No More Learning

But his book came down to me. "

"You have the book! " cried Vivian smiling saucily. "The charm is written
in it. Good, take my advice and let me know the secret at once, for if
you should hide it away like a puzzle in a chest, if you should put
chest upon chest, and lock and padlock each chest thirty times and bury
them all away under some vast mound like the heaps of soldiers on the
battle-field, still I should hit upon some way of digging it out, of
picking it, of opening it and reading the charm. And _then_ if I tried
it on you who would blame me? "

"You read the book, my pretty Vivien? " cried Merlin. "Well, it's only
twenty pages long, but such pages! Every page has a square of text that
looks like a blot, the letters no longer than fleas' legs written in a
language that has long gone by, and all the borders and margins
scribbled, crossed and crammed with notes. You read that book! No one,
not even I can read the text, and no one besides me can make out the
notes on the margins. I found the charm in the margin. Oh, it is simple
enough. Any child might work it and then not be able to undo it. Don't
ask me again for it, because even although you would love me too much to
try it on me, still you might try it on some of the knights of the Round
Table. "

"O, you are crueller than any man ever told of in a story, or sung about
in song! " cried Vivien. She clapped her hands together and wailed out a
shriek. "I'm stabbed to the heart! I only wished that prove to you that
were wholly mine, that you loved me and now I'm killed with a word.
There's nothing left for me to do except crawl into some hole or cave,
and if the wolves won't tear me to pieces, just to weep my life away,
killed with unutterable unkindness! "

She paused, turned away, hung her head while the hair uncoiled itself.
Then she wept afresh.

The dark wood grew darker with a storm coming over the sky.

Merlin sat thinking quietly and half believed that she was true.

"Come out of the storm," he called over to her, "come here into the
hollow old oak tree. "

Then since she didn't answer, he tried three times to calm her but quite
in vain. At last, however, she let herself be conquered, came back to
her old perch, and nestled there, half falling from his knees. Gentle
Merlin saw the slow tears still standing in her eyes and threw his arms
kindly about her. But Vivien unlinked herself at once, rose with her
arms crossed upon her bosom and fled away.

"No more love between us two," she cried, "for you do not trust me. Oh,
it would have been better if I had died three times over than to have
asked you once! Farewell, think gently of me and I will go. But before I
leave you let me swear once more that if I've been planning against you
in all this, may the dark heavens send one great flash from out the sky
to burn me to a cinder! "

Just as she ended a bolt of lightning darted across the sky, and sliced
the giant oak tree into a thousand splinters and spikes.

"Oh, Merlin, save me! save me! " cried Vivien, terrified lest the heavens
had heard her oath and were going to kill her. And she flew back to his
arms. She called him her dear protector, her lord and liege, her seer,
her bard, her silver star of evening, her God, her Merlin, the one
passionate love of her life, and hugged him close.

All the time overhead the tempest bellowed, the branches snapped above
them in the rushing rain. Her glittering eyes and neck seemed to come
and go before Merlin's eyes with the lightning. At last the storm had
spent its passion, the woodland was all in peace again, and Merlin,
overtalked and overworn had told all of the charm and had fallen asleep.

[Illustration: IN THE HOLLOW OF THE OLD OAK TREE LEFT HIM LYING DEAD. ]

Then in a moment Vivien worked the charm with woven footsteps and waving
arms, and in the hollow of the old oak tree left him lying dead to all
life, use and fame and name.

"I have made his glory mine! O fool! " she shrieked, and she sprang down
through the great forest, the thicket closed about her behind her and
all the woods echoed, "Fool! "




BALIN AND BALAN.


King Pellam owed Arthur some tribute money so Arthur told three of his
knights to go see about it and collect it for him.

"Very well," said one of the knights, "but listen, on the way to King
Pellam's country, near Camelot, there are two strange knights sitting
beside a fountain. They challenge and overthrow every knight that
passes. Shall I stop to fight them as we go by and send them back to
you? "

Arthur laughed, "No, don't stop for anything; let them wait until they
can find some one stronger themselves. "

With that the three men left. But after they had gone Arthur, who loved
a good fight himself, started away early one morning for the fountain
side of Camelot. On its right hand he saw the knight Balin sitting under
an alder tree, with his horse beside him, and on the left hand under a
poplar tree with his horse at his side sat the knight Balan.

