The complete works of John Gower, volume 3 : $b The English worksGower, John
History
The complete works of John Gower, volume 3 : $b The English works
Gower, John
Poetry
With Hercules into the Cave,
Sche seide him that sche wolde have[576]
Hise clothes of and hires bothe,[577]
That ech of hem scholde other clothe.[578]
And al was do riht as sche bad,
He hath hire in hise clothes clad 6860
[Sidenote: =P. ii. 359=]
And caste on hire his gulion,
Which of the Skyn of a Leoun
Was mad, as he upon the weie
It slouh, and overthis to pleie
Sche tok his grete Mace also
And knet it at hir gerdil tho. (6900*)
So was sche lich the man arraied,[579]
And Hercules thanne hath assaied
To clothen him in hire array:
And thus thei jape forth the dai, 6870
Til that her Souper redy were.
And whan thei hadden souped there,
Thei schopen hem to gon to reste;
And as it thoghte hem for the beste,
Thei bede, as for that ilke nyht,
Tuo sondri beddes to be dyht,
For thei togedre ligge nolde,
Be cause that thei offre wolde
Upon the morwe here sacrifice.
The servantz deden here office 6880
And sondri beddes made anon,
Wherin that thei to reste gon
Ech be himself in sondri place.[580]
Faire Eole hath set the Mace
Beside hire beddes hed above,
And with the clothes of hire love
Sche helede al hire bed aboute;
And he, which hadde of nothing doute,
Hire wympel wond aboute his cheke,
Hire kertell and hire mantel eke 6890
[Sidenote: =P. ii. 360=]
Abrod upon his bed he spredde.
And thus thei slepen bothe abedde;
And what of travail, what of wyn,
The servantz lich to drunke Swyn
Begunne forto route faste.[581]
This Faunus, which his Stelthe caste,
Was thanne come to the Cave,
And fond thei weren alle save
Withoute noise, and in he wente.
The derke nyht his sihte blente, 6900
And yit it happeth him to go
Where Eolen abedde tho
Was leid al one for to slepe;
Bot for he wolde take kepe
Whos bed it was, he made assai,
And of the Leoun, where it lay,
The Cote he fond, and ek he fieleth
The Mace, and thanne his herte kieleth,
That there dorste he noght abyde,
Bot stalketh upon every side 6910
And soghte aboute with his hond,
That other bedd til that he fond,
Wher lai bewympled a visage.
Tho was he glad in his corage,
For he hir kertell fond also
And ek hir mantell bothe tuo (6950*)
Bespred upon the bed alofte.
He made him naked thanne, and softe
Into the bedd unwar he crepte,
Wher Hercules that time slepte, 6920
[Sidenote: =P. ii. 361=]
And wende wel it were sche;
And thus in stede of Eole
Anon he profreth him to love.
But he, which felte a man above,
This Hercules, him threw to grounde[582]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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