The whyles sir Artegall with that old knight
Did forth descend, there being none them neare,
And forward marched to a towne in sight.
By this came tydings to the tyrants eare,
By those which earst did fly away for feare,
Of their arrivall: wherewith troubled sore
He all his forces streight to him did reare,
And, forth issuing with his scouts afore, [shore:
Meant them to have incountred ere they left the

But ere he marched farre he with them met,
And fiercely charged them with all his force;
But Talus sternely did upon them set,
And brusht and battred them without remorse,
That on the ground he left full many a corse;
Ne any able was him to withstand,
But he them overthrew both man and horse,
That they lay scattred over all the land,

As thicke as doth the seede after the sowers hand:

Till Artegall him seeing so to rage

Willd him to stay, and signe of truce did make:
To which all harkning did awhile asswage
Their forces furie, and their terror slake;
Till he an herauld cald, and to him spake,
Willing him wend unto the tyrant streight,
And tell him that not for such slaughters sake
He thether came, but for to trie the right
Of fayre Irenaes cause with him in single fight:

And willed him for to reclayme with speed
His scattred people, ere they all were slaine;
And time and place convenient to areed,
In which they two the combat might darraine,
Which message when Grantorto heard, full fayne
And glad he was the slaughter so to stay;
And pointed for the combat twixt them twayne
The morrow next, ne gave him longer day:
So sounded the retraite, and drew his folke away.

Like as a tender rose in open plaine,
That with untimely drought nigh withered was,
And hung the head, soone as few drops of raine
Thereon distill and deaw her daintie face,
Gins to look up, and with fresh wonted grace
Dispreds the glorie of her leaves gay;
Such was Irenas countenance, such her case,
When Artegall she saw in that array,
There wayting for the tyrant till it was farre day:

Who came at length with proud presumpteous gate Into the field, as if he fearelesse were,

All armed in a cote of yron plate

Of great defence to ward the deadly feare,
And on his head a steele-cap he did weare
Of colour rustie-browne, but sure and strong;
And in his hand an huge polaxe did beare,
Whose steale was yron-studded, but not long,
With which he wont to fight, to justifie his wrong:

Of stature huge and hideous he was,
Like to a giant for his monstrous hight,
And did in strength most sorts of men surpas,
Ne ever any found his match in might;
Thereto he had great skill in single fight:
His face was ugly and his countenance sterne,
That could have frayd one with the very sight,
And gaped like a gulfe when he did gerne ;
That whether man or monster one could scarse dis-

cerne.

Soone as he did within the listes appeare,
With dreadfull looke he Artegall beheld,
As if he would have daunted him with feare;
And, grinning griesly, did against him weld
His deadly weapon which in hand he held:
But th' Elfin swayne, that oft had seene like sight,
Was with his ghastly count'nance nothing queld:
But gan him streight to buckle to the fight,
And cast his shield about to be in readie plight.

The trompets sound; and they together goe
With dreadfull terror and with fell intent;
And their huge strokes full dangerously bestow,
To doe most dammage whereas most they ment:
But with such force and furie violent
The tyrant thundred his thicke blowes so fast,
That through the yron walles their way they rent,
And even to the vitall parts they past, [brast.
Ne ought could them endure, but all they cleft or

Which cruell outrage whenas Artegall
Did well avize, thenceforth with warie heed
He shund his strokes, where-ever they did fall,
And way did give unto their gracelesse speed:
As when a skilfull marriner doth reed
A storme approching that doth perill threat,
He will not bide the daunger of such dread,
But strikes his sayles, and vereth his main-sheat,
And lends unto it leave the emptie ayre to beat.

But, ere he coulde reforme it thoroughly,
He through occasion called was away
To Faerie court, that of necessity
His course of justice he was forst to stay,
And Talus to revoke from the right way,
In which he was that realme for to redresse:
But envies cloud still dimmeth vertues ray!
So, having freed Irena from distresse,

He tooke his leave of her there left in heavinesse.

