University of Virginia Library

Scars had the messyngeris thir wordis said,
Quhen all the Latynys, trublyt, full onglaid,
Fra hand to hand quhispyris fast and roundis,
On diuerss wyss demyng with murmour soundis—
Lyke as the swyft watir stremys cleir
Sum tyme rowtand men on far may heir,
Quhar it is stoppit with thir stanys round,
That of the ryveris brute and brokkyn sound,
Brystand on skelleis our thir demmyt lynnys,
The bankis endlang all the fludis dynnys.
Bot efter that thar mudis mesyt wer,
Thar waverand wordis stanchit and sik beir,
With reuerens first blyssand the goddis mycht.
The kyng thus carpys from hys trone on hycht:
“O Latyn pepill, forsuyth I wald al gait,
And so had beyn far better, weill I wait,
Full lang or now avisyt had we be
Twychand the common weill and materis hie;
And not at sik a poynt, apon this wyss,
Our consale to assembill and to avyss,
Quhen that our fays and aduersaris ar bown
Forto bysege the wallys of our town.
O citeȝanys, we move and ledis at hand
Ane wer inoportune, quhilk is onganand,
Aganys folkis of goddis clan discend,
That beyn invincybill, and weill can defend
So that na bargane may thame irk nor tyre;
Nor thocht thai venquyst war, baith man and syre,
May thai desist, ne withdraw the melle.
Gif ony hope or confidens had we
In chevalry of the Etholianys,
Quhilkis in Napillis with Dyomed remanys,
And for thir men of armys thidder send,
Do all sik traste away, and ȝou defend:
Lat euery man in his awyn self haue hope.
But quhou febill sik traste is ȝe may grope,
And eik befor ȝour eyn cleir may ȝe se
In quhou gret perrell and proplexite
All other materis lyis now or standis;
All sic thyngis bene braid amang ȝour handis.
I will accuss nor argu now na wight.
All haill the forss or strenth mycht be in fycht
Exercyt was, I wait; sen all the flour
And pyssans of this realm dyd stryve in stour.
Now so it is that I will breifly end,
And in schort wordis mak onto ȝou kend
The dowtsum purpos in my mynd remanys;
Attendans geif, and harkis all at anys.
I haue, besyde Tyber the Tuscane flud,
Ane ald feld onprofitabill and rude,
Far strekand west to the bundis quhar remanys
The Scicyll pepill, quhilkis clepit ar Sycanys;
The folk Auruncane and of Rutuly
This grund sawys full onthriftely,
With scharp plewis and steill sokkis seir
Thai hard hillys hyrtis forto eyr,
And on thir wild holtis harsk alsso
In faynt pastur doith thar bestis go.
All that cuntre and band of hillis hie,
Sa full of rochis pynnakillis, as we se,
Lat it be geif for amyte and concord
To the Troianys, and Eneas thar lord;
Syne offer thame equale trety condyng,
And, as our perys, do call thame in this ryng;
All sammyn lat thame dwell heir by and by;
Gif thai haue sik desyre to Italy,
Do lat thame beld thar cite wallys squar.
Bot gif so be that thai lyst ellis quhar
To othir costis or pepill forto wend,
Thar duellyng place for ay to apprehend,
And possibill be that of our boundis thai
May so depart, and from thens wend away;
Twyss ten schippis lat ws beld agane
Of strang tymmyr and treis Italyane,
And gif thai wald compleit ma in this land,
The stuf lyis all reddy by the strand;
Of thar schippis the numbir and maner
Lat thame command, and we sal furnyss heir
The irne graith, the wark men, and the wrychtis,
And all that to the schippis langis of rychtis.
And forthir eik it lykis me,” quod he,
“To ber my wordis to this prynce Ene,
And to conferm our frendschip and our pess,
Ane hundreth gay ambassatouris, but less,
Of gretast blude of the Latyn menȝe,
And in thar handis reke furth the paceabill tre;
And bair hym giftis and rewardis large,
Of gold and evoir mony sovm and charge,
The char or sete accordyng for the ryng,
Our rob ryall, ensenȝeys of a kyng.
Avyss heiron amangis ȝou for the best,
And help to bryng our febill weill to rest.”
