CHAPTER IV.



At length the day fixed for the tournament arrived, and a
distinguished noble, appointed by the German emperor, arranged
all things in the most magnificent and sumptuous guise for the
solemn festival. The field of combat opened wide, and fair,
and level, thickly strewn with the finest sand, so that, both
man and horse might find sure footing; and, like a pure field
of snow, it shone forth from the midst of the flowery plain.
Rich hangings of silk from Arabia, curiously embroidered with
Indian gold, adorned with their various colours the lists
enclosing the space, and hung from the lofty galleries which
had been erected for the ladies and the nobles who were to
behold the combat. At the upper end, under a canopy of
majestic arches richly wrought in gold, was the place of the
Lady Hildegardis. Green wreaths and garlands waved gracefully
between the glittering pillars in the soft breezes of July.
And with impatient eyes the multitude, who crowded beyond the
lists, gazed upwards, expecting the appearance of the fairest
maiden of Germany, and were only at times drawn to another
part by the stately approach of the combatants. Oh, how many
a bright suit of armour, many a silken richly-embroidered
mantle, how many a lofty waving plume was here to be seen!
The splendid troop of knights moved within the lists, greeting
and conversing with each other, as a bed of flowers stirred by
a breath of wind; but the flower-stems had grown to lofty
trees, the yellow and white flower-leaves had changed to gold
and silver, and the dew-drops to pearls and diamonds. For