"Fair sirs," cried Arthur, "why are you sitting here? "

"For the sake of glory," they answered. "We're stronger than all
Arthur's court. We've proved that because we easily overthrow every
knight that comes by here. "

"Well, I'm of Arthur's court, too," replied the king, "although I've
never done so much in jousts as in real wars. But see whether you can
overthrow me so easily too. "

So the two brothers came out boldly and fought with Arthur, but he
struck them both lightly down, then softly came away and nobody knew
anything about it.

But that evening while Balin and Balan sat very meekly by the bubbling
water a spangled messenger came riding by and cried out to them: "Sirs,
you are sent for by the King. "

So they followed the man back to the court. "Tell me your names,"
demanded Arthur, "and why do you sit there by the fountain? "

[Illustration: TWO STRANGE KNIGHTS. ]

"My name is Balin," answered one of the men, "and my brother's name is
Balan. Three years ago I struck down one of your slaves whom I heard had
spoken ill of me, and you sent me away for a three years' exile. Then I
thought that if we would sit by the well and would overcome every knight
who passed by you would be a more willing to take me back. But today
some man of yours came along and conquered us both. What do you wish
with me? "

"Be wiser for falling," Arthur said. "Your chair is in the hall vacant.
Take it again and be my knight once more. "

So Balin went back into the old hall of the Knights of the Round Table,
and they all clashed their cups together drinking his welcome, and sang
until all of Arthur's banners of war hanging overhead began to stir as
they always did on the battlefield.

Meanwhile the men who had gone to collect the taxes from King Pellam
returned.

"Sir King," they cried to Arthur, "We scarcely could see Pellam for the
gloom in his hall. That man who used to be one of your roughest and most
riotous enemies is now living like a monk in his castle and has all
sorts of holy things about him, and says he has given up all matters of
the world. He wouldn't even talk about the tribute money and told us
that his heir Sir Garlon, attended to his business for him, so we went
to Garlon and after a struggle we got it. Then we came away, but as we
passed through the deep woods we found one of your knights lying dead,
killed by a spear. After we had buried him, we talked with an old
woodman who told us that there's a demon of the woods who had probably
slain the knight. This demon, he said, was once a man who lived all
alone and learned black magic. He hated people so much that when he died
he became a fiend. The woodman showed us the cave where he has seen the
demon go in and out and where he lives. We saw the print of a horse's
hoof, but no more. "

"Foully and villainously slain! " cried Arthur thinking of his poor
killed knight in the woods. "Who will go hunt this demon of the woods
for me? "

"I! " exclaimed Balan, ready to dart instantly away, but first he
embraced Balin, saying, "Good brother, hear; don't let your angry
passions conquer you, fight them away. Remember how these knights of the
Round Table welcomed you back. Be a loving brother with them and don't
imagine that there is hatred among them here any more than there is in
heaven itself. "

When bad Balan left, Balin set himself to learn how to curb his wildness
and become a courteous and manly knight. He always hovered about
Lancelot, the pattern knight of all the court, to see how he did, and
when he noticed Lancelot's sweet smiles and his little pleasant words
that gladdened every knight or churl or child that he passed, Balin
sighed like some lame boy who longed to scale a mountain top and could
scarcely limp up one hundred feet from the base.

"It's Lancelot's worship of the queen that helps to make him gentle,"
said he to himself. "If I want to be gentle I must serve and worship
lovely Queen Guinevere too. Suppose I ask the King to let me have some
token of hers on my shield instead of these pictures of wild beasts with
big teeth and grins. Then whenever I see it I'll forget my wild heats
and violences. "

"What would you like to bear on your shield? " asked the king when Balin
spoke to him about his wish.

"The queen's own crown-royal," replied Balin.

Then the queen smiled and turned to Arthur. "The crown is only the
shadow of the king," she said, "and this crown is the shadow of that
shadow. But let him have it if it will help him out of his violences. "

"It's no shadow to me, my queen," cried Balan, "no shadow to me, king.
It's a light for me. "

So Balin was given the crown to bear on his shield and whenever he
looked at it, it seemed to make him feel gentle and patient.

