FROM 'THE THRISSILL AND THE ROIs.'
Quhen Merche wes with variand windis past
And Appryle had, with her silver schouris,
Tane leif at Nature with ane orient blast,
And lusty May, that muddir is of flouris,
Had maid the birdis to begyn thair houris1
Amang the tendir flouris reid and quhyt,
Quhois armony to heir it wes delyt :
In bed at morrow, sleiping as I lay,
Me thocht Aurora, with hir cristall ene
In at the window lukit by the day,
And halsit me, with visage paill and grene;
On quhois hand a lark sang fro the splene3,
Awalk, luvaris, out of your slomering
Sé hou the lusty morrow dois up-spring.
Me thocht fresch May befoir my bed up stude,
In weid depaynt of mony diverss hew,
Sobir, benyng, and full of mansuetude
In brycht atteir of flouris forgit new
Hevinly of color, quhyt, reid, broun and blew,
Balmit in dew, and gilt with Phebus bemys;
Quhyll all the house illumynit of her lemys *.
Slugird, scho said, awak annone for schame,
And in my honour sum thing thou go wryt;
The lark hes done the mirry day proclame,
To raise up luvaris with confort and delyt ;
Yit nocht incressis thy curage to indyt,
Quhois hairt sum tyme hes glaid and blisfull bene,
Sangis, to mak undir the levis grene.
Than callit scho all flouris that grew on feild
Discirnyng all thair fassionis and effeiris:
Upone the awfull Thrissil scho beheld
And saw him kepit with a busche of speiris ;
Considering him so able for the weiris1
A radius 2 croun of rubeis scho him gaif,
And said, In feild go furth and fend the laif3 :
And sen thou art a King, thou be discreit;
Herb without vertew thow hald nocht of sic pryce
As herb of vertew and of odour sueit;
And lat no nettill vyle, and full of vyce,
Hir fallow to the gudly flour-de-lyce ;
Nor latt no wyld weid, full of churlicheness,
Compair hir till the lilleis nobilness.
Nor hald non udir flour in sic denty 5
As the fresche Rois, of cullour reid and qunyt:
For gife thow dois, hurt is thyne honesty;
Considring that no flour is so perfyt,
So full of vertew, plesans, and delyt,
So full of blisful angeilik bewty,
Imperiall birth, honour and dignité.
Bryght as the stern of day begouth to schyne
Quhen gone to bed war Vesper and Lucyne,
I raise, and by a rosere did me rest :
Up sprang the goldyn candill matutyne,
With clere depurit bemes cristallyne
Glading the mery foulis in thair nest;
Or Phebus was in purpur cape revest
Up raise the lark, the hevyn's menstrale fyne
In May, in till a morow myrthfullest.
Full angellike thir birdis sang thair houris
Within thair courtyns grene, in to thair bouris,
Apparalit quhite and red, wyth blomes suete ;
3 rest. * match herself. 5 favour. 6
Anamalit was the felde with all colouris,
The perly droppis schuke in silvir schouris ;
Quhill all in balme did branch and levis flete1,
To part fra Phebus did Aurora grete2;
Hir cristall teris I saw hyng on the flouris
Quhilk he for lufe all drank up with his hete.
For mirth of May, wyth skippis and wyth hoppis,
The birdis sang upon the tender croppis,
With curiouse notis, as Venus chapell clerkis;
The rosis yong, new spreding of their knoppis 3
War powderit brycht with hevinly beriall droppis
Throu bemes rede, birnyng as ruby sperkis ;
The skyes rang for schoutyng of the larkis.
THE DANCE OF THE SEVIN DEIDLY SYNNIS.
Of Februar the fyiftene nycht,
Full lang befoir the dayis lycht,
I lay in till a trance;
And than I saw baith Hevin and Hell:
Me thocht, amangis the feyndis fell,
Mahoun gart cry ane Dance
Off Schrewis that were nevir schrevin,
Aganis the feist of Fasternis evin 5
To mak thair observance;
He bad gallandis ga graith a gyiss
And kast up gamountis in the Skyiss
As varlotis dois in France.
Heilie Harlottis on hawtane wyiss
Come in with mony sindrie gyiss,
Bot yit lucheR nevir Mahoun,
Quhill9 preistis come in with bair schevin nekkis,
Than all the Feyndis lewche, and made gekkis 10,
Blak-belly and Bawsy-Broun.
Lat sé, quoth he, now quha begynnis,
With that the fowll Sevin Deidly synnis
Begowth to leip at anis.
And first of all in Dance was Pryd,
With hair wyld bak, and bonet on syd,
Lyk to mak vaistie1 wanis 2;
And round abowt him, as a quheill,
Hang all in rumpillis to the heill
His kethat for the nanis :
Mony prowd trumpour with him trippit
Throw skaldand fyre, ay as thay skippit
Thay gyrnd with hyddous granis3.
Than Yre come in with sturt and stryfe;
His hand wes ay upoun his knyfe,
He brandeist lyk a beir:
Bostaris, braggaris, and barganeris,
Eftir him passit in to pairis,
All bodin in feir of weir
In jakkis, and scryppis and bonettis of steill
Thair leggis wer chenyeit to the heill,
Frawart was their affeir:
Sum upoun uder with brandis beft",
Sum jagit uthers to the heft
With knyvis that scherp cowd scheir.
Nixt in the Dance followite Invy,
Fild full of feid and fellony,
Hid malyce and dispyte.
For pryvie hatrent that tratour trymlit;
5 They grinned with hideous groans. 9 petulant fellow.
northern participial form. arrayed. 7 struck.
Nixt him in Dans come Cuvatyce
Rute of all evill, and grund of vycc,
That nevir cowd be content :
Catyvis, wrechis, and ockeraris',
Hud-pykis 2, hurdaris 3, and gadderaris 1,
All with that warlo went :
Out of thair throttis thay schot on udder
Hett moltin gold,
As fyre-flawcht
Ay as thay tumit
me thocht, a fudder 5
maist fervent ;
them of schot,
Feyndis fild thame new up to the thrott
With gold of allkin prent.
Syne Sweirnes, at the secound bidding,
Come lyk a sow out of a midding,
Full slepy wes his grunyie 10,
Mony sweir bumbard belly huddroun 11,
Mony slute daw 12, and slepy duddroun
Him servit ay with sounyie11.
He drew thame furth in till a chenyie
And Belliall with a brydill renyie
Evir lascht thame on the lunyie 15
In Dans thay war so slaw of feit,
Thay gaif thame in the fyre a heit,
And made them quicker of counyie 1o.
Than Lichery, that lathly corse,
Came berand 17 lyk a bagit horse,
And Ydilness did him leid;
Thair wes with him ane ugly sort,
And mony stynkand fowll tramort
That had in syn bene deid:
Quhen they were enterit in the Dance,
Thay wer full strenge of countenance,
Lyke tortchis byrnand reid,
properly of 128 lbs. weight.
9 sloth. 10 grunt.
7 emptied. 8 of all kinds.
"heavy tun-bellied sloven. 12 slothful wench.
apprehension. snorting. corpse.
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