blood Were died blacke The roote also bestained as it stoode A déepe darke purple colour straight vpon the Berries cast Anon scarce ridded of hir feare with which she was agast For doubt of disapointing him commes Thisbe forth in hast And for hir louer lookes about reioycing for to tell How hardly she had scapt that night the daunger that befell And as she knew right well the place and facion of the trée As whych she saw so late before euen so when she did sée The colour of the Berries turnde she was vncertaine whither It were the trée at which they both agréed to méete togither While in this doubtfull stounde she stoode she cast hir eye aside And there beweltred in his bloud hir louer she espide Lie sprawling with his dying limmes at which she started backe And looked pale as any Box a shuddring through hir stracke Euen like the Sea which sodenly with whissing noyse doth moue When with a little blast of winde it is but toucht aboue But when approching nearer him she knew it was hir loue She beate hir brest she shricked out she tare hir golden heares And taking him betwéene hir armes did wash his wounds with teares She meynt hir wéeping with his bloud and kissing all his face Which now became as colde as yse she cride in wofull case Alas what chaunce my Pyramus hath parted thée and mée Make aunswere O my Pyramus It is thy Thisb euen shée Whome thou doste loue most heartely that speaketh vnto thée Giue eare and rayse thy heauie heade He hearing Thisbes name Lift vp his dying eyes and hauing séene hir closde the same But when she knew hir mantle there and saw his scabberd lie Without the swoorde Unhappy man thy loue hath made thée die Thy loue she said hath made thée slea thy selfe This hand of mine Is strong inough to doe the like My loue no lesse than thine Shall giue me force to worke my wound I will pursue the dead And wretched woman as I am it shall of me be sed That like as of thy death I was the only cause and blame So am I thy companion eke and partner in the same For death which only coulde alas a sunder part vs twaine Shall neuer so disseuer vs but we will méete againe And you the Parentes of vs both most wretched folke alyue Let this request that I shall make in both our names byliue Entreate you to permit that we whome chaste and stedfast loue And whome euen death hath ioynde in one may as it doth behoue In one graue be together layd And thou vnhappie trée Which shroudest now the corse of one and shalt anon through mée Shroude two of this same slaughter holde the sicker signes for ay Blacke be the colour of thy fruite and mourninglike alway Such as the murder of vs twaine may euermore bewray This said she tooke the sword yet warme with slaughter of hir loue And setting it beneath hir brest did to hir heart it shoue Hir prayer with the Gods and with their Parentes tooke effect For when the frute is throughly ripe the Berrie is bespect With colour tending to a blacke And that which after fire Remained rested in one Tumbe as Thisbe did desire This tale thus tolde a little space of pawsing was betwist And then began Leucothoâ— thus hir sisters being whist This Sunne that with his streaming light al worldly things doth cheare Was tane in loue of Phebus loues now list and you shall heare It is reported that this God did first of all espie For euerie thing in Heauen and Earth is open to his eie How Venus with the warlike Mars adâ—outrie did commit It grieued him to sée the fact and so discouered it He shewed his husband Iunos sonne th' aduoutrie and the place In which this priuie scape was done Who was in such a case That heart and hand and all did faile in working for a space Anon he featly forgde a net of Wire so fine and slight That neyther knot nor nooze therein apparant was to sight This piece of worke was much more fine than any handwarpe oofe Or that whereby the Spider hanges in sliding from the roofe And furthermore the suttlenesse and slight thereof was such It followed euery little pull and closde with euery touch And so he set it handsomly about the haunted couch Now when that Venus and hir mate were met in bed togither Hir husband by his newfound snare before conuayed thither Did snarle them both togither fast in middes of all theyr play And setting ope the Iâ—orie doores callde all the Gods streight way To sée them they with shame inough fast lockt togither lay A certaine God among the rest disposed for to sport Did wish that he himselfe also were shamed in that sort The resdue laught and so in heauen there was no talke a while But of this Pageant how the Smith the louers did beguile Dame Venus highly stomacking this great displeasure thought To be reuenged on the part by whome the spight was wrought And like as he hir secret loues and méetings had bewrayd So she with wound of raging loue his guerdon to him payd What now auayles Hyperions sonne thy forme and beautie bright What now auayle thy glistring eyes with cleare and piercing sight For thou that with thy gleames art wont all countries for to burne Art burnt thy selfe with other gleames that serue not for thy turne And thou that oughtst thy cherefull looke on all things for to show Alonly on Leucothoë doste now the same bestow Thou fastnest on that Maide alone the eyes that thou doste owe To all the worlde Sometime more rathe thou risest in the East Sometime againe thou makste it late before thou fall to reast And for desire to looke on hir thou often doste prolong Our winter nightes And in thy light thou faylest eke among The fancie of thy faultie minde infectes thy feeble sight And so thou makste mens hearts afrayde by daunting of thy light Thou looxte not pale bycause the globe of Phebe is betwéene The Earth and thée but loue doth cause this colour to be séene Thou louest this Leucothoë so far aboue all other That neyther now for Clymenâ— for Rhodos nor the mother Of Circé nor for Clytië who at that present tyde Reiected from thy companie did for thy loue abide Most grieuous torments in hir heart thou séemest for to care Thou mindest hir so much that all the rest forgotten are Hir mother was Eurynome of all the fragrant clime Of Arabie estéemde the flowre of beautie in hir time But when hir daughter came to age the daugher past the mother As far in beautie as before the mother past all other Hir father was king Orchamus and rulde the publike weale Of Persey counted by descent the .vij. from auncient Bele Far vnderneath the Westerne clyme of Hesperus doe runne The pastures of the firie stéedes that draw the golden Sunne There are they fed with Ambrosâ—e in stead of grasse all
seruing of a Goddesse that is thanklesse for thy payne When Isis had this comfort giuen shée went her way agayne A ioyfull wyght rose Telethuse and lifting too the sky Her hardened hands did pray hir dreame myght woorke effectually Her throwes increast and forth alone anon the burthen came A wench was borne too Lyctus who knew nothing of the same The mother making him beléeue it was a boay did bring It vp and none but shée and nurce were priuie too the thing The father thanking God did giue the chyld the Graundsyres name The which was Iphys Ioyfull was the moother of the same Bycause the name did serue alike too man and woman bothe And so the lye through godly guile forth vnperceyued gothe The garments of it were a boayes The face of it was such As eyther in a boay or gyrle of beawtie vttered much When Iphys was of thirtéene yéeres her father did insure The browne Iänthee vntoo her a wench of looke demure Commended for her fauor and her person more than all The Maydes of Phestos Telest men her fathers name did call He dwelt in Dyctis They were bothe of age and fauor léeke And vnâ—er both one schoolemayster they did for nurture séeke And herevpon the hartes of both the dart of Loue did stréeke And wounded both of them aléeke But vnlike was theyr hope Both longed for the wedding day toogither for too cope For whom Iänthee thinkes too bée a man shée hopes too sée Her husband Iphys loues whereof shée thinkes shée may not bée Partaker and the selfe same thing augmenteth still her flame Herself a Mayden with a Mayd ryght straunge in loue became Shée scarce could stay her teares What end remaynes for mée ê™ shée How straunge a loue how vncoth how prodigious reygnes in mée If that the Gods did fauor mée they should destroy mée quyght Or if they would not mée destroy at least wyse yit they myght Haue giuen mée such a maladie as myght with nature stond Or nature were acquainted with A Cow is neuer fond Uppon a Cow nor Mare on Mare The Ram delyghts the Eawe The Stag the Hynde the Cocke the Hen. But neuer man could shew That female yit was â—ane in loue with female kynd O would Too God I neuer had béene borne Yit least that Candy should Not bring foorth all that monstruous were the daughter of the Sonne Did loue a Bull. Howbéet there was a Male too dote vppon My loue is furioâ—ser than hers if truthe confessed bée For shée was fond of such a lust as myght bée compast Shée Was serued by a Bull beguyld by Art in Cow of trée And one there was for her with whom aduowtrie to commit If all the conning in the worlde and slyghts of suttle wit Were héere or if that Daedalus himselfe with vncowth wing Of Wax should hither fly againe what comfort should he bring Could he with all his conning crafts now make a boay of mée Or could he O Iänthee chaunge the natiue shape of thée Nay rather Iphys settle thou thy mynd and call thy witts Abowt thee shake thou of theis flames that foolishly by fitts With out all reason reigne Thou séest what Nature hathe thée made Onlesse thow wilt deceyue thy selfe So farre foorth wysely wade As ryght and reason may support and loue as women ought Hope is the thing that bréedes desyre hope féedes the amorous thought This hope thy sex denieth thée Not watching doth restreyne Thée from embracing of the thing wherof thou art so fayne Nor yit the Husbands iealowsie nor rowghnesse of her Syre Nor yit the coynesse of the Wench dooth hinder thy desyre And yit thou canst not her enioy No though that God and man Should labor too their vttermost and doo the best they can In they behalfe they could not make a happy wyght of thée I cannot wish the thing but that I haue it Frank and frée The Goddes haue giuen mée what they could As I will so will hée That must become my fathrinlaw so willes my father too But nature stronger than them all consenteth not theretoo This hindreth mée and nothing else Behold the blisfull â—yme The day of Mariage is at hand Iänthee shalbée myne And yit I shall not her enioy Amid the water wée Shall thirst O Iuno president of mariage why with thée Comes Hymen too this wedding where no brydegroome you shall sée But bothe are Brydes that must that day toogither coupled bée This spoken shée did hold hir peace And now the toother mayd Did burne as whote in loue as shée And earnestly shee prayd The brydale day myght come with spéede The thing for which shée longd Dame Telethusa fearing sore from day too day prolongd The tyme oft feyning siknesse oft pretending shée had séene Ill tokens of successe at length all shifts consumed béene The wedding day so oft delayd was now at hand The day Before it taking from her head the kerchéef quyght away And from her daughters head likewyse with scattred heare she layd Her handes vpon the Altar and with humble voyce thus prayd O Isis who doost haunt the towne of Paretonie and The féeldes by Maraeotis lake and Pharos which dooth stand By Alexandria and the Nyle diuided intoo seuen Great channels comfort thou my feare and send mée help from heauen Thyself O Goddesse euen thyself and theis thy relikes I Did once behold and knew them all as well thy company As eke thy sounding rattles and thy â—ressets burning by And myndfully I marked what commaundement thou didst giue That I escape vnpunished that this same wench dooth liue Thy counsell and thy hest it is Haue mercy now on twayne And help vs. With that word the teares ran downe her chéekes amayne The Goddesse séemed for too moue her Altar and in déede She moued it The temple doores did tremble like a réede And hornes in likenesse too the Moone about the Church did shyne And Rattles made a raughtish noyse At this same luckie signe Although not wholy carelesse yit ryght glad shée went away And Iphys followed after her with larger pace than ay Shée was accustomd And her face continued not so whyght Her strength encreased and her looke more sharper was too syght Her heare grew shorter and shée had a much more liuely spryght Than when shée was a wench For thou O Iphys who ryght now A modther wert art now a boay With offrings both of yow Too Church retyre and there reioyce with fayth vnfearfull They With offrings went too Church ageine and there theyr vowes did pay They also set a table vp which this bréef méeter had The vovves that Iphys vovvd a vvench he hath performd a Lad. Next morrow ouer all the world did shine with lightsome flame When Iuno and Dame Venus and Sir Hymen ioyntly came Too Iphys mariage who as then transformed too a boay Did take Iänthee too his wyfe and so her loue enioy Finis noni Libri ¶ THE TENTH BOOKE of Ouids Metamorphosis FRom thence in
one bodie oftentimes appeared to the eyes One halfe thereof aliue to be and all the rest beside Both voyde of life and séemely shape starke earth to still abide For when that moysture with the heate is tempred equally They doe conceyue â–ª and of them twaine engender by and by All kinde of things For though that fire with water aye debateth Yet moysture mixt with equall heate all liuing things createth And so those discordes in their kinde one striuing with the other In generation doe agrée and make one perfect mother And therfore when the mirie earth bespred with slimie mud Brought ouer all but late before by violence of the flud Caught heate by warmnesse of the Sunne and culmenesse of the skie Things out of number in the worlde forthwith it did applie Whereof in part the like before in former times had bene And some so straunge and ougly shapes as neuer erst were sene In that she did such Monsters bréede was greatly to hir woe But yet thou ougly Python wert engendred by hir thoe A terror to the new made folke which neuer erst had knowne So foule a Dragon in their life so monstrously foregrowne So great a ground thy poyson paunch did vnderneath thée hide The God of shooting who no where before that present tide Those kinde of weapons put in vre but at the speckled Deare Or at the Roes so wight of foote a thousand shaftes well neare Did on that hideous serpent spende of which there was not one But forced forth the venimd bloud along his sides to gone So that his quiuer almost voyde he nailde him to the grounde And did him nobly at the last by force of shot confounde And least that time might of this worke deface the worthy fame He did ordeyne in minde thereof a great and solemne game Which of the serpent that he slue of Pythians bare the name Where who so could the maistrie winne in feates of strength or sleight Of hande or foote or rolling whéele might claime to haue of right An Oken garland fresh and braue There was not any wheare As yet a Bay by meanes whereof was Phebus faine to weare The leaues of euery pleasant trée about his golden heare Peneian Daphne was the first where Phebus set his loue Which not blind chaunce but Cupids fierce cruel wrath did moue The Delian God but late before surprisde with passing pride For killing of the monstrous worme the God of loue espide With bowe in hand already bent and letting arrowes go To whome he sayd and what hast thou thou wanton baby so With warlike weapons for to toy It were a better sight To sée this kinde of furniture on our two shoulders bright Who when we list with stedfast hand both man and beast can wound Who tother day wyth arrowes kéene haue nayled to the ground The serpent Python so forswolne whose filthie wombe did hide So many acres of the grounde in which he did abide Content thy selfe sonne sorie loues to kindle with thy brand For these our prayses to attaine thou must not take in hand To him quoth Venus sonne againe well Phebus I agree Thy bow to shoote at euery beast and so shall mine at thée And looke how far that vnder God eche beast is put by kinde So much thy glorie lesse than ours in shooting shalt thou finde This saide with drift of fethered wings in broken ayre he flue And to the forkt and shadie top of Mount Parnasus drue There from hys quiuer full of shafts two arrowes did he take Of sundrie workes tone causeth Loue the tother doth it slake That causeth loue is all of golde with point full sharpe and bright That chaseth loue is blunt whose stéele with leaden head is dight The God this fixed in the Nymph Peneis for the nones The tother perst Apollos heart and ouerraft his bones Immediatly in smoldring heatâ— of Loue the tone did swelt Againe the tother in hir heart no sparke nor motion felt In woods and forrests is hir ioy the sauage beasts to chase And as the price of all hir painâ— to take the skinne and case Unwedded Phebe doth she haunt and follow as hir guide Unordred doe hir tresses waue scarce in a fillet tide Full many a wooer sought hir loue she lothing all the rout Impacient and without a man walkes all the woods about And as for Hymen or for loue and wedlocke often sought She tooke no care they were the furthest end of all hir thought Hir father many a time and oft would saye my daughter déere Thow owest me a sonneinlaw to be thy lawfull féere Hir father many a time and oft would say my daughter deere Of Nephewes thou my debtour art their Graundsires heart to chéere She hating as a haynous crime the bonde of bridely â—ed Demurely casting downe hir eyes and blushing somwhat red Did folde about hir fathers necke with â—auning armes and sed Deare father graunt me while I liue my maidenhead for to haue As to Diana here tofore hir father fréely gaue Thy father Daphne could consent to that thou doest require But that thy beautie and thy forme impugne thy chaste desire So that thy will and his consent are nothing in this case By reason of the beautie bright that shineth in thy face Apollo loues and longs to haue this Daphne to his Féere And as he longs he hopes but his foredoomes doe fayle him there And as light hame when corne is reapt or hedges burne with brandes That passers by when day drawes néere throwe loosely fro their handes So into flames the God is gone and burneth in his brest And féedes his vaine and barraine loue in hoping for the best Hir haire vnkembd about hir necke downe flaring did he sée O Lord and were they trimd quoth he how séemely would she bée He sées hir eyes as bright as fire the starres to represent He sées hir mouth which to haue séene he holdes him not content Hir lillie armes mid part and more aboue the elbow bare Hir handes hir fingers and hir wrystes him thought of beautie rare And sure he thought such other parts as garments then did hyde Excelled greatly all the rest the which he had espyed But swifter than the whyrling winde shée flées and will not stay To giue the hearing to these wordes the which he had to say I pray thée Nymph Penaeis stay I chase not as a fo Stay Nymph the Lambes so flée y â— Wolues the Stags y â— Lions so With flittring feathers â—ielie Doues so from the Gossehauke flie And euery creature from his foe Loue is the cause that I Do followe thée alas alas how would it grieue my heart To sée thée fall among the briers and that the bloud should start Out of thy tender legges I wretch the causer of thy smart The place is rough to which thou runst take leysure I thée pray Abate thy flight and I my selfe my running pace will stay Yet would I wishe thée take aduise and
face The which he did immediately with feruent loue embrace He féedes a hope without cause why For like a foolishe noddie He thinkes the shadow that he sées to be a liuely boddie Astraughted like an ymage made of Marble stone he lyes There gazing on his shadowe still with fixed staring eyes Stretcht all along vpon the ground it doth him good to sée His ardant eyes which like two starres full bright and shyning bée And eke his fingars fingars such as Bacchus might beséeme And haire that one might worthely Apollos haire it déeme His beardlesse chinne and yuorie necke and eke the perfect grace Of white and red indifferently bepainted in his face All these he woondreth to beholde for which as I doe gather Himselfe was to be woondred at or to be pitied rather He is enamored of himselfe for want of taking héede And where he lykes another thing he lykes himselfe in déede He is the partie whome he wooes and suâ—er that doth wooe He is the flame that settes on fire and thing that burneth tooe O Lord how often did he kisse that false deceitfull thing How often did he thrust his armes midway into the spring To haue embraste the necke he saw and could not catch himselfe He knowes not what it was he sawe And yet the foolish elfe Doth burne in ardent loue thereof The verie selfe same thing That doth bewitch and blinde his eyes encreaseth all his sting Thou fondling thou why doest thou raught the fickle image so The thing thou séekest is not there And if a side thou go The thing thou louest straight is gone It is none other matter That thou doest sée than of thy selfe the shadow in the water The thing is nothing of it selfe with thée it doth abide With thee it would departe if thou withdrew thy selfe aside No care of meate could draw him thence nor yet desire of rest But lying flat against the ground and leaâ—ing on his brest With gréedâ—e eyes he gazeth still vppon the falced face And through his sight is wrought his bane Yet for a little space He turnes and settes himselfe vpright and holding vp his hands With piteous voyce vnto the wood that round about him stands Cryes out and ses alas ye Woods and was there euer any That looude so cruelly as I you know for vnto many A place of harbrough haue you béene and fort of refuge strong Can you remember any one in all your tyme so long That hath so pinde away as I I sée and am full faine Howbeit that I like and sée I can not yet attaine So great a blindnesse in my heart through doting loue doth raigne And for to spight me more withall it is no iourney farre No drenching Sea no Mountaine hie no wall no locke no barre It is but euen a little droppe that kéepes vs two a sunder He would be had For looke how oft I kisse the water vnder So oft againe with vpwarde mouth he riseth towarde mée A man would thinke to touch at least I should yet able bée It is a trifle in respect that lettes vs of our loue What wight soeuer that thou art come hither vp aboue O pierlesse piece why dost thou mée thy louer thus delude Or whither fliste thou of thy friende thus earnestly pursude Iwis I neyther am so fowle nor yet so growne in yeares That in this wise thou shouldst me shoon To haue me to their Féeres The Nymphes themselues haue sude ere this And yet as should appéere Thou dost pretende some kinde of hope of friendship by thy chéere For when I stretch mine armes to thée thou stretchest thine likewise And if I smile thou smilest too And when that from mine eyes The teares doe drop I well perceyue the water stands in thine Like gesture also dost thou make to euerie becke of mine And as by mouing of thy swéete and louely lippes I wéene Thou speakest words although mine eares conceiue not what they béene It is my selfe I well perceyue it is mine Image sure That in this sort dâ—luding me this furie doth procure I am mamored of my selfe I doe both set on fire And am the same that swelteth too through impotent desire What shall I doe be woode or wo whome shall I wo therefore The thing I séeke is in my selfe my plentie makes me poore O would to God I for a while might from my bodie part This wish is straunge to heare a Louer wrapped all in smart To wish away the thing the which he loueth as his heart My sorrowe takes away my strength I haue not long to liue But in the floure of youth must die To die it doth not grieue For that by death shall come the ende of all my griefe and paine I would this yongling whome I loue might lenger life obtaine For in one soule shall now decay we stedfast Louers twaine This saide in rage he turnes againe vnto the forsaide shade And rores the water with the teares and sloubring that he made That through his troubling of the Well his ymage gan to fade Which when he sawe to vanish so Oh whither dost thou flie Abide I pray thée heartely aloud he gan to crie Forsake me not so cruelly that loueth thée so déere But giue me leaue a little while my dazled eyes to chéere With sight of that which for to touch is vtterly denide Thereby to féede my wretched rage and surie for a tide As in this wise he made his mone he stripped off his cote And with his fist outragiously his naked stomacke smote A ruddie colour where he smote rose on his stomacke shéere Lyke Apples which doe partly white and striped red appéere Or as the clusters ere the grapes to ripenesse fully come An Orient purple here and there beginnes to grow on some Which things assoone as in the spring he did beholde againe He could no longer beare it out But fainting straight for paine As lith and supple waxe doth melt against the burning flame Or morning dewe against the Sunne that glareth on the same Euen so by piecemale being spent and wasted through desire Did he consume and melt away with Cupids secret fire His liuely hue of white and red his chéerefulnesse and strength And all the things that lyked him did wanze away at length So that in fine remayned not the bodie which of late The wretched Echo loued so Who when she sawe his state Although in heart she angrie were and mindefull of his pride Yet ruing his vnhappie case as often as he cride Alas she cride alas likewise with shirle redoubled sound And when he beate his breast or strake his féete against the ground She made like noyse of clapping too These are the woordes that last Out of his lippes beholding still his woonted ymage past Alas swéete boy beloude in vaine farewell And by and by With sighing sound the selfe same wordes the Echo did reply With that he layde his wearie head against the grassie place And death did cloze his
