u are
afraid, then come forth and yield yourself my thrall."

[Illustration: "The King blew a loud note on his bugle"]

The churlish giant darted out at the summons, brandishing his massive
club, and rushed straight at King Arthur. The spell of the enchanted
ground seized the king at that moment, and his hand sank down. Down
fell his good sword Excalibur, down fell his shield, and he found
himself ignominiously helpless in the presence of his enemy.

The Ransom

Now the giant cried aloud: "Yield or fight, King Arthur; which will
you do? If you fight I shall conquer you, for you have no power to
resist me; you will be my prisoner, with no hope of ransom, will lose
your land and spend your life in my dungeon with many other brave
knights. If you yield I will hold you to ransom, but you must swear
to accept the terms I shall offer."

"What are they," asked King Arthur. The giant replied: "You must swear
solemnly, by the Holy Rood, that you will return here on New Year's
Day and bring me a true answer to the question, 'What thing is it that
all women most desire?' If you fail to bring the right answer your
ransom is not paid, and you are yet my prisoner. Do you accept my
terms?" The king had no alternative: so long as he stood on the
enchanted ground his courage was overborne by the spell and he could
only hold up his hand and swear by the Sacred Cross and by Our Lady
that he would return, with such answers as he could obtain, on New
Year's Day.

The King's Search

Ashamed and humiliated, the king rode away, but not back to
Carlisle--he would not return home till he had fulfilled his task; so
he rode east and west and north and south, and asked every woman and
maid he met the question the churlish knight had put to him. "What is
it all women most desire?" he asked, and all gave him different
replies: some said riches, some splendour, some pomp and state; others
declared that fine attire was women's chief delight, yet others voted
for mirth or flattery; some declared that a handsome lover was the
cherished wish of every woman's heart; and among them all the king
grew quite bewildered. He wrote down all the answers he received, and
sealed them with his own seal, to give to the churlish knight when he
returned to the Castle of Tarn Wathelan; but in his own heart King
Arthur felt that the true answer had not yet been given to him. He was
sad as he turned and rode towards the giant's home on New Year's Day,
for he