him but especially of mée most ioyfullie welcommed And telling of his owne aduentures and trauayles and of those thinges which he had séene interminglyng better with worse bechaunce he remembred him selfe at last to speake of Panphilus of whose prayses dilating verie much remembring the curtesies that he had sometimes doone hym made me most contented and plyed my willing eares to his tale And shamefast reason and womanly modestie dyd scarce bridle my eger will from running to embrace hym and to enquire of my Panphilus with an extraordinarie kinde of appassionate affection as at that very present I felte But yet staying my selfe and he béeing also demaunded of many concerning his estate and hauing answered euery one well I onely asked hym with a merry countenaunce howe he employed him selfe and spent his tyme there and if his minde was happely bent to returne againe To which demaundes he answered thus To what purpose my good Ladie should Panphilus come againe There is not a fayrer Gentlewoman in all his countrie which aboue all other Citties dooth bring foorth Goddesses for beautie then she who most entirely loueth him and by as much as I could vnderstood of others and as I verely beléeue is déerely belooued of hym againe otherwise I would account hym but a foole whereas héeretofore I euer iudged him to be wise My hart was so turned at these words as Oenones was sitting on the high hils of Ida seing her louer come sayling homewards with the new Grecian Lady in the Troyan Ship which thing I cold scarce hyde in my countenance although verie hardly I dyd the same but yet with a dissembled and fainte laughter I sayd vnto hym Certes thou sayest euen true For we could not imagine in this country any one gentlewoman so different from his deintie lyking whome wée might déeme worthy of his looue so high was his inestimable vertue so rare were his laudable quallities and so many his good graces But if he hath found out any one there hee dooth both well and wisely in staying with her there But tell me with what mynd dooth he brooke his new wife he then answered he hath no wyfe for she that came to his house as I tolde not long since true it is that she came not to hym but to his father Whilest he spake these bitter wordes Ielousie is of all others the worst which so earnestly I lystened vnto passing out of one anguishe into an other anxyetie a great deale worse pricked moreouer with sodayne anger and gréefe of mynde my sorrowfull heart beganne so to pante and beate as the swifte wynges of Progne when shée beginnes to take her strongest flyght doo beate against the whyte Sea bankes and shoares And my fearefull spyrits beganne no otherwise to tremble thorow out euery part of my body then the superficiall vppermost part of the Sea with the gentle breathing of some calme wynde discended vpon it is commonly wont to do or the bendynge réedes scarcely shaken of some pleasaunt and softe ayre and I beganne to feele my strength by little and little decaie wherefore getting my selfe as conueniently as I could from thence I wente into my Chamber because none myght perceyue the violent issue of my sodayne gréefe And béeing nowe gonne out of the presence of euery one I came no sooner into it but I beganne to power out of mine eyes such plentie of teares as a swelling vayne or fountaine of water bursting and gushinge out when it ouerfloweth the vallies and I could scarce holde my troubled tongue from lowde exclamations and my hoarce voyce from pittious lamentations but casting my selfe nay rather falling flatte vppon my miserable bedde the wicked witnesse of our looues I would haue cryed out aloude and sayd O Panphilus why hast thou betrayed mée But my wordes were broken in the very middest so sodainelie were the vygour and forces taken from my tongue and from the other partes of my bodie And there I laye a good while as one deade nay verelie thought to bée deade indéede carefullie watched and giuing no small wonder to euery one there by this sodayne traunce no skill of Physicke or secrecie of anie arte béeing able to make my erringe lyfe returne to her former place againe But after that my sorrowfull soule which in lamenting hadde manie tymes embraced the myserable spyrittes of my bodie to departe did yet stay it selfe in the same and recalling her forces agayne togeather which were almost dissolued and fledde away my eyes receiued againe theyr light which for a good space they had lost And lifting vppe my heade I sawe manie Gentlewomen and others about mée who with theyr loouing and pittifull seruices bewayling my sodaine swoune had with most precious and swéete waters all bedewed mée and with many other instrumentes in their handes and which I dyd sée lying before mée labouring to regaine my lost life Whereuppon I maruailed no lesse at those waters preserues and glasses that were about me then at the great lamentations of all the gentlewomen there And after that I hadde recouered my speeche agayne I demaunded what was the the cause of their assembly about mée and of all those thinges there And one of them answered and sayde These thinges good Ladie were brought hether and for no other purpose we also came to reduce thy fugitiue soule into thy colde bodie againe Then after a great sighe and faynte spirite I sayd alas good Gentlewoman with what fréendly office of pittie working rather a most cruell function and repugnant to my will doo you thinke to haue don mée a thankefull péece of seruice whereas you haue procured my great payne and doone me the worst turne as euer I had in forcible retayning my soule in mée still which was so well disposed and so willing to haue lefte the most miserable body that liueth Alas it is enough that there was neuer any thing which with lyke affection was desired of me or of any bodie else which you haue denyed me My soule al readie dissolued from these paynes and tribulations hadde béene néerely arriued to the wished hauen of my desires but you haue hindered it her passage After these wordes the Gentlewoman recomforted me with dyuers good spéeches but they spent both wordes and wynde in vaine I fayned notwithstanding to bée of better chéere Miserable men desire to be alone to burst out their inward greefe in lamentation and alleadged newe occasions of this miserable accident because when they were gon I might haue full scope to burst out my great and swelling gréefe And after that some of them were departed and the rest had taken theyr leaue my selfe bginning to shewe a merry countenaunce and to dissemble my sorrowe I remayned accompanied onelie there with my olde Nurce and with my faythfull maid who had all this time béene priuie to my long playntes and a procurer of my momentarie pleasure both which dutifully ministred comfortable salues to my vnfayned sores possible enough to haue healed
