E xil'd Astræa is come againe,
L o here she doth all things maintaine
I n number, weight, and measure:
S he rules vs with delightfull paine,
A nd we obey with pleasure.
B y Loue she rules more then by Law,
E uen her great mercy breedeth awe;
T his is her sword and scepter:
H erewith she hearts did euer draw,
A nd this guard euer kept her.
R eward doth sit in her right-hand,
E ach vertue thence taks her garland
G ather'd in Honor's garden;
I n her left hand (wherein should be
N ought but the sword) sits Clemency
A nd conquers Vice with pardon.
HYMNE XXIV.
Of her Magnanimitie.
E uen as her State, so is her mind,
L ifted aboue the vulgar kind;
I t treades proud Fortune vnder:
S un-like it sits aboue the wind,
A boue the stormes, and thunder.
B raue spirit, large heart, admiring nought,
E steeming each thing as it ought,
T hat swelleth not, nor shrinketh;
H onour is alwayes in her thought,
A nd of great things she thinketh.
R ocks, pillars, and heauen's axeltree,
E xemplifie her constancy;
G reat changes neuer change her:
I n her sexe, feares are wont to rise,
N ature permits, Vertue denies,
A nd scornes the face of Danger.