l was left empty, with its shields
glimmering in the moonlight.

[Illustration: The Knight with the Sword]

[Illustration] THE DEATH OF ARTHUR

King Arthur's Round Table had lasted many years, and the knights
had done much to help the people of the country; yet there were
traitors to the king among his own subjects. One of these
traitors made war in a distant part of the kingdom, and Arthur
went with most of his knights to punish him. His nephew, Sir
Modred, the brother of Sir Gawain and Sir Gareth, ruled in his
stead at Camelot.

Now Sir Modred was a wicked knight. He hated the king and the
queen, and Sir Lancelot. Since King Arthur was absent a long
time, Sir Modred had the opportunity of doing much harm. He let
evil go unpunished; he allowed bad customs to come into the
country; and at last he raised a rebellion against the good
king.

When Arthur returned to Camelot to quell this rebellion, he had
lost many of his faithful knights. Sir Hector was dead, and Sir
Ulfius and Sir Brastias; Sir Kay was dead, and Sir Bors, and Sir
Gawain. Sir Lancelot was far away. Sir Bedivere alone remained of
those who had been with Arthur since he had first ruled in Wales
and Britain.

The king and Sir Bedivere, with the help of such knights as still
were faithful, tried to put down those rebels. They drove the
traitors back until they came at length to Lyonnesse by the sea.
Here the last great battle took place.

The night before the battle, Sir Bedivere heard the king praying.
Then Arthur slept, and when he awakened he called to his friend:

"Sir Bedivere," he said, "I have had a dream. I thought that Sir
Gawain came to me and told me that to-morrow I shall die."

"My lord, it is but a dream," answered Sir Bedivere. "You are
great; you have done much good which will last forever, and you
will live many years yet to perform many gracious acts. The day
will soon dawn, and you will win the battle."

Arthur shook his head.

"This is not like my other battles. I have no heart for it. It is
hard to slay my own people, even if they are traitors."

Day came, but no sun. A cold white mist lay over land and sea. It
chilled the knights to the bone. And when the battle began, the
mist was so thick that no one could see with whom he was
fighting. Friends slew each other, not knowing whom they killed.
Some could not fight at all, for it seemed to them that those
moving on the battle-field were ghosts of warriors long sinc