<h2><SPAN name="CHAPTER_III" id="CHAPTER_III"></SPAN>CHAPTER III.</h2>
<h3>COUNT ANTONIO AND THE PRINCE OF MANTIVOGLIA.</h3>
<p>I know of naught by which a man may better be judged than by his bearing
in matters of love. What know I of love, say you—I, whose head is grey,
and shaven to boot? True, it is grey, and it is shaven. But once it was
brown, and the tonsure came not there till I had lived thirty years and
borne arms for twelve. Then came death to one I loved, and the tonsure
to me. Therefore, O ye proud young men and laughing girls, old Ambrose
knows of love, though his knowledge be only like the memory that a man
has of a glorious red-gold sunset which his eyes saw a year ago: cold
are the tints, gone the richness, sober and faint the picture. Yet it is
something; he sees no more, but he has seen; and sometimes still I seem
to see a face that last I saw smiling in death. They tell me such
thoughts are not fitting in me, but I doubt their doing a man much harm;
for they make him take joy when others reap the happiness that he,
forestalled by fate's sickle, could not garner. But enough! It is of
Count Antonio I would write, and not of my poor self. And the story may
be worth the reading—or would be, had I more skill to pen it.</p>
<p>Now in the summer of the second year of Count Antonio's banishment, when
the fierce anger of Duke Valentine was yet hot for the presumption shown
by the Count in the matter of Duke Paul's death, a messenger came
privily to where the band lay hidden in the hills, bringing greeting to
Antonio from the Prince of Mantivoglia, between whom and the Duke there
was great enmity. For in days gone by Firmola had paid tribute to
Mantivoglia, and this burden had been broken off only some thirty years;
and the Prince, learning that Antonio was at variance with Duke
Valentine, perceived an opportunity, and sent to Antonio, praying him
very courteously to visit Mantivoglia and be his guest. Antonio, who
knew the Prince well, sent him thanks, and, having made dispositions for
the safety of his company and set Tommasino in charge of it, himself
rode with the man they called Bena, and, having crossed the frontier,
came on the second day to Mantivoglia. Here he was received with great
state, and all in the city were eager to see him, having heard how he
had dealt with Duke Paul and how he now renounced the authority of
Valentine. And the Prince lodged him in his palace, and prepared a
banquet for him, and set him on the right hand of the Princess, who was
a very fair lady, learned, and of excellent wit; indeed, I have by me
certain stories which she composed, and would read on summer evenings in
the garden; and it may be that, if I live, I will make known certain of
them. Others there are that only the discreet should read; for what to
one age is but mirth turns in the mind of the next to unseemliness and
ribaldry. This Princess, then, was very gracious to the Count, and
spared no effort to give him pleasure; and she asked him very many
things concerning the Lady Lucia, saying at last, "Is she fairer than
I, my lord?" But Antonio answered, with a laugh, "The moon is not fairer
than the sun, nor the sun than the moon: yet they are different." And
the Princess laughed also, saying merrily, "Well parried, my lord!" And
she rose and went with the Prince and Antonio into the garden. Then the
Prince opened to Antonio what was in his mind, saying, "Take what
command you will in my service, and come with me against Firmola; and
when we have brought Valentine to his knees, I will take what was my
father's, and should be mine: and you shall wring from him your pardon
and the hand of your lady." And the Princess also entreated him. But
Antonio answered, "I cannot do it. If Your Highness rides to Firmola, it
is likely enough that I also may ride thither; but I shall ride to put
my sword at the service of the Duke. For, although he is not my friend,
yet his enemies are mine." And from this they could not turn him. Then
the Prince praised him, saying, "I love you more for denying me,
Antonio; and when I send word of my coming to Valentine, I will tell
him also of what you have done. And if we meet by the walls of Firmola,
we will fight like men; and, after that, you shall come again to
Mantivoglia;" and he drank wine with Antonio, and so bade him God-speed.
