THE DEATH OF ULYSSES. 453 Book XXXVI. of fish, vanishes. in doubt and sear. And a-boue hit ho bare, on the bright end, hand, and on the point of it a pan Corius & crafty, clene to be-holde. 13828 pan hit semet, for-sothe, þat þe selfe woman Wold haue faryn hym fro, but first ho hym said. meaning of the And the coniunctoun vniust is Joynit vs be- emblem and twene, 13832 Is care for to come, with a cold ende." Than waknet the wegh of his wan slepe, Ulysses awakes Myche dut he his dreme, & dred hym perfore. (fol. 211 b.) Anone as the night past, the noble kyng sent 13836 ffor Devinours full duly, & of depe wit. When þai comyn were to court, he the case told The Diviners 13810 He shuld duly be ded of his derfe sone. perish by the Hit fell hym by fortune of a foole end. han Vlixes the lege kyng, of his lyf feerd, Telamocus he toke, his tru sone, 13844 Stake hym in a stith house, & stuerne men to be shut up and closely guarded. kepe, Wallit full wele, with water aboute. Thus he keppit hym full cloise, & in care held, bat no whe to hym wan but wardens full sure. declare he will hand of his son. He causes 13818 Hit tide, as I told haue in tymes before, bat Vlixes with a lady in a lond dwellit, He hade a child with þat choise was a chere sone, 13852 bat Telagonius in his tyme truly was cald ; And none wist hit, I-wis, but his wale moder, When the ffreike had the fulle of xylene yeres, 13856 He fraynit at the fre, who his fader was, In what lond he was lent, & if he lyue hade. Telegonus anxiously inquires of his mother Circe, regarding his father. Book XXXVI. After much delay she informs him Ulysses is his father. Telegonus resolves to go in search of his father. Sho layuit hit full long, & list not to telle, ffor the sake of hir sone, lest he soght furth. 13860 This mild of his moder so mainly dessiret, þat ho said hym o sycher, all in soche wordes, Hat Vlixes the lord was his leue fader; And enfourmet hym fully of þe fre rewme, Thelagonius of the tale truly was fayne, He purpost hym plainly to pas ouer sea, The mon at his moder mekely toke leue, The lady hir leue son lyuely can pray, He sets sail. (fol. 212 a.) He arrives at Achaia, proceeds to the palace of Ulysses, and insists on entering. The buerne ynto bote busket onone, So long had he laburt, & the lord soght, 13876 hat he come to Acaya, þere the kyng dwellit. There arofe he full radly, raght to þe bonke, There were kepars full cant at the close yatis, 13880 pat no buere was so bold þe brigge for to entre. bai denyet hym onone o no kyn wise ; kynd lord. ffast prayet the prinse, all with pure wordis, 13884 Of ffrenship, & fauour, and in faire wise. ffull stuernly with strenght þai stourket hym þan, Bere hym bak on be brigge, bet hym with-all. Telagonius, full tyte, tenet þerwith. 13888 When he suffert the sore in his sad yre, He nolpit on with his Neue in the necke hole, hat the bon alto brast, & the buerne deghit. With the remnond full rade he rixlit unfaire, The guards drive him back harshly: he kills one of them, and scatters the others, TIIE DEATH OF ULYSSES. 455 Book XXXVI. armed men from within, He wrests a sword from one; wounded. Telemachus has 13892 With gronyng & grym gert hym to stynt, Cast hom ouer clanly at the cloise brigge. The noise brings 13896 Telagonius to take and tirne vnto dethe. ban he braid to the buerne on þe brig sone, killed, ind he is ffaght with tho fuerse men felly agayne, severely 13900 Tyll fyftene were fay of his fell dynttes, And he woundit full wickedly in were of his lyf. Ulysses thinks 13904 Hopet his sone was (out) slippit, þat set was in made his escape : (Ms, has "at") hold, And put downe his pepull as he past furth. To the noise oponone neghit þe kyng, Vne wode of his wit for the wale crye, 13908 With a dart vndull þat the duke bare, Bsizes a dart, Telegonus. 