|
They of Mecene leete enquere and seke |
| Of Lacedomye fifty maydens eke, |
| On whiche they wolden doon hir lecherye; |
| But was ther noon of al that compaignye |
| 675 | That she nas slayn, and with a good entente |
| Chees rather for to dye than assente |
| To been oppressed of hir maydenhede. |
| Why sholde I thanne to dye been in drede? |
| Lo, eek, the tiraunt Aristoclides, |
| 680 | That loved a mayden heet Stymphalides, |
| Whan that hir fader slayn was on a nyght, |
| Unto Dianes temple goth she right, |
| And hente the ymage in hir handes two; |
| Fro which ymage wolde she nevere go, |
| 685 | No wight ne myghte hir handes of it arace, |
| Til she was slayn right in the selve place. |
|
| They of Messina did require and seek |
| From Lacedaemon fifty maids to take, |
| On whom they would have done their lechery; |
| But there was none of all that company |
| 675 | Who was not slain, and who with good intent |
| Preferred not death rather than give consent |
| To be thus ravished of her maidenhead. |
| Why should I then hold dying in such dread? |
| Lo, too, the tyrant Aristoclides, |
| 680 | Who loved a maiden called Stimphalides. |
| Whenas her father had been slain by night, |
| Unto Diana's temple she took flight |
| And grasped the image in her two hands so |
| That from this image would she not let go. |
| 685 | No one could tear her hands from that embrace |
| Till she was slaughtered in that self-same place. |
|
