| |
| OLGER the Dane and Desiderio, | |
| King of the Lombards, on a lofty tower | |
| Stood gazing northward o’er the rolling plains, | |
| League after league of harvests, to the foot | |
| Of the snow-crested Alps, and saw approach | 5 |
| A mighty army, thronging all the roads | |
| That led into the city. And the King | |
| Said unto Olger, who had passed his youth | |
| As hostage at the court of France, and knew | |
| The Emperor’s form and face: “Is Charlemagne | 10 |
| Among that host?” And Olger answered: “No.” | |
| |
| And still the innumerable multitude | |
| Flowed onward and increased, until the King | |
| Cried in amazement: “Surely Charlemagne | |
| Is coming in the midst of all these knights!” | 15 |
| And Olger answered slowly: “No; not yet; | |
| He will not come so soon.” Then much disturbed | |
| King Desiderio asked: “What shall we do, | |
| If he approach with a still greater army?” | |
| And Olger answered: “When he shall appear, | 20 |
| You will behold what manner of man he is; | |
| But what will then befall us I know not.” | |
| |
| Then came the guard that never knew repose, | |
| The Paladins of France; and at the sight | |
| The Lombard King o’ercome with terror cried: | 25 |
| “This must be Charlemagne!” and as before | |
| Did Olger answer: “No; not yet, not yet.” | |
| |
| And then appeared in panoply complete | |
| The Bishops and the Abbots and the Priests | |
| Of the imperial chapel, and the Counts; | 30 |
| And Desiderio could no more endure | |
| The light of day, nor yet encounter death, | |
| But sobbed aloud and said: “Let us go down | |
| And hide us in the bosom of the earth, | |
| Far from the sight and anger of a foe | 35 |
| So terrible as this!” And Olger said: | |
| “When you behold the harvests in the fields | |
| Shaking with fear, the Po and the Ticino | |
| Lashing the city walls with iron waves, | |
| Then may you know that Charlemagne is come.” | 40 |
| And even as he spake, in the northwest, | |
| Lo! there uprose a black and threatening cloud, | |
| Out of whose bosom flashed the light of arms | |
| Upon the people pent up in the city; | |
| A light more terrible than any darkness, | 45 |
| And Charlemagne appeared;—a Man of Iron! | |
| |
| His helmet was of iron, and his gloves | |
| Of iron, and his breastplate and his greaves | |
| And tassets were of iron, and his shield. | |
| In his left hand he held an iron spear, | 50 |
| In his right hand his sword invincible. | |
| The horse he rode on had the strength of iron, | |
| And color of iron. All who went before him, | |
| Beside him and behind him, his whole host, | |
| Were armed with iron, and their hearts within them | 55 |
| Were stronger than the armor that they wore. | |
| The fields and all the roads were filled with iron, | |
| And points of iron glistened in the sun | |
| And shed a terror through the city streets. | |
| |
| This at a single glance Olger the Dane | 60 |
| Saw from the tower, and turning to the King | |
| Exclaimed in haste: “Behold! this is the man | |
| You looked for with such eagerness!” and then | |
| Fell as one dead at Desiderio’s feet. | |
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