with equal ardor. At last the Turks were
driven back, but they returned next day to the attack, nor did they
retreat until the Crusaders had slain four thousand of them. The heads
of these Turks were cut off and thrown over the walls of Nicaea, there to
inform the garrison of the Crusaders' victory and to frighten them into
surrender.

But the Turks held out long, in spite of the many brave assaults made by
the besiegers. In these attacks the Crusaders used many strange machines
of war,--great rams of wood to batter down the walls; ballistas for
casting stones, beams, and arrows; and catapults for throwing fire and
huge stones into the city.

The Turks had similar machines and also great iron hands with which they
reached down from the walls, seized the Crusaders, and drew them up into
the city. Then, killing these luckless captives and stripping the
bodies, the infidels would hurl them back by machines into the camp of
the Christians. These cruelties and the vengeance of the Crusaders made
the warfare very horrible.

Wonderful deeds were performed on both sides. A huge giant among the
Turks made himself admired and dreaded by his great skill and
extraordinary strength. With every cast of his javelin he slew an enemy,
and he destroyed scores of the besiegers by hurling down upon them great
masses of rock. One day he stood on the city wall and, single-handed,
held at bay a great number of Christians. While fighting, he shouted
defiance to the whole army of Crusaders, ridiculing them and grossly
insulting their religion. Hundreds of arrows flew at him, but still he
remained unhurt. Then Godfrey, who had been in another part of the
field, came rushing up to discover the cause of the tumult. The infidel,
poising an arrow, exclaimed,--

"Dog of a Christian, thou too shalt die! Let us see if thy crucified God
can save thee!"

Enraged at this insolence and blasphemy, Godfrey seized a cross-bow and
took aim quickly. Through the heart of the scoffing giant went the
arrow, and down into the ditch tumbled the dreaded infidel. Cries of
distress from the Turks and shouts of joy from the Christians greeted
this deed of the valiant Godfrey.

After seven weeks of almost continuous fighting, the Crusaders were on
the point of taking Nicaea, when to their astonishment they saw the
standard of Alexius raised on the city wall. The cunning Greek emperor,
learning that the city was about to surrender, had sent an envoy and
persuaded