At last he came unto a gloomy glade, Cover'd with boughes and shrubs from heavens light,
Whereas he sitting found in secret shade
An uncouth, salvage, and uncivile wight,
Of griesly hew and fowle ill favour'd sight;
His face with smoke was tand, and eies were
bleard,
And round about him lay on every side
Great heapes of gold that never could be spent ;
Of which some were rude owre, not purifide
Of Mulcibers devouring element;
Some others were new driven, and distent
Into great Ingowes and to wedges square;
Some in round plates withouten moniment;
But most were stampt, and in their metal bare
The antique shapes of kings and kesars
straunge and rare.
Soone as he Guyon saw, in great affright
And haste he rose for to remove aside [sight,
And downe them poured through an hole full
Those pretious hils from straungers envious
Into the hollow earth, them there to hide. [ wide
But Guyon, lightly to him leaping, stayd
His hand that trembled as one terrifyde;
And though himselfe were at the sight dismayd,
Yet him perforce restraynd, and to him doubt-
full sayd:
What art thou, man, (if man at all thou art)
That here in desert hast thine habitaunce,
And these rich hils of welth doest hide apart
From the worldes eye, and from her right
usaunce?'
Thereat, with staring eyes fixed askaunce, In great disdaine he answerd Hardy Elfe, His head and beard with sout were ill bedight, That darest view my direfull countenaunce, His cole-blacke hands did seeme to have ben I read thee rash and heedlesse of thy selfe, seard [clawes appeard. To trouble my still seate, and heapes of pre
In smythes fire-spitting forge, and nayles like|
His yron cote, all overgrowne with rust,
Was underneath enveloped with gold; [dust,
Whose glistring glosse, darkned with filthy
Well yet appeared to have beene of old
A worke of rich entayle and curious mould,
Woven with antickes and wyld ymagery;
And in his lap a masse of coyne he told,
And turned upside downe, to feede his eye
And covetous desire with his huge threasury.
'God of the world and worldlings I me call,
Great Mammon, greatest god below the skye,
That of my plenty poure out unto all,
And unto none my graces do envye:
Riches, renowme, and principality,
Honour, estate, and all this worldes good,
For which men swinck and sweat incessantly,
Fro me do flow into an ample flood,
And in the hollow earth have their eternall brood.
Lamenting Sorrow did in darknes lye, [eye. 'Sonne,' (said he then) 'lett be thy bitter scorne, And shame his ugly face did hide from living And leave the rudenesse of that antique age To them that liv'd therin in state forlorne: Thou, that doest live in later times, must wage Thy workes for wealth, and life for gold engage. If then thee list my offred grace to use, Take what thou please of all this surplusage; If thee list not, leave have thou to refuse : But thing refused doe not afterward accuse.'
What secret place' (quoth he) 'can safely hold So huge a masse, and hide from heavens eie? Or where hast thou thy wonne, that so much gold
Thou canst preserve from wrong and robbery?' 'Come thou,' (quoth he) 'and see.' So by and by Through that thick covert he him led, and fownd
And over them sad horror with grim hew
Did alwaies sore, beating his yron wings;
And after him Owles and Night-ravens flew,
The hatefull messengers of heavy things,
Of death and dolor telling sad tidings;
Whiles sad Celeno, sitting on a clifte,
A song of bale and bitter sorrow sings,
That hart of flint asonder could have rifte;
Which having ended after him she flyeth
Before the dore sat selfe-consuming Care,
Day and night keeping wary watch and ward,
For feare least Force or Fraud should unaware
Breake in, and spoile the treasure there in gard:
A darkesome way, which no man could descry, Ne would he suffer Sleepe once thither-ward
That deep descended through the
grownd,
And was with dread and horror
hollow Approch, albe his drowsy den were next; [arownd. For next to death is Sleepe to be compard; compassed Therefore his house is unto his annext :
At length they came into a larger space,
That stretcht itselfe into an ample playne;
Through which a beaten broad high way did
trace,
That streight did lead to Plutoes griesly rayne.
By that wayes side there sate internall Payne,
And fast beside him sat tumultuous Strife:
The one in hand an yron whip did strayne,
The other brandished a bloody knife;
And both did gnash their teeth, and both did
threten life.
On thother side in one consort there sate
Cruell Revenge, and rancorous Despight,
Disloyall Treason, and hart-burning Hate;
But gnawing Gealosy, out of their sight
Sitting alone, his bitter lips did bight:
And trembling Feare still to and fro did fly,
And found no place wher safe he shroud him
might:
Here Sleep, ther Richesse, and Hel-gate them both betwext.
