TELLUS

No comparison Floscula? and why so? is not my beauty divine, whose body is decked with fair flow ers, and veins are Vines, yielding sweet liquour to the dullest spirits, whose ears are Corn, to bring strength, and whose hears are grass, to bring abundance? Does not Frankincense, & Mirth breath out of my nostrils, and all the sacrifice of the Gods, breed in my bowels? Infinite are my creatures, without which, neither thou nor Endymion, nor any could love, or live. Loath I am Endymion thou shouldst die, be cause I love thee well, and that thou shouldst live it grieveth me, because thou love Cynthia too well. In these extremities what shall I do? Floscula no more words, I am resolved. He shall neither live, nor die. Yes, I will entangle him in such a sweet net, that he shall neither find the means to come out, nor desire it. All allurements of pleasure will I cast before his eyes, insomuch that he shall slake that love which he now voweth to Cynthia, and burn in mine, of which he seems careless. In this languishing, between my a morous devises, and his own lose desires, there shall such dissolute thoughts take root in his head, and over his heart grow so thick a skin, that neither hope of preferment, nor fear of punishment, nor counsel of the wisest, nor company of the worthiest, shall altar his hu mor, nor make him once to think of his honour. Yet suffer me to imitate Juno, who would turn Jupiters lovers to beasts on the earth, though she knew afterwards they should be stars in heaven. It shall suffice me if the world talk that I am favoured of Endymion. Behold Floscula, we have met with the Woe man by chance that we sought for by travel; I will break my mind to her without ceremony or circum stance, least we lose that time in advise, that should be spent in execution. Tush Floscula, in obtaining of love, what im possibilities will I not try? and for the winning of Endi mion, what impieties will I not practice? Dipsas, whom as many honour for age, as wonder at for cunning, listen in few words to my tale, & answer in one word to the purpose, for that neither my burning desire can afford long speech, nor the short time I have to stay many de lays. Is it possible by herbs, stones, spells, incantan tation, enchantment, exorcisms, fire, metals, plan nets, or any practice to plant affection where it is not, and to supplant it where it is? Unhappy Tellus, whose desires are so des perate, that they are neither to be conceived of any credit ature, nor to be cured by any art. Endymion, sweet Endymion is he that hath my heart, and Cynthia, too too fair Cynthia, the miracle of Nature, of time, of Fortune, is the Lady that he de lights in, and dotes on every day, and die for ten thou sand times a day. It is the only thing I crave, that seeing my love to Endymion unspotted, cannot be accepted, his truth to Cynthia (though it be unspeakable) may be suspected. Let us go. Yonder I espy Endymion, I will seem to sum specked nothing but sooth him, that seeing I cannot ob taine the depth of his love, I may learn the height of his dissembling; Floscula and Dipsas, withdraw your selves out of our sighed, yet be within the hearing of our saluting; How now Endymion, always solitary? no come pany but your own thoughts? no Friend but melan cholie fancies? Then you love me Endymion. Is it not possible for you Endymion, to dissem ble? Why, is dissembling joined to their sex inse parable? as heat to fire, heaviness to earth, moisture to water, thinness to air? Do they all dissemble? Who is that? You will be sure I shall take no vantage of your words. But in sooth Endymion, without more cere moneys, is it not Cynthia? Why, she is but a woman. She is but a virgin. She shall have and end. Is not her beauty subject to time? Wilt thou make her immortal? Take heed Endymion, lest Like the Wrestler in Olimpiam, that striving to lift and impossible weight, catched and incurable strain, thou by fixing thy thoughts above thy reach, fall into a disease without all recure? But I see thou art now in love with Cynthia. As good sleep and do no harm, as wake and do no good. Corsites, Cynthia may restrain the liberty of my body, of my thoughts she cannot, and therefore do I esteem my self most free, though I am in greatest bondage. Corsites, there is no sweeter music to the miserable then despair, and therefore the more bitter ness I feel, the more sweetness I find, for so vain were liberty, and so unwelcome the following of higher for tune, that I choose rather to pine in this Castle, then to be a Prince in any other