The Salvage serves Serena well,
Till she Prince Arthure fynd;
Who her, together with his Squyre,
With th' Hermit leaves behynd.
WHAT an easie thing is to descry
The gentle bloud, however it be wrapt
In sad misfortunes foule deformity
And wretched sorrowes, which have often hapt!
For howsoever it may grow mis-shapt,
Like this Wyld Man being undisciplynd,
That to all vertue it may seeme unapt;
Yet will it shew some sparkes of gentle mynd,
And at the last breake forth in his owne proper kynd.
That plainely may in this Wyld Man be red,
Who, though he were still in this desert wood,
Mongst salvage beasts, both rudely borne and bred,
Ne ever saw faire guize, ne learned good,
Yet shewd some token of his gentle blood
By gentle usage of that wretched Dame:
For certes he was borne of noble blood,
However by hard hap he hether came;
As ye may know, when time shall be to tell the same.
Who, whenas now long time he lacked had
The good Sir Calepine, that farre was strayd,
Did wexe exceeding sorrowfull and sad,
As he of some misfortune were afrayd;
And, leaving there this Ladie all dismayd,
Went forth streightway into the forrest wyde
To seeke if he perchance asleep were layd,
Or whatso else were unto him betyde:
He sought him farre and neare, yet him no where he spyde.
Tho, backe returning to that sorie Dame,
He shewed semblant of exceeding mone
By speaking signes, as he them best could frame,
Now wringing both his wretched hands in one,
Now beating his hard head upon a stone,
That ruth it was to see him so lament:
By which she well perceiving what was done,
Gan teare her hayre, and all her garments rent,
And beat her breast, and piteously herselfe torment.
Upon the ground herselfe she fiercely threw,
Regardlesse of her wounds yet bleeding rife,
That with their bloud did all the flore imbrew,
As if her breast new launcht with murdrous knife
Would streight dislodge the wretched wearie Life:
There she long groveling and deepe groning lay,
As if her vitall powers were at strife
With stronger Death, and feared their decay:
Such were this Ladies pangs and dolorous assay.
Whom when the Salvage saw so sore distrest,
He reared her up from the bloudie ground,
And sought, by all the meanes that he could best,
Her to recure out of that stony swound,
And staunch the bleeding of her dreary wound:
Yet nould she be recomforted for nought,
Nor cease her sorrow and impatient stound,
But day and night did vexe her carefull thought,
And ever more and more her owne affliction wrought.
At length, whenas no hope of his retourne
She saw now left, she cast to leave the place,
A nd wend abrode, though feeble and forlorne,
To seeke some comfort in that sorie case:
His steede, now strong through rest so long a space,
Well as she could she got, and did bedight;
And being thereon mounted forth did pace
Withouten guide her to conduct aright,
Or guard her to defend from bold oppressors might.
Whom when her Host saw readie to depart,
He would not suffer her alone to fare,
But gan himselfe addresse to take her part.
Those warlike armes, which Calepine whyleare
Had left behind, he gan eftsoones prepare,
And put them all about himself unfit,
His shield, his helmet, and his eurats bare,
But without sword upon his thigh to sit;
Sir Calepine himselfe away had hidden it.
So forth they traveld an uneven payre,
That mote to all men seeme an uncouth sight;
A Salvage Man matcht with a Ladie fayre
That rather seem'd the conquest of his might
Gotten by spoyle then purchaced aright:
But he did her attend most carefully,
And faithfully did serve both day and night
Withouten thought of shame or villeny,
Ne ever shewed signe of foule disloyalty.
Upon a day, as on their way they went,
It chaunst some furniture about her steed
To be disordred by some accident;
Which to redresse she did th' assistance need
Of this her Groome; which he by signes did reede; And streight his combrous armes aside did lay Upon the ground, withouten doubt or dreed; And, in his homely wize, began to assay T' amend what was amisse, and put in right aray.
Bout which whilest he was busied thus hard,
Lo! where a Knight, together with his Squire,
All arm'd to point came ryding thetherward;
Which seemed, by their portance and attire,
To be two Errant Knights, that did inquire
After adventures, where they mote them get:
Those were to weet (if that ye it require)
Prince Arthur and young Timias, which met
By straunge occasion, that here needs forth be set.
After that Timias had againe recured
The favour of Belphebe, as ye heard,
And of her grace did stand againe assured,
To happie blisse he was full high uprear'd,
Nether of envy nor of chaunge afeard:
Though many foes did him maligne therefore,
And with unjust detraction him did beard;
Yet he himselfe so well and wisely bore,
That in her soveraine lyking he dwelt evermore.
But, of them all which did his ruine seeke,
Three mightie enemies did him most despight,
Three mightie ones, and cruell minded eeke,
That him not onely sought by open might
To overthrow, but to supplant by slight:
The first of them by name was cald Despetto,
Exceeding all the rest in powre and hight;
The second, not so strong but wise, Decetto;
The third, nor strong nor wise but spightfullest, Defetto.
Oftimes their sundry powres they did employ,
And several deceipts, but all in vaine;
For neither they by force could him destroy,
Ne yet entrap in treasons subtill traine:
Therefore, conspiring all together plaine,
They did their counsels now in one compound:
Where singled forces faile, conjoyned may gaine.
The Blatant Beast the fittest meanes they found
To worke his utter shame, and throughly him confound.
Upon a day, as they the time did waite
When he did raunge the wood for salvage game,
They sent that Blatant Beast to be a baite
To draw him from his deare beloved Dame
Unwares into the daunger of defame :
For well they wist that Squire to be so bold,
That no one beast in forrest wylde or tame
Met him in chase, but he it challenge would,
And plucke the pray oftimes out of their greedy hould.
The hardy Boy, as they devised had,
Seeing the ugly Monster passing by,
Upon him set, of perill nought adrad,
Ne skilfull of the uncouth jeopardy;
And charged him so fierce and furiously,
That, his great force unable to endure,
He forced was to turne from him and fly :
Yet, ere he fled, he with his tooth impure
Him heedlesse bit, the whiles he was thereof secure.
Securely he did after him pursew,
Thinking by speed to overtake his flight;
Who through thicke woods and brakes and briers him
To weary him the more and waste his spight,
So that he now has almost spent his spright:
Till that at length unto a woody glade
He came, whose covert stopt his further sight;
There his three foes shrowded in guilefull shade
Out of their ambush broke, and gan him to invade.
Sharpely they all attonce did him assaile,
Burning with inward rancour and despight,
And heaped strokes did round about him haile
With so huge force, that seemed nothing might
Beare off their blowes from percing thorough quite :
Yet he them all so warily did ward,
That none of them in his soft flesh did bite;
And all the while his backe for best safegard
He lent against a tree, that backeward onset bard.
Like a wylde Bull, that, being at a bay,
Is bayted of a mastiffe and a hound
And a curre-dog, that doe him sharpe assay On every side, and beat about him round; But most that curre, barking with bitter sownd, And creeping still behinde, doth him incomber, That in his chauffe he digs the trampled ground, And threats his horns, and bellowes like the thonder: So did that Squire his foes disperse and drive asonder.
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