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+*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 14752 ***
+
+Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this
+      file which includes the original illustrations.
+      See 14752-h.htm or 14752-h.zip:
+      (https://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/1/4/7/5/14752/14752-h/14752-h.htm)
+      or
+      (https://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/1/4/7/5/14752/14752-h.zip)
+
+
+
+
+
+THE CHILDREN'S HOUR
+
+In Ten Volumes
+
+Illustrated
+
+VOLUME III
+
+STORIES FROM THE CLASSICS
+
+Selected & Arranged by
+
+EVA MARCH TAPPAN
+
+Houghton Mifflin Company
+
+1907
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration: "_It is strange that they let that dog lie there_"]
+
+
+
+
+Between the dark and the daylight, when the night is beginning to lower
+comes a pause in the days occupations, that is known as the Children's
+Hour.
+
+
+
+
+NOTE
+
+
+All rights in stories in this volume are reserved by the holders of the
+copyrights. The publishers and others named in the subjoined list are the
+proprietors, either in their own right or as agents for the authors, of
+the stories taken from the works enumerated, of which the ownership is
+hereby acknowledged. The editor takes this opportunity to thank both
+authors and publishers for the ready generosity with which they have
+allowed her to include these stories in "The Children's Hour."
+
+"The Wonder-Book," and "Tanglewood Tales," by Nathaniel Hawthorne;
+published by Houghton, Mifflin & Company.
+
+"Old Greek Folk Stories," by Josephine Preston Peabody; published by
+Houghton, Mifflin & Company.
+
+"The Odyssey of Homer," English prose version by George Herbert Palmer;
+published by Houghton, Mifflin & Company.
+
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+  TO THE CHILDREN
+
+  STORIES FROM HERODOTUS
+    LADRONIUS, THE PRINCE OF THIEVES
+                  Retold by G. H. Boden and W. Barrington d'Almeida
+    ARION AND THE DOLPHIN
+                  Retold by G. H. Boden and W. Barrington d'Almeida
+
+  STORIES FROM LIVY
+    ROMULUS, FOUNDER OF ROME                       Alfred J. Church
+    HOW HORATIUS HELD THE BRIDGE                   Alfred J. Church
+    HOW CINCINNATUS SAVED ROME                     Alfred J. Church
+    THE STORY OF VIRGINIA                          Alfred J. Church
+    THE SACRIFICE OF MARCUS CURTIUS                Alfred J. Church
+
+  STORIES FROM OVID
+    THE MIRACULOUS PITCHER                      Nathaniel Hawthorne
+    THE GOLDEN TOUCH                            Nathaniel Hawthorne
+    THE POMEGRANATE SEEDS                       Nathaniel Hawthorne
+
+  OLD GREEK FOLK-STORIES
+    ORPHEUS AND EURYDICE                  Josephine Preston Peabody
+    ICARUS AND DÆDALUS                    Josephine Preston Peabody
+    PHAETHON                              Josephine Preston Peabody
+    NIOBE                                 Josephine Preston Peabody
+    PYRAMUS AND THISBE                    Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+  STORIES OF THE TROJAN WAR
+    THE APPLE OF DISCORD                  Josephine Preston Peabody
+    THE QUARREL BETWEEN AGAMEMNON AND ACHILLES     Alfred J. Church
+    THE FIGHT BETWEEN PARIS AND MENELAUS            Walter C. Perry
+    THE DUEL BETWEEN HECTOR AND AJAX                Walter C. Perry
+    THE DEATH OF PATROCLUS AND THE BATTLE OF THE RIVER
+                                                   Alfred J. Church
+    VULCAN MAKES ARMOR FOR ACHILLES                 Walter C. Perry
+    THE SLAYING OF HECTOR                           Walter C. Perry
+    THE FUNERAL GAMES IN HONOR OF PATROCLUS         Walter C. Perry
+    THE WOODEN HORSE AND THE FALL OF TROY Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+  THE WANDERINGS OF ULYSSES
+    AN ADVENTURE WITH THE CYCLOPS                  Alfred J. Church
+    CIRCE'S PALACE                              Nathaniel Hawthorne
+    THE SIRENS--SCYLLA AND CHARYBDIS
+                                Translated by George Herbert Palmer
+
+  ULYSSES IN ITHACA
+    ULYSSES LANDS ON THE SHORE OF ITHACA
+                    F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+    ULYSSES AT THE HOUSE OF THE SWINEHERD
+                    F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+    THE VENGEANCE OF ULYSSES
+      A. HIS RECEPTION AT THE PALACE
+                    F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+      B. THE TRIAL OF THE BOW
+                                Translated by George Herbert Palmer
+      C. THE SLAYING OF THE SUITORS
+                    F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+      D. PENELOPE RECOGNIZES ULYSSES
+                                Translated by George Herbert Palmer
+
+  THE WANDERINGS OF THE TROJAN ÆNEAS
+    THE FLIGHT OF ÆNEAS FROM THE RUINS OF TROY     Alfred J. Church
+    ÆNEAS'S ADVENTURE WITH THE HARPIES         Charles Henry Hanson
+    ÆNEAS IN THE LAND OF THE CYCLOPS           Charles Henry Hanson
+    ÆNEAS AND QUEEN DIDO                           Alfred J. Church
+    THE FUNERAL GAMES OF ANCHISES              Charles Henry Hanson
+    ÆNEAS'S VISIT TO THE LOWER WORLD           Charles Henry Hanson
+    ÆNEAS'S FIRST GREAT BATTLE WITH THE LATINS Charles Henry Hanson
+    ÆNEAS FINALLY CONQUERS THE LATINS              Alfred J. Church
+
+
+
+
+ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+
+  "IT IS STRANGE THAT THEY LET THAT DOG LIE THERE"
+                                                L.F. Schutzenberger
+
+  "I AM AFRAID THERE WILL NOT BE HALF ENOUGH SUPPER"   Walter Crane
+
+  THEY LEAPED OUT OF THE BOTTOMLESS HOLE     George Wharton Edwards
+
+  TO HIM AT LAST THE THREE GODDESSES INTRUSTED THE JUDGMENT
+  AND THE GOLDEN APPLE                                Giulio Romano
+
+  FIERCE WAS THE FIGHT ABOUT THE BODY OF PATROCLUS    Giulio Romano
+
+  A GREAT IMAGE OF A HORSE                              Franz Cleyn
+
+  THE CYCLOPS IN HIS WRATH BRAKE OFF THE TOP OF A GREAT HILL
+                                                L.F. Schutzenberger
+
+  "DEAR SON, HAVE YOU COME HOME AT LAST?"              G. Truffault
+
+  THE FLIGHT FROM TROY                                  Franz Cleyn
+
+  THE VICTORY OF EURYALUS                               Franz Cleyn
+
+
+
+
+TO THE CHILDREN
+
+
+The greater part of this book is made up of stories from the poems of
+Homer and Virgil. Homer is thought to have lived in Greece about three
+thousand years ago, and yet his poems never seem old-fashioned and people
+do not tire of reading them. Boys and girls almost always like them,
+because they are so full of stories. If you want to read about giants or
+mermaids or shipwrecks or athletic contests or enchanters or furious
+battles or the capture of cities or voyages to strange countries, all you
+have to do is to open the Iliad and the Odyssey, and you will find stories
+on all of these subjects. Homer can describe a foot-race or the throwing
+of a discus so that you hold your breath to see who will win; and he can
+picture a battle so vividly that you almost try to dodge the arrows and
+spears. He can make the tears come into your eyes by telling you of the
+grief of the warrior's wife when he leaves her and their baby son to go to
+battle; and he can almost make you shout, "Hurrah for the brave champion!"
+when he tells you what wonderful deeds of prowess have been done. He can
+describe a shield so minutely that you could make one like it; and he can
+paint a scene of feasting so perfectly that you feel as if you had been in
+the very room.
+
+How is it that Homer makes his stories seem so real? There are several
+reasons, but one of the strongest is because he tells the little things
+that writers often forget to put in. When he describes the welcome given
+to two strangers at the house of the lost Ulysses, by Telemachus, son of
+the wanderer, he begins, "When they were come within the lofty hall, he
+carried the spear to a tall pillar and set it in a well-worn rack." That
+one word, "well-worn," gives us the feeling that Homer is not making up a
+story, but that he has really seen the rack and noticed how it looked. The
+same sentence shows why it is that people do not tire of reading Homer. It
+ends, "where also stood many a spear of hardy Ulysses." This reminds the
+reader that in spite of the hero's long years of absence, no one has been
+allowed to remove his weapons from their old place. From this one phrase,
+then, we can realize how much his wife and son love him, and how they have
+mourned for him. Telemachus welcomes the strangers, but we can feel how
+eager he is for them to be made comfortable as soon as possible so he can
+talk of his father and learn whether they have chanced to meet him in
+their wanderings. Homer's poems are full of such sentences as these; and,
+no matter how many times one reads them, some thought, unnoticed before,
+is ever coming to light. That is why they are always fresh and new and
+interesting.
+
+There is a tradition that Homer was blind, and that he wandered about from
+one place to another, singing or reciting his poems; but this is only
+tradition, and there is little hope that we shall ever be able to find out
+whether it is true or not.
+
+Homer's great poem, the Iliad, is the account of the Trojan War. His
+Odyssey relates the adventures of the hero Ulysses, or Odysseus, as the
+Greeks called him, in many years of wandering at the close of the war
+before his enemies among the Gods would permit him to return to his home.
+There were Trojan heroes, however, as well as Greek, and Æneas was one of
+them. Virgil, the Latin poet, has told in the Æneid the story of his
+troubles and adventures. Æneas, too, was driven over the waters, for the
+Gods had told him it was the will of Jupiter, or Zeus, as it is in Greek,
+for him to seek Italy and there found a city. Part of his journey is the
+same as that of Ulysses. He, too, stops at the country of the one-eyed
+giants and has to row as fast as he can to escape the rocks that they
+throw at his vessel. He, too, hears the thunders of Mount Ætna and sees
+the flashing of the fires of the volcano. His sailors point to it in fear
+and whisper to one another, "That is the giant Enceladus. He rebelled
+against the Gods and they piled the mountain on top of him. The fires of
+Jupiter burn him, and he breathes out glowing flames. When he tosses from
+one side to the other, the whole island of Sicily is shaken with a mighty
+earthquake."
+
+Virgil was no homeless singer; he was one of the great literary men of
+Rome, and he read his poems aloud to the Emperor Augustus. He had a
+handsome villa and a troop of friends. He enjoyed everything that was
+beautiful and seemed as happy when a friend had written a good poem as if
+he had composed it himself. He was never satisfied with his verse till he
+had made every line as perfect as possible. When he was ill and knew that
+he could not recover, he made a will, and in it he ordered the Æneid to be
+burned, because it was not so polished as he wished. "I meant to spend
+three years more on it," he said. Fortunately for all the people who enjoy
+a great poem, the Emperor forbade that this part of the will should be
+carried out. He gave the manuscript to three friends of Virgil, all of
+them poets, with orders to strike out every phrase that they believed
+Virgil would have struck out on revision, but not to add one word. This is
+the way that the Æneid was saved for us. If it had been destroyed, we
+should have lost the work of one of the best storytellers that have ever
+lived.
+
+Livy, too, was a friend of the Emperor Augustus, He lived in Rome,
+enjoying his companions, the libraries of the city, and, most of all, his
+independence. Even Virgil was ready to insert a few lines here and there
+in a poem to gratify his friends, or to choose a subject that he knew
+would please the Emperor; but Livy wrote on the subject that pleased him
+and treated it just as he believed to be best. His great work was his
+history, and this he begins with a little preface, as independent as it is
+graceful. "Whether I shall gain any share of glory," he says, "by writing
+a history of the Roman people, I do not know. The work, however, will be a
+pleasure to me; and even if any fame that might otherwise be mine should
+be hidden by the success of other writers, I shall console myself by
+thinking of their excellence and greatness." No such thing happened,
+however, for the kindly historian was so praised and his work so fully
+appreciated that he said he had all the fame he could wish.
+
+Herodotus was a Greek who liked to travel. The world was very small in his
+day, for little of it was known except some of the lands bordering on the
+Mediterranean. To visit Tyre, Babylon, Egypt, Palestine, and the islands
+of the eastern Mediterranean, as he did, made a man a great traveler five
+centuries before Christ. Herodotus enjoyed all these wanderings, but they
+also "meant business" to him. Whenever he came to a place of historical
+interest, he stayed awhile. He explored the country thereabouts, he
+measured the important buildings, he talked with the people who knew most
+about the place. Then, when he came to write of its history, he did not
+write like a man who had read an article or two in an encyclopædia and was
+trying to recite what he had learned, but like one who knew the place
+which he was describing and liked to talk about it, and about what had
+happened there. It is no wonder that his history has always been a
+favorite; and to be a favorite author for twenty centuries is no small
+glory.
+
+Ovid was a Latin poet who knew how to tell a story. He could not only
+invent a tale, but he could tell it so well that the reader feels as if it
+must be true. His most interesting stories, however, he did not invent,
+for they are a rewriting of the old mythological tales. In one respect he
+is like Homer; he never forgets the little things, and he tells so many
+details that we can hardly believe he is imagining them. In his story of
+Baucis and Philemon, for instance, Ovid does not forget to say that the
+cottage door was so low that the two gods had to stoop to pass through it;
+that Baucis hurried to brighten the fire with dry leaves and bits of bark;
+that one leg of the table was too short and had to be propped up with a
+piece of tile. He tells us that the kindhearted couple tried to catch
+their one goose so as to cook it for the supper of their guests; but that
+they were so old, and the goose so nimble of wing, that he escaped them
+and flew to the Gods for refuge. We are so accustomed to think of Latin as
+a grave, dignified language that almost every line of Ovid's
+"Metamorphoses" is a pleasant surprise. The stories that he tells, "The
+Miraculous Pitcher", "The Golden Touch", "The Pomegranate Seeds", and
+others, retold by Hawthorne, are favorites among the boys and girls of
+to-day, and they must have been liked just as well by the Roman children.
+In Rome the children read the great poets in school, and I fancy that they
+were always glad when the hour came to read the "Metamorphoses."
+
+
+
+
+STORIES FROM HERODOTUS
+
+
+LADRONIUS, THE PRINCE OF THIEVES
+
+Retold by G. H. Boden and W. Barrington d'Almeida
+
+
+Many hundreds of years ago, not long after the Greeks returned from the
+famous siege of Troy, there lived a king of Egypt, whose name was
+Rhampsinitus. So great a king was he, that he kept a small army constantly
+employed in supplying the royal household with food, and another small
+army was required to keep the gardens of the palace in order. And had any
+one been bold enough to doubt the greatness of the king, he need only have
+looked at his magnificent dress to set all doubts at rest forever. Upon
+the neck of the king was a heavy necklace, glittering with priceless
+jewels, and on his arms were massive bracelets of pure gold. A golden
+serpent, the symbol of royalty, gleamed from his forehead, and his golden
+breastplate showed the sacred beetle worked in precious stones, to protect
+him from evil spirits. Whenever he appeared in the streets of his capital,
+he was borne in the royal chair on the shoulders of eight of his
+courtiers, while on each side walked a great noble carrying a fan, shaped
+like a palm leaf, with a long, straight stem. In front marched the
+bodyguard of Sardinians, men with fair skins and blue eyes, who looked
+very much out of place among the swarthy Egyptians; and last of all came
+the grim, black guards from Ethiopia, with their sabres flashing in the
+sun. And all the people fell on their faces and kissed the dust before
+their royal master. Moreover, King Rhampsinitus erected several enormous
+statues of himself, as well as many fine palaces and a beautiful temple,
+bearing inscriptions which related all his great and glorious deeds, so
+that the people who lived after him might know how great a king he had
+been.
+
+But, in spite of all his greatness, there was one thing that prevented
+King Rhampsinitus from being a happy man. He had so many treasures--masses
+of silver, nuggets of gold, and bags of gold-dust, jewelry, precious
+stones, and carvings in ivory--that he lived in constant fear of being
+robbed. He had all his treasures packed in large jars and strong chests,
+which were securely fastened, sealed up, and stowed away in a strong room
+of the palace; but even then he did not feel comfortable, for might not
+the palace be broken into by a clever thief and part of his treasure
+stolen, while he slept? Besides, there was so much treasure packed away
+already, that it was difficult to find a safe place for any more. His
+anxiety made the king so unhappy, and caused him so many sleepless nights,
+that he determined at last to build a large chamber of stone, with walls
+too thick for any thief to break through. He sent for his chief architect,
+who collected a great multitude of workmen and set to work building the
+chamber without delay. Whole villages were compelled to join in the work;
+even the old men and children were employed in carrying away rubbish,
+bringing water and clay, and doing other work that was not too hard for
+them. The stronger and more skillful workmen hewed great blocks of
+granite, which were dragged to the place on wooden sledges; and, as they
+had no cranes to lift the stones into their places on the walls, they were
+obliged to build mounds of sand and rough bricks, and roll up each stone
+gradually with wooden levers, until they got it into its proper place. It
+was terribly hard work, but there were so many workmen, and the foremen
+used their whips so unmercifully, that the walls rose very rapidly.
+
+Now the architect was a cunning man, and guessed what the chamber was
+intended to hold. He therefore fitted one stone in such a way that it
+would slide down and leave a hole just large enough for a man to crawl
+through; and yet, when you looked at the wall, there was no sign at all by
+which the secret could be discovered. Nor did the architect think it
+necessary to mention the secret opening to his majesty, when he showed the
+chamber to him and told him that it was as strong as he could make it.
+
+Rhampsinitus lost no time in moving his treasures into the new
+treasure-chamber. The key he kept with him night and day, so that at last
+he could sleep peacefully, knowing that any one who wished to pass the
+solid, brass-bound door, must first prevail upon him to unlock it.
+
+For some time all went well. The king went to the treasury every morning,
+and found everything in its place. Evidently he had been too clever for
+the thieves.
+
+In the mean time the architect was lying ill in bed, and day by day he
+grew weaker and weaker; until at length he knew that his end was
+approaching, and, calling his two sons to his bedside, he told them of the
+secret way into the treasure-chamber.
+
+"I have little of my own to leave you, my sons," he said, "and I have but
+little influence at court; but by the aid of this secret, which I devised
+for your sake, you may become rich men, and hold the office of king's
+treasurers for life."
+
+The young men were delighted at his words, and so impatient were they to
+enjoy their good fortune, that on the very night of their father's funeral
+they stole away quietly to the place where the treasure-house stood. They
+found the sliding stone exactly as their father had described it. The
+younger and slimmer of the two brothers crawled through the opening and
+found himself in a dark chamber, surrounded by heavy chests and jars with
+sealed covers. Breaking open one of the latter, he put in his hand and
+drew out a handful of gold, which sparkled and twinkled at him even in the
+faint light which came through the hole in the wall. Handful after handful
+he drew out and passed to his brother, at the same time filling the bags
+he had brought with him, until both had as much as they could conveniently
+carry. Then they replaced the stone, and returned to lay the treasure
+before their mother; for in those days stealing was considered rather a
+clever trick, and even the thief's mother did not scold him, so long as he
+was not so clumsy as to be caught.
+
+Imagine the consternation of King Rhampsinitus when he visited the chamber
+the following morning! Everything seemed as secure as ever, and yet, when
+he opened the door, there lay one of the great jars turned over and empty,
+while the lid of one of the chests was broken open and part of the
+contents scattered on the floor. He examined every nook and cranny of the
+chamber from floor to ceiling, and there was no sign of any one's having
+forced an entrance. The fastenings of the door were firm, and the lock was
+one which it was perfectly impossible to pick. For greater security,
+however, Rhampsinitus sent at once for a locksmith, and commanded him to
+fit the door with a second lock, the key of which he kept with the other.
+
+Notwithstanding this precaution, the treasure-chamber was robbed again on
+the next night, and this time the thieves had broken open a great many of
+the chests, and carried away some of the most valuable jewels. On the
+following night a sentinel was posted, and still the treasury was robbed.
+The sentinel vowed that he had stood with his back to the door all night,
+and there is little doubt that he spoke the truth, though the poor fellow
+was accused of sleeping at his post, and punished for his negligence.
+
+Then the king took counsel of the fan-bearer on the right hand, who was
+also prime minister. He made a long speech, beginning with his regret that
+his majesty had not thought fit to consult him earlier, and concluding
+with a learned discourse on the habits of rats.
+
+"This is all very interesting," said Rhampsinitus, "but I do not see that
+it helps very much to protect my treasure."
+
+"I crave your majesty's pardon," the prime minister answered. "I was about
+to observe that the best way to catch a rat is first to study the habits
+and tastes of the rat, and next to apply the knowledge so gained in
+setting a trap."
+
+From which one may see that the prime minister was a very learned man, and
+could not be expected to come to the point all at once. The king thanked
+him for his valuable advice, and procured two or three powerful man-traps,
+which he placed within his treasure-chamber.
+
+Night came on, and the two thieves set to work as before, but no sooner
+had the younger brother disappeared through the hole in the wall than he
+began to utter loud cries of agony.
+
+"Peace, brother! You will rouse the guard," said the elder. "What can have
+befallen you?"
+
+The other controlled himself, and said with a groan, "Ladronius, we are
+ruined. I am held fast in a trap, and I think my leg is broken. O Horus,
+Lord of Life, deliver me!"
+
+With some difficulty Ladronius crawled through the opening to aid his
+brother, for, though a thief, he was no coward.
+
+"Go back, Ladronius, go back!" cried his brother. "Leave me to my fate! I
+think I hear the cries of the guard. No, brother, waste no more time!" he
+entreated, as Ladronius tugged in vain at the cruel teeth of the trap.
+"One thing remains to be done. Cut off my head, and take it away with you,
+that I may not be recognized and so we both perish! I hear the footsteps
+of men approaching. Do not rob our mother of both her sons!"
+
+And Ladronius, seeing that there was nothing else to be done, drew his
+sword, cut off his brother's head, and escaped through the opening, not
+forgetting to replace the stone behind him. He was only just in time, for
+scarcely had he gained the cover of a clump of trees, when the soldiers of
+the guard came running to the place and began to belabor the door. To
+their surprise they found everything quiet and nothing displaced. They
+examined the outside of the building thoroughly, and then, supposing that
+they had been roused by a false alarm, they returned to the palace.
+
+In the morning, Rhampsinitus paid his daily visit to the chamber, and
+discovered the headless body in the trap. He was more puzzled than ever.
+He examined the fastenings of the door and the whole of the chamber over
+and over again, and no hole nor crevice could he find.
+
+"Nevertheless," said he, "I have now bait for my trap. What can I do
+better than set a thief to catch a thief?"
+
+So he ordered the body to be hung from the outer wall of the chamber, and
+placed sentinels to guard it, strictly charging them to bring before him
+any one who showed pity or sorrow for the dead.
+
+When the mother heard of her son's death and how the body had been
+treated, she reproached Ladronius bitterly for his cowardice, and implored
+him with many tears to bring back the body for proper burial. For the
+Egyptians thought that unless a man's body were properly embalmed and
+buried whole, he could have no life in the next world; so that it would be
+a terrible misfortune if the head and the body were buried separately.
+Ladronius attempted to comfort his mother, but did not dare to carry off
+his brother's body so long as the sentinels were watching. In vain his
+mother wept and entreated him, until at last her grief was turned to
+anger, and she vowed that, if he did not obey her, she would go to the
+king and tell him the whole story. Then Ladronius, seeing her so
+determined, promised to do as she wished, and set his wits to work to
+invent some means of carrying off the body without being caught by the
+sentinels. At last he thought of a plan, which seemed to have some chance
+of success. He hired two donkeys, and having bought some wineskins, which
+were used in the place of bottles, he filled them with strong wine and
+placed them on the donkeys' backs.
+
+Thus equipped, and dressed up to look like an old merchant, he set out for
+the place where his brother's body was suspended. When he drew near to the
+sentinels, he secretly loosened some of the strings which fastened the
+necks of the wineskins, and then whipping the donkeys and letting them run
+on a little way in front, he pursued them with loud cries.
+
+"Oh, miserable wretch that I am!" he cried, beating his head and looking
+the very picture of despair. "All my good wine wasted on the ground! What
+shall I do? Oh, what shall I do? Stop, most ungrateful of donkeys,
+children of Set, that devour my substance and waste my wine as if it were
+water! May Tefnet plague you with gadflies, and Renenutet poison the
+thistles! Oh dear! oh dear! I am a ruined man."
+
+The soldiers, supposing it to be a genuine accident, laughed loudly at the
+fellow's distress, and while some chased and caught the donkeys, the
+others brought bowls and pitchers and began to drink the wine, as it ran
+out of the skins.
+
+"Never mind, worthy sir!" they said to Ladronius. "The wine is serving a
+very good purpose. Here is to our future friendship and your excellency's
+very good health!"
+
+Ladronius pretended to fly into a great passion, and called them thieves
+and monsters of iniquity for robbing a poor man of his wine.
+
+"Ay, laugh away!" he cried. "But a day of reckoning will come for your
+wickedness. See how the law treats robbers!" And he pointed to his
+brother's body hanging on the wall.
+
+"Now, by Anubis, the fellow speaks truth," said one of the soldiers. "We
+are but sorry fellows to drink away a poor man's living, and if this were
+to come to the ears of the king, we should be in evil case for leaving our
+duty."
+
+The others laughed good-humoredly, as they tied up some of the skins, and
+did their best to put the merchant into a good temper. Ladronius, after a
+little more grumbling, appeared to be pacified, and, as a sign of
+good-will, presented a wineskin to the soldier who had first spoken in his
+favor.
+
+"May you never want a young friend to speak for you in your old age," said
+he, "and may you meet with no worse companions than these; for though they
+seem to be somewhat headstrong, yet I perceive that I spoke hard words in
+my anger."
+
+The soldiers, who by this time had sat down on the grass and were passing
+the wineskin from one to another, declared that the merchant was a
+good-hearted old fellow and invited him to come and drink their health.
+
+"Nay, my masters," said Ladronius, pretending to adjust the straps on the
+donkeys' backs. "I have far to go, and I am but a little way on my
+journey."
+
+But, as they pressed him, he consented to drink one cup with them before
+he went. "Though in truth," he added, "if I mistake not, the skin is
+emptied already. I see that you would force me to part with another,
+before I set out."
+
+As he spoke, he produced another wineskin, and the soldiers, who were
+growing merry, greeted him with a shout of delight, and insisted on his
+sitting down with them. Ladronius, still declaring that he could stay only
+long enough to drink one cup with them, allowed himself to be placed in
+the midst, where he presently proved himself so good a companion and told
+so many merry tales that the soldiers would not hear of his departure.
+They drank more and more heavily, until at length a third skin was opened,
+and one by one the sentinels were overpowered by the strong wine, and all
+lay asleep on the ground.
+
+By this time it had grown dark, and Ladronius, who had pretended to be as
+drunk as the rest, cautiously raised his head, and finding that all the
+sentinels were snoring, he took down his brother's body and carried it
+off. But, before he went, he shaved the right side of the head of each of
+the sentinels, to show his contempt for the king's precautions.
+
+The king was furious when he discovered the failure of his plan and the
+insult offered to his guards, all of whom were beheaded for their
+disobedience to his orders. He was more determined than ever to catch the
+thief, and after taking counsel once more with his prime minister, he
+decided upon another plan. He caused a proclamation to be made, in which
+he promised the hand of his daughter to the man whom she should consider
+the cleverest and most wicked of all men. He commanded the princess to sit
+on a throne in the temple of Ra, the sun-god, and to speak to all who came
+to pay their homage to her, asking them what was the cleverest and most
+wicked deed they had done. But secretly Rhampsinitus told her that, if any
+one related the story of the robbing of the treasury, she was to seize him
+by the hand, and hold him till the guards came and secured him.
+
+The moment Ladronius heard the proclamation, he saw that it was another
+trick to catch him, but he was so daring and so fond of adventure that he
+could not resist the temptation to outdo the king in cunning once more. He
+determined actually to put his head in the lion's mouth--in other words,
+to go boldly to the temple and talk to the princess. He took with him
+under his cloak the strangest of presents, an arm cut from a dead man's
+body.
+
+When he entered the temple, he beheld the princess seated on her throne,
+looking very beautiful in her royal robes, with her dark curls flowing
+over her shoulders, and the golden vulture of Egypt spreading his wings
+over her head. She looked a little pale and weary too, for she had talked
+with many scores of suitors, all of whom had told her tales which were
+very much alike and nothing at all to do with her father's
+treasure-chamber. And when the princess looked up and saw Ladronius
+standing there, with his bold, handsome face, and resolute eyes, she had a
+suspicion that this was the robber of the treasury. At the same time she
+felt some pity for the young man, whom she was to be the means of
+punishing for his bravery. However, she could only obey her father, and
+motioning to Ladronius to approach, she addressed him with great courtesy,
+saying, "You seem, sir, by your bearing, to be a man of some strength and
+courage. Tell me now, what is the most wicked thing, and what the
+cleverest, you ever did in your life?"
+
+And Ladronius looked her straight in the face and answered, "Most gracious
+princess, the most wicked thing I ever did in my life was to cut off my
+brother's head in His Majesty's treasure-house, and the cleverest was when
+I made the sentinels drunk and carried off my brother's body."
+
+Scarcely were the words out of his mouth, when the princess jumped up and
+caught him, as she supposed, by the arm, at the same time crying out for
+the guards, who were concealed behind the throne. But, to her dismay, the
+arm seemed to part company with the rest of the body, and she was left
+with the cloak of Ladronius and the arm of the dead man, while Ladronius
+himself was out of the temple before she had recovered from her surprise;
+nor could the guards find any trace of him outside.
+
+The princess went back to her father in fear and trembling, and related
+how Ladronius had escaped once more; but the king was so amazed at the
+daring and skill of the young man, that he quite forgot to be angry.
+
+The picture of the princess holding the arm that had no body attached to
+it, and gazing blankly after the departing figure of Ladronius, so took
+his fancy, that he lay back on his couch, and laughed till his sides
+ached.
+
+"Bast!" he cried at length. "If the youth is really as clever as this, I
+would rather have him my friend than my enemy. Such a man should be
+rewarded and not punished for his genius. So he made you a present of his
+cloak too, did he?" And the king collapsed once more.
+
+"And what manner of youth is he?" he asked the princess; the princess
+answered, with a blush, that he looked like a brave young man.
+
+"That I am sure he is," said the king. "I have learnt it to my cost. And
+he is not ill-looking?"
+
+"No," said the princess; she would not describe him as ill-looking.
+
+"Ah! well," said the king dryly, "we must see whether we cannot find some
+means of securing his friendship."
+
+So King Rhampsinitus ordered another proclamation to be made, promising
+that if the robber would present himself to the king and confess how he
+had broken into the treasury, the king would grant him a free pardon and a
+great reward beside.
+
+Ladronius was not long in making up his mind. He knew that kings were not
+always above treachery, but he had survived so many dangers that he
+determined to risk this also. He arrayed himself, therefore, in his best
+attire, and boldly presented himself to the king, who was delighted with
+his courage and bade him relate the whole story fearlessly. And when
+Rhampsinitus heard of the secret way into his treasury, he would not rest
+until he had seen the sliding stone and moved it for himself. He laughed
+heartily when he remembered how he had put another lock on the door, and
+how he had posted a sentinel in the one place where he could see nothing
+of the thieves. Then he returned to the palace, and sent for the princess,
+his daughter. Presently she entered with her train of maidens, and
+Ladronius was so overcome by her fresh, girlish beauty, that he could
+hardly find voice enough to reply to the king's questions. The king rose
+and embraced his daughter, and then, addressing Ladronius before the
+assembled courtiers, he said, "Ladronius, the Egyptians are the most
+cunning of all nations on the face of the earth, and you have proved
+yourself more cunning than all the Egyptians. And now, after robbing me of
+so many treasures, you are about to rob me of the best and most priceless
+of all."
+
+So saying, he took his daughter by the hand, and led her to Ladronius.
+
+"Take her, my son!" he said. "A good and obedient daughter should make a
+faithful and loving wife."
+
+The princess stood with her eyes cast down, blushing very prettily, and
+Ladronius looked very handsome as he knelt and kissed her hand. Then the
+trumpets began to blare, the drums rattled, the cymbals clashed, and the
+courtiers shouted, "Long live our gracious princess! Long live
+Rhampsinitus and his son-in-law Ladronius!" The royal minstrel brought his
+harp and sang a solemn chant, all about the beauty of the princess and the
+bravery of Ladronius; and the maids of honor performed a graceful dance to
+the music, winding wreaths of lotus flowers about the bride and
+bridegroom. As the music ceased, the venerable High Priest of Ra, a tall
+old man with his head clean-shaven, came forward to bless and anoint them,
+and to tell how he had foreseen it all from the beginning.
+
+So Ladronius and the beautiful princess were married, and, though it is
+not in the story, there can be no doubt that they lived very happily for
+the rest of their lives.
+
+
+
+
+ARION AND THE DOLPHIN
+
+Retold by G. H. Boden and W. Barrington d'Almeida
+
+
+It happened once upon a time, in the olden days, that a young man,
+Periander of Corinth, started from a port in the south of Greece to sail
+to Miletus. Being caught in a storm, the boat was carried out of her
+course as far as the island of Lesbos, where she stayed for several days,
+in order that the damage caused by the storm might be repaired. In the
+mean time Periander landed, and occupied himself in wandering about the
+island and watching the inhabitants. In his wanderings, he came one
+evening upon a group of men and women, the sight of whom made him pause
+with a longing to join them. They had been working hard all day, gathering
+the grapes, and pressing them in big, wooden vats, to extract the wine for
+which Lesbos was famous; and now, in the beautiful autumn evening, they
+were making merry after their labors.
+
+No wonder Periander stayed to watch them, for they made a very pretty
+picture,--the handsome youths, with their bronzed faces and strong, fine
+limbs; the women with their gay dresses and bare feet, that seemed to have
+been made for dancing; the vine-clad hill at the back, and, over it all,
+the glow of the setting sun. In the centre of the dancers sat a boy,
+playing upon a small lute with seven strings. To this accompaniment the
+dancers chanted a song in praise of Dionysus, the god of the vine.
+Gradually the music went faster and faster; and faster and faster the feet
+of the dancers sped over the ground, until they were all out of breath,
+and lay laughing on the grass.
+
+Then, as the boy struck another chord, all laughter was hushed, and he
+began to sing; it was a simple, plaintive little song, but there was a
+magic in his voice which held the listeners spellbound. The last rays of
+the setting sun played about his golden curls, and lit up his sweet,
+childish face, as he sang:--
+
+  "Why should you grieve for me, my love,
+    When I am laid to rest?
+  Our lives are shaped by the gods above,
+    And they know best.
+  What though I stand on the farther shore,
+  Others have crossed the stream before--
+    Why weep in vain?
+  Life is but a drop in the deep,
+  Soon we wake from the last, lone sleep,
+    And meet again."
+
+As the last note died away, a sigh came from the listeners; some of the
+women turned away their faces, and the young men began to talk hastily, as
+if to hide their emotion.
+
+Periander waited until the group began to break up. Then he stepped
+forward and laid his hand on the boy's shoulder. The boy looked up with a
+smile.
+
+"What is your name, my fair minstrel?" asked Periander.
+
+"My name is Arion," answered the boy, as if he were used to being
+questioned. "I come from Methymna beyond the hills, where I used to tend
+the goats." And he told Periander that his mother and father died before
+he could remember, and that he was brought up by an old goat-herd; until a
+traveling minstrel, who happened one day to hear him singing on the hills,
+took charge of him and taught him to play the lute.
+
+"That was one of his own songs I was singing," said Arion. "He always
+liked me to sing his songs; but, when I am a man, I shall make my own
+songs, and sing them in the great cities over the sea."
+
+"And so you shall," said Periander. "Now, listen to me, Arion! Some day,
+perhaps, I also may be a great man, able to help you to become a great
+singer. Remember, when you have need of a friend, that Periander of
+Corinth will help you, if he can!"
+
+And, when he departed, Periander left a sum of money with a worthy old
+couple, who promised to look after the boy, and see that he wanted
+nothing.
+
+After some years, Periander became king of Corinth, and having a love of
+everything beautiful, he soon gathered about him a little band of poets,
+artists, and musicians. One day, when he was listening to one of the court
+musicians, something--it might have been a chord in the music--reminded
+him of the little Lesbian Arion. He seemed to see once more the boy with
+the golden light on his curls, and the upturned faces of the peasants
+grouped around him; and the very words of the song ran in his head.
+
+"By Apollo!" he cried, so suddenly that the musician nearly fell off his
+seat. "We will have the little Lesbian at court, and make a famous singer
+of him. Where is Glaucus? Ho, there! Bid Glaucus attend the king!"
+
+When Glaucus appeared, the king bade him take a boat and sail for Lesbos.
+"There you will make search for one Arion, a singer," he said. "And when
+you have found him, say, 'Periander of Corinth has need of his friend
+Arion.' And see that you bring him safely to Corinth!"
+
+Glaucus did as he was bidden, and in due time found Arion, now grown into
+a tall, graceful youth. Arion, when he heard the message, consented to
+accompany Glaucus to Corinth, where he was greeted with great kindness by
+Periander. He very soon became a great favorite among the Corinthians, and
+all the musicians envied him his beautiful voice and his skill in playing
+on the lute. No one had such power to soothe the king in his black moods;
+nor was it at court alone that his fame as a singer was known, for he was
+ever ready to sing to the people, who idolized him and called him the son
+of Apollo. Among other things he taught them the song and dance of the
+Lesbians in honor of Dionysus and the vine; it afterwards became one of
+the most famous songs of Greece.
+
+Many years Arion stayed with Periander, who held him in high honor and
+loaded him with costly presents. His fame spread as far as Italy and
+Sicily, and he had many requests that he would go over and sing to the
+people there. At length, he determined to make the journey, not only from
+curiosity to see new countries, but also because he had heard of the songs
+sung by the Sicilian shepherds, and had a great desire to study them.
+Periander tried to dissuade him, but, finding him resolved, he assisted
+him in his preparations, and on his departure exacted from him a promise
+that he would return to Corinth.
+
+Arion traveled about Italy and Sicily for a long time, and made a great
+fortune by his singing. But growing tired at last of the wandering life,
+he went to Tarentum to find a ship which would take him back to Corinth.
+There were two or three ships ready to make the journey, among them one
+named the Nausicaa, which was manned by a crew of Corinthians. This he
+chose, being somewhat nervous about the large sum of money he was
+carrying, and thinking that he could trust the Corinthians, whom he knew,
+better than a crew of foreigners.
+
+The Nausicaa was a strange-looking vessel, with a single sail, and long
+oars pulled by men who sat on benches along the side. The prow, which was
+carved to represent the maiden Nausicaa, stood well out of the water, and
+the bulwarks descended in a graceful curve to rise again at the stern,
+where the captain stood and shaped his course by means of a broad paddle,
+which was hung over the side.
+
+The voyage began happily enough, the wind being favorable, and the captain
+and crew all deference and politeness. But when they were well out to sea,
+the behavior of the crew changed; they answered Arion's questions with
+scant politeness, and held many whispered consultations, which, from the
+black glances cast at him, made him uneasy as to his safety. On the second
+evening, waking out of a light sleep, he heard them conspiring to throw
+him overboard and divide his wealth among them. Arion started up and
+implored them not to carry out their evil purpose, offering to hand over
+all his wealth, if they would spare his life. His entreaties and promises
+were all in vain.
+
+"We give you a fair choice," said the captain brutally. "Either leap into
+the sea at once, or kill yourself in some other way, and we will bury you
+decently on shore."
+
+Abandoning his vain appeals for mercy, Arion begged them, as a last favor,
+to let him sing once more before he died.
+
+"That we will not refuse," the captain answered; "though, if you think to
+move us by your wailing, let me tell you that you waste your breath!" In
+reality, he was not displeased to have an opportunity of hearing the most
+famous singer in the world.
+
+Arion put on his sacred robes, in which he used to sing in the temple of
+Apollo, and taking his lute he stepped firmly to the prow of the vessel.
+There he stood, pale and calm, in the silvery light of the moon, his fair
+hair playing with the wind, while the little waves lifted themselves to
+look at him, and then ran playfully into the shadow of the boat, to dash
+their heads against the beams and be broken into spray. The sailors were
+awed in spite of themselves, as that beautiful voice rose on the breeze.
+He sang the old song which he had sung in the Lesbian vineyards when
+Periander saw him first. And when he came to the last lines,--
+
+  "Life is but a drop in the deep,
+  Soon we wake from the last, lone sleep,
+     And meet again,"
+
+Arion leapt over the side of the vessel, just as he was.
+
+The captain, fearing that some of the crew might be moved to lend him
+assistance, gave the order to make all speed ahead. Had he waited, he
+might have seen a most wonderful sight. For, as Arion fell into the sea,
+the water seemed to become alive beneath him, and he felt it lifting him
+up, and carrying him rapidly away from the ship. Then he discovered that
+he was seated astride on a great, black fish, which was swimming very
+rapidly on the top of the water, and he knew it must be a dolphin, which
+had been attracted by his singing; for the dolphins, unlike most things
+that live in the sea, have sharp ears, and are very fond of music. He
+touched his lute, to see if the strings had suffered from the water, and,
+as he did so, the great back quivered beneath him. Finding, therefore,
+that the dolphin liked the music, and thinking that he owed it some return
+for saving his life, Arion began to sing, and sang song after song;
+whenever he stopped, the dolphin ceased from swimming, as if to inquire
+the reason; and when Arion began again, the dolphin bounded through the
+water with great strokes of his broad tail. A strange sight it must have
+been, had there been any one there to see! But the dolphin went straight
+across the open sea, where no ships were to be seen; for the sailors of
+that day did not care to lose sight of the coast, but would sail all the
+way round a large bay rather than straight across it. So it was that Arion
+came to Tænarus in Greece, without having been seen by any man. The
+dolphin took him close to the shore, where he bade it good-by, and watched
+it swim away disconsolately.
+
+From Tænarus he made his way on foot to Corinth. Periander was overjoyed
+to see him once more; and when he marveled at the strange costume in which
+Arion had traveled, Arion related the whole story.
+
+Periander listened attentively, and, when it was finished, remarked
+gravely, "Are you then so little satisfied with your victories over the
+musicians, Arion, that you have determined to be king of story-tellers
+also?"
+
+"Does your majesty intend to throw doubt on my story?" asked Arion.
+
+"Far be it from me!" answered Periander. "The story pleases me well, and
+if you will tell me another such, I will take pains to believe that also."
+
+"Then Zeus be my witness! I will find means to prove it," cried Arion.
+
+"Have I not said that I doubted not?" asked Periander. "Yet I would gladly
+see the proof. My crown to your lute upon the issue!"
+
+"So be it!" said Arion. "But first I must ask your majesty that none may
+speak of my return; and when the ship _Nausicaa_ comes to port, let the
+seamen be dealt with as I shall appoint!"
+
+The king assented laughing, for he deemed the tale impossible. After some
+days, however, it was announced that the ship _Nausicaa_ was in the
+harbor. Periander summoned the captain and all the crew to the palace, and
+asked them whether they had brought any news of his minstrel Arion. The
+captain replied that men said at Tarentum that Arion was still in Italy,
+traveling from place to place, and received everywhere with great honor.
+The rest of the sailors confirmed the story, and one of them added that
+Arion was said to prefer Italy to Greece, nor had he any intention of
+returning to Corinth.
+
+At that moment a curtain was drawn and disclosed Arion, standing in his
+sacred robes and holding his lute, just as they had seen him last in the
+prow of the ship. The sailors, supposing that they beheld his spirit, were
+seized with terror, and fell at the king's feet, confessing all their
+wickedness and begging for mercy. But Periander was filled with
+indignation, and spurned them angrily. Arion interposed, urging the king
+to be merciful, now that the seamen had seen their wickedness, and were
+willing to make restitution. Periander, however, would not hear of mercy.
+
+"Your compassion bears witness to your noble spirit, Arion," he replied.
+"But these men have planned a most cruel and cowardly murder, and cruelly
+shall they suffer for it. Seize me these men, guards, and bind them!"
+
+The guards came forward and began to lead away the trembling wretches.
+
+"Stay!" cried Arion. "It is I who am king. Did not your majesty stake your
+crown against my lute, and can the royal word be broken? Back, guards! I
+claim my wager."
+
+Periander could not refrain from laughter, but confessed himself beaten by
+this piece of strategy. "The wit of Arion," he said, "is stronger than the
+tears of repentance. Release the prisoners!"
+
+"That being so," said Arion, "and seeing that I find myself more easy with
+the lute, I will restore the royal crown to Periander."
+
+So the men were set at liberty, after having restored the property of
+Arion, and departed full of gratitude, invoking blessings on his head.
+
+And lest any man should doubt the truth of the story in time to come,
+Arion erected at Tænarus a statue in bronze, representing a man riding on
+a dolphin's back.
+
+
+
+
+STORIES FROM LIVY
+
+
+ROMULUS, FOUNDER OF ROME
+
+Adapted by Alfred J. Church
+
+
+Æneas of Troy, coming to the land of Italy, took to wife Lavinia, daughter
+of King Latinus, and built him a city, which he called Lavinium, after the
+name of his wife. And, after thirty years, his son Ascanius went forth
+from Lavinium with much people, and built him a new city, which he called
+Alba. In this city reigned kings of the house and lineage of Æneas for
+twelve generations. Of these kings the eleventh in descent was one Procas,
+who, having two sons, Numitor and Amulius, left his kingdom, according to
+the custom, to Numitor, the elder. But Amulius drove out his brother, and
+reigned in his stead. Nor was he content with this wickedness, but slew
+all the male children of his brother. And the daughter of his brother,
+that was named Rhea Silvia, he chose to be a priestess of Vesta, making as
+though he would do the maiden honor, but his thought was that the name of
+his brother should perish, for they that serve Vesta are vowed to
+perpetual virginity.
+
+But it came to pass that Rhea bare twin sons, whose father, it was said,
+was the god Mars. Very wroth was Amulius when he heard this thing; Rhea he
+made fast in prison, and the children he gave to certain of his servants
+that they should cast them into the river. Now it chanced that at this
+season Tiber had overflowed his banks, neither could the servants come
+near to the stream of the river; nevertheless they did not doubt that the
+children would perish, for all that the overflowing of the water was
+neither deep nor of a swift current. Thinking, then, that they had duly
+performed the commandment of the king, they set down the babes in the
+flood and departed. But after a while the flood abated, and left the
+basket wherein the children had been laid on dry ground. And a she-wolf,
+coming down from the hill to drink at the river (for the country in those
+days was desert and abounding in wild beasts), heard the crying of the
+children and ran to them. Nor did she devour them, but gave them suck;
+nay, so gentle was she that Faustulus, the king's shepherd, chancing to go
+by, saw that she licked them with her tongue. This Faustulus took the
+children and gave them to his wife to rear; and these, when they were of
+age to go by themselves, were not willing to abide with the flocks and
+herds, but were hunters, wandering through the forests that were in those
+parts. And afterward, being now come to full strength, they were not
+content to slay wild beasts only, but would assail troops of robbers, as
+these were returning laden with their booty, and would divide the spoils
+among the shepherds. Now there was held in those days, on the hill that is
+now called the Palatine, a yearly festival to the god Pan. This festival
+King Evander first ordained, having come from Arcadia, in which land,
+being a land of shepherds, Pan, that is the god of shepherds, is greatly
+honored. And when the young men and their company (for they had gathered a
+great company of shepherds about them, and led them in all matters both of
+business and of sport) were busy with the festival, there came upon them
+certain robbers that had made an ambush in the place, being very wroth by
+reason of the booty which they had lost. These laid hands on Remus, but
+Romulus they could not take, so fiercely did he fight against them. Remus,
+therefore, they delivered up to King Amulius, accusing him of many things,
+and chiefly of this, that he and his companions had invaded the land of
+Numitor, dealing with them in the fashion of an enemy and carrying off
+much spoil. To Numitor, therefore, did the king deliver Remus, that he
+might put him to death. Now Faustulus had believed from the beginning that
+the children were of the royal house, for he knew that the babes had been
+cast into the river by the king's command, and the time also of his
+finding them agreed thereto. Nevertheless he had not judged it expedient
+to open the matter before due time, but waited till occasion or necessity
+should arise. But now, there being such necessity, he opened the matter to
+Romulus. Numitor also, when he had the young man Remus in his custody,
+knowing that he and his brother were twins, and that the time agreed, and
+seeing that they were of a high spirit, bethought him of his grandsons;
+and, indeed, having asked many questions of Remus, was come nigh to
+knowing of what race he was. And now also Romulus was ready to help his
+brother. To come openly with his whole company he dared not, for he was
+not a match for the power of King Amulius; but he bade sundry shepherds
+make their way to the palace, each as best he could, appointing to them a
+time at which they should meet. And now came Remus also, with a troop of
+youths gathered together from the household of Numitor. Then did Romulus
+and Remus slay King Amulius. In the meanwhile Numitor gathered the youth
+of Alba to the citadel, crying out that they must make the place safe, for
+that the enemy was upon them; but when he perceived that the young men had
+done the deed, forthwith he called an assembly of the citizens, and set
+forth to them the wickedness which his brother had wrought against him,
+and how his grandsons had been born and bred and made known to him, and
+then, in order, how the tyrant had been slain, himself having counseled
+the deed. When he had so spoken the young men came with their company into
+the midst of the assembly, and saluted him as king; to which thing the
+whole multitude agreeing with one consent, Numitor was established upon
+the throne.
+
+After this Romulus and his brother conceived this purpose, that, leaving
+their grandfather to be king at Alba, they should build for themselves a
+new city in the place where, having been at the first left to die, they
+had been brought up by Faustulus the shepherd. And to this purpose many
+agreed both of the men of Alba and of the Latins, and also of the
+shepherds that had followed them from the first, holding it for certain
+all of them that Alba and Lavinium would be of small account in comparison
+of this new city which they should build together. But while the brothers
+were busy with these things, there sprang up afresh the same evil thing
+which had before wrought such trouble in their house, even the lust of
+power. For though the beginnings of the strife between them were peaceful,
+yet did it end in great wickedness. The matter fell out in this wise.
+Seeing that the brothers were twins, and that neither could claim to have
+the preference to the other in respect of his age, it was agreed between
+them that the gods that were the guardians of that country should make
+known by means of augury which of the two they chose to give his name to
+the new city. Then Romulus stood on the Palatine hill, and when there had
+been marked out for him a certain region of the sky, watched therein for a
+sign; and Remus watched in like manner, standing on the Aventine. And to
+Remus first came a sign, six vultures; but so soon as the sign had been
+proclaimed there came another to Romulus, even twelve vultures. Then they
+that favored Remus clamored that the gods had chosen him for king, because
+he had first seen the birds; and they that favored Romulus answered that
+he was to be preferred because he had seen more in number. This dispute
+waxed so hot that they fell to fighting; and in the fight it chanced that
+Remus was slain. But some say that when Romulus had marked out the borders
+of the town which he would build, and had caused a wall to be built round
+it, Remus leapt over the wall, scorning it because it was mean and low;
+and that Romulus slew him, crying out, "Thus shall every man perish that
+shall dare to leap over my walls." Only others will have it that though he
+perished for this cause Romulus slew him not, but a certain Celer. This
+much is certain, that Romulus gained the whole kingdom for himself, and
+called the city after his own name.
+
+And now, having first done sacrifice to the Gods, he called a general
+assembly of the people, that he might give them laws, knowing that without
+laws no city can endure. And judging that these would be the better kept
+of his subjects if he should himself bear something of the show of royal
+majesty, he took certain signs of dignity, and especially twelve men that
+should continually attend him, bearing bundles of rods, and in the midst
+of the rods an axe; these men they called _lictors_. Meanwhile the city
+increased, for the king and his people enlarged their borders, looking
+rather to the greatness for which they hoped than to that which they had.
+And that this increase might not be altogether empty walls without men,
+Romulus set up a sanctuary, to which were gathered a great multitude of
+men from the nations round about. All that were discontented and lovers of
+novelty came to him. Nor did he take any account of their condition,
+whether they were bond or free, but received them all. Thus was there
+added to the city great strength. And the king, when he judged that there
+was strength sufficient, was minded to add to the strength counsel.
+Wherefore he chose a hundred men for counselors. A hundred he chose,
+either because he held that number to be sufficient, or because there were
+no more that were fit to bear this dignity and be called Fathers, for this
+was the name of these counselors.
+
+After this the people bethought themselves how they should get for
+themselves wives, for there were no women in the place. Wherefore Romulus
+sent ambassadors to the nations round about, praying that they should give
+their daughters to his people for wives. "Cities," he said, "have humble
+beginnings even as all other things. Nevertheless they that have the Gods
+and their own valor to help become great. Now that the gods are with us,
+as ye know, be assured also that valor shall not be wanting." But the
+nations round about would not hearken to him, thinking scorn of this
+gathering of robbers and slaves and runaways, so that they said, "Why do
+ye not open a sanctuary for women also that so ye may find fit wives for
+your people?" Also they feared for themselves and their children what this
+new city might grow to. Now when the ambassadors brought back this answer
+the Romans were greatly wroth, and would take by force that which their
+neighbors would not give of their free will. And to the end that they
+might do this more easily, King Romulus appointed certain days whereon he
+and his people would hold a festival with games to Neptune; and to this
+festival he called all them that dwelt in the cities round about. But when
+many were gathered together (for they were fain to see what this new city
+might be), and were now wholly bent on the spectacle of the games, the
+young men of the Romans ran in upon them, and carried off all such as were
+unwedded among the women. To these King Romulus spake kindly, saying, "The
+fault is not with us but with your fathers, who dealt proudly with us, and
+would not give you to us in marriage. But now ye shall be held in all
+honor as our wives, and shall have your portion of all that we possess.
+Put away therefore your anger, for ye shall find us so much the better
+husbands than other men, as we must be to you not for husbands only but
+parents also and native country."
+
+In the meanwhile the parents of them that had been carried off put on
+sackcloth, and went about through the cities crying out for vengeance upon
+the Romans. And chiefly they sought for help from Titus Tatius, that was
+king of the Sabines in those days, and of great power and renown. But when
+the Sabines seemed to be tardy in the matter, the men of Cære first
+gathered together their army and marched into the country of the Romans.
+Against these King Romulus led forth his men and put them to flight
+without much ado, having first slain their king with his own hand. Then,
+after returning to Rome, he carried the arms which he had taken from the
+body of the king to the hill of the Capitol, and laid them down at the
+shepherds' oak that stood thereon in those days. And when he had measured
+out the length and breadth of a temple that he would build to Jupiter upon
+the hill, he said, "O Jupiter, I, King Romulus, offer to thee these arms
+of a king, and dedicate therewith a temple in this place, in which temple
+they that come after me shall offer to thee like spoils in like manner,
+when it shall chance that the leader of our host shall himself slay with
+his own hands the leader of the host of the enemy." And this was the first
+temple that was dedicated in Rome. And in all the time to come two only
+offered in this manner, to wit, Cornelius Cossus that slew Lars Tolumnius,
+king of Veii, and Claudius Marcellus that slew Britomarus, king of the
+Gauls.
+
+After this, King Tatius and the Sabines came up against Rome with a great
+army. And first of all they gained the citadel by treachery in this
+manner. One Tarpeius was governor of the citadel, whose daughter, Tarpeia
+by name, going forth from the walls to fetch water for a sacrifice, took
+money from the king that she should receive certain of the soldiers within
+the citadel; but when they had been so received, the men cast their
+shields upon her, slaying her with the weight of them. This they did
+either that they might be thought to have taken the place by force, or
+that they judged it to be well that no faith should be kept with traitors.
+Some also tell this tale, that the Sabines wore great bracelets of gold on
+their left arms, and on their left hands fair rings with precious stones
+therein, and that when the maiden covenanted with them that she should
+have for a reward that which they carried in their left hands, they cast
+their shields upon her. And others say that she asked for their shields
+having the purpose to betray them, and for this cause was slain.
+
+Thus the Sabines had possession of the citadel; and the next day King
+Romulus set the battle in array on the plain that lay between the hill of
+the Capitol and the hill of the Palatine. And first the Romans were very
+eager to recover the citadel, a certain Hostilius being their leader. But
+when this man, fighting in the forefront of the battle, was slain, the
+Romans turned their backs and fled before the Sabines, even unto the gate
+of the Palatine. Then King Romulus (for he himself had been carried away
+by the crowd of them that fled) held up his sword and his spear to the
+heavens, and cried aloud, "O Jupiter, here in the Palatine didst thou
+first, by the tokens which thou sentest me, lay the foundations of my
+city. And lo! the Sabines have taken the citadel by wicked craft, and have
+crossed the valley, and are come up even hither. But if thou sufferest
+them so far, do thou at the least defend this place against them, and stay
+this shameful flight of my people. So will I build a temple for thee in
+this place, even a temple of Jupiter the Stayer, that may be a memorial to
+after generations of how thou didst this day save this city." And when he
+had so spoken, even as though he knew that the prayer had been heard, he
+cried, "Ye men of Rome, Jupiter bids you stand fast in this place and
+renew the battle." And when the men of Rome heard these words, it was as
+if a voice from heaven had spoken to them, and they stood fast, and the
+king himself went forward and stood among the foremost. Now the leader of
+the Sabines was one Curtius. This man, as he drave the Romans before him,
+cried out to his comrades, "See, we have conquered these men, false hosts
+and feeble foes that they are! Surely now they know that it is one thing
+to carry off maidens and another to fight with men." But whilst he boasted
+himself thus, King Romulus and a company of the youth rushed upon him. Now
+Curtius was fighting on horseback, and being thus assailed he fled,
+plunging into a certain pool which lay between the Palatine hill and the
+Capitol. Thus did he barely escape with his life, and the lake was called
+thereafter Curtius' pool. And now the Sabines began to give way to the
+Romans, when suddenly the women for whose sake they fought, having their
+hair loosened and their garments rent, ran in between them that fought,
+crying out, "Shed ye not each other's blood, ye that are fathers-in-law
+and sons-in-law to each other. But if ye break this bond that is between
+you, slay us that are the cause of this trouble. And surely it were better
+for us to die than to live if we be bereaved of our fathers or of our
+husbands." With these words they stirred the hearts both of the chiefs and
+of the people, so that there was suddenly made a great silence. And
+afterward the leaders came forth to make a covenant; and these indeed so
+ordered matters that there was not peace only, but one state where there
+had been two. For the Sabines came to Rome and dwelt there; and King
+Romulus and King Tatius reigned together. Only, after a while, certain men
+of Lanuvium slew King Tatius as he was sacrificing to the Gods at
+Lavinium; and thereafter Romulus only was king as before.
+
+When he had reigned thirty and seven years there befell the thing that
+shall now be told. On a certain day he called the people together on the
+field of Mars, and held a review of his army. But while he did this there
+arose suddenly a great storm, with loud thunderings and very thick clouds,
+so that the king was hidden away from the eyes of all the people. Nor
+indeed was he ever again seen upon the earth. And when men were recovered
+of their fear they were in great trouble, because they had lost their
+king, though indeed the Fathers would have it that he had been carried by
+a whirlwind into heaven. Yet after a while they began to worship him as
+being now a god; and when nevertheless some doubted, and would even
+whisper among themselves that Romulus had been torn in pieces by the
+Fathers, there came forward a certain Proculus, who spake after this
+manner: "Ye men of Rome, this day, in the early morning, I saw Romulus,
+the father of this city, come down from heaven and stand before me. And
+when great fear came upon me, I prayed that it might be lawful for me to
+look upon him face to face. Then said he to me, 'Go thy way, tell the men
+of Rome that it is the will of them that dwell in heaven that Rome should
+be the chiefest city in the world. Bid them therefore be diligent in war;
+and let them know for themselves and tell their children after them that
+there is no power on earth so great that it shall be able to stand against
+them.' And when he had thus spoken, he departed from me, going up into
+heaven." All men believed Proculus when he thus spake, and the people
+ceased from their sorrow when they knew that King Romulus had been taken
+up into heaven.
+
+
+
+
+HOW HORATIUS HELD THE BRIDGE
+
+Adapted by Alfred J. Church
+
+
+    [King Tarquin had been driven from Rome because of his tyranny.]
+
+
+King Tarquin and his son Lucius (for he only remained to him of the three)
+fled to Lars Porsenna, king of Clusium, and besought him that he would
+help them. "Suffer not," they said, "that we, who are Tuscans by birth,
+should remain any more in poverty and exile. And take heed also to thyself
+and thine own kingdom if thou permit this new fashion of driving forth
+kings to go unpunished. For surely there is that in freedom which men
+greatly desire, and if they that be kings defend not their dignity as
+stoutly as others seek to overthrow it, then shall the highest be made
+even as the lowest, and there shall be an end of kingship, than which
+there is nothing more honorable under heaven." With these words they
+persuaded King Porsenna, who judging it well for the Etrurians that there
+should be a king at Rome, and that king an Etrurian by birth, gathered
+together a great army and came up against Rome. But when men heard of his
+coming, so mighty a city was Clusium in those days, and so great the fame
+of King Porsenna, there was such fear as had never been before.
+Nevertheless they were steadfastly purposed to hold out. And first all
+that were in the country fled into the city, and round about the city they
+set guards to keep it, part thereof being defended by walls, and part, for
+so it seemed, being made safe by the river. But here a great peril had
+well-nigh overtaken the city; for there was a wooden bridge on the river
+by which the enemy had crossed but for the courage of a certain Horatius
+Cocles. The matter fell out in this wise.
+
+There was a certain hill which men called Janiculum on the side of the
+river, and this hill King Porsenna took by a sudden attack. Which when
+Horatius saw (for he chanced to have been set to guard the bridge, and saw
+also how the enemy were running at full speed to the place, and how the
+Romans were fleeing in confusion and threw away their arms as they ran),
+he cried with a loud voice, "Men of Rome, it is to no purpose that ye thus
+leave your post and flee, for if ye leave this bridge behind you for men
+to pass over, ye shall soon find that ye have more enemies in your city
+than in Janiculum. Do ye therefore break it down with axe and fire as best
+ye can. In the meanwhile I, so far as one man may do, will stay the
+enemy." And as he spake he ran forward to the farther end of the bridge
+and made ready to keep the way against the enemy. Nevertheless there stood
+two with him, Lartius and Herminius by name, men of noble birth both of
+them and of great renown in arms. So these three for a while stayed the
+first onset of the enemy; and the men of Rome meanwhile brake down the
+bridge. And when there was but a small part remaining, and they that brake
+it down called to the three that they should come back, Horatius bade
+Lartius and Herminius return, but he himself remained on the farther side,
+turning his eyes full of wrath in threatening fashion on the princes of
+the Etrurians, and crying, "Dare ye now to fight with me? or why are ye
+thus come at the bidding of your master, King Porsenna, to rob others of
+the freedom that ye care not to have for yourselves?" For a while they
+delayed, looking each man to his neighbor, who should first deal with this
+champion of the Romans. Then, for very shame, they all ran forward, and
+raising a great shout, threw their javelins at him. These all he took upon
+his shield, nor stood the less firmly in his place on the bridge, from
+which when they would have thrust him by force, of a sudden the men of
+Rome raised a great shout, for the bridge was now altogether broken down,
+and fell with a great crash into the river. And as the enemy stayed a
+while for fear, Horatius turned him to the river and said, "O Father
+Tiber, I beseech thee this day with all reverence that thou kindly receive
+this soldier and his arms." And as he spake he leapt with all his arms
+into the river and swam across to his own people, and though many javelins
+of the enemy fell about him, he was not one whit hurt. Nor did such valor
+fail to receive due honor from the city. For the citizens set up a statue
+of Horatius in the market-place; and they gave him of the public land so
+much as he could plough about in one day. Also there was this honor paid
+him, that each citizen took somewhat of his own store and gave it to him,
+for food was scarce in the city by reason of the siege.
+
+
+
+
+HOW CINCINNATUS SAVED ROME
+
+Adapted by Alfred J. Church
+
+
+It came to pass that the Æquians brake the treaty of peace which they had
+made with Rome, and, taking one Gracchus Cloelius for their leader,
+marched into the land of Tusculum; and when they had plundered the country
+thereabouts, and had gathered together much booty, they pitched their camp
+on Mount Ægidus. To them the Romans sent three ambassadors, who should
+complain of the wrong done, and seek redress. But when they would have
+fulfilled their errand, Gracchus the Æquian spake, saying, "If ye have any
+message from the Senate of Rome, tell it to this oak, for I have other
+business to do;" for it chanced that there was a great oak that stood hard
+by, and made a shadow over the general's tent. Then one of the
+ambassadors, as he turned to depart, made reply, "Yes, let this sacred oak
+and all the gods that are in heaven hear how ye have wrongfully broken the
+treaty of peace; and let them that hear help us also in the day of battle,
+when we shall avenge on you the laws both of gods and of men that ye have
+set at nought."
+
+When the ambassadors had returned to Rome the Senate commanded that there
+should be levied two armies; and that Minucius the Consul should march
+with the one against the Æquians on Mount Ægidus, and that the other
+should hinder the enemy from their plundering. This levying the tribunes
+of the Commons sought to hinder; and perchance had done so, but there also
+came well-nigh to the walls of the city a great host of the Sabines
+plundering all the country. Thereupon the people willingly offered
+themselves, and there were levied forthwith two great armies. Nevertheless
+when the Consul Minucius had marched to Mount Ægidus, and had pitched his
+camp not far from the Æquians, he did nought for fear of the enemy, but
+kept himself within his entrenchments. And when the enemy perceived that
+he was afraid, growing the bolder for his lack of courage, they drew lines
+about him, keeping him in on every side. Yet before that he was altogether
+shut up there escaped from his camp five horsemen, that bare tidings to
+Rome how that the Consul, together with his army, was besieged. The people
+were sorely dismayed to hear such tidings; nor, when they cast about for
+help, saw they any man that might be sufficient for such peril, save only
+Cincinnatus. By common consent, therefore, he was made Dictator for six
+months, a thing that may well be noted by those who hold that nothing is
+to be accounted of in comparison of riches, and that no man may win great
+honor or show forth singular virtue unless he be well furnished with
+wealth. For here in this great peril of the Roman people there was no hope
+of safety but in one who was cultivating with his own hand a little plot
+of scarcely three acres of ground. For when the messengers of the people
+came to him they found him ploughing, or, as some say, digging a ditch.
+When they had greeted each the other, the messengers said, "May the Gods
+prosper this thing to the Roman people and to thee. Put on thy robe and
+hear the words of the people." Then said Cincinnatus, being not a little
+astonished, "Is all well?" and at the same time he called to his wife
+Racilia that she should bring forth his robe from the cottage. So she
+brought it forth, and the man wiped from him the dust and the sweat, and
+clad himself in his robe, and stood before the messengers. These said to
+him, "The people of Rome make thee Dictator, and bid thee come forthwith
+to the city." And at the same time they told how the Consul and his army
+were besieged by the Æquians. So Cincinnatus departed to Rome; and when he
+came to the other side of the Tiber there met him first his three sons,
+and next many of his kinsfolk and friends, and after them a numerous
+company of the nobles. These all conducted him to his house, the lictors,
+four and twenty in number, marching before him. There was also assembled a
+very great concourse of the people, fearing much how the Dictator might
+deal with them, for they knew what manner of man he was, and that there
+was no limit to his power, nor any appeal from him.
+
+The next day before dawn the Dictator came into the market-place, and
+appointed one Lucius Tarquinius to be Master of the Horse. This Tarquinius
+was held by common consent to excel all other men in exercises of war;
+only, though, being a noble by birth, he should have been among the
+horsemen, he had served, for lack of means, as a foot soldier. This done
+he called an assembly of the people and commanded that all the shops in
+the city should be shut; that no man should concern himself with any
+private business, but all that were of an age to go to the war should be
+present before sunset in the Field of Mars, each man having with him
+provisions of cooked food for five days, and twelve stakes. As for them
+that were past the age, they should prepare the food while the young men
+made ready their arms and sought for the stakes. These last they took as
+they found them, no man hindering them; and when the time appointed by the
+Dictator was come, all were assembled, ready, as occasion might serve,
+either to march or to give battle. Forthwith they set out, the Dictator
+leading the foot soldiers by their legions, and Tarquinius the horsemen,
+and each bidding them that followed make all haste. "We must needs come,"
+they said, "to our journey's end while it is yet night. Remember that the
+Consul and his army have been besieged now for three days, and that no man
+knows what a day or a night may bring forth." The soldiers themselves also
+were zealous to obey, crying out to the standard-bearers that they should
+quicken their steps, and to their fellows that they should not lag behind.
+Thus they came at midnight to Mount Ægidus, and when they perceived that
+the enemy was at hand they halted the standards. Then the Dictator rode
+forward to see, so far as the darkness would suffer him, how great was the
+camp of the Æquians and after what fashion it was pitched. This done he
+commanded that the baggage should be gathered together into a heap, and
+that the soldiers should stand every man in his own place. After this he
+compassed about the whole army of the enemy with his own army, and
+commanded that at a set signal every man should shout, and when they had
+shouted should dig a trench and set up therein the stakes. This the
+soldiers did, and the noise of the shouting passed over the camp of the
+enemy and came into the city, causing therein great joy, even as it caused
+great fear in the camp. For the Romans cried, "These be our countrymen,
+and they bring us help." Then said the Consul, "We must make no delay. By
+that shout is signified, not that they are come only, but that they are
+already dealing with the enemy. Doubtless the camp of the Æquians is even
+now assailed from without. Take ye your arms and follow me." So the legion
+went forth, it being yet night, to the battle, and as they went they
+shouted, that the Dictator might be aware. Now the Æquians had set
+themselves to hinder the making of a ditch and rampart which should shut
+them in; but when the Romans from the camp fell upon them, fearing lest
+these should make their way through the midst of their camp, they left
+them that were with Cincinnatus to finish their entrenching, and fought
+with the Consul. And when it was now light, lo! they were already shut in,
+and the Romans, having finished their entrenching, began to trouble them.
+And when the Æquians perceived that the battle was now on either side of
+them, they could withstand no longer, but sent ambassadors praying for
+peace, and saying, "Ye have prevailed; slay us not, but rather permit us
+to depart, leaving our arms behind us." Then said the Dictator, "I care
+not to have the blood of the Æquians. Ye may depart, but ye shall depart
+passing under the yoke, that ye may thus acknowledge to all men that ye
+are indeed vanquished." Now the yoke is thus made. There are set up in the
+ground two spears, and over them is bound by ropes a third spear. So the
+Æquians passed under the yoke.
+
+In the camp of the enemy there was found abundance of spoil. This the
+Dictator gave wholly to his own soldiers. "Ye were well-nigh a spoil to
+the enemy," said he to the army of the Consul, "therefore ye shall have no
+share in the spoiling of them. As for thee, Minucius, be thou a lieutenant
+only till thou hast learnt how to bear thyself as a consul." Meanwhile at
+Rome there was held a meeting of the Senate, at which it was commanded
+that Cincinnatus should enter the city in triumph, his soldiers following
+him in order of march. Before his chariot there were led the generals of
+the enemy; also the standards were carried in the front; and after these
+came the army, every man laden with spoil. That day there was great
+rejoicing in the city, every man setting forth a banquet before his doors
+in the street.
+
+After this, Virginius, that had borne false witness against Cæso, was
+found guilty of perjury, and went into exile. And when Cincinnatus saw
+that justice had been done to this evil-doer, he resigned his
+dictatorship, having held it for sixteen days only.
+
+
+
+
+THE STORY OF VIRGINIA
+
+Adapted by Alfred J. Church
+
+
+It was agreed between the nobles and the commons that, to make an end of
+disputing about the laws, ambassadors should be sent into Greece, and
+especially to Athens (which city and its lawgiver, Solon, were held in
+high repute in those days), to learn what manner of laws and customs they
+had, and to bring back a report of them. And when the ambassadors had
+brought back their report, it seemed good to the people that in the
+following year there should be appointed neither consuls nor any other
+magistrate, but decemvirs only; that is to say, ten men, who should set in
+order the laws of Rome. Thus it came to pass in the ninety and first year
+from the driving out of the kings, that decemvirs were appointed in the
+stead of consuls, Appius Claudius being the chief of the ten.
+
+For a while these pleased the people well, doing justice equally between
+man and man. And the custom was that each day one of the ten sat as judge
+with the twelve lictors about him, the nine others sitting with one
+minister only. Also they busied themselves with the ordering of the laws;
+and at last set forth ten tables on which these were written. At the same
+time they called the people together to an assembly, and spake to them
+thus: "The Gods grant that this undertaking may turn to the credit of the
+state, and of you, and of your children. Go, therefore, and read these
+laws which we have set forth; for though we have done what ten men could
+do to provide laws that should be just to all, whether they be high or
+low, yet the understandings of many men may yet change many things for the
+better. Consider therefore all these matters in your own minds, and debate
+them among yourselves. For we will that the Roman people should be bound
+by such laws only as they shall have agreed together to establish."
+
+The ten tables were therefore set forth, and when these had been
+sufficiently considered, and such corrections made therein as seemed good,
+a regular assembly of the people was called, and the laws were duly
+established. But now there was spread abroad a report that two tables were
+yet wanting, and that when these should have been added the whole would be
+complete; and thence there arose a desire that the Ten should be appointed
+to hold office a second year. This indeed was done; but Appius Claudius so
+ordered matters that there were elected together with him none of the
+chief men of the state, but only such as were of an inferior condition and
+fortune.
+
+After this the Ten began more and more to set aside all law and right.
+Thus whereas at the first one only on each day was followed by the twelve
+lictors, each of the Ten came daily into the market-place so attended, and
+whereas before the lictors carried bundles of rods only, now there was
+bound up with the rods an axe; whereby was signified the power of life and
+death. Their actions also agreed with this show, for they and their
+ministers plundered the goods and chattels of the people. Some also they
+scourged, and some they beheaded. And when they had so put a man to death,
+they would divide his substance among those that waited upon them to do
+their pleasure.
+
+Among their misdeeds two were especially notable. There was a certain
+Sicinius in the host, a man of singular strength and courage, who took it
+ill that the Ten should thus set themselves above all law, and was wont to
+say to his comrades that the commons should depart from the city as they
+had done in time past, or should at the least make them tribunes to be
+their champions as of old. This Sicinius the Ten sent on before the army,
+there being then war with the Sabines, to search out a place for a camp;
+and with him they sent certain others, bidding them slay him when they
+should have come to some convenient place. This they did, but not without
+suffering much loss; for the man fought for his life and defended himself,
+slaying many of his enemies. Then they that escaped ran into the camp,
+saying that Sicinius had fallen into an ambuscade, and had died along with
+certain others of the soldiers. At the first, indeed, this story was
+believed; but afterward, when, by permission of the Ten, there went some
+to bury the dead, they found that none of the dead bodies had been
+spoiled, and that Sicinius lay with his arms in the midst, the others
+having their faces toward him; also that there was no dead body of an
+enemy in the place, nor any track as of them that had gone from the place;
+for which reasons they brought back tidings that Sicinius had certainly
+been slain by his own comrades. At this there was great wrath in the camp;
+and the soldiers were ready to carry the body of Sicinius to Rome, but
+that the Ten made a military funeral for him at the public cost. So they
+buried Sicinius with great lamentation; but the Ten were thereafter in
+very ill repute among the soldiers.
+
+Again, there was a certain centurion, Lucius Virginius by name, an upright
+man and of good credit both at home and abroad. This Virginius had a
+daughter, Virginia, a very fair and virtuous maiden, whom he had espoused
+to a certain Icilius that had once been a tribune of the commons. On this
+maiden Appius Claudius, the chief of the Ten, sought to lay hands, and for
+this end gave commandment to one Marcus Claudius, who was one of the
+clients of his house, that he should claim the girl for a slave. On the
+morrow therefore, as Virginia passed across the market-place, being on her
+way to school (for the schools in those days were held in the
+market-place), this Claudius seized her, affirming that she was born of a
+woman that was a slave, and was therefore by right a slave herself. The
+maiden standing still for fear, the nurse that attended her set up a great
+cry and called the citizens to help. Straightway there was a great
+concourse, for many knew the maiden's father Virginius, and Icilius to
+whom she was betrothed. Then said Claudius, seeing that he could not take
+her by force, "There is no need of tumult or of gathering a crowd. I would
+proceed by law, not by force." Thereupon he summoned the girl before the
+judge. When they came to the judgment-seat of Appius the man told a tale
+that had already been agreed upon between the two. "This girl," he said,
+"was born in my house, and was thence secretly taken to the house of
+Virginius, and passed off on the man as his daughter. Of this I will bring
+proof sufficient, such as will convince Virginius himself, who doubtless
+has received the chief wrong in this matter. But in the meanwhile it is
+reasonable that the slave should remain in the house of her master." To
+this the friends of the girl made answer, "Virginius is absent on the
+service of the state, and will be here within the space of two days, if
+tidings of this matter be sent to him. Now it is manifestly wrong that
+judgment concerning a man's children should be given while he is himself
+absent. Let the cause, therefore, be postponed till he come. Meanwhile let
+the maiden have her freedom, according to the law which Appius and his
+fellows have themselves established."
+
+Appius gave sentence in these words: "That I am a favorer of freedom is
+manifest from this law of which ye make mention. Yet this law must be
+observed in all cases and without respect of persons; and as to this girl,
+there is none but her father only to whom her owner may yield the custody
+of her. Let her father therefore be sent for; but in the meanwhile
+Claudius must have custody of her, as is his right, only giving security
+that he will produce her on the morrow."
+
+At this decree, so manifestly unrighteous was it, there was much
+murmuring, yet none dared to oppose it, till Numitorius, the girl's uncle,
+and Icilius came forth from the crowd. The lictor cried, "Sentence has
+been given," and bade Icilius give place. Then Icilius turned to Appius,
+saying, "Appius, thou must drive me hence with the sword before thou canst
+have thy will in this matter. This maiden is my espoused wife; and verily,
+though thou call hither all thy lictors and the lictors of thy colleagues,
+she shall not remain in any house save the house of her father."
+
+To this Appius, seeing that the multitude was greatly moved and were ready
+to break forth into open violence, made this reply: "Icilius cares not for
+Virginia, but being a lover of sedition and tumult, seeks an occasion for
+strife. Such occasion I will not give him to-day. But that he may know
+that I yield not to his insolence, but have regard to the rights of a
+father, I pronounce no sentence. I ask of Marcus Claudius that he will
+concede something of his right, and suffer surety to be given for the girl
+against the morrow. But if on the morrow the father be not present here,
+then I tell Icilius and his fellows that he who is the author of this law
+will not fail to execute it. Neither will I call in the lictors of my
+colleague to put down them that raise a tumult. For this my own lictors
+shall suffice."
+
+So much time being thus gained, it seemed good to the friends of the
+maiden that the son of Numitorius and the brother of Icilius, young men
+both of them and active, should hasten with all speed to the camp, and
+bring Virginius thence as quickly as might be. So the two set out, and
+putting their horses to their full speed, carried tidings of the matter to
+the father. As for Appius, he sat awhile on the judgment-seat, waiting for
+other business to be brought before him, for he would not have it seem
+that he had come for this cause only; but finding that there was none, and
+indeed the people were wholly intent on the matter of Virginia, he
+departed to his own house. Thence he sent an epistle to his colleagues
+that were at the camp, saying, "Grant no leave of absence to Virginius,
+but keep him in safe custody with you." But this availed nothing, for
+already, before ever the epistle was brought to the camp, at the very
+first watch of the night, Virginius had set forth.
+
+When Virginius was come to the city, it being then early dawn, he put on
+mean apparel, as was the custom with such as were in danger of life or
+liberty, and carried about his daughter, who was clad in like manner,
+praying all that he met to help and succor him. "Remember," said he, "that
+day by day I stand fighting for you and for your children against your
+enemies. But what shall this profit you or me if this city being safe,
+nevertheless our children stand in peril of slavery and shame?" Icilius
+spake in like manner, and the women (for a company of matrons followed
+Virginia) wept silently, stirring greatly the hearts of all that looked
+upon them. But Appius, so set was his heart on evil, heeded none of these
+things; but so soon as he had sat him down on the seat of judgment, and he
+that claimed the girl had said a few words complaining that right had not
+been done to him, he gave his sentence, suffering not Virginius to speak.
+What pretense of reason he gave can scarce be imagined, but the sentence
+(for this only is certain) was that the girl should be in the custody of
+Claudius till the matter should be decided by law. But when Claudius came
+to take the maiden, her friends and all the women that bare her company
+thrust him back. Then said Appius, "I have sure proof, and this not from
+the violence only of Icilius, but from what is told to me of gatherings by
+night in the city, that there is a purpose in certain men to stir up
+sedition. Knowing this I have come hither with armed men; not to trouble
+quiet citizens, but to punish such as would break the peace of the state.
+Such as be wise, therefore, will keep themselves quiet. Lictor, remove
+this crowd, and make room for the master that he may take his slave."
+These words he thundered forth in great anger; and the people, when they
+heard them, fell back in fear, so that the maiden stood without defense.
+Then Virginius, seeing that there were none to help him, said to Appius,
+"I pray thee, Appius, if I have said aught that was harsh to thee, that
+thou wilt pardon it, knowing how a father must needs suffer in such a
+case. But now suffer me to inquire somewhat of this woman that is the
+girl's nurse, that I may know what is the truth of the matter. For if I
+have been deceived in the matter, and am not in truth father to the girl,
+I shall be more content." Then, Appius giving permission, he led his
+daughter and her nurse a little space aside, to the shops that are by the
+temple of Cloacina, and snatching a knife from a butcher's, said, "My
+daughter, there is but this one way that I can make thee free," and he
+drave the knife into her breast. Then he looked back to the judgment-seat
+and cried, "With this blood, Appius, I devote thee and thy life to
+perdition." There went up a great cry from all that stood there when they
+saw so dreadful a deed, and Appius commanded that they should seize him.
+But no man laid hands on him, for he made a way for himself with the knife
+that he carried in his hand, and they that followed defended him, till he
+came to the gate of the city. Then Icilius and Numitorius took up the dead
+body of the maiden and showed it to the people, saying much of the
+wickedness of him who had driven a father to do such a deed, and much also
+of the liberty which had been taken from them, and which, if they would
+only use this occasion, they might now recover. As for Appius, he cried
+out to his lictors that they should lay hands on Icilius, and when the
+crowd suffered not the lictors to approach, would himself have made a way
+to him, by the help of the young nobles that stood by him. But now the
+crowd had leaders, themselves also nobles, Valerius and Horatius. These
+said, "If Appius would deal with Icilius according to law we will be
+securities for him; if he mean to use violence, we are ready to meet him."
