The Poetical Works of Edmund Spenser

The whiles a most delitious harmony,

In full straunge notes was sweetly heard to With him went Daunger, cloth'd in ragged weed,

sound,

Made of Beares skin, that him more dreadfull made,

Yet his owne face was dreadfull, ne did need Straunge horrour, to deforme his griesly shade; A net in th'one hand, and a rustie blade In th'other was, this Mischiefe, that Mishap; With th'one his foes he threatned to inuade, With th'other he his friends ment to enwrap: For whom he could not kill, he practizd to entrap. Next him was Feare, all arm'd from top to toe, Yet thought himselfe not safe enough thereby, But feard each shadow mouing to and fro, And his owne armes when glittering he did spy, Or clashing heard, he fast away did fly, As ashes pale of hew, and wingyheeld; And euermore on daunger fixt his eye, Gainst whom he alwaies bent a brasen shield, Which his right hand vnarmed fearefully did wield.

With him went Hope in rancke, a handsome After them went Displeasure and Pleasance,
Mayd,

Of chearefull looke and louely to behold;
In silken samite she was light arayd,
And her faire lockes were wouen vp in gold;
She alway smyld, and in her hand did hold
An holy water Sprinckle, dipt in deowe,
With which she sprinckled fauours manifold,
On whom she list, and did great liking sheowe,
Great liking vnto many, but true loue to feowe.

He looking lompish and full sullein sad,
And hanging downe his heauy countenance;
She chearefull fresh and full of ioyance glad,
As if no sorrow she ne felt ne drad;
That euill matched paire they seemd to bee:
An angry Waspe th'one in a viall had
Th'other in hers an hony-lady Bee;
Thus marched these sixe couples forth in faire
degree.

Through which he still did peepe, as forward he At that wide orifice her trembling hart

did pace.
Next him went Griefe, and Fury matcht yfere;
Griefe all in sable sorrowfully clad,
Downe hanging his dull head with heauy chere,
Yet inly being more, then seeming sad:
A paire of Pincers in his hand he had,
With which he pinched people to the hart,
That from thenceforth a wretched life they lad,
In wilfull languor and consuming smart,
Dying each day with inward wounds of dolours
dart.

But Fury was full ill appareiled

In rags, that naked nigh she did appeare, With ghastly lookes and dreadfull drerihed ; For from her backe her garments she did teare, And from her head oft rent her snarled heare: In her right hand a firebrand she did tosse About her head, still roming here and there; As a dismayed Deare in chace embost, Forgetfull of his safety, hath his right way lost.

Was drawne forth, and in siluer basin layd,
Quite through transfixed with a deadly dart,
And in her bloud yet steeming fresh embayd:
And those two villeins, which her steps vpstayd,
When her weake feete could scarcely her sus-
taine,

And fading vitall powers gan to fade,

And euermore encreased her consuming paine.
Her forward still with torture did constraine,

Next after her the winged God himselfe
Came riding on a Lion rauenous,
Taught to obay the menage of that Elfe,
That man and beast with powre imperious
Subdeweth to his kingdome tyrannous:
His blindfold eyes he bad a while vnbind,
That his proud spoyle of that same dolorous
Faire Dame he might behold in perfect kind;
Which seene, he much reioyced in his cruell
mind.

Behinde him was Reproch, Repentance, Shame; Reproch the first, Shame next, Repent behind: Repentance feeble, sorrowfull, and lame: Reproch despightfull, carelesse, and vnkind; Shame most ill fauourd, bestiall, and blind: Shame lowrd, Repentance sigh'd, Reproch did scould; [twind, Reproch sharpe stings, Repentance whips enShame burningbrond-yrons in her hand did hold: All three to each vnlike, yet all made in one mould. 25

And after them a rude confused rout

Of persons flockt, whose names is hard to read: Emongst them was sterne Strife, and Anger Vnquiet Care, and fond Vnthriftihead, [stout, Lewd Losse of Time, and Sorrow seeming dead, Inconstant Chaunge, and false Disloyaltie, Consuming Riotise, and guilty Dread Of heauenly vengeance, faint Infirmitie, Vile Pouertie, and lastly Death with infamie.

There were full many moe like maladies,
Whose names and natures I note readen well;
So many moe, as there be phantasies
In wauering wemens wit, that none can tell,
Or paines in loue, or punishments in hell;
All which disguized marcht in masking wise,
About the chamber with that Damozell,
And then returned, hauing marched thrise,
Into the inner roome, from whence they first did
rise.

So soone as they were in, the dore streight way Fast locked, driuen with that stormy blast, Which first it opened; and bore all away. Then the braue Maid, which all this while was plast

In secret shade, and saw both first and last, Issewed forth, and went vnto the dore, To enter in, but found it locked fast: It vaine she thought with rigorous vprore For to efforce, when charmes had closed it afore.

