Intense excitement prevailed in the community when the day for the tournament arrived. The governor of the State was expected to be present with his military staff, the adjutant-general, and other distinguished personages. It was anticipated that the array of beauty would be immense; and, for a week anterior to the eventful day, each fair maiden had held frequent consultations with her mirror, in order to ascertain whether there was a probability that she might have the high honor of being crowned Queen of Love and Beauty by some valorous and victorious knight. Tom Seddon and the Professor had arrived on the preceding evening from Bella Vista. Tom was now supremely happy, for Ida Somers had temporarily escaped from the supervision of her cynical uncle, and was the guest of the Widow Wild. The Professor told Toney that when Tom heard that Ida had gone to Mapleton to attend the tournament, he could hardly content himself to wait for the next train, but wanted to be off like a pyrite of iron after the magnet; and that, when on the cars, he was continually complaining of the sluggishness of the iron horse, which failed to go faster than twenty miles in an hour. Tom escorted the beautiful Ida to the ground, who bestowed on her escort many a smile, and furtively glanced at his face, radiant with happiness, and came to the conclusion that Tom was a very handsome fellow; but would not for the world have permitted anybody to know that such was her decided opinion. Toney walked behind Ida and Tom, with Rosabel by his side, while the Professor had the Widow Wild under his protection. They were soon comfortably seated, and cast their eyes around to survey the scene before them. "Who are those military gentlemen standing in a line in front of their horses?" said Rosabel to Toney. "Those are the knights," said Toney. "The big man on the right is Richard." "Who is Richard?" asked Rosabel. "Richard the Lion-hearted," said Toney. "Why, he looks like Mr. Pate," said Ida. "Richard and Pate are one and the same person to-day," said Toney. "M. T. Pate is now Richard Plantagenet, Miss Somers; and if he should prove victorious in the lists he may crown you Queen of Love and Beauty." Tom Seddon was silent, but he gazed at Richard with a look of savage ferocity, which reminded the Professor of the expression of his countenance just after he had been bled by Doctor Bull. "The knight standing next to Mr. Pate, who is he?" asked Rosabel. "Ivanhoe," said Toney. "It is Mr. Wiggins," said Ida. "Formerly Mr. Wiggins, now the son of Cedric,--the disinherited knight, the valiant Ivanhoe." "And the little man whose head hardly reaches to his horse's mane? How in the world will he ever mount?" said Rosabel. "Oh, never fear. His esquire will help him on his horse. He is a Knight Templar," said Toney. "What is his name?" said Rosabel. "Brian de Bois Guilbert," said Toney. "It is Little Love," said Tom Seddon. "And the one next to him is Dove," said the widow.