The Faerie Queene (5 page)

And strooke at her with more then manly force,

That from her body full of filthie sin

He raft her hatefull head without remorse;

A streame of cole black bloud forth gushed from her corse.

25
Her scattred brood, soone as their Parent deare

They saw so rudely falling to the ground,

Groning full deadly, all with troublous feare,

Gathred themselues about her body round,

Weening their wonted entrance to haue found

At her wide mouth: but being there withstood

They flocked all about her bleeding wound,

And sucked vp their dying mothers blood,

Making her death their life, and eke her hurt their good.

26
That detestable sight him much amazde,

To see th'vnkindly Impes of heauen accurst,

Deuoure their dam; on whom while so he gazd,

Hauing all satisfide their bloudy thurst,

Their bellies swolne he saw with fulnesse burst,

And bowels gushing forth: well worthy end

Of such as drunke her life, the which them nurst;

Now needeth him no lenger labour spend,

His foes haue slaine themselues, with whom he should

[contend.

27
His Ladie seeing all, that, chaunst, from farre

Approcht in hast to greet his victorie,

And said, Faire knight, borne vnder happy starre,

Who see your vanquisht foes before you lye:

Well worthy be you of that Armorie,

Wherein ye haue great glory wonne this day,

And proou'd your strength on a strong enimie,

Your first aduenture: many such I pray,

And henceforth euer wish, that like succeed it may.

28
Then mounted he vpon his Steede againe,

And with the Lady backward sought to wend;

That path he kept, which beaten was most plaine,

Ne euer would to any by-way bend,

But still did follow one vnto the end,

The which at last out of the wood them brought.

So forward on his way (with God to frend)

He passeth forth, and new aduenture sought;

Long way he trauelled, before he heard of ought.

29
At length they chaunst to meet vpon the way

An aged Sire, in long blacke weedes yclad,

His feete all bare, his beard all hoarie gray,

And by his belt his booke he hanging had;

Sober he seemde, and very sagely sad,

And to the ground his eyes were lowly bent,

Simple in shew, and voyde of malice bad,

And all the way he prayed, as he went,

And often knockt his brest, as one that did repent.

30
He faire the knight saluted, louting low,

Who faire him quited, as that courteous was:

And after asked him, if he did know

Of straunge aduentures, which abroad did pas.

Ah my deare Sonne (quoth he) how should, alas,

Silly old man, that liues in hidden cell,

Bidding his beades all day for his trespas,

Tydings of warre and worldly trouble tell?

With holy father sits not with such things to mell.

31 But if of daunger which hereby doth dwell,

And homebred euill ye desire to heare,

Of a straunge man I can you tidings tell,

That wasteth all this countrey farre and neare.

Of such (said he) I chiefly do inquere,

And shall you well reward to shew the place,

In which that wicked wight his dayes doth weare:

For to all knighthood it is foule disgrace,

That such a cursed creature liues so long a space.

32
Far hence (quoth he) in wastfull wildernesse

His dwelling is, by which no liuing wight

May euer passe, but thorough great distresse.

Now (sayd the Lady) draweth toward night,

And well I wote, that of your later fight

Ye all forwearied be: for what so strong,

But wanting rest will also want of might?

The Sunne that measures heauen all day long,

At night doth baite his steedes the
Ocean
waues emong.

33
Then with the Sunne take Sir, your timely rest,

And with new day new worke at once begin:

Vntroubled night they say giues counsell best.

Right well Sir knight ye haue aduised bin,

(Quoth then that aged man;) the way to win

Is wisely to aduise: now day is spent;

Therefore with me ye may take vp your In

For this same night. The knight was well content:

So with that godly father to his home they went.

34
A little lowly Hermitage it was,

Downe in a dale, hard by a forests side,

Far from resort of people, that did pas

In trauell to and froe: a little wyde

There was an holy Chappell edifyde,

Wherein the Hermite dewly wont to say

His holy things each morne and euentyde:

Thereby a Christall streame did gently play,

Which from a sacred fountaine welled forth alway.

35
Arriued there, the little house they fill,

Ne looke for entertainement, where none was:

Rest is their feast, and all things at their will;

The noblest mind the best contentment has.

With faire discourse the euening so they pas:

For that old man of pleasing wordes had store,

And well could file his tongue as smooth as glas;

He told of Saintes and Popes, and euermore

He strowd an
Aue-Mary
after and before.

36
The drouping Night thus creepeth on them fist,

And the sad humour loading their eye liddes,

As messenger of
Morpheus
on them cast

Sweet slombring deaw, the which to sleepe them biddes.

Vnto their lodgings then his guestes he riddes:

Where when all drownd in deadly sleepe he findes,

He to his study goes, and there amiddes

His Magick bookes and artes of sundry kindes,

He seekes out mighty charmes, to trouble sleepy mindes.

37
Then choosing out few wordes most horrible,

(Let none them read) thereof did verses frame,

With which and other spelles like terrible,

He bad awake blacke
Plutoes
griesly Dame,

And cursed heauen, and spake reprochfull shame

Of highest God, the Lord of life and light;

A bold bad man, that dar'd to call by name

Great
Gorgon,
Prince of darknesse and dead night,

At which
Cocytus
quakes, and
Styx
is put to flight.

38
And forth he cald out of deepe darknesse dred

Legions of Sprights, the which like little flyes

Fluttring about his euer damned hed,

A-waite whereto their seruice he applyes,

To aide his friends, or fray his enimies:

Of those he chose out two, the falsest twoo,

And fittest for to forge true-seeming lyes;

The one of them he gaue a message too,

The other by himselfe staide odier worke to doo.

