THE WAIL OF CASSANDRA. 3472 With sykyng & sorow said on this wise : 3476 : thus now, With solas full sore, and sanges of myrthe, At the weddyng of the weghes, pat shall to wo turne. With hardlayke & harme, pat happyn shall Ye dowtles mun degh for dedes of po two ; Book VII. Cassandra's 113 lamentation, and forebodings. (fol. 55 a.) 3480 Your husbandes hewen with hondys in pesis, A! Modris so mylde, what myschefe is to you! 3492 The hard dethe is you dight, þat ye doute litle ! 3496 Why wrought ye so wantonly in your wilde yre? fforto rauysshe vnrightwisely pis riche out of 3500 Grece, ffro a man pat neuer mys did to pis mene lond. ground. matrons, Hecuba and her children, the people, Book VII. Paris and Helen. Priam casts Cassandra into prison. (fol. 55 b.) But, had they heeded her warnings Troy would have remained. 3504 Hope ye Parys, playn þefte vnponysshet wilbe, And you angur for euer en[d]les to worche ? 3508 Soche sorow & sikyng pi seluyn vs bringes; The smoke & smorther, pat smytes to dethe, 3512 Qwyle ye lawfully lefe may & your lyf haue; poche dole ho dregh with mony depe terys!" With pyté & complaint, þat pyne was to here, hat Priam out of pes put ay anone, 3516 And neuer sesit of saghis & sorowfull wordys. The kyng pen comaund to cacche hir belyue, And fetur hir fast in a fre prisoune,— A stithe house of stone,-to still hir of noise. 3520 Hit said was for sothe, ho sate pere full longe, And suffert moche sorow for hir sothe tales. bus kept the kyng vnkyndly his doughter;— ffor hir tales of truthe teghit her in yernes. 5324 But, hade pai herkont pat hynde, & in hert keppit, Troy hade bene truly out of tene yet; And pere fortune full felle faire ouer-paste, hat all the world hade warnyng of þere wo sythen; 3528 And euer mynde wulbe made of paire myshap, Enduryng till domysday for doole pat pere was. Now, what felle of hor foly faire will I tell ; And ye hastely shall here, and ye houe stille. Eght Boke. Of the Counsell of the Grekys fior Recoueryng of Elayne. 3532 Sone after pis saute, sothely to telle, bat the Troiens in the Temple tokyn þe qwene, And the riches hade Robbed with relikes ynow, Er þai tenydon hade takon & turnyt into hauyn, 3536 The speche of hom sprange & spred into Grise, And gret noise of pere noie naitly ouer all. Vnto Menelay, the mene tyme, mowthly was foray of the told Of the rape vnrightwis of his Riche qwene, 3540 And he stythely astonyt stroke into sorowe. bat he luffit so lelly no lesse pen hym seluyn; Menelaus is advised of the Trojaus. (Pylus.) (fol. 56 a.) He falls to the ground in a swoon. Book VIII. His grief for Nestor comes to comfort him. With a great company of knights, &c. he conducts himn home and sends for Agamemnon, Castor, and Of the harmes & the hethyng hym happont to thole. 3556 And for his worshipfull wife, that hym worst liket, pat faren was ouer the fome, & hir fame loste; And other freikes shuld fonge in a fer londe With pat semly to solas, hit sate in his hert. 3560 And of delites full dere, pat dight were at 3564 3568 3572 home, Lest hir lackit suche lustis in a londe straunge, poche mones he made & mournyng ynoghe, With wailyng & weping, wo for to here; hat it neght to non end pe noie pat he tholet. Vnto Nestor anon pis naytly was tolde, Of pe mornyng & myscheffe to Menelay was comyn; Vnto pat worthy he went wisly anon, 3576 Agamynon þe graithe, in a gret haste, 3580 By a message on molde put he mekyll triste; THE COUNSELL OF AGAMYNON TO MENELAY. 3584 When agamynon the grete the greuaunce behelde, THE COUNSEL OF AGAMEMNON. And the bale of his brother, pus the buerne 117 Book VIII. "Why dreghis pou pis dole, & deris þi seluyn? "Why endure this Lefe of pis Langore, as my lefe brother, 3588 hat puttes pe to payne and peires pi sight. If þu has cause for to care for vnkynde werkes, And with sykyng ouerset, & sorow at þi hert, Hit were wit, as I wene, to were it ffro noise, 3592 And fro knowyng of comyns & of course opun; ffor a sorow þat is sene on a sib frynde, misery ? at least conceal your grief. Our sorrow makes friends Mas pe mournyng more of men pat hym luffes: sad, and foes Mikull comfordes his care all his kene fos, 3596 And engendres paire ioy all his iuste sorow. glad. ffayne euer feire chere in pi felle anger. Whan sorow is most sad, set all at litle; 3600 pi scrow & pi sikyng set all at noght. And in maters þat meuys pe with might for to stir, There is no worship in weping, ne in wan teres ; 3604 With pi swerde is to swinke & not with swym By your sword, thoghtes. ffor in sorow may be sene who is sad wise; When hym comys by course contrary thinges ;3608 He þat opressit not with payne his prinsepall wittes, Ne ouersettes not his saule with sorow full hoge. And pere as sikyng & sorow slees the within, and not by tears, this work must be done. Therefore rouse yourself. |