Rend her! Pierce her to the hilt! She is Murder: have her out! What! this little fist, as big As the southern summer fig! She is Madness, none may doubt. Death, who dares deny her guilt! Death, who says his blood she spilt! . . . . . . . Each at each, a crouching beast, Glared, and quivered for the word, Each at each, and all on that, Humped and grinning like a cat. Head bound with its bridal wreath. . . . . . . . Death, who dares deny her guilt! Death, who says his blood she spilt! Traitor he who stands between! Swift to hell, who harms the Queen! She, the wild, contention's cause, Combed her hair with quiet paws. Make the bed for Attila! Notice the horror of the effect caused by the use of certain simple words in these verses. The beautiful Ildico is no longer spoken of as a woman, but as an insane animal or a thing. First we notice that "it" and "its" have been substituted for "she" and "hers" or "her"; then we have the word "paws," making a very horrible impression. The woman is so mad that she knows nothing of her danger, knows nothing of what has happened; through some old habit of womanly instinct, she tries to arrange her poor tossed hair, but with her fingers, as a cat combs itself with its paws. Then begins the mighty breaking of that tremendous army: First Attila must be buried; and, according to custom, no one must know where the King is buried. A party of slaves are ordered to make the grave; when they have made it, they are killed and buried, in order that none of them may be able to say to strangers where the corpse of Attila reposes. It is not impossible, it is even probable that Ildico was killed and buried with her king, for the barbarians were accustomed to slaughter the attendants of a dead prince, and even his horses, in order that he might have shadowy company and shadowy steeds in the other world. But we do not know. History has nothing to say as to what became of Ildico. The poem closes with a wonderful description of the breaking up of the army, which is likened to the breaking up of the ice in a great river at the approach of spring.