Hymen lö Hymen, dauncing all around;

Whylst freshest Flora her with yvie girlond crownd.

XLIX.

In this great passion of unwonted lust,
Or wonted feare of doing ought amis,
He starteth up, as seeming to mistrust
Some secret ill, or hidden foe of his :
Lo, there before his face his Ladie is,
Under blacke stole hyding her bayted hooke;
And as halfe blushing offred him to kis,

With gentle blandishment and lovely looke, Most like that Virgin true, which for her Knight him took.

L.

All cleane dismayd to see so uncouth1 sight,
And halfe enraged at her shamelesse guise,

He thought have slaine her in his fierce despight; 2
But, hastie heat tempring with sufferance wise,
He stayde his hand; and gan himselfe advise
Το prove his sense, and tempt her faigned truth.
Wringing her hands, in wemens pitteous wise,
Tho3 can she weepe, to stirre up gentle ruth"
Both for her noble blood, and for her tender youth.

LI.

And sayd, "Ah Sir, my liege lord, and my love,
Shall I accuse the hidden cruell fate,

And mightie causes wrought in heaven above,
Or the blind god, that doth me thus amate,5
For hoped love to winne me certaine hate?
Yet thus perforce he bids me do, or die.
Die is my dew; yet rew my wretched state,

You, whom my hard avenging destinie

Hath made iudge of my life or death indifferently:

LII.

"Your owne deare sake forst me at first to leave
My fathers kingdom" - There she stopt with teares;
Her swollen hart her speech seemd to bereave;
And then againe begun; "My weaker yeares,
Captiv'd to fortune and frayle worldly feares,
Fly to your fayth for succour and sure ayde:
Let me not die in languor and long teares."

66

Why, dame," quoth he, "what hath ye thus dismayd? What frayes1 ye, that were wont to comfort me affray'd?”

LIII.

"Love of yourselfe," she saide, "and deare constraint,
Lets me not sleepe, but waste the wearie night
In secret anguish and unpittied plaint,

Whiles you in carelesse sleepe are drowned quight."
Her doubtfull words made that redoubted Knight
Suspect her truth; yet since no' untruth he knew,
Her fawning love with foule disdainefull spight

He would not shend; 2 but said, "Deare dame, I rew, That for my sake unknowne such griefe unto you grew:

LIV.

“Assure your selfe, it fell not all to ground;
For all so deare, as life is to my hart,

I deeme your love, and hold me to you bound:
Ne let vaine fears procure your needlesse smart,
Where cause is none; but to your rest depart."

1 Frayes, affrights.

2 Shend, reproach.

LII.1.- Your owne deare sake, &c.] This is not true, as Una did not know St. George till she came to the court of the Faerie Queene. Falsehood can only assume the outward semblance of Truth.

Not all content, yet seemd she to appease

Her mournefull plaintes, beguiled of her art,

And fed with words, that could not chose but please : So, slyding softly forth, she turnd as to her ease.

LV.

Long after lay he musing at her mood, *

Much griev'd to thinke that gentle Dame so light,
For whose defence he was to shed his blood.
At last dull wearines of former fight

Having yrockt asleepe his irkesome spright,
That troublous Dreame gan freshly tosse his braine
With bowres, and beds, and ladies deare delight:
But, when he saw his labour all was vaine,
With that misformed Spright he back returnd againe.

LV. 9. Back returnd againe.] Here we are taught that the principle of Holiness has an innate power, which instinctively rejects evil, though the temptation may come in the form of Truth.

CANTO II.

The guilefull great Enchaunter parts
The Redcrosse Knight from Truth:
Into whose stead faire Falshood steps,
And workes him woefull ruth.

I.

By this the northerne wagoner had set
His sevenfold teme behind the stedfast starre
That was in ocean waves yet never wet,
But firme is fixt, and sendeth light from farre
To all that in the wide deepe wandring arre;
And chearefull chaunticlere with his note shrill
Had warned once, that Phoebus fiery carre
In hast was climbing up the easterne hill,
Full envious that night so long his roome did fill:

II.

When those accursed messengers of hell,

That feigning Dreame, and that faire-forged Spright,
Came to their wicked Maister, and gan tell

Their bootelesse paines, and ill-succeeding night:
Who, all in rage to see his skilfull might
Deluded so, gan threaten hellish paine
And sad Prosérpines wrath, them to affright.
But, when he saw his threatning was but vaine,
He cast about, and searcht his baleful bokes againe.

1. 1. The northerne wagoner.] The "northerne wagoner " is the constellation Bootes; his "sevenfold teme are the seven stars in the Great Bear, which are commonly called Charles's Wain; and the "stedfast starre is the pole-star.

III.

Eftsoones he tooke that miscreated Faire,
And that false other Spright, on whom he spred
A seeming body of the subtile aire,

Like a young Squire, in loves and lustyhed
His wanton daies that ever loosely led,
Without regard of armes and dreaded fight;
Those two he tooke, and in a secrete bed,
Covered with darkenes and misdeeming 2 night,
Them both together laid, to ioy in vaine delight.

IV.

Forthwith he runnes with feigned-faithfull hast Unto his guest, who, after troublous sights And dreames, gan now to take more sound repast; Whom suddenly he wakes with fearful frights, As one aghast with feends or damned sprights, And to him calls; "Rise, rise, unhappy swaine, That here wex old in sleepe, whiles wicked wights Have knit themselves in Venus shameful chaine: Come, see where your false Lady doth her honor staine."

V.

All in a maze he suddenly up start

With sword in hand, and with the old man went;

Who soone him brought into a secret part,
Where that false couple were full closely ment 3

In wanton lust and leud embracement:

Which when he saw, he burnt with gealous fire;
The eie of reason was with rage yblent 1;
And would have slaine them in his furious ire,
But hardly was restreined of that aged sire.

1 Eftsoones, immediately. Misdeeming, causing to mistake.

3 Ment, mingled.

4 Yblent, dazzled, blinded.