It was the beginning of Spring, and all the flowers of the Launs, Meadowes, Valleyes, and Hills, were now blowing; all was fresh, and green, and odorous. The Bee’s humming from the flowers, the Bird’s warbling from the groves, the Lamb’s skipping on the hills, were pleasant to the ear, and eye. And now when such a fragrancy had filled those blest and happy fields, both the old men and the young, would imitate the pleasant things they heard, and saw; and hearing how the birds did chant it, they began to carroll too; and seeing how the Lambs skipt, tript their light and nimble measures; then to emulate the Bees, they fall to cull the fairest flowers. Some of which in toysome sport they cast in one anothers bosoms, and of some plaited Garlands for the Nymphs. And always keeping near together, had, and did all things in common: for Daphnis often gathered in the straggling sheep; and Chloe often drove the bolder ventrous Goats from the crags, and precipices; and sometimes to one of them, the care of both the flocks was left, while the other did intend some pretty knack, or Toysome play. For all their sport, were sports of children, and of Shepherds. Chloe scudding up and down, and here and there picking up the windlestrawes; would make in plats, a Trap to catch a Grasshopper; and be so wholly bent on that, that she was carelesse of her flocks. Daphnis on the other side, having cut the slender reeds, and bored the quils, or intervals between the joynts, and with his soft wax joyned and fitted one to another; took no care but to practise, or devise some tune, even from morning, to the twilight. Their wine, and their milk, and whatever was brought from home to the fields, they had still in common. And a man might sooner see all the Cattel separate from one another, than he should Chloe and Daphnis, asunder. But while they are thus playing away their time, to sweeten pleasure, afterwards Love procures them these Cares: A Wolf that had a kennel of whelps, came often ravenous upon the fields, and bore away many cattel, because she needed much prey, to keep her self and those cubs. The Villagers therefore meet together, and in the night they dig a ditch of a proportinall Length, and Depth, and Breadth; the earth flung up they scatter all abroad at a good distance, by handfulls; and laying over-crosse the Chasm, long, dry, and rotten sticks, they strow them over with that earth which did remain: that if a Hare did but offer to run there, she could not choose but break those rods, that were as brittle as the stubble; and then would easily make it known, that that indeed was not true, but only Counterfeited Soil. Many such Trap-ditches were digg’d in the Mountains, and the fields; yet they could not take this Wolf, (for she could perceive the Sophi-stick, and commentitious ground:) but many of the Sheep and Goats were there destroyed; and there wanted but a little, that Daphnis too was not slain; and it was on this chance: Two he-goats were exasperated to fight, and the shock was furious. One of them, by the violence of the very first Butt, had one of his horns broke; upon the pain and grief of that, all in a fret and mighty chase, he betakes himself to flight: but the victor pursuing him close, would not let him take breath. Daphnis was vext to see the horn broke, and that kind of male-pertnesse of the Goat; up he catches his club and pursues the pursuer. But, as it frequently happens when one hastes away as fast as possibly he can, and the other with ardency pursues; there was no certain prospect of the things before them, but into the Trap-ditch both fall, first the Goat, then Daphnis. And indeed it was only this that served to save poor Daphnis, that he flunder’d down to the bottome of the ditch a cock-horse on the rough Goat. There in a lamentable case he lay, waiting, if perchance it might be some body to draw him out. Chloe seeing the accident, away she flyes to weep over Daphnis his grave, and found he was alive, though buried there, and calls for help to a herdsman of the adjoyning fields. When he was come, he bustled about for a long Cord: but finding none, Chloe in a tearing haste, pulls off her hair-lace and her fillet, gives him them to let down; and standing on the pit brim, both began to draw and hale; and Daphnis holding fast by it, nimbly followed Chloe’s line, and so ascended to the Top. They drew up too the wretched Goat which now had both his horns broke (so fiercely did the revenge of the victor pursue him,) and they gave him to the herdsman as a reward of the rescue, and redemption of their lives. And if any body mist him at home, they would say it was the Invasion of the Wolf: and so returned to their Sheep and Goats. And when they had found that all were feeding orderly, according to the precepts of Lamo and Dryas; sitting down upon the Trunk of an Oak, they began curiously to search, whether he had hurt any limb in that terrible fall; but nothing was hurt, nothing bloodied; onely his head, his bosome, and some other parts, were durtied by the soil which covered over, and hid the Trap. And therefore they thought it best before the accident was made known to Lamo and Myrtale, that he should wash himself in the Cave of the Nymphs. And coming there together with Chloe, he gives her his Scrip, his Jacket, and his Shirt to hold while he washt.