In his wandering he came finally to the market place. He saw the vine hanging to the bell rope.
“These leaves,” he thought, “are better than nothing, though they are withered.”
He began to pull at the withered leaves. The very first pull set the great bell to ringing loudly. The poor horse was so hungry that he paid no attention to the ringing. He kept on eating, and the bell rang louder and louder.
The judge heard the sounds, and wondered who was ringing the bell so loudly. He put on his robe and hurried to the market place.
He was greatly surprised when he saw who had rung the bell. He felt sorry for the poor creature, however.
“Even the dumb beast,” he murmured, “shall have justice. This is the horse of the Knight of Atri.”
A large crowd of people had gathered in a few minutes. They told the judge the story of the old horse. Their stories, however, did not agree. The judge, therefore, decided to call the Knight himself.
The heartless old Knight said that the horse was useless to him, and that he could not take care of him any longer. It cost too much money.
“Did he not always do his duty by you?” asked the judge. “Did he ever refuse to carry you to the hunt, or to bring you safely home?”
The old Knight had to confess that the horse had always been faithful.
“The law decides, then,” cried the judge, “that you shall provide him shelter and food as long as he lives.”
At this decision all the people clapped their hands and shouted loudly.
The old Knight ordered his servant to lead the horse back to the stable. The people followed, cheering, because even a dumb animal could get justice.
The fame of the bell of Atri spread abroad through all Italy.
To-day people know very little about the other things that Good King John did. They simply remember him as the king who set up the bell of justice at Atri.
In the beautiful land of Switzerland is a little town named Zurich. Not far from here is the larger city of Strasburg. The people of Zurich had long looked with envy on the larger city and wanted to become a part of it. At last they decided to send an appeal to the magistrates. This they did, but the great magistrate of Strasburg bluntly refused the honor of such a union.
“Zurich is of no importance,” they said, “and besides it is too far away to be of any help in time of need.”