Full of the Makers guyle, with ufage fly He taught to imitate that Lady trew, Whofe femblance she did carrie under feigned hew.

XLVII.

Thus, well inftructed, to their worke they hafte; And, comming where the Knight in flomber

lay,

The one upon his hardie head him plaste,
And made him dreame of loves and luftfull

play;

That nigh his manly hart did melt away,
Bathed in wanton blis and wicked ioy.

ufes deriv'd by due defcent" for a natural production, Sonnet 74.

"From mother's wombe deriv'd by due descent."

CHURCH.

Born without thofe due and proper qualities of a real woman; for real fhe was not, but, as Homer calls the like airy phantom, who, and Virgil, tenuis umbra; and, as our poet calls her foon after, a misformed Spright and mifcreated faire, ἔίδωλον αμαυρόν, Ηom. Odyf. δ. 824.

"dat inania verba,

"Dat fine mente fonum."

So this idol, this new creature, this phantom, had words, but not due words, (inania verba,) found, but not due fenfe. This I take to be the meaning; the reader is however to think for himself. UPTON.

XLVII. 3. The one upon his hardie head him plaste,] Archimago bids the idle Dream fly away, Báox idi, "Overpe. The Dream goes and places himself upon the Knight's head, the feat of the foul and of the imagination. Στη δι ἄρ ὑπὲρ κεφαλῆς, Il. B. 20. Who can doubt but our poet had Homer in view? UPTON.

XLVII. 6. Bathed in wanton blis] This was a common phrase in poetry both before and after the time of Spenfer, as I have shown in a note on Milton's Comus, v. 812. Perhaps

1

Then feemed him his Lady by him lay,

And to him playnd, how that false winged boy Her chafte hart had fubdewd to learne dame Pleasures toy,

XLVIII.

And the her felfe, of beautie foveraigne queene,
Fayre Venus, feemde unto his bed to bring
Her, whom he, waking, evermore did weene
To bee the chafteft flowre that aye
did fpring
On earthly braunch, the daughter of a king,
Now a loose leman to vile fervice bound:
And eke the Graces feemed all to fing,
Hymen Tö Hymen, dauncing all around;
Whylft freshest Flora her with yvie girlond

crownd.

XLIX.

In this great paffion of unwonted lust,
Or wonted feare of doing ought amis,
He starteth up, as feeming to mistrust
Some fecret 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.

Spenfer here remembered the precife expreffion, which he ufes, in The Hift. of Promos and Caffandra, 1578. P. i. A. i. S. ii. "The rushing youthes that bathe in wanton blisse." TODD.

L.

All cleane difmayd to fee fo uncouth fight, And halfe enraged at her fhameleffe guise, He thought have flaine her in his fierce defpight;

But, haftie heat tempring with fufferance wife, He stayde his hand; and gan himfelfe advife To prove his fenfe, and tempt her faigned

truth.

Wringing her hands, in wemens pitteous wife, Tho can fhe weepe, to ftirre up gentle ruth Both for her noble blood, and for her tender

youth.

LI.

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

And mightie causes wrought in heaven above, Or the blind god, that doth me thus amate, 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:

L. 3. He thought have flaine her] So the first and fecond editions in quarto. But the folios, and both Hughes's editions, read" He thought t'have flaine her." But the old reading is to be retained. The manner is elliptical, and there are frequent instances of it. See F. Q. iv. iv. 22, and elsewhere.

CHURCH,

LII.

"Your owne deare fake forft me at firft to leave My fathers kingdom"-There the stopt with

teares;

Her fwollen hart her fpeech feemd to bereave;
And then againe begun; "My weaker yeares,
Captiv'd to fortune and frayle worldly feares,
Fly to your fayth for fuccour and fure ayde :
Let me not die in languor and long teares."
Why, dame," quoth he, "what hath ye
thus difmayd?

66

What frayes ye, that were wont to comfort me affrayd?"

LIII.

"Love of yourfelfe," fhe faide," and deare constraint,

LII. 1. Your owne deare fake &c.] This is false; for Una knew not St. George, till fhe came to Faerie Court. The lying phantom breaks off her difcourfe therefore, left the fhould difcover too much; and the whole is finely conducted by the poet. UPTON.

LII. 4. And then againe begun ;] Begonne in the first edition, which Church adopts. I read, with Upton, from the second edition, begun. TODD.

LII. 5. Captiv'd] Here we may read this line, and certainly more mufically, with the accent on the first fyllable of captiv'd; in general the poet accents this word on the fecond fyllable. See F. Q. i. iv. 51, ii. iv. 16, &c. Fairfax and Milton adopt the latter accentuation. TODD.

LIII. 1. uneafinefs. See F. Q. iii. viii. 3, conftrain'd for made uncafe, F. Q. conftreint for uneasiness:

deare constraint,] Pleafing and iii. ix. 40. So he uses ii. ix. 36. So Chaucer ufes

"Her hewe whilom bright, that tho was pale,
"Bare witneffe of her wo, and her conftreint." CHURCH.

Lets me not fleepe, but waste the wearie night
In fecret anguifh and unpittied plaint,
Whiles you in careleffe fleepe are drowned
quight."

Her doubtfull words made that redoubted
Knight

Suspect her truth; yet fince no' untruth he
knew,

Her fawning love with foule difdainefull fpight

He would not fhend; but faid, "Deare dame, I rew,

That for my fake unknowne fuch griefe unto

you grew:

LIV.

"Affure your felfe, it fell not all to ground; For all fo deare, as life is to my hart, I deeme your love, and hold me to you bound: Ne let vaine fears procure your needleffe fmart,

It is probable that Milton was influenced by this paffage in Spenfer, when he wrote the following lines in Lycidas :

"Bitter constraint, and fad occafion dear,

"Compels me to disturb your feafon due." TODD. LIV. 1. it fell not all to ground;] This is a Scripture phrase. 1 Sam. iii. 19. "And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground:" Septuagint. ¿x σ inì Tv Y. So Apollon. Rhod. Arg. iv. 389.

LIV. 4.

τὰ μὲν ἐ θέμις ἀκράαντα

Ἐν γαίη πεσέειν.

UPTON.

procure your needlesse Smart,] The line would be more melodious, if we should read you, agree