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PICKERING'S PUBLICATIONS. 
 
 Now ready for delivery, in 2 vols. 4to. price Five Guineas, 
 
 A NEW DICTIONARY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 ENGLISH LANGUAGE. 
 
 BY CHARLES RICHARDSON. 
 
 This work consists of two large quarto volumes, upon the compo- 
 sition of which the author has been employed for more than 20 years : 
 and though the expense of publication has exceeded the sum of 60001. 
 it is published at the moderate price of 5 guineas. The two volumes 
 contain nearly 2300 pages of 3 columns each, closely yet clearly and 
 beautifully printed. It combines the two branches, hitherto kept se- 
 parate, of Etymology and Explanation . 
 
 REVIEWS AND CRITICAL NOTICES. 
 
 " Mr. Pickering has just put forth a New Dictionary of the English 
 Language, which, whether we regard its extraordinary cheapness, or the extra- 
 ordinary labour and ability by which it is characterised, bids fair to rival all 
 similar publications. The work is to be completed in Thirty Parts, each Part to 
 contain eighty 4to. pages, with three columns of Diamond type upon each page ; 
 the meaning of each word is illustrated by a greater number of passages from 
 standard English writers than is to be found in any similar work ; and the read- 
 ing necessary for the supply of this immense body, must have been the labour of 
 years. A part of this Dictionary appeared, we find, in the Encydopcedia Metro- 
 politana, and was spoken of by the Quarterly and other reviews, as the greatest 
 lexicographical achievement of the age. In its complete form it will be, to judge 
 from the sample before us, a work of unrivalled ability, labour and utility." — 
 Old England. 
 
 " The compiler, who has already approved his ability for this work by what 
 he has contributed of it to the Encyclopcedia Metropolitana, justly observes, 
 that Dr. Johnson did not execute his own project, and that the desideratum of a 
 Dictionary to ' exhibit, first, the natural and primitive signitication of words, 
 then give the consequential, and then the metaphorical meaning, and the quota- 
 tions to be arranged accoi-ding to the ages of the authors,' is, at the distance of 
 nearly ninety years, still more to be desiderated now, than in 1747, when the 
 learned lexicographer made liis propi sitiou to Lord Chesterfield. Mr. Richardson 
 
CRITICAL NOTICES continued. 
 derives considerable aid from Home Tooke's philological labours ; and from the 
 part before us, we would anticipate a useful and interesting work." — Literary 
 Gazette. 
 
 " The arrangement is founded upon the plan which Dr. Johnson put forth as 
 the proper mode of proceeding with his great undertaking, though he did not, 
 in the execution, adhere to his own scheme. The task which our great philo- 
 loger left unfulfilled has been performed by Mr. Richardson, with a patient 
 labour in research and collection, which Johnson, we suspect, never possessed, 
 and with means at his disposal, by the resuscitation of our ancient writers, which 
 Johnson certainly never had. Judging from the specimen before us, the result 
 will be to present the world with the most complete Dictionary that ever was 
 published, as regards the etymology and primitive meaning of the words, the 
 successive growth of their secondary significations, the gradual advance and 
 changes of the language, the vast body of quotations from all authors, whether 
 ancient or modern, and, in consequence, the skeleton iiistory of the English lan- 
 guage which it indirectly presents ; it will, in short, be a work indispensable to 
 every one who is curious in his mother tongue, and without which no library 
 can be considered complete." — Spectator. 
 
 " It would be impossible to speak of the value of this work within tlie short 
 space of a literary notice; but thus much we can assure our readers, that in its 
 plan it is novel, and more comprehensive than any of its predecessors; that the 
 quotations from the earliest poets, chroniclers, divines, &c. arranged in chrono- 
 logical order, in illustration of different words, supply an admirable view of the 
 progress of the English tongue ; that reference is made to chapter and verse for 
 every quotation given ; that it is cheap ; and that the publisher engages to de- 
 liver all parts beyond thirty free of expense. No library should be without it." — 
 Christian Remembrancer, 
 
 " This laborious work, of which the two first Parts are before us, is understood 
 to be completed in the manuscript ; the subscriber, therefore, incurs no risk of 
 disappointment from the non-accomplishment of the design. Of the care and 
 diligence bestowed in getting up the New Dictionary we are prepared to speak 
 in the highest praise. The paper is good, the type remarkably clear, the size 
 convenient, in every respect becoming a work of national importance. The 
 radical word with its derivatives, is placed at the head of the meaning, of the 
 etymological derivation and of the quotations, by which their usages are illus- 
 trated. These quotations are selected and digested in the chronological order of 
 the writers appealed to, so that one, with common sagacity, may trace the 
 changes through which a word has passed down to its modern acceptation. The 
 primitive signification is thus made to give a strength and clearness to our own 
 perception of the word. We remember when it was the custom to characterise a 
 dull heavy work by the remark, "I would as soon read a Dictionary through." 
 We may now say, without drawing upon the truth, that we have a Dictionary 
 surpassing in entertainment and knowledge most books. The deep research and 
 extensive reading which have amassed this wealth of quotations, make us ac- 
 quainted with stores of thought, hitherto buried in the dust of time, or accessible 
 only to the favoured few. The divines, the poets, the dramatists, the philoso- 
 phers, the historians, who have helped to build up the noble fabric of our lan- 
 guage, are made in short but appropriate sentences, to give us their own literary 
 portraits ; and, if style be an index to character, and expression to thought, we 
 have here a fine opportunity of comparing age with age, not only in its literary, 
 but also in its intellectual features. We add, that no deeper stain could be 
 marked upon our national reputation, than that such a work, so grand in its de- [ 
 sign, and so perfect in its execution, should meet with indifference, or even with 
 partial success." — Gloucestershire Chronicle. 
 
 " We are inclined to consider the English language as having attained that 
 fulness of maturity which leaves no wish for increase, but only anxiety for pre- 
 servation. As helps to this, we have the various acceptations, in which every 
 word has been used by approved writers, collected by Mr. Richardson, in a Dic- 
 tionary, such as, perhaps, no other language could ever boast : and we have a 
 new guide for the theory and use of languages, exemplifying his (Home Tooke's) 
 principles, by applying them to our own tongue." — Quarterly Review for March, 
 1827. 
 
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PHANTASMION 
 
 k 
 
PH ANTASMION 
 
 ALDI 
 
 LONDON 
 WILLIAM PICKERING 
 
 1837 
 
CHARLES VVITITTINGHAM 
 LON DOi\ 
 
J6a3P 
 
 PHANTASMION. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 THE FAIRY POTENTILLA APPEARS TO THE YOUNG 
 PRINCE PHANTASMION. 
 
 A YOUNG boy hid himself from his nurse in 
 sport, and strayed all alone in the garden 
 of his father, a rich and mighty prince ; he fol- 
 lowed the bees from jflower to flower, and wan- 
 dered farther than he had ever gone before, till 
 he came to the hollow tree where they hived, and 
 watched them entering their storehouse laden with 
 the treasures they had collected : he lay upon the 
 turf, laughing and talking to himself, and, after 
 a while, he plucked a long stiff blade of grass, 
 and was about to thrust it in at the entrance of 
 the hive, when a voice, just audible above the 
 murmur of the bees, cried, " Phantasmion !" Now 
 the child thought that his nurse was calling him 
 in strange tones, and he started, saying, " Ah ! 
 
^ PHANTASMION. 
 
 Leeliba !" and looked round ; but casting up his 
 eyes he saw that there stood before him an ancient 
 woman, slenderer in figure than his nurse, yet 
 more firm and upright, and with a countenance 
 which made him afraid. " What dost thou here, 
 Phantasmion ?" said the stranger to the little boy, 
 and he made no answer : then she looked sweetly 
 upon the child, for he was most beautiful, and she 
 said to him, " Whom dost thou take me for?" and 
 he replied, '' At first I took thee for my nurse, but 
 now I see plainly that thou art not like her." 
 " And how am I different from thy nurse?" said 
 the strange woman. The boy was about to an- 
 swer, but he stopped short and blushed ; then 
 after a pause he said, " One thing is, that thou hast 
 wings upon thy shoulders, and she has none." 
 " Phantasmion !" she replied, <' I am not like thy 
 nurse : I can do that which is beyond her skill, 
 great as thou thinkest it." At this the boy laughed, 
 and said with a lively countenance, pointing to the 
 hollow tree, " Couldst thou make the bees that 
 have gone in there fly out of their hive all in one 
 swarm ?" The fairy staid not to answer, but 
 touched the decayed trunk with her wand, and the 
 bees poured out of their receptacle by thousands 
 and thousands, and hung in a huge cluster from 
 the branch of a sycamore ; and, as the child looked 
 upon the swarm, it seemed to be composed of living 
 diamonds, and glanced so brilliantly in the sun- 
 shine that it dazzled the sight. And the beautiful 
 
PHANTASMION. 
 
 boy laughed aloud, and leaped into the air, and 
 clapped his hands for joy. Then the fairy placed 
 her wand within his little palm, saying, '* Strike 
 the tree, and say, ' Go in !' and they shall all 
 enter the hive again." The cheeks of the young 
 boy blushed brighter than ever, and his eyes 
 sparkled, as he struck the hollow trunk with all 
 his might, and cried, " Go in ! go in I" No sooner 
 had he done this than the whole multitude quitted 
 the branch of the sycamore, and disappeared within 
 the body of the tree. 
 
 Then the ancient woman said to the little 
 prince, " Wilt thou give me that pomegranate ?" 
 and she pointed to the only ripe one which grew on 
 a tree hard by. One member of the trunk of this 
 pomegranate tree leaned forward, and invited the 
 adventurous child to mount ; he quickly crept 
 along it, and having plucked the fruit which the 
 fairy had pointed out, he turned round and tried 
 to descend ; but finding that he should slip if he 
 attempted to return by the way he came, having 
 measured the height from the ground with his eye, 
 he boldly sprang at once from the bough to the 
 turf below, and presented his prize to the stranger. 
 With that she took it from his hand, and, looking 
 kindly upon him, she said, " My little Phantas- 
 mion, thou needest no fairy now to work wonders 
 for thee, being j^et so young that all thoubeholdest 
 io new and marvellous in thine eyes. But the day 
 must come when this happiness will fade away ; 
 
4 PHANTASMIOW. 
 
 when the stream, less clear than at its outset, will 
 no longer return such bright reflections : then, if 
 thou wilt repair to this pomegranate tree, and call 
 upon the name of Potentilla, I will appear before 
 thee, and exert all my power to renew the delights 
 and wonders of thy childhood." 
 
 After speaking these words Potentilla vanished ; 
 the child opened his eyes wide, and, now feeling 
 afraid to be alone, he ran homeward as fast as 
 possible, and in a little time heard the voice of his 
 mother calling to him in quick tones ; for she had 
 outrun his nurse, who was also hastening in 
 search of him. The child bounded up to her, 
 and with breathless eagerness sought to describe 
 the strange things which he had seen. " All 
 the bees came out in a cluster," cried he ; *' and 
 they were drest in diamonds ! thousands and 
 millions of them hung together upon a branch ! 
 and I my own self made every one of the bees go 
 back again into their hive, with the shining stick 
 which the old woman lent me." " What old 
 woman ?" replied Queen Zalia to her little son ; 
 '* was it one of the gardeners' wives ?" " O no!" 
 said he; "an old woman with wings on her 
 shoulders, and she flew up and vanished away, like 
 the bubbles which I blow through my pipe." 
 " Thou hast been dreaming, my sweet boy," said 
 his mother; " thou hast fallen asleep in the 
 sunshine, and hast dreamt all this." " No, no ! 
 my mother," the child replied; *' indeed, indeed 
 
PHANTASMION. 
 
 it was quite unlike those dreams which I have at 
 night. I wish the bees could speak that they 
 might tell thee all about it, for they saw the 
 
 winged woman as well as I.' 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 POTENTILLA FULFILS HER PROMISE TO 
 PHANTASMION. 
 
 SOON afterwards Phantasmion's fair mother, 
 Zalia, fell sick and died. Her young son was 
 kept from the chamber of death, and, roaming 
 about the palace in search of her, he found a 
 little child sitting on the floor of a lonely cham- 
 ber, afraid to stir because he was by himself. 
 *' The people are all gone away," cried Phantas- 
 mion; " Come, I will take thee abroad to see the 
 pretty flowers, now the sun shines so bright." 
 The child was glad to have fresh air and com- 
 pany, and, holding fast by the older boy's hand, he 
 sped along with short quick steps further than his 
 tiny feet had ever carried him before, lisping 
 about the bees and hornets, which, in his igno- 
 rance he would fain have caught, as they buzzed 
 past him, and laughing merrily when his fro- 
 licsome guide led him right through a bed of 
 feathered columbines, for the sake of seeing the 
 
PHANTASMION. 
 
 urchin's rosy cheek brushed by soft blossoms and 
 powdered with flower dust. At last they entered 
 the queen's pleasure ground, where only one gar- 
 dener remained, and he was sitting on the path, 
 gathering berries in a basket. " Where is my 
 mother ? " cried the prince, leaping suddenly 
 behind him; "hast thou hidden her away, old 
 man?" "Thy mother is dead!" answered he, 
 looking up in the boy's face ; and it was the 
 glance of his eye, more than the words he spoke, 
 which made Phantasmion shudder. The menial 
 smoothed his brow, and with humble courtesy 
 offered a branch of crimson fruit to the young 
 prince, who flung it on the ground, crying in a 
 haughty tone, " How darest thou say that my 
 mother is dead ?" " Go to her chamber, and see ;" 
 replied the man sternly. " And how can I see 
 her if she is dead ?" rejoined the boy, with a tre- 
 mulous laugh; '' can I see the cloud of yesterday 
 in yon clear sky? like clouds the dead vanish away, 
 and we see them no more." Just then he spied the 
 young child lying down, with the fruit-branch drop- 
 ping out of his fingers, and his face buried in a 
 flowery tuft. " What ! hiding among the hearts- 
 ease ?" cried he ; " ah ! let me hide too." Then, 
 putting his face close to that of his charge, " How 
 cold the little cheek is !" he cried ; " come, raise it 
 up to the warm sun." Hearing these words the 
 gardener turned the child's face upwards, and be- 
 hold he was dead ; his lips smeared with berry 
 
PIIANTASMION". 7 
 
 juice, and his pale swollen cheeks covered with 
 purple spots ! Then he held out the body to the 
 startled boy, and showing the slack limbs and 
 glazed eye, while his own shot fire like that of a 
 panther: — '' So look the dead," cried he, " ere they 
 vanish away: just so Queen Zalia is looking!" 
 Phantasmion shrieked, and hastening home, he met 
 his mother's funeral procession going forth from 
 the palace. The body was wrapped in a shroud, 
 and black plumes nodded over the face ; but he 
 saw the dead hands, and the limbs stiffly stretched 
 upon the bier. From that time forth he never 
 spoke of Queen Zalia, but he often beheld her in 
 dreams, and often he dreamed of the old man who 
 told him she was dead, and who disappeared, on 
 the same day, from the royal household. 
 
 Phantasmion grieved but little when his father 
 died a year afterwards ; for he scarcely knew King 
 Dorimant's face, that warlike prince having been 
 wholly engaged, since the birth of his child, in a 
 fruitless search after mines of iron. It was com- 
 monly believed that ill success in this matter has- 
 tened his end ; but the people about the palace well 
 knew that he died of eating poisoned honey. 
 
 Thus Phantasmion was yet too young, when he 
 inherited the throne of Palmland, to be a king in 
 reality ; and those who governed the land sought 
 to keep him a child as long as possible. They 
 prevented him from learning how to reign, but 
 could not succeed in making him content with 
 
8 PHANTASMION. 
 
 mere pomp and luxury ; for his pleasures were so 
 closely set that they hindered one another's growth, 
 and, by the time that he attained to his full stature, 
 nothing gratified him, except the society of a noble 
 youth who came to visit his court from a foreign 
 country, and who interested his mind by curious 
 histories and glowing descriptions. Dariel of 
 Tigridia was well skilled in the management of 
 fruit trees and flowers ; he had brought seeds of 
 many fine sorts from distant lands, and, at the de- 
 sire of Phantasmion, he sowed them in the royal 
 garden. One morning he came to the prince, 
 saying, "The rare plant has put forth leaves: 
 come and look at it !" " Earlier even than we ex- 
 pected 1" cried the prince, rising joyfully from his 
 seat. " I will not only see, but taste and try." 
 The two youths took their way through a flowery 
 labyrinth, talking much of the wondrous plant and 
 the virtues of its leaves ; but just as they were 
 drawing nigh to the nook where it grew, several 
 scorpions fastened all at once on Dariel's sandaled 
 foot, and stung it with such violence that, quitting 
 his comrade's arm, he sprang into the air, and then 
 fell prostrate under the towering lilies. Phantas- 
 mion carried him to the palace, and placed him 
 tenderly on a couch. After a time, seeing that he 
 continued in a languishing state, he made an in- 
 fusion of the leaves which his friend had so highly 
 extolled, and silently gave it to Dariel instead of 
 the drink which the physician had ordered ; but. 
 
PHANTASMION. y 
 
 just as he expected to see the poor youth revived 
 by this kind act, his head sank on the piUow, a 
 blue tinge stole over his cheek, and, when the 
 prince had gazed upon his altered face for a few 
 minutes, he plainly saw that it told no longer of 
 sickness, but of death. Not, however, till decay 
 had wrought a still more ghastly change in Da- 
 riel's comely countenance, Phantasmion quitted the 
 side of his couch ; then, overpowered with sorrow, 
 he roamed abroad, and sought the forest of lilies 
 which his comrade's hand had reared : the sun was 
 bright, the air fresh, but all that flowery multitude 
 was drooping and ready to perish ; cankerworms 
 had gnawed their roots, and the wondrous plant 
 itself had been attacked by such numbers-^f in- 
 sects that scarce a trace of it remained. 
 
 This circumstance deepened the melancholy 
 which had seized on the spirit of Phantasmion. 
 He began to think that all persons and things 
 connected with himself were doomed to misfortune ; 
 and when this channel of thought was once opened, 
 a hundred rills poured into it at once, and filled it 
 to the brim. 
 
 He reflected on the early deaths of his father 
 and mother, as he had never reflected on them be- 
 fore : the black plumes and solemn tapers of the 
 chamber where King Dorimant lay in state rose 
 up before him, while Zalia stretched on her bier, 
 and the strange man holding out his little com- 
 rade's body, visited him again as in the dreams of 
 
10 
 
 PHANTASMIOy. 
 
 his childhood. These and other remembrances, 
 grouped together under one aspect of gloom, all 
 wore the same visionary twilight hue, and inspired 
 the same sadness. He turned away from cheerful 
 faces, and was constantly expecting to see the 
 ghost of Dariel, a shadowy image of his swollen 
 corse. 
 
 Phantasmion had spent many days in this state 
 of dejection, when he wandered forth after a sleep- 
 less night one clear morning, and, refreshed by the 
 breath of early dawn, began to slumber under the 
 boughs of a pomegranate tree. No sooner had 
 he closed his eyes than the fairy, whom he had 
 formerly seen on that very spot, seemed to stand 
 there again. In his dream she touched him with 
 her wand, and forthwith leafy branches, like 
 those which drooped over him, sprouted from his 
 shoulders ; imperceptibly those branches changed 
 into green wings and up he soared, feeling as if his 
 whole body were inflated with air. As he floated 
 along in the sky a group of angel faces shone be- 
 fore him : he surveyed them, and all were lovely, 
 but one was far lovelier than the rest, and, while 
 he gazed upon that countenance, it grew more 
 and more exquisite, the others becoming indistinct 
 and fading gradually away. Suddenly, like a 
 balloon exhausted of air, down he dropped to the 
 earth, and was snatched away from the vision. 
 " Potentilla!" he cried aloud; starting up in the 
 intensity of feehng, and stretching out both his 
 
PHANTASMION. 1 1 
 
 hands, '' Potentilla ! help ! help !" No sooner had 
 he uttered that long- forgotten name, than he 
 opened his eyes, and saw the little old fairy smil- 
 ing in his face. " Phantasmion," she said, " what 
 shall I do for thee ? I am queen of the insect realm, 
 and powers like those which insects have, are mine 
 to bestow." " Give me wings !" he cried ; for 
 still he had a vague hope that he might once more 
 behold that heavenly face if he could but soar 
 aloft. 
 
 Potentilla waved her wand, and soon the air was 
 filled with butterflies, those angel insects pouring 
 from every region of the heavens. Here came a 
 long train arrayed in scarlet, waving up and down 
 altogether like a flag of triumph ; there floated a 
 band clad in deep azure, and flanked on either side 
 by troops in golden panoply. Some were like 
 flights of green leaves, others twinkled in robes of 
 softest blue besprent with silver, like young prin- 
 cesses at a festival ; and, in front of the whole 
 multitude, a gorgeous crowd, adorned with peacock 
 eyes, flew round and round in a thousand starry 
 wheels, while here and there one butterfly would 
 flit aloof for a few moments, then sink into the 
 circle and revolve indistinguishably with the rest : 
 now the entire wheel flew off into splinters, now 
 reconstructed itself at once, as if but a single life 
 informed its several parts. 
 
 Again Potentilla waved her wand, and the bloomy 
 throng descended on trees and shrubs, attiring 
 
12 PHANTASMION. 
 
 every bough in fresh blossoms, which quivered 
 without a breeze. Phantasmion saw that he was 
 to choose from this profusion of specimens the 
 wing's that pleased him best, and he fixed on a set 
 like those which he wore in his dream. The mo- 
 ment that Potentilla touched him with her wand a 
 sensation of lightness ran throughout his body, and 
 instantly afterwards he perceived that wings played 
 on his shoulders, wings of golden green adorned 
 with black embroidery : beneath an emerald coronet 
 his radiant locks clustered in large soft rings, and 
 wreathed themselves around his snowy forehead ; 
 robes of white silk floated over his buoyant limbs, 
 and his full eyes, lately closed in languor, beamed 
 with joyful expectation, while more than childlike 
 bloom rose mantling to his cheek. Potentilla had 
 seen an eagle teaching her young ones to fly, gra- 
 dually widening her airy circles, and mounting in 
 a spiral line that swelled as it rose, while the sun 
 burnished her golden plumes; just so she flew 
 before the winged youth, who timidly followed 
 where she led the way, trembling in his first career 
 when he saw the earth beneath him. But, gain- 
 ing confidence, all at once he shot away from his 
 guide, like a spark from a sky-rocket ; he soared 
 and gyred and darted on high, describing as many 
 different figures as a skater on the ice, while from 
 the groves and flowery meads below this choral 
 strain resounded : — 
 
PHANTASMION. 13 
 
 See the bright stranger ! 
 On wings of enchantment. 
 See how he soars ! 
 Eagles ! that high on the crest of the mountain, 
 Beyond where the cataracts gush from their fountain, 
 Look out o'er the sea and her glistering shores, 
 Cast your sun-gazing eyes on his pinions of hght ! 
 Behold how he glitters 
 Transcendantly bright ! 
 
 Whither, ah whither, 
 To what lofty region 
 
 His course will he bend ? 
 See him! 0, see him! the clouds overtaking. 
 As tho' the green earth he were blithely forsaking • 
 Ah now, in swift circles behold him descend ! 
 Now again like a meteor he shoots through the sky, 
 
 Or a star glancing upward, 
 
 To sparkle on high ! 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 PHANTASMION SEES AND HEARS STRANGE THINGS 
 BY THE SEA SHORE. 
 
 PHANTASMION left the shadows of earth 
 behind him, while he soared so high that green 
 fields, and blue waters, gardens and groves all 
 melted into one, and even that heavenly sight which 
 had first made him pray for wings was itself for- 
 gotten in the pleasure of flying. He thought it a de- 
 lightful novelty to rush down upon the heron like 
 
14 PHANTASMION. 
 
 the trained hawk, or aim a javelin at some bird of 
 prey as she stooped upon her quarry; to whirl 
 upward with the glede, drop down like a shot side 
 by side with the jer-falcon, disperse the swallows 
 in the midst of their aerial dances, or sweep the 
 cope of heaven in pursuit of the swift : then hover- 
 ing aloft in perfect stillness, with green pinions 
 and floating robes, he attracted crowds of gazers, 
 who marvelled how a bird of paradise could look 
 so large at such a wondrous height. One fine 
 clear day he flew southward to the ocean, and 
 pursued a sea eagle to the highest ether. At 
 first setting off he was rudely brushed by vultures, 
 hurrying down to feast upon a carcase which lay 
 rocking on the waves : he thrust among them with 
 his drawn sword, and pushed onward, leaving a 
 cloud of his delicate plumelets fluttering in the air. 
 Having arrived at last where the atmosphere was 
 too thin for any thing but a bird to breathe, he 
 hastily began to descend ; but, faint and weary, 
 scarce saw his way before him, and dropped full on 
 the back of the eagle's mate, jerking out of her 
 clutches a load of fish just caught for her young. 
 Enraged at this loss, she pursued Phantasmion, 
 and with her strong beak shattered one of his 
 pinions ere he had time to gain a cliff toward which 
 he was steering ; so that, being no longer able to 
 direct his course aright, he fell with violence, and 
 lay stunned upon the rugged shore. While he 
 leaned upon his arm, just recovering from the shock, 
 
PIIANTASMION. 15 
 
 and surveyed the ocean with dazzled eyes, he per- 
 ceived a strang-e woman's form rising out of the 
 waves, and gliding toward the beach : a wreath 
 of living moving flowers, like sea-anemones, clung 
 round her head, from which the slimy locks of 
 whitish blue hung down till they met the waters ; 
 her skin was thick and glistering ; there was a 
 glaze upon it which made Phantasmion shiver; 
 and, trailing her sinuous body beside the place 
 where the youth lay, she cast a glance towards 
 him, with her moony eyes of yellow green, at 
 which his blood ran cold : but on she wen-t, and 
 turned round a crag which jutted into the sea be- 
 yond the fallen prince. Still scarce recovered, 
 Phantasmion arose and leaned against the lower 
 end of this rock, which, like a buttress, projected 
 from the main body of the cliif ; the shattered 
 pinion drooped to the ground, while the wings on 
 the left side were half expanded, and lay languidly 
 against the white stone, like a green branch amid 
 unseasonable snow. And now other sounds caught 
 his ear beside the roar and hiss of advancing and 
 retiring waves ; he stood on tiptoe, and looking 
 down into a recess on the other side of the rock, 
 beheld the shape that had lately passed him, re- 
 clining on the shore, and staring up in the face 
 of a lofty dame who talked aloud with passionate 
 tones and gestures. She whose voice Phantas- 
 mion heard stood wnth her back towards him ; he 
 saw not her face, but he observed that she wore 
 
16 
 
 PPIANTASMION, 
 
 purple robes and a jewelled crown. " Ah ! me !" 
 she cried, " the beautiful larine ! Glandreth has 
 called her *the beautiful larine:' teach me how 
 to countervail the charms of this fair girl, and to 
 secure the heart of Glandreth." To this the fishy 
 woman made no reply, save a murmuring sound 
 of laughter ; whereat the crowned lady exclaimed 
 in a shrill voice, " Remember thy vow to the 
 king, my father, when he caught thee in his 
 toils upon the shore." Then the woman-fish re- 
 plied; " Have I not redeemed that vow? Did I 
 not lend thee spells to bewitch the heart of Albi- 
 nian, and is it not through me that thou art queen 
 of this Land of Rocks ? Without guerdon I will 
 serve thee no longer." The crowned lady put her 
 hands before her face, and groaned deeply: at 
 length she made answer, '' Be satisfied, Seshelma ! 
 the babe shall be thine. Help me to remove 
 larine from the sight of Glandreth; help me to 
 destroy the hostile house of Magnart, and thou 
 shalt have thy desire." Then the crowned woman 
 sate down below the rock, and listened to the words 
 of her whom she called Seshelma, and the two 
 seemed to be contriving some plot. Phantasmion 
 could not understand all that was said, for Se- 
 shelma discoursed in a low gurgling murmur ; but 
 he heard her speak of poisonous fish, and of a 
 charmed vessel, and of a damsel named larine. 
 In the end she drew from an oyster- shell a glit- 
 tering net, and offered it to her companion ; who 
 
PHANTASMION. 17 
 
 took it from her flabby hand, then rose and, lifting 
 up her embroidered train, went her way leisurely, 
 as if absorbed in thought. But Seshelma returned 
 into the sea, and, again rowing past Phantasmion, 
 she looked up in his face with the same hideous 
 leer which had chilled his blood before ; then diving 
 into the deeper water, she quickly disappeared. 
 
 Phantasmion stood for some time gazing on the 
 flood, almost expecting that some new shape would 
 rise out of it. He mused on what had passed, and 
 could not help in some sort connecting it with his 
 heavenly dream. A lady, young and beautiful, was 
 hated and persecuted : powers of earth and sea were 
 leagued against her ; he pictured this fair larine with 
 the countenance which he had beholden in the vision, 
 and longed to find her and rescue her from peril. 
 
 The prince now bethought him that he was a 
 long way from his royal palace, having fallen on 
 the borders of Rockland, a country adjoining his 
 own dominions ; he therefore hastened from the 
 coast, holding up the disabled wing with his hand, 
 and journeyed homeward on foot. After a night's 
 sleep he repaired to the pomegranate tree, but felt 
 unable to express the imaginations that haunted 
 his mind while Potentilla stood before him. He 
 told the fairy, when she begged to know his plea- 
 sure, that he was tired of his butterfly pinions, and 
 wished to try new experiments. " Make my feet," 
 said he, " like those of flies, which climb up the 
 niirrors or walk over the roof of my marble hall : 
 c 
 
1 8 PHANTASMION. 
 
 enable me to follow wherever one of those insects 
 cansteal along." He had no sooner spoken thus than 
 Potentilla removed the wings she had given him, 
 and fitted to his feet the suckers of flies. This gift 
 pleased Phantasmion well, and he spent the re- 
 mainder of that day in gliding along the walls and 
 over the vaulted ceilings of his palace, or scaling 
 the pillar-like stems of the loftiest palm trees. Those 
 who witnessed his feats were amazed ; but it had 
 been commonly believed that the race of the Palm- 
 land kings was under the protection of some mys- 
 terious being, and this tale, which had of late years 
 been forgotten, was now recalled to mind with fresh 
 awe and wonder. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 PHANTASMION ASCENDS THE MOUNT OF EAGLES. 
 
 EARLY the next morning, Phantasmion rode 
 out to the Black Mountains, which divided 
 his territories from Rockland, the realm of a neigh- 
 bouring monarch ; and, having arrived at the bot- 
 tom of a steep hill, he alighted in order to climb 
 the side of it. This was a precipice of solid rock, 
 many hundred feet deep, which looked like a dark 
 curtain let down from the sky, and till that hour had 
 never been trodden by the foot of man. Strange 
 was it to see him as he paused iu the midst of the 
 
PHANTASMION. 19 
 
 ascent, plucking a wild flower from a crevice ; not 
 sustained in the manner of a bird, with spread tail 
 and half expanded pinions, but seemingly upborne 
 by his own lightness, like a vapoury phantom. 
 When the prince was a child, his mother had told 
 him that a wreath of precious stones was hidden 
 somewhere betwixt the top of this huge crag, and 
 the summit of the hill beyond ; she had hung it 
 round the neck of her pet lamb in play, and, while 
 she was plucking dainty herbs to regale her fa- 
 vourite, an eagle had carried away the Iamb and 
 its costly necklace to her young ones among the 
 highest rocks. Phantasmion remembered this, 
 and, in some faint hope of discovering the relic, 
 wandered on, after he had gained the summit of 
 the crag, till he came to a small round lake, which 
 lay buried in shadow below a semicircle of rocks. 
 Taking rest here for a few moments, he spied an 
 eagle with something white in her talons, and soon 
 he saw her fly across the pool and enter a recess 
 amid the crags above. *' This is one of those 
 eyries," thought he, " where the eagles breed from 
 age to age ; 1 will invade their ancient house, and 
 perhaps I may win back the prize which was plun- 
 dered from mine." While he was beginning to 
 ascend, the mother eagle flew forth again, so that 
 Phantasmion was able to mark well the situation 
 of the nest. With steady foot he climbed the crags 
 above the tarn, till he arrived at the bottom of that 
 loftier cliff, in the centre of which the eyry was 
 
20 PHANTASMION. 
 
 embosomed ; just as he reached this point, un- 
 expected sounds met his ear : " The eaglets' cry is 
 strangely like the wailing of a child," thought he ; 
 and, full of wonder, he glided up the front of the 
 rock to the hollow where the nest was lodged, and 
 there beheld an infant lying on its back unhurt, 
 but screaming piteously, while two half-fledged 
 eaglets were shrinking to the further part of the 
 cavity, frightened by the clamours of their in- 
 tended victim. Startled by this sight, the prince 
 thought no more about the jewels, but took up the 
 babe, which was clad in the fairest raiment, and 
 now, having something beside himself to carry, 
 was bent on returning by the easiest path. Ac- 
 cordingly, after having descended to the tarn again, 
 he tracked the course of a rivulet which flowed 
 from that darksome receptacle till it wandered 
 away out of sight amid shaggy rocks ; then, pausing 
 to consider how he should proceed, again he heard 
 a sound of lamentation, but it was softer and 
 deeper than that which had proceeded from the 
 eagle's nest. He listened, but the dashing of 
 some hidden waterfall overpowered the voice, and 
 for a moment he thought that fancy had deGeive4 
 him ; till once more it rose louder than those 
 watery sounds, and then sank into silence. 
 
 Phantasmion wrapped the infant, now fast asleep, 
 in his upper vest, and laid it on dry moss, under 
 a jutting stone ; he then followed the streamlet 
 among the crags, and thus found his way to a nook, 
 
PHANTASMION. 21 
 
 where it formed a series of cascades. Beside the 
 lowest of these, a damsel sate weeping. She was 
 so fair and exquisitely formed that, leaning against 
 the black rock, she looked like those white figures 
 that are cut in relief on the dark ground of an 
 onyx. She was a prisoner amid the labyrinth of 
 rocks, unable either to repass the precipitous road 
 whereby she had incautiously ascended, or to climb 
 the wall of rock which rose above her head, and 
 over which the prince was airily advancing. A 
 yew tree grew out of a cleft in the beetling crag, 
 and from its twisted trunk Phantasmion looked 
 ' down upon the damsel, and saw her cheeks wet with 
 tears, and her luxuriant tresses curhng amid the 
 spray of the torrent ; it seemed as if the waterfall 
 mocked her distress, babbling while she wept bit- 
 terly, and crying, "Fair one, follow me ! see how 
 I leap down the precipice." 
 
 The rustling of boughs over-head made the fair 
 girl look up, and seeing a bright face peering down 
 amid the dark foliage of the tree, " Good youth," 
 she exclaimed, *' hast thou seen a babe upon this 
 mountain ? Hast thou seen an eagle carrying a 
 young child to her nest ?" " The infant is safe," 
 replied Phantasmion ; " I took him myself even 
 now from the eyry, and he lies wrapped up in a 
 silken garment, under shelter of a rock." Then 
 the youth swung himself down from the yew, and 
 approached the damsel, who, overjoyed at these 
 tidings, led him to the place where she had climbed 
 
22 PHANTASMIOX. 
 
 up to reach the waterfall, thinking that she might 
 find the eagle's nest within the chasm. Phantas- 
 mion offered to carry her to the bottom of the rock, 
 and, to prove with what ease it could be done, he 
 darted up and down the steep cliff before her as 
 firmly and fearlessly as if he were skimming over 
 the plain. The lady looked astonished at his won- 
 drous agility, and was somewhat alarmed when he 
 carried her in his arms to the edge of the crag ; 
 but in a few moments he placed her in safety on 
 the heather below, and hastened back to the jut- 
 ting stone where he had left the baby. Phantas- 
 mion found the child still asleep, W'ith the tears yet 
 glistening on its placid cheek, and soon returned, 
 holding it carefully to his breast; the damsel sprang 
 forward to meet him ; her countenance was no 
 longer downcast, but beaming with joy and tender 
 affection, and, as she stretched out her arms to 
 receive the rescued babe, Phantasmion saw that 
 her face was the same as that entrancing one which 
 he had beheld in his dream. He suffered her to 
 take the child, and gazed in silent ecstasy while 
 she was pressing it to her bosom. At last, after 
 uttering many thanks, she bade him farewell, and 
 was about to depart ; Phantasmion would have 
 attended her home, but, with earnest looks and 
 words, she declined his courtesy, and began wind- 
 ing her way, in all haste, towards the further part 
 of the mountain. The prince followed her with 
 his eye as she steadily descended a slope of smooth 
 
PHANTASMION. 23 
 
 grass, the babe, now awake, showing" its rosy face 
 over her shoulder, while a gentle breeze uplifted 
 her long wavy locks, brightened by the sunshine. 
 No sooner was she lost from his view, than Phan- 
 tasmion, awaking from his trance, hastened in 
 the direction which he had seen her take, and at 
 length came in sight of a spreading vale, with a 
 dusky lake in the centre of it. The damsel was 
 no where to be seen ; she had struck into a wood 
 on the skirt of the hill, but, at the further end of 
 the valley, companies of soldiers clad in mail were 
 exercising themselves in a mock battle ; they were 
 too distant for the youth to discern their motions, 
 but, the sun being reflected from their polished ar- 
 mour, a steady mass of lightning seemed to dwell 
 upon the plain. Phantasmion's soul kindled at the 
 sight, and he almost longed to rush down and join 
 those shining troops : but from the appearance of 
 the sky he feared to be belated if he tarried longer, 
 and, in order that he might not miss his way, re- 
 traced his steps to the small round lake on the 
 other side of the mountain. 
 
 At the time that he reached the tarn, a beam of 
 light was resting on those waters, which were co- 
 vered with shadows when he saw them last, and 
 through the clear fluid a gemmy coronal was gleam- 
 ing. Phantasmion waded into the pool, and 
 plucked the splendid ornament from the ooze in 
 which it was half buried ; it was of exquisite work- 
 manship, and represented a pomegranate branch, 
 
24 PHANTASMION. 
 
 the leaves being made of emeralds, and the blos- 
 soms of burning rubies. The inner part bore this 
 inscription in letters of gold : The Queen of Palm- 
 land. 
 
 Phantasmion placed the wreath in his girdle, 
 and hastened to rejoin his attendants at the bottom 
 of the hill. The suckers of his feet had imbibed 
 a quantity of moisture, and, being much fatigued, 
 he scarce had strength to drag his clinging soles 
 from that which they trode upon : so that he car- 
 ried away many loose stones as he went along, and 
 was in danger of being lamed ere he reached his 
 horse. 
 
 On his way home, Phantasmion showed the 
 wreath which had once adorned the flaxen locks of 
 Zalia to an ancient noble, formerly his mother's 
 guardian. The old man looked sorrowful at the sight 
 of it, and said, " May the next Queen of Palm- 
 land be happier than she who wore those jewels l" 
 " How sayst thou, Cyradis ?" the youth replied ; 
 ^' didst thou not bid me visit the glades of my 
 mother's native land, where Zalia was the gayest 
 thing that sported under the green leaves ?" "So 
 it was with Zalia," Cyradis replied, ** till she ex- 
 changed her wild flower chaplets for a royal crown. 
 Alas ! thy father saw not how his fair queen was 
 arrayed ; he cared only for his kingdom, and 
 grieved day and night that he could not caparison 
 his army in solid brass and steel." " The King 
 of Rockland has well armed soldiers !" exclaimed 
 
PHANTASMIOlSr. JO 
 
 Phantasmion, recollecting what he had seen from 
 the mountain top. " He hath," replied Cyradis ; 
 •' and a great-hearted general too, who seeks to 
 enlarge the boundaries of Rockland on either side." 
 These remarks, and a discourse which followed, 
 made the son of Dorimant very thoughtful, and he 
 sought next day to renew his conversation with 
 Cyradis, but was informed that the ancient chief 
 had returned to his own abode, in the district of 
 Gemmaura, where, in former days, Zalia, the or- 
 phan heiress of that territory, dwelt under the 
 same roof with him. The prince pondered on the 
 sudden departure of Cyradis, and began to suspect 
 that the good old man had been forced away by 
 those who wished their youthful sovereign to re- 
 main ignorant and careless of all that pertained to 
 the g-overnment of the realm. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 PHANTASMION ENTERS THE LAND OF ROCKS. 
 
 THE kingdom which Phantasmion had inhe- 
 rited from his ancestors abounded not only 
 in palms, but in all kinds of grain and fruit trees, 
 as well as in flocks and herds. The land flowed 
 with milk and wine, oil and honey ; but few 
 metals or valuable stones had yet been discovered 
 
26 
 
 PHANTASMION. 
 
 in its bosom. On the other hand the realm of 
 Albinian, who reigned over a country separated 
 from Palmland, partly by an extensive range of 
 hills, called the Black Mountains, and partly by 
 the river Mediana, which flowed from them to the 
 sea on the right hand, was craggy and barren, rich 
 only in metals, marbles, and other stones, and in 
 materials for making glass and porcelain. The 
 men of Rockland, (so this wild country was called,) 
 were ingenious in mechanical devices and opera- 
 tions ; the inhabitants of the fertile Land of Palms 
 were given to agriculture, and had never acquired 
 that skill in arts and manufactures, by which the 
 neighbouring nation was distinguished. Anciently 
 the two countries enriched and strengthened one 
 another, but these friendly relations were ex- 
 changed for feuds and settled hostility during the 
 reign of Dorimant. For that ambitious monarch 
 cherished designs of rendering the Land of Rocks 
 tributary to his kingdom, and, having been secretly 
 informed of certain iron mines in a glen among 
 the Black Mountains, he offered to yield his claim 
 upon the hand of a fair lady whom Albinian had 
 fallen desperately in love with, on condition that 
 this narrow vale should be annexed to his crown. 
 The King of Rockland unguardedly accepted these 
 terms, but afterwards refused to ratify his part of 
 the treaty, having learnt, as he declared, that Do- 
 rimant was covertly preparing to make war on his 
 
PHANTASMION. 2/ 
 
 dominions. It was reported, however, that he had 
 been influenced in this matter by the sorceress 
 Queen of Tigridia, who foretold that a mighty 
 conqueror should arise in a craggy vale among 
 the Black Mountains, containing veins of iron. 
 Dorimant inveighed loudly against the bad faith 
 of Albinian, which he secretly hoped he should 
 soon be in a condition to punish ; for, after desert- 
 ing the lady to whom he had been betrothed, he 
 espoused the heiress of Gemmaura, a district which 
 lay between Palmland and the kingdom of Alma- 
 terra, fully expecting to find the desired metals in 
 his new territory. But a spell seemed cast upon 
 this region from the hour that it came into his 
 hands, and, though he had reason to know that 
 both iron and copper had once been found there, 
 he died without discovering the object of his search. 
 On his decease, however, the discord which he had 
 sedulously fomented between his subjects and their 
 neighbours did not subside ; the first were veiy 
 scantily supplied with instruments of war, and the 
 others were dependant on the fields and pastures 
 of a rich country called Almaterra for needful sus- 
 tenance ; but so enduring was the enmity which 
 the measures of Dorimant had excited betwixt the 
 two nations, that no regard to interest could restore 
 their former friendly intercourse. 
 
 Phantasmion revolved these things in his mind 
 after hearing what fell from Cyradis ; Dariel had 
 
28 PHANTASMIO¥. 
 
 formerly excited his curiosity concerning the Land 
 of Rocks, and now he resolved to travel through it 
 in disguise, for the sake of making observations 
 relative to war, and still more from a hope of 
 meeting with the lovely maiden whom he had res- 
 cued from her prison among the rocks. 
 
 When he presented himself before Potentilla, 
 the fairy fixed her eyes on his countenance, and 
 saw that there was more speculation in it than 
 formerly. " Give me," said he, " the power to 
 travel with great speed ; yet, in such a way, that 
 I may not outwardly appear to be thus gifted. 
 Eet me skip like the grasshoppers, and those in- 
 sects which can go at one bound many hundred 
 times their own length." Potentilla touched his 
 thighs with her wand, and bade him try his new 
 faculty : so Phantasmion gave a spring, and vaulted 
 above a quarter of a mile, darting over a clump of 
 young palm trees to alight in a verdant lawn. 
 
 The prince gave out that he was going to travel, 
 and all the court imagined that he meant to visit 
 Cyradis in Gemmaura, which he had never entered 
 since the death of his mother. Before day-break 
 he took horse, and sallied forth alone, habited after 
 the fashion of Rockland, the language and cus- 
 toms of which country he had learnt from his 
 nurse, and also from Dariel. He wore a tig-ht 
 vest of purple silk, embroidered with golden vine 
 leaves ; a jewelled girdle encircled his waist, and he 
 exchanged his tiara for a cap adorned with a single 
 
PHANTASMION . 29 
 
 arching feather of many hues. In his hand he 
 carried a hollow reed of thin gold, with a serpent 
 twisted round it ; the folds of the snake held gold 
 and jewels, and in the body of the wand a nutritious 
 conserve was deposited. Thus equipped, Phan- 
 tasmion rode forth to the river Mediana, the banks 
 of which had formerly been fringed with olive- 
 trees even to the skirts of the hills ; now leafless 
 stumps alone were to be seen by the river-side : 
 the vineyards, which the prince passed on his way 
 to the boundary stream, appeared to have been 
 laid waste, for all the plants were lying on the 
 ground, torn and trampled into the earth ; and, in 
 the rich pastures, for miles around, not a sheep or 
 heifer was cropping the tall grass. 
 
 On the Rockland side of the stream, at the foot 
 of a hill which ended the range of the Black 
 Mountains, was a fortified town called Lathra, 
 Phantasmion eyed the lofty walls and turrets and 
 deep moat by which it was surrounded, and de- 
 termined to overleap them all at a bound. He 
 stood upright on the back of his steed, and im- 
 pelled himself forward ; in a moment he was 
 shooting over the house-tops, and instantly after- 
 wards a tremendous crash was in his ears, while 
 fragments, shai-p as glass, were entering into his 
 flesh. The leaper had come down upon a stand of 
 sumptuous porcelain exposed for sale ; the owners 
 all stood aghast while he endeavoured to glide 
 away ; but, soon recovering from their amazement. 
 
30 PHANTASMION. 
 
 the whole crowd bustled after him, as a swarm of 
 wasps rushes out indignantly when a stone has 
 been flung by wanton children into their pensile 
 nest, and all their delicate architecture has been 
 crushed in a moment. They hem round the prince, 
 the ring grows smaller and smaller ; still each 
 man waits for his neighbour to seize the mysterious 
 culprit, and ere the circle has closed upon him, 
 Phantasmion has sprung away, and, having cleared 
 many a lofty edifice, he is now alighting in another 
 quarter of the town. To avoid a fresh crowd 
 which began to collect around him, he slipped into 
 a large building, the door of which was standing 
 ajar, and found that he had entered an armouiy, 
 the walls being covered with weapons fancifully 
 arranged, and the floor with piles of bucklers and 
 breast-plates. The attention of the prince was 
 riveted by a magnificent sword which lay beside a 
 suit of armour of extraordinary size. The master 
 of the magazine, seeing his inquisitive counte- 
 nance, told him that they belonged to Glandreth, 
 who conquered the country of Tigridia for King 
 Albinian. " And that large helmet, surmounted 
 with a white plume, is that to be worn by the 
 same person?" the youth inquired. "That too 
 is for Glandreth," replied the keeper of the arms ; 
 '* Queen Mandra placed those feathers in it with 
 her own hand. Thou art from court, and must 
 know more of courtly afifairs than I ; but it is 
 plain to the whole country that the conqueror of 
 
PHANTASMION. 31 
 
 Tigridia has ruled both the state and the queen's 
 heart ever since the king grew decrepit." 
 
 Phantasmion went forth, and, leaving the town, 
 advanced toward a field where men, wild beasts, 
 and cattle appeared to be strangely mingled to- 
 gether. Drawing nigh to the scene of action, he 
 perceived that a band of tigers -were performing 
 certain movements on signals given them by men 
 with spears in their hands. Obedient to the word 
 of command, they surrounded the sheep and kine, 
 separated them into divisions, and drove them to 
 different parts of the field with as much skill as a 
 shepherd's dog will collect his master's flock on 
 the mountains. A country-man was looking on 
 by the side of Phantasmion. *' I hear," said he, 
 " that there is little booty to be got now in the 
 tract about the river ; doubtless our captains will 
 march up to King Phantasmion's palace next, and 
 see what can be made prize of there." " Aha ! " 
 cried Phantasmion, much startled, and ready to 
 give one of his enormous leaps ; he restrained 
 himself, however, and carelessly observed, " I knew 
 not that tigers were bred in this land." The rus- 
 tic stared, as he replied, '* Sure thou hast heard 
 how Malderyl, the queen's mother, sent them 
 from Tigridia, where they abound in the brakes 
 and forests ?" 
 
 The prince made no reply, but directed his steps 
 toward a woody knoll, which he espied at a dis- 
 tance ; and, having reached the bottom of it, in- 
 
32 PHANTASMION. 
 
 Stead of slowly winding his way to the top, he 
 gained it at one bound, and there stretched himself 
 at full length on dry moss underneath the trees. 
 " How have I been living," thought he, " like an 
 animal in its winter burrow, wrapped in luxury, 
 without hearing or seeing aught of what went on 
 ground me ; I will spring back, to guard my palace ; 
 nay, I will make war upon Glandreth, and my nu- 
 merous army shall cover the battle plain ! — Army ! 
 alas 1 can men armed with slings and cudgels de- 
 serve that name ? No ! it is best to pursue my 
 original intent. I will survey this injurious, this 
 faithless country, as an eagle eyes the flock on 
 which he means to descend. I will take my way 
 through Almaterra ; Dariel was wont to say that 
 a little effort would suffice to snap the ties which 
 bind that state to this. Yes, yes, I will seek the 
 king and the chiefs of the adjoining country, and, 
 having gained allies there, I will return to my own 
 kingdom, and be a monarch indeed." Instantly 
 after Phantasmion had uttered these last words to 
 himself, the small cunning eye of a serpent met 
 his view : the creature looked in his face as if 
 divining his very thoughts, while it lay coiled up 
 under the fallen leaves of a bay tree. As soon as 
 the prince raised his head, the snake began to 
 move its forked tongue, and seemed to emit sparks 
 of fire from its eyes ; whereupon Phantasmion 
 started from his mossy couch, and, having leaped 
 from the top of the wooded hill to the plain below, 
 
PHANTASMIOJf. 33 
 
 found himself close upon that wide sheet of water 
 which he had formerly seen from the craggy moun- 
 tain, when he followed the steps of the departing 
 damsel. Toward the banks of this lake he swiftly 
 proceeded, and came opposite to a large island 
 covered with tall trees of gloomy green, over which 
 rose battlements and pinnacles and frowning towers. 
 The waters of the lake seemed to be very deep, so 
 dark was their aspect ; and two craggy islets, at 
 nearly equal distances, emerged from its bosom 
 betwixt the large island and the shore. Phantas- 
 mion skipped to these isles of crag, one after ano- 
 ther, and looked like some gay water-bird alighted 
 on a rock with glistening plumage, as he stood on 
 the dusky islet with his arched feather waving to 
 and fro. From that station he had a fair view of 
 the large island, and saw that, within its pebbly 
 margin, there rose a fence of interwoven hollies, 
 like a jasper colonnade on a white marble pave- 
 ment. This firm bank Phantasmion was just able 
 to attain by a leap, and no sooner had he gained 
 it than his attention was arrested by a soft melan- 
 choly voice, liquid and musical as the chime of 
 ci*ystal cups thrilled by a dewy finger. He drew 
 nigh the fence, and, though unable to catch a 
 glimpse of the singer through the close hollies, 
 he heard these words of the song : 
 
 Tho' I be young — ah ! well-a-day ! 
 I cannot love these opening flowers; 
 For they have each a kiudly spray 
 D 
 
34 PHANTASMION. 
 
 To shelter them from suns and showers ; 
 But I may pine, oppressed with grief, 
 Kobhed of my dear protecting leaf. 
 
 Since thou art gone, my mother sweet, 
 I weep to see the fledgling doves 
 Close nestling in a happy seat. 
 Each beside the breast it loves ; 
 While I, uncared for, sink to rest. 
 Far, far from my fond mother's breast. 
 
 Sweet mother ! in thy blessed sight 
 I too might blossom full and free ; 
 Heaven then would beam with softer light ; 
 But, could I rest upon thy knee 
 My drooping head, what need I care 
 How sickly pale and wan I were 1 
 
 My face I view in pools and brooks. 
 When garish suns full brightly shine ; 
 Ah ! me ! think I, those blooming looks. 
 And that smooth brow can ne'er be mine ! 
 Sad heart ! I charge thee to express 
 More truly all thy deep distress. 
 
 Deceitful roses leave my cheek, 
 Soft lilies join those happy flowers, 
 Which nothing stirs but zephyr meek, 
 Which nought oppresses but sweet showers : 
 While she lies dead I grieve to be 
 More like those living flowers than she. 
 
 Here there was a pause in the soft strain, and 
 Phantasmion, looking on the lake, descried some 
 fishermen in a vessel just come within sight. He 
 eagerly hailed them, and while they approached 
 the shore, he heard the song thus continued : — 
 
PHANTASMION. 35 
 
 O, what to me are landscapes green, 
 
 With groves and vineyards sprinkled o'er, 
 
 And gardens where gay plants are seen 
 
 To form a daily changing floor 1 
 
 I dream of waters and of waves, 
 
 The tide which thy sea-dwelHng laves. 
 
 Dearly I love the hours of night, 
 "When bashful stars have leave to shine ; 
 For all my visions rise in light, 
 "While sun-lit spectacles decline ; 
 And with those stars they fade away, 
 Or look as glow-worms look by day. 
 
 CHAPTER V[. 
 
 PHANTASMION PAYS A SECOND VISIT TO THE 
 king's ISLAND. 
 
 PHANTASMION leaped into the boat when it 
 approached the shore, requesting- the fishermen 
 to convey him to the further end of the lake ; and, 
 while the vessel was receding, he listened, in rapt 
 attention, to the music of that plaintive song which 
 floated over the water, accompanied by the soft 
 symphony of the dipping oars. His conductors 
 eyed him in silent surprise, and, guessing that he 
 was a person of condition, they held their peace, 
 and continued to row from the island. When the 
 melody was no longer audible, Phantasmion asked 
 an old man who was sitting at the bottom of the 
 
36 PHANTASMION. 
 
 boat, busy with his tackle, if he knewwho.it was that 
 sang on the large wooded island. "Ay, marry !" 
 replied he, " the voice was that of larine, the fair 
 daughter of our king." *' larine ! " exclaimed the 
 prince ; ** and dwells larine in yonder castle ?" he 
 inquired, pointing to the towers which were yet 
 visible above the trees in the distance. *' That 
 is the summer abode of the queen and her aged 
 consort," replied the old man. " Is the king 
 aged?" rejoined Phantasmion. *' He looks as if 
 he were," answered the fisherman; *' but that 
 comes more of sickliness than of years. He is 
 feeble in mind and body, but his wife reigns man- 
 fully in his stead, aided by a valiant general — and 
 other helpers, belike, which to us are unknown 
 and invisible." These last words were spoken in 
 a low tone, and Phantasmion thought of the 
 crowned lady and her strange companion on the 
 sea-shore. 
 
 *' I am a stranger in this land," observed he, 
 after a while, " so long have I been absent from 
 it ; but, methinks, I recollect that the king had 
 another wife before he espoused the Princess of 
 Tigridia." '' That beauteous dame," said the old 
 man, " perished at sea, leaving the sweet larine 
 to deplore her loss." '* Has Queen Maudra chil- 
 dren of her own ?" the prince inquired. His in- 
 formant replied, " She has two ; and one of them is 
 still a babe in his nurse's arms. This same infant 
 was carried away by an eagle to its nest, on the 
 
PHANTASM ION. 37 
 
 highest peak of the Black Mountains, and the fair 
 princess larine climbed up among the crags, and 
 rescued him from the eyry. She had been playing 
 with him in a field at the foot of the hill, when 
 the fierce bird descended from the rocks to seize 
 her little charge ; and, in the evening, she reap- 
 peared with the babe in her arms, just as the 
 king's household began to fear that both were lost 
 for ever." 
 
 The island was now far in the distance, and the 
 fishermen inquired where the princely stranger de- 
 sired to be put on shore. Phantasmion asked the 
 owner of the boat, if he could afford him hospi- 
 tality for the rest of that day, and a night's lodg- 
 ing ; and the old man made answer that he was 
 able and willing to do so, even without the pay- 
 ment which the youth offered. His younger com- 
 rades now impelled the boat swiftly onward, and, 
 passing a tiny tufted islet,'' over against which 
 stood the fisherman's cottage on a pleasant green 
 bank, the vessel was brought up to a little stone 
 pier right opposite to the door of that lowly dwel- 
 ling. Phantasmion entered the rustic abode, and 
 partook of the humble fare which it afforded ; then 
 went forth again, having told the fisherman and 
 his dame that he meant to return and rest under 
 their roof that night. He wandered along the banks 
 of the lake, directing his steps toward that part 
 of them whence he could obtain a full view of the 
 King's Island : and now the sun went down, and 
 
38 PHANTASMION. 
 
 the lustre of a summer's day, which had drowned 
 all things in a flood of hazy brightness, gave place 
 to the distinct splendour of moonlight, when the 
 hills looked like masses of ebony, and seemed fcr 
 the first time to exhibit their true forms and bulk, 
 while standing out in bold relief against the deep 
 clear sky. Phantasmion gazed not on them, but 
 kept looking towards the island ; for the melan- 
 choly strain, which he had lately heard there, was 
 yet sounding in his ears, and connected itself with 
 the fair countenance which was constantly present 
 to his mind. On the side of the wooded isle 
 which he now beheld, Phantasmion espied no ver- 
 durous wall of interlacing boughs, but a margin 
 fringed with broad alders and bending willows. 
 While his eye was fixed on that grove, he saw a 
 small narrow boat issue from amid the boughs, 
 which drooped into the water, and flit across the 
 lake. It was impelled by a youthful maiden, 
 whose braided tresses shone in the moonlight. 
 She entered a little inlet where the water looked 
 black as pitch, the trees leaning over and hiding 
 it from the moonbeams. Phantasmion stood in 
 the shadow of the birchen grove, behind the nar- 
 row bay, and watched her motions. The damsel 
 leaned over the edge of the boat, and dipped into 
 the dusky basin a net that seemed to be composed 
 of flaming wires. The prince expected to see 
 those flames quenched, but they glowed and flashed 
 

 PHANTASMION. 
 
 39 
 
 in their liquid shrine, like fiery water-snakes, illu- 
 minating the cove, and making the moonbeams 
 that rested on the lake beyond, appear of a green- 
 ish chrysolite colour. Shoals of little fish, with 
 many-coloured bodies, were attracted by the light: 
 up they came, and crowded into the net, so that 
 the maiden appeared to be catching live jewels 
 instead of fish. When her net was full, the lady 
 poured her draught of glittering fishes into a silver 
 pitcher of water, which stood on the bench of the 
 boat ready to receive them. Phantasmion gazed 
 earnestly upon her, and knew that she was that 
 same fair damsel whom he had met upon the moun- 
 tain ; but now she appeared more brightly beau- 
 tiful than when he found her weeping beside the 
 rushing cataract. Her face looked placid as mar- 
 ble; and those features on which the ruddy light 
 of the magical net was playing,..seemed as if they 
 ought never to have been cast in perishable clay. 
 Dazzling in whiteness were the lady's rounded 
 arms extended over the pool, and her graceful 
 neck, on which no jewels shone, was polished and 
 smooth as alabaster, but with a look of soft downy 
 depth which art cannot imitate. Her bright locks 
 no longer floated to her waist, but were coiled 
 round the back part of her head ; even from her 
 open brow the ringlets were strained away, and 
 only a few tendrils, escaping from confinement, 
 lay upon her cheeks and forehead. 
 
40 PHAN^TASMION. 
 
 Having filled her net once more, and loaded 
 her pitcher, the damsel began to push the boat out 
 of the cove by means of a long pole. While thus 
 engaged she looked up, and espying the figure of 
 Phantasmion, as he stood under the birch trees 
 just above the bay, she started and hastened her 
 movements, then, flinging down the pole, she seized 
 tbe oars, and began to row with all speed toward 
 the island. This was done before Phantasmion 
 had summoned resolution to speak or stir ; now she 
 was in the deep water, yet still within the limits of 
 his vaulting powers, but he restrained himself from 
 leaping into the lake. A little way further on was 
 a vessel, which, by some accident, had got loose 
 from its moorings, and was drifting about in the 
 water ; he leapt into it, and thus nearly upset the 
 narrow skiff, which quivered with the sudden 
 shock ; but, when it steadied again, he caught up 
 the oars and rowed to the wooded isle. Having 
 arrived within a certain distance, he sprang to land 
 among the willows, leaped over an alder grove, 
 and beheld the maiden at the end of a long alley of 
 cypresses, bearing on her head the silver pitcher, 
 the polished surface of which reflected the moon- 
 light. One arm supported the vessel, the other held 
 aside her long white garments and disclosed her 
 twinkling feet, brightened by the harmless flames 
 of the magic net, which was grasped in the same 
 hand that contained the folds of her light robe. 
 Oh, what grace of motion was there ! The black 
 
PIIANTASMION. 41 
 
 firs and cypresses which stood in the moonshine, 
 stern and g-rand, like stony effigies of' trees, the 
 delicate acacias that hung their boughs in grace- 
 ful attitudes, ready to sway to and fro on the 
 slightest impulse, all seemed to recognize her as 
 one of themselves, a being unsullied and perfect 
 in the simplicity of nature. Something of this 
 Phantasmion may have felt, but he thought not of 
 trees or of moonshine, and knew not whether it were 
 day or night ; he was busily measuring the dis- 
 tance between himself and the damsel. But, even 
 as a silvery beam from a lamp, which some nig-ht 
 passenger carries in his hand, will travel across the 
 ceiling of an unlighted room, attracting the eye of 
 one who sits idly musing in the darkness, so did 
 the damsel gleam, glide, and vanish through the 
 avenue of black shadows ; and Phantasmion stood 
 motionless, while swift thoughts were passing and 
 repassing through his mind. He hesitated to fol- 
 low the maiden along the walk which wound circu- 
 larly about the island, but, espying a light amid 
 the foliage, he darted through the trees into a 
 smooth lawn, across which he beheld a tower 
 separate from the main body of the castle. The 
 lower half of this building was hidden by shrubs, 
 but, just above the screen, projected a balcony, over 
 the rails of which a lady in sumptuous attire was 
 leaning, and looking eagerly down upon the path 
 below; a diadem was on her brow, the rich train of 
 her purple robe swept the marble platform, beads 
 
42 PHANTASMION. 
 
 of gold were twined around her bony arms, while 
 numerous carcanets and chains of sparkling jewels 
 hung from her neck over the balustres. That 
 lady's lineaments were queen-like, though harsh 
 and worn ; but hers was the aspect of no kindly 
 dame, and on such a countenance of ungentle emo- 
 tion the moon's calm ray seldom rests. " larine !" 
 she exclaimed, " hast thou found them? quicken 
 thy pace !" and now Phantasmion espied the dam- 
 sel, with the pitcher on her head, mounting the 
 higher steps of the balcony stairs ; a moment 
 afterwards she was gone, having entered the tower 
 with the crowned lady; then, the door being 
 closed, and the light of the inner apartment hidden, 
 Phantasmion was left alone with the trees and the 
 half shrouded moon. '' That voice, that diadem, 
 that gorgeous train !" exclaimed the youth ; *' full 
 surely this is the passionate dame who sate dis- 
 coursing with that strange woman of the deep. 
 They spake of poisonous fish ! — O, can this maiden, 
 who looks too fair and good to dwell below the sky, 
 can she be the base instrument of wicked wills ? 
 Nay, nay ! she is herself beguiled, perchance to be 
 the victim of treacherous hatred." He gazed on 
 the dark tower, and had resolved to gain admittance 
 by force or stratagem, when a file of armed men 
 advanced through the trees into the lawn, talking 
 loud and peering about, as if in search of some one. 
 From a few words which came to his ear, Phantas- 
 mion gussed that he had been descried from the 
 
PHANTASMION. 43 
 
 castle, and that the guard were come to lay hands 
 on him. He glided off amid the trees, while the 
 clouds were veiling the moon's light, and found his 
 way, by the margin of the isle, to that same spot 
 which he had visited in the morning; from the 
 hank of pebbles he bounded to the first of the 
 craggy islets, thence to the second, and from that 
 again to the shore of the main land. 
 
 The moon was driving off her veil when Phan- 
 tasmion thus crossed the water ; and, when he 
 stood on the shore, having the woody knoll right 
 before him, she had thrown it completely aside. 
 The prince resolved on returning to the fisher- 
 man's hut by the side of the lake opposite to that 
 which he had lately traversed, so that he should 
 have gone completely round the whole sheet of 
 water by the time that he reached the cottage, 
 which from its situation he felt sure of recog- 
 nizing. 
 
 He skirted the lake closely, being obliged now 
 and then to leap over parts of the shore which it 
 would have been troublesome to pass step by step, 
 and in this way he came to a river, which he con- 
 cluded was on its way to join the sea upon the 
 right hand. The stream was wide where it issued 
 out of the lake, and looked deep and turbid. 
 Phantasmion prepared to spring across, but checked 
 himself and paused for a few moments, surveying 
 the opposite bank, and endeavouring to ascertain 
 its nature. While standing thus on the river's 
 
44 PHANTASMION. 
 
 brim, he felt something cold and slimy touching 
 his foot between the straps of the sandal, and soon 
 a slippery hand glided up his leg where it was 
 bare, the tight vest having been rent by thorns 
 during his journey. Phantasmion had no time to 
 consider what this might be, for the touch was as 
 that of a torpedo, and he had received an electrical 
 shock which benumbed his whole body. While he 
 stood stupified and motionless, again he felt the 
 terrible hand grasping his leg, and attempting to 
 drag him into the river. Then, throwing down 
 the serpent wand, he hastily drew his sword, and 
 smote that which was pulling at his leg ; where- 
 upon a hissing sound, such as a snake might send 
 forth v,'hen crushed by a stone, issued from the 
 water, which was tinged for a moment with blood. 
 Phantasmion looked down and beheld the flat white 
 face of the fishy woman, Seshelma, glistening in 
 the moonlight ; she leaned backward in the tide 
 as if she were faint with pain, and her great glassy 
 eyes appeared fixed and rigid ; but, when they 
 stared on him that had inflicted the wound, they 
 seemed to express more of slow malice than of any 
 keen sensation. Soon, however, she gathered 
 strength, and turning about began to dive away 
 into the deeper water. Phantasmion seized her 
 blue locks, but they slipped out of his hand, while 
 the air was filled with cries of menace or of 
 mockery, and numberless grotesque visages, start- 
 ing out of the water, gleamed momently in the 
 
PHANTASM ION. 45 
 
 twilight. The prince staggered and fell, for he 
 had received another severe shock ; from which 
 having at length recovered he saw nothing but the 
 image of the moon's face on the stream, and heard 
 no sound but the soft full murmur of an unimpeded 
 current, smoothly sweeping by. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 AFTER PASSING THE NIGHT IN A THICKET, PHAN- 
 TASMION TALKS WITH TELZA, THE NURSE OF 
 lARINE. 
 
