aced themselves thus
armed. To whom the bailiff answered that his lords had sent him to
guard this place, and that the supremacy belonged to the Counts of
Oettingen; which my son gainsaid, as the parents of the Counts had sold
it, and it belonged to me, and he bid them take themselves off. Upon
this the bailiff rode away with these words, that he would soon return
after another fashion; and presently, from the footpath horsemen and
infantry were to be seen coming; whereupon my son sent certain servants
and vassals to the castle and the church tower, to await the enemy.
Suddenly the Count's people, numbering about forty horsemen and three
hundred foot, came riding and running at full speed, attacked my son,
and cousin Ludwig, and their sharpshooters and vassals with spears and
firearms, pressed quite up to the barrier of the fair, and closed the
gates by overpowering force. On the other hand my son and his followers
placed themselves on the defensive, fought them at close quarters, and
firing at them from the castle and towers, shot two of the Count's
horses and two of his men, one in the body and the other in the leg;
thus they kept them at bay, and at last put them to flight, but, thank
God! no misfortune happened to him or his. Afterwards, however, when my
son had entered the castle with his people, and was eating his supper
and taking no further heed, Count Lothar, that honourable man, who had
before said so many friendly things to me, returned about six o'clock,
and fired thirty shots at the castle with four powerful guns upon
wheels, and blew away full twelve bricks. About nine o'clock they
returned to Unter-Bissingen: both Counts strengthened themselves in the
night, and came again in the morning with many people. As my son and my
cousin Ludwig had no expectation of another attack, they came over to
me early in the morning; then the burgomaster and certain councillors
went out to the enemy and inquired what their intentions were, as there
was no one in the castle but women and children, they also said that
the domain was under process and Imperial neutrality. Thereupon the
bailiff from Harburg made reply that they had come yesterday and again
to-day with good and friendly intentions, to claim their lord's rights
of supremacy, but they had been fired at, whereby great damage had been
done to them. They desired to occupy the _Platz_ to-day, but if they
were fired at, it would be seen what they should do in return. Upo