University of Virginia Library

Ene with this instantly list not cess
Forto recontyr Turnus in the press,
And hys big speir apon hym schakis he,
Quhilk semyt rude and squar as ony tre,
And with a bald and bustuus breist thus spak:
“Quhat menys this langsum delay ȝhe mak?
Quhy tary ȝe for schame, Turnus, all day?
Quharto withdrawis thou the so away?
We pyngill not for speid na curss to ryn,
Bot we debait suld, this barress within,
With wapynnys keyn and with our burnyst brandis,
Togiddir met dereyn it with our handis.
Do change thy self, or turn at thy awyn eyss
In all maner of figuris as the pleiss;
Gaddir togiddir and assembill now, lat se,
All that thou hass of strenth or subtelte;
Wyss now to fle vp to the starnys on hycht
With fedderit weyngis forto tak thy flycht,
Or forto cloyss thy self this ilk thraw
Into sum cavern vnder the erd law.”
Turnus, schakand hys hed, said: “Thou fers fo,
Thy fervent wordis compt I not a stro,
Thy sawis makis me not agast, perfay:
It is the goddis that doith me affray,
And Iupiter becummyn myne ennemy.”
Ne mor he said, bot blent about inhy,
And dyd aspy quhar that a gret roke lay,
Ane ald crag stane huge gret and gray,
Quhilk on the plane, percace, was liggand neir,
A marche set in that grund mony ȝeir
Of twa feildis, forto decern tharby
The ald debait of pley or contrauersy;
Scarsly twyss sax stowt walit men and wight,
Quhilk now the erd producis, hess sik mycht
To charge it on thar schuldris or to beir;
Quham full lychtly Turnus, that nobill heir,
Hynt in hys hand, and swakkit at his fo,
And raxit hym on hicht thar vndir alsso,
And tharwith chargit a full swyft curss ran.
Bot sa confundit is this douchty man
That he ne knew hym selvyn in that sted,
Nowder quhar that he ran, nor quhar he ȝed,
Nor felt hym self liftand on the land
The mekill stane, nor steir it with his hand.
Hys kneis stummerit and hys lymmys slydis,
The blude congelit for feir within his sydis,
So at the stane he at his foman threw
Fayntly throwowt the voyd and waist air flew,
Ne went it all the space, as he dyd mynt,
Nor, as he etlyt, perfornyst not the dynt.
Lyk as, sum tyme, in our swevyn we tak keip,
Quhen langsum dravillyng or the onsond sleip
Our eyn oursettis in the nyghtis rest,
Than semys ws full bissy and full prest
That we ws streke, and doith adress inhy
Lang renkis forto mak and ryn swiftly;
Bot all for nocht, for at the first assay,
Or in the myddis of the start, by the way,
All fante we faill, as forfeblit war we;
The tung avalis not, it will not be;
Ne ȝit the strenthis in our body knaw
Semys sufficient to ws at that thraw;
For, set we press ws fast to spek owt braid,
Ne voce nor wordis followys, nocht is said—
Siklyke wyss hess this goddess myschewss
Ombeset all the ways of Turnus.
Quhat evir to do by hys strenth etlyt he,
Scho maid obstakill; all that ganestandis sche.
Than in hys mynd becom his wittis strange
And begouth forto vary and to change;
And oft he dyd behald Rutilianys,
And oft the cite with all that ryall wanys.
He hovirris all abasyt for dreid and feir,
And gan do quaik, seand at hand the speir;
Ne can he fynd quhiddir away to wend,
Nor on quhat wyss hym self he may defend,
Nor with quhat strenth assaill hys aduersar,
Nor be na ways persaue hys cart or char,
Nor se hys sistir, that had hys cartar be.
And as he stud on hovyr thus, Ene
The fatale dedly speir in hand gan tayss,
And with hys eyn markit and walit hass
Ane place be fortoun to smyte oportune,
And with the hail fors of hys body soyn
Furth from hys hand weil far the lance gan thraw.
Neuer sa swyftly quhidderand the stane flaw
Swakkit from the engyne onto the wall,
Nor fulderis dynt, that causis towris fall,
With sik a rummyll com bratland on sa fast.
Lyke the blak thud of awfull thundris blast
Furth flaw the schaft to smyte the dedly straik,
And with it brocht cruell myschewos wraik;
Quhilk throu the hawbrik skyrtis persyt hass,
And the extreme bordour gan arrass
Of hys strang scheild, cowchit of sevyn ply,
And quhirrand smait hym throw the thee in hy,
That with the dynt huge Turnus, full onsound,
With faldyn howchis duschit to the grund.
Vpstart Rutilianys sammyn complenyng
With a ȝelloch and cairfull womentyng,
Quhill all the hillys rumysit thame abowt,
And far on breid thyk woddis gaue a schowt.
And Turnus, than, quhar he at erth dyd ly,
Addressis furth full humyll and lawly
Towart Ene hys syght and eyn tway,
And strekis eik hys rycht hand hym to pray,
And thus he said: “Forsuyth I haue deserve
The deth, I knaw, and of thy hand to sterve,
Ne wil I not beseik the me to spair.
Oyss furth thy chance: quhat nedis process mar?
Bot gif that ony cuyr or thocht,” quod he,
“Of ony wofull parent may twich the,
Haue rewth and mercy of Kyng Dawnus the ald
(Thou had forsuyth, as I haue hard betald,
Anchises, sik a fader as is he),
And me, or than, gif bettir lykis the,
My body, spulȝeit and the life byreft,
Onto my folkis thou may rendir eft.
Thou hess me venquyst, I grant, and me ourcum.
Italian pepill present all and sum
Hess sene streke furth my handis humylly.
Lavinia is thy spowss, I not deny:
Extend na forthir thy wraith and matalent.”
Eneas stern in armys tho present
Rolland hys eyn toward Turnus dyd stand,
And lyst nocht stryke, bot can withdraw hys hand,
And mor and mor thir wordis, by and by,
Begouth inclyne hym to reuth and mercy,
Abydand lang in hovir quhat he suld do,
Quhen, at the last, on Turnus schuldir, lo,
The fey gyrdill hie set dyd appeir,
With stuthis knaw and pendes schynand cleir,
The belt or tysche of the child Pallas,
Quhilk by this Turnus laitly venquyst was,
As we haue said, and with a grews wond
Slane in the feld, bet doun, and brocht to grund,
And Turnus, in remembrans of this thing,
Abowt his schuldris bair this onfrendly syng.
Bot eftir that Eneas with hys eyn
Sa cruell takynnys of dyseyss hess seyn,
And can sik weid byreft thar aspy,
All full of furour kyndlys he inhy,
Full brym of ire and terribill thus can say:
“Sall thou eschape me of this sted away,
Cled with the spulȝe of my frendis deir?
Pallas, Pallas, with this wond rycht heir
Of the ane offerand to the goddys makkis,
And of thy wikkit blude punytioun takkis.”
And sayand thus, full ferss, with all hys mayn,
Law in hys breist or cost, lay hym forgayn,
Hys swerd hess hyd full hait; and tharwithall
The cald of deth dissoluyt hys membris all.
The spreit of lyfe fled murnand with a grone,
And with disdeyn vnder dyrk erth is goyn. etc.