And more to lull him in his slumber soft,

A trickling streame from high rock tumbling downe,
And ever drizling raine upon the loft,

Mixt with a murmuring winde, much like the sowne1
Of swarming bees, did cast him in a swowne.2
No other noyse, nor peoples troublous cryes,
As still are wont to annoy the walled towne,
Might there be heard: but carelesse Quiet lyes
Wrapt in eternall silence, farre from enimyes.

UNA AND THE LION.3

ONE day, nigh wearie of the yrkesome way,
From her unhastie beast she did alight;
And on the grasse her dainty limbs did lay
In secrete shadow, far from all men's sight;
From her fayre head her fillet she undight,
And layd her stole aside her angels face,
As the great eye of heaven, shyned bright,
And made a sunshine in the shady place:
Did never mortal eye behold such heavenly grace.

It fortunéd, out of the thickest wood
A ramping lyon rushéd suddeinly,
Hunting full greedy after salvage blood;
Soone as the royall virgin he did spy,
With gaping mouth at her ran greedily,
To have attonces devourd her tender corse:
But to the pray when as he drew more ny,
His bloody rage aswagéd, with remorse,

And, with the sight amazed, forgat his furious forse.

(1) Sowne-sound.

(2) Swowne-swoon.

(3) "Faerie Queene," book i., canto 3. "What a picture!" says Professor Wilson, in reference to this passage, "We have seen it painted, and beautifully too, by colours on canvas; but never nearly so beautiful as here in the light of words:"--Blackwood's Magazine, Nov. 1834.

(4) Undight-loosened, untied.

(5) And made a sunshine, &c.-" A line," says the writer just quoted, "of itself sufficient to make the whole world in love with Truth."

(6) Salvage-savage.

(7) Ran-i.e. he ran; the ellipsis of the personal pronoun is very common in the old writers. See another instance in the last line of this stanza.

(8) Attonce-at once.

Instead thereof he kist her weary feet,
And lickt her lilly hands with fawning tong;
As he her wronged innocence did weet.1
O how can beautie maister the most strong,
And simple truth subdue avenging wrong!
Whose yielded pride and proud submission,
Still dreading death, when she had marked long,
Her heart gan melt in great compassion;
And drizling teares did shed for
pure affection.

"The lyon, lord of everie beast in field,"

Quoth she, "his princely puissance doth abate,
And mightie proud to humble weake does yield,
Forgetfull of the hungry rage, which late
Him prickt, in pittie of my sad estate :-
But he, my lyon, and my noble lord,2
How does he find in cruell hart to hate
Her, that him loved, and ever most adord
As the god of my life? why hath he me abhord ?"

Redounding tears did choke th' end of her plaint,
Which softly ecchoed from the neighbour wood;
And, sad to see her sorrowful constraint,
The kingly beast upon her gazing stood;
With pittie calmd, downe fell his angry mood.
A last, in close hart shutting up her payne,
Arose the virgin borne of heavenly brood,
And to her snowy palfrey got agayne,
To seeke her strayed champion if she might attayne.

The lyon would not leave her desolate,

But with her went along, as a strong gard
Of her chast person, and a faythfull mate
Of her sad troubles and misfortunes hard:

Still, when she slept, he kept both watch and ward;
And when she wakt, he wayted diligent,
With humble service to her will prepard;
From her fayre eyes he took commandément,
And ever by her lookes conceivéd her intent.

(1) Weet--from the Anglo-Saxon wit-an, to know-recognise. (2) My noble lord the Red-Cross Knight, from whom Una had been separated by Archimago's devices. (3) Redounding-from the Latin redundare, to flow over-abounding (4) Palfrey-from the French par le frein, by the bridle-a lady's horse, led by the squire. The word here refers to the ass before named.

MAN THE CARE OF ANGELS.'

AND is there care in heaven?

And is there love

In heavenly spirits to these creatures base,
That may compassion of their evils move?

There is:-else much more wretched were the case
Of men then beasts: but O the exceeding grace
Of Highest God! that loves his creatures so,
And all his workes with mercy doth embrace,
That blessed angels he sends to and fro,
To serve to3 wicked man, to serve his wicked foe!

How oft do they their silver bowers leave,

4

To come to succour us that succour want!
How oft do they with golden pinions cleave
The flitting skyes, like flying pursuivant,5
Against fowle feendes to ayd us militant !6
They for us fight, they watch, and dewly ward,
And their bright squadrons round about us plant;
And all for love, and nothing for reward;

O why should hevenly God to men have such regard!