And the Princess, when her husband was gone, looked at the Count and
said, "Valentine will not give her to you. Why will not you take her?"</p>
<p>But Antonio answered: "The price is too high."</p>
<p>"I would not have a man who thought any price too high," cried the
Princess.</p>
<p>"Then your Highness would mate with a rogue?" asked Count Antonio,
smiling.</p>
<p>"If he were one for my sake only," said she, fixing her eyes on his face
and sighing lightly, as ladies sigh when they would tell something, and
yet not too much nor in words that can be repeated. But Antonio kissed
her hand, and took leave of her; and with another sigh she watched him
go.</p>
<p>But when the middle of the next month came, the Prince of Mantivoglia
gathered an army of three thousand men, of whom seventeen hundred were
mounted, and crossed the frontier, directing his march towards Firmola
by way of the base of Mount Agnino and the road to the village of
Rilano. The Duke, hearing of his approach, mustered his Guards to the
number of eight hundred and fifty men, and armed besides hard upon two
thousand of the townsmen and apprentices, taking an oath of them that
they would serve him loyally; for he feared and distrusted them; and of
the whole force, eleven hundred had horses. But Count Antonio lay still
in the mountains, and did not offer to come to the Duke's aid.</p>
<p>"Will you not pray his leave to come and fight for him?" asked
Tommasino.</p>
<p>"He will love to beat the Prince without my aid, if he can," said
Antonio. "Heaven forbid that I should seem to snatch at glory, and make
a chance for myself from his necessity."</p>
<p>So he abode two days where he was; and then there came a shepherd, who
said, "My lord, the Duke has marched out of the city and lay last night
at Rilano, and is to-day stretched across the road that leads from the
spurs of Agnino to Rilano, his right wing resting on the river. There
he waits the approach of the Prince; and they say that at daybreak
to-morrow the Prince will attack."</p>
<p>Then Antonio rose, saying, "What of the night?"</p>
<p>Now the night was very dark, and the fog hung like a grey cloak over the
plain. And Antonio collected all his men to the number of threescore and
five, all well-armed and well-horsed; and he bade them march very
silently and with great caution, and led them down into the plain. And
all the night they rode softly, husbanding their strength and sparing
their horses; and an hour before the break of day they passed through
the outskirts of Rilano and halted a mile beyond the village, seeing the
fires of the Duke's bivouacs stretched across the road in front of them;
and beyond there were other fires where the Prince of Mantivoglia lay
encamped. And Bena said, "The Prince will be too strong for the Duke, my
lord."</p>
<p>"If he be, we also shall fight to-morrow, Bena," answered Antonio.</p>
<p>"I trust, then, that they prove at least well matched," said Bena; for
he loved to fight, and yet was ashamed to wish that the Duke should be
defeated.</p>
<p>Then Count Antonio took counsel with Tommasino; and they led the band
very secretly across the rear of the Duke's camp till they came to the
river. There was a mill on the river, and by the mill a great covered
barn where the sacks of grain stood; and Antonio, having roused the
miller, told him that he came to aid the Duke, and not to fight against
him, and posted his men in this great barn; so that they were behind the
right wing of the Duke's army, and were hidden from sight. Day was
dawning now: the campfires paled in the growing light, and the sounds of
preparation were heard from the camp. And from the Prince's quarters
also came the noise of trumpets calling the men to arms.</p>
<p>At four in the morning the battle was joined, Antonio standing with
Tommasino and watching from the mill. Now Duke Valentine had placed his
own guards on either wing, and the townsmen in the centre; but the
Prince had posted the flower of his troops in the centre; and he rode
there himself, surrounded by many lords and gentlemen; and with great
valour and impetuosity he flung himself against the townsmen, recking
little of how he fared on either wing. This careless haste did not pass
unnoticed by the Duke, who was a cool man and wore a good head; and he
said to Lorenzo, one of his lords who was with him, "If we win on right
and left, it will not hurt us to lose in the middle;" and he would not
strengthen the townsmen against the Prince, but rather drew off more of
them, and chiefly the stoutest and best equipped, whom he divided
between the right wing where he himself commanded, and the left which
Lorenzo led. Nay, men declare that he was not ill pleased to see the
brunt of the strife and the heaviest loss fall on the apprentices and
townsmen. For a while indeed these stood bravely; but the Prince's
chivalry came at them in fierce pride and gallant scorn, and bore them
down with the weight of armour and horses, the Prince himself leading on
a white charger and with his own hand slaying Glinka, who was head of
the city-bands and a great champion among them. But Duke Valentine and
Lorenzo upheld the battle on the wings, and pressed back the enemy
there; and the Duke would not send aid to the townsmen in the centre,
saying "I shall be ready for the Prince as soon as the Prince is ready
for me, and I can spare some of those turbulent apprentices." And he
smiled his crafty smile, adding, "From enemies also a wise man may suck
good;" and he pressed forward on the right fighting more fiercely than
was his custom. But when Antonio beheld the townsmen hard pressed and
being ridden down by the Prince of Mantivoglia's knights and saw that
the Duke would not aid them, he grew very hot and angry, and said to
Tommasino, "These men have loved my house, Tommasino. It may be that I
spoil His Highness's plan, but are we to stand here while they perish?"</p>
<p>"A fig for His Highness's plan!" said Tommasino; and Bena gave a cry of
joy and sprang, unbidden, on his horse.</p>
<p>"Since you are up, Bena," said the Count, "stay up, and let the others
mount. The Duke's plan, if I read it aright, is craftier than I love,
and I do not choose to understand it."</p>
<p>Then, when the townsmen's line was giving way before the Prince, and the
apprentices, conceiving themselves to be shamefully deserted, were more
of a mind to run away than to fight any more, suddenly Antonio rode
forth from the mill. He and his company came at full gallop; but he
himself was ten yards ahead of Bena and Tommasino, for all that they
raced after him. And he cried aloud, "To me, men of Firmola, to me,
Antonio of Monte Velluto!" and they beheld him with utter astonishment
and great joy. For his helmet was fallen from his head, and his fair
hair gleamed in the sun, and the light of battle played on his face. And
the band followed him, and, though they had for the most part no armour,
yet such was the fury of their rush, and such the mettle and strength of
their horses, that they made light of meeting the Prince's knights in
full tilt. And the townsmen cried, "It is the Count! To death after the
Count!" And Antonio raised the great sword that he carried, and rode at
the Marshal of the Prince's palace, who was in the van of the fight,
and he split helmet and head with a blow. Then he came to where the
Prince himself was, and the great sword was raised again, and the Prince
rode to meet him, saying, "If I do not die now, I shall not die to-day."
