University of Virginia Library

The meyn sesson, hys fader with his feris,
Down at the fludis syde of Tyberis,
Stanschit his wondis with watyr by and by,
Weschand the blude and swait from hys body.
Hys helm of steil besyde hym hang weil ne
Apon a grayn or branch of a grene tre;
Hys other weghty harness, gud in neid,
Lay on the gyrss besyde hym in the meid;
Hys trasty chosyn verlettis hym abowt;
And he ful sor wondyt, all in dowt,
Stude lenand with hys wery nek and bonys,
Owt our a bowand tre, with sair gronys;
Hys weil kemmyt berd, hyngand ful straucht
Apon his breist, onto hys gyrdill raucht;
And feill tymys on Lawsus menys he,
Prayand full oft he mycht hym salfly se,
And mony messyngeris onto hym hess send,
To withdraw hym the feild, and to defend
That he abyde na langar in bargane
And schaw quhat sorow for hym hys fader had tane.
Bot than Lawsus ded owt of the feild
Hys wofull feris careit apon a scheild,
Wepand sa gret a man was brocht to grond,
And discumfyt with sa grysly a wond.
Meȝentius mynd and consait, the ilk tyde,
Suspekand the harmys quhilkis war betyde,
Onfar considerit the causs of thar murnyng,
And on hys canos hair the dust gan slyng,
With mekill powdir fyland hys hasart hed;
And baith hys handis in that sammyn sted
Towart the hevin vphevis in a fary,
And he the goddis and starnys fast dyd wary;
Syne, lenand on hys sonnys corps, thus cryis:
“O my deir child and tendir get heir lyis!
Had I sa gret appetit and delyte
Onto this wrachit lyfe, sa ful of syte,
That I the sufferit to entyr in my sted
Vndre our fays hand, and with thy ded
My lyfe is salfit? Ha, I thy fader heir,
Quhilk the begat, my only son sa deir,
Suld I be salf and lyfand eftir the,
Throu tha sa grisly wondis that I se?
Allace, onto me, wrachit catyve thing,
Myne exill now at last and banysyng
Becummyn is hard and insufferabill!
The stound of deth, the panys lamentabill,
Is deip engravyn in my hart onsound;
Now am I smyttyn with the mortal wond!
I, the self man was the causs of thy ded,
With my trespass, my child, in euery sted
Filyt the glor and honour of thy name,
Thy hie renovn bespottand with my schame,
As I that was, by invy and haitrent
Of my awin pepill, with thar haill assent,
Expellit from my ceptre and my ryng,
And was adettyt, for my mysdoyng
Onto our cuntre, till haue sufferit pane:
I aucht and worthy was to haue bene slane,
And to haue ȝald this wikkyt sawle of myne
Be all maner of turment and of pyne,
Fortill amend myne offencis and fed.
Ha, now I lyf, allace, and thou art ded!
Ȝit want I not off men the cumpany,
Nowder lyght of lyfe, ne cleirness of the sky,
Bot soyn I sal thame leif and part thar fra.”
And sayand thus, sammyn with mynd ful thra
He rasyt hym vp apon hys wondit thee,
And determyt to revenge hym or de;
For thocht the violens of hys sair smart
Maid hym onfery, ȝit hys stalwart hart
And curage ondekeit was gude in neid.
He bad go fech Rhebus, hys ryall steid,
Quhilk was hys wirschip and hys comfort haill,
And hys support hys fays to assaill;
For by this horss in euery gret iourne
Hame fra the feild victour eschapit he.
Quhamto Meȝentyus, but mair abaid,
Seand the steid drowpand and sad, thus said:
“Rhebus, we twa hess levit lang yfeir,
Gyf that to mortal wightis in this erd heir
Ony tyme may be reput lang,” quod he.
“Owder this day beys thou revengear with me
Of Lawsus dolorus deith, and wrek our schame,
And sall as victour with the bryngyn hame
Ȝon bludy spulȝe, and Eneas hed;
Or, gif na fors nor strenth into that sted
Will suffir ony way that it be so,
We sal in feild sammyn de baith two.
For, O moist forcy steid, my lovyt foill,
I can na wyss beleif at thou may thoill
Tobe at ony otheris commandment,
Nor that the list dedeyn, gif I war schent,
Till obey ony master or lord Troiane.”
And sayand thus, ful towartly onane
The steid bekend held to hys schulder plat,
And he at eyss apon hys bak doun sat,
And baith hys fystis fillyt with dartis keyn,
With helm on hed burnyst brycht and scheyn,
Abuf the quhilk hys tymbret buklyt was,
Lyke till a lokryt mayn with mony fass.
