Part Two
Arthur
was in Caerlleon upon Usk; and he went to hunt, and Peredur went with him. And
Peredur let loose his dog upon a hart, and the dog killed the hart in a desert
place. And a short space from him he saw signs of a dwelling, and towards the
dwelling he went, and he beheld a hall, and at the door of the hall he found
bald swarthy youths playing at chess. And when he entered, he beheld three
maidens sitting on a bench, and they were all clothed alike, as became persons
of high rank. And he came, and sat by them upon the bench; and one of the
maidens looked steadfastly upon Peredar, and wept. And Peredur asked her
wherefore she was weeping. "Through grief, that I should see so fair a
youth as thou art, slain."
"Who will slay me?" inquired Peredur.
"If thou art so daring as to remain here to-night, I will tell thee."
"How great soever my danger may be from remaining here, I will listen unto
thee."
"This Palace is owned by him who is my father," said the maiden,
"and he slays every one who comes hither without his leave."
"What sort of a man is thy father, that he is able to slay every one
thus?"
"A man who does violence and wrong unto his neighbours, and who renders
justice unto none." And hereupon he saw the youths arise and clear the
chessmen from the board. And he heard a great tumult; and after the tumult there
came in a huge black one-eyed man, and the maidens arose to meet him. And they
disarrayed him, and he went and sat down; and after he had rested and pondered
awhile, he looked at Peredur, and asked who the knight was. "Lord,"
said one of the maidens, "he is the fairest and gentlest youth that ever
thou didst see. And for the sake of Heaven, and of thine own dignity, have
patience with him."
"For thy sake I will have patience, and I will grant him his life this
night." Then Peredur came towards them to the fire, and partook of food and
liquor, and entered into discourse with the ladies. And being elated with the
liquor, he said to the black man, "It is a marvel to me, so mighty as thou
sayest thou art, who could have put out thine eye."
"It is one of my habits," said the black man, that whosoever puts to
me the question which thou hast asked, shall not escape with his life, either as
a free gift or foraprice."
"Lord," said the maiden, "whatsoever he may say to thee in jest,
and through the excitement of liquor, make good that which thou saidst and didst
promise me just now."
"I will do so, gladly, for thy sake," said he. "Willingly will I
grant him his life this night." And that night thus they remained.
And the next day the black man got up, and put on his armour, and said to
Peredur, "Arise, man, and suffer death." And Peredur said unto him,
"Do one of two things, black man; if thou wilt fight with me, either throw
off thy own armour, or give arms to me, that I may encounter thee."
"Ha! man," said he, "couldst thou fight, if thou hadst arms?
Take, then, what arms thou dost choose." And thereupon the maiden came to
Peredur with such arms as pleased him; and he fought with the black man, and
forced him to crave his mercy. "Black man, thou shalt have mercy, provided
thou tell me who thou art, and who put out thine eye."
"Lord, I will tell thee; I lost it in fighting with the Black Serpent of
the Carn. There is a mound, which is called the Mound of Mourning; and on the
mound there is a carn, and in the carn there is a serpent, and on the tail of
the serpent there is a stone, and the virtues of the stone are such, that
whosoever should hold it in one hand, in the other he will have as much gold as
he may desire. And in fighting with this serpent was it that I lost my eye. And
the Black Oppressor am I called. And for this reason I am called the Black
Oppressor, that there is not a single man around me whom I have not oppressed,
and justice have I done unto none."
"Tell me," said Peredur, "how far is it hence?"
"The same day that thou settest forth, thou wilt come to the Palace of the
Sons of the King of the Tortures."
"Wherefore are they called thus?"
"The Addanc of the Lake slays them once every day. When thou goest thence,
thou wilt come to the Court of the Countess of the Achievements."
"What achievements are there?" asked Peredur.
"Three hundred men there are in her household, and unto every stranger that
comes to the Court, the achievements of her household are related. And this is
the manner of it,--the three hundred men of the household sit next unto the
Lady; and that not through disrespect unto the guests, but that they may relate
the achievements of the household. And the day that thou goest thence, thou wilt
reach the Mound of Mourning, and round about the mound there are the owners of
three hundred tents guarding the serpent."
"Since thou hast, indeed, been an oppressor so long," said Peredur,
"I will cause that thou continue so no longer." So he slew him.
