CHAPTER XI. GERAINT AND ENID.
ONE Whitsuntide King Arthur held his court at Caerleon upon Usk, andhe had with him Queen Guenever and most of his knights. While he washolding high feast in his hall, there came to him one of his forestersfrom the Forest of Dean, and reported to him that he had seen there awhite stag of wondrous size and beauty. King Arthur resolved to huntthat stag on the following day; and Queen Guenever craved leave to ridewith him and see the chase, which Arthur granted her with a good will.But on the morrow the king and his huntsmen rose full early, and thequeen overslept herself, so when she awoke they were all gone. Shetook her horse as soon as she might, and rode forth with her maidens tofollow the hunt. Presently there met her a good knight of the court, SirGeraint, the son of Erbin, who was lord of the country of Devon. Whilethey held converse together, they saw a dwarf riding along on a greathorse, and behind him a knight and a lady riding together. The knightwas fully armed, and seemed to be a man of much prowess.
"Sir Geraint," said the queen, "knowest thou the name of that knight?"
"I know him not," answered Geraint; "and because of his helm I cannotsee his face."
Then the queen bade one of her maidens go and ask the dwarf who theknight was. She obeyed; but when she asked the dwarf he would not tellher. "Since," she said, "thou art so churlish, I will go and ask himmyself."
"Thou shalt not ask him, by my faith," said he.
"Wherefore?" asked the maiden.
"Because thou art not of honour sufficient to befit thee to speak to mylord."
Then the maiden turned her horse's head towards the knight, upon whichthe dwarf struck her across the face with a whip that he carried inhis hand, so that the blood flowed forth, and the maiden returned toGuenever complaining of the hurt she had received.
"Very rudely has the dwarf treated thee," said Geraint. "I will myselfgo to ask who the knight is." So he went to the dwarf, who, however,said and did to him as he had done to the damsel Very wroth was Geraint,and he put his hand to his sword; but he considered that it would be novengeance to him to slay the dwarf and be attacked unarmed by the armedknight, so he returned to the queen, who said he had acted wisely anddiscreetly.
"Madam," said Geraint, "I will follow them yet; and in time theywill come to some inhabited place where I may get arms, so that I canencounter the knight."
To this the queen assented, but cautioned him not to attack the knightuntil he got arms; and she said she should be anxious concerning himtill she got good news of him.
"If I am alive," quoth Geraint, "by to-morrow afternoon, madam, youshall hear tidings of me;" and so he departed, and followed the knight,the lady, and the dwarf. They rode past Caerleon, and over the ford ofthe Usk, and then went up a lofty ridge of ground till they came to thetop of it. There stood a fair town, and on the other side of it a greatcastle. As the knight passed through the town all the people in itsaluted him and the lady. The three rode on and went into the castle,where Geraint saw many people welcome them. He himself looked into everyhouse in the town, to see if there were any that he knew, from whom hemight borrow a suit of armour; but he had never seen any of the peoplebefore. Every house he saw was full of men and arms and horses; andthe people were polishing shields, and burnishing swords, and washingarmour, and shoeing horses.
Geraint looked about him, to see where he should lodge, and he perceivedat a little distance from the town an old palace that once had been fullnobble, but now was falling into decay. He went toward it, and foundthat it was approached by a bridge of marble. On the bridge he sawsitting an old man, clad in poor and tattered garments. Upon him Geraintgazed steadfastly for a long time.
"Young man," said he, "wherefore art thou thoughtful?"
"I am thoughtful," answered Geraint, "because I know not where to goto-night."
"Wilt thou abide with me?" said the old man, "and thou shalt have of thebest that I can give thee."
So he led the way into the hall, and Geraint followed him. In the hallGeraint dismounted and left his horse, and his host took him into anupper chamber where were two women. One was old and decrepit, but itseemed to Geraint that when she was young she must have been exceedinglyfair. The other was a young damsel, and he thought he had never seen amaiden more full of comeliness, grace, and beauty than she. But both ofthe women were attired in old and worn-out garments. The old manbade the girl attend to their guest; and she disarrayed him, and thenunsaddled his horse and gave it straw and com. After that the old manbade her go to the town and bring the best she could find, both of foodand liquor. While she was away, the old people conversed pleasantly withGeraint. In a while she returned, bringing with her a youth who bore aflagon of mead and the quarter of a young bullock. In her hands and inher veil she carried a quantity of bread "I could not obtain better thanthis," she said, "nor with better would I have been trusted."