open company to make me therby more assured of his feruent looue calling me by the name of Fiammetta and hymselfe Pamphilus Alas howe many times in the presence of my selfe and of my déerest fréendes being prittely heated with feasting and looues eates did he deuise fayning Fiammetta and Pamphilus to be Grecians how I with him and he with me were first combyned in loouing bondes And afterwardes what accidentes did ensue of this Grecian looue collouring his forged nouell with fit and fayned names It made me truely many times to laughe not so much at the grauitie and conterfaite modestie in his discourse as at the simplicitie and good meaning of those who gaue eare and beléefe to his tale And yet I was sometimes afrayd least that both his disordinate heates might haue vnaduisedly perhappes transported his tongue thether whether it would afterwardes haue repented that it runned But as he was a more prudent perfect scholler then I tooke him to be so did he craftely take héede of speaking of false Latine O gentle and pittifull Ladies what dooth not looue teache his subiectes and whom dooth not he enable to learne wise discourses and acquainte him with braue and commendable fashione My selfe being but a young and simple woman in such pastimes Looue a cunning master and scarce able amōgst other gentlewomen my companions in plaine and common thinges to vntie my vnperfect tongue by giuing a willing and an affectioned eare to his spéeches did reape thereby so much fruite that in a short time in fayning and talking I thought I did excell euery famous Poet. For there were fewe or none of his presupposed positions but with a fictions and painted tale I woulde haue effectually argued and fitly aunswered to the same a very hard thing in my opinion for a young gentlewoman to learne so soone and more difficult to tel or put in practise But all these shiftes would séeme but shadowes and of no consequence if I did write and set downe if present matter shoulde require with what subtill slights I did experiment the faith of one of my most familiar and trusty womē to whom we bothe purposed to committe the secrecie of our hidden loue not as yet by spéeches manifested to anie one considering with my selfe that enclosed in my burning brest it coulde not bee kept there long without great trouble and gréefe and perhappes without some violent and suddaine issue vnlesse there were some meanes and remedies applyed to the contrarie It would be besides this a tedious labour to recount what counsell and how manie deuises were excogitated betwéene her and me perhaps in vain and foolish matters and neuer put in vre no not so much as imagined of anie before All which although I haue séene them putte in tryall to my great preiudice and hinderaunce I am not sorrie neuerthelesse that I haue knowne them If I doo not erre Gentlewomen in my opinion With what difficulty louers are contained in the bonds of reason the great firmenes of our yong yéeres was verie straunge to beholde if that with a due and perfecte consideration it is well weighed how hard a thing it is for the enamored mindes of two yong and rawe louers to continue any long time vnited together but that on the one or other side spurred on wyth superfluous and ouerruling desires they should alter wander out of reasons course But the bondes of our loues were so fast knit and of such rare tenour that the grauest wisest and strongest personages in like passages should haue gotte them high and worthy praises But now my stayned penne with an vnbridled and wanton desire dooth prepare it selfe to write of those finall termes of loue beyond that which none can passe furder with déede or desire whatsoeuer But before I come to this point as humbly as I may I implore gentle Ladyes your pietie and therewithall that amorous force which possessing your tender breastes dooth also draw your burning desires to such an end And pray you moreouer if my spéeches séeme offensiue vnto you I speake not of the déede because I know that if you haue not as yet attained to such felicity you haue in your minds a thousand times wished to haue felt the same that then moste prompt you would arise in my excuse and defence And thou séemelie and honest shamefastnes to late alas entred into my wilful minde pardon mee most earnestlie entreating thée to giue place a little while to timerous yong Gentlewomē because secure and frée from thy restraint and menaces they may reade that of me which in their feruent loues I know and hote desires they also wishe might handsomelie befall vnto them With hungry hope therfore and ful of feareful cares our longing desires The slack dealing in conducting amorous desires to their end is very bitter yet lingring delaies drew one eche daie after other which bothe of vs with painfull thoughts didde hourelie endure albeit that one did manifest the same in daily méeting and secrete talke together and the other did shewe her selfe in graunting of it verie coye and in shewe repugnant though against her will as you your selues in séeking that which perhaps most of all doth please your wanton appetites doo knowe well enough that enamoured yong gentlewomen are wont to doo He therfore giuing but little credit to my words in these denials attending fitt time place more audacious then aduised in that which he did and more fortunate then wise obtained that of me which I as wel as he though with a fained face and a little rigorous resisting to the contrarie did most gréedilie desire But if I shoulde for all this affirme that this was the occasion that made mée loue him more I must confesse that euery time that the remembraunce thereof touched my guiltie minde it brought with it an incomparable gréefe Wherefore let the Gods aboue the secrete serchers of our harts bee witnesses wyth me héerein that this ineuitable accident was then and yet is the least cause of that great loue which I beare him Albeit not denying but that this was thē and euermore since a most swéete wyshed and welcommed delight vnto mee And what simple and slender witted woman is shee who would not wish that thing which she déerely loued to bee rather néere vnto her then farre of from her and by how much she loued desired it by so much more to féele the same néerest of al vnto her I say therfore that after such a quickly passed chance not fallen in the cōpasse of my belly before thogh not seldome times tossed in my thoughts with excéeding ioy and fauourable fortune not once but manie times by meanes of our proper wits and new inuentions we recreated our selues with this maner of dainty disport although the pleasures of the same is now alas lighter then the windes flowne from me vnhappy womā But yet while these pleasant times passed on as loue it selfe can make true report and giue
from me as it came my eares by chaunce hearde certaine doolefull mutterings and sorrowfull bewaylings vttered forth by my best beloued Wherfore suddainly troubled in minde and my thoughts at warre within themselues for his welfare made mee almoste interrupt him wyth these words Swéete hart what doost thou ayle But countermanded by new counsell I kept them in and with a sharpe eye and subtile eares secretely beholding him turned nowe on the otherside of the bedde I lystened a good while to his sorowfull and silent words but mine eares did not apprehend anie of thē albeit I might perceiue him molested with great store of lamentable sobbes and sighes that hée cast forth and by séeing also hys breast bedewed all wyth teares What words alas canne sufficiently expresse wyth howe manie cares my poore soule all thys while beeing ignoraunt of the cause was afflicted A thousand thoughts in one moment did violentlie runne vppe and downe in my doubtfull mynde méeting all at the laste and concludinge in one thing which was that hee louing some other Woman remained wyth me héere and in this sorte against hys wyll My words were very often at the brinck of my mouth to examine the cause of his greefe but doubting least hee lamenting in this sorte and béeing suddainly espied and interrupted of me he might not bee greatly abashed thereat they retyred back and went downe again and oftentimes likewise I turned away mine eies from beholding him because least the hote teares distilling from them and falling vppon him might haue giuen him occasion and matter to knowe that I perceiued his wofull plight Oh how many impatient meanes did I imagine to