That swote of savour ben with-alle.
And almandres gret plente,
Fyges, and many a date tree
There wexen, if men hadde nede,
Thorgh the gardyn in length and brede.
Ther was eke wexyng many a spice,
As clowe-gelofre,1 and lycorice,
Gyngevre, and greyn de Parys,2
Canelle, and setewale of prys,
And many a spice delitable,
To eten whan men rise fro table.
And many homly trees ther were,
That peches, coynes, and apples beere,
Medlers, plowmes, perys, chesteyns,"
Cherys, of which many oon fayne is,
Notes, aleys, and bolas,"
That forto seen it was solas;
With many high lorey 10 and pyn,
Was renged clene alle that gardyn;
With cipres, and with olyvers,
Of which that nygh no plente heere is.
There were elmes grete and stronge,
Maples, asshe, oke, aspe, planes longe,
Fyne ew, popler, and lyndes faire,
And othere trees fulle many a payre.
What shulde I telle you more of it?
There were so many trees yet,
That I shulde all encombred be,
Er I hadde rekened every tree.
8 Cinnamon. 4 Valerian.
Aloes. • Bullace plums. 10 Laurel
These trees were sette, that I devyse, One from another in assyse
Five fadome or syxe, I trowe so,
But they were hye and great also:
And for to kepe oute well the sonne,
The croppes were so thycke yronne,
And every braunche in other knytte,
And full of grene leves sytte,
That sonne myghte there noon dyscende,
Lest the tender grasses shende.2
There myghte men does and roes yse,
And of squyrels ful gret plente,
From bowe to bowe alwaye lepynge.
Connies there were also playenge,
That comyn out of her clapers &
Of sundry colours and maners,
And maden many a tourneynge
Upon the freshe grasse spryngynge.
In places sawe I welles there,
In whych there no frogges were,
And fayre in shadowe was every welle;
But I ne can the nombre telle
Of stremys smale, that by devyse
Myrthe hadde done come through condyse,"
Of whych the water in rennynge
Gan make a noyse full lykynge."
Aboute the brynkes of these welles,
And by the stremes over al elles
Sprange up the grasse, as thycke yset
2 Be ruined. • Burrows. 4 Conduits.
And softe as any veluet,
On whych men myght hys lemman leye,
As on a fetherbed to pleye,
For the erthe was ful softe and swete.
Through moysture of the welle wete
Spronge up the sote grene gras,
As fayre, as thycke, as myster1 was.
But moche amended it the place,
That therthe was of suche a grace
That it of floures hath plente,
That both in somer and wynter be.
There sprange the vyolet al newe,
And fresshe pervynke 2 ryche of hewe,
And floures yelowe, white, and rede;
Suche plente grewe there never in mede.
Ful gaye was al the grounde, and queynt,
And poudred, as men had it peynt,
With many a freshe and sondry floure,
That casten up ful good savoure.
I wol not longe holde you in fable
Of al this garden delectable.
I mote my tonge stynten nele,
For I ne maye withouten drede
Naught tellen you the beaute alle,
Ne halfe the bounte therewythalle.
I went on ryght hande and on lefte
Aboute the place; it was not left,
Tyl I had al the garden bene
In the esters that men myghte sene.
1 Need. 2 Periwinkle. 8 Passages.
And thus whyle I wente in my playe,
The god of Love me folowed aye.
Ryght as an hunter can abyde
The beest, tyl he seeth hys tyde
To shoten, at goodnesse,1 to the dere,
When that hym nedeth go no nere.
And so befyl I restede me
Besydes a wel under a tree,
Whych tree in Fraunce men cal a pyne.
But, syth the tyme of kynge Pepyne,
Ne grewe there tree in mannes syght
So fayre, ne so wel woxe in hyght;
In al that yarde so hygh was none.
And spryngynge in a marble stone
Hadde Nature set, the soth to telle,
Under that pyne tree a welle.
And on the border al withoute
Was wryten on the stone aboute
Letteres smale, that sayden thus:
“Here starfe the fayre Narcisus."
Narcisus was a bachelere,
That Love hadde caught in hys daungere, 1476
And in hys nette gan hym so strayne,
And dyd hym so to wepe and playne,
That nede hym muste hys lyfe forgo.
For a fayre lady, that hyght Echo,
Hym loved over any creature,
And gan for hym suche payne endure,
That on a tyme she hym tolde,
1 Advantage. 2 Jurisdiction.
That yf he her y-loven nolde,
That her behovede nedes dye,
There laye none other remedye.
But nathelesse, for hys beaute
So fyers and daungerous was he,
That he nolde graunte hir askyng,
For wepyng, ne for faire praiyng.
And whanne she herd hym werne1 soo,
She hadde in herte so gret woo,
And took it in so gret dispite,
That she, withoute more respite,
Was deed anoon. But er she dide,
Fulle pitously to God she preide,
That proude hertid Narcisus,
That was in love so daungerous,"
Myght on a day ben hampred so
For love, and ben so hoot for woo,
That never he myght to joye atteygne ;
And that he shulde feele in every veyne
What sorowe trewe lovers maken,
That ben so velaynesly forsaken.
This prayer was but resonable,
Therfore God helde it forme and stable: 1500
For Narcisus, shortly to telle,
By aventure come to that welle
To resten hym in that shadowing,
A day whanne he come fro huntyng.
This Narcisus hadde suffred paynes
For rennyng alday in the playnes,
|