<p><SPAN name="link2H_4_0027" id="link2H_4_0027"></SPAN></p>
<h2> The Lady of the Fountain. </h2>
<p>In the centre of the great hall in the castle of Caerleon upon Usk, king
Arthur sat on a seat of green rushes, over which was thrown a covering of
flame-coloured silk, and a cushion of red satin lay under his elbow. With
him were his knights Owen and Kynon and Kai, while at the far end, close
to the window, were Guenevere the queen and her maidens embroidering white
garments with strange devices of gold.</p>
<p>'I am weary,' said Arthur, 'and till my food is prepared I would fain
sleep. You yourselves can tell each other tales, and Kai will fetch you
from the kitchen a flagon of mean and some meat.'</p>
<p>And when they had eaten and drunk, Kynon, the oldest among them, began his
story.</p>
<p>'I was the only son of my father and mother, and much store they set by
me, but I was not content to stay with them at home, for I thought no deed
in all the world was too mighty for me. None could hold me back, and after
I had won many adventures in my own land, I bade farewell to my parents
and set out to see the world. Over mountains, through deserts, across
rivers I went, till I reached a fair valley full of trees, with a path
running by the side of a stream. I walked along that path all the day, and
in the evening I came to a castle in front of which stood two youths
clothed in yellow, each grasping an ivory bow, with arrows made of the
bones of the whale, and winged with peacock's feathers. By their sides
hung golden daggers with hilts of the bones of the whale.</p>
<p>'Near these young men was a man richly dressed, who turned and went with
me towards the castle, where all the dwellers were gathered in the hall.
In one window I beheld four and twenty damsels, and the least fair of them
was fairer than Guenevere at her fairest. Some took my horse, and others
unbuckled my armour, and washed it, with my sword and spear, till it all
shone like silver. Then I washed myself and put on a vest and doublet
which they brought me, and I and the man that entered with me sat down
before a table of silver, and a goodlier feast I never had.</p>
<p>'All this time neither the man nor the damsels had spoken one word, but
when our dinner was half over, and my hunger was stilled, the man began to
ask who I was. Then I told him my name and my father's name, and why I
came there, for indeed I had grown weary of gaining the mastery over all
men at home, and sought if perchance there was one who could gain the
mastery over me. And at this the man smiled and answered:</p>
<p>'"If I did not fear to distress thee too much, I would show thee what thou
seekest." His words made me sorrowful and fearful of myself, which the man
perceived, and added, "If thou meanest truly what thou sayest, and
desirest earnestly to prove thy valour, and not to boast vainly that none
can overcome thee, I have somewhat to show thee. But to-night thou must
sleep in the this castle, and in the morning see that thou rise early and
follow the road upwards through the valley, until thou reachest a wood. In
the wood is a path branching to the right; go along this path until thou
comest to a space of grass with a mound in the middle of it. On the top of
the mound stands a black man, larger than any two white men; his eye is in
the centre of his forehead and he has only one foot. He carries a club of
iron, and two white men could hardly lift it. Around him graze a thousand
beasts, all of different kinds, for he is the guardian of that wood, and
it is he who will tell thee which way to go in order to find the adventure
thou art in quest of."</p>
<p>'So spake the man, and long did that night seem to me, and before dawn I
rose and put on my armour, and mounted my horse and rode on till I reached
the grassy space of which he had told me. There was the black man on top
of the mound, as he had said, and in truth he was mightier in all ways
than I had thought him to be. As for the club, Kai, it would have been a
burden for four of our warriors. He waited for me to speak, and I asked
him what power he held over the beasts that thronged so close about him.</p>
<p>'"I will show thee, little man," he answered, and with his club he struck
a stag on the head till he brayed loudly. And at his braying the animals
came running, numerous as the stars in the sky, so that scarce was I able
to stand among them. Serpents were there also, and dragons, and beasts of
strange shapes, with horns in places where never saw I horns before. And
the black man only looked at them and bade them go and feed. And they
bowed themselves before him, as vassals before their lord.</p>
<p>'"Now, little man, I have answered thy question and showed thee my power,"
said he. "Is there anything else thou wouldest know?" Then I inquired of
him my way, but he grew angry, and, as I perceived, would fain have
hindered me; but at the last, after I had told him who I was, his anger
passed from him.</p>
<p>'"Take that path," said he, "that leads to the head of this grassy glade,
and go up the wood till thou reachest the top. There thou wilt find an
open space, and in the midst of it a tall tree. Under the tree is a
fountain, and by the fountain a marble slab, and on the slab a bowl of
silver, with a silver chain. Dip the bowl in the fountain, and throw the
water on the slab, and thou wilt hear a might peal of thunder, till heaven
and earth seem trembling with the noise. After the thunder will come hail,
so fierce that scarcely canst thou endure it and live, for the hailstones
are both large and thick. Then the sun will shine again, but every leaf of
the tree will by lying on the ground. Next a flight of birds will come and
alight on the tree, and never didst thou hear a strain so sweet as that
which they will sing. And at the moment in which their song sounds
sweetest thou wilt hear a murmuring and complaining coming towards thee
along the valley, and thou wilt see a knight in black velvet bestriding a
black horse, bearing a lance with a black pennon, and he will spur his
steed so as to fight thee. If thou turnest to flee, he will overtake thee.
