That none did others fafety despize,

Nor aid envy to him in need that stands;
But friendly each did others praise devize,
How to advaunce with favourable hands,

As this good Prince redeemd the Redcroffe knight from bands.

2.

Who when their powres, empayrd through labor long,
With dew repast they had recured well,

And that weake captive wight now wexed ftrong,
Them lift no lenger there at leasure dwell,
But forward fare as their adventures fell:
But, ere they parted, Una faire befought

That ftraunger knight his name and nation tell;
Least so great good, as he for her had wrought,
Should die unknown, and buried be in thankles
thought.

3.

"Faire virgin," (faid the Prince,) "yee me require
A thing without the compas of
my witt;

For both the lignage, and the certein Sire,

From which I fprong, from mee are hidden yitt;
For all fo foone as life did me admitt

Into this world, and fhewed hevens light,

From mother's pap I taken was unfitt,
And streight deliver'd to a Fary knight,

To be upbrought in gentle thewes and martiall might.

Douglas. See alfo F. Q. ii. i. 35; ii. ix. 2; iii. vii. 48, &c. So in fere, in company. UPTON. In the fifth line of this Stanza "fafety" is, as in many other places and poets, a trifyllable. In the next line "envy" must, as then usual, be accented on the second fyllable. C.

с

and the certein Sire.] A fingular instance of a modern compofitor's confufion of the long and f: Todd printed fire for "Sire ;" but in this miftake he has not been followed. C.

To be upbrought in gentle thewes.] In gentle endowments, qualifications, or habits. C.

4.

"Unto old Timon he me brought bylive;*

Old Timon, who in youthly yeares hath beene In warlike feates th' expertest man alive, And is the wifeft now on earth I weene: His dwelling is low in a valley greene, Under the foot of Rauran' moffy hore, From whence the river Dee, as filver cleene, His tombling billowes rolls with gentle rore; There all my daies he traind mee up in vertuous lore.

5.

"Thether the great magicien Merlin came,

As was his ufe, ofttimes to visitt mee;
For he had charge my difcipline to frame,
And Tutors nouriture to oversee.

Him oft and oft I afkt in privity,

Of what loines and what lignage I did spring;
Whofe aunfwere bad me ftill affured bee,

That I was fonne and heire unto a king,

As time in her just term the truth to light should bring.”

6.

"Well worthy impe," faid then the Lady gent,
"And Pupil fitt for fuch a tutors hand!
But what adventure, or what high intent,
Hath brought you hether into Fary land,

Aread, Prince Arthure, crowne of Martiall band ?”

•he me brought bylive.] Quickly, Speedily. "Bylive," or belive, generally means with activity. C.

Under the foot of Rauran.] In Selden's illuftration of "Dinas Emris," where Merlin prophefied, he adds," Rauran-Vaur hill is there by in Merioneth: whence the origin of that fiction of the Muses best pupil, the noble Spenfer, in fuppofing Merlin vfually to vifit his old. Timon, whofe dwelling he places low in a valley greene, under the foot of RAURAN, &c." Drayton's "Polyolb." Song X. Illuftr. TODD.

Aread, Prince Arthure.] Arthur and Una have been hitherto reprefented as entire strangers to each other; and it does not appear how Una became acquainted with the name of this new knight. T. WARTON.

"Full hard it is," (qd. he) " to read aright The course of heavenly cause, or understand The fecret meaning of th' eternall might,

That rules mens waies, and rules the thoughts of living wight.

7.

"For whether he, through fatal deepe forefight,

Me hither fent for caufe to me unghest ;

Or that fresh bleeding wound, which day and night Whilome doth rancle in my riven breft,

With forced fury following his beheft,

Me hether brought by wayes yet never found,
You to have helpt I hold my felfe yet blest.”

"Ah! courteous Knight," (quoth fhe) " what fecret

wound

Could ever find to grieve the gentlest hart on ground?”

8.

