"Brander! Brander!" screamed a youth, whose face was hot and flushed
with supper and with beer; "Brander, I say? Thou art a Doctor! No,--a
Pope;--thou art a Pope, by--"
These words were addressed to a pale, quiet-looking person, who sat
opposite, and was busy in making a wretched, shaved poodle sit on his
hind legs in a chair, by his master's side, and hold a short clay pipe
in his mouth,--a performance to which the poodle seemed no wise
inclined.
"Thou art challenged!" replied the pale Student, turning from his dog,
who dropped the pipe from his mouth and leaped under the table.
Seconds were chosen on the spot; and the arms ordered; namely, six
mighty goblets, or Bassgläser, filled to the brim with foaming beer.
Three were placed before each duellist.
"Take your weapons!" cried one of the seconds, and each of the
combatants seized a goblet in his hand.
"Strike!"
And the glasses rang, with a salutation like the crossing of swords.
"Set to!"
Each set the goblet to his lips.
"Out!"
And each poured the contents down his throat, as if he were pouring
them through a tunnel into a beer-barrel. The other two glasses
followed in quick succession, hardly a long breath drawn between. The
pale Student was victorious. He was first to drain the third goblet. He
held it for a moment inverted, to let the last drops fall out, and then
placing it quietly on the table, looked his antagonist in the face, and
said;
"Hit!"
Then, with the greatest coolness, he looked under the table and
whistled for his dog. His antagonist stopped midway in his third glass.
Every vein in his forehead seemed bursting; his eyes were wild and
bloodshot, his hand gradually loosened its hold upon the table, and he
sank and rolled together like a sheet of lead. He was drunk.
At this moment a majestic figure came stalking down the table,
ghost-like, through the dim, smoky atmosphere. His coat was off, his
neck bare, his hair wild, his eyes wide open, and looking right before
him, as if he saw some beckoning hand in the air, that others could not
see. His left hand was upon his hip, and in his right he held a drawn
sword extended, and pointing downward. Regardless of every one, erect,
and with a martial stride he marched directly along the centre of the
table, crushing glasses and overthrowing bottles at everystep. The
students shrunk back at his approach; till at length one more drunk, or
more courageous, than the rest, dashed a glass full of beer into his
face. A general tumult ensued, and the student with the sword leaped to
the floor. It was Von Kleist. He was renowning it. In the midst of the
uproar could be distinguished the offensive words;
"Arrogant! Absurd! Impertinent! Dummer Junge!"
Von Kleist went home that night with no less than six duels on his
hands. He fought them all out in as many days; and came off with only a
gash through his upper lip and another through his right eyelid from a
dexterous Suabian Schlaeger.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account