The  Noble  Bandit  in  Literature  43

grace  to  my  heart,  which  is  gentle  and  humane."  At
the  end  of  the  episode  Roque  sends  his  captives  away
"admiring  his  generosity,  his  gallantry,  and  his  ex-
traordinary conduct,  and  looking  upon  him  rather  as
an  Alexander  the  Great  than  as  a  notorious  robber." '
Here  was  a  sufficient  hint  for  a  criminal  in  the  grand
style,  who  should  imagine  himself  the  spiritual  con-
gener of  Plutarch's  heroes.
'  A  singular  Don  Quixote  whom  we  abominate  and
love,  admire  and  pity ',. — such  was  Schiller's  own  for-
mula for  his  first  dramatic  hero.  From  the  standpoint
of  ordinary  logic  it  must  be  admitted  that  Moor's
motive  for  becoming  a"  rx)bber  (the  lying  letter  that  he
receives  from  Franz)  is  quite  insufficient.  He  is  duped
too  easily  and  should  have  known  his  brother  better.
