The Adventurous Simplicissimus: being the description of the Life of a Strange vagabond named Melchior Sternfels von FuchshaimGrimmelshausen, Hans Jakob Christoph von
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The Adventurous Simplicissimus: being the description of the Life of a Strange vagabond named Melchior Sternfels von Fuchshaim
Grimmelshausen, Hans Jakob Christoph von
German fiction -- Translations into English; Thirty Years' War, 1618-1648 -- Fiction
So we drew near to the Mainguard, and the sentinel must call "Who goes
there?" though well he knew it was my lord: who would not answer but
would leave the honour to that other: yet when the sentinel grew more
impatient and repeated his challenge, the Commissary answered to the
last "Who goes there?" "The man who pays the money."
Now as we passed the sentry-box, and I came last of all, I heard the
before-mentioned sentry, which was a new recruit, and before that by
profession a well-to-do young farmer on the Vogelsberg, thus murmur to
himself: "Yea, and a lying customer thou art: a man, forsooth, that
pays the money? a skin-the-flint that takes the money, that art thou.
So much money hast thou wrung from me that I would to God thou wert
struck dead before thou shouldst leave this town."
So from that hour I conceived this belief that this foreign lord with
the silk doublet must be a holy man: for not only did no curse harm
him, but also even they that hated him shewed him all honour and love
and kindness: and that night was he princely entreated and made blind
drunk, and thereafter put to bed in a noble bedplace.
Next day, then, at the review of the troops everything was at sixes and
sevens. And even I, poor simple creature, was clever enough to cheat
that clever commissary (for to such offices and administrations ye may
well know they do choose no simple babes). Which same deceit I learned
in less than an hour; for the whole art consisted therein, to beat five
with the right hand and four with the left on a drum. For yet I was too
little to represent a musqueteer. So they furnished me forth to that
end with borrowed clothes (for my short page's breeches were in no wise
military to look upon) and with a borrowed drum: without doubt for this
reason, that I myself was but borrowed: and with all this I came
happily through the inspection. Thereafter, nevertheless, would no one
trust my simple mind to keep in my memory any unaccustomed name,
hearing which I should answer to it and step out of the ranks: and so
must I keep the name of Simplicius; and for a surname the Governor
himself added that of Simplicissimus, and so had me written down in the
muster-roll. And so he made me like a bastard, the first of my family;
and that although, after his own shewing, I looked so like his own
sister. So ever thereafter I bore this name and surname, until I knew
my right name: and under that name I played my part pretty well to the
profit of the Governor and small danger to the Crown of Sweden. And
this is all the service that ever I rendered to the crown of Sweden in
all my life: and the enemies of that crown can at least not lay more
than this to my charge.
_Chap. v._: HOW SIMPLICISSIMUS WAS BY FOUR DEVILS BROUGHT INTO HELL AND
THERE TREATED WITH SPANISH WINE
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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