But Florimell her felf was far away,
Driven to great distress by fortune ftrange,
And taught the careful mariner to play,
Sith late mifchaunce had her compel'd to change
The land for fea, at random there to range:
Yet there that cruel Queen avengerefs,
Not fatisfide fo far her to eftrange
From courtly blifs and wonted happinets, Did heap on her new waves of weary wretchedness. XXI.
For being fled into the fishers boat;
For refuge from the monsters cruelty,
Long fo the on the mighty main did float,
And with the tide drove forward carelefly;
For th'air was mild, and cleared was the sky,
And all his winds Dan Aolus did keep,
From stirring up their ftormy enmity,
As pitying to fee her wail and weep;
But all the while the fifher did fecurely fleep.
XXII.
At laft when drunk with droufinefs, he woke,
And faw his drover drive along the ftream,
He was difmayd, and thrice his breast he stroke,
For marveil of that accident extream;
But when he faw that blazing beauties beam,
Which with rare light his boat did beautifie,
He marveil'd more, and thought he yet did dreami
Not well awakt, or that fome extafie
- Affotted had his fenfe, or dazed was his eye.
XXIII.
But when her well avizing, he perceiv'd
To be no vifion, nor fantaftick fight,
Great comfort of her prefence he conceiv'd,
And felt in his old courage new delight
To 'gin awake, and ftir his frozen fpright:
The rudely afkt her, how fhe thither came,
Ah, faid fhe, father, I n'ote read aright,
What hard misfortune brought me to this fame i
Yet am I glad that here I now in safety am.
G g
But thou good man fith far in fea we be,
And the great waters 'gin apace to fwell,
That now no more we can the main-land fee,
Have care, I pray, to guide the cock-boat well,
Left worse on fea than us on land befell.
Thereat th'old man did nought but fondly grin,
And faid, his boat the way could wifely tell:
But his deceiptful eyes did never lin
To look on her fair face, and mark her fnowy skin.
XXV.
The fight whereof, in his congealed flesh,
Infixt fuch fecret fting of greedy lust,
That the dry wither'd ftock it 'gan refresh,
And kindled heat, that foon in flame forth bruft:
The drieft wood is fooneft burnt to duft.
Rudely to her he leapt, and his rough hond
Where ill became him, rafhly would have thrust:
But fhe with angry fcorn him did withftond,
And shamefully reproved for his rudeness fond.
XXVI.
But he that never good nor manners knew,
Her sharp rebuke full little did esteem;
Hard is to teach an old horse amble true.
The inward smoke, that did before but steam,
Broke into open fire and rage extream,
And now he strength 'gan add unto his will,
Forfing to do that did him foul miffeem:
Beaftly he threw her down, ne car'd to sp'ill
Her garments gay with scales of fish, that all did fill.
XXVII.
The filly virgin ftrove him to withstand,
All that he might, and him in vain revil'd: She ftrugled ftrongly both with foot and hand, To fave her honour from the villain vild, And cry'd to heaven, from human help exil'd. O ye brave Knights, that boaft this Ladies love, Where be ye now, when fhe is nigh defil'd Of filthy wretch? well may the you reprove Of falfhood, or of floth, when moft it may behove.
But if that thou, Sir Satyrane, didit weet,
Or thou, Sir Peridure, her forry state,
How foon would ye affemble many a fleet
To fetch from fea, that ye at land loft late?
Towres, cities, kingdoms ye would ruinate,
In your avengement and difpiteous rage,
Ne ought your burning fury mote abate;
But if Sir Calidore could it prefage,
No living creature could his cruelty affuage.
XXIX.
But fith that none of all her Knights is nigh,
See how the heavens of voluntary grace,
And foveraine favour towards chastity,
Do fuccour fend to her diftreffed cafe:
So much high God doth innocence embrace.
It fortuned, whilft thus fhe ftifly strove,
And the wide fea importuned long space
With fhrilling fhrieks, Proteus abroad did rove,
Along the foamy waves driving his finny drove.
