And in their tops the soring hauke did towre,
Sitting like king of fowles in majesty and powre.
VII
And at the foote thereof, a gentle flud 55
His silver waves did softly tumble downe,
Unmard with ragged mosse or filthy mud;
Ne mote wylde beastes, ne mote the ruder clowne
Thereto approch, ne filth mote therein drowne:
But nymphes and faeries by the bancks did sit, 60
In the woods shade, which did the waters crowne,
Keeping all noysome things away from it,
And to the waters fall tuning their accents fit.
VIII
And on the top thereof a spacious plaine
Did spred it selfe, to serve to all delight, 65
Either to daunce, when they to daunce would faine,
Or else to course about their bases light;
Ne ought there wanted, which for pleasure might
Desired be, or thence to banish bale:
So pleasauntly the hill with equall hight 70
Did seeme to overlooke the lowly vale;
Therefore it rightly cleeped was Mount Acidale.
IX
They say that Venus, when she did dispose
Her selfe to pleasaunce, used to resort
Unto this place, and therein to repose 75
And rest her selfe, as in a gladsome port,
Or with the Graces there to play and sport;
That even her owne Cytheron, though in it
She used most to keepe her royall court,
And in her soveraine majesty to sit, 80
She in regard hereof refusde and thought unfit.
X
Unto this place when as the Elfin knight
Approcht, him seemed that the merry sound
Of a shrill pipe he playing heard on hight,
And many feete fast thumping th’ hollow ground, 85
That through the woods their eccho did rebound.
He nigher drew, to weete what mote it be;
There he a troupe of ladies dauncing found
Full merrily, and making gladfull glee,
And in the midst a shepheard piping he did see. 90
XI
He durst not enter into th’ open greene,
For dread of them unwares to be descryde,
For breaking of their daunce, if he were seene;
But in the covert of the wood did byde,
Beholding all, yet of them unespyde. 95
There he did see, that pleased much his sight,
That even he him selfe his eyes envyde,
An hundred naked maidens lilly white,
All raunged in a ring, and dauncing in delight.
XII
All they without were raunged in a ring, 100
And daunced round; but in the midst of them
Three other ladies did both daunce and sing,
The whilest the rest them round about did hemme,
And like a girlond did in compasse stemme:
And in the middest of those same three was placed 105
Another damzell, as a precious gemme
Amidst a ring most richly well enchaced,
That with her goodly presence all the rest much graced.
XIII
Looke how the crowne, which Ariadne wore
Upon her yvory forehead that same day 110
That Theseus her unto his bridale bore,
When the bold Centaures made that bloudy fray
With the fierce Lapithes, which did them dismay,
Being now placed in the firmament,
Through the bright heaven doth her beams display, 115
And is unto the starres an ornament,
Which round about her move in order excellent:
XIV
Such was the beauty of this goodly band,
Whose sundry parts were here too long to tell:
But she that in the midst of them did stand 120
Seem’d all the rest in beauty to excell,
Crownd with a rosie girlond, that right well
Did her beseeme. And ever, as the crew
About her daunst, sweet flowres, that far did smell,
And fragrant odours they uppon her threw; 125
But most of all, those three did her with gifts endew.
XV
Those were the Graces, daughters of delight,
Handmaides of Venus, which are wont to haunt
Uppon this hill, and daunce there day and night:
Those three to men all gifts of grace do graunt, 130
And all that Venus in her selfe doth vaunt
Is borrowed of them. But that faire one,
That in the midst was placed paravaunt,
Was she to whom that shepheard pypt alone,
That made him pipe so merrily, as never none. 135
XVI
She was, to weete, that jolly shepheards lasse,
Which piped there unto that merry rout;
That jolly shepheard which there piped was
Poore Colin Clout (who knowes not Colin Clout?)
He pypt apace, whilest they him daunst about. 140
Pype, jolly shepheard, pype thou now apace
Unto thy love, that made thee low to lout;
Thy love is present there with thee in place,
Thy love is there advaunst to be another Grace.
XVII
Much wondred Calidore at this straunge sight, 145
Whose like before his eye had never seene
And standing long astonished in spright,
And rapt with pleasaunce, wist not what to weene;
Whether it were the traine of Beauties Queene,
Or nymphes, or faeries, or enchaunted show, 150
With which his eyes mote have deluded beene.
Therefore resolving, what it was, to know,
Out of the wood he rose, and toward them did go.
XVIII
But soone as he appeared to their vew,
They vanisht all away out of his sight, 155
And cleane were gone, which way he never knew;
All save the shepheard, who, for fell despight
Of that displeasure, broke his bag-pipe quight,
And made great mone for that unhappy turne.
