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+Project Gutenberg's Stories of King Arthur's Knights, by Mary MacGregor
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Stories of King Arthur's Knights
+       Told to the Children by Mary MacGregor
+
+Author: Mary MacGregor
+
+Editor: Louey Chisholm
+
+Illustrator: Katharine Cameron
+
+Release Date: May 31, 2008 [EBook #25654]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK STORIES OF KING ARTHUR'S KNIGHTS ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Chris Curnow, Lindy Walsh, Suzan Flanagan and
+the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at
+https://www.pgdp.net
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+TOLD TO THE CHILDREN SERIES
+EDITED BY LOUEY CHISHOLM
+
+
+       KING ARTHUR'S KNIGHTS
+
+
+
+
+                TO
+          MARIE WINIFRED
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration: BESIDE HER STOOD HER BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTER
+
+Page 7]
+
+
+
+
+            STORIES OF
+
+       King Arthur's Knights
+
+      TOLD TO THE CHILDREN BY
+
+          MARY MACGREGOR
+
+         WITH PICTURES BY
+
+         KATHARINE CAMERON
+
+           [Illustration]
+
+     LONDON: T. C. & E. C. JACK
+     NEW YORK: E. P. DUTTON & CO.
+
+
+
+
+ABOUT THIS BOOK
+
+
+More than four hundred years ago there lived a diligent man called
+Sir Thomas Malory, who wrote in English words many of the beautiful
+Welsh tales about King Arthur's Knights, that the people of Wales
+loved so well.
+
+All the stories in this little book were found in Malory's big
+book, except 'Geraint and Enid.' But it, too, is one of the old
+Welsh tales that tell of the brave knights and fair ladies of King
+Arthur's court.
+
+Many times, since Sir Thomas Malory wrote his book, have these
+stories been told again to old and young, but perhaps never before
+have they been told to the children so simply as in this little
+book.
+
+                                                  MARY MACGREGOR.
+
+
+
+
+LIST OF STORIES
+
+                                      Page
+
+     Geraint and Enid,                   1
+
+     Lancelot and Elaine,               29
+
+     Pelleas and Ettarde,               45
+
+     Gareth and Lynette,                61
+
+     Sir Galahad and the Sacred Cup,    88
+
+     The Death of King Arthur,         107
+
+
+
+
+LIST OF PICTURES
+
+
+     GERAINT AND ENID.
+
+     Beside her stood her beautiful daughter,  _Frontispiece_
+
+                                                      At page
+
+     Through woods and swamps Enid and Geraint rode
+     silently,                                             20
+
+
+     LANCELOT AND ELAINE.
+
+     The Lily Maid of Astolat,                             44
+
+
+     PELLEAS AND ETTARDE.
+
+     Sir Pelleas was always at his lady's side,            50
+
+
+     GARETH AND LYNETTE.
+
+     Sometimes the birds and beasts, his woodland
+     friends, would call to him,                           62
+
+     The Lady Lyonors,                                     84
+
+
+     SIR GALAHAD AND THE SACRED CUP.
+
+     'My strength is as the strength of ten
+     Because my heart is pure,'                           102
+
+
+     THE DEATH OF KING ARTHUR,                            114
+
+
+
+
+GERAINT AND ENID
+
+
+Queen Guinevere lay idly in bed dreaming beautiful dreams. The
+sunny morning hours were slipping away, but she was so happy in
+dreamland, that she did not remember that her little maid had
+called her long ago.
+
+But the Queen's dreams came to an end at last, and all at once she
+remembered that this was the morning she had promised to go to the
+hunt with King Arthur.
+
+Even in the hunting-field, the King was not quite happy if his
+beautiful Queen Guinevere were not there. This morning he had
+waited for her in vain, for in dreamland the Queen had forgotten
+all about the hunt.
+
+'If I dress quickly, I shall not be very late,' thought the Queen,
+as she heard the far-off sound of the hunting-horn. And she was so
+quick that in a very short time she and her little waiting-maid
+were out, and riding up to a grassy knoll. But the huntsmen were
+already far away. 'We will wait here to see them ride homewards,'
+said the Queen, and they drew up their horses to watch and listen.
+
+They had not waited long, when they heard the sound of horse's
+hoofs, and turning round, the Queen saw Prince Geraint, one of
+Arthur's knights. He was unarmed, except that his sword hung at his
+side. He wore a suit of silk, with a purple sash round his waist,
+and at each end of the sash was a golden apple, which sparkled in
+the sunlight.
+
+'You are late for the hunt, Prince Geraint,' said the Queen.
+
+'Like you, I have come, not to join the hunt, but to see it pass,'
+said the Prince, bowing low to the beautiful Queen. And he asked to
+be allowed to wait with her and the little maid.
+
+As they waited, three people, a lady, a knight and a dwarf, came
+out of the forest, and rode slowly past. The knight had his helmet
+off, and the Queen saw that he looked young and bold.
+
+'I cannot remember if he is one of Arthur's knights. I must know
+his name,' she said. And she sent her little maid to find out who
+the strange knight was.
+
+But when the little maid asked the dwarf his master's name, the
+dwarf answered rudely that he would not tell her.
+
+'Then I will ask your master himself,' said the maid. But as she
+stepped towards the knight, the dwarf struck her with his whip, and
+the little maid, half-angry and half-frightened, hurried back to
+the Queen, and told her how the dwarf had treated her.
+
+Prince Geraint was angry when he heard how rude the dwarf had been
+to the Queen's little messenger, and said that he would go and find
+out the knight's name.
+
+But the dwarf, by his master's orders, treated the Prince as rudely
+as he had treated the little maid. When Geraint felt the dwarf's
+whip strike his cheek, and saw the blood dropping on to his purple
+sash, he felt for the sword at his side. Then he remembered that
+while he was tall and strong, the dwarf was small and weak, and he
+scorned to touch him.
+
+Going back to the Queen, Geraint told her that he had not been able
+to find out the knight's name either, 'but with your leave, I will
+follow him to his home, and compel him to ask your pardon,' said
+the Prince. And the Queen allowed him to follow the knight.
+
+'When you come back, you will perhaps bring a bride with you,' said
+the Queen. 'If she be a great lady, or if she be only a
+beggar-maid, I will dress her in beautiful robes, and she shall
+stand among the fairest ladies of my court.'
+
+'In three days I shall come back, if I am not slain in battle with
+the knight,' said Geraint. And he rode away, a little sorry not to
+hear the merry sound of the hunter's horn, and a little vexed that
+he had undertaken this strange adventure.
+
+Through valleys and over hills Geraint followed the lady, the
+knight and the dwarf, till at last, in the evening, he saw them go
+through the narrow streets of a little town, and reach a white
+fortress. Into this fortress the lady, the knight and the dwarf
+disappeared.
+
+'I shall find the knight there to-morrow,' thought Geraint 'Now I
+must go to an inn for food and a bed,' for he was hungry and tired
+after his long ride.
+
+But all the inns in the little town were full, and every one seemed
+too busy to take any notice of the stranger.
+
+'Why is there such a bustle in your town this evening?' asked
+Geraint, first of one person and then of another. But they hurried
+past him, muttering, 'The Sparrow-hawk has his tournament here
+to-morrow.'
+
+'The Sparrow-hawk! that is a strange name,' thought Geraint. But he
+did not know that this was one of the names of the knight he had
+followed so far.
+
+Soon Geraint reached a smithy, and he looked in, and saw that the
+smith was busy sharpening swords and spears. 'I will go in and buy
+arms,' thought Geraint.
+
+And because the smith saw that the stranger was dressed like a
+Prince, he stopped his work for a moment to speak to him.
+
+'Arms?' he said, when Geraint told him what he wanted. 'There are
+no arms to spare, for the Sparrow-hawk holds his tournament here
+to-morrow.'
+
+'The Sparrow-hawk again!' thought Geraint. 'I wonder who he can
+be.' Then he turned to the smith again and said, 'Though you cannot
+give me arms, perhaps you can tell me where to find food and a
+bed.'
+
+'The old Earl Yniol might give you shelter. He lives in that
+half-ruined castle across the bridge,' said the smith. And he
+turned again to his work, muttering, 'Those who work for the
+Sparrow-hawk have no time to waste in talk.'
+
+So Geraint rode wearily on across the bridge and reached the
+castle. The courtyard was quite empty and looked very dreary, for
+it was all overgrown with weeds and thistles. At the door of the
+half-ruined castle stood the old Earl.
+
+'It is growing late. Will you not come in and rest,' said Earl
+Yniol, 'although the castle be bare, and the fare simple?'
+
+And Geraint said he would like to stay there, for he was so hungry
+that the plainest food would seem a feast.
+
+As he entered the castle, he heard some one singing. The song was
+so beautiful, and the voice was so pure and clear, that Geraint
+thought it was the sweetest song in all the world, and the old
+castle seemed less gloomy as he listened.
+
+Then Earl Yniol led Geraint into a long low room, and this room was
+both dining-room and kitchen.
+
+The Earl's wife sat there, and she wore a dress that must have been
+very grand once, but now it was old.
+
+Beside her stood her beautiful daughter, and she wore a faded silk
+gown, but Geraint thought he had never seen so fair a face.
+
+'This is the maiden who sang the beautiful song,' he thought. 'If I
+can win her for my bride, she shall come back with me to Queen
+Guinevere. But the brightest silks the Queen can dress her in, will
+not make her look more fair than she does in this old gown,' he
+murmured to himself.
+
+'Enid,' said the Earl, 'take the stranger's horse to the stable,
+and then go to the town and buy food for supper.'
+
+Geraint did not like the beautiful girl to wait on him, and he got
+up eagerly to help her.
+
+'We are poor, and have no servants, but we cannot let our guest
+wait upon himself,' said the Earl proudly. And Geraint had to sit
+down, while Enid took his horse to the stall, and went across the
+bridge to the little town to buy meat and cakes for supper.
+
+And as the dining-room was the kitchen too, Geraint could watch
+Enid as she cooked the food and set the table.
+
+At first it grieved him that she should work at all, but afterwards
+he thought, 'She touches everything with such grace and gentleness,
+that the work grows beautiful under her white hands.'
+
+And when supper was ready, Enid stood behind, and waited, and
+Geraint almost forgot that he was very hungry, as he took the
+dishes from her careful hands.
+
+When supper was over, Geraint turned to the Earl. 'Who is this
+Sparrow-hawk of whom all the townspeople chatter? Yet if he should
+be the knight of the white fortress, do not tell me his real name.
+That I must find out for myself.' And he told the Earl that he was
+Prince Geraint, and that he had come to punish the knight, because
+he allowed his dwarf to be so rude to the Queen's messengers.
+
+The Earl was glad when he heard his guest's name. 'I have often
+told Enid of your noble deeds and wonderful adventures,' he said,
+'and when I stopped, she would call to me to go on. She loves to
+hear of the noble deeds of Arthur's knights. But now I will tell
+you about the Sparrow-hawk. He lives in the white fortress, and he
+is my nephew. He is a fierce and cruel man, and when I would not
+allow him to marry Enid, he hated me, and made the people believe I
+was unkind to him. He said I had stolen his father's money from
+him. And the people believed him,' said the Earl, 'and were full of
+rage against me. One evening, just before Enid's birthday, three
+years ago, they broke into our home, and turned us out, and took
+away all our treasures. Then the Sparrow-hawk built himself the
+white fortress for safety, but us he keeps in this old half-ruined
+castle.'
+
+'Give me arms,' said Geraint, 'and I will fight this knight in
+to-morrow's tournament.'
+
+'Arms I can give you,' said the Earl, 'though they are old and
+rusty; but you cannot fight to-morrow.' And the Earl told Geraint
+that the Sparrow-hawk gave a prize at the tournament. 'But every
+knight who fights to-morrow must have a lady with him,' said the
+Earl, 'so that if he wins the prize in fair fight from the
+Sparrow-hawk, he may give it to her. But you have no lady to whom
+you could give the prize, so you will not be allowed to fight.'
+
+'Let me fight as your beautiful Enid's knight,' said Geraint. 'And
+if I win the prize for her, let me marry her, for I love her more
+than any one else in all the world.'
+
+Then the Earl was pleased, for he knew that if the Prince took Enid
+away, she would go to a beautiful home. And though the old castle
+would be more dreary than ever without her, he loved his fair
+daughter too well to wish to keep her there.
+
+'Her mother will tell Enid to be at the tournament to-morrow,' said
+the Earl, 'if she be willing to have you as her knight.'
+
+And Enid was willing. And when she slept that night she dreamed of
+noble deeds and true knights, and always in her dream the face of
+each knight was like the face of Prince Geraint.
+
+Early in the morning Enid woke her mother, and together they went
+through the meadows to the place where the tournament was to be
+held.
+
+And the Earl and Geraint followed, and the Prince wore the Earl's
+rusty arms, but in spite of these, every one could see that he was
+a Prince.
+
+A great many lords and ladies and all the townspeople came to see
+the tournament.
