Gawin Douglas - The Æneid of Virgil Translated Into Scottish Verse

Syne, quhen we se our tyme to sail maist habill,
The blastis mesit, and the fludis stabill,
The softe piping wynd callyng to see,
Thar schippis than furth settis our menȝe:
Ȝe mycht haue sene the costis and the strandis
Fillit with portage and pepil tharon standis.
Furth of the havin we salit al onone;
The sicht of land and cite sone is gone.
Amyd the sey yclepit Egeos
Ane haly iland lyis, that hait Delos,
Beluffit of Neptune, and the moder alswa
Of the Nereydes, clepit Doryda;
Quham the cheritabil archer, Appollo,
Quhen it flet rollyng from costis to and fro,
Saisit and band betwix other ilis twa,
Quhilk clepit ar Mycone and Gyara,
Stablisyng so that it mycht lauborit be,
And comptis nowthir the wynd nor storm of see.
Thidder ar we careit, and, in that plesand land,
A sovir havyn ressavit ws at hand.
Al wery beyn we yschit furth of schip
The cite of Apollo to wirschip:
The kyng tharof, yclepit Anyvs,
Prince of the men, and preste eik to Phebus,
With bendis baith and haly lawrer crown
Set on his hed, met ws withowt the town;
His agit frend Anchises knew this kyng.
Handis we schuke with hartly welcumyng,
And to his palyce al with hym we went,
Quhar that I wirschip, as wes myne entent,
The god Appollo, within his hallowit hald
Or tempil beldyt al of stanys ald.
O thou, quod I, Appollo Tymbreus,
Sum propir dwellyng place thou grant to ws;
We the beseik that schaw alsso thou wald
To ws irkit sum strenth and stalwart hald,
And at thou grant ws eik successioun,
And for to dwel in a remanand town.
Salve ws, lattir wardis of Troy, that we ne spill,
Levyngis of Grekis and of the fers Achill.
Geif ws thine answer quharon we sal depend;
Quhidder wilt thou, fader, at we now wend?
Quhar sall we set our lugyng to remane?
Condiscend in our myndis, and schaw this plane.
Scars war thir wordis said, quhen that I se
Al thingis trymmyl and schaik neir abowt me,
The durris and the lawrer tre, but dowt,
And al the montane movit rownd about:
A murmur or a rumysyng hard we haue
Within the courtyng and the secret cave;
The quyet closettis oppynnyt with a rerd,
And, we plat law gruflyngis on the erd,
A voce com til our erys, sayand thus;
O ȝe dowr pepil discend from Dardanus,
The ilke grond, fra quham the first stok cam
Of ȝour lynnage, with blyth bosum the sam
Sal ȝou ressaue thidder returnyng agane:
To seik ȝour ald moder mak ȝou bane.
Thar sal Eneas lynnage haue senȝeory
Our al realmys and landis vndir the sky,
And thar sonnys, and sonnys sonnys syne,
And al that evir succedis of thar lyne.
Thus said Phebus; and than, our folkis amang,
Mixt with blithnes a fellon dyn vpsprang:
Quhat place was this, euery ane fast gan frane,
Quhidder callis Phebus? byddis he ws turn agane?
My fader than, revoluyng in his mynd,
The discens of forfaderis of our strynd,
Nobillis, quod he, harkis quhat I sal say,
And leyr at me ȝour weilfair, I ȝou pray.
The ile of Crete lyis amyd the see,
The native land of Jupiter maist hie;
Thar is the first hyll, yclepit Ida,
Thar our forbearis first in thar credlys lay;
The land maist plentevs of wyne, oyl, and quhete,
Inhabyt with a hundreth citeis gret,
Quharfra thar com, gif I remembir rycht,
Our gret forfader Teucrus the wycht,
First to the cost of Rethea in Phrygy,
And for his cite chesit the set fast by:
For ȝit than was not Ilion vpbeld,
Nor the strang wallis of Troy; bot on the feld
Thai dwelt in lugys and mony litil cave.
The adornar eik of our realm we haue
From that land, the moder of goddis Cybele,
And blast of brasyn trumpettis, as ȝe se:
From thens com eik the wod of Idea,
And the traist serymonys of sacrifice alswa:
The fasson eik and gys we lernyt thar
Quhou the lyonys suld draw the ladeis char.