But one morning as he heard Lancelot and the queen talking together on
the white walk of lilies that led to Queen Guinevere's bower, all his
old passions seemed to come back and filled him and he darted madly away
on his horse, not stopping until he had passed the fount where he had
sat with his brother Balan and had dived into the skyless woods beyond.
There the gray-headed woodman was hewing away wearily at a branch of a
tree.

[Illustration: BALIN WAS GIVEN THE CROWN TO WEAR ON HIS SHIELD. ]

"Give me your axe, Churl," cried Balin, and with one sharp cut he struck
it down.

"Lord! " cried the woodman, "you could kill the devil of this woods if
any one can. Just yesterday I saw a flash of him. Some people say that
our Sir Garlon has learned black magic too and can ride armed unseen.
Just look into the demon's cave. "

But Balin said the woodman was foolish, and rode off through the glades
with a drooping head. He did not notice that on his right a great cavern
chasm yawned out of the darkness. Once he heard the mosses beneath him
thud and tremble and then the shadow of a spear shot from behind him and
ran along the ground. The light of somebody's armor flashed by him and
vanished into the woods.

Balin dashed after this but he was so blinded by his rage that he
stumbled against a tree, breaking his lance and falling from his horse.
He sprang to his feet and darted off again not knowing where he was
going until the massy battlements of King Pellam's castle appeared.

"Why do you wear the crown royal on your shield? " Pellam's men asked him
as soon as they saw him.

"The fairest and best of ladies living gave it to me," Balin replied, as
he stalled his horse and strode across the court to the banquet hall.

"Why do you wear the royal crown? " Sir Garlon asked him as they sat at
table.

"The queen whom Lancelot and we all worship as the fairest, best and
purest gave it to me to wear," said Balin.

But Sir Garlon only hissed at him and made fun of what he said, and
Balin reached for a wonderful goblet embossed with a sacred picture to
hurl it at Garlon, but the thought of the gentle queen about whom he
was talking soothed his temper. The next morning, however, in the court
Sir Garlon mocked him again and Balin's face grew black with anger. He
tore out his sword from its shield and crying out fiercely, "Ha! I'll
make a ghost of you! " struck Garlon hard on the helmet.

The blade flew and splintered into six parts which clinked upon the
stones below while Garlon reeled slowly backward and fell. Balin dragged
him by the banneret of his helmet and struck again, but in a minute
twenty warriors with pointed lances were making for him from the castle.
Balin dashed his fist against the foremost face then dipped through a
low doorway out along a glimmering gallery until he saw the open portals
of King Pellam's chapel. He slipped inside this and crept behind the
door while the others howled past outside.

Before the golden altar he noticed lying the brightest lance he had ever
seen with its point painted red with blood. Seizing it he pushed it out
through an open casement, leaned on it and leaped in a half-circle to
the ground outside. Running along a path he found his horse, mounted him
and scudded away. An arrow whizzed to his right, another to his left and
a third over his head while he heard Pellam crying out feebly, "Catch
him, catch him! he mustn't pollute holy things! "

But Balin quickly dove beneath the tree boughs and raced through miles
of thick groves and open meadowland until his good horse, at last
wearied and uncertain in his footsteps, stumbled over a fallen oak and
threw Balin headlong.

As Balin rose to his feet he looked at the Queen's crown on his shield
and then drew the shield from off his neck. "I have shamed you," he
cried. "I won't carry you any more," and he hung it up on a branch and
threw himself on the ground in a passionate sleep.

While he slept there the beautiful wicked Vivien came riding by through
the woodland alleys with her squire, warbling a song.

