MAXIMILIAN THE EMPEROR.

Wairarapa Standard, Volume I, Issue 14, 6 April 1867, Page 4

MAXIMILIAN THE EMPEROR.

■(A legend from the German, translated expressly for the Editor.)

It was an Impressive sight to behold the richly attired princess and the proud courtiers kneeling together with the poor peasants, all breathing the same prayer, all humbled in the dust before the same mighty Lord of Heaven, •in opposition to whose will all the power and greatness of man avails him nothing; whilst above “them on his narrow resting-place knelt' the bold hero, the rich and mighty emperor, ■now weak and helpless as a child; the ruler of so many thousand subjects, placed beyond all human approach and assistance, the possessor ■of treasures and riches fainting with hunger and thirst. And above all these the rosy glaciers, the white snow drifts among the green meadows and craggy rocks, with the church bells of Ziri sounding at intervals in the distance. When the people at length rose from their ■knees, they saw that Maximilian still remained kneeling: a salutary torpor had stolen upon bis senses, and deadened for a few moments his bitter sufferings. But his faithful servants ;and the assembled people thought now he was dead, and wept bitterly over his early loss. Full thirty-twofaours had meanwhile elapsed creeping as slowly as if they had been so many -days. Two bold mountaineers had, during this interval, set out quietly and elone to find, if possible, a way up the other side of the rocky wall, and to bring down, at least, the •emperor’s body. The path they took led close to the edge of the precipice, and they could not know that, great as was the danger of climbing up, the descent would be far more perilous. Often bad they only a bunch of alpine plants or a thorn bush to hold by as they hung over the abyss, but after a time their exertions were rewarded in a surprising degree, the supposed inaccessible side of the Martinswall proving at a certain height far less precipitous than, viewing it from below, would appear possible. They scrambled by degrees I higher and higher, often resting the point of their toe only on a loose stone or in some cleft of the rock, then with a powerful spring reaching a higher point, and repeating the dangerous attempt as often as it failed. At last they came to a narrow fissure, which they were on tion, when one of them fancied he saw a ray the point of passing without examinaof light at the end of a deep dark cleft. On his mentioning what he had seen, it appeared to the other a matter of such importance, that they turned back to examine it more closely. On nearer inspection there was no doubt that the cleft reached to the opposite side ef the Martinswall, and that the sunshine came in from thence. It might, perhans, he possible to work their way through the narrow pass, and to climb further up from the other opening. The slenderest of the two cautiously entered the fissure, which became wider as he proceeded, and, in defiance of the peril of groping in thickest darkness along an unknown path, leading, perhaps, to hidden depths and , horrible precipices, he persevered until he happily reached the spot from whence the light shone in clear and bright. He now fastenerl *

around his body, passing the other end over a point of rode, and called to his comrade to follow him carefully until he could lay hold of the rope and support him by it whilst he leaned out of the opening to try if he could discover a path, or see whereabouts the emperor was. This was quickly done, and the first, laying himself flat on the ground, cautiously drew himself to the edge and leaned out over the terrible precipice. His comrade meanwhile held the rope with a firm grasp, fixing himself steadily against the rock. Suddenly the hunter gave a shout of joyous surprise, for about ten paces immediately below him he beheld the emperor st3l kneeling on his narrow platform. “ Holloo!” he cried eagerly, to learn if he were still alive, 41 how are you?” To his indiscribable joy Maximilian replied, though in a faint voice, “ I watch” —that is, “ I wait for help.”- Whe can describe the fervent gratitude of the half-famished, emperor when a piece of bread soaked in ;wine was let down to him by a cord from above. He reached it with trembling hands, and eagerly swallowed the refreshing morsel. The hunters could have lowered their -well-filled 'flask, instead of the bread steeped in wine, but they prudently feared lest the emperor, thirsty ns he was, might take a larger draugat than in his 'exhausted state his head could bear, and be intoxicated by it. And now the most complete self-possession and presence of mind were required, for they saw at once that only from this spot was it possible to rescue the emperor, and that the risk, both to him and his deliverers, would be very great. The attempt must, however-, be made, for in another hour he would, perhaps, be no longer able to stand upright; or a storm might arise amongst the Alps, when he must inevitably he swept into the abyss. The food he had taken and the presence of the brave men above him restored Maximilian's spirits and courage. As the noose of a strong rope was let down to him, he suffered it quietly to fail over his shoulders, and then drew it fast about his waist. The men had, meanwhile, made a deepish hole in the rock with a pointed hammer and passed the other end of the rope into it, securing one opening with sharp wooden wedges, for being experienced chamois hunters, they had, with prudent forethought, provided themselves with all ■the requisite implements. They now began carefully to wind up the rope, using for that purpose the but ends of their muskets bound together. It required a tremendous exertion •ef strength to draw up so large and powerful a man with such insufficient preparation, but God was with them, and soon Maximilian swung, supported only by the rope, clear over the abyss. With renewed energy and cool presence of mind he kept himself away from the rock with his foot whenever he came too near it, not only to preserve his hands, by which he held fast the rope, from being bruised and torn, but also to prevent the rope itsdf from being injured by the sharp projecting points cf rock and giving way under his weight. These were fearful moments of suspense! Not until now did the people in the valley below observe the unexpected attempt made to rescue'the emperor, and now they prayed fervently for its success. Tears were in every eye. Every heart beat with anxiety and terror as they saw him suspended over the horrible abj'ss. Now he had nearly reached the opening of the cleft, while his generous ’deliverers had drawn far back, pulling the trembling rope with giant strength higher np •the pass. The ’exertion was so excessive that large drops of blood stood on the forehead of one ef the mountaineers and fell upon Maximilian’s ’hands as he caught hold of the rock and ■grasped iit firmly, for now he must make a spring to get completely in. This, too, he happily accomplished, notwithstanding Ms exhausted state, mental excitement giving him strength at the critical moment. Now that he saw himself in safety, his senses forsook him, and with the exclamation “ 0 heira! 0 heim!” he sank into the arms of his deliverers.

There were still perils to be overcome, and great exertions to be made, for the descent was quite as dangerous, yea even more so, than the ascent had been. But He who had thus far aided the efforts of these hrave men, crowned their work with complete success, in two hours the emperor found himself on the spot from whence the priest had raised his hands to bless him, and there he threw him on his knees, and with him his attendants and all the people, gave thanks to God for his wonderful deliverance. And the bells of all the churches sounded far and wide, rousing the slumbering echoes in the mountains. The emperor rewarded his bold preservers with large estates and worldly honors. For the constant remembrance of their courageous deed, he conferred upon the one who first cried “Halloo!” to him, the family name “ Hallaner,” and gave him a bounding chamois with an alpine blossom on his coat of arms. The second, in whose arms he sank fainting and exhausted, he named “ 0 heim!” and his shield was distinguished by a chamois scull with seven drops of blood falling from it. Both families are still in high estimation and dignity. On the highest point of the Martinswall, after the ascent was made more practicable, Maximilian had a cross erected, eighteen feet high, as a memorial of his wonderful preservation. It is still to be seen standing on the height, three hundred yards above the fiver Inn. CONCLUDE!*.