SO used were the good burghers of Bordeaux to martial display andknightly sport, that an ordinary joust or tournament was aneveryday matter with them. The fame and brilliancy of theprince's court had drawn the knights-errant and pursuivants-of-arms from every part of Europe. In the long lists by the Garonneon the landward side of the northern gate there had been many astrange combat, when the Teutonic knight, fresh from the conquestof the Prussian heathen, ran a course against the knight ofCalatrava, hardened by continual struggle against the Moors, orcavaliers from Portugal broke a lance with Scandinavian warriorsfrom the further shore of the great Northern Ocean. Herefluttered many an outland pennon, bearing symbol and blazonryfrom the banks of the Danube, the wilds of Lithuania and themountain strongholds of Hungary; for chivalry was of no clime andof no race, nor was any land so wild that the fame and name ofthe prince had not sounded through it from border to border.

Great, however, was the excitement through town and district whenit was learned that on the third Wednesday in Advent there wouldbe held a passage-at-arms in which five knights of England wouldhold the lists against all comers. The great concourse ofnoblemen and famous soldiers, the national character of thecontest, and the fact that this was a last trial of arms beforewhat promised to be an arduous and bloody war, all united to makethe event one of the most notable and brilliant that Bordeaux hadever seen. On the eve of the contest the peasants flocked infrom the whole district of the Medoc, and the fields beyond thewalls were whitened with the tents of those who could find nowarmer lodging. From the distant camp of Dax, too, and fromBlaye, Bourge, Libourne, St. Emilion, Castillon, St. Macaire,Cardillac, Ryons, and all the cluster of flourishing towns whichlook upon Bordeaux as their mother, there thronged an unceasingstream of horsemen and of footmen, all converging upon the greatcity. By the morning of the day on which the courses were to berun, not less than eighty people had assembled round the listsand along the low grassy ridge which looks down upon the scene ofthe encounter.

It was, as may well be imagined, no easy matter among so manynoted cavaliers to choose out five on either side who should haveprecedence over their fellows. A score of secondary combats hadnearly arisen from the rivalries and bad blood created by theselection, and it was only the influence of the prince and theefforts of the older barons which kept the peace among so manyeager and fiery soldiers. Not till the day before the courseswere the shields finally hung out for the inspection of theladies and the heralds, so that all men might know the names ofthe champions and have the opportunity to prefer any chargeagainst them, should there be stain upon them which shoulddisqualify them from taking part in so noble and honorable aceremony.

Sir Hugh Calverley and Sir Robert Knolles had not yet returnedfrom their raid into the marches of the Navarre, so that theEnglish party were deprived of two of their most famous lances.Yet there remained so many good names that Chandos and Felton, towhom the selection had been referred, had many an earnestconsultation, in which every feat of arms and failure or successof each candidate was weighed and balanced against the rivalclaims of his companions. Lord Audley of Cheshire, the hero ofPoictiers, and Loring of Hampshire, who was held to be thesecond lance in the army, were easily fixed upon. Then, of theyounger men, Sir Thomas Percy of Northumberland, Sir Thomas Wakeof Yorkshire, and Sir William Beauchamp of Gloucestershire, werefinally selected to uphold the honor of England. On the otherside were the veteran Captal de Buch and the brawny Olivier deClisson, with the free companion Sir Perducas d'Albert, thevaliant Lord of Mucident, and Sigismond von Altenstadt, of theTeutonic Order. The older soldiers among the English shook theirheads as they looked upon the escutcheons of these famouswarriors, for they were all men who had spent their lives uponthe saddle, and bravery and strength can avail little againstexperience and wisdom of war.

"By my faith! Sir John," said the prince as he rode through thewinding streets on his way to the list, "I should have been gladto have splintered a lance to-day. You have seen me hold a spearsince I had strength to lift one, and should know best whether Ido not merit a place among this honorable company."

"There is no better seat and no truer lance, sire," said Chandos;"but, if I may say so without fear of offence, it were notfitting that you should join in this debate."

"And why, Sir John?"

