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 houris' Amang the tendir odouris 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 splene', Awalk, luvaris, out of your slomering
Sé hou the lusty morrow dois up spring.
Me thocht fresche 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 lemys3. Slugird, scho said, awalk 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 weiris
A radius croun of rubeis scho him gaif, And said, In feild go furth and fend the laif1:
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 denty3
As the fresche Rois, of cullour reid and quhyt:
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 4 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;
Anamalit was the felde with all colouris, The perly droppis schuke in silvir schouris;
Quhill all in balme did branch and levis flete', 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.
Off 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.
Quhill preistis come in with bair schevin nekkis, Than all the Feyndis lewche, and made gekkis 1o, Blak-belly and Bawsy-Broun.
Lat sé, quoth he, now quha begynnis, With that the fowl 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 granis. Than Yre come in with sturt and stryfe; His hand wes ay upoun his knyfe, He brandeist lyk a beir5: 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:
northern participial form
1 waste. observe that ei represents several southern vowel sounds.
Nixt him in Dans come Cuvatyce Rute of all evill, and grund of vyce,, That nevir cowd be content: Catyvis, wrechis, and ockeraris1, Hud-pykis, hurdaris, and gadderaris, All with that warlo went :
Out of thair throttis thay schot on udder Hett moltin gold, me thocht, a fudder
As fyre-flawcht® maist fervent ; Ay as thay tumit 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 ", Mony slute daw 12, and slepy duddroun Him servit ay with sounyie 14. 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 counyie1.
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,
6 wild-fire. 7 emptied. 8 of all kinds. 11 tun-bellied sloven. 12 slothful wench
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