But when Antonio saw the Prince, he brought his sword to his side and
bowed and turned aside, and engaged the most skilful of the Mantivoglian
knights. And he fought that day like a man mad; but he would not strike
the Prince of Mantivoglia. And after a while the Prince ceased to seek
him; and a flatterer said to the Prince, "He is bold against us, but he
fears you, my lord." But the Prince said, "Peace, fool. Go and fight."
For he knew that not fear, but friendship, forbade Antonio to assail
him.</p>
<p>Yet by now the rout of the townsmen was stayed and they were holding
their own again in good heart and courage, while both on the right and
on the left the Duke pressed on and held the advantage. Then the Prince
of Mantivoglia perceived that he was in a dangerous plight, for he was
in peril of being worsted along his whole line; for his knights did no
more than hold a doubtful balance against the townsmen and Antonio's
company, while the Duke and Lorenzo were victorious on either wing; and
he knew that if the Duke got in rear of him and lay between him and
Mount Agnino, he would be sore put to it to find a means of retreat.
Therefore he left the centre and rode to the left of his line and
himself faced Duke Valentine. Yet slowly was he driven back, and he gave
way sullenly, obstinately, and in good order, himself performing many
gallant deeds, and seeking to come to a conflict with the Duke. But the
Duke, seeing that the day was likely to be his, would not meet him and
chose to expose his person to no more danger: "For," he said, "a soldier
who is killed is a good soldier; but a chief who is killed save for some
great object is a bad chief." And he bided his time and slowly pressed
the Prince back, seeking rather to win the battle than the praise of
bravery. But when Count Antonio saw that all went well, and that the
enemy were in retreat, he halted his band; and at this they murmured,
Bena daring to say, "My lord, we have had dinner, and may we not have
supper also?" Antonio smiled at Bena, but would not listen.</p>
<p>"No," said he. "His Highness has won the victory by his skill and
cunning. I did but move to save my friends. It is enough. Shall I seek
to rob him of his glory? For the ignorant folk, counting the arm more
honourable than the head, will give me more glory than him if I continue
in the fight." And thus, not being willing to force his aid on a man who
hated to receive it, he drew off his band. Awhile he waited; but when he
saw that the Prince was surely beaten, and that the Duke held victory in
his hand, he gave the word that they should return by the way they had
come.</p>
<p>"Indeed," said Tommasino, laughing, "it may be wisdom as well as good
manners, cousin. For I would not trust myself to Valentine if he be
victorious, for all the service which we have done him in saving the
apprentices he loves so well."</p>
<p>So Antonio's band turned and rode off from the field, and they passed
through Rilano. But they found the village desolate; for report had
come from the field that the Duke's line was broken, and that in a short
space the Prince of Mantivoglia would advance in triumph, and having
sacked Rilano, would go against Firmola, where there were but a few old
men and boys left to guard the walls against him. And one peasant, whom
they found hiding in the wood by the road, said there was panic in the
city, and that many were escaping from it before the enemy should
appear.</p>
<p>"It is months since I saw Firmola," said Antonio with a smile. "Let us
ride there and reassure these timid folk. For my lord the Duke has
surely by now won the victory, and he will pursue the Prince till he
yields peace and abandons the tribute."</p>
<p>Now a great excitement rose in the band at these words; for although
they had lost ten men in the battle and five more were disabled, yet
they were fifty stout and ready; and it was not likely that there was
any force in Firmola that could oppose them. And Martolo, who rode with
Tommasino, whispered to him, "My lord, my lord, shall we carry off the
Lady Lucia before His Highness can return?"</p>
<p>Tommasino glanced at Antonio. "Nay, I know not what my cousin purposes,"
said he.</p>
<p>Then Antonio bade Bena and Martolo ride on ahead, taking the best
horses, and tell the people at Firmola that victory was with the Duke,
and that His Highness's servant, Antonio of Monte Velluto, was at hand
to protect the city till His Highness should return in triumph. And the
two, going ahead while the rest of the band took their mid-day meal, met
many ladies and certain rich merchants and old men escaping from the
city, and turned them back, saying that all was well; and the ladies
would fain have gone on and met Antonio; but the merchants, hearing that
he was there, made haste to get within the walls again, fearing that he
would levy a toll on them for the poor, as his custom was. At this Bena
laughed mightily, and drew rein, saying, "These rabbits will run quicker
back to their burrow than we could ride, Martolo. Let us rest awhile
under a tree; I have a flask of wine in my saddle-bag." So they rested;
and while they rested, they saw what amazed them; for a lady rode alone
towards them on a palfrey, and though the merchants met her and spoke
with her, yet she rode on. And when she came to the tree where Bena and
Martolo were, they sprang up and bared their heads; for she was the Lady
Lucia; and her face was full of fear and eagerness as she said, "No
guard is kept to-day, even on helpless ladies. Is it true that my lord
is near?"</p>
<p>"Yes, he is near," said Bena, kissing her hand. "See, there is the dust
of his company on the road."</p>
