Prince Arthur hears of Florimell
Three fofters Timius wound;
Belphœbe finds him almost dead,
And reareth out of swownd.
Panting for breath, and almoft out of hart, The dwarfe him anfwerd, " Sir, ill motel fta "To tell the fame: I lately did depart "From Faery Court, where I have many a day "Served a gentle lady of great fway "And high accompt throughout all Elfin Land, "Who lately left the fame, and tooke this way: "Her now I feeke, and if ye understand "Which way she fared hath, good Sir! tell out "of hand,"
"What mifter wight," faide he, " and how "rayd ?"
"Royally clad," quoth he, " in cloth of gold, "As meeteft may befeeme a noble mayd; "Her faire lockes in rich circlet be enrold, "A fayrer wight did never funne behold; "And on a palfrey rydes ntore white then (now, "Yet the herfelfe is whiter manifold: "The fureft figne whereby ye may her know, "Is, that she is the faireft wight alive, I trow."
It fortuned, as they devized had,
The gentle fquyre came riding that fame way,
Unwecting of their wile and treason bad,
And through the ford to paffen did affay;
But that fierce fofter, which late fled away,
Stoutly foorth fepping on the further fhore,
Him boldly bad his paffage there to stay,
Till he had made amends and full reftore
His finfull fowle with defperate difdaine
Out of her fleshly ferme fled to the place of paine.
That feeing now the only laft of three,
Who with that wicked fhafte him wounded had,
Trembling with horror, as that did forefee
The fearefull end of his avengement fad,
Through which he follow fhould his brethren bad,
His booteleffe bow in feeble hand upcaught,
For all the damage which he had him doen And therewith fhott an arrow at the lad,
The bitter earth, and bad to let him in
Into the balefull houfe of endleffe night,
Which fayntly fluttrifig fcarce his helmet raught, And glauncing fell to ground, but him annoyed naught.
With that he would have fled into the wood;
But Timias him lightly overheut,
Right as he entring was into the flood,
And strooke at him with force fo violent,
That headleffe him into the foord he fent :
The carcas with the ftreame was carried downe,
But th' head fell backeward on the continent;
So mifchief fel upon the meaners crowne:
They three be dead with fhame, the squire live
with renowne :
He lives, but takes small ioy of his renowne;
For of that cruell wound he bled so fore,
That from his fteed he fell in deadly swowne,
Yet ftill the blood forth gusht in so great store,
That he lay wallowed all in his owne gore.
Now God thee kecpe, thou gentleft squire alive!
Els fhall thy loving lord thee fee no more;
But both of comfort him thou shalt deprive,
And eke thyfelfe of honor which thou didst ats
chive.
Providence hevenly paffeth living thought,
And doth for wretched mens reliefe make way;
For lo! great grace or fortune thether brought
Comfort to him that comfortlesse now lay.
In those fame woods ye well remember may
How that a noble huntreffe did wonne,
Shee, that bafe Braggadochia did affray,
And made him faft out of the forest ronne;
Belphobe was her name, as faire as Phabu
funne.
She on a day, as fhe purfewd the chace
Of fome wilde beaft, which with her arrow
keene
Where wicked ghosts doe waile their former fin; She wounded had, the fame along did trace
Tho gan the battaile freshly to begin;
For nathemore for that fpectacle bad
Did th' other two their cruell vengeaunce blin,
But both attonce on both fides him beftad,
And load upon him layd, his life for to have had.
Tho when that villayn he avyzd, which late
Affrighted had the fairest Florimell,
Full of fiers fury and indignant hate
To him he turned, and with rigor fell
Smote him fo rudely on the pannikell,
That to the chin he clefte his head in twaine :
Downe on the ground his carkas groveling fell;
By tract of blood, which the had freshly feene
To have befprinckled all the graffy greene;
By the great perfue which the there perceav'd,
Well hoped thee the beaft engor'd had beene,
And made more hafte the life to have bereav'd;
But an her expectation greatly was deceav'd,
Shortly the came whereas that woefull squire
With blood deformed lay in deadly fwownd,
In whofe faire eyes, like lamps of quenched fire,
The christall humor flood congealed rownd;
His locks, like faded leaves, fallen to grownd,
Knotted with blood in bounches rudely ran,
|