eternal damnation, while even Walther might be involved in
their ruin. "Shall I make him happy in this world only that he may lose
his soul in the next?" she argued; while again and again her father
reminded her that a promise to God was of more moment than a promise
to man, and he implored her to hasten to the nearest convent and retire
behind its walls. Still she wavered, however, and still her father
pleaded with her, sometimes actually threatening to exert his parental
authority. One evening, driven to despair, Minna sought to cool her
throbbing pulses by a walk on the wind-swept heights overlooking the
Rhine at Ruedesheim. Possibly she would be able to come to a decision
there, she thought; but no! she could not bring herself to renounce her
lover, and with a cry of despair she flung herself over the steep rocks
into the swirling stream.

A hideous death it was. The maiden was immolated on the altar of
superstition, and the people of Ruedesheim were awestruck as they thought
of the pathetic form drifting down the river. Nor did posterity fail
to remember the story, and down to recent times the boatmen of the
neighbourhood, when seeing the Rhine wax stormy at the place where Minna
was drowned, were wont to whisper that her soul was walking abroad, and
that the maiden was once again wrestling with the conflicting emotions
which had broken her heart long ago.

Gisela

Knight Broemser of Ruedesheim was one of those who renounced comfort and
home ties to throw in his lot with the Crusaders. He was a widower, and
possessed a beautiful daughter, Gisela. In the holy wars in Palestine
Broemser soon became distinguished for his bravery, and enterprises
requiring wit and prowess often were entrusted to him.

Now it befell that the Christian camp was thrown into consternation
by the appearance of a huge dragon which took up its abode in the
mountainous country, the only locality whence water could be procured,
and the increasing scarcity of the supply necessitated the extirpation
of the monster. The Crusaders were powerless through fear; many of them
regarded the dragon as a punishment sent from Heaven because of the
discord and rivalry which divided them.

At last the brave Broemser offered to attempt the dragon's destruction,
and after a valiant struggle he succeeded in slaying it. On his way back
to the camp he was surprised by a party of Saracens, and after various
hardships was cast into a dungeon. Here he remained i