Book XXXIII.

Hatred arises between Orestes and Menelaus; but they are reconciled by Idomeneus and Forensis;

and Orestes marties

Hermione, daughter of Menelaus.

And as right to his rewme restorit hym agayn. 13088 pan þai coroned hym kyng of pat kyd yle, In the Cité of Syre set hym olofte.

All the ledis of his lond lelly were fayn;

And he wrothe as the wynde to his wale eme. 13092 Idumus the derfe kyng, & his dere cosyn fforenses, the fre þat hym faith aght, To Macanas po men meuit all somyn, And accordit po kynges in the kith euyn,13096 Menelay the mighty & his mayn nephew, Orestes the renke, of hor ranke yre.

This accord was knit & in course made,

þat Orestes the rich kyng radly shuld wed 13100 Ermonia, the maydon, his owne myld cosyn, His Emes doghter full dere duly to wyf. Made was this mariage po mighty betwene, With Solenité & Sacrifice the Cité with-in,

13104 With flastyng and fare of the fre pepull,

And lyuet furth in Lykyng a long tyme after.

The xxxiiij Boke: How hit happit Vlixes aftur the Sege.

Vlyxes the Lord, that lurkyd by nyght
ffro the Cité to the see, as I said Ere,

(fol. 200 a.)

Ulysses, having lost all his fleet, arrives at Crete

with two hired

13108 When Thelamon, with tene was trayturly slayn, ships.

All bare in his bed & blody beronen,

With two schippis full schene, pat pe schalk

hiret,

He come vnto Crete as pe course fell.

13112 All his nauy full nobill naytly were lost,

And refte fro the rynke, as I rede schall.

Telamon tor son toke hym with hond,

He refte hym his riches & his renke schippis,

He had lost all his wealth, and

13116 And wold haue honget pe here vppon hegh galos; barely escaped

But hit auntrid Vlixes vne for to skape,

Thurgh wiles & wit wan of his hondis,

And past of his pouer to pouert ynugh.

13120 Of all his wallond wele walt he no gode,
And pof he passit with pyne pe pouer of hym,
3et happit hym full hard in a hond qwile.
The noble kyng Naule naytly hym toke,

with his life.

(MS. has "on lyue")

13124 And purpost with pyne to put hym (o) lyue, ffor the tale of the treson, I told 30W before, Of the prise kyng Palomydon, his aune pure son; But thurgh wilys & wit he wan of his daunger. escapes from

13128 Vnpairit of his person priuely he stale.

He cunningly

King Nauplius.

(fol. 200 b.)

Book XXXIV.

Idomeneus welcomes him; and inquires regarding his present state

and past

adventures.

(MS. has "pat")

Ulysses relates

how he departed

from Troy with a large and

rich fleet.

That he sailed to Maropea in Thrace;

thence to the country of the

Lotophagi, on the coast of Lybia.

Having left

this district, the

fleet is caught by a storm.

By what Iapis or gen, aiuges not here, hat he skope fro the skath of thies skathell men ; But full pore of his pride, & in plite febull, 13132 To Idumus, the du kyng, doutles he come, bat had meruell full mekill of his myshap, And welcomyt þat worthy on a wise faire. He spird hym full specially of his spede feble, 13136 ffor to tell hym the truth how hym tid hade. (ban) he grauntid the gret with a good wille, His dissyre for to do, & dressit to say:

"Soth hit is, sir kyng, & so ye well know, 13140 After the takyng of Troy me tid for to haue Mony schippis full shene, shot full of godes, With Relikes full rife, and red gold ynogh: Mony seruandes me suet, & sad pepull als; 13144 Knightes in my company, & kide men of were. So went I to watur, hade winde at my lust, Past to a port pleasond and faire,

bat, with men of pat marche, Murna was cald: 13148 pere launchit I to laund, a litle for ese,

Restid me rifely, ricchit my seluyn.

Non hedit me with hething, ne no harme did,
Nowther barge, ne bote, ne buerne vppon lyue.

13152 pan toke I my tide, turnyt to ship,

Hade winde at my wille & the wedur calme,
To Colofages I flet, & my feres all,

And pere restid in the rode, as I red toke. 13156 Whan I hade lengit qwile me list, I launchit on

swith,

And all the calme ouercast into kene stormes.
ffull wodely the windes wackont aboue;
A myst & a merknes mynget with rayn,
13160 bat wilt vs in were & our way lost.

