4 Soone after comes the cruell Sarazin,
In woven maile all armed warily;

And sternly lookes at him, who not a pin
Does care for looke of living creatures eye.
They bring them wines of Greece and Araby,
And daintie spices fetcht from furthest Ynd,
To kindle heat of courage privily;

And in the wine a solemne oth they bynd
T'observe the sacred lawes of armes, that are assynd.

5 At last forth comes that far renowmed Queene, With royall pomp and princely majestie;

She is ybrought unto a paled greene,

And placed under stately canapee,

The warlike feates of both those knights to see.
On th' other side in all mens open vew

Duessa placed is, and on a tree

Sansfoy his shield is hangd with bloudy hew:
Both those the lawrell girlonds to the victor dew.

6 A shrilling trompet sownded from on hye,
And unto battaill bad themselves addresse:

Their shining shieldes about their wrestes they tye,
And burning blades about their heades doe blesse,
The instruments of wrath and heavinesse :
With greedy force each other doth assayle,

And strike so fiercely, that they do impresse

Deepe dinted furrowes in the battred mayle:

The yron walles to ward their blowes are weak and fraile.

7 The Sarazin was stout and wondrous strong,
And heaped blowes like yron hammers great;
For after bloud and vengeance he did long.
The knight was fiers, and full of youthly heat,
And doubled strokes, like dreaded thunders threat:
For all for praise and honour he did fight.

Both stricken strike, and beaten both do beat;
That from their shields forth flyeth firie light,

And helmets, hewen deepe, shew marks of eithers might.

8 So th' one for wrong, the other strives for right:
As when a Gryfon, seized of his pray,
A Dragon fiers encountreth in his flight,
Through widest ayre making his ydle way,
That would his rightfull ravine rend away;
With hideous horror both together smight,
And souce so sore, that they the heavens affray:
The wise Soothsayer, seeing so sad sight,

Th' amazed vulgar telles of warres and mortall fight.

9 So th' one for wrong, the other strives for right; And each to deadly shame would drive his foe: The cruell steele so greedily doth bight

In tender flesh, that streames of bloud down flow;
With which the armes, that earst so bright did show,
Into a pure vermillion now are dyde;

Great ruth in all the gazers harts did grow,
Seeing the gored woundes to gape so wyde,
That victory they dare not wish to either side.

IO At last the Paynim chaunst to cast his eye,
His suddein eye, flaming with wrathfull fyre,
Upon his brothers shield, which hong thereby:
Therewith redoubled was his raging yre,
And said; Ah wretched sonne of wofull syre,
Doest thou sit wayling by blacke Stygian lake,
Whilest here thy shield is hangd for victors hyre?
And, sluggish german, doest thy forces slake
To after-send his foe, that him may overtake?

II Goe caytive Elfe, him quickly overtake,

And soone redeeme from his longwandring woe:
Goe guiltie ghost, to him my message make,
That I his shield have quit from dying foe.
Therewith upon his crest he stroke him so,
That twise he reeled, readie twise to fall:
End of the doubtfull battell deemed tho
The lookers on, and lowd to him gan call
The false Duessa, Thine the shield, and I, and all.

12 Soone as the Faerie heard his Lady speake,
Out of his swowning dreame he gan awake;
And quickning faith, that earst was woxen weake,
The creeping deadly cold away did shake;

Tho mov'd with wrath, and shame, and Ladies sake,
Of all attonce he cast aveng'd to be,

And with so' exceeding furie at him strake,
That forced him to stoupe upon his knee:

Had he not stouped so, he should have cloven bee.

13 And to him said; Goe now, proud Miscreant,
Thyselfe thy message do to german deare;
Alone he wandring thee too long doth want:
Goe say, his foe thy shield with his doth beare.
Therewith his heavie hand he high gan reare,
Him to have slaine; when lo a darkesome clowd
Upon him fell; he no where doth appeare,

But vanisht is. The Elfe him calls alowd,

But answer none receives: the darknes him does shrowd.

