Which he atchieved to his owne great gaines, Reaping eternall glorie of his restlesse1 paines.

III.

So sharply he the Monster did pursew, That day nor night he suffred him to rest, Ne rested he himselfe (but natures dew) For dread of daunger not to be redrest,2 If he for slouth forslackt 3 so famous quest. Him first from court he to the citties coursed, And from the citties to the townes him prest, And from the townes into the countrie forsed, And from the country back to private farmes he scorsed.*

IV.

From thence into the open fields he fled,

Whereas the heardes were keeping of their neat,5
And shepheards singing, to their flockes that fed,
Layes of sweet love and youthes delightfull heat:
Him thether eke for all his fearefull threat

He followed fast, and chaced him so nie,
That to the folds, where sheepe at night doe seat,
And to the litle cots, where shepherds lie

In winters wrathfull time, he forced him to flie.

V.

There on a day, as he pursew'd the chace,
He chaunst to spy a sort of shepheard groomes

1 Restlesse, unceasing.

2 Redrest, escaped.

3 Forslackt, delayed, put off.

4 Scorsed, chaced.

5 Neat, cattle.

6 Sort, company.

III. 3. nature.

IV. 9.- Wrathfull time.] Church and Upton are of opinion that Spenser wrote "tine," inclemency.

But natures dew.] Only so much as was required by

Playing on pypes and caroling apace,

The whyles their beasts there in the budded broomes
Beside them fed, and nipt the tender bloomes;
For other worldly wealth they cared nought:
To whom Sir Calidore yet sweating comes,
And them to tell him courteously besought,

If such a beast they saw, which he had thether brought.

VI.

They answer'd him that no such beast they saw, Nor any wicked feend that mote offend Their happie flockes, nor daunger to them draw; But if that such there were (as none they kend1) They prayd High God them farre from them to send: Then one of them him seeing so to sweat, After his rusticke wise, that well he weend, Offred him drinke to quench his thirstie heat, And, if he hungry were, him offred eke to eat.

VII.

The Knight was nothing nice, where was no need,
And tooke their gentle offer: so adowne
They prayd him sit, and gave him for to feed
Such homely what as serves the simple clowne,
That doth despise the dainties of the towne:
Tho, having fed his fill, he there besyde

Saw a faire Damzell, which did weare a crowne
Of sundry flowres with silken ribbands tyde,
Yclad in home-made greene that her owne hands had dyde.

VIII.

Upon a litle hillocke she was placed

1 Kend, knew.

2 Tho, then.

VII. 4. Such homely what.] Such homely fare.

Higher then all the rest, and round about
Environ'd with a girland, goodly graced,
Of lovely lasses; and them all without

2

The lustie shepheard swaynes sate in a rout,2
The which did pype and sing her prayses dew,
And oft reioyce, and oft for wonder shout,
As if some miracle of heavenly hew

Were downe to them descended in that earthly vew.

IX.

And soothly 3 sure she was full fayre of face,
And perfectly well shapt in every lim,
Which she did more augment with modest grace
And comely carriage of her count'nance trim,1
That all the rest like lesser lamps did dim:
Who, her admiring as some heavenly wight,
Did for their soveraine goddesse her esteeme,
And, caroling her name both day and night,
The fayrest Pastorella her by name did hight.5

X.

Ne was there heard, ne was there shepheards swayne, But her did honour; and eke many a one

Burnt in her love, and with sweet pleasing payne

Full many a night for her did sigh and grone:

But most of all the shepheard Coridon

For her did languish, and his deare life spend ;

Yet neither she for him nor other none

Did care a whit, ne any liking lend:

Though meane her lot, yet higher did her mind ascend.

XI.

Her whyles Sir Calidore there vewed well,

1 Then, than.

2 Rout, company.
Soothly, truly.

4 Trim, nice, fair.
Hight, call.

6 Heard, a keeper of cattle

And markt her rare demeanure, which him seemed
So farre the meane' of shepheards to excell,
As that he in his mind her worthy deemed
To be a Princes paragone esteemed,

He was unwares surprisd in subtile bands

Of the Blynd Boy; ne thence could be redeemed

By any skill out of his cruell hands;

Caught like the bird which gazing still on others stands.

XII.

So stood he still long gazing thereupon,

Ne any will had thence to move away,
Although his quest" were farre afore him gon:
But after he had fed, yet did he stay

And sate there still, untill the flying day
Was farre forth spent, discoursing diversly
Of sundry things, as fell,3 to worke delay;
And evermore his speach he did apply

To th' heards, but meant them to the Damzels fantazy.5

XIII.

By this the moystie Night approaching fast

Her deawy humour gan on th' earth to shed,

That warn'd the shepheards to their homes to hast
Their tender flocks, now being fully fed,

For feare of wetting them before their bed:
Then came to them a good old aged Syre,
Whose silver lockes bedeckt his beard and hed,
With shepheards hooke in hand, and fit attyre,
That wil'd the Damzell rise; the day did now expyre.

XI. 5.

1 Meane, mien.

▲ Heards, keepers of cattle.

2 Quest, object of pursuit. 3 Fell, befell.
Fantazy, fancy, apprehension.

A Princes paragone.] A companion for princes.

XIV.

He was to weet, by common voice, esteemed
The father of the fayrest Pastorell,
And of herselfe in very deede so deemed;
Yet was not so; but, as old stories tell,
Found her by fortune, which to him befell,
In th' open fields an infant left alone;

And, taking up, brought home and noursed well
As his owne chyld; for other he had none;
That she in tract1 of time accompted was his owne.

XV.

She at his bidding meekely did arise,

And streight unto her litle flocke did fare:
Then all the rest about her rose likewise,
And each his sundrie sheepe with severall care
Gathered together, and them homeward bare:
Whylest everie one with helping hands did strive
Amongst themselves, and did their labours share,
To helpe faire Pastorella home to drive
Her fleecie flocke; but Coridon most helpe did give.

XVI.

But Melibee (so hight that good old man)
Now seeing Calidore left all alone,
And night arrived hard at hand, began
Him to invite unto his simple home;
Which though it were a cottage clad with lome,

1 Tract, course.

2 Hight, was called.

6

XIV. 4. As old stories tell, &c.] "The story of Pastorella is founded on the old romance called Dorastus and Fawnia, from which Shakspeare borrowed the plan of his play called the Winter's Tale' Or rather Spenser might borrow from the original, viz., the pastoral of Daphnis and Chloc, by Longus."- UPTON.

XVI. 5. — Clad with lome.] Built of, or covered with, clay.