"What is this? " she cried as she noticed the shield on the tree, "a
shield with a crown upon it. And there's a horse. Where's the rider? Oh!
there he is sleeping. Hail royal knight, I'm flying away from a bad king
and the knight I was riding with was hurt, and my poor squire isn't of
much use in helping me. But you, Sir Prince, will surely guide me to the
Warrior King Arthur, the Blameless, to get me some shelter. "

"Oh, no, I'll never go to Arthur's court again," cried Balin. "I'm not a
prince any more, or a knight. I have brought the Queen's crown to
shame. "

Then Vivien laughed shrilly, and told Balin a wicked story about the
Queen which she just imagined in her wicked mind. But she told it so
cunningly and smiled so sunnily as she talked that Balin believed her
and he flew into the more passionate rage because he thought he had been
deceived in the Queen whom he had worshipped.

He ground his teeth together, sprang up with a yell, tore the shield
from the branch and cast it on the ground, drove his heel _into the
royal crown_, stamped and trampled upon it until it was all spoiled,
then hurled the shield from him out among the forest weeds and cursed
the story, the queen and Vivien.

His weird yell had thrilled through the woods where Balan was lurking
for his foe. "There! that's the scream of the wood-devil I'm looking
for," he thought. "He has killed some knight and trampled on his shield
to show his loathing of our order and the queen. Devil or man,
whichever you are, take care of your head! "

[Illustration: HE DROVE HIS HEEL INTO THE ROYAL CROWN. ]

With that he made swiftly for his poor brother whom he did not
recognize. Sir Balin spoke not a word but snatched the buckler from
Vivien's squire, vaulted on his horse and in a moment had clashed with
his brother's armor. King Pellam's holy spear reddened with blood as it
pricked through Balan's shield to his flesh. Then Balin's horse, wearied
to death, rolled back over his rider and crushed him inward and both men
fell and swooned away.

"The fools! " cried Vivien to her young squire. "Come, you Sir Chick,
loosen their casques and see who they are. They must be rivals for the
same woman to fight so hard. "

"They are happy," her gentle squire answered, "if they died for love.
And Vivien, though you beat me like your dog I would die for you. "

"Don't die, Sir Boy," cried Vivien, "I'd rather have a live dog than a
dead lion. Come away, I don't like to look at them," and she made her
palfrey leap off over the fallen oak tree.

Balin was the first to wake from his swoon. As soon as he saw his
brother's face he crawled over to his side moaning. Then Balan faintly
opened his eyes and seeing who was with him kissed Balin's forehead.

"O Balin," he cried, "why didn't you carry your own shield which I knew,
and why did you trample all over this one which bears the queen's own
crown which I know? "

So Balin slowly gasped out the whole story of his shield. Then they each
said good-night to the other and closed their eyes, locked in each
other's arms.




LANCELOT AND ELAINE.


Long before Arthur was crowned king while he was roving one night over
the trackless realms of Lyonesse he came upon a glen with a gray boulder
and a lake. As he rode up the highway in the misty moonshine he suddenly
stepped upon a white skeleton of a man with a crown of diamonds upon its
skull. The skull broke off from the body and rolled away into the lake.
Arthur alighted, reached down and picked up the crown and set it on his
head murmuring to himself, "_You too shall be king some day_," for the
skeleton was the bones of a king who had fought with his brother there
and been killed.

[Illustration: YOU TOO SHALL BE KING SOME DAY. ]

When Arthur was crowned he plucked the nine gems out of the crown he had
found on the skeleton and showed them to his knights with the words:

"These jewels belong to the whole kingdom for everybody's use and not to
the king. Hereafter there is to be joust for one of them every year and
in that way in nine years time we will learn who is the mightiest in the
kingdom and we will race with each other to become skilful in the use
of arms until at last we shall be able to drive away the heathen horde
from the land. "

Eight years had now passed and there had been eight jousts. Lancelot had
won the diamond every year and intended when he had been victorious in
all the jousts, to give the nine gems to the queen. When the ninth year
came Arthur proclaimed the tournament for the central and largest
diamond to be held at Camelot, where he was holding his court. But the
queen became ill as the time for the tour jousts drew near and he asked
her whether she was too feeble to go to see Lancelot in the lists.
"Yes, my lord," replied Guinevere, "and you know it," and she looked up
languidly to Lancelot who stood near.