 For some time after he had grasped the locks of 
 Seshelma, Phantasmion felt as if his limbs were 
 frozen; and, on attempting once more to spring 
 across the river, he found that his leaping powers 
 were suspended. No boat was at hand or to be 
 seen within hail ; he dared not trust himself in the 
 waters of that haunted stream, but, feeling desirous 
 of rest, he resolved to make his bed for the remainder 
 of the night in a grove of oaks and beeches, a little 
 way removed from the borders of the lake and 
 river. On arriving in this thicket he seemed to 
 have entered a dim chamber, so close and leafy 
 were the boughs that composed it; and the moss on 
 which he reclined, beneath the boughs of an oak, 
 made an easy couch ; but no sooner had he lain 
 
46 PHANTASMION. 
 
 down than he seemed to hear the hum of a spin- 
 ning-wheel, turned by some one in the dark ; and 
 the importunate bird, which produced that sound 
 from her gaping throat, kept flying round his head 
 and striking her wings together sonorously. After 
 persevering in this course for some time, she would 
 perch on a bough just above the prince's head, and 
 utter two or three short sharp notes, as though a 
 thorn were piercing her bosom. It was in vain to 
 scare the bird away, for she still returned, and at 
 last, in spite of her noise and restlessness, Phan- 
 tasmion fell half asleep, and thus reposed till be 
 was completely awakened by a still more impetuous 
 clapping of pinions, and a vehement whistling close 
 to his face. The youth arose, and, by a glimmer 
 of the moon's light, which pierced the branchy 
 covert, he descried a glistering snake, and the 
 speckled night-jar, with her great bill wide open, 
 pouring out her angry murmur over the silent 
 reptile's head. He drew the sword from his girdle 
 and cut the serpent in pieces ; then, stooping down 
 to examine its severed head, he espied a nest in a 
 little hollow betwixt the roots of the oak tree, and 
 thus discovered the cause of that poor bird's un- 
 easiness. For she had first been driven from her 
 nest by Phantasmion's approach, and was after- 
 wards in trepidation at the appearance of the reptile. 
 She imagined indeed that it came to suck her un- 
 protected eggs, while the prince believed it to be 
 some emissary of Seshelma, who seemed bent on 
 
PHANTASMION. 47 
 
 procuring his death or driving him out of Rock- 
 land ; and, when he had looked at the several pieces 
 of the dead snake in a fuller light, and saw that it 
 closely resembled that which prepared to attack 
 him in the woody knoll, this opinion was strength- 
 ened. 
 
 The youth advanced a little further in the wood 
 to climb a beech tree; and, when the night-jar was 
 settled on her nest, he had stretched himself along 
 one of its wide flat boughs, the upper ones forming 
 a canopy over his head. Here he slept till break 
 of day, and was then roused by the twittering of 
 birds all around him : when he first entered the 
 grove it seemed to have no other inhabitants 
 than the disturbed mother and himself; but now 
 every tree was alive with chirping voices and 
 moving pinions. Phantasmion was little inclined 
 to join the vocal quire, being ill at ease in his whole 
 frame ; he felt so anxious indeed concerning his 
 bodily condition, that he, must needs climb further 
 up the tree to make trial of his strength, and found 
 it in some degree restored. From the top of 
 the tall beech he cast his eyes over the lake, which 
 wore a uniform colouring of sad blue, while motion- 
 less bars of grey cloud streaked the horizon, and 
 all the landscape was revealed under a cold equa- 
 lizing light. The youth at that hour felt a transi- 
 tory despondence, and his beautiful visions seemed 
 to have departed with the sublime shadows and 
 spiritual splendour of midnight. • 
 
48 PHANTASMION. 
 
 From his lofty station Phantasmion beheld the 
 fisherman in his boat, and hailed him with a shout 
 that woke the echoes, at the same time beckoning 
 with his serpent wand. Well pleased was the old 
 man to hear that salutation, having come out thus 
 early in search of his guest, for whose safety he 
 had begun to entertain some fear. The prince 
 descended from the tree, and, repairing to the 
 boat, which was soon brought to land, he seated 
 himself at the stern, and requested to be conveyed 
 to the cottage. He told his ancient host that he 
 had been seized with cramp, and, feeling still 
 much disordered, should be glad to remain under 
 his roof till he should find himself in a condition 
 to resume his journey. The old man renewed 
 his former hospitable offers, and, rowing faster 
 than he had done for many a day, quickly brought 
 the vessel to the little stone pier. Passing the 
 greensward, now wet with morning dew, Phan- 
 tasmion entered the cottage, and was kindly wel- 
 comed by Telza, the fisherman's ancient dame, 
 who had stood on the landing-place, straining 
 her eyes to ascertain whether the noble youth 
 were with her husband, and, as soon as she dis- 
 cerned him in the boat, had hastened within to 
 prepare for his reception. Phantasmion was re- 
 freshed with the food which she set before him, 
 and, happening to fix his eye on the porcelain ves- 
 sels in which it was sen-^ed, was told they were 
 the gift of the princess larine, to whom Telza had 
 
PHANTASMION. 49 
 
 been a fond and faithful nurse. No sooner was 
 that subject opened, than the. good old woman had 
 more to say than she had time to utter, and the 
 prince felt no desire to stir from her side while 
 she enlarged on the charms of larine's babyhood. 
 " In very truth," said she, " I was the luckiest 
 nurse that ever rocked a cradle ; and little need 
 was there to rock the cradle of sweet larine. O ! 
 she would sleep so beautifully for hours together, 
 without a start or a murmur, yet looking as life- 
 some all the while as that clear lake, which never 
 seems so bright as when it sleeps in the sunshine ! 
 Then when it was her time to awake, in a moment 
 she was full of smiles, her pretty eyes wide open 
 suddenly, and sparkling like the little merry rivu- 
 lets which never sleep at all. We thought she 
 could not be meant to pass through this vale of 
 tears, because she wept so little at the beginning 
 of her pilgrimage ; but now I fear she weeps 
 enough, and more sadly and stealthily than she 
 need ever have done in my arms." " Is it not 
 several years since she lost her mother?" inquired 
 the youth. " To me it seems but yesterday," 
 Telza replied ; " but to one so young as larine, the 
 time must appear full long, and the loss might 
 ere now have been forgotten, had it been kindly 
 repaired." " How did Queen Anthemmina meet 
 her death ? " said Phantasmion. *' She perished 
 at sea," was the answer, " in sailing to the Isle 
 of Birds, where a gay entertainment was appointed 
 
50 PHANTASMION. 
 
 to be held. I cannot tell thee all the rumours that 
 were afloat at the time ; but now I verily believe 
 that evil spirits lent their aid in drowning that 
 lady, for, since she sank beneath the waves, they, 
 and they only, have ruled this land." " Was the 
 first queen beautiful ?" asked the prince. " O 
 what could be more beautiful," exclaimed Telza^ 
 *' unless it be her most fair child larine ? I have 
 her now before me, just as she appeared on the 
 day of that ill-starred expedition. Her gleaming 
 jetty tresses were bound with pearls; alas I she little 
 thought how soon those pearls would be restored 
 to the deep ! and, wreathed around her snow-white 
 vest, was a garland of blue lilies fresh gathered from 
 the lake. How well I remember the splendid lady 
 raising her eyes to the child in my arms I ' My 
 pretty one,* said she, ' are they not beautiful V and 
 she pointed to those starry flowers. Beautiful in- 
 deed were her blue eyes beneath black eyebrows ; 
 but soon they swam in tears, as if at that moment 
 she had a presage of her doom. The sweet child 
 had no presentiment ; she laughed and hid her 
 face behind me as I set her on the floor, though 
 charmed to see her mother's festal ornaments ; and 
 O ! how mirthfully she laughed again, when, lifting 
 up a loose part of the lady's robe, she spied a 
 silver vessel hanging by a silken cord !'' Telza 
 would have proceeded much longer in this strain, 
 but the fisherman beckoned her away, and she left 
 the cottage ; whereupon Phantasmion stepped out of 
 
PHANTASMION. 51 
 
 doors, and gazed upon the lake absorbed in thought. 
 For many furlongs beyond the stone pier on which 
 he seated himself, the smooth sod came close 
 down to the edge of the water ; and now that 
 the sun shone brightly, the greensward and its re- 
 flection seemed all one piece. But soon that pic- 
 ture began to be filled with figures, which, emer- 
 ging from a coppice, stole into the verdant fore- 
 ground, while no steps were heard upon the noise- 
 less turf. Palfreys, with courtly riders, were oc- 
 cupying the green space, and the mirror showed 
 that one of them carried a silver vessel. Phan- 
 tasmion looked up and saw that Telza had now 
 joined the distant group, and that she was stand- 
 ing beside a lady who leaned forward on her steed 
 to speak with her. In a few moments the train 
 were winding through the coppice, while the fisher- 
 man's dame, smiling cheerfully, crossed the green- 
 sward and approached her guest, who was still sit- 
 ting on the pier ! *' that thou hadst seen my fair 
 princess !" she cried. " The morning air has 
 decked her cheeks with dazzling roses, and now 
 she looks as lightsome as when she was my nurs- 
 ling, and had never shed a tear." The face of the 
 young prince grew deeply red at these words of 
 Telza; and when' she added, " The sweet lady is 
 going to visit her mother's sister, the wife of Mag- 
 nart, in Almaterra," he started from his seat and 
 eagerly inquired what had become of the fisher- 
 man ? " He is going to the king's island," replied 
 
52 PHANTASMIOK. 
 
 the dame ; and she pointed to his boat which was 
 yet within sight. Then the youth sate down upon 
 the pier to watch for his return, and Telza seated 
 herself by his side, hoping in the meantime to have 
 him for a listener. 
 
 Looking at the island, which was just visible in 
 the distance, she said in a low voice, " All the 
 country believes that Albinian was bewitched when 
 he wedded the daughterof Maid eryl, whom Gland- 
 reth brought a captive from Tigridia. Scarce a 
 month of that marriage had elapsed when the king 
 fell into decrepitude, and Glandreth became the 
 real sovereign of the land. My husband oft com- 
 pares Queen Maudra to those evil spirits that allure 
 men first and put them in bail afterwards." 
 
 '^ There is a little boy in the boat with thy 
 helpmate," cried Phantasmion, when at last he 
 beheld the fisherman coming from the island. 
 " Yes," repHed Telza, " that is Albinet, the king's 
 eldest son : larine grieves to part with the poor 
 child, and she prayed my husband to amuse him 
 on the lake this fine morning. See there, he is 
 guiding the rod which the young prince holds in 
 his hand ! Ah ! now a fish comes out of the water, 
 and poor Albinet fancies that he has caught it. 
 How quietly the good old man drew his hand away, 
 and left the rod and line, and the prize at the end 
 of it in the young one's possession !" " But the 
 boy is lame !" cried the prince ; " what strange 
 motions he makes in trying to leap for joy!** 
 
PHANTASM ION. 53 
 
 *' Till he was four years old," cried Telza, mourn- 
 fully; " that child throve and g-rew like mown 
 grass after the rain. One evening he played alone 
 by the lake side, and from that hour he has been 
 palsied and sickly. Home he came, looking all 
 aghast, like one that had seen a spirit ; and verily 
 I believe that he met with something more than 
 the damp air and biting gales of the season." 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 PHANTASMION IS GUIDED BY THE FISHERMAN TO 
 POLYANTHIDA. 
 
 PHANTASMION w^as glad when he saw young 
 Albinet lifted into a boat which was sent to 
 take him back to the island ; and he loudly hailed 
 the kind old man, who attended to his summons, 
 and was soon standing beside him on the stone 
 pier. " My good host," cried the youth, " canst 
 thou conduct me to the house of Magnart in Al- 
 materra V " That I can right easi'," the fisher- 
 man replied; "I oft go thither to sell fish: for 
 we have a delicate sort in our lake, which is found 
 nowhere else ; and the women of these parts have 
 a choice method of preserving them with spices." 
 *' It is well," replied the youth ; " I feel myself 
 able to pursue my journey this very hour, and am 
 
54 PHANTASMION. 
 
 desirous to reach the place I told thee of by the 
 nearest road." '* The nearest road," replied the 
 old man, " is a rugged one ; it lies among the 
 Black Mountains : but it would bring thee to Al- 
 materra some time before they who are winding 
 through the plain will reach it." The prince was 
 glad to become acquainted with the passes of the 
 country ; and still more he exulted in the hope of 
 being speedily brought to the presence of the 
 island princess. *' Find me a good mule," cried 
 he, " which cares not for rough ways, and as well 
 as he plays his part shall I play mine." 
 
 Before the sun began to slant down his westerly 
 path, Phantasmion and his ancient guide, seated 
 on mules as sure-footed as rock-goats, but far more 
 discreet and serious, were ascending a zig-zag road 
 along a ridge of the Black Mountains. Telza had 
 furnished them with provisions ; the beasts knew 
 every step of the journey even better than the 
 guide ; and thus the travellers wound their way 
 for several days over the sides of hills and through 
 bleak valleys, resting at night under the brow of a 
 rock, or in the scanty shelter of weather-beaten 
 pine trees. 
 
 At last they reached a deep gully, where the 
 mountains reared their black fronts on either side, 
 abrupt and steep, as if the double range had for- 
 merly been one, and had been split asunder by 
 lightning. The blue sky formed a bright roof to 
 these grim walls, which the sun vainly strove to 
 
PHANTASMION. 55 
 
 illumine, and was the only sight that relieved the 
 eye from sameness of g-loom, except a rivulet which 
 laboured along the bottom of the glen, moaning 
 audibly in the summer silence, its weak voice in- 
 tercepted by no sound of beast, or bird, or busy 
 insect. " Yon falcon comes from Palmland," ob- 
 served the guide. " See where she flies over the 
 crags on the left hand. Doubtless her nest is 
 hid among those airy battlements." " A wise 
 bird !" cried the youth. " She keeps on the bor- 
 ders of a plentiful land, yet rears her young se- 
 curely in a barren desert. This glen will be an 
 utter solitude when we have left it." His com- 
 rade smiled as he answered, " Thinkest thou that 
 we have no living neighbours but the falcon and 
 her brood ? Then come this way. " Curious to 
 know the meaning of the old man's smile, Phan- 
 tasmion followed him to the edge of a pit, the 
 black mouth of which he had taken for the shadow 
 of rocks, and heard a noise, as he approached, like 
 thunder imprisoned beneath his feet. The calm 
 looks of his guide assured him that no earthquake 
 was coming on ; and, lying down, so as to bring 
 his ear over the darksome gulf, he began to dis- 
 tinguish loud laments in divers languages, wicked 
 words and piercing outcries, shouts of anger, ac- 
 cents of woe, and, mingled with tyrannical voices, 
 the resonance of blows, the clank of chains, and 
 the crashing of rocks — all these noises reverbe- 
 rated a hundred-fold through the windings of the 
 
56 PHANTASMION . 
 
 subterranean abode, and composed a whirlwind of 
 sounds, which smote the listener's ear with hor- 
 ror as it rolled upwards through the black abyss. 
 '' What place of torture is here ? " exclaimed the 
 youth, retreating from the chasm. " This is the 
 famous iron mine,'' his guide made answer : " the 
 same that caused such feuds between our king and 
 his ancient ally. Glandreth discovered what riches 
 these rocks contained while following his father's 
 stray goats up the glen. Forthwith he stole across 
 the hills into Palmland, and sold his secret to king 
 Dorimant : this, and nought but this, was the foun- 
 dation of his grandeur. Now he uses the mine 
 both as a place of punishment and of safe custody : 
 hither he sends his captives from foreign lands, all 
 public malefactors, and all of every age, and sex, 
 and rank, who trespass against his lawless will." 
 Phantasmion proceeded somewhat thoughtfully; 
 but ere long he had ceased to think of Glandreth, 
 how he began, or how he maintained his fortunes, 
 and was musing on the bright lady Anthemmina, 
 whom Dorimant had abandoned for the sake of 
 this bleak vale, and whose wrongs he resented the 
 more from having unconsciously clothed her with 
 the form and countenance of larine. 
 
 The travellers continued to follow the stony path, 
 and, on emerging at last from the mountain gorg-e, 
 surveyed a prospect as little like the savage 
 wilderness that had brought them to it, as the 
 
PHANTASMION. 57 
 
 young monarch's dream of love and joy resem- 
 bled the warlike projects by which he hoped to 
 realize that soft and radiant vision. Turning round 
 a broad rock, they beheld the vale of Polyanthida, 
 vested in sunny green, luxuriant with orange groves, 
 meadows of golden bloom and sloping gardens, 
 whence the rainbow might have borrowed all its 
 colours. From the high ground where the travellers 
 stood, they looked down upon a bright blue lake, 
 partly girt by hills of soft wavy outline, clad in 
 freshest verdure, to which an amethystine tinge was 
 imparted by blossoms of the fragrant thyme. The 
 skirts of these grassy hills were bathed by the 
 water, while on the opposite side was a thick wood, 
 stretching beyond the rocky shores, which looked 
 as if they had been carved by a graver's chisel, 
 and formed bays and promontories overhung, here 
 and there, with knots of drooping trees. The well- 
 attired valley seemed to smile on the lake which 
 smiled radiantly in return, as a conscious beauty, 
 beaming on her lover, causes his face to brighten 
 with pleasure and hope. The little brook too, which 
 had murmured so fretfully in the darksome pass, 
 now gushed with a wider stream, arrayed in spark- 
 ling white, and bounded to the lake, raising a glad- 
 some cry as if of thankfulness at having escaped 
 from those torturing rocks and that dreary prison. 
 " Where is the mansion of Magnart?" inquired 
 Phantasmion, charmed by the view of this delicious 
 
58 FIIANTASMIOlSr. 
 
 region. " Beyond that wood it rises," replied the 
 fisherman; " verily thou wilt find it as rich and 
 noble a tenement as ever a groping miner found his 
 way to. Time was when Magnart and Glan- 
 dreth dwelt with their father in a lowlier hut 
 than mine." " And how did they reach the height 
 where we now see them?" asked Phantasmion. 
 " Have I not told thee of the mine?" replied the 
 fisherman. " Had they no natural gifts then?" 
 inquired the youth ; " did the mine supply hands 
 as well as materials ?" " Gifts !" cried the old 
 man, warmly ; " what need they natural gifts who 
 have supernatural helpmates ? moreover they never 
 scrupled to blast anything that stood in their way, 
 and now I believe they would blast each other if 
 the power answered to the will." Discoursing 
 thus the youthful king and his guide pursued their 
 way down the slanting path into the flowery vesti- 
 bule of Almaterra, and soon struck into the wood 
 which lay betv/een the lake and the dwelling of 
 Magnart. They had not proceeded far in the 
 woodland path when Phantasmion stopped short, 
 listening to a voice which struck him as having 
 some resemblance to that of larine ; and looking 
 down the wood he descried a graceful maiden, 
 throwing garlands around the neck of a white stag. 
 At this sight the youth leaped from his mule, turned 
 his glowing face to the old man, and hastily thanked 
 him for his services, at the same time that he put 
 into his girdle a handful of gold. '^ O, thou hast 
 
PHANTASM I ON. 59 
 
 overpaid me!" cried the fisherman; *' but shall 
 I not guide thee to the goodly mansion ?" " No T' 
 said the prince ; " only take charge of my mule, 
 and return, when thou wilt, to the Black Lake, 
 bearing a kind remembrance from me to thy 
 good dame." The prince added a jewel for Telza 
 to the gold already given to his guide, who, 
 having by this time spied a lady in the wood, and 
 thus gained a twilight glimpse of the youth's mind, 
 bade him farewell, and proceeded to a neighbour- 
 ing village. 
 
 Phantasmion advanced into the forest, and, look- 
 ing from behind an oak tree, beheld the slender 
 damsel caressing the stag, whose white hide was 
 dappled with minute shadows from a branch of 
 aspen, the sunbeams finding their way through the 
 interstices of its delicate foliage. The lady had 
 intermitted her melody, but now resumed it, ad- 
 dressing thus her happy comrade, who seemed to 
 be conscious that he was the subject of the strain :— 
 
 Sylvan stag, securely play, 
 'Tis the sportful month of May, 
 Till her music dies away 
 
 Fear no huntsman's hollo ; 
 While the cowslip nods her head. 
 While the fragrant blooms are shed 
 O'er the turf which thou dost tread, 
 / None thy traces follow. 
 
 In the odours wafted round, 
 
 Those that breathe from thee are drowned \ 
 
 Echo voices not a sound. 
 
 Fleet one, to dismay thee j 
 
60 PHANTASMION. 
 
 On the budding beeches browse. 
 None shall come the deer to rouse ; 
 Scattered leaves and broken boughs 
 Shall not now betray thee. 
 
 Sylvan deer ! on branches fed, 
 'Mid the countless branches bred, 
 Mimic branches on thy head 
 
 With the rest are springing ; 
 Smooth them on the russet bark, 
 Or the stem of cypress dark. 
 From whose top the woodland lark 
 
 Soars to heaven singing. 
 
 Here a livelier voice from another quarter of the 
 forest, where the ground dipped into a dell, took 
 up the strain and continued the song- thus, as if in | 
 a spirit of gay mimicry : — * 
 
 Bound along or else be still , 
 Sportive roebuck, at thy will ; 
 Wilding rose and woodbine fill 
 
 All the grove with sweetness 
 Safely may thy gentle roe 
 O'er the piny hillocks go, 
 Every white-robed torrent's flow 
 
 Rivalling in fleetness. 
 
 Peaceful breaks for thee the dawn. 
 While thou lead'st thy skipping fawn, 
 Gentle hind, across the lawn 
 
 In the forest spreading : 
 Morn appears in sober vest. 
 Nor hath eve in roses drest. 
 By her purple hues exprest, 
 
 Aught of thy blood-shedding. 
 
PHANTASMION. 61 
 
 The damsel was by this time seated on the 
 projecting- roots of a large tree, finishing- a long 
 wreath of flowers, while the stag lay beside her and 
 seemed to watch her motions. She continued to 
 murmur in a low key, but in unison with the 
 voice which proceeded from the dell, and which 
 was joined by one of deeper tone, in these latter 
 verses : — 
 
 Milk-white doe, 'tis but the breeze 
 Rustling in the alder trees ; 
 Slumber thou while honey-bees 
 
 Lull thee with their humming ; 
 Though the ringdove's plaintive moan 
 Seem to tell of pleasure flown, 
 On thy couch with blossoms sown. 
 
 Fear no peril coming. 
 
 Thou amid the lilies laid, ^ 
 
 Seem'st in lily vest array'd, 
 
 Fann'd by gales which they have made 
 
 Sweet with their perfuming ; 
 Primrose tufts impearl'd with dew ; 
 Bells wliich heav'n has steep'd in blue 
 Lend the breeze their odours too. 
 
 All around thee blooming. 
 
 None shall come to scare thy dreams. 
 Save perchance the playful gleams ; 
 Wake to quaff the cooling streams 
 
 Of the sunlit river ; 
 Thou across the faithless tide 
 Needest not for safety glide, 
 Nor thy panting bosom hide 
 
 Where the gfrasses shiver. 
 
62 PIIANTASMION. 
 
 When the joyous months are past, 
 Roses pine in autumn's blast, 
 When the violets breathe their last. 
 
 All that's sweet is flying ; 
 Then the sylvan deer must fly, 
 'Mid the scatter'd blossoms lie. 
 Fall with falling leaves and die 
 
 When the flow'rs are dying. 
 
 But now the damsel, seated under the tree, arose 
 and began tripping towards the lake ; as she went 
 on she caug'ht a glimpse of Phantasmion's figure 
 among the trees, and sportively flung the stalks of 
 flowers from her basket toward the place where he 
 stood, crying aloud, " Come, brother, quit thy 
 melancholy humour ! thou wilt not lean all day 
 against that gnarled oak when fair larine is 
 seen amongst us." These words, and the counte- 
 nance of the speaker, dissipated the illusion which 
 had made Phantasmion's heart beat so tumul- 
 tuously. Fair and sweet was that youthful maiden, 
 but only so far like larine as the wild bloom of 
 eglantine, dancing in every gale, resembles the 
 splendid rose of a hundred petals. She took her 
 way to a brake which was close beside the water, 
 and Phantasmion resolved to follow her ; for he sur- 
 mised that she was one of Magnart's fair daughters, 
 of whom Telza had spoken to him, and that by her 
 he might be pleasantly introduced to the chief's 
 household. Moving toward the brake he beheld 
 the lady stoop down to gather marigolds, which 
 
PHANTASMION. 63 
 
 grew far beneath the brambles, and he saw, what 
 she could not see, a panther masked by those briers. 
 The beast had now advanced one paw from behind 
 the bush, and was touching- the earth with his white 
 bosom, about to spring on the stag-, which seemed 
 aware of its danger, as it stood between the panther 
 and the unconscious fair one. That sight restored 
 Phantasmion to all his former agility; from the 
 place where he stood he leaped close up to the face 
 of the glaring beast, which bounded back into the 
 forest, and was out of sight ere the prince could 
 draw his sword to dispatch it. After vainly pur- 
 suing it to some distance he returned to the 
 brake, and saw the slender maiden lying in a swoon 
 beside the brambles ; her flaxen hair was caught 
 among the thorns ; the basket of flowers lay over- 
 turned upon the sod, and one crimson blossom 
 rested beside her colourless cheek. The gentle 
 stag was standing beside her, looking down lovingly 
 on her wan countenance, while the gay garlands 
 yet hung from his neck. 
 
 Phantasmion scooped water from the lake and 
 sprinkled it upon her cheeks and brow. While he 
 knelt beside her she revived, and blushed on be- 
 holding the bright countenance that bent over hers. 
 She withdrew her eyes from his face, and they 
 rested on a blue scarf, which was bound across his 
 breast, and peeped from beneath his upper garment 
 as he leaned forward. " Didst thou know Dariel 
 of Palmland ?" she inquired, looking earnestly at 
 
64 PHANTASMION^. 
 
 the figures embroidered on the scarf. " He was my 
 dearest friend," replied Phantasmion. " And did 
 he give thee that silken band ?" asked the damsel, 
 fearfully. " Alas !" cried the youth, " I took it 
 from my Dariel's corse, and now am wearing it 
 for his beloved sake." The lady closed her eyes 
 and would have fallen to the ground, but Phan- 
 tasmion's extended arms received her, and, on 
 recovering, she led the way to that hollow glade 
 whence the two voices that chimed in with her 
 sylvan song had proceeded. 
 
 The fair damsel advanced before the prince, who, 
 on entering the shady dell, espied another beauteous 
 maiden seated on the bank, with her eyes cast 
 down upon a picture that lay in her lap, while a 
 slender youth was twining a chaplet of dewy lilies 
 of the vale amid her raven tresses. " Leucoia !" 
 cried the maid, when she heard the rustle of leaves, 
 but still without raising her eyes from the picture, 
 " see what a lovely wreath our Karadan has been 
 making, though not without my aid; he now 
 vouchsafes to try it upon me, but I fear it will have 
 lost its freshness ere larine comes to wear it." The 
 youth had by this time dropped the chaplet on the 
 ■ ground, and was gazing with a bashful air on his 
 sister's companion. And now the dark-haired 
 lady caught sight of Phantasmion, and, springing 
 from her seat, came gaily forward, while the pic- 
 ture fell amid a heap of flowers. *' My sister !" 
 she exclaimed, " what has detained thee ?" and so 
 
PHANTASMION. 65 
 
 saying she cast a hasty look, with her bright black 
 eyes, at the stranger. — '^ Zelneth," replied the 
 damsel, " but for this noble youth I might never 
 have returned at all ;" and then she related how 
 Phantasmion had driven away the panther. On 
 hearing this tale the sprightly maiden melted into 
 tears, and Karadan, forgetting his reserve, ex- 
 claimed, " Would that I had been with thee, dear 
 Leucoia ! I thought I had slain the last panther 
 which lurked in the forest." 
 
 Phantasmion looked somewhat sternly on him 
 who had been preparing a chaplet for the island- 
 maid ; and Karadan appeared little delighted when 
 the princely stranger, who called himself Semiro, 
 a friend of their former guest Dariel, declared that 
 he was bound for the house of Magnart. But 
 Zelneth smiled blithely, her eyes yet glittering with 
 tears, and thus she spoke : " The house of Mag- 
 nart is the house of our father, and Karadan will 
 guide thee to it, kind Semiro. Come, dearest Leu- 
 coia, what will our mother say when she hears of 
 thy jeopardy ? Thou art as delicate and as dearly 
 prized as the frail bloom of wind flowers, which 
 the first eager gale scatters abroad." 
 
 Then the fair maidens arm in arm proceeded to 
 their stately home, and the stag was left browsing 
 amid a herd of deer. Phantasmion followed them 
 along the varied scenes of a wide pleasure-ground, 
 and was conducted by Karadan to a splendid apart- 
 ment, where a man of dignified aspect reclined on 
 
66 PHANTASMION. 
 
 a sofa. This comely personage wore a head-dress 
 adorned with jewels, and a superb scarf thrown over 
 a pelisse composed of feather down, which gleamed 
 with bright reflections, changing according to the 
 play of light. The chief rose from his couch and 
 courteously received the youth of noble demeanour, 
 who was presented by his son. Karadan then has- 
 tily departed : a pang of jealous fear shot across 
 the heart of Phantasmion as he quitted the apart- 
 ment, but the expectant face of Magnart recalled 
 his wandering thoughts, and all his warlike plan 
 was once more brought to mind. With grateful 
 gesture and flowing utterance he had soon told his 
 story, professing that he was an envoy from Palm- 
 land, bad travelled in disguise through the land of 
 Rocks, and was sent to learn whether his sovereign 
 might hope for aid from the kings and chiefs of 
 Almaterra, should his country be invaded by its 
 hostile neighbours. The countenance of Magnart 
 brightened as Phantasmion spoke, and he received 
 the tale exactly as it was told him, being apt to 
 take all things which bore the image and super- 
 scription of his reigning desire, without a scrutiny. 
 " Thy master's foes," cried he, " should be friends 
 of mine ; myself and Albinian married two daugh- 
 ters of Cleoras, son of Thalimer, and that king's 
 mighty general is mine own brother. Nevertheless 
 I will not uphold Glandreth in his over- weening 
 ambition : if he invades Palmland he shall have to 
 encounter me, and I will speak on thy master's 
 
PHANTASMION. 67 
 
 behalf with the heads of this realm." It was plain 
 that not ambition displeased Magnart, but the suc- 
 cess which that of a rival had met with. " Glan- 
 dreth invaded Tigridia," said he, " on a mere pre- 
 text; and now, forsooth, he is puffed up with his 
 conquest, and must give law to all the world. He 
 threatens me doughtily, because I keep fast hold 
 of Polyanthida in my wife's right. Who denies that 
 one half was Anthemmina's portion ? Ill befall them 
 that put away the mother, and would rob the daugh- 
 ter of her inheritance ! Safely will I guard it for 
 that precious child till I can many her to my eldest 
 son." , 
 
 Phantasmion was more startled by these last 
 words than if they had proclaimed designs upon the 
 Land of Palms ; and Magnart, seeing the youth's 
 darkened brow, began to protest that this marriage 
 would make no change in his policy, and that 
 Karadan would not fail to oppose any injustice 
 which might be carried on in the name of his wife's 
 father. But all his smooth words were as drops of 
 hot lead to the feelings of his hearer, and, while the 
 chief swore that he would leave no stone unturned to 
 annul the alliance between Almaterra and the Land 
 of Rocks, Phantasmion thought of nothing but how 
 to prevent that between larine and Karadan. For 
 this cause he thankfully accepted Magnart's invi- 
 tation to pass that night under his roof. " We 
 have not quite settled the matter yet," said the 
 self-pleasing noble, as he led his guest to another 
 
68 PHANTASMION. 
 
 apartment, there to repose till supper time. " Now 
 Heaven forbid," thought Phantasmion, " that it be 
 settled according to thy scheme ! Could I but see 
 the minds of the other parties — in this hope I tarry- 
 here." Having donned fresh robes he lay upon a 
 sofa near an open door, that led into the garden, 
 and, musing on what his host had let fall, watched 
 the shades of evening sadden the landscape, while 
 nightingales saluted her approach with varied song; 
 till after a time, this strain, breathed forth more 
 earnestly than theirs, was borne upon the breeze : 
 
 One face alone, one face alone, 
 
 These eyes require ; 
 But, when that longed-for sight is shewn. 
 What fatal fire 
 Shoots through my veins a keen and hquid flame. 
 That melts each fihre of my wasting frame ! 
 
 One voice alone, one voice alone, 
 
 I pine to hear ; 
 But, when its meek mellifluous tone 
 Usurps mine ear. 
 Those slavish chains about my soul are wound. 
 Which ne'er, till death itself, can be unbound. 
 
 One gentle hand, one gentle hand, 
 
 I fain would hold ; 
 But, when it seems at my command, 
 My own grows cold ; 
 Then low to earth I bend in sickly swoon, 
 Like lilies drooping 'mid the blaze of noon. 
 
 The song ceased, but Phantasmion heard not the 
 nightingales which still warbled in chorus. "The 
 voice of Karadan!" thought he, "a passionate 
 
PHANTASxMION. 69 
 
 rival ! but sure that was no happy strain. He is 
 gone ; perhaps even now by her side. O what 
 vantage ground he has !" Impelled by this agita- 
 ting surmise, he advanced towards the other door, 
 and met one who summoned him to Magnart's 
 board. 
 
 He followed the messenger, and, entering the 
 sumptuous hall, surveyed a spectacle which would 
 have chased all former visions from many a youth- 
 ful mind. A pyramid of flame suspended from the 
 roof drew out the deepest glow of crimson hangings, 
 and they, in turn, cast rosy splendour on white 
 marble .pillars, images and rich utensils glittering 
 all around : while over-head the lofty ceiling so 
 vividly pourtrayed heaven's vault, that it seemed 
 as if the buoyant forms that floated there, looking 
 translucent amid golden ether, and spurning the 
 clouds with their feet, were soon to vanish in 
 the skiey depth. From the hand of one a posy 
 was falling back to earth, and the scattered flowers, 
 which caught the light as they descended, shone like 
 meteors. In the centre of the hall stood a table 
 covered with fruits, wines, and viands, contained in 
 vessels of crystal and gold, among which was a 
 taller one of silver. Arzene, the wife of Mag- 
 nart, was seated at the board, apparelled as be- 
 seemed her queenly figure,which time had ripened 
 into a new aspect of comeliness ere it had lost all the 
 graces of youth. Zelneth sate next, with one full 
 arm resting on the table, while the other held a 
 
70 PHANTASMION. 
 
 qhaplet of faded lily bells, which she was displaying 
 to her mother when Phantasmion entered the hall. 
 No tresses drooped over her cheek of rich carna- 
 tion, or veiled the brilliance of her large and liquid 
 eyes, but the ravenhair that loosely waved around her 
 head rested on the white expanse below in massy 
 curls, like the volutes of a pillar, and, descending 
 below the gilded cincture's deep recess, wandered 
 along the falls and risings of her soft luxuriant form. 
 Leucoia's figure, easy and graceful as the sapling 
 ash, was seen bending over her mother's chair : her 
 quiet eyes, gleaming through a shower of light 
 ringlets, were fixed on the countenance of Zelneth, 
 and one staid smile responded to the quick motions 
 of her sister's face, which was incessantly rippling 
 and sparkling beneath the breeze of mirthful fancy. 
 Karadan stood on the other side of Arzene with 
 his countenance turned away from the table : he 
 held in his hand a javelin, and pretended to be 
 wholly occupied in examining its sharp point, or 
 trying the strength of the nether end by striking 
 it against the marble floor ; but half smiles and 
 flitting blushes, which passed over his dark cheeks 
 and brow, and beamed for a moment in his full 
 black eye, evinced that the sallies of his blithe sis- 
 ter had not missed their mark. At the lower end 
 of the board sate Magnart, and he too was smiling 
 and shewing so goodly an aspect, that how he 
 gained Polyanthida by winning the heart of that 
 noble heiress appeared to be no deep mystery. A 
 
PHANTASMION. 71 
 
 blooming boy sate on his knee and leaned forward 
 with both his arms on the table to catch the jests of 
 Zelneth, at which he laughed louder than all the 
 company, till, on spying- Phantasmion, he sprang 
 from his father's knee and ran up to him, exclaim- 
 ing, " Our cousin is not come ! Unkind Queen 
 Maudra — ," " Hermillian ! hold thy peace 1" cried 
 Zelneth, while her brow assumed thatloftyair which 
 naturally belonged to it, but which the smiles of 
 youth and gaiety were continually charming away. 
 " Our beloved larine returned home of her own 
 accord, when the messenger was sent to tell her of 
 her father's illness." " All a false pretence, I dare 
 be sworn !" murmured the boy as he quitted the 
 apartment, rushing past the prince, whom at first 
 he had taken for one of his familiar acquaintances. 
 The current of Phantasmion's blood seemed for 
 a moment to be arrested by young Hermillian's 
 announcement, but he made an effort to conceal his 
 feelings, and when he looked on the graceful figure 
 of Karadan, he almost felt glad that larine was not 
 there to behold it too. Arzene courteously invited 
 him to join the repast, and, seating himself at the 
 table, he entered into discourse with her and her 
 fair daughters. Zelneth continued her gay smiles, 
 though more chary of her words than before the 
 approach of the noble stranger; and Leucoia's soft 
 brown eyes, that swam in silvery lustre, gazed on the 
 youth when he spoke to others, but, when he turned 
 his bright glances on herself, were bashfully with- 
 
72 PHANTASMION. 
 
 drawn to rest on the blue scarf still worn across 
 his breast. Phantasmion talked with the damsels, 
 and saw their beauty, but felt it no more than that of 
 the sculptured nymphs which gleamed in white 
 marble behind them. 
 
 " We cannot enjoy our cousin's sweet company," 
 said the wife of Magnart, " but let us not forget 
 the delicate conserve which the messenger brought 
 us from her." " Karadan," cried Zelneth, " I 
 warn thee not to taste larine's gift, thou wilt be sure 
 to find it as bitter as wormwood." While the dark 
 stripling allowed Arzene to pour some of the rich 
 viand on his plate, his elder sister offered a portion 
 of it to Phantasmion, who accepted her courtesy, 
 well pleased to taste what had come from the hands 
 of the Island princess. After eating a few morsels 
 of the conserve he fixed his eyes on the vessel from 
 which it had been taken : no sooner had he marked 
 its resemblance to the silver pitcher into which he 
 had seen larine pour the many-coloured fish, than 
 his head swam dizzily, the brilliant lights and 
 smiling faces danced before him, then vanished into 
 darkness, and soon he sank fainting from his seat 
 at the board. Karadan, who sate next him, and had 
 been watching his actions instead of tasting the 
 spicy food, held out his arms and prevented him 
 from falling on the floor. Immediately after Phan- 
 tasmion was surrounded by all who had been sitting 
 round the table, and was borne by attendants, at 
 the command of Arzene, to a luxurious chamber of 
 the palace. 
 
PHANTASMION. 73 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 KARADAN TAKES POSSESSION OF THE SILVER 
 PITCHER. 
 
 PHANTASMION remained without sense or 
 motion for nearly an hour, but, opening at 
 length his heavy lids, he beheld faces bright and 
 soft bending over him, and felt as if he had awa- 
 kened from the sleep of death and beheld angels 
 watching his re-animation. Arzene, when she 
 perceived that he was about to raise his head, made 
 a sign to her daughters and they glided out of the 
 room, while the youth, ere he again relapsed into 
 unconsciousness, felt as if he had seen but the 
 figures of a dream. The lady now called to mind 
 a sovereign antidote against the effects of poison; 
 this she administered, and seeing her patient recover 
 more thoroughly, she left him to court refreshing 
 slumbers, guests which, when they need be courted, 
 never come. The torpor that lately possessed the 
 prince was now exchanged for restlessness and 
 burning heat ; he rose from his couch, and sought 
 the fresh air from a balcony which looked out on 
 smooth turf, bounded by a sheet of water. In 
 the midst of the lawn stood Karadan embracing the 
 silver pitcher which had lately graced the supper 
 
74 
 
 PHANTASMION. 
 
 table, as if in an ecstasy of joy ; but soon his looks 
 and gestures changed ; the pitcher fell from his 
 arms ; he gazed upon it with a countenance of 
 grief; he clasped his hands ; and his dark face, up- 
 turned to the clear calm sky, appeared to quiver 
 with emotion, while tears that filled his eyes glit- 
 tered in the moonshine. Toward his right hand 
 was a tall cypress, on one of the higher boughs of 
 which an owl was standing with his body erect, his 
 wings closed, and his plumage smooth as ivory, 
 looking like a figure carved out of the wood of the 
 tree. When Karadan took up the fallen vessel and 
 advanced to the water's edge, this bird upreared the 
 horn-like tuft upon his head, and, light as thistle- 
 down, he flew from the summit of the cypress to a 
 lower bough, only a few feet from the ground. 
 Meantime the dark youth cast the pitcher's gluti- 
 nous contents on the grass, and, kneeling down, 
 immersed the vessel in the water not many paces 
 from the cypress tree. While he was employed 
 in rinsing it, the owl quitted the bough, and came 
 hovering around him with such a soft smooth flight, 
 that the abstracted youth perceived not the bird till 
 he saw its shadow before him on the gleaming pool ; 
 then he lifted up his hand to scare it away, but, 
 after eddying round the lawn with airy motion, it 
 returned to the same spot and began to feed on the 
 fishy mass which had been poured from the pitcher. 
 A merry hoot, mimicking the owl's cry, burst from 
 some part of the mansion : the bird seemed not to 
 
PHANTASMION. 75 
 
 heed it, but Karadan started and hastened away, 
 wrapping" the pitcher in his loose garment. 
 
 Phantasmion's attention was now arrested by- 
 ringing laughter, and the name of larine uttered 
 repeatedly in two different voices, one low and 
 murmuring as the rustle of a willow grove in the 
 wind, the other high and clear as the breeze that 
 plays among the pendulous branches. He moved 
 towards the place whence the sounds proceeded, 
 and beheld the interior of an apartment on the 
 same floor with that which he had quitted. The 
 curtains in front of the chamber had been closed, 
 but were now drawn partly aside to admit the air, 
 and, through this open space, Phantasmion had 
 glimpses of Zelneth and Leucoia, untwisting their 
 platted hair beside a lofty mirror. Their words 
 came distinctly to his ear as he stood under the 
 awning beside the drapery of the apartment, but 
 now they had changed the subject of discourse. 
 "The picture !" cried Zelneth, "ah! I had for- 
 gotten ! it must be lying in the wood." " Trampled 
 beneath the hoofs of deer, mayhap," rejoined Leu- 
 coia, " or perchance the hare has found it smooth 
 enough to couch upon." " Well," replied her sis- 
 ter, " I would that Penselimer had no other per- 
 fidy than mine to complain of. He scarcely knows 
 my face." *' Yet how hast thou dwelt on his !" 
 rejoined Leucoia ; *' how hast thou imagined the 
 strain he is breathing forth, and heard the very 
 sounds of the harp-chords which he seems to be 
 
76 
 
 PHANTASMIOX. 
 
 striking ! None but Penselimer, no living breathing 
 lover — " ''Dear Leucoia," cried Zelneth, " why 
 remember dreams which even the dreamer has 
 forgotten? I have ceased to be a child — " " Since 
 this morning !" rejoined Leucoia in a low tone. 
 Zelneth laughed, and with some hesitation she 
 answered, " The visions of our earliest years soon 
 fade away, or serve but to brighten the image of 
 some real object, like forms of frost that shine in 
 the chill morning, but, when the sun is high, are 
 changed to dew-drops which sparkle on the firm 
 green leaves." Leucoia sighed, and Zelneth said, 
 with a glance of kindness, " Shall I ask Semiro 
 to give thee that scarf, Leucoia ?" " Hast thou 
 such influence ?" the maid replied. Zelneth looked 
 up and perceived that Leucoia strove to prevent 
 a tear from descending upon her cheek. " Dear 
 sister," she said, " thou art still tremulous from 
 thy jeopardy in the morning. I had begun to think 
 thou hadst forgotten Dariel, or remembered him 
 only as I do." The tears now trickled down Leu- 
 coia's face, and Zelneth hung over her in silence, 
 seeming at a loss for words of comfort. 
 
 Phantasmion was about to retire, but at that 
 moment Karadan entered the room, and the prince 
 felt constrained to tarry. The youth lingered for 
 a while by Leucoia's side, as if he had something 
 to say or to hear spoken of ; but the sisters were 
 silent, and he was about to leave the room, when 
 Zelneth laid her hand upon him, saying, "Stay, 
 
PHANTASMION. 77 
 
 brother, and tell us what thou thinkest of Semiro ? 
 Hast thou ever seen a youth of more noble aspect ?" 
 " I have seen many comely faces ere now," replied 
 the boy, " and some that are better worth studying* 
 than his." " The comeliness of Semiro's face may 
 be seen without much study," answered the fair 
 damsel with a smile ; " but, dear Karadan," she 
 added, '' I have been thinking of that fearful beast 
 which still lurks in the woodland. When the 
 stranger is recovered, pray invite him to hunt the 
 panther with thee." " Dost thou think I need his 
 aid?" cried the youth warmly. " 'Twere folly to 
 reject so, good a thing when it comes in thy way," 
 replied the maiden. " What hindered him from 
 dispatching the beast this morning ?" rejoined the 
 dark youth. " Not want of manliness," cried 
 Zelneth quickly ; " Karadan, to judge from 
 looks, I should say he would wield sword and 
 lance better than thou." "That is as shall here- 
 after appear !" exclaimed the son of Magnart with 
 flashing eye : at that moment he grasped his javelin 
 and advanced further into the room, so that Phan- 
 tasmion saw his countenance plainly. The prince 
 began to glow, and, forgetful of everything but the 
 menacing looks of Karadan, he laid his hand on 
 the sword in his girdle, but, recollecting that he 
 was unseen, he refrained from drawing it forth. 
 " Yes, yes," cried the youth in a low smothered 
 voice, "lam neither fit to win a lady's love, it seems, 
 nor to do her manly service." Here Leucoia turned 
 
78 PHANTASMION. 
 
 from the glass, with her fair dishevelled tresses in 
 her hand, to look upon Karadan's flushed face, 
 while Zelneth playfully sank on one knee, and, 
 catching hold of her brother's robe, besought his 
 pardon, with arch humility in her smiling eyes. 
 *' Dear brother !" she cried, " I spake but in jest; 
 what I think of thee in very truth — " " Nay, spare 
 thy assurances, dear Zelneth," said Leucoia, " Ka- 
 radan little cares how he looks in thy glass. If 
 thou couldst assure him that larine will not prefer 
 Semiro to Karadan, that anxious brow would be- 
 come as smooth as this mirror." The blood was 
 rapidly overspreading the face of the agitated 
 youth as Leucoia spoke thus, and Zelneth, quickly 
 rising from the floor, exclaimed, " Hath Semiro 
 seen larine then? how knowest thou that?" " I 
 do but guess it," answered Leucoia ; " certainly he 
 seemed to know that we were expecting our cousin, 
 and when he heard that she was not to come I saw 
 him turn quite pale, and look as much distraught 
 as thou and Karadan are looking now." Leucoia's 
 hint had indeed banished all the gay looks and dim- 
 ples from her sister's countenance, just as a pebble, 
 flung into a pool, causes a crowd of circling insects 
 and glancing fishes to disappear ; but quickly they 
 return, andas quickly did the face of Zelneth resume 
 its easy brightness, while the eyes of Karadan 
 seemed ready to overflow, and, to hide the tears that 
 would not be repressed, without another word, he 
 left the apartment. 
 
PHANTASM lOlSr. 79 
 
 When Karadan had withdrawn Phantasmion too 
 retired, and soug-ht the chamber he had quitted, 
 where keen thoughts stimulated his mind till sleep 
 suppressed them with imperceptible hand, and pre- 
 sented in their stead her strangely mingled pictures. 
 But at early dawn those thoughts rose up again to 
 awaken the sleeper ; he left his couch, descended to 
 the lawn by winding stairs that led from the bal- 
 cony, and walked beside the shallow lake. Thence 
 he roamed on to a rich garden where the flowers 
 were still sleeping covered with dew, and the mar- 
 ble statues which gleamed in morning's timid light, 
 now that living company was absent, seemed to 
 share the beauties of their pleasant home with the 
 lonely wanderer. Entering a dim alley Phantas- 
 mion was struck by one still and graceful form, 
 which, though not seen in front, appeared more 
 perfect than any he had passed. It was crowned 
 with fresh flowers and stood beside an arbour, the 
 head thrown back, the arms uplifting an amber- 
 coloured urn, which glowed in light admitted at 
 the end of the arched walk. Phantasmion admired 
 the easy air with which those polished arms sus- 
 tained their burden, the swan-like throat inclined 
 a little to one side, and the full drapeiy flowing in 
 soft curves from its deep and narrow zone. But sure 
 those folds are not of marble ! they undulate in a 
 passing breeze, and glossy tresses gleam between 
 the rose-wreath which partly hides them. " Is 
 it clear ? " cry voices from under the trees. 
 
 h 
 
80 PHANTASMION. 
 
 "Cleat as clearest amber," replied the fancied sta- 
 tue, turning round and showing the face of Zel- 
 neth. At sight of the prince her eyes brightened ; 
 smiling and whispering she gave the urn into the 
 hand of Leucoia, who had come forth from the ar- 
 bour, and now returned to her seat within, among 
 heaps of rejected flowers and vessels of new wine. 
 A blush slightly tinged the prince's cheek as he 
 greeted the fair daughter of Magnart, but it rose 
 somewhat higher when young Hermillian, who sate 
 at Leucoia's feet, looked up with eyes of wonder 
 and exclaimed, " Well! here thou art, and neither 
 of us need go far to serve thee ! Dost thou see 
 that yellow wine ? It was prepared for larine, but 
 thou art to drink it — to my sorrow. Not that I am 
 sorry for thy being here ; and let me tell thee, good 
 Semiro, that I was the chief maker of the delicate 
 beverage. Indeed now, sister ! Did I not gather 
 more thanhalf the flowers? And I would have carried 
 it to thy chamber too, but Zelneth cried, * Peace, 
 child ! Dost think I will trust thee with it V Yet 
 other days I had need be shod with wings"— Here 
 the prattler suddenly paused, struck by the altered 
 looks of Phantasmion, who had relapsed into his 
 former weakness, and now reeling forward fell upon 
 the floor of the arbour close by his side. ' ' O haste, 
 Leucoia," cried Zelneth ; " seek for some one to 
 bear Semiro to the house." Leucoia departed, and 
 soon returned with Karadan, who bore Phantas- 
 mion to a couch in one of the apartments of the 
 mansion. 
 
PIIANTASMION. 81 
 
 The youth quickly recovered from this slight re- 
 newal of former illness, and looking up he again 
 beheld Zelneth. He now blushed more deeply 
 than before, and a smile, which he could not sup- 
 press, played upon his lips when he saw the beau- 
 tiful maiden standing a little way off, with her eyes 
 timidly cast towards him. Alas for Zelneth ! she is 
 deceived by that bright smile, and takes for feelings 
 like her own the glow of youthful fancy, which 
 loves to feed on images of joy, and kindles at the 
 sight of beauty, even while the heart lies still, as a 
 bird beneath its mother's wing. " Take this juicy 
 citron," said the damsel; ''my mother sends itthee." 
 In speaking these words she cast a momentary 
 glance at the stranger, then threw down her eyes 
 while she offered him the fruit. Phantasmion took 
 the citron and seemed intent on tearing it apart 
 but all the time he was thinking how he might lead 
 the fair Zelneth to speak of larine. At last he 
 resolved to break the spell which seemed binding 
 him to silence ; he took the hand of Zelneth, like 
 one that is about to plead earnestly, and looking 
 in her face with an animated expression, " Fairest 
 maiden — " he said ; but at those words he paused, 
 having caught sight of another face reflected in an 
 opposite mirror. It was that of Leucoia, who 
 stood near the door behind the curtains of the couch ; 
 her head was drooping, and tears were about to flow 
 from her pale face into her bosom : while Zelneth 
 Stood erect, with brightest bloom upon her cheek, 
 
 Q 
 
8^ JHANTASMION. 
 
 and strove to hide her joy under an air of majesty* 
 So after summer rains we see a stately flower 
 raising its crimson disk to hail the sunshine , while 
 underneath, the snowy bells of some frail plant lean 
 forward on their bending stem, and still weep dew- 
 drops. Leucoia stole away and Zelneth followed 
 her, not casting a glance at the noble youth of 
 whose heart she now felt secure* 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 HERMILLIAN CHARGES KARADAN WITH POISOSTl^Ta 
 HIS OWL. 
 
 P 
 
 HANTASMION was musing on the demean- 
 our of Zelneth and Leucoia when their mother 
 approached him with a cup and phial in her hand. 
 At sight of her the prince leaped lightly from hia 
 couch, and the lady exclaimed, as he made his cour- 
 teous obeisance, ^' It glads me to find that thou hast 
 more need of pleasant food than of bitter infusions; 
 come with me, I pray thee, and partake of a simple 
 repast." Phantasmion attended his gentle hostess 
 to an apartment where Magnart and the household 
 were already assembled, but the first object that 
 struck his eye was young Hermillian. The boy 
 refused the dainty fare which his sisters offered 
 
PHANTASMIOiyr. 83 
 
 him, and stood with his back to the table, looking 
 on the body of a large bird which lay motionless 
 on his outspread palms, without a sign of life in 
 its prominent eyes. " O father ! he never blinks 
 in all this light !" cried the sorrowful child, his 
 blooming cheeks flooded with a fresh gush of tears ; 
 *'he is stone dead, and I know who it is that has 
 killed him." Hermillian repaired to his father's 
 side, and continued weeping and whispering in the 
 ear of Magnart, who bent forward to listen, while 
 Karadan kept his eyes fixed on the board in moody 
 silence, and Arzene cast inquiring glances, first at 
 one of her sons and then at the other. Phantasmion 
 looked at the dead bird, and thought it was the 
 same which fluttered over the head of Karadan the 
 night before. New suspicions crossed his mind as 
 herememberedthe pitcher and its noxious contents : 
 he took no heed of Zelneth, whose beaming eyes 
 were fixed upon his countenance ; nor thought for a 
 moment of Leucoia, who watched to see whether 
 that gaze was returned. " Speak aloud, Hermil- 
 lian," cried Magnart; " I cannot understand this 
 muttering." The child cast a side-long glance at 
 Karadan ; then, wrapping himself in the loose por- 
 tion of his father's robe, he began his voluble story. 
 " Last night," said he, '' I made an outcry in my 
 sleep, for I thought that an arrow whizzed through 
 the air and pierced my own poor owl to the heart. 
 ' Go to sleep again,' said my nurse ; ' the owls are 
 hooting, and their noise has put this dream into thy 
 
84 PHANTASMION. 
 
 head ;' — but, as I would not be pacified, she took me 
 to the window, that I might look out and see with 
 my own eyes that he was alive and well." " How 
 didst thou know it was thy owl ? " said his father. 
 " O ! I know every feather of him," replied the 
 child eagerly ; *' I first found him in his nest, nigh 
 the top of an old tower, when he was covered with 
 mere down, and, as soon as I looked in, he raised 
 himself on his legs, puffed out his body, and began 
 to hiss at me, just as baby sister does when I offer 
 to take away her play-things." " But what was 
 the owl doing last night? " said Magnart. *' Alas ! " 
 cried Hermillian, resuming his mournful counte- 
 nance, " he was perched on a lower bough of the 
 cypress near the pond, and up went the feathers 
 of his head into a goodly ruff, while he bent forward 
 and peered down on busy Karadan." " Be silent, 
 foolish boy ! " cried his brother sternly, and Arzene, 
 who had been observing her son's troubled looks 
 with surprize, beckoned to Hermillian; but Magnart 
 said, " Nay, Karadan ! let us hear how the owl met 
 his death ;" and the boy exclaimed, " He met his 
 death by eating the conserve which Karadan threw 
 out of the pitcher ; I hooted to him over and over 
 again, but he would not answer me, so eager was 
 he to feast upon that poisonous food." " Prithee, 
 mother, send him away," cried the dark youth ; 
 " how canst thou suffer him to babble so foolishly! " 
 *' Yes, Karadan," the younger boy rejoined, with a 
 glance of defiance, which he cast over his father's 
 
PHANTASMION". 85 
 
 shoulder, after having climbed the back of his chair, 
 " and thou didst not taste a morsel of the mess thy- 
 self, though helped to it abundantly." Arzene 
 commanded Hermillian to be silent, but she looked 
 with a grave countenance at Magnart, and said 
 softly, " My husband, what thinkest thou of this V 
 " Indeed I think," replied he with a lofty smile, 
 " that larine can send no dish wherein Maudra 
 may not mingle poison. We must transplant that 
 sweet flower to a happier soil : what sayest thou, 
 Karadan ? " His son and his guest both reddened 
 at this speech, but on Karadan's cheek the flush 
 subsided into deadly paleness. " Where is the 
 pitcher, good wife?" cried Magnart, smiling; "has 
 our eldest son stolen it ? Thou seest what grievous 
 charges are preferred against thee, Karadan." 
 " Nay," replied Arzene, looking with persuasive 
 mildness on the gloomy countenance of her son ; 
 " he has given me his jewelled cup in exchange 
 for the pitcher, though I shall not be long in finding 
 some excuse to give it him back again." " And I 
 have neither cup nor pitcher," said Hermillian, 
 appealing to his father; " and because Karadan is 
 enamoured of larine, my harmless owl is to be 
 sacrificed." " The eldest son," cried Zelneth, 
 " has his mother's heart in fee, and other children 
 may but hold the soil under him." " Yesterday," 
 said Arzene, "■ some of you declared that I favoured 
 my younger children !" Then she took her lute 
 and thus she sang, while Hermillian, who needed 
 
86 PHANTASMION. 
 
 no soft music to charm his melancholy away, was 
 sitting on the ground and playing with her train : 
 
 Deem not that our eldest heir 
 Wins too much of love and care ; 
 What a parent's heart can spare. 
 
 Who can measure truly t 
 Early crops were never found 
 To exhaust that fertile ground, 
 Still with riches 'twill abound. 
 
 Ever springing newly. 
 
 See in yonder plot of flowers 
 How the tallest lily towers, 
 Catching beams and kindly showers, 
 
 Which the heav'ns are shedding : 
 While the younger plants below 
 Less of suns and breezes know. 
 Till beyond the shade they grow, 
 
 High and richly spreading. 
 
 She that latest leaves the nest. 
 Little fledgehng much carest. 
 Is not therefore loved the best, 
 
 Though the most protected ; 
 Nor the gadding daring child. 
 Oft reproved for antics wild. 
 Of our tenderness beguiled. 
 
 Or in thought neglected. 
 
 'Gainst the islet's rocky shore 
 
 Waves are beating evermore, 
 
 Yet with blooms 'tis scattered o'er. 
 
 Decked in softest lustre : 
 Nature favours it no less 
 Than the guarded still recess. 
 Where the birds for shelter press, 
 
 And the hare-beUs cluster. 
 
PHANTASMION. 87 
 
 ■ Arzene would have taken up another strain, all 
 the good company being silent, though Magnart 
 alone heeded the words of the song, but suddenly, 
 as a rebounding ball, Hermillian leaped into the 
 air : unheeded by any eye but his, the owl had 
 risen from the floor, and sailing along the roof, silent 
 as a snow-flake, disappeared under the arch of a 
 lofty window. Arzene laid down the lute, well 
 pleased to see the happy child bound through the 
 lawn, clapping his hands and hallooing to the owl 
 over head, then swiftly pursue him into the grove, 
 where he hastened to seek shelter from the sunny 
 glare. 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 PHANTASMION IS ENTERTAINED BY HIS HOSt's 
 FAMILY IN THE GARDEN. 
 
 TOWARD evening Phantasmion was seated 
 beside Arzene in the farther part of the plea- 
 sure-ground: on one hand light cascades twinkled 
 athwart the foliage of a hanging orchard, on the 
 other bright-eyed deer, followed by troops of fawns, 
 tripped into the greensward from a darksome wood, 
 then retiring to the sylvan covert seemed to grow 
 into that arborous landscape, as their branched 
 antlers mingled with the boughs. Just in front of 
 
88 PHANTASMIOl^. 
 
 the bank where he sate, the children of Magnart 
 danced round beds of blooming plants, which rose 
 like bright embroidery from the shaven turf, or, 
 forming one regular line, resembled a flower-spike, 
 on which the lower blossoms are fully blown, the 
 others gradually greener and closer up to the 
 sheathed bud which crowns the summit. Zelneth 
 admired the forbearance of Semiro, who kept his 
 seat beside the matron, believing it to be painfully 
 practised for her sake ; but, well disposed to tempt 
 him out of this rigour, she approached a tree near 
 the spot he occupied, and, snapping a twig from 
 one of the branches, full half its foliage seemed to 
 fly away. This was a bevy of green doves, which, 
 sweeping rapidly before the prince's eye, proceeded 
 to augment the verdure of an opposite shrub. Phan- 
 tasmion smiled carelessly as he raised his eyes to 
 the damsel, and that smile was more than returned 
 by Zelneth, who yet lingered under the tree which 
 the doves had deserted. Soon she was springing 
 beside the cascades in the orchard knoll, her loose 
 robe appearing by glimpses betwixt the leaves, 
 white as those foamy streams. Now she bends 
 over them to scoop the water in a shell, and now 
 comes forth again, with the dripping vessel in her 
 hand, attended by a train of squirrels. Go back, 
 blithe squirrels, to your leafy haunts : it is more 
 than a picture that Zelneth now dreams of, 
 and the maiden has no heart to chase you round 
 the lawns and groves. She laid the shell before 
 
PHANTASMION. 89 
 
 Leucoia's stag, but he playfully threw it over with 
 his horn, and wetted the foot of his fair mistress. 
 Zelneth heard not her sister's mild reproach, but, 
 now grown weary of this game, where all the lover's 
 part was supplied by fancy, she kneels down over 
 against the bank to place flowers in a jar, and seems 
 to be wholly occupied with the rich hues of ama- 
 ranths and roses, while her softer cheek, on which 
 Semiro perchance is gazing, surpasses the garden's 
 pride in its deep crimson . But soon larine's name 
 has caught her listening ear. " Were it not for 
 larine," sighed the matron, " father and son might 
 both sink into the grave." The maiden looked up, 
 and saw that the eyes of the prince were eagerly 
 fixed on Arzene : the damask rose, which now fell 
 from her hand, still blushed bright red, but from 
 Zelneth 's cheek the hue of joy had faded. In 
 haste she finished her task, and rising from the 
 turf displayed before her mother the vase of various 
 flowers. Arzene praised the well formed group, 
 and looked with silent pride on her beauteous 
 daughter. "The spirit like the outward form !" 
 Phantasmion murmured. Arzene thought he spoke 
 of Zelneth, but he was far away on the Island of 
 the Black Lake, and saw neither the flowers nor 
 the fair trembler who held them. " Thou wert 
 speaking of Albinet and Albinian," he rejoined j 
 " how saidst thou that they are kept from sinking 
 into the grave ? " Zelneth retired, and approach- 
 ing her sister, poured all that the vase contained 
 
90 PHANTASMION, 
 
 upon the garden mould. Leucoia withdrew her 
 vest, which was sprinkled by the water. " A se- 
 cond wetting from thy hand in one short hour ?" 
 said the maiden. " And what have the roses done, 
 that they must be turned adrift to wither ?" '* Why 
 does our mother keep him listening to such tedious 
 tales ?" cried Zelneth. " Tedious to whom?" re- 
 plied Leucoia. "If he finds them so, he will not 
 listen long." 
 
 Zelneth selected a few choice flowers from the 
 heap which lay at her feet, joined graceful buds to 
 half expanded blossoms, then with flushed cheek 
 and fluttering heart, knelt down betwixt Arzene 
 and the prince to fix the posy in her mother's 
 girdle. Phantasmion was still hanging on the 
 words of his hostess, and still the discourse was con- 
 cerning Anthemmina's peerless child. " Magnart 
 believes," pursued the dame, " that she silently 
 loves our son : but, by Karadan's report, she 
 thinks more of one who is dead and gone, than of 
 those who live but to serve and worship her." Hi- 
 therto Zelneth had been studiously disposing the 
 flowers in Arzene's bosom, but now she raised her 
 eyes, and saw Phantasmion with rapt countenance 
 gazing upward, as if he contemplated some glo- 
 rious vision in the evening sky. Then she bowed 
 her head, and one of her massy tresses fell 
 upon the prince's hand. He started from his 
 reverie, and beheld the lovely Zelneth looking at 
 him with eyes full of love and sorrow, tears on 
 
PHANTASMION. 91 
 
 her cheek, and her wild locks, which had broken 
 from restraint, falling in careless abandonment 
 to the ground where she knelt. Again he 
 blushed and smiled, and his was a face on which 
 smiles and blushes appeared to have a tenfold 
 meaning, as sunny weather in a land of flowery 
 meads and crystal waters seems tenfold sunnier 
 than in a barren plain. Quickly as touchwood 
 fires at a spark, while the flint from which it flew 
 is cold as ever, poor Zelneth's heart kindled with 
 sudden joy. Scorning her own distrust, scarce 
 able to endure the tide of pleasure that overflowed 
 her bosom, she rose and glided lightly over the 
 lawn. Meantime, Phantasmion observed Leucoia 
 leaning against a tree, with her eyes turned to- 
 ward the bank where he sate beside Arzene. The 
 dainty leaves collected for the stag had fallen to 
 her feet : and he too seemed little to heed them, 
 while his large mild eye was fondly fixed on the 
 absent face of the damsel. 
 
 But Zelneth wandered on to a pool which gleam- 
 ed betwixt the unbranched stems of trees like a 
 mirror in its frame. And now she hears the sound 
 for which her ear listens : she cannot be deceived : 
 Semiro is tracing her footsteps. With tremulous 
 limbs, which half refused to carry her forward, she 
 gained the palm trees, and, standing between them, 
 eyed the waterfowl which flew out of the border- 
 ing wood, and caused a transient whirlpool in the 
 glassy lake with sudden plunge, then made it roar 
 
92 PHANTASMION. 
 
 and whiten as they rushed hither and thither on 
 whirring wings. Ere the tumult had subsided, 
 Phantasmion stood before Zelneth; his words 
 were drowned in the hubbub of the waters ; but 
 he presented a letter cased in ivory, which the 
 spouse of Magnart, to try his dispositions toward 
 the dark-eyed maid, had charged him to lay before 
 her. Zelneth had forgotten all men but one, and 
 dreamed not that what he held in his hand, re- 
 ported of any heart but his own. With feigned 
 reserve she turned away to caress a graceful bird 
 in mantle of silver grey, which seemed to imitate 
 some stately damsel as it trode the margin of the 
 pool. " Pretty crane," said Zelneth, stroking its 
 silky plumage, " what hast thou to say of thy 
 fair mistress, larine ? Has she never a thought to 
 bestow upon the living ? Wert thou not given to 
 Karadan as an earnest of a better gift hereafter ?" 
 The letter in its carved case fell from Phantas- 
 mion's hand ; his heart throbbed fast ; he fell on 
 his knees before the lady, and, seizing her robe, 
 exclaimed, " O ! Zelneth, Zelneth, this is but one 
 of thy jests ? Karadan has not indeed won the 
 heart of larine ?" Zelneth looked upon his face, 
 where passion was plainly pictured: but now she 
 knew that not for her his cheek glowed, his lip 
 quivered ; and, when her eye sought the ground, 
 she espied upon the ivory case, the letters of an 
 unloved name. Pale and speechless she turned 
 away, her heart swelling with sorrow. Midway 
 
PHANTASMION. 93 
 
 between the pool and the flowery lawn she joined 
 Leucoia, who, having- seen Phantasmion throw 
 himself at her sister's feet, expected to behold the 
 maiden's face beaming with happiness. " I am 
 weary," said Zelneth, in a languid tone : "let me 
 lean on thee. O, sister, he loves larine !" Then 
 Leucoia saw that her first guesses were true, and 
 became on a sudden right eloquent, whispering a 
 thousand consolations, which she herself had a 
 thousand times rejected. Phantasmion followed 
 them to Arzene's bower, paid many abrupt cour- 
 tesies to the sorrowful maiden, placed a lute in her 
 hand, and, scarce knowing what he said in his 
 confusion, entreated her to sing. Zelneth swept 
 the chords with hurried finger, then accompanied 
 their expressive chime with these words : — - 
 
 While the storm her bosom scourges, 
 What can calm a troubled sea 1 
 Will the heaving dashing surges 
 Tranquil through persuasion be 1 
 Rest, my soul, like frozen ocean ! 
 Let thy wavy tumult sleep ! 
 Rise no more in vexed commotion, 
 Heedless where the gale may sweep. 
 