Court. I marvel Corsites that you being a Captain, who should found nothing but terror, and suck nothing but blood, can find in your heart to talk such smooth words, for that it agreeth not with your calling to use words so soft, as that of love. Good Corsites talk not of love, but let me to my labour: the little beauty I have, shall be bestowed on my Loom, which I now mean to make my Lover. The only favour I desire, is now and then to walk. I Marvel Corsites gives me so much liberty: all the world knowing his charge to be so high, and his nature to be most strange, who hath so ill entreated Ladies of great honour, that he hath not suf feared them to look out of windows, much less to walk abroad: it may be he is in love with me, for (Endymion, hard hearted Endymion, excepted) what is he that is not enamoured of my beauty? But what respectest thou the love of all the world, Endymion hates thee. A las poor Endymion, my maylce hath exceeded my love: and thy faith to Cynthia, quenched my affections. Quen ched Tellus? nay kindled them a fresh; in so much that I find scorching flames, for dead embers, and cruel en counters of war in my thoughts, in steed of sweet parlees. Ah that I might once again see Endymion, ac cursed girl, what hope hast thou to see Endymion? on whose head already are grown grey hairs, and whose life must yield to Nature, before Cynthia end her dis pleasure. Wicked Dipsas, and most devilish Tellus, the one for cunning too exquisite, the other for hate too in tolerable. Thou wast commanded to weave the stories & Poetries, wherein were showed both examples & pu nishments of tattling tongues, and thou hast only imbro dered the sweet face of Endymion, devises of love, melan choly imaginations, and what not, out of thy work, that thou shouldst study to pick out of thy mind. But here comes Corsites, I must seem yielding and stout, full of mildness, yet tempered with a Majesty: for if I be too flexible, I shall give him more hope then I mean, if too froward, enjoy less liberty then I would, love him I can not, & therefore will practice that which is most contra rye to our sex, to dissemble. My Lord I have no playfellow but fancy, be king barred of all company I must question with my self, and make my thoughts my Friends. There are no colours so contrary as white and black, nor Elements so disagreeing as fire and water, nor any thing so opposite as men's thoughts & their words. Well Corsites I will flatter my self, and believe you. What would you do to enjoy my love? These be great words, and fit your calling: for Captains must promise things impossible. But will you do one thing for all. You know that on the Lunary bank slee peth Endymion. Stay, will your self attempt it? I will depart, and go you to Endymion. Truth shall be mine answer, and therefore I will not study for and excuse. Divine Cynthia, by whom I receive my life, and am content to end it. I can neither excuse my fault without lying, nor confess it without shame; Yet were it possible that in so heavenly thoughts as yours, there could fallen such earthly motions as mine, I would then hope, if not to be pardoned without extreme punishment, yet to be herd without great marvel. Endymion, that Endymion in the prime of his youth, so ravished my heart with love, that to obtain my desires, I could not find means, nor to resite them reason. What was she that favoured not Endymion, being young, wise, honourable, and virtuous; beside, what mettle was she made of (be she mortal) that is not affected with the spice, nay infected with the poison of that (not to be expressed, yet always to be felt) Love? which breaks the brains, and never brooseth the brow: consumeth the heart, and never touches the skin: and makes a deep skarre to be seen, be before any wound at all be felt. My heart too tender to withstand such a divine fury, yielded to Love. Madame I not without blushing confess, yielded to Love. Feeling a continual burning in all my bowels, and a bursting almost in every vain, I could not smoo there the inward fire, but it must needs be per ceiued by the outward smoke, and by the flying a broad of diverse sparks, diverse judged of my scalding flames. Endymion as full of art as wit, marking mine eyes, (in which he might see almost his own,) my sighs, by which he might ever hear his name sounded, aimed at my heart, in which he was assured his person was im printed, and by questions wrunge out that, which was ready to burst out. When he saw the depth of my affections, he sware, that mine in respect of his, were as fumes to