University of Virginia Library

Glaidnes and comfort than, in to sum part,
Begouth to kittil Eneas thochtful hart.
“Heyss heich the cross,” he bad, “al mak thaim bown,
And fessyn bonnettis beneith the mayn sail down.”
Than al sammyn, with handis, feit and kneis,
Dyd heyss thar sail, and trossyt down thar teys;
Now the le schete, and now the luf, thai slak,
Set in a fang, and threw the ra abak;
Baith to and fra al dyd thar nokkis wry;
Prosper blastis furth careis the navy.
Befor the laif, as lodis man and lard,
And al his salis vp with fellon fard,
Went Palynure; and hail the remanent
Was chargit hald the sammyn courss and went.
Be than the donk nycht had run almaist evin
His myd courss or methis in the hevin,
And euery maryner, but langar kepe,
Thar bodeis restis with the plesand sleip,
Endlang the hechis lyand heir and thar is,
Or in thar hard settis lenand on ayris;
Quhen that the swift god of sleip gan slide
Furth of the starnyt hevin, by nychtis tide,
And dyd away the dirknes of the ayr,
Removing schadowit skyis maid al fair;
Onto the, Palynurus, hess he socht,
And the, al innocent, soroful slepis brocht.
Heich in the eftschip dyd this god appeir,
In figur of Phorbantus, a maryneir,
And frendfully gan warp sik wordis owt:
“Iasyus son, Palynur, luke about;
The sobir seys beris sownd our navy;
The wyndis blawis ful evin and rycht makly;
Thou may sovirly tak the ane howris rest,
Leyn doun thi hede and sleip, for that is best
Thi wery eyn thou prevely withdraw
From langsum laubour, and sleip a litil thraw,
And I my self sal glaidly in thi place
Beir thyne office, and steir a litil space.”
To quhom Palynur, skars liftand his eyn,
Ansuerd and said: “Quhat thing wald thou meyn?
Byddis thou me be sa nyce I suld mysknaw
This calm salt watir, or stabil fludis haw?
Wilt thou I traste this monstre perellus?
Or quhat in wyndis sa dissaitful til ws,
And this cleir hevin sa oft hes trumpit me,
Wald thou I lippynnyt the maist nobil Ene?”
Sik wordis he said, grippand the helmstok fast,
Lenand tharon, and by na way nor cast
Wald part tharfra, haldand his eyn ful evin
Ay tobehald the starnys in the hevyn;
Quhen lo! this god smate bath his tymplis twane
With a ful sleipry and bedyit grane,
Wet in the myndles flude of hell, Lythe,
And sowpit in Stix, the forcy hellys see;
Hys glotnyt and fordovirrit eyn two
He closyt hes, and sound gart sleip alsso.
Bot scarsly gan the first rest of sleip,
Or he was war, thus on his membris creip,
Quhen on him lenys this god, and tho he kneld,
And with a swak, as that the schip gan helde,
Ourburd him kest amyd the flowand see,
Richt al togidder with the helmstok of tre;
Than al for nocht apon his feris he cryis.
This god flaw vp lyke a bird in the skyis.
And nocht the less the schip held furth hir went,
As scho did ayr, throw the calm seys sprent,
But ony harm, and al the navy sone,
By the promyss of the fader Neptune.
With this almaste thai careit ar infeir
Onto the rochis and skelleis weill neir
Of Syrene, that we Marmadynnys clepe,
Dangerus vmquhile, for a mekil hepe
Of dede banys lay tharon ful quhite;
So gan the salt iawpis ythandly smyte
The holl rolkis, maid a sownd ful hayss.
Quhen Prince Ene persauyt, by his rayss,
Quhou that the schip dyd rok and tailȝeve
For lak of a gude sterisman on the see,
Him self hess than sone hynt the rudyr in hand
And throu the fludis steris the schip to land,
Bewaland gretly in his mynde pensyfe,
For that his frend was fal and lost the lyfe.
“Allace! our mekil thou lippynnyt hess,” quod he,
“Into the stabillit hevin and calmyt see:
Bair and onerdit, in ane onkouth land,
Palynurus, sal thou ly on the sand.”
Thus wepand said, and leyt his flote go large,
Quhill at the last, baith ballyngar and barge
Apon the cost that hait Ewboica
Arryvit neir the cite of Cuma.
Than to the streme thai turnyt thar forschip,
Kest down thar bewchit ankyrris, ferm of grip,
Into the raid, endlang the costis bay
Thar eft castellis gan mustyr in array.
And al the ȝongkeris spedis hastely
Onto the schore of Hisperia fast by.
Sum smytis fyre furth of the hard flynt stane;
Sum spedely to the thik wod ar gane,
In dern dennys, quharin wild bestis dwellis;
And sum dyd schaw the new fund springand wellis;
To beit thar mystir al bissy for the nanys,
Sum to this turn, sum to that, start atanys.