University of Virginia Library

Thus awfull Mars equaly with hys brand
The sorow rasyt apon athir hand:
Huge slauchter mayd was and seir woundis wyd,
Thai kyll and ar bet down on euery syde,
That sammyn in the feild thai fall infeir,
Baith the victouris, and thai that venquyst weir,
And nother party wist, nother he nor he,
To salf hym self quhar away to fle:
So that the goddis in Iovys hevynly hald
Had compassioun and rewth for tobehald
The wroith and ire of athir in the fightis,
That sik distress rang amang mortal wightis.
Venus towart the Troiane syde tuke tent;
Aganyst quham, all full of maltalent,
Saturnus douchter Iuno, that full bald is,
Towart the party aduersar behaldis;
And the pail furour of Tysiphone
Walkis wod wroth amydwart the melle.
Bot pryncipaly Meȝentyus all engrevyt,
With a gret speir, quharwith he feill myschevit,
Went brangland throu the feild all hym allon;
Als bustuus as the hydduus Orion,
Quhen he on fut woyd throu the mekill see,
Scherand the streym with hys schuldris hie,
Abufe the wallys of the flude apperis;
Or lyke ane ancyent ayk tre, mony ȝheris
That grew apon sum montane toppys hycht,
Semand so hie to euery manis sycht,
Quhilk, thocht hys rutis spred in the grond all sydis,
Hys crop vpstraucht amyd the clowdis hydis—
Syk lyke Meȝentius mustyrris in the feild,
With huge armour, baith speir, helm and scheild,
Aganyst quham Eneas fast hym hyis,
Fra tyme amyd the rowt he hym aspyis.
The tother, onabasyt, all reddy thar
The cummyng of hys douchty aduersar
Abydis stowtly, fermyt in hys forss,
And massely vpstude with bustuus corss:
And, mesurand with hys e als large spaiss
As he mycht thraw a castyng speir, thus says:
“My rycht hand, and this fleand dart mot be,
Quhilk now I tayss, as verray God to me!
Assistyng to my schot I ȝou beseik;
For I awow, and heir promittys eyk,
In syng of trophe or triumphall meith,
My lovit son Lawsus forto cleith
With spulȝe and all harness rent,” quod he,
“Of ȝondir rubbaris body, falss Enee.”
Thus said he, and fra hys hand the ilk tyde
The castyng dart fast byrrand lattis glyde,
That fleand sclentis on Eneas scheild,
Syne, standand far onrovm ȝond in the feild,
Smate worthy Anthores the ilk thraw,
Betwix the bowellys and the rybbys law:
Anthores, ane of gret Hercules ferys,
That com from Arge into hys lusty ȝheris,
Inherdand to Evander the Arcaid,
And had hys dwellyng and hys residens maid
In Palentyn, cite Italian,
Onhappely now lyggis thus down slane,
All of a wound and dynt quhilk in the fycht
Addressit was towart ane other knycht.
Ȝit, deand, he beheld the hevynnys large,
And can ramembir hys sweit cuntre of Arge.
Than the reuthfull Eneas kest hys sper,
Quhilk throu Meȝentius armour all dyd scher;
Throw gyrd hys targe platyt thryss with steill,
And throw the cowchit lynnyn euery deill,
And thrynfald plyis of the bullys hydis,
That law down in hys flank the dynt abydis;
Bot it byreft hym nowder lyfe ne mycht.
Eneas tho, quhilk was expert in fyght,
Ioyfull quhen that Meȝentius blude saw he,
Furth hynt hys swerd at hang law by hys thee,
And fervently towart hys fa can pass,
Quhilk, for the dynt, sum deill astonyst was.
Quhen Lawsus saw this aventour of weir,
He wepyt wail sair for hys fader deir;
Sa wobegone becam this lusty man
That salt teris fast our hys chekis ran.
Forsuyth, I sall not ourslyp in this sted
Thy hard myschance, Lawsus, and fatale ded,
And thy maist dowchty actis bellycall:
O fresch ȝongker, maist dyng memoriall
I sall reherss, gyf ony faith may be
Gevyn to sa gret dedis of antiquyte.
With this Meȝentyus menȝeit drew abak,
Harland hys leg quharin the schaft stak,
That quhar he went he baris our the feild
Hys ennemyss lance fixit in hys scheild.
