All thofe, and all that els does horror breed, About them flew, and fild their fayles with feare: Yet ftayd they not, but forward did proceed, Whiles th' one did row, and th' other ftifly steare; Till that at last the weather gan to cleare, And the faire land itfelfe did playnly show. Said then the palmer, "Lo where does appeare "The facred foile where all our perills grow, "Therefore, Sir Knight, your ready armes about "you throw."
He hearkned, and his armes about him tooke,
The whiles the nimble bote so well her fped,
That with her crooked keele the land the ftrooke;
Then forth the noble Guyon fallied,
And his fage palmer that him governed;
But th' other by his bote behind did stay.
They marched fayrly forth, of nought ydred,
Both firmely armd for every hard affay, [difmay.
With conftancy and care, gainst daunger and
Ere long they heard an hideous bellowing
Of many beafts, that roard outrageously,
As if that Hunger's poynt, or Venus' sting,
Had them enraged with fell furquedry;
Yet nought they feard, but paft on hardily,
Untill they came in vew of those wilde bcasts,
Who all attonce, gaping full greedily,
And rearing fercely their upstaring crefts,
Ran towards to devoure thofe unexpected guests.
But foone as they approcht with deadly threat,
The palmer over them his staffe upheld,
His mighty staffe, that could all charmes defeat;
Eftefoones their stubborne corages were queld,
And high-advaunced crefts downe meekely feld:
Instead of fraying they themselves did feare,
And trembled, as them paffing they beheld;
Such wondrous powre did in that staffe appeare,
All monsters to fubdew to him that did it beare.
Of that fame wood it fram'd was cunningly
Of which Caduceus whileome was made,
Caduceus, the rod of Mercury,
With which he wonts the Stygian realmes invade
Through ghastly horror and eternall shade;
Th' infernall feends with it he can affwage,
And Orcus tame, whom nothing can perfwade,
And rule the furyes when they most doe rage:
Such vertue in his staffe had eke this palmer fage.
Thence paffing forth, they fhortly doe arryve
Whereat the Bowre of Bliffe was fituate,
A place pickt out by choyce of best alyve.
That Nature's worke by Art can imitate;
In which whatever in this worldly state
Is fweete and pleafing unto living sense,
Or that may daynteft fantasy aggrate,
Was poured forth with plentifull difpence,
And made there to abound with lavish affluence.
Goodly it was enclosed rownd about,
As well their entred guestes to keep within,
Yi feemd th' inchaunted flame which did Creufa Gently attempred, and difpofd so well,
'All this and more might in that goodly gate
Be red, that ever open stood to all
Which thether came; but in the porch there fate
A comely perfonage of ftature tall,
And femblaunce pleasing, more than naturall,
That traveilers to him feemd to entize;
His loofer garment to the ground did fall,
And flew about his heels in wanton wize,
Not fitt for fpeedy pace or manly exercize.
They in that place him Genius did call;
Not that celeftiall powre to whom the care
Of life, and generation of all
That lives, perteines in charge particulare,
Who wondrous things concerning our welfare,
And firaunge phantomes, doth lett us ofte forefee,
And ofte of fecret ills bids us beware,
That is ourfelfe, whom though we do not fee,
Yet cach doth in himfelfe it well perceive to bee:
Therefore a god him fage Antiquity
Did wifely make, and good Agdiftes call;
But this fame was to that quite contrary,
The foe of life, that good envyes to all,
That fecretly doth us procure to fall
Through guilefull femblants, which he makes us
fee;
He of this gardin had the governall,
And Pleafure's porter was devizd to bee,
Holding a ftaffe in hand for more formalitee.
With diverfe flowres he daintily was deckt And frowed rownd about, and by his fide
That still it breathed forth sweet spirit and hok fmell:
More sweet and holefome then the pleasaunt
Of Rhodope, on which the nimphe that bore
A gyaunt babe, herfelfe for griefe did kill;
Or the Theffalian Tempe, where of yore
Fayre Daphne Phoebus' hart with love did g
Or Ida, where the gods lov'd to repayre,
Whenever they their heavenly bowres forlan
Or fweet Parnaffe, the haunt of Mufes fayre
Or Eden felfe, if ought with Eden mott
payre.
Much wondred Guyon at the fayre aspect
Of that sweet place, yet fuffred no delight
To fincke into his fence, nor mind affect;
But paffed forth, and lookt ftill forward righ
Brydling his will, and mayftering his might
Till that he came unto another gate,
No gate, but like one, being goodly dight
With bowes and braunches, which dide
dilate
Their clafping armes in wanton wreathing tricate:
So fashioned a porch with rare device,
Archt over head with an embracing vine,
Whole bounches hanging downe iccmd to
All paffers by to tafte their lufhious wine,
And did themselves into their hands incline
As freely offering to be gathered;
Some deepe empurpled as the hyacine,
Some as the rubine, laughing fweetely red,
Some like faire cmeraudes, not yet well ripe
Many faire ladies and lafcivious boyes, That ever mixt their fong with light licentious toyes.