So soone as she was entred, round about
She cast her eies, to see what was become
Of all those persons, which she saw without:
But lo, they streight were vanisht all and some,
Ne liuing wight she saw in all that roome,
Saue that same woefull Ladie, both whose hands
Were bounden fast, that did her ill become,
And her small wast girt round with yron bands,
Vnto a brasen pillour, by the which she stands.
31

And her before the vile Enchaunter sate,
Figuring straunge characters of his art,
With liuing bloud he those characters wrate,
Dreadfully dropping from her dying hart,
Seeming transfixed with a cruell dart,
And all perforce to make her him to loue.
Ah who can loue the worker of her smart?
A thousand charmes he formerly did proue ;
Yet thousand charmes could not her stedfast
heart remoue.

Soone as that virgin knight he saw in place,
His wicked bookes in hast he ouerthrew,
Not caring his long labours to deface,
And fiercely ronning to that Lady trew,
A murdrous knife out of his pocket drew,
The which he thought, for villeinous despight,
In her tormented bodie to embrew:
But the stout Damzell to him leaping light,.
His cursed hand withheld, and maistered his
might.

33 From her, to whom his fury first he ment, The wicked weapon rashly he did wrest, And turning to her selfe his fell intent, Vnwares it strooke into her snowie chest, That little drops empurpled her faire brest. Exceeding wroth therewith the virgin grew, Albe the wound were nothing deepe imprest, And fiercely forth her mortall blade she drew, Togiue him the reward for such vile outrage dew.

So mightily she smote him, that to ground He fell halfe dead; next stroke him should haue slaine,

Had not the Lady, which by him stood bound, Dernely vnto her called to abstaine, From doing him to dy. For else her paine Should be remedilesse, sith none but hee, Which wrought it,could the same recure againe. Therewith she staydher hand, loth stayd to bee; For life she him enuyde, and long'd reuenge to

see.

And to him said, Thou wicked man, whose meed
For so huge mischiefe, and vile villany
Is death, or if that ought do death exceed,
Be sure, that nought maysaue thee from to dy,
But if that thou this Dame doe presently
Restore vnto her health, and former state;
This doe and liue, else die vndoubtedly.
He glad of life, that lookt for death but late,
Did yield himselfe right willing to prolong his
date.

And rising vp, gan streight to ouerlooke
Those cursed leaues, his charmes backe to She much was cheard to heare him mentiond,

reuerse;

Full dreadfull things out of that balefull booke He red, and measur'd many a sad verse, That horror gan the virgins hart to perse, And her faire locks vp stared stiffe on end, Hearing him those same bloudy lines reherse; And all the while he red, she did extend

Whom of all liuing wights she loued best. Then laid the noble Championesse strong hond Vpon th'enchaunter, which had her distrest So sore, and with foule outrages opprest: With that great chaine, wherewith not long ygo He bound that pitteous Lady prisoner, now relest,

Himselfe she bound, more worthy to be so,

Her sword high ouer him, if ought he did offend. And captiue with her led to wretchednesse and

Stanzas 43-45 were first inserted in the 1596 quarto, displacing the following stanzas which

concluded Book III

At last she came vnto the place, where late
She left Sir Scudamour in great distresse,
Twixt dolour and despight halfe desperate,
Of his loues succour, of his owne redresse,
And of the hardie Britomarts successe:
There on the cold earth him now thrown she found,
In wilfull anguish, and dead heauinesse,

And to him cald; whose voices knowen sound Soon as he heard, himself he reared light from ground.

There did he see, that most on earth him ioyd,
His dearest loue, the comfort of his dayes,
Whose too long absence him had sore annoyd,
And wearied his life with dull delayes:
Straight he vpstarted from the loathed layes,
And to her ran with hasty egernesse,
Like as a Deare, that greedily embayes
In the coole soile, after long thirstinesse,
Which he in chace endured ĥath, now nigh breath-
lesse.

in the first edition.

Lightly he clipt her twixt his armes twaine,
And streightly did embrace her body bright,
Her body, late the prison of sad paine,
Now the sweet lodge of loue and deare delight:
But she faire Lady ouercommen quight
Of huge affection, did in pleasure melt,
And in sweete rauishment pourd out her spright:
No word they spake, nor earthly thing they felt,
But like two senceles stocks in long embracement
dwelt.

Had ye them seene, ye would haue surely thought,
That they had beene that faire Hermaphrodite,
Which that rich Romane of white marble wrought,
And in his costly Bath causd to bee site:
So seemd those two, as growne together quite,
That Britomart halfe enuying their blesse,
Was much empassiond in her gentle sprite,
And to her selfe oft wisht like happinesse,
In vaine she wisht, that fate n'ould let her yet

possesse.

Thus doe those louers with sweet counteruayle,
Each other of loues bitter fruit despoile.
But now my teme begins to faint and fayle,
All woxen weary of their journal toyle:
Therefore I will their sweatie yokes assoyle
At this same furrowes end, till a new day:
And ye faire Swayns, after your long turmoyle,
Now cease your worke, and at your pleasure play;
Now cease your worke; to morrow is an holy day.

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