The Knights of the Cross/Volume 1/Chapter 18

by Henryk Sienkiewicz

CHAPTER XVIII.

Father Vyshonek dressed Zbyshko' s wound. He found only one rib broken, but the first day he could not answer for recovery, since he could not tell "whether the heart in the sick man was wrenched, or his liver torn." Toward evening so great a faintness seized De Lorche that he had to lie down. On the following day he could move neither hand nor foot without great pain in all his bones.

The princess and Danusia, with other damsels, attended the sick men, and prepared for them, according to directions of the priest, various ointments and herbs. Zbyshko was seriously wounded, and from time to time vomited blood, which alarmed the priest greatly. Still, he was conscious, and the next day, though very much weakened, when he learned from Danusia who it was to whom he was indebted for life, he called his Cheh, to thank and reward him. But he had to remember that Hlava had come from Yagenka, and that had it not been for her well-wishing heart he would have perished. This thought was to him even burdensome, for he felt that he never could repay the honest girl with good for good, and that he would be for her only the cause of suffering and terrible sadness. He said to himself, it is true, immediately after, "I cannot indeed hew myself in two," but at the bottom of his soul there remained, as it were, a reproach of conscience. The Cheh inflamed still more this internal disquiet.

"I swore to my lady," said he, "on my honor as a noble, to guard you, and I will do so without any reward. Not to me, but to her, are you indebted for rescue."

Zbyshko gave no answer, but began to breathe heavily. Hlava was silent for a while, then he said,—

"If you command me to hurry to Bogdanets, I will hurry. You might wish to see the old lord, for God knows what will happen you."

"What does the priest say?" inquired Zbyshko.

"The priest says that he will know at the new moon, and there are four days to the new moon."

"Ei! there is no need to go to Bogdanets. Either I shall die before my uncle could come, or I shall recover."

"You might send even a letter to Bogdanets. Sanderus will write it all clearly. They would know about you, at least, and perhaps have a mass said."

"Leave me at present, for I am weak. If I die, thou wilt return to Zyh's house, and tell how it was; they will give money then for a mass there. And people will bury me here, or in Tsehanov."

"In Tsehanov, or in Prasnysh, for only Kurpie are buried in the forest, where wolves howl over them. I have heard from the servants, also, that the prince will go with the court in two days to Tsehanov, and thence to Warsaw."

"They will not desert me here," said Zbyshko.

In fact he had divined rightly, for the princess had gone that very day to the prince with the request to let her stay in the forest house with Danusia, the damsels, and the priest, who was opposed to the early removal of Zbyshko to Prasnysh. De Lorche was considerably better in two days, and was on his feet. But learning that the "ladies" would remain, he remained also to accompany them on their return, and in case of a "Saracen" attack, to defend them from evil accident. Whence these "Saracens" were to come was a question which the gallant knight of Lorraine had not given himself. In the distant west, it is true, Lithuanians were called thus; from them, however, no danger could threaten the daughter of Keistut; she was the full sister of Vitold, and the cousin of Yagello, the "mighty king at Cracow."

But in spite of what he had heard in Mazovia of the christening of Lithuania, and the union of two crowns on the head of one sovereign, De Lorche had lived too long among Knights of the Cross not to believe that every evil might be expected from Lithuanians at all times. The Knights of the Cross had told him this, and he had not entirely lost faith in the Order.

Meanwhile an event happened which fell as a shadow between the Knights of the Cross and Prince Yanush. On the day before the departure of the court, brothers Gottfried and Rotgier arrived; they had been in Tsehanov before; and with them came a certain De Fourcy as the herald of news unfavorable for Knights of the Cross. Behold, it had happened that foreign guests visiting with the starosta of Lubov, namely, he, De Fourcy, De Bregov, and Meinegger, all from families of previous merit in the Order, when they had heard of Yurand of Spyhov, not only were they not frightened, but they decided to entice the renowned warrior to the field and convince themselves whether he was really as terrible as people declared him.

The starosta, it is true, opposed, referring to the peace between the Order and the princes of Mazovia; but at last, in the hope, perhaps, of freeing himself from a terrible neighbor, he determined not only to look at the affair through his fingers, but to let men at arms go also.

The knights sent a challenge to Yurand, who accepted it eagerly on condition that they would send away their men, and they three fight with him and two comrades on the very boundary of Prussia and Spyhov. When they were unwilling to dismiss their men at arms and withdraw from the lands of Spyhov, he fell upon them, slew their men at arms, thrust a spear through Meinegger, took Bregov prisoner and threw him into the dungeon of Spyhov. De Fourcy alone was unhurt, and after wandering three days through Mazovian forests, he learned from a tar-boiler that Knights of the Cross were tarrying in Tsehanov; he made his way to these knights so as to complain with them to the majesty of the prince, pray for punishment, and a command to free Bregov.