 Clouds that have the light partaken. 
 Round yon radiant planet rolled. 
 Lingering in the west forsaken, 
 Soon shall glimmer, wan and cold : 
 All our thoughts are gay and golden. 
 While the sun of hope they shroud ; 
 Those bright beams no more beholden, 
 Turn again to watery cloud. 
 
94 PHANTASMION, 
 
 He that scorns the smiling valley, 
 Fragrant copse and gentle stream, 
 Forth for distant heights to sally. 
 Whence deceptive colours gleam ; 
 "Late shall find that cold and dreary, 
 'Tis but from afar they glow, 
 Shall not, when his feet are weary, 
 Win the blossomed vale below. 
 
 Having stolen a glance at Phantasmion, who 
 was leaning against the arbour with his eyes fixed 
 on the ground, Zelneth gave him back the lute, 
 when all the company looked eagerly towards him. 
 The prince played a soft prelude, then sang thus : 
 
 Many a fountain cool and shady 
 May the traveller's eye invite ; 
 One among them all, sweet lady. 
 Seems to flow for his delight : 
 In many a tree the wilding bee 
 Might safely hide her honeyed store ; 
 One hive alone the bee will own, 
 She may not trust her sweets to more. 
 
 Say'st thou, " Can that maid be fairer ? 
 " Shows her lip a livelier dye ? 
 *' Hath she treasures richer, rarer ] 
 " Can she better love than I V 
 What form'd the spell, I ne'er could tell. 
 But subtle must its working be, 
 Since, from the hour, I felt its pow'r, 
 No fairer face I wish to see. 
 
 Light wing'd Zephyr, ere he settles 
 On the loveliest flower that blows. 
 Never stays to count thy petals, 
 Dear, dehcious, fragrant rose ! — 
 
 I 
 
PIIANTASMIOF. 95 
 
 Her features bright elude my sight, 
 1 know not how her tresses lie ; 
 In fancy's maze my spirit plays. 
 When she with all her charms is nigh. 
 
 "Here is Karadan coming from the wood!" 
 cried Arzene, rising-, and Pbantasmion, glad to 
 leave the arbour, hastened away with her. Mag- 
 nart, who had now come forth to see his guest, 
 followed with the children, but Zelneth had 
 fallen fainting among the branches of the bower, 
 and Leucoia remained by her side. Ere the 
 company returned to the spot they bad left, the 
 dark-eyed maid was weeping on her sister's bosom 
 in that apartment where, from childhood, they had 
 nightly reposed together. " O Leucoia !" she cried, 
 " thy channel was once full, though now the 
 stream is dried at the fountain : but mine has ever 
 been despised, unvisited : the current winds ano- 
 ther way, and will not flow there." 
 
 CHAPTER XH. 
 
 AFTER MEETING WITH ADVENTURES IN THE WOOD, 
 PHANTASMION GOES TO SEEK PENSELIMER. 
 
 *' ^ B "'HOU hast not found the panther yet, my 
 
 JL son !" cried Magnart, as he met Karadan 
 
 coming from the wood with a train of dogs at his 
 
 heels, and the spoils of a wild beast hanging over 
 
D6 PHANTASMION. 
 
 his shoulder. "This is the hide of an ounce," 
 pursued he, ** I know it by the white g-round." 
 " The panther shall not escape me to-morrow," 
 answered the youth, looking as if he would fain 
 have avoided the company that greeted him as he 
 emerged from the outskirts of the forest. " Semiro 
 will hunt with thee to-morrow," said his father. 
 *' Thou wilt not withstand this plea?" added he, 
 turning to his guest, whom he had been urging to 
 prolong his stay in Polyanthida. Upon that Ka- 
 radan looked sternly at Phantasmion, and, striking 
 his spear on the ground, he said in a low deep 
 voice; *' I pray thee, noble stranger, to accept 
 my father's hospitality ; but endanger not thy life 
 by pursuing the same game with me." " Noble 
 Karadan," rejoined Phantasmion, with a kindling 
 eye and cheek, " I will pursue no game which I 
 am not as free to follow as thou art ; but danger 
 to my life will never deter me from any just enter- 
 prize." Then checking himself at sight of Arzene's 
 anxious face and Magnart's uplifted eye-brow, he 
 added in a lighter tone, " Surely I have some 
 right to pursue this panther, for it was I who started 
 it first — ." " Thou knowest not who started it be- 
 fore thee," murmured Karadan; but at the urgent 
 request of his mother he reluctantly appointed an 
 Jiour to meet Phantasmion in the wood on the fol- 
 lowing day, and then hastened homeward, outstrip- 
 ping Magnart, who suited his pace to that of 
 the young children, as well as the stranger youth, 
 who remained by the side of Arzene, 
 
PHANTASMION. 97 
 
 Next morning' the prince accoutred himself for 
 the chace, and partook of an early repast, at which 
 neither Karadan nor his two elder sisters were 
 present. Arzene looked less cheerily than usual, 
 as she cast her eye round the board, and when 
 Phantasmion set forth, she accompanied him 
 through the lawn, speaking much of Karadan's 
 over hardihood. Hermillian skipped by her side, 
 and drank in more of the morning's balm than 
 even the dewy flowers, which the sun seemed to 
 paint with richer hues, while it stole their tears 
 away. " When shall I be old enough to hunt?" 
 exclaimed the boy, scattering the posy which he 
 had gathered with rapture : " Dear mother ! before 
 I am as tall as Karadan I will be more venturous 
 and rash than he !" At parting, Arzene placed in 
 the hand of her guest a phial of the precious liquor, 
 which had hastened his cure, bidding him admi- 
 nister the contents to himself or Karadan, should 
 either of them receive a wound that day. 
 
 Phantasmion accepted the phial, as he had lis- 
 tened to the mother's story, with a courteous smile, 
 and took his way to the brake, where Karadan 
 had agreed to meet him. He looked around, and, 
 seeing no living creature in the wood, except deer 
 and their fawns, he seated himself behind that 
 screen of briers where he had formerly beheld the 
 panther, and having tightened his sandal, began 
 to examine the weapons with which Magnart had 
 provided him. While thus employed, he heard 
 
98 
 
 PHANTASMION. 
 
 sounds on the other side of the bushes ; it seemed 
 as if steps were approaching, then as if some one 
 sate down upon the turf; soon after he saw the 
 head of the white stag, the branches of his horns 
 protruding" beyond the shrubs which came down 
 to the water's edge, and, ere he stooped to drink, 
 Phantasmion caught a glance of his mild vigilant 
 eye. From the top of an alder tree a thrush was 
 pouring out the gladdest notes to soothe his pa- 
 tient mate, as she brooded on her nest in one of 
 the brambles that overhung the water. But soon 
 Leucoia's voice traversed the briery fence, and 
 softly warbled these words : 
 
 The captive bird with ardour sings, 
 Where no fond mate rewards the strain, 
 Y6t, sure, to chant some solace brings, 
 
 Although he chants in vain : 
 But I my thoughts in bondage keep, 
 Lest he should hear who ne'er will heed. 
 And none shall see the tears I weep, 
 With whom 'twere vain to plead. 
 
 No glossy breast, no quivering plume. 
 Like fan unfurl' d to tempt the eye, 
 Reminds the prisoner of his doom. 
 Apart, yet all too nigh : 
 
 would that in some shrouded place 
 
 1 too were prisoned fancy free. 
 
 And ne'er had seen that beaming face. 
 Which ne'er will beam on me ! 
 
 When kindred birds fleet o'er the wave. 
 From yellow woods to green ones fly. 
 
PHANTASMION. 99 
 
 The captive hears the wild winds rave 
 
 Beneath a wint'ry sky ! 
 And, when my loved one hence shall fleet, 
 Bleak, bleak will yonder heav'n appear. 
 The flowers will droop, no longer sweet, 
 
 And every leaf be sere. 
 
 Phantasmion hardly noted the meaning of Leucoia's 
 song-, but its melancholy murmur haunted his ear 
 as he loitered along in search of Karadan, and it 
 seemed to him as if he had heard the orphan 
 larine lamenting that hapless mother, whose image 
 her soul cherished so fondly. By the time that 
 he had advanced some way into the forest, the 
 sun was shining in full fervour, no cloud inter- 
 cepted its beam, no breeze winnowed the warm 
 air, and roused it from sleepy stillness. The lake, 
 which gleamed through an open space between 
 oaks and beeches, was all one fabric with the 
 vaulted sky ; and neither end of the lucid pile, 
 though the lower was more shiny than the upper, 
 contained a single fret or flaw. One little island 
 was visible opposite the place where Phantasmion 
 stood, and the weeping birches that grew upon 
 its margin seemed to be intently studying their 
 own images in the mirror ; not one of their light 
 leaflets moved upon its pliant stem. No rapid 
 swallow skimmed over the water, now shooting 
 aloft to snatch an insect, now wheeling round and 
 soaring out of sight ; but a lonely heron stood be- 
 neath those trees, and seemed as if he had fallen 
 
100 PHAlSfTASMIOTf'. 
 
 asleep over his task, as if the delicate perch 
 might glance past him unobserved. The deer 
 slumbered in the closest coverts, the birds had 
 ceased to sing, all was profoundly silent, except 
 that, from a great distance among the trees, 
 Phantasmion heard the cooing of a dove ; but 
 that, too, died away, and then no sound was au- 
 dible but the murmur of a solitary bee over a bed 
 of flowers, which loaded the sultry air with frag- 
 rance. This only moving object attracted the eye 
 of the prince, as he sate beneath a broad-armed 
 oak, wondering at the delay of Karadan ; he 
 watched the insect roving up and down among 
 the hyacinths, which grew in countless multitudes 
 far as eye could reach, till a drowsiness began to 
 steal over him, and it seemed, while he inhaled 
 the odour of the blossoms, and viewed their soft 
 colours, as if he saw a new flower gradually rising 
 up from among the rest. Rousing himself to 
 look more steadfastly at this strange appearance, 
 he perceived that it was no flower, but an exqui- 
 site feminine form, which stood between his eye 
 and the lake's deep azure. A breath would have 
 separated the yellow tresses that lay upon her 
 neck into a thousand diverging threads, as fine as 
 gossamer ; vivid bloom was on her cheek, her 
 eyes were blue as the turquois, and her mantle 
 was of the freshest green. A crown of dew drops 
 glittered on her brow when first she rose, but 
 quickly melted away, and she held by a silken line 
 
PHANTASMION. 101 
 
 a leash of buttei'flies. " Phantasmion !" she said, 
 in a slender sighing voice, " Phantasmion! thou 
 lovest larine, the daughter of Anthemmina ! O 
 how fair was Anthemmina when she plighted her 
 faith to Penselimer ! she was laden with beauty, 
 like the trees of spring, that hide the green of 
 their leaves with amethystine clusters, and gar- 
 lands of yellow gold !" " Who art thou ?" cried 
 Phantasmion, " and why speakest thou thus to 
 me ?" The soft phantom replied, " I am Feydeleen, 
 the Spirit of the Flowers ; I love the house of Tha- 
 limer, but Karadan, to gain the charmed vessel, 
 hath put his faith in other powers than mine. 
 He loves larine ;" — the spirit continued to murmur 
 the names of Karadan, larine, and Anthemmina, 
 but her breath appeared to be stifled. " Speak 
 on !" said Phantasmion, " what hast thou to tell 
 me of Karadan, of larine, and of Anthemmina ?" 
 " Alas !" she feebly answered, " Oloola, the 
 Spirit of the Blast !-7-go to Penselimer ! — to the 
 Deserted Palace !" — the fading phantom waved 
 her hand : '* Even now," she murmured, " I 
 feel her touch ! it is like the hand of death." 
 While she yet spoke, the delicate colour faded 
 from her cheek ; her face began to shrivel ; she 
 hung her head; her whole form shrank; then, 
 gradually sinking earth-ward, appeared to re-enter 
 the ground whence it had arisen. While Phan- 
 tasmion was yet gazing with fixed eyes, the trees, 
 late so motionless, were bent by a rushing blast, 
 
102 PHANTASMION. 
 
 which swept, as if in triumph, across the spot 
 where Feydeleen had stood , disturbed the bosom of 
 the glassy lake, then passed away, and soon every 
 nodding hyacinth had ceased to sway upon its 
 flexile stem. Even in the hot sun-beams the 
 prince felt his blood chilled ; he rose from his 
 seat and felt an impulse to hasten out of the wood ; 
 but at that moment the deep silence of the forest 
 was broken by clamorous yells, and the prolonged 
 sound of a hunter's horn caused the sleeping deer 
 to arise, and the birds to rush from the boughs 
 they occupied, while the heron upon the island 
 started up and sailed off to a distant shore. 
 
 Phantasmion passed swiftly on, and soon had 
 sight of Karadan, who stood surrounded by vocife- 
 rous dogs, with his javelin plunged in the body of 
 a large panther. Indignant at this sight the 
 prince hurried through the trees, and, coming in 
 front of the young huntsman, he saw that his 
 countenance was full of joyful triumph, as he bent 
 over the grim face of the expiring beast, and that 
 dr6ps of blood were slowly trickling from a wound 
 in his hand into larine's pitcher, which he held up 
 to receive them. So intent was he on this occu- 
 pation, and on gazing at the panther, that he had 
 not perceived the approach of his rival, who, stung 
 with jealousy at what he beheld, and with remem- 
 brance of what the Flower Spirit had uttered, stood 
 a little way off, eyeing him with fiery looks, and 
 brandishing his stainless weapon, without knowing 
 
PHANTASMION. 103 
 
 exactly in what terms to couch an accusation, or 
 how to challenge one who was already wounded 
 in combat. While he yet hesitated, the prince 
 was struck by the sound of Leucoia's vo'ice, crying-, 
 *' Karadan !" The maiden had heard her brother 
 wind the horn, and, knowing by that signal that 
 the beast was slain, she came flitting through the 
 forest to the place of the encounter. Phantasmion 
 gave up all thoughts of seeking a quarrel with 
 Karadan when he saw his sister approach : he 
 withdrew behind the broad trunk of a tree, and 
 soon afterwards beheld Leucoia binding up her 
 brother's wound with strips torn from her own 
 garment, while the dogs leaped around, fawning 
 on the maiden, as if rejoiced at the aid that she 
 rendered to their master. The lady's milk-white 
 stag, fearless of the hounds, with which he had 
 long been familiar, stood beside the bloody pard, 
 and was the only one of the group who seemed to 
 espy Phantasmion, as he lingered among the 
 over-arching trees of thickest foliage. " Karadan 
 loves larine," were the words that rang in the 
 prince's ear, as he retraced his steps through the 
 forest ; and, without re-entering Magnart's abode, 
 he forthwith departed to find that of Penselimer, 
 king of Almaterra. 
 
104 PHANTASMIOW. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 PENSELIMER TELLS HIS STORY TO PHANTASMIOS. 
 
 PHANTASM ION pursued his journey for seve- 
 ral days in that rich land, travelling by leaps, 
 whenever he could do so without attracting the gaze 
 of the rustics, and taking refreshment in the hum- 
 blest dwellings. He found that the peasant folks 
 in general were quite unacquainted with the person 
 of their king, though they had many strange tales to 
 tell respecting him ; but all the certain information 
 in these matters which the prince gained, was, 
 that he lived in retirement with Laona, the mother 
 of Arzene and Anthemmina, the affairs of his 
 kingdom being managed by Sanio, a wise and 
 worthy man, who had been the friend of his father. 
 The prince pursued his way, according to the direc- 
 tions he had received, till he found that blossomed 
 orchards, gardens, and gay buildings, began to be 
 less and less frequent, and it seemed as if, from 
 the land of summer, he had stepped into November's 
 dreary domain. At length he entered a tract 
 which was full of fading flowers and trees, clad 
 in the garb of autumn, and thence proceeded to 
 a bleak and barren moor, where cold swamps, 
 rocks encrusted with ashy pale lichens, or fringed 
 
PIIANTASMION. 105 
 
 with rustling fern, and twisted uncouth trunks, 
 that looked like mummies of trees as they reclined 
 in sepulchral cavities, were the only features of the 
 stern landscape. One light-coloured object ap- 
 peared in view just beneath a company of gaunt 
 pine trees that straggled over a stony slope ; this 
 was a forlorn mountain ash, with foliage of trans- 
 parent brightness. The wind came by fits, whist- 
 ling through the pine grove, and, whenever it 
 shook the fragile ash, a shower of yellow leaves 
 fell from its delicate branches on the steely pool 
 below. Those stagnant waters were agitated by 
 the rough gale, and foaming waves for a moment 
 were visible; then again, relapsing into torpor, they 
 sullenly reflected the sullen sky and the wasting 
 roan tree. Streaks of dull clouds covered great 
 part of the heavens, but, just where the sun was 
 sinking on the horizon, they showed a spectral 
 whiteness, edged with faintest yellow and sea 
 green. In the opposite quarter, the moon appeared 
 like a wan face gradually kindling into life ; she 
 looked out from the sky in full splendour while 
 Phantasmion was yet on his way ; and, when he 
 saw her beams resting on an ancient castle, sur- 
 rounded by a moat and a high and thick wall, he 
 knew that he beheld the domain of Penselimer. 
 Arrived at the edge of the moat, he surveyed the 
 barrier before him, and, having taken a good aim, 
 leaped to the top of it, gained a sure footing on 
 the wall, and waved his sword to an ancient do- 
 
106 
 
 PHANTASMION. 
 
 mestic, who had espied him from a court yard 
 below. The old man gazed in astonishment at the 
 youthful figure on the horizon, with nodding plume 
 and glancing sword illumined by the moon-beams. 
 Phantasmion proceeded along the top of the wall, 
 looking down upon groves of cypresses and glis- 
 tering laurels, till he came over against a wide 
 lawn which fronted the castle. Down into this 
 grassy plain he leaped, and beheld, straight before 
 him, an ancient yew tree which rose about the 
 centre of it, casting a gigantic shadow on the 
 moonlit sward. As the prince passed under this 
 tree on his way to the castle, he perceived that a 
 tall man, habited in a long black stole, was lean- 
 ing over one of its broad arms, and looking, from 
 amid its dusky foliage, at the star-bright sky. 
 Just then a thin vapour was flitting across the 
 moon ; but soon Phantasmion beheld the side of 
 the gazer's face in a clear light, and was struck 
 with the majesty of his features, and the placid 
 melancholy of their expression. He stood still, 
 feeling assured that this was Penselimer, and con- 
 sidering how to proceed ; when the man in the 
 mourning robe turned round, and, having scanned 
 his face, exclaimed reproachfully : " Ha ! Dori- 
 mant : art thou come to render up the silver pit- 
 cher ?" Phantasmion, who had been continually 
 thinking of larine's silver pitcher ever since he 
 first saw it in the hands of his rival, was too much 
 struck with these words to make a prompt reply ; 
 
 1 
 
PHANTASMION. 107 
 
 but the lofty personage before him pointed to the 
 moon : " Thou art come," said he, " from visiting- 
 the lady Anthemmina?" " King Penselimer," 
 cried Phantasmion a little confused, " I come 
 from Palmland." " It is false," rejoined the 
 monarch, in a tone of solemn indignation ; " with 
 my own eyes I saw thee descend from the sky, 
 and alight on the hither side of those fir trees V 
 Then again he gazed upwards at the moon ; " I 
 had been pleading with her all this evening;" said 
 he ; " she was still silent and obdurate ; she would 
 not promise to restore the silver pitcher ; but now 
 I trust she has sent it by thy hand." " Noble 
 Penselimer," cried the youth impetuously, " I 
 know not what thou meanest by pointing to the 
 sky, and speaking of a silver pitcher." " And 
 perchance," rejoined the king, with a disdainful 
 smile, " thou dost not behold the fair Anthemmina 
 in heaven, and perchance she too will deny that 
 she is at this moment looking down upon thee and 
 me." " King Penselimer," said Phantasmion, who 
 now began to understand w^hy the sovereign of 
 Almaterra lived in retirement, " I see that fair 
 dispenser of light as plainly as thou dost, and true 
 it is that she has guided me to thy abode ; but the 
 lady Anthemmina I never beheld while she so- 
 journed upon earth." "Art thou not mine enemy 
 Dorimant?" inquired the king earnestly, perusing 
 the features of his youthful visitant. " Dorimant, 
 king of Palmland, sleeps with his ancestors," re- 
 
108 
 
 PHANTASMION. 
 
 plied the youth; " I know not why thou callest 
 him thine enemy, nor how he can have injured 
 thee concerning" a silver pitcher ?" *' Ha, in- 
 deed !" said Penselimer, " then I will tell thee the 
 whole story of my wrongs ! But not here," he 
 added in a low voice, casting up his eyes to the 
 moon, " lest she should hear the tale ; it is my 
 belief she often listens when shame or pride for- 
 bids her to reply." Then he moved away, and 
 beckoned to Phantasmion, who followed him, as 
 he strode across the lawn, thinking of larine with 
 the silver pitcher on her head, and Karadan press- 
 ing it to his bosom, and how the fishy woman by 
 the sea shore, and the bright faii*y in the w^ood 
 had both spoken of a charmed vessel. Penselimer 
 conducted the youth to an apartment in the castle, 
 where a fire upon the hearth cast its light on the 
 walls, hung with dark paintings, and on a harp 
 and other musical instruments which were scat- 
 tered around. The king of Almaterra made Phan- 
 tasmion take a seat opposite to one which he him- 
 self occupied, and began to speak thus : " There 
 was a time when the beautiful Anthemmina looked 
 graciously upon me, and told me every thought of 
 her bosom : now she veils her face when I gaze 
 upon it, and, though I spend my life in assuring 
 her that I seek only to be reconciled, she still 
 persists in chilling silence." Phantasmion looked 
 at the speaker, and saw no haggard looks, no 
 traces of anguish on his goodly face ; clear and 
 
PIIANTASMION. 109 
 
 smooth was his high forehead, and the black locks 
 that shadowed it were scarcely sprinkled with 
 grey ; but ever and anon his dark eye gave sud- 
 den flashes, like silent lightning on a gloomy 
 summer's night. It seemed as if something were 
 at work within, apart from the soul of Penselimer, 
 something dangerous and irregular as lightning 
 itself. Without returning the curious glance of 
 Phantasmion, his eyes appearing fixed on vacancy, 
 he proceeded thus : *' One day the lady Anthem- 
 mina approached me, radiant with joy as with 
 beauty : she held in her hand a silver pitcher, and, 
 placing it in mine, she said, ' Penselimer, while 
 this charmed vessel remains in thy possession, no 
 earthly power can deprive thee of me !' At these 
 words I was full of astonishment ; 1 threw my- 
 self on my knees before the stately virgin, and, 
 receiving the pitcher, was unable to utter a word, 
 but look^id up eagerly in her face to seek an ex- 
 planation. Anthemmina smiled, ' Dost thou be- 
 lieve the tale V said she ; ' truly thou mayst be- 
 lieve it. Feydeleen has answered my prayers, for 
 she loves the house of Thalimer.' ' But Thallo, 
 the king of this land,' cried I, ' whom thy father 
 would have thee wed, — is not he a descendant of 
 Thalimer, as well as we two ?' ' Fear nothing 
 from him,' the maid replied ; ' Feydeleen, our 
 guardian spirit, appeared to me as I watered the 
 flowers, and, in gazing at the bright phantom, I 
 let the pitcher fall from my hands. ' Anthem- 
 
110 PHANTASMION. 
 
 mina,' she said, * take up thy pitcher, and he in 
 whose hands thou shalt place it can alone be thy 
 husband; while he, keeps it safe no other man can 
 deprive him of thee.' The fairy vanished, and, 
 looking down at my feet, I saw that my earthen 
 pitcher was gone, and that this silver vessel, en- 
 graved with curious characters, was lying in its 
 place.' From the time that Anthemmina spoke 
 thus I felt like a new creature, and ceased to 
 tremble in the presence of Thallo, or of his young 
 sister Zalia, whom my father would have had me 
 espouse. I cared not who was called the sovereign 
 of this land; the whole world seemed made for 
 me since I possessed that charmed vessel ; the 
 rosy dawn, the noon day radiance, the gorgeous 
 sunset, and the spangled firmament, all wiere but 
 varied images of my inward bliss ; to my exulting 
 fancy they were but festal shews, set forth to 
 celebrate my happiness with Anthemmina. Alas ! 
 alas ! the glory of a sunset gradually gives way 
 to darkness, and by slow degrees the magic spec- 
 tacle of midnight passes from the heavens ; but 
 this radiance which surrounded me, and appeared 
 to stream from a thousand sunny fountains, was 
 quenched as wholly and as suddenly as a man 
 may extinguish one poor solitary taper ! She took 
 back again that precious gift, one that she had 
 proffered with such an overflowing measure of 
 unhoped for tenderness : tricked me out of it by 
 
PIIANTASMION. Ill 
 
 cruel art, and gave it to king Dorimant. I saw 
 her place it in his hand. I saw his look of tri- 
 umph as he held it aloft ; more I could not see, 
 for I fell on the ground senseless. O ! why did 
 I not pierce him to the heart, that base perfidious 
 man, doubly, nay, trebly perjured and faithless !" 
 When Penselimer spoke thus, Phantasmion'started 
 up, and laid his hand on his sword, forgetting that 
 the true spirit of Penselimer was not there to ren- 
 der account of his words. " My father was an 
 honourable man," the youth exclaimed ; " he hath 
 a son at least who will maintain his honour." The 
 king of Almaterra looked at him with majestic 
 composure, as the fire threw its tremulous beam 
 • on his flushed countenance ; for phantoms were 
 realities to him, and external realities moved^him 
 less than phantoms. '* How thy face recalls to 
 me that fatal hour !" quoth he ; — " that hour 
 when the aspect of my fate grew suddenly dark, 
 as the glowing face of the deep will blacken in 
 its whole extent when the wind rushes over it ! 
 For years I remained in a state of stupor ; Thallo 
 died, and I succeeded to my grandsire's throne ; 
 Dorimant delivered the pitcher to king Albi- 
 nian, whom Cleoras forced Anthemmina to marry ; 
 the king of Palmland espoused Zalia, and an- 
 nexed to his realm her inheritance of Gem- 
 maura ; all these events I learned with indiffer- 
 ence : nothing roused me till tidings were brought 
 
112 PHANTASMION. 
 
 that Anthemmina had perished at sea. Then I 
 repaired to the shore, entered a boat, and roamed 
 over the waste of waters, till, at last, I beheld my 
 radiant mistress arise out of the waves. From 
 the vessel's prow I stood gazing, and prayed aloud 
 for wings that I might follow her into the sky; 
 but a jeering voice issued from the deep, and 
 seemed to utter these words, ' Where she is gone 
 thou shalt never follow.' I looked down upon 
 the waters, and there beheld a round white glis- 
 tering face, that seemed to be a hideous mockery 
 of that celestial visage. It rose from the surface 
 of the sea, and there stood before me a strange 
 form, half fish, half woman, which held her arms 
 aloft, and her body inclined in the posture of a 
 dancing nymph, while she pointed with one hand at 
 me, with the other at the newly risen Queen of Hea- 
 ven ; then with a burst of merriment she plunged 
 amid the waves, which swallowed in the gurgling 
 sounds of laughter." "And before this memor- 
 able night," said Phantasmion, ** when Anthem- 
 mina took her station in heaven, didst thou never 
 behold that bright orb which is beaming through 
 yonder latticed window ?" " Before that night," 
 replied Penselimer, " I never beheld any heavenly 
 orb which was fairer and brighter than the moon. 
 But she, since then, has been so diminished, that 
 I cannot distinguish her from the other stars.'* 
 " And what has become of the pitcher ?" said the 
 prince. " That is the subject of my constant in- 
 
PHANTASMION. 113 
 
 quir)%" replied Penselimer. " Albinian is not long 
 for this world : could I regain possession of the 
 charmed vessel, Antheramina might yet be mine." 
 While Penselimer spoke these words, an aged lady- 
 entered the apartment. " Laona," said the king, 
 " hast thou heard any tidings of the silver pit- 
 cher?" *' Not yet," replied the ancient dame in 
 a gentle tone ; " go now to repose, for Feydeleen 
 will never help us to find the pitcher while the 
 flowers are sleeping. To-morrow we will all renew 
 our search more diligently." 
 
 When Penselimer had quitted the apartment, 
 Laona looked earnestly in the face of Phantas- 
 mion, and said, " Art thou the son of Dorimant, 
 king of Palmland ?" " Even so," he answered. 
 '* Alas, then," rejoined the ancient lady, " why 
 comest thou to Penselimer, and the mother of 
 Anthemmina?" '* Because I love Anthemmina's 
 beautiful daughter," the ardent youth replied, 
 " and in all truth and honour I seek to lay my 
 crown at her feet. The Spirit of the Flowers 
 knows my love, and she has sent me hither." 
 " And hath she told thee where to find the 
 charmed vessel?" inquired the dame. "Feyde- 
 leen decreed that after Anthemmina's time the 
 fortunes of her child should depend upon it, as 
 hers did before ?" Phantasmion made no answer, 
 being lost in thought, and Laona added, " Doubt- 
 less it is now at the bottom of the sea, for my ill 
 starred child took it with her when she entered 
 
 I 
 
114 PHANTASMION. 
 
 that fatal bark which never came to land again. 
 Sweet larine knows nothing of this charm ; she 
 weeps when she looks on the wild waves of the 
 ocean, but those tears are for her mother alone." 
 Phantasmion felt certain that the pitcher, so ear- 
 nestly embraced by Karadan, must be this charmed 
 vessel, which rendered him the master of larine's 
 fate, so far as to prevent her union with any one 
 but himself. How he gained it, and how he might 
 be dispossessed of it, were anxious thoughts which 
 cast their shadow over the young prince's brow. 
 Laona perceived his distress : '' Come," she cried, 
 " rest thou this night under our roof, and to-mor- 
 row we will consider if it be possible to find the 
 pitcher. Since the Flower Spirit favours thy love, 
 she will not suffer thee to seek in vain." Having 
 spoken thus, she led her guest to a chamber of the 
 castle. 
 
 When Phantasmion obtained sight of Laona 
 the next morning, he inquired if she could direct 
 him to the Deserted Palace. *' Look out over the 
 country," she rephed ; *' below that hill which 
 bounds the horizon thou wilt find the ancient abode 
 of my husband ; there we dwelt, with Arzene and 
 Anthemmina, before Cleoras possessed the flowery 
 vale which thou hast lately visited." " What a 
 black cloud," exclaimed the youth, " is resting on 
 the summit of the boundary eminence !" " That 
 cloud," rejoined Laona, " overhangs the dwelling 
 pf the enchantress Melledine ; she it is who has 
 
PHANTASM ION. 115 
 
 blasted this region, while Feydeleen vainly en- 
 deavours to counterwork her spells. Alas ! that 
 outward blasting is but a type of the desolation 
 that she has brought on me and mine. Soon 
 after the Spirit of the Flowers had blest Anthem- 
 mina and Penselimer with the hope of their happy 
 union, my daughter met a woman whose face was 
 covered with a shining veil, as she wandered, late 
 in the evening, through an orchard that lies be- 
 tween the palace and the mountain. ' Come to 
 this clear stream,' said the witch, ' and thou shalt 
 see a strange sight.' Anthemmina looked into the 
 water, and fancied that she there beheld the face 
 of Dorimant her cousin Zalia's suitor, hard by the 
 image of her own. While she was gazing on the 
 shadow in the brook, that wicked enchantress 
 persuaded the maiden to drink out of a cup 
 which she presented to her. No sooner had she 
 tasted its contents than all her affections were 
 transfen-ed from Penselimer to him whose likeness 
 she seemed to behold. Alas ! no spell but that 
 which beaming eyes contain was needed to turn 
 Dorimant's jfickle heart from Zalia to Anthemmina, 
 and none but that of ambition caused him to 
 break his faith with my faithless child, and again 
 oifer his hand to the heiress of Gemmaura." 
 Phantasmion looked sorrowful and abashed, but 
 could not feel anger against Laona, for she spoke 
 as one in whom no affections remain, except such 
 as are fit to live for ever. " Dorimant is dead," 
 
^16 PHANTASMION. 
 
 she added, " and Zalia and Anthemmina are at 
 rest from their troubles. Penselimer yet lives 
 and— Hark! his lute is sounding from that gloomy 
 cell, in which it is his pleasure to immure himself 
 till the moon rises." Phantasmion listened and 
 heard Penselimer sing thus : — 
 
 The sun may speed or loiter on his way, 
 May veil his face in clouds or brightly glow ; 
 Too fast he moved to bring one fatal day, 
 I ask not now if he be swift or slow. 
 
 I have a region, bathed in joyous beams. 
 Where he hath never gilded fruit or flower. 
 Hath ne'er lit up the ^lad perennial streams. 
 Nor tinged the foliage of an Autumn bower. 
 
 Then hail the twilight cave, the silent dell. 
 That boast no beams, no music of their own ; 
 Bright pictures of the past around me dwell. 
 Where nothing whispers that the past is flown. 
 
 The eyes of Laona shone in tears for a moment, 
 but no strong emotion disturbed the serene sadness 
 of her brow. " Alas!" she said, *' his are but 
 mockeries of woe, that dwell in the wild brain and 
 never touch the heart. Yet hark again ! — " Pen- 
 selimer was singing, 
 
 • 
 Grief's heavy hand hath sway'd the lute ; 
 
 ^Tis henceforth mute : 
 Though pleasure woo, the strings no more respond 
 
 To touches light as fond, 
 Silenced as if by an enchanter's wand. 
 
 ! 
 
PHANTASMION. 117 
 
 Do thou brace up each slackened chord. 
 
 Love, gentle lord; 
 Then shall the lute pour grateful melodies 
 
 On every breeze, 
 Strains that celestial choristers may please. 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 PHANTASMION VISITS THE DESERTED PALACE. 
 
 HAVING received tlie blessing of Laona, 
 Phantasmion departed, and, just as thfe 
 castle towers were sinking out of sight, remem- 
 bered that he ought to have inquired for the abode 
 of Sanio. Eager, however, to explore Anthem- 
 mina's ancient dwelling-place, he hastened for- 
 ward, now running, now leaping, yet sometimes 
 forgetting even to move, in his deep thoughts con- 
 cerning past and future events. The sky was clear 
 in every part, except right before him on the hori- 
 zon ; there the dark mass hung so steadily, that 
 it looked more like a black sea than a cloud. At 
 last he reached a smiling peninsula in the sullen 
 ocean of the waste : '' Here at least," thought he, 
 *' Melledine has not turned the leaves yellow when 
 they ought to be green : here the Flower Spirit 
 hath her way." Phantasmion passed the mossy 
 stones which, of yore, had formed an outer wall, 
 and now inclosed a neighbourhood of snakes and 
 
118 PHANTASMION. 
 
 lizards, and proceeded to a wilderness where com- 
 monest M'eeds upreared their heads among rare 
 flowers, and towered, and swelled, and blossomed, 
 and seeded, casting out their branches on every 
 side in unassailed prosperity and tranquil pomp. 
 There the soft hyacinth and rich carnation were 
 overtopped by thistles, the full piony blushed 
 among- tall grass half hidden, and a solitary arch, 
 that had once been a gateway, was crested with 
 the prim larkspur and spruce jonquil. Over 
 against a green mound, from which the wild goats 
 bounded at his approach, Phantasmion discerned 
 an imperfect outline of two apartments : the first 
 was tapestried with jessamine, and tenanted by 
 owls, who stared with no hospitable looks upon the 
 stranger as he entered their abode; a shallow pool 
 floored the second, reflecting the ruined wall with 
 its arched windows and carved ornaments, over 
 which the eglantine waved its lithe branches, still 
 perhaps to wave them in the gale, when that 
 phantom edifice should have fallen under its breath. 
 Phantasmion paused not here, but went on to find 
 the brook spoken of by Laona, passing orchards 
 where the unpruned boughs were bending under 
 crgwded birds and fruit, till, through the close 
 undergrowth, in parts quite impervious, be per- 
 ceived a stream which flowed through a vaulted 
 opening at the base of a lofty rock, then wandered 
 away to the right hand. Above that rock was a 
 succession of crags, the highest veiled in dark-. 
 
PHANTASM I0:N. 119 
 
 ness ; and this was the cloud-capped height which 
 he had seen from the castle. Phantasmion ap- 
 proached the stream close to the archway, and, 
 looking on its waters, discerned his own colourless 
 shadow, and nothing more : but, on stooping to 
 bathe his temples in the brook, he perceived be- 
 yond the shadow, a picture of himself as vivid and 
 seemingly substantial as that which the finest 
 mirror might have presented. It was not looking 
 as his natural face would have done in a glass 
 at that moment, for his countenance was thought- 
 ful, and bore traces of tears ; but the countenance 
 of the picture appeared to be radiant with joy and 
 love. It did not gaze on him that gazed on it, 
 but on another object in the watery depth, the 
 graceful figure of a damsel, holding up a silver 
 pitcher so that it concealed her face, which was 
 bowed down upon her bosom. While the youth 
 still examined the picture, it gradually faded, and 
 he saw only the sparkling sands in the bed of the 
 river; but, ere he turned away his eyes, those 
 very sands had formed themselves into characters, 
 making the names of Dorimant and Anthemmina, 
 larine and Phantasmion. Again they were min- 
 gled together, and, while he sought to decypher 
 them as before, a tinkling melody rang out from 
 the rocks overhead. It seemed as if they were 
 musical stones touched by some invisible hand 
 with a silver hammer, and soon they seemed to 
 speak thus : ; 
 
120 PHANTASMION. 
 
 Life and light, Anthemna bright. 
 Ere thy knell these rocks shall ring, 
 Joy and power, a gladdening dower. 
 Thou shalt shower on Palmland's king. 
 Floor of coral, roof of beryl. 
 Thou shalt find afar from peril. 
 While thy lovely child is dwelling 
 Where the palm and vine are swelling. 
 Crystal streams around her welhng. 
 All the land her virtue telling. 
 Life and light, Anthemna bright, • 
 Thou to Palmlands king art bringing : 
 Richest dower, fairest flower 
 Is from thee for Pahnland springing. 
 
 "That king of Palmland is Phantasmion ! " 
 exclaimed the youth in ecstacy ; *' and the watery 
 picture is my likeness, only like Dorimant, as I 
 resemble my father. Anthemmina's fair child is 
 mine,— but how am I to gain the charmed ves- 
 sel ?" Full of joyous agitation he strayed along 
 the margin of the brook, and after a time stooped 
 down to drink ; but, ere he had fully slaked his 
 thirst a cry issued from the opposite bank, while 
 sudden brightness fell upon the water. Phantas- 
 mion at first imagined that he had heard the voice 
 and saw the shadow of a kingfisher, whose eme- 
 rald wings and breast of ardent gold were casting 
 that rainbow gleam on the smooth current ; but 
 looking up he espied the green mantle of Feyde- 
 leen, floating behind her in a transient breeze, as 
 she leaned from a grove of rushes over the stream, 
 to which her silken bodice, in hue like the honied 
 
PHANTASMION. 121 
 
 nectary of a blossom, was imparting- its yelloAv 
 tinge. No sooner had the fairy caught Phantas- 
 mion's eye than she pointed up the river to the 
 place where he had beheld the vision, and lo ! 
 there was Karadan with his face bent over the 
 waters while the silver pitcher stood on the ground 
 beside him. " Now will I wrestle with thee for 
 that pitcher !" Phantasmion would have cried, but 
 the words died on his lips : an irresistible drow- 
 siness came over him, and down he sank in 
 slumber beside a shady willow. Soon however 
 a gale of sharp fragrance awakened him, and he 
 raised his head ; the air had become thick and 
 misty ; and Karadan was lifting in both hands a 
 heavy stone, as if for the purpose of crushing the 
 pitcher to atoms. Phantasmion strove to speak, 
 but again sleep surprised him ; thought vanished 
 from his mind as the stream from his eye, and 
 with closed lids he fell back under the canopy of 
 the willow. When he next awoke, the clouds that 
 lately capped the mountain had descended to its 
 base, and all was darkness ; yet in this darkness 
 there were spasms and slower pulses of light, 
 which, here and there, unveiled the rocks and the 
 river ; and one of these discovered Karadan stand- 
 ing bewildered, his right hand raised before his 
 face, as if to repel the mist, and the pitcher hang- 
 ing from his left. Thereupon with a shout Phan- 
 tasmion rushed forward to attack his rival; but, 
 even as he advanced, the light was swallowed up. 
 
122 PHANTASMION, 
 
 and all the force and fury of his onset were be- 
 stowed on the stem of a birch tree, while Karadan's 
 misguided weapon was striking" a volley of sparks 
 out of the flinty rock, in a cleft of which the tree 
 grew. But soon Phantasmion started back, struck 
 by a plaintive scream close to his ear. Then came 
 the flickering light, and revealed the birch tree 
 which he had so fiercely assaulted, its long pen- 
 dent boughs laden with moisture, and blood-drops 
 trickling down its silver skin. And next eyes of 
 steady flame were glaring upon him from a hole 
 in the rock, and, while the darkness came on again, 
 he heard a rustle over head, then perceived wings 
 as of white fire sweeping onward. While these 
 sights were presenting themselves, the youth ima- 
 gined that he had wounded some living female 
 frame, and thereby exasperated a demon who kept 
 watch over the imprisoned object of his love ; but 
 a second cry from the goblin as he sailed away, 
 and the sense of a slight wound about the bosom, 
 soon made it clear that he had but startled an owl 
 from its hiding place, and stained a senseless 
 trunk with his own blood. After this interruption, 
 he raged about in search of Karadan, on whom at 
 last he fell with an impetuosity which made the 
 pitcher fly out of his hand, and flung the youth 
 himself with stunning force upon the ground, while 
 his own sword was shivered in the encounter. 
 He was bending forward, and groping for his 
 rival, when something plucked him back; at the 
 
PHANTASMION. 123 
 
 same time the cloud was rent, and admitted a 
 bright beam just over the spot where the pitcher 
 lay. Again he sprang' to seize the vessel, but it 
 was snatched away into the darkness. Doubly 
 baffled at having lost both the prize and his enemy, 
 Phantasmion stood motionless, till he perceived, 
 straight before him, a dim figure glimmering- gigan- 
 tically through a thinner part of the mist. Then, 
 as a great serpent gathers all his might to crush 
 a buffalo of unusual size and strength, letting fall 
 his bioken sword, and rushing onward, Phantas- 
 mion coiled himself with vast force around his 
 foe; but. a loud and bitter cry, followed by earnest 
 words of supplication, induced him to relax his 
 grasp, and, on the outskirts of the mist, he now 
 beheld a woman's form, writhing on the ground, 
 and twisting the ends of a silvery veil which covered 
 her face. On one side all was yet dark ; on the 
 other the archway was visible, and, beneath it, an 
 ivory boat, to which a team of swans was fastened. 
 The pitcher had rolled to the margin of the brook; 
 Phantasmion caught it up, dipped it in the stream, 
 and, urged by thirst, drank deeply. No sooner 
 had he done so, than sleep once more seized him, 
 occupying his senses as fast as vapours in a 
 storm envelope a mountain. He was about to 
 examine a scroll, which he had taken out of the 
 vessel ; it fell from his hand, while the pitcher 
 slipped from his bosom ; he sank down in deep 
 slumber, with his face toward the stream, and 
 
124 PHANTASMIOl"^^. 
 
 heard neither the voice of Karadan in the cloud, 
 nor the mournful dirge of the swans, which be- 
 wailed their lady's anguish with strains that might 
 have preluded their own death, and were given 
 back from under the archway with more and more 
 distant echoes. 
 
 On awaking, he saw that a grey-haired man 
 had hold of his arm. He started up : boat, swans, 
 and veiled lady were out of sight ; the scroll lay 
 upon the ground before him, but the pitcher was 
 gone. " Who has robbed me of the silver pit- 
 cher?" exclaimed Phantasmion, looking wildly 
 upon the old man. " One who seemed half in- 
 clined to take thy life also," he replied. "When I 
 came hither, he was standing over thee, dagger 
 in hand, yet appeared irresolute." " Which way 
 went he ?" cried the youth. '' Nay, it were 
 vain to follow him," the ancient man replied ; 
 *' he set out many an hour ago." " And took 
 the pitcher with him !" ejaculated the prince. 
 " On espying me," resumed the stranger, " he 
 thrust his dagger into his belt, caught up a silver 
 vessel, and went his way. Since that time I have 
 been vainly striving to awaken thee : I guess thou 
 hast been drinking these waters, which flow from 
 the enchanted domain of Melledine, and are well 
 known to produce unnatural sleep. Had I left 
 thee alone in this neighbourhood of spells and sor- 
 ceries, thou mightest have suffered worse than the 
 loss of a pitcher." " I owe thee many thanks," 
 
PHANTASMION. 125 
 
 replied Phantasmion. " Perchance thou canst 
 tell me where I may find Sanio, the king's minis- 
 ter." " Thou hast found Sanio already," rejoined 
 the grey -haired man ; " for I am he." 
 
 Phantasmion now observed that the air was 
 clear, the cloud confined to the mountain top, and 
 that all around looked as when he first came thi- 
 ther, save that the sun was in a different quarter 
 of the sky. Placing the scroll in his bosom, he 
 led the discourse to Penselimer. " Ay ! there 
 flows the stream," quoth Sanio, " which ruined 
 him and this poor kingdom. Yet it is my belief 
 that Anthemmina would never have seen Dori- 
 mant's face in the waters, had it not first been 
 pictured in her own fickle heart." " They say 
 that Ant?iemmina's child is fair and faithful too," 
 interposed Phantasmion. Sanio smiled; " You 
 that are young," he said, " search the past only 
 to illustrate the present ; while for us that are old 
 the present has little interest, except as it reflects 
 the past, — alas, how dully ! Yes ; Anthemmina 
 had a daughter by illbinian, whom she married, 
 after rendering Penselimer unfit to govern either 
 wife or kingdom." " He has no heir," said Phan- 
 tasmion; " will the son of Arzene succeed him in 
 his throne ?" "I would fain have it otherwise," 
 the old man replied. " I have loved Penselimer 
 from a boy, as I loved his father before him. It 
 is for this cause that I repair hither to call on 
 Melledine, and entreat herto bestow some charmed 
 
126 PHANTASMION. 
 
 cup or potent herb, that may restore him to his 
 senses." " Melledine !" exclaimed the prince 
 with emotion; *' can the hot blast of the desert 
 be persuaded to bear health upon its wing ? " 
 Sanio hung his head ; " Strong desire," he said, 
 " has deceived me also : lest I should be further 
 deceived, I will go hence." 
 
 Phantasmion accompanied the ancient noble 
 through the tangled grove, cutting a way for him 
 amid the bushes ; and, when those impediments 
 were past, he spoke of his mission, and of the 
 succours promised by Magnart. " Hope little 
 from him," Sanio made answer, " and trust him 
 with little. Such as he will smile and take in all, 
 and give out nothing but what is noxious, — glit- 
 tering bogs, the warmer the sun shines on- them, 
 the colder is the air which they exhale I" " This 
 lord of Polyanthida is the counterpart of his 
 ambitious brother then," Phantasmion observed. 
 " A true copy," replied the minister, *' in all but 
 his fine points, and shining qualities. Magnart's 
 train hath no eyes in it ; yet he loves to unfurl it 
 as widely as if it portrayed the starry heavens, 
 and rears his crest and sweeps the ground with 
 even more pride and consequence than his brother 
 peacock." "I have heard," said the prince, 
 "that Glandreth is plotting with Maudra to 
 ascend the throne of Albinian at his decease, and 
 moreover to unite Palmland with his dominions." 
 "And art thou ignorant," said the old man, 
 
PHANTASMION. 127 
 
 "that his ships are, even now, hovering about the 
 coasts of thy country ? We know it well, for 
 they carry off sheep and kine from the land of 
 Palms, and convey them to the plains of Tigridia, 
 which borders on this realm as well as on Rock- 
 land." " Then," cried the young monarch, " it 
 is the interest of Almaterra to unite with us against 
 our warlike neighbours ; for they will soon be in- 
 dependent of all that her luxuriant fields pro- 
 duce." " To second you," the old man replied, 
 " but not to begin the war. If I were as young 
 as Penselimer, and he as sane as I am, we might 
 move faster in this enterprise. Palmland has a 
 youthful monarch, let him lead the way." 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 PHANTASMION RETURNS TO PALMLAND. 
 
 SANIO guided his youthful companion to a 
 solitary mansion where he had left his at- 
 tendants, and the fellow wanderers rested there 
 that night ; but, before the aged man had left his 
 chamber, Phantasmion was far upon his road, 
 leaping from field to field, and only stopping to 
 inquire his way and procure food. He slept that 
 night in the shelter of an orange grove, having 
 
128 PHANTASMION. 
 
 left the desolate region far behind him ; and thus 
 he fared till the blooming" vale of Polyanthida 
 came in view. He did not take the road which 
 led to Magnart's mansion, but passed through a 
 valley betwixt the green hills on the further side 
 of the lake and those rugged mountains which 
 overbrowed them. Here he entered a cottage, 
 and exchanged a fine jewel for a bow and quiver, 
 on hearing the huntsman, to whom they belonged, 
 describe the sport which might be had, by an 
 expert climber, in shooting rock-goats on the 
 Black Mountains. Over those wild hills Phan- 
 tasmion resolved to take his homeward way : he 
 left Polyanthida, and leaped up the crags, passing 
 far above the valley of mines, and crossing the 
 whole of that mountain district, through which he 
 had already travelled, at a much quicker rate than 
 when he wound his way along the lower ridges 
 and stony dells with the fisherman. The contents 
 of a light case, which he had replenished in the 
 huntsman's cottage, satisfied his hunger, and, 
 when that failed, he had recourse to the conserve 
 inclosed in his serpent wand. As he vaulted from 
 rock to rock many an ibex gazed at him with ter- 
 rified eyes, and one, leaping dow^n a precipice to 
 get beyond his reach, was dashed to pieces. 
 
 At last he gained the lofty Mount of Eagles, 
 where larine had been imprisoned among the crags. 
 As he was climbing more than half way toward 
 the top, and had turned away from gazing on the 
 
PHANTASMION. 129 
 
 Black Lake in the vale below, he beheld a herd 
 of rock goats in a hollow just above him, and 
 soon, one of the number, quitting his companions, 
 placed himself at the edge of a jutting crag. 
 *' How like a child's toy that creature looks !" 
 thought the prince, " while he thus stands out 
 against the wide back ground of the sky !" A mo- 
 ment afterward his arrow whizzed through the air, 
 but the ibex had leaped from the crag, and there 
 stood in his place a man with a plumed crest, 
 who had been ascending from the vale of the 
 Black Lake and had hitherto been hidden from view 
 by projecting rocks. The shaft would have hit 
 his forehead as he climbed the crag, had the air 
 remained' as tranquil as before ; but a strong 
 gust arose and made it slant over the precipice, 
 whence the ibex had leaped. The plumed man 
 made no pause, but w^aved his hand aloft, as if 
 communing with some one in the air, and con- 
 tinued swiftly to ascend the hill. 
 
 Phantasmion hasting forward reached the top- 
 most peak of the mountain by the time that the 
 sun had descended, and, while he sought to obtain 
 a view of his own royal domain, beheld, on a peak 
 over against him, the man from whom his shaft 
 had glanced aside. He was of great size and 
 stature, and wore a plume of glossy white feathers 
 which fluttered in the gale, and now shone, noAV 
 glimmered, as the moon was visible by snatches 
 betwixt the hurrying clouds. Beside him stood 
 
 K 
 
130 PHANTA9MION. 
 
 a woman's fornt, with streaming dusky locks, 
 which the wind raised above her head, and she 
 was pointing to the sea, where it gleamed beyond 
 the dark inland waters like a cloudless part of the 
 sky, and to some vessels off the coast of Palm- 
 land. Suddenly she unfurled her wide transparent 
 wings, which had been lying motionless over her 
 shoulders, and floated away on the wind which 
 blew toward the Land of Rocks. "This is Glan- 
 dreth !" cried Phantasmion ; *' I know that plumed 
 crest; and he hath for his counsellor Oloola, the 
 Spirit of the Blast !" Gradually the wind died 
 away, the moon shone brightly, Phantasmion saw 
 the figure of Oloola, like a white-winged bird in 
 the distance, and Glandreth intently surveying that 
 fair country which he hoped to make his own. 
 The youth knelt down, he set his arrow in 
 the bow, and fixed his eye on Glandreth, who 
 stood quite motionless absorbed in contemplation. 
 *' Now," thought he, " at this moment could I 
 lay him level with the earth, and his schemes 
 should fall with him." Then he cried aloud, 
 '* Nay, nay ! hereafter will I meet him face to 
 face." He was about to rise, when a violent 
 blast tore the bow and arrow out of his hand, and, 
 eddying round and round, lifted him on high, then 
 suffered him to fall upon the stony soil as gently 
 as a nurse can lay her infant charge upon a car- 
 peted floor. Phantasmion looked up and beheld 
 a speck in the heavens right over his head. It 
 
PHANTASMION. 131 
 
 vanished at the moment when Glandreth disap- 
 peared descending the peak on the side toward 
 the vale of the Black Lake. 
 
 The prince went on to find a sheltered nook 
 which he had remembered seeing beside the 
 shadowy tarn. There he slept peaceably, for- 
 getting Glandreth and Oloola, and seeing only 
 the angelic face of larine, as it looked when she 
 beheld in his arms the lost infant. At dawn he 
 descended the hill toward the Land of Palms, and 
 saw the sun light up the white sails of those pirate 
 vessels of which Glandreth had communed with 
 Oloola. He entered a herdsman's hut below the 
 mountain, to obtain refreshment : here a damsel 
 was sitting in company with a youth from the 
 palace, and Phantasmion heard them talk about a 
 council which was to be holden that day concern- 
 ing the king's absence : so he induced this page, 
 who had never seen his face before, to lend him his 
 horsey and, travelling at full speed, he reached 
 the palace soon after the ancient men were as- 
 sembled. 
 
 Not tarrying to change his wayworn garments 
 he entered the hall of state in the midst of a vehe- 
 ment harangue ; on catching the tenor of which 
 he paused , and held up his hand to those who had 
 recognized him to forbid their announcing his 
 name- *' At this moment," said the speaker, 
 " Phantasmion is exploring the central regions, 
 or revelling in the sequestered caves of ocean, or 
 
132 PHANTASMION. 
 
 visiting the stars with some arch spirit ; and there, 
 no doubt, he takes sage counsel, and learns things 
 of deep concernment to his realm upon earth." 
 Scarce had these words fallen from his lips than 
 he perceived the young monarch looking at him 
 with a keen composed countenance, while the other 
 chiefs were full of perturbation, as he stood be- 
 twixt himself and the throne. Then all the 
 assembly rose, the brother of Cyradis exclaim- 
 ing, " Our king appears, and his gainsayers are 
 put to silence :" the presumptuous chief did homage 
 with the rest of the elders, and Phantasmion 
 ascended the vacant throne. Thence he addressed 
 the council, relating all he had learned during his 
 absence which concerned the welfare of his coun- 
 try, ^nd appearing no more like him who till then 
 had been called the sovereign of Palmland, than 
 a tree full robed in leaf and blossom resembles the 
 same tree ere a bud is unfolded ; for he was clothed 
 with majesty, and spoke like one who desired and 
 deserved to be a king. 
 
PHANTASMION. 
 PART II. 
 
PHANTASMION. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 PHANTASMION RESCUES THE INFANT BROTHER 
 OF lARINE. 
 
 ON the evening of the day on which Phantas- 
 mion returned to his palace, he conferred with 
 Potentilla beside the pomegranate tree, and, shew- 
 ing her the scroll that fell from the silver pitcher, 
 " What is this ?" he asked. The Fairy smiled 
 disdainfully as she read aloud, " A Record of the 
 agreement betwixt Seshelma and Karadan, the son 
 of Magnart." ** Seshelma !" exclaimed the youth ; 
 *' wherefore does she hate me and serve mine 
 enemies ?" " She hates thee," replied Potentilla, 
 " because an ancestor of thine poisoned the waters 
 of a certain spring, and for the same cause she 
 will hate thy remotest descendants." " But how 
 is she in league with Karadan?" inquired the 
 prince ; " is she not Maudra's servant ? " Poten- 
 tilla made answer: "Karadan may have offered 
 some higher bribe, or perhaps she only serves him 
 
136 
 
 PHANTASMION. 
 
 out of wayward malice. Be that as it may, Maudra 
 is but the press that toils to crush the fruit and 
 keeps the empty skins alone, while the juice flows 
 down below. ' I will bring" poisonous fish into the 
 lake,' Seshelma said to her ; ' let Tarine send them 
 to the house of Magnart in Anthemmina's pitcher, 
 which I brought thee from the ocean. So thine 
 enemies will perish, and the charmed vessel will 
 fall into the hand of the steward. But Glandreth 
 will scorn larine, believing' that she has poisoned 
 her own kindred for the sake of that low-born 
 favourite. ' This plot she framed in order that 
 Karadan might get possession of the charmed ves- 
 sel ; and how Maudra has been cheated concern- 
 ing the fish thou thyself well knowest." " They 
 caused sickness indeed," cried the prince, " but 
 not death. Then it was the water- witch," he con- 
 tinued, " who brought Anthemmina's pitcher from 
 the bottom of the sea ? " Potentilla made no reply 
 to this question, and when Phantasmion spoke of 
 Oloola she trembled and was silent. At length 
 however she said, " Be thou guided by me, and I 
 will serve thee against all thy foes without guerdon. 
 Dorimant scorned my words and I left him to his 
 fate." So saying the Fairy flew away in the form 
 of a chafer, and the prince fancied that he could dis- 
 tinguish her deep droning sounds when her form 
 was hidden among the foliage. It was now very 
 dark, and Phantasmion returned to the palace 
 through groves and alleys, where the stars, shining 
 
pha:htasmion. 137 
 
 athwart the leafy boughs, appeared like funeral 
 tapers. " How did my father perish ?" thought the 
 youth, musing on the last words of Potentilla; 
 " was it not surmised that he ate poisoned ho- 
 ney?" Phantasmion shuddered: ''Shall I seek 
 aid," he said, " from beings like these, freakish 
 and sudden as children, yet steadfast in revenge 
 as the sternest of mankind ?" 
 
 But when the young monarch arose with the sun, 
 other thoughts possessed his soul. He remem- 
 bered the pirate vessels which were plundering the 
 fair plains of Palmland ; he conceived a project 
 of driving them from the coast without delay, and, 
 seeking the pomegranate tree, exclaimed to Poten- 
 tilla, at the moment she made herself visible, " Once 
 more give me wings ! make me able to fly over the 
 sea and dive deep into its bosom ! " The Fairy 
 touched him wdth her wand and, in exchange for 
 his leaping powers, Phantasmion received those 
 of a water-beetle; his body was cased in black 
 mail, and he was furnished with ample means of 
 flight. No sooner was this work performed and 
 his head surmounted with the crest and fiery eyes 
 of a sea-dragon carved on a helmet than, having 
 expanded his hard black upper wings with sudden 
 snap, and unfurled the soft silveiy pinions that lay 
 beneath, till they stretched far beyond their dark 
 wing-cases, he flew off to the ocean, filling the air 
 with a loud humming and droning, which, when 
 it mingled with the dash of waves below, produced 
 
138 PHANTASMION. 
 
 a noise like that of a great water-wheel. But, 
 when the wind sank and the sea was at perfect rest 
 he descended and played upon its surface. As one 
 that slides on ice runs a few steps, and is then 
 borne along the crystal floor without exertion, so 
 did Phantasmion, in his new method of swimming 
 give a few strokes to the water, then dart on 
 smoothly over the waveless flood, while his jetty 
 corslet now twinkled in the sun like mother of pearl, 
 now blackened suddenly as if a shadow had fallen 
 upon it. Then down he dived and walked at the 
 bottom of the sea, as long as he could remain there 
 without taking breath. Having enjoyed enough of 
 this pastime he went in search of the ships that were 
 plundering his subjects' cattle. Espying one at a 
 little distance, he flew towards it, plunged under 
 water, and came up close beside the vessel, the 
 deck of which was crowded with sheep and goats. 
 Great was the perplexity of the crew as they 
 watched the winged swimmer emerge from the 
 deep : the dragon's head rose first, then came to 
 view the curly locks, white brow, and animated 
 eyes of a fair youth, then those vast insect pinions, 
 and that strange coat of mail. A large net was 
 straightway brought by one of the sailors, but 
 Phantasmion rushed up into the air amid the 
 roar of waters, uttering loud threats and denuncia- 
 tions. He hovered aloft, and made as if he would 
 enter the ship, but the crew, taking him for a 
 demon sent to carry some of them away into a 
 place of torment, with one accord set up a yell of 
 
PHANTASMION. 139 
 
 terror; the captain who had climbed the mast, 
 thence to survey the monster in the deep, bran- 
 dished his sword; the sheep and goats huddled 
 together, one over the back of the other, and all 
 the spears and pitchforks, which the men had used 
 in their marauding expeditions, were turned up- 
 ward, so that the deck bristled with iron points. 
 Phantasmion wheeled suddenly round and snatched 
 away the sword of the captain, who, endeavour- 
 ing to make a rapid retreat, tumbled into the sea. 
 The youth plunged after him, as an osprey plunges 
 after a fish, and would have landed him on the 
 deck of the vessel, but the sailors, stupified with 
 fright, remained in the same attitude as before, and 
 the serried spears were still held aloft to oppose 
 his entrance. Phantasmion, therefore, relaxed 
 his grasp, and let the captain fall back again into 
 the water, then violently shaking his wings, though 
 not a particle of moisture adhered to them, he 
 soared away, having first proclaimed aloud that 
 he should speedily return with his armed legions 
 to punish the plunderers. They did not await 
 the execution of the threat, but hastily the whole 
 pirate fleet cleared the coast of Palmland, and, 
 proceeding along that of the adjacent realm, con- 
 veyed their booty to the plains of Tigridia. 
 
 Meanwhile Phantasmion resolved to steer his 
 course towards the Black Lake, and to return 
 home over the Mount of Eagles. He held such a 
 lofty course that his form was not discernible from 
 below ; but, having reached the Rockland shore, 
 
140 PHANTASMION. 
 
 he desired to rest, and softly alighted not far from 
 the spot where he had first seen Seshelma, and 
 the consort of Albinian. A remembrance of that 
 strange incident prompted him to approach the low 
 projecting cliff, and, leaning against it, to look 
 down into the cave. Having done this he started, 
 for there, on the same rock which she had formerly 
 occupied, sate the queen, with an infant asleep 
 upon her lap. The tide had reached the train of 
 her long robe, and was dashing it to and fro, but 
 Maudra, heedless of her sumptuous garment, gazed 
 with looks of anguish on the little child, which 
 slumbered peacefully on her knee. The sea was 
 calm and glittered ; but, if a fish leaped up, or a 
 sea bird dipped into the water, a shuddering came 
 over her frame, and she looked upon the tranquil 
 ocean with a countenance of despair. A few tears 
 trickled from her eyes on the face of the infant, 
 which started, roused by their heat, then, breath- 
 ing a soft sigh, resigned itself again to sleep, while 
 the breeze just lifted up and down the delicate 
 rings of flaxen hair that lay in clusters on its 
 innocent head, and tinged with the faint pink of 
 May blossoms, the upturned cheek which, till then, 
 had been colourless, but round and lovely as a 
 gleaming pearl. Maudra took the diadem from 
 her burning brow, and would have dashed it against 
 the rock, but checked herself, through fear of awa- 
 kening the sleeper, and let it fall on the soft bed 
 of sand. Then in a low lulling tone she sang these 
 words : — 
 
PHANTASMION. 141 
 
 O sleep, my babe, hear not the rippling wave, 
 
 Nor feel the breeze that round thee lingering strays, 
 
 To drink thy balmy breath. 
 
 And sigh one long farewell. 
 
 Soon shall it mourn above thy wat'ry bed. 
 And whisper to me, on the wave-beat shore. 
 
 Deep murm'ring in reproach, 
 
 Thy sad untimely fate. 
 
 Ere those dear eyes had open'd on the light, 
 In vain to plead, thy coming life was sold, 
 
 O ! wakened but to sleep, 
 
 Whence it can wake no more ! 
 
 A thousand and a thousand silken leaves 
 The tufted beech unfolds in early spring, 
 
 All clad in tenderest green, 
 
 All of the self same shape : 
 
 A thousand infant faces, soft and sweet, 
 Eacb year sends forth, yet every mother views 
 
 Her last not least beloved 
 
 Like its dear self alone. 
 
 No musing mind hath ever yet foreshaped 
 The face to-morrow's sun shall first reveal, 
 
 No heart hath e'er conceived 
 
 What love that face will bring. 
 
 O sleep, my babe, nor heed how mourns the gale 
 To part with thy soft locks and fragrant breath, 
 
 As when it deeply sighs 
 
 O'er autumn's latest bloom. 
 
 But now ' Phantasmion's heart begins to swell, 
 and he feels impatient of his strange disguise, for 
 larine enters the recess and fondly bends over the 
 sleeping infant. No sooner had Maudra looked 
 
142 
 
 PHANTASMION. 
 
 upon that angel face, than her own assumed an 
 expression of malignity; all her worst passions 
 being roused by the soft splendour of the maiden's 
 beauty. She bade larine take the infant boy and 
 walk with him close to the water, that he might 
 be refreshed by the mild sea breezes. *' Soon I will 
 join thee," she said, " and Glandreth will come 
 to conduct us to the boat, and across the lake to 
 the castle." larine took the babe in her arms, but, 
 spite of all her care, he opened his blue eyes, and, 
 smiling on his mother, encircled her finger, which 
 she had holden up to enjoin silence, in playful 
 pertinacity with his fairy hand. larine unclasped- 
 it, and, casting a look of wonder on the agitated 
 countenance of the queen, she hastily withdrew. 
 Till the damsel and her charge were out of sight 
 Maudra stood fixed and rigid, leaning against a 
 rock : when they were no longer visible from the 
 cavern, her form collapsed, and she sank upon the 
 ground with closed eyes. 
 
 Phantasmion sprang into the air, and the sound 
 of his large pinions was like the whirring of an 
 albatross. He flew over the sea shore and hovered 
 above the spot where the damsel was pacing the 
 sands. larine took him for some large eagle, and 
 held the child aloft to shew him the great bird 
 which was wheeling about high over head. Then 
 with the rapidity of lightning he slanted downward, 
 and dived into the sea, his form being rendered in- 
 distinguisha;ble by the swiftness of his flight. la- 
 
PH ANT A SMION . 1 43 
 
 rine was astonished, and stood waiting to behold the 
 strange bird reappear, while the baby pointed to the 
 place where it had rushed into the sea, and lay back 
 in the arms of his fair nurse, laughing merrily, and 
 believing that what he saw was a game of hide and 
 seek, carried on for his amusement. But Phan- 
 tasmion has caught sight of Seshelma lurking in 
 the water, and now he sees her dart onward, now 
 emerge, and approach the maiden. At that mo- 
 ment he rose from the waves, and, before the ex- 
 tended arms of Seshelma had grasped their prey, 
 he had snatched it from the hands of larine, and, 
 violently spurning the face of the woman-fish with 
 his mail-clad foot, he soared aloft, and became as 
 a speck in the vault of heaven. 
 