Betwix thame ruschys in the ȝong Lawsus,
Amyd thar wapynnys, stern and curagus,
Hym self hass set forto sustene the fyght;
Vnder Eneas rycht hand rasyt on hycht,
That reddy was to smyte a dedly wond,
In steppis he, and baldly the ilk stound
The bytand brand vphevyt keppyt he,
And can resist and stynt the gret Enee.
Hys feris followys with a felloun schowt;
Quhill that Meȝentius of the feild wan owt,
Diffend and coverit with hys sonnys scheild,
Thai cast dartis thikfald thar lord to held,
With schaftis schot, and flanys gret plente,
Perturband thar stern aduersar Ene,
That all enragyt hys sovir targe erekkit,
And thar vndre hym haldis closly dekkyt.
And lyke as sum tyme clowdis brystis attanys,
The schowr furthȝettand of hoppand hailstanys,
That all the plewmen and thar hynys inhy
Fleis of the croftis and feildis by and by;
And eik the travellour ȝond vnder the wald
Lurkand withdrawys to sum sovir hald,
Owdir vnder watyr brays and bankis dern,
Or in sum craggis clyft, or deip cavarn,
So lang as that the schour lestis on the plane,
That he may, when the son schynys agane,
Exers hys iourne, or hys wark alsfast—
Syk wyss Ene with schoit and dartis cast
Was all ourheld, and ombeset ilk syde,
Quhil he the press of batale styntis that tyde,
And all thar forss sustenyt and deray;
Reprevand Lawsus, thus begouth to say,
And mannansyt hym with brand of blude all red:
“Quhidder hastis thou sa fast apon thy ded?
Or quhou dar thou ondertak into fyght
Syk interpryss, quhilk is abuf thy mycht?
Thou art nocht wyss; thy tendir hart,” quod he,
“And rewthfull mynd all owt dissavis the.”
Bot for all thys ȝong Lawsus, vail que vaill,
Wald no wyss cess Eneas till assaill.
Than hyear rayss the wraith and felloun ire
Of the ilk manfull Troiane lordly syre,
And eyk the fatale sisteris tho in deid
Had wymplyt vp this Lawsus lattyr threid:
For so Eneas stokis hys styf brand
Throw owt this ȝongker, hard vp to hys hand,
That swerd, befor maid mannansyng and bost,
Throw gyrd that gentill body and hys cost,
Hys target persand and hys armour lycht,
And eik hys cote of goldyn thredis brycht
Quhilk hys moder hym span; and, to conclude,
Hys bosum all is fillyt of hait blude;
Sone efter is the spreit of lyfe furth went
Down to the goistis law with sad entent,
And left the body ded, and hyne dyd pass.
Bot quhen Anchises son, ferss Eneas,
Beheld hys wlt and contenans in deyng,
Hys sweit vissage sa in the ded thrawyng
Becummyn wan and paill on diuerss wyss,
He sychit profundly owder twyss or thryss,
And drew abak hys hand, and rewth hass hynt;
For sa into hys mynd, eftir the dynt,
The ymage of hys faderly piete
Imprentit wass, that on this wyss said he:
“O douchty ȝynglyng, worthy tobe menyt,
Worthy tobe bewalyt and complenyt,
Quhat sall the reuthfull compacient Ene
For sa gret lovabill dedis rendir the?
Or quhat may he the ȝeld sufficient
For sik natural and inborn hardyment?
Thyne armour, quharof sumtyme thou reiosyt,
With the I leif, for ay tobeyn eniosyt;
Onto thy parentis handis and sepulcre
I the belief tobe entyrit,” quod he,
“Gyf that sic maner of triumphe and cost
May do thame plesour, or eyss onto thy gost.
Bot thou, onsilly child, sa will of red,
Do comfort heirwith thy lamentabill ded,
That thou ourmatchit art and thus lyis slane
By the gretast Eneas handis twane.”
Syne he hys feris can repreif and chyde
That thai sa lang delayt hym besyde,
Makand na haist to bair hys corps away;
And he hym self betwix hys armys tway
The ded body vplyftis fra the grond,
That with red blude of his new grene wond
Besparklyt had hys ȝallow lokis brycht,
That ayr war kemmyt and addressyt rycht.