A New Version of a Scottish PoemAuthor(s): Edith BennettSource: The Modern Language Review, Vol. 33, No. 3 (Jul., 1938), p. 403Published by: Modern Humanities Research AssociationStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3715407 .

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Miscellaneous Notes 403

A NEW VERSION OF A SCOTTISH POEM

In the front of the Ruthven MS. of Gavin Douglas's Eneydos (University of Edinburgh Library) is an extra leaf, originally the first fly-leaf, which bears on the recto side a poem beginning, 'As phebus brycht in

speir meridiane'. One version of this poem occurs in the Bannatyne MS.

(vol. III, p. 305 in the Scottish Text Society edition), and was attributed

by Sir Walter Scott, in his preface to the Hunterian Club edition of that

manuscript, to the collector George Bannatyne himself. The version in the Ruthven MS. has, I think, not hitherto been noticed. It offers several variant readings, and adds an entire stanza, between stanzas 1 and 2 of the Bannatyne MS. version, which is of especial interest in that it incor-

porates (1. 7 below) a well-known simile from the Prologue to the Canter-

bury Tales (C.T. A 267, 268). The new stanza and a collation of the more

important variants here follow: Hyr angell face wyth blynkys amyabyll Hyr hevinly hew with bewte ondefadyt Hyr body trym in sylkis honorabyll Hyr tendyr 3outht in bewte on degradyt Hyr membyris all in dew proportione maid Hyr ene with bemes Glances in my sycht As twynkling starnis in ane frosty nycht.

Variant readings (As the right-hand margin of the leaf has been cut down a little, and

a long strip of blank paper pasted across the centre of stanzas 3 and 4, some of the words cannot be read: these are indicated below by dots.)

Bannatyne MS. Ruthven MS. I, 2. Aboif hir heid Aganis the son

7. Formit Maid fair a creatur lusty creatur

II, 1. unto wicht to na wycht 6. fragrant balme of odour flag... balm with odour

iv, 1. Thow 0 3. And in to presens of hir With grevus face lament my

visage fair vofull teiyr 5. Askand hir mercy Dysyrand mercy 6. woundis panis

v, 2. plenyng mumyng 4. hairt lif 6. For acteon Quhayr atione

vi, 1. in thy most awfull rage moist awfull of raig 5. sichis soir hewy thocht

vII, 4. flour and well well the flour 5. to my lyfe remeid of my luf rame... 6. It wald me suffyiss It wer my honour

vii, 6. for weping forwepn EDITH BENNETT.

OXFORD.

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