XXX.
Proteus is fhepherd of the feas of yore,
And hath the charge of Neptunes mighty herd; An aged fire with head all frowy hore, And sprinkled froft upon his dewy beard: Who when those pitiful outcries he heard Through all the feas fo ruefully refound, His charet fwift in hafte he thither fteard Which, with a team of scaly Phoca's bound, Was drawn upon the waves, that foamed him around, XXXI.
And coming to that fifhers wandring boat,
That went at will withouten card or fail,
He therein faw that irkfome fight, which fimote
Deep indignation and compaffion frail
Into his heart attonce: ftreight did he hail
The greedy villain from his hoped prey,
Of which he now did very little fail,
And with his ftaff that drives his herd aftray,
Him beat fo fore, that life and fenfe did much difmay
The whiles the pitious Lady up did rife,
Ruffled and fouly rayd with filthy foil,
And blubbred face with tears of her fair eyes:
Her heart nigh broken was with weary toil
To fave her felf from that outrageous spoil:
But when he looked up, to weet what wight
Had her from fo infamous fact affoil'd,
For fhame, but more for fear of his grim fight, Down in her lap fhe laid her face, and loudly fhright. XXXIII.
Herself not faved yet from danger dred
She thought, but chang'd from one to other fear; Like as a fearful Partridge, that is fled
From the fharp Hawk, which her attached near,
And falls to ground, to feek for fuccour there,
Whereas the hungry Spaniels fhe does spy,
With greedy jaws her ready for to tear;
In fuch diftrefs and fad perplexity
Was Florimell, when Proteus she did fee thereby.
XXXIV.
But he endeavoured with fpeeches mild,
Her to recomfort, and accourage bold,
Bidding her fear no more her foeman vilde,
Nor doubt himself; and who he was, her told.
Yet all that could not from affright her hold,
Ne to recomfort her at all prevail'd;
For her faint heart was with the frozen cold
Benumb'd fo inly, that her wits nigh fail'd,
And all her fenfes with abafhment quite were qail'd.
XXXV.
up betwixt his rugged hands he rear'd,
And with his frory lips full foftly kift,
Whiles the cold ificles from his rough beard
Dropped adown upon her ivory breaft:
Yet he himself fo bufily addreft,
That her out of aftonishment he wrought,
And out of that fame fifhers filthy neft
Removing her, into his charet brought,
And there with many gentle terms her fair besought.
But that old leachour, which with bold affault
That beauty durft prefume to violate,
He caft to punish for his heinous fault;
Then took he him yet trembling fith of late,
And ty'd behind his charet, to aggrate
The virgin, whom he had abus'd fo fore:
So drag'd him through the waves in fcornful ftate,"
And after caft him up upon the fhore;
But Florimell with him unto his bowre he bore.
XXXVII.
His bowre is in the bottom of the main,
Under a mighty rock, 'gainft which do rave
The roaring billows in their proud disdain;
That with the angry working of the wave,
Therein is eaten out an hollow cave,
That feems rough mafons hand with engins keen
Had long while laboured it to engrave:
There was his wonne, ne living wight was feen,* Save one old Nymph, hight Panope, to keep it clean. XXXVIII.
Thither he brought the forry Florimell,
And entertained her the beft he might;
And Panope her entertain'd eke well,
As an immortal mote a mortal wight,
To win her liking unto his delight;
With flattring words he fweetly wooed her,
And offered fair gifts t'allure her fight:
But the both offers and the offerer
Defpis'd, and all the fawning of the flatterer.
XXXIX.
Daily he tempted her with this.or that,
And never fuffred her to be at reft:
But evermore fhe him refufed flat,
And all his feigned kindness did deteft;
So firmly fhe had fealed up her breast.
Sometimes he boasted, that a God he hight:
But the a mortal creature loved beft:
Then he would make himself a mortal wight
But then she said the lov'd none but a Fairy Knight.
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