with working Quite out of time to breake the feast are in their houses lurking And there doe fall to spinning yarne or weauing in the frame And kepe their maidens to their worke Of which one pleasant dame As she with nimble hand did draw hir slender thréede and fine Said whyle that others idelly doe serue the God of wine Let vs that serue a better Sainct Minerua finde some talke To ease our labor while our handes about our profite walke And for to make the time séeme shorte let eche of vs recite As euery bodies turne shall come some tale that may delight Hir saying likâ—e the rest so well that all consent therein And therevpon they pray that first the eldest would begin She had such store and choyce of tales she wist not which to tell â–ª She doubted if she might declare the fortune that befell To Dircetes of Babilon whome now with scaly hide In altred shape the Philistine beleueth to abide In watrie Pooles or rather how hir daughter taking wings In shape of Doue on toppes of towres in age now sadly sings Or how a certaine water Nymph by witchâ—raft and by charmes Conuerted into fishes dumbe of yongmen many swarmes Untill that of the selfe same sauce hir selfe did tast at last Or how the trée that vsde to beare fruite white in ages past Doth now beare fruite in maner blacke by sprincling vp of blood This tale bicause it was not stale nor common séemed good To hir to tell and therevpon she in this wise begun Hir â—â—sie hand still drawing out the flaxen threede she spun Within the towne of whose huge walles so monstrous high thickâ— The fame is giuen Semyramis for making them of bricke Dwelt hard together two yong folke in houses ioynde so nere That vnder all one roofe well nie both twaine conueyed were The name of him was Pyramus and Thisbe calde was she So faire a man in all the East was none aliue as he Nor nere a woman maide nor wife in beautie like to hir This neighbrod bred acquaintance first this neyghbrod first did stirre The secret sparkes this neighbrod first an entrance in did showe For loue to come to that to which it afterward did growe And if that right had taken place they had bene man and wife But still their Parents went about to let whith for their life They could not let For both their heartes with equall flame did burne No man was priuie to their thoughts And for to serue their turne In steade of talke they vsed signes the closelier they supprest The fire of loue the fiercer still it raged in their brest The wall that parted house from house had riuen therein a crany Which shronke at making of the wall â–ª this fault not markt of any Of many hundred yeares before what doth not loue espie These louers first of all found out and made a way whereby To talke togither secretly and through the same did goe Their louing whisprings verie light and safely to and fro Now as a tonefide Pyramus and This be on the tother Stoode often drawing one of them the pleasant breath from other O thou enuious wall they sayd why letst thou louers thus What matter were it if that thou permitted both of vs In armes eche other to embrace Or if thou thinke that this Were ouermuch yet mightest thou at least make roume to kisse And yet thou shalt not finde vs churles we thinke our selues in deâ— For this same piece of courtesie in vouching safe to let Our sayings to our friendly eares thus fréely come and goe Thus hauing where they stoode in vaine complayned of their woe When night drew nere they bade adew and eche gaue kisses swéete Unto the parget on their side the which did neuer méete Next morning with hir cherefull light had driuen the starres aside And Phebus with his burning beames the dewse grasse had dride These louers at their wonted place by foreappointment met Where after much complaint and mone they couenanted to get Away from such as watched them and in the Euening late To steale out of their fathers house and eke the Citie gate And to th entent that in the fieldes they strayde not vp and downe They did agrée at Ninus Tumb to méete without the towne And tarie vnderneath a trée that by the same did grow Which was a faire high Mulberie with fruite as white as snow Hard by a coole and trickling spring This bargaine pleasde them both And so daylight which to their thought away but slowly goth Did in the Ocean fall to rest and night from thence doth rise Assoone as darkenesse once was come straight Thisbe did deuise A shift to wind hir out of doores that none that were within Perceyued hir And muffling hir with clothes about hir chin That no man might discerne hir face to Ninus Tumb she came Unto the trée and sat hir downe there vnderneath the same Loue made hir bold But sée the chauÌ„ce there comes bâ—smerde with blood About the chappes a Lionesse all foming from the wood From slaughter lately made of Kine to staunch hir bloudie thurst With water of the foresaid spring Whome Thisbe spying furst A farre by moonelight therevpon with fearfull steppes gan flie And in a darke and yrkesome caue did hide hirselfe thereby And as she fled away for hast she let hir mantle fall The whych for feare she left behind not looking backe at all Now when the cruell Lionesse hir thurst had stanched well In going to the Wood she found the slender wéede that fell From Thisbe which with bloudie teeth in pieces she did teare The night was somewhat further spent ere Pyramus came there Who séeing in the suttle sande the print of Lions paw Waxt pale for feare But when also the bloudie cloke he saw All rent and torne one night he sayd shall louers two confounde Of which long life deserued she of all that liue on ground My soule deserues of this mischaunce the perill for to beare I wretch haue bene the death of thée which to this place of feare Did cause thée in the night to come and came not here before My wicked limmes and wretched guttes with cruell téeth therfore Deuour ye O ye Lions all that in this rocke doe dwell But Cowardes vse to wish for death The slender wéede that fell From Thisbe vp he takes and streight doth beare it to the trée Which was appointed erst the place of méeting for to bée And when he had bewept and kist the garment which he knew Receyue thou my bloud too quoth he and therewithall he drew His sworde the which among his guttes he thrust and by and by Did draw it from the bléeding wound beginning for to die And cast himselfe vpon his backe the bloud did spin on hie As when a Conduite pipe is crackt the water bursting out Doth shote it selfe a great way off and pierce the Ayre about The leaues that were vpon the trée besprincled with his
way and here I raise my heade And looke vpon the starres agayne neare out of knowledge fled Now while I vnderneath the Earth the Lake of Styx did passe I saw your daughter Proserpine with these same eyes She was Not merrie neyther rid of feare as séemed by hir chéere But yet a Quéene but yet of great God Dis the stately Féere But yet of that same droupie Realme the chiefe and souereigne Péere Hir mother stoode as starke as stone when she these newes did heare And long she was like one that in another worlde had béene But when hir great amazednesse by greatnesse of hir téene Was put aside she gettes hir to hir Chariot by and by And vp to heauen in all post haste immediatly doth stie And there besâ—owbred all hir face hir haire about hir eares To royall Ioue in way of plaint this spightfull tale she beares As well for thy bloud as for mine a suter vnto thée I hither come if no regard may of the mother bée Yet let the childe hir father moue and haue not lesser care Of hir I pray bicause that I hir in my bodie bare Behold our daughter whome I sought so long is found at last If finding you it terme when of recouerie meanes is past Or if you finding do it call to haue a knowledge where She is become Hir rauishment we might consent to beare So restitution might be made And though there were to me No interest in hir at all yet forasmuche as she Is yours it is vnméete she be bestowde vpon a théefe Ioue aunswerde thus My daughter is a Iewell deare and léefe A collup of mine owne flesh cut as well as out of thine But if we in our heartes can finde things rightly to define This is not spight but loue And yet Madame in faith I sée No cause of such a sonne in law ashamed for to bée So you contented were therewith For put the case that hée Were destitute of all things else how greate a matter ist Ioues brother for to be but sure in him is nothing mist. Nor he inferior is to me saue only that by lot The Heauens to me the Helles to him the destnies did allot But if you haue so sore desire your daughter to diuorce Though she againe to Heauen repayre I doe not greatly force But yet conditionly that she haue tasted there no foode For so the destnies haue decréed He ceaste and Ceres stoode Full bent to fetch hir daughter out but destnies hir withstoode Bicause the Maide had broke hir fast For as she hapt one day In Plutos Ortyard rechlessely from place to place to stray She gathering from a bowing trée a ripe Pownegarnet tooke Seuen kernels out and sucked them None chaunst hereon to looke Saue onely one Ascalaphus whome Orphne erst a Dame Among the other Elues of Hell not of the basest fame Bare to hir husbande Acheron within hir duskie den He sawe it and by blabbing it vngraciously as then Did let hir from returning thence A grieuous â—igh the Quéene Of Hell did fetch and of that wight that had a witnesse béeâ—e Against hir made a cursed Birde Upon his face she shead The water of the Phlegâ—ton and by and by his head Was nothing else but Beake and Downe and mightie glaring eyes Quight altred from himselfe betwéene two yellow wings he flies He groweth chiefly into head and hooked talants long And much a doe he hath to flaske his lazie wings among The messenger of Morning was he made a filthie fowle A signe of mischiefe vnto men the sluggish skreching Owle This person for his lauas tongue and telling tales might séeme To haue deserued punishment But what should men estéeme To be the verie cause why you Acheloes daughters weare Both féete and feathers like to Birdes considering that you beare The vpper partes of Maidens still and commes it so to passe Bicause when Ladie Proserpine a gathering flowers was Ye Meremaides kept hir companie whome after you had sought Through all the Earth in vaine anon of purpose that your thought Might also to the Seas be knowen ye wished that ye might Upon the waues with houering wings at pleasure rule your flight And had the Goddes to your request so pliant that ye found With yellow feathers out of hand your bodies clothed round Yet least that pleasant tune of yours ordeyned to delight The hearing and so high a gift of Musicke perish might For want of vttrance humaine voyce to vtter things at will And countnance of virginitie remained to you still But meane betwéene his brother and his heauie sister goth God Ioue and parteth equally the yeare betwéene them both And now the Goddesse Proserpine indifferently doth reigne Aboue and vnderneath the Earth and so doth she remaine One halfe yeare with hir mother and the resdue with hir Féere Immediatly she altred is as well in outwarde chéere As inwarde minde for where hir looke might late before appéere Sad euen to Dis hir countnance now is full of mirth and grace Euen like as Phebus hauing put the watrie cloudes to chace Doth shew himselfe a Conqueror with bright and shining face Then fruitfull Ceres voide of care in that she did recouer Hir daughter prayde thée Arechuse the storie to discouer What caused thée to fléete so farre and wherefore thou became A sacred spring the waters whist The Goddesse of the same Did from the bottome of the Well hir goodly head vp reare And hauing driëd with hir hand hir faire gréene hanging heare The Riuer Alpheys auncient loues she thus began to tell I was quoth she a Nymph of them that in Achaia dwell There was not one that earnester the Lawndes and forests sought Or pitcht hir toyles more handsomly And though that of my thought It was no part to séeke the fame of beautie though I were All courage yet the pricke and prise of beautie I did beare My ouermuch commended face was vnto me a spighâ— This gift of bodie in the which another would delight I rudesbye was ashamed off me thought is was a crime To be belikte I beare it well in minde that on a time In comming wearie from the chase of Stymphalus the heatâ— Was feruent and my trauelling had made it twice as great I founde a water neyther déepe nor shallow which did glide Without all noyse so calme that scarce the mouing might be spide And throughly to the very ground it was so crispe and cleare That euery little stone therein did plaine aloft appeare The horie Sallowes and the Poplars growing on the briâ— Unset vpon the shoring bankes did cast a shadow trim I entred in and first of all I déeped but my â—eete And after to my knées And not content to wade so fléete I put off all my clothes and hung them on a Sallow by And threw my selfe amid the streame â–ª which as I â—allyingly Did beate and draw and with my selfe a thousand maistries trâ—e In casting of mine armes abrode and swimming wantonly I
aside The violence of their boystrous blasts things scarsly can abide They so turmoyle as though they would the world in pieces rende So cruell is those brothers wrath when that they doe contende And therefore to the morning graye the Realme of Nabathie To Persis and to other lands and countries that doe lie Farre vnderneath the Morning starre did Eurus take his flight Likewise the setting of the Sunne and shutting in of night Belong to Zephyr And the blasts of blustring Boreas raigne In Scythia and in other landes set vnder Charles his waine And vnto Auster doth belong the coast of all the South Who beareth shoures and rotten mistes continuall in his month Aboue all these he set aloft the cleare and lightsome skie Without all dregs of earthly filth or grossenesse vtterlie The boundes of things were scarsly yet by him thus pointed out But that appeared in the heauen starres glistring all about Which in the said confused heape had hidden bene before And to thintent with liuely things eche Region for to store The heauenly soyle to Gods and Starres and Planets first he gaue The waters next both fresh and salt he let the fishes haue The suttle ayre to flickring fowles and birdes he hath assignde The earth to beasts both wilde and tame of sundrie sort and kinde Howbeit yet of all this while the creature wanting was Farre more deuine of nobler minde which should the residue pasâ—e In depth of knowledge reason wit and high capacitie And which of all the residue should the Lord and ruler bée Then eyther he that made the worlde and things in order set Of heauenly séede engendred Man or else the earth as yet Yong lustie fresh and in hir floures and parted from the kie But late before the séede thereof as yet held inwardlie The which Prometheus tempring straight with waâ—er of the spring Did make in likenesse to the Gods that gouerne euerie thing And where all other beasts behold the ground with groueling eie He gaue to Man a stately looke replâ—â—e with maiestie And willde him to behold the Heâ—â—en wyth countnance cast on hie â–ª To marke and vnderstand what things were in the starrie skie And thus the earth which late before had neyther shape nor hew Did take the noble shape of man and was transformed new Then sprang vp first the golden age which of it selfe maintainde The truth and right of euery thing vnforst and vnconstrainde There was no feare of punishment there was no thrâ—â—ining lawe In brazen tables nayled vp to â—éepe the folke inlawe There was no man would cronch or créepe to Iudge with cap in hand They liued safe without a Iudge in euerie Realme and lande The loftie Pynetrée was not hewen from mountaines where it stood In séeking straunge and forren landes to roue vpon the flood Men knew none other countries yet than where themselues did kéepe There was no towne enclosed yet with walles and diches déepe No horne nor trumpet was in vse no sword nor helmet worne The worlde was suche that souldiers helpe might easly be forborne The fertile earth as yet was frée vntoucht of spade or plough And yet it yéelded of it selfe of euery things inough And men themselues contented well with plaine and simple foode That on the earth of natures gift without their trauell stoode Did liue by Raspis heppes hawes by cornelles plummes and cherries By sloes and apples nuttes and peares and lothsome bramble berries And by the acornes dropt on ground from Ioues brode trée in fielde The Springtime lasted all the yeare and Zephyr with his milde And gentle blast did cherish things that grew of owne accorde The ground vntilde all kinde of fruits did plenteously auorde No mucke nor tillage was bestowde on leane and barren land To make the corne of better head and ranker for to stand TheÌ„ streames ran milke then streames ran wine yellow honny flowde From ech gréene trée whereon the rayes of firie Phebus glowde But when that into Lymbo once Saturnus being thrust The rule and charge of all the worlde was vnder Ioue vniust And that the siluer age came in more somewhat base than golde More precious yet than freckled brasse immediatly the olde And auncient Spring did Ioue abridge and made therof anon Foure seasons Winter Sommer Spring and Autumne of and on Then first of all began the ayre with feruent heate to swelt Then Isyeles hung roping downe then for the colde was felt Men gan to shroud themselues in house their houses were the thickes And bushie queaches hollow caues or hardels made of stickes Then first of all were furrowes drawne and corne was cast in ground The simple Oxe with sorie sighes to heauie yoke was bound Next after this succeded streight the third and brazen age More hard of nature somewhat bent to cruell warres and rage But yet not wholy past all grace Of yron is the last In no part good and traetable as former ages past For when that of this wicked Age once opened was the veyne Therein all mischief rushed forth then Fayth and Truth were faine And honest shame to hide their heades for whom stept stoutly in Craft Treason Uiolence Enuie Pride and wicked Lust to win The shipman hoyst his sailes to wind whose names he did not knowe And shippes that erst in toppes of hilles and mountaines had ygrowe Did leape and daunce on vncouth waues and men began to bound With dowles and diches drawen in length the frée and fertile ground Which was as common as the Ayre and light of Sunne before Not onely corne and other fruites for sustnance and for store Were now exacted of the Earth but eft thy gan to digge And in the bowels of the ground vnsaciably to rigge For Riches coucht and hidden déepe in places nere to Hell The spurres and stirrers vnto vice and foes to doing well Then hurtfull yron came abrode then came forth yellow golde More hurtfull than the yron farre then came forth battle bolde That feightes with bothe and shakes his sword in cruell bloudy hand Men liue by rauine and by stelth the wandring guest doth stand In daunger of his host the host in daunger of his guest And fathers of their sonne in lawes yea seldome time doth rest Betwéene borne brothers such accord and loue as ought to bée The goodman séekes the goodwiues death and his againe séekes shée The stepdames fell their husbandes sonnes with poyson do assayle To sée their fathers liue so long the children doe bewayle All godlynesse lies vnder foote And Ladie Astrey last Of heauenly vertues from this earth in slaughter drowned past And to thintent the earth alone thus should not be opprest And heauen aboue in slouthfull ease and carelesse quiet rest ¶ Men say that Giantes went about the Realme of Heauen to win To place themselues to raigne as Gods and lawlesse Lordes therein And hill on hill they heaped vp aloft vnto the skie Till God almighty from the Heauen did let his
