se
beheadings gave such encouragement to the whole army that six thousand
soldiers, with three led horses, each preceded by a soldier bearing a
Turk's head on a lance, turned out as a guard to Smith and conducted
him to the pavilion of the general, to whom he presented his trophies.
General Moyses (occasionally Smith calls him Moses) took him in his arms
and embraced him with much respect, and gave him a fair horse, richly
furnished, a scimeter, and a belt worth three hundred ducats. And his
colonel advanced him to the position of sergeant-major of his regiment.
If any detail was wanting to round out and reward this knightly
performance in strict accord with the old romances, it was supplied by
the subsequent handsome conduct of Prince Sigismund.

When the Christians had mounted their guns and made a couple of breaches
in the walls of Regall, General Moyses ordered an attack one dark night
"by the light that proceeded from the murdering muskets and peace-making
cannon." The enemy were thus awaited, "whilst their slothful governor
lay in a castle on top of a high mountain, and like a valiant prince
asketh what's the matter, when horrour and death stood amazed at
each other, to see who should prevail to make him victorious." These
descriptions show that Smith could handle the pen as well as the
battleaxe, and distinguish him from the more vulgar fighters of his
time. The assault succeeded, but at great cost of life. The Turks sent a
flag of truce and desired a "composition," but the earl, remembering the
death of his father, continued to batter the town and when he took it
put all the men in arms to the sword, and then set their heads upon
stakes along the walls, the Turks having ornamented the walls with
Christian heads when they captured the fortress. Although the town
afforded much pillage, the loss of so many troops so mixed the sour
with the sweet that General Moyses could only allay his grief by sacking
three other towns, Veratis, Solmos, and Kapronka. Taking from these a
couple of thousand prisoners, mostly women and children, Earl Moyses
marched north to Weisenberg (Alba Julia), and camped near the palace of
Prince Sigismund.

When Sigismund Battori came out to view his army he was made acquainted
with the signal services of Smith at "Olumpagh, Stowell-Weisenberg, and
Regall," and rewarded him by conferring upon him, according to the law
of--arms, a shield of arms with "three Turks' heads." This was granted
by a