"Surely it is good enough," said Geraint. So the food was made ready,and Geraint and the old people sat down to the table, while the maidenwaited upon them.
When they had finished eating, Geraint talked with the old man, andasked him to whom the palace belonged "Truly," answered the other, "itwas I that built it, and to me also belonged the town and the castle youhave seen."
"Alas!" said Geraint, "how comes it that you have lost them?"
"I lost a great earldom as well as these," answered the other, "and itwas in this wise. I had a nephew, the son of my brother, and I took hispossessions to myself; and when he came to his strength he demandedhis property of me, but I withheld it from him. Thereupon he waged waragainst me, and took from me all that I possessed."
"Good sir," said Geraint, "will you tell me wherefore came the knight,lady, and dwarf that I just now saw go into the castle; and also whythere is such preparation and furbishing of arms going forward in thetown?"
"The preparations," answered the old earl, whose name was Uniel, "arefor a tournament that is to be held to-morrow by the young earl, mynephew. In a meadow hard by will be hung a silver sparrow-hawk on asilver rod, and that is the prize. Any man may joust for it if he havewith him the lady that he loves the best. The knight you saw has won thesparrow-hawk these two years, and if he win it to-morrow it will then besent to him every year, and he will no more come-for it himself; but hewill thenceforth be called the Knight of the Sparrow-Hawk."
Then Geraint told Earl Uniel of the quest he was on, and of the insultwhich the knight's dwarf had given to him and to Queen Guenever; and heasked what it were best for him to do.
"It is not easy to counsel thee," said the earl, "because thou hastneither dame nor maiden with thee for whom thou couldst joust. Yet haveI arms here which thou mightst have."
"Ah, sir." said Geraint, "may Heaven reward you! And if you will permitme to-morrow to challenge for this fair maiden your daughter, I willengage, if I come alive from the tournament, to love her ever after; andif I do not escape she will be nothing the worse."
To this the old earl gladly assented; nor was the maiden sorry, forGeraint was a right comely and noble man, and was ever courteous toladies. So the next morning they all went forth to the meadow. And theknight that had previously won the sparrow-hawk came forth with greatpride, because he deemed that none would, dare to encounter him. He badehis lady to take the sparrow-hawk, because she was the fairest, and ifany denied her, by force would he defend it for her.
"Touch it not," said Geraint; "for there is here a maiden who is fairer,and more noble, and more comely, and has a better claim to it than thouhast."
Then said the knight scornfully, "If thou maintainest the sparrow-hawkto be due to thy lady, come forward and do battle for it with me."
Geraint came forward accordingly. He and his horse were arrayed in theEarl Uniers old armour, which was heavy and rusty, and of uncouth shape;so that few thought he would be likely to keep his ground against thatstrong knight. Then three or four times the two ran together and broketheir spears on each other without doing any hurt. Then said the oldearl to Geraint, "O knight, since no othe
r lance will hold, here is thegood spear which I took in my hand on the day when first I was knighted,and a better never held I in my hand."
Geraint thanked him and took the spear. Then the dwarf also broughta lance to his lord, and said, "Bethink thee that no knight has everwithstood thee so long as this one."
"I vow by Our Lady," quoth Geraint, "that if I be not slain and thisspear hold, he shall fare none the better for thy service." So againthey rushed together, and this time Geraint by pure might broke theother knight's shield in twain and burst his saddle-girths, so that hefell back to the ground. Then quickly Geraint dismounted and drew hissword, and the other knight also rose and pulled out his sword; and theyfought fiercely on foot, striking each other such heavy blows that thefire flashed like stars from their armour, and their vision was obscuredwith blood and sweat. After a while the stranger knight seemed as thoughhe would prevail, at which the young earl and all his party rejoiced;but Earl Uniel and his wife and the maiden were heavy of heart. So EarlUniel went near to Geraint and cried, "O knight, bethink thee of theinsult that thou and Queen Guenever had from the dwarf." At that Geraintput forth all his might, and struck his enemy so mightily on the helmthat it broke, and the sword cut through to the skull.
Then the knight fell on his knees, yielded, and craved mercy of Geraint."I will grant thee grace," answered Geraint, "on one condition--thatthou go to King Arthur's court and make amends to Queen Guenever for theinsult that was offered her by thy dwarf. As for the insult he gave tome, for that I have myself taken amends." The knight promised to obey;and in reply to Geraint he said his name was Edeym, the son of Nudd.So he got on his horse and rode sadly toward Caerleon, and his lady anddwarf went with him.
