Beowulf (Wyatt)/Beowulf 36

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XXXVI.

Wīglaf wæs hāten,  Weoxstānes sunu,
lēoflic lind-wiga,  lēod Scylfinga,
mǣg Ælfheres;  geseah his mon-diyhten
2605under here-grīman  hāt þrōwian;
gemunde ðā ðā āre,  þe hē him ǣr forgeaf,
wīc-stede weligne  Wǣgmundinga,
folc-rihta gehwylc,  swā his fæder āhte;
ne mihte ðā forhabban,  hond rond gefēng,
2610geolwe linde,  gomel swyrd getēah.
Þæt wæs mid eldum  Ēanmundes lāf,
*suna Ōhtere[s],[1]  þām æt sæcce wearð,Fol. 188a.
wræcca[n][2] wine-lēasum,  Weohstān[3] bana
mēces ecgum,  ond his māgum ætbær
2615brūn-fāgne helm,  hringde byrnan,
eald sweord etonisc,  þæt him Onela forgeaf,
his gædelinges  gūð-gewǣdu,
fyrd-searo fūslīc;  nō ymbe ðā fǣhðe spræc,
þēah ðe hē his brōðr  bearn ābredwade.
2620Hē frǣtwe gehēold  fela missera,
bill ond byrnan,  oð ðæt his byre mihte
eorl-scipe efnan  swā his ǣr-fǣder;
geaf him ðā mid Gēatum  gūð-gewǣda
ǣghwæs unrīm,  þā hē of ealdre gewāt
2625frōd on forð-weg.  Þā wæs forma sīð
geongan cempan,  þæt hē gūðe rǣs
mid his frēo-dryhtne  fremman sceolde;
ne gemealt him se mōd-sefa,  ne his mǣges[4] lāf
gewāc æt wīge;  þæt[5] se wyrm onfand,
2630syððan hīe tōgædre  gegān hæfdon.
Wīglāf maðelode  word-rihta fela,
sægde gesīðum  (him wæs sefa gēomor):
“Ic ðæt *mǣl geman,  þǣr wē medu þēgun,Fol. 188b.
þonne wē gehēton  ussum hlāforde
2635in bīor-sele,  ðe ūs ðās bēagas geaf,
þæt wē him ðā gūð-getāwa  gyldan woldon,
gif him þyslicu  þearf gelumpe,
helmas ond heard sweord.  Ðē hē ūsic on herge gecēas
tō ðyssum sīð-fate  sylfes willum,
2640onmunde ūsic mǣrða,  ond mē þās māðmas geaf,
þē hē ūsic gār-wīgend  gōde tealde,
hwate helm-berend,  þēah ðe hlāford ūs
þis ellen-weorc  āna āðōhte
tō gefremmanne,  folces hyrde,
2645forðam[6] hē manna mǣst  mǣrða gefremede,
dǣda dollīcra.  Nū is se dæg cumen,
þæt ūre man-dryhten  mægenes behōfað
gōdra gūð-rinca;  wutun gongan tō,
helpan hild-fruman,  þenden hyt sȳ,
2650glēd-egesa grim.  God wāt on mec,
þæt mē is micle lēofre,  þæt mīnne līc-haman
mid mīnne gold-gyfan  glēd fæðmie.[7]
Ne þynceð mē gerysne,  þæt wē rondas beren
eft tō earde,  nemne wē ǣror mægen
2655fāne gefyllan,  *feorh ealgianFol. 197a.[8]
Wedra ðēodnes.  Ic wāt geare,
þæt nǣron eald gewyrht,  þæt hē āna scyle
Gēata duguðe  gnorn þrōwian,
gesīgan æt sæcce;  ūrum sceal[9] sweord ond helm,
2660byrne ond byrdu-scrūd,  bām gemǣne.”
Wōd þā þurh þone wæl-rēc,  wīg-heafolan bær
frēan on fultum,  fēa worda cwæð:
“Lēofa Bīowulf,  lǣst eall tela,
swā ðū on geoguð-fēore  geara gecwǣde,
2665þæt ðū ne ālǣte  be ðē lifigendum
dōm gedrēosan;  scealt nū dǣdum rōf,
æðeling ān-hȳdig,  ealle mægene
feorh ealgian;  ic ðē ful-lǣstu.”
Æfter ðām wordum  wyrm yrre cwōm,
2670atol inwit-gæst,  ōðre sīðe
fȳr-wylmum fāh  fīonda nīos[i]an,[10]
lāðra manna.  Līg-ȳðum forborn
bord wið rond;  byrne ne meahte
geongum gār-wigan  gēoce gefremman;
2675ac se maga geonga  under his mǣges scyld
elne geēode,  þā his āgen w[æs]
glēdum forgrunden.  Þā gēn gūð-cyning
m[ǣrða][11] gemunde,  mægen-strengo slōh
hilde-bille,  þæt hyt on heafolan stōd
2680nīþe genȳded;  Nægling forbærst,
geswāc æt sæcce  sweord Bīowulfes,
*gomol ond grǣg-mǣl.  Him þæt gifeðe ne wæs,Fol. 197.b
þæt him īrenna  ecge mihton
helpan æt hilde;  wæs sīo hond tō strong,
2685sē ðe mēca gehwane,  mīne gefrǣge,
swenge ofersōhte,  þonne hē tō sæcce bær
wǣpen wund[r]um[12] heard;  næs him wihte ðē sēl.
Þā wæs þēod-sceaða  þriddan sīðe,
frēcne fȳr-draca,  fǣhða gemymdig,
2690rǣsde on ðone rōfan,  þā him rūm āgeald,
hāt ond heaðo-grim,  heals ealne ymbefēng
biteran bānum;  hē geblōdegod wearð
sāwul-drīore;  swāt ȳðum wēoll.

  1. 2612. MS. ‘ohtere.’
  2. 2613. MS. defective at corner.
  3. MS. ‘weohstanes.’
  4. 2628. MS. ‘mægenes’; Ettmüller ‘mǣges.’
  5. 2629. MS. ‘þa’; Thorpe ‘þæt.’
  6. 2645. MS. “forðā’; Zupitza ‘forðan.’ So also l. 2741.
  7. 2652. MS. and Zupitza ‘fæðmię’; hence Wülcker ‘fæðmiæ’ (cf. l. 2126, and Sievers § 361). In “ręced” (l. 1981) Zupitza is not sure that the mark under the e is not a mere flourish. It is used to convert e into æ in “bęl” (l. 2126), but it also occurs under the æ of “sæcce” (l. 1989).
  8. 2655. The numbers of the folios are given as they stand in the MS. Fol. 131 follows fol. 146. “The old number of this leaf is 197; but now it stands between 188 and 189, and the old number has been changed to 189 in pencil.”—Z.
  9. 2659. MS. ‘ð·sceal· urū:ð̦’; Zupitza ‘urum sceal,’ and in a foot-note:sceal within dots and with a ð before it added in the left margin, whereas a ð over a colon with a comma under it marks the place in the line where it is to be inserted.” From a misunderstanding of this device have arisen the frequent misreadings of this line.
  10. 2671. MS. defective at edge, here and in ll. 2676, 2678.
  11. 2678. Kemble’s emendation.
  12. 2687. MS. ‘wundū’; Wülcker ‘wundum.’ Thorpe ‘wundrum’—a convincing emendation; cf. wundrum wrætlīce “Phoenix” 63, wundrum hēah “Wanderer” 98.