+And when the lictor would have laid hands on these two the multitude brake
+his rods to pieces. Then Appius would have spoken to the people, but they
+clamored against him, so that at last, losing all courage and fearing for
+his life, he covered his head and fled secretly to his own house.
+
+Meanwhile Virginius had made his way to the camp, which was now on Mount
+Vecilius, and stirred up the army yet more than he had stirred the city.
+"Lay not to my charge," he said, "that which is in truth the wickedness of
+Appius; neither turn from me as from the murderer of my daughter. Her
+indeed I slew, thinking that death was better than slavery and shame; nor
+indeed had I survived her but that I hoped to avenge her death by the help
+of my comrades." Others also that had come from the city persuaded the
+soldiers; some saying that the power of the Ten was overthrown, and others
+that Appius had gone of his own accord into banishment. These words so
+prevailed with the soldiers that, without any bidding from their generals,
+they took up their arms, and, with their standards carried before them,
+came to Rome and pitched their camp on the Aventine.
+
+Nevertheless, the Ten were still obstinate, affirming that they would not
+resign their authority till they had finished the work for which they had
+been appointed, namely, the drawing up of the twelve tables of the laws.
+And when the army perceived this they marched from the Aventine and took
+up their abode on the Sacred Hill, all the commons following them, so that
+there was not left in the city a single man that had ability to move; nor
+did the women and children stay behind, but all, as many as could move,
+bare them company; for Duilius, that had been tribune, said, "Unless the
+Senate see the city deserted, they will take no heed of your complaints."
+And indeed, when these perceived what had taken place, they were more
+urgent than before that the Ten should resign their office. And these at
+last consented. "Only," said they, "do not suffer us to perish from the
+rage of the commons. It will be an ill day for the nobles when the people
+shall learn to take vengeance on them." And the Senate so wrought that
+though at the first the commons in their great fury demanded that the Ten
+should be burned alive, yet they were persuaded to yield, it being agreed
+that each man should be judged by the law according to his deserts.
+Appius, therefore, was accused by Virginius, and being cast into prison,
+slew himself before the day appointed for the trial. Oppius also, another
+of the Ten, whom the commons hated for his misdeeds next after Appius, was
+accused and died in like manner. As for Claudius, that had claimed
+Virginia for his slave, he was condemned to be banished. And thus at the
+last, the guilty having been punished, the spirit of Virginia had rest.
+
+
+
+
+THE SACRIFICE OF MARCUS CURTIUS
+
+Adapted by Alfred J. Church
+
+
+In the three hundred and ninety-third year after the building of the city
+there was seen suddenly to open in the market-place a great gulf of a
+deepness that no man could measure. And this gulf could not be filled up,
+though all the people brought earth and stones and the like to cast into
+it. But at the last there was sent a message from the Gods that the Romans
+must inquire what was that by which more than all things the state was
+made strong. "For," said the soothsayer, "this thing must be dedicated to
+the Gods in this place if the commonwealth of Rome is to stand fast
+forever." And while they doubted, one Marcus Curtius, a youth that had won
+great renown in war, rebuked them, saying, "Can ye doubt that Rome hath
+nothing better than arms and valor?"
+
+Then all the people stood silent; and Curtius, first beholding the temples
+of the immortal Gods that hung over the market-place and the Capitol, and
+afterward stretching forth his hands both to heaven above and to this gulf
+that opened its mouth to the very pit, as it were, of hell, devoted
+himself for his country; and so--being clothed in armor and with arms in
+his hand, and having his horse arrayed as sumptuously as might be--he
+leapt into the gulf; and the multitude, both of men and women, threw in
+gifts and offerings of the fruits of the earth, and afterward the earth
+closed together.
+
+
+
+
+STORIES FROM OVID
+
+
+THE MIRACULOUS PITCHER
+
+By Nathaniel Hawthorne
+
+
+One evening, in times long ago, old Philemon and his old wife Baucis sat
+at their cottage door, enjoying the calm and beautiful sunset. They had
+already eaten their frugal supper, and intended now to spend a quiet hour
+or two before bedtime. So they talked together about their garden, and
+their cow, and their bees, and their grapevine, which clambered over the
+cottage wall, and on which the grapes were beginning to turn purple. But
+the rude shouts of children, and the fierce barking of dogs, in the
+village near at hand, grew louder and louder, until, at last, it was
+hardly possible for Baucis and Philemon to hear each other speak.
+
+"Ah, wife," cried Philemon, "I fear some poor traveler is seeking
+hospitality among our neighbors yonder, and, instead of giving him food
+and lodging, they have set their dogs at him, as their custom is!"
+
+"Well-a-day!" answered old Baucis, "I do wish our neighbors felt a little
+more kindness for their fellow-creatures. And only think of bringing up
+their children in this naughty way, and patting them on the head when they
+fling stones at strangers!"
+
+"Those children will never come to any good," said Philemon, shaking his
+white head. "To tell you the truth, wife, I should not wonder if some
+terrible thing were to happen to all the people in the village, unless
+they mend their manners. But, as for you and me, so long as Providence
+affords us a crust of bread, let us be ready to give half to any poor,
+homeless stranger that may come along and need it."
+
+"That's right, husband!" said Baucis. "So we will!"
+
+These old folks, you must know, were quite poor, and had to work pretty
+hard for a living. Old Philemon toiled diligently in his garden, while
+Baucis was always busy with her distaff, or making a little butter and
+cheese with their cow's milk, or doing one thing and another about the
+cottage. Their food was seldom anything but bread, milk, and vegetables,
+with sometimes a portion of honey from their beehive, and now and then a
+bunch of grapes, that had ripened against the cottage wall. But they were
+two of the kindest old people in the world, and would cheerfully have gone
+without their dinners, any day, rather than refuse a slice of their brown
+loaf, a cup of new milk, and a spoonful of honey, to the weary traveler
+who might pause before their door. They felt as if such guests had a sort
+of holiness, and that they ought, therefore, to treat them better and more
+bountifully than their own selves.
+
+Their cottage stood on a rising ground, at some short distance from a
+village, which lay in a hollow valley, that was about half a mile in
+breadth. This valley, in past ages, when the world was new, had probably
+been the bed of a lake. There fishes had glided to and fro in the depths,
+and water-weeds had grown along the margin, and trees and hills had seen
+their reflected images in the broad and peaceful mirror. But, as the
+waters subsided, men had cultivated the soil, and built houses on it, so
+that it was now a fertile spot, and bore no traces of the ancient lake,
+except a very small brook, which meandered through the midst of the
+village, and supplied the inhabitants with water. The valley had been dry
+land so long that oaks had sprung up, and grown great and high, and
+perished with old age, and been succeeded by others, as tall and stately
+as the first. Never was there a prettier or more fruitful valley. The very
+sight of the plenty around them should have made the inhabitants kind and
+gentle, and ready to show their gratitude to Providence by doing good to
+their fellow-creatures.
+
+But, we are sorry to say, the people of this lovely village were not
+worthy to dwell in a spot on which Heaven had smiled so beneficently. They
+were a very selfish and hard-hearted people, and had no pity for the poor,
+nor sympathy with the homeless. They would only have laughed, had anybody
+told them that human beings owe a debt of love to one another, because
+there is no other method of paying the debt of love and care which all of
+us owe to Providence. You will hardly believe what I am going to tell you.
+These naughty people taught their children to be no better than
+themselves, and used to clap their hands, by way of encouragement, when
+they saw the little boys and girls run after some poor stranger, shouting
+at his heels, and pelting him with stones. They kept large and fierce
+dogs, and whenever a traveler ventured to show himself in the village
+street, this pack of disagreeable curs scampered to meet him, barking,
+snarling, and showing their teeth. Then they would seize him by his leg,
+or by his clothes, just as it happened; and if he were ragged when he
+came, he was generally a pitiable object before he had time to run away.
+This was a very terrible thing to poor travelers, as you may suppose,
+especially when they chanced to be sick, or feeble, or lame, or old. Such
+persons (if they once knew how badly these unkind people, and their unkind
+children and curs, were in the habit of behaving) would go miles and miles
+out of their way, rather than try to pass through the village again.
+
+What made the matter seem worse, if possible, was that when rich persons
+came in their chariots, or riding on beautiful horses, with their servants
+in rich liveries attending on them, nobody could be more civil and
+obsequious than the inhabitants of the village. They would take off their
+hats, and make the humblest bows you ever saw. If the children were rude,
+they were pretty certain to get their ears boxed; and as for the dogs, if
+a single cur in the pack presumed to yelp, his master instantly beat him
+with a club, and tied him up without any supper. This would have been all
+very well, only it proved that the villagers cared much about the money
+that a stranger had in his pocket, and nothing whatever for the human
+soul, which lives equally in the beggar and the prince.
+
+So now you can understand why old Philemon spoke so sorrowfully, when he
+heard the shouts of the children and the barking of the dogs, at the
+farther extremity of the village street. There was a confused din, which
+lasted a good while, and seemed to pass quite through the breadth of the
+valley.
+
+"I never heard the dogs so loud!" observed the good old man.
+
+"Nor the children so rude!" answered his good old wife.
+
+They sat shaking their heads, one to the other, while the noise came
+nearer and nearer; until, at the foot of the little eminence on which
+their cottage stood, they saw two travelers approaching on foot. Close
+behind them came the fierce dogs, snarling at their very heels. A little
+farther off ran a crowd of children, who sent up shrill cries, and flung
+stones at the two strangers, with all their might. Once or twice, the
+younger of the two men (he was a slender and very active figure) turned
+about and drove back the dogs with a staff which he carried in his hand.
+His companion, who was a very tall person, walked calmly along as if
+disdaining to notice either the naughty children or the pack of curs,
+whose manners the children seemed to imitate.
+
+Both of the travelers were very humbly clad, and looked as if they might
+not have money enough in their pockets to pay for a night's lodging. And
+this, I am afraid, was the reason why the villagers had allowed their
+children and dogs to treat them so rudely.
+
+"Come, wife," said Philemon to Baucis, "let us go and meet these poor
+people. No doubt, they feel almost too heavy-hearted to climb the hill."
+
+"Go you and meet them," answered Baucis, "while I make haste within doors,
+and see whether we can get them anything for supper. A comfortable bowl of
+bread and milk would do wonders towards raising their spirits."
+
+Accordingly, she hastened into the cottage. Philemon, on his part, went
+forward, and extended his hand with so hospitable an aspect that there was
+no need of saying what nevertheless he did say, in the heartiest tone
+imaginable,--
+
+"Welcome, strangers! welcome!"
+
+"Thank you!" replied the younger of the two, in a lively kind of way,
+notwithstanding his weariness and trouble. "This is quite another greeting
+than we have met with yonder in the village. Pray, why do you live in such
+a bad neighborhood?"
+
+"Ah!" observed old Philemon, with a quiet and benign smile, "Providence
+put me here, I hope, among other reasons, in order that I may make you
+what amends I can for the inhospitality of my neighbors."
+
+"Well said, old father!" cried the traveler, laughing; "and, if the truth
+must be told, my companion and myself need some amends. Those children
+(the little rascals!) have bespattered us finely with their mud-balls; and
+one of the curs has torn my cloak, which was ragged enough already. But I
+took him across the muzzle with my staff; and I think you may have heard
+him yelp, even thus far off."
+
+Philemon was glad to see him in such good spirits; nor, indeed, would you
+have fancied, by the traveler's look and manner, that he was weary with a
+long day's journey, besides being disheartened by rough treatment at the
+end of it. He was dressed in rather an odd way, with a sort of cap on his
+head, the brim of which stuck out over both ears. Though it was a summer
+evening, he wore a cloak, which he kept wrapt closely about him, perhaps
+because his under garments were shabby. Philemon perceived, too, that he
+had on a singular pair of shoes; but, as it was now growing dusk, and as
+the old man's eyesight was none the sharpest, he could not precisely tell
+in what the strangeness consisted. One thing, certainly, seemed queer. The
+traveler was so wonderfully light and active, that it appeared as if his
+feet sometimes rose from the ground of their own accord, or could only be
+kept down by an effort.
+
+"I used to be light-footed, in my youth," said Philemon to the traveler.
+"But I always found my feet grow heavier towards nightfall."
+
+"There is nothing like a good staff to help one along," answered the
+stranger; "and I happen to have an excellent one, as you see."
+
+This staff, in fact, was the oddest-looking staff that Philemon had ever
+beheld. It was made of olive-wood, and had something like a little pair of
+wings near the top. Two snakes, carved in the wood, were represented as
+twining themselves about the staff, and were so very skillfully executed
+that old Philemon (whose eyes, you know, were getting rather dim) almost
+thought them alive, and that he could see them wriggling and twisting.
+
+"A curious piece of work, sure enough!" said he. "A staff with wings! It
+would be an excellent kind of stick for a little boy to ride astride of!"
+
+By this time Philemon and his two guests had reached the cottage door.
+
+"Friends," said the old man, "sit down and rest yourselves here on this
+bench. My good wife Baucis has gone to see what you can have for supper.
+We are poor folks; but you shall be welcome to whatever we have in the
+cupboard."
+
+The younger stranger threw himself carelessly on the bench, letting his
+staff fall, as he did so. And here happened something rather marvelous,
+though trifling enough, too. The staff seemed to get up from the ground of
+its own accord, and, spreading its little pair of wings, it half hopped,
+half flew, and leaned itself against the wall of the cottage. There it
+stood quite still, except that the snakes continued to wriggle. But, in my
+private opinion, old Philemon's eyesight had been playing him tricks
+again.
+
+Before he could ask any questions, the elder stranger drew his attention
+from the wonderful staff, by speaking to him.
+
+"Was there not," asked the stranger, in a remarkably deep tone of voice,
+"a lake, in very ancient times, covering the spot where now stands yonder
+village?"
+
+"Not in my day, friend," answered Philemon; "and yet I am an old man, as
+you see. There were always the fields and meadows, just as they are now,
+and the old trees, and the little stream murmuring through the midst of
+the valley. My father, nor his father before him, ever saw it otherwise,
+so far as I know; and doubtless it will still be the same, when old
+Philemon shall be gone and forgotten!"
+
+"That is more than can be safely foretold," observed the stranger; and
+there was something very stern in his deep voice. He shook his head, too,
+so that his dark and heavy curls were shaken with the movement. "Since the
+inhabitants of yonder village have forgotten the affections and sympathies
+of their nature, it were better that the lake should be rippling over
+their dwellings again!"
+
+The traveler looked so stern that Philemon was really almost frightened;
+the more so, that, at his frown, the twilight seemed suddenly to grow
+darker, and that, when he shook his head, there was a roll as of thunder
+in the air.
+
+But, in a moment afterwards, the stranger's face became so kindly and mild
+that the old man quite forgot his terror. Nevertheless, he could not help
+feeling that this elder traveler must be no ordinary personage, although
+he happened now to be attired so humbly and to be journeying on foot. Not
+that Philemon fancied him a prince in disguise, or any character of that
+sort; but rather some exceedingly wise man, who went about the world in
+this poor garb, despising wealth and all worldly objects, and seeking
+everywhere to add a mite to his wisdom. This idea appeared the more
+probable, because, when Philemon raised his eyes to the stranger's face,
+he seemed to see more thought there, in one look, than he could have
+studied out in a lifetime.
+
+While Baucis was getting the supper, the travelers both began to talk very
+sociably with Philemon. The younger, indeed, was extremely loquacious, and
+made such shrewd and witty remarks that the good old man continually burst
+out a-laughing, and pronounced him the merriest fellow whom he had seen
+for many a day.
+
+"Pray, my young friend," said he, as they grew familiar together, "what
+may I call your name?"
+
+"Why, I am very nimble, as you see," answered the traveler. "So, if you
+call me Quicksilver, the name will fit tolerably well."
+
+"Quicksilver? Quicksilver?" repeated Philemon, looking in the traveler's
+face, to see if he were making fun of him. "It is a very odd name! And
+your companion there? Has he as strange a one?"
+
+"You must ask the thunder to tell it you!" replied Quicksilver, putting on
+a mysterious look. "No other voice is loud enough."
+
+This remark, whether it were serious or in jest, might have caused
+Philemon to conceive a very great awe of the elder stranger, if, on
+venturing to gaze at him, he had not beheld so much beneficence in his
+visage. But undoubtedly here was the grandest figure that ever sat so
+humbly beside a cottage door. When the stranger conversed, it was with
+gravity, and in such a way that Philemon felt irresistibly moved to tell
+him everything which he had most at heart. This is always the feeling that
+people have when they meet with any one wise enough to comprehend all
+their good and evil, and to despise not a tittle of it.
+
+But Philemon, simple and kind-hearted old man that he was, had not many
+secrets to disclose. He talked, however, quite garrulously, about the
+events of his past life, in the whole course of which he had never been a
+score of miles from this very spot. His wife Baucis and himself had dwelt
+in the cottage from their youth upward, earning their bread by honest
+labor, always poor, but still contented. He told what excellent butter and
+cheese Baucis made, and how nice were the vegetables which he raised in
+his garden. He said, too, that, because they loved one another so very
+much, it was the wish of both that death might not separate them, but that
+they should die, as they had lived, together.
+
+As the stranger listened, a smile beamed over his countenance, and made
+its expression as sweet as it was grand.
+
+"You are a good old man," said he to Philemon, "and you have a good old
+wife to be your helpmeet. It is fit that your wish be granted."
+
+And it seemed to Philemon, just then, as if the sunset clouds threw up a
+bright flash from the west, and kindled a sudden light in the sky.
+
+Baucis had now got supper ready, and, coming to the door, began to make
+apologies for the poor fare which she was forced to set before her guests.
+
+"Had we known you were coming," said she, "my good man and myself would
+have gone without a morsel, rather than you should lack a better supper.
+But I took the most part of to-day's milk to make cheese; and our last
+loaf is already half eaten. Ah me! I never feel the sorrow of being poor,
+save when a poor traveler knocks at our door."
+
+"All will be very well; do not trouble yourself, my good dame," replied
+the elder stranger kindly. "An honest, hearty welcome to a guest works
+miracles with the fare, and is capable of turning the coarsest food to
+nectar and ambrosia."
+
+"A welcome you shall have," cried Baucis, "and likewise a little honey
+that we happen to have left, and a bunch of purple grapes besides."
+
+"Why, Mother Baucis, it is a feast!" exclaimed Quicksilver, laughing; "an
+absolute feast! and you shall see how bravely I will play my part at it! I
+think I never felt hungrier in my life."
+
+"Mercy on us!" whispered Baucis to her husband. "If the young man has such
+a terrible appetite, I am afraid there will not be half enough supper!"
+
+[Illustration: "I AM AFRAID THERE WILL NOT BE HALF ENOUGH SUPPER"]
+
+They all went into the cottage.
+
+And now, my little auditors, shall I tell you something that will make you
+open your eyes very wide? It is really one of the oddest circumstances in
+the whole story. Quicksilver's staff, you recollect, had set itself up
+against the wall of the cottage. Well, when its master entered the door,
+leaving this wonderful staff behind, what should it do but immediately
+spread its little wings, and go hopping and fluttering up the doorsteps!
+Tap, tap, went the staff, on the kitchen floor; nor did it rest until it
+had stood itself on end, with the greatest gravity and decorum, beside
+Quicksilver's chair. Old Philemon, however, as well as his wife, was so
+taken up in attending to their guests that no notice was given to what the
+staff had been about.
+
+As Baucis had said, there was but a scanty supper for two hungry
+travelers. In the middle of the table was the remnant of a brown loaf,
+with a piece of cheese on one side of it, and a dish of honeycomb on the
+other. There was a pretty good bunch of grapes for each of the guests. A
+moderately sized earthen pitcher, nearly full of milk, stood at a corner
+of the board; and when Baucis had filled two bowls, and set them before
+the strangers, only a little milk remained in the bottom of the pitcher.
+Alas! it is a very sad business, when a bountiful heart finds itself
+pinched and squeezed among narrow circumstances. Poor Baucis kept wishing
+that she might starve for a week to come, if it were possible, by so
+doing, to provide these hungry folks a more plentiful supper.
+
+And, since the supper was so exceedingly small, she could not help wishing
+that their appetites had not been quite so large. Why, at their very first
+sitting down, the travelers both drank off all the milk in their two
+bowls, at a draught.
+
+"A little more milk, kind Mother Baucis, if you please," said Quicksilver.
+"The day has been hot, and I am very much athirst."
+
+"Now, my dear people," answered Baucis, in great confusion, "I am so sorry
+and ashamed! But the truth is, there is hardly a drop more milk in the
+pitcher. O husband, husband, why didn't we go without our supper?"
+
+"Why, it appears to me," cried Quicksilver, starting up from table and
+taking the pitcher by the handle, "it really appears to me that matters
+are not quite so bad as you represent them. Here is certainly more milk in
+the pitcher."
+
+So saying, and to the vast astonishment of Baucis, he proceeded to fill,
+not only his own bowl, but his companion's likewise, from the pitcher that
+was supposed to be almost empty. The good woman could scarcely believe her
+eyes. She had certainly poured out nearly all the milk, and had peeped in
+afterwards, and seen the bottom of the pitcher, as she set it down upon
+the table.
+
+"But I am old," thought Baucis to herself, "and apt to be forgetful. I
+suppose I must have made a mistake. At all events, the pitcher cannot help
+being empty now, after filling the bowls twice over."
+
+"What excellent milk!" observed Quicksilver, after quaffing the contents
+of the second bowl. "Excuse me, my kind hostess, but I must really ask you
+for a little more."
+
+Now Baucis had seen, as plainly as she could see anything, that
+Quicksilver had turned the pitcher upside down, and consequently had
+poured out every drop of milk, in filling the last bowl. Of course, there
+could not possibly be any left. However, in order to let him know
+precisely how the case was, she lifted the pitcher, and made a gesture as
+if pouring milk into Quicksilver's bowl, but without the remotest idea
+that any milk would stream forth. What was her surprise, therefore, when
+such an abundant cascade fell bubbling into the bowl, that it was
+immediately filled to the brim, and overflowed upon the table! The two
+snakes that were twisted about Quicksilver's staff (but neither Baucis nor
+Philemon happened to observe this circumstance) stretched out their heads,
+and began to lap up the spilt milk.
+
+And then what a delicious fragrance the milk had! It seemed as if
+Philemon's only cow must have pastured, that day, on the richest herbage
+that could be found anywhere in the world. I only wish that each of you,
+my beloved little souls, could have a bowl of such nice milk, at
+supper-time!
+
+"And now a slice of your brown loaf, Mother Baucis," said Quicksilver,
+"and a little of that honey!"
+
+Baucis cut him a slice accordingly; and though the loaf, when she and her
+husband ate of it, had been rather too dry and crusty to be palatable, it
+was now as light and moist as if but a few hours out of the oven. Tasting
+a crumb, which had fallen on the table, she found it more delicious than
+bread ever was before, and could hardly believe that it was a loaf of her
+own kneading and baking. Yet, what other loaf could it possibly be?
+
+But oh, the honey! I may just as well let it alone, without trying to
+describe how exquisitely it smelt and looked. Its color was that of the
+purest and most transparent gold; and it had the odor of a thousand
+flowers; but of such flowers as never grew in an earthly garden, and to
+seek which the bees must have flown high above the clouds. The wonder is,
+that, after alighting on a flower-bed of so delicious fragrance and
+immortal bloom, they should have been content to fly down again to their
+hive in Philemon's garden. Never was such honey tasted, seen, or smelt.
+The perfume floated around the kitchen, and made it so delightful, that,
+had you closed your eyes, you would instantly have forgotten the low
+ceiling and smoky walls, and have fancied yourself in an arbor, with
+celestial honeysuckles creeping over it.
+
+Although good Mother Baucis was a simple old dame, she could not but think
+that there was something rather out of the common way in all that had been
+going on. So, after helping the guests to bread and honey, and laying a
+bunch of grapes by each of their plates, she sat down by Philemon, and
+told him what she had seen, in a whisper.
+
+"Did you ever hear the like?" asked she.
+
+"No, I never did," answered Philemon, with a smile. "And I rather think,
+my dear old wife, you have been walking about in a sort of a dream. If I
+had poured out the milk, I should have seen through the business at once.
+There happened to be a little more in the pitcher than you thought,--that
+is all."
+
+"Ah, husband," said Baucis, "say what you will, these are very uncommon
+people."
+
+"Well, well," replied Philemon, still smiling, "perhaps they are. They
+certainly do look as if they had seen better days; and I am heartily glad
+to see them making so comfortable a supper."
+
+Each of the guests had now taken his bunch of grapes upon his plate.
+Baucis (who rubbed her eyes, in order to see the more clearly) was of
+opinion that the clusters had grown larger and richer, and that each
+separate grape seemed to be on the point of bursting with ripe juice. It
+was entirely a mystery to her how such grapes could ever have been
+produced from the old stunted vine that climbed against the cottage wall.
+
+"Very admirable grapes these!" observed Quicksilver, as he swallowed one
+after another, without apparently diminishing his cluster. "Pray, my good
+host, whence did you gather them?"
+
+"From my own vine," answered Philemon. "You may see one of its branches
+twisting across the window, yonder. But wife and I never thought the
+grapes very fine ones."
+
+"I never tasted better," said the guest. "Another cup of this delicious
+milk, if you please, and I shall then have supped better than a prince."
+
+This time, old Philemon bestirred himself, and took up the pitcher; for he
+was curious to discover whether there was any reality in the marvels which
+Baucis had whispered to him. He knew that his good old wife was incapable
+of falsehood, and that she was seldom mistaken in what she supposed to be
+true; but this was so very singular a case, that he wanted to see into it
+with his own eyes. On taking up the pitcher, therefore, he slyly peeped
+into it, and was fully satisfied that it contained not so much as a single
+drop. All at once, however, he beheld a little white fountain, which
+gushed up from the bottom of the pitcher, and speedily filled it to the
+brim with foaming and deliciously fragrant milk. It was lucky that
+Philemon, in his surprise, did not drop the miraculous pitcher from his
+hand.
+
+"Who are ye, wonder-working strangers!" cried he, even more bewildered
+than his wife had been.
+
+"Your guests, my good Philemon, and your friends," replied the elder
+traveler, in his mild, deep voice, that had something at once sweet and
+awe-inspiring in it. "Give me likewise a cup of the milk; and may your
+pitcher never be empty for kind Baucis and yourself, any more than for the
+needy wayfarer!"
+
+The supper being now over, the strangers requested to be shown to their
+place of repose. The old people would gladly have talked with them a
+little longer, and have expressed the wonder which they felt, and their
+delight at finding the poor and meagre supper prove so much better and
+more abundant than they hoped. But the elder traveler had inspired them
+with such reverence that they dared not ask him any questions. And when
+Philemon drew Quicksilver aside, and inquired how under the sun a fountain
+of milk could have got into an old earthen pitcher, this latter personage
+pointed to his staff.
+
+"There is the whole mystery of the affair," quoth Quicksilver; "and if you
+can make it out, I'll thank you to let me know. I can't tell what to make
+of my staff. It is always playing such odd tricks as this; sometimes
+getting me a supper, and, quite as often, stealing it away. If I had any
+faith in such nonsense, I should say the stick was bewitched!"
+
+He said no more, but looked so slyly in their faces, that they rather
+fancied he was laughing at them. The magic staff went hopping at his
+heels, as Quicksilver quitted the room. When left alone, the good old
+couple spent some little time in conversation about the events of the
+evening, and then lay down on the floor, and fell fast asleep. They had
+given up their sleeping-room to the guests, and had no other bed for
+themselves, save these planks, which I wish had been as soft as their own
+hearts.
+
+The old man and his wife were stirring, betimes, in the morning, and the
+strangers likewise arose with the sun, and made their preparations to
+depart. Philemon hospitably entreated them to remain a little longer,
+until Baucis could milk the cow, and bake a cake upon the hearth, and,
+perhaps, find them a few fresh eggs, for breakfast. The guests, however,
+seemed to think it better to accomplish a good part of their journey
+before the heat of the day should come on. They, therefore, persisted in
+setting out immediately, but asked Philemon and Baucis to walk forth with
+them a short distance, and show them the road which they were to take.
+
+So they all four issued from the cottage, chatting together like old
+friends. It was very remarkable, indeed, how familiar the old couple
+insensibly grew with the elder traveler, and how their good and simple
+spirits melted into his, even as two drops of water would melt into the
+illimitable ocean. And as for Quicksilver, with his keen, quick, laughing
+wits, he appeared to discover every little thought that but peeped into
+their minds, before they suspected it themselves. They sometimes wished,
+it is true, that he had not been quite so quick-witted, and also that he
+would fling away his staff, which looked so mysteriously mischievous, with
+the snakes always writhing about it. But then, again, Quicksilver showed
+himself so very good-humored, that they would have been rejoiced to keep
+him in their cottage, staff, snakes, and all, every day, and the whole day
+long.
+
+"Ah me! Well-a-day!" exclaimed Philemon, when they had walked a little way
+from their door. "If our neighbors only knew what a blessed thing it is to
+show hospitality to strangers, they would tie up all their dogs, and never
+allow their children to fling another stone."
+
+"It is a sin and shame for them to behave so,--that it is!" cried good old
+Baucis vehemently. "And I mean to go this very day, and tell some of them
+what naughty people they are!"
+
+"I fear," remarked Quicksilver; slyly smiling, "that you will find none of
+them at home."
+
+The elder traveler's brow, just then, assumed such a grave, stern, and
+awful grandeur, yet serene withal, that neither Baucis nor Philemon dared
+to speak a word. They gazed reverently into his face, as if they had been
+gazing at the sky.
+
+"When men do not feel towards the humblest stranger as if he were a
+brother," said the traveler, in tones so deep that they sounded like those
+of an organ, "they are unworthy to exist on earth, which was created as
+the abode of a great human brotherhood!"
+
+"And, by the by, my dear old people," cried Quicksilver, with the
+liveliest look of fun and mischief in his eyes, "where is this same
+village that you talk about? On which side of us does it lie? Methinks I
+do not see it hereabouts."
+
+Philemon and his wife turned towards the valley, where, at sunset, only
+the day before, they had seen the meadows, the houses, the gardens, the
+clumps of trees, the wide, green-margined street, with children playing in
+it, and all the tokens of business, enjoyment, and prosperity. But what
+was their astonishment! There was no longer any appearance of a village!
+Even the fertile vale, in the hollow of which it lay, had ceased to have
+existence. In its stead, they beheld the broad, blue surface of a lake,
+which filled the great basin of the valley from brim to brim, and
+reflected the surrounding hills in its bosom with as tranquil an image as
+if it had been there ever since the creation of the world. For an instant,
+the lake remained perfectly smooth. Then a little breeze sprang up, and
+caused the water to dance, glitter, and sparkle in the early sunbeams, and
+to dash, with a pleasant rippling murmur, against the hither shore.
+
+The lake seemed so strangely familiar, that the old couple were greatly
+perplexed, and felt as if they could only have been dreaming about a
+village having lain there. But, the next moment, they remembered the
+vanished dwellings, and the faces and characters of the inhabitants, far
+too distinctly for a dream. The village had been there yesterday, and now
+was gone!
+
+"Alas!" cried these kind-hearted old people, "what has become of our poor
+neighbors?"
+
+"They no longer exist as men and women," said the elder traveler, in his
+grand and deep voice, while a roll of thunder seemed to echo it at a
+distance. "There was neither use nor beauty in such a life as theirs; for
+they never softened or sweetened the hard lot of mortality by the exercise
+of kindly affections between man and man. They retained no image of the
+better life in their bosoms; therefore, the lake, that was of old, has
+spread itself forth again, to reflect the sky!"
+
+"And as for those foolish people," said Quicksilver, with his mischievous
+smile, "they are all transformed to fishes. There needed but little
+change, for they were already a scaly set of rascals, and the
+coldest-blooded beings in existence. So, kind Mother Baucis, whenever you
+or your husband have an appetite for a dish of broiled trout, he can throw
+in a line, and pull out half a dozen of your old neighbors!"
+
+"Ah," cried Baucis shuddering, "I would not, for the world, put one of
+them on the gridiron!"
+
+"No," added Philemon, making a wry face, "we could never relish them!"
+
+"As for you, good Philemon," continued the elder traveler,--"and you, kind
+Baucis,--you, with your scanty means, have mingled so much heartfelt
+hospitality with your entertainment of the homeless stranger, that the
+milk became an inexhaustible fount of nectar, and the brown loaf and the
+honey were ambrosia. Thus, the divinities have feasted, at your board, off
+the same viands that supply their banquets on Olympus. You have done well,
+my dear old friends. Wherefore, request whatever favor you have most at
+heart, and it is granted."
+
+Philemon and Baucis looked at one another, and then--I know not which of
+the two it was who spoke, but that one uttered the desire of both their
+hearts.
+
+"Let us live together, while we live, and leave the world at the same
+instant, when we die! For we have always loved one another!"
+
+"Be it so!" replied the stranger, with majestic kindness. "Now, look
+towards your cottage!"
+
+They did so. But what was their surprise on beholding a tall edifice of
+white marble, with a wide-open portal, occupying the spot where their
+humble residence had so lately stood!
+
+"There is your home," said the stranger, beneficently smiling on them
+both. "Exercise your hospitality in yonder palace as freely as in the poor
+hovel to which you welcomed us last evening."
+
+The old folks fell on their knees to thank him; but, behold! neither he
+nor Quicksilver was there.
+
+So Philemon and Baucis took up their residence in the marble palace, and
+spent their time, with vast satisfaction to themselves, in making
+everybody jolly and comfortable who happened to pass that way. The
+milk-pitcher, I must not forget to say, retained its marvelous quality of
+being never empty, when it was desirable to have it full. Whenever an
+honest, good-humored, and free-hearted guest took a draught from this
+pitcher, he invariably found it the sweetest and most invigorating fluid
+that ever ran down his throat. But, if a cross and disagreeable curmudgeon
+happened to sip, he was pretty certain to twist his visage into a hard
+knot, and pronounce it a pitcher of sour milk!
+
+Thus the old couple lived in their palace a great, great while, and grew
+older and older, and very old indeed. At length, however, there came a
+summer morning when Philemon and Baucis failed to make their appearance,
+as on other mornings, with one hospitable smile overspreading both their
+pleasant faces, to invite the guests of over-night to breakfast. The
+guests searched everywhere, from top to bottom of the spacious palace, and
+all to no purpose. But, after a great deal of perplexity, they espied, in
+front of the portal, two venerable trees, which nobody could remember to
+have seen there the day before. Yet there they stood, with their roots
+fastened deep into the soil, and a huge breadth of foliage overshadowing
+the whole front of the edifice. One was an oak, and the other a
+linden-tree. Their boughs--it was strange and beautiful to see--were
+intertwined together, and embraced one another, so that each tree seemed
+to live in the other tree's bosom much more than in its own.
+
+While the guests were marveling how these trees, that must have required
+at least a century to grow, could have come to be so tall and venerable in
+a single night, a breeze sprang up, and set their intermingled boughs
+astir. And then there was a deep, broad murmur in the air, as if the two
+mysterious trees were speaking.
+
+"I am old Philemon!" murmured the oak.
+
+"I am old Baucis!" murmured the linden-tree.
+
+But, as the breeze grew stronger, the trees both spoke at
+once,--"Philemon! Baucis! Baucis! Philemon!"--as if one were both and both
+were one, and talking together in the depths of their mutual heart. It was
+plain enough to perceive that the good old couple had renewed their age,
+and were now to spend a quiet and delightful hundred years or so, Philemon
+as an oak, and Baucis as a linden-tree. And oh, what a hospitable shade
+did they fling around them! Whenever a wayfarer paused beneath it, he
+heard a pleasant whisper of the leaves above his head, and wondered how
+the sound should so much resemble words like these:--
+
+"Welcome, welcome, dear traveler, welcome!"
+
+And some kind soul, that knew what would have pleased old Baucis and old
+Philemon best, built a circular seat around both their trunks, where, for
+a great while afterwards, the weary, and the hungry, and the thirsty used
+to repose themselves, and quaff milk abundantly from the miraculous
+pitcher.
+
+And I wish, for all our sakes, that we had the pitcher here now!
+
+
+
+
+THE GOLDEN TOUCH
+
+By Nathaniel Hawthorne
+
+
+Once upon a time, there lived a very rich man, and a king besides, whose
+name was Midas; and he had a little daughter, whom nobody but myself ever
+heard of, and whose name I either never knew or have entirely forgotten.
+So, because I love odd names for little girls, I choose to call her
+Marygold.
+
+This King Midas was fonder of gold than of anything else in the world. He
+valued his royal crown chiefly because it was composed of that precious
+metal. If he loved anything better, or half so well, it was the one little
+maiden who played so merrily around her father's footstool. But the more
+Midas loved his daughter, the more did he desire and seek for wealth. He
+thought, foolish man! that the best thing he could possibly do for this
+dear child would be to bequeath her the immensest pile of yellow,
+glistening coin, that had ever been heaped together since the world was
+made. Thus, he gave all his thoughts and all his time to this one purpose.
+If ever he happened to gaze for an instant at the gold-tinted clouds of
+sunset, he wished that they were real gold, and that they could be
+squeezed safely into his strong box. When little Marygold ran to meet him
+with a bunch of buttercups and dandelions, he used to say, "Poh, poh,
+child! If these flowers were as golden as they look, they would be worth
+the plucking!"
+
+And yet, in his earlier days, before he was so entirely possessed of this
+insane desire for riches, King Midas had shown a great taste for flowers.
+He had planted a garden, in which grew the biggest and beautifulest and
+sweetest roses that any mortal ever saw or smelt. These roses were still
+growing in the garden, as large, as lovely, and as fragrant as when Midas
+used to pass whole hours in gazing at them and inhaling their perfume. But
+now, if he looked at them at all, it was only to calculate how much the
+garden would be worth if each of the innumerable rose-petals were a thin
+plate of gold. And though he once was fond of music (in spite of an idle
+story about his ears, which were said to resemble those of an ass), the
+only music for poor Midas, now, was the chink of one coin against another.
+
+At length (as people always grow more and more foolish, unless they take
+care to grow wiser and wiser), Midas had got to be so exceedingly
+unreasonable, that he could scarcely bear to see or touch any object that
+was not gold. He made it his custom, therefore, to pass a large portion of
+every day in a dark and dreary apartment, under ground, at the basement of
+his palace. It was here that he kept his wealth. To this dismal hole--for
+it was little better than a dungeon--Midas betook himself, whenever he
+wanted to be particularly happy. Here, after carefully locking the door,
+he would take a bag of gold coin, or a gold cup as big as a washbowl, or a
+heavy golden bar, or a peck-measure of gold-dust, and bring them from the
+obscure corners of the room into the one bright and narrow sunbeam that
+fell from the dungeon-like window. He valued the sunbeam for no other
+reason but that his treasure would not shine without its help. And then
+would he reckon over the coins in the bag; toss up the bar, and catch it
+as it came down; sift the gold-dust through his fingers; look at the funny
+image of his own face, as reflected in the burnished circumference of the
+cup; and whisper to himself, "O Midas, rich King Midas, what a happy man
+art thou!" But it was laughable to see how the image of his face kept
+grinning at him, out of the polished surface of the cup. It seemed to be
+aware of his foolish behavior, and to have a naughty inclination to make
+fun of him.
+
+Midas called himself a happy man, but felt that he was not yet quite so
+happy as he might be. The very tiptop of enjoyment would never be reached,
+unless the whole world were to become his treasure-room, and be filled
+with yellow metal which should be all his own.
+
+Now, I need hardly remind such wise little people as you are, that in the
+old, old times, when King Midas was alive, a great many things came to
+pass, which we should consider wonderful if they were to happen in our own
+day and country. And, on the other hand, a great many things take place
+nowadays, which seem not only wonderful to us, but at which the people of
+old times would have stared their eyes out. On the whole, I regard our own
+times as the strangest of the two; but, however that may be, I must go on
+with my story.
+
+Midas was enjoying himself in his treasure-room, one day, as usual, when
+he perceived a shadow fall over the heaps of gold; and, looking suddenly
+up, what should he behold but the figure of a stranger, standing in the
+bright and narrow sunbeam! It was a young man, with a cheerful and ruddy
+face. Whether it was that the imagination of King Midas threw a yellow
+tinge over everything, or whatever the cause might be, he could not help
+fancying that the smile with which the stranger regarded him had a kind of
+golden radiance in it. Certainly, although his figure intercepted the
+sunshine, there was now a brighter gleam upon all the piled-up treasures
+than before. Even the remotest corners had their share of it, and were
+lighted up, when the stranger smiled, as with tips of flame and sparkles
+of fire. As Midas knew that he had carefully turned the key in the lock,
+and that no mortal strength could possibly break into his treasure-room,
+he, of course, concluded that his visitor must be something more than
+mortal. It is no matter about telling you who he was. In those days, when
+the earth was comparatively a new affair, it was supposed to be often the
+resort of beings endowed with supernatural power, and who used to interest
+themselves in the joys and sorrows of men, women, and children, half
+playfully and half seriously. Midas had met such beings before now, and
+was not sorry to meet one of them again. The stranger's aspect, indeed,
+was so good-humored and kindly, if not beneficent, that it would have been
+unreasonable to suspect him of intending any mischief. It was far more
+probable that he came to do Midas a favor. And what could that favor be,
+unless to multiply his heaps of treasure?
+
+The stranger gazed about the room; and when his lustrous smile had
+glistened upon all the golden objects that were there, he turned again to
+Midas.
+
+"You are a wealthy man, friend Midas!" he observed. "I doubt whether any
+other four walls, on earth, contain so much gold as you have contrived to
+pile up in this room."
+
+"I have done pretty well,--pretty well," answered Midas, in a discontented
+tone. "But, after all, it is but a trifle, when you consider that it has
+taken me my whole life to get it together. If one could live a thousand
+years, he might have time to grow rich!"
+
+"What!" exclaimed the stranger. "Then you are not satisfied?"
+
+Midas shook his head.
+
+"And pray what would satisfy you?" asked the stranger. "Merely for the
+curiosity of the thing, I should be glad to know."
+
+Midas paused and meditated. He felt a presentiment that this stranger,
+with such a golden lustre in his good-humored smile, had come hither with
+both the power and the purpose of gratifying his utmost wishes. Now,
+therefore, was the fortunate moment, when he had but to speak, and obtain
+whatever possible, or seemingly impossible thing, it might come into his
+head to ask. So he thought, and thought, and thought, and heaped up one
+golden mountain upon another, in his imagination, without being able to
+imagine them big enough. At last, a bright idea occurred to King Midas. It
+seemed really as bright as the glistening metal which he loved so much.
+
+Raising his head, he looked the lustrous stranger in the face.
+
+"Well, Midas," observed his visitor, "I see that you have at length hit
+upon something that will satisfy you. Tell me your wish."
+
+"It is only this," replied Midas. "I am weary of collecting my treasures
+with so much trouble, and beholding the heap so diminutive, after I have
+done my best. I wish everything that I touch to be changed to gold!"
+
+The stranger's smile grew so very broad, that it seemed to fill the room
+like an outburst of the sun, gleaming into a shadowy dell where the yellow
+autumnal leaves--for so looked the lumps and particles of gold--lie strewn
+in the glow of light.
+
+"The Golden Touch!" exclaimed he. "You certainly deserve credit, friend
+Midas, for striking out so brilliant a conception. But are you quite sure
+that this will satisfy you?"
+
+"How could it fail?" said Midas.
+
+"And will you never regret the possession of it?"
+
+"What could induce me?" asked Midas. "I ask nothing else, to render me
+perfectly happy."
+
+"Be it as you wish, then," replied the stranger, waving his hand in token
+of farewell. "To-morrow, at sunrise, you will find yourself gifted with
+the Golden Touch."
+
+The figure of the stranger then became exceedingly bright, and Midas
+involuntarily closed his eyes. On opening them again, he beheld only one
+yellow sunbeam in the room, and, all around him, the glistening of the
+precious metal which he had spent his life in hoarding up.
+
+Whether Midas slept as usual that night, the story does not say. Asleep or
+awake, however, his mind was probably in the state of a child's, to whom a
+beautiful new plaything has been promised in the morning. At any rate, day
+had hardly peeped over the hills, when King Midas was broad awake, and,
+stretching his arms out of bed, began to touch the objects that were
+within reach. He was anxious to prove whether the Golden Touch had really
+come, according to the stranger's promise. So he laid his finger on a
+chair by the bedside, and on various other things, but was grievously
+disappointed to perceive that they remained of exactly the same substance
+as before. Indeed, he felt very much afraid that he had only dreamed about
+the lustrous stranger, or else that the latter had been making game of
+him. And what a miserable affair would it be, if, after all his hopes,
+Midas must content himself with what little gold he could scrape together
+by ordinary means, instead of creating it by a touch!
+
+All this while it was only the gray of the morning, with but a streak of
+brightness along the edge of the sky, where Midas could not see it. He lay
+in a very disconsolate mood, regretting the downfall of his hopes, and
+kept growing sadder and sadder, until the earliest sunbeam shone through
+the window, and gilded the ceiling over his head. It seemed to Midas that
+this bright yellow sunbeam was reflected in rather a singular way on the
+white covering of the bed. Looking more closely, what was his astonishment
+and delight, when he found that this linen fabric had been transmuted to
+what seemed a woven texture of the purest and brightest gold! The Golden
+Touch had come to him with the first sunbeam!
+
+Midas started up, in a kind of joyful frenzy, and ran about the room,
+grasping at everything that happened to be in his way. He seized one of
+the bed-posts, and it became immediately a fluted golden pillar. He pulled
+aside a window-curtain, in order to admit a clear spectacle of the wonders
+which he was performing; and the tassel grew heavy in his hand,--a mass of
+gold. He took up a book from the table. At his first touch, it assumed the
+appearance of such a splendidly bound and gilt-edged volume as one often
+meets with, nowadays; but, on running his fingers through the leaves,
+behold! it was a bundle of thin golden plates, in which all the wisdom of
+the book had grown illegible. He hurriedly put on his clothes, and was
+enraptured to see himself in a magnificent suit of gold cloth, which
+retained its flexibility and softness, although it burdened him a little
+with its weight. He drew out his handkerchief, which little Marygold had
+hemmed for him. That was likewise gold, with the dear child's neat and
+pretty stitches running all along the border, in gold thread!
+
+Somehow or other, this last transformation did not quite please King
+Midas. He would rather that his little daughter's handiwork should have
+remained just the same as when she climbed his knee and put it into his
+hand.
+
+But it was not worth while to vex himself about a trifle. Midas now took
+his spectacles from his pocket, and put them on his nose, in order that he
+might see more distinctly what he was about. In those days, spectacles for
+common people had not been invented, but were already worn by kings; else,
+how could Midas have had any? To his great perplexity, however, excellent
+as the glasses were, he discovered that he could not possibly see through
+them. But this was the most natural thing in the world; for on taking them
+off, the transparent crystals turned out to be plates of yellow metal,
+and, of course, were worthless as spectacles, though valuable as gold. It
+struck Midas as rather inconvenient that, with all his wealth, he could
+never again be rich enough to own a pair of serviceable spectacles.
+
+"It is no great matter, nevertheless," said he to himself, very
+philosophically. "We cannot expect any great good, without its being
+accompanied with some small inconvenience. The Golden Touch is worth the
+sacrifice of a pair of spectacles, at least, if not of one's very
+eyesight. My own eyes will serve for ordinary purposes, and little
+Marygold will soon be old enough to read to me."
+
+Wise King Midas was so exalted by his good fortune that the palace seemed
+not sufficiently spacious to contain him. He therefore went downstairs,
+and smiled, on observing that the balustrade of the staircase became a bar
+of burnished gold, as his hand passed over it in his descent. He lifted
+the door-latch (it was brass only a moment ago, but golden when his
+fingers quitted it), and emerged into the garden. Here, as it happened, he
+found a great number of beautiful roses in full bloom, and others in all
+the stages of lovely bud and blossom. Very delicious was their fragrance
+in the morning breeze. Their delicate blush was one of the fairest sights
+in the world; so gentle, so modest, and so full of sweet tranquillity did
+these roses seem to be.
+
+But Midas knew a way to make them far more precious, according to his way
+of thinking, than roses had ever been before. So he took great pains in
+going from bush to bush, and exercised his magic touch most indefatigably;
+until every individual flower and bud, and even the worms at the heart of
+some of them, were changed to gold. By the time this good work was
+completed, King Midas was summoned to breakfast; and as the morning air
+had given him an excellent appetite, he made haste back to the palace.
+
+What was usually a king's breakfast in the days of Midas, I really do not
+know, and cannot stop now to investigate. To the best of my belief,
+however, on this particular morning, the breakfast consisted of hot cakes,
+some nice little brook trout, roasted potatoes, fresh boiled eggs, and
+coffee, for King Midas himself, and a bowl of bread and milk for his
+daughter Marygold. At all events, this is a breakfast fit to set before a
+king; and, whether he had it or not, King Midas could not have had a
+better.
+
+Little Marygold had not yet made her appearance. Her father ordered her to
+be called, and, seating himself at table, awaited the child's coming, in
+order to begin his own breakfast. To do Midas justice, he really loved his
+daughter, and loved her so much the more this morning, on account of the
+good fortune which had befallen him. It was not a great while before he
+heard her coming along the passage-way crying bitterly. This circumstance
+surprised him, because Marygold was one of the cheerfullest little people
+whom you would see in a summer's day, and hardly shed a thimbleful of
+tears in a twelvemonth. When Midas heard her sobs, he determined to put
+little Marygold into better spirits, by an agreeable surprise; so, leaning
+across the table, he touched his daughter's bowl (which was a China one,
+with pretty figures all around it), and transmuted it to gleaming gold.
+
+Meanwhile, Marygold slowly and disconsolately opened the door, and showed
+herself with her apron at her eyes, still sobbing as if her heart would
+break.
+
+"How now, my little lady!" cried Midas. "Pray what is the matter with you,
+this bright morning?"
+
+Marygold, without taking the apron from her eyes, held out her hand, in
+which was one of the roses which Midas had so recently transmuted.
+
+"Beautiful!" exclaimed her father. "And what is there in this magnificent
+golden rose to make you cry?"
+
+"Ah, dear father!" answered the child, as well as her sobs would let her;
+"it is not beautiful, but the ugliest flower that ever grew! As soon as I
+was dressed I ran into the garden to gather some roses for you; because I
+know you like them, and like them the better when gathered by your little
+daughter. But, oh dear, dear me! What do you think has happened? Such a
+misfortune! All the beautiful roses, that smelled so sweet and had so many
+lovely blushes, are blighted and spoilt! They are grown quite yellow, as
+you see this one, and have no longer any fragrance! What can have been the
+matter with them?"
+
+"Poh, my dear little girl,--pray don't cry about it!" said Midas, who was
+ashamed to confess that he himself had wrought the change which so greatly
+afflicted her. "Sit down and eat your bread and milk! You will find it
+easy enough to exchange a golden rose like that (which will last hundreds
+of years) for an ordinary one which would wither in a day."
+
+"I don't care for such roses as this!" cried Marygold, tossing it
+contemptuously away. "It has no smell, and the hard petals prick my nose!"
+
+The child now sat down to table, but was so occupied with her grief for
+the blighted roses that she did not even notice the wonderful
+transmutation of her China bowl. Perhaps this was all the better; for
+Marygold was accustomed to take pleasure in looking at the queer figures,
+and strange trees and houses, that were painted on the circumference of
+the bowl; and these ornaments were now entirely lost in the yellow hue of
+the metal.
+
+Midas, meanwhile, had poured out a cup of coffee, and, as a matter of
+course, the coffee-pot, whatever metal it may have been when he took it
+up, was gold when he set it down. He thought to himself, that it was
+rather an extravagant style of splendor, in a king of his simple habits,
+to breakfast off a service of gold, and began to be puzzled with the
+difficulty of keeping his treasures safe. The cupboard and the kitchen
+would no longer be a secure place of deposit for articles so valuable as
+golden bowls and coffee-pots.
+
+Amid these thoughts, he lifted a spoonful of coffee to his lips, and,
+sipping it, was astonished to perceive that the instant his lips touched
+the liquid, it became molten gold, and the next moment, hardened into a
+lump!
+
+"Ha!" exclaimed Midas, rather aghast.
+
+"What is the matter, father?" asked little Marygold, gazing at him, with
+the tears still standing in her eyes.
+
+"Nothing, child, nothing!" said Midas. "Eat your milk, before it gets
+quite cold."
+
+He took one of the nice little trouts on his plate, and, by way of
+experiment, touched its tail with his finger. To his horror, it was
+immediately transmuted from an admirably fried brook trout into a
+gold-fish, though not one of those gold-fishes which people often keep in
+glass globes, as ornaments for the parlor. No; but it was really a
+metallic fish, and looked as if it had been very cunningly made by the
+nicest goldsmith in the world. Its little bones were now golden wires; its
+fins and tail were thin plates of gold; and there were the marks of the
+fork in it, and all the delicate, frothy appearance of a nicely fried
+fish, exactly imitated in metal. A very pretty piece of work, as you may
+suppose; only King Midas, just at that moment, would much rather have had
+a real trout in his dish than this elaborate and valuable imitation of
+one.
+
+"I don't quite see," thought he to himself, "how I am to get any
+breakfast!"
+
+He took one of the smoking-hot cakes, and had scarcely broken it, when, to
+his cruel mortification, though, a moment before, it had been of the
+whitest wheat, it assumed the yellow hue of Indian meal. To say the truth,
+if it had really been a hot Indian cake, Midas would have prized it a good
+deal more than he now did, when its solidity and increased weight made him
+too bitterly sensible that it was gold. Almost in despair, he helped
+himself to a boiled egg, which immediately underwent a change similar to
+those of the trout and the cake. The egg, indeed, might have been mistaken
+for one of those which the famous goose, in the story-book, was in the
+habit of laying; but King Midas was the only goose that had had anything
+to do with the matter.
+
+"Well, this is a quandary!" thought he, leaning back in his chair, and
+looking quite enviously at little Marygold, who was now eating her bread
+and milk with great satisfaction. "Such a costly breakfast before me, and
+nothing that can be eaten!"
+
+Hoping that, by dint of great dispatch, he might avoid what he now felt to
+be a considerable inconvenience, King Midas next snatched a hot potato,
+and attempted to cram it into his mouth, and swallow it in a hurry. But
+the Golden Touch was too nimble for him. He found his mouth full, not of
+mealy potato, but of solid metal, which so burnt his tongue that he roared
+aloud, and, jumping up from the table, began to dance and stamp about the
+room, both with pain and affright.
+
+"Father, dear father!" cried little Marygold, who was a very affectionate
+child, "pray what is the matter? Have you burnt your mouth?"
+
+"Ah, dear child," groaned Midas dolefully, "I don't know what is to become
+of your poor father!"
+
+And, truly, my dear little folks, did you ever hear of such a pitiable
+case in all your lives? Here was literally the richest breakfast that
+could be set before a king, and its very richness made it absolutely good
+for nothing. The poorest laborer, sitting down to his crust of bread and
+cup of water, was far better off than King Midas, whose delicate food was
+really worth its weight in gold. And what was to be done? Already, at
+breakfast, Midas was excessively hungry. Would he be less so by
+dinner-time? And how ravenous would be his appetite for supper, which must
+undoubtedly consist of the same sort of indigestible dishes as those now
+before him! How many days, think you, would he survive a continuance of
+this rich fare?
+
+These reflections so troubled wise King Midas, that he began to doubt
+whether, after all, riches are the one desirable thing in the world, or
+even the most desirable. But this was only a passing thought. So
+fascinated was Midas with the glitter of the yellow metal, that he would
+still have refused to give up the Golden Touch for so paltry a
+consideration as a breakfast. Just imagine what a price for one meal's
+victuals! It would have been the same as paying millions and millions of
+money (and as many millions more as would take forever to reckon up) for
+some fried trout, an egg, a potato, a hot cake, and a cup of coffee!
+
+"It would be quite too dear," thought Midas.
+
+Nevertheless, so great was his hunger, and the perplexity of his
+situation, that he again groaned aloud, and very grievously too. Our
+pretty Marygold could endure it no longer. She sat, a moment, gazing at
+her father, and trying with all the might of her little wits to find out
+what was the matter with him. Then, with a sweet and sorrowful impulse to
+comfort him, she started from her chair, and, running to Midas, threw her
+arms affectionately about his knees. He bent down and kissed her. He felt
+that his little daughter's love was worth a thousand times more than he
+had gained by the Golden Touch.
+
+"My precious, precious Marygold!" cried he.
+
+But Marygold made no answer.
+
+Alas, what had he done? How fatal was the gift which the stranger
+bestowed! The moment the lips of Midas touched Marygold's forehead, a
+change had taken place. Her sweet, rosy face, so full of affection as it
+had been, assumed a glittering yellow color, with yellow teardrops
+congealing on her cheeks. Her beautiful brown ringlets took the same tint.
+Her soft and tender little form grew hard and inflexible within her
+father's encircling arms. Oh, terrible misfortune! The victim of his
+insatiable desire for wealth, little Marygold was a human child no longer,
+but a golden statue!
+
+Yes, there she was, with the questioning look of love, grief, and pity,
+hardened into her face. It was the prettiest and most woeful sight that
+ever mortal saw. All the features and tokens of Marygold were there; even
+the beloved little dimple remained in her golden chin. But the more
+perfect was the resemblance, the greater was the father's agony at
+beholding this golden image, which was all that was left him of a
+daughter. It had been a favorite phrase of Midas, whenever he felt
+particularly fond of the child, to say that she was worth her weight in
+gold. And now the phrase had become literally true. And now, at last, when
+it was too late, he felt how infinitely a warm and tender heart, that
+loved him, exceeded in value all the wealth that could be piled up betwixt
+the earth and sky!
+
+It would be too sad a story, if I were to tell you how Midas, in the
+fullness of all his gratified desires, began to wring his hands and bemoan
+himself; and how he could neither bear to look at Marygold, nor yet to
+look away from her. Except when his eyes were fixed on the image, he could
+not possibly believe that she was changed to gold. But stealing another
+glance, there was the precious little figure, with a yellow tear-drop on
+its yellow cheek, and a look so piteous and tender that it seemed as if
+that very expression must needs soften the gold, and make it flesh again.
+This, however, could not be. So Midas had only to wring his hands, and to
+wish that he were the poorest man in the wide world, if the loss of all
+his wealth might bring back the faintest rose-color to his dear child's
+face.
+
+While he was in this tumult of despair, he suddenly beheld a stranger
+standing near the door. Midas bent down his head, without speaking; for he
+recognized the same figure which had appeared to him, the day before, in
+the treasure-room, and had bestowed on him this disastrous faculty of the
+Golden Touch. The stranger's countenance still wore a smile, which seemed
+to shed a yellow lustre all about the room, and gleamed on little
+Marygold's image, and on the other objects that had been transmuted by the
+touch of Midas.
+
+"Well, friend Midas," said the stranger, "pray how do you succeed with the
+Golden Touch?"
+
+Midas shook his head.
+
+"I am very miserable," said he.
+
+"Very miserable, indeed!" exclaimed the stranger. "And how happens that?
+Have I not faithfully kept my promise with you? Have you not everything
+that your heart desired?"
+
+"Gold is not everything," answered Midas. "And I have lost all that my
+heart really cared for."
+
+"Ah! So you have made a discovery, since yesterday?" observed the
+stranger. "Let us see, then. Which of these two things do you think is
+really worth the most,--the gift of the Golden Touch, or one cup of clear
+cold water?"
+
+"O blessed water!" exclaimed Midas. "It will never moisten my parched
+throat again!"
+
+"The Golden Touch," continued the stranger, "or a crust of bread?"
+
+"A piece of bread," answered Midas, "is worth all the gold on earth!"
+
+"The Golden Touch," asked the stranger, "or your own little Marygold,
+warm, soft, and loving as she was an hour ago?"
+
+"Oh, my child, my dear child!" cried poor Midas, wringing his hands. "I
+would not have given that one small dimple in her chin for the power of
+changing this whole big earth into a solid lump of gold!"
+
+"You are wiser than you were, King Midas!" said the stranger, looking
+seriously at him. "Your own heart, I perceive, has not been entirely
+changed from flesh to gold. Were it so, your case would indeed be
+desperate. But you appear to be still capable of understanding that the
+commonest things, such as lie within everybody's grasp, are more valuable
+than the riches which so many mortals sigh and struggle after. Tell me,
+now, do you sincerely desire to rid yourself of this Golden Touch?"
+
+"It is hateful to me!" replied Midas.
+
+A fly settled on his nose, but immediately fell to the floor; for it, too,
+had become gold. Midas shuddered.
+
+"Go, then," said the stranger, "and plunge into the river that glides past
+the bottom of your garden. Take likewise a vase of the same water, and
+sprinkle it over any object that you may desire to change back again from
+gold into its former substance. If you do this in earnestness and
+sincerity, it may possibly repair the mischief which your avarice has
+occasioned."
+
+King Midas bowed low; and when he lifted his head, the lustrous stranger
+had vanished.
+
+You will easily believe that Midas lost no time in snatching up a great
+earthen pitcher (but, alas me! it was no longer earthen after he touched
+it), and hastening to the riverside. As he scampered along, and forced his
+way through the shrubbery, it was positively marvelous to see how the
+foliage turned yellow behind him, as if the autumn had been there, and
+nowhere else. On reaching the river's brink, he plunged headlong in,
+without waiting so much as to pull off his shoes.
+
+"Poof! poof! poof!" snorted King Midas, as his head emerged out of the
+water. "Well; this is really a refreshing bath, and I think it must have
+quite washed away the Golden Touch. And now for filling my pitcher!"
+
+As he dipped the pitcher into the water, it gladdened his very heart to
+see it change from gold into the same good, honest earthen vessel which it
+had been before he touched it. He was conscious, also, of a change within
+himself. A cold, hard, and heavy weight seemed to have gone out of his
+bosom. No doubt his heart had been gradually losing its human substance,
+and transmuting itself into insensible metal, but had now softened back
+again into flesh. Perceiving a violet, that grew on the bank of the river,
+Midas touched it with his finger, and was overjoyed to find that the
+delicate flower retained its purple hue, instead of undergoing a yellow
+blight. The curse of the Golden Touch had therefore really been removed
+from him.
+
+King Midas hastened back to the palace; and I suppose the servants knew
+not what to make of it when they saw their royal master so carefully
+bringing home an earthen pitcher of water. But that water, which was to
+undo all the mischief that his folly had wrought, was more precious to
+Midas, than an ocean of molten gold could have been. The first thing he
+did, as you need hardly be told, was to sprinkle it by handfuls over the
+golden figure of little Marygold.
+
+No sooner did it fall on her than you would have laughed to see how the
+rosy color came back to the dear child's cheek! and how she began to
+sneeze and sputter!--and how astonished she was to find herself dripping
+wet, and her father still throwing more water over her!
+
+"Pray do not, dear father!" cried she. "See how you have wet my nice
+frock, which I put on only this morning!"
+
+For Marygold did not know that she had been a little golden statue; nor
+could she remember anything that had happened since the moment when she
+ran with outstretched arms to comfort poor King Midas.
+
+Her father did not think it necessary to tell his beloved child how very
+foolish he had been, but contented himself with showing how much wiser he
+had now grown. For this purpose he led little Marygold into the garden,
+where he sprinkled all the remainder of the water over the rose-bushes,
+and with such good effect that above five thousand roses recovered their
+beautiful bloom. There were two circumstances, however, which, as long as
+he lived, used to put King Midas in mind of the Golden Touch. One was,
+that the sands of the river sparkled like gold; the other, that little
+Marygold's hair had now a golden tinge, which he had never observed in it
+before she had been transmuted by the effect of his kiss. This change of
+hue was really an improvement, and made Marygold's hair richer than in her
+babyhood.
+
+When King Midas had grown quite an old man, and used to trot Marygold's
+children on his knee, he was fond of telling them this marvelous story,
+pretty much as I have now told it to you. And then would he stroke their
+glossy ringlets, and tell them that their hair, likewise, had a rich shade
+of gold, which they had inherited from their mother.
+
+"And to tell you the truth, my precious little folks," quoth King Midas,
+diligently trotting the children all the while, "ever since that morning,
+I have hated the very sight of all other gold, save this!"
+
+
+
+
+THE POMEGRANATE SEEDS
+
+By Nathaniel Hawthorne
+
+
+Mother Ceres was exceedingly fond of her daughter Proserpina, and seldom
+let her go alone into the fields. But, just at the time when my story
+begins, the good lady was very busy, because she had the care of the
+wheat, and the Indian corn, and the rye and barley, and, in short, of the
+crops of every kind, all over the earth; and as the season had thus far
+been uncommonly backward, it was necessary to make the harvest ripen more
+speedily than usual. So she put on her turban, made of poppies (a kind of
+flower which she was always noted for wearing), and got into her car drawn
+by a pair of winged dragons, and was just ready to set off.
+
+"Dear mother," said Proserpina, "I shall be very lonely while you are
+away. May I not run down to the shore, and ask some of the sea-nymphs to
+come up out of the waves and play with me?"
+
+"Yes, child," answered Mother Ceres. "The sea-nymphs are good creatures,
+and will never lead you into any harm. But you must take care not to stray
+away from them, nor go wandering about the fields by yourself. Young
+girls, without their mothers to take care of them, are very apt to get
+into mischief."
+
+The child promised to be as prudent as if she were a grown-up woman, and,
+by the time the winged dragons had whirled the car out of sight, she was
+already on the shore, calling to the sea-nymphs to come and play with her.
+They knew Proserpina's voice, and were not long in showing their
+glistening faces and sea-green hair above the water, at the bottom of
+which was their home. They brought along with them a great many beautiful
+shells; and, sitting down on the moist sand, where the surf wave broke
+over them, they busied themselves in making a necklace, which they hung
+round Proserpina's neck. By way of showing her gratitude, the child
+besought them to go with her a little way into the fields, so that they
+might gather abundance of flowers, with which she would make each of her
+kind playmates a wreath.
+
+"Oh, no, dear Proserpina," cried the sea-nymphs; "we dare not go with you
+upon the dry land. We are apt to grow faint, unless at every breath we can
+snuff up the salt breeze of the ocean. And don't you see how careful we
+are to let the surf wave break over us every moment or two, so as to keep
+ourselves comfortably moist? If it were not for that, we should soon look
+like bunches of uprooted sea-weed dried in the sun."
+
+"It is a great pity," said Proserpina, "but do you wait for me here, and I
+will run and gather my apron full of flowers, and be back again before the
+surf wave has broken ten times over you. I long to make you some wreaths
+that shall be as lovely as this necklace of many-colored shells."
+
+"We will wait, then," answered the sea-nymphs. "But while you are gone, we
+may as well lie down on a bank of soft sponge, under the water. The air
+to-day is a little too dry for our comfort. But we will pop up our heads
+every few minutes to see if you are coming."
+
+The young Proserpina ran quickly to a spot where, only the day before, she
+had seen a great many flowers. These, however, were now a little past
+their bloom; and wishing to give her friends the freshest and loveliest
+blossoms, she strayed farther into the fields, and found some that made
+her scream with delight. Never had she met with such exquisite flowers
+before,--violets, so large and fragrant,--roses, with so rich and delicate
+a blush,--such superb hyacinths and such aromatic pinks,--and many others,
+some of which seemed to be of new shapes and colors. Two or three times,
+moreover, she could not help thinking that a tuft of most splendid flowers
+had suddenly sprouted out of the earth before her very eyes, as if on
+purpose to tempt her a few steps farther. Proserpina's apron was soon
+filled and brimming over with delightful blossoms. She was on the point of
+turning back in order to rejoin the sea-nymphs, and sit with them on the
+moist sands, all twining wreaths together. But, a little farther on, what
+should she behold? It was a large shrub, completely covered with the most
+magnificent flowers in the world.
+
+"The darlings!" cried Proserpina; and then she thought to herself, "I was
+looking at that spot only a moment ago. How strange it is that I did not
+see the flowers!"
+
+The nearer she approached the shrub, the more attractive it looked, until
+she came quite close to it; and then, although its beauty was richer than
+words can tell, she hardly knew whether to like it or not. It bore above a
+hundred flowers of the most brilliant hues, and each different from the
+others, but all having a kind of resemblance among themselves, which
+showed them to be sister blossoms. But there was a deep, glossy lustre on
+the leaves of the shrub, and on the petals of the flowers, that made
+Proserpina doubt whether they might not be poisonous. To tell you the
+truth, foolish as it may seem, she was half inclined to turn round and run
+away.
+
+"What a silly child I am!" thought she, taking courage. "It is really the
+most beautiful shrub that ever sprang out of the earth. I will pull it up
+by the roots, and carry it home, and plant it in my mother's garden."
+
+Holding up her apron full of flowers with her left hand, Proserpina seized
+the large shrub with the other, and pulled and pulled, but was hardly able
+to loosen the soil about its roots. What a deep-rooted plant it was! Again
+the girl pulled with all her might, and observed that the earth began to
+stir and crack to some distance around the stem. She gave another pull,
+but relaxed her hold, fancying that there was a rumbling sound right
+beneath her feet. Did the roots extend down into some enchanted cavern?
+Then, laughing at herself for so childish a notion, she made another
+effort; up came the shrub, and Proserpina staggered back, holding the stem
+triumphantly in her hand, and gazing at the deep hole which its roots had
+left in the soil.
+
+Much to her astonishment this hole kept spreading wider and wider, and
+growing deeper and deeper, until it really seemed to have no bottom; and
+all the while, there came a rumbling noise out of its depths, louder and
+louder, and nearer and nearer, and sounding like the tramp of horses'
+hoofs and the rattling of wheels. Too much frightened to run away, she
+stood straining her eyes into this wonderful cavity, and soon saw a team
+of four sable horses, snorting smoke out of their nostrils, and tearing
+their way out of the earth with a splendid golden chariot whirling at
+their heels. They leaped out of the bottomless hole, chariot and all; and
+there they were, tossing their black manes, flourishing their black tails,
+and curvetting with every one of their hoofs off the ground at once, close
+by the spot where Proserpina stood. In the chariot sat the figure of a
+man, richly dressed, with a crown on his head, all flaming with diamonds.
+He was of a noble aspect, and rather handsome, but looked sullen and
+discontented; and he kept rubbing his eyes and shading them with his hand,
+as if he did not live enough in the sunshine to be very fond of its light.
+
+[Illustration: THEY LEAPED OUT OF THE BOTTOMLESS HOLE, CHARIOT AND ALL;
+AND THERE THEY WERE TOSSING THEIR BLACK TAILS, AND CURVETTING WITH EVERY
+ONE OF THEIR HOOFS OFF THE GROUND AT ONCE, CLOSE BY THE SPOT WHERE
+PROSERPINA STOOD. IN THE CHARIOT SAT THE FIGURE OF A MAN]
+
+As soon as this personage saw the affrighted Proserpina, he beckoned her
+to come a little nearer.
+
+"Do not be afraid," said he, with as cheerful a smile as he knew how to
+put on. "Come! Will not you like to ride a little way with me, in my
+beautiful chariot?"
+
+But Proserpina was so alarmed that she wished for nothing but to get out
+of his reach. And no wonder. The stranger did not look remarkably
+good-natured, in spite of his smile; and as for his voice, its tones were
+deep and stern, and sounded as much like the rumbling of an earthquake
+under ground as anything else. As is always the case with children in
+trouble, Proserpina's first thought was to call for her mother.
+
+"Mother, Mother Ceres!" cried she, all in a tremble. "Come quickly and
+save me."
+
+But her voice was too faint for her mother to hear. Indeed, it is most
+probable that Ceres was then a thousand miles off, making the corn grow in
+some far-distant country. Nor could it have availed her poor daughter,
+even had she been within hearing; for no sooner did Proserpina begin to
+cry out, than the stranger leaped to the ground, caught the child in his
+arms, and again mounting the chariot, shook the reins, and shouted to the
+four black horses to set off. They immediately broke into so swift a
+gallop that it seemed rather like flying through the air than running
+along the earth. In a moment, Proserpina lost sight of the pleasant vale
+of Enna, in which she had always dwelt. Another instant, and even the
+summit of Mount Ætna had become so blue in the distance that she could
+scarcely distinguish it from the smoke that gushed out of its crater. But
+still the poor child screamed, and scattered her apron full of flowers
+along the way, and left a long cry trailing behind the chariot; and many
+mothers, to whose ears it came, ran quickly to see if any mischief had
+befallen their children. But Mother Ceres was a great way off, and could
+not hear the cry.
+
+As they rode on, the stranger did his best to soothe her.
+
+"Why should you be so frightened, my pretty child?" said he, trying to
+soften his rough voice. "I promise not to do you any harm. What! You have
+been gathering flowers? Wait till we come to my palace, and I will give
+you a garden full of prettier flowers than those, all made of pearls, and
+diamonds, and rubies. Can you guess who I am? They call my name Pluto, and
+I am the king of diamonds and all other precious stones. Every atom of the
+gold and silver that lies under the earth belongs to me, to say nothing of
+the copper and iron, and of the coal-mines, which supply me with abundance
+of fuel. Do you see this splendid crown upon my head? You may have it for
+a plaything. Oh, we shall be very good friends, and you will find me more
+agreeable than you expect, when once we get out of this troublesome
+sunshine."
+
+"Let me go home!" cried Proserpina. "Let me go home!"
+
+"My home is better than your mother's," answered King Pluto "It is a
+palace, all made of gold, with crystal windows; and because there is
+little or no sunshine thereabouts, the apartments are illuminated with
+diamond lamps. You never saw anything half so magnificent as my throne. If
+you like, you may sit down on it, and be my little queen, and I will sit
+on the footstool."
+
+"I don't care for golden palaces and thrones," sobbed Proserpina. "Oh, my
+mother, my mother! Carry me back to my mother!"
+
+But King Pluto, as he called himself, only shouted to his steeds to go
+faster.
+
+"Pray do not be foolish, Proserpina," said he, in rather a sullen tone. "I
+offer you my palace and my crown, and all the riches that are under the
+earth; and you treat me as if I were doing you an injury. The one thing
+which my palace needs is a merry little maid, to run upstairs and down,
+and cheer up the rooms with her smile. And this is what you must do for
+King Pluto."
+
+"Never!" answered Proserpina, looking as miserable as she could. "I shall
+never smile again till you set me down at my mother's door."
+
+But she might just as well have talked to the wind that whistled past
+them; for Pluto urged on his horses, and went faster than ever. Proserpina
+continued to cry out, and screamed so long and so loudly, that her poor
+little voice was almost screamed away; and when it was nothing but a
+whisper, she happened to cast her eyes over a great, broad field of waving
+grain--and whom do you think she saw? Who, but Mother Ceres, making the
+corn grow, and too busy to notice the golden chariot as it went rattling
+along. The child mustered all her strength, and gave one more scream, but
+was out of sight before Ceres had time to turn her head.
+
+King Pluto had taken a road which now began to grow excessively gloomy. It
+was bordered on each side with rocks and precipices, between which the
+rumbling of the chariot-wheels was reverberated with a noise like rolling
+thunder. The trees and bushes that grew in the crevices of the rocks had
+very dismal foliage; and by and by, although it was hardly noon, the air
+became obscured with a gray twilight. The black horses had rushed along so
+swiftly, that they were already beyond the limits of the sunshine. But the
+duskier it grew, the more did Pluto's visage assume an air of
+satisfaction. After all, he was not an ill-looking person, especially when
+he left off twisting his features into a smile that did not belong to
+them. Proserpina peeped at his face through the gathering dusk, and hoped
+that he might not be so very wicked as she at first thought him.
+
+"Ah, this twilight is truly refreshing," said King Pluto, "after being so
+tormented with that ugly and impertinent glare of the sun. How much more
+agreeable is lamplight or torchlight, more particularly when reflected
+from diamonds! It will be a magnificent sight when we get to my palace."
+
+"Is it much farther?" asked Proserpina. "And will you carry me back when I
+have seen it?"
+
+"We will talk of that by and by," answered Pluto. "We are just entering my
+dominions. Do you see that tall gateway before us? When we pass those
+gates, we are at home. And there lies my faithful mastiff at the
+threshold. Cerberus! Cerberus! Come hither, my good dog!"
+
+So saying, Pluto pulled at the reins, and stopped the chariot right
+between the tall, massive pillars of the gateway. The mastiff of which he
+had spoken got up from the threshold, and stood on his hinder legs, so as
+to put his forepaws on the chariot-wheel. But, my stars, what a strange
+dog it was! Why, he was a big, rough, ugly-looking monster, with three
+separate heads, and each of them fiercer than the two others; but, fierce
+as they were, King Pluto patted them all. He seemed as fond of his
+three-headed dog as if it had been a sweet little spaniel, with silken
+ears and curly hair. Cerberus, on the other hand, was evidently rejoiced
+to see his master, and expressed his attachment, as other dogs do, by
+wagging his tail at a great rate. Proserpina's eyes being drawn to it by
+its brisk motion, she saw that this tail was neither more nor less than a
+live dragon, with fiery eyes, and fangs that had a very poisonous aspect.
+And while the three-headed Cerberus was fawning so lovingly on King Pluto,
+there was the dragon tail wagging against its will, and looking as cross
+and ill-natured as you can imagine, on its own separate account.
+
+"Will the dog bite me?" asked Proserpina, shrinking closer to Pluto. "What
+an ugly creature he is!"
+
+"Oh, never fear," answered her companion. "He never harms people unless
+they try to enter my dominions without being sent for, or to get away when
+I wish to keep them here. Down, Cerberus! Now, my pretty Proserpina, we
+will drive on."
+
+On went the chariot, and King Pluto seemed greatly pleased to find himself
+once more in his own kingdom. He drew Proserpina's attention to the rich
+veins of gold that were to be seen among the rocks, and pointed to several
+places where one stroke of a pick-axe would loosen a bushel of diamonds.
+All along the road, indeed, there were sparkling gems, which would have
+been of inestimable value above ground, but which were here reckoned of
+the meaner sort, and hardly worth a beggar's stooping for.
+
+Not far from the gateway, they came to a bridge, which seemed to be built
+of iron. Pluto stopped the chariot, and bade Proserpina look at the stream
+which was gliding so lazily beneath it. Never in her life had she beheld
+so torpid, so black, so muddy-looking a stream: its waters reflected no
+images of anything that was on the banks, and it moved as sluggishly as if
+it had quite forgotten which way it ought to flow, and had rather stagnate
+than flow either one way or the other.
+
+"This is the river Lethe," observed King Pluto. "Is it not a very pleasant
+stream?" "I think it a very dismal one," said Proserpina. "It suits my
+taste, however," answered Pluto, who was apt to be sullen when anybody
+disagreed with him. "At all events, its water has one very excellent
+quality; for a single draught of it makes people forget every care and
+sorrow that has hitherto tormented them. Only sip a little of it, my dear
+Proserpina, and you will instantly cease to grieve for your mother, and
+will have nothing in your memory that can prevent your being perfectly
+happy in my palace. I will send for some, in a golden goblet, the moment
+we arrive."
+
+"Oh, no, no, no!" cried Proserpina, weeping afresh. "I had a thousand
+times rather be miserable with remembering my mother than be happy in
+forgetting her. That dear, dear mother! I never, never will forget her."
+
+"We shall see," said King Pluto. "You do not know what fine times we will
+have in my palace. Here we are just at the portal. These pillars are solid
+gold, I assure you."
+
+He alighted from the chariot, and taking Proserpina in his arms, carried
+her up a lofty flight of steps into the great hall of the palace. It was
+splendidly illuminated by means of large precious stones, of various hues,
+which seemed to burn like so many lamps, and glowed with a hundred-fold
+radiance all through the vast apartment. And yet there was a kind of gloom
+in the midst of this enchanted light; nor was there a single object in the
+hall that was really agreeable to behold, except the little Proserpina
+herself, a lovely child, with one earthly flower which she had not let
+fall from her hand. It is my opinion that even King Pluto had never been
+happy in his palace, and that this was the true reason why he had stolen
+away Proserpina, in order that he might have something to love, instead of
+cheating his heart any longer with this tiresome magnificence. And, though
+he pretended to dislike the sunshine of the upper world, yet the effect of
+the child's presence, bedimmed as she was by her tears, was as if a faint
+and watery sunbeam had somehow or other found its way into the enchanted
+hall.
+
+Pluto now summoned his domestics, and bade them lose no time in preparing
+a most sumptuous banquet, and above all things, not to fail of setting a
+golden beaker of the water of Lethe by Proserpina's plate.
+
+"I will neither drink that nor anything else," said Proserpina. "Nor will
+I taste a morsel of food, even if you keep me forever in your palace." on
+the seashore, she hastened thither as fast as she could, and there beheld
+the wet faces of the poor sea-nymphs peeping over a wave. All this while,
+the good creatures had been waiting on the bank of sponge, and once every
+half-minute or so, had popped up their four heads above water, to see if
+their playmate were yet coming back. When they saw Mother Ceres, they sat
+down on the crest of the surf wave, and let it toss them ashore at her
+feet.
+
+"Where is Proserpina?" cried Ceres. "Where is my child? Tell me, you
+naughty sea-nymphs, have you enticed her under the sea?"
+
+"Oh, no, good Mother Ceres," said the innocent sea-nymphs, tossing back
+their green ringlets, and looking her in the face. "We never should dream
+of such a thing. Proserpina has been at play with us, it is true; but she
+left us a long while ago, meaning only to run a little way upon the dry
+land, and gather some flowers for a wreath. This was early in the day, and
+we have seen nothing of her since."
+
+Ceres scarcely waited to hear what the nymphs had to say, before she
+hurried off to make inquiries all through the neighborhood. But nobody
+told her anything that could enable the poor mother to guess what had
+become of Proserpina. A fisherman, it is true, had noticed her little
+footprints in the sand, as he went homeward along the beach with a basket
+of fish; a rustic had seen the child stooping to gather flowers; several
+persons had heard either the rattling of chariot-wheels or the rumbling of
+distant thunder; and one old woman, while plucking vervain and catnip, had
+heard a scream, but supposed it to be some childish nonsense, and
+therefore did not take the trouble to look up. The stupid people! It took
+them such a tedious while to tell the nothing that they knew, that it was
+dark night before Mother Ceres found out that she must seek her daughter
+elsewhere. So she lighted a torch, and set forth, resolving never to come
+back until Proserpina was discovered.
