The Bruce
“Or that yhour purpos ende haf tane; 660
“Bot yhe sall thame ourdriff ilkane.
“And, that yhe trow this sekirly,
“My twa sonnys with yhow sall I
“Send to tak with yhow yhour travell; 664
“For I wat weill thai sall nocht fale
“Till be rewardit weill at rycht,
“Quhen yhe ar heyt on to yhour hicht.”
[644: E _land_.]
[Sidenote: 1307] _Of Astrology_]
[Sidenote: 1307] _Of Necromancy_]
The Kyng, that herd all hir carpyng, 668
Than thankit hir in mekill thing;
For scho confortit hym sumdeill:
The-quhethir he trowit nocht full weill
Hir spek, for he had gret ferly 672
How scho suld wit it sekirly:
As it wes wounderfull, perfay,
How ony man throu steris may
Knaw the thingis that ar to cum 676
Determinabilly, all or sum,
Bot gif that he enspirit war
Of him, that all thing evirmar
Seis in his presciens, 680
*As it war ay in his presens:
As David wes, and Jeromy,
Samuell, Joell, and Ysay,
That throu his haly grace can tell
Feill thingis that eftirward befell. 684
Bot thai prophetis so thyn ar sawin,
That nane in erd now is knawin.
Bot feill folk ar sa curious,
And to wit thingis sa covatous, 688
That thai, throu thair gret clergy,
Or ellis throu thair devilry,
On thir twyn maners makis fanding
Of thingis to cum to haf knawing. 692
Ane of thame is astrology,
Quhar-throu clerkis, that ar witty,
May knaw conjunctione of planetis,
And quhethir that thair cours thaim settis 696
In soft segis, or in angry;
And of the hevyn all halely
How that the disposicioune
Suld apon thingis wirk heir doune, 700
On regiones, or on climatis,
That wirkis nocht ay-quhar a-gatis,
Bot sum ar les, sum othir mair,
Eftir as thair bemys strekit air, 704
Owthir all evin, or on wry.
Bot me think it war gret mastry
Till ony astrolog to say
This sall fall heir, and on this day. 708
For thouch a man his liff haly
Studeit swa in astrology,
That on the sternis his hed he brak,
Wis men sais he suld nocht mak, 712
His liftyme, certane domys thre;
And yheit suld he ay dout quhill he
Saw how that it com till ending:
Than is thar na certane demyng. 716
Or gif thai men that will study
In the craft of astrology,
Knaw all mennis nacioune,
And als the constillacioune 720
That kyndly maneris giffis thaim til,
For till inclyne to gud or ill;
How that thai throu craft of clergy,
Or throu slicht of astrology, 724
Couth tell quhatkyn perell apperis
To thame that haldis kyndly maneris;
I trow that thai suld faill to say
The thingis that thame happyn may. 728
For quhethir sa men inclynit be
Till vertu or to mavite,
He may richt weill refrenyhe his will,
Outhir throu nurtour or throu skill, 732
And to the contrar turne him all.
And men has mony tymis seyn fall,
That men, kyndly to ivill giffin,
Throu thair gret wit away has drivin 736
Thair evill, and worthyn of gret renoune,
Magre the constillacioune.
As Arestotill, gif, as men redis,
He had followit his kyndly dedis, 740
He had beyn fals and covatous;
Bot his wit maid him virtuous.
And syn men may on this kyn wis
Wirk agane that cours, that is 744
Principal caus of thair demyng,
Me think thair dome na certane thing.
Nigramansy ane othir is,
That kennys men on syndry wis, 748
Throw stalward conjuraciones,
And throw exorcizaciones,
To ger spiritis to thame apeir,
And gif ansuer on seir maneir. 752
As quhilom did the Phitones,
That, quhen Saull abasit wes
Of the Philistianis mycht,
Rasit, throu hyr mekill slycht, 756
Samuelis sperit als tit,
Or in his sted the evill spirit,
That gaf rycht graith ansueir hir to.
Bot of hir-self rycht nocht wist scho. 760
And man is in-to dreding ay
Of thingis that he has herd say,
And namly of thingis to cum, quhill he
Have of the end the certante. 764
And sen thai ar in sic wenyng,
Fourouten certane witting,
Me think, quha sayis he knawis thingis
To cum, he makis gret gabbingis. 768
Bot quhethir scho that tald the King
How his purpos suld tak ending,
Wenit, or wist it witterly;
It fell eftir all halely 772
As scho said: for syne king wes he,
And of full mekill renomme.
[* Pinkerton, whose numbering of the lines is followed by Skeat, omits
this line by an oversight.]
[686: C has _That thair in erd now nane is knawin_ (S). Reading from
E. H has _nane in eird_.]
[753: C _That_ (S): _As_ E H.]
[764: _Knaw_ in E H.]
BOOK V.
Of the King’s Handseling in Carrick at his First Arrival.
This wes in vere, quhen wyntir tyde,
With his blastis hydwis to byde,
Wes ourdriffin: and byrdis smale,
As thristill and the nychtingale, 4
Begouth rycht meraly to syng,
And for to mak in thair synging
Syndry notis, and soundis sere,
And melody plesande to here. 8
And the treis begouth to ma
Burgeonys, and brycht blumys alsua,
To wyn the heling of thar hevede.
That wikkit wyntir had thame revede; 12
And all grevis begouth to spryng.
