And, underneath their feet, all scattered lay Dead fculls and bones of men, whofe life had gone aftray.

XXXVII.

So forth they marchen in this goodly fort,
To take the folace of the open aire,

And in fresh flowring fields themselves to
fport:

Emongst the reft rode that falfe Lady
faire,

The foule Dueffa, next unto the chaire
Of proud Lucifer', as one of the traine:
But that good Knight would not so nigh
repaire,

XXXVI. 8. And, underneath their feet, all fcattered lay Dead fculls and bones of men,] See alfo, in

Mammon's Cave, F. Q. ii. vii. 30.

"And all the ground with fculs was scattered
"And dead mens bones"

Thus, in the Seven Champions, B. ii. Ch. 8, the champions, when they are betrayed by the necromancer of the Black Castle into an enchanted Cave, “ as they went groping and feeling up and down, they found that they did tread on no other things but dead mens bones." T. WARTON.

XXXVII. 6. Of proud Lucifer', as one of the traine:] So the 1ft quarto: the 2d, "Of proud Lucifera as one of the traine." Which is no verfe: So too the folios. But Mr. Hughes from his conjecture, "Of proud Lucifera as one o' th' traine." That the reading, which I have given, is Spenfer's own, appears not only from the authority of his own edition; but likewife from his ufual elifion in fuch like proper names : Thus, in F. Q. i. iv. 2.

"Called Fidefs', and fo fuppofd to be." Again, ft. 15.

"But to Duefs' each one himfelfe did payne." See alfo F. Q. i. vi. 2 . xii. 21, iii. ii. 32. UPTON.

Him felfe eftraunging from their ioyaunce

vaine,

Whofe fellowship feemd far unfitt for warlike fwaine.

XXXVIII.

So, having folaced themfelves a space
With pleafaunce of the breathing fields yfed,
They backe retourned to the princely place;
Whereas an errant Knight in armes ycled,
And heathnifh fhield, wherein with letters red
Was writt Sans ioy, they new arrived find :
Enflam'd with fury and fiers hardyhed,
He feemd in hart to harbour thoughts unkind,
And nourish bloody vengeaunce in his bitter
mind.

XXXIX.

Who, when the fhamed fhield of flaine Sansfoy He spide with that fame Fary champions

page,

Bewraying him that did of late destroy
His eldest brother; burning all with rage,
He to him lept, and that fame envious gage
Of victors glory from him fnacht away:
But th' Elfin Knight, which ought that war-
like wage,

XXXIX. 1.

the fhamed Shield] The propriety

of this epithet is explained in ftanza 41. CHURCH.

XXXIX. 7.

which ought that warlike wage,] That is,

which owed; which was the proper owner, or poffeffor of. For

Difdaind to loose the meed he wonne in fray; And, him rencountring fierce, reskewd the noble pray.

XL.

Therewith they gan to hurtlen greedily,
Redoubted battaile ready to darrayne,

thus, to owe, is used in Sidney's Arcadia, p. 37. "If it be by the death of him that owed it, &c." i. e. was the poffeffor or owner of the armour. So Fairfax, iii. 73.

"Which he from pagan lords, that did them owe,
"Had wonne, &c."

Shakspeare thus ufes it in a hundred paffages. UPTON. XXXIX. 9. And, him rencountring] See the rencontre explained, in the note, F. Q. iii. i. 9. "Which by that new rencounter &c."

XL. 1.

TODD.

to hurtlen] See the note, p. 119. TODD. XL. 2. Redoubted battaile ready to darrayne,] Darraine is often thus ufed by Chaucer; as in Kn. Tale, v. 2098. "That everich fhould an hundred knights bring

"The battel to darrain."

See also ibid. v. 1632. The word feems to be derived from the French arranger; so that, to darrayne battaile, is to fet the battle in array. Our poet has used arranged, from arranger, and applied it to battle more than once. See F. Q. i. ii. 36, i. vi. 38. The word darrayne being a Chaucerifm, our author has very remarkably affected the use of it. See F. Q. i. vii. 11, ii. ii. 26, iii. i. 20, iv. iv. 26, iv. v. 24, v. ii. 15, vi, xii. 9, vi. vii. 41. We have alfo an inftance in which the word is used in a more vague fenfe, F. Q. iv. ix. 4.

