Gawin Douglas - The Æneid of Virgil Translated Into Scottish Verse

Belive Eneas membris schuk for cald,
And murnand baith his handis vp did hald
Towart the sternys, with petuus voce thus gan say;
O sevin tymys quhou happy and blissit war thai,
Vnder hie wallis of Troy, by dynt of swerd,
Deit in thar faderis syght, bytand the erd!
O thou of Grekis maist forcy Diomed,
Quhy mycht I not on feldis of Troy haue deit,
And by thi rycht hand ȝaldin furth my sprete?
Quhar that the valiant Hectour losit the swete
On Achillis speir, and grisly Sarpedon,
And ondyr the flude Symois mony one
With schelde and helm stalwart bodeis lyis warpit.
And al invane thus quhil Eneas carpit,
A blastrand bub, out from the north brayng,
Gan our the forschip in the bak saill dyng,
And to the sternys vp the flude gan cast;
The aris hechis, and the takillis brast;
The schippis stevin frawart hyr went gan wryth,
And turnyt hir braid syde to the wallis swyth.
Heich as a hill the jaw of watir brak,
And in ane hepe cam on thame with a swak.
Sum hesit hoverand on the wallis hycht,
And sum the swowchand sey so law gart lycht,
Thame semyt the erd oppynnyt amyd the flude;
The stour vp bullyrrit sand as it war wode.
The sowth wynd Nothus thre schippis draif away
Amang blynd cragis, quhilk huge rolkis, thai say,
Amyd the sey, Italianys altaris callis;
And othir thre Eurus from the deip wallis
Cachit amang the schald bankis of sand:
Dolorus to se thame chop on grond, and stand
Lyke as a wall with sand warpit about!
Ane othir, in quham salit the Lycianys stowt,
Quhilum fallowis to kyng Pandor in weir,
And Orontes Eneas’ fallow deir,
Befor his eyn [hastelye] from the north wynd
Ane hydduus sey schippit at hir stern behynd,
Smate furth the skippar clepit Lewcaspis,
His hed doune warpit; and the schip with this
Thrys thar the flude quhirlit about round,
The sowkand swelth sank vnder sey and drond.
On the huge deip quhoyn salaris dyd appeir;
The Troianys’ armour, tabillis, and othir geir
Flet on the wallis: and the strang barge tho
Bair Ilioneus, and scho that bair also
Forcy Achates, and scho that bair Abas,
And scho quharin ancyant Alethes was,
The storm ourset, raif rovis and syde semys;
They all lekkit, the salt watir stremys
Fast bullerand in at euery ryft and boyr.
In the meyn quhile, with mony rowt and royr
The sey thus trublit, and this tempest furth sent
Felt Neptune, and his watir movit and schent,
The deip furthȝet in schaldis heir and thair;
Gretly commovit, out of the sey gan stair,
His plesand hede rasit on the hyast wall,
Lukand about, behaldis, the sey our all,
Eneas navy skatterit fer ysundir;
With fludis ourset the Troianys, and at vnder
By flaggis and rayn dyd from the hevyn discend:
Junois dissate and ire full weill he kend.
He callis till hym Eurus and Zephirus,
Tha est and west wyndis, and said thame thus;
Ar ȝe sa gretly assurit in ȝour hie kyn,
Ȝe wyndis, quod he, but my leif durst begyn
Baith erd and ayr to move on this maneir,
And eik the sey with sa stowt stormys steir?
I sal ȝou chastys: bot me behuffis first meys
The motioune of fludis, and thame appes;
Traist weill, onpunyst ȝe sal me not astart,
On sik a wys gif ȝe falt efterwart.
Withdraw ȝou hens, and to ȝour kyng say ȝe,
He has na power nor autorite
On seys, nor on the thre granyt ceptour wand
Quhilk is by cut gevin me to beir in hand;
Hald him on craggis and amang rochis hie,
Thair is ȝour dwelling place, Eurus, quod he;
Byd Eolus kepe him in that hald conding,
Do cloys the presoun of wyndis, and tharon ryng.
Thus said he, and with that word hastely
The swelland seys has swagit, and fra the sky
Gaderit the clowdis and chasit sone away,
Brocht hame the son agane and the brycht day.
Hys douchter Cymothoe, and hys son Tryton
Enforsis thame the Troianys schippis anone
To rays and lift of the scharp rolkis blynd:
The god hym self gan hesyng thame behynd
With his byg ceptour havand granys thre;
Oppynnys schald sandis and temperis weill the see,
Ourslidand lychtly the croppis of the wallis.
And as ȝe se, as oft amangis commonys fallis
Stryfe and debait in thar wod fulych ire,
Now fleys the stanys, and now the broyndis of fyre,
Thar greif and fury mynysteris wapynnys plente:
Bot than percace, gif thai behald or se
Sum man of gret autorite and efferis,
Thai ces, and al stil standand gevis him eris;
He wyth his wordis gan slaik thar mynd and swage.
On the samyn wys fell all the seys rage.

Eftyr that the fader of the fludys Neptune
Had on sik wys behaldyn the seys abone,
Vndir the stabillit hevin movit in his chare,
Slakking his renȝeis with prosper cours and fair,
Eneas and his feris, on the strand
Wery and forwrocht, sped thame to the nerrest land,
And at the cost of Lyby arryvit he.
