Metamorphoses

Ovid

Ovid. The XV bookes of P. Ouidius Naso, entytuled Metamorphosis. Golding, Arthur, translator. London: W. Seres (printer), 1567.

  1. Thus farre (I well remember mee) did Helens woordes extend
  2. To good Aenaeas. And it is a pleasure unto mee
  3. The Citie of my countrymen increasing thus to see:
  4. And that the Grecians victorie becommes the Trojans weale.
  5. But lest forgetting quyght themselves our horses happe to steale
  6. Beyond the mark: the heaven and all that under heaven is found,
  7. Dooth alter shape. So dooth the ground and all that is in ground.
  8. And wee that of the world are part (considring how wee bee
  9. Not only flesh, but also sowles, which may with passage free
  10. Remove them into every kynd of beast both tame and wyld)
  11. Let live in saufty honestly with slaughter undefyld,
  12. The bodyes which perchaunce may have the spirits of our brothers,
  13. Our sisters, or our parents, or the spirits of sum others
  14. Alyed to us eyther by sum freendshippe or sum kin,
  15. Or at the least the soules of men abyding them within.
  16. And let us not Thyesteslyke thus furnish up our boordes
  17. With bloodye bowells. Oh how leawd example he afoordes.
  18. How wickedly prepareth he himself to murther man
  19. That with a cruell knyfe dooth cut the throte of Calf, and can
  20. Unmovably give heering to the lowing of the dam
  21. Or sticke the kid that wayleth lyke the little babe, or eate
  22. The fowle that he himself before had often fed with meate.
  23. What wants of utter wickednesse in woorking such a feate?
  24. What may he after passe to doo? well eyther let your steeres
  25. Weare out themselves with woork, or else impute theyr death to yeeres.
  26. Ageinst the wynd and weather cold let Wethers yeeld yee cotes,
  27. And udders full of batling milk receyve yee of the Goates.
  28. Away with sprindges, snares, and grinnes, away with Risp and net.
  29. Away with guylefull feates: for fowles no lymetwiggs see yee set.
  30. No feared fethers pitche yee up to keepe the Red deere in,
  31. Ne with deceytfull bayted hooke seeke fishes for to win.
  32. If awght doo harme, destroy it, but destroy't and doo no more.
  33. Forbeare the flesh: and feede your mouthes with fitter foode therfore.
  1. Men say that Numa furnisshed with such philosophye
  2. As this and like, returned to his native soyle, and by
  3. Entreatance was content of Rome to take the sovereintye.
  4. Ryght happy in his wyfe which was a nymph, ryght happy in
  5. His guydes which were the Muses nyne, this Numa did begin
  6. To teach Religion, by the meanes whereof hee shortly drew
  7. That people unto peace whoo erst of nought but battell knew.
  8. And when through age he ended had his reigne and eeke his lyfe,
  9. Through Latium he was moorned for of man and chyld and wyfe
  10. As well of hygh as low degree. His wyfe forsaking quyght
  11. The Citie, in vale Aricine did hyde her out of syght,
  12. Among the thickest groves, and there with syghes and playnts did let
  13. The sacrifyse of Diane whom Orestes erst had fet
  14. From Taurica in Chersonese, and in that place had set.
  15. How oft ah did the woodnymphes and the waternymphes perswade
  16. Egeria for to cease her mone. What meanes of comfort made
  17. They. Ah how often Theseus sonne her weeping thus bespake.
  18. O Nymph, thy moorning moderate: thy sorrow sumwhat slake: '
  19. Not only thou hast cause to heart thy fortune for to take.
  20. Behold like happes of other folkes, and this mischaunce of thyne
  21. Shall greeve thee lesse. Would God examples (so they were not myne)
  22. Myght comfort thee. But myne perchaunce may comfort thee. If thou
  23. In talk by hap hast heard of one Hippolytus ere now,
  24. That through his fathers lyght beleefe, and stepdames craft was slayne,
  25. It will a woonder seeme to thee, and I shall have much payne
  26. To make thee to beleeve the thing. But I am very hee.