+
+In her haste and trouble of mind, she quite forgot her car and the winged
+dragons; or, it may be, she thought that she could follow up the search
+more thoroughly on foot. At all events, this was the way in which she
+began her sorrowful journey, holding her torch before her, and looking
+carefully at every object along the path. And as it happened, she had not
+gone far before she found one of the magnificent flowers which grew on the
+shrub that Proserpina had pulled up.
+
+"Ha!" thought Mother Ceres, examining it by torchlight. "Here is mischief
+in this flower! The earth did not produce it by any help of mine, nor of
+its own accord. It is the work of enchantment, and is therefore poisonous;
+and perhaps it has poisoned my poor child."
+
+But she put the poisonous flower in her bosom, not knowing whether she
+might ever find any other memorial of Proserpina.
+
+All night long, at the door of every cottage and farmhouse, Ceres knocked,
+and called up the weary laborers to inquire if they had seen her child;
+and they stood, gaping and half asleep, at the threshold, and answered her
+pityingly, and besought her to come in and rest. At the portal of every
+palace, too, she made so loud a summons that the menials hurried to throw
+open the gate, thinking that it must be some great king or queen, who
+would demand a banquet for supper and a stately chamber to repose in. And
+when they saw only a sad and anxious woman, with a torch in her hand and a
+wreath of withered poppies on her head, they spoke rudely, and sometimes
+threatened to set the dogs upon her. But nobody had seen Proserpina, nor
+could give Mother Ceres the least hint which way to seek her. Thus passed
+the night; and still she continued her search without sitting down to
+rest, or stopping to take food, or even remembering to put down the torch;
+although first the rosy dawn, and then the glad light of the morning sun,
+made its red flame look thin and pale. But I wonder what sort of stuff
+this torch was made of; for it burned dimly through the day, and at night
+was as bright as ever, and never was extinguished by the rain or wind, in
+all the weary days and nights while Ceres was seeking for Proserpina.
+
+It was not merely of human beings that she asked tidings of her daughter.
+In the woods and by the streams, she met creatures of another nature, who
+used, in those old times, to haunt the pleasant and solitary places, and
+were very sociable with persons who understood their language and customs,
+as Mother Ceres did. Sometimes, for instance, she tapped with her finger
+against the knotted trunk of a majestic oak; and immediately its rude bark
+would cleave asunder, and forth would step a beautiful maiden, who was the
+hamadryad of the oak, dwelling inside of it, and sharing its long life,
+and rejoicing when its green leaves sported with the breeze. But not one
+of these leafy damsels had seen Proserpina. Then, going a little farther,
+Ceres would, perhaps, come to a fountain, gushing out of a pebbly hollow
+in the earth, and would dabble with her hand in the water. Behold, up
+through its sandy and pebbly bed, along with the fountain's gush, a young
+woman with dripping hair would arise, and stand gazing at Mother Ceres,
+half out of the water, and undulating up and down with its ever-restless
+motion. But when the mother asked whether her poor lost child had stopped
+to drink out of the fountain, the naiad, with weeping eyes (for these
+water-nymphs had tears to spare for everybody's grief), would answer,
+"No!" in a murmuring voice, which was just like the murmur of the stream.
+
+Often, likewise, she encountered fauns, who looked like sunburnt country
+people, except that they had hairy ears, and little horns upon their
+foreheads, and the hinder legs of goats, on which they gamboled merrily
+about the woods and fields. They were a frolicsome kind of creature, but
+grew as sad as their cheerful dispositions would allow when Ceres inquired
+for her daughter, and they had no good news to tell. But sometimes she
+came suddenly upon a rude gang of satyrs, who had faces like monkeys and
+horses' tails behind them, and who were generally dancing in a very
+boisterous manner, with shouts of noisy laughter. When she stopped to
+question them, they would only laugh the louder, and make new merriment
+out of the lone woman's distress. How unkind of those ugly satyrs! And
+once, while crossing a solitary sheep pasture, she saw a personage named
+Pan, seated at the foot of a tall rock. And making music on a shepherd's
+flute. He, too, had horns and hairy ears, and goat's feet; but being
+acquainted with Mother Ceres, he answered her question as civilly as he
+knew how, and invited her to taste some milk and honey out of a wooden
+bowl. But neither could Pan tell her what had become of Proserpina, any
+better than the rest of these wild people.
+
+And thus Mother Ceres went wandering about for nine long days and nights,
+finding no trace of Proserpina, unless it were now and then a withered
+flower; and these, she picked up and put in her bosom, because she fancied
+that they might have fallen from her poor child's hand. All day she
+traveled onward through the hot sun; and at night, again, the flame of the
+torch would redden and gleam along the pathway, and she continued her
+search by its light, without ever sitting down to rest.
+
+On the tenth day, she chanced to espy the mouth of a cavern, within which
+(though it was bright noon everywhere else) there would have been only a
+dusky twilight: but it so happened that a torch was burning there. It
+flickered and struggled with the duskiness, but could not half light up
+the gloomy cavern with all its melancholy glimmer. Ceres was resolved to
+leave no spot without a search; so she peeped into the entrance of the
+cave, and lighted it up a little more by holding her own torch before her.
+In so doing, she caught a glimpse of what seemed to be a woman, sitting on
+the brown leaves of the last autumn, a great heap of which had been swept
+into the cave by the wind. This woman (if woman it were) was by no means
+so beautiful as many of her sex: for her head, they tell me, was shaped
+very much like a dog's, and, by way of ornament, she wore a wreath of
+snakes around it. But Mother Ceres, the moment she saw her, knew that this
+was an odd kind of a person, who put all her enjoyment in being miserable,
+and never would have a word to say to other people, unless they were as
+melancholy and wretched as she herself delighted to be.
+
+"I am wretched enough now," thought poor Ceres, "to talk with this
+melancholy Hecate, were she ten times sadder than ever she was yet."
+
+So she stepped into the cave, and sat down, on the withered leaves by the
+dog-headed woman's side. In all the world, since her daughter's loss, she
+had found no other companion.
+
+"O Hecate." said she, "if ever you lose a daughter, you will know what
+sorrow is. Tell me, for pity's sake, have you seen my poor child
+Proserpina pass by the mouth of your cavern?"
+
+"No." answered Hecate, in a cracked voice, and sighing betwixt every word
+or two.--"no. Mother Ceres, I have seen nothing of your daughter. But my
+ears, you must know, are made in such a way that all cries of distress and
+affright, all over the world, are pretty sure to find their way to them:
+and nine days ago, as I sat in my cave, making myself very miserable. I
+heard the voice of a young girl, shrieking as if in great distress.
+Something terrible has happened to the child, you may rest assured. As
+well as I could judge, a dragon, or some other cruel monster, was carrying
+her away."
+
+"You kill me by saying so," cried Ceres, almost ready to faint. "Where was
+the sound, and which way did it seem to go?"
+
+"It passed very swiftly along," said Hecate, "and, at the same time, there
+was a heavy rumbling of wheels towards the eastward. I can tell you
+nothing more, except that, in my honest opinion, you will never see your
+daughter again. The best advice I can give you is to take up your abode in
+this cavern, where we will be the two most wretched women in the world."
+
+"Not yet, dark Hecate." replied Ceres, "But do you first come with your
+torch, and help me to seek for my lost child. And when there shall be no
+more hope of finding her (if that black day is ordained to come), then, if
+you will give me room to fling myself down, either on these withered
+leaves or on the naked rock, I will show you what it is to be miserable.
+But until I know that she has perished from the face of the earth, I will
+not allow myself space even to grieve."
+
+The dismal Hecate did not much like the idea of going abroad into the
+sunny world. But then she reflected that the sorrow of the disconsolate
+Ceres would be like a gloomy twilight round about them both, let the sun
+shine ever so brightly, and that therefore she might enjoy her bad spirits
+quite as well as if she were to stay in the cave. So she finally consented
+to go, and they set out together, both carrying torches, although it was
+broad daylight and clear sunshine. The torchlight seemed to make a gloom;
+so that the people whom they met along the road could not very distinctly
+see their figures; and, indeed, if they once caught a glimpse of Hecate,
+with the wreath of snakes round her forehead, they generally thought it
+prudent to run away, without waiting for a second glance.
+
+As the pair traveled along in this woebegone manner, a thought struck
+Ceres.
+
+"There is one person." she exclaimed, "who must have seen my poor child,
+and can doubtless tell what has become of her. Why did not I think of him
+before? It is Phoebus."
+
+"What," said Hecate, "the young man that always sits in the sunshine? Oh,
+pray do not think of going near him. He is a gay, light, frivolous young
+fellow, and will only smile in your face. And besides, there is such a
+glare of the sun about him, that he will quite blind my poor eyes, which I
+have almost wept away already."
+
+"You have promised to be my companion," answered Ceres. "Come, let us make
+haste, or the sunshine will be gone, and Phoebus along with it."
+
+Accordingly, they went along in quest of Phoebus, both of them, sighing
+grievously, and Hecate, to say the truth, making a great deal worse
+lamentation than Ceres; for all the pleasure she had, you know, lay in
+being miserable, and therefore she made the most of it. By and by, after a
+pretty long journey, they arrived at the sunniest spot in the whole world.
+There they beheld a beautiful young man, with long, curling ringlets,
+which seemed to be made of golden sunbeams; his garments were like light
+summer clouds; and the expression of his face was so exceedingly vivid,
+that Hecate held her hands before her eyes, muttering that he ought to
+wear a black veil. Phoebus (for this was the very person whom they were
+seeking) had a lyre in his hands, and was making its chords tremble with
+sweet music; at the same time singing a most exquisite song, which he had
+recently composed. For besides a great many other accomplishments, this
+young man was renowned for his admirable poetry.
+
+As Ceres and her dismal companion approached him, Phoebus smiled on them
+so cheerfully that Hecate's wreath of snakes gave a spiteful hiss, and
+Hecate heartily wished herself back in her cave. But as for Ceres, she was
+too earnest in her grief either to know or care whether Phoebus smiled or
+frowned.
+
+"Phoebus!" exclaimed she, "I am in great trouble, and have come to you for
+assistance. Can you tell me what has become of my dear child Proserpina?"
+
+"Proserpina! Proserpina, did you call her name?" answered Phoebus,
+endeavoring to recollect; for there was such a continual flow of pleasant
+ideas in his mind that he was apt to forget what had happened no longer
+ago than yesterday. "Ah, yes, I remember her now. A very lovely child,
+indeed. I am happy to tell you, my dear madam, that I did see the little
+Proserpina not many days ago. You may make yourself perfectly easy about
+her. She is safe, and in excellent hands."
+
+"Oh, where is my dear child?" cried Ceres, clasping her hands and flinging
+herself at his feet.
+
+"Why," said Phoebus,--and as he spoke, he kept touching his lyre so as to
+make a thread of music run in and out among his words,--"as the little
+damsel was gathering flowers (and she has really a very exquisite taste
+for flowers) she was suddenly snatched up by King Pluto, and carried off
+to his dominions. I have never been in that part of the universe; but the
+royal palace, I am told, is built in a very noble style of architecture,
+and of the most splendid and costly materials. Gold, diamonds, pearls, and
+all manner of precious stones will be your daughter's ordinary playthings.
+I recommend to you, my dear lady, to give yourself no uneasiness.
+Proserpina's sense of beauty will be duly gratified, and, even in spite of
+the lack of sunshine, she will lead a very enviable life."
+
+"Hush! Say not such a word!" answered Ceres indignantly. "What is there to
+gratify her heart? What are all the splendors you speak of, without
+affection? I must have her back again. Will you go with me, Phoebus, to
+demand my daughter of this wicked Pluto?"
+
+"Pray excuse me," replied Phoebus, with an elegant obeisance. "I certainly
+wish you success, and regret that my own affairs are so immediately
+pressing that I cannot have the pleasure of attending you. Besides, I am
+not upon the best of terms with King Pluto. To tell you the truth, his
+three-headed mastiff would never let me pass the gateway; for I should be
+compelled to take a sheaf of sunbeams along with me, and those, you know,
+are forbidden things in Pluto's kingdom."
+
+"Ah, Phoebus," said Ceres, with bitter meaning in her words, "you have a
+harp instead of a heart. Farewell."
+
+"Will not you stay a moment," asked Phoebus, "and hear me turn the pretty
+and touching story of Proserpina into extemporary verses?"
+
+But Ceres shook her head, and hastened away, along with Hecate. Phoebus
+(who, as I have told you, was an exquisite poet) forthwith began to make
+an ode about the poor mother's grief; and, if we were to judge of his
+sensibility by this beautiful production, he must have been endowed with a
+very tender heart. But when a poet gets into the habit of using his
+heartstrings to make chords for his lyre, he may thrum upon them as much
+as he will, without any great pain to himself. Accordingly, though Phoebus
+sang a very sad song, he was as merry all the while as were the sunbeams
+amid which he dwelt.
+
+Poor Mother Ceres had now found out what had become of her daughter, but
+was not a whit happier than before. Her case, on the contrary, looked more
+desperate than ever. As long as Proserpina was above ground there might
+have been hopes of regaining her. But now that the poor child was shut up
+within the iron gates of the king of the mines, at the threshold of which
+lay the three-headed Cerberus, there seemed no possibility of her ever
+making her escape. The dismal Hecate, who loved to take the darkest view
+of things, told Ceres that she had better come with her to the cavern, and
+spend the rest of her life in being miserable. Ceres answered that Hecate
+was welcome to go back thither herself, but that, for her part, she would
+wander about the earth in quest of the entrance to King Pluto's dominions.
+And Hecate took her at her word, and hurried back to her beloved cave,
+frightening a great many little children with a glimpse of her dog's face,
+as she went.
+
+Poor Mother Ceres! It is melancholy to think of her, pursuing her toilsome
+way all alone, and holding up that never-dying torch, the flame of which
+seemed an emblem of the grief and hope that burned together in her heart.
+So much did she suffer, that, though her aspect had been quite youthful
+when her troubles began, she grew to look like an elderly person in a very
+brief time. She cared not how she was dressed, nor had she ever thought of
+flinging away the wreath of withered poppies, which she put on the very
+morning of Proserpina's disappearance. She roamed about in so wild a way,
+and with her hair so dishevelled, that people took her for some distracted
+creature, and never dreamed that this was Mother Ceres, who had the
+oversight of every seed which the husbandman planted. Nowadays, however,
+she gave herself no trouble about seed-time nor harvest, but left the
+farmers to take care of their own affairs, and the crops to fade or
+flourish, as the case might be. There was nothing, now, in which Ceres
+seemed to feel an interest, unless when she saw children at play or
+gathering flowers along the wayside. Then, indeed, she would stand and
+gaze at them with tears in her eyes. The children, too, appeared to have a
+sympathy with her grief, and would cluster themselves in a little group
+about her knees, and look up wistfully in her face; and Ceres, after
+giving them a kiss all around, would lead them to their homes, and advise
+their mothers never to let them stray out of sight.
+
+"For if you do," said she, "it may happen to you, as it has to me, that
+the iron-hearted King Pluto will take a liking to your darlings, and
+snatch them up in his chariot, and carry them away."
+
+One day, during her pilgrimage in quest of the entrance to Pluto's
+kingdom, she came to the palace of King Celeus, who reigned at Eleusis.
+Ascending a lofty flight of steps, she entered the portal, and found the
+royal household in very great alarm about the queen's baby. The infant, it
+seems, was sickly (being troubled with its teeth, I suppose), and would
+take no food, and was all the time moaning with pain. The queen--her name
+was Metanira--was desirous of finding a nurse; and when she beheld a woman
+of matronly aspect coming up the palace steps, she thought, in her own
+mind that here was the very person whom she needed. So Queen Metanira ran
+to the door, with the poor wailing baby in her arms, and besought Ceres to
+take charge of it, or, at least, to tell her what would do it good."
+
+"Will you trust the child entirely to me?" asked Ceres.
+
+"Yes, and gladly too," answered the queen, "if you will devote all your
+time to him. For I can see that you have been a mother."
+
+"You are right," said Ceres. "I once had a child of my own. Well, I will
+be the nurse of this poor, sickly boy. But beware, I warn you, that you do
+not interfere with any kind of treatment which I may judge proper for him.
+If you do so, the poor infant must suffer for his mother's folly."
+
+Then she kissed the child, and it seemed to do him good, for he smiled and
+nestled closely into her bosom.
+
+So Mother Ceres set her torch in a corner (where it kept burning all the
+while), and took up her abode in the palace of King Celeus, as nurse to
+the little Prince Demophöon. She treated him as if he were her own child,
+and allowed neither the king nor the queen to say whether he should be
+bathed in warm or cold water, or what he should eat, or how often he
+should take the air, or when he should be put to bed. You would hardly
+believe me, if I were to tell how quickly the baby prince got rid of his
+ailments, and grew fat, and rosy, and strong, and how he had two rows of
+ivory teeth in less time than any other little fellow, before or since.
+Instead of the palest, and wretchedest, and puniest imp in the world (as
+his own mother confessed him to be when Ceres first took him in charge),
+he was now a strapping baby, crowing, laughing, kicking up his heels, and
+rolling from one end of the room to the other. All the good women of the
+neighborhood crowded to the palace, and held up their hands, in
+unutterable amazement, at the beauty and wholesomeness of this darling
+little prince. Their wonder was the greater, because he was never seen to
+taste any food,--not even so much as a cup of milk.
+
+"Pray, nurse," the queen kept saying, "how is it that you make the child
+thrive so?"
+
+"I was a mother once," Ceres replied always; "and having nursed my own
+child, I know what other children need."
+
+But Queen Metanira, as was very natural, had a great curiosity to know
+precisely what the nurse did to her child. One night, therefore, she hid
+herself in the chamber where Ceres and the little prince were accustomed
+to sleep. There was a fire in the chimney, and it had now crumbled into
+great coals and embers, which lay glowing on the hearth, with a blaze
+flickering up now and then, and flinging a warm and ruddy light upon the
+walls. Ceres sat before the hearth with the child in her lap, and the
+firelight making her shadow dance upon the ceiling overhead. She undressed
+the little prince, and bathed him all over with some fragrant liquid out
+of a vase. The next thing she did was to rake back the red embers, and
+make a hollow place among them, just where the backlog had been. At last,
+while the baby was crowing and clapping its fat little hands, and laughing
+in the nurse's face (just as you may have seen your little brother or
+sister do before going into its warm bath), Ceres suddenly laid him, all
+naked as he was, in the hollow, among the red-hot embers. She then raked
+the ashes over him, and turned quietly away.
+
+You may imagine, if you can, how Queen Metanira shrieked, thinking nothing
+less than that her dear child would be burned to a cinder. She burst forth
+from her hiding-place, and running to the hearth, raked open the fire, and
+snatched up poor little Prince Demophöon out of his bed of live coals, one
+of which he was griping in each of his fists. He immediately set up a
+grievous cry, as babies are apt to do when rudely startled out of a sound
+sleep. To the queen's astonishment and joy, she could perceive no token of
+the child's being injured by the hot fire in which he had lain. She now
+turned to Mother Ceres, and asked her to explain the mystery.
+
+"Foolish woman," answered Ceres, "did you not promise to intrust this poor
+infant entirely to me? You little know the mischief you have done him. Had
+you left him to my care, he would have grown up like a child of celestial
+birth, endowed with superhuman strength and intelligence, and would have
+lived forever. Do you imagine that earthly children are to become immortal
+without being tempered to it in the fiercest heat of the fire? But you
+have ruined your own son. For though he will be a strong man and a hero in
+his day, yet, on account of your folly, he will grow old, and finally die,
+like the sons of other women. The weak tenderness of his mother has cost
+the poor boy an immortality. Farewell."
+
+Saying these words, she kissed the little prince Demophöon, and sighed to
+think what he had lost, and took her departure without heeding Queen
+Metanira, who entreated her to remain, and cover up the child among the
+hot embers as often as she pleased. Poor baby! He never slept so warmly
+again.
+
+While she dwelt in the king's palace, Mother Ceres had been so continually
+occupied with taking care of the young prince, that her heart was a little
+lightened of its grief for Proserpina. But now, having nothing else to
+busy herself about, she became just as wretched as before. At length, in
+her despair, she came to the dreadful resolution that not a stalk of
+grain, nor a blade of grass, not a potato, nor a turnip, nor any other
+vegetable that was good for man or beast to eat, should be suffered to
+grow until her daughter were restored. She even forbade the flowers to
+bloom, lest somebody's heart should be cheered by their beauty.
+
+Now, as not so much as a head of asparagus ever presumed to poke itself
+out of the ground, without the especial permission of Ceres, you may
+conceive what a terrible calamity had here fallen upon the earth. The
+husbandmen ploughed and planted as usual; but there lay the rich black
+furrows, all as barren as a desert of sand. The pastures looked as brown
+in the sweet month of June as ever they did in chill November. The rich
+man's broad acres and the cottager's small garden-patch were equally
+blighted. Every little girl's flower-bed showed nothing but dry stalks.
+The old people shook their white heads, and said that the earth had grown
+aged like themselves, and was no longer capable of wearing the warm smile
+of summer on its face. It was really piteous to see the poor starving
+cattle and sheep, how they followed behind Ceres, lowing and bleating, as
+if their instinct taught them to expect help from her; and everybody that
+was acquainted with her power besought her to have mercy on the human
+race, and, at all events, to let the grass grow. But Mother Ceres, though
+naturally of an affectionate disposition, was now inexorable.
+
+"Never," said she. "If the earth is ever again to see any verdure, it must
+first grow along the path which my daughter will tread in coming back to
+me."
+
+Finally, as there seemed to be no other remedy, our old friend Quicksilver
+was sent post haste to King Pluto, in hopes that he might be persuaded to
+undo the mischief he had done, and to set everything right again, by
+giving up Proserpina. Quicksilver accordingly made the best of his way to
+the great gate, took a flying leap right over the three-headed mastiff,
+and stood at the door of the palace in an inconceivably short time. The
+servants knew him both by his face and garb; for his short cloak and his
+winged cap and shoes and his snaky staff had often been seen thereabouts
+in times gone by. He requested to be shown immediately into the king's
+presence; and Pluto, who heard his voice from the top of the stairs, and
+who loved to recreate himself with Quicksilver's merry talk, called out to
+him to come up. And while they settle their business together, we must
+inquire what Proserpina has been doing ever since we saw her last.
+
+The child had declared, as you may remember, that she would not taste a
+mouthful of food as long as she should be compelled to remain in King
+Pluto's palace. How she contrived to maintain her resolution, and at the
+same time to keep herself tolerably plump and rosy, is more than I can
+explain; but some young ladies, I am given to understand, possess the
+faculty of living on air, and Proserpina seems to have possessed it too.
+At any rate, it was now six months since she left the outside of the
+earth; and not a morsel, so far as the attendants were able to testify,
+had yet passed between her teeth. This was the more creditable to
+Proserpina, inasmuch as King Pluto had caused her to be tempted day after
+day, with all manner of sweetmeats, and richly preserved fruits, and
+delicacies of every sort, such as young people are generally most fond of.
+But her good mother had often told her of the hurtfulness of these things;
+and for that reason alone, if there had been no other, she would have
+resolutely refused to taste them.
+
+All this time, being of a cheerful and active disposition, the little
+damsel was not quite so unhappy as you may have supposed. The immense
+palace had a thousand rooms, and was full of beautiful and wonderful
+objects. There was a never-ceasing gloom, it is true, which half hid
+itself among the innumerable pillars, gliding before the child as she
+wandered among them, and treading stealthily behind her in the echo of her
+footsteps. Neither was all the dazzle of the precious stones, which flamed
+with their own light, worth one gleam of natural sunshine; nor could the
+most brilliant of the many-colored gems which Proserpina had for
+playthings vie with the simple beauty of the flowers she used to gather.
+But still, wherever the girl went, among those gilded halls and chambers,
+it seemed as if she carried nature and sunshine along with her, and as if
+she scattered dewy blossoms on her right hand and on her left. After
+Proserpina came, the palace was no longer the same abode of stately
+artifice and dismal magnificence that it had before been. The inhabitants
+all felt this, and King Pluto more than any of them.
+
+"My own little Proserpina," he used to say, "I wish you could like me a
+little better. We gloomy and cloudy-natured persons have often as warm
+hearts at bottom as those of a more cheerful character. If you would only
+stay with me of your own accord, it would make me happier than the
+possession of a hundred such palaces as this."
+
+"Ah," said Proserpina, "you should have tried to make me like you before
+carrying me off. And the best thing you can do now is to let me go again.
+Then I might remember you sometimes, and think that you were as kind as
+you knew how to be. Perhaps, too, one day or other, I might come back, and
+pay you a visit."
+
+"No, no," answered Pluto, with his gloomy smile, "I will not trust you for
+that. You are too fond of living in the broad daylight, and gathering
+flowers. What an idle and childish taste that is! Are not these gems,
+which I have ordered to be dug for you, and which are richer than any in
+my crown,--are they not prettier than a violet?"
+
+"Not half so pretty," said Proserpina, snatching the gems from Pluto's
+hand, and flinging them to the other end of the hall. "Oh, my sweet
+violets, shall I never see you again?"
+
+And then she burst into tears. But young people's tears have very little
+saltness or acidity in them, and do not inflame the eyes so much as those
+of grown persons; so that it is not to be wondered at if, a few moments
+afterwards, Proserpina was sporting through the hall almost as merrily as
+she and the four sea-nymphs had sported along the edge of the surf wave,
+King Pluto gazed after her, and wished that he, too was a child. And
+little Proserpina, when she turned about, and beheld this great king
+standing in his splendid hall, and looking so grand, and so melancholy,
+and so lonesome, was smitten with a kind of pity. She ran back to him,
+and, for the first time in all her life, put her small, soft hand in his.
+
+"I love you a little," whispered she, looking up in his face.
+
+"Do you, indeed, my dear child?" cried Pluto, bending his dark face down
+to kiss her; but Proserpina shrank away from the kiss, for though his
+features were noble, they were very dusky and grim. "Well, I have not
+deserved it of you, after keeping you a prisoner for so many months, and
+starving you, besides. Are you not terribly hungry? Is there nothing which
+I can get you to eat?"
+
+In asking this question, the king of the mines had a very cunning purpose;
+for, you will recollect, if Proserpina tasted a morsel of food in his
+dominions, she would never afterwards be at liberty to quit them.
+
+"No, indeed," said Proserpina. "Your head cook is always baking, and
+stewing, and roasting, and rolling out paste, and contriving one dish or
+another, which he imagines may be to my liking. But he might just as well
+save himself the trouble, poor, fat little man that he is. I have no
+appetite for anything in the world, unless it were a slice of bread of my
+mother's own baking, or a little fruit out of her garden."
+
+When Pluto heard this, he began to see that he had mistaken the best
+method of tempting Proserpina to eat. The cook's made dishes and
+artificial dainties were not half so delicious, in the good child's
+opinion, as the simple fare to which Mother Ceres had accustomed her.
+Wondering that he had never thought of it before, the king now sent one of
+his trusty attendants, with a large basket, to get some of the finest and
+juiciest pears, peaches, and plums which could anywhere be found in the
+upper world. Unfortunately, however, this was during the time when Ceres
+had forbidden any fruits or vegetables to grow; and, after seeking all
+over the earth, King Pluto's servants found only a single pomegranate, and
+that so dried up as to be not worth eating. Nevertheless, since there was
+no better to be had, he brought this dry, old, withered pomegranate home
+to the palace, put it on a magnificent golden salver, and carried it up to
+Proserpina. Now it happened, curiously enough, that, just as the servant
+was bringing the pomegranate into the back door of the palace, our friend
+Quicksilver had gone up the front steps, on his errand to get Proserpina
+away from King Pluto.
+
+As soon as Proserpina saw the pomegranate on the golden salver, she told
+the servant he had better take it away again.
+
+"I shall not touch it, I assure you," said she. "If I were ever so hungry,
+I should never think of eating such a miserable, dry pomegranate as that."
+
+"It is the only one in the world," said the servant.
+
+He set down the golden salver, with the wizened pomegranate upon it, and
+left the room. When he was gone, Proserpina could not help coming close to
+the table, and looking at this poor specimen of dried fruit with a great
+deal of eagerness; for, to say the truth, on seeing something that suited
+her taste, she felt all the six months' appetite taking possession of her
+at once. To be sure, it was a very wretched-looking pomegranate, and
+seemed to have no more juice in it than an oyster-shell. But there was no
+choice of such things in King Pluto's palace. This was the first fruit she
+had seen there, and the last she was ever likely to see; and unless she
+ate it up immediately, it would grow drier than it already was, and be
+wholly unfit to eat.
+
+"At least, I may smell it," thought Proserpina.
+
+So she took up the pomegranate, and applied it to her nose; and, somehow
+or other, being in such close neighborhood to her mouth, the fruit found
+its way into that little red cave. Dear me! what an everlasting pity!
+Before Proserpina knew what she was about, her teeth had actually bitten
+it, of their own accord. Just as this fatal deed was done, the door of the
+apartment opened, and in came King Pluto, followed by Quicksilver, who had
+been urging him to let his little prisoner go. At the first noise of their
+entrance, Proserpina withdrew the pomegranate from her mouth. But
+Quicksilver (whose eyes were very keen, and his wits the sharpest that
+ever anybody had) perceived that the child was a little confused; and
+seeing the empty salver, he suspected that she had been taking a sly
+nibble of something or other. As for honest Pluto, he never guessed at the
+secret.
+
+"My little Proserpina," said the king, sitting down, and affectionately
+drawing her between his knees, "here is Quicksilver, who tells me that a
+great many misfortunes have befallen innocent people on account of my
+detaining you in my dominions. To confess the truth, I myself had already
+reflected that it was an unjustifiable act to take you away from your good
+mother. But, then, you must consider, my dear child, that this vast palace
+is apt to be gloomy (although the precious stones certainly shine very
+bright), and that I am not of the most cheerful disposition, and that
+therefore it was a natural thing enough to seek for the society of some
+merrier creature than myself. I hoped you would take my crown for a
+plaything, and me--ah, you laugh, naughty Proserpina--me, grim as I am,
+for a playmate. It was a silly expectation."
+
+"Not so extremely silly," whispered Proserpina. "You have really amused me
+very much, sometimes."
+
+"Thank you," said King Pluto, rather dryly. "But I can see, plainly
+enough, that you think my palace a dusky prison, and me the iron-hearted
+keeper of it. And an iron heart I should surely have, if I could detain
+you here any longer, my poor child, when it is now six months since you
+tasted food. I give you your liberty. Go with Quicksilver. Hasten home to
+your dear mother."
+
+Now, although you may not have supposed it, Proserpina found it impossible
+to take leave of poor King Pluto without some regrets, and a good deal of
+compunction for not telling him about the pomegranate. She even shed a
+tear or two, thinking how lonely and cheerless the great palace would seem
+to him, with all its ugly glare of artificial light, after she
+herself,--his one little ray of natural sunshine, whom he had stolen, to
+be sure, but only because he valued her so much,--after she should have
+departed. I know not how many kind things she might have said to the
+disconsolate king of the mines, had not Quicksilver hurried her away.
+
+"Come along quickly," whispered he in her ear, "or his majesty may change
+his royal mind. And take care, above all things, that you say nothing of
+what was brought you on the golden salver."
+
+In a very short time, they had passed the great gateway (leaving the
+three-headed Cerberus, barking and yelping, and growling, with threefold
+din, behind them), and emerged upon the surface of the earth. It was
+delightful to behold, as Proserpina hastened along, how the path grew
+verdant behind and on either side of her. Wherever she set her blessed
+foot, there was at once a dewy flower. The violets gushed up along the
+wayside. The grass and the grain began to sprout with tenfold vigor and
+luxuriance, to make up for the dreary months that had been wasted in
+barrenness. The starved cattle immediately set to work grazing, after
+their long fast, and ate enormously all day, and got up at midnight to eat
+more. But I can assure you it was a busy time of year with the farmers,
+when they found the summer coming upon them with such a rush. Nor must I
+forget to say that all the birds in the whole world hopped about upon the
+newly blossoming trees, and sang together in a prodigious ecstasy of joy.
+
+Mother Ceres had returned to her deserted home, and was sitting
+disconsolately on the doorstep, with her torch burning in her hand. She
+had been idly watching the flame for some moments past, when, all at once,
+it flickered and went out.
+
+"What does this mean?" thought she. "It was an enchanted torch, and should
+have kept burning till my child came back."
+
+Lifting her eyes, she was surprised to see a sudden verdure flashing over
+the brown and barren fields, exactly as you may have observed a golden hue
+gleaming far and wide across the landscape, from the just risen sun.
+
+"Does the earth disobey me?" exclaimed Mother Ceres indignantly. "Does it
+presume to be green, when I have bidden it be barren until my daughter
+shall be restored to my arms?"
+
+"Then open your arms, dear mother," cried a well-known voice, "and take
+your little daughter into them."
+
+And Proserpina came running, and flung herself upon her mother's bosom.
+Their mutual transport is not to be described. The grief of their
+separation had caused both of them to shed a great many tears; and now
+they shed a great many more, because their joy could not so well express
+itself in any other way.
+
+When their hearts had grown a little more quiet, Mother Ceres looked
+anxiously at Proserpina.
+
+"My child," said she, "did you taste any food while you were in King
+Pluto's palace?"
+
+"Dearest mother," answered Proserpina. "I will tell you the whole truth.
+Until this very morning, not a morsel of food had passed my lips. But
+to-day, they brought me a pomegranate (a very dry one it was, and all
+shriveled up, till there was little left of it but seeds and skin), and
+having seen no fruit for so long a time, and being faint with hunger, I
+was tempted just to bite it. The instant I tasted it, King Pluto and
+Quicksilver came into the room. I had not swallowed a morsel; but--dear
+mother, I hope it was no harm--but six of the pomegranate seeds, I am
+afraid, remained in my mouth."
+
+"Ah, unfortunate child, and miserable me!" exclaimed Ceres. "For each of
+those six pomegranate seeds you must spend one month of each year in King
+Pluto's palace. You are but half restored to your mother. Only six months
+with me, and six with that good-for-nothing King of Darkness!"
+
+"Do not speak so harshly of poor King Pluto," said Proserpina, kissing her
+mother. "He has some very good qualities, and I really think I can bear to
+spend six months in his palace, if he will only let me spend the other six
+with you. He certainly did very wrong to carry me off; but then, as he
+says, it was but a dismal sort of life for him, to live in that great
+gloomy place, all alone; and it has made a wonderful change in his spirits
+to have a little girl to run up stairs and down. There is some comfort in
+making him so happy; and so, upon the whole, dearest mother, let us be
+thankful that he is not to keep me the whole year round."
+
+
+
+
+OLD GREEK FOLK-STORIES
+
+
+ORPHEUS AND EURYDICE
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+When gods and shepherds piped and the stars sang, that was the day of
+musicians! But the triumph of Phoebus Apollo himself was not so wonderful
+as the triumph of a mortal man who lived on earth, though some say that he
+came of divine lineage. This was Orpheus, that best of harpers, who went
+with the Grecian heroes of the great ship Argo in search of the Golden
+Fleece.
+
+After his return from the quest, he won Eurydice for his wife, and they
+were as happy as people can be who love each other and every one else. The
+very wild beasts loved them, and the trees clustered about their home as
+if they were watered with music. But even the gods themselves were not
+always free from sorrow, and one day misfortune came upon that harper
+Orpheus whom all men loved to honor.
+
+Eurydice, his lovely wife, as she was wandering with the nymphs,
+unwittingly trod upon a serpent in the grass. Surely, if Orpheus had been
+with her, playing upon his lyre, no creature could have harmed her. But
+Orpheus came too late. She died of the sting, and was lost to him in the
+Underworld.
+
+For days he wandered from his home, singing the story of his loss and his
+despair to the helpless passers-by. His grief moved the very stones in the
+wilderness, and roused a dumb distress in the hearts of savage beasts.
+Even the gods on Mount Olympus gave ear, but they held no power over the
+darkness of Hades.
+
+Wherever Orpheus wandered with his lyre, no one had the will to forbid him
+entrance; and at length he found unguarded that very cave that leads to
+the Underworld, where Pluto rules the spirits of the dead. He went down
+without fear. The fire in his living heart found him a way through the
+gloom of that place. He crossed the Styx, the black river that the Gods
+name as their most sacred oath. Charon, the harsh old ferryman who takes
+the shades across, forgot to ask of him the coin that every soul must pay.
+For Orpheus sang. There in the Underworld the song of Apollo would not
+have moved the poor ghosts so much. It would have amazed them, like a star
+far off that no one understands. But here was a human singer, and he sang
+of things that grow in every human heart, youth and love and death, the
+sweetness of the Earth, and the bitterness of losing aught that is dear to
+us.
+
+Now the dead, when they go to the Underworld, drink of the pool of Lethe;
+and forgetfulness of all that has passed comes upon them like a sleep, and
+they lose their longing for the world, they lose their memory of pain, and
+live content with that cool twilight. But not the pool of Lethe itself
+could withstand the song of Orpheus; and in the hearts of the shades all
+the old dreams awoke wondering. They remembered once more the life of men
+on earth, the glory of the sun and moon, the sweetness of new grass, the
+warmth of their homes, all the old joy and grief that they had known. And
+they wept.
+
+Even the Furies were moved to pity. Those, too, who were suffering
+punishment for evil deeds ceased to be tormented for themselves, and
+grieved only for the innocent Orpheus who had lost Eurydice. Sisyphus,
+that fraudulent king (who is doomed to roll a monstrous boulder uphill
+forever), stopped to listen. The daughters of Danaus left off their task
+of drawing water in a sieve. Tantalus forgot hunger and thirst, though
+before his eyes hung magical fruits that were wont to vanish out of his
+grasp, and just beyond reach bubbled the water that was a torment to his
+ears; he did not hear it while Orpheus sang.
+
+So, among a crowd of eager ghosts, Orpheus came, singing with all his
+heart, before the king and queen of Hades. And the queen Proserpina wept
+as she listened and grew homesick, remembering the fields of Enna and the
+growing of the wheat, and her own beautiful mother, Demeter. Then Pluto
+gave way.
+
+They called Eurydice and she came, like a young guest unused to the
+darkness of the Underworld. She was to return with Orpheus, but on one
+condition. If he turned to look at her once before they reached the upper
+air, he must lose her again and go back to the world alone.
+
+Rapt with joy, the happy Orpheus hastened on the way, thinking only of
+Eurydice, who was following him. Past Lethe, across the Styx they went, he
+and his lovely wife, still silent as a shade. But the place was full of
+gloom, the silence weighed upon him, he had not seen her for so long; her
+footsteps made no sound; and he could hardly believe the miracle, for
+Pluto seldom relents. When the first gleam of upper daylight broke through
+the cleft to the dismal world, he forgot all, save that he must know if
+she still followed. He turned to see her face, and the promise was broken!
+
+She smiled at him forgivingly, but it was too late. He stretched out his
+arms to take her, but she faded from them, as the bright snow, that none
+may keep, melts in our very hands. A murmur of farewell came to his
+ears,--no more. She was gone.
+
+He would have followed, but Charon, now on guard, drove him back. Seven
+days he lingered there between the worlds of life and death, but after the
+broken promise Hades would not listen to his song. Back to the earth he
+wandered, though it was sweet to him no longer. He died young, singing to
+the last, and round about the place where his body rested, nightingales
+nested in the trees. His lyre was set among the stars; and he himself went
+down to join Eurydice, unforbidden.
+
+Those two had no need of Lethe, for their life on earth had been wholly
+fair, and now that they are together they no longer own a sorrow.
+
+
+
+
+ICARUS AND DÆDALUS
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+Among all those mortals who grew so wise that they learned the secrets of
+the gods, none was more cunning than Dædalus.
+
+He once built, for King Minos of Crete, a wonderful Labyrinth of winding
+ways so cunningly tangled up and twisted around that, once inside, you
+could never find your way out again without a magic clue. But the king's
+favor veered with the wind, and one day he had his master architect
+imprisoned in a tower. Dædalus managed to escape from his cell; but it
+seemed impossible to leave the island, since every ship that came or went
+was well guarded by order of the king.
+
+At length, watching the sea-gulls in the air,--the only creatures that
+were sure of liberty,--he thought of a plan for himself and his young son
+Icarus, who was captive with him.
+
+Little by little, he gathered a store of feathers great and small. He
+fastened these together with thread, moulded them in with wax, and so
+fashioned two great wings like those of a bird. When they were done,
+Dædalus fitted them to his own shoulders, and after one or two efforts, he
+found that by waving his arms he could winnow the air and cleave it, as a
+swimmer does the sea. He held himself aloft, wavered this way and that,
+with the wind, and at last, like a great fledgling, he learned to fly.
+
+Without delay, he fell to work on a pair of wings for the boy Icarus, and
+taught him carefully how to use them, bidding him beware of rash
+adventures among the stars. "Remember," said the father, "never to fly
+very low or very high, for the fogs about the earth would weigh you down,
+but the blaze of the sun will surely melt your feathers apart if you go
+too near."
+
+For Icarus, these cautions went in at one ear and out by the other. Who
+could remember to be careful when he was to fly for the first time? Are
+birds careful? Not they! And not an idea remained in the boy's head but
+the one joy of escape.
+
+The day came, and the fair wind that was to set them free. The father bird
+put on his wings, and, while the light urged them to be gone, he waited to
+see that all was well with Icarus, for the two could not fly hand in hand.
+Up they rose, the boy after his father. The hateful ground of Crete sank
+beneath them; and the country folk, who caught a glimpse of them when they
+were high above the tree-tops, took it for a vision of the gods,--Apollo,
+perhaps, with Cupid after him.
+
+At first there was a terror in the joy. The wide vacancy of the air dazed
+them,--a glance downward made their brains reel. But when a great wind
+filled their wings, and Icarus felt himself sustained, like a halcyon-bird
+in the hollow of a wave, like a child uplifted by his mother, he forgot
+everything in the world but joy. He forgot Crete and the other islands
+that he had passed over: he saw but vaguely that winged thing in the
+distance before him that was his father Dædalus. He longed for one draught
+of flight to quench the thirst of his captivity: he stretched out his arms
+to the sky and made towards the highest heavens.
+
+Alas for him! Warmer and warmer grew the air. Those arms, that had seemed
+to uphold him, relaxed. His wings wavered, drooped. He fluttered his young
+hands vainly,--he was falling,--and in that terror he remembered. The heat
+of the sun had melted the wax from his wings; the feathers were falling,
+one by one, like snowflakes; and there was none to help.
+
+He fell like a leaf tossed down the wind, down, down, with one cry that
+overtook Dædalus far away. When he returned, and sought high and low for
+the poor boy, he saw nothing but the bird-like feathers afloat on the
+water, and he knew that Icarus was drowned.
+
+The nearest island he named Icaria, in memory of the child; but he, in
+heavy grief, went to the temple of Apollo in Sicily, and there hung up his
+wings as an offering. Never again did he attempt to fly.
+
+
+
+
+PHAETHON
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+Once upon a time, the reckless whim of a lad came near to destroying the
+Earth and robbing the spheres of their wits.
+
+There were two playmates, said to be of heavenly parentage. One was
+Epaphus, who claimed Zeus as a father; and one was Phaethon, the earthly
+child of Phoebus Apollo (or Helios, as some name the sun-god). One day
+they were boasting together, each of his own father, and Epaphus, angry at
+the other's fine story, dared him to go prove his kinship with the Sun.
+
+Full of rage and humiliation, Phaethon went to his mother, Clymene, where
+she sat with his young sisters, the Heliades.
+
+"It is true, my child," she said, "I swear it in the light of yonder Sun.
+If you have any doubt, go to the land whence he rises at morning and ask
+of him any gift you will; he is your father, and he cannot refuse you."
+
+As soon as might be, Phaethon set out for the country of sunrise. He
+journeyed by day and by night far into the east, till he came to the
+palace of the Sun. It towered high as the clouds, glorious with gold and
+all manner of gems that looked like frozen fire, if that might be. The
+mighty walls were wrought with images of earth and sea and sky. Vulcan,
+the smith of the Gods, had made them in his workshop (for Mount Ætna is
+one of his forges, and he has the central fires of the earth to help him
+fashion gold and iron, as men do glass). On the doors blazed the twelve
+signs of the Zodiac, in silver that shone like snow in the sunlight.
+Phaethon was dazzled with the sight, but when he entered the palace hall
+he could hardly bear the radiance.
+
+In one glimpse through his half-shut eyes, he beheld a glorious being,
+none other than Phoebus himself, seated upon a throne. He was clothed in
+purple raiment, and round his head there shone a blinding light, that
+enveloped even his courtiers upon the right and upon the left,--the
+Seasons with their emblems, Day, Month, Year, and the beautiful young
+Hours in a row. In one glance of those all-seeing eyes, the sun-god knew
+his child; but in order to try him he asked the boy his errand.
+
+"O my father," stammered Phaethon, "if you are my father indeed"--and then
+he took courage; for the god came down from his throne, put off the
+glorious halo that hurt mortal eyes, and embraced him tenderly.
+
+"Indeed, thou art my son," said he. "Ask any gift of me, and it shall be
+thine; I call the Styx to witness."
+
+"Ah!" cried Phaethon rapturously. "Let me drive thy chariot for one day!"
+
+For an instant the Sun's looks clouded. "Choose again, my child," said he.
+"Thou art only a mortal, and this task is mine alone of all the Gods. Not
+Zeus himself dare drive the chariot of the Sun. The way is full of
+terrors, both for the horses and for all the stars along the roadside, and
+for the Earth, who has all blessings from me. Listen, and choose again."
+And therewith he warned Phaethon of all the dangers that beset the
+way,--the great steep that the steeds must climb, the numbing dizziness of
+the height, the fierce constellations that breathe out fire, and that
+descent in the west where the Sun seems to go headlong.
+
+But these counsels only made the reckless boy more eager to win honor of
+such a high enterprise.
+
+"I will take care; only let me go," he begged.
+
+Now Phoebus had sworn by the black river Styx, an oath that none of the
+Gods dare break, and he was forced to keep his promise.
+
+Already Aurora, goddess of dawn, had thrown open the gates of the east,
+and the stars were beginning to wane. The Hours came forth to harness the
+four horses, and Phaethon looked with exultation at the splendid
+creatures, whose lord he was for a day. Wild, immortal steeds they were,
+fed with ambrosia, untamed as the winds; their very pet names signified
+flame, and all that flame can do,--Pyrois, Eoüs, Æthon, Phlegon.
+
+As the lad stood by, watching, Phoebus anointed his face with a philter
+that should make him strong to endure the terrible heat and light, then
+set the halo upon his head, with a last word of counsel.
+
+"Follow the road," said he, "and never turn aside. Go not too high or too
+low, for the sake of heavens and earth; else men and Gods will suffer. The
+Fates alone know whether evil is to come of this. Yet if your heart fails
+you, as I hope, abide here and I will make the journey, as I am wont to
+do."
+
+But Phaethon held to his choice and bade his father farewell. He took his
+place in the chariot, gathered up the reins, and the horses sprang away,
+eager for the road.
+
+As they went, they bent their splendid necks to see the meaning of the
+strange hand upon the reins,--the slender weight in the chariot. They
+turned their wild eyes upon Phaethon, to his secret foreboding, and
+neighed one to another. This was no master charioteer, but a mere lad, a
+feather riding the wind. It was holiday for the horses of the Sun, and
+away they went.
+
+Grasping the reins that dragged him after, like an enemy, Phaethon looked
+down from the fearful ascent and saw the Earth far beneath him, dim and
+fair. He was blind with dizziness and bewilderment. His hold slackened and
+the horses redoubled their speed, wild with new liberty. They left the old
+tracks. Before he knew where he was, they had startled the constellations
+and well-nigh grazed the Serpent, so that it woke from its torpor and
+hissed.
+
+The steeds took fright. This way and that they went, terrified by the
+monsters they had never encountered before, shaking out of their silver
+quiet the cool stars towards the north, then fleeing as far to the south
+among new wonders. The heavens were full of terror.
+
+Up, far above the clouds, they went, and down again, towards the
+defenseless Earth, that could not flee from the chariot of the Sun. Great
+rivers hid themselves in the ground, and mountains were consumed. Harvests
+perished like a moth that is singed in a candle-flame.
+
+In vain did Phaethon call to the horses and pull upon the reins. As in a
+hideous dream, he saw his own Earth, his beautiful home and the home of
+all men, his kindred, parched by the fires of this mad chariot, and
+blackening beneath him. The ground cracked open and the sea shrank.
+Heedless water-nymphs, who had lingered in the shallows, were left gasping
+like bright fishes. The dryads shrank, and tried to cover themselves from
+the scorching heat. The poor Earth lifted her withered face in a last
+prayer to Zeus to save her if he might.
+
+Then Zeus, calling all the Gods to witness that there was no other means
+of safety, hurled his thunderbolt; and Phaethon knew no more.
+
+His body fell through the heavens, aflame like a shooting star; and the
+horses of the Sun dashed homeward with the empty chariot.
+
+Poor Clymene grieved sore over the boy's death; but the young Heliades,
+daughters of the Sun, refused all comfort. Day and night they wept
+together about their brother's grave by the river, until the Gods took
+pity and changed them all into poplar-trees. And ever after that they wept
+sweet tears of amber, clear as sunlight.
+
+
+
+
+NIOBE
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+There are so many tales of the vanity of kings and queens that the half of
+them cannot be told.
+
+There was Cassiopæia, queen of Æthiopia, who boasted that her beauty
+outshone the beauty of all the sea-nymphs, so that in anger they sent a
+horrible sea-serpent to ravage the coast. The king prayed of an oracle to
+know how the monster might be appeased, and learned that he must offer up
+his own daughter, Andromeda. The maiden was therefore chained to a rock by
+the sea-side, and left to her fate. But who should come to rescue her but
+a certain young hero, Perseus, who was hastening homeward after a perilous
+adventure with the snaky-haired Gorgons. Filled with pity at the story of
+Andromeda, he waited for the dragon, met and slew him, and set the maiden
+free. As for the boastful queen, the Gods forgave her, and at her death
+she was set among the stars. That story ended well.
+
+But there was once a queen of Thebes, Niobe, fortunate above all women,
+and yet arrogant in the face of the gods. Very beautiful she was, and
+nobly born, but above all things she boasted of her children, for she had
+seven sons and seven daughters.
+
+Now there came the day when the people were wont to celebrate the feast of
+Latona, mother of Apollo and Diana; and Niobe, as she stood looking upon
+the worshipers on their way to the temple, was filled with overweening
+pride.
+
+"Why do you worship Latona before me?" she cried out. "What does she
+possess that I have not in greater abundance? She has but two children,
+while I have seven sons and as many daughters. Nay, if she robbed me out
+of envy, I should still be rich. Go back to your houses; you have not eyes
+to know the rightful goddess."
+
+Such impiety was enough to frighten any one, and her subjects returned to
+their daily work, awestruck and silent.
+
+But Apollo and Diana were filled with wrath at this insult to their divine
+mother. Not only was she a great goddess and a power in the heavens, but
+during her life on earth she had suffered many hardships for their sake.
+The serpent Python had been sent to torment her; and, driven from land to
+land, under an evil spell, beset with dangers, she had found no
+resting-place but the island of Delos, held sacred ever after to her and
+her children. Once she had even been refused water by some churlish
+peasants, who could not believe in a goddess if she appeared in humble
+guise and travel-worn. But these men were all changed into frogs.
+
+It needed no word from Latona herself to rouse her children to vengeance.
+Swift as a thought, the two immortal archers, brother and sister, stood in
+Thebes, upon the towers of the citadel. Near by, the youth were pursuing
+their sports, while the feast of Latona went neglected. The sons of Queen
+Niobe were there, and against them Apollo bent his golden bow. An arrow
+crossed the air like a sunbeam, and without a word the eldest prince fell
+from his horse. One by one his brothers died by the same hand, so swiftly
+that they knew not what had befallen them, till all the sons of the royal
+house lay slain. Only the people of Thebes, stricken with terror, bore the
+news to Queen Niobe, where she sat with her seven daughters. She would not
+believe in such a sorrow.
+
+"Savage Latona," she cried, lifting her arms against the heavens, "never
+think that you have conquered. I am still the greater."
+
+At that moment one of her daughters sank beside her. Diana had sped an
+arrow from her bow that is like the crescent moon. Without a cry, nay,
+even as they murmured words of comfort, the sisters died, one by one. It
+was all as swift and soundless as snowfall.
+
+Only the guilty mother was left, transfixed with grief. Tears flowed from
+her eyes, but she spoke not a word, her heart never softened; and at last
+she turned to stone, and the tears flowed down her cold face forever.
+
+
+
+
+PYRAMUS AND THISBE
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+Venus did not always befriend true lovers, as she had befriended
+Hippomenes, with her three golden apples. Sometimes, in the enchanted
+island of Cyprus, she forgot her worshipers far away, and they called on
+her in vain.
+
+So it was in the sad story of Hero and Leander, who lived on opposite
+borders of the Hellespont. Hero dwelt at Sestos, where she served as a
+priestess, in the very temple of Venus; and Leander's home was in Abydos,
+a town on the opposite shore. But every night this lover would swim across
+the water to see Hero, guided by the light which she was wont to set in
+her tower. Even such loyalty could not conquer fate. There came a great
+storm, one night, that put out the beacon, and washed Leander's body up
+with the waves to Hero, and she sprang into the water to rejoin him, and
+so perished.
+
+Not wholly unlike this was the fate of Halcyone, a queen of Thessaly, who
+dreamed that her husband Ceyx had been drowned, and on waking hastened to
+the shore to look for him. There she saw her dream come true,--his
+lifeless body floating towards her on the tide; and as she flung herself
+after him, mad with grief, the air upheld her and she seemed to fly.
+Husband and wife were changed into birds; and there on the very water, at
+certain seasons, they build a nest that floats unhurt,--a portent of calm
+for many days and safe voyage for the ships. So it is that seamen love
+these birds and look for halcyon weather.
+
+But there once lived in Babylonia two lovers named Pyramus and Thisbe, who
+were parted by a strange mischance. For they lived in adjoining houses;
+and although their parents had forbidden them to marry, these two had
+found a means of talking together through a crevice in the wall.
+
+Here, again and again, Pyramus on his side of the wall and Thisbe on hers,
+they would meet to tell each other all that had happened during the day,
+and to complain of their cruel parents. At length they decided that they
+would endure it no longer, but that they would leave their homes and be
+married, come what might. They planned to meet, on a certain evening, by a
+mulberry-tree near the tomb of King Ninus, outside the city gates. Once
+safely met, they were resolved to brave fortune together.
+
+So far all went well. At the appointed time, Thisbe, heavily veiled,
+managed to escape from home unnoticed, and after a stealthy journey
+through the streets of Babylon, she came to the grove of mulberries near
+the tomb of Ninus. The place was deserted, and once there she put off the
+veil from her face to see if Pyramus waited anywhere among the shadows.
+She heard the sound of a footfall and turned to behold--not Pyramus, but a
+creature unwelcome to any tryst--none other than a lioness crouching to
+drink from the pool hard by.
+
+Without a cry, Thisbe fled, dropping her veil as she ran. She found a
+hiding-place among the rocks at some distance, and there she waited, not
+knowing what else to do.
+
+The lioness, having quenched her thirst (after some ferocious meal),
+turned from the spring and, coming upon the veil, sniffed at it curiously,
+tore and tossed it with her reddened jaws,--as she would have done with
+Thisbe herself,--then dropped the plaything and crept away to the forest
+once more.
+
+It was but a little after this that Pyramus came hurrying to the
+meeting-place, breathless with eagerness to find Thisbe and tell her what
+had delayed him. He found no Thisbe there. For a moment he was confounded.
+Then he looked about for some signs of her, some footprint by the pool.
+There was the trail of a wild beast in the grass, and near by a woman's
+veil, torn and stained with blood; he caught it up and knew it for
+Thisbe's.
+
+So she had come at the appointed hour, true to her word; she had waited
+there for him alone and defenseless, and she had fallen a prey to some
+beast from the jungle! As these thoughts rushed upon the young man's mind,
+he could endure no more.
+
+"Was it to meet me, Thisbe, that you came to such a death!" cried he. "And
+I followed all too late. But I will atone. Even now I come lagging, but by
+no will of mine!"
+
+So saying, the poor youth drew his sword and fell upon it, there at the
+foot of that mulberry-tree which he had named as the trysting-place, and
+his life-blood ran about the roots.
+
+During these very moments, Thisbe, hearing no sound and a little
+reassured, had stolen from her hiding-place and was come to the edge of
+the grove. She saw that the lioness had left the spring, and, eager to
+show her lover that she had dared all things to keep faith, she came
+slowly, little by little, back to the mulberry-tree.
+
+She found Pyramus there, according to his promise. His own sword was in
+his heart, the empty scabbard by his side, and in his hand he held her
+veil still clasped. Thisbe saw these things as in a dream, and suddenly
+the truth awoke her. She saw the piteous mischance of all; and when the
+dying Pyramus opened his eyes and fixed them upon her, her heart broke.
+With the same sword she stabbed herself, and the lovers died together.
+
+There the parents found them, after a weary search, and they were buried
+together in the same tomb. But the berries of the mulberry-tree turned red
+that day, and red they have remained ever since.
+
+
+
+
+STORIES OF THE TROJAN WAR
+
+
+THE APPLE OF DISCORD
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+There was once a war so great that the sound of it has come ringing down
+the centuries from singer to singer, and will never die.
+
+The rivalries of men and gods brought about many calamities, but none so
+heavy as this; and it would never have come to pass, they say, if it had
+not been for jealousy among the immortals,--all because of a golden apple!
+But Destiny has nurtured ominous plants from little seeds; and this is how
+one evil grew great enough to overshadow heaven and earth.
+
+The sea-nymph Thetis (whom Zeus himself had once desired for his wife) was
+given in marriage to a mortal, Peleus, and there was a great wedding-feast
+in heaven. Thither all the immortals were bidden, save one, Eris, the
+goddess of Discord, ever an unwelcome guest. But she came unbidden. While
+the wedding-guests sat at feast, she broke in upon their mirth, flung
+among them a golden apple, and departed with looks that boded ill. Some
+one picked up the strange missile and read its inscription, "For the
+Fairest;" and at once discussion arose among the goddesses. They were all
+eager to claim the prize, but only three persisted.
+
+Venus, the very goddess of beauty, said that it was hers by right; but
+Juno could not endure to own herself less fair than another, and even
+Athene coveted the palm of beauty as well as of wisdom, and would not give
+it up! Discord had indeed come to the wedding-feast. Not one of the Gods
+dared to decide so dangerous a question,--not Zeus himself,--and the three
+rivals were forced to choose a judge among mortals.
+
+Now there lived on Mount Ida, near the city of Troy, a certain young
+shepherd by the name of Paris. He was as comely as Ganymede himself,--that
+Trojan youth whom Zeus, in the shape of an eagle, seized and bore away to
+Olympus, to be a cup-bearer to the gods. Paris, too, was a Trojan of royal
+birth, but like Oedipus, he had been left on the mountain in his infancy,
+because the oracle had foretold that he would be the death of his kindred
+and the ruin of his country. Destiny saved and nurtured him to fulfill
+that prophecy. He grew up as a shepherd and tended his flocks on the
+mountain, but his beauty held the favor of all the wood-folk there and won
+the heart of the nymph Oenone.
+
+To him, at last, the three goddesses intrusted the judgment and the golden
+apple. Juno first stood before him in all her glory as queen of Gods and
+men, and attended by her favorite peacocks as gorgeous to see as royal
+fan-bearers.
+
+[Illustration: TO HIM, AT LAST, THE THREE GODDESSES INTRUSTED THE JUDGMENT
+AND THE GOLDEN APPLE]
+
+"Use but the judgment of a prince, Paris," she said, "and I will give thee
+wealth and kingly power."
+
+Such majesty and such promises would have moved the heart of any man; but
+the eager Paris had at least to hear the claims of the other rivals.
+Athene rose before him, a vision welcome as daylight, with her sea-gray
+eyes and golden hair beneath a golden helmet.
+
+"Be wise in honoring me, Paris," she said, "and I will give thee wisdom
+that shall last forever, great glory among men, and renown in war."
+
+Last of all, Venus shone upon him, beautiful as none can ever hope to be.
+If she had come, unnamed, as any country maid, her loveliness would have
+dazzled him like sea-foam in the sun; but she was girt with her magical
+Cestus, a spell of beauty that no one can resist.
+
+Without a bribe she might have conquered, and she smiled upon his dumb
+amazement, saying, "Paris, thou shalt yet have for wife the fairest woman
+in the world."
+
+At these words, the happy shepherd fell on his knees and offered her the
+golden apple. He took no heed of the slighted goddesses, who vanished in a
+cloud that boded storm.
+
+From that hour he sought only the counsel of Venus, and only cared to find
+the highway to his new fortunes. From her he learned that he was the son
+of King Priam of Troy, and with her assistance he deserted the nymph
+Oenone, whom he had married, and went in search of his royal kindred.
+
+For it chanced at that time that Priam proclaimed a contest of strength
+between his sons and certain other princes, and promised as prize the most
+splendid bull that could be found among the herds of Mount Ida. Thither
+came the herdsmen to choose, and when they led away the pride of Paris's
+heart, he followed to Troy, thinking that he would try his fortune and
+perhaps win back his own.
+
+The games took place before Priam and Hecuba and all their children,
+including those noble princes Hector and Helenus, and the young Cassandra,
+their sister. This poor maiden had a sad story, in spite of her royalty;
+for, because she had once disdained Apollo, she was fated to foresee all
+things, and ever to have her prophecies disbelieved. On this fateful day,
+she alone was oppressed with strange forebodings.
+
+But if he who was to be the ruin of his country had returned, he had come
+victoriously. Paris won the contest. At the very moment of his honor, poor
+Cassandra saw him with her prophetic eyes; and seeing as well all the
+guilt and misery that he was to bring upon them, she broke into bitter
+lamentations, and would have warned her kindred against the evil to come.
+But the Trojans gave little heed; they were wont to look upon her visions
+as spells of madness. Paris had come back to them a glorious youth and a
+victor; and when he made known the secret of his birth, they cast the
+words of the oracle to the winds, and received the shepherd as a long-lost
+prince.
+
+Thus far all went happily. But Venus, whose promise had not yet been
+fulfilled, bade Paris procure a ship and go in search of his destined
+bride. The prince said nothing of this quest, but urged his kindred to let
+him go; and giving out a rumor that he was to find his father's lost
+sister Hesione, he set sail for Greece, and finally landed at Sparta.
+
+There he was kindly received by Menelaus, the king, and his wife, Fair
+Helen.
+
+This queen had been reared as the daughter of Tyndarus and Queen Leda, but
+some say that she was the child of an enchanted swan, and there was indeed
+a strange spell about her. All the greatest heroes of Greece had wooed her
+before she left her father's palace to be the wife of King Menelaus, and
+Tyndarus, fearing for her peace, had bound her many suitors by an oath.
+According to this pledge, they were to respect her choice, and to go to
+the aid of her husband if ever she should be stolen away from him. For in
+all Greece there was nothing so beautiful as the beauty of Helen. She was
+the fairest woman in the world.
+
+Now thus did Venus fulfill her promise and the shepherd win his reward
+with dishonor. Paris dwelt at the court of Menelaus for a long time,
+treated with a royal courtesy which he ill repaid. For at length, while
+the king was absent on a journey to Crete, his guest won the heart of Fair
+Helen, and persuaded her to forsake her husband and sail away to Troy, or
+Ilium.
+
+King Menelaus returned to find the nest empty of the swan. Paris and the
+fairest woman in the world were well across the sea.
+
+When this treachery came to light, all Greece took fire with indignation.
+The heroes remembered their pledge, and wrath came upon them at the wrong
+done to Menelaus. But they were less angered with Fair Helen than with
+Paris, for they felt assured that the queen had been lured from her
+country and out of her own senses by some spell of enchantment. So they
+took counsel how they might bring back Fair Helen to her home and husband.
+
+Years had come and gone since that wedding-feast when Eris had flung the
+apple of discord, like a firebrand, among the guests. But the spark of
+dissension that had smouldered so long burst into flame now, and, fanned
+by the enmities of men and the rivalries of the Gods, it seemed like to
+fire heaven and earth.
+
+A few of the heroes answered the call to arms unwillingly. Time had
+reconciled them to the loss of Fair Helen, and they were loath to leave
+home and happiness for war, even in her cause.
+
+One of these was Odysseus, or Ulysses, king of Ithaca, who had married
+Penelope, and was quite content with his kingdom and his little son
+Telemachus. Indeed, he was so unwilling to leave them that he feigned
+madness in order to escape service, appeared to forget his own kindred,
+and went ploughing the seashore and sowing salt in the furrows. But a
+messenger, Palamedes, who came with the summons to war, suspected that
+this sudden madness might be a stratagem, for the king was far famed as a
+man of many devices. He therefore stood by, one day (while Ulysses,
+pretending to take no heed of him, went ploughing the sand) and he laid
+the baby Telemachus directly in the way of the ploughshare. For once the
+wise man's craft deserted him. Ulysses turned the plough sharply, caught
+up the little prince, and there his fatherly wits were manifest! After
+this he could no longer play madman. He had to take leave of his beloved
+wife Penelope and set out to join the heroes, little dreaming that he was
+not to return for twenty years. Once embarked, however, he set himself to
+work in the common cause of the heroes, and was soon as ingenious as
+Palamedes in rousing laggard warriors.
+
+There remained one who was destined to be the greatest warrior of all.
+This was Achilles, the son of Thetis,--foretold in the day of Prometheus
+as a man who should far outstrip his own father in glory and greatness.
+Years had passed since the marriage of Thetis to King Peleus, and their
+son Achilles was now grown to manhood, a wonder of strength indeed, and,
+moreover, invulnerable. For his mother, forewarned of his death in the
+Trojan War, had dipped him in the sacred river Styx when he was a baby, so
+that he could take no hurt from any weapon. From head to foot she had
+plunged him in, only forgetting the little heel that she held him by, and
+this alone could be wounded by any chance. But even with such precautions
+Thetis was not content. Fearful at the rumors of war to be, she had her
+son brought up, in woman's dress, among the daughters of King Lycomedes of
+Scyros, that he might escape the notice of men and cheat his destiny.
+
+To this very palace, however, came Ulysses in the guise of a merchant, and
+he spread his wares before the royal household,--jewels and ivory, fine
+fabrics, and curiously wrought weapons. The king's daughters chose girdles
+and veils and such things as women delight in; but Achilles, heedless of
+the like, sought out the weapons, and handled them with such manly
+pleasure that his nature stood revealed. So he, too, yielded to his
+destiny and set out to join the heroes.
+
+Everywhere men were banded together, building the ships and gathering
+supplies. The allied forces of Greece (the Achaians, as they called
+themselves) chose Agamemnon for their commander-in-chief. He was a mighty
+man, king of Mycenæ and Argos, and the brother of the wronged Menelaus.
+Second to Achilles in strength was the giant Ajax; after him Diomedes,
+then wise Ulysses, and Nestor, held in great reverence because of his
+experienced age and fame. These were the chief heroes. After two years of
+busy preparation, they reached the port of Aulis, whence they were to sail
+for Troy.
+
+But here delay held them. Agamemnon had chanced to kill a stag which was
+sacred to Diana, and the army was visited by pestilence, while a great
+calm kept the ships imprisoned. At length the oracle made known the reason
+of this misfortune and demanded for atonement the maiden Iphigenia,
+Agamemnon's own daughter. In helpless grief the king consented to offer
+her up as a victim, and the maiden was brought, ready for sacrifice. But
+at the last moment Diana caught her away in a cloud, leaving a white hind
+in her place, and carried her to Tauris in Scythia, there to serve as a
+priestess in the temple. In the mean time, her kinsfolk, who were at a
+loss to understand how she had disappeared, mourned her as dead. But Diana
+had accepted their child as an offering, and healing came to the army, and
+the winds blew again. So the ships set sail.
+
+Meanwhile, in Troy across the sea, the aged Priam and Hecuba gave shelter
+to their son Paris and his stolen bride. They were not without misgivings
+as to these guests, but they made ready to defend their kindred and the
+citadel.
+
+There were many heroes among the Trojans and their allies, brave and
+upright men, who little deserved that such reproach should be brought upon
+them by the guilt of Prince Paris. There were Æneas and Deïphobus, Glaucus
+and Sarpedon, and Priam's most noble son Hector, chief of all the forces,
+and the very bulwark of Troy. These and many more were bitterly to regret
+the day that had brought Paris back to his home. But he had taken refuge
+with his own people, and the Trojans had to take up his cause against the
+hostile fleet that was coming across the sea.
+
+Even the Gods took sides. Juno and Athene, who had never forgiven the
+judgment of Paris, condemned all Troy with him and favored the Greeks, as
+did also Neptune, god of the sea. But Venus, true to her favorite,
+furthered the interests of the Trojans with all her power, and persuaded
+the warlike Mars to do likewise. Zeus and Apollo strove to be impartial,
+but they were yet to aid now one side, now another, according to the
+fortunes of the heroes whom they loved.
+
+Over the sea came the great embassy of ships, sped hither safely by the
+god Neptune; and the heroes made their camp on the plain before Troy.
+First of all Ulysses and King Menelaus himself went into the city and
+demanded that Fair Helen should be given back to her rightful husband.
+This the Trojans refused, and so began the siege of Troy.
+
+
+
+
+THE QUARREL BETWEEN AGAMEMNON AND ACHILLES
+
+By Alfred J. Church
+
+
+The Greeks sacked the city of Chryse, where was a temple of Apollo, and a
+priest that served the temple. And when they divided the spoil, they gave
+to King Agamemnon with other gifts, the priest's daughter, Chryseïs.
+Thereupon there came to the camp Chryses, the priest, wishing to ransom
+his daughter. Much gold he brought with him, and on his staff of gold he
+carried the holy garland, that men might reverence him the more. He went
+to all the chiefs, and to the sons of Atreus first of all, saying,--
+"Loose, I pray you, my dear daughter, and take the ransom for her; so may
+the gods that dwell in Olympus grant you to take the city of Troy, and to
+have safe return to your homes."
+
+Then all the others spake him fair, and would have done what he wished.
+Only Agamemnon would not have it so.
+
+"Get thee out, graybeard!" he cried in great wrath. "Let me not find thee
+lingering now by the ships, neither coming hither again, or it shall be
+the worse for thee, for all thy priesthood. And as for thy daughter, I
+shall carry her away to Argos, when I shall have taken this city of Troy."
+
+Then the old man went out hastily in great fear and trouble. And he walked
+in his sorrow by the shore of the sounding sea, and prayed to his god
+Apollo.
+
+"Hear me, god of the silver bow! If I have built thee a temple, and
+offered thee fat of many bullocks and rams, hear me, and avenge my tears
+on the Greeks with thine arrows!"
+
+And Apollo heard him. Wroth was he that men had so dishonored his priest,
+and he came down from the top of Olympus, where he dwelt. Dreadful was the
+rattle of his arrows as he went, and his coming was as the night when it
+cometh over the sky. Then he shot the arrows of death, first on the dogs
+and the mules, and then on the men; and soon all along the shore rolled
+the black smoke from the piles of wood on which they burnt the bodies of
+the dead.
+
+For nine days the shafts of the god went throughout the host; but on the
+tenth day Achilles called the people to an assembly. So Juno bade him, for
+she loved the Greeks, and grieved to see them die. When they were gathered
+together he stood up among them, and spake to Agamemnon:--
+
+"Surely it were better to return home, than that we should all perish here
+by war or plague. But come, let us ask some prophet or priest or dreamer
+of dreams why it is that Apollo is so wroth with us."
+
+Then stood up Calchas, best of seers, who knew what had been, and what
+was, and what was to come, and spake:--
+
+"Achilles, thou biddest me tell the people why Apollo is wroth with them.
+Lo! I will tell thee, but thou must first swear to stand by me, for I know
+that what I shall say will anger King Agamemnon, and it goes ill with
+common men when kings are angry."
+
+"Speak out, thou wise man!" cried Achilles; "for I swear by Apollo that
+while I live no one shall lay hands on thee, no, not Agamemnon's self,
+though he be sovereign lord of the Greeks."
+
+Then the blameless seer took heart, and spake: "It is not for vow or
+offering that Apollo is wroth; it is for his servant the priest, for he
+came to ransom his daughter, but Agamemnon scorned him, and would not let
+the maiden go. Now, then, ye must send her back to Chryse without ransom,
+and with her a hundred beasts for sacrifice, so that the plague may be
+stayed."
+
+Then Agamemnon stood up in a fury, his eyes blazing like fire.
+
+"Never," he cried, "hast thou spoken good concerning me, ill prophet that
+thou art, and now thou tellest me to give up this maiden! I will do it,
+for I would not that the people should perish. Only take care, ye Greeks,
+that there be a share of the spoil for me, for it would ill beseem the
+lord of all the host that he alone should be without his share."
+
+"Nay, my lord Agamemnon," cried Achilles, "thou art too eager for gain. We
+have no treasures out of which we may make up thy loss, for what we got
+out of the towns we have either sold or divided; nor would it be fitting
+that the people should give back what has been given to them. Give up the
+maiden, then, without conditions, and when we shall have taken this city
+of Troy, we will repay thee three and four fold."
+
+"Nay, great Achilles," said Agamemnon, "thou shalt not cheat me thus. If
+the Greeks will give me such a share as I should have, well and good. But
+if not, I will take one for myself, whether it be from thee or from Ajax
+or from Ulysses; for my share I will have. But of this hereafter. Now let
+us see that this maiden be sent back. Let them get ready a ship, and put
+her herein, and with her a hundred victims, and let some chief go with the
+ship, and see that all things be rightly done."
+
+Then cried Achilles, and his face was as black as a thunder-storm: "Surely
+thou art altogether shameless and greedy, and, in truth, an ill ruler of
+men. No quarrel have I with the Trojans. They never harried oxen or sheep
+of mine in fertile Phthia, for many murky mountains lie between, and a
+great breadth of roaring sea. But I have been fighting in thy cause, and
+that of thy brother Menelaus. Naught carest thou for that. Thou leavest me
+to fight, and sittest in thy tent at ease. But when the spoil is divided,
+thine is always the lion's share. Small, indeed, is my part,--'a little
+thing, but dear.' And this, forsooth, thou wilt take away! Now am I
+resolved to go home. I have no mind to heap up goods and gold for thee,
+and be myself dishonored."
+
+And King Agamemnon answered, "Go, and thy Myrmidons with thee! I have
+other chieftains as good as thou art, and ready, as thou art not, to pay
+me due respect; and Zeus, the god of council, is with me. I hate thee, for
+thou always lovest war and strife. And as for the matter of the spoil,
+know that I will take thy share, the girl Briseïs, and fetch her myself,
+if need be, that all may know that I am sovereign lord here in the host of
+the Greeks."
+
+Then Achilles was mad with anger, and he thought in his heart, "Shall I
+arise and slay this caitiff, or shall I keep down the wrath in my breast?"
+And as he thought he laid his hand on his sword-hilt, and had half-drawn
+his sword from the scabbard, when lo! the goddess Athene stood behind him
+(for Juno, who loved both this chieftain and that, had sent her), and
+caught him by the long locks of his yellow hair. But Achilles marveled
+much to feel the mighty grasp, and turned and looked, and knew the
+goddess, but no one else in the assembly might see her. Terrible was the
+flash of his eyes as he cried, "Art thou come, child of Zeus, to see the
+insolence of Agamemnon? Of a truth, I think that he will perish for his
+folly."
+
+But Athene said, "Nay, but I am come from heaven to abate thy wrath, if
+thou wilt hear me; white-armed Juno sent me, for she loveth and cherisheth
+you both alike. Draw not thy sword; but use bitter words, even as thou
+wilt. Of a truth, I tell thee that for this insolence of to-day he will
+bring thee hereafter splendid gifts, threefold and fourfold for all that
+he may take away. Only refrain thyself and do my bidding."
+
+Then Achilles answered, "I will abide by thy command for all my wrath, for
+the man who hearkens to the immortal gods is also heard of them." And as
+he spake he laid his heavy hand upon the hilt, and thrust back the sword
+into the scabbard, and Athene went her way to Olympus.
+
+Then he turned him to King Agamemnon, and spake again, for his anger was
+not spent. "Drunkard, with the eyes of a dog and the heart of a deer!
+never fighting in the front of the battle, nor daring to lie in the
+ambush! 'Tis a race of dastards that thou rulest, or this had been thy
+last wrong. But this I tell thee, and confirm my words with a mighty
+oath--by this sceptre do I swear. Once it was the branch of a tree, but
+now the sons of the Greeks bear it in their hands, even they who maintain
+the laws of Zeus; as surely as it shall never again have bark, or leaves,
+or shoot, so surely shall the Greeks one day miss Achilles, when they fall
+in heaps before the dreadful Hector; and thou shalt eat thy heart for
+rage, to think that thou hast wronged the bravest of thy host."
+
+And as he spake he dashed the sceptre, all embossed with studs of gold,
+upon the ground, and sat down. And on the other side Agamemnon sat in
+furious anger. Then Nestor rose, an old man of a hundred years and more,
+and counseled peace. Let them listen, he said, to his counsel. Great
+chiefs in the old days, with whom no man now alive would dare to fight,
+had listened. Let not Agamemnon take away from the bravest of the Greeks
+the prize of war; let not Achilles, though he was mightier in battle than
+all other men, contend with Agamemnon, who was sovereign lord of all the
+hosts of Greece. But he spake in vain. For Agamemnon answered,--
+
+"Nestor, thou speakest well, and peace is good. But this fellow would lord
+it over all; yet there are some, methinks, who will not obey him. For if
+the immortal Gods have made him a great warrior, do they therefore grant
+him leave to speak lawless words? Verily he must be taught that there is
+one here, at least, who is better than he."
+
+And Achilles said, "I were a slave and a coward if I owned thee as my
+lord. Not so; play the master over others, but think not to master me. As
+for the prize which the Greeks gave me, let them do as they will. They
+gave it; let them take it away. But if thou darest to touch aught that is
+mine own, that hour thy life-blood shall redden on my spear."
+
+Then the assembly was dismissed. Chryseïs was sent to her home with due
+offerings to the god, the wise Ulysses going with her. And all the people
+purified themselves, and offered offerings to the Gods; and the sweet
+savor went up to heaven in the wreathing smoke.
+
+But King Agamemnon would not go back from his purpose. So he called to him
+the heralds, Talthybius and Eurybates, and said,--
+
+"Heralds, go to the tents of Achilles, and fetch the maiden Briseïs. But
+if he will not let her go, say that I will come myself with many others to
+fetch her; so will it be the worse for him."
+
+Sorely against their will the heralds went. Along the seashore they
+walked, till they came to where, amidst the Myrmidons, were the tents of
+Achilles. There they found him, sitting between his tent and his ship. He
+did not rejoice to see them, and they stood in great terror and shame. But
+he knew in his heart wherefore they had come, and cried aloud, "Come near,
+ye heralds, messengers of Gods and men. 'Tis no fault of yours that ye are
+come on such an errand."
+
+Then he turned to Patroclus (now Patroclus was his dearest friend) and
+said,--
+
+"Bring the maiden from her tent, and let the heralds lead her away. But
+let them be witnesses, before gods and men, and before this evil-minded
+king, against the day when he shall have sore need of me to save his hosts
+from destruction. Fool that he is, who knoweth not to look back and to
+look forward, that his people may be safe!"
+
+Then Patroclus brought forth the maiden from her tent, and gave her to the
+heralds. And they led her away; but it was sorely against her will that
+she went. But Achilles went apart from his comrades, and sat upon the
+seashore, falling into a great passion of tears, and stretching out his
+hands with loud prayer to his mother, Thetis, daughter of the sea. She
+heard him where she sat in the depths by her father, the old god of the
+sea, and rose from the gray sea, as a vapor rises, and came to where he
+was weeping, and stroked him with her hand, and called him by his name.
+
+"What ails thee, my son?" she said.
+
+Then he told her the story of his wrong, and when he had ended he said,--
+
+"Go, I pray thee, to the top of Olympus, to the palace of Zeus. Often have
+I heard thee in my father's hall boast how, long ago, thou didst help him
+when the other gods would have bound him, fetching Briareus of the hundred
+hands, who sat by him in his strength, so that the Gods feared to touch
+him. Go now, and call these things to his mind, and pray him that he help
+the sons of Troy, and give them victory in the battle, so that the Greeks,
+as they flee before them, may have joy of this king of theirs, who has
+done such wrong to the bravest of his host."
+
+And his mother answered him, "Surely thine is an evil lot, my son. This
+life is short, and it should of right be without tears and full of joy;
+but now it seems to me to be both short and sad. But I will go as thou
+sayest to Olympus, to the palace of Zeus; but not now, for he has gone,
+and the other Gods with him, to a twelve days' feast with the pious
+Ethiopians. But when he cometh back I will entreat and persuade him. And
+do thou sit still, nor go forth to battle."
+
+Meanwhile Ulysses drew near to Chryse with the holy offerings. And when
+they were come within the haven, they furled the sail, and laid it in the
+ship, and lowered the mast, and rowed the ship to her moorings. They cast
+out the anchor stones, and made fast the cables from the stern. After that
+they landed, taking with them the offerings and the maid Chryseïs. To the
+altar they brought the maid, and gave her into the arms of her father, and
+the wise Ulysses said, "See now; Agamemnon, King of men, sends back thy
+daughter, and with her a hundred beasts for sacrifice, that we may appease
+the god who hath smitten the Greeks in his wrath."
+
+Then the priest received his daughter right gladly, and when they had
+ranged the beasts about the altar, and poured out the water of
+purification, and taken up handfuls of bruised barley, then the priest
+prayed, "Hear me, God of the silver bow! If before thou didst hearken to
+my prayer, and grievously afflict the Greeks, so hear me now, and stay
+this plague which is come upon them."
+
+So prayed he, and the god gave ear.
