reason Amarillis hath to be angrie with me, & to conceiue so ill an opinion of the vn∣stained faith I beare her, which makes her surmise that, which neuer any other Shep∣herdesse hath euer yet imagined of her louing Shepherd. Knowe therefore (faire Shepherdesse) that the fates (not onely when I was borne, but long before) de∣termined, that I should loue this faire Shepherdesse, which fits before thy faire & my sorrowfull eies, whose intents I haue answered with such effect, as there is no loue (I thinke) like mine, nor any ingratitude like to hers. It fell out afterwardes, that from my childehood, seruing her in the best manner I coulde, there are fiue or sixe moneths past, since my mishap brought a Shepherd hither called Arsileus, who went vp and downe seeking a Shepherdesse called Belisa, which by some ill successe of Fortune, wandred like an exile heere and there amongst these woodes & groues. And as his sorrow was very great, it fell out, that this cruell Shepherdesse, either for great pittie she tooke of him, or for the little she had of me, or for what cause else (she knowes best herselfe) woulde neuer be out of his companie: To whom if by chance I did but speake thereof, she was ready to kill me with anger; for those eies which thou seest there, procure death no lesse, when they are angry, then life when they are milde and gentle. But now when all my sences were thus occupied, mine eies with teares, my eares with hearing denials, my thoughts with a bitter taste of sorrow, my soule with a rare and vnspeakeable kind of affection, and my vnderstan∣ding with the greatest iealousie, as the like neuer any had, I made my complaint to Arsileus with sighes, and to the earth, and these groues with pitifull and bitter la∣mentations, shewing them what iniuries Amarillis did me. Her deceiued imagina∣tion of the suspect, that I had of her honestie, hath bredde in her so great despite and hatred against me, that to be reuenged of me, she hath hitherto perseuered therein, which greeuous torment she is not onely content to lay vpon me, but when she sees me before her eies, flies from my presence, as the fearefull Hinde from the hungry and pursuing Hounde. So that by the loue which thou owest thy selfe, I pray thee (good Shepherdesse) iudge whether this be a sufficient cause to make her thus abhorre me, and if my fault on the other side, be so great, that it deserues such endles and extreme hate. Filemon hauing made an end of the cause of his greefe and iniurie, wherewith his Shepherdesse tormented him; Amarillis began to shape her answer thus. This Filemon (faire Shepherdesse) that sits before thee, hath loued me well (I must needes confesse) or at the least, made a fine shewe thereof, and such haue his seruices beene towards me, that to say otherwise of him, then he deserues, it would ill beseeme me. But if for his sake, in lieu and recompence of that affection, I haue not reiected the suites and seruice of many iolly Shepherds that feede their flockes vpon these downes, and in these pleasant vales; and also (for his loue) haue not contemned many countrey youthes, whom nature hath enriched with no lesse perfections then himselfe, let himselfe be iudge. For the infinite times, that with their amorous sutes I haue beene importuned, and those wherein I haue kept that firmnes due to his faith, haue not (I thinke) beene at any time out of his presence, which neuerthelesse should be no sufficient cause for him to make so small account of me, as to imagine or suspect any thing of that, wherein I am most of all bounde to my selfe. For if it be so, (as he knowes well enough) that for the loue of him I haue cast off many, that died by mine occasion, how coulde I then forget or reiect him for the loue of another? A thousand times hath Filemon watched me, not leesing a steppe that the Shepherd Arsileus and I haue troden amiddes these greene woods, and pleasant vales, but let him say, if he euer heard Arsileus talke to
