Even all the nation of unfortunate
And fatall birds about them flocked were,
Such as by nature men abhorre and hate;
The ill-faste owle, death's dreadfull messengere;
The hoars night-raven, trump of dolefull drere;
The lether-winged batt, daye's enemy;
The ruefull strich, still waiting on the bere;
The whistler shrill, that whoso heares doth dy;
The hellish harpyes, prophets of sad destiny:
XXXVII.
All those, and all that els does horror breed,
About them flew, and fild their sayles with feare:
Yet stayd they not, but forward did proceed,
Whiles th' one did row, and th' other stifly steare;
Till that at last the weather gan to cleare,
And the faire land itselfe did playnly show.
Said then the palmer, "Lo where does appeare
"The sacred soile where all our perills grow,
"Therefore, Sir Knight, your ready arms about
XXXVIII. [you throw."
He hearkned, and his armes about him tooke,
The whiles the nimble bote so well her sped,
That with her crooked keele the land she strooke;
Then forth the noble Guyon sallied,
And his sage 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 assay,
With constancyand care, gainst daunger and dismay.
Ere long they heard an hideous bellowing
Of many beasts, that roard outrageously,
As if that Hunger's poynt, or Venus' sting,
Had them enraged with fell surquedry;
Yet nought they feard, but past on hardily,
Untill they came in vew of those wilde beasts,
Who all attonce, gaping full greedily,
And rearing fercely their upstaring crests,
Ran towards to devoure those unexpected guests.
XL.
But soone as they approcht with deadly threat,
The palmer over them his staffe upheld,
His mighty staffe, that could all charmes defeat ;
Eftesoones their stubborne corages were queld,
And high-advaunced crests downe meekely feld:
Instead of fraying they themselves did feare,
And trembled, as them passing they heheld;
Such wondrous powre did in that staffe appeare,
All monsters to subdew to him that did it beare.
XLI.
Of that same wood it fram'd was cunningly
Of which Caduceus whilome 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 asswage,
And Orcus tame, whome nothing can perswade,
And rule the furyes when they most doe rage:
Such vertue in his staffe had eke this palmer sage.
Thence passing forth, they shortly doe arryve
Whereat the Bowre of Blisse was situate,
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 sweete and pleasing unto living sense,
Or that may dayntest fantasy aggrate,
Was poured forth with plentifull dispence,
And made there to abound with lavish affluence.
XLIII.
Goodly it was enclosed rownd about,
As well their entred guestes to keep within,
As those unruly beasts to hold without;
Yet was the fence thereof but weake and thin;
Nought feard they force that fortilage to win,
But Wisedome's powre and Temperaunce's might,
By which the mightiest things efforced bin ;
And eke the gate was wrought of substaunce light,
Rather for pleasure then for battery or fight.
XLIV.
Yt framed was of precious yvory,
That seemd a worke of admirable witt,
And therein all the famous history
Of Iason and Medea was ywritt;
Her mighty charmes, her furious loving fitt,
His goodly conquest of the Golden Fleece,
His falsed fayth, and love too lightly flitt,
The wondred Argo, which in venturous pecce
First through the Euxine seas bore all the flowr of
Greece.
Ye might have seene the frothy billowes fry
Under the ship, as thorough them she went,
That seemd the waves were into yvory,
Or yvory into the waves, were sent ;
And otherwhere the snowy substaunce sprent
With vermell, like the boyes blood therein shed,
A piteous spectacle did
And otherwhiles with gold besprinkeled,
Yt seemd th' enchaunted flame which did Creusa
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 sate
A comely personage of stature tall,
And semblaunce pleasing, more than naturall,
That traveilers to him seemd to entize;
His looser garment to the ground did fall,
And flew about his heeles in wanton wize,
Not fit for speedy pace or manly exercize.
XLVII.
They in that place him Genius did call;
Not that celestiall powre to whom the care
Of life, and generation of all
That lives, perteines in charge particulare,
Who wondrous things concerning our welfare, And straunge phantomes, doth lett us ofte foresee, And ofte of secret ills bids us beware,
That is ourselfe, whom though we do not see, Yet each doth in himselfe it well perceive to bee:
Therefore a god him sage Antiquity
Did wisely make, and good Agdistes call;
But this same was to that quite contary,
The foe of life, that good envyes to all,
That secretly doth us procure to fall
Through guilefull semblants, which he makes us see ;
He of this gardin had the governall,
And Pleasure's porter was devizd to bee,
Holding a staffe in hand for more formalitee.
With diverse flowres he daintily was deckt
And strowed rownd about, and by his side
A mighty mazer bowle of wine was sett,
As if it had to him bene sacrifide,
Wherewith all new-come guests he gratyfide;
So did he eke Sir Guyon passing by;
But he his ydle curtesy defide,
And overthrew his bowle disdainfully, [blants sly. And broke his staffe, with which he charged semL.
Thus being entred, they behold arownd
A large and spacious plaine on every side
Strowed with pleasauns: whose fayre grassy grownd
Mantled with greene, and goodly beautifide
With all the ornaments of Floraes pride,
Wherewith her mother Art (as halfe in scorne
Of niggard Nature) like a pompous bride
Did decke her, and too lavishly adorne, [morne.
When forth from virgin bowre she comes in th'early
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