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Title: Gawayne And The Green Knight
A Fairy Tale

Author: Charlton Miner Lewis

Release Date: December 21, 2004 [EBook #14410]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

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GAWAYNE AND
THE GREEN KNIGHT

A Fairy Tale

BY

CHARLTON MINER LEWIS

NEW HAVEN

YALE UNIVERSITY PRESS

MDCCCCXVI

COPYRIGHT, 1903, BY CHARLTON MINER LEWIS
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

_Published October, 1903_

_To_
_G.R.L._

CONTENTS

PREFACE 1
CANTO I--THE GREEN KNIGHT 5
CANTO II--ELFINHART 35
CANTO III--GAWAYNE 61
CANTO IV--CONCLUSION 93

PREFACE

PREFACE

Arms and the man I sing,--not as of old
The Mantuan bard his mighty verse unrolled,
But in such humbler strains as may beseem
Light changes rung on a fantastic theme.
My tale is ancient, but the sense is new,--
Replete with monstrous fictions, yet half true;--
And, if you'll follow till the story's done,
I promise much instruction, and some fun.

CANTO I

THE GREEN KNIGHT

CANTO I

THE GREEN KNIGHT

King Arthur and his court were blithe and gay
In high-towered Camelot, on Christmas day,
For all the Table Round were back again,
At peace with God and with their fellow-men.
Their shields hung idly on the pictured wall;
Their blood-stained banners decked the festal hall
Light footsteps, rustling on the rush-strewn floors,
And laughter, rippling down long corridors,
Attested minds at ease and hearts at play,--
Rude Mars unharnessed for love's holiday.
In the great hall the Christmas feast was done.
The level sunbeams from the setting sun
Stretched through the mullioned casements to the wall,
And wove fantastic shadows over all.
The revelry was hushed. In tranquil ease
The warriors grouped themselves by twos and threes
About the dames and damsels of the court,
And chattered careless words of small import;
But in an alcove, unobserved, apar