The Triumph of Love, Chapter II

ALl musynge wyth greate admiration
As one astonnyed to see the fasshyon
Nowe here, nowe there, I loked all aboute
To se the order of this greate huge route
And as my harte from thought to thought past
I sawe twayne together at a caste
Hande in hand they went in the prease
Reasonynge together they dyd not sease.
Theyr straunge habyte, and theyr araye
And theyr language more straunge I saye
Was vnto me so darke and obscure
That what they ment I knowe not be ye sure.
Tyll my felowe by his interpretation
Of that whiche they talked made declaration
And then when I knewe what they were
Into theyr presence I drewe me nere
And perceaued that the one spirite was
Frende to the Romaynes that there dyd passe
The to ther contrary a perpetuall foo
I lefte hyr then, and to the tother dyd goo
and sayde: O Masinissa I the praye
For Scypyons sake which thou dydst loue alway
And for Sophonysba that standeth the by
That I am so bolde be thou not angrye
To demaunde the what thou doest here
Masinissa aunswered with a sad chere
I do desyre to knowe what thou shulde be
For it is I tel the a great wonder vnto me
That thou doest spye my great affection
whiche that I be are with suche dilection
To this my loue, and to my tother frende
That desyre of me, and I wyll condescende
To all that thynge that thou wylt haue me do
I aunswered gently, O hyghe prynce not so
My poore estate desyreth no suche mede
A small lytle fyer farre of in dede
Bryngeth forth but a small lyght:
But thy royall fame, O noble knyght
Is euery where blowen and spredde
This duke afore whome thou arte ledde
I praye the gently kynge expresse
Whether he doth lede you both in peace
You and Sophonysba, for I suppose
That twayne suche louers as together goese
In all the worlde were harde to fynde:
He aunswered and sayde, thy wordes are so kind
That although thou knowe hole the case
Of all my loue howe greuous that it was
Yet wyll I tell the thy fancy to appease
And thy mynde to set at rest and ease,
That noble Duke that onlye had my harte
So true and sure, and fast in euery parte
That I in frendshyp with Lelins may compare
Whersoeuer his worthy baner dyd fare,
There was I, wyth that moste worthy knyght
But not so fortunate as he deserued by ryght
For full of goodnes and grace was he
Aswell wyth soule as in the fayre bodye
Nowe after the Romaynes by singler honoure
Had sprede theyr armes by myght and power
To the extreme partes of the occident
Thither wyth this valeaunt Scipion I went
There was I, in loue fyrst taken than
Wyth this Sophonisba this swete woman
And she with me in such a feruent guyse
That I affirme and with so true aduyse
That neuer two louers loued better
Nor two true louing hartes nor sweter
Agreade in one nor yet neuer shall
But the tyme of duryng alas it was but small
For sone vanished away our louely chere
As I tell the yf that thou wilt me here
For albeit, I toke her to my wyfe
And thought with her to haue led my lyffe
The bond was broken forthwith in twayne
By his holy wordes that more myght certayne
Then all the worlde in such faruente case
The knot he losed and I my selfe gaue place
And nowe wonder for I in hym dyd see
So highe vertue in all kynde of degree
That as I may say by good comparison
He is all blynde that cannot see the sonne
And albeit that iustice was offence
To oure true loue yet his high prudence
And his deare frendshyppe dyd me compell
For to folo we his sage worthy councell
In honour a very father was he
And in loue a chylde in yche degree
A brother in yeres which me constrayned
Wyth heuy harte with sighes depe payned
Scipio to obeye whereby my wyfe
Was constrayned for to lose her lyfe
And that wyllingly rather then she
Into vyle seruitude brought should be
And I my selfe the mynister was
To my great doloure to execute this case
So ardently she desired the death
That I my selfe as the trueth sayeth
To her prayer dyd then condiscend
To my great heuynes this was the ende
I sent her venyme for to drynke
Wyth such a sorowe as thou mayest thynke
Y feuer thou feltes of loues woo and payne
That it semeth my harte wolde brest in twayne
She knoweth this and so well knowe I
Be thou the Iudge and thynk I do not lye
Thus loste I my dere hope and luste
To kepe my fayth and not to be vniuste
Unto my Scipio nowe seke yf thou may
Yf thou caust se in all this great arraye
Or ells perceaue in all this louers daunce
So wonderfull and so straunge a chaunce
Wyth these wordes that he declared to me
Calling to minde as I myght playnely se
The hoote fyery loue betwixt them twayne
My harte euen there so relentyde playne
As doth the snowe agaynst the feruent sonne
When that his beames to sprede he hath begonne
And this as these twayne passed by
I harde her say and that right hastely
This felowe pleased me nothing at all
I am determined ye and euer shall
To hate hym and all his nacion
When that I harde her speake of this facion
I sayd Sophonisba I praye the be in peace
For bryfelye the truth to the to reherse
Two times the Romaynes thy cartage oppressed
That as theyr subiectes to be they all confessed
The thirde tyme they destroyde it cleane
That nowe vnneth thereof is nothyng sene
Sophonisba answered to me agayne
With short wordes and in great disdaine
Yf Aufrike wept Italie had no nede
For to make bost of theyr lucky spede
Aske those that your hystoryes do wryte
For they the trueth of both perties do endite
Thus they went both together in fere
