Le Morte Darthur / by Syr Thomas Malory ; the original edition of William Caxton now reprinted and edited with an introduction and glossary by H. Oskar Sommer ; with an essay on Malory's prose style by Andrew Lang

¶ Capitulum Tercium

THenne departed syr Percyuale from his aunte eyther makynge grete sorowe / And soo he rode tyl euensonge tyme / And thenne he herd a clok smyte / and thēne he was ware of an hows closed wel with walles and depe dyches / and there he knocked at the gate / and was lete in / and he alyght and was ledde vnto a chamber and soone he was vnarmed / And there he had ryght good chere alle that nyghte / and on the morne he herd his masse / and in the monastery he fonde a preest redy at the aulter / And on the ryght syde he sawe a pewe closyd with yron / and behynde the aulter he sawe a ryche bedde and a fayre as of clothe of sylke and golde / Thenne syr Percyual aspyed that therin was a man or a woman / for the vysage was couerd / thenne he left of his lokyng and herd his seruyse / And whan hit came to the sacrynge / he that lay within that Percloos dressid hym vp and vncouerd his heede / and thenne hym besemed a passynge old man / and he had a crowne of gold vpon his hede / & his sholders were naked & vnhylled

[leaf 323r] vnto his nauel / And thenne sir Percyual aspyed his body / was ful of grete woundes bothe on the sholders armes and vysage / And euer he held vp his handes ageynst oure lordes body / and cryed / Fair swete fader Ihesu Cryst forgete not me and soo he laye doune / but alwayes he was in his prayer & orysons / and hym semed to be of the age of thre honderd wynter / And whanne the masse was done the preest took oure lordes body / and bare hit to the seke kynge / And whanne he had vsed hit / he dyd of his crowne / and commaunded the crowne to be sette on the aulter / Thenne syr Percyual asked one of the bretheren / what he was / Sire sayd the good man ye haue herd moche of Ioseph of Armathye how he was sente by Ihesu Cryst in to this land for to teche and preche the holy cristen feythe / and therfor he suffred many persecucyons the whiche the enemyes of Cryst dyd vnto hym / and in the Cyte of Sarras he conuerted a kynge whos name was Euelake / And so this kynge came with Ioseph in to this land / and euer he was besy to be there as the Sancgreal was / and on a tyme he nyghed it soo nyghe that oure lord was displeasyd with hym / but euer he folowed hit more and more / tyl god stroke hym al most blynde / Thenne this kynge cryed mercy / and sayd / faire lord lete me neuer dye tyl the good knyghte of my blood of the ix degree be come that I may see hym openly that he shal encheue the Sancgreal that I may kysse hym