Bissula. English
Page 33
CHAPTER XXXIII.
But, eagerly as Saturninus watched for the galleys expected fromArbor, another was to learn their anticipated departure long before heknew of it. This was Duke Hariowald.
On a wooded hill, the hill of Zio, named the Geerebuehl, east of theHoly Mountain, almost directly opposite to Arbor, a little band ofAlemanni spies watched night and day, one, relieved every hour, gazingsteadily across the lake at the Hill of Mercury, the nearest heightsouth of Arbor on the southern shore of the lake.
The region around this harbor fortress, which was wholly under Romanrule, was inhabited by colonists of various tribes: among them manyAlemanni whom capture, or voluntary surrender and removal, had led tothe better-tilled, more richly cultivated southern shore.
At noon on the day of Adalo's secret message a slender, almostinvisible column of smoke rose from the Hill of Mercury on the southernshore: instantly a thick grayish-black cloud of smoke ascended from theGeerebuehl on the north shore. This was clearly seen from the easternside of the summit of the Holy Mountain,--the Hill of Mercury was _not_visible from it,--and one of the guards who constantly watched theGeerebuehl, instantly rushed into the Duke's tent "Smoke is rising onZio's Mountain! A high column of smoke."
Hariowald came out of his tent in full armor (during the past week hehad scarcely removed it night or day), with his battle helmet on hisnoble head. This helmet was a very strange one: whoever unexpectedlysaw it gleam before him might well be startled.
In those days, as well as now, the great white owl was a rare visitorto Lake Constance. Scarcely once in a decade did this stranger from thefar north go so far southwest in its migratory flight as theneighborhood of the Alps. Early in the winter of the previous yearAdalo had brought down with his arrow a magnificent specimen of thesuperb bird of prey from a tall fir-tree in the forest by the lake, andgiven the huge bird with its gleaming snow-white plumage, marked onlywith a few rusty brown feathers in undulating lines on the breast, tohis white-haired cousin as a splendid ornament for his helmet.
The owl now spread above the bronze head-piece its huge pinions which,though not stretched to their full width, extended more than threefeet. It was not mounted as eagle and swan wings usually were, with thetips of the feathers toward the back of the helmet, but in the oppositeway, turned forward, startling and confusing the spectator by thethreatening attitude--a true helmet of terror, such as Odin wears whenhe rushes into battle at the head of his troops.
With this helmet and clad in full armor, the Duke came out of his tentand motioned to one of the heralds, who always waited his orders here.The man seized the long crooked horn of the aurochs, which hung readyon one of the posts of the tent, and sounded it three times. Thesummons echoed far and wide. Instantly the other heralds, carryingwhite-ash staffs in their hands, and wearing smaller horns hung byleather thongs over their shoulders, hurried down from the summit inevery direction, through all the lines of the fortifications, bearingthe Duke's summons to the most distant outpost.
The warriors flocked from all sides, fully armed, swiftly climbing themountain; only the guards needed to protect the fords across theswamps, the barricades, and the narrow entrances to the ring wallsremained behind. All pressed up the mountain and, as soon as theyreached the summit, surged toward a giant ash-tree which, from the topof the loftiest mountain peak, thrust its branches into the clouds.
Close to its trunk a sort of judge's tribunal had been built of largestones; an oblong one rested like a back against the tree; another ofthe same height, laid across two blocks sunk in the earth, formed theseat.
Several stone steps led up to the high seat, and on them lay variousweapons, among them one very plain shield and spear, with the rune_fe_, corresponding to the Latin _F_. Then came a costly boar helmet, arichly ornamented bronze shield, covered with a boar's hide and, likethe helmet, decorated with two boar's tusks outstretched defiantly; asword in a costly sheath of polished linden wood, richly mounted withbronze; a sharp battle axe and a spear, the handles of both adorned andstrengthened by gilded nails: these weapons bore as a house-markdrawings of two boar tusks. Last of all were a small, very light roundshield, a short spear, and a dainty sword with a white leather beltpainted with red lead: each of the three weapons bore as house-mark astag's antlers.
The Duke had not yet taken his seat. Standing erect on the horizontalstone, with his spear in his right hand, he scanned the warriorsflocking from every direction. A huge oblong shield, almost the heightof a man, painted red, with black runes inscribed upon it, hung abovehis head on a bough of the ash.
The whole top of the peak around the tree was inclosed and girdled by"cords and staves"; that is, by hazel wands and spears, which--thelatter with the iron points uppermost--stood thrust into the earth atdistances of seven feet apart, and were bound together by linen bandsalmost a hand's breadth wide, knotted around the middle of the staffs,the red hue of the bands proclaiming that the popular assembly was tojudge matters of life and death.