Lancelot thinking that she would rather have him near while she was ill
than to receive all the diamonds of the crown, said:

"Sir King, that old wound of mine is not quite healed so I can hardly
ride in my saddle. "

So the king went, excused Lancelot, and rode away alone to the lists
while Lancelot remained, but as soon as Arthur was gone the _queen told
Lancelot that he ought by all means go too and fight_.

"But how can I go now," replied Lancelot, "after what I have said to the
king. "

"I will tell you what to do," said Guinevere. "Everybody says that men
go down before your spear just because of your great name. They are
afraid as soon as you appear and of course, they are conquered. Go in
today entirely unknown and win for yourself, then after all is over the
king will be pleased with you for being so clever. "

[Illustration: THE QUEEN TOLD LANCELOT THAT HE OUGHT BY ALL MEANS
FIGHT. ]

Lancelot quickly got his horse and leaving the beaten thoroughfare,
chose a green path among the downs to take him to the lists. It was a
new road to him however and he lost his way and did not know where to go
until at last he came upon a faintly traced pathway that led to the
castle of Astolat far away on a hill. He went thither, blew the horn at
the gate where a _dumb, wrinkled old man came to let him in_. In the
castle court he met the lord of Astolat with his two young sons, Sir
Torre and Sir Lavaine and behind them the lily maiden Elaine, Astolat's
daughter. They were jesting and laughing as they came.

[Illustration: A WRINKLED OLD MAN CAME AND LET HIM IN. ]

"Where do you come from, my guest, and what is your name? " asked
Astolat. "By your state and presence I would guess you to be the chief
of Arthur's court, for I have seen him although the other knights of the
Round Table are strangers to me. "

Lancelot, Arthur's chief knight replied, "I am of Arthur's court and I
am known, and my shield which I have happened to bring with me, is known
too. But as I am going to joust for the diamond at Camelot as a
stranger do not ask me my name. After it is over you shall know me and
my shield. If you have some blank shield around, or one with a strange
device, pray lend it to me. "

"Here is Torre's," the Lord of Astolat replied. "He was hurt in his
first tilt and so his shield is blank enough, God knows. You can have
his. "

"Yes," added Sir Torre simply, "since I can't use it you may have it. "

His father laughed. "Fie, Churl, is that an answer for a noble knight?
You must pardon him, but Lavaine, my younger boy, is so full of life he
will ride in the lists, joust for the diamond, win and bring it in one
hour to set upon his sister's golden hair and make her three times as
wilful as before. "

"Oh, no, good father! don't shame me before this noble knight. It was
all a joke. Elaine dreamed that some one had put the diamond into her
hand and it was so slippery it dropped into a pool of water. Then I told
her that if I fought and won it for her she must keep it safer than
that. But it was all in fun. However, if you'll give me your leave, I'll
ride to Camelot with this noble knight. I shall not win but I'll do my
best to win. "

Lancelot smiled a moment. "If you'll give me the pleasure of your
company over the downs where I lost myself I'll be glad to have you as a
friend and guide. You shall win the diamond if you can and then give it
to your sister if you wish. "

"Such diamonds are for queens and not for simple little girls," said Sir
Torre.

Elaine flushed at this and Lancelot said, "If beautiful things are for
beautiful people this maiden may wear as fine jewels as there are in the
world. "

Then the lily maid lifted her eyes and thought that Lancelot was the
greatest man that had ever lived. She loved his bruised and bronzed face
seamed across with an old sword-cut.

They took the pet knight of Arthur's court into the rude hall of Astolat
where they entertained him with their best meats, wines and minstrel
melodies. They told him about the dumb old man at the gate, how ten
years ago he had warned Astolat of the heathen fighters coming, and how
they had all escaped to the woods and lived in a boatman's hut by the
river while the old man had been caught and had his tongue cut off.