+
+Then the Sparrow-hawk came to the front of the great crowd, and
+asked if any one claimed his prize. And he thought, 'No one here is
+brave enough to fight with me.'
+
+But Geraint was brave, and he called out loudly, 'I claim the
+prize for the fairest lady in the field.' And he glanced at Enid in
+her faded silk dress.
+
+Then, in a great rage, the Sparrow-hawk got ready for the fight
+with Enid's champion, and they fought so fiercely that three times
+they broke their spears. Then they got off their horses, and fought
+with their swords. And the lords and ladies and all the townspeople
+marvelled that Geraint was still alive, for the Sparrow-hawk's
+sword flashed like lightning round the Prince's head.
+
+But Geraint, because he was fighting for the Queen, and to win the
+gracious Enid for his bride, brought down his sword with all his
+strength on the Sparrow-hawk's helmet. The blow brought the knight
+to the ground, and Geraint put his foot on him, and demanded his
+name.
+
+And all the pride of the Sparrow-hawk was gone because Enid had
+seen his fall, and he quickly told Geraint his name was Edyrn.
+
+'I will spare your life,' said Geraint, 'but you must go to the
+Queen and ask her to forgive you, and you must take the dwarf with
+you. And you must give back to Earl Yniol his earldom and all his
+treasures.'
+
+Edyrn went to the Queen and she forgave him; and he stayed at the
+court and grew ashamed of his rough and cruel deeds. At last he
+began to fight for King Arthur, and lived ever after as a true
+knight.
+
+When the tournament was over, Geraint took the prize to Enid, and
+asked her if she would be his bride, and go to the Queen's court
+with him the next day. And Enid was glad, and said she would go.
+
+In the early morning, Enid lay thinking of her journey. 'I have
+only my faded silk dress to wear,' she sighed, and it seemed to her
+shabbier and more faded than ever, as it hung there in the morning
+light. 'If only I had a few days longer, I would weave myself a
+dress. I would weave it so delicately that when Geraint took me to
+the Queen, he would be proud of it,' she thought. For in her heart
+she was afraid that Geraint would be ashamed of the old faded silk,
+when they reached the court.
+
+And her thoughts wandered back to the evening before her birthday,
+three long years ago. She could never forget that evening, for it
+was then that their home had been sacked. Then she thought of the
+morning of that day when her mother had brought her a beautiful
+gift. It was a dress, made all of silk, with beautiful silk flowers
+woven into it. If only she could have worn that, but the robbers
+had taken it away.
+
+But what had happened? Enid sat up and rubbed her eyes. For at that
+moment her mother came into the room, and over her arm was the very
+dress Enid had been thinking of.
+
+'The colours are as bright as ever,' said the mother, touching the
+silk softly. And she told Enid how last night their scattered
+treasures had been brought back, and how she had found the dress
+among them.
+
+'I will wear it at once,' said Enid, a glad look in her eyes. And
+with loving hands her mother helped her to put on the old birthday
+gift.
+
+Downstairs the Earl was telling Geraint that last night the
+Sparrow-hawk had sent back all their treasures. 'Among them is one
+of Enid's beautiful dresses. At last you will see her dressed as a
+Princess,' said the Earl gladly.
+
+But Geraint remembered that he had first seen and loved Enid in the
+faded gown, and he thought, 'I will ask her to wear it again to-day
+for my sake.'
+
+And Enid loved the Prince so dearly, that when she heard his wish,
+she took off the beautiful dress she had been so glad to wear, and
+went down to him in the old silk gown. And when Geraint saw Enid,
+the gladness in his face made her glad too, and she forgot all
+about the old dress.
+
+All that day Queen Guinevere sat in a high tower and often glanced
+out of the window to look for Geraint and his bride. When she saw
+them riding along the white road, she went down to the gate herself
+to welcome them. And when the Queen had dressed Enid in soft and
+shining silk, all the court marvelled at her beauty.
+
+But because Geraint had first seen and loved her in the old faded
+silk, Enid folded it up with care and put it away among the things
+she loved.
+
+And a feast was made for the wedding-day, and in great joy Geraint
+and Enid were married.
+
+Day by day Geraint loved his wife more dearly. And Enid was happy
+in this strange new life, and she wondered at the merry lords and
+ladies, and she loved the beautiful Queen, who was so kind to her.
+
+And Geraint was glad that Enid was often with the Queen, till one
+day he heard some people say that though the Queen was very
+beautiful, she was not good. And Geraint heard this so often, that
+he learned to believe it.
+
+'I must take Enid away from the court,' he thought, 'for she
+worships the Queen and may grow like her.'
+
+So Geraint went to King Arthur, and asked to be allowed to go to
+his own country. He told the King that robbers trampled down his
+cornfields, and carried away his cattle. 'I wish to go and fight
+these robbers,' he said. And King Arthur allowed him to go.
+
+And Enid left the Queen and the lords and ladies gladly, to go with
+Geraint.
+
+But all the time Geraint could not help thinking, 'Enid is longing
+for the knights and ladies she knew at the court.'
+
+When Geraint reached his own country, he forgot all about the
+robbers, who were destroying his land. He forgot to go to the hunt,
+or the tournament, or to look after the poor people. And this was
+all because he loved Enid so much. He thought, 'I will stay with
+her all day. I will be so kind to her that she will forget the gay
+lords and ladies, and be happy here, alone with me.'
+
+But Enid grew sadder and paler every day. She did not wish Geraint
+to wait on her and forget every one else. She wanted him to be a
+true knight.
+
+And the people began to scoff and jeer whenever Geraint's name was
+spoken. 'The Prince is no knight,' they said. 'The robbers spoil
+his land and carry off his cattle, but he neither cares nor
+fights. He does nothing but wait on the fair Lady Enid.'
+
+Enid knew what the people said, and she thought, 'I must tell
+Geraint, and then surely he will be ashamed, and become a brave
+knight once more.' But always her courage failed.
+
+'I think I could buckle on his armour and ride with him to battle,'
+thought Enid, 'but how can I tell him he is no worthy knight?'
+
+And her tears fell fast, and Geraint coming in, saw her weeping,
+and thought, 'She weeps for the gay lords and ladies of Arthur's
+court.'
+
+Then all at once he hated his idle life. 'It has only made Enid
+despise me,' he thought. 'We will go together into the wilderness,
+and I will show her I can still fight.' And half in anger and half
+in sadness he called for his war-horse.
+
+Then Geraint told Enid to put on her oldest dress and ride with him
+into the wilderness. And because he was angry with himself for
+thinking that Enid wept for the gay knights and ladies at Arthur's
+court, he would not ride with her, but told her to go on in front,
+and 'whatever you see or hear, do not speak to me,' he said
+sternly.
+
+Then Enid remembered the old faded silk gown. 'I will wear that,
+for he loved me in it,' she thought.
+
+Through woods and swamps Enid and Geraint rode in silence. And
+while Enid's heart cried, 'Why is Geraint angry with me?' her eyes
+were busy glancing into every bush and corner, in case robbers
+should attack her lord.
+
+At last in the shadow of some trees, Enid saw three tall knights.
+They were armed, and she heard them whisper, when they saw Geraint,
+'This is a craven-looking knight. We will slay him, and take his
+armour and his maiden.'
+
+And Enid thought, 'Even if it makes Geraint angry, I must tell him
+what the knights say, or they will attack him before he knows they
+are there.' And Enid turned back. Geraint frowned as he saw her
+coming to speak to him, but Enid said bravely, 'There are three
+knights in front of us. They say they will fight with you.'
+
+'I do not want your warning,' said Geraint roughly, 'but you shall
+see I can fight.'
+
+Sad and pale, Enid watched the three knights spring suddenly out of
+their ambush and attack her lord.
+
+But Geraint threw his spear at the tallest knight, and it pierced
+his breast. Then with two sword thrusts, he stunned the other two.
+
+Geraint dismounted, and took the armour of the three fallen
+knights, and tied it round their horses. Twining the three bridle
+reins into one, he gave it to Enid.
+
+'Drive these horses in front, and whatever you see or hear, do not
+speak to me,' said Geraint. But he rode a little nearer Enid than
+before, and that made her glad.
+
+Soon they came to a wood, and in the wood Enid again saw three
+knights. One was taller and looked stronger than Geraint, and Enid
+trembled as she looked at him.
+
+'The knight hangs his head, and the horses are driven by a girl,'
+she heard them mutter. 'We will kill the knight, and take his
+damsel and his horses for ourselves.'
+
+[Illustration: THROUGH WOODS AND SWAMPS ENID AND GERAINT RODE IN
+SILENCE
+
+Page 19]
+
+'Surely,' thought Enid, 'I may warn Geraint this time, for he is
+faint and tired after the last battle.'
+
+And Enid waited till Geraint rode up to her, and told him there
+were three evil men in front of them. 'One is stronger than you,'
+she said, 'and he means to kill you.'
+
+And Geraint answered angrily, 'If you would but obey me, I would
+fight one hundred knights gladly.' Yet Geraint loved Enid all the
+time, though he spoke so roughly.
+
+Then Enid stood out of the way, and she hardly dared to look as the
+strongest knight attacked Geraint. But Geraint hurled his spear
+through the strong knight's armour, and he fell over and died.
+
+The other two knights came slowly towards Geraint, but he shouted
+his battle-cry, and they turned and fled. But Geraint caught them,
+and killed them.
+
+Again Geraint tied the armour of the three slain knights round
+their horses. Then he twisted the three reins together, and handed
+them to Enid.
+
+'Drive these on in front,' said Geraint. And now Enid had six
+horses to drive, and Geraint saw that they were difficult to
+manage. Then he rode nearer Enid.
+
+They had left the wood behind them now, and were riding through
+cornfields, where reapers were busy cutting down the waving corn.
+
+Coming down the path towards them, they saw a fair-haired boy. He
+was carrying food to the reapers. Geraint thought Enid looked
+faint, and he was very hungry, so he stopped the lad and asked for
+food.
+
+'I can give you some of this; it is the reapers' dinner,' said the
+boy. 'But it is coarse and plain food,' and he glanced doubtfully
+at the lady with the sad eyes and her stern-looking knight.
+
+But Geraint thanked him, and took the food to Enid. And to please
+him she ate a little, but Geraint was so hungry that he finished
+all the reapers' dinner.
+
+'I will reward you,' said Geraint, for the lad was dismayed to find
+nothing left for the reapers to eat. And he told him to take one
+of the horses, with the suit of armour bound round it.
+
+Then the boy was full of glee, and thought himself a knight, as he
+led the horse away.
+
+Geraint and Enid then went to the little village near the
+cornfields, and lodged there for one night.
+
+The country they were in belonged to a cruel Earl. He had once
+wanted to marry Enid. When he heard that she was in his country, he
+made up his mind to kill Geraint, and make Enid marry him after
+all.
+
+'I will go to the inn while they are still asleep,' thought the
+Earl, 'and kill the knight and take Enid away.'
+
+But Geraint and Enid had got up very early that morning, and had
+left the five horses and the five suits of armour with the
+landlord, to pay him for their food and shelter.
+
+By the time the Earl reached the inn Geraint and Enid had ridden a
+long way into a wild country.
+
+Then the wicked Earl galloped after them, and Enid heard the sound
+of horse's hoofs coming nearer and nearer. As the horseman dashed
+down upon Geraint, Enid hid her face, and asked God to spare her
+dear lord's life once more.
+
+The fight was long and fierce, but at last Geraint overthrew the
+Earl, and left him lying half-dead in the dust.
+
+Still a little in front, Enid rode silently on, and Geraint
+followed, but he had been wounded in the fight with the Earl,
+though he did not tell Enid. And the wound bled inside his armour,
+till Geraint felt very faint, and suddenly everything seemed black
+in front of him. He reeled and fell from his horse on to a bank of
+grass.
+
+Enid heard the crash of his armour as he fell, and in a moment she
+was beside him. She unbuckled the armour and took off his helmet
+Then she took her veil of faded silk and bound up his wound. But
+Geraint lay quite still.
+
+Enid's horse wandered into a forest and was lost, but Geraint's
+noble war-horse kept watch with Enid, as if he understood.
+
+About noon, the Earl, in whose country they now were, passed along
+with his followers. He saw the two by the wayside, and shouted to
+Enid, 'Is he dead?'
+
+'No, no, not dead; he cannot be dead. Let him be carried out of the
+sun,' she entreated.
+
+And Enid's great sorrow, and her great beauty, made the Earl a
+little less rough, and he told his men to carry Geraint to the
+hall. 'His charger is a noble one, bring it too,' shouted the Earl.
+
+His men unwillingly carried Geraint to the hall, and laid him down
+on a stretcher there, and left him.
+
+Enid bent over him, chafing his cold hands, and calling him to come
+back to her.
+
+After a long time Geraint opened his eyes. He saw Enid tenderly
+watching him, and he felt Enid's tears dropping on his face. 'She
+weeps for me,' he thought; but he did not move, but lay there as if
+he were dead.