And all that while right over him the hong
With her false eyes fast fixed in his fight,
As feeking medicine whence the was stong,
Or greedily depafturing delight;
And oft inclining downe with kiffes light,
For feare of waking him, his lips bedewd,
And through his humid eyes did fucke his spright,
Quite molten into luft and pleasure lewd,
Wherewith the fighed foft, as if his case she rewd.
The whiles fome one did chaunt this lovely lay, "Ah! fee, whofo fayre thing doest faine to fee, "In fpringing flowre the image of thy day; "Ah! fee the virgin rofe, how sweetly thee "Doth first peepe foorth with bashfull modestee, "That fairer feemes the leffe ye see her may : «Lo! fee foone after, how more bold and free, "Her bared bofome she doth broad display; "Lo! fee foone after how the fades and falls > way!
"So paffeth, in the paffing of a day,
"Of mortall life the leafe, the bud, the flowre; "Ne more doth florish after first decay, "That earft was fought to deck both bed and "bowre
"Of many a lady and many a paramowre: "Gather therefore the rose whileft yet is prime, "For foone comes age that will her pride de" flowre;
"Gather the rofe of love whileft yet is time, "Whileft loving thou mayît loved be with equal "crime."
Moyftened their fierie beames, with which the But that their bliffe he turn'd to balefulneffe:
Fraile harts, yet quenched not; like starry light, Which fparckling on the filent waves does feeme more bright.
The young man fleeping by her feemd to be
Some goodly swayne of honorable place,
That certes it great pitty was to fee
Him his nobility fo fowle deface:
A sweet regard and amiable grace,
Mixed with manly fterneffe, did appeare
Yet fleeping in his well proportiond face;
And on his tender lips the downy heare [heare.
Did now but freshly spring, and filken bloffoms
His warlike armes (the ydle inftruments
Of fleeping praife) were hong upon a tree,
And his brave fhield, full of old moniments,
Was fowly ra'ft, that none the fignes might fee:
Ne for them, ne for honour, cared hee,
Ne ought that did to his advauncement tend;
But in lewd loves and waftfull luxurce
His dayes, his goods, his bodie, he did spend;
O horrible enchantment, that him fo did blend!
The noble elfe and carefull palmer drew
So nigh them (minding nought but luftfull game)
That fuddein forth they on them rufht, and threw
A fubtle net, which only for that fame
The skilfull palmer formally did frame,
So held them under faft; the whiles the reft
Fled all away for feare of fowler shame.
The faire enchauntreffe, fo unwares oppreft,
Tryde all her arts and all her fleights thence out
to wreft;
And eke her lover ftrove; but all in vaine;
For that fame net fo cunningly was wound,
That neither guile nor force might it diftraine.
They tooke them both, and both them strongly
bound
In captive bandes, which there they readie found:
But her in chaines of adamant he tyde,
For nothing else might keepe her safe and found;
But Verdant (fo he hight) he foone untyde,
And counfell fage infteed thereof to him ap
plyde.
Their groves he feld, their gardins did deface, Their arbers fpoyle, their cabinets suppresse, Their banket-houses burne, their buildings race, And of the fayreft late now made the fowleft place.
Then led they her away, and eke that knight
They with them led, both forrowfull and fad :
The way they came, the fame retourn'd they
right,
Till they arrived where they lately had [mad;
Charm'd those wild beafts that rag'd with furie,
Which now awaking, fierce at them gan fly,
As in their mistreffe refkew, whom they lad;
But them the palmer foon did pacify.
Than Guyon afkt, what meant thofe beaftes
which there did ly?
Sayd he, "These seeming beaftes are men indeed, "Whom this enchauntreffe hath transformed "thus,
"Whylome her lovers, which her luftes did feed, "Now turned into figuers hideous,
"According to their mindes like monftruous." "Sad end," quoth he, "of life intemperate, "And mournful meed of ioyes delicious: "But, palmer, if it mote thee fo aggrate, "Let them returned be unto their former ftate." LXXXVI.
Streightway he with his vertuous staffe them ftrooke,
And streight of beastes they comely men became,
Yet being men, they did unmanly looke,
And ftared ghaftly; fome for inward fhame,
And fome for wrath to fee their captive dame
But one above the rest in speciall,
That had an hog beene late, hight Grylle by name,
Repyned greatly, and did him mifcall,
That had from hoggish forme him brought to
Daturall
Saide Guyon," See the mind of beastly man! "That hath fo foone forgot the excellence "Of his creation, when he life began, "That now he choofeth with vile difference "To be a beaft, and lacke intelligence." To whom the palmer thus: "The donghill "kinde
"Delightes in filth and fowle incontinence : Let Gryll be Gryll, and have his hoggish "minde;
But all thofe pleafaunt bowres and pallace brave,"
Guyon broke downe with rigour pittileffe ;
Ne ought their goodly workmanship might save
Them from the tempeft of his wrathfulnesse,
"But let us hence depart, whileft weather serves " and winde."
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