Among the great prease here and there
Smiling and talkyng that I ne might
No more of them haue after that a sight
Then as one that at aduenture doth ride
To knowe the right way on euery syde
Nowe standeth, nowe goeth, nowe hyeth a pase
Euen so my fancye at that time it was
Doubtefull and desyring to knowe by proue
Howe faruently these twayne dyd loue
Tyll at the last as I cast myne eye
Upon the lyft hande I sawe me by
One that had this straunge effecte
To seme angry because he dyd abiecte
His wyffe which he loued aboue all other
By pytie to geue her to a nother
And reioysed much so for to doo
And all together as louers they dyd goo
Talkynge of this merueylouse case
And of Syrya that countre where it was
I drue me nere to these spirites thre
That were aboute, as farre as I can see
To haue gone from thense another way
And to the first of them thus dyd I say
I pray you sayde I, a whyle for to abyde
A none the fyrste he dyd cast his heade asyde
When that he harde me speake Italyan
And wyth a ryght angrye countenaunce than
He stode styll and streyght began to tell
That which I thought to be a great maruell
Thou desyrest my frende to knowe sayeth he
What I am and what that I should be
I am Selencus brifely to discus
And this afore the is my sonne Antiocus
Which had great warre with ye Romaines nation
But right agaynste fierce hath no dominion
This woman that thou sest was fyrst my wyfe
And after was his for to saue hys lyfe
It was then […]efull for vs so to doe
Her name is Stratonica she was called so
And oure chaunce by loue was thus deuyded
And vnder this facyon the matter was guyded
My sonne was contented to release to my hande
His great kyngdome and all his large lande
I vnto hym my loue and lady deare
When that I sawe hym for to chaung his chere
And day by daye to drawe vnto the death
So that vnneth he myght not drawe his breath.
I maruayled muche what the cause shoulde be
Secretely my wyfe for trueth loued he
That not disclosinge his wofull payne
My dere sonne by loue was well nere slayne
And had ben deade, but that the wyse phisician
Disclosed to me the very cause than
Of all his sycknes whiche he kept close
Surely this came of a vertuouse purpose
And of a wonderous fatherly pytie of me
Sayinge these wordes awaye went he
So that I coulde vnneth bydde hym farewell
And this was all that then he dyd me tell
After that the shadowe thus was gone
Syghynge and sadde, I made great mone
Because I myght not to hym disclose my hart
But styll as I stode thus musynge aparte
I knowe that Zerzes the great kynge of Perce
Whiche ledde an Army as hystories reherce
Of men innumerable, had neuer such a sort
As there was of louers barrayne of comforte
So that myne eyes coulde not well suffyse
To se theyr straunge fashyons and theyr guyse
Uaryable of tounges, and of so dyuers landes
That amonge a thousand one that there standes
I knewe not, theyr person nor theyr name
Nor yet in hystorye coulde descryue the same
Parseus was one, and fayne I woulde desyre
Howe Andromeda dyd hyr selfe so attyre
That although she blacke were pardie
Borne in Ethiope that whote countrie
yet her fayre eyne, and her cryspe heare
This Parseus harte in loue so dyd steare
That as his loue the virgyn dyd he take
And neuer after dyd that mayde forsake
There was also the folysh louer playne
That loued his owne pycter vayne
That therby vnwysely he was brought to death
And after as the hystorye playnly sayth
He was conuerted by the diuine power
Unto a fayre goodly pleasaunt flower
Without for to brynge any frute at all
And by hym emong these louers thrall
Was she that was turned vnto a stone
And now aloude doth aunswer euery one
When she is called with voyce clere
Next vnto this Ecco that dyd appeare
Was yphys that had her selfe in hate
Wyth other dyuers, in a full pyteouse state
Whiche were to longe theyr names for to reherse
Eyther in prose, or elles in ryme or verse
But yet of some I wyll declare and tell
Of Alcione and Ceice that loued so well
That loue they had so ioyned for euer
That nothynge could make them to disseuer
Nowe clepyng now kyssynge, as they dyd flye
Serchynge the kyngedome of Esperye
Now restynge together on a salte stone
And by the Sea theyr nestes to make alone
And I sawe also amonge that great route
As here and there I loked me about
The cruell doughter of kynge Nysus
With flyght she fledde which is maruelouse
Allauta was amonge them in the presse
With theyr gay golden apples doubtles
She was vanquyshed yea and ouercome
By Hyppomone lo this is all and some
Glad he semed to haue had the vyctory
And amonge the other of this companye
I sawe Atys and Galathea in his lappe
And Poliphemon with greate noyse and clappe
And Glanco shouynge amonge the sorte
Crying for his loue without comforte
Carmenite and Pico, of Italy sometyme kynge
Turne to a byrde, which was a meruelouse thing
There sawe I also Egeria complayne
Because Syllayn was turned certayne
Into a greate harde rocke of stone
Whiche in the sea maketh many to mone
Amonge the other that I haue rehearsed
Was Cauase, by hyr father oppressed
In the tone hande a penne dyd she holde
A sworde in the tother, with pale face and colde
Pygmalion was there among the reste
With his wyfe Alyf that he loued best
And amonge these I harde a thousande synge
In Castallia where these Poetes brynge
These louers with them more then I reherse
In prose, in ryme, in metre, and in verse
And at the last Cydippe dyd I see
Scorned with an apple there was she.