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A PESTILENCE.

Wonderfully wroght weghis to be-hold, With gematry Justly aioynet to gedur; Miche soteltie, for-sothe, settyng of notes, 8396 Crafte þat was coynt, knawyng of tymes,

And other faynet fare & fantasy olde!

273

Book XX.

copper supporting an image of pure gold.

("Gematry "= geometry.)

Within the tyme of the tru, the triet kyng Priam, Priam buries

His noble sonnes naturell naitly gert bery,

8400 With hor brether, in the burgh, on his best wise:

Eure son by hym selfe, sais me the lyne,

In a precius place, & in prise toumbis!

his sons, each in

a separate tomb.

HERE AI FFAGHT TWELUE DAYES TO-GEDur.

When the sex monethes were meuit of pe mene

true,

8404 Than faght þai in feld felly to gedur,

Twelue dayes, be-dene, dole to be-holde!
ffull myche was the murthe of po mayn knightes,
On bothe sydes, for-sothe, sayes me the lyne ;
8408 And myche blode on the bent of tho bold leuyt.
Than the hete was so hoge, harmyt the grekes,
With a pestylence in the pepull pynet hom sore:
Thai fore out to the fildes, fellyn to ground,

8412 And droppit to dethe on dayes full thicke.
ffor þat Agamynon, by grement, graidly did send
To the toun, for a true of a tym shorte;
Thretty dayes to endure, & no deire wirke.
8416 Hit was grauntid pat grete, by grement with-in
Of Priam, & [the] prinse, & the prise all
Of kynges, and Comyns, and of kyde Dukes.
Therto sworne were pai swiftly on hor swete

haloes,

8420 And affermyt hit fast: and here a ffyt endes.

The truce is ended fighting is resumed.

Because of the great heat, a pestilence heaks out; many of the Greeks die in the fields.

Agamemnon desires a truce ot 30 days:

which is granted.

(fol. 130 b.)

During the last night of the truce,

Andromacha dreams that

Hector will be

slain on the next day,

She prays him not to go to battle.

(fol. 131)

Hector blames
Andromacha:

The xxj Boke. Of the viij Batell: And of the Dreme of Ector wyffe.

Lengye here at a litill, lystyn my wordes,
I shall tell you full tyte how hom tyde after,
When thes dayes were done, & dryven to an
ende,

8424 All þai fforen to pe fight, & the fild toke!
Of Andromaca drem I dresse me to telle,
How hir noyet in the night, er þai to note yode.
As pis burde was in bed with hir blythe lorde,
8428 And slippit vpon slepe, slomeryng a while,
Sho was affrayet full foule with a fuerse dreme,
That she met of hir maister, & masit full euyll.
At hir wakonyng ho wist, as the writ sayes,
8432 Iff the bold vnto batell busket þat day,

8436

He shuld doutles be dede, & drepit for euer ! Andromaca for drede of her dreme felle, Miche water ho weppit, and wackont the prince. As pai bothe were in bed, pe burd to hym saide, And told hym by tale, as her tyde hade. Sho prayet the prinse with hir pure hert, ffor drede of hir drem, & deire pat might falle, 8440 On nowise in thys world the walles to passe, ffor to bowne vnto batell, ne of burghe wend. han the worthy at his wife wrathet a litle,

And blamyt the burde for hir bold speche. 8444 Hit was vnfittyng, he said, a sad man of wit,

ANDROMACHA'S DREAM.

Any dremys to drede, or deme hom for trew,
Syn þai feble are & faint, & falsly dissayuyn,
And be-lirten yche lede, pat leuys perapon.
8448 When the day vp droghe, & the derke voidet,
The burd bownet fro bed, & of boure past :
To his fader ho fore, & his fre moder.
All ho told hom in tale, as her tyde hade,
8452 Besechis the souerain, with sykyng in hert,

Hir lord for to let, for lure pat might happyn:
On nowise þat he went, for wothe of his lyf!

When the sun vp set with his softe beames, 8156 All the batels of the burghe bownet to feld, Ordant of Ector efter his deuyse.

Troiell, the triet knyght, toke the feld sone; Then Paris full prest put hym next aftur. 8460 Deffebus drogh furth with a derfe pepull; Eneas afturward auntred to feld.

Polidamas, the proud knight, past on swithe;

Then the fuerse kyng Forcius folowet anon; 8464 And Philmen, the freke, with a felle batell. Then all the kynges by course, pat comyn were

to Troy,

The citie to socour, with pere sute hoole,

Passit furth fro Priam to pe playn feld,

8468 With leue of pe lord, þat the lond aght.

Then Priam to be prinse prestly can send,

275

Book XXI.

says, it is silly to give heed to dreams.

