Part 24

They be present before thine eyes, and yet thou seest them not. Oh what and howe great sorrowes, bitter and sharpe paine and vexation doost thou beare, wicked, execrable and accursed appetite.

O detestable madnesse, oh beguiled senses, by your faulte with the selfe same beastlie pleasure, myserable mortall men are ouerthrowne.

Oh filthy lust, absurd furie, disordinate and vaine desire, building nests with errours, and torments for vvounded harts, the vtter destroyer, and idle letting goe by of all good blessings.

Oh blinde Monster, how doost thou blinde, and with what deceipt doost thou couer the eyes, and deceiue the vnderstanding sences of vnhappie and miserable Louers with vailes and mystes.

O monstrous and slauish, which compassed with so manie euils, hastenest to so small pleasure poysoned and fayned.

Logistica speaking with vehemencie these and such lyke words, her fore-head frowning, wrympling with sorrowes, and veines, rysing vp in a great rage, shee cast her Lute vppon the ground and brake it.

VVhere-vppon Thelemia, with a smyling countenaunce, nodded towards mee, as if shee shoulde say, let Logistica speake her pleasure, but doe as you see good your selfe.

And Logistica seeing my wicked intent and resolute determination, beeing kindled with disdaine, turned her backe, and with a great sigh hastened away.

And I remained still with my companion Thelemia, vvho with a flattering and smyling grace said vnto me, Poliphilus, this is the place where thou shalt not continue long, but thou shalt finde the deerest thing which thou louest in the world, & which thou hast in thy hart, without intermission determined to seeke and desire.

And doubtfully then discoursing with my selfe, I was resolued that nothing coulde breede quiet, or bring content to my poore grieued hart, but my best desired Polia. The promise and warrantise of Thelemia for my obtayning the same, bred in mee some comfort.

And shee perceiuing that the Mistris of thys place, and the seate it selfe, and her Women dyd bothe please mee vvell, and entertained mee courteously, shee kissing mee, tooke her leaue and gaue me a fare-well.

The metallyne gates beeing shut, I remayned incloystered among these fayre and beautifull Nymphes, who began very pleasantly and wantonly to deuise with mee: and beeing hemmed in with their lasciuious company, I found my selfe prouoked by their perswasiue alluring intisements, to vnlawfull concupiscence, feeling in my selfe a burning desire, kyndled with their wanton aspects, an increasing prouocation of a lusting fier. I doubt me that if Phrine had beene of that fauour, and force in gesture of speech, colde Xenocrates would haue consented to her alluring, and not haue beene accused by her, to be an image of stone. Their countenances were so lasciuious, their breastes naked and intycing, theyr eyes flattering, in their roseall forheads, glystering and rowling, their shapes most excellent, their apparell rich, their motions girlish, theyr regards byting, theyr ornaments, sweete and precious, no part counterfeited, but all perfected by nature in an excellent sort, nothing deformed, but all partes aunswerable one to an other.

Their heades yellowe, their tresses fayre, and the hayre soft and fine, in such a sort dressed vp and rouled into trammels, with laces of silke and golde, passing any ioye that a man may beholde, turned about their heads in an excellent manner, inuiluxed, and bound vppe together, their forheades compassed about and shaddowed with wauering curles, mouably prpending in a wonderfull manner, marueilous delightfull, perfumed & sweet, yeelding an vnknown fragrancie. Their speeches so perswasorie and pleasing, as might robbe the fauour of an indesposed hart, and violently drawe vnto them any mind, though Satyr-like or churlish howsoeuer, to depraue Religion, to binde euery loose conceit, to make any rusty Peasant amorous, and to mollifie any froward disposition. Vppon which occasion, my minde, altogether set on fier with a new desire, and in the extreame heate of concupiscence, prouoked to fall headlong into a lasciuious appetite, & drowned in lustfull loue vnbridled: in the extreame inuasion and infectious contage thereof, the Damoselles forsooke mee and left me all alone in a fruitfull playne.

In this place Poliphilus being left alone, a most fayre Nymphe (when hee was forsaken of the lasciuious company) came vnto him, whose beautie and apparell Poliphilus dooth amourously describe.