<p>"Go, one of you, and say that I wait for him," she commanded; so Martolo
rode on to carry the news farther, and Bena went to Antonio and said,
"Heaven, my lord, sends fortune. The Lady Lucia has escaped from the
city, and awaits you under yonder tree."</p>
<p>And when Tommasino heard this, he put out his hand suddenly and caught
Antonio's hand and pressed it, saying, "Go alone, and bring her here: we
will wait: the Duke will not be here for many hours yet."</p>
<p>Then Antonio rode alone to the tree where Lucia was; and because he had
not seen her for many months, he leapt down from his horse and came
running to her, and, kneeling, kissed her hand; but she, who stood now
by her palfrey's side, flung her arms about his neck and fell with tears
and laughter into his arms, saying, "Antonio, Antonio! Heaven is with
us, Antonio."</p>
<p>"Yes," said he. "For His Highness has won the day."</p>
<p>"Have not we won the day also?" said she, reaching up and laying her
hands on his shoulders.</p>
<p>"Heart of my heart," said he softly, as he looked in her eyes.</p>
<p>"The cage is opened, and, Antonio, the bird is free," she whispered, and
her eyes danced and her cheek went red. "Lift me to my saddle, Antonio."</p>
<p>The Count obeyed her, and himself mounted; and she said, "We can reach
the frontier in three hours, and there—there, Antonio, none fears the
Duke's wrath." And Antonio knew what she would say, save that she would
not speak it bluntly—that there they could find a priest to marry
them. And his face was pale as he smiled at her. Then he laid his hand
on her bridle and turned her palfrey's head towards Firmola. Her eyes
darted a swift question at him, and she cried low, "Thither, Antonio?"</p>
<p>Then he answered her, bending still his look on her, "Alas, I am no
learned man, nor a doctor skilled in matters of casuistry and nice
distinctions. I can but do what the blood that is in me tells me a
gentleman should do. To-day, sweetheart—ah, will you not hide your face
from me, sweetheart, that my words may not die in my mouth?—to-day our
lord the Duke fights against the enemies of our city, holding for us in
hard battle the liberty that we have won, and bearing the banner of
Firmola high to heaven in victory."</p>
<p>She listened with strained frightened face; and the horses moved at a
walk towards Firmola. And she laid her hand on his arm, saying again,
"Antonio!"</p>
<p>"And I have fought with my lord to-day, and I would be at his side now,
except that I do his pleasure better by leaving him to triumph alone.
But my hand has been with him to-day, and my heart is with him to-day.
Tell me, sweetheart, if I rode forth to war and left you alone, would
you do aught against me till I returned?"</p>
<p>She did not answer him.</p>
<p>"A Prince's city," said he, "should be as his faithful wife; and when he
goes to meet the enemy, none at home should raise a hand against him;
above all may not one who has fought by his side. For to stand side by
side in battle is a promise and a compact between man and man, even as
though man swore to man on a holy relic."</p>
<p>Then she understood what he would say, and she looked away from him
across the plain; and a tear rolled down her cheek as she said, "Indeed,
my lord, the error lies in my thoughts; for I fancied that your love was
mine."</p>
<p>Antonio leant from his saddle and lightly touched her hair. "Was that
indeed your fancy?" said he. "And I prove it untrue?"</p>
<p>"You carry me back to my prison," she said. "And you will ride away."</p>
<p>"And so I love you not?" he asked.</p>
<p>"No, you love me not," said she; and her voice caught in a sob.</p>
<p>"See," said he; "we draw near to Firmola, and the city gates are open;
and, look, they raise a flag on the Duke's palace; and there is joy for
the victory that Martolo has told them of. And in all the Duchy there
are but two black hearts that burn with treacherous thoughts against His
Highness, setting their own infinite joy above the honour and faith they
owe him."</p>
<p>"Nay, but are there two?" she asked, turning her face from him.</p>
<p>"In truth I would love to think there was but one," said he. "And that
one beats in me, sweetheart, and so mightily, that I think it will burst
the walls of my body, and I shall die."</p>
<p>"Yet we ride to Firmola," said she.</p>
<p>"Yet, by Christ's grace," said Count Antonio, "we ride to Firmola."</p>
<p>Then the Lady Lucia suddenly dropped her bridle on the neck of her
palfrey and caught Antonio's right hand in her two hands and said to
him, "When I pray to-night, I will pray for the cleansing of the black
heart, Antonio. And I will make a wreath and carry it to the Duke and
kiss his hand for his victory. And I will set lights in my window and
flags on my house; and I will give my people a feast; and I will sing
and laugh for the triumph of the city and for the freedom this day has
won for us: and when I have done all this, what may I do then, Antonio?"</p>
<p>"I am so cruel," said he, "that then I would have you weep a little: yet
spoil not the loveliest eyes in all the world; for if you dim them, it
may be that they will not shine like stars across the plain and even
into the hut where I live among the hills."</p>
<p>"Do they shine bright, Antonio?"</p>
<p>"As the gems on the Gates of Heaven," he answered; and he reined in his
horse and gave her bridle into her hands. And then for many minutes
neither spoke; and Count Antonio kissed her lips, and she his; and they
promised with the eyes what they needed not to promise with the tongue.
And the Lady Lucia went alone on her way to Firmola. But the Count sat
still like a statue of marble on his horse, and watched her as she rode.
