Gawin Douglas - The Æneid of Virgil Translated Into Scottish Verse

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 harpeys 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 nane 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 vyrgynys 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 gyrs pasturyng on raw;
With wapynnys thame we brittyn, but dreid or aw:
To goddis syne and Jupiter 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 clos 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 for to tell,
Sone haue thai done; and, vnder the gers, 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 prophetes,
Furth of hir breist thir wordis warpis expres:
Theyfage lynnage of fals Laomedon,
Addres ȝe thus to mak bargane onon?
Becaus 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 Jupiter maist hie
Schew to Phebus, and brycht Phebus tald me.
I knaw ȝe set ȝour cowrs 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 downfell,
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, ameys ȝour wrath and greif,
Quod he; and tharwith chargit ankyrris haill,
Do lows 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 Zacynth, 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 les,
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, les Jupiter war aggrevit;
Syne on the altaris kendillit sacrifyce,
And, langgis the channel, eftir the Troiane gys,
The active gemmys and sportis gart assay.
Our falloschip excers palestral play,
As thai war wont at hame, with oyll envnte,
Nakyt wreslyng and struglyng at nyce punte.
Joyvs thai war to haue eschapit at hand
Sa mony citeis of the Grekis land,
And to haue fled til salfte on this wys
Throu the myd rowtis of thar ennemys.

Be this the son had circulit his lang ȝer,
And frosty wyntir scharpit the watir cleir
With cald blastis of the northin art.
Quhen sesson come that tyme was to depart,
Apon a post in the tempyl I hang
A bowand scheild of plait, quhilk Abas strang
Bair vmquhile, and, the maner to rehers,
I notyfy and tytillis with this vers,
Eneas hec de Danais victoribus arma;
That is to say, Eneas festnyt thus
This armour of the Grekis victorius.
Syne, to depart of that havyn, I command
Syt down on hechis, and span aris in hand.
Byssely our folkis gan to pyngil and stryve,
Swepand the flude with lang rowthys belyve,
And vp thai welt the stowr of fomy see;
Quhil sone the citeis of Corsyra tyne we,
And vp we pyke the cost of Epyrus,
And landit thar at port Chaonyus:
Syne to the hie town of Butrot ascendit;
Quhar tythingis, oncredibill to thame not kend it,
Come to our erys, schawyng that Helenus,
The lauchful son of the kyng Priamus,
Rang kyng our mony citeis in Greik land,
Berand tharof the ceptre and the wand,
By resson of his spows adionyt, but les,
Be Pyrrus vmquhil son of Achilles;
And that Andromacha wes wed agane
Onto ane other husband and man Troiane.
Heirof awondrit, with breist hait as fyre,
Be fervent luf kendillit in gret desyre
Our cuntre man to vissy and with hym talk,
To knaw thir strange casys, on I stalk
From the port, my navy left in the raid.
That ilke sesson, percace, as I furth glaid,
Befor the cite, in a schaw, I wys,
Besyde the fenȝeit flude of Symois,
Andromache maid anniuersar sacrifyce
And funerale servyce, on ful dolorus wys,
To Hectoris puldir or hys assis brynt:
Oft wald scho clepe and call, and oneth stynt,
Apon the sawlis that onbodeit war,
Besyde Hectoris voyd tumbe stannand thar,
Quhilk scho vpbeildit had of herbis greyn,
With twa altaris; and oft with wepyng eyn
Bewalis scho that hard dissyverance.
And alssone as scho me aspyis perchance,
And Troiane armour and ensenȝeis with me saw,
Affrayit of the ferly, scho stude syk aw,
And at the fyrst blenk become so mait,
Naturale heyt left hir membris in sik stait
Quhil to the grond half mangit fel scho down,
And lay a lang tyme in a dedly swown
Or ony speche or word scho mycht furth bring:
Ȝit thus, at last, sayd eftir hir dwawmyng;
Is that thine awyn face, and suythfast thyng?
Schawis thou to me a verray sovir warnyng?
Levis thou ȝit, son of the goddes? quod sche,
Gif thou be ded, quhar is Hector? tell me.