"Dear Dame," (quoth he) " you sleeping sparkes awake,
Which, troubled once, into huge flames will grow;
Ne ever will their fervent fury flake,
Till living moysture into smoke do flow,
And wasted life doe lye in afhes low:
Yet fithens filence leffeneth not my fire,

But, told, it flames; and, hidden, it does glow;
I will revele what ye fo much defire.

Ah, Love! lay down thy bow, the whiles I may

refpyre.

9.

"It was in freshest flowre of youthly yeares,

When corage first does creepe in manly cheft,
Then first that cole" of kindly heat appeares

To kindle love in every living brest:

Then first that cole.] The fecond and all the later editions read "the cole." But" that cole" alludes to the fleeping Sparkes in the preceding Stanza.

CHURCH.

But me had warnd old Timons wife beheft,'
Those creeping flames by reafon to fubdew,
Before their rage grew to fo great unrest,
As miferable lovers ufe to rew,

Which still wex old in woe, whiles wo ftil wexeth new.

IO.

"That ydle name of love, and lovers life,
As loffe of time, and vertues enimy,

I ever fcorn'd, and joyd to stirre up ftrife,
In middeft of their mournfull Tragedy;
Ay wont to laugh when them I heard to cry,
And blow the fire which them to ashes brent:
Their God himselfe, grievd at my libertie,
Shott many a dart at me with fiers intent;
But I them warded all with wary government.

II.

"But all in vaine: no fort can be fo ftrong,
Ne fleshly breft can armed be fo fownd,
But will at last be wonne with battrie long,
Or unawares at difadvantage fownd.
Nothing is fure that growes on earthly grownd;
And who moft truftes in arme of fleshly might,
And boaftes in beauties chaine not to be bownd,
Doth fooneft fall in difaventrous fight,

And yeeldes his caytive neck to victours most despight.

12.

Enfample make of him your hapleffe joy,

And of my felfe now mated, as ye see ;*

Whose prouder vaunt that proud avenging boy

i old Timons wife bebeft.] The first edition reads Cleons. Spenfer [feems to have] doubted whether to take the name of Prince Arthur's tutor from glory, or from honour. But he corrected Cleons among the errors of the prefs. UPTON.

k now mated, as ye fee.] To" mate" of old meant to confound, or deftroy, and examples of its ufe in this fenfe are innumerable. C.

Did foone pluck downe, and curbd my libertee.
For on a day, prickt forth with jollitee
Of loofer life and heat of hardiment,

Raunging the foreft wide on courfer free,

The fields, the floods, the heavens, with one confent, Did feeme to laugh on me,' and favour mine intent. 13.

"Forwearied with my sportes," I did alight

From loftie steed, and downe to sleepe me layd:
The verdant gras my couch did goodly dight,
And pillow was my helmett fayre difplayd;
Whiles every fence the humour fweet embayd,
And flombring foft my hart did steale away,
Me feemed, by my fide a royall Mayd
Her daintie limbes full foftly down did lay :
So fayre a creature yet faw never funny day.

14.

"Moft goodly glee and lovely blandishment
She to me made, and badd me love her deare;
For dearely fure her love was to me bent,
As, when just time expired, should appeare.
But whether dreames delude, or true it were,
Was never hart fo ravifht with delight,

Ne living man like wordes did ever heare,
As fhe to me delivered all that night;

And at her parting faid, She Queene of Faries hight."

1 Did feeme to laugh on me.] The text of the first edition is "at me;" but it is corrected to " on me "" among the errata at the end. C.

m Forwearied with my fportes.] Forwearied in the edit. 1611, which is, doubtlefs, right; the meaning being, that he was over-wearied. Church and Todd tell us that the edits. of 1751 and 1758 read “For wearied;" but how strange it is that they should not have known that the 4to. 1590 has precisely the fame text. C.

" She Queene of Faries hight.] She was called the Queen of Fairies. Nothing can well be more common than this use of the word. C.