In the meantime the young earl came and greeted Geraint, and asked himto come to his castle; but Geraint said he would lodge that night wherehe had lodged before, and so returned with Earl Uniel and his wife anddaughter to the old palace. But the young earl sent thither a greatmany servants, who put the house in order, and brought large store ofprovision, and set out the feast in the great hall. Also they broughtfine garments for Uniel and the two women; but Geraint entreated thatthe maiden should wear no other array than the old worn vest and veil inwhich he had seen her first. Then a great company sat down to the feast,and in the highest places were Geraint, the young earl, the old earl,his wife, and the maiden, who was called Enid. So they feasted, andafterwards they talked together. Geraint said plainly that if he livedEarl Uniel should not be long without his possessions.
"As to that," answered the young earl, "it is not my fault that he lostthem; and with regard to the disagreement between us, I will gladlyabide by thy decision, and agree to what thou judgest right."
"I but ask thee," said Geraint, "to restore to him what was his."
This the young earl did, and Uniel received back his town and castle andall that he had lost. Then said he to Geraint, "O knight, here is themaiden for whom thou didst challenge at the tournament. Well hast thouwon her, and I gladly give her to thee."
"She shall go with me," said Geraint, "to the court of King Arthur; andshe shall wear still the raiment in which I first saw her, till for mysake Queen Guenever arrays her in richer garments." And he looked onEnid with joy, for his heart was full of love toward her. The next day,accordingly, Geraint and Enid rode forth toward Caerleon.
In the meantime King Arthur had killed the white stag he hunted; andat the queen's wish he agreed not to decide to whom its head should begiven till Geraint returned from the quest he was on, because if he weresuccessful the queen wished that some mark of honour should be bestowedupon him. So the next day Guenever caused a watch to be set on thebattlements of the palace to tell when Geraint might appear. A littleafter mid-day, the porter who was without came and informed the queenthat at the gate was a knight who said his errand was to her; that hisarmour was all broken and blood-stained, and his whole aspect pitiful.
"Knowest thou his name?" asked the queen.
"He says," answered the porter, "that his name is Edeym, the son ofNudd." So the knight was brought in, and Guenever saw that it was theknight whom Geraint had followed; and she could not but pity him, evenalthough the churlish dwarf was with him. So he told Guenever all thathad befallen him, and what Geraint had done; and it was settled thathe should be put in charge of the leeches, and, when he was recovered,should give such satisfaction to the queen as the Knights of the RoundTable might judge fitting. The next day Geraint came to Caerleon withEnid, and both of them were nobly received. Queen Guenever attired themaiden in some of her own rich raiment, and then all said that they hadnever seen any one who was more beautiful. Before long she and Geraintwere wedded, and Geraint abode with her at the court, and won greathonour in joustings and in the hunt.
But after three years Erbin, because he was grown old and feeble, sentfor his son to take charge of his territories. King Arthur was loath tolet him go, and Guenever was sorry to part with Enid; but inasmuch asthe parting was unavoidable, they sent them away with a noble followingof knights and ladies. So Geraint went into Devon, and ruled inhis father's place. He governed the country well and wisely, andat tournaments there was no knight of that country strong enough towithstand him. But after a while he grew to love Enid so much thathe neglected knightly sports, and spent all his time with her in thepalace; and in this way he began to lose the love of his people, and hisfame was no longer great in the land. This became known to Enid, and shesorrowed much on account of it. One morning in summer they were lying onthe couch in their chamber, and Enid was awake, but Geraint slept. Theclothing had fallen off his arms and breast, and as she gazed on himshe exclaimed, "Alas! and am I the cause that these arms and this breasthave lost their glory and the warlike fame which once they so richlyenjoyed."
As she spoke thus, the tears dropped from her eyes and fell on herhusband's breast, so that he awoke; and hearing her words imperfectly,the thought entered his mind that she loved some other man more thanhim, and wished for other society. So Geraint was sore troubled, andhe sprang quickly from his couch, and calling his squire, bade him getready his horse and arms. "And do thou arise," he said sternly toEnid, "and apparel thyself in the worst riding-dress thou hast in thypossession, and cause thy horse to be got ready. Evil betide me ifwe return here till thou knowest whether I have lost my strength socompletely as thou didst say. If that be so, then will it be easy forthee to seek the society of him whom thou desirest."
