Page:Romance of the Rose (Ellis), volume 2.pdf/45

Reluct­ance often feigned Your deed, and Shame and Fear should wake
And feign defence—though all aquake8070
With will, while struggling, to give way,
Then will you understand their play.
If tremulous Fear turn deadly pale,
Shame flush bright red, while ’neath him fail
Rude Danger’s knees, and all the three
Shriek and lament them woefully,
Care not for them an empty shuck,
But grasp the Rose and thank your luck,
Showing yourself a man of nerve
When place and good occasion serve,8080
For nothing gives them more delight
Than to be vanquished in a fight
By major force.
At different times
Their moods will vary e’en as climes
And seasons change; if you appealed
Their will, they ne’er would dare to yield
That which they love to give by force,
But feign their joy to be the source
Of bitterest grief, although they sighed
And longed for that which lips denied.8090
It is, forsooth, their full intent
To gain the end they most resent;
And disappointment were intense,
To say the truth, if their defence
Succeeded, and all unappeased
Would be their wrath, while wondrous pleased
They vaunted them of their escape.
But if resistance take the shape