Page:Metamorphoses (Ovid, 1567).djvu/386

 The sydes to ribbes, the keele that through the middle gaily goes Became the ridgebone of the backe, the sayles and tackling, heare: And into armes on eyther syde the sayleyards turned were. Theyr hew is duskye as before, and now in shape of mayd They play among the waves of which even now they were afrayd. And beeing Sea nymphes, wheras they were bred in mountaynes hard, They haunt for ay the water soft, and never afterward Had mynd to see theyr natyve soyle. But yit forgetting not How many perills they had felt on sea by lucklesse lot, They often put theyr helping hand to shippes distrest by wynd, Onlesse that any caryed Greekes. For bearing still in mynd The burning of the towne of Troy, they hate the Greekes by kynd. And therfore of Ulysses shippes ryght glad they were to see The shivers, and as glad they were as any glad myght bee, To see Alcinous shippes wex hard and turned into stone. Theis shippes thus having gotten lyfe and beeing turnd each one To nymphes, a body would have thought the miracle so greate Should into Turnus wicked hart sum godly feare have beate, And made him cease his wilfull warre. But he did still persist. And eyther partye had theyr Goddes theyr quarrell to assist, And courage also: which as good as Goddes myght well be thought. In fyne they neyther for the Realme nor for the scepter sought, Nor for the Lady Lavine: but for conquest. And for shame To seeme to shrinke in leaving warre, they still prolongd the same. At length dame Venus sawe her sonne obteyne the upper hand. King Turnus fell, and eeke the towne of Ardea which did stand Ryght strong in hygh estate as long as Turnus lived. But Assoone as that Aenaeas swoord to death had Turnus put, The towne was set on fyre: and from amid the embers flew A fowle which till that present tyme no persone ever knew, And beete the ashes feercely up with flapping of his wing. The leanenesse, palenesse, dolefull sound, and every other thing That may expresse a Citie sakt, yea and the Cities name Remayned still unto the bird. And now the verrye same With Hernesewes fethers dooth bewayle the towne wherof it came. And now Aenaeas prowesse had compelled all the Goddes And Juno also (whoo with him was most of all at oddes)