And there he stayed till the gates of the city received her and the
walls hid her from his sight; and the old men on the walls saw him and
knew him, and asked, "Does he come against us? But it was against the
Prince of Mantivoglia that we swore to fight." And they watched him till
he turned and rode at a foot's pace away from the city. And now as he
rode his brow was smooth and calm and there was a smile on his lips.</p>
<p>But when Antonio had ridden two or three miles and came where he had
left the band, he could see none of them. And a peasant came running to
him in great fright and said, "My lord, your men are gone again to aid
the Duke; for the Prince has done great deeds, and turned the fight, and
it is again very doubtful: and my lord Tommasino bade me say that he
knew your mind, and was gone to fight for Firmola."</p>
<p>Then Antonio, wondering greatly at the news, set his horse to a gallop
and passed through Rilano at furious speed, and rode on towards Agnino;
and it was now afternoon. Presently he saw the armies, but they seemed
to lie idle, over against one another. And, riding on, he met Bena, who
was come to seek him. And Bena said, "The Prince and his knights have
fought like devils, my lord, and the townsmen grew fearful again when
you were gone; and we, coming back, have fought again. But now a truce
has sounded, and the Prince and the Duke are meeting in conference
between the armies. Yet they say that no peace will be made; for the
Prince, taking heart from his sudden success, though he is willing to
abandon the tribute, asks something in return which the Duke will not
grant. Yet perhaps he has granted it by now, for his men are weary."</p>
<p>"He should grant nothing," cried Antonio, and galloped on again. But
Bena said to himself with an oath, "He has sent back the lady! The
saints save us!" and followed Antonio with a laugh on his face.</p>
<p>But Antonio, thinking nothing of his own safety, rode full into the
ranks of the Duke's Guard, saying, "Where does my lord talk with the
Prince?" And they showed him where the place was; for the Prince and
the Duke sat alone under a tree between the two arrays. And the Duke
looked harsh and resolute, while the Prince was very courteously
entreating him.</p>
<p>"Indeed," said he, "so doubtful has the day been, my lord, that I might
well refuse to abandon the tribute, and try again to-morrow the issue of
the fight. But, since so many brave men have fallen on both sides, I am
willing to abandon it, asking of you only such favour as would be
conceded to a simple gentleman asking of his friend. And yet you will
not grant it me, and thus bring peace between us and our peoples."</p>
<p>Duke Valentine frowned and bit his lip; and the Prince rose from where
he had been seated, and lifted his hand to the sky, and said, "So be it,
my lord; on your head lies the blame. For to-morrow I will attack again;
and, as God lives, I will not rest till the neck of the city of Firmola
is under my foot, or my head rolls from my shoulders by your sword."</p>
<p>Then Duke Valentine paced up and down, pondering deeply. For he was a
man that hated to yield aught, and beyond all else hated what the
Prince of Mantivoglia asked of him. Yet he feared greatly to refuse; for
the townsmen had no stomach for another fight and had threatened to
march home if he would not make peace with the Prince. Therefore he
turned to the Prince, and, frowning heavily, was about to say, "Since it
must be so, so let it be," when suddenly the Count Antonio rode up and
leapt from his horse, crying, "Yield nothing, my lord, yield nothing!
For if you will tell me what to do, and suffer me to be your hand, we
will drive the enemy over our borders with great loss."</p>
<p>Then the Prince of Mantivoglia fell to laughing, and he came to Antonio
and put his arm about his neck, saying, "Peace, peace, thou foolish
man!"</p>
<p>Antonio saluted him with all deference, but he answered, "I must give
good counsel to my lord the Duke." And he turned to the Duke again,
saying, "Yield nothing to the Prince, my lord."</p>
<p>Duke Valentine's lips curved in his slow smile as he looked at Antonio.
"Is that indeed your counsel? And will you swear, Antonio, to give me
your aid against the Prince so long as the war lasts, if I follow it?"</p>
<p>"Truly, I swear it," cried Antonio. "Yet what need is there of an oath?
