It answered was, her name was Prays-defire, That by well doing fought to honour to afpyre.

XL.

The whiles the Faery Knight did entertaine
Another Damfell of that gentle crew,

That was right fayre and modeft of demayne,
But that too oft fhe chaung'd her native hew:
Straunge was her tyre, and all her garment
blew,

Clofe rownd about her tuckt with many a
plight :

Upon her fift the bird, which shonneth vew And keepes in coverts close from living wight, Did fitt, as yet ashamd how rude Pan did her dight.

XLI.

So long as Guyon with her communed, Unto the grownd she caft her modeft eye,

XL. 7. Upon her fift the bird, which fhonneth vew &c.] Pan fell in love with Echo, and begat a daughter on her named Jynx, who was by Juno (but Spenfer fays by Pan) turned into a bird of the fame name, because the endeavoured to practise her philters and incantations on Jupiter. See the Schol. ou Theocr. Idyll. ii. ver. 17. What bird this Jynx is, cannot fo well be determined; but Spenfer feems, by his description, to mean the cuckow. Compare Chaucer, Kn. T. 1930.

"And Jeloufie

"That werd of yelow goldis a garland,

"And had a cuckow fitting on her hand." UPTON. XLI. 1. communed,] Spenfer's own editions read commoned, but all the fubfequent editions, except that of 1751, read communed. TODD.

And ever anone with rofy red

The bashfull blood her fnowy cheekes did dye,

That her became, as polifht yvory

Which cunning craftesman hand hath over

layd

XLI. 3. And ever and anone with rofy red

The bashfull blood &c.] Spenfer is fond of thus

defcribing perfonal beauty. Again,

"And his fweet lips on which, before that stound,
"The bud of youth to bloffome fair began,

Spoyld of their rofie red were woxen pale and wan. See alfo F. Q. ii. i. 41. From these elegant paffages Milton transferred the enchanting smile to the Angel, Par. L. B. viii. 618; and not from rofy red applied to apples, (F. Q. i. xi. 46.) as Mr. Thyer and Mr. Church have fuppofed. Sylvefter, I fhould add, has adorned one of his ladies with Speufer's defcription in the paflage before us. See Du Bart. 1621, p. 498. "The lillies of her brefts, the rofie red

"In either cheek-" TODD.

XLI. 4. The bashfull blood &c.] From Virg. Æn. xii. 64. Accepit vocem lacrimis Lavinia matris,

66

"Flagrantis perfufa genas: cui plurimus ignem

66

Subjecit rubor, et calefacta per ora cucurrit.

"Indum fanguineo veluti violaverit oftro

"Si quis ebur, aut mixta rubent ubi lilia multa
"Alba rofa: talis virgo dabat ore colores."

Compare F. Q. v. iii. 23, Hom. I. . 141; Claudian, Rapt. Prof. i. 271; Statius, Achill. i. 304; Ovid, Amor. ii. v. 34, Met. iv. 330. Many more paffages of ancient writers might be pointed out, in which these favourite comparisons occur.

JORTIN.

XLI. 6. craftefman hand] So Spenfer's own editions read, which, as Mr. Upton obferves, is more poetical than the reading of the folios, "craftefman's hand;" the fubftantive being used adjectively, as in F. Q. i. ii. 1. "In ocean waves." Again, F. Q. i. vi. 27. "The lyon whelpes.' It is therefore remarkable that Mr. Church, who defends the reading of "lyon whelpes," and propofes to read "Shepherd fwayne" ft. 14, fhould follow the fuppofed emendation of the

With fayre vermilion or pure caftory.

Great wonder had the Knight to fee the Mayd

So ftraungely paffioned, and to her gently faid;

XLII.

Fayre Damzell, feemeth by your troubled cheare,

That either me too bold ye weene, this wife You to moleft, or other ill to feare

That in the fecret of your hart clofe lyes, From whence it doth, as cloud from fea, aryfe:

If it be I, of pardon I you pray;

But, if ought elfe that I mote not devyfe, I will, if please you it difcure, affay

To eafe you of that ill, fo wifely as I may."

XLIII.