These tidings obscured at once the good relations between Prince Yanush and the guests, for not only did the two brothers who arrived then, but also Danveld and Siegfried von Löwe demand of the prince insistently to do justice to the Order, free the boundary of a robber, and mete out punishment with usury for all his offences. Danveld, especially, having with Yurand his own old accounts, the remembrance of which burnt him with pain and with shame, demanded vengeance almost threateningly.

"A complaint will go to the Grand Master," said he, "and if we obtain no justice from your Princely Grace, he will be able to find it, even should all Mazovia take the part of that murderer."

The prince, though mild by nature, grew angry, and said:

"What justice are ye asking for? If Yurand had been the first to attack you, if he had burnt villages, driven away herds, and killed people, I should summon him to judgment, and measure out punishment. But it was ye who attacked him. Your starosta let armed men go on the expedition; but what did Yurand do? He accepted your challenge, and only asked you to send off your serving men. How am I to punish him for that, or to summon him to judgment? Ye attacked a dreadful man, feared by all, and of your own choice brought down on your own heads disaster. What do ye want, then? Am I to command him not to defend himself whenever ye are pleased to attack him?"

"It was not the Order who attacked him, but guests, foreign knights," replied Danveld.

"The Order answers for guests, and besides, with them were men at arms from the Lubov garrison."

"Was the starosta to yield up guests, as for slaughter?"

At this the prince turned to Siegfried, and said,—

"See what justice becomes in your mouths, and see if your evasions are not offensive to God."

"De Bregov must be freed from captivity," answered the stern Siegfried; "for men of his family were chiefs in the Order, and have rendered great service to the Cross."

"And the death of Meinegger must be avenged," added Hugo.

The prince gathered the hair on both sides of his head, and rising from his seat, approached the Germans with an ominous face; but after a moment he remembered evidently that they were his guests; so he restrained himself once more, placed his hand on Siegfried's arm, and said,—

"Listen, starosta, you wear the cross on your mantle, so answer on that cross according to conscience. Was Yurand right or not?"

"De Bregov must be freed from captivity," answered Siegfried.

"God grant me patience," said the prince, after a moment of silence.

"The injustice which has met us in the persons of our guests is merely an additional cause of complaint," continued Siegfried, in a voice as sharp as a sword-edge. "Since the Order is an order, never in Palestine, or in Transylvania, or in pagan Lithuania up to this time, has one common man done us so much evil as that bandit of Spyhov. Your Princely Grace, we desire redress and punishment, not for one injustice, but a thousand; not for one battle, but for five hundred; not for one blood spilling, but for whole years of deeds for the like of which the fire of heaven should burn that godless nest of cruelty and wickedness. Whose groans are calling to God there for vengeance? Ours! Whose tears? Ours! In vain have we brought complaints, in vain have we called for judgment. Never has satisfaction been rendered us."

When he heard this Prince Yanush nodded his head. "In former years," said he, "Knights of the Cross were guests often in Spyhov, and Yurand was not your enemy till his beloved wife died in your bonds. How many times have you attacked him yourselves, as now, because he challenged and conquered your knights? How many times have you set murderers on him, or sent bolts at him from crossbows in the pine woods? He has attacked you, it is true, for vengeance was burning him; but have not you, or knights living on your lands, attacked peaceful people in Mazovia? Have you not driven away herds, burnt villages, slaughtered men, women, and children? And when I made complaint to your Master he answered from Malborg: 'An ordinary brawl on the boundary!' Give me peace! It does not become you to complain, you who seized me when I was unarmed, in time of peace, on my own land; and had it not been for terror before the anger of the king at Cracow, I might have been groaning to this hour in your underground dungeons. That is how you paid me, who came from the family of your benefactors. Leave me in peace; it is not for you to speak of justice!"

When they heard this the Knights of the Cross looked at one another with impatience, for it was bitter to them and a shame that the prince mentioned that event in Zlotoria in presence of De Fourcy; so Danveld, wishing to put an end to further conversation on that subject, said,—

"In the case of your Princely Grace there was a mistake, which we corrected, not out of fear of the king at Cracow, but for the sake of justice. As to brawls on the boundary, our Master cannot answer for them, since in all kingdoms of the world everywhere there are turbulent spirits on the boundaries."

