The Æneid of Virgil Translated Into Scottish Verse. Volumes 1 & 2. Virgil
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,20
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.25
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,30
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,5
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.10
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,15
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,20
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,25
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.30
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,5
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;10
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,15
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.20
CAP. V.
Eneas arryvis at Epyria,
And how he spak thar with Andromacha.
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,5
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 command10
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,15
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,20
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;25
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,30
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 sacrifyce5
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,10
Quhilk scho vpbeildit had of herbis greyn,
With twa altaris; and oft with wepyng eyn