Robert Henryson's The testament of Cresseid

The complaint of cresseid

Lines 407 through 504

O sop of sorrow, sonkin into cair: Line 407 O catiue cresseid, for now and euer mair, Line 408 Gane is thy ioy and all thy mirth in eird, Line 409 Of all blyithnes now art thow blaiknit bair. Line 410 Thair is na salue may saif the of thy sair, Line 411 Fell is thy fortoun, wickit is thy weird: Line 412 Thy blys is baneist, and thy baill on breird, Line 413 Vnder the eirth, god gif i grauin wer: Line 414 Quhair nane of grece nor zit of troy micht heird Line 415

Quhair is thy chalmer wantounlie besene? Line 416 With burely bed and bankouris browderit bene, Line 417 Spycis and wyne to thy collatioun, Line 418 The cowpis all of gold and siluer schene: Line 419 The sweit meitis, seruit in plaittis clene, Line 420 With saipheron sals of ane gude sessoun: Line 421 Thy gay garmentis with mony gudely goun, Line 422 Thy plesand lawn pinnit with goldin prene: Line 423 All is areir, thy greit royall renoun. Line 424

Quhair is thy garding with thir greissis gay? Line 425 And fresche flowris, quhilk the quene floray: Line 426 Had paintit plesandly in euerie pane, Line 427 Quhair thou was wont full merilye in may, Line 428 To walk and tak the dew be it was day Line 429 And heir the merle and mawis mony ane, Line 430 With ladyis fair in carrolling to gane. Line 431 And se the royall rinkis in thair array: Line 432 In garmentis gay garnischit on euerie grane Line 433

Thy greit triumphand fame and hie honour Line 434 Quhair thou was callit of eirdlye wichtis flour. Line 435 All is decayit, thy weird is welterit so. Line 436 Thy hie estait is turnit in darknes dour. Line 437 This lipper ludge tak for thy burelie bour. Line 438 And for thy bed tak now ane bunche of stro, Line 439 For waillit wyne, and meitis thou had tho, Line 440 Tak mowlit breid,peirrie and ceder sour: Line 441 Bot cop and clapper, now is all ago. Line 442

My cleir voice, and courtlie carrolling, Line 443 Quhair i was wont with ladyis for to sing. Line 444 Is rawk as ruik, full hiddeous hoir and hace, Line 445 My plesand port all vtheris precelling: Line 446 Of lustines i was hald maist conding. Line 447

Line 447 Now is deformit the figour of my face, Line 448 To luik on it, na leid now lyking hes: Line 449 Sowpit in syte, i say with sair siching, Line 450 Ludgeit amang the lipper leid allace. Line 451

O ladyis fair of troy and grece attend, Line 452 My miserie, quhilk nane may comprehend. Line 453 My friuoll fortoun, my infelicitie: Line 454 My greit mischeif quhilk na man can amend Line 455 Be war in tyme approchis neir the end, Line 456 And in zour mynd ane mirrour mak of me: Line 457 As i am now, peraduenture that ze Line 458 For all zour micht may cum to that same end, Line 459 Or ellis war, gif ony war may be. Line 460

Nocht is zour fairnes bot ane faiding flour, Line 461 Nocht is zour famous laud and hie honour. Line 462 Bot wind inflat in vther mennis eiris. Line 463 Zour roising reid to rotting sall retour: Line 464 Exempill mak of me in zour memour, Line 465 Quhilk of sic thingis wofull witnes beiris, Line 466 All welth in eird, away as wind it weiris Line 467 Be war thairfor, approchis neir the hour: Line 468 Fortoun is fikkill, quhen scho beginnis & steiris Line 469

Thvs chydand with hir drerie destenye, Line 470 Weiping, scho woik the nicht fra end to end. Line 471 Bot all in vane, hir dule, hir cairfull cry Line 472 Micht not remeid, nor zit hir murning mend. Line 473 Ane lipper lady rais and till hir wend, Line 474 And said: quhy spurnis thow aganis the wall, Line 475 To sla thy self, and mend nathing at all? Line 476

