University of Virginia Library

Egloga prima

Daphnes. Amintas.
Amin.
Thy prayses Daphnes are to great,
and more for me than meete:
Nor euer I, suche saged sawes,
coulde synge in Uerses sweete.
And now, to talke of spring time tales
my heares to hoare, do growe
Suche tales as these, I tolde in, tyme,
when youthfull yeares dyd flowe.
But synce, I can not the denye,
thy Fathers loue doth bynde:
In symple Songe I wyll adresse
my selfe, to showe my mynde.
Longe hast thou Daphnes me requyred
the state of Loue to tell,
For in my youth, I knewe the force,
and passions all, full well.
Nowe Loue therfore I wyll defyne
and what it is declare,
which way poore souls it doth entrap
and howe it them doth snare.
My Boie, remoue my beasts frō hens
and dryue them farther downe,
Upon the Hylles, let them go feade,
that ioyne to yender towne,
O Cupyde kynge of fyerye Loue,
ayde thou my syngynge Uerse,
And teache me heare the cause & case,
Of Louers to reherse,
Direct my tong, in trothe to treade,
with Furye fyll my brayne,
That I may able be to tell,
the cause of Louers payne.
Opinions diuers coulde I showe,
but chiefest of them all,
I wyll declare: and for the rest,
with silence leaue I shall.
A feruent Humour, (some do iudge)
within the Head doth lye,
Whiche yssuyng forth with poysoned beames
doth ron frō eye to eye:
And taking place abrode in heads,
a whyle doth fyrmely rest:
Till Phrensie framde in Fancie fond
discends from hed, to brest.

Plato.

And poison strong, frō eies outdrawn
doth perce the wretched harte,
And all infectes the bloud aboute,
and boyles in euery parte:
Thus: whē the beames, infected hath,
the wofull Louers blud:
Then Sences al, do strayght decaye,
opprest with Furyes flud.
Then Lybertie withdrawes herself,
and Bondage beares the swaye,
Affection blynd then leades the hart,
and Wyt, is wownde awaye.
O Daphnes then, the paines appeare,
and tormentes all of hell.
Then sekes, the selye wounded soule,
the flames for to expell.
But all to late, alas he stryues,
for Fancie beares the stroke
And he, must toyle (no helpe there is)
in slauysshe seruyle yoke.
His blud corrupted all within,
doth boyle in euery vayne,
Than sekes he howe to sewe for salue
that maye redresse his payne.
And when the face, he doth beholde
by whiche he shulde haue ayde,
And sees no helpe, thē lookes he long,
and trembleth all afrayde.
And museth at the framed shape,
that hath his lyfe in handes:
Nowe fast he flies, aboute the flames,
nowe styll amased standes:
Yet Hope relieues, his hurtful Heate
and Wyll doth Payne make lyght,
And al the griefes, that then he feeles
doth Presence styll requyght.
But when the Lyght absented is,
and Beames in hart remayne,
Then flames the Fyre fresh agayne,
and newe begyns his Payne.
Then longe he lookes, his losse to se,
then sobbes, and syghes abounde,
Then mourneth he, to mys the marke
that erst to soone he founde.
Then shadefull places oute he lookes,
and all alone he lyues,
Exylynge Ioye, and myrth from him,
hymselfe to waylynge gyues,
And styll his minde theron doth muse
and styll, therof he prates,
O Daphnes here I swere to the,
no griefe to Louers state.
Yf he but ones beholde the place,
where he was wont to mete,
The pleasaunt forme yt hym enflamd,
and ioyfull Countnaunce swete.
The place (a wonderous thing I tell)
his gryefe augmenteth newe,
Yet styll he sekes the place to se,
that moste he shulde eschewe.
Yf but the name rehearsed be,
(a thynge more straunge to heare)
Then Colour cōmes and goes in hast
then quaketh he for feare,
The verye name, hath suche a force,
that it can dase the mynde,
And make the man amasde to stande,
what force hath Loue to bynde?
Affection none to this is lyke,
it doth surmownt them all,
Of greiffes, the greatest greif no doubt
is to be Venus thrall,
And therfore, Daphnes nowe beware,
for thou art yonge, and fre,
Take heade of vewynge faces longe,
for losse of Lybertye,
I shall not nede (I thynke) to byd
the, to detest the Cryme,
Of wycked loue, that Ioue did vse,

Iupiter.

In Ganimedes tyme,
For rather wolde I (thoo it be muche)
that thou shuldest seake the fyre,
Of lawfull Loue, that I haue tolde,
than burne wyth suche desyre,
And thus an end, I weryed am,
my wynde is olde, and faynt,
Suche matters I, do leaue to suche,
as finer farre can paint,
Fetche in the Gote: that goes astraye,
and dryue hym to the folde,
My yeares be great I wyl be gone,
for spryngtyme nyghts be colde.

Daphnes
Great thankes to the, for this thy tale
Amintas here I gyue:
But neuer can I make amendes
to the whilste I do lyue.
Yet for thy paynes (no recompence)
a small rewarde haue here.
A whistle framed longe ago,
wherwith my father deare
His ioyfull beasts, was wont to kepe.
No Pype fortune so swete
Might shepharde euer yet posses.
(a thynge for the full mete.)