The piece has the appearance of being a youthful work; the verse is often irregular and clumsy, and the rimes uncertain.  On the whole, however, it contains not a little that is graceful and pleasing to the ear, while in description the unknown author shows himself a faithful and not unsuccessful disciple of Spenser in his idyllic mood.  Here, for instance, are two passages which have been thought to reveal a study of the master:[318]

    Within this ore-growne Forrest, there is found
    A duskie Cave, thrust lowe into the ground: 
    So ugly darke, so dampie and so steepe,
    As for his life the sunne durst never peepe
    Into the entrance:  which doth so afright
    The very day, that halfe the world is night. 
    Where fennish fogges, and vapours do abound: 
    There Morpheus doth dwell within the ground,
    No crowing Cocke, nor waking bell doth call,
    Nor watchfull dogge disturbeth sleepe at all. 
    No sound is heard in compasse of the hill,
    But every thing is quiet, whisht, and still. 
    Amid this Cave, upon the ground doth lie,
    A hollow plancher, all of Ebonie
    Cover’d with blacke, whereon the drowsie God,
    Drowned in sleepe, continually doth nod. (II. i. 112.)

And again: 

    Then in these verdant fields al richly dide,
    With natures gifts, and Floras painted pride: 
    There is a goodly spring whose christal streames
    Beset with myrtles, keepe backe Phoebus beames: 
    There in rich seates all wrought of Ivory,
    The Graces sit, listening the melodye: 
    The warbling Birds doo from their prettie billes
    Unite in concord, as the brooke distilles,
    Whose gentle murmure with his buzzing noates
    Is as a base unto their hollow throates. 
    Garlands beside they weare upon their browes,
    Made of all sorts of flowers earth allowes: 
    From whence such fragrant sweet perfumes arise,
    As you would sweare that place is Paradise. (V. i. 104.)

The same influence may perhaps be traced in slighter sketches, such as the

                                grassie bed
    With sommers gawdie dyaper bespred. (II. i. 55.)

Here is a passage in another strain, which culminates in a touch of haunting melody that Spenser himself might have envied: 

    I marvell that a rusticke shepheard dare
    With woodmen thus audaciously compare? 
    Why, hunting is a pleasure for a King,
    And Gods themselves sometime frequent the thing. 
    Diana with her bowe and arrowes keene,
    Did often use the Chace, in Forrests greene. 
    And so alas, the good Athenian knight,
    And swift Acteon herein tooke delight: 
    And Atalanta the Arcadian dame,
    Conceiv’d such wondrous pleasure in the game,
    That with her traine of Nymphs attending on,
    She came to hunt the Bore of Calydon. (I. i. 318.)