tory of William Tell
was Guillimann, in his work on Swiss Antiquities, published in 1598.
He calls the story a pure fable, but, nevertheless, eating his words,
concludes by proclaiming his belief in it, because the tale is so
popular! Undoubtedly he acted a wise part; for, in 1760, as we are
told, Uriel Freudenberger was condemned by the canton of Uri to be burnt
alive, for publishing his opinion that the legend of Tell had a Danish
origin. [1]

The bold heretic was substantially right, however, like so many other
heretics, earlier and later. The Danish account of Tell is given as
follows, by Saxo Grammaticus:--

"A certain Palnatoki, for some time among King Harold's body-guard, had
made his bravery odious to very many of his fellow-soldiers by the zeal
with which he surpassed them in the discharge of his duty. This man
once, when talking tipsily over his cups, had boasted that he was so
skilled an archer that he could hit the smallest apple placed a long way
off on a wand at the first shot; which talk, caught up at first by the
ears of backbiters, soon came to the hearing of the king. Now, mark
how the wickedness of the king turned the confidence of the sire to the
peril of the son, by commanding that this dearest pledge of his life
should be placed instead of the wand, with a threat that, unless the
author of this promise could strike off the apple at the first flight of
the arrow, he should pay the penalty of his empty boasting by the loss
of his head. The king's command forced the soldier to perform more
than he had promised, and what he had said, reported, by the tongues of
slanderers, bound him to accomplish what he had NOT said. Yet did not
his sterling courage, though caught in the snare of slander, suffer him
to lay aside his firmness of heart; nay, he accepted the trial the more
readily because it was hard. So Palnatoki warned the boy urgently when
he took his stand to await the coming of the hurtling arrow with calm
ears and unbent head, lest, by a slight turn of his body, he should
defeat the practised skill of the bowman; and, taking further counsel to
prevent his fear, he turned away his face, lest he should be scared at
the sight of the weapon. Then, taking three arrows from the quiver, he
struck the mark given him with the first he fitted to the string.....
But Palnatoki, when asked by the king why he had taken more arrows from
the quiver, when it had been settled that he should only try the fortune
o