Enid arose, and clothed herself in her meanest garments; but she said,"My lord, I know nothing of your meaning."
"Neither will you know at this time," he answered roughly. ThenGeraint went to Erbin, and told him he was going on a quest, and it wasuncertain when he would return. After that he rode forth with Enid, andcharged her to ride before him, and, whatever she might hear or see, notto turn back, or to speak to him unless he spoke first to her. And hechose a road that was wild and beset by thieves and robbers. In a whilethey came to a great forest; and Enid saw four armed horsemen lying inwait, of whom one said to the others, "Here is a good opportunity for usto capture this lady and the horses and armour; for we can easily masteryonder knight, who hangs his head so heavily." When Enid heard this, sheknew not what to do, for Geraint had charged her not to speak to him."Yet," she said to herself, "I would rather have my death from his handthan from that of any other; and though he slay me, yet will I speak tohim, lest I endure the misery of seeing him slain." So she waited forGeraint till he came near.
"My lord," she said kindly, "did you hear the words of those menconcerning you?"
Then he raised his eyes, and looked at her angrily.
"Did I not bid thee hold thy peace?" he said. "I only wished forsilence, not for warning. And thou--thou shouldst desire to see me slainby these men; yet do I feel no dread."
Then the foremost of the robbers couched his spear, and rushed atGeraint, who received the stroke on his shield, and thrust his own lancethrough the other's body. And so he served the other three. After thathe dismounted, too
k the arms of the dead men, fastened them on theirsaddles, and tied all the bridles of the horses together. Then he badeEnid ride before, and drive the horses; and again he forbade her tospeak to him unless he first spoke to her. In that manner they wentthrough the forest, and then came out on a vast plain, across which Enidsaw three armed knights coming toward them; and she heard them say thatit would be easy to take all that spoil from one dolorous knight. Againwas she terrified for Geraint, because she thought he was weariedwith his former combat; so she warned him of the purpose of the threeknights.
"I declare to Heaven," he said, "that all they can do is less grievousto me than that thou wilt not be silent as I bid thee."
"My lord," she answered meekly, "I feared lest they should surprise theeunawares."
"Hold thy peace, then," replied Geraint. "Do not I desire silence?"
Straightway the three knights attacked Geraint, but they fared no betterthan the others had done before; for he slew them all, and added theirarms and horses to the other spoil which was in Enid's charge. Yetagain, when they were nearly across the plain, did Enid break silence towarn her lord of five horsemen who were preparing to attack him; and hewas exceedingly wrathful, and rebuked her sorely. But he slew all thefive robbers, and added their arms and horsey to the others. Then theyrode toward a wood, there to pass the night, and even in his angerGeraint was troubled at heart to see so fair and tender a woman as Enidtoiling to guide so many horses. In the wood Geraint slept all night;but he bade Enid watch, and she obeyed him.
In the morning they came to a fair city, and there Geraint hired alodging, and had all his horses stabled. He commanded Enid to sit on theside of the chamber opposite to where he sat. Then both of them slept;and when they awoke, the earl to whom the city belonged, and who hadbeen told of the arrival of this stranger knight with a passing fairlady and many horses and much spoil, came to visit Geraint, bringingwith him twelve knights; and his name was the Earl Doorm. He askedGeraint the object of his journey. "I have none," said he, "but to seekadventures and follow my own inclination." Then the earl saw Enid whereshe sat apart, and he thought he had never seen so comely a maiden asshe. So he said to Geraint, "Have I thy permission to go and conversewith yonder maiden?"
"Thou hast it gladly," he answered.
Then the earl went to her, and said, "Fair maiden, it cannot be pleasantto thee to travel thus with yonder knight."
"It is not unpleasant to me to journey with him," she answered.
"I will give thee good counsel," he said; for her beauty inflamed himexceedingly. "All my earldom shall be at thy disposal if thou wilt dwellwith me."
"That will I not," she replied. "Am I to be faithless to my lord?"
"Thou art foolish," quoth he. "If I slay thy lord, I can take thee withme in thine own despite, and turn thee away when I please. But if thouwilt go with me of thine own goodwill, I swear that I will remain trueto thee as long as I may live."
Then Enid took counsel with herself how she might save her lord. So shesaid to the earl, "Then must you, to save me from any needless shame,come, here to-morrow, and take me away as though I knew nothing of thematter."