"Thou sayst that, but art calling for justice against Yurand. What do ye wish?"

"Justice and punishment."

The prince balled his bony fists and repeated,—

"God give me patience!"

"Let your Princely Grace remember this, too," continued Danveld, "that our turbulent men harm only lay persons not of the German race; but yours raise their hands against the German Order, by which they offend the Saviour himself. And what tortures and punishments can suffice those who offend the Cross?"

"Hear me!" said the prince. "Do not carry on war by means of God, for Him thou wilt not deceive! "And placing his hands on the shoulders of the Knight of the Cross, he shook him violently. The German was alarmed at once, and began in a milder voice,—

"If it be true that the guests attacked Yurand first, and they did not dismiss their men at arms, I do not applaud them. But did Yurand really accept the challenge?"

Then he looked at De Fourcy, blinking stealthily the while, as if to inform him that he was to deny; but De Fourcy, unable, or unwilling to do so, replied,—

"He wished in company with two other men to do battle against us, after we had sent away the men at arms."

"Are you certain?"

"On my honor ! De Bregov and I agreed, but Meinegger would not join us."

"Starosta of Schytno!" interrupted the prince, "you know better than other men that Yurand does not avoid a challenge." Here he turned to all, and said: "Whoever of you would like to challenge Yurand to a battle on foot or on horseback, to him I give permission. Should Yurand be killed, or taken captive, Bregov will be freed without ransom. Ask no more of me, for you will not receive it."

After these words deep silence followed. Danveld and Siegfried, and Brother Rotgier, and Brother Gottfried, though brave, were too well acquainted with the terrible heir of Spyhov for any man of them to undertake a life-and-death battle against him; only a stranger might do that,—a man from distant parts, like De Lorche, or De Fourcy; but De Lorche was not present at the conversation, and De Fourcy was still too much influenced by heartfelt fear.

"I have seen him once," muttered he, "and have no wish to look at him a second time."

"A monk is not permitted to engage in single combat," said Siegfried, "unless with special permission of the Master and the Grand Marshal; but we do not demand permission for battle, only that De Bregov be liberated from captivity, and Yurand put to death."

"You are not the law in this land."

"We have endured patiently, so far, a grievous neighborhood. But our Master will be able to measure out justice."

"Therefore there will be justice to the Master and to you from Mazovia!"

"Behind the Master are the Germans and the Roman emperor."

"And behind me is the Polish king, to whom more lands and nations are subject."

"Does your Princely Grace wish war with the Order?"

"If I wished war, I should not wait for you in Mazovia, I should go to you; but do not threaten me, for I am not afraid."

"What am I to report to the Master?"

"Your Master has made no inquiry of me. Report what you like to him."

"Then we will measure out punishment and revenge ourselves."

The prince stretched out his arms and began to move his finger threateningly in the very face of the Knight of the Cross.

"Have a care!" said he, in a voice of suppressed anger. "Have a care; I have permitted you to challenge Yurand, but if you break into my country with troops of the Order, I will strike you and you will sit here, not as a guest, but a captive."

Evidently his patience was exhausted, for he threw his cap against the table with all his strength, went out of the room, and slammed the door behind him. The Knights of the Cross were pale from rage, and De Fourcy looked at them as if bewildered.

"What will happen now?" inquired Brother Rotgier.

But Danveld sprang almost with closed fists at De Fourcy.

"Why didst thou say that ye attacked Yurand first?"

"Because it is true!"

"There was need of a lie."

"I came here to fight, not to lie."

"Thou hast fought fiercely—there is no word on that score!"

"And hast thou not run away before Yurand to Schytno?"

"Pax, pax!" exclaimed Siegfried. "This knight is a guest of the Order."

"It is all one what he said," put in Brother Gottfried.

"They would not have punished Yurand without trial, and at a trial the affair would have been explained."

"What will happen now?" repeated Brother Rotgier.

A moment of silence followed.

"We must finish finally with that bloody cur!" said Siegfried, in a stern and resolute voice. "De Bregov must be freed from confinement. Let us assemble the garrisons from Schytno, Insburg, and Lubov. Let us summon the nobles of Helmno, and attack Yurand. It is time to put an end to him!"

But the adroit Danveld, who knew how to weigh everything on both sides, put his hands on his head, frowned, and said, after thinking,—

"Impossible, without permission of the Master."

"If it succeeds, the Master will praise," said Gottfried.

"But if not? If the prince moves his spearmen, and falls on us?"

"There is peace between him and the Order; he will not strike."