practise because that he awaking me might coniecture that I hadde neither hearde his sighes nor séene his teares and yet agréed to none at all But ouercome at the last with eager desire to knowe the occasion of his complaint because hee shoulde turne him towards mee as those who in their déepest sléepe terryfied by dreaming of some great fall wylde beast or of some ghastlie thing giue a suddaine start and in most fearefull wise rouse vppe themselues affrighted out of theyr sléepe and wyttes at once euen so wyth a suddayne and timorous voice I skriked and lifting vppe my selfe I violently caste one of my armes ouer his shoulders And truly my deceit deceiued me not because closely wyping away his teares with infinite though counterfet ioy he quickly turned towardes mée againe and with a pittifull voice sayd My fayrest and swéetest soule of what wert thou afraid Whō without delay I answered thus My Loue I thought I had lost thée My words alas I knowe not by what spyrite vttered forth were most true presagers and foretellers of my future losse as nowe to true I find it But he replyed O déerest déere not hatefull death nor anie aduerse chaunce of vnstable Fortune whatsoeuer can worke such operations in my firme breast that thou my onlie ioy shalt leese me for euer And incontinently a greate and profound sighe folowed these pittiful words the cause of which not so soone demaunded of mee who was also moste desirous to knowe the ofspring of his first lamentations but sodainely two streames of teares from both his eyes as from two fountaines beganne to gushe out amaine and in great aboundance to drench his sorrowfull breast not yet thorowlie dryed vp by his former wéeping And holding mée poore soule plunged in a gulfe of gréefes ouercome with flooddes of brinish teares a longe time in a dolefull and doubtfull suspence before euen so did the violence of his sobbes and sighes stoppe the passage of his wordes he could aunswer any thing to my demaundes againe But after that he felt the tempest of his outragious passion somewhat calmed with a sorrowfull voyce yet still interrupted with many heauy sighes he sayde thus againe O déerest Lady and sole Mistresse of my afflicted hart and onely belooued of me aboue all other women in the worlde as these extraordinarie effectes are true recordes of the same If my plaintes deserue any credite at all thou mayst then beléeue that my eyes not without a gréeuous occasion shed earst such plenty of bitter teares when so euer that is obiected to my memory which remaininge nowe with thée in great ioye dooth cruelly torment my heart to thinke of that is when I remember with my selfe that thou mayest not alas faine would I that thou couldest make two Panphilowes of me because remaining héere and being also there whether vrgent and necessary affayres doo perforce compell me most vnwillingly to retire I might at one time fulfill the lawes of looue and my pittifull naturall and duetifull deuoyre O my aged and loouing father Being therefore not able to suffer any more my pensiue hart with remembrance of it is continually with great affliction galled more and more as one whom pitty drawing on the one side is taken out of thy armes and on the other side with great force of looue is still reteyned in them All these reasons are condemned of louers which perturbe their ioyes These wordes perced my miserable hart with such extréeme bitternesse as I neuer felt before And although my dusked wittes did not well vnderstand them notwithstanding as much as my eares and sences attentiue to theyr harmes did receiue and conceiue of them by so much more the very same conuerted into teares issued out of my eyes leauing behinde them their cruell malicious effects in my hart This was therefore good Ladies the fyrst hower in the which I felt such grudgīg gréefs enuious of my plesures this was that hower which made me power forth vnmesurable teares the like neuer spent of me before whose course and maine streames not any of his comforts consolatory words could stop stench one whit But after I had a long time together remained in woefull walinges enfolding him loouingly beetwéene my armes I praied him as much as I could to tell me more cléerely what pittie what due pyetie that was that did drawe him out of my armes and threaten me his absence wherupō not ceasing to lament he said thus vnto me Ineuitable death the finall ende of all thinges of manie other sonnes hath left me sole to suruiue with my aged and reuerent father who burdened with many yeres and liuing without the swéet companie of his deceased wife and louing brothers who might in his olde yéeres carefully comforte him and remaining now without any hope of more issue being determined not to marrie dooth recall me home to sée hym as the chéefest part of his consolation whome he hath not séene these many yéeres past For shifting of which iournie because I would not swéet Fiammetta leaue thée there are not a fewe monthes past when fyrst by diuers meanes I beganne to frame some iust and reasonable excuse But he in fyne not accepting of any did not cease to coniure me by the essence which I had by him and by my impotent childhoode tenderly
pray thée by tarying here stil to the comfort weale of both our liues My words encreased his teares in great aboundance of the which with intermingled and swéet kisses I drunke vp some But after many a heauy sigh that he fetched he answered me thus againe O chéefest and singuler felicitie of my soule I doubtlesse know thy words to be most true as by euery manifest daunger included in them thou hast plainly set down before my eyes But because since present and vrgent necessity doth require which I would it did not I may bréefely answer thée I tel thée that to paie and acquite with a short gréefe a long and great debt I thinke my Fiammetta thou wilt easilye graunt that I may and must iustly doo Thou must therefore think and rest assured that although I am sufficiently by the pitty of my sicke and aged Father duely obliged yet am I no lesse nay rather more straightly bounde by the same which I ought to haue of vs bothe which if it were lawfull to discouer it woulde of it selfe séeme excusable enough presupposing that what thou hast said shoulde bee iudged of my Father or of any other els for him I would then leaue and let my olde Father die without séeing him at all But since it behooueth that this pittie muste bee couert and kept close and accomplished also without manifesting the cause of it I sée not how without great infamy and reprehensiō I might anie way desist to performe the same To auoide which due slaunder in not discharge of my duetie frowning Fortune shall but thrée or foure monethes at the most interrupt suspend our woonted delights which no sooner expired but without all faile thou shalt sée me ioyfully return to thée againe and make both our harts as glad at our merry méeting as they are nowe dolefully daunted with their sorrowfull parting And if the place to which I goe is so vnpleasant as thou makest it and as it is indéede compared with this thy swéete selfe also béeing héere then this must greatly content thée thinking that if there were no other occasion that shoulde prouoke mee to departe from thence the qualities of the place moste contrarye to the disposition of my mind would bee forcible motiues to make me returne and come hither againe Graunt mee therefore swéete Mistresse this fauoure that I may goe thither and as thou hast béene héeretofore most carefull of my estate and honor so now likewise tender the same and arme thy mind with patience in this crosse of spightfull Fortune