Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 18, 1907.djvu/70

42 Owain follows Luned into a beautiful chamber, where he is feasted and put to sleep by her. At daybreak he witnesses the funeral procession of the knight whom he has slain and falls in love with the knight's lady. Luned describes her as 'the fairest, and the most chaste, and the most liberal, and the wisest, and the most noble of women,' but gives her no name but the Countess of the Fountain. While Owain sleeps again, Luned goes to woo the Countess for him. At first the Countess resents her words. But Luned argues as follows: 'Unless thou canst defend the fountain, thou canst not maintain thy dominions; and no one can defend the fountain except it be a knight of Arthur's household; and I will go to Arthur's Court, and ill betide me if I return thence without a warrior who can guard the fountain, as well as, or even better than, he who defended it formerly.' The Countess bids her go. She returns with Owain. The Countess detects in him the slayer of her lord. 'So much the better for thee, lady,' says Luned, 'for had he not been stronger than thy lord he could not have deprived him of life.' The Countess, having taken counsel of her assembled subjects, then marries Owain. And thenceforward, we read, 'Owain defended the fountain with lance and sword. And this is the manner in which he defended it: whensoever a knight came there he overthrew him, and sold him for his full worth, and what he thus gained he divided among his barons and his knights; and no man in the whole world could be more beloved than he was by his subjects. And it was thus for the space of three years.'

At the end of that time Arthur and his household, guided by Kynon, set out to seek for Owain. They too come to the hospitable host, the giant, and a black knight. Kai obtains leave to essay the adventure, but is overthrown. Next day he tries again, but again is overthrown and sore wounded. After that, the whole household, man by man, attacks the knight with a like result. Gwalchmai and Arthur alone remain. Arthur is arming himself for the fray, when Gwalchmai begs permission to attempt the combat before him. Arthur consents; and all that day until the evening Gwalchmai and the black knight fight without either unhorsing the other. On the morrow they fight again with equal fortune. On the third day at noon they both are thrown, but rise and renew the struggle with swords till fire flashes from their weapons. One of O wain's blows discloses Gwalchmai's face. They recognise each other amid great rejoicings. The day following all repair to the castle of the Countess of the Fountain, where they are entertained with a banquet of three months' duration.

Arthur now induces the Countess to allow Owain to go with him to the Island of Britain. She gives him leave of absence for three months. But he stays away for three years. One day, as he sits at meat in Caerlleon upon Usk a damsel rides up to him and, with taunting words, takes the ring from his finger. Owain then remembers his promise and roams the mountains in distress, feeding familiarly with wild beasts till he becomes too weak to bear them company. A widowed countess and her maidens find him exhausted in their park. The countess bids one of the