g himself in the least, he walked away with the
young tree, roots and all.

Having shaken off the earth roughly, he pulled out a sheath-knife and
trimmed the branches till he had made him a kind of club, with which he
threatened me, saying, "If I catch that young man at any tricks, with
this club will Jan Lubber Fiend break every bone in his skin, like the
shells of so many broken eggs."

Then laughing a little, and seeing that nothing could be made of the
fellow, the Lady Ysolinde rode on and we followed her. We thought that
surely there would be no difficulty in shaking him off long ere we
reached our lodging-place of the evening, and that he would find his way
back to the city of Thorn.

But even though we set our horses to their speed, it seemed to make no
difference to the unwieldy giant. He merely stretched his legs a little
farther, and caused his great gaskined feet to pass each other as fast as
if they had been shod with seven-league boots. So he not only kept up
with us easily, but oftentimes made a detour through the fields and over
the wild country on either side, as a questing dog does, ever returning
to us with some quaint vagrant fancy or quip of childish simplicity.

But what pleased me better than the appearance of the Lubber Fiend was
that ere we had gone quite two miles out of the city we found two
well-armed and stanch-looking soldiers waiting for us at a kind of
cross-road. They were armed with the curious powder-guns which were
coming into fashion from France. These went off with a noble report, and
killed sometimes at as much as fifteen or twenty paces when the aim was
good. The fellows had swords also, and little polished shields on their
left arms--altogether worthy and notable body-guards.

"These two are soldiers of the Guard from Plassenburg," said the Lady
Ysolinde, "though now they are travelling as members of a Free Company
desiring to enter upon new engagements. But they will make the way easier
and pleasanter for us, as well as infinitely safer, being veterans well
accustomed to the work of quartering and foraging."

As indeed we were to find ere the day ended.

So we rode on in the brilliant light, and the long, long day seemed all
too brief to us who were young, and scarce delivered from the
prison-house of Thorn. And to my shame I admit that my heart rose with
every mile that I put between me and the Red Tower.

Indeed, I hardly had a thought to spend on my father. The hot qua