[Le morte darthur]

¶Capitulum xiij

SOo kyng Mark rode by fortune by a welle in the way where stood a Knyght erraunte on horsbak armed att al poyntes with a grete spere in his hand

And whanne he sawe Kynge Marke comynge fleynge / he sa∣id Knyght retorne ageyne for shame and stand with me / & I shalle be thy waraunt / A fayr Knyght said Kyng Marke lete me passe / for yonder cometh after me the best knyght of the world with the blak bended sheld / Fy for shame said the kn∣yght he is none of the worthy Knyghtes / and yf he were syre launcelot or sir Tristram I shold not doubte to mete the bet∣ter of them bothe / Whanne Kynge Marke herd hym saye that word / he torned his hors and abode by hym / And thenne that stronge Knyght bare a spere to Dagonet / and smote hym so so∣re that he bare hym ouer his hors tayle / and nyghe he had bro∣ken his neck / And anone after hym came sir Brandyles / and whanne he sawe Dagonet haue that falle / he was passynge wrothe / and cryed Kepe the Knyght / and soo they hurtled to gyders wonder sore / But the Knyght smote sir Brandyles so sore that he wente to the erthe hors and man / Syre Vwayne came after and sawe alle this / Ihesu said he / yonder is a stro∣nge Knyght / And thenne they feutryd their speres / and this Knyght came soo egerly that he smote doune sir Vwayne / Thenne came Ozana with the hardy hert / and he was smyten doune / Now said sire Gryflet by my counceyl lete vs sende to yonder arraunt Knyght / and wete whether he be of Arthurs Courte / for as I deme it is sir Lamorak de galys / Soo they sente vnto hym / and prayd the straunge Knyghte to telle his name / and whether he were of Arthurs courte or not / As for my name they shalle not wete / but telle hem I am a Knyʒt ar¦raunt as they ar / and lete them wete that I am no Knyghte of Kynge Arthurs Courte / and soo the squyer rode ageyne vnto them and told them his ansuer of hym / By my hede said sir Agrauayne he is one of the strongest Knyghtes that euer I sawe / for he hath ouerthrowen thre noble Knyghtes / and ne¦des we must encountre with hym for shame / So syr Agraua∣yne feutryd his spere / and that other was redy / & smote hym doune ouer his hors to the erthe / And in the same wyse he smo¦te sir Vwayne les auoultres and also sir Gryflet / thenne had he serued hem alle / but sir Dynadan / for he was behynde / and sir Mordred was vnarmed and Dagonet had his harneis / ¶Soo whan this was done this stronge Knyght rode on his

his way a softe paas / and kynge Marke rode after hym / pray synge hym mykel / but he wold ansuer no wordes / but syghed wonderly sore / hangynge doune his hede / takyng no hede to his wordes / Thus they rode wel a thre myle Englysshe / and then¦ne this Knyght called to hym a varlette / and badde hym ryde vntyl yonder fayr manoyre / and recommaunde me to the lady of that castel and place / and praye her to sende me refressh∣ynge of good metes / and drynkes / And yf she aske the what I am / Telle her that I am the knyght that foloweth the Gla∣tysaunt beest / that is in Englysshe to saye the questynge beeste for that beest where someuer he yede / he quested in the bely with suche a noyse / as it hadde ben a thyrtty couple of houndes

¶Thenne the varlet wente his way and came to the manoyr and salewed the lady / and told her from whens he came / And whan she vnderstode that he came from the knyghte that folo∣wed the questynge beeste / O swete lord Ihesu she sayd whan shalle I see that noble Knyghte my dere sone Palomydes / Allas wille he not abyde with me / and there with she swou∣ned and wepte / and made passynge grete dole / And thenne al¦so soone as she myghte she gaf the varlet alle that he axyd / And the varlet retorned vnto sir Palomydes / for he was a var¦let of kynge Marke / And as soone as he came / he told the kn∣yghtes name was sir Palomydes / I am wel pleasyd said ky∣nge Marke but holde the styll and seye no thynge / ¶ Thenne they alyghte and sette them doune and reposed them a why∣le / Anone with alle kynge Marke felle on slepe / whanne syre Palomydes sawe hym sound a slepe / he took his hors and ro∣de his way and said to them / I wille not be in the companye of a slepynge Knyghte / And soo he rode forthe a grete paas