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CHARLES J. ROSEBAULT. Saladin. Prince of Chivalry

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CHARLES J. ROSEBAULT.
Saladin. Prince of Chivalry
page 9



tion. A solemn and complicated ceremony, he explained, usually accompanied the induction of the candidate for knightly honors, all of which had a symbolic significance. The aspirant must be purified and come in a proper spirit of humility; for pride was a blemish and no true knight could forget that the end of all flesh was death, nor that pomp and power were but transitory things of no avail in the world to come. Step by step through the elaborate proceedings, each detail significant of the duties the knight vowed to perform throughout life for the service and honor of God and holy church, as also in defense of the weak and the protection of the virtuous, Saladin followed his host, his deep interest attested by exclamatory interjections, such as : " By God, this is most beautiful ! " and " All this is good to hear." With such enthusiasm for its fundamentals, and with the glow of sympathy inspired by their newfound friendship, what was more natural than that the pupil should ask and the instructor grant initiation into the order? To be sure, they would fight each other on the morrow, and, to be sure, here was a Moslem, which meant to every Christian, however lenient and broad-minded, an infidel, who must inevitably descend into the torments of hell-fire, did he not repent of his unholy faith, and embrace the true one. Moreover, the very foundation of knighthood was support of Mother Church. Just how the gallant Humphrey avoided this delicate problem is a matter of conjecture, but it is perhaps not going too far afield to suggest that he might


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