1755 fǣge gefealleð; fēhð ōþer tō,
sē þe unmurnlīce mādmas dǣleþ,
eorles ǣr-gestrēon, egesan[1] ne gȳmeð.
Bebeorh þē ðone bealo-nīð, Bēowulf lēofa,
secg betsta, ond þē þæt sēlre gecēos,
1760ēce rǣdas; oferhȳda ne gȳm,
mǣre cempa. Nū is þīnes mægnes blǣd
āne hwīle; eft sōna bið,
þæt þec ādl oððe ecg eafoþes getwǣfeð,
oððe fȳres feng, oððe flōdes wylm,
1765oððe gripe mēces, oððe gāres fliht,
oððe atol yldo; oððe ēagena bearhtm
forsiteð ond forsvvorceð; semninga bið,
þæt ðec, dryht-guma, dēað oferswȳðeð.
Swā ic Hring-Dena hund missera
1770wēold under wolcnum, ond hig wigge belēac
manigum mǣgþa, geond þysne middan-geard
æscum ond ecgum, þæt ic mē ǣnigne
under swegles begong gesacan ne tealde.
Hwæt! mē þæs on ēþle edwenden[2] cwōm,
1775gyrn æfber gomene, seoþðan Grendel wearð,
eald gewinna,[3] ingenga mīn;
*ic þære sōcne singales wægFol. 169a.
mōd-ceare micle. Þæs sig Metode þanc,
ēcean Dryhtne, þæs ðe ic on aldre gebād,
1780þæt ic on þone hafelan heoro-drēorigne
ofer eald gewin ēagum starige.
- ↑ 1757. Grein ‘ēgesan’ (owner).
- ↑ 1774. MS. ‘ed wendan.’ Cf. ll. 280, 2188.
- ↑ 1776. Most editors ‘eald-gewinna.’ I have avoided such compounds, except where clearly indicated by the absence of inflection in the adj. Cf. ll. 373, 945, 1781 (where no editor makes a compound of eald gewin), with 853, 1381, 2778.