because knowing this accident to be most gréeuous vnto thée I may héere after make my selfe more assured that in anie chaunce of Fortune whatsoeuer my honor is as déere to thée as my selfe He had now saide and helde his peace when I be ganne thus to reioyne as foloweth Nowe doo I cléerely sée that which framed in thy inflexible mind thou dost beare inexorable And I scarcely thinke that in the same thou doost admit any thought at all of those great infinite cares with which thou leauest my distressed soule so heauily burdened deuiding thy selfe from me Things that are wont to hurt a louers mind which not one day night nor houre canne possiblie liue héere without a thousande feares And I shall remaine in continuall doubt of thy life which I pray the Gods may be prolonged aboue my daies to thine owne will and desire Alas what néede I with superfluous spéeche prolong the time in discoursing and reciting of them by one and one Dangers that hang daily ouer mortal mē thy selfe knowing well enough that the Sea hath not so manie sandes nor heauen so manie starres as there be doubtfull and dangerous perilles that are imminent and commonly incident to mortall men All the which if thou goest from hence as doubtles they will not a little feare mee so will they greatlie offend and hurt thée Woe is me for my sorrowful life I am ashamed to tell thée that which nowe commeth to my mind but because by that which I haue heard it séemeth a thing possible and likely constrained therfore I will tell it thée Now if in thy country in the which as the common fame is and as my selfe perticulerly haue hearde there is an infinite number of faire and daintie Ladies who spending their yong yeres in cunning loue solemne sports and feasts the first a passion especially incident to them and the second a common thing vsed there with wanton and aluring meanes are most expert to entise and procure loue again thy wandring eie should espie some one of these which might perhappes please thy absent hart and so for her loue shouldest neglect and forget mine ah what a miserable life should I then leade Wherefore if thou doost beare me such feruent affection as thou sayest and séemest to doo imagine howe thou wouldest take it if for exchaunge of an other which thinge shall neuer come to passe I should denye thée Panphilus my loue But before my true hart shoulde harbour one trecherous thought thereof these handes of myne should rent it from my brest and be the executioners of my iust death But let vs leaue these imaginations and that which wée desire may neuer happen let vs not with ominous auguries diuinate and tempt the Gods in vaine But if thy minde be resolutly bent to departe and forasmuch as there is nothing that can please mee which may anie wayes displease and discontent thée I must of necessity dispose my selfe to bee agréeable to thy wyll héerein Notwithstanding with earnest prayers I request thée that it would please thée in one thing to follow my minde in delaying I meane yet a little longer if possiblye it may bée thy suddaine and sorrowful iourney during which time imagining in the meane time thy departure with continuall thinking thereof presupposing thy absence I may with lesse gréefe of mind learne frame my selfe to liue without thee which is no straunge thing for mée to request nor harde for thée to graunt since that the weather which for this time of the yéere is most vnreasonable doth greatlie encline to the helpe and fauour of thys my desire and is most contrary to the drifte of thy determination Why doost not thou sée Virgill immitated in the 4. boke of Aeneas howe the skyes full of dark and blacke clowdes with tempests stormes and flooddes of powring rayne and Hylles of thicke snowes choaking vppe the waies with raging and boysterous windes and horrible thunders doo dailie threaten the earth and earthlie creatures with manifest daungers And as thou canst not otherwise know how euery little Riuer and Brooke is nowe by these continuall showers of rayne swelled into daungerous and myghtye flooddes What senceles man thē is hée pardon me good Panphilus who hauing so small regarde of his life would in this blustering stormy and yll weather take any voyage or iourney in hand Doo therfore my pleasure in this reasonable aduise which if
the hurtefull and vnseasonable weather might haue béene an occasion of sicknesse or of some worse mischaunce that might haue hindered his deseignes and so hurt my desires And in this dolefull imagination I remember my minde was longer busied then in any other although that I did often times argue by the induction of his vnfayned teares which I did sée trickle downe his chéekes and of my painefull troubles which neuer chaunged my firmenesse that it could not bee a true conclusion that for so little gréefe so great loue should be extinct hoping also that his young age mastred with singuler discretion and wisedome would defend and kéepe him from any other hurtfull accident Thus therfore in opposing answering dissoluing my owne obiections I spent so many daies that I dyd not onely thinke that he was now arriued in his countrie but I was also certified thereof by his letters which for many causes were most welcome and acceptable vnto me in the which he certified me that with greater flames of affection he burned more in my looue then euer he did and with stronger promises did reuiue my hope of his returne Wherefore my first thoughtes being gonne from this howre foreward new fancies did quicklie arise in their places For sometimes I sayd Now my Panphilus the onely belooued sonne of his olde father who many yéeres before had not séene him receiued of him with great ioye They that looue are alwaies in suspition feasted of all his kinsfolkes and déerely entertayned of all his fréendes dooth not onely forget me but dooth I thinke accurse the monethes daies and howers in the which with diuers occasions heretofore my looue hath stayed him here And honourablie welcomed of all his compeers and with ioyfull congratulation of all Ladyes and Gentlewomen dooth blame mee perhappes who knew not how to féede his dainty fancies in anie thing else then in simple vnfolding my secréete looue and the straung effects of my new affections vnto him when he was here And mindes full of mirth and iollitie are apte to be drawen from one place and to be bound to another according to the mutabilitie of their pleased and displeased fancies But alas may it now be that I should léese him in this sorte Truely I cannot hardly thinke it The Gods forbidde that this should come to passe graunt that as amongst my parentes and kinsfolkes and in my own natiue Citty they haue made and kept me onely his So amongst his kindred and in his natural countrie let them vouchsafe to preserue him one lie mine Alas with how many salt teares were these wordes mingled and with how many more should they haue béene if I had beléeued that that which they themselues did truely prognosticate should afterwardes haue prooued true albeit that those which then came not foorth I haue afterwards in trebble folde spent all in vaine Besides such spéeches my mind diuining often times of her woes to come surprised I know not with what feare did greatly tremble and quake which feare was most cōmonly resolued into these stinging thoughtes and wordes Panphilus abidinge now ioyfully in his Cittye full of most famous and excellēt temples and by reason of most solemne and high feastes with excéeding pompe and glory celebrated there dooth with great pleasure visite them where he cannot chuse but finde many fayre and noble women which as in surpassing beautie