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Eftfoones his page drew to the castle gate,'

And with his iron flale at it let flie,
That all the warders it did fore amate,
The which ere-while spake fo reprochfully,
And made them ftoupe, that looked earst so hie.
Yet still he bet and bounft uppon the dore,
And thundred ftrokes thereon fo hideouflie,
That all the peece he shaked from the flore,
And filled all the house with feare and great uprore.
XXII.

With noise whereof the lady forth appeared

Uppon the castle-wall; and when she saw

The daungerous ftate in which fhe ftood, fhe feared The fad effect of her neare overthrow;

And gan intreat that iron man below

To cease his outrage, and him faire befought, Sith neither force of stones which they did throw, Nor powr of charms, which she against him wrought, Might otherwise prevaile, or make him cease for ought. XXIII.

But whenas yet she saw him to proceede,

Unmov'd with praiers or with piteous thought,
She ment him to corrupt with goodly meede;

And causde great fackes with endlesse riches fraught
Unto the battilment to be upbrought,

And powred forth over the castle wall,

That she might win some time, though dearly bought, Whileft he to gathering of the gold did fall;

But he was nothing mov'd nor tempted therewithall:

XXIV.

But still continu'd his affault the more,
And layd on load with his huge yron flaile,
That at the length he has yrent the dore,
And made way for his maifter to affaile:
Who being entred, nought did then availe
For wight against his powre themselves to reare:
Each one did flie; their hearts began to faile,
And hid themselves in corners here and there;

And eke their dame halfe dead did hide herself for feare.

XXV.

Long they her fought, yet no where could they finde her,
That fure they ween'd she was escapt away:

But Talus, that could like a lime-hound winde her,
And all things fecrete wifely could bewray,
At length found out whereas the hidden lay
Under an heape of gold: thence he her drew
By the faire lockes, and fowly did array
Withouten pitty of her goodly hew,

That Artegall himselfe her feemeleffe plight did rew.
XXVI.

Yet for no pitty would he change the course
Of iuftice, which in Talus hand did lye;
Who rudely hayld her forth without remorse,
Still holding up her suppliant hands on hye,
And kneeling at his feete fubmiffively:
But he her fuppliant hands, those hands of gold,
And eke her feete, those feete of filver trye,
Which fought unrighteousneffe, and iuftice fold,
Chopt off, and nayld on high, that all might them behold.
XXVII.

Herfelfe then tooke he by the sclender wast

In vaine loud crying, and into the flood
Over the castle wall adowne her cast,
And there her drowned in the dirty mud:
But the streame washt away her guilty blood.
Thereafter all that mucky pelfe he tooke,
The spoile of peoples evill gotten good,

The which her fire had scrap't by hooke and crooke,
And burning all to afhes powr'd it downe the brooke.

XXVIII. And

XXVIII.

And lastly all that caftle quite he raced,
Even from the fole of his foundation,
And all the hewen ftones thereof defaced,
That there mote be no hope of reparation,
Nor memory thereof to any nation.

All which when Talus throughly had perfourmed,
Sir Artegall undid the evil fashion,

And wicked cuftomes of that bridge refourmed:
Which done, unto his former iourney he retourned.
XXIX.

In which they measur'd mickle weary way,

Till that at length nigh to the fea they drew;
By which as they did travell on a day,
They faw before them, far as they could vew,
Full many people gathered in a crew;
Whofe great affembly they did much admire;
For never there the like resort they knew.
So towardes them they coafted, to enquire
What thing fo many nations met did there defire.
XXX.

There they beheld a mighty gyant stand
Upon a rocke, and holding forth on hie
An huge great paire of ballance in his hand,
With which he boafted in his furquedrie
That all the world he would weigh equallie,
If ought he had the fame to counterpoys:
For want whereof he weighed vanity,
And fild his ballaunce full of idle toys :
Yet was admired much of fooles, women, and boys
XXXI.

He fayd that he would all the earth uptake
And all the fea, divided each from either:
So would he of the fire one ballaunce make,
And one of th'ayre, without or wind or wether:
Then would he ballaunce heaven and hell together,
And all that did within them all containe;
Of all whose weight he would not misse a fether:
And looke what surplus did of each remaine,
He would to his owne part reftore the fame againe.

XXXII. For

XXXII.

For why? he fayd, they all unequall were,
And had encroched uppon others fhare;
Like as the fea (which plaine he shewed there)
Had worne the earth; fo did the fire the aire;
So all the reft did others parts empaire:
And fo were realmes and nations run awry.
All which he undertooke for to repaire,
In fort as they were formed aunciently;
And all things would reduce unto equality.
XXXIII.

Therefore the vulgar did about him flocke,
And cluster thicke unto his leafings vaine;
Like foolish flies about an hony-crocke;
In hope by him great benefite to gaine,
And uncontrolled freedome to obtaine.
All which when Artegall did fee and heare,
How he misled the fimple peoples traine,
In fdeingfull wize he drew unto him neare,
And thus unto him spake, without regard or feare
XXXIV.

Thou that prefum ft to weigh the world anew,

And all things to an equall to restore,
Instead of right me feemes great wrong doft shew,
And far above thy forces pitch to fore:
For ere thou limit what is leffe or more
In every thing thou oughteft first to know
What was the poyfe of every part of yore:
And looke then how much it doth overflow,
Or faile thereof, fo much is more then iuft I trow.
XXXV.

For at the first they all created were
In goodly measure by their makers might ;
And weighed out in ballaunces fo nere,
That not a dram was missing of their right:
The earth was in the middle centre pight,
In which it doth immoveable abide,
Hemd in with waters like a wall in fight,

And they with aire, that not a drop can flide:

A which the heavens containe, and in their courfes guide.

XXXVI, Such

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Thou foolifhe elfe, faid then the gyant wroth,
Seeft not how badly all things present bee,
And each eftate quite out of order goth?
The fea itfelfe doeft thou not plainely fee
Encroch uppon the land there under thee?
And th' earth itfelfe how daily its increaft
By all that dying to it turned be?

Were it not good that wrong were then furceaft,
And from the most that fome were given to the leaft?
XXXVIII.

Therefore I will throw downe thefe mountains bie,
And make them levell with the lowly plaine.
These towring rocks, which reach unto the skie,
I will thruft downe into the deepeft maine,
And as they were them equalize againe.
Tyrants, that make men fubiect to their law,
I will fuppreffe, that they no more may
raine ;
And lordings curbe that commons over-aw;
And all the wealth of rich men to the poore will draw.

XXXIX.

Of things unfeene bow canft thou deeme aright,
Then answered the righteous Artegall,
Sith thou misdeem'ft fo much of things in fight?
What though the fea with waves continuall
Doe eate the earth, it is no more at all;
Ne is the earth the leffe, or lofeth ought :
For whatsoever from one place doth fall
Is with the tide unto another brought :
For there is nothing loft, that may be found if fought.

XL. Like

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