Andromacha
pleads with
Priam and
Hecuba to

prevent Hector
going to that

fight.

The Trojans take
the field, led by
Troilus, Paris,
Deiphobus, and

Aeneas:

Polydamas,
Phoreys,
Pylæmenes and
the allied kings.

Priam commands

Hector to stay

That he bownet to no batell, ne pe burgh past, within the city.

On nowise in this world, for worship or other. 8472 Therat Ector was angry, & angardly wrothe,

Repreuet the prinses with a pale face:
With his worshipful wife wrathit hym þen.
Withouten leue of the lord, þat hym let wold,

8476 To his seruondes he saide in a sad haste,

Hector is angry:

(fol. 131 b.)

orders his

servants to bring

To bryng hym his bright geire, bownet to feld, his armour; and
And arayed for the rode with a ronke wille.

arrays himself,

Book XXI.

Andromacha

takes her infant

in her arms,

and falls at

Hector's feet.

She pleads with

him to stay.

Hector refuses:

she clasps his feet and swoons.

Than his wif was war of his wille sone,
8480 Myche watur ho weppit, wailyng for sorow.
Two sonnes hade pat semly, with the sure
prinse,-

On Lamydon was litle, and his leue brother
Astionac also, pat after was borne,—

8484 hat were bothe at the brest of the bright norse,
Noght put fro the pappe to no prise fode.

The ton toke ho full tyte in hir true armys,
To the fote of pat fre fell ho belyue:

8488 Hit was dole & deire, pat dere to be-hold!

With myche wepyng & woo pes wordes ho said:--"A! my lord, & it like yow at this lefe tyme, I be-seche you, for my sake sober youre wille : 8492 Put of youre purpos, preses no fer,

ffor all the loue in our lyue, pat light vs betwene!"

He denyet hir anon: hir noy was the more. And sho braid with the barne to pe bare erthe, 8496 Vmbfoldyt his fete, felle vnto swone.

And when ho wacknet of wo, thies wordes ho said:

"If ye no mercy haue on me, for mysse þat I thole,

Haue pité on youre pure sonnes, pat mone payne

thole!

Again she pleads 8500 To be done to pe dethe with hor dere moder,
Or be shot out with shame fro youre shene

with him to stay.

His mother, his sisters, and

Helen, fall at his feet,

landes;

Exiled for euermore endles to sorow,

Pight vnder pouert and penaunce to lyue!"

8504 Then his moder the myld qwene, & his meke

syster,

Cassandra the clene, & clere Polexena,

And honerable Elan also, with hom:

Thies fellyn hym to fete with a foule cherc,

HECTOR AND ANDROMACHA.

8508 Prayond the prinse (pitie was to se)
To put of his pale wedis, & his pale entre;
And abyde in the burgh to the bare night.
He hade no ruthe of hor remyng, ne pe rank
teris,

8512

Ne pe prayer of po prise persit not his hert; But past furth prudly his purpos to hold, And bounet toward batell, bode he no lengur. ben Andromoca for dol drogh out of wit, 8516 Vne fore as a fole, fonnet at all;

Past vnto Priam, pe prinsis aune fadur, With a rufull rore rent of hir clothis; Rafit pe red chekis roidly with hond, 8520 And pe hore of hir hede heterly pullit! So pat ffre with hir face fore at þe tyme, hat all blod was pe bright in hir ble qwit: Ho was vnkyndly to knaw of hir kyd frendis.

8524 So disfigurt of face & febill of hew,

To pe fete of pe fre kyng fel ho belyue,
Besechond pat soueran, in a sad hast

ffor to high to pat hynd, & hold hym within, 8528 þat he fore not to fight, ne the fild toke ! Than Priam in pure hast preset to horse, Lept vp full lyghtly, & the rede folowet : Ouertoke hym full tyte, taried hym pan,

8532 Raght to the reynes of his riche bridell:
Vne wrothe in his wille weppit full sore,
Comaundand pat comly, as his kynd fader,
By all hor goddes so gret, & greuyng of hym,
8536 þat he fare shuld ne ferre, ne the feld entre.
At the last, purgh the likyng of his lege kyng,
And offence of his ffader, the freke agayne

turnyt:

Past euyn to his palais, & the place entrid. 8540 He wold put of no plate of his prise armur, But abode in the burgh in his bright wedis.

277

Book XXI.

pleading that he abide in the city

till night.

(fol. 132 a.)

Hector will not yield. He goes forth to battle.

Andromacha

in despair rushes to Priam. Tearing her face and hair,

she falls at his feet,

beseeching him

to detain Hector within the city.

Priam overtakes
Hector:

commands and
entreats him to
desist.

With great
returns:

reluctance he

but will, on no account put off his armour.

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