PART II - CHAPTER LXIV.

by Miguel de Cervantes

　　TREATING OF THE ADVENTURE WHICH GAVE DON QUIXOTE MORE UNHAPPINESS THANALL THAT HAD HITHERTO BEFALLEN HIMThe wife of Don Antonio Moreno, so the history says, was extremely happyto see Ana Felix in her house. She welcomed her with great kindness,charmed as well by her beauty as by her intelligence; for in bothrespects the fair Morisco was richly endowed, and all the people of thecity flocked to see her as though they had been summoned by the ringingof the bells.Don Quixote told Don Antonio that the plan adopted for releasing DonGregorio was not a good one, for its risks were greater than itsadvantages, and that it would be better to land himself with his arms andhorse in Barbary; for he would carry him off in spite of the wholeMoorish host, as Don Gaiferos carried off his wife Melisendra."Remember, your worship," observed Sancho on hearing him say so, "SenorDon Gaiferos carried off his wife from the mainland, and took her toFrance by land; but in this case, if by chance we carry off Don Gregorio,we have no way of bringing him to Spain, for there's the sea between.""There's a remedy for everything except death," said Don Quixote; "ifthey bring the vessel close to the shore we shall be able to get on boardthough all the world strive to prevent us.""Your worship hits it off mighty well and mighty easy," said Sancho; "but'it's a long step from saying to doing;' and I hold to the renegade, forhe seems to me an honest good-hearted fellow."Don Antonio then said that if the renegade did not prove successful, theexpedient of the great Don Quixote's expedition to Barbary should beadopted. Two days afterwards the renegade put to sea in a light vessel ofsix oars a-side manned by a stout crew, and two days later the galleysmade sail eastward, the general having begged the viceroy to let him knowall about the release of Don Gregorio and about Ana Felix, and theviceroy promised to do as he requested.One morning as Don Quixote went out for a stroll along the beach, arrayedin full armour (for, as he often said, that was "his only gear, his onlyrest the fray," and he never was without it for a moment), he saw comingtowards him a knight, also in full armour, with a shining moon painted onhis shield, who, on approaching sufficiently near to be heard, said in aloud voice, addressing himself to Don Quixote, "Illustrious knight, andnever sufficiently extolled Don Quixote of La Mancha, I am the Knight ofthe White Moon, whose unheard-of achievements will perhaps have recalledhim to thy memory. I come to do battle with thee and prove the might ofthy arm, to the end that I make thee acknowledge and confess that mylady, let her be who she may, is incomparably fairer than thy Dulcineadel Toboso. If thou dost acknowledge this fairly and openly, thou shaltescape death and save me the trouble of inflicting it upon thee; if thoufightest and I vanquish thee, I demand no other satisfaction than that,laying aside arms and abstaining from going in quest of adventures, thouwithdraw and betake thyself to thine own village for the space of a year,and live there without putting hand to sword, in peace and quiet andbeneficial repose, the same being needful for the increase of thysubstance and the salvation of thy soul; and if thou dost vanquish me, myhead shall be at thy disposal, my arms and horse thy spoils, and therenown of my deeds transferred and added to thine. Consider which will bethy best course, and give me thy answer speedily, for this day is all thetime I have for the despatch of this business."Don Quixote was amazed and astonished, as well at the Knight of the WhiteMoon's arrogance, as at his reason for delivering the defiance, and withcalm dignity he answered him, "Knight of the White Moon, of whoseachievements I have never heard until now, I will venture to swear youhave never seen the illustrious Dulcinea; for had you seen her I know youwould have taken care not to venture yourself upon this issue, becausethe sight would have removed all doubt from your mind that there ever hasbeen or can be a beauty to be compared with hers; and so, not saying youlie, but merely that you are not correct in what you state, I accept yourchallenge, with the conditions you have proposed, and at once, that theday you have fixed may not expire; and from your conditions I except onlythat of the renown of your achievements being transferred to me, for Iknow not of what sort they are nor what they may amount to; I amsatisfied with my own, such as they be. Take, therefore, the side of thefield you choose, and I will do the same; and to whom God