CANTO V.

The faithful knight in equal field

Subdues his faithless foe;

Whom false Duessa saves, and for

His cure to hell does go.

I.

THE noble heart that harbours virtuous thought,
And is with child of glorious great intent,
Can never rest, until it forth have brought
Th' eternal brood of glory excellent.
Such restless passion did all night torment
The flaming courage of that Faëry knight,
Devising, how that doughty tournament

With greatest honor be achieved might:

Still did he wake, and still did watch for dawning light.

II.

At last, the golden oriental gate

Of greatest heaven gan to open fair,

And Phoebus, fresh as bridegroom to his mate,

Came dancing forth, shaking his dewy hair;

And hurl'd his glistring beams through gloomy air. Which when the wakeful Elf perceiv'd, straightway He started up, and did himself prepare

In sunbright arms, and battailous array;

For with that Pagan proud he combat will that day.

III.

And forth he comes into the common hall ;
Where early wait him many a gazing eye,

To weet what end to stranger knights may fall.
There many minstrels maken melody,

To drive away the dull meláncholy;

And many bards, that to the trembling chord
Can tune their timely voices cunningly;

And many chroniclers, that can record

Old loves, and wars for ladies done by many a lord.

IV.

Soon after comes the cruel Saracen,

In woven mail all armed warily;

And sternly looks at him, who not a pin
Does care for look of living creatures eye.

They bring them wines of Greece and Araby,
And dainty spices fetch from furthest Ind,

To kindle heat of courage privily;

And in the wine a solemn oath they bind

T'observe the sacred laws of arms, that are assigned.

V.

At last forth comes that far renowned queen;

With royal pomp and princely majesty,
She is ybrought unto a paled* green,

And placed under stately canopy,

* Paled, enclosed.

The warlike feats of both these knights to see.
On th' other side in all mens open view
Duessa placed is, and on a tree

Sansfoy his shield is hang'd with bloody hue:
Both those, the laurel garlands to the victor due.

VI.

A shrilling trumpet sounded from on high,
And unto battle bade themselves address:
Their shining shields about their wrists they tie,
And burning blades about their heads do bless,
The instruments of wrath and heaviness:
With greedy force each other doth assail,
And strike so fiercely, that they do impress
Deep dinted furrows in the batter'd mail :

The iron walls to ward their blows are weak and frail.

VII.

The Saracen was stout and wondrous strong,
And heaped blows like iron hammers great;

For after blood and vengeance he did long.
The knight was fierce, and full of youthly heat,
And doubled strokes, like dreaded thunders threat:
For all for praise and honor did he fight.

Both stricken strike, and beaten both do beat;

That from their shields forth flyeth fiery light,

And helmets, hewed deep, shew marks of either's might.

VIII.

So th' one for wrong, the other strives for right:

As when a griffen, seized of his prey,

A dragon fierce encountreth in his flight,
Through widest air making his idle way,

That would his rightful ravine* rend away :
With hideous horror both together smite,
And souse so sore, that they the heavens affray :
The wise soothsayer, seeing so sad sight,

Th' amazed vulgar tells of war and mortal fight.

1x.

So th' one for wrong, the other strives for right; And each to deadly shame would drive his foe : The cruel steel so greedily doth bite

In tender flesh, that streams of blood down flow;
With which the arms, that erst so bright did show,
Into a pure vermillion now are dyed.

Great ruth in all the gazers' hearts did grow,
Seeing the gored wounds to gape so wide,
That victory they dare not wish to either side.

X.

At last the Paynim chanc'd to cast his eye,
His sudden eye, flaming with wrathful fire,
Upon his brother's shield, which hung thereby :
Therewith redoubled was his raging ire,

And said; "Ah! wretched son of woful sire,
Doest thou sit wailing by black Stygian lake,
Whilst here thy shield is hang'd for victors hire?
And, sluggish german,† dost thy forces slake
To after-send his foe, that him may overtake?

XI.

"Go, captive Elf, him quickly overtake,
And soon redeem from his long-wand'ring woe:
Go, guilty ghost, to him my message make,
That I his shield have quit from dying foe."

* Ravine, prey.

† German, relative.

Therewith upon his crest he struck him so,
That twice he reeled, ready twice to fall:
End of the doubtful battle deemed tho*

The lookers on; and loud to him

gan call

The false Duessa, "Thine the shield, and I, and all !"

XII.

Soon as the Faëry heard his lady speak,

Out of his swooning dream he gan awake;

And quick'ning faith, that erst was waxen weak,

The creeping deadly cold away did shake;

Tho mov'd with wrath, and shame, and ladies sake,

Of all at once he cast aveng'd to be,

And with so' exceeding fury at him strake,
That forced him to stoop upon his knee:

Had he not stooped so, he should have cloven be.

XIII.

And to him said; "Go now, proud miscreant,
Thyself thy message do to german dear;
Alone he, wandring, thee too long doth want:
Go

say, his foe thy shield with his doth bear." Therewith his heavy hand he high gan rear,

Him to have slain; when lo! a darksome cloud

Upon him fell; he nowhere doth appear,

But vanish'd is. The Elf him calls aloud,

But answer none receives; the darkness him does shroud.

XIV.

In haste Duessa from her place arose,

And to him running said; "O prowest knight,

That ever lady to her love did chose,

Let now abate the terror of your might,

* Tho, then.