And, with that word, scho bryst furth mony a teir,
And walit so that piete was to heir,
Quhil al about dynnys of hir womentyng.
A few wordis skars as I mycht furth bryng,
For to comfort that maist lamentabill wight,
With langsum speche said, quhispirand, as I mycht;
I leif forsuyth, and ledis lyfe, as ȝe se,
In al hard chance of fortunys extremyte.
Be nocht agast, ȝe se bot suythfast thyng.
Allace! quhat aventur, in this onkouth ryng,
Is the betyd, and hes degradit, quod I,
Eftir thi husbandis deth, was maist douchty?
Or quhat fortune mycht sufficient happyn the,
Spows to maist worthy Hector, Andromache?
Art thou, or na, to Pirrus ȝit bywed?
Hyr vissage down scho kest, for schame adred,
And, with a bas voce, thus said, as scho mycht;
O thou alane, befor al madynnys bricht,
Happy was, virgyne douchtir of Priam kyng,
Quhilk, vnder the wallis hie of Troys ryng,
Apon thine ennemeis grafe was maid to de;
Thou suffert no kut nor kavillys cast for the,
Nor in bondage away was thou nocht led,
Nor ȝit twichit na victour lordis bed.
Bot we, quhen that ybrynt war our kynd landis,
Careit our fremmyt seys and diuers strandis,
The dortynes of Achillis ofspring,
In bondage, vndir the prowd Pyrrus ȝyng,
By fors sustenyt thraldome mony a day,
Quhil he at last ensewit ane othir may,
Hermyone, the douchtir of Helena,
In fey wedlok at Lachidemonya;
Than send he me, his seruand, hiddir thus,
Tobe spowsit with his seruand Helenus.
Bot Orestes, cachit in furyus rage
For cryme of his moderis slauchtir, and savage,
In lufe hait byrnyng for his spows byreft,
Or he was war, set on this Pirrus eft,
And in Delphos, quhat nedis wordis mair?
Smate of his hed befor his faderis altair.
Thus, by deces of Neoptolymus,
Of the realm a part fell to Helenus;
The quhilk boundis and feildis braid alsswa
He has to name clepit Chaonya,
Eftir his brodir of Troy Chaonyus,
And Troiane wallis heir has beild vp thus,
And on thir motis a strenth hait Ilion.
Bot quhat wyndis thi cowrs has hydder gone?
And quhat aventur has the hyddir dryve?
Or of the goddis quha maid the heir arrive
At our marchis, mysknawyng our estait?
Quhou faris the child Ascanyus now of lait,
Quham to the bayr Crevse, thi spous and joy,
That tyme enduryng the sege lay about Troy?
Levis he ȝit in helth and in weilfair?
Ha! how gret harm and skaith for euermar
That child has caucht throu lesyng of his moder!
O lord! quhat ancyant vertuys, ane and othir,
And knychtly prowes in hym steris frendis befor,
Baith fader Eneas, and hys vncle Hector!
Syk wordis scho spak, wepyng with petuus mayn,
And with lang sobbis furthȝettand teris invayn;
Quhen that hir lord hym self cummys from the town,
Kyng Priamus son, Helenus of renown.
Neir he approchit with ful gret cumpany,
And hys awyn natyve frendis knew in hy,
And blythly to hys cite hes ws led:
Betwix ilk word feil bricht teris furth he sched.
We passit on, and litil Troy I knaw,
Lyke the gret cite contyrfait on raw,
With Ilion, and wallis lyke Pergama,
And a smal burn half gane dry alswa,
Onto his surname clepit Exanthus.
At port Seya I entir, and eik with ws
Al our Troianys togiddir welcum war
Onto thar frendly cite famyliar.
In hys wyde palyce the kyng ressauyt thaim all,
And, in the myddis of the mekil hall,
Thai byrl the wyne in honour of Bachus;
Gret fest with joy wes maid for luf of ws;
The mesis and the danteis thyk dyd stand,
And goldyn cowpis went fra hand to hand.