Sen thy weiping dowbillis bot thy wo. Line 477 I counsall the mak vertew of ane neid. Line 478 To leir to clap thy clapper to and fro, Line 479 And leir efter the law of lipper leid. Line 480 Thair was na buit, bot furth with thame scho zeid, Line 481 Fra place to place, quhill cauld and hounger sair: Line 482 Compellit hir to be ane rank beggair. Line 483

That samin tyme of troy the garnisoun, Line 484 Quhilk had to chiftane worthie troylus. Line 485 Throw ieopardie of weir had strikken doun Line 486 Knichtis of grece in number meruellons, Line 487 With greit tryumphe and laude victorious Line 488 Agane to troy richt richt royallie thay raid Line 489 The way quhair cresseid with the lipper baid. Line 490

Seing that companie yai come all with ane steuin Line 491 Thay gaif ane cry, and schuik coppis gude speid. Line 492 Said worthie lordis, for goddis lufe of heuin, Line 493 To vs lipper part of zour almous deid. Line 494 Than to thair cry nobill troylus tuik heid, Line 495 Hauing pietie, neir by the place can pas: Line 496 Quhair cresseid sat, not witting quhat scho was. Line 497

Than vpon him scho kest vp baith hir ene, Line 498 And with ane blenk it come into his thocht, Line 499 That he sumtime hir face befoir had sene. Line 500 Bot scho was in sic plye he knew hir nocht, Line 501 Zit than hir luik into his mynd it brocht Line 502 The sweit visage and amorous blenking Line 503 Of fair cresseid sumtyme his awin darling. Line 504

Lines 505 through 617

Na wonder was, suppois in mynd that he Line 505 Tuik hir figure sa sone, and lo now quhy. Line 506 The idole of ane thing, in cace may be Line 507 Sa deip imprentit in the fantasy: Line 508 That it deludis the wittis outwardly, Line 509 And sa appeiris in forme and lyke estait, Line 510 Within the mynd as it was figurait. Line 511

Ane spark of lufe than till his hart culd spring, Line 512 And kendlit all his bodie in ane fyre. Line 513 With hait fewir ane sweit and trimbling Line 514 Him tuik, quhill he was reddie to expyre. Line 515 To beir his scheild, his breist began to tyre Line 516 Within ane quhyle he changit mony hew, Line 517 And neuertheles not ane ane vther knew Line 518

For knichtlie pietie and memoriall Line 519 Of fair cresseid, ane gyrdill can he tak. Line 520 Ane purs of gold, and mony gay iowall, Line 521 And in the skirt of cresseid doun can swak: Line 522 Than raid away, and not ane word spak. Line 523 Pensiwe in hart, quhill he come to the toun, Line 524 And for greit cair oft syis almaist fell doun. Line 525

The lipper folk to cresseid than can draw, Line 526 To se the equall distributioun Line 527 Of the almous, bot quhen the gold thay saw. Line 528 Ilk ane to vther prewelie can roun, Line 529 And said zone lord hes mair affectioun Line 530 How euer it be, vnto zone lazarous, Line 531 Than to vs all, we knaw be his almous. Line 532

Quhat lord is zone quod scho haue ze na feill Line 533 Hes done to vs so greit humanitie? Line 534 Zes quod a lipper man i knaw him weill. Line 535 Schir troylus it is, gentill and fre: Line 536 Quhen cresseid vnderstude that it was he, Line 537 Stiffer than steill, thair stert ane bitter stound Line 538 Throwout hir hart, and fell doun to the ground. Line 539

Quhen scho ouircome, with siching sair & sad, Line 540 With mony cairfull cry and cald ochane. Line 541 Now is my breist with stormie stoundis stad, Line 542 Wrappit in wo, ane wretch full will of wane. Line 543 Than swounit scho oft or scho culd refrane, Line 544 And euer in hir swouning cryit scho thus: Line 545 O fals cresseid and trew knicht troylus. Line 546