"Because, sire, it is not for you to take part with Gasconsagainst English, or with English against Gascons, seeing that youare lord of both. We are not too well loved by the Gascons now,and it is but the golden link of your princely coronet whichholds us together. If that be snapped I know not what wouldfollow."

"Snapped, Sir John!" cried the prince, with an angry sparkle inhis dark eyes. "What manner of talk is this? You speak asthough the allegiance of our people were a thing which might bethrown off or on like a falcon's jessel."

"With a sorry hack one uses whip and spur, sire," said Chandos;"but with a horse of blood and spirit a good cavalier is gentleand soothing, coaxing rather than forcing. These folk arestrange people, and you must hold their love, even as you have itnow, for you will get from their kindness what all the pennons inyour army could not wring from them."

"You are over-grave to-day, John," the prince answered. "We maykeep such questions for our council-chamber. But how now, mybrothers of Spain, and of Majorca. what think you of thischallenge?"

"I look to see some handsome joisting," said Don Pedro, who rodewith the King of Majorca upon the right of the prince, whileChandos was on the left. "By St. James of Compostella! but theseburghers would bear some taxing. See to the broadcloth andvelvet that the rogues bear upon their backs! By my troth! ifthey were my subjects they would be glad enough to wear faldingand leather ere I had done with them. But mayhap it is best tolet the wool grow long ere you clip it."

"It is our pride," the prince answered coldly, "that we rule overfreemen and not slaves."

"Every man to his own humor," said Pedro carelessly. "Carajo!there is a sweet face at yonder window! Don Fernando, I pray youto mark the house, and to have the maid brought to us at theabbey."

"Nay, brother, nay!" cried the prince impatiently. "I have hadoccasion to tell you more than once that things are not orderedin this way in Aquitaine."

"A thousand pardons, dear friend," the Spaniard answered quickly,for a flush of anger had sprung to the dark cheek of the Englishprince. "You make my exile so like a home that I forget at timesthat I am not in very truth back in Castile. Every land hathindeed its ways and manners; but I promise you, Edward, that whenyou are my guest in Toledo or Madrid you shall not yearn in vainfor any commoner's daughter on whom you may deign to cast youreye."

"Your talk, sire," said the prince still more coldly, "is notsuch as I love to hear from your lips. I have no taste for suchamours as you speak of, and I have sworn that my name shall becoupled with that of no woman save my ever dear wife."

"Ever the mirror of true chivalry!" exclaimed Pedro, while Jamesof Majorca, frightened at the stern countenance of their all-powerful protector, plucked hard at the mantle of his brotherexile.

"Have a care, cousin," he whispered; "for the sake of the Virginhave a care, for you have angered him."

"Pshaw! fear not," the other answered in the same low tone. "IfI miss one stoop I will strike him on the next. Mark me else.Fair cousin," he continued, turning to the prince, "these be raremen-at-arms and lusty bowmen. It would be hard indeed to matchthem."

"They have Journeyed far, sire, but they have never yet foundtheir match."

"Nor ever will, I doubt not. I feel myself to be back upon mythrone when I look at them. But tell me, dear coz, what shall wedo next, when we have driven this bastard Henry from the kingdomwhich he hath filched?"

"We shall then compel the King of Aragon to place our good friendand brother James of Majorca upon the throne."

"Noble and generous prince!" cried the little monarch.

"That done," said King Pedro, glancing out of the corners of hiseyes at the young conqueror, "we shall unite the forces ofEngland, of Aquitaine, of Spain and of Majorca. It would beshame to us if we did not do some great deed with such forcesready to our hand."

"You say truly, brother," cried the prince, his eyes kindling atthe thought. "Methinks that we could not do anything morepleasing to Our Lady than to drive the heathen Moors out of thecountry."

"I am with you, Edward, as true as hilt to blade. But, by St.James! we shall not let these Moors make mock at us from over thesea. We must take ship and thrust them from Africa."

"By heaven, yes!" cried the prince. "And it is the dream of myheart that our English pennons shall wave upon the Mount ofOlives, and the lions and lilies float over the holy city."

"And why not, dear coz? Your bowmen have cleared a path toParis, and why not to Jerusalem? Once there, your arms mightrest."

