On a sudden, a whistle was again heard in the distance, which was once more answered by a low tone or two of Hayraddin's horn. Presently afterwards, a tall, stout, soldierly-looking man, a strong contrast in point of thewes and sinews to the small and slender-limbed Bohemians, made his appearance. He had a broad baldric over his shoulder, which sustained a sword that hung almost across his person; his hose were much slashed, through which slashes was drawn silk or tiffancy, of various colours; they were tied by at least five hundred points or strings, made of ribbon, to the tight buff-jacket which he wore, and the right sleeve of which displayed a silver boar's head, the crest of his Captain. A very small hat sat jauntily on one side of his head, from which descended a quantity of curled hair, which fell on each side of a broad face, and mingled with as broad a beard, about four inches long. He held a long lance in his hand; and his whole equipment was that of one of the German adventurers, who were known by the name of lanzknechts, in English, spearmen, who constituted a formidable part of the infantry of the period. These mercenaries were, of course, a fierce and rapacious soldiery, and having an idle tale current among themselves, that a lanzknecht was refused admittance into heaven on account of his vices, and into hell on the score of his tumultuous, mutinous, and insubordinate disposition, they manfully acted as if they neither sought the one, nor eschewed the other.
"Donner and blitz!" was his first salutation, in a sort of German-French, which we can only imperfectly imitate, "Why have you kept me dancing in attendance dis dree nights?"
"I could not see you sooner, Meinherr," said Hayraddin, very submissively; "there is a young Scot, with as quick an eye as the wild-cat, who watches my least motions. He suspects me already, and, should he find his suspicion confirmed, I were a dead man on the spot, and he would carry back the women into France again."
"Was henker!" said the lanzknecht; "we are three – we will attack them to-morrow, and carry the women off without going farther. You said the two valets were cowards – you and your comrade may manage them, and the Teufel sall hold me, but I match your Scots wild-cat."
"You will find that foolhardy," said Hayraddin; "for, besides that we ourselves count not much in fighting, this spark hath matched himself with the best knight in France, and come off with honour – I have seen those who saw him press Dunois hard enough."
"Hagel and sturmwetter! It is but your cowardice that speaks," said the German soldier.
"I am no more a coward than yourself," said Hayraddin; "but my trade is not fighting. – If you keep the appointment where it was laid, it is well – if not, I guide them safely to the Bishop's Palace, and William de la Marck may easily possess himself of them there, provided he is half as strong as he pretended a week since."
"Poz tausend!" said the soldier, "we are as strong and stronger; but we hear of a hundreds of the lances of Burgund, – das ist, – see you, – five men to a lance do make five hundreds, and then hold me the devil, they will be fainer to seek for us, than we to seek for them; for der Bischoff hath a goot force on footing – ay, indeed!"
"You must then hold to the ambuscade at the Cross of the Three Kings, or give up the adventure," said the Bohemian.
"Geb up – geb up the adventure of the rich bride for our noble hauptman – Teufel! I will charge through hell first. – Mein soul, we will be all princes and hertzogs, whom they call dukes, and we will hab a snab at the wein-kellar, and at the moudly French crowns, and it may be at the pretty garces too, when He with de beard is weary on them."