So all that night they past in great disease,
Till that the morning, bringing earely light
To guide mens labours, brought them also ease,
And some asswagement of their painefull plight.
Then up they rose, and gan themselves to dight
Unto their journey; but that Squire and Dame
So faint and feeble were, that they ne might
Endure to travell, nor one foote to frame:
Their hearts were sicke; their sides were sore; their feete
[were lame. Therefore the Prince, whom great affaires in mynd Would not permit to make there lenger stay, Was forced there to leave them both behynd In that good Hermits charge, whom he did pray To tend them well: So forth he went his way, And with him eke the Salvage (that whyleare Seeing his royal usage and array
Was greatly growne in love of that brave Pere)
Would needes depart; as shall declared be elsewhere.
The Hermite heales both Squire and Dame
Of their sore maladies:
He Turpine doth defeate and shame
For his late villanies.
No wound, which warlike hand of enemy
Inflicts with dint of sword, so sore doth light
As doth the poysnous sting, which Infamy
Infixeth in the name of noble wight:
For, by no art nor any Leaches might,
It ever can recured be againe ;
Ne all the skill, which that immortall spright
Of Podalyrius did in it retaine,
Can remedy such hurts; such hurts are hellish paine.
Such were the wounds the which that Blatant Beast
Made in the bodies of that Squire and Dame;
And, being such, were now much more increast
For want of taking heede unto the same,
That now corrupt and curelesse they became :
Howbe that carefull Hermite did his best,
With many kindes of medicines meete, to tame
The poysnous humour which did most infest
Their ranckling wounds, and every day them duely drest.
For he right well in Leaches craft was seene;
And, through the long experience of his dayes,
Which had in many fortunes tossed beene
And past through many perillous assayes,
He knew the diverse went of mortall wayes,
And in the mindes of men had great insight;
Which with sage counsell, when they went astray,
He could enforme, and them reduce aright;
And all the passions heale, which wound the weaker spright.
For whylome he had bene a doughty Knight,
As any one that lived in his daies,
And proved oft in many perillous fight,
In which he grace and glory wonne alwaies,
And in all battels bore away the baies :
But being now attacht with timely age,
And weary of this worlds unquiet waies,
He tooke himselfe unto this Hermitage,
In which he liv'd alone, like carelesse bird in cage.
One day, as he was searching of their wounds,
He found that they had festred privily;
And, ranckling inward with unruly stounds,
The inner parts now gan to putrify,
That quite they seem'd past helpe of surgery;
And rather needed to be disciplinde
With holesome reede of sad sobriety,
To rule the stubborne rage of passion blinde : "Give salves to every sore, but counsell to the minde."
So, taking them apart into his Cell,
He to that point fit speaches gan to frame,
As he the art of words knew wondrous well,
And eke could doe as well as say the same;
And thus he to them sayd; "Faire Daughter Dame, And you, faire Sonne, which here thus long now lie In piteous languor since ye hither came;
In vaine of me ye hope for remedie,
And I likewise in vaine doe salves to you applie:
"For in yourselfe your onely helpe doth lie
To heale yourselves, and must proceed alone
From your owne will to cure your maladie.
Who can him cure that will be cur'd of none?
If therefore health ye seeke, observe this one:
First learne your outward senses to refraine
From things that stirre up fraile affection;
Your eies, your eares, your tongue, your talk restraine From that they most affect, and in due termes containe.
"For from those outward sences, ill affected,
The seede of all this evill first doth spring,
Which at the first, before it had infected,
Mote easie be supprest with little thing:
But, being growen strong, it forth doth bring
Sorrow, and anguish, and impatient paine,
In th' inner parts; and lastly, scattering
Contagious poyson close through every vaine,
It never rests till it have wrought his finall bane.
"For that Beastes teeth, which wounded you tofore,
Are so exceeding venemous and keene,
Made all of rusty yron ranckling sore,
That, where they bite, it booteth not to weene
With salve, or antidote, or other mene,
It ever to amend: ne marvaile ought;
For that same Beast was bred of hellish strene,
And long in darksome Stygian den upbrought,
Begot of foule Echidna, as in bookes is taught.
"Echidna is a Monster direfull dred,
Whom gods doe hate, and heavens abhor to see;
So hideous is her shape, so huge her hed,
That even the hellish fiends affrighted bee
At sight thereof, and from her presence flee:
Yet did her face and former parts professe
A faire young Mayden, full of comely glee;
But all her hinder parts did plaine expresse
A monstrous Dragon, full of fearfull uglinesse.
"To her the Gods, for her so dreadfull face,
In fearefull darknesse, furthest from the skie
And from the earth, appointed have her place
Mongst Rocks and Caves, where she enrold doth lie
In hideous horrour and obscurity,
Wasting the strength of her immortall age :
There did Typhaon with her company;
Cruell Typhaon, whose tempestuous rage
Makes th' heavens tremble oft, and him with vowes asswage.
"Of that commixtion they did then beget
This hellish dog, that hight the Blatant Beast;
A wicked Monster, that his tongue doth whet
Gainst all, both good and bad, both most and least,
And pours his poysnous gall forth to infest
The noblest wights with notable defame:
Ne ever Knight that bore so lofty creast,
Ne ever Lady of so honest name,
But he them spotted with reproch, or secrete shame.
"In vaine therefore it were with medicine
To
goe
about to salve such kind of sore,
That rather needes wise read and discipline
Then outward salves that may augment it more."
66 Aye me!" sayd then Serena, sighing sore,
"What hope of helpe doth then for us remaine,
If that no salves may us to health restore!"
"But sith we need good counsell," sayd the Swaine, Aread, good Sire, some counsell that may us sustaine."
"The best," sayd he, " that I can you advize,
Is, to avoide th' occasion of the ill:
For when the cause, whence evill doth arize,
Removed is, th' effect surceaseth still.
Abstaine from pleasure, and restraine your will;
Subdue desire, and bridle loose delight;
Use scanted diet, and forbeare your fill;
Shun secresie, and talke in open sight:
So shall you soone repaire your present evill plight."
Thus having sayd, his sickely Patients
Did gladly hearken to his grave beheast,
And kept so well his wise commaundëments,
That in short space their malady was ceast,
And eke the biting of that harmefull Beast
Was throughly heal'd. Tho when they did perceave
Their wounds recur'd, and forces reincreast,
Of that good Hermite both they tooke their leave,
And went both on their way, ne ech would other leave:
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