University of Virginia Library

“Quha sal the harmys of that woful nycht
Expreme? Or quha with tong to tell hes mycht
Sa feil ded corsis as thar lyis slane?
Or thocht in cace thai weip quhil teris rayn
Equaly may bewail tha sorowis all?
The ancyant, worthy cite down is fall
That mony ȝeris held hie senȝeory.
Stekit in stretis heir and thar thai ly,
Feil corsis ded of mony onweldy wyght,
Dung down in howsis, fey thai fal all nycht,
In sanctuarys and templis of goddis eik;
Na quhar mercy nor succor mycht thai seik.
And not only of Troianys throu owt the town
The blude is sched, thus marthyrit and slane down,
Bot sum tyme eik to thame, ourcummyn and schent,
Agane returnys in brestis hardyment,
So that sum Grekis victoris war smyte ded.
Cruel womenting occupyit euery steid,
Our alquhar dreid, our alquhar wo and cayr,
And of the deth feil gastly schaddowis thair.
Bot first enconteris wss Androgeus
With a gret cumpany of the Gregyus,
Onwarly wenyng his fallowis we hadbe.
In haymly wordis to wss thus carpis he:
‘Haist ȝou, matis, quhat slewth tareit ȝou thus lait?
Our other feris rubbis, tursyng away fut hait
The spreith of Troy, quhilk now is brynt to gledis,
And ȝe, fyrst from ȝour schippis now ȝou spedis.’
Thus said he, quhen that suddanly and onone
He felt hym self happynnyt amyd his foyn,
For we hym gave answer not traist enewch.
Estonyt with the word, abak he drewch,
As quha onwar tred on a rowch serpent
Lyggyng in the buss, and for feir bakwart sprent,
Seand hir, reddy to stang and to infek,
Set vp hir vennamus ȝallo boldyn nek:
On the sammyn wyss, Androgeus, of our syght
Gretly effrayt, fled in al his mycht.
On thame we schot, and in thar myd rowt duschit,
Hewit, hakkit, smate down, and al to fruschit
Tha fey Gregionys, on ilk syde heir and thair,
With dreid ourset, and wist not quhar thai war.
The first lawbour thus lukkit weil with wss.
Ioyus in hart of this chance, Chorebus,
‘O ȝe feris, hald furth this way,’ quod he,
‘Quhar forton first has schawyn ws sik supple,
Hald thidder quhar our manhed has ws taucht.
Now lat wss change scheildis, sen we beyn sawcht,
Grekis ensenȝeis do we cowntyrfeit;
Quhidder by slycht or strenth of armys gret
A man ourcum his ennemy, quha rakkis?
Thai sal ws rendir thir harnes of thar bakkis.’
And sayand thus, Androgeus cristit helm
He hynt in hy and our his hed gan quhelm;
His schynand scheild with his bawgy tuk he
And hang a Gregioun swerd down by his the.
Syklyke dyd Rypheus, my self eik, and Dymas,
And all the other ȝongmen at thar was,
Ful glaidly in that recent spulȝe warm
Belyf ilk man dyd thame self enarm.
Amang the Grekis mydlit than went we,
Nocht with our awyn takyn nor deite;
Mony debatis and onsettis haue we done,
And, throu the silens of the nycht, ondone
Feil of the Grekis, and send to hell adown.
Ane other menȝe fled fast out of town
To thar schippis and tha traist coistis nyce;
Sum part alsso for schaymfull cowartyce
Clam vp agane in the gret horssis maw
And hyd thame in that belly weilbeknaw.
Allace, onleiffull is ony man to weyn
(Contrar the plesour of goddis) ocht may sustene.
Lo, Priamus dochtir, the virgyne Cassandra,
Was from the tempill and sete of Mynerva
Drawyn forsabilly bairhed, with hayr down schake,
Reuthfully invane behaldand hevyn, alake,
With glotnyt eyn, for baith hir tendir handis
War strenȝeit sayr, ybondyn hard with bandis.
This dolorus syght Chorebus mycht nocht se,
But ruschit with furyus mynd in the melle,
Reddy to de, and we all followit fast,
Amang glavys and armour in we thrast.
Heir war we fyrst tofruschit and hard byset,
With dartis and with stanys all tobet
By owr awyn feris from the templis hycht—
A miserabil slauchtir thar begouth that nycht;
The portratour of armys was mysknaw,
All war bot Grekis tymbrellis at thai saw.
Als quhat for walyng of irus wordis fell
Agane reskewit said by the damycell,
Grekis flokkis togidder heir and thar
And ombesettis cruelly and sayr,
The fellon Aiax and othir Atrides
And al the rowtis clepit Dolopes.
Lyke as sum tyme the fers wyndis ȝe se,
Ȝepherus, Nothus and Eurus, all thre
Contrarius blaw thar bustuus bubbys with byr,
The woddis rerdis, bath ayk, elm and fyr
Ourturnys to grond and Nereus the fomy
From the sey grond wod wraith is cachit in hy:
On siklyke wyss the Grekis wss invadit,
For than thai alls that fled war and evadit,
Throu the dyrk nycht, quhen sum thar feris slew we,
And thame had chasit throw owt all the cite,
Thai war the first come now to do wss deir;
Our fenȝeit scheildis, wapynnys and other geir
Ful weil thai knew, and by our vocis eik
Thai notyfy that nane of wss was Greik.
By multitude and nowmyr apon wss set
All ȝeid to wraik, thar war we hail doune bet.
And first of all, down smyte is Chorebus
By the rycht hand of Greik Peneleus
Befor the altare of armipotent Pallas;
Rypheus down fell, ane the maist iust man was,
Amang Troianys best kepand equite—
Bot other ways the goddis thocht suldbe;
Hypanys eik and Dymas than alssua
War by thar fallowis throwgyrd bath twa;
Nor ȝit the, Panthus, quhen that thou fell down,
Thy gret pety and godly religioun
Nor habyt of Apollo hyd from skaith.
O ȝe cald assys of Troy and flawmys baith
And extreme end of cuntre folkis, heir I
Drawis ȝow to witness and doys testyfy,
Quhen that ȝe fell togrund thus and war slane,
I nowder sparit wapynnys, strenth nor pane,
Nor nane onset eschewit of Grekis mycht,
And gif fatis wald I had fallyn in fyght,
Thar with my handis wrocht I worth my ded.
Bot with the press we war relit of that sted,
Only with me Hyphitus and Pelyas—
For age Hyphitus waik and febill was,
And Pelyas slawly mycht onethis go,
By Vlixes for he was woundit so.”