One day, nigh weary of the irksome way,
From her unhasty beast she did alight,
And on the grass her dainty limbs did lay
In secret shadow, far from all men's sight;
From her fair head her fillet she undight,
And laid her stole aside. Her angel's face,
As the great eye of heaven shinèd bright,
And made a sunshine in the shady place;
Did never mortal eye behold such heavenly
grace.

It fortuned, out of the thickest wood
A ramping lion rushed suddenly,
Hunting full greedy after savage blood.
Toon as the royal virgin he did spy,

gaping mouth at her ran greedily,

The lion would not leave her desolate,
But with her went along, as a strong guard
Of her chaste person, and a faithful mate
Of her sad troubles and misfortunes hard;
Still, when she slept, he kept both watch
and ward;

And, when she waked, he waited diligent,
With humble service to her will prepared:
From her fair eyes he took commandement,
And ever by her looks conceived her intent.

THE MARRIAGE OF UNA TO ST. GEORGE.

His own two hands the holy knots did knit, That none but death for ever can divide; His own two hands, for such a turn most fit,

The housling fire did kindle and provide, And holy water thereon sprinkled wide; At which the bushy teade a groom did light, And sacred lamp in secret chamber hide, Where it should not be quenched day nor night, [bright.

For fear of evil fates, but burnen ever

Then gan they sprinkle all the posts with wine,

[day: And made great feast to solemnize that They all perfumed with frankincense divine, And precious odours fetched from far away, That all the house did sweat with great array.

And all the while sweet music did apply
Her curious skill the warbling notes to play,
To drive away the dull melancholy;
The whiles one sang a song of love and
jollity.

During the which there was an heavenly
noise
[santly,
Heard sound through all the palace plea-
Like as it had been many an angel's voice
Singing before th' Eternal Majesty,
In their trinal triplicities on high:

Yet wist no creature whence that heavenly

sweet

Proceeded, yet each one felt secretly Himself thereby reft of his senses meet, And ravished with rare impression in his sprite.

THE BOWER OF BLISS.

THENCE passing forth, they shortly do arrive

Whereas the Bower of Bliss was situate;
A place picked out by choice of best alive
That nature's work by art can imitate:
In which whatever in this worldly state
Is sweet and pleasing unto living sense,
Or that may daintiest fantasy aggrate,
Was poured forth with plentiful dispense,
And made there to abound with lavish
affluence.

Goodly it was enclosed round about,

As well their entered guests to keep within,

As those unruly beasts to hold without; Yet was the fence thereof but weak and thin ;

Nought feared their force, that fortilace to win, [might, But Wisdom's power, and Temperance's By which the mightiest things efforced bin : And eke the gate was wrought of substance light, [fight. Rather for pleasure than for battery or

It framèd was of precious ivory,
That seemed a work of admirable wit;
And therein all the famous history
Of Jason and Medea was ywrit;
Her mighty charms, her furious loving fit;
His goodly conquest of the golden fleece,
His falsed faith, and love too lightly flit;
The wond'red Argo, which in venturous
piece
[flow'r of Greece.

First through the Euxine seas bore all the

Ye might have seen the frothy billows fry
Under the ship as thorough them she went,
That seemed the waves were into ivory,
Or ivory into the waves were sent ;
And otherwhere the snowy substance sprent
With vermeil, like the boy's blood therein
shed,

A piteous spectacle did represent;
And otherwhiles with gold besprinkelèd
It seemed th' enchanted flame, which did
Creusa wed.

All this and more might in that goodly gate Be read, that ever open stood to all Which thither came; but in the porch there

sate

A comely personage of stature tall, And semblance pleasing, more than natural,

That travell'rs to him seemed to entice: His looser garment to the ground did fall, And flew about his heels in wanton wise, Nor fit for speedy pace or manly exercise.

They in that place him Genius did call : Not that celestial Pow'r, to whom the care Of life, and generation of all

That lives, pertains in charge particular, Who wondrous things concerning our welfare

And strange phantoms, doth let us oft foresee,

And oft of secret ills bids us beware: That is our Self, whom though we do not

see,

[be: Yet each doth in himself it well perceive to

Therefore a god him sage Antiquity
Did wisely make, and good Agdistes call;
But this same was to that quite contrary,
The foe of life, that good envies to all,
That secretly doth us procure to fall
Through guileful semblants which he
makes us see:

He of this garden had the governal,
And Pleasure's porter was devised to be,
Holding a staff in hand for more formality.