My tender heart thus excessiuely wounded with amorous prouocation, I think I was mad, I stood so amazed, or blinde at the least, because that I coulde not perceiue in what sort or how this desired and delightfull company gaue mee the slip: and at last not knowing what I did, but casting mine eyes right forward, I behelde before mee, a fine Arbour of sweete Gessamine, somewhat high, lifting vppe and bending ouer, all to bee painted and decked with the pleasant and odoriferous flowers of three sortes commixt, and entring in vnder the same. Wonderfully perplexed for the losse of my company, I knewe not howe or in what sort, and calling to remembraunce the diuers, rare and wonderfull thinges past, and aboue al the great hope and trust which I had conceiued vpon the Queenes promise, that I should finde my loue Polia.

Alas said I, with a deepe sigh, my Polia, that the greene Arbour resounded againe therewithall, my amourous breathings were such, framed within and sent out from my burning hart. And I was no sooner entered into this agony, and ouerwhelmed in this passion, but as I passed on to the other ende of the Arbor, I might perceiue a farre off, a great number of youthes, solacing and sporting themselues very loude with diuers melodious soundes, with pleasant sports and sundry pastimes, in great ioye, and passing delight assembled together, in a large playne. Vppon this gratefull and desired noueltie, I set me down marueiling at it, before I would step any further on.

And beholde, a most noble and faire Nymph, with a burning torch in her hand, departing from the company, tended her course towardes mee, so as I might well perceiue that shee was a reall mayde indeede and no spirite, whervpon I mooued not one whit, but gladly expected her comming, who with a maidenly hast, modest accesse, star-like countenance, and smiling grace, drewe neere vnto mee with such a Maiestie, and yet friendly, so as I doubt me, the amorous Idalea neuer shewed her selfe to Mars, nor to her the fayre Pastor Adonis. Nor the delicate Ganimed to Iupiter, or the fayre Psyches, to her spouse Cupid.

For which cause, if shee had beene the fourth among the three contending Goddesses, if Joue had beene Iudge, as in the shady Wooddes of Mensunlone was the Phrigian Sheepheard, without all doubt she had beene iudged of farre more excellent beautie, and without equiuolence, more worthy of the golden apple, then all or any one of the rest. At the first sight I was perswaded that shee had beene Polia, but the place vnaccustomed & her apparell made mee thinke the contrarie, and therefore my doubtfull iudgement remained in suspence, hauing onely a reuerent suspition therof.

This honourable Nymph, had her virgineall diuine and small body couered with a thinne subtill stuffe of greene silke, powdered with golde, vppon a smocke of pure white coorled Lawne, couering her most delicate and tender body, and snowye skinne, as fine and good as euer Pamphila the daughter to Platis in the Iland of Coo, did inuent to weaue. Which white smocke seemed as if it had couered damaske Roses.

The coate which she wore ouer that, was not like our fashioned petticoates with French wastes, for that her sweete proporcioned body needed no such pinching in, & vnholsome weare, hyndering procreation and an enemie to health: but rather like a wastcoate, with little plightes and gathers vnder her rounde and pretty bearing out breasts, vpon her slender and small waste, ouer her large proportioned flanckes and little round belly, fast girded about with a girdle of golde: and ouer the same, a gowne or garment side to the ground, and welted belowe.

This garment beeing very side, was taken vp round about the pitch of her hippes, and before vpon her belly, & tyed about with the studded marriage girdle of Citherea, the plucking vp of y^e garment, bearing ouer the girdle about her like a french vardingale, & the nethermost part falling down about her feet in plightes and fouldes, vnstable and blowne about with the sweete ayre & coole winde, causing sometime, by the thinnesse thereof, her shape to be seene in it, which shee seemed with a prompt readinesse to resist and hynder. Her beautie and grace was such, as I stoode in doubt whether shee were begotten by any humaine generation: her armes stretching downe, her handes long and slender, her fingers small and fayre, and her nayles thinne and ruddy, and shining, as if she had beene Minerua her selfe. Her armes to be seene through the cleere thinnesse of the Lawne, the winges about the size of her garment where her armes came out, were of golde, in an excellent sort and fashion welted, and set with Pearle and stone: and in like sort, all the hemming about of her vesture, with golde ooes, and Pearle, and spangles of golde in diuers places, distantly disposed in a curious and pleasant sort to beholde.

