The Æneid of Virgil Translated Into Scottish Verse. Volumes 1 & 2. Virgil
in hir bowkit bysme, that hellys belch
The large fludis suppys thrys in a swelch,
And othir quhilis spowtis in the ayr agane,5
Dryvand the stowr to the starnys, as it war rane.
Bot Scilla lurkand in darn hyddyllis lyis,
Within hir cave, spredand hyr mouth feil syis
To sowk the schippis amang rolkis onsure.
Lyke to a woman hir ovyr portrature,10
A fair virgynys body doun to hir scheir;
Bot hir hynd partis ar als gret, weil neir,
As beyn a hydduus huddon, or a quhaill,
Quharto beyn cuppillit mony meyrswyne taill,
With empty mawys of wolfis ravenus:15
Eschew, tharfor, this passage dangerus;
For bettir is thou seik the cost about
Of Pachynus in Scycill, than stand in dout,
And turn thi cowrs on bawburd, a weil far way,
Than anys tobe into sa hard assay20
As forto se the vgly monstre fell,
Scilla, and heir the craggis rowt and ȝell
For barking of sey doggis in hir wame.
And mair atour, gif owthir wit, or fame,
Or traist may be geif Helenus the prophete,25
Or gif with verite Phebus inspiris hys sprete,
This a thing, son of the goddes, I the tech,
Abuf al othir, this a thyng I the prech,
And principaly repetis the sam agane,
And seir tymys monysis heir in plane;30
First of Juno thou wirschip the gret mycht,
And glaidly hallow with sacrifice al at rycht
The power of Juno, and that mychty prynces
To ples lawly with offerandis the addres:
And on sik wys quhen thou hir favouris hes get,5
And hest alsso thi cours from Sycil set
Towart the boundis of Italy our see,
Syne, quhen thou art careit to that cuntre,
And cummyn is to the cite of Cumas,
And by the lakys dedicate to goddis doith pas10
Outthrou the soundand forest of Avern,
Vndir a roch, law within a cavern,
Thar salt thou fynd the godly prophetes,
Ful of the spreit dyvyne, that schawis expres
The reuelationys and fatis forto cum,15
In palm tre leiffis thame notand al and sum,
Writand vp euery word as sal betyde,
Direkking the leiffis per ordour furth on syde.
Quhat euer this virgyne discrive in hir endyte,
Without the cave closyt scho lays the write:20
Tha leiffis remanys onsterit of thar place,
Ne partis not furth of rewle, quhil per cace
The piping wynd blaw vp the dur on char,
And dryve the leiffis, and blaw thaim out of har
In at the entre of the cave agane,25
That al hir fyrst laubour was invane:
Bot, fra the blast and ȝet pertrubbil thus
Tha thyn leiffis, scho is so dangerus,
Nevir eftyr denȝeing hir within the cave
To gaddir togiddir thame with the wynd bewave.30
Ne forto put thame into rewle agane,
Nor jone hir writis as thai dyd first remane.
Thus oft the pepil but answer gays thar ways,
And wareis the set of Sybil al thar days.
Fail not, for los of tyme that may betyde,5
Bot thou pas to that prophetes, thocht the tyde
And prospir wyndis challance the to the saill,
Ȝa, thocht thi fallowyis cry owt, illyr haill!
On burd! a fair wynd blawis betwix twa schetis!
Beseik hir or thou wend, thocht thine hart betis,10
Oppynnand hir voce, scho plesit schaw the evyn
Thy destaneys, be hir awyn mowthis stevin.
Scho sal ryply declare to the in hy
The maneris of al pepill in Italy;
The batellis forto cum scho wil the schaw,15
And on quhat wys al dangeir thou sal withdraw.
Or how thou may al lauborus payn sustene;
Wirschip this haly religyus woman cleyn,
Scho sal the grant a prospir cours at hand.
This is the effect, schortly to vnderstand,20
That I am levyt with my wordis the to charge:
Adew, pas on, and by thi fatis large
The fame of mekil Troy bair vp to hevyn!
Eftir at this prophet, with hys frendly stevyn,
Thir dyvyne answeris thus pronosticate,25
Seyr weghty gyftis of massy goldyn plate
Onto our schippis chargit he beir onon,
And gret ryches of polyst eveir bone:
Our karvellis howys ladis and prymys he
With huge charge of syluer in quantite.30
With caldronys, and othir seir veschell ma,
In Epyr land maid at Dodonea.
To me he gaif a thik clowyt habyrgeon,
A thrynfald hawbrik was al gold begone,
A rownd rich helm with creste and tymbrete fair,5
The armour quhilum Neoptolemus bair:
Syne to my fader, effering to his age,
Rych rewardis he gaif of hie parage;
Tharto alsso he eikis and gaif ws then
Gentill horssis, pylotis, and lodismen;10
He ws suppleyt with rowaris and maryneris,
And armour plente atanys for al our feris.
CAP. VII.
Of Helenus and of Andromache,
And how fra thame departing gan Ene.
In the meyn quhile Anchisis, my fader, in hy
Reddy forto sail chargis mak our navy,
Les than, percace, it mycht our cours delay,15
Gif so the wynd blew fair that othir day;
Quhom till this wys interpretour of Phebus,
Helenus, with gret honour carpys thus:
O thou Anchisis, that worthy was, quod he,
With fair Venus conionyt for to be,20
And twys delyverit by purviance dyvyne,