Page:Popular Tales of the Germans (Volume 1).djvu/191

 to the pit. The pirit of vengeance already brandihed the unaccutomed arms in the hands of the village matrons, as the Bacchanalian fury formerly waved the heavy thyrus in the hands of the female votaries of the God of wine. The whole troop fell with one accord upon our heroes’ quarters, without the mallet regard to the laws of hopitality. The defenceles wights were rudely awaked from their refrehing leep by furious thruts and the harp fangs of the fire-forks. They dicerned their danger from this unfriendly morning alutation, et up great lamentations, attempted to negotiate from the oven, and begged piteouly for their lives. The in- Rh