gallant behauiour and good graces they excell all others so most of them being skilfull practicioners in theyr entising arte with subtile snares and amorous allectiues are passing cunning to entrappe young and gentle mindes thereby to drawe them to theyr liking and so to lure them to their looue Alas who can then be so strong a gardien of himselfe where so many motiues doo concurre but must mauger his bearde at sometime or other by plaine force be ouertaken as I my selfe not many monthes sithence by like powers also assailed may be an approoued and haplesse president of such straung and strong vertues which in my simple breast preuailed And besides this new thinges are wont to delight more then olde It is therefore but an easie matter that he being newly ariued and a straunger may please them and they him againe Alas how gréeuous was this imagination to me the which that it shoulde not come to passe I coulde scarce driue out of my minde saying thus Howe may Panphilus who loueth thée more then himselfe receiue into that hart enclosed in thine any other newe loue Why dost not thou know that there is héere perhaps some braue Lady well worthy of hys loue who with greater force then with that of her eies hath oft assaide and endeuoured to enter into his hart but coulde not find any way wherby he béeing yet scarce thine as now he is so many more Goddesses also of beautie passing vppe and downe in this Cittie and yet not anie one of them able to mooue his minde Howe canst thou then thinke that hee may bée so soone enamoured as thou sayst And besides this doost thou beléeue that he would violate that troth which so religiouslie he auowed vnto thée for any other faith It may neuer be and therfore thou must trust to his fidelity and relie vppon his good discretion With great reason thou oughtest to think that he is not so meanelie wise but that he knoweth well enough that it is but méere folly to leaue that which alreadie he hath to gette that which he hath not yea if that which he would forsake were but a smal thing and of great deale lesse account in respect of that which hee séeketh to attaine béeing of greater estimation and value And of this also thou must haue an infallible hope that this cannot so easily come to passe because if the great fame and generall report of thy beauty be true which thy selfe hast often hearde thou mayest placed amongst the number of the brauest Ladies in his Countrey and to the fairest of them all paragoned be prised aboue the best which hath not in it anie one richer brauer or more nobly borne then thy selfe And besides this whom can he finde amongst all the Gentlewomē in his Citty that would nay that coulde loue him so déerely as thou doost Againe hee is not ignoraunt as one expert in amorous affaires how hard a labour and intricate a matter it is so to dispose and worke with any woman to make her like at the first or at the first assaults to make her yéeld to loue And although he did not loue thée at all yet béeing troubled about many affaires of his Father and occupied with his proper busines he could not nowe bee at vacant leysure to acquaint himselfe with other newe women Wherefore let not thys onely fall into thy thought but hold it for an infallible Maxime that as much as thou louest so much thou art beloued againe Alas how falsly sophistically were these argumēts coyned against the truth But with all my disputing I could
sufficientlie knowen to thy hearer Ingratiude Nor let it passe thy minde nor escape thy mouth to recken vppe how many worthie valiaunt and noble young Gentlemen haue attempted manie times to get my looue and the diuers meanes which continually they practised for the least hope of it as theyr glorious and dailie musteringes before my windowes in goodly troopes in the day time their ielous contentions by night and their diuine prowesse shewed in feates of armes and yet could neuer vnwind me from the laborinth of thy enchaunted looue And forget not to tell that notwithstanding all this for a woman scarcelie knowen thou hast of mee made a sodaine and dishonourable exchaunge Who if she be not perhappes so simple as my selfe will with great suspect receiue thy dissembling kisses and will warely defend her selfe from thy deceitfull dealinges from which alas I had neuer the power to kéepe my selfe and whom I wishe may by such an one to thée as Atreus his Philomena was to him or as the daughters of Danaus to theyr newe husbandes or as Clitemnestra to Agamemnon or at the least as my selfe thy iniquitie being the occasion thereof haue liued with my déere husbande most vnworthie of all these iniuries And that she may bring thée to such extreame misery which nowe for verye pittie of my selfe I doo woefully bewaile that it may force mée against my will to power out aboundaunt teares for thée All which thinges I pray the Goddes if that with any pittie they beholde miserable creatures may quickly fall and light vpon thée Although that I was greatlie troubled with this intollerable gréefe and not that daie onely but many more after notwithstanding the alteration that I perceyued in the foresaide Gentlewoman dyd stinge mee cruellie on the other syde the which drewe on my minde sometimes to so ruthfull and ielious thoughtes as I was not other times accustomed to imagine And therfore said with my selfe Alas wherfore doo I sorrowe Panphilus for thy long absence and that thou art combined to a newe wife knowinge that if thou werte héere present thou shouldest bée myne neuer the more but an others O most wicked man into how many partes was thy looue discected and howe fitte dooth the etimologie of thy name and calling agrée with thy nature and condition since being Panphilus thou art a fréende to all To her with whome thou liuest there to this who liues without thée here to mée who liues and dies for thée so that to her to this to mée and yet perhappes to none at all And so false wretche by these meanes thou wert in league with manie when I thought though thou diddest defie all women besydes mée And so it came to passe that thinking to vse my owne goods I was to bolde in vsurping that which belonged to others And who can tell thys béeing nowe knowen if anie of these more worthie of fauour at the Goddes handes then my selfe obtesting them for the iniurie receyued by mee and crauing reuenge for the harmes that I haue doone them haue impetrated so much grace to make mée féele these vnacquainted woes and vndeserued gréefes of minde But whosoeuer she bee if any there bee let her forgiue mée because I haue ignorauntly offended And my simple ignoraunce dooth deserue some fauourable pardon But with what fine arte didst thou faine these things with what a vyle conscience didst thou practise thē by what kinde of looue or of what tendernesse of mynde wert thou drawen to this I haue hearde it more then once sayde that none can loue no more but one at one selfe same time None can looue at one and self same time more then one at once But this rule tooke exception in thée For thou diddest looue many or else didest carie a shewe thereof to much by one Ah carelesse wretche diddest thou giue to all or to this one which could not so well nor so craftylie conceale that which thou diddest so maliciouslye hide from me that fayth those teares those signes and promises which thou diddest so prodigally bestowe on mée If thou diddest this thou mayest then securelie liue and at thy libertie looue all and yet not bound to anie woman Because that which is distinctlie giuen to manie cannot bée properlie sayd giuen to one Alas how may it then otherwise bee but that hée who robbeth so many