To that he assented gladly, and went away. She and Geraint retiredearly, but about midnight she woke him and told him all that had passedbetween herself and Earl Doorm, and said it would be well that theyshould flee. He was wroth with her for speaking, but did as she advised;and in payment to his host gave him all the horses and armour he hadtaken from the robbers, asking only of the man that he should guide themout of the town by a different way from that by which they had entered.To this the man agreed readily; but when he returned, he found EarlDoorm at his house with many knights. The earl was wrathful to find thatGeraint and Enid were gone, and rode hard after them with his knights.Enid was uneasy as she rode along, and ever she looked behind her. Sometime after dawn she saw a great cloud of dust behind them, that camenearer, and in a while she perceived a knight coming through the mist.So she could not refrain from warning Geraint, who was wrathful, andreproached her because she would not keep silence in obedience to hisorders. However, he turned his horse, and every knight that came uphe overthrew. The earl assailed him the last, and they fought longtogether; but Geraint compelled him to sue for mercy, the which hegranted him.
So Geraint and Enid pursued their journey till they came to a passingfair valley, with a river running through it. Over the river was abridge, and on the other side a walled town. As they rode, they met aknight, and Geraint asked him to whom the valley and town belonged.He answered that they were in the hands of a perilous knight that wascalled the Little King.
"Can I go by yonder bridge and the highway that runs past the town?"asked Geraint.
"You cannot go that way," answered the knight, "unless you intend tocombat with the Little King; for it is his custom to combat with everyknight that comes upon his lands."
"Nevertheless," said Geraint, "I shall pursue my journey that way."
"If you do," said the knight, "you will probably meet with shame anddisgrace in reward for your daring."
Then Geraint rode on over the bridge, and Enid with him. And on theother side he saw a knight, that was very small of stature, mounted on agreat war-horse.
"Tell me, knight," said he, "whether it is through ignorance orpresumption that you seek to insult my dignity and infringe my rules?Come with me now to my court, and give me satisfaction."
"That will I not," answered Geraint.
"Then will I have satisfaction, or receive my overthrow at thy hands,"returned the Little King. So they fought together a long time on theirhorses, and it was exceedingly difficult for Geraint to strike theLittle King, because he was so small of stature; but at the last hethrew him headlong on the ground. Then they encountered on foot, andeach gave the other painful wounds. At length Geraint grew enraged,and struck the other so fierce a blow that it shattered his helmet andwounded him on the head, even to the bone. Then the Little King droppedhis sword, and entreated for mercy; which Geraint granted on conditionthat the Little King should always be his ally, and engage to come tohis assistance if ever it were needed. To this the Little King pledgedhimself: and then he begged Geraint to come with him to his court, sothat he might recover from his fatigue; but to this Geraint would notassent for all his entreaty, and insisted on continuing his journey,wounded as he was.
The heat of the sun was very great, and so when Geraint and Enid hadridden a little further, his wounds began to pain him more than theyhad done at first, and to escape the sun's rays he went into a wood andstood under a tree. Enid followed after, and stood under another tree.Suddenly they heard a great noise, the reason of which was that KingArthur and many knights and ladies of his court were come into the wood.A foot-page of Sir Kay the seneschal saw the knight and lady standingsilent under the trees, and he hastened to tell his master, who took hisspear and shield, and rode to where Geraint was.
"Ah, knight," said Sir Kay, "what dost thou here?"
"I am standing under a tree to avoid the rays of the sun."
"Wherefore is thy journey, and who art thou?"
"I seek adventures, and go where I list."
"Indeed," quoth Kay. "Then come with me to King Arthur, who is near athand."
"That will I not," answered Geraint curtly. He knew Sir Kay well, butSir Kay knew him not.
"Thou must needs come," said Kay; and therewith he couched his spear andattacked Geraint, who, becoming angry, smote him with the shaft of hislance, and rolled him headlong on the ground. Sir Kay got on his feetagain as well as he could, and rode back to the tents, where he met SirGawaine.
"There is yonder in the wood," said he, "a wounded knight, with batteredarmour. Will you go and ascertain who he is?"
Gawaine assented, but Kay warned him to take his spear and armour,because the knight was not over courteous. This Gawaine did, and then hewent to Geraint, and asked him who he was, and whether he would go withhim to King Arthur; but Geraint would not tell his name, and refused togo to the king.
