Above all other in most hygh estate. Well, sayde Sapience, I thinke in my mynde Her love and favoure you shall attayne by kynde; And I wyll drawe to you incontinent. All your complaynt, as is convenient Unto dame Venus, to se directly For your payne and sorowe sone a remedy. She drewe my pyteous lamentacion, Accordyng to this supplication: CAP. XXX. THE SUPPLICATION. O, Venus! lady, and excellent goddesse, O celestiall starre! havyng the soverayntie Above all other starres as lady and princes, As is according unto your deitie; Pleaseth it nowe your great benignitie Unto my complaynt for to geve audience, Whiche burne in love with pearcyng vyolence. For so it happened that the lady Fame Did with me mete, and gan to expresse Of a fayre lady whiche had unto name La Bell Pucel, come of hye noblesse; Whose beautie cleare and comely goodlines From day to day doth ryght well reuenue, With grace brydled and with great vertue. She tolde me of her fayre habitation, And of the wayes therto full daungerous; Her swete report gave me exhortation Unto my herte for to be courigious, To passe the passage harde and troublous; And to bring me out of great encumbraunce, She me delyvered both Grace and Governaunce. So forth we went to the toure of Science, For to attayne in every artike poole. And first Doctryne by good experience Unto dame Grammer did sette me to scoole, Of mysty ignoraunce to oppres the dole; And so I ascended unto dame Logyke, And after her unto lusty Rethorike. Tyll at the last, at a feast solemply To a temple I went, dame Musike to heare Play on her organs with swete armony; But than on lofte I saw to me appeare The floure of comforte, the sterre of vertue clere, Whose beaute bright into my herte did passe, Lyke as fayre Phebus doth shyne in the glasse. So was my herte by the stroke of love With sorow prest, and with mortall payne; That unneth I myght from the place remove, Where as I stode I was so take certayne, Yet up I loked to se her agayne, And at aventure with a sory moode, Up than I went where as her person stode. And first of all my herte gan to lerne Right well to register in remembraunce, How that her beautie I might than decerne, From top to to endued with pleasaunce, Which I shall shew withouten variaunce; Her shining here so properly she dresses Alofe her forehed with fayre golden tresses. Her forehead stepe, with fayre browes ybent, Her eyen gray, her nose streyght and fayre, In her whyte chekes the fayre bloud it went As among the whyte the rede to repayre: Her mouth right small, her breth swete of ayre, Her lyppes softe and ruddy as a rose, No hert on lyve but it wold him appose.