 Before he winged his way homeward Phantas- 
 mion descended once more, to take a last look at the 
 distressed larine. Poised on his outspread tvings, 
 he beheld her with her heavenly face thrown up- 
 ward, and her white arms outstretched, as if she 
 had forgotten all fear and were imploring him that 
 had seized the infant to restore it. Some one ap- 
 proaches her on the sandy shore ; by his stately 
 port and plume of waving feathers, Phantasmion 
 knows him to be Glandreth. larine still gazes on 
 the sky, and points to the hovering youth. And 
 now he beholds Maudra rushing across the sands ; 
 she utters a loud shriek as she looks at the sky ; 
 she tears her hair and flings herself upon the 
 ground : then, arising, she hastens to the side of 
 
144 PHANTASMION. 
 
 Glandreth, points at larine, and seems to be ac- 
 cusing her to him. The innocent maiden clasps 
 her hands and still keeps her eye on the infant. 
 
 Phantasmion dared tarry no longer: he used 
 his wings vigorously, and scarcely paused till he 
 had arrived at the pomegranate tree, where he was 
 divested, by Potentilla, of his wings and other 
 strange accoutrements. He then carried the infant 
 to his nurse, Leeliba, and bade her bring him up 
 with as much secresy as possible. For the re- 
 mainder of that day the child drooped like a bird 
 newly placed in a cage, and looked strangely on 
 his nurse when he awoke the next morning ; but, 
 ere many hours were over, he was smiling in the 
 arms of the youth who had twice preserved him 
 from death, and seemed ready to spring away, and 
 catch the wild colt, which the attendants brought 
 to gambol for his amusement. 
 
 CHAPTER H. 
 
 PHANTASMION MEETS WITH lARINE AND ALBINET 
 ON THE BANKS OF THE BLACK LAKE. 
 
 PHANTASMION again sought an interview 
 with the Fairy, and told her that he desired 
 above all things to win the heart of larine, and to 
 confound his enemy Glandreth. Potentilla replied, 
 
PHANTASMION. 145 
 
 ** Go then to the Black Lake, offer thyself as cup- 
 bearer to Queen Maudra, and with my aid thou 
 shalt accomplish both these projects." Having 
 spoken thus she turned to the bough of a plane 
 tree, where a cicada was pertinaciously chirping, 
 as if it would bear a part in the discourse. She 
 touched the insect, and it gradually expanded to a 
 vast magnitude, while the sound of its drum grew 
 rapidly louder and louder, till at last it seemed 
 about to split, with its vibrations, the broad trunk 
 and stout arms of the tree on which it stood. 
 Phantasmion exclaimed, " With such an instru- 
 ment as this I might roam at night through the 
 forests and make the wild beasts fly on all sides." 
 " Ay," replied Potentilla, " and with an instrument 
 like this thou shalt terrify the soul of Glandreth ; 
 for I will whisper such a warning in his ear that 
 when he hears that sound, he shall believe his last 
 hour to be at hand." Phantasmion embraced the 
 fairy's scheme with ardour, feeling confident that he 
 should not fail in executing his part of it. Poten- 
 tilla placed the drum in the forepart of his body, 
 and showed him by what slight imperceptible mo- 
 tions he might draw forth the full powers of the 
 instrument ; then, removing her wand to his shoul- 
 ders, she endued them with wings that might be 
 closely folded down lengthwise, and concealed be- 
 neath his loose upper vest. 
 
 Having entrusted the affairs of his kingdom to 
 the brother of Cyradis, and the royal scion to that 
 
 L 
 
146 PHANTASMION. 
 
 of his ancient nurse, he attired himself in garments 
 denoting" the office he meant to assume ; they were 
 embroidered at the edge with green vine leaves and 
 clusters of purple grapes. Thus equipped he set 
 forth, flying many a league till he reached the val- 
 ley of the Black Lake, and stayed to rest on a large 
 tree where he was hidden by the abundant foliage. 
 When he arrived at this station, the King's Island, 
 and the whole sheet of water in which it stood, was 
 wrapped in a thick fog, only the edge of the lake 
 being visible beyond the vapoury curtain like a rim 
 of lurid steel. Phantasmion looked out from amid 
 the boughs, and, after a time, began to perceive a 
 small ghostlike vessel advancing through the mist. 
 It contained two figures, faint and shadowy, a 
 young boy moving the oars, and, standing beside 
 him, a damsel clad in white robes, and wearing a 
 crown of star-shaped azure lilies, which gleamed 
 within the misty veil. Slowly the boat made way, 
 gradually the figures grew in distinctness, and, 
 as the lake looked clearer, and the radiant face of 
 larine came closer, it seemed to the prince that 
 she, and not the dull red orb on high, was pouring 
 brightness through the sullen mist. Young Albinet, 
 now weary of his task, resigned the oars : skilfully 
 the maiden drew the boat to land, then leaping on 
 the shore she held up both her arms of gleaming 
 whiteness and lifted the lame child out of the boat. 
 " Sister," said the boy, " thou wast kind to come 
 with me when nobody else would venture out. The 
 
PHANTASM ION. 147 
 
 finest summer days often begin thus. Let us sit 
 down here and see the white curtain draw up from 
 the lake." larine seated herself beside young 
 Albinet on a bank below the tree where Phantas- 
 mion was concealed, and soon the child began to 
 amuse himself with plucking purple flags, and 
 sticking the blossoms all about her dress, and here 
 and there amid the labyrinth of her locks. Now 
 he would lift up those tresses, and spread them 
 abroad in the faint sunshine, till they glittered like 
 a tissue of golden threads, now heap them together 
 in full masses, which looked as deep and mellow as 
 rich wine in the cask. " Sister," said the child, 
 " w^hy wilt thou always wear those cold blue water 
 lilies ? Red and yellow flowers are livelier than 
 blue ones." *' I love them because my mother 
 loved them," said larine. " Dost thou think she 
 wears such a crown as this now ?" said Albinet 
 softly, looking up at the sky. " The flowers she 
 wears," replied the maiden, " are such as will 
 never fade." " Heaven must be very full of flow- 
 ers," cried he, " if new ones come and yet the old 
 ones never go away. I hope it is not like that pic- 
 ture of a sunny garden which never changes ; I 
 hope there are half opened buds in heaven, larine, 
 and merry milk-white lambs." " Heaven is hap- 
 piness," the maid replied ; *' all that can make us 
 happy we shall meet with there." " I wish," said 
 Albinet with a sigh, " that we could get thither 
 without going down into the dark grave. Is there 
 
148 
 
 PIIANTASMION. 
 
 no lightsome road to heaven, up in the open air ?" 
 " My mother never wentinto the grave;" said larine, 
 " she was buried in the waves of the sea." " O 
 from the sea," said Albinet, " it must be easy 
 enough to climb up into the sky, for I myself have 
 marked the very place where it meets the water. 
 When this fog clears away, if I could get to the top 
 of that tree, and look intently, perchance I might 
 descry some very minute trace of the beginning of 
 heaven. Dear larine, these are no heavenly flow- 
 ers, for they are drooping already : I will throw 
 them into the lake to send away the fog." So say- 
 ing, he pulled the chaplet from his sister's brow, 
 and flung it into the water, when a large dark bird 
 suddenly rose from one of the craggy islets, and 
 rushed onward, appearing vast and indistinct as it 
 loomed through the mist. Albinet shrieked aloud, 
 and fell upon the ground wiithing ; larine hung 
 over him tenderly, and, when he recovered, she 
 pointed to the dark bird, which now stood on the 
 shore in full view. " There is the goblin," she 
 said ; ''no goblins but such as that will ever come 
 near thee and me." The pale boy smiled, and, 
 hiding his face in his sister's lap, intreated her to 
 soothe him for a while with one of her soft melo- 
 dies, and, while the fog was rapidly dispersing, she 
 sans: words like these : — 
 
 o 
 
 How gladsome is a child, and how perfect is his mirth. 
 How brilliant to his eye are the daylight shews of earth ! 
 
PHANTASM ION. 149 
 
 But Oh ! how black and strange are the shadows in his sight, 
 What phantoms hover round him in the darkness of the night ! 
 
 Away, ye gloomy visions, I charge ye hence away, 
 Nor scare the simple heart that without ye were so gay •, 
 Alas ! when you are gone with all your ghastly crew, 
 What sights of glowing splendour will fade away with you ! 
 
 He'll see the gloomy sky, and know 'tis here decreed. 
 That sunshine follow every storm, and light to shade succeed. 
 No more he'll dread the tempest, nor tremble in the dark. 
 Nor soar on wings of fancy far beyond the soaring lark. 
 
 I love thee, little brother, when smiles are on thy face, 
 I love thy eager merriment, thy never failing grace : 
 But when the shadow darkens thee and chills thy timid breast, 
 I'd watch from eve till daybreak that thou might'st be at rest. 
 
 " I dreamt thatwe were in the grave," said Albinet, 
 roused by his sister from sobbing- sleep ; " and I 
 began to cry : but, behold, it was only a passage, 
 and there was light at the other end." " What 
 have we to do with the grave ?" said larine in a 
 sprightly tone : "we can never be laid under 
 ground, only our worn garments. The earth is 
 nature's wardrobe ; for out of it every living thing 
 and every tree and plant receive apparel. Ere we 
 go hence we must replace our garments in the great 
 receptacle, that the old materials may serve to make 
 new clothes for other creatures." Albinet looked 
 at his pining limb : " I will have finer clothes than 
 these in heaven," he said, " and such as fit me bet- 
 ter." " Think of our garden favourite," said the 
 maid again; " when the streaked petals and shining 
 
150 PHANTASMION. 
 
 leaves and upright stem all disappeared, was the 
 dear lily dead ? * No, no !' she might have cried 
 from under ground, ' though all you ever saw of me 
 is gone to dust, yet 1 am still alive, and soon shall 
 have fresh raiment fit to appear in ; unless the 
 spring proves faithless.' " Albinet clasped his sis- 
 ter's hand joyfully ; "We too shall be fresh clothed," 
 he cried, " and better clothed, because our spring 
 will be in a far finer soil and climate. Ha, ha ! 
 who knows but these bodies of ours may be the bulbs 
 out of which our heavenly bodies are to spring, as 
 that caterpillar is the bulb of a butterfly, and the poor 
 dry acorn of a branching oak ?" 
 
 Then full of smiles he ran aw^ay to gather blos- 
 soms that grew in the lake, the vapours having all 
 cleared off ; but soon returning, " Sister," he cried, 
 " I cannot reach the queen of the whole company; 
 pray come and lend a hand." larine had begun to 
 read a letter with deep attention, yet now she rose, 
 and placing stones in the water, erected a little 
 bridge to the floating colony of flowers. But just as 
 she was about to gather one Albinet screamed aloud; 
 for he had heard the sound of the magical drum, 
 which the prince struck against the branch of a tree 
 in bending forward to look at larine. The maid 
 was startled, her foot slipped from the stone, and, 
 looking up, she beheld Phantasmion, with light 
 wings unfurled, gazing at her from the middle of a 
 broad leafy bough. She knew his face, and remem- 
 bering how strangely it had appeared to her twice 
 
PIIANTASMION. 151 
 
 before, she believed the youth was some wizard 
 or guileful spirit, and springing- to the bank and 
 catching hold of her little brother, she hastened 
 away as fast as his feeble limbs would allow him to 
 keep pace with her. Phantasmion lightly fluttered 
 down from the tree, and, fanning the air with his 
 delicate pinions, quickly overtook larine and the 
 terrified child. At that instant he lowered his wings, 
 folding them down over his shoulder, and, kneeling 
 before the princess, held out a cup to shew what 
 office he sought, and intreated her to favour his suit 
 with the queen. Albinet clasped his sister round 
 the waist, and hid his face, that he might not see 
 the object which excited his terror ; but the fears 
 of larine almost melted away while Phantasmion 
 spoke, and looking at his noble countenance she 
 could not but yield to the faith which it inspired. 
 " I cannot speak for Queen Maudra," she replied, 
 " but thou shalt be conducted to her presence and 
 mayst have an answer from herself." She then 
 returned with young Albinet to the boat, which she 
 had over-passed in her sudden alarai, and was soon 
 on her way to the Island. Phantasmion went to 
 gather up the flower which had fallen from her 
 hand into the lake, and, at the same time, espied 
 the letter floating by its side. The name of Semiro 
 and that of Karadan caught his eye as it lay open 
 before him, and guessing that it came from Zel- 
 neth, he read what follows while he waited for the 
 boat from the Island : — " Beware of him, dearest 
 
152 PHANTASMION. 
 
 larine, for it is reported that he deals in magic ; 
 yes, powerful magic ; and I believe the charge. 
 Our house has never seemed like itself since he 
 entered it ; Karadan is more despairing than ever, 
 and Leucoia grieves twice as much for her lost love 
 as she did before the enchanter came among us. 
 She seems to have sat too long in the sun ; her 
 cheeks are like a bleached primrose born near 
 midsummer. And Oh ! what a sun-bright visage 
 beamed on us lately ! 
 
 " My cousin, beware of him, if he comes into thy 
 presence ; be not deceived by his heavenly brow, 
 nor ,his noble countenance, nor his deep sweet 
 voice, nor his gallant bearing : above all, be not 
 deluded by his smile : that smile I know to be his 
 most pernicious spell. It banishes all natural smiles 
 from the place where it has once appeared ; it is 
 a light that puts out other lights, and, vanishing, 
 leaves darkness behind it. 
 
 " Our father avers that Semiro was no envoy from 
 Palmland, but a spy sent by Glandreth. Oh folly ! 
 Semiro never came from any dominions but his own, 
 whether they be of earth or of some other sphere. 
 Arzene is wroth with him, for the sake of her dear 
 son : that he sought Karadan's blood, I believe not; 
 but if he seeks to rob him of that which he values 
 more, thy love, he does far worse. I beseech thee 
 let him not succeed in this, larine ; let him not, 
 work spells on thee, as thou valuest thy good name. 
 I grieve that any suspicion should rest on that; 
 
PHANTASMION. 153 
 
 but Strange rumours will fly abroad unless thou 
 hearkenest to the suit of Karadan. Pity indeed 
 should incline thee to this ; better have nipped his 
 passion in the bud, than suffer the flower to blow 
 in vain, wasting the precious juices of the tree. I 
 could not act thus cruelly, even toward a wicked 
 sorcerer, if I were loved by him as thou art by 
 Karadan. Alas ! no one, whose love I care for, 
 will ever love me thus ; yet, loved or unloved, I 
 remain thy loving cousin, Zelneth." 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 PHANTASMION MAKES USE OF HIS MAGICAL DRUM. 
 
 PHANTASM ION thanked Zelneth in his heart 
 for that warning letter, which seemed so well 
 fitted to defeat its own purpose, and by the time that 
 a boat had arrived to transport him whither his 
 heart was bound, he had concealed his wings under 
 a cloak, and every aspiring thought under a coun- 
 tenance of humility and reserve. The queen, when 
 she beheld him, was pleased with the opportunity 
 of engaging so handsome a cup-bearer, and, being 
 engrossed with the image of Glandreth, observed 
 no beauty in him which might not belong to men 
 of lowly station. "He looks sedate yet quick," 
 thought she; " I may find him the more useful; 
 
154 PHANTASMION. 
 
 at all events he will be a goodly piece of furni- 
 ture, becoming a palace." 
 
 That day a high feast was holden at the castle, and 
 Phantasmion attended in his place amid the crowd 
 of domestic servants. He placed himself right 
 opposite to Glandreth, and read his face more 
 keenly than any one at the board. He saw the 
 courtier bend forward to address the queen with 
 soft volubility, prolonged smile, and gently sus- 
 pended eyelid, then, absolving himself from the 
 mimic task, on a sudden resume his lofty port 
 and natural countenance, every smile gone, every 
 muscle braced up, and none but stern thoughts 
 legible on his brow. At one end of the table sate 
 poor Albinian, the mock effigy of a king, his white 
 locks incessantly shaken by the palsied motions of 
 his head. Now and then he muttered a few words 
 which no one tried to understand but larine : she, 
 brightest and loveliest, sate beside him, devoting all 
 her looks and words to the afflicted man ; but from 
 her heavenly face he turned away, by a miserable 
 fascination, to watch his gaudy queen and the proud 
 injurious noble. Phantasmion could see his eye 
 flash and his teeth chatter with impotent rage, 
 when others perceived none but the twitchings of 
 disease in that distorted face. And now Glandreth 
 has fixed his ardent eye upon the beautiful princess ; 
 but silent reproaches, deeper than any but an 
 angel face could have expressed, were all her answer, 
 and looking back to Maudra he spied suspicion on 
 
PHANTASM ION. 155 
 
 her lowering brow. He refrained from casting- 
 another glance upon larine, and renewed his dis- 
 course to the queen, leaning forward and address- 
 ing herw'ith all the tender confidence of a favourite ; 
 " Last night I had the strangest dream ;" said be, 
 ** 'tis well 1 have few fears ;" then dropping his 
 voice, and looking expressively at Maudra, he 
 added, " there is but one being on earth who holds 
 me in awe," — " Tell me thy dream," answered 
 the queen, with a smile : "I did not think thou 
 hadst been a dreamer ; but the dreams of some are 
 worth more than the waking thoughts of others. " 
 " I dreamed," said he, " that I heard a thunder^- 
 ing sound, which gradually grew louder and louder, 
 till I thought it would shatter myself and all 
 around me with its violence. I started from my 
 couch, expecting, forsooth, to be swallowed up by 
 an earthquake ; but all was still and silent : I lay 
 down to sleep, and had no sooner pressed the pillow 
 than these words were breathed into my ear; 
 'Gland re th, when thou hearest that sound again, 
 prepare to die.' " Maudra listened to this story 
 with a face full of smiles, believing that it was 
 a feigned tale, intended to elicit from her some 
 mark of favour. She poured out a cup of spark- 
 ling wine, and bade Phantasmion present it to 
 Glandreth : " Long mayst thou live," she cried, 
 " and never cease to prosper till dreams like these 
 become true prophecies !" When that service was 
 performed, the graceful cupbearer took his station 
 
156 PHANTASMION. 
 
 behind the noble guest, and, just as he was raising 
 the wine-cup to his lips, having answered the 
 queen's pledge, Phantasmion produced a long, 
 loud, swelling peal from his gong, which vibrated 
 across the back of Glandreth's stately chair through 
 every fibre of his frame, and caused him to spill 
 the contents of the goblet into his bosom. The 
 queen started from her seat with clasped hands, 
 and the whole company were full of amazement. 
 Is that an idiot smile which distends Albinian's 
 face, while he stares upon Glandreth ? — to Phan- 
 tasmion it seemed the expression of gratified hatred. 
 Meantime, the proud chief sate trembling, and 
 vainly strove to recover the careless air with which 
 he had related his dream. But Phantasmion per- 
 ceived that the soft eyes of larine were bent on 
 him with a regretful look, that seemed to say, 
 " Zelneth speaks truly : that beaming face and 
 princely aspect are the disguise of a sorcerer." 
 No one else appeared to guess whence the sounds 
 had proceeded ; most of the company had listened 
 to the story of the dream; they cast unpiteous 
 glances on the haughty warrior, and all agreed 
 with one consent that the noise they heard could 
 never have been produced by any instrument which 
 the hand of man had fashioned. Glandreth frowned, 
 and it seemed doubtful whether alarm or anger 
 spoke loudest in his heart. 
 
 Phantasmion retired among the domestics, and, 
 wandering, while day declined, through the woods 
 
PHANTASMION. 157 
 
 on the island, he espied, between the foliage, a 
 twinkling light upon the lake. He uncovered his 
 wings, flew up to a tree, and, looking down upon 
 the gleaming pebbles of the shore in the clear 
 moonlight, espied the dark face of Karadan, who, 
 at that moment, was leaning on a pole, in the act 
 of bringing his boat to land. In a few moments 
 he took up the silver pitcher, leaped upon the 
 shore, and looked and listened, as if expecting 
 some one from the castle ; then he seated himself 
 on a turfy bank, just below the prince, and while 
 he embraced the charmed vessel, softly murmured 
 these words : — 
 
 I tremble when with look benign 
 Thou tak'st my ofFer'd hand in thine. 
 Lest passion-breathing words of mine 
 
 The charm should break : 
 And friendly smiles be forced to fly. 
 Like soft reflections of the sky. 
 Which, when rude gales are sweeping by, 
 
 Desert the lake. 
 
 Of late I saw thee in a dream. 
 
 The day-star pour'd his hottest beam, 
 
 And thou, a cool refreshing stream. 
 
 Didst brightly run : 
 The trees where thou wert pleased to flow, 
 Swell'd out their flowers, a glorious show. 
 While I, too distant doom'd to grow. 
 
 Pined in the sun. 
 
 By no life-giving moisture fed, 
 A wasted tree, I bow'd my head. 
 
1^8 PHANTASMION. 
 
 My sallow leaves and blossoms shed 
 
 On earth's green breast : 
 And silent pray'd the slumbering wind, 
 The lake, thy tarrying place, might find. 
 And waft my leaves, with breathings kind, 
 
 There, there, to rest. 
 
 Phantasmion had now taken his resolution : he 
 was about to spring from his place of concealment, 
 and contend with Karadan for the pitcher, but his 
 motions were suddenly arrested, when he beheld 
 larine, clad in flowing garments as she sate at the 
 feast, advance through the trees to meet the son of 
 Magnart ; and he then became all eagerness to hear 
 what discourse would follow between them. His 
 heart began to sink, and he felt more alarmed for 
 the success of his hopes than he had ever done 
 since he first beheld larine. 
 
 The dark youth threw himself on his knees before 
 the princess, and laid hold of her robe, as if to se- 
 cure her stay till he had gained courage to speak. 
 *' Karadan," said the maiden, " I received thy 
 message ; say quickly what thou hast to tell me, 
 for I have little time to tarry here." *' larine," 
 said the youth, *' I have a relic in my possession, 
 which once belonged to thy mother." •' Dear 
 cousin," replied she, " hast thou come thus far 
 to gratify that fond wish of my heart ? Give me 
 the relic, and I will bless thee for ever." " Thou 
 canst indeed bless me for ever," exclaimed the 
 youth fervently, '* but not with words alone, dear 
 as thy words have ever been to me. O let deeds 
 
PHANTASM ION. 159 
 
 follow, or thy gentlest words will come in vain, as 
 the dew falls on plants that waste inwardly, having" 
 a worm at the core." " Nay, Karadan, speak 
 not thus;" answered the maiden, " thou hast no 
 worm at the core, but a sound heart, a gallant heart, 
 which will carry thee through a thousand noble 
 enterprises." " O lady, sweet cousin," cried the 
 youth, " my grief is a jest to thee. If thou couldst 
 understand but half the intensity of my anguish, 
 I know that, out of tenderness and compassion, 
 thou wouldst learn to love me." " Not as thou 
 desirest, Karadan :" replied the maid ; " why, 
 wouldst thou force me to promise what I never 
 can perform ?" " If thou hadst promised to love 
 me," answered Karadan eagerly, " even that thou 
 couldst perform. Virtue and kindliness are thy 
 very being, thy every thought and feeling is in- 
 formed by them. Promise that thou wilt try 
 to love me, and I will go hence the happiest 
 man that ever loved and hoped. That sky, 
 which lately looked so bare and void, now shines 
 with multitudes of stars ; and barren plains, which 
 seem to have no germs of life within them, how 
 soon are they covered with flourishing herbs and 
 groves where the birds nestle ! Only try to love 
 me, and thy heart, sweet lady, will prove as great 
 a change as this." " Dear cousin," answered 
 the maid, " we have duties enough which nature 
 imposes ; for a heart like mine I am sure they are 
 sufficient; never let us make a duty of love." A 
 
160 PHANTASMIOK. 
 
 change came over Karadan's face, and his eye 
 shot fire, as he exclaimed, " Thou art more than 
 usually resolute ! perchance thou hast seen a 
 youth from Palmland." larine was silent. " Yes, 
 yes !" pursued Karadan with vehemence, " a youth 
 like the sun, as my sister blazons him ; to thee, 
 no doubt, he seems not less radiant. 0, he is the 
 rising* sun, and I the gloomy night that must retire 
 when he approaches !" " Give me the relic, good 
 cousin," replied the maid, " and I will show favour 
 to no youth from Palmland." Karadan seized the 
 pitcher, and holding it up, he exclaimed, " Tell 
 him that I have the charmed vessel on which thy 
 fate depends. Tell him that thou thyself hast 
 made it mine : tell him that I will hide it where it 
 shall never more be found, and then let him fight 
 with me till one or both of us perish!" Karadan 
 pressed the pitcher close to his bosom, while his 
 countenance this moment seemed glowing with 
 passion, the next, darkening in despair. Phan- 
 tasmion again prepared to spring forwai'd, and 
 challenge him for the pitcher, but restrained 
 himself once more when he beheld Glandreth 
 emerge from the shady wood, into the clear 
 moonlight which gleamed upon the lake and 
 pebbly shore. On espying the youth and the 
 maid he suddenly stopped, holding up his liand, 
 as if in astonishment. " larine !" exclaimed he, 
 '* the princess larine ! Fair lady, let me lead 
 thee to the castle ; thou art looked for by the 
 
PHANTASMION. 161* 
 
 queen : she would wonder indeed to see thee in 
 such company at such an hour." At these words, 
 Karadan, whose face Glandreth had not yet seen, 
 rushed forward. " Proud man!" he cried, " my 
 kinswoman owes thee no explanation : my 
 father is her natural guardian, and not thou." 
 " What, Karadan 1" exclaimed Glandreth, " Hast 
 thou ventured hither ? Hence , and bear my defiance 
 to Magnart." " I will bear no message from 
 thee," replied the youth : "I have a sword here, 
 and can stand in my father's place." " Hast 
 thou a life to spare, mad youth ?" replied Glan- 
 dreth contemptuously. " Away ! when I am in 
 second childhood I will fight with thee !" " I 
 have a life to spare !" vociferated Karadan: '* Do 
 I not know thy wickedness against the mother of 
 lairine ? Art thou not in my power ?" Glandreth 
 approached Karadan, who was trembling with 
 passion, and bending down his hand, which held 
 the sword, with a mighty grasp, he pointed to the 
 sky, while, in deep low tones, he murmured, 
 " Rash Karadan, look yonder ! Hast thou forgotten 
 that form ?" Phantasmion and the son of Mag- 
 nart both raised their eyes to the sky, and beheld 
 the dim outline of a winged figure, with the hand 
 outstretched, and pointing to Karadan, while from 
 that outstretched hand lightnings appeared to ra- 
 diate in quivering lines along the starry vault : at 
 the same time a shuddering passed across the lake, 
 and over all the woods in which it was embosomed. 
 
162 PHANTASMION, 
 
 Like a stranded vessel, that, after tossing in vio- 
 lent agitation, runs aground upon rocks, Karadan 
 sank silently to the earth; larine covered her 
 face with her hands ; and even Phantasmion's 
 heart was chilled with fear. He still gazed up- 
 ward, and observed the form grow fainter and 
 fainter, till it finally vanished : Karadan too, raised 
 his drooping head, and saw Glandreth seize both 
 hands of the fair princess, and smile triumphantly 
 in her face. Then, forgetting everything but ven- 
 geance, he sprang to his feet, and dashed the 
 silver pitcher against the forehead of the insulting 
 chieftain : at that same moment, the Isle resound- 
 ed, and all the distant hills reechoed the tremendous 
 roar of the magical drum, during the reverberations 
 of which, Phantasmion leaped forward, full of life, 
 hope, and energy, feeling ready to encounter a 
 world in arms. 
 
 Glandreth, stunned by the blow, but far more 
 overpowered by the terrific sounds which he believed 
 to be the heralds of his death, lay motionless on the 
 shore, his face streaming with blood. The dark 
 youth gazed in perturbation upon the young king of 
 Palmland. " Sorcerer !" at length he exclaimed, 
 *' wilt thou come betwixt me and my foe with spells 
 and witcheries V " I am no sorcerer !" cried Phan- 
 tasmion, glowing with indignation ; " but it is the 
 most fiendish of all that practise sorcery in whom 
 thou puttest thy trust? How speaks ' the Record be- 
 twixt Seshelma and Karadan, son of Magnart V " 
 
PHANTASMION. 163 
 
 " How came that Record into thy hands, thou rob- 
 ber ?" Karadan retorted — " Didst thou not attempt 
 to steal this vessel which I purchased wdth my own 
 gold ?" — " Thou shalt purchase it with steel as well 
 as with gold," cried Phantasmion, drawing his 
 sword: " come on, there is light enough here to 
 fight by." Karadan flung the pitcher into the boat, 
 and beckoned his antagonist to a firm space of 
 smooth turf, clear from trees ; there they fought in 
 the moonlight, guiding their weapons with deadly 
 resolution, — Phantasmion inspired by hope as well 
 as love and courage, Karadan with no ally to second 
 those feelings but despair. The calm lake reflected 
 their bright blades, hard by the image of the waning 
 moon, which lay motionless on its bosom. larine 
 fled to the castle, and soon the combatants heard 
 earnest voices, and hurrying footsteps of persons 
 who came to separate them. Both paused at once : 
 " Let us meet again !" cried Phantasmion; " here 
 is my pledge !" and throwing his mantle, which lay 
 upon the ground, on the arm of Karadan, he plunged 
 into the depths of the wood, while his adversary 
 leaped into the boat, made it skim round the Island, 
 and was out of sight from that part of the shore 
 when the armed men reached it. The soldiers 
 sought about ; and found no one but Glandreth, 
 who was just roused from his swoon, and sate up- 
 right, gazing around him with blood-stained face 
 and looks of bewildered fury , 
 
164 PHANTASMIOK. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 GLANDRETH IS MORE THAN EVER AMAZED AND DIS- 
 COMFITED BY THE NOISE OF THE MAGIC DRUM. 
 
 PH ANTASMION stole away through the woods 
 till he came right into the midst of a jovial com- 
 pany, who were carousing in the open air. These 
 were the pages and other servants of the royal 
 household : they had heard the awful noise of the 
 gong, and were making haste to drown their fears 
 in wine. " The mighty general," they cried, '* who 
 dreams only of war and conquest, how sober he looked 
 at that spirit-quelling sound !" *' Did ye mark," 
 said one, " how Queen Maudra started from her 
 chair ; there was little sobriety in her demeanour, I 
 trow." " Now I warrant," cried a saucy page, after 
 having renewed his courage with a deep draught, 
 *' while she is planting arbours, entwined with pas- 
 sion flowers and jessamine, wherein to enjoy the 
 converse of Glandreth, when Albinian lies low, he 
 has been looking out for a stronghold on the fron- 
 tiers, where he may keep her under garrison as far 
 fi"om Tiis palace of pleasure as possible." " One 
 good thing will come to pass in those days," cried 
 .?inother 5 " larine willbe queeninstead of Maudra." 
 
P H ANTASM ION . 165 
 
 " Hurra ! hurra !" shouted the revellers : *' The 
 moon shall be queen in heaven, and bright larine 
 upon earth." " Hush, hush !" ejaculated an old 
 wine bibber, who was lying under the rose bushes, 
 " let the moon hear nothing about it yet, nor Mau- 
 dra either, but mark my words" — Here a burst of 
 merriment drowned his sage discourse, but, when 
 the uproar had subsided, he raised his flushed face 
 among the pure cool roses, and stammered out; 
 '* Depend on it that young larine would rather 
 drink the waters of the sea, than marry that wicked 
 miner and underminer, who caused Anthemmina 
 to drink them." " When Albinian dies," cried a 
 sprightly page, " the heads of the land shall all be 
 young and handsome. None but a fit spouse for 
 larine shall be our king." The revellers cast 
 their eyes on Phantasmion ; " Come," said one, 
 " take this fine fellow, pour some royal blood into 
 his veins, and he shall be the man." Thereupon 
 they crowded round the prince, placed a chaplet on 
 his brow, and made him drink out of many a spark- 
 ling bowl, till he caught their spirit, and joined them 
 in a blithe chorus after this sort : — 
 
 Ne'er ask where knaves are mining. 
 While the nectar plants are twining : 
 
 To pull up the vine 
 
 They never incline, 
 With all their deep designing. 
 
 O ne'er for the dead sit weeping, 
 Their graves the dews are steeping : 
 
166 PHANTASMION. 
 
 And founts of mirth 
 Spring up from the earth. 
 Where they are at peace and sleeping. 
 
 Away with studious learning, 
 
 When heaven's bright lamps are burning : 
 
 In the glorious art 
 
 That gladdens the heart, 
 We cannot be more discerning. 
 
 Forget the blood that gushes 
 Where the fiery war-horse rushes : 
 
 The blood that glows, 
 
 As it brightly flows. 
 Is making us chant like thrushes. 
 
 When burden'd troops, advancing, 
 In cumbrous mail are glancing. 
 
 With garlands crown 'd 
 
 We reel around. 
 While the earth and sky are dancing. 
 
 Phantasmion escaped from this boon company, 
 and, having entered the castle, espied Glandreth 
 and the queen communing together in a vaulted 
 passage. The chieftain bent his head, and slowly 
 retired to his chamber ; but Maudra beckoned to 
 Phantasmion, and bade him keep vi^atch in the 
 balcony adjoining Glandreth's apartment, that he 
 might render assistance to the wounded warrior in 
 the night if it were needed. The prince obeyed 
 this order with alacrity ; he crept to the appointed 
 station, displaced a party of bats, and looked down 
 on his late comrades, most of whom had now fallen 
 asleep among their cups. Glandreth was neither 
 
PHANTASMION. 167 
 
 drinking nor sleeping-, but drawing a chart of 
 Palmland : with his face bent over the table, he 
 had lifted up his pen to mark the very spot where 
 his invading- host was to enter the country, at 
 that same point of time when the young monarch, 
 pressing his drum close to the wall, produced an 
 indescribable and intolerable din, which not only 
 made the apartment of Glandreth rock and resound 
 like a belfry, but circulated around the castle, till 
 every dome, and tower, and vault, rang again, and 
 the whole edifice appeared to be a sounding cymbal 
 in the hand of some mighty musician. Phan- 
 tasmion crouched down, and, peeping through the 
 rails of the balcony, was amused to see that the 
 whole party of sleepers, lately scattered up and 
 down among the bushes, had started to their feet, 
 and were all standing in one attitude, every head 
 thrown back, every right arm upraised, while 
 rooks, bats, owls, and swallows, day birds and 
 night birds, were flying about in confusion, and 
 the howling of dogs, from various quarters of the 
 island, sounded as if an enemy had entered the 
 precincts. 
 
 After having observed the effects produced with- 
 out the castle for a little time, the prince resolved 
 to enter Glandreth's chamber, under pretence of 
 obeying Maudra's command. Accordingly, stealing 
 in from the balcony, he found all as still as death. 
 He advanced farther into the apartment, and beheld 
 the strong man lying upon the floor, his eyes fixed, 
 
168 PHANTASMION. 
 
 his cheeks livid, and the wound upon his forehead 
 sending forth a fresh stream of blood. Maudra 
 knelt beside him, with a pale, horror-stricken face : 
 a lamp, which had fallen from her hand, lay 
 burning" on the floor, and cast a lurid gleam on the 
 blotted map just beside it, and on those two ghastly 
 visages, while the moon's milder light, admitted 
 through the window, illumined the rose-crowned 
 head of the royal youth, and his light half- raised 
 wings, from which his upper vest had slipped 
 aside. 
 
 Maudra was too much absorbed to observe Phan- 
 tasmion ; he glided away, and, passing into another 
 pRrt of the castle, where a lamp shone from the 
 roof, he beheld Albinian standing outside his 
 chamber-door, with a wild exultation in his blear 
 eyes. On seeing Phantasmion, he began eagerly 
 to mutter and gesticulate, pointing along the 
 passage, as if to inquire what had become of Mau- 
 dra. The youth was too wary to throw light upon 
 this subject, but, making alow obeisance, hastened 
 on, and entered a gloomy passage, into which a 
 feeble light was shining from a window at one 
 end : and now he heard soft irregular steps ap- 
 proaching; some one, little and light, ran against 
 him : by an involuntary motion he erected his 
 gauzy wings, which caught the faint rays from the 
 high window, while the rest of his figure was 
 shadowy and obscure. A shrill scream pierced 
 those darksome recesses, then a door opened at a 
 
.PHAJITASMION. 169 
 
 little distance, and, swift as a coney hies to his 
 hole in the rock, young Albinet, with his bare feet 
 and loose vest, hurried into larine's unlighted 
 chamber. Phantasmion stood at the door, and 
 between the pauses of the boy's eager stoiy , uttered 
 amidst loud sobs, he heard her soothing tones 
 and mild remonstrances. " Let me stay here," 
 said the child at length, "I am happy even in 
 the dark when close to thee. But O, sister, 
 would that we lived where there is no night for 
 almost half the year ! In those lands when the sun 
 does set, a throng of purple meteors play his part 
 in the sky. The very ground too is luminous, 
 and reflects the moonbeams from its snowy sur- 
 face." " Those lands have more light than 
 heat;" said larine, " thou dost not love the 
 cold." " In heaven there will be neither cold 
 nor darkness," he answered after a pause ; " but, 
 alas ! now I think on it, up in the sky we shall 
 be close to the dreadful thunder, and there it 
 will sound as loud as that horrible din which 
 is bellowing in my ears even yet." " Thun- 
 der comes from the clouds ;" the maid replied, 
 " our dwelling will be far beyond the clouds that 
 frown upon this earth. There will be no vexing 
 noises, no dull silence, no shade but the shadows 
 of bright-blossomed trees with sunshine all round 
 about them. But sleep now. — " " O, sleep is 
 scared away for ever," sighed Albinet ; *' never, 
 never to come nigh these walls again !" A few 
 
170 PHANTASMION. 
 
 moments afterwards Phantasmion heard the soft 
 regular breathing which told that his fearful spirit 
 had ceased to strive with itself; then, having laid 
 himself down beside that chamber-door, he too fell 
 asleep, and dreamed right pleasantly. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 GLANDRETH QUITS THE ISLAND, AND PHANTASMION 
 OBTAINS AN INTERVIEW WITH lAUINE. 
 
 WHEN Phantasmion awoke in the dim pas^ 
 sage, he heard the inmates of the chamber 
 greeting the dawn with this song : 
 
 How high yon lark is heavenward borne I 
 Yet, ere again she hails the mom, 
 . Beyond where birds can wing their way 
 Our souls may soar to endless day, 
 May hear the heavenly quires rejoice, 
 While earth still echoes to her voice. 
 
 ' A waveless flood, supremely bright, 
 Has drown'd the myriad isles of light ; 
 But ere, that ocean ebb'd away, 
 The shadowy gulf their forms betray, 
 Above the stars our course may run, 
 'Mid beams unborrow'd from the sun. 
 
 In this day's light what flowers will bloom. 
 What insects quit the self-made womb ! 
 But ere the bud its leaves unfold. 
 The gorgeous fly his plumes of gold. 
 
 1 
 
PHANTASMION. 
 
 171 
 
 On fairer wings we too may glide. 
 Where youth and joy no ills betide. 
 
 Then come, while yet we linger here. 
 Fit thoughts for that celestial sphere, 
 A heart which, under keenest light, 
 May bear the gaze of spirits bright. 
 Who all things know, and nought endure 
 That is not holy, just, and pure. 
 
 " Now for fresh thoughts and fresh deeds !" 
 cried the youth, starting up, when the strain ceased, 
 and doffing his withered chaplet ; but, ere these 
 glowing resolves had taken any fixed shape, forth 
 came laiine, hand in hand with Albinet, throwing 
 light from the chamber full on his face : then 
 starting at the sight of him, she hurried away, and 
 soon had entered Maudra's apartment. Phantas- 
 mion stood in a recess, and in a little time, the 
 young boy, going out on some errand, left the 
 door ajar, so that he now beheld the interior of 
 the apartment, where larine was dressing the 
 queen's hair, and beheld her lovely form as she bent 
 over the task, and her face reflected in the mirror 
 above that of Maudra. The step-dame surveyed 
 her own too faithful portrait, and the more she 
 gazed, the more she was dissatisfied with those 
 bleak remains of pristine splendour. A deeper 
 shade seemed to fall over her sunken eyes, and 
 the hollows that lay beneath them, so that the 
 reflection, and that which was reflected, mutually 
 increased each other's gloom ; while the soft image 
 
172 PHANTASMION. 
 
 of larine's unconscious face beamed on in pensive 
 beauty. Maudra pulled away her dishevelled 
 locks from the lily hand that held them, and, 
 scowling upon the maiden, said, " Thy tresses 
 are too thick, larine : no wonder my work stands 
 still, when thou hast such a multitude of gadding 
 tendrils to cultivate : if thou wert a child of mine 
 I should have them pruned much closer." The 
 damsel understood this hint, and, while her tears 
 fell fast, cut one after another of her sunny 
 ringlets, and let them fall upon the ground, while 
 Maudra looked sternly on, and never seemed to 
 think that she had done enough. Phantasmion*s 
 blood was rising ; Albinet, at this moment, ran 
 back into his mother's room, and, seeing what 
 larine was about, stopped short in his career. 
 Then, looking greatly astonished, he held her 
 hand, and plaintively inquired, " What! art 
 thou shearing away all thy locks which our poor 
 father loves to play with ?" larine whispered, 
 '^ Hush ! it is by the queen's command." Upon 
 which, Albinet looked full in Maudra's face, and 
 exclaimed, " O, mother ! what harm can larine's 
 ringlets do to thee ?" The haughty woman turned 
 away from her child's inquiring gaze, and muttered 
 in a low tone to the damsel, ^' Have a care that 
 no one else plays with them, no one but thy doting 
 father, or this poor fool." Albinet began to gather 
 tjp the scattered tresses, while larine hastened to 
 
PHANTASMION. 173 
 
 close the door, having caught a glimpse of Phan- 
 tasmion's eager face in the mirror. 
 
 Afterwards the prince went forth, and saw Glan- 
 dreth at a little distance, hurrying to the lake, with 
 pale disordered looks, and still the chart of the realm 
 he meant to conquer, w^as in his hand. "Terrified 
 yet unsubdued !" exclaimed the youth ; and when, 
 his enemy's boat was midway between the island 
 and the opposite bank, he knelt upon the ground, 
 and drew forth from his body a hollow noise, which 
 was conveyed over the water with great force, to 
 the chieftain's ear ; then he saw Glandreth drop 
 the oar, and let the vessel drift at random. 
 
 But Phantasmion arose. " I will not break the 
 calm of this sunshiny hour," he cried, " with more 
 loud peals. O that these gently- trilling birds, and 
 that soft breeze, could plead for me with my coy 
 mistress !" Possessed by such thoughts, he wan- 
 dered about the flower-beds, and through many a 
 pleasant copse, in hopes that he might find her, 
 but still disappointed, he sadly cried, " 0, harsh 
 step-dame, to keep larine out of the sunshine on 
 such a day as this !" At length he approached 
 that ancient tower, detached from the main building, 
 whither he had seen the maiden ascend the night 
 she caught the poisonous fish. Now it cast a black 
 shadow in the midst of the sunny garden : a 
 thousand bees were busy there, but not one mur- 
 mured over the flow^ers which lay in that shade; 
 
174 PHANTASMIO?^. 
 
 no buttei-fly flitted across to reach the golden 
 blossoms that basked in the warm rays beyond. 
 The entrance to the tower was open; he went in, 
 and, going up the dark winding stairs, he heard 
 the voice of Albirtet: ^' I dare not play in the 
 garden,'^ the boy was saying, " for fear of the 
 stranger youth." A soft reply which followed was 
 not audible, and Phantasmion mounted a little 
 higher. " Indeed now, sister, I did see his wings," 
 rejoined Albinet ; *^ he hides them by day under 
 his cloak. O, sister, sister, perhaps it was he 
 that flew away with our baby brother." " Dear 
 child, I cannot let thee in," replied the soft voice 
 of larine ; " the door is locked, and thy mother 
 has the key." "Alas! alas!" cried the child; 
 *' it is so dark here ! — if I had wings I would fly 
 in at the window which opens upon the lawn." 
 Phantasmion descended the stairs, and soon dis- 
 covered the window spoken of by Albinet, then, 
 loosing his wings, he flew up to it, and, looking 
 into the apartment, beheld the maiden at work on 
 a superb vest, which lay floating in ample folds 
 over her lap, while Albinet was crying from with- 
 out, " Sing, sing, larine ; keep singing, that jL 
 may hear thy voice." As soon as the damsel 
 espied Phantasmion entering at the window, she 
 turned her face to the door, bent over her task 
 with renewed assiduity, and began singing aloud. 
 The prince attempted to describe the ardour of 
 his passion, to explain his conduct, and entreat 
 
PHANTASMION. 175 
 
 the beautiful princess to exchange that g-loomy 
 tower for the throne of Palmland : but he wasted 
 his eloquence on deaf ears ; larine kept singing-, 
 over and over again, in concert with Albinet, a 
 few verses which her mother had taught her, and 
 nothing would she reply but this : — 
 
 Newts and blindworms do no wrong-, 
 Spotted snakes from guilt are clear ; 
 Smiles and sighs, a dang'rous throng. 
 Gentle spirit, these I fear ; 
 Guard me from those looks of light. 
 Which only shine to blast the sight. 
 
 " Do. I blast thy sight, cruel larine ?" exclaimed 
 the youth ; and renewed his passionate prayers, 
 which were interrupted with words like these : 
 
 Serpents' tongues have ne'er been known 
 Simple maid from peace to sever, 
 Eut the voice whose thrilling tone 
 Tells of love that lasts for ever, 
 Gentle spirit 
 
 " O, gentle spirit, plead my cause !" exclaimed 
 the youth, '* and dissipate this strange illusion. 
 Look up, fairest larine ; I only borrowed wings 
 that I might fly to thee, but take this sword, and 
 cut them in pieces if thou wilt." The maid still 
 kept her eyes on a wreath of corn poppies which 
 she was embroidering, nor stole one look at the 
 kingly brow, with its black arches, that inclined 
 towards her in persuasive humility, nor at the 
 
176 PHANTASMION. 
 
 radiant eyes of the enamoured youth, cast down 
 beseechingly under their full lids and shadowy 
 eyelashes : but still she sang on, with Albinet : — 
 
 Beetles black will never charm me, 
 Spiders weave no snares for me. 
 Thorny hedge-hogs cannot harm me, 
 But the brow where heaven I see. 
 Catching beams from sunny eyes, — 
 Guard me from that bright disguise ! 
 
 As the prince drew nearer to the damsel, she 
 pressed closer to the door, trembling all over, and 
 singing more and more earnestly, and at last she 
 knelt down, wrapping the silken garment round 
 her head and face and her whole figure, till she 
 was completely enveloped. Thus baffled and utterly 
 disappointed, Phantasmion stood still, and clasping 
 his hands, exclaimed, " fatal disguise ! O fatal 
 magic arts that have undone me !" Thrown off 
 her guard by the earnest tone in which this was 
 uttered, larine let the robe fall from her head, and 
 looked up, somewhat fearfully, in the face of the 
 youth who stood at a little distance. His eyes 
 met hers, he uttered not a word, but again the 
 maid felt irresistibly persuaded that truth as well 
 as beauty beamed from his countenance. A spell 
 seemed to hold them both silent and motionless, 
 but the spell is broken, for a feeble knocking is 
 heard at the partition wall, and larine starts up to 
 obey that summons, letting Maudra's unfinished 
 robe fall upon the ground. She opened a door. 
 
PHANTASMION. 177 
 
 and discovered Albinian with his head resting on 
 a harp, of which some strings were broken. larine 
 braced them up, and the grey-haired man began 
 feebly to move the chords, murmuring an old 
 melody, the burden of which was scarce intelligible 
 to the prince ; but when the damsel joined in the 
 strain, he distinguished words like these : 
 
 The winds were whispering, the waters glistering, 
 A bay-tree shaded a sun-lit stream ; 
 Blasts came blighting, the bay-tree smiting, 
 W hen leaf and flower, like a morning dream. 
 Vanished full suddenly. 
 
 The winds yet whisper, the waters glister, 
 And softly below the bay-tree glide j 
 Vain is their cherishing, for, slowly perishing, 
 It doth but cumber the river side. 
 Leafless in summer-time, 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 PHANTASMION JOINS lARIlSTE ON THE LAKE. 
 
 PHANTASMION continued to gaze on larine, 
 unperceived by her father, whose face was 
 turned in an opposite direction, till he heard a 
 key turn in the lock, and the voice of Maudra 
 speaking to Albinet. Then he quitted the tower as 
 he had entered it, and roamed about the island, 
 
 N 
 
178 PHANTASMIOlir. 
 
 pondering how he might obtain another interview 
 with the princess. That day he poured out wine 
 for a noble company, but Glandreth was absent, 
 and Maudra's glances fell upon his empty chair, 
 while larine seemed afraid to raise her downcast 
 eyes, lest they should meet those of a present 
 over. The banquet being ended, Phantasmion 
 repaired to the lake side, and, looking out for 
 Glandreth or Karadan, beheld only the light skiffs 
 of the castle guests lying at anchor in the bay, 
 their gay streamers rustling in a gentle breeze. 
 Albinet sate and looked at them with tearful eyes ; 
 it seemed as if he loved to hear the varied into- 
 nations of his childish grief, so long drawn out was 
 his sobbing and sighing. " I wish that breeze 
 would rise to a tempest ere to-morrow's dawn," 
 he murmured ; " my sister is to be upon the lake 
 when the sun rises ; and woe's me ! I am not to 
 'be with her." 
 
 Phantasmion's heart beat high with the thought 
 of a scheme which these words suggested ; he 
 dreamed of it, sleeping and waking through the 
 night, and by day-break the next morning he was 
 hovering over the lake. There all was solitary 
 and silent, larine was not come ; he flew back 
 again to listen at her chamber window, and at 
 last was so far carried away that he softly entered, 
 and hung over her, like a guardian spirit, while 
 she yet slept. Then he tasked himself to examine 
 the separate charms which made up that sum of 
 
PIIANTASMION. 179 
 
 beauty, the graceful flowing line in which the 
 whole was contained, the full eye, gently slanting 
 at the outer side like a dove's, the soft gradation 
 of colour, from locks of golden brown to the dark 
 thread-like eyebrow and still blacker lashes, which, 
 parting from fair white lids, appeared like fohage 
 of a yew-branch laden with a pile of snow. It 
 seemed as if the hand that streaks the tulip and 
 the iris, and traces jetty lines down many a milk- 
 white petal, had just finished painting that ex- 
 quisite picture, and left it with every tint bright 
 and fresh as new blown flowers. But hush ! 
 those eyes will quickly open, and the prince dares 
 not w^ait to see them unclosed ! He repassed the 
 window, and, soaring upward, went and placed 
 himself beside the pinnacles of the castle. 
 
 From the top of the highest tower he watched 
 larine as she went leisurely across the lawn, till 
 she disappeared in a grove between the castle and 
 the lake ; and, full of impatience he still waited, 
 with out-spread wings, till the prow of her light 
 shallop darted forth from the dark green alders 
 that clustered on the shore ; then, plying his ready 
 sails, he launched into the air, swept over the lawn 
 and grove, and, wheeling round the boat, alighted 
 just in front of the beautiful damsel, who dropped 
 the oars and sate motionless when she saw him 
 arriving. " Ah, leave me !" she cried, " I must 
 needs be alone ; the queen bade me go unaccom- 
 panied to meet a messenger, and receive some 
 
380 PHANTASMION. 
 
 token or message for her." " And wilt thon be 
 the blind servant of her wicked will, rather than 
 reign in my fair land ?" replied Phantasmion ; 
 *' nay, sweet princess, thou shalt go with me, and 
 never return to give an account of thy embassy." 
 Then he seized the oars, and, turning the boat, 
 made it fly over the waters like a swallow traversing 
 the sky ; larine sought in vain to arrest his move- 
 ments ; gaily the youth smiled, when her hand 
 was laid on his strong arm, as if the snow should 
 seek to impede the course of the torrent on which 
 it falls. " My father!" she cried, " alas! my 
 father ! Thou hast taken his infant child, and 
 wilt thou rob him of me also ?" ''I took that 
 child to place him in safety," answered the young 
 monarch ; " and I will place thee in more than 
 safety : thou shalt be a queen, and reign over all 
 my subjects, as now thou dost over my heart." 
 ** Karadan has promised to aid my father against 
 Glandreth;" said larine. " What is his aid com- 
 pared to mine ?" exclaimed the youth ; *' and what 
 his love compared to that I bear thee ?" '' He 
 is my mother's kinsman," replied the maid ; " my 
 father loves him as he never will love thee ; and 
 for his sake I must shun thee, and seek to love 
 him." '' Would it be less difl&cult to love me 
 than him?" cried the prince, " must thou shun 
 me ere thou canst love him ? if this be true, a 
 thousand enemies and rivals shall never prevail 
 againstme !" Abandoning the oar he seized larine 's 
 
PHANTASMION. 181 
 
 hand, but with the one still left at liberty she 
 pointed to the sky : *' See what clouds," she said, 
 *' have gathered on the mountain-top ! how threat- 
 ening they are ! how rapidly they are overspreading 
 the heavens !" She had scarce finished speaking, 
 when the hills, the shores, and the island were 
 shrouded in vapour, while the lurid waters glim- 
 mered in a flickering twilight. Lightning rent 
 the clouds on the mountain head, and disclosed the 
 black rocks beneath them ; instantly they closed 
 again, but, at that signal flash, thunder and a 
 boisterous wind raised their loud voices together, 
 one like sullen threats rising louder and louder 
 into fury, the other like the prolonged scream of 
 maniac rage. A skiff which tossed at a dis- 
 tance, its white sails fluttering as the wings of 
 a tempest-beaten dove, was the last object visible 
 on the dusky horizon. Phantasmion surveyed the 
 sky, in the centre of which he seemed to discern 
 one cloud blacker than all the rest, and round it 
 a faint edge of lighter hue ; on that dark mass 
 the youth could not help gazing, it seemed so like 
 the shroud of a winged form ; here and here might 
 be the outstretched pinions, and, above these, the 
 head and floating hair. While his face was up- 
 turned, a sheet of lightning overspread the cope 
 of heaven : dizzy and half blinded he cast down 
 his eyes upon the lake, and there beheld the glis- 
 tering face of Seshelma, upraised by the side of 
 the boat, while her hands were extended to catch 
 
182 . PHANTASMION. 
 
 larine. Phantasmion seized the oar, and driving 
 it betwixt the water- witch and the vessel, he thrust 
 her away, then uplifted it again to strike her 
 with all his force ; but, like an otter, she darted 
 under the waves, and soon her bubbling- laugh was 
 heard at a little distance, amid the voices of the 
 storm. Still the boat goes onward, riding up and 
 down the waves, at each descent seeming about to 
 enter the deep, yet again mounting to the summit 
 of the billow. It drives toward the foot of the 
 lake, and soon approaches the skiff which has been 
 seen on the horizon. Karadan is standing at the 
 prow ! vainly does he stretch out his arms and 
 call upon Seshelma ; she cannot bring about that 
 meeting which her arts contrived, for a mightier 
 power than hers presides over the storm. The 
 dark youth beholds larine and Phantasmion 
 together ; he may not look upon them long ; the 
 skiff is going down! it sinks! " O save him!" 
 exclaims the maid ; and Phantasmion leaps into 
 the tumbling element. It is a desperate enterprise ; 
 those wings, not made for the waier, now only 
 encumber him, and Karadan clings round his body 
 with the clasp of a drowning man. Long did he 
 struggle, but in vain : he and his rival were nigh 
 sinking tog-ether, when a vessel, conducted by the 
 old fisherman from the lower end of the lake, 
 arrived in time to save them from death. In a 
 little while they were rescued from the waves, and 
 laid at the bottom of the wide bark, where the 
 
PHANTASMION. 183 
 
 crew surrounded them, intent on their restoration, 
 and none, save the aged husband of Telza, bestowed 
 a thought on the damsel in the narrow boat. 
 
 But the storm now abated, and larine, waving 
 her hand to the fisherman, in token that she needed 
 no help, slowly pursued her way homewards. On 
 the horizon of the plain, beyond the foot of the 
 lake, a border of pale brightness was visible; it 
 seemed to shew that there was a silver firmament 
 behind those tumultuous volumes of cloud which 
 had remained unmoved throughout the chaos of the 
 storm. The maid was alone, but for herself she 
 felt no fear ; she thought not of Karadan or of 
 Glandreth, of the water witch or of an angry step- 
 dame ; she was thinking only of Phantasmion. Her 
 love had hitherto been as a distant strain of music, 
 scarce noted by one that is busily occupied ; but 
 now the harmony sounds fuller and more distinct; 
 it will be heard, and the hum of many voices falls 
 into an undersong. With reluctance she recedes 
 from the vessel where she lately saw him taken in 
 dripping and senseless. That bark was filled with 
 servants of Magnart, who had been dispatched 
 from Polyanthida in search of their master's son. 
 Learning from the old fisherman that he had gone 
 upon the lake, they ventured through the storm, 
 guided by the old man, in the direction of the is- 
 land, whither they supposed he might have taken 
 his course. Phantasmion recovered wholly while 
 Karadan was but just beginning to revive, and, 
 
184 PHANTASMIOIir. 
 
 while the men in the boat were still bending around 
 the dark youth, he took flight from the stern, and 
 hastened to rejoin larine. 
 
 Black clouds were yet rolled around the body of 
 the hills, while the head of the lake and one side of 
 the Island were still thickly veiled with mist : but 
 the sun began to gild the peaks of the mountains, 
 and a vivid rainbow spanned the waters, which now 
 lay motionless and inky black, as if a trance had 
 succeeded to violent agitation. Again Phantas- 
 mion stood by the side of larine : with moist wings 
 he hovered over the boat, when the maid looked up 
 and continued to ply the oars without speaking : 
 but there was a smile on her face, and the youth 
 entered the narrow vessel. Ere that splendid phan- 
 tom which bent around them had faded away, larine 
 and Phantasmion were bound to each other by the 
 strongest ties which words can form ; clouds or 
 sunshine might reign without, but their faith was 
 to remain like the dial, which stands fixed and 
 changeless, while day and night roll on, and can 
 but brighten or darken its face as they are passing 
 over it. Now the youth feels that perfect satisfac- 
 tion in the present hour which lulls in its tranquil 
 ecstacy, all hope, all effort, all reflection, all fore- 
 cast ; even the certain knowledge that the dream 
 must dissolve cannot lessen its charm, that joy ful- 
 ness of feeling which thought has no power to 
 shake. He took from beneath his girdle the chap- 
 let which had been worn by Zalia, and on which 
 
PHANTASM ION. 183 
 
 was inscribed, " The Queen of Palmland." He 
 shewed her the ruby flowers with their leaves of 
 emerald, and the lady smiled, but turned away and 
 again pointed to the heavens. " How strange it 
 is," she said, " that those wreaths of vapour are 
 yet lying" on the lake, when every cloud has left 
 the mountain, and almost all have melted from 
 the sky !" Phantasmion cast his eyes around and 
 saw that the welkin was clear, except above the 
 vapoury mass to which larine pointed ; there he 
 descried the same noticeable cloud which he had 
 gazed upon in the beginning of the tempest : it 
 was in the form of a cross, and the shape was 
 more conspicuous now that it was alone in the 
 sky. " Let us fear nothing," cried the youth ; 
 '' these clouds too will disperse like the rest, and 
 we shall have perfect sunshine." Scarce had he 
 spoken thus, and placed the chaplet on larine *s 
 brow, when a boat shot forth from the dark mist. 
 Glandreth was standing at the prow, and that 
 vessel was followed by a train of others, which, 
 at his command, surrounded Phantasmion and 
 larine. 
 
 In a few moments the youth was bound with 
 cords which fastened his arms and delicate pinions 
 to his body, and, while Glandreth's armed men 
 where dragging him away to the Castle, he beheld 
 the chieftain conducting larine to the shore, then 
 Maudra hidden among the trees jealously watching 
 his actions, then the drooping Albinian with his 
 
186 PHANTASMION. 
 
 lame child on their way to the lake side. Albinet 
 pulled his father's arm as Phantasmion passed him. 
 " Look at his shoulders," he said; "now see his 
 wings by daylight !" The cross-formed cloud had 
 disappeared, and the sky seemed an endless depth 
 of sunny blue when Phantasmion was hidden from 
 daylig-ht in a subterranean vault of the Castle. 
 
 CHAPTER VIT. 
 
 PHANTASMION ESCAPES FROM PRISON, AND PRE- 
 SENTS HIMSELF TO lARINE IN DISGUISE. 
 
 DARK and cold was the place in which Phan- 
 tasmion was confined, and such as might 
 have chilled a less ardent temper than his ; but he 
 paced the stone floor, like a leopard in a cage, 
 devising plans of escape, and nursing hopes of 
 vengeance. He had now leisure to review the 
 events of the morning, and now he surmised that 
 Maudra had sent larine to meet Karadan at the 
 suggestion of her wily counsellor, because she 
 desired, at any cost, to remove her from the eyes 
 of Glandreth ; that the dark youth had planned to 
 carry her away, and that their schemes and his 
 own had been frustrated by the intervention of 
 Oloola. " The spirit of the storm cannot conquer 
 the heart of larine !" cried he ; " other things 
 
PHANTASMION. 187 
 
 may change for the better, and that will never 
 change for the worse !" 
 
 Thus he hoped and triumphed, but no food was 
 given him, and his limbs were painfully pinioned, 
 so that after a certain length of time he sank on 
 the floor, exhausted and spiritless. His eyes were 
 fixed in anguish on the massy door, at the top of 
 the stone steps, by which he had descended into 
 the dungeon, when he heard the bolts withdrawn 
 and, in a few moments, Glandreth stood before 
 him, sumptuously attired, and with a flaming lamp 
 in his hand. " King of Palmiand," said he with 
 a smile, ''why hast thou chosen to conceal from 
 a brother chief thy rank and dignity ?" "A brother 
 chief!" ejaculated the captive in high disdain. " I 
 know thee now," pursued Glandreth, " and can offer 
 terms suitable to thy rank. Deign to read that 
 scroll : I may not tarry to hear thy reply, for I must 
 visit my fair mistress larine, who will brook delay 
 on my part worse than thou wilt. Early to-morrow 
 thou shalt see me again, and the light of the sun 
 also, if thou approvest the conditions." So saying, 
 he placed the lamp and the scroll on the ground 
 beside the prisoner, and, without loosing his bands, 
 or giving him a morsel of food, quitted the dungeon. 
 Phantasmion began to peruse the writing laid 
 before him by his adversary, and found only such 
 proposals as roused his indignation. " No ! " 
 he exclaimed aloud, " rather than yield half my 
 kingdom and, what I value more than the whole 
 
188 PHANTASMION. 
 
 of it, my claim on the hand of larine, let the floor 
 of this dungeon be my death bed ! here let me 
 perish since Potentilla does not come to my aid." 
 Just as he had spoken thus, Phantasmion beheld a 
 multitude of saw-flies with yellow bodies and black 
 heads, flitting toward the light of the lamp ; along 
 with them came numbers of wasps, and the youth 
 shrank as he beheld the mingled swarm approach- 
 ing himself. He had little cause for fear; they 
 alighted on the cords that bound his arms and 
 wings, and, setting resolutely to work, the wasps, 
 with their jaws, the flies with their rasping instru- 
 ments, they severed the tough threads, till the 
 prisoner, by a single effort, snapped the weakened 
 bands ; at that moment his arms were stretched 
 at full length, and his wings broke forth like the 
 tender leaves of a tree when released from their 
 gummy sheath. Away flew the whole company 
 of wasps and flies, and, while they were disappear- 
 ing by the narrow space between the bottom of 
 the door and the top of the stairs, Phantasmion 
 perceived a host of bees entering on the opposite 
 side. They flew to a corner of the roof, and, 
 holding up the lamp, he saw that waxen combs 
 were suspended above his head, and that the bees 
 were there depositing the honey which they had 
 just collected in the gardens of the island. Phan- 
 tasmion now acknowledged that he had not been 
 neglected by Potentilla, who had been employed 
 in his service ever since he entered the dungeon. 
 
PIIANTASMION. 189 
 
 He soon o:ained possession of the luscious store, 
 which the bees abandoned at his approach ; and 
 having feasted on the honey, found his strength 
 and his hopes return together, nay, felt as jocund 
 as one that has drunk new wine. In this mood 
 he passed the remainder of the night, and, when 
 a few faint rays of the dawn found their way be- 
 neath the door into his gloomy abode, he ascended 
 the steps to examine a painted roll which Glan- 
 dreth had let fall as he left the dungeon ; it was 
 all emblazoned with gay devices, in the midst of 
 which Phantasmion read these lines : — 
 
 False Love, too long thou hast delay'd, 
 
 Too late I make my choice ; 
 
 Yet win for me that precious maid, 
 
 And bid my heart rejoice, 
 
 Then shall mine eyes shoot youthful fire, 
 
 My cheek with triumph glow. 
 
 And other maids that glance desire. 
 
 Which I on one bestow. 
 
 Make her with Smile divinely bland 
 
 Beam sunshine o'er my face, 
 
 And Time shall touch with gentlest hand 
 
 What she hath deign 'd to grace ; 
 
 O'er scanty locks full wreaths I'll wear ; 
 
 No wrinkled brow to shade. 
 
 For joy will smooth the furrows there, 
 
 Which earlier griefs have made. 
 
 Though sports of youth be tedious toil, 
 When youth has pass'd away, 
 I'll cast aside the martial spoil 
 With her light locks to play ; 
 
190 PHANTASMION. 
 
 Yea turn, sweet maid, from tented field 
 To rove where dewdrops shine, 
 Nor care what hand the sceptre wield. 
 So thou wilt grant me thine. 
 
 Before the lamp expired, Phantasmion fed its 
 flame with this testimony of his rival's passion, 
 then reascended the steps, and stationed himself 
 beside the door. Hearing a key thrust into the 
 lock he hovered above it, on balanced wings, face 
 downward, and, while Glandreth was beginning 
 to descend, rushed past him out of the dungeon. 
 The fugitive played his vans faster and faster, till 
 he had cleared the island, then away over the lake 
 he floated through clear fields of air, as if borne 
 along by the breeze, without a movement of his 
 outspread pinions. 
 
 He alighted in the midst of that thicket where he 
 had formerly spent the night, and looked about with 
 momentary dread to see that no snake yet lurked 
 there. Scarcely had he finished hiding his wings, 
 when the fisherman's ancient dame came in sight, 
 and, being startled at his unexpected appearance, 
 let her bundle of sticks fall to the ground. The 
 youth accosted her kindly, and began to collect her 
 scattered burden, while she seized the opportunity 
 of chatting and asking questions . ' ' Thou hast tra- 
 velled far since we saw thee last," she cried ; " but 
 there is no city in Almaterra so well worth going 
 to see as the capital of this country, Diamantha." 
 
PHANTASMION. 191 
 
 " How knowest thou that I have not gone to see 
 it ? " said the prince with a smile. " I think thou 
 wouldst hardly come away," said Telza, *^ just as 
 the court are going thither." " Are they going 
 thither?" inquired the prince ; ''ah! methinks, 
 I heard tell of this ; and when will they set out?" 
 " This very day," replied the dame ; " come to my 
 cottage and thou wilt see them pass." By the 
 time that Phantasmion reached a rising ground, 
 just beyond that lowly cot, the royal train might 
 be seen winding along the vale: and, long after 
 they were out of sight, he stood looking after them 
 wrapped in thought. Telza marked his counte- 
 nance. "The last time thou wert here," said 
 she, *' our lovely princess passed by ; truly till thou 
 hast seen her thou hast not set eyes on the fairest 
 thing in Rockland." 
 
