yat as yis quyk man wald haue castin ye deid man of the barreis, he fell bakwart on his bak, and ye deid man on his breist, and culd not awoid him of him q the day wes past; and sua, be the law, he wes iugit in the cryme, and justifeit y'foir. III." The ordinance and maner how turnayis wes wont to be maid, and the harness for knytis and squyaris, and quhat differens suld be in ye abulzement betuix knytis and squyaris, and how ye cry suld be maid. " The manner in which a knight and a squire should be armed, is thus described: "First, ane harness of jampes, cowerit w ledder, sowit w pointis, the lenth of the jampe to ye kne, and tua attaiches lairge for to atteiche yame into his brayer: Item, cuisses and poullanis, armit wleddir: Item, hoisis of maile abone the harness of jambes, attaches to the brayer, as said is, abone the cuisses; and ane payir of gilt spurris, qlk salbe knyt w ane small corde about the jambe, yat ye spur turne not under the fut: Item, vus anciens et vues espaultreres: Item, panet manches, qlk salbe knet be the cuivre, w all his aggreppes sus les espaulles & une soutellier, upone the feit befoire: Item, brathieris knet to the schulderis of the cuyvre: Item, bacynet a tout le howsone, and ane escusson of balane upone the nek, cowerit with ledder, w ye tonneres for to knet to the brayer or ye cuyvre; and upone the bacynet a coyf of maile, and a fair offroy befoire on the fronte, quha will, and a wyn bred to put in the kny'is handis: Item, a heaume & ye tymbre, sic as he will: Item, tua chenzeis knet to ye breist of the cuyvre, ane for ye swerd, ye vyer for ye bastoun, and tua visieris for to fastin ye heaume. "The "The abilzement of ye squyar salbe ewin lyk as ye knyis, except yat he suld haue na hoiss of maile, na corset of maile upone his basynet, bot he suld haue ane chaplete of mont aubieu, and he suld haue na bratheres, and of vyer thingis may arme him as ane kny, and suld haue na sautour at his sadill." Many of the observations on the signification of animals, fowls, and fishes in heraldry, are extremely curious. "The Leopard is ane ry cruell beist, and in takin of crueltie and hardynes, he hes his face ewir to ye folk; and as sayis Isodore in his vii buk, he is generit be adultry of the part and the lyones, and is ane beist ry deliuer, sua yat oftymes he deis be force of leping; and cowattis blude mervalouslie, and is spottit w mony colo', and signifyis, yat he yat first bure it wes cruell, hardy, and deliuer. And sum sayis yat Marlin ye propheite wes ye first man yat bure it, becaus he wes borne of faarie in adultre; and ry sua ye first duk of Guyenne wes borne of a fee, and yrfoir the armes of And is ane beist And is ane beist yat be ye princis and lordis hes ay borne, and zit beiris in armorie; but he yat beiris him in his propir colo' suld be ane bastard, and yairfoir na princis beiris him in his werry colo', bot yai beir him in vyer colo' in significatioun of his propertie and not of his nature, "The Gryffon is ane ry grit beist of body and force, sua yat he be his force wald beir on hy an armit man, and eftir, as Isodorus sayis, ye griffonis keipis ane montaigne qlk is in Asie, in the qlk aboundis gold and pretious stanis of rỷ grit valo'; and signifeis, yat he yat bare it first wes ane man austere, terrible, and double double in his deidis, and covetous, yat wout moderatioun keipis his gold sua yat he will not distribute it amang his suldiouris, bot kepis it, and waittis not quhome to he keipis it. "The modewarp is ane blind beist, haifand ane gronze in forme of ane porc, euir beand worseland in the eird; and signifeis, yat he yat bure it first, hes bene a theif and brigand, hydand him daylie in woddis and cauernis, pilzend and reifand; for it is said comonly, he yat euill dois, hattis ye ly. "The Unicorne is ane strenthy beist, the qlk is lyk ane hors of body, bot scho hes feit of ane eliphant, and taile of ane hart, and hir voice is marvalouslie fleand; and abone in the middis of her heid, ane mervalous horne, scheynand and thrawand ewin to ye eird; the qlk is sa stark and sa scharp, yat it peirsis w it all yat it ouertakis, and na man may byde it; for na ingyne may be in ye warld, and may not be tane leifand, bot gif ye huntaris send ane gratious virgine quhair the unicorne