+
+In the evening the Earl came into the great hall and called for
+dinner, and many knights and ladies sat down with him, but no one
+remembered Enid. But when the Earl had finished eating and
+drinking, his eye fell on her. He remembered how she had wept for
+her wounded lord in the morning.
+
+'Do not weep any more, but eat and be merry. Then I will marry you,
+and you shall share my earldom, and I will hunt for you,' said the
+wild Earl.
+
+Enid's head drooped lower, and she murmured, 'Leave me alone, I
+beseech you, for my lord is surely dead.'
+
+The Earl hardly heard what she said, but thought Enid was thanking
+him. 'Yes, eat and be glad,' he repeated, 'for you are mine.'
+
+'How can I ever be glad again?' said Enid, thinking, 'Surely
+Geraint is dead.'
+
+But the Earl was growing impatient. He seized her roughly, and made
+her sit at the table, and he put food before her, shouting, 'Eat.'
+
+'No,' said Enid, 'I will not eat, till my lord arises and eats with
+me.'
+
+'Then drink,' said the Earl, and he thrust a cup to her lips.
+
+'No,' said Enid, 'I will not drink, till my lord arises and drinks
+with me; and if he does not arise, I will not drink wine till I
+die.'
+
+The Earl strode up and down the hall in a great rage. 'If you will
+neither eat nor drink, will you take off this old faded dress?'
+said the Earl. And he told one of his women to bring Enid a robe,
+which had been woven across the sea, and which was covered with
+many gems.
+
+But Enid told the Earl how Geraint had first seen and loved her in
+the dress she wore, and how he had asked her to wear it when he
+took her to the Queen. 'And when we started on this sad journey, I
+wore it again, to win back his love,' she said, 'and I will never
+take it off till he arises and bids me.'
+
+Then the Earl was angry. He came close to Enid, and struck her on
+the cheek with his hand.
+
+And Enid thought, 'He would not have dared to strike me, if he had
+not known that my lord was truly dead,' and she gave a bitter cry.
+
+When Geraint heard Enid's cry, with one bound he leaped to where
+the huge Earl stood, and with one swing of his sword cut off the
+Earl's head, and it fell down and rolled along the floor.
+
+Then all the lords and ladies were afraid, for they had thought
+Geraint was dead, and they fled, and Geraint and Enid were left
+alone.
+
+And Geraint never again thought that Enid loved the gay lords and
+ladies at King Arthur's court better than she loved him.
+
+Then they went back to their own land. And soon the people knew
+that Prince Geraint had come back a true knight, and the old
+whispers that he was a coward faded away, and the people called him
+'Geraint the Brave.'
+
+And her ladies called Enid, 'Enid the Fair,' but the people on the
+land called her 'Enid the Good.'
+
+
+
+
+LANCELOT AND ELAINE
+
+
+Her name was Elaine. But she was so fair that her father called her
+'Elaine the Fair,' and she was so lovable that her brothers called
+her 'Elaine the Lovable,' and that was the name she liked best of
+all.
+
+The country people, who lived round about the castle of Astolat,
+which was Elaine's home, had another and a very beautiful name for
+her. As she passed their windows in her white frock, they looked at
+the white lilies growing in their gardens, and they said, 'She is
+tall and graceful and pure as these,' and they called her the 'Lily
+Maid of Astolat.'
+
+Elaine lived in the castle alone with her father and her two
+brothers, and an old dumb servant who had waited on her since she
+was a baby.
+
+To her father Elaine seemed always a bright and winsome child,
+though she was growing up now. He would watch her serious face as
+she listened to Sir Torre, the grave elder brother, while he told
+her that wise maidens stayed at home to cook and sew. And he would
+laugh as he saw her, when Sir Torre turned away, run off wilfully
+to the woods.
+
+Elaine spent long happy days out of doors with her younger brother
+Lavaine. When they grew tired of chasing the butterflies and
+gathering the wildflowers, they would sit under the pine-trees and
+speak of Arthur's knights and their noble deeds, and they longed to
+see the heroes of whom they talked.
+
+'And the tournament will be held at Camelot this year,' Lavaine
+reminded his sister. 'If some of the knights ride past Astolat, we
+may see them as they pass.' And Elaine and Lavaine counted the days
+till the tournament would begin.
+
+Now Arthur had offered the prize of a large diamond to the knight
+who fought most bravely at the tournament.
+
+But the knights murmured to each other, 'We need not hope to win
+the prize, for Sir Lancelot will be on the field, and who can stand
+before the greatest knight of Arthur's court?'
+
+And the Queen heard what the knights said to each other, and she
+told Lancelot how they lost courage and hope when he came on to the
+field. 'They begin to think some magic is at work when they see
+you, and they cannot fight their best. But I have a plan. You must
+go to the tournament at Camelot in disguise. And though the knights
+do not know with whom they fight, they will still fall before the
+strength of Lancelot's arm,' added the Queen, smiling up to him.
+
+Then Lancelot disguised himself, and left the court and rode
+towards Camelot. But when he was near Astolat he lost his way, and
+wandered into the old castle grounds, where Elaine stood, with her
+father and brothers.
+
+And as Elaine's father, the old Baron, welcomed the knight, Lavaine
+and Elaine whispered together, 'This is better than to see many
+knights passing on their way to Camelot.'
+
+And Lancelot stayed at Astolat till evening, and he told many tales
+of Arthur's court.
+
+As Elaine and Lavaine listened to his voice, and looked at his
+face, with the scars of many battles on it, they loved him. 'I will
+be his squire and follow him,' thought Lavaine, and Elaine wished
+that she might follow the strange knight too. But Sir Torre, the
+grave elder brother, looked gloomily at the stranger, and wished he
+had not come to Astolat.
+
+In the evening Sir Lancelot told the Baron how he was going in
+disguise to the tournament, and how, by mistake, he had brought his
+own shield with him. 'If you can lend me another, I will leave my
+shield with you till I come back from Camelot,' said the knight.
+
+Then they gave him Sir Torre's shield, for Sir Torre had been
+wounded in his first battle, and could not go to the tournament.
+And Elaine came running gladly to take the strange knight's shield
+under her care. But none of them knew that it was Sir Lancelot's
+shield, for he had not told them his name.
+
+And Elaine, carrying the shield with her, climbed the tower stair,
+up to her own little room. And she put the shield carefully into a
+corner, thinking, 'I will sew a cover for it, to keep it safe and
+bright.' Then she went downstairs again, and saw that the knight
+was going, and that Lavaine was going too.
+
+'He has asked the knight to take him as his squire,' she thought.
+'But although I cannot go,' she murmured sadly, 'I can ask him to
+wear my favour at the tournament.' For in those days a knight often
+wore the colours of the lady who loved him.
+
+Very shyly Elaine told the knight her wish. Would he wear her
+favour at the tournament? It was a red sleeve, embroidered with
+white pearls.
+
+Lancelot thought how fair Elaine was, as she looked up at him with
+love and trust in her eyes, but he told her gently that he had
+never yet worn a lady's favour, and that he could not wear hers.
+
+'If you have never worn one before, wear this,' she urged timidly.
+'It will make your disguise more complete.' And Lancelot knew that
+what she said was true, and he took the red sleeve embroidered with
+pearls, and tied it on his helmet.
+
+So Elaine was glad, and after the knight and Lavaine had ridden
+away, she went up the turret stair again to her little room. She
+took the shield from the corner, and handled the bruises and dints
+in it lovingly, and made pictures to herself of all the battles and
+tournaments it had been through with her knight.
+
+Then Elaine sat down and sewed, as Sir Torre would have wise
+maidens do. But what she sewed was a beautiful cover for the
+shield, and that Sir Torre would not have her do, for he cared
+neither for the strange knight nor his shield.
+
+Lancelot rode on towards Camelot, with Lavaine as his squire, till
+they came to a wood where a hermit lived. And they stayed at the
+hermitage all night, and the next morning they rode on till they
+reached Camelot.
+
+And when Lavaine saw the King sitting on a high throne, ready to
+judge which knight was worthy to have the diamond, he did not think
+of the grandeur of the throne, nor of the King's marvellous dress
+of rich gold, nor of the jewels in his crown. He could think only
+of the nobleness and beauty of the great King's face, and wish that
+his fair sister Elaine might see him too.
+
+Then many brave knights began to fight, and all wondered why Sir
+Lancelot was not there. And they wondered more at the strange
+knight, with the bare shield and the red sleeve with pearls on his
+helmet, who fought so bravely and overthrew the others one by one.
+
+And the King said, 'Surely this is Sir Lancelot himself.' But when
+he saw the lady's favour on the knight's helmet, he said, 'No, it
+cannot be Sir Lancelot.'
+
+When at last the tournament was over, the King proclaimed that the
+strange knight who wore the red sleeve embroidered with pearls had
+won the prize, and he called him to come to take the diamond.
+
+But no one came, and the knight with the red sleeve was nowhere to
+be seen. For Sir Lancelot had been wounded in his last fight, and
+when it was over, had ridden hastily from the field, calling
+Lavaine to follow. And when they had ridden a little way into the
+wood, Sir Lancelot fell from his horse. 'The head of the spear is
+still in my side,' he moaned; 'draw it out, Lavaine.'
+
+At first Lavaine was afraid, for he thought of the pain it would
+give the knight, and he was afraid too that the wound would bleed
+till his knight bled to death. But because Sir Lancelot was in
+great suffering, Lavaine at last took courage, and pulled the head
+of the spear out of Lancelot's side. Then he, with great
+difficulty, helped the knight on to his horse, and slowly and
+painfully they rode towards the hermitage.
+
+They reached it at last, and the hermit came out and called two of
+his servants to carry the knight into his cell; and they unarmed
+him and put him to bed. Then the hermit dressed the knight's wound
+and gave him wine to drink.
+
+When King Arthur found the strange knight had disappeared, and
+heard that he was wounded, he said that the prize should be sent to
+so gallant a victor. 'He was tired and wounded, and cannot have
+ridden far,' said the King. And turning to Sir Gawaine, he gave him
+the diamond, and told him to go and find the knight and give him
+the prize he had won so bravely.
+
+But Sir Gawaine did not want to obey the King. He did not want to
+leave the feasting and merriment that followed the tournament. Yet
+since all Arthur's knights had taken a vow of obedience, Gawaine
+was ashamed not to go, so sulkily, like no true knight, he left the
+feast.
+
+And Sir Gawaine rode through the wood and past the hermitage where
+the wounded knight lay; and because he was thinking only of his own
+disappointment, his search was careless, and he did not see the
+shelter Sir Lancelot had found. He rode on till he came to
+Astolat. And when Elaine and her father and her brother Sir Torre
+saw the knight, they called to him to come in and tell them about
+the tournament, and who had won the prize.
+
+Then Sir Gawaine told how the knight with the red sleeve
+embroidered with white pearls had gained the prize, but how, being
+wounded, he had ridden away without claiming it. He told too how
+the King had sent him to find the unknown knight and to give him
+the diamond.
+
+But because Elaine was very fair, and because he did not greatly
+wish to do the order of the King, Sir Gawaine lingered there,
+wandering in the old castle garden, with 'the Lily Maid of
+Astolat.' And he told Elaine courtly tales of lords and ladies, and
+tried to win her love, but she cared for no one but the knight
+whose shield she guarded.
+
+One day, as Elaine grew impatient with the idle Sir Gawaine, she
+said she would show him the shield the strange knight had left with
+her. 'If you know the arms engraved on the shield, you will know
+the name of the knight you seek, and perhaps find him the sooner,'
+she said.
+
+And when Sir Gawaine saw the shield he cried, 'It is the shield of
+Sir Lancelot, the noblest knight in Arthur's court.'
+
+Elaine touched the shield lovingly, and murmured, 'The noblest
+knight in Arthur's court.'
+
+'You love Sir Lancelot, and will know where to find him,' said Sir
+Gawaine. 'I will give you the diamond, and you shall fulfil the
+King's command.'
+
+And Sir Gawaine rode away from Astolat, kissing the hands of the
+fair Elaine, and leaving the diamond with her. And when he reached
+the court he told the lords and ladies about the fair maid of
+Astolat who loved Sir Lancelot. 'He wore her favour, and she guards
+his shield,' he said.
+
+But when the King heard that Sir Gawaine had come back, without
+finding the strange knight, and leaving the diamond with the fair
+maid of Astolat, he was displeased. 'You have not served me as a
+true knight,' he said gravely; and Sir Gawaine was silent, for he
+remembered how he had lingered at Astolat.
+
+When Elaine took the diamond from Sir Gawaine she went to her
+father. 'Let me go to find the wounded knight and Lavaine,' she
+said. 'I will nurse the knight as maidens nurse those who have worn
+their favours.' And her father let her go.
+
+With the grave Sir Torre to guard her, Elaine rode into the wood,
+and near the hermitage she saw Lavaine.
+
+'Take me to Sir Lancelot,' cried the Fair Elaine. And Lavaine
+marvelled that she knew the knight's name.