13912 He drof at hym with be dart, derit hym but litle, de .dly wound. 13916 Woundit hym wickedly to the wale dethe, bat he dusshet euen doun of his dede hurt. In great agony, who the youth is, 13920 And weike of his wordes, woinerond in speche, He spird at hom specially, as he speike might, follows I. 13927.) With a dart to the dethe, & deiret full mony : 13924 So hit meuit to his mynd in his mekill noye. Telagonius full tite at a tulke asket, and rushes at he reinembers his vision, and a ks (In MS. 1. 13923 he has so wounded Book XXXVI. Who the freike was in faith, þat fraynit his nome. The said the lord was Vlixes, þat he lost hade. Telegonus is 13928 When Telagon the tale of the tru herd, horrified to find hat his fader was fey of his fell dynt, his father Ulysses. He brait out with a birr of a bale chere, shuld ! Me to solas in sound, as a sone owe; þat my solas & socour sothely shuld be !” He falls to the 13936 With fainttyng & feblenes he fell to be ground All dowly, for dole, in a dede swone. He recovers; Whan he wackont of wo, he wan vpo fote, All-to rechit his robis & his ronke here; and his hair ; falls 13940 ffowle frusshet his face with his felle nailes. down at his han he fell to be fete of be fre kyng, father's feet, and declares himself. And told hym full tyte, þat Telagon he was, His son, þat on Circes sothely was getton :13944 “ þat þou gate on þi gamyn, as vngrate felle; And if þou degh of this dynt, by destany þus, Oure goddis graunt me þat grace, þut I go with, (fol. 218 a.) And no lengur to lyue in no lond after.” earth in a swoon, tears his clothes Ulysses tries to comfort him: sends for Telemachus, who, on seeing his father, desires to slay Telegonus. . 13948 When Vlixes þe lord lyuely persayuit , þat he to Circes was son, þat hym-self gat, He fauort hym more faithly, & frely comaundit, To sese of his sorow, and sobur his cher. And he come out of kepyng to his kid fadur; fforto dere for be deth of his du lord. With gronyng and greue gert hym to stynt ; brothir, Ulysses forhids TELEGONUS RETURNS HOME. 457 Book XXXVI. he is dead, Telemachus is to return hoine. And cheris hym choisly for chaunse vpon vrthe. 13960 Thre dais, in his dole, pe dughti con lyue, Within three days And then lefte he þe lif, & þe lond bothe. Ys he birit in a burgh, & a bright toumbe, 13964 And Telamoce his tor son takyn for kyng, made king; and ffull sesit of þe soile, with septur in hond; Telegonus is greatly honoured And Telagon, his tru brothir, trifelly honourit, at his court. With myche worchip & wele, in his wale court, 13968 Til a zer was full yore, yarkit to end, And a halfe, er þat end happit to fare, leng All his lyf in his lond, with lordchip to haue. 13972 pen letteris had þe lede fro his lefe modur, His mother, Circe, desires him fforto high hym in hast, & his home laite : So lefte he þe lond of his lele brothir, Soght hom to Cerces with solas ynogh. 13976 Miche worchip had þe whe of his wale frendis, Having received Gay giftys and grete, qwen he go wold. sents, he parts from Telemachus At þe partyng was pité of þo pure knyghtis, Miche wepyng & wail, wetyng of lere. Into Aulida afterword abli he come, Als fayne of the freike, as pe fre might, 13984 Myche solast hir the sight of hir sone þan, To se the lede vppon lyue, þat ho louet most : stremes, Euyn drownet in the depe, hir dole was the more, 13988 Or ellis fallyn in fight with þo felle buernes, At the slaght of his Syre in the syde londes. many rich pre and returns to Æea. * A few lines awanting. |