The Well at the World's End: A Tale

by William Morris

  CHAPTER 29

  Of Goldburg and the Queen Thereof

  On the morrow, when Ralph and Clement met in the hall, Clement spakeand said: "Lord Ralph, as I told thee in Whitwall, we chapmen are nowat the end of our outward journey, and in about twenty days time weshall turn back to the mountains; but, as I deem, thou wilt be mindedto follow up thy quest of the damsel, and whatsoever else thou mayst beseeking. Now this thou mayst well do whiles we are here in Goldburg,and yet come back hither in time to fare back with us: and also, ifthou wilt, thou mayst have fellows in thy quest, to wit some of thoseour men-at-arms, who love thee well. But now, when thou hast done thybest these days during, if thou hast then found naught, I counsel theeand beseech thee to come thy ways back with us, that we twain may wendto Upmeads together, where thou shalt live well, and better all thedeeds of thy father. Meseemeth this will be more meet for thee thanthe casting away of thy life in seeking a woman, who maybe will benaught to thee when thou hast found her; or in chasing some castle inthe clouds, that shall be never the nigher to thee, how far soever thoufarest. For now I tell thee that I have known this while how thou artseeking the Well at the World's End; and who knoweth that there is anysuch thing on the earth? Come, then, thou art fair, and young, andstrong; and if ye seek wealth thou shalt have it, and my furtherance tothe utmost, if that be aught worth. Bethink thee, child, there arethey that love thee in Upmeads and thereabout, were it but thy gossip,my wife, dame Katherine."

  Said Ralph: "Master Clement, I thank thee for all that thou hast said,and thy behest, and thy deeds. Thy rede is good, and in all ways willI follow it save one; to wit, that if I have not found the damsel ereye turn back, I must needs abide in this land searching for her. And Ipray the pardon both of thee and of thy gossip, if I answer not yourlove as ye would, and perchance as I should. Yea, and of Upmeads alsoI crave pardon. But in doing as I do, my deed shall be but accordingto the duty bounden on me by mine oath, when Duke Osmond made me knightlast year, in the church of St. Laurence of Upmeads."

  Said Clement: "I see that there is something else in it than that; Isee thee to be young, and that love and desire bind thee in closerbonds than thy knightly oath. Well, so it must be, and till thou hasther, there is but one woman in the world for thee."

  "Nay, it is not so, Master Clement," said Ralph, "and I will tell theethis, so that thou mayst trow my naysay; since I departed from Upmeads,I have been taken in the toils of love, and desired a fair woman, and Ihave won her and death hath taken her. Trowest thou my word?"

  "Yea," said Clement, "but to one of thy years love is not plucked up bythe root, and it soon groweth again." Then said Ralph, sadly: "Nowtell my gossip of this when thou comest home." Clement nodded yeasay,and Ralph spake again in a moment: "And now will I begin my search inGoldburg by praying thee to bring me to speech of merchants and otherswho may have seen or heard tidings of my damsel."

  He looked at Clement anxiously as he spoke; and Clement smiled, for hesaid to himself that looking into Ralph's heart on this matter was likelooking into a chamber through an open window. But he said: "Fear notbut I will look to it; I am thy friend, and not thy schoolmaster."

  Therewith he departed from Ralph, and within three days he had broughthim to speech of all those who were like to know anything of thematter; and one and all they said that they had seen no such woman, andthat as for the Lord of Utterbol, he had not been in Goldburg thesethree months. But one of the merchants said: "Master Clement, if thisyoung knight is boun for Utterbol, he beareth his life in his hand, asthou knowest full well. Now I rede thee bring him to our Queen, who isgood and compassionate, and if she may not help him otherwise, yetbelike she may give him in writing to show to that tyrant, which maystand him in stead: for it does not do for any man to go against thewill of our Lady and Queen; who will surely pay him back for hisill-will some day or other." Said Clement: "It is well thought of, andI will surely do as thou biddest."

  So wore four days, and, that time during, Ralph was going to and froasking questions of folk that he came across, as people new come to thecity and hunters from the mountain-feet and the forests of the plain,and mariners and such like, concerning the damsel and the Lord ofUtterbol; and Bull also went about seeking tidings: but whereas Ralphasked downright what he wanted to know, Bull was wary, and rather ledmen on to talk with him concerning those things than asked them of themin such wise that they saw the question. Albeit it was all one, and notidings came to them; indeed, the name of the Lord of Utterbol (whomforsooth Bull named not) seemed to freeze the speech of men's tongues,and they commonly went away at once when it was spoken.

  On the fifth day came Clement to Ralph and said: "Now will I bring theeto the Queen, and she is young, and so fair, and withal so wise, thatit seems to me not all so sure but that the sight of her will make anend of thy quest once for all. So that meseems thou mayest abide herein a life far better than wandering amongst uncouth folk, perilous andcruel. Yea, so thou mayst have it if thou wilt, being so exceedinggoodly, and wise, and well-spoken, and of high lineage."

  Ralph heard and reddened, but gave him back no answer; and they wenttogether to the High House of the Queen, which was like a piece of theKingdom of Heaven for loveliness, so many pillars as there were ofbright marble stone, and gilded, and the chapiters carved mostexcellently: not many hangings on the walls, for the walls themselveswere carven, and painted with pictures in the most excellent manner;the floors withal were so dainty that they seemed as if they were madefor none but the feet of the fairest of women. And all this was setamidst of gardens, the like of which they had never seen.

  But they entered without more ado, and were brought by the pages to theLady's innermost chamber; and if the rest of the house were goodly,this was goodlier, and a marvel, so that it seemed wrought rather bygoldsmiths and jewellers than by masons and carvers. Yet indeed manyhad said with Clement that the Queen who sat there was the goodliestpart thereof.