wisely for to viewe What one he is that for thy grace in humble wise doth sewe I am not one that dwelles among the hilles and stonie rockes I am no shéepehearde with a Curre attending on the flockes I am no Carle nor countrie Clâ—wne nor neathearde taking charge Of cattle grazing here and there within this Forrest large Thou doest not know poore simple soule God wote thou dost nor knowe â–ª From whome thou fléest â–ª For If thou knew thou wouldste not flée me so In Delphos is my chiefe abode my Temples also stande At Glaros and at Patara within the Lycian lande And in the I le of Tenedos the people honour mée The king of Gods himselfe is knowne my father for to bée By me is knowne that was that is and that that shall ensue By mée men learne to sundrie tunes to frame swéete ditties true â–ª In shooting haue I stedfast hand but sured hand had hée That made this wound within my heart that heretofore was frée Of Phisicke and of surgerie I found the Artes for néede The powre of euerie herbe and plant doth of my gift procéede Nowe wo is me that neare an herbe can heale the hurt of loue And that the Artes that others helpe their Lord doth helpelesse proue As Phoebus would haue spoken more away Penaeis stale With fearefull steppes and left him in the midst of all his tale And as she ran the méeting windes hir garments backewarde blue So that hir naked skinne apearde behinde hir as she flue Hir goodly yellowe golden haire that hanged loose and slacke With euery puffe of ayre did waue and tosse behinde hir backe Hir running made hir séeme more fayre the youthfull God therefore Coulde not abyde to waste his wordes in dalyance any more But as his loue aduysed him he gan to mende his pace And with the better foote before the fléeing Nymph to chace And euen as when the gréedie Grewnde doth course the sielie Hare Amiddes the plaine and champion fielde without all couert bare Both twaine of them doe straine themselues and lay on footemanship Who may best runne with all his force the tother to outstrip The tone for safetie of his lyfe the tother for his pray The Grewnde aye prest with open mouth to beare the Hare away Thrusts forth his snoute and gyrdeth out and at hir loynes doth snatch As though he would at euerie stride betwéene his téeth hir latch Againe in doubt of being caught the Hare aye shrinking slips Upon the sodaine from his Iawes and from betwéene his lips So farde Apollo and the Mayde hope made Apollo swift And feare did make the Mayden fléete deuising how to shift Howebeit he that did pursue of both the swifter went As furthred by the feathred wings that Cupid had him lent So that he would not let hir rest but preased at hir héele So néere that through hir scattred haire she might his breathing féele But when she sawe hir breath was gone and strength began to fayle The colour faded in hir chéekes and ginning for to quayle Shée looked to Penaeus streame and sayde nowe Father dere And if you streames haue powre of Gods then help your daughter here O let the earth deuour me quicke on which I séeme to fayre Or else this shape which is my harme by chaunging straight appayre This piteous prayer scarce sed hir sinewes waxed starke And therewithall about hir breast did grow a tender barke Hir haire was turned into leanes hir armes in boughes did growe Hir feete that were ere while so swift now rooted were as slowe Hir crowne became the toppe and thus of that she earst had beene Remayned nothing in the worlde but beautie fresh and gréene Which when that Phoebus did beholde affection did so moue The trée to which his loue was turnde he coulde no lesse but loue And as he softly layde his hande vpon the tender plant Within the barke newe ouergrowne he felt hir heart yet pant And in his armes embracing fast hir boughes and braunches lythe He proferde kisses to the trée the trée did from him writhe Well quoth Apollo though my Féere and spouse thou can not bée Assuredly from this tyme forth yet shalt thou be my trée Thou shalt adorne my golden lookes and eke my pleasant Harpe Thou shalt adorne my Quyuer full of shafâ—s and arrowes sharpe Thou shalt adorne the valiant knyghts and royall Emperours When for their noble feates of armes like mightie conquerours Triumphantly with stately pompe vp to the Capitoll They shall ascende with solemne traine that doe their déedes â—xtoll Before Augustus Pallace doore full duely shalt thou warde The Oke amid the Pallace â–ª yarde aye faythfully to gaâ—de And as my heade is neuer â—oulde nor neuer more without A séemely bushe of youthfull haire that spreadeth rounde about Euen so this honour giue I thée continâ—ally to haue Thy braunches clad from time to tyme with leaues both fresh braue Now when that Pean of this talke had fully made an ende The Lawrell â–ª to his iust request did séeme to condescende By bowing of hir newe made boughes and tender braunches downe and wagging of hir séemely toppe as if it were hir crowne There is a lande in Thessalie enclosd on euery syde With wooddie hilles that Timpe hight through mid whereof doth glide Penaeus gushing full of froth from foote of Pindus hye Which with his headlong falling downe doth cast vp violently A mistie steame lyke flakes of smoke besprinckling all about The toppes of trées on eyther side and makes a roaring out That may be heard a great way off This is the fixed seate This is the house and dwelling place and chamber of the greate And mightie Ryuer Here he sittes in Court of Péeble stone And ministers iustice to the waues and to the Nymphes eche one That in the Brookes and waters dwell Now hither did resorte Not knowing if they might reioyce and vnto mirth exhort Or comfort him his Countrie Brookes Sperchius well beséene With sedgie heade and shadie bankes of Poplars fresh and gréene Enipeus restlesse swift and quicke olde father Apidane Amphrisus with his gentle streame and Aeas clad with cane With dyuers other Ryuers moe which hauing runne their race Into the Sea their wearie waues doe lead with restlesse pace From hence the carefull Inachus absentes him selfe alone Who in a corner of his caue with doolefull teares and mone Augments the waters of his streame bewayling piteously His daughter Iö lately lost He knewe not certainly And if she were a liue or deade But for he had hir sought And coulde not finde hir any where assuredly he thought She did not liue aboue the molde ne drewe the vitall breath Misgiuing worser in his minde if ought be worse than death It fortunde on a certaine day that Ioue espide this Mayde Come running from hir fathers streame alone to whome he sayde â–ª O Damsell worthie Ioue himselfe like one day for to make Some happie person whome thou list vnto thy bed
he rid â–ª he tooke an armed pike In full intent hir through the heart with deadly wound to strike But God almighty held his hand and lifting both away Did disapoint the wicked Act. For straight he did conuay Them through the Ayre with whirling windes to top of all the skie And there did make them neighbour starres about the Pole on hie When Iuno shining in the heauen hir husbands minion found She swelde for spight and downe she comes to watry Tethys round And vnto olde Oceanus whome euen the Gods aloft Did reuerâ—nce for their iust deserts full many a time and oft To whome demaunding hir the cause And aske ye quoth she why That I which am the Quéene of Goddes come hither from the sky Good cause there is I warrant you Another holdes my roome For neuer trust me while I liue if when the night is coome And ouercasteth all the world with shadie darknesse whole Ye sée not in the heigth of heauen hard by the Northren Pole Whereas the vtmost circle runnes about the Axeltrée In shortest circuit gloriously enstalled for to bée In shape of starres the stinging woundes that make me yll apayde Now is there trow ye any cause why folke should be afrayde To do to Iuno what they list or dread hir wrathfull mood Which only by my working harme doe turne my foes to good O what a mightie act is done how passing is my powre I haue bereft hir womans shape and at this present howre She is become a Goddesse Loe this is the scourge so sowre Wherewith I strike mine enimies â–ª Loe here is all the spight That I can doe this is the ende of all my wondrous might No force I would he should for me hir natiue shape restore And take away hir brutish shape Like as he hath before Done by his Paramour that fine and proper piece Of Argos whom he made a Cow I meane Phoronevvs Niece Why makes he not a full deuorce from me and in my stead Straight take his Sweetheart to his wife and coll hir in my bed He can not doe a better déede I thinke than for to take Lycaon to his fatherinlaw But if that you doe make Accompt of me your foster childe then graunt that for my sake The Oxen and the wicked Waine of starres in number seuen For whoredome sake but late ago receyued into heauen May neuer diue within your waues Ne let that strumpet vyle By bathing of hir filthie limmes your waters pure defile The Gods did graunt hir hir request straight to heauen she flue In haÌ„dsome Chariot through the Ayre which painted peacocks drue As well beset with blasing eyes late tane from Argus hed As thou thou prating Rauen white by nature being bred Hadst on thy fethers iustly late a coly colour spred For this same birde in auncient time had fethers faire and whight As euer was the driuen snow or siluer cleare and bright He might haue well comparde himselfe in beautie with the Doues That haue no blemish or the Swan that running water loues Or with the Géese that afterward should with their gagling out Preserue the Romaine Capitoll beset with foes about His tongue was cause of all his harme his tatling tongue did make His colour which before was white became so foule and blake Coronis of Larissa was the fairest maide of face In all the land of Thessalie Shée stoode in Phebus grace As long as that she kept hir chast or at the least as long As that she scaped vnespide in doing Phebus wrong But at the last Apollos birde hir priuie packing spide Whome no entreatance could persuade but that he swiftly hide Him to his maister to bewray the doings of his loue Now as he flue the pratling Crow hir wings apace did moue And ouertaking fell in talke and was inquisitiue For what intent and to what place he did so swiftly driue And when she heard the cause thereof she said now trust me sure This message on the whiche thou goste no goodnesse will procure And therefore hearken what I say disdaine thou not at all To take some warning by thy friende in things that may befall Consider what I erst haue bene and what thou séest me now And what hath bene the ground hereof I boldly dare aâ—ow That thou shalt finde my faithfulnesse imputed for a crime For Pallas in a wicker chest had hid vpon a time A childe calde Ericthonius whome neuer woman bare And tooke it vnto Maidens thrée that Cecrops daughters were Not telling them what was within but gaue them charge to kéepe The Casket shut and for no cause within the same to péepe I standing close among the leaues vpon an Elme on hie Did marke their doings and their wordes and there I did espie How Pandrosos and Herse kept their promise faithfully Aglauros calles them Cowardes both and makes no more a doe But takes the Casket in hir hand and doth the knots vndooe And there they saw a childe whose partes beneath were like a Snake Straight to the Goddesse of this déede a iust report I make For which she gaue me this reward that neuer might I more Accompt hir for my Lady and my Mistresse as before And in my roume she put the fowle that flies not but by night A warning vnto other birdes my lucke should be of right To holde their tongues for being shent But you will say perchaunce I came vnsentfor of my selfe she did me not aduaunce I dare well say though Pallas now my heauie Mistresse stand Yet if perhaps ye should demaund the question at hir hand As sore displeased as she is she would not this denie But that she chose me first hir selfe to beare hir companie For well I know my father was a Prince of noble fame Of Phocis King by long discent Coronevv was his name I was his darling and his ioy and many a welthie Piere I would not haue you thinke disdaine did séeke me for their Fere. My forme and beautie did me hurt For as I leysurely Went ietting vp and downe the shore vpon the grauell drie As yet I customably doe the God that rules the Seas Espying me fell straight in loue And when he saw none ease In sute but losse of wordes and time he offred violence And after me he runnes apace I skudde as fast fro thence From sand to shore from shore to sand still playing Foxe to hole Untill I was so tirde that he had almost got the gole Then cald I out on God and man But as it did appeare There was no man so neare at hand that could my crying heare A Uirgin Goddesse pitied me bicause I was a mayde And at the vtter plunge and pinche did send me present ayde I cast mine armes to heaueÌ„ mine armes waxt light with fethers black I went about to cast in hast my garments from my back And all was fethers In my skinne the rooted fethers sâ—ack I was about with violent hand to strike my naked breast But nether
Of Snakes and Todes the filthie foode that kéepes hir vices fresh It lothde hir to beholde the sight Anon the Elfe arose And left the gnawed Adders flesh and slouthfully she goes With lumpish leysure like a Snayle and when she saw the face Of Pallas and hir faire attire adournde with heauenly grace She gaue a sigh a sorie sigh from bottome of hir heart Hir lippes were pale hir chéekes were wan and all hir face was swart Hir bodie leane as any Rake She looked eke a skew Hir téeth were furde with filth and drosse hir gums were waryish blew The working of hir festered gall had made hir stomacke gréene And all bevenimde was hir tongue No sléepe hir eyes had séene Continuall Carke and cankred care did kéepe hir waking still Of laughter saue at others harmes the Helhound can no skill It is against hir will that men haue any good successe And if they haue she frettes and fumes within hir minde no lesse Than if hir selfe had taken harme In séeking to annoy And worke distresse to other folke hir selfe she doth destroy Thus is she torment to hir selfe Though Pallas did hir hate Yet spake she briefly these few wordes to hir without hir gate Infect thou with thy venim one of Cecrops daughters thrée It is Aglauros whome I meane for so it néedes must bee This said she pight hir speare in ground and tooke hir rise thereon And winding from that wicked wight did take hir flight anon The Caitife cast hir eye aside and séeing Pallas gon Began to mumble with hir selfe the Diuels Paternoster And fretting at hir good successe began to blow and bluster She takes a crooked staffe in hand bewreathde with knubbed prickes And couered with a coly cloude where euer that she stickes Hir filthie féete she tramples downe and seares both grasse and corne That all the fresh and fragrant fieldes séeme vtterly forlorne And with hir staffe she tippeth of the highest poppie heades Such poyson also euery where vngraciously she sheades That euery Cottage where she comes â–ª â—nd euery Towne and Citie Doe take infection at hir breath At length the more is pitie She found the faire Athenian towne that flowed freshly then In feastfull peace and ioyfull welth and learned witts of men And forbicause she nothing saw that might prouoke to wéepe It was a corsie to hir heart hir hatefull teares to kéepe Now when she came within the Court she went without delay Directly to the lodgings where King Cecrops daughters lay There did she as Minerua bad she laide hir scuruie fist besmerde with venim and with filth vpon Aglauros brist The whiche she fillde with hooked thornes and breathing on hir face Did shead the poyson in hir bones which spred it selfe apace As blacke as euer virgin pitch through Lungs and Lights and all And to thintent that cause of griefe abundantly should fall She placed ay before hir eyes hir sisters happie chaunce In being wedded to the God and made the God to glaunce Continually in heauenly shape before hir wounded thought And all these things she painted out which in conclusion wrought Such corsies in Aglauros brest that sighing day and night She gnawde and fretted in hir selfe for very cancred spight And like a wretche she wastes hir selfe with restlesse care and pine Like as the yse whereon the Sunne with glimering light doth shine Hir sister Herses good successe doth make hir heart to yerne In case as when that fire is put to gréenefeld wood or fearne Whych giueth neyther light nor heate but smulders quite away Sometime she minded to hir Sire hir sister to bewray Who well she knew would yll abide so lewde a part to play And oft she thought with wilfull hande to brust hir fatall threede Bicause she woulde not sée the thing that made hir heart to bléede At last she sate hir in the doore and leaned to a post To let the God from entring in To whome now hauing lost Much talke and gentle wordes in vayne she said Sir leaue I pray For hence I will not be you sure onlesse you go away I take thée at thy word quoth he and therewithall he pusht His rod against the barred doore and wide it open rusht She making proffer for to rise did féele so great a waight Through all hir limmes that for hir life she could not stretch hir straight She stroue to set hirself vpright but striuing booted not Hir hamstrings and hir knées were stiffe a chilling colde had got In at hir nayles through all hir limmes and eke hir veynes began For want of bloud and liuely heate to waxe both pale and wan And as the freting Fistula forgrowne and past all cure Runnes in the flesh from place to place and makes the sound and pure As bad or worser than the rest euen so the cold of death Strake to hir heart and closde hir veines and lastly stopt hir breath She made no profer for to speake and though she had done so It had bene vaine For way was none for language forth to go Hir throte congealed into stone hir mouth became hard stone And like an image sate she still hir bloud was clearely gone The which the venim of hir heart so fowly did infect That euer after all the stone with freckled spots was spect When Mercurie had punisht thus Aglauros spightfull tung And cancred heart immediatly from Pallas towne he flung And flying vp with flittering wings did pierce to heauen aboue His father calde him straight aside but shewing not his loue Said sonne my trustie messenger and worker of my will Make no delay but out of hand flie downe in hast vntill The land that on the left side lookes vpon thy mothers light Yonsame where standeth on the coast the towne that Sidon hight The King hath there a heirde of Neate that on the Mountaines féede Go take and driue them to the sea with all conuenient speede He had no sooner said the word but that the heirde begun Driuen from the mountaine to the shore appointed for to run Whereas the daughter of the King was wonted to resort With other Ladies of the Court there for to play and sport Betwéene the state of Maiestie and loue is set such oddes As that they can not dwell in one The Sire and King of Goddes Whose hand is armd with triplefire who only with his frowne Makes Sea and Land and Heauen to quake doth lay his scepter downe With all the graue and stately port belonging therevnto And putting on the shape of Bull as other cattell doe Goes lowing gently vp and downe among them in the field The fairest beast to looke vpon that euer man beheld For why his colour was as white as any winters snow Before that eyther trampling féete or Southerne winde it thow His necke was brawnd with rolles of flesh and from his chest before A dangling dewlap hung me downe good halfe a foote and more His hornes were small but yet so fine as that ye would
such powre as for to turne their shape That are the giuers of the stripe before you hence escape One stripe now will I lende you more He strake them as beforne And straight returnd his former shape in which he first was borne Tyresias therefore being tane to iudge this iesting strife Gaue sentence on the side of Ioue The which the Quéene his wife Did take a great deale more to heart than néeded and in spight To wreake hir téene vpon hir Iudge bereft him of his sight But Ioue for to the Gods it is vnléefull to vndoe The things which other of the Gods by any meanes haue doe Did giue him sight in things to come for losse of sight of eye And so his grieuous punishment with honour did supplie By meanes whereof within a while in Citie fielde and towne Through all the coast of Aöny was bruted his renowne And folke to haue their fortunes read that dayly did resorte Were aunswerde so as none of them could giue him misreporte The first that of his soothfast wordes had proufe in all the Realme Was freckled Lyriop whom sometime surprised in his streame The floud Cephisus did enforce This Lady bare a sonne Whose beautie at his verie birth might iustly loue haue wonne Narcissus did she call his name Of whome the Prophet sage Demaunded if the childe should liue to many yeares of age Made aunswere yea full long so that him selfe he doe not know The Soothsayers wordes séemde long but vaine vntill the end did show His saying to be true in déede by straungenesse of the rage And straungenesse of the kinde of death that did abridge his age For when yeares thrée times fiue and one he fully lyued had So that he séemde to stande béetwene the state of man and Lad The hearts of dyuers trim yong men his beautie gan to moue And many a Ladie fresh and faire was taken in his loue But in that grace of Natures gift such passing pride did raigne That to be toucht of man or Mayde he wholy did disdaine A babling Nymph that Echo hight who hearing others talke By no meanes can restraine hir tongue but that it néedes must walke Nor of hir selfe hath powre to ginne to speake to any wight Espyde him dryuing into toyles the fearefull stagges of flight This Echo was a body then and not an onely voyce Yet of hir speach she had that time no more than now the choyce That is to say of many wordes the latter to repeate The cause thereof was Iunos wrath For when that with the feate She might haue often taken Ioue in daliance with his Dames And that by stealth and vnbewares in middes of all his games This elfe would with hir tatling talke deteine hir by the way Untill that Ioue had wrought his will and they were fled away The which when Iuno did perceyue she said with wrathfull mood This tongue that hath deluded me shall doe thée little good For of thy speach but simple vse hereafter shalt thou haue The déede it selfe did straight confirme the threatnings that she gaue Yet Echo of the former talke doth double oft the ende And backe againe with iust report the wordes earst spoken sende Now when she sawe Narcists stray about the Forrest wyde She wared warme and step for step fast after him she hyde The more she followed after him and néerer that she came The whoter euer did she waxe as néerer to hir flame Lyke as the liuely Brimstone doth which dipt about a match And put but softly to the fire the flame doth lightly catch O Lord how often woulde she faine if nature would haue let Entreated him with gentle wordes some fauour for to get But nature would not suffer hir nor giue hir leaue to ginne Yet so farre forth as she by graunt at natures hande could winne Ay readie with attentiue eare she harkens for some sounde Whereto she might replie hir wordes from which she is not bounde By chaunce the stripling being strayde from all his companie Sayde is there any body nie straight Echo answerde I. Amazde he castes his eye aside and looketh round about And come that all the Forrest roong aloud he calleth out And come sayth she he looketh backe and séeing no man followe Why fliste he cryeth once againe and she the same doth hallowe He still persistes and wondring much what kinde of thing it was From which that answering voyce by turne so duely séemde to passe Said let vs ioyne She by hir will desirous to haue said In fayth with none more willingly at any time or stead Said let vs ioyne And standing somewhat in hir owne conceit Upon these wordes she left the Wood and forth she yéedeth streit To coll the louely necke for which she longed had so much He runnes his way and will not be imbraced of no such And sayth I first will die ere thou shalt take of me thy pleasure She aunswerde nothing else thereto but take of me thy pleasure Now when she saw hir selfe thus mockt she gate hir to the Woods And hid hir head for verie shame among the leaues and buddes And euer sence she lyues alone in dennes and hollow Caues Yet stacke hir loue still to hir heart through which she dayly raues The more for sorrowe of repulse Through restlesse carke and care Hir bodie pynes to skinne and bone and waxeth wonderous bare The bloud doth vanish into ayre from out of all hir veynes And nought is left but voyce and bones the voyce yet still remaynes Hir bones they say were turnde to stones From thence she lurking still In Woods will neuer shewe hir head in field nor yet on hill Yet is she heard of euery man it is hir onely sound And nothing else that doth remayne aliue aboue the ground Thus had he mockt this wretched Nymph and many mo beside That in the waters Woods and groues or Mountaynes did abyde Thus had he mocked many men Of which one miscontent To sée himselfe deluded so his handes to Heauen vp bent And sayd I pray to God he may once féele fierce Cupids fire As I doe now and yet not ioy the things he doth desire The Goddesse Ramnuse who doth wreake on wicked people take Assented to his iust request for ruth and pities sake There was a spring withouten mudde as siluer cleare and still Which neyther shéepeheirds nor the Goates that fed vpon the hill Nor other cattell troubled had nor sauage beast had styrd Nor braunch nor sticke nor leafe of trée nor any foule nor byrd The moysture fed and kept aye fresh the grasse that grew about And with their leaues the trées did kéepe the heate of Phoebus out The stripling wearie with the heate and hunting in the chace And much delighted with the spring and coolenesse of the place Did lay him downe vpon the brim and as he stooped lowe To staunche his thurst another thurst of worse effect did growe For as he dranke he chaunst to spie the Image of his
