to whom it should be given.

The trade of his great house was for the most part with Venice, and it
would have been easy to fancy oneself in some fine palazzo on the grand
canal as one marked the carpets, the mirrors, the brocade, and the
vessels in his house; and not a few of his tokens had likewise been
brought from thence.

Before this largesse in his own house he was wont to bestow another, and
a very noble one, on the old men and women of the poor folks in the town;
and when this was over he went with them to the church of Saint Aegidius,
and washed the feet of about a score of them, which act of penitential
humility he was wont to repeat in Passion week.

Then when he had welcomed his kin, each one to his house, he would say to
such as thanked him, if it were a child, very soberly: "Be a good child."
But for elder folks he had no more than "It is well," or an almost
churlish: "That is enough."

This evening he had given me a gown of costly brocade of Cyprus; to Kunz
everything that a Junker might need on his travels; and to Herdegen the
same sword which he himself had in past time worn at court; the hilt was
set with gems and ended in the lion rampant, couped, of the Im Hoffs.
Ursula Tetzel, like me, had had a gown-piece which was lying near by the
sword.

Herdegen, holding the jewelled weapon in his hand, thanked his
grand-uncle, who muttered as was his wont "'Tis well, 'tis well," when
Jost Tetzel put in his word, saying that the gift of a sword was supposed
to part friends, but that this ill-effect might be hindered if he who
received it made a return-offering to the giver, and so the token was
made into a purchase.

At this Herdegen hastened to take out a gold pin set with sapphire
stones, which Cousin Maud had given him, from his neck-kerchief, to offer
it to his uncle; but the elder would have nothing to say to such
foolishness, and pushed the pin away. But then when my brother did not
cease, but besought him to accept it, inasmuch as he cared so greatly for
his uncle's fatherly kindness, the old knight cried that he wanted no
such sparkling finery, but that the day might come when he should require
some payment and that Herdegen was then to remember that he was in his
debt.

At this minute they were hindered from further speech by the servants,
who came in to bid us to supper, and there stood ready wild fowl and
fish, fruits and pastry, with the rarest wines and the richest vessels;
the great middl