Tho, as he backe returned from that land,
And there arriv'd againe whence forth he set,
He had not passed farre upon the strand,
Whenas two old ill-favour'd hags he met,
By the way-side being together set,

Two griesly creatures; and, to that their faces
Most foule and filthie were, their garments yet,
Being all rag'd and tatter'd, their disgraces [cases.
Did much the more augment, and made most ugly
The one of them, that elder did appeare,
With her dull eyes did seeme to looke askew,
That her mis-shape much helpt: and her foule heare
Hung loose and loathsomely; thereto her hew
Was wan and leane, that all her teeth arew
And all her bones might through her cheekes be red;
Her lips were, like raw lether, pale and blew
And as she spake, therewith she slavered; [she sed:
Yet spake she seldom: but thought more, the lesse

Her hands were foule and durtie, never washt
In all her life, with long nayles over-raught,
Like puttocks clawes; with th' one of which she
scratcht

Her cursed head, although it itched naught;
The other held a snake with venime fraught,
On which she fed and gnawed hungrily,
As if that long she had not eaten ought;
That round about her iawes one might descry
The bloudic gore and poyson dropping lothsomely.

Her name was Envie, knowen well thereby;
Whose nature is to grieve and grudge at all
That ever she sees doen prays-worthily;
Whose sight to her is greatest crosse may fall,
And vexeth so, that makes her eat her gall:
For, when she wanteth other thing to eat,
She feedes on her owne maw unnaturall,
And of her owne foule entrayles makes her meat;
Meat fit for such a monsters monsterous dyeat:

And if she hapt of any good to heare,
That had to any happily betid,

Then would she inly fret, and grieve, and teare

Her flesh for felnesse, which she inward hid; But if she heard of ill that any did,

Or harme that any had, then would she make
Great cheare, like one unto a banquet bid;
And in anothers losse great pleasure take,
As she had got thereby and gayned a great stake.

The other nothing better was then shee;
Agreeing in bad will and cancred kynd,
But in bad maner they did disagree:
For whatso Envie good or bad did fynd
She did conceale, and murder her owne mynd;
But this, whatever evill she conceived,
Did spred abroad and throw in th' open wynd:
Yet this in all her words might be perceived,
That all she sought was mens good name to have
bereaved.

For, whatsoever good by any sayd

Or doen she heard, she would streightwayes invent
How to deprave or slaunderously upbrayd,
Or to misconstrue of a mans intent,

And turne to ill the thing that well was ment:
Therefore she used often to resort

To common haunts, and companies frequent,
To hearke what any one did good report,

Then from her mouth the gobbet she does take,
The which whyleare she was so greedily
Devouring, even that halfe-gnawen snake,
And at him throws it most despightfully:
The cursed serpent, though she hungrily
Earst chawd thereon, yet was not all so dead,
But that some life remayned secretly;
And, as he past afore withouten dread,

sort:

And if that any ill she heard of any,

She would it eeke, and make much worse by telling,
And take great ioy to publish it to many;
That every matter worse was for her melling:
Her name was hight Detraction, and her dwelling
Was neare to Envie, even her neighbour next;
A wicked hag, and Envy selfe excelling
In mischiefe; for herselfe she only vext:

But this same both herselfe and others eke perplext.

Her face was ugly, and her mouth distort,
Foming with poyson round about her gils,
In which her cursed tongue full sharpe and short
Appear'd like aspis sting, that closely kils,
Or cruelly does wound whomso she wils:
A distaffe in her other band she had,
Upon the which she litle spinnes, but spils;
And faynes to weave false tales and leasings bad,
To throw amongst the good, which others had dis-
prad.

These two now had themselves combynd in one,
And linckt together gainst sir Artegall;
For whom they wayted as his mortall fone,
How they might make him into mischiefe fall,
For freeing from their snares Irena thrall:
Besides, unto themselves they gotten had
A monster, which the Blatant Beast men call,
A dreadfull feend of gods and men ydrad, [lad.
Whom they by slights allur'd and to their purpose

Such were these bags, and so unhandsome drest:
Who when they nigh approching had espyde
Sir Artegall return'd from his late quest,
They both arose, and at him loudly cryde,
As it had bene two shepheards curres had scryde
A ravenous wolfe amongst the scattered flockes:
And Envie first, as she that first him eyde,
Towardes him runs, and with rude flaring lockes
About her eares does beat her brest and forhead
knockes.

