第62章 Pelleas and Ettarre(2)

Then Arthur made vast banquets,and strange knights From the four winds came in:and each one sat,Though served with choice from air,land,stream,and sea,Oft in mid-banquet measuring with his eyes His neighbour's make and might:and Pelleas looked Noble among the noble,for he dreamed His lady loved him,and he knew himself Loved of the King:and him his new-made knight Worshipt,whose lightest whisper moved him more Than all the ranged reasons of the world.

Then blushed and brake the morning of the jousts,And this was called 'The Tournament of Youth:'

For Arthur,loving his young knight,withheld His older and his mightier from the lists,That Pelleas might obtain his lady's love,According to her promise,and remain Lord of the tourney.And Arthur had the jousts Down in the flat field by the shore of Usk Holden:the gilded parapets were crowned With faces,and the great tower filled with eyes Up to the summit,and the trumpets blew.

There all day long Sir Pelleas kept the field With honour:so by that strong hand of his The sword and golden circlet were achieved.

Then rang the shout his lady loved:the heat Of pride and glory fired her face;her eye Sparkled;she caught the circlet from his lance,And there before the people crowned herself:

So for the last time she was gracious to him.

Then at Caerleon for a space--her look Bright for all others,cloudier on her knight--Lingered Ettarre:and seeing Pelleas droop,Said Guinevere,'We marvel at thee much,O damsel,wearing this unsunny face To him who won thee glory!'And she said,'Had ye not held your Lancelot in your bower,My Queen,he had not won.'Whereat the Queen,As one whose foot is bitten by an ant,Glanced down upon her,turned and went her way.

But after,when her damsels,and herself,And those three knights all set their faces home,Sir Pelleas followed.She that saw him cried,'Damsels--and yet I should be shamed to say it--I cannot bide Sir Baby.Keep him back Among yourselves.Would rather that we had Some rough old knight who knew the worldly way,Albeit grizzlier than a bear,to ride And jest with:take him to you,keep him off,And pamper him with papmeat,if ye will,Old milky fables of the wolf and sheep,Such as the wholesome mothers tell their boys.

Nay,should ye try him with a merry one To find his mettle,good:and if he fly us,Small matter!let him.'This her damsels heard,And mindful of her small and cruel hand,They,closing round him through the journey home,Acted her hest,and always from her side Restrained him with all manner of device,So that he could not come to speech with her.

And when she gained her castle,upsprang the bridge,Down rang the grate of iron through the groove,And he was left alone in open field.

'These be the ways of ladies,'Pelleas thought,'To those who love them,trials of our faith.

Yea,let her prove me to the uttermost,For loyal to the uttermost am I.'

So made his moan;and darkness falling,sought A priory not far off,there lodged,but rose With morning every day,and,moist or dry,Full-armed upon his charger all day long Sat by the walls,and no one opened to him.

And this persistence turned her scorn to wrath.

Then calling her three knights,she charged them,'Out!

And drive him from the walls.'And out they came But Pelleas overthrew them as they dashed Against him one by one;and these returned,But still he kept his watch beneath the wall.

Thereon her wrath became a hate;and once,A week beyond,while walking on the walls With her three knights,she pointed downward,'Look,He haunts me--I cannot breathe--besieges me;Down!strike him!put my hate into your strokes,And drive him from my walls.'And down they went,And Pelleas overthrew them one by one;And from the tower above him cried Ettarre,'Bind him,and bring him in.'

He heard her voice;

Then let the strong hand,which had overthrown Her minion-knights,by those he overthrew Be bounden straight,and so they brought him in.

Then when he came before Ettarre,the sight Of her rich beauty made him at one glance More bondsman in his heart than in his bonds.

Yet with good cheer he spake,'Behold me,Lady,A prisoner,and the vassal of thy will;And if thou keep me in thy donjon here,Content am I so that I see thy face But once a day:for I have sworn my vows,And thou hast given thy promise,and I know That all these pains are trials of my faith,And that thyself,when thou hast seen me strained And sifted to the utmost,wilt at length Yield me thy love and know me for thy knight.'

Then she began to rail so bitterly,With all her damsels,he was stricken mute;But when she mocked his vows and the great King,Lighted on words:'For pity of thine own self,Peace,Lady,peace:is he not thine and mine?'

'Thou fool,'she said,'I never heard his voice But longed to break away.Unbind him now,And thrust him out of doors;for save he be Fool to the midmost marrow of his bones,He will return no more.'And those,her three,Laughed,and unbound,and thrust him from the gate.

And after this,a week beyond,again She called them,saying,'There he watches yet,There like a dog before his master's door!

Kicked,he returns:do ye not hate him,ye?

Ye know yourselves:how can ye bide at peace,Affronted with his fulsome innocence?

Are ye but creatures of the board and bed,No men to strike?Fall on him all at once,And if ye slay him I reck not:if ye fail,Give ye the slave mine order to be bound,Bind him as heretofore,and bring him in:

It may be ye shall slay him in his bonds.'

She spake;and at her will they couched their spears,Three against one:and Gawain passing by,Bound upon solitary adventure,saw Low down beneath the shadow of those towers A villainy,three to one:and through his heart The fire of honour and all noble deeds Flashed,and he called,'I strike upon thy side--The caitiffs!''Nay,'said Pelleas,'but forbear;He needs no aid who doth his lady's will.'