Maugis, ye sorcerer from ye ancient French : a wonderful tale from ye writings of ye mad savant of ye Maison Maugis in ye olde citie of Mouzon, France
their sight, hurriedly dismounted, and ascended, by means of a secret
path known only to himself, the high rock on one side of the gorge,
and appeared at the top overlooking the imperial cavalcade; then
throwing off his disguise, assumed his own form and stood erect in full
view of the astonished emperor and his knights.
“I am Maugis!” he shouted, “whom you would unjustly send to death, and
to-day I defy you once more, Charlemagne the proud! Do you recognize
here your crown and your treasures? and you, sir knights, the haughty
companions of your master, here are your swords, all in my power.
However, thou canst have them once more—if the emperor will grant peace
to the four sons of Aymon, all will be given back to you.”
Amid the furious cries of rage caused by this audacious defiance,
Maugis disappeared before their eyes.
While the pride of Charlemagne and his peers was deeply wounded,
not all the knights could restrain from laughing, secretly among
themselves, at their misadventures, for the bravery and audacity of
Maugis and his brothers had raised them highly in their estimation.
Being at last free from Charlemagne and his troops, Maugis returned
quietly to Montaubon with the treasures. He was received there with
the greatest joy, and when he showed his booty every one hastened to
congratulate him on the success of his enterprise. The wealth was taken
care of, and to the rage and mortification of Charlemagne, his golden
eagle adorned the most elevated position on the château of Montaubon,
for on the following morning when Charlemagne saw his golden eagle
resplendent in the rays of the sun, he was astounded. He called his
peers and said to them:
“We are dishonored, and we must secure ourselves at any price.”
He thereupon called the Duke de Naimes and Oger, who were relatives of
Maugis, and ordered them to go to him, and say that if he would return
what had been taken he would be granted a truce of two years.
It was an imposing procession that set out for the château Montaubon,
headed by the two knights and followed by the flower of the court, and
when they appeared before Maugis and his brothers, they were given a
cordial and gracious reception.
“Brave knights,” said Oger, “thou canst not ignore the fact that the
Duke de Naimes and myself have personally done all we could to stop
this war, and that it would have terminated long since if the emperor
had listened to our advice; this being so, we have some cause to ask
thee to return our swords into our hands, and that if thou wilt also
render all that thou hast taken from Charlemagne into our hands, he
will grant thee a truce of two years.”
“Noble lords, and sir knights,” responded Maugis, “gladly will I grant
thy request, and willingly will I return unto Charlemagne all that
has been taken from him, on the condition of two years’ truce, and I
can only hope and pray that during this time a final peace will be
concluded.”
Then Maugis gave to each knight his own sword, and put into the
possession of the Duke de Naimes all the treasure of the emperor that
had been taken from him.
The generosity and nobility of character Maugis had shown in this
matter awoke the friendly feeling and admiration of every peer of
Charlemagne’s court. Even the emperor was affected almost to tears, and
a general demand arose that the war be ended and peace be granted the
brave young men. A certain number of the courtiers went to Montaubon
and endeavored to persuade Maugis to appear again before the emperor,
now that his heart had been somewhat softened, and endeavor to secure
peace, and when Maugis, though strongly persuaded, hesitated, the Baron
de Estouville even offered to remain at Montaubon as a hostage, and the
Duke de Naimes, in behalf of all the knights present, guaranteed Maugis
should return uninjured, then Maugis, finally, decided to go, though
much against the advice of Yolande, who would have him absolutely
refuse. When the party at last set out and had covered half the
distance to the camp of Charlemagne, Oger and the Duke de Naimes, after
consulting Maugis, rode forward to see Charlemagne, in order to prepare
him for the coming interview.
Unhappily, fate seemed to pursue the dove of peace all through the
career of Maugis and his brave brothers; no sooner did the horizon
brighten for them than dark clouds would again gather and the storm
beset them more furiously than ever. In this case it was Pinabel, an
intimate of Ganelon, who, seeing what was going on, mounted his horse
and hastened to the emperor, that he might arrive there first and
prejudice him against the project of the two knights.
By making false reports, all kinds of calumnies, and above all, by
appealing to the well-known weakness in the character of Charlemagne,
his self-pride, appeals to which he was always susceptible, it hardly
needed the lies and misrepresentations in addition to persuade him that
the coming of Maugis was an insult if not a treachery.
So furious was the emperor made by the crafty deceits of Pinabel, that
he summoned Olivier, saying:
“Harken me well, and obey me. I command thee to take four hundred men
and go forward on the road to Montaubon, where thou wilt encounter the
traitor Maugis and his brother Alard, who have the supreme assurance to
insult me by coming hither. I command thee, thou shalt make them thy
prisoners, even if thou dost lose thy entire force, and fail not,” he
added sternly, “under pain of my displeasure.”
“I go, sire,” replied Olivier, who forthwith departed.
Olivier, who had no knowledge of the pledge given by Oger and the Duke
de Naimes, assembled his troops quickly and departed on his mission.
It was at the very moment he left that Oger and his noble companion
arrived to announce to the emperor the result of their embassy.