In-to that tyme the nobill King,
With his flot and a few menyhe,
Thre hundir I trow thai mycht weill be, 16
Is to the se, furth of Arane
A litill forrow the evyn gane.
[13: E _gressys_.]
[17: _Is_ in E. C and H give _Went_, which must be wrong. S alters to
_Wes_. _Cf._ 254.]
[Sidenote: 1307] _Who made the Fire?_]
Thai rowit fast with all thar mycht,
Till that apon thame fell the nycht, 20
That it wox myrk on gret maner,
Swa that thai wist nocht quhar thai wer.
For thai na nedill had na stane;
Bot rowyt alwayis in-till ane, 24
Stemmand alwayis apon the fyre,
That thai saw byrnand licht and schire.
It wes bot aventur that thame led:
And thai in schort tym swa thame sped, 28
That at the fyre arivit thai,
And went to land but mair delay.
And Cuthbert, that has seyn the fyre,
Wes full of angir and of ire, 32
For he durst nocht do it away;
And he wes alsua doutand ay
That his lord suld pas the se.
Tharfor thair cummyng watit he,36
And met thame at thair ariving.
He wes weill soyne brocht to the King,
That sperit at hym how he had done.
And he with sair hert tald him sone, 40
How that he fand nane weill willand,
Bot all war fais that evir he fand:
And at the lord the Persy,
With neir thre hundreth in cumpany, 44
Was in the castell thar besyde,
Fulfillit of dispit and pride.
Bot mair than twa part of his rowt
War herbreit in the toune tharout; 48
“And dispisis yhow mair, Schir King,
“Than men may dispis ony thing.”
Than said the Kyng, in full gret ire,
‘Tratour, quhy maid thou on the fyre?’ 52
“A! Schir,” said he, “sa God me se!
“That fyre wes nevir maid on for me.
“Na, or this nycht, I wist it nocht;
“Bot fra I wist it, weill I thocht 56
“That yhe, and haly yhour menyhe,
“In hy suld put yhow to the se.
“Forthi I com to meit yhow her,
“To tell peralis that may aper.” 60
[25: E _Sterand all tyme_.]
[27: E omits _that_, and with _aventur_ accented as in line 69 it
seems superfluous.]
The King wes of his spek angry,
And askit his preve men in hy,
Quhat at thame thocht wes best to do.
Schir Edward ferst answerd thar-to, 64
His brothir that wes so hardy,
And said: “I say yhow sekirly
“Thar sall na peralis that may be,
“Dryve me eftsonis to the se. 68
“Myne aventure heir tak will I,
“Quhethir it be eisfull or angry.”
‘Brothir,’ he said, ‘sen thou will sa,
‘It is gud that we sammyn ta 72
‘Dises or ese, or pyne or play,
‘Eftir as God will us purvay.
‘And sen men sais that the Persy
‘Myne heritage will occupy, 76
‘And his menyhe sa neir us lyis,
‘That us dispytis mony wys;
‘Ga we venge sum of the dispit,
‘And that we may haf don als-tit; 80
‘For thai ly trastly, but dreding
‘Of us, or of our heir-cummyng.
‘And thouch we slepand slew thaim all,
‘Repreif us tharof na man sall. 84
‘For weriour na fors suld ma,
‘Quhethir he mycht ourcum his fa
‘Throu strynth, or throu sutelte;
‘Bot at gud faith ay haldin be.’ 88
[65: E _brodyr_.]
Here the King secretly enters the Town and slays All.
Quhen this wes said thai went thare way;
And till the toun soyn cumin ar thai,
Sa prevely, bot noys making,
That nane persavit thair cummyng. 92
Thai scalyt throu the toune in hy,
And brak up dures sturdily,
And slew all that thai mycht ourtak:
And thai that na defens mycht mak, 96
Full pitwisly couth rair and cry;
And thai slew thame dispitwisly,
As thai that war in-to gud will
To venge the angir and the ill, 100
That thai and thairis had to thaim wrocht;
Thai with so felloun will thaim socht,
That thai slew thame evirilkane,
Outtak Makdowall hym allane, 104
That eschapit throu gret slicht,
And throu the myrknes of the nycht.
[Sidenote: 1307] _The Carrick Men are Overawed_]
In the castell the lorde Persy
Herd weill the noyis and the cry: 108
Sa did the men, that with-in wer,
And full effraytly gat thair ger.
But off thaim wes nane sa hardy,
That evir ischyt fourth to the cry. 112
In sic afray thai baid that nycht,
Till on the morn that day wes licht:
And than cesit in-to party
The noyis, slauchtir, and the cry. 116
The King gert be departit then
All haill the reif amang his men;
And duelt all still thair dais thre.
Sic hansell to the folk gaf he, 120
Richt in the first begynnyng,
Newly at his arivyng.
[109-112: From E. C omits by an oversight, reading on from the second
_cry_.]
A Certain Lady, a Relative of the King, comes to him with Forty Men.
Qwhen at the King and his folk ware
Arivit, as I tald yhow are, 124
A quhill in Carrik lendit he,
To se quha frend or fa wald be.
Bot he fand litill tendirnes:
And nocht-for-thi the pepill wes 128
Inclynit to hym in-to party;
Bot Inglis men sa angirly
Led thame with danger and wyth aw,
That thai na frendschip durst him schaw. 132
Bot a lady of that cuntre,
That wes till hym in neir degre
Of cosynage, wes wounder blith