For all he taught the tender ymp was but To banish cowardize and bastard feare:
In these and like delightes of bloody game
He trayned was, till ryper years he raught;
Walkt in that forrest, whom he had not taught
And there abode, whylst any beast of name
To feare his force: and then his courage
haught
Desyrd of forreine foemen to be knowne,
His trembling hand he would him force to put
Upon the Lyon and the rugged Beare; [teare;
And from the she Beares teats her whelps to
And eke wyld roring Buls he would him make
To tame, and ryde their backes, not made to And far abroad for straunge adventures sought;
And the Robuckes in flight to overtake, [quake. In which his might was never overthrowne;
That everie beast for feare of him did fly, and But through al Faery lond his famous worth
Th' enchaunter vaine his errour should not rew: Led with their noise which through the aire But thou his errour shalt, I hope, now proven trew.'
had sown. Arriv'd wher they in erth their fruitles blood
Whom all so soone as that proud Sarazin Espide, he gan revive the memory Of his leud lusts, and late attempted sin, And lefte the doubtfull battell hastily, To catch her, newly offred to his eie; But Satyrane, with strokes him turning, staid, And sternely bad him other businesse plie Then hunt the steps of pure unspotted Maid: Wherewith he al enrag'd these bitter speaches said.
'O foolish faeries sonne' what fury mad
Hath thee incenst to hast thy dolefull fate?
Were it not better 1 that Lady had
Then that thou hadst repented it too late?
Most sencelesse man he, that himselfe doth hate,
To love another: Lo! then, for thine ayd,
Here take thy lovers token on thy pate.'
So they to fight; the whiles the royall Mayd
Fledd farre away, of that proud Paynim sore
afrayd.
But that false Pilgrim, which that leasing Being in deed old Archimage, did stay [told, In secret shadow all this to behold; And much rejoyced in their bloody fray: But, when he saw the Damsell passe away, He left his stond, and her pursewd apace, In hope to bring her to her last decay. But for to tell her lamentable cace, [place. And eke this battels end, will need another
So growen great, through arrogant delight
of th high descent whereof he was yborne,
And through presumption of his matchlesse
might,
All other powres and knighthood he did scorne.
And left to losse; his stalking steps are stayde
Such now he marcheth to this man forlorne,
Upon a snaggy Oke, which he had torne
Out of his mothers bowelles, and it made
His mortall mace, wherewith his foemen he
dismayde.
That, when the knight he spyde, he gan ad
Hereof this gentle knight unweeting was;
And lying downe upon the sandie graile.
Dronke of the streame, as cleare as christall
Eftsoones his manly forces gan to fayle, [glas:
And mightie strong was turnd to feeble frayle. With huge force and insupportable mayne,
His chaunged powres at first them selves not And towardes him with dreadfull fury praunce;
Till crudled cold his corage gan assayle, [felt; Who haplesse, and eke hopelesse, all in vaine
And cheareful blood in fayntnes chill did melt, Did to him pace sad battaile to darrayne,
Which like a fever fit through all his bodie Disarmd, disgraste, and inwardly dismayde;
'And eke so faint in every joynt and vayne,
Through that fraile fountain which him feeble
made,
[single blade.
That scarsely could he weeld his bootlesse
Yet goodly court he made still to his Dame, Pourd out in loosnesse on the grassy grownd, Both carelesse of his health, and of his fame; Till at the last he heard a dreadfull sownd, Which through the wood loud bellowing did rebownd,
That all the earth for terror seemd to shake. And trees did tremble. Th' Elfe, therewith astownd,
The Geaunt strooke so maynly mercilesse, That could have overthrowne a stony towre; And, were not hevenly grace that did him blesse.
He had beene pouldred all as thin as flowre:
But he was wary of that deadly stowre,
And lightly lept from underneath the blow:
Yet so exceeding was the villeins powre,
That with the winde it did him overthrow,
And all his sences stound that still he lay full
low.
As when that divelish yron Engin, wrought
In deepest Hell, and framd by Furies skill,
With windy Nitre and quick Sulphur fraught,
And ramd with bollet rownd, ordaind to kill,
Conceiveth fyre, the heavens it doth fill
With thundring noyse, and all the ayre doth
Such one it was, as that renowmed Snake
Which great Alcides in Stremona slew,
Long fostred in the filth of Lerna lake:
Whose many heades, out budding ever new,
Did breed him endlesse labor to subdew.
But this same Monster much more ugly was,
For seven great heads out of his body grew,
An yron brest, and back of scaly bras,
And all embrewd in blood his eyes did shine
as glas.
His tayle was stretched out in wondrous length, That none can breath, nor see, nor heare at will, That to the hous of hevenly gods it raught: Through smouldry cloud of dusk ish stincking And with extorted powre, and borrow'd [escapt the stroke.
That th' only breath him daunts, who hath The everburning lamps from thence it braught, And prowdly threw to ground, as things of
And underneath his filthy feet did tread
So daunted when the Geaunt saw the knight, The sacred thinges, and holy heastes foreHis heavie hand he heaved up on hye,
And him to dust thought to have battred Upon this dreadfull Beast with sevenfold head He sett the false Duessa, for more aw and dread.
Untill Duessa loud to him gan crye,
O great Orgoglio! greatest under skye,
O! hold thy mortall hand for Ladies sake;
Hold for my sake, and doe him not to dye,
But vanquisht thine eternall bondslave make,
And me, thy worthy meed, unto thy Leman
take.'
The wofull Dwarfe, which saw his maisters
fall
Whiles he had keeping of his grasing steed.
And valiant knight become a caytive thrall,
When all was past, tooke up his forlorne weed;
His mightie Armour, missing most at need;
His silver shield, now idle, maisterlesse;
His poynant speare that many made to bleed,
The rueful moniments of heavinesse;
And with them all departes to tell his great
distresse.
He had not travaild long, when on the way
He wofull Lady, wofull Una, met,
Fast flying from that Paynims greedy pray,
Whilest Satyrane him from pursuit did let
Who when her eyes she on the Dwarf had set,
And saw the signes that deadly tydinges spake,
She fell to ground for sorrowfull regret,
And lively breath her sad brest did forsake ;
Yet might her pitteous hart be seene to pant
and quake.
The messenger of so unhappie newes
Would faine have dyde: dead was his hart
within,
Yet outwardly some little comfort shewes.
At last, recovering hart, he does begin
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