had set up in the meadow. The hat was still on top of it, nailed to the
wood by Tell's arrow.

"Here's the hat!" shouted Ruodi--"the hat to which we were to bow!"

"What shall we do with it?" cried several voices.

"Destroy it! Burn it!" said others. "To the flames with this emblem of
tyranny!"

But Tell stopped them.

"Let us preserve it," he said. "Gessler set it up to be a means
of enslaving the country; we will set it up as a memorial of our
newly-gained liberty. Nobly is fulfilled the oath we swore to drive
the tyrants from our land. Let the pole mark the spot where the
revolution finished."

"But _is_ it finished?" said Arnold of Melchthal. "It is a nice
point. When the Emperor of Austria hears that we have killed his friend
Gessler, and burnt down all his fine new fortresses, will he not come
here to seek revenge?"

"He will," said Tell. "And let him come. And let him bring all his
mighty armies. We have driven out the enemy that was in our land. We
will meet and drive away the enemy that comes from another country.
Switzerland is not easy to attack. There are but a few mountain passes
by which the foe can approach. We will stop these with our bodies. And
one great strength we have: we are united. And united we need fear no
foe."