THE ELIZABETHAN FAIRIES

42 ORIGIN AND NATURE
pe maister-dragoun lucifer: and is riste felawes ech-on
pat faste heolden with is pruyte: he drof heom to helle anon.
Ake huy pat heolden sumdel with him: and noust fulliche so faste,
Out of heouene he drof heom: and In-to pe lofte heom caste,
A1 here bi-nepe toward pe eorpe: pare mest tempeste is:
And pare heo schullen in tempest and in pine beo: to pe daye of
dome, i-wis ;
And ase hore gult pe more was: heore pine was aI-so,
pe worse stude heom [was] i-take: heore penaunce for-to do.
Ake to helle huy ne schullen noust: are domes-day i-wende;
Ak pare huy schullen after-ward: bi-leue with-outen ende.
Opure pare weren pat for heom: sumdel in mis-pouste weren,
Ake natheles huy heolden betere with god: and vnnepe fur-bere:
pulke wenden out of heouene al-so: and a-boue pe opure beoth,
An heis onder pe firmament: and godes wille i-seoth,
And so schullen sumdel in pine beo: a-non to j?e worldes ende,
Ake huy schullen at domes-day: a-sein to heouene wende.
In eorthpeliche parays: some beoth seot al-so,
And in opur studes on eorpe: heore penaunce for-to da. -
For heore defaute in heouene: porus ore louerdes grace
Man was formest on eorpe i-wroust: to fulfulle Pulke place.
And ofte in fourme of wommane: In many derne weye
grete compaygnie men i-seoth of heom: bope hoppie and pleise,
pat Eluene beoth i-cleopede: and ofte heo comiez to toune,
And bi daye muche in wodes heo beoth: and bi niste ope heiae
dounes.
pat beoth pe wrechche gostes: pat out of heuene weren i-nome,
And manie of heom a-domesday: seot schullen to reste
In the 17th century this theory of their origin was fre-
quently advanced, and in one instance in the I 6th century,
in The Famous Historie of Chinon of England, by
Christopher Middleton, the fairies are defined as
67 E. E. T. S. ed., p. 305, 11. 181-210; p. 307, 11. 253-258.