night Which doth refresh their werie limmes and kéepeth them in plight To beare their dailie labor out now while the stéedes there take Their heauenly foode and night by turne his timely course doth make The God disguised in the shape of Quéene Eurynome Doth prease within the chamber doore of faire Leucothoë His louer whome amid .xii. Maides he found by candlelight Yet spinning on hir little Rocke and went me to hir right And kissing hir as mothers vse to kisse their daughters deare Saide Maydes withdraw your selues a while and sit not listning here I haue a secret thing to talke The Maides auoyde eche one The God then being with his loue in chamber all alone Said I am he that metes the yeare that all things doe beholde By whome the Earth doth all things sée the Eye of all the worlde Trust me I am in loue with thée The Ladie was so nipt With sodaine feare that from hir hands both rocke and spindle slipt Hir feare became hir wondrous well he made no mo delayes But turned to his proper shape and tooke hys glistring rayes The damsell being sore abasht at this so straunge a sight And ouercome with sodaine feare to sée the God so bright Did make no outcrie nor no noyse but helde hir pacience still And suffred him by forced powre his pleasure to fulfill Hereat did Clytie sore repine For she beyond all measure Was then enamoured of the Sunne stung with this displeasure That he another Leman had for verie spight and yre She playes the blab and doth defame Leucothoë to hir Syre He cruell and vnmercifull would no excuse accept But holding vp hir handes to heauen when tenderly she wept And said it was the Sunne that did the déede against hir will Yet like a sauage beast full bent his daughter for to spill He put hir déepe in delued ground and on hir bodie laide A huge great heape of heauie sand The Sunne full yll appaide Did with his beames disperse the sand and made an open way To bring thy buried face to light but such a weight there lay Upon thee that thou couldst not raise thine hand aloft againe And so a corse both voide of bloud and life thou didst remaine There neuer chaunst since Phaetons fire a thing that grieude so sore The ruler of the winged stéedes as this did And therfore He did attempt if by the force and vertue of his ray He might againe to liuely heate hir frozen limmes conuay But forasmuch as destenie so great attempts denies He sprincles both the corse it selfe and place wherein it lyes With fragrant Nectar And therewith bewayling much his chaunce Sayd yet aboue the starrie skie thou shalt thy selfe aduaunce Anon the body in this heauenly liquor stéeped well Did melt and moisted all the earth with swéete and pleasant smell And by and by first taking roote among the cloddes within By little and by little did with growing top begin A pretie spirke of Frankinsence aboue the Tumbe to win Although that Clytie might excuse hir sorrow by hir loue And seeme that so to play the blab hir sorrow did hir moue Yet would the Author of the light resort to hir no more But did withholde the pleasant sportes of Venus vsde before The Nymph not able of hir selfe the franticke fume to stay With restlesse care and pensiuenesse did pine hir selfe away Bareheaded on the bare cold ground with flaring haire vnkempt She sate abrode both night and day and clearly did exempt Hirselfe by space of thrise thrée dayes from sustnance and repast Saue only dewe and saue hir teares with which she brake hir fast And in that while she neuer rose but stared on the Sunne And euer turnde hir face to his as he his corse did runne Hir limmes stacke fast within the ground and all hir vpper part Did to a pale ashcolourd herbe cleane voyde of bloud conuart The floure whereof part red part white beshadowed with a blew Most like a Uiolet in the shape hir countnance ouergrew And now though fastned with a roote she turnes hir to the Sunne And kéepes in shape of herbe the loue with which she first begunne She made an ende and at hir tale all wondred some denide Hir saying to be possible and other some replide That such as are in déede true Gods may all things worke at will But Bacchus is not any such Thys arguing once made still To tell hir tale as others had Alcithoes turne was come Who with hir shettle shooting through hir web within the Loome Said Of the shepeheird Daplynis loue of Ida whom erewhile A iealouse Nymph bicause he did with Lemans hir beguile For anger turned to a stone such furie loue doth sende I will not speake it is to knowe ne yet I doe entende To tell how Scython variably digressing from his kinde Was as sometime woman sometime man as liked best his minde And Celmus also wyll I passe who for bicause he cloong Most faithfully to Iupiter when Iupiter was yoong Is now become an Adamant So will I passe this howre To shew you how the Curets were engendred of a showre Or how that Crocus and his loue faire Smylar turned were To little flowres with pleasant newes your mindes now will I chere Learne why the fountaine Salmacis diffamed is of yore Why with his waters ouerstrong it weakeneth men so sore That whoso bathes him there commes thence a perfect man no more The operation of this Well is knowne to euery wight But few can tell the cause thereof the which I will recite The waternymphes did nurce a sonne of Mercuries in I de Begot on Venus in whose face such beautie did abide As well therein his father both and mother might be knowne Of whome he also tooke his name Assoone as he was growne To fiftene yeares of age he left the Countrie where he dwelt And Ida that had fostered him The pleasure that he felt To trauell Countries and to sée straunge riuers with the state Of forren landes all painfulnesse of trauell did abate He trauelde through the lande of Lycie to Carie that doth bound Next vnto Lycia There he saw a Poole which to the ground Was Christall cleare No fennie sedge no barren reeke no réede Nor rush with pricking poynt was there nor other moorish wéede The water was so pure and shere a man might well haue seene And numbred all the grauell stones that in the bottome béene The vtmost borders from the brim enuirond were with clowres Beclad with herbes ay fresh and gréene and pleasant smelling flowres A Nymph did haunt this goodly Poole but such a Nymph as neyther To hunt to run nor yet to shoote had any kinde of pleasure Of all the Waterfairies she alonly was vnknowne To swift Diana As the brute of fame abrode hath blowne Hir sisters oftentimes would say take lightsome Dart or bow And in some painefull exercise thine ydle time bestow But neuer could they hir persuade to runne to shoote or hunt Or
any other exercise as Phebes knightes are wont Sometime hir faire welformed limbes she batheth in hir spring Sometime she downe hir golden haire with Boxen combe doth bring And at the water as a glasse she taketh counsell ay How euery thing becommeth hir Erewhile in fine aray On soft swéete hearbes or soft gréene leaues hir selfe she nicely layes Erewhile againe a gathering flowres from place to place she strayes And as it chaunst the selfe same time she was a sorting gayes To make a Poisie when she first the yongman did espie And in beholding him desirde to haue his companie But though she thought she stoode on thornes vntill she went to him Yet went she not before she had bedect hir neat and trim And pride and péerd vpon hir clothes that nothing sat awrie And framde hir countnance as might séeme most amrous to the eie Which done she thus begon O childe most worthie for to bée Estemde and taken for a God if as thou séemste to mée Thou be a God to Cupids name thy beautie doth agrée Or if thou be a mortall wight right happie folke are they By whome thou camste into this worlde right happy is I say Thy mother and thy sister too if any bée good hap That woman had that was thy Nurce and gaue thy mouth hir pap But farre aboue all other far more blist than these is shée Whome thou vouchsafest for thy wife and bedfellow for to bée Now if thou haue alredy one let me by stelth obtaine That which shall pleasure both of vs. Or if thou doe remaine A Maiden frée from wedlocke bonde let me then be thy spouse And let vs in the bridelie bed our selues togither rouse This sed the Nymph did hold hir peace and therewithall the boy Waxt red he wist not what loue was and sure it was a ioy To sée it how excéeding well his blushing him became For in his face the colour fresh appeared like the same That is in Apples which doe hang vpon the Sunnie side Or Iuorie shadowed with a red or such as is espide Of white and scarlet colours mixt appearing in the Moone When folke in vaine with sounding brasse would ease vnto hir done When at the last the Nymph desirde most instantly but this As to his sister brotherly to giue hir there a kisse And therewithall was clasping him about the Iuorie necke Leaue of quoth he or I am gone and leaue thee at a becke With all thy trickes Then Salmacis began to be afraide And to your pleasure leaue I frée this place my friend she sayde Wyth that she turnes hir backe as though she would haue gone hir way But euermore she looketh backe and closely as she may She hides hir in a bushie queach where knéeling on hir knée She alwayes hath hir eye on him He as a childe and frée And thinking not that any wight had watched what he did Romes vp and downe the pleasant Mede and by and by amid The flattring waues he dippes his féete no more but first the sole And to the ancles afterward both féete he plungeth whole And for to make the matter short he tooke so great delight In coolenesse of the pleasant spring that streight he stripped quight His garments from his tender skin When Salmacis behilde His naked beautie such strong pangs so ardently hir hilde That vtterly she was astraught And euen as Phebus beames Against a myrrour pure and clere rebound with broken gleames Euen so hir eys did sparcle fire Scarce could she tarience make Scarce could she any time delay hir pleasure for to take She wolde haue run and in hir armes embraced him streight way She was so far beside hir selfe that scarsly could she stay He clapping with his hollow hands against his naked sides Into the water lithe and baine with armes displayde glydes And rowing with his hands and legges swimmes in the water cleare Through which his bodie faire and white doth glistringly appeare As if a man an Iuorie Image or a Lillie white Should ouerlay or close with glasse that were most pure and bright The price is won cride Salmacis aloud he is mine owne And therewithall in all post hast she hauing lightly throwne Hir garments off flew to the Poole and cast hir thereinto And caught him fast betweene hir armes for ought that he could doe Yea maugre all his wrestling and his struggling to and fro She held him still and kissed him a hundred times and mo And willde he nillde he with hir handes she toucht his naked brest And now on this side now on that for all he did resist And striue to wrest him from hir gripes she clung vnto him fast And wound about him like a Snake which snatched vp in hast And being by the Prince of Birdes borne lightly vp aloft Doth writhe hir selfe about his necke and griping talants oft And cast hir â—aile about his wings displayed in the winde Or like as Iuie runnes on trées about the vtter rinde Or as the Crabfish hauing caught his enmy in the Seas Doth claspe him in on euery side with all his crooked cleas But Atlas Nephew still persistes and vtterly denies The Nymph to haue hir hoped sport she vrges him likewise And pressing him with all hir weight fast cleauing to him still Striue struggle wrest and writhe she said thou froward boy thy fill Doe what thou canst thou shalt not scape Ye Goddes of Heauen agrée That this same wilfull boy and I may neuer parted bée The Gods were pliant to hir boone The bodies of them twaine Were mixt and ioyned both in one To both them did remaine One countnance like as if a man should in one barke beholde Two twigges both growing into one and still togither holde Euen so when through hir hugging and hir grasping of the tother The members of them mingled were and fastned both togither They were not any lenger two but as it were a toy Of double shape Ye could not say it was a perfect boy Nor perfect wench it seemed both and none of both to béene Now when Hermaphroditus saw how in the water shéene To which he entred in a man his limmes were weakened so That out fro thence but halfe a man he was compelde to go He lifteth vp his hands and said but not with manly réere O noble father Mercurie and Venus mother déere This one petition graunt your son which both your names doth beare That whoso commes within this Well may so be weakened there That of a man but halfe a man he may fro thence retire Both Parentes moued with the chaunce did stablish this desire The which their doubleshaped sonne had made and therevpon Infected with an vnknowne strength the sacred spring anon Their tales did ende and Mineus daughters still their businesse plie In spight of Bacchus whose high feast they breake contemptuously When on the sodaine seeing nought they heard about them round Of rubbish Timbrels perfectly a hoarse and iarring sound With shraming shalmes and
And oftentâ—â—es from thence againe to leape into the Pond And there they now doe practise still their filthy tongues to scold And shamelessely though vnderneath the water they doe hold Their former wont of brawling still amid the water cold Their voices stil are hoarse and harsh their throtes haue puffed goawles Their chappes with brawling widened are their haÌ„mer headed Ioawles Are ioyned to their shoulders iust the neckes of them doe séeme cut off the ridgebone of their backe stickes vp of colour greene Their paunch which is the greatest part of all their trunch is gray And so they vp and downe the Pond made newly Frogges doe play When one of Lyce I woâ—e not who had spoken in this sort Another of a Satyr streight began to make report Whome Phebus ouercomming on a pipe made late ago By Pallas put to punishment Why fleaëst thou me so Alas he cride it irketh me Alas a sorie pipe Deserueth not so cruelly my skin from me to stripe For all his crying ore his eares quight pulled was his skin Nought else he was than one whole wounde The griesly bloud did spin From euery part the sinewes lay discouered to the eye The quiuering veynes without a skin lay beating nakedly The panting bowels in his bulke ye might haue numbred well And in his brest the shere small strings a man might easly tell The Countrie Faunes the Gods of Woods the Satyrs of his kin The Mount Olympus whose renowne did ere that time begin And all the Nymphes and all that in those mountaines kept their shéepe Or grazed cattell thereabouts did for this Satyr wéepe The â—â—uâ—tfull earth waxt moyst therewith and moysâ—ed did receyue Their teares and in hir bowels deepe did of the same conceyue And when that she had turned them to water by and by She sent them forth againe aloft to sée the open Skie The Riuer that doth rise thereof beginning there his race In verie déepe and shoring bankes to Seaward runnes a pace Through Phrygie and according as the Satyr so the streame Is called Marsias of the brookes the clearest in that Realme With such examples as these same the common folke returnde To present things and euery man through all the Citie moornde For that Amphion was destroyde with all his issue so But all the fault and blame was laide vpon the mother tho For hir alonly Pelops mournde as men report and hée In opening of his clothes did shewe that euerie man might see His shoulder on the left side bare of Iuorie for to bée This shoulder at his birth was like his tother both in hue And flesh vntill his fathers handes most wickedly him slue And that the Gods when they his limmes againe togither drue To ioyne them in their proper place and forme by nature due Did finde out all the other partes saue only that which grue Betwene the throteboll and the arme which when they could not get This other made of Iuorie white in place thereof they set And by that meanes was Pelops made againe both whole and sound The neyghbor Princes thither came and all the Cities round About besought their Kings to go and comfort Thebe as Arge And Sparta and Mycene which was vnder Pelops charge And Calydon vnhated of the frowning Phebe yit The welthie towne Orchomenos and Corinth which in it Had famous men for workmanship in mettals and the stout Messene which full twentie yeares did hold besiegers out And Patre and the lowly towne Cleona Nelies Pyle And Troyzen not surnamed yet Pittheia for a while And all the other Borough townes and Cities which doe stand Within the narrow balke at which two Seas doe méete at hand Or which do bound vpon the balke without in maine firme land Alonly Athens who would thinke did neither come nor send Warre barred them from courtesie the which they did entend The King of Pontus with an host of sauage people lay In siege before their famous walles and curstly did them fray Untill that Tereus King of Thrace approching to their ayde Did vanquish him and with renowne was for his labor payde â–ª And sith he was so puissant in men and ready coyne And came of mightie Marsis race Pandion sought to ioyne Aliance with him by and by and gaue him to his Féere His daughter Progne At this match as after will appeare Was neyther Iuno President of mariage wont to bée Nor Hymen no nor any one of all the graces thrée The Furies snatching Tapers vp that on some Herce did stande Did light them and before the Bride did beare them in their hande The Furies made the Bridegroomes bed And on the house did rucke A cursed Owle the messenger of yll successe and lucke And all the night time while that they were lying in their beds She sate vpon the bedsteds top right ouer both their heds Such handsell Progne had the day that Tereus did hir wed Such handsell had they when that she was brought of childe a bed All Thracia did reioyce at them and thankt their Gods and wild That both the day of Prognes match with Tereus should be hild For feastfull and the day likewise that Itys first was borne So little know we what behoues The Sunne had now outworne Fiue Haruests and by course fiue times had run his yearly race When Progne flattring Tereus saide If any loue or grace Betweene vs be send eyther me my sister for to sée Or finde the meanes that hither she may come to visit mée You may assure your Fathrinlaw she shall againe returne Within a while Ye doe to me the highest great good turne That can be if you bring to passe I may my sister sée Immediatly the King commaundes his shippes a flote to bée And shortly after what with sayle and what with force of Ores In Atheâ—s hauen he arriues and landes at Pyrey shores Assoone as of his fathrinlaw the presence he obtainde And had of him bene courteously and friendly entertainde Unhappie handsell entred with their talking first togither The errandes of his wife the cause of his then comming thither He had but new begon to tell and promised that when She had hir sister séene she should with spéede be sent agen When sée the chaunce came Philomele in raiment very rich And yet in beautie farre more rich euen like the Fairies which Reported are the pleasant woods and water springs to haunt So that the like apparell and attire to them you graunt King Tereus at the sight of hir did burne in his desire As if a man should chaunce to set a gulfe of corne on fire Or burne a stacke of hay Hir face in déede deserued loue But as for him to fleshly lust euen nature did him moue For of those countries commonly the people are aboue All measure prone to lecherie And therefore both by kinde His flame encreast and by his owne default of vicious minde He purposde fully to corrupt hir seruants with reward Or for to bribe hir Nurce that she
should slenderly regarde Hir dutie to hir mistresseward And rather than to fayle The Ladie euen hirselfe with gifts he minded to assayle And all his kingdome for to spend or else by force of hand To take hir and in maintenance thereof by sword to stand There was not vnder heauen the thing but that he durst it proue So far vnable was he now to stay his lawlesse loue Delay was deadly Backe againe with gréedie minde he came Of Prognes â—rrands for to talke and vnderneath the same He workes his owne vngraciousnesse Loue gaue him power to frame His talke at will As oft as he demaunded out of square Upon his wiues importunate desire himselfe he bare He also wept as though his wife had willed that likewise O God what blindnesse doth the heartes of mortall men disguise By working mischiefe Tereus gets him credit for to séeme A louing man and winneth praise by wickednesse extréeme Yea and the foolish Philomele the selfe same thing desires Who hanging on hir fathers necke with flattring armes requires Against hir life and for hir life his licence for to go To see hir sister Tereus beholdes hir wistly tho And in beholding handles hir with heart For when he saw Hir kisse hir father and about his necke hir armes to draw They all were spurres to pricke him forth and wood to féede his fire And foode of forcing nourishment to further his desire As oft as she hir father did betwéene hir armes embrace So often wished he himselfe hir father in that case For nought at all should that in him haue wrought the greater grace Hir father could not say them nay they lay at him so sore Right glad thereof was Philomele and thanked him therefore And wretched wench she thinkes she had obtained such a thing As both to Progne and hir selfe should ioy and comfort bring When both of them in verie déede should afterward it rew To endward of his daily race and trauell Phebus drew And on the shoring side of Heauen his horses downeward flew A princely supper was prepaarde and wine in golde was set And after meate to take their rest the Princes did them get But though the King of Thrace that while were absent from hir sight Yet swelted he and in his minde reuoluing all the night Hir face hir gesture and hir hands imaginde all the rest The which as yet he had not séene as likte his fancie best He féedes his flames himselfe No winke could come within his eyes For thinking ay on hir Assoone as day was in the skies Pandion holding in his hand the hand of Tereus prest To go his way and sheading teares betooke him thus his guest Deare sonneinlaw I giue thee here sith godly cause constraines This Damsell Bythe faith that in thy Princely heart remaines â–ª And for our late aliance sake and by the Gods aboue I humbly thée beseche that as a Father thou doe loue And maintaine hir and that as soone as may be all delay Will vnto me séeme ouer long thou let hir come away The comfort of my carefull age on whome my life doth stay And thou my daughter Philomele it is inough ywis That from hir father set so farre thy sister Progne is If any sparke of nature doe within thy heart remayne With all the haast and spéede thou canst returne to me againe In giuing charge he kissed hir and downe his chéekes did raine The tender teares and as a pledge of faith he tooke the right Handes of them both and ioyning them did eche to other plight Desiring them to beare in minde his commendations to His daughter and hir little sonne And then with much a doe For sobbing at the last he bad adew as one dismaid The foremisgiuing of his minde did make him sore afraid Assoone as Tereus and the Maide togither were a boord And that their ship from land with Ores was haled on the foord The fielde is ours he cride aloude I haue the thing I sought And vp he skipt so barbrous and so beastly was his thought That scarce euen there he could forbeare his pleasure to haue wrought His eye went neuer off of hir as when the scarefull Erne With hooked talants trussing vp a Hare among the Ferne Hath laid hir in his nest from whence the prisoner can not scape The rauening fowle with gréedie eyes vpon his pray doth gape Now was their iourney come to ende now were they gone a land In Thracia when that Tereus tooke the Ladie by the hand And led hir to a pelting graunge that peakishly did stand In woods forgrowen There waxing pale and trembling sore for feare And dreading all things and with teares demaunding sadly where Hir sister was he shet hir vp and therewithall bewraide His wicked lust and so by force bicause she was a Maide And all alone he vanquisht hir It booted nought at all That she on sister or on Sire or on the Gods did call She quaketh like the wounded Lambe which froÌ„ the Wolues hore tâ—th New shaken thinkes hir selfe not safe or as the Doue that feéth Hir fethers with hir owne bloud staynde who shuddring still doth feare The greedie Hauke that did hir late with griping talants teare Anon when that this mazednesse was somewhat ouerpast She rent hir haire and beate hir brest and vp to heauenward cast Hir hands in mourningwise and said â–ª O cankerd Carle O fell And cruell Tyrant neyther could the godly teares that fell A downe my fathers chéekes when he did giue thée charge of meé Ne of my sister that regarde that ought to be in theé Nor yet my chaast virginitie nor conscience of the lawe Of wedlocke from this villanie thy barbrous heart withdraw Behold thou hast confounded all My sister thorough mée Is made a Cucqueane and thy selfe through this offence of thée Art made a husband to vs both and vnto me a foe A iust deserued punishment for lewdly doing so But to thintent O periurde wretch no mischiefe may remaine Unwrought by theé why doest thou from murdring me refraine Would God thou had it done before this wicked rape From hence Then should my soule most blessedly haue gone without offence But if the Gods doe sée this déede and if the Gods I say Be ought and in this wicked worlde beare any kinde of sway And if with me all other things decay not sure the day Will come that for this wickednesse full dearly thou shalt pay Yea I my selfe reiecting shame thy doings will bewray And if I may haue power to come abrode them blase I will In open face of all the world or if thou kéepe me still As prisoner in these woods my voyâ—e the verie woods shall fill And make the stones to vnderstand Let Heauen to this giue eare And all the Gods and powers therein if any God be there The cruell tyrant being chaaft and also put in feare With these and other such hir wordes both causes so him stung That drawing out his naked sworde that