Then the maiden spoke, and began to converse with him. "If thou wast poor
when thou camest here, henceforth thou wilt be rich through the treasure of the
black man whom thou hast slain. Thou seest the many lovely maidens that there
are in this Court; thou shalt have her whom thou best likest for the lady of thy
love."
"Lady, I came not hither from my country to woo; but match yourselves as it
liketh you with the comely youths I see here; and none of your goods do I
desire, for I need them not." Then Peredur rode forward, and he came to the
Palace of the Sons of the King of the Tortures; and when he entered the Palace,
he saw none but women; and they rose up, and were joyful at his coming; and as
they began to discourse with him, he beheld a charger arrive, with a saddle upon
it, and a corpse in the saddle. And one of the women arose, and took the corpse
from the saddle, and anointed it in a vessel of warm water, which was below the
door and placed precious balsam upon it; and the man rose up alive, and came to
the place where Peredur was, and greeted him, and was joyful to see him. And two
other men came in upon their saddles, and the maiden treated these two in the
same manner as she had done the first. Then Peredur asked the chieftain
wherefore it was thus. And they told him, that there was an Addanc in a cave,
which slew them once every day. And thus they remained that night.
And next morning the youths arose to sally forth, and Peredur besought them, for
the sake of the ladies of their love, to permit him to go with them; but they
refused him, saying, "If thou shouldst be slain there, thou hast none to
bring thee back to life again." And they rode forward, and Peredur followed
after them; and, after they had disappeared out of his sight, he came to a
mound, whereon sat the fairest lady he had ever beheld. "I know thy
quest," said she; "thou art going to encounter the Addanc, and he will
slay thee, and that not by courage, but by craft. He has a cave, and at the
entrance of the cave there is a stone pillar, and he sees every one that enters,
and none see him; and from behind the pillar he slays every one with a poisonous
dart. And if thou wouldst pledge me thy faith to love me above all women, I
would give thee a stone, by which thou shouldst see him when thou goest in, and
he should not see thee."
"I will, by my troth," said Peredur, "for when first I beheld
thee I loved thee; and where shall I seek thee?"
"When thou seekest me, seek towards India." And the maiden vanished,
after placing the stone in Peredur's hand.
And he came towards a valley, through which ran a river; and the borders of the
valley were wooded, and on each side of the river were level meadows. And on one
side of the river he saw a flock of white sheep, and on the other a flock of
black sheep. And whenever one of the white sheep bleated, one of the black sheep
would cross over and become white; and when one of the black sheep bleated, one
of the white sheep would cross over, and become black. And he saw a tall tree by
the side of the river, one half of which was in flames from the root to the top,
and the other half was green and in full leaf. And nigh thereto he saw a youth
sitting upon a mound, and two greyhounds, white-breasted and spotted, in
leashes, lying by his side. And certain was he that he had never seen a youth of
so royal a bearing as he. And in the wood opposite he heard hounds raising a
herd of deer. And Peredur saluted the youth, and the youth greeted him in
return. And there were three roads leading from the mound; two of them were wide
roads, and the third was more narrow. And Peredur inquired where the three roads
went. "One of them goes to my palace," said the youth; "and one
of two things I counsel thee to do; either to proceed to my palace, which is
before thee, and where thou wilt find my wife, or else to remain here to see the
hounds chasing the roused deer from the wood to the plain. And thou shalt see
the best greyhounds thou didst ever behold, and the boldest in the chase, kill
them by the water beside us; and when it is time to go to meat, my page will
come with my horse to meet me, and thou shalt rest in my palace to-night."
"Heaven reward thee; but I cannot tarry, for onward must I go."
"The other road leads to the town, which is near here, and wherein food and
liquor may be bought; and the road which is narrower than the others goes
towards the cave of the Addanc."
"With thy permission, young man, I will go that way."
And Peredur went towards the cave. And he took the stone in his left hand, and
his lance in his right. And as he went in he perceived the Addanc, and he
pierced him through with his lance, and cut off his head. And as he came from
the cave, behold the three companions were at the entrance; and they saluted
Peredur, and told him that there was a prediction that he should slay that
monster. And Peredur gave the head to the young men, and they offered him in
marriage whichever of the three sisters he might choose, and half their kingdom
with her. "I came not hither to woo," said Peredur, " but if
peradventure I took a wife, I should prefer your sister to all others."
