Page:The castle of Indolence - an allegorical poem - Written in imitation of Spenser (IA castleofindolenc00thomiala).pdf/70

XLII.

Elate in Thought, he counted them his own,

They listen'd so intent with fix'd Delight:
But they instead, as if transmew'd to Stone,
Marvel'd he could, with such sweet Art, unite
The Lights and Shades of Manners, Wrong and Right.
Mean time, the silly Croud the Charm devour,
Wide-pressing to the Gate. Swift, on the Knight
He darted fierce, to drag him to his Bower,
Who back'ning shun'd his Touch; for well he knew its Power.

XLIII.

As in throng'd Amphitheatre, of old,

The wary ^[1]Retiarius trap'd his Foe;
Even so the Knight, returning on him bold,
At once involv'd him in the Net of Woe,
Whereof I Mention made not long ago.
Enrag'd at first, he scorn'd so weak a Jail,
And leap'd, and flew, and flounced to and fro;
But when he found that nothing could avail,
He sat him felly down and gnaw'd his bitter Nail.

1. A Gladiator, who made use of a Net, which he threw over his Adversary.

XLIV.