And deafen'd with the stammering cracks (and claps

That follow'd, flying back and crying out,
O Merlin, tho' you do not love me, save,
Yet save me!" clung to him and hugg'd him
(close;

And call'd him dear protector in her fright,
Nor yet forgot her practice in her fright,
But wrought upon his mood and hugg'd him
(close

The pale blood of the wizard at her touch Took gayer colours, like an opal warm'd. She blamed herself for telling hearsay tales: She shook from fear, and for her fault she (wept

Of petulancy; she call'd him lord and liege, Her seer, her bard, her silver star of eve, Her God, her Merlin, the one passionate love Of her whole life; and ever overhead Bellow'd the tempest, and the rotten branch. Snapt in the rushing of the river rain Above them; and in change of glare and (gloom

Her eyes and neck glittering went and came; Till now the storm,its burst of passion spent, Moaning and calling out of other lands, Had left the ravaged woodland yet once more To peace; and what should not have been (had been,

For Merlin, overtalk'd and overworn, Had yielded, told her all the charm, and (slept.

Then, in one moment, she put forth the
(charm

Of woven paces and of waving hand,
And in the hollow oak he lay as dead,
And lost to life and use and name and fame.

Then crying,I have made his glory mine," And shrieking out,,O fool!" the harlot leapt Adown the forest, and the thicket closed Behind her, and the forest echo'd fool."

LANCELOT AND ELAINE. ELAINE the fair, Elaine the loveable, Elaine, the lily maid of Astolat, High in her chamber up a tower to the east Guarded the sacred shield of Lancelot; Which first she placed where morning's (earliest ray

Might strike it, and awake her with the (gleam;

Then fearing rust or soilure fashion'd for it A case of silk, and braided thereupon

All the devices blazon'd on the shield
In their own tinct, and added, of her wit,
A border fantasy of branch and flower,
And yellow-throated nestling in the nest.
Nor rested thus content, but day by day
Leaving her household and good father
(climb'd

That eastern tower, and entering barr'd her (door,

Stript off the case, and read the naked shield,
Now guess'd a hidden meaning in his arms,
Now made a pretty history to herself
Of every dint a sword had beaten in it,
And every scratch a lance had made upon it,
Conjecturing when and where: this cut is
(fresh;

That ten years back; this dealt him at (Caerlyle;

That at Caerleon; this at Camelot : And ah God's mercy what a stroke was (there!

And here a thrust that might have kill'd, (but God

Broke the strong lance, and roll'd his (enemy down,

And saved him: so she lived in fantasy.

How came the lily maid by that good (shield

Of Lancelot, she that knew not ev'n his (name?

He left it with her, when he rode to tilt For the great diamond in the diamond (jousts,

Which Arthur had ordain'd, and by that (name

Had named them, since a diamond was the (prize.

For Arthur long before they crown'd him (king,

Roving the trackless realms of Lyonnesse, Had found a glen, gray boulder and black (tarn.

A horror lived about the tarn, and clave Like its own mists to all the mountain side: For here two brothers, one a king, had met And fought together; but their names were (lost.

And each had slain his brother at a blow, And down they fell and made the glen (abhorr❜d:

And there they lay till all their bones were (bleach'd,

And lichen'd into colour with the crags:

And he, that once was king, had on a crown Of diamonds, one in front, and four aside. And Arthur came, and labouring up the (pass

All in a misty moonshine, unawares Had trodden that crown'd skeleton, and (the skull

Brake from the nape, and from the skull (the crown

Roll'd into light, and turning on its rims Fled like a glittering rivulet to the tarn: And down the shingly scaur he plunged, (and caught,

And set it on his head, and in his heart Heard murmurs,,,lo, thou likewise shalt be (king."

