Likewife the earth is not augmented more
By all that dying into it doe fade;
For of the earth they formed were of yore:
However gay their blossome or their blade
Doe flourish now, they into duft fhall vade.
What wrong then is it if that when they die
They turne to that whereof they first were made?
All in the poure of their great Maker lie:
All creatures must obey the voice of the moft Hie.
XLI.
They live, they die, like as he doth ordaine,
Ne ever any asketh reason why.
The bils doe not the lowly dales difdaine;
The dales doe not the lofty hils envy.
He maketh kings to fit in foverainty;
He maketh fubiects to their powre obay ;
He pulleth downe, he fetteth up on by;
He gives to this, from that he takes away :
For all we have is bis: what he lift doe, he may.
XLII.
Whatever thing is done, by him is donne,
any may bis mighty will withstand;
Ne any may
bis foveraine power shonne,
Ne loofe that he hath bound with fedfaft band:
In vaine therefore doeft thou now take in band
To call to count, or weigh his workes anew,
Whofe counfels depth thou canst not understand;
Sith of things fubiect to thy daily vew
Thou doeft not know the caufes nor their courses dew.
XLIII.
For take thy ballaunce, if thou be fo wife,
And weigh the winde that under heaven doth blow;
Or weigh the light that in the east doth rife;
Or weigh the thought that from mans mind doth flow:
But if the weight of these thou canst not show,
Weigh but one word which from thy lips doth fall:
For how canft thou thofe greater fecrets know,
That doeft not know the least thing of them all?
Ill can be rule the great that cannot reach the fmall.
VOL. II.
Therewith the gyant much abashed sayd
That he of little things made reckoning light;
Yet the least word that ever could be layd
Within his ballaunce, he could way aright.
Which is, fayd he, more heavy then in weight,
The right or wrong, the false or else the trew?
He answered that he would try it streight :
So he the words into his ballaunce threw
But streight the winged words out of his ballaunce flew.
XLV.
Wroth wext he then, and fayd that words were light,
Ne would within his ballaunce well abide :
But he could iuftly weigh the wrong or right.
Well then, fayd Artegall, let it be tride:
First in one ballance fet the true afide.
He did fo first, and then the false he layd
In th'other scale; but ftill it downe did flide,
And by no meane could in the weight be stayd:
For by no meanes the falfe will with the truth be wayd.
XLVI.
Now take the right likewife, fayd Artegale,
And counterpeife the fame with fo much wrong.
So first the right he put into one scale;
And then the gyant ftrove with puiffance strong
To fill the other fcale with fo much wrong:
But all the wrongs that he therein could lay
Might not it peife; yet did he labour long,
And fwat, and chauf'd, and proved every way:
Yet all the wrongs could not a litle right downe way.
XLVII.
in
Which when he faw, he greatly grew rage,
And almoft would his balances have broken:
But Artegall him fairely gan affwage,
And said, Be not upon thy balance wroken ;
For they do nought but right or wrong betoken;
But in the mind the doome of right must bee :
And fo likewife of words, the which be spoken,
The care must be the ballance, to decree
And iudge, whether with truth or falfhood they agree.
But fet the truth and fet the right afide,
For they with wrong or falfhood will not fare,
And put two wrongs together to be tride,
Or elfe two falfes, of each equal share,
And then together doe them both compare :
For truth is one, and right is ever one.
So did he; and then plaine it did appeare,
Whether of them the greater were attone :
But right fat in the middeft of the beame alone.
XLIX.
But he the right from thence did thrust away;
For it was not the right which he did feeke:
But rather strove extremities to way,
Th'one to diminish, th'other for to eeke:
For of the meane he greatly did misleeke.
Whom when fo lewdly minded Talus found,
Approching nigh unto him cheeke by cheeke
He fhouldered him from off the higher ground,
And down the rock him throwing in the sea him dround.
Like as a ship, whom cruell tempest drives
Upon a rocke with horrible dismay,
Her fhattered ribs in thousand peeces rives,
And spoyling all her geares and goodly ray
Does makes herselfe misfortunes piteous pray.
So downe the cliffe the wretched
gyant tumbled ;
His battred ballances in peeces lay,
His timbered bones all broken rudely rumbled:
So was the high-aspyring with huge ruine humbled.
That when the people, which had there about
Long wayted, faw his fudden defolation,
They gan to gather in tumultuous rout,
And mutining to ftirre up civill faction
For certaine loffe of fo great expectation:
For well they hoped to have got great good,
And wondrous riches by his innovation :
Therefore refolving to revenge his blood
They rofe in armes, and all in battell order stood.
Which lawleffe multitude him comming to
In warlike wife when Artegall did vew,
He much was troubled, ne wift what to do:
For loth he was his noble hands t'embrew
In the base blood of fuch a rafcall crew;
And otherwise, if that he should retire,
He fear'd least they with shame would him pursew:
Therefore he Talus to them fent t'inquire
The cause of their array, and truce for to defire.
But foone as they him nigh approching fpide,
They gan with all their weapons him affay,
And rudely stroke at him on every fide;
Yet nought they could him hurt, ne ought dismay:
But when at them he with his flaile gan lay,
He like a fwarm of flyes them overthrew :
Ne any of them durft come in his way,
But here and there before his presence flew,
And hid themselves in holes and bushes from his vew.
As when a faulcon hath with nimble flight
Flowne at a flush of ducks foreby the brooke,
The trembling foule dismayd with dreadfull fight
Of death, the which them almost overtooke,
Doe hide themselves from her aftonying looke
Amongst the flags and covert round about.
When Talus faw they all the field forfooke,
And none appear'd of all that raskall rout,
To Artegall he turn'd and went with him throughout.
The Spousals of faire Florimell,
Where turney many knights:
There Braggadochio is uncas'd
In all the ladies fights.
FTER long stormes and tempefts over-blowne
The funne at length his ioyous face doth cleare:
So whenas fortune all her spight hath showne,
Some blisfull houres at last must needes appeare;
Else should afflicted wights oft-times defpeire.
So comes it now to Florimell by tourne,
After long forrowes fuffered whyleare,
In which captiv'd she many moneths did mourne,
To taft of ioy, and to wont pleasures to retourne:
Who being freed from Proteus cruell band
By Marinell was unto him affide,
And by him brought againe to faerie land
Where he her spous'd, and made his ioyous bride.
The time and place was blazed farre and wide,
And folemne feaftes and giufts ordain'd therefore:
To which there did refort from every fide
Of lords and ladies infinite great store;
Ne any knight was absent that brave courage bore.
III.
To tell the glorie of the feast that day,
The goodly service, the devicefull fights,
The bridegromes state, the brides most rich
The pride of ladies, and the worth of knights,
The royall banquets, and the rare delights,
Were worke fit for an herauld, not for me ::
But for fo much as to my lot here lights,
That with this present treatise doth agree,
True vertue to advance, fhall here recounted bee
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