So soon as Night had with her pallid hue
Defaced the beauty of the shining sky,
And reft from men the world's desired view,
She with het Nurse adown to sleep did lie;
But sleep full far away from her did fly:
Instead thereof, sad sighs and sorrows deep
Kept watch and ward about her warily,

That nought she did but wail, and often steep

Her dainty couch with tears which closely she did weep.
Book III. Canto II.

MARINELL WOUNDED BY THE PRECIOUS SHORE.

Like as the sacred Ox that careless stands,
With gilden horns and flowery garlands crowned,
Proud of his dying honour and dear bands,1
Whiles the altars fume with frankincense around,
All suddenly, with mortal stroke astound,
Doth groveling fall, and with his streaming gore
Distains the pillars and the holy ground,
And the fair flowers that deckèd him afore ;-
So fell proud Marinell upon the Precious Shore.

The Martial Maid2 stayed not him to lament,
But forward rode, and kept her ready way
Along the strand; which, as she overwent,
She saw bestrowèd all with rich array
Of pearls and precious stones of great assay,3
And all the gravel mixt with golden ore:
Whereat she wondered much, but would not stay
For gold, or pearls, or precious stones, an hour,
But them despisèd all; for all was in her power..

Whiles thus he lay in deadly stonishment,
Tidings hereof came to his mother's ear:
His mother was the black-browed Cymoënt,
The daughter of great Nereus, which did bear
This warlike son unto an earthly peer,*

2 Britomart (see p. 252), who in the armour of Angela, a Saxon Queen, with her Nurse, also armed, for her Squire, has set out to Faeryland to seek for Arthegall, the Knight of her vision. Her first warlike encounter is with Marinell, the proud son of a sea-nymph, who holds possession of "the Precious Shore."

3 Worth.

4 Mate, equal.

There he this Knight of her begot, whom born,
She, of his father,1 Marinell did name;
And in a rocky cave, as wight forlorn,2
Long time she fostered up, till he became
A mighty man at arms, and mickle fame

Did get through great adventures by him done :
For never man he suffered by that same

Rich Strond3 to travel, whereas he did won,+

But that he must do battle with the Sea-nymph's Son. ...

And, for his more assurance, she inquired
One day of Proteus, by his mighty spell
(For Proteus was with prophecy inspired),
Her dear son's destiny to her to tell,
And the sad end of her sweet Marinell :
Who, through foresight of his eternal skill,
Bade her from womankind to keep him well,
For of a woman he should have much ill;

A virgin strange and stout him should dismay or kill. . .

Too true the famous Marinell it found,
Who, through late trial, on that wealthy Strond
Inglorious now lies in senseless swound,5
Through heavy stroke of Britomartis hond."
Which when his mother dear did understond,
And heavy tidings heard, whereas she played
Amongst her watery sisters by a pond,
Gathering sweet daffadillies, to have made

Gay garlands from the Sun their foreheads fair to shade,

Eftsoons both flowers and garlands far away
She flung, and her fair dewy locks yrent;"
To sorrow huge she turned her former play,
And gamesome mirth to grievous dreariment :
She threw herself down on the continent,8
Ne word did speak, but lay as in a swoun,9
Whiles all her sisters did for her lament
With yelling outcries, and with shrieking soun;
And every one did tear her garland from her crown.

Soon as she up out of her deadly fit

Arose, she bade her chariot to be brought;
And all her sisters that with her did sit

Bade eke at once their chariots to be sought :

10

3 The Precious Shore.
6 Britomart's hand. 7 Rent.
10 Sound.

1

Tho,1 full of bitter grief and pensive thought,
She to her waggon clomb; clomb all the rest,
And forth together went with sorrow fraught.
The waves, obedient to their behest,

Them yielded ready passage, and their rage surceast.2

Great Neptune stood amazed at their sight,
Whiles on his broad round back they softly slid,
And eke himself mourned at their mournful plight,
Yet wist not what their wailing meant; yet did,
For great compassion of their sorrow, bid
His mighty waters to them buxom 3 be:
Eftsoons the roaring billows still abid,*
And all the griesly Monsters of the Sea

6

Stood gaping at their gate, and wondered them to see.