"Yes, there is peace, but we shall be the first to break it. Our garrisons are not enough against the Mazovians."

"Then the Master will take our side, and there will be war."

Danveld frowned again, and was thoughtful.

"No, no," said he, after a while. "If it succeeds, the Master will be glad at heart. Envoys will go to the prince, there will be discussions, and we shall get off without punishment. But in case of defeat, the Order will not take our part, and will not declare war against the prince. For that another Master would be needed. Behind Prince Yanush stands the Polish king, and the Grand Master will not quarrel with him."

"Still, we took the land of Dobryn; it is evident that Cracow is not a terror to us."

"There were pretexts,—Opolchyk. We took, as it were, a mortgage, and even that—" Here he looked around, and added in a low voice, "I have heard in Malborg that if we were threatened with war, we should give up the mortgage, if the money were returned."

"Ach!" said Rotgier, "if Markward of Salzbach were among us, or if Schaumberg, who smothered Vitold's whelps,—they would manage Yurand. Who is Vitold? Yagello's viceroy!—Grand Prince; still Schaumberg cared nothing,—he smothered Vitold's children—made nothing of it. Indeed, there is a lack among us of men who can find means to do anything."

Hearing this, Hugo von Danveld put his elbows on the table and his head on his hands, and sank for a long time in thought. Suddenly his eyes grew bright, he wiped his thick moist lips with the back of his hand as his wont was, and said,—

"Blessed be the moment in which you recalled, pious brother, the name of the valiant Schaumberg."

"Why so? Have you thought of something?" inquired Siegfried.

"Speak quickly!" cried Rotgier and Gottfried.

"Listen: Yurand has a daughter here, his only child, whom he loves as the sight of his eye."

"He has; I know her. Princess Anna Danuta loves her also."

"She does. Now listen: If you were to carry off that maiden, Yurand would give for her not only Bregov, but all the prisoners, with himself and Spyhov in addition."

"By the blood of Saint Boniface shed in Dohum!" cried Brother Gottfried, "it would be as you say."

Then they were silent, as if frightened by the boldness and the difficulties of the undertaking. Only after a while did Brother Rotgier turn to Siegfried.

"Your wit and experience," said he, "are equal to your valor; what do you think of this?"

"I think it a question which deserves consideration."

"For," continued Rotgier, "the maiden is a companion of the princess; more, she is almost a beloved daughter. Think, pious brothers, what an uproar would rise."

"You have said yourself," said Hugo, laughing, "that Schaumberg smothered Vitold's whelps,—and what was done to him for doing so? They will raise an outcry for any cause; but if we should send Yurand in chains to the Master, reward would await us more certainly than punishment."

"True," said Siegfried, "there is a chance for attack. The prince will go away, Anna Danuta will remain here with only her damsels. But an attack on the prince's court in time of peace is no common matter. The prince's court is not Spyhov. Then it will be again as in Zlotoria. Again complaints will be sent to all kingdoms, and to the Pope, against the violence of the Order; again the cursed Yagello will be heard with a threat, and the Master—you know him, moreover—he is glad to take what he can, but he does not want war with Yagello. Yes! a shout would rise in all the lands of Mazovia and Poland."

"Meanwhile Yurand's bones would be bleaching on a hook," said Danveld. "Besides who tells you to snatch her away here from the court, from the side of the princess?"

"Not from Tsehanov, I hope, where in addition to nobles there are three hundred bowmen."

"No. But may not Yurand get sick, and send people for his daughter? The princess would not forbid her to go in that case, and should the girl be lost on the road, who will say to you or to me, 'Thou didst snatch her away?'"

"Pshaw!" said Siegfried, impatiently; "then make Yurand get sick and send for the maiden."

At this Hugo smiled in triumph, and answered,—

"I have a goldsmith at home, who was driven out of Malborg for crime, and who settled in Schytno. This man can imitate any seal; I have men too, who, though our subjects, are descended from Mazovians. Dost not understand me yet?"

"I understand!" exclaimed Gottfried excitedly.

Brother Rotgier raised his hands aloft, and said,—

"God give thee happiness, pious brother, for neither Markward of Salzbach, nor Schaumberg would have found a better method."

Then he blinked as if trying to see something in the distance. "I see," said he, "Yurand standing with a rope around his neck at the Dantzig Gate in Malborg, and our men at arms kicking him."

"And his daughter will be a servant of the Order," added Hugo.

Hearing this, Siegfried turned severe eyes at Danveld, who drew the back of his hand across his lips again, and said,—

"But now to Schytno as quickly as possible."