the first
army of Marsilius already forming in the passes. "O devil Gan," he
exclaimed, "this then is the consummation of thy labors!" Oliver put
spurs to his horse, and galloped back down the mountain to Orlando.

"Well," cried the hero, "what news?"

"Bad news," said his cousin, "such as you would not hear of yesterday.
Marsilius is here in arms, and all the world is with him."

The paladins pressed round Orlando, and entreated him to sound his
horn, in token that he needed help. His only answer was to mount his
horse, and ride up the mountain with Sansonetto.

As soon, however, as he cast forth his eyes, and beheld what was round
about him, he turned in sorrow, and looked down into Roncesvalles, and
said, "O miserable valley! the blood shed in thee this day will color
thy name forever."

Orlando's little camp were furious against the Saracens. They armed
themselves with the greatest impatience. There was nothing but lacing
of helmets and mounting of horses, while good Archbishop Turpin went
from rank to rank exhorting and encouraging the warriors of Christ.
Orlando and his captains withdrew for a moment to consultation. He
fairly groaned for sorrow, and at first had not a word to say, so
wretched he felt at having brought his people to die in Roncesvalles.
Then he said: "If it had entered into my heart to conceive the king of
Spain to be such a villain never would you have seen this day. He has
exchanged with me a thousand courtesies and good words; and I thought
that the worse enemies we had been before, the better friends we had
become now. I fancied every human being capable of this kind of virtue
on a good opportunity, saving, indeed, such base-hearted wretches as
can never forgive their very forgivers; and of these I did not suppose
him to be one. Let us die, if die we must, like honest and gallant men,
so that it shall be said of us it was only our bodies that died. The
reason why I did not sound the horn was partly because I thought it did
not become us, and partly because our liege lord could hardly save us,
even if he heard it." And with these words Orlando sprang to his horse,
crying, "Aways against the Saracens!" But he had no sooner turned his
face than he wept bitterly, and said, "O Holy Virgin, think not of me,
the sinner Orlando, but have pity on these thy servants!"

And now with a mighty dust, and an infinite sound of horns and
tambours, which came filling the valley, the first army of the infi