Quoth he, I do profess and swear, And will perform what you enjoin, Or may I never see you mine. Amen, (quoth she;) then turn'd about, And bid her Esquire let him out. 900 But ere an artist could be found T' undo the charms another bound, The sun grew low, and left the skies, Put down (some write) by ladies eyes, The moon pull'd off her veil of light 905 That hides her face by day from sight, (Mysterious veil, of brightness made, That's both her lustre and her shade,) And in the lanthorn of the night With shining horns hung out her light; 910 For darkness is the proper sphere, Where all false glories use t' appear. The twinkling stars began to muster, And glitter with their borrow'd lustre, While sleep the weary 'd world reliev'd, 915 By counterfeiting death reviv'd; His whipping penance till the morn Our vot'ry thought it best t' adjourn, And not to carry on a work Of such importance in the dark, 920 With erring haste, but rather stay, And do't in th' open face of day; And in the mean time go in quest Of next retreat to take his rest. CANTO II THE ARGUMENT. ------------------------------------------------- The Knight and Squire, in hot dispute, Within an ace of falling out, Are parted with a sudden fright Of strange alarm, and stranger sight; With which adventuring to stickle, They're sent away in nasty pickle. ------------------------------------------------- 'Tis strange how some mens' tempers suit (Like bawd and brandy) with dispute, That for their own opinions stand last Only to have them claw'd and canvast; That keep their consciences in cases, 5 As fiddlers do their crowds and bases, Ne'er to be us'd, but when they're bent To play a fit for argument; Make true and false, unjust and just, Of no use but to be discust; 10 Dispute, and set a paradox Like a straight boot upon the stocks, And stretch it more unmercifully Than HELMONT, MONTAIGN, WHITE, or TULLY, So th' ancient <n> Stoicks, in their porch, 15 With fierce dispute maintain'd their church; Beat out their brains in fight and study, To prove that Virtue is a Body; That <o> Bonum is an Animal, Made good with stout polemic brawl; 20 in which some hundreds on the place Were slain outright; and many a face Retrench'd of nose, and eyes, and beard, To maintain what their sect averr'd; All which the Knight and Squire, in wrath, 25 Had like t' have suffered for their faith, Each striving to make good his own, As by the sequel shall be shown.