+
+Then Elaine told her brother about Sir Gawaine, and his careless
+search for Lancelot, and she showed him the diamond she brought for
+the wounded knight.
+
+'Take me to him,' she cried again. And as they went, Sir Torre
+turned and rode gloomily back to Astolat, for it did not please him
+that the Fair Elaine should love Sir Lancelot.
+
+When Lavaine and Elaine reached the hermitage, the hermit welcomed
+the fair maid, and took her to the cell where Lancelot lay.
+
+'The knight is pale and thin,' said Elaine; 'I will nurse him.'
+
+Day by day and for many nights Elaine nursed him tenderly as a
+maiden should, till at last one glad morning the hermit told her
+she had saved the knight's life.
+
+Then when Sir Lancelot grew stronger, Elaine gave him the diamond,
+and told him how the King had sent him the prize he had won so
+hardly. And Lancelot grew restless, and longed to be at the King's
+court once more.
+
+When the knight was able to ride, he went back to Astolat with
+Elaine and Lavaine. And as he rested there, he thought, 'Before I
+go, I must thank the Lily Maid, and reward her for all she has done
+for me.'
+
+But when he asked Elaine how he could reward her, she would answer
+only that she loved him, and wished to go to court with him, as
+Lavaine would do.
+
+'I cannot take you with me,' said the knight courteously; 'but
+when you are wedded, I will give you and your husband a thousand
+pounds every year.'
+
+But Elaine wanted nothing but to be with Sir Lancelot.
+
+'My Lily Maid will break her heart,' said her father sadly, 'unless
+the knight treats her less gently.'
+
+But Sir Lancelot could not be unkind to the maid who had nursed him
+so tenderly. Only, next morning when he rode away, carrying his
+shield with him, though he knew Elaine watched him from her turret
+window, he neither looked up nor waved farewell. And Elaine knew
+she would never see Sir Lancelot again.
+
+Then day by day she grew more sad and still. 'She will die,' said
+her father sadly, as he watched her; and the grave Sir Torre
+sobbed, for he loved his sister dearly.
+
+One day Elaine sent for her father to come to her little turret
+room.
+
+'Promise me that when I die you will do as I wish. Fasten the
+letter I shall write tightly in my hand, and clothe me in my
+fairest dress. Carry me down to the river and lay me in the barge,
+and, alone with our old dumb servant, let me be taken to the
+palace.'
+
+And her father promised. And when Elaine died there was great
+sadness in Astolat.
+
+Then her father took the letter and bound it in her hand, and by
+her side he placed a lily. And they clothed her in her fairest
+dress, and carried her down to the river, and laid her in the
+barge, alone with the old dumb servant.
+
+And the barge floated quietly down the stream, guided by the old
+dumb man.
+
+Then when it reached the palace steps, it stopped, and the King and
+the Queen and all the knights and ladies came to see the strange
+sight.
+
+And the King took the letter from the fair maid's hand and read it
+aloud.
+
+'I am the Lily Maid of Astolat, and because Sir Lancelot left me, I
+make unto all ladies my moan. Pray for my soul.'
+
+When they heard it the lords and ladies wept with pity.
+
+And Sir Lancelot buried Elaine sadly. And sometimes when those who
+loved him were jealous and unkind, he thought tenderly of the pure
+and simple love of the Lily Maid of Astolat.
+
+[Illustration: THE LILY MAID OF ASTOLAT
+
+Page 44]
+
+
+
+
+PELLEAS AND ETTARDE
+
+
+Far away in a dreary land there lived a lad called Pelleas. The men
+were rough and the women grave in the dreary land where Pelleas
+lived.
+
+To this far-away country there had come tales of the gay lords and
+ladies of Arthur's court.
+
+Pelleas heard, in great astonishment, that the men in Arthur's
+country were brave and gentle, and that the women smiled. He would
+go away from his own land, he thought, and see these strange and
+happy people.
+
+Soon the rough men in his country laughed at Pelleas, for he began
+to grow brave and gentle like the knights who were so often in his
+thoughts.
+
+And the grave women looked at each other in surprise, as they saw
+the lad's bright face and caught the smile on his lips. Pelleas
+had been dreaming about the gay ladies he had heard of, till some
+of their gladness had passed into his face.
+
+When he was older Pelleas left his country and all the land that
+belonged to him there. He would take his horse and his sword and
+ask the great King Arthur to make him one of his knights, for had
+he not learned knightly ways from the wonderful tales he had heard
+long ago?
+
+After many days Pelleas reached the court. And when the King had
+listened to the young man's story, and had seen his beauty and
+strength, he gladly made him his knight.
+
+Then Pelleas was ready to begin his adventures. He would go to
+Carleon, where, for three days, the King's tournament was to be
+held.
+
+The King had promised a golden circlet and a good sword to the
+knight who showed himself the strongest. The golden circlet was to
+be given to the fairest lady in the field, and she was to be called
+the 'Queen of Beauty.'
+
+On his way to Carleon, Pelleas rode along a hot and dusty road.
+There were no trees to shelter him from the scorching sun, but he
+rode on steadfastly, for he knew that a great shady forest lay
+before him.
+
+When at last Pelleas reached the forest, he was so hot and tired
+that he dismounted, and tying his horse to a tree, he lay down
+gratefully under a large oak and fell asleep.
+
+Sounds of laughter and merriment woke him, and opening his eyes he
+saw a group of maidens close by.
+
+Pelleas was bewildered. Could they be wild woodland nymphs, he
+thought, as, only half-awake, he lay there, and watched them
+flitting in and out among the tall trees.
+
+They wore bright dresses, blue and yellow and purple, and to
+Pelleas the forest seemed all aglow.
+
+The maidens were talking together, and looking first in one
+direction and then in another. They were lost in the forest, on
+their way to the great tournament at Carleon.
+
+Then the lost maidens caught sight of the knight, lying
+half-asleep under the oak-tree. 'He will be able to show us the
+way,' they said joyfully to one another, for they guessed that he
+too was on his way to the tournament.
+
+'I will speak to the knight,' said the Lady Ettarde, the tallest
+and most beautiful of all the maidens, and she left the others and
+went towards Pelleas. But when she told the knight that she and her
+lords and ladies had lost their way, and asked him to tell her how
+to reach Carleon, he only looked at her in silence. Was she one of
+the woodland nymphs? Was he still dreaming, and was she the lady of
+his dreams?
+
+As the lady still stood there, he roused himself and tried to
+speak. But because he was bewildered by her beauty, he stammered
+and answered foolishly.
+
+The Lady Ettarde turned to the merry lords and ladies who had
+followed her. 'The knight cannot speak, though he is so strong and
+good-looking,' she said scornfully.
+
+But Sir Pelleas was wide-awake at last. He sprang to his feet, and
+told the Lady Ettarde that he had been dreaming, and that she had
+seemed to him a part of his dream. 'But I too am going to Carleon,'
+he added, 'and I will show you the way.'
+
+And as they rode through the forest Sir Pelleas was always at his
+lady's side. When the branches were in her way he pushed them
+aside, when the path was rough he guided her horse. In the evening
+when the Lady Ettarde dismounted, Pelleas was there to help her,
+and in the morning again it was Pelleas who brought her horse and
+helped her to mount.
+
+Now the Lady Ettarde was a great lady in her own land; knights who
+had fought many battles and won great fame had served her, and she
+cared nothing for the young untried knight's love and service.
+
+'Still he looks so strong, that I will pretend to care for him,'
+she thought, 'and then perhaps he will try to win the golden
+circlet for me, and I shall be called the "Queen of Beauty."' For
+the Lady Ettarde was a cruel and vain lady, and cared more for the
+golden circlet and to be called the 'Queen of Beauty,' than for
+the happiness of the young knight Pelleas. And so for many days the
+Lady Ettarde was kind to Sir Pelleas, and at last she told him that
+she would love him if he would win the golden circlet for her.
+
+'The lady of my dreams will love me,' the knight murmured. And
+aloud he said proudly that if there were any strength in his right
+arm, he would win the prize for the Lady Ettarde.
+
+Then the lords and ladies that were with Ettarde pitied the young
+knight, for they knew their lady only mocked him.
+
+At last they all reached Carleon, and the next morning the
+tournament began.
+
+And the Lady Ettarde watched her knight merrily, as each day he
+overcame and threw from their horses twenty men.
+
+'The circlet will be mine,' she whispered to her lords and ladies.
+But they looked at her coldly, for they knew how unkindly she would
+reward Sir Pelleas.
+
+At the end of three days the tournament was over, and King Arthur
+proclaimed that the young knight Pelleas had won the golden circlet
+and the sword.
+
+[Illustration: SIR PELLEAS WAS ALWAYS AT HIS LADY'S SIDE
+
+Page 49]
+
+Then in the presence of all the people, Sir Pelleas took the golden
+circlet and handed it to the Lady Ettarde, saying aloud that she
+was the fairest lady on the field and the Queen of Beauty.
+
+The Lady Ettarde was so pleased with her prize, that for a day or
+two she was kind to her knight, but soon she grew tired of him, and
+wished that she might never see him again.
+
+Still even when she was unkind, Sir Pelleas was happy, for he
+trusted the beautiful lady, and said to himself, 'She proves me, to
+see if I really love her.'
+
+But the Lady Ettarde knew she would never love Sir Pelleas, even if
+he died for her.
+
+Then her ladies were angry, as they saw how she mocked the knight,
+for they knew that greater and fairer ladies would have loved Sir
+Pelleas for his strength and great knightliness.
+
+'I will go back to my own country,' said the Lady Ettarde, 'and see
+my faithful knight no more.'
+
+When Pelleas heard that the Lady Ettarde was going home he was
+glad. He remembered the happy days he had spent as they rode
+together through the forest, and he looked forward to other happy
+days in the open air, when he could again shield the lady from the
+roughness of the road.
+
+But when the Lady Ettarde saw that Sir Pelleas was following her
+into her own country, she was angry.
+
+'I will not have the knight near me,' she said proudly to her
+ladies. 'I will have an older warrior for my love.' And they knew
+their lady's cruel ways, and in pity kept the knight away.
+
+As they rode along the days seemed long to Pelleas, for he neither
+saw nor spoke to the Lady Ettarde.
+
+When she got near her own castle, she rode on more swiftly, telling
+her lords and ladies to follow her closely. The drawbridge was
+down, and the Lady Ettarde rode across it, and waiting only till
+her lords and ladies crossed it, ordered the bridge to be drawn up,
+while Pelleas was still on the other side.
+
+The knight was puzzled. Was this a test of his love too, or did the
+lady for whom he had won the golden circlet indeed not care for
+him? But that he would not believe. 'She will grow kinder if I am
+faithful,' he thought, and he lived in a tent beneath the castle
+walls for many days.
+
+The Lady Ettarde heard that Pelleas still lingered near the castle,
+and in her anger she said, 'I will send ten of my lords to fight
+this knight, and then I shall never see his face again.'
+
+But when Pelleas saw the ten lords coming towards him, he armed
+himself, and fought so bravely that he overthrew each of them.
+
+But after he had overthrown them, he allowed them to get up and to
+bind him hand and foot, and carry him into the castle. 'For they
+will carry me into the presence of the Lady Ettarde,' he thought.
+
+But when she saw Pelleas, the Lady Ettarde mocked him, and told her
+lords to tie him to the tail of a horse and turn him out of the
+castle.
+
+'She does it to find out if I love her truly,' thought Sir Pelleas
+again, as he struggled back to his tent below the castle.
+
+Another ten lords were sent to fight the faithful knight, and again
+Pelleas overthrew them, and again he let himself be bound and
+carried before the Lady Ettarde.
+
+But when she spoke to him even more unkindly than before, and
+mocked at his love for her, Sir Pelleas turned away. 'If she were
+good as she is beautiful, she could not be so cruel,' he thought
+sadly.
+
+And he told her that though he would always love her, he would not
+try to see her any more.
+
+Now one of King Arthur's knights, called Sir Gawaine, had been
+riding past the castle when the ten lords attacked Sir Pelleas.
+
+And Sir Gawaine had looked on in dismay. He had seen the knight
+overthrow the ten lords, and stand there quietly while the
+conquered men got to their feet. He had seen them bind him hand and
+foot, and carry him into the castle.
+
+'To-morrow I will look for him, and offer him my help,' thought Sir
+Gawaine, for he was sorry for the brave young knight.
+
+The next morning he found Sir Pelleas in his tent, looking very
+sad. And when Sir Gawaine asked the knight why he was so sad, Sir
+Pelleas told him of his love for the Lady Ettarde and of her
+unkindness. 'I would rather die a hundred times than be bound by
+her lords,' he said, 'if it were not that they take me into her
+presence.'
+
+Then Sir Gawaine cheered Sir Pelleas and offered to help him, for
+he too was one of Arthur's knights.
+
+And Sir Pelleas trusted him, for had not all King Arthur's knights
+taken the vows of brotherhood and truth?