39
He making speedy way through spersed ayre,

And through the world of waters wide and deepe,

To
Morpheus
house doth hastily repaire.

Amid the bowels of the earth full steepe,

And low, where dawning day doth neuer peepe,

His dwelling is; there
Tethys
his wet bed

Doth euer wash, and
Cynthia
still doth steepe

In siluer deaw his euer-drouping hed,

Whiles sad Night ouer him her mande black doth spred.

40
Whose double gates he findeth locked fast,

The one faire fram'd of burnisht Yuory,

The other all with siluer ouercast;

And wakefull dogges before them farre do lye,

Watching to banish Care their enimy,

Who oft is wont to trouble gentle sleepe.

By them the Sprite doth passe in quietly,

And vnto
Morpheus
comes, whom drowned deepe

In drowsie fit he findes: of nothing he takes keepe.

41
And more, to lulle him in his slumber soft,

A trickling streame from high rocke tumbling downe

And euer-drizling raine vpon the loft,

Mixt with a murmuring winde, much like the sowne

Of swarming Bees, did cast him in a swowne:

No other noyse, nor peoples troublous cryes,

As still are wont t'annoy the walled towne,

Might there be heard: but carelesse Quiet lyes,

Wrapt in eternall silence farre from enemyes.

42
The messenger approching to him spake,

But his wast wordes returnd to him in vaine:

So sound he slept, that nought mought him awake.

Then rudely he him thrust, and pusht with paine,

Whereat he gan to stretch: but he againe

Shooke him so hard, that forced him to speake.

As one then in a dreame, whose dryer braine

Is tost with troubled sights and fancies weake,

He mumbled soft, but would not all his silence breake.

43
The Sprite then gan more boldly him to wake,

And threatned vnto him the dreaded name

Of
Hecate:
whereat he gan to quake,

And lifting vp his lumpish head, with blame

Halfe angry asked him, for what he came.

Hither (quoth he) me
Archimago
sent,

He that the stubborne Sprites can wisely tame,

He bids thee to him send for his intent

A fit false dreame, that can delude the sleepers sent

44
The God obayde, and calling forth straight way

A diuerse dreame out of his prison darke,

Deliuered it to him, and downe did lay

His heauie head, deuoide of carefull carke,

Whose sences all were straight benumbd and starke.

He backe returning by the Yuorie dore,

Remounted vp as light as chearefull Larke,

And on his litle winges the dreame he bore

In hast vnto his Lord, where he him left afore.

45
Who all this while with charmes and hidden artes,

Had made a Lady of that other Spright,

And fram'd of liquid ayre her tender partes

So liuely, and so like in all mens sight,

That weaker sence it could haue rauisht quight:

The maker selfe for all his wondrous witt,

Was nigh beguiled with so goodly sight:

Her all in white he clad, and ouer it

Cast a blacke stole, most like to seeme for
Vna
fit.

46
Now when that ydle dreame was to him brought,

Vnto that Elfin knight he bad him fly,

Where he slept soundly void of euill thought,

And with false shewes abuse his fantasy,

In sort as he him schooled priuily:

And that new creature borne without her dew,

Full of the makers guile, with vsage sly

He taught to imitate that Lady trew,

Whose semblance she did carrie vnder feigned hew.

47
Thus well instructed, to their worke they hast,

And comming where the knight in slomber lay,

The one vpon his hardy head him plast,

And made him dreame of loues and lustfull play,

That nigh his manly hart did melt away,

Bathed in wanton blis and wicked ioy:

Then seemed him his Lady by him lay,

And to him playnd, how that false winged boy,

Her chast hart had subdewd, to learne Dame pleasures toy.

48
And she her selfe of beautie soueraigne Queene,

Faire
Venus
seemde vnto his bed to bring

Her, whom he waking euermore did weene,

To be the chastest flowre, that ay did spring

On earthly braunch, the daughter of a king,

Now a loose Leman to vile seruice bound:

And eke the
Graces
seemed all to sing,

Hymen iö Hymen,
dauncing all around,

Whilst freshest
Flora
her with Yuie girlond crownd.

49
In this great passion of vnwonted lust,

Or wonted feare of doing ought amis,

He started vp, as seeming to mistrust,

Some secret ill, or hidden foe of his:

Lo there before his face his Lady is,

Vnder blake stole hyding her bayted hooke,

And as halfe blushing offred him to kis,

With gentle blandishment and louely looke,

Most like that virgin true, which for her knight him took.

50
All cleane dismayd to see so vncouth sight,

And halfe enraged at her shamelesse guise,

He thought haue slaine her in his fierce despight:

But hasty heat tempring with sufferance wise,

He stayde his hand, and gan himselfe aduise

To proue his sense, and tempt her faigned truth.

Wringing her hands in wemens pitteous wise,

Tho can she weepe, to stirre vp gentle ruth,

Both for her noble bloud, and for her tender youth.

51
And said, Ah Sir, my liege Lord and my loue,

Shall I accuse the hidden cruell fate,

And mightie causes wrought in heauen aboue,

Or the blind God, that doth me thus amate,

For hoped loue to winne me certaine hate?

Yet thus perforce he bids me do, or die.

Die is my dew: yet rew my wretched state

You, whom my hard auenging destinie

Hath made iudge of my life or death indifferently.

52
Your owne deare sake forst me at first to leaue

My Fathers kingdome, There she stopt with teares;

Her swollen hart her speach seemd to bereaue,

And then againe begun, My weaker yeares

Captiu'd to fortune and frayle worldly feares,

Fly to your faith for succour and sure ayde:

Let me not dye in languor and long teares.

Why Dame (quoth he) what hath ye thus dismayd?

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