Jerusalem Delivered | Page 7

the smart of other's anguish
tries,
If one were hurt, the other felt the sore,
She lost her blood, he
spent his life therefore.
LVIII
But these and all, Rinaldo far exceeds,
Star of his sphere, the
diamond of this ring,
The nest where courage with sweet mercy

breeds:
A comet worthy each eye's wondering,
His years are fewer
than his noble deeds,
His fruit is ripe soon as his blossoms spring,

Armed, a Mars, might coyest Venus move,
And if disarmed, then
God himself of Love.
LIX
Sophia by Adige's flowery bank him bore,
Sophia the fair,
spouse to Bertoldo great,
Fit mother for that pearl, and before
The
tender imp was weaned from the teat,
The Princess Maud him took,
in Virtue's lore
She brought him up fit for each worthy feat,
Till of
these wares the golden trump he hears,
That soundeth glory, fame,
praise in his ears.
LX
And then, though scantly three times five years old,
He fled
alone, by many an unknown coast,
O'er Aegean Seas by many a
Greekish hold,
Till he arrived at the Christian host;
A noble flight,
adventurous, brave, and bold,
Whereon a valiant prince might justly
boast,
Three years he served in field, when scant begin
Few golden
hairs to deck his ivory chin.
LXI
The horsemen past, their void-left stations fill
The bands on
foot, and Reymond them beforn,
Of Tholouse lord, from lands near
Piraene Hill
By Garound streams and salt sea billows worn,
Four
thousand foot he brought, well armed, and skill
Had they all pains
and travels to have borne,
Stout men of arms and with their guide of
power
Like Troy's old town defenced with Ilion's tower.
LXII
Next Stephen of Amboise did five thousand lead,
The men he
prest from Tours and Blois but late,
To hard assays unfit, unsure at
need,
Yet armed to point in well-attempted plate,
The land did like
itself the people breed,
The soil is gentle, smooth, soft, delicate;

Boldly they charge, but soon retire for doubt,
Like fire of straw, soon
kindled, soon burnt out.
LXIII

The third Alcasto marched, and with him
The boaster

brought six thousand Switzers bold,
Audacious were their looks, their
faces grim,
Strong castles on the Alpine clifts they hold,
Their
shares and coulters broke, to armors trim
They change that metal, cast
in warlike mould,
And with this band late herds and flocks that guide,

Now kings and realms he threatened and defied.
LXIV
The glorious standard last to Heaven they sprad,
With Peter's
keys ennobled and his crown,
With it seven thousand stout Camillo
had,
Embattailed in walls of iron brown:
In this adventure and
occasion, glad
So to revive the Romans' old renown,
Or prove at
least to all of wiser thought,
Their hearts were fertile land although
unwrought.
LXV
But now was passed every regiment,
Each band,
each troop, each person worth regard
When Godfrey with his lords to
counsel went,
And thus the Duke his princely will declared:
"I will
when day next clears the firmament,
Our ready host in haste be all
prepared,
Closely to march to Sion's noble wall,
Unseen, unheard,
or undescried at all.
LXVI
"Prepare you then for travel strong and light,
Fierce to the
combat, glad to victory."
And with that word and warning soon was
dight,
Each soldier, longing for near coming glory,
Impatient be
they of the morning bright,
Of honor so them pricked the memory:

But yet their chieftain had conceived a fear
Within his heart, but kept
it secret there.
LXVII
For he by faithful spial was assured,
That Egypt's King was
forward on his way,
And to arrive at Gaza old procured,
A fort that
on the Syrian frontiers lay,
Nor thinks he that a man to wars inured

Will aught forslow, or in his journey stay,
For well he knew him for a
dangerous foe:

An herald called he then, and spake him so:
LXVIII
"A pinnace take thee swift as shaft from bow,
And speed
thee, Henry, to the Greekish main,
There should arrive, as I by letters
know
From one that never aught reports in vain,
A valiant youth in

whom all virtues flow,
To help us this great conquest to obtain,
The
Prince of Danes he is, and brings to war
A troop with him from under
the Arctic star.
LXIX
"And for I doubt the Greekish monarch sly
Will use with
him some of his wonted craft,
To stay his passage, or divert awry

Elsewhere his forces, his first journey laft,
My herald good and
messenger well try,
See that these succors be not us beraft,
But send
him thence with such convenient speed
As with his honor stands and
with our need.
LXX
"Return not thou, but Legier stay behind,
And move the
Greekish Prince to send us aid,
Tell him his kingly promise doth him
bind
To give us succors, by his covenant made."
This said, and thus
instruct, his letters signed
The trusty herald took, nor longer stayed,

But sped him thence to done his Lord's behest,
And thus the Duke
reduced his thoughts to rest.
LXXI
Aurora bright her crystal gates
unbarred,
And bridegroom-like forth stept the glorious sun,
When
trumpets loud and clarions shrill were heard,
And every one to rouse
him fierce begun,
Sweet music to each heart for war prepared,
The
soldiers glad by heaps to harness run;
So if with drought endangered
be their grain,
Poor ploughmen joy when thunders promise rain.
LXXII
Some