+
+Then they cast the barley on the heads of the cattle, and slew them, and
+flayed them, and they cut out the thigh-bones and wrapped them up in folds
+of fat, and laid raw morsels on them. These the priest burned on fagots,
+pouring on sparkling wine; and the young men stood by, having the
+five-pronged forks in their hands. And when the thighs were consumed, then
+they cut up the rest, and broiled the pieces carefully on spits. This
+being done, they made their meal, nor did any one lack his share. And when
+the meal was ended, then they poured a little wine into the cups to serve
+for libations to the Gods. After that they sat till sunset, singing a hymn
+to the Archer God, and making merry; and he heard their voice and was
+pleased.
+
+When the sun went down, they slept beside the stern-cables; and when the
+dawn appeared, then they embarked, raising the mast and spreading the
+sail; and Apollo sent them a favoring wind, and the dark blue wave hissed
+about the stem of the ship as she went: so they came to the camp of the
+Greeks.
+
+But all the time Achilles sat in wrath beside his ships; he went not to
+the war, nor yet to the assembly, but sat fretting in his heart, because
+he longed for the cry of the battle.
+
+
+
+
+THE FIGHT BETWEEN PARIS AND MENELAUS
+
+By Walter C. Perry
+
+
+In obedience to the summons of their leaders, the great host of the
+Achaians assembled on the plain of the flowing river Scamander,
+innumerable as the leaves and flowers in the season of spring. And in the
+midst of them stood the great ruler, Agamemnon: his head and eyes like
+those of Loud-thundering Zeus; his waist like that of the Man-slaying
+Mars; and with a breast like that of Neptune, the Ruler of the Sea. As the
+mail-clad Argives marched on, and rushed across the plain, the earth
+groaned beneath them.
+
+Now Ægis-bearing Zeus sent his messenger, Iris, to the assembly of the
+Trojans, with the voice of Polites, son of Priam, their sentinel at
+Priam's gate, and spake thus to Hector: "This is no time for idle words,
+for stern war is already upon you. But to thee, O Hector, do I especially
+speak; and do thou obey my voice! As thou hast many allies, of diverse
+nations and tongues, let each chief marshal and command his own people,
+and lead them forth to war."
+
+And the glorious Hector knew the voice of the messenger, and hastened to
+obey. He straightway dissolved the assembly. The gates of Troy were then
+thrown open, and the Trojan host rushed forth, with a mighty din. The
+blameless Hector, with his glancing helmet, was foremost of all, and led
+the bravest and strongest of the men; Æneas, son of the goddess Aphrodite,
+or Venus, born amidst the peaks of Ida, led the Dardans; and of the other
+leaders of the allies, the most famous were Sarpedon, son of Zeus, and
+blameless Glaucus, who led the Lycians, from distant Lycia, by the
+swift-eddying Xanthus.
+
+And, as the countless hosts advanced, to meet each other in deadly
+conflict, the Trojans marched with noisy shouts, like the clamor of the
+cranes, when they fly to the streams of Oceanus, in the early morning,
+screaming, and bringing death and destruction to the Pigmy men; but the
+Achaieans came on in silence, breathing dauntless courage.
+
+But when they came near to each other, the goodly Paris went before the
+front rank of the Trojans, and brandished his spear, and challenged all
+the Argive chiefs to single combat. When the warlike Menelaus, whom Paris
+had so deeply wronged by carrying off his wife, the beautiful Helen, saw
+Paris there, he was glad, thinking that he should now punish the false
+traitor for his wickedness. So he leaped from his chariot, in his clanging
+armor, and advanced to meet the challenger. And Paris saw him; and pale
+fear got hold of him, like to a man who has trodden on a serpent, in a
+wooded valley among the mountains; and he shrank back among the lordly
+Trojans.
+
+His brother Hector saw him, and reproached him with scornful words. "Base
+deceiver of women, beautiful in appearance and favor, but coward at heart!
+would that thou hadst never been born, or that thou hadst died unwedded!
+Now thou seest what kind of man is he, whose lovely wife thou hast carried
+off by stealth. Of no avail will be thy sounding lyre, thy beauteous face
+and curling hair, or all the gifts of golden Venus, when thou liest
+groveling in the dust."
+
+And the goodly Paris answered him, "Hector, thou rightly chidest me, and
+not more than I deserve. _Thy_ heart is ever undaunted, and keen as the
+axe, which cutteth the strong oak, in the hands of a skillful shipwright.
+But reproach me not for the lovely gifts of golden Aphrodite; for no man
+can obtain them by wishing for them, for they are among the precious gifts
+of the blessed Gods. But if thou desirest that I should do battle with the
+valiant Menelaus, make the Trojans and the Achaians sit down; and set me
+and Menelaus in the midst, to fight for Helen and for all the treasures
+which were taken away with her. And whichever of us twain shall be the
+victor, let him bear away the woman and the treasure, and take them home."
+
+So spake he, and they all kept silence; but Menelaus of the loud war-cry
+stood forward amongst the Greeks and made harangue, "Hearken now to me,
+for my heart hath endured the greatest grief. Whosoever of us twain shall
+fall, there let him lie. But now bring a goodly sacrifice, a white ram and
+a black ewe, for the Earth and for the Sun; and another for
+Loud-thundering Zeus; and summon hither the great King Priam, that he may
+take the pledge; for his sons are reckless and faithless; young men's
+hearts are too frivolous and fickle, but an old man looketh to the future
+and the past."
+
+And Hector sent heralds to the city, to fetch two lambs, and to summon
+Priam; while Agamemnon sent Talthybius for a ram. Now Iris, in Troy, came
+to Helen, in the semblance of Laodice, Paris's sister, fairest of Priam's
+daughters, wife of Helicaon, the son of Antenor. She found Helen weaving a
+great purple web, on which she was embroidering the battles of the Argives
+and the Trojans. The swift-footed Iris came near her, and said, "Come
+hither, dear lady, come with me, to see the wondrous deeds of the
+horse-taming Trojans and the mail-clad Argives; for now the battle is
+suspended, while Paris, and Menelaus, dear to Mars, will fight alone with
+their spears, for _thee_; and thou wilt be the fair wife of the victor."
+So Iris spoke, and put into Helen's bosom a longing for her former
+husband, and for her darling daughter. Then Helen veiled her face, and
+went straightway to the Scæan Gate, letting fall a tear; and her two
+handmaidens, Æthre and Clymene, followed her.
+
+On the tower above the Scæan Gate, she found the Trojan elders. These, on
+account of their age, had ceased from war, but were still good orators,
+with voices like the grasshoppers which sit upon a tree, and send forth
+their lily-like voice; so sat the elders of the Trojans on the Tower. When
+those ancient sages saw the fair Helen coming to them, they were
+astounded, and whispered one to another, "No wonder that the Trojans and
+the Achaians have suffered so many things for such a glorious woman! But,
+fair as she is, let her sail away, and not stay here to trouble us and our
+children after us."
+
+But the aged King Priam addressed her kindly. "Dear Daughter! come hither,
+and see thy former husband and kinsmen! I do not blame _thee_, but the
+Gods, and especially Venus, by whom this sad war has been brought upon us.
+But tell me who is that huge Achaian warrior? Many are taller than he, but
+I have never seen a man so stately and royal." And the fair Helen, the
+daughter of Zeus, replied, "O venerable Father of my lord! would that
+death had been my lot, when I followed thy son to Troy, and left my home
+and husband, and my dear young daughter, and all the loved companions of
+my girlhood! But that was not to be, and therefore I mourn and weep. The
+man of whom thou speakest is Atreides, the wide-ruling monarch Agamemnon,
+who is both a stately king and a doughty warrior; he is the brother of
+Menelaus my husband--shameless thing that I am!"
+
+Then the aged Priam asked her about the other Achaian chiefs,--Ulysses,
+and the gigantic Ajax, the bulwark of the host, and the godlike Idomeneus;
+and the lovely Helen told him all, and said, "I see all the other
+bright-eyed Achaians, and could tell their names; but two I see not, even
+mine own brothers, horse-taming Castor and the boxer Pollux; peradventure
+they came not with the Achaians; or if they came, they fight not, for fear
+of the revilings which men heap on me--shameless that I am!" She knew not
+that the earth already covered them, in Lacedæmon, their dear native land.
+Now the aged Priam drove out through the Scæan Gate, with Antenor by his
+side; and, when he had come to the Achaians and the Trojans, he descended
+from his chariot, and stood on the Earth, the bounteous grain-giver. Then
+Agamemnon, the king of men, and Ulysses, the man of many devices, rose up;
+and the stately heralds brought the holy oath-offerings to the gods, and
+mixed the ruddy wine in the mixing-bowl, from which they gave portions to
+the Achaian and the Trojan chiefs. Agamemnon raised his hands to heaven
+and prayed, "O Father Zeus, most great and glorious! O Sun, who seest and
+hearest all things! O ye Rivers, and thou, Mother Earth! be ye all
+witnesses to our oaths! If Paris shall kill Menelaus, then let him keep
+Helen and all her possessions; but if the yellow-haired Menelaus slay
+Paris, then let the Trojans give back Helen and her treasures!"
+
+Then the lordly Agamemnon slew the lambs, and prayed again to Zeus. But
+Priam spake unto the Achaians and the Trojans. "I verily will return to
+breezy Ilium; for I cannot bear to see my own son engaged in deadly
+conflict with the war-loving Menelaus."
+
+Then the goodly Paris, lord of the fair-haired Helen, put on his beautiful
+armor. First he set the splendid greaves upon his legs, fastened round the
+ankles with silver clasps; then he donned the corslet, which he had
+borrowed from his brother Lycaon; and he threw over his shoulders the
+silver-studded sword-belt with his sword, and took up his mighty shield;
+and upon his beauteous head he placed the helmet, with a horsehair crest,
+and the plume nodded terribly; and he took a strong spear in his hand.
+
+Then he and Menelaus stood face to face, on the ground which Hector and
+Ulysses had meted out; and they brandished their spears, with wrath
+against each other. Paris drew the lot to be the first to cast his
+long-shafted spear; he threw it, and it struck the round shield of
+Atreides Menelaus, but did not pierce it; for the point of the spear was
+turned.
+
+Then Menelaus, poising his lance, prayed to Zeus, "O Father Zeus! grant me
+to take vengeance on goodly Paris, who did me such foul wrong--_me_, who
+had shown him so much kindness!" He said, and hurled his strong spear,
+which struck the bright shield of the son of Priam; and the sharp point
+passed through it, and through his breastplate, and rent the tunic, close
+to the side of his body; but Paris swerved from it, and shunned the black
+fate of death. Then Menelaus drew his sword from the silver-studded
+sheath, and smote on the helmet of Paris, but the sword was shattered, and
+fell in pieces from his hand. Then he looked up to heaven, and exclaimed,
+"O Father Zeus! thou art the most cruel of all the Gods!"
+
+So saying, he caught Paris by his horse-hair crest, and dragged him
+towards the well-greaved Achaians, and the embroidered strap of the helmet
+went nigh to strangle him. But Venus, daughter of great Zeus, who loved
+the beauteous Paris, drew near him, and tore the strap of leather; and the
+helmet came away, empty, in the strong hand of the son of Atreus. Full of
+wrath, he hurled it towards his trusty companions, and they took it up. He
+then rushed back again, to slay his enemy; but golden-haired Venus, being
+a goddess, easily caught up Paris, and hid him in thick darkness, and
+carried him into Troy, to his high and fragrant chamber.
+
+Venus, the golden Goddess of Love, then went to summon Helen, in the
+likeness of an old woman, a wool-comber, who had worked for Helen in
+Lacedæmon, and whom she greatly loved. She found the white-armed Helen on
+the high tower, and spake: "Come hither to Paris, who sends for thee; he
+is there in the fragrant chamber, shining in beauty--
+
+  "Not like a warrior parted from the foe,
+  But some fair dancer from the public show."
+          (Pope's Translation of the _Iliad_.)
+
+But Helen's heart was greatly moved; she knew the golden Venus, saw her
+fair neck and sparkling eyes, and called her by her name. "O thou strange
+Goddess! wouldst thou again deceive me? Now Menelaus hath conquered Paris,
+and will carry me home--accursed as I am! And now do _thou_ no more return
+to Olympus, but leave the dwelling of the Gods, and go and sit by Paris,
+till he make _thee_ his wife--or perchance, his slave. But _I_ will not go
+to him; for all the Trojan women would justly blame me hereafter; I have
+innumerable griefs within my heart."
+
+Then was the bright goddess sore displeased, and spake harshly to her.
+"Beware! thou foolish woman! lest in my wrath I leave thee, and henceforth
+hate thee, as I have loved thee until now!" Venus spake, and Helen,
+daughter of great Zeus, trembled and obeyed, wrapping her beautiful
+garments about her; and the goddess led her to the fragrant chamber in the
+palace, and set her on a chair before the goodly Paris.
+
+But Helen looked askance at her lord, and chode him with bitter words.
+"Would that thou hadst never come back from the fight, but hadst perished
+by the arm of the warrior who was once my husband! Thou didst boast
+thyself to be a better man than Menelaus! Go then, and challenge him
+again, to meet thee face to face once more!"
+
+Yet Helen, though she could not but despise Paris, soon became reconciled
+to him, partly from a remnant of her former love for him, and partly from
+her fear of Venus.
+
+In the meantime, Menelaus was raging through the field in search of him.
+Nor could any of the Trojans find him, or they would have given him up;
+for they hated him like death, as the cause of all their sufferings.
+
+And King Agamemnon said to the Trojans, "Now that the Mars-loving Menelaus
+hath conquered Paris do ye give back to us Helen and all her treasures!"
+But this was not to be.
+
+
+
+
+THE DUEL BETWEEN HECTOR AND AJAX
+
+By Walter C. Perry
+
+
+And now we must speak of Hector, the noble Trojan prince, who, after
+Achilles, was the most famous warrior of the two hostile armies. Achilles,
+indeed, was the son of a goddess, even silver-footed Thetis; while
+Hector's mother, Hecuba, was a mortal woman.
+
+Well knowing the dangers to which he was exposed, and how soon he might
+fall in battle, Hector now bethought him of his lovely wife, Andromache,
+and his little boy Astyanax. When he came to the Scæan Gate, the Trojan
+women came running to him, with eager questions about their husbands,
+sons, and brothers; and sorrow filled their hearts. Among them came his
+fond and generous mother, Hecuba, leading by the hand the fairest of her
+daughters, Laodice, and she called him by his name, and spoke: "Dear Son!
+why hast thou left the field? Do the Achaians press thee hard? Dost thou
+come to make prayers to Father Zeus, from the Citadel? But come, I will
+bring thee honey-sweet wine, that thou mayest pour out a libation to
+Almighty Zeus, the Son of Cronos, and refresh thyself with a draught."
+
+But Hector answered her, "Bring me no luscious wine, dear mother! lest
+thou rob me of my strength and courage. Nor dare I make a libation to
+Zeus, with hands unwashen and soiled with blood. But go thou to the Temple
+of Athene, driver of the spoil; and lay the finest robe, the most precious
+to thyself, upon her knees; and vow to sacrifice twelve fat kine to her;
+and beg her to have mercy on the Trojans, and on their wives and little
+children! So, perhaps, she will hold back the terrible warrior, Tydides,
+from sacred Ilium. And I will go and seek out Paris; would that the earth
+would swallow him up! for Zeus hath cherished him to be the bane of his
+country, and of his father Priam."
+
+Then Hecuba went to her ambrosial chamber, and took the finest of her
+embroidered robes, the work of Sidonian women, which shone like a star;
+and went, with other aged women, to the temple of Athene. And the
+fair-cheeked Theano, daughter of Kisseus, the priestess, wife of Antenor,
+opened the temple gates, and took the shining robe, and laid it upon
+Athene's knees, and prayed to the great daughter of Zeus. But the goddess
+did not grant her prayer.
+
+But Hector went his way to the fair palace of Paris, and found him in his
+chamber, polishing his beautiful armor, and proving his curved bow. Then,
+when Hector saw him, he reproached him with bitter words. "O thou strange
+man! thou dost not well to nurse thy spite against the Trojans, who are
+now perishing before the city, and all for thy sake! Rise, then, now, lest
+the city be burned with fire!"
+
+And the goodly Paris answered, "It is not so much by reason of my wrath
+against the Trojans, but I would fain indulge my sorrow. My wife, too,
+hath urged me to the battle. Tarry then awhile, and I will don my armor;
+or go thou before, and I will follow."
+
+Then the divine Helen, daughter of great Zeus, came and spoke gently to
+Hector, and said, "O brother! brother of vile _me_, who am a dog--would
+that, when my mother bare me, the storm-wind had snatched me away to a
+mountain, or a billow of the loud-roaring sea had swept me away, before
+all these evil things had befallen me! Would that I had been mated with a
+better man than Paris, whose heart is not sound, and never will be. But
+come, my brother, and sit by me; for thou verily hast suffered most for
+me, who am a dog, and for the grievous sin of Paris, upon whom, surely,
+Zeus is bringing evil days; he will be, hereafter, a song of scorn in the
+mouths of future men, through all time to come."
+
+But noble Hector answered her, "If thou lovest me, dear Helen, bid me not
+stay; for I go to succor my friends, who long for me in my absence. But do
+thou try and rouse this husband of thine, and bid him overtake me. As for
+me, I shall first go to my home, and to my wife and my little son; for who
+knoweth whether I shall ever return to them again?"
+
+So spake the glorious Hector, and went his way to his own well-furnished
+house; but he found not Andromache there; for she had gone to the tower,
+with her fair-robed nurse and with her boy, all bathed in tears. Hector
+asked the servants whither the white-armed Andromache was gone; and the
+busy matron of the house replied, "She is gone to the tower of holy Troy;
+for she heard that the Trojans were defeated, and the Achaians
+victorious." Then Hector returned, by the same way, down the wide streets,
+and came to the Scæan Gate.
+
+And his peerless wife, even Andromache, daughter of the high-minded
+Eëtion, king of Cilicia--she whom he had won by countless gifts--came
+running to meet him. And with her came the handmaid, the nurse, bearing in
+her arms Hector's tender boy, Astyanax, beautiful as the morning star. And
+Hector smiled, and looked on his darling boy, while Andromache stood
+beside him weeping. And she clasped his hand, and called him by his name.
+"O my dear lord, thy dauntless courage will destroy thee! Hast thou no
+pity for thy infant child, and for thy hapless wife, who soon will be a
+widow? It were far better for me to die, if I lose _thee_; for nevermore
+can I know comfort, but only pain and sorrow. For I shall be utterly
+alone. I have neither father nor mother; for Eëtion, my royal sire, was
+slain by great Achilles. And all my seven brothers went down to Hades on
+the selfsame day! they too were slain by swift-footed Pelides. But my
+mother was smitten in her father's halls, by the gentle arrows of the
+archer Artemis. Lo! now, _thou_ art all in all to me, father, mother,
+brother, and dearly loved husband! Come, then, take pity on us, and abide
+in the tower, and make not thy boy an orphan, and thy wife a widow!"
+
+And the glorious Hector of the glancing helm answered her, and said, "Dear
+Wife! I too think of all these things. But how can I shun the battle, like
+a coward, to be the mock of the Trojans, and of the Trojan dames with
+trailing robes? I, who have always fought in the van of battle, and won
+glory for my father and myself? I know that the day will come, when sacred
+Ilium shall be leveled with the ground, and Priam and the people of Priam
+shall perish. But it is not so much the fate of Priam, and of my mother,
+Hecuba, and of my brethren, which fills my soul with anguish; but it is
+_thy_ misery, dear one, in the day when some Achaian warrior shall bear
+thee away, weeping, and rob thee of thy freedom. Thou, alas! wilt abide in
+Argos, and ply the loom, the slave of another woman; or bear water from
+the Hypereian fount, being harshly treated! And one will say, as he
+looketh upon thee, 'This was the wife of Hector, the foremost of the
+horse-taming Trojans in the war round Ilium.' But may the deep earth cover
+_me_, ere I hear thee crying in the day of thy captivity."
+
+So spake he, and held out his arms to take his darling boy. But the child
+shrank crying, and nestled in the bosom of his well-girdled nurse; for he
+feared the horsehair crest, nodding terribly from the brazen helmet. Then
+the fond parents laughed; and Hector doffed his helmet, and laid it on the
+ground. And he kissed his dear child, and fondled him, and prayed thus to
+Zeus:--
+
+"O Zeus! and all ye Gods! grant that this, my son, may like me be foremost
+to fight among the Trojans, and rule as a king in Ilium; so that men may
+say, 'He is far better than his father'!"
+
+Thus speaking, he laid the child in the fragrant bosom of his dear wife
+Andromache; and he pitied her, and caressed her with his hand, and called
+her by her name. "Dear one! be not thus utterly cast down. No man can slay
+me till my hour of destiny is come. But no man, when once he hath been
+born, can escape his fate, be he a brave man or a coward. Go thou to thy
+house, to the distaff and the loom, and make thy maidens ply their labors.
+But _men_ shall engage in war, and I the first of all in Troy."
+
+So spake Hector of the glancing helmet, and went his way. And his dear
+wife went to her home, looking back at him as she went, shedding bitter
+tears. And she found her maidens there, and with them she bewailed her
+lord, while yet he lived; for they feared that he would never again return
+from battle.
+
+And the goodly Paris donned his beautiful armor, and hastened after his
+brother, whom he overtook, and he made excuse for his long tarrying. And
+Hector answered him, "No man can justly speak lightly of thy deeds, for
+thou art strong; but thou art slack and careless, and I am grieved when I
+hear shameful things said of thee by the Trojans, who for thee bear so
+much toil. But let us be going."
+
+So the twain brothers, the glorious Hector and the goodly Paris, went
+forth to the battle. And Paris slew Menesthius, of Arne, son of Areïthous;
+and Hector smote noble Eïoneus in the neck, and relaxed his limbs in
+death. And Glaucus, captain of the Lycian allies, cast his spear at
+Iphinous, and pierced his shoulder; and he fell from his chariot, and his
+limbs were loosened.
+
+But when the fierce-eyed Athene saw the Trojans making havoc of the
+Achaians, she rushed down from the peaks of Olympus, to sacred Ilium. And
+Apollo, who favored the Trojans, saw her from Pergamus, and hastened to
+meet her; and they met by the beech-tree, and Apollo of the Silver Bow
+addressed her: "Why dost thou come, O Daughter of the Loud-Thunderer? Is
+it to bring victory to the Greeks? for thou hast no pity on the Trojans.
+But hearken unto me, and let us stop the battle for this day--hereafter
+they shall fight again."
+
+And the fierce-eyed goddess answered him, "Be it so, Far-Darter! for this
+was my purpose when I came from high Olympus. But how thinkest thou to
+make the war to cease?"
+
+Then King Apollo spake. "Let us rouse the valiant spirit of horse-taming
+Hector, to challenge one of the Greeks to deadly single combat." And the
+fierce-eyed Maid assented to his words.
+
+And the dear son of royal Priam, Helenus, the wise augur, who knew the
+counsel of the Gods, drew near to Hector, and spake thus to him: "Dear
+brother, who art peer of Zeus in counsel, wouldst thou listen to me? Make
+the Trojans and the Achaians sit down; and do thou challenge the bravest
+of the Achaians to meet thee in single combat. I hear the voice of the
+deathless Gods, that it is not yet thy lot to die."
+
+And the great Hector rejoiced at his words; and going into the throng, he
+held back the companies of the Trojans with his spear, holding it in the
+middle, and made them all sit down. And Agamemnon made the well-greaved
+Achaians sit down. And Athene and Apollo, in the form of vultures, sat on
+a lofty tree, and watched the hosts. And Hector stood between the two
+armies, and spake: "Hear me, ye Trojans and Achaians! Amongst you are the
+great chiefs of the Achaians. Now let one of these be your champion, to
+fight with me, Hector: and I call Zeus to witness, that if he slay me, you
+shall let him carry off my armor, but give my body to the Trojans, that
+they may render to me the honor of the funeral pyre. But if the Far-Darter
+shall grant me glory, that I may slay _him_, then will I strip him of his
+armor, and hang it in the Temple of Apollo; but his lifeless body I will
+give back to the long-haired Achaians, that they may bury him, and build
+him a barrow by the Hellespont."
+
+Thus spake the glorious Hector; but all were silent; for they were afraid
+to meet him. Then, at last, Menelaus, groaning deeply, reproached the
+Achaians, and said, "O ye women of Achaia, no longer _men!_ surely this
+will be an everlasting shame to us, if none of the Greeks dare to fight
+with the noble Hector! But I myself will arm me; for the issues of victory
+are with the Gods."
+
+And he began to put on his dazzling armor. And now wouldst thou, Menelaus,
+have yielded up thy life at the hands of Hector; but the great ruler,
+Agamemnon, rose up and stayed thee. "Art thou mad, O foster-son of Zeus?
+Draw back, though with grief and pain; and think not to fight with Hector,
+the man-slaying son of Priam; for he is a far better man than thou, even
+godlike Achilles feareth to meet this man in battle. Go then and sit down;
+and we will choose another champion."
+
+And the fair-haired Menelaus obeyed his brother's words, and his henchmen
+gladly took off his bright armor. And the wise Nestor arose, and upbraided
+all the Achaian chiefs: "Fie on us! Shame and lamentation have come upon
+us all. Surely the aged Peleus, the goodly king of the Myrmidons, would
+deeply groan, if he heard that we are all cowering before great Hector; he
+would pray that his soul might leave his body and go down to Hades. Would
+to Zeus, and to Athene and Apollo, that I were young, as when the Pylians
+met the Arcadians in battle, and Ereuthalion, the squire of King Lycurgus
+of Arcadia, wearing the divine armor of Areïthous, of the iron mace,
+before the walls of Pheia, by the waters of Iardanus, challenged all our
+host; and they were afraid and trembled. Then I, the youngest of all,
+stood up and fought with him, and Athene gave me great glory; for he was
+the tallest man, and of the greatest bulk, that I have ever slain. Would
+that I were still so young and strong! But of you, leaders of the
+Achaians, not one has heart enough to meet great Hector."
+
+The wise old man's reproaches filled the Achaian chiefs with shame; and
+nine of them rose up, ready to fight; namely, Agamemnon, king of men; and
+the stalwart Diomedes; and Idomeneus, and his brother in arms, Meriones,
+equal in fight to murderous Mars; and Eurypylus, and Thaus, and the wily
+Ulysses, and two others. Then Nestor spake again. "Now cast lots for him
+that shall be champion." Then each man marked his lot, and threw it into
+Agamemnon's helmet; and all men prayed that the lot might fall on Ajax or
+Diomedes, or the king of rich Mycenæ. Then Nestor shook the helmet, and
+the lot of Ajax leapt out; and the herald placed it in the hand of mighty
+Ajax, and he was glad; for he said, "I think that I shall vanquish goodly
+Hector." And they all prayed to the Son of Cronos, to give victory to
+Ajax, or to grant unto each of them equal glory and renown.
+
+Then huge Ajax donned his bright armor of bronze, and came forth like the
+war-god Mars when he goeth to battle. The Achaians were glad, but the
+Trojans trembled; and even the brave Hector felt his heart beat quicker in
+his breast. But he would not shrink from the combat, seeing that he had
+himself challenged all the Achaians. And Ajax came on, bearing a mighty
+shield, like a tower, which Tychius, the cunning leather-worker, had made
+for him, of sevenfold hides of lusty bulls, all overlaid with bronze. And
+he stood near godlike Hector, and spake: "Now shalt thou see what manner
+of men the Greeks have among them, even now when Achilles, the
+lion-hearted, hath left us in his wrath. But do thou begin the fight!"
+
+And Hector answered him, "Great Ajax, son of Telamon, sprung from Zeus!
+speak not to me as if I were a poor weak boy, or a woman! for I too have
+knowledge of war and slaughter. I know how to charge into the midst of the
+chariots, or, at close quarters, to join in the wild dance of Mars." He
+said, and hurled his long-shafted spear, and struck the sevenfold shield
+of Ajax; it passed through six folds, but was stopped by the seventh.
+
+Then Ajax, sprung from Zeus, threw his ponderous lance at the shield of
+mighty Priam's son. It passed right through the bright shield, and through
+the well-wrought corselet, and rent his tunic; but he swerved aside, and
+escaped gloomy death. Then the two fell upon each other, like ravening
+lions or wild boars; and Hector smote the shield of Ajax with his spear,
+but the sharp point was turned by the stout buckler. Then Ajax leapt upon
+him, and drove his spear at Hector's neck, making a wound from which the
+dark blood flowed.
+
+But Hector, undismayed, took up a great stone from the ground, and with it
+smote the boss of Ajax's shield. And Ajax heaved up a far bigger stone and
+threw it on the buckler of Hector, and it fell on him like a huge
+millstone, and stretched him on his back! But Apollo raised him, and set
+him on his legs again.
+
+Then they would have furiously attacked each other with their swords, had
+not the Achaian herald, Talthybius, and the Trojan herald, Idaius,
+intervened and stopped the fight, holding their staves of office between
+the godlike warriors; and Idaius spake to them: "Fight no longer, brave
+youths; for Zeus loveth you both; and we know well what gallant warriors
+ye are. Night is upon us, whose commands it behooveth us to obey."
+
+And the Telamonian Ajax answered, "Let Hector say those words; for it was
+he who challenged us."
+
+And Hector of the shining helmet said, "Ajax, since thou hast received
+strength and wisdom from the Gods, and dost excel all the Achaians in the
+fight, let us now cease from battle for the day, and hereafter we will
+fight again, until the Gods shall give victory to one of us. Go now, and
+rejoice thy friends and kinsmen by the ships, and I will gladden the
+hearts of Trojan men and long-robed dames in the holy city of King Priam.
+But now let us exchange costly gifts, that Trojans and Achaians may say of
+us that we, having met in this heart-gnawing strife, have parted like good
+friends." He spake, and gave to Ajax a silver-studded sword; and Ajax gave
+him a purple belt. So they parted, and went their way; the one to the
+ships of the Achaians, and the other to the holy city of Troy. And the
+Trojans rejoiced that Hector had escaped unhurt from the unapproachable
+hands of mighty Ajax.
+
+
+
+
+THE DEATH OF PATROCLUS AND THE BATTLE OF THE RIVER
+
+By Alfred J. Church
+
+
+Patroclus came and stood by the side of Achilles weeping. Then said
+Achilles, "What ails thee, Patroclus, that thou weepest like a girl-child
+that runs along by her mother's side, and would be taken up, holding her
+gown, and looking at her with tearful eyes till she lift her in her arms?
+Hast thou heard evil news from Phthia? Menoetius yet lives, they say, and
+Peleus. Or art thou weeping for the Greeks, because they perish for their
+folly?"
+
+Then said Patroclus, "Be not wroth with me, great Achilles, for indeed the
+Greeks are in grievous straits, and all their bravest are wounded, and
+still thou cherishest thy wrath. Surely Peleus was not thy father, nor
+Thetis thy mother; but the rocks begat thee, and the sea brought thee
+forth. Or if thou goest not to battle, fearing some warning from the Gods,
+yet let me go, and thy Myrmidons with me. And let me put thy armor on me;
+so shall the Greeks have breathing-space from the war."
+
+So he spake, entreating, nor knew that for his own doom he entreated. And
+Achilles made reply,--
+
+"It is no warning that I heed, that I keep back from the war. But these
+men took from me my prize, which I won with my own hands. But let the past
+be past. I said I would not rise up till the battle should come nigh to my
+own ships. But thou mayest put my armor upon thee, and lead my Myrmidons
+to the fight. For in truth the men of Troy are gathered as a dark cloud
+about the ships, and the Greeks have scarce standing-ground between them
+and the sea. For they see not the gleam of my helmet. And Diomed is not
+there with his spear; nor do I hear the voice of Agamemnon, but only the
+voice of Hector as he calls the men of Troy to the battle. Go, therefore,
+Patroclus, and drive the fire from the ships. And then come thou back, nor
+fight any more with the Trojans, lest thou take my glory from me. And go
+not near, in the delight of the battle, to the walls of Troy, lest one of
+the Gods meet thee to thy hurt; and, of a truth, the keen Archer Apollo
+loves the Trojans well."
+
+But as they talked the one to the other, Ajax could hold out no longer.
+For swords and javelins came thick upon him, and clattered on his helmet,
+and his shoulder was weary with the great shield which he held; and he
+breathed heavily and hard, and the great drops of sweat fell upon the
+ground. Then at the last Hector came near and smote his spear with a great
+sword, so that the head fell off. Then was Ajax sore afraid, and gave way,
+and the men of Troy set torches to the ship's stem, and a great flame shot
+up to the sky. And Achilles saw it, and smote his thigh and spake:--
+
+"Haste thee, Patroclus, for I see the fire rising up from the ships. Put
+thou on the armor, and I will call my people to the war." So Patroclus put
+on the armor--corselet, and shield, and helmet--and bound upon his
+shoulder the silver-studded sword, and took a mighty spear in his hand.
+But the great Pelian spear he took not, for that no man but Achilles might
+wield. Then Automedon yoked the horses to the chariot, Bayard and Piebald,
+and with them in the side harness, Pedasus; and they two were deathless
+steeds, but he was mortal.
+
+Meanwhile Achilles had called the Myrmidons to battle. Fifty ships had he
+brought to Troy, and in each there were fifty men. Five leaders they had,
+and the bravest of the five was Pisander.
+
+Then Achilles said, "Forget not, ye Myrmidons, the bold words that ye
+spake against the men of Troy during the days of my wrath, making
+complaint that I kept you from the battle against your will. Now,
+therefore, ye have that which you desired."
+
+So the Myrmidons went to the battle in close array, helmet to helmet, and
+shield to shield, close as the stones with which a builder builds a wall.
+And in front went Patroclus, and Automedon in the chariot beside him. Then
+Achilles went to his tent and took a great cup from the chest, which
+Thetis his mother had given him. Now no man drank of that cup but he only,
+nor did he pour out of it libations to any of the Gods, but only to Zeus.
+This first he cleansed with sulphur, and then with water from the spring.
+And after this he washed his hands, and stood in the midst of the space
+before his tent, and poured out of it to Zeus, saying, "O Zeus, I send my
+comrade to this battle; make him strong and bold, and give him glory, and
+bring him home safe to the ships, and my people with him."
+
+So he prayed, and Father Zeus heard him, and part he granted and part
+denied.
+
+But now Patroclus with the Myrmidons had come to where the battle was
+raging about the ship of Protesilaus, and when the men of Troy beheld him
+they thought that Achilles had forgotten his wrath and was come forth to
+the war. And first Patroclus slew Pyræchmes, who was the chief of the
+Pæonians who live on the banks of the broad Axius. Then the men of Troy
+turned to flee, and many chiefs of fame fell by the spears of the Greeks.
+So the battle rolled back to the trench, and in the trench many chariots
+of the Trojans were broken, but the horses of Achilles went across it at a
+stride, so nimble were they and strong. And the heart of Patroclus was set
+to slay Hector; but he could not overtake him, so swift were his horses.
+Then did Patroclus turn his chariot, and keep back those that fled, that
+they should not go to the city, and rushed hither and thither, still
+slaying as he went.
+
+But Sarpedon, when he saw the Lycians dismayed and scattered, called to
+them that they should be of good courage, saying that he would himself
+make trial of this great warrior. So he leapt down from his chariot, and
+Patroclus also leapt down, and they rushed at each other as two eagles
+rush together. Then first Patroclus struck down Thrasymelus, who was the
+comrade of Sarpedon; and Sarpedon, who had a spear in either hand, with
+the one struck the horse Pedasus, which was of mortal breed, on the right
+shoulder, and with the other missed his aim, sending it over the left
+shoulder of Patroclus. But Patroclus missed not his aim, driving his spear
+into Sarpedon's heart. Then fell the great Lycian chief, as an oak, or a
+poplar, or a pine falls upon the hills before the axe. But he called to
+Glaucus, his companion, saying, "Now must thou show thyself a good
+warrior, Glaucus. First call the men of Lycia to fight for me, and do thou
+fight thyself, for it would be foul shame to thee, all thy days, if the
+Greeks should spoil me of my arms."
+
+Then he died. But Glaucus was sore troubled, for he could not help him, so
+grievous was the wound where Teucer had wounded him. Therefore he prayed
+to Apollo, and Apollo helped him and made him whole. Then he went first to
+the Lycians, bidding them fight for their king, and then to the chiefs of
+the Trojans, that they should save the body of Sarpedon. And to Hector he
+said, "Little carest thou for thy allies. Lo! Sarpedon is dead, slain by
+Patroclus. Suffer not the Myrmidons to carry him off and do dishonor to
+his body."
+
+But Hector was troubled to hear such news, and so were all the sons of
+Troy, for Sarpedon was the bravest of the allies, and led most people to
+the battle. So with a great shout they charged, and drove the Greeks back
+a space from the body; and then again the Greeks did the like. And so the
+battle raged, till no one would have known the great Sarpedon, so covered
+was he with spears and blood and dust. But at the last the Greeks drave
+back the men of Troy from the body, and stripped the arms, but the body
+itself they harmed not. For Apollo came down at the bidding of Zeus, and
+carried it out of the midst of the battle, and washed it with water, and
+anointed it with ambrosia, and wrapped it in garments of the Gods. And
+then he gave it to Sleep and Death, and these two carried it to Lycia, his
+fatherland.
+
+Then did Patroclus forget the word which Achilles had spoken to him, that
+he should not go near to Troy, for he pursued the men of the city even to
+the wall. Thrice he mounted on the angle of the wall, and thrice Apollo
+himself drove him back, pushing his shining shield. But the fourth time
+the god said, "Go thou back, Patroclus. It is not for thee to take the
+city of Troy; no, nor for Achilles, who is far better than thou art."
+
+So Patroclus went back, fearing the wrath of the archer god. Then Apollo
+stirred up the spirit of Hector, that he should go against Patroclus.
+Therefore he went, with his brother Cebriones for driver of his chariot.
+But when they came near, Patroclus cast a great stone which he had in his
+hand, and smote Cebriones on the forehead, crushing it in, so that he fell
+headlong from the chariot. And Patroclus mocked him, saying,--
+
+"How nimble is this man! how lightly he dives! What spoil he would take of
+oysters, diving from a ship, even in a stormy sea! Who would have thought
+that there were such skillful divers in Troy!"
+
+Then again the battle waxed hot about the body of Cebriones, and this too,
+at the last, the Greeks drew unto themselves, and spoiled it of the arms.
+And this being accomplished, Patroclus rushed against the men of Troy.
+Thrice he rushed, and each time he slew nine chiefs of fame. But the
+fourth time Apollo stood behind him and struck him on the head and
+shoulders, so that his eyes were darkened. And the helmet fell from off
+his head, so that the horse-hair plumes were soiled with dust. Never
+before had it touched the ground, for it was the helmet of Achilles. And
+also the god brake the spear in his hand, and struck the shield from his
+arms, and loosed his corselet. All amazed he stood, and then Euphorbus,
+son of Panthous, smote him on the back with his spear, but slew him not.
+Then Patroclus sought to flee to the ranks of his comrades. But Hector saw
+him, and thrust at him with his spear, smiting him in the groin, so that
+he fell. And when the Greeks saw him fall, they sent up a terrible cry.
+Then Hector stood over him and cried,--
+
+"Didst thou think to spoil our city, Patroclus, and to carry away our
+wives and daughters in the ships? But lo! I have slain thee, and the fowls
+of the air shall eat thy flesh; nor shall the great Achilles help thee at
+all,--Achilles, who bade thee, I trow, strip the tunic from my breast, and
+thou thoughtest in thy folly to do it."
+
+But Patroclus answered, "Thou boasteth much, Hector. Yet _thou_ didst not
+slay me, but Apollo, who took from me my arms, for had twenty such as thou
+met me, I had slain them all. And mark thou this: death and fate are close
+to thee by the hand of the great Achilles."
+
+And Hector answered, but Patroclus was dead already, "Why dost thou
+prophesy death to me? Maybe the great Achilles himself shall fall by my
+hand." Then he drew his spear from the wound, and went after Automedon, to
+slay him, but the swift horse of Achilles carried him away.
+
+Fierce was the fight about the body of Patroclus, and many heroes fell,
+both on this side and on that.
+
+[Illustration: FIERCE WAS THE FIGHT ABOUT THE BODY OF PATROCLUS AND MANY
+HEROES FELL]
+
+Meanwhile Antilochus, son of Nestor, ran to Achilles and said, "I bring
+ill news; Patroclus lies low. The Greeks fight for his body, but Hector
+hath his arms."
+
+Then Achilles took of the dust of the plain in his hand, and poured it on
+his head, and lay at his length upon the ground, and tare his hair. And
+all the women wailed. And Antilochus sat weeping; but ever he held the
+hands of Achilles, lest he should slay himself in his great grief.
+
+Then came his mother, hearing his cry, from where she sat in the depths of
+the sea, and laid her hand on him and said,--
+
+"Why weepest thou, my son? Hide not the matter from me, but tell me."
+
+And Achilles answered, "All that Zeus promised thee for me he hath
+fulfilled. But what profit have I, for my friend Patroclus is dead, and
+Hector has the arms which I gave him to wear. And as for me, I care not to
+live, except I can avenge me upon him."
+
+Then said Thetis, "Nay, my son, speak not thus. For when Hector dieth, thy
+doom also is near."
+
+And Achilles spake in great wrath: "Would that I might die this hour,
+seeing that I could not help my friend, but am a burden on the earth,--I,
+who am better in battle than all the Greeks besides. Cursed be the wrath
+that sets men to strive the one with the other, even as it set me to
+strive with King Agamemnon! But let the past be past. And as for my
+fate--let it come when it may, so that I first avenge myself on Hector.
+Wherefore, seek not to keep me back from the battle."
+
+Then Thetis said, "Be it so; only thou canst not go without thy arms which
+Hector hath. But to-morrow will I go to Vulcan, that he may furnish thee
+anew."
+
+But while they talked the men of Troy pressed the Greeks more and more,
+and the two heroes, Ajax the Greater and Ajax the Less, could no longer
+keep Hector back, but that he should lay hold of the body of Patroclus.
+And indeed he would have taken it, but that Zeus sent Iris to Achilles,
+who said,--
+
+"Rouse thee, son of Peleus, or Patroclus will be a prey for the dogs of
+Troy."
+
+But Achilles said, "How shall I go?--for arms have I none, nor know I
+whose I might wear. Haply I could shift with the shield of Ajax, son of
+Telamon, but he, I know, is carrying it in the front of the battle."
+
+Then answered Iris, "Go only to the trench and show thyself; so shall the
+men of Troy tremble and cease from the battle, and the Greeks shall have
+breathing-space."
+
+So he went, and Athene put her ægis about his mighty shoulders, and a
+golden halo about his head, making it shine as a flame of fire, even as
+the watch-fires shine at night from some city that is beseiged. Then went
+he to the trench; with the battle he mingled not, heeding his mother's
+commands, but he shouted aloud, and his voice was as the sound of a
+trumpet. And when the men of Troy heard, they were stricken with fear, and
+the horses backed with the chariots, and the drivers were astonished when
+they saw the flaming fire above his head which Athene had kindled. Thrice
+across the trench the great Achilles shouted, and thrice the men of Troy
+fell back. And that hour there perished twelve chiefs of fame, wounded by
+their own spears or trampled by their own steeds, so great was the terror
+among the men of Troy.
+
+Right gladly did the Greeks take Patroclus out of the press. Then they
+laid him on a bier, and carried him to the tent, Achilles walking with
+many tears by his side.
+
+But on the other side the men of Troy held an assembly. Standing they held
+it, for none dared to sit, lest Achilles should be upon them.
+
+Then spake Polydamas: "Let us not wait here for the morning. It was well
+for us to fight at the ships while Achilles yet kept his wrath against
+Agamemnon. But now it is not so, for to-morrow he will come against us in
+his anger, and many will fall before him. Wherefore, let us go back to the
+city, for high are the walls and strong the gates, and he will perish
+before he pass them."
+
+Then said Hector, "This is ill counsel, Polydamas. Shall we shut ourselves
+up in the city, where all our goods are wasted already, buying meat for
+the people? Nay, let us watch to-night, and to-morrow will we fight with
+the Greeks. And if Achilles be indeed come forth from his tent, be it so.
+I will not shun to meet him, for Mars gives the victory now to one man and
+now to another."
+
+So he spake, and all the people applauded, not knowing what the morrow
+should bring forth.
+
+Thus did it come to pass that Achilles went again into the battle, eager
+above all things to meet with Hector and to slay him.
+
+But Apollo stood by Æneas, and spake to him: "Æneas, where are now thy
+boastings that thou wouldst meet Achilles face to face?"
+
+Then Æneas answered, "Nay, I have stood up against him in the day when he
+took the town of Lyrnessus. But I fled before him, and only my nimble feet
+saved me from falling by his spear. Surely a god is ever with him, making
+his spear to fly aright."
+
+Him Apollo answered again, "Thou, too, art the son of a goddess, and thy
+mother is greater than his, for she is but a daughter of the sea. Drive
+straight at him with thy spear, and let not his threats dismay thee."
+
+Then Æneas stood out from the press to meet Achilles and Achilles said,
+"Fightest thou with me because thou hopest to reign over the men of Troy,
+or have they given thee a choice portion of ground, ploughland and
+orchard, to be thine when thou hast slain me? Thou wilt not find it easy.
+Dost thou not remember how thou fleddest before me in the day that I took
+Lyrnessus?"
+
+Then Æneas answered, "Think not to terrify me with words, son of Peleus,
+for I, too, am the son of a goddess. Let us make a trial one of the
+other."
+
+Then he cast his spear, and it struck the shield of Achilles with so
+dreadful a sound that the hero feared lest it should pierce it through,
+knowing not that the gifts of the Gods are not easy for mortal man to
+vanquish. Two folds, indeed, it pierced, that were of bronze, but in the
+gold it was stayed, and there were yet two of tin within. Then Achilles
+cast his spear. Through the shield of Æneas it passed, and though it
+wounded him not, yet was he sore dismayed, so near it came. Then Achilles
+drew his sword, and rushed on Æneas, and Æneas caught up a great stone to
+cast at him. But it was not the will of the Gods that Æneas should perish,
+seeing that he and his sons after him should rule over the men of Troy in
+the ages to come. Therefore Neptune lifted him up, and bore him over the
+ranks of men to the left of the battle, but first he drew the spear out of
+the shield, and laid it at the feet of Achilles. Much the hero marveled to
+see it, crying, "This is a great wonder that I behold with mine eyes. For
+I see my spear before me, but the man whom I sought to slay, I see not. Of
+a truth Æneas spake truth, saying that he was dear to the immortal Gods."
+
+Then he rushed into the battle, slaying as he went. And Hector would have
+met him, but Apollo stood by him and said, "Fight not with Achilles, lest
+he slay thee." Therefore he went back among the men of Troy. Many did
+Achilles slay, and among them Polydorus, son of Priam, who, because he was
+the youngest and very dear, his father suffered not to go to the battle.
+Yet he went, in his folly, and being very swift of foot, he trusted in his
+speed, running through the foremost of the fighters. But as he ran
+Achilles smote him and wounded him to the death. When Hector saw it, he
+could not bear any more to stand apart. Therefore he rushed at Achilles,
+and Achilles rejoiced to see him, saying, "This is the man who slew my
+comrade;" and to Hector he cried, "Come hither, and taste of death."
+
+And Hector made answer, "Son of Peleus, seek not to make me afraid with
+words. For though I be weaker than thou, yet victory lieth on the knees of
+the Gods, and I, too, bear a spear."
+
+Then he cast his spear, but Athene turned it aside with her breath, and
+laid it again at his feet. And when Achilles leapt upon Hector with a
+shout, Apollo snatched him away. Three times did Achilles leap upon him,
+and three times he struck only the mist. But the fourth time he cried with
+a terrible voice, "Dog, thou hast escaped from death, Apollo helping thee;
+but I shall meet thee again, and make an end of thee."
+
+Then Achilles turned to the others, and slew multitudes of them, so that
+they fled, some across the plain, and some to the river, the eddying
+Xanthus. And these leapt into the water as locusts leap into a river when
+a fire which men light drives them from the fields. And all the river was
+full of horses and men. Then Achilles leapt into the stream, leaving his
+spear on the bank, resting on the tamarisk trees. Only his sword had he,
+and with this he slew many; and they were as fishes which fly from some
+great dolphin in the sea. In all the bays of a harbor they hide
+themselves, for the great beast devours them apace. So did the Trojans
+hide themselves under the banks of the river. And when Achilles was weary
+of slaying, he took twelve alive, whom he would slay on the tomb of
+Patroclus.
+
+Yet there was one man who dared to stand up against him, while the others
+fled. This was Asteropæus, who was the grandson of the river-god Axius,
+and led the men of Pæonia. And Achilles wondered to see him, and said,
+"Who art thou that standest against me?"
+
+And he said, "I am the grandson of the river-god Axius, fairest of all the
+streams on the earth, and I lead the men of Pæonia."
+
+And as he spake he cast two spears, one with each hand, for he could use
+either alike; and the one struck the shield, nor pierced it through, for
+the gold staved it, and the other grazed the right hand of Achilles so
+that the blood spurted forth. Then did Achilles cast his spear, but missed
+his aim, and the great spear stood fast in the bank. And thrice Asteropæus
+strove to draw it forth. Thrice he strove in vain, and the fourth time he
+strove to break the spear. But as he strove Achilles smote him that he
+died. Yet had he some glory, for that he wounded the great Achilles.
+
+When the River saw that Asteropæus was dead, and that Achilles was slaying
+many of the Pæonians--for these were troubled, their chief being dead--he
+took upon him the shape of a man, and spake to Achilles, saying, "Truly,
+Achilles, thou excellest all other men in might and deeds of blood, for
+the Gods themselves protect thee. It may be that Zeus hath given thee to
+slay all the sons of Troy; nevertheless, depart from me and work thy will
+upon the plain; for my stream is choked with the multitude of corpses, nor
+can I pass to the sea. Do thou, therefore, cease from troubling me."
+
+To him Achilles made answer, "This shall be as thou wilt, O Scamander. But
+the Trojans I will not cease from slaying till I have driven them into
+their city and have made trial of Hector, whether I shall vanquish him or
+he shall vanquish me."
+
+And as he spake he sped on, pursuing the Trojans. Then the River cried to
+Apollo, "Little thou doest the will of thy father, thou of the Silver Bow,
+who bade thee stand by the men of Troy and help them till darkness should
+cover the land." And he rushed on with a great wave, stirring together all
+his streams. The dead bodies he threw upon the shore, roaring as a bull
+roareth; and them that lived he hid in the depths of his eddies. And all
+about Achilles rose up the flood, beating full upon his shield, so that he
+could not stand fast upon his feet. Then Achilles laid hold of a
+lime-tree, fair and tall, that grew upon the bank; but the tree brake
+therefrom with all its roots, and tare down the bank, and lay across the
+River, staying its flood, for it had many branches. Thereupon Achilles
+leapt out of the water and sped across the plain, being sore afraid. But
+the River ceased not from pursuing him, that he might stay him from
+slaughter and save the sons of Troy. So far as a man may throw a spear, so
+far did Achilles leap; strong as an eagle was he, the hunting-bird that is
+the strongest and swiftest of all birds. And still as he fled the River
+pursued after him with a great roar. Even as it is with a man that would
+water his garden, bringing a stream from a fountain; he has a pick-axe in
+his hand to break down all that would stay the water; and the stream runs
+on, rolling the pebbles along with it, and overtakes him that guides it.
+Even so did the River overtake Achilles, for all that he was swift of
+foot, for indeed the Gods are mightier than men. And when Achilles would
+have stood against the River, seeking to know whether indeed all the Gods
+were against him, then the great wave smote upon his shoulders; and when
+he leapt into the air, it bowed his knees beneath him and devoured the
+ground from under his feet. Then Achilles looked up to heaven and groaned,
+crying out, "O Zeus, will none of the Gods pity me, and save me from the
+River? I care not what else may befall me. Truly my mother hath deceived
+me, saying that I should perish under the walls of Troy by the arrows of
+Apollo. Surely it had been better that Hector should slay me, for he is
+the bravest of the men of Troy, but now I shall perish miserably in the
+River, as some herd-boy perisheth whom a torrent sweeps away in a storm."
+
+So he spake; but Poseidon and Athene stood by him, having taken upon them
+the shape of men, and took him by the hand and strengthened him with
+comforting words, for Poseidon spake, saying, "Son of Peleus, tremble not,
+neither be afraid. It is not thy fate to be mastered by the River. He
+shall soon cease from troubling thee. And do thou heed what we say. Stay
+not thy hands from the battle, till thou shalt have driven all the sons of
+Troy that escape thee within the walls of the city. And when thou shalt
+have slain Hector, go back to the ships; for this day is the day of thy
+glory."
+
+Then the two departed from him. Now all the plain was covered with water,
+wherein floated much fair armor and many dead bodies. But Achilles went on
+even against the stream, nor could the River hold him back; for Athene put
+great might into his heart. Yet did not Scamander cease from his wrath,
+but lifted his waves yet higher, and cried aloud to Simois, "Dear brother,
+let us two stay the fury of this man, or else of a surety he will destroy
+the city of Priam. Come now, fill all thy streams and rouse thy torrents
+against him, and lift up against him a mighty wave with a great concourse
+of tree-trunks and stones, that we may stay this wild man from his
+fighting. Very high thoughts hath he, even as a god; yet shall neither his
+might nor his beauty nor his fair form profit him; for they shall be
+covered with much mud; and over himself will I heap abundance of sand
+beyond all counting. Neither shall the Greeks be able to gather his bones
+together, with such a heap will I hide them. Surely a great tomb will I
+build for him; nor will his people have need to make a mound over him when
+they would bury him."
+
+Then he rushed again upon Achilles, swelling high with foam and blood and
+dead bodies of men. Very dark was the wave as it rose, and was like to
+have overwhelmed the man, so that Juno greatly feared for him, lest the
+River should sweep him away. And she cried to Vulcan, her son, saying,
+"Rouse thee, Haltfoot, my son! I thought that thou wouldst have been a
+match for Scamander in battle. But come, help us, and bring much fire with
+thee; and I will call the west wind and the south wind from the sea, with
+such a storm as shall consume the sons of Troy, both them and their arms.
+And do thou burn the trees that are by the banks of Xanthus, yea, and the
+River himself. And let him not turn thee from thy purpose by fury or by
+craft; but burn till I shall bid thee cease."
+
+Then Vulcan lit a great fire. First he burned the dead bodies that lay
+upon the plain, and it dried all the plain, as the north wind in the
+autumn time dries a field, to the joy of him that tills it. After this it
+laid hold of the River. The lime-trees and the willows and the tamarisks
+it burned; also the plants that grew in the streams. And the eels and the
+fishes were sore distressed, twisting hither and thither in the water,
+being troubled by the breath of Vulcan. So the might of the River was
+subdued, and he cried aloud, "O Vulcan, no one of the Gods can match
+himself with thee. Cease now from consuming me; and Achilles may drive the
+men of Troy from their city if he will. What have I to do with the strife
+and sorrow of men?"
+
+So he spake, for all his streams were boiling--as a cauldron boils with a
+great fire beneath it, when a man would melt the fat of a great hog; nor
+could he flow any longer to the sea, so sorely did the breath of the
+Fire-god trouble him. Then he cried aloud to Juno, entreating her: "O
+Juno, why doth thy son torment me only among all? Why should I be blamed
+more than others that help the men of Troy? Verily, I will cease from
+helping them, if he also will cease. Nay, I will swear a great oath that I
+will keep no more the day of doom from the sons of Troy; no, not when all
+the city shall be consumed with fire."
+
+And Queen Juno heard him, and called to Vulcan, saying, "Cease, my son; it
+doth not beseem thee to work such damage to a god for the sake of a mortal
+man."
+
+So Vulcan quenched his fire, and the River flowed as he flowed before.
+
+
+
+
+VULCAN MAKES ARMOR FOR ACHILLES
+
+By Walter C. Perry
+
+
+On high Olympus, the Loud-thundering Zeus spake mockingly to his consort,
+Juno, and said, "At length, thou hast what thou desirest, and hast roused
+Achilles to fight against the Trojans. Surely, the long-haired Achaians
+must be thine own children, since thou lovest them so dearly!"
+
+And the ox-eyed queen replied, "Dread son of Cronos! what words are these
+which have passed the barrier of thy teeth? Even a mortal man doth what he
+can to help another; and shall not I, the chief of goddesses by birth and
+as thy wife--O thou king of the deathless Gods!--shall not _I_ avenge
+myself upon the men of Troy?"
+
+Thus these two strove with one another.
+
+Meantime, the silver-footed Thetis came to the splendid palace of Vulcan,
+bright and immortal, which shone like a star among the mansions of the
+Gods. She found him at his bellows, sweating from his mighty toil; for he
+was forging twenty tripods, to stand round the walls of his well-built
+mansion. Beneath each of them he placed wheels of gold; and they move, of
+themselves, into the assembly of the Gods, and so return.
+
+While he was thus employed, the silver-footed Thetis approached the house.
+And Charis, of the shining veil, the wedded wife of Vulcan (whose first
+wife had been Aphrodite or Venus), came forth to meet her, and took her by
+the hand, and called her by her name. "O long-robed Thetis! dear and
+honored as thou art! not oft, I ween, dost thou come to visit us. But
+follow me, that I may show thee due hospitality."
+
+Then she led the way in, and seated Thetis on a lofty chair with silver
+studs, beautiful, and cunningly wrought, and placed a footstool beneath
+her shining feet. And she called to Vulcan, the divine artificer, "Come
+hither, Vulcan! for the silver-footed Thetis seeketh thine aid."
+
+And the glorious lame god answered, "Revered and dear to me is she; for
+she saved me, when my shameless mother threw me down from heaven; and I
+should have suffered dire anguish had not Eurynome, daughter of Oceanos,
+and Thetis taken me to their hearts and comforted me. Nine years I spent
+with them, and fashioned all kinds of curious work of bronze--clasps, and
+spiral bracelets, and ear-rings, like the calyx of a flower, and
+necklaces--in the hollow grot, while all around me roared the streams of
+great Oceanus. And none of the other Gods knew where I was, but only
+Thetis and Eurynome. And now that she is come, a welcome guest, to my
+house, I will repay the fair-haired nymph in every way, for saving my
+life."
+
+So saying, he raised his mighty bulk from the block, and, limping on his
+slender legs, moved quickly; and he put away his bellows, and placed his
+tools in a silver chest, and sponged his face and hands, his strong neck
+and hairy breast; then he donned his tunic, and leaning on a staff, he
+limped along. And golden handmaids, in the form of living maidens, came to
+help their lord; these have intelligent minds, and human voices, and skill
+from the deathless Gods. And he went with halting gait, and seated himself
+on a shining throne, near the silver-footed Thetis; and he took her by the
+hand, and said to her, "O dear and honored Thetis of the flowing robes!
+why comest thou to our house, thou, an infrequent guest?"
+
+Then the silver-footed goddess answered him, "O Vulcan! hath Zeus, the son
+of Cronos, laid on any other goddess in Olympus such grievous woes as on
+_me_, unhappy that I am? He chose out me, from all the sea nymphs, to
+endure marriage with a mortal. A son I bare, the greatest of heroes. I
+brought him up, like a young tree in a fruitful soil, and sent him in a
+high-peaked ship to war against the Trojans; but never again will he
+return to me, in the halls of his aged father Peleus. And even while I yet
+see him, and he beholdeth the light of the sun, he is full of grief, and I
+cannot help him. For King Agamemnon took away his prize, the dearly loved
+maiden Briseïs. For the loss of her, he pined and wept; nor would he allow
+his Myrmidons to join in the battle, though the Achaians were hard pressed
+and driven to their ships. The chiefs of the Argives came to him with
+prayers and tears, and many costly gifts. And though he refused himself to
+rescue them, he suffered Patroclus to put on his divine armor, and sent
+many of the Myrmidons with him to the battle. And the son of Menoetius
+performed high deeds of valor, and went near to sack the city. But the
+Far-Darting Apollo and glorious Hector slew him, and gained immortal
+glory. And now, I come as a suppliant, to clasp thy knees, and to pray
+that thou wouldst give my short-lived son a shield, a helmet, a
+breastplate, and goodly greaves."
+
+Then the lame god, the famous artificer, replied, "Be of good cheer, O
+silver-footed Queen, and be not troubled about these things! Would that I
+could as surely save him from mournful death, as that I will supply him
+with goodly armor, a wonder to behold!"
+
+And he returned to his workshop, and bade his bellows--there were twenty
+of them--blow the blasts on the fire and prepare the earthen moulds; and
+as Vulcan willed, the work was done. He melted the tough bronze and tin,
+the gold and silver, with the fire; and placed an anvil and took a strong
+hammer in one hand, and tongs in the other, and with these he worked.
+
+First, he made the shield, broad and strong, with many decorations. Around
+it he placed a triple bright rim, and a silver strap depended from it. The
+shield itself was formed with five zones, in each of which he fashioned
+many curious works.
+
+Therein he fashioned the Earth, the Sky, the Sea, the unwearied Sun, the
+Moon at the full, and all the bright luminaries which crown the azure
+firmament: the Pleiades, daughters of Atlas, the Hyades, the mighty Orion,
+and, turning about to watch Orion, the Bear, which alone of all the stars
+bathes not in the streams of Oceanus.
+
+Also, on the shield, he sculptured two fair cities of articulate-speaking
+men. In one of these were wedding-festivals; and, with a blaze of
+torchlight, the brides were conducted from their chambers along the
+streets; while the hymeneal song was loud, and the youths whirled round
+and round in the giddy dance, to the music of flute and harp; while the
+women stood at their doors, watching and admiring. In that city he also
+fashioned an assembly of the people, in which a contention had arisen,
+about the blood-fine or "were-geld" for a murdered man; the people, with
+noisy shouts, cheered, on either side; but the heralds stilled the tumult,
+holding their staves of office in their hands; and then the judges rose
+up, to pronounce their verdict.
+
+Around the other city lay two armies besieging it, with flashing arms. Two
+plans were considered: either to destroy the town, or to divide the wealth
+thereof with its citizens. But the beleaguered garrison had not yet
+yielded, but armed themselves and set an ambush. Their dear wives and
+children, and the old men, stood on the walls to defend it, while the
+strong men went forth to fight. And they were led by Mars and Athene,
+whose forms were fashioned in gold, with golden raiment; and, as gods, he
+made them larger and more beautiful than the mortals around them.
+
+The men in ambush set upon the herdsmen who were driving oxen to the
+watering-place of the army, and making music with their pipes. They
+carried off the cattle; but the besiegers, as they sat before the rostra,
+heard the lowing of the oxen and drove up, with their high-stepping
+horses, to repel the raid. Then a fierce conflict arose; and in it were
+seen Strife, and Uproar, and Dire Fate; like living warriors, they rushed
+on one another, and haled away the dead whom they slew.
+
+In another part of the shield, he represented a rich, deep-soiled, fallow
+field, thrice ploughed; and when the ploughers came to the end of the
+furrow, a man would give to each of them a goblet of sweet wine. And the
+ploughed ground grew black behind them, like real soil, although it was of
+gold. Then there, too, was a rich field of corn, where reapers were
+cutting the harvest with their sickles and it fell in rows; and others
+were binding it with bands of straw; while the lord looked on, and was
+glad at heart. And under a spreading oak a feast was being made ready for
+the reapers.
+
+And he fashioned therein a vineyard, rich with clusters of black grapes,
+which the youths and maidens, in their glee, carried in baskets; while a
+boy, in their midst, made sweet music on a clear-sounding harp; and he
+sang the "Song of Linos," and the rest kept time with their feet.
+
+And there was a herd of straight-horned oxen, all of gold and tin,
+hurrying to the pasture beside the gently murmuring stream and the waving
+rushes. Four herdsmen, of gold, followed them, and nine fleet dogs. And
+two terrible lions seized a bellowing bull. The herdsmen followed, but
+they could not set on their dogs to bite the lions, for the dogs shrank
+back, barking and whining, and turned away.
+
+And therein the glorious divine artist placed a wide pasture full of white
+sheep, with folds and tents and huts. And he made a dancing-ground, like
+that which Dædalus wrought at Gnosos for lovely fair-haired Ariadne.
+There, lusty youths in shining tunics glistening with oil, danced with
+fair maidens of costly wooing. The maidens had wreaths of flowers upon
+their heads; and the youths wore daggers banging from silver sword-belts.
+They whirled round, with lightly tripping feet, swift as the potter's
+wheel, holding each other by the wrist; and then they ran, in lines, to
+meet each other. A crowd of friends stood round and joyfully watched the
+dance, and a divine minstrel made sweet music with his harp, while a pair
+of tumblers diverted the crowd.
+
+Lastly, around the margin of the shield, Vulcan made the stream of the
+mighty river Oceanus, which encircleth the earth.
+
+And when he had finished this strong and splendid shield, he wrought the
+breastplate, glowing with blazing fire; and he made a heavy helmet for the
+head, beautiful, and adorned with curious art; upon it was a crest of
+gold. But the goodly greaves he made of flexible tin. When he had
+completed the whole suit of glorious armor, he laid it before the
+silver-footed Thetis, the mother of Achilles; and she darted, swift as a
+hawk, from snowy Olympus, bearing the brightly glittering arms to her dear
+son.
+
+
+
+
+THE SLAYING OF HECTOR
+
+By Walter C. Perry
+
+
+Meantime, Achilles went on slaughtering the Trojans; and the aged Priam
+stood on the sacred tower, and saw the son of Peleus driving the Trojans
+before him. And he shouted aloud to the brave warders of the gates, "Open
+the gates, that the fugitives may enter!" And the Far-Darter went to the
+front, to save the Trojans who were fleeing to the sheltering walls, with
+Achilles behind them in hot pursuit.
+
+Then would the Achaians have stormed the lofty gates of Troy, had not
+Phoebus Apollo roused Agenor, a brave and noble prince, son of Antenor.
+Apollo stood by this man's side, leaning on an oak, and shrouded in mist,
+and put courage into his heart, that he might ward off fate from the
+Trojans. And when Agenor saw Achilles, he stood irresolute, and said to
+his mighty heart, "If I too flee before Achilles, he will catch me and
+slay me as a coward. Or shall I fly by another way, and hide me in the
+spurs of Ida? How, then, if I go forth to meet him? for his flesh, too,
+may surely be pierced by the keen bronze, and he has but one life, like
+other mortals."
+
+And his heart grew strong within him, to stay and fight. And he cried out
+aloud to Achilles, "Surely, thou thinkest this very day to sack the proud
+city of Troy? Fool! many terrible things will happen before _that_; for
+there are many of us--many and brave--to protect our dear parents and
+wives and little children, and to guard holy Ilium. Thou, too, perhaps,
+mighty as thou art, mayest here meet death."
+
+He spake and hurled a spear at Achilles with his strong hand. And it smote
+him below the knee, and the tin-wrought greave rang loudly; but the stout
+spear bounded off, for it could not pierce the work of Vulcan.
+
+Then Achilles rushed on godlike Agenor; but him Apollo caught in a mist,
+and carried him safely out of the fray. And the god took the form of
+Agenor, and ran a little way before Achilles, towards the deep-flowing
+Scamander. And while Apollo thus deceived the mighty son of Peleus, the
+routed Trojans ran, well pleased, to their stronghold, and the great city
+was filled with their multitude.
+
+Then as he ran before Achilles, the mighty Far-Darter addressed him, and
+spake: "O son of Peleus! why dost thou, being a mortal man, pursue _me_
+with thy swift feet, who am a deathless god?" Then, in wrath, the son of
+Peleus answered him: "Thou hast blinded me, most mischievous of all the
+Gods! and lured me away from the walls; else would many a Trojan have
+fallen, or ever he had reached the city." He then went towards the city,
+with a proud heart, like a war-horse victorious in a chariot race; and the
+aged Priam saw him, blazing like the star in autumn brightest of all,
+which men call "Orion's Dog," that bringeth fever upon wretched mortals.
+
+And the old man cried aloud, in his agony, and beat his head with his
+fists, and called in a piercing voice to his dear son Hector. For the
+brave hero, when all the others had escaped into the city, remained alone
+at the Scæan Gate eager to fight with Achilles. And his wretched father
+stretched forth his withered hands, and pleaded piteously to his son:--
+
+"Hector! dear Hector! do not meet this terrible man alone, for he is far
+mightier than thou, and knoweth no pity. Already hath he robbed me of many
+a brave son; and now I no longer see two of my children, Lycaon and the
+goodly Polydorus, whom Laothoë, princess among women, bare to me. But the
+death of others will cause us briefer grief, if thou, dear Hector, art not
+slain. Come, then, within the walls, and save the men and women of Troy!
+And have pity on me, too, to whom the son of Cronos hath allotted a
+terrible doom in my old age--to see my brave sons dragged away, and my
+fair daughters carried off, as captives, by the cruel hands of the
+Achaians. Last of all, I too shall be torn, on my own threshold, by
+ravenous dogs--even the dogs which I myself have reared with food from my
+table, to guard my house. They will tear my flesh and drink my blood! It
+may well become a _young_ man to lie slain on the field, for he is highly
+honored in his death; but when dogs defile an old man's head and beard,
+this is the most lamentable thing that befalleth wretched mortals."
+
+And the old man tore his hair in his sore agony; but even he prevailed not
+with the soul of Hector. And then his dear mother, Hecuba, took up the
+plaint and spake through her piteous tears.
+
+"Hector! my child! have respect to the mother who bare thee and nursed
+thee on this bosom! Pity _me_! and fight the foe from this side of the
+wall! For if he slay thee, not on a funeral bed shall I, and thy dear
+wife, won by so many gifts, deplore thee; but the swift dogs shall devour
+thee, far away from us, by the black ships of the Argives."
+
+Thus wailed they over their glorious son, beseeching him; but they could
+not prevail, for honor held him fast. Meanwhile, Achilles drew nigh, in
+strength like a giant; but Hector awaited him undismayed, leaning his
+shield against the tower. And he communed thus with his brave soul: "Alas,
+if I go through the gates, Polydamas will justly blame me; for he gave me
+good advice--that I should lead the host into the city on that fatal
+night, when the noble Achilles returned to the war. And I would not
+hearken to him, although he counseled well. And now that I have brought
+this evil on the city by my folly, I am ashamed to appear before the men,
+and the proud dames with trailing robes, lest some one should taunt me and
+say, 'Hector in his pride hath ruined us.' Better then would it be for me
+to meet Achilles, and either slay him or fall with glory before the city.
+Or how would it be if I should lay aside all my arms, and go to meet the
+son of Peleus, and offer to restore Argive Helen and all her possessions
+to Menelaus and Agamemnon, and to divide the wealth of Troy with the
+Achaians? But no! I might come to him unarmed, but he is merciless, and
+would slay me on the spot, as if I were a woman. But why do I hesitate?
+This is no time to hold dalliance with him, from oak or rock, like youths
+and maidens. Better to fight at once, and see to whom Olympian Zeus will
+give the victory!"
+
+While he thus pondered, Achilles, peer of Mars, came on, poising his
+terrible spear of Pelian ash; and his divine armor, the work of a god,
+blazed like fire or the rising sun. And when Hector saw him he was seized
+with panic, and he fled from the gates in terror.
+
+But Achilles, swift of foot, rushed after him. As a falcon, swiftest of
+all birds, swoops upon the trembling dove, and takes no heed of her
+piteous screaming, so Achilles flew straight at Hector. And pursuer and
+pursued passed by the guard and the wild fig-tree, the sport of the winds,
+and came to the two springs of water, which feed the deep-whirling
+Scamander. Brave was he who fled, but mightier far was he who chased him
+on his swift feet; and they were racing not for some prize in the games,
+but for the life of the noble horse-taming Hector. And like horses in the
+race for a great prize--a tripod or a woman--so the twain ran thrice round
+the sacred city of King Priam; and all the Gods were looking on.
+
+And Zeus, the great father of Gods and men, spake first: "Alas! I see a
+man whom I love above all others chased round the walls of Troy. Come now,
+let us take some counsel, whether to save him or leave him to be slain by
+the son of Peleus."
+
+And the fierce-eyed Athene answered him, "O thou great Lord of the
+Lightning, Cloud-girt King! what a word hast thou spoken! Wouldst thou
+indeed save a mortal long ago doomed by Fate? Do as thou pleasest; but we
+Gods shall not praise thee."
+
+And her great father, the Cloud-Gatherer, answered with gentle words, "O
+Trito-born, my dear child! be of good cheer. I spake not in earnest, and
+would fain please thee. Do as seemeth good to thee." And Athene, full of
+joy, sped down from high Olympus.
+
+Achilles, with all speed, was chasing the noble Hector, as the dogs hunt
+the fawn of a deer through dale and woodland; and though the fawn hideth
+behind a bush, they follow by the scent until they find it; so Hector
+could not escape from the swift-footed son of Peleus. Often did Hector
+rush along the strong walls, in hopes that the Trojans within might succor
+him from above with their arrows. But Achilles gained on him and turned
+him into the plain again.
+
+And so, though Hector failed in his flight and Achilles in his pursuit,
+yet might Hector have escaped his doom, had not this been the last time
+that Apollo the Far-Darter came nigh to him, to nerve his heart and his
+swift knees. Achilles had made a sign to his comrades, and forbade them to
+launch their darts against the noble Hector, lest one of them should gain
+high honor, and he come only second. And when they had, for the fourth
+time, run round the walls and reached the springs, then Zeus, the Great
+Father, raised his golden scales, and placed in each the lot of gloomy
+death,--one for Hector, and the other for Achilles. And he held the scales
+by the middle, and poised them; and the noble Hector's scale sank down to
+Hades; and Phoebus Apollo left him.
+
+But the fierce-eyed goddess Athene came near to Achilles and spake winged
+words: "Now, at last, O godlike Achilles! shall we twain carry off great
+glory to the Achaian ships! He cannot now escape us, though the Far-Darter
+should grovel at the feet of Zeus with fruitless prayers. But do thou stay
+and recover thy breath; and I will go and persuade Hector to stand up
+against thee in fight." And he gladly obeyed her voice, and stood leaning
+on his ashen spear.
+
+And she, Athene, came to noble Hector in the likeness of his brother
+Deïphobus, and spake to him: "Dear Lord and elder Brother, surely the
+fleet-footed son of Peleus hath done great violence against thee, chasing
+thee round the walls! But let us twain make a stand against him!"
+
+And the great Hector answered, "Deïphobus, thou wert ever the dearest of
+my brothers; now I honor thee still more, because thou hast dared to come
+out from behind the walls to aid me, while others skulk within."
+
+The fierce-eyed goddess, as Deïphobus, spake again: "It is true that my
+father, and my queenly mother, and all my comrades, besought me to stay
+with them, so greatly do they fear the mighty son of Peleus; but my heart
+was sore for thee, dear brother! But let us fight amain, and see whether
+he will carry our spoils to his ships, or fall beneath thy spear!" And so,
+with her cunning words, she led him on to death.
+
+And when he and Achilles were come near to each other, the noble Hector
+spake: "O mighty Achilles, thrice did I flee before thee round the great
+city of Priam, and dared not await thy onslaught. But now I will stand up
+against thee, to slay or to be slain. But come, let us make a covenant
+with one another, and call the Gods, the best guardians of oaths, to
+witness. If Zeus grant me to take thy life, and despoil thee of thy divine
+armor, then will I give back thy body to the warlike Achaians; and do thou
+the same by me!"
+
+And Achilles, with a malignant scowl, replied, "Speak not to me of
+covenants! There is no covenant between men and lions, or between wolves
+and sheep, but only eternal war. And there can be no pledge of faith
+between us twain, until one of us hath sated the murderous Mars with his
+blood. Therefore, show thyself a good spearman and a brave man of war!
+There is no escape for thee; for Pallas Athene hath delivered thee into my
+hands."
+
+He spake, and cast his long-shafted spear at Hector. But Hector stooped,
+and the strong bronze spear flew over his head; but Athene picked it up,
+unknown to Hector, and gave it back to Achilles. Then Hector, rejoicing,
+spake to the son of Peleus: "Thou hast missed! Nor dost thou surely know
+the day of my doom, as thou pretendest. Thou shalt not plant thy spear in
+my back, as I flee before thee; but in my breast, if the Gods allow it.
+But now, in thy turn, avoid _my_ spear!" So spake he, and smote the middle
+of Achilles' shield with his long-shafted spear, but it bounded back from
+the shield. Then Hector was dismayed, for he had no second spear to throw.
+And he called aloud to his brother, Deïphobus; but no answer came, for
+_he_ was far away. Then Hector knew that he was betrayed, and that Athene
+had deceived him, in the likeness of his brother. "Now," he cried, "is
+Death come near me, and there is no way of escape! This is the will of
+Zeus and of the Far-Darter, who once were wont to succor me. But I will
+not die ingloriously, but yet perform some notable deed of arms."
+
+He said, and, with his sharp sword, swooped down upon Achilles. But
+Achilles rushed at him, wild with fury, brandishing his spear, with evil
+intent against noble Hector, and eyed him over, to see where he might
+pierce his flesh most easily. The rest of Hector's body was protected by
+the splendid armor which he had stripped from the body of Patroclus; but
+there was one chink, between the collar-bone and the throat, through which
+Achilles thrust his spear. Yet it cut not the windpipe; and Hector was
+able to speak faint words to his insulting foe, after he had fallen to the
+ground.
+
+Achilles triumphed over him: "Ah, Hector! when thou wert stripping
+Patroclus of my goodly armor, thou caredst nothing for me, who was far
+away! I, his friend and avenger, was left among the black ships--even I, a
+mightier man than he! Thee shall the dogs and birds devour; but he shall
+have honorable burial."
+
+Then, with his last breath, the noble Hector of the bright helm addressed
+his pitiless foe: "Achilles! I pray thee, by thy soul, and by thy parents'
+heads, let not Achaian dogs devour me by the ships! but accept great store
+of gold and bronze from my father and my queenly mother, and restore my
+body to them, that the Trojans may deck my funeral pyre with all due
+honor!"
+
+And Achilles, with a grim scowl, replied, "Clasp not my knees, vile dog!
+nor speak to me of parents! Such evil hast thou done me, that I could
+devour thee raw! Not for thy weight in gold would I give thee to thy
+queenly mother, to mourn over thee; but dogs and birds shall batten on thy
+flesh!"
+
+Then the dying Hector uttered his last words: "Thou iron-hearted man! now
+I know thee; nor did I think to prevail upon thee. But beware of the wrath
+of the Gods, when Paris and the Far-Darter slay thee, at the Scæan Gate,
+brave though thou art!"
+
+He spake; and Death overshadowed him; and his soul went down to Hades,
+wailing to leave beauty, youth, and vigor.
+
+And Achilles spake again to the dead Hector: "Lie thou there! And as for
+me, I will die when it seemeth good to the deathless Gods!"
+
+And the Achaians ran up, and looked with wonder at the noble stature and
+beauty of the Trojan hero. And they all inflicted wounds upon him, as he
+lay, saying, "He is easier to deal with now than when he was burning our
+ships with flames of fire."
+
+And when the son of Peleus had stripped him of his armor, he stood up, and
+spake to the Achaians:--
+
+"Great chiefs and counselors of the Argives! at last the Gods have granted
+us to slay this man, whose single arm hath wrought more evil to us than
+all the rest together. Let us now approach the city, and learn the purpose
+of the Trojans; whether they will now surrender the citadel or go on
+fighting, though great Hector is no more. But why do I thus ponder in my
+mind? Patroclus is lying unburied and unwept by the ships. Never can I
+forget him, while I live; and even in the House of Hades, I will remember
+my dearest friend. Come, then! let us raise the chant of victory, and bear
+our deadliest foe to the black ships!"
+
+Then he foully outraged the dead body of glorious Hector; slitting the
+sinews of both feet, from heel to ankle, he passed ox-hide straps through
+them, and fastened them to his chariot, leaving the goodly head to trail
+upon the ground. Then he laid the armor on the chariot; and mounting it,
+lashed his willing horses to full speed. And in the dust lay the once
+beautiful head, with its flowing hair; for Zeus had now given Hector up to
+his enemies, to be foully used in his own native land.
+
+And when his dear mother, Hecuba, saw her much-loved son dragged along,
+begrimed with dust, she tore her hair, and shrieked aloud, and tossed far
+away her glistening veil. And his father, King Priam, wailed and mourned;
+and with him all the men and women in the city, as if the beetling towers
+of Ilium were already smouldering in fire. Hardly could they keep the aged
+father from rushing through the gates; for he threw himself in the dust
+and supplicated each man by name: "O friend, forbear! and if you love me,
+let me go to the ships of the Achaians, and pray to this arrogant, this
+fearful man!" Thus wailed old Priam; and the men wailed with him. And
+Queen Hecuba led the loud lamentations of the women. "Why," she cried,
+"should I yet live, when thou, my son, my boast, my glory, art dead? the
+pride and blessing of all, both men and women of the city, who honored
+thee as a god; for in thy life thou wert an honor to them all!" Thus
+mourned his unhappy mother.
+
+But to his wife, the noble, beautiful, tender-hearted Andromache, no
+messenger had brought the fearful tidings that Hector had remained without
+the gates. All unconscious, she was sitting in the inner chamber of her
+lofty palace, weaving a purple web of double woof, and embroidering it
+with many flowers. And she was ordering her handmaids to prepare a warm
+bath for her dear husband, when he should return from the battle; poor
+child! little knowing that the fierce-eyed Athene had treacherously slain
+him, by the hand of Achilles! But when she heard shrieks and lamentations
+from the walls, she reeled, and the shuttle dropped from her hands. And
+she spake again to her fair-haired maidens: "Surely, that was the cry of
+Hector's noble mother! Some terrible thing must have befallen my godlike
+husband! Come, then, follow me, that I may learn what has happened; I
+greatly fear that he has been cut off from the city by Achilles; for he
+would never retreat among the throng, or yield to any man, in his high
+courage."