And into sik array with swyft curss he
Furth steris hys steid, and draif in the melle.
Deip in hys hart boldynnys the felloun schame,
Myxit with dolour, angir and defame;
The fervent luf of hys son ȝyng of age
Gan catchyng hym into the furyus rage;
Tharto alsso persuadis to the fyght
Hys forss weil knawin, hys hardyment and mycht;
And, in sik poynt, throw owt the rowtis all
With mychty voce thryss dyd Eneas call.
Eneas hard hym cry, and weil hym knew,
And glaid tharof can towartis hym persew,
And prayand says: “The fader of goddis hie,
And eik mychty Apollo, that grant to me,
Thou wald begyn in bargan on this land
To mell with me, and to meyt hand for hand.”
Thus carpyt he, and with stern lance, but tary,
Furth steppys forto meyt hys aduersary.
Bot Meȝentius, seand hym cumand,
Cryit to hym onon and bad hym stand:
“O thou maist cruell aduersar,” said he,
“Quhat wenys thou so to effray and bost me,
Sen thou my son hass me bereft this day,
Quhilk was only the maner and the way
Quharby thou myght ourcum me and distroy?
Now, sen that I haue tynt all warldis ioy,
Nowdyr I abhor the ded, to starve in fycht,
Nor rak I ocht of ony goddis mycht.
Desist, and cess to bost me or mannass,
For I am cum to de in this ilk plass;
Bot first I bryng the thir rewardis,” quod he.
With that word, at his fa a dart leyt fle,
And efter that ane other hass he cast,
And syne ane other hass he fixit fast,
About hym prekand in a cumpas large:
Bot all thir dyntis sustenyt the goldin targe.
Thryss on the left half fast, as he war wod,
About Eneas raid he quhar he stude,
Thik with hys handis swakkand dartis keyn;
And thryss this Troiane prynce our all the greyn,
Intil hyss stalwart stelyt scheild stikand owt,
Lyke a hair wod the dartis bair abowt.
At last, as he ennoyt of this deray,
This irksum traysyng, iowkyng and delay,
And cumryt wolx samony dartis invane
Thus oft to draw furth and to cast agane,
As he that was matchit that tyme, but faill,
With hys fa man in bargane inequale,
Quhilk ay was at avantage and onflocht,
Full mony thing revoluyt he in thocht;
Syne on that weirman ruschit he in teyn;
In the forhed, betwix the horsys eyn,
He kest hys speir with all his fors and mycht.
Vpstendis than the stalwart steid on hycht,
And with his helys flang vp in the ayr;
Down swakkis the knycht sone with a fellon fair,
Foundris fordwart flatlyngis on hys spald,
Ourquhelmyt the man, and can hys feit onfald.
Than the Latynys, and eik pepill Troianys,
The hevynnys dyndlit with a schowt at anys.
Eneas gyrd abufe hym with a braid,
Hynt furth hys swerd, and forthir thus he said:
“Quhar is he now, Meȝentius, sa stern?
Quhar is the ferss stowt curage of that bern?”
Quhamto Meȝentius, this ilk prynce Tyrrheyn,
Fra that he mycht alyftyn vp his eyn
To se the hevynnys licht, and draw hys braith,
And hys rycht mynd agane recoverit haith,
Thus answeris: “O thou dispetuus fo,
Quharto me chydis thou reprochand so,
And mannancis me to the ded by and by?
Of my slauchter I think na villany,
Nor on sik wyss heir com I not in feild,
That I stand aw to swelt vnder my scheild;
Nor, I beleif, na frendschip in thy handis,
Nane syk trety of sawchnyng nor cunnandis,
My son Lawsus band vp with the, perfay.
Bot of a thyng I the beseik and pray,
Gif ony plesour may be grantit or beld
Till aduersaris, that lyis venquyst in feild;
That is to knaw, suffir my body haue
Ane sepultur, and with erd be bygrave.
I knaw abowt me standand in this sted
My folkis byttyr haitrent and gret feid:
Defend me from thar furour, I requeir,
And grant my corps, besyde my sonnys infeir,
Into sum tumbe entyrit for tobe.”
And sayand thus, knawand at he most de,
Befor hys eyn persavyt the burnyst brand,
That throuch hys gorge went from Eneas hand;
Within hys armour, schortly to conclude,
Furth bruschit the sawle with gret stremys of blude.
Be this the son declynyt was almost,
So that the Latynys and Rutilian ost,
Quhat for the absens of thar duke Turnus,
And new slauchter of bald Meȝentius,
Withdrew thame to thar raset in affray,
And Troianys went onto thar rest quhil day.