he maiden, foul caitiff! Give place, I
say, and let the princess go! What, wilt thou face me, vile robber?
Have at thee, then, and take the wages of thy villainy." As he uttered
the last words he aimed a tremendous thrust at his visionary opponent
and narrowly escaped transfixing the comely person of a young lady who
at this very moment entered the room, with signs of haste and alarm.
Behind her, in the dimly-lighted passage, appeared the portly figure of
an elderly dame, who was proclaimed, by the bunch of keys which hung at
her girdle, to be the gentleman's housekeeper.

"Dear uncle, what ails thee?" said the young lady, gazing with pity and
wonder at the poor distracted man, who stood arrested in his last
attitude, with rolling eyes and hair in wild disorder, while great beads
of sweat poured down his face. But he, whose mind was still soaring in
the regions of high romance, at once converted his niece into a rescued
princess, saved from violence by his prowess; and, lowering his blade
and dropping gracefully on one knee, he raised her hand to his lips and
said: "Fear nothing, gentle lady! There lies thine enemy in his gore";
and he pointed to a table which had been overset in one of his wild
rushes, carrying with it an inkstand, the contents of which were now
trickling in a black stream across the uncarpeted boards.

His niece was accustomed to the strange fits of her eccentric relative,
and, humoring his fancy, she answered: "Thou hast done well, and I thank
thee. But sit down now and rest awhile after thy toils; and I will bring
thee something to drink." With that she led him to a couch and left the
room, taking the housekeeper with her. In a few moments she returned,
bearing a great pitcher of cold water.

"'Tis a most rare elixir," said he, after taking a deep draught,
"prepared by the great enchanter Alquife, and of a magic potency." Then,
being exhausted by his violent exertions of body and mind he stretched
himself on the couch and soon sank into a quiet sleep.

II. PREPARING FOR THE QUEST

The extraordinary scene which has just been described was only one among
many which had occurred during several months, down to the time when our
story begins; and we must now go back a little and give some account of
our hero's habits and studies, which ended by bringing him to so
desperate a state. At that time by far the most popular form of light
literature was the Romances of Chivalry,--huge interminable fiction