Thereafter, when a king, he had the gems Pluck'd from the crown, and show'd them (to his knights,

Saying these jewels, whereupon I chanced Divinely, are the kingdom's not the king's For public use: henceforward let there be, Once every year, a joust for one of these: For so by nine years' proof we needs must (learn

Which is our mightiest, and ourselves shall (grow

In use of arms and manhood, till we drive The Heathen, who, some say, shall rule the (land

Hereafter, which God hinder." Thus he (spoke :

And eight years past, eight jousts had been, (and still

Had Lancelot won the diamond of the (year,

With purpose to present them to the Queen, When all were won; but meaning all at (once

To snare her royal fancy with a boon Worth half her realm, had never spoken (word.

Now for the central diamond and the last And largest, Arthur, holding then his court Hard on the river nigh the place which now Is this world's hugest, let proclaim a joust At Camelot, and when the time drew nigh Spake (for she had been sick) to Guinevere Are you so sick, my Queen, you cannot (move

To these fair jousts? Yea, lord," she said, (ye know it."

Then will ye miss," he answer'd,,,the great (deeds

Of Lancelot, and his prowess in the lists,
A sight ye love to look on." And the Queen
Lifted her eyes, and they dwelt languidly
On Lancelot, where he stood beside the
(King.

He thinking that he read her meaning there,
Stay with me, I am sick; my love is more
Than many diamonds," yielded, and a heart,
Love-loyal to the least wish of the Queen
(However much he yearn'd to make com-
(plete

The tale of diamonds for his destined boon) Urged him to speak against the truth, and (say,

Sir King, mine ancient wound is hardly (whole,

And lets me from the saddle;" and the King Glanced first at him, then her, and went (his way.

No sooner gone than suddenly she began.

To blame, my lord Sir Lancelot, much (to blame.

Why go ye not to these fair jousts? the (knights

Are half of them our enemies, and the crowd Will murmur, lo the shameless ones, who (take

Their pastime now the trustful king is (gone!"

Then Lancelot vext at having lied in vain : "Are ye so wise? ye were not once so wise, My Queen, that summer, when ye loved (me first.

Then of the crowd ye took no more account
Than of the myriad cricket of the mead,
When its own voice clings to each blade of
(grass,

And every voice is nothing. As to knights,
Them surely can I silence with all ease.
But now my loyal worship is allow'd
Of all men many a bard, without offence,
Hass link'd our names together in his lay,
Lancelot, the flower of bravery, Guinevere,
The pearl of beauty: and our knights at
(feast

Have pledged us in this union, while the (king

Would listen smiling. How then? is ther (more?

Has Arthur spoken aught? or would your(self,

Now weary of my service and devoir,
Henceforth be truer to your faultless lord?"
She broke into a little scornful laugh.
"Arthur, my lord, Arthur, the faultless
(King,

That passionate perfection, my good lord-
But who can gaze upon the Sun in heaven?
He never spake word of reproach to me,
He never had a glimpse of mine untruth,
He cares not for me: only here to-day
There gleam'd a vague suspicion in his
(eyes:

Some meddling rogue has tamper'd with (him-else

Rapt in this fancy of his Table Round,
And swearing men to vows impossible,
To make them like himself: but, friend, to
(me

He is all fault who hath no fault at all: For who loves me must have a touch of (earth;

The low sun makes the colour: I am yours, Not Arthur's, as ye know, save by the bond. And therefore hear my words: go to the (jousts:

The tiny-trumpeting gnat can break our (dream

When sweetest; and the vermin voices here May buzz so loud-we scorn them, but they (sting."

Then answer'd Lancelot, the chief of (knights.

And with what face, after my pretext

(made,

Shall I appear, O Queen, at Camelot, I Before a king who honours his own word, As if it were his God's?"

"Yea," said the Queen, A moral child without the craft to rule, Else had he not lost me: but listen to me, If I must find you wit: we hear it said That men go down before your spear at a (touch

But knowing you are Lancelot; your great (name,

This conquers: hide it therefore; go un(known:

Win! by this kiss you will: and our true (king

Will then allow your pretext, O my knight,
As all for glory; for to speak him true,
Ye know right well, how meek so'er he seem,
No keener hunter after glory breathes.

