Page:Sienkiewicz - The knights of the cross.djvu/153

 luck. We suffered a dreadful defeat from Edygeï. First they killed our horses. The Tartar will not strike hand to hand, like a Christian, but shoots from a distance with bows. If thou press him he will flee, and shoot again. Do thy best, he will have his way. See you, in our army the knights boasted without bounds, and talked thus: 'We will not even level a lance, nor draw swords; we will just dash that vermin apart with our horse-hoofs.' So they boasted till shafts groaned around them, till the air was dark with arrows; and after the battle, what? Barely one out of ten was alive. Will you believe? More than half the army, with seventy Lithuanian and Russian princes, remained on the field; and as to boyars and various courtiers, or whatever they are called, youths, you could not count them in less than a fortnight—"

"I have heard," interrupted Matsko. "And of our auxiliary knights a great many fell also."

"Yes, even nine Knights of the Cross, for these too had to serve Vitold. And of our people a crowd, for, as you know, others may look behind, but our people never. The Grand Prince had most confidence in Polish knights, and would have no guard but them near his person in battle. Hi! hi! They lay like a pavement around him, and nothing touched Vitold! Pan Spytko of Melshtyn fell, and Bernat, the swordbearer, and Mikolai, the cupbearer, and Prokop, and Pretslav, and Dobrogost, Yasko of Lazevitse, Pilik Mazur, Varsh of Mihov, Soha the voevoda, Yasko of Dombrova, Pietrko of Miloslavie, Schepetski, and Oderski, and Tomko Lagoda. Who could count them all? And I have seen some so filled with arrows that they looked like dead hedgehogs, till laughter seized me at sight of them."

Then he laughed outright, as if telling the most amusing thing possible, and began to sing at once,—

"Oi, thou wilt learn what the Tartar is, When he has rubbed thy skin well!"

"Well, afterward what?" asked Zbyshko.

"Afterward the Grand Prince fled; but straightway he took courage as he does always. The more thou bend him, the better he springs, like a hazel twig. We rushed then to defend the Tavan ford. A handful of new knights came from Poland. All quiet! Very well! Edygeï came next day with a Tartar host, but did nothing. Oh, it was pleasant! Wherever he tried to pass the ford we gave it in the

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