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Advance banner! Lay your spears in the rest! Crevecoeur to the Rescue!" Crying his war cry, and followed by his men at arms, he galloped rapidly forward to charge the Schwarzreiters. Rescue or none, Sir Knight, I am your captive: Deal with me what your nobleness suggests Thinking the chance of war may one day place you Where I must now be reckon'd I' the roll Of melancholy prisoners.

To maintain the name of Black Troopers, and to strike additional terror into their enemies, they usually rode on black chargers, and smeared with black ointment their arms and accoutrements, in which operation their hands and faces often had their share. In morals and in ferocity these Schwarzreiters emulated their pedestrian brethren the Lanzknechts.

The skirmish betwixt the Schwarzreiters and the Burgundian men at arms lasted scarcely five minutes, so soon were the former put to the rout by the superiority of the latter in armour, weight of horse, and military spirit.

It was two hours after noon, when the travellers were alarmed by the report of the guide, who, with paleness and horror in his countenance, said that they were pursued by a party of De la Marck's Schwarzreiters. These soldiers, or rather banditti, were bands levied in the Lower Circles of Germany, and resembled the lanzknechts in every particular, except that the former acted as light cavalry.