Signs of the Times, Book 1 - Ellen G. White

deep impression upon the minds of the German people. They saw that Luther
had been treated with great injustice by the emperor and the higher clergy,
and their feelings were strongly aroused against the arrogant assumptions of
the papacy.
Had Charles V. understood the real value of such a man as Luther to his
empire, a man who would not be bought or sold, who would not sacrifice
principle for friends or foes,--he would have cherished and honored instead
of denouncing and proscribing him.
Luther journeyed toward home, receiving, as he went, the most flattering
attentions from all classes. Dignitaries of the church welcomed the monk
upon whom the pope's curse rested, and secular officers honored the man
who was under the ban of the empire. He decided to turn aside from the
direct route, to visit Mora, his father's birthplace. His friend Amsdorff and a
wagoner accompanied him, while the remainder of the party proceeded on
their way to Wittenberg. After spending a day with his relatives, enjoying a
peaceful rest in marked contrast to the turmoil and strife of Worms, he
resumed his journey.
As the carriage was passing a narrow defile, the travelers encountered
five horsemen, completely armed and masked. Two of the men seized
Amsdorff and the wagoner, while the other three proceeded to secure Luther.
In profound silence they forced him to alight, threw a knight's cloak over his
shoulders, and placed him upon an extra horse. Then the two in charge of
Amsdorff and the wagoner released them, and the five all sprang into their
saddles, and disappeared with their prisoner in the thick gloom of the forest.
Through winding and intricate paths they made their way, now
advancing and now retracing their steps in such a manner as effectually to
elude pursuit. When night fell, they struck into a new road, and swiftly and
silently pressed forward, through dark, almost untrodden forests, to the
1521