+
+And she rushed, all frantic, through the house, followed by her maidens,
+and came to the walls, and saw Hector dragged through the dust, towards
+the black ships of the Achaians. Then darkness shrouded her fair eyes, and
+she fell backwards in a swoon. And when roused, she tore from her head the
+net, the fillet, and the nuptial veil which golden Venus had given her,
+when noble Hector of the shining helm led her forth, from King Eëtion's
+palace, as his bride. And the sisters-in-law of her dear husband gathered
+round her, and raised her from the ground, all distracted as she was and
+nigh unto death. When she had recovered from her swoon, she sobbed and
+wailed, crying, "O Hector! to the same evil fate were we twain born, thou
+in Troy, and I in Thebes, where my great father, Eëtion, reared me as a
+little child. Would that I had never been born, since thou leavest me a
+hapless widow! And our son, thine and mine, ill-fated one! is but a little
+child; and thou canst no more profit him, nor he be a joy to thee, since
+thou art dead! A helpless orphan, he is cut off from his playmates; and if
+he pluck the robe of his father's friends, one may, in pity, just hold the
+cup to his lips, but give him not to satisfy his hunger and his thirst;
+while other children, whose parents still live, will drive him from their
+feast, with taunts and blows, saying, 'Away with thee! thou hast no father
+at our table!' Then will he come back to me, his lonely mother; he, who so
+lately sat on his father's knee, and fed on the choicest of food! and when
+sleep fell upon him, tired with his childish play, he nestled in a soft
+bed in his nurse's arms. But now that his father is no more, he shall
+suffer untold griefs, even he whom the Trojans called 'Astyanax,' king of
+the city, because thou, O my beloved lord! wert the sole defense and glory
+of their lofty walls." Thus wailed the fair Andromache; and the women
+moaned around her.
+
+
+
+
+THE FUNERAL GAMES IN HONOR OF PATROCLUS
+
+By Walter C. Perry
+
+
+The noble Achilles could not do enough in honor of his lost friend,
+Patroclus, and he had determined to hold games, of every kind, in which
+the mail-clad Achaians might compete for prizes; and to this end he had
+brought goodly treasures from his ships,--tripods, and caldrons, horses,
+mules, and oxen, well-girdled women, and hoary iron. The first and most
+important contest was a chariot race, for which he offered a woman skilled
+in needlework, and a two-handled tripod, holding two-and-twenty
+measures--these, for the best man of all; the second prize was a mare, six
+years old, with a mule foal; the third prize was a fair new caldron, of
+four measures; the fourth was two talents of bright gold; the fifth was a
+two-handled vase, untarnished by the fire.
+
+And Achilles addressed the chiefs, and said, "If the race were in honor of
+some other warrior, then should I enter the lists, and bear away the
+prize; for ye know that my horses are immortal, and by far the best;
+Neptune, the Earth-Girdler, gave them to my father, and he to me. But I
+and they will stand aside; for they have lost a noble and gentle driver,
+who oft-times washed them with clear water and then poured soft oil upon
+their goodly manes! And now they stand with sorrow in their breasts, and
+their full long manes are trailing on the earth. But now, let whoever of
+you trusteth in his horses and his strong chariot take his place in the
+lists!"
+
+And first came forward Eumelus, son of Admetus; next came the mighty
+Diomedes, with the famous horses of Tros, which he had taken from Æneas;
+then arose Menelaus,--the fair-haired, godlike Menelaus, with Aithe,
+Agamemnon's mare, and his own horse, Podargus; and the fourth was
+Antilochus, son of the wise Nestor, who yoked swift Pylian horses to his
+chariot.
+
+His father Nestor, son of Neleus, stood by Antilochus, and gave him good
+advice, although he himself was wise. "Antilochus, my son," he said,
+"though thou art young, yet Zeus and Neptune have loved thee, and made
+thee a perfect horseman; and there is little need for me to teach thee.
+But the other horses are better than thine; and I fear that much trouble
+is in store for thee. But skill and cunning are better than force, and so
+one charioteer defeats another. Look well to the posts at either end, and
+run closely by them. Now I will tell thee another thing. Some six feet
+above the ground, there stands the withered stump of a tree, with two
+white stones, on either side; this is the mark fixed by the swift-footed
+Achilles. Do thou drive thy horses hard by this, and lean slightly to the
+left, and lash the off horse and give him rein; but let the near horse so
+closely skirt the post that the nave of the wheel of thy car may seem to
+graze the stone; but beware of touching it!"
+
+Next, Meriones made ready his chariot; and so did the others. Then they
+mounted their cars, and drew lots for their places. Great Diomedes drew
+the best. Achilles ranged them all side by side, and pointed to the
+turning-post, in the plain, near which he posted old Phoenix, as umpire.
+
+Then, at a signal from the son of Peleus, they raised their long whips,
+together, standing upright, and lashed their horses, and encouraged them
+by hand and voice. And the chariots now ran evenly on the ground, and now
+bounded high in air. But when they entered the last part of the course,
+driving towards the sea, the fleet mares of Eumelus, grandson of Pheres,
+rushed to the front; and next came Diomedes, with the stallions of Tros,
+so near that they seemed to be mounting the car of Eumelus, and with their
+hot breath covered his back and shoulders. Then Tydides would either have
+gained a victory, or it would have been at least a dead heat; but Phoebus
+Apollo was angry with him, and dashed his shining whip from his hand. He
+shed hot tears of fury, when he saw that the mares of Eumelus were still
+at their utmost speed, while his own horses slackened their speed, no
+longer feeling the lash. But, luckily for Diomedes, his constant friend
+Athene marked the trick of Apollo; and, speeding after Diomedes, she gave
+him back the scourge, and put fresh mettle into his steeds. She then
+pursued Eumelus, and brake the yoke of his horses; they bolted from the
+course, and he was hurled off his car into the dust. Meanwhile, Tydides
+rushed on before the others, for Athene was shedding glory on his head.
+
+Next to him ran the horses of Menelaus, son of Atreus. Then came
+Antilochus, son of Nestor, who spake thus to his father's Pylian horses:
+"I do not ask you to contend with Tydides, whose horses Athene herself is
+speeding; but I pray you to catch up the chariot of Atrides; and be not
+beaten by Aithe, lest she, who is only a mare, pour ridicule upon you."
+Thus spake Antilochus, and his horses were afraid, and sped on more
+swiftly. But Antilochus noted a narrow gully, where the rain had collected
+and had carried away a part of the course. There Menelaus was driving,
+when Antilochus turned his horses out of the way, and followed him at one
+side. Then Menelaus, fearing a collision, shouted loudly to the son of
+Nestor: "Antilochus, hold in thy horses! and drive not so recklessly!
+close ahead there is a wider space, where we can pass one another!" But
+Antilochus, as if he heard him not, drove on more madly than ever and
+plied the lash; and the golden-haired son of Atreus called again to him,
+reproving him: "Antilochus, there is no man more spiteful than thou; away
+with thee! wrongly have we called thee _wise_!" Then he called on his
+horses, and they increased their speed, fearing the anger of their lord,
+and quickly overtook the others.
+
+Now the Argive chiefs sat together, watching the race as the chariots flew
+along the course. The first to see them coming was Idomeneus, the Cretan
+prince, the son of Deucalion; he was sitting apart from the rest on the
+highest place, and he could distinguish the voices of the drivers. He
+noticed a chestnut horse, with a white star on his forehead, round like
+the full moon; and he stood up and spake: "Friends and Counselors of the
+Argives! can ye see the horses as I do? To me, there appeareth a new
+chariot and horses; and the mares which led at the start I can no longer
+see."
+
+Then the son of Oïleus, Ajax, rebuked him in boorish fashion: "Idomeneus,
+why chatterest thou before the time? Thou art not one of the youngest, nor
+are thine eyes of the sharpest. The same mares of Eumelus are still
+leading, and he is standing up in the chariot."
+
+And the great chief, Idomeneus, answered in great wrath, "Ajax, ever ready
+to abuse, inconsiderate slanderer! thou art in all respects inferior to
+the other Argives, for thy mind is rude."
+
+Thus spoke the Cretan hero. And the son of Oïleus rose again, to reply
+with scornful words; but Achilles himself stood forward and said, "No
+longer, Idomeneus and Ajax, bandy insulting words with one another; for it
+is not meet! Sit ye still, and watch; and soon will ye know which horses
+are leading." He spake; and straightway Tydides came driving up in his
+fair chariot, overlaid with gold and tin, which ran lightly behind the
+horses, and scarcely left a trace in the fine dust of the plain. Checking
+his horses in the middle of the crowd, he leapt to the ground and claimed
+the splendid prize; and the gallant Sthenelus made no delay, but gave to
+his victorious comrade the woman and the tripod to bear away.
+
+Next to Diomedes came the son of Nestor, Antilochus, who had passed by
+Menelaus by a clever stratagem, though his horses were inferior; but even
+so, Menelaus had pressed him hard, and was behind him only so far as a
+horse is from the wheel of the chariot which he draweth.
+
+But Meriones, the brave charioteer of Idomeneus, came in about the cast of
+a lance behind Menelaus; for his horses were the slowest, and he was
+himself but a sluggish driver. Last of all came Eumelus, the son of
+Admetus, dragging his broken chariot. The swift-footed Achilles, son of
+Peleus, pitied him, and spake winged words to the chiefs: "Lo! the best
+man of all comes last; but let us give him a prize--the second! And let
+Tydides bear away the first!"
+
+All the Achaians heard him, and shouted applause; and the noble Achilles
+would have given him the mare had not Antilochus, son of the wise and
+glorious Nestor, stood up in defense of his claim: "O Achilles!" he said,
+"justly shall I be wroth with thee, if thou takest away the prize which I
+have fairly won. Thou thinkest only of the unlucky chance which hath
+befallen Eumelus and his horses; but he ought to have made prayer to the
+deathless Gods, and then he would not have come in last of all. If thou
+pitiest him, there is much treasure in thy house,--gold, and bronze, and
+sheep, and handmaids, and horses. Give him, if it pleaseth thee and the
+Achaians, a still richer prize. But I will not give up the mare; for she
+is _mine_."
+
+And Achilles smiled on his comrade Antilochus, whom he dearly loved, and
+answered him, "Antilochus, I will do as thou sayest: I will give him the
+bronze cuirass, edged with shining tin, which I took from Asteropæus."
+
+But the great Menelaus arose, filled with insatiable wrath against
+Antilochus. The herald placed a sceptre in his hand, and called for
+silence. Then the godlike king made harangue, and said, "Antilochus! thou
+who wert once accounted wise--what is this that thou hast done? Thou hast
+disgraced my skill, and discomfited my horses, by thrusting thine, which
+are far worse, in front of them. Come then, great chiefs of the Argives!
+give judgment, without favor, between him and me! That no one may say
+hereafter, that ye favored me for my power and rank, I will myself set the
+issue before you; so that no one may reproach me. Stand forth, Antilochus,
+before thy chariot; and take thy whip, and lay thy hand upon thy horses,
+and swear by the great Girdler and Shaker of the Earth, that thou didst
+not, by set purpose and malice, hinder my chariot in the course!"
+
+Then Antilochus made prudent answer, "Be patient with me, King Menelaus!
+for I am younger, and thou art in all respects my better. Bear with me,
+then: and I will myself give thee the mare, my prize, rather than lose my
+place in thy heart, O thou beloved of Zeus!" Thus spake the noble-minded
+son of Nestor; and he gave the mare to Menelaus, king of men.
+
+And the heart of the son of Atreus rejoiced, as the ripe ears of corn,
+when the dew descendeth upon them, in the glistening cornfield. And he
+spake kindly to Antilochus, and said, "Lo! at once do I put away my anger;
+for of old thou wert never rash or light-minded; but now thy reason was
+overborne by the impetuosity of youth. Therefore I grant thy prayer, and
+will even give thee the mare; for I am in no wise covetous or
+unforgiving."
+
+He spake, and gave the mare to Noëmon, the comrade of Antilochus, to lead
+away; but he took the bright caldron to himself. And Meriones, who came in
+fourth, took the two talents of gold. But the fifth prize, a vase with two
+handles, was not obtained; and the noble Achilles gave this to Nestor,
+and, standing by him, uttered winged words:--
+
+"Let this, O Father! be for thee an heirloom, and a memorial of Patroclus'
+funeral games--of him, whom thou wilt never see again! I give it to thee
+since thou mayest not contend in boxing, nor in wrestling, nor in throwing
+the lance, nor in the foot-race; for rueful old age weigheth heavily upon
+thee."
+
+Nestor gladly received the splendid gift, and spake: "True and fitting are
+thy words, dear friend! My limbs are no longer sound, nor do my arms move
+easily from my shoulders; and I must make way for younger men. But I
+accept thy free gift with joy, and rejoice that thou dost remember our old
+friendship."
+
+Then Pelides brought forward the prizes for the rough, fierce
+boxing-match: a six-year-old unbroken mule for the winner; and a
+two-handled goblet for the loser. Then quickly rose the famous boxer
+Epeius, and laid his hand on the stubborn mule, and boasted aloud: "Let
+who will bear away the goblet; but the mule is mine! for no one will beat
+me with his fists!" They all kept silence, and feared. Only one came
+forward, even Euryalus, the gallant son of King Mecistus. The famous
+warrior Tydides made him ready for the fight, and bade him God speed. The
+twain went into the ring, and fell to work; and terrible was the gnashing
+of their teeth, and the sweat ran down from their limbs. Epeius came on
+fiercely, and struck Euryalus on the cheek, and that was enough; for all
+his limbs were loosened. As a fish on a weedy beach, in the ripple caused
+by Boreas, leapeth high in air, so Euryalus leapt up in his anguish. But
+the generous Epeius raised him again to his feet, and his comrades led him
+away, with dragging feet and drooping head, and spitting out black blood.
+
+Next came the terrible wrestling match; and for this the glorious Achilles
+brought out two costly prizes: for the winner, a fireproof tripod, worth
+twelve oxen; and for the loser, a woman skilled in handiwork, valued at
+four oxen. And he cried aloud to the Achaians, "Stand forward all ye who
+will enter into this contest!"
+
+Then rose Telamonian Ajax and the crafty Ulysses, and faced each other.
+And they entered the ring, and grasped each other with their strong hands,
+like the rafters of a house, joined by some skillful builder to withstand
+the wind. Their backbones grated and creaked beneath the strain; the sweat
+poured down from their limbs, and bloody weals streaked their sides and
+shoulders, as they struggled for the well-wrought tripod. But neither
+could Ulysses throw the burly Ajax, nor Ajax him. And when the Achaians
+grew tired of the futile contest, Ajax spake to Ulysses: "O thou offspring
+of the Gods, Laertes' son! do thou lift me, or I will lift thee, and the
+issue will be on the lap of Zeus!"
+
+So saying, he raised Ulysses. But the Wily One did not forget his craft.
+From behind, he struck the hollow of Ajax's knee, and threw him on his
+back; and Ulysses fell upon him; and the people marveled. Then, in his
+turn, Ulysses tried to lift huge Ajax, but could not; so he thrust his
+crooked knee into the hollow of the other's; and they again both fell to
+the ground, covered with dust. When they rose for a third bout, Achilles
+restrained them. "No longer wear ye one another out, with toil and pain!
+Ye both have won and shall receive equal prizes!" And they cleansed
+themselves, and put on their doublets.
+
+Then the noble son of Peleus offered prizes for the foot-race; the first,
+a silver krater holding six measures, curiously chased by Sidonian
+artists--by far the most beautiful mixing-cup in the whole world. For the
+second he offered a stalled ox; and for the third, half a talent of gold.
+The wondrous krater Phoenicians had brought by sea, and given it to Thoas,
+the ruler of Lemnos; and Euneus, son of Jason, inherited it from Jason,
+who received it from Thoas, his father-in-law; and Euneus gave it to the
+hero Patroclus, as a ransom for Lycaon, son of Priam; this splendid goblet
+was offered to the swiftest of foot.
+
+Then three valiant heroes arose: Ajax, son of Oïleus; Ulysses, the wily
+one; and Antilochus, the best runner of the youths. Achilles ranged them
+side by side, and showed them the goal. All started at full speed; but
+Ajax soon took the lead; and Ulysses came close behind him, near as the
+shuttle to the breast of a fair-girdled woman when she is weaving,--so
+near that his breath was warm on the back of Ajax. But as they neared the
+goal, the wily Ulysses prayed to the fierce-eyed Athene, "O goddess, come
+and help my feet!" And Athene heard her favorite, and strengthened all his
+limbs. But just as they were about to pounce upon the prize, Ajax slipped
+in the blood of the slaughtered oxen, and fell; his mouth and nostrils
+were filled with dirt and gore. So the patient Ulysses took the priceless
+krater, and Ajax the fatted ox. But Ajax, holding his prize by the horn,
+and spitting the filth from his mouth, spake to the Achaians: "O fie upon
+it! it was the goddess who betrayed me; she who is ever near to Ulysses,
+as a mother to her child." And the Achaians laughed merrily, to see him in
+such a sorry plight.
+
+Antilochus, smiling, took the last prize, half a talent of gold; and he
+too spake winged words to the Argives: "My friends, ye too will agree with
+me that the deathless Gods show favor to the older men. Ajax is a little
+older than I; but Ulysses is of a former generation. It were not easy for
+any one, except Achilles, fleet of foot, to outrun _him_."
+
+Achilles was pleased at the honor done to his swiftness. "Not unrewarded,"
+he said, "shall the praise be which thou hast bestowed on me: I give thee
+another half-talent of gold." Antilochus received it gladly. Then the
+assembly was dissolved, and the Achaians dispersed, each to his own ship.
+
+
+
+
+THE WOODEN HORSE AND THE FALL OF TROY
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+Nine years the Greeks laid siege to Troy, and Troy held out against every
+device. On both sides the lives of many heroes were spent, and they were
+forced to acknowledge each other enemies of great valor.
+
+Sometimes the chief warriors fought in single combat, while the armies
+looked on, and the old men of Troy, with the women, came out to watch afar
+off from the city walls. King Priam and Queen Hecuba would come, and
+Cassandra, sad with foreknowledge of their doom, and Andromache, the
+lovely young wife of Hector, with her little son, whom the people called
+the city's king. Sometimes fair Helen came to look across the plain to the
+fellow-countrymen whom she had forsaken; and although she was the cause of
+all this war, the Trojans half forgave her when she passed by, because her
+beauty was like a spell, and warmed hard hearts as the sunshine mellows
+apples. So for nine years the Greeks plundered the neighboring towns, but
+the city Troy stood fast, and the Grecian ships waited with folded wings.
+
+In the tenth year of the war the Greeks, who could not take the city by
+force, pondered how they might take it by craft. At length, with the aid
+of Ulysses, they devised a plan.
+
+A portion of the Grecian host broke up camp and set sail as if they were
+homeward bound; but, once out of sight, they anchored their ships behind a
+neighboring island. The rest of the army then fell to work upon a great
+image of a horse. They built it of wood, fitted and carved, and with a
+door so cunningly concealed that none might notice it. When it was
+finished the horse looked like a prodigious idol; but it was hollow,
+skillfully pierced here and there, and so spacious that a band of men
+could lie hidden within and take no harm. Into this hiding-place went
+Ulysses, Menelaus, and the other chiefs, fully armed, and when the door
+was shut upon them, the rest of the Grecian army broke camp and went away.
+
+[Illustration: A GREAT IMAGE OF A HORSE. THEY BUILT IT OF WOOD, FITTED AND
+CARVED, AND WITH A DOOR SO CUNNINGLY CONCEALED THAT NONE MIGHT NOTICE IT.
+WHEN IT WAS FINISHED THE HORSE LOOKED LIKE A PRODIGIOUS IDOL, BUT IT WAS
+HOLLOW, SKILLFULLY PIERCED HERE AND THERE]
+
+Meanwhile, in Troy, the people had seen the departure of the ships, and
+the news had spread like wildfire. The great enemy had lost heart,--after
+ten years of war! Part of the army had gone,--the rest were going. Already
+the last of the ships had set sail, and the camp was deserted. The tents
+that had whitened the plain were gone like a frost before the sun. The war
+was over!
+
+The whole city went wild with joy. Like one who has been a prisoner for
+many years, it flung off all restraint, and the people rose as a single
+man to test the truth of new liberty. The gates were thrown wide, and the
+Trojans--men, women, and children--thronged over the plain and into the
+empty camp of the enemy. There stood the Wooden Horse.
+
+No one knew what it could be. Fearful at first, they gathered around it,
+as children gather around a live horse; they marveled at its wondrous
+height and girth, and were for moving it into the city as a trophy of war.
+
+At this, one man interposed,--Laocoön, a priest of Neptune. "Take heed,
+citizens," said he. "Beware of all that comes from the Greeks. Have you
+fought them for ten years without learning their devices? This is some
+piece of treachery."
+
+But there was another outcry in the crowd, and at that moment certain of
+the Trojans dragged forward a wretched man who wore the garments of a
+Greek. He seemed the sole remnant of the Grecian army, and as such they
+consented to spare his life, if he would tell them the truth.
+
+Sinon, for this was the spy's name, said that he had been left behind by
+the malice of Ulysses, and he told them that the Greeks had built the
+Wooden Horse as an offering to Athene, and that they had made it so huge
+in order to keep it from being moved out of the camp, since it was
+destined to bring triumph to its possessors.
+
+At this the joy of the Trojans was redoubled, and they set their wits to
+find out how they might soonest drag the great horse across the plain and
+into the city to insure victory. While they stood talking, two immense
+serpents rose out of the sea and made towards the camp. Some of the people
+took flight, others were transfixed with terror; but all, near and far,
+watched this new omen. Rearing their crests, the sea-serpents crossed the
+shore, swift, shining, terrible as a risen water-flood that descends upon
+a helpless little town. Straight through the crowd they swept, and seized
+the priest Laocoön where he stood, with his two sons, and wrapped them all
+round and round in fearful coils. There was no chance of escape. Father
+and sons perished together; and when the monsters had devoured the three
+men, into the sea they slipped again, leaving no trace of the horror.
+
+The terrified Trojans saw an omen in this. To their minds punishment had
+come upon Laocoön for his words against the Wooden Horse. Surely, it was
+sacred to the Gods; he had spoken blasphemy, and had perished before their
+eyes. They flung his warning to the winds. They wreathed the horse with
+garlands, amid great acclaim; and then, all lending a hand, they dragged
+it, little by little, out of the camp and into the city of Troy. With the
+close of that victorious day, they gave up every memory of danger and made
+merry after ten years of privation.
+
+That very night Sinon the spy opened the hidden door of the Wooden Horse,
+and in the darkness, Ulysses, Menelaus, and the other chiefs who had lain
+hidden there crept out and gave the signal to the Grecian army. For, under
+cover of night, those ships that had been moored behind the island had
+sailed back again, and the Greeks were come upon Troy.
+
+Not a Trojan was on guard. The whole city was at feast when the enemy rose
+in its midst, and the warning of Laocoön was fulfilled.
+
+Priam and his warriors fell by the sword, and their kingdom was plundered
+of all its fair possessions, women and children and treasure. Last of all,
+the city itself was burned to its very foundations.
+
+Homeward sailed the Greeks, taking as royal captives poor Cassandra and
+Andromache and many another Trojan. And home at last went fair Helen, the
+cause of all this sorrow, eager to be forgiven by her husband, King
+Menelaus. For she had awakened from the enchantment of Venus, and even
+before the death of Paris she had secretly longed for her home and
+kindred. Home to Sparta she came with the king after a long and stormy
+voyage, and there she lived and died the fairest of women.
+
+But the kingdom of Troy was fallen. Nothing remained of all its glory but
+the glory of its dead heroes and fair women, and the ruins of its citadel
+by the river Scamander. There even now, beneath the foundations of later
+homes that were built and burned, built and burned, in the wars of a
+thousand years after, the ruins of ancient Troy lie hidden, like mouldered
+leaves deep under the new grass. And there, to this very day, men who love
+the story are delving after the dead city as you might search for a buried
+treasure.
+
+
+
+
+THE WANDERINGS OF ULYSSES
+
+
+AN ADVENTURE WITH THE CYCLOPS
+
+By Alfred J. Church
+
+
+    [After the fall of Troy the Greeks set out for home, but many of
+    them had troubles and dangers to meet before they saw again the
+    shores of their native land. The one who suffered most was
+    Ulysses, and the following is his story of his adventure with the
+    one-eyed giant, the Cyclops.]
+
+
+The wind that bore me from Troy brought me to Ismarus, a city of the
+Ciconians. This I sacked, slaying the people that dwelt therein. Much
+spoil did we take out of the city, dividing it among the people, so that
+each man had his share. And when we had done this, I commanded my men that
+they should depart with all speed; but they, in their folly, would not
+hear me. For there was much wine to drink, and sheep and kine to slay;
+therefore they sat on the shore and feasted. Meanwhile the people of the
+city fetched others, their kinsmen that dwelt in the mountains, and were
+more in number and more valiant than they, and skillful in all manner of
+fighting. In the early morning they assembled themselves together, thick
+as the flowers and the leaves that grow in the springtime, and set the
+battle in array. Then we fought with them; while the day waxed we
+prevailed over them, and beat them back, though they were more in number
+than we; but when the sun was descending in the heavens, then the Cicones
+overcame us, and drave us to our ships. Six from each ship perished, but
+the remnant of us escaped from death.
+
+On the tenth day after this we came to the land where the lotus grows--a
+wondrous fruit of which whosoever eats cares not to see country or wife or
+children again. Now the Lotus-Eaters, for they so called the people of the
+land, were a kindly folk, and gave of the fruit to some of the sailors,
+not meaning them any harm, but thinking it to be the best that they had to
+give. These, when they had eaten, said that they would not sail any more
+over the sea; which, when I heard, I bade their comrades bind them and
+carry them, sadly complaining, to the ships.
+
+Then, the wind having abated, we took to our oars, and rowed for many days
+till we came to the country where the Cyclops dwell. Now, a mile or so
+from the shore there was an island, very fair and fertile, but no man
+dwells there or tills the soil, and in the island a harbor where a ship
+may be safe from all winds, and at the head of the harbor a stream falling
+from a rock, and whispering alders all about it. Into this the ships
+passed safely, and were hauled up on the beach, and the crews slept by
+them, waiting for the morning.
+
+When the dawn appeared, then we wandered through the island; and the
+nymphs of the land started the wild goats that my company might have food
+to eat. Thereupon we took our bows and our spears from the ships, and shot
+at the goats; and the Gods gave us plenty of prey. Twelve ships I had in
+my company, and each ship had nine goats for its share, and my own portion
+was ten.
+
+Then all the day we sat and feasted, drinking the sweet wine which we had
+taken from the city of the Cicones, and eating the flesh of the goats; and
+as we sat we looked across to the land of the Cyclops, seeing the smoke
+and hearing the voices of the men and of the sheep and of the goats. And
+when the sun set and darkness came over the land, we lay down upon the
+seashore and slept.
+
+The next day I gathered my men together, and said, "Abide ye here, dear
+friends; I with my own ship and my own company will go and make trial of
+the folk that dwell in yonder island, whether they are just or unjust."
+
+So I climbed into my ship, and bade my company follow me; so we came to
+the land of the Cyclops. Close to the shore was a cave, with laurels round
+about the mouth. This was the dwelling of the Cyclops. Alone he dwelt, a
+creature without law. Nor was he like to mortal men, but rather to some
+wooded peak of the hills that stands out apart from all the rest.
+
+Then I bade the rest of my comrades abide by the ship, and keep it, but I
+took twelve men, the bravest that there were in the crew, and went forth.
+I had with me a goat-skin full of the wine, dark red, and sweet, which the
+priest of Apollo at Ismarus had given me. Because we kept him and his wife
+and child from harm when we sacked the city, reverencing the god,
+therefore did he give it me. Three things did he give me,--seven talents
+of gold, and a mixing-bowl of silver, and of wine twelve jars. So precious
+was it that none in his house knew of it saving himself and his wife and
+one dame that kept the house. When they drank of it they mixed twenty
+measures of water with one of wine, and the smell that went up from it was
+wondrous sweet. No man could easily refrain from drinking it. With this
+wine I filled a great skin and bore it with me; also I bare corn in a
+wallet, for my heart within me boded that I should need it.
+
+So we entered the cave, and judged that it was the dwelling of some rich
+and skillful shepherd. For within there were pens for the young of the
+sheep and of the goats, divided all according to their age, and there were
+baskets full of cheeses, and full milkpails ranged along the wall. But the
+Cyclops himself was away in the pastures. Then my companions besought me
+that I would depart, taking with me, if I would, a store of cheeses and
+sundry of the lambs and of the kids. But I would not, for I wished to see,
+after my wont, what manner of host this strange shepherd might be, and, if
+it might be, to take a gift from his hand, such as is the due of
+strangers. Verily, his coming was not to be a joy to my company.
+
+It was evening when the Cyclops came home,--a mighty giant, very tall of
+stature, and when we saw him we fled into the sacred place of the cave in
+great fear. On his shoulder he bore a vast bundle of pine logs for his
+fire, and threw them down outside the cave with a great crash, and drove
+the flocks within, and closed the entrance with a huge rock, which twenty
+wagons and more could not bear. Then he milked the ewes and all the
+she-goats, and half of the milk he curdled for cheese, and half he set
+ready for himself, when he should sup. Next he kindled a fire with the
+pine logs, and the flame lighted up all the cave, showing to him both me
+and my comrades.
+
+"Who are ye?" cried Polyphemus, for that was the giant's name. "Are ye
+traders, or, haply, pirates?"
+
+I shuddered at the dreadful voice and shape, but bare me bravely, and
+answered, "We are no pirates, mighty sir, but Greeks sailing back from
+Troy, and subjects of the great King Agamemnon, whose fame is spread from
+one end of heaven to the other. And we are come to beg hospitality of thee
+in the name of Zeus, who rewards or punishes hosts and guests, according
+as they be faithful the one to the other, or no."
+
+"Nay," said the giant; "it is but idle talk to tell me of Zeus and the
+other Gods. We Cyclops take no account of gods, holding ourselves to be
+much better and stronger than they. But come, tell me, where have you left
+your ship?"
+
+But I saw his thought when he asked about the ship, how he was minded to
+break it, and take from us all hope of flight. Therefore I answered him
+craftily,--
+
+"Ship have we none, for that which was ours King Neptune brake, driving it
+on a jutting rock on this coast, and we whom thou seest are all that are
+escaped from the waves."
+
+Polyphemus answered nothing, but without more ado caught up two of the
+men, as a man might catch up the whelps of a dog, and dashed them on the
+ground, and tare them limb from limb, and devoured them, with huge
+draughts of milk between, leaving not a morsel, not even the very bones.
+But we that were left, when we saw the dreadful deed, could only weep and
+pray to Zeus for help. And when the giant had filled his maw with human
+flesh and with the milk of the flocks, he lay down among his sheep and
+slept.
+
+Then I questioned much in my heart whether I should slay the monster as he
+slept, for I doubted not that my good sword would pierce to the giant's
+heart, mighty as he was. But my second thought kept me back, for I
+remembered that, should I slay him, I and my comrades would yet perish
+miserably. For who should move away the great rock that lay against the
+door of the cave? So we waited till the morning, with grief in our hearts.
+And the monster woke, and milked his flocks, and afterwards, seizing two
+men, devoured them for his meal. Then he went to the pastures, but put the
+great rock on the mouth of the cave, just as a man puts down the lid upon
+his quiver.
+
+All that day I was thinking what I might best do to save myself and my
+companions, and the end of my thinking was this: there was a mighty pole
+in the cave, green wood of an olive-tree, big as a ship's mast, which
+Polyphemus purposed to use, when the smoke should have dried it, as a
+walking-staff. Of this I cut off a fathom's length, and my comrades
+sharpened it and hardened it in the fire, and then hid it away. At evening
+the giant came back, and drove his sheep into the cave, nor left the rams
+outside, as he had been wont to do before, but shut them in. And having
+duly done his shepherd's work, he took, as before, two of my comrades, and
+devoured them. And when he had finished his supper, I came forward,
+holding the wineskin in my hand, and said,--
+
+"Drink, Cyclops, now that thou hast feasted. Drink, and see what precious
+things we had in our ship. But no one hereafter will come to thee with
+such like, if thou dealest with strangers as cruelly as thou hast dealt
+with us."
+
+Then the Cyclops drank, and was mightily pleased, and said, "Give me again
+to drink, and tell me thy name, stranger, and I will give thee a gift such
+as a host should give. In good truth this is a rare liquor. We, too, have
+vines, but they bear not wine like this, which, indeed, must be such as
+the Gods drink in heaven."
+
+Then I gave him the cup again, and he drank. Thrice I gave it to him, and
+thrice he drank, not knowing what it was, and how it would work within his
+brain.
+
+Then I spake to him: "Thou didst ask my name, Cyclops. My name is No Man.
+And now that thou knowest my name, thou shouldst give me thy gift."
+
+And he said, "My gift shall be that I will eat thee last of all thy
+company."
+
+And as he spake, he fell back in a drunken sleep. Then I bade my comrades
+be of good courage, for the time was come when they should be delivered.
+And they thrust the stake of olive-wood into the fire till it was ready,
+green as it was, to burst into flame, and they thrust it into the
+monster's eye; for he had but one eye, and that in the midst of his
+forehead, with the eyebrow below it. And I, standing above, leant with all
+my force upon the stake, and turned it about, as a man bores the timber of
+a ship with a drill. And the burning wood hissed in the eye, just as the
+red-hot iron hisses in the water when a man seeks to temper steel for a
+sword.
+
+Then the giant leapt up, and tore away the stake, and cried aloud, so that
+all the Cyclops who dwelt on the mountain-side heard him and came about
+his cave, asking him, "What aileth thee, Polyphemus, that thou makest this
+uproar in the peaceful night, driving away sleep? Is any one robbing thee
+of thy sheep, or seeking to slay thee by craft or force?"
+
+And the giant answered, "No Man slays me by craft."
+
+"Nay, but," they said, "if no man does thee wrong we cannot help thee. The
+sickness which great Zeus may send, who can avoid? Pray to our father,
+Neptune, for help."
+
+So they spake, and I laughed in my heart when I saw how I had beguiled
+them by the name that I had given.
+
+But the Cyclops rolled away the great stone from the door of the cave, and
+sat in the midst, stretching out his hands, to feel whether perchance the
+men within the cave would seek to go out among the sheep.
+
+Long did I think how I and my comrades should best escape. At last I
+lighted upon a device that seemed better than all the rest, and much I
+thanked Zeus for that this once the giant had driven the rams with the
+other sheep into the cave. For, these being great and strong, I fastened
+my comrades under the bellies of the beasts, tying them with osier twigs,
+of which the giant made his bed. One ram I took, and fastened a man
+beneath it, and two rams I set, one on either side. So I did with the six,
+for but six were left out of the twelve who had ventured with me from the
+ship. And there was one mighty ram far larger than all the others, and to
+this I clung, grasping the fleece tight with both my hands. So we all
+waited for the morning. And when the morning came, the rams rushed forth
+to the pasture; but the giant sat in the door and felt the back of each as
+it went by, nor thought to try what might be underneath. Last of all went
+the great ram. And the Cyclops knew him as he passed, and said,--
+
+"How is this, thou who art the leader of the flock? Thou art not wont thus
+to lag behind. Thou hast always been the first to run to the pastures and
+streams in the morning, and the first to come back to the fold when
+evening fell; and now thou art last of all. Perhaps thou art troubled
+about thy master's eye, which some wretch--No Man, they call him--has
+destroyed, having first mastered me with wine. He has not escaped, I ween.
+I would that thou couldst speak, and tell me where he is lurking. Of a
+truth, I would dash out his brains upon the ground, and avenge me of this
+No Man."
+
+So speaking, he let the ram pass out of the cave. But when we were now out
+of reach of the giant, I loosed my hold of the ram, and then unbound my
+comrades. And we hastened to our ship, not forgetting to drive the sheep
+before us, and often looking back till we came to the seashore. Right glad
+were those that had abode by the ship to see us. Nor did they lament for
+those that had died, though we were fain to do so, for I forbade, fearing
+lest the noise of their weeping should betray us to the giant, where we
+were. Then we all climbed into the ship, and sitting well in order on the
+benches smote the sea with our oars, laying to right lustily, that we
+might the sooner get away from the accursed land. And when we had rowed a
+hundred yards or so, so that a man's voice could yet be heard by one who
+stood upon the shore, I stood up in the ship and shouted,--
+
+"He was no coward, O Cyclops, whose comrades thou didst so foully slay in
+thy den. Justly art thou punished, monster, that devourest thy guests in
+thy dwelling. May the Gods make thee suffer worse things than these!"
+
+Then the Cyclops in his wrath brake off the top of a great hill, a mighty
+rock, and hurled it where he had heard the voice. Right in front of the
+ship's bow it fell, and a great wave rose as it sank, and washed the ship
+back to the shore. But I seized a long pole with both hands, and pushed
+the ship from the land, and bade my comrades ply their oars, nodding with
+my head, for I would not speak, lest the Cyclops should know where we
+were. Then they rowed with all their might and main.
+
+[Illustration: THE CYCLOPS IN HIS WRATH BRAKE OFF THE TOP OF A GREAT HILL]
+
+And when we had gotten twice as far as before I made as if I would speak
+again; but my comrades sought to hinder me, saying, "Nay, my lord, anger
+not the giant any more. Surely we thought we were lost before, when he
+threw the great rock, and washed our ship back to the shore. And if he
+hear thee now, he may crush our ship and us, for the man throws a mighty
+bolt, and throws it far."
+
+But I would not be persuaded, but stood up and said, "Hear, Cyclops! If
+any man ask who blinded thee, say that it was the warrior Ulysses, son of
+Laertes, dwelling in Ithaca."
+
+
+
+
+CIRCE'S PALACE
+
+By Nathaniel Hawthorne
+
+
+At one time in the course of Ulysses' weary voyage, he arrived at an
+island that looked very green and pleasant, but the name of which was
+unknown to him. For, only a little while before he came thither, he had
+met with a terrible hurricane, or rather a great many hurricanes at once,
+which drove his fleet of vessels into a strange part of the sea, where
+neither himself nor any of his mariners had ever sailed. This misfortune
+was entirely owing to the foolish curiosity of his shipmates, who, while
+Ulysses lay asleep, had untied some very bulky leathern bags, in which
+they supposed a valuable treasure to be concealed. But in each of these
+stout bags, King Æolus, the ruler of the winds, had tied up a tempest, and
+had given it to Ulysses to keep, in order that he might be sure of a
+favorable passage homeward to Ithaca; and when the strings were loosened,
+forth rushed the whistling blasts, like air out of a blown bladder,
+whitening the sea with foam, and scattering the vessels nobody could tell
+whither.
+
+Immediately after escaping from this peril, a still greater one had
+befallen him. Scudding before the hurricane, he reached a place which, as
+he afterwards found, was called Læstrygonia, where some monstrous giants
+had eaten up many of his companions, and had sunk every one of his
+vessels, except that in which he himself sailed, by flinging great masses
+of rock at them, from the cliffs along the shore. After going through such
+troubles as these, you cannot wonder that King Ulysses was glad to moor
+his tempest-beaten bark in a quiet cove of the green island, which I began
+with telling you about. But he had encountered so many dangers from
+giants, and one-eyed Cyclops, and monsters of the sea and land, that he
+could not help dreading some mischief, even in this pleasant and seemingly
+solitary spot. For two days, therefore, the poor weather-worn voyagers
+kept quiet, and either stayed on board of their vessel or merely crept
+along under cliffs that bordered the shore; and to keep themselves alive,
+they dug shell-fish out of the sand, and sought for any little rill of
+fresh water that might be running towards the sea.
+
+Before the two days were spent, they grew very weary of this kind of life;
+for the followers of King Ulysses, as you will find it important to
+remember, were terrible gormandizers, and pretty sure to grumble if they
+missed their regular meals, and their irregular ones besides. Their stock
+of provisions was quite exhausted, and even the shell-fish began to get
+scarce, so that they had now to choose between starving to death or
+venturing into the interior of the island, where, perhaps, some huge
+three-headed dragon or other horrible monster had his den. Such misshapen
+creatures were very numerous in those days; and nobody ever expected to
+make a voyage or take a journey without running more or less risk of being
+devoured by them.
+
+But King Ulysses was a bold man as well as a prudent one; and on the third
+morning he determined to discover what sort of a place the island was, and
+whether it were possible to obtain a supply of food for the hungry mouths
+of his companions. So, taking a spear in his hand, he clambered to the
+summit of a cliff, and gazed round about him. At a distance, towards the
+centre of the island, he beheld the stately towers of what seemed to be a
+palace, built of snow-white marble, and rising in the midst of a grove of
+lofty trees. The thick branches of these trees stretched across the front
+of the edifice, and more than half concealed it, although, from the
+portion which he saw, Ulysses judged it to be spacious and exceedingly
+beautiful, and probably the residence of some great nobleman or prince. A
+blue smoke went curling up from the chimney, and was almost the
+pleasantest part of the spectacle to Ulysses. For, from the abundance of
+this smoke, it was reasonable to conclude that there was a good fire in
+the kitchen, and that, at dinnertime, a plentiful banquet would be served
+up to the inhabitants of the palace, and to whatever guests might happen
+to drop in.
+
+With so agreeable a prospect before him, Ulysses fancied that he could not
+do better than to go straight to the palace gate, and tell the master of
+it that there was a crew of poor shipwrecked mariners, not far off, who
+had eaten nothing for a day or two save a few clams and oysters, and would
+therefore be thankful for a little food. And the prince or nobleman must
+be a very stingy curmudgeon, to be sure, if, at least, when his own dinner
+was over, he would not bid them welcome to the broken victuals from the
+table.
+
+Pleasing himself with this idea, King Ulysses had made a few steps in the
+direction of the palace, when there was a great twittering and chirping
+from the branch of a neighboring tree. A moment afterwards, a bird came
+flying towards him, and hovered in the air, so as almost to brush his face
+with its wings. It was a very pretty little bird, with purple wings and
+body, and yellow legs, and a circle of golden feathers round its neck, and
+on its head a golden tuft, which looked like a king's crown in miniature.
+Ulysses tried to catch the bird. But it fluttered nimbly out of his reach,
+still chirping in a piteous tone, as if it could have told a lamentable
+story, had it only been gifted with human language. And when he attempted
+to drive it away, the bird flew no farther than the bough of the next
+tree, and again came fluttering about his head, with its doleful chirp, as
+soon as he showed a purpose of going forward.
+
+"Have you anything to tell me, little bird?" asked Ulysses.
+
+And he was ready to listen attentively to whatever the bird might
+communicate; for at the siege of Troy and elsewhere he had known such odd
+things to happen that he would not have considered it much out of the
+common run had this little feathered creature talked as plainly as
+himself.
+
+"Peep!" said the bird. "Peep, peep, pe--weep!" And nothing else would it
+say, but only, "Peep, peep, pe--weep!" in a melancholy cadence, and over
+and over and over again. As often as Ulysses moved forward, however, the
+bird showed the greatest alarm, and did its best to drive him back, with
+the anxious flutter of its purple wings. Its unaccountable behavior made
+him conclude, at last, that the bird knew of some danger that awaited him,
+and which must needs be very terrible, beyond all question, since it moved
+even a little fowl to feel compassion for a human being. So he resolved,
+for the present, to return to the vessel, and tell his companions what he
+had seen.
+
+This appeared to satisfy the bird. As soon as Ulysses turned back, it ran
+up the trunk of a tree, and began to pick insects out of the bark with its
+long, sharp bill; for it was a kind of woodpecker, you must know, and had
+to get its living in the same manner as other birds of that species. But
+every little while, as it pecked at the bark of the tree, the purple bird
+bethought itself of some secret sorrow, and repeated its plaintive note of
+"Peep, peep, pe--weep!"
+
+On his way to the shore, Ulysses had the good luck to kill a large stag by
+thrusting his spear into its back. Taking it on his shoulders (for he was
+a remarkably strong man), he lugged it along with him, and flung it down
+before his hungry companions. I have already hinted to you what
+gormandizers some of the comrades of King Ulysses were. From what is
+related of them, I reckon that their favorite diet was pork, and that they
+had lived upon it until a good part of their physical substance was
+swine's flesh, and their tempers and dispositions were very much akin to
+the hog. A dish of venison, however, was no unacceptable meal to them,
+especially after feeding so long on oysters and clams. So, beholding the
+dead stag, they felt of its ribs in a knowing way, and lost no time in
+kindling a fire, of drift-wood, to cook it. The rest of the day was spent
+in feasting; and if these enormous eaters got up from table at sunset, it
+was only because they could not scrape another morsel off the poor
+animal's bones.
+
+The next morning their appetites were as sharp as ever. They looked at
+Ulysses, as if they expected him to clamber up the cliff again, and come
+back with another fat deer upon his shoulders. Instead of setting out,
+however, he summoned the whole crew together, and told them it was in vain
+to hope that he could kill a stag every day for their dinner, and
+therefore it was advisable to think of some other mode of satisfying their
+hunger.
+
+"Now," said he, "when I was on the cliff yesterday, I discovered that this
+island is inhabited. At a considerable distance from the shore stood a
+marble palace, which appeared to be very spacious, and had a great deal of
+smoke curling out of one of its chimneys."
+
+"Aha!" muttered some of his companions, smacking their lips. "That smoke
+must have come from the kitchen fire. There was a good dinner on the spit;
+and no doubt there will be as good a one to-day."
+
+"But," continued the wise Ulysses, "you must remember, my good friends,
+our misadventure in the cavern of one-eyed Polyphemus, the Cyclops!
+Instead of his ordinary milk diet, did he not eat up two of our comrades
+for his supper, and a couple more for breakfast, and two at his supper
+again? Methinks I see him yet, the hideous monster, scanning us with that
+great red eye, in the middle of his forehead, to single out the fattest.
+And then again, only a few days ago, did we not fall into the hands of the
+king of the Læstrygons, and those other horrible giants, his subjects, who
+devoured a great many more of us than are now left? To tell you the truth,
+if we go to yonder palace, there can be no question that we shall make our
+appearance at the dinner-table; but whether seated as guests or served up
+as food, is a point to be seriously considered."
+
+"Either way," murmured some of the hungriest of the crew, "it will be
+better than starvation; particularly if one could be sure of being well
+fattened beforehand and daintily cooked afterwards."
+
+"That is a matter of taste," said King Ulysses, "and, for my own part,
+neither the most careful fattening nor the daintiest of cookery would
+reconcile me to being dished at last. My proposal is, therefore, that we
+divide ourselves into two equal parties, and ascertain, by drawing lots,
+which of the two shall go to the palace, and beg for food and assistance.
+If these can be obtained, all is well. If not, and if the inhabitants
+prove as inhospitable as Polyphemus or the Læstrygons, then there will but
+half of us perish, and the remainder may set sail and escape."
+
+As nobody objected to this scheme, Ulysses proceeded to count the whole
+band, and found that there were forty-six men, including himself. He then
+numbered off twenty-two of them, and put Eurylochus (who was one of his
+chief officers, and second only to himself in sagacity) at their head.
+Ulysses took command of the remaining twenty-two men, in person. Then,
+taking off his helmet, he put two shells into it, on one of which was
+written, "Go," and on the other, "Stay." Another person now held the
+helmet, while Ulysses and Eurylochus drew out each a shell; and the word
+"Go" was found written on that which Eurylochus had drawn. In this manner
+it was decided that Ulysses and his twenty-two men were to remain at the
+seaside until the other party should have found out what sort of treatment
+they might expect at the mysterious palace. As there was no help for it,
+Eurylochus immediately set forth at the head of his twenty-two followers,
+who went off in a very melancholy state of mind, leaving their friends in
+hardly better spirits than themselves.
+
+No sooner had they clambered up the cliff, than they discerned the tall
+marble towers of the palace, ascending, as white as snow, out of the
+lovely green shadow of the trees which surrounded it. A gush of smoke came
+from a chimney in the rear of the edifice. This vapor rose high in the
+air, and meeting with a breeze, was wafted seaward, and made to pass over
+the heads of the hungry mariners. When people's appetites are keen, they
+have a very quick scent for anything savory in the wind.
+
+"That smoke comes from the kitchen!" cried one of them, turning up his
+nose as high as he could, and snuffing eagerly. "And, as sure as I'm a
+half-starved vagabond, I smell roast meat in it."
+
+"Pig, roast pig!" said another. "Ah, the dainty little porker! My mouth
+waters for him."
+
+"Let us make haste," cried the others, "or we shall be too late for the
+good cheer!"
+
+But scarcely had they made half a dozen steps from the edge of the cliff,
+when a bird came fluttering to meet them. It was the same pretty little
+bird, with the purple wings and body, the yellow legs, the golden collar
+round its neck, and the crown-like tuft upon its head, whose behavior had
+so much surprised Ulysses. It hovered about Eurylochus, and almost brushed
+his face with its wings.
+
+"Peep, peep, pe--weep!" chirped the bird.
+
+So plaintively intelligent was the sound, that it seemed as if the little
+creature were going to break its heart with some mighty secret that it had
+to tell, and only this one poor note to tell it with.
+
+"My pretty bird," said Eurylochus,--for he was a wary person, and let no
+token of harm escape his notice,--"my pretty bird, who sent you hither?
+And what is the message which you bring?"
+
+"Peep, peep, pe--weep!" replied the bird, very sorrowfully.
+
+Then it flew towards the edge of the cliff, and looked round at them, as
+if exceedingly anxious that they should return whence they came.
+Eurylochus and a few of the others were inclined to turn back. They could
+not help suspecting that the purple bird must be aware of something
+mischievous that would befall them at the palace, and the knowledge of
+which affected its airy spirit with a human sympathy and sorrow. But the
+rest of the voyagers, snuffing up the smoke from the palace kitchen,
+ridiculed the idea of returning to the vessel. One of them (more brutal
+than his fellows, and the most notorious gormandizer in the whole crew)
+said such a cruel and wicked thing, that I wonder the mere thought did not
+turn him into a wild beast in shape, as he already was in his nature.
+
+"This troublesome and impertinent little fowl," said he, "would make a
+delicate titbit to begin dinner with. Just one plump morsel, melting away
+between the teeth. If he comes within my reach, I'll catch him, and give
+him to the palace cook to be roasted on a skewer."
+
+The words were hardly out of his mouth, before the purple bird flew away,
+crying, "Peep, peep, pe--weep," more dolorously than ever.
+
+"That bird," remarked Eurylochus, "knows more than we do about what awaits
+us at the palace."
+
+"Come on, then," cried his comrades, "and we'll soon know as much as he
+does."
+
+The party, accordingly, went onward through the green and pleasant wood.
+Every little while they caught new glimpses of the marble palace, which
+looked more and more beautiful the nearer they approached it. They soon
+entered a broad pathway, which seemed to be very neatly kept, and which
+went winding along with streaks of sunshine falling across it, and specks
+of light quivering among the deepest shadows that fell from the lofty
+trees. It was bordered, too, with a great many sweet-smelling flowers,
+such as the mariners had never seen before. So rich and beautiful they
+were that, if the shrubs grew wild here and were native in the soil, then
+this island was surely the flower-garden of the whole earth; or, if
+transplanted from some other clime, it must have been from the Happy
+Islands that lay towards the golden sunset.
+
+"There has been a great deal of pains foolishly wasted on these flowers,"
+observed one of the company; and I tell you what he said, that you may
+keep in mind what gormandizers they were. "For my part, if I were the
+owner of the palace, I would bid my gardener cultivate nothing but savory
+potherbs to make a stuffing for roast meat, or to flavor a stew with."
+
+"Well said!" cried the others. "But I'll warrant you there's a kitchen
+garden in the rear of the palace."
+
+At one place they came to a crystal spring, and paused to drink at it for
+want of liquor which they liked better. Looking into its bosom, they
+beheld their own faces dimly reflected, but so extravagantly distorted by
+the gush and motion of the water, that each one of them appeared to be
+laughing at himself and all his companions. So ridiculous were these
+images of themselves, indeed, that they did really laugh aloud, and could
+hardly be grave again as soon as they wished. And after they had drunk,
+they grew still merrier than before.
+
+"It has a twang of the wine-cask in it," said one, smacking his lips.
+
+"Make haste!" cried his fellows; "we'll find the wine-cask itself at the
+palace; and that will be better than a hundred crystal fountains."
+
+Then they quickened their pace, and capered for joy at the thought of the
+savory banquet at which they hoped to be guests. But Eurylochus told them
+that he felt as if he were walking in a dream.
+
+"If I am really awake," continued he, "then, in my opinion, we are on the
+point of meeting with some stranger adventure than any that befell us in
+the cave of Polyphemus, or among the gigantic man-eating Læstrygons, or in
+the windy palace of King Æolus, which stands on a brazen-walled island.
+This kind of dreamy feeling always comes over me before any wonderful
+occurrence. If you take my advice, you will turn back."
+
+"No, no," answered his comrades, snuffing the air, in which the scent from
+the palace kitchen was now very perceptible. "We would not turn back,
+though we were certain that the king of the Læstrygons, as big as a
+mountain, would sit at the head of the table, and huge Polyphemus, the
+one-eyed Cyclops, at its foot."
+
+At length they came within full sight of the palace, which proved to be
+very large and lofty, with a great number of airy pinnacles upon its roof.
+Though it was now midday, and the sun shone brightly over the marble
+front, yet its snowy whiteness and its fantastic style of architecture
+made it look unreal, like the frostwork on a window-pane, or like the
+shapes of castles which one sees among the clouds by moonlight. But just
+then a puff of wind brought down the smoke of the kitchen chimney among
+them, and caused each man to smell the odor of the dish that he liked
+best; and, after scenting it, they thought everything else moonshine, and
+nothing real save this palace, and save the banquet that was evidently
+ready to be served up in it.
+
+So they hastened their steps towards the portal, but had not got half-way
+across the wide lawn, when a pack of lions, tigers, and wolves came
+bounding to meet them. The terrified mariners started back, expecting no
+better fate than to be torn to pieces and devoured. To their surprise and
+joy, however, these wild beasts merely capered around them, wagging their
+tails, offering their heads to be stroked and patted, and behaving just
+like so many well-bred house-dogs, when they wish to express their delight
+at meeting their master or their master's friends. The biggest lion licked
+the feet of Eurylochus; and every other lion, and every wolf and tiger,
+singled out one of his two and twenty followers, whom the beast fondled as
+if he loved him better than a beef-bone.
+
+But, for all that, Eurylochus imagined that he saw something fierce and
+savage in their eyes; nor would he have been surprised, at any moment, to
+feel the big lion's terrible claws, or to see each of the tigers make a
+deadly spring, or each wolf leap at the throat of the man whom he had
+fondled. Their mildness seemed unreal, and a mere freak; but their savage
+nature was as true as their teeth and claws.
+
+Nevertheless, the men went safely across the lawn with the wild beasts
+frisking about them, and doing no manner of harm; although, as they
+mounted the steps of the palace, you might possibly have heard a low
+growl, particularly from the wolves, as if they thought it a pity, after
+all, to let the strangers pass without so much as tasting what they were
+made of.
+
+Eurylochus and his followers now passed under a lofty portal, and looked
+through the open doorway into the interior of the palace. The first thing
+that they saw was a spacious hall, and a fountain in the middle of it,
+gushing up towards the ceiling out of a marble basin, and falling back
+into it with a continual plash. The water of this fountain, as it spouted
+upward, was constantly taking new shapes, not very distinctly, but plainly
+enough for a nimble fancy to recognize what they were. Now it was the
+shape of a man in a long robe, the fleecy whiteness of which was made out
+of the fountain's spray; now it was a lion, or a tiger, or a wolf, or an
+ass, or, as often as anything else, a hog, wallowing in the marble basin
+as if it were his sty. It was either magic or some very curious machinery
+that caused the gushing waterspout to assume all these forms. But, before
+the strangers had time to look closely at this wonderful sight, their
+attention was drawn off by a very sweet and agreeable sound. A woman's
+voice was singing melodiously in another room of the palace, and with her
+voice was mingled the noise of a loom, at which she was probably seated,
+weaving a rich texture of cloth, and intertwining the high and low
+sweetness of her voice into a rich tissue of harmony.
+
+By and by the song came to an end; and then, all at once, there were
+several feminine voices, talking airily and cheerfully, with now and then
+a merry burst of laughter, such as you may always hear when three or four
+young women sit at work together.
+
+"What a sweet song that was!" exclaimed one of the voyagers.
+
+"Too sweet, indeed," answered Eurylochus, shaking his head. "Yet it was
+not so sweet as the song of the Sirens, those birdlike damsels who wanted
+to tempt us on the rocks, so that our vessel might be wrecked, and our
+bones left whitening along the shore."
+
+"But just listen to the pleasant voices of those maidens, and that buzz of
+the loom, as the shuttle passes to and fro," said another comrade. "What a
+domestic, household, homelike sound it is! Ah, before that weary siege of
+Troy, I used to hear the buzzing loom and the women's voices under my own
+roof. Shall I never hear them again? nor taste those nice little savory
+dishes which my dearest wife knew how to serve up?"
+
+"Tush! we shall fare better here," said another. "But how innocently those
+women are babbling together, without guessing that we overhear them! And
+mark that richest voice of all, so pleasant and familiar, but which yet
+seems to have the authority of a mistress among them. Let us show
+ourselves at once. What harm can the lady of the palace and her maidens do
+to mariners and warriors like us?"
+
+"Remember," said Eurylochus, "that it was a young maiden who beguiled
+three of our friends into the palace of the king of the Læstrygons, who
+ate up one of them in the twinkling of an eye."
+
+No warning or persuasion, however, had any effect on his companions. They
+went up to a pair of folding-doors at the farther end of the hall, and,
+throwing them wide open, passed into the next room. Eurylochus, meanwhile,
+had stepped behind a pillar. In the short moment while the folding-doors
+opened and closed again, he caught a glimpse of a very beautiful woman
+rising from the loom and coming to meet the poor weather-beaten wanderers,
+with a hospitable smile and her hand stretched out in welcome. There were
+four other young women, who joined their hands and danced merrily forward,
+making gestures of obeisance to the strangers. They were only less
+beautiful than the lady who seemed to be their mistress. Yet Eurylochus
+fancied that one of them had sea-green hair, and that the close-fitting
+bodice of a second looked like the bark of a tree, and that both the
+others had something odd in their aspect, although he could not quite
+determine what it was, in the little while that he had to examine them.
+
+The folding-doors swung quickly back, and left him standing behind the
+pillar, in the solitude of the outer hall. There Eurylochus waited until
+he was quite weary, and listened eagerly to every sound, but without
+hearing anything that could help him to guess what had become of his
+friends. Footsteps, it is true, seemed to be passing and repassing in
+other parts of the palace. Then there was a clatter of silver dishes, or
+golden ones, which made him imagine a rich feast in a splendid
+banqueting-hall. But by and by he heard a tremendous grunting and
+squealing, and then a sudden scampering, like that of small, hard hoofs
+over a marble floor, while the voices of the mistress and her four
+handmaidens were screaming all together, in tones of anger and derision.
+Eurylochus could not conceive what had happened, unless a drove of swine
+had broken into the palace, attracted by the smell of the feast. Chancing
+to cast his eyes at the fountain, he saw that it did not shift its shape,
+as formerly, nor looked either like a long-robed man, or a lion, a tiger,
+a wolf, or an ass. It looked like nothing but a hog, which lay wallowing
+in the marble basin, and filled it from brim to brim.
+
+But we must leave the prudent Eurylochus waiting in the outer hall, and
+follow his friends into the inner secrecy of the palace. As soon as the
+beautiful woman saw them, she arose from the loom, as I have told you, and
+came forward, smiling, and stretching out her hand. She took the hand of
+the foremost among them, and bade him and the whole party welcome.
+
+"You have been long expected, my good friends," said she. "I and my
+maidens are well acquainted with you, although you do not appear to
+recognize us. Look at this piece of tapestry, and judge if your faces must
+not have been familiar to us."
+
+So the voyagers examined the web of cloth which the beautiful woman had
+been weaving in her loom; and to their vast astonishment they saw their
+own figures perfectly represented in different colored threads. It was a
+lifelike picture of their recent adventures, showing them in the cave of
+Polyphemus, and how they had put out his one great moony eye; while in
+another part of the tapestry they were untying the leathern bags, puffed
+out with contrary winds; and farther on, they beheld themselves scampering
+away from the gigantic king of the Læstrygons, who had caught one of them
+by the leg. Lastly, there they were, sitting on the desolate shore of this
+very island, hungry and downcast, and looking ruefully at the bare bones
+of the stag which they devoured yesterday. This was as far as the work had
+yet proceeded; but when the beautiful woman should again sit down at her
+loom, she would probably make a picture of what had since happened to the
+strangers, and of what was now going to happen.
+
+"You see," she said, "that I know all about your troubles; and you cannot
+doubt that I desire to make you happy for as long a time as you may remain
+with me. For this purpose, my honored guests, I have ordered a banquet to
+be prepared. Fish, fowl, and flesh, roasted, and in luscious stews, and
+seasoned, I trust, to all your tastes, are ready to be served up. If your
+appetites tell you it is dinner-time, then come with me to the festal
+saloon."
+
+At this kind invitation, the hungry mariners were quite overjoyed; and one
+of them, taking upon himself to be spokesman, assured their hospitable
+hostess that any hour of the day was dinner-time with them, whenever they
+could get flesh to put in the pot, and fire to boil it with. So the
+beautiful woman led the way; and the four maidens (one of them had
+sea-green hair, another a bodice of oak-bark, a third sprinkled a shower
+of water-drops from her fingers' ends, and the fourth had some other
+oddity, which I have forgotten), all these followed behind, and hurried
+the guests along, until they entered a magnificent saloon. It was built in
+a perfect oval, and lighted from a crystal dome above. Around the walls
+were ranged two and twenty thrones, overhung by canopies of crimson and
+gold, and provided with the softest of cushions, which were tasseled and
+fringed with gold cord. Each of the strangers was invited to sit down; and
+there they were, two and twenty storm-beaten mariners, in worn and
+tattered garb, sitting on two and twenty cushioned and canopied thrones,
+so rich and gorgeous that the proudest monarch had nothing more splendid
+in his stateliest hall.
+
+Then you might have seen the guests nodding, winking with one eye, and
+leaning from one throne to another, to communicate their satisfaction in
+hoarse whispers.
+
+"Our good hostess has made kings of us all," said one. "Ha! do you smell
+the feast? I'll engage it will be fit to set before two-and-twenty kings."
+
+"I hope," said another, "it will be, mainly, good substantial joints,
+sirloins, spareribs, and hinder quarters, without too many kickshaws. If I
+thought the good lady would not take it amiss, I should call for a fat
+slice of fried bacon to begin with."
+
+Ah, the gluttons and gormandizers! You see how it was with them. In the
+loftiest seats of dignity, on royal thrones, they could think of nothing
+but their greedy appetite, which was the portion of their nature that they
+shared with wolves and swine; so that they resembled those vilest of
+animals far more than they did kings,--if, indeed, kings were what they
+ought to be.
+
+But the beautiful woman now clapped her hands; and immediately there
+entered a train of two and twenty serving-men, bringing dishes of the
+richest food, all hot from the kitchen fire, and sending up such a steam
+that it hung like a cloud below the crystal dome of the saloon. An equal
+number of attendants brought great flagons of wine, of various kinds, some
+of which sparkled as it was poured out, and went bubbling down the throat;
+while, of other sorts, the purple liquor was so clear that you could see
+the wrought figures at the bottom of the goblet. While the servants
+supplied the two and twenty guests with food and drink, the hostess and
+her four maidens went from one throne to another, exhorting them to eat
+their fill, and to quaff wine abundantly, and thus to recompense
+themselves, at this one banquet, for the many days when they had gone
+without a dinner. But, whenever the mariners were not looking at them
+(which was pretty often, as they looked chiefly into the basins and
+platters), the beautiful woman and her damsels turned aside and laughed.
+Even the servants, as they knelt down to present the dishes, might be seen
+to grin and sneer, while the guests were helping themselves to the offered
+dainties.
+
+And once in a while the strangers seemed to taste something that they did
+not like.
+
+"Here is an odd kind of a spice in this dish," said one. "I can't say it
+quite suits my palate. Down it goes, however."
+
+"Send a good draught of wine down your throat," said his comrade on the
+next throne. "That is the stuff to make this sort of cookery relish well.
+Though I must needs say, the wine has a queer taste too. But the more I
+drink of it the better I like the flavor."
+
+Whatever little fault they might find with the dishes, they sat at dinner
+a prodigiously long while; and it would really have made you ashamed to
+see how they swilled down the liquor and gobbled up the food. They sat, on
+golden thrones, to be sure; but they behaved like pigs in a sty, and, if
+they had had their wits about them, they might have guessed that this was
+the opinion of their beautiful hostess and her maidens. It brings a blush
+into my face to reckon up, in my own mind, what mountains of meat and
+pudding, and what gallons of wine, these two and twenty guzzlers and
+gormandizers ate and drank. They forgot all about their homes, and their
+wives, and children, and all about Ulysses, and everything else, except
+this banquet, at which they wanted to keep feasting forever. But at length
+they began to give over, from mere incapacity to hold any more.
+
+"That last bit of fat is too much for me," said one.
+
+"And I have not room for another morsel," said his next neighbor, heaving
+a sigh. "What a pity! My appetite is as sharp as ever."
+
+In short, they all left off eating, and leaned back on their thrones, with
+such a stupid and helpless aspect as made them ridiculous to behold. When
+their hostess saw this, she laughed aloud; so did her four damsels; so did
+the two-and-twenty serving men that bore the dishes, and their
+two-and-twenty fellows that poured out the wine. And the louder they all
+laughed, the more stupid and helpless did the two-and-twenty gormandizers
+look. Then the beautiful woman took her stand in the middle of the saloon,
+and stretching out a slender rod (it had been all the while in her hand,
+although they never noticed it till this moment), she turned it from one
+guest to another, until each had felt it pointed at himself. Beautiful as
+her face was, and though there was a smile on it, it looked just as wicked
+and mischievous as the ugliest serpent that ever was seen; and fat-witted
+as the voyagers had made themselves, they began to suspect that they had
+fallen into the power of an evil-minded enchantress.
+
+"Wretches," cried she, "you have abused a lady's hospitality; and in this
+princely saloon your behavior has been suited to a hogpen. You are already
+swine in everything but the human form, which you disgrace, and which I
+myself should be ashamed to keep a moment longer, were you to share it
+with me. But it will require only the slightest exercise of magic to make
+the exterior conform to the hoggish disposition. Assume your proper
+shapes, gormandizers, and begone to the sty!"
+
+Uttering these last words, she waved her wand; and stamping her foot
+imperiously, each of the guests was struck aghast at beholding, instead of
+his comrades in human shape, one and twenty hogs sitting on the same
+number of golden thrones. Each man (as he still supposed himself to be)
+essayed to give a cry of surprise, but found that he could merely grunt,
+and that, in a word, he was just such another beast as his companions. It
+looked so intolerably absurd to see hogs on cushioned thrones, that they
+made haste to wallow down upon all fours, like other swine. They tried to
+groan and beg for mercy, but forthwith emitted the most awful grunting and
+squealing that ever came out of swinish throats. They would have wrung
+their hands in despair, but, attempting to do so, grew all the more
+desperate for seeing themselves squatted on their hams, and pawing the air
+with their fore trotters. Dear me! what pendulous ears they had! what
+little red eyes, half buried in fat! and what long snouts, instead of
+Grecian noses!
+
+But brutes as they certainly were, they yet had enough of human nature in
+them to be shocked at their own hideousness; and still intending to groan,
+they uttered a viler grunt and squeal than before. So harsh and
+ear-piercing it was, that you would have fancied a butcher was sticking
+his knife into each of their throats, or, at the very least, that somebody
+was pulling every hog by his funny little twist of a tail.
+
+"Begone to your sty!" cried the enchantress, giving them some smart
+strokes with her wand; and then she turned to the serving-men. "Drive out
+these swine, and throw down some acorns for them to eat."
+
+The door of the saloon being flung open, the drove of hogs ran in all
+directions save the right one, in accordance with their hoggish
+perversity, but were finally driven into the back yard of the palace. It
+was a sight to bring tears into one's eyes (and I hope none of you will be
+cruel enough to laugh at it) to see the poor creatures go snuffing along,
+picking up here a cabbage leaf and there a turnip-top, and rooting their
+noses in the earth for whatever they could find. In their sty, moreover,
+they behaved more piggishly than the pigs that had been born so; for they
+bit and snorted at one another, put their feet in the trough, and gobbled
+up their victuals in a ridiculous hurry; and, when there was nothing more
+to be had, they made a great pile of themselves among some unclean straw
+and fell fast asleep. If they had any human reason left, it was just
+enough to keep them wondering when they should be slaughtered, and what
+quality of bacon they should make.
+
+Meantime, as I told you before, Eurylochus had waited, and waited, and
+waited, in the entrance-hall of the palace, without being able to
+comprehend what had befallen his friends. At last, when the swinish uproar
+resounded through the palace, and when he saw the image of a hog in the
+marble basin, he thought it best to hasten back to the vessel, and inform
+the wise Ulysses of these marvelous occurrences. So he ran as fast as he
+could down the steps, and never stopped to draw breath till he reached the
+shore.
+
+"Why do you come alone?" asked King Ulysses, as soon as he saw him. "Where
+are your two and twenty comrades?"
+
+At these questions Eurylochus burst into tears.
+
+"Alas!" cried he, "I greatly fear that we shall never see one of their
+faces again."
+
+Then he told Ulysses all that had happened, as far as he knew it, and
+added that he suspected the beautiful woman to be a vile enchantress, and
+the marble palace, magnificent as it looked, to be only a dismal cavern in
+reality. As for his companions, he could not imagine what had become of
+them, unless they had been given to the swine to be devoured alive. At
+this intelligence all the voyagers were greatly affrighted. But Ulysses
+lost no time in girding on his sword, and hanging his bow and quiver over
+his shoulders, and taking a spear in his right hand. When his followers
+saw their wise leader making these preparations, they inquired whither he
+was going, and earnestly besought him not to leave them.
+
+"You are our king," cried they; "and what is more, you are the wisest man
+in the whole world, and nothing but your wisdom and courage can get us out
+of this danger. If you desert us, and go to the enchanted palace, you will
+suffer the same fate as our poor companions, and not a soul of us will
+ever see our dear Ithaca again."
+
+"As I am your king," answered Ulysses, "and wiser than any of you, it is
+therefore the more my duty to see what has befallen our comrades, and
+whether anything can yet be done to rescue them. Wait for me here until
+to-morrow. If I do not then return, you must hoist sail, and endeavor to
+find your way to our native land. For my part, I am answerable for the
+fate of these poor mariners, who have stood by my side in battle, and been
+so often drenched to the skin, along with me, by the same tempestuous
+surges. I will either bring them back with me or perish."
+
+Had his followers dared, they would have detained him by force. But King
+Ulysses frowned sternly on them, and shook his spear, and bade them stop
+him at their peril. Seeing him so determined, they let him go, and sat
+down on the sand, as disconsolate a set of people as could be, waiting and
+praying for his return.
+
+It happened to Ulysses, just as before, that, when he had gone a few steps
+from the edge of the cliff, the purple bird came fluttering towards him,
+crying, "Peep, peep, pe--weep!" and using all the art it could to persuade
+him to go no farther.
+
+"What mean you, little bird?" cried Ulysses. "You are arrayed like a king
+in purple and gold, and wear a golden crown upon your head. Is it because
+I too am a king that you desire so earnestly to speak with me? If you can
+talk in human language, say what you would have me do."
+
+"Peep!" answered the purple bird, very dolorously. "Peep, peep,
+pe--we--ep!"
+
+Certainly there lay some heavy anguish at the little bird's heart; and it
+was a sorrowful predicament that he could not, at least, have the
+consolation of telling what it was. But Ulysses had no time to waste in
+trying to get at the mystery. He therefore quickened his pace, and had
+gone a good way along the pleasant wood-path, when there met him a young
+man of very brisk and intelligent aspect, and clad in a rather singular
+garb. He wore a short cloak, and a sort of cap that seemed to be furnished
+with a pair of wings; and from the lightness of his step, you would have
+supposed that there might likewise be wings on his feet. To enable him to
+walk still better (for he was always on one journey or another), he
+carried a winged staff, around which two serpents were wriggling and
+twisting. In short, I have said enough to make you guess that it was
+Quicksilver; and Ulysses (who knew him of old, and had learned a great
+deal of his wisdom from him) recognized him in a moment.
+
+"Whither are you going in such a hurry, wise Ulysses?" asked Quicksilver.
+"Do you not know that this island is enchanted? The wicked enchantress
+(whose name is Circe, the sister of King Æetes) dwells in the marble
+palace which you see yonder among the trees. By her magic arts, she
+changes every human being into the brute, beast, or fowl whom he happens
+most to resemble."
+
+"That little bird which met me at the edge of the cliff," exclaimed
+Ulysses; "was he a human being once?"
+
+"Yes," answered Quicksilver. "He was once a king, named Picus, and a
+pretty good sort of a king too, only rather too proud of his purple robe,
+and his crown, and the golden chain about his neck; so he was forced to
+take the shape of a gaudy-feathered bird. The lions, and wolves, and
+tigers who will come running to meet you, in front of the palace, were
+formerly fierce and cruel men, resembling in their dispositions the wild
+beasts whose forms they now rightfully wear."
+
+"And my poor companions," said Ulysses. "Have they undergone a similar
+change, through the arts of this wicked Circe?"
+
+"You well know what gormandizers they were," replied Quicksilver; and,
+rogue that he was, he could not help laughing at the joke. "So you will
+not be surprised to hear that they have all taken the shapes of swine! If
+Circe had never done anything worse, I really should not think her so very
+much to blame."
+
+"But can I do nothing to help them?" inquired Ulysses.
+
+"It will require all your wisdom," said Quicksilver, "and a little of my
+own into the bargain, to keep your royal and sagacious self from being
+transformed into a fox. But do as I bid you, and the matter may end better
+than it has begun."
+
+While he was speaking, Quicksilver seemed to be in search of something; he
+went stooping along the ground, and soon laid his hand on a little plant
+with a snow-white flower, which he plucked and smelt of. Ulysses had been
+looking at that very spot only just before; and it appeared to him that
+the plant had burst into full flower the instant when Quicksilver touched
+it with his fingers.
+
+"Take this flower, King Ulysses," said he. "Guard it as you do your
+eyesight; for I can assure you it is exceedingly rare and precious, and
+you might seek the whole earth over without ever finding another like it.
+Keep it in your hand, and smell of it frequently after you enter the
+palace, and while you are talking with the enchantress. Especially when
+she offers you food, or a draught of wine out of her goblet, be careful to
+fill your nostrils with the flower's fragrance. Follow these directions,
+and you may defy her magic arts to change you into a fox."
+
+Quicksilver then gave him some further advice how to behave, and, bidding
+him be bold and prudent, again assured him that, powerful as Circe was, he
+would have a fair prospect of coming safely out of her enchanted palace.
+After listening attentively, Ulysses thanked his good friend, and resumed
+his way. But he had taken only a few steps, when, recollecting some other
+questions which he wished to ask, he turned round again, and beheld nobody
+on the spot where Quicksilver had stood; for that winged cap of his, and
+those winged shoes with the help of the winged staff, had carried him
+quickly out of sight.
+
+When Ulysses reached the lawn in front of the palace, the lions and other
+savage animals came bounding to meet him, and would have fawned upon him
+and licked his feet. But the wise king struck at them with his long spear,
+and sternly bade them begone out of his path; for he knew that they had
+once been bloodthirsty men, and would now tear him limb from limb, instead
+of fawning upon him, could they do the mischief that was in their hearts.
+The wild beasts yelped and glared at him, and stood at a distance while he
+ascended the palace steps.
+
+On entering the hall, Ulysses saw the magic fountain in the centre of it.
+The up-gushing water had now again taken the shape of a man in a long,
+white, fleecy robe, who appeared to be making gestures of welcome. The
+king likewise heard the noise of the shuttle in the loom, and the sweet
+melody of the beautiful woman's song, and then the pleasant voices of
+herself and the four maidens talking together, with peals of merry
+laughter intermixed. But Ulysses did not waste much time in listening to
+the laughter or the song. He leaned his spear against one of the pillars
+of the hall, and then, after loosening his sword in the scabbard, stepped
+boldly forward, and threw the folding-doors wide open. The moment she
+beheld his stately figure standing in the doorway, the beautiful woman
+rose from the loom, and ran to meet him with a glad smile throwing its
+sunshine over her face, and both her hands extended.
+
+"Welcome, brave stranger!" cried she. "We were expecting you."
+
+And the nymph with the sea-green hair made a courtesy down to the ground,
+and likewise bade him welcome; so did her sister with the bodice of oaken
+bark, and she that sprinkled dew-drops from her fingers' ends, and the
+fourth one with some oddity which I cannot remember. And Circe, as the
+beautiful enchantress was called (who had deluded so many persons that she
+did not doubt of being able to delude Ulysses, not imagining how wise he
+was), again addressed him.
+
+"Your companions," said she, "have already been received into my palace,
+and have enjoyed the hospitable treatment to which the propriety of their
+behavior so well entitles them. If such be your pleasure, you shall first
+take some refreshment, and then join them in the elegant apartments which
+they now occupy. See, I and my maidens have been weaving their figures
+into this piece of tapestry."
+
+She pointed to the web of beautifully woven cloth in the loom. Circe and
+the four nymphs must have been very diligently at work since the arrival
+of the mariners; for a great many yards of tapestry had now been wrought,
+in addition to what I before described. In this new part, Ulysses saw his
+two and twenty friends represented as sitting on cushioned and canopied
+thrones, greedily devouring dainties and quaffing deep draughts of wine.
+The work had not yet gone any further. Oh, no, indeed! The enchantress was
+far too cunning to let Ulysses see the mischief which her magic arts had
+since brought upon the gormandizers.
+
+"As for yourself, valiant sir," said Circe, "judging by the dignity of
+your aspect, I take you to be nothing less than a king. Deign to follow
+me, and you shall be treated as befits your rank."
+
+So Ulysses followed her into the oval saloon, where his two and twenty
+comrades had devoured the banquet which ended so disastrously for
+themselves. But all this while he had held the snow-white flower in his
+hand, and had constantly smelt of it while Circe was speaking; and as he
+crossed the threshold of the saloon, he took good care to inhale several
+long and deep snuffs of its fragrance. Instead of two and twenty thrones,
+which had before been ranged around the wall, there was now only a single
+throne, in the centre of the apartment. But this was surely the most
+magnificent seat that ever a king or an emperor reposed himself upon, all
+made of chased gold, studded with precious stones, with a cushion that
+looked like a soft heap of living roses, and overhung by a canopy of
+sunlight which Circe knew how to weave into drapery. The enchantress took
+Ulysses by the hand, and made him sit down upon this dazzling throne.
+Then, clapping her hands, she summoned the chief butler.
+
+"Bring hither," said she, "the goblet that is set apart for kings to drink
+out of. And fill it with the same delicious wine which my royal brother,
+King Æetes, praised so highly, when he visited me with my fair daughter
+Medea. That good and amiable child! Were she now here, it would delight
+her to see me offering this wine to my honored guest."
+
+But Ulysses, while the butler was gone for the wine, held the snow-white
+flower to his nose.
+
+"Is it a wholesome wine?" he asked.
+
+At this the four maidens tittered; whereupon the enchantress looked round
+at them, with an aspect of severity.
+
+"It is the wholesomest juice that ever was squeezed out of the grape,"
+said she; "for, instead of disguising a man, as other liquor is apt to do,
+it brings him to his true self, and shows him as he ought to be."
+
+The chief butler liked nothing better than to see people turned into
+swine, or making any kind of a beast of themselves; so he made haste to
+bring the royal goblet, filled with a liquid as bright as gold, and which
+kept sparkling upward, and throwing a sunny spray over the brim. But,
+delightfully as the wine looked, it was mingled with the most potent
+enchantments that Circe knew how to concoct. For every drop of the pure
+grape-juice there were two drops of the pure mischief; and the danger of
+the thing was, that the mischief made it taste all the better. The mere
+smell of the bubbles, which effervesced at the brim, was enough to turn a
+man's beard into pig's bristles, or make a lion's claws grow out of his
+fingers, or a fox's brush behind him.
+
+"Drink, my noble guest," said Circe, smiling as she presented him with the
+goblet. "You will find in this draught a solace for all your troubles."
+
+King Ulysses took the goblet with his right hand, while with his left he
+held the snow-white flower to his nostrils, and drew in so long a breath
+that his lungs were quite filled with its pure and simple fragrance. Then,
+drinking off all the wine, he looked the enchantress calmly in the face.
+
+"Wretch," cried Circe, giving him a smart stroke with her wand, "how dare
+you keep your human shape a moment longer? Take the form of the brute whom
+you most resemble. If a hog, go join your fellow swine in the sty; if a
+lion, a wolf, a tiger, go howl with the wild beasts on the lawn; if a fox,
+go exercise your craft in stealing poultry. Thou hast quaffed off my wine,
+and canst be man no longer."
+
+But, such was the virtue of the snow-white flower, instead of wallowing
+down from his throne in swinish shape or taking any other brutal form,
+Ulysses looked even more manly and kinglike than before. He gave the magic
+goblet a toss, and sent it clashing over the marble floor, to the farthest
+end of the saloon. Then, drawing his sword, he seized the enchantress by
+her beautiful ringlets, and made a gesture as if he meant to strike off
+her head at one blow.
+
+"Wicked Circe," cried he, in a terrible voice, "this sword shall put an
+end to thy enchantments. Thou shalt die, vile wretch, and do no more
+mischief in the world, by tempting human beings into the vices which make
+beasts of them."
+
+The tone and countenance of Ulysses were so awful, and his sword gleamed
+so brightly and seemed to have so intolerably keen an edge, that Circe was
+almost killed by the mere fright, without waiting for a blow. The chief
+butler scrambled out of the saloon, picking up the golden goblet as he
+went; and the enchantress and the four maidens fell on their knees,
+wringing their hands and screaming for mercy.
+
+"Spare me!" cried Circe,--"spare me, royal and wise Ulysses. For now I
+know that thou art he of whom Quicksilver forewarned me, the most prudent
+of mortals, against whom no enchantments can prevail. Thou only couldst
+have conquered Circe. Spare me, wisest of men. I will show thee true
+hospitality, and even give myself to be thy slave, and this magnificent
+palace to be henceforth thy home."
+
+The four nymphs, meanwhile, were making a most piteous ado; and especially
+the ocean nymph, with the sea-green hair, wept a great deal of salt water,
+and the fountain nymph, besides scattering dewdrops from her fingers'
+ends, nearly melted away into tears. But Ulysses would not be pacified
+until Circe had taken a solemn oath to change back his companions, and as
+many others as he should direct, from their present forms of beast or bird
+into their former shapes of men.
+
+"On these conditions," said he, "I consent to spare your life. Otherwise
+you must die upon the spot."
