THE MISFORTUNES OF ULYSSES.

With-in a yere, full yeuerly, þat yepe was with
child,

13232 Consayuit of my-selfe, & a son hade.

han I purpast to passe with pepull a few, And cast me by craft & conyng perfore. Of me be worthy was war, & my wille knew, 13236 And sped hir full specially my sped for to let, With wiles & wicchecraft my way for to hindur; But my-self of þat sciens somwhat I can,

Well enformet of the feate, & hir fare marret ; 13240 And all hir note of Nigromansy naitly distroyet. han I wan fro the woman with wyles ynow; With a lite, pat me left were, launchit to see ; Past ouer the pale ythes, & perellis full mony, 13244 Into the cuntre of Calaphe cast with a storme,

And safe with my soudiours slippit hir fro. pan I sailet forth soundly on the Sea occian, With hom pat I hade, and happit to light 13256 In an yle, pere an old temple naitly I founde, Of a god, þat with gomes was gretly honouret. There answare hade all men after þere wille, Both certayn & sothe, pat soght for to wete. 13260 At þat orribill I asket angardly myche,

Of dethe, & of deire, as destyny willes;
And other ferlies full fele I fraynit of hit.
There spird I full specially in spede for to here,
13264 When dethe hade vs drepit, & our day comyn,

433

Book XXXIV.

She bears him a son,

and employs all her charms (fol. 202 a.)

and wiles to prevent him leaving the island.

By means of counter charms

he escapes from Circe and sails to the country of Calypso.

There the qwene with hir qwaintis qwaitid me The queen falls

in love with him.

to cacche :

Held me with hir, & my hede knightes,

Alse longe as hir list, with hir loue bounden.
13248 But hit noyet me noght for hir noble chere,
That ho made to my men with myrthes & Ioye.
At the last, fro pat lady, I lausyt myselfe
By wiles, & wit, & wo, pat I tholit.

13252 Hir craft & hir conyng by course I distroyet,

(fol. 203 a. See Note.)

He escapes and
sails away to
an island on
which there is a

temple of a
famous god.

He inquires
regarding death,
and the state
of souls after
death.

Book XXXIV.

He sets sail and passes to the island of the Sirens,

who are half
fish, half woman,

Their music is enchanting as 'the high song of bliss out of heaven.'

If the passing sailor listens to it, he is lulled asleep; and the Sirens sink his ship beneath

the waves.

(fol. 203 b.)

Ulysses and
his companions
are beset by

the Sirens; but

they resist

and overcome them.

And we went of this world, what worthe of our saules.

To all thing he answarit abilly me thoght,
But of our sawles, for-sothe, said he me noght.
13268 Than went I to watur, & a winde rose,

Shot furth my shippes on the shyre ythes.
To a perellus plase past I fro thens,

And sailet purgh a sea pere Syrens were in:
13272 ffro the navell netherward noght but a fisshe,
And made as a maidon fro pe myddes vp,
Bothe of face & of feturs as a fre woman.
The songe of po Syrens was selly to here!
13276 With a ledyn full lusty & likyng with-all,
The myrthe of paire mowthes musyk was like,
As to here out of heuyn the high song of blisse.
There folis pat faryn by fer costes,

13280 þat heron the melody, so mekill are masit in

hert,

Lettyn sailis doun slyde, & in slym fallyn: Nowthir stightill pai stere, ne no stithe ropes. So synkes in hor sawle the song of po bestis, 13284 Thai have no dainty of drynk, ne of dere

meites,

But derkon euon down on a depe slomur.
When the Sirens this sene, sone oponone
hai wyn to the wale ship, & walton all vnder;

13288 And the folke in the flete felly þai drownen :-—
pai dump in the depe, and to dethe passe.
My-self in thies Sirens sothely was stad,
With my felowes in fere, & my few shippes;

13292 And with crafte of my conyng I keppit vs

wele,

hat no wegh, þat I wist, hade wille for to slepe. We faght with hom felly, and flait hom so,

bat a thawsaund with threpe we throng vnto

dethe;

THE MISFORTUNES OF ULYSSES.

13296 And noght hedit hom with heryng for harme of oure-selfe.

ffro thies perels I past, & no payne tholit! But me happit full hard in a honde whyle! ffull swift to the swalgh me swinget the flode, 13300 But fyftene forlong failit I perof,

ffele of my fraght were before past,
Draghen into the depe, drownet belyue.

The more halfe of my men & my mayn shippis, 13304 There tynt I full tite & turnyt away.

pan I soght by the sea to Senyse I come, There a ferlyful folke I fond, & a cursid! Thai mvrtherit my men with hor mayn dynttes. 13308 The most parte of my pepull put to pe dethe. pai left me but lite pat on lyue were.

pai toke vs full tite, teghit oure hondes, And put vs in prison, pyne for to pole. 13312 All the godes þai grippit of the gret vessell,

And robbed vs full radly, right as hom liked.

