Beowulf (Wyatt)/Beowulf 33

XXXIII.

Ðā se gæst ongan  glēdum spīwan,
beorht hofu bærnan;  bryne-lēoma stōd
eldum on andan;  nō ðǣr āht cwices
2315lāð lyft-floga  lǣfan *wolde.Fol. 181b.
Wæs þæs wyrmes wīg  wīde gesȳne,
nearo-fāges nīð  nēan ond feorran,
hū se gūð-sceaða  Gēata lēode
hatode ond hȳnde.  Hord eft gescēat,
2320dryht-sele dyrnne,  ǣr dæges hwīle;
hæfde land-wara  līge befangen,
bǣle ond bronde;  beorges getrūwode,
wīges ond wealles;  him sēo wēn gelēah.
Þā wæs Bīowulfe  brōga gecȳðed
2325snūde tō sōðe,  þæt his sylfes hām,^[1]
bolda sēlest,  bryne-wyhnum mealt,
gif-stōl Gēata.  Þæt ðām gōdan wæs
hrēow on hreðre,  hyge-sorga mǣst;
wēnde se wīsa,  þæt hē Wealdende
2330ofer ealde riht,  ēcean Dryhtne,
bitre gebulge;  brēost innan wēoll
þēostrum geþoncum,  swā him geþȳwe ne wæs.
Hæfde līg-draca  lēoda fæsten,
ēa-lond ūtan,  eorð-weard ðone,
2335glēdum forgrunden;  him ðæs gūð-kyning,
Wedera þīoden,  wræce leornode.
Heht him þā gewyrcean  wīgendra hlēo
eall-īrenne,  eorla dryhten,
wīg-bord wrætlīc;  *wisse hē gearwe, Fol. 182a.
2340þæt him holt-wudu  he[lpan]^[2] ne meahte,
lind wið līge.  Sceolde lǣn-daga.^[3]
æþeling ǣr-gōd  ende gebīdan,
worulde līfes,  ond se wyrm somod,
þēah ðe hord-welan  hēolde lange.
2345Oferhogode ðā  hringa fengel,
þæt hē þone wīd-flogan  weorode gesōhte,
sīdan herge;  nō hē him þā^[4] sæcce ondrēd,
ne him þæs wyrmes wīg  for wiht dyde,
eafoð ond ellen,  forðon hē ǣr fela,
2350nearo nēðende,  nīða gedīgde,
hilde-hlemma,  syððan hē Hrōðgāres,
sigor-ēadig secg,  sele fǣlsode,
ond æt gūðe forgrāp  Grendeles mǣgum
lāðan cynnes.  Nō þæt lǣsest wæs
2355hond-gemōt,  þǣr mon Hygelāc slōh,
syððan Gēata cyning  gūðe rǣsum,^[5]
frēa-wine folca  Frēs-londum on,
Hrēðles eafora,  hioro-dryncum swealt
bille gebēaten;  þonan Bīowulf cōm
2360sylfes cræfte,  sund-nytte drēah;
hæfde him on earme  *[āna]^[6] þrittigFol. 182b.
hilde-geatwa,  þā hē tō holme [st]āg.
Nealles Hetware  hrēmge þorf[t]on
fēðe-wīges,  þe him foran ongēan
2365linde bǣron;  lȳt eft becwōm
fram þām hild-frecan  hāmes nīosan.
Oferswam ðā sioleða bigong  sunu Ecgðēowes,
earm ān-haga,  eft tō lēodum,
þǣr him Hygd gebēad  hord ond rīce,
2370bēagas ond brego-stōl;  bearne ne trūwode,
þæt hē wið æl-fylcum  ēþel-stōlas
healdan cūðe,  ðā w«s Hygelāc dēad.
Nō dȳ ǣr fēa-sceafte  findan meahton
æt ðām æðelinge  ǣnige ðinga,
2375þæt hē Heardrēde  hlāford wǣre,
oððe þone cynedōm  cīosan wolde;
hwæðre hē hine^[7] on folce  frēond-lārum hēold,
ēstum mid āre,  oð ðæt hē yldra wearð,
Weder-Gēatum wēold.  Hyne wræc-mæcgas
2380ofer sǣ sēhtan,  suna Ōhteres;
hæfdon hȳ forhealden  helm Scylfinga,
þone sēlestan  sǣ-cyninga,
þāra ðe^[8] in Swīo-rīce  sinc brytnade,
mǣrne *þēoden.  Him þæt tō mearce wearð;Fol. 183.a
2385hē þǣr orfeorme^[9]  feorh-wunde hlēat
sweordes swengum,  sunu Hygelāces.
Ond him eft gewāt  Ongenðīoes bearn
hāmes nīosan,  syððan Heardrēd læg,
lēt ðone brego-stōl  Bīowulf healdan,
2390Gēatum wealdan;  þæt wæs gōd cyning.

1. 2325. MS. ‘him’ (so Wülcker); Conybeare ‘hām.’
2. 2340. MS. defective at corner.
3. 2241. MS. ‘þend’; Kemble ‘lǣn.’ Cf. l. 2591.
4. 2347. MS. ‘þa’ (= þām). Wūlcker retains the MS. reading and defends it in a note, which one can only suppose to be a misprint: “Da on mit dat. ebenso wie mit accus. verbunden wird.” Sæcc is fem. (Sievers § 258. 1).
5. 2356. Zupitza ‘guðe-ræsum.’ Not one of the sixty odd compounds of gūð is formed in this way.
6. 2361. MS. defective at corner, here and in two following lines. Zupitza ‘. . . xxx.’ Grein’s emendation.
7. 2377. MS. ‘hi’ (= him); Thorpe ‘hine.’
8. 2383. MS. “ðe ðe,’ the first at the end of a line, the second at the beginning of the next.
9. 2385. Grein ‘on feorme’; Möller ‘for feorme’ (so Heyne 5).