University of Virginia Library

The Rutilianys onon all in a rowt
This ded corps, that slayn lay, start abowt;
The gentill body of this stowt ȝongkeir
Thai haue adressit and laid on a rich beir,
And with hym eik feill takynnys by the way,
Reft from Troianys in the bargan, bair thai,
Baith helmys, horss, swerdis and other geir,
Scheildis, gittarnys and mony stalwart speir.
Syne eftir this hys wery cart furth went,
Of Troian slauchter and hait blude all bysprent.
Furth haldis wepand Metiscus, the carter,
As he that in the craft was not to leir,
Ledand the steid bedowyn all of swete
And chekis wait of flotterand terys grete,
Quhilk steyd had careit Turnus oft tofor
As victor hame with gret triumphe and glor
Full pompusly, apon ane other wyss,
Efter fervent slauchter of his ennymyss.
Ȝondir otheris, about hym inveroun,
Baris thar armour and scheildis turnyt dovn;
The remanent syne of the haill barnage
Followys wepand, knycht, swane, man and page,
With habundans of mony trigland teyr
Wetand thar brestis, wedis and other geir;
And thus wery furth went thai euery wycht
Amyd the dirk silens of the nyght,
Betand thame self with wondir drery cheir.
And Kyng Latyn with all thame with hym wer
Towart hys palyce gan return onon
With mynd trublit, trist and wobygon
For sa excelland ded corps as was slane.
Terys all sammyn furth ȝettis eueryane—
Baith agit men, matronys and childer lyte
The cite fyllis with womentyng and syte.
Dawnus, hys fader (na wyss wittand tho
He suld remane to se sik duyll and wo,
Nor that his son hys stalwart spreit had ȝald
And maid end in the lattir bargan bald,
That thus was brocht to tovn ded by his feris
With sik plente of bittir wepand terys),
The sammyn tyme with other dyseyss was socht,
At mekill sad dolour and hevy thocht.
For as the Latyn pepill war ourset
Into batall by Troianys, and dovn bet,
And Turnus be his hait and recent ded
Had with hys blude littit the grund all red,
A suddan fyre within the wallys hie
Ombeset halyly Ardea cite;
The biggyng of this fader wobegon,
Brynt and doun bet, of reky flammys schone,
And all returnys intill assys red;
The fyry sparkis into every sted
Twynkland vpspryngis to the starnys on hie,
That now na hope of help may fundyn be,
Quhidder so it was onto the goddis lykyng,
Or that the fatis befor list schaw sum syng
Of Turnus deth, in horribill batal slane.
And quhen the pepill saw remed was nane,
Belyfe the wofull trublit citesanys
Thar drery brestis betand all atanys,
Gan fast bewaill with petuus wepand face
Of this onhappy chance the wrachit cace;
In lang rabill the wemen and matronys
With all thar forss fled reuthfully atonys
From the bald flammys and brym blesys stowt.
And lyke as that of emottis the blak rowt,
That ithandly laubouris and byssy be,
Had beldit, vnder the ruyt of a heich tre,
Intill a clift thar byke and duellyng sted,
To hyd thar langsum wark and wyntyr bred;
Gyf so betyde thai feill the ax smyte
Apon the treis schank, and tharon byte,
So that the crop doun weltis to the grund,
That with the felloun rusch and grysly sond
Thar small cavernys all tobrok and rent is;
Than spedely this litill rowt furth sprentis
All will of red, fleand thai wait nocht quhar,
Tursand thar byrdyngis affraytly heir and thar—
Or lyke as that on the howss syde the snaill,
Schakand hir coppit schell or than hir taill,
Fleand the byrnand heit that scho doith feill,
A lang tyme gan do wrassill and to wreill,
Thristand fast with hir feit onto the wall,
And ȝit hir hed with forss and strenthis all
Frawart the fervent flammys fast withdrawys;
Scho scaldis, and with mony wrikis and thrawys
Presys forto eschew the feirfull heit—
Nane other wyss in sa feill perrellis gret
Thir woful citesanys gan thame self slyng,
Ruschand with trublit mynd intill a lyng
Baith heir and thar, and wist not quhar away.
Bot maist of all, allace and weil away!
With reuthfull vocis cryand to the hevyn,
The agit kyng Dawnus with wofull stevyn
Gan on the goddis abuf clepe and call.
And tho amyd the flambis furthwithall
Ardea the fowll, quham a heron clepe we,
Betand hir weyngis, thai behaldyn fle
Furth of the fyre heich vp in the air,
That baith the name and takyn our alquhar
Baris of this cite Ardea the ald,
Quhilum with wallis and towris hie ontald
Stud weirly wrocht, as strenth of gret defens,
That now is changit and full quyte goyn hens
With weyngis wyde fleand baith vp and doun,
Now bot a fowle, was ayr a ryall tovn.
Astonyst of this nyce and new cace
And of the wonderus mervellis in that place
(Quhilk semyt no thing litill fortobe)
As thocht thai send war by the goddis hie,
The pepill all confusyt still dyd stand,
Thir byrdyngis on thar schuldris caryand,
And movit nowther fut, tung nor mouth:
And Kyng Dawnus, for this affray onkouth
With ardent luf smyttin and hait desyre
Of hys cheif sete distroyt and brynt in fyre,
The hard dolour and the sorow smert
Haldis full closs, deip gravyn in hys hart.