But they like tyrants merciless, the more
Rejoiced at his miferable cafe,
And him reviled, and reproached fore
With bitter taunts and terms of vile difgrace.
Now whenas Arthegal arriv'd in place,
Did afk, what caufe brought that man to decay,
They round about him 'gan to fwarm apace,
Meaning on him their cruel hands to lay,
And to have wrought unwares fome villanous affay.
XXIV.
But he was foon aware of their ill mind,
And drawing back deceived their intent;
Yet though himself did fhame on womankind
His mighty hand to fhen, he Talus fent
To wreck on them their follies hardiment:
Who with few foufes of his iron flaile,
Difperfed all their troop incontinent,
And fent them home to tell a piteous tale
Of their vain prowefs, turned to their proper bale.
But that fame wretched man, ordain'd to dye,
They left behind them, glad to be fo quit:
Him Talus took out of perplexity,
And horrour of foul death for Knight unfit,}
Who more than lofs of life ydreaded it;
And him reftoring unto living light,
So brought unto his Lord, where he did fit,
Beholding all that womanish weak fight;
Whom foon as he beheld, he knew, and thus behight.
XXVI.
Sir Terpine, hapless man, what make you here?
Or have you loft your felf, and your difcretion,
That ever in this wretched cafe ye were?
Or have ye yielded you to proud oppreffion
Of womens powre, that boast of mens fubjection?
Or elfe, what other deadly difmal day
Is faln on you, by heavens hard direction,
That ye were run fo fondly far aftray,
As for to lead your felf unto your own decay?
Much was the man confounded in his mind,
Partly with fhame, and partly with difmay,
That all aftonifht he himself did find,
And little had for his excufe to fay,
But only thus; Moft hapless well ye may
Me juftly term, that to this fhame am brought, And made the fcorn of knighthood this fame day. But who can scape what his own fate hath wrought? The work of heavens will furpaffeth human thought. XXVIII.
Right true but faulty men ufe oftentimes
To attribute their folly unto fate,
And lay on heaven the guilt of their own crimes. But tell, Sir Terpine, ne let you amate
Your mifery, how fell ye in this ftate.
Then fith ye needs, quoth he, will know my fhame,
And all the ill which chanc'd to me of late,
I fhortly will to you rehearse the fame,
In hope ye will not turn misfortune to my blame.
XXIX.
Being defirous (as all Knights are wont)
Through hard adventures deeds of arms to try,
And after fame and honour for to hunt,
I heard report that far abroad did fly,
That a proud Amazon did late defy
All the brave Knights that hold of Maidenhead,
And unto them wrought all the villany
That the could forge in her malicious head,
Which fome hath put to fhame, and many done be dead.
XXX.
The cause, they fay, of this her cruel hate,
Is for the fake of Bellodant the bold,
To whom she bore moft fervent love of late, And wooed him by all the ways fhe could: But when she faw at laft, that he ne would For ought or nought be won unto her will, She turn'd her love to hatred manifold, And for his fake, vow'd to do all the ill Which the could do to Knights: which now the doth
For all thofe Knights, the which by force or guile
She doth fubdue, fhe fouly doth intreat.
First the doth them of warlike arms defpoil,
And clothe in womens weeds: and then with threat
Doth them compell to work, to earn their meat,
To fpin, to card, to few, to wash, to wring;
Ne doth fhe give them other thing to eat
But bread and water, or like feeble thing,
Them to difable from revenge adventuring.
XXXII.
But if through ftout disdain of manly mind,
Any her proud obfervance will withstand,
Upon that gibbet, which is there behind,
She causeth them be hang'd up out of hand;
In which condition I right now did stand.
For being overcome by her in fight,
And put to that bale fervice of her band,
I rather chofe to dye in life's defpight,
Than lead that fhameful life, unworthy of a Knight. XXXIII.
How hight that Amazon (faid Arthegal)?
And where, and how far hence does the abide ?
