The Faerie Queene (99 page)

So sundry waies and fashions as clerkes faine,

Some in short space, and some in longer yeares;

What is the same but alteration plaine?

Onely the starrie skie doth still remaine:

Yet do the Starres and Signes therein still moue,

And euen itself is mov'd, as wizards saine.

But all that moueth, doth mutation loue:

Therefore both you and them to me I subiect proue.

56
Then since within this wide great
Vniuerse

Nothing doth firme and permanent appeare,

Cut all things tost and turned by transuerse:

What then should let, but I aloft should reare

My Trophee, and from all, the triumph beare?

Now iudge then (ô thou greatest goddesse trew!)

According as thy selfe doest see and heare,

And vnto me addoom that is my dew;

That is the rule of all, all being rul'd by you.

57
So hauing ended, silence long ensewed,

Ne
Nature
to or fro spake for a space,

But with firme eyes affixt, the ground still viewed.

Meanewhile, all creatures, looking in her face,

Expecting th'end of this so doubtfull case,

Did hang in long suspence what would ensew,

To whether side should fall the soueraigne place:

At length, she looking vp with chearefull view,

The silence brake, and gaue her doome in speeches few.

58
I well consider all that ye haue sayd,

And find that all things stedfastnes doe hate

And changed be: yet being rightly wayd

They are not changed from their first estate;

But by their change their being doe dilate:

And turning to themselues at length againe,

Doe worke their owne perfection so by fate:

Then ouer them Change doth not rule and raigne;

But they raigne ouer change, and doe their states maintaine.

59
Cease therefore daughter further to aspire,

And thee content thus to be rul'd by me:

For thy decay thou seekst by thy desire;

But time shall come that all shall changed bee,

And from thenceforth, none no more change shall see.

So was the
Titaness
put downe and whist,

And
Ioue
confirm'd in his imperiall see.

Then was that whole assembly quite dismist,

And
Natur's
selfe did vanish, whither no man wist

1
When I bethinke me on that speech whyleare,

Of
Mutability,
and well it way:

Me seemes, that though she all vnworthy were

Of the Heav'ns Rule; yet very sooth to say,

In all things else she beares the greatest sway.

Which makes me loath this state of life so tickle,

And loue of things so vaine to cast away;

Whose flowring pride, so fading and so fickle,

Short
Time
shall soon cut down with his consuming sickle.

2
Then gin I thinke on that which Nature sayd,

Of that same time when no more
Change
shall be,

But stedfast rest of all things firmely stayd

Vpon the pillours of Eternity,

That is contrayr to
Mutabilitie:

For, all that moueth, doth in
Change
delight:

But thence-forth all shall rest eternally

With Him that is the God of Sabbaoth bight:

O that great Sabbaoth God, graunt me that Sabaoths sight.

FINIS

TEXTUAL CORRECTIONS:

Code:
a
1590 edition of
Faerie Queene,
I-III
         
b
1596 edition of
Faerie Queene,
I-VI
         
c
1609 edition of
Faerie Queene,
I-VII
         
d
1611 edition of
Works
FE
‘Faults Escaped', erratum page in
  a  

The four columns are stanza and line, corrected reading, source of correction, and rejected reading from
b
if unspecified. The inclusion of a code letter instead of date of edition as source of corrected reading is to follow the practice established by the Variorum Edition of Spenser.

BOOK I

Canto 1

10.4
They
  a  
The

12.5
stroke
  FE  
hardy stroke
  a  

20.7
loathly frogs
ac
       loathlyfrogs

21.5
spring
  FE  
ebbe

25.7
wound
  a  
wound

31.2
euill
  a  
euill euill

34.8
gently
  a  
genlty

35.8
euermore
  a  
euemore

42.4
thrust
  a  
trust

48.9
her with Yuie
  a  
her Yuie

Canto 2

17.5
cruel spies
  FE  
cruelties

29.2
shade him thither
  a  
shade thither

29.3
ymounted
  FE  
that mounted

32.9
guiltlesse
  a  
guitlesse

40.1
Thensforth
  FE  
Thenforth

41.5
Thensforth
  FE  
Thenforth

Canto 3

3.9
brought,
  a  
brought,

11.1
whom
  a  
Whom

34.5
feare
  a  
fea

36.7
mourning
acd
morning

38.7
that
  FE  
the

43.5
field
  a  
fied

Canto 4

11.3
worth
  a  
wroth

12.2
selfe a Queene
  a  
selfe Queene

13.1
El1 fin
  a  
Elfing

16.9
glitterand
  a  
glitter and

20.3
From
  a  
For

32.9
fifte
  FE  
first

45.5
of my new
  FE  
of new

Canto 5

1.9
did he wake
  a  
did wake

2.1
gate
  a  
gate,

2.5
hurld
  FE  
hurls

24.9
for
  a  
and

30.9
filthey
  a  
filtey

38.6
cliffs
  FE  
clifts

41.2
nigh
  a  
high

51.5
that
  FE  
the

Canto 6

1.5
in
  FE  
it

5.5
win
  a  
with

15.2
Or 11 Of

26.9
as a tyrans
  a  
as tyrans

47.2
fate
  a  
fete

Canto 7

5.5
her a be

32.6
Selinis a
Selinis

43.9
Gehons a Gebons

47.3
hands
  FE  
hand [so corrected in copy text]

Canto 8

Arg. 3
the
  FE  
that

11.9
murmur ring
  FE  
murmuring

15.3
nigh d night

29.4
forcibly, a forcibly.

