HECTOR ENCOURAGES THE TROJANS. And frunt hym in þe fase a full fel wond, 6924 pat pe blod out brast, & on his brest lyght. be lede, for þat laith dynt, leuyt not hys horse, Book XV. 223 and receives a similar wound in return. 6928 And wondyt hym wickydly in hys wale fase. All þe day, with outyn doute, to pis du tyme, His aune batell full breme vppon bent leuyt, 6936 Hym selfe liuely o pe launde launchit aboute. ben he segh pat pe soume of pe saide grekys, The Trojans would now have fled, had not Hector and his them. Hector, observing that the Greeks Were pe stithir in þe stoure, & strongur of pupull: were stronger He bounet to his batell, bode he no lengur, 6940 bat fayn were in fere of paire fre prinse, þat þai had hym at hond & in holl qwert. With all pe might & pe mayn of your mekill 6952 pen he led hom forth lyuely by a law vale, There deghit mony derfe of pe due grekes; Miche slaght in pat slade of po slegh knightes. 6956 Hit is wonder to wete of pe wode stoure, What knightes were kild vnto cold dethe! and more numerous than the Trojans, dashes off to his own division, (fol. 107 b.) and incites them to make a desperate charge on their enemies. Book XV. King Thoas is assailed by the brothers of Hector, in revenge for the death of Cassibelan. The Duke of Athens comes to Toax pat tyme purght the toile rode, bat Cassibilan had kyld, the kyngis son of Troy: 6960 He fell of pe frigies with his fuerse dynttes, And myche wo with his weppon wroght at þe tyme. Cassibilan kynd brether pen þe kyng segh, And gird hym euyn to pe ground in a gret Ire. Hade no wepyn hym to weire fro pere wild 6968 The haspes of his helme were hurlit in sonder; All bare was the buerne aboue on his hed. He hade lelly ben lost & of lyue done, Ne hade pe derfe Duke of Athens drawen hym to his aid; is sorely 6972 With fuerse men in fight, & fell to be stoure. wounded by Paris, (fol. 108 a.) but succeeds in rescuing Thoas, To Qwintilion the quem he qwithit a dynt, Woundit hym wickidly, warpit hym to ground, Dressit hym with dere to dele with another. 6976 ben Paris, pe prise knight, with a pile sharp, Rut hym in thurgh þe rybbis with a roid wond, þat þe duk for pe dynt derit hym but a littell. Toax in pe toile out of tene broght, 6980 Wan hym wightly away wondit full sore. Humerius wounds Hector with an arrow, Hector, in a rage, cleaves him to the saddle. THE DETH OF HUMERIUS BY ECTOR SLAYN. As Ector rod thurgh þe rout with his roid dyntes, Miche greuanse and grem to be grekys dyd, Humerius pe mighty, with a mayn bow, 6984 ffrunt hym euyn in þe fase with a fyn arow. be worthi at pe wond wrathit hym sore, ffore euyn to be freke with a fyn sworde; þe hathill o þe hede in his hote angur, 6988 And rent hym doun roidly ryght to be sadill: He bend neuer bow more, ne no buerne hurt, Hit THE TROJANS RE-ENFORCED. But was ded of pe dynt er he doun lyght. 6992 vij .M. said grekys semblit hym vmbe. And he were hym full wightly, wondit full mony. 6996 Mony derf to pe deth of his dyntis 3ode! hen he bounet fro batell, & pe bent leuyt, Issit out of pe ost angarely fast; ffore euyn to his fader in a furse hast, Book XV. 225 At the blast of a horn 7000 Greeks surround Hector. Dashing from 7000 Bad hym socore hom sone with his sure knightes; of the bravest And he fore to pe fyght with a fryke wyll, knights, and returns to the With pre pousond pro knyghtis prong into Greeks. batell, ffurse men, & fel, & of fyn strenkyth. 7004 þai gyrd to pe grekys & myche grem wroght, Slogh hom doun sleghly in þe slade moue. Ector and Aiax auntrid to mete: With fyn spers in þe frount frochit togedur, 7008 pat aythir bakward was borne to pe bare erthe. Menelaus, a myghti out of mayn Troi, With his wepyn he wondit, & warpit to deth. 7012 Slogh Moles pe myghty, a mon out of Oreb, 7020 Tachet vpon Thelamon, & tenfully woundit. Presit to Protheus & put hym to grond. So all be noble brether naturyll of pe naite kynge, 7024 Priam sons, pe prise kynges prestly pai foghten, Hector and Ajax meet. (fol. 108 b.) Celidonus, a son Madon strikes out Famen strikes Prothenor to the earth. Book XV. Anglas presses Mnestheus, and is severely wounded. His brother unhorses another brother comes to his aid; and the three would have slain Mnestheus had not Theuter come to the rescue. Hector slays a thousand knights: cuts down Memnon: and is wounded by Mnestheus. And mony buerne in þe batell broght vnto ground. hat the viser & the ventaile voidet hym fro: But manly he macchit hom with his mayn strokes,t [--and anon he was succoured by the king Theuter. But Hector then assayled them both, and without fault they had not escaped, had not Ajax the strong and valiant knight haue come to the reskue with a thousand knights, that he had in his company. Then came on the King of Perse with fiue thousand knights, that Paris lead; and so did all the other Troyans, and made the Greeks recule, and goe back by force. Dares writeth in his Boke, how that Hector slew a thousand knights, onely in this assault. Among all other things, Hector encountred the King Menon before a Tent, and said to him: "ha, euill traitour, that thou lettest me to take the armes of Patroclus:" and then he smote him so great a stroke that he fell downe to the ground. And after Hector alighted downe, and smote off his head, and would haue taken his armes from him: but Menesteus letted him, and smote upon Hector ouerthwart, by such force that he gaue him a great wound, and went then his way without more tarrying, doubting the fury of Hector. Then Hector went out of the throng and bound up his wound, that it bled no more; and after went in againe into the prease, and slew in his comming many Greekes. And Dares sayth, that after he had bound up his wound, he slew the same day a thousand Knights, and there was none had courage to auenge him Fol. 109 is awanting in MS. See Note. OF HIM THAT NOTES NOT HIS TIME. against him, or defend himselfe, but he put them all to flight; and the Troyans entred into their Tents, and pilled and robbed them, and tooke all the best that they could finde.] Guido di Colonna: (from The Ancient Historie of The Destruction of Troy. Sixth Ed. London, 1636.) Garmentes full gay all of grete furris, 7044 Bright beidis & Brasse broght þai with-all, 7048 pat for euer hade ben ende Angur to voide; Book XV. 227 The Greeks are put to flight, and their tents are pillaged. (fol. 110 a. Marked 109 in MS.) The Trojans divide the spoils. On this day the Trojans might have had the victory, if fortune And þai wonen paire wille neuer the werre aftur, had consented. broght; But wirdis, þat is wicked, waitis hir avantage, 7052 With ffortune so felle, þat is of fer cast. All þat desteny with dole has demyt to falle, OFF HYM AT NOTES NOT HIS TYME WHEN GOD HASE GRAUNTID: BY ECTOR. 7056 And Ector of all men euyll hit dissayuet, 7060 Doutles pat day, withouten deire aftur, Of no wise mon to wale, when wirdes has 7064 ffor to tary on his tyme, when hym tydes faire, And put of a purpos, pat empaires after, Hector might have saved his people, his himself; and country, and crushed his Or þat draghes to dethe, and deres at pe ende. He pat tas not his tyme, when pe tyde askes, 7068 But lettes it deuly ouerdryve with delling to opportunity, He that improves not his noght, |