Page:Sienkiewicz - The knights of the cross.djvu/29

Rh merchants, so that they stretched their necks over the tankards toward Matsko of Bogdanets and inquired,—

"And of ours who will meet the French? Tell quickly!"

Matsko raised his beer to his lips, drank, and answered:

"Ei! have no fear for our men. They are Yan of Vloshchova, castellan of Dobryn; Mikolai of Vashmuntov; Yasko of Dakov; and Yarosh of Chehov. All are knights to be proud of, deadly fellows. Whether they do battle with lance, sword, or axe—it is nothing new to them! Men's eyes will have something to look at, and their ears something to hear. I have said, put foot on the throat of a Frenchman and he will send knightly words at thee. So help me God and the Holy Cross! as the French talk, so do ours slay."

"There will be glory, if God bless us," said one of the nobles.

"And Saint Stanislav!" added another. Then, turning to Matsko, he continued: "Well, now go on! You have glorified the Germans and other knights, saying that they are brave and that they broke Lithuanians easily. But against you was it not more difficult? Did they go against you with the same willingness? How did God favor? Give praise to our side!" Evidently Matsko was no braggart, hence he answered modestly,—

"Whoso is fresh from distant lands strikes us willingly, but after he has tried us once and a second time he has not the same courage, for our people are stubborn. We have been reproached often with this stubbornness. 'Ye despise death,' say our enemies, 'but ye help the Saracens, and for this ye will be damned!' But in us stubbornness increases, for what they say is untrue. The double kingdom baptized Lithuania, and all people there confess Christ the Lord, though not every one does so with knowledge. We know that when a devil was cast out of the cathedral in, our gracious lord gave command to set up a candle to him, and priests had to tell the king that it was improper to do that. Well, how must it be in the case of a common man? More than one says to himself: 'The prince has given command to be christened, he has given command to bow down to Christ, so I bow down; but why should I spare a pot of curds on the ancient pagan devils, why not throw them a toasted turnip, or pour to them beer foam? Unless I do so my horses will drop dead, or my cows will be