Haue done onon, tharfor, and lat ws wend
Thidder quhar the goddis oracle haith ws kend.
The wynd first lat ws meys, or that we ga,
Syne seik the realm of Crete and Gnosia:
It is not thens lang cowrs nor vyage far;
Our navy sall, with help of Jupiter,
The thrid morow be at the cost of Crete.
This beand said, ganand offerandis ful mete
Befor the altaris he slew in sacrifyce;
A bul first to Neptune, as is the gys,
A bull to brycht Appollo for his beheist,
And to the god of tempestis a blak beist,
And to the chancy wyndis ane mylk quhite.
The fame was than, of Crete the cost stude quyte
Dissolate, but prince; for Idomeneus the kyng
Was by the pepil expellit from his ryng,
The lugyngis voyd and reddy to thar fays,
The sete left waist til ony it vptais.
The porte tharwith, Ortygia, leif we,
And with swift cowrs flaw throu the salt see;
By the iland swepit we onon
With hillis ful of wynys, hait Naxon,
By Donysa quhar growis the marbill greyn,
And by Paron with his quhite marbill scheyn,
By Olearon, and mony ilis, but les,
Skatterit in the sey, yclepit Cyclades;
We slyde throu fludis endlang feil costis fayr.
The noys vpsprang of mony marynar
Byssy at thar wark, to takilling euery tow,
Thar feris exorting, with mony heys and how,
To speid thame fast towart the realm of Crete,
With thar forfaderis and progenitouris to mete.
The followand wynd blew strek in our tail,
Quhill finaly arrive we, with bent saill,
Apon the ancyant cost of Curetanys,
A kynd of pepill quhilk into Crete remanys.
And sone I me enfors with diligence
To byg a wallit cite of defens;
Pargamea I namyt it, but baid:
Our folkis than, that warryn blyth and glaid
Of this kowth surname of our new cite,
Exort I to graith howsis, and leif in le,
And rays on hycht the strenth and fortales.
Our schippis, or this, ful weil we gart adres,
And lay almaist apon the dry sand:
The ȝong men fortil laubour thar new land,
And in honour of wedlok, as is the gys,
Makkis thar offerand and thar sacryfys,
And I thar statutis and seyr lawis thame tawcht,
Assyngnand ilkane propir howsis and aucht.
Quhen suddanly a cruel pest and traik,
So that cornys and frutis goith to wraik,
Throu the corruppit ayr and cowrs of hevyn,
A dedly ȝeir, far wers than I kan nevin,
Fell on our membris with sik infectioun,
Was na remeid, cure, nor correctioun;
The sweit sawlis lefis the bodeis ded,
Or seik thai ly gaspand in euery sted.
And forthir eik, Syryvs, the frawart star,
Quhilk clepit is the syng canicular,
So brynt the feildis al was barrand maid;
Herbis wolx dry, wallowyng, and gan to faid;
The seik grond denyis hys fruyt and fudis.
My fader exortis ws turn agane our fludis
To Delos, and Apolloys answer speir,
Besekyng hym of succurs ws to leir,
Quhat end ontil our irksum panys he sendis,
And be quhat way we mycht assay amendis
Of this turbacioun, or quhidder and quhar that he
Wil at we seik or set our cowrs our see.

Cummyn is the nycht, that euery beist on grond
Desiris rest by kynd, and slepis sovnd;
Quhen that the figuris of our goddis blist,
And the Phrigiane Penates, or I wist,
Quhilkis from amyd the fyris of Troy I brocht
Thidder with me, quhar I lay and slepit nocht,
Gan to appeir standyng befor myne eyn:
With ful gret lycht graithly I haue thame seyn,
Quhar as the ful moyn schawing bemys brycht
Inthrou the tyrlyst wyndo schane by nycht.
Than said thai thus, with wordis to asswage
My thochtis and my hevy sad curage;
That thing, quod thai, quhilk Apollo wald sa
And thou war brocht onto Ortygia,
Heir he the schawis, and eik, as thou may se,
Onrequirit hes send ws hidder to the.