"how best he might darraine

"That enterprize"

But we are told in the Gloffary to Urry's Chaucer, that this word, among other fenfes, fignifies, to dare, to attempt. Thus, by a gradual detortion, and by an imperceptible progreffion from one kindred fenfe to another, words at length attain a meaning entirely foreign to their original etymology.

Spenter's frequent ufe of darrayne feems to have somewhat familiarifed it in Queen Elizabeth's age. We meet with it in Shakspeare, who probably drew it from our author, Hen. VI. P. iii. A. ii. S. iii. 66 Darraign your battle; they are near at

hand." T. WARTON.

And clash their shields, and shake their fwerds

on hy;

That with their fturre they troubled all the

traine:

Till that great Queene, upon

eternall paine Of high displeasure that enfewen might, Commaunded them their fury to refraine; And, if that either to that shield had right, In equall lifts they should the morrow next it fight.

XLI.

"Ah dearest Dame," quoth then the Paynim

bold,

"Pardon the error of enraged wight,

Whome great griefe made forgett the raines to hold

Of reafons rule, to fee this recreaunt Knight,

XL. 3. And clash their fhields, and shake their fwerds on hy ;] Twas a cuftom of the old warriours to ftrike their fwords or fpears against their fhields: "Cùm haftis clypei feriuntur iræ documentum eft et doloris.” Ammian. Marcell. L. xv. C. 8. So Turnus in Virgil, Æn. viii. 3.

"Utque acres concuffit equos, útque impulit arma :” i. e. clashed his arms. UPTON.

XLI. 4.

recreaunt Knight,] This ignominious phrase often occurs in romance. It not only means one who yields himself to his enemy in fingle combat, but a coward and a traitor. See Du Cange, V.V. Recredentia and Recreditus. The frequent use of the word in romances familiarifed it in Elifabeth's time; and accordingly Shakspeare has applied it to "limbs." Milton alfo employs it, not only in his poetry, Par. Reg. B. iii. 138, but also in his profe, where he calls the Jew "a recreant," Profe-Works, i. 179. ed. 1698.

TODD.

(No Knight, but treachour full of false def

pight

And fhameful treafon,) who through guile hath flayn

The proweft Knight, that ever field did fight, Even ftout Sansfoy, (O who can then re

frayn ?)

Whofe fhield he beares renverft, the more to heap difdayn.

XLII.

"And, to augment the glorie of his guile,
His deareft love, the faire Fideffa, loe
Is there poffeffed of the traytour vile;
Who reapes the harvest fowen by his foe,
Sowen in bloodie field, and bought with woe:

XLI. 7. The prowest Knight,] The most valiant Knight. See the note, F. Q. ii. viii. 18. TODD.

XLI. 9. Whofe shield he beares renverft,] Reversed. Again, F. Q. v. iii. 37. "Then from him reft his fhield, and it renverst." Renverse, in heraldry, is when the arms are turned backward, or upfide down. This was a ceremony used in the degradation of Knights; he was deprived of his fword, his fpurs were cut off with a hatchet, and his arms were reverfed; clypeo gentilitio inverfo. UPTON.

It may be added that the conqueror generally carried off the armour of the conquered knight. See before, C. ii. ft. 20. This explains the circumftance of the Elfin Knight's bearing Sansfoy's fhield. In the celebrated duel between Don Philip the bastard of Savoy, and the brave Crequi, in the reign of Hen. IV. of France, the victor Crequi carried off the arms of his opponent. See the Hift. of Dueliing, translated from M. Couftard de Maffi. 1770, P. i. p. 75. TODD.

XLII. 4. Who reapes the harveft fowen by his foe,] 'Anλorpion ¿ur dépos, Ariftophanes. Alii fementem faciunt, alii metent. There is frequent allufion to this proverb in the Scriptures. See II Cor. ix. 6, Gal. vi. 7. UPTON.