Her name, quoth he, they Radigund do call,
A Princess of great powre, and greater pride,
And Queen of Amazons in arms well tride,
And fundry battles which fhe hath atchiev'd
With great fuccefs, that her hath glorifide,
And made her famous, more than is believ'd;
Ne would I it have ween'd, had I not late it priev'd.
XXXIV.
Now fure, faid he, and by the faith that I
To Maidenhead and noble knighthood owe,
I will not reft, till I her might do try,
And venge the fhame, that the to Knights doth show.
Therefore Sir Terpine from you lightly throw
This fqualid weed, the pattern of despair,
And wend with me, that ye may fee and know,
. How fortune will your ruin'd name repair, And Knights of Maidenhead, whofe praife she would em
With that, like one that hopeless was repriev'd
From deathës door, at which he lately lay,
Those iron fetters, wherewith he was gyv'd,
The badges of reproach, he threw away,
And nimbly did him dight to guide the way
Unto the dwelling of that Amazone.
Which was from thence not paft a mile or tway;
A goodly city, and a mighty one,
The which of her own name fhe called Radigone.
XXXVI.
Where they arriving by the watchmen were
- Defcried ftraight; who all the city warn'd,
How that three warlike perfons did
appear,
Of which the one him feem'd a Knight all arm'd,
And th' other two well likely to have harm'd.
Eftfoons the people all to harness ran,
And like a fort of bees in clusters fwarm'd:
Ere long, their Queen her self arm'd like a man, Came forth into the rout, and them t' array began. XXXVII.
And now the Knights, being arrived near,
Did beat upon the gates to enter in,
And at the Porter, fcorning them so few,
Threw many threats, if they the town did win,
To tear his flesh in pieces for his fin.
Which whenas Radigund there coming heard, Her heart for rage did grate, and teeth did grin: She bade that straight the gates fhould be unbar'd, ` And to them way to make, with weapons well prepar'd. XXXVIII.
Soon as the gates were open to them fet,
They preffed forward, entrance to have made.
But in the middle way they were ymet
With a fharp fhowre of arrows, which them ftaid,
And better bade advise, ere they assaid,
Unknowen peril of bold womens pride.
Then all that rout upon them rudely laid,
And heaped ftrokes fo faft on every fide,
And arrows haild fo thick, that they could not abide.
XXXIX.
But Radigund her felf, when the efpide
Sir Terpine, from her direful doom acquit,
So cruel dole amongst her maids divide.
T'avenge that fhame, they did on him commit;
All fuddainly enflam'd with furious fit,
Like a fell Lionefs at him fhe flew,
And on his head-piece him fo fiercely fmit,
That to the ground him quite the overthrew,
Dismay'd fo with the ftroke, that he no colours knew.
XL.
Soon as the faw him on the ground to grovel,
She lightly to him leapt; and in his neck
Her proud foot fetting, at his head did level,
Weening at once her wrath on him to wreak,
And his contempt, that did her judgment break:
As when a Bear hath feiz'd her cruel claws
Upon the carcass of fome beast too weak,
Proudly stands over, and a while doth pause,
To hear the piteous beaft pleading her plaintiff cause.
XLI.
Whom whenas Arthegal in that distress
By chance beheld, he left the bloody slaughter,
In which he swam, and ran to his redrefs.
There her affailing fiercely fresh, he raught her
Such an huge stroke, that it of fenfe diftraught her:
And had the not it warded warily,
It had depriv'd her mother of a daughter.
Nath'lefs for all the powre fhe did apply,
It made her stagger oft, and ftare with ghaftly eye.
XLII.
Like to an Eagle in his kingly pride,
Soaring through his wide empire of the air, To weather his broad fails, by chance hath fpide A Gofhawk, which hath feized for her fhare Upon fome fowl, that should her feast prepare; With dreadful force he flies at her bylive, That with his foufe, which none enduren dare, Her from the quarry he away doth drive, And from her griping pounce the greedy prey doth rive
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