Ane havyn place with a lang hals or entre
Thar is, with ane ile enveronyt on athir part,
To brek the wallis and storm of euery art;
Within, the watir in a bosum gays.
Baith heir and thair stant large craggis and brais.
To se the hewis on athir hand is wondir,
For hycht that semys pyngill with hevin; and vndir.
In a braid sound sovir from all wyndis blawis,
Flowis the schore deip, euer stabil but ony wawis.
A wod abufe ourheldis with his rank bewis,
And castis a plesand schaddow our the clewis.
Rycht our forgane the forret of a bra,
Vnder the hyngand rolkis, was alswa
Ane coif, and tharin fresch watir springand,
And satis of stane neuer hewyn with manis hand
Bot wrocht by natur, as it ane hows had beyn
For nymphis, goddessis of fludis and woddis greyn.
Perbrakit schippis but cabillis thar mycht ryde,
Nane ankyr nedis mak thame arest nor byde.
Of all his navy thidder Eneas brocht
Bot sevin schippis. With gret desyre and thocht
Tobe on grund Troianys sped thame to land,
As thai desyrit set softly on the sand;
Thare lethis and lymmys in salt watir bedyit,
Strekit on the cost, spred furth, bekit and dryit.
Bot first Achates slew fyre of the flynt
Keppit in dry leiffis, as tunder, quhil thai brynt;
Syne stikkis dry to kyndil thar about laid is,
Quhil al in flambe the bles of fyre vp bradis.
Than was the quhete with fludis chaffit and wet,
And instrumentis to purge it, swith out set.
For skant of vittal, the cornys in quernys of stane
Thai grand, and syne buke at the fyre ilkane.
In the meyn quhile, Eneas the bank on hie
Has clummyn, widequhar behaldand the large see,
Gif ony schip tharon mycht be persavit
Quhilk lait tofor the wyndis had bewavit,
Or ony Troiane galay, bark or barge,
Antheus, Capis, or Caicus stremeris large
Wavand or schawand from thar top on hycht.
Na schip he saw; bot sone he gat a syght
Of thre hartis waverand by the cost syde,
Quham at the bak, throu out the gravis wide,
The mekil herdis followit in a rowt,
And pasturit all the large valle about.
Tharat he styntis, and hynt his bow in hand;
Swift fleand arowis fast by him had berand
The traist Achates: and first the ledaris thre,
Quhilk on thar hedis bair the tyndis hie,
Smertly he slew, syne all the rangald persewis
With grundyn arowis amang the thik wod bewis;
And styntis not with dartis thame to bete
Quhil he to grond had brocht sevin hartis grete,
And with his schippis thar nowmyr equale maid.
Syne to the havin sped him for out abaid,
And thame distribut amangis his feris all.
The wyne tharwith, in veschell gret and small,
Quhilk til him gave Acestes, his ryall host,
At his departing from Sycilly the cost,
To thame he byrlis and skynkis fast but weir,
And with sik wordis comfortis thar drery cheir:
O ȝe my feris, and deir frendis, quod he,
Of by went perrellis not ignorant bene we;
Ȝe haue sustenyt grettar dangeris onkend,
Lyke as heirof God sal mak sone ane end.
The rage of Silla, that huge swelth in the see,
Ȝe haue eschapit, and passit eik haue ȝhe
The euer rowtand Charibdis rolkis fell,
The craggis quhar monstruus Ciclopes dwell
Ȝhe ar expert: pluk vp ȝour hartis, I ȝou pray,
This dolorus dreid expell and do away;
Sum tyme heiron to think may help perchance.
By diuers cacis, seir perrellis and sufferance,
Onto Itale we ettill, quhar destany
Has schape for ws, in rest and quiet, herbry.
Predestinat is thar Troy sal rys agane;
Beis stowt, on prosper forton to remane.
Syk plesand wordis, carpand, he has furth brocht,
Set his mynd trublit mony grewous thocht,
With fenȝeit comfort by his cheyr outwart
The dolorus payn hyd deip gravyn in hart.
Hys feris has this praye ressauyt raith,
And to thar met addressis, it to graith;
Hynt of the hydis, maid the bowkis bair,
Rent furth the entralis, sum in tailȝeis schare,
Syne brochit flykerand, sum gobbettis of lyre
Kest in caldronys, and othir sum bet the fyre,
Thame to refresch: thus all, the cost on lenth,
Sped thame with fude to recover thar strenth;
On the greyn gers sat doune, and fillit thaim syne
Of fat venyson and nobill auld wyne.
Quhen hungir thus with metis was chasit away,
And dischis drawin, than, with lang sermond, thai
Bewalit thar feris lossit on the flude:
Betwix gude hope and dreid in dowt thai stude,
Quhidder thai war levand, or tholit extreme ded all;
Thai answer nocht set thai oft pleyn and call.
Bot principally, the pietefull Eneas
Regratis oft the hard fortoune and cace
Of stern Orontes new drownyt in the sey,
And now Amycus harm complenys he,
Now hym alone the cruel fate of Lycus,
Now strang Gyan, now stalwart Cloanthus.