I 've felt hot and cold by turns all day.'
The horsemen came jingling carelessly along the street in scattered twos
and threes, laughing together, and singling out the maidens at the
gable-shadowed windows with hawking eyes. The good citizens of Cologne
did not look on them favourably. Some showed their backs and gruffly
banged their doors: others scowled and pocketed their fists: not a few
slunk into the side alleys like well-licked curs, and scurried off with
forebent knees. They were in truth ferocious-looking fellows these trusty
servants of the robber Baron Werner, of Werner's Eck, behind Andernach.
Leather, steel, and dust, clad them from head to foot; big and black as
bears; wolf-eyed, fox-nosed. They glistened bravely in the falling beams
of the sun, and Margarita thrust her fair braided yellow head a little
forward over her father's shoulder to catch the whole length of the grim
cavalcade. One of the troop was not long in discerning the young beauty.
He pointed her boldly out to a comrade, who approved his appetite, and
referred her to a third.
Pages:
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37