“The princess Linor shall be thine,
And all the country fair
Of Léon I bestow for dower;
This, by my race, I swear.
“Do but the thing which I demand,
(And this the last shall be:)
To celebrate the marriage, bring
Bard Merlin unto me.”
VII.
“O Merlin, Bard, alone, forlorn,
With all thy garments soiled and torn:
O Merlin, Bard, whence comest thou,
With weary step, with clouded brow,
Bareheaded and barefooted? Say;
And whither wouldst thou wend thy way?
Thy holly staff can barely stay
Thy bending form, thou Druid gray.”
“Alas! To seek my harp I go:
Best solace that my heart can know
In this world. I am wandering
To seek my harp, to seek my ring:
Both have I lost: no more I sing,
But wearily am wandering.”
“Nay, then, O Merlin, grieve not so;
Yet shalt thou find thy harp, I trow:
Thy harp and eke thy golden ring;
So cease awhile thy wandering.
Enter, O Bard, and rest thee here,
And taste a morsel of my cheer.”
“Nay, pray me not: I will not stay,
Nor pause upon my weary way;
I will not cease my painful quest,
I will not eat, I will not rest,
Until I seek no more in vain:
Until my harp I find again.”
“Hear me, O Merlin, and obey:
In sooth, thou wilt not long delay
Thy harp to find. Come in, I pray,
A little space, nor say me nay.”