A team of Dolphins rangèd in array
Drew the smooth chariot of sad Cymoënt :
They were all taught by Triton to obey
To the long reins at her commandèment :
As swift as swallows on the waves they went,
That their broad flaggy fins no foam did rear
Ne bubbling roundel they behind them sent.
The rest of other fishes drawen were,

Which with their finny oars the swelling sea did shear.

Soon as they been arrived upon the brim

Of the Rich Strond, their chariots they forlore,7
And let their teamèd fishes softly swim

Along the margent of the foamy shore,

Lest they their fins should bruise, and surbate & sore
Their tender feet upon the stony ground:
And, coming to the place where all in gore
And cruddy blood enwallowed they found
The luckless Marinell lying in deadly swound,

His mother swooned thrice, and the third time
Could scarce recovered be out of her pain:
Had she not been devoid of mortal slime,9
She should not then have been re-lived 10 again;
But, soon as life recovered had the reign,
She made so piteous moan and dear wayment, 11
That the hard rocks could scarce from tears refrain;

And all her sister Nymphs with one consent
Supplied her sobbing breaches1 with sad complement.

"Dear image of my self," she said, "that is
The wretched son of wretched mother born,
Is this thine high advancement? O! is this
The immortal name with which thee, yet unborn,
Thy grandsire Nereus promised to adorn?
Now liest thou of life and honour reft;
Now liest thou a lump of earth forlorn ;
Ne of thy late life memory is left,

Ne can thy irrevocable destiny be weft.2...

Thus when they all had sorrowed their fill,
They softly gan to search his griesly3 wound:
And, that they might him handle more at will,
They him disarmed; and, spreading on the ground
Their watchet mantles fringed with silver round,
They softly wiped away the gealy blood

From the orifice; which having well upbound,
They poured in soverain balm and nectar good,
Good both for earthly medicine and for heavenly food....

Tho, up him taking in their tender hands,
They easily unto her chariot bear :
Her team at her commandment quiet stands,
Whiles they the corse into her waggon rear,
And strow with flowers the lamentable bier.
Then all the rest into their coaches clim,"
And through the brackish waves their passage
Upon great Neptune's neck they softly swim,
And to her watery chamber swiftly carry him.

Deep in the bottom of the sea her bower Is built of hollow billows heaped high,

shear ;

Like to thick clouds that threat a stormy shower,
And vauted all within, like to the Sky

In which the Gods do dwell eternally;

There they him laid in easy couch well dight,9
And sent in haste for Tryphon, to apply

Salves to his wounds, and medicines of might;

For Tryphon of sea gods the soverain leech is hight.10

The whiles the Nymphs sit all about him round,
Lamenting his mishap and heavy plight;
And oft his mother, viewing his wide wound,
Cursed the hand that did so deadly smite
Her dearest son, her dearest heart's delight:
But none of all those curses overtook

The warlike Maid, the ensample of that might;
But fairly well she thrived, and well did brook

Her noble deeds, ne her right course for ought forsook.
Book III. Canto IV.

1

FLORIMEL IN THE WITCH'S HUT.

So long she travelled, till at length she came
To an hill-side, which did to her bewray1

A little valley subject to the same,

All covered with thick woods that quite it overcame.

Through the tops of the high trees she did descry
A little smoke, whose vapour thin and light
Reeking aloft uprolled to the sky :

Which cheerful sign did send unto her sight
That in the same did won2 some living wight.3
Eftsoons her steps she thereunto applied,
And came at last in weary wretched plight
Unto the place to which her hope did guide,
To find some refuge there, and rest her weary side.

There in a gloomy hollow glen she found
A little cottage, built of sticks and reeds
In homely wise, and walled with sods around;
In which a Witch did dwell, in loathly weeds
And wilful want, all careless of her needs;
So choosing solitary to abide

Far from all neighbours, that her devilish deeds
And hellish arts from people she might hide,
And hurt far off unknown whom-ever she envied.

The Damsel there arriving entered in ;
Where sitting on the floor the Hag she found
Busy (as seemed) about some wicked gin :4
Who, soon as she beheld that sudden stound,5
Lightly upstarted from the dusty ground,
And with fell look and hollow deadly gaze
Stared on her a while, as one astound,"
1 Betray.
2 Dwell. 3 Being. 4 Snare. 5 Disturbance.

6 Astounded.