simple women of their yéelding hartes must néedes be despoyled of his by some woman againe Why Narcissus was enamored of himselfe Narcissus belooued of manie and being most rigorous to all was at the last ouertaken with the shadowe of his owne beautie Atalanta most swifte and pittilesse in her race lefte her miserable loouers behinde combatting betwéene looue life and death vntill Hippomenes with a braue and maistered deceit ouer ranne and ouer came her she consenting also willinglie to the same But why doo I alledge olde examples My selfe who could neuer be taken of any one was at last ah mée therefore vnfortunately surprised by thée Hast not thou therefore amongest so many of thy spoile foūd out some braue one who hath entangled thee I doo not thinke but doo assuredlie beleeue that thou wert once subdued by hym who maie tame thée and subiect to her who had but little cause to bee prowde of her captiue But if thou wert whatsoeuer shée was that with so great force dyd conquer thy subtile heart why doost thou not aply thy looue onely to her lykinges But if neyther to her nor to me thou hast desire to retourne at least come backe againe to this who could not couer thy secrete and false looue nor conceale her owne fond passions And if thou wilt néeds haue my fates and fortune so contrarie to me which perhaps according to thy erronious oppinion I haue deserued let not my offences preiudicate the right of other women Returne againe to them at the least and kéepe thy fayth first perhaps promised to them and then to mée and to hurt me onely offende not so many as I beléeue thou hast left héere and else where in vaine and fonde hope And let not one preuayle more there then many héere She is alreadie thine nor cannot although she would but be still thine Leauing her therefore in safetie and with infallible assuraunce of thy looue come because those which are not able to be made thine but with thy presence thou mayest with the same kéepe them also thine After many of these vaine spéeches because they did neither smite into the eares of the Gods nor sound in those of that obdurate and vngratefull young man it came to passe sometimes that sodainely I changed my councelles into these spéeches saying O miserable young woman wherfore doost thou desire that Panphilus should come hether againe Doost thou thinke with greater patience to suffer that consuming corsiue néere thée which being so farre of is most gréeuous to thy thoughtes Thou desirest sond woman thy owne harme And if now thou remainest in peraduēture that he
with them I began to sitte mee downe incontinentlie againe entring still into newe and fantasticall imaginations Euery thīge refresheth the memory of the Louer of his sorpassed and happy life It came then to my minde howe solemne and glorious that feast was which like vnto this was once made in honor of my nuptiall ioy in the which béeing then but a simple soule in franticke loue matters and frée from melancholye passions as abounding in all ioy I sawe in my selfe wyth woorthy congratulations of euery one honourablye saluted and nobly entreated And cōparing those times with these and séeing them beyond all proportion altered I was wyth great desire if oportunitie of time and place had graunted prouoked to wéepe This swyft and suddaine thought didde runne also in my minde when I sawe the yong Gentlemen and Gentlewomen to reioyce equally together and to bee merry alike courting and deuising one with another sometimes with many pleasant and swéete discourses and sometimes with many singuler and prettie deuises fitte for such purposes howe that once I behelde my Panphilus in lyke places and howe in his company he and I all alone had passed the time there together and could not nowe doo the like And it gréeued me no lesse to sée my selfe depryued of the occasion of making such kind of ioy and enioying such content then I was sorrowfull for the pleasure which I loste by the not performance of the same But from thence applying my eares to amorous delights songs and sundry tunes and remembring those with my self that were passed I sighed and meruailous desirous to sée the ende of such tedious feastes béeing malecontent in the meane time and sorrowfull wyth my selfe I passed them away Notwithstanding beholding euery thing exactly the companies of yong Gentlemen béeing flocked about the Gentlewomen and Ladies that nowe were sette downe to rest them and retyred into diuers places to gaze on them I did perceiue well that many of them or almost all did sometimes ayme theyr beames at me and did talke secretly amongst themselues of diuers things touching my beautie brauery and behauiour but not so softlie but that by manifest hearing of my owne part or by imagination or hearesay of some others no smal part of their spéeches came to mine eares Some of them said one to another Diuers opinions and speeches of menne Alas behold that yong Gentlewoman who had not her paragon for beautie in our Cittie and sée nowe what an one she is become Dooest not thou sée how strangely she is altered and how appalled her once faire face is growne my selfe béeing as ignorant of the cause as amazed to sée the effects And hauing thus said looking on me with a most pittifull and milde eye as they who were greatly condolent of my gréefes going away left mee full of compassion and more pittious towards my selfe then I was wont to be Others didde enquire of one another amongst themselues saying Alas hath this Gentlewoman béene sicke And afterwards did answere themselues again saying It séemeth so because she is wexed so leane and pale Wherefore it is great pittie especiallye thinking of her former beautie that is nowe vaded quite away But there were some of a déeper reache then the reste whose true surmises greeued me very much after many gesses and spéeches amongst themselues saying The palenes of this yong Ladie is a manifest token of an enamored hart For what kind of infirmitie doth bring a Louer to a lower estate of bodie then the vnruly passions of feruent and hote affection She is vndoubtedly in loue And if it be so hée is too cruell and inhumaine that is the cause of such vnwoorthye consequences gréefe and cares I meane that make her looke with so pale and thinne chéekes When I had hearde these nipping wordes that rubbed vppe my festered wounde I coulde not with-holde my sighes perceiuing that others were more ready to pittie my miseries then he to preuent these mishaps who by greatest reason and most of all shoulde haue hadde compassion in his thanklesse harte And after I had fetcht manie déepe sighes with an humble and lowe voice I earnestlye besoughte the Gods that in lue of their kindnes towardes me they might haue better successe in their Loues And I remember again that the value of my honour and honestie was not small amongst some of them who in talking together did fauourably séeme to excuse the foresaide true surmises saying The Gods forbid that we should hatch such a thought in our minds to say that fonde Loue shoulde molest this wise modest yong Ladie or that blind affection could trouble her minde at all For she as she is endued with as great honestye as any other so was shee as it euer séemed neuer addicted to such vanities as many of her coequalles and hath not shewed at any time so much as a semblance of wanton boldnesse but continually arguments of wise and modest behauiour Nor amongst the diuers communications and companies of curious and inquisite Louers there could be neuer heard any spéech of her Loue Loue is a passion not supported any long time not once immagined amongst them which is so furious