you straunger whome I neuer saw before Should perish what should be the cause of this my feare so great Unhappie wench and if thou canst suppresse this vncouth heat That burneth in thy tender brest and if so be I coulde A happie turne it were and more at case then be I shoulde But now an vncouth maladie perforce against my will Doth hale me Loue persuades me one another thing my skill The best I sée and like the worst I follow headlong still Why being of the royall bloud so fondly doste thou raue Upon a straunger thus to dote desiring for to haue An husband of another world at home thou mightest finde A louer méete for thine estate on whome to set thy minde And yet it is but euen a chaunce if he shall liue or no God graunt him for to liue I may without offence pray so Although I loude him not for what hath Iason trespast me Who woulde not pitie Iasons youth onlesse they cruell be What creature is there but his birth and prowesse might him moue And setting all the rest asyde who woulde not be in loue With Iasons goodlie personage my heart assuredly Is toucht therewith But if that I prouide not remedie With burning breath of blasting Bulles néedes sindged must he bée Of séedes that he himselfe must sow a haruest shall he sée Of armed men in battell ray vpon the ground vp grow Against the which it houeth him his manhode for to show And as a pray he must be set against the Dragon fell If I these things let come to passe I may confesse right well That of a Tyger I was bred and that within my brest A heart more harde than any stéele or stonie rocke doth rest Why rather doe I not his death with wrathfull eyes beholde And ioy with others séeing him to vtter perill solde Why doe I not enforce the Bulles against him why I say Exhort I not the cruell men which shall in battell ray Arise against him from the ground and that same Dragon too Within whose eyes came neuer sléepe God shield I so should doo But prayer smally bootes except I put to helping hand And shall I like a Caytife then betray my fathers land Shall I a straunger saue whome we nor none of ours doth know That he by me preserued may without me homeward row And take another to his wife and leaue me wretched wight To torments If I wist that he coulde worke me such a spight Or could in any others loue than only mine delight The Churle should die for me But sure he beareth not the face Like one that wold doe so His birth his courage and his grace Doe put me clearly out of doubt he will not me deceyue No nor forget the great good turnes he shall by me receyue Yet shall he to me first his faith for more assurance plight And solemly he shall be sworne to kéepe the couenant right Why fearste thou now without a cause step to it out of hand And doe not any lenger time thus lingring fondly stand For ay shall Iason thinke himselfe beholding vnto thée And shall thée marrie solemly yea honored shalt thou bée Of all the Mothers greate and small throughout the townes of Gréece For sauing of their sonnes that come to fetch the golden fléece And shall I then leaue brother sister father kith and kin And household Gods and natiue soyle and all that is therein And saile I know not whither with a straunger yea why not My father surely cruell is my Countrie rude God wot My brother yet a verie babe my sister I dare say Contented is with all hir heart that I should go away The greatest God is in my selfe the things I doe forsake Are trifles in comparison of those that I shall take For sauing of the Gréekish ship renoumed shall I bée A better place I shall enioy with Cities riche and frée Whose fame doth florish fresh euen here and people that excell In ciuill life and all good Artes and whome I would not sell For all the goods within the worlde Duke Aesons noble sonne Whome had I to my lawfull Féere assuredly once wonne Most happie yea and blest of God I might my selfe account And with my head aboue the starres to heauen I should surmount But men report that certaine rockes I know not what doe méete Amid the waues and monstruously againe a sunder fléete And how Charybdis vtter foe to ships that passe thereby Now sowpeth in now speweth out the Sea incessantly And rauening Scylla being hemde with cruell dogs about Amids the gulfe of Sicilie doth make a barking out What skilleth that As long as I enioy the thing I loue And hang about my Iasons necke it shall no whit me moue To saile the daungerous Seas as long as him I may embrace I cannot surely be afraide in any kinde of case Or if I chaunce to be afraide my feare shall only tende But for my husband Callste thou him thy husband doste pretende Gay titles to thy foule offence Medea nay not so But rather looke about how great a lewdnesse thou doste go And shun the mischiefe while thou mayst She had no sooner said These wordes but right and godlinesse and shamefastnesse were staid Before hir eyes and frantick loue did flie away dismaid She went me to an Altar that was dedicate of olde To Perseys daughter Hecate of whome the witches holde As of their Goddesse standing in a thicke and secrete wood So close it coulde not well be spide and now the raging mood Of furious loue was well alaide and clearely put to flight When spying Aesons sonne the flame that séemed quenched quight Did kindle out of hand againe Hir chéekes began to glowe And flushing ouer all hir face the scarlet bloud did flowe And euen as when a little sparke that was in ashes hid Uncouered with the whisking windes is from the ashes rid Efâ—soones it taketh nourishment and kindleth in such wise That to his former strength againe and flaming it doth rise Euen so hir quailed loue which late ye would haue thought had quight Bene vanisht out of minde as soone as Iason came in sight Did kindle to his former force in vewing of the grace With which he did auaunce himselfe then comming there in place And as it chaunced farre more faire and beautifull of face She thought him then than euer erst but sure it doth behoue Hir iudgement should be borne withall bicause she was in loue She gapte and gased in his face with fixed staring eyen As though she neuer had him séene before that instant time So farre she was beside hir selfe â—he thought it should not bée The face of any worldly wight the which she then did sée She was not able for hir life to turne hir eyes away But when he tooke hir by the hand and speaking gan to pray Hir softly for to succor him and promisde faithfully To take hir to his wedded wife she falling by and by A wéeping said Sir
for me But if my minde deceyue me not the time will shortly be That wish thou wilt thou had hir not And so in anger she To Procris sent me backe againe in going homeward as Upon the Goddesse sayings with my selfe I musing was I gan to dreade bad measures least my wife had made some scape Hir youthfull yeares begarnished with beautie grace and shape In maner made me to beleue the déede already done Againe hir maners did forbid mistrusting ouer soone But I had bâ—ne away but euen the same from whom I come A shrewde example gaue how lightly wiues doe run in blame But we poore Louers are afraide of al things Herevpon I thought to practise feates which thing repented me anon And shall repent me while I liue The purpose of my drifts Was for tassault hir honestie with great rewards and gifts The Morning fooding this my feare to further my deuice My shape which thing me thought I felt had altered with a trice By meanes whereof anon vnknowne to Pallas towne I came And entred so my house the house was clearely voide of blame And shewed signes of chastitie in mourning euer sith Their maister had bene rapt away A thousand meanes wherewith To come to Procris speach had I deuisde and scarce at last Obteinde I it Assoone as I mine eie vpon hir cast My wits were rauisht in such wise that nigh I had forgot The purposde triall of hir troth right much a doe God woâ— I had to holde mine owne that I the truth bewrayed not To kéepe my selfe from kissing hir full much a doe I had As reason was I should haue done She looked verie sad And yet as sadly as she lookte no Wight aliue can show A better countenance than did she Hir heart did inward glow In longing for hir absent spouse How beautifull a face Thinke you Sir Phocus was in hir whome sorrow so did grace What should I make report how oft hir chast behauiour straue And ouercame most constantly the great assaults I gaue Or tell how oft she shet me vp with these same words To one Where ere he is I kéepe my selfe and none but he alone Shall sure enioy the vse of me What creature hauing his Wits perfect would not be content with such a proofe as this Of hir most stedfast chastitie I could not be content But still to purchase to my selfe more wo I further went At last by profering endlesse welth and heaping gifts on gifts In ouerlading hir with wordes I draue hir to hir shifts Then cride I out Thine euill heart my selfe I tardie take Where of a straunge aduouterer the countenance I did make I am in déede thy husband O vnfaithfull woman thou Euen I my selfe can testifie thy lewde behauior now She made none answere to my words but being stricken dum And with the sorrow of hir heart alonly ouercum Forsaketh hir entangling house and naughtie husband quight And hating all the sort of men by reason of the spight That I had wrought hir straide abrode among the Mountaines hie And exercisde Dianas feates Then kindled by and by A fiercer fire within my bones than euer was before When she had thus forsaken me by whome I set such store I prayde hir she woulde pardon me and did confesse my fault Affirming that my selfe likewise with such a great assault Of richesse might right well haue bene enforst to yeelde to blame The rather if performance had ensewed of the same When I had this submission made and she sufficiently Reuengde hir wronged chastitie she then immediatly Was reconcilde and afterward we liued many a yeare In ioy and neuer any iarre betwéene vs did appeare Besides all this as though hir loue had bene to small a gift She gaue me eke a goodly Grewnd which was of foote so swift That when Diana gaue him hir she said he should out go All others and with this same Grewnd she gaue this Dart also The which you sée I hold in hand Perchaunce ye faine would know What fortune to the Grewnd befell I will vnto you show A wondrous case The straungenesse of the matter will you moue The krinkes of certaine Prophesies surmounting farre aboue The reach of auncient wits to read the Brookenymphes did expouÌ„d And mindlesse of hir owne darke doubts Dame Themis being found Was as a rechelesse Prophetisse throwne flat against the ground For which presumptuous déede of theirs she tooke iust punishment To Thebes in Baeotia streight a cruell beast she sent Which wrought the bane of many a Wight The couÌ„tryfolk did féed Him with their cattell and themselues vntill as was agréed That all we youthfull Gentlemen that dwelled there about Assembling pitcht our corded toyles the champion fields throughout But Net ne toyle was none so hie that could his wightnesse stop He mounted ouer at his ease the highest of the top Then euerie man let slip their Grewnds but he them all outstript And euen as nimbly as a birde in daliance from them whipt Then all the field desired me to let my Laelaps go The Grewnd that Procris vnto me did giue was named so Who strugling for to wrest his necke already from the band Did stretch his collar Scarsly had we let him of of hand But that where Laelaps was become we could not vnderstand The print remained of his féete vpon the parched sand But he was clearly out of sight Was neuer Dart I trow Nor Pellet from enforced Sling nor shaft from Cretish bow That flew more swift than he did runne There was not farre fro thence About the middle of the Laund a rising ground from whence A man might ouerlooke the fieldes I gate me to the knap Of this same hill and there beheld of this straunge course the hap In which the beast seemes one while caught and ere a man would think Doth quickly giue the Grewnd the slip and from his bighting shrink And like a wilie Foxe he runnes not forth directly out Nor makes a windlasse ouer all the champion fieldes about But doubling and indenting still auoydes his enmies lips And turning short as swift about as spinning whéele he whips To disapoint the snatch The Grewnd pursuing at an inch Doth cote him neuer losing ground but likely still to pinch Is at the sodaine shifted of continually he snatches In vaine for nothing in his mouth saue only Aire he latches Then thought I for to trie what helpe my Dart at néede could show Which as I charged in my hand by leuell aime to throw And set my fingars to the thongs I lifting from bylow Mine eies did looke right forth againe and straight amids the field A wondrous thing two Images of Marble I beheld Of which ye would haue thought the tone had fled on still a pace And that with open barking mouth the tother did him chase In faith it was the will of God at least if any Goddes Had care of them that in their pace there should be found none oddes Thus farre and
did lay his golden Uiall there And so the stones the sound thereof did euer after beare King Nisus daughter oftentimes resorted to this Wall And strake it with a little stone to raise the sound withall In time of peace And in the warre she many a time and oft Behelde the sturdie stormes of Mars from that same place aloft And by continuance of the siege the Captaines names she knew Their armes horse armor and aray in euerie band and crew But specially aboue the rest she noted Minos face She knew inough and more than was inough as stoode the case For were it that he hid his head in Helme with fethered crest To hir opinion in his Helme he stayned all the rest Or were it that he tooke in hand of stéele his target bright She thought in wéelding of his shielde he was a comly Knight Or were it that he raisde his arme to throw the piercing Dart The Ladie did commend his force and manhode ioynde with Art Or drew he with his arrow nockt his bended Bow in hand She sware that so in all respectes was Phoebus wont to stand But when he shewde his visage bare his Helmet laid aside And on a Milke white Stéede braue trapt in Purple Robe did ride She scarce was Mistresse of hir selfe hir wits were almost straught A happie Dart she thought it was that he in fingars caught And happie called she those reynes that he in hand had raught And if she might haue had hir will she could haue founde in hart Among the enmies to haue gone she could haue found in hart From downe the highest Turret there hir bodie to haue throwne Among the thickest of the Tents of Gnossus to haue flowne Or for to ope the brazen gates and let the enmie in Or whatsoeuer else she thought might Minos fauor win And as she sate beholding still the King of Candies tent She said I doubt me whether that I rather may lament Or of this wofull warre be glad It grieues me at the hart That thou O Minos vnto me thy Louer enmie art But had not this same warfare bene I neuer had him knowne Yet might he leaue this cruell warre and take me as his owne A wife a féere a pledge for peace he might receiue of me O flowre of beautie O thou Prince most pearlesse if that she That bare thée in hir wombe were like in beautie vnto thée A right good cause had Ioue on hir enamored for to bée Oh happie were I if with wings I through the Aire might glide And safely to King Minos Tent from this same Turret slide Then would I vtter who I am and how the firie flame Of Cupid burned in my brest desiring him to name What dowrie he would aske with me in loän of his loue Saue only of my Fathers Realme no question he should take place Adue desire of hoped Loue. Yet oftentimes such grace Hath from the gentle Conqueror procéeded erst that they Which tooke the foyle haue found the same their profit and their stay Assuredly the warre is iust that Minos takes in hand As in reuengement of his sonne late murthered in this land And as his quarrell séemeth iust euen so it cannot faile But rightfull warre against the wrong must I beleue preuaile Now if this Citie in the ende must needes be taken why Should his owne sworde and not my Loue be meanes to win it by It were yet better he should spéede by gentle meanes without The slaughter of his people yea and as it may fall out With spending of his owne bloud too For sure I haue a care O Minos least some Souldier wound thée ere he be aware For who is he in all the world that hath so hard a hart That wittingly against thy head would aime his creull Dart â–ª I like well this deuise and on this purpose will I stand To yéelde my selfe endowed with this Citie to the hand Of Minos and in doing so to bring this warre to ende But smally it auaileth me the matter to intende The gates and yssues of this towne are kept with watch and warde And of the Keyes continually my Father hath the garde My Father only is the man of whome I stand in dréede My Father only hindreth me of my desired spéede Would God that I were Fatherlesse Tush euerie Wight may bée A God as in their owne behalfe and if their hearts be frée From fearefulnesse For fortune works against the fond desire Of such as through faint heartednesse attempt not to aspire Some other féeling in hir heart such flames of Cupids fire Already would haue put in proofe some practise to destroy What thing so euer of hir Loue the furtherance might anoy And why should any womaâ— haue a bolder heart than I Throw fire and sword I boldly durst aduenture for to flie And yet in this behalfe at all there néedes no sword nor fire There néedeth but my fathers haire to accomplish my desire That Purple haire of his to me more precious were than golde That Purple haire of his would make me bleâ—t a thousand folde That haire would compasse my desire and set my heart at rest Night chiefest Nurce of thoughts to such as are with care opprest Approched while she spake these words and darknesse did encrease Hir boldnesse At such time as folke are wont to finde release Of cares that all the day before were working in their heds By sléepe which falleth first of all vpon them in their beds Hir fathers chamber secretly she entered where alasse That euer Maiden should so farre the bounds of Nature passe She robde hir Father of the haire vpon the which the fate Depended both of life and death and of his royall state And ioying in hir wicked pray she beares it with hir so As if it were some lawfull spoyle acquired of the fo And passing through a posterne gate she marched through the mid Of all hir enmies such a trust she had in that she did Untill she came before the King â–ª whom troubled with the sight She thus bespake Enforst O King by loue against all right I Scylla Nisus daughter doe present vnto thée héere My natiue soyle my household Gods and all that else is déere For this my gift none other thing in recompence I craue Thaâ— of thy person which I loue fruition for to haue And in assurance of my loue receyue thou here of mée My fathers Purple haire and thinke I giue not vnto thée A haire but euen my fathers head And as these words she spake The cursed gift with wicked hand she profered him to take But Minos did abhorre hir gift and troubled in his minde With straungenesse of the heynous act so sore against hir kinde He aunswerde O thou slaunder of our age the Gods expell Thée out of all this world of theirs and let thée no where dwell Let rest on neither Sea nor Land be graunted vnto thée Assure thy selfe that as for me I neuer will agrée That
Candie Ioues owne foster place as long as I there raigne Shall vnto such a monstruous Wight a Harbrow place remaine This said he like a righteous Iudge among his vanquisht foes Set order vnder paine of death Which done he willed those That serued him to go a boorde and Anchors vp to wey When Scylla saw the Candian fléete a flote to go away And that the Captaine yéelded not so good reward as shée Had for hir lewdnesse looked for and when in fine she sée That no entreatance could preuaile then bursting out in ire With stretched hands and scattred haire as furious as the fire She shraming cryëd out aloud And whither doste thou flie Reiecting me the only meanes that thou hast conquerde by O cankerde Churle preferde before my natiue soyle preferd Before my father whither flyste O Carle of heart most hard Whose conquest as it is my sinne so doth it well deserue Reward of thée for that my fault so well thy turne did serue Doth neither thée the gift I gaue nor yet my faithfull loue Nor yet that all my hope on thée alonly rested moue For whither shall I now resort forsaken thus of thée To Megara the wretched soyle of my natiuitie Behold it lieth vanquished and troden vnder foote But put the case it flourisht still yet could it nothing boote I haue foreclosde it to my selfe through treason when I gaue My fathers head to thée Whereby my countriefolke I draue To hate me iustly for my crime And all the Realmes about My lewde example doe abhorre Thus haue I shet me out Of all the world that only Crete might take me in â–ª which if Thou like a Churle denie and cast me vp without relief The Ladie Europ surely was not mother vnto thée But one of Affricke Sirts where none but Serpents fostred bée But euen some cruell Tiger bred in Armen or in Inde Or else the Gulfe Charybdis raisde with rage of Southerne winde Thou wert not got by Ioue ne yet thy mother was beguilde In shape of Bull of this thy birth the tale is false compilde But rather some vnwieldâ—e Bull euen altogither wilde That neuer lowed after Cow was out of doubt thy Sire O father Nisus put thou me to penance for my hire Reioyce thou in my punishment thou towne by me betrayd I haue deserued I confesse most iustly to be payd With death But let some one of theÌ„ that through my lewdnesse smart â–ª Destroy me why doste thou that by my crime a gainer art Commit like crime thy selfe Admit this wicked act of me As to my land and Fatherward in deede most hainous be Yet oughtest thou to take it as a friendship vnto thée But she was méete to be thy wife that in a Cow of trée Could play the Harlot with a Bull and in hir wombe could beare A Barne in whome the shapes of man and beasts confounded were How sayst thou Carle coÌ„pell not these my words thine eares to glow Or doe the windes that driue thy shyps in vaine my sayings blow In faith it is no wonder though thy wife Pasiphaë Preferrde a Bull to thée for thou more cruell wert than he Now wo is me To make more hast it standeth me in hand The water sounds with Ores and hales from me and from my land In vaine thou striuest O thou Churle forgetfull quight of my Desertes for euen in spight of thee pursue thée still will I. Upon thy courbed Keele will I take holde and hanging so Be drawen along the Sea with thée where euer thou do go She scarce had said these words but that she leaped on the waue And getting to the ships by force of strength that Loue hir gaue Upon the King of Candies Kéele in spight of him she claue Whome when hir father spide for now he houered in the aire And being made a Hobby Hauke did soare betwéene a paire Of nimble wings of yron Mayle he soused downe a maine To seaze vpon hir as she hung and would haue torne hir faine With bowing Beake But she â—or feare did let the Caricke go And as she was about to fall the lightsome Aire did so Uphold hir that she could not touch the Sea as séemed tho Anon all â—ethers she became and forth away did flie Transformed to a pretie Bird that â—â—â—eth to the Skie And for bicause like clipped haire hir head doth beare a marke The Gréekes it 〈…〉 and we doe name the same a Larke Assone as Mâ—nos came a land in Crete he by and by Performde his vowes 〈◊〉 Iupiter in causing for to die A hundred Bulles for sacrifice And then he did adorne His Paâ—lace with the enmies spoyles by conquest wonne beforne The slaunder of his house encreast and now appeared more The mothers filthie whoredome by the monster that she bore Of double shape an vgly thing This shamefull infamie This monster borne him by his wife he mindes by pollicie To put away and in a house with many nookes and krinks From all mens sights and speach of folke to shet it vp he thinks Immediatly one Daedalus renowned in that lande For fine deuise and workmanship in building went in hand To make it He confounds his worke with sodaine stops and stayes And with the great vncertaintie of sundrie winding wayes Leades in and out and to and fro at diuers doores astray And as with trickling streame the Brooke Maeander séemes to play In Phrygia and with doubtfull race runnes counter to and fro And méeting with himselfe doth looke if all his streame or no Come after and retiring eft cleane backward to his spring And marching eft to open Sea as streight as any string Indenteth with reuersed streame euen so of winding wayes Unnumerable Daedalus within his worke conuayes Yea scarce himselfe could find the meanes to winde himselfe well out So busie and so intricate the house was all about Within this Maze did Minos shet the Monster that did beare The shape of man and Bull. And when he twise had fed him there With bloud of Atticke Princes sonnes that giuen for tribute were The third time at the ninth yeares end the lot did chaunce to light On Theseus King Aegaeus sonne who like a valiant Knight Did ouercome the Minotaur and by the pollicie Of Minos eldest daughter who had taught him for to tie A clew of 〈◊〉 at the doore to guide himselfe thereby As busie as the turnings were his way he out did finde Which neuer man had done before And streight he hauing winde With Minos daughter sailde away to Dia where And cruell creature that he was he left hir post alone vnkinde Upon the shore Thus desolate and making dolefull mone God Bacchus did both comfort hir and take hir to his bed And with an euerlasting starre the more hir fame to spred He tooke the Chaplet from hir head and vp to Heauen it threw The Chaplet thirled through the Aire and as it gliding flew The precious stones were turnd to starres which blased cleare bright
