The Faerie Queene · Book II · Canto 2 3 (2/2)

To whom he thus: “O fairest under skie!

Trew be thy words, and worthie of thy praise,

That warlike feats doest highest glorifie.

Therein I have spent all my youthly daies,

And many battailes fought and many fraies

Throughout the world, wher-so they might be found,

Endevoring my dreaded name to raise

Above the Moone, that fame may it resound

In her eternall tromp, with laurell girlond cround.

“But what art thou, O Lady! which doest raunge

In this wilde forest, where no pleasure is,

And doest not it for joyous court exchaunge,

Emongst thine equall peres, where happy blis

And all delight does raigne, much more then this?

There thou maist love, and dearly loved be,

And swim in pleasure, which thou here doest mis:

There maist thou best be seene, and best maist see:

The wood is fit for beasts, the court is fitt for thee.”

“Whoso in pompe of prowd estate” (quoth she)

“Does swim, and bathes him selfe in courtly blis,

Does waste his dayes in darke obscuritee,

And in oblivion ever buried is;

Where ease abownds yt’s eath to doe amis:

But who his limbs with labours, and his mynd

Behaves with cares, cannot so easy mis.

Abroad in armes, at home in studious kynd,

Who seekes with painfull toile shall honor soonest find:

“In woods, in waves, in warres, she wonts to dwell,

And wil be found with perill and with paine;

Ne can the man that moulds in ydle cell

Unto her happy mansion attaine:

Before her gate high God did Sweate ordaine,

And wakefull watches ever to abide;

But easy is the way and passage plaine

To pleasures pallace: it may soone be spide,

And day and night her dores to all stand open wide.

“In Princes court”⁠—The rest she would have sayd,

But that the foolish man, fild with delight

Or her sweete words that all his sence dismayd,

And with her wondrous beauty ravisht quight,

Gan burne in filthy lust; and, leaping light,

Thought in his bastard armes her to embrace.

With that she, swarving backe, her Javelin bright

Against him bent, and fiercely did menace:

So turned her about, and fled away apace.

Which when the Pesaunt saw, amazd he stood,

And grieved at her flight; yet durst he nott

Pursew her steps through wild unknowen wood:

Besides he feard her wrath, and threatned shott,

Whiles in the bush he lay, not yett forgott:

Ne car’d he greatly for her presence vayne,

But turning said to Trompart; “What fowle blott

Is this to knight, that Lady should agayne

Depart to woods untoucht, and leave so proud disdayne.”

“Perdy,” (said Trompart) “lett her pas at will,

Least by her presence daunger mote befall;

For who can tell (and sure I feare it ill)

But that shee is some powre celestiall?

For whiles she spake her great words did appall

My feeble corage, and my heart oppresse,

That yet I quake and tremble over-all.”

“And I,” (said Braggadocchio) “thought no lesse,

When first I heard her horn sound with such ghastlinesse,

“For from my mothers wombe this grace I have

Me given by eternall destiny,

That earthly thing may not my corage brave

Dismay with feare, or cause one foot to flye,

But either hellish feends, or powres on hye:

Which was the cause, when earst that horne I heard,

Weening it had beene thunder in the skye,

I hid my selfe from it, as one affeard;

But, when I other knew, my self I boldly reard.

“But now, for feare of worse that may betide,

Let us soone hence depart.” They soone agree:

So to his steed he gott, and gan to ride

As one unfitt therefore, that all might see

He had not trayned bene in chevalree.

Which well that valiaunt courser did discerne;

For he despisd to tread in dew degree,

But chaufd and fom’d with corage fiers and sterne,

And to be easd of that base burden still did erne.