+
+'Give me your horse and armour,' said Sir Gawaine. 'I will go to
+the castle with them, and tell the Lady Ettarde that I have slain
+you. Then she will ask me to come in, and I will talk of your
+great love and strength, till she learns to love you.'
+
+And Sir Gawaine rode away, wearing the armour and helmet of Sir
+Pelleas, and promising to come back in three days.
+
+The Lady Ettarde was walking up and down outside the castle, when
+she saw the knight approaching. 'Sir Pelleas again,' she thought
+angrily, and turned to go into the castle.
+
+But Sir Gawaine called to her to stay. 'I am not Sir Pelleas, but a
+knight who has slain him.'
+
+'Take off your helmet that I may see your face,' said the Lady
+Ettarde, as she turned to look at him.
+
+When she saw that it was really a strange knight, she took him into
+her castle. 'Because you have slain Sir Pelleas, whom I hated, I
+will love you,' said the cruel Lady Ettarde.
+
+Sir Gawaine saw how beautiful the lady was, and he forgot her
+unkindness to Sir Pelleas, and he loved her. And because he was not
+a true knight, Sir Gawaine did not think of Pelleas, who waited so
+anxiously for his return.
+
+Three days passed, but he did not go back, and in the castle all
+was joy and merriment.
+
+Six days passed, and still Sir Gawaine stayed with the beautiful
+Lady Ettarde.
+
+At last Sir Pelleas could bear his loneliness no longer. That night
+he went up to the castle, and swam across the river. When he
+reached the front of the castle, he saw a great many tents. And all
+the lords and ladies were asleep in their tents, and Sir Gawaine
+was there too.
+
+'He has forgotten me, and will stay here always with the Lady
+Ettarde,' muttered Sir Pelleas in scorn, and he drew the sword he
+had won at the tournament, to slay the false knight Sir Gawaine.
+
+Then, all at once, he remembered the vows he had taken, when the
+great King had knighted him, and slowly he sheathed his sword, and
+went gloomily down to the river.
+
+But Sir Pelleas could not make up his mind to go away, and again he
+turned and went back to the tent, where Sir Gawaine lay, still
+asleep.
+
+Once more Sir Pelleas drew his sword, and laid it across the false
+knight's bare neck.
+
+When Sir Gawaine woke in the morning, he felt the cold steel, and
+putting up his hand, he found the sword that Sir Pelleas had left.
+
+Sir Gawaine did not know how the sword had come there, but when he
+told the Lady Ettarde what had happened, and showed her the sword,
+she knew it was the one that Sir Pelleas had won at the tournament,
+when he had given her the golden circlet.
+
+'You have not slain the knight who loved me,' cried the Lady
+Ettarde, 'for he has been here, and left his sword across your
+throat.' And then she hated Gawaine because he had told her a lie,
+and she drove him from her castle.
+
+And the Lady Ettarde thought of her true knight Sir Pelleas, and at
+last she loved him with all her heart.
+
+But when he had left his sword across Sir Gawaine's throat, Pelleas
+had gone sadly back to his tent, and taking off his armour, had
+lain down to die.
+
+Then the knight's servant was in great distress, because his master
+would neither eat nor sleep, but lay in his tent getting more pale
+and more thin day by day. And the servant was wandering sadly along
+the bank of the river, wondering how he could help his master, when
+he met a beautiful maiden called the 'Lady of the Lake.'
+
+The maiden asked why he looked so sad, and, won by her gentleness,
+he told her how his master had been hated by the Lady Ettarde, and
+betrayed by the false knight Sir Gawaine.
+
+'Bring me to your master,' said the Lady of the Lake.
+
+And when she had come to the tent and saw Sir Pelleas, she loved
+him.
+
+'I will send him to sleep,' she murmured, 'and when he wakes he
+will be well.' And she threw an enchantment over him, and he slept.
+
+When Sir Pelleas awoke, he felt strong once more, and at last he
+knew that the cruel Lady Ettarde had never been the lady of his
+dreams, and he loved her no longer.
+
+But when the Lady Ettarde knew that Sir Pelleas loved her no more,
+she wept sorrowfully, and died of her grief.
+
+Then the gentle Lady of the Lake asked Pelleas to come with her to
+her own beautiful Lake-land. And as they rode together, her simple
+kindness made the knight happy again, and he learned to love the
+Lady of the Lake, and they lived together and loved each other all
+their lives long.
+
+
+
+
+GARETH AND LYNETTE
+
+
+Gareth was a little prince. His home was an old grey castle, and
+there were great mountains all round the castle. Gareth loved these
+mountains and his beautiful home at the foot of them. He had lived
+there all his life.
+
+Gareth had no little boys or girls to play with, for there were no
+houses near his mountain home.
+
+But Gareth was happy all day long. Sometimes in the bright summer
+mornings the streams would call to him. Then he would follow them
+up the mountains, till he found the place where the streams ended
+in tiny silver threads.
+
+Sometimes the birds and beasts, his woodland friends, would call to
+him, and then Gareth would wander about in the forest with them
+till evening came. Then he would tell his mother the wonderful
+things he had seen, and the wonderful things he had heard in the
+forests and on the mountain-sides.
+
+Gareth's mother, the Queen of Orkney, loved the little prince so
+much that she was never dull. She had no one to talk to except her
+little son, for her husband was old, so old that he could not talk
+to his Queen. And if she talked to him, he was almost too deaf to
+hear what she said.
+
+But though the Queen was never dull, she was sometimes unhappy. She
+was afraid that some day, when Gareth was older, he would want to
+leave her to go into the world, perhaps to go to the great King
+Arthur's court, as his three brothers had done.
+
+Now Gareth had already heard stories about the brave deeds of King
+Arthur's knights. He knew that they were strong men, and that they
+fought for the weak people, and that they often had great
+adventures, when they were sent to punish the King's enemies. And
+Gareth longed to be a man, for 'when I am a man, I will be one of
+Arthur's knights, too,' he thought.
+
+[Illustration: SOMETIMES THE BIRDS & BEASTS HIS WOODLAND FRIENDS
+WOULD CALL TO HIM
+
+Page 61]
+
+At last, one day, his mother knew that what she had been afraid of
+had come to pass. She knew that Gareth would not be content to stay
+among the mountains much longer. But when he threw his arms round
+her, and coaxed her to let him go, she thought, 'Surely I can keep
+him a little longer.' And she said, 'Your father is old, and your
+brothers have left me, you will not leave me alone, Gareth. You
+will stay and be a great huntsman and follow the deer.' But all the
+time her heart whispered, 'He will not stay.'
+
+And Gareth said, 'Let me go, sweet mother. Now I am a man, I must
+do a man's work. "Follow the deer!" No; now I must follow the
+King.'
+
+But still his mother would not let him go. 'The next time he asks
+me, I will try another way,' she thought. And when Gareth came
+again and pleaded to be allowed to go to the court, she said, 'Yes,
+you may go, if for one whole year you will tell no one your name,
+or that you are a prince, and if for that whole year you will go
+into the King's kitchen and work there.' 'These things will be too
+difficult for my princely boy,' she thought.
+
+But Gareth wanted to go so much, that he promised not to tell any
+one his name, nor that he was a prince. 'And I will go to the
+court, only to work in the King's kitchen for a year,' promised
+Gareth proudly. And then his mother knew that her plan had failed,
+and she wept.
+
+But Gareth was glad. He got up early one morning, and without
+saying good-bye to his mother, for he could not bear to see her sad
+face again, he left his mountain home, and went out into the wide
+world.
+
+When three men, dressed like ploughmen, left the castle, no one
+would have known that one of them was a prince. For Gareth had left
+all his beautiful clothes behind him, and was dressed just like the
+two servants he took with him. But still he was glad, for though he
+remembered he was going to work in a kitchen, he thought a year
+would soon pass, and then, perhaps, King Arthur would make him one
+of his knights.
+
+On a certain day, every year, there was a great feast at Arthur's
+court. Now the King would not sit down to the feast till he had
+heard if any of his people were in trouble, and if they wished one
+of his knights to go to help them. And on this day too, people
+could come into the King's presence to ask for any boon or good
+thing they wished. Gareth reached the court, with his two servants,
+on one of these feast-days.
+
+'The King will listen to my wish to-day. I will go to him at once,'
+thought Gareth. And leaning on the shoulders of his servants, so as
+to look less princely, he came into the large dining-hall.
+
+'Grant me only this boon,' Gareth entreated the King, 'that I may
+work in your kitchen and eat and drink there for a year. After that
+I will fight.'
+
+And King Arthur looked at Gareth, and saw that though he leaned on
+his servants he was tall and strong, and that though he wore rough
+clothes, he was as noble-looking as any of his knights.
+
+'You ask but a small boon,' said the King. 'Would you not rather
+serve me as my knight?'
+
+And Gareth longed to say 'Yes.' But as he could not break the
+promise he had given to his mother, he said again, that the only
+boon he asked was to be allowed to work in the King's kitchen.
+
+Then the King sent for Sir Kay, the steward of his kitchen, and
+told him to make Gareth one of his kitchen-boys. But Sir Kay did
+not wish this noble-looking lad in his kitchen, and he made fun of
+him and mocked him, because he would not tell his name, nor where
+his home was.
+
+But Sir Lancelot, the noblest knight in all the land, was kind to
+Gareth, and Gareth's brother, Sir Gavaine, who had gone to Arthur's
+court long ago, was kind to him too. Yet Sir Gavaine did not know
+that Gareth was his brother, for the little prince he had left at
+home looked very different to the King's new kitchen-boy.
+
+In the kitchen Gareth soon began to find out what a difficult task
+he had undertaken, for the sake of one day being a knight. He ate
+his meals with rough kitchen-boys, and as Gareth's mother had
+taught her little prince daintily, he did not like their rough
+ways; and at night he slept in a shed with dirty kitchen-boys.
+
+And because Sir Kay did not like Gareth, he would bustle and hurry
+him, and make him work harder than any of the other lads, and give
+him all the roughest work to do. It was Gareth who had to draw the
+water and cut the wood, while the other servants played.
+
+But when at last his work was done, Gareth would listen gladly as
+the servants talked of Lancelot and the King. He loved to hear how
+Lancelot had twice saved the King's life, and how since then there
+had grown up a great friendship between the King and his brave
+knight.
+
+And Gareth was glad when he heard that though Lancelot was first in
+all the tournaments or mock battles, yet on the battle-field his
+hero King was mightiest of all.
+
+But when the servants' talk was rough and rude, Gareth would not
+listen, but sang some of his old mountain-songs, carolling like
+any lark, and the servants stopped their talk to listen.
+
+It seemed a long year to Gareth, the longest year in all his life,
+but at last it came to an end. A whole year had passed, and another
+of the King's great feast-days had begun.
+
+Gareth woke up on that morning, thinking, 'Now at last I can be one
+of King Arthur's knights; now at last I am free.'
+
+In the dining-room he sprang eagerly to the King's side. 'A boon,
+King Arthur, grant me this boon,' he cried, 'that I serve you no
+longer as a kitchen-page, but as a knight.'
+
+Arthur loved the noble-looking lad, and was pleased with his
+eagerness. 'I make you my knight, to win glory and honour for our
+land,' said the King. But the secret of Gareth's knighthood was to
+be kept from all but Sir Lancelot, till the new knight, Sir Gareth,
+had won for himself great fame.
+
+'You shall begin at once,' said the King. And he promised Gareth
+that he should be the first of all his knights to leave his court
+that day.
+
+As he spoke, a beautiful lady called Lynette came into the hall, in
+great haste. 'A knight to rescue my sister, King Arthur,' she
+cried.
+
+'Who is your sister, and why does she need a knight?' asked the
+King.
+
+And Lynette told Arthur that her sister was called the Lady
+Lyonors, and that Lyonors was rich and had many castles of her own,
+but a cruel knight, called the Red Knight, had shut her up in one
+of her own castles. The name of the castle in which she was a
+prisoner was Castle Dangerous. And the Red Knight said he would
+keep Lady Lyonors there, till he had fought King Arthur's bravest
+knight. Then he would make Lyonors his wife. 'But,' said Lynette,
+'my sister will never be the bride of the Red Knight, for she does
+not love him.'
+
+Then Arthur, looking round his knights, saw Gareth's eyes growing
+bright, and heard Gareth's voice ringing out, 'Your promise, King.'
+
+And the King said to Gareth, 'Go and rescue the Lady Lyonors from
+the Red Knight.'
+
+'A kitchen-page go to rescue the Lady Lyonors!' shouted Sir Kay in
+scorn.
+
+When Lynette heard that, she was angry, and said, 'I came for Sir
+Lancelot, the greatest of all your knights, and you give me a
+kitchen-boy.' In her anger, she walked out of the palace gates, and
+rode quickly down the streets. She neither looked nor waited to see
+if Gareth followed.
+
+'I will wait for nothing,' thought the new knight, and he hurried
+after Lynette to the palace gates, but there he was stopped.