ageine the hooked iron stacke And when the same was pulled out the blood a mayne ensewd At both the holes with poyson foule of Lerna Snake embrewd This blood did Nessus take and said within himselfe well fith I needes must dye yet will I not dye vnreuendgd And with The same he staynd a shirt and gaue it vnto Dyanyre Assuring hir it had the powre too kindle Cupids fyre A greate whyle after when the déedes of worthy Hercules Were such as filled all the world and also did appease The hatred of his stepmother As he vppon a day With conquest from Oechalia came and was abowt to pay His vowes to Ioue vppon the Mount of Cenye tatling fame Who in reporting things of truth delyghts too sauce the same With tales and of a thing of nowght dooth euer greater grow Through false and newly forged lyes that shée hirself dooth sow Told Dyanyre that Hercules did cast a liking too A Ladie called Iölee â–ª And Dyanyra whoo Was iealous ouer Hercules gaue credit too the same And when that of a Leman first the tidings too hir came She being striken too the hart did fall too teares alone And in a lamentable wise did make most wofull mone Anon she said what méene theis teares thus gushing froÌ„ myne eyen My husbands Leman will reioyce at theis same teares of myne Nay sith she is too come the best it were too shonne delay And for too woork sum new deuyce and practyse whyle I may Béefore that in my bed her limbes the filthy strumpet lay And shall I then complayne or shall I hold my toong with skill Shall I returne too Calydon or shall I tarry still Or shall I get me out of doores and let them haue their will What if that I Meleager remembring mée too bée Thy suster too attempt sum act notorious did agrée And in a harlots death did shew that all the world myght sée What greef can cause the womankynd too enterpryse among And specially when therevntoo they forced are by wrong With wauering thoughts ryght violeÌ„tly her mynd was tossed loÌ„g At last shée did preferre before all others for too send The shirt bestayned with the blood of Nessus too the end Too quicken vp the quayling loue And so not knowing what She gaue she gaue her owne remorse and gréef too â—ychas that Did know as little as herself and wretched woman shee Desyrd him gently too her Lord presented it too sée The noble Prince receyuing it without mistrust therein Did weare the poyson of the Snake of Lerna next his skin Too offer incense and too pray too Ioue he did begin And on the Marble Altar he full boawles of wyne did shed When as the poyson with the heate resoluing largely spred Through all the limbes of Hercules As long as ere he could The stoutnesse of his haâ—t was such that sygh no whit he would But when the mischeef grew so great all pacience too surmount He thrust the altar from him streight and filled all the mount Of Oeta with his roring out He went about too teare The deathfull garment from his backe but where he pulled there He pulld away the skin and which is lothsum too report It eyther cleaued too his limbes and members in such sort As that he could not pull it oâ— or else it tare away The flesh that bare his myghty bones and grisly sinewes lay The scalding venim boyling in his blood did make it hisse As when a gad of stéele red whot in water quenched is There was no measure of his paine The frying venim hent His inwards and a purple swet from all his body went His findged sinewes shrinking crakt and with a secret strength The poyson euen within his bones the Marée melts at length And holding vp his hands too heauen he sayd with hideous réere O Saturnes daughter féede thy selfe on my distresses héere Yea féede and cruell wyght this plage behold thou from aboue And glut thy sauage hart therewith Or if thy fo may moue Thée vntoo pitie for too thée I am an vtter so Beréeue mée of my hatefull soule distrest with helplesse wo And borne too endlesse toyle For death shall vntoo mee bee swéete And for a cruell stepmother is death a gift most méete And is it I that did destroy Busiris who did foyle His temple floores with straungers blood I st I that did dispoyle Antaeus of his moothers help I st I that could not bée Abashed at the Spanyard who in one had bodies thrée Nor at the trypleheaded shape O Cerberus of thée Are you the hands that by the hornes the Bull of Candie drew Did you king Augies stable clenze whom afterward yée slew Are you the same by whom the fowles were sâ—aard from Stymphaly Caught you the Stag in Maydenwood which did not runne but fly Are you the hands whose puissance receyued for your pay The golden belt of Thermodon Did you conuey away The Apples from the Dragon fell that waked nyght and day Ageinst the force of mée defence the Centaures could not make Nor yit the Boare of Arcadie nor yit the ougly Snake Of Lerna who by losse did grow and dooble force still take What is it I that did behold the pampred Iades of Thrace With Maungers full of flesh of men on which they fed a pace I st I that downe at syght thereof theyr greazy Maungers threw And bothe the fatted Iades themselues and â—ke their mayster slew The Nemean Lyon by theis armes lyes dead vppon the ground Theis armes the monstrâ—ous Giant Cake by Tyber did confound Uppon theis shoulders haue I borne the weyght of all the skie Ioues cruell wyfe is wéerye of commaunding mée Yit I Unwéerie am of dooing still But now on mee is lyght An vncoth plage which neyther force of hand nor vertues myght Nor Arte is able too resist Like wasting fyre it spréedes Among myne inwards and through out on all my body féedes But all this whyle Eurysthye liues in health And sum men may Beeleue there bée sum Goddes in déede Thus much did Hercule say And wounded ouer Oeta hygh he stalking gan too stray As when a Bull in maymed bulk a deadly Dart dooth beare And that â–ª the dooer of the déede is shrunke asyde for feare Oft syghing myght you him haue séene oft trembling oft about Too teare the 〈◊〉 with his hands from top too to throughoâ—t And throwing downe the myghtye trées and chaufing with the hilles Or casting vp his handes too heauen where Ioue his father dwelles Behold as Lychas trembling in a hollow rock did lurk He spyed him And as his gréef did all in furie woork He sayd Art thou syr Lychas he that broughtest vntoo mée This plagye present of my death must thou the woorker bée Hée quaakt and shaakt and looked pale and fearfully gan make Excuse But as with humbled hands hee knéeling too him spake The furioâ—s Hercule caught him vp and swindging him about His head a halfe a doozen tymes or more he
Lucina leaped vp amazde at that that shée had sed And let her â—ands a sunder slip And I immediatly With loosening of the knot had sauf deliuerance by and by They say that in deceyuing Dame Lucina Galant laught And therfore by the yellow locks the Goddesse wroth hir caught And dragged her And as she would haue risen from the ground Shée kept her downe and into legges her armes shée did confound Her former stoutnesse still remaynes her backe dooth kéepe the hew That â—rst was in her heare her shape is only altered new And for with lying mouth shée helpt a woman laboring shée Dooth kindle also at her mouth And now she haunteth frée Our houâ—es as shée did before a Weasâ—e as wée sée With that shée syghes too think vppon her seruants hap and then Her daughtrinlaw immediatly replied thus agen But mother shee whose altred shape dooth moue your hart so sore Was neyther kithâ—nor kin too you What will you say therefore If of myne owne déere suster I the woondrous fortune show Although my sorrow and the teares that from myne eyes doo flow Doo hinder mee and stop my spéeche Her mother you must know My father by another wyfe had mée bare neuer mo But this same Ladie Dryopee the fayrest Ladye tho In all the land of Oechalye Whom béeing then no mayd For why the God of Delos and of Delphos had her frayd Andraemon taketh too hys wyfe and thinkes him well apayd There is a certaine leaning Lake whose bowing banks doo show A likenesse of the salt sea shore Uppon the brim doo grow All round about it Mirtletrées My suster thither goes Unwares what was her destinie and which you may suppose Was more too bée disdâ—yned at the cause of comming there Was too the fayries of the Lake fresh garlonds for too beare And in her armes a babye her sweete burthen shée did hold Who sucking on her brest was yit not full a tweluemoonth old Not farre from this same pond did grow a Lote trée florisht gay With purple flowres and beries swéete and leaues as gréene as Bay Of theis same flowres too please her boy my suster gathered sum And I had thought too doo so too for I was thither cum I saw how from the sliuered flowres red drops of blood did fall And how that shuddring horribly the braunches quaakt withall You must perceyue that as too late the Countryfolk declare A Nymph cald Lotos flying from fowle Pryaps filthy ware Was turned intoo this same trée reseruing still her name My suster did not know so much who when shée backward came Afrayd at that that shée had séene and hauing sadly prayd The Nymphes of pardon too haue gone her way agen assayd Her féete were fastned downe with rootes Shee stryued all she myght Too plucke them vp but they so sure within the earth were pyght That nothing saue her vpper partes shée could that present moue A tender barke growes from beneath vp leysurly aboue And softly ouerspreddes her loynes which when shée saw shée went About too teare her heare and full of leaues her hand shée hent Her head was ouergrowen with leaues And little Amphise so Had Eurytus his Graundsyre naamd her sonne not long ago Did féele his mothers dugges wex hard And as he still them drew In sucking not a whit of milke nor moysture did â—nsâ—w I standing by thée did behold thy cruell chaunce but nought I could reléeue thée suster myne yit too my powre I wrought Too stay the growing of thy trunk and of thy braunches by Embracing thée Yea I protest I would ryght willingly Haue in the selfe same barke with thee bene closed vp Behold Her husband good Andraemon and her wretched father old Sir Eurytus came thither and enquyrd for Dryopee And as they askt for Dryopee I shewd them Lote the tree They kist the wood which yit was warme and falling downe bylow Did hug the rootes of that their trée My suster now could show No part which was not wood except her face A deawe of teares Did stand vppon the wretched leaues late formed of her heares And whyle she might and whyle her mouth did giue her way too speake With such complaynt as this her mynd shée last of all did breake If credit may bee giuen too such as are in wretchednesse I sweare by God I neuer yit deserued this distresse I suffer peyne without desert My lyfe hath guiltlesse béene And if I lye I would theis boughes of mine which now are gréene Myght withered bée and I heawen downe and burned in the fyre This infant from his mothers wombe remoue you I desyre And put him forth too nurce and cause him vnderneath my trée Oft tymes too sucke and oftentymes too play And when that hée Is able for too speake I pray you let him gréete mée héere And sadly say in this same trunk is hid my mother déere But lerne him for too shun all ponds and pulling flowres from trées And let him in his heart beléeue that all the shrubs he sees Are bodyes of the Goddesses Adew déere husband now Adew déere father and adew déere suster And in yow If any loue of mée remayne defend my boughes I pray From wound of cutting hooke and ax and bit of beast for ay And for I cannot stoope too you rayse you yourselues too mée And come and kisse mée whyle I may yit toucht and kissed bee And lift mée vp my little boy I can no lenger talke For now about my lillye necke as if it were a stalke The tender rynd beginnes too créepe and ouergrowes my top Remoue your fingars from my face â–ª the spreading barke dooth stop My dying eyes without your help Shee had no sooner left Her talking but her lyfe therewith toogither was bereft But yit a good whyle after that her natiue shape did fade Her newmade boughes continewed warme Now whyle that Iöle made Report of this same woondrous tale and whyle Alcmena who Did wéepe was drying vp the teares of Iöle wéeping too By putting too her thomb there hapt a sodeine thing so straunge That vntoo mirth from heauinesse theyr harts it streight did chaunge For at the doore in maner euen a very boy as then With short soft Downe about his chin reuoked backe agen Too youthfull yeares stood Iölay with countnance smooth and trim Dame Hebee Iunos daughter had bestowde this gift on him Entreated at his earnest sute Whom mynding fully there The giuing of like gift ageine too any too forsweare Dame Themis would not suffer For quoth shée this present howre Is cruell warre in Thebee towne and none but Ioue hath powre Too vanquish stately Canapey The brothers shall a like Wound eyther other And alyue a Prophet shall go séeke His owne quicke ghoste among the dead the earth him swallowing in The sonne by taking vengeance for his fathers death shall win The name of kynd and wicked man in one and self same cace And flayght with mischéefes from his wits and from
his natiue place The furies and his mothers ghoste shall restlessely him chace Untill his wyâ—e demaund of him the fatall gold for meede And that his cousin Phegies swoord doo make his sydes too bléede Then shall the fayre Callirrhoee Achelous daughter pray The myghty Ioue in humble wyse too graunt her children may Retyre ageine too youthfull yéeres and that he will not sée The death of him that did reuenge vnvenged for too bée Ioue moued at her sute shall cause his daughtrinlaw too giue Like gift and backe from age too youth Callirrhoës children driue When Themis through foresyght had spoke theis woords of prophesie The Gods began among themselues vayne talke too multiplie They mooyld why others myght not giue like gift as well as shée First Pallants daughter grudged that her husband old should bée The gentle Ceres murmurde that her Iasions heare was hore And Vulcane would haue calld ageine the yéeres long spent beforâ— By Ericthonius And the nyce Dame Venus hauing care Of tyme too come the making yong of old Anchises sware So euery God had â—ne too whom he speciall fauor bare And through this partiall loue of theyrs seditiously increast A hurlyburly till the time that Ioue among them preast And sayd So smally doo you stand in awe of mee this howre As thus too rage Thinkes any of you himself too haue such powre As for too alter destinye I tell you Iölay Recouered hath by destinye his yéeres erst past away Callirrhoës children must returne too youth by destiny And not by force of armes or sute susteynd ambitiously And too th'entent with méelder myndes yée may this matter beare Euen I myself by destinyes am rulde which if I were Of power too alter thinke you that our Aeacus should stoope By reason of his féeble age or Radamanth should droope Or Minos who by reason of his age is now disdeynd And liues not in so sure a state as heretoofore he reygnd The woords of Ioue so movd the Gods that none of them complaynd Sith Radamanth and Aeacus were both with age constreynd And Minos also who as long as lusty youth did last Did euen with terror of his name make myghty Realmes agast But then was Minos weakened sore and greatly stood in feare Of Milet one of Deyons race who proudly did him beare Uppon his father Phoebus and the stoutnesse of his youth And though he feard he would rebell yit durst he not his mouth Once open for too banish him his Realme vntill at last Departing of his owne accord Miletus swiftly past The Gotesâ—a and did build a towne vppon the Asian ground Which still reteynes the name of him that first the same did found And there the daughter of the brooke Maeander which dooth go So often backward Cyane a Nymph of body so Excéeding comly as the lyke was seldome heard of as Shée by her fathers wynding bankes for pleasure walking was Was knowen by Milet vnto whom a payre of twinnes shée brought And of the twinnes the names were Caune and Byblis â–ª Byblis ought Too bée a mirror vntoo Maydes in lawfull wyse too loue This Byblis cast a mynd too Caune but not as did behoue A suster too her brotherward When first of all the fyre Did kindle shée perceyvd it not Shée thought in her desyre Of kissing him so oftentymes no sin ne yit no harme In cléeping him about the necke so often with her arme The glittering glosse of godlynesse beguyld her long Her loue Began from euill vntoo woorse by little too remoue Shée commes too sée her brother deckt in braue and trim attyre And for too séeme excéeding fayre it was her whole desyre And if that any fayrer were in all the â—locke than shee It spyghts her In what case she was as yit shée did not sée Her heate excéeded not so farre as for too vow and yit Shée suffred in her troubled brist full many a burning fit Now calleth shée him mayster now shée vtter hateth all The names of kin Shée rather had he should her Byblis call Than suster yit no filthy hope shée durst permit too créepe Within her mynd awake But as shée lay in quiet sléepe Shée oft behild her loue and oft she thought her brother came And lay with her and though a sléepe shée blushed at the same When sléepe was gone she long lay dumb still musing on the syght And said with wauering mynd Now wo is mée most wretched wyght What méenes the image of this dreame that I haue séene this nyght I would not wish it should bée trew Why dreamed I then so Sure hée is fayre although hée should bée iudged by his fo Hée likes mée well â–ª and were he not my brother I myght set My loue on him and he were mée ryght woorthy for too get But vnto this same match the name of kinred is a let Well So that I wake doo still mee vndefyled keepe Let come as often as they will such dreamings in my sléepe In sléepe there is no witnesse by â–ª In sléepe yit may I take As greate a pleasure in a sort as if I were awake Oh Venus and thy tender sonne Sir Cupid what delyght How present féeling of your sport hath touched mée this nyght How lay I as it were resolvd both marée flesh and bone How gladdes it mée too thinke thereon Alas too soone was gone That pleasure and too hastye and despyghtfull was the nyght In breaking of my ioyes O Lord if name of kinred myght Betweene vs twoo remoued mée how well it would agrée O Caune that of thy father I the daughtrinlaw should bee How fitly myght my father haue a sonneinlaw of thée Would God that all saue auncesters were common too vs twayne I would thou were of nobler stocke than I â–ª I cannot sayne O perle of beautie what shée is whom thou shalt make a mother Alas how ill befalles it mée that I could haue none other Than those same parents which are 〈◊〉 So only sâ—ill my brother And not my husband mayst thou bée The thing that hurts vs bothe Is one and that betwéene vs ay inseparably gothe what méene my dreames thâ— what effect haue dreames may there bée Effect in dreames The Gods are farre in better case than wée For why the Gods haue matched with theyr susters as wée sée So Saturne did alie with Ops the néerest of his blood So â—ethys with Oceanus So Ioue did think it good Too take his suster Iuno too his wyfe â–ª What then the Goddes Haue lawes and charters by themselues And sith there is such oddes Betwéene the state of vs and them why should I sample take Our worldly matters equall with the heauenly things too make This wicked loue shall eyther from my hart he driuen away Or if it can not bée expulst God graunt I perish may And that my brother kisse me layd on Herce â—oo go too graue But my desyre the full consent of both of vs dooth craue Admit the matter liketh me He will for
presently haue showde My feruent loue He should haue seene how teares had from mée flowde Hée should haue séene my piteous looke ryght louerlike I could Haue spoken more than intoo those my tables enter would About his necke against his will myne armes I myght haue wound And had he shaakt me of I myght haue séemed for too swound I humbly myght haue kist his feete and knéeling on the ground Besought him for too saue my lyfe All theis I myght haue proued Wherof although no one alone his stomacke could haue moued Yit all toogitâ—er myght haue made his hardened hart relent Perchaunce there was some fault in him that was of message sent He stept vntoo him bluntly I beléeue and did not watch Conuenient tyme in merrie kew at leysure him too catch Theis are the things that hindred mée For certeinly I knowe No sturdy stone nor massy stéele dooth in his stomacke grow He is not made of Adamant He is no Tygers whelp He neuer sucked Lyonesse He myght with little help Bée vanquisht Let vs giue fresh charge vppon him Whyle I liue Without obteyning victorie I will not ouer giue For firstly iâ— it lay in mée my dooings too reâ—oke I should not haue begonne at all But séeing that the stroke Is giuen the second poynt is now too giue the push too win For neyther he although that I myne enterpryse should blin Can euer whyle he liâ—es forget my déede And sith I shrink My loue was lyght or else I meant too trap him he shall think Or at the least he may suppose that this my rage of loue Which broyleth so within my brest procéedes not from aboue By Cupids stroke but of some foule and filthy lust In fyne I cannot but too wickednesse now more and more inclyne By wryghting is my sute commenst my méening dooth appéere And though I cease yit can I not accounted bée for cléere Now that that dooth remayne behynd is much as in respect My fond desyre too satisfy and little in effect Too aggrauate my fault withall Thus much shée sayd And so Unconstant was her wauering mynd still floting too and fro That though it irkt her for too haue attempted yit pocéedes Shée in the self same purpose attempting and excéedes All measure and vnhapy wench shée takes from day too day Repulse vpon repulse and yit shée hath not grace too stay Soone after when her brother saw there was with her no end He fled his countrie forbycause he would not so offend And in a forreine land did buyld a Citie Then men say That Byblis through despayre and thought all wholy did dismay Shée tare her garments from her brest and furiously shée wroong Her hands and béete her armes and like a bedlem with her toong Confessed her vnlawfull loue But béeing of the same Dispoynted shée forsooke her land and hatefull house for shame And followed after flying Caune And as the Froes of Thrace In dooing of the thrée yéere rites of Bacchus in lyke cace The maryed wyues of Babasie saw Byblis howling out Through all theyr champion féeldes The which shée leauing ran about In Caria too the Lelegs who are men in battell slout And so too Lycia Shée had past Crag Limyre and the brooke Of Xanthus and the countrie where Chymaera that same pooke Hath Goatish body Lions head and brist and Dragons tayle When woods did want and Byblis now beginning for too quayle Through wéerynesse in following Caune sank down and sayd her hed Ageinst the ground and kist the leaues that wynd from â—rées had shed The Nymphes of Caria went about in tender armes too take Her often vp They oftentymes perswaded her too stake Her loue And woords of comfort too her deafe card mynd they spake Shée still lay dumbe and with her nayles the gréenish herbes shée hild And moysted with a streame of teares the grasse vpon the féeld The waternymphes so folk report put vnder her a spring Whych neuer myght be dryde and could they giue a greater thing Immediatly euen like as when yée wound a pitchtrée rynd The gum dooth issue out in droppes or as the westerne wynd With gentle blast toogither with the warmth of Sunne vnbynd The yce or as the clammy kynd of cement which they call Bitumen issueth from the ground full fraughted therewithall So Phoebus néece Dame Byblis then consuming with her teares Was turnd too a fountaine which in those same vallyes beares The tytle of the founder still and gusheth freshly out From vnderneath a Sugarchest as if it were a spowt The fame of this same wondrous thing perhappes had filled all The hundred Townes of Candye had a greater not befall More néerer home by Iphys meanes transformed late before For in the shyre of Phestos hard by Gnossus dwelt of yore A yeoman of the meaner sort that Lyctus had too name His stocke was simple and his welth according too the same Howbéet his lyfe so vpryght was as noman could it blame He came vntoo his wyfe then big and ready downe too lye And sayd twoo things I wish thée Tone that when thou out shalt crye Thou mayst dispatch with little payne the other that thou haue A Boay For Gyrles too bring them vp a greater cost doo craue And I haue no abilitie And therefore if thou bring A wench it goes ageinst my heart too thinke vppon the thing Although ageinst my will I charge it streyght destroyed bée The bond of nature néedes must beare in this behalf with mée This sed both wept excéedingly as well the husband who Did giue commaundement as the wyfe that was commaunded too Yit Telethusa earnestly at Lyct her husband lay Although in vayne too haue good hope and of himselfe more stay But he was full determined Within a whyle the day Approched that the frute was rype and shée did looke too lay Her belly euery mynute when at midnyght in her rest Stood by her or did séeme too stand the Goddesse Isis drâ—st And trayned with the solemne pomp of all her rytes Twoo hornes Uppon her forehead lyke the mooâ—e with eares of rypened cornes Stood glistring as the burnisht gold Moreouer shée did weare A rich and stately diadeâ—â—e Attendant on her were The barking bug Anubis and the saint of Bubast and The pydecote Apis and the God that giues too vnderstand By fingar holden too his lippes that men should silence kéepe And Lybian wormes whose stinging dooth enforce continuall sléepe And thou Osyris whom the folk of Aegypt euer séeke And neuer can haue sought inough and Rittlerattles eke Then euen as though that Telethuse had fully béene awake And séene theis things with open eyes thus Isis too her spake My seruant Telethusa cease this care and breake the charge Of Lyct And when Lucina shall haue let thy frute at large Bring vp the same what ere it bée I am a Goddesse who Delyghts in helping folke at néede I hither come too doo Thée good thou shalt not haue a cause hereafter too complayne Of