+
+With a drawn sword hanging over her, the enchantress would readily have
+consented to do as much good as she had hitherto done mischief, however
+little she might like such employment. She therefore led Ulysses out of
+the back entrance of the palace, and showed him the swine in their sty.
+There were about fifty of these unclean beasts in the whole herd; and
+though the greater part were hogs by birth and education, there was
+wonderfully little difference to be seen betwixt them and their new
+brethren who had so recently worn the human shape. To speak critically,
+indeed, the latter rather carried the thing to excess, and seemed to make
+it a point to wallow in the miriest part of the sty, and otherwise to
+outdo the original swine in their own natural vocation. When men once turn
+to brutes, the trifle of man's wit that remains in them adds tenfold to
+their brutality.
+
+The comrades of Ulysses, however, had not quite lost the remembrance of
+having formerly stood erect. When he approached the sty, two and twenty
+enormous swine separated themselves from the herd, and scampered towards
+him, with such a chorus of horrible squealing as made him clap both hands
+to his ears. And yet they did not seem to know what they wanted, nor
+whether they were merely hungry or miserable from some other cause. It was
+curious, in the midst of their distress, to observe them thrusting their
+noses into the mire, in quest of something to eat. The nymph with the
+bodice of oaken bark (she was the hamadryad of an oak) threw a handful of
+acorns among them; and the two and twenty hogs scrambled and fought for
+the prize, as if they had tasted not so much as a noggin of sour milk for
+a twelvemonth.
+
+"These must certainly be my comrades," said Ulysses. "I recognize their
+dispositions. They are hardly worth the trouble of changing them into the
+human form again. Nevertheless, we will have it done, lest their bad
+example should corrupt the other hogs. Let them take their original
+shapes, therefore, Dame Circe, if your skill is equal to the task. It will
+require greater magic, I trow, than it did to make swine of them."
+
+So Circe waved her wand again, and repeated a few magic words, at the
+sound of which the two and twenty hogs pricked up their pendulous ears. It
+was a wonder to behold how their snouts grew shorter and shorter, and
+their mouths (which they seemed to be sorry for, because they could not
+gobble so expeditiously) smaller and smaller, and how one and another
+began to stand upon his hind legs, and scratch his nose with his fore
+trotters. At first the spectators hardly knew whether to call them hogs or
+men, but by and by came to the conclusion that they rather resembled the
+latter. Finally, there stood the twenty-two comrades of Ulysses, looking
+pretty much the same as when they left the vessel.
+
+You must not imagine, however, that the swinish quality had entirely gone
+out of them. When once it fastens itself into a person's character, it is
+very difficult getting rid of it. This was proved by the hamadryad, who,
+being exceedingly fond of mischief, threw another handful of acorns before
+the twenty-two newly restored people; whereupon down they wallowed, in a
+moment, and gobbled them up in a very shameful way. Then, recollecting
+themselves, they scrambled to their feet, and looked more than commonly
+foolish.
+
+"Thanks, noble Ulysses!" they cried. "From brute beasts you have restored
+us to the condition of men again."
+
+"Do not put yourselves to the trouble of thanking me," said the wise king.
+"I fear I have done but little for you."
+
+To say the truth, there was a suspicious kind of a grunt in their voices,
+and for a long time afterwards they spoke gruffly, and were apt to set up
+a squeal.
+
+"It must depend on your own future behavior," added Ulysses, "whether you
+do not find your way back to the sty."
+
+At this moment, the note of a bird sounded from the branch of a
+neighboring tree.
+
+"Peep, peep, pe--wee--ep!"
+
+It was the purple bird, who, all this while, had been sitting over their
+heads, watching what was going forward, and hoping that Ulysses would
+remember how he had done his utmost to keep him and his followers out of
+harm's way. Ulysses ordered Circe instantly to make a king of this good
+little fowl, and leave him exactly as she found him. Hardly were the words
+spoken, and before the bird had time to utter another "Pe--weep," King
+Picus leaped down from the bough of the tree, as majestic a sovereign as
+any in the world, dressed in a long purple robe and gorgeous yellow
+stockings, with a splendidly wrought collar about his neck, and a golden
+crown upon his head. He and King Ulysses exchanged with one another the
+courtesies which belonged to their elevated rank. But from that time
+forth, King Picus was no longer proud of his crown and his trappings of
+royalty, nor of the fact of his being a king; he felt himself merely the
+upper servant of his people, and that it must be his lifelong labor to
+make them better and happier.
+
+As for the lions, tigers, and wolves (though Circe would have restored
+them to their former shapes at his slightest word), Ulysses thought it
+advisable that they should remain as they now were, and thus give warning
+of their cruel dispositions, instead of going about under the guise of
+men, and pretending to human sympathies, while their hearts had the
+blood-thirstiness of wild beasts. So he let them howl as much as they
+liked, but never troubled his head about them. And, when everything was
+settled according to his pleasure, he sent to summon the remainder of his
+comrades, whom he had left at the seashore. These being arrived, with the
+prudent Eurylochus at their head, they all made themselves comfortable in
+Circe's enchanted palace until quite rested and refreshed from the toils
+and hardships of their voyage.
+
+
+
+
+THE SIRENS--SCYLLA AND CHARYBDIS
+
+Translated by George Herbert Palmer
+
+
+I turned me toward my ship, and called my crew to come on board and loose
+the cables. Quickly they came, took places at the pins, and sitting in
+order smote the foaming water with their oars. And for our aid behind our
+dark-bowed ship came a fair wind to fill our sail, a welcome comrade, sent
+us by fair-haired Circe, the mighty goddess, human of speech. When we had
+done our work at the several ropes about the ship, we sat us down, while
+wind and helmsman kept her steady.
+
+Now to my men, with aching heart, I said, "My friends, it is not right for
+only one or two to know the oracles which Circe told, that heavenly
+goddess. Therefore I speak, that, knowing all, we so may die, or fleeing
+death and doom, we may escape. She warns us first against the marvelous
+Sirens, and bids us flee their voice and flowery meadow. Only myself she
+bade to hear their song; but bind me with galling cords, to hold me firm,
+upright upon the mast-block,--round it let the rope be wound. And if I
+should entreat you, and bid you set me free, thereat with still more
+fetters bind me fast."
+
+Thus I, relating all my tale, talked with my comrades. Meanwhile our
+stanch ship swiftly neared the Sirens' island; a fair wind swept her on.
+On a sudden the wind ceased; there came a breathless calm; Heaven hushed
+the waves. My comrades, rising, furled the sail, stowed it on board the
+hollow ship, then sitting at their oars whitened the water with the
+polished blades. But I with my sharp sword cut a great cake of wax into
+small bits, which I then kneaded in my sturdy hands. Soon the wax warmed,
+forced by the powerful pressure and by the rays of the exalted sun, the
+lord of all. Then one by one I stopped the ears of all my crew; and on the
+deck they bound me hand and foot, upright upon the mast-block, round which
+they wound the rope; and sitting down they smote the foaming water with
+their oars. But when we were as far away as one can call, and driving
+swiftly onward, our speeding ship, as it drew near, did not escape the
+Sirens, and thus they lifted up their penetrating voice:--
+
+"Come hither, come, Ulysses, whom all praise! great glory to the Achaians!
+Bring on your ship, and listen to our song. For none has ever passed us in
+a black-hulled ship till from our lips he heard ecstatic song, then went
+his way rejoicing and with larger knowledge. For we know all that on the
+plain of Troy Argives and Trojans suffered at the Gods' behest; we know
+whatever happens on the bounteous earth."
+
+So spoke they, sending forth their glorious song, and my heart longed to
+listen. Knitting my brows, I signed my men to set me free; but bending
+forward, on they rowed. And straightway Perimedes and Eurylochus arose and
+laid upon me still more cords, and drew them tighter. Then, after passing
+by, when we could hear no more the Sirens' voice nor any singing, quickly
+my trusty crew removed the wax with which I stopped their ears, and set me
+free from bondage.
+
+Soon after we left the island, I observed a smoke, I saw high waves and
+heard a plunging sound. From the hands of my frightened men down fell the
+oars, and splashed against the current. There the ship stayed, for they
+worked the tapering oars no more. Along the ship I passed, inspiriting my
+men with cheering words, standing by each in turn:--
+
+"Friends, hitherto we have not been untried in danger. Here is no greater
+danger than when the Cyclops penned us with brutal might in the deep cave.
+Yet out of that, through energy of mine, through will and wisdom, we
+escaped. These dangers, too, I think some day we shall remember. Come
+then, and what I say let us all follow. You with your oars strike the deep
+breakers of the sea, while sitting at the pins, and see if Zeus will set
+us free from present death and let us go in safety. And, helmsman, these
+are my commands for you; lay them to heart, for you control the rudders of
+our hollow ship: keep the ship off that smoke and surf and hug the crags,
+or else, before you know it, she may veer off that way, and you will bring
+us into danger."
+
+So I spoke, and my words they quickly heeded. But Scylla I did not
+name,--that hopeless horror,--for fear through fright my men might cease
+to row, and huddle all together in the hold. I disregarded too the hard
+behest of Circe, when she had said I must by no means arm. Putting on my
+glittering armor and taking in my hands my two long spears, I went upon
+the ship's fore-deck, for thence I looked for the first sight of Scylla of
+the rocks, who brought my men disaster. Nowhere could I descry her; I
+tried my eyes with searching up and down the dusky cliff.
+
+So up the strait we sailed in sadness; for here lay Scylla, and there
+divine Charybdis fearfully sucked the salt sea-water down. Whenever she
+belched it forth, like a kettle in fierce flame all would foam swirling
+up, and overhead spray fell upon the tops of both the crags. But when she
+gulped the salt sea-water down, then all within seemed in a whirl; the
+rock around roared fearfully, and down below the bottom showed, dark with
+the sand. Pale terror seized my men; on her we looked and feared to die.
+
+And now it was that Scylla snatched from the hollow ship six of my
+comrades who were best in skill and strength. Turning my eyes toward my
+swift ship to seek my men, I saw their feet and hands already in the air
+as they were carried up. They screamed aloud and called my name for the
+last time, in agony of heart. As when a fisher, on a jutting rock, with
+long rod throws a bait to lure the little fishes, casting into the deep
+the horn of stall-fed ox; then, catching a fish, flings it ashore
+writhing,--even so were these drawn writhing up the rocks. There at her
+door she ate them, loudly shrieking and stretching forth their hands in
+mortal pangs toward me. That was the saddest sight my eyes have ever seen,
+in all my toils, searching the ocean pathways.
+
+
+
+
+ULYSSES IN ITHACA
+
+
+ULYSSES LANDS ON THE SHORE OF ITHACA
+
+By F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+
+
+    [For ten years Ulysses was driven hither and thither over the
+    water, seeking for his homeland, Ithaca. At length he was
+    shipwrecked on the shores of Phoeacia. The king, Alcinous,
+    entertained him most hospitably, and Ulysses related to him the
+    story of his wanderings.]
+
+
+When Ulysses had finished his story, there was silence in the hall till
+Alcinous said, "Ulysses, now that you have come to my house after all
+these troubles, you shall return without more wandering to your home." And
+then he bade the princes go home for the night and meet again in the
+morning to bring their gifts.
+
+So next day the Sea-kings went down to the ship and put their gifts on
+board and then returned to the palace and sacrificed an ox to Zeus. And
+then they feasted and drank their good wine and waited till the sun went
+down. And the minstrel sang to them, but Ulysses kept looking at the sun
+impatiently, like a hungry ploughman tired out at the close of day. At
+last the time arrived, and then Ulysses said, "Alcinous, let me go now,
+and fare you well. My escort and my gifts are all prepared, and I could
+wish no more. May I but find my wife and my dear ones all safe and sound
+at home! And may Heaven grant you, too, happy homes and every blessing and
+no distress among your people!" And to Queen Arete he said, "Lady, may you
+live happily with your husband and children, and all this people, till old
+age comes to you and death, which must come to all!"
+
+Then the herald led the way and Ulysses followed to the ship, and the
+queen sent her servants with him to carry warm clothing for the voyage and
+food and drink. And when they had stored the ship he lay down silently in
+the stern, and the rowers took their places in the benches and plied their
+oars, while a deep, sweet sleep fell upon him, like the sleep of death.
+Then the wonderful ship leapt forward on her way, like a team of chariot
+horses plunging beneath the whip, and the great dark wave roared round the
+stern. No hawk could fly so quickly as that ship flew through the waves,
+and the hawk is the swiftest of all birds. And as she sped, the man who
+had suffered so much and was as wise as the Gods lay peacefully asleep,
+and forgot his sufferings.
+
+But when the bright star rose that tells of the approach of day, the ship
+drew near the island of Ithaca. There is a haven there between two steep
+headlands which break the waves, so that ships can ride in safety without
+a mooring rope, and at the head of it an olive-tree, and a shadowy cave
+where the water fairies come and tend their bees and weave their sea-blue
+garments on the hanging looms and mix their wine in bowls and jars of
+stone. There are springs of water in the cave, and two ways into it, one
+to the north for men to enter, and one to the south where none but the
+Gods may pass.
+
+The Sea-kings knew this harbor and rowed straight into it and ran their
+ship half a keel's length ashore. Then they lifted Ulysses out of the
+stern, wrapt in the rugs and coverlet, and laid him still asleep upon the
+sand. And the gifts they placed in a heap by the trunk of the olive-tree,
+a little out of the road, so that no passer-by might rob him as he slept.
+
+Then they sailed away; and after they were gone Ulysses awoke, but he
+could not recognize the land where he lay, for Athene had cast a mist
+about him so that everything looked strange, though he was the lord of it
+all. There were the mountain paths and the sheltering creeks, the high,
+steep rocks and the trees in bloom; but he could not see it aright, and
+started up and smote his hands upon his thighs and cried aloud,--
+
+"What land have I come to now? And what can I do with all this treasure?
+If the Sea-kings did not really mean to send me back to Ithaca they should
+have conveyed me to some other people who would have sent me home." And
+then he counted the gifts over, the golden vessels, and the beautiful
+garments, and found nothing missing, but they gave him no pleasure; and he
+turned sadly to walk along the shore and dream of home, when a young
+herdsman met him, of noble figure, with a javelin in his hand and a fine
+mantle in double folds upon his shoulders. Ulysses was glad to greet him,
+and asked what country he had reached. It was Athene in disguise, and she
+answered, "Truly, stranger, you must have come from far indeed. For this
+is a famous island that all men know, whether they live in the east or in
+the west. It is a rugged land, and no place for horses and chariots, but
+though it is narrow, it is not so poor; for there are stores of corn and
+wine, plenty of water for the cattle and plenty of wood. Its name is
+Ithaca, and some men have heard of it even at Troy, which they say is a
+long way off."
+
+Then brave Ulysses rejoiced in his heart to hear that it was his native
+land; but he would not tell the herdsman who he was, and made up a cunning
+story that he had escaped as an outlaw from Crete and had been left upon
+the island by a Phoenician crew. And the goddess smiled to hear him, and
+stood forth in her own true form, a wise and noble woman, tall and fair,
+and put her hand upon his shoulder, and said,--
+
+"Come, let us practice no more craft on one another, Ulysses, for we are
+both famous for our wit and wiles, you among mortals and I among the Gods.
+I am Pallas Athene, daughter of Zeus, and I have stood beside you and
+protected you in all your wanderings and toil. And now I have come here to
+tell you of the troubles that await you in your house, and to help you
+with my counsel. But you must still endure in silence, and tell no one
+that Ulysses has returned."
+
+And Ulysses made answer, "It is hard, goddess, for a mortal to know you,
+wise though he may be, for you come in many shapes. Truly I have known
+your kindness from of old in Troy, but when we went on board the ships, I
+never saw you at my side again. Tell me, I pray you, if this is Ithaca
+indeed, my native land."
+
+Then the goddess answered, "I see, Ulysses, that you keep your ready wit
+and steadfast mind. I could not show myself your friend before for fear of
+angering Neptune, my own father's brother. But come now, and I will show
+you Ithaca; there is the haven and the olive with its slender leaves, and
+the cave where you once made many an offering to the water nymphs."
+
+And then she rolled away the mist, and the long-suffering hero rejoiced to
+see his native land again. He kissed the kindly earth, and vowed to the
+nymphs that he would bring them offerings as of old if he lived to see his
+dear son a man.
+
+Then the goddess bade him be of good cheer, and showed him a hiding-place
+in the cavern for the gifts. And then they sat down by the trunk of the
+olive-tree, and Athene told him all the misdeeds of the suitors, and how
+his wife had beguiled them and kept them waiting till his return, and how
+he must avenge himself and her.
+
+Then Ulysses said, "Truly, I should have perished in my own halls, like
+Agamemnon, if you had not warned me. Help me, therefore, with your wisdom,
+and stand beside me again and put strength and courage within me as in the
+days of Troy. For with you by my side I could fight against three hundred
+men."
+
+And Pallas Athene made answer, "I will be with you, Ulysses, when the hour
+of the conflict is come, and the blood of the suitors who eat up your
+substance shall be shed at last. But now I will change you into a poor
+beggar, so old and so wretched that no one will know you, and in that
+guise you must go and stay with the herdsman Eumæus, who tends your swine,
+until I have brought your son Telemachus from Sparta, where he has gone to
+seek tidings of you."
+
+Then she touched him with her magic wand, and the fair flesh withered on
+his limbs, and the golden locks fell from his head, and he was changed
+into an old man. His skin was shriveled and his bright eyes dimmed, and
+for his covering she gave him a tattered wrap, begrimed with smoke, and a
+worn deerskin on his shoulder, and a wallet and a staff in his hand.
+
+Then she vanished, and left him to take his way alone across the hills.
+
+
+
+
+ULYSSES AT THE HOUSE OF THE SWINEHERD
+
+By F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+
+
+Ulysses went up along the rough mountain path, through the forest and over
+the hills, till he came to the house where his faithful steward lived. It
+stood in an open space, and there was a large courtyard in front with a
+wall of heavy stones and hawthorn boughs and a stout oak palisade. Inside
+the yard there were twelve sties for the pigs, and the swineherd kept four
+watch-dogs to guard the place, great beasts and fierce as wolves, that he
+had reared himself. Ulysses found him at home, sitting in the porch alone,
+and cutting himself a pair of sandals from a brown oxhide.
+
+The dogs caught sight of the king as soon as he came up and flew at him,
+barking, but he had the wit to let go his staff and sit down at once on
+the ground. Still it might have gone hard with him there in front of his
+own servant's house had not Eumæus rushed out of the porch, dropping the
+leather in his haste, and scolded the dogs, driving them off with a volley
+of stones.
+
+Then he said to Ulysses, "A little more, old man, and the dogs would have
+torn you in pieces, and disgraced me forever. And I have my full share of
+trouble as it is, for I have lost the best master in all the world and
+must sit here to mourn for him and fatten his swine for other men, while
+he is wandering somewhere in foreign lands, hungry and thirsty perhaps, if
+he is still alive at all. But now come in yourself, and let me give you
+food and drink and tell me your own tale."
+
+So he took Ulysses into the house and made a seat for him with a pile of
+brushwood boughs and a great thick shaggy goat-skin which he used for his
+own bed, and all with so kind a welcome that it warmed the king's heart
+and made him pray the Gods to bless him for his goodness. But Eumæus only
+said, "How could I neglect a stranger, though he were a worse man than
+you? All strangers and beggars are sent to us by Zeus. Take my gift and
+welcome, though it is little enough I have to give, a servant such as I,
+with new masters to lord it over him. For we have lost the king who would
+have loved me and given me house and lands and all that a faithful servant
+ought to have, whose work is blest by the Gods and prospers, as mine does
+here. Alas! he is dead and gone! he went away with Agamemnon to fight at
+Troy and never came home again."
+
+So saying, the good swineherd rose and fetched what meat and wine he had,
+and set it before Ulysses, grieving that he had nothing better for him
+because the shameless suitors plundered everything.
+
+But Ulysses ate and drank eagerly, and when his strength had come again he
+asked Eumæus, "My friend, who is this master of yours you tell me of? Did
+you not say he was lost for Agamemnon's sake? Perhaps I may have seen him,
+for I have traveled far."
+
+But the swineherd answered, "Old man, his wife and son will believe no
+traveler's tale. They have heard too many such. Every wandering beggar who
+comes to Ithaca goes to my mistress with some empty story to get a meal
+for himself, and she welcomes him and treats him kindly and asks him about
+it all, with the tears running down her cheeks in a woman's way. Yes, even
+you, old man, might learn to weave such tales if you thought they would
+get you a cloak or a vest. No, he is dead, and dogs and birds have eaten
+him, or else he has fed the fishes and his bones lie somewhere on the
+seashore, buried in the sand. And he has left us all to grieve for him,
+but no one more than me, who can never have so kind a master again, not
+though I had my heart's desire and went back to my native land and saw my
+father and mother, and the dear home where I was born. It is Ulysses above
+all whom I long to see once more. There, stranger, I have called him by
+his name, and that I should not do; for he is still my dear master though
+he is far away."
+
+Then Ulysses said, "My friend, your hope has gone and you will never
+believe me. But I tell you this and seal it with an oath: Ulysses will
+return! Poor as I am, I will take no reward for my news till he comes to
+his own again, but you shall give me a new vest and cloak that day, and I
+will wear them."
+
+But the swineherd answered, "Ah, my friend, I shall never need to pay you
+that reward. He will never come back again. But now drink your wine in
+peace, and let us talk of something else, and do not call to mind the
+sorrow that almost breaks my heart. Tell me of yourself and your own
+troubles and who you are, and what ship brought you here, for you will not
+say you came afoot."
+
+Then Ulysses pretended he was a Cretan and had fought at Troy, and told
+Eumæus a long tale of adventures and how he had been wrecked at last on
+the coast of Epirus. The king of the country, he said, had rescued him,
+and he had learned that Ulysses had been there a little while before, and
+was already on his way to Ithaca.
+
+The swineherd listened eagerly to it all, but when Ulysses had finished he
+said, "Poor friend, my heart aches to hear of all your sufferings. But
+there is one thing you should not have said, one thing I can never
+believe, and that is that Ulysses will return. And why need you lie to
+please me? I can see for myself that you are old and unhappy, a wanderer
+whom the Gods have sent to me. It is not for such a tale I will show you
+the kindness that you need, but because I pity you myself and reverence
+the law of Zeus."
+
+"If I lie," Ulysses answered, "you may have me thrown from the cliff as a
+warning to other cheats. I swear it, and call the Gods to witness."
+
+But the true-hearted swineherd only said, "I should get a good name by
+that, my friend, if I took you into nay house and had you for my guest,
+and then murdered you brutally! Do you think I could pray to Zeus after
+that without a fear? But now it is supper-time, and my men will be coming
+home." While they spoke, the herdsmen came up with the swine, and the sows
+were driven into the pens, grunting and squealing noisily as they settled
+in for the night. Then Eumæus called out, "Bring in the fattest boar, and
+let us make a sacrifice in honor of our guest, and get some reward
+ourselves for all the trouble we have spent upon the drove,--trouble lost,
+since strangers take the fruit of it all."
+
+So they brought in a big fat white-tusked boar, while Eumæus split the
+wood for the fire. And he did not forget the Immortals, for he had a pious
+heart: he made the due offerings first and prayed for his master's return,
+and then he stood up at the board to carve, and gave each man his share
+and a special slice for his guest from the whole length of the chine.
+Ulysses took it and thanked him with all his heart:--
+
+"May Father Zeus be your friend, Eumæus, and give you what I would give
+you for your kindness to a poor old man like me."
+
+But the swineherd said, "Take it, my good friend, take it and enjoy it.
+Zeus will give or withhold as it may please him, for he can do all
+things."
+
+So they sat down to the feast, and after they had had their fill the
+swineherd's servant cleared everything away, and then they made ready for
+sleep. The evening closed in black and stormy, and a west wind sprang up
+bringing the rain with it, and blew hard all the night; so Eumæus made up
+a bed of fleeces for Ulysses by the fire and gave him a great thick cloak
+as well, that he kept for the roughest weather. But he could not bring
+himself to stay there too, away from his herd of pigs, and he wrapped
+himself up warmly and went out to sleep beside them in the open. Ulysses
+saw, and smiled to see, what care he took of everything, while he thought
+his master was far away.
+
+[On the following morning] Ulysses and the swineherd were already
+preparing their breakfast when Telemachus came up. The dogs knew him and
+played round him lovingly. "Eumæus," said Ulysses, "some friend of yours
+is coming, for I hear footsteps, and the dogs are pleased and do not
+bark."
+
+He had hardly finished speaking when his own dear son stood in the
+doorway. The swineherd started up and dropped the vessels in which he was
+mixing the wine. He went to meet his young master and fell on his neck and
+kissed him as a father would kiss an only son escaped from death. "Light
+of my eyes, dear son, have you come home at last? When you sailed away to
+Pylos, I never thought to see you again. But come in and let me feast my
+eyes upon you; for you do not often visit us, but are kept at home in the
+town, watching that crowd of ruinous suitors."
+
+And Telemachus answered, "Gladly, good father; I have come to see you, and
+to hear tidings of my mother."
+
+Then the swineherd told him that his mother still waited patiently at
+home, and spent her days and nights in weeping.
+
+[Illustration: "DEAR SON, HAVE YOU COME HOME AT LAST? WHEN YOU SAILED AWAY
+TO PYLOS, I NEVER THOUGHT TO SEE YOU AGAIN. BUT COME IN AND LET ME FEAST
+MY EYES UPON YOU; FOR YOU DO NOT OFTEN VISIT US, BUT ARE KEPT AT HOME IN
+THE TOWN, WATCHING THAT CROWD OF RUINOUS SUITORS." AND TELEMACHUS
+ANSWERED, "GLADLY, GOOD FATHER; I HAVE COME TO SEE YOU, AND TO HEAR
+TIDINGS OF MY MOTHER." THEN THE SWINEHERD TOLD HIM THAT HIS MOTHER STILL
+WAITED PATIENTLY AT HOME.]
+
+Then Telemachus went into the house, and as he came up Ulysses rose to
+give him his seat, but he would not take it, and said, "Keep your seat,
+stranger, this man shall make up another for me." So Ulysses sat down
+again, and the swineherd made a seat for Telemachus of the green brushwood
+and put a fleece upon it. Then he set food before them, and when they had
+eaten, Telemachus asked who the stranger was, and how he had come to
+Ithaca. And Eumæus told him Ulysses's own story and begged him to protect
+the wanderer. But Telemachus thought of the suitors and did not wish to
+take him to the palace.
+
+"I will give him a coat and a vest," he said, "and shoes for his feet, and
+a two-edged sword, and I will send him on his way. But I cannot take him
+into the house, where the suitors would mock at him and use him ill. One
+man cannot restrain them, and he so young as I."
+
+Then Ulysses said, "Sir, if I may speak, I would say foul wrong is done
+you in your house, and my heart burns at the thought. Do your people hate
+you, or will your brothers give you no support? Would that I were as young
+as you are, and were Ulysses's son or Ulysses himself. I would go to the
+palace and fall upon all the throng, and die there, one man against a
+hundred, sooner than see the shameful deeds that are done in that glorious
+house."
+
+And Telemachus answered, "Hear me, stranger, and I will tell you all. My
+people do not hate me, and I have no quarrel with them. But I have no
+brothers to stand by me, for Zeus has never given more than one son to
+each generation of our line. And there are many foemen in the house, all
+the princes of the islands, and they too woo my mother and threaten my
+life, and I cannot see how it will end."
+
+Then he said to Eumæus, "Go up to the house, old father, as quickly as you
+can, and tell my mother that I am come back safe from Pylos, and I will
+wait for you here."
+
+And Eumæus answered, "I hear, master, and understand. But shall I not go
+to Laertes on my way and tell him too? For since you set sail for Pylos,
+they say he has not eaten or drunk or gone about his work, but sits in his
+house sorrowing and wasting away with grief."
+
+But Telemachus bade him go straight to the palace and return at once, and
+let the queen send word to Laertes by one of the maids. So Eumæus went
+forth, and when Athene saw him go, she drew near, and came and stood by
+the gateway and showed herself to Ulysses, a tall and beautiful woman,
+with wisdom in her look. The dogs saw her too and were afraid, and shrank
+away whining into the corner of the yard, but Telemachus could not see
+her. Then the goddess nodded to Ulysses, and he went out and stood before
+her, and she said, "Noble Ulysses, now is the time to reveal yourself to
+your son, and go forth with him to the town, with death and doom for the
+suitors. I shall be near you in the battle and eager to fight."
+
+Then she touched him with her golden wand and gave him his beauty and
+stature once more, and his old bronzed color came back and his beard grew
+thick and his garments shone bright again: and so she sent him to the hut.
+And when Telemachus saw him, he marveled and turned away his eyes, for he
+thought it must be a god.
+
+"Stranger," he said, "you are changed since a moment ago; your color is
+not the same, nor your garments. If you are one of the Immortals, be
+gracious to us, and let us offer you gifts and sacrifice."
+
+Then Ulysses cried out, "I am no god, but your own dear father, for whose
+sake you are suffering cruel wrongs and the spite of men." And then he
+kissed his son and let his tears take their way at last.
+
+But Telemachus could not believe it, and said, "You cannot be my father,
+but a god come down to deceive me and make me grieve still more. No mortal
+could do what you have done, for a moment since you were old and wretched,
+and poorly clad, and now you seem like one of the heavenly Gods."
+
+Then his father answered, "My son, no other Ulysses will ever come back to
+you. Athene has done this wonder, for she is a goddess and can make men
+what she will, now poor, now rich, now old, now young; such power have the
+lords of heaven to exalt us or bring us low."
+
+Then Telemachus fell on his neck, and they wept aloud together. And they
+would have wept out their hearts till evening, had not Telemachus asked
+his father how he had come to Ithaca at last; and Ulysses told him that
+the sea-kings had brought him and put him on shore asleep, and that Athene
+had sent him to the swineherd's hut. "But now tell me of the suitors. How
+many are they and what manner of men? Can the two of us make head against
+the throng?"
+
+"Father," he answered, "I know well your fame, mighty and wise in war. But
+this we could never dare, two men against a host. They are a hundred and
+twenty in all, the best fighting men from Ithaca and the islands round.
+Think, if you can, of some champion who would befriend us and give us
+help."
+
+And Ulysses made answer, "What think you, if Father Zeus and the goddess
+Athene stood by our side? Should we still need other help?"
+
+"Truly they are the best of champions," said Telemachus, "though they sit
+on high among the clouds; and they rule both men and Gods." "And they will
+be with us," said his father, "when we come to the trial of war. Now at
+daybreak you must go home and mix with the suitors, and later on the
+swineherd will bring me to the town, disguised again as the old
+beggar-man; and if they ill-treat me or even strike me or drag me out of
+the house, you must look on and bear it. You may check them by speaking,
+but they will not listen, for the day of their doom is at hand. And tell
+no one that Ulysses has come home, not even Laertes nor the swineherd nor
+Penelope herself; we must keep the secret until we are sure of our
+friends."
+
+Then Telemachus said that his father might trust him, and so they talked
+on together. Meanwhile Eumæus had reached the palace with the tidings that
+Telemachus had returned; and the suitors who were in the hall heard it and
+were dismayed, for they saw that their plot had failed. They went out of
+the palace and sat down before the gates, and were talking of sending word
+to their ship that was lying in wait for Telemachus, when the ship itself
+came into the harbor, with the other princes on board. So they all went up
+together to the public square and debated what to do, and they resolved to
+murder Telemachus as soon as they found another chance. Then they went
+back and sat down again on the polished seats in the hall.
+
+Now Medon the herald had heard them plotting together in the square, and
+went and told Penelope all they had said, and how they had purposed
+putting her son to death. She went down at once to the hall with her
+women, and stood in the doorway with her bright veil before her face and
+spoke to Antinous and said, "Wicked and insolent man, can it be that they
+call you in Ithaca one of their wisest men? No, it is a fool's work you
+are doing, plotting to kill my son. He is helpless before you now, but
+Zeus is the friend of the helpless and avenges their wrongs. Impious and
+ungrateful too! Did not Ulysses once shield your father from his enemies
+and save his life? Yet you waste his substance and would murder his son?"
+
+Then Eurymachus spoke and tried to soothe her. No one, he said, should
+injure Telemachus while he was alive, for he loved him more than any man
+on earth. Eurymachus's words were fair, and Penelope could say no more;
+yet all the while he was planning the death of her son.
+
+In the evening the swineherd reached his hut again, and found Ulysses
+changed to the old beggar-man once more, preparing supper with Telemachus.
+
+"What news, good Eumæus?" said the young man. "Have the proud lords come
+home from their ambush, or are they still waiting out yonder to take me as
+I return?" And Eumæus replied, "I did not stay, master, to go through the
+town and find out the news, for when I had given my message I wanted to be
+at home. But one thing I saw from the brow of the hill as I came along. A
+swift ship was entering the harbor, full of armor and armed men. They may
+have been the princes, but I cannot say."
+
+As he heard this, Telemachus looked at his father and smiled, but he took
+good care that the swineherd should not see.
+
+
+
+
+THE VENGEANCE OF ULYSSES
+
+
+A. HIS RECEPTION AT THE PALACE.
+
+By F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+
+
+Early next morning, when the rosy-fingered dawn was in the sky, Telemachus
+bound on his sandals and took his stout spear in his hand, and said to the
+swineherd, "Old friend, I must now be off to the city and let my mother
+see me, for I know she will weep and sigh until I am there myself. And as
+for this poor stranger, I would have you take him to the town and let him
+beg for bite and sup from door to door, and those who choose can give. For
+I cannot be host to every wanderer with all the trouble I have to bear.
+And if that makes him angry--well! it is only the worse for him; I am a
+man that speaks his mind."
+
+Then Ulysses answered readily, "Sir, I do not ask to stay here myself; a
+beggar should not beg in the fields. Nor am I young enough to work on a
+farm at a master's beck and call. So go your ways, and your man shall take
+me with him to the town. But I will wait till the sun is high, for I am
+afraid of the morning frost with these threadbare rags of mine."
+
+So Telemachus strode away until he reached the palace, and went into the
+hall. The old nurse Eurycleia was there with the maids, spreading fleeces
+on the inlaid stools and chairs; and she saw him at once and went up to
+him with tears in her eyes, and then all the women gathered round and
+kissed him and welcomed him home again. And Penelope came down from her
+chamber and flung her arms round her son, and kissed his head and both his
+eyes, and said to him tearfully, "You have come home, Telemachus, light of
+my eyes! I thought I should never see you again, when you sailed away to
+Pylos secretly, against my will, to get tidings of your father. And now
+tell me all you heard."
+
+But Telemachus said to her, "Mother, why make me think of trouble now,
+when I have just escaped from death? Rather put on your fairest robes, and
+go and pray the Gods to grant us a day of vengeance. But I must be off to
+the public square to meet a guest of mine whom I brought here in my ship.
+I sent him on before me with the crew, and bade one of them take him to
+his house until I came myself."
+
+So Penelope went away and prayed to the Gods, while the prince went down
+to the public square and found Theoclymenus and brought him back to the
+palace, and they sat down together in the hall. Then one of the old
+servants brought up a polished table and spread it for them with good
+things for their meal, and Penelope came and sat beside the door, spinning
+her fine soft yarn. She did not speak till they had finished, but then she
+said to her son, "Telemachus, I see I must go up to my room and lie down
+on my bed, the bed I have watered with my tears ever since Ulysses went
+away to Troy; for you are determined not to talk to me and tell me the
+news of your father before the suitors come into the hall!"
+
+Then Telemachus said, "Mother, I will tell you all I know. We reached
+Pylos and found Nestor there, and he took me into his splendid house, and
+welcomed me as lovingly as though I had been a long-lost son of his own.
+But he could tell me nothing of my father, not even if he were alive or
+dead, and so he sent me on to Sparta, to the house of Menelaus. There I
+saw Helen, the fairest of women, for whom the Greeks and Trojans fought
+and suffered so long. Menelaus asked me why I came and I told him about
+the suitors and all the wrong they did. Then he cried, 'Curse on them! The
+dastards in the hero's place! Oh, that Ulysses would return! They would
+soon have cause enough to hate this suit of theirs!' And then he told me
+how he had heard tidings of my father from Proteus, the wizard of the sea.
+He was living still, so the wizard said, on an island far away, in the
+cave of a wood nymph called Calypso, who kept him there against his will,
+and he had no ship to carry him over the broad sea. That was all Menelaus
+could tell me; and when I had done my errand I came away, and the Gods
+have brought me home in safety."
+
+And as Penelope listened her heart filled with sorrow; but Theoclymenus,
+the seer, said to her, "Listen to me, wife of Ulysses, and I will prophesy
+to you; for your son has heard nothing certain, but I have seen omens that
+are sure. I swear by Zeus, the ruler of the Gods, and by the board and the
+hearth of Ulysses himself where I am standing now, he is already here in
+Ithaca, he knows of all this wickedness, and is waiting to punish the
+suitors as they deserve."
+
+At that moment the princes came in from their sport and flung their cloaks
+aside, and set about slaughtering the sheep and the fatted goats and the
+swine for their feast.
+
+Meanwhile Ulysses was starting for the town, with the swineherd to show
+him the way. He had slung the tattered wallet across his shoulder, and
+Eumæus had given him a staff, and every one who met them would have taken
+the king for a poor old beggar-man, hobbling along with his crutch.
+
+So they went down the rocky path till they reached a running spring by the
+wayside where the townsfolk got their water. There was a grove of tall
+poplars round it, and the cool stream bubbled down from the rock overhead,
+and above the fountain there was an altar to the nymphs where the
+passers-by laid their offerings.
+
+There they chanced to meet Melanthius, the king's goatherd, driving his
+fattest goats to the town for the suitors' feast. He was a favorite of
+theirs, and did all he could to please them. Now as soon as he saw the two
+he broke out into scoffs and gibes, till the heart of Ulysses grew hot
+with anger.
+
+"Look there!" he shouted, "one rascal leading another! Trust a man to find
+his mate! A plague on you, swineherd, where are you taking that pitiful
+wretch? Another beggar, I suppose, to hang about the doors and cringe for
+the scraps and spoil our feasts? Now if you would only let me have him to
+watch my farm and sweep out my stalls and fetch fodder for my kids, he
+could drink as much whey as he liked and get some flesh on his bones. But
+no! His tricks have spoilt him for any honest work!"
+
+So he jeered at them in his folly, and as he passed he kicked Ulysses on
+the thigh, but the king stood firm, and took the blow in silence, though
+he could have found it in his heart to strike the man dead on the spot.
+But Eumæus turned round fiercely, and cried to the Gods for vengeance.
+
+"Nymphs of the spring," he prayed, "if ever my master honored you, hear my
+prayer, and send him home again! He would make a sweep of all your
+insolence, you good-for-nothing wretch, loitering here in the city while
+your flocks are left to ruin!"
+
+"Oho!" cried Melanthius. "Listen to the foul-mouthed dog! I must put him
+on board a ship and sell him in a foreign land, and make some use of him
+that way! Why, Ulysses will never see the day of his return! He is dead
+and gone; I wish his son would follow him!"
+
+With that he turned on his heel and hastened away to the palace hall,
+where he sat down with the suitors at their feast. And the other two
+followed slowly until they reached the gate. There they paused, and
+Ulysses caught the swineherd by the hand, and cried,--
+
+"Eumæus, this must be the palace of the king! No one could mistake it.
+See, there is room after room, and a spacious courtyard with a wall and
+coping-stones and solid double doors to make it safe. And I am sure that a
+great company is seated there at the banquet, for I can smell the roasted
+meat and hear the sound of the lyre."
+
+Then Eumæus said, "Your wits are quick enough; it is the very place. And
+now tell me: would you rather go in alone and face the princes while I
+wait here, or will you stay behind and let me go in first? But if you wait
+here, you must not wait too long, for some one might catch sight of you
+and strike you and drive you from the gate."
+
+Then the hero said to him, "I understand; I knew what I had to meet. Do
+you go first and I will wait behind. For I have some knowledge of thrusts
+and blows, and my heart has learned to endure; for I have suffered much in
+storm and battle, and I can bear this like the rest."
+
+But while they were talking, a dog who was lying there lifted his head and
+pricked his ears. It was the hound Argus, whom Ulysses had reared himself
+long ago before the war, but had to leave behind when he went away to
+Troy. Once he used to follow the hunters to the chase, but no one cared
+for him now when his master was away, and he lay there covered with
+vermin, on a dung-heap in front of the gates. Yet even so, when he felt
+that Ulysses was near him, he wagged his tail and dropped his ears; but he
+had not strength enough to drag himself up to his master. And when Ulysses
+saw it, he turned away his face so that Eumæus should not see the tears in
+his eyes, and said, "Eumæus, it is strange that they let that dog lie
+there in the dung. He looks a noble creature, but perhaps he has never
+been swift enough for the chase, and they have only kept him for his
+beauty."
+
+"Ah, yes!" Eumæus answered, "it is easy to see that he has no master now.
+If you had been here when Ulysses went to Troy, you would have wondered at
+the creature's pace and strength. In the thickest depth of the forest no
+quarry could escape him, and no hound was ever keener-scented. But now he
+is old and wretched and his lord has perished far away, and the heedless
+women take no care of him. Slaves can do nothing as they ought when the
+master is not there, for a man loses half his manhood when he falls into
+slavery."
+
+Then Eumæus went on into the palace and up to the hall where the suitors
+were. But Argus had seen his master again at last, and when he had seen
+him, he died.
+
+As soon as the swineherd came in, Telemachus caught sight of him, and
+beckoned him to a stool at his side, and gave him his share of the feast.
+After a little while Ulysses came up too, and sat down on the threshold
+like a poor old beggar-man. Then his son sent him meat and bread by the
+swineherd, and said that a beggar should be bold, and he ought to go among
+the princes and ask each man for a dole. So he went round from one to the
+other, stretching out his hand for a morsel in the true beggar's way. And
+every one else felt some pity and gave him an alms, but Antinous mocked at
+them all and told them they were ready enough to be generous with
+another's wealth. And at last he grew angry and cursed Ulysses for a
+whining rascal, and hurled a footstool at his head, bidding him begone and
+trouble them no more. The stool struck Ulysses on the shoulder, but he
+stood like a rock, motionless and silent, with black thoughts in his
+heart. Then he went back straight to the threshold and sat down and spoke
+to all the company:--
+
+"Listen to me, my lords! No man bears any rancor for a blow in open war,
+but Antinous has struck me because I am a beggar and know the curse of
+hunger. If there be any gods who avenge the poor man's cause, I pray that
+he may die before his marriage day!"
+
+At that the others felt shame, and told Antinous he did wrong to strike
+the homeless wanderer.
+
+"Who knows?" they said. "He might be one of the heavenly Gods, and woe to
+you if he were! For sometimes the Immortals take upon themselves the
+likeness of strangers, and enter our cities, and go about among men,
+watching the good and evil that they do."
+
+Thus they warned him, but he cared little for all they said. And
+Telemachus sat there full of rage and grief to see his father struck, but
+he kept back the tears and held his peace.
+
+Now Penelope was sitting in her room behind the hall, and she saw what had
+happened, and was angry with Antinous, and called the swineherd to her
+side.
+
+"Go, good Eumæus, and tell the stranger to come here. And I will ask him
+if he has ever heard of Ulysses, for he looks like a man who has wandered
+far."
+
+And the swineherd said, "Yes, he is a Cretan, and has had all kinds of
+adventures before he was driven here, and he could tell you stories that
+would charm you like a minstrel's sweetest song, and you would never tire
+of listening. And he says that he has heard of Ulysses, near home, in the
+rich land of Epirus, and that he is already on his way to us, bringing a
+store of treasures with him."
+
+Then Penelope said, "Quick, bring the stranger here at once, and let him
+speak with me face to face. And if I see that he tells the truth I will
+give him a vest and a cloak for himself."
+
+So the swineherd hurried back with the message; but Ulysses said he dared
+not face the princes a second time and it would be better to speak with
+Penelope later in the evening, alone by the fireside; and when the queen
+heard this, she said that the stranger was right. By this time it was
+afternoon, and Eumæus went up to Telemachus and whispered that he must be
+off to his work again. Telemachus said he might go, but bade him have
+supper first and told him to come back next morning without fail. So the
+swineherd took his food in the hall, and then started home for his farm,
+to look after his pigs and everything that he had charge of there.
+
+
+
+
+B. THE TRIAL OF THE BOW
+
+Translated by George Herbert Palmer
+
+
+And now the goddess, clear-eyed Athene, put in the mind of Icarius's
+daughter, heedful Penelope, to offer to the suitors in the hall the bow
+and the gray steel, as means of sport and harbingers of death. She mounted
+the long stairway of her house, holding a crooked key in her firm hand,--a
+goodly key of bronze, having an ivory handle,--and hastened with her
+damsels to a far-off room where her lord's treasure lay, bronze, gold, and
+well-wrought steel. Here also lay his curved bow and the quiver for his
+arrows,--and many grievous shafts were in it still,--gifts which a friend
+had given Ulysses when he met him once in Lacedæmon,--Iphitus, son of
+Eurytus, a man like the Immortals. At Messene the two met, in the house of
+wise Orsilochus. Ulysses had come hither to claim a debt, which the whole
+district owed him; for upon ships of many oars Messenians carried off from
+Ithaca three hundred sheep together with their herdsmen. In the long quest
+for these, Ulysses took the journey when he was but a youth; for his
+father and the other elders sent him forth. Iphitus, on the other hand,
+was seeking horses; for twelve mares had been lost, which had as foals
+twelve hardy mules. These afterwards became the death and doom of Iphitus
+when he met the stalwart son of Zeus, the hero Hercules, who well knew
+deeds of daring; for Hercules slew Iphitus in his own house, although his
+guest, and recklessly did not regard the anger of the Gods nor yet the
+proffered table, but slew the man and kept at his own hall the
+strong-hoofed mares. It was when seeking these that Iphitus had met
+Ulysses and given the bow which in old days great Eurytus was wont to
+bear, and which on dying in his lofty hall he left his son. To Iphitus
+Ulysses gave a sharp-edged sword and a stout spear, as the beginning of a
+loving friendship. They never sat, however, at one another's table; ere
+that could be, the son of Zeus slew godlike Iphitus, the son of Eurytus,
+who gave the bow. Royal Ulysses, when going off to war in the black ships,
+would never take this bow. It always stood in its own place at home, as a
+memorial of his honored friend. In his own land he bore it.
+
+Now when the royal lady reached this room and stood on the oaken
+threshold,--which long ago the carpenter had smoothed with skill and
+leveled to the line, fitting the posts thereto and setting the shining
+doors,--then quickly from its ring she loosed the strap, thrust in the
+key, and with a careful aim shot back the door-bolts. As a bull roars when
+feeding in the field, so roared the goodly door touched by the key, and
+open flew before her. She stepped to a raised dais where stood some chests
+in which lay fragrant garments. Thence reaching up, she took from its peg
+the bow in the glittering case which held it. And now she sat her down and
+laid the case upon her lap, and loudly weeping drew her lord's bow forth.
+But when she had had her fill of tears and sighs, she hastened to the hall
+to meet the lordly suitors, bearing in hand the curved bow and the quiver
+for the arrows, and many grievous shafts were in it still. Beside her,
+damsels bore a box in which lay many a piece of steel and bronze,
+implements of her lord's for games like these. And when the royal lady
+reached the suitors, she stood beside a column of the strong-built roof,
+holding before her face her delicate wimple, the while a faithful damsel
+stood on either hand. And straightway she addressed the suitors, speaking
+thus:--
+
+"Hearken, you haughty suitors who beset this house, eating and drinking
+ever, now my husband is long gone; no word of excuse can you suggest
+except your wish to marry me and win me for your wife. Well then, my
+suitors,--since before you stands your prize,--I offer you the mighty bow
+of prince Ulysses; and whoever with his hands shall lightliest bend the
+bow and shoot through all twelve axes, him will I follow and forsake this
+home, this bridal home, so very beautiful and full of wealth, a place I
+think I ever shall remember, even in my dreams."
+
+So saying, she bade Eumæus, the noble swineherd, deliver to the suitors
+the bow and the gray steel. With tears Eumæus took the arms and laid them
+down before them. Near by, the neatherd also wept to see his master's bow.
+But Antinous rebuked them, and spoke to them and said,--
+
+"You stupid boors, who only mind the passing minute, wretched pair, what
+do you mean by shedding tears, troubling this lady's heart, when already
+her heart is prostrated with grief at losing her dear husband? Sit down
+and eat in silence, or else go forth and weep, but leave the bow behind, a
+dread ordeal for the suitors; for I am sure this polished bow will not be
+bent with ease. There is not a man of all now here so powerful as Ulysses.
+I saw him once myself, and well recall him, though I was then a child."
+
+He spoke, but in his breast his heart was hoping to draw the string and
+send an arrow through the steel; yet he was to be the first to taste the
+shaft of good Ulysses, whom he now wronged though seated in his hall,
+while to like outrage he encouraged all his comrades. To these now spoke
+revered Telemachus:--
+
+"Ha! Zeus the son of Cronos has made me play the fool! My mother--and wise
+she is--says she will follow some strange man and quit this house; and I
+but laugh and in my silly soul am glad. Come then, you suitors, since
+before you stands your prize, a lady whose like cannot be found throughout
+Achaian land, in sacred Pylos, Argos, or Mycenæ, in Ithaca itself, or the
+dark mainland, as you yourselves well know,--what needs my mother
+praise?--come then, delay not with excuse nor longer hesitate to bend the
+bow, but let us learn what is to be. I too might try the bow. And if I
+stretch it and send an arrow through the steel, then with no shame to me
+my honored mother may forsake this house and follow some one else, leaving
+me here behind; for I shall then be able to wield my father's arms."
+
+He spoke, and flung his red cloak from his shoulders, rising full height,
+and put away the sharp sword also from his shoulder. First then he set the
+axes, marking one long furrow for them all, aligned by cord. The earth on
+the two sides he stamped down flat. Surprise filled all beholders to see
+how properly he set them, though he had never seen the game before. Then
+he went and stood upon the threshold and began to try the bow. Three times
+he made it tremble as he sought to make it bend. Three times he slacked
+his strain, still hoping in his heart to draw the string and send an arrow
+through the steel. And now he might have drawn it by force of a fourth
+tug, had not Ulysses shaken his head and stayed the eager boy. So to the
+suitors once more spoke revered Telemachus:--
+
+"Fie! Shall I ever be a coward and a weakling, or am I still but young and
+cannot trust my arm to right me with the man who wrongs me first? But
+come, you who are stronger men than I, come try the bow and end the
+contest."
+
+So saying, he laid by the bow and stood it on the ground, leaning it on
+the firm-set polished door. The swift shaft, too, he likewise leaned
+against the bow's fair knob, and once more took the seat from which he
+first arose. Then said to them Antinous, Eupeithes' son,--
+
+"Rise up in order all, from left to right, beginning where the cupbearer
+begins to pour the wine."
+
+So said Antinous, and his saying pleased them. Then first arose Leiodes,
+son of Oenops, who was their soothsayer and had his place beside the
+goodly mixer, farthest along the hall. To him alone their lawlessness was
+hateful; he abhorred the suitor crowd. He it was now who first took up the
+bow and the swift shaft; and going to the threshold, he stood and tried
+the bow. He could not bend it. Tugging the string wearied his hands,--his
+soft, unhorny hands,--and to the suitors thus he spoke:--
+
+"No, friends, I cannot bend it. Let some other take the bow. Ah, many
+chiefs this bow shall rob of life and breath! Yet better far to die than
+live and still to fail in that for which we constantly are gathered,
+waiting expectantly from day to day! Now each man hopes and purposes at
+heart to win Penelope, Ulysses' wife. But when he shall have tried the bow
+and seen his failure, then to some other fair-robed woman of Achaia let
+each go, and offer her his suit and woo her with his gifts. So may
+Penelope marry the man who gives her most and comes with fate to favor!"
+
+When he had spoken, he laid by the bow, leaning it on the firm-set
+polished door. The swift shaft, too, he likewise leaned against the bow's
+fair knob, and once more took the seat from which he first arose. But
+Antinous rebuked him, and spoke to him, and said,--
+
+"Leiodes, what words have passed the barrier of your teeth? Strange words
+and harsh! Vexatious words to hear! As if this bow must rob our chiefs of
+life and breath because you cannot bend it! Why, your good mother did not
+bear you for a brandisher of bows and arrows. But others among the lordly
+suitors will bend it by and by."
+
+So saying, he gave an order to Melanthius, the goatherd: "Hasten,
+Melanthius, and light a fire in the hall and set a long bench near, with
+fleeces on it; then bring me the large cake of fat which lies inside the
+door, that after we have warmed the bow and greased it well, we young men
+may try the bow and end the contest."
+
+He spoke, and straightway Melanthius kindled a steady fire, and set a
+bench beside it with a fleece thereon, and brought out the large cake of
+fat which lay inside the door, and so the young men warmed the bow and
+made their trial. But yet they could not bend it; they fell far short of
+power. Antinous, however, still held back, and prince Eurymachus, who were
+the suitors' leaders; for they in manly excellence were quite the best of
+all.
+
+Meanwhile out of the house at the same moment came two men, princely
+Ulysses' herdsmen of the oxen and the swine; and after them came royal
+Ulysses also from the house. And when they were outside the gate, beyond
+the yard, speaking in gentle words Ulysses said,--
+
+"Neatherd, and you too, swineherd, may I tell a certain tale, or shall I
+hide it still? My heart bids me speak. How ready would you be to aid
+Ulysses if he should come from somewhere, thus, on a sudden, and a god
+should bring him home? Would you support the suitors or Ulysses? Speak
+freely, as your heart and spirit bid you speak."
+
+Then said to him the herdsman of the cattle, "O father Zeus, grant this my
+prayer! May he return and Heaven be his guide! Then shall you know what
+might is mine and how my hands obey."
+
+So prayed Eumæus too to all the Gods, that wise Ulysses might return to
+his own home. So when he knew with certainty the heart of each, finding
+his words once more Ulysses said,--
+
+"Lo, it is I, through many grievous toils now in the twentieth year come
+to my native land! And yet I know that of my servants none but you desire
+my coming. From all the rest I have not heard one prayer that I return. To
+you then I will truly tell what shall hereafter be. If God by me subdues
+the lordly suitors, I will obtain you wives and give you wealth and homes
+established near my own; and henceforth in my eyes you shall be friends
+and brethren of Telemachus. Come, then, and I will show you too a very
+trusty sign,--that you may know me certainly and be assured in heart,--the
+scar the boar dealt long ago with his white tusk, when I once journeyed to
+Parnassus with Autolycus's sons."
+
+So saying, he drew aside his rags from the great scar. And when the two
+beheld and understood it all, their tears burst forth; they threw their
+arms round wise Ulysses, and passionately kissed his face and neck. So
+likewise did Ulysses kiss their heads and hands. And daylight had gone
+down upon their weeping had not Ulysses stayed their tears and said,--
+
+"Have done with grief and wailing, or somebody in coming from the hall may
+see, and tell the tale indoors. Nay, go in one by one, not all together. I
+will go first, you after. And let this be agreed: the rest within, the
+lordly suitors, will not allow me to receive the bow and quiver. But,
+noble Eumæus, bring the bow along the room and lay it in my hands. Then
+tell the women to lock the hall's close-fitting doors; and if from their
+inner room they hear a moaning or a strife within our walls, let no one
+venture forth, but stay in silence at her work. And noble Philoetius, in
+your care I put the courtyard gates. Bolt with the bar and quickly lash
+the fastening."
+
+So saying, Ulysses made his way into the stately house, and went and took
+the seat from which he first arose. And soon the serving-men of princely
+Ulysses entered too.
+
+Now Eurymachus held the bow and turned it up and down, trying to heat it
+at the glowing fire. But still, with all his pains, he could not bend it;
+his proud soul groaned aloud. Then bitterly he spoke; these were the words
+he said,--
+
+"Ah! here is woe for me and woe for all! Not that I so much mourn missing
+the marriage, though vexed I am at that. Still, there are enough more
+women of Achaia, both here in sea-girt Ithaca and in the other cities. But
+if in strength we fall so short of princely Ulysses that we cannot bend
+his bow--oh, the disgrace for future times to know!"
+
+Then said Antinous, Eupeithes' son, "Not so, Eurymachus, and you yourself
+know better. To-day throughout the land is the archer-god's high feast.
+Who then could bend a bow? Nay, quietly lay it by; and for the axes, what
+if we leave them standing? Nobody. I am sure, will carry one away and
+trespass on the house of Laertes' son, Ulysses. Come then, and let the
+wine-pourer give pious portions to our cups, that after a libation we may
+lay aside curved bows. To-morrow morning tell Melanthius, the goatherd, to
+drive us here the choicest goats of all his flock; and we will set the
+thighs before the archer-god, Apollo, then try the bow and end the
+contest."
+
+So said Antinous, and his saying pleased them. Pages poured water on their
+hands; young men brimmed bowls with drink and served to all, with a first
+pious portion for the cups. And after they had poured and drunk as their
+hearts would, then in his subtlety said wise Ulysses,--
+
+"Hearken, you suitors of the illustrious queen, and let me tell you what
+the heart within me bids. I beg a special favor of Eurymachus, and great
+Antinous too; for his advice was wise, that you now drop the bow and leave
+the matter with the Gods, and in the morning God shall grant the power to
+whom he may. But give me now the polished bow, and let me in your presence
+prove my skill and power and see if I have yet such vigor left as once
+there was within my supple limbs, or whether wanderings and neglect have
+ruined all."
+
+At these his words all were exceeding wroth, fearing that he might bend
+the polished bow. But Antinous rebuked him, and spoke to him and said,
+"You scurvy stranger, with not a whit of sense, are you not satisfied to
+eat in peace with us, your betters, unstinted in your food and hearing all
+we say? Nobody else, stranger or beggar, hears our talk. 'Tis wine that
+goads you, honeyed wine, a thing that has brought others trouble, when
+taken greedily and drunk without due measure. Wine crazed the Centaur,
+famed Eurytion, at the house of bold Peirithous, on his visit to the
+Lapithæ. And when his wits were crazed with wine, he madly wrought foul
+outrage on the household of Peirithous. So indignation seized the heroes.
+Through the porch and out of doors they rushed, dragging Eurytion forth,
+shorn by the pitiless sword of ears and nose. Crazed in his wits, he went
+his way, bearing in his bewildered heart the burden of his guilt. And
+hence arose a feud between the Centaurs and mankind; but the beginning of
+the woe he himself caused by wine. Even so I prophesy great harm to you,
+if you shall bend the bow. No kindness will you meet from any in our land,
+but we will send you by black ship straight to King Echetus, the bane of
+all mankind, out of whose hands you never shall come clear. Be quiet,
+then, and take your drink! Do not presume to vie with younger men!"
+
+Then said to him heedful Penelope, "Antinous, it is neither honorable nor
+fitting to worry strangers who may reach this palace of Telemachus. Do you
+suppose the stranger, if he bends the great bow of Ulysses, confident in
+his skill and strength of arm, will lead me home and take me for his wife?
+He in his inmost soul imagines no such thing. Let none of you sit at the
+table disturbed by such a thought; for that could never, never, be!"
+
+Then answered her Eurymachus, the son of Polybus, "Daughter of Icarius,
+heedful Penelope, we do not think the man will marry you. Of course that
+could not be. And yet we dread the talk of men and women, and fear that
+one of the baser sort of the Achaians say,'Men far inferior sue for a good
+man's wife, and cannot bend his polished bow. But somebody else--a
+wandering beggar--came, and easily bent the bow and sent an arrow through
+the steel.' This they will say, to us a shame indeed."
+
+Then said to him heedful Penelope, "Eurymachus, men cannot be in honor in
+the land and rudely rob the household of their prince. Why, then, count
+this a shame? The stranger is right tall, and well-knit too, and calls
+himself the son of a good father. Give him the polished bow, and let us
+see. For this I tell you, and it shall be done: if he shall bend it and
+Apollo grants his prayer, I will clothe him in a coat and tunic, goodly
+garments, give him a pointed spear to keep off dogs and men, a two-edged
+sword, and sandals for his feet, and I will send him where his heart and
+soul may bid him go."
+
+Then answered her discreet Telemachus, "My mother, no Achaian has better
+right than I to give or to refuse the bow to any as I will. And out of all
+who rule in rocky Ithaca, or in the islands off toward grazing Elis, none
+may oppose my will, even if I wished to put the bows into the stranger's
+hands and let him take them once for all away. Then seek your chamber and
+attend to matters of your own,--the loom, the distaff,--and bid the women
+ply their tasks. Bows are for men, for all, especially for me; for power
+within this house rests here."
+
+Amazed, she turned to her own room again, for the wise saying of her son
+she laid to heart. And coming to the upper chamber with her maids, she
+there bewailed Ulysses, her dear husband, till on her lids clear-eyed
+Athene caused a sweet sleep to fall.
+
+Meanwhile the noble swineherd, taking the curved bow, was bearing it away.
+But the suitors all broke into uproar in the hall, and a rude youth would
+say, "Where are you carrying the curved bow, you miserable swineherd?
+Crazy fool! Soon out among the swine, away from men, swift dogs shall eat
+you,--dogs you yourself have bred,--will but Apollo and the other
+deathless Gods be gracious!" At these their words the bearer of the bow
+laid it down where he stood, frightened because the crowd within the hall
+cried out upon him. But from the other side Telemachus called threatening
+aloud, "Nay, father! Carry on the bow! You cannot well heed all. Take
+care, or I, a nimbler man than you, will drive you to the fields with
+pelting stones. Superior in strength I am to you. Ah, would I were as much
+beyond the others in the house, beyond these suitors, in my skill and
+strength of arm! Then would I soon send somebody away in sorrow from my
+house; for men work evil here."
+
+He spoke, and all burst into merry laughter and laid aside their bitter
+anger with Telemachus. And so the swineherd, bearing the bow along the
+hall, drew near to wise Ulysses and put it in his hands; then calling
+aside nurse Eurycleia, thus he said,--
+
+"Telemachus bids you, heedful Eurycleia, to lock the hall's close-fitting
+doors; and if a woman from the inner room hears moaning or a strife within
+our walls, let her not venture forth, but stay in silence at her work."
+
+Such were his words; unwinged, they rested with her. She locked the doors
+of the stately hall. Then silently from the house Philoetius stole forth
+and straightway barred the gates of the fenced court. Beneath the portico
+there lay a curved ship's cable, made of biblus plant. With this he lashed
+the gates, then passed indoors himself, and went and took the seat from
+which he first arose, eyeing Ulysses. Now Ulysses already held the bow and
+turned it round and round, trying it here and there to see if worms had
+gnawed the horn while its lord was far away. And glancing at his neighbor
+one would say,--
+
+"A sort of fancier and a trickster with the bow this fellow is. No doubt
+at home he has himself a bow like that, or means to make one like it. See
+how he turns it in his hands this way and that, ready for
+mischief,--rascal!"
+
+Then would another rude youth answer thus: "Oh, may he always meet with
+luck as good as when he is unable now to bend the bow!"
+
+So talked the suitors. Meantime wise Ulysses, when he had handled the
+great bow and scanned it closely,--even as one well skilled to play the
+lyre and sing stretches with ease round its new peg a string, securing at
+each end the twisted sheep-gut, so without effort did Ulysses string the
+mighty bow. Holding it now with his right hand, he tried its cord; and
+clear to the touch it sang, voiced like the swallow. Great consternation
+came upon the suitors. All faces then changed color. Zeus thundered loud
+for signal. And glad was long-tried royal Ulysses to think the son of
+crafty Cronos had sent an omen. He picked up a swift shaft which lay
+beside him on the table, drawn. Within the hollow quiver still remained
+the rest, which the Achaians soon should prove. Then laying the arrow on
+the arch, he drew the string and arrow notches, and forth from the bench
+on which he sat let fly the shaft, with careful aim, and did not miss an
+axe's ring from first to last, but clean through all sped on the
+bronze-tipped arrow; and to Telemachus he said,--
+
+"Telemachus, the guest now sitting in your hall brings you no shame. I did
+not miss my mark, nor in the bending of the bow make a long labor. My
+strength is sound as ever, not what the mocking suitors here despised. But
+it is time for the Achaians to make supper ready, while it is daylight
+still; and then for us in other ways to make them sport,--with dance and
+lyre; for these attend a feast."
+
+He spoke and frowned the sign. His sharp sword then Telemachus girt on,
+the son of princely Ulysses clasped his right hand around his spear, and
+close beside his father's seat he took his stand, armed with the gleaming
+bronze.
+
+
+
+
+C. THE SLAYING OF THE SUITORS
+
+By F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+
+
+Ulysses sprang to the great threshold with the bow and quiver in his hand.
+He poured out the arrows at his feet, and shouted to the princes, "So ends
+the game you could not play! Now for another mark which no man has ever
+hit before!"
+
+With that he shot at Antinous. He, as it chanced, was just lifting a
+golden cup from the board, never dreaming that death would meet him there
+with all his comrades round him at the feast. But before the wine touched
+his lips the arrow struck him in the throat, and the cup dropped from his
+hand, and he fell dying to the floor. The princes sprang to their feet
+when they saw their comrade fallen, and looked round the walls for armor,
+but there was not a spear or shield to be found. Then they turned in fury
+on Ulysses: "Madman, are you shooting at men? You have slain the noblest
+youth in Ithaca, and you shall not live to draw bow again."
+
+But Ulysses faced them sternly and said, "Dogs, you thought that I should
+never return. You have rioted in my home, and outraged the women of my
+household, and you have wooed my own wife while I was yet a living man.
+You took no thought for the Gods who rule in heaven, nor for the
+indignation of men in days hereafter. Now your time is come."
+
+All grew pale as he spoke, and Eurymachus alone found words: "If you are
+in truth King Ulysses, your words are just; there have been many shameful
+deeds done upon your lands and in your house. But Antinous, who was the
+cause of all, lies dead; it was he who lead us on, hoping that he might
+take your kingdom for himself. Spare us now that he has met his doom, for
+we are your own people; and we will make you full atonement for all that
+has been eaten and drunk in your halls."
+
+"Eurymachus, you might give me all you have, but even then I would not
+hold my hands until I had taken vengeance for every wrong. You have your
+choice. Fight, or fly, if you think that flight can save you."
+
+At that their knees shook beneath them, but Eurymachus cried, "Comrades,
+this man will have no mercy. He has got the bow in his hands, and he will
+shoot us down from the threshold, so long as there is one of us left
+alive. Draw your swords, and guard yourselves, with the tables; and let us
+all set upon him at once and drive him from the doorway. If we can reach
+the city, we are safe."
+
+As he spoke he drew his sword and sprang forward with a cry; and at the
+same moment Ulysses shot. The arrow struck him in the breast, and he
+dropped forward over the table, while the mist of death sank upon his
+eyes. Then Amphinomus made a rush on the doorway. But Telemachus was too
+quick for him; he hurled his spear and struck him from behind between the
+shoulders, and he fell crashing on the floor. Telemachus sprang back,
+leaving the spear, for he dared not wait to draw it out. He darted to his
+father's side. "Father, we ought to have armor; I will go and get weapons
+for us."
+
+"Run and bring them," said. Ulysses, "while I have arrows left; when these
+are gone I cannot hold the doorway against them all."
+
+So Telemachus ran to the armory and hurried back with helmets and shields
+and spears; and he armed himself and made the two servants do the same,
+and they took their stand beside the king. While the arrows lasted,
+Ulysses shot, and struck down the wooers man by man. And then he leant the
+bow against the doorpost, and slung the shield about him and put on the
+helmet and took two spears in his hand.
+
+Now there was a postern in the hall, close beside the great doorway and
+opening on the corridor. Ulysses had put the swineherd to guard it, and
+now the boldest of the suitors said to the rest, "Could not some of us
+force a passage there and raise the cry for rescue?"
+
+"Little use in that," said Melanthius, "the great doorway is too close,
+and one brave man might stop us all before we reached the court. I have a
+better plan. Ulysses and his son have stowed away the weapons, and I think
+I know where they are. I will go and fetch you what you need."
+
+With these words he clambered up through the lights of the hall and got
+into the armory, and fetched out twelve shields and as many spears and
+helmets, and brought them to the princes. The heart of Ulysses misgave him
+when he saw the armor and the long spears in their hands; and he felt that
+the fight would go hard, and said to Telemachus, "Melanthius or one of the
+women has betrayed us."
+
+"Father, it was my fault," said Telemachus; "I left the door of the armory
+open, and one of them must have kept sharper watch than I did. Go, Eumæus,
+make fast the door, and see whether this is the doing of Melanthius, as I
+guess."
+
+While they spoke, Melanthius went again to fetch more armor, and the
+swineherd spied him and said, "There is the villain going to the armory,
+as we thought; tell me, shall I kill him, if I can master him, or shall I
+bring him here to suffer for his sins?" "Telemachus and I will guard the
+doorway here," said Ulysses, "and you and the shepherd shall bind him hand
+and foot and leave him in the chamber to wait his doom."
+
+So the two went up to the armory, and stood in wait on either side of the
+door; and as Melanthius came out, they leapt upon him and dragged him back
+by the hair and flung him on the ground and bound him tightly to a pillar
+hand and foot. "Lie there," said Eumæus, "and take your ease: the dawn
+will not find you sleeping, when it is time for you to rise and drive out
+your goats." With that they went back to join Ulysses, and the four stood
+together at the threshold,--four men against a host.
+
+Then Athene came among them in the likeness of Mentor, and Ulysses knew
+her and rejoiced. "Mentor," he shouted, "help me in my need, for we are
+comrades from of old." And the wooers sent up another shout, "Do not
+listen to him, Mentor; or your turn will come when he is slain." But
+Athene taunted Ulysses and spurred him to the fight: "Have you lost your
+strength and courage, Ulysses? It was not thus you did battle for Helen in
+the ten years' war at Troy. Is it so hard to face the suitors in your own
+house and home? Come, stand by me, and see if Mentor forgets old
+friendship." Yet she left the victory still uncertain, that she might
+prove his courage to the full. She turned herself into a swallow and flew
+up into the roof and perched on a blackened rafter overhead.
+
+Then the wooers took courage, when they saw that Mentor was gone, and that
+the four stood alone in the doorway. And one of them said to the rest,
+"Let six of us hurl our spears together at Ulysses. If once he falls,
+there will be little trouble with the rest." So they flung their spears as
+he bade them; but all of them missed the mark. Then Ulysses gave the word
+to his men, and they all took steady aim and threw, and each one killed
+his man; and the wooers fell back into the farther end of the hall, while
+the four dashed on together and drew out their spears from the bodies of
+the slain. Once more the suitors hurled, and Telemachus and the swineherd
+were wounded; but the other spears fell wide. Then at last Athene lifted
+her shield of war high overhead,--the shield that brings death to
+men,--and panic seized the wooers, and they fled through the hall like a
+drove of cattle when the gadfly stings them. But the four leapt on them
+like vultures swooping from the clouds; and they fled left and right
+through the hall, but there was no escape.
+
+Only Phemius, the minstrel, whom the wooers had forced to sing before
+them, sprang forward and clasped the knees of Ulysses and said, "Have
+mercy on me, Ulysses: you would not slay a minstrel, who gladdens the
+hearts of Gods and men? The princes forced me here against my will."
+
+And Telemachus heard and said to his father, "Do not hurt him, for he is
+not to blame: and let us save the herald too, if he is yet alive, for he
+took care of me when I was a child."
+
+Now the herald had hidden himself under a stool and pulled an ox-hide over
+him, and when he heard this he crept out and clasped the knees of
+Telemachus and begged that he would plead for him. "Have no fear," said
+Ulysses; "my son has saved your life. Go out, you and the minstrel, and
+wait in the courtyard, for I have other work to do within." So the two
+went out into the courtyard, and sat down beside the altar, looking for
+their death each moment.
+
+Then Ulysses searched through the hall, to see if any one was yet lurking
+alive. But they all lay round him fallen in the dust and blood, heaped
+upon each other like fishes on a sunny beach when the fisherman has drawn
+his net to land. Then he told Telemachus to call out the old nurse
+Eurycleia. She came and found Ulysses standing among the bodies of the
+slain, with his hands and feet all stained with blood, and she was ready
+to shout aloud for triumph when she saw the great work accomplished. But
+Ulysses checked her cry and said, "Keep your joy unspoken, old nurse;
+there should be no shout of triumph over the slain. It is the judgment of
+Heaven that has repaid them for the evil deeds they did."
+
+Then he gave orders that the bodies of the dead should be carried out and
+that the blood should be washed away. And when this was done he turned to
+Eurycleia and said, "Bring fire and sulphur now and I will purify the
+hall. Then bid Penelope meet me here."
+
+"Yes, my child," said the old nurse, "I will obey you. But let me bring
+you a mantle first: it is not fitting that you should stand here with only
+your rags to cover you." But Ulysses said that she must do his bidding at
+once. So she brought sulphur and lit a fire, and Ulysses purified the
+hall.
+
+
+
+
+D. PENELOPE RECOGNIZES ULYSSES
+
+Translated by George Herbert Palmer
+
+
+The old woman, full of glee, went to the upper chamber to tell her
+mistress her dear lord was in the house. Her knees grew strong; her feet
+outran themselves. By Penelope's head she paused, and thus she spoke:--
+
+"Awake, Penelope, dear child, to see with your own eyes what you have
+hoped to see this many a day! Ulysses is here! He has come home at last,
+and slain the haughty suitors, the men who vexed his house, devoured his
+substance, and oppressed his son."
+
+Then heedful Penelope said to her, "Dear nurse, the Gods have crazed you.
+They can befool one who is very wise, and often they have set the simple
+in the paths of prudence. They have confused you; you were sober-minded
+heretofore. Why mock me when my heart is full of sorrow, telling wild
+tales like these? And why arouse me from the sleep that sweetly bound me
+and kept my eyelids closed? I have not slept so soundly since Ulysses went
+away to see accursed Ilium,--name never to be named. Nay then, go down,
+back to the hall. If any other of my maids had come and told me this and
+waked me out of sleep, I would soon have sent her off in sorry wise into
+the hall once more. This time age serves you well."
+
+Then said to her the good nurse Eurycleia, "Dear child, I do not mock you.
+In very truth it is Ulysses; he is come, as I have said. He is the
+stranger whom everybody in the hall has set at naught. Telemachus knew
+long ago that he was here, but out of prudence hid his knowledge of his
+father till he should have revenge from those bold men for wicked deeds."
+
+So spoke she; and Penelope was glad, and, springing from her bed, fell on
+the woman's neck, and let the tears burst from her eyes; and, speaking in
+winged words, she said,--
+
+"Nay, tell me, then, dear nurse, and tell me truly; if he is really come
+as you declare, how was it he laid hands upon the shameless suitors, being
+alone, while they were always here together?"
+
+Then answered her the good nurse Eurycleia, "I did not see; I did not ask;
+I only heard the groans of dying men. In a corner of our protected chamber
+we sat and trembled,--the doors were tightly closed,--until your son
+Telemachus called to me from the hall; for his father bade him call. And
+there among the bodies of the slain I found Ulysses standing. All around,
+covering the trodden floor, they lay, one on another. It would have warmed
+your heart to see him, like a lion, dabbled with blood and gore. Now all
+the bodies are collected at the courtyard gate, while he is fumigating the
+fair house by lighting a great fire. He sent me here to call you. Follow
+me, then, that you may come to gladness in your true hearts together, for
+sorely have you suffered. Now the long hope has been at last fulfilled. He
+has come back alive to his own hearth, and found you still, you and his
+son, within his hall; and upon those who did him wrong, the suitors, on
+all of them here in his home he has obtained revenge."
+
+Then heedful Penelope said to her, "Dear nurse, be not too boastful yet,
+nor filled with glee. You know how welcome here the sight of him would be
+to all, and most to me and to the son we had. But this is no true tale you
+tell. Nay, rather some immortal slew the lordly suitors, in anger at their
+galling insolence and wicked deeds; for they respected nobody on earth,
+bad man or good, who came among them. So for their sins they suffered. But
+Ulysses, far from Achaia, lost the hope of coming home; nay, he himself
+was lost."
+
+Then answered her the good nurse Eurycleia, "My child, what word has
+passed the barrier of your teeth, to say your husband, who is now beside
+your hearth, will never come! Your heart is always doubting. Come, then,
+and let me name another sign most sure,--the scar the boar dealt long ago
+with his white tusk. I found it as I washed him, and I would have told you
+then; but he laid his hand upon my mouth, and in his watchful wisdom would
+not let me speak. But follow me. I stake my very life; if I deceive you,
+slay me by the vilest death."
+
+Then heedful Penelope answered her, "Dear nurse, 'tis hard for you to
+trace the counsels of the everlasting Gods, however wise you are.
+Nevertheless, let us go down to meet my son, and see the suitors who are
+dead, and him who slew them."
+
+So saying, she went from her chamber to the hall, and much her heart
+debated whether aloof to question her dear husband, or to draw near and
+kiss his face and take his hand. But when she entered, crossing the stone
+threshold, she sat down opposite Ulysses, in the firelight, beside the
+farther wall. He sat by a tall pillar, looking down, waiting to hear if
+his stately wife would speak when she should look his way. But she sat
+silent long; amazement filled her heart. Now she would gaze with a long
+look upon his face, and now she would not know him for the mean clothes
+that he wore. But Telemachus rebuked her, and spoke to her and said,--
+
+"Mother, hard mother, of ungentle heart, why do you hold aloof so from my
+father, and do not sit beside him, plying him with words and questions?
+There is no other woman of such stubborn spirit to stand off from the
+husband who, after many grievous toils, comes in the twentieth year home
+to his native land. Your heart is always harder than a stone!"
+
+Then said to him heedful Penelope, "My child, my soul within is dazed with
+wonder. I cannot speak to him, nor ask a question, nor look him in the
+face. But if this indeed is Ulysses, come at last, we certainly shall know
+each other better than others know; for we have signs which we two
+understand,--signs hidden from the rest."
+
+As she, long tried, spoke thus, royal Ulysses smiled, and said to
+Telemachus forthwith in winged words, "Telemachus, leave your mother in
+the hall to try my truth. She soon will know me better. Now, because I am
+foul and dressed in sorry clothes, she holds me in dishonor, and says I am
+not he. But you and I have yet to plan how all may turn out well. For
+whoso kills one man among a tribe, though the man leaves few champions
+behind, becomes an exile, quitting kin and country. We have destroyed the
+pillars of the state, the very noblest youths of Ithaca. Form, then, a
+plan, I pray."
+
+Then answered him discreet Telemachus, "Look you to that, dear father.
+Your wisdom is, they say, the best among mankind. No mortal man can rival
+you. Zealously will we follow, and not fail, I think, in daring, so far as
+power is ours."
+
+Then wise Ulysses answered him and said, "Then I will tell you what seems
+best to me. First wash and put on tunics, and bid the maids about the
+house array themselves. Then let the sacred bard with tuneful lyre lead us
+in sportive dancing, that men may say, hearing us from without, 'It is a
+wedding,' whether such men be passers-by or neighboring folk; and so broad
+rumor may not reach the town about the suitors' murder till we are gone to
+our well-wooded farm. There will we plan as the Olympian shall grant us
+wisdom."
+
+So he spoke, and willingly they heeded and obeyed. For first they washed
+themselves and put on tunics, and the women also put on their attire. And
+then the noble bard took up his hollow lyre, and in them stirred desire
+for merry music and the gallant dance; and the great house resounded to
+the tread of lusty men and gay-girt women. And one who heard the dancing
+from without would say, "Well, well! some man has married the long-courted
+queen. Hard-hearted! For the husband of her youth she would not guard her
+great house to the end, till he should come." So they would say, but knew
+not how things were.
+
+Meanwhile within the house Eurynome, the housekeeper, bathed resolute
+Ulysses and anointed him with oil, and on him put a goodly robe and tunic.
+Upon his face Athene cast great beauty; she made him taller than before,
+and stouter to behold, and made the curling locks to fall round his head
+as on the hyacinth flower. As when a man lays gold on silver,--some
+skillful man whom Vulcan and Pallas Athene have trained in every art, and
+he fashions graceful work, so did she cast a grace upon his head and
+shoulders. Forth from the bath he came, in bearing like the Immortals, and
+once more took the seat from which he first arose, facing his wife, and
+spoke to her these words:--
+
+"Lady, a heart impenetrable beyond the sex of women the dwellers on
+Olympus gave to you. There is no other woman of such stubborn spirit to
+stand off from the husband who, after many grievous toils, comes in the
+twentieth year home to his native land. Come, then, good nurse, and make
+my bed, that I may lie alone. For certainly of iron is the heart within
+her breast."
+
+Then said to him heedful Penelope, "Nay, sir, I am not proud, nor
+contemptuous of you, nor too much dazed with wonder. I very well remember
+what you were when you went upon your long-oared ship away from Ithaca.
+However, Eurycleia, make up his massive bed outside that stately chamber
+which he himself once built. Move the massive frame out there, and throw
+the bedding on,--the fleeces, robes, and bright-hued rugs."
+
+She said this in the hope to prove her husband, but Ulysses spoke in anger
+to his faithful wife: "Woman, these are bitter words which you have said!
+Who set my bed elsewhere? A hard task that would be for one, however
+skilled,--unless a god should come and by his will set it with ease upon
+some other spot; but among men no living being, even in his prime, could
+lightly shift it; for a great token is inwrought into its curious frame. I
+built it; no one else. There grew a thick-leaved olive shrub inside the
+yard, full-grown and vigorous, in girth much like a pillar. Round this I
+formed my chamber, and I worked till it was done, building it out of
+close-set stones, and roofing it over well. Framed and tight-fitting doors
+I added to it. Then I lopped the thick-leaved olive's crest, cutting the
+stem high up above the roots, neatly and skillfully smoothed with my axe
+the sides, and to the line I kept all true to shape my post, and with an
+auger I bored it all along. Starting with this, I fashioned me the bed
+till it was finished, and I inlaid it well with gold, with silver, and
+with ivory. On it I stretched a thong of ox-hide, gay with purple. This is
+the token I now tell. I do not know whether the bed still stands there,
+wife, or whether somebody has set it elsewhere, cutting the olive trunk."
+
+As he spoke thus, her knees grew feeble and her very soul, when she
+recognized the tokens which Ulysses exactly told. Then bursting into
+tears, she ran straight toward him, threw her arms round Ulysses' neck and
+kissed his face, and said,--
+
+"Ulysses, do not scorn me! Ever before, you were the wisest of mankind.
