"Thence, forward he him ledd and shortly brought Unto another rowme, whose dore forthright To him did open as it had beene taught: Therein an hundred raunges weren pight, And hundred fournaces all burning bright; By every fournace many Feends did byde, Deformed creatures, horrible in sight; And every Feend his busie paines applyde To melt the golden metall, ready to be tryde. "One with great bellowes gathered filling ayre, And with forst wind the fewell did inflame; Another did the dying bronds repayre With yron tongs, and sprinckled ofte the same With liquid waves, fiers Vulcans rage to tame, Who, maystring them, renewd his former heat: Some scumd the drosse that from the metall came; Some stird the molten owre with ladles great: And every one did swincke, and every one did sweat... "He brought him, through a darksom narrow strayt, To a broad gate all built of beaten gold: The gate was open; but therein did wayt A sturdie Villein, stryding stiffe and bold, As if the Highest God defy he would: In his right hand an yron club he held, But he himselfe was all of golden mould, Yet had both life and sence, and well could weld That cursed weapon, when his cruell foes he queld.... "He brought him in. The rowme was large and wyde, As it some gyeld or solemne temple weare; Many great golden pillours did upbeare The massy roofe, and riches huge sustayne; And every pillour decked was full deare With crownes, and diademes, and titles vaine, Which mortall princes wore whiles they on earth did rayne. "A route of people there assembled were, Of every sort and nation under skye, Which with great uprore preaced to draw nere To th' upper part, where was advaunced hye A stately siege of soveraine maiestye; And thereon satt a Woman gorgeous gay, And richly cladd in robes of royaltye, That never earthly prince in such aray His glory did enhaunce, and pompous pryde display.... "There, as in glistring glory she did sitt, She held a great gold chaine ylincked well, Whose upper end to highest heven was knitt. And lower part did reach to lowest hell."[368] No artist's dream matches these visions: the glow of the furnaces beneath the vaults of the cavern, the lights flickering over the crowded figures, the throne, and the strange glitter of the gold shining in every direction through the darkness. The allegory assumes gigantic proportions. When the object is to show temperance struggling with temptations, Spenser deems it necessary to mass all the temptations together. He is treating of a general virtue; and as such a virtue is capable of every sort of resistance, he requires from it every sort of resistance alike; after the test of gold, that of pleasure. Thus the grandest and the most exquisite spectacles follow and are contrasted with each other, and all are supernatural; the graceful and the terrible are side by side--the happy gardens close by with the cursed subterranean cavern.