"Those were dull days," said the Lord of Astolat, "until Arthur came and
drove the heathen away. "

"O, great Lord! " cried Lavaine to Lancelot, "you fought in those
glorious wars with Arthur. Tell us about them! "

So Lancelot told him all about the fight all day long at the white mouth
of the river Glenn, the four loud battles on the shore of Duglas where
the glorious king wore on his cuirass an emerald carved into Our Lady's
head. "On the mount of Badon," he said, "I saw him charge at the head of
all of his Round Table and break the heathen hosts. Afterward he stood
on a heap of the killed, all red, from his spurs to the plumes of his
helmet, with their blood, and he cried to me: 'They are broken! they are
broken! ' In this heathen war the fire of God filled him, I never saw
anyone like him, there is no greater leader. "

"Except yourself," thought the lily maid Elaine. All through the night
she saw his dark, splendid face living before her eyes and early in the
morning she arose as if to bid goodbye to Lavaine, stole step after step
down the long tower stairs and passed out to the court where Lancelot
was smoothing the glossy shoulders of his horse. She drew nearer and
stood in the dewy light, studying his face as though it was a god. He
had never dreamed she was so beautiful.

[Illustration: "FAIR LORD," SAID ELAINE. ]

"Fair lord," said Elaine, "I don't know your name but I believe it is
the noblest himself of them all. Will you wear a token of me at the
tournament today? "

"No, pretty lady," said he, "for I've never worn a token of any woman in
the lists; as every one who knows me knows. "

"Then by wearing mine you'll be less likely to be found out this time. "

"That's true, my child, well, I'll wear it. Fetch it out to me. What is
it? "

"A red sleeve bordered with pearls," replied Elaine, and she went in and
brought it out to him.

Then he wound it round his helmet and said he had never before done so
much for any girl in the world. The blood sprang to Elaine's face as he
said that, and filled her with delight, although she grew all the paler
as Lavaine came out and handed Sir Torre's shield to Lancelot. Lancelot
gave his own shield to Elaine saying, "Do me this favor, child, keep my
shield for me until I come back. "

"It's a favor to me," she replied smiling, "I'll be your squire. "

"Come, Lily Maid," cried Lavaine, "you'll be a lily maid in earnest if
you don't get to bed and have some sleep," and he kissed her good-bye.

Lancelot kissed her hand as they moved away. She watched them at the
gateway until their sparkling arms dipped below the downs, then climbed
up to her tower with the shield and there she studied it and mused over
it every day.

Meanwhile Lancelot and Lavaine passed far over the long downs until they
reached an old hermit who lived in a white rock. Here they spent the
night. The next morning as they rode away Lancelot said, "Listen to me,
but keep what I say a secret, you're riding with Lancelot of the Lake. "

"The great Lancelot? " stammered Lavaine, catching his breath with
surprise. "There is only one other great man to see, and that is
Britain's king of kings, Arthur. And he's going to be at the tournament,
too. "

As soon as they reached the lists in the meadows by Camelot, Lancelot
pointed out the king who, as he sat in the peopled gallery was very easy
to recognize because of his five dragons. A golden dragon clung to his
crown, another writhed down his robe while two others in gilded carved
wood-work formed the arms of his chair. The canopy above him blazed with
the last big diamond.

"You call me great," cried Lancelot, "I'm not great, there's the man. "

Lavaine gaped at Arthur as if he were something miraculous. Then the
trumpets blew. The two sides, those who held the lists and those who
attacked them, set their lances in rest, then struck their spurs, moved
out suddenly and shocked in the center of the field. The ground shook
and there was a low thunder of arms. Lancelot waited a little until he
saw which was the weaker side, then sprang into the fight with them. In
those days of his glory, whomever he struck he overthrew, whether they
were kings, dukes, earls, counts or barons. But that day in the field
some of his relatives were holding the lists who did not know him and
who could not bear the idea that any stranger knight should out do the
feats of their own Lancelot.

"Who is this? " one of them asked, "Isn't it Lancelot? "

"When has Lancelot ever worn a lady's token? " the others replied.

"Who is it then? " they cried, furious to guard the name of Lancelot.
They pricked their steeds and moving all together bore down upon him
like a wild wave that upsets a ship. One spear lamed Lancelot's charger
and another pierced through Lancelot's side, snapped there and stuck.
Lavaine now did splendidly for he brought a famous old knight down by
Lancelot's side. Lancelot in the meantime rose to his feet in all his
agony and by a sort of miracle as it seemed to those who were on his
side, drove all his opponents back to the barrier. Then the trumpet blew
and proclaimed that the knight who wore the scarlet sleeve with pearls
was victor.

