Page:The Enchanted Knights; or The Chronicle of the Three Sisters.djvu/24

12 not to overwhelm him with bitter reproaches. To terminate her upbraidings he employed the most infallible remedy—that is, to be silent and let his lady talk as long as she liked. Meanwhile he rolled the golden eggs to a place of safety. After that he wore three days’ mourning for decency’s sake, thinking only how to re-commence his former life. In a short time the castle was again the habitation of joy, and the Elysium of greedy guests. Balls, tournaments, and splendid feasts were alternately given. Bertha, the remaining daughter, attracted at the court of her father the eyes of all the stately knights, like the silvery moon, the gaze of sentimental wanderers in a clear summer’s night. It was she who used to award the prizes at the knightly sports, and to lead the dance with the conquering knight. The hospitality of the count and the beauty of the daughter allured the most noble knights from the remotest parts of the country. Many wooed the rich heiress, but among so many competitors choice was not an easy matter for Bertha all of them excelling in nobility, beauty, and grace. The lovely girl was selecting and choosing till the golden eggs upon which the count had not spared the file, had dwindled away to the size of a hazel nut. The