Chapter 22

CHAPTER XXII.
HUON OF BORDEAUX, CONTINUED. HUON, having traversed the Apennines and Italy, arrived at the
environs of Rome, where, laying aside his armor, he assumed the
dress of a pilgrim. In this attire he presented himself before the
Pope, and not till after he had made a full confession of his sins did
he announce himself as his nephew. "Ah! my dear nephew," exclaimed the
Holy Father, "what harder penance could I impose than the Emperor
has already done? Go in peace, my son," he added, absolving him, "I go
to intercede for you with the Most High." Then he led his nephew
into his palace, and introduced him to all the Cardinals and Princes
of Rome as the Duke of Guienne, son of the Duchess Alice, his sister.
Huon, at setting out, had made a vow not to stop more than three
days in a place. The Holy Father took advantage of this time to
inspire him with zeal for the glory of Christianity, and with
confidence in the protection of the Most High. He advised him to
embark for Palestine, to visit the Holy Sepulchre, and to depart
thence for the interior of Asia.
Loaded with the blessings of the Holy Father, Huon, obeying his
counsels, embarked for Palestine, arrived, and visited with the
greatest reverence the holy places. He then departed, and took his way
toward the east. But, ignorant of the country and of the language,
he lost himself in a forest, and remained three days without seeing
a human creature, living on honey and wild fruits which he found on
the trees. The third day, seeking a passage through a rocky defile, he
beheld a man in tattered clothing, whose beard and hair covered his
breast and shoulders. This man stopped on seeing him, observed him,
and recognized the arms and bearing of a French knight. He immediately
approached, and exclaimed, in the language of the South of France,
"God be praised! Do I indeed behold a chevalier of my own country,
after fifteen years passed in this desert without seeing the face of a
fellow-countryman?"
Huon, to gratify him still more, unlaced his helmet, and came
towards him with a smiling countenance. The other regarded him with
more surprise than at first. "Good Heaven!" he exclaimed, "was there
ever such a resemblance! Ah, noble sir," he added, "tell me, I beseech
you, of what country and race you come?" "I require," replied Huon,
"before telling you mine, that you first reveal your own; let it
suffice you at present to know that I am a Christian, and that in
Guienne I was born." "Ah! Heaven grant that my eyes and my heart do
not deceive me," exclaimed the unknown; "my name is Sherasmin; I am
brother to Guire, the Mayor of Bordeaux. I was taken prisoner in the
battle where my dear and illustrious master, Sevinus, lost his life.
For three years I