shall give itmay Saint Peter add his blessing."The Knight of the White Moon had been seen from the city, and it was toldthe viceroy how he was in conversation with Don Quixote. The viceroy,fancying it must be some fresh adventure got up by Don Antonio Moreno orsome other gentleman of the city, hurried out at once to the beachaccompanied by Don Antonio and several other gentlemen, just as DonQuixote was wheeling Rocinante round in order to take up the necessarydistance. The viceroy upon this, seeing that the pair of them wereevidently preparing to come to the charge, put himself between them,asking them what it was that led them to engage in combat all of a suddenin this way. The Knight of the White Moon replied that it was a questionof precedence of beauty; and briefly told him what he had said to DonQuixote, and how the conditions of the defiance agreed upon on both sideshad been accepted. The viceroy went over to Don Antonio, and asked in alow voice did he know who the Knight of the White Moon was, or was itsome joke they were playing on Don Quixote. Don Antonio replied that heneither knew who he was nor whether the defiance was in joke or inearnest. This answer left the viceroy in a state of perplexity, notknowing whether he ought to let the combat go on or not; but unable topersuade himself that it was anything but a joke he fell back, saying,"If there be no other way out of it, gallant knights, except to confessor die, and Don Quixote is inflexible, and your worship of the White Moonstill more so, in God's hand be it, and fall on."He of the White Moon thanked the viceroy in courteous and well-chosenwords for the permission he gave them, and so did Don Quixote, who then,commending himself with all his heart to heaven and to his Dulcinea, aswas his custom on the eve of any combat that awaited him, proceeded totake a little more distance, as he saw his antagonist was doing the same;then, without blast of trumpet or other warlike instrument to give themthe signal to charge, both at the same instant wheeled their horses; andhe of the White Moon, being the swifter, met Don Quixote after havingtraversed two-thirds of the course, and there encountered him with suchviolence that, without touching him with his lance (for he held it high,to all appearance purposely), he hurled Don Quixote and Rocinante to theearth, a perilous fall. He sprang upon him at once, and placing the lanceover his visor said to him, "You are vanquished, sir knight, nay deadunless you admit the conditions of our defiance."Don Quixote, bruised and stupefied, without raising his visor said in aweak feeble voice as if he were speaking out of a tomb, "Dulcinea delToboso is the fairest woman in the world, and I the most unfortunateknight on earth; it is not fitting that this truth should suffer by myfeebleness; drive your lance home, sir knight, and take my life, sinceyou have taken away my honour.""That will I not, in sooth," said he of the White Moon; "live the fame ofthe lady Dulcinea's beauty undimmed as ever; all I require is that thegreat Don Quixote retire to his own home for a year, or for so long atime as shall by me be enjoined upon him, as we agreed before engaging inthis combat."The viceroy, Don Antonio, and several others who were present heard allthis, and heard too how Don Quixote replied that so long as nothing inprejudice of Dulcinea was demanded of him, he would observe all the restlike a true and loyal knight. The engagement given, he of the White Moonwheeled about, and making obeisance to the viceroy with a movement of thehead, rode away into the city at a half gallop. The viceroy bade DonAntonio hasten after him, and by some means or other find out who he was.They raised Don Quixote up and uncovered his face, and found him pale andbathed with sweat.Rocinante from the mere hard measure he had received lay unable to stirfor the present. Sancho, wholly dejected and woebegone, knew not what tosay or do. He fancied that all was a dream, that the whole business was apiece of enchantment. Here was his master defeated, and bound not to takeup arms for a year. He saw the light of the glory of his achievementsobscured; the hopes of the promises lately made him swept away like smokebefore the wind; Rocinante, he feared, was crippled for life, and hismaster's bones out of joint; for if he were only shaken out of hismadness it would be no small luck. In the end they carried him into thecity in a hand-chair which the viceroy sent for, and thither the viceroyhimself returned, cager to ascertain who this Knight of the White Moonwas who had left Don Quixote in such a sad plight.