And if thou abidest were thou art, he will unhorse thee. And if thou dost
not find trouble in that adventure, thou needest not to seek it during the
rest of thy life."</p>
<p>'So I bade the black man farewell, and took my way to the top of the wood,
and there I found everything just as I had been told. I went up to the
tree beneath which stood the fountain, and filling the silver bowl with
water, emptied it on the marble slab. Thereupon the thunder came, louder
by far than I had expected to hear it, and after the thunder came the
shower, but heavier by far than I had expected to feel it, for, of a truth
I tell thee, Kai, not one of those hailstones would be stopped by skin or
by flesh till it had reached the bone. I turned my horse's flank towards
the shower, and, bending over his neck, held my shield so that it might
cover his head and my own. When the hail had passed, I looked on the tree
and not a single leaf was left on it, and the sky was blue and the sun
shining, while on the branches were perched birds of very kind, who sang a
song sweeter than any that has come to my ears, either before or since.</p>
<p>'Thus, Kai, I stood listening to the birds, when lo, a murmuring voice
approached me, saying:</p>
<p>'"O knight, what has brought thee hither? What evil have I done to thee,
that thou shouldest do so much to me, for in all my lands neither man nor
beast that met that shower has escaped alive." Then from the valley
appeared the knight on the black horse, grasping the lance with the black
pennon. Straightway we charged each other, and though I fought my best, he
soon overcame me, and I was thrown to the ground, while the knight seized
the bridle of my horse, and rode away with it, leaving me where I was,
without even despoiling me of my armour.</p>
<p>'Sadly did I go down the hill again, and when I reached the glade where
the black man was, I confess to thee, Kai, it was a marvel that I did not
melt into a liquid pool, so great was my shame. That night I slept at the
castle where I had been before, and I was bathed and feasted, and none
asked me how I had fared. The next morning when I arose I found a bay
horse saddled for me, and, girdling on my armour, I returned to my own
court. The horse is still in the stable, and I would not part with it for
any in Britain.</p>
<p>'But of a truth, Kai, no man ever confessed an adventure so much to his
own dishonour, and strange indeed it seems that none other man have I ever
met that knew of the black man, and the knight and the shower.'</p>
<p>'Would it not be well,' said Owen, 'to go and discover the place?'</p>
<p>'By the hand of my friend,' answered Kai, 'often dost thou utter that with
thy tongue which thou wouldest not make good with thy deeds.'</p>
<p>'In truth,' said Guenevere the queen, who had listened to the tale, 'thou
wert better hanged, Kai, than use such speech towards a man like Owen.'</p>
<p>'I meant nothing, lady,' replied Kai; 'thy praise of Owen is not greater
than mine.' And as he spoke Arthur awoke, and asked if he had not slept
for a little.</p>
<p>'Yes, lord,' answered Owen, 'certainly thou hast slept.'</p>
<p>'Is it time for us to go to meat?'</p>
<p>'It is, lord,' answered Owen.</p>
<p>Then the horn for washing themselves was sounded, and after that the king
and his household sat down to eat. And when they had finished, Owen left
them, and made ready his horse and his arms.</p>
<p>With the first rays of the sun he set forth, and travelled through deserts
and over mountains and across rivers, and all befell him which had
befallen Kynon, till he stood under the leafless tree listening to the
song of the birds. Then he heard the voice, and turning to look found the
knight galloping to meet him. Fiercely they fought till their lances were
broken, and then they drew their swords, and a blow from Owen cut through
the knight's helmet, and pierced his skull.</p>
<p>Feeling himself wounded unto death the knight fled, and Owen pursued him
till they came to a splendid castle. Here the knight dashed across the
bridge that spanned the moat, and entered the gate, but as soon as he was
safe inside, the drawbridge was pulled up and caught Owen's horse in the
middle, so that half of him was inside and half out, and Owen could not
dismount and knew not what to do.</p>
