broken leg of this stool into you
if you are not satisfied yet.' Thereupon he held his tongue, and went
away with a black eye, accompanied by his noble companions. They
mounted their horses and rode out of the gate. But as soon as they
considered themselves safe, then they began to rail; they nicknamed me
a hundred times a trade-fallen ostler. One of them tried to fire his
pistol, but could not succeed; doubtless because there was neither cock
nor trigger to the lock. At last they perceived that I was coming after
them with half-a-dozen peasants; so they, hastened off, and sent me,
about a fortnight afterwards, all three at the same time, a challenge,
in the belief that I should never have the courage to meet them sword
in hand in the open field; but they found themselves much mistaken.

"Being fearful, however, that the whole swarm of surrounding
_Krippenreiters_ would fall upon me, and unite in giving me a good
drubbing, I took with me two troopers who were then in the country, and
in the first pass gave V. such a good cut over the shoulder, that his
sword fell from his hand, which he could no longer use. W. therefore
lost at once all courage, so that on my second fight he was fain to
make peace. No one conducted himself better than Michael von S., whom I
had before considered the most faint-hearted. He fought well enough,
till at last this threefold duel ended thus: the two companions were
reconciled to me, but Vogelbach stipulated to have two more passes on
horseback as soon as his arm should be healed, which, nevertheless, he
has not carried out up to the present day.

"Thus I obtained rest from the brawls of '_Krippenreiters_,' though
there was no diminution of their visits; nevertheless, I soon
experienced a much greater and more costly annoyance. My vendor had not
only cheated me a good deal in the sale itself, but had concealed from
me also an important redeemable interest; besides which, he had not
given up all that was set down in the inventory. So I was obliged to
bring a complaint against him before the government, and to employ an
advocate. It was long beginning I was little disposed to do so; it was
my wish to obtain the daughter of some good citizen with a few thousand
thalers, and thereby to improve my housekeeping. But the false friend
who over-persuaded me to the purchase, advised me to marry no one that
was not of the old nobility, and also in the neighbourhood. 'In the
first place,' said he, 'it is