His waft was with a wreath of yvie greene
Engirt about, ne other garment wore :
For all his haire was like a garment feene;
And in his hand a tall young oake he bore,
Whose knottie snags were fharpned all afore,
And beath'd in fire, for fteele to be in sted:
But whence he was, or of what wombe ybore,
Of beafts, or of the earth, I have not red;
But certes was with milke of wolves and tygres
fed..
This ugly creature in his armes her snatcht,
And through the forrest bore her quite away,
With briers and bushes all to rent and fcratcht;
Ne care he had, ne pittie of the pray,
Which many a knight had fought so many a day :
He stayed not, but in his armes her bearing
Ran, till he came to th' end of all his way,
Unto his cave, farre from all peoples hearing,
And there he threw her in, nought feeling, ne
nought fearing.
For fhe (deare ladie!) all the way was dead,
Whileft he in armes her bore; but when the felt
Herfelfe downe fouft, fhe waked out of dread
Streight into griefe, that her deare hart nigh fwelt,"
And eft gan into tender teares to melt:
'Then when the lookt about, and nothing found
But darkneffe and dread horrour where she dwelt,
She almost fell againe into a fwound,
Ne wift whether above the were or under ground.
With that she heard fome one clofe by her fide
Sighing and fobbing fore, as if the paine
Her tender hart in peeces would divide;
Which the long liftning, foftly askt againe
What mifter wight it was that fo did plaine?
To whom thus aunfwer'd was; "Ah, wretched
"wight,
"That feckes to know another's griefe in vaine, "Unweeting of thine owne like hapleffe plight: "Selfe to forget to mind another is over-fight."
"Aye me!" faid fhe," where am I, or with ".whom,
"Emong the living, or emong the dead? "What shall of me, unhappy maid! become? "Shall death be th' end, or ought elfe worse, a"read?"
Unhappy, mayd," then anfwer'd fhe," whofe "dread
"Untride is leffe then when thou shalt it try; "Death is, to him that wretched life doth lead "Both grace and gaine; but he in hell doth lie "That lives a loathed life, and wishing, cannot
"This difmall day hath thee a caytive made, "And vaffall to the vileft wretch alive, "Whofe curfed ufage and ungodly trade "The heavens.abhorre, and into darknesse drive; For on the spoile of women he doth live,
"A woful wretched maid, of God and man for got.
"But what I was it irkep me to rcherse, "Daughter unto a lord of high degree, "That ioyd in happy peace, till Fates perverse, "With guilefull Love, did fecretly agree "To overthrow my ftate and dignitie. "It was my lot to love a gentle swaine, "Yet was he but a fquire of low degree; "Yet was he meet, unless mine eye did faine, "By any ladies fide for leman to have laine.
But fled away with ghafly dreriment,
Who lay the whiles in fwoune, full fadly fet,
Well knowing her to be his death's fole inftru- From her faire eyes wiping the deawy wet,
Which foftly ftild, and kiffing them atweene,
And handling foft the hurts which she did get;
For of that carle fhe forely bruz'd had beene,
Als of his owne rash hand one wound was to be
feene.
There he continued in his carefull plight,
Wretchedly wearing out his youthly yeares,
Through wilfull penury confumed quight,
That like a pined ghost he foone appeares ;
For other food then that wilde forrest beares,
Ne other drinke there did he ever tast
Then running water, tempred with his teares,
The more his weakened body fo to wast,
That out of all mens knowledge he was worne at
laft.
For on a day, by Fortune as it fell,
At which his uncouth guise and usage quaint
The prince did wonder much, yet could not gheffe
The cause of that his forrowfull constraint;
Yet weend by fecret fignes of manlineffe,
Which close appeard in that rude brutishneffe,
His own deare lord, Prince Arthure, came that That he whilome some gentle swaine had beene,
Seeking adventures where he mote heare tell;
And as he through the wandring wood did stray,
Having cfpide his cabin far away,
He to it drew, to weet who there did wonne,
Weening therein fome holy hermit lay,
That did refort of finfull people fhonne,
Or fe fome woodman fhrowded there
fcorching funne.
Traind up in feats of armes and knightlinesse,
Which he obferv'd by that he him had feene
To weld his naked sword, and try the edges keeng
And eke by that he faw on every tree,
How he the name of one engraven had,
Which likly was his liefeft love to be,
from From whom he now fo forely was beftad,
Which was by him BELPHOEBE rightly rad;
Yet who was that Belphebe he ne wift,
Yet faw he often how he wexed glad
When he it heard, and how the ground he kift,
Wherein it written was, and how himfelfe ha
blift:
Arriving there he found this wretched man,
Spending his daies in dolour and despaire,
And through long fafting woxen pale and wan,
All over-growen with rude and rugged haire;
That albeit his owne dear squire he were,
Yet he him knew not, ne aviz'd at all,
Tho when he long had marked his demeanor,
But like ftrange wight, whom he had feene no And faw that all he said and did was vaine, where,
Saluting him, gan into fpcach to fall,
Ne ought mote make him chaunge his wonted , tenor,
And pitty much his plight, that liv'd like out-caft Ne ought mote ceafe to mitigate his paine,
But to his fpeach he aunswered no whit,
But flood ftill mute, as if he had beene dum,
Ne figne of fence did fhew, ne common wit,
He left them there in languor to remaine,
Till time for him fhould remedy provide,
And him reftore to former grace againe;
Which, for it is too long here to abide,
I will defer the end untill another tide.
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