repairis; for it is hir nature to byde and repos in the virginis skirt, and takis all ye feirtnes fra hir; and on this maner hunteris sleyis yame, and signifyis, he yat first bure yame in armes wes stark in mony maneris, and his voice fleis, and is fleand to his innemeys, and yat he had wit in his intent and in his heid, atto all vyeris to cum to his intent, and all his rest wes in deidis of virginitie. "The Phenise is ane foule yat haldis hir in Arabie, and yair is na ma in all the warld, and is weill als grit as ane aigle, and hes creste in ye heid of ye ane p and the vyer, and ye fedderis about his nek is lyk to ye fyne gould of arabie, bot bene' to ye taill is of purpre colour, and ye taile of roise, as the Arabiens beiris wit nes, nes, quha hés sene yame mony tymes, and yai say he leifis v' hundre' zeiris, and výeris sayis his lyf lestes vii' h. zeiris and mair, bot the maist pairt he eildis in v h. zeiris; and quhen it cumis to ye termes of his lyfe, his nature findis him to accuse him of his deid, for to haue ane new lyfe, and at ye end passis to ane gude tre, and of gude sauo', and makis ane moutall quhair he garris the fyre tak, and syne enteris yairin ewin to ye sone rysing, and quhen he is brint, of the cinderis rysis ane worme yat hes lyfe, and the secund day of his nassance is maid lyk ane litil chikkin, the thrid day is all grit and growin as he suld be, and fleyis and passis to ye place quhair his habitatioun is. sum sayis yat it wes fund be the prouest of ane citie callit heliopolis, quhair the phenise regnit as is befoir said, and signifyis, yat he that first in armes bure him wes fair, and of fair fassoun of memberis, and langer lefand nor ony vyeris, qlk regenerit him be his heit of fyre of cowetise, yat he assemblit to and brint him in the plesance yrof, qlk daylie put him agane to his first estait, and yat in fyre wout fulfilling of pane suld euir mair lest. "The Papegault is ane foule, as sayis Isodore, qlk is ry fair, and is grene; bot hir neb and hir feit ar reid, and hes far mair toung and mair bly' yan oný vy foule, quhairthrow scho sayis and speikis articulatly lyk ane man qlk is leirit hir of hir zoutheid w in the secund zeir of hir aige, for fra yen furtht, scho is hard and forgetfull; and ye philosophor sayis, quha will not lerne hir in hir zoutheid, scho will not speik bot jargon, and scho hcs ane stane in her nib sa stark, qlk in all hir necessite is scheld for keping of hir body; and efter the philosophor, in the tent buke xlii chepto', and and he fall fra hicht upone stanes, he putis his neb befoir, qlk keipis all his body. Alsua he vsis ye neb in steid of hand, takand in his feit yat is necessary to him; and puttis not ye ta fute befoir ye vyer, qll he haue put in his neb it yat he haldis; and climis fast about his caige, of ane vyir maner nor vyer foulis dois; and is ane foule yat lordis and ladyis desyris to be sene in yair hous; and signifyis, he yat first bure him in armes wes ane plesand man, and wald be sen cled w fair colo', and his feit and visage war of fair fassone and colo', and rý plesand and wes propir, and culd speik diuers langagis, and yat he did w gud will, and in his defence in aduersitie, and to defend him fra his innemeis w his mouth and his tounge he did yame mair greuance yan ony vyer thing, and wes ane ry sueit man, and for his countenance and strang maner of ganging men lukit w gude will to him; and wes euir in all places w lordis and ladyis for his fair speiche and his maneris, qlk strangeris luffis weill to see. "The Basilique is ane fische in maner of ane serpent, and is sa ry full of weinoume, yat he scheynis all wout, and the sy and the straik of him beiris veinoum far and neir, for quhy he corruptis the air, and distrois the treis, and sleyis the foules fleand, and w his luk slais men, and he is of gritnes of VI fute, and hes quhyt spottis and creste as ane cok to ye mydis of his body; and not wstanding that he is sa forcy and sa dangerous, ye basilique, (the weazel is probably intended), qlk is litill as ane mowse quyte under the body, slais him; and wit ze yat Alex' fand yame, and gart mak grit ampolles of glace, and gart men entir yrin, qlk saw yame, and yai saw yame not, and yai reportit how yai had sene yame, and be ye verres of glace fand |