 Phantasmion partook once more of Telza's hos- 
 pitality and learned from the fisherman, her hus- 
 band, that Glandreth was not travelling with the 
 King and Queen, but was still at the Island. Forth- 
 with he resolved to follow larine, and, taking leave 
 of the aged pair, pursued his journey alone ; but pre- 
 sently, fearing that he might stray out of the right 
 course, he looked about for some one to guide or 
 direct him. So doing he espied a number of tall 
 peasant girls with baskets on their heads, and saw 
 them sit downby the way side to eat their provisions. 
 ** Who are these lofty maidens ?" inquired the youth. 
 
192 PHANTASMION-. 
 
 A passing countryman, to whom he had spoken, 
 made answer, " They come from a certain glen 
 and are bound for a neighbouring town, where they 
 expect to sell the fruit in their baskets : some pf 
 them will not need to go so far, for this evening 
 they will overtake the royal household who are 
 already encamped at no great distance." Phan- 
 tasmion approached one of the damsels : " Are all 
 the women of your valley as tall as thou and thy 
 comrades, fair maiden ?" he said. " No women 
 are so tall as those of our glen," she replied; " and 
 no fruit is so fine as that which we gather at the 
 tops of our hills. Prithee taste and buy." " I 
 will buy thy whole basket," answered he, " if I may 
 purchase thy cloak and head-gear too : — and how 
 might I procure the secresy of thy comrades, were 
 I to go along with them thus disguised?" That 
 affair was quickly despatched by the mountain 
 maiden, who dighted the prince in her upper vest 
 and muffling head dress, placed her basket on his 
 head, and departed to a cottage hard by with more 
 gold in her hand than the baskets of all the com- 
 pany were like to gain. The prince went on 
 with the rest of the band, and, about evening, 
 espied a number of tents erected at the entrance of 
 a wood. The women were soon dispersed among 
 them, eager to gain purchasers for their fruit, and 
 Phantasmion, having learnt that the princess was 
 Tvandering in the forest, hastily went in search of 
 
PHANTASMION. 193 
 
 her, followed by some of his new associates. Soon 
 he hears a rustHng- amid the leaves, a bird falls from 
 its lofty perch, and young Albinet shouts for joy. 
 *' Sister !" he cried, " my little bow and arrows will 
 shoot as well as the longest and strongest in the 
 land." *' I prithee aim not at me, young archer !" 
 cried a voice from amid the trees ; '* nor take me for 
 a white heron or long necked crane !" Phantasmion 
 hastened on. The voice was at some distance, but 
 believing it to be that of larine he wondered at 
 such lively tones. Soon he entered a glade, where 
 three white-robed damsels were standing beside a 
 rivulet ; the first, who was looking toward the 
 wood, was Zelneth; larine and Leucoia were talking 
 together at a little distance. The youth drew his 
 head-dress, which he had begun to push aside, close 
 over his face, while his comrades offered their fruit 
 to the lady. " Here are the tall mountaineers," 
 cried she, *' with their pleasant cloud-berries ; let 
 us sit beside that elder tree and eat the dainty 
 fruit." Phantasmion was by this time kneeling 
 before larine and vainly endeavouring to catch her 
 eye, unperceived by Leucoia; but Zelneth called 
 him away to place the fruit in his basket on broad 
 leaves which grew near the brook, and, while this 
 repast was eaten, the maidens' talk went on. "I 
 have little doubt," said larine, " that we shall find 
 Karadan at Diamantha, near the northern palace. 
 Arzene's heart may soon be set at ease." " Nay," 
 cried Zelneth, *' it is more likely that we shall find 
 o 
 
194 PHANTASMION. 
 
 him about the Black Lake, for it was there that he 
 escaped again from those who were sent to bring* 
 him home." " Was he imprisoned in the dark 
 vault of the tower, or in the castle ?" asked Leu- 
 coia. " Karadan imprisoned !" said larine. " I 
 meant that other youth, of whom thou and Zelneth 
 were speaking," replied her cousin. " He was con- 
 fined in the tower," answered larine with tears, 
 " and perhaps he is a prisoner still." " And thou 
 didst nothing to set him free !" exclaimed Zelneth : 
 " I would have died" — here the damsel checked her 
 hasty speech, struck by an eager countenance which 
 reminded her of Semiro. But Phantasmion turned 
 away, and the startling likeness was forgotten when 
 larine offered her a key, and in an earnest tone re- 
 joined, " Then go thou to the Island, and open his 
 prison door." " I am ready to attend thee, Zelneth," 
 cried Leucoia, quickly rising from her seat. " Why 
 didst thou not release the captive thyself?" said 
 Zelneth, as she took the key. " I was prevented 
 by the queen ;" larine replied : " she met me as I 
 descended the steps of the tower, where I had dis- 
 covered it beneath the tapestry, and, full of mis- 
 placed suspicion, angrily sent me to my chamber." 
 " And thou wilt seek for Karadan," said Zelneth, 
 "while we perform this charitable errand?" "O 
 hasten to perform it this very hour," exclaimed the 
 lovely princess. *' Yon cloud above the wood is 
 yet full of radiance, and even when the sun declines, 
 it is pleasant travelling by the softer beams of the 
 
PHANTASMIOX. 195 
 
 moon." " Which will not rise this night, sweet 
 cousin," Zelneth made reply. *' For that favour- 
 ing- countenance we may vainly pray, as luckless 
 Karadan does for thine." 
 
 Then the three slender damsels and the manlike 
 mountaineers with their princely companion quit- 
 ted the lawn and pursued their way through the 
 wood. " Come, Albinet ! we are returning !" cried 
 larine, but the boy, with a laugh, went and hid 
 himself among the underwood. Phantasmion kept 
 by the side of larine and, when Zelneth and Leu- 
 coia stepped forward, he pulled her robe. The 
 princess looked up in surprise, but at that moment 
 the dark-eyed maiden turned back to address her 
 cousin; — " What will our mother think of this 
 journey?" she cried, " and, after all, what thanks 
 shall I earn ?" "A thousand thanks !" said larine, 
 blushing deeply. " From thee, but not from him !" 
 murmured Zelneth. " I will never repine," larine 
 answered, " whatever guerdon he offers thee." 
 Zelneth smiled and again stepped forward with 
 Leucoia ; Phantasmion once more touched larine's 
 robe and whispered, " I am here ; and subject to 
 no will but thine." Joy now animated her trem- 
 bling frame, and when Zelneth addressed her once 
 more she wondered at the glow of happiness that 
 mantled on her cheek. " Unhappy Karadan !" 
 sighed the maiden. " Hush !" cried larine ; "my 
 father is approaching." Then Leucoia impatiently 
 beckoned to Zelneth : " Come, sister," she cried, 
 
196 PHANTASM ION. 
 
 " if thou art resolved on this journey we must 
 mount our steeds without delay." 
 
 The daughters of Magnart now departed, after 
 taking leave of their kinswoman, who remained 
 within the wood, and beheld the sun's crimson orb, 
 half sunk below the distant plain, betwixt bare 
 shafts of trees, which looked like pillars of ebony. 
 Over their rugged roots Albinian was slowly ad- 
 vancing, his thin white locks just tinged with red 
 by the sunbeams. Glandreth and his armed band 
 were close behind, their casques glittering brightly, 
 while their shadows blackened the ground. The 
 chief strode on before them, passing Zelneth and 
 Leucoia without a glance, for he had discerned 
 larine in the wood. With firm step and lofty port 
 he came, while the tottering Albinian hurried on 
 when he perceived his approach, and went to lean 
 upon the lady's arm. " Give me the hand of the 
 fair princess, thy daughter," said Glandreth, " and 
 thou shalt have a firmer support than she alone 
 can give." The old man's face appeared convulsed 
 with inward passion ; he strove to speak, but words 
 failing him, shook his head and waved the chief 
 away. 
 
 Glandreth, incensed by the refusal of Albinian, 
 impetuously took the lady's hand from his, and the 
 feeble man, overthrown by that sudden movement, 
 fell to the earth. larine turned her indignant 
 eye upon the proud usurper, and would have knelt 
 by the side of Albinian, but the chief detained her 
 
PIIANTASMION. 197 
 
 hand, till Phantasmion, leaning forward from the 
 group of damsels, forced him to release it, seizing 
 his arm with no friendly grasp. Astonished that 
 a woman could assault him thus, he turned about 
 and was wounded at that moment in the cheek by 
 a small arrow which flew from the underwood. 
 Then, believing himself surrounded by concealed 
 enemies, he shouted to his armed men, who were 
 still in the back ground. They hastened into the 
 wood, but scarcely had they entered it, when a 
 cloud descended from on high and hung, like a 
 canopy, over the tops of the tall trees. That 
 canopy Avas composed of innumerable winged in- 
 sects : every moment it grew thicker and thicker, 
 and the soldiers groped about in total darkness 
 unable to find their chief. He, meantime, was 
 battling with armies of moths, which, as fast as 
 he cut them away with his sword, continued to 
 swarm around him undiminished, and soon his 
 men at arms were engaged in like manner : they 
 ran against the trees, and straggled in all directions 
 into the wood, trying to escape from their countless 
 antagonists. Phantasmion seized by mistake, the 
 robe of Albinian, who was clinging to laiine, and 
 whispered in his ear. " My fairest, dost thou still 
 love the stranger from Palmland?" a low groan 
 was the only answer to this fond inquiry. The 
 youth let go his hold and rushed away to a little 
 distance : there the cloud of insects dispersed right 
 above his head, and, looking up into the clear 
 
19S PHANTASMION. 
 
 space, he beheld Potentilla, cloaked in wide moth 
 wings, hovering" aloft. She beckoned to Phantas- 
 mion ; he dropped his feminine garb, and soaring- 
 upwards floated by the side of his guardian Fairy 
 through the dim grey sky. By the time that 
 both were out of sight, the wood was free from 
 insects: the sun's flaming ball had sunk and no 
 moon had arisen ; but one large star was shooting 
 its diamond rays just over the top of a sable fir 
 tree. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 POTEIHTILLA WEAVES A WONDROUS WEB FOR 
 PHANTASMION. 
 
 POTENTILLA guided Phantasmion to the chief 
 palace of Rockland, situate between the sea 
 and Diamantha, after he had procured the dress of 
 a peasant by the way. The travellers rested in 
 an orange grove, and, when the prince besought 
 Potentilla to deliver larine from the power of 
 Glandreth and Maudra, she made answer, "To- 
 morrow, the courtly company will arrive at this 
 place. I cannot give thee troops of horse and 
 men in armour to meet them ; but I will exhibit a 
 strange spectacle, and, while the crowd are gazing 
 at it thou mayst carry off the princess to the sea 
 
PHANTASMION. 199 
 
 shore. There the son of Magnart hath a skiff in 
 readiness; for he still hopes to win larine and 
 carry her to a secret bower in Nemorosa. This 
 vessel, if thou art before hand with him, may- 
 transport thy fair one and thee to Palmland." 
 
 The heart of Phantasmion bounded with joyful 
 expectation when he heard the Fairy speak thus. 
 He donned his rustic disguise, took a pruning 
 hook in his hand, and, when he saw any one ap- 
 proach, seemed to be busy among the shrubs. 
 He fed on the fruits of the garden, and at night 
 lay down to sleep in a clump of trees, close by 
 the principal entrance to the royal domain. Right 
 in front of that gate, at the top of a gentle ascent, 
 over which the road led to the Diamanthine palace, 
 was a triumphal arch of light architecture, erected 
 to commemorate the conquest of Tigridia, but now 
 overgrown with climbing plants and decked with 
 their gay blossoms. Phantasmion had not reposed 
 long when he was awakened by an eager dream : 
 he thought he saw the royal procession enter the 
 great gate and advance toward the archway. One 
 by one the company seemed to be pacing along ; 
 larine passes, but still he is chained to the turf 
 where he lies ; the damsel floats on, — she gains 
 the arch, but, just as she is about to disappear, 
 Phantasmion starts up. The dream has vanished, 
 but the scene remains, and, by the pale light of 
 the midnight sky, he discerns a strange object un- 
 der the festive fabric : a spider, as big as a wolf, 
 
200 PHANTASMION. 
 
 is wheeling round and round within the circuit of 
 the lofty arch, spinning and weaving as she goes. 
 The frame-work of her giant web is formed, the 
 warp is laid out, and now she is travelling round 
 and round to fill in the gummy woof. Not long after* 
 wards Phantasmion beheld the fairy artisan depart, 
 in the manner of spiders, shooting long lines into 
 the air, and seeming to fly without wings. Up- 
 wards she travels, and now she darts across the 
 moon's bow, and now she is a black spot in the 
 midst of a twinkling constellation. Phantasmion 
 slept again, and the first object that struck his 
 newly opened eyes, was the magic web, looking 
 like a wheel of fire in the rosy light of morning. 
 Anon those flames expired : every spoke and cross 
 thread appeared to be a shining icicle, and the 
 whole might have been taken for a crystal net; 
 but soon the elastic substance began to undulate be- 
 neath a gentle breeze, and all the scarlet blossoms, 
 which flaunted over it, were softly heaved up and 
 down. Phantasmion feared that the delicate appa^ 
 rition would melt away before the travellers arrived; 
 but the sun, as it grew stronger and stronger, 
 had no power to dissolve that fabric, and, while a 
 crowd was advancing from the palace to view it close 
 at hand, the courtly train, being suddenly arrested 
 on entering the great gate by this unexpected sight, 
 and utterly forgetful of every other object, stood 
 gazing in wonder at the magic web. Phantasmion 
 
PHANTASMION. 201- 
 
 easily recognized larine amid a bevy of damsels, 
 though she and all of them were veiled from head 
 to foot. He shaded his brow with his peasant's 
 cap, and, approaching* the princess, eagerly whis- 
 pered, " Come with me and I will explain this 
 wonder." The lady started, threw down her veil, 
 which she had partly drawn aside, to survey the 
 spectacle, and, after a few moments' hesitation, 
 stole away into the wide plain beyond the precincts 
 of the palace. Phantasmion followed, full of hope 
 and joy, and beheld larine, fleet as an antelope, 
 speeding across the moor. She had gained some 
 ground at first, and, so swiftly did she bound along, 
 that the youth came not up with her till she had 
 sunk down among the trees of a shady copse. 
 Great was his surprise when he arrived here, to 
 find the princess, her veil thrown off, clad in the 
 habit of a shepherdess, with a crook in her hand* 
 " Wherefore is this disguise ?" he cried, " and 
 why hast thou fled hither ? on the sea coast we 
 shall find a vessel wherein we may sail to Palm- 
 land, and thence up the great river to my very 
 palace gates." larine replied, " My heart is thine, 
 and yet I may not go with thee ; I am bound by a 
 vow to make a pilgrimage elsewhere ; the strongest 
 proof of love which thou canst give will be to let 
 me instantly depart and ask not whither I am go- 
 ing." Phantasmion felt like one who has dreamt 
 of golden fruit, and, waking, sees what he had 
 
202 
 
 PHANTASMION. 
 
 dreamt of glowing- nigh, but finds his arms fettered, 
 his feet fastened to the ground. " This device of 
 thine," she said, *' has enabled me to escape, just 
 as I had begun to despair of what I so anxiously 
 desired. If my enterprise succeeds, I shall owe that 
 happiness to thee." Cheerily the maiden spoke, 
 yet could not choose but w^eep, while Phantasmion 
 remained speechless and tearful, looking in her 
 face with imploring eyes, as if he hoped by the 
 mute eloquence of his grief, to melt away her reso- 
 lution, larine cut oflf one of her long ringlets, tied 
 it round the arm of the sorrowful youth, and smil- 
 ing playfully yet tenderly, bound him with that 
 silken fetter to the branch of a shrub. *' Fare- 
 well !" she said, "when next we meet thou mayst 
 fasten the chain on me; and, if it binds me to 
 thyself, believe that I will gladly wear it even to 
 my life's end." Then she took up her shepherd's 
 crook, and hastened away, nor turned her head 
 till her motions were scarce to be discerned by him 
 she left behind through the dimness of distance. 
 Phantasmion sought not to follow her, but, long 
 after she was out of sight, he stood in the same 
 attitude as when she disappeared, clasping the 
 glossy ringlet in unconscious hands. 
 
 At length he moved away, and, wandering along 
 with uncertain steps, found himself once more 
 beside the archway. It was now past noon-day, 
 and all the gazers had dispersed ; but still the magic 
 web remained, and, while he was looking at it with 
 
PIIANTASMION. 203 
 
 sorrowful eyes, he saw a beautiful bird called a 
 chinquis fly into it, and become entangled in its 
 meshes. While it fluttered there he recognized it 
 as one which he had been wont to caress and feed 
 in Palmland, and which had gained the name of 
 the moon-bird, from the sky-blue moons or mirrors 
 which adorned its wings and train. *' Poor bird," 
 said the prince, " thou hast followed me hither out 
 of love ! thou shalt not perish in these toils, if I 
 can set thee at liberty." He threw off his upper vest, 
 fanned the air lightly with his pinions, and, forget- 
 ing the supernatural strength aAd teftacity of Po- 
 tentilla's work, laboured to free the bird till he 
 himself became entangled , and struggling to dis- 
 engage his wings v^^as only the more fi.rmly glued 
 to the web. Thus he hung, suspended in the centre 
 of the arch, with the moon-bird by his side, while 
 a set of rustics who beheld him from the open gate, 
 believed him to be some deity that presided over 
 the feathered tribes, and gazed at his wings in 
 silent wonder. All his struggles to escape were 
 vain, till a large eagle, rushing upon the moon- 
 bird, became likewise entangled in the toils. He 
 with his strong pinions shook the net so violently 
 that at last it was rent asunder : aloft he flew with 
 great part of the web clinging to his back, and 
 Phantasmion was dashed upon the ground. For 
 some moments he lay under the triumphal arch 
 with his eyes closed, and his senses gone ; but, 
 coming to himself he beheld the pretty moon-bird 
 
204 PHANTASMION. 
 
 hovering affectionately over him. Then he arose, 
 drew on his cloak, and hastened out of the royal 
 precincts ; having gained a lonely place, he tried 
 his wings, but, finding they were too much injured 
 to sustain him aloft, except during very short 
 flights, full of sorrow and perplexity, he took his 
 way to the sea shore. 
 
 Karadan had gone thither before him : Karadan 
 stood on the rocky beach, and, raising to his lips 
 a trumpet-formed shell, produced a sound in which 
 the tones of the wind, as it whistles through a 
 crevice, were combined with the deep full swelling 
 voice of many waters. That blast was borne over 
 the liquid plain, and soon a woman's form arose 
 from the ocean ; the setting sun threw its orange 
 glow on the bloodless visage of Seshelma, as on- 
 ward she came, cleaving the amber flood ; a smile 
 widened her flat face and glittered in her yellow 
 eyes, unshaded by lashes, and, thus illumined, her 
 countenance looked like that of a demon brightened 
 by surrounding flames. *' Where is larine ?" ex- 
 claimed Karadan; "hath my rival carried her 
 away, and have thy promises come to this ?" " larine 
 is gone to Nemorosa," replied the sorceress, "and 
 he to whom she has given her heart is not far off." 
 At these words Seshelma smiled maliciously upon 
 Karadan, and the youth uttered a deep groan. 
 " Accursed be the day," he cried, " when I entered 
 into a league with thee ! larine loves my rival, and 
 what fruit have I of this wicked bond ?" " Do my 
 
PHANTASMION. 205 
 
 bidding, as heretofore," said the woman-fish, *' and 
 thou shalt banish thy rival from the maiden's 
 heart." " Away !" cried Karadan impatiently ; 
 " thy promises are but vain lures." '' What !" 
 was the reply ; " have I not put into thy hands 
 the silver pitcher?" "That is true," cried the 
 youth ; " what hast thou to propose ?" " The 
 king of Palmland," she answered, " hath larine's 
 infant brother secreted in his palace: place that 
 child in my power, and I will cause the maiden to 
 believe that Phantasmion has delivered him to me. 
 Agree to this and I will transport thee to his royal 
 domain long before he can return to it : thou shalt 
 travel swiftly by the sea and up the large river 
 which flows past the palace of Palmland to enter 
 the ocean." Cold drops stood on Karadan's brow 
 while he debated within himself on this proposal ; 
 at last he exclaimed, " O never will I betray the 
 child that larine loves to this monster ! One sacri- 
 fice I have promised : to gain that heavenly maid, 
 I have made a vow which renders me unworthy to 
 possess her. Surely I have never loved aright." 
 Seshelma laughed, and that long-drawn jeering 
 laugh blended with the bubble and hiss of the 
 waters and died into the piping of the wind : but 
 no angry emotion ruffled the glazed surface of 
 her face, as she fronted the youth's agitated coun- 
 tenance. " Do as thou wilt," she replied; ''per- 
 chance thou art wise to cease contending in this 
 cause, for who can alter the fixed purposes of 
 
206 PIIANTASMION^. 
 
 fate ? There are spirits of the flood that can see 
 into futurity" — *' Did they tell thee of her I love '?" 
 interrupted Karadan, with vehemence ; " shall the 
 maid be mine?" "Never!" answered Seshelma, 
 and again she laughed, while it seemed as if her 
 laugh was reechoed by a lurking train under the 
 waters, till it passed off into the noises of the ocean. 
 " Treacherous fiend !" Karadan shrieked aloud, 
 ^' shall Phantasmion possess larine ? Dost thou 
 answer yes ? unsay that word and I will come and 
 dwell with thee, all hideous as thou art, in dark 
 and breathless caves for ever !" Furiously he 
 rushed forward and seized her extended arm, 
 whereat a lightning flash of electricity shot through 
 his frame ; his impotent grasp relaxed ; he stood 
 motionless, cramped in every muscle, and with an- 
 guish-stricken eyes, bent in fixed stare upon the 
 deep, beheld the enchantress holding up her hands 
 in mockery, while she retreated backward through 
 the ocean, leisurely rocking up and down with the 
 waves, as if she resigned herself, like a drifting 
 vessel, to their guidance. 
 
 \ 
 
PHANTASMTO^T. 207 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 PHANTASMION RETURNS TO PALMLAND BY SEA. 
 
 MEANTIME Phantasmion approached the 
 sea shore by a thickly wooded g^orge, the 
 lovely chinquis flying" by his side or before him, 
 then rushing up among the trees to play hide and 
 seek with her master, as she had been wont to do 
 in the groves of Palmland. From between the 
 last rocks of the valley appeared a small portion 
 of the sea, in the midst of which, a little skiff 
 moved on the dark waves with white sails gleam- 
 ing in the twilight. The moon-bird paused not 
 with Phantasmion to note that object, but skim- 
 ming on, now hither now thither, with careless 
 waste of motion, flew unawares against the face 
 of Karadan, as he turned an angle of the winding- 
 road. The youth, being suddenly startled in his 
 miserable mood, lifted an angry hand and smote 
 the bird with such force that it fell to the ground ; 
 whereupon Phantasmion sprang forward, and the 
 two princely rivals stood face to face. *' Well 
 met!" cried the young king of Palmland; " I 
 have not come hither in vain, since I have en- 
 countered thee. Let us fight now for that pitcher 
 which hangs to thy girdle." " So be it!" cried 
 
208 PHANTASMIO^'. 
 
 Karadan, hastily unfastening the vessel; " I will 
 shew thee a good place, smooth and light." He 
 hurried on, till, coming within a stone's throw of a 
 chasm amid the rocks, he raised his hand to fling ' 
 the pitcher down that dark abyss, hoping thus to 
 prevent its falling to the lot of his rival, let the event 
 of the conflict be what it might. But Phantasmion, 
 springing forward, stayed his arm ; the pitcher fell 
 at his feet ; Karadan in desperation drew his dag- 
 ger, and was rushing on his unguarded adversary, 
 when the moon- bird, which had risen from the 
 ground unobserved, flew upon him and darted her 
 beak into his eye, A stream of blood gushed down 
 his cheek; he was still feeble from the effects of 
 Seshelma's touch, and, overpowered by this second 
 blow, he fell fainting on the ground. Phantasmion 
 resolved to secure the pitcher, and fight with Ka*- 
 radan on some future opportunity ; he began to 
 draw it from under the body of the youth, who 
 opened his eyes and groaned deeply, but had not . 
 strength to stir. The prince saw that his lips 
 moved, but no articulate sounds reached the listener's 
 ear. He desisted for a moment, then renewed his 
 attempt, and, pulling out the pitcher sought to 
 place it under his cloak, but the handle slipped out 
 of his fingers ; he took it up again, but the same 
 thing happened; then he would have seized the 
 vessel by the lip, but, like those insects which 
 elude the grasp with their finely polished cases or 
 pliant hair, it still glided away ; he might as well 
 
PHANTASMION. 209 
 
 have tried to hold quicksilver, and, after many 
 vain attempts, he began to suspect that he was 
 foiled by some invisible being. " Can Seshelma 
 prevail here/' he cried, " among rocks and trees 
 and flowery banks ?" Phantasmion cast his eyes 
 around him on all sides ; at a little distance from 
 the place where he stood grew a tall branching plant, 
 sheeted with blossoms, which at this evening hour 
 were newly opened, when other plants had closed 
 their dewy cups and bells. At mid-day the hue of 
 those flowers would have looked wan and spiritless ; 
 but now that the sky was sobered, now that scar- 
 let andcrimson began to blacken, while blue, lilac, 
 and green were growing all alike, the silver yellow 
 gleam of the broad disk, which gathered in the 
 light, like eyes of night birds, had a noticeable 
 lustre, and they seemed to be the beautiful spectres 
 of blossoms that had perished in the day. Just 
 above that luminous plant appeared another spectre, 
 yet more softly resplendent. It was the Fairy Fey- 
 deleen, with warning hand outstretched toward the 
 youth of Palmland. ^' Phantasmion !" she whis- 
 pered, " the tears of Arzene have prevailed, and, 
 even against thee, I must guard her truant son. Go 
 hence, I beseech thee, and trouble him no more !" 
 The young monarch obeyed ; he proceeded down 
 the glen, and, looking back, ere the path turned 
 away, beheld the delicate Fairy pouring balm from 
 a chalice on the eyes of Karadan. 
 
 And now Phantasmion has entered the little 
 p 
 
210 PHANTASMION. 
 
 skifF, and is about to leave those hostile shores, 
 when on the summit of the cliff, high over-head, 
 he beholds two figures, the indistinct lineaments of 
 which, seen through the dusk, fill his soul with 
 apprehension. That stony outline of an armed 
 form, sharp as the rugged rock, and that soft qui- 
 vering plume belong to none but Glandreth, while, 
 on the other side vast wings upraised, and move- 
 less, bespeak the presence of Oloola. She points 
 to an eagle that flies overhead with threads of net- 
 work hanging from its feathers ; it is the one that 
 rent Potentilla's web ; Glandreth looks after the 
 bird, then eagerly renews his discourse; what 
 words he uttered were inaudible to Phantasmion, 
 but the gale brought to his ear Oloola's resonant 
 reply. " Phantasmion has not carried her away : 
 she is gone to seek a spring of healing waters ; for 
 the sake of Albinian and of Albinet, she roams 
 afar." The youth listened eagerly: Glandreth 's 
 discourse was a dull murmur, but Oloola spake 
 again, and her words appeared to have been blown 
 through a trumpet. " While Phantasmion goes in 
 search of larine Glandreth shall conquer the Land 
 of Palms." Then Glandreth shouted for joy till 
 all the rocks reechoed, and Phantasmion saw that 
 Oloola had disappeared from the cliff. He was 
 still watching Glandreth and listening to the up- 
 roar which his voice raised along the shore, when 
 the little vessel in which he stood was suddenly 
 lifted up and whirled about in the air, while the 
 
PHANTASMION. 211 
 
 sea dashed and roared and eddied underneath, as 
 if a water-spout had fallen on the spot. The moon- 
 bird, having no power to resist that blast, eddied 
 round and round without the vessel ; but gradu- 
 ally the wind fell, the sea grew smooth, and the 
 fragile bark settled on the water, as a falcon sinks 
 to her nest after wheeling about restlessly in the 
 air. Meantime Phantasmion heard a voice on 
 high, and it sent these words to his ear, " I swore 
 to serve him till Anthemmina's dying day." 
 
 The moon is up, and two large stars, bright 
 spots of light, appear as if they had dropped out 
 of her, beaming crescent; Phantasmion admires 
 not the moon, nor fancies an invisible chain by 
 which those pendant gems may be linked to her 
 golden bow. The chinquis rests upon the mast 
 and sleeps in the moonlight, her splendid train, 
 with all its mirrors, reflecting the mild rays of 
 night : but the prince of Palmland gazes not on 
 her : in thought he is following the lovely pilgrim 
 through dangerous woods and wilds. Thus he 
 coasted along, coming to land now and then for 
 provisions, till he reached Palmland and sailed up 
 the principal river to his own abode. Weary and 
 dispirited, he reached his palace gates, and scarce 
 had arrived at the pomegranate tree when the 
 faithful chinquis, which had never wholly recovered 
 Karadan's blow, fell dead at his feet. Phantas- 
 mion sate upon the ground, and shed tears over 
 the lifeless bird : but Potentilla came behind him 
 
21^ PIIANTASMION. 
 
 and cheerily exclaimed, *' Weep no more for the 
 dead, but take thought for the living." The 
 prince looked up ; "I have gained the heart 
 of larine," said he ; *' but I cannot make her my 
 wife because of Glandreth and Karadan." Poten- 
 tilla replied, " Surely my aid has availed thee 
 somewhat ; perchance it may enable thee to gain 
 still more." 
 
PHANTASMION, 
 
 PART III. 
 
PHANTASMION. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 lARINE VISITS THE HOUSE OF MALDERYL IN 
 COMPANY WITH PENSELIMER. 
 
 WHILE Phantasmion sailed homeward, larine 
 was wandering through the wilds of Tigridia, 
 at every hut where she obtained food and shelter 
 inquiring, as if by chance, concerning the situation 
 of Malderyl's mansion, but telling no one that she 
 was thither bound. Could the sweet feelings and 
 glad thoughts, which she excited wherever she 
 went among the pastoral people of the land, have 
 sprung up into visible flowers, it would have been 
 seen that she left a blooming track behind her, and, 
 like the sun, drew virtue from the coldest soil. 
 One evening she entered a green dell between 
 woods, where a shepherd was conducting his sheep 
 to the fold ; a youth who accompanied her knew 
 this old man, and having commended her to his 
 care departed, to the great distress of the maiden, 
 who feared lest wild beasts should attack him on his 
 way home, as the shades of night came on. The 
 
216 
 
 PHANTASMION. 
 
 shepherd tried to lessen her fears by relating how 
 Ulander of Nemorosa had thinned the tiger inha- 
 bitants of the land. *' In these woods," said he, 
 " I doubt if a brindled coat remains, for here it 
 was that the huntsman chief and his comrades pro- 
 cured a band of tigerlings for Queen Maudra. I 
 wish this country paid no other tribute to the bar- 
 ren Land of Rocks than that. Here the parents 
 were murdered, and the young preserved to flesh 
 their teeth on the subjects of king Phantasmion." 
 While the old man stood talking to larine, des- 
 cribing with lively gestures, the battle of the tigers, 
 the braying of horns, the crashing of boughs, and 
 yelling of wounded beasts, many of his sheep, as 
 if glad to steal away from the oft told tale, had 
 straggled *into the woody glen, which was full of 
 soft herbage, and larine offered to guard the main 
 body of his flock while he went in search of the 
 truants ; so thanking her for that courtesy, taking 
 a weapon of defence from his girdle, and placing 
 his crook in her hand, he hastened away. The 
 lovely princess led the flock slowly onward till she 
 arrived at a stream, which crossed the dell, and 
 had been swollen by sudden rains to a torrent: 
 here she paused, waiting for the shepherd, and, 
 while the sheep eyed the water, thinking perchance 
 of a ford lower down, where they had crossed in 
 the morning, larine's mind had travelled back to 
 her father and Albinet, thence to her baby brother, 
 and all the time was not wholly absent from Phan- 
 
PHANTASMION. 217 
 
 tasmion. At last she began to think that the old 
 man was long- away, and looked up with pleasure 
 when she heard footsteps advancing ; but he who 
 now stood before her was more like a king than a 
 rustic swain ; his attire, though black, was costly, 
 his countenance abstracted and grave. He stop- 
 ped to look at larine, as she lifted up a dripping 
 lamb, which had slipped into the water, and, see- 
 ing that she eyed him anxiously, as if desirous yet 
 afraid to speak, (for indeed, she wished to inquire 
 whether he had seen the shepherd,) his eye lit up 
 with expectation, and in an eager tone he ex- 
 claimed ; — " Hast thou aught to tell me of the 
 silver pitcher ? Surely thou art akin to Anthem- 
 mina, for there is something in thy face like hers." 
 larine was startled at being accosted thus, but in 
 a few minutes felt assured that she must be in 
 company with Penselimer of Almaterra. " I 
 know not what has become of the silver pitcher ;" 
 she said ; " would that I could hear tidings of it ! 
 But meantime I feel anxious lest the shepherd, 
 whose flock I am guarding, may have met some 
 accident in yonder wood." " I trust he has not 
 fallen in with a tiger," said the king; " such a 
 fell beast as lately carried off my horse at noon- 
 day." Then, taking a javelin from his belt, he 
 hastened in the direction which larine pointed out, 
 and soon the maiden saw him return followed by 
 the truant sheep, and bearing in his arms the old 
 shepherd, who had fallen down a ravine, formed by 
 
218 PHANTASMION. 
 
 a recent flood, and so disabled himself. He di- 
 rected larine to a shallower part of the stream, 
 where her fleecy charge were able to pass over. 
 She penned the sheep in the fold while Pen- 
 selimer carried their owner to his cottage ; then,^ 
 repairing to that rustic abode, she assisted the 
 shepherd's daughter to tend his wounds and pre- 
 pare the evening meal. 
 
 Penselimer sate beside the hearth, seeing forms 
 in the fire which appeared to no one but himself ; for, 
 as soon as he had placed the old man in safety, 
 his thoughts had all flown back to the silver pitcher. 
 When larine's employment was over, and she too 
 sate down, he o£fered, out of courtesy, to guard 
 her during the rest of her journey, and, hearing 
 in what direction she must proceed, declared that 
 he should lose no time in attending her, as the 
 way she spoke of would bring him to the house of 
 Malderyl, whither he desired to go. There was a 
 damsel in the cottage, who had bashfully drawn 
 back when the strangers entered ; while larine was 
 helping the shepherd lass she took the maiden's 
 wheel into a corner, and span ; but, hearing Pen- 
 selimer speak in a low voice of Malderyl, she 
 stayed both hand and foot, and leaned forward to 
 catch the words of his discourse. larine, then 
 first beholding her countenance by the fire light, 
 felt a sudden glow of alarm, so much did it re- 
 semble that of Karadan : the passionate black eye, 
 the brow, the dark skin, all seemed his, and just 
 
PHANTASMIOX. 219 
 
 such a green and crimson roll as he commonly 
 wore concealed her locks. The shy damsel, see- 
 ing herself noted, resumed her spinning, and larine 
 smiled at her own suspicion when she saw her thus 
 quietly employed. 
 
 Early the next morning the princess went forth 
 again in company with Penselimer, who related 
 the story of his unfortunate love for Anthemmina ; 
 then at length she understood how her own fate 
 depended on the silver pitcher, and saw that Ka*- 
 radan had told no feigned tale when he showed it 
 her upon the Island. Penselimer did not observe 
 her sorrowful countenance, but continued talking 
 of himself. " It is strange," said he, with the 
 smiling face of a child, that wears his newest, 
 finest suit, " that I, who am the most unhappy 
 among men, should be the envy of beings who 
 dwell on high. The truth is, they hate me on ac- 
 count of Anthemmina, foreseeing that I shall re- 
 gain her love if I can but find the pitcher. There- 
 fore they watch me with their bright eyes inces- 
 santly ; and even at this hour, though I cannot see 
 them, I well know that they are keenly observing 
 me." larine cast up her blue eyes to the sky, 
 with a look of pity and wonder. " Their unheard 
 of persecutions," added he, '* excited the compas- 
 sion of the veiled lady Melledine, who bade me 
 repair to her sister Malderyl, and gave me good 
 hope that, through her, I should regain what T had 
 lost." The maiden rejoiced on hearing Melledine's 
 
220 PHANTASMION, 
 
 name, and surmised that Pengelimer was to recover 
 his lost senses by means of the blessed spring of 
 which she herself was in search. 
 
 The travellers rested at noon beside a stream, 
 and larine sought to persuade her companion that 
 the notions which he dwelt upon were shadows of 
 no substance, echoes of no sound, like those sights 
 and voices which the disordered eye and ear create 
 within themselves, unmoved by any outward thing. 
 But Penselimer calmly replied ; " Sweet lady (for 
 it is plain to me that thou art no shepherdess,) if 
 the mirror of my mind did indeed play false, as 
 thy speech infers, how vain it were to lay the 
 truth before me ! For I must either be incapable of 
 seeing it at all, or must see it distorted and dis- 
 coloured through the flaws and stains of the glass. 
 That Anthemmina dwells in yonder sky seems to 
 ine as plain as that I view thy beauteous face, and 
 heard thee just now declare that she lies under 
 the wave. But this is one of the tricks of my 
 persecutors : go where I may a report has still pre- 
 ceded me that I am mad." Just as Penselimer 
 spoke thus, a fawn gambolled past larine ; the dam- 
 sel was tempted to pursue it a little way down the 
 stream, and, running by a leafy covert, she caught 
 a glimpse of the brown girl, who span at the cot- 
 tage J but passing that way again she saw no one 
 there. 
 
 The travellers went on their way, and larine, 
 finding that all the thoughts which a sane mind 
 
PHANTASMION. 22 1 
 
 can sug-gest to one that is diseased will take the 
 hue of the receptacle, as colourless waters turn 
 blue or green when poured into certain channels, 
 rather sought, by gentle ingenuity, to make him 
 conceive happy imaginations than presented them 
 to him, and no longer combated errors which were 
 as invulnerable as they were easy to hit. Both 
 rested at a goatherd's cottage that night, and, in 
 passing through the little orchard attached to it, 
 when she set forth early the next day, larine be- 
 held the dark maiden, wrapped in a cloak and sleep- 
 ing under a tree. The swarthy cheek and black 
 eyebrow again fixed her attention, but, as she gazed, 
 the girl awoke, and, beholding larine, covered her 
 face with her garment. Penselimer now joined 
 his fair comrade, and the maiden, in some per- 
 plexity, pursued her way. At noon she beheld 
 the house of Malderyl, situate on the lowest ridge 
 of a conical mountain, which towered alone upon 
 the plain, and showed from its rugged brow on one 
 side pastoral plains, interspersed with woods and 
 hollow glades, full of giant reeds and tree-like ferns; 
 on the other the endless forest of Nemorosa, which 
 Glandreth had never subdued. The mansion itself 
 and the wall around it were hewn out of a rock. 
 " Whither shall I conduct thee ?" said Penselimer 
 to his companion, when they reached the foot of 
 the hill. " I must go whither thou art going," 
 she said, " even to the house of Malderyl ; for I 
 too seek the presence of the ancient queen, but was 
 
222 PHANTASMION. 
 
 bound not to speak of this till I approached her 
 threshold." Penselimer blew a horn which hung 
 at the outer gate of the mansion, as soon as he 
 reached it, and started at the loud sound which en- 
 sued and which all the rocks above and below re- 
 echoed. A raven flew from a beetling crag over 
 head just as a rugged churl admitted the strangers : 
 other domestics then appeared and conducted them 
 to the apartment where their mistress sate at the 
 summit of a tower. Malderyl was seated in a 
 carved chair, the brown arms and upright back of 
 which resembled her own figure, dried and stif- 
 fened, but not enfeebled by age. Her face ap- 
 peared of bronze, all but the rapid eye, like a lam- 
 bent flame shining and restless ; her heart was 
 dead as the leathern girdle that covered it, her brain 
 ever in motion, like the sands of the hour glass 
 that stood before her on the table. She was clad 
 in robes of purple and scarlet, and wore upon her 
 head a crown of golden spikes. larine felt appalled 
 when Malderyl desired that Penselimer would wait 
 in the ante-room while she conferred with the 
 maiden , but, summoning courage , presented an ivory 
 tablet on which her name was inscribed, with cu- 
 rious cyphers underneath. Malderyl, after a glance 
 at the writing, told her that she must go alone to 
 the spring and impart the secret to no one. The 
 maiden having agreed to this condition, she placed 
 in her hand a light bucket and chain with a lea- 
 thern bottle, at the same time giving her certain 
 
PHANTASMION. 223 
 
 directions, and larine took her leave with many- 
 thanks, delighted to think how much of the preci- 
 ous water the skin would contain. No sooner was 
 she out of hearing" than Malderyl turned her keen 
 eyes on the melancholy king, who had entered at 
 one door as larine disappeared by another. *' Pen- 
 selimer," she said, " he who robs thee of thy 
 right is Phantasmion king of Palmland." " The 
 son of Dorimant !" he exclaimed, with kindling 
 eye. On each side of the queen's footstool a dwarf- 
 ish figure was crouching ; larine had scarcely ob- 
 served them, and by Penselimer they had been 
 taken for appendages to the grotesque imagery 
 of her wooden chair. But when the queen touch- 
 ed one of them with her foot, up he sprang, and 
 fixed upon Penselimer a pair of toad's eyes ringed 
 with scarlet : at the same instant the other dwarf 
 raised his pointed face, in which the eye-holes 
 were mere points, laid out his broad flat hands, 
 and put forward the side of his head as if to 
 hear rather than see what was going on. While 
 Penselimer viewed these objects with surprise, 
 Malderyl began to mutter, and soon both they 
 and the whole apartment were obscured, clouds 
 creeping over the vaulted roof and veiling the wide 
 crystal windows. A fiery light then rose up on 
 the opposite wall, and Penselimer beheld, in many- 
 coloured flame, a picture of Phantasmion, standing 
 over Karadan and striving to secure the enchanted 
 vessel. When the king beheld that image of An- 
 
224 PHANTASMION* 
 
 themmina's pitcher in silvery light, he rushed for- 
 ward and would have clutched it from the wall ; 
 but, lo ! it was impalpable as fires that hover over 
 a marsh, and a loud puffing noise arose from be- 
 low, that seemed to be an expression, either of 
 pain or mockery. Thereat Penselimer, looking 
 down, espied the toad-like dwarf, whose body he 
 had squeezed against the wall, with his great 
 mouth wide open, and a slimy liquid oozing from 
 every pore of his wrinkled skin.- A hollow laugh 
 echoed from the chair of Malderyl, who was 
 wrapped in darkness, and the crystal windows of 
 the tower tinkled with her mirth. " Is it thus 
 thou rewardest those that serve thee, noble mo- 
 narch ?" she said. " Swartho has shewn thee 
 thine enemy by the power of his art, and in re- 
 turn thou art trampling him under foot." Pense- 
 limer drew back, and was incensed, when he recog- 
 nised the face of Phantasmion, to find that the 
 youth, to whom he had related his story, was King 
 Dorimant's son, not doubting that he had visited 
 him solely to obtain an account of the silver pitcher. 
 " Transport me to Palmland," exclaimed the king, 
 " and furnish me with armour." " Nay," an- 
 swered the crafty witch, " if thou goest now to 
 Palmland, thou wilt miss thine enemy, and in 
 case of meeting him on the road wouldst fail to 
 know him, for he is disguised by the Fairy Poten- 
 tilla." " Shew me his likeness," rejoined the 
 king, " as he appears at this moment." The sor- 
 
PHANTASMION-. 225 
 
 ceress bade Swartho comply with that request, 
 and straightway he brought so strange a phantom 
 before the eyes of Penselimer, so all unlike any 
 adversary which he had ever dreamt of, that for a 
 moment he stood aghast. But, ere the grim figure 
 faded away, and light once more succeeded to. 
 darkness, his courage returned, and, kneeling 
 before the ancient queen, he besought her to arm 
 him, so that he might fitly encounter such a for- 
 midable foe. " What guerdon shall I have from thee 
 for such service ?" inquired Malderyl. " What 
 wouldst thou have ? " the king replied. '' If 
 thou conquerest Phantasmion," said the queen, 
 '' thou shalt bestow half of Palmland on my 
 young kinsman Ulander." The king willingly 
 acceded to this proposal, and also agreed that if 
 he died without issue, Ulander should inherit 
 Almaterra. In a little time afterwards Malderyl 
 had provided him with a horse, and armour, and 
 a plumed casque, as like as possible to those of 
 Glandreth, whose stature was scarce loftier than 
 his own, and bade him repair to the mansion of 
 that aspiring chief, on the confines of Rockland, 
 Tigridia and Almaterra. " By the time that thou 
 arrivest there," said she, " Phantasmion will have 
 reached the same place, under a feigned character, 
 for the sake of encountering the great enemy of 
 his kingdom in single combat. Thou shalt bear 
 a letter from me to Glandreth ; he will easily be 
 persuaded to let thee accept the challenge in his 
 Q 
 
226 PHANTASMION. 
 
 name, when he knows that thou, being furnished 
 with enchanted armour, in addition to thy own 
 great skill and might, art more certain to defeat 
 the king of Palmland even than his valiant self." 
 Thus forewarned Penselimer departed, full of 
 joy and confidence, expecting soon to have the 
 disposal of Phantasmion's life and kingdom, and 
 to obtain the more valuable pitcher for himself. 
 
 CHAPTER 11. 
 
 lARINE HAS A FEARFUL ADVENTURE ON THE 
 MOUNTAIN. 
 
 MALDERYL was sitting under the outer wall 
 of her abode, looking after the king of Al- 
 materra, as he rode down the hill, when the dark 
 damsel kneeled at her feet and placed in her hand a 
 withered branch. "Thou comest from Melledine !" 
 said Malderyl ; " who art thou, ^nd what has passed 
 betwixt thee and the veiled lady V I am Zelneth, 
 daughter of Magnart," said the damsel, taking the 
 roll from her head, and letting her jetty ringlets 
 fall down to her waist. " This is not my natural 
 colour," added she, putting up her white hand to 
 her swarthy cheek ; '* I stained my face that no 
 one might know me as I travelled to thy house. 
 
PHANTASMION-. 227 
 
 Melledine I met with on the King's Island, and she 
 sent me to thee." " Wherefore ?" said Malderyl, 
 feio:nino: ig-norance of what she knew full well. 
 " To find my sister Leucoia," replied Zelneth, 
 while a bright blush glowed through her tawny 
 mask. '' Then return to thy home," said Malderyl, 
 " for there thou wilt be more likely to learn tidings 
 of Leucoia than here." Zelneth cast her eyes on 
 the ground, as she replied in a whisper, " Where 
 can I learn tidings of Phantasmion, son of Dori- 
 mant ? I do confess that for his sake, also, I am 
 come to thee." Malderyl's searching glance was 
 now exchanged for a look which encouraged Zel- 
 neth to proceed in her disclosure ; she told the 
 stoiy of her love for Phantasmion, and how she 
 had set forth to free him from prison. " It was 
 midnight," she said, " when we reached the Island, 
 and, straightway, repairing to the darksome vault 
 and putting the key into the lock, I found the 
 bolts already withdrawn. I descended and sought 
 in all the subterranean chambers, but found no 
 trace of him whom I hoped to meet. Just as I 
 emerged from the vault my lamp threw its light on 
 a lady covered with a veil which gleamed in the 
 darkness. " Dost thou seek Phantasmion of Palm- 
 land ?" she said; "this morning his prison door 
 was unlocked by the king's daughter." Then I 
 knew that larinehad deceived me, and, recollecting 
 the lofty mountaineer, who kept by her side in the 
 wood, I clearly saw for what reason she had sent 
 
228 PHANTASMIOW. 
 
 me away. While I was weeping on my pillow 
 that night the veiled lady entered my room, and 
 offered me a cup, one draught from which, as she 
 averred, would make me cease to love and cease 
 to feel such sorrow. But starting up I promptly 
 answered, ' Ask me not to drown the remembrance 
 either of those I love or those I hate : rather offer 
 me a charm by which I may gain the heart of 
 Phantasmion, and triumph over my false rival.* 
 Then she bade me repair to thee in secret, bearing 
 a token from her, and, placing a withered branch 
 in my hand she left me to repose. Early the next 
 day I sought Leucoia, but she was no where to be 
 found, and I could not doubt that she drank of the 
 forgetful cup and followed Melledine. In all haste 
 I crossed the mountains, and travelled on to the 
 house of a shepherd inTigridia. There I dismissed 
 all my attendants, bidding them repair to Arzene, 
 and tell her that I hoped soon to return home 
 with my brother and sister. I had not long 
 been under the shepherd's roof when king Pense- 
 limer and the princess larine arrived at the same 
 cottage. Alas ! even here perhaps, the daughter 
 of Anthemmina has forestalled me, and I cannot 
 weep with sweet Leucoia, for she has been carried 
 away !" Tears flowed down the face of Zelneth, 
 streaking the stains that hid her lovely skin. 
 Maldeiyl smiled : " Have no fear," she said, 
 ^* touching larine and Leucoia: neither shall cross 
 thy path." " But is Leucoia safe and happy?" 
 
PHANTASMION. 229 
 
 said Zelneth tenderly. " Safer than a pearl five 
 fathom deep," said Malderyl ; *' and happy enough, 
 though not so blest as thou shalt be ere long. Come 
 with me to my cavern in the forest : and if I do 
 not quickly bring Phantasraion to thy feet, in that 
 secret dwelling, I will hide my head there for the 
 remainder of my life." Zelneth trode on air when 
 she heard Malderyl speak thus : she washed herself 
 white in a pure fountain, and joyfully accompanied 
 the sorceress queen to her cave in the woods. 
 
 larine meantime wound along the mountain, 
 scarce pausing for a moment to survey the syl- 
 van prospect before her, but going steadily on 
 till she found the well in a hollow betwixt two 
 rocky ridges. This dale was clothed with her- 
 bage, converted into stone by the overflowings 
 of the spring; and the breeze, when it swept 
 the valley, stirred not a leaf that grew there. 
 Joyfully the maiden smiled when she saw these 
 manifest signs of the water's potency, and ima- 
 gined that it would brace and strengthen her fa- 
 ther's quivering frame even as it had enabled the 
 tremulous reeds and blades of grass to stand firm 
 against the wind. With a fragment of rock in 
 her hand she ascended the petrified mound that en- 
 cased the spring, and, having flung her burden into 
 the well, kneeled down and listened for the noise 
 described by Malderyl, who had told her that the 
 waters were commonly out of reach ; that she must 
 throw a heavy stone into the pit, whereupon they 
 
230 PHANTASMION. 
 
 would gradually rise higher and higher, till at last 
 they might be taken up by the bucket ; that when 
 she heard a noise like stifled thunder she must 
 listen carefully till it changed to that of bubbling 
 and hissing ; then, regardless of the fumes, which 
 would pour from the mouth of the pit, she must 
 let down her bucket and fill quickly, ere the water 
 again sank out of reach. And now larine has 
 caught the sound, and with a beating heart she 
 applies her ear close to the opening, in spite of the 
 hot vapours with which she begins to be enveloped : 
 such indeed was the effect upon her frame that 
 she felt as if she must quickly dissolve and trickle 
 into the well or float away to the sky in subtle 
 steam : yet still she listened, holding her breath 
 lest she should fail to hear the sign, and miss the 
 right moment. But, just as the hissing noise com- 
 menced, just as she was about to raise her head 
 and lower the bucket, a youth leaped forward, 
 caught her suddenly in his arms, and rushed away 
 to a distance from the shining mound ; and, scarce 
 had he placed the maiden on her feet, when the 
 volumes of steam sent forth from the pit were 
 succeeded by a column of boiling water, which rose 
 higher than the dark rocks behind it, and, falling 
 in foaming curves, quickly deluged the surround- 
 ing vale. The fountain continued to play before 
 larine, mounting higher and higher, as if it would 
 sweep down the clouds, — a pile of rainbow splen- 
 dour with a crest of a thousand feathers as white 
 
PHANTASMIOi^. 231 
 
 as snow ; — and, while she watched it in speechless 
 amazement, the youn^ huntsman gazed upon her 
 face in equal wonder and almost equal agitation. 
 " What didst thou at the boiling well ? " at length 
 he inquired. " I have been cruelly deceived," the 
 maid rephed, and then began to relate how she had 
 been beguiled into undertaking her pilgrimage. 
 
 " One night," she said, " I was working for my 
 step-mother in a lonely tower : the evening shades 
 came on, I dropped my needle, being unable to dis- 
 tinguish the colours of the embroidery, and, hear- 
 ing my silver pheasant tap at the window, I hastened 
 to let her in. But, when I rose, the bird was not 
 at the casement, and looking out, I saw that she 
 had fallen to the ground, with an arrow in her breast. 
 Then I hastened down the steps of the tower and 
 bent over my favourite." " O surely she revived !" 
 replied the youth, fixing his eyes, full of tenderest 
 rapture, upon larine, as if to say that looks of pity 
 from her face were enough to heal any wound. 
 " Nay," replied the maiden, '* my bird seemed 
 stone dead ; — but, raising my tearful eyes, I saw a 
 lady wrapped in a shining veil, with a vial in her 
 hand. Pure water from this tiny vessel she poured 
 on the face of the bird, when suddenly I saw the 
 glazed eye relume within its scarlet rim, the ruffled 
 feathers expand and shew their finest gloss, like 
 silken streamers swollen with the wind, and, rising 
 from the ground, my graceful favourite took her 
 highest flight, clearing the tower, and sinking down 
 
232 PHANTASMION, 
 
 into the grove beyond. I turned to thank the lady 
 in the shining veil, but she was gone, and never 
 again did I behold her, till one night when I sallied 
 forth to free a prisoner from the lonely tower." 
 *' A prisoner !" said the youth, " and thou wast 
 going to set him free !" larine blushed as she pur- 
 sued her story. " On that night I met the same 
 veiled lady in the grove, betwixt the castle and 
 the tower : * Wilt thou serve strangers,' she said, 
 ' and do nothing for those that are near to thee, for 
 poor Albinian and his sickly son V Then I be- 
 sought her to tell me how I might serve them, 
 and she bade me seek the fountain head of that 
 water with which she had restored the dying bird. 
 * How shall I find it V I eagerly replied. ' Go 
 to Queen Malderyl,' she answered, ' bearing this 
 token from me ; but tell no one whither thou art 
 bound, or on what errand ; unless thou goest in 
 secret, she will not reveal the salutary spring.' Then 
 placing an ivory tablet in my hand, again she dis- 
 appeared." " And didst thou free the prisoner ?" 
 the young huntsman anxiously inquired. larine 
 paused : then answered, " I trust he is now at li- 
 berty, though not through me." " And thou hast 
 taken this long pilgrimage," cried the enamoured 
 youth, " all for thy father's and thy brother's sake ! 
 — and the cruel queen gave thee that bucket, and 
 would have sent thee to destruction ?" " O for a 
 swift steed !" cried larine, "to travel day and night 
 till I reached the Diamanthine Palace !" *' Come 
 
PHANTASMION. 233 
 
 with me !" exclaimed the youth, seizing her hand ; 
 " even here we are not in safety." 
 
 The maiden now perceived volumes of smoke 
 far above the watery column ; they rose from a 
 high peak, and soon were changed to spiral 
 flames, which occupied the vault of heaven just 
 over the foaming fountain. larine kept pace 
 with the speed of her conductor : soon they reached 
 the grove below the hill where the young hunts- 
 man had left his horse to follow a goat among the 
 rocks : he placed the princess hastily on his steed, 
 and, mounting before her, never ceased urging him 
 forward, till he was in the very bosom of the forest. 
 " We are going farther from Rockland !" ex- 
 claimed the maid in sorrow. "Trust to me," the 
 youth replied : " this way will sooner bring thee 
 home than to retrace thy steps." larine was 
 bewildered by the ocean of trees into which they 
 were launched, but hoped that she should emerge 
 from it in time, and find herself in some territory 
 not far distant from Rockland. It was almost dark 
 in the shady track through which the young hunts- 
 man threaded his way: he had left his bow near the 
 boiling fountain, so that the quiver at his shoulder 
 would have been of little avail had one of the 
 panthers, whose bright eyes glared from under the 
 dark branches, felt courage for an attack ; but at 
 his approach they bounded away, leaping from tree 
 to tree. At last larine began to catch bright gleams 
 and moving objects through the foliage, and soon 
 
234 PHANTASMION^. 
 
 her conductor came upon the skirts of a wide plea- 
 sure ground, on the slope of a hill crowned by a 
 goodly palace, which, from glittering spires and 
 gay enamelled windows, reflected the rays of the 
 sun, just then about to sink on the opposite woody 
 horizon. Below the mansion were hanging gardens 
 of rich flowers, intersected with rivulets, which ran 
 among the beds of roses, like tears down a bright 
 blushing face. On a lawn at the foot of the hill 
 a band of youths and maidens were dancing : these 
 had no sooner espied the noble huntsman than they' 
 came forward in a body to cast their wreaths at his 
 feet, and, by their festive cries and salutations, 
 larine learned that her companion was Ulander, 
 chief of Nemorosa. The maiden entered his dwell- 
 ing still beguiled by hopes that she was on the way 
 to Rockland, but soon discovered that her being 
 restored to the arms of her father depended on a 
 condition which even love for him could never 
 strengthen her to fulfil. As Ulander's bride she 
 might revisit her native country, but else was 
 doomed to brook the fruitless penance of distaste- 
 ful courtship in a foreign land. Day after day 
 she complied with every request of her adorer, save 
 that alone to which all his petitions tended ; she 
 flew by his side on the light steed, pierced the pard, 
 or lynx, or savage deer, and, while the forest 
 rang with praises of the graceful huntress, and 
 Ulander kneeling declared that she excelled in skill 
 and courage even as in loveliness, the gentle maiden 
 
PHANTASMION. 235 
 
 longed to fly with those she pursued, and either 
 escape or perish. From her chamber in Ulander's 
 palace she looked out over the undulating forest 
 of Nemorosa, which appeared like a wavy ocean 
 fixed in stillness by an enchanter's wand : for gold 
 or silver gleams, when the sun shone, there was 
 a gilded verdure, and, when the breezes blew, for 
 ocean's purple fi-own, a ripple of green leaves. 
 But care darkened the shadows of the scene for 
 her, and sickening hope tinted the mellow foliage. 
 Now she thought of Phantasmion ; of him she had 
 so resolutely quitted, whose pursuit she had almost 
 feared ; , now she repined at that multitude of trees, 
 which seemed to interpose an endless barrier be- 
 twixt them, and gazed for hours on the woodland 
 prospect, still faintly hoping, deeply longing, to 
 see him rise with the morning star from the skirts 
 of the forest, or sail from the golden east with 
 brightened wings over the green expanse. 
 
 On a tufted knoll behind the palace Ulander was 
 carving larine's name upon a cypress with a spear's 
 point, when, hearing her soft voice among the trees 
 beyond, he dropped the implement, and, resting his 
 head against a bough, listened with grieved heart 
 to these numbers : 
 
 He came unlook'd for, undesir'd, 
 A sun-rise in the northern sky : 
 More than the brightest dawn admir'd. 
 To shine and then for ever fly. 
 
 His love, conferr'd without a claim. 
 Perchance was like the fitful blaze. 
 
236 PHANTASMION. 
 
 Which lives to light a steadier flame, 
 And, while that strengthens, fast decays. 
 
 Glad fawn along the forest springing. 
 Gay birds that breeze-like stir the leaves. 
 Why hither haste, no message bringing, 
 T6 solace one that deeply grieves 1 
 
 Thou star that dost the skies adorn. 
 So brightly heralding the day, 
 Bring one more welcome than the morn. 
 Or still in night's dark prison stay. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 PHANTASMION GOES TO FIGHT GLANDRETH AND 
 ENCOUNTERS PENSELIMER. 
 
 " TTTHILE Phantasmion seeks larine Glan- 
 T T dreth shall conquer the Land of Palms !" 
 " Surely," thoug-ht the young monarch, '' Oloola 
 is secretly on my side, and those words, which 
 were blown to my ear as with the blast of a trumpet, 
 were meant to give me warning. Not only this 
 kingdom but larine herself will never be securely 
 mine while my enemy lives and triumphs." After 
 a conference with Potentilla he informed his coun- 
 cil that, as Glandreth alone endangered the safety 
 of the realm, and to conquer him would be to ex- 
 tinguish the war at once, he had resolved on defy- 
 ing him to single combat, and purposed to announce 
 
PHANTASMION. 237 
 
 himself, in the challenge, as a puissant warriour, 
 sent by the king of Palmland to encounter the 
 mighty general of Albinian. He had already 
 given orders for raising an army, and guarding 
 the sea coast with a numerous fleet ; there were 
 hosts of brave men at his disposal, but the want of 
 metal armour was one which no ingenuity could 
 supply, and rendered his subjects ill fitted to con- 
 tend with the men of Rockland, who had iron 
 without as well as firm sinews within. This con- 
 sideration only heightened Phantasmion's desire to 
 encounter Glandreth, and, seeking the pomegra- 
 nate tree, at the first peep of dawn, he besought Po- 
 tentilla to produce that powerful armour with which 
 she had offered to furnish him. She struck the earth, 
 and brought before the eyes of Phantasmion a pair 
 of warriour ants which fought ferociously till both 
 were exhausted. " How sayest thou ?" said Po- 
 tentilla ; '' wilt thou be armed like these pugnacious 
 insects ?" The youth having readily consented, 
 she laid her wand upon his head, then bade him 
 strike it with his dagger. He did so, and found it 
 perfectly impenetrable; but, looking with eager 
 curiosity into a clear pool hard by, he started at 
 the portentous shadow of his insect helmet. It 
 displayed a moveable crest in the shape of jagged 
 awlshaped jaws, with which, if other weapons 
 failed, a terrible wound might be inflicted, while 
 the face and breast of the wearer appeared to be 
 cased in a substance tough as horn, yet hard as 
 
'23S PHANTASMION. 
 
 brass. The youth was still surveying his figure, 
 not without dismay, little thinking that the picture 
 of it was at that same moment before the eyes of 
 Penselimer in the house of Malderyl, when Po- 
 tentilla placed in his hand ^e sting of a scorpion, 
 increased to the size of the largest scimetar, and 
 taught him how the fearful weapon was to be used. 
 "But thou wilt rid me of this disguise as soon as 
 the fight is over ?" said Phantasmion. Potentilla 
 smiling replied, " It might stand thee in good 
 stead whither thou art going. Malderyl has a 
 young kinsman who pursues fair damsels more 
 earnestly than the bright eyed antelope and silver 
 coated hind. The constancy of thy mistress may 
 be strongly assailed in the country of Ulander." 
 ^' How sayest thou ?" exclaimed Phantasmion, but 
 the Fairy disappeared, leaving him wrapped in 
 thought and gazing on vacancy, till the sting of an 
 ant upon his right foot admonished him to set off 
 without delay. Forthwith he concealed his face 
 and the upper part of his body with a mask and a 
 cloak, which, at the Fairy's suggestion he had 
 brought to the interview, mounted his horse, and 
 through rugged passes among the Black Mountains 
 travelled toward the house of Glandreth. 
 
 His adversary meantime had been pondering 
 over the defiance from Palmland, when Penselimer 
 arrived bearing the letter of Malderyl. On pe- 
 rusing this crafty epistle Glandreth was v*'ell con- 
 tent that the king of Almaterra should stand in 
 
PHANTASMION. 239 
 
 his place, and fight his enemy with charmed wea- 
 pons, resolving- in the meanwhile to lead his well 
 trained forces into the realm he so much desired 
 to invade. He would not even await the event 
 of the conflict, but stole away, after pompously 
 accepting' the challenge, and, while Phantasmion 
 was traversing Rockland, Glandreth was on his 
 way to the Land of Palms. 
 
 The combatants met on a wide plain before 
 Glandreth's castle in the presence of a large as- 
 sembly. Phantasmion looked at the sky and 
 satisfied himself that it was perfectly clear ; then 
 he cast his eyes on his adversary, and thought that 
 Glandreth, though of noble port and stature, was 
 by no means so broad-built a man as he had for- 
 merly imagined. The king of Almaterra, mean- 
 time, could scarce turn his attention from Phantas- 
 mion's woollen cloak, which lay on the ground; for 
 though it was only wrapped about the serpent 
 wand, and a silver cup, he imagined that it con- 
 cealed nothing less than Anthemmina's pitcher. 
 But now the trumpet sounded, and great was the 
 astonishment both of Phantasmion and an amphi- 
 theatre of spectators to see Penselimer's panoply 
 diip all over, then fall into furrows, and, lastly, 
 trickle away in many a bubbling stream, as if he 
 were but a waxen warriour, and melted at the very 
 breath of his antagonist. Such was the effect of 
 Malderyl's treachery, such the power of her mut- 
 tered charm, that Penselimer quickly stood bare in 
 
240 PHANTASMIQN. 
 
 the sijili Oi' ?-\\ men, his helmet with its vizor and 
 his uplifted blade alone remaining for a season firm. 
 When drops began to fall from the end of that 
 weapon also he indignantly rushed upon Phantas- 
 mion ; but no sooner had he felt the point of the 
 scorpion sword, than, uttering a loud cry, he sank 
 senseless on the ground, with the magic weapon 
 sticking fast in his side. 
 
 At the same moment that he fell Phantasmion's 
 fairy accoutrements vanished, and, when with loud 
 shouts Penselimer was removed from the field, he 
 procured fresh armour, and challenged every war- 
 riour present to stand in Glandreth's place ; but all 
 declining the combat he forthwith departed to roam 
 in search of larine. And now that deeds of arms 
 ho more engaged his thoughts they centred wholly 
 in that fair and pious maid, whose image beamed 
 on all sides of his solitary path ; and this was one 
 of many strains with which he addressed her : 
 
 Yon changeful cloud will soon thy aspect wear 
 
 So bright it grows : — and now, by light winds shaken, 
 
 O ever seen yet ne'er to be o'ertaken ! 
 
 Those waving branches seem thy billowy hair. 
 
 The C3rpress glades recall thy pensive air ; 
 
 Slow rills, that wind like snakes amid the grass. 
 
 Thine eye's mild sparkle fling me as they pass. 
 
 Yet murmuring cry. This fruitless quest forbear ! 
 
 Nay e'en amid the cataract's loud storm. 
 
 Where foamy torrents from the crags are leaping, 
 
 Methinks I catch swift glimpses of thy form. 
 
 Thy robe's light folds in airy tumult sweeping ; 
 
 Then silent are the falls : 'mid colours warm 
 
 Gleams the bright maze beneath their splendour sleeping. 
 
PHANTASMIOlf. 241 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 PHANTASMION IS DETAINED IN MALDERYl's CAVE. 
 
