t their supper. Then there was great joy when news was brought
of his coming and they brought him in to the court and set him beside the
King and the Lady Guinevere all armed as he was. Then King Arthur said:
"Sir Launcelot, how is it with thee?" and Sir Launcelot said: "It is well."
Then King Arthur said: "Tell us what hath befallen thee." And Sir Launcelot
told all that had happened in that month since he had left court. And all
they who were there listened, and were much astonished.

But when Sir Launcelot told how he had encountered those seven knights, in
the armor of Sir Kay, all laughed beyond measure excepting those of the
seven who were there, for they took no very good grace to be laughed at in
that wise.

* * * * *

So now I hope I have made you acquainted with Sir Launcelot of the Lake,
who was the greatest knight in the world. For not only have I told you how
he was created a knight at the hands of King Arthur, but I have also led
you errant along with him, so that you might see for yourself how he
adventured his life for other folk and what a noble and generous gentleman
he was; and how pitiful to the weak and suffering, and how terrible to the
evil-doer. But now I shall have to leave him for a while (but after a while
in another book that shall follow this, I shall return to him to tell you a
great many things concerning other adventures of his), for meantime it is
necessary that I should recount the history of another knight, who was held
by many to be nearly as excellent a knight as Sir Launcelot was himself.

CONCLUSION

_Here endeth the story of Sir Launcelot. That which followeth is the story
of Sir Tristram of Lyonesse, who was knit with Sir Launcelot into such
close ties of friendship that if they had been brothers of the same blood,
with the same father and mother, they could not have loved one another more
than they did.

For indeed it would not be possible to tell any history of Sir Launcelot of
the Lake without telling that of Sir Tristram of Lyonesse as well, for as
the web of a fair fabric is woven in with the woof thereof, so were the
lives of Sir Launcelot and Sir Tristram woven closely together.

Wherefore you shall now hear tell of the goodly adventures of Sir Tristram
of Lyonesse; and God grant that you may have the same joy in reading
thereof that I shall have in telling of them to you._

The Book of Sir Tristram

[Illustration: Sir Tr