With diverse flowers he daintily was decked,

And strowed round about; and by his side

A mighty mazer* bowl of wine was set,
As if it had to him been sacrificed;
Wherewith all new-come guests he grati-
fied:

So did he eke Sir Guyon passing by,
But he his idle courtesy defied,
And overthrew his bowl disdainfully,
And broke his staff, with which he charmèd
semblants sly.

Thus being entered, they behold around
A large and spacious plain on every side
Strowed with pleasaunce; whose fair

grassy ground

Mantled with green, and goodly beautified With all the ornaments of Flora's pride, Wherewith her mother Art, as half in

scorn

Of niggard Nature, like a pompous bride Did deck her, and too lavishly adorn, When forth from virgin bow'r she comes in th' early morn.

Thereto the heavens always jovial Looked on them lovely, still in steadfast state,

Ne suffered storm nor frost on them to fall,

Their tender buds or leaves to violate: Nor scorching heat, nor cold intemperate, T' afflict the creatures which therein did

dwell;

But the mild air with season moderate Gently attempered and disposed so well, That still it breathed forth sweet spirit and wholesome smell.

More sweet and wholesome than the pleasant hill [bore

Of Rhodope, on which the nymph, that A giant babe, herself for grief did kill;

* A carved bowl of maple wood.

Or the Thessalian Tempe, where of yore Fair Daphne Phoebus' heart with love did gore;

Or Ida, where the gods loved to repair, Whenever they their heavenly bowers forlore;

Or sweet Parnasse, the haunt of Muses fair;

Or Eden self, if aught with Eden mote

compare.

Much wondered Guyon at the fair aspect Of that sweet place, yet suffered no delight

To sink into his sense, nor mind affect; But passed forth, and looked still forward right,

Bridling his will and mastering his might: Till that he came unto another gate;

No gate, but like one, being goodly dight With boughs and branches, which did broad dilate

Their clasping arms in wanton wreathing's intricate.

So fashioned a porch with rare device,
Arched overhead with an embracing vine,
Whose bunches hanging down seemed to
entice

All passers-by to taste their luscious wine,
And did themselves into their hands in-
cline,

As freely offering to be gathered;
Some deep empurpled as the hyacine,
Some as the ruby laughing sweetly red,
Some like fair emeralds, not yet well:
ripened:

And them amongst some were of burnished
gold,

So made by art to beautify the rest,
Which did themselves amongst the leaves
enfold,

As lurking from the view of covetous guest,
That the weak boughs with so rich load
opprest

Did bow adown as overburdened.
Under that porch a comely dame did rest
Clad in fair weeds but foul disordered,
And garments loose that seemed unmeet
for womanhead:

In her left hand a cup of gold she held, And with her right the riper fruit did reach, Whose sappy liquor, that with fulness swelled,

Into her cup she scruzed with dainty breach! Of her fine fingers, without foul empeach,

That so fair winepress made the wine more

sweet.

Thereof she used to give to drink to each Whom passing by she happened to meet: It was her guise all strangers goodly so to greet.

So she to Guyon offered it to taste,
Who, taking it out of her tender hond,
The cup to ground did violently cast,
That all in pieces it was broken fond,
And with the liquor stained all the lond:
Whereat Excess exceedingly was wroth,
Yet no'te the same amend, ne yet with-
stond,

But suffered him to pass, all were she loth: Who, nought regarding her displeasure, forward goth.

There the most dainty paradise on ground Itself doth offer to his sober eye,

In which all pleasures plenteously abound, And none does other's happiness envy; The painted flowers; the trees upshooting high;

The dales for shade; the hills for breathing space;

The trembling groves; the crystal running by ;

And, that which all fair works doth most

aggrace,

The art, which all that wrought, appeared in no place.

One would have thought (so cunningly the rude

And scorned parts were mingled with the fine),

That Nature had for wantoness ensued Art, and that Art of Nature did repine; So striving each th' other to undermine, Each did the other's work more beautify; So differing both in wills agreed in fine: So all agreed, through sweet diversity, This garden to adorn with all variety.

And in the midst of all a fountain stood, Ofrichest substance that on earth might be, So pure and shiny that the silver flood Through every channel running one might

The whiles some one did chant this lovely lay:

Ah! see, whoso fair thing dost fain to see, In springing flower the image of thy day! Ah! see the virgin rose, how sweetly she Doth first peep forth with bashful modesty; That fairer seems the less ye see her may! Lo! see soon after how more bold and free