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Don Fernando parted the officer and Don Quixote, and to their mutualcontentment made them relax the grip by which they held, the one thecoat collar, the other the throat of his adversary; for all this,however, the officers did not cease to demand their prisoner andcall on them to help, and deliver him over bound into their power,as was required for the service of the King and of the HolyBrotherhood, on whose behalf they again demanded aid and assistance toeffect the capture of this robber and footpad of the highways.

Don Quixote smiled when he heard these words, and said verycalmly, "Come now, base, ill-born brood; call ye it highway robbery togive freedom to those in bondage, to release the captives, tosuccour the miserable, to raise up the fallen, to relieve the needy?Infamous beings, who by your vile grovelling intellects deserve thatheaven should not make known to you the virtue that lies inknight-errantry, or show you the sin and ignorance in which ye liewhen ye refuse to respect the shadow, not to say the presence, ofany knight-errant! Come now; band, not of officers, but of thieves;footpads with the licence of the Holy Brotherhood; tell me who was theignoramus who signed a warrant of arrest against such a knight as Iam? Who was he that did not know that knights-errant are independentof all jurisdictions, that their law is their sword, their chartertheir prowess, and their edicts their will? Who, I say again, wasthe fool that knows not that there are no letters patent of nobilitythat confer such privileges or exemptions as a knight-errantacquires the day he is dubbed a knight, and devotes himself to thearduous calling of chivalry? What knight-errant ever paid poll-tax,duty, queen's pin-money, king's dues, toll or ferry? What tailorever took payment of him for making his clothes? What castellan thatreceived him in his castle ever made him pay his shot? What king didnot seat him at his table? What damsel was not enamoured of him anddid not yield herself up wholly to his will and pleasure? And, lastly,what knight-errant has there been, is there, or will there ever bein the world, not bold enough to give, single-handed, four hundredcudgellings to four hundred officers of the Holy Brotherhood if theycome in his way?"

CHAPTER XLVI

OF THE END OF THE NOTABLE ADVENTURE OF THE OFFICERS OF THE HOLYBROTHERHOOD; AND OF THE GREAT FEROCITY OF OUR WORTHY KNIGHT, DONQUIXOTE

WHILE Don Quixote was talking in this strain, the curate wasendeavouring to persuade the officers that he was out of his senses,as they might perceive by his deeds and his words, and that theyneed not press the matter any further, for even if they arrested himand carried him off, they would have to release him by-and-by as amadman; to which the holder of the warrant replied that he had nothingto do with inquiring into Don Quixote's madness, but only to executehis superior's orders, and that once taken they might let him go threehundred times if they liked.

"For all that," said the curate, "you must not take him away thistime, nor will he, it is my opinion, let himself be taken away."

In short, the curate used such arguments, and Don Quixote did suchmad things, that the officers would have been more mad than he wasif they had not perceived his want of wits, and so they thought itbest to allow themselves to be pacified, and even to act aspeacemakers between the barber and Sancho Panza, who still continuedtheir altercation with much bitterness. In the end they, as officersof justice, settled the question by arbitration in such a mannerthat both sides were, if not perfectly contented, at least to someextent satisfied; for they changed the pack-saddles, but not thegirths or head-stalls; and as to Mambrino's helmet, the curate,under the rose and without Don Quixote's knowing it, paid eightreals for the basin, and the barber executed a full receipt andengagement to make no further demand then or thenceforth for evermore,amen. These two disputes, which were the most important and gravest,being settled, it only remained for the servants of Don Luis toconsent that three of them should return while one was left toaccompany him whither Don Fernando desired to take him; and goodluck and better fortune, having already begun to solve difficultiesand remove obstructions in favour of the lovers and warriors of theinn, were pleased to persevere and bring everything to a happyissue; for the servants agreed to do as Don Luis wished; which gaveDona Clara such happiness that no one could have looked into herface just then without seeing the joy of her heart. Zoraida, thoughshe did not fully comprehend all she saw, was grave or gay withoutknowing why, as she watched and studied the various countenances,but particularly her Spaniard's, whom she followed with her eyes andclung to with her soul. The gift and compensation which the curategave the barber had not escaped the landlord's notice, and he demandedDon Quixote's reckoning, together with the amount of the damage to hiswine-skins, and the loss of his wine, swearing that neitherRocinante nor Sancho's ass should leave the inn until he had been paidto the very last farthing. The curate settled all amicably, and DonFernando paid; though the Judge had also very readily offered to paythe score; and all became so peaceful and quiet that the inn no longerreminded one of the discord of Agramante's camp, as Don Quixotesaid, but of the peace and tranquillity of the days of Octavianus: forall which it was the universal opinion that their thanks were due tothe great zeal and eloquence of the curate, and to the unexampledgenerosity of Don Fernando.

