Readie t’imbarke vpon the shores they stood, Like flowers in spring, that beautifie the plaine, Or like May flies orewhelmed by the flood, As infinite, as leaues or drops of raine, Powr’d from the heau’ns vpon the liquid maine, That with their weight, dame Terrae’s aged backe Beneath the sway of horse and foot did cracke. 161. And as blacke swarmes of ants with loaden thies, Hauing vpon the flowrie spring made pray, In number numberlesse with fresh supplies, Climbes some steepe hillock, and through all the day By thousands in thick flockes do fill the way; So Spaine’s great host from trampled shores did wend, In thronging troopes, their mountaine ships t’ascend. 162. And such a blustring as against the shore, When as the swelling seas the welkin braues, Or storme-driuen billowes on the bankes do rore, Or such a noise as in earth’s hollow caues We often heare, when stormie Boreas raues: Such clamorous noise out of the tumult sprong, When they from shores vnto their ships did throng. 163. Hous’d in their fleet, their ankors vp they weigh’d, Hoisted their top-masts with their sailes on high, The misens then with winged winds displaid Before their hollow keeles, that low did lie Within the deepe, made parted billowes flie; Their huge big bulks made Neptune’s back to bow, And waues to swell vpon his waterie brow. 164. Their towring heads, the heau’ns blacke clouds did kisse, Borne by the winde-driuen stormie waues on high, Their hollow bosomes in the deepe abysse Amongst the surges of the fish-full skie, Like mightie rockes from sight did hidden lie, Whose brasse-arm’d sides such compasse did containe, They seem’d to couer acres on the maine. 165. Whoso had seene them on the gulphie flood, He would haue thought some Delos now againe, Some towne, some citie, or some desert wood, Or some new vnkowne world from shores of Spaine Launcht off to seas, had wandred on the maine, Peopled with those, that like quicke sprites in skie, By little hold-fast all about could flie. 166. [Sidenote: Musket shot could not pierce them. _Emanuel Van-Metran_, in his 15 booke of his historie.] Each barke, whose bulke was proofe against the wound Of common shot, besides those buls of brasse, Whose bellowing rore did equall thunders sound, Of such great thicknesse and high building was, That like large towers they on the deepe did passe; For scarce could brazen cannons banefull thunder, With battering bullet beat their sides asunder. 167.