"Go up and get your diamond," his men said to him.

"Don't give me any diamonds," said Lancelot. "My prize is death, I'll
leave and don't follow. "

Then he vanished into the poplar grove where he told Lavaine to draw out
the lance head.

"I'm afraid you'll die, if I do," cried Lavaine.

"I'm dying now with it," said Lancelot, so Lavaine drew it out and
Lancelot gave a wonderful shriek and swooned away.

Then the old hermit came out, carried him into the white rock and
stanched his wound.

Immediately after he had left the field the men of his side went to the
king and said that the knight who had won the day had left without
receiving his prize.

"Such a knight as that must not go uncared for," said the king. "Gawain,
ride out and find him and since he didn't come for his diamond we will
send it to him. Don't leave your quest until you have him. "

Gawain the courteous was a good young knight but he didn't like it that
he had to leave the banquet and the king's side to look for a stranger
knight, so he mounted his horse rather crossly. He rode all round the
country to every place except the right one, poplar grove, and at last
very late reached the Castle of Astolat.

"What news from Camelot? " cried Elaine as soon as she saw him, "What
about the knight with the red sleeve? "

"He won. "

"I knew it," she said.

"But he left the jousts wounded in his side. "

Then Elaine almost swooned away. When the Lord of Astolat came out and
heard about Gawain's quest, "Stay with us, noble prince," said he. "For
the knight was here and left his shield with us, so he will certainly
come back or send for it. Besides my son is with him. "

Gawain thought he would have a pleasant time with Elaine so he stayed.
But Elaine rebelled against his pretty love-making and asked him why he
neglected the king's quest and why he didn't ask to see the knight's
shield.

"I've lost my quest in the light of your blue eyes," said Gawain, "but
let me see the shield. Ah! the king was right! " he cried out when Elaine
showed it to him. "It was our Lancelot. "

"I was right too," Elaine said merrily, "for I dreamed that my knight
was the greatest of them all. "

"And suppose that I dreamed that you love this greatest knight? "
returned Gawain.

"What do I know? " Elaine answered simply. "I don't know whether I know
what love is, but I do know that if I do not love him there isn't
another man whom I can love. "

"Yes, you love him well," said Gawain. "And I suppose you know just
where your greatest knight is hidden, so let me leave my quest with you.
If you love him it will be sweet to you to give him the diamond and if
he loves you it will be sweet to him to receive it from you, while even
if he doesn't love you, a diamond is always a diamond. Farewell a
thousand times. If he loves you I may see you at court after while. "

Then Gawain lightly kissed her hand as he laid the diamond in it, and,
wearied of his quest, leaped on his horse and carrolling a love-ballad
airily rode away to the court where it was soon buzzed abroad that a
maid of Astolat loved Lancelot and that Lancelot loved a maid of
Astolat.

The maid meanwhile crept up to her father one day and received his leave
to take the diamond to Sir Lancelot. Sir Torre went with her to the
gates of Camelot where they saw Lavaine capering about on a horse.

"Lavaine! " she cried, "how is it with my lord Sir Lancelot? " and she
told him about the diamond. Then Sir Torre went on into the city while
Lavaine guided Elaine to the hermit's cave. As she saw her handsome
knight on the floor, a sort of skeleton of himself, she gave a little
tender dolorous cry.

"Your prize, the diamond, sent you by the king," said she, as she put it
into his hand and explained how she had received it from Gawain. Then he
kissed her as a father would kiss a dear little daughter and she went
back to the dim, rich city of Camelot for the night. But the next
morning she was back in the cave, and day after day she came, caring for
him more mildly, tenderly and kindly than any mother could with a child,
until at last the old hermit said she had nursed him back to life, then
all three rode back together one morning to Astolat where Lancelot asked
Elaine to tell him the dearest wish of her heart so that he could grant
it to her. Elaine turned as pale as a ghost when he first spoke but at
last one day she told him. She said she wanted him to love her, she
wanted to be his wife.

