sir, said Aries, this desire
cometh of my son and not of me, for I shall tell you I have thirteen
sons, and all they will fall to what labour I put them, and will be
right glad to do labour, but this child will not labour for me, for
anything that my wife or I may do, but always he will be shooting or
casting darts, and glad for to see battles and to behold knights, and
always day and night he desireth of me to be made a knight. What is thy
name? said the king unto the young man. Sir, my name is Tor. The king
beheld him fast, and saw he was passingly well-visaged and passingly
well made of his years. Well, said King Arthur unto Aries the cowherd,
fetch all thy sons afore me that I may see them. And so the poor man
did, and all were shaped much like the poor man. But Tor was not like
none of them all in shape nor in countenance, for he was much more than
any of them. Now, said King Arthur unto the cow herd, where is the sword
he shall be made knight withal? It is here, said Tor. Take it out of the
sheath, said the king, and require me to make you a knight.

Then Tor alighted off his mare and pulled out his sword, kneeling, and
requiring the king that he would make him knight, and that he might be
a knight of the Table Round. As for a knight I will make you, and
therewith smote him in the neck with the sword, saying, Be ye a good
knight, and so I pray to God so ye may be, and if ye be of prowess and
of worthiness ye shall be a knight of the Table Round. Now Merlin, said
Arthur, say whether this Tor shall be a good knight or no. Yea, sir,
he ought to be a good knight, for he is come of as good a man as any
is alive, and of kings' blood. How so, sir? said the king. I shall tell
you, said Merlin: This poor man, Aries the cowherd, is not his father;
he is nothing sib to him, for King Pellinore is his father. I suppose
nay, said the cowherd. Fetch thy wife afore me, said Merlin, and
she shall not say nay. Anon the wife was fetched, which was a fair
housewife, and there she answered Merlin full womanly, and there she
told the king and Merlin that when she was a maid, and went to milk
kine, there met with her a stern knight, and half by force he had my
maidenhead, and at that time he begat my son Tor, and he took away from
me my greyhound that I had that time with me, and said that he would
keep the greyhound for my love. Ah, said the cowherd, I weened not this,
but I may believe it well, for he had never no tatches of me. Sir,