<p>While he was in this sore plight a little door in the castle gate opened,
and he could see a street facing him, with tall houses. Then a maiden with
curling hair of gold looked through the little door and bade Owen open the
gate.</p>
<p>'By my troth!' cried Owen, 'I can no more open it from here than thou art
able to set me free.'</p>
<p>'Well,' said she, 'I will do my best to release thee if thou wilt do as I
tell thee. Take this ring and put it on with the stone inside thy hand,
and close thy fingers tight, for as long as thou dost conceal it, it will
conceal thee. When the men inside have held counsel together, they will
come to fetch thee to thy death, and they will be much grieved not to find
thee. I will stand on the horse block yonder and thou canst see me though
I cannot see thee. Therefore draw near and place thy hand on my shoulder
and follow me wheresoever I go.'</p>
<p>Upon that she went away from Owen, and when the men came out from the
castle to seek him and did not find him they were sorely grieved, and they
returned to the castle.</p>
<p>Then Owen went to the maiden and placed his hand on her shoulder, and she
guided him to a large room, painted all over with rich colours, and
adorned with images of gold. Here she gave him meat and drink, and water
to wash with and garments to wear, and he lay down upon a soft bed, with
scarlet and fur to cover him, and slept gladly.</p>
<p>In the middle of the night he woke hearing a great outcry, and he jumped
up and clothed himself and went into the hall, where the maiden was
standing.</p>
<p>'What is it?' he asked, and she answered that the knight who owned the
castle was dead, and they were bearing his body to the church. Never had
Owen beheld such vast crowds, and following the dead knight was the most
beautiful lady in the world, whose cry was louder than the shout of the
men, or the braying of the trumpets. And Owen looked on her and loved her.</p>
<p>'Who is she?' he asked the damsel. 'That is my mistress, the countess of
the fountain, and the wife of him whom thou didst slay yesterday.'</p>
<p>'Verily,' said Owen, 'she is the woman that I love best.'</p>
<p>'She shall also love thee not a little,' said the maiden.</p>
<p>Then she left Owen, and after a while went into the chamber of her
mistress, and spoke to her, but the countess answered her nothing.</p>
<p>'What aileth thee, mistress?' inquired the maiden.</p>
<p>'Why hast thou kept far from me in my grief, Luned?' answered the
countess, and in her turn the damsel asked:</p>
<p>'Is it well for thee to mourn so bitterly for the dead, or for anything
that is gone from thee?'</p>
<p>'There is no man in the world equal to him,' replied the countess, her
cheeks growing red with anger. 'I would fain banish thee for such words.'</p>
<p>'Be not angry, lady,' said Luned, 'but listen to my counsel. Thou knowest
well that alone thou canst not preserve thy lands, therefore seek some one
to help thee.'</p>
<p>'And how can I do that?' asked the countess.</p>
<p>'I will tell thee,' answered Luned. 'Unless thou canst defend the fountain
all will be lost, and none can defend the fountain except a knight of
Arthur's court. There will I go to seek him, and woe betide me if I return
without a warrior that can guard the fountain, as well as he who kept it
before.'</p>
<p>'Go then,' said the countess, 'and make proof of that which thou hast
promised.'</p>
<p>So Luned set out, riding on a white palfrey, on pretence of journeying to
King Arthur's court, but instead of doing that she hid herself for as many
days as it would have taken her to go and come, and then she left her
hiding-place, and went into the countess.</p>
<p>'What news from the court?' asked her mistress, when she had given Luned a
warm greeting.</p>
<p>'The best of news,' answered the maiden, 'for I have gained the object of
my mission. When wilt thou that I present to thee the knight who has
returned with me?'</p>
<p>'To-morrow at midday,' said the countess, 'and I will cause all the people
in the town to come together.'</p>
<p>Therefore the next day at noon Owen put on his coat of mail, and over it
he wore a splendid mantle, while on his feet were leather shoes fastened
with clasps of gold. And he followed Luned to the chamber of her mistress.</p>