  Now she spake to Clement and said: "Hail, merchant! Is this the youngknight of whom thou tellest, he who seeketh his beloved that hath beenborne away into thralldom by evil men?"

  "Even so," said Clement. But Ralph spake: "Nay, Lady, the damsel whomI seek is not my beloved, but my friend. My beloved is dead."

  The Queen looked on him smiling kindly, yet was her face somewhattroubled. She said: "Master chapman, thy time here is not over longfor all that thou hast to do; so we give thee leave to depart with ourthanks for bringing a friend to see us. But this knight hath noaffairs to look to: so if he will abide with us for a little, it willbe our pleasure."

  So Clement made his obeisance and went his ways. But the Queen badeRalph sit before her, and tell her of his griefs, and she looked sokindly and friendly upon him that the heart melted within him, and hemight say no word, for the tears that brake out from him, and he weptbefore her; while she looked on him, the colour coming and going in herface, and her lips trembling, and let him weep on. But he thought notof her, but of himself and how kind she was to him. But after a whilehe mastered his passion and began, and told her all he had done andsuffered. Long was the tale in the telling, for it was sweet to him tolay before her both his grief and his hope. She let him talk on, andwhiles she listened to him, and whiles, not, but all the time she gazedon him, yet sometimes askance, as if she were ashamed. As for him, hesaw her face how fair and lovely she was, yet was there little longingin his heart for her, more than for one of the painted women on thewall, for as kind and as dear as he deemed her.

  When he had done, she kept silence a while, but at last she enforcedher, and spake: "Sad it is for the mother that bore thee that thou artnot in her house, wherein all things would be kind and familiar tothee. Maybe thou art seeking for what is not. Or maybe thou shaltseek and shalt find, and there may be naught in what thou findest,whereof to give thee such gifts as are meet for thy faithfulness andvaliancy. But in thine home shouldst thou have all gifts which thoumayest desire."

  Then was she silent aw
hile, and then spake: "Yet must I needs say thatI would that thine home were in Goldburg."

  He smiled sadly and looked on her, but with no astonishment, and indeedhe still scarce thought of her as he said: "Lady and Queen, thou artgood to me beyond measure. Yet, look you! One home I had, and leftit; another I looked to have, and I lost it; and now I have no home.Maybe in days to come I shall go back to mine old home; and whiles Iwonder with what eyes it will look on me. For merry is that land, anddear; and I have become sorrowful."

  "Fear not," she said; "I say again that in thine home shall all thingslook kindly on thee."

  Once more she sat silent, and no word did his heart bid him speak.Then she sighed and said: "Fair lord, I bid thee come and go in thishouse as thou wilt; but whereas there are many folk who must needs seeme, and many things are appointed for me to do, therefore I pray theeto come hither in three days' space, and meanwhile I will look to thematter of thy search, that I may speed thee on the way to Utterness,which is no great way from Utterbol, and is the last town whereof weknow aught. And I will write a letter for thee to give to the lord ofUtterbol, which he will heed, if he heedeth aught my good-will orenmity. I beseech thee come for it in three days wearing."

  Therewith she arose and took his hand and led him to the door, and hedeparted, blessing her goodness, and wondering at her courtesy andgentle speech.

  For those three days he was still seeking tidings everywhere, till folkbegan to know of him far and wide, and to talk of him. And at the timeappointed he went to the Queen's House and was brought to her chamberas before, and she was alone therein. She greeted him and smiled onhim exceeding kindly, but he might not fail to note of her that shelooked sad and her face was worn by sorrow. She bade him sit besideher, and said: "Hast thou any tidings of the woman whom thou seekest?""Nay, nay," said he, "and now I am minded to carry on the searchout-a-gates. I have some good friends who will go with me awhile. Butthou, Lady, hast thou heard aught?"

  "Naught of the damsel," she said. "But there is something else. AsClement told me, thou seekest the Well at the World's End, and throughUtterness and by Utterbol is a way whereby folk seek thither. Maystthou find it, and may it profit thee more than it did my kinsman ofold, who first raised up Goldburg in the wilderness. Whereas for himwas naught but strife and confusion, till he was slain in a quarrel,wherein to fail was to fail, and to win the day was to win shame andmisery."

  She looked on him sweetly and said: "Thou art nowise such as he; andif thou drink of the Well, thou wilt go back to Upmeads, and thy fatherand mother, and thine own folk and thine home. But now here is theletter which thou shalt give to the Lord of Utterbol if thou meet him;and mayhappen he is naught so evil a man as the tale of him runs."

  She gave him the letter into his hands, and spake again: "And now Ihave this to say to thee, if anything go amiss with thee, and thou benigh enough to seek to me, come hither, and then, in whatso plight thoumayst be, or whatsoever deed thou mayst have done, here will be theopen door for thee and the welcome of a friend."

  Her voice shook a little as she spake, and she was silent again,mastering her trouble. Then she said: "At last I must say this tothee, that there may no lie be between us. That damsel of whom thouspakest that she was but thy friend, and not thy love--O that I mightbe thy friend in such-wise! But over clearly I see that it may not beso. For thy mind looketh on thy deeds to come, that they shall beshared by some other than me. Friend, it seemeth strange and strangeto me that I have come on thee so suddenly, and loved thee so sorely,and that I must needs say farewell to thee in so short a while.Farewell, farewell!"

  Therewith she arose, and once more she took his hand in hers, and ledhim to the door. And he was sorry and all amazed: for he had notthought so much of her before, that he might see that she loved him;and he thought but that she, being happy and great, was kind to him whowas hapless and homeless. And he was bewildered by her words and soreashamed that for all his grief for her he had no speech, and scarce alook for her; he knew not what to do or say.

  So he left the Queen's House and the court thereof, as though thepavement were growing red hot beneath his feet.