Book XII. The gods hate it; it spoils the best plans; and proud men in 4840 Let us therefore walk wisely in this undertaking, and be ruled by righteousness, that no fault may be found with us. Ye all know, that this great host has come hither to avenge us for the misdeeds of Priam. (fol. 76 a.) (ournyt,' roused, enraged.) ('erted,' emboldened.) Assuredly he is forewarned, and has collected great forces; but they know not our movements. If all his forces are ready we may pay dearly for our invasion. 4844 4848 4852 4856 4860 Syn it haten thies hegh goddes & hogely withstondyn, And ay the purpas enpayres with pride is be gonen, Hit is wit for to wayue or vs worse happon; Let vs waive now wisely in our werkes all, Now wete ye right well, pat all þis wale pepull bat Priam and his pepull hath plainly vs done. Yf he were fully our foo forwith this tyme, But pai wete not our werkes, ne our wilde fare; hat we be neghit so negh, ne noy þat is fallyn. 4864 ffor if pai might be so mony, & of mayne strenght, We mut bye it full bitterly pe baret we make. pai haue a Cité for sothe, a sure & a noble, THE COUNSEL OF AGAMEMNON. Well wallit to wale, with water aboute; 4868 And perfore sothly I say, hit semis vnto vs, bai are feler of folke, & fuerser by the halfe, With more plenty of pepull, & pe province hor owne; 159 Book XII. ('filsom' = And yche freike is pere frynd to filsom pere spede. fulsum, to 4872 bis I say not, for sothe, supposyng in hert hat of our dede shuld be doute,-I dem it not so. 4876 further.) our success; Ne I put not vnpossible 30n place for to take, But pat louyng & lose shuld lenge of our dedis, And our werkes all wisely wroght by discrecioun, 4880 þat we fare with no foly ne fonnyng of pride. Hit has fallyn vnto fele men, fer in tymes past, þat hastely on hede has highit to a note, And keppit no counsell, ne no clene rule, 4884 But put hom with pride a purpos vnto, city but that we may work wisely and with ('fonnyng,' Hit rapit to repentaunse & mony ranke harmys. Priam, Noght leng sithen but late, a lede of his owne 4888 Made on a message vnto our menes londis, This couet the kyng, keppit he no more. This assembly sent a message to ('atterwart,' angrily.) (fol. 76 b.) 4892 Answarth hym awterwart with angur & skorne, ill-naturedly, 4896 Done his dissyre, deiret not our seluyn, The harme & the hardgrem, pat highet vs after, And this sorow in Sitheria had sothely not fallyn; 4000 Had not laithly bene laght, & led vnto Troy ; Had we but request, the harms and sorrow that followed would not have befallen us. Book XII. And, what fortune shall befall us, no one can tell. Therefore, sirs, if you wish to avoid all the perils of war, and to save our people, let us send a message to Priam, and promise to grant him Hesione if he will send back Helen and the rest of our people; and redress the wrongs done to us by Paris. (MS. has ruder.') And if Priam refuse this offer, we shall have two friends to fight in our cause: Right, that constrains us for the loss of our goods, and Peace, Ne we, pat are wonyn ouer the wale streames, hat worthy to wyn with weppon in fight, ~ Hade not faren so far our fos to distroy, 4904 Ne so long fro our londes lengit away. And, what fall shalbe fortune, no freke can vs telle : Wethur worship or wo: wete we not all? perfore, sirs, me semys, if you so like, 4908 Yf ye deme it be don, & in dede holde, All chaunse to exchewe, & cheue vs the bettur 4912 þat we may saile hom in sound & our sute haue; bat is kyng of the coste & the kythe ow, 4916 Honerable Elan & other of our pepull: And redresse vs the domage, þat he don has By Paris his proude son, in our prise londis. If þat souerayne accept this sothly with hert, 4920 And do it in dede, as our dissyre wille, We may wend hom with worship & our wille haue; And saue so our seluyn & our sute hole; 4924 And if Priam with pride this purpos refuse, that we proffer to 4928 Thurgh the world shall it wend our werke at prevent the exercise of our power. (fol. 77 a.) The Trojans will be accounted fools; but never one will blame us. pis tyme. Ay the mo, pat our mesure maynly may here, The lengur vs luff shall till our last end; And the Troiens be told as for triet foles, 4932 Ne excusit of skathe & sklaunder of pride, To macche vs with monhede & might of our selfe, ULYSSES AND DIOMEDES SENT TO PRIAM. And wyn hom in wer with weppon in fight. Neuer buerne will vs blame, ne ban for our dede, 4936 Ne wegh will vs wite to be worldes end. Ses now, your seluyn, my saghis vnto, And part of pat pepull prouyt hit for wit; Book XII. 161 'Devise now as ye think best." The council is divided; some condemn, and some approve the proposal. At last all accept it, and Ulysses and 4944 Two chere men þai chese on þis choise erend, Diomede are sent (Onest & abell Vlexes was one, And Dyamede, pe derfe kyng demyt þat other)- 4948 Stiden vpon stithe horse stird to the Cité, Lightyn at the low, leftyn paire horses, 4952 Gone vp by the greses all of gray marbill, Hit into the halle of the high kynge. Hade meruell full mekull of pat mayne place, Of the walles pat wroght were wondurly faire, 4960 The bole was of bright gold, bret to pe myddes, 4964 The brede of his bowes borly to se, Large and longe, (light as the sun) ffro the dese to the dorse doblit on brede And the sydys, by a sercle of þe same hall. 4968 The braunches were borly, sum of bright gold, Sum syluer for sothe, semlist of hew; as messengers to Priam. They arrive at the palace and pass into the hall. They are astonished at the greatness of the city; its walls and towers, &c. But they are more astonished by a tree of gold, set in the centre of the great hall. It was twelve cubits high, and finely formed. (fol. 77 b.) The boughs spread from the dais to the doors, and from wall to wall. Some of the branches are of gold, and some Book XII. of silver; with leaves of the same. The buds and fruit are of many kinds, and shimmer among the leaves like precious stones. Ulysses and Diomede are led through many long chambers, till they reach the one where Priam was seated among his lords. They make no obeisance, and sit down before the king. With leuys full luffly, light of þe same; 4972 And frut on yt fourmyt fairest of shap, Of mony kynd þat was kuyt, knagged aboue, hat shemert as shire as any shene stonys. Long abodyn thies buernes in the bright hall, 4976 Or þai comyn to the kyng by course for to speike. Led were po lordes pro mony long chaumburs, And past into a proude chaumbur þere Priam 4980 Among lordes of his londe & ledis of his owne. ben auntred Vlexes and his erund said, (MS. has "Sais") "Agamemnon asks you to restore Helen in safety, (fol. 78 a.) and to make restitution for the harms done by your son Paris. THE WORDES OF VLIXES TO THE KYNG PRIAM. "Sir Priam! thof we prise not þi person to hailse, 4988 Ne worship the as worthy, no wonder pou haue ; ffor we haue pe in hate as our hede ffoo: And an enmy to anoper nothing it semys, Hailsyng ne hynd speche with no hede bare. 4992 Agamynon the gret, pat on pi ground lys, Hase made vs as messengers at this mene tyme,— He biddes the full barly the bright qwene Elan, 4996 That you caght fro his kyng, & oper kyd pepull, Send hom in sound & safly to hym, And stifly restore o the stithe harmys; 5000 That you pild in his prouynse by Paris þi son. |