Right as the stern of day begouth to schine,
Qwhen gone to bed war Vesper and Lucine,
I raise and by a rosere did me rest;
Up sprang the goldin candill matutine,
With clere depurit bemes cristalline,
Glading the mery fowlis in thair nest;
Or Phebus was in purpur cape revest
Up raise the lark, the hevins menstrale fine
In May, intill a morrow mirthfullest.

Full angellike thir birdis sang thair houris
Within thair courtins grene, into thair bowris,
Apparalit qwhite and red with blomes swete;
Anamalit was the felde with all colouris,
The perly droppis schake in silvir schowris,
Qwhill all in balme did branch and levis flete;
To part fra Phebus did Aurora grete,
His cristall teris I saw hing on the flowris,
Qwhilk he for lufe all drank up with his hete.

For mirth of May, with skippis and with hoppis,
The birdis sang upon the tender croppis,
With curiouse note, as Venus chapell clerkis:
The rosis yong, new spreding of thair knopis,
War powderit bricht with hevinly beryall droppis,
Throu bemes rede birning as ruby sperkis;
The skies rang for schouting of the larkis,
The purpur hevin, ourscailit in silvir sloppis,
Ourgilt the treis, branchis, lef, and barkis.

Downe throu the rice a rivir ran with stremis,
So lustily again thay likand lemis,
That all the lake as lamp did leme of licht,
Qwhilk schadowit all about with twinkling glemis;
That bewis bathit war in secund bemis
Throu the reflex of Phebus visage bricht;
On every side the hegies raise on hicht,
The bank was grene, the bruke was full of bremis,
The stanneris clere as stern in frosty nicht.

The cristall air, the sapher firmament,
The ruby skies of the orient,
Cest beriall bemes on emerant bewis grene;
The rosy garth depaint and redolent,
With purpur, azure, gold, and goulis gent
Arayed was, by dame Flora the quene,
So nobily, that joy was for the sene;
The roch again the rivir resplendent
As low enluminit all the leves schene.

Qwhat throu the mery foulis armony,
And throu the riveris soune richt ran me by,
On Florais mantill I slepit as I lay,
Qwhare sone into my dremes fantasy
I saw approach, again the orient sky,
A saill, als qwhite as blossum upon spray,
With merse of gold, bricht as the stern of day,
Qwhilk tendit to the land full lustily,
As falcoune swift desirouse of hir pray.

And hard on burd unto the blomit medis,
Among the grene rispis and the redis,
Arrivit sche, qwhar fro anone thare landis
Ane hundreth ladies, lusty into wedis,
Als fresch as flowris that in May up spredis,
In kirtillis grene, withoutin kell or bandis:
Thair bricht hairis hang gletering on the strandis
In tressis clere, wippit with goldin thredis;
With pappis qwhite, and midlis small as wandis.

Discrive I wald, bot qwho could wele endite
How all the feldis with thay lilies qwhite
Depaint war bricht, qwhilk to the hevin did glete:
Noucht thou, Omer, als fair as thou coud write
For all thine ornate stylis so perfite;
Nor yit thou, Tullius, qwhois lippis swete
Off rethorike did into termes flete:
Your aureate tongis both bene all to lite,
For to compile that paradise complete.

Thare saw I Nature and Venus, quene and quene,
The fresch Aurora, and lady Flora schene,
Juno, Appollo, and Proserpina,
Diane the goddesse chaste of woddis grene,
My lady Cleo, that help of makaris bene,
Thetes, Pallas, and prudent Minerva,
Fair feinit Fortune, and lemand Lucina,
Thir michty quenis in crownis micht be sene,
With bemis blith, bricht as Lucifera.

There saw I May, of mirthfull monethis quene,
Betwix Aprile and June, her sistir schene,
Within the garding walking up and down,
Qwham of the fowlis gladdith al bedene;
Scho was full tender in hir yeris grene.
Thare saw I Nature present hir a gowne
Rich to behald and nobil of renowne,
Off eviry hew under the hevin that bene
Depaint, and broud be gude proporcioun.

Full lustily thir ladies all in fere
Enterit within this park of most plesere,
Qwhare that I lay ourhelit with levis ronk;
The mery fowlis, blisfullest of chere,
Salust Nature, methoucht, on thair manere,
And eviry blome on branch, and eke on bonk,
Opnit and spred thair balmy levis donk,
Full low enclining to thair Quene so clere,
Qwham of thair nobill norising thay thonk.

Sine to dame Flora, on the samin wise,
Thay saluse, and thay thank a thousand sise;
And to dame Venus, lufis michty quene,
Thay sang ballettis in lufe, as was the gise,
With amourouse notis lusty to devise,
As thay that had lufe in thair hertis grene;
Thair hony throtis, opnit fro the splene,
With werblis swete did perse the hevinly skies,
Qwhill loud resounit the firmament serene.

Ane othir court thare saw I consequent,
Cupide the king, with bow in hand ybent,
And dredefull arowis grundin scharp and square;
Thare saw I Mars, the god armipotent,
Awfull and sterne, strong and corpolent;
Thare saw I crabbit Saturn ald and haire,
His luke was like for to perturb the aire;
Thare was Mercurius, wise and eloquent,
Of rethorike that fand the flowris faire;

Thare was the god of gardingis, Priapus;
Thare was the god of wildernes, Phanus;
And Janus, god of entree delitable;
Thare was the god of fludis, Neptunus;
Thare was the god of windis, Eolus,
With variand luke, richt like a lord unstable;
Thare was Bacus the gladder of the table;
Thare was Pluto, the elrich incubus,
In cloke of grene, his court usit no sable.

