CANTO VII.
Turpine is baffuld; his two knights
doe gaine their treasons meed:
Fayre Mirabellaes punishment
for Loves disdaine decreed.
IKE as the gentle hart it selfe bewrayes
In doing gentle deedes with franke delight,
Even so the baser mind it selfe displayes
In cancred malice and revengefull spight:
For to maligne, t' envie, t' use shifting slight,
Be arguments of a vile donghill mind;
Which, what it dare not doe by open might,
To worke by wicked treason wayes doth find,
By such discourteous deeds discovering his base kind.
That well appears in this discourteous knight,
The coward Turpine, whereof now I treat;
Who notwithstanding that in former fight
He of the Prince his life received late,
Yet in his mind, malitious and ingrate,
He gan devize, to be aveng'd anew
For all that shame, which kindled inward hate :
Therefore, so soone as he was out of vew,
Himselfe in hast he arm'd, and did him fast
Well did he tract his steps as he did ryde,
Yet would not neare approch in daungers eye,
But kept aloofe for dread to be descryde,
Untill fit time and place he mote espy,
Where he mote worke him scath and villeny:
At last he met two knights to him unknowne,
The which were armed both agreeably,
And both combynd, whatever chaunce were blowne
Betwixt them to divide, and each to make his owne.
To whom false Turpine comming courteously,
To cloke the mischiefe which he inly ment,
Gan to complaine of great discourtesie,
Which a straunge knight, that neare afore him went,
Had doen to him, and his deare Ladie shent.
Which if they would afford him ayde at need
For to avenge in time convenient,
They should accomplish both a knightly deed, And for their paines obtaine of him a goodly meed.
The knights beleev'd that all he sayd was trew;
And being fresh and full of youthly spright,
Were glad to heare of that adventure new,
In which they mote make triall of their might
Which never yet they had approv'd in fight,
And eke desirous of the offred meed:
Said then the one of them; "Where is that wight, The which hath doen to thee this wrongfull deed, That we may it avenge, and punish him with speed?" "He rides" (said Turpine) "there not farre afore, 6 With a wyld man soft footing by his syde;
ye list to haste a litle more,
Ye may him overtake in timely tyde."
Eftsoones they pricked forth with forward pryde, And ere that litle while they ridden had, The gentle Prince not farre away they spyde, Ryding a softly pace with portance sad, Devizing of his love more then of daunger drad.
Then one of them aloud unto him cryde,
Bidding him turne againe; "False traytour knight! Foule womanwronger!"—for he him defyde. With that they both at once with equall spight Did bend their speares, and both with equall might Against him ran; but th' one did misse his marke, And being carried with his force forthright Glaunst swiftly by; like to that heavenly sparke, Which glyding through the ayre lights all the heavens darke.
But th' other, ayming better, did him smite
Full in the shield with so impetuous powre,
That all his launce in peeces shivered quite,
And scattered all about fell on the flowre:
But the stout Prince, with much more steddy stowre,
Full on his bever did him strike so sore,
That the cold steele, through piercing, did devowre His vitall breath, and to the ground him bore, Where still he bathed lay in his owne bloody gore.
As when a cast of Faulcons make their flight
At an Herneshaw, that lyes aloft on wing,
The whyles they strike at him with heedlesse might,
The warie foule his bill doth backward wring;
On which the first, whose force her first doth bring,
Her selfe quite through the bodie doth engore,
And falleth downe to ground like senselesse thing;
But th' other, not so swift as she before,
Fayles of her souse, and passing by doth hurt no more.
By this the other, which was passed by,
Himselfe recovering was return'd to fight, Where when he saw his fellow lifelesse ly, He much was daunted with so dismal sight; Yet nought abating of his former spight, Let drive at him with so malitious mynd, As if he would have passed through him quight; But the steele-head no stedfast hold could fynd, But glauncing by deceiv'd him of that he desynd.
Not so the Prince; for his well learned speare
Tooke surer hould, and from his horses backe
Above a launces length him forth did beare,
And gainst the cold hard earth so sore him strake,
That all his bones in peeces nigh he brake.
Where seeing him so lie, he left his steed,
And to him leaping vengeance thought to take
Of him for all his former follies meed,
With flaming sword in hand his terror more to breed.
The fearfull swayne beholding death so nie
Cryde out aloud for mercie, him to save;
In lieu whereof he would to him descrie
Great treason to him meant, his life to reave.
The Prince soone hearkned, and his life forgave.
Then thus said he: "There is a straunger knight,
The which, for promise of great meed, us drave
To this attempt to wreake his hid despight,
For that himselfe thereto did want sufficient might."
The Prince much mused at such villenie, [meed,
And sayd: "Now sure ye well have earn'd your
For th' one is dead, and th' other soone shall die,
Unlesse to me thou hither bring with speed
The wretch that hyr'd you to this wicked deed."
He glad of life, and willing eke to wreake
The guilt on him which did this mischiefe breed, Swore by his sword, that neither day nor weeke He would surceasse, but him where so he were would seeke.
So
up he rose, and forth streightway he went
Backe to the place where Turpine late he lore;
There he him found in great astonishment,
To see him so bedight with bloodie gore,
And griesly wounds that him appalled sore;
Yet thus at length he said: “How now,
What meaneth this which here I see before?
How fortuneth this foule uncomely plight,
So different from that which earst ye seem'd in sight?"
"Perdie," (said he) "in evill houre it fell,
That ever I for meed did undertake So hard a taske as life for hyre to sell; The which I earst adventur'd for your sake: Witnesse the wounds, and this wide bloudie lake, Which ye may see yet all about me steeme. Therefore now yeeld, as ye did promise make, My due reward, the which right well I deeme I yearned have, that life so dearely did redeeme."
"But where then is" (quoth he halfe wrothfully) 16 "Where is the bootie, which therefore I bought, That cursed caytive, my strong enemy,
That recreant knight, whose hated life I sought? And where is eke your friend which halfe it ought?” "He lyes" (said he)" upon the cold bare ground, Slayne of that errant knight with whom he fought; Whom afterwards my selfe with many a wound Did slay againe, as ye may see there in the stound.” Thereof false Turpin was full glad and faine, And needs with him streight to the place would ryde, Where he himselfe might see his foeman slaine; For else his feare could not be satisfyde. So as they rode he saw the way all dyde
With streames of bloud; which tracting by the traile,
Ere long they came, whereas in evill tyde
That other swayne, like ashes deadly pale,
Lay in the lap of death, rewing his wretched bale.
Much did the Craven seeme to mone his case, 18
That for his sake his deare life had forgone;
And him bewayling with affection base,
Did counterfeit kind pittie where was none:
For wheres no courage, theres no ruth nor mone.
Thence passing forth, not farre away he found
Whereas the Prince himselfe lay all alone,
Loosely displayd upon the grassie ground,
Possessed of sweete sleepe that luld him soft in swound.
Wearie of travell in his former fight,
He there in shade himselfe had layd to rest,
Having his armes and warlike things undight,
Fearelesse of foes that mote his peace molest;
The whyles his salvage page, that wont be prest,
Was wandred in the wood another way,
To doe some thing that seemed to him best;
The whyles his Lord in silver slomber lay,
Like to the Evening starre adorn'd with deawy ray.
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