+
+Gareth's mother had not forgotten that a year had passed since her
+boy had left her. In her quiet castle she had been busy planning a
+surprise for her prince.
+
+'Gareth will be a knight to-day,' she thought. 'I will send our
+dwarf to him with a noble war-horse and armour fit for a knight.
+Surely he will begin his adventures the more gladly, that I help to
+send him forth,' she murmured, thinking half-regretfully of the
+long year she had made him spend in the kitchen.
+
+And Gareth was glad when he saw his mother's gift; and when he had
+put on the armour, there was no more handsome knight in all King
+Arthur's court than Sir Gareth. He mounted his horse, and, telling
+the dwarf to follow, rode quickly after Lynette.
+
+But Gareth had not gone far, when he heard shouts behind him, and,
+turning, he saw that Sir Kay was riding after him.
+
+'If it is possible, I will bring my kitchen-boy boy back again,'
+thought Sir Kay, 'for he works well.' 'Have you forgotten that I am
+your master?' he shouted, as he reached Gareth.
+
+'You are no longer my master,' said Gareth, 'and I know that you
+are the most unkind of all Arthur's knights.'
+
+Then Sir Kay was so angry that he drew his sword, and Gareth drew
+his and struck Sir Kay so hard a blow, that he tumbled off his
+horse, and lay on the ground as if he were dead. Then Gareth took
+away his old master's sword and shield, and telling the dwarf to
+take Sir Kay's horse, he once more hurried on to reach Lynette.
+
+Both Lancelot and Lynette had seen Sir Gareth fight with Sir Kay,
+for the King had asked Sir Lancelot to ride on before Gareth, that
+he might know if his new knight could use his sword.
+
+When Lancelot had seen Sir Kay fall to the ground, he rode back to
+the court to tell King Arthur that his knight, Sir Gareth, was
+strong and true. And he sent men to bring home the wounded Sir Kay.
+
+Now Lynette was more cross than ever because Lancelot had left her,
+and when Gareth at last rode up to her, she cried rudely, 'You are
+only a kitchen-knave. Your clothes smell of cooking, and your dress
+is soiled with grease and tallow. Ride further off from me.'
+
+But what she said was not true, for Gareth had put on the beautiful
+armour his mother had sent him.
+
+As Lynette mocked, Gareth rode quietly behind. In spite of her
+unkindness, he was happy. After the long days spent in the hot
+kitchen, the forest breeze seemed to touch him more gently than in
+the old days, and the trees seemed to him more beautiful. But
+though the streams seemed more clear, they still called to him,
+just as the streams in his own mountains used to do.
+
+But Gareth had not much time to think of the trees and streams, for
+suddenly he heard the steps of some one hurrying through the
+forest, crushing the fallen twigs and crisp leaves underfoot in his
+great haste. Was it an adventure?
+
+'Where are you running to?' said Gareth, as a man came in sight.
+
+'O sir, six thieves have fallen upon my lord, and bound him to a
+tree, and I am afraid they will kill him.'
+
+'Show me where your lord is,' said Gareth. And they rode together
+to the place where the knight was tied to a tree.
+
+Then Gareth struck the first robber down with his sword, and killed
+another, and slew the third as he turned to run away.
+
+'There were six thieves,' thought Gareth; but when he turned to
+look for the other three, they were nowhere to be seen. They had
+all run away in great fright.
+
+Then Gareth unbound the knight. And the knight was very grateful,
+and said, 'Come and stay at my castle to-night, and to-morrow I
+will reward you.'
+
+'I want no reward,' said Gareth. 'And besides, I must follow this
+lady.' But when he rode up to Lynette, she said, 'Ride further off,
+for still you smell of the kitchen.' 'You are no knight, though you
+killed the robbers.'
+
+Then the knight who had been set free rode up, and asked Lynette to
+come to his castle, and as it was getting dark in the forest, she
+was glad to stay with him that night.
+
+At supper-time, the knight put a chair for Gareth beside Lynette.
+
+'Sir Knight, you are wrong to put a kitchen-knave beside me,' said
+the lady, 'for I am of noble birth.'
+
+'The noble-looking knight a kitchen-knave! What does the lady
+mean!' But he took Gareth to another table, and sat there himself
+with him.
+
+The next morning Gareth and Lynette thanked the knight, and rode
+on, till they came to another great forest, and at the end of the
+forest they reached a broad river. There was only one place where
+the river was narrow and could be crossed, and this passage was
+guarded by two knights.
+
+'Will you fight two knights,' mocked Lynette, 'or will you turn
+back again?'
+
+'Six knights would not make me turn back,' said Gareth, as he
+rushed into the river. One knight rushed in from the further side,
+and Gareth and he fought with their swords in the middle of the
+stream. At last Gareth smote him on the helmet so violently that he
+fell down into the water and was drowned.
+
+Then Gareth spurred his horse up the bank where the other knight
+stood waiting for him, and this knight fought so fiercely that he
+broke Gareth's spear. Then they both drew their swords, and fought
+for a long time, till in the end Gareth won the victory.
+
+Gareth then crossed over the river again to Lynette, and told her
+to ride on, for the passage across the river was clear.
+
+'Alas, that a kitchen-page should kill two brave knights!' cried
+Lynette. 'But do not think your skill killed these men.' And she
+told Gareth she had seen the horse of the first knight stumble, and
+that that was why he was drowned. 'And, as for the second knight,
+you came behind and slew him like a coward,' she said.
+
+'Lady,' said Gareth, 'say what you like; but lead on, and I follow
+to deliver your sister.' So Gareth and the lady rode on till
+evening.
+
+In the evening they came to a strange and dreary country, where
+everything looked black. On one side of a black hawthorn hung a
+black banner, on the other side hung a black shield. Beside the
+shield there was a long black spear, and close to the spear there
+was a great black horse, covered with silk, and the silk was black.
+And looking blacker than all the rest was a huge black rock.
+
+Through the darkness they could see some one sitting near the rock.
+It was a knight, and he was armed in black armour, and his name was
+'the Knight of the Black Land.'
+
+Lynette saw the knight. 'Flee down the valley, before the Black
+Knight saddles his horse,' she called to Gareth. But she knew that
+even the Black Knight would not frighten her kitchen-knave.
+
+The Black Knight saddled his horse and rode up to them. 'Is this
+your knight, and has he come to fight me?' he asked Lynette.
+
+'He is only a kitchen-boy, he is no knight of mine,' Lynette
+answered. And in a cruel voice she added, 'I wish you could slay
+him and take him out of my way; but he does wonderful deeds with
+his sword, and has just slain two knights.'
+
+'If he is no knight, I will take his horse and armour, and let him
+go. It would be a shame to take his life,' said the Black Knight.
+
+Gareth was very angry when he heard this. 'I am on my way to Castle
+Dangerous, and I mean to reach it,' he said to the Black Knight.
+'And as for my horse and armour, you cannot have them unless you
+take them from me in fair fight.'
+
+Then they began to fight on foot, and the Black Knight wounded
+Gareth, but Gareth smote him with such strength, that his sword cut
+through the knight's armour, and then the Black Knight fell to the
+ground and died. This was the fiercest fight Gareth had ever
+fought, and it lasted for an hour and a half.
+
+Once more Gareth went back to Lynette a conqueror, but still she
+cried, 'Do not come near me, kitchen-knave. You have slain a noble
+knight. Let me ride on alone.'
+
+'Whatever happens I will follow you till we reach the Lady
+Lyonors,' said Gareth.
+
+They were coming near to Castle Dangerous now, but before they
+reached it, a knight dressed all in green stopped them.
+
+And Gareth fought the Green Knight too. But when he had struck him
+to the ground, the Green Knight begged Gareth to spare his life.
+
+'It is useless to ask me to spare your life, for you shall die,
+unless the Lady Lynette asks me to set you free,' said Gareth. And
+he began to undo the helmet of the Green Knight, as if he meant to
+slay him.
+
+'I will never ask a favour of a kitchen-page,' said Lynette
+haughtily. 'I will never ask you to spare the Green Knight's life.'
+
+'Spare my life,' entreated the Green Knight, 'and I and my thirty
+followers will serve you for ever.'
+
+'It is useless for you to ask me,' repeated Gareth. 'Only the Lady
+Lynette can save your life.' And again he lifted his sword, as if
+to slay the Green Knight.
+
+'You will not slay him, for if you do, you will be sorry,'
+stammered Lynette, as she saw Gareth's sword coming down to kill
+the knight.
+
+Gareth heard Lynette's voice, and at once put away his sword, and
+gave the Green Knight his freedom.
+
+In his gratitude the knight persuaded Gareth and Lynette to stay
+with him that night, 'and in the morning I will help you to reach
+Castle Dangerous,' he said.
+
+That evening at supper-time, Lynette again mocked Gareth. He had
+never asked her to be more gentle to him, but now he said, 'Mock me
+no more, for in spite of all your taunts I have killed many
+knights, and cleared the forests of the King's enemies.'
+
+Now Lynette had begun to feel ashamed of her unkindness, and as she
+listened to Gareth, and thought how loyally he had served her, she
+felt sorry that she had been so unkind. And she asked Gareth to
+forgive her for being so rude.
+
+'I forgive you with all my heart,' said Gareth, and at last they
+rode on happily side by side.
+
+Then Gareth sent his dwarf on in front to tell Lynette's sister
+that they were near her castle. And the Lady Lyonors asked the
+dwarf a great many questions about his master.
+
+'He is a noble knight and a kind master,' said the dwarf; and he
+told the lady of all the adventures they had met on their way to
+her castle. And Lyonors longed to see the knight who had fought so
+often and so bravely to reach her.
+
+And now there was only the Red Knight between Gareth and the Lady
+Lyonors.
+
+On the great tree, outside the castle, Gareth saw hanging the
+bodies of forty knights, with their shields round their necks and
+their spurs on their heels. As he looked at this terrible sight,
+Gareth was afraid.
+
+Then Lynette reminded him of all his victories, and of how even the
+Black Knight had yielded to him. But what encouraged Gareth more
+than all Lynette said was that, when he looked up to the castle, he
+saw a beautiful lady at one of the windows. She smiled and waved
+her hands to him, and he knew that this was the Lady Lyonors. Then
+all his courage came back.
+
+'This is the fairest lady I have ever seen,' thought Gareth. 'I ask
+nothing better than to be allowed to do battle for her, and win her
+from the Red Knight.'
+
+Outside the castle, hanging on a sycamore tree, was a great horn,
+made of an elephant's bone, and whoever wished to fight the Red
+Knight must blow this horn.
+
+Gareth looked again at the window where Lyonors still watched, and
+hesitating no longer, blew the horn so piercingly and so long, that
+he woke all the echoes of the wood.
+
+Then the Knight of the Red Lands armed himself in great haste, and
+his barons brought him a red spear, and a steed covered with red
+silk. And the Red Knight rode proudly down into the valley, to slay
+Gareth, as he had slain the other forty knights.
+
+'Do not look any longer at the castle window,' said the Red Knight
+roughly to Gareth. 'The Lady Lyonors is mine. I have fought many
+battles for her.'
+
+'I know that the Lady Lyonors does not love you nor your ways, for
+they are cruel,' said Gareth, 'and I will rescue her from you, or
+die.'
+
+'Look at the dead knights on those trees, and beware,' said the Red
+Knight, 'or soon I will hang your body beside theirs.'
+
+'That is a sight that makes me only more anxious to fight,' said
+Gareth, 'for you break the rules of all true knights by your
+cruelty.'
+
+'Talk no more,' said the Red Knight, 'but get ready for the
+combat.'
+
+Then Gareth told Lynette to go further off, to a place of safety.
+
+And the two knights smote each other so fiercely in the front of
+their shields that they both fell off their horses, still holding
+the reins in their hands. And they lay stunned on the ground so
+long, that those who were watching from the castle thought their
+necks were broken.
+
+But after a time, leaving their horses, they fought on foot. And
+the battle was so rough that great pieces of their shields and
+armour were knocked off, and left lying on the field.
+
+And they fought till twelve o'clock. But by that time they were so
+worn out that they staggered about, scarcely knowing where they
+went, and their wounds bled so much that they were faint.
+
+They fought till evening, and then they both agreed to rest for a
+little while.
+
+Then Gareth took off his helmet, and looked up to the castle
+window. And when he saw the Lady Lyonors looking down at him, with
+great kindness in her eyes, his heart felt all at once light and
+glad.
+
+And her kindness made him strong, and he started up quickly and
+called to the Red Knight to fight, 'and this time to the death,'
+said Gareth.
+
+In his fury the Red Knight knocked the sword out of Gareth's hand,
+and before he could get it again, he gave him such a blow on his
+helmet that Gareth stumbled and fell to the ground.
+
+Then Lynette called out, 'O Gareth, have you lost your courage? My
+sister weeps and breaks her heart, because her true knight has
+fallen.'
