The Lovers delight:
OR,
A pleasant Pastorall Sonnet
To a new Court Tune.
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COme love, lets walke into the springe,
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where wee will heare the blackbird singe;
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The Robin Redbrest, and the Thrush,
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the nightingale on thornie bush,
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Their musick sweetely Carrowling,
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that to my love Content may bring.
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In yonder dale there are sweete flowers,
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with many pleasent shadie bowers;
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A pearling brooke with silver streames,
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all beautified with Phebus beames:
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I stood behind a tree for feare,
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to see Dyana bathe her there.
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See where the nimph, with all her traine
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comes tripping ore the Parke a maine:
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In yonder grove there will they stay
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at barlie-breake to sport and playe:
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Where wee will sitt us downe and see
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faire beautie mixt with Chastitie.
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The youthfull shephard with delight
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will tune a pleasant oaten pipe:
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Each neatresse fine with heavenly note
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will stretch and straine her varie throate;
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So loud and cleare their nimphs will sing
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that hills and vallies all will ringe.
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The shepheard Srephan with his friend
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the faithfull Clayes will attend
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By playe before the Queene, to prove
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who best deserves Uranias love:
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A most strange sight there shall you see
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rivalls of love and amitie.
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Menalcas and Amintas young,
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brave Coridon, and Thersis strong
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Your minds would unto pleasure move
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to have them plead for Phillis love:
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Judge of these tryumphs who shall be
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but the faire Queene of chastity?
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Under the shade of yonder pine
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you see a Royall throne devine
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Prepared for the Judge to sit,
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the Queene of beauty and of wit,
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Wise Pallas in her Majesty
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the pavid Judge is chose to be.
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The Queene of love is banisht there
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For feare that Phaebe take offence;
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Her wanton sonne must not come there,
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nor Cylharea once appeare:
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It grieves my heart to thinke that shee
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from this aspect exempt must be.
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For if the Queene of love should spie
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the splendour of thy heavenly eye,
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Shee should perswade her winged Sonne
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to wound thy heart as hee hath done.
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My silly breast with dreade and feare,
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but O the chaince, shee is not here.
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See where the wood-Nimphs rankt do stand
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with each a garland in her hand,
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Compact of mir and sweete bayes;
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for who deserved the chiefest prayse
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In pleading of their passions here,
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the Lawrell Crowne away must beare.
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Upon this bed of vyolets blew
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a seate most fit for lovers true:
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Here may wee sit us downe and see
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love tryumph in his Majesty:
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By the sweete eclogs that are sung,
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wee shall perceive, who suffred wrong.
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But stay, the Judges comes to sit,
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the Queene of chastity and wit:
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The Shepheards all are ready here
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in comly habits to appeare.
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All wrongs here righted wee shall see
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by the faire Queene of chastity.
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The second part, To the same tune.
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SWeet heart come tel me whose soft layes
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in your conceit deserves most prayse?
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Or who did set forth passions best?
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how Cupid wounded his brest?
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I know you have noted all thats past,
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from the first man unto the last.
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Me thought it great content did bring,
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to heare the Shepheards carrowling,
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To Crowne Cilrana, made her choise,
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Menalcas for his heavenly voyce;
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Which glory did small pleasure move,
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since Coridon had Phillis love.
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To wrastle and throw barres of length;
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all men gave place to Thersis strength:
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His stedfast footing none could move,
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yet for all this hee lost his love
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No strength or harmony of voyce
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could Phillis move to make her choyce.
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If it had rested in my power,
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there to have chose a paramour:
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Hee whom I thought deservd most grace,
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was young Amintas; whose sweet face,
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And nimble feete could not be matcht.
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the Deities I feare were catcht.
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Did you not note how Pallas swore
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the like shee never saw before?
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Had Meliager made such hast,
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Athlanta had the wager lost:
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In token of deserved praise,
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she crowned him with lasting bayes.
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Then Phaebe unto Phillis said,
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to make thy choise be not afraide,
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For if I were the Nimph to choose,
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Amintas I would not refuse:
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But all in vaine they did exhort,
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for Corridon had Phillis heart.
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Both Pallas and Diana chast,
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did almost straine with breathles hast:
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Who could their prayses farther heape,
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on young Amintas and his sheepe,
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His person, gesture, and his grace
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they did applaud, and his sweete face.
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But tell mee love the reason, why
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faire Phillis with the Christall eye,
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Did all the youthfull swaines refuse,
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and Corridon a love did chuse?
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Since they in beauty did excell,
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and for each prayse did beare the bell.
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It seemes the beauty of the mind,
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did in this case strike Phillis blind:
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His eloquence of tongue and wit,
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in place whereas the Judge did sit
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Was his chiefe gaine, and their soule losse,
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Ulisses so had Ajax crosse.
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But one thing much doth make mee muse,
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why sweete Urania did refuse,
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Her two beloved Ryvalls there?
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in whom such friendship did appeare,
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That stil they wild her with one voyce,
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in friendly wise to make her choyce.
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How prettily they laid the ground,
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how shee at first their heart did wound,
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When shee by them her Neate did keepe,
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and leaving the men halfe a sleepe,
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Her bird out of her pocket ranne,
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and unto Strephans hand did come.
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The pretty neatresse did awake,
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heareing her fluttering bird escape,
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And unto Strephans hand did hye.
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he did restore imediatly
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Her bird, and eke his heart she got,
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and in her snow white bosome put.
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The silly bird but for his love
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his passions could in no wayes move,
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Neither for himselfe nor his trew friend,
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as it appeared in the end,
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That neither party should grow wroth,
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shee most unkinde refused them both.
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And now mee thinkes the sun growes low.
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If you be mist, your friends will know
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That you and I have beene alone,
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which to prevent Ile bring you home,
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To part it is a second hell,
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loth to depart bids oft farewell.
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