grave and the Princess, and take
their places to the well-known, long-loved march. The minstrels have
seats apart from the rest, facing their audience. The Landgrave
addresses them nobly, with gracious compliment for the skill shown
theretofore by them in singing as in fighting, for their victorious
championship of virtue and the true faith, high tradition and all
things lovely. Let them offer the guests to-day a banquet of song,
upon the occasion of the return among them of the "daring singer"
whose absence they so long had deplored, whom a wonderful mystery
has brought back into their neighbourhood. He sets to the
song-contestants as their task to define the nature of love. He
who shall most worthily besing it shall receive the prize from
Elizabeth's hand. Let his demand be bold as he will, the Landgrave's
care it shall be to see his wish granted.

Lots are drawn. Fortune appoints Wolfram to open the song-feast.
He preludes pensively, and sets forth in an improvisation of slow
and stately gait his delicate dreamer's sentiments: Glancing around
this noble assemblage, his heart kindles at sight of so many heroes,
valiant, German, and wise,--a proud oak-forest, verily, splendid,
fresh and green. And among them fair and virtuous ladies, fragrant
garland of beauteous flowers. The eye swoons, drunken with gazing,
the poet's song grows mute before such splendour of loveliness. He
fixes his eyes, then, upon one only of the stars in that dazzling
firmament. His spirit is forced to worship and bow in prayer. And,
behold, the vision he has of a miraculous fount, from which his spirit
may draw sacred joys, his heart receive ineffable refreshment. And
never would he wish to trouble that fountain, never with criminal
presumption stir those waters,--but offer himself up to it in
self-sacrificing adoration, and shed for its sake the last of his
blood. From these words the company may apprehend what he conceives
to be the nature of love at its purest.

There is warm applause from the noble knights and ladies, whether
because they understand the star to be Elizabeth, and the fountain
the pure love she inspires, or because it was the ideal of that
period of song-contests and Courts of Love and chivalry to love with
a reverence that precluded any near approach to the lady elected
for adoration. A poet might marry and have seven children, while
regarding with exalted passion and celebrating in enraptured
song,--making into his star, hi