Am I not Your Highness's servant, bound to obey without an oath?"</p>
<p>"Nay, but you do not tell him——" began the Prince angrily.</p>
<p>Duke Valentine smiled again; he was ever desirous to make a show of
fairness where he risked nothing by it; and he gazed a moment on
Antonio's face; then he answered to the Prince of Mantivoglia, "I know
the man, my lord. I know him in his strength and in his folly. Do not we
know one another, Antonio?"</p>
<p>"Indeed, I know not all your Highness's mind," answered Antonio.</p>
<p>"Well, I will tell him," said Duke Valentine. "This Prince, Antonio, has
consented to a peace, and to abandon all claim to tribute from our city,
on one condition; which is, that I, the Duke, shall do at his demand
what of my own free and sovereign will I would not do."</p>
<p>"His demand is not fitting nor warranted by his power," said Antonio;
but in spite of his words the Prince of Mantivoglia passed his arm
through his, and laughed ruefully, whispering, "Peace, man, peace."</p>
<p>"And thus I, the Duke, having bowed my will to his, shall return to
Firmola, not beaten indeed, yet half-beaten and cowed by the power of
Mantivoglia."</p>
<p>"It shall not be, my lord," cried Count Antonio.</p>
<p>"Yet, my lord Duke, you do not tell him what the condition is," said the
Prince.</p>
<p>"Why, it is nothing else than that I should pardon you, and suffer you
to wed the Lady Lucia," said Duke Valentine.</p>
<p>Then Count Antonio loosed himself from the arm of the Prince and bent
and kissed the Prince's hand; but he said, "Is this thing to come twice
on a man in one day? For it is but an hour or less that I parted from
the lady of whom you speak; and if her eyes could not move me, what else
shall move me?" And he told them briefly of his meeting with the Lady
Lucia. But Duke Valentine was wroth with the shame that a generous act
rouses in a heart that knows no generosity; and the Prince was yet more
wroth, and he said to Duke Valentine, "Were there any honour in you, my
lord, you would not need my prayers to pardon him."</p>
<p>At this the Duke's face grew very dark; and he cried angrily, "Get back
to your own line, my lord, or the truce shall not save you." And he
turned to Antonio and said, "Three hours do I give you to get hence,
before I pursue."</p>
<p>Antonio bowed low to him and to the Prince; and they three parted, the
two princes in bitter wrath, and set again on fighting to the end, the
one because he was ashamed and yet obstinate, the other for scorn of a
rancour that found no place in himself. But Count Antonio went back to
his company and drew it some little way off from both armies; and he
said to Tommasino, "The truce is ended, and they will fight again so
soon as the men have had some rest;" and he told Tommasino what had
passed. Then he sat silent again; but presently he laid hold of his
cousin's arm, saying, "Look you, Tommasino, princes are sometimes fools;
and hence come trouble and death to honest humble folk. It is a sore
business that they fight again to-morrow, and not now for any great
matter, but because they are bitter against one another on my account.
Cannot I stop them, Tommasino?"</p>
<p>"Aye, if you have five thousand men and not thirty-five—for that is the
sum of us now, counting Martolo, who is back from Firmola."</p>
<p>Antonio looked thoughtfully through the dusk of evening which now fell.
"They will not fight to-night," he said. "I am weary of this
blood-letting." And Tommasino saw that there was something in his mind.</p>
<p>Now the night fell dark again and foggy, even as the night before; and
none in either army dared to move, and even the sentries could see no
more than a few yards before them. But Antonio's men being accustomed to
ride in the dark, and to find their way through mists both in plain and
hill, could see more clearly; and Antonio divided them into two parties,
himself leading one, and giving the other into Tommasino's charge.
Having very securely tethered their horses, they set forth, crawling on
their bellies through the grass. Antonio with his party made for the
camp of the Prince, while Tommasino and his party directed their way
towards the Duke's bivouacs. And they saw the fires very dimly through
the mist, and both parties passed the sentries unobserved, and made
their way to the centre of the camps. Then, on the stroke of midnight, a
strange stir arose in both the camps. Nothing could be seen by reason of
the darkness and the mist; but suddenly cries arose, and men ran to and
fro; and a cry went up from the Duke's camp, "They are behind us! They
are behind us! We are surrounded!" And in the Prince's camp also was
great fear; for from behind them, towards where the spurs of Mount
Agnino began, there came shouts of "At them, at them! Charge!" And the
Prince's officers, perceiving the cries to be from men of Firmola (and
this they knew by reason of certain differences in the phrasing of
words), conceived that the Duke had got behind them, and was lying
across their way of retreat.</p>
<p>Then the Duke, hearing the shouts in his own camp, ran out from his
tent; and he was met by hundreds of the townsmen, who cried, "My lord,
we are surrounded!" For Antonio's men had gone to the townsmen and shewn
them how they might escape more fighting; and the townsmen were nothing
loth; and they insisted with the Duke that a body of men on horseback
had passed behind them. So the Duke sent out scouts, who could see
nothing of the horsemen. But then the townsmen cried, some being in the
secret, others not, "Then they have ridden past us, and are making for
Firmola. And they will do Heaven knows what there. Lead us after them,
my lord!" And the Duke was very angry; but he was also greatly afraid,
for he perceived that there was a stir in the Prince's camp also, and
heard shouts from there, but could not distinguish what was said. And
while he considered what to do, the townsmen formed their ranks and sent
him word that they were for Firmola; and when he threatened them with
his Guard, they rejoined that one death was as good as another; and the
Duke gnawed his nails and went pale with rage. But Count Antonio's men,
seeing how well the plan had sped, crept again out from the camp, and
returned to where they had tethered their horses, and mounted, each
taking a spare horse. And before they had been there long, they heard
trumpets sound in the Duke's camp, and the camp was struck, and the Duke
and all his force began to retreat on Rilano, throwing out many scouts,
and moving very cautiously in the darkness and mist. Yet when they came
on nobody, they marched more quickly, even the Duke himself now
believing that the Prince of Mantivoglia had of a purpose allowed the
stir in his camp to be seen and heard, in order that he might detach a
column to Firmola unobserved, and attack the city before the Duke came
up. Therefore he now pressed on, saying, "I doubt not that the Prince
himself is with the troop that has gone to Firmola." And all night long
they marched across the plain, covering a space of eighteen miles; and
just before the break of day they came to the city.</p>
<p>Thus did it fall out with the army of Duke Valentine. But the Prince of
Mantivoglia had been no less bewildered; for when he sent out men to see
what the cries behind the camp meant, he found no man; but he still
heard scattered cries among the rising ground, where the hills began.
