[From The Palice of Honour.]
My rauist spreit1 in that desert terribill,
Approchit neir that vglie flude horribill,
Like till Cochyte the riuer infernall,
With vile water quhilk maid a hiddious trubil,
Rinnand ouirheid, blude reid, and impossibill
That it had been a riuer naturall;
With brayis bair, raif' rochis like to fall,
Quhairon na gers nor herbis were visibill,
Bot swappis brint with blastis boriall.
This laithlie flude rumland as thonder routit,
In quhome the fisch 3elland' as eluis schoutit,
Thair 3elpis wilde my heiring all fordeifit,
Thay grym monstures my spreits abhorrit and doutit.
Not throw the soyl bot muskane® treis sproutit,
Combust, barrant, vnblomit and vnleifit,
Auld rottin runtis quhairin na sap was leifit,
Moch, all waist, widderit with granis moutit,
A ganand9 den, quhair murtherars men reifit 10.
Quhairfoir my seluin was richt sair agast,
This wildernes abhominabill and waist,
(In quhome nathing was nature comfortand)
Was dark as rock, the quhilk the sey vpcast.
The quhissilling wind blew mony bitter blast,
Runtis rattillit and vneith 11 micht I stand.
Out throw the wod I crap on fute and hand,
The riuer stank, the treis clatterit fast.
The soyl was nocht bot marres 12, slike 13, and sand.
A SCOTTISH WINTER LANDSCAPE.
[From the Prologue to the Aeneid, Bk. vii.]
The frosty regioun ringis of the 3eir,
The tyme and sessoune bitter cald and paill,
Thai schort days that clerkis clepe brumaill;
Quhen brym blastis of the northyne art2
Ourquhelmit had Neptunus in his cart,
And all to schaik the levis of the treis,
The rageand storm ourwalterand wally seis3;
Reveris ran reid on spait with watteir broune,
And burnis hurlis all thair bankis downe,
And landbrist rumland rudely wyth sic beir3,
So loud ne rummist wyld lioun or beir.
Fludis monstreis, sic as meirswyne or quhailis ",
For the tempest law in the deip devallyis".
Mars occident, retrograide in his speir,
Provocand stryff, regnit as lord that 3eir;
Rany Orioune wyth his stormy face
Bewalit of the schipman by his rays;
Frawart Saturne, chill of complexioune,
Throw quhais aspect derth and infectioune
Bene causit oft, and mortale pestilens,
Went progressiue the greis of his ascens;
And lusty Hebe, Junois douchtir gay,
Stud spulzeit 10 of hir office and array.
The soil ysowpit into wattir wak",
The firmament ourkest with rokis blak,
The ground fadyt, and fauch wolx 12 all the feildis,
Montayne toppis sleikit wyth snaw ourheildis,
On raggit rolkis of hard harsk quhyne stane 13,
With frosyne frontis cauld clynty clewis 14 schane;
Bewtie wes lost, and barrand schew the landis,
With frostis haire 15 ourfret the feildis standis.
Soure bittir bubbis1, and the schowris snell
Semyt on the sward ane similitude of hell,
Reducyng to our mynd, in every steid,
Goustly schaddois of eild and grisly deid,
Thik drumly scuggis dirknit so the hevyne.
Dym skyis oft furth warpit feirfull levyne3,
Flaggis of fyir, and mony felloun flawe,
Scharp soppis of sleit, and of the snypand1 snawe.
The dowy dichis war all donk and wait,
The law vaille flodderit all wyth spait,
The plane stretis and every hie way
Full of fluschis, doubbis, myre and clay.
Our craggis, and the front of rochis seyre,
Hang gret isch schoklis lang as ony spere;
The grund stude barrand, widderit, dosk and gray,
Herbis, flouris, and gersis wallowit away;
Woddis, forestis, wyth nakyt bewis blout",
Stud strypyt of thair weyd in every hout 8.
So bustuysly Boreas his bugill blew,
The deyr full dern' dovne in the dalis drew ;
Smal byrdis, flokand throw thik ronnis thrang,
In chyrmyng and with cheping changit thair sang,
Sekand hidlis and hirnys" thaim to hyde
Fra feirfull thudis of the tempestuus tyde.
The wattir lynnis 12 routtis, and every lynde
Quhyslyt and brayt of the swouchand wynde.
Puire laboraris and byssy husband men
Went wayt and wery draglyt in the fen;
The silly scheip and thair lytill hyrd gromis
Lurkis vndir le of bankis, wodys, and bromys;
And wthir 13 dantit gretar bestial,
Within thair stabillis sesyt into stall,
Sić as mulis, horsis, oxin and ky,
Fed tuskit baris 14, and fat swyne in sty,
Sustenit war by mannis gouernance
On hervist and on symmeris purviance.
Widequhair with fors so Eolus schouttis schyll
In this congelyt sessioune scharp and chyll,
The callour air, penetrative and puire,
Dasyng the bluide in every creature,
Maid seik warm stovis, and beyne' fyris hoyt,
In double garmont cled and wyly coyt3,
Wyth mychty drink, and meytis confortive,
Agayne the storme wyntre for to strive.
[From The Palice of Honour.]
Our horsis pasturit in ane plesand plane,
Law at the fute of ane faire grene montane,
Amid ane meid schaddowit with ceder treis,
Saif fra all heit, thair micht we weill remane.
All kinde of herbis, flouris, frute, and grane,
With euerie growand tre thair men micht cheis,
The beriall stremis rinnand ouir stanerie greis 5
Made sober noyis, the schaw dinnit agane
For birdis sang, and sounding of the beis.
The ladyis fair on diuers instrumentis,
Went playand, singand, dansand ouir the bentis",
Full angellike and heuinlie was thair soun.
Quhat creature amid his hart imprentis,
The fresche bewtie, the gudelie representis,
The merie speiche, fair hauingis", hie renoun
Of thame, wald set a wise man half in swoun,
Thair womanlines wryithit the elementis,
Stoneist 10 the heuin, and all the eirth adoun.
A BALLADE IN COMMENDATION OF HONOUR.
[From The Palice of Honour.]
O hie honour, sweit heuinlie flour degest1,
Gem verteous, maist precious, gudliest.
For hie renoun thow art guerdoun conding2,
Of worschip kend the glorious end and rest,
But quhome in richt na worthie wicht may lest.
Thy greit puissance may maist auance all thing,
And pouerall to mekill auaill sone bring *.
I the require sen thow but peir art best,
That efter this in thy hie blis we ring.
Of grace thy face in euerie place sa schynis,
That sweit all spreit baith heid and feit inclynis,
Thy gloir afoir for till imploir remeid.
He docht richt nocht, quhilk out of thocht the tynis';
Thy name but blame, and royal fame diuine is;
Thow port at schort of our comfort and reid,
Till bring all thing till glaiding efter deid,
All wicht but sicht of thy greit micht ay crynis ",
O schene I mene, nane may sustene thy feid 12.
Haill rois maist chois till clois thy fois greit micht,
Haill stone quhilk schone vpon the throne of licht,
Vertew, quhais trew sweit dew ouirthrew al vice,
Was ay ilk day gar say the way of licht;
Amend, offend, and send our end ay richt.
Thow stant, ordant as sanct, of grant
Till be supplie, and the hie gre
14 of price.
Delite the tite me quite of site 1 to dicht,
For I apply schortlie to thy deuise.
2 condign. 3 without whom.
5 without a peer.
bring the poor to 7 avails. 12 hatred.
• before thy glory.
11 diminishes.
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