aftir þat 3024 he hadde maked by hys wepely songes þe wodes meueable to rennen. { and} hadde ymaked þe ryueres to stonden stille. { and} maked þe hertys { and} hyndes to ioignen dredles hir sides to cruel lyou{ n}s to herkene his songe. 3028 { and} had[de] maked þat þe hare was nat agast of þe hounde whiche þat was plesed by hys songe.
[Sidenote: But the songs that did all things tame, could not allay their master's ardent love.]
so þat whane þe most[e] ardaunt loue of hys wijf brende þe entrailes of his brest. ne þe songes þat hadde ouer [[pg 107]] comen alle þinges ne my[gh]ten nat assuage hir lorde 3033 orpheus.
[Sidenote: He bewailed the cruelty of the gods above, and descended to Pluto's realm.]
¶ He pleyned[e] hym of þe godes þat were{ n} cruel to hym. he wente hym to þe houses of helle
[Sidenote: There he struck his tuneful strings and sang, exhausting all the harmonious art imparted to him by his mother Calliope.]
{ and} þere he tempred[e] hys blaundissyng songes by resounyng 3036 of hys strenges. ¶ And spak { and} song in wepynge alle þat euer he hadde resceyued { and} laued oute of þe noble welles of hys modir calliope þe goddesse.
[Sidenote: In songs dictated both by grief and love, he implored the infernal powers to give him back his Eurydice.]
{ and} he song wiþ as mychel as he my[gh]t[e] of 3040 wepynge. { and} wiþ as myche as loue þat doubled[e] his sorwe my[gh]t[e] [gh]euen hym { and} teche hy{ m} in his seke h{ er}te. ¶ And he commoeuede þe helle { and} requered[e] { and} sou[gh]te by swete p{ re}iere þe lordes of soules in helle 3044 of relesynge. þat is to seyne to [gh]elden hym hys wif.
[Sidenote: Cerberus, Hell's three-headed porter, stood amazed;]
¶ Cerberus þe porter of helle wiþ his þre heuedes was cau[gh]t { and} al abaist for þe new[e] songe.
[Sidenote: the Furies, tormentors of guilty souls, did weep;]
{ and} þe þre goddesses furijs { and} vengerisse of felonies þat to{ ur}mente{ n} 3048 { and} agaste{ n} þe soules by anoye wexen sorweful { and} sory { and} wepen teres for pitee.
[Sidenote: Ixion, tormented by the revolving wheel, found rest;]
þan was nat þe heued of Ixion{ e} yto{ ur}mented by þe ou{ er}þrowi{ n}g whele.
[Sidenote: Tantalus, suffering from a long and raging thirst, despised the stream;]