printers into mere slaves of the grocers and tobacconists: for, as yet, noble knights continued to break their lances at the tournaments—such as Dietreck of Berne, Hildibrand, and Liegfried the Horny; and with Rembold the Strong, rambled in search of dragons and other fiery monsters, and encountered dwarfs and giants, each equal to more than a dozen men, cast in the modern mould. The old venerable Theuerdunk was in those times the great model of German art and sagacity; his work was the earliest production of our national intellect, though it was only calculated for beaux esprits, poets, and philosophers, of his own age. Francis belonged to none of these classes; and had, therefore, no occupation but to play upon the flute, to look out of the window, and take observations of the weather. But this led to no better conclusions than the rest of the theories of the soaring meteorologists of the day. It was lucky, then, that he met with a more engaging object of attention, which served to fill up the daily increasing vacuum both of his head and his heart.
Opposite his own window, in the same narrow street, dwelt a respectable widow, who gained a scanty living, not, however, without the hope of better times. She had a very beautiful daughter, who assisted her at the spinning-wheel; and between them, indeed, they produced as much yarn as would