And Peredur rode forward, and he heard a noise behind him. And he looked back,
and saw a man upon a red horse, with red armour upon him; and the man rode up by
his side, and saluted him, and wished him the favour of Heaven and of man. And
Peredur greeted the youth kindly. "Lord, I come to make a request unto
thee."
"What wouldest thou?"
"That thou shouldest take me as thine attendant."
"Whom then should I take as my attendant, if I did so?"
"I will not conceal from thee what kindred I am of. Etlym Gleddyv Coch am I
called, an Earl from the East Country."
"I marvel that thou shouldest offer to become attendant to a man whose
possessions are no greater than thine own; for I have but an earldom like
thyself. But since thou desirest to be my attendant, I will take thee
joyfully."
And they went forward to the Court of the Countess, and all they of the Court
were glad at their coming; and they were told it was not through disrespect they
were placed below the household, but that such was the usage of the Court. For,
whoever should overthrow the three hundred men of her household, would sit next
the Countess, and she would love him above all men. And Peredur having
overthrown the three hundred men of her household, sat down beside her, and the
Countess said, "I thank Heaven that I have a youth so fair and so valiant
as thou, since I have not obtained the man whom best I love."
"Who is he whom best thou lovest?"
"By my faith, Etlym Gleddyv Coch is the man whom I love best, and I have
never seen him."
"Of a truth, Etlym is my companion; and behold here he is, and for his sake
did I come to joust with thy household. And he could have done so better than I,
had it pleased him. And I do give thee unto him."
"Heaven reward thee, fair youth, and I will take the man whom I love above
all others." And the Countess became Etlym's bride from that moment.
And the next day Peredur set forth towards the Mound of Mourning. "By thy
hand, lord, but I will go with thee," said Etlym. Then they went forwards
till they came in sight of the mound and the tents. "Go unto yonder
men," said Peredur to Etlym, "and desire them to come and do me
homage." So Etlym went unto them, and said unto them thus,--"Come and
do homage to my lord."
"Who is thy lord?" said they. "Peredur with the long lance is my
lord," said Etlym. "Were it permitted to slay a messenger, thou
shouldest not go back to thy lord alive, for making unto Kings, and Earls, and
Barons, so arrogant a demand as to go and do him homage." Peredur desired
him to go back to them, and to give them their choice, either to do him homage,
or to do battle with him. And they chose rather to do battle. And that day
Peredur overthrew the owners of a hundred tents; and the next day he overthrew
the owners of a hundred more; and the third day the remaining hundred took
counsel to do homage to Peredur. And Peredur inquired of them, wherefore they
were there. And they told him they were guarding the serpent until he should
die. "For then should we fight for the stone among ourselves, and whoever
should be conqueror among us would have the stone."
"Await here," said Peredur, "and I will go to encounter the
serpent."
"Not so, lord," said they; "we will go altogether to encounter
the serpent."
"Verily," said Peredur, "that will I not permit; for if the
serpent be slain, I shall derive no more fame therefrom than one of you."
Then he went to the place where the serpent was, and slew it, and came back to
them, and said, "Reckon up what you have spent since you have been here,
and I will repay you to the full." And he paid to each what he said was his
claim. And he required of them only that they should acknowledge themselves his
vassals. And he said to Etlym, "Go back unto her whom thou lovest best, and
I will go forwards, and I will reward thee for having been my attendant."
And he gave Etlym the stone. "Heaven repay thee and prosper thee,"
said Etlym.
And eredur rode thence, and he came to the fairest valley he had ever seen,
through which ran a river; and there he beheld many tents of various colours.
And he marvelled still more at the number of water-mills and of windmills that
he saw. And there rode up with him a tall auburn-haired man, in a workman's
garb, and Peredur inquired of him who he was. "I am the chief miller,"
said he, "of all the mills yonder."
"Wilt thou give me lodging?" said Peredur.