So soon as Mammon there arrivd, the dore
To him did open and affoorded way:
Him followed eke Sir Guyon evermore,
Ne darkenesse him, ne daunger might dismay.
Soone as he entred was, the dore streight way
Did shutt, and from behind it forth there lept
An ugly feend, more fowle then dismall day,
The which with monstrous stalke behind him
stept,
[kept.
And ever as he went dew watch upon him
Well hoped hee, ere long that hardy guest,
If ever covetous hand, or lustfull eye,
Or lips he layd on thing that likte him best,
Or ever sleepe his eie-strings did untye,
Should be his pray. And therefore still on hye
He over him did hold his cruell clawes,
Threatning with greedy gripe to doe him dye,
And rend in peeces with his ravenous pawes,
If ever he transgrest the fatall Stygian lawes.
Who it to rob and ransacke did intend.
Then Mammon, turning to that warriour, said;
'Loe! here the worldes blis: loe! here the end,
To which al men doe ayme, rich to be made :
That houses forme within was rude and Such grace now to be happy is before thee laid.'
But, when an earthly wight they present saw Glistring in armes and battailous aray,
From their whot work they did themselves
withdraw
To wonder at the sight; for till that day
They never creature saw that cam that way:
Their staring eyes sparckling with fervent fyre
And ugly shapes did nigh the man dismay,
That, were it not for shame, he would retyre;
Till that him thus bespake their soveraine
Lord and syre;
Soone as those glitterand armes he did espye, That with their brightnesse made that darknes light,
His harmefull club he gan to hurtle hye,
And threaten batteill to the Faery knight;
Who likewise gan himselfe to batteill dight,
Till Mammon did his hasty hand withhold,
And counseld him abstaine from perilous tight;
For nothing might abash the villein bold,
Behold, thou Faeries sonne, with mortall Nemortall steele emperce his miscreated mould. That living eye before did never see. [eye,
The thing, that thou didst crave so earnestly, So having him with reason pacifyde,
To weet whence all the wealth late shewd by And that fiers Carle commaunding to forbeare,
Proceeded, lo! now is reveald to thee. [mee
He brought him in. The rowme was large
Here is the fountaine of the worldes good:
Now, therefore, if thou wilt enriched bee,
Avise thee well, and chaunge thy wilfull mood,
Least thou perhaps hereafter wish, and be
As it some Gyeld or solemne Temple weare.
Many great golden pillours did upbeare
The massy roofe, and riches huge sustayne;
And every pillour decked was full deare
With crownes, and Diademes, and titles vaine,
Which mortall Princes wore whiles they on
earth did rayne.
A route of people there assembled were,
Of every sort and nation under skye,
Which with great uprore preaced to draw nere
To th' upper part, where was advaunced hye
A stately siege of soveraine majestye:
And thereon satt a woman, gorgeous gay
And richly cladd in robes of royaltye,
That never earthly Prince in such aray
His glory did enhaunce, and pompous pryde
display.
To a broad gate all built of beaten gold:
The gate was open; but therein did wayt
A sturdie villein, stryding stiffe and bold,
As if the highest God defy he would:
In his right hand an yron club he held,
But he himselfe was all of golden mould,
Yet had both life and sence, and well could Yet was not that same her owne native hew,
weld
[queld. But wrought by art and counterfetted shew,
That cursed weapon, when his cruell foes he Thereby more lovers unto her to call:
Her face right wondrous faire did seeme to
bee,
[threw
That her broad beauties beam great brightnes
Through the dim shade, that all men might
Disdayne he called was, and did disdayne
To be so cald, and who so did him call:
Sterne was his looke, and full of stomacke
vayne;
Nath'lesse most hevenly faire in deed and vew
She by creation was, till she did fall;
Thenceforth she sought for helps to cloke her
crime withall.
His portaunce terrible, and stature tall, There, as in glistring glory she did sitt,
Far passing th' hight of men terrestriall, She held a great gold chaine ylincked well,
Like an huge Gyant of the Titans race; ['small, Whose upper end to highest heven was knitt,
That made him scorne all creatures great and And lower part did reach to lowest Hell;
And with his pride all others powre deface: And all that preace did rownd about her swell
More fitt emongst black fiendes then men to To catchen hold of that long chaine, thereby
To climbe aloft, and others to excell:
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