THE BOWER OF BLISS."

THERE the most daintie paradise on grounds
Itselfe doth offer to his sober eye,

In which all pleasures plenteously abownd,
And none does others happinesse envye;
The painted flowers; the trees upshooting hye;
The dales for shade; the hilles for breathing space;
The trembling groves; the christall running by;
And, that which all faire works doth most aggrace,10
The art," which all that wrought, appeared in no place.

(1) "Faerie Queene," book ii., canto 8. "These," says Dr. Jortin, "are fine lines, and would not suffer by being compared with anything that Milton has said upon this subject."

(2) Then-than. (3) Serve to-this is the old syntax. (4) Flitting skyes— the floating clouds (see note 4, p. 5). (5) Pursuivant-from the French poursuivre, to follow up a state messenger. (6) Militant-from the Latin militare,

(9) His

to serve as a soldier-fighting, engaged in warfare.

(7) "Faerie Queene," book ii., canto 12. (8) On ground on earth. -i.e. Sir Guyon, or Temperance. (10) Aggrace-favour, enhance. art, &c.-The old maxim--artis est celare artem, the perfection of art consists in concealing it, seems to be here hinted at.

(11) The

One would have thought (so cunningly the rude
And scornéd parts were mingled with the fine,)
That Nature had for wantonesse ensude1
Art, and that Art at Nature did repine;
So striving each the other to undermine,
Each did the others worke more beautify
So differing both in wills, agreed in fine:2
So all agreed, through sweete diversity,
This gardin to adorne with all variety.

And in the midst of all a fountaine stood,
Of richest substance that on earth might bee,
So pure and shiny, that the silver flood
Through every channell running one might see;
Most goodly it with curious ymageree
Was overwrought, and shapes of naked boys,
Of which some seemed with lively iolitee
To fly about, playing their wanton toyes,
Whylest others did themselves embay3 in liquid ioyes.

And over all, of purest gold, was spred

A trayle of yvie in his native hew ;
For the rich metall was so colouréd,

That wight, who did not well avised it vew,
Would surely deeme it to bee yvie trew:
Low his lascivious armes adown did creepe,

4

That themselves dipping in the silver dew,
Their fleecy flowers they fearefully did steepe,
Which drops of christall seemed for wantones to weep.

Infinit streams continually did well

Out of this fountain, sweete and faire to see,
The which into an ample laver fell,

And shortly grew to so great quantitie
That like a little lake it seemd to bee;

Whose depth exceeded not three cubits hight,
That through the waves one might the bottom see,
All pavd beneath with jaspar shining bright,
That seemd the fountaine in that sea did sayle upright.

(1) Ensude-followed. (2) Fine-end. (3) Embay-bathe. vicious-loose, hanging loose.

(4) Las

Eftsoones they heard a most melodious sound
Of all that mote delight a daintie ear,
Such as attonce might not on living ground,
Save in this paradise, be heard elsewhere:
Right hard it was for wight which did it heare
To read what manner musicke that might bee:
For all that pleasing is to living eare,
Was there consorted in one harmonee;
Birdes, voices, instruments, windes, waters, all agree :
The ioyous birdes, shrouded in chearefull shade,
Their notes unto the voice attempred sweet;
The angelical soft trembling voyces made
To the instruments divine respondence meet;
The silver-sounding instruments did meet
With the base3 murmure of the waters fall:
The waters fall, with difference discreet,
Now soft, now loud, unto the wind did call :
The gentle warbling wind low answered to all.

So forth issèwed the Seasons of the yeare:

First, lusty Spring, all dight in leaves of flowers
That freshly budded and new bloosmes did beare,
In which a thousand birds had built their bowers
That sweetly sung to call forth paramours;
And in his hand a iavelin he did beare,
And on his head (as fit for warlike stoures)
A guilt engraven morion7 he did weare;

That as some did him love, so others did him feare.
Then came the iolly Sommer, being dight
In a thin silken cassock coloured greene,
That was unlyned all, to be more light;
And on his head a girlond well beseene
He wore, from which as he had chaufféd been
The sweat did drop; and in his hand he bore
A bowe and shaftes, as he in forrest greene

(1) Eftsoones-soon efter or after, presently. low.

(2) Read-guess.

(3) Base

(5) Lusty-" Beautiful,

(4) "Faerie Queene," canto 7 (of "Mutabilitie"). lovely."-Todd.

cap or helmet.

(6) Stoures-assaults, battles. (7) Morion-an ancient steel

(8) Well beseene-beautiful to be seen.

(9) Chauffed-heated.