298 THE BOOK OF SCOTTISH POEMS. (fr Dilligence. Admitted by the Pape: Whilk ye shall see and grape:1 Among the wives with wrinks and wiles, Yea all the crafts I ken, perqueir, J. Cou доиз радий As I was teachèd by ane friar But now, alas! our great abusion Of all credence now I am quite, That reads the New Testament. Dool fall the brain that has it wrought, Be sure of priestis thou will get nae sup- Sae fall them that the book hame brought: port. Als, I pray to the rood, Had been smoorde 5 in their cud. Were never read in kirk, But, amongst friars into the mirk, [Here shall he lay down his gear upon ane board, and say:] My patent pardons, ye may see, Though ye have nae contrition, With help of books and bells. Was slain into Balquhidder. Of good hemp soft and sound : Whilk bare his holy bell: He shall never gang to hell, Without he be of Belial born; Maisters, trow ye that this be scorn? Come win this pardon, come. Who loves their wives not with their heart, I have power them for till part: Me think you deaf and dumb. Has none of you crust wicked wives, That holds you untill sturt and strives, Come take my dispensation : Of that cumber5 I shall make you quite, Howbeit yourselves be in the wyte, And make ane false narration. Come, win the pardon; now let see, For meal, for malt or for money, For cock, hen, goose, or gryce Of relicts, here I have ane hunder. Why come ye not? this is ane wonder I trow ye be not wise. separated, much to their mutual satisfaction, by the performance of a ceremony of the coarsest possible description. Then the Pardoner's boy, Wilkin, makes his appearance, and gives us a peep into the secret of relic manufacture.] Wilkin. Hoaw! maister, hoaw! Where are ye now? Pardoner. I am here, Wilkin, widdie fow.1 Wilkin. Sir, I have done your bidding, For I have found here ane great horse bone, Ane fairer saw ye never none, Upon dame Flesher's midding. Sir, will ye rule 2 this relic weel, [Here shall PAUPER rise and rax him.]* Pauper. What thing was yon, that I heard crack 3 and cry? I have been dreamand and drivland of my kye. With my right hand my whole body I sain, 4 Saint Bride, Saint Bride, send me my kye again! I see standand yonder ane holy man, morn. [Here shall he sain him with his relics.] Now lose thy purse, and lay down thy offrand,1 Pardoner. Ane thousand year, I lay upon thy head, With totiens quotiens: now, make na mair plead:1 Thou hast received thy pardon now already. Pauper. But I can see nothing, sir, by our lady: Forsooth, maister, I trow I be not wise To pay ere I have seen my merchandise. That ye have gotten my groat full sair Irue: Sir, whether is your pardon black or blue? And thou shall have my pardon even frae Maister, sen ye have tane frae me my hand. cunzie, 2 With ropes, and relics, I shall thee sain My merchandise shew me, withouten sunzie ;3 Pauper. That he should promise me ane gay pardon, When I am there, curst carl, where shall Not into heaven, but rather into hell: When thou art come my dolours till abate, Trows thou, butcher, that I will buy blind lambs: Give me my groat; the devil dryte in thy gams. Pardoner. Swith! stand aback! I trow this man be mangèd : 1 Thou gets not this, carl, though thou should be hanged. Pauper. Give me my groat weel bound intill ane clout, Or, by God's bread, Robin 2 shall bear ane rout. [Here shall they fight, and PAUPER shall cast down the board and relics in the water.] JOHN BELLENDEN. 1492 (?)—1550 (?). It was probably during his temporary alienation from court that Lindsay, in the "Complaint of the Papyngo," describes him as THIS learned ecclesiastic is more dis- | inconstancy of court favour. "Ane plant of poetis, called Ballendyne, It would not be long after this that he was recalled, for, in 1530, and the three following years, it is shown by the Treasurer's accounts that he was engaged upon the Translation of Livy, and Boece's History of Scotland, by Mad. 2 Robin Rome-raker, the Pardoner. request of the King. For the former, which only extended to the first five books, he was paid £36, and for the latter £78. But besides these payments, he was promoted to the Archdeaconry of Moray, and, about the same time, was made a Canon of Ross. A POLITICAL HOMILY. I. Thou martial book! pass to the noble King James the Fift, my Sovereign maist harrows II. Has filled her granges 3 full of every corn; The translation of Boece was printed soon after it was written, but the year is not given in the title-page or elsewhere. Livy remained in MS. till 1822, when it was published in the complete edition of his works edited by Maitland, from the MS. in the Advocate's Library. These two works, says While busy Ceres with her plough and Dr Irving, "exhibit the most ample specimen of ancient Scottish prose that has descended to our times, and are distinguished beyond most others by their fluency and neatness of style; nor can we peruse these translations without being convinced that the writer's learning and talents had qualified him for original compositions." The "Epistle to James V.," which prefaces Boece's History, is written with a manly boldness and dignity, which is creditable to both the King and the author. It also conveys a high idea of his skill and taste in the art of poetical composition. Bellenden was strenuously opposed to the Reformation; but having gone to Rome, he is said to have died there in 1550, before that mighty current of religious and political thought had swept away that ecclesiastical system which, if all its priesthood were Bellendens, would at least have presented a more venerable aspect to posterity. arrows Has all the cloudis of the heavenis shorn, III. Sen thou art drawen sae compendius And wha has been of chivalry the rose. |