He wooed her, till day fpring he efpide;
But all in vain: and then turn'd to the herd,
Who butted him with horns on every fide,
And trode down in the dirt, where his hore beard
Was fouly dight, and he of death affeard.
Early before the heavens faireft light
Out of the ruddy Eaft was fully rear'd,
The herds out of their folds were loofed quight, And he emongst the reft crept forth in forry plight. LIII.
So foon as he the prifon door did pafs,
He ran as faft as both his feet could bear,
And never looked who behind him was,
Ne fcarcely who before: like as a Bear
That creeping clofe, emongst the hives to rear
An hony-comb, the wakeful dogs efpy,
And him affailing, fore his carcass tear,
That hardly he with life away does fly,
Ne ftays, till fafe himself he fee from jeopardy.
Ne ftayd he, till he came unto the place
Where late his treasure he entombed had; Where when he found it not (for Trompart bafe Had it purloined for his maifter bad:) With extream fury he became quite mad, And ran away, ran with himself away: That who fo ftrangely had him feen beftad, With upstart hair, and ftaring eyes difmay, From Limbo lake him late efcaped fure would fay.
High over hills and over dales he fled,
As if the wind him on his wings had borne,
Ne bank nor bush could stay him, when he fped
His nimble feet, as treading ftill on thorn:
Grief, and defpight, and jealoufie, and fcorn
Did all the way him follow hard behind:
And he himself, himself loath'd fo forlorn,
So fhamefully forlorn of womankind;
That, as a Snake, fill lurked in his wounded mind.
Still fled he forward, looking backward ftill,
Ne ftayd his flight, nor fearful agony,
Till that he came unto a rocky hill,
Over the fea fufpended dreadfully,
That living creature it would terrify
To look adown, or upward to the height:
From thence he threw himself defpiteously,
All defperate of his fore-damined spright,
That feem'd no help for him was left in living fight.
LVII.
But through long anguish, and felf-murdring thought,"
He was fo wafted and fore-pined quight,
That all his fubftance was confum'd to nought,
And nothing left, but like an airy Spright,
That on the rocks he fell fo flit and light,
That he thereby receiv'd no hurt at all,
But chanced on a craggy cliff to light;
Whence he with crooked claws fo long did crawll,
That at the last he found a cave with entrance small.
LVIII.
Into the fame he creeps, and thence-forth there
Refolv'd to build his baleful mansion,
In dreary darkness, and continual fear
Of that rocks fall; which ever and anon
Threats with huge ruin him to fall upon,
That he dare never fleep, but that one eye
Still ope he keeps for that occafion;
Ne ever refts he in tranquillity,
The roaring billows beat his bowre fo boiftroufly.
LIX.
Ne ever is he wont on ought to feed,
But Toads and Frogs (his pafture poisonous)
Which in his cold complexion do breed
A filthy blood, or humour rancorous,
Matter of doubt and dread fufpicious,
That doth with carelefs care confume the heart,
Corrupts the ftomach with gall vicious,
Crofs-cuts the liver with internal fmart,
And doth transfix the foul with deaths eternal dart.
LX.
Yet can he never dye, but dying lives,
And doth him self with forrow new sustain,
That death and life attonce unto him gives,
And painful pleasure turns to pleasing pain.
There dwells he ever, miferable swain,
Hateful both to himself, and every wight;
Where he through privy grief, and horrour vain,
Is woxen fo deform'd, that he has quight
Forgot he was a man, and Jealoufe is hight.
CANTO XI.
Britomart chaceth Ollyphant,
Finds Scudamour diftreft:
Allays the boufe of Bufirane,
Where Loves fpoils are expreft.
Hateful hellish Snake, what fury first
Brought thee from baleful house of Proferpine, Where in her bofom fhe thee long had nurst, And foftred up with bitter milk of tine, Foul jealoufie, that turneft Love divine To joyless dread, and mak'st the loving heart With hateful thoughts to languish and to pine, And feed it felf with felf-confuming smart? Of all the paffions in the mind thou vileft art.
O! let him far be banished away,
And in his ftead let Love for ever dwell;
Sweet Love that doth his golden wings embay
In bleffed Nectar, and pure pleasures Well,
Untroubled of vile fear, or bitter fell.
And ye fair Ladies, that your kingdoms make
In th'hearts of men, them govern wifely well,
And of fair Britomart enfample take,
That was as true in love, as Turtle to her mate.
Who with Sir Satyrane (as earft ye read)
Forth riding from Malbecco's hoftless house,
Far off efpide a young man, the which fled
From an huge Giant, that with hideous
And hateful out-rage long him chaced thus;
It was that Ollyphant, the brother dear
Of that Argante vile and vicious,
From whom the Squire of Dames was reft whylere; Thus all as bad as fhe, and worfe, if worse ought were, IV.
For as the fifter did in feminine
And filthy luft exceed all woman-kind,
So he furpaffed his fex mafculine,
In beastly use all I did ever find;
Whom whenas Britomart beheld behind
The fearful boy fo greedily pursue,
She was emmoved in her noble mind,
T'imploy her puiffance to his rescue,
And pricked fiercely forward, where fhe him did view.
Ne was Sir Satyrane her far behind,
But with like fiercenefs did enfue the chace: Whom when the Giant faw, he foon refign'd His former fuit, and from them fled apace; They after both, and boldly bade him bace, And each did strive the other to out-go: But he them both out-ran a wondrous space; For he was long and fwift as any Roe, And now made better speed, t'escape his feared foe.
It was not Satyrane whom he did fear,
But Britomart, the flowre of chastity;
For he the powre of chafte hands might not bear,
But always did their dread encounter fly:
And now fo faft his feet he did apply,
That he was gotten to a foreft near,
Where he is fhrouded in fecurity:
The wood they enter, and fearch every where,
They fearched diverfly; fo both divided were.
Fair Britomart fo long him followed,
That fhe at laft came to a fountain fhear,
By which there lay a Knight all wallowed
Upon the graffy ground, and by him near
His haberjeon, his helmet and his spear;
A little off, his fhield was rudely thrown,
On whch the winged boy in colours clear
Depainted was, full eafie to be known,
And he thereby, where-ever it in field was fhown,
VIII.
His face upon the ground did groveling lye,
As if he had been flumbring in the shade,
That the brave maid would not for courtesy,
Out of his quiet flumber him abrade,
Nor feem too fuddainly him to invade :
Still as fhe ftood, fhe heard with grievous throb
Him groan, as if his heart were pieces made,
And with most painful pangs to figh and fob,
That pity did the virgins heart of patience rob.
IX.
At laft forth breaking into bitter plaints,
He faid: O foveraine Lord that fitft on high,
And reign'ft in blifs emongst thy bleffed Saints,
How fuffreft thou fuch fhameful cruelty,
So long unwreaked of thine enemy?
Or haft thou, Lord, of good mens caufe no heed?
Or doth thy justice fleep, and filent lye?
What booteth then the good and righteous deed,
If goodness find no grace, nor righteousness no meed?
X.
If good find grace, and righteousness reward,
Why then is Amoret in caitive band,
Sith that more bounteous creature never far'd
On foot upon the face of living land?
Or if that heavenly justice may withstand
The wrongful out-rage of unrighteous men,
Why then is Bufirane with wicked hand
Suffred, thefe feven months day, in fecret den
My Lady and my Love fo cruelly to pen?
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