Knew we no costis for cauping of ythes,
Ne no lond on to light, þat vs lefe was.
O sithes, vnto Cisile I sailet at the last,

THE MISFORTUNES OF ULYSSES.

13164 There me happit full hard in a hond qwile.
The same tyme in Cicill, somyn þere were
Two kynges pere wone, pat the kyth aght:
Bothe were pai brether, & bold men of hond,
13168 And fell men in fight, pere found I my part.
Stigeta, a stuerne man & stalworth, was one,
And Ciclophe the secund: so were þai cald.
pai fell to me fuersly, & my folke slogh;
13172 Robbet my riches, & reft me my godes;
Spoilet me dispitiously, sparit me noght.
Two sons, for-sothe, of the same kynges,-
ffuers men in fight, & fell of hor dinttes,—
13176 Kyld of my knightes, kid men a hundrith,

And sesit my self, & my sure felow,
Alphenor, a freike, þat me faith aght.
In a castell full cloise keppit vs bothe,
13180 And put vs in prison prestly to-gedur.

Poliphemas, the pert, had a prise suster,
ffairest of fetur, fresshe to be-hold,

Clere as the cristall, & a cleane maidon :

13184 Whan Alphenor the freike faithfully can se,

He was lappit with loue & lusty dissire,
Negh wode of his wit went in pe plase.
Sex mones, þat mighty made me to leng

13188 As prisoner, with pyne, in his prowd castell.
han pité of my person prikket his hert,
He deliuert me lowse, & my lefe felow,
Alphenor the freike, þat fallyn was in loue.
13192 This Poliphemas me plesit, & putto me þan
Giftis of gold, & greatly honouryt.
Alphenor, in faithe, foundit full ofte

The woman to wyn, & away lede.

13196 So he spake of his spede pat speciall vnto,
þat onone in the night, þat noble he stale
ffro the souerain hir Syre, & soght with hir
furth.

431

Book XXXIV.

(fol. 201 a.) He reaches the coast of Sicily, where his fleet is plundered by two kings,

whose two sons

kill one hundred of his knights,

and imprison Alphenor and himself.

Alphenor falls in love with the sister of

Polyphemus.

After six months

the prisoners are released: and prepare to depart.

Alphenor elopes by night with the sister of Polyphemus.

Book XXXIV.

With an armed

force

(fol. 201 b.) Polyphemus pursues; attacks the company of Ulysses; and

loses his one eye.

With difficulty Ulysses escapes from Sicily, and steers for the island of Ewa, where he found

two ladies, sisters, who sorely grieved him.

Whoever lands there can never

get away and
if they do not

submit to their
control they
are transformed

into beasts.

The ladies are called Circe and Calypso.

For a twelve

month and two

weeks Circe holds

Ulysses under

her spells.

When hit come to the knowyng of hir kid brother,

13200 Poliphemus prudly preset hir after

With knightes full kene, kyd men of hond.
He fell on my folke, & fele of hom slogh,
And my seluyn with a sewte asailet full hard;
13204 þan I fell to defence with a frike wille,

My-seluyn to saue, and socour my pepull.
The ton Egh in the toile tynt he belyue,

And I shot to my shippes, & the shalke leuit. 13208 With myche labur, at the last, I launchit to se, Soght out of Cicile with sorow, þat I hade,

With myche noy in the night my nauy to stere.
To the Ile of Aulida I auntrid to hit,

13212 There found I before the fairest on lyue,
Two sister full semly, þat me sore greuit.
Thai were ladies of pe laund, & of lore wise;
Of Nigromansy ynogh nothing hom lakked.
13216 The craft of coniuracioun po cumly did vse;
With Spretis & experyment so spend pai pere

lyf,

Who-so lightes in pat lond fro the low sea,

hai haue no power to passe fro pere pure art; 13220 And who pat bowes not bainly pere biddyng

vnto,

po shene wull forshape vnto shire bestis,
Neuermore to be men vppon mold after,
Ne the lond for to leue in hor lyf tyme.
13224 The wiser of tho worthy, to wale hir by nome,
High Sirces, for-sothe, so was sho callid,

And Taliphe, pat tother of the tried suster.
This Circes my-seluyn set on to loue:

13228 With charmes & Inchauntmenttes ho cherisshed

me so,

þat me wissit no wile away for to passe:

A twelmond & two wekes twynnet we noght.