THE FOREST A ROMANCE BY MAURICE HEWLETT NEW YORK CHARLES SCRIBNERS SONS 1927 Att rieUl revntt COPYRIGHT, 1898, BY MAURICE HEWLETT Set up and electron ped May, 1S98 Reprinted June twice, September twice, October, 1898. Febniary, 1899 Special edi tion, March, 1899 Regular edition, July, November, 1899 March, September, 1901, October, 1903, May, September, 1905 October, 1905, Jjne, lOOCj January, 1907, September, 1909 November, 1910, December. 1912. August. 1915, January, 19 IS September, 1919, January, 1921, May, 1923, December, 1924 March, 1927 Illustrated Edition prmtecl October, 1909 Printed in the United States of America To MRS. W. K CLIFFORD WITH THE AUTHORS HOMAGE CONTENTS CHAFTEB VAGI I. PROSPER LE GAI RIDES OUT I H. MORGRAUNT, AND A DEAD KNIGHT . . .12 HI. HOLY THORN AND HOLY CHURCH . - . . .22 IV. DOM GALORS 28 V. LA DESIROUS ....... 35 VI. THE VIRGIN MARRIAGE 48 TO, GALORS ABJURES 65 vm. THE SALLY AT DAWN 72 IX, THE BLOOD-CHASE AND THE LOVE-CHASE . . 89 X. FOREST ALMS 98 XI. SANCTUARY . 107 XIL BROKEN SANCTUARY 11 X1H. HIGH MARCH, AND A GREAT LADY . . 127 XIV. A RECORDER I5 XV. THREE AT TORTSENTDER 153 XVI. BOY AND GIRL ....... 173 xvn. ROY 185 xvm. BOYS LOVE 200 XDC, LADYS LOVE 210 XX. HOW PROSPER HELD A REVIEW .... 222 XXI. HOW THE NARRATIVE SMACKS AGAIN OF THE SOIL . 235 GALORS CONQUSSTOR 243 vii viii CONTENTS CHAPTER PACK XXm. FALVE THE CHARCOAL-BURNER . . . 256 XXIV. SECRET THINGS AT HAUTEMVK, . .265 XXV. THE ROAD TO GOLTRES 276 XXVI. GUESS-WORK AT GOLTRES 282 XXVII. GALORS RIDES HUNTING . r . 297 XXVm. MERCY WITH THE BEASTS 302 XXIX. WANMEETING CRIES, HA SAINT JAMES ., 3 II XXX. THE CHAINED VIRGIN OF SAINT THORN . 3 2 3 XXXI. ENTRA PER ME 332 xxxn. BIDE THE TIME 340XXXIU. SALOMON IS DRIVEN HOME. . . - 35 1 XXXIV. LA D SIR E . . . 361 XXXV. FOREST LOVE ., ., . 365 XXXVI. THE LADY PIETOSA DE BRfiAUTE . . . 372 THE FOREST LOVERS CHAPTER I PROSPER LE GAI RIDES OUT MY story will take you into times and spaces alike rude and uncivil. Blood will be spilt, virgins suffer distresses the horn will sound through woodland glades dogs, wolves, deer, and men, Beauty and the Beasts, will tumble each other, seeking life or death with their proper tools. There should be mad work, not devoid of entertainment When you read the word Explicit if you have laboured so far, you will know something of Morgraunt Forest and the Countess Isabel the Abbot of Holy Thorn will have postured and schemed with you behind the arras you will have wandered with Isoult and will know why she was called La Desirous, with Prosper le Gai, and will understand how a man may fall in love with his own wife. Finally, of Galors and his affairs, of the great difference there may be between a Christian and the brutes, of love and hate, grudging and open humour, faith and works, cloisters and thoughts uncloistered all in the green wood you will know as much 2 THE FOREST LOVERS ca as I do if you have cared to follow the argument. I hope you will not ask me what it all means, or what the moral of it is. I rank myself with the historian in this business of tale-telling, and consider that my sole affair is to hunt the argu ment dispassionately. Your romancer must be neither a lover of his heroine nor as the fashion now sets of his chief rascal. He must affect a genial height, that of a jigger of strings and his attitude should be that of the Pulpiteer Heaven help you, gentlemen, but I know what is bestfor you Leave everything to me. It is related of Prosper le Gai, that when his brother Malise, Baron of Starning and Parrox, showed him the door of their fathers house, and showed it with a meaning not to be mistaken, he stuck a sprig of green holly in his cap. He put on his armour his horse and sword also he took he was for the wilds. Baron Jocelyns soul, the priests reported, was with God his body lay indubitably under a black effigy in Starning Church...