But Calidore, though no lesse sory wight 160
For that mishap, yet seeing him to mourne,
Drew neare, that he the truth of all by him mote learne:
XIX
And first him greeting, thus unto him spake:
‘Haile, jolly shepheard, which thy joyous dayes
Here leadest in this goodly merry make, 165
Frequented of these gentle nymphes alwayes,
Which to thee flocke, to heare thy lovely layes!
Tell me, what mote these dainty damzels be,
Which here with thee doe make their pleasant playes?
Right happy thou, that mayst them freely see: 170
But why, when I them saw, fled they away from me?’
XX
‘Not I so happy,’ answerd then that swaine,
‘As thou unhappy, which them thence didst chace,
Whom by no meanes thou canst recall againe;
For being gone, none can them bring in place, 175
But whom they of them selves list so to grace.’
‘Right sory I,’ saide then Sir Calidore,
‘That my ill fortune did them hence displace.
But since things passed none may now restore,
Tell me, what were they all, whose lacke thee grieves so sore.’ 180
XXI
Tho gan that shepheard thus for to dilate:
‘Then wote thou shepheard, whatsoever thou bee,
That all those ladies which thou sawest late
Are Venus damzels, all within her fee,
But differing in honour and degree: 185
They all are Graces, which on her depend,
Besides a thousand more, which ready bee
Her to adorne, when so she forth doth wend:
But those three in the midst doe chiefe on her attend.
XXII
‘They are the daughters of sky-ruling Jove, 190
By him begot of faire Eurynome,
The Oceans daughter, in this pleasant grove,
As he, this way comming from feastfull glee
Of Thetis wedding with Æacidee,
In sommers shade him selfe here rested weary. 195
The first of them hight mylde Euphrosyne,
Next faire Aglaia, last Thalia merry:
Sweete goddesses all three, which me in mirth do cherry.
XXIII
‘These three on men all gracious gifts bestow,
Which decke the body or adorne the mynde, 200
To make them lovely or well favoured show,
As comely carriage, entertainement kynde,
Sweete semblaunt, friendly offices that bynde,
And all the complements of curtesie:
They teach us, how to each degree and kynde 205
We should our selves demeane, to low, to hie,
To friends, to foes; which skill men call civility.
XXIV
‘Therefore they alwaies smoothly seeme to smile,
That we likewise should mylde and gentle be,
And also naked are, that without guile 210
Or false dissemblaunce all them plaine may see,
Simple and true, from covert malice free:
And eeke them selves so in their daunce they bore,
That two of them still froward seem’d to bee,
But one still towards shew’d her selfe afore; 215
That good should from us goe, then come, in greater store.
XXV
‘Such were those goddesses which ye did see;
But that fourth mayd, which there amidst them traced,
Who can aread what creature mote she bee,
Whether a creature, or a goddesse graced 220
With heavenly gifts from heven first enraced?
But what so sure she was, she worthy was
To be the fourth with those three other placed:
Yet was she certes but a countrey lasse,
Yet she all other countrey lasses farre did passe. 225
XXVI
‘So farre as doth the daughter of the day
All other lesser lights in light excell,
So farre doth she in beautyfull array
Above all other lasses beare the bell:
Ne lesse in vertue, that beseemes her well, 230
Doth she exceede the rest of all her race;
For which the Graces, that here wont to dwell,
Have for more honor brought her to this place,
And graced her so much to be another Grace.
XXVII
‘Another Grace she well deserves to be, 235
In whom so many graces gathered are,
Excelling much the meane of her degree;
Divine resemblaunce, beauty soveraine rare,
Firme chastity, that spight ne blemish dare;
All which she with such courtesie doth grace, 240
That all her peres cannot with her compare,
But quite are dimmed when she is in place.
She made me often pipe, and now to pipe apace.
XXVIII
‘Sunne of the world, great glory of the sky,
That all the earth doest lighten with thy rayes, 245
Great Gloriana, greatest Majesty,
Pardon thy shepheard, mongst so many layes
As he hath sung of thee in all his dayes,
To make one minime of thy poore handmayd,
And underneath thy feete to place her prayse, 250
That, when thy glory shall be farre displayd
To future age, of her this mention may be made.’
XXIX
When thus that shepherd ended had his speach,
Sayd Calidore: ‘Now sure it yrketh mee,
That to thy blisse I made this luckelesse breach, 255
As now the author of thy bale to be,
Thus to bereave thy loves deare sight from thee:
But, gentle shepheard, pardon thou my shame,
Who rashly sought that which I mote not see.’
Thus did the courteous knight excuse his blame, 260
And to recomfort him all comely meanes did frame.
