80
The first Booke of
Cant. VI.
The woodborne people fall before her flat,And worship her as Goddesse of the wood;And old Syluanus selfe bethinkes not, whatTo thinke of wight so fayre, but gazing stood,In doubt to deeme her borne of earthly brood;Sometimes Dame Venus selfe he seemes to see,But Venus neuer had so sober mood;Sometimes Diana he her takes to be,But misseth bow, and shaftes, and buskins to her knee.
By vew of her he ginneth to reuiueHis ancient loue, and dearest Cyparisse,And calles to mind his pourtraiture aliue,How fayre he was, and yet not fayre to this,And how he slew with glauncing dart amisseA gentle Hynd, the which the louely boyDid loue as life, aboue all worldly blisse;For griefe whereof the lad n'ould after ioy,But pynd away in anguish and selfewild annoy.
The wooddy Nymphes, faire HamadryadesHer to behold do thether runne apace,And all the troupe of light foot Naiades,Flocke all about to see her louely face:But when they vewed haue her heauenly grace,They enuy her in their malitious mind,And fly away for feare of fowle disgrace:But all the Satyres scorne their woody kind,And henceforth nothing faire, but her on earth they find
Glad of such lucke, the luckelesse lucky mayd,Did her content to please their feeble eyes,And long time with that saluage people stayd,To gather breath in many miseryes.
During
