thou have gloves without end, I warn thee to fill thy right-hand
glove with soft wool, that thou mayest deceive the game with the
semblance of a hand. But what sayest thou to break the custom of thy
people in carrying thy sword at thy right side and embracing thy wife
with thy left arm?"

"Ha," retorted Walthar, laughing grimly, "thou wilt have to greet the
troops of heroes with a side glance. When thou gettest thee home, make
thee a larded broth of milk and flour, which will both nourish and cure
thee."

Then they placed on horseback the king, who was in sore pain. Hagen bore
him back to Worms, whilst Walthar and Hildegund pursued their way to
Aquitaine, and, on arrival, magnificently celebrated their wedding.

For thirty years did Walthar rule his people after his father's death.
"What wars after this, what triumphs he ever had, behold, my blunted
pen refuses to mark. Thou whosoever readest this, forgive a chirping
cricket. Weigh not a yet rough voice but the age, since as yet she hath
not left the nest for the air. This is the poem of Walthar. Save us,
Jesus Christ."

CHAPTER VII--HEIDELBERG TO SAeCKINGEN

Heidelberg is known all over the world as one of Germany's great
university towns, as the site of an unrivalled if ruined schloss, and of
a view at the junction of the Rhine with the Neckar which is one of
the most famous in the world. It lies between lofty hills covered with
vineyards and forests, flanked by handsome villas and gardens, and is
crowned by its castle, which has suffered equally from siege and the
elements, being partially blown up by the French in 1609, and struck by
lightning in 1704.

The Wolf's Spring

The name of Jette, a beautiful prophetess of the ancient goddess Herthe,
is linked with the neighbourhood of Heidelberg by the following tragic
tale.

When the old heathen gods and goddesses were still worshipped in the
Rhine country, a certain priestess of Herthe took up her abode in an
ancient grove, where she practised her occult arts so successfully that
the fame of her divinations spread far and wide, and men came from all
parts of Europe to learn from her what the future had in store for them.
Frequently a warrior left her abode with a consuming fire kindled in
his breast which would rob him of sleep for many a long night, yet none
dared to declare his love to her, for, lovely though she was, there
was an air of austerity, an atmosphere of mysticism about her which
command