He loves it in his knights more than him(self:

They prove to him his work: win and re(turn."

Then got Sir Lancelot suddenly to horse, Wroth at himself: not willing to be known, He left the barren-beaten thoroughfare, Chose the green path that show'd the rarer (foot,

And there among the solitary downs,
Full often lost in fancy, lost his way;
Till as he traced a faintly-shadow'd track,
That all in loops and links among the dales
Ran to the Castle of Astolat, he saw
Fired from the west, far on a hill, the
(towers.

Thither he made and wound the gateway (horn.

Then came an old, dumb, myriad-wrinkled (man,

Who let him into lodging and disarm'd. And Lancelot marvell'd at the wordless (man;

And issuing found the Lord of Astolat With two strong sons, Sir Torre and Sir (Lavaine,

Moving to meet him in the castle court; And close behind them stept the lily maid. Elaine, his daughter: mother of the house There was not: some light jest among them (rose

With laughter dying down as the great (knight

Approach'd them: then the Lord of Astolat. Whence comest thou, my guest, and by (what name

Livest between the lips? for by thy state
And presence
I might guess thee chief of

(those,

Blank, or at least with some device not (mine."

Then said the Lord of Astolat, "Here is (Torre's:

Hurt in his first tilt was my son, Sir Torre. And so, God wot, his shield is blank enough. His ye can have." Then added plain Sir (Torre,

"Yea since I cannot use it, ye may have it." Here laugh'd the father saying Fie Sir (Churl,

Is that an answer for a noble knight?
Allow him: but Lavaine, my younger here,
He is so full of lustihood, he will ride,
Joust for it, and win, and bring it in an
(hour

And set it in this damsel's golden hair,
To make her thrice as wilful as before."

"

"Nay, father, nay good father, shame me (not

Before this noble knight" said youngLavaine
For nothing. Surely I but play'd on Torre:
He seem'd so sullen, vext he could not go :
A jest, no more: for, knight, the maiden
(dream,

That some one put this diamond in her hand,
And that it was too slippery to be held,
And slipt and fell into some pool or stream,
The castle-well, belike; and then I said
That if I went and if I fought and won it
(But all was jest and joke among ourselves)
Then must she keep it safelier. All was jest.
But father give me leave, an if he will,
To ride to Camelot with this noble knight:
Win shall I not, but do my best to win:
Young as I am, yet would I do my best."

So ye will grace me," answer'd Lancelot, Smiling a moment, with your fellowship O'er these waste downs whereon I lost my(self,

Then were I glad of you as guide and friend; And you shall win this diamond -as I hear, It is a fair large diamond, if ye may, And yield it to this maiden, if ye will. "A fair large diamond," added plain SirTorre Such be for Queens and not for simple (maids.

Then she,who held her eyes upon the ground, Elaine, and heard her name so tost about, Flush'd slightly at the slight disparagement Before the stranger knight, who, looking at (her,

Full courtly, yet not falsely, thus return'd,
"If what is fair be but for what is fair,
And only Queens are to be counted so,
Rash were my judgment then, who deem
(this maid

Might wear as fair a jewel as in on earth,
Not violating the bond of like to like."

He spoke and ceased: the lily maid Elaine, Won by the mellow voice before she look'd, Lifted her eyes, and read his lineaments. The great and guilty love he bare the Queen; In battle with the love he bare his lord, Had marr'd his face, and mark'd it ere his (time.

Another sinning on such heights with one,
The flower of all the west and all the world,
Had been the sleeker for it: but in him
His mood was often like a fiend, and rose
And drove him into wastes and solitudes
For agony, who was yet a living soul.
Marr'd as he was, he seem'd the goodliest
(man,

That ever among ladies ate in Hall,
And noblest, when she lifted up her eyes.
However marr'd, of more than twice her
(years,

Seam'd with an ancient swordcut on the (cheek,

And bruised and bronzed, she lifted up her (eyes

And loved him, with that love which was (her doom.

