The Æneid of Virgil Translated Into Scottish Verse. Gawin Douglas

      Quham the blak storm had skatterit on the see,

      And at ane other cost drevyn to the land.

      He and his fallow awondris this seand.

      Achates half estonyst stude in affray;

      With feir and joy smyttin baith war thai,

      And langit fair to schaik handys; bot thar hart

      The onkouth cace amovit in sum part

      Forto dissymyll, as na thing seyn thai had,

      And, with the dyrk clowd hyd, to spy thai baid

      Quhou it stude with thar ferys, or chansyt eft,

      Or on quhat cost thar navy thai had left,

      Quhat thai desyrit; for, as full weill thai saw,

      From thar schippis per ordour thai com on raw,

      Besekand grace and peax fast, as thame thocht,

      And to the tempill with gret clamour socht.

      Fra thai war enterit in the tempill tho,

      And licens grantit thame to speke alsso,

      The gretast oratour, Ilioneus,

      With plesand voce begouth his sermond thus;

      O hie princes, quhamto Jupiter has grant

      To beld ane new cyte, and to dant

      The violens of prowd folk by just law,

      We wrachit Troianys, with the wyndis blaw

      Throu strange stremys and mony diuers see,

      Forbyd ȝon cruell fyre, besekis the,

      Suffir not to byrn our schippis in a rage,

      Haue reuth apon our petuus auld lynage.

      Considir frendly our mater quhou it standis;

      We com nocht hiddir with drawyn swerdis in handis,

      To spulȝe templis or ryches of Lybia,

      Nor by the cost na spreth to dryve away;

      Sik violens nane within our myndis is,

      Nor sa gret stowtnes to venquyst folk, I wys.

      Thar is a place quham the Grekis, thai say,

      Onto hys name clepis Hesperia,

      Ane nobill land, richt potent in bataill,

      And fructuus grond, plentuus in vittaille,

      By kyng Onotryus inhabit first, we trow;

      Bot in our days laitly, the fame is now,

      Eftir thar duke it is namyt Italy.

      Thidderwart our cours was laid: quhen suddanly

      The flude boldnyt, and stormy Orion

      Amang blynd bankis cachit ws onon;

      The byttir blastis, contrarius al ways,

      Throw wallis huge, salt fame, and wilsum wais,

      And throw the perrellus rowkis gan ws dryve;

      Hidder at ȝour cost ar few of ws arryve.

      Quhat kynd of pepill duellis heir? quod he,

      Quhou beyn sik thewis sufferit in this cuntre?

      We ar defendit to herbry on the sand,

      Prouokyt eik to batale, and, drevyn to land

      By fors of storm, the slyke thai ws deny.

      Albeit the strenth of men ȝhe set not by,

      And mortal weris contempnys and comptis nocht,

      Belevis weill ȝit than, and haue in thocht,

      The goddis sall remember, trastis me,

      Baith of gud dedis and iniquite.

      To ws was kyng the worthy Eneas,

      Ane justar man in all the warld nane was,

      Nor mair reuthfull, nor wisar into weir,

      And mair valiant in dedis of armys seir:

      Quham gif the fatis alyve conservit haith

      To tak this hevinly ayr and draw his braith,

      And not with cruell gostis hyd vnder erd,

      We neid not dreid, sall nocht mak ws efferd;

      Nor thou sall neuer repent the sykkyrly

      To schaw ws first frendschip and curtasy.

      Into the realm of Sycill als haue we

      Frendis and citeis, with armyt men plente,

      And of the Troian blude Acestes kyng.

      Gyf ws war levit our flote on land to bryng,

      That with the wynd and storm is all to schaik,

      And grantit eik wod leif to hew, and take

      Tymmyr to beit ayrris and other mysteris,

      So that our kyng we mycht fynd and our feris,

      Blithly we suld hald towart Italy,

      And to the cost of Latium seik in hy:

      Bot gif our weilfar and beleve cleyn gayn is,

      And the, maist souerane fader of ws Troianys,

      The Lybian sey withhaldis, gif thou be gone,

      Nor of Ascanyus comfort remanys none,

      Than suythly, at the leste, the Sycill see

      And placis reddy fra quham hidder drevin ar we,

      We sall seik, and to the kyng Acestes.

      Thus said Ilioneus, and sa can he ces;

      Bot than the noys rays amang the Troianys,

      Thai murmuryt and complenyt all at anys.

      Than schortly Dido spak with vissage doun cast,

      Remove all dreid, Troianys, beis nocht agast,

      Pluk vp ȝour hartis, and hevy thochtis dovn thring.

      Ane hard myschans and novelte of this ryng

      Constrenys me sik mastry forto schaw,

      And with discurriouris kepe the cost on raw.

      Quha knawys nocht the lynnage of Enee?

      Or quha myskennys Troy, that ryall cyte?

      The gret wirschip of sik men quha wald nocht meyn?

      And the huge ardent batalys at thar has beyn?

      We Phenycianys nane sa blait breistis hes,

      Nor so fremmytly the Son list nocht addres

      Hys curs frawart Cartage cyte away.

      Quhiddir ȝhe will to gret Hesperia,

      The grund of Saturn, quhilk now is Italy,

      Or to the cost of Sycill fast tharby,

      And at the kyng Acestes lyst ȝou be,

      Thidder sall ȝhe suyrly pas with my supple;

      I sall support ȝou with all geir may gayn.

      And ples ȝhe with me in this realm remane,

      The cyte quhilk I byg is ȝouris fre;

      Bryng in ȝour schippis hidder from the see;

      Betwix a Troiane and ane Tyrriane

      Na differens, all sall I rewle as ane;

      And, with this sammyn wynd hidder blaw in feir,

      Wald God Enee ȝour kyng war present heir!

      Endlang the costis and far partis of Lyby

      I sall forsuyth exploratouris send to spy

      In ony wod gyf that he be vpdryve,

      Or ȝit perchance at ony cyte arryve.

      CAP. IX

      Quhou