She answerd nought, but more abasht for shame Held downe her head, the whiles her lovely face

The flashing blood with blushing did inflame, And the ftrong paffion mard her modeft.

grace,

folios. See alfo ft. 59 of the prefent canto, " Briton moniments." The editions of Hughes, of 1751, and of Tonfon's in 1758, read alfo craftefman's. TODD,

XLI. 9. paffioned,] Difordered. So, in ft. 43. "And the ftrong paffion," i, e. diforder, commotion. CHURCH. XLIII, 4. And the strong paffion mard her modeft grace,] I believe Milton had this exprefliou in his mind, Pur. Loft, B. iv. 114.

That Guyon mervayld at her uncouth cace; Till Alma him befpake; " Why wonder yee, Faire Sir, at that which ye fo much embrace? She is the fountaine of your modeftee;

You fhamefaft are, but Shamefaftnes itselfe is fhee."

XLIV.

Thereat the Elfe did blufh in privitee,

And turnd his face away; but she the fame Diffembled faire, and faynd to oversee. Thus they awhile with court and goodly game Themselves did folace each one with his Dame, Till that great Lady thence away them fought To vew her Caftles other wondrous frame: Up to a stately turret she them brought, Afcending by ten steps of alablafter wrought.

"Thus while he spake, each passion dim'd his face,
"Thrice changd with pale ire, envy, and despair,
"Which marr'd his borrowd image.' UPTON.

"

XLIII. 9. You shamefast are, &c.] Mr. Upton thinks that here is an historical allusion, and that the character of the Earl of Effex is particularly hinted at. Perhaps the poet was rather thinking of Lord Surry's elegant defcription in Songes aad Sonets, edit. 1587, fol. 18. b. where "The louer for fhamefaftnes hideth his defire within his faithfull heart." Concerning the perfonification of Shamefacedness, see the note on F. Q. iv. x. 50. TODD.

XLIV. 8. Up to a fately turret she them brought,] Cicero, Tufc. Difp. i. 10. "Plato triplicem finxit animum, cujus principatum, i. e. rationem, in capite ficut in arce pofuit." Plato calls it the ακρόπολις. UPTON.

XLIV. 9. Afcending by ten feps of alablafter wrought.] There may be many reasons why he fays by "ten steps :" Perhaps to show the completion and finishing of the building; for

XLV.

That turrets frame moft admirable was,
Like highest heaven compaffed around,
And lifted high above this earthly maffe,
Which it furvewd, as hils doen lower ground:
But not on ground mote like to this be found;
Not that, which antique Cadmus whylome
built

In Thebes, which Alexander did confound; Nor that proud towre of Troy, though richly guilt,

From which young Hectors blood by cruell Greekes was fpilt.

XLVI.

The roofe hereof was arched over head,

ten is the completion and finifhing of number. Μέγισος μὲν ἀριθμὸς ὁ ΔΕΚΑ, κατὰ τὰς Πυθαγορικές, ὁ τετρακτός τε ὤν, καὶ πάντας τὰς ἀριθε μητικὲς καὶ τὰς ἁρμονικές, περιέχων λόγος, Athenag. Apol. pro Chriftianis. "Pefectum antiqui conftituerunt numerum, qui decem dicitur," Vitruv. L. iii. C. 1. Another reason, and which feens the chief, why he fays that the afcent was made by ten fteps, may be affigned from what the Greeks call xμaxτñgis, and Pliny (L. vii. C. xlix.) anni scanfiles, i. e. thofe fteps or stages of life, which vary every seventh year; 'till the last step is reached, with difficulty; feven times x. the lxxth year. See Cenforinus De Die Nat. C. xiv. A. Gellius, L. iii. C. 10. and L. xv. C. 7. and Macrob. p. 28, 29. See alfo Pfalm xc. 10. "The days of our age are threefcore years and ten." UPTON. XLV. 8. Nor that proud towre of Troy, though richly guilt, From which young Hectors blood by cruell Greekes was spilt.] Aftyanax (the young Hector) was flung from the battlements of Troy. See Ovid. Met. xiii. 415. Though richly guilt, alludes to the defcription of Virgil, Æn. ii. 448. "Auratafque trabes," and ver. 504. “ Barbarico poftes auro." And to what Paris fays in his Epiftle to Helena,

"Innumeras urbes atque aurca tecta videbis."

UPTON.