"She often prayd, and often me besought,
Sometime with tender teares to let her goe,
Sometime with witching smyles: but yet, for nought
That ever she to me could say or doe,
Could she her wished freedome fro me wooe;
But forth I led her through the Temple gate,
By which I hardly past with much adoe:
But that same Ladie, which me friended late
In entrance, did me also friend in
my retrate.
"No lesse did Daunger threaten me with dread,
Whenas he saw me, maugre all his powre,
That glorious spoyle of Beautie with me lead,
Then Cerberus, when Orpheus did recoure
His Leman from the Stygian princes boure.
But evermore my Shield did me defend
Against the storme of every dreadfull stoure:
Thus safely with my Love I thence did wend."
So ended he his Tale; where I this Canto end.
Marinells former wound is heald;
He comes to Proteus hall,
Where Thames doth the Medway wedd,
And feasts the sea-gods all.
BUT ah! for pittie that I have thus long
Left a fayre Ladie languishing in payne!
Now well away! that I have doen such wrong,
To let faire Florimell in bands remayne,
In bands of love, and in sad thraldomes chayne;
From which unlesse some heavenly powre her free
By miracle, not yet appearing playne,
She lenger yet is like captív'd to bee;
That even to thinke thereof it inly pitties mee.
Here neede you to remember, how erewhile
Unlovely Proteus, missing to his mind
That Virgins love to win by wit or wile,
Her threw into a dongeon deepe and blind,
And there in chaynes her cruelly did bind,
In hope thereby her to his bent to draw:
For, whenas neither gifts nor graces kind
Her constant mind could move at all he saw,
He thought her to compell by crueltie and awe.
Deepe in the bottome of an huge great rocke
The dongeon was, in which her bound he left,
That neither yron barres, nor brasen locke,
Did neede to gard from force or secret theft
Of all her lovers which would her have reft:
For wall'd it was with waves, which rag'd and ror'd
As they the cliffe in peeces would have cleft;
Besides, ten thousand monsters foule abhor'd
Did waite about it, gaping griesly, all begor'd.
And in the midst thereof did Horror dwell,
And Darkenesse dredd that never viewed day,
Like to the balefull house of lowest hell,
In which old Styx her aged bones alway
(Old Styx the grandame of the gods) doth lay.
There did this lucklesse Mayd seven months abide,
Ne ever evening saw, ne mornings ray,
Ne ever from the day the night descride,
But thought it all one night, that did no houres
divide.
And all this was for love of Marinell,
Who her despysd (ah! who would her despyse!)
And wemens love did from his hart expell,
And all those ioyes that weake mankind entyse.
Nathlesse his pride full dearely he did pryse;
For of a womans hand it was ywroke,
That of the wound he yet in languor lyes,
Ne can be cured of that cruell stroke
Which Britomart him gave, when he did her provoke.
Yet farre and neare the Nymph his mother sought,
And many salves did to his sore applie,
And many herbes did use: But whenas nought
She saw could ease his rankling maladie ;
At last to Tryphon she for helpe did hie,
(This Tryphon is the sea-gods surgeon hight,)
Whom she besought to find some remedie:
And for his paines a whistle him behight,
That of a fishes shell was wrought with rare delight.
So well that leach did hearke to her request,
And did so well employ his carefull paine,
That in short space his hurts he had redrest,
And him restor❜d to healthfull state againe :
In which he long time after did remaine
There with the Nymph his mother, like her thrall;
Who sore against his will did him retaine,
For feare of perill which to him mote fall
Through his too ventrous prowesse proved over all.
It fortun'd then, a solemne Feast was there
To all the sea-gods and their fruitfull seede,
In honour of the Spousalls which then were
Betwixt the Medway and the Thames agreed.
Long had the Thames (as we in records reed)
Before that day her wooed to his bed;
But the proud Nymph would for no worldly meed,
Nor no entreatie, to his love be led;
Till now at last relenting she to him was wed.
So both agreed that this their Bridale Feast
Should for the gods in Proteus house be made ;
To which they all repayr'd, but most and least,
As well which in the mightie ocean trade,
As that in rivers swim, or brookes doe wade:
All which, not if an hundred tongues to tell,
And hundred mouthes, and voice of brasse I had,
And endlesse memorie that mote excell,
In order as they came could I recount them well.
Helpe therefore, O thou sacred Impe of Iove,
The noursling of dame Memorie his Deare,
To whom those rolles, layd up in heaven above,
And records of antiquitie appeare,
To which no wit of man may comen neare;
Helpe me to tell the names of all those Floods
And all those Nymphes, which then assembled
To that great Banquet of the watry gods,
And all their sundry kinds, and all their hid abodes.
First came great Neptune, with his three-forkt mace,
That rules the seas and makes them rise or fall;
His dewy lockes did drop with brine apace
Under his diademe imperiall:
And by his side his Queene with coronall,
Faire Amphitrite, most divinely faire,
Whose yvorie shoulders weren covered all,
As with a robe, with her owne silver haire,
And deckt with pearles which th' Indian seas for
her prepaire.
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