Quhen Troy was brynt, we followit thi prowes,
Vnder thi gward to schip we ws addres,
Ourspannand mony swelland seys salt;
And to the starnys eik we sal exalt
The childryn for tocum of thine ofspryng;
Thi cite sal we geif empyre to ryng
Our al the erth: tharfor to goddis grete
Begyn to graith gret wallis and ryal sete;
Leif not thi langsum lavbour, bot fle away;
This duelling place thou mon change, we the say:
Delyvs Apollo, certis, as thou thocht,
Tocum onto this cost perswadit nocht,
Nor chargit neuer in Crete thou suld remane.
A land thar is, in Grekis langage plane
Hesperya clepit, a bald cuntre in weir,
A fructuus grond of corn and riches seir,
By kyng Onotryvs inhabit first with wyne,
Bot in our days laitly, the fame is syne,
Eftir thar duke it is namyt Italy:
Thar beyn our propir setis and our herbry;
Tharof com Dardane and his brothir Jasyvs,
And from that ilk prince, Schir Dardanus,
Is the discens of our genealogy.
Get vp onone, tel thi ald fader blythly
Thir tythyngis, quhilk beyn trew and certan thing.
Seik to Coryce, and Italy the ryng;
For the feldis in Crete neyr Dycteus
Jupiter denyis to granting onto ws.
Of this visioun estonyst quhar I lay,
And of tha wordis quhilkis the goddis gan say,
(For this wes nowthir dreym nor fantasy;
Thar propir vissage befor me stand knew I,
With garlandis and thar cirkillettis on thar hair;
Thar figur saw I present to me thair;
The cald sweit our al my body ran;)
Furth of my bed on fute son sprent I than,
And, strekand vp my handis towart hevyn,
Myne oryson I maid with devote stevyn;
A cleyn sacrifyce and offerand maid I syne,
Into the fyris ȝettand sens and wyne.
The serymoneis endit, blyth and glaid
To my fader per ordour al I said
As ȝe haue hard, quhat nedis tell agane?
And of this mater maid hym ful certane.
Onone he knew our elderis dowtis ilk deill,
And of our clan the dowbill stok full weill:
He grantis the unkouth errour hym dissavit
Of ancyant placis, quhilk he not persavit.
Syne said he, son, thou irkit art al gatis
By the contrarius frawart Troiane fatis;
Now I remembir only quhou Cassandra
Ful oft maid mensioun of Hesperya,
And oft als of the realm hait Italy,
Thir materis me declaring by and by.
That land now knaw I destinate to our kyn:
Bot quha wald haue belevit at euer within
The realm of Itail Teucrus blude suld cum?
Or quha wald than, mair than scho had bene dum,
Set by the prophetes wordis Cassandra?
Lat ws obey Phebus, and wend awa,
As we bene monyst, follow our chance, but pleys.
Thus said he, and we glaid al hym obeys:
A few folkis thar left to kepe the town,
This sted alsso leif we, and sail maid bown;
In bowit bargis throu the large streym we slyde.
Quhen sycht of land was tynt on euery syde,
Sa that na cost apperis quhilk we mycht se,
Bot the schippis haldand the deip see,
The hevin abufe, and fludis al abowt;
A watry clowd, blak and dyrk, but dowt,
Gan tho appeir abone our hed ful rycht,
And down a tempest sent als myrk as nycht.
The streym apperis vgsum of the dym sky;
The wyndis weltris the sey continualy,
That huge wallis boldynnys apon loft;
Skatterit widequhar our the fame ful oft
War our schippis, and the brythnes of day,
Inuolvit al with clowdis, hyd away.
The rayn and royk reft from ws sycht of hevin;
The brokkyn skyis rappis furth thunderis levin;
Forswiftit from our richt cowrs, gan we ar
Amang the blynd wallis waverand far.
For Palynurus him self maist expart,
For al his cunnyng of schipman craft and cart,
Amyd the sey forȝet the richt way,
Denyand als that the nycht from the day
He mycht discern be sycht of firmament.
Apon sik wys oncertanly we went
Thre days wilsum throu the mysty streym,
And als mony nychtis but starnys leym,
That quhidder was day or nycht oneith wist we;
Bot at the last, on the ferd day we se
On far the land appeir, and hillis rys,
The smoky vapour vpcasting on thar gys.
Down fallis salis, the aris sone we span;
But mair abaid, the marineris euery man
Egirly rollis our the fomy flude,
And the haw sey weltis vp as thai war woid.
Salve from the wallis at the costis of Strophe
With al our navy first arryvit we.