14 In haste Duessa from her place arose,

And to him running said; O prowest knight,

That ever Lady to her love did chose,
Let now abate the terrour of your might,

And quench the flame of furious despight
And bloudie vengeance: lo th' infernall powres,
Covering your foe with cloud of deadly night,
Have borne him hence to Plutoes balefull bowres.
The conquest yours, I yours, the shield and glory yours.

15 Not all so satisfide, with greedie eye

He sought, all round about, his thirstie blade
To bathe in bloud of faithlesse enimy;
Who all that while lay hid in secrete shade:
He standes amazed how he thence should fade.
At last the trumpets Triumph sound on hie
And running heralds humble homage made,
Greeting him goodly with new victorie;

And to him brought the shield, the cause of enmitie.

16 Wherewith he goeth to that soveraine Queene;
And falling her before on lowly knee,

To her makes present of his service seene;
Which she accepts with thankes and goodly gree,
Greatly advauncing his great chevalree.

So marcheth home, and by her takes the knight,
Whom all the people follow with great glee,
Shouting, and clapping all their hands on hight,
That all the aire it fils, and flyes to heaven bright.

17 Home is he brought, and laid in sumptuous bed:
Where many skilfull leaches him abide,

To salve his hurts, that yet still freshly bled.
In wine and oyle they wash his woundes wide,
And softly gan embalme on everie side.
And all the while most heavenly melody
About the bed sweet musicke did divide,
Him to beguile of griefe and agony:
And all the while Duessa wept full bitterly.

18 As when a wearie traveller, that strayes
By muddy shore of broad seven-mouthed Nile,
Unweeting of the perillous wandring wayes,
Doth meete a cruell craftie Crocodile,

Which, in false griefe hyding his harmefull guile,
Doth weepe full sore, and sheddeth tender teares;
The foolish man, that pitties all this while

His mournefull plight, is swallowed up unwares,
Forgetfull of his owne that mindes anothers cares.

19 So wept Duessa untill eventide,

That shyning lampes in Joves high house were light:
Then forth she rose, ne lenger would abide;
But comes unto the place, where th' Hethen knight,
In slombring swownd nigh voyd of vitall spright,
Lay cover'd with inchaunted cloud all day:
Whom when she found, as she him left in plight,
To wayle his wofull case she would not stay,

But to the easterne coast of heaven makes speedy way.

20 Where griesly Night, with visage deadly sad,
That Phoebus chearefull face durst never vew,
And in a foule blacke pitchy mantle clad,

She findes forth comming from her darksome mew,
Where she all day did hide her hated hew.
Before the dore her yron charet stood,

Already harnessed for journey new,

And cole-blacke steedes yborne of hellish brood,
That on their rusty bits did champ, as they were wood.

21 Who when she saw Duessa sunny bright,
Adornd with gold and jewels shining cleare,
She greatly grew amazed at the sight,
And th' unacquainted light began to feare;
(For never did such brightnes there appeare;)
And would have backe retyred to her cave,
Untill the witches speech she gan to heare,
Saying, Yet, O thou dreaded Dame, I crave
Abide, till I have told the message which I have.

22 She stayd; and foorth Duessa gan proceede;
O thou, most auncient Grandmother of all,

More old then Jove, whom thou at first didst breede,
Or that great house of Gods cælestiall;

Which wast begot in Daemogorgons hall,
And sawst the secrets of the world unmade;

Why suffredst thou thy nephewes deare to fall

With Elfin sword most shamefully betrade?

Lo where the stout Sansjoy doth sleepe in deadly shade!

23 And, him before, I saw with bitter eyes

The bold Sansfoy shrinke underneath his speare;
And now the pray of fowles in field he lyes,
Nor wayld of friends, nor layd on groning beare,
That whylome was to me too dearely deare.
O! what of Gods then boots it to be borne,

If old Aveugles sonnes so evill heare?

Or who shall not great Nightes children scorne,

When two of three her nephews are so fowle forlorne?