<p>Right glad was the countess to see them, but she looked closely at Owen
and said:</p>
<p>'Luned, this knight has scarcely the air of a traveller.'</p>
<p>'What harm is there in that, lady?' answered Luned.</p>
<p>'I am persuaded,' said the countess, 'that this man and no other chased
the soul from the body of my lord.'</p>
<p>'Had he not been stronger than thy lord,' replied the damsel, 'he could
not have taken his life, and for that, and for all things that are past,
there is no remedy.'</p>
<p>'Leave me, both of you,' said the countess, 'and I will take counsel.'</p>
<p>Then they went out.</p>
<p>The next morning the countess summoned her subjects to meet in the
courtyard of the castle, and told them that now that her husband was dead
there was none to defend her lands.</p>
<p>'So choose you which it shall be,' she said. 'Either let one of you take
me for a wife, or give me your consent to take a new lord for myself, that
my lands be not without a master.'</p>
<p>At her words the chief men of the city withdrew into one corner and took
counsel together, and after a while the leader came forward and said that
they had decided that it was best, for the peace and safety of all, that
she should choose a husband for herself. Thereupon Owen was summoned to
her presence, and he accepted with joy the hand that she offered him, and
they were married forthwith, and the men of the earldom did him homage.</p>
<p>From that day Owen defended the fountain as the earl before him had done,
and every knight that came by was overthrown by him, and his ransom
divided among his barons. In this way three years passed, and no man in
the world was more beloved than Owen.</p>
<p>Now at the end of the three years it happened that Gwalchmai the knight
was with Arthur, and he perceived the king to be very sad.</p>
<p>'My lord, has anything befallen thee?' he asked.</p>
<p>'Oh, Gwalchmai, I am grieved concerning Owen, whom I have lost these three
years, and if a fourth year passes without him I can live no longer. And
sure am I that the tale told by Kynon the son of Clydno caused me to lose
him. I will go myself with the men of my household to avenge him if he is
dead, to free him if he is in prison, to bring him back if he is alive.'</p>
<p>Then Arthur and three thousand men of his household set out in quest of
Owen, and took Kynon for their guide. When Arthur reached the castle, the
youths were shooting in the same place, and the same yellow man was
standing by, and as soon as he beheld Arthur he greeted him and invited
him in, and they entered together. So vast was the castle that the king's
three thousand men were of no more account than if they had been twenty.</p>
<p>At sunrise Arthur departed thence, with Kynon for his guide, and reached
the black man first, and afterwards the top of the wooded hill, with the
fountain and the bowl and the tree.</p>
<p>'My lord,' said Kai, 'let me throw the water on the slab, and receive the
first adventure that may befall.'</p>
<p>'Thou mayest do so,' answered Arthur, and Kai threw the water.</p>
<p>Immediately all happened as before; the thunder and the shower of hail
which killed many of Arthur's men; the song of the birds and the
appearance of the black knight. And Kai met him and fought him, and was
overthrown by him. Then the knight rode away, and Arthur and his men
encamped where they stood.</p>
<p>In the morning Kai again asked leave to meet the knight and to try to
overcome him, which Arthur granted. But once more he was unhorsed, and the
black knight's lance broke his helmet and pierced the skin even to the
bone, and humbled in spirit he returned to the camp.</p>
<p>After this every one of the knights gave battle, but none came out victor,
and at length there only remained Arthur himself and Gwalchmai.</p>
<p>'Oh, let me fight him, my lord,' cried Gwalchmai, as he saw Arthur taking
up his arms.</p>
<p>'Well, fight then,' answered Arthur, and Gwalchmai threw a robe over
himself and his horse, so that none knew him. All that day they fought,
and neither was able to throw the other, and so it was on the next day. On
the third day the combat was so fierce that they fell both to the ground
at once, and fought on their feet, and at last the black knight gave his
