Saint George and his virtuous Lady, having arrived in Africa, were
travelling to Egypt from the west, when they chanced to arrive at a
magnificent country, inhabited only by Amazonians.
Journeying along, great was their surprise to find every town and
village desolate of people; the fields untilled; and fields overgrown
with weeds: nor man, nor woman, nor child was to be seen.
Scarcely food even from the berries in the woods could they procure to
satisfy their hunger.
In this extremity, after many days, they arrived before a rich
pavilion--all of green and crimson, bordered with gold and azure--the
hooks of ivory, the cords of silk, while at the top stood a golden
eagle, and at each corner a green silver griffin shining in the sun.
Beautiful as was the tent, still more lovely was the lady who stood
before it--a maiden queen--crowned with an imperial diadem, and clothed
in a robe of green, with the body formed of lace of gold, and her
crimson kirtle bound with violet-coloured velvet, the wide sleeves being
embroidered with flowers of gold and rich pearls. Around her stood her
maiden attendants in comely attire, with silver coronets on their heads,
and silver bows in their hands, while at their backs hung quivers full
of golden arrows.
With courteous words the Queen invited the Knight and his Lady to enter
her pavilion, when she told him that her country was sorely afflicted by
the arts of a wicked magician, named Osmond, who had sought her love,
and having been rejected had conceived the most deadly hatred against
her.
"He has built," she said, "a mighty tower on the borders of my realm,
from which issues so deadly and dark a smoke that my people are driven
from their homes, and the country remains desolate. He has left the
guarding of the castle to a terrible giant, the ugliest monster eyes
ever beheld. He is thirty feet in height, his head three times the size
of that of the largest ox, his eyes larger than two sunflowers, and his
teeth, with which he can break a bar of iron, standing out a foot from
his mouth; his arms long and bony, his skin black as coal and hard as
brass, and his strength so great that he can carry away three knights in
armour, and their steeds, with the greatest ease."
"Now, by my halidom, but I will fetter this monster and break the
enchantment, or never see this place again." In vain the Princess Sabra
entreated him not to undertake the adventure.
Even the Amazonian Queen thought it beyond his power.
At daybreak, accompanied by De Fistycuff, he set forth, leaving the side
of his weeping wife, and assuring her that he would return in safety.
As he and his Squire advanced into the enchanted district the light of
day decreased; darker and darker it grew, till they could with
difficulty grope their way before them, while dense clouds of smoke
seemed to be rolling thicker and thicker over their heads. Nothing
could surpass the melancholy and depressing gloom of the air.
At length, by a faint glimmer of lurid light, they beheld the gates of
the enchanted tower, at which sat, on a block of rock, a huge giant in
his iron coat, with a mace of steel in his hand. At first sight of
Saint George and his Squire, he beat his teeth so mightily together that
they rang like the stroke of an anvil; and then he sprang up and rushed
forward, thinking to take the Champion, horse and all, within his mouth,
with the Squire under one arm, and to bear them into the tower.
When, however, the giant opened his mouth, showing his teeth sharp as
steel, Saint George thrust his trusty sword Ascalon so far down it, that
the monster cried out loud as thunder in his pain and terror; the very
earth trembled, his mouth smoked like a fiery furnace, and his eyes
rolled in his head like brands of flaming fire: but the Champion pressed
him harder and harder, the blood flowing in a great stream from his
mouth, till he was forced to cry out for mercy, and to beg for life.
This Saint George granted him, on condition that he would discover all
the secrets of the tower, and ever after be his true servant. Then the
giant swore to speak the truth, and told him that the necromancer had
made a huge fire in a deep vault whence all the smoke came forth, but
that near the fire was a fair and pleasant fountain, the water of which,
if any knight could cast it on the fire, the smoke would cease and the
fire be put out. This sufficed Saint George.
Ordering the giant to keep the door, and leaving De Fistycuff to watch
over him, he advanced into the tower, which was full of vast windows;
and then he entered a long dark passage with a door at one end, set as
thick with spikes of steel as are the prickles of a sea-urchin's skin;
yet, dashing open the door, in spite of the clouds of smoke which rushed
out, he descended in total darkness, thundering blows all the time
raining down on his burgonet, which he guarded off with his shield, and
voices from unseen spirits screeching in his ears, while the heat, great
at first, increased so fiercely that he was almost melted, his armour
becoming nearly red-hot.
Just as he was about to faint he espied the crystal fountain, and
quickly filling his shield from it, he cast the water on the fire.
Backwards and forwards he went, till, to his joy, he saw the smoke
ceasing and the blue sky appearing, when the light of the sun entering
the dark passage, he saw on the stairs many great images of brass, with
mighty maces of steel, which had struck him the heavy blows as he
descended.
The fire being quenched, and the enchantment being thus happily quashed,
the country was restored to its former prosperous condition, while Saint
George received warm thanks of the Amazonian Queen; and then, with the
Princess Sabra by his side, and followed by De Fistycuff, and the huge
Giant Orcus as he was called, he set off to join the Christian army in
the south. On their way, however, finding that they were not far from
Bagabornabou, the native land of the lovely Sabra, they determined to
journey thither.
