"Seest thou not how the Mohammedan princes daily intermarry with the noble Nazarene maidens in Spain, without scandal either to Moor or Christian?
And the noble Soldan will, in his full confidence in the blood of Richard, permit the English maid the freedom which your Frankish manners have assigned to women.

He will allow her the free exercise of her religion, seeing that, in very truth, it signifies but little to which faith females are addicted; and he will assign her such place and rank over all the women of his zenana, that she shall be in every respect his sole and absolute queen." "What!" said Sir Kenneth, "darest thou think, Moslem, that Richard would give his kinswoman--a high-born and virtuous princess--to be, at best, the foremost concubine in the haram of a misbeliever?
Know, Hakim, the meanest free Christian noble would scorn, on his child's behalf, such splendid ignominy." "Thou errest," said the Hakim.

"Philip of France, and Henry of Champagne, and others of Richard's principal allies, have heard the proposal without starting, and have promised, as far as they may, to forward an alliance that may end these wasteful wars; and the wise arch-priest of Tyre hath undertaken to break the proposal to Richard, not doubting that he shall be able to bring the plan to good issue.

The Soldan's wisdom hath as yet kept his proposition secret from others, such as he of Montserrat, and the Master of the Templars, because he knows they seek to thrive by Richard's death or disgrace, not by his life or honour.

Up, therefore, Sir Knight, and to horse.