 PHANTASMION pursued the same track which 
 his gentle princess had taken through Tigri- 
 dia, and excited curiosity in all who beheld him by 
 his noble aspect and kingly air. The first discourse 
 of his cottage hosts was ever concerning the fair 
 pilgrim larine, and this tale was sure to be followed 
 by an animated history of Ulander as its counter- 
 part. Phantasmion glowed and trembled when he 
 heard those names wedded in description, and 
 scarce dared inquire about Nemorosa lest he should 
 hear some unwelcome eulogy on the graces of 
 its youthful chief. Thus he fared, tracing his 
 lady's footsteps to the house of Malderyl, where 
 he learned that the ancient queen had repaired to 
 the forest with a most beautiful maiden. His 
 heart beat higher than ever at this intelligence : a 
 most beautiful maiden could be no other than larine, 
 and it seemed plain as the sun at noon day that 
 Malderyl was bent on securing so rich a prize for 
 her young kinsman Ulander. He wound along 
 the bottom of the mountain and left his horse, be- 
 fore night-fall, at the cottage of a goatherd, think- 
 
 R 
 
242 PHANTASMION. 
 
 ing that he could best proceed on foot through the 
 tangled forest to find Malderyl's retreat. Provided 
 as he was with good armour and dauntless courage 
 he feared neither man nor beast, but anxious 
 thoughts and surmises crowded on his mind, like 
 swarms of stinging gnats, the pertinacity of which 
 no efforts were suflficient to repel. Just as his 
 mental fever had reached its height, and had begun 
 to bring, even before his visual eye, a graceful 
 huntsman kneeling at the feet of larine, in whose 
 face a smile seemed to dawn, but whether of cold 
 courtesy or nascent love he vainly strove to dis- 
 tinguish, — a voice whispered, seemingly from un- 
 derground, '' Dost thou seek larine ? she dwells 
 with Ulander : and — the loveliest of all maidens is 
 in Malderyl's cave." Phantasmion shivered, and 
 an instant afterwards his veins could scarce contain 
 their scalding currents. '' larine with Ulander 
 in Malderyl's cave ! " " Surely," thought he, 
 " that was not the mere voice of my delirium." 
 Then he began to rave and shout aloud, as if 
 the forest could hear him, " Where is the cave ? 
 where is the cave ? O these huge trees, that 
 stretch their giant arms, and point on all sides, how 
 they too madden me !" Flinging away his cloak, 
 he rushed on wildly till he was stopped by close 
 underwood, growing over a swamp. Here again 
 a voice rose to his ear, crying, " larine dwells with 
 Ulander: seek the beauty in Malderyl's cave." 
 
PHANTASMION. 243 
 
 Phantasmion now looked down and perceived a 
 strange figure, but could not see either its form 
 or features clearly from the dimness of the place. 
 " Do thou shew me the way, whoever thou art," 
 cried the youth, franticly waving his sword. At 
 these words Malderyl's toad-like dwarf leaped from 
 amid the bushes, and skipped on before Phantas- 
 mion, who followed him till the umbrageous path 
 was faintly illumined by what appeared in the dis- 
 tance like two huge eyes of fire. '* Those are 
 openings in front of Malderyl's rocky tenement," 
 saidthedwarf ; " their light will guide thee^ thither." 
 Phantasmion looked at his good steel blade, then 
 hastened on and entered the cavern by a winding 
 passage. He paused at the threshold, and saw no 
 graceful hunter youth, but a wrinkled crone, in 
 queenly attire, bending over the flames of a well 
 heaped hearth and carefully inspecting the contents 
 of a wide vessel, which simmered amid the blaze, 
 and filled the cave with odorous inebriating fumes. 
 Beside her stood the glowing and beautiful Zelneth, 
 her glossy raven locks carelessly flung back from 
 her white forehead, and her splendid eyes intent 
 upon the work that was going on. She held in 
 both hands a crystal bowl, into which Malderyl 
 began to pour some of the rosy liquid scooped from 
 the cauldron, when Phantasmion appeared and 
 caused such alarm in the damsel's mind, that the 
 vessel would have fallen to the ground, if her com- 
 
244 PHANTASMION. 
 
 panion had not taken it from her. " King of 
 Palmland," said the aged queen, " thou art wel- 
 come; be seated and take oflFthy cumbrous armour." 
 Muttering within herself she touched the head of 
 the youth, as he bent forward to look after Zelneth, 
 who had retreated to the inner part of the cave, 
 when his crested helmet vanished, and soon the 
 hyacinthine locks and goodly countenance of 
 Phantasraion were revealed by the red light of 
 the flames. Then Zelneth uttered a cry of astonish- 
 ment and exclaimed, " O Malderyl ! is this a de- 
 lusion of magic, or do I look upon the very face of 
 him I love ?" " Dost thou still love Phantasmion, 
 best and loveliest?" cried the youth, rushing forward 
 to throw himself on his knees, his whole soul pos- 
 sessed with the image of larine ; but, looking up 
 and beholding Zelneth, her bright face beaming 
 with transport, her fair form almost appearing to 
 expand from the joy of her bosom, he started away 
 with a countenance of deep disappointment ! " Zel- 
 neth, daughter of Magnart!" he exclaimed in a 
 sorrowful tone ; '* tell me, hast thou lately seen 
 thy kinswoman larine ?" The damsel turned 
 away without speaking, and, while tears gushed 
 between the ivory fingers that strove to conceal 
 them, Malderyl, who still bent over the cauldron, 
 answered in her stead. " larine was gaily hunt- 
 ing the deer," said she, " by the side of her be- 
 trothed Ulander, when Zelneth came to my house 
 in search of Leucoia. larine, pretending to serve 
 
PHANTASMION. 245 
 
 her parent, deserts him for a lover, while this 
 maiden faces a thousand dangers for her sister's 
 sake, and loves with constancy though hopeless of 
 a return." Zelneth flung her white arms around 
 Malderyl, and, hiding her head, she gently cried 
 with half suppressed sobs, " O speak no more ! 
 Phantasmion will win back his beauteous bride, 
 and Zelneth would rather die than trouble his hap- 
 piness." The youth's brain had been half unsettled 
 by feverish suspicions together with bodily fatigue, 
 and now the steams of the liquor doubled its con-^ 
 fusion : he turned away and would have rushed 
 out into the forest, to seek his rival, but the cavern 
 appeared to be full of passages winding in every 
 direction, and he found it impossible to hit upon 
 the one by which he had entered. '* Take thy 
 rest here to night," said Malderyl ; " thou wilt 
 never find the Sylvan Palace in the dark, and to- 
 morrow, or a month hence larine may still be found 
 at the house of Ulander, — if thou must indeed go 
 fight for that gathered lily, with tarnished leaf and 
 tainted fragrance." At another time Phantasmion 
 would have flamed at those words like a fire fresh 
 fuelled, but now the luscious vapours were stealing 
 over his senses ; he was gazing unconsciously upon 
 Zelneth, as she stood a little behind Malderyl with 
 arms pensively crossed and downcast face, shaded 
 on each side by drooping locks. He retired to a 
 recess in the cavern, and tried to think again his 
 former thoughts and purposes ; but insensibly they 
 
246 PHANTASMIOir. 
 
 floated away. His rage against Ulander seemed 
 to dissolve, or turn into its opposite, and he vainly 
 sought to keep firm hold of that or any other feeling. 
 Zelneth approached with the crystal basin in her 
 hands, and said to him, as he sate in the shadow, 
 ** Malderyl has been preparing a precious liquor 
 for my beloved parents, it takes away all sense of 
 toil and pain." " She stood with her face half 
 turned away, yet holding the vessel within Phan- 
 tasmion's reach. He put out his hand towards it, 
 gazing all the time on the damsel ; but, with a 
 sudden efifort, he drew it back again, and turned 
 his face to the rocky wall. Zelneth sipped the 
 liquid, then cried to the aged woman, who was busy 
 about the fire, stirring and skimming the cauldron, 
 " Malderyl, add nothing more ; it cannot be 
 better. I will go fetch the jars in which it must 
 stand this night." She left the crystal basin on a 
 table of rock just opposite to Phantasmion : he saw 
 the liquor lie glowing and creaming in the bowl, like 
 melted rubies frothed with pearl ; he inhaled its 
 sweet bewildering odour, and, scarce knowing what 
 he did, the youth raised it to his lips and drank 
 deeply. In a moment he was electrified with de- 
 light, a rapturous tranquillity pervading his whole 
 frame : he felt intoxicated with pleasure which 
 sprang from no cause and tended to no object, yet 
 was ever ready to be reflected and multiplied from 
 all objects around : he seemed incapable of thinking 
 and happier than any thought could make him. 
 
PHANTASMION. 247 
 
 Zelneth returned from the further part of the 
 cavern, bringing jars in her hand : in the eyes of 
 the spell-bound prince she now appeared to be 
 glorified by a supernatural light of beauty ; joy 
 streamed from every line of her face and form into 
 the joyful heart of the prince, as light shoots from 
 the surface of smooth water back toward its 
 heavenly source. All thought of Zelneth, all 
 thought of larine, all remembrance of the past, all 
 anticipation of the future were completely sus- 
 pended : he only knew that he was gazing on a sun 
 of loveliness, in which a thousand beauties seemed 
 to converge, while the feelings inspired by his own 
 heavenly maid were mingled with his new sensa- 
 tions, though the object of them was veiled in his 
 memory by a dazzling mist. Zelneth retired again 
 into the dark recess to fetch more vessels, while 
 Phantasmion, recHning on a smooth low rock with 
 his head sunk into a mossy hollow, beheld fantastic 
 petrifactions, which hung from the ceiling, illumi- 
 nated by the fire-light. He gazed upon them in 
 ecstasy, and felt as if the transport of his bosom, 
 which invested them with splendour, was derived 
 from those unmeaning forms, till Zelneth, again 
 presenting herself, occupied his whole fancy, and 
 seemed once more to be the fountain of all his glad 
 sensations. The damsel now ventured to cast her 
 eyes upon him, and, seeing the bowl by his side, 
 was sure that he had drunk the charmed liquor ; 
 eagerly she perused his countenance, and, reading 
 
248 PHANTASMION. 
 
 the deepest fascination of love in every line of it, 
 she let the jar fall upon the floor. " He is mine !" 
 she whispered, clasping her hands ; '' O Malderyl, 
 is this all thy work ? have I no part in it ? but 
 will not the enchantment fade ? will Phantasmion 
 love Zelneth for ever ?" He heard the words and 
 smiled on her who spoke them, but spoke not him- 
 self, his eyes being heavy with sleep. As an infant 
 lies in his cradle watching every motion of her 
 whom he loves fondly, but unconsciously, free from 
 the burden of esteem, and obligation of gratitude, 
 so Phantasmion followed with his eyes the beautiful 
 Zelneth, and saw her prepare a couch for him on 
 the floor of the cavern. She heaped up sweet- 
 scented withered leaves, and strewed over them 
 the skins of wolves and flowing fur of lynxes; 
 Phantasmion sank down upon the soft bed, and 
 was speedily wrapped in slumber. Zelneth kneeled 
 beside him, gazing on his gentle and noble coun- 
 tenance, as the fire-light irradiated his fair brow, 
 where all the soft blue veins were traceable under 
 a smooth surface, and his bright youthful cheek 
 reclining amid the spoils of savage animals, and 
 surrounded by the black walls and shadowy hollows 
 of the cavern. Already she fancied herself the 
 flower-crowned bride of Phantasmion, and breathed 
 in a soft lulling melody this happy strain : — 
 
 I was a brook in straitest channel pent. 
 Forcing 'mid rocks and stones my toilsome way, 
 A scanty brook in wandering well nigh spent; 
 
PHANTASMION. 249 
 
 But now with thee, rich stream, conjoin'd I stray. 
 Through golden meads the river sweeps along. 
 Murmuring its deep full joy in gentlest undersong. 
 
 I crept through desert moor and gloomy glade. 
 
 My waters ever vex'd, yet sad and slow. 
 
 My waters ever steep'd in baleful shade : 
 
 But, whilst with thee, rich stream, conjoin'd I flow. 
 
 E'en in swift course the river seems to rest. 
 
 Blue sky, bright bloom, and verdure imag'd on its breast. 
 
 And, whilst with thee I roam through regions bright. 
 
 Beneath kind love's serene and gladsome sky, 
 
 A thousand happy things that seek the light. 
 
 Till now in darkest shadow forc'd to lie, 
 
 Up through the illumin'd waters nimbly run. 
 
 To shew their forms and hues in the all revealing sun. 
 
 Singing thus she fell asleep, and, when her eyes 
 were fast sealed in slumber, Phantasmion heard a 
 shrill voice, crying, " Awake, young prince of 
 Palmland, awake !" He raised his head and saw 
 Malderyl sitting on the floor, an urn by her side, 
 a branch of red berries on her lap, her fingers wet 
 with purple juice. The crown she lately wore was 
 thrown aside, her eyes shot fire, and Phantasmion 
 knew that the face he now looked upon, was the 
 very face of the strange old man who told him of 
 his mother's death. A shadowy form hovers aloft : 
 it is the spirit of the poisoned child : Phantasmion 
 remembers that swollen spotted cheek as if he had 
 seen it but yesterday. " Beware, young prince of 
 Palmland !" the wan spectre cries, and, unmoved 
 at Malderyl's awful threats, with sullen eye and 
 
250 
 
 PHANTASMION. 
 
 obstinate finger keeps pointing to the purple berries 
 that lie beside the urn. *' Witch ! Murderess !" 
 exclaimed Phantasmion starting up ; but, while he 
 strove to free his feet from the coverings of the 
 couch, Malderyl stirred the cauldron till fumes 
 filled the cave and entered every pore and inlet of 
 the youth's body. He sank down again, and scarce 
 had pressed the furry pillow, when Zelneth met 
 his eye, Zelneth, smiling in sleep, her head inclined 
 on one ivory shoulder and her soft white arm ex- 
 tended over the skin of a black wolf. The charm 
 resumed its power, the murderess and the ghastly 
 spectre vanished from his sight, and, dreaming 
 only of lilied meads, bright streams, and perfect 
 loveliness he lay in deep repose within the rugged 
 cavern. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 PHANTASMION IS DISENCHANTED BY OLOOLA. 
 
 FROM the witch's cavern subterranean pas- 
 sages conducted into a delicious garden, em- 
 bosomed in the forest, and surrounded by a double 
 fence of lofty trees. Here the prince found him- 
 self when he awoke in the morning : bright wreaths 
 of an acacia bower drooped over his head ; flowers 
 
 \ 
 
PHANTASMION. 251 
 
 blushed, and streamlets glittered far as eye could 
 reach ; a splendid picture was hung out before 
 him, and Zelneth, placed at coy distance, appeared 
 the very subject of the piece. Phantasmion sprang 
 from his odorous couch, and, approaching the 
 damsel, seemed to tread on air. No trace of the 
 warning vision remained in his memory, and, now 
 that the charm had taken into its alliance the re- 
 freshment of sleep, he was transported with a still 
 more exquisite delirium than on the preceding 
 evening. He felt it to be his turn to speak, while 
 Zelneth was speechless with happiness, drinking 
 in his fluent love-discourse, as if it were a rill 
 which ever gratified, but never removed, the plea- 
 surable thirst it excited, while to him this volu- 
 bility seemed in itself an enjoyment, and resembled 
 the soft lapse of the brimming rivulet which wan- 
 dered past his feet to visit a thousand floweiy knots 
 and odorous copses. Phantasmion scarce noted 
 anything stedfastly, or considered whence it arose, 
 or what it betokened ; but, sitting by the side of 
 Zelneth, and pouring himself forth in admiration 
 of her charms, he ever and anon caught glimpses 
 of Feydeleen's flower-like face, darting smiles 
 from corners of the bower, dim with the shadow 
 of clustered roses, while now and then her fingers 
 came like a twinkling butterfly and scattered over 
 the head of the delighted maiden a shower of light 
 petals from the frailest and most transitory blossoms. 
 Zelneth saw not Feydeleen, nor anything but 
 
252 PHANTASMION. 
 
 Phantasmion; she rose from her seat to fetch a 
 well filled urn, which had been placed in the arbour ; 
 it was the vessel which contained the poisoned 
 juice, and the moment so long watched for by Mal- 
 deryl seemed about to arrive. The sorceress leans 
 forward over a leafy bough : Phantasmion's glance 
 for a moment is diverted from the maid, and that 
 prominent eye-ball, flashing amid the foliage, brings 
 dim recollections to his mind ; but Malderyl sinks 
 back to her hiding place, and the youth turns to 
 gaze on Zelneth, who stands smiling before him, 
 with a crystal goblet in her left hand. " Wilt thou 
 drink once more," she said, " and promise to be mine 
 for ever ?" Phantasmion threw himself on his knees, 
 ready to utter vows of eternal love and faithful- 
 ness, having forgotten those he had made to larine, 
 as if they had been characters formed in ice, which 
 a hot sun had melted away. At the same moment, 
 his tongue was arrested and the blood appeared to 
 stagnate in his veins ; the air had become piercing 
 cold, and filled with white vapour; the brook 
 ceased to murmur, and the birds to sing ; the waters 
 were congealed, the leaves and flowers wan aud 
 drooping, the branches encrusted with hoary rime. 
 But the eyes of Phantasmion were fixed on Zelneth; 
 motionless she stood, one arm raising aloft the urn, 
 from whose lip an icicle depended, the other hold- 
 ing the empty crystal goblet, now no longer grasped 
 but glued to the powerless palm. She was frozen 
 to the ground : the glowing carnation of her cheek 
 
PHANTASMION. 253 
 
 had faded to palest lilac ; a deathy blueness tinged 
 her brow of pearl, and crept over her bosom ; 
 wreaths of frost curled around her stiffened jetty- 
 ringlets ; her arms looked brittle and crystalline ; 
 while those dark orbs, that lately almost eluded the 
 sight by their lifesome motion had a dull shine 
 upon them, like eyes of glass, and seemed fixed in 
 their marble sockets. Phantasmion would have 
 risen and approached the damsel, but strove in 
 vain to move one step nearer to her statue-like 
 form. His heart beat fearfully, but every other 
 part of his frame was beginning to lose power and 
 sensation : his head was fixed on one side ; his 
 knee clung to the earth, and no longer perceived 
 its coldness : the fingers of his extended hand 
 were cramped into one, and felt as if they touched 
 each other through velvet : he seemed to be fast 
 changing into a form of ice. On a sudden the 
 sky grew black, showers of stony hail came rush- 
 ing on between him and his fair companion, he 
 was wrapped round about in a sheet of snow, while 
 blasts, which he found it impossible to resist, 
 carried him to the further end of the garden, pros- 
 trated the tall fence of trees with interwoven 
 branches, and continued to impel him onwards for 
 many a mile and many a league, till at length, 
 when the wind lulled, he sank upon the open plain 
 far beyond the Forest of Nemorosa, his blood 
 mo^dng rapidly and his limbs stiff with exertion. 
 Phantasmion had fallen under the shelter of 
 
2.54 PHANTASMION". 
 
 massy walls overgrown with ivy, the wreck of a 
 palace where Tigridia's monarchs had dwelt from 
 age to age. Here the husband of Malderyl and 
 her son Sylvalad had been treacherously murdered 
 when Glandreth invaded the land, and Maudra her 
 daughter, becoming enamoured of the blood-stained 
 hero, followed him as a voluntary captive. The 
 two sons of Sylvalad had been brought up by the 
 widowed queen ; one had perished in a far country, 
 the other, whose name was Ulander, bore sway in 
 the woodland fastnesses where his father had ruled 
 before him, but was too wild and careless to attempt 
 the recovery of his whole inheritance. The wind 
 had relented, the sky was disclosing more and 
 more of its blue dome, snakes and lizards came 
 forth to glitter in the sun, and the solitary bird 
 that hides its nest under grey ruins sought food in 
 the moistened herbage, enjoying, amid the desola- 
 tion of that ancient abode, the pleasures of a dear 
 though transient home. Still the breeze lingered 
 round Phantasmion, playing with his wet robe and 
 gently shaking the particles of snow from his re- 
 dundant locks. Plaintive sounds issued from dif- 
 ferent parts of the building, as if a penitent lover 
 were uttering meek confessions mingled with re- 
 gret, and from within the pile some solemn instru- 
 ment sent forth a deep slow melody of former days. 
 While it was yet proceeding the youth heard a 
 voice that seemed to be just above his head. " Phan- 
 tasmion," it whispered, *' what dost thou here, 
 
PHANTASMION. 255 
 
 while faithful larine wanders in Nemorosa ?" Soon 
 afterwards the same voice appeared to come from 
 a higher point ; it was accompanied with a noise 
 of light wings fanning the air, and to the youth's 
 anxious ear it seemed to say, " Phantasmion must 
 seek larine while Glandreth conquers the Land 
 of Palms." After these words were spoken the 
 solemn music swelled into a fuller tone, then sank 
 into silence : Phantasmion started up, and saw the 
 pinnacles of the edifice gilded, here and there, by 
 partial beams which struggled forth from amid dis- 
 orderly heaps of dark vapour. Just beyond the 
 battlements of a black tower, he beholds trans- 
 parent pinions, spread to their vast extent, with 
 the sun glittering through them. A moment 
 afterwards they recede : Oloola dives among the 
 clouds on which those golden wings shed radiance. 
 On she goes, sweeping the sky, as a shearer sweeps 
 away the fleeces of the new-shorn flock : and now 
 she is indistinguishable from the mass that moves 
 along with her, and now both she and the clouds 
 themselves are gone, leaving the cope of heaven 
 pure and resplendent, as if it were cut out of a single 
 sapphire through which a powerful sun was pour- 
 ing its diffusive light. 
 
256 PHANTASMION. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 ZELNETH IS CARRIED TO THE SYLVAN PALACE, 
 WHITHER PHANTASMION GOES IN SEARCH OF 
 lARINE. 
 
 THE Storm which followed that intense frost 
 had beaten on the rigid form of Zelneth un- 
 felt, unseen ; but now the charm was broken, the 
 stony locks fell loose, all gemmed with dew-drops 
 gleaming in the soft sunlight, and, even as thawing 
 streams break forth into sound and motion, so the 
 damsel moved and spoke once more, and sparkled 
 with returning life. She roamed about the garden 
 where Feydeleen had revived the drooping flowers 
 and breathed new vigour ihto their languid stems : 
 the Fairy looked at her pitifully from amid the leaves, 
 and fondly whispered, " Kings shall sue for Zel- 
 neth, and Zelneth shall cause the ardent lover to 
 forget his first love." The maiden heard not, 
 heeded not, but continued her weeping, or mur- 
 mured laments like these : — 
 
 By the storm invaded 
 Ere thy arch was wrought. 
 Rainbow, thou hast faded 
 Like a gladsome thought. 
 And ne'er mayst shine aloft in all earth's colours fraught. 
 
PHANTASMION. 257 
 
 Insect tranced for ever 
 In thy pendent bed, 
 Which the breezes sever 
 From its fragile thread, 
 Thou ne'er shalt burst thy cell and crumpled pinions spread. 
 
 Lily born and nourish'd 
 'Mid the waters cold, 
 Where thy green leaves flourish'd. 
 On the sunburnt mould 
 How canst thou rear thy stem and sallow buds unfold ? 
 
 Snowy cloud suspended 
 O'er the orb of light, 
 With its radiance blended 
 Ne'er to glisten bright. 
 It sinks, and thou grow'st black beneath the wings of night. 
 
 Malderyl had been stricken to the earth by the 
 rapid tempest, and there she lay muttering and 
 making hideous faces : the green-vested fairy 
 gleamed past her, as a lizard glances past a fallen 
 log : then pointing with dewy finger at Zelneth, 
 *' Malderyl," she said, "when wilt thou weep again? 
 Ah ! thou art old and sapless, past the luxury of 
 tears." 
 
 A harsh voice uttering the name of larine caused 
 Zelneth to raise her head, and looking up she saw 
 the dwarf Herva seated beside the ancient woman, 
 his sharp visage turned towards her, and each flat 
 paddle arm spread out. " How long since ?" cried 
 Malderyl angrily. " Yester morn," said he, " I 
 was about to climb the high wall that girds Ulander's 
 domain, when lo ! the damsel larine, armed with 
 s 
 
258 PHANTASMIONi 
 
 bow and qujver, appeared on the top of it : she saw 
 not me, as I crouched beneath, but leaped over my 
 head on the soft moss, then, swift as a roe, she 
 darted through the wood." Zelneth turned away 
 wringing her hands, for she gathered that larine 
 had escaped from Ulander, though she could not 
 catch all that the dwarf muttered. " And where 
 hast thou been loitering V cried Malderyl fiercely, 
 but the next moment her thoughts were engaged 
 by the other dwarf, who came limping in, with 
 open mouth to tell his tale. *' Mistress," he said, 
 *' she is at the goatherd's cottage, and her father 
 is there also !" " How ?" cried Malder^^l, " the pal- 
 sied king Albinian ?" " Even so," replied the 
 dwarf; " strong love, or perhaps the approach of 
 death, counteracted his disease so far, that he stole 
 away from the palace, followed larine's footsteps, 
 and this morning came to thy house on the hill, 
 inquiring for his daughter. I guided him to the 
 boiling fount" — " Right !" cried Malderyl : " he 
 has cumbered the earth long enough ; and how did 
 he escape ?" "He was saved by his daughter, who 
 had got away from the Sylvan Palace," replied 
 Swartho, " and took her way across the hill, doubt- 
 less because it was the shortest and best known to 
 her. Entering the stony dell she espied Albinian, 
 lying just under the mound of the well, where he 
 had sunk down exhausted. The maiden rescued him 
 from that dangerous place, dragging him away in 
 her arms; but, if the goatherd had not come within 
 
PHANTASMION. 259 
 
 call, she would scarce have reached the bottom of 
 the hill by this time. Now both are under his roof, 
 and Albinian seems to be on his death bed." " Didst 
 thou follow them?" said the witch. *' I should 
 have done so," the dwarf answered, "but, no sooner 
 did the goatherd relieve larine of Albinian's weight, 
 than she took the bow from her shoulder, an arrow 
 from the case, and made this wound in my heel." 
 The body of Swartho puffed up as he spoke, and 
 the flaming circle of his dilated eye appeared to 
 grow wider and redder. " Coward !" exclaimed 
 Malderyl, with a laugh, " thou shalt have a worse 
 wound in thy face presently." "Nay, mistress! 
 hear what I did further," replied the dwarf: 
 " after a while I repaired to the cottage garden, 
 and there learned from a boy, who has lived with 
 the goatherd ever since his wife and child perished 
 together in a burning shower on the mountain, 
 that larine will be close to the cavern this evening. 
 I know the exact spot whither she means to repair, 
 a patchof berry-bearing plants just under the hollow 
 sycamore, in which a squirrel has made his nest. 
 She has been once there already to gather fruit 
 for her father; and, ere it is dark, she will come 
 again for a fresh supply." Malderyl arose. " Well ! 
 get ye both into the cavern," she said, " and be 
 ready when I call." The dwarfs retired, and their 
 ancient mistress approached Zelneth, who sate upon 
 the ground with her streaming locks around her, 
 silently watering the turf with tears. " Oloola 
 
260 PHANTASMION. 
 
 brought the frost and raised the storm," said Mal- 
 deryl; *'she favours Glandreth and hates his enemies ; 
 for his sake she persecutes the son of Dorimant, 
 and she will separate him from larine as well as 
 from thee. Take courage : I will devise a plan" — 
 *' Away !" cried the damsel, scornfully; " thou hast 
 neither skill nor foresight. Why didst thou bring 
 us into the garden under the open sky ? Oloola 
 could have worked us no ill in the cavern." Mal- 
 deryl's eye lightened at this taunt, but Zelneth saw 
 not its vengeful flash, and relapsed into silence. 
 Imperceptibly, however, as a snow shower changes 
 into rain, her sullen mood relented, and Malderyl 
 found an opportunity to propose her plan. '* larine," 
 she said, '* is at the goatherd's cottage" — " Where 
 Phantasmion will find her," cried Zelneth impe- 
 tuously. " He shall never find her again," replied 
 the witch, *' if thou wilt consent to a brief disguise,' 
 and brave a slight peril." Zelneth fixed her bright- 
 ening eyes on her evil counsellor. ''Thou hast 
 some skill," she said, while the last tear fell from 
 her cheek : " tell me what peril, what disguise 
 thou art thinking of." Malderyl brought from the 
 cavern a panther's skin. "It is but to dress 
 thyself in this gay garb," she said ; " then to sit 
 crouching on the bough of a tree hard by here, and, 
 when larine comes under it and is busily engaged 
 in gathering berries, suddenly to show thyself and 
 leap down by her side. When she attempts to fly, 
 thou and the dwarfs shall intercept her return to 
 
PHANTASMIO^. 261 
 
 the cottage, and I, meantime, will beckon her into 
 the cavern, whence she shall not come out till she 
 consents to marry Ulander. My kinsman shall 
 meet her here, and thou shalt repair to the Sylvan 
 Palace, where Phantasmion will be sure to go in 
 search of larine." " She sent me to the Island," 
 murmured Zelneth, '' to release one who was 
 standing by her side at that moment." '' I will 
 take good care that she shall not escape," added 
 Malderyl. " Thou shalt see me run out with a chaf- 
 ing-dish in my hand, to stupify her senses by the 
 smoke of burning herbs. But come ! either reject 
 the scheme, or prepare to do thy part in it; for she 
 will be here presently." Zelneth took up the skin, 
 without knowing how to put it on, but Malderyl 
 adjusted it so well that the lady's speaking eyes 
 looked through holes which had formerly contained 
 the bestial ones of a panther. Strangely now in- 
 deed they sparkled under a shaggy brow and up- 
 right ears, which the original wearer could move 
 and bend at will. Zelneth in her childish days 
 had been wont to follow the squirrels up many a 
 well branched tree. She loved to wind her way 
 among the boughs, overcoming a series of delight- 
 ful dangers, till she could place her fairy foot betwixt 
 the topmost fork, proud to find herself at such 
 a dizzy height, and glad to have in prospect the 
 pleasing adventure of descent. But such sports 
 of the vacant mind and lithe limbs had fallen into 
 disuse, and, though the sycamore was easy to climb. 
 
262 PHANTASMION. 
 
 slowly and timorously she crept up to her lurking 
 place, and still more violently her heart palpitated 
 when she saw larine approach with her basket^ 
 and kneel down to collect the fruit which grew on 
 tiny bushes under the tree. While the eyes of 
 the gentle princess were busily engaged upon the 
 ground, those of Zelneth, anxious and fearful, were 
 gazing at her from above. The bough shook as 
 with trembling limbs she began to creep forward, 
 after the manner of a wild cat, and all the crisp 
 leaves and branches made a rustling noise. larine 
 started, and looking up espied the pretended pan- 
 ther peeping down from the bough, whence she 
 had scarce summoned resolution to spring. Un- 
 happy Zelneth ! she had not reckoned on her 
 cousin's newly acquired skill in archery, nor on that 
 matchless bow, the amorous chieftain's gift, which 
 now hung at her shoulder. On seeing the damsel 
 prepare to shoot she uttered a loud cry, and strove 
 to turn about, but, ere she could escape, the arrow 
 was in her side. larine, hearing Ulander's voice 
 from a distance, stayed not to examine the false 
 panther, which had fallen to the ground, but glided 
 swiftly through the wood, while the dwarfs, who 
 were stationed to prevent her return, panic-stricken 
 at what they had witnessed, and at the approach 
 of the royal huntsman, crouched among the brush- 
 wood, and Malderyl, her form half hidden by 
 wreaths of smoke from the censer in her hand, stood 
 laughing at the entrance of the cave, till at last 
 
PHANTASMION. 263 
 
 she fell upon the ground, overpowered by the fumes 
 she had heedlessly inhaled. Meantime Ulander, 
 who had been roaming in search of his fair fugitive, 
 drew nigh the patch of berry-bearing plants, and 
 there found Zelneth, prostrate on the ground, with 
 the skin of a wild beast covering the lower part of 
 her body : for by this time she had freed her head 
 and neck from the cumbrous disguise. Astonished 
 both by her beauty and the strange state in which 
 he found her, the youth alighted from his horse, 
 and asked what savage hand had inflicted that 
 wound in her side, whence the blood was flowing. 
 Zelneth pointed to the panther's skin still hanging 
 about her feet, then sank into a swoon, her dis- 
 engaged arm falling powerless on the shaggy spoils. 
 The chieftain forgot larine while he gazed on her 
 fair countenance ; he gently removed the skin, 
 placed the fainting damsel on his horse, and con- 
 veyed her with all care and tenderness to his 
 princely home. But though the travellers went 
 at so leisurely a pace, that the night was far gone 
 when they arrived there, the motion of the horse 
 inflamed the lady's wound, which would soon have 
 healed but for this aggravation. Fever seized the 
 hapless maid, and Ulander found with sorrow that 
 his love had proved as injurious to Zelneth as it had 
 been irksome and grievous to larine. 
 
 Not long after the chief of Nemorosa reachad 
 his mansion, Phantasmion arrived there also. The 
 influence of the magic draught over his spirit had 
 
264 
 
 PHANTASMIOW. 
 
 been destroyed by Oloola's counteracting spell, 
 the mist dispersed, and larine's imag-e again shone 
 forth in sunny splendour, while that of Zelneth, 
 late so radiant, shewed like the vanishing moon 
 with her weak superfluous light. But the last 
 words of Oloola had cast him into a reverie. Glan- 
 dreth had fallen by his hand : how then should 
 Glandreth conquer the Land of Palms ? Had the 
 voice a hidden meaning, or no meaning at all? 
 He had heard that Glandreth formerly sued for 
 the hand of larine's mother, that Oloola loved the 
 bold and beautiful chieftain, and made a solemn 
 vow to be his friend and minister till Anthem- 
 mina's dying day. " And now that they two are 
 dead," thought he, *' perchance Oloola befriends 
 Phantasmion; or it may be that, like the winds 
 of heaven, she follows no settled course, to sport 
 with human hopes and purposes her only plan." 
 Raising his eyes from the ground he saw Mal- 
 deryl's mansion upon the brow of the conical moun- 
 tain, just visible in the distance, and thither he 
 resolved to go and inquire again for larine. On 
 reaching the gate Phantasmion made the rocks 
 resound with his loud summons, and, ere the echoes 
 had ceased, the porter with his grisly beard stood 
 before him. " Hast thou seen any other maiden," 
 cried the youth, '' beside her who went to the woods 
 with thy mistress?" " None since she was here," 
 the porter replied. " But, just before she ar- 
 rived^ there came a shepherdess in company with 
 
PHANTASMION. .265 
 
 a man of high degree. Her face was shaded with 
 a hood, and she went forth alone, having a bucket 
 and a bottle in her hand. Surprized to see the 
 way she took I watched her while she ascended 
 that steep upward path. And on she went, so 
 wondrous fleet and graceful, that, when she gained 
 yon cloudy summit, I thought within myself, ** Is 
 this a shepherdess or an angel going back into the 
 sky ?" Phantasmion hastened up the steep track to 
 which the servant of Malderyl pointed, and wound 
 along the mountain till he met an old man who 
 was driving on goats before him. He stopped 
 when the youth approached his flock. " Thou 
 art a stranger by thy garb," said he ; '' dost thou 
 know of the boiling fount, and the volcanic fires, 
 which oft break forth on that part of the moun- 
 tain to which thou art proceeding ? Daily I climb 
 this hill"—'' And didst thou lately see a damsel 
 here," the youth inquired, " in the habit of a 
 shepherdess ?" " Yes truly," answered he ; " and 
 I meant to give her warning, but she waved me 
 off with her hand, and sped along so fast that even 
 my goats could scarce have followed her. She 
 entered the stony dell, which lies beyond the rocks, 
 and there no doubt she perished." Phantasmion 
 rushed away, passed the rocks, and entered the dell 
 where the fountain was playing. He stood mo- 
 tionless at the entrance of the hollow till the water 
 subsided, then approached the mound, and an icy 
 chill seized his heart when he beheld a leathern 
 
266 PHANTASMION. 
 
 bottle petrified on the edge of the well, with a 
 bucket and chain lying close beside it. Believing 
 that larine had been overtaken by the force of the 
 waters, and had so lost her life, he sought about 
 in desperation, expecting to find her fair body 
 among the other petrifactions ; but, seeing no 
 trace of any such thing, he imagined that she had 
 fallen into the well, and, lying down on the edge of 
 it, resolved there to remain and await destruction. 
 Many times he was tempted to throw himself into 
 the dark abyss, and, when he called on the name of 
 larine, he thought that fierce voices answered him. 
 In this condition he remained till the moon rose and 
 threw her cold beams over the stony dell ; when, 
 turning his eye once again toward the bucket, 
 he descried the steel point of a petrified arrow 
 shining a little beyond it. Instantly it struck him 
 that this shaft had fallen from the quiver of some 
 huntsman, perhaps Ulander himself, and that he 
 might have borne larine away, either alive or dead. 
 Roused by this thought he started up, hurried 
 down the hill, and, about day break, knocked at 
 the goatherd's cottage. The host of Albinian and 
 larine came out with his finger on his lips. 
 " There is a dying man in my house," quoth he : 
 " I may not ask thee to enter. Thy steed has 
 been taken care of. Thou wilt find him in yonder 
 shed beside the marigolds." The goatherd having 
 re-entered, Phantasmion found his good horse, 
 which recognized him with signs of pleasure, but, 
 
PHANTASMION. 267 
 
 SO greatly exhausted was he that, instead of moun- 
 ting-, he sank down by his side, and slept with his 
 feet among the marigolds, and his head on the 
 neck of the gentle beast. Ere he awoke at mid- 
 day, one of Ulander's train came nigh and stopped 
 his horse in admiration of the young monarch and 
 his goodly steed, whose quick eye seemed to say, 
 " Pass on, I pray thee, and disturb him not." 
 The huntsman's cheek was fresh and glowing, 
 while that of the slumberer looked pale amid the 
 sunshine and the gleams of his golden bed. " Art 
 thou Ulander ?" said Phantasmion starting up. 
 " I would I were," the youth replied with a smile ; 
 " not for his crown and palace, but for the sake 
 of a most fair damsel, worthy of both, by whose 
 side he is kneeling." "■ Wilt thou guide me to 
 that palace ?" cried the young king of Palmland, 
 his burning cheeks and scintillating eyes turned 
 full on the huntsman. "It is my home," the 
 youth answered, *' and I can shew thee the short- 
 est road to it." Phantasmion was quickly mounted, 
 he and his guide went at full speed, whenever the 
 road permitted, and, ere the light began to fade, he 
 entered the abode of Ulander. 
 
268 PHANTASMION. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 PHANTASMION LEAVES THE SYLVAN PALACE AND 
 ZELNETH RECEIVES SUCCOUR FROM FEYDE- 
 LEEN. 
 
 PHANTASMION demanded to see the chief of 
 Nemorosa, and was conducted to a spacious 
 apartment, the couches and seats of which were 
 covered with brindled or spotted skins, the walls 
 with horns of deer and rock-gloats fancifully ar- 
 ranged. There, under a high canopy adorned 
 with branching antlers, lay the wounded Zelneth, 
 her limbs motionless, her eyes closed in death-like 
 languor, while the young chieftain was raising her 
 from the couch in his arms, and trying, by a thou- 
 sand assiduities, to elicit signs of life and looks of 
 recognition. So a child, grieved to see his rarest 
 flower, the milk white foxglove, with its whole 
 spire of bells newly blown extended on the earthy 
 sets himself to support the crushed stem which his, 
 own heedless foot has beaten down. But all in 
 vain ; for, leaning on the prop, it hastens to decay, 
 no longer able to imbibe the dews that fall around 
 it, withered by that sun which lately nourished its 
 firm stalk and bursting blossoms. Ulander saw 
 not the young king of Palmland till he had entered 
 
 t 
 
PHANTASMION. 269 
 
 the apartment, and stood midway between the door 
 and the couch, grazing intently on Zelneth. But, 
 when he did at last perceive his presence, the 
 chieftain started, uttering an exclamation ; roused 
 by which the damsel opened her eyes, and, seeing 
 Phantasmion, leaped wildly from the couch, with 
 crimsoning cheek and eyes of delirious brightness ; 
 but, her strength soon deserting her, she fell for- 
 ward, looking still more lifeless than when she lay 
 on the coach, upreared in the arms of the sylvan 
 chieftain. Ulander looked on with sullen surprise, 
 while Phantasmion carried Zelneth to the couch, 
 and laid her on the tiger skins with which it was 
 covered. " Who art thou ?" he said ; " art thou 
 the brother of this maiden ?" "I am bound to 
 her by no near ties," replied Phantasmion with 
 haste : " she came to greet me as one who had re- 
 ceived hospitality at her father's house." " Why 
 then hast thou come hither," rejoined the chieftain, 
 " breaking in upon my privacy without leave asked?" 
 " I came in search of another," replied the youth 
 in some confusion; "I came to inquire for this 
 fair damsel's kinswoman, the princess larine." 
 "larine !" exclaimed Ulander; *' she it was that 
 wounded this lovely maid. I found her bleeding 
 in the midst of the forest, and she accuses larine 
 of the cruel deed. That name, and one other, 
 inarticulately murmured, are the only words she 
 has spoken since she entered here." " larine ac- 
 cused of a cruel deed !" ejaculated Phantasmion : 
 
^70 PHANTASMION. 
 
 " here is more witchery, more wickedness and de- 
 ceit !" — The chieftain held up his finger, then, 
 pointing to the maid, *' Look there !" he cried, in 
 a low stifled voice ; " vex not her parting spirit by 
 violent words." Phantasmion held his peace, and, 
 drawing nigh to look on Zelneth, he felt assured 
 that her soul had abandoned its fair tenement for 
 ever. The crisp and glossy tresses that flowed to 
 her waist seemed yet instinct with life ; in all their 
 wonted beauty they curled around the full white 
 arm that lay so dead and motionless by her side : 
 but mournful was the stillness of her long black eye 
 lashes, which seemed now laid to rest for ever on 
 that smooth cheek whence every life-like tint had 
 vanished, as the warm light of morning fades from 
 a snow-clad hill, leaving it as coldly white as pure 
 and polished marble. Ulander wept aloud ; Phan- 
 tasmion mused in sorrowful silence. Till now he 
 had never looked on Zelneth as on a bright flower, 
 doomed to wither, but had felt as if she were like 
 the glittering stars that shine unaltered, while a 
 thousand roses bloom and perish. 
 
 At last he recollected what befell him in the 
 house of Magnart. *' Perchance the damsel is 
 but entranced," he said ; '' I myself once lay thus 
 for many an hour." Ulander raised his head, 
 and, starting from his knees, approached Phantas- 
 mion. " Didst thou lie motionless ?" he cried ; 
 *' w^as thy breath suspended, were thy cheeks as 
 pale as these ?" Phantasmion poured balm into 
 
f 
 
 PHANTASMION. 271 
 
 the heart of Ulander by the answers he gave to all 
 his eager questions, and soon the chieftain called 
 to mind how his ancient kinswoman, Malderyl, had 
 cured one of his train who lay insensible after a 
 wound received from a wild boar. The two youths 
 were now standing together by the couch, the 
 hand of Phantasmion locked in that of Ulander, 
 who frankly told all he knew of larine, how he 
 loved and lost her, and how he was on the way to 
 consult Malderyl in the cavern concerning the fair 
 princess, when his thoughts were suddenly absorb- 
 ed by the distress and beauty of Zelneth. " But 
 now," says he, " I will go forthwith to fetch the 
 Queen of Tigridia : she hath great skill in medicine, 
 and in other arts too. Me she loves well, and at 
 my entreaty she will restore this maid, and per- 
 chance discover to thee the retreat of larine." 
 Right glad was Phantasmion to accept Ulander's 
 intercession with one whose evil powers were not 
 to be averted by sword and spear ; he zealously 
 offered to keep watch by the body of Zelneth, and 
 to defend it, with the danger of his life, against a 
 host of her kinsmen, should they come to take it 
 away. Having accepted his courtesy Ulander kissed 
 the damsel's cold hand as it lay upon the couch, 
 and sighed to see it no longer withdrawn as here- 
 tofore ; then with looks of deep anxiety he hastened 
 away. After his departure Phantasmion read these 
 lines which he found traced on a tablet, but 
 whether addressed to Zelneth or larine seemed 
 uncertain : 
 
272 PHANTASMION. 
 
 I thought by tears thy soul to move, 
 
 Since smiles had proved in vain ; 
 
 But I from thee nor smiles of love, 
 
 Nor tears of pity gain : 
 
 Now, now I could not smile perforce 
 
 A sceptred queen to please : 
 
 Yet tears will take th' accustom'd course 
 
 Till time their fountain freeze. 
 
 My life is dedicate to thee, 
 
 My service wholly thine : 
 
 But what fair fruit can grace the tree 
 
 Till suns vouchsafe to shine 1 
 
 Thou art my sun, thy looks are light, 
 
 O cast me not in shade ! 
 
 Beam forth ere summer takes its flight. 
 
 And all my honours fade. 
 
 When, torn by sudden gusty flaw, 
 
 The fragile harp lies mute. 
 
 Its tenderest tones the wind can draw 
 
 From many another lute ; 
 
 But when this beating heart lies still, 
 
 Each chord relax'd in death. 
 
 What other shall so deeply thriU, 
 
 So tremble at thy breath 1 
 
 But the dark hours came on ; no lamp shed 
 light on the silent face of Zelneth, when a train 
 of damsels entered from the garden, with lighted 
 tapers, and baskets of night-blowing flowers in 
 their hands. They sang a dirge over the maiden, 
 then covered her body with those blossoms of 
 greenish white or palest yellow, stuck their tapers 
 around the canopy, and slowly departed, leaving 
 
 < 
 
PHANTASMION. 273 
 
 the chamber filled with an aromatic fragrance. 
 Phantasmion had retired to the further end of the 
 apartment, where the horns of an elk threw their 
 wide shadow on the marble floor, and from that 
 station he watched the mourners while they per- 
 formed their* gentle rites, then softly stole away. 
 At last the door was closed, but one of the train 
 yet lingered under the canopy, her flower-basket 
 resting on the couch. Phantasmion, as he drew 
 forward, beheld her countenance by the light of 
 the tapers, which threw a tender gleam over the 
 pale flowers, the still features of Zelneth, and the 
 bright aerial visage that shone above them. " Fey- 
 deleen !" cried the prince, " can Zelneth be re- 
 stored ? and O ! where is larine ?" " Leave Zelneth 
 in my care," she answered, " and seek thou the 
 domain of Melledine, there to find and rescue her 
 that is lost for thy sake." Phantasmion was 
 about to reply with eagerness, but the nightly 
 exhalations of so many blossoms overpowered his 
 senses, and he sank on the floor, motionless and 
 pale as the fair damsel who lay stretched upon the 
 couch. 
 
 No sooner had he become thus entranced, than 
 his guardian spirit stood beside him. " Feydeleen !" 
 she exclaimed, " is it not enough to have deprived 
 Phantasmion of the pitcher ? wherefore hast thou 
 dealt with him thus?" The soft Fairy smiled on 
 Potentilla, and, with words and tones like the 
 warm breeze that unbinds the f]-ozen earth, she 
 
 T 
 
274 PHANTASMION. 
 
 persuaded her not only to forgive what was past, 
 but to make a compact with herself, whereby all 
 whom they both loved should in the end be gainers. 
 Potentilla called for her light car, drawn by dragon - 
 flies, and, having increased both to a convenient 
 size by magic power, conveyed away the fainting 
 prince, through the murky air, while Feydeleen 
 remained alone by the side of Zelnetb. 
 
 As a plant that seems irrecoverably withered 
 revives at the first shower, swells out its flaccid 
 leaves, and stretches them forth to catch the kind- 
 ly moisture, so was Zelneth restored by the salu- 
 tary dews and airs which the kind spirit shed 
 around her. Gradually a tender bloom suflfused 
 her cheek, gentle breathing returned, the damsel 
 raised herself from the couch, holding out her 
 hand, as if to welcome some one, while her lids 
 were yet fast sealed, then fell back upon her 
 pillow in deep refreshing slumber. But, when a 
 thousand flowers were opening their soft eyes upon 
 the dawn, those of Zelneth were unclosed, and up 
 she sprang, scattering on the floor the blossoms 
 which had been so plentifully strewed on her 
 seeming corse ; they were now drooping, while 
 she was upraised in health and lifesome beauty. 
 Alas ! Phantasmion had disappeared, and all the 
 apartment was silent and solitary, till a fawn ran 
 in from the open door, through which, ere the 
 cock crew, Potentilla had carried him away. 
 She went forth, and caught a glimpse of Feyde- 
 
PHANTASMION. "lib 
 
 leen, who was just entering a tufted grove with a 
 chalice in her hand. Zelneth followed, and, 
 kneeling on the ground, under the embowered 
 branches, besought her to declare why Phantas- 
 mion had left her side, and whither he was gone. 
 A slender voice came from amid the myrtles, and 
 it spoke thus. " Phantasmion left Zelneth to 
 seek larine." " And shall I never more regain 
 his heart ?" the maid exclaimed. Again the soft 
 voice, breathing gales of perfume, gently but 
 clearly answered in these words : " Henceforth 
 Phantasmion's heart will never swerve from la- 
 rine." Zelneth continued to listen, while tears 
 chased one another down her upraised face, but 
 the only voice she now heard, was that of a turtle 
 cooing to his mate, with soft notes long dwelt 
 upon, in the depth of the wood. Then she strove 
 to turn her heart against the bright youth of 
 Palmland, and grieved to find how much more 
 love than pride had mastery there. While her 
 mind was full of such thoughts, she heard a slight 
 rustling ; something had fallen from the branches 
 beside the place where she sate, and, straight be- 
 fore her, she espied the picture of Penselimer, 
 with its eyes looking at hers, and seeming to con- 
 vey, in their passionate melancholy, an expression 
 of reproach. From the hour that it fell from her 
 lap, when she first beheld Phantasmion, Zelneth 
 had scarce bestowed a thought on this idol of her 
 childhood, which Anthemmina, when her heart 
 
276 PHANTASMION. 
 
 was estranged from Penselimer, had carelessly 
 hung around her baby neck . Now she took it up by 
 the chain of pearls to which it was fastened, and 
 sighed, as she gazed on the well known linea- 
 ments, for the free heart and enamoured fancy of 
 former times, when she rejected many an un- 
 pleasing suitor, for the sake, as she loved to ima- 
 gine, of the noble Penselimer. Zelneth raised her 
 eyes, on being accosted in a shrill voice, and 
 shuddered to behold Malderyl approaching her 
 with a cup. '' Ulander brought me to thy couch," 
 said the ancient queen, " where we found plenty 
 of withered flowers, but no entranced maiden ; 
 and soon my young kinsman, rushing to the door, 
 beheld thee bound lightly over the lawn. I could 
 have restored thee to health, had thy malady con- 
 tinued, and, even now, I would have thee drink 
 this cup, lest it should return with the evening 
 dews." Zelneth suspected that the liquor pre- 
 sented to her was some of that which had been 
 prepared in the cavern, and that Malderyl's design 
 was to make her return the chieftain's passion ; 
 nevertheless she took the cup and slowly drank, 
 with her eyes fixed on the features of Penselimer. 
 Scarce had the magic draught pervaded her frame 
 than the portrait assumed a new aspect; it seemed 
 fairer, nobler than Phantasmion himself; love 
 for the king of Palmland seemed absorbed into a 
 larger emotion, as the last wave is swelled by 
 those which have gone before. Her visions of 
 
PHANTASMION. 277. 
 
 childhood rose again in all their keen aerial co- 
 lours; the realities she had since experienced 
 melted into indistinctness ; their forms were gone, 
 but still their glow remained, and filled the atmo- 
 sphere of memory with warmth and golden light. 
 Ulander advanced from amid the trees, where he 
 had hitherto been shrouded, and, seeing her face 
 bright with smiles, when she returned his salu- 
 tation, he inwardly rejoiced, vowing eternal grati* 
 tude to Malderyl, by whose endeavours he fully 
 believed that Zelneth looked upon him thus. 
 Formerly his enamoured looks and words, which 
 the maid lacked strength to repel, seemed to hasten 
 her spirit's flight ; now they fell upon her occupied 
 mind, like raindrops on marble, which glitters 
 amid the shower and remains unsoftened. Both 
 were equally possessed with gladsome fancies, and 
 confident in the success of their hopes, when they 
 rode into the forest, ere noonday, followed by a 
 train of huntsmen, Zelneth indulging her steed in 
 all his graceful vagaries, and Ulander fondly 
 hoping that for long years to come she would thus 
 disport herself by his side. " Kings shall sue for 
 Zelneth, and for her the ardent lover shall forget 
 his first love." Feydeleen breathed this prophecy 
 once more in Zelneth's ear, as she passed under 
 the branches. Now it was no longer unheard or 
 unheeded; the damsel applied it to Penselimer, 
 and joyfully expected that he would soon appear 
 to rescue her from durance. 
 
278 PHANTASMION. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 PHANTASMION ENTERS THE SUNLESS VALLEY. 
 
 ANIGHT and a day had elapsed since Phan- 
 tasmion left the domain of Ulander, when, 
 roused from his trance, he found himself descend- 
 ing" through the sky. Then he sate upright, and 
 saw right before him, fanning the twilight air, the 
 gauzy wings of dragon-flies, while those of Poten- 
 tilla, who stood upright on the seat of the car, were 
 playing above his head. The moon had not yet 
 risen, but, when he came to the ground, and leaped 
 upon the turf, he perceived a shining circlet in the 
 sky, and, had no sooner looked upon it, than it 
 began to descend, widening, swelling and bright- 
 ening as it sank. The tract where Phantasmion 
 stood first glimmered, then gleamed, and lastly 
 shone with more than noonday splendour in many- 
 coloured light, while gradually the features of the 
 scene stole upon his eye, and soon he recognised 
 the skeleton palace, where owls peeped forth 
 from bowers of ivy, the ruined hall with its watery 
 floor and rose-crowned window, and the wild plea- 
 sure ground in all its flush of blossoms. The De- 
 serted Palace, and the space in front of it, were en- 
 circled by a vast hoop of cold flame, produced by 
 
PilANTASMION. 279 
 
 innumerable fire flies. Phantasmion turned to 
 Potentilla, who was leaning back in the car, over 
 which her wing-s reclined, and smiling at his looks 
 of wonder. '' Wilt thou go with me," she said, 
 " to rescue a lost maiden from the sunless valley ?" 
 *' Instantly," cried Phantasmion. " Wherefore 
 do we tarry?" " Recruit thy strength," replied 
 the Fairy, " with what is provided in the car, then 
 drink from this vial which Feydeleen gave me for 
 thy use. It will ward off the drowsy influences of 
 Melledine's abode." Phantasmion obeyed, and, 
 while his eyes were brightening with the effect of 
 the Flower Fairy's gift, Potentilla, from the seat 
 of the car, touched his head and shoulders with 
 her wand, then waved him after her as she soared 
 aloft. The next moment he was flying through 
 the air, his head surrounded with a halo of intense 
 light, his dragon-fly wings and whole body beam- 
 ing with a keen lustre, which varied from chryso- 
 lite to vivid green, passing off into the deepest 
 azure, and thence into amethystine purple. Po- 
 tentilla flew on before, with the wings and radiant 
 head of a lantern fly, and the clouds of luminous 
 insects followed. As the whole mass went undu- 
 lating along, they looked like a fiery river, flowing 
 athwart the sky, and so proceeded, till, just as the 
 moon rose, they overpassed the wall of rock which 
 bounded Melledine's domain. " This region," 
 said Potentilla, " by the spells of the enchantress, 
 who dwells here, is perpetually hidden from the 
 
280 PHANTASMION. 
 
 sun's light : the whole valley is girt on every side 
 by rugged mountains, and, during the day, it is 
 shrouded by an opaque fog." Phantasmion fol- 
 lowed his guide above the black vapours, to a point 
 right over the centre of the valley, while the fire- 
 flies, high over head, appeared once more like a 
 circular constellation. Thence he saw the pitchy 
 cloud splitting in the middle, and shrinking more 
 and more, on every side, till at last it was heaped 
 in huge scrolls on the mountain tops. While the 
 moon and stars in full splendour were thus re- 
 vealed to waking eyes below, Phantasmion beheld 
 their beams reflected from the enlightened vale, 
 from lily fields and groves of gleaming foliage, pas- 
 tures whitened with straying flocks, and one wide 
 sheet of water. 
 
 As he descended he heard no sound but that of 
 the owls, hooting to one another from yew trees and 
 ivy-mantled rocks, the sonorous notes of those at 
 hand receiving clear but slender responses from 
 others at a distance. Coming yet lower, he began to 
 catch the nightingale's upper notes, and next the 
 sound of flowing waters and the gurgling of brooks. 
 Potentilla waved her wand, and the luminous pro- 
 cession, which was now following in the form of a 
 serpent, quenched its radiance, and became sud- 
 denly as black as ink. Phantasmion underwent the 
 same change, and followed his guide, who alone re- 
 tained her light, to the abode of Melledine. The en- 
 chantress was busily employed in gathering herbs. 
 
PHANTASMION. 281 
 
 on which the moonbeams rested, seeking them by 
 the side of a rivulet which wandered through a 
 meadow, silvered with white flowers. A damsel 
 delicately fair and slender, with flaxen locks that 
 floated to her taper waist, was following Melledine, 
 and leading by a silver chain a milkwhite stag, 
 the hoofs and horns of which appeared to be also of 
 silver. On his back the deer carried a pannier, 
 filled with flowers and herbs, which the damsel re^ 
 ceived from the enchantress and deposited there. 
 Thus they proceeded, moving contrary to the 
 course of the brook, till they arrived at a rocky 
 knoll, where the same rivulet formed a little cata- 
 ract, splitting, like a ravelled skein, into divers 
 shining threads, here gliding in clear lapse over a 
 smooth-faced stone, there skipping from rock to 
 rock enveloped in foam, here narrow as a spindle, 
 there spreading like a garment puffed out by the 
 wind. Melledine was stooping over the united 
 streams, when Potentilla ranged her legions right 
 above the meadow and watery knoll : the head of 
 the enchantress was crowned with white poppies, 
 and a shining veil, thrown back from her face, 
 covered her kneeling form. Surprised at the 
 shade which darkened the rivulet and its flowery 
 banks, she looked straight up to the sky, dis- 
 closing a face of goodly features but black as 
 ebony. Gazing thus she beheld Phantasmion all 
 irradiated with purple light descending under the 
 cloud, and in an instant afterwards the pitchy 
 
282 PHANTASMION. 
 
 mass became a flaming pavilion. Then, blinded 
 and amazed, she fell upon the ground, covering 
 her face with her veil, an^ muttering disjointed 
 spells, without power to repeat any at full length. 
 Phantasmion alighted on the hillock, and Poten- 
 tilla, hovering over his head, called on Melledine 
 to deliver up the damsel whom she kept a captive 
 in her sunless domain. She, meantime, was 
 hasting away with the white stag, and soon en- 
 tered a cypress grove, through which the rivulet 
 held its way. Melledine hesitated to promise 
 obedience, but when the air blackened with swarms 
 of stinging insects, and the ground with locusts, 
 she consented to yield up the captive maid, and to 
 conduct her to the Deserted Palace through the 
 pass whereby she entered the valley. No sooner 
 was this promise given than the locusts rose into 
 the air: Potentilla secured Melledine by chains, 
 which were hidden under her glittering raiment, 
 and with which she was wont to bind her victims : 
 this being done, the whole swarm flew away along 
 with the other insects, till they disappeared in the 
 distance. Phantasmion had no sooner witnessed 
 the submission of Melledine than he pursued the 
 damsel into the dark wood. As he rushed along, 
 casting phosphoric splendour on the sombre foliage 
 around, the nightingales hushed their songs, and 
 the owls shrank away, letting down the curtains 
 of their prominent eyes. At last he obtained 
 sight of the damsel ; she after flitting on before him 
 
PHANTASMION. 283 
 
 for some time, being now unable to go any further, 
 stood in the pathway, leaning on the white stag, 
 who had suited his pace to that of the lady and re- 
 strained his steps when he saw that her powers of 
 flight were exhausted. 
 
 The damsel clung to her mild companion hiding 
 her face against his neck, till the pursuer, having 
 arrived where she stood, took her hand and gently 
 cried, " Look up, my fair one ! it is Phantasmion." 
 At these words he withdrew the dazzling radiance 
 which streamed from his whole person, leaving his 
 head only encircled with a diadem of softened rays. 
 Then the lady raised her face, and Phantasmion 
 saw that it was Leucoia, the sister of Zelneth. Ill 
 fated maid ; she had drunk the oblivious draught 
 of Melledine, had not only forgotten her parents 
 and pleasant home, but ceased to pine for the noble 
 stranger, whose image had occupied her soul, a 
 beautiful poison tree, that spread abroad its glister- 
 ing boughs and blighted every other growth. 
 But now Phantasmion's illumined face, radiant 
 with love and beauty, suddenly cast a flood of light 
 on forms and hues of memory, which magic power 
 had obscured but never obliterated; again she 
 loves, again her stilled bosom is roused to emotion, 
 and, full of tears and blushes, she once more hides 
 her face on the stag's neck. Phantasmion him- 
 self was overwhelmed with trouble and perplexity : 
 Leucoia's heart he had never cared to fathom, but 
 he now suspected that she, and not larine, was the 
 
284 PHANTASMION". 
 
 lost maiden whom he had been sent to deliver.'* 
 " Hast thou not found the daughter of Albinian?" 
 he cried, turning to Potentilla, as she came through 
 the grove, leading the sullen Melledine by her 
 chain, " O tell me whither to go in search of her !'* 
 " Seek not here for the lovely princess," she re- 
 plied ; " but free Leucoia from captivity, and Fey- 
 deleen will lend her aid to make larine thine.'* 
 " What power has Feydeleen ?" cried Phantasmion, 
 " and why must I do her behest ?" " Hast thou 
 forgotten the silver pitcher ?" Potentilla replied ; 
 " Without Feydeleen's goodwill thou canst never 
 obtain the hand of her whom thou lovest." " Doubt- 
 less Ulander will be sent to rescue my lost maiden?" 
 exclaimed the youth. '^ Nay," replied the Fairy, 
 " Ulander cares for no one now but dark-eyed 
 Zelneth." Leucoia had been weeping silently, 
 while the stag looked in her face with eyes full of 
 tenderness ; Phantasmion even fancied he saw a 
 tear glisten there, and that he had seen that 
 countenance before, if these were not illusions 
 of his dazzled sight. But at Zelneth's name the 
 maid looked up with an inquiring glance. " Knowest 
 thou aught of my sister ?" she said. " Zelneth 
 went to seek for thee in the forest of Nemorosa," 
 the youth replied: ''there she was wounded by 
 an arrow, and now lies, I fear, in evil plight at the 
 house of the young chief Ulander." When Leu- 
 coia heard this her heart was oppressed by a crowd 
 of sad emotions, and, throwing herself on her knees 
 
PHANTASMIO^r. 285 
 
 before Phantasmion, **Take me hence, I beseech 
 thee," she cried ; '' I will not keep thee long 
 upon the road, but travel, nig'ht and day, to reach 
 my home." Phantasmion declared that he was 
 ready to conduct the damsel whither she desired 
 to g'o. He raised her from the earth, and placed 
 her on the back of the stag : Melledine shewed 
 the way to the borders of a lake, and Phantasmion 
 followed, leading Leucoia's gentle steed by the 
 silver chain. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 PHANTASMION RESCUES LEUCOIA FROM CAPTIVITY, 
 
 HAVING reached the banks of the wide sheet 
 of water which Phantasmion had seen from 
 on high, the company entered a mother of pearl boat, 
 which was drawn by a team of swans, a full grown 
 pair in front of the vessel, then three yokes of youn- 
 ger ones, each couple being smaller than that be- 
 hind, while a single tiny cygnet floated on before. 
 Doves fastened to the stern by silken cords and 
 studs of diamond fluttered round the gleaming 
 skiff, and hastened its progress while they lulled 
 the air with their downy pinions. The fire-fly con- 
 stellation was reflected, together with the moon, 
 on the calm waters, forming now a belt across her 
 
286 PHANTASMION. 
 
 disk, now a ring which inclosed and shone beyond 
 it ; white peacocks spread their snowy trains over 
 the dark foliage that overhung the lake, white cor- 
 morants occupied the rocks, and alabaster images 
 of herons cast their still reflections on the pool. A 
 tiger emerging from the recesses of the wood came 
 to drink the cool wave, after sleeping in his lair dur- 
 ing the close heat of the darksome day ; and he too 
 was colourless and gleaming as a ghost. Anon a 
 white bird of paradise rose from the trees, and flew 
 with slow undulating motion over the lake, first 
 crossing the moon's bright image, then sinking 
 amid blossoms, downy and drooping as her own 
 light plumage, like a snow flake descending into 
 a wreath of snow. The tiger was drinking at the 
 end of a little promontory as the skiff passed by : 
 a reflection on the water made him look up, 
 when beholding the youth's illumined visage, he 
 suddenly rushed back again into the depths of the 
 grove. The company in the vessel were all silent 
 and thoughtful, Leucoia's fair stag lay beside her 
 feet, Potentilla sate at the helm with Melledine's 
 chain in her hand, while the captive crouched be- 
 neath, her ebon face bowed forward. Phantasmion 
 leaning over the prow cast such bright gleams 
 upon the waters, that the silver-scaled fishes leaped 
 up, attracted by a stronger light than had ever 
 penetrated their liquid haunts before. The pensive 
 eyes of Leucoia were bent upon the youth's averted 
 face : she longed not for green fields and sunshine, 
 
 I 
 
PHANTASMION. 287 
 
 but would fain have dwelt with him in that gleam- 
 ing- vale for ever. Melledine drew nigh the stag", 
 and would have rested her head upon his lily side ; 
 but when he shrank away she leaned against the 
 edge of the boat, and began to murmur a soft 
 melody. The tone of her voice was inexpressibly 
 sweet, and such was her power that it seemed to 
 proceed from the woods and waters and all places 
 except from the skiff. For a time her words were 
 inaudible, but, at last, Phantasmion ceased to 
 watch the leaping fishes, and listened unconsciously 
 to these numbers : 
 
 Blest is the tarn wMcli towering cliiFs o'ershade, 
 Which, cradled deep within the mountain's breast, 
 Nor voices loud, nor dashing oars invade : 
 Yet e'en the tarn enjoys no perfect rest. 
 For oft the angry skies her peace molest, 
 . With them she frowns, gives back the lightning's glare, 
 Then rages wildly in the troubled air. 
 
 This calmer lake, which potent spells protect. 
 
 Lies dimly slumbering through the fires of day, 
 
 And when yon skies, with chaste resplendence deck'd. 
 
 Shine forth in all their stateliest array, 
 
 O then she wakes to glitter bright as they. 
 
 And view the face of heaven's benignant queen 
 
 Still looking down on hers with smile serene ! 
 