XXX
In such discourses they together spent
Long time, as fit occasion forth them led;
With which the knight him selfe did much content,
And with delight his greedy fancy fed, 265
Both of his words, which he with reason red,
And also of the place, whose pleasures rare
With such regard his sences ravished,
That thence he had no will away to fare,
But wisht that with that shepheard he mote dwelling share. 270
XXXI
But that envenimd sting, the which of yore
His poysnous point deepe fixed in his hart
Had left, now gan afresh to rancle sore,
And to renue the rigour of his smart:
Which to recure, no skill of leaches art 275
Mote him availe, but to returne againe
To his wounds worker, that with lovely dart
Dinting his brest, had bred his restlesse paine,
Like as the wounded whale to shore flies from the maine.
XXXII
So taking leave of that same gentle swaine, 280
He backe returned to his rusticke wonne,
Where his faire Pastorella did remaine:
To whome, in sort as he at first begonne,
He daily did apply him selfe to donne
All dewfull service, voide of thoughts impure: 285
Ne any paines ne perill did he shonne,
By which he might her to his love allure,
And liking in her yet untamed heart procure.
XXXIII
And evermore the shepheard Coridon,
What ever thing he did her to aggrate, 290
Did strive to match with strong contention,
And all his paines did closely emulate;
Whether it were to caroll, as they sate
Keeping their sheepe, or games to exercize,
Or to present her with their labours late; 295
Through which if any grace chaunst to arize
To him, the shepheard streight with jealousie did frize.
XXXIV
One day as they all three together went
To the greene wood, to gather strawberies,
There chaunst to them a dangerous accident: 300
A tigre forth out of the wood did rise,
That with fell clawes full of fierce gourmandize,
And greedy mouth, wide gaping like hell gate,
Did runne at Pastorell her to surprize;
Whom she beholding, now all desolate 305
Gan cry to them aloud, to helpe her all too late.
XXXV
Which Coridon first hearing, ran in hast
To reskue her, but when he saw the feend,
Through cowherd feare he fled away as fast,
Ne durst abide the daunger of the end; 310
His life he steemed dearer then his frend.
But Calidore soone comming to her ayde,
When he the beast saw ready now to rend
His loves deare spoile, in which his heart was prayde,
He ran at him enraged, in stead of being frayde. 315
XXXVI
He had no weapon, but his shepheards hooke,
To serve the vengeaunce of his wrathfull will;
With which so sternely he the monster strooke,
That to the ground astonished he fell;
Whence ere he could recov’r, he did him quell, 320
And hewing off his head, it presented
Before the feete of the faire Pastorell;
Who scarcely yet from former feare exempted,
A thousand times him thankt, that had her death prevented.
XXXVII
From that day forth she gan him to affect, 325
And daily more her favour to augment;
But Coridon for cowherdize reject,
Fit to keepe sheepe, unfit for loves content:
The gentle heart scornes base disparagement.
Yet Calidore did not despise him quight, 330
But usde him friendly for further intent,
That by his fellowship he colour might
Both his estate and love from skill of any wight.
XXXVIII
So well he wood her, and so well he wrought her,
With humble service, and with daily sute, 335
That at the last unto his will he brought her;
Which he so wisely well did prosecute,
That of his love he reapt the timely frute,
And joyed long in close felicity:
Till Fortune, fraught with malice, blinde and brute, 340
That envies lovers long prosperity,
Blew up a bitter storme of foule adversity.
XXXIX
It fortuned one day, when Calidore
Was hunting in the woods (as was his trade)
A lawlesse people, Brigants hight of yore, 345
That never usde to live by plough nor spade,
But fed on spoile and booty, which they made
Upon their neighbours which did nigh them border,
The dwelling of these shepheards did invade,
And spoyld their houses, and them selves did murder, 350
And drove away their flocks, with other much disorder.
XL
Amongst the rest, the which they then did pray,
They spoyld old Melibee of all he had,
And all his people captive led away;
Mongst which this lucklesse mayd away was lad, 355
Faire Pastorella, sorrowfull and sad,
Most sorrowfull, most sad, that ever sight,
Now made the spoile of theeves and Brigants bad,
Which was the conquest of the gentlest knight
That ever liv’d, and th’ onely glory of his might. 360
XLI
With them also was taken Coridon,
And carried captive by those theeves away;
Who in the covert of the night, that none
Mote them descry, nor reskue from their pray,
Unto their dwelling did them close convay. 365
Their dwelling in a little island was,
Covered with shrubby woods, in which no way
Appeard for people in nor out to pas,
Nor any footing fynde for overgrowen gras.
XLII
For underneath the ground their way was made, 370
Through hollow caves, that no man mote discover
For the thicke shrubs, which did them alwaies shade
From view of living wight, and covered over:
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