"I will not leave thee," said Gawaine, "till I know whothou art." Then he charged Geraint with his spear, and it splintered onhis shield, and their horses stood front to front. Gawaine gazed fixedlyat the other, and saw who he was.
"Ah, Geraint," he cried, "art thou here?"
"I am not Geraint," said the knight, who, what with the pain of hiswounds and the agony of his mind, divided between jealousy of Enid andsorrow and love, was well-nigh out of his wits.
"Geraint thou art, I know well," answered Gawaine, "and a wretched andinsane expedition is this." Then he looked round, and saw Enid, andwelcomed her gladly. Again he entreated Geraint to come to the king.
"I will not," he answered; "for I am not in a fit state to see any one."
So Gawaine contrived that King Arthur should be brought to the place;and when he came, he commanded that Geraint should not be allowed togo forth till he was healed, and committed him to the charge of hisphysicians. A whole month they abode in that place; and Queen Guenevertook charge of Enid, and tended her lovingly. But ever Enid wassorrowful, for still she knew not why her lord had so utterly changedto her; and as for him, though his body was healed, he remained sad andsilent.
At last Geraint went to the king, saying that he was whole, and askedleave again to go forth, which Arthur unwillingly granted. So he andEnid once more set out, and Geraint desired her to ride before him, asshe had formerly done. As they journeyed along the road, they heard loudwailing; and there, in an open glade of the wood, they saw a lady, youngand fair, standing by a dead knight.
"What hath befallen thee, lady?" asked Geraint.
"Sir," she answered weeping, "I was journeying here with my belovedhusband, when there came upon us three giants, and without anyprovocation they slew him."
"Which way went they hence?" said Geraint. She pointed out the way, andhe bade Enid stay with the lady, and rode after the giants. Presently heovertook them. Each was as great in stature as three men, and carriedin his hand a huge club. Geraint rushed upon them, and thrust his lancethrough the body of one, then drew it forth and slew another in the sameway. But the third turned upon him, and struck him with his dub, sothat the blow crushed his shoulder, and opened all his wounds anew. ThenGeraint drew his sword, and smote the giant so fiercely on the crown ofthe head that it was split down to his shoulders, and he fell dead inthat place. So Geraint left him thus, and returned to Enid; and as soonas he came to her he sank down at her feet as though he were dead. ThenEnid uttered a cry, piercing and loud and thrilling; and it chanced thata wild earl called Limours, with a great company, was travelling on thehighroad, and he heard the cry, and turned aside to see what was thecause of it. The earl said to Enid, "Fair lady, what hath befallenthee?"
"Alas!" she answered, "the only man I ever loved, or shall love, isslain."
Then he asked the other the cause of her grief.
"They have slain my dear husband also."
"Who was it that slew them?" asked the earl.
"Some giants," she answered, "slew my best beloved; and the other knightwent in pursuit of them, and came back as thou seest."
The earl caused the dead knight to be buried; but it seemed to him thatthere was still some life left in Geraint, so he had him carried alongon a shield. And the two women followed. When they came to the earl'smansion, Geraint was placed on a couch in the hall, and Enid sat by hisside. The earl and his companions changed their travelling dress; and hecame and asked Enid to do likewise, but she refused.
"Do not be sorrowful for this matter," said he, "and take no heedwhether yonder knight live or die. Behold, a good earldom, together withmyself, will I bestow upon thee. Be therefore happy and joyful."
"I shall never henceforth be happy while I live," said Enid.
"Come, then, and eat," quoth the earl.
"No, I will not," she answered.
"By our Lady thou shalt," he cried, and forced her to come to the table,where he many times bade her eat. Then said Enid, "I call all hereto witness that I will not eat till he that is on yonder couch eatethlikewise."
"Thou canst not fulfil that pledge," said the earl, "for the man isalready dead."
"Still will I abide by what I have said."
Then he offered her a goblet of wine, and bade her drink, and then shewould change her mind.
"Evil betide me," she replied, "if I drink aught till he drink also."
Then the earl grew angry. "Truly," said he, "it is of no more avail forme to be gentle with thee than ungentle;" and, un-knightly, he struckher with his hand on the face. And Enid raised an exceedingly loud andbitter cry;--not so much, indeed, because of the pain of the blow, asbecause it reminded her more strongly of the calamity that had befallenher, since she felt that if Geraint had been alive no man dared havesmitten her. But all at once, at the sound of her cry, Geraint rose upfrom the couch. His sword was still in his hand as it had been when heswooned, and with it he rushed to the earl, and gave him so stern a blowthat it clove him in twain till the sword was stayed by the table.
