University of Virginia Library

“Strophades in Grew leid ar nemmyt so,
In the gret sey standing ilis two,
The quhilk sey clepit is Ionium;
And, in thir ilandis quhidder we ar becum,
Dwelt and inhabit the cruel Celeno,
With all the otheris harpyes mony mo,
Evir sen thai war expeld from the land
Of Arcad, quhar Kyng Phyneus was dwelland,
And for dreid at his tabil durst not remane.
Mair wikkit monstreis than thai kan be nane,
Nor nan mair cruel pestilens is fund,
Nor fury of goddis that cummys from hellis grund,
Furth of the flude of Stix that sory place.
Thir fowlis hes a virgynys wlt and face,
With handis like to bowland byrdis clewis,
Bot the vile belleis of thai cursit schrewis
Aboundis of fen maist abhomynabill,
And pail al tyme thar mowthis miserabill
For wod hungyr and gredy appetite.
At this ilke cost as we arryvit als tyte
And in the port entrit, lo! we se
Flokkis and herdis of oxin and of fe,
Fat and tydy, rakand our alquhar,
And trippis eik of gait, but ony kepar,
In the rank gyrss pasturyng on raw;
With wapynnys thame we brittyn, but dreid or aw:
To goddis syne and Iupiter we pray,
And thame distribut a party of our pray,
Syne eftir, endlang the sey costis bay,
Vp sonkis set, and desys dyd array.
To meit we sat with habundans of cheir,
Quhen suddanly, with horribill dyn and beir,
From the montanys the harpeis on vs fell
With huge fard of weyngis and mony a ȝell.
Our mesis and our mete thai reft away,
And with thar laithly twich al thing fyle thai;
Thar voce alsso was vgsum fortil heir,
With sa corruppit flewyr nane mycht byde neir.
From that place syne ontil a caif we went,
Vndir a hyngand hewch, in a dern went,
With treys closs bilappit rownd about,
And thik harsk granyt pikis standing owt:
Thar vp agane our tabillis haue we dicht
And on the altaris bet the fyris bricht.
Bot of the hevin agane from syndry artis,
Out of quyet hyrnys, the rowt vpstartis
Of thai birdis, with byr and mony a bray,
And in thar crukyt clawis grippis the pray:
Evir as thai fle about fra sete to sete,
With thar vyle mowthis infek thai al our mete.
Quhen I saw this, our feris command I than
Tak thar wapynnys, and bargane euery man
Agane tha cruell pepill or byrdis fell.
As I thame chargit, schortly fortotell,
Sone haue thai done, and, vnder the gerss al bair
Ful prevaly thar swerdis in thai stair,
And darnly eik thar targis al ourheildis,
So that, quhen the sey costis and the feildis
Resoundis at down come of thir harpeys,
Mysenus, the wait, on the hie garet seys,
And with his trumpet thame a takyn maid.
Our falloschip thir fowlys gan invayd,
And onkouth kynd of batail dyd assay,
With wapynnys forto bet and dryve away
Thir laithly sey byrdis of syk effeir.
Bot thar was na dynt mycht thar fedderis scheir,
Nor in thar bodeis wound ressave thai nane,
Bot suddanly away tha wysk ilkane
Furth of our sycht, heich vp in the sky;
The pray half etyn behynd thame lat thai ly,
With fut stedis vyle and laith to se.
Ane, on a rolkis pynnakill perkit hie,
Celeno clepit, a drery prophetess,
Furth of hir breist thir wordis warpis express:
‘Theyfage lynnage of fals Laomedon,
Address ȝe thus to mak bargane onon?
Becauss ȝe have our oxin reft and slane,
Brytnyt our styrkis and ȝong bestis mony ane,
Schaip ȝe, tharfor, harpeys expell and dyng,
But ony offens, furth of thar faderis ryng?
Ressave for that, and in ȝour brestis enprent
My wordis, quhilk I, gretast fury of torment,
Schawis ȝou, that thing quhilk Iupiter maist hie
Schew to Phebus, and brycht Phebus tald me.
I knaw ȝe set ȝour cowrss to Italy:
Ȝe cal eftir gude wyndis and prospir sky:
To Itale sal ȝe wend, and thar tak land.
Bot first, or wallis of the cite vpstand
Quhilk by the goddis is ȝou predestinate,
For strang hungir sal ȝe stand in sik state,
In wraik of our iniuris and bestis slane,
That with ȝour chaftis to gnaw ȝe salbe fane,
And runge ȝour tabillis al and burdis,’ quod sche,
And sone away in the thik wod gan fle.
The suddane dreid so stonyst our feris than,
Thar blude congelit and al togiddir ran;
Dolf wolx thar spretis, thar hie curage down fell,
No mair thame lykis assayng sik batell,
Bot, with offerandis and eik devot prayer,
Thai wald we suld perdoun and pace requer,
In cace gif thai war goddessis or fowlis,
Vengeabill wightis or ȝit laithly owlis.
Bot our fader, hevand vp his handis,
The gret goddis dyd call, and on the sandis
Hallowis thar mycht with detful reverens:
‘O hie goddis, forbyd syk violens,
Stanch this bost and ondo this myscheif,
Salve petuus folkis, ameyss ȝour wrath and greif,’
Quod he, and tharwith chargit ankyrris haill,
Do lowss the rabandis, and lat down the saill.
The sowth wyndis stentis furth strait our schete;
Swiftly we slyde our bullyrand wallys grete,
And followit furth the sammyn went we have,
Quhar so the wynd and sterysman ws drave,
Quhil that amyd the fludis gan we se
The woddy ile Ȝacynth with mony tre;
Dulichium syne and Same we aspy,
And Neritos with his rochis hie;
By craggis and hewys of Itachia,
That was Laertes realm, we slyde alswa,
And fast we wary and cursyt oft, but less,
That land quhilk bred the cruel Vlixes.
Belyve the mysty toppys of mont Lewcas
Apperis, quharon Appollois tempil was,
That feirful is til euery maryner.
Al wery of our vayage thidder we steir,
And come onon afor the litil town,
And of our forschip ankyrris leit we down:
Endlang the costis syde our navy raid.
And thus at last brocht to land blyth and glaid,
Quhar as to have arryvit we not belevit,
We clenge ws first, less Iupiter war aggrevit,
Syne on the altaris kendillit sacrifyce,
And langgis the channel, eftir the Troiane gyss,
The active gemmys and sportis gart assay.
Our falloschip excerss palestral play,
As thai war wont at hame, with oyll envnte,
Nakyt wreslyng and struglyng at nyce punte.
Ioyvs thai war to haue eschapit at hand
Sa mony citeis of the Grekis land,
And to haue fled til salfte on this wyss
Throu the myd rowtis of thar ennemyss.”