King Arthur was at Caerlleon upon Usk; and one day he sat in his
chamber; and with him were Owain the son of Urien, and Kynon the son
of Clydno, and Kai the son of Kyner; and Gwenhwyvar and her
handmaidens at needlework by the window. And if it should be said
that there was a porter at Arthur's palace, there was none. Glewlwyd
Gavaelvawr was there, acting as porter, to welcome guests and
strangers, and to receive them with honour, and to inform them of the
manners and customs of the Court; and to direct those who came to the
Hall or to the presence-chamber, and those who came to take up their lodging.
In the centre of the chamber King Arthur sat upon a seat of green
rushes, over which was spread a covering of flame-coloured satin, and
a cushion of red satin was under his elbow.
Then Arthur spoke, "If I thought you would not disparage me," said
he, "I would sleep while I wait for my repast; and you can entertain
one another with relating tales, and can obtain a flagon of mead and
some meat from Kai." And the King went to sleep. And Kynon the son
of Clydno asked Kai for that which Arthur had promised them. "I,
too, will have the good tale which he promised to me," said Kai.
"Nay," answered Kynon, "fairer will it be for thee to fulfill
Arthur's behest, in the first place, and then we will tell thee the
best tale that we know." So Kai went to the kitchen and to the mead-
cellar, and returned bearing a flagon of mead and a golden goblet,
and a handful of skewers, upon which were broiled collops of meat.
Then they ate the collops and began to drink the mead. "Now," said
Kai, "it is time for you to give me my story." "Kynon," said Owain,
"do thou pay to Kai the tale that is his due." "Truly," said Kynon,
"thou are older, and art a better teller of tales, and hast seen more
marvellous things than I; do thou therefore pay Kai his tale."
"Begin thyself," quoth Owain, "with the best that thou knowest." "I
will do so," answered Kynon.
"I was the only son of my mother and father, and I was exceedingly
aspiring, and my daring was very great. I thought there was no
enterprise in the world too mighty for me, and after I had achieved
all the adventures that were in my own country, I equipped myself,
and set forth to journey through deserts and distant regions. And at
length it chanced that I came to the fairest valley in the world,
wherein were trees of equal growth; and a river ran through the
valley, and a path was by the side of the river. And I followed the
path until mid-day, and continued my journey along the remainder of
the valley until the evening; and at the extremity of a plain I came
to a large and lustrous Castle, at the foot of which was a torrent.
And I approached the Castle, and there I beheld two youths with
yellow curling hair, each with a frontlet of gold upon his head, and
clad in a garment of yellow satin, and they had gold clasps upon
their insteps. In the hand of each of them was an ivory bow, strung
with the sinews of the stag; and their arrows had shafts of the bone
of the whale, and were winged with peacock's feathers; the shafts
also had golden heads. And they had daggers with blades of gold, and
with hilts of the bone of the whale. And they were shooting their daggers.
"And a little way from them I saw a man in the prime of life, with
his beard newly shorn, clad in a robe and a mantle of yellow satin;
and round the top of his mantle was a band of gold lace. On his feet
were shoes of variegated leather, fastened by two bosses of gold.
When I saw him, I went towards him and saluted him, and such was his
courtesy that he no sooner received my greeting than he returned it.
And he went with me towards the Castle. Now there were no dwellers
in the Castle except those who were in one hall. And there I saw
four-and-twenty damsels, embroidering satin at a window. And this I
tell thee, Kai, that the least fair of them was fairer than the
fairest maid thou hast ever beheld in the Island of Britain, and the
least lovely of them was more lovely than Gwenhwyvar, the wife of
Arthur, when she has appeared loveliest at the Offering, on the day
of the Nativity, or at the feast of Easter. They rose up at my
coming, and six of them took my horse, and divested me of my armour;
and six others took my arms, and washed them in a vessel until they
were perfectly bright. And the third six spread cloths upon the
tables and prepared meat. And the fourth six took off my soiled
garments, and placed others upon me; namely, an under-vest and a
doublet of fine linen, and a robe, and a surcoat, and a mantle of
yellow satin with a broad gold band upon the mantle. And they placed
cushions both beneath and around me, with coverings of red linen; and
I sat down. Now the six maidens who had taken my horse, unharnessed
him, as well as if they had been the best squires in the Island of
Britain. Then, behold, they brought bowls of silver wherein was
water to wash, and towels of linen, some green and some white; and I
washed. And in a little while the man sat down to the table. And I
sat next to him, and below me sat all the maidens, except those who
waited on us. And the table was of silver, and the cloths upon the
table were of linen; and no vessel was served upon the table that was
not either of gold or of silver, or of buffalo-horn. And our meat
was brought to us. And verily, Kai, I saw there every sort of meat
and every sort of liquor that I have ever seen elsewhere; but the
meat and the liquor were better served there than I have ever seen
them in any other place.
"Until the repast was half over, neither the man nor any one of the
damsels spoke a single word to me; but when the man perceived that it
would be more agreeable to me to converse than to eat any more, he
began to inquire of me who I was. I said I was glad to find that
there was some one who would discourse with me, and that it was not
considered so great a crime at that Court for people to hold converse
together. 'Chieftain,' said the man, 'we would have talked to thee
sooner, but we feared to disturb thee during thy repast; now,
however, we will discourse.' Then I told the man who I was, and what
was the cause of my journey; and said that I was seeking whether any
one was superior to me, or whether I could gain the mastery over all.
