164 THE WONDER-BOOK OF HORSES 



Charlemagne would not allow him to do other- 

 wise. At his command, therefore, one of his 

 knights secured Ogier's sword, another his shield, 

 and another the good horse Broiefort. Then 

 twenty men with drawn swords stood around the 

 fugitive while the archbishop awakened him. 



" My old-time friend, Ogier," he said, " awake 

 and look around you ! You can see that it is use- 

 less for you to resist ; for here are forty men, most 

 of them armed, while you are unarmed and alone. 

 Yield yourself, then, as our prisoner ! " 



But Ogier was not the man to be taken so 

 easily. He sprang to his feet, and with a blow 

 of his great fist crushed the head of the knight 

 who stood nearest to him. Then he tore the 

 saddle from the back of one of the priest's pack- 

 horses, and with it dealt furiously about him until 

 ten of his assailants were laid sprawling in the 

 dust, and the rude weapon was broken in pieces 

 in his hands. But the struggle was of no avail, 

 for other knights closing in upon him, he was 

 wounded sorely, and finally bound hand and foot 

 with strong ropes. He begged his captors that 

 they would kill him then and there, rather than 

 give him up to Charlemagne. They made no an- 

 swer, however, but put him astride of a mule. 