"If I had chosen to wed," Lancelot replied, slowly, "I would have been
married long before this. But now I shall never marry, sweet Elaine. "

"No, no," cried Elaine, "it won't matter if I can't be your wife, if I
can only go with you always and go round the world with you and serve
you. "

But Lancelot said that would be a poor way for him to requite the love
and kindness her father and brothers had shown him. "Noble maid," he
went on, "this is only the first flash of love with you. After awhile
you will smile at yourself about it when you find a knight who is fitter
for you to marry and not three times older than you as I am, and then I
will give you broad lands and territories even to a half of my kingdom
across the seas and I'll always be ready to fight for you in your
troubles. I'll do this, dear girl, but more I cannot. "

"Of all this I care for nothing," Elaine said growing deathly pale and
falling in a swoon.

That evening Lancelot sent for his shield from the tower where Elaine
sat with it, and as his horse's hoofs clattered off upon the stone of
the highway she looked down from her tower, but he did not glance back.

After that Elaine dreamed her time sadly away in the tower and only
wished that she could die. She begged her father to send for the priest
to confess her and asked Lavaine to write a letter for her to Lancelot.
Then she arranged it that when she died the dumb old man at the gate was
to take her in the barge down the river to the king's palace. Eleven
days later this was done. Elaine was dressed like a little sleeping
queen and floated along the stream with her letter in one hand and a
lily in the other.

That day Lancelot was with the queen and as he looked out of the
casement upon the river he saw the barge hung with rich black samite,
the dumb old man and the lily maid of Astolat gliding up to the palace
door.

"What is it? " cried everybody streaming round. "A pale fairy queen come
to take Arthur to fairy land? "

Then the king bade meek Sir Percival and pure Sir Galahad carry her
reverently into the hall where the fine Gawain came and wondered at her
and Lancelot came and mused over her, and the queen came and pitied her.
But King Arthur spied a letter, opened it and read it aloud to all the
lords and ladies. It was Elaine's goodbye to Lancelot.

[Illustration: A PALE FAIRY QUEEN CAME TO TAKE ARTHUR TO FAIRY LAND. ]

Then Sir Lancelot told them everything about Elaine and how he had
promised to give her his lands and riches when she should be ready to
marry some knight of her own age. The king said that he should see that
she was buried very grandly. So they had a procession with all the pomp
of a queen, with gorgeous ceremonies, mass and rolling music while all
the Order of the Round Table followed her to the tomb. Then they laid
the shield of Lancelot at her feet and put a lily in her hand.




THE HOLY GRAIL.


One day a new monk came into the abbey beyond Camelot. There was
something about him different from all the other monks there. He was so
polished and clever that old Ambrosious who had lived in the old
monastery for fifty years and had never seen a bit of the world guessed
in a minute that the new brother had come from King Arthur's court. And
one windy April morning as Ambrosious stood under the yew tree with this
gentle monk he asked him why he left the Knights of the Round Table.

Then Sir Percival answered:

"It was the sweet vision of the Holy Grail. "

[Illustration: "THE HOLY GRAIL," CRIED AMBROSIOUS. ]

"The Holy Grail," cried Ambrosious. "Heaven knows I don't know much, but
what is that, the phantom of a cup that comes and goes? "

"No, no," said Percival, "what phantom do you mean? It's the cup that
our Lord drank from at his sad last supper, and after he died Joseph of
Aramathea brought it to Glastonbury at Christmas time, and there it
stayed a while and every one who looked at it or touched it was healed
of their sicknesses. But the times grew so wicked that the cup was
caught up into heaven where nobody could see it. "

"Yes, I remember reading in our old books," said Ambrosious, "how Joseph
built a lonely little church at Glastonbury on the marsh, but that was
long ago. Who first saw the vision of the Holy Grail to-day? "

"A woman," said Sir Percival, "a nun, my sister who was a holy maid if
ever there was one. The old man to whom she used to tell her sins (or
what she called her sins), often spoke to her about the legend of the
Holy Grail which had been handed down through six people, each of them a
hundred years old, from the Lord's time. And when Arthur made the order
of the Round Table and all hearts became clean and pure for a time this
old man thought surely the Holy Grail would come back again. 'O Christ!