ay, a
very rude and violent man--daring, reckless, and often unjust, and
even cruel--but he was not treacherous. What he did, he did in the
open day; and he was wholly incapable of such a deed as pretending
deceitfully that he would accede to Conrad's claims with a view of
throwing him off his guard, and then putting him to death by means of
hired murderers.

This reasoning will seem satisfactory to us or otherwise, according to
the views we like to entertain in respect to the genuineness of the
sense of generosity and honor which is so much boasted of as a
characteristic of the spirit of chivalry. Some persons place great
reliance upon it, and think that so gallant and courageous a knight
as Richard must have been incapable of any such deed as a secret
assassination. Others place very little reliance upon it. They think
that the generosity and nobleness of mind to which this class of men
make such great pretension is chiefly a matter of outside show and
parade, and that, when it serves their purpose, they are generally
ready to resort to any covert and dishonest means which will help them
to accomplish their ends, however truly dishonorable such means may
be, provided they can conceal their agency in them. For my part, I am
strongly inclined to the latter opinion, and to believe that there is
nothing in the human heart that we can really rely upon in respect to
human conduct and character but sound and consistent moral principle.

At any rate, it is unfortunate for Richard's cause that among those
who were around him at the time, and who knew his character best, the
prevailing opinion was against him. It was generally believed in the
army that he was really the secret author of Conrad's death. The event
produced a prodigious excitement throughout the camp. When the news
reached Europe, it awakened a very general indignation there,
especially among those who were inclined to be hostile to Richard.
Philip, the King of France, professed to be alarmed for his own
safety. "He has employed murderers to kill Conrad, my friend and
ally," said he, "and the next thing will be that he will send some of
the Old Man of the Mountain's emissaries to thrust their daggers into
me."

So he organized an extra guard to watch at the gates of his palace,
and to attend him whenever he went out, and gave them special
instructions to watch against the approach of any suspicious
strangers. The Emperor of Germany too, and the Archduke of Aus