Aetna, valleys to Alps, Ants to Eagles, and nothing could be compared to my beauty but his love, and eternity. Thus drawing a smooth shoe upon a crooked foot, he made me believe, that (which all of our sex willingly acknowledge) I was beautiful. And to wonder, (which indeed is a thing miraculous) that any of his sex should be faithful. I will Madame quickly make and end of my love & my tale. Finding continual increase of my tor menting thoughts, and that the enjoying of my love, made deeper wounds then the entering into it. I could find no means to ease my grief, but to follow Endi mion, and continually to have him in the object of mine eyes, who had me slave and subject to his love. But in the moment that I feared his falsehood, and fried my self most in mine affections, I found, (ah grief, even then I lost my self.) I found him in most melancholy and desperate terms, cursing his stars, his state, the earth, the heavens, the world, and all for the love of Madame, I dare not utter for fear to of fend. For the love of Cynthia. I seeing my Hope's turned to mishaps, and a settled dissembling towards me, and and unmovable de sire to Cynthia, forgetting both my self and my sex; fell unto this unnatural hate; for knowing your for tues Cynthia to be immortal, I could not have and ima gination to withdraw him. And finding mine own of fections unquenchable, I could not carry the mind that any else should possess what I had pursued. For though in majesty, beauty, virtue, and dignity, I all ways humbled and yielded my self to Cynthia, yet in affections, I esteemed my self equal with the Gods ses, & all other creatures according to their states with my self. For stars to their bigness have their lights, and the sun hath no more. And little pytchers when they can hold no more, are as full as great vessels that run over. Thus Madam in all truth, have I uttered the un happiness of my love, and the cause of my hate, yeel ding wholly to that divine judgement which never erred for want of wisdom, or envied for too much partiality. Ah Endymion, now I know thee and ask par done of thee: suffer me still to wish thee well. Madame most willingly. Only the picture of Endymion. Treacherous and most periurde Endymion, is Cynthia the sweetness of thy life, and the bitterness of my death? What revenge may be devised so full of shame, as my thoughts are replenished with malice? Tell me Floscula if falseness in love can possibly be punished with extremity of hate. As long as sword, fire, or poison may be hired, no traitor to my love shall live vnreuen ged. Were thy oaths without number, thy kisses with out measure, thy sighs without end, forged to deceive a poor credulous virgin, whose simplicity had been worth thy favour and better fortune? If the Gods sit unequal beholders of injuries, or laughers at Lovers de ceipts, then let mischief be as well forgiven in women, as perjury winked at in men. He shall know the malice of a woman, to have neither mean, nor end, and of a woman deluded in love, to have neither rule, nor reason. I can do it, I must, I will. All his virtues will I shadow with vices, his person (ah sweet person) shall he deck with such rich Robes, as he shall forget it is his own person, his sharp wit (ah wit too sharp, that hath cut off all my joys) shall he use, inflattering of my face, and devising Son nets in my favour. The prime of his youth and pride of his time, shall be spent in melancholy passion, care less behaviour, untamed thoughts, and unbridled of fections. Ah Floscula, thou rendest my heart in sunder, in putting me in remembrance of the end. But timely Madam crooks that tree that will be a camock, and young it pricks that will be a thorn, and therefore he that began without care to settle his life, it is a sign without amendment he will end it. If you will remove him from that place by force, and convey him into some obscure cave by policy, I give you here the faith of and unspotted virgin, that you only shall possess me as a lover, and in spite of ma lice, have me for a wife. Simple Corsites, I have set thee about a task being but a man, y to the gods the ̄ selves cannot perform: for little dost thou know how heavy his head lies, how hard his fortune: but such shifts must women have to de ceiue men, and under colour of things easy, entreat that which is impossible: otherwise we should be cum ̄ bred with importunities, oaths, sighs, letters, and all implements of love, which to one resolved to the contrary, are most loathsome. I will in and laugh with the other Ladies at Corsites sweating.