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In the meyn tyme, the kyngis of athir rowt
From thar citeis and strenthis ischis owt.
Amyd a four quhelit char Latyn that thraw
With huge pomp by stedis fowr was draw,
Quhais haris and hys tymplis war weil dycht
With ryall crown of fyne gold burnyst brycht,
Quharon stud turrettis twelf, lyke bemys scheyn,
As it ane rych enornament had beyn
Of cleir Phebus, that was hys grandschir hald:
Nixt quham furth rollyt was Prynce Turnus bald
Within a twa quhelyt chariot of delyte,
That drawyn was with stedis twa mylk quhyte;
In athir hand held he, in feir of weir,
The braid hed brangland on the ievillyng speir.
The fader Eneas alsso furth withall,
Of Romane lynnage the originall,
Apon the tother half com thame agane,
With byrnyst scheild that brycht as starris schane,
And hevynly armour lemand all of lycht:
Besyde hym raid Ascanyus the sweit wyght,
That semyt weil, till euery manis doym,
Ane other gude beleif and hope to gret Roym.
Furth come the preste, quhamto accordyt mak
The sacrifice of concord and contract,
In vestment cleyn, for syk religioun wrocht,
And a ȝong byrsyt swyne befor thame brocht,
With a rowch twyntyr scheip sammyn infeir,
Quhais woll or fleyce was neuer clyp with scheir;
The bestis furth hess tursyt this ilke syre
Onto the altar blesand of hait fyre.
The princis tho, quhilkis suld this payce makyng,
Turnys towartis the brycht sonnys vprysyng,
With the salt meldyr in thar handis raith;
The forrettis of thir bestis toppys baith
They clyp and myssour, as tho was the gyss,
And cowpys full of wyne in sacryfyss
Abowt the altaris ȝettis he and he.
With drawyn swerd syne the reuthfull Enee
Hys orison furth maid, and thus he said:
“O thou brycht son, with thy scheyn bemys glaid,
Be wytnes now till my behest, I pray;
And this ilk grund mot testyfy quhat I say,
For quham sa gret payn and aduersyte
I sufferit haue feill syth on land and see;
And thou almychty Iove heir my prayer;
Saturnus douchtir, thou hys spowss sa deir,
Now mor benyng than thou was of befor,
Sweit goddess, heir me now, I the implor;
And gentill Mars now takis tent heirtill,
That withhaldis and writhis at thy will
Every batale, stryfe, weirfar or debait
Vndyr thy hie power deificait;
All fludys I call, fontanys and stremys cleir,
And all maner of reuerend goddis seir
Abuf the hevyn ydred and starrit sky;
And ȝow eik, blissyt wightis, I testify,
That vnder erth or law in hell doun beyn,
Or in the fomy seis stremys greyn:
Gif so betyd, that fallys the victory
To Turnus on the Ausonyan party,
It is conuenient, and we grant to fle,
As venquyst folk, till Evandrus cite;
Ascanyus sall als tyte thir feildis withdraw,
Nor Eneadanys neuer, from the ilk thraw,
Aganyst ȝou sall rebell nor move weir,
Ne with na wapynnys eft thys cuntre deir.
Bot gif so beys, Mars our god glorius
The victory and ouyrhand grantis ws
(As I beleif far rathar sal befall,
And that als tyte conferm mot goddis all
Throw the gret mychtis of thar deite!),
Gif that sa fair fortoun betydis me,
Ne will I not command Italianys
Tobe subiect, nor obey the Troianys,
Ne ȝit this realm desyre I not to me;
Bot athir of our pepill mot go fre,
Onthrall, onvenquyst, in lawys all evynly
Confiderat in perpetuall ally.
The wirschipyng of goddis in sacryfice
I sal thame lern and tech at my devyss:
My fader in law, the kyng Latinus heir,
Most rewle the pepill baith in peax and wer;
My fader in law, as souerane lord and syre,
Duryng hys lyfe most bruke solempnyt empyre.
Suffir my Troianys than, as we ar bovn,
For me to beild a strenth and wallyt tovn,
And to this cite, quhar we sall duell at hame,
Lat the madyn Lavinia gif the name.”
Thus first Eneas said, and efter syne
Apon this wyss hym followys Kyng Latyn,
Behaldand towart hevyn quhar he dyd stand,
And to the starnys vphevyis hys rycht hand:
“By this ilk erth, seys and starnys hie,
I sweir inlike wyss onto ȝou, Enee,
And by Latoneis byrth, or twynnys twa,
The brycht Apollo, and chast Diana,
And by the dowbill frontit Ianus, and all
The pyssans of the goddis infernal,
And by the dyrk sanctuary, blak as sabill,
Of grevoss Pluto, that god revengeabill:
The hie fader abuf mot heir my cry,
That dois with thundir sik concord ratify.
I twich thyr altaris and ingill present,” quod he,
“And testifyis ilk godly maieste;
Sall nevir tyme, sesson nor day betyd,
To breke this peax on the Italian syde,
Ne this confiderans anys part in two,
Quhat way that evir happynnys the mater go;
Ne na manner of violens, bost nor aw
Sall ony wyss me tharfra withdraw,
Bot ferm and stabill all sall haldyn be:
All thocht the erth wald myddill with the see,
And with diluge or invndatioun schent
Covir and confund athir eliment;
Or thocht the hevyn in hell resolue wald,
Our promyss sall inuiolat be hald.
Lyke as this ilk ceptour wand ȝhe see,”
(Perchans that tyme a ceptour in hand bair he)
“Sall nevyr burgioun, nor spred branchis lyte,
Nowder rank levys, nor blosum of delyte,
Sen it is anys in wod, thar as it grew,
Law from hys stok hard by the rutis hew,
And wantis now hys moder of nurysyng;
For all the syonys and twystis wont to spryng
Or grow thar fra, as ȝhe may se perfay,
With egge lumys bene sned full quyte away;
Vmquhile a growand tre, thar it dyd stand,
That now thus by the crafty wark manis hand
Inclusyt is and coverit lustely
In burnyst gold and fynast alcomy,
And gevyn our forfaderis of Latyn land,
As ceptour ryall, fortober in hand.”
With wordis sik and ferm relatioun
This fynal suyr confideratioun
Athir pryncis hass confermyt and sworn,
Amyd thar nobillys standyng thame beforn:
Syne, eftyr thar auld cerymonys and gyss,
The bestis dewly adrest for sacryfyss
Thai brytnyt haue amyd the flawmys red,
And rentis out, or thai war fully ded,
The entralys of thir bestis ȝit alyve;
Syne furth of platys or ballancis belyve
With pasyt flesch plenyst the altaris large,
Tharon bestowand in hepys mony a charge.
Bot tho begouth of new this ilk bargane
Semyng to the Rutilianys, euery man,
Tobe ane rycht onevynly interpryss,
And diuerss rumour can in thar brestis ryss,
With mony syndry demyng and consait;
He thynkis thus, and he ane other gait;
And ay the nerrar and mar diligently
At thai the mater consider and aspy,
Weill thai persaue and behaldis, sans faill,
Thir campionys war not of strenth equaill.
And onto this opinioun the ilk thraw
Helpit mekill, that with still payss so slaw
This Turnus musand towart the altar past,
And it lawly adournyt with face doun cast,
With chekis walxin leyn, to thar semyng,
Quharon the soft berd newly dyd furth spryng,
As all to ȝyng with sic ane till haue daill,
Thai thocht hys vissage all becummyn paill.