 What cruel cares the maiden's heart assail. 
 Who loves, but fears no deep felt love to gain. 
 Or, having gain'd it, fears that love will fail ! 
 My power can soothe to rest her wakeful pain, 
 Till none but calm delicious dreams remain. 
 And, while sweet tears her easy pillow steep, 
 , She yields that dream of bliss to ever welcome sleep- 
 
288 PHANTASMI05T. 
 
 "While the strain proceeded, a pleasing stupor 
 stole over Phantasmion, in spite of the antidote 
 supplied by Feydeleen : he began to dream with 
 his eyes open, and beheld the face of larine in 
 that of Leucoia. He fancied himself on the Black 
 Lake, and the radiance of the moon seemed to his 
 eyes the same soft sunlight which had shone upon 
 his last interview with the island princess. Poten- 
 tilla had been busily plying her pinions, and broke 
 the silence of night with a continuous hum, which 
 seemed to tell of open flowers, and glancing sun- 
 beams : now her wings of gauze hung sleepily down, 
 her lamp languished, one hand dropped the helm, 
 the other resigned the chain, and, bending forward 
 she nodded over the stern. Then Melledine raised 
 her head, and, iixing her eyes upon Phantasmion's 
 face, continued her melodious incantations accom- 
 panied by the soft noise of downy wings and of 
 the gliding vessel. Meanwhile, as she waved her 
 hand, a mist gradually rose all round the skiff, 
 and on its silvery tissue the rays of the moon 
 painted a vivid rainbow, which rested on either 
 side among darksome groves and shady waters, 
 while, betwixt the arch, an island and the grey 
 towers of an ancient castle appeared to loom through 
 the vapoury veil. Then Phantasmion dreamed that 
 all which had passed, since he plighted his faith to 
 larine under the sunny rainbow, was but a dream : 
 he took from his bosom her glossy ringlet, which 
 had .been twined with rubies to form a crown for 
 
PHANTASMION. 289 
 
 his brow, and, placing it on Leucoia's head, while 
 he whispered vows of changeless love, he bade her 
 wear it for his sake till she was queen of Palmland. 
 Melledine looked earnestly at Leucoia, with her fin- 
 ger on her lips, and entreated her, in low breathed 
 strains of melody, to bear at least a silent part in 
 this deception. And, if the maiden loved Phan- 
 tasmion while his countenance was unimpassioned, 
 how still more loveable did he now appear, when 
 his looks and tones expressed the deepest tender- 
 ness ! But her spirit was free from magic influ- 
 ence, and, having just recovered from the treach- 
 erous spell, she was less subject to its power. 
 '* Never," she said, '^ shall Phantasmion, for my 
 unworthy sake, be hidden from the sun's light; 
 false Melledine's subtle sleights shall all prove 
 vain." The enchantress had by this time turned 
 the skiff, the doves fanned the air with redoubled 
 vigour and the swans rowed swiftly on toward the 
 head of the lake. Leucoia took a loosened peg, 
 which had fastened one of the dove-cords into the 
 skiff, and was about to prick the relaxed palm of 
 Potentilla, which lay half open beside her lap ; 
 when the vigilant fairy, who had only been feign- 
 ing slumber, quickly rose, her flames all rekindled, 
 and, snatching the peg from Leucoia, plunged it 
 up to the diamond head in the arm of Melledine 
 which was guiding the rudder. Stung with pain, 
 the enchantress uttered one loud piercing shriek : 
 such a sound had never escaped her lips till then, 
 u 
 
290 PHANTASMION. 
 
 such a sound had never before been heard in the 
 gleaming valley. The peacocks, which sate in 
 multitudes on the trees around the lake, unfurling 
 their eyeless trains to the moon-beams, echoed that 
 scream till the mountains rang again, and in- 
 stantly afterwards the fiery constellation descended 
 from on high to hang over Melledine's head in 
 the guise of a comet, that flamed and quivered 
 just aloft with painful splendour. Dazzled and 
 stunned she sank to the bottom of the skiff, veiling 
 her head and pressing her palms closely over her 
 muffled ears. While Potentilla resumed the rud- 
 der and put the vessel back into its former course, 
 Phantasmion, now thoroughly awakened, looked 
 in confusion at the chaplet of larine's hair which 
 twined the flaxen locks of Leucoia. The damsel 
 took it from her head, and, with a gentle smile and 
 glistening eye, restored it to him : that done, the 
 stag, which had been standing by her side with wild 
 looks ever since Melledine turned the skiff, lay 
 down at her feet, and rested peacefully as before. 
 After a while the boat entered a river, by which 
 the waters of the lake partly flowed off. The 
 swans held on their course till they arrived at a 
 steep wall of cliff, against the lower part of which 
 a cloud was resting. Here they stopped, and 
 Potentilla having pulled Melledine by the chain, 
 she rose, and, waving her hand, caused the cloud 
 to soar from the base to the middle of the rock, 
 discovering an archway, through which the stream 
 
PHANTASMIOl^. 291 
 
 flowed and disappeared amid the windings of the 
 passage. Leucoia embraced her gentle stag as 
 they entered the gloomy vault ; Phantasmion co- 
 vered himself with redoubled brightness, and cast 
 his many-coloured radiance on the expanded wings 
 and arched necks of the swans, while on before 
 and around the gliding boat all was black shadow, 
 save where the fireflies made a golden line in the 
 dark wave, or, soaring up, illumined the roof of 
 the vault, enkindling many a sparry rock, which 
 never reflected one bright ray before. At last the 
 damsel's now unwonted eyes were smitten by a 
 faint sunbeam ; the birds moved with renewed 
 vigour, hastening toward the genial light, and soon 
 a picture, delicate and minute from distance, pre- 
 sented itself to the eyes of the voyagers, who once 
 more beheld the varied green of trees opposed to 
 the deep blue of the sky, and all the landscape 
 bathed in golden radiance. Melledine seemed 
 blasted by the sight, and crouched with her face 
 to the stern, closely wrapped in her veil. Mean- 
 time the halo which surrounded Phantasmion faded 
 away, and his wings disappeared : but heedless of 
 the change he sate, gazing into the stream, while 
 the swans lowered their expanded sails, and Leu- 
 coia leaped ashore with the white stag ; for once 
 more he beheld his watery image with that of a 
 damsel holding up a pitcher before her face. And 
 now for the first time he observed, in the faint 
 background of the picture, a prostrate form, with 
 
292 PHANTASMION. 
 
 the aspect of one dying or dead. *' Why renew 
 this vision?" said he to the enchantress, pulling 
 her chain ; " whom wouldst thou now delude V 
 The prisoner replied that what had deceived An- 
 themmina was no work of hers, but produced by 
 a spirit of the waters, who had the faculty of fore- 
 shewing future scenes. While she yet spoke it 
 faded away ; all quitted the skiff, and, at a signal 
 from Melledine, the swans disappeared under the 
 darksome vault. 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 phantasmiots^ hears the second part of 
 penselimer's story. 
 
 POTENTILLA bade Phantasmion follow the 
 stream that flowed from Melledine's domain 
 till it entered a large river. " There," said she, 
 " thou shalt find one who will convey thee and 
 thy company to a dell not far from Leucoia's home. 
 Offer the gem that clasps thy sleeve to the boat- 
 man, and he will receive you all without delay." 
 Then her form changed, and he knew not if she 
 were gone, or still flitted around him among the 
 gilded flies and feathery gnats that hummed in the 
 sunshine. 
 
 As they proceeded Phantasmion heard the rocks 
 
PHANTASMION. 293 
 
 resound from a distance, above the murmur of the 
 brook, the course of which they were following : 
 sometimes he thought they rang Anthemmina's knell 
 with melancholy falls, and then again their merry 
 tinkling chime seemed fitter to express the hap- 
 piest espousals. Soon after those sounds ceased 
 to be audible, having arrived where the waters 
 met, and espied an old man in a boat, he plucked 
 the jewel from his sleeve, and ran toward him 
 holding it up to sparkle in the rays of the sun. 
 On a nearer view he saw that the conductor pro- 
 vided by his guardian Fairy was no other than the 
 ancient fisherman of the Black Lake, who clasped 
 his hands for joy as soon as he knew the prince. 
 " The messenger might have told thy name," he 
 cried, " instead of offering hire." " What mes- 
 senger?" inquired the youth. '* She with bright 
 wings," he answered, " who met me in the watery 
 dell, and bade me hasten hither with this boat. Was 
 it not on thy account she promised that I should 
 win by the journey more than my fish had ever 
 earned in Polyanthida ? or was it all a dream ?" 
 Phantasmion replied that, if it were, he had 
 dreamed to a good purpose, and, having placed his 
 companions in the vessel, he took an oar, and 
 seated himself beside the fisherman, who felt right 
 glad to see him turn the boat, and begin rowing 
 down the stream. They made great way with 
 little effort, the full tide bearing them so rapidly 
 forward, that the rich meads of Almaterra flew by 
 
294 PHANTASMION. 
 
 like dreams, while each new scene had carried its 
 colours into the next, ere the eye had time to dis- 
 tinguish it. Now and then they came to land for 
 refreshment, and added the juicy fniits of the river 
 side to their other provisions : such delays Phan- 
 tasmion yielded to courtesy, though but ill pleased 
 to see the stream run by his idle boat. Nor did 
 Leucoia wish to linger long upon the way, for she 
 had now resolved on following her sister to the 
 chieftain's palace, if her mother's consent could be 
 gained ; and the more her heart reproached her 
 with Zelneth's wound, and Arzene's anguish, the 
 less she felt the pangs of unrequited love. 
 
 It was now the end of the third day, and night 
 hung over the voyagers : white moths, flitting by, 
 reflected feeble gleams of light at intervals, and 
 once the eyes of the wild cat glared amid branches 
 that deepened the darkness of the waters by their 
 shade. Leucoia slept with a tear on her cheek, 
 lulled by the chant of nightingales ; Melledine lay 
 still, and heaved no breath ; Phantasmion rowed 
 on in silence, w^hile the old man, from whose 
 failing hand he had taken the oar, slumbered 
 heavily at his feet. He was thinking whether 
 Potentilla still watched over him, when a ring of 
 fireflies suddenly encircled the black visage of the 
 enchantress, and revealed the workings of her 
 sullen face. In a few moments they rose with 
 shrouded light, and a well known voice was heard 
 to sing thus ; 
 
PHANTASMION. 295 
 
 What means that darkly-working hrow, 
 
 Melledina? 
 
 Whose heart-strings art thou wresting now, 
 Melledina ? 
 
 The dearest pleasure follows pain, 
 
 But thou with grief shalt aye remain, 
 
 And for thyself hast forged the chain, 
 
 Melledina ! 
 
 " Those gauzy wings !" muttered the fisherman, 
 disturbed, but not awakened, by the fairy's shrill 
 pipe. He slept in peace, while she thus proceeded 
 in a softer tone : 
 
 Ah, dream of sullen skies no more. 
 
 Sad Leucoia ! 
 
 The roughest ocean hath a shore, 
 
 Sweet Leucoia ! 
 
 A steadfast shore the billows kiss. 
 
 And oft some fancied joy to miss. 
 
 Prepares the heart for higher bliss. 
 
 Young Leucoia ! 
 
 By daybreak the vessel was gliding near a field, 
 which the river all but surrounded. Bright green 
 was that field, sun-bright its liquid fence, and 
 brightly shone its groups of giant lilies, their 
 glossy leaves full fed with moisture, their painted 
 petals vying with the painted insect, which seemed 
 in rivalry to rest its wing beside them. Round this 
 fair semi- isle Phantasmion steered his boat, and 
 saw that just beyond its farthest angle a narrower 
 stream, which flowed beneath high woody banks, 
 joined company with the river, losing itself in the 
 
296 fHAllfTASMIOiSf. 
 
 stronger current, as childhood steals imperceptibly 
 into vig-orous youth. Guessing that this new comer 
 issued from the lake near Magnart's mansion, he 
 concluded that here was the place to which the 
 Fairy had directed him, and was preparing to land 
 on the meadow, when his ear caught the melody of 
 a harp, floating along the hidden course of^the tri- 
 butary stream. The sounds approached quickly from 
 a distance, and now were interpreted by the varying 
 tones of a voice, which it seemed to him that he 
 had formerly heard with the same accompaniment. 
 He fixed his eye on the spot where the rivers met, 
 and soon beheld a skiff with silken streamer 
 glide from among the trees. It made for the 
 meadow, and, when he had ascertained by whom 
 it was occupied he took up the oars, and, having 
 awakened the fisherman, began to look about for 
 a landing-place. Leucoia still lay fast asleep, 
 with her head toward the prow; she had been 
 dreaming of Zelneth, and seemed to roam in search 
 of her through tangled wilds ; but, when the sounds 
 of the hai-p came thrilling across the waters, they 
 wrought new images into the dream. That kingly 
 portrait, once her sister's idol, appeared to gleam 
 upon her lonesome path; but, when she stooped 
 towards it, the picture had become a living shape, 
 while the frame rose into high trees, between the 
 golden shafts of which the monarch sate before her, 
 singing and playing on his harp. This vision was 
 dissolved by the slight shock of the boat coming 
 
PHANTASMION. 297 
 
 to shore, and no sooner were her eyes opened than 
 they discerned the very object of her dream, Pen- 
 selimer himself, with his hand upon the strings of 
 the hai-p, which he had just ceased to sound, 
 while on he came betwixt the drooping- trees that 
 over-hung the river. And Zelneth stands beside 
 him ! — Zelneth herself, with outstretched arms, 
 and eager look, and face not pale and languishing, 
 but full of bloom and triumph, as before the days 
 of her unprosperous love. And who is she that 
 bends towards the long lost maid with deeper and 
 more melancholy fondness ? Is it Arzene ? Ah 
 yes ! that mild maternal brow is none but hers : 
 Leucoia is soon folded in her mother's arms, and 
 feels that now indeed she has attained a peaceful 
 haven. 
 
 When the happy tears and embraces of this meet- 
 ing were over, Arzene retired with her daughters 
 to another part of the dell, where a tent had been 
 pitched among the trees for their reception, and 
 harnessed steeds were in readiness to carry them 
 home by land. Then Penselimer, finding himself 
 alone with Phantasmion in the island meadow, (for 
 the old man was a little way off with his vessel,) 
 accosted him in the friendliest manner, smiling, 
 and saying with a perfectly rational air, — " I owe 
 thee many thanks, young king of Palmland ; by 
 thy hand I have been restored to reason." The 
 youth looked astonished at these words. "That 
 thou art a changed ijaan," he answered, " I see 
 
298 PHANTASMIOK. 
 
 plainly ; but how I can have wrought the change 
 I see not, and, were thy looks no less wild than 
 thy speech, I should hold thee as far from reason 
 as ever." " Hear the second part of my story," 
 said Penselimer, *' as thou hast formerly heard 
 the first : I will soon show what part thou hast 
 played in my adventures, unknown to thyself." 
 Phantasmion delivered Melledine to the attendants, 
 and heard the king of Almaterra relate how the 
 ebon-faced enchantress had tempted him to seek 
 the house of Malderyl, what had befallen him 
 there, how he personated his enemy, fought with 
 him in that disguise, and was wounded by the 
 magic weapon, but not mortally, as all supposed." 
 ^' And whither went Glandreth?" exclaimed Phan- 
 tasmion, Oloola's prophecy rushing into his mind ; 
 '' did he invade the Land of Palms ?" "I thought 
 not of him," replied the monarch ; " for days, indeed, 
 I lay incapable of thought, and, when my senses 
 returned, was racked with grievous pangs ; but 
 tliis bodily suffering proved the cure of my better 
 part, which, like the dyer's tincture, underwent 
 the fire till it became clear, glowing, and resplen- 
 dent. Reason rose, as it were, from the dead, 
 and now in my true being I began to live once 
 more. Again the stars shone forth in their own 
 brightness, again the breezes blew with their own 
 freshness ; self, shrinking within its natural limits, 
 no longer sicklied the whole face of outward things, 
 as vapours veil with one same lurid hue earth, 
 
PHANTASMION. 299 
 
 sky, and water ; my spirit ceased to multiply itself 
 by a thousand vain reflections, but grew and spread 
 through nourishment from without. 
 
 " While I was in this happy state, feeling* as if 
 my soul were a thing apart from its mortal frame, 
 yet with my head sunken among the pillows from 
 utter weakness, Albinian's queen drew near, weep- 
 ing bitterly, and calling me by the name of Glan- 
 dreth ; while, at the same time, methought there 
 was a soft bright face on the other side of the 
 bed, which peeped from behind the curtains, and 
 seemed to be smiling at her in derision. Wonder- 
 ing if these were but spectres of delirium, I raised 
 myself up a little, when Maudra, beholding my 
 face, cried aloud, and hurried from the apartment. 
 Then that other bright visitant, growing more dis- 
 tinct, shewed herself to be the Fairy Feydeleen, 
 and bade me hasten to Nemorosa, where a lady of 
 the house of Thalimer was detained against her 
 will. As she gave the command the Flower Spirit 
 imparted the power of obeying it, such enlivening 
 odours and salutary dews she scattered round me 
 ere she disappeared. I arose, feeling that my 
 wounds were healed, and took my way, sane in 
 body and mind, through the country of Malderyl. 
 Entering Nemorosa during the heat of the day, I 
 was allured to a shady covert by the sound of fall- 
 ing waters, and there I spied a dark and slender 
 youth holding a silver vessel underneath a scanty 
 rill which spouted over the rocks. At the first 
 
soo 
 
 PHANTASMION. 
 
 glance I felt assured that this vessel was Anthem'- 
 mina's pitcher, but, before I had resolved whether 
 to claim it or no, the dark youth mounted his horse 
 and rode away. " Anthemmina is dead," thought 
 I, " and if any malignant power imagines that by 
 this sight he may lure me back again to my former 
 dreams, he has missed his purpose ; but, for the 
 sake of Anthemmina's lovely child, I will see into 
 w^hat hands the charm has fallen." Phantasmion 
 was now listening with a fixed eye and troubled 
 heart, for he doubted not that Karadan was the 
 yoath with the pitcher, and that he had gone in 
 search of larine to Nemorosa. " I followed him," 
 pursued Penselimer, " but he had ridden out of 
 sight, and, while I was considering which way to 
 take, a strange object arrested my attention. Be- 
 low the green oaks of the forest, grew the stump 
 of a black thorn, which seemed to have been 
 blighted, for not a single leaf remained upon its 
 uncouth boughs. The tree was split into a double 
 trunk, one portion of which reclined upon the 
 ground, while the other stood upright, and, toward 
 the top, shot forth a solitary pair of branches. 
 Casting my eyes adown the forest, I beheld the 
 branches change into the horns of a stag, the up- 
 right stem put on the appearance of a deer's head 
 and towering neck, while that which lay upon 
 the ground swelled out into a body covered with a 
 spotted hide. I rushed forward to examine this 
 marvel j when the creature started up on legs 
 
PIIANTASMION. 301 
 
 newly formed, perhaps from the roots of the thorn 
 bush, and flew before me, while I eagerly followed, 
 spurring the sides of my fleet horse to overtake 
 him. Bounding on with huge leaps, he came at 
 last upon a company of hunters, the most notice- 
 able of whom was one that wore a panther skin 
 around his loins, and on his yellow hair a crown 
 of golden oak leaves. No sooner had this goodly 
 youth espied the giant stag, than ofif he flew, fol- 
 lowed by all his train with whoop and hollo. One 
 fair huntress alone remained, gazing bashfully 
 at me, with such looks as might have made me 
 pause on the road to paradise." "And this fair hun- 
 tress," cried Phantasmion, '^ was Zelneth, daugh- 
 ter of Magnart ; she whom Feydeleen sent thee 
 to deliver, she who was destined to replace all that 
 thou hadst lost in Anthemmina ?" " Even so," 
 rejoined Penselimer ; "at first I thought she was 
 Anthemmina herself, restored in all her bloom and 
 beauty. And thus we stood silent and motionless, 
 till the shouts of the distant huntsmen began to 
 die upon the ear. Then she fled with me, and, on 
 better knowledge of the sweet lady's features, I 
 found they had an expression all their own, and 
 one for its own sake most worthy to be loved. 
 Fair indeed were the still eyes of Anthemmina, 
 gleaming amid cloudy tresses ; seen in the light, 
 they shewed as many exquisite shades of colour 
 as a mountain pool ; but those of Zelneth sparkle 
 so with life and meaning, that we think less of 
 
302 PHANTASMION. 
 
 them than of the eloquent tales they tell. How 
 her love was bestowed on me I marvel; she was 
 but a laughing babe — " 
 
 " Think me no babe now !" cried Zelneth, softly 
 approaching, and smiling away some little confu- 
 sion at sight of the younger prince ; " sooth to 
 say, I have not yet found thee much older and 
 wiser than myself. I should scarce quarrel with 
 these few grey hairs," she added in a lower tone, 
 " if they did not remind me of the years that I 
 have missed thy love." With a brightened coun- 
 tenance Penselimer finished his story. " It was 
 dusk," he cried, " when we entered Magnart's 
 garden ; Arzene ran from the threshold to welcome 
 us, but Zelneth greeted her with tears. ' Think 
 not that I bring Leucoia,' she cried ; ' I hoped to 
 find her with thee, but the tone of thy voice tells 
 me that thou art still bereaved.' While the sad 
 mother wept on Zelneth's bosom, Feydeleen 
 gleamed upon my sight just under those moon- 
 shiny blossoms that droop over the porch. ' Weep 
 no more,' she cried, in soothing accents ; ' but 
 seek the long lost maiden in the watery dell.' " 
 " Didst thou see her?" asked Zelneth. " As 
 plainly as I see thee now," replied the king, fixing 
 his pensive eyes on the sprightly maid ; " and me- 
 thought she drew a white violet from her bosom." 
 "Ah, my sister's flower !" the lady cried; " mine 
 eyes must have been dimmed with tears. I only 
 heard her voice. And said she not that a spirit of 
 
PHANTASMION. 303 
 
 the wood protects Leucoia, and that this same 
 spirit lent her power to raise the sylvan phantom 
 that brought thee to my aid ?" " Methought so," 
 the king replied ; " but, lady, let me place thee 
 on thy steed, or the sun will reach his journey's 
 end while we are delaying ours." Then they all 
 rose to depart, and, after bidding farewell to the 
 friendly fisherman, Phantasmion rode with Zel- 
 neth and Penselimer toward the mansion of Mag- 
 nart, relating his adventures in the Sunless Valley 
 by the way. 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 PHANTASMION MEETS A NUMEROUS COMPANY AT 
 THE MANSION OF MAGNART. 
 
 MEANWHILE Arzene and her train were 
 hastening homewards with fair Leucoia, 
 whose snow-white stag tripped on in fi'ont of the 
 company, as if delighted to carry a rider that so 
 befitted his own graceful form. At times the 
 maid turned to exchange smiles with Arzene, 
 and see what watchful eyes were ever bent on her, 
 then she flew forward again, surveying with new 
 delight the vale of Polyanthida, and every object 
 brightened by the beams of day. At last her fa- 
 ther's mansion came in sight, and the damsel 
 
304 
 
 PHANTASMION". 
 
 bounded on, waving aloft a white mantle, and 
 casting up her eyes to a little mount within the 
 walls, where her young" brothers and sisters were 
 assembled to watch the advancing company. Thus 
 she approached the principal entrance, while the 
 children were skipping down the hill, and beheld, 
 not far from the gateway, an ancient woman seated 
 in a car, to which leopards were harnessed. The 
 heads of the beasts were held by a youth, who had 
 himself somewhat of a wild and sylvan air, but not 
 unmixed with gentleness and lofty grace. He was 
 listening to the words of a dwarf, who stood in 
 front of the car, and grasped the reins with his left 
 hand, while, with his right, he pointed at Leucoia. 
 But When the damsel's fair stag came nigh the 
 leopards, he started, and rushed through the open 
 gate by which the children had passed to meet 
 Arzene. The youth stepped forward, but could 
 not overtake the fugitive till he had reached the 
 top of that woody hillock which overlooked the 
 road. There, holding the reins of her sylvan 
 steed, he told the lady that his name was Ulander, 
 that he had come to Polyanthida under the gui- 
 dance of his sage kinswoman Malderyl, in search 
 of her lovely sister Zelneth, whom he sought in 
 marriage, and who had been carried away from 
 his forest realm just when he hoped she would be- 
 come his bride. " Tell me now," cried he, looking 
 out over the road with glowing cheek, " is not 
 that my betrothed lady who comes in front of the 
 
PHANTASM ION. 305 
 
 troop ?" " A betrothed lady comes there, but not 
 thine, I think," replied Leucoia, with a pitying 
 smile. " O no, I cannot be deceived !" exclaimed 
 the lover ; '' what damsel rides with such youthful 
 spirit, such queenly grace, as my fair Zelneth ? 
 O yes ! and surely that is Phantasmion of Palm- 
 land, who comes on before ?" Ulander cast his 
 sparkling eyes upon Leucoia's face, and marked 
 its pensive air. *' But who is he that keeps by 
 the side of Zelneth ?" the chieftain next inquired. 
 " That is the king of this country," she answered. 
 " And wherefore comes he to Polyanthida ?" asked 
 the youth. " To celebrate his nuptials, as I 
 guess," Leucoia made reply. Ulander smiled when 
 he beheld her blushing cheek, and asked in a 
 courteous whisper if she were to be the bride. 
 " O no !" she answered ; " Penselimer seeks the 
 hand of Zelneth, who had indeed betrothed herself 
 to him, as I can witness, before she went to seek 
 for me in thy far country." Struck by these un- 
 expected tidings, Ulander dropped the reins and 
 sank upon the ground ; but soon recovering, he saw 
 the gentle eyes of the stag and of Leucoia fixed 
 upon his face : the one was standing near him, 
 while the other kneeled by his side. The lady's 
 gentle countenance tempted Ulander to pour forth 
 all his sorrow to her, and, even while he spoke, 
 her looks of pity stole into his heart, and softened 
 the bitterness of that grief which he described so 
 eloquently. But now Arzene appeared, climbing 
 
306 PHANTASMION. 
 
 the hill with young Hermillian and all her bIoom~ 
 in^ train. The chieftain was still telling his tale 
 with passionate gestures to Leucoia, who leaned 
 upon her stag, and felt her own griefs assuaged by 
 the tears that flowed for Ulander. Arzene ac- 
 costed the youth, and made him the same cour- 
 teous proffer of hospitality which had been already 
 accepted by his ancient kinswoman. He gladly 
 consented to be her guest, and accompanied the 
 wife and daughter of Magnart to a pleasant bank 
 shaded by trees, and spread with wines, and fruits, 
 and dainty viands, by Arzene's command. Ulan- 
 der kept by the side of Leucoia, continuing his 
 discourse as much for the sake of the listener as 
 the subject : for, while he beheld her gentle smiles, 
 and soft retreating eyes, new thoughts and wishes 
 began to arise in his bosom. Insensibly he ceased 
 to think of Zelneth ; but, caressing Leucoia's sil- 
 ver-coated stag, observed how fair he would look 
 among the glades of Nemorosa. '' Wilt thou go 
 to that far land ?" qnoth the damsel playfully to 
 her favourite. " Fair mistress," replied the chief- 
 tain, answering for him, " without thee I should 
 pine and perish; let us both dwell there together." 
 At that moment the stag raised' his soft bright 
 eye, and looked at Leucoia, as if he adopted what 
 was said in his name. 
 
 Arzene and the ancient queen were now sitting 
 on a bank ; the white deer came to browse beside 
 them, ever and anon looking up in the face of 
 
PHANTASMION. 307 
 
 Malderyl, who scowled and shuddered as she 
 met his gentle gaze. Ulander among the trees at 
 a little distance was teaching Leucoia how to 
 shoot, when Zelneth, followed by her noble com- 
 panions, entered the grove. With light steps she 
 approached her sister ; but, on a sudden, beheld 
 the chieftain of Nemorosa bending his bow under 
 a laurel. At that sight she uttered an excla- 
 mation of surprise, and drew back hastily to the 
 side of Penselimer. Then she approached the bank 
 to salute young Hermillian, who was twining his 
 mother's hair with honeysuckle, and started when 
 the face of Malderyl presented itself to her view. 
 Soon afterwards the whole company assembled 
 in Magnart's princely hall, but, while the guests 
 were gaily entertained, their gentle hostess sighed 
 for one that was absent, and wondered whether 
 Karadan had joined his father in Rockland. Ulan- 
 der had ceased to sigh, and appeared so all intent 
 on winning Leucoia's grace that Zelneth addressed 
 him with one of her archest smiles, and inquired 
 what had become of the panther's skin which he 
 used to wear for her sake. She blushed when the 
 youth whispered that he did but follow her example ; 
 had not she too forgotten for whose sake she once 
 wore it ? Afterwards, however, he drew a remnant 
 of the hide from beneath his vest to spread it un- 
 der Leucoia's feet, then cast upon the spotty carpet 
 his crown of golden oak-leaves, which Zelneth took 
 up, and twined among her sister's ringlets. 
 
30S PHANTASMIO:Sr. 
 
 Amid these and other such pleasantries the eveft- 
 ing shades stole on, when Melledine dismissed her 
 gloom, and joined insensibly in the general mirth. 
 Next Malderyl arose and with meaning glances be-^ 
 sought the lady of the Sunless Vale for that obli- 
 vious charm which her kinsman stood in need of; 
 at the same time she placed a chalice in her hand, 
 and Melledine, taking forth a vial, poured the con-^ 
 tents therein, and delivered the cup to Ulander. 
 But he fixed his eyes on Leucoia, as she sate con- 
 sidering the coronal which now she held in her 
 hand, and, declaring that he had no flames in his 
 bosom which he desired to extinguish, poured out 
 the liquor on the marble floor. Then Malderyl 
 complimented the bashful maid on having gained 
 a most experienced suitor, one so well seasoned to 
 love's variable clime that he might now endure its 
 worst vicissitudes ; and, flinging stones that re- 
 bounded from one point to another, annoyed all 
 present by hints at Ulander's passion for Zelneth, 
 and his worship of larine. While the youth him- 
 self maintained a blushing silence Melledine pre- 
 tended to take his part. " Methinks I can spy good 
 reasons for his last change," said she, " I know of a 
 song which fits this case well" — " A song !" cried 
 Malderyl ; " let us hear it; thy voice may have 
 more persuasion than thy words." Phantasmion 
 was absorbed in thought of larine, and Leucoia en- 
 gaged by the silent courtship of her sylvan lover, 
 when this wily proposal was made j so, without 
 
 I 
 
PHANTASMION. 309 
 
 opposition from them, the veiled lady held up her 
 fettered arms, where she stood in the midst of the 
 hall, and, with expressive gestures, began to sing 
 thus in the person of Ulander : 
 
 Methought I wander 'd dimly on, 
 But few faint stars above me shone. 
 
 When Love drew near : 
 *< The night," said he, " is dark and damp, 
 To guide thy steps receive this lamp 
 
 Of crystal clear." 
 
 Love lent his torch, — with ready hand 
 The splendid lamp by his command 
 
 I strove to light ; 
 But strove in vain ; no flame arose. 
 Unchanged, unfired as moonlit snows, 
 
 It sparkled bright. 
 
 Again on wings as swift as thought 
 The boy a glittering cresset brought 
 
 Of sunny gold : 
 Full sure 'twas worth a monarch's gaze. 
 And how I toil'd to make it blaze 
 
 Can scarce be told. 
 
 Deprived of hope I stood perplex'd. 
 And, through my tears, what offer'd next 
 
 Obscurely floated : 
 One other lamp Love bade me take. 
 Mine eye its colour, size or make. 
 
 But little noted ; 
 
 Till soon, (what joys my soul inspire !) 
 From far within a steady fire 
 Soft upward steals ; 
 And O how many a tender hue. 
 
310 PHANTASMION. 
 
 What lines to loveliest nature true, ' , 
 
 That beam reveals ! 
 
 Now what reck I of burnish'd gold. 
 Or crystal cast in statelier mould? — 
 
 This lamp be mine, 
 Which makes my path where'er I go. 
 With warm reflected colours glow. 
 
 And light divine. 
 
 Gradually Melledine's voice, together with the 
 fumes of the liquor which had been spilled upon the 
 floor, infected the hearers with drowsiness, and, as 
 the song proceeded, the scenes it pictured stole 
 upon their misted eyes : first dim star-light, then 
 Love with torch and lamp and beamy smile emerg- 
 ing from a wood, till at last a crowd of witching 
 faces, and bright torches, and lamps of a thousand 
 shapes and colours, lit and unlit, waved along be- 
 fore them in endless succession. Even the ena- 
 moured chief could no longer look upon the very 
 face of Leucoia, but beheld a lucid image of it with 
 closed lids. The maid herself scarce inquired 
 whether she were indeed the lamp that was kind- 
 ling at Ulander's touch, and, though lately proot 
 against Melledine's charm, now nodded under the 
 influence of this doubly potent spell. Phantasmion 
 kept his eyes open longer than the rest, and per- 
 ceived that Malderyl was loosing the fetters from 
 his captive's feet and hands, but was too fast held 
 in drowsy bands to prevent her liberation, and, ere 
 it was fully effected, he too lay slumbering on the 
 
PHANTASMION. 311 
 
 floor. A new sun had just dawned when he started 
 up and saw its rays brightening the crimson cushions 
 around, and the fair faces which reclined on them ; 
 but the enchantresses were gone. With small hope 
 of recovering" his prisoner he rushed into the gar- 
 den, and, passing toward the chief entrance through 
 a shady avenue, beheld the traces of panthers' feet 
 on the humid soil. But beyond the trees and the 
 gate, in open sunshine not a foot-mark was to be 
 seen upon the firm dry earth ; and, when he looked 
 at the contracted shadows of cattle on the verdurous 
 plain, and saw the broad blue sky, where a carol- 
 ling bird was the only speck of darkness, he felt 
 as if drowsy charms, and sunless vales, and sable 
 visages were but dreams of a long dim night. 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 ULANDER CONDUCTS LEUCOIA TO THE FOREST. 
 
 THERE was something in the face of the 
 huntsman chief which brought to Leucoia s 
 mind young Dariel of Tigridia. The maid had 
 loved and suffered silently, so that, when she 
 listened to the suit of Ulander, Arzene thought 
 she gave her hand to him who had first touched 
 her heart. The nuptials of Zelneth and Leucoia 
 
312 PHANTASMION. 
 
 were celebrated in their native vale, and Sanio,' 
 Penselimer's trusty minister, being present at the 
 festivities, was the first to inform the king of 
 Palmland that Glandreth had invaded his domi- 
 nions, and was now occupying them with a power- 
 ful army. Forthwith a league was struck betwixt 
 the three sovereigns, who resolved to unite hand 
 and heart against the common enemy, to drive the 
 invaders from Palmland, to free Almaterra from 
 dependence on the Land of Rocks, to protect the 
 right of Albinian's son, and to place Ulander on 
 the throne of his ancestors. Phantasmion resolved 
 on secretly entering Geramaura, that district which 
 had been annexed to Palmland by the union of 
 Zalia with Dorimant, for the sake of raising the 
 spirits of the inhabitants by his presence and stir- 
 ring them up against the foe. It was settled that 
 Penselimer, meantime, should divide his forces, 
 that one part, in company with the foresters of 
 Nemorosa, should fall upon Rockland, while the 
 other, having joined Phantasmion in Gemmaura, 
 which was yet free from the foreign troops, should 
 unite with such an army as he could muster to 
 drive the invaders from the Land of Palms. With 
 these allies Phantasmion would have felt sure to 
 triumph but for the lack of metal armour, which 
 damped his subjects' martial prowess. Neither 
 could the king of Almaterra supply the deficiency, 
 for all the steel and brass which his people had in 
 use they derived from Rockland, having neither 
 
PHANTASMION. 313 
 
 mines nor skilful smiths among themselves. Mag- 
 nart could not be called upon to fulfil his big pro- 
 mises, for he had entered Rockland with all the 
 men he had at command, under pretence of se- 
 curing Albinian's throne, against his brother's 
 selfish schemes, for the boy Albinet. He desired 
 to have his eldest son with him in this expedition, 
 and to bring about his marriage with larine ; but 
 the youth and the maid were both missing, and no 
 one could inform him where to seek for either. 
 Penselimer's queen was eager to raise a powerful 
 army in behalf of Phantasmion, not from any 
 lingering remnant of love for him, but that her 
 kingly spouse might appear important in the eyes 
 of all men : Leucoia dreaded warfare, but from 
 gratitude to her deliverer she felt anxious that he 
 should be enabled to regain his kingdom. 
 
 While Phantasmionjourneyed toward his mother's 
 country, which lay betwixt Almaterra and Palm- 
 land, full of grief to think that he must again travel 
 away from larine, Penselimer conducted Zelneth 
 to his castle with regal pomp, and Ulander's gentle 
 bride accompanied her spouse to Nemorosa. The 
 wife of Magnart went with Leucoia on her journey ; 
 for, having heard Penselimer's tale, she could not 
 doubt that the youth who carried a silver pitcher 
 was her beloved son, and purposed to make inquiry 
 in every house on the borders of the forest till 
 she traced him out. After many disappointments 
 in this quest she entered the goatherd's cottage, 
 
314 PHANTASMION. 
 
 aad there heard tiding$ which made her resolve to 
 shape her course toward the sea. Arzene had left 
 home with no attendants of her own, and, now that 
 she ^as to part company with her son and daughter, 
 Leucoia bade the chieftain guard her through the 
 d^pgerous forest. Ulander, though somewhat loth, 
 obeyed his bride's behest, and, to shew his zeal and 
 devotion, attended her mother, leaving Leucoia at 
 the goatherd's cottage. The lady asked many 
 questions of her host concerning his late guests. 
 She had already heard him relate to Arzene how a 
 beautiful young maid and her aged sire abode un- 
 der his roof, how the old man died, and the damsel 
 departed with a tall dark youth who bore a silver 
 pitcher. Now he spoke more minutely of these 
 matters, and shewed the jewels which his guests had 
 given him. Leucoia felt certain that the decrepit 
 maa of whom he spake must have been Iarine*s 
 father, and, full of tender thoughts, she wandered 
 forth alone to view the hollow in the rocks where 
 loM <?ofl&n had been deposited. Passing through a 
 part of the wood she espied the fair white stag 
 brousing among the trees a little way off, and, 
 fearing that he might stray too far, sh6 went to 
 lead him back toward the cottage. On she tripped, 
 calling him by his name in silver tones ; but, ei-e 
 she reached his side, two dwarfs rushed out upon 
 her from behind some bushes, and, while one pin- 
 ioned her arms, the other bound them with cords, 
 then both together placed her at the bottom of a 
 
PHAKTASMION. 315 
 
 car drawn by leopards, wherein the ancient queen 
 of Tigridia was seated. " Swartho," said Malderyl 
 to one of these monsters, putting" the reins into his 
 hand, " dost thou see how yon white deer stands 
 terror-stricken ? Drive up to hinx : if he awaits 
 our approach I will throw this noose round his 
 iie€k, and take him to the gardens of the cavern." 
 Swartho's toad eyes gleamed strangely, while his 
 mistress spoke, and, as he stared in affright, the 
 scarlet ring flamed out all round ; but, without an- 
 swering a word, he shook the reins and drove up to 
 the stag. Leucoia was lying stupified at Malderyl's 
 feet, the witch stood erect, the object of attack ap- 
 peared as motionless as if it were a marble effigy 
 placed there to decorate the glade. But no sooner 
 had Malderyl cast her loop round his neck than 
 she dropped the cord and shrieked aloud : it was 
 no stag, but a tiger with glaring eyeballs and 
 terrific jaws, around which her noose was hanging. 
 With a roar that shook the forest he sprang upon 
 the leopards, and, at that moment, Ulander ap- 
 peared in sight. Perceiving the jeopardy of his 
 kinswoman he rushed on with his javelin uplifted : 
 but, no sooner had he approached the car, than 
 the tiger vanished. Ulander beheld his awn Leu^- 
 coia lying bound at the feet of Malderyl, and the 
 hideous dwarf crouching like a nightmare on her 
 breast. In a moment he had severed the eords 
 that bound her arms, and would have spitted the 
 monster with his spear, but a voice that seemed to 
 
316 PHANTASMION. 
 
 be made up of many sweet voices, so powerful 
 and mellow it sounded, was heard to speak thus ; 
 " Take home thy g-entle bride, Ulander, and let 
 the dwarf and Malderyl go unhurt. Fear nothing 
 for Leucoia : she may wander securely, by day or 
 night, amid the loneliest recesses of this forest. 
 The Spirit of the Woods protects her, and destined 
 the maid from childhood for thy bride. Go, Mal- 
 deryl ! in vain wouldst thou seek to overthrow my 
 plans: fly to thy mountain abode, and lurk no 
 longer in the shadow of these boughs, weaving 
 deceits and treacheries." While the voice con- 
 tinued every bird was silent, every leaf motionless 
 on the spray; but, when it ceased, a murmur ran 
 through the forest, as if the whole expanse of 
 foliage were swept by one strong transient gale, 
 and all the feathered inmates of the wood burst 
 forth at once into a choral melody. Leucoia leaped 
 upon the turf, then Malderyl drove her leopards 
 through an opposite quarter of the forest, and soon 
 was hidden from the view amid leafy oaks and 
 beeches. The lady by Ulander's side pursued a 
 different course: wherever she passed the birds 
 crowded to the boughs, even the trees themselves 
 appeared to be saluting her with lowered branches, 
 and a troop of white fawns, like snow-drops, such 
 as had never been seen in that region before, skip- 
 ped around and preceded her steps. 
 
 But when the wedded pair arrived at the Sylvan 
 Palace, Ulander saw, to his astonishment, that its 
 
PHANTASMION. 317 
 
 precincts were enlarged, that a fence of tall trees 
 which formerly bounded one end of it, was now 
 removed, and a delicious pleasure ground, watered 
 by a clear stream, laid open to the view. This 
 was Malderyl's garden, which the Spirit of the 
 Wood had thus added to the domain of Ulander, 
 having taken off the spells which had hitherto 
 hedged it round. The Witch's Cavern was yet 
 standing, but soon afterwards an earthquake laid 
 it in ruins, and the place it had occupied became 
 a rocky channel, where the river, diverted from its 
 ancient bed, flowed roughly, flashing and raving 
 in its broken course, as if indignant at the re- 
 membrance of deeds once perpetrated there. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 AFTER THE DEATH OF ALBINIAN lATlINE LEAVES 
 THE goatherd's COTTAGE. 
 
 WHILE the daughters of Magnart were sur- 
 rounded with festal pomp and pleasure, 
 larine watched her father's dying bed, and, so 
 deeply was her heart engaged by his wants and 
 sufferings, that the season of Albinian's mortal 
 sickness, with its slightly varied stages, its melan- 
 choly hopes and transient restorations, remained 
 imprinted on her mind like a vivid chart, which 
 
318 PHANTASMION. 
 
 the ieye surveys at once, all equally distinct and 
 clear from the beginning to the end. 
 
 Just before his death, Albinian spoke of Mau- 
 dra and Anthemmina ; for in this time of natural 
 decay his speech was wholly restored. " It was 
 a fearful retribution," he said, *' that she to whom 
 1 denied my hand and heart, (alas too hastily pro- 
 mised,) should be enabled to bewitch my spirit 
 with an amorous infatuation, and afterwards my 
 body with unnatural weakness. But O, the beauty 
 of Anthemmina might have done away stronger 
 traces from the heart than Maudra ever left on 
 mine !" larine sighed, and still more sadly she felt 
 when Albinian spoke further. " Weakly and 
 wrongfully," he said, " I accepted the fair hand 
 which a father offered me, and that gift brought 
 after it a train of evils, which clung to the receiver 
 even after the gift itself had been taken away. 
 Dorimant was in all her thoughts, Dorimant was 
 in her nightly dreams : when, wrapped in slumber, 
 she uttered the name of Dorimant, sleep deserted 
 my pillow; one fatal image haunted the unloved 
 husband and the regretful wife. But thou, larine, 
 wast the child of that marriage : thy beauty brings 
 only blessing and happiness ; thou hast loved mfe 
 here, and where I go thy love will follow me." 
 While he spoke thus the old man's withered face 
 appeared to expand and brighten, his mind being 
 filled with the one only thought on which it could 
 dwell with perfect complacency. He imagined 
 
PHANTASlVf ION. 31 9 
 
 blissful regions, where Maudra and Anthemmina 
 could wreck his peace no more, where larine, with 
 brave Karadan, who from boyhood had shewn 
 him reverence, might dwell for ever in his sight. 
 But soon that vision faded, while sad remembrances 
 and anticipations cast their deep shadows over his 
 soul. larine saw that his countenance was dis- 
 turbed, though no new words had been spoken, as 
 a lake appears ruffled on the surface while not 
 a breath of air is stirring abroad, and the valesmeii 
 imagine a wind under the waters. Albinian wag 
 thinking of Albinet, left in Glandreth's power, 
 of his infant boy in the palace of Palmland, and, 
 worse than all, of larine plighted to the son of 
 Dorimant. " Father !" said the maid, reading 
 part of his thoughts, " thy children have noble 
 and brave defenders : me they may survive aS 
 well as thee, but while I tarry here below I will 
 watch those children with a mother's care ; attd 
 rich indeed will be my reward when I receive thy 
 thanks hereafter, and hear thy sons declare that I 
 faithfully discharged my trust !" These soothing 
 images found no entrance to the spirit of Albinian ; 
 Dorimant and Anthemmina, larine and Phantas- 
 mion, linked together in eternal bliss ! Alas ! 
 alas ! earth had been a scene of sorrow to the 
 dying man, and heaven, he feared, would be no 
 heaven for him. He pressed the hand of his 
 daughter, and, even while the dews of death stood 
 on his forehead, his sunken eyes appeared to glow 
 
320 PHANTASMIOU. 
 
 and be projected by the force of passion. *' Pro. 
 mise to marry Karadan, thy deal* mother's kins- 
 man," he cried with strugg^ling utterance ; " then 
 I shall die in peace :" at that moment the. unhappy 
 maiden longed to die too, and dwell with both her 
 parents in realms above. She remained silent, 
 while tears flooded her cheeks, and her whole 
 frame trembled. With a faint groan Albinian 
 abandoned her gentle hand, and instantly after- 
 wards he ceased to breathe. larine closed his 
 eyes, and kneeled beside the bed with her face 
 howed down in sorrow. 
 
 She had remained for some time in this posture, 
 lost to all outward sights and sounds, when a well 
 known voice roused her from abstraction. larine 
 lifted up her eyes, dim with tears, and beheld the 
 silver pitcher of Anthemmina gleaming in the 
 light admitted by a narrow casement at one end of 
 the rustic chamber. He who held it now advanced 
 from the door, and she saw the dark face and 
 slim figure of Karadan. "Is he dead ?" cried 
 the youth, gazing sorrowfully on the couch : *' O 
 say not that he is gone for ever ! I have here a 
 blessed medicine, which the kind spirit has given 
 me at my earnest prayer : I myself have felt its 
 wondrous potency." " It comes too late 1" replied 
 the maid, with fresh-flowing tears : " charms and 
 witcheries can have no power upon him now, for good 
 or evil." " Woe is me !" exclaimed the youth, 
 ** it would have restored him to health jtnd vigour I 
 
PHANTASMION. 321 
 
 How long- have I been wandering bewildered in 
 this land of trees ! O would that Feydeleen had 
 shewn me thy abode before !" " Many thanks to 
 thee, Karadan !" exclaimed the damsel fervently ; 
 *' thou hast ever loved and honoured my father !" 
 Karadan wept, and stood looking with a counte- 
 nance of grief on the face of Albinian ; at last he said 
 in a low voice, " Thy father loved me too, and 
 fain would have had me for a son. Were thou and 
 I united in marriage, his spirit would be ever nigh 
 to bless and to protect us." " O, Karadan !" 
 replied larine, " with his dying voice he urged 
 that suit ; yet even now, could I restore him to 
 life by granting it, the little word might not be 
 spoken." Karadan remained silent for some time 
 after larine had uttered these words, kneeling by 
 the side of the bed ; then he clasped his hands, 
 and, looking up, with a face of deep anguish, 
 " Yes, yes !" he exclaimed ; " it was fated long- 
 ago ! I see that thou art never to be mine ! Thou 
 couldst not consent, even to bring back Anthem- 
 mina from exile !" larine gazed on Karadan, as 
 if to read his meaning in his eyes, but soon the 
 youth declared that meaning with solemn words 
 and oaths. *' Anthemmina yet lives !" he cried ; 
 " blame me not that I have concealed this truth 
 till now : hereafter thou shalt know that I am 
 blameless. Anthemmina did not sink beneath the 
 waves, and I can guide thee to the coast, where 
 
 Y 
 
322 PHANTASMION. 
 
 Feydeleen last ni^ht shed balm upon her lonely 
 
 pillow." larine stood rapt, with face upturned 
 
 and arms outstretched, but motionless; her heart 
 
 and brain seemed overborne by a multitude of 
 
 thoughts and feelings which crowded on them at 
 
 once; a thousand dreams were suddenly realized, 
 
 and started up from the depths of memory into 
 
 brilliant light. At last she clasped her hands and 
 
 rushing to her father's side, " O wake again," she 
 
 wildly cri^d, " to hear that my mother lives !'* 
 
 The eyes of him who lay on the couch were open, 
 
 and he returned her eager gaze. Albinian was not 
 
 dead : sense and breathing had feebly returned, and 
 
 he had heard that she whom he had never ceased 
 
 ft 
 
 to love, was yet among the living. He beckoned 
 to Karadan, who stood with eyes fixed on his in 
 amazement. Karadan approached and kneeled by 
 his side. Albinian looked at the maid, then at 
 the youth, and pointed to the silver pitcher now 
 standing on the floor. His lips moved, and larine 
 knew, as she bent over her father, that he was 
 entreating her to be the wife of Karadan, and to 
 seek with him for Anthemmina. " Give me thy 
 hand," cried the youth rising : then he whispered 
 in larino's ear, " Satisfy the soul of Albinian, 
 and thou shalt be free from this tie by the time 
 that thou beholdest Anthemmina." The maid no 
 longer held back, but placed her hand in the hand 
 of Karadan, and the youth, firmly grasping it, said 
 
PIIANTASMION. 323 
 
 aloud, " Thy daughter has betrothed hei'self to me, 
 and death only can separate us." larine marked 
 not the import of these words, her mind being 
 wholly occupied with the change that came over 
 her father's countenance immediately after they 
 were spoken; for his face, though it wore a happy 
 smile, was now again like the face of the dead. 
 Karadan took the pitcher, and bedewed his body 
 with the charmed liquor supplied by Feydeleen. 
 The eflfect was marvellous : every wririkle was re- 
 moved, soft bloom overspread the cheek, and that 
 body, so miserably wasted by sorrow and sickness, 
 shewed like the corse of some fair and youthful 
 person whose thread of life had been snapped by 
 sudden accident. But this adorning was only for 
 the tomb ; Albinian's spirit had fled a moment 
 after larine placed her hand in that of Karadan ; 
 the empty tenement looked meet to be inhabited, 
 but the soul returned to it no more. 
 
 Long did larine linger over the fcorse of Albinian ; 
 but, when all hope was gone, having placed her 
 father's remains in a coffin, she went with Karadan 
 to lay them in a hollow among the rocks, where 
 the goatherd promised they should remain in 
 safety till they could be removed to a more august 
 receptacle. That service performed, larine be- 
 sought Karadan to fulfil his promise of conducting 
 her to the abode of Anthemmina, and, having 
 mounted a mule, she bade her sorrowful host fare- 
 
324 PHANTASM ION. 
 
 well with many tears, declaring that even when 
 he should cease to be the g-uardian of her father's 
 body every link would not be severed which bound 
 her to him. 
 
PHANTASMION, 
 
 PART IV. 
 
1 
 
PHANTASMION. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 PHANTASMION VAINLY ATTEMPTS THE DESTRUCTION 
 OF GLANDRETH, BUT, ENTERING THE BOWELS OF 
 THE EARTH, HE MEETS WITH ONE WHO ASSURES 
 HIM OF VICTORY AND VENGEANCE. 
 
 PHANTASMION had hardly set foot in Gem- 
 maura when his guardian spirit appeared 
 before him. " Beware," she cried, ** how thou 
 proceedest in this district : the foe has been here 
 before thee. Hast thou no remembrance of the 
 country around ?" Phantasmion replied that it 
 scarcely seemed new to his eyes. ^' Not far from 
 hence," rejoined Potentilla, " is the mansion where 
 thy mother used to dwell with Cyradis, her guar- 
 dian. After marriage Zalia loved to revisit the 
 spot, and see her little son gambol in those green 
 haunts where • she herself had sported when a 
 child ; and here in her death-sickness she desired 
 to be buried, feeling like one who longs to lie 
 down in the old accustomed chamber. Her ancient 
 friend survived till an hour ago, but Glandreth 
 
328 
 
 PHANTASMION. 
 
 and his savage band have murdered him." Then 
 Phantasmion cried aloud, and, flinging himself 
 upon the ground, began to tear his bossy ringlets. 
 " It was rumoured," said the Fairy, " that he pos- 
 sessed a treasure and was acquainted with rich 
 mines. And so they pierced him with spears, on the 
 tomb of his beloved pupil, which he daily visited ; 
 then, digging into the ground, discovered no pre- 
 cious stones or metals, but thy mother's cofl&n, 
 which they are even now carrying away into Palm- 
 land. For Glandreth declares that he will hold a 
 solemn feast and burn the relics of Dorimant and 
 Zalia, before all the people, as a sign that the old 
 race of the Palmland kings is utterly abolished." 
 Phantasmion now sprang from the earth, and, 
 grasping Potentilla's robe, implored her either to 
 end his life at once or to give him the means of 
 sudden vengeance. The Fairy made answer that 
 she could devise but one way of helping him to 
 that for which his soul thirsted, and this was a 
 plan fraught with toil, hazard, and even abasement." 
 Phantasmion exclaimed that he would do and be 
 and suffer anything, if he might but stop his ene- 
 mies in their outrageous career. "Then listen," 
 she replied; " among the innumerable subjects of 
 my insect realm is one which digs a pitfall in the 
 sand. For nature has so constructed its unwieldy 
 form that it walks backward, and has no other 
 means of catching the nimble creatures which it 
 preys upon. At the farther end of Gemmaura is a 
 
PHANTASMION. 329 
 
 wide sandy plain : this thy enemies have to traverse 
 ere they reach the luxuriant Valley of Palms, where 
 their armed comrades are to meet them, and the 
 festival is to be celebrated on the morrow. Thither 
 thou shalt go, and, in the guise of that crafty in- 
 sect, prepare a gulf large enough to swallow up 
 Glandreth and all his murderous band when they 
 arrive there." The youth embraced this offer, 
 and, having received wings fi'om Potentilla, rapidly 
 followed her through the air, and alighted on a 
 spot suitable for the undertaking, just before the 
 entrance to the Vale of Palms. At a touch of the 
 Fairy's wand his wings vanished, and, in the same 
 pointof time, every vestige of his human form disap- 
 peared. Led by a natural instinct he forthwith set to 
 work, and traced out circle within circle in the sand, 
 his new body and limbs being his only instruments. 
 Labouring without stop he at length scooped out a 
 deep cavity, of size proportioned to the gigantic 
 form that wrought it; at the bottom of the snare the 
 metamorphosed prince now took his seat, covering 
 himself with sand, so that the upper part of his 
 head with the points of his horrid fangs, which were 
 like two reaping hooks crossed, alone remained 
 visible ; and, over the hollow, Potentilla wove a 
 gummy web, on which, when finished, she strewed 
 a light covering of dust and common soil. 
 
 By this time the sun was sinking in the west, 
 and the last clump of spiral trees, which Glandreth's 
 company passed on the margin of the desert, cast 
 
330 PIIANTASMION. 
 
 their lengthened shadows on the yellow sand. The 
 leader had fallen back to the rear, and was deep in 
 discourse with a chieftain, richly apparelled, to 
 whom he was vaunting his triumphs, and de- 
 scribing how he meant to rule the state of Palm- 
 land. Some way in advance were those that bore 
 the remains of Zalia, and the younger men went 
 riding on before. No sooner had these youthful 
 warriors, who were mounted on prancing steeds, 
 arrived at the sandy plain, than, for their own sport 
 and that of their horses, they resolved on running 
 a race. Their friends behind warned them to be- 
 ware of the old quarries which lay to the right * 
 but, confident and carel-ess, off they started, avoid- 
 ing those excavations only to fall into an equally 
 destructive gulf. Within a few seconds of each 
 other all arrived at the abyss which gaped to re- 
 ceive them. At the edge of it they rushed upon 
 a loose bank of pebbles and sand, thrown up by 
 the fabricator : against this the horses stumbled, 
 attd, losing their balance, fell headlong into the 
 trap. The men behind wondered to see them 
 suddenly disappear in the distance, and strained 
 their eyes to look after them. It was quite dark 
 ere the company that brought the coffin reached 
 the pitfall, so that, leisurely as they came all rolled 
 over the shelf and joined their comrades in the 
 hollow. There the mingled crowd were lying, 
 crushed and mangled, with broken arms, legs, ribs, 
 and sculls, some over their steeds and some under 
 
PIIAMTASMION. 331 
 
 them, Avhile those horses which still had power to 
 move kicked and plunged and trode their masters 
 to atoms. He who had dug the huge pit kept 
 quietly at his post, somewhat oppressed by the 
 weight of one man's body, nigh the centre of thfe 
 gulf, but eagerly expecting the arrival of Glan- 
 dreth. Glandreth however was destined to escape 
 that snare. " The moon is not yet up," he cried 
 to his men, " and we shall have a stream to cross 
 in the Valley of Palms. Kindle the torches that 
 we may see our way." The conqueror was obeyed, 
 and, by the light which the flaming pine branches 
 cast around them, he and his companions descried 
 the heaped sand and the gaping pitfall. Seized 
 with alarm and astonishment Glandreth snatched 
 one of the brands, and went with the rest to look 
 down into the gulf, where he beheld a crowd of 
 mangled bodies and heard the groans of the dying. 
 Phantasmion plainly discerned his enemy, on whose 
 horror-stricken visage the torch-light cast a fierce 
 glare, gazing into the pit and narrowly eyeing the 
 scythe-formed weapons of his head which stood 
 out from the centre of it. Another face gleamed 
 beside his, beneath a jewelled head-dress : it was 
 that of treacherous Magnart, whom the indignant 
 youth immediately recognized. After a while the 
 two brothers and their attendants drew off toward 
 the Vale of Palms, when, with some difficulty, 
 Phantasmion dragged himself out of his den, 
 bringing up his mother's coffin along with him. 
 
332 PHANTASMION. 
 
 He had been miserably bruised, and now, feeling 
 all eagerness to be divested of his hideous mask, 
 would have cried aloud for the Insect Fairy, but 
 found himself unable to utter any articulate sound. 
 He looked about and saw not her whom he sought 
 in woman's form, yet surmised that she must still 
 be near him, because a large moth, having the 
 figure of a scull depicted on the upper part of its 
 body, kept flitting around his head, ever and anon 
 uttering a shrill piteous cry, then sinking down 
 beside him. *' She deserted Dorimant !" thought 
 he ; " perhaps she will leave me also to my fate." 
 But soon he keenly felt the wretchedness of being 
 disabled either from facing his enemies or escaping 
 from them by fleetness ; when a band of soldiers, 
 armed with arrows and javelins, and lighted by 
 torches, came to take the bodies of their companions 
 out of the pit. One of them, looking over the 
 plain, espied the monstrous form under which 
 Phantasmion was disguised, lying stretched upon 
 the sand. He pointed it out to the rest, who 
 feared to approach, but from a distance discharged 
 their missiles, many of which stuck like porcupine 
 quills about the ungainly carcase, and caused the 
 youth such anguish that he believed he should ex- 
 pire that night. " Miserable man that I am," he 
 exclaimed, " or rather miserable spirit of a man, 
 imprisoned in a frightful crust, to what dire ex- 
 tremity have I been driven by mad rage ! I have 
 cast away my human form and faculties only to 
 
PHANTASMION. 333 
 
 perish unavenged by arrows from mine enemy's 
 quiver !" Still dragging his mother's coffin he 
 crawled along in hopes to gain the shelter of some 
 rocks, and there to find at once a death-bed and a 
 sepulchre. The moon had now risen, and cast her 
 light upon those rocks by the time that Phantas- 
 raion reached them ; but, exhausted with fatigue 
 and pain he was unable to command the motions 
 of his monstrous body, his eyes grew dim, he came 
 unawares to the verge of a stone quarry, and, 
 moving backwards, lost his balance so that he 
 tumbled to the bottom. Here, when he recovered 
 sense and motion, which his fall at first suspended, 
 he found himself lying under a vault of stone, 
 with large fragments of rock scattered on all sides. 
 The moon cast her beams wherever they could 
 find entrance amid the lumber of the quarry, and 
 all around was an interchange of blackest shade 
 and soft silver reflections. But the attention of 
 the miserable transformed youth was drawn to- 
 ward a darksome hollow, whence he heard low 
 sounds proceed; and, after listening a little while, he 
 distinguished two voices, one deep and sepulchral, 
 the other slender and sweet as that of a solitary 
 wren, which pipes a faint strain when the blast is 
 silent, and the sun shines on its cushion of snow. 
 " Nevertheless, O save my son !" exclaimed that 
 softer voice. It seemed as if the tones of the 
 second speaker came from under ground, while 
 those of the first descended through the air. " What 
 
334 PHANTASMION. 
 
 have I to do with the son of Dorimant ?" was the 
 reply. " I have expiated my disobedience, great 
 Spirit of the Earth ?" rejoined the voice from above. 
 *' I perished through that marriage against which 
 thou didst warn me." " What is Phantasmion to 
 me ?" again the Earth Spirit rephed ; " he hath a 
 helper of his own, and even here, in my domain, 
 she hath presumed to practise her witcheries?" 
 "But thou hast triumphed, O Valhorga," the 
 second speaker replied : '' now therefore, I beseech 
 thee, suffer Potentilla to restore my son." While 
 Phantasmion listened to this colloquy, his soul was 
 filled with indescribable tumults, and the silence 
 that succeeded to the last words caused him the 
 most agonizing suspense : he felt as if his strong 
 emotions must rend and break to shivers that dis- 
 proportioned case which lay on the earth, lumpish 
 and uncouth as the half hewn stones around it. 
 But now the hideous dream has vanished, and 
 once more Phantasmion stands erect in his own 
 noble form, splendid as the palm trees, with their 
 leaf-crowned heads and gorgeous clusters, graceful 
 and majestic as the darker cypress. The first object 
 that met his eye was Potentilla, whose wand had 
 just wrought the change, flitting away in the air, 
 her wings growing transparent, her head triagonal, 
 and her whole body more and more minute, till she 
 had changed into a dragon-fly, the gay colours of 
 which twinkled for a moment in the moonlight. 
 She is gone ! but what pale shadowy form is that 
 
PHANTASMION. 335 
 
 which occupies her place, and gazes with such 
 melancholy tenderness on the renovated youth ? 
 Phantasmion looking intently before him remem- 
 bers the fair and gentle countenance of his mother. 
 An hour ago how ill could he have brought to 
 mind the face of Zalia, that face which, ever 
 beaming in his presence with maternal love, had 
 been to his young mind the very symbol of mater- 
 nity. Now he not only recognized her features, 
 but saw his childish self placed outwardly before 
 him. The time when he lay in sickness on his 
 little couch, and saw that soft mild countenance 
 still shining in betwixt delirious dreams, now oc- 
 cupied l^is mind with such intensity that all which 
 had since occurred seemed dim and faint in com- 
 parison ; as when a distant moonlit building attracts 
 the eye, all the intervening space looks indistinct 
 and shadowy because that has been rendered so 
 conspicuous. Filled with inexpressible yearning, 
 Phantasmion leaned forward to embrace the form 
 of Zalia ; but ah I no living mother watches over 
 him now, and she who has done him this maternal 
 service is but an impalpable phantom. " Blessings 
 on thee, my son !" whispered the spirit ; " restore 
 my bones to their resting place, and lay those of 
 my ancient guardian in the same grave !" Phan- 
 tasmion eagerly promised to obey, and then she 
 related that Valhorga once made her mistress of 
 those precious mines, the report of which induced 
 Dorimant to marry her ; that no sooner had she 
 
336 PHANTASMION. 
 
 accepted his hand than the gift was withdrawn. 
 While Phantasmion listened darkness fell upon an 
 opposite rock, which had reflected the full light of 
 the moon from its humid front. He looked and 
 saw what seemed the shadow of a giant, leaning 
 forward from a recess hard by. " Dorimant could 
 never find those mines," Zalia continued. " Alas ! 
 it was but iron and gold that he sought in seeking 
 me ! The Earth Spirit knew this and frustrated his 
 purpose." " I too need metals !" exclaimed Phan- 
 tasmion. *' Come then !" his mother cried, " and 
 I will shew thee where veins of iron have lurked 
 for ages, undisturbed by the hand of man." Phan- 
 tasmion rejoiced at these words ; but now he be- 
 thought him of larine, and, hoping that he might 
 learn where she abode, from the kind spirit, he 
 kneeled down and, looking earnestly in her face, 
 " Mother!" he said, " knowest thou her to whom 
 I have given thy coronal, the daughter of Anthem- 
 mina ?" As he uttered that name a mournful dis- 
 pleasure darkened Zalia's countenance, and her 
 face, which hitherto had shone in the moonlight 
 pure as a fleecy cloud, now appeared to be flecked 
 with purple. " What means this fearful change, 
 my mother?" exclaimed Phantasmion, " and O why 
 dost thou look so mournfully?" The shade of Zalia 
 was silent ; Phantasmion held up his hands in ear- 
 nest supplication, but now his mother's form gleam- 
 ed upon him no longer, and the moonbeams en- 
 lightened only the solid walls of the quarry. 
 
PHANTASMION. 337 
 
 A dawning sun tinged the landscape with its first 
 pale beam, when Phantasmion heard the voice of 
 the Earth Spirit calling him from underground ; — ^ 
 *' Son of Zalia ! follow me !" it cried, " and thou 
 shalt be avenged on Glandreth !" ** Shall I leave 
 the light of day !" thought the youth, *' and ven- 
 ture below with one who may keep me there for 
 ever?" While Phantasmion hesitated, he heard 
 a thundering sound, and at the same time the 
 masses of rock and walls of stone began to quiver, 
 as if seized with an ague. The tumult having 
 subsided, he beheld an opening in the earth, and 
 from that passage the voice of the Earth Spirit 
 issued, and spoke thus : " If thou wilt be avenged 
 on Glandreth, follow me !" Then Phantasmion 
 thought that if Valhorga willed his destruction, he 
 had but to shake the earth a little more forcibly, 
 and straightway he must lie defaced and mangled 
 among the fragments of the quarry. No sooner • 
 had he taken his resolve than hope led him onward, 
 and all the dark images which fear had summoned 
 were dissipated in the brightening atmosphere of 
 his soul, like smoky fumes in the transparent 
 ether. He entered the hollow way, and groped 
 along, till the last faint glimmering of light had 
 disappeared, and he stumbled in utter darkness. 
 Awful noises now assailed his ears, and, as he pro- 
 ceeded, they grew louder and louder ; but his cou- 
 rage never deserting him, he went right on, till 
 the passage widened, and brought him to an open 
 z 
 
338 PHAWTASMIOH. 
 
 space with a firm but glassy footing. Here he 
 groped a little way, then stopped, overcome by the 
 iseeming weight of darkness, and the utter vacancy 
 on every side: when, all at once, his eyefr were 
 attracted by sparks of light kindling in the black- 
 ness above, and soon myriads of fresh stars shone 
 out. In another moment these fiery points shot 
 upward, and swelled into volumes of flame, which 
 disclosed the ruby lamps that held them, and a new 
 heaven of gems with numberless constellations 
 glittering over his head. Below that sapphirinfe 
 dome, the ground was of jasper, embossed with 
 a thousand flower-like jewels ; and full in View 
 were lakes of crystal, emerald groves, and towers 
 ■and spires of diamond, which rose from a golden 
 city, built on many hills, and stretched away in 
 the distance far as eye could reach. Over against 
 where he stood, at the entrance of this gemmy 
 vale, w^hich, by its over brightness, caused the eye 
 to ache for milder daylight, Phantasmion beheld a 
 swarthy and gigantic figure, leaning on an imple- 
 ment of iron ; his limbs were muscular, his cheeks 
 ploughed with furrows, and bis eyes deep sunk 
 beneath black beetling brows. *' Valhorga !" ex- 
 claimed the youth, *' it is not gold and jewels that 
 I seek from thee, but brass and iron ; give me 
 sharp swords to pierce the impious hearts of my 
 enemies, and let all thy brilliant possessions reflect 
 no other light than that of these subterranean 
 fires !" Valhoiga's stern brow relaxed, and h& 
 
fHANTASMION. 339 
 
 'smiled upon Phantasmion. '' Thou shalt have 
 iron and brass enough," said he, " to make thy 
 armies glitter in the sun, like glaciers on the bosom 
 of the mountain. Conduct them to the volcano 
 behind the house of Malderyl, and there they shall 
 be fitted out to encounter the troops of Glandreth." 
 Phantasmion's heart exulted in this promise, but, 
 casting his eyes around the sparkling scene, he 
 beheld that stony likeness of a pomegranate tree 
 whence his mother's coronal had been taken ; it 
 grew beside a crystal lake, which reflected the 
 sapphire vault, and stars of carbuncle and ruby, 
 their flames appearing to quiver on its firm smooth 
 face. Then Zalia's mournful image came back 
 into his mind, and he besought Valhorga to ex- 
 plain the meaning of her sudden change. The 
 Earth Spirit made reply; " Malderyl persuaded 
 thy mother to taste poisonous berries, averring that 
 they were sent by the Flower Spirit, and would 
 render her beloved in the eyes of her neglectful 
 spouse. Zalia still clings to the error which 
 haunted her dying bed, and believes that Fey- 
 deleen sought her life for the sake of Anthemmina." 
 Then Valhorga disclosed the ancient feud which 
 had rendered Malderyl and Melledine bitter ene- 
 mies, both to the house of Thalimer, and the race 
 of Palmland, and Phantasmion found that Dariel, 
 whose scarf he still wore across his bosom, was 
 the brother of Ulander, and had been sent by the 
 Tigridian ^ueen to work his ruin. 
 