saffron colourd robe flew Hymen through y e ayre And into Thracia béeing callâ—d by Orphy did repayre He came in dâ—â—de at Orphyes call buâ— neyther did he sing The woordes of that solemnitie nor merry countnance bring Nor any handâ—ell of good lucke His torch with drizling smoke Was dim the same too burne out cleere no stirrrâ—ng could prouoke The end was woorser than the signe For as the â—ryde did rome Abrode accompanyde with a trayne of Nymphes too bring her home A serpent lurking in the grasse did 〈◊〉 her in the ancle Whereof shée dyde incontinent so swift the 〈◊〉 did â—ancle Whom when the Thracian Poet had bewaylâ— sufficiently On earth the Ghostes departed hence he minding for too trie Downe at the gate of Taenarus did go too Limbo lake And thence by gastly folk and soules late buried he did take His iourney too Persephonâ—e and too the king of Ghosts That like a Lordly tyran reignes in those vâ—â—â—easant coasts And playing on his tuned harp he thus began too sound O you the Souereines of the world set vnderneath the ground Too whome wée all what euer thing is made of mortall kynd Repayre if â—y your leaue I now may fréely speake my mynd I come not hither as a spye 〈…〉 Nor yet the foule thrée headed Eurre whose heares all Adders bée Too tye in cheynes The cause of this my vyage is my wyfe Whose foote a Uiper stinging did abridge her youthfull lyfe I would haue borâ—e it paâ—iently and so too doo I straue But Loue surmounâ—ed powre This God is knowen great force too haue Aboue on earth And whether he reigne héere or no I dowâ— But I beleeue hée reignes héere too If faâ—â—e that flies abowt Of former rape report not wrong Loue coupled also yow By theis same places full of feare by this howge Chaos now And by the stâ—lnesse of this waste and emptye Kingdome I Beséech yée of Eurydicee vâ—â—éele the destinye That was so swiftly reeled vp All things too you belong And though wée lingring for a whyle our pageants doo prolong Yit soone or late wée all too one abyding place doo rome Wée haste vs hither all this place becomes our latest home And you doo ouer humaine kynd reigne longest tyme. Now when This woman shall haue liued full her tyme shée shall agen Become your owne The vse of her but for a whyle I craue And if the Destnyes for my wyfe denye mée for too haue Releace I fully am resolvd for euer héere too dwell Reioyce you in the death of both As he this tale did tell And played on his instrument the bloodlesse ghostes shed teares Too tyre on Titius growing hart the gréedy Grype forbeares The shunning water Tantalus endeuereth not too drink And Danaus daughters ceast too fill theyr tubbes that haue no brink Ixions whéele stood still and downe sate Sisyphus vppon His rolling stone Then first of all so fame for truth hath gone The Furies béeing striken there with pitie at his song Did wéepe And neyther Pluto nor his Ladie were so strong And hard of stomacke too withhold his iust petition long They called foorth Eurydicee who was as yit among The newcome Ghosts and limped of her wound Her husband tooke Her with condicion that he should not backe vppon her looke Untill the tyme that hée were past the bounds of Limbo quyght Or else too lose his gyft They tooke a path that steepe vpryght Rose darke and full of foggye mist. And now they were within A kenning of the vpper earth when Orphye did begin Too dowt him least shée followed not and through an eager loue Desyrous for too see her he his eyes did backward moue Immediatly shée slipped backe He reâ—ching out his hands Desyrous too bée caught and for too ketch her grasping stands But nothing saue the slippry aire vnhappy man he caught Shée dyâ—ng now the second tyme complaâ—nd of Orphye naught For why what had shée too complayne onlesse it were of loue Which made her husband backe agen his eyes vppon her moue Her last farewell shée spake so oft that scarce he heard the sound And then reuolted too the place in which he had her found This double dying of his wyfe set Orphye in a stound No lesse than him who at the syght of Plutos dreadfull Hound That on the middle necke of three dooth beare an iron cheyne Was striken in a sodein feare and could it not restreyne Untill the tyme his former shape and nature béeing gone His body quyght was ouergrowne and turned intoo stone Or than the foolish Olenus who on himself did take Anothers fault and giltlesse néedes himself would giltie make Toogither with his wretched wyfe Lethaea for whose pryde They both becomming stones doo stand euen yit on watry Ide He would haue gone too Hell ageine and â—arnest sute did make But Charon would not suffer him too passe the Stygian lake Seuen dayes he sate forlorne vppon the bank and neuer â—ate A bit of bread Care teares and thought and sorrow were his meate And crying out vppon the Gods of Hell as cruell hée Withdrew too lofty Rhodopee and Heme which beaten bée With Northern wynds Thrée tymes the Sunne had passed through the shéere And watry signe of Pisces and had finisht full the yéere And Orphye were it that his ill successe hée still did rew Or that he vowed so too doo did vtterly eschew The womankynd Yit many a one desyrous were too match With him but he thâ—m with repulse did all alike dispatch He also taught the Thracian folke a stâ—wes of Males too make And of the flowring pryme of boayes the pleasure for too take There was a hyll and on the hyll a verie leuell plot Fayre gréene with grasse But as for shade or couert was there not Assoone as that this Poâ—t borne of Goddes in that same place Sate downe and toucht his tuned strings a shadow came a pace There wanted neyther Chaons trée nor yit the trees too which Fresh Phaetons susters turned were nor Béeche nor Holme nor Wich Nor gentle Asp nor wyuelesse Bay nor lofty Chestnuttrée Nor Hazle spalt nor Ash wherof the shafts of speares made bée Nor knotlesse Firre nor chéerfull Plane nor Maple â—lecked grayne Nor Lote nor Sallow which delights by waters too remayne Nor slender twigged Tamarisk â–ª nor Bor ay gréene of hew Nor Figtrées loden with theyr frute of colours browne and blew Nor double colourd Myrtletrées Moreouer thither came The wrything Iuye and the Uyne that runnes vppon a frame Elmes clad with Uynes and Ashes wyld and Pitchtrées blacke as cole And full of trées with goodly frute red stryped Ortyards whole And Palmetrées lythe which in reward of conquest men doo beare And Pynapple with tufted top and harsh and prickling heare The trée too Cybele mother of the Goddes most déere For why Her minion Atys putting of the shape of man did dye And hardened intoo this same trée Among this companée Was present with a pyked top the Cypresse now
a trée Sumtime a boay beloued of the God that with a string Dooth arme his bow and with a string in tune his Uiall bring For hallowed too the Nymphes that in the féeldes of Carthye were There was a goodly myghty Stag whose hornes such bredth did beare As that they shadowed all his head His hornes of gold did shyne And downe his brest hung from his necke a chyne with iewels fyne Amid his fruâ—t with prettie strings a tablet béeing tyde Did wauer as he went and from his cares on eyther syde Hung perles of all one growth about his hollow temples bryght This goodly Spitter béeing voyd of dread as hauing quyght Forgot his natiue fearefulnesse did haunt mens houses and Would suffer folk yea though vnknowen too coy him with theyr hand But more than vntoo all folke else he déerer was too thée O Cyparisse the fayrest Wyght that euer man did sée In Coea Thou too pastures thou too water springs him led Thou wreathedst sundry flowres betwéene his hornes vppon his hed Sumtyme a horsman thou his backe for pleasure didst bestryde And haltring him with silken bit from place too place didst ryde In summer tyme about hygh noone when Titan with his heate Did make the hollow crabbed cleas of Cancer for too sweate Unwéeting Cyparissus with a Dart did strike this Hart Quyght through And when that of the wound he saw he must depart He purposd for too die himself What woords of comfort spake Not Phoebus too him willing him the matter lyght too take And not more sorrow for it than was requisite too make But still the Lad did sygh and sob and as his last request Desyred God he myght thenceforth from moorning neuer rest Anon through wéeping ouermuch his blood was drayned quyght His limbes wert gréene his heare which hung vpoÌ„ his forehead whyght Began too bée a bristled bush and taking by and by A stiffnesse with sharpened top did face the starrie skye The God did sigh and sadly sayd Myselfe shall moorne for thée And thou for others and ay one in moorning thou shalt bée Such wood as this had Orphye drawen about him as among The herdes of beasts and flocks of Birds he sate amyds the throng And when his thumbe sufficiently had tryed euery string And found that though they seuerally in sundry sounds did ring Yit made they all one Harmonie He thus began too sing O Muse my mother frame my song of Ioue for euery thing Is subiect vntoo royall Ioue Of Ioue the heauenly King I oft haue shewed the glorious power I erst in grauer verse The Gyants slayne in Phlaegra féeldes with thunder did reherse But now I néede a méelder style too tell of prettie boyes That were the derlings of the Gods and of vnlawfull ioyes That burned in the brests of Girles who for theyr wicked lust According as they did deserue receyued penance iust The King of Goddes did burne erewhyle in loue of Ganymed The Phrygian and the thing was found which Iupiter that sted Had rather bée than that he was Yit could â—e not betéeme The shape of any other Bird than Aegle for too séeme And so he soring in the ayre with borrowed wings trust vp The Troiane boay who still in heauen euen yit dooth beare his cup And brings him Nectar though against Dame Iunos will it bée And thou Amyclys sonne had not they heauy destinée Abridged thée before thy tyme hadst also placed béene By Phoebus in the firmament How bée it as is séene Thou art eternall so farre forth as may bée For as oft As warrie Piscis giueth place too Aries that the soft And gentle springtyde dooth succéede the winter sharp and stowre So often thou renewest thyself and on the fayre gréene clowre Doost shoote out flowres My father bare a speciall loue too thee Aboue all others So that whyle the God went oft too sée Eurotas and vnwalled Spart he left his noble towne Of Delphos which a mid the world is situate in renowne Without a souereigne â–ª Neyther Harp nor Bow regarded were Unmyndfull of his Godhead he refused not too beare The nets nor for too hold the hounds nor as a peynfull mate Too trauell ouer cragged hilles through which continuall gate His flames augmented more and more And now the sunne did stand Well néere midway betwéene the nyghts last past and next at hand They stript themselues and noynted them with oyle of Olyfe fat And fell to throwing of a Sledge that was ryght howge and flat Fyrst Phoebus peysing it did throw it from him with such strength As that the weyght draue downe the clouds in flying And at length It fell vpon substantiall ground where plainly it did show As well the cunning as the force of him that did it throw Immediatly vpon desyre himself the sport too trie The Spartane lad made haste too take vp vnaduisedly The Sledge before it still did lye But as he was in hand Too catch it it rebounding vp ageinst the hardened land Did hit him full vpon the face The God himselfe did looke As pale as did the lad and vp his swounding body tooke Now culles he him now wypes he from the wound the blood away Anotherwhyle his fading lyfe he stryues with herbes too stay Nought booted Léechcraft Helplesse was the wound And like as one Broosd violet stalkes or Poppie stalkes or Lillies growing on Browne spindles streight they withering droope with heauy heads are Not able for too hold them vp but with their tops doo stare Uppon the ground So Hyacinth in yéelding of his breath Chopt downe his head His necke bereft of strength by meanes of death Was euen a burthen too itself and downe did loosely wrythe On both his shoulders now a tone and now a toother lythe Thou faadst away my Hyacinth defrauded of the pryme Of youth quoth Phoebus and I sée thy wound my heynous cryme Thou art my sorrow and my fault this hand of myâ—e hath wrought Thy death I like a murtherer haue too thy graue thée brought But what haue I offended thow onlesse that too haue playd Or if that too haue loued an offence it may be sayd Would God I render myght my lyfe with and in stead of thée Too which syth fatall destinée denyeth too agrée Both in my mynd and in my mouth thou euermore shalt bée My Uâ—all striken with my hand my songs shall sound of thée And in a newmade flowre thou shalt with letters represent Our syghings â–ª And the tyme shall come ere many yéeres bée spent That in thy flowre a valeant Prince shall ioyne himself with thée And leaâ—e his name vppon the leaues for men too réede and sée Whyle Phoebus thus did prophesie behold the blood of him Which dyde the grasse ceast blood too bée and vp there sprang a trim And goodly flowre more orient than the Purple cloth ingrayne In shape a Lillye were it not that Lillyes doo remayne Of syluer colour whereas theis of purple hew are séene Although
bée The Goddes did graunt her this request the last that 〈◊〉 make The ground did ouergrow hir féete and ancles as shée spake And from her bursten toes went rootes which wrything heere and there Did fasten so the trunk within the ground shée could not steare Her bones did intoo timber turne whereof the marie was The pith and into watrish sappe the blood of her did passe Her armes were turnd too greater boughes her fingars into twig Her skin was hardned into bark And now her belly big The eatching trée had ouergrowen and ouertane her brest And hasted for to win her neck and hyde it with the rest Shée made no taryence nor delay but met the comming trée And shroonk her face within the barke therof Although that shée Toogither with her former shape her senses all did loose Yit wéepeth shée and from her trée warme droppes doo softly woose The which her teares are had in pryce and honour And the Myrrhe That issueth from her gummy bark dooth beare the name of her And shall doo whyle the world dooth last The misbegotten chyld Grew still within the trée and from his mothers womb defyld Sought meanes too bée delyuered Her burthened womb did swell Amid the trée and stretcht her out But woordes wherwith to tell And vtter foorth her gréef did want She had no vse of spéech With which Lucina in her throwes shée might of help beséech Yit like a woman labring was the trée and bowwing downe Gaue ofteÌ„ sighes shed foorth teares as though shée there should drowne Lucina to this wofull trée came gently downe and layd Her hand theron and speaking woordes of ease the midwife playd The trée did cranye and the barke deuiding made away And yéelded out the chyld alyue which cryde and wayld streyght way The waternymphes vppon the soft swéete hearbes the chyld did lay And bathde him with his mothers teares His face was such as spyght Must needes haue praysd For such he was in all condicions right As are the naked Cupids that in tables picturde bée But too th entent he may with them in euery poynt agrée Let eyther him bée furnisshed with wings and quiuer light Or from the Cupids take theyr wings and bowes and arrowes quight Away slippes fléeting tyme vnspyde and mocks vs too our face And nothing may compare with yeares in swiftnesse of theyr pace â–ª That wretcheâ—◠〈◊〉 whom wickedly his graundfather begate And whom his cursed suster bare who hidden was alate Within the trée and lately borne became immediatly The beawtyfullyst babe on whom man euer set his eye Anon a stripling hée became and by and by a man And euery day more beawtâ—full than other he becam That in the end Dame Venus fell in loue with him wherby He did reuenge the outrage of his mothers villanye For as the armed Cupid kist Dame Venus vnbeware An arrow sticking out did raze hir brest vppon the bare The Goddesse being wounded â—hrust away her sonne The wound Apyeered not too bée so déepe as afterward was found It did deceyue her at the first The beawty of the lad Inflaamd her Too Cythera I le no mynd at all shée had Nor vntoo Paphos where the sea beats round about the shore Nor 〈◊〉 Gnyde nor Amathus that hath of metalls store Yea â—uen from heauen shee did absteyne Shée lovd Adonis more Than heauen â–ª To him shée clinged ay and bare him companye And in the shadowe woont shée was too rest continually And for too set her beawtye out most séemely too the eye By trimly decking of her self Through â—ushy grounds and groues And ouer Hâ—lls and Dales and Lawnâ—s and stony rocks shée roues Bare knéed with garment tucked vp according too the woont Of Phebe and shée chéerd the hounds with hallowing like a hunt Pursewing game of hurtlesse sort as Hares made lowe before Or stagges with loftye heades or bucks But with the sturdy Boare And raâ—ening woolf and Bearewhelpes armd with vgly pawes and éeke The cruell Lyons which delyght in blood and slaughter séeke Shée meddled not And of theis same shée warned also thée Adonis for too shoonne them if thou wooldst haue warned bée Bée bold on cowards Venus sayd for whoso dooth aduaunce Himselfe against the bold may hap too méete with sum mischaunce Wherfore I pray thée my swéete boy forbeare too bold too bée For feare thy rashnesse hurt thy self and woork the wo of mée Encounter not the kynd of beastes whom nature armed hath For dowt thou buy thy prayse too déere procuring thée sum scath Thy tender youth thy beawty bryght thy countnance fayre and braue Although they had the force too win the hart of Venus haue No powre ageinst the Lyons nor ageinst the brist led swyne The eyes and harts of sauage beasts doo nought too theis mâ—lyne The cruell Boares beare thunder in theyr hooked tushes and Excéeding force and féercenesse is in Lyons too withstand And sure I hate them at my hart Too him demaunding why A monstrous chaunce ê™ Venus I will tell thée by and by That hapned for a fault But now vnwoonted toyle hath made Mée wéerye and beholde in tyme this Poplar with his shade Allureth and the ground for cowch dooth serue too rest vppon I prey thée let vs rest héere They sate them downe anon And lying vpward with her head vppon his lappe along Shée thus began and in her tale shée bussed him among Perchaunce thou hast or this tyme hard of one that ouercame The swiftest men in footemanshippe no fable was that fame She ouercame them out of dowt And hard it is to tell Thée whither she did in footemanshippe or beawty more excell Uppon a season as she askt of Phebus what he was That should her husband bée he sayd For husband doo not passe O Atalanta thou at all of husband hast no néede Shonne husbanding But yit thou canst not shonne it I thée réede Alyue thou shalt not be thy self Shée being sore afrayd Of this Apollos Oracle did kéepe herself a mayd And liued in the shady woodes When wooers to her came And were of her importunate shée draue away the same With boystous woordes and with sore condition of the game I am not too be had ê™ shée onlesse yée able bâ—e In ronning for too vanquish mée Yée must contend with mée In footemanshippe And who so winnes the wager I agrée Too bée his wife But if that he bée found too slowe then hee Shall lose his head This of your game the verrye law shall bée Shée was in déede vnmercifull But such is beawties powre That though the sayd condition were extreme and ouer sowre Yit many suters were so rash too vndertake the same Hippomenes as a looker on of this vncurteous game Sate by and sayd Is any man so mad to séeke a wyfe With such apparant perill and the hazard of his lyfe And vtterly he did condemne the yongmens loue But when He saw her face and bodye bare for why the Lady then Did strippe her