and forcible a passion that it will not bée anie long time concealed but will like restrained flames violently burst out vnawares Alas sayd I then to my selfe howe farre doo they roame from the truth not déeming me to be in loue because as it is the manner of fooles I make not my loue publicke to the view of euery one and preache it not openly abroade to bee secretely tossed from mouth to mouth as others vainly glorying in theirs are commonly wont to doo There came also sometimes oppositely before mee many yonge and noble Gentlemen proper men of personage of swéete and amiable countenaunces in euery thing gracious couragious and curteous and the chiefest flowers of our Cittie who often times before by many cunning meanes and drifts hadde to their vtmost of their power attempted and laboured to haue drawne but the deuotions of my eyes to the desires of theyr harts Who after that a certaine while they had séene mée so much deformed and altered from that I was wont to bée not wel pleased perhaps that I did not at the first frame my affections to their fancies disdayned now to looke at me and forsooke me saying The braue beautie of this Lady is gone and turned to a bleacke hew and the glory of her enflaming desires is nowe extincte Wherefore shall I hyde that from you fayre Ladies which dooth not onely gréeue mee to rehearse but generally all Women to heare I say therefore that although it was the greatest gréefe in the world to think that my Panphilus was not present for whose sake my then excellent beauty was most déere vnto me yet in such vpbraiding sort to heare that I had lost it it was no lesse then present death to my soule And besides all these things I remēber that béeing
brook any bridle and dooth admitte no reason and is not afraide of death but rather driuen on headlong and vrged of it selfe it resisteth the mortall prickes of sharpe swordes But if thou wouldest let this anger of it selfe waxe somewhat colder I doubte not but thy kindled follie should be made manifest to that temperate and cooled part And therefore good daughter with patience sustaine his great force and giue place to his furie Wherfore note my words a little and settle thy minde vpon the examples Weake comâ—â—rtes which I will propunde vnto thée Thou arte with incessaunt anguishe of minde most sorowfull if I haue well perceiued thy spéeches for the long absence of thy belooued youth gon from thée and for his faithlesse fidelity for the second looue of his newe choice And being agréeued at these perhappes vncertaine and vniust iniuries recknest no paine like vnto thine But certes if thou wouldest be so wise as I do wishe thée thou shalt for ease of all these painefull accidentes pondering well my words receiue an easie an effectuall remedy The young man whom thou loouest ought without all doubt according to the lawes ordinances of looue to looue thée againe as thou doost him if he doth not hée dooth very ill and yet there is no force to compell him thereunto since euery one may vse the benefitte of his owne liberty as it pleaseth him best If thou doost loue him greatly and so much that thereby thou doost endure greate paine hee is not therefore to bee blamed nor thou canst not iustly be agréeued with him therefore considering that thou thy selfe art the chiefest cause of this For mighty Loue al though he be a great Lorde and his forces are ineuitable could not for all that against thy will place thy Louer in thy hart Thy vagrant witt and idle thoughts were the firste originalles of thy loue which if thou haddest effectually opposed with thy might these sorrowfull euents had not happened vnto thée as now they haue doone but as one frée froÌ„ such vncouth passions thou mightest haue mooued him and all others as he disporting himselfe with his new loue as thou sayst dooth now make but a iest of thée It is therfore necessary since that thou hast submitted thy libertye to hys Lawe to gouerne thy passions according to his pleasures and since he thinks it best to be farre from thée that thou coÌ„tent thy selfe and not repine thereat If with teares hée dyd vowe entire faith vnto thée and promised thée to returne he did not vse any newe thing héerein but an olde and common tricke practised out of memorye and performed euery day of most Louers And these are the prancks and many more such fashions of like consequence which are daily taught and learned in thy God his Court But if hee hath not kept with thée that faith promise there was neuer any Iudge that in decyding of this matter could say any more of it but that he did not well and would so acquite him thinking also with thy selfe that he should doo the like if any other strange loue or fortune had giuen thée ouer to such a breache of former faith as now thou shouldest and I doo wish thée to doo He is not also the first that hath doone so nor thou the first to whom like accidents haue befallen Diuers examples of those that forsooke their louers Iason departed from Lemnos from Hipsiphile and returned into Thessaly to Medea and from her afterwards to Creusa Amorous Parris went from the woods of Ida from Oenon and returned to Troy with faire Hellen. Theseus went from Creete from Ariadne and came to Athens to Phedra And yet for al this neither Hipsiphile Oenone or Ariadne killed themselues but reiecting all vaine thoughts buried their false Louers in darke obliuioÌ„ Loue as I said aboue doth thée no wrong at all or hath doone thée any more then thou thy selfe wouldest take He vseth his bowe and arrowes without any respect of persons as we may dailie sée by proofe And there are so many and manifest examples making so cléere on his side and for his manner of inordinate dealinges that none can worthely be agréeued at any badde successe which hee giueth and that can with reason almost bewayle the ordinary gréefe paynes and care which by his meanes and molestations his followers haue but rather complaine and lament their voluntary submission and be sorrowful for their franck consent which they yéelded to him For he béeing but a wanton naked and blind boy doth flye and alight he knoweth not where himselfe Wherefore to be sorrowfull for hys accustomed and indirect vsages to bewayle his vnkind and froward abuses to receiue no coÌ„fort by him or by no means to thinke to remooue him is rather a losse of wordes and winde The newe Woman who hath taken thy beloued in her netts or els whom hee hath with his cunning guiles ouercome and whom with so many reuenging words thou dost menace with her owne fault perhaps hath not made hym hers but he with his important sutes it may be and wyth his flattering and pittifull words great gifts and seruicable déedes hath wonne her to be his And as thou wert wonte not able to resiste his enchaunting prayers and to beholde his wofull teares so she perhaps as flexible by prayers promises and protestations as thy selfe could not endure them without some great pittie of his distressed and sorrowfull cause If he coulde so well by amorous complaints expresse hys hote desires and could so cunningly as thou hast tolde like a Crocadile whensoeuer it pleased him bewaile and lament then must thou cléerely know that teares ioyned with beauty are of great force to obtaine their request And besides this Say that the Gentlewoman with her sugred spéeches and gracious behauiour hath ouercome him why is it not a thing commonly vsed now adayes in the worlde that euery one doth séeke his own aduantage not hauing any regarde or care to an other his preiudice Euery one seeketh his owne aduantage but where and when he findeth euen there and then hee taketh as hee best may The good Woman as expert as thy selfe in these affayres knowing perhaps him to bee a cunning Knight in Venus Courtly battailes allured him therefore the more vnto her And who with-holdeth thée or what impediment hast thou to hinder thée that thou mayest not doo the like to some other which thing albeit I neither counsell nor commaund But if there can be no more doone then may bee and that of necessitie thou art constrained to follow Loue whensoeuer thou wilt pull thy necke out of his seruile yoke thou mayest quickly finde a great number of yong and lusty Gentlemen in this Cittie more valiant noble proper more worthy and more louing and a great deale more constant then hee is Who as I certainly beléeue to obtaine but the smallest fauour at thy hands that he hath had would gladly kisse the very grounde