+The Gods have sent us sorrow, and grudged our staying side by side to
+share the joys of youth and reach the threshold of old age. But do not be
+angry with me now, nor take it ill that then when I first saw you I did
+not greet you thus; for the heart within my breast was always trembling. I
+feared some man might come and cheat me with his tale. Many a man makes
+wicked schemes for gain. Nay, Argive Helen, the daughter of Zeus, would
+not have given herself to love a stranger if she had known how warrior
+sons of the Achaians would bring her home again, back to her native land.
+And yet it was a god prompted her deed of shame. Before, she did not
+cherish in her heart such sin, such grievous sin, from which began the woe
+which stretched to us. But now, when you have clearly told the tokens of
+our bed, which no one else has seen, but only you and I and the single
+servant, Actoris, whom my father gave me on my coming here to keep the
+door of our closed chamber,--you make even my ungentle heart believe."
+
+So she spoke, and stirred still more his yearning after tears; and he
+began to weep, holding his loved and faithful wife. As when the welcome
+land appears to swimmers, whose sturdy ship Neptune wrecked at sea,
+confounded by the winds and solid waters; a few escape the foaming sea and
+swim ashore; thick salt foam crusts their flesh; they climb the welcome
+land, and are escaped from danger; so welcome to her gazing eyes appeared
+her husband. From round his neck she never let her white arms go. And
+rosy-fingered dawn had found them weeping, but a different plan the
+goddess formed, clear-eyed Athene. She checked the long night in its
+passage, and at the ocean-stream she stayed the gold-throned dawn, and did
+not suffer it to yoke the swift-paced horses which carry light to men,
+Lampus and Phaethon, which bear the dawn. And now to his wife said wise
+Ulysses,--
+
+"O wife, we have not reached the end of all our trials yet. Hereafter
+comes a task immeasurable, long and severe, which I must needs fulfill;
+for so the spirit of Tiresias told me, that day when I descended to the
+house of Hades to learn about the journey of my comrades and myself. But
+come, my wife, let us to bed, that there at last we may refresh ourselves
+with pleasant sleep."
+
+Then said to him heedful Penelope, "The bed shall be prepared whenever
+your heart wills, now that the Gods have let you reach your stately house
+and native land. But since you speak of this, and God inspires your heart,
+come, tell that trial. In time to come, I know, I shall experience it. To
+learn about it now, makes it no worse."
+
+Then wise Ulysses answered her and said, "Lady, why urge me so insistently
+to tell? Well, I will speak it out; I will not hide it. Yet your heart
+will feel no joy; I have no joy myself; for Tiresias bade me go to many a
+peopled town, bearing in hand a shapely oar, till I should reach the men
+that know no sea and do not eat food mixed with salt. These, therefore,
+have no knowledge of the red-cheeked ships, nor of the shapely oars which
+are the wings of ships. And this was the sign, he said, easy to be
+observed. I will not hide it from you. When another traveler, meeting me,
+should say I had a winnowing-fan on my white shoulder, there in the ground
+he bade me fix my oar and make fit offerings to lord Neptune,--a ram, a
+bull, and the sow's mate, a boar,--and, turning homeward, to offer sacred
+hecatombs to the immortal gods who hold the open sky, all in the order
+due. And on myself death from the sea shall very gently come and cut me
+off, bowed down with hale old age. Round me shall be a prosperous people.
+All this, he said, should be fulfilled."
+
+Then said to him heedful Penelope, "If gods can make old age the better
+time, then there is hope there will be rest from trouble."
+
+So they conversed together. Meanwhile, Eurynome and the nurse prepared
+their bed with clothing soft, under the light of blazing torches. And
+after they had spread the comfortable bed, with busy speed, the old woman
+departed to her room to rest; while the chamber-servant, Eurynome, with
+torch in hand, walked on before, as they two came to bed. She brought them
+to their chamber, and then she went her way. So they came gladly to their
+old bed's rites. And now Telemachus, the neatherd, and the swineherd
+stayed their feet from dancing, and bade the women stay, and all betook
+themselves to rest throughout the dusky halls.
+
+So when the pair had joyed in happy love, they joyed in talking too, each
+one relating; she, the royal lady, what she endured at home, watching the
+wasteful throng of suitors, who, making excuse of her, slew many cattle,
+beeves, and sturdy sheep, and stores of wine were drained from out the
+casks; he, high-born Ulysses, what miseries he brought on other men and
+what he bore himself in anguish,--all he told, and she was glad to listen.
+No sleep fell on her eyelids till he had told her all.
+
+He began with how at first he conquered the Ciconians, and came thereafter
+to the fruitful land of Lotus-Eaters; then what the Cyclops did, and how
+he took revenge for the brave comrades whom the Cyclops ate, and never
+pitied; then how he came to Æolus, who gave him hearty welcome and sent
+him on his way; but it was fated that he should not reach his dear land
+yet, for a sweeping storm bore him once more along the swarming sea,
+loudly lamenting; how he came to Telepylus in Læstrygonia, where the men
+destroyed his ships and his mailed comrades, all of them; Ulysses fled in
+his black ship alone. He told of Circe, too, and all her crafty guile; and
+how on a ship of many oars he came to the mouldering house of Hades, there
+to consult the spirit of Teiresias of Thebes, and looked on all his
+comrades, and on the mother who had borne him and cared for him when
+little; how he had heard the full-voiced Sirens' song; how he came to the
+Wandering Rocks, to dire Charybdis and to Scylla, past whom none goes
+unharmed; how then his crew slew the Sun's kine; how Zeus with a blazing
+bolt smote his swift ship,--Zeus, thundering from on high,--and his good
+comrades perished, utterly, all, while he escaped their evil doom; how he
+came to the island of Ogygia and to the nymph Calypso, who held him in her
+hollow grotto, wishing him to be her husband, cherishing him, and saying
+she would make him an immortal, young forever, but she never beguiled the
+heart within his breast; then how he came through many toils to the
+Phæacians, who honored him exceedingly, as if he were a god, and brought
+him on his way to his native land, giving him stores of bronze and gold
+and clothing. This was the latest tale he told, when pleasant sleep fell
+on him, easing his limbs and from his heart removing care.
+
+
+
+
+THE WANDERINGS OF THE TROJAN ÆNEAS
+
+
+THE FLIGHT OF ÆNEAS FROM THE RUINS OF TROY
+
+By Alfred J. Church
+
+
+Æneas, a famous Trojan warrior, fought bravely as long as the city stood;
+but when it had fallen, he bethought himself of his father Anchises, and
+his wife Creusa, and of his little son Ascanius, and how he had left them
+without defense at home. But as he turned to seek them, the night being
+now, by reason of many fires, as clear as the day, he espied Helen sitting
+in the temple of Vesta, where she had sought sanctuary; for she feared the
+men of Troy, to whom she had brought ruin and destruction, and not less
+her own husband, whom she had deceived. Then was his wrath kindled, and he
+spake to himself, "Shall this evil woman return safe to Sparta? Shall she
+see again her home and her children, with Trojan women forsooth to be her
+handmaidens? Shall Troy be burnt and King Priam be slain, and she take no
+harm? Not so; for though there be no glory to be won from such a deed, yet
+shall I satisfy myself, taking vengeance upon her for my kinsmen and my
+countrymen." But while he thought these things in his heart, lo! there
+appeared unto him Venus, his mother, made manifest as he had never seen
+her before, as fair and as tall as the dwellers in heaven behold her. Then
+Venus spake thus: "What meaneth all this rage, my son? Hast thou no care
+for me? Hast thou forgotten thy father Anchises, and thy wife, and thy
+little son? Of a surety the fire and the sword had consumed them long
+since but that I cared for them and saved them. It is not Helen, no, nor
+Paris, that hath laid low this great city of Troy, but the wrath of the
+Gods. See now, for I will take away the mist that covers thine eyes; see
+how Neptune with his trident is overthrowing the walls and rooting up the
+city from its foundations; and how Juno stands with spear and shield in
+the Scæan Gate and calls fresh hosts from the ships; and how Pallas sits
+on the height with the storm-cloud about her and her Gorgon shield; and
+how Father Jupiter himself stirs up the enemy against Troy. Fly,
+therefore, my son. I will not leave thee till thou shalt reach thy
+father's house." And as she spake she vanished in the darkness.
+
+Then did Æneas see dreadful forms and gods who were enemies of Troy, and
+before his eyes the whole city seemed to sink down into the fire. Even as
+a mountain oak upon the hills on which the woodmen ply their axes bows its
+head while all its boughs shake about it, till at last, as blow comes
+after blow, with a mighty groan it falls crashing down from the height,
+even so the city seemed to fall. Then did Æneas pass on his way, the
+goddess leading him, and the flames gave place to him, and the javelins
+harmed him not.
+
+But when he was come to his house he bethought him first of the old man
+his father; but when he would have carried him to the hills, Anchises
+would not, being loath to live in some strange country when Troy had
+perished. "Nay," said he, "fly ye who are strong and in the flower of your
+days. But as for me, if the Gods had willed that I should live, they had
+saved this dwelling for me. Enough it is, yea, and more than enough, that
+once I have seen this city taken, and lived. Bid me, then, farewell as
+though I were dead. Death will I find for myself. And truly I have long
+lingered here a useless stock and hated of the Gods, since Jupiter smote
+me with the blast of his thunder."
+
+Nor could the old man be moved from his purpose, though his son and his
+son's wife, and even the child Ascanius, besought him with many tears that
+he should not make yet heavier the doom that was upon them. Then was Æneas
+minded to go back to the battle and die. For what hope was left?
+"Thoughtest thou, my father," he cried, "that I should flee and leave thee
+behind? What evil word is this that has fallen from thy lips? If the Gods
+will have it that nought of Troy should be left, and thou be minded that
+thou and thine should perish with the city, be it so. The way is easy;
+soon will Pyrrhus be here: Pyrrhus, red with Priam's blood; Pyrrhus, who
+slays the son before the face of the father, and the father at the altar.
+Was it for this, kind Mother Venus, that thou broughtest me safe through
+fire and sword, to see the enemy in my home, and my father and my wife and
+my son lying slaughtered together? Comrades, give me my arms, and take me
+back to the battle. At the least I will die avenged."
+
+But as he girded on his arms and would have departed from the house, his
+wife Creusa caught his feet upon the threshold, staying him, and held out
+the little Ascanius, saying, "If thou goest to thy death, take wife and
+child with thee; but if thou hopest aught from arms, guard first the house
+where thou hast father and wife and child."
+
+And lo! as she spake there befell a mighty marvel, for before the face of
+father and mother there was seen to shine a light on the head of the boy
+Ascanius, and to play upon his waving hair and glitter on his temples. And
+when they feared to see this thing, and would have stifled the flame or
+quenched it with water, the old man Anchises in great joy raised his eyes
+to heaven, and cried aloud, "O Father Jupiter, if prayer move thee at all,
+give thine aid and make this omen sure." And even as he spake the thunder
+rolled on his left hand, and a star shot through the skies, leaving a long
+trail of light behind, and passed over the house-tops till it was hidden
+in the woods of Ida. Then the old man lifted himself up and did obeisance
+to the star, and said, "I delay no more: whithersoever ye lead I will
+follow. Gods of my country, save my house and my grandson. This omen is of
+you. And now, my son, I refuse not to go."
+
+Then said Æneas, and as he spake the fire came nearer, and the light was
+clearer to see, and the heat more fierce, "Climb, dear father, on my
+shoulders; I will bear thee, nor grow weary with the weight. We will be
+saved or perish together. The little Ascanius shall go with me, and my
+wife follow behind, not over near. And ye, servants of my house, hearken
+to me; ye mind how that to one who passes out of the city there is a tomb
+and a temple of Ceres in a lonely place, and an ancient cypress-tree hard
+by. There will we gather by divers ways. And do thou, my father, take the
+holy images in thy hands, for as for me, who have but newly come from
+battle, I may not touch them till I have washed me in the running stream."
+
+And as he spake he put a cloak of lion's skin upon his shoulders, and the
+old man sat thereon. Ascanius also laid hold of his hand, and Creusa
+followed behind. So he went in much dread and trembling. For indeed before
+sword and spear of the enemy he had not feared, but now he feared for them
+that were with him. But when he was come nigh unto the gates, and the
+journey was well-nigh finished, there befell a grievous mischance, for
+there was heard a sound as of many feet through the darkness; and the old
+man cried to him, "Fly, my son, fly; they are coming. I see the flashing
+of shields and swords." But as Æneas hasted to go, Creusa his wife was
+severed from him. But whether she wandered from the way or sat down in
+weariness, no man may say. Only he saw her no more, nor knew her to be
+lost, till all his company being met at the temple of Ceres, she only was
+found wanting. Very grievous did the thing seem to him, nor did he cease
+to cry out in his wrath against Gods and men. Also he bade his comrades
+have a care of his father and his son, and of the household gods, and
+girded him again with arms, and so passed into the city. And first he went
+to the wall and to the gate by which he had come forth, and then to his
+house, if haply she had returned thither. But there indeed the men of
+Greece were come, and the fire had well-nigh mastered it. And after that
+he went to the citadel and to the palace of King Priam. And lo! in the
+porch of Juno's temple, Phoenix and Ulysses were keeping guard over the
+spoil, even the treasure of the temples, tables of the Gods, and solid
+cups of gold, and raiment, and a long array of them that had been taken
+captive, children and women. But not the less did he seek his wife through
+all the streets of the city, yea, and called her aloud by name. But lo! as
+he called, the image of her whom he sought seemed to stand before him,
+only greater than she had been while she was yet alive. And the spirit
+spake, saying, "Why art thou vainly troubled? These things have not
+befallen us against the pleasure of the Gods. The ruler of Olympus willeth
+not that Creusa should bear thee company in thy journey. For thou hast a
+long journey to take, and many seas to cross, till thou come to the
+Hesperian shore, where Lydian Tiber flows softly through a good land and a
+fertile. There shalt thou have great prosperity, and take to thyself a
+wife of royal race. Weep not, then, for Creusa, whom thou lovest, nor
+think that I shall be carried away to be a bond-slave to some Grecian
+woman. Such fate befits not a daughter of Dardanus and daughter-in-law of
+Venus. The mighty mother of the Gods keepeth me in this land to serve her.
+And now, farewell, and love the young Ascanius, even thy son and mine."
+
+[Illustration: AND AS HE SPAKE HE PUT A CLOAK OF LION'S SKIN UPON HIS
+SHOULDERS, AND THE OLD MAN SAT THEREON. ASCANIUS ALSO LAID HOLD OF HIS
+HAND, AND CREUSA FOLLOWED BEHIND. SO HE WENT IN MUCH DREAD AND TREMBLING,
+FOR INDEED BEFORE SWORD AND SPEAR OF THE ENEMY HE HAD NOT FEARED, BUT NOW
+HE FEARED MUCH FOR THEM THAT WERE WITH HIM]
+
+So spake the spirit, and when Æneas wept and would have spoken, vanished
+out of his sight. Thrice he would have cast his arms about her neck, and
+thrice the image mocked him, being thin as air and fleeting as a dream.
+Then, the night being now spent, he sought his comrades, and found with
+much joy and wonder that a great company of men and women were gathered
+together, and were willing, all of them, to follow him whithersoever he
+went. And now the morning star rose over Mount Ida, and Æneas, seeing that
+the Greeks held the city, and that there was no longer any hope of succor,
+went his way to the mountains, taking with him his father.
+
+
+
+
+ÆNEAS'S ADVENTURE WITH THE HARPIES
+
+By Charles Henry Hanson
+
+
+    [For three days the vessels of Æneas were tossed about by terrible
+    storm winds.]
+
+
+At last, on the fourth day, the fury of the storm abated, and they came in
+sight of land,--at first lofty mountains, and afterwards, as they drew
+nearer, rich grassy plains, on which the wanderers saw herds of cattle and
+flocks of goats grazing without a keeper. As soon as the storm-beaten
+vessels could be brought to the shore, the Trojans hastened to land, and
+slaughtered some of the cattle, preparing a luxurious banquet. But this
+they were not destined to enjoy in peace; for scarcely had they stretched
+themselves on the couches they had hurriedly prepared beside the food when
+there was a sudden rushing of wings, and three ghastly creatures swooped
+down upon the feast, devoured a large part of it, and so defiled the rest
+with their loathsome touch that very little was eatable. These were the
+Harpies, and by their appearance Æneas knew that he and his companions had
+arrived at the Strophades, two islands in the Ionian Sea which for many
+years had been given up to the monsters. They were fearful of aspect: down
+to the breast they resembled women, with scanty black hair and glaring
+red-rimmed eyes, and on their faces ever a famine-stricken look; but they
+had wings instead of arms, and their bodies and lower limbs were those of
+huge birds, foul and uncleanly. These hateful creatures had long before
+been sent by the Gods to plague Pheneus the Blind, king of Thrace, who had
+cruelly treated his sons. Whenever a meal was spread for the king, the
+Harpies used to descend and devour it. At last some brave warriors, who
+were passing through Thrace, were persuaded by the promise of rewards from
+Pheneus to rid him of the monsters, and drove them to the far Strophades,
+where they had ever since dwelt.
+
+Irritated at the loss of their feast, Æneas and his companions prepared
+more food, and determined, if necessary, to defend it with their swords.
+They accordingly concealed their weapons in the grass, and stationed one
+of their number on the watch, to give notice with the sound of a trumpet
+when the Harpies were approaching. This was done accordingly, and the
+obscene creatures, when they again swooped down to seize on the cooked
+meats, which they relished more than any other food, were driven off,
+though not without difficulty. But one of them, perching on a high rock,
+croaked forth to the astonished mariners this dismal prophecy:--
+
+"Woe to you, Trojans! Do you dare to make war upon us after having slain
+our oxen, and to banish the innocent Harpies from the kingdom which is
+theirs by right? Fix, then, in your minds these words, which the father of
+Gods and men revealed to Phoebus Apollo, and Apollo to me. Italy is the
+land you seek, and Italy you shall reach at last, after many perils; but
+you shall not build up the walls of your new-founded city until dire
+famine and suffering, visiting you because you have injured us, shall
+compel you to devour your tables as well as the food that is upon them."
+
+The gloomy prediction terrified most of the wanderers, and they urged
+Æneas to endeavor to propitiate the unclean monsters with invocations and
+sacrifices. But Anchises, after imploring Jupiter to ward off the
+threatened calamities, commanded that the expedition should at once quit
+that melancholy shore. After passing the rugged cliffs of Ithaca, and
+uttering maledictions on the land that bred Ulysses, the most cunning
+enemy of Troy, the exiles arrived in safety at the harbor of Leucadia,
+where the ships were anchored, and the travelers landed to rest awhile
+after the fatigues of the voyage. Here they celebrated the games of their
+country; and Æneas hung on the door-posts of an ancient and famous temple
+of Apollo a suit of armor, which he had taken from a Greek warrior slain
+before Troy, placing above it an inscription, "These arms Æneas won from
+the victorious Greeks."
+
+
+
+
+ÆNEAS IN THE LAND OF THE CYCLOPS
+
+By Charles Henry Hanson
+
+
+A day's sail over the blue Mediterranean brought Æneas and his followers
+in sight of the southeastern shores of Italy; and as they saw the swelling
+hills and grassy plains of the promised land, they broke into cries of
+joy. The ships were run into a secure harbor, and sacrifices offered up
+for the propitiation of Minerva and of Juno; after which, mindful of the
+injunctions of Helenus to avoid those parts of Italy which lay nearest to
+Greece, the adventurers resumed their voyage. Keeping near the coast, they
+passed the Bay of Tarentum and the lofty promontories of Calabria. Now
+came in sight the immense bulk of Etna, lifting its fire-crowned head into
+the clouds; and the roaring of the terrible Charybdis could be distinctly
+heard. Remembering the warnings of Helenus, they hastily turned to the
+left, and avoided the perilous strait, but sought refuge in a place
+scarcely less dangerous; for they landed in the country of the Cyclops,
+where, only a little while before, Ulysses had been with his comrades, and
+had endured great sufferings at the hands of the giant Polyphemus. The
+Cyclops, it will be remembered, were a race of savage shepherds, of
+immense stature, having each but one eye in the middle of his forehead.
+They dwelt in caves, and kept great flocks and herds. Polyphemus was the
+largest and fiercest of them all; and when Ulysses and his companions
+entered his cave he kept them prisoners, and devoured several of them. The
+hero himself and the rest of his followers had escaped him by making him
+drunk with wine they had brought on shore from their ships, and then
+putting out his eye with a sharpened stake, the point of which they had
+hardened in the fire. The knowledge of this adventure came to Æneas and
+his Trojans in a strange fashion. On the morning after their arrival in
+the country of the Cyclops, they were on the shore, when they were
+surprised to see a man emerge from the woods, and approach them with
+suppliant gestures. His appearance was wild and emaciated, his beard
+overgrown, his garments ragged; but nevertheless it was easy to perceive
+that he was a Greek. When he saw that the voyagers wore Trojan dress and
+arms, he paused in fear, but the next moment he hurried toward them with
+tears and entreaties.
+
+"I conjure you," he cried, "by the stars, by the powers above, by the
+light of heaven, ye Trojans, take me hence. Carry me where you will, do
+with me what you will, I shall be content. I confess that I was one who
+bore arms against Troy; if you deem that a crime, put me to death for it.
+At least I shall have the satisfaction of dying by the hands of men."
+
+Æneas and Anchises received the stranger kindly, assured him of his
+safety, and asked him who he was, and how he came to be in that desolate
+country. He answered that he was an Ithacan, his name Achæmenides, and
+that he had been one of the companions of Ulysses in his wanderings. He
+related the adventures of the Ithacan hero in the cave of Polyphemus, and
+told how he himself, having been by accident left behind when his comrades
+escaped, had since led a wretched existence in the woods, living on wild
+berries and roots, and continually in dread lest he should be seen by the
+Cyclops. He advised Æneas to lose no time in quitting the country, lest
+the ferocious shepherds should discover and destroy them. Even as
+Achæmenides spoke, Polyphemus was seen accompanying his flock to their
+pasture. So tall was he of stature that he carried the trunk of a
+pine-tree as a staff to guide his footsteps. Reaching the sea he stepped
+into it, and bent down to bathe the wound inflicted by Ulysses. The
+Trojans hastened to cut their cables, and rowed out to sea. The giant
+heard the sound of their oars, and turned to follow them; but in his
+blindness he dared not follow far, and therefore he called on his brethren
+with a cry so loud that the very sea was shaken in its depths. Forthwith
+the huge Cyclops came trooping to the shore, like a wood of lofty trees
+endued with life and motion; but by this time the Trojan vessels had got
+beyond their reach.
+
+
+
+
+ÆNEAS AND QUEEN DIDO
+
+By Alfred J. Church
+
+
+    [Æneas was driven by a storm upon the shores of Carthage.]
+
+
+Now it came to pass on the next day that Æneas, having first hidden his
+ships in a bay that was well covered with trees, went forth to spy out the
+new land whither he was come, and Achates only went with him. And Æneas
+had in each hand a broad-pointed spear. And as he went there met him in
+the middle of the wood his mother, but habited as a Spartan virgin, for
+she had hung a bow from her shoulders after the fashion of a huntress, and
+her hair was loose, and her tunic short to the knees, and her garments
+gathered in a knot upon her breast. Then first the false huntress spake:
+"If perchance ye have seen one of my sisters wandering hereabouts, make
+known to me the place. She is girded with a quiver, and is clothed with
+the skin of a spotted lynx, or, maybe, she hunts a wild boar with horn and
+hound."
+
+To whom Æneas, "I have not seen nor heard sister of thine, O virgin--for
+what shall I call thee? for, of a surety, neither is thy look as of a
+mortal woman, nor yet thy voice. A goddess certainly thou art, sister of
+Phoebus, or, haply, one of the nymphs. But whosoever thou art, look
+favorably upon us and help us. Tell us in what land we be, for the winds
+have driven us hither, and we know not aught of place or people."
+
+And Venus said, "Nay, stranger, I am not such as ye think. We virgins of
+Tyre are wont to carry a quiver and to wear a buskin of purple. For indeed
+it is a Tyrian city that is hard by, though the land be Libya. And of this
+city Dido is queen, having come hither from Tyre, flying from the
+wrong-doing of her brother. And indeed the story of the thing is long, but
+I will recount the chief matter thereof to thee. The husband of this Dido
+was one Sichæus, richest among all the men of Phoenicia, and greatly
+beloved of his wife, whom he married from a virgin. Now the brother of
+this Sichæus was Pygmalion, the king of the country, and he exceeded all
+men in wickedness. And when there arose a quarrel between them, the king,
+being exceedingly mad after gold, took him unaware, even as he did
+sacrifice at the altar, and slew him. And the king hid the matter many
+days from Dido, and cheated her with false hopes. But at the last there
+came to her in her dreams the likeness of the dead man, baring his wounds
+and showing the wickedness which had been done. Also he bade her make
+haste and fly from that land, and, that she might do this the more easily,
+told her of great treasure, gold and silver, that was hidden in the earth.
+And Dido, being much moved by these things, made ready for flight; also
+she sought for companions, and there came together to her as many as hated
+the king or feared him. Then did they seize ships that chanced to be ready
+and laded them with gold, even the treasure of King Pygmalion, and so fled
+across the sea. And in all this was a woman the leader. Then came they to
+this place, where thou seest the walls and citadel of Carthage, and bought
+so much land as they could cover with a bull's hide. And now do ye answer
+me this, Whence come ye, and whither do ye go?"
+
+Then answered Æneas, "Should I tell the whole story of our wanderings, and
+thou have leisure to hear, evening would come ere I could make an end. We
+are men of Troy, who, having journeyed over many seas, have now been
+driven by storms to this shore of Libya. And as for me, men call me Prince
+Æneas. The land I seek is Italy, and my race is from Jupiter himself. With
+twenty ships did I set sail, going in the way whereon the Gods sent me.
+And of these scarce seven are left. And now, seeing that Europe and Asia
+endure me not, I wander over the desert places of Africa."
+
+But Venus suffered him not to speak more, but said, "Whoever thou art,
+stranger, that art come to this Tyrian city, thou art surely beloved by
+the Gods. And now go, show thyself to the queen. And as for thy ships and
+thy companions, I tell thee that they are safe in the haven, if I have not
+learnt augury in vain. See those twenty swans, how joyously they fly! And
+now there cometh an eagle swooping down from the sky, putting them to
+confusion, but now again they move in due order, and some are settling on
+the earth and some are preparing to settle. Even so doth it fare with thy
+ships, for either are they already in the haven or enter thereinto with
+sails full set."
+
+And as she spoke she turned away, and there shone a rosy light from her
+neck, also there came from her hair a sweet savor as of ambrosia, and her
+garments grew under her feet; and Æneas perceived that she was his mother,
+and cried aloud,--
+
+"O my mother, why dost thou mock me so often with false shows, nor
+sufferest me to join my hand unto thy hand, and to speak with thee face to
+face?"
+
+And he went towards the walls of the city. But Venus covered him and his
+companions with a mist, that no man might see them, or hinder them, or
+inquire of their business, and then departed to Paphos, where was her
+temple and also many altars of incense. Then the men hastened on their
+way, and mounting a hill which hung over the city, marveled to behold it,
+for indeed it was very great and noble, with mighty gates and streets, and
+a multitude that walked therein. For some built the walls and the citadel,
+rolling great stones with their hands, and others marked out places for
+houses. Also they chose those that should give judgment and bear rule in
+the city. Some, too, digged out harbors, and others laid the foundations
+of a theatre, and cut out great pillars of stone. Like to bees they were,
+when, the summer being newly come, the young swarms go forth, or when they
+labor filling the cells with honey, and some receive the burdens of those
+that return from the fields, and others keep off the drones from the hive.
+Even so labored the men of Tyre. And when Æneas beheld them he cried,
+"Happy ye, who even now have a city to dwell in!" And being yet hidden by
+the mist, he went in at the gate and mingled with the men, being seen of
+none.
+
+Now in the midst of the city was a wood, very thick with trees, and here
+the men of Carthage, first come to the land from their voyage, had digged
+out of the ground that which Juno had said should be a sign to them, even
+a horse's head; for that, finding this, their city would be mighty in war,
+and full of riches. Here, then, Dido was building a temple to Juno, very
+splendid, with threshold of bronze, and many steps thereunto; of bronze
+also were the door-posts and the gates. And here befell a thing which gave
+much comfort and courage to Æneas; for as he stood and regarded the place,
+waiting also for the queen, he saw set forth in order upon the walls the
+battles that had been fought at Troy, the sons of Atreus also, and King
+Priam, and fierce Achilles. Then said he, not without tears, "Is there any
+land, O Achates, that is not filled with our sorrows? Seest thou Priam?
+Yet withal there is a reward for virtue here also, and tears and pity for
+the troubles of men. Fear not, therefore. Surely the fame of these things
+shall profit us."
+
+Then he looked, satisfying his soul with the paintings on the walls. For
+there was the city of Troy. In this part of the field the Greeks fled and
+the youth of Troy pursued them, and in that the men of Troy fled, and
+Achilles followed hard upon them in his chariot. Also he saw the white
+tents of Rhesus, king of Thrace, whom the fierce Diomed slew in his sleep,
+when he was newly come to Troy, and drave his horses to the camp before
+they ate of the grass of the fields of Troy or drank the waters of
+Nanthus. There also Troilus was pictured, ill matched in battle with
+Achilles. His horses bare him along; but he lay on his back in the
+chariot, yet holding the reins, and his neck and head were dragged upon
+the earth, and the spear-point made a trail in the dust. And in another
+place the women of Troy went suppliant-wise to the temple of Minerva,
+bearing a great and beautiful robe, sad and beating their breasts, and
+with hair unbound; but the goddess regarded them not. Also Achilles
+dragged the body of Hector three times round the walls of Troy, and was
+selling it for gold. And Æneas groaned when he saw the man whom he loved,
+and the old man Priam reaching out helpless hands. Also he knew himself,
+fighting in the midst of the Grecian chiefs; black Memnon also he knew,
+and the hosts of the East; and Penthesilea leading the army of the Amazons
+with shields shaped as the moon. Fierce she was to see, with one breast
+bared for battle, and a golden girdle beneath it, a damsel daring to fight
+with men.
+
+But while Æneas marveled to see these things, lo! there came, with a great
+throng of youths behind her, Dido, most beautiful of women, fair as Diana,
+when, on the banks of Eurotas or on the hills of Cynthus, she leads the
+dance with a thousand nymphs of the mountains about her. On her shoulder
+she bears a quiver, and overtops them all, and her mother, even Latona,
+silently rejoices to behold her. So fair and seemly to see was Dido as she
+bare herself right nobly in the midst, being busy in the work of her
+kingdom. Then she sat herself down on a lofty throne in the gate of the
+temple, with many armed men about her. And she did justice between man and
+man; also she divided the work of the city, sharing it equally or parting
+by lot.
+
+Then of a sudden Æneas heard a great clamor, and saw a company of men come
+quickly to the place, among whom were Antheus and Sergestus and Cloanthus,
+and others of the men of Troy that had been parted from him in the storm.
+Right glad was he to behold them, yet was not without fear; and though he
+would fain have come forth and caught them by the hand, yet did he tarry,
+waiting to hear how the men had fared, where they had left their ships,
+and wherefore they were come.
+
+Then Ilioneus, leave being now given that he should speak, thus began: "O
+Queen, whom Jupiter permits to build a new city in these lands, we men of
+Troy, whom the winds have carried over many seas, pray thee that thou save
+our ships from fire, and spare a people that serveth the Gods. For,
+indeed, we are not come to waste the dwellings of this land, or to carry
+off spoils to our ships. For, of a truth, they who have suffered so much
+think not of such deeds. There is a land which the Greeks call Hesperia,
+but the people themselves Italy, after the name of their chief; an ancient
+land, mighty in arms and fertile of corn. Hither, were we journeying, when
+a storm arising scattered our ships, and only these few that thou seest
+escaped to the land. And can there be nation so savage that it receiveth
+not shipwrecked men on its shore, but beareth arms against them, and
+forbiddeth them to land? Nay, but if ye care not for men, yet regard the
+Gods, who forget neither them that do righteously nor them that
+transgress. We had a king, Æneas, than whom there lived not a man more
+dutiful to Gods and men, and greater in war. If indeed he be yet alive,
+then we fear not at all. For of a truth it will not repent thee to have
+helped us. And if not, other friends have we, as Acestes of Sicily. Grant
+us, therefore, to shelter our ships from the wind; also to fit them with
+fresh timber from the woods, and to make ready oars for rowing, so that,
+finding again our king and our companions, we may gain the land of Italy.
+But if he be dead, and Ascanius his son lost also, then there is a
+dwelling ready for us in the land of Sicily, with Acestes, who is our
+friend."
+
+Then Dido, her eyes bent on the ground, thus spake: "Fear not, men of
+Troy. If we have seemed to deal harshly with you, pardon us, seeing that,
+being newly settled in this land, we must keep watch and ward over our
+coasts. But as for the men of Troy, and their deeds in arms, who knows
+them not? Think not that we in Carthage are so dull of heart, or dwell so
+remote from man, that we are ignorant of these things. Whether, therefore,
+ye will journey to Italy or rather return to Sicily and King Acestes, know
+that I will give you all help, and protect you; or, if ye will, settle in
+this land of ours. Yours is this city which I am building. I will make no
+difference between man of Troy and man of Tyre. Would that your king also
+were here! Surely I will send those that shall seek him in all parts of
+Libya, lest haply he should be gone astray in any forest or strange city
+of the land."
+
+And when Æneas and Achates heard these things they were glad, and would
+have come forth from the cloud, and Achates said, "What thinkest thou? Lo,
+thy comrades are safe, saving him whom we saw with our own eyes drowned in
+the waves; and all other things are according as thy mother said."
+
+And even as he spake the cloud parted from about them, and Æneas stood
+forth, very bright to behold, with face and breast as of a god, for his
+mother had given to him hair beautiful to see, and cast about him the
+purple light of youth, even as a workman sets ivory in some fair ornament,
+or compasseth about silver or marble of Paros with gold. Then spake he to
+the queen: "Lo! I am he whom ye seek, even Æneas of Troy, scarcely saved
+from the waters of the sea. And as for thee, O Queen, seeing that thou
+only hast been found to pity the unspeakable sorrows of Troy, and biddest
+us, though we be but poor exiles and lacking all things, to share thy city
+and thy home, may the Gods do so to thee as thou deservest. And, of a
+truth, so long as the rivers run to the seas, and the shadows fall on the
+hollows of the hills, so long will thy name and thy glory survive,
+whatever be the land to which the Gods shall bring me." Then gave he his
+right hand to Ilioneus, and his left hand to Sergestus, and greeted them
+with great joy.
+
+And Dido, hearing these things, was silent for a while, but at the last
+she spake. "What ill fortune brings thee into perils so great? what power
+drave thee to these savage shores? Well do I mind me how in days gone by
+there came to Sidon one Teucer, who, having been banished from his
+country, sought help from Belus that he might find a kingdom for himself.
+And it chanced that in those days Belus, my father, had newly conquered
+the land of Cyprus. From that day did I know the tale of Troy, and thy
+name also, and the chiefs of Greece. Also I remember that Teucer spake
+honorably of the men of Troy, saying that he was himself sprung of the old
+Teucrian stock. Come ye, therefore to my palace. I too have wandered far,
+even as you, and so have come to this land, and having suffered much, have
+learnt to succor them that suffer."
+
+So saying she led Æneas into her palace; also she sent to his companions
+in the ships great store of provisions, even twenty oxen and a hundred
+bristly swine and a hundred ewe sheep with their lambs. But in the palace
+a great feast was set forth, couches covered with broidered purple and
+silver vessels without end, and cups of gold, whereon were embossed the
+mighty deeds of the men of old time.
+
+And in the mean time Æneas sent Achates in haste to the ships, that he
+might fetch Ascanius to the feast. Also he bade that the boy should bring
+with him gifts of such things as they had saved from the ruins of Troy,--a
+mantle stiff with broidery of gold and a veil bordered with yellow
+acanthus, which the fair Helen had taken with her, flying from her home;
+but Leda, her mother, had given them to Helen; a sceptre likewise which
+Ilione, first-born of the daughters of Priam, had carried, and a necklace
+of pearls and a double crown of jewels and gold.
+
+But Venus was troubled in heart, fearing evil to her son should the men of
+Tyre be treacherous, after their wont, and Juno remember her wrath.
+Wherefore, taking counsel with herself, she called to the winged boy, even
+Love, that was her son, and spake: "My son, who art all my power and
+strength, who laughest at the thunders of Jupiter, thou knowest how Juno,
+being exceedingly wroth against thy brother Æneas, causeth him to wander
+out of the way over all lands. This day Dido hath him in her palace, and
+speaketh him fair; but I fear me much how these things may end. Wherefore
+hear thou that which I purpose. Thy brother hath even now sent for the boy
+Ascanius, that he may come to the palace, bringing with him gifts of such
+things as they saved from the ruins of Troy. Him will I cause to fall into
+a deep sleep and hide in Cythera or Idalium, and do thou for one night
+take upon thee his likeness. And when Queen Dido at the feast shall hold
+thee in her lap, and kiss and embrace thee, do thou breathe by stealth thy
+fire into her heart."
+
+Then did Love as his mother bade him, and put off his wings, and took upon
+him the shape of Ascanius, but on the boy Venus caused there to fall a
+deep sleep, and carried him to the woods of Idalium, and lapped him in
+sweet-smelling flowers. And in his stead Love carried the gifts to the
+queen. And when he was come they sat down to the feast, the queen being in
+the midst under a canopy. Æneas also and the men of Troy lay on coverlets
+of purple, to whom serving-men brought water and bread in baskets and
+napkins; and within fifty handmaids were ready to replenish the store of
+victual and to fan the fire; and a hundred others, with pages as many,
+loaded the tables with dishes and drinking-cups. Many men of Tyre also
+were bidden to the feast. Much they marveled at the gifts of Æneas, and
+much at the false Ascanius. Dido also could not satisfy herself with
+looking on him, nor knew what trouble he was preparing for her in the time
+to come. And he, having first embraced the father who was not his father,
+and clung about his neck, addressed himself to Queen Dido, and she ever
+followed him with her eyes, and sometimes would hold him on her lap. And
+still he worked upon her that she should forget the dead Sichæus and
+conceive a new love in her heart.
+
+But when they first paused from the feast, lo! men set great bowls upon
+the table and filled them to the brim with wine. Then did the queen call
+for a great vessel of gold, with many jewels upon it, from which Belus,
+and all the kings from Belus, had drunk, and called for wine, and having
+filled it she cried, "O Jupiter, whom they call the god of hosts and
+guests, cause that this be a day of joy for the men of Troy and for them
+of Tyre, and that our children remember it forever. Also Bacchus, giver of
+joy, be present, and kindly Juno." And when she had touched the wine with
+her lips, she handed the great cup to Prince Bitias, who drank thereout a
+mighty draught, and the other princes after him. Then the minstrel Iopas,
+whom Atlas himself had taught, sang to the harp, of the moon, how she goes
+on her way, and of the sun, how his light is darkened. He sang also of
+men, and of the beasts of the field, whence they come; and of the stars,
+Arcturus, and the Greater Bear and the Less, and the Hyades; and of the
+winter sun, why he hastens to dip himself in the ocean; and of the winter
+nights, why they tarry so long. The queen also talked much of the story of
+Troy, of Priam, and of Hector, asking many things, as of the arms of
+Memnon, and of the horses of Diomed, and of Achilles, how great he was.
+And at last she said to Æneas, "Tell us now thy story, how Troy was taken,
+and thy wanderings over land and sea." And Æneas made answer, "Nay, O
+Queen, but thou biddest me renew a sorrow unspeakable. Yet, if thou art
+minded to hear these things, hearken." And he told her all that had
+befallen him, even to the day when his father Anchises died.
+
+Much was Queen Dido moved by the story, and much did she marvel at him
+that told it, and scarce could sleep for thinking of him. And the next day
+she spake to Anna, her sister, "O my sister, I have been troubled this
+night with ill dreams, and my heart is disquieted within me. What a man is
+this stranger that hath come to our shores! How noble of mien! How bold in
+war! Sure I am that he is of the sons of the Gods. What fortunes have been
+his! Of what wars he told us! Surely were I not steadfastly purposed that
+I would not yoke me again in marriage, this were the man to whom I might
+yield. Only he--for I will tell thee the truth, my sister--only he, since
+the day when Sichæus died by our brother's hand, hath moved my heart. But
+may the earth swallow me up, or the almighty Father strike me with
+lightning, ere I stoop to such baseness. The husband of my youth hath
+carried with him my love, and he shall keep it in his grave."
+
+So she spake, with many tears. And her sister made answer, "Why wilt thou
+waste thy youth in sorrow, without child or husband? Thinkest thou that
+there is care or remembrance of such things in the grave? No suitors
+indeed have pleased thee here or in Tyre, but wilt thou also contend with
+a love that is after thine own heart? Think too of the nations among whom
+thou dwellest, how fierce they are, and of thy brother at Tyre, what he
+threatens against thee. Surely it was by the will of the Gods, and of Juno
+chiefly, that the ships of Troy came hither. And this city, which thou
+buildest, to what greatness will it grow if only thou wilt make for
+thyself such alliance! How great will be the glory of Carthage if the
+strength of Troy be joined unto her! Only do thou pray to the Gods and
+offer sacrifices; and, for the present, seeing that the time of sailing is
+now past, make excuse that these strangers tarry with thee awhile."
+
+Thus did Anna comfort her sister and encourage her. And first the two
+offered sacrifice to the Gods, chiefly to Juno, who careth for the bond of
+marriage. Also, examining the entrails of slain beasts, they sought to
+learn the things that should happen thereafter. And ever Dido would
+company with Æneas, leading him about the walls of the city which she
+builded. And often she would begin to speak and stay in the midst of her
+words. And when even was come, she would hear again and again at the
+banquet the tale of Troy, and while others slept would watch, and while he
+was far away would seem to see him and to hear him. Ascanius, too, she
+would embrace for love of his father, if so she might cheat her own heart.
+But the work of the city was stayed meanwhile; nor did the towers rise in
+their places, nor the youth practice themselves in arms.
+
+Then Juno, seeing how it fared with the queen, spake to Venus: "Are ye
+satisfied with your victory, thou and thy son, that ye have vanquished,
+the two of you, one woman? Well I knew that thou fearedst lest this
+Carthage should harm thy favorite. But why should there be war between us?
+Thou hast what thou seekest. Let us make alliance. Let Dido obey a
+Phrygian husband, and bring the men of Tyre as her dowry."
+
+But Venus knew that she spake with ill intent, to the end that the men of
+Troy should not reign in the land of Italy. Nevertheless she dissembled
+with her tongue, and spake: "Who would not rather have peace with thee
+than war? Only I doubt whether this thing shall be to the pleasure of
+Jupiter. This thou must learn, seeing that thou art his wife, and where
+thou leadest I will follow."
+
+So the two, taking counsel together, ordered things in this wise. The next
+day a great hunting was prepared. For as soon as ever the sun was risen
+upon the earth, the youth of the city assembled, with nets and hunting
+spears and dogs that ran by scent. And the princes of Carthage waited for
+the queen at the palace door, where her horse stood champing the bit, with
+trappings of purple and gold. And after a while she came forth, with many
+following her. And she had upon her a Sidonian mantle, with a border
+wrought with divers colors; of gold was her quiver, and of gold the knot
+of her hair, and of gold the clasp to her mantle. Æneas likewise came
+forth, beautiful as is Apollo when he leaveth Lydia and the stream of
+Xanthus, coming to Delos, and hath about his hair a wreath of bay-leaves
+and a circlet of gold. So fair was Æneas to see. And when the hunters came
+to the hills they found great store of goats and stags, which they chased.
+And of all the company Ascanius was the foremost, thinking scorn of such
+hunting, and wishing that a wild boar or a lion out of the hills would
+come forth to be his prey.
+
+And now befell a great storm, with much thunder and hail, from which the
+hunters sought shelter. But Æneas and the queen, being left of all their
+company, came together to the same cave. And there they plighted their
+troth one to the other. Nor did the queen after that make secret of her
+love, but called Æneas her husband.
+
+Straightway went Rumor and told these things through the cities of Libya.
+Now Rumor, men say, is the youngest daughter of Earth, a marvelous
+creature, moving very swiftly with feet and wings, and having many
+feathers upon her, and under every feather an eye and a tongue and a mouth
+and an ear. In the night she flieth between heaven and earth, and sleepeth
+not; and in the day she sitteth on some housetop or lofty tower, or
+spreadeth fear over mighty cities; and she loveth that which is false even
+as she loveth that which is true. So now she went telling through Libya
+how Æneas of Troy was come, and Dido was wedded to him, and how they lived
+careless and at ease, and thinking not of the work to which they were
+called.
+
+And first of all she went to Prince Iarbas, who himself had sought Dido in
+marriage. And Iarbas was very wroth when he heard it, and, coming to the
+temple of Jupiter, spread his grief before the Gods, how that he had given
+a place on his coasts to this Dido, and would have taken her to wife, but
+that she had married a stranger from Phrygia, another Paris, whose dress
+and adornments were of a woman rather than of a man.
+
+And Jupiter saw that this was so, and he said to Mercury, who was his
+messenger, "Go speak to Æneas these words: 'Thus saith the king of Gods
+and men. Is this what thy mother promised of thee, twice saving thee from
+the spear of the Greeks? Art thou he that shall rule Italy and its mighty
+men of war, and spread thy dominion to the ends of the world? If thou
+thyself forgettest these things, dost thou grudge to thy son the citadels
+of Rome? What doest thou here? Why lookest thou not to Italy? Depart and
+tarry not.'"
+
+Then Mercury fitted the winged sandals to his feet, and took the wand with
+which he driveth the spirits of the dead, and came right soon to Mount
+Atlas, which standeth bearing the heaven on his head, and having always
+clouds about his top, and snow upon his shoulders, and a beard that is
+stiff with ice. There Mercury stood awhile; then, as a bird which seeks
+its prey in the sea, shot headlong down, and came to Æneas where he stood,
+with a yellow jasper in his sword-hilt, and a cloak of purple shot with
+gold about his shoulders, and spake: "Buildest thou Carthage, forgetting
+thine own work? The Almighty Father saith to thee, 'What meanest thou? Why
+tarriest thou here? If thou carest not for thyself, yet think of thy son,
+and that the Fates have given to him Italy and Rome.'"
+
+And Æneas saw him no more. And he stood stricken with fear and doubt. Fain
+would he obey the voice, and go as the Gods commanded. But how should he
+tell this purpose to the queen? But at the last it seemed good to him to
+call certain of the chiefs, as Mnestheus, and Sergestus, and Antheus, and
+bid them make ready the ships in silence, and gather together the people,
+but dissemble the cause, and he himself would watch a fitting time to
+speak and unfold the matter to the queen.
+
+Yet was not Dido deceived, for love is keen of sight. Rumor also told her
+that they made ready the ships for sailing. Then, flying through the city,
+even as one on whom has come the frenzy of Bacchus flies by night over
+Mount Cithæron, she came upon Æneas, and spake: "Thoughtest thou to hide
+thy crime, and to depart in silence from this land? Carest thou not for
+her whom thou leavest to die? And hast thou no fear of winter storms that
+vex the sea? By all that I have done for thee and given thee, if there be
+yet any place for repentance, repent thee of this purpose. For thy sake I
+suffer the wrath of the princes of Libya and of my own people; and if thou
+leavest me, for what should I live?--till my brother overthrow my city, or
+Iarbas carry me away captive? If but I had a little Æneas to play in my
+halls I should not seem so altogether desolate."
+
+But Æneas, fearing the words of Jupiter, stood with eyes that relented
+not. At the last he spake: "I deny not, O Queen, the benefits that thou
+hast done unto me, nor ever, while I live, shall I forget Dido. I sought
+not to fly by stealth; yet did I never promise that I would abide in this
+place. Could I have chosen according to my will I had built again the city
+of Troy where it stood; but the Gods command that I should seek Italy.
+Thou hast thy Carthage; why dost thou grudge Italy to us? Nor may I tarry.
+Night after night have I seen my father Anchises warning me in dreams.
+Also even now the messenger of Jupiter came to me--with these ears I heard
+him--and bade me depart."
+
+Then, in great wrath, with eyes askance, did Dido break forth upon him:
+"Surely no goddess was thy mother, nor art thou come of the race of
+Dardanus. The rocks of Caucasus brought thee forth, and an Hyrcanian
+tigress gave thee suck. For why should I dissemble? Was he moved at all my
+tears? Did he pity my love? Nay, the very Gods are against me. This man I
+took to myself when he was shipwrecked and ready to perish. I brought back
+his ships, his companions from destruction. And now forsooth comes the
+messenger of Jupiter with dreadful commands from the Gods. As for thee, I
+keep thee not. Go, seek thy Italy across the seas: only, if there is any
+vengeance in heaven, thou wilt pay the penalty for this wrong, being
+wrecked on some rock in their midst. Then wilt thou call on Dido in vain.
+Aye, and where-ever thou shalt go I will haunt thee, and rejoice in the
+dwellings below to hear thy doom."
+
+Then she turned, and hasted to go into the house. But her spirit left her,
+so that her maidens bare her to her chamber and laid her on her bed.
+
+Then Æneas, though indeed he was much troubled in heart, and would fain
+have comforted the queen, was obedient to the heavenly word, and departed
+to his ships. And the men of Troy busied themselves in making them ready
+for the voyage. Even as the ants spoil a great heap of corn and store it
+in their dwellings against winter, moving in a black line across the
+field, and some carry the great grains, and some chide those that linger,
+even so did the Trojans swarm along the ways and labor at the work.
+
+But when Dido saw it she called to Anna her sister and said, "Seest thou
+how they hasten the work along the shore? Even now the sails are ready for
+the winds, and the sailors have wreathed the ships with garlands, as if
+for departure. Go thou--the deceiver always trusted thee, and thou knowest
+how best to move him--go and entreat him. I harmed not him nor his people;
+let him then grant me this only. Let him wait for a fairer time for his
+journey. I ask not that he give up his purpose; only that he grant me a
+short breathing space, till I may learn how to bear this sorrow."
+
+And Anna hearkened to her sister, and took the message to Æneas, yet
+profited nothing, for the Gods shut his ears that he should not hear. Even
+as the oak stands firm when the north wind would root it up from the
+earth,--its leaves are scattered all around, yet doth it remain firm, for
+its roots go down to the regions below, even as far as its branches reach
+to heaven,--so stood Æneas firm, and, though he wept many tears, changed
+not his purpose.
+
+Then did Dido grow weary of her life. For when she did sacrifice, the pure
+water would grow black and the wine be changed to blood. Also from the
+shrine of her husband, which was in the midst of her palace, was heard a
+voice calling her, and the owl cried aloud from the house-top. And in her
+dreams the cruel Æneas seemed to drive her before him; or she seemed to be
+going a long way with none to bear her company, and be seeking her own
+people in a land that was desert. Therefore, hiding the thing that was in
+her heart, she spake to her sister, saying, "I have found a way, my
+sister, that shall bring him back to me or set me free from him. Near the
+shore of the Great Sea, where the Æthiopians dwell, is a priestess, who
+guards the temple of the daughters of Hesperus, being wont to feed the
+dragons that kept the apples of gold. She is able by her charms to loose
+the heart from care or to bind it, and to stay rivers also, and to turn
+the courses of the stars, and to call up the spirits of the dead. Do thou,
+therefore--for this is what the priestess commands--build a pile in the
+open court, and put thereon the sword which he left hanging in our
+chamber, and the garments he wore, and the couch on which he lay, even all
+that was his, so that they may perish together."
+
+And when these things were done--for Anna knew not of her purpose--and
+also an image of Æneas was laid upon the pile, the priestess, with her
+hair unbound, called upon all the gods that dwell below, sprinkling
+thereon water that was drawn, she said, from the lake of Avernus, and
+scattering evil herbs that had been cut at the full moon with a sickle of
+bronze. Dido also, with one foot bare and her garments loosened, threw
+meal upon the fire and called upon the gods, if haply there be any, that
+look upon those that love and suffer wrong.
+
+In the mean time Æneas lay asleep in the hind part of his ship, when there
+appeared to him in a dream the god Mercury, even as he had seen him when
+he brought the commandment of Jupiter. And Mercury spake, saying, "Son of
+Venus, canst thou sleep? seest thou not what perils surround thee, nor
+hearest how the favorable west wind calls? The queen purposes evil against
+thee. If thou lingerest till the morning come thou wilt see the shore
+covered with them that wish thee harm. Fly, then, and tarry not; for a
+woman is ever of many minds."
+
+Then did Æneas in great fear start from his sleep, and call his
+companions, saying, "Wake, and sit on the benches, and loose the sails.
+'Tis a god thus bids us fly." And even as he spake he cut the cable with
+his sword. And all hasted to follow him, and sped over the sea.
+
+And now it was morning, and Queen Dido, from her watch-tower, saw the
+ships upon the sea. Then she smote upon her breast and tore her hair, and
+cried, "Shall this stranger mock us thus? Hasten to follow him. Bring down
+the ships from the docks, make ready sword and fire. And this was the man
+who bare upon his shoulders his aged father. Why did I not tear him to
+pieces, and slay his companions with the sword, and serve up the young
+Ascanius at his meal? And if I had perished, what then? for I die to-day.
+O Sun, that regardest all the earth, and Juno, that carest for marriage
+bonds, and Hecate, Queen of the dead, and ye Furies that take vengeance on
+evil-doers, hear me. If it be ordered that he reach that land, yet grant
+that he suffer many things from his enemies, and be driven from his city,
+and beg for help from strangers, and see his people cruelly slain with the
+sword; and, when he shall have made peace on ill conditions, that he enjoy
+not long his kingdoms, but die before his day, and lie unburied on the
+plain. And ye, men of Tyre, hate his children and his people forever. Let
+there be no love or peace between you. And may some avenger arise from my
+grave who shall persecute the race of Dardanus with fire and sword. So
+shall there be war forever between him and me."
+
+Then she spake to old Barce, who had been nurse to her husband Sichæus,
+"Bid my sister bathe herself in water, and bring with her beasts for
+sacrifice. And do thou also put a garland about thy head, for I am minded
+to finish this sacrifice which I have begun, and to burn the image of the
+man of Troy."
+
+And when the old woman made haste to do her bidding, Queen Dido ran to the
+court where the pile was made for the burning, and mounted on the pile,
+and drew the sword of Æneas from the scabbard. Then did she throw herself
+upon the bed, and cry,
+
+"Now do I yield up my life. I have finished my course. I have built a
+mighty city. I have avenged my husband on him that slew him. Happy had I
+been, yea, too happy! had the ships of Troy never come to this land." Then
+she kissed the bed and cried, "Shall I die unavenged? Nevertheless let me
+die. The man of Troy shall see this fire from the sea whereon he journeys,
+and carry with him an augury of death."
+
+And when her maidens looked, lo! she had fallen upon the sword, and the
+blood was upon her hands. And a great cry went up through the palace,
+exceeding loud and bitter, even as if the enemy had taken Carthage or
+ancient Tyre, and the fire were mounting over the dwellings of men and of
+Gods. And Anna her sister heard it, and rushing through the midst called
+her by name: "O my sister, was this thy purpose? Were the pile and the
+sword and the fire for this? Why wouldst thou not suffer that I should die
+with thee? For surely, my sister, thou hast slain thyself, and me, and thy
+people, and thy city. But give me water, ye maidens, that I may wash her
+wounds, and if there be any breath left in her, we may yet stay it."
+
+Then she climbed on to the pile, and caught her sister in her arms, and
+sought to staunch the blood with her garments. Three times did Dido strive
+to raise her eyes; three times did her spirit leave her. Three times she
+would have raised herself upon her elbow; three times she fell back upon
+the bed, looking with wandering eyes for the light, and groaning that she
+yet beheld it.
+
+Then Juno, looking down from heaven, saw that her pain was long, and
+pitied her, and sent down Iris, her messenger, that she might loose the
+soul that struggled to be free. For, seeing that she died not by nature,
+nor yet by the hand of man, but before her time and of her own madness,
+Queen Proserpine had not shred the ringlet from her head which she shreds
+from them that die. Wherefore Iris, flying down with dewy wings from
+heaven, with a thousand colors about her from the light of the sun, stood
+about her head and said, "I give thee to death, even as I am bidden, and
+loose thee from thy body." Then she shred the lock, and Queen Dido gave up
+the ghost.
+
+
+
+
+THE FUNERAL GAMES OF ANCHISES
+
+By Charles Henry Hanson
+
+
+Æneas called together all his followers, and reminded minded them that a
+year had now passed since the death of his father. Not of their own
+purpose, but doubtless by the will of the Gods, they had now returned to
+the friendly land where his bones had been laid. It was therefore his
+intention to celebrate funeral games. For eight days there should be
+feasting, for which Acestes had generously provided two oxen for each
+ship; and on the ninth day he would give prizes to be contested in the
+foot-race, in shooting with the bow, and in boxing with the cestus.
+
+Having thus spoken, the hero, according to the custom of that time, placed
+a wreath of myrtle upon his head and proceeded to the tomb of his father,
+where he poured out, as a libation to the Gods, two bowls of wine, two of
+new milk, and two of sacred blood. Then he scattered flowers over the
+tomb, and offered up a prayer to his father's shade. Immediately there
+came forth from the tomb a huge snake with glittering scales of blue and
+gold, which, after tasting of what had been poured out, retired again to
+the recesses of the vault. Believing this creature to be an attendant on
+his father's spirit, Æneas offered rich sacrifices--ewes, sows, and
+bullocks--and his companions followed his example. The eight days of
+feasting passed pleasantly enough, and the morning appointed for the
+funeral games dawned bright and serene. A joyous crowd assembled on the
+shore, some to take part in the contests, and others to watch them. The
+first of the games was a race between galleys, and four ships had been
+entered to take part in it. The first was the Pristis, or Shark, of which
+Mnestheus was the captain. The Chimera, a vessel of immense size, was
+commanded by Gyas. The other vessels were the Centaur and the Scylla,--the
+first commanded by Sergestus, and the second by Cloanthus. Some way out in
+the sea, opposite to the starting-point, a rock rose amid the restless
+waters. The galleys were to round this rock, on which Æneas had planted an
+oak-tree as a mark, and then return to the shore. The vessels were
+assigned their places by lot, and the captain of each took his place on
+the poop; while the rowers, stripped to the waist, their shoulders
+glistening with oil, sat with their arms stretched to the oars, eager for
+the signal. At the blast of a trumpet all the oars struck the sea at once,
+and beat it into foam, and the vessels shot forward amid the loud shouts
+of the multitude. The Chimera, under Gyas's skillful guidance, took the
+lead; next followed the Scylla, whose rowers were more efficient, but were
+unable to make such progress, because the vessel was naturally slower.
+Behind the Shark and the Centaur followed close together, and first the
+one and then the other gained a slight advantage. The two leading vessels
+were rapidly nearing the rock when Gyas perceived that his helmsman,
+Menoetes, was keeping a course too far to the right, in fear of some
+hidden crags, and was thus losing the advantage that had been gained. He
+urged him to steer more to the left, nor to care even if the oars grazed
+the rock; but Menoetes was afraid to obey the command. And now Cloanthus
+in the Scylla, taking the very course Gyas had wished to follow, ran
+boldly between the Chimera and the rock, and so got round the goal in
+front of his antagonist. When Gyas beheld this he was full of wrath.
+Rushing to the helm, he seized the over-cautious Menoetes and hurled him
+into the sea; then he himself took the helm, and at once guided his ship
+and issued commands and cries of encouragement to his oarsmen. The
+luckless Menoetes with difficulty contrived to scramble out of the sea
+onto the rock, and sat there in his dripping garments, while the
+spectators roared with laughter at his misadventure. But now Mnestheus in
+the Shark and Sergestus in the Centaur pushed forward with redoubled zeal
+in the hope of obtaining the lead. Sergestus got a little in front of his
+competitor, but Mnestheus, walking among his rowers, urged them to put
+forth their utmost strength, and at least not to suffer the disgrace of
+being last. In response to his appeal they bent to the oar with new vigor;
+the ship trembled under their strokes and the water seemed to fly from
+beneath her keel. Suddenly, while the Centaur, in full career, was
+pressing close to the rock to prevent the Shark from passing on the inner
+side, she ran upon a jutting point where she remained fast, while the oars
+were shattered against the hard rocks. In a moment the Shark shot past,
+and having rounded the goal, dashed on the homeward way. Ere long
+Mnestheus had overtaken the Chimera, which had lost ground because she was
+deprived of her steersman. Cloanthus in the Scylla was now alone in front
+of the Shark; and though the race was nearly over, the frantic efforts of
+Mnestheus' crew might have gained him the victory, but that Cloanthus
+poured forth passionate prayers to the marine deities, and promised them
+ample offerings if the first prize became his. They heard his vows, and
+gathering underneath his vessel, pushed it forward, so that it entered the
+harbor just in front of the Shark. Then Æneas proclaimed Cloanthus the
+victor, and gave him a mantle embroidered with gold and ornamented with a
+thick fringe of the costly Meliboean purple. On Mnestheus, who had so
+gallantly gained the second place, he bestowed a ponderous coat of mail
+worked in gold and brass, which he had himself taken from a famous Greek
+warrior, Demoleus, whom he had slain before Troy. Gyas received two
+caldrons of brass, and some silver bowls ornamented with rich carvings.
+Lastly, when Sergestus had slowly brought back to port his crippled
+galley, his chief bestowed on him, in reward for having rescued the vessel
+from her perilous position, a Cretan female slave with her two children.
+
+Thus ended the galley race; and the assembled multitude now proceeded to a
+grassy plain a little way inland, where thrones were placed for Acestes,
+Æneas, and the other leaders. Here the remaining games were to be
+celebrated, and first of all a foot race. Among the competitors in this
+were Euryalus, a Trojan youth distinguished for his personal beauty;
+Nisus, a brave warrior, who was his constant friend and companion; Diores,
+Salius, and Patron, three other Trojans; and two Sicilian youths famous
+for their speed, named Elymus and Panopes. Æneas announced that he would
+give two Cretan javelins of bright steel and a carved battle-axe of silver
+to each who took part in the race, and to the three who came in first
+other rich prizes: to the first a war-horse with costly trappings; to the
+second a quiver full of Thracian arrows, with a gold belt and jeweled
+buckle; and to the third a Grecian helmet. The runners having been placed
+in proper order, the signal was given, and they darted forward like a
+tempest. Nisus led the way, Salius coming second, and Euryalus third, with
+the rest following close behind. Already Nisus was near the goal, when
+unluckily his foot slipped at a spot where some victims had been
+sacrificed for the altar, and the blood soaking into the grass had made it
+slippery. Down he fell into the puddle, and in a moment his chance of
+victory had disappeared. But even then, in spite of his disappointment, he
+was mindful of his affection for Euryalus, and resolved that since he
+could not win the race, his friend should do so. He rose to his feet just
+as Salius was coming up, and contrived to stand in his way so as to
+overturn him. Euryalus, who had still kept the third place, now sprang
+forward, and was easily victorious amid the applause of the crowd. Elymus
+came in next, and close behind him Diores. But Salius loudly demanded that
+the first prize of right belonged to him, because he had been deprived of
+the victory by unfair means. The spectators, however, favored the claim of
+Euryalus because of his youth and beauty; and Diores vehemently took the
+same side, since, if Salius were adjudged the victory, he would not
+receive a prize at all. Æneas speedily silenced all contention by
+declaring that the promised rewards should go to the three who had arrived
+first at the winning-post; but he added that he would show his sympathy
+for the disaster which had befallen Salius, and therefore bestowed on him
+the shaggy hide of a Getulian lion, still retaining the claws, which had
+been gilt. Upon this, Nisus also merrily asked for some consolation, since
+but for an accident the first prize would have been his, and he showed his
+face and limbs all besmeared with mud. His chief entered into the jest,
+and gave him a buckler, finely carved, which had once hung on the walls of
+Neptune's temple at Troy.
+
+[Illustration: HE ROSE TO HIS FEET JUST AT THE MOMENT THAT SALIUS WAS
+COMING UP, AND CONTRIVED TO STAND IN HIS WAY SO AS TO OVERTURN HIM.
+EURYALUS, WHO HAD STILL KEPT THE THIRD PLACE, NOW SPRANG FORWARD, AND WAS
+EASILY VICTORIOUS AMID THE APPLAUSE OF THE CROWD. ELYMUS CAME IN NEXT, AND
+CLOSE BEHIND HIM DIORES. BUT SALIUS LOUDLY DEMANDED THAT THE FIRST PRIZE
+OF RIGHT BELONGED TO HIM.]
+
+The next contest was that with the cestus, the boxing-glove of the
+ancients, a formidable implement, intended not to soften the blows dealt
+by the boxers, but to make them more painful, for it was composed of
+strips of hardened oxhide. To the competitors in this sport--if such it
+could be called--Æneas offered two prizes,--the first a bullock, decked
+with gold and fillets, and the second a sword and a shining helmet. A
+noted Trojan warrior named Dares, a man of immense strength and bulk, who
+was also celebrated for his skill with the cestus, presented himself to
+contest this prize. He brandished his huge fists in the air, and paced
+vaingloriously backward and forward in the arena, challenging any one in
+the assembly to meet him. But there was no response; his friends were too
+well acquainted with his skill, and the Sicilians were awed by his
+formidable appearance. At last, therefore, imagining that nobody would
+venture to encounter him, he advanced to Æneas and asked that the prize
+might be given up to him. It seemed, indeed, that this would have to be
+done, when King Acestes turned to one of his elders, a venerable Sicilian
+chief named Entellus, and asked how it was that he thus allowed such
+splendid prizes to be taken before his eyes without striking a blow for
+them. Entellus had, in his younger days, been a great champion with the
+cestus, having been taught the use of the weapon by none other than Eryx,
+at that time king of Sicily, and one of the most expert boxers in the
+world. So confident had Eryx been in his powers, that when the mighty
+Hercules passed through Sicily on his way from Spain, where he had slain
+King Geryon and carried off his splendid cattle, the Sicilian monarch
+ventured to challenge the hero to a combat with the cestus, staking his
+kingdom against the cattle which Hercules was bearing away to Greece.
+Hercules had accepted the challenge, and had slain Eryx in the encounter;
+but the tradition of his skill had been preserved by his pupil Entellus.
+The chief was now old, and disinclined for exertion; but when thus urged
+by King Acestes, he slowly rose and threw into the arena the gauntlets
+which King Eryx had been accustomed to use. Terrible weapons indeed
+they-were, with heavy pieces of iron and lead sewn into them underneath
+the oxhide. At the mere sight of them Dares shrank back appalled, and
+refused to fight with such implements. "These," said Entellus, "were the
+gauntlets with which my master Eryx encountered Hercules; and these, after
+his death, I myself was accustomed to use. But if Dares likes not such
+gloves, let Æneas provide others for both of us." With these words he
+threw off his upper garments and bared his massive shoulders and sinewy
+arms. The Trojan chief brought out two pairs of gauntlets of less
+formidable make, with which the two champions armed themselves; and then
+they stood face to face, and both raised their arms for the encounter. For
+some time they stood parrying each other's blows and watching for an
+opportunity. Presently, as they grew warmer, many heavy strokes were given
+on each side, now on the head, now on the breast. Entellus stood stiff and
+unmoved in the same firm posture, only bending to evade Dares's blows, and
+always closely watching his antagonist, who, more active, wheeled round
+him, trying first one method of attack, then another. At last Entellus
+uplifted his right arm, thinking he saw an opportunity for delivering a
+decisive stroke; but Dares with great agility slipped out of the way, and
+as the arm of Entellus encountered no resistance save from the empty air,
+he fell forward on the ground through the violence of his own effort.
+Acclamations burst from all the onlookers, and Acestes himself stepped
+forward to assist his old companion to his feet. But the mishap had only
+aroused Entellus's anger; he no longer acted on the defensive, but rushed
+upon his opponent with irresistible ardor, and smote blow after blow,
+driving Dares headlong over the field, pouring down strokes as incessantly
+as a shower of hail rattles upon the house-tops. Æneas now deemed it high
+time to put a stop to the combat, and called upon Dares, who indeed was
+quite overpowered, to yield. His comrades led the beaten champion to the
+ships, with the blood flowing from his battered head and face, and on his
+behalf they took away the helmet and sword, leaving the bull to the
+conqueror. Entellus, proud of his victory, laid hold of the animal, and
+exclaimed, "Behold, O chief, and you Trojans, from this what my strength
+once was, and also from what death you have saved Dares." With these words
+he smote the bull on the forehead with the cestus so mightily that the
+skull was battered in and the brute sank dead at his feet.
+
+After this exciting competition came a more peaceful sport,--a trial of
+skill with the bow. A mast was planted on a sward, and to the top of it a
+living dove was secured by a cord. This was the mark, and four archers
+came forward to contend for the prizes,--Hippocoön, the brother of Nisus
+and one of Æneas's dearest friends; Mnestheus, the winner of the second
+prize in the galley race; Eurytion, a brother of that Pandarus who was one
+of the most skillful archers that fought in the Trojan war, and who, after
+wounding Menelaus, was slain by Diomedes; and lastly, King Acestes
+himself. Hippocoön shot first, and his arrow, whizzing past the fluttering
+dove, pierced the pole to which she was fastened. This, though it did not
+hit the mark, was an excellent shot, and it won loud applause from the
+spectators. Mnestheus next discharged his dart, taking a long and steady
+aim; but his arrow, instead of striking the bird, cut in two the cord by
+which she was fastened, and, spreading her wings, the dove at once flew
+away. Instantly, however, Eurytion raised his bow, and shot with so true
+an aim that he struck the bird even in mid-flight, and brought her
+lifeless to the earth. There was thus no longer a mark at which Acestes
+could aim; but notwithstanding he drew his bow and discharged a shaft high
+into the air. And now a strange prodigy happened; for the arrow, soaring
+upward, took fire as it flew, and marked out a path of flame, till, being
+quite consumed, it vanished into the air. This spectacle naturally excited
+the wonder and reverence of the assembled multitude; and Æneas, embracing
+Acestes, declared that the incident was an omen from the Gods awarding to
+him the first prize. He therefore bestowed on him a splendid bowl,
+embossed with figures, which had once belonged to Anchises, nor did the
+other competitors dispute the justice of the decision.
+
+But the games were not yet ended. The Trojan chief had prepared a closing
+spectacle as a surprise for the spectators. He sent a messenger to summon
+Ascanius, and in the mean time ordered a large space of ground to be
+cleared. Then suddenly his son entered on horseback at the head of a
+numerous company,--all the youths of the expedition. They were attired
+alike, with garlands on their heads and circles of gold about their necks;
+and each carried two spears of cornel-wood, tipped with steel. The young
+equestrians were divided into three companies; one was commanded by
+Ascanius himself, mounted on a beautiful Sidonian steed which had been
+given him by Queen Dido; a second by the youthful Priam, a son of that
+Polites whom Pyrrhus slew at the fall of Troy; and the third by Atys, a
+boy who was Ascanius' especial friend and companion. They went through a
+series of evolutions, now advancing in line, again forming in different
+bands and pretending to charge one another, and afterwards going through
+many other intricate manoeuvres. The scene was a most picturesque one, and
+gave great pleasure to those who witnessed it.
+
+
+
+
+ÆNEAS'S VISIT TO THE LOWER WORLD
+
+By Charles Henry Hanson
+
+
+Continuing his voyage, Æneas reached the shore of the country afterwards
+named Campania, the modern province of Naples. Here the ships were
+carefully moored, and the crews disembarked. Some busied themselves in
+kindling fires and preparing a meal; others explored the country in search
+of game. Æneas, however, hastened at once to seek the temple of Apollo and
+the adjoining cave of the Cumæan Sibyl,--the most famous of all the
+oracles of antiquity. The temple and cave were situated in a thick wood,
+closely adjoining the gloomy lake of Avernus, a black pool of unknown
+depth, hedged in by precipitous cliffs, and emitting gases so poisonous
+that no bird was able to fly over it in safety. In the rocks at one side
+of the lake there yawned a sombre cavern, which was believed in those days
+to be the entrance to the kingdom of Pluto--the abode of the dead.
+
+Æneas was surveying the temple,--an edifice of great splendor, adorned
+with pictures wrought in metal by the cunning hand of Dædalus,--when
+Achates, whom he had sent before him to the Sibyl's cave, approached,
+conducting the priestess. "O prince," she said, "this is not the time for
+admiring the works of men. It will be more fitting for you to propitiate
+the god with sacrifices, so that he may inspire me." With this mandate the
+hero at once complied, and then the Sibyl summoned him and his followers
+to the entrance of her cave,--a vast apartment carved out of the living
+rock, whence issued a hundred corridors. Scarcely had the Trojans
+approached the threshold when the virgin exclaimed, "Now is the time to
+consult your fate! The god! lo, the god!" As she cried out thus her looks
+suddenly changed, her color came and went, her hair fell in disorder over
+her shoulders, her bosom heaved, and she was shaken by an uncontrollable
+passion. Her very form seemed to dilate, and the tone of her voice was no
+longer that of a mere mortal, since she was inspired by the influence of
+the god. "Trojan Æneas!" she exclaimed, "delay no longer to offer thy
+prayers for the knowledge which thou seekest; for not till then can I
+reveal to thee the secrets of the future."
+
+Earnestly did Æneas implore pity and aid from Apollo; and of the Sibyl he
+entreated that she should proclaim her revelations by word of mouth, and
+not, as was her custom, write them on leaves of trees, lest they should
+become the sport of the winds. At first the prophetess did not answer; she
+was not yet fully possessed by the spirit of the god, and raved in wild
+ecstasy in the cave, struggling, as it were, to resist the will of
+Phoebus, who, on his part, wearied her foaming lips, subdued her fierce
+heart, and moulded her to his will. Then all at once the hundred doors of
+the cavern flew open of their own accord, and the Sibyl proclaimed the
+divine response,--
+
+"O thou who hast at length overpassed the perils of the ocean, yet more
+terrible trials await thee on shore. Thou and thy Trojans shall indeed
+reach the promised land--that is assured; but ye shall wish that ye had
+never come thither. Wars, horrid wars, I foresee, and Tiber foaming with a
+deluge of blood. Another Achilles awaits thee in Latium--he also the son
+of a goddess. Nor shall the persecutions of Juno cease to follow the
+Trojans wherever they may be; and in your distress you will humbly
+supplicate all the surrounding Italian states for aid. Once more shall a
+marriage with a foreign wife be a source of affliction to you. But yield
+not under your sufferings; encounter them resolutely in the teeth of
+adverse fortune, and when you least expect it, the means of deliverance
+shall come to you from a Greek city."
+
+So, under the inspiration of Apollo, spoke the Sibyl. When she had ceased,
+Æneas answered that no prospect of further trials could appall him, for he
+was prepared to endure the worst that could befall. But he now entreated,
+since it was said that the entrance to the shades was near, that the Sibyl
+should conduct him into those dark regions, in order that he might obtain
+an interview with the spectre of his father. It was Anchises' self, he
+added, who had bidden him make this request; and filial devotion would
+enable him to perform a task which Orpheus had achieved out of love for
+his wife Eurydice, and Pollux through his attachment to his brother
+Castor.
+
+"Æneas," replied the priestess, "easy is the descent into Hades: grim
+Pluto's gate stands open night and day, but to retrace your steps and
+escape to the upper regions will be a difficult task indeed, and one which
+few have hitherto been able to accomplish. If, however, you are fixed in
+the resolve to pursue so desperate an enterprise, learn what first is to
+be done. There is in the dark woods which surround the Lake of Avernus a
+certain tree, dense of foliage, on which grows a single bough of gold,
+with leaves and twigs of the same precious metal, and no living mortal can
+enter Hades unless he has first found and plucked this bough, which is
+demanded by Proserpine, the consort of Pluto and queen of the infernal
+realms, as her peculiar tribute. When the bough is torn off, another
+always grows in its place. Therefore search for it diligently, and when
+you have discovered it grasp it with your hand. If the Fates are
+propitious to your enterprise, you will be able to pluck it easily; if
+otherwise, your whole strength could not tear it from the tree, nor could
+you ever sever it with your sword. In the mean time the body of one of
+your friends lies lifeless, and demands the funeral rites. First bury him
+with proper ceremonies, and then return to me with black cattle for the
+sacrifices; and then you shall be able to visit the realms of Hades, to
+which most living men are denied an entrance."
+
+With sorrowful thoughts Æneas, closely followed by Achates, now withdrew
+from the shrine, and took the way to the shore. Both were greatly
+perplexed to know what was the corpse needing burial of which the Sibyl
+had spoken. But while they were wondering they came to the beach, and
+there, before them, they saw lying the body of Misenus, who had come to a
+lamentable end. Misenus was the most skilled among all the Trojans in the
+art of blowing the trumpet. He had been, besides, a famous warrior, and
+during the siege of Troy was accustomed to be the companion of Hector in
+the field, and to fight by his side. When Hector fell, he attached himself
+to Æneas, scorning to follow any less illustrious chief, and so had formed
+one of the band which the hero was conducting to Latium. But he was
+inordinately vain of his skill with the trumpet, and believed himself
+superior even to the Tritons, the sea-deities whose especial province it
+was to lull the seas at the command of Neptune by blowing upon instruments
+made of shells. These Tritons Misenus had challenged to a trial of skill,
+and by way of defiance had blown so loud a note that the deities were
+afraid to respond to his challenge; but being full of jealousy, they had
+now contrived to lure him into the sea and drown him. The discovery of his
+lifeless body filled all his comrades with sadness. They gathered about
+him with loud lamentations, and then prepared to erect his funeral pyre,
+hastening with axes into the thick surrounding woods, and cutting down
+huge oaks and pines and ash-trees.
+
+Æneas himself led the way in the performance of this task, and while he
+was engaged in it he could not help exclaiming, as his glance surveyed the
+wide forest, "Would that I could now perceive the golden bough which I
+must find before entering Hades; for in this ample forest, how can I begin
+to search for it?" Scarcely had he spoken when two pigeons suddenly
+swooped down from the upper air and alighted at his feet. He guessed at
+once that these doves, his mother's favorite birds, had been sent for his
+guidance, and he entreated them to conduct him to the place where the
+precious bough was growing. The doves, feeding and flying by turns,
+advanced through the wood at such a speed that Æneas could easily keep
+them in sight, and presently, having reached the very edge of Lake
+Avernus, both rose at once into the air, and settled on a great tree of
+very dense foliage. The hero hastened to the spot, and there indeed, on
+one of the lower limbs of the tree, gleamed the bough, the rich yellow
+lustre of its leaves and twigs contrasting vividly with the deep green of
+the surrounding foliage. Æneas with delight grasped it, and plucked it
+from its place, and, bearing it carefully in his hand, hastened to rejoin
+his companions.
+
+They, in the mean time, had reared on the shore a vast pile of logs of
+pine and oak, the sides of which they had interlaced with smaller boughs.
+After having carefully washed and purified the body of Misenus, they first
+made a couch upon the pyre, with the apparel of the dead man, and then,
+with renewed cries of grief, placed the body upon it. His arms, too, they
+laid beside him, and having poured incense and oil abundantly upon the
+pile, they set it on fire. When only smouldering embers were left, these
+were quenched with wine, and the ashes of the dead were carefully
+collected and placed in a brazen urn. This urn was afterwards deposited in
+a lofty tomb which Æneas erected on a promontory that henceforth bore the
+name of Misenus.
+
+The funeral ceremonies having thus duly been performed, the hero proceeded
+to the cave of the Sibyl, and called upon her to fulfill her promise, and
+accompany him to the kingdom of the dead. She led him to the mouth of the
+black cavern at the side of Lake Avernus, and there offered up sacrifices
+of black cattle and sheep, uttering various invocations. Presently the
+ground began to rumble beneath their feet; upon which the Sibyl ordered
+those of Æneas's followers who had attended him to withdraw from the spot,
+and exhorted the chief himself, drawing his sword from its sheath, to
+march firmly forward. So saying she plunged into the cave, nor did he
+hesitate to follow.
+
+At first they moved along through a region that was utterly waste, void,
+and covered with an intense gloom, deep as that of a winter's night when
+the moon is obscured by clouds. But this desolate tract was not wholly
+untenanted, for Æneas saw flitting about certain hideous shadowy forms.
+The spirits of Grief and Revenge and pale Disease, Fear and Famine and
+deformed Indigence, had their abode in this vestibule of Hades; and so,
+too, Death and Toil, and murderous War, and frantic Discord, her head
+crowned with curling vipers and bound by a blood-dyed fillet. Here, also,
+were the iron chambers in which dwelt the terrible Furies. In the midst
+rose a gloomy elm, which was the haunt of vain Dreams, who dwelt under
+every leaf. Beyond this tree were many huge and misshapen
+monsters,--Centaurs, and double-formed Scyllas, and the great dragon of
+the Lernæan lake, which, when it plagued the upper earth, was slain by
+Hercules. Here, also, was the huge Chimæra, with its three heads vomiting
+flames; Gorgons, Harpies, and other ghastly forms flitted about. At so
+fearful a sight. Æneas was seized with sudden fear; he drew his sword, and
+would have struck at the monsters, if the Sibyl had not restrained his
+hand and reminded him that they were but disembodied shadows.
+
+The path now led them to a place where the three infernal rivers, Acheron,
+Cocytus, and Styx, met in one deep, black, and boiling flood. Here there
+kept guard the grim ferryman Charon, an infernal deity of fearful aspect.
+A long gray beard fell all tangled and neglected from his chin; his filthy
+and ragged garments were knotted over his shoulders; his eyes glittered
+with baleful light. He sat on a great black barge, which he pushed to and
+fro across the river with a pole. An immense crowd of shades was
+incessantly pouring to the banks,--young and old, matrons and virgins,
+warriors who had endured the toils of a long life and tender boys who had
+died while yet under the care of their parents. All were eager to cross
+the stream, and stretched their hands in earnest entreaty to Charon to
+admit them into his boat. But the sullen ferryman only consented to
+receive some; others he drove back with his pole, and would on no account
+permit them to cross.
