CH. 9: GUILHELMŌ MONTŌIŌ COMITĪ ANGLŌ ERASMUS ROTERODAMUS S.D.

Guilhelmo Montoio Comiti Agnle Erasmus Roterodamus S.D.

Erasmus Roterodam says hello to the Count of the Englishman William Mountjoy.

Post iter difficillimum tandem pervenimus.

After the most difficult trip, we arrived at last.

Qui Ulixes nunc me maior esse videbitur?

Which Ulysses will be seen to greater than me now?

Dei ventis, frigore acerrimo, pluvia, nive, grandine, contra nos pugnabant.

The Gods were fighting against us with intense wind, cold, rain, snow and hail.

Prima nocte diu pluerat: in nivem est mutata; vis nivium erat ingens; postea grando est addita; tum subito iterum pluere coepit.

On the first night it had rained for the first time and the rain chained into snow; the force of the snow was huge; afterward hail was added; then it suddenly began to rain again.

Simul ac pluvia terram vel arbores tangebat, glacies ibi fiebat.

As soon as the rain touched the land or the trees, ice arose there.

Ubique in terra glacies conspiciebatur nec terra erat aequa, sed multis in locis altior videbatur.

Everywhere on the land ice was seen adn the land was not leveled, but in many places it seemed higher.

Arbores sunt glacie vestitae, cuius onere opprimebantur.

The trees were dressed with ice, by the weight of which they were pressed down.

Itaque earum cacumina terram tangebant, rami scindebantur, arbores cadebant et in terra iacebant.

And so their tops touched the ground, the branches split, the trees were falling and were lying on the ground.

Homines, quos in agris vidimus, dicebant se numquam in vita rem similem vidisse.

The people whom we saw in the fields kept saying themselves never to have seen a similar thing in their lives.

Equi per glaciem et nives progredi conabantur.

The horser were trying to move forward through the snow and the ice.

Fortasse rogabis quid in Erasmi tui animo illo tempore fuerit.

Perhaps you will ask what was in the mind of your Erasmus at that time.

Sedebam in equo et quoties equus aures erigebat, animum demittebam;

I was sitting on the horse anda s often as the horse was raising his ears my spirit sank;

quoties ille in genua procumbebat, mihi pectus saliebat.

as often as he fell forward onto its knees, my heart leapt.

Sed audias hos.

But listen to this.

Putabis te verba ex fabula audire.

You will think that you are hearing words from a story.

Dum per montem descendebam us, ita ventis ferri, coepi et labi ac si velificarer.

While we were descending along the mountain, I began to be carried by the winds in this way and to slide as if I was sailing.

Hastili cursum moderari sum conatus.

I tried to direct my course with my shaft.

Novum navigandi genus!

A new type of sailing!

Ita progrediebam ur.

We were progressing in this way.

Solem vix quarto die aspeximus.

We could hardly glimpse the sun on the fourth day.

At nunc bene valeo.

But now I am in good health.

Tu quoque, mi optime Guilhelme, valeas!

You also, my great William, be well!