+
+When Gareth heard that, he got up, and with a great effort leaped
+to where his sword lay, and caught it in his hand, and began to
+fight as if he fought a new battle.
+
+[Illustration: THE LADY LYONORS
+
+Page 84]
+
+And his strokes fell so quickly on his foe, that the Red Knight
+lost his sword and fell to the ground, and Gareth threw himself on
+him to slay him. But the knight begged piteously for his life.
+
+'Go to the castle and yield your homage to the Lady Lyonors,' said
+Gareth. 'And if she is willing to pardon you, you are free, after
+you restore the lands and castles you have taken from her.'
+
+Then the Red Knight gladly restored all he had stolen. And after he
+had been forgiven by the Lady Lyonors, he journeyed to the court,
+and told Arthur all that Sir Gareth had done.
+
+And Lynette came and took off Gareth's armour and bathed his
+wounds, and he rested in his tent for ten days.
+
+'I will go to the castle and ask Lyonors to come home with me and
+be my wife,' thought Gareth, as soon as his wounds were healed. But
+when he came to the castle, he found the drawbridge pulled up, and
+many armed men were there, who would not let him enter.
+
+'But Lyonors, I must see Lyonors,' thought Gareth. 'Surely she will
+wish to see me,' and he looked wistfully up to the window, and
+there beautiful as ever, was his Lady Lyonors.
+
+'I cannot love you altogether,' said Lyonors, 'till you have been
+King Arthur's knight for another year, and helped to clear the land
+from his enemies.'
+
+Though he was a good knight, Gareth's heart was heavy as he
+listened. 'If I do not see Lyonors for a year,' he thought, 'the
+months will pass more slowly and seem more empty than those long
+months I spent in the King's kitchen.' But as Gareth was a right
+loyal knight, he bowed to his lady's will. He had freed the castle
+from the Red Knight, and now it was open to every one, only he
+himself was banished. And he went away sadly but faithfully to find
+new adventures.
+
+And when Gareth slept in the forests or on the wild mountain-sides,
+he often dreamed of the day that would come when his year's
+wanderings were over, when Lyonors would be his wife, and together
+they would go back to King Arthur's court, and he would at last be
+known to every one as Sir Gareth and a prince.
+
+He dreamed, too, of the happier day, when he would take the
+beautiful Lyonors to his mother, and show her the mountain home he
+loved so well.
+
+
+
+
+SIR GALAHAD AND THE SACRED CUP
+
+
+    'My strength is as the strength of ten,
+     Because my heart is pure,'
+
+sang Galahad gladly. He was only a boy, but he had just been made a
+knight by Sir Lancelot, and the old abbey, where he had lived all
+his life, rang with the echo of his song.
+
+Sir Lancelot heard the boy's clear voice singing in triumph. As he
+stopped to listen, he caught the words,
+
+    'My strength is as the strength of ten,
+     Because my heart is pure,'
+
+and the great knight wished he were a boy again, and could sing
+that song too.
+
+Twelve nuns lived in the quiet abbey, and they had taught Galahad
+lovingly and carefully, ever since he had come to them as a
+beautiful little child. And the boy had dwelt happily with them
+there in the still old abbey, and he would be sorry to leave them,
+but he was a knight now. He would fight for the King he reverenced
+so greatly, and for the country he loved so well.
+
+Yet when Sir Lancelot left the abbey the next day, Galahad did not
+go with him. He would stay in his old home a little longer, he
+thought. He would not grieve the nuns by a hurried farewell.
+
+Sir Lancelot left the abbey alone, but as he rode along he met two
+knights, and together they reached Camelot, where the King was
+holding a great festival.
+
+King Arthur welcomed Sir Lancelot and the two knights. 'Now all the
+seats at our table will be filled,' he said gladly. For it pleased
+the King when the circle of his knights was unbroken.
+
+Then all the King's household went to service at the minster, and
+when they came back to the palace they saw a strange sight.
+
+In the dining-hall the Round Table at which the King and his
+knights always sat seemed strangely bright.
+
+The King looked more closely, and saw that at one place on this
+Round Table were large gold letters. And he read, 'This is the seat
+of Sir Galahad, the Pure-hearted.' But only Sir Lancelot knew that
+Sir Galahad was the boy-knight he had left behind him in the quiet
+old abbey.
+
+'We will cover the letters till the Knight of the Pure Heart
+comes,' said Sir Lancelot; and he took silk and laid it over the
+glittering letters.
+
+Then as they sat down to table they were disturbed by Sir Kay, the
+steward of the King's kitchen.
+
+'You do not sit down to eat at this festival,' Sir Kay reminded the
+King, 'till you have seen or heard some great adventure.' And the
+King told his steward that the writing in gold had made him forget
+his usual custom.
+
+As they waited a squire came hastily into the hall. 'I have a
+strange tale to tell,' he said. 'As I walked along the bank of the
+river I saw a great stone, and it floated on the top of the water,
+and into the stone there has been thrust a sword.'
+
+Then the King and all his knights went down to the river, and they
+saw the stone, and it was like red marble. And the sword that had
+been thrust into the stone was strong and fair. The handle of it
+was studded with precious stones, and among the stones there were
+letters of gold.
+
+The King stepped forward, and bending over the sword read these
+words: 'No one shall take me away but he to whom I belong. I will
+hang only by the side of the best knight in the world.'
+
+The King turned to Sir Lancelot. 'The sword is yours, for surely
+there lives no truer knight.'
+
+But Sir Lancelot answered gravely, 'The sword is not mine. It will
+never hang by my side, for I dare not try to take it.'
+
+The King was sorry that his great knight's courage failed, but he
+turned to Sir Gawaine and asked him to try to take the sword.
+
+And at first Sir Gawaine hesitated. But when he looked again at the
+precious stones that sparkled on the handle, he hesitated no
+longer. But he no sooner touched the sword than it wounded him, so
+that he could not use his arm for many days.
+
+Then the King turned to Sir Percivale. And because Arthur wished
+it, Sir Percivale tried to take the sword; but he could not move
+it. And after that no other knight dared to touch the fair sword;
+so they turned and went back to the palace.
+
+In the dining-hall the King and his knights sat down once more at
+the Round Table, and each knight knew his own chair. And all the
+seats were filled except the chair opposite the writing in gold.
+
+It had been a day full of surprise, but now the most wonderful
+thing of all happened. For as they sat down, suddenly all the doors
+of the palace shut with a loud noise, but no one had touched the
+doors. And all the windows were softly closed, but no one saw the
+hands that closed them.
+
+Then one of the doors opened, and there came in a very old man
+dressed all in white, and no one knew whence he came.
+
+By his side was a young man in red armour. He had neither sword nor
+shield, but hanging by his side was an empty sheath.
+
+There was a great silence in the hall as the old man said slowly
+and solemnly, 'I bring you the young knight Sir Galahad, who is
+descended from a king. He shall do many great deeds, and he shall
+see the Holy Grail.'
+
+'He shall see the Holy Grail,' the knights repeated, with awe on
+their faces.
+
+For far back, in the days of their boyhood, they had heard the
+story of the Holy Grail. It was the Sacred Cup out of which their
+Lord had drunk before He died.
+
+And they had been told how sometimes it was seen carried by angels,
+and how at other times in a gleam of light. But in whatever way it
+appeared, it was seen only by those who were pure in heart.
+
+And as the old man's words, 'He shall see the Holy Grail,' fell on
+their ears, the knights thought of the story they had heard so long
+ago, and they were sorry, for they had never seen the Sacred Cup,
+and they knew that it was unseen only by those who had done wrong.
+
+But the old man was telling the boy-knight to follow him. He led
+him to the empty chair, and lifted the silk that covered the golden
+letters. 'This is the seat of Sir Galahad, the Pure-hearted,' he
+read aloud. And the young knight sat in the empty seat that
+belonged to him.
+
+Then the old man left the palace, and twenty noble squires met him,
+and took him back to his own country.
+
+When dinner was ended, the King went over to the chair where his
+boy-knight sat, and welcomed him to the circle of the Round Table.
+Afterwards he took Sir Galahad's hand, and led him out of the
+palace to show him the strange red stone that floated on the river.
+When Sir Galahad heard how the knights could not draw the sword out
+of the stone, he knew that this adventure was his.
+
+'I will try to take the sword,' said the boy-knight, 'and place it
+in my sheath, for it is empty,' and he pointed to his side. Then
+he laid his hand on the wonderful sword, and easily drew it out of
+the stone, and placed it in his sheath.
+
+'God has sent you the sword, now He will send you a shield as
+well,' said King Arthur.
+
+Then the King proclaimed that the next day there would be a
+tournament in the meadows of Camelot. For before his knights went
+out to new adventures, he would see Sir Galahad proved.
+
+And in the morning the meadows lay bright in the sunshine. And the
+boy-knight rode bravely to his first combat, and overthrew many
+men; but Sir Lancelot and Sir Percivale he could not overthrow.
+
+When the tournament was over the King and his knights went home to
+supper, and each sat in his own seat at the Round Table.
+
+All at once there was a loud crashing noise, a noise that was
+louder than any peal of thunder. Was the King's wonderful palace
+falling to pieces?
+
+But while the noise still sounded a marvellous light stole into
+the room, a light brighter than any sunbeam.
+
+As the knights looked at one another, each seemed to the other to
+have a new glory and a new beauty in his face.
+
+And down the sunbeam glided the Holy Grail. It was the Sacred Cup
+they had all longed to see. But no one saw it, for it was invisible
+to all but the pure-hearted Sir Galahad.
+
+As the strange light faded away, King Arthur heard his knights
+vowing that they would go in search of the Holy Grail, and never
+give up the quest till they had found it.
+
+And the boy-knight knew that he too would go over land and sea,
+till he saw again the wonderful vision.
+
+That night the King could not sleep, for his sorrow was great. His
+knights would wander into far-off countries, and many of them would
+forget that they were in search of the Holy Grail. Would they not
+have found the Sacred Cup one day if they had stayed with their
+King and helped to clear the country of its enemies?
+
+In the morning the streets of Camelot were crowded with rich and
+poor. And the people wept as they watched the knights ride away on
+their strange quest. And the King wept too, for he knew that now
+there would be many empty chairs at the Round Table.
+
+The knights rode together to a strange city and stayed there all
+night. The next day they separated, each going a different way.
+
+Sir Galahad rode on for four days without adventure. At last he
+came to a white abbey, where he was received very kindly. And he
+found two knights there, and one was a King.
+
+'What adventure has brought you here?' asked the boy-knight.
+
+Then they told him that in this abbey there was a shield. And if
+any man tried to carry it, he was either wounded or dead within
+three days.
+
+'But to-morrow I shall try to bear it,' said the King.
+
+'In the name of God, let me take the shield,' said Sir Galahad
+gravely.
+
+'If I fail, you shall try to bear it,' said the King. And Galahad
+was glad, for he had still no shield of his own.
+
+Then a monk took the King and the young knight behind the altar,
+and showed them where the shield hung. It was as white as snow, but
+in the middle there was a red cross.
+
+'The shield can be borne only by the worthiest knight in the
+world,' the monk warned the King.
+
+'I will try to bear it, though I am no worthy knight,' insisted the
+King; and he took the shield and rode down into the valley.
+
+And Galahad waited at the abbey, for the King had said he would
+send his squire to tell the young knight how the shield had
+protected him.
+
+For two miles the King rode through the valley, till he reached a
+hermitage. And he saw a warrior there, dressed in white armour, and
+sitting on a white horse.
+
+The warrior rode quickly towards the King, and struck him so hard
+that he broke his armour. Then he thrust his spear through the
+King's right shoulder, as though he held no shield.
+
+'The shield can be borne only by a peerless knight. It does not
+belong to you,' said the warrior, as he gave it to the squire,
+telling him to carry it back to the abbey and to give it to Sir
+Galahad with his greeting.
+
+'Then tell me your name,' said the squire.
+
+'I will tell neither you nor any one on earth,' said the warrior.
+And he disappeared, and the squire saw him no more.
+
+'I will take the wounded King to an abbey, that his wounds may be
+dressed,' thought the squire.
+
+And with great difficulty the King and his squire reached an abbey.
+And the monks thought his life could not be saved, but after many
+days he was cured.
+
+Then the squire rode back to the abbey where Galahad waited. 'The
+warrior who wounded the King bids you bear this shield,' he said.
+
+Galahad hung the shield round his neck joyfully, and rode into the
+valley to seek the warrior dressed in white.
+
+And when they met they saluted each other courteously. And the
+warrior told Sir Galahad strange tales of the white shield, till
+the knight thanked God that now it was his. And all his life long
+the white shield with the red cross was one of his great treasures.
+
+Now Galahad rode back to the abbey, and the monks were glad to see
+him again. 'We have need of a pure knight,' they said, as they took
+Sir Galahad to a tomb in the churchyard.
+
+A pitiful noise was heard, and a voice from the tomb cried,
+'Galahad, servant of God, do not come near me.' But the young
+knight went towards the tomb and raised the stone.