foe such a blow on his head that his helmet fell from his face.</p>
<p>'I did not know it was thee, Gwalchmai,' said the black knight. 'Take my
sword and my arms.'</p>
<p>'No,' answered Gwalchmai, 'it is thou, Owen, who art the victor, take thou
my sword'; but Owen would not.</p>
<p>'Give me your swords,' said Arthur from behind them, 'for neither of you
has vanquished the other,' and Owen turned and put his arms round Arthur's
neck.</p>
<p>The next day Arthur would have given orders to his men to make ready to go
back whence they came, but Owen stopped him.</p>
<p>'My lord,' he said, 'during the three years that I have been absent from
thee I have been preparing a banquet for thee, knowing full well that thou
wouldst come to seek me. Tarry with me, therefore, for a while, thou and
thy men.'</p>
<p>So they rode to the castle of the countess of the fountain, and spent
three months in resting and feasting. And when it was time for them to
depart Arthur besought the countess that she would allow Owen to go with
him to Britain for the space of three months. With a sore heart she
granted permission, and so content was Owen to be once more with his old
companions that three years instead of three months passed away like a
dream.</p>
<p>One day Owen sat at meat in the castle of Caerleon upon Usk, when a damsel
on a bay horse entered the hall, and riding straight up to the place where
Owen sat she stooped and drew the ring from off his hand.</p>
<p>'Thus shall be treated the traitor and the faithless,' said she, and
turning her horse's head she rode out of the hall.</p>
<p>At her words Owen remembered all that he had forgotten, and sorrowful and
ashamed he went to his own chamber and made ready to depart. At the dawn
he set out, but he did not go back to the castle, for his heart was heavy,
but he wandered far into wild places till his body was weak and thin, and
his hair was long. The wild beasts were his friends, and he slept by their
side, but in the end he longed to see the face of a man again, and he came
down into a valley and fell asleep by a lake in the lands of a widowed
countess.</p>
<p>Now it was the time when the countess took her walk, attended by her
maidens, and when they saw a man lying by the lake they shrank back in
terror, for he lay so still that they thought he was dead. But when they
had overcome their fright, they drew near him, and touched him, and saw
that there was life in him. Then the countess hastened to the castle, and
brought from it a flask full of precious ointment and gave it to one of
her maidens.</p>
<p>'Take that horse which is grazing yonder,' she said, 'and a suit of men's
garments, and place them near the man, and pour some of this ointment near
his heart. If there is any life in him that will bring it back. But if he
moves, hide thyself in the bushes near by, and see what he does.'</p>
<p>The damsel took the flask and did her mistress' bidding. Soon the man
began to move his arms, and then rose slowly to his feet. Creeping forward
step by step he took the garments from off the saddle and put them on him,
and painfully he mounted the horse. When he was seated the damsel came
forth and greeted him, and glad was he when he saw her and inquired what
castle that was before him.</p>
<p>'It belongs to a widowed countess,' answered the maiden. 'Her husband left
her two earldoms, but it is all that remains of her broad lands, for they
have been torn from her by a young earl, because she would not marry him.'</p>
<p>'That is a pity,' replied Owen, but he said no more, for he was too weak
to talk much. Then the maiden guided him to the castle, and kindled a
fire, and brought him food. And there he stayed and was tended for three
months, till he was handsomer than ever he was.</p>
<p>At noon one day Owen heard a sound of arms outside the castle, and he
asked of the maiden what it was.</p>
<p>'It is the earl of whom I spoke to thee,' she answered, 'who has come with
a great host to carry off my mistress.'</p>
<p>'Beg of her to lend me a horse and armour,' said Owen, and the maiden did
so, but the countess laughed somewhat bitterly as she answered:</p>
<p>'Nay, but I will give them to him, and such a horse and armour and weapons
as he has never had yet, though I know not what use they will be to him.
