At laft he found, where fleeping he did ly. The wicked weed," which there the Foxe did lay, From underneath his head he tooke away, And then him waking, forc'd up to rize. The Lion looking up gan him avize, As one late in a traunce, what had of long Become of him; for fantasie is strong. "Arife, (faid Mercurie) thou fluggish beast, That here lieft fenfeles, like the corpfe deceast, The whilste thy kingdome from thy head is rent, And thy throne royall with dishonour blent:" Arife, and doo thy felfe redeeme from shame, And be aveng'd on those that breed thy blame." Thereat enraged, foone he gan upstart, Grinding his teeth, and grating his great hart; And, rouzing up himselfe, for his rough hide He gan to reach, but no where it efpide. Therewith he gan full terribly to rore, And chafte at that indignitie right fore:
But when his Crowne and scepter both he wanted, Lord! how he fum'd, and fweld, and rag'd, and panted; And threatned death, and thousand deadly dolours, 1341 To them that had purloyn'd his Princely honours. With that in haft, difroabed as he was, He toward his owne Pallace forth did And all the way he roared as he went, That all the forreft with astonishment Thereof did tremble, and the beasts therein
m The wicked weed.] This is the first time we have heard of "the wicked weed" laid by the Fox under the Lion's head in order to produce, or prolong fleep: fee p. 420. C.
n with dishonour blent.] Blemished, disgraced. See F. Q. i. vi. 42; ii. v. 5, &c. Todd. Todd is mistaken: "blent" means only blended; blemished being only a confequential fenfe; blemished, because blended or "blent with dishonour." So alfo in the paffages he refers to, vol. i. p. 279; vol. ii. p. 160. C.
Fled faft away from that fo dreadfull din. At laft he came unto his manfion,
Where all the gates he found fast lockt anon, And manie warders round about them stood: With that he roar'd alowd, as he were wood, That all the Pallace quaked at the stound, As if it quite were riven from the ground, And all within were dead and hartles left;
And th' Ape himselfe, as one whose wits were reft, Fled here and there, and everie corner fought, To hide himselfe from his owne feared thought. But the falfe Foxe, when he the Lion heard, Fled closely forth, ftreightway of death afeard, And to the Lion came, full lowly creeping, With fained face, and watrie eyne halfe weeping, T'excufe his former treason and abusion,
And turning all unto the Apes confufion. Nath'les the royall Beaft forbore beleeving, But bad him stay at eafe till further preeving."
Then, when he saw no entraunce to him graunted, Roaring yet lowder that all harts it daunted, Upon those gates with force he fiercely flewe, And, rending them in pieces, felly flewe Those warders strange, and all that els he met. But th' Ape still flying he no where might get : From rowme to rowme, from beame to beame he fled All breathles, and for feare now almost ded; Yet him at last the Lyon fpide, and caught, And forth with fhame unto his judgement brought. Then all the beafts he caus'd assembled bee,
• till further preeving.] Prooving, i. e. as it fhould turn out upon trial. So Chaucer ufes preve, "Clerk. Tale," edit. Tyrwhitt, 8876. "Your dome is fals, your conftance evil preveth,
"A ful gret fool is he that on you leveth." Todd. In the fame way we have had "prief" for proof, vol. i. p. 316, &c. C.
To heare their doome, and fad enfample fee. The Foxe, firft Author of that treacherie,
He did uncafe, and then away let flie:
But th' Apes long taile (which then he had) he quight Cut off, and both eares pared of their hight; Since which all Apes but halfe their eares have left, And of their tailes are utterlie bereft.
So Mother Hubberd her difcourfe did end, Which pardon me, if I amiffe have pend; For weake was my remembrance it to hold, And bad her tongue that it fo bluntly tolde.
P He did uncafe.] i. e. he did fkin, ufing "uncafe" in a double The "cafe" of an animal is its fkin.
E heavenly spirites, whofe afhie cinders lie Under deep ruines, with huge walls op-
But not your praife, the which shall never die
Through your faire verses, ne in ashes reft; If fo be fhrilling voyce of wight alive
May reach from hence to depth of darkest hell, Then let thofe deep Abyffes open rive,
ye may understand my fhreiking yell. Thrice having feene under the heavens veale Your toombs devoted compaffe over all, Thrice unto you with lowd voyce I appeale, And for your antique furie here doo call,
The whiles that I with facred horror fing Your glorie, faireft of all earthly thing!
a The Ruines of Rome: by Bellay.] Entitled, in the edition of Bellay's Poems published at Rouen in 1597, "Le Premier Livre des Antiquitez de Rome, contenant une generale defcription de fa grandeur, & comme une deploration de fa ruine." At the end follow the fifteen " Songes of Bellay, which Spenfer has tranflated; omitting the concluding Sonnets "Au Roy" and "A la Royne." TODD.
Great Babylon her haughtie walls will praise, And sharped steeples high fhot up Greece will the olde Ephefian buildings blaze, And Nylus nurflings their Pyramides faire; The fame yet vaunting Greece will tell the storie Of Joves great Image in Olympus placed; Maufolus worke' will be the Carians glorie; And Crete will boaft the Labyrinth, now raced: The antique Rhodian will likewise set forth The great Coloffe, erect to Memorie;
And what els in the world is of like worth, Some greater learned wit will magnifie :
But I will fing above all moniments Seven Romane Hils, the worlds Seven Wonderments.
Thou stranger, which for Rome in Rome here seekest, And nought of Rome in Rome perceivst at all, These fame olde walls, olde arches, which thou seest, Olde Palaces, is that which Rome men call. Beholde what wreake, what ruine, and what wast, And how that fhe, which with her mightie powre Tam'd all the world, hath tam'd herselfe at last ; The pray of time, which all things doth devowre! Rome now of Rome is th' onely funerall, And onely Rome of Rome hath victorie; Ne ought fave Tyber hastning to his fall Remaines of all. O worlds inconftancie! That which is firme doth flit and fall away, And that is flitting doth abide and stay.
b Maufolus worke.] It is "Manfolus worke" in the first impreffion; and this misprint, not elsewhere uncorrected, Todd ftrangely preserved. We need hardly say that Maufolus, son of Hacatomnus, was king of Caria. C.
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