Vppon either side, vnder the armes to her waste, her vpper garment was vnsowed and open, but fastened with three buttons of great Orient Pearle (such as Cleopatra neuer had to dissolue in a Potion) in loopes of blewe silke, so that you might see her smocke betweene the distance of one Pearle from an other, couering her daintie soft snowye thinne skinne: except her small necke and the vpper halfe of her spatious and delitious breast, more desired and contenting mine eyes, then the water brookes and coole Ryuers to the emboste and chased Hart, more pleasing then the fisher boate of Endimion to Cynthia, and more pleasant then Cithera to Orpheus.

The sleeues of her smocke of a conuenient largenesse, and about her wristes plighted and tyed with Bracelets of Golde, double and vnited with Orient Pearle. And besides all her ornaments and gracious gestures, she indeuoured nowe and then with stolen and affected regards, in a sweet & pleasant sort, to cast down her eyes vpon her little round swelling breastes, impatient at the suppressing of her soft and fine apparell: so as I iudged vppon good consideration, and thought that in the dignitie and honourable frame of her personage, the Creator had framed and vnited together, all the violence of Loue. The foure Nourses of the royall Kingdome of Babilon, called The tongue of the Gods, had not that powre to winne fauour and loue of the King, which this most sweet Nymph had.

About her fayre Necke, more white then the Scithian snowe, shee wore a Carkenet of Oryent Pearle: Cerna the wife of Csar neuer had the like, and I doubt me that that of Eriphile, which she tooke to Amphiaraus, was nothing comparable vnto it. And in the bending downe ouer the deuision of her breastes, betwixt two great Pearles, there was laced a corruscant rounde Rubie, and vppon the collaterate sides of the sayde Pearles, two glistering Saphires, and two Pearles, next them two Emeraldes, & two Pearles, and after them two fayre Iacinthes: all these Pearles and Stones were laced in a worke in losenges, in a rare and beautifull manner.

Her fayre heade, sending downe and vnfolding a loose spreading abroade of plentifull hayre, like the smallest threds of golde, wauing with the winde, and vpon her crowne, a garland of tawny vyolets sweetly smelling, and couering the same almost to her forheade: from the middle vpper point whereof, in forme of two Hemycycles to the halfe of her eares, it mounted vppe in curled trammelles, falling downe againe vppon her fayre Temples, moueably wauing and shaddowing the same, and hyding the vpper halfe of her small eares, more fayre then euer was reported of Mimoria.

The rest of her yellowe haire, descended downe ouer her fayre necke, well disposed shoulders, and straight backe, to the calues of her slender legges, moderatly wauing and blowne abroad, in greater beautie than the proude eyed feathers of Iunoes Birde. Such hayre as Berenice did neuer vow in the venereous Temple for her Tholomaus, nor Conus the Mathematrician did euer beholde the like placed in the Triangule.

In her forehead, vnder two subtile blacke Hemycicles and distinct eye brees, such as Abacsine in thiopia had not to boast of, or compare with, nor Juno her selfe, did looke out and present themselues two pleasant radious and glistering eyes, which would enforce Jupiter to rayne golde, of a cleere sight, quicke and pearcing, with a browne circle betwixt the Apple and the milchie white: neere to the which, were her purple and Cherry cheekes, beautified with two round smyling dimples, gracing the pleasure of her countenaunce, of the collour of the fresh Roses gathered at the rysing of the Sunne, and layde in a vessell of the Christall of Cyprus, and shewing through the same, as me thought.

Vnder her nose to her lyppes, passed a little valley to her small mouth of a most sweete forme, her lyppes not blabbered or swelling, but indifferent, & of a rubye collour, couering two vniforme sets of teeth, like yuory, and small, not one longer and sharper than an other, but in order euenly disposed and set: from betwixt the which, Loue had composed an euerlasting sweet breathing, so as I presumed to thinke, that the snow white teeth betwixt her gracious lyppes, were no other but Oryent Pearles, & her sweet breath hot Muske, and by her delightfull voyce that she was Thespis with her nine daughters.