Finding himself now clear and quit of all quarrels, his squire'sas well as his own, Don Quixote considered that it would beadvisable to continue the journey he had begun, and bring to a closethat great adventure for which he had been called and chosen; and withthis high resolve he went and knelt before Dorothea, who, however,would not allow him to utter a word until he had risen; so to obey herhe rose, and said, "It is a common proverb, fair lady, that 'diligenceis the mother of good fortune,' and experience has often shown inimportant affairs that the earnestness of the negotiator brings thedoubtful case to a successful termination; but in nothing does thistruth show itself more plainly than in war, where quickness andactivity forestall the devices of the enemy, and win the victorybefore the foe has time to defend himself. All this I say, exalted andesteemed lady, because it seems to me that for us to remain any longerin this castle now is useless, and may be injurious to us in a waythat we shall find out some day; for who knows but that your enemy thegiant may have learned by means of secret and diligent spies that I amgoing to destroy him, and if the opportunity be given him he may seizeit to fortify himself in some impregnable castle or stronghold,against which all my efforts and the might of my indefatigable arm mayavail but little? Therefore, lady, let us, as I say, forestall hisschemes by our activity, and let us depart at once in quest of fairfortune; for your highness is only kept from enjoying it as fully asyou could desire by my delay in encountering your adversary."

Don Quixote held his peace and said no more, calmly awaiting thereply of the beauteous princess, who, with commanding dignity and in astyle adapted to Don Quixote's own, replied to him in these words,"I give you thanks, sir knight, for the eagerness you, like a goodknight to whom it is a natural obligation to succour the orphan andthe needy, display to afford me aid in my sore trouble; and heavengrant that your wishes and mine may be realised, so that you may seethat there are women in this world capable of gratitude; as to mydeparture, let it be forthwith, for I have no will but yours;dispose of me entirely in accordance with your good pleasure; forshe who has once entrusted to you the defence of her person, andplaced in your hands the recovery of her dominions, must not thinkof offering opposition to that which your wisdom may ordain."

"On, then, in God's name," said Don Quixote; "for, when a ladyhumbles herself to me, I will not lose the opportunity of raisingher up and placing her on the throne of her ancestors. Let us departat once, for the common saying that in delay there is danger, lendsspurs to my eagerness to take the road; and as neither heaven hascreated nor hell seen any that can daunt or intimidate me, saddleRocinante, Sancho, and get ready thy ass and the queen's palfrey,and let us take leave of the castellan and these gentlemen, and gohence this very instant."

Sancho, who was standing by all the time, said, shaking his head,"Ah! master, master, there is more mischief in the village than onehears of, begging all good bodies' pardon."

"What mischief can there be in any village, or in all the citiesof the world, you booby, that can hurt my reputation?" said DonQuixote.

"If your worship is angry," replied Sancho, "I will hold my tongueand leave unsaid what as a good squire I am bound to say, and what agood servant should tell his master."

"Say what thou wilt," returned Don Quixote, "provided thy words benot meant to work upon my fears; for thou, if thou fearest, artbehaving like thyself; but I like myself, in not fearing."

