'currente calamo' on such various themes with an almost fatal fluency. His greatest admirers have confessed that 'he has written so many verses that they cannot always be expected to reach a very high standard.' Passages in The Dreme, Squire Meldrum, and The Monarchie, may for grace of description be set beside any corresponding to them in the works of his predecessors; but his writings are in the main more distinguished for trenchant sense, vivacity, courage, and observing power than by high imagination. He himself speaks of his 'raggit rural verse,' and he willingly passes from more delicate fancies to discourse on the grave matters with the rehearsal of which he desires rather to edify than to delight his readers. His style is generally incisive, and though frequently disfigured by 'aureate' terms, leaves us little room to doubt of the author's meaning. Unlike Dunbar, Lyndesay may almost be said to have been born a Protestant ; but he never ventured beyond the range of the leading Reformers of his age. He is a Calvinist, more tolerant of sins of blood than errors of brain, rejoicing like Tertullian over the agonies of the damned. His mission was to amuse and arouse the people of his time, to affront them with a reflection of their vices, and to set to rough music the thunder and the whirlwind of sixteenthcentury iconoclasm.

J. NICHOL

FROM THE PROLOGUE TO THE DREME'

Efter that I the lang wynteris nycht

Had lyne walking', in to my bed, allone,
Throuch hevy thocht, that no way sleip? I mycht,
Rememberyng of divers thyngis gone:

So, up I rose, and clethit me anone;

Be this, fair Tytane with his lemis lycht

Ouer all the land had spred his baner brycht.

With cloke and hude I dressit me belyve*,

With dowbyll schone, and myttanis on my handis;
Howbeit the air was rycht penetrative,

6

Yit fure I furth, lansing ouirhorte" the landis,
Toward the see, to schorte me on the sandis;
Because unblomit was baith bank and braye,
And so, as I was passing be the waye,

I met dame Flora, in dule weid dissagysit",
Quhilk into May wes dulce, and delectabyll;
With stalwart stormis, hir sweitnes wes supprisit ;
Hir hevynlie hewis war turnit into sabyll,

8

Quhilkis umquhile war to luffaris amiabyll.
Fled frome the froste, the tender flouris I saw,
Under dame Naturis mantyll, lurking law".

Pensyve in hart, passing full soberlie

Unto the see, ordward fure anone;

The see was furth, the sand wes smooth and drye;
Then up and doune I musit myne allone,
Tyll that I spyit ane lyttill cave of stone,

Heych in ane craig: upwart I did approche.
But tarying, and clam up in the roche:

1 waking.

rays.

⚫ lovers.

2 Observe the use of ei for several southern vowel-sounds

• at once.

5 athwart.

⚫ low.

• amuse.

disguised

And purposit, for passing of the tyme,
Me to defend from ociositie

With pen and paper to register in ryme
Sum mery mater of Antiquitie :

Bot Idelnes, ground of iniquitie,

Scho maid so dull my spreitis, me within,
That I wyste nocht at quhat end to begin.

But satt styll in that cove, quhare I mycht see
The wolteryng of the wallis' up and down;
And this fals Warldis instabylytie

Unto that sce makkand' comparisoun,
And of this Warldis wracheit variatioun
To thame that fixis all thair hole intent,
Consideryng quho most had suld most repent.

So, with my hude my hede I happit warme,
And in my cloke I fauldit boith my feit;

I thocht my corps with cauld suld tak no harme,
My mittanis held my handis weill in heit;
The skowland craig me coverit frome the sleit :
Thare styll I satt, my bonis for to rest,
Tyll Morpheus, with sleip, my spreit opprest.

3

So throw the bousteous blastis of Eolus,

And throw my walkyng on the nycht before, And throw the seyis movyng marvellous

Be Neptunus, with mony route and rore, Constrainit I was to sleip, withouttin more: And quhat I dremit, in conclusion

I sall you tell, ane marvellous Visioun.

waves.

Northern participial form.

• boisterous

FROM 'THE TESTAMENT AND COMPLAYNT OF THE PAPINGO

Kyng James the First, the patroun of prudence,

Gem of ingyne, and peirll of polycie,

Well of Justice, and flude of eloquence,

Quhose vertew doith transcende my fantasie
For tyll discryve; yit quhen he stude most hie
Be fals exhorbitant conspiratioun

That prudent Prince was pieteouslie put down.

Als, James the Secunde, roye of gret renoun,
Beand in his superexcelland glore,
Throuch reakless schuttyng of one gret cannoun
The dolent deith, allace! did hym devore.
One thyng thare bene, of quhilk I marvell more,
That Fortune had at hym sic mortall feid'
Throuch fyftie thousand, to waill2 him by the heid.
My hart is peirst with panes, for to pance3,
Or wrytt, that courtis variatioun

Of James the Third, quhen he had governance,
The dolour, dreid, and desolatioun,

The change of court and conspiratioun ;
And quhon that Cochrane, with his companye,
That tyme in courte clam so presumpteouslye.

*

*

*

*

*

Allace! quhare bene that rycht redoutit roye,
That potent prince, gentyll King James the Feird'

I pray to Christe his saule for to convoye :

Ane greater nobyll rang nocht in to the eird.

5

O Atropus! warye we maye thy weird;

For he wes myrrour of humylitie,

Lode sterne and lampe of liberalytic.

And of his court, throuch Europe sprang the fame,
Of lustie Lordis and lufesum Ladyis ying,
Tryumphand tornayis, justyng, and kychtly game,
With all pastyme, accordyng for ane kyng:
He wes the glore of princelie governyng,

Quhilk, throuch the ardent lufe he had to France,
Agane Ingland did move his ordinance.

Of Floddoun Feilde the rewyne to revolve,
Or that most dolent daye for tyll deplore,
I nyll, for dreid that dolour yow dissolve,
Schaw how that prince, in his tryumphand glore,
Distroyit was, quhat nedeith proces more?
Nocht be the vertew of Inglis ordinance
Bot, be his awin wylfull mysgovernance.

FROM 'ANE SATYRE OF THE THREI ESTAITIS.' Veritie.

For our Christ's saik, I am richt weill content To suffer all thing that sall pleis his grace, Howbeit, ye put ane thousand till torment, Ten hundreth thowsand sall ryse into thair place. [Veritie sits down on hir knies and sayis:]

Yet up, thow slepis all too lang, O Lord,

And mak sum ressonabill reformatioun,

On thame that dois tramp down thy gracious word, And hes ane deidlie indignatioun,

At them, quha maks maist trew narratioun:
Suffer me not, Lord, mair to be molest,

Gude Lord, I mak the supplicatioun,
With thy unfriends let me nocht be supprest.

*

Pardoner.

My patent pardouns, ye may se,
Cum fra the Cane of Tartarei,
Weill seald with oster schellis ;
Thocht ye have na contritioun,
Ye sall have full remissioun,

With help of buiks and bellis.
Heir is ane relict, lang and braid,
Of Fine Macoult the richt chaft blaid',
With teith and al togidder :

1 1 jaw-bone.