V
‘How should’st thou, fair lady, love me,
Whom thou know’st thy country’s foe?
Thy fair words make me suspect thee;
Serpents lie where flowers grow.’—
‘All the harm I think to thee, most gracious knight,
God grant unto myself the same may fully light:
VI
‘Blessèd be the time and season
That you came on Spanish ground;
If our foes you may be termèd,
Gentle foes we have you found.
With our city you have won our hearts each one;
Then to your country bear away that is your own.’—
VII
‘Rest you still, most gallant lady,
Rest you still, and weep no more;
Of fair lovers there are plenty;
Spain doth yield a wondrous store.’—
‘Spaniards fraught with jealousy we often find,
But Englishmen through all the world are counted kind.
VIII
‘Leave me not unto a Spaniard;
You alone enjoy my heart;
I am lovely, young, and tender,
And so love is my desart.
Still to serve thee day and night my mind is press’d;
The wife of every Englishman is counted blest.’—
IX
‘It would be a shame, fair lady,
For to bear a woman hence;
English soldiers never carry
Any such without offence.’—
‘I will quickly change myself if it be so,
And like a page I’ll follow thee where’er thou go.’—