Allas I wepyng Boethius deplores his misfortunes in the following pathetic elegy. am constreined to bygynne vers of
sorouful matere. ¶ Þat whilom in florysching
studie made delitable ditees. For loo rendyng muses
of poetes enditen to me þinges to be writen. and drery [4]
vers of wrecchednes weten my face wiþ verray teers.
¶ At þe leest no drede ne myȝt[e] ouer-come þo muses.
þat þei ne weren felawes and folweden my wey. þat is
to seyne when I was exiled. ypalage antithesis þei þat weren glorie of [8]
my youȝth whilom weleful and grene conforten now þe
sorouful werdes of me olde man. Laments his immature old age. for elde is comen vnwarly
vpon me hasted by þe harmes þat I haue. and
sorou haþ comaunded his age to be in me. ¶ Heeres [12]
hore ben schad ouertymelyche vpon myne heued. and
þe slak[e] skyn trembleþ vpon myn emty body.
Death turns a deaf ear to the wretched. þilk[e] deeþ of men is welful þat ne comeþ not in ȝeres þat
ben swete (.i. mirie.) but comeþ to wrecches often [16]
yclepid.
1 of—MS. of of.
2 florysching—floryssynge
3 rendyng—rendynge
4 be—ben
5 wrecchednes—wrecchednesse
teers—teeres
6 leest—leeste
myȝt[e] ouer-come—myhte ouercomen
8 seyne when—seyn whan
9 youȝth—MS. þoȝt, C. yowthe
10 sorouful werdes—sorful wierdes [i. fata]