Thy lufe, thy lawtie, and thy gentilnes, Line 547 I countit small in my prosperitie. Line 548 Sa eleuait i was in wantones, Line 549 And clam vpon the fickill quheill sa hie, Line 550 All faith and lufe i promissit to the. Line 551 Was in the self fickill and friuolous: Line 552 O fals cresseid, and trew knicht troilus. Line 553

For lufe of me thow keipt continence. Line 554 Honest and chaist in conuersatioun. Line 555 Of all wemen protectour and defence Line 556 Thou was, and helpit thair opinioun. Line 557 My mynd in fleschelie foull affectioun Line 558 Was inclynit to lustis lecherous: Line 559 Fy fals cresseid, o trew knicht troylus, Line 560

Louers be war and tak gude heid about Line 561 Quhome that ze lufe,for quhome ze suffer paine. Line 562 I lat zow wit, thair is richt few thairout: Line 563 Quhome ze may traist to haue trew lufe agane: Line 564 Preif quhen ze will, zour labour is in vaine. Line 565 Thairfoir, i reid, ze tak thame as ze find: Line 566 For thay ar sad as widdercok in wind, Line 567

Becaus i knaw the greit vnstabilnes Line 568 Brukkil as glas, into my self i say. Line 569 Traisting in vther als greit vnfaitfulnes: Line 570 Als vnconstant, and als vntrew of fay. Line 571 Thocht sum be trew, i wait richt few ar thay, Line 572 Quha findis treuth lat him his lady ruse: Line 573 Nane but my self, as now i will accuse. Line 574

Quhen this was said, with paper scho sat doun, Line 575 And on this maneir maid hir testament. Line 576 Heir i beteiche my corps and carioun Line 577 With wormis and with taidis to be rent. Line 578 My cop and clapper, and myne ornament Line 579 And all my gold the lipper folk sall haue: Line 580 Quhen i am deid, to burie me in graue. Line 581

This royall ring, set with this rubie reid, Line 582 Quhilk troylus in drowrie to me send. Line 583 To him agane i leif it quhen i am deid, Line 584 To mak my cairfull deid wnto him kend: Line 585 Thus i conclude schortlie and mak ane end, Line 586 My spreit i leif to diane quhair scho dwellis. Line 587 To walk with hir in waist woddis and wellis, Line 588

O diomeid thou hes baith broche and belt, Line 589 Quhilk troylus gaue me in takning Line 590 Of his trew lufe, and with that word scho swelt. Line 591 And sone ane lipper man tuik of the ring, Line 592 Syne buryit hir withouttin tarying, Line 593 To troylus furthwith the ring he bair, Line 594 And of cresseid the deith he can declair. Line 595

Quhen he had hard hir greit infirmitie, Line 596 Hir legacie and lamentatioun. Line 597 And how scho endit in sic pouertie, Line 598 He swelt for wo, and fell doun in ane swoun, Line 599 For greit sorrow his hart to brist was boun: Line 600 Siching full sadlie, said i can no moir, Line 601 Scho was vntrew, and wo is me thairfoir. Line 602

Sum said he maid ane tomb of merbell gray. Line 603 And wrait hir name and superscriptioun, Line 604 And laid it on hir graue quhair that scho lay, Line 605 In goldin letteris, conteining this ressoun: Line 606 Lo, fair ladyis, cresseid, of troyis toun, Line 607 Sumtyme countit the flour of womanheid. Line 608 Vnder this stane, lait lipper, lyis deid. Line 609

Now worthie wemen in this ballet schort, Line 610 Maid for zour worschip and instructioun, Line 611 Of cheritie, i monische and exhort, Line 612 Ming not zour lufe with fals deceptioun. Line 613 Beir in zour mynd this schort conclusioun Line 614 Of fair cresseid, as i haue said befoir, Line 615 Sen scho is deid, i speik of hir no moir. Line 616

Finis Line 617