Far away from the hidden fugitives, in the south-east side of the town,
strife and tumult were meanwhile raging.
Many of the revolted slaves, after revenging themselves on their
masters, had thrown down their arms; but the _wildest_ spirits,
restrained by the Germans from further incendiarism, murder, and
robbery, and driven by them from street to street, had now crowded
together for a last resistance.
Here lay the large imperial magazines for the building of boats and
rafts for the traffic of the Ivarus, especially the salt-trade: also
immense stores of well-dried wood, sail-cloth, pitch, and tar. These
favourites of the fire-god the mad creatures wished to set on fire.
They hoped, in their blind destructive fury, that the conflagration
would from there spread its red and black wings over the whole city.
But the magazines were covered with slates on the flat roofs, were
protected by high stone walls, and shut in with strong oak doors; the
few guards round about had, certainly, long since fled, but, even
undefended, stone and iron-bound wood would for some time resist the
fury of the assailants.
But now came Keix, the leader of the host, from the bath of Amphitrite,
close by, which was in flames, swinging in one hand a blue and in the
other a green pitch torch, such as were used in the illumination of the
ornamental gardens.
"Ha!" cried he; "now see! We will have to-day the richest fire-works!
The Christian emperors have indeed forbidden the Saturnalia, but we
will introduce them again, but this time to the honour of Vulcan and
Chaos!"
And he propped both torches against the oak panels of the door, which
immediately began to smoulder. But now the pursuing Bajuvaren had
reached the spot.
The barricades in the streets they had, after a short, wild conflict
with their defenders, thrown down; and they now rushed forward in a
close wedge with Duke Garibrand at their head.
"We have you, incendiaries! Down with your arms! Extinguish those
flames instantly; or, by the spear of Wotan, no man among you shall
remain alive."
Instead of answering, Kottys lifted up the heavy iron rod--the long
bolt which he had torn from his own slave prison--and screamed:
"Dost thou think we wish to change our masters? We will be free, and
masters ourselves. And all shall be destroyed on this whole earthly
ball that reminds us of the time of our slavery. Come on, ye
barbarians, if you want to fight with desperate men."
And now a furious rage threatened to break forth.
Suddenly a loud, powerful voice cried: "Stop. Peace be with you all!"
Between the combatants stepped the venerable form of Johannes; behind
him appeared his ecclesiastical brethren; they, assisted by some of the
burghers of Juvavum, were carrying on barrows and litters, wounded
slaves, Moors, Isaurians, and also some Germans.
"Make way for us! Let us take these wounded--they belong to you all who
are here fighting--to my church."
The words, the look, had immediately a silencing, an appeasing effect.
At the sign of their Duke, the Bajuvaren lowered their lifted weapons;
most of the slaves did the same. Fearlessly Johannes walked into the
thickest part of the crowd; all reverently shrunk back. The women--for
there were many women amongst the mob--knelt down and kissed the hem of
his garment. He stepped straight towards the door which had now caught
fire.
Kottys alone tried to turn him away.
"Back, priest!" he cried, and threw the iron bar; and as Johannes
quietly walked on, the iron struck him on the shoulder. He sank--his
blood flowed on the ground.
"Woe to thee, brother!" cried Keix. "Thou hast murdered the only
protector of the poor and miserable--our father's best friend!"
And the wild man knelt by the priest, holding him in his arms.
To do this he was obliged to throw away his weapon, an iron trident,
which he had torn from the hand of a Neptune at the fountain. Nearly
all his comrades followed this example. Kottys threw the rod on the
ground, and entreated:
"Pardon me, Father Johannes!"
The priest raised himself. "Thou hast repented, therefore God has
forgiven thee. Who am I--a sinner--that _I_ should forgive?"
He now stepped unhindered to the door, threw down the torches, picked
up one of the broad shields, pressed it with the right hand against the
burning door, raised imploringly the left towards heaven, and said:
"Fire! thou also art a creature and a servant of God the Lord! I
command thee--I adjure thee, thou hellish demon of flame, retire hence
into hell."
The fire was then extinguished. Johannes let the shield fall, and
turned again to the crowd; his face was radiant with the glory of the
deepest conviction.
"A wonder! A miracle of the Lord by the hand of the devout Johannes!"
sounded out from the whole host of slaves. The most defiant now threw
away their weapons and sank on their knees, crossing themselves. Among
the Germans many also made the sign of the cross and bent the knee; but
Keix and Kottys raised their hands towards Johannes as if in worship.
Duke Gariband then advanced to the Presbyter, and spoke slowly:
"Thou hast well done, old man. Here, my hand. But say," continued he,
and a sly smile flashed across his lips, "if thou hadst full confidence
in the magic of the Runic words that thou didst utter to the fire, why
didst thou also use the shield?"
The priest so addressed stood erect and said: "Because we should not
tempt God. Not that the Lord needed my arm or the shield to extinguish
the fire."
"It has never yet happened," said the Duke, thoughtfully nodding his
head, "that one of you Christian priests was at a loss for an answer.
You have--and thou especially hast--power over souls, more than my
sword over the conquered, use it ever as at this time. I know well how
powerful you are, ye men of the cross, on the Danube there rules one,
Severinus by name; he has more authority by his word than Rome and the
barbarians. We shall be good friends; I shall respect thee. But hear
this. I shall allow you to worship Christ as you will; take thou care
not to hinder my people from sacrificing as they will. No, no, old man,
do not shake thy head; I suffer no contradiction!" And he lifted his
finger threateningly.
But undaunted, Johannes said:
"If the Lord will call the wanderers to Himself through my mouth, fear
of thee will not close it. Thy duchess is already won to the Lord.
Verily, I tell thee--thou, and thy people--you will not escape Him. But
you, rise," said he, turning to the slaves. "I will entreat for you
with the victors, who are now the rulers of this land. I will teach
them, that ye also, created in the image of God, are also their
brethren, and that your immortal souls are redeemed by the death of
Christ. I will teach them, that he who sets his slaves free wins the
warmest place in the heart of the Father of heaven."
"But he who has still to remain in servitude," interrupted the Duke,
"let him know, that we Germans are noble-minded masters; we do not
burden and punish the slave according to the caprice and temper of the
master; as our free people are judged by the free, so the bond people
are judged by their fellows--in the court of justice, according to the
law. You stand henceforth under the protection of the strongest
judicial fortress--the law, and the tribunal of your own comrades! So
be comforted: you serve noble masters."