De Fistycuff, as a herald, went before to announce their arrival,
whereon they were received right royally. Such joyful sounds of bells,
trumpets, cymbals, and drums, were scarce ever heard before in the
kingdom; nor had such stately pageants ever been seen as those which
welcomed them; the walls were hung with Indian coverlets and curious
tapestry, and the pavement was strewed with odoriferous flowers of every
lovely hue.
This being over, the Princess Sabra was crowned Queen of the country,
and for many days she and her noble lord reigned there in peace and
prosperity, till the desire of martial glory summoned Saint George once
more to buckle on his armour, and to join the Christian forces now
marching towards Egypt.
Time will not allow a full description of the bloody battle which took
place between the Christians and the Pagans, or of the magic arts
practised by the fell Enchanter Osmond, who strove with all his power to
overthrow or circumvent the former; or how he raised an army of evil
spirits from the earth, the air, and fire, and water; and besides a
mighty tempest by which huge oaks were torn up by the roots, houses and
temples were unroofed, and men and horses carried high up into the air,
and let down again with terrific crashes.
While the tempest was raging, they charged into the Christian host with
flaming falchions, firing their horses' manes, burning their trappings,
and consuming their banners; but undaunted they stood, headed by Saint
George and the six other Champions, till the Pagan forces were compelled
at length to give way, and to retire from the field.
The acts of the Enchanter were not yet concluded, for he erected a magic
tent, with arts so subtle, that the interior seemed like a large country
full of gardens, fields, and orchards, and palaces. There he caused six
of his spirits to assume the guise of six lovely princesses, travelling
the country round in search of six gallant knights who would break some
lances in their services. By artful guile the seeming royal ladies
persuaded the six Champions to accompany them to their pavilion, where
they announced that a right royal banquet was prepared to do them
honour.
The Champions departed, unsuspicious of ill; but day after day passed by
and they did not return. The troops, by degrees, began to complain that
they were left without their leaders; when Saint George, inquiring into
the matter, right wisely supposed that it might be some cunning device
of the Enchanter Osmond.
On inquiring of his slave, the Giant Orcus, he found that this was
indeed too true, and that the Knights were kept in servile bonds in the
magic pavilion. Addressing his warriors, he told them of the discovery
he had made, when, with loud shouts, they vowed to follow wherever he
might lead.
Thus trusting in the noble Champion, they neither feared the
necromancer's charms, the flaming dragons, the fierce drakes, the
flashing lurid lights, or the legions of hideous monsters armed with
burning falchions, which surrounded them as they marched towards the
enchanted pavilion.
Far more dangerous were the sounds of sweet music which struck upon
their ears, and the enchanting sights which their eyes beheld, as they
surrounded the magic tent; but Saint George, recollecting the honour of
his knighthood, let drive at the tent with his sword, so furiously, that
he cut it into a thousand pieces; when there was exposed to view the
fell Enchanter Osmond, sitting on a rock of iron, feeding hideous
spirits, who obeyed his will, with drops of blood.
The Champion and his soldiers rushed upon him so furiously that, seizing
him unawares, they carried him off, and bound him with chains to the
root of a blasted oak, whence neither his own art nor all the spirits he
once commanded could release him.
Saint George then set at liberty the six captive Knights, when the
lovely princesses, turning into their proper shapes of six hideous
spirits, flew off with loud shrieks and hisses through the air.
The necromancer then shrieking forth that all his magic arts and devices
had come to nought, tore out his eyes, bit his tongue in two, because
that it had so often uttered curses, cut off his hands, which had held
his silver wand, the cause of so much evil; and finally ended his
existence by devouring his own inside, dying thus a warning to all
magicians for future ages.
This adventure being happily terminated, the Christian army advanced
towards Egypt and Persia; nor did the Champions ever again sheathe their
swords, or unlock their armour, till the subversion of those ancient
Empires was accomplished. This being done, they took truce of the
world, and triumphantly marched towards Christendom; in which journey
they erected many stately monuments in remembrance of their victories
and heroical achievements; and through every country that they marched
there flocked to them an innumerable company of Pagans, that desired to
follow Saint George into Christendom, protesting that they wished to
forsake their heathen gods, whose worshippers' chief delight is in the
shedding of human blood and every cruelty. To their requests Saint
George at once condescended, not only in granting them their desires,
but also in honouring them with the favour of his princely countenance.
Once more did the gallant Champion return to England, with the faithful
De Fistycuff, and this time he invited the other six Champions to
accompany him.
Pen would fail properly to describe the magnificent entertainments with
which they were honoured, and the pleasant time they spent there, before
they again set forward on their adventures.
There, sad to relate, the Princess Sabra sickened and died, and with
grief and anguish Saint George raised a magnificent tomb to her memory,
and placed it above her grave. Then, after embracing his three young
sons, he once more set out on his travels.