otherwise doo in this sorte as you shall heare I passed away my melancholie times I say therefore that martired with these continuall anguishes and considering well of others who haue not béene exempted from the lyke the painefull looues of Inacus his daughter who being first a tender and delicate damsell and passing loouely and beautifull did séeme liuely to represent me came to my minde and afterwards her great good happe and happy felicitie in that she was not meanely belooued of mightie Ioue Which thing doubtlesse cold not be of her onely but of euery womā also accompted a great glory and praise Afterwardes considering howe shee was metamorphised into a Cowe and how by the seuere commaunde of iealious Iuno she was kept of vigilant Argus I did iudge her to be beyond all measure tormēted with great anxieties and gréefe of mind And certes I am of opinion that her gréefs did greatly excéede mine if that for her company comfort she had not had sometimes the assistance of her loouing God And who dooth doubt if I had the swéete company of my loouer who might any time haue helped me in these ruthfull passions or that he had but sometimes taken any little pittie of me that any woes whatsoeuer coulde haue annoyed me so as they haue continually doone Bedes this her ende made her passed and approoued sorrowes very light Because Argus being killed by her loouers messenger and she transported lightly with her heauie body into Egipt and returned there to her owne shape againe and maryed to Ostiris she sawe her selfe at last installed in the Emperiall diademe and like a happy Quéene to sway the regal scepter of Egipt If I could but thinke or hope though in my olde age to sée my Panphilus once againe I would say that my gréefes were not to be compared with the sorrowes of this Lady But the Gods onely knowe if this good fortune shall euer happē to me or no howsoeuer with false hope in the meane time I delude and flatter my selfe The greater part of these fables are in Ouide Next to her the vnfortunate looue of Biblis is represented vnto my thoughts whom me thinke I sée forsake all her wealth ioy and pleasure to followe vnflexible Caunus And with these I bethinke my selfe also of wicked Mirrha who after the detested fruition of her odious looues flying from her angry Father who pursued her with menaces of iust death plunged also into that misery I behold also dolorus Canace who after the miserable byrth of her incestious conceptiō looked for nothing lesse but death And thinking well with my selfe of their seuerall sorrowes I dyd doubtlesse estéeme them to be extreame although their looues were but filthy and abhominable lustes But if I am not deceiued I sée them all ended or else in shorte space to be terminated Because Mirrha flying away hauing the Goddes pittifull of her paines and aunswerable to her desires was with delay transformed into a trée of her owne name And shee neuer after although it dooth continually destill Amber teares as shee dyd at the very instant when her forme was changed felte any of her former paynes and playntes And as the occasion of her sorrowes dyd aryse so the cause of theyr pryuation was not also wanting Biblis likewise as some say without any longer delay ended her dolefull daies with a cruell halter admitte that others holde that by great fauour of the Nimphes who did commisserate her harde destinies she was turned into a fountaine of her owne name till this day yet kéeping the same And this befell to her when she knew that Caumus denied her her desires and scornefully reiected her companie and with frowning browes reprooued her wicked sutes What shal I say in shewing my owne paines greater alas then those that molested Biblis more gréeuous then those that Mirrha had but that the breuiety of them hath had no small aduantage ouer the length of mine Those therefore well considered the pittifull looues of haplesse Pyramus and Thisbe were next obiected to my remembraunce of whome I cannot but take great compassion imagining them both to be young and with great trouble many sorowes to haue burned in each others looue and labouring with mutuall presence to haue reaped the fruite of theyr feruent desires which with vntimely death and in shorte time were equallie dissolued O what a pittifull thing is it to thinke what gréefe pearced poore Pyramus his hart when in the silent time of night finding his déere Thisbes robes bloody and torne of the wild beast at the foote of the Mulbery trée néere vnto the foūtaine and appointed méeting place by these dismall vnexpected tokens he surely thought that she was deuoured The sheathing certes of his own sword in his inpatiēt breast did shew it manifestly enough Afterwards discoursing in my minde the wounding thoughtes of miserable Thisbe beholding her loouer wallowing in his owne goare and pāting yet with declining life I thinke them to be so gréeuous and imagine her teares also to be such burning droppes that I can hardlie beléeue that there were euer any myne owne excepted that dyd torment and scalde more then hyrs Wherefore these two as it is now sayd in the very beginning of theyr gréefes and looues dyd ende the very same O thrise happy soules if that in the other world as in this their perfect and firme looue dooth still remaine inuiolate And so the paynes cares and infinite woes of all theyr former looue could not be equiualent with the delightes and content of their eternall company After these the gréefe of forsaken Dido entred with greater force and déeper consideration into my minde because her condition did of all others most resemble mine I imagined how she was building of Carthage and studying with great Maiesty to dictate lawes in Iunos temple to her new people And how she gaue bountifull entertainment to Aeneas a straunger vnto her by enuious tempests of the Sea weatherbeaten and cast vpon her Libian shores and how she was enamoured of his braue personage and passing vertues and at last howe she committed both her selfe and all hirs to the disposition and pleasure of that Troyan Duke Who hauing vsed her royall Pallaces at his pleasure and soaked himselfe in all manner of delices in her countrie she being euery day more and more enflamed with his looue abandoning her at last departed from thence O how much without compare did she séeme miserable in my conceite beholding her looking from her highest turrettes towards the sea couered with disankred shippes of her flying and vnpittifull loouer But I iudge her more impatient then dollorous when I thinke of her cruell death And certes at the first departure of my Panphilus I felt in my oppinion the very selfe same gréefe as she did on the sodaine endure at the sayling away of false Aeneas O that it had so pleased the Goddes that I as vnable to endure my gréefe as she was hers had