The man looked upon me, and he smiled and said, 'If I did not fear to
distress thee too much, I would show thee that which thou seekest.'
Upon this I became anxious and sorrowful, and when the man perceived
it, he said, 'If thou wouldest rather that I should show thee thy
disadvantage than thine advantage, I will do so. Sleep here to-
night, and in the morning arise early, and take the road upwards
through the valley until thou reachest the wood through which thou
camest hither. A little way within the wood thou wilt meet with a
road branching off to the right, by which thou must proceed, until
thou comest to a large sheltered glade with a mound in the centre.
And thou wilt see a black man of great stature on the top of the
mound. He is not smaller in size than two of the men of this world.
He has but one foot; and one eye in the middle of his forehead. And
he has a club of iron, and it is certain that there are no two men in
the world who would not find their burden in that club. And he is
not a comely man, but on the contrary he is exceedingly ill-favoured;
and he is the woodward of that wood. And thou wilt see a thousand
wild animals grazing around him. Inquire of him the way out of the
glade, and he will reply to thee briefly, and will point out the road
by which thou shalt find that which thou art in quest of.'
"And long seemed that night to me. And the next morning I arose and
equipped myself, and mounted my horse, and proceeded straight through
the valley to the wood; and I followed the cross-road which the man
had pointed out to me, till at length I arrived at the glade. And
there was I three times more astonished at the number of wild animals
that I beheld, than the man had said I should be. And the black man
was there, sitting upon the top of the mound. Huge of stature as the
man had told me that he was, I found him to exceed by far the
description he had given me of him. As for the iron club which the
man had told me was a burden for two men, I am certain, Kai, that it
would be a heavy weight for four warriors to lift; and this was in
the black man's hand. And he only spoke to me in answer to my
questions. Then I asked him what power he held over those animals.
'I will show thee, little man,' said he. And he took his club in his
hand, and with it he struck a stag a great blow so that he brayed
vehemently, and at his braying the animals came together, as numerous
as the stars in the sky, so that it was difficult for me to find room
in the glade to stand among them. There were serpents, and dragons,
and divers sorts of animals. And he looked at them, and bade them go
and feed; and they bowed their heads, and did him homage as vassals to their lord.
"Then the black man said to me, 'Seest thou now, little man, what
power I hold over these animals?' Then I inquired of him the way,
and he became very rough in his manner to me; however, he asked me
whither I would go? And when I told him who I was and what I sought,
he directed me. 'Take,' said he, 'that path that leads towards the
head of the glade, and ascend the wooded steep until thou comest to
its summit; and there thou wilt find an open space like to a large
valley, and in the midst of it a tall tree, whose branches are
greener than the greenest pine-trees. Under this tree is a fountain,
and by the side of the fountain a marble slab, and on the marble slab
a silver bowl, attached by a chain of silver, so that it may not be
carried away. Take the bowl and throw a bowlful of water upon the
slab, and thou wilt hear a mighty peal of thunder, so that thou wilt
think that heaven and earth are trembling with its fury. With the
thunder there will come a shower so severe that it will be scarce
possible for thee to endure it and live. And the shower will be of
hailstones; and after the shower, the weather will become fair, but
every leaf that was upon the tree will have been carried away by the
shower. Then a flight of birds will come and alight upon the tree;
and in thine own country thou didst never hear a strain so sweet as
that which they will sing. And at the moment thou art most delighted
with the song of the birds, thou wilt hear a murmuring and
complaining coming towards thee along the valley. And thou wilt see
a knight upon a coal-black horse, clothed in black velvet, and with a
pennon of black linen upon his lance; and he will ride unto thee to
encounter thee with the utmost speed. If thou fleest from him he
will overtake thee, and if thou abidest there, as sure as thou art a
mounted knight, he will leave thee on foot. And if thou dost not
find trouble in that adventure, thou needest not seek it during the
rest of thy life.'
"So I journeyed on, until I reached the summit of the steep, and
there I found everything as the black man had described it to me.
And I went up to the tree, and beneath it I saw the fountain, and by
its side the marble slab, and the silver bowl fastened by the chain.
Then I took the bowl, and cast a bowlful of water upon the slab; and
thereupon, behold, the thunder came, much more violent than the black
man had led me to expect; and after the thunder came the shower; and
of a truth I tell thee, Kai, that there is neither man nor beast that
can endure that shower and live. For not one of those hailstones
would be stopped, either by the flesh or by the skin, until it had
reached the bone. I turned my horse's flank towards the shower, and
placed the beak of my shield over his head and neck, while I held the
upper part of it over my own head. And thus I withstood the shower.
When I looked on the tree there was not a single leaf upon it, and
then the sky became clear, and with that, behold the birds lighted
upon the tree, and sang. And truly, Kai, I never heard any melody
equal to that, either before or since. And when I was most charmed
with listening to the birds, lo, a murmuring voice was heard through
the valley, approaching me and saying, 'Oh, Knight, what has brought
thee hither? What evil have I done to thee, that thou shouldst act