30.2
An a And

33.5
sits a fits

40.8
beare,
  a  
beare.

41.7
and helmets a helmets

43.2
haue a kaue

Canto 9

11.4
vnawares a vnwares

12.9
on
  FE  
at

14.8
night;
  a  
night,

18.9
as
  a  
the

26.5
nye. [editorial conjecture] nye?
abc

31.5
subtile tong
a subtilltongue

34.6
cliffs
  FE  
clifts

35.9
Were
  a  
Where

38.8
liuing
  a  
liniug

53.1
feeble a seely

Canto 10

10.5
[line moved to right]

16.8
her
  FE  
be

31.6
faire,
  a  
faire.

36.9
in commers-by
c
in-commers by
ab

50.1
she
  a  
he

52.6
Brings
  FE  
Bring
ab

57.5
pretious
  FE  
piteous

59.2
frame
  FE  
fame

61.3
thy
  a  
to thy

62.9
they'are
  a  
are

64.7
doen
  a  
doen then

Canto 11

1.1
faire,
c faire, ab

4.5
stretcht a stretch

5.1
his
  FE  
this

5.2
withdraw d with draw

6.9
scared
  FE  
feared

8.7
vaste d wast

11.5
as
  FE  
all

18.5
vnsound
  a  
vnfound

25.1
wroth
  a  
wrath

25.6
[line moved to right]

27.2
vaunt
  a  
daunt

30.5
one
  FE  
it

30.6
[line moved to right]

35–1
spy,
  a  
spy.

39.4
sting
  a  
string

39.7
string
  a  
sting

51.2
the
  a  
her

Canto 12

2.9
fall,
c
fall,
ab

9.7
monstrous
  a  
monstrous

11.5
talants
  FE  
talents

16.1
pleasure
  a  
pleasures

18.8
Paynim
  a  
Pynin

21.7
To tell that dawning day is drawing neare,
  a  
To tell the dawning day is dawning neare,

22.4
heauenly
  a  
heaunnly

27.7
of yore
  a  
and yore

32.5
t'
  FE  
to

34.9
who
  FE  
wo

40.9
His
  a  
Her

BOOK II

Canto 1

2.7
natiue a natiues

4.1
lay,
c
lay.
ab

4.6–7
[Lines 6 and 7 should be transposed as in
a
.]

8.7
spoile,
  a  
‘spoile.

11.7
he
  a  
be

16.7
torment? – torment

31.2
handling
  a  
hanfling

33.8
thrise
  FE  
these

39.4
dolour
  a  
labour

40.4
gore
  a  
gold

44.9
speake: help
  a  
speake:help

45.7
started
  a  
started

56.2
off
c
off,
ab

59.1
equall
  a  
euill

59.6
bury all teene [editorial conjecture] buriall teene
abc

Canto 2

9.1
whose
  a  
those

9.8
be
  a  
he

28.2
champions
  a  
champion

30.1
there
c
their
ab

37.1
Fast
FE
First

41.4
eye,
c
eye.
ab

Canto 3

9.7
From
  a  
For

Canto 4

10.4
not
  FE  
no

10.9
and
  a  
aud

41.2
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhocles

44.8
sits
  a  
fits

45.4
might
  a  
migbt

45.8
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhocles

Canto 5

1.9
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhocles

4.4
broad
ac
braod

8.2
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhocles

8.7
hurtle
a
hurle,

10.8
releast,
a
relast,

16.1
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhocles

16.8
aread
a
a read

19.4
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhocles
she chee a6

20.2
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhocles

20.6
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhocles

21.2
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhocles

24.8
agayne,
a
agayne.

25.4
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhocles

27.3
her
a
his

36.6
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhocles

38.7
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhocles

Canto 6

29.2
importune
a
importance

34.7
sweet alarmes
c
sweet Alarmes,
a
sweetalarms,

39.2
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhocles

43.4
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhocles

43.9
Pyrochles,
ô
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhocles,
ô
Pyrrhocles

44.6
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhocles

45.3
Burning
a
But

48.7
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhocles

49.1
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhodes

Canto
7

4.9
And
a
A

16.3
glad thankes
a
gladthankes

17.2
Grandmother
ac
Gandmother

18.2
of that antique
a
of antique

37.1
earthly wight
ac
earthlywight

39.8
mesprise
a
mespise

40.5
As if that
a
  FE  
As the

41.3
his a to

48.6
my deare, my c my deare my aft

53.1
Gardin
a
Gordin

Canto 8

12.1
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhocles

19.1
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhocles

21.7
Pyrochles
  FE  
Pyrrhocles