And eviry one of thir, in grene arayit,
On harp or lute full merily thay playit,
And sang ballettis with michty notis clere:
Ladies to dance full sobirly assayit;
Endlang the lusty rivir so thay mayit,
Thair observance richt hevinly was to here;
Than crap I throu the levis, and drew nere,
Qwhare that I was richt sudainly affrayit,
All throu a luke, qwhilk I have boucht full dere.

And schortly for to speke, be lufis quene
I was aspyit; scho bad hir archearis kene
Go me arrest; and thay no time delayit;
Than ladies fair lete fall thair mantillis grene,
With bowis big in tressit hairis schene,
All sudainly thay had a felde arayit;
And yit richt gretly was I noucht affrayit,
The party was so pleasand for to sene:
A wonder lusty bickir me assayit.

And first of all, with bow in hand ybent,
Come dame Beautee, richt as scho wald me schent;
Sine folowit all hir dameselis yfere,
With mony diverse awfull instrument,
Unto the pres; Fair Having with hir went,
Fine Portrature, Plesance, and Lusty Chere.
Than come Resoun, with schelde of gold so clere;
In plate and maille, as Mars armipotent,
Defendit me that nobil chevallere.

Sine tender Youth come with hir virgins ying,
Grene Innocence, and schamefull Abaising,
And quaking Drede, with humble Obedience;
The Goldin Targe harmit thay no thing;
Curage in thame was noucht begonne to spring;
Full sore thay dred to done a violence:
Swete Womanhede I saw cum in presence,
Of artilye a warld sche did in bring,
Servit with ladies full of reverence.

Sche led with hir Nurture and Lawlines,
Contenence, Pacience, Gude Fame, and Stedfastness,
Discrecioun, Gentrise, and Considerance,
Levefell Company, and Honest Besines,
Benigne Luke, Milde Chere, and Sobirnes:
All thir bure ganyeis to do me grevance;
But Resoun bure the Targe with sic constance,
Thair scharp assayes micht do no dures
To me, for all thair awfull ordinance.

Unto the pres persewit Hye Degree,
Hir folowit ay Estate, and Dignitee,
Comparisoun, Honour, and Noble Array,
Will, Wantonnes, Renown, and Libertee,
Richesse, Fredome, and eke Nobilitee:
Wit ye thay did thair baner hye display;
A cloud of arowis as haile schowr lousit thay.
And schot, qwhill wastit was thair artilye,
Sine went abak reboitit of thair pray.

Qwhen Venus had persavit this rebute,
Dissimilance scho bad go mak persute,
At all powere to perse the Goldin Targe;
And scho, that was of doubilnes the rute,
Askit hir choise of archeris in refute.
Venus the best bad hir go wale at large;
Scho tuke Presence, plicht ankers of the barge,
And Fair Calling, that wele a flain coud schute,
And Cherising for to complete hir charge.

Dame Hamelines scho tuke in company,
That hardy was and hende in archery,
And broucht dame Beautee to the felde again;
With all the choise of Venus chevalry
Thay come and bickerit unabaisitly:
The schowr of arowis rappit on as rain;
Perilouse Presence, that mony sire has slaine,
The bataill broucht on bordour hard us by;
The salt was all the sarar, suth to sayn.

Thik was the schote of grundin dartis kene;
Bot Resoun, with the Scheld of Gold so schene,
Warly defendit, qwhosoevir assayit;
The awfull stowre he manly did sustene,
Qwhill Presence cest a pulder in his ene,
And than as drunkin man he all forwayit:
Qwhen he was blind, the fule with him thay playit,
And banist him among the bewis grene;
That sory sicht me sudainly affrayit.

Than was I woundit to the deth wele nere,
And yoldin as a wofull prisonnere
To lady Beautee in a moment space;
Methoucht scho semit lustiar of chere,
Efter that Resoun tint had his eyne clere,
Than of before, and lufliare of face:
Qwhy was thou blindit, Resoun? qwhy, allace!
And gert ane hell my paradise appere,
And mercy seme, qwhare that I fand no grace.

Dissimulance was besy me to sile,
And Fair Calling did oft apon me smile,
And Cherising me fed with wordis fair;
New Acquintance enbracit me a qwhile,
And favourit me, qwhill men micht go a mile,
Sine tuk hir leve, I saw hir nevir mare:
Than saw I Dangere toward me repair;
I coud eschew hir presence be no wile.
On side scho lukit with ane fremit fare,

And at the last departing coud hir dresse,
And me deliverit unto Hevinesse
For to remaine, and scho in cure me tuke.
Be this the Lord of Windis, with wodenes,
God Eolus, his bugill blew, I gesse,
That with the blast the levis all to-schuke;
And sudainly, in the space of a luke,
All was hine went, thare was bot wildernes,
Thare was no more bot birdis, bank, and bruke.

In twinkling of ane eye to schip thay went,
And swith up saile unto the top thay stent,
And with swift course atour the flude thay frak;
Thay firit gunnis with powder violent,
Till that the reke raise to the firmament,
The rochis all resounit with the rak;
For reirde it semit that the rainbow brak;
With spirit affraide apon my fete I sprent,
Amang the clewis so carefull was the crak.

And as I did awake of my sweving,
The joyfull birdis merily did sing
For mirth of Phebus tendir bemes schene;
Swete war the vapouris, soft the morowing,
Halesum the vale, depaint with flowris ying;
The air attemperit, sobir, and amene;
In qwhite and rede was all the felde besene,
Throu Naturis nobil fresch anamaling,
In mirthfull May, of eviry moneth Quene.