The Lay of Havelok the Dane Part 16

[Footnote 82: MS. re, _the _r_ being caught from the word above._ Cf. l. 1903.]

[Footnote 83: _Qu._ here. MS. he.]

[Headnote: ALL THE SIXTY THIEVES ARE SLAIN.]

+Daeit _w_o[84] recke! for he it s{er}uede, Hwat dide he ore were{n} he werewed; So longe hauede{n} he but and bet 1916 With neues under hernes set, [Sidenote: All sixty a.s.sailants are slain.]

at of o sixti men and on Ne wente er awey liues non.

[Footnote 84: MS. "?e," clearly miswritten for "?o" or "wo."

See ll. 2047, 296, 300, &c.]

[Headnote: UBBE ASKS BERNARD WHAT HAS HAPPENED.]

[Sidenote: At morn, there they lay like dogs.]

+ON e morwe{n}, h_w_an[85] it was day, 1920 Ilc on other wirwed lay, Als it were dogges at were{n} he{n}ged, And su{m}me leye i{n} dikes slenget, And su{m}me in gripes bi e her 1924 Drawen ware, and lat{en} ther.

Sket cam tiding intil ubbe, at hauelok hauede with a clubbe Of hise slawen sixti and on 1928 Sergaunz, e beste at mithe{n} gon.

[Sidenote: Ubbe comes to see what is the matter.]

"Deus!" quoth ubbe, "hwat may is be!

Bet{er}e his i nime[86] miself and se, at is baret on hwat is wold, 1932 a{n}ne i sende yunge or old.

For yif i sende him un-to, I wene me{n} sholde him shame do, And at ne wolde ich for no ing: 1936 I loue him wel, bi heuene king!

Me wore leuere i wore lame, a{n}ne men dide him ani shame, [Sidenote: [Fol. 213b, col. 2.]]

Or tok, or onne handes leyde, 1940 Vn-ornelike,[87] or same seyde."

He lep up on a stede lith, And with him mani a n.o.ble knith, And ferde forth un-to e tun, 1944 [Sidenote: He calls for Bernard Brown.]

And dide calle b{er}nard brun Vt of his hus, wan he er cam; And b{er}nard sone ageyn [him] nam, Al to-tused and al to-torn, 1948 Ner also naked so he was born, And al to-brised, bac and e: [Sidenote: Ubbe asks who has beaten him about so?]

Quoth ubbe, "b{er}nard, hwat is e?

Hwo haues e us ille maked, 1952 us to-riue{n}, and al mad naked?"

[Footnote 85: MS. "hhan," miswritten for "h?an," from which it differs very slightly.]

[Footnote 86: MS. inime.]

[Footnote 87: MS. Vn ornel?ke; _but _?_ should certainly be _i_._]

[Headnote: BERNARD RELATES HAVELOK'S PROWESS.]

[Sidenote: "Sixty thieves attacked me last night.]

+"Louerd,[88] m{er}ci," quot he sone, "To-nicht also ros e mone Come{n} her mo an sixti eues, 1956 With lokene copes, and wide sleues, Me forto robben, and to pine, And for to drepe me and mine.

Mi dore he broken up ful sket, 1960 And wolde me binden hond and fet.

Wan e G.o.deme{n} at sawe, [Sidenote: Havelok and his friends drove them off.]

Hauelok, and he at bi e wowe Leye, he stirte{n} up sone on-on, 1964 And su{m}me grop tre, and su{m} grop ston, And driue he{m} ut, ei he were{n} crus, So dogges ut of milne-hous.

Hauelok grop e dore-tre, 1968 And [at] a dint he slow he{m} thre.

He is e beste ma{n} at nede, at eu{er}e mar shal ride stede!

Als helpe G.o.d, bi mine wone, 1972 [Sidenote: He is worth a thousand men.]

A housend of me{n} his he worth one!

Yif he ne were, ich were nou ded, So haue ich don Mi soule red; But it is hof him mikel sinne; 1976 He made{n} him swilke woundes ri{n}ne, at of e aler-leste wounde Were a stede brouht to grunde.