And he in his turn saw a stir in the camp opposite to him. And, being an
impetuous Prince, as he had shown both in evil and in good that day, he
snatched up his sword, swearing that he would find the truth of the
matter, and bidding his officers wait his return and not be drawn from
their position before he came again to them; and taking some of his
younger knights and a few more, he passed out of his camp, and paused
for a moment, bidding those with him spread themselves out in a thin
line, in order the better to reconnoitre, and that, if some fell into an
ambuscade, others might survive to carry the news back to the camp. And
he, having given his order, himself stood resting on his sword. But in
an instant, before he could so much as lift the point of his sword from
the ground, silent blurred shapes came from the mist, and were in front
and behind and round him; and they looked so strange that he raised his
hand to cross himself; but then a scarf was thrown over his mouth, and
he was seized by eight strong hands and held so that he could not
struggle; and neither could he cry out by reason of the scarf across his
mouth. And they that held him began to run rapidly; and he was carried
out of the camp without the knowledge of any of those who were with him,
and they, missing their leader, fell presently into a great
consternation, and ran to and from in the gloom crying, "The Prince?
Have you seen the Prince? Is His Highness with you? In God's name, has
the Prince been this way?" But they did not find him, and they grew more
confounded, stumbling against one another and being much afraid. And
when the Prince was nowhere to be found, they lost heart, and began to
fall back towards their own borders, skirting the base of Agnino. And
their retreat grew quicker; and at last, when morning came, they were
near the border; but the fog still wrapped all the plain in obscurity,
and, robbed of their leader, they dared attempt nothing.</p>
<p>Now the Prince of Mantivoglia, whom his army sought thus in fear and
bewilderment, was carried very quickly up to the high ground, where the
rocks grew steep and close and the way led to the peak of Agnino. And as
he was borne along, some one bound his hands and his feet; and still he
was carried up, till at last he found himself laid down gently on the
ground. And though he knew no fear—for they of Mantivoglia have ever
been most valiant Princes and strangers to all fear—yet he thought that
his last hour was come, and, fearing God though he feared nothing else,
he said a prayer and commended his soul to the Almighty, grieving that
he should not receive the last services of the Church. And having done
this, he lay still until the dawning day smote on his eyes and he could
see; for the fog that lay dense on the plain was not in the hills, but
hung between them and the plain. And he looked round, but saw no man. So
he abode another hour, and then he heard a step behind him, and a man
came, but whence he could not see; and the man stooped and loosed the
scarf from his mouth and cut his bonds, and he sat up, uttering a cry of
wonder. For Count Antonio stood before him, his sword sheathed by his
side. And he said to the Prince of Mantivoglia, "Do to me what you will,
my lord. If you will strike me as I stand, strike. Or if you will do me
the honour to cross swords, my sword is ready. Or, my lord, if you will
depart in peace and in my great love and reverence, I will give thanks
to Heaven and to a noble Prince."</p>
<p>"Antonio, what does this mean?" cried the Prince, divided between anger
and wonder.</p>
<p>Then Antonio told him all that he had done: how the Duke was gone back
with his army to Firmola, and how the Prince's army had retreated
towards the borders of Mantivoglia; for of all this his men had informed
him; and he ended, saying, "For since it seemed that I was to be the
most unworthy cause of more fighting between two great Princes, it came
into my head that such a thing should not be. And I rejoice that now it
will not; for the townsmen will not march out again this year at least,
and Your Highness will scarce sit down before Firmola with the season
now far gone."</p>
<p>"So I am baulked?" cried the Prince, and he rose to his feet. "And this
trick is played me by a friend!"</p>
<p>"I am of Firmola," said Antonio, flushing red. "And while there was war,
I might in all honour have played another trick, and carried you not
hither, but to Firmola."</p>
<p>"I care not," cried the Prince angrily. "It was a trick, and no fair
fighting."</p>
<p>"Be it as you will, my lord," said Antonio. "A man's own conscience is
his only judge. Will you draw your sword, my lord?"</p>
<p>But the Prince was very angry, and he answered roughly, "I will not
fight with you, and I will not speak more with you. I will go."</p>
<p>"I will lead Your Highness to your horse," said Antonio.</p>
<p>Then he led him some hundreds of paces down the hill, and they came
where a fine horse stood ready saddled.</p>
<p>"It is not my horse," said the Prince.</p>
<p>"Be not afraid, my lord. It is not mine either," said Antonio smiling.
