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Quhill thai thus at gret altricatioun wer
Amangis thame self in dowtsum thingis seir,
Eneas all his ost and haill army
Hess rasyt, trumpyng to the town in hy.
A messynger com ruschand in with haist,
Amyd the rowtis ran as he war chaist,
That with huge rumour and a feirfull dyn
Fillit onon the kyngis riall in,
And with gret dreid the cite stuffit alquhar;
Schawand quhou that thar fays cummyn war
In plane batale arrayt, to conclud,
The Troiane barnage from Tibir the flude,
With ordinance of Tuscan, that dyd spreid
In forfront al the large feildis on breid.
Onon the pepillis hartis effrayt wer,
And commonys breistis proplexit all for feir;
In sum, the greif and ire dyd fast habund,
Rasyt with brethfull stangis full onsond,
And with a felloun dreid all on steir
Thai hynt to harnes, and cryis eftir thar ger:
“Harness, harnes,” all the ȝong citeȝanys
With fellon brute and noys schowtis atanys;
The febill and agyt faderis wobegone
Can pleyn and weip with mony a petuus grone.
In euery part the gret clamour and cryis
In diuerss opinionys rayss vp to the skyis—
Nane other wyss than as sum tyme we knaw
The flycht of byrdis fordynnys the thik schaw,
Or than the rawk vocit swannys in a rabill,
Sondand and swouchand with noys lamentabill
Endlang the bemand stankis and stremys cleir
Of Padusa, sa full of fyschis seir.
Turnus, that fand hys tyme sa oportune,
Now baldly says he: “Citeȝanys, haue doyn;
Do call ȝour consale, takis avysment,
Sittand at eyss ilkane say his entent,
Carpys of paix, and ruyss it now, lat se,
Quhen that thai ȝonder invadis ȝour cuntre,
Ȝour mortale fays enarmyt ȝou to assaill.”
Na mar he said, but startis vp sans faill,
And of the cheif palyce ischit furth in hy,
Thus carpand to the noblys stud hym by:
“Go tyte, Volusus, to the banereris
Of the Volscanys, and thame that standartis beris;
Charge thame thar ensenȝeis forto rayss on hycht,
And in thar armour adress thar men to fyght:
And ȝhe, Mesapus, Coras, and ȝour broder,
The horsmen all enarmyt, ane and other,
Convoys furth onto the feildis braid.
A party of the citeȝanys,” he said,
“Do stuf the entreis, and the portis defend;
Sum to the towris and wall hedis ascend;
The remanent of all our hail menȝe,
Quhen I command, lat thame set on with me.”
Onon our all the cite by and by
Vp on the wallys ryn thai than in hy.
The kyng Latyn hys consale, full onglaid,
And gret materis quhilkis he begunnyn had,
Left and differrit quhil ane other day,
Trist in his mynd, and trublit of that delay;
And mony ways hym self he accusyt,
That he sa lang had slewthit and refusyt
To ressaue glaidly the Troiane Ene;
Repentyng sor, for weill of his cite,
That he had not requirit hym and draw,
Or than, tobe his mawch and son in law.
Sum tho, thar cite entre forto kepe,
Befor the portis delvis trynschis deip;
Sum to the ȝettis weltis weghty stonys,
And sum gret iestis and sillys for the nonys;
The bass trumpet with a bludy sovn
The syng of batell blew our all the tovn.
The wallis than thai stuffit rownd abowt
With diuerss sortis of mony syndry rowt,
Baith wifis, barnys, childer, men and page
(Na kynd of stait was sparit tho, nor age);
The heyast poynt and lattir resistens
Callit euery wight to laubour and defens.
The queyn also, Amata, furth can hald
Onto the tempill and Pallas souerane hald,
Born in hir char, and walkyng hir abowt
Of matronys and nobil wemen a rowt;
Offerandis and gyftis brocht with hir scho had;
Nixt hand hir went Lavynia the maid,
The causs of all this harm and wofull teyn,
That dovn for schame dyd cast hyr lusty eyn.
The matronys entris in the goddis presens,
And smokis the tempill with sweit vapour and sens,
And reuthful vocis warpis lovd on hie.
Alssone as thai attenyt the entre,
“O thou,” said thai, “Pallas armipotent,
Tritonia clepit, maid, and president
Of batale and of weris eueryone,
With thy virginal handis breke onon
Ȝon Troiane revaris wapynnys and his speir;
Hym self als tyte dovn to the grund thou ber,
Vndre our portis and our wallis hie
Down warp hym ded, that we that sycht may se.”