The poetes fayne how that kyng Athlas Heaven should bere upon his shoulders hye; Because in connyng he dyd all other pas, Especially in the hygh astronomye: Of the vi. planettes he knewe so perfytly The operacions, how they were domified; For whych poetes hym so exemplyfied. And in lyke wyse, unto the Sagittary They feyne the Centures to be of lykenesse, As halfe man and halfe horse truely; Because Mylyzyus wyth hys worthynesse Dyd fyrst attame and breke the wyldenes Of the riall stedes, and ryght swyftly Hys men and he rode on them surely. And also Pluto, somtyme kynge of hell; A cyte of Grece, standyng in Thessayle, Betwene grete rockes, as the boke doth tell, Wherin were people wythout any fayle, Huge, fyerse, and strong in battayle, Tyrauntes, theves, replete with treason; Wherfore poetes, by true comparison, Unto the devylles, blacke and tedious, Dyd them resemble, in terrible fygure, For theyr mysselyvyng so foule and vycyous, As to thys daye it doth appere in ure Of Cerebus the defloured pycture, The porter of hell, wyth thre heades ugly, Lyke an horrible gyaunt fyrce and wonderly: Because alway hys customed tyranny Was elevate in herte by hygh presumpcion, Thynkyng hym selfe most strong and myghty; And secondly, he was destruction Of many ladies by yll compulcion; And thyrdly, his desyre insaciable Was to get ryches full innumerable. Thus, for these thre vyces abhominable They made hym wyth thre hedes serpentyne, And like a feend his body semblable, For his pryde, avaryce, and also rapyne. The morall cense can soone enlumyne The fatall pycture to be exuberaunt, And to our syght clere, and not variaunte. Also rehersed the cronicles of Spayne, How redoubted Hercules by puyssaunce Fought with an ydre, ryght grete certayne, Having seven heades of full grete myschaunce; For whan that he wyth all hys valiaunce Had stryken of an head, ryght shortly, Another anon arose ryght sodaynly. Seven sophyms full hard and fallacyous Thys ydre used in preposicion Unto the people, and was full rigorious To devoure them, where lacked responsion; And whan one reason had conclusion, Another reason than incontinent Began agayne wyth subtyll argument. For whych cause the poetes covertly With vii. heades doth thys ydre depaynt, For these vii. sophyms full ryght closely; But of rude people the wyttes are so faynt, That wyth theyr connyng they can not acquaynt, But who that lyst theyr scyence to lerne, Their obscure fygures he shall well decerne. O redolent well of famous poetry, O clere fountayne replete wyth swetenes, Reflerynge out the dulcet delicacy Of iiii. ryvers in mervaylous wydenesse, Fayrer than Tygrys or yet Eufrates; For the fyrst ryver is Understandyng; The seconde ryver Close-concluding;