Page:Surprising adventures, miraculous escapes, and wonderful travels, of the renowned Baron Munchausen.pdf/6

 common in Poland. — At length night and darkness overtook me; no village was to be seen: and the country was covered with snow — Tired, I alighted, and fastened my horse to something like a pointed stump of a tree, which appeared above the snow; and lay down on the snow, where I slept so soundly, that I did not open my eyes till full day-light. — Conceive my astonishment, to find myself in the midst of a village, lying in a church yard, — My horse was not to be seen; but I heard him soon after neigh somewhere above me. — On looking upwards, I beheld him hanging, by his bridle, to the weather cock of the steeple. — Matters were now very plain: the village had been covered with snow over night; a sudden thaw had taken place; I had sunk down gently to the church yard as the snow had melted away; and what in the dark I had taken to be a stump of a tree, appearing above the snow, proved to have been the weather-cock of the steeple! I took one of my pistols, shot the bridle in two, brought down the horse, and proceeded on my journey.

I was at Count Przobosky’s noble country-seat in Lithuania; and being at tea, I remained with the ladies in the drawing-room, while the gentlemen were down in the yard, to see a young horse of blood, which was just arrived from the stud. — We heard a noise! I hastened down stairs, and found the horse so unruly, that nobody durst approach or mount him. — At one leap, I was on his back, took him by surprise, and worked him quite into gentleness and obedience. To show my horsemanship to the ladies, I forced him to leap in at