_Quhou finaly Scibilla and Ene
Com to the plesand plane of Elyse._
Fra that the ancyant nun of Dan Phebus
Thir wordys endyt had, and spokkyn thus;
Haue done, quod scho, now tak thi way expres,
Perform thy wark quhilk thou begunnyn hes:
Speid ws fordwart; for ȝondir, lo, I se 5
Of Plutois chymmys the byg wallys hie,
Forgyt of irne full craftely and bet
Be the Ciclopes furth of thar furnace het;
Eik I behald, lo, heir forgane our face,
Tha portis with thar stalwart bow or brace, 10
Quhar our instructioun techis ws ful plane
This presand thar to leif and goldyn grane.
Thus said scho; and onon tharwith baith tway
Gan walkyn furth throwout the darn way,
And sone our passyt hes the myddill space, 15
Approchyng to the portis of that place.
Eneas baldly sprang in at the ȝet,
Hys body strynkillit, or a litill wet,
With cleir spryngand watir ran tharby;
Forgane thame eik, at the entre, in hy 20
The goldyn branch he stykkis vp far and weill.
This beand done at last, and euery deil
Perfurnyst langyng the goddes gyft gay,
Ontil a plesand grond cummyn ar thai,
With battil gyrs, fresch herbys, and beyn swardis,
The lusty orchardis and the hailsum ȝardis
Of happy sawlys and weil fortunat,
To blissyt wightis the placis preparat.
Thir feildis beyn largiar, and hevynnys brycht 5
Ravestis thame with purpur schynand lycht:
The starnys, for this place conuenient,
Knawis weil thar son and obseruys his went.
Sum thar, amyd the gresy planys greyn,
Into palestral plays thame betweyn 10
Thar membris gan exers, and hand for hand
Thai fal to werslyng on the goldyn sand,
Assayand honest gemmys thame to schort:
Sum other hantyng gan ane other sport,
As forto dansyng, and to leid the ryng, 15
To syng ballatis, and go in karalyng.
Thar was alsso the preist and menstrale sle,
Orpheus of Trace, in syd rob harpand hie,
Playand proportionys and spryngis dyvyne
Apon his harp, sevyn diuers sovndis fyne; 20
Now with gymp fyngris doyng stryngis smyte,
And now with subtel evyr poyntalis lyte.
Heir was the nobil kyn and ancyant strynde,
The maist dowchty lynage sprang be kynde
Fra king Tewcer, campyones souerane, 25
Into mair happy ȝeris born ilkane:
Thar was Ilus, and eik Assaracus,
And the begynnar of Troy, Schir Dardanus.
On fer Eneas and als Sibilla
Awondrit war, and mervellis baith twa 30
The armour and the men for to behald,
And voyd charyotis of thir chyftanys bald.
Thar sperys stikkyng in the erd dyd stand;
Wydquhar al lows owr feildis and the land
Pasturyt thar horsis, rakand thame fast by: 5
For quhat plesour of armys or chevalry,
Or quhat cuyr to addres thar cart or wedis,
To fedyng and to dant thar sleik swail stedis,
Thai hantit quhil thai levyt heir alyve,
The sammyn solace, be thai man or wyfe, 10
Ȝit doith thame follow vndir the erth stad.
And lo, ane other sort, ful blyth and glaid,
On athir hand behaldis Eneas,
At banket on the greyn herbys set was,
In loving of the goddis joyusly 15
Ympnys of pryce, triumphe, and victory,
All syngand glaid togydder in falloschip,
And pryncipaly Apollo to worschip:
Within a wod of lawrer greyn thai dwell,
Fragrant of sweit odour and hailsum smell, 20
Quhar throw the schawis scheyn in strandis seir
Erydanus, the hevynly ryver cleyr,
Flowys contyrmont and vpwart to the lift.
Within this place, in al plesour and thryft,
Ar hail the pissance quhilk, in just batal, 25
Slane in defens of thar kynd cuntre fell;
And al thai preistis and religius wightis
Quhilk levyt chaste cleyn lyfe, as to thame rycht is;
And al godlyke devote prophetis trew,
That suythfast thyng worthy to Phebus schew; 30
And thai quhilkis, by thar craftys or science fyne,
Fund by thar subtel knawlage and engyne,
Thar lyfe illumynat and annornyt cleir;
And tha by merytabil dedis and gyftis seir
That maid otheris hald thame in memory: 5
Of al thir war the tymplis by and by
Arrayt with a fresch garland snaw quhite.
And as thai flokkit abowt Ene, als tyte
Syk wys onto thame carpys Sibilla;
Bot principaly to Museus, ane of tha, 10
Was stad amyddis of the mekill rowt,
As sche beheld hym with big schulderis stout:
O ȝhe so happy sawlys, tellith me,
And thou, maste souerane poet, schaw, quod sche,
In quhat regioun and place bene Anchises? 15
Hyddir for his saik come we, and with gret pres
Hes oursalit of hell the gret fludis.
This ryall lord in few wordis concludis,
And ansuerit thus; frend, certane dwelling nane
In this cuntre haue we, bot all ourane 20
Walkys and lugis in thir schene wod schawys,
Endlang thir ryver bankis all on rawys;
Thar bene our settis, and beddis of fresch flowris
In soft bene medowis by cleir strandis all howris
Our habitatioun is and residens. 25
Bot gif ȝour mynd langis to haue presens
Of Anchises, pas vp ȝone swyre fut het,
I sall ȝou lyghtly in the hie way set.
And sayand thus, befor thame furth went he,
And can thame schaw, apon the hill on hie, 30
The schynand planys full of all plesance.
Agane returnys he, and thai avans,
Fra thyne discending from the hillis hyght,
Quhar thai at last of Anchises gat sycht.