Virgil's Aeneid translated into Scottish verse :: :: University of Virginia Library

Eftyr that the fader of the fludys Neptune
Had on sik wyss behaldyn the seys abone,
Vndir the stabillit hevin movit in his chare,
Slakking his renȝeis with prosper courss and fair,
Eneas and his feris on the strand
Wery and forwrocht sped thame to the nerrest land,
And at the cost of Lyby arryvit he.
Ane havyn place with a lang hals or entre
Thar is, with ane ile enveronyt on athir part,
To brek the wallis and storm of euery art;
Within the watir in a bosum gays.
Baith heir and thair stant large craggis and brais.
To se the hewis on athir hand is wondir
For hycht that semys pyngill with hevin, and vnder
In a braid sound sovir from all wyndis blawis
Flowis the schore deip, euer stabil but ony wawis.
A wod abufe ourheldis with his rank bewis
And castis a plesand schaddow our the clewis.
Rycht our forgane the forret of a bra
Vnder the hyngand rolkis was alswa
Ane coif, and tharin fresch watir springand,
And satis of stane neuer hewyn with manis hand
Bot wrocht by natur, as it ane howss had beyn
For nymphis, goddessis of fludis and woddis greyn.
Perbrakit schippis but cabillis thar mycht ryde,
Nane ankyr nedis mak thame arest nor byde.
Of all his navy thidder Eneas brocht
Bot sevin schippis. With gret desyre and thocht

Tobe on grund, Troianys sped thame to land,
As thai desyrit set softly on the sand;
Thare lethis and lymmys in salt watir bedyit
Strekit on the cost, spred furth, bekit and dryit.
Bot first Achates slew fyre of the flynt
Keppit in dry leiffis as tunder, quhil thai brynt;
Syne stikkis dry to kyndil thar about laid is,
Quhil al in flambe the bless of fyre vp bradis.
Than was the quhete (with fludis chaffit and wet)
And instrumentis to purge it swith out set.
For skant of vittal, the cornys in quernys of stane
Thai grand, and syne buke at the fyre ilkane.
In the meyn quhile, Eneas the bank on hie
Has clummyn, widequhar behaldand the large see
Gif ony schip thar on mycht be persavit
Quhilk lait tofor the wyndis had bewavit,
Or ony Troiane galay, bark or barge,
Antheus, Capis or Caicus stremeris large
Wavand or schawand from thar top on hycht.
Na schip he saw, bot sone he gat a syght
Of thre hartis waverand by the cost syde,
Quham at the bak, throu out the gravis wide,
The mekil herdis followit in a rowt
And pasturit all the large valle about.
Tharat he styntis and hynt his bow in hand;
Swift fleand arowis fast by him had berand
The traist Achates; and first the ledaris thre,
Quhilk on thar hedis bair the tyndis hie,

Smertly he slew, syne al the rangald persewis
With grundyn arowis amang the thik wod bewis,
And styntis not with dartis thame to bete
Quhil he to grond had brocht sevin hartis grete,
And with his schippis thar nowmyr equale maid.
Syne to the havin sped him for out abaid
And thame distribut amangis his feris all.
The wyne thar with in veschell gret and small,
Quhilk til him gave Acestes, his ryall host,
At his departing from Sycilly the cost,
To thame he byrlis and skynkis fast but weir,
And with sik wordis comfortis thar drery cheir:
“O ȝe my feris and deir frendis,” quod he,
“Of bywent perrellis not ignorant bene we.
Ȝe haue sustenyt grettar dangeris onkend,
Lyke as heirof God sal mak sone ane end.
The rage of Silla, that huge swelth in the see,
Ȝe haue eschapit, and passit eik haue ȝhe
The euer rowtand Charibdis rolkis fell;
The craggis quhar monstruus Ciclopes dwell
Ȝhe ar expert. Pluk vp ȝour hartis, I ȝou pray,
This dolorus dreid expell and do away.
Sum tyme heiron to think may help perchance:
By diuerss cacis, seir perrellis and sufferance
Onto Itale we ettill, quhar destany
Has schape for ws, in rest and quiet, herbry;
Predestinat is thar Troy sal ryss agane—
Beis stowt on prosper forton to remane.”
Syk plesand wordis carpand he has furth brocht,
Set his mynd trublit mony grewouss thocht,
With fenȝeit comfort by his cheyr outwart
The dolorus payn hyd deip gravyn in hart.
Hys feris has this praye ressauyt raith
And to thar met addressis, it to graith,

Hynt of the hydis, maid the bowkis bair,
Rent furth the entralis, sum in tailȝeis schare,
Syne brochit flykerand, sum gobbettis of lyre
Kest in caldronys, and othir sum bet the fyre;
Thame to refresch thus all the cost on lenth
Sped thame with fude to recover thar strenth,
On the greyn gers sat doune, and fillit thaim syne
Of fat venyson and nobill auld wyne.
Quhen hungir thus with metis was chasit away
And dischis drawin, than with lang sermond thai
Bewalit thar feris lossit on the flude:
Betwix gude hope and dreid in dowt thai stude
Quhidder thai war levand or tholit extreme ded all;
Thai answer nocht set thai oft pleyn and call.
Bot principally the pietefull Eneas
Regratis oft the hard fortoune and cace
Of stern Orontes new drownyt in the sey,
And now Amycus harm complenys he,
Now hym alone the cruel fate of Lycus,
Now strang Gyan, now stalwart Cloanthus.

C f marginal note setts; L B marginal note or settis.

Nympha may be clepit a spowss or a damysell. Bot thai bein taken wyth poetis for goddessis of woddis, wildirness, fludis or wellis, and Nympha is a generall naym to all syk. Nymphis of wellis bein callit Naydes; of hillis or montanys, Oreades; of woddis and forestis, Dryades; of salt fludis, Nereides; of flouris, Napee; and Hamadriades ar fenȝeit to grow and de wyth the tre, as quha wald say the sawll of the tre.

Ȝe sall ondirstand Virgill in all partis of his prosess, quhat maner or fasson he discrivis ony man at the begynnyng, sa continewys he of that samin person all thro, and Eneas in all his wark secludis from all vylle offyce; bot as twychand materris of pyety or devotion, thar labowris he euer wyth the first, as ȝe may se in the beginyng of the vi buke.

Thocht sum wald say, perchans, that in Affrik bein na hartis, therto answeris Landinus that, albeit perchans now ther be nain, in tha days tha war not to seyk, or thocht in the ferther partis of Affrik be nain, in the hiddir partis, quharto was Eneas dryve, ther beyn mony.

or gydaris.

Acestes, kyng of Sycilly; of quham in the first c. of the thrid buke.

Sylla and Charybdis bein twa gret dangeris in the Sycill sey; of quham in the vi and viii c. of the thrid buyk.

Off thir Cyclopes alsso in the ix and x c. of the thrid buyk.

Wyne the eldar the bettir, sa that it be fresch, and euery man knawis vennyson owt of ply tynys the sesson.