Yet mayhap it will save them from falling into the hands of my enemies.'</p>
<p>The horse was brought out and Owen rode forth with two pages behind him,
and they saw the great host encamped before them.</p>
<p>'Where is the earl?' said he, and the pages answered:</p>
<p>'In yonder troop where are four yellow standards.'</p>
<p>'Await me,' said Owen, 'at the gate of the castle, and he cried a
challenge to the earl, who came to meet him. Hard did they fight, but Owen
overthrew his enemy and drove him in front to the castle gate and into the
hall.</p>
<p>'Behold the reward of thy blessed balsam,' said he, as he bade the earl
kneel down before her, and made him swear that he would restore all that
he had taken from her.</p>
<p>After that he departed, and went into the deserts, and as he was passing
through a wood he heard a loud yelling. Pushing aside the bushes he beheld
a lion standing on a great mound, and by it a rock. Near the rock was a
lion seeking to reach the mound, and each time he moved out darted a
serpent from the rock to prevent him. Then Owen unsheathed his sword, and
cut off the serpent's head and went on his way, and the lion followed and
played about him, as if he had been a greyhound. And much more useful was
he than a greyhound, for in the evening he brought large logs in his mouth
to kindle a fire, and killed a fat buck for dinner.</p>
<p>Owen made his fire and skinned the buck, and put some of it to roast, and
gave the rest to the lion for supper. While he was waiting for the meat to
cook he heard a sound of deep sighing close to him, and he said:</p>
<p>'Who are thou?'</p>
<p>'I am Luned,' replied a voice from a cave so hidden by bushes and green
hanging plants that Owen had not seen it.</p>
<p>'And what dost thou here?' cried he.</p>
<p>'I am held captive in this cave on account of the knight who married the
countess and left her, for the pages spoke ill of him, and because I told
them that no man living was his equal they dragged me here and said I
should die unless he should come to deliver me by a certain day, and that
is no further than the day after to-morrow. His name is Owen the son of
Urien, but I have none to send to tell him of my danger, or of a surety he
would deliver me.'</p>
<p>Owen held his peace, but gave the maiden some of the meat, and bade her be
of good cheer. Then, followed by the lion, he set out for a great castle
on the other side of the plain, and men came and took his horse and placed
it in a manger, and the lion went after and lay down on the straw.
Hospitable and kind were all within the castle, but so full of sorrow that
it might have been thought death was upon them. At length, when they had
eaten and drunk, Owen prayed the earl to tell him the reason of their
grief.</p>
<p>'Yesterday,' answered the earl, 'my two sons were seized, while thy were
hunting, by a monster who dwells on those mountains yonder, and he vows
that he will not let them go unless I give him my daughter to wife.'</p>
<p>'That shall never be,' said Owen; 'but what form hath this monster?'</p>
<p>'In shape he is a man, but in stature he is a giant,' replied the earl,
'and it were better by far that he should slay my sons than that I should
give up my daughter.'</p>
<p>Early next morning the dwellers in the castle were awakened by a great
clamour, and they found that the giant had arrived with the two young men.
Swiftly Owen put on his armour and went forth to meet the giant, and the
lion followed at his heels. And when the great beast beheld the hard blows
which the giant dealt his master he flew at his throat, and much trouble
had the monster in beating him off.</p>
<p>'Truly,' said the giant, 'I should find no difficulty in fighting thee, if
it were not for that lion.' When he heard that Owen felt shame that he
could not overcome the giant with his own sword, so he took the lion and
shut him up in one of the towers of the castle, and returned to the fight.
But from the sound of the blows the lion knew that the combat was going
ill for Owen, so he climbed up till he reached the top of the tower, where
there was a door on to the roof, and from the tower he sprang on to the
walls, and from the walls to the ground. Then with a loud roar he leaped
upon the giant, who fell dead under the blow of his paw.</p>
<p>Now the gloom of the castle was turned into rejoicing, and the earl begged
Owen to stay with him till he could make him a feast, but the knight said
he had other work to do, and rode back to the place where he had left
Luned, and the lion followed at his heels. When he came there he saw a
great fire kindled, and two youths leading out the maiden to cast her upon
the pile.</p>
<p>'Stop!' he cried, dashing up to them. 'What charge have you against her?'</p>
<p>'She boasted that no man in the world was equal to Owen,' said they, 'and
we shut her in a cave, and agreed that none should deliver her but Owen
himself, and that if he did not come by a certain day she should die. And
now the time has past and there is no sign of him.'</p>
<p>'In truth he is a good knight, and had he but known that the maid was in
peril he would have come to save her,' said Owen; 'but accept me in his
stead, I entreat you.'</p>
<p>'We will,' replied they, and the fight began.</p>
<p>The youths fought well and pressed hard on Owen, and when the lion saw
that he came to help his master. But the youths made a sign for the fight
to stop, and said:</p>
<p>'Chieftain, it was agreed we should give battle to thee alone, and it is
harder for us to contend with yonder beast than with thee.'</p>
<p>Then Owen shut up the lion in the cave where the maiden had been in
prison, and blocked up the front with stones. But the fight with the giant
had sorely tried him, and the youths fought well, and pressed him harder
than before. And when the lion saw that he gave a loud roar, and burst
through the stones, and sprang upon the youths and slew them. And so Luned
was delivered at the last.</p>
<p>Then the maiden rode back with Owen to the lands of the lady of the
fountain. And he took the lady with him to Arthur's court, where they
lived happily till they died.</p>
<p>From the 'Mabinogion.'</p>
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