University of Virginia Library

XLVII. THE ELEGIE.

Now, since the day of our depairt appeirs,
Guid resone wald my hand to ȝou suld wr[yt]
That vhilk I can not weill expres but teirs;
Videlicet:—“Adeu! my Lady vhyt.”
Adeu, my love, my lyking, and delyt,
Till I returne; for vhilk I think so lang,
That absence els does all my bouells byt:
Sik gredie grippis I feell befor I gang.
Resave, vhill than, a harte lyk for to mang,
Quhilk freats and fryis in furious flammis of fy[re;]
Keep it in gage, bot let it haif no wrang
Of sik as may perhaps his place desyre.
This is the summe of that vhilk I requyre:
If it hes ocht offendit, let it smart;
If it be true, then let it haif the hyre.
Oh! wold to God ȝe might behold this harte!
Quharin a thousand things ȝe suld advert:
Thair suld ȝe sie the wound vhilk ȝe it g[ave;]
Thair suld ȝe sie the goldin deadly darte;
Thair suld ȝe sie, hou ȝe bereft it haiv;
Thair suld ȝe sie ȝour image by the laiv;
Thair suld ȝe sie ȝour hevinly angels face;
Thair suld ȝe soon my permanence persaiv;
Thair suld ȝe sie ȝour name haif only p[lace;]
Thair suld ȝe sie my languishing, alace!
For our depairt: bot since ȝe knou my painis,
I hope, if ȝe considder weill the case,
And spyis the teirs vhilks ouer my visage rains,
If in ȝour breist sik sympathie remanis,
Then sall ȝe suffer som thing for my saik.
Quhair constant love is aluay, it constranis,
In weill or wo, coequall pairt to take;
Lyk as my members all begins to quake,
That of ȝour duill the half I do indure,
Quhilk I suppone ȝe for my absence mak.
Then haif no dout that ony creature
Can dispossesse ȝou of my hairt, be sure,
Nor ȝit remove from ȝou my constant mynd.
Since I am ȝours, quhom love culd not allure,
Sen I wes borne, till nou that I enclynd
To ȝou allone, for whom my hairt is pynd.
Of lovis fyr, before, I nevir kneu,
Nor ȝit acquent with Cupid in this kynd;
Bot look! hou soon gude fortun to me sheu
Ȝour sueet behaviour and ȝour hevinly heu,
As A per se, that evir Natur wroght,
Then vncouth cairs in me began aneu,
Both in my spreit and in my trublit thoght:
My libertie vhilk I in bondage broght,
Sa that my frank and frie desyre, or than,
Ane hunder places for my plesur soght,
And ay sall do, whill I am leving man.
Sall ȝe then, efter our depairt, forȝet
That vhilk is ȝours, and change on na wyse can?
Hou soon myn ee no sight of ȝours culd get,
It weeping said:—“O deidly corps, defet!
Quhair bene these lamps of light, these crista[ll ees,]
Quhilks maid ws ay so mirrie vhen we mett?”
Quod I agane, with sighing voce:—“Thou sees,
Thoght thou for dolour vnder shadou dees.
Be not abaisd, suppose thou haif no sight.
Thy sun is hid, and keeps no more degre[es;]
Bot, for thy sake, goes to at none, for night:
That is to say—that hevinly visage bright,
Quharon thou wont thy fantasie to feid,
Is far fra the; vhair throu thou laikis th[y sight.”]
So, lustie Lady, well of womanheid!
Myne ee and I but comfort ar indeed,
And do bewaill thy wofull absence ay.
Regrating ȝou, my woundit hairt does bleed;
And than I think, vhen I am far auay,
Leist that, mein tym, blind Love suld thus a[ssay]
All meins he micht, by craft or ȝit ingyne,
To open vp his blindit ees, that they
Might clerelie see these gratious ees of thyn;
And so, beholding sik a sight divyn,
His mynd, to love the, shortly suld be movd;
And caus me, at ane instant, for to tyne
The thing quhilk I sa lang and leall haiff lovd.
Be ȝe not constant, vhen ȝe sall be provd,
Love sall ouercome ȝour honest ansueirs all;
That ȝe sall think, to ȝeild, it ȝou behovd:
Love is so slie; vhais fairdit language sall
Peirce and get entrie throu a stony wall.
I wish ȝou, thairfor, with him to be war:
His mouth is hony, bot his hairt is gall.
On kitlest huiks the sliest baits they ar.
If he the heght, or slielie drau the nar,
Thou ansueir him:—“Go, Love, reteir the hence;
For I love one vho hes my hairt so far,
He merits not to tyne him, but offence.”