[Sidenote: He has some bad wounds, more than twenty.]

He haues a wunde i{n} the side, 1980 With a gleyue, ful un-ride, And he haues on oru his arum, er-of is ful mikel haru{m}, [Sidenote: [Fol. 214, col. 1.]]

And he haues on oru his he, 1984 e vn-rideste at men may se, And oe[r] wundes haues he stro{n}ge, Mo than twenti swie longe.

But sien he hauede lauth e sor 1988 Of e wundes, was neuere bor at so fauth so he fauth a{n}ne; Was non at hauede e hern-panne So hard, at he ne dede alto-cruhsse, 1992 And alto-s.h.i.+uere, and alto-frusshe.

[Sidenote: He followed them like a dog does a hare.]

He folwede he{m} so hund dos hare, Daeyt on he wolde spare, at [he] ne made he{m} euerilk on 1996 Ligge stille so doth e ston: And er nis he nouth to frie, For oer sholde he make hem lye Ded, or ei him hauede slawen, 2000 Or alto-hewen, or al-to-drawen.

[Footnote 88: MS. Iouerd.]

+Louerd, haui no more plith Of at ich was us greed to-nith.

us wolde e theues me haue reft, 2004 But G.o.d-ank, he hauenet sure keft.

[Sidenote: But I fear Havelok is all but dead."]

But it is of him mikel scae: I woth at he bes ded ful rae."

[Headnote: THE OTHERS CONFIRM BERNARD'S STORY.]

+Quoth ubbe, "b{er}nard, seyst ou soth?" 2008 "Ya, sire, that i ne[89] lepe oth.

Yif y, louerd, a word leye, To-morwen do me hengen heye."

[Sidenote: The rest confirm Bernard's story.]

e burgeys at er-bi stode ore, 2012 Grundlike and grete oes swore, Litle and mikle, yunge and holde, at was soth, at b{er}nard tolde.

Soth was, at he wolde{n} him bynde, 2016 And trusse al at he mithen fynde Of hise, in arke or in kiste, at he mouthe i{n} seckes riste.

[Sidenote: "The thieves wanted to steal all he had.]

"Louerd, he hauede{n} al awey born 2020 His ing, and him-self alto-torn, But als G.o.d self barw him wel, at he ne tinte no catel.

Hwo mithe so mani sto{n}de ageyn, 2024 Bi nither-tale, knith or swein?

He were{n} bi tale sixti and ten, Starke laddes, stalwori men, [Sidenote: They were led on by one G[r]iffin Gall."]

And on, e mayster of he{m} alle, 2028 at was e name giffin[90] galle.

[Sidenote: [Fol. 214, col. 2.]]

Hwo mouthe agey[{n}][91] so mani sto{n}de, But als is ma{n} of f{er}ne londe Haueth he{m} slawe{n} with a tre? 2032 Mikel ioie haue he!

G.o.d yeue him mikel G.o.d to welde, Boe in tun, and ek in felde!

We[l][92] is set he etes mete." 2036 [Sidenote: Ubbe sends for Havelok, to dub him knight.]

Quoth ubbe, "doth him swie fete, at y mouthe his woundes se, Yf that he mouthe{n} heled[93] be.

For yf he mouthe couere yet, 2040 And gange{n} wel up-on hise fet, Mi-self shal dubbe him to knith, For-i at he is so with.

And yif he liuede, o foule theues, 2044 at were{n} of kaym kin and eues, He sholden hange bi e necke; Of here ded daeit wo recke, Hwan he yeden us on nithes 2048 To binde boe burgme{n} and knithes.

For bynderes loue ich neuere mo, Of hem ne yeue ich nouht a slo."

[Footnote 89: MS. ine.]

[Footnote 90: _Qu._ griffin.]

[Footnote 91: MS. agey.]

[Footnote 92: Cf. ll. 772, 907.]

[Footnote 93: MS. holed. See l. 2058.]

[Headnote: UBBE SENDS FOR HAVELOK AND TAKES HIM TO HIS CASTLE.]