With a few of my felowes, þat me fore with.

13316 No gode þai me gaf but graunt of my lyff,

And lete me go with my gyng on pe gray water!
Thus in pouert & payn I past on the sea,
With myche baret all aboute the bourders of
Iude.

13320 At the last, in this lond light am I here,
Naked, & nedefull, as pou now sees.

Now I told haue the torfer, þat me tide hase,
Syn I turnyt fro troy, of tempast & other."

435

At the last pai me lausit, by leue of our goddes, At last they are

liberated, and
sent away.
After many
wanderings he
comes to

Idomeneus,
naked and
needful.

13324 Idimius the du kyng, þat his dole herde, Hade pité of his pouert & plesit hym mykell. Moche gode he hym gaf of his gold red,

And refresshit his fflete with a fyn wille.

Book XXXIV.

Having passed
the perils of
Sirens about
fifteen furlongs,
half his men
and ships are lost.

He next sails to Trinacria, where the natives rob him and murder most of his men : then cast him and the other survivors into prison.

Idomeneus, pitying Ulysses, (fol. 20 a.) entertains him:

and on his

departure gives

13328 When the kyng oute of Crete cast hym to fare, him two ships

Book XXXIV.

well found, and sufficient money for the voyage.

Departing from
Crete he visits

king Alcinous,
who receives him
joyfully.

He is told how faithful Penelope had been.

His son Telemachus visits him, and confirms the

tidings: he informs him regarding the state of his realm.

(MS. has "kym.”)

At the request of Ulysses, the king assists him to drive out his enemies.

Two shippes full shene shot full of godys, And of syluer a sowme, sothely with-all, The kyng of the cost kyndly hym gaffe, 13332 pat might Suffise the syre forto saile home. han he prayet hym full prestly, þat he passe wold

To Antenor on all wise, pat ay had dessyred, bat was a kyng in his coste, & couet full mekyll,

13336 Vlixes, of long tyme, on lyue forto se.
pan laght he his leue, & the lord panked,
Past vnto port, puld vp his sayles,

To Anthenor the tore kyng turnyt belyue.

13340 And he, war of þat worthy, welcomet hym faire, Mykell cherissht the choise kyng with a chere noble,

And welcomd þat worthy, as he wele couthe. There were tythynges hym told of his triet realme,

13344 And of Penolope, his owne pure wyf,

hat had keppit hir full cloise as a cleane lady, With myche worship & wyn, þat hym wele lyked.

Thelamoc, his tru sun, tythinges had herd, 13348 pat his fader in fere was ferkit to lond

With Antenor the tru: he trussit hym thedur, And all tythinges hym told of his tried moder. How Enmyes were egurly entrid his rewme, 13352 ffor to hold hit with hond, & with hole strenght.

pan Vlixes full lyuely the lege (kyng) prayet,

To kaire in his company with knightes a few,
His fomen to fell with his fyne helpe:

13356 And he assenttid full sone, sowmet his pepull,

Past into port, puld vp pere sailes;

Hade wind at þere wille, & the watur calme,
Sailet to the Cité somyn in the night.

ULYSSES WELCOMED HOME.

13360 Euery lede to the lond laghtyn þere gayre.
pan hurlet into howses all the hed knightes,
By the ledyng of a lede, pat the land knew,
When the fomen were fast fallyn vppon slepe.
13364 There brittnet pai the buernes in hor bed naked,
And none left vpon lyue, þat hom lothe were.
Whan the day vp drogh, & the derke voidet,
han the past to the palas of the prise kyng.
13368 Bothe the souerayn hym-selfe & his syb frynd,
And were welcom, I-wis, on a wise faire !

A! what wise was Penolope proude at hir hert, The joy and
And gladly ho grippet to hir gode lord,

welcome of
Penelope.

13376 Gret gyftes þai hym gaffe of gold & of Syluer,

And moche worsshippet the wegh all his wale

pepull.

437

Book XXXIV.

(fol. 204 b.)

They reach the palace.

13372 pat ho had depely dessyret on dayes before

In sound for to se, mony sad winttur !

The pepull of the prise toun presit full thicke, The people flock
ffor to loke on hor lord longit full sore.

to the palace to
welcome their
lord, with gifts of
gold and silver.

There fourmyt þai a fest on a faire wise, ffele dayes to endure, as hom dere thoght. 13384 Antenor full tyte pan turnyt to his rewme, And Vlixes with lykyng leuyt at home. Mony dayes he endurit, all in due pes,

And had rest in his rewme right to his dethe.

He was enhaunsyt full high in his hed toune,

Nausicaa,
daughter of

And so treated with Antenor, þat Thelamoc Ulysses takes his son, 13380 Nauca, the noble doghter naitly can wed Of Tyde Antenor, as the tale saise.

Alcinous, to wed his own son Telemachus.

The joy and feasting that

followed.

Alcinous returns home.

Ulysses spends the
rest of his days
in peace.