Now the ambitious lark with mirror clear They catch, while he (fool!) to himself makes love: And now at keels they try a harmless chance, And now their cur they teach to fetch and dance. {110} When merry May first early calls the morn, With merry maids a maying they do go: Then do they pull from sharp and niggard thorn The plenteous sweets (can sweets so sharply grow?) Then some green gowns are by the lasses worn In chastest plays, ’till home they walk arow, Whilst dance about the may-pole is begun, When, if need were, they could at Quintain[b1-05] run: While thus they ran a low, but levell’d race, While thus they liv’d, this was indeed a life, With nature pleas’d, content with present case, Free of proud fears, brave begg’ry, smiling strife, Of climb-fall court, the envy hatching place: While those restless desires in great men rise, To visit so low of folks did much disdain, This while, though poor, they in themselves did reign. One day (O day, that shin’d to make them dark!) While they did ward sun-beams with shady bay, And Claius taking for his youngling cark, (Lest greedy eyes to them might challenge lay) Busy with ochre did their shoulders mark, (His mark a pillar was devoid of stay, As bragging that free of all passions’ moan, Well might he others bear, but lean to none:) Strephon with leafy twigs of laurel tree, A garland made on temples for to wear, For he then chosen was, the dignity Of village lord, that Whitsuntide to bear: And full, poor fool, of boyish bravery, With triumph’s shows would show he nought did fear. But fore-accounting oft makes builders miss: They found, they felt, they had no lease of bliss. For ere that either had his purpose done, Behold, beholding well it doth deserve, They saw a maid who thitherward did run, To catch her Sparrow which from her did swerve, As she a black-silk cap on him begun To set for foil of his milk-white to serve, She chirping ran, he peeping flew away, ’Till hard by them both he and she did stay. Well for to see, they kept themselves unseen, And saw this fairest maid of fairer mind: By fortune mean; in nature born a queen, How well apaid she was her bird to find: How tenderly her tender hands between {111} In ivory cage she did the micher bind: How rosy moist’ned lips about his beak Moving, she seem’d at once to kiss, and speak. Chast’ned but thus, and thus his lesson taught, The happy wretch she put into her breast, Which to their eyes the bowels of Venus brought, For they seem’d made even of sky metal best, And that the bias of her blood was wrought. Betwixt them two the peeper took his nest, Where snugging well he well appear’d content, So to have done amiss, so to be shent. This done, but done with captive-killing grace, Each motion seeming shot from beauty’s bow, With length laid down, she deck’d the lovely place. Proud grew the grass that under her did grow,