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At this tyme, the bargane induryng thus,
Eneas moder, the farest dame Venus,
Into hys mynd scho hass put this entent,
To hald onto the wallys incontinent,
And steir hys ost the cyte till assay
With hasty onset and suddane affray,
At gret myscheif the Latynys to effeir,
Quhilk of hys cummyng tho onwarnyt wer.
And as at he held movyng to aspy
Turnus throu syndry rowtis by and by,
On euery syde he hass castyn hys e,
And at the last behaldis the cite,
Saikless of batale, fre of all syk stryfe,
But payn or travale, at quyet man and wyfe.
Than of a grettar bargane in hys entent
All suddanly the figour dyd imprent:
He callys Mnestheus and eik Sergestus,
Chiftanys of hys ost, and strang Serestus,
And on a lytill mote ascendit inhy,
Quhar sone forgadderit all the Troian army,
And thik abowt hym flokkyng can, but baid;
Bot nother scheld nor wapynnys doun thai laid.
And he amyddis on the knollis hight
Onto thame spak thus, herand euery wight:
“Heir I command no tary nor delay
Be maid of my preceptis, quhat I sal say,
Nor se that na man be sweir nor slaw to ryn;
Till our hasty onset we wil begyn,
Sen Iupiter assistis onto our syde.
Now harkis quhat I purposs do this tyde:
This day I sal distroy and cleyn bet doun
Of Lawrent haill the cite and the tovn,
Quhilk is the causs of all our werying,
And quyte confund the kyng Latinus ryng,
Less than thai wil ressaue the bridill at hand,
Be at obeysans, and grant my command;
And ȝon hie turrettis, and tha toppis hie
Of rekand chymnais ȝondir, as we se,
I sal mak plane and equale with the grond.
Quhat suld I tary or delay a stond,
Abydand heir into sik plyte,” quod he,
“Quhil Turnus lyst feght with ws in melle;
Or quhil that he, ane other tyme agane
Ourcum and venquyst into batale plane,
May haue refuge to this tovn to releif,
Syne efter in feild vs recontyr and greif?
O citeȝanys, the hed is this cite
Of our weirfair, and cheif of iniquyte:
Turss thiddir inhy the hait byrnand fyre brandis,
And with the blesand flawmys in ȝour handis
Renewys and requir agane,” said he,
“The trety sworn and promyst ȝou and me.”
Quhen this was said, thai put thame in array,
Togiddir all the cite tyll assay:
Thai pyngill thraly quha mycht formest be
With dowr myndys onto the wallys hie:
Knyt in a sop, with gret pissans thai thrist
The leddyrris to the wallys, or ony wist,
And hasty fyre blesis dyd appeir.
Sum otheris of the Troianys ruschit infeir
Onto the portis, and the first thame met
Hes kyllyt at the entre and doun bet:
Sum otheris schotis dartis, takillis and flanys
At thame quhilkis on the barmkyn hed remanys,
That with the flycht of schaftis heir and thar
Thai dyrknyt all the skyis and the air.
Ene hym self with the formast can stand
Vndyr the wallys, puttand to hys hand
To the assalt, and with lowd voce on hie
The kyng Latinus fast accusys he,
Drawand the goddys to wytnes, quhou agane
He is constrenyt on forss to move bargane,
And quhou at the Italianys thus twyss
At syndry tymys schew thame hys ennemyss,
And how falsly that day thai brokyn had
The secund confideratioun sworn and maid.
Amang the citeȝanys, into gret affray,
Vpraiss discord in mony syndry way:
Sum bad oncloss the cite, and als fast
Warp vp the portis, and wyde the ȝettis cast
To the Troianys, and thar gret prynce Ene
Ressaue as for thar kyng in the cite;
Otheris start to thar wapynnys and thar geir,
Forto defend thar tovn in feir of weir.
As we may geif a symylitude, wail lyke
Quhen that the herd hess fund the beys byke,
Closit vnder a dern cavern of stanys,
And fillit hess full sone that litill wanys
With smoik of sowr and byttir rekis stew;
The beys within, affrayt all of new,
Ourthwort thar hyvis and walxy tentis rynnys,
With mekill dyn and bemyng in that innys,
Scharpand thar stangis for ire, as thai wald fycht—
Swa heir the laithly odor raiss on hycht
From the fyre blesis, dyrk as ony roik,
That to the ruffis toppys went the smoik;
The stanys warpit in fast dyd rebund,
Within the wallis rayss gret bruyt and sound,
And vp the reik all void went in the air,
Quhar as na tenementis stud nor howsis war.
Betyd alsso to thir wery Latynys,
Quhilk so irkit at sik myscheif and pyne is,
Ane chance of mysfortoun, that all the tovn
With womentyng straik to the boddum doun.
For as the queyn Amata saw syk wyss
The cyte ombeset with ennymyss,
The wallys kyndlyt be with flambys heit,
The fyre blesis abuf the ruffis gleyt,
Na Turnus army cumand thame aganys,
Nor ȝit nan ostis of Rutilianys;
Scho, full onhappy, in the batell sted
Wenyt ȝong Turnus feghtand had bene ded;
And tho for verray sorow suddanly,
Hyr mynd trublit, gan to rame and cry,
Scho was the causs and wyte of all this greif,
Baith crop and ruyte and hed of sik myscheif;
And in hir dolorus fury thus myndless,
All enragit for duyll tho dyd express
Full mony a thyng, and reddy to de with all
Rent with hir handis hyr purpour weid ryall,
And at ane hie balk teyt vp scho hass
With a lowp knot a stark cord or a lass,
Quharwith hir self scho spilt by schamefull ded.
And fra the Latyn matronys, will of red,
Persavit hess this vile myschewoss wraik,
Thai rent thar hair, with, “Harrow,” and, “Allaik!”
Hyr douchter first besyde the ded corps standis,
Ryvand hyr gyltyn tressys with hir handis,
Hyr rosy chekis to tor and scartis sche;
Than all the laif, that piete was to se,
Of ladeis that about the ded corps stud,
Rentis and ruggis thame self as thai war wod,
That of thar gowlyng, greting and deray
The large hald resundis a far way,
Quhill from the kyngis palyce inveroin
Dywlgat went and spred our all the tovne
The fey onhappy fame of sik a deid;
Than euery wight tynt hart for wo and dreid.
With habyt rent Kyng Latyn on the gait
Walkis wobegone, astonyst of the fait
Of hys deir spouss, and of the cite syne,
That semyt brocht onto fynall ruyne:
Hys cannos hair, sair movit in hys entent,
With onclene puldyr has he all bysprent,
And mony tymys hym selvyn hess accusyt,
That he sa lang had lachit and reffusyt
To ressaue glaidly the Troiane Ene;
Repentyng sair, for weill of the cyte,
That he had nocht requirit hym, and draw
Or than tobe his mawche and son in law.