  27. The daughter of Pasyphae in vayne oft tempting mee
  28. My fathers chamber to defyle, surmysde mee to have sought
  29. The thing that shee with al her hart would fayne I should have wrought.
  30. And whither it were for feare I should her wickednesse bewray,
  31. Or else for spyght bycause I had so often sayd her nay,
  32. Shee chardgd mee with hir owne offence. My father by and by
  33. Condemning mee, did banish mee his Realme without cause whye.
  34. And at my going like a fo did ban me bitterly.
  35. To Pitthey Troyzen outlawelike my chariot streight tooke I.
  36. My way lay hard uppon the shore of Corinth. Soodeinly
  37. The sea did ryse, and like a mount the wave did swell on hye,
  38. And seemed huger for to growe in drawing ever nye,
  39. And roring clyved in the toppe. Up starts immediatly
  40. A horned bullocke from amid the broken wave, and by
  41. The brest did rayse him in the ayre, and at his nostrills and
  42. His platter mouth did puffe out part of sea uppon the land.
  43. My servants harts were sore afrayd. But my hart musing ay
  44. Uppon my wrongfull banishment, did nought at all dismay.
  45. My horses setting up theyr eares and snorting wexed shye,
  46. And beeing greatly flayghted with the monster in theyr eye,
  47. Turnd downe to sea: and on the rockes my wagon drew. In vayne
  48. I stryving for to hold them backe, layd hand uppon the reyne
  49. All whyght with fome, and haling backe lay almost bolt upryght.
  50. And sure the feercenesse of the steedes had yeelded to my might,
  51. But that the wheele that ronneth ay about the Extree round,
  52. Did breake by dashing on a stub, and overthrew to ground.
  53. Then from the Charyot I was snatcht the brydles beeing cast
  54. About my limbes. Yee myght have seene my sinewes sticking fast
  55. Uppon the stub: my gutts drawen out alyve: my members, part
  56. Still left uppon the stump, and part foorth harryed with the cart:
  57. The crasshing of my broken bones: and with what passing peyne
  58. I breathed out my weery ghoste. There did not whole remayne
  59. One peece of all my corce by which yee myght discerne as tho
  60. What lump or part it was. For all was wound from toppe to toe.
  61. Now canst thou, nymph, or darest thou compare thy harmes with myne?
  62. Moreover I the lightlesse Realme behild with theis same eyne,
  63. And bathde my tattred bodye in the river Phlegeton,
  64. And had not bright Apollos sonne his cunning shewde uppon
  65. My bodye by his surgery, my lyfe had quyght bee gone.
  66. Which after I by force of herbes and leechecraft had ageine
  67. Receyvd by Aesculapius meanes, though Pluto did disdeine,
  68. Then Cynthia (lest this gift of hers myght woorke mee greater spyght)
  69. Thicke clowds did round about mee cast. And to th'entent I myght
  70. Bee saufe myself, and harmelessely appeere to others syght:
  71. Shee made mee old. And for my face, shee left it in such plyght,
  72. That none can knowe mee by my looke. And long shee dowted whither
  73. To give mee Dele or Crete. At length refusing bothe togither,
  74. Shee plaast mee heere. And therwithall shee bade me give up quyght
  75. The name that of my horses in remembrance put mee myght.
  76. For whereas erst Hippolytus hath beene thy name (quoth shee)
  77. I will that Virbie afterward thy name for ever bee.
  78. From that tyme foorth within this wood I keepe my residence,
  79. As of the meaner Goddes, a God of small magnificence,
  80. And heere I hyde mee underneathe my sovereine Ladyes wing
  81. Obeying humbly to her hest in every kynd of thing.
  82. But yit the harmes of other folk could nothing help nor boote
  83. Aegerias sorrowes to asswage. Downe at a mountaines foote
  84. Shee lying melted into teares, till Phebus sister sheene
  85. For pitie of her greate distresse in which shee had her seene,
  86. Did turne her to a fountaine cleere, and melted quyght away
  87. Her members into water thinne that never should decay.