340 fUATHTA^MlO^ . 
 
 This discourse inspired him with fresh desire t0 
 encounter his foes, and fresh hope that he should 
 prevail against them ere long, by Valhorga's aid* 
 The Spirit of the Storm he feared not. " An- 
 themmina's dying day," thought he, '* is long 
 since past, and her vow to serve Glandreth must 
 have expired." With a joyful heart he quitted 
 that sappbirine sky, and pursued another dark 
 winding passage, till it led him up into the light 
 of day. When he emerged, the sun was shining 
 in meridian splendour, and he found himself in 
 the midst of Penselimer's army, with the numerous 
 bands of Gemmaurians and fugitives from Palm- 
 land, who had flocked around him. They had as- 
 sembled on the sandy tract, and were greatly at 
 a loss to know what had become of the young 
 monarch, scouts having been sent on all sides to 
 look for him in vain. Great was the astonishment 
 of Penselimer when he beheld the earth gape a 
 little way from the place where he stood, and 
 Phantasmion come forth in helmet, shield, and 
 breast-plate of diamonds, which sparkled like icicles 
 in the sunshine, though not to be melted by the 
 hottest ray. " This jewelled armour," cried tlie 
 king of Palmland, " is a pledge from Valhorga, 
 the Spirit of the Earth : soon it shall be exchanged 
 for a more serviceable suit, and every soldier of 
 our numerous host shall receive the same harness 
 as myself. Let us march to the volcanic moun- 
 tain of Tigridia, there to be equipped for battle 
 
PHANTASMI05f. 341 
 
 and victory.'* Acclamations rent the sky, after 
 the silence of amazement which his first reappear- 
 ance occasioned : Phantasmion shewed himself to 
 the whole army in his brilliant array, so that all 
 were inspired with confidence, and eager to start 
 for the mountain of Malderyl. Phantasmion de- 
 layed their march, while he interred his mother's 
 remains, with the body of her faithful guardian, 
 in a secret but honoured grave : those rites per- 
 formed, the united armies set forth on their dis- 
 tant expedition. 
 
 CHAPTER IL 
 
 ARZENE WANDERS IN SEARCH OF KARADAN TO A 
 • BAY, WHENCE HE HAS JUST SET SAIL WITH 
 lARINE. 
 
 " The spring returns, and balmy budding flow'rs 
 Reviv^e in memory all my childish hours, 
 When pleasures were as bright and fresh, though brie'f» 
 As petals of the May or silken leaf. 
 
 But now when kingcups ope their golden eyes, 
 I see my darling's brighten with surprise. 
 And rival tints that little cheek illume 
 When eglantine displays her richest bloom. 
 
 Dear boy ! thou art thy mother's vernal flow'r. 
 Sweeter than those she loved in childhood's hour. 
 And spring renews my earliest ecstasy. 
 By bringing buds and fresh delights for thee." 
 
342 PHANTASM ION* 
 
 With tearful eyes Arzene murmured thi> song,. 
 and seemed to see the childish form of Karadair 
 Sp^orting^ before her, as when she sang it first. 
 Ko one gave tiding-s of her son at the hamlet where 
 she had spent the night, but the goatherd had ex- 
 pressed a belief, from inquiries which the youth 
 made^ that he and his fair companion were bound 
 for the Tigridian coast, and thither she directed 
 her steps. At mid day she entered a sunny 
 field, where the reapers were busy at work, and 
 women were binding sheaves. There she sate be- 
 low the shady fence to rest, and saw a little boy 
 collecting corn poppies, which the sickle had cut 
 down, while his sister was busy in gathering the 
 scattered ears. " Idle child !" cried the laden 
 girl, " what hast thou gleaned, I pray ? will those 
 gaudy flowers make bread ?" " Bread for bees !" 
 replied the urchin. "If thou art a busy bee, 
 thou canst make bread of flowers." So saying, 
 with a laugh he flung his posy at the chider's 
 face, and a shower of the profitless blossoms fell 
 down into her armfull of corn. Arzene thought 
 of her own playful Hermillian and young Arimel, 
 who loved to forestall womanhood, and step into her 
 mother's place, till the golden crop and the bend- 
 ing groups swam through her tears, and, starting 
 from her seat, she resolved forthwith to seek no 
 more for him Who scorned her anxious love, !>ut 
 return to her other children. In this mind she 
 turned her face from the village, whither she Jiad 
 
P H ANTASM ION . 343 
 
 intended to proceed, and, having partaken of the 
 reapers' fare, which they charitably offered, she 
 travelled on in another direction till the day was 
 far spent. Then, sitting dowi^ again to rest, she 
 heard the wind sigh dolefully, and saw the black 
 shadow of a tree on a smooth green slope wave 
 slowly up and down. Arzene was thinking with 
 deep sorrow of her truant son, and now she seemed 
 to hear his voice, and to see his image reproaching 
 her change of purpose. She arose, and again re- 
 solved to seek along the coast for Karadan. Scarce 
 hoping to reach the sea that night, she journeyed, 
 however, towards it, till she entered a field that 
 was batlied in the clear melancholy sunshine, and 
 contained a clump of dark holm oaks, about which 
 a rivulet was wound like a silver chain. Just 
 across that brook, a shepherdess was sitting, while 
 her flocks nibbled the green grass on its margin. 
 Arzene would scarce have seen her among the 
 trees, but the notes of her song, while the words 
 were inaudible, canie across the field to her ear, 
 and she went up to the place where the maiden 
 sate, with the intention of begging a shelter for 
 that night. " Go on with thy sweet song," said 
 Arzene courteously, when the damsel rose at her 
 approach : " I will sit beside thee on this fallen 
 log." The shepherdess renewed her melody, and 
 these were the words of her song : 
 
 Full oft before soine gorgeous fane 
 "Hie yoangling heifer bleeds and dies j 
 
344 PHANTASMIOX. 
 
 Her life-blood issuing forth amain, 
 While wreaths of incense climb the skies. 
 
 The mother wanders all around. 
 Through shadowy grove and lightsome glade ; 
 Her foot-marks on the yielding ground 
 Will prove what anxious quest she made. 
 
 The stall where late her darling lay 
 
 She visits oft with eager look : 
 
 In restless movements wastes the day. 
 
 And fills with cries each neighbouring nook. 
 
 She roams along the willowy copse. 
 Where purest waters softly gleam : 
 But ne'er a leaf or blade she crops. 
 Nor couches by the gliding stream. 
 
 No youthful kine, though fresh and fair. 
 Her vainly searching eyes engage ; 
 No pleasant fields relieve her care. 
 No murmuring streams her grief assuage. 
 
 The words of this song* struck painfully on the 
 sad mother's heart. Her face was bathed in 
 tears, and, while she drooped forward, absorbed in 
 bitter thought, the light-hearted shepherdess ga- 
 thered her flock, and went away. After a while, 
 Arzene remembered that she had not where to 
 take her rest that night, and strove to overtake the 
 damsel, but, having followed her for some time, 
 she became exhausted, and laid her down to sleep 
 in a waste field. The sun had just risen, and 
 turned the dewdrops around Arzene's bed into 
 diamonds, when Karadan entered the field where 
 
PHANTASMIONi 345 
 
 his mother slept. From the top of a lofty mul- 
 lein a goldfinch piped beside her, and soon his 
 new-fledged offspring, led by their other parent, 
 alighted on tall plants around, buoyantly swaying 
 back and forward as they pecked the winged seeds. 
 Arzene saw not the gleeful group : in dreams she 
 had wandered back to her own deserted little 
 ones, and knew not, that he for whose sake she 
 had left them was weeping over her. While the 
 youth still gazed on his mother's face, larine came 
 beside him. He started, and would have drawn 
 her away. " Come," he said, in a low voice, " our 
 path lies yonder. I bade thee wait till I had ex-^ 
 plored this field." But larine had recognized the 
 features of her who slept, and wondering much at 
 the behaviour of Karadan ; '* Wilt thou leave thy 
 mother alone in this strange land ?" she said. An- 
 guish was depicted on his face, but he answered 
 firmly, " We must leave Arzene, or thou mayst 
 forego all hope of beholding Anthemmina." " She 
 is come in search of thee from her distant home," 
 said the maid ; " wilt thou not stay till she wakes, 
 and tell her thy purpose ?" '' Then it would never 
 be effected," Karadan replied. " Take thy choice ♦ 
 return with Arzene, or seek Anthemmina." larine 
 looked at the youth's countenance of woe, and 
 guessed that if the mother beheld her son, she 
 would never suffer him to pursue his journey. 
 With a sorrowful heart she quitted the field, ac- 
 companied Karadan to the sea shore, and there 
 
34$: 
 
 PHANTASMION* 
 
 Femained in a fisherman's hut, while he went in 
 <|ajest of a vessel. But larine knew only that she 
 was to await the youth's return : for so strict a 
 silence had he kept, and enjoined on her, concern- 
 ing their errand, that she knew not whether hep 
 mother's abode were to be approached by sea or 
 land. 
 
 After some hours he returned, placed her on the 
 mule, and, holding the reins, led it by rugged 
 paths over a ridge of rocks, from the top of which 
 larine beheld a skiff anchored in a little bay. 
 Still carefully guiding the mule, Karadan descended, 
 and soon he had entered the vessel with his com- 
 panion. " Does the wind blow favourably V* 
 inquired the maid, as she helped him to unfurl the 
 m.i}s. She heard not the reply, but a gurgling 
 sound of laughter issued from under the waves, 
 circling all round the vessel, and prolonged by 
 a succession of fainter and fainter echoes. As 
 a pebble, thrown by a dexterous hand, repeatedly 
 touches the water, then sinks out of sight, even so 
 the sounds were many times renewed till they 
 died into silence. larine looked aghast, but heard 
 no comment on that ill-boding mirth from hep 
 companion, whose countenance did not regain its 
 gloomy composure ere the skiff had cleared the 
 hay. Smoothly then it sailed, till land was again 
 in sight, and larine's countenance glowed, while 
 that of Karadan became livid as a corse. 0» a 
 sudden, however, ao iiftpetuous galej arQ§e, aj»4 
 
PHANTASM ION. 347 
 
 drove back the vessel from the point toward which 
 the melancholy helmsman was steering : having 
 impelled it far into mid-ocean the wind relented, 
 but rose again as often as the skiff approached the 
 shore. Karadan knew what power was frustrating 
 his efforts, and, in a presentiment of this delay, 
 had stored the ship with provisions. The damsel 
 prayed that the elemental strife might cease, but 
 Karadan would have rejoiced could this state of 
 things have lasted for ever. 
 
 Meantime Arzene tarried in the creek whence 
 her son had sailed, vainly expecting his return. 
 Scarce had the youth and maiden left the field 
 where she lay, than the deserted mother awoke, 
 and saw Feydeleen weeping by her side. *' Why 
 weepest thou, fair one ?" Arzene cried ; '* Shall I 
 never again behold his face ?" " Thou shalt be- 
 hold his face again," the mild spirit answered; 
 but still the tears were trickling from her soft blue 
 eyes upon the flowery sod. " Where shall I find 
 him?" exclaimed Arzene. Feydeleen replied, " Not 
 far from hence there is a narrow bay, encircled by 
 rocks, where a hermit dwells nigh the sea shore. 
 There, after some days, thou shalt behold thy son. 
 When that time comes I will again be with thee, 
 and will bring my choicest gifts to preserve him 
 from all future harm." The spirit vanished, and 
 Arzene, going to the sea shore, learned from an old 
 man, who dwelt in a cave of the rock, that a youth 
 and damsel had lately sailed from the narrow bay 
 
348 PHANTASM ION. 
 
 in a skiff brought from another part of the coast. 
 Confiding in Feydeleen's assurance, she took up 
 her abode wdth the hermit, and, from morn till eve, 
 continued to watch the restless ocean, oft revert- 
 ing in thought to this strain, which had been sung 
 in happier days amid the blooming bowers of 
 Polyanthida :— * 
 
 See yon blithe child that dances in our sight ! 
 Can gloomy shadows fall from one so bright 1 
 
 Fond mother, whence these fears ? 
 While buoyantly he rushes o'er the lawn, 
 , Dream not of clouds to stain his manhood's dawn, 
 
 Nor dim that sight with tears* 
 
 ' No cloud he spies in brightly glowing hours, 
 But feels as if the newly vested bowers 
 
 For him could never fade : 
 Too well we know that vernal pleasures fleet, 
 But having him, so gladsome, fair, and sweet, 
 
 Our loss is overpaid. 
 
 Amid the balmiest flowets that earth can give 
 Some bitter drops distil, and all that live 
 
 A mingled portion share ; 
 But, while he learns these truths which we lament, 
 . Such fortitude as ours will sure be sent. 
 
 Such solace to bis care. 
 
tHANTASMlOW* 349 
 
 CHAPTER IIL 
 
 l-HE ALLIED FORCES ARE EQUIPPED WITH ARMOUR 
 IN THE HEART OF THE VOLCANIC MOUNTAIN. 
 
 WHILE Phantasmion was conducting his 
 forces through Tigridia, Malderyl sate in 
 her ancient tower full of angry thoughts. After 
 the murder of Dorimant's queen, as she traversed 
 Gemmaura in her chariot, she had fallen into the 
 power of the Earth Spirit. But Valhorga, who 
 hated Dorimant, released the witch that she might 
 accomplish her projects against him : at the same 
 time he gave her two dwarfs, endowed with won- 
 drous powers, intending, on a future occasion, to 
 fetch both her and them into slavery. Malderyl 
 despatched an emissary to Palmland, who planted 
 so many sweet but baleful herbs in Dorimant's 
 domain, that the honey of the bees was infected 
 with it, and the king, regaling himself thereon, 
 was poisoned. But Phantasmion was now beyond 
 the reach of her vengeful arm, while Zelneth and 
 Leucoia, whom she once hoped to enslave, had 
 both escaped her snares. Swartho crouched at 
 the queen's feet, grinning maliciously as he viewed 
 her knitted brows ; for he knew that Valhorga 
 had espoused the cause of Zalia's son, and that 
 soon he should return to serve his ancient master. 
 
350 PHANTASMION. 
 
 That evening Malderyl went forth to visit the 
 ancient castle where Phantasmion last beheld 
 Oloola. Gloomy thoughts possessed her soul as 
 she ascended the tower whence her husband and 
 her son, by Glandreth's command, had been cast 
 upon the flag-stones below. There she stood, while 
 the twilight was deepening into darkness, and saw 
 the ghosts of Helmio and Sylvalad fluttering about 
 ■the parapet, and beckoning, with earnest gesticu- 
 lations, as if they invited her to throw herself 
 down. She watched them till her head grew 
 dizzy, and she almost felt tempted to obey the 
 summons. Their motions were like those of swal- 
 lows teaching their young to fly. One after ano- 
 ther, each gleaming ghost would perch on the 
 battlements, a little way off, look eagerly towards 
 her, then plunge into the court beneath. As they 
 flitted away in a curving line, both swept by Mal- 
 deryl, looked in her face reproachfully, and pointed 
 to the horizon, just as the moon, emerging from 
 clouds, cast a clearer light upon the landscape, 
 ^nd enabled her to descry an army encamped upon 
 the plain. Then back she hied to her house upon 
 the hill, and commanded Swartho to raise pictures 
 on the wall, and show her what was coming. He 
 obeyed, but when she looked to have seen chariots 
 and horses, and men in armour, mockery flames 
 quivered around, and she stood in the midst of a 
 seeming furnace. Malderyl shrieked, and, rushing 
 forth, beheld the mountain crested with fire. Twicfe 
 
PHANTASMION. 351 
 
 did a pyramid of flame burst forth from a lofty 
 eminence above the mansion, twice it sank back, 
 as if sucked in by a mighty force : the third time 
 it remained, a steady blaze, which made the moon 
 and stars appear to shine in vain. As fast as her 
 tottering limbs could carry her she descended the 
 skirt of the hill, and would have made her way 
 through a plantation of firs and pines, but started 
 when suddenly she beheld all the trees before her 
 glowing with fire, the trunks and branches and 
 every needle leaf appearing red hot. Meantime, 
 with a crash like thunder, the ancient mansion 
 was levelled with the ground. Torrents of fire 
 gushed down the ravines above, and Malderyl saw 
 that she must soon be overtaken by the flames, 
 Again she looked at the plantation of firs, thinking 
 to rush through the midst of it ; but in front of 
 that fiery grove stood the towering form of Val- 
 horga, whose wild locks and rugged cheeks looked 
 ^wful in the glare of the conflagration. " Fear 
 not the flames, Malderyl," he said, with a grim 
 smile ; *^ thou shalt ply thy burning tasks unhurt." 
 So saying, he touched her with his iron mace, 
 •when she became fire proof, and, seeing that she 
 •was now condemned to endless toil in the bowels 
 of the earth, she repented not having thrown her- 
 self down from the tower, that her spirit might 
 wander at large with the ghosts of Helmio and 
 Sylvalad. She followed Valhorga through the 
 glowing pine grove, and at the other end of it 
 
352 phantasmion:. 
 
 beheld the army, which she had seen at a distance, 
 approaching the volcano, while Phantasmion, ra- 
 diant with diamonds, led them on. They had 
 descried the conflagration, and believing it to be 
 a signal from Valhorga, resumed their march at 
 midnight. And this was not the only host which 
 the light of those flames had attracted : from the 
 woods of Nemorosa came Ulander, conducting his 
 troops of tiger hunters, clad in shaggy skins, and 
 armed with bows, arrows, and javelins. 
 
 Valhorga waved his hand, and the flames, which 
 looked like a billowy sea, now rolled away, curling 
 upwards to the top of the mountain, and there 
 forming a fiery coronal. By the light of that blaze 
 Phantasmion beheld a vaulted passage, occupying 
 the place where Malderyl's mansion had stood. 
 He beckoned to Phantasmion, and, as the youth 
 followed him through the avenue, which received 
 light from within, he heard a chaos of sounds, and 
 soon entered a vast cavern hollowed out in the 
 heart of the mountain. At the farther end was a 
 huge hill of fire, whence smoke and flame rose up 
 through a chimney that formed the crater of the 
 volcano. Innumerable swarthy labourers were 
 ranged in this vast smithy, row within row : one 
 company softened the blocks of metal, then quenchr 
 ed them in vessels of water ; another fashioned 
 them on the anvil ; every process in the formation 
 of armour was going on, and every thing used in 
 war was made in this workshop. The roaring of 
 
PHANTASMlOy. 353 
 
 the flafties and bellows, the hissing of the metal 
 when plunged in water, the clattering and jingling 
 of hammer and anvil produced a din which almost 
 deafened the ears of Phantasmion. Malderyl took 
 her place among the toiling crew, and helped to 
 make the shield which was afterwards worn by 
 the son of Dorimant. As fast as the suits were 
 made ready, the bands of warriors entered to fit 
 them on, and, ere the morning dawned, they were 
 all equipped except Ulander. For he had espied 
 Malderyl, as she followed her master into the 
 cavern, and, guessing that her time of punishment 
 was come, felt loth to witness it. The whole 
 throng of aitificers had withdrawn to the haunts 
 whence the Earth Spirit had summoned them, and 
 Phantasmion was the only warrior that remained 
 in the mighty dome. At one end of the cavern 
 Valhorga leaned against a rock, resembling the 
 gigantic effigies which some nations carve in the 
 sides of mountains. " Why does Ulander tarry?" 
 cried the king of Palmland, as he looked at the 
 shield of one last suit which Malderyl was polishing. 
 " Ay ! why does Ulander tarry ?" repeated Val- 
 horga, with a stern voice ; " tell him that his ar- 
 mour is finished, and that he must fetch it, ere it 
 be too late." But now the Nemorosan chief ap- 
 peared entering the cavern, and soon began to dofi 
 the tiger's hide which he wore on his shoulders 
 The ancient queen arose when she saw her kins- 
 
 A A 
 
354 PHANTASMION'. 
 
 man ; and laying hold of his garment, besought him, 
 for his father's sake, to procure a mitigation of her 
 doom. Then Phantasmion, at Ulander's entreaty, 
 besought Valhorga that Malderyl might be per- 
 mitted to die, and join the shades of Helmio and 
 Sylvalad. The Earth Spirit smiled carelessly, and 
 answered, " Be it as thou wilt." Malderyl, having 
 heard these words, sprang into the midst of the 
 blazing fire, when the flames rose up around her, 
 and she looked like an image of bronze which 
 they blackened but vainly attempted to destroy. 
 Valhorga touched her with his mace, then down 
 she sank upon her fiery bed and was tonsumed in 
 an instant. While they yet gazed on the flames 
 the warriors heard a strange unnatural sound, 
 that seemed to express pain or grief, and, looking 
 about, they espied Swartho in a corner of the 
 cavern, his bright eyes gleaming like jewels set in 
 rusty iron. Though sorely oppressed by the heat 
 he had lingered behind all the other slaves to see 
 what would be done with Malderyl, and was 
 grieved to the heart that she should escape the in- 
 sults by which he had hoped to repay her former 
 tyranny. Ulander, recollecting his treatment of 
 Leucoia, was about to pierce the livid breast of 
 the dwarf with the spear he had just received ; but 
 Phantasmion, laying hold of his arm, bade him 
 beware how he touched a servant of Valhorga, 
 whose mighty form was yet visible in a recess of 
 
PHANTASMION. 355 
 
 the cavern. Then the two chiefs issued forth into 
 the daylight, and beheld the united armies ranged 
 upon the plain, their burnished armour shining 
 coldly in the light of the newly risen sun. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 lARINE FINDS HER MOTHER IN THE SEQUESTERED 
 PENINSULA. 
 
 WHILE Phantasmion and his allies were con- 
 ducting their armed force to Rockland, 
 driving along with them troops of sheep and kine 
 formerly plundered from the Land of Palms, and 
 followed at a distance by a train of wolves and 
 tigers, which seemed ready to brave any danger 
 for the sake of obtaining a share in the booty, 
 Karadan still contended with the impetuous gale. 
 At length it sank and was no more renewed ; the 
 voyagers gained the coast, and silence reigned on 
 sea and land while the dark youth placed larine on 
 the beach. He told her how she was to find the 
 dwelling of Anthemmina, and tears streamed from 
 the maiden's eyes when he declared that she must 
 seek it alone. " Farewell !" cried Karadan pas- 
 sionately; a ray of joy, at sight of those tears, 
 brightening his sad face. *' More than betrothed 
 thou canst not be to any one but him who owns this 
 
356 PHANTASMlOWi 
 
 charmed vessel, and thou hast been betrothed 
 to me ! — Alas ! that wreath upon thy brow ! — ■ 
 When next we meet may it be there no longer ! 
 Then thou wilt know that I have ventured foi' 
 thy sake as he who gave that pledge will never 
 dare to do." Sorrowful indeed was the parting of 
 larine and Karadan, while each had a heart full of 
 the gloomiest forebodings ; but little did either 
 suspect what worse calamity awaited the other* 
 Karadan stood at the vessel's prow and watched 
 the maiden, huiTying with tremulous feet, along 
 the rocky coast ; again and again she tunied to 
 wave her hand, and beheld him still keeping his 
 station ; at last she disappeared, and her garment, 
 fluttering behind her, vanished out of sight. Then 
 Karadan fastened the pitcher securely to his body, 
 steered away his skiff into the deep water, and, 
 looking to the sky, beheld, just dawning into view, 
 a winged form which, since he first beheld it, had 
 a thousand times been present to his nightly 
 slumbers. He Waited not to see the dreaded shape 
 more fully revealed^ but plunged into the waves 
 and perishedj the charmed vessel remaining still 
 bound to a heart which fear and love could agitate 
 no longer. 
 
 Unconscious of his miserable fate larine pursued 
 her way to Anthemmina's abode. No living crea- , 
 ture met her eye as she hastened on amid sickly 
 herbage or blighted bushes, and the sky wore a 
 leaden hue even more melancholy than that of the 
 
PHANTASM lOK. 357 
 
 plain. Once she looked up and beheld a flight of 
 swallows, which soon descended, like a shower of 
 dappled stones and lay dead on the ground before 
 her. The farther she advanced the more pining 
 and desolate the face of nature appeared. Beyond 
 the cliffs of the shore she journeyed over a per- 
 fectly level plain, and, after a time, the turrets of 
 a solitary dwelling came within view amid the 
 tops of spiral cypresses. Just such a landscape 
 larine had beheld in mournful dreams, and she 
 hurried on, hoping by quick motion to escape the 
 sad feelings which the scene reawakened. After 
 passing a collection of low mounds like graves, 
 she gained the cypress wood, and, advancing 
 through it, soon found herself in front of that 
 mansion which she had seen at a distance. The 
 door stood open, and larine entered, but no one 
 greeted her at the threshold. She traversed 
 many empty apartments, all such as would have 
 befitted a palace ; they were decorated with black 
 marble and costly hangings, but the colours of the 
 drapery had fled, while the ornaments and utensils 
 around were tarnished and rusty. She visited a 
 small chamber which contained a bed, hoping to 
 find some tokens of living inhabitants ; the bed 
 was occupied, the body of an old man being laid 
 out there, and branches of cypress mixed with yew 
 arranged over the head of the corse. This 
 solemn sight assured larine that some one yet 
 survived in the house or its neighbourhood. She 
 
358 PHANTASMION. 
 
 retraced her steps, quitted the mansion, and, having 
 crossed the grove that extended behind it, descried 
 two figures, standing beside a boundless sheet of 
 sluggish lurid water. On she went and beheld a 
 stately lady all hung over with blue garlands of 
 star-shaped blossoms, her long black tresses floating 
 wide, and her head and neck adorned with strings 
 of pearl. An aged woman, who held a basket, 
 seemed to be contending with her, while she per- 
 sisted in throwing cakes of bread afar into the 
 marsh with an air of sullen fierceness : her com- 
 panion, having tried in vain to stop her hand, let 
 fall the empty basket, and crossed her aims in all 
 the tranquillity of settled despair. 
 
 On larine's approach the woman in humble ap- 
 parel turned about and looked at her in astonish- 
 ment ; but the majestic lady continued to gaze 
 upon the marsh. The maiden felt unable to speak, 
 but, perusing her face with deep anxiety, felt as- 
 sured that she beheld her mother. The outline of 
 her form and features was grandly beautiful ; but 
 her cheeks were white as wax, her blue eyes 
 spectrally bright, and her delicate arms and fingers 
 wasted to the bone. There was something wild and 
 ghastly in her countenance, and strangely it was 
 contrasted with that of her companion, who seemed 
 benumbed by misery but not bewildered. " Who art 
 thou ?" said the feeble creature, " and why hast 
 thou come hither to see us perish, and to perish 
 thyself when we are gone ?" " Art thou not 
 
PHANTASMION. 359 
 
 Doraa, my mother's nurse?" replied the damsel, 
 " and is not this Anthemmina, the wife of Al- 
 binian ?" '' Woe is me ! thou sayest true," replied 
 the ag-ed woman ; *' and surely thou art the sweet 
 larine, whom this wretched lady left in the palace 
 of Rockla^nd, when she quitted it never to return." 
 All this time Anthemmina remained with her eyes 
 fixed upon the stagnant water, speechless and 
 motionless. The damsel related who she was and 
 how she had come to that coast, tenderly address- 
 ing her mother, but obtaining not a word, nor even 
 a single glance, in return ; till at last she took her 
 hand and implored her to break this fearful silence. 
 Then she who was so gaily bedecked looked up, 
 and, beholding the wreath of jewelled flowers, 
 gazed at it with an astonished countenance. " Za- 
 lia !" she cried at length, her eyes kindling with 
 frenzy ; " art thou come instead of Dorimant ?" 
 Then, with a wild shriek, she snatched the chaplet 
 from the maiden's brow, and trampled it under 
 her feet. Heart-stricken and overpowered larine 
 sank upon the ground, at the feet of the once 
 gentle and captivating Anthemmina. She had 
 found her mother, but alas ! in what state ! Here 
 ^as the goodly fabric, to outward view still per- 
 fect ; all the wondrous materials were yet in being, 
 but the springs within had failed and the whole was 
 a wreck. 
 
 "We are starving!" Dorna cried; " no fresh 
 provisions have been sent us for many nionths, 
 
360 PlIANTASMION. 
 
 and our last remnant of food now lies in yonder 
 marsh. Alas ! my mistress feels no trouble con- 
 cerning things like these. Sorrow and the noxious 
 vapours of this pool have turned her brain, and daily 
 she decks herself, as when she firet came hither, 
 still expecting to be visited by Dorimant, king of 
 Palmland." "How came she hither?" larine 
 exclaimed. " By the arts of Glandreth," Dorna 
 answered ; ** a storm drove our vessel to this de- 
 solate coast, but that storm was raised by Glan- 
 dreth's power. In those days the wicked chief 
 was enamoured of my mistress, and, I doubt not, 
 beguiled her with feigned tales, saying that Queen 
 Zalia was near her end, and that, when she died, 
 Dorimant would carry her into Palmland. So she 
 trusted herself with him, and, never consenting to 
 become his wife, has remained his wretched cap- 
 tive. I will tell thee more while we repair to the 
 beach : let us go in haste lest thy conductor 
 should sail away !" '* He bade me return to my 
 own country by land," replied the maiden : " say- 
 ing that this peninsula could scarce be a day s 
 journey from the chief palace of Rockland." *' If 
 he is gone we must all perish !" Dorna replied ; 
 " there is no passage hence by land. The place is 
 separated from Rockland and Tigridia by this vast 
 marsh, the exhalations whereof are so baleful that 
 any birds which attempt to wing their way high 
 in the air above it are sure to perish. All our 
 household have died, one after another, of linger- 
 
PHANTASMION. 361 
 
 ng maladies ; the last survivor expired yesterday, 
 and strength will fail me, I fear, to dig his grave." 
 During this discourse Anthemmina sate upon the 
 ground, weaving a fresh garland, and sometimes 
 raising her head to cast sullen glances at the un- 
 happy maid. Dorna hied away to the sea shore, 
 hoping yet to hail Karadan's vessel, while larine 
 stood beside her mother absorbed in silent grief. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 PHANTASMION AND HIS ALLIES JOIN BATTLE WITH 
 GLANDRETH IN THE VALLEY OF THE BLACK 
 LAKE. 
 
 STRUCK with consternation at sight of the 
 united army the people of Rockland had offered 
 no resistance, but had forthwith despatched mes- 
 sengers to Glandreth, and, while Phantasmion was 
 gazing on the Island where larine used to dwell, 
 it was announced that the conqueror was about to 
 enter the valley of the Black Lake with his victo- 
 rious forces, Soon afterwards the foremost bands 
 of the enemy were descried at a distance, and 
 were hailed by the men of Palmland with this 
 chant : 
 
 Their armour is flashing. 
 And ringing and clashing. 
 
362 PHANTASMION. 
 
 Their looks are wild and savage ! 
 
 With deeds of night 
 
 They have darken'd the light, 
 
 They are come from reckless ravage ! 
 
 O bountiful Earth, 
 
 With famine and dearth, 
 
 With plague and fire surround them ; 
 
 Thy womb they have torn 
 
 With impious scorn ; 
 
 Let its trembHngs now confound them ! 
 
 Our cause maintain, 
 
 For as dew to the plain. 
 
 Or wind to the slumbering sea, 
 
 Or sunny sheen 
 
 To woodlands green. 
 
 So dear have we been to thee. 
 
 The new-blown flowers. 
 
 From thy fairest bowers. 
 
 Their rifling hands have taken ; 
 
 And the tree's last crop, 
 
 That was ready to drop. 
 
 From the boughs have rudely shaken ; 
 
 Through deep green dells. 
 
 Where the bright stream wells. 
 
 Like diamond with emerald blending ; 
 
 Through shelter'd vales. 
 
 Where the light wind sails. 
 
 High cedars scarcely bending ; 
 
 Through lawn and grove, 
 
 Where the wild deer rove. 
 
 They have rush'd like a burning flood : 
 
 For morning's beam. 
 
 Or the starry gleam. 
 
 Came fire, and sword, and blood. 
 
 Then lend us thy might. 
 Great Earth, for the fight. 
 
PHANTASMION. 363 
 
 help us to quell their pride : 
 
 Make our sinews and bones 
 
 As firm as the stones, 
 
 And metals that gird thy side ; 
 
 May the smould'ring mountains. 
 
 And fiery fountains 
 
 Inflame our vengeful ire. 
 
 And beasts that lurk 
 
 In thy forests murk, 
 
 Their tameless rage inspire ; 
 
 While from caves of death 
 
 Let a sluggish breath 
 
 O'er the spoilers' spirits creep; 
 
 O send to their veins 
 
 The chill that reigns 
 
 In thy channels dark and deep. 
 
 But if those we abhor 
 
 Must triumph in war, 
 
 Let us sink to thy inmost centre. 
 
 Where the trump's loud sound. 
 
 Nor the tramp and the bound, 
 
 Nor the conqueror's shout can enter ; 
 
 Let mountainous rocks. 
 
 By earthquake shocks. 
 
 High o'er our bones be lifted ; 
 
 And piles of snow. 
 
 Where we sleep below. 
 
 To the plains above be drifted ; 
 
 If the murderous band 
 
 Must dwell in tbe land. 
 
 And the fields we loved to cherish. 
 
 From the land of balm 
 
 Let cedar and palm 
 
 With those that rear'd them perish. 
 
 Phantasmion knew so well how the land lay in 
 this mountainous region that Penselimer desired 
 
56# PHANTASMION. 
 
 him to take the lead in all orders and dispositions 
 of war ; he had already shewn the herdsmen how 
 they might drive their bleating and lowing troops 
 across the hills into Palmland, and he now joyfully 
 proceeded to marshal the allied armies and conduct 
 them to the most advantageous post. Flanked by 
 the lake and its deep banks on one side, and on 
 the other by a woody brow, they were soon drawn 
 out in order of battle ; the long winding files were 
 quickly transformed to squares, clothing every inch 
 of green turf and purple heather with brass and 
 steel as fast as a painter's brush invests a pannel 
 with new colours. The ground covered by the 
 front line rose gradually at either end, toward the 
 lake and toward the mountain, so that the troops 
 were ranged in form of a semicircle. The centre 
 of the van was occupied by Phantasmion with his 
 light Gemmaurian cavalry, whose helmets were 
 surmounted with carbuncles representing ruddy 
 flames ; but the young monarch's own crest was of 
 diamonds, and displayed the figure of a damsel 
 holding a pitcher. The Nemorosan spearmen 
 were placed on either wing, Ulander commanding 
 the division flanked by the hill. His foresters 
 wore casques crested with the grim visage of a 
 gaping tiger. The king of Almaterra divided his 
 large force into two squadrons, taking charge 
 himself of that which held the middle ground, 
 while Delmorin, son of Sanio, commanded the 
 rear. Some companies of archers, wearing stags* 
 
PHANTASMIO!?. 365 
 
 horns on their helmets, were posted by Phantas- 
 mion among fir trees on the slope of the hill, where 
 fanshaped branches, growing close to the ground, 
 kept them in ambush, though now and then their 
 sylvan crests peeped out amid the leaves. 
 
 Meantime Glandreth was rapidly advancing and 
 filling the plain opposite to that narrower space 
 which Phantasmion's front line occupied, and 
 which looked like the contracted girth of the val- 
 ley. His force appeared innumerable, and had 
 been swollen by accessions from Palmland, to- 
 gether with certain well ordered battahons brought 
 by traitorous Magnai't, whom the mighty promises 
 and mysterious hints of Glandreth had persuaded 
 to strengthen the strong cause, and desert that 
 of Albinet. The chief now sate beside his bro- 
 ther in a stately car which preceded the army, 
 and listened to his talk with deep attention ; Glan- 
 dreth pointed to the sky, and Magnart seemed 
 more bent on watching the appearances there than 
 on surveying the ground and the enemies' array 
 of battle. The aspect of that well accoutred host, 
 reflecting a bright sun from burnished armour, 
 was indeed an unwelcome surprise to the mighty 
 general; and, though his own was still more nume- 
 rous, he could not hope to surround and overpower 
 his opponents with multitudes of horse by reason 
 of their having secured so advantageous a position. 
 Nevertheless Glandreth was free from even a 
 shadow of dread', and beheld the furious onset of his 
 
366 PHANTASMION. 
 
 foes, when the battle began, without concern; 
 for it was not in sword and buckler, nor in stout 
 hands and hearts, that he reposed his trust ; he had 
 summoned other powers to his aid, .and a dark 
 massy cloud which followed his course, or paused 
 with him, right over his head, while the cope of 
 heaven around was crystal clear, assured him of 
 victory. 
 
 Phantasmion saw that cloud and his heart was 
 troubled ; seen indeed it must needs have been by 
 every one present, but he of all the assembled 
 multitude alone surmised that it was aught more 
 than a collection of vapours, he alone imagined 
 that it contained such an ally of Glandreth as no 
 mortal power might withstand. Perplexing con- 
 jectures engrossed his mind ; he thought of Oloola's 
 doubtful conduct at former junctures ; he strove to 
 think that she was no real enemy to his cause ; he 
 believed that Anthemmina's dying day was long 
 since past ; yet why did that black cloud continue 
 to hover above the head of Glandreth, and what 
 did it portend ? While the other chiefs, animated 
 with the most confident hopes, were performing 
 feats of valour, Phantasmion 's brow was overcast, 
 and, for a little while, the buoyancy and ardour of 
 his temperament appeared to have forsaken him. 
 
 Soon, however, the young monarch roused him- 
 self from anxious speculation, and led on the troops 
 with all his wonted energy. Phantasmion eagerly 
 desired to encounter Glandreth ; but lo ! the chief- 
 
PIIANTASMION. 367 
 
 tain, conspicuous by his lon^ white plume and 
 lofty stature, resigns the command to Magnart, 
 who leads the vanguard, and, retiring from the 
 fight, ascends a bare rock, just apart from the 
 conflict, whence he obtains a full view of the hills 
 above and of the plain beneath. Triumphantly 
 from that eminence he cast his eyes around, having 
 reason to believe that, in a few moments, every 
 object he beheld would be absolutely subjected 
 to his power. Below where he stood were the 
 contending armies, the flashing of armour, the 
 tramp of horses, the clang of sword and shield. 
 On the green hill side he observed the numerous - 
 sheep and herds which now belonged to his adver- 
 saries : with scarce perceptible motion they were 
 stealing onward, while ever and anon their con- 
 ductors turned about to look upon the field of 
 combat. 
 
 Part of the flock? had already disappeared, 
 having wound their way into a rocky gorge, while 
 the rest were following. Glandreth's heart swelled 
 with scornful exultation as he looked upon them. 
 *' Now," thought he, " ere those flocks are out of 
 sight the plunderers shall have felt my power ; at 
 one stroke I will change the scene, and my enemies 
 shall be crushed for ever." At this moment suc- 
 cess appeared inclining toward the less numerous 
 army ; Magnart had fallen by the hand of Phantas- 
 mion, and his body was trampled under foot by the 
 throng ; Penselimer, with his heavy armed troops, 
 
368 1»HA»TASM10». 
 
 powerfully supported the Gemmaurian cavalry} 
 and the archers placed behind the fir trees, like a 
 herd of armed deer came rushing down to attack 
 the enemy in flank. Glandreth beheld Phantas- 
 mion, after he had given Magnart his death blow, 
 pressing onwards and striving to win his way to 
 the place where he stood. Then he lifted up his 
 glittering blade and shouted, " Come on, Phantas- 
 mion !" The rocks were still resounding that cry, 
 when a far different echo came from the cloud 
 over his head. *' Phantasmion ! — Phantasmion ! — • 
 Come on, Phantasmion !" was uttered from above 
 in a tone more shrill and piercing than that of the 
 chieftain, more like the sound of the wind than that 
 of any human voice ; it prevailed over the din of 
 battle ; every ear heard it ; every eye was fixed on 
 the black mass, and every weapon was suspended. 
 But the dense pitchy cloud remained unchanged 
 and motionless, and had a preternatural appearance 
 alone in the pure blue sky* 
 
 Phantasmion gazed at it, as he listened with 
 awe but not with terror to that aerial challenge ; an 
 eye of intense light now became visible in the 
 centre of the darkness ; it grew and spread till he 
 seemed for a moment to perceive the indistinct 
 lineaments of a dazzling face, and at the same 
 time, a hand glanced forth and beckoned him. 
 Feelings akin to frenzy possessed the young war- 
 rior at that sight; he resolved to know his fate, and 
 ,not to die without having essayed at least to punish 
 
PHANTASMION. 369 
 
 the iniquitous aggressor; he spurred his horse, 
 and began to drive right onward through the ranks, 
 which made way before him. Then once more 
 Glandreth raised his sword, and pointed to Phan- 
 tasmion, while he cast up his face to the sky, and 
 called upon Oloola. The call was heard ; a gush 
 of lightning burst from the cloud, quivered adown 
 the uplifted blade, and clothed, as with a robe of 
 fire, the mailed body of Glandreth. A moment he 
 stood enveloped in flames ; the blasted corse then 
 tumbled from the rock, and, just as Phantasmion 
 arrived, rolled down at the feet of his courser. 
 
 No noisy peel followed this vengeful lightning : 
 BO cry was uttered at the fall of Glandreth ; silence 
 was in the sky, amid the mountains, afid on the 
 motionless lake, and the armed multitudes, lately 
 engaged in the turmoil of conflict, were still as 
 the stones and rocks. Arrow-shaped particles of 
 innocuous flame were diffused around ; each com- 
 batant beheld them gliding over the polished helm 
 and breastplate of his neighbour, and all fell terror- 
 stricken with their faces to the earth. Phantas- 
 mion alone was exempted from the blinding glare ; 
 silent, yet calm, he sate on his unmoving steed, 
 which hung his head, and, like all living things 
 around, seemed stupified with amazement. Un- 
 appalled he sate, his head thrown back to gaze on 
 the dark cloud, which slowly ascended and gra- 
 dually brightened, as if some luminous body within 
 were eating away its coal-black shroud. That 
 £ B 
 
370 PHANTASMION. 
 
 shroud became thinner and thinner, revealing more 
 and more of a winged form, till at last when it was 
 perfectly transparent, the floating locks and out- 
 spread pinions of Oloola, ere she disappeared in 
 the upper sky, were dimly visible. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 ANTHEMMINA DIES IN THE PRESENCE OF lARINE 
 AND PHANTASMION. 
 
 PHANTASMION was still gazing upward, 
 when he discerned in the sky that angelic 
 vision which first made him long to soar aloft ; 
 at the same time a well known voice whispered in 
 his ear, " Come, and find larine." Then he felt 
 himself enabled to quit the earth, and, rising buoy- 
 antly into the air, pursued larine's image over hill 
 and dale. But when at last the apparition melted 
 away, he saw his guardian Fairy flitting on before 
 him ; swiftly they traversed the Land of Rocks, 
 passed the Diamanthine Palace, and flew above the 
 waves till they descried an empty vessel drifting 
 about at random. Phantasmion followed Poten- 
 tilla when she entered the skiff, and no sooner had 
 they alighted on the deck than the pinions of both 
 disappeared, and the Fairy, sitting at the helm, 
 appeared like some ancient pilot. *' In this boat," 
 
PHANTASMION. 371 
 
 she said, " Karadan conducted larine to the place 
 of her mother's exile : in this boat thou shalt bear 
 larine away, but death alone can release Anthem- 
 mina." The Fairy then disclosed what Oloola's 
 power had long forced her to conceal, how Albinian's 
 first queen had been tempted by Glandreth, how 
 she came to the Lost Land which was cut off from 
 the neighbour countries by an impassable marsh, 
 and shunned by seafarers on account of fearful 
 traditions and predictions connected with its name. 
 *' On that dreary coast she roamed," continued Po- 
 tentilla, " till at length every cloud, which hung 
 about the sun's globe and steeped its fleece in splen- 
 dour, seemed growing into the likeness of Dori- 
 mant, every changeful mist that rose from the 
 wave seemed about to take his form. Thus she 
 fared till not a vestige of her former being re- 
 mained but that one miserable dream. Glandreth 
 meant to have sailed with fresh provisions the day 
 after the battle ; but Anthemmina, in frenzy, had 
 cast the scanty remnant into the water, and by 
 hastening the day of her death released Oloola 
 from a vow long repented of: thus was she en- 
 abled to punish the wickedness of Glandreth, and 
 thus hath his cruelty recoiled on his own head." 
 *' But Karadan?" inquired the youth, while the skiff 
 went forward with a favourable breeze, ^' how knew 
 he where to find larine's mother?" " Karadan," 
 she replied, '* was visiting his fair young cousin in 
 the Land of Rocks, when Glandreth laid his plan 
 
372 PHANTASMION. 
 
 for carrying off the queen. By way of a childish, 
 frolic, he hid himself in the lower part of the ship, 
 and remained unseen by the chieftain till he was 
 about to sail away from the peninsula. Then 
 coming forward, he fearfully exclaimed, * Where 
 is the queen ? O where is all the crew? Thou wilt 
 not leave them on this barren coast V While he 
 spoke thus, Oloola made herself manifest in thun- 
 der and lightning ; his young spirit was filled with 
 terror, and he took solemn oaths never to reveal 
 Anthemmina's abode. ' The day that any one 
 through thee finds this peninsula,' said Glandreth, 
 * that day will be the last of thy life.' Karadan 
 knew not that at the very hour when he brought 
 larine thither, Oloola was released from her vow to 
 Glandreth, and free to serve him whom she had 
 ever loved since first she saw him on the mountain's 
 top." " And the silver pitcher?" exclaimed Phan- 
 tasmion. *' That was stolen from the hapless queen 
 by Seshelma," replied the Fairy, *' and afterwards 
 transferred to Karadan, who knew that larine 's 
 fate depended on it, and was beguiled by the water- 
 witch to hope that she might in the end be his." 
 " But O where is it now ?" the youth eagerly de- 
 manded. Potentilla replied iiot, but pointed to the 
 coast of the peninsula, where Dorna was joyfully 
 hailing the vessel. Phantasmion gained the shore, 
 and, guided by the aged woman, crossed the bleak 
 waste which his betrothed maiden had lately tra- 
 versed ; then, hurrying through the cypress grove. 
 
PHANTASMION. 373 
 
 he came in sight of the marsh, just as the sun was 
 throwing- a red g-leam over that livid pool, in which, 
 on the far horizon, he seemed ready to sink and 
 quench his flaming tiara. When he had passed 
 the wood, Phantasmion stopped and beheld larine 
 kneeling beside her mother, who lay on the margin 
 of the lake, and seemed nigh unto death. Now 
 that life was waning, her senses had fully returned. 
 She had recognized her sweet larine, and they had 
 wept together ; could such tears have rained upon 
 her blighted cheek before they might have kept 
 away a fatal malady. '* Dear child," she said, 
 " thou wast a glimpse of soft blue sky between the 
 clouds of my tempestuous life. Now that it beams 
 forth once again, my day is closed." Just as An- 
 themmina had spoken thus, and had begun to 
 lament over the wretched pass to which larine was 
 brought, she heard approaching footsteps, and, 
 casting up her death-stricken eyes, beheld Phan- 
 tasmion. " Dorimant !" she faintly exclaimed ; and 
 larine, clasping her hands, cried, " Yes ! the son 
 of Dorimant ! Phantasmion ! He is come to save 
 and to protect us !" Then, while the youth kneeled 
 by her side, and told his tale, Anthemmina saw how 
 she had been deceived by the watery vision, and 
 whom the figures there portrayed did truly repre- 
 sent. She was glad to depart herself, and thank- 
 ful to find that her child was destined for happiness, 
 which had ever been a mere vision to her. ** But 
 the silver pitcher, given me by the guardian spirit 
 
374 PHANTASM 10 N^ 
 
 of our race, that is still wanting !" So thought 
 Anthemmina when she joined the hands of the 
 youthful pair, and blessed their union. The mists 
 of death had now begun to darken her eyes, but,, 
 ere they were closed for ever, she caught a glimpse 
 of the charmed vessel, gleaming amid the cypress 
 trees, and just discerned a train of aerial figures, 
 which had glided thither from the sea, and were 
 now pausing in silence amid the shadows of the 
 grove. Her head then sank upon its earthy pillow, 
 and, with a smile on her countenance,, the mother 
 of larine expired. The maiden closed her eyes, 
 kissed her wan cheeks, and sank in a swoon upon 
 her bosom. Phantasmion goes to raise her in his 
 arms, but pauses on seeing another mourner come 
 to weep for Anthemmina. It is Feydeleen, the 
 Spirit of the Flowers ; softly she rises from amid 
 the lilies 6f the pool, her head wrapped in a hood, 
 white as those lovely blossoms, while the ends of 
 her shiny green mantle float away on either side 
 of her bending form, and rest upon the surface of 
 the water. And now she droops in sorrow over 
 Anthemmina and the fainting maid ; tears drop from 
 her fair eyes on the faces of both, and her yellow 
 locks, light as gossamer, fall down and mingle 
 with the dark tresses of Anthemmina. At length 
 she raised her head, and throwing back the snowy 
 hood which had concealed her face, disclosed her 
 bloomy cheeks and golden tendrils to Phantasmion. 
 
PHANTASMION. 375 
 
 Feydeleen pointed to the silver pitcher, then to 
 larine, and, softly smiling, whispered, " She is 
 thine !" Hues of life were dawning on the 
 maiden's cheek while Feydeleen retired among the 
 white and azure blossoms. She veiled her head, 
 and bowed it on the surface of the pool, as a water- 
 lily closes her cup and lowers her flexile stem, 
 when the sun is on his downward path. In a few 
 moments, none but the heads of the lilies glim- 
 mered on the darkening waters of the marsh. 
 
 As Feydeleen disappeared, larine rose from the 
 earth, supported in the arms of Phantasmion, and 
 then the train of sea-nymphs, with feet glancing 
 in the twilight, fair as foam that twinkles on the 
 crest of a billow, poured forward like a soft advan- 
 cing tide. The foremost of them brought the 
 charmed vessel and placed it in the maiden's hand ; 
 they who came last bore the corse of Karadan ; they 
 paused among the cypresses, and larine held up 
 the silver pitcher to hide the tears which flooded 
 her drooping face. But ere those tears had ceased 
 to flow, Phantasmion received it from the willing 
 hand of his gentle-hearted maid. 
 
 The nymphs now surrounded Anthemmina's body, 
 taking the weedy coronals from their heads to 
 scatter them on that fair corse. Those who formed 
 the outer circle blew melancholy notes through 
 many a wreathed shell, attuning them to this fare- 
 well strain which their sisters chanted ; 
 
376 
 
 PHANTASMION. 
 
 Ah, where lie now those locks that lately streamed 
 'Mid gales that fann'd in vain the fever'd cheek 1 
 
 Low let them rest, ye winds. 
 
 The heart now rests in peace. 
 
 How vainly, while the tortur'd bosom heav'd. 
 Restless as waves that lash'd her sea-beat haunt. 
 We strove to cool that cheek 
 Which death too quickly chill'd ! 
 
 Like wreaths of mist, that some lone rock o'erhang, 
 And seem intent to melt the crags away. 
 
 While with soft veil they hide 
 
 Its tempest-riven head ; 
 
 We hover'd round thee on the lonesome beach. 
 And sought to calm thy brow with dewy hand. 
 
 Thy wild unquiet eye 
 
 With pitying glances met. 
 
 " O fly with us," we whisper 'd; " from glad hearts. 
 From mirthful bands that meet on moon-light shores. 
 
 We came to watch thee pace 
 
 This melancholy strand. 
 
 " A captive thou, an exile here confin'd ; 
 But fatal passion to more galling chains. 
 
 To exile more unblest. 
 
 Thy blinded spirit dooms. 
 
 " O fly with us ; no dangerous choice we know. 
 Mild heavenly influence guides our gentle lives, 
 
 Obedient as yon tide, 
 
 Sway'd by the circling moon. 
 
 " fly with us, free, free as ocean gale. 
 To roam at large, releas'd from sorrow's power." — 
 Ah no ! — far happier scenes. 
 More blissful change, be thine ! 
 
PHANTASMION. 377 
 
 Through fields of radiance let thy spirit stray. 
 While these fair relics, shrin'd in ocean's depth. 
 
 Shall gleam like purest pearl, 
 
 Caress'd by winds and waves. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 PHANTASMION AND lARINE ARE WAFTED TO THE 
 NARROW BAY, WHENCE THEY SAIL WITH ZEL- 
 NETH AND LEUCOIA TO ROCKLAND. 
 
 WHILE the procession moved along the wood 
 with Anthemmina's body, one of the many 
 garlands that hung about it fell to the ground, 
 which larine took up, and fondly twined amid her 
 own tresses. Phantasmion observed the pome- 
 granate wreath at a little distance glittering on 
 the borders of the marsh ; he went to fetch the 
 relic, and placed it in his bosom, resolving to keep 
 the memorial for his mother's sake. In the still- 
 ness of the air, as he stooped beside the pool, a 
 mournful sound, like the boom of some distant 
 bittern, came to his ear across the waters. It was 
 the voice of Seshelma ; just as Karadan expired, 
 the witch was about to seize on his corse and the 
 pitcher along with it ; but Oloola had descended 
 in a whirlwind, and, bearing her aloft, had plunged 
 her in that pestiferous bog which bounded the Lost 
 Land. Thence she dared not return into the sea. 
 
378 PHANTASMION'. 
 
 but ever after continued slowly roaming from one 
 part of the fen to the other ; while her moans and 
 wailings, heard sometimes on the side of Tigridia, 
 sometimes toward the Land of Rocks, augmented 
 the horror with which the people of those coun- 
 tries regarded the marsh and the peninsula be- 
 yond it. 
 
 The moon was up when Phantasmion and his 
 fair princess gained the beach, and espied Dorna 
 sitting in the vessel with the seeming pilot. They 
 entered it, and, when they had put out into the 
 deep, no cloudlet was ever driven along the sky 
 b^ the keen winds of March more swiftly than 
 that skiff was made to fly over the ocean plain. 
 After a while, Phantasmion discerned before the 
 vessel's prow a shadowy form, which seemed to be 
 guiding it on its way. larine saw not what he 
 saw, for her eyes, from which the tears had 
 scarcely ceased to flow, were now heavy with sleep, 
 and at last she lay in slumber on Phantasmion 's 
 cloak upon the open deck. Then the phantom rose 
 up from the waves, and, turning about, revealed to 
 him that still watched the face of Zalia. While 
 she murmured blessings on his head, he pointed to 
 the sleeping maid : " O bless her too," he cried, 
 " who makes me blessed." The shade of Zalia bent 
 toward larine, but soon recoiled, gazing with a sad 
 look on the blue lilies which now lay withering on 
 the damsel's stainless brow. But when Phantas- 
 mion removed Anthemmina's garland, and placed 
 
PHANTASMION. 379 
 
 the jewelled wreath upon the maiden's head, again 
 the face of Zalia grew softly bright, and, bending 
 over larine's tearful cheek to breathe a benison, 
 she seemed like the moon shedding benign influ- 
 ence on some dewy flower. 
 
 When the stars faded in heaven, Zalia too dis- 
 appeared, but first she pointed to a group of figures 
 now in sight upon the margin of the narrow bay, 
 and sighing said, " Awake, larine ! Thou hast 
 fellow mourners ! Lo, Zelneth and Leucoia weep- 
 ing for their mother and for Karadan !" With 
 that voice sounding in her ear larine awoke : the 
 shade of Zalia had vanished, but she beheld the 
 daughters of Magnart kneeling on the beach beside 
 two prostrate forms. Nigh them a fair shape was 
 pouring liquid on those lifeless bodies, but, when 
 larine approached the mourners, it disappeared, 
 leaving behind a fragrant atmosphere. Feydeleen 
 had been performing the last kind office for the 
 mother and the son : Arzene had watched and 
 waited for Karadan in the bay till those same sea- 
 nymphs who bore his pale corse to the peninsula, 
 transported it thence to her feet, then falling sense- 
 less over it, she was drowned by the advancing 
 tide. The same vessel in which the son of Mag- 
 nart sailed from these shores, received his em- 
 balmed body, with that of his mother. larine, 
 Zelneth, and Leucoia, closely united in sorrow, 
 entered the skiff with Phantasmion, and were 
 driven by steady gales to the Rockland coast not 
 far from the Diamanthine Palace. 
 
380 PHANTASMION. 
 
 Leaving the fellow mourners at that royal abode, 
 Phantasmion rejoined his kingly allies at the ca- 
 pital city of Rockland, and learned that Glandreth's 
 army had submitted to their united forces without 
 striking another blow, so that the whole country 
 was subdued. Albinet with his mother Maudra 
 had disappeared ; for no sooner was the fatal end 
 of Glandreth generally known, than the principal 
 men of Rockland had revolted against the widowed 
 queen, declaring that they would neither endure 
 her sway, nor that of her sickly child. To escape 
 their hands, she had fled with young Albinet, no 
 one knew whither, and the chiefs placed their 
 crown at the disposal of the allied monarchs, sig- 
 nifying a desire that he who should espouse the 
 daughter of Albinian might reign over them. 
 Phantasmion was not eager to embrace this pro- 
 posal, but caused diligent search to be made for 
 larine's brother, whose rights he resolved to up- 
 hold. At this time it was announced, that mines 
 of iron, as well as of copper, had been discovered 
 in Gemmaura, and in a part of Palmland adjoining 
 that district. 
 
 While Ulander was restored to his ancestral 
 throne, the blooming Hermillian inherited Polyan- 
 thida. Meantime Penselimer and the sylvan chief 
 found their fair consorts at the Diamanthine Pa- 
 lace, and heard how, in obedience to the voice of 
 Feydeleen, they had followed their mother to the 
 naiTow bay, where they found her corse on the 
 
PHANTASMION. 381 
 
 beach beside the body of Karadan. Afterwards 
 Leucoia made known to Ulander, that the witch's 
 cavern was destroyed on the nig-ht when the vol- 
 canic mountain filled the heavens with smoke ; 
 and Zelneth told her kingly spouse, that the bleak 
 waste around his castle had begun to smile with 
 verdure, while the black cloud no longer rested on 
 the horizon. " It is reported," said she, " that 
 the dim vale has been freed from its diurnal ca- 
 nopy by the Spirit of the Blast, and that Melledine 
 has drowned herself in a mountain pool which lies 
 in deep shadow." 
 
 Phantasmion caused the remains of Albinian to 
 be brought from Nemorosa under the care of the 
 faithful goatherd, and to be interred in Rockland 
 with fitting pomp. Magnart's body could never 
 be certified among the heaps of slain which had 
 been defaced by the trampling throng; but the 
 obsequies of Arzene and of Karadan were solemnly 
 performed, and splendid monuments were raised to 
 their memory. Anthemmina had no share in these 
 funeral honours ; her relics could not be entombed 
 beneath a solid marble pile : but the face of the 
 deep, with its changeful hues and motions, for the 
 mind of larine, was her mother's monument, and 
 strains like these she dedicated to her memory : 
 
 Poor is the portrait that one look portrays. 
 It mocks the face on which we lov'd to gaze j 
 A thousand past expressions all combia'd, 
 The mind itself depictur'd by the mind, 
 
382 PHANTASMION. 
 
 That face contains which in the heart is shrin'd. 
 
 Yet, dearest mother, if on lasting hrass 
 
 Thy very self to future times might pass, 
 
 111 could I bear such monument to build 
 
 For future times with dearer memories fiU'd : 
 
 Ah no ! thy fadeless portrait in my breast 
 
 From earth shall vanish when 1 sink to rest ; 
 
 But, ere to join thee on glad wings I go, 
 
 Thy sun-like influence, beaming here below. 
 
 In sorrow's hour, when earthly hope betrays me. 
 
 To heav'n above, my hope's best aim, shall raise me. 
 
 In hours of bliss when heav'n almost seems here, 
 
 For thy sweet memory claim the tribute tear ; 
 
 So yon bright orb doth tearful incense gain 
 
 From glittering lake, swift rill, and humid plain. 
 
 Yet dries the spray that trembled in the shower. 
 
 And shines reflected from each dripping flower. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 lARINE FINDS HER BROTHERS IN THE GROVE 
 WHERE PHANTASMION FIRST SAW POTENTILLA. 
 
 WHEN the days of mourning had expired, all 
 the children of Magnart, with the kings 
 who had espoused Zelneth and Leucoia, accompa- 
 nied Phantasmion and his betrothed princess to 
 Palmland, that they might be present at their 
 nuptials. The country palace where the young 
 monarch had always resided lay in their way, being 
 at no great distance from the confines of Rockland; 
 
PHANTASMION. 383 
 
 and here it was resolved that the company should 
 sojourn, while preparations were made for the 
 wedding- in the principal city. There was a strange 
 look on earth and sky when larine entered that 
 regal domain, a hot sun being* veiled by bluish 
 mist ; her cheeks glowed and her breath laboured 
 with the stifled heat and with eager anticipation, 
 for she expected shortly to behold her long-lost 
 infant brother. Eurelio was to be Lord of Gem- 
 maura, so Phantasmion had declared ; but how 
 could she rejoice over him without grieving for 
 Albinet ? And alas ! where was Albinet to be 
 found, or how could she discharge toward that 
 beloved boy her promises to his father? With 
 beating bosom she hastened onward, and entered 
 the grove where Potentiila first shewed herself to 
 Phantasmion. There she espied a child just old 
 enough to run alone, caressing a poor boy in tat- 
 tered clothes, and presenting him with fruits, toys, 
 and fragments of cake from a basket where all 
 were mingled together. Close by was a woman 
 who wore a beggar's garb, and seemed in woful 
 plight; she sate upon the ground, her head in- 
 clined against a tree, watching that fair child and 
 his pale comrade, who ate the dainties given him 
 by the rosy little one as if he were well nigh 
 famished. Her looks were full of misery, but 
 not a tear-drop trickled down her ghastly cheek, 
 larine knew at once that the younger child was 
 Eurelio, and flew to embrace her darling charge. 
 
384 
 
 PHANTASMION. 
 
 twice lost, and now twice found. While she held 
 him in her arms the sickly boy wept, and catching 
 her robe exclaimed, *' O, sister, wilt thou not speak 
 to roe ? Art thou too turned against me ?" Startled 
 by the sound of a well known voice, the lady 
 looked at him stedfastly, and saw that he was her 
 father's heir, the poor rejected Albinet. Then she 
 gave Eurelio to his nurse, who had come up in 
 breathless haste, and tenderly caressed her weeping 
 brother, shedding tears herself while she wiped 
 the big drops which fell from his eyes. 
 
 But soon his face beamed with happiness, though 
 wan as frosted roses, and, turning to the wretched 
 woman, who vainly strove to rise, " Mother," he 
 cried, " our griefs are ended now : here is larine. 
 Sister, didst thou find that healing well ? If thou 
 hast any of the water left, I pray thee give it to 
 my mother." By this time the gentle princess 
 had recognized Maudra's altered face, and, kneel- 
 ing beside her, whispered words of consolation, 
 declaring that she herself would be protected, and 
 Albinet restored to his rights, by the generous 
 king of Palmland. Tears now gushed in torrents 
 from the eyes of Maudra, but still she could make 
 no reply ; her evil counsellor, whom she had met 
 on the sea shore, after the destruction of Glandreth, 
 and franticly strove to punish, had stricken a deadly 
 chill into her frame and rendered her speechless. 
 And now Phantasmion was seen holding up the 
 charmed vessel among the boughs of the pome- 
 
PMANTASMION. 385 
 
 granate tree, which stood a little way back within 
 the grove. Potentilla sate in the shadow, while 
 Feydeleen, less hidden by the foliage, was pouring 
 a fragrant liquid from her chalice into the pitcher : 
 and just as Zelneth and Leucoia, with the rest of 
 the company, arrived he shed the Flower Spirit's 
 balmy gift on the head of Albinet, whose body 
 gradually changed as the precious drops trickled 
 over it, till by the time they reached the ground 
 he stood erect in blooming health and vigour. His 
 limbs, on which the ragged garments had before 
 hung loose, now muscular and shapely, filled them 
 out tQ their full stretch ; his form was upright, 
 and his cheeks, though not so round and soft, were 
 blooming as those of Eurelio. Maudra had wit- 
 nessed the change with flushed cheek and gleam- 
 ing eye, but could not utter a word of joy or 
 thankfulness. Albinet flung his arms around her 
 neck ; " O, mother !" he said, " why art thou not 
 healed of this dire malady ?" But Maudra scarcely 
 thought of him or that; for now again her eye 
 was fastened on Eurelio. larine observed that 
 look, and blamed herself tliat she had so long de- 
 layed to place the lost one in his mother's arms. 
 In haste she brought him to her side, and gently 
 whispered, " This is thy rescued babe, thy sweet 
 Eurelio !" Joy lighted up the face of the dying 
 woman at those words ; she strove to clasp the 
 smiling child to her bosom ; but, ere she reached 
 c c 
 
386 PHANTASM ION. 
 
 him, her sight failed, and, sinking backwards, she 
 expired in the arms of Albinet. 
 
 A little while afterwards Phantasmion looked 
 down into the grove, and saw the heir of Rock- 
 land leaning against a tree with his weeping eyes 
 fixed upon the ground. The Flower Spirit gleamed 
 beside him in the hazy light, and seemed to smile, 
 as she bent forward, like a sapling swayed by a 
 gentle breeze, to crown his drooping brow with 
 thornless roses. Eurelio was too young to weep 
 the death of Maudra ; he thought she slumbered 
 when silently and softly she was borne away. With 
 Potentilla's wand he struck a hollow trunk of 
 sycamore, and sweetly his childish laughter rang 
 through the grove, when myriads of bees came 
 crowding forth, and shone with all the dyes of the 
 opal as they hung from a branch above his head. 
 Phantasmion felt as if he had dreamed of years, 
 not lived them ; the Fairy looked as old and 
 upright as when she first appeared to him ; the 
 trees around all seemed as green and flourishing ; 
 the grove was filled with just the same soft insect 
 murmur, and that bright swarm hung dazzling as 
 of yore. 
 
 But lo ! the sun has broken through its hazy 
 veil, and Feydeleen's soft cheek, as if it faded 
 in the brilliant light, is seen no more among the 
 blossoms ; Albinet raises his head, from which the 
 airy chaplet melts away, and with wondei'-stricken 
 
PHANTASMION. 387 
 
 eyes Eurelio gazes upward, for Potentilla has 
 risen from his side. A moment yet the wings of 
 her insect steeds are painted against the back- 
 ground of one lingering cloudlet — but now they 
 disappear, while earth below, suflFused with splen- 
 dour, becomes a softened image of the heavens 
 themselves. 
 
 Phantasmion looked round in momentary dread, 
 lest larine should have proved a spirit and vanished 
 like the rest; but there she stood, her face beam- 
 ing bright as ever in full sunshine, the earnest 
 that all he remembered and all he hoped for was 
 not to fade like a dream. 
 
 FINIS. 
 
 LONDON : 
 C. WHITTINGHAM, TOOKS COURT, CHANCIJRY LANE.