+
+Then a thick smoke was seen, and through the smoke a figure uglier
+than any man leaped from the tomb, shouting, 'Angels are round
+thee, Galahad, servant of God. I can do you no harm.'
+
+The knight stooped down and saw a body all dressed in armour lying
+there, and a sword lay by its side.
+
+'This was a false knight,' said Sir Galahad. 'Let us carry his body
+away from this place.'
+
+'You will stay in the abbey and live with us,' entreated the monks.
+But the boy-knight could not rest. Would he see the light that was
+brighter than any sunbeam again? Would his adventures bring him at
+last to the Holy Grail?
+
+Sir Galahad rode on many days, till at last he reached a mountain.
+On the mountain he found an old chapel. It was empty and very
+desolate. Galahad knelt alone before the altar, and asked God to
+tell him what to do next.
+
+And as he prayed a voice said, 'Thou brave knight, go to the Castle
+of Maidens and rescue them.'
+
+Galahad rose, and gladly journeyed on to the Castle of Maidens.
+
+There he found seven knights, who long ago had seized the castle
+from a maiden to whom it belonged. And these knights had imprisoned
+her and many other maidens.
+
+When the seven knights saw Sir Galahad they came out of the castle.
+'We will take this young knight captive, and keep him in prison,'
+they said to each other, as they fell upon him.
+
+But Sir Galahad smote the first knight to the ground, so that he
+almost broke his neck. And as his wonderful sword flashed in the
+light, sudden fear fell on the six knights that were left, and they
+turned and fled.
+
+Then an old man took the keys of the castle to Galahad. And the
+knight opened the gates of the castle, and set free many prisoners.
+He gave the castle back to the maiden to whom it belonged, and sent
+for all the knights in the country round about to do her homage.
+
+Then once again Sir Galahad rode on in search of the Holy Grail.
+And the way seemed long, yet on and on he rode, till at last he
+reached the sea.
+
+There, on the shore, stood a maiden, and when she saw Sir Galahad,
+she led him to a ship and told him to enter.
+
+[Illustration: "MY STRENGTH IS AS THE STRENGTH OF TEN BECAUSE MY
+HEART IS PURE"
+
+Page 88]
+
+The wind rose and drove the ship, with Sir Galahad on board,
+between two rocks. But when the ship could not pass that way, the
+knight left it, and entered a smaller one that awaited him.
+
+In this ship was a table, and on the table, covered with a red
+cloth, was the Holy Grail. Reverently Sir Galahad sank on his
+knees. But still the Sacred Cup was covered.
+
+At last the ship reached a strange city, and on the shore sat a
+crippled man. Sir Galahad asked his help to lift the table from the
+ship.
+
+'For ten years I have not walked without crutches,' said the man.
+
+'Show that you are willing, and come to me,' urged the knight.
+
+And the cripple got up, and when he found that he was cured, he ran
+to Sir Galahad, and together they carried the wonderful table to
+the shore.
+
+Then all the city was astonished, and the people talked only of the
+great marvel. 'The man that was a cripple for ten years can walk,'
+each said to the other.
+
+The King of the city heard the wonderful tale, but he was a cruel
+King and a tyrant. 'The knight is not a good man,' he said to his
+people, and he commanded that Galahad should be put in prison. And
+the prison was underneath the palace, and it was dark and cold
+there.
+
+But down into the darkness streamed the light that had made Galahad
+so glad long ago at Camelot. And in the light Galahad saw the Holy
+Grail.
+
+A year passed and the cruel King was very ill, and he thought he
+would die. Then he remembered the knight he had treated so
+unkindly, and who was still in the dark, cold prison. 'I will send
+for him, and ask him to forgive me,' murmured the King.
+
+And when Galahad was brought to the palace, he willingly forgave
+the tyrant who had put him in prison.
+
+Then the King died, and there was great dismay in the city, for
+where would they find a good ruler to sit on the throne?
+
+As they wondered, they heard a voice that told them to make Sir
+Galahad their King, and in great joy the knight was crowned.
+
+Then the new King ordered a box of gold and precious stones to be
+made, and in this box he placed the wonderful table he had carried
+away from the ship. 'And every morning I and my people will come
+here to pray,' he said.
+
+For a year Sir Galahad ruled the country well and wisely.
+
+'A year ago they crowned me King,' thought Galahad gravely, as he
+woke one morning. He would get up early, and go to pray at the
+precious table.
+
+But before the King reached the table he paused. It was early.
+Surely all the city was asleep. Yet some one was already there,
+kneeling before the table on which, uncovered, stood the Sacred
+Cup.
+
+The man kneeling there looked holy as the saints look. Surrounding
+him was a circle of angels. Was it a saint who kneeled, or was it
+the Lord Himself?
+
+When the man saw Sir Galahad, he said, 'Come near, thou servant of
+Jesus Christ, and thou shalt see what thou hast so much longed to
+see.'
+
+And with joy Sir Galahad saw again the Holy Grail. Then as he
+kneeled before it in prayer, his soul left his body and was carried
+by angels into heaven.
+
+
+
+
+THE DEATH OF KING ARTHUR
+
+
+It was not to win renown that King Arthur had gone far across the
+sea, for he loved his own country so well, that to gain glory at
+home made him happiest of all.
+
+But a false knight with his followers was laying waste the country
+across the sea, and Arthur had gone to wage war against him.
+
+'And you, Sir Modred, will rule the country while I am gone,' the
+King had said. And the knight smiled as he thought of the power
+that would be his.
+
+At first the people missed their great King Arthur, but as the
+months passed they began to forget him, and to talk only of Sir
+Modred and his ways.
+
+And he, that he might gain the people's praise, made easier laws
+than ever Arthur had done, till by and by there were many in the
+country who wished that the King would never come back.
+
+When Modred knew what the people wished, he was glad, and he made
+up his mind to do a cruel deed.
+
+He would cause letters to be written from beyond the sea, and the
+letters would tell that the great King Arthur had been slain in
+battle.
+
+And when the letters came the people read, 'King Arthur is dead,'
+and they believed the news was true.
+
+And there were some who wept because the noble King was slain, but
+some had no time to weep. 'We must find a new King,' they said. And
+because his laws were easy, these chose Sir Modred to rule over
+them.
+
+The wicked knight was pleased that the people wished him to be
+their King. 'They shall take me to Canterbury to crown me,' he said
+proudly. And the nobles took him there, and amid shouts and
+rejoicings he was crowned.
+
+But it was not very long till other letters came from across the
+sea, saying that King Arthur had not been slain, and that he was
+coming back to rule over his own country once more.
+
+When Sir Modred heard that King Arthur was on his way home, he
+collected a great army and went to Dover to try to keep the King
+from landing.
+
+But no army would have been strong enough to keep Arthur and his
+knights away from the country they loved so well. They fought
+fiercely till they got on shore and scattered all Sir Modred's men.
+
+Then the knight gathered together another army, and chose a new
+battle-field.
+
+But King Arthur fought so bravely that he and his men were again
+victorious, and Sir Modred fled to Canterbury.
+
+Many of the people began to forsake the false knight now, and
+saying that he was a traitor, they went back to King Arthur.
+
+But still Sir Modred wished to conquer the King. He would go
+through the counties of Kent and Surrey and raise a new army.
+
+Now King Arthur had dreamed that if he fought with Sir Modred again
+he would be slain. So when he heard that the knight had raised
+another army, he thought, 'I will meet this traitor who has
+betrayed me. When he looks in my face, he will be ashamed and
+remember his vow of obedience.'
+
+And he sent two bishops to Sir Modred. 'Say to the knight that the
+King would speak with him alone,' said Arthur.
+
+And the traitor thought, 'The King wishes to give me gold or great
+power, if I send my army away without fighting.' 'I will meet King
+Arthur,' he said to the bishops.
+
+But because he did not altogether trust the King he said he would
+take fourteen men with him to the meeting-place, 'and the King must
+have fourteen men with him too,' said Sir Modred. 'And our armies
+shall keep watch when we meet, and if a sword is lifted it shall be
+the signal for battle.'
+
+Then King Arthur arranged a feast for Sir Modred and his men. And
+as they feasted all went merrily till an adder glided out of a
+little bush and stung one of the knight's men. And the pain was so
+great, that the man quickly drew his sword to kill the adder.
+
+And when the armies saw the sword flash in the light, they sprang
+to their feet and began to fight, 'for this is the signal for
+battle,' they thought.
+
+And when evening came there were many thousand slain and wounded,
+and Sir Modred was left alone. But Arthur had still two knights
+with him, Sir Lucan and Sir Bedivere.
+
+When King Arthur saw that his army was lost and all his knights
+slain but two, he said, 'Would to God I could find Sir Modred, who
+has caused all this trouble.'
+
+'He is yonder,' said Sir Lucan, 'but remember your dream, and go
+not near him.'
+
+'Whether I die or live,' said the King, 'he shall not escape.' And
+seizing his spear he ran to Sir Modred, crying, 'Now you shall
+die.'
+
+And Arthur smote him under the shield, and the spear passed through
+his body, and he died.
+
+Then, wounded and exhausted, the King fainted, and his knights
+lifted him and took him to a little chapel not far from a lake.
+
+As the King lay there, he heard cries of fear and pain from the
+distant battle-field.
+
+'What causes these cries?' said the King wearily. And to soothe the
+sick King, Sir Lucan said he would go to see.
+
+And when he reached the battle-field, he saw in the moonlight that
+robbers were on the field stooping over the slain, and taking from
+them their rings and their gold. And those that were only wounded,
+the robbers slew, that they might take their jewels too.
+
+Sir Lucan hastened back, and told the King what he had seen.
+
+'We will carry you farther off, lest the robbers find us here,'
+said the knights. And Sir Lucan lifted the King on one side and Sir
+Bedivere lifted him on the other.
+
+But Sir Lucan had been wounded in the battle, and as he lifted the
+King he fell back and died.
+
+Then Arthur and Sir Bedivere wept for the fallen knight.
+
+Now the King felt so ill that he thought he would not live much
+longer, and he turned to Sir Bedivere: 'Take Excalibur, my good
+sword,' he said, 'and go with it to the lake, and throw it into its
+waters. Then come quickly and tell me what you see.'
+
+Sir Bedivere took the sword and went down to the lake. But as he
+looked at the handle with its sparkling gems and the richness of
+the sword, he thought he could not throw it away. 'I will hide it
+carefully here among the rushes,' thought the knight. And when he
+had hidden it, he went slowly to the King and told him he had
+thrown the sword into the lake.
+
+'What did you see?' asked the King eagerly.
+
+'Nothing but the ripple of the waves as they broke on the beach,'
+said Sir Bedivere.
+
+'You have not told me the truth,' said the King. 'If you love me,
+go again to the lake, and throw my sword into the water.'
+
+Again the knight went to the water's edge. He drew the sword from
+its hiding-place. He would do the King's will, for he loved him.
+But again the beauty of the sword made him pause. 'It is a noble
+sword; I will not throw it away,' he murmured, as once more he hid
+it among the rushes. Then he went back more slowly, and told the
+King that he had done his will.
+
+'What did you see?' asked the King.
+
+'Nothing but the ripples of the waves as they broke on the beach,'
+repeated the knight.
+
+'You have betrayed me twice,' said the King sadly, 'and yet you are
+a noble knight! Go again to the lake, and do not betray me for a
+rich sword.'
+
+Then for the third time Sir Bedivere went to the water's edge, and
+drawing the sword from among the rushes, he flung it as far as he
+could into the lake.
+
+And as the knight watched, an arm and a hand appeared above the
+surface of the lake. He saw the hand seize the sword, and shaking
+it three times, disappear again under the water. Then Sir Bedivere
+went back quickly to the King, and told him what he had seen.
+
+'Carry me to the lake,' entreated Arthur, 'for I have been here too
+long.'
+
+[Illustration: Page 115]
+
+And the knight carried the King on his shoulders down to the
+water's side. There they found a barge lying, and seated in it were
+three Queens, and each Queen wore a black hood. And when they saw
+King Arthur they wept.
+
+'Lay me in the barge,' said the King. And when Sir Bedivere had
+laid him there, King Arthur rested his head on the lap of the
+fairest Queen. And they rowed from land.
+
+Sir Bedivere, left alone, watched the barge as it drifted out of
+sight, and then he went sorrowfully on his way, till he reached a
+hermitage. And he lived there as a hermit for the rest of his life.
+
+And the barge was rowed to a vale where the King was healed of his
+wound.
+
+And some say that now he is dead, but others say that King Arthur
+will come again, and clear the country of its foes.
+
+
+Edinburgh: Printed by T. and A. CONSTABLE
+
+
+
+
+TRANSCRIBER'S NOTE
+
+
+Minor punctuation corrections have been made; however, all
+spellings appear as in the original.
+
+Removed a duplicate title page for GERAINT AND ENID.
+
+
+
+
+
+End of Project Gutenberg's Stories of King Arthur's Knights, by Mary MacGregor
+
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