BELLA BIS QUINIS. — Metrum 7
"The wrekere Attrides (that is to seyn, Agamenon), that
wrought and contynued the batailes by ten yer, recovered and
purgide in wrekynge, by the destruccioun of Troye, the loste
chaumbris of mariage of his brothir. (That is to
seyn, that he, Agamenon, wan ayein Eleyne that was Menelaus wif
his brothir.) In the mene while that thilke Agamenon
desirede to yeven sayles to the Grykkyssche naveye, and boughte
ayein the wyndes by blood, he unclothide hym of pite of fadir;
and the sory preest yeveth in sacrifyenge the wrecchide kuttynge
of throte of the doughter. (That is to
seyn that
Agamenon leet kutten the throte of his doughter by the preest,
to maken alliaunce with his goddes and for to han wynd with
whiche he myghte wenden to Troye.)
"Ytakus (that is to seyn, Ulixes) bywepte his felawes
ilorne, the whiche felawes the fyerse Poliphemus, ligginge in his
grete cave, had fretyn and dreynt in his empty wombe. But
natheles Poliphemus, wood for his blynde visage, yald to Ulixes
joye by his sorwful teres. (This to seyn, that Ulixes smoot out
the eye of Poliphemus, that stood in his forheed, for whiche
Ulixes hadde joye whan he say Poliphemus wepynge and blynd).
"Hercules is celebrable for his harde travailes. He
dawntide the proude Centauris (half hors,
half
man), and he byrafte the dispoilynge fro the cruel lyoun
(that is to seyn, he slouhe the lyoun and
rafte hym his
skyn); he smot the briddes that hyghten Arpiis with certein
arwes; he ravysschide applis fro the wakynge dragoun, and his
hand was the more hevy for the goldene metal; he drowh Cerberus,
the hound of helle, by his treble cheyne; he, overcomer, as it
is seyd, hath put an unmeke lord foddre to his crwel hors (this
to seyn, that Hercules slowh Diomedes, and made his hors to
freten hym); and he, Hercules, slowh Idra the serpent, and brende
the venym; and Acheleous the flod, defowled in his forheed,
dreynte his schamefast visage in his strondes (that
is to seyn, that Achaleous coude transfiguren hymself into
diverse liknesse, and,
as he faughte with Hercules, at the laste he torned hym into a
bole, and Hercules brak of oon of his hornes, and he for schame
hidde hym in his ryver); and he, Hercules, caste adoun
Antheus the geaunt in the [sondes] of Libye; and Kacus apaysede
the wratthes of
Evander (this to seyn,
that Hercules slouh the monstre Kacus, and apaysed with that deth
the wratthe of Evander); and the bristilede boor markide
with scomes the scholdres of Hercules, the whiche scholdres the
heye cercle of hevene sholde thriste; and the laste of his
labours was that he susteynede the hevene uppon his nekke
unbowed; and he disservide eftsones the hevene to ben the pris
of his laste travaile.
"Goth now thanne, ye stronge men, ther as the heye wey
of
the greet ensaumple ledith yow. O nyce men! why nake ye your
bakkes? (As who seith, "O ye slowe
and delicat
men! whi flee ye adversites, and ne fyghte nat ayeins hem by
vertu, to wynnen the mede of the hevene?"") For the
erthe overcomen yeveth the sterres." (This to
seyn, that whan that erthly lust is overcomyn, a man is makid
worthy to the hevene.)