"It is nothing of the sort, as I am a sinner before God," saidSancho, "but that I take it to be sure and certain that this lady, whocalls herself queen of the great kingdom of Micomicon, is no more sothan my mother; for, if she was what she says, she would not gorubbing noses with one that is here every instant and behind everydoor."

Dorothea turned red at Sancho's words, for the truth was that herhusband Don Fernando had now and then, when the others were notlooking, gathered from her lips some of the reward his love hadearned, and Sancho seeing this had considered that such freedom wasmore like a courtesan than a queen of a great kingdom; she, however,being unable or not caring to answer him, allowed him to proceed,and he continued, "This I say, senor, because, if after we havetravelled roads and highways, and passed bad nights and worse days,one who is now enjoying himself in this inn is to reap the fruit ofour labours, there is no need for me to be in a hurry to saddleRocinante, put the pad on the ass, or get ready the palfrey; for itwill be better for us to stay quiet, and let every jade mind herspinning, and let us go to dinner."

Good God, what was the indignation of Don Quixote when he heardthe audacious words of his squire! So great was it, that in a voiceinarticulate with rage, with a stammering tongue, and eyes thatflashed living fire, he exclaimed, "Rascally clown, boorish, insolent,and ignorant, ill-spoken, foul-mouthed, impudent backbiter andslanderer! Hast thou dared to utter such words in my presence and inthat of these illustrious ladies? Hast thou dared to harbour suchgross and shameless thoughts in thy muddled imagination? Begone frommy presence, thou born monster, storehouse of lies, hoard of untruths,garner of knaveries, inventor of scandals, publisher of absurdities,enemy of the respect due to royal personages! Begone, show thyselfno more before me under pain of my wrath;" and so saying he knittedhis brows, puffed out his cheeks, gazed around him, and stamped on theground violently with his right foot, showing in every way the ragethat was pent up in his heart; and at his words and furious gesturesSancho was so scared and terrified that he would have been glad if theearth had opened that instant and swallowed him, and his onlythought was to turn round and make his escape from the angrypresence of his master.

But the ready-witted Dorothea, who by this time so well understoodDon Quixote's humour, said, to mollify his wrath, "Be not irritated atthe absurdities your good squire has uttered, Sir Knight of the RuefulCountenance, for perhaps he did not utter them without cause, and fromhis good sense and Christian conscience it is not likely that he wouldbear false witness against anyone. We may therefore believe, withoutany hesitation, that since, as you say, sir knight, everything in thiscastle goes and is brought about by means of enchantment, Sancho, Isay, may possibly have seen, through this diabolical medium, what hesays he saw so much to the detriment of my modesty."

"I swear by God Omnipotent," exclaimed Don Quixote at this, "yourhighness has hit the point; and that some vile illusion must have comebefore this sinner of a Sancho, that made him see what it would havebeen impossible to see by any other means than enchantments; for Iknow well enough, from the poor fellow's goodness and harmlessness,that he is incapable of bearing false witness against anybody."

"True, no doubt," said Don Fernando, "for which reason, Senor DonQuixote, you ought to forgive him and restore him to the bosom of yourfavour, sicut erat in principio, before illusions of this sort hadtaken away his senses."

Don Quixote said he was ready to pardon him, and the curate went forSancho, who came in very humbly, and falling on his knees begged forthe hand of his master, who having presented it to him and allowed himto kiss it, gave him his blessing and said, "Now, Sancho my son,thou wilt be convinced of the truth of what I have many a time toldthee, that everything in this castle is done by means of enchantment."

"So it is, I believe," said Sancho, "except the affair of theblanket, which came to pass in reality by ordinary means."

"Believe it not," said Don Quixote, "for had it been so, I wouldhave avenged thee that instant, or even now; but neither then nornow could I, nor have I seen anyone upon whom to avenge thy wrong."