"Nay, there is more to be done," cried the prince, carried awayby the ambitious dream. "There is still the city of Constantineto be taken, and war to be waged against the Soldan of Damascus.And beyond him again there is tribute to be levied from the Chamof Tartary and from the kingdom of Cathay. Ha! John, what sayyou? Can we not go as far eastward as Richard of the LionHeart?"

"Old John will bide at home, sire," said the rugged soldier. "Bymy soul! as long as I am seneschal of Aquitaine I will findenough to do in guarding the marches which you have entrusted tome. It would be a blithe day for the King of France when heheard that the seas lay between him and us."

"By my soul! John," said the prince, "I have never known you turnlaggard before."

"The babbling hound, sire, is not always the first at the mort,"the old knight answered.

"Nay, my true-heart! I have tried you too often not to know.But, by my soul! I have not seen so dense a throng since the daythat we brought King John down Cheapside."

It was indeed an enormous crowd which covered the whole vastplain from the line of vineyards to the river bank. From thenorthern gate the prince and his companions looked down at a darksea of heads, brightened here and there by the colored hoods ofthe women, or by the sparkling head-pieces of archers and men-at-arms. In the centre of this vast assemblage the lists seemed buta narrow strip of green marked out with banners and streamers,while a gleam of white with a flutter of pennons at either endshowed where the marquees were pitched which served as thedressing-rooms of the combatants. A path had been staked offfrom the city gate to the stands which had been erected for thecourt and the nobility. Down this, amid the shouts of theenormous multitude, the prince cantered with his two attendantkings, his high officers of state, and his long train of lordsand ladies, courtiers, counsellors, and soldiers, with toss ofplume and flash of jewel, sheen of silk and glint of gold--asrich and gallant a show as heart could wish. The head of thecavalcade had reached the lists ere the rear had come clear ofthe city gate, for the fairest and the bravest had assembled fromall the broad lands which are watered by the Dordogne and theGaronne. Here rode dark-browed cavaliers from the sunny south,fiery soldiers from Gascony, graceful courtiers of Limousin orSaintonge, and gallant young Englishmen from beyond the seas.Here too were the beautiful brunettes of the Gironde, with eyeswhich out-flashed their jewels, while beside them rode theirblonde sisters of England, clear cut and aquiline, swathed inswans'-down and in ermine, for the air was biting though the sunwas bright. Slowly the long and glittering train wound into thelists, until every horse had been tethered by the varlets inwaiting, and every lord and lady seated in the long stands whichstretched, rich in tapestry and velvet and blazoned arms, oneither side of the centre of the arena.

The holders of the lists occupied the end which was nearest tothe city gate. There, in front of their respective pavilions,flew the martlets of Audley, the roses of Loring, the scarletbars of Wake. the lion of the Percies and the silver wings ofthe Beauchamps, each supported by a squire clad in hanging greenstuff to represent so many Tritons, and bearing a huge conch-shell in their left hands. Behind the tents the great war-horses, armed at all points, champed and reared, while theirmasters sat at the doors of their pavilions, with their helmetsupon their knees, chatting as to the order of the day's doings.The English archers and men-at-arms had mustered at that end ofthe lists, but the vast majority of the spectators were in favorof the attacking party, for the English had declined inpopularity ever since the bitter dispute as to the disposal ofthe royal captive after the battle of Poictiers. Hence theapplause was by no means general when the herald-at-armsproclaimed, after a flourish of trumpets, the names and styles ofthe knights who were prepared, for the honor of their countryand for the love of their ladies, to hold the field against allwho might do them the favor to run a course with them. On theother hand, a deafening burst of cheering greeted the rivalherald, who, advancing from the other end of the lists, rolledforth the well-known titles of the five famous warriors who hadaccepted the defiance.

"Faith, John," said the prince, "it sounds as though you wereright. "Ha! my grace D'Armagnac, it seems that our friends onthis side will not grieve if our English champions lose the day."

"It may be so, sire," the Gascon nobleman answered. "I havelittle doubt that in Smithfield or at Windsor an English crowdwould favor their own countrymen."