Knight of the Silver Cross

Whilst the greatest effort has been made to ensure the quality of this text, due to the historical nature of this content, in some rare cases there may be minor issues with legibility. The old man ceased speaking, and the group silently proceeded forward. The road they had passed, for some distance, was strewn with sand to the depth of several inches, by the laborers who had been engaged in repairing it a short time before, to smooth away the roughness of the new pavement, so that their horses' feet made scarcely any noise, as they sank in the sand to their ankles with each step. This circumstance prevented them from hearing the approach of a horseman from behind, whose coal black steed, of giant proportions, bore him with such rapidity along the difficult way, as to enable him to overtake the travellers ere they had half descended the side of the hill, and while they were yet a mile from the city gate. From his dress, a stranger would mave supposed him to have been a Saracen Chieftain; but could you have rent the silken folds of his disguise, you would have seen beneath his garments the ponderous breast plate and shining armor of a knight, and on his left shoulder a silver cross, the symbol of his order, worked in the coat of mail.