Page:Sir Orfeo, adapted from the Middle English (IA sirorfeoadaptedf00hunt).pdf/23

 Yet from their circle, and unseen,
The woeful Heurodis was won.
 Alas! naught was where she had been,
And none could tell where she had gone.

Then there was wailing wild and dread;
 The king into his chamber went,
And oft he swooned upon her bed,
 And made such dole and such lament
 His very life was wellnigh spent
Ere he could find a space for words;
 Then woefully he rose, and sent
For all his barons, earls, and lords,

When they had come in solemn train,
 “My lords,” he said, “all ye have seen;
Hear now: my steward I ordain
 To rule throughout my broad demesne.
 He shall be lord as I have been,
And I must wander hence forlorn,
 For I have lost the fairest queen
And sweetest lady ever born.

[11]