"I will, gladly," he answered. And Peredur came to the miller's house,
and the miller had a fair and pleasant dwelling. And Peredur asked money as a
loan from the miller, that he might buy meat and liquor for himself and for the
household, and he promised that he would pay him again ere he went thence. And
he inquired of the miller, wherefore such a multitude was there assembled. Said
the miller to Peredur, "One thing is certain: either thou art a man from
afar, or thou art beside thyself. The Empress of Cristinobyl [Constantiople --MJ]
the Great is here; and she will have no one but the man who is most valiant; for
riches does she not require. And it was impossible to bring food for so many
thousands as are here, therefore were all these mills constructed." And
that night they took their rest.
And the next day Peredur arose, and he equipped himself and his horse for the
tournament. And among the other tents he beheld one, which was the fairest he
had ever seen. And he saw a beauteous maiden leaning her head out of a window of
the tent, and he had never seen a maiden more lovely than she. And upon her was
a garment of satin. And he gazed fixedly on the maiden, and began to love her
greatly. And he remained there, gazing upon the maiden from morning until
mid-day, and from mid-day until evening; and then the tournament was ended, and
he went to his lodging and drew off his armour. Then he asked money of the
miller as a loan, and the miller's wife was wroth with Peredur; nevertheless,
the miller lent him the money. And the next day he did in like manner as he had
done the day before. And at night he came to his lodging, and took money as a
loan from the miller. And the third day, as he was in the same place, gazing
upon the maiden, he felt a hard blow between the neck and the shoulder, from the
edge of an axe. And when he looked behind him, he saw that it was the miller;
and the miller said to him, "Do one of two things either turn thy head from
hence, or go to the tournament." And Peredur smiled on the miller, and went
to the tournament; and all that encountered him that day he overthrew. And as
many as he vanquished he sent as a gift to the Empress, and their horses and
arms he sent as a gift to the wife of the miller, in payment of the borrowed
money. Peredur attended the tournament until all were overthrown, and he sent
all the men to the prison of the Empress, and the horses and arms to the wife of
the miller, in payment of the borrowed money. And the Empress sent to the Knight
of the Mill, to ask him to come and visit her. And Peredur went not for the
first nor for the second message. And the third time she sent a hundred knights
to bring him against his will, and they went to him and told him their mission
from the Empress. And Peredur fought well with them, and caused them to be bound
like stags, and thrown into the milldyke. And the Empress sought advice of a
wise man who was in her counsel; and he said to her, "With thy permission,
I will go to him myself." So he came to Peredur, and saluted him, and
besought him, for the sake of the lady of his love, to come and visit the
Empress. And they went, together with the miller. And Peredur went and sat down
in the outer chamber of the tent, and she came and placed herself by his side.
And there was but little discourse between them. And Peredur took his leave, and
went to his lodging.
And the next day he came to visit her, and when he came into the tent there was
no one chamber less decorated than the others. And they knew not where he would
sit. And Peredur went and sat beside the Empress, and discoursed with her
courteously. And while they were thus, they beheld a black man enter with a
goblet full of wine in his hand. And he dropped upon his knee before the
Empress, and besought her to give it to no one who would not fight with him for
it. And she looked upon Peredur. "Lady," said he, bestow on me the
goblet." And Peredur drank the wine. and gave the goblet to the miller's
wife. And while they were thus, behold there entered a black man of larger
stature than the other, with a wild beast's claw in his hand, wrought into the
form of a goblet and filled with wine. And he presented it to the Empress, and
besought her to give it to no one but the man who would fight with him.
"Lady," said Peredur, "bestow it on me." And she gave it to
him. And Peredur drank the wine, and sent the goblet to the wife of the miller.
And while they were thus, behold a rough-looking, crisp-haired man, taller than
either of the others, came in with a bowl in his hand full of wine; and he bent
upon his knee, and gave it into the hands of the Empress, and he besought her to
give it to none but him who would fight with him for it; and she gave it to
Peredur, and he sent it to the miller's wife. And that night Peredur returned to
his lodging; and the next day he accoutred himself and his horse, and went to
the meadow and slew the three men. Then Peredur proceeded to the tent, and the
Empress said to him, "Goodly Peredur, remember the faith thou didst pledge
me when I gave thee the stone, and thou didst kill the Addanc."
"Lady," answered he, "thou sayest truth, I do remember it."
And Peredur was entertained by the Empress fourteen years, as the story relates.