Then the great knight, the darling of the (court,

Loved of the loveliest, into that rude hall Stept with all grace, and not with half dis(dain

Hid under grace, as in a smaller time,
But kindly man moving among his kind:
Whom they with meats and vintage of their
(best

And talk and minstrel melody entertain'd. And much they ask'd of court and Table (Round,

And ever well and readily answer'd he: But Lancelot, when they glanced at Guine(vere,

Suddenly speaking of the wordless man, Heard from the Baron that, ten years before, The heathen caught and reft him of his (tongue.

He learnt and warn'd me of their fierce (design

Against my house, and him they caught and (maim'd

But I my sons and little daughter fled From bonds or death, and dwelt among the (woods

By the great river in a boatman's hut. Pull days were those, till our good Arthur (broke

The Pagan yet once more on Badon hill."

O there, great Lord, doubtless," Lavaine (said, rapt

By all the sweet and sudden passion of youth Toward greatness in its elder, you have (fought.

you know

O tell us for we live apart Of Arthur's glorious wars." And Lancelot (spoke

And answer'd him at full, as having been With Arthur in the fight which all day long Rang by the white mouth of the violent (Glem;

And in the four wild battles by the shore
Of Duglas; that on Bassa; then the war
That thunder'd in and out the gloomy skirts
Of Celidon the forest; and again

By castle Gurnion where the glorious King
Had on his cuirass worn our Lady's Head,
Carved of one emerald, center'd in a sun
Of silver rays, that lighten'd as he breathed;
And at Caerleon had he help'd his lord,
When the strong neighings of the wild white
(Horse

Set every gilded parapet shuddering;
And up in Agned Cathregonion too,

And down the waste sand-shores of Trath (Treroit,

Where many a heathen fell; and on the (mount

Of Badon I myself beheld the King

Charge at the head of all his Table Round,
And all his legions crying Christ and him,
And break them; and I saw him, after, stand
High on a heap of slain, from spur to plume
Red as the rising sun with heathen blood,
And seeing me, with a great voice he cried
"They are broken, they are broken, for the
(King,

However mild he seems at home, nor cares
For triumph in our mimic wars, the jousts-
For if his own knight cast him down, he
(laughs

Saying, his knights are better men than he
Yet in this heathen war the fire of God

Fills him: I never saw his like: there lives
No greater leader."
While he utter'd this,
Low to her own heart said the lily maid
Save your heart self, fair lord ;" and when
(he fell

From talk of war to traits of pleasantry
Being mirthful he but in a stately kind
She still took note that when the living smile
Died from his lips, across him came a cloud
Of melancholy severe, from which again,
Whenever in her hovering to and fro
The lily maid had striven to make him cheer,
There brake a sudden-beaming tenderness
Of manners and of nature: and she thought
That all was nature, all, perchance, for her.
And all night long his face before her lived,
As when a painter, poring on a face,
Divinely thro' all hindrance finds the man
Behind it, and so paints him that his face,
The shape and colour of a mind and life,
Lives for his children, ever at its best
And fullest; so the face before her lived,
Dark-splendid, speaking in the silence, full
Of noble things, and held her from her sleep.
Till rathe she rose, half-cheated in the
(thought

She needs must bid farewell to sweet La(vaine.

First as in fear, step after step, she stole Down the long tower-stairs, hesitating: Anon, she heard Sir Lancelot cry in the (court,

"This shield, my friend, where is it?" and (Lavaine

Past inward, as she came from out the tower There to his proud horse Lancelot turn'd (and smooth'd

The glossy shoulder, humming to himself. Half-envious of the flattering hand, she (drew

Nearer and stood. He look'd, and more (amazed

Than if seven men had set upon him, saw
The maiden standing in the dewy light,
He had not dream'd she was so beautiful.
Then came on him a sort of sacred fear,
For silent, tho' he greeted her, she stood
Rapt on his face as if it were a God's.
Suddenly flash'd on her a wild desire,
That he should wear her favour at the tilt.
She braved a riotous heart in asking for it.
"Fair lord, whose name I know not- noble
(it is,