4

Ye nymphes of Mulla1 which with carefull heed,

The silver scaly trouts doe tend full well,

And greedy pikes which use therein to feed,

(Those trouts and pikes all others doo excell)

And ye likewise which keepe the rushy lake,

Where none doo fishes take.

Bynd vp the locks the which hang scatterd light,

And in his waters which your mirror make,

Behold your faces as the christall bright,

That when you come whereas my love doth lie,

No blemish she may spie.

And eke ye lightfoot mayds which keepe the deere2,

That on the hoary mountayne vie to towre3,

And the wylde wolves which seeke them to devoure,

With your steele darts doo chace from comming neer

Be also present heere,

To helpe to decke her, and to help to sing,

That all the woods may answer, and your eccho ring.

注释：1.Mulla：指the river Awbeg。是斯宾塞爱尔兰府邸附近的一条小河。

2.keepe the deere：1611版中是“dore”（door）。

3.towre：猎鹰术语，意思是“to soar”在这里意思是“to frequent high places”。