Then th' other comming neare gan him revile,
And fouly rayle, with all she could invent;
Saying that he had, with unmanly guile
And foule abusion, both his honour bient,
And that bright sword, the sword of Iustice lent,
| Had stayned with reprochfull crueltie
In guiltlesse blood of many an innocent:
As for Grandtorto, him with treacherie
And traynes having surpriz'd he fouly did to die.
Thereto the Blatant Beast, by them set on,
At him began aloud to barke and bay
With bitter rage and fell contention;
That all the woods and rockes nigh to that way
Began to quake and tremble with disınay;
And all the aire rebellowed againe;

So dreadfully his hundred tongues did bray:
And evermore those hags themselves did paine
To sharpen him, and their owne cursed tongs did
straine.

And, still among, most bitter wordes they spake,
Most shamefull, most unrighteous, most untrew,
That they the mildest man alive would make
Forget his patience, and yeeld vengeaunce dew
To her, that so false sclaunders at him threw:
And more, to make them pierce and wound more
deepe,

She with the sting which in her vile tongue grew
Did sharpen them, and in fresh poyson steepe:
Yet he past on, and seem'd of them to take no keepe

But Talus, hearing her so lewdly raile
And speake so ill of him that well deserved,
Would her have chástiz'd with his yron flaile,
If her sir Artegall had not preserved,
And him forbidden, who his heast observed
So much the more at him still did she scold,
And stones did cast; yet he for nought would swerve
From his right course, but still the way did hold
To Faerie court; where what him fell shall else be
told.

OF

285

In this delightfull land of Faery,

Are so exceeding spacious and wyde,
And sprinckled with such sweet variety
Of all that pleasant is to eare or eye,

That I, nigh ravisht with rare thoughts delight,

My tedious travell doe forget thereby;

And, when I gin to feele decay of might,

Of which though present age doe plenteous seeme, Yet, being matcht with plaine antiquitie,

Ye will them all but fayned showes esteeme, Which carry colours faire that feeble eies misdeeme:

Such secret comfort and such heavenly pleasures,
Ye sacred imps, that on Parnasso dwell,

And there the keeping have of learnings threasures
Which doe all worldly riches farre excell,
Into the mindes of mortall men doe well,
And goodly fury into them infuse;
Guyde ye my footing, and conduct me well
In these strange waies where never foote did use,
Ne none can find but who was taught them by the
Muse:

Revele to me the sacred noursery

Of vertue, which with you doth there remaine,
Where it in silver bowre does hidden ly
From view of men and wicked worlds disdaine;
Since it at first was by the gods with paine
Planted in earth, being deriv'd at furst
From heavenly seedes of bounty soveraine,
And by them long with carefull labour nurst,
Till it to ripenesse grew, and forth to honour burst.

Amongst them all growes not a fayrer flowre Then is the bloosme of comely courtesie; Which though it on a lowly stalke doe bowre, Yet brancheth forth in brave nobilitie,

Fashion'd to please the eies of them that pas,
Which see not perfect things but in a glas:
Yet is that glasse so gay that it can blynd
The wisest sight, to thinke gold that is bras:
But vertues seat is deepe within the mynd,
And not in outward shows but inward thoughts
defynd.

But where shall I in all antiquity

So faire a patterne finde, where may be seene
The goodly praise of princely curtesie,
As in yourselfe, O soveraine lady queene?
In whose pure minde, as in a mirrour sheene,
It showes, and with her brightnesse doth inflame
The eyes of all which thereon fixed beene;
But meriteth indeede an higher name:
Yet so, from low to high, uplifted is your name.

Then pardon me, most dreaded soveraine,
That from yourselfe I doe this vertue bring,
And to yourselfe doe it returne againe:
So from the ocean all rivers spring,
And tribute backe repay as to their king:
Right so from you all goodly vertues well
Into the rest which round about you ring,
Faire lords and ladies which about you dwell,
And doe adorne your court where courtesies excell.

CANTO I.

Calidore saves from Maleffort

A damzell used vylde:

Doth vanquish Crudor; and doth make Briana wexe more mylde.

Of court, it seemes, men courtesie doe call,
For that it there most useth to abound;
And well beseemeth that in princes hall
That vertue should be plentifully found,
Which of all goodly manners is the ground,
And roote of civill conversation:
Right so in Faery court it did redound,
Where curteous knights and ladies most did won
Of all on Earth, and made a matchlesse paragon.