Then, at the sight of that terrible stroke, all who were there fled awaywith loud outcries. Geraint was sore grieved when he looked upon Enid,for her face was pale, and she wept bitterly.
"Lady," said he, "knowest thou where our horses are?"
"I know where thy horse is, my lord," she answered, "but I know notwhere the other may be." She showed him where his horse was, and hemounted, and took up Enid and placed her before him, and so they rodeforth. Presently something was heard like the sound of a hostapproaching, and Geraint put Enid on the other side of a hedge by thewayside, and made him ready. Immediately a knight rode forward andcouched his lance. Then Enid could not restrain herself, but sprang toher feet, and cried. "O knight! whoever thou art, what renown wilt thougain by slaying one that is already well-nigh dead?"
"O Heaven!" cried he, "is it Geraint?"
"Yes, in truth," she answered; "and who art thou?"
"I am the Little King. I heard you were in trouble, and was coming toyour assistance.--And if thou, Geraint, had followed my advice, none ofthese hardships would have befallen thee."
"Nothing can happen," said Geraint, "without the will of Heaven, thoughmuch good results from counsel."
So he and Enid went with the Little King to the house of a baron thatwas the son of his sister, and there Geraint abode till he was perfectlywell. After that, the Little King said to Geraint, "Now will we go to mycourt, to rest and amuse ourselves."
"No," said Geraint; "I will journey first for one day more and returnagain."
So they set forth together, and presently came to a place where the roaddivided into two. There they met a man walking on foot, and the LittleKing asked him which was the best road to follow. "This," said he,pointing to the one by which he had come, "is the best to follow; for ifyou go by the other you will never return. It leads to a hedge of mist,within which are enchanted games, and no one who has gone thither hasever come back. The court of the Earl Owain is there, and he permits noone to lodge in the town except he will go to his court."
But Geraint said they would go by that road; and they travelled tillthey came to the town, whence the Earl Owain sent for them to his court,whither they went willingly; and when Geraint said he wished to go tothe games, the earl assented. After they had eaten, Geraint took hisarms and his horse and rode forth, the earl and all the company goingwith him. When they came to the hedge of mist, it was so high that noone could see the top. "Which way may I enter?" asked Geraint.
"I know not," answered Owain, "but enter by the way that seems easiest."
Then fearlessly Geraint dashed through the mist; and beyond it he founda fair orchard, within which was a pavilion of red satin. In front ofit was a great apple tree, to one branch of which hung a hunting-horn.Geraint dismounted, and entered the tent. Within there was only amaiden, sitting in a golden chair; and opposite to her was another likechair that was empty. Geraint went and sat down in it.
"Ah, knight," said the maiden, "I would not counsel thee to sit i
n thatchair."
"Wherefore?" said Geraint.
"Because he to whom it belongs has never suffered another to sit in it."
"I care not," answered Geraint, "though it displease him that I sit inthe chair."
Thereupon there arose a mighty tumult about the pavilion; and Geraintlooked to see what was the cause of it, and he saw a great knight, fullyarmed, mounted on a mettlesome war-horse.
"Tell me, knight," said he, "who was it bade thee sit on that chair?"
"Myself," quoth Geraint.
"It was wrong of thee," said the other, "to do me this shame andinsolence. Arise now, and give me satisfaction."
Then Geraint went forth, mounted his horse, and encountered him. Againand again they rushed at each other and broke spears; but at lastGeraint cast him on the ground, a whole spear's length beyond hishorse's crupper. Thereupon he sued for mercy, and promised to grant allthat Geraint asked.
"I only desire," he answered, "that this enchantment shall cease."
"Sound yonder horn," said the knight, "and the hedge of mist willimmediately disappear; but it will not go hence unless the horn besounded by the knight by whom I have been vanquished."
Then Geraint went and sounded the horn, and at the first blast the hedgeof mist vanished; and there Geraint was visible to Enid, who had beensorrowful with anxiety concerning him, and to all the others. So onthe morrow Geraint returned with his wife to his own dominions. All thedistrust and grief between them had gone like the hedge of mist, becausehe had proved her to be faithful and loving to him beyond all women.Thenceforth he reigned prosperously, and his warlike fame and splendourlasted thereafter as long as he lived.