Ane Drances tho vpstud, and speke began,
The quhilk Drances was the self man
That, as we said haue laitly heir tofor,
Was rycht molest to Turnus euermor,
Quham the renovn of Turnus and glory
Prikkyt full sor with lurkand hyd envy;
Of moblis rych and plentuus was he,
And maste expert in speche and wordis sle,
Bot of his handis into batale sted
Full cald of curage, dolf as ony led,
And into consalys gevyng he was hald
A man nocht indegest, bot wyss and cald;
Bot ane seditioun or a brek to make
Sa masterfull, tharin was nane hys mayk;
The nobill kynrent of hys moderis syde
Maid hym full gret of blude, and full of pryde;
Hys fader was oncertane and onknaw.
And vp he startis in this ilk thraw,
With thir wordis Turnus to ourcharge,
Aggregyng on hym wrath and malyce large:
“O douchty kyng, thou axis consale,” said he,
“Of that mater quhilk, as semys me,
Is nother dyrk nor dowtsum, bot full cleir,
That mysteris not our avicis beyn heir.
The pepill haill grantis that thai wait
Quhat forton schawys, and in quhat estait
Our materis standis; bot thai ar arch to schaw,
Quhispirand amangis thame, thai stand sik aw.
Bot causs hym geif thame liberte to speke,
Do way his bost, at thar breth may outbreke;
I meyn of hym, by quhais onhappy werd
And fraward thewys, now ded on the erd
Samony cheif chiftanys and dukis lyis:
Forsuyth, I sall say furth all myne avyss,
All thocht with brag and bost, or wapynnys, he
Me doith await, and mannans forto de;
For by hys dedis may we se express
Thys cite haly plungit in distress,
Quhillys that he has maid hym to assay
The Troianys strenth, and stall sa sone away,
Havand assurans to withdraw and fle,
And into armys dois bost the hevynnys hie.
Bot, O thou all thar best and riall kyng,
To all thir gyftis ekis bot a thyng;
Onto thir presandis and wyss wordis seir,
That to Troianys thou hass byd say and beir,
Ekis a gift, and lat neuer demyt be
The bustuusness of ony may dant the.
Bot that thi douchter, O thou fader gude,
Onto ȝon worthy prynce of gentill blude
Be gevyn, tobe thy son in law, I wyss,
As he that worthy sik a wedlok is;
And knyt vp paix, but mor disseuerans,
With that eternall band of allyans.
And gif sa gret raddour or dreid haue we
Within our myndis or our breistis,” quod he,
“That, for Turnus, we dar nocht do sik thyng,
Than lat ws for the weilfar of this ryng
Beseik hym tharfor and with haill entent
Requir hym at he wald grant hys consent,
So that the kyng, at hys fre volunte,
Mycht oyss and do hys proper dewyte,
And, for the weill publik of this land,
Desyre that he na wyss tharto ganestand.
O Turnus, hed and causar verraly
Of thir myschevis gret in Italy,
Quharto sa feill syss in playn perrellis now
Thir sylly wrachit citeȝanys warpis thou?
Nane hoip of weilfar haue we in this wer:
For paix halely we all the requer,
Togiddyr with Lavinia the schene may,
Quhilk is the pand or plege, this dar I say,
Of paix tobe kepit inviolate.
And I, forsuyth, quhilk, as be thy consait,
Thou fenys thyne evill willar fortobe,
And for the common weill, sa mot I thee,
So fortocum I refuss nocht, gud broder,
Bot lo me heir, now formest of all other
Humylly the besekyng: I requer,
Haue mercy, lord, of thyne awyn frendis deir,
Lat be thy stowt mynd, go thy way but lak,
With ane mair strang rebute and dryve abak.
Ded corpsis bet down enew haue we seyn,
Our large feildis and boundis all betweyn
Left desolate and waist of induelleris.
Bot gif thy fame and gret renown the steris,
Gyf in thy breist sa hie curage and mycht
Thou hass consauyt, thynkand the sa wight,
And gif that on sik wyss this hald ryall
Suldbe thy dowry and rych gyft dotall
Thou berys in hart, and is to the sa deir;
Do vndyrtake this thyng, and end the weir:
Address thy body baldly, and not spayr
Forto recontyr alone thyne aduersar,
To that entent, that Turnus all hys lyfe
May weld the kyngis douchter to hys wyfe;
So that we, dolf of curage as the led,
Be not doun strowit in the feildis ded,
In cumpaneis onberyit or bewalyt.
Bot thou, that hass in feild sa feil assalyt,
Gyf ony strenth thou hass or hardyment,
Or marciall prowes steryng thyne entent
For thy cuntre; aganyst the, for hys rycht,
Behald thy fa prouocand the to fyght,
Ȝondir all reddy to mak hys party gude;
Delay no mor, bot manfully go to it.”