482 JOINVILLE θ MEMOIRS OF BATTÎT LOUIS IX. [[ΡΤ.Π. 8eningaan, who said hé had set ont from the kingdom of Norone, where he had embarked, and coasting Spain* had passed the Straits of Morocco ; and that he had ran great hazards and suffered much evil before he could come to ua The king retained this knight, with ten others of hie eon panions. I heard him say, that the nights in the land of Norone, during the summer, were so short, that yon could see in the latest part of them. When this knight became acquainted with the country, he and his people began to hunt the lions, many of which they took, but not without much bodily danger. Their manner of hunting was on horseback ; and when they found a lion, they shot at him at a proper distance from their bow or cross-bow. On the lion being wounded, he ran at the first he saw, who instantly spurred his horse to a full gallop, dropping as he fled some piece of old cloth or coverlid, which the lion seized and tore to pieces, imagining it was the man he was in pursuit of. As the Hon was employed in tearing die cloth, others advanced and shot at him, which made him again pursue them : they kept dropping old cloths, and shoot ing at him alternately, until they killed him. Thus did they destroy many lions. Another most noble knight came to the king when he was at Cœsarea, who said he was of the house of Coucy. The king said, he was his cousin by his descent from one of the sisters of King Philip, who had been married to the emperor of Constantinople. The king retained this knight, and nine others, for one year ; on the expiration of which, he returned to Constantinople, whence he had come. While he was with us, I heard him tell the king, that the emperor of Constantinople had once formed an alliance with the king of the Commains, to have their assistance to conquer the emperor of Greece, whose name was Vataiche ; and he added, that the king of the Commains, to have greater faith in the professione of the emperor of Constantinople, caused him and their people on both sides to be blooded, and made each drink alternately of the other's blood, in eign of brotherhood, saying they were now brothers of the same blood. It was thus we were forced to do with this knight and his companions ; and our blood, being mixed with wine, was drunk by each party, as constituting us all brothers of the same bloock