common sense corresponded to his age, discouraged the zealous knights.

"You are stupid!" said he. "Is it possible that none of you have beard
that Christ's image spoke to the queen? If the Saviour himself condescend
to such familiarity, then why will the Holy Ghost, who is the third
person of the Trinity, be less kind to her. Therefore she sees future
events, as if they were passing before her, and she has thus spoken:"

Here he stopped for a while, shook his head, and then said:

"I have forgotten what she prophesied, but I will soon recollect."

He began to think, and they waited silently, because the popular belief
was that the queen could see the future.

"Aha!" said he, finally, "I remember now! The queen said, that if every
knight went with Witold against The Lame-Man, then heathenish power would
be destroyed. But all cannot go because of the dishonesty of Christian
lords. We are obliged to guard the boundaries from the attacks of the
Czechs and the Hungarians and also from the attacks of the Order, because
we cannot trust any of them. Therefore if Witold go with only a handful
of Polish warriors, then Tymur the Lame, or his _wojewodas_, coming with
innumerable hosts, will defeat him."

"But we are at peace now," said Toporczyk, "and the Order will give some
assistance to Witold. The Knights of the Cross cannot act otherwise, if
only for the sake of appearances, and to show to the holy father that
they are ready to fight the pagans. The courtiers say that Kuno von
Lichtenstein came not entirely for the christening, but also to consult
with the king."