er were
put repeatedly under the ban of the Empire, and in certain cities the
priests and monks fulminated fire and flame at me from the pulpit, and
gave me up to be eaten by the birds of the air, and everything that we
had was taken from us, so that we could not possess a foot's breadth of
anything. There was no time for festivities; we were obliged to conceal
ourselves, and yet I was able to do my enemies some injury, both to
their possessions and otherwise, so that his Imperial Majesty several
times interposed and directed his commissaries to negotiate between us,
to regulate all things and bring about a reconciliation; thereby his
Imperial Majesty hindered many of my projects, and occasioned me more
than two hundred thousand gulden' worth of loss, for I intended to have
carried off both gold and money from the Nurembergers. It was my
project then, by God's help, to overthrow, beat, and imprison all the
Nuremberg soldiers, and even the burgomaster himself, who wore a large
gold chain about his neck, and held a mace in his hand, and also all
their horsemen and their standard bearer, when they were on their way
to Hohenkraehen; I was already prepared for it with horse and foot, so
that it was quite certain I should have got them into my hands. But
there were some good lords and friends of whom I took counsel, whether
I should on the appointed day appear before his Imperial Majesty, or
put my project in execution. Their true and faithful counsel was, that
I should honour his Imperial Majesty with a visit that day, which
counsel I followed to my great and evident loss.

"I knew when the Frankfort fair was to take place, when the
Nurembergers were to go on foot from Wuerzburg to Frankfort by the
Spessart. I made a reconnaissance and fell upon five or six; amongst
them there was a merchant whom I attacked for the third time, having in
half a year, twice made him prisoner and once deprived him of property;
the others were mere bale packers of Nuremberg: I made semblance as if
I would cut off their heads and hands, though I was not in earnest; but
they were obliged to kneel down and lay their heads upon a block; I
then gave one of them a kick behind, and a box on the ear to the
others: this was the way I punished them, and then let them go their
way. The merchant whom I had so frequently waylaid crossed himself and
said: 'I should sooner have thought that the heavens would fall in than
that you should have waylaid me to-day,