“Sire,” said Oger, “we have come to announce to thee that Maugis and
his brother Alard are on their way hither to sue thee for peace; almost
without exception the peers of thy court are lost in admiration of the
nobility of character and the bravery of these young men. Sire, it is
our devotion to thee, as well, that leads us to wish a reconciliation,
that this cruel war may be ended with honor to both parties; we beseech
thee, then, sire, to listen to their penitencies and grant them again
thy favor, and be assured, sire, it will be an act to add to thy
renown, and will be another instance of thy greatness of character.”
“Thou hast gone too far,” said the emperor coldly.
At these words the brave old soldier hesitated not to face the emperor
and declared flatly:
“Sire! though our act may give thee displeasure, it was committed in
the interest of justice and through devotion to thine own interests.
It was the Duke de Naimes who has caused them to visit thee on the
guarantee of our word of honor that they should be protected; rather
than that be violated, I will, myself, if necessary, at the head of my
own men, protect him from any one who shall put the least insult upon a
man I now regard as a common friend.”
During this time Olivier had proceeded along the road until he
encountered Maugis, who was marching alone, without arms, leading
Bayard peacefully at the head of his escort. On seeing Olivier and
his troops, Maugis turned quickly to the Archbishop Turpin and De
Estonville, saying:
“You have betrayed me, behold the troops that come to make me prisoner.”
“We have not betrayed you,” replied the knights, and De Estonville
added:
“God forfend us from committing such a vile infamy, and to prove it we
will join in your defense, and will fight for you to the death.”
While they were having this discussion, Roland dashed up to sustain
Olivier. The three knights, however, were determined to treat the
affair with resolution, advancing to within a hundred paces of the
opposing force, and shouting:
“Roland! stop, I pray you, in the name of honor, in the name of our
word pledged, that not any injury shall befall Maugis and Alard, if
they would visit the emperor and sue for peace.”
Olivier, who had left at the head of his troops against the dictates
of his own heart to fulfill the mission for the emperor, was the first
to accept this explanation joyfully, in which he was quickly joined by
Roland, who said:
“We join you, with our brave companions; not only will we not arrest
you, but if Maugis wishes we will all accompany you direct to the tent
of Charlemagne. We could not do otherwise; we are all united in the
same thought that Maugis should be accorded peace, plain and entire,
and now is the time to have this miserable war terminated.”
In saying this, Roland uttered the sincere sentiments of his heart
toward Maugis, having always found him so brave, so loyal, and so
true, and he could not restrain from testifying to his feelings on
this occasion. Entirely reassured by this friendliness, Maugis yielded
himself into their hands, and they all, once more, took up their march
for the camp.
On their arrival the emperor greeted them with a stern brow, and his
face flushed with anger; a great hush fell upon the assembled company
and an embarrassing silence ensued that was of ominous portent. Oger
would have spoken, but Charlemagne, with an imperious gesture, stopped
him, saying in a voice hoarse with passion:
“Silence! I am your master, let it suffice, once for all that I have
decided that this traitor Maugis shall be punished like a rebel, as he
is, and this time he shall not escape me.”
“Sire, that we shall not willingly permit,” responded the veteran Oger,
fearlessly gazing into the face of Charlemagne. “No! it shall not be
said we have given our word in vain; our honor is above all and unto
the gravest consequences, understand, we shall defend him against you.”
At these defiant words a great hush fell upon the assembled courtiers,
and so intense was the moment that not a word was said, while
Charlemagne sat with eyes blazing, clutching his robe in his hands too
amazed for utterance.
It was at this moment that Maugis, perceiving a situation so tense
would evidently lead to a conflict, advanced and modestly addressing
the emperor, said:
“Sire! I have complied with all the conditions you have imposed
upon me. I have not swerved from a single point. I came here alone,
without arms, on the faith of these brave knights to ratify with you
the basis of a peace. What reproaches can I merit for this? If I have
fought against thee, it is because thou hast incessantly pursued me;
because thou hast tracked me like a wild beast, and all because at the
beginning I refused to sustain thee in a war where my honor commanded
me to remain neutral. Ah, sire!” earnestly pleaded Maugis, “reflect,
examine my actions well; judge my conduct with impartiality, and thou
wilt end in rendering me the justice which is my due.”
It needed but these firm and modest words to add to the evident signs
of disapproval on the part of his courtiers to convince Charlemagne
that he had gone too far; that with but few exceptions his entire court
was against him, and that if he continued his policy there would be
no other outcome than his own humiliation, if not defeat. Quick of
resource, however, he pondered but a moment before he made reply, and
turning to Maugis, said:
“Art thou prepared to make thy cause good, in single combat arms in
hand?”
This change in the aspect of the subject by an appeal to a single
combat was a happy thought; it restored the emperor in the opinion of
his knights and offered a solution of the differences customary and
honorable in those warlike times. Maugis, on his part, hailing any
prospects to secure peace with joy, promptly answered:
“Right willingly, sire, will I accept thy challenge; and all I ask is,
that the Archbishop Turpin, Oger, the Duke de Naimes and Olivier will