though not in the selfsame coffin yit in verse Although in tumb the bones of vs toogither may not couch Yit in a grauen Epitaph my name thy name shall touch Her sorrow would not suffer her too vtter any more Shée sobd and syght at euery woord vntill her hart was sore The morning came and out shée went ryght pensif too the shor◠Too that same place in which shée tooke her leaue of him before Whyle there shée musing stood and sayd he kissed mée euen héere Héere weyëd hée his Anchors vp héere loosd he from the péere And whyle shée calld too mynd the things there marked with her eyes In looking on the open sea a great way of shée spyes A certeine thing much like a corse come houering on the waue At first shée dowted what it was As tyde it néerer draue Although it were a good way of yit did it plainely showe Too bée a corce And though that whose it was shée did not knowe Yit forbycause it séemd a wrecke her hart therat did ryse And as it had sum straunger béene with water in her eyes Shée sayd alas poore wretch who ere thou art alas for her That is thy wyfe if any bée And as the waues did stirre The body floted néerer land the which the more that shée Behilld the lesse began in her of stayed wit too bée Anon it did arriue on shore Then plainely shée did sée And know it that it was her feere Shée shréeked it is hée And therewithall her face her heare and garments shée did teare And vntoo Ceyx stretching out her trembling handes with feare Sayd cumst thou home in such a plyght too mée O husband deere Returnst in such a wretched plyght There was a certeine péere That buylded was by hand of waues the first assaults too breake And at the hauons mouth too cause the tyde too enter weake Shée lept theron A wonder sure it was shée could doo so Shée flew and with her newgrowen winges did beate the ayre as tho And on the waues a wretched bird shee whisked too and fro And with her crocking neb then growen too slender bill and round like one that wayld and moorned still shée made a moaning sound Howbéet as soone as she did touch his dumb and bloodlesse flesh And had embraast his loued limbes with winges made new and fresh And with her hardened neb had kist him coldly though in vayne Folk dowt of Ceyx féeling it too rayse his head did strayne Or whither that the waues did lift it vp But surely hée It felt and through compassion of the Goddes both hée and shée Were turnd too birdes The loue of them éeke subiect too their fate Continued after neyther did the faythfull bond abate Of wedlocke in them béeing birdes but standes in stedfast state They treade and lay and bring foorth yoong and now the Alcyon sitts In wintertime vppon her nest which on the water flitts A seuennyght During all which tyme the sea is calme and still And euery man may too and fro sayle saufly at his will For Aeölus for his ofsprings sake the windes at home dooth kéepe And will not let them go abroade for troubling of the déepe An auncient father séeing them about the brode sea fly Did prayse theyr loue for lasting too the end so stedfastly His neyghbour or the selfsame man made answer such is chaunce Euen this fowle also whom thou séest vppon the surges glaunce With spindle shanks he poynted too the wydegoawld Cormorant Before that he became a bird of royall race might vaunt And if thou couet lineally his pedegrée too séeke His Auncetors were Ilus and Assaracus and éeke Fayre Ganymed who Iupiter did rauish as his ioy Laomedon and Priamus the last that reygnd in Troy Stout Hectors brother was this man And had he not in pryme Of lusty youth béene tane away his déedes perchaunce in tyme Had purchaast him as great a name as Hector though that hée Of Dymants daughter Hecuba had fortune borne too bée For Acsacus reported is begotten to haue béene By scape in shady Ida on a mayden fayre and shéene Whose name was Alyxothoe a poore mans daughter that With spade and mattocke for himselfe and his a liuing gat This Aesacus the Citie hates and gorgious Court dooth shonne And in the vnambicious féeldes and woods alone dooth wonne He séeldoom haunts the towne of Troy yit hauing not a rude And blockish wit nor such a hart as could not be subdewd By loue he spyde Eperie whom oft he had pursewd Through all the woodes then sitting on her father Cebrius brim A drying of her heare ageinst the sonne which hanged trim Uppon her back Assoone as that the Nymph was ware of him She fled as when the grisild woolf dooth scare the fearefull hynd Or when the Fawcon farre from brookes a Mallard happes too fynd The Troiane knyght ronnes after her and béeing swift through loue Purseweth her whom feare dooth force apace her feete to moue Behold an Adder lurking in the grasse there as shee fled Did byght her foote with hooked tooth and in her bodye spred His venim Shée did cease her flyght and soodein fell downe dead Her louer being past his witts her carkesse did embrace And cryde alas it irketh mée it irkes mée of this chace But this I feard not neyther was the gaine of that I willd Woorth halfe so much Now twoo of vs thée wretched soule haue killd The wound was giuen thée by the snake the cause was giuen by mée The wickedder of both am I who for too comfort thée Will make thée satisfaction with my death With that at last Downe from a rocke the which the waues had vndermynde he cast Himself intoo the sea Howbéet dame Tethys pitying him Receyud him softly and as he vppon the waues did swim Shée couered him with fethers And though fayne he would haue dyde Shée would not let him Wroth was he that death was him denyde And that his soule compelld should bee ageinst his will too byde Within his wretched body still from which it would depart And that he was constreynd too liue perforce ageinst his hart And as he on his shoulders now had newly taken wings He mounted vp and downe vppon the sea his boddye dings His fethers would not let him sinke In rage he dyueth downe And despratly he striues himself continually too drowne His loue did make him leane long leggs long neck dooth still remayne His head is from his shoulders farre of Sea he is most fayne And for he vnderneath the waues delyghteth for too driue A name according therevntoo the Latins doo him giue Finis vndecimi Libri ¶ THE XII BOOKE OF Ouids Metamorphosis RIng Priam béeing ignorant that Aesacus his sonne Did liue in shape of bird did moorne and at a tumb wheron His name was written Hector and his brother solemly Did kéepe an Obit Paris was not at this obsequye Within a whyle with rauisht wyfe he brought a lasting warre Home vnto Troy
that goodly personage and louely face of thyne The which compelleth mée that am a Goddesse too enclyne Too make this humble sute too thée that art a mortall wyght Asswage my flame and make this sonne whoo by his heauenly syght Foresées all things thy fathrinlawe and hardly hold not scorne Of Circe whoo by long discent of Titans stocke am borne Thus much sayd Circe He ryght féerce reiecting her request And her sayd whooso ere thou art go set thy hart at rest I am not thyne nor will not bée Another holdes my hart And long God graunt shée may it hold that I may neuer start Too leawdnesse of a forreine lust from bond of lawfull bed As long as Ianus daughter my swéete singer is not dead Dame Circe hauing oft renewd her sute in vayne beefore Sayd dearely shalt thou by thy scorne For neuer shalt thou more Returne too Singer Thou shalt lerne by proof what one can doo That is prouoked and in loue yea and a woman too But Circe is bothe stird too wrath and also tane in loue Yea and a woman Twyce her faâ—e too westward she did moue And twyce too Eastward Thryce shée layd her rod vppon his head And therwithall thrée charmes shée cast Away king Picus fled And woondring that he fled more swift than â—arst he had béene woont He saw the fethers on his skin and at the sodein brunt Became a bird that haunts the wooddes wherat he taking spyght With angrye bill did iob vppon hard Okes with all his myght And in his moode made hollowe holes vppoâ— theyr boughes The hew Of Crimzen which was in his cloke vppon his fethers grew The gold that was a clasp and did his cloke toogither hold Is fethers and about his necke goes circlewyse like gold His seruants luring in that whyle oft ouer all the ground In vayne and fynding no where of theyr kyng no incling found Dame Circe For by that tyme shée had made the ayâ—r shéere And suffred both the sonne and wyndes the mistye steames too cléere And charging her with matter trew demaunded for theyr kyng And offring force began theyr darts and Iauelings for too fling Shée sprincling noysom venim streyght and iewce of poysoning myght Did call toogither Eribus and Chaos and the nyght And all the féendes of darknesse and with howling out along Made prayers vntoo Hecate Scarce ended was her song But that a woondrous thing too tell the woodes lept from theyr place The ground did grone the trées néere hand lookt pale in all the chace The grasse besprent with droppes of blood lookt red the stones did séemâ— Too roare and bellow hoarce and doggs too howle and raze extréeme And all the ground too crawle w t snakes blacke scaald gastly spryghts Fly whisking vp and downe The folke were flayghted at theis syghts And as they woondring stood amaazd shée strokte her witching wand Uppon theyr faces At the touche wherof there out of hand Came woondrous shapes of sauage beastes vppon them all Not one Reteyned still his natiue shape The setting sonne was gone Beyond the vtmost câ—ast of Spaine and Singer longd in vayne Too sée her husband Bothe her folke and people ran agayne Through all the woodes And euer as they went they sent theyr eyes Before them for too fynd him out but no man him espyes Then Singer thought it not ynough too wéepe and teare her heare And beat herself all which shée did Shée gate abrode and there Raundgd ouer all the broade wyld féelds like one besyds her witts Six nyghts and full as many dayes as fortune led by fitts She strayd mée ouer hilles and dales and neuer tasted rest Nor meate nor drink of all the whyle The seuenth day sore opprest And tyred bothe with trauell and with sorrowe downe shée sate Uppon cold Tybers bank and there with teares in moorning rate Shée warbling on her gréef in tune not shirle nor ouer hye Did make her moane as dooth the swan whoo ready for too dye Dooth sing his buriall song before Her marée molt at last With moorning and shée pynde away and finally shée past Too lither ayre But yit her fame remayned in the place For why the auncient husbandmen according too the cace Did name it Singer of the nymph that dyed in the same Of such as these are many things that yéere by fortune came Bothe too my héering and my sight Wée weâ—ing resty then And sluggs by discontinuance were commaunded yit agen Too go a boord and hoyse vp sayles And Circe told vs all That long and dowtfull passage and rowgh seas should vs befall I promis thée those woordes of hers mée throughly made afrayd And therfore hither I mée gate and héere I haue mée stayd This was the end of Macars tale And ere long tyme was gone Aenaeas Nurce was buryed in a tumb of marble stone And this short verse was set theron In this same verry place My Nurcechyld whom the world dooth know too bée a chyld of grace Deliuering mée Caâ—eta quicke from burning by the Grayes Hathe burnt mée dead with such a fyre as iustly winnes him prayse Theyr Cables from the grassye strond were loozde and by and by From Circes slaunderous house and from her treasons â—arre they fly And making too the thickgrowen groues where through the yellow dust The shady Tyber intoo sea his guâ—â—hing streame dooth thrust Aenaeas got the Realme of king Latinus Favvnus sonne And éeke his daughter whom in fâ—yght by force of armes he wonne He enterprysed warre ageinst a Nation féerce and strong And Turne was wrothe for holding of his wyfe away by wrong Ageinst the Shyre of Latium met all Tyrrhene and long With busys carâ— hawlt victorie by force of armes was sought Eche partie too augment theyr force by forreine succour wrought And many sent the Rutills help and many came too ayd The Troianes neyther was the good Aenaeas ill apayd Of going too Euanders towne But Venulus in vayne Too outcast Diomeds citie went his succour too obteine This Diomed vnder Davvnus king of Calabrye did found A myghtye towne and with his wyfe in dowrye hild the ground Now when from Turnus Venulus his message had declaard Desyring help Th' Actolian knyght sayd none could well bee spaard And in excuce he told him how he neyther durst be bold Too prest his fathers folk too warre of whom he had no hold Nor any of his countrymen had left as then alyue Too arme And least yée think ê™ hée I doo a shift contryue Although by vppening of the thing my bitter greef reuyue I will abyde too make a new rehersall After that The Gréekes had burned Troy and on the ground had layd it flat And that the Prince of Narix by his rauishing the mayd In Pallas temple on vs all the pennance had displayd Which he himself deserud alone Then scattred héere and there And harryed ouer all the seas wée Gréekes were fayne too beare Nyght thunder tempest wrath of heauen and sea and
the Elme had nat The trée too leane vntoo it should vppon the ground ly flat Yit art not thou admonisht by example of this trée Too take a husband neyther doost thou passe too maryed bée But would too God thou wouldest Sure Quéene Helen neuer had Mo â—uters nor the Lady that did cause the battell mad Betwéene the halfbrute Centavvres and the Lapythes nor the wyfe Of bold Vlysses whoo was éeke ay fearefull of his lyfe Than thou shouldst haue For thousands now eueÌ„ now most chéefly wheÌ„ Thou séemest suters too abhorre desyre thée both of men And Goddes and halfgoddes yea and all the fayryes that doo dwell In Albane hilles But if thou wilt bée wyse and myndest well Too match thy self and wilt giue eare too this old woman héere Too whom thou more than too them all art trust mée léef and déere And more than thou thyself beleevst the common matches flée And choose Vertumnus too thy make And take thou mée too bée His pledge For more he too himself not knowen is than too mée He roues not like a ronneagate through all the world abrode This countrye héerabout the which is large is his abode He dooth not like a nomber of theis common wooers cast His loue to euery one he sées Thou art the first and last That euer he set mynd vppon Alonly vntoo thée Hée vowes himself as long as lyfe dooth last Moreouer hée Is youthfull and with beawtye shéene endewd by natures gift And aptly intoo any shape his persone he can shift Thou canst not bid him bée the thing though al things y u shouldst name But that he fitly and with ease will streyght becomme the same Besydes all this in all one thing bothe twayne of you delyght And of the frutes that you loue best the firstlings are his ryght And gladly he receyues thy gifts But neyther couets hée Thy Apples Plommes nor other frutes new gathered from the trée Nor yit the herbes of pleasant sent that in thy gardynes bée Nor any other kynd of thing in all the world but thée Haue mercy on his feruent loue and think himself too craue Héere present by the mouth of mée the thing that he would haue And feare the God that may reuenge as Venus whoo dooth hate Hard harted folkes and Rhamnuse whoo dooth eyther soone or late Expresse her wrath with myndfull wreake And too th entent thou may The more beware of many things which tyme by long delay Hathe taught mée I will shewe thée one which ouer all the land Of Cyprus blazed is abrode which being ryghtly skand May easly bow thy hardned hart and make it for too yild One Iphis borne of lowe degrée by fortune had behild The Ladye Anaxarete descended of the race Of Tevvcer and in vewwing her the fyre of loue a pace Did spred it self through all his bones With which he stryuing long When reason could not conquer rage bycause it was too strong Came humbly too the Ladyes house and one whyle laying ope His wretched loue before her nurce besought her by the hope Of Lady Anaxarete her nurcechylds good successe Shée would not bee ageinst him in that cace of his distresse Anoother whyle entreating fayre sum fréend of hers he prayd Him earnestly with carefull voyce of furthrance and of ayd Oftymes he did preferre his sute by gentle letters sent Oft garlonds moysted with the deawe of teares that from him went He hanged on her postes Oft tymes his tender sydes he layd Ageinst the threshold hard and oft in sadnesse did vpbrayd The locke with much vngentlenesse The Lady crueller Than are the rysing narrowe seas or falling kiddes and farre More hard than stéele of Noricum and than the stonny rocke That in the quarrye hath his roote did him despyse and mocke Besyde her dooings mercylesse of statelynesse and spyght Shée adding prowd skornefull woordes defrauds the wretched wyght Of verry hope But Iphis now vnable any more Too beare the torment of his greef still standing there before Her gate spake theis his latest woordes well Anaxarete Thou hast the vpper hand Hencefoorth thou shalt not néede too bée Agréeued any more with mée Go tryumph hardely Go vaunt thy self with ioy go sing the song of victorye Go put a crowne of glittring bay vppon thy cruell head For why thou hast the vpper hand and I am gladly dead Well stéely harted well reioyce Compeld yit shalt thou bée Of sumwhat in mée for too haue a lyking Thou shalt sée A poynt wherein thou mayst mee déeme most thankfull vntoo thée And in the end thou shalt confesse the great desert of mée But yit remember that as long as lyfe in mée dooth last The care of thée shall neuer from this hart of myne be cast For bothe the lyfe that I doo liue in hope of thée and toother Which nature giueth shall haue end and passe away toogither The tydings neyther of my death shall come too thée fame Myself I doo assure thée will bée bringer of the same Myself I say will present bée that those same cruell eyen Of thyne may féede themselues vppon this linelesse corce of myne But yit O Goddes if you behold mennes déedes remember mée My toong will seâ—ue too pray no more and cause that I may bée Longtyme heerafter spoken of and length the lyfe by fame The which yée haue abridgd in yéeres In saying of this same He lifted vp his watrye eyes and armes that wexed wan Too those same stulpes which oft he had with garlondes deckt ere than And fastning on the toppe therof a halter thus did say Thou cruell and vngodly wyght theis are the wreathes that may Most pleasure thée And with that woord he thrusting in his head Euen then did turne him towards her as good as being dead And wretchedly did totter on the poste with strangled throte The wicket which his féerefull féete in sprawling maynely smote Did make a noyse and flying ope bewrayd his dooing playne The seruants shreekt and lifting vp his bodye but in vayne Conueyd him too his moothers house his father erst was slayne His moother layd him in her lappe and cléeping in her armes Her sonnes cold bodye after that shée had bewayld her harmes With woordes and dooings mootherlyke the corce with moorning chéere Too buryall sadly through the towne was borne vppon a beere The house of Anaxarete by chaunce was néere the way By which this piteous pomp did passe and of the doolefull lay The sound came too the eares of her whom God alreadye gan Too strike â–ª Yit let vs sée ê™ shée the buryall of this man And vp the hygh wyde windowde house in saying so shée ran Scarce had shée well on Iphis lookt that on the béere did lye But that her eyes wert stark and from her limbes the blood gan flye In stead therof came palenesse in And as shée backeward was In mynd too go her féete stacke fast and could not stirre And as Shée would haue cast her countnance backe shée
In gobbits they them rent whereof were some in Pipkins boyld And other some on hissing spits against the fire were broyld And with the gellied bloud of him was all the chamber foyld To this same banket Progne bade hir husband knowing nought Nor nought mistrusting of the harme and lewdnesse she had wrought And feyning a solemnitie according to the guise Of Athens at the which there might be none in any wise Besides hir husband and hir selfe she banisht from the same Hir householde folke and soiourners and such as guestwise came King Tereus sâ—tting in the throne of his forefathers fed And swallowed downe the selfe same flesh that of his bowels bred And he so blinded was his heart fetch Itys hither sed No lenger hir most cruell ioy dissemble could the Quéene But of hir murther coueting the messenger to béene She said the thing thou askest for thou hast within About He looked round and asked where To put him out of dout As he was yet demaunding where and calling for him out Lept Philomele with scattred haire aflaight like one that fled Had from some fray where slaughter was and threw the bloudy head Of Itys in his fathers face And neuer more was shée Desirous to haue had hir speache that able she might be Hir inward ioy with worthie wordes to witnesse franke and frée The tyrant with a hideous noyse away the table shoues And reeres y â— fiends from Hell One while with yauning mouth he proues To perbrake vp his meate againe and cast his bowels out Another while with wringing handes he wéeping goes about And of his sonne he termes himselfe the wretched graue Anon With naked sword and furious heart he followeth fierce vpon Pandions daughters He that had bene present would haue déemdâ— Their bodies to haue houered vp with fethers As they séemde So houered they with wings in déede Of whome the one away To woodward flies the other still about the house doth stay And of their murther from their brestes not yet the token goth For euen still yet are stainde with bloud the fethers of them both And he through sorrow and desire of vengeance waxing wight Became a Bird vpon whose top a tuft of feathers light In likenesse of a Helmets crest doth trimly stand vpright In stead of his long sword his bill shootes out a passing space A Lapwing named is this Bird all armed séemes his face The sorrow of this great mischaunce did stop Pandions breath Before his time and long ere age determinde had his death Erecthey reigning after him the gouernment did take A Prince of such a worthinesse as no man well can make Resolution if he more in armes or iustice did excell Foure sonnes and daughters foure he had Of which a couple well Did eche in beautie other match The one of these whose name Was Procris vnto Cephalus King Aeolus sonne became A happie wife The Thracians and King Tereus were a let To Boreas so that long it was before the God could get His dearbeloued Orithy a while trifling he did stand With faire entreatance rather than did vse the force of hand But when he saw he no reliefe by gentle meanes could finde Then turning vnto boystous wrath which vnto that same winde Is too familiar and too much accustomed by kinde He said I serued am but well for why laid I a part My proper weapons fiercenesse force and ire and cruell hart And fell to fauning like a foole which did me but disgrace For me is violence meete Through this the pestred cloudes I chace Through this I tosse the Seas Through this I turne vp knottie Okes And harden Snow and beate the ground in hayle with sturdie strokes When I my brothers chaunce to get in open Ayre and Skie For that is my fielde in the which my maisteries I doe trie I charge vpon them with such brunt that of our méeting smart The Heauen betwéene vs soundes from the hollow Cloudes doth start Enforced fire And when I come in holes of hollow ground And fiersly in those emptie caues doe rouse my backe vp round I trouble euen the ghostes and make the verie world to quake This helpe in wooing of my wife to spéede I should haue take Erecthey should not haue bene prayde my Fatherinlaw to be He should haue bene compelde thereto by stout extremitie In speaking these or other wordes as sturdie Boreas gan To flaske his wings With wauing of the which he raysed than So great a gale that all the earth was blasted therewithall And troubled was the maine brode Sea And as he traylde his pall Bedusted ouer highest tops of things he swept the ground And hauing now in smokie cloudes himselfe enclosed round Betwéene his duskie wings he caught Orithya straught for feare And like a louer verie soft and easly did hir beare And as he flew the flames of loue enkindled more and more By meanes of stirring Neither did he stay his flight before He came within the land and towne of Cicons with his pray And there soone after being made his wife she hapt to lay Hir belly and a paire of boyes she at a burthen brings Who else in all resembled full their mother saue in wings The which they of their father tooke Howbeit by report They were not borne with wings vpon their bodies in this sort While Calais and Zetes had no beard vpon their chin They both were callow But assoone as haire did once begin In likenesse of a yellow Downe vpon their cheekes to sprout Then euen as comes to passe in Birdes the feathers budded out Togither on their pinyons too and spreaded round about On both their sides And finally when childhod once was spent And youth come on togither they with other Minyes went To Colchos in the Galley that was first deuisde in Greece Upon a sea as then vnknowen to fetch the golden fléece Finis sexti Libri ¶ THE SEVENTH BOOKE of Ouids Metamorphosis ANd now in ship of Pagasa the Mynies cut the seas And leading vnder endlesse night his age in great disease Of scarcitie was Phiney séene and Boreas sonnes had chaste Away the Maidenfaced foules that did his victels waste And after suffring many things in noble Iasons band In muddie Phasis gushing streame at last they went a land There while they going to the King demaund the golden fléece Brought thither certaine yeares before by Phryxus out of Greece And of their dreadfull labors wait an answere to receiue Aeëtas daughter in hir heart doth mightie flames conceyue And after strugling verie long when reason could not win The vpper hand of rage she thus did in hir selfe begin In vaine Medea doste thou striue some God what ere he is Against thée bendes his force for what a wondrous thing is this Is any thing like this which men doe terme by name of Loue For why should I my fathers hestes estéeme so hard aboue All measure sure in very déede they are too hard and sore Why feare I least