The Æneid of Virgil Translated Into Scottish Verse. Volumes 1 & 2. Virgil
deith ȝe pleis, the lyfe fra me gar taik.20
CAP. X.
Of Poliphemus, and mony strange cost,
And how Ene hys fader in Sycill lost.
Skars this wes sayd, quhen sone we gat a sycht
Apon ane hyll stalkand this hydduus wight,
Amang hys beystis, the hyrd Poliphemus,
Down to the costis bekend draw towartis ws:
A monstre horribyll, onmesurabill and myschaip,
Wanting hys syght, and gan to stab and graip
With hys burdon, that wes a gret fyr tre,5
Fermand his steppis, becaus he mycht not se;
The wollyt scheip him followyng at the bak,
Quharin his plesur and delyte gan he tak.
About hys hals a quhissil hung had he,
Wes all his solace for tynsell of hys E;10
And, with his staf fra he the deip flude
Twichit, and cummyn at the seysyde stude,
Of hys E dolp the flowand blude and attir
He wysch away al with the salt wattir,
Grassilland his teith, and rummysand full hie.15
He wadis furth throu myddis of the see,
And ȝit the wattir wet not hys lang syde.
We, far from thens affrayt, durst not abyde,
Bot fled onon, and within burd hes brocht
That faithful Greik quhilk ws of succurs socht,20
And prevyly we smyte the cabill in twane;
Syne, kempand with aris in al our mane,
Vp weltris watir of the salt sey flude.
He persauyt the sownd, quhar that he stude,
And towart the dyn movis hys pays onon:25
Bot quhen he felt at we sa far war gone,
Sa that his handis ws areke ne mycht,
Nor the deip sey Ionium, for all hys hycht,
Ne mycht he waid equale ws to arest,
A fellon bray and huge schowt vp he kest,30
Quharthrou the sey and al the fludis schuke;
The land alhail of Itail trymlyt and qwoyk;
And holl cavernys or furnys of Ethna rownd
Rummyst and lowyt, fordynnyt with the sound.
Bot than, furth of the woddis and hillys hie,5
Walkynnyt with the cry, a huge pepill we se
Of Ciclopes cum hurland to the port,
And fillyt all the cost sydis at schort.
Tha elrych bredyr, with thar lukis thrawyn,
Thocht not avalyt, thar standyng haue we knawyn;10
Ane horribil sort, with mony camscho beik,
And hedis semand to the hevyn areik:
Syklyke as quhar that, with thar hie toppis,
The byg akis strekyng in the ayr thar croppys,
Or than thir cipressis berand heich thar bewys,15
Growand in the woddis or hie vp on hewis,
In schawys ald, as men may se from far,
Hallowyt to Dyane or ȝit to Jupiter.
The scharp dreid maid ws so to cach haist,
Withdrawand fast, as thocht we had bene chaist,20
And for to set our sail quhidder we best mycht,
To follow the wynd, and hald na courssis rycht.
Aganys the counsale of Helenus, our feris
Perswadis to hald furth evyn the way that steris
Mydwart betwix Charibdis and Scylla,25
A litil space fra ded by athir of twa:
For, bot we hald that cours, for owtyn fail,
Bakwartis, thai said, on Ciclopes mon we saill.
Bot lo! onon a fair wynd, or we wist,
Rays of the north, blawing evyn as we lyst,30
From the strait bay of Pelorus the mont
And sone we swepyt by, at the fyrst bront,
The mouth of flude Pantagyas ful of stanys,
The sownd Megarus, and Tapsum ile atanys.
The namys of thir costis, Achemenydes,5
The companȝeon of onhappy Vlixes,
Raknys to ws, as we past ane by ane;
For we return the sammyn went agane
Quhar thar navy had waverit by thar rays.
Within the fyrth of Sycill, forgane the face10
Of the flude Plemyrion full of wallis,
Thar lyis ane Iland, quhilk our elderis callis
Orthigia; quhar that the fame is so
That Alpheus, ane of the ryveris two
Of the cite of Elys in Archaid,15
Vndir the sey gan thyddir flow and wayd
Throu secrete cundytis, and now eik, as thai say,
Arethusa, at thi mouth or ischay,
It entris rynnyng in the Sycill see.
The gret goddis of that place wirschip we,20
At command of my fader; and fra thyne
The fertill grond of Helory passyt syne,
Quhilk flude watyris al the feild about.
Thar on the craggis our navy stude in dowt;
For on blynd stanys and rolkis hyrslit we,25
Tumblit of mont Pachynnus in the see:
And far from thens the loch Cameryna,
Quham the fatis forbyddis to do away,
Apperis to ws, and of Geloy the feildis,
Quhar that the gret cite Gela vpbeild is,30
Havand the surname fra the flude fast by:
Syne heich Agragas far of we gan aspy,
A hyl and cite with large wallys of fors,
Quhar vmquhile bred war the maist weirlyke hors:
And the alsso, Selynys, I left behynd,5
For al thi palm treys, with the followand wynd.
The dangerus schaldis and cost vppykyt we,
With al hys blynd rolkis, of Lylibe.
Thar the port of Drepanon, and the rayd,
Quham to remember my hart may nevir be glaid,10
Ressauyt me, quhar that, allace, allace!
I leys my fader, al comfort and solace,
And al supple of our travell and pane;
Thar, thar allaik! sa feill dangeris bygane
And tempestis of the sey. O fader most deir,15
Anchises, desolate quhy left thou