[knight

But mongst them all was none more courteous
Then Calidore, beloved over all:
In whom it seemes that gentlenesse of spright
And manners mylde were planted naturall;
To which he adding comely guize withall
And gracious speach, did steale mens hearts away:
Nathlesse thereto he was full stout and tall,
And well approv'd in batteilous affray, [play.
That him did much renowme, and far his fame dis-
Ne was there knight ne was there lady found
In Faery court, but him did deare embrace
For his faire usage and conditions sound,
The which in all mens liking gayned place,
And with the greatest purchast greatest grace;
Which he could wisely use, and well apply,
To please the best, and th' evill to embase:
For he loathd leasing and base flattery,
And loved simple truth and stedfast honesty.

And now he was in travell on his way,
Uppon an hard adventure sore bestad,
Whenas by chaunce he met uppon a day
With Artegall, returning yet halfe sad
From his late conquest which he gotten had :
Who whenas each of other had a sight,
They knew themselves, and both their persons rad:
When Calidore thus first; "Haile, noblest knight
Of all this day on ground that breathen living
spright!

"Now tell, if please you, of the good successe
Which ye have had in your late enterprize."
To whom sir Artegall gan to expresse
His whole exploite and valorous emprize,
In order as it did to him arize.

"Now, happy man," said then sir Calidore,
"Which have, so goodly as ye can devize,
Atchiev'd so hard a quest, as few before;
That shall you most renowmed make for evermore.

"But where yc ended have, now I begin
To tread an endlesse trace; withouten guyde
Or good direction how to enter in,
Or how to issue forth in waies untryde,
In perils strange, in labours long and wide;
In which although good fortune me befall,
Yet shall it not by none be testifyde."
"What is that quest," quoth then sir Artegall,

That you into such perils presently doth call?"

"The Blattant Beast," quoth he, "I doe pursew, And through the world incessantly doe chase, Till I him overtake, or else subdew:

Yet know I not or how or in what place To find him out, yet still I forward trace." "What is that Blattant Beast then?" he replide; "Is it a monster bred of hellishe race,"

Then answered he, "which often hath annoyd Good knights and ladies true, and many else destroyd.

"Of Cerberus whilome he was begot
And fell Chimæra, in her darkesome den,
Through fowle commixture of his filthy blot;
Where he was fostred long in Stygian fen,
Till he to perfect ripenesse grew; and then
Into this wicked world he forth was sent

To be the plague and scourge of wretched men :
Whom with vile tongue and venemous intent
He sore doth wound, and bite, and cruelly tor-
ment."

"Then, since the Salvage Island I did leave,"
Sayd Artegall, "I such a beast did see,
The which did seeme a thousand tongues to have,
That all in spight and malice did agree,
With which he bayd and loudly barkt at mee,
As if that he attonce would me devoure:
But I, that knew myselfe from perill free,
Did nought regard his malice nor his powre;
But he the more his wicked poyson forth did poure."
"That surely is that beast," saide Calidore,
"Which I pursue, of whom I am right glad
To heare these tidings which of none afore
Through all my weary travell I have had :
Yet now some hope your words unto me add."
"Now God you speed," quoth then sir Artegall,
"And keepe your body from the daunger drad;
For ye have much adoe to deale withal!!"
So both tooke goodly leave, and parted severall.

Sir Calidore thence travelled not long,
Whenas by chaunce a comely squire he found,
That thorough some more mighty enemies wrong
Both hand and foote unto a tree was bound;
Who, seeing him from farre, with piteous sound
Of his shrill cries him called to his aide:
To whom approching, in that painefull stound
When he him saw, for no demaunds he staide,
But first him losde, and afterwards thus to him said;

Unhappy squire, what hard mishap thee brought
Into this bay of perill and disgrace?
What cruell hand thy wretched thraldome wrought,
And thee captyved in this shamefull place?"
To whom he answered thus; "My haplesse case
Is not occasiond through my misdesert,
But through misfortune, which did me abase
Unto this shame, and my young hope subvert,
Ere that I in her guilefull traines was well expert.
"Not farre from hence, uppon yond rocky hill,
Hard by a streight there stands a castle strong,
Which doth observe a custome lewd and ill,
And it hath long mayntaind with mighty wrong:
For may no knight nor lady passe along
That way, (and yet they needs must passe that way,
By reason of the streight, and rocks among,)
But they that ladies lockes doe shave away,
And that knights beard, for toll which they for pas
sage pay."