"A rogue who serves me, and is called Bena, forgot his manners so far as
to steal it from the quarters of the Duke. I pray you use some
opportunity of sending it back to him, or I shall be dubbed
horse-stealer with the rest."</p>
<p>"I am glad it is not yours," said the Prince, and he prepared to mount,
Antonio holding the stirrup for him. And when he was mounted, Antonio
told him how to ride, so that he should come safely to his own men, and
avoid certain scouting parties of the Duke that he had thrown out behind
him as he marched back to Firmola. And having done this, Antonio stood
back and bared his head and bowed.</p>
<p>"And where is your horse?" asked the Prince suddenly.</p>
<p>"I have no horse, my lord," said Antonio. "My men with all my horses
have ridden back to our hiding-place in the hills. I am alone here, for
I thought that Your Highness would kill me, and I should need no horse."</p>
<p>"How, then, will you escape the scouting parties?"</p>
<p>"I fear I shall not escape them, my lord," said Antonio, smiling again.</p>
<p>"And if they take you?"</p>
<p>"Of a surety I shall be hanged," said Count Antonio.</p>
<p>The Prince of Mantivoglia gathered his brow into a heavy frown, but the
corners of his lips twitched, and he did not look at Antonio. And thus
they rested a few moments, till suddenly the Prince, unable to hold
himself longer, burst into a great and merry peal of laughter; and he
raised his fist and shook it at Antonio, crying, "A scurvy trick,
Antonio! By my faith, a scurvier trick by far than that other of yours!
Art thou not ashamed, man? Ah, you cast down your eyes! You dare not
look at me, Antonio."</p>
<p>"Indeed I have naught to say for this last trick, my lord," said
Antonio, laughing also.</p>
<p>"Indeed I must carry this knave with me!" cried the Prince. "Faugh, the
traitor! Get up behind me, traitor! Clasp me by the waist, knave!
Closer, knave! Ah, Antonio, I know not in what mood Heaven was when you
were made! I would I had the heart to leave you to your hanging! For
what a story will my Princess make of this! I shall be the best-derided
man in all Mantivoglia."</p>
<p>"I think not, my dear lord," said Count Antonio, "unless a love that a
man may reckon on as his lady-love's and a chivalry that does not fail,
and a valour that has set two armies all agape in wonder, be your
matters for mirth in Mantivoglia. And indeed, my lord, I would that I
were riding to the lady I love best in the world, as Your Highness
rides; for she might laugh till her sweet eyes ran tears so I were near
to dry them."</p>
<p>The Prince put back his hand towards Antonio and clasped Antonio's hand,
and said, "What said she when you left her, Antonio? For with women love
is often more than honour, and their tears rust the bright edge of a
man's conscience."</p>
<p>"Her heart is even as Our Lady's, and with tears and smiles she left
me," said Antonio, and he grasped the Prince's hand. "Come, my lord, we
must ride, or it is a prison for you and a halter for me."</p>
<p>So they rode together in the morning on the horse that Bena had stolen
from among the choicest of Duke Valentine's, and, keeping cunningly
among the spurs of the hills, they were sighted once only from afar off
by the Duke's scouts, and escaped at a canter, and came safe to the
Prince's army, where they were received with great wonder and joy. But
the Prince would not turn again to besiege Firmola, for he had had a
fill of fighting, and the season grew late for the siege of a walled
town. So he returned with all his force to Mantivoglia, having won by
his expedition much praise of valour, and nothing else in the wide world
besides; which thing indeed is so common in the wars of princes that
even wise men have well-nigh ceased to wonder at it.</p>
<p>But the Princess of Mantivoglia heard all that had passed with great
mirth, and made many jests upon her husband; and again, lest the Prince
should take her jesting in evil part, more upon Duke Valentine. But
concerning Count Antonio and the Lady Lucia she did not jest. Yet one
day, chancing to be alone with Count Antonio—for he stayed many days
at the Court of Mantivoglia, and was treated with great honour—she said
to him, with a smile and half-raised eyelids, "Had I been a man, my lord
Antonio, I would not have returned alone from the gates of Firmola. In
truth, your lady needs patience for her virtue, Count Antonio!"</p>
<p>"I trust, then, that Heaven sends it to her, madame," said Antonio.</p>
<p>"And to you also," she retorted with a laugh. "And to her trust in you
also, I pray. For an absent lover is often an absent heart, Antonio, and
I hear that many ladies would fain soften your exile. And what I hear,
the Lady Lucia may hear also."</p>
<p>"She would hear it as the idle babbling of water over stones," said
Antonio. "But, madame, I am glad that I have some honesty in me. For if
there were not honest men and true maids in this world, I think more
than a half of the wits would starve for lack of food."</p>
<p>"Mercy, mercy!" she cried. "Indeed your wit has a keen edge, my lord."</p>
<p>"Yet it is not whetted on truth and honesty," said he.</p>
<p>She answered nothing for a moment; then she drew near to him and stood
before him, regarding his face; and she sighed "Heigh-ho!" and again
"Heigh-ho!" and dropped her eyes, and raised them again to his face; and
at last she said, "To some faithfulness is easy. I give no great praise
to the Lady Lucia." And when she had said this she turned and left him,
and was but little more in his company so long as he stayed at
Mantivoglia. And she spoke no more of the Lady Lucia. But when he was
mounting, after bidding her farewell, she gave him a white rose from her
bosom, saying carelessly, "Your colour, my lord, and the best. Yet God
made the other roses also."</p>
<p>"All that He made He loves, and in all there is good," said Antonio, and
he bowed very low, and, having kissed her hand, took the rose; and he
looked into her eyes and smiled, saying, "Heaven give peace where it has
given wit and beauty;" and so he rode away to join his company in the
hills. And the Princess of Mantivoglia, having watched till he was out
of sight, went into dinner, and was merrier than ever she had shown
herself before; so that they said, "She feared Antonio and is glad that
he is gone." Yet that night, while her husband slept, she wept.</p>
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