They were all eager to know what the affair of the blanket was,and the landlord gave them a minute account of Sancho's flights, atwhich they laughed not a little, and at which Sancho would have beenno less out of countenance had not his master once more assured him itwas all enchantment. For all that his simplicity never reached so higha pitch that he could persuade himself it was not the plain and simpletruth, without any deception whatever about it, that he had beenblanketed by beings of flesh and blood, and not by visionary andimaginary phantoms, as his master believed and protested.

The illustrious company had now been two days in the inn; and asit seemed to them time to depart, they devised a plan so that, withoutgiving Dorothea and Don Fernando the trouble of going back with DonQuixote to his village under pretence of restoring Queen Micomicona,the curate and the barber might carry him away with them as theyproposed, and the curate be able to take his madness in hand athome; and in pursuance of their plan they arranged with the owner ofan oxcart who happened to be passing that way to carry him afterthis fashion. They constructed a kind of cage with wooden bars,large enough to hold Don Quixote comfortably; and then Don Fernandoand his companions, the servants of Don Luis, and the officers ofthe Brotherhood, together with the landlord, by the directions andadvice of the curate, covered their faces and disguised themselves,some in one way, some in another, so as to appear to Don Quixote quitedifferent from the persons he had seen in the castle. This done, inprofound silence they entered the room where he was asleep, taking hishis rest after the past frays, and advancing to where he wassleeping tranquilly, not dreaming of anything of the kind happening,they seized him firmly and bound him fast hand and foot, so that, whenhe awoke startled, he was unable to move, and could only marvel andwonder at the strange figures he saw before him; upon which he at oncegave way to the idea which his crazed fancy invariably conjured upbefore him, and took it into his head that all these shapes werephantoms of the enchanted castle, and that he himself wasunquestionably enchanted as he could neither move nor help himself;precisely what the curate, the concoctor of the scheme, expected wouldhappen. Of all that were there Sancho was the only one who was at oncein his senses and in his own proper character, and he, though he waswithin very little of sharing his master's infirmity, did not failto perceive who all these disguised figures were; but he did notdare to open his lips until he saw what came of this assault andcapture of his master; nor did the latter utter a word, waiting to theupshot of his mishap; which was that bringing in the cage, they shuthim up in it and nailed the bars so firmly that they could not beeasily burst open. They then took him on their shoulders, and asthey passed out of the room an awful voice- as much so as thebarber, not he of the pack-saddle but the other, was able to makeit- was heard to say, "O Knight of the Rueful Countenance, let notthis captivity in which thou art placed afflict thee, for this mustneeds be, for the more speedy accomplishment of the adventure in whichthy great heart has engaged thee; the which shall be accomplished whenthe raging Manchegan lion and the white Tobosan dove shall be linkedtogether, having first humbled their haughty necks to the gentleyoke of matrimony. And from this marvellous union shall come forthto the light of the world brave whelps that shall rival the raveningclaws of their valiant father; and this shall come to pass ere thepursuer of the flying nymph shall in his swift natural course havetwice visited the starry signs. And thou, O most noble and obedientsquire that ever bore sword at side, beard on face, or nose to smellwith, be not dismayed or grieved to see the flower ofknight-errantry carried away thus before thy very eyes; for soon, ifit so please the Framer of the universe, thou shalt see thyselfexalted to such a height that thou shalt not know thyself, and thepromises which thy good master has made thee shall not prove false;and I assure thee, on the authority of the sage Mentironiana, that thywages shall be paid thee, as thou shalt see in due season. Follow thenthe footsteps of the valiant enchanted knight, for it is expedientthat thou shouldst go to the destination assigned to both of you;and as it is not permitted to me to say more, God be with thee; forI return to that place I wot of;" and as he brought the prophecy toa close he raised his voice to a high pitch, and then lowered it tosuch a soft tone, that even those who knew it was all a joke werealmost inclined to take what they heard seriously.