+
+Æneas was amazed at this scene, and asked the Sibyl to explain to him its
+meaning. "You see before you," she replied, "the deep pools of Cocytus,
+and the Stygian lake, by which the Gods are accustomed to swear when they
+take an oath which they dare not violate. All that crowd which Charon will
+not ferry across is composed of persons who after death received not the
+rites of burial; those only are permitted to enter the boat who have been
+interred with proper ceremonies. As for the others, they wander unquiet
+about these shores for a hundred years before they are allowed to cross to
+the regions beyond."
+
+When Æneas heard this he was filled with sadness, for among the spectres
+of the unburied who crowded on the bank he saw many of his own comrades
+who had perished during the storms he had had to encounter during his long
+voyages. As he looked, there advanced, slow and mournful, the pilot
+Palinurus, who had been thrown overboard by Somnus during the recent
+voyage from Sicily. The hero accosted him, and asked him what god had torn
+him from his post and overwhelmed him in the midst of the ocean. The
+oracle of Apollo, he said, had assured him that Palinurus would be safe on
+the sea, and would arrive on the Italian coast; and yet it would seem that
+the oracle had been falsified. The shade of Palinurus, knowing nothing of
+the enchantment which had been wrought on him by Somnus, replied that no
+god had destroyed him, and that the oracle had spoken truly. He had fallen
+into the sea through being overcome by slumber, and having kept afloat for
+three days and nights, had on the fourth day reached the Italian shore
+alive, but had been cruelly murdered by the savage people while clambering
+up the cliffs. Now his body was tossing on the waves, sometimes thrown on
+the shore and then washed off again. But he passionately entreated Æneas
+either to find his corpse and inter it with proper solemnities, or else to
+contrive some means of taking him as his companion across the black waters
+of Styx, unburied as he was, that at last his soul might find rest. The
+Sibyl, however, rebuked him for expressing so impious a desire, and for
+hoping that the fixed decrees of the Gods could be violated for the
+benefit of one insignificant mortal. But by way of consolation she
+informed him that the people of the country where he had met with his
+death, compelled by terrible plagues sent by Jupiter, would offer solemn
+atonement to his remains, erect a tomb to his memory, and give his name to
+the place where it stood.
+
+Æneas and the Sibyl now advanced toward the river; but when Charon saw
+them approaching, he called out, "Whoever thou mayest be that art now
+coming armed and in life to our rivers, say quickly on what errand thou
+art coming. This is the region of ghosts and death; to waft over the
+bodies of the living in my boat is not permitted. Nor was it joyful to me
+to receive Hercules when he came, nor Theseus and Pirithous, though they
+were descendants of the Gods and unconquerable in war. Hercules dared to
+bind in chains Cerberus himself, the keeper of the gate of Tartarus, and
+dragged him trembling from the very throne of Pluto. The others attempted
+a feat scarcely less perilous, for they sought to carry off our queen
+Proserpine."
+
+"Be not disturbed," answered the Sibyl; "we at least meditate no such
+plots, nor does this mortal bring with him his arms for any purpose of
+violence. He is Æneas of Troy, illustrious for piety and skill in arms,
+and he penetrates these gloomy abodes to have converse with his father
+Anchises. If your compassion is not moved by his filial devotion, at least
+pay regard to this branch." And so saying, she produced the golden bough.
+The surly ferryman, though filled with rage at being forced to obey, was
+at once silenced. He brought his boat to the bank, and silently received
+into it Æneas and his companion, driving back the ghosts that at the same
+time eagerly strove to enter the vessel. It was old and leaky, and sank
+deep in the black flood under the unaccustomed weight of living mortals;
+but Charon ferried them safely across, and landed them on the farther
+side, where, in a huge den at the gate of the infernal regions, lay
+Cerberus, the terrible three-headed dog which was the guardian of the
+place--a ferocious brute which only Hercules among living men had been
+able to subdue. When Æneas approached he opened his huge jaws and made all
+Hades resound with his barking; but the Sibyl threw to him a medicated
+cake, which he at once devoured, and was thereby lulled into profound
+sleep. The way was now safe; the Trojan chief and his companion passed
+quickly through the open gate, and entered the dread region where Minos
+and his fellow judges pronounced on the fate of each ghost that came
+before them.
+
+The first place within the gate was assigned to the shades of infants, cut
+off in the very beginning of life, who filled their allotted region with
+loud wailings and weeping. Beyond these were placed persons who had been
+put to death in consequence of false accusations. Not even the unjust
+suffering which such persons had endured on earth could at once procure
+for them a place among those happy spirits declared free of guilt. Here
+they were doomed to wait till the inexorable Minos examined each case and
+gave his award. Immediately adjoining was the place allotted to those who,
+though unstained by crime, had become weary of life and had committed
+self-destruction. Gladly, indeed, would they have now returned to the
+upper world they had despised, but no such return was possible to them.
+
+Æneas and his companion next viewed a region named the Fields of
+Mourning,--a wide tract, with shady paths and thick myrtle groves,
+dedicated to those who had died through unrequited love, and were held to
+have been emancipated by the miseries they had endured on earth from
+suffering any punishment below. Here were to be seen, wandering
+disconsolately, many women of whom Æneas had heard in old legends of
+Greece and Troy. Among them he beheld, with sorrow and pity, the
+ill-starred Queen of Carthage, the wound she had herself inflicted yet
+gaping in her fair bosom. "Dido!" he exclaimed with tears, "was it then a
+true rumor that reached me of your having died after my departure, and by
+your own hand? If I have been the cause of your death, I am indeed
+unhappy. By all I hold sacred, fair queen, I swear to you that it was
+against my own will I quitted Carthage. The will of the Gods, which now
+has brought me, while yet living, into these melancholy realms, drove me
+from you; but I dreamt not that our separation would bring upon you such
+extreme suffering. Why will you not speak to me? Why do you fly from me?
+Never again will the Fates permit us to meet together." But all his
+entreaties and his tears were vain. The spectre gazed upon him awhile with
+eyes of inexorable hate, and then turned away, with a gesture of
+unrelenting aversion, to a shady recess near by, where she was joined by
+the ghost of her first lord, Sichæus, who by the compassion of Pluto had
+been permitted to bear her company. Æneas resumed his journey, pondering
+sadly over the fate of the woman who but a little since had loved him so
+ardently and to whom he had unwillingly brought such misfortunes. He and
+his guide now came to a place dedicated to the shades of renowned
+warriors. Here he saw numbers of those brave Trojans, once his companions
+in arms, who had fallen before Troy. They eagerly crowded around him,
+pressed his hands, and questioned him as to the circumstances which had
+brought him, while yet alive, amongst them. There, too, were many Greeks
+who had perished during the Trojan war; but when they beheld the hero in
+the flesh, and wearing his gleaming armor, they fled from him in dismay.
+As he passed on, after exchanging affectionate words with many of his old
+comrades, he met Deïphobus, that son of Priam who, after the death of
+Paris, became the husband of Helen. The spectre of the prince was cruelly
+mutilated,--so that Æneas scarcely knew him. "Who, O Deïphobus," he
+exclaimed, "could have inflicted such shameful wounds upon you? After I
+had escaped from Troy a story was brought to me that you had indeed
+perished, but honorably and in fair fight, having slain many of the enemy.
+Then I erected in your honor an empty tomb on the shore under Mount Ida,
+and offered proper funeral rites, for your body I was unable to find."
+
+"You, my friend," answered Deïphobus, "omitted no duty towards my corpse
+that you could perform. But I owe my death and these infamous wounds to
+the wickedness of Helen; they are the marks of her love. On the night
+after the fatal horse was brought into Troy, I was lying asleep in my
+chamber, enjoying needful repose. Then my faithless wife removed all the
+arms from my palace, and even took away my sword from the side of my
+couch. That done, she threw open the gates, and herself summoned her
+former husband, Menelaus, and he and Ulysses burst into my apartment and
+inflicted on me these wounds, for which I pray the Gods that they may be
+requited."
+
+Æneas would have spent yet more time in conversing with the shades of his
+former comrades; but the Sibyl reminded him that the hour was approaching
+when he must return to the upper world. "Here," she said, "the path is
+divided. To the right, past the palace of Pluto, lies our way to the
+Elysian Fields; on the left is the way to Tartarus, the place of
+punishment for the wicked."
+
+As they proceeded toward Elysium, Æneas looked around him, and beheld to
+the left a vast prison, enclosed by mighty walls, at the foot of which ran
+Phlegethon, the river of fire, whirling along great rocks in its furious
+current. Across the stream, just opposite to where he was standing, was a
+lofty gate, with columns of solid adamant. In an iron tower adjoining sat
+Tisiphone, the eldest of the Furies, watching the gate. From within sounds
+were heard--groans of pain, the sound of cruel lashes, and the clanking of
+chains. Æneas asked his companion what punishments were being inflicted
+within, and who were the sufferers. "This," replied the Sibyl, "is
+Tartarus, whereinto no righteous person can enter. Here Rhadamanthus
+presides: he searches into the deeds of all who are sent hither, obliges
+them to confess all the crimes they have committed in the upper world, and
+awards the punishment. As soon as the sentence is pronounced, Tisiphone
+scourges the doomed one with a whip of scorpions, and then consigns him to
+the fierce attendants of her sister Furies. Immediately the gates,
+creaking on their hinges, fly open. Within, the entrance is guarded by a
+hideous Hydra, with fifty black and gaping mouths. In the pit of Tartarus
+beyond, the giants who waged war against the ruler of the Gods lie
+prostrated by his thunderbolts. Beside them, enduring terrible tortures,
+is Salmoneus. He was a king of Elis in Greece, and was so puffed up by
+pride that he rode through his city on a high chariot drawn by four
+prancing horses, waving in his hand a torch, and pretending to be Jupiter
+himself, wielding his thunderbolts. The Almighty Sire punished his impiety
+by hurling from Olympus a real thunderbolt, which deprived him of life;
+and now he pays the penalty of his mad pride by eternal sufferings in
+Tartarus. There also lies Tityus, the huge giant who, having insulted the
+goddess Latona, was slain by the darts of her children, Apollo and Diana,
+and whose writhing body now lies extended over nine acres of ground, while
+insatiable vultures perpetually prey on his vitals, that are renewed as
+fast as they are devoured. Beyond him is Ixion, bound to a wheel that
+never ceases to revolve, while he is scourged by attendant Furies. He it
+was who, being admitted to Olympus by the generosity of Jupiter himself,
+dared to seek the love of the queen of the Gods. Not less dreadful is the
+punishment allotted to Pirithous, who, along with Theseus, endeavored to
+carry off the Queen of Hades, Proserpine, from the side of Pluto. Over his
+head hangs a huge rock, which every moment seems about to fall and crush
+him, but yet never actually descends; moreover, he is plagued with a
+gnawing hunger, and a rich banquet is always before him, which yet he is
+never able to reach. Myriads of other unhappy shades, whose course on
+earth has been stained by detestable crime, here expiate the evil they
+have done; but had I a hundred mouths and a hundred tongues, I could not
+recount all their offenses and the varieties of their punishment. It is
+necessary that we should go forward, since yonder stands the palace of
+Pluto, where thou, O Æneas, must deposit the bough which has gained thee
+admission here."
+
+Obedient to his guide, Æneas advanced to the vast portals of the palace
+where Pluto, the brother of Jupiter and monarch of the infernal kingdom,
+had his abode with his lovely queen Proserpine, the daughter of Ceres,
+whom ages before he had carried off from the upper world. There he made
+due reverence before the goddess, and deposited the golden bough at her
+feet. Advancing beyond, Æneas and the Sibyl came at last to the Elysian
+Fields,--the abode of joy assigned to those who during life had been
+distinguished for piety, virtue, and heroic actions. Here were lovely
+green fields and pleasant groves; the air was pure and balmy, the sky was
+blue, and all was glowing-in the light of the blessed sun. Some of the
+happy spirits who dwelt in this region were amusing themselves by
+wrestling on the greensward, and other sports in which they had delighted
+on earth, such as chariot-racing, exercises with the spear and the bow.
+Others were dancing and singing to the delicious notes which Orpheus, the
+most skillful of musicians, produced from his lyre. On the bank of the
+river Eridanus, which pours its clear waters through Elysium over sands of
+gold, were gathered a band whose heads were adorned with snow-white
+fillets. These were priests who had kept unstained the purity and sanctity
+of their office; poets who had sung the praises of the Gods in immortal
+verse; and those who had made human life more happy by the invention of
+useful arts. Among them the Sibyl sought out Musseus, the father of the
+poets, and besought him to reveal in what retreat they should find
+Anchises, on whose account she and her companion had traversed all the
+regions of the shades.
+
+"None of us," answered the venerable shade, "have here any fixed abode. We
+wander at our will among the shady groves and by the pleasant banks of the
+river. But if you mount with me this little eminence, I will show you him
+whom you seek."
+
+As he spoke, he led them to a spot where they could survey all the shining
+plains around, and pointed to where Anchises, reclined in a secluded vale,
+was surveying the souls of his descendants who were destined in future
+times to visit the earth, and were enacting beforehand the achievements
+they were fated to accomplish during life. As soon as he saw Æneas
+advancing toward him, he rose with hands stretched out and joyful tears
+pouring down his face.
+
+"Are you indeed," he exclaimed, "come to me at last, my son? Am I
+permitted once more to see your face, and to listen to the tones of your
+dear voice? Now indeed the hopes which I cherished are fulfilled. By how
+many dangers have you been threatened since we parted! I was filled with
+dread lest you should be prevented from accomplishing your task by the
+temptations which beset you at Carthage."
+
+"Thy apparition, beloved father," answered Æneas, "continually appearing
+to me in dreams, urged me forward even to these regions. Permit me now to
+clasp thee in my arms, and do not withdraw from my embrace." Thrice did he
+attempt to throw his arms about the shade, which being only composed of
+thin air, was not perceptible to his touch. While the two conversed
+together, Æneas observed at no great distance from them a stream, at which
+prodigious numbers of ghosts were incessantly crowding to drink, swarming
+like bees round their hive. Astonished at this spectacle, the hero
+inquired of his father what that stream was, and why those spectres were
+so eager to drink of it. "These," answered Anchises, "are souls destined
+by fate to occupy other bodies in the upper world; and the stream is
+Lethe, one draught of which is sufficient to destroy all recollection of
+their former condition."
+
+"But surely," said Æneas, "it is not to be believed that any souls which
+have tasted the delights of this abode will be desirous to return again to
+the life of earth, with its uncertainties and its miseries. How comes it
+that this impulse possesses them?"
+
+In reply to this question, Anchises entered into a long explanation, the
+substance of which was that all the spirits of the departed had to endure
+in the regions below a process of expiation for their earthly sins, longer
+or shorter according to the nature of their transgressions. Those that
+were not consigned to the pains of Tartarus entered the Elysian Fields,
+where, after they had remained a thousand years, they were summoned to
+drink of the waters of Lethe, and thus lose all recollection of their
+former lives; after which, being purified from all stain, they were fitted
+to return to the upper world and inhabit new bodies. Anchises added that
+he would show to his son the forms of his own descendants in the Italian
+kingdom he was destined to establish, and would trace for him their
+achievements. Leading Æneas and the Sibyl onto a rising ground, in the
+midst of the souls which were crowding about the magic stream of Lethe, he
+pointed out to him a long array of future kings of Latium,--Silvius, who
+was to be the son of Æneas's old age by his consort Lavinia; Procas,
+Capys, and Numitor, destined to be monarchs of Alba Longa; and Romulus,
+the future founder of the great city of Rome, which would extend over
+seven hills, and would spread her dominion over the whole earth. Not far
+from these were the souls of Romulus's successors in the' early days of
+Rome,--Numa Pompilius, who first would give his country laws, and
+encourage the arts of peace; Tullus Hostilius, who would wage victorious
+wars, and extend the territories of Rome; Ancus Martius, not less
+successful in the field; and Tarquin, destined to lose the throne through
+his oppressive reign. Anchises proceeded to indicate to his wondering son
+many of the patriots and generals who in future years were to contribute
+to the glory and power of the Roman State,--more especially the great
+Julius Caesar, the lineal descendant of Æneas himself; and Augustus, who
+would once more establish the golden age in Latium, and whose empire would
+extend to countries as yet unknown. The venerable shade concluded his
+forecast of the future with a splendid description of the part which Rome
+was destined to play in the world's history:--
+
+  "Let others better mould the running mass
+  Of metals, and inform the breathing brass,
+  And soften into flesh a marble face;
+  Plead better at the bar; describes the skies,
+  And when the stars descend, and when they rise:
+  But Rome! 'tis thine alone, with awful sway
+  To rule mankind, and make the world obey,
+  Disposing peace and war thy own majestic way;
+  To tame the proud, the fettered slave to free,--
+  These are imperial arts, and worthy thee."
+
+Having thus inspired Æneas with renewed determination by showing him the
+brilliant future that was awaiting his descendants, Anchises conducted him
+over those parts of the Elysian Fields which he had not yet visited, and
+showed him everything that was of peculiar interest. As they went, he
+discoursed to him respecting the wars which he would have to wage in
+Latium, and gave him counsel as to the means by which he should overcome
+every difficulty. Then at last, having brought him to the ivory gate
+whence the gods were accustomed to send false dreams to the upper world,
+he bade him farewell. By that gate Æneas and the Sibyl quitted the abodes
+of the dead, and ascended without difficulty or adventure to the cave of
+the oracle, whence the hero hastened at once to his ships. Without loss of
+time he ordered the sails to be spread, and the ships were steered along
+the coast, drawing nearer ever hour to their final destination.
+
+
+
+
+ÆNEAS'S FIRST GREAT BATTLE WITH THE LATINS
+
+By Charles Henry Hanson
+
+
+    [Æneas finally lands in Italy, the country promised him by the
+    Gods as a home for his race. The Italian king, Latinus, has been
+    warned by signs and omens that the hand of his daughter Lavinia
+    must not be given to an Italian prince, but to a stranger coming
+    from a far country. He believes that Æneas is the hero chosen by
+    the Fates as her husband, and greets him in most friendly manner.
+    Queen Amata, however, is influenced by the Trojan-hating Juno to
+    oppose this marriage. Turnus, chief of the Rutuli, a suitor of
+    Lavinia, is next aroused, and soon the whole kingdom is in a
+    turmoil. A fierce battle ensues.]
+
+
+Turnus, having brought the bulk of his forces from before the beseiged
+camp, hurled them against the army of Æneas before its ranks were properly
+formed, and a furious conflict at once began to rage. The Trojan hero,
+rejoicing to find himself once more on a field of battle, first
+encountered the Latian warriors, who chanced to be in his front. Their
+leader was Theron, a man of gigantic stature, who did not hesitate to
+engage Æneas hand to hand; but he paid dearly for his rashness, for the
+sword which Vulcan had forged--so keen was its edge, so excellent its
+temper--pierced through his brazen buckler and his tunic stiffened by bars
+of gold, and penetrating his side, drained the life-blood. Next the hero
+struck down Lycas; and rushing onward, encountered two stalwart rustics,
+Cisseus and Gyas, who were making havoc among the Trojans by beating them
+down with ponderous clubs. On the divine armor the heavy blows of these
+rude weapons fell harmless, while the spear of Æneas proved fatal to both
+those who wielded them. An insolent warrior named Pharus was defying the
+hero from a short distance with taunting speech, when he hurled a javelin,
+which struck the boaster full in the mouth, and transfixing the throat,
+silenced him forever. Now a band of seven brothers, the sons of Phorcus,
+all at once attacked Æneas with darts, throwing them together. Some of the
+weapons struck his helmet and shield, and rebounded; others, turned aside
+by the care of Venus, grazed his skin. Æneas called to Achates to bring
+him more spears, and snatching one as soon as it was offered, hurled it
+against Mæon, one of the brothers, with such force that it penetrated his
+shield and corselet, and inflicted a mortal wound in his breast. Another
+brother, Alcanor, hurrying up to Mæon's assistance, he smote with a second
+spear, just where the arm and shoulder join, leaving the arm hanging to
+the body only by two or three shreds of skin and muscle. Seeing the
+slaughter that Æneas was spreading around him, Halæsus and Messapus
+hurried up with their bands to confront him, and so in that part of the
+field the battle grew still more furious.
+
+In another part, where Pallas was fighting at the head of his Arcadian
+horsemen, the ground had been rendered so uneven by the winter torrents
+that they were obliged to dismount, and being unaccustomed to fight on
+foot, they began to retreat before the fierce assault of the Rutulians. At
+this sight their brave young leader was overwhelmed with shame and
+mortification. "Whither," he cried, "my fellow countrymen, do you fly? I
+implore you, by the memory of your gallant deeds in the past, by the name
+of Evander, the king you love, by my own hopes of glory, not to flee. Your
+way lies through your foes, not from them; with your swords must you cut a
+passage where they crowd most densely. These are not gods who pursue us;
+they are mortals, like ourselves, and they are not stronger or more
+numerous than we. The ocean hems us in with an impassable barrier on the
+one side; the enemy confronts us on the other, and separates us from our
+friends. Whether shall we fly into the sea, or force our way toward the
+Trojans?" So saying, he turned, and dashed into the midst of the hostile
+ranks. Tagus was the first who fell a victim to his noble wrath; for as he
+was stooping to pick up a heavy stone, the spear of Pallas struck him in
+the middle of the back, and shattered the spine and ribs. As the young
+hero was withdrawing the weapon, Hisbon rushed on and struck at him from
+above; but the blow fell short, and before he could recover his guard
+Pallas buried his sword deep in his body. Warrior after warrior he struck
+down, restored the confidence of his followers, and spread confusion and
+dismay in the opposite ranks, raging among them as the flames lit by the
+husbandman in the autumn spread through the stubble, and destroy
+everything in their path. But now the Auruncian chief, Halæsus, summoned
+by some of his followers to their aid, opposed the advance of the
+Arcadians. He was a tried and fierce warrior, and he slew five of the
+bravest of Pallas's men before the young chief could confront him. Then,
+however, the son of Evander hurled a spear with such skill and certainty
+of aim that he pierced Halæsus's heart, and the grim leader of the Aurunci
+sank lifeless on the field. His fall was a sore discouragement to the
+troops of Turnus, which would have sought safety in flight, had not
+Lausus, the gallant son of Mezentius,--noble and upright offspring of an
+unworthy father,--suddenly come to their aid. First encountering Abas,
+leader of the Populonians, he slew him with a single blow of his sword,
+and followed up his success with a furious slaughter of Arcadians and
+Etrurians. Thus the battle continued: on the one side Pallas impetuously
+urged the attack; on the other Lausus not less obstinately maintained the
+defense. They were equal in years, and in beauty and grace of form; and to
+both alike the Fates had assigned a place among the victims of the war.
+But the Gods had ordained that they should not encounter hand to hand;
+each was destined to succumb to a superior foe.
+
+Turnus was leading his troops in another quarter of the field, when he was
+summoned to hasten to the assistance of Lausus, who alone was bearing up
+the battle against Pallas and his Arcadians. Quickly he turned his chariot
+in that direction, and as soon as he reached the spot, called on his
+warriors to withdraw from the conflict. "I alone," he said, "will
+encounter Pallas; to me his life is given. Would to Heaven his father were
+here to witness our combat." The Rutulians obeyed the command of their
+king, and fell back; while Pallas, amazed at their retreat and the sudden
+appearance of Turnus, gazed on his opponent. Then, in reply to his
+vaunting speech, he said, "Now, either by carrying off thy spoils or by a
+noble death at thy hands, I shall be rendered famous. My sire knows how to
+bear either extremity of fortune. Cease thy threatenings and let us
+engage." As he spoke, the hearts of the Arcadians, who loved him, were
+filled with fear and sorrow. Turnus sprang from his chariot, and came
+forward to the encounter on foot, advancing as a lion bounds toward his
+prey. As soon as Pallas thought him within reach of his spear, he prepared
+to throw it, and uttered this prayer to Hercules: "By my father's
+hospitality, and that abode which thou, his guest, didst visit, O Alcides,
+aid, I implore thee, my arduous attempt. May the dying eyes of Turnus
+behold me strip him, expiring, of his bloody armor, and endure the sight
+of a victorious foe." Hercules, from his place on Olympus, heard the
+prayer, and knowing that the decree of Fate was otherwise, answered with
+heavy groans and unavailing tears. These were not unseen by Jupiter, who
+strove to console his immortal son. "To every one," he said, "his day is
+fixed; a short and irretrievable term of life is given to all; but to
+lengthen out fame by heroic deeds is the best that man can do. Under the
+lofty walls of Troy many sons of gods themselves perished,--among them the
+heroic Sarpedon, my own offspring, perished; Turnus, too, is summoned by
+the Fates, and has nearly reached his term of life." He spoke, and turned
+away his gaze from the battlefield, himself pitying the untimely death of
+Pallas.
+
+And now the brave son of Evander with his utmost force hurled his spear,
+and then hastened to draw his sword from its scabbard. The weapon struck
+Turnus where the shoulder was protected by the corselet, and piercing
+through the solid brass, slightly grazed the hero's body. Then Turnus,
+poising a steel-tipped javelin, darted it at Pallas, exclaiming, "See
+whether mine be not the more penetrating shaft." Cast with irresistible
+might, it tore its way through the youth's shield, composed though it was
+of thick plates of brass and iron, and through his cuirass, and inflicted
+a ghastly wound in his breast. In vain he wrenched out the deadly missile
+from his body; even as he withdrew it life deserted his quivering form,
+and he fell to the ground. Bestriding the corpse, Turnus cried, "Ye
+Arcadians, faithfully report to Evander this message,--I send him back his
+Pallas in such a plight as he deserved. Whatever honor is in a tomb,
+whatever solace in the performance of funeral rites, I freely grant him.
+His league with the Trojan intruder shall cost him dear." So saying, he
+pressed his foot on the body, and tore away a massive belt, adorned with
+figures richly carved in gold. This spoil Turnus exultingly clasped around
+his own body, little dreaming that the time would come when he would wish
+that he had never taken it, and that he and Pallas had never met. But now
+the lifeless corpse of the youth, stripped of its arms and still bleeding
+from the fatal wound inflicted by the Rutulian chief, was laid on a shield
+and borne away by his weeping followers. Thus the first day on which he
+took a part in war saw also the young hero's death, though not, indeed,
+before he had strewn the plain with Rutulian corpses.
+
+Speedily the news of this sad disaster, and of the consequent retreat of
+his forces in that part of the field, was borne to Æneas. Rendered furious
+by the event, he impetuously mowed with his sword a bloody passage through
+the hostile ranks in search of Turnus, on whom he was eager to avenge the
+death of his friend. The thought of the bright youth who had thus perished
+in his cause, of the hoary father bereaved of all that made life dear to
+him, filled his heart with sorrow as he recalled the kindness which both
+had shown to him, and the pledges of enduring friendship he had exchanged
+with them. Eight Rutulian warriors he struck down, and captured them
+alive, destining them as victims to be offered to the shade of Pallas, and
+to drench with their blood the flames of the hero's funeral pyre. Next,
+Æneas having hurled a javelin at a Latian named Magus, the trembling
+wretch evaded the dart by stooping, and as Æneas rushed upon him with
+uplifted sword, he clasped his knees, and implored him to spare his life,
+proffering a large ransom of silver and gold which lay concealed
+underground in his house. Sternly the Trojan chief bade him keep his
+treasures for his sons; as for showing mercy, that was forbidden to him
+from the moment that Pallas fell by the hand of Turnus. Then grasping the
+suppliant's helmet, and forcing back his head so as to expose the neck,
+even as Magus renewed his petition he plunged the sword into his body to
+the hilt. Near by, the luckless Æmonides, a priest of Apollo and Diana,
+who wore a sacred fillet on his temples and shone in burnished armor, fell
+a victim to his relentless spear, and the splendid arms he had worn were
+carried off by Serestus as an offering to Mars. The Rutulians fled in
+terror before the raging chief; but King Cæculus of Præneste, and Umbro,
+the leader of the Marsians, renewed the struggle. A huge warrior named
+Tarquitus, the son of the nymph Dryope, dared to oppose himself to Æneas,
+but his fate was soon decided. The hero first pierced his corselet with a
+spear, and then, as he lay wounded and imploring mercy, smote off his head
+with his sword. Spurning the bleeding trunk, he furiously cried, "Lie
+there, haughty champion! Thee no tender mother shall lodge in the earth,
+or place a tomb above thy body; to birds of prey thou shalt be left, or
+cast in the sea to be devoured by fishes." Still insatiable of slaughter,
+he drove into terrified flight Antæus and Lycas, two of Turnus's bravest
+followers. But now the fierce Lucagus approached in a chariot drawn by two
+snow-white coursers. These were guided by his brother Liger, while he
+himself flourished his sword in the air, and prepared to encounter Æneas,
+who on his part rushed forward to meet them. "These," cried Liger, "are
+not the steeds of Diomedes, nor this the plain of Troy. Here an end shall
+be put at once to thy life and to the war." Against these insults Æneas
+prepared to give an answer otherwise than in words, and as Lucagus bent
+forward in readiness for the fight, the Trojan javelin whizzed through the
+rim of his shield, smote him in the groin, and hurled him, quivering in
+the pangs of death, out of the chariot. Æneas assailed his dying ears with
+a bitter scoff: "It is not, O Lucagus, the slowness of thy steeds in
+flight that hath lost thee thy chariot, but thou thyself, springing from
+thy seat, hast abandoned it." So saying, he seized the chariot; and now
+the miserable Liger, extending his hands in supplication, begged for his
+life. "It was not in this fashion that thou spokest a little while since,"
+replied the relentless hero. "It would not be fitting that thou shouldst
+desert thy brother. Die, therefore, and attend him to the shades." With
+that he thrust the avenging sword through his heart, whence the trembling
+soul fled with a shriek.
+
+So Æneas spread havoc amid the hostile ranks, and drove the forces of
+Turnus back in headlong rout, so that Ascanius and those who had hitherto
+been shut up in the fortifications were able to issue forth into the
+field. Meanwhile Jupiter, watching from Olympus the fortunes of the day,
+accosted his consort. "Thou art in the right, my cherished queen, in
+alleging that Venus gives her aid to the Trojans; for without divine aid,
+how would it be possible for any mortal to achieve such deeds as Æneas is
+now accomplishing?" "Why," submissively answered Juno, "dost thou tease
+me, who am already oppressed with anguish for the fate of the people I
+befriend? Had I that share in your love which I once enjoyed, and which it
+is fitting for me to possess, thou surely couldst not refuse me this much,
+that I might have permission to rescue Turnus from the fate that threatens
+him, and restore him safe to his father Daunus. But since that cannot be,
+let him die, and glut the vengeance of the Trojan with his blood; yet his
+origin is divine, and often has he piled thy altars with sacrifices." Not
+unmoved, the ruler of the Gods replied, "If you plead for a respite from
+immediate death, and a little breathing-time for the youth, I grant you to
+bear him from the field, and for a short time to preserve him. So far I
+will indulge you; but if you hope to gain any greater favor, and imagine
+that the whole predetermined course of the war is to be altered at your
+entreaty, you delude yourself with empty hopes." With tears Juno
+responded, "What if thou shouldst grant in thy heart what in words thou
+dost refuse, and continue the life of Turnus for its natural duration? I
+fear much that a speedy end awaits the brave youth; but oh! I pray that I
+may be misled by groundless alarms, and that thou, to whom all power
+belongs, may alter thy purpose for the better."
+
+Not daring to say more, the queen of heaven hastily descended from Olympus
+towards the contending armies. Then she devised an airy phantom, wearing
+armor which exactly resembled that of Æneas, and imitating to the life his
+walk and mien. This shadow she caused to flutter in the forefront of the
+battle, full in the view of Turnus, and to provoke him with darts and
+insolent words. The enraged Rutulian eagerly pressed upon it, and from a
+distance hurled against it a spear. Immediately the spectre, wheeling
+about, took to flight. Turnus, imagining that in very truth it was the
+Trojan chief who feared to meet him, and filled with baseless exultation,
+cried out, "Æneas, whither dost thou fly? Desert not thus thy promised
+bride; with this right hand will I bestow upon thee the settled abode thou
+hast sought in vain through so many lands and seas." Thus vociferating, he
+madly pursued the deceitful phantom. It chanced that near the shore there
+lay a vessel, joined to the land by a temporary bridge of planks. Hither
+Juno led the shadow, and caused it in seeming fear to leap on board and
+throw itself into a hiding-place. With not less speed Turnus followed,
+bounded along the bridge, and mounted to the lofty prow of the ship in
+search of the supposed fugitive. Instantly the goddess severed the cable,
+and drove the vessel over the foaming waves. Then the phantom melted into
+the air, and the Rutulian, utterly bewildered, gazed about him in despair,
+nor did he feel at all thankful to the guardian deity for having thus
+preserved him from the arms of Æneas. "Almighty Father," he cried, raising
+his eyes and hands towards heaven, "why dost thou think me worthy of such
+shame as this? What have I done to merit such a punishment? whither am I
+borne? How shall I venture again to enter the walls of Laurentum or look
+upon my camp? What will be said of me by the warriors who have followed me
+into this war, and whom--unutterable shame!--I have abandoned to the
+bloodthirsty Trojans! O winds! take pity on me, I entreat you; dash this
+vessel on some rugged crag, and overwhelm me so that I can no longer be
+conscious either of my humiliation or of the reproaches of my Rutulians."
+While he thus lamented, he was uncertain whether he should put an end to
+his own life with his sword or plunge into the sea and endeavor to regain
+the land by swimming. Three times he attempted each expedient, and as
+often Juno, full of pity, restrained him. Carried along by a favorable
+wind, the ship bore him safely to the capital of his father, King Daunus.
+
+Meanwhile Æneas raged through the battle-field in search of the victim
+whom the queen of the Gods had thus snatched from his conquering hands.
+Under his leadership the Trojans and their allies, flushed with success,
+pressed more eagerly on their discomfited foe; but Mezentius now advanced
+to restore the courage of the Rutulians. The Etrurians, as soon as they
+saw their expelled monarch, out of hostility to whom they had engaged in
+the war, rushed upon him with shouts of rage; but he, as fearless as he
+was wicked, stood as firmly against them as a great rock on the shore
+meets all the fury of the winds and waves. Three warriors he overthrew in
+quick succession: Hebrus he cut down with his sword, Latagus he slew by
+hurling a great stone which battered in his face, and at Palmus he threw a
+javelin which pierced his thigh and extended him helpless on the ground.
+Then the raging king slew Evas the Phrygian, and a Trojan named Mimas, who
+in former days had been the companion of Paris, having been born in Troy
+on the same night that gave to the light the ill-starred son of Priam.
+Paris now lay in eternal repose amid the ruins of his native city, while
+to Mimas the sword of Mezentius assigned an unknown grave on the distant
+shore of Italy. And just as when an old wild boar, chased from his retreat
+amid the wooded Alps, stands at bay among the underwood, and the hunters,
+afraid to approach him, ply him with darts from a distance, while he
+gnashes his tusks with rage and faces them undaunted, so stood Mezentius;
+while his former subjects, though filled with just anger against him, and
+eager for his destruction, dare not come within reach of his dreaded
+sword, but galled him with spears and useless clamor. It chanced that a
+Greek from Corytus, named Acron, presented himself in the front,
+conspicuous in nodding plumes, and in purple trappings that had been
+worked for him by his betrothed wife. His gay attire caught the eye of
+Mezentius, who rushed forward and smote down the luckless Greek; then, as
+the others fell back, he cut off the retreat of an Etrurian chief, Orodes,
+forced him to engage hand to hand, and speedily slew him. Pressing his
+foot on the expiring warrior to draw out his lance from his body,
+Mezentius cried to his followers, "Behold, friends! Orodes has fallen--not
+the meanest of our foes." The Rutulians raised a joyful shout, but the
+dying Orodes faintly answered, "Not long shall thou rejoice with impunity
+over me; a similar fate awaits thyself, and soon shalt thou also be
+stretched lifeless on this same field." Smiling scornfully, Mezentius
+returned, "Die thou, and leave my fate to the Gods, in whose hands it
+rests." His example inspired other of the Rutulians; they pressed fiercely
+forward and drove back the troops of Æneas. Mezentius advanced at their
+head, and as he strode along, the Trojan hero espied him, and hastened
+towards him. Unawed by the prospect of an encounter even with so terrible
+a foe, Mezentius stood firm, and poising a huge spear in his hand,
+exclaimed,--for he was a contemner of the Gods, and never offered
+invocations to them,--"Now let this right hand and this good dart be my
+aid; and then I vow that my son, my dear Lausus, shall be clad in the
+bright arms torn from the body of yon Trojan pirate." With these words he
+drew the spear. Sent with a true aim, it struck the shield of Æneas, but
+glanced from the hardened surface, and turning aside, pierced the side of
+Antores, a faithful follower of Evander, who had come with Pallas to the
+war. Thus died Antores, by a weapon never aimed at him, but he was
+speedily avenged. Æneas, putting all his might into the cast, now in his
+turn hurled his spear. It tore its way through the triple plates of
+Mezentius' shield, through his corselet, and inflicted a severe wound in
+his groin, though its force was so far spent that the injury was not
+mortal.
+
+Overjoyed at the sight of his enemy's blood, Æneas drew his sword from its
+sheath, and rushed upon Mezentius, who was as yet bewildered by the blow.
+When Lausus saw his father in such peril he sprang forward and stood
+before Æneas, while Mezentius fell back among his friends, the Trojan
+lance still trailing in his armor. Lausus received the first stroke of
+Æneas' sword on his buckler, while the Rutulians with loud shouts
+applauded him, and poured on the Trojan hero a tempest of darts. Against
+this he protected himself with his shield, and meanwhile, pitying the
+youth and courage of Lausus, spoke to him in words of warning: "Why do you
+thus rush on your own destruction, and attempt what is beyond your
+strength? Your filial devotion blinds you to your danger." But Lausus,
+resolute to defend his wounded sire, returned a haughty defiance. Then
+Æneas could no longer control his wrath; he exerted all his strength, and
+thrust his terrible sword up to the hilt through the body of the youth,
+who sank lifeless on the blood-steeped ground. When Æneas saw the comely
+young warrior stretched dead before him, his heart was filled with pity.
+"Ill-fated youth!" he cried, "how can I testify my reverence for thy
+filial piety and thy undaunted valor? Thou shalt at least retain those
+arms which it was thy delight to wear, and thy body shall be given up
+unspoiled to thy friends." With that he summoned the dismayed followers of
+Lausus, and with his own hands raised from the ground the comely body, all
+disfigured with blood and wounds. Meantime Mezentius had retreated to the
+bank of the Tiber, where he took off his armor, and bathed his wound with
+water. While he was thus resting from the fatigues of the battle, he was
+full of anxiety for his son, and sent messenger after messenger to recall
+him from the fight. But too soon a crowd of weeping warriors appeared,
+carrying the corpse of Lausus in their arms. The sorrowing father divined
+what had occurred from their lamentations, even before the body was
+brought to him. He threw dust upon his head, he clasped the loved form in
+his arms, and bedewed the pallid face with his tears. "O my son," he
+exclaimed, "was I possessed with such a fond desire of life as to suffer
+thee to offer thyself in my place to the relentless foe? Am I preserved at
+the cost of these cruel wounds? Now, indeed, I feel the calamity of exile.
+My crimes have cost thee not only thy paternal throne and sceptre, but thy
+life also. It was I that owed expiation to my country, and should have
+satisfied my people by a deserved death. And yet I live! yet I do not quit
+the detested light! but I will quickly follow thee." Then he rose up, and
+though crippled by the wound in his thigh, and suffering anguish from its
+smart, he did not flinch, but ordered his attendants to bring his courser.
+This was a horse famous for its speed and its prompt obedience to the
+rein. When it was brought, he accosted it: "Long have we lived together,
+Rhoebus, and many great deeds have we accomplished. To-day we shall either
+bear away the head of Æneas and his arms all spattered with his blood, or
+we shall perish together; for I am assured that thou wilt never condescend
+to bear a Trojan lord." Then mounting the noble steed, he filled both
+hands with darts, and dashed recklessly into the midst of the battle. His
+heart swelling with rage and shame and grief, he thrice loudly summoned
+Æneas to the combat. Æneas heard, and rejoiced at the challenge; and with
+threatening spear advanced to meet his foe. "Barbarous wretch," cried
+Mezentius, "thinkest thou to affright me with thy weapons, now that thou
+hast robbed me of my son? That was the only means by which thou couldst
+destroy me. I fear neither death nor the anger of any of your gods.
+Forbear threats; now am I come hither to die, but first I bring you these
+gifts." So saying, he rapidly hurled one dart after another at the hero,
+whirling swiftly round him on his horse; but the shield framed by Vulcan's
+hands received all the shafts and repelled them. Wearied at last of so
+unequal a fight, in which he had to endure ceaseless attacks without
+striking a blow, Æneas stepped forward, and hurled his spear against the
+charger, piercing its skull betwixt the ears. The fiery horse reared
+upward in the death agony, and then fell backward upon his rider, pressing
+him to the earth. The spectators of this fierce combat uplifted their
+voices in shouts, some in joy and others in sorrow, as Æneas rushed up to
+the fallen warrior, and lifting his sword to deal the fatal blow, cried,
+"Where is now the stern Mezentius?" The Etrurian, on the other hand,
+replied, "Spiteful foe, why dost thou threaten and insult before thou
+strikest? Thou wilt do me no wrong in slaying me. I sought thee expecting
+nothing else, and neither I nor my son has asked mercy at thy hands. One
+favor alone I implore of thee, that thou wilt give burial to my corpse. I
+know well that the hate of my former subjects would pursue me after death.
+Defend my remains, I entreat, from outrage, and grant me a grave along
+with my son." He said no more, but extended his throat to receive the
+fatal blow, which descended and drew forth his life as the blood poured
+over his armor.
+
+The shades of night were now gathering, and as the Rutulians and Latins
+had quitted the field in confusion, the conflicts of that sanguinary day
+were at last, ended.
+
+
+
+
+ÆNEAS FINALLY CONQUERS THE LATINS
+
+By Alfred J. Church
+
+
+Prince Turnus was filled with rage. Even as a lion which a hunter hath
+wounded breaketh the arrow wherewith he hath been stricken, and rouseth
+himself to battle, shaking his mane and roaring, so Turnus arose. And
+first he spake to King Latinus, saying, "I will meet this man face to
+face, and slay him while ye look on; or, if the Gods will that he vanquish
+me so, he shall rule over you, and have Lavinia to wife."
+
+But King Latinus made answer, "Yet think awhile, my son. Thou hast the
+kingdom of thy father Daunus; and there are other noble virgins in Latium
+whom thou mayest have to wife. Wilt thou not then be content? For to give
+my daughter to any husband of this nation I was forbidden, as thou
+knowest. Yet did I disobey, being moved by love of thee, my wife also
+beseeching me with many tears. Thou seest what troubles I and my people,
+and thou more than all, have suffered from that time. Twice have we fled
+in the battle, and now the city only is left to us. If I must yield me to
+these men, let me yield whilst thou art yet alive. For what doth it profit
+me that thou shouldst die? Nay, but all men would cry shame on me if I
+gave thee to death!" Now for a space Turnus spake not for wrath. Then he
+said, "Be not troubled for me, my father. For I, too, can smite with the
+spear; and as for this Æneas, his mother will not be at hand to snatch him
+in a cloud from my sight."
+
+Then Amata cried to him, saying, "Fight not, I beseech thee, with these
+men of Troy, my son; for surely what thou sufferest I also shall suffer.
+Nor will I live to see Æneas my son-in-law."
+
+And Lavinia heard the voice of her mother, and wept. As a man stains ivory
+with crimson, or as roses are seen mixed with lilies, even so the virgin's
+face burned with crimson. And Turnus, regarding her, loved her
+exceedingly, and made answer, "Trouble me not with tears or idle words, my
+mother, for to this battle I must go. And do thou, Idmon the herald, say
+to the Phrygian king, 'To-morrow, when the sun shall rise, let the people
+have peace, but we two will fight together. And let him that prevaileth
+have Lavinia to wife.'"
+
+Then first he went to the stalls of his horses. The wife of the North Wind
+gave them to Pilumnus. Whiter than snow were they, and swifter than the
+wind. Then he put the coat of mail about his shoulders, and fitted a
+helmet on his head, and took the great sword which Vulcan had made for
+Daunus his father, and had dipped it when it was white-hot in the river of
+Styx. His spear also he took where it stood against a pillar, saying,
+"Serve me well, my spear, that hast never failed me before, that I may lay
+low this womanish robber of Phrygia, and soil with dust his curled and
+perfumed hair." The next day the men of Italy and the men of Troy measured
+out a space for the battle. And in the midst they builded an altar of
+turf. And the two armies sat on the one side and on the other, having
+fixed their spears in the earth and laid down their shields. Also the
+women and the old men stood on the towers and roofs of the city, that they
+might see the fight.
+
+But Queen Juno spake to Juturna, the sister of Turnus, saying, "Seest thou
+how these two are now about to fight, face to face? And indeed Turnus
+goeth to his death. As for me, I endure not to look upon this covenant or
+this battle. But if thou canst do aught for thy brother, lo! the time is
+at hand." And when the nymph wept and beat her breast, Juno said, "This is
+no time for tears. Save thy brother, if thou canst, from death; or cause
+that they break this covenant."
+
+After this came the kings, that they might make the covenant together. And
+King Latinus rode in a chariot with four horses, and he had on his head a
+crown with twelve rays of gold, for he was of the race of the sun; and
+Turnus came in a chariot with two white horses, having a javelin in either
+hand; and Æneas had donned the arms which Vulcan had made, and with him
+was the young Iulus. And after due offering Æneas sware, calling on all
+the Gods, "If the victory shall fall this day to Turnus, the men of Troy
+shall depart to the city of Evander, nor trouble this land any more. But
+if it fall to me, I will not that the Latins should serve the men of Troy.
+Let the nations be equal one with the other. The gods that I bring we will
+worship together, but King Latinus shall reign as before. A new city shall
+the men of Troy build for me, and Lavinia shall call it after her own
+name."
+
+Then King Latinus sware, calling on the gods that are above and the gods
+that are below, saying, "This covenant shall stand forever, whatsoever may
+befall. As sure as this sceptre which I bear--once it was a tree, but a
+cunning workman closed it in bronze, to be the glory of the Latian
+kings--shall never again bear twig or leaf, so surely shall this covenant
+be kept."
+
+But the thing pleased not the Latins; for before, indeed, they judged that
+the battle would not be equal between two; and now were they the more
+assured, seeing them when they came together, and that Turnus walked with
+eyes cast to the ground, and was pale and wan. Wherefore there arose a
+murmuring among the people, which when Juturna perceived, she took upon
+herself the likeness of Camertus, who was a prince and a great warrior
+among them, and passed through the host saying, "Are ye not ashamed, men
+of Italy, that one man should do battle for you all? For count these men;
+surely they are scarce one against two. And if he be vanquished, what
+shame for you! As for him, indeed, though he die, yet shall his glory
+reach to the heavens; but ye shall suffer disgrace, serving these
+strangers forever."
+
+And when she saw that the people were moved, she gave also a sign from
+heaven. For lo! an eagle, that drave a crowd of sea-fowl before him,
+swooped down to the water, and caught a great swan; and even while the
+Italians looked, the birds that before had fled turned and pursued the
+eagle, and drave him before them, so that he dropped the swan and fled
+away. Which thing when the Italians perceived they shouted, and made them
+ready for battle. And the augur Tolumnius cried, "This is the token that I
+have looked for. For this eagle is the stranger, and ye are the birds,
+which before, indeed, have fled, but shall now make him to flee."
+
+And he ran forward and cast his spear, smiting a man of Arcadia below the
+belt, upon the groin. One of nine brothers was he, sons of a Tuscan
+mother, but their father was a Greek; and they, when they saw him slain,
+caught swords and spears, and ran forward. And straightway the battle was
+begun. First they brake down the altars, that they might take firebrands
+therefrom; and King Latinus fled from the place. Then did Messapus drive
+his horses against King Aulestes of Mantua, who, being fain to fly,
+stumbled upon the altar and fell headlong on the ground. And Messapus
+smote him with a spear that was like a weaver's beam, saying, "This, of a
+truth, is a worthier victim." After this Coryneus, the Arcadian, when
+Ebysus would have smitten him, snatched a brand from the altar and set
+fire to the beard of the man, and, before he came to himself, caught him
+by the hair, and thrusting him to the ground, so slew him. And when
+Podalirius pursued Alsus the shepherd, and now held his sword over him
+ready to strike, the other turned, and with a battle-axe cleft the man's
+head from forehead to chin.
+
+But all the while the righteous Æneas, having his head bare, and holding
+neither spear nor sword, cried to the people, "What seek ye? what madness
+is this? The covenant is established, and I only have the right to do
+battle." But even while he spake an arrow smote him, wounding him. But who
+let it fly no man knoweth; for who, of a truth, would boast that he had
+wounded Æneas? And he departed from the battle.
+
+Now when Turnus saw that Æneas had departed from the battle he called for
+his chariot. And when he had mounted thereon he drave it through the host
+of the enemy, slaying many valiant heroes, as Sthenelus and Pholus, and
+the two sons of Imbrasus the Lycian, Glaucus and Lades. Then he saw
+Eumedes, son of that Dolon who would have spied out the camp of the
+Greeks, asking as his reward the horses of Achilles (but Diomed slew him).
+Him Turnus smote with a javelin from afar, and, when he fell, came near
+and put his foot upon him, and taking his sword drave it into his neck,
+saying, "Lo! now thou hast the land which thou soughtest. Lie there and
+measure out Italy for thyself." Many others he slew, for the army fled
+before him. Yet did one man, Phegeus by name, stand against him, and would
+have stayed the chariot, clutching the bridles of the horses in his hand.
+But as he clung to the yoke and was dragged along, Turnus broke his
+cuirass with his spear, and wounded him. And when the man set his shield
+before him, and made at Turnus with his sword, the wheels dashed him to
+the ground, and Turnus struck him between the helmet and the breastplate
+and smote off his head.
+
+But in the meanwhile Mnestheus and Achates and Iulus led Æneas to the
+camp, leaning on his spear. Very wroth was he, and strove to draw forth
+the arrow. And when he could not, he commanded that they should open the
+wound with the knife, and so send him back to the battle. Iapis also, the
+physician, ministered to him. Now this Iapis was dearer than all other men
+to Apollo, and when the god would have given him all his arts, even
+prophecy and music and archery, he chose rather to know the virtues of
+herbs and the art of healing, that so he might prolong the life of his
+father, who was even ready to die. This Iapis, then, having his garments
+girt about him in healer's fashion, would have drawn forth the arrow with
+the pincers, but could not. And while he strove, the battle came nearer,
+and the sky was hidden by clouds of dust, and javelins fell thick into the
+camp. But when Venus saw how grievously her son was troubled, she brought
+from Ida, which is a mountain of Crete, the herb dittany. A hairy stalk it
+hath and a purple flower. The wild goats know it well if so be that they
+have been wounded by arrows. This, then, Venus, having hidden her face,
+brought and dipped into the water, and sprinkled there with ambrosia and
+sweet-smelling panacea.
+
+And Iapis, unawares, applied the water that had been healed; and lo! the
+pain was stayed and the blood was staunched and the arrow came forth,
+though no man drew it, and Æneas's strength came back to him as before.
+Then said lapis, "Art of mine hath not healed thee, my son. The Gods call
+thee to thy work." Then did Æneas arm himself again, and when he had
+kissed Iulus and bidden him farewell, he went forth to the battle. And all
+the chiefs went with him, and the men of Troy took courage and drave back
+the Latins. Then befell a great slaughter, for Gyas slew Ufens, who was
+the leader of the Æquians; also Tolumnius, the great augur, was slain, who
+had first broken the covenant, slaying a man with his spear. But Æneas
+deigned not to turn his hand against any man, seeking only for Turnus,
+that he might fight with him. But when the nymph Juturna perceived this
+she was sore afraid. Therefore she came near to the chariot of her
+brother, and thrust out Metiscus, his charioteer, where he held the reins,
+and herself stood in his room, having made herself like to him in shape
+and voice. Then as a swallow flies through the halls and arcades of some
+rich man's house, seeking food for its young, so Juturna drave the chariot
+of her brother hither and thither. And ever Æneas followed behind, and
+called to him that he should stay; but whenever he espied the man, and
+would have overtaken him by running, then again did Juturna turn the
+horses about and flee. And as he sped Messapus cast a spear at him. But
+Æneas saw it coming, and put his shield over him, resting on his knee. Yet
+did the spear smite him on the helmet-top and shear off the crest. Then
+indeed was his wrath kindled, and he rushed into the army of the enemy,
+slaying many as he went.
+
+Then was there a great slaughter made on this side and on that. But after
+a while Venus put it into the heart of Æneas that he should lead his army
+against the city. Therefore he called together the chiefs, and, standing
+in the midst of them on a mound, spake, saying, "Hearken now to my words,
+and delay not to fulfill them, for of a truth Jupiter is on our side. I am
+purposed this day to lay this city of Latinus even with the ground, if
+they still refuse to obey. For why should I wait for Turnus till it please
+him to meet me in battle?"
+
+Then did the whole array make for the walls of the city. And some carried
+firebrands, and some scaling-ladders, and some slew the warders at the
+gates, and cast javelins at them who stood on the walls. And then there
+arose a great strife in the city, for some would have opened the gates
+that the men of Troy might enter, and others made haste to defend the
+walls. Hither and thither did they run with much tumult, even as bees in a
+hive in a rock which a shepherd hath filled with smoke, having first shut
+all the doors thereof.
+
+Then also did other ill fortune befall the Latins, for when Queen Amata
+saw from the roof of the palace that the enemy were come near to the
+walls, and saw not anywhere the army of the Latins, she supposed Turnus to
+have fallen in the battle. Whereupon, crying out that she was the cause of
+all these woes, she made a noose of the purple garment wherewith she was
+clad, and hanged herself from a beam of the roof. Then did lamentation go
+through the city, for the women wailed and tore their hair, and King
+Latinus rent his clothes and threw dust upon his head.
+
+But the cry that went up from the city came to the ears of Turnus where he
+fought in the farthest part of the plain. And he caught the reins and
+said, "What meaneth this sound of trouble and wailing that I hear?" And
+the false Metiscus, who was in truth his sister, made answer, "Let us
+fight, O Turnus, here where the Gods give us victory. There are enough to
+defend the city." But Turnus spake, saying, "Nay, my sister, for who thou
+art I have known even from the beginning; it must not be so. Why camest
+thou down from heaven? Was it to see thy brother die? And now what shall I
+do? Have I not seen Murranus die, and Ufens the Æquian? And shall I suffer
+this city to be destroyed? Shall this land see Turnus flee before his
+enemies? Be ye kind to me, O gods of the dead, seeing that the gods of
+heaven hate me. I come down to you a righteous spirit, and not unworthy of
+my fathers."
+
+And even as he spake came Saces, riding on a horse that was covered with
+foam, and on his face was the wound of an arrow. And he cried, "O Turnus,
+our last hopes are in thee. For Æneas is about to destroy the city, and
+the firebrands are cast upon the roofs. And King Latinus is sore tried
+with doubt, and the Queen hath laid hands upon herself and is dead. And
+now only Messapus and Atinas maintain the battle, and the fight grows
+fierce around them, whilst thou drivest thy chariot about these empty
+fields."
+
+Then for a while Turnus stood speechless, and shame and grief and madness
+were in his soul; and he looked to the city, and lo! the fire went up even
+to the top of the tower which he himself had builded upon the walls to be
+a defense against the enemy. And when he saw it, he cried, "It is enough,
+my sister; I go whither the Gods call me. I will meet with Æneas face to
+face, and endure my doom."
+
+And as he spake he leapt down from his chariot, and ran across the plain
+till he came near to the city, even where the blood was deepest upon the
+earth, and the arrows were thickest in the air. And he beckoned with the
+hand and called to the Italians, saying, "Stay now your arrows. I am come
+to fight this battle for you all." And when they heard it they left a
+space in the midst. Æneas also, when he heard the name of Turnus, left
+attacking the city, and came to meet him, mighty as Athos, or Eryx, or
+Father Apenninus, that raiseth his snowy head to the heavens. And the men
+of Troy and the Latins and King Latinus marveled to see them meet, so
+mighty they were.
+
+First they cast their spears at each other, and then ran together, and
+their shields struck one against the other with a crash that went up to
+the sky. And Jupiter held the balance in heaven, weighing their doom. Then
+Turnus, rising to the stroke, smote fiercely with his sword. And the men
+of Troy and the Latins cried out when they saw him strike. But the
+treacherous sword brake in the blow. And when he saw the empty hilt in his
+hand he turned to flee. They say that when he mounted his chariot that day
+to enter the battle, not heeding the matter in his haste, he left his
+father's sword behind him, and took the sword of Metiscus, which, indeed,
+served him well while the men of Troy fled before him, but brake, even as
+ice breaks, when it came to the shield which Vulcan had made. Thereupon
+Turnus fled, and Æneas, though the wound which the arrow had made hindered
+him, pursued. Even as a hound follows a stag that is penned within some
+narrow space, for the beast flees hither and thither, and the staunch
+Umbrian hound follows close upon him, and almost holds him, and snaps his
+teeth, yet bites him not, so did Æneas follow hard on Turnus. And still
+Turnus cried out that some one should give him his sword, and Æneas
+threatened that he would destroy the city if any should help him. Five
+times about the space they ran; not for some prize they strove, but for
+the life of Turnus. Now there stood in the plain the stump of a wild
+olive-tree. The tree was sacred to Faunus, but the men of Troy had cut it,
+and the stump only was left. Herein the spear of Æneas was fixed, and now
+he would have drawn it forth that he might slay Turnus therewith, seeing
+that he could not overtake him by running. Which when Turnus perceived, he
+cried to Faunus, saying, "O Faunus, if I have kept holy for thee that
+which the men of Troy have profaned, hold fast this spear." And the god
+heard him; nor could Æneas draw it forth. But while he strove, Juturna,
+taking again the form of Metiscus, ran and gave to Turnus his sword. And
+Venus, perceiving it, wrenched forth the spear from the stump. So the two
+stood again face to face.
+
+Then spake Jupiter to Juno, where she sat in a cloud watching the battle,
+"How long wilt thou fight against fate? What purpose hast thou now in thy
+heart? Was it well that Juturna--for what could she avail without thy
+help?--should give back to Turnus his sword? Thou hast driven the men of
+Troy over land and sea, and kindled a dreadful war, and mingled the song
+of marriage with mourning. Further thou mayest not go."
+
+And Juno humbly made answer, "This is thy will, great Father; else had I
+not sat here, but stood in the battle smiting the men of Troy. And indeed
+I spake to Juturna that she should help her brother; but aught else I know
+not. And now I yield. Yet grant me this. Suffer not that the Latins should
+be called after the name of Troy, nor change their speech, nor their garb.
+Let Rome rule the world, but let Troy perish forever."
+
+Then spake with a smile the Maker of all things, "Truly thou art a
+daughter of Saturn, so fierce is the wrath of thy soul. And now what thou
+prayest I give. The Italians shall not change name, nor speech, nor garb.
+The men of Troy shall mingle with them, and I will give them a new
+worship, and call them all Latins. Nor shall any race pay thee more honor
+than they."
+
+Then Jupiter sent a fury from the pit. And she took the form of a bird,
+even of an owl that sitteth by night on the roof of a desolate house, and
+flew before the face of Turnus and flapped her wings against his shield.
+Then was Turnus stricken with great fear, so that his hair stood up and
+his tongue clave to the roof of his mouth. And when Juturna knew the sound
+of the false bird what it was, she cried aloud for fear, and left her
+brother and fled, hiding herself in the river of Tiber.
+
+But Æneas came on, shaking his spear that was like unto a tree, and said,
+"Why delayest thou, O Turnus? Why drawest thou back? Fly now if thou canst
+through the air, or hide thyself in the earth." And Turnus made answer, "I
+fear not thy threats, but the Gods and Jupiter, that are against me this
+day." And as he spake he saw-a great stone which lay hard by, the landmark
+of a field. Scarce could twelve chosen men, such as men are now, lift it
+on their shoulders. This he caught from the earth and cast it at his
+enemy, running forward as he cast. But he knew not, so troubled was he in
+his soul, that he ran or that he cast, for his knees tottered beneath him
+and his blood grew cold with fear. And the stone fell short, nor reached
+the mark. Even as in a dream, when dull sleep is on the eyes of a man, he
+would fain run but cannot, for his strength faileth him, neither cometh
+there any voice when he would speak; so it fared with Turnus. For he
+looked to the Latins and to the city, and saw the dreadful spear approach,
+nor knew how he might fly, neither how he might fight, and could not spy
+anywhere his chariot or his sister. And all the while Æneas shook his
+spear and waited that his aim should be sure. And at the last he threw it
+with all his might. Even as a whirlwind it flew, and brake through the
+seven folds of the shield and pierced the thigh. And Turnus dropped with
+his knee bent to the ground. And all the Latins groaned aloud to see him
+fall. Then he entreated Æneas, saying, "I have deserved my fate. Take thou
+that which thou hast won. Yet perchance thou mayest have pity on the old
+man, my father, even Daunus, for such an one was thy father Anchises, and
+give me back to my own people, if it be but my body that thou givest. Yet
+hast thou conquered, and the Latins have seen me beg my life of thee, and
+Lavinia is thine. Therefore I pray thee, stay now thy wrath." Then for a
+while Æneas stood doubting; aye, and might have spared the man, when lo!
+he spied upon his shoulders the belt of Pallas, whom he had slain. And his
+wrath was greatly kindled, and he cried with a dreadful voice, "Shalt thou
+who art clothed with the spoils of my friends escape me? 'Tis Pallas
+slays thee with this wound, and takes vengeance on thy accursed blood."
+And as he spake he drave the steel into his breast. And with a groan the
+wrathful spirit passed into darkness.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+According to the old legends Æneas wedded the fair Lavinia, founded his
+city of Lavinium, and ruled over it for three years. Then in a battle with
+the Rutulians, or some other Italian people, he disappeared; and as his
+body was not found after the conflict was over, it was believed that the
+Gods had taken him up to heaven. His son Ascanius peacefully succeeded
+him, and removed the capital of his kingdom to Alba Longa, which city
+again, after the lapse of centuries, gave birth to mighty Rome.
+
+
+
+
+END OF VOLUME III
+
+*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 14752 ***
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+<title>The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Children's Hour, Volume 3 (of 10), by Various</title>
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+<div>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 14752 ***</div>
+<h1 class="pg">The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Children's Hour, Volume 3 (of 10), by
+Various, Edited by Eva March Tappan</h1>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<hr class="full" />
+<h2>THE CHILDREN&rsquo;S HOUR</h2>
+<h4>IN TEN VOLUMES</h4>
+<h4>ILLUSTRATED</h4>
+<h2>VOLUME III</h2>
+<hr />
+<div class="figure"><a href="images/big_004.jpg"><img src=
+"images/small_004.jpg" alt=
+"A man looks at a melee while a dog lays in the street." id="img01"
+name="img01" width="252" height="321" /></a>
+<p>&ldquo;<em>It is strange that they let that dog lie
+there</em>&rdquo;</p>
+</div>
+<hr />
+<h2>The Children&rsquo;s Hour</h2>
+<h1>STORIES FROM THE CLASSICS</h1>
+<h4>Selected &amp; Arranged by</h4>
+<h2>Eva March Tappan</h2>
+<hr class="short" />
+<h3>1907</h3>
+<h6 class="pg">Houghton Mifflin Company</h6>
+<hr class="short" />
+<p class="quote" style="font-size:1.25em;text-align:center;">
+<em>Between the dark and the daylight, when the night is beginning
+to lower comes a pause in the days occupations, that is known as
+the Children&rsquo;s Hour.</em></p>
+<hr />
+<h3>NOTE</h3>
+<p>All rights in stories in this volume are reserved by the holders
+of the copyrights. The publishers and others named in the subjoined
+list are the proprietors, either in their own right or as agents
+for the authors, of the stories taken from the works enumerated, of
+which the ownership is hereby acknowledged. The editor takes this
+opportunity to thank both authors and publishers for the ready
+generosity with which they have allowed her to include these
+stories in &ldquo;The Children&rsquo;s Hour.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;The Wonder-Book,&rdquo; and &ldquo;Tanglewood
+Tales,&rdquo; by Nathaniel Hawthorne; published by Houghton,
+Mifflin &amp; Company.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Old Greek Folk Stories,&rdquo; by Josephine Preston
+Peabody; published by Houghton, Mifflin &amp; Company.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;The Odyssey of Homer,&rdquo; English prose version by
+George Herbert Palmer; published by Houghton, Mifflin &amp;
+Company.</p>
+<hr class="full" />
+<h2><a id="Contents" name="Contents">CONTENTS</a></h2>
+<table summary="Table of Contents">
+<tr>
+<td class="main" colspan="2"><a href="#Children">TO THE
+CHILDREN</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="main" colspan="2"><a href="#Herodotus">STORIES FROM
+HERODOTUS</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Ladronius">Ladronius, The Prince of
+Thieves</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Retold by G.H. Boden and W. Barrington
+d&rsquo;Almeida</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Arion">Arion and the
+Dolphin</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Retold by G.H. Boden and W. Barrington
+d&rsquo;Almeida</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="main" colspan="2"><a href="#Livy">STORIES FROM
+LIVY</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Romulus">Romulus, Founder of
+Rome</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Horatius">How Horatius Held the
+Bridge</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Cincinnatus">How Cincinnatus Saved
+Rome</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Virginia">The Story of
+Virginia</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Curtius">The Sacrifice of Marcus
+Curtius</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="main" colspan="2"><a href="#Ovid">STORIES FROM
+OVID</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Pitcher">The Miraculous
+Pitcher</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Nathaniel Hawthorne</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Touch">The Golden Touch</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Nathaniel Hawthorne</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Pomegranate">The Pomegranate
+Seeds</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Nathaniel Hawthorne</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="main" colspan="2"><a href="#FolkStories">OLD GREEK
+FOLK-STORIES</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Orpheus">Orpheus and
+Eurydice</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Josephine Preston Peabody</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Icarus">Icarus and
+D&aelig;dalus</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Josephine Preston Peabody</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Phaethon">Phaethon</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Josephine Preston Peabody</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Niobe">Niobe</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Josephine Preston Peabody</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Pyramus">Pyramus and Thisbe</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Josephine Preston Peabody</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="main" colspan="2"><a href="#Trojan">STORIES OF THE
+TROJAN WAR</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Discord">The Apple of
+Discord</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Josephine Preston Peabody</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Agamemnon">The Quarrel between
+Agamemnon and Achilles</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Menelaus">The Fight between Paris
+and Menelaus</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Walter C. Perry</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Ajax">The Duel between Hector and
+Ajax</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Walter C. Perry</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Patroclus">The Death of Patroclus
+and the Battle of the River</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Vulcan">Vulcan Makes Armor for
+Achilles</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Walter C. Perry</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Hector">The Slaying of
+Hector</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Walter C. Perry</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Funeral">The Funeral Games in Honor
+of Patroclus</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Walter C. Perry</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Horse">The Wooden Horse and the Fall
+of Troy</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Josephine Preston Peabody</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="main" colspan="2"><a href="#UlyssesWanderings">THE
+WANDERINGS OF ULYSSES</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Cyclops">An Adventure with the
+Cyclops</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Circe">Circe&rsquo;s Palace</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Nathaniel Hawthorne</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Sirens">The Sirens&mdash;Scylla and
+Charybdis</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Translated by George Herbert
+Palmer</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="main" colspan="2"><a href="#UlyssesIthaca">ULYSSES IN
+ITHACA</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#UlyssesLands">Ulysses Lands on the
+Shore of Ithaca</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>F.S. Marvin, R.J.C. Mayor, and F.M.
+Stowell</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Swineherd">Ulysses at the House of
+the Swineherd</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>F.S. Marvin, R.J.C. Mayor, and F.M.
+Stowell</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle" style="padding-top:0.5em;" colspan="2">
+<a href="#Vengeance">The Vengeance of Ulysses</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle" style="padding-left:2em;"><a href=
+"#Reception">A. His Reception at the Palace</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>F.S. Marvin, R.J.C. Mayor, and F.M.
+Stowell</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle" style="padding-left:2em;"><a href="#Bow">B.
+The Trial of the Bow</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Translated by George Herbert
+Palmer</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle" style="padding-left:2em;"><a href=
+"#Suitors">C. The Slaying of the Suitors</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>F.S. Marvin, R.J.C. Mayor, and F.M.
+Stowell</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle" style="padding-left:2em;"><a href=
+"#Penelope">D. Penelope Recognizes Ulysses</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Translated by George Herbert
+Palmer</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="main" colspan="2"><a href="#TrojanWanderings">THE
+WANDERINGS OF THE TROJAN &AElig;NEAS</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Flight">The Flight of &AElig;neas
+from the Ruins of Troy</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Harpies">&AElig;neas&rsquo;s
+Adventure with the Harpies</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Charles Henry Hanson</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Cyclops2">&AElig;neas in the Land of
+the Cyclops</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Charles Henry Hanson</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Dido">&AElig;neas and Queen
+Dido</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Anchises">The Funeral Games of
+Anchises</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Charles Henry Hanson</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#LowerWorld">&AElig;neas&rsquo;s
+Visit to the Lower World</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Charles Henry Hanson</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Battle">&AElig;neas&rsquo;s First
+Great Battle with the Latins</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Charles Henry Hanson</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Conquers">&AElig;neas Finally
+Conquers the Latins</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+</table>
+<h3>ILLUSTRATIONS</h3>
+<table summary="List of Illustrations">
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#img01">&ldquo;It is strange that
+they let that dog lie there&rdquo;</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>L.F. Schutzenberger</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#img02">&ldquo;I am afraid there will
+not be half enough supper&rdquo;</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Walter Crane</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#img03">They leaped out of the
+Bottomless Hole</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>George Wharton Edwards</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#img04">To him at last the Three
+Goddesses intrusted the Judgment and the Golden Apple</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Giulio Romano</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#img05">Fierce was the Fight about
+the Body of Patroclus</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Giulio Romano</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#img06">A Great Image of a
+Horse</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Franz Cleyn</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#img07">The Cyclops in his Wrath
+brake off the Top of a Great Hill</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>L.F. Schutzenberger</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#img08">&ldquo;Dear son, have you
+come home at last?&rdquo;</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>G. Truffault</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#img09">The Flight from Troy</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Franz Cleyn</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#img10">The Victory of
+Euryalus</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Franz Cleyn</em></td>
+</tr>
+</table>
+<h2><a id="Children" name="Children">TO THE CHILDREN</a></h2>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>The greater part of this book is made up of stories from the
+poems of Homer and Virgil. Homer is thought to have lived in Greece
+about three thousand years ago, and yet his poems never seem
+old-fashioned and people do not tire of reading them. Boys and
+girls almost always like them, because they are so full of stories.
+If you want to read about giants or mermaids or shipwrecks or
+athletic contests or enchanters or furious battles or the capture
+of cities or voyages to strange countries, all you have to do is to
+open the Iliad and the Odyssey, and you will find stories on all of
+these subjects. Homer can describe a foot-race or the throwing of a
+discus so that you hold your breath to see who will win; and he can
+picture a battle so vividly that you almost try to dodge the arrows
+and spears. He can make the tears come into your eyes by telling
+you of the grief of the warrior&rsquo;s wife when he leaves her and
+their baby son to go to battle; and he can almost make you shout,
+&ldquo;Hurrah for the brave champion!&rdquo; when he tells you what
+wonderful deeds of prowess have been done. He can describe a shield
+so minutely that you could make one like it; and he can paint a
+scene of feasting so perfectly that you feel as if you had been in
+the very room.</p>
+<p>How is it that Homer makes his stories seem so real? There are
+several reasons, but one of the strongest is because he tells the
+little things that writers often forget to put in. When he
+describes the welcome given to two strangers at the house of the
+lost Ulysses, by Telemachus, son of the wanderer, he begins,
+&ldquo;When they were come within the lofty hall, he carried the
+spear to a tall pillar and set it in a well-worn rack.&rdquo; That
+one word, &ldquo;well-worn,&rdquo; gives us the feeling that Homer
+is not making up a story, but that he has really seen the rack and
+noticed how it looked. The same sentence shows why it is that
+people do not tire of reading Homer. It ends, &ldquo;where also
+stood many a spear of hardy Ulysses.&rdquo; This reminds the reader
+that in spite of the hero&rsquo;s long years of absence, no one has
+been allowed to remove his weapons from their old place. From this
+one phrase, then, we can realize how much his wife and son love
+him, and how they have mourned for him. Telemachus welcomes the
+strangers, but we can feel how eager he is for them to be made
+comfortable as soon as possible so he can talk of his father and
+learn whether they have chanced to meet him in their wanderings.
+Homer&rsquo;s poems are full of such sentences as these; and, no
+matter how many times one reads them, some thought, unnoticed
+before, is ever coming to light. That is why they are always fresh
+and new and interesting.</p>
+<p>There is a tradition that Homer was blind, and that he wandered
+about from one place to another, singing or reciting his poems; but
+this is only tradition, and there is little hope that we shall ever
+be able to find out whether it is true or not.</p>
+<p>Homer&rsquo;s great poem, the Iliad, is the account of the
+Trojan War. His Odyssey relates the adventures of the hero Ulysses,
+or Odysseus, as the Greeks called him, in many years of wandering
+at the close of the war before his enemies among the Gods would
+permit him to return to his home. There were Trojan heroes,
+however, as well as Greek, and &AElig;neas was one of them. Virgil,
+the Latin poet, has told in the &AElig;neid the story of his
+troubles and adventures. &AElig;neas, too, was driven over the
+waters, for the Gods had told him it was the will of Jupiter, or
+Zeus, as it is in Greek, for him to seek Italy and there found a
+city. Part of his journey is the same as that of Ulysses. He, too,
+stops at the country of the one-eyed giants and has to row as fast
+as he can to escape the rocks that they throw at his vessel. He,
+too, hears the thunders of Mount &AElig;tna and sees the flashing
+of the fires of the volcano. His sailors point to it in fear and
+whisper to one another, &ldquo;That is the giant Enceladus. He
+rebelled against the Gods and they piled the mountain on top of
+him. The fires of Jupiter burn him, and he breathes out glowing
+flames. When he tosses from one side to the other, the whole island
+of Sicily is shaken with a mighty earthquake.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Virgil was no homeless singer; he was one of the great literary
+men of Rome, and he read his poems aloud to the Emperor Augustus.
+He had a handsome villa and a troop of friends. He enjoyed
+everything that was beautiful and seemed as happy when a friend had
+written a good poem as if he had composed it himself. He was never
+satisfied with his verse till he had made every line as perfect as
+possible. When he was ill and knew that he could not recover, he
+made a will, and in it he ordered the &AElig;neid to be burned,
+because it was not so polished as he wished. &ldquo;I meant to
+spend three years more on it,&rdquo; he said. Fortunately for all
+the people who enjoy a great poem, the Emperor forbade that this
+part of the will should be carried out. He gave the manuscript to
+three friends of Virgil, all of them poets, with orders to strike
+out every phrase that they believed Virgil would have struck out on
+revision, but not to add one word. This is the way that the
+&AElig;neid was saved for us. If it had been destroyed, we should
+have lost the work of one of the best storytellers that have ever
+lived.</p>
+<p>Livy, too, was a friend of the Emperor Augustus, He lived in
+Rome, enjoying his companions, the libraries of the city, and, most
+of all, his independence. Even Virgil was ready to insert a few
+lines here and there in a poem to gratify his friends, or to choose
+a subject that he knew would please the Emperor; but Livy wrote on
+the subject that pleased him and treated it just as he believed to
+be best. His great work was his history, and this he begins with a
+little preface, as independent as it is graceful. &ldquo;Whether I
+shall gain any share of glory,&rdquo; he says, &ldquo;by writing a
+history of the Roman people, I do not know. The work, however, will
+be a pleasure to me; and even if any fame that might otherwise be
+mine should be hidden by the success of other writers, I shall
+console myself by thinking of their excellence and
+greatness.&rdquo; No such thing happened, however, for the kindly
+historian was so praised and his work so fully appreciated that he
+said he had all the fame he could wish.</p>
+<p>Herodotus was a Greek who liked to travel. The world was very
+small in his day, for little of it was known except some of the
+lands bordering on the Mediterranean. To visit Tyre, Babylon,
+Egypt, Palestine, and the islands of the eastern Mediterranean, as
+he did, made a man a great traveler five centuries before Christ.
+Herodotus enjoyed all these wanderings, but they also &ldquo;meant
+business&rdquo; to him. Whenever he came to a place of historical
+interest, he stayed awhile. He explored the country thereabouts, he
+measured the important buildings, he talked with the people who
+knew most about the place. Then, when he came to write of its
+history, he did not write like a man who had read an article or two
+in an encyclop&aelig;dia and was trying to recite what he had
+learned, but like one who knew the place which he was describing
+and liked to talk about it, and about what had happened there. It
+is no wonder that his history has always been a favorite; and to be
+a favorite author for twenty centuries is no small glory.</p>
+<p>Ovid was a Latin poet who knew how to tell a story. He could not
+only invent a tale, but he could tell it so well that the reader
+feels as if it must be true. His most interesting stories, however,
+he did not invent, for they are a rewriting of the old mythological
+tales. In one respect he is like Homer; he never forgets the little
+things, and he tells so many details that we can hardly believe he
+is imagining them. In his story of Baucis and Philemon, for
+instance, Ovid does not forget to say that the cottage door was so
+low that the two gods had to stoop to pass through it; that Baucis
+hurried to brighten the fire with dry leaves and bits of bark; that
+one leg of the table was too short and had to be propped up with a
+piece of tile. He tells us that the kindhearted couple tried to
+catch their one goose so as to cook it for the supper of their
+guests; but that they were so old, and the goose so nimble of wing,
+that he escaped them and flew to the Gods for refuge. We are so
+accustomed to think of Latin as a grave, dignified language that
+almost every line of Ovid&rsquo;s &ldquo;Metamorphoses&rdquo; is a
+pleasant surprise. The stories that he tells, <a href=
+"#Pitcher">&ldquo;The Miraculous Pitcher&rdquo;</a>, <a href=
+"#Touch">&ldquo;The Golden Touch&rdquo;</a>, <a href=
+"#Pomegranate">&ldquo;The Pomegranate Seeds&rdquo;</a>, and others,
+retold by Hawthorne, are favorites among the boys and girls of
+to-day, and they must have been liked just as well by the Roman
+children. In Rome the children read the great poets in school, and
+I fancy that they were always glad when the hour came to read the
+&ldquo;Metamorphoses.&rdquo;</p>
+<h2><a id="Herodotus" name="Herodotus">STORIES FROM
+HERODOTUS</a></h2>
+<h3><a id="Ladronius" name="Ladronius">Ladronius, The Prince of
+Thieves</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>Retold by G.H. Boden and W. Barrington
+d&rsquo;Almeida</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Many hundreds of years ago, not long after the Greeks returned
+from the famous siege of Troy, there lived a king of Egypt, whose
+name was Rhampsinitus. So great a king was he, that he kept a small
+army constantly employed in supplying the royal household with
+food, and another small army was required to keep the gardens of
+the palace in order. And had any one been bold enough to doubt the
+greatness of the king, he need only have looked at his magnificent
+dress to set all doubts at rest forever. Upon the neck of the king
+was a heavy necklace, glittering with priceless jewels, and on his
+arms were massive bracelets of pure gold. A golden serpent, the
+symbol of royalty, gleamed from his forehead, and his golden
+breastplate showed the sacred beetle worked in precious stones, to
+protect him from evil spirits. Whenever he appeared in the streets
+of his capital, he was borne in the royal chair on the shoulders of
+eight of his courtiers, while on each side walked a great noble
+carrying a fan, shaped like a palm leaf, with a long, straight
+stem. In front marched the bodyguard of Sardinians, men with fair
+skins and blue eyes, who looked very much out of place among the
+swarthy Egyptians; and last of all came the grim, black guards from
+Ethiopia, with their sabres flashing in the sun. And all the people
+fell on their faces and kissed the dust before their royal master.
+Moreover, King Rhampsinitus erected several enormous statues of
+himself, as well as many fine palaces and a beautiful temple,
+bearing inscriptions which related all his great and glorious
+deeds, so that the people who lived after him might know how great
+a king he had been.</p>
+<p>But, in spite of all his greatness, there was one thing that
+prevented King Rhampsinitus from being a happy man. He had so many
+treasures&mdash;masses of silver, nuggets of gold, and bags of
+gold-dust, jewelry, precious stones, and carvings in
+ivory&mdash;that he lived in constant fear of being robbed. He had
+all his treasures packed in large jars and strong chests, which
+were securely fastened, sealed up, and stowed away in a strong room
+of the palace; but even then he did not feel comfortable, for might
+not the palace be broken into by a clever thief and part of his
+treasure stolen, while he slept? Besides, there was so much
+treasure packed away already, that it was difficult to find a safe
+place for any more. His anxiety made the king so unhappy, and
+caused him so many sleepless nights, that he determined at last to
+build a large chamber of stone, with walls too thick for any thief
+to break through. He sent for his chief architect, who collected a
+great multitude of workmen and set to work building the chamber
+without delay. Whole villages were compelled to join in the work;
+even the old men and children were employed in carrying away
+rubbish, bringing water and clay, and doing other work that was not
+too hard for them. The stronger and more skillful workmen hewed
+great blocks of granite, which were dragged to the place on wooden
+sledges; and, as they had no cranes to lift the stones into their
+places on the walls, they were obliged to build mounds of sand and
+rough bricks, and roll up each stone gradually with wooden levers,
+until they got it into its proper place. It was terribly hard work,
+but there were so many workmen, and the foremen used their whips so
+unmercifully, that the walls rose very rapidly.</p>
+<p>Now the architect was a cunning man, and guessed what the
+chamber was intended to hold. He therefore fitted one stone in such
+a way that it would slide down and leave a hole just large enough
+for a man to crawl through; and yet, when you looked at the wall,
+there was no sign at all by which the secret could be discovered.
+Nor did the architect think it necessary to mention the secret
+opening to his majesty, when he showed the chamber to him and told
+him that it was as strong as he could make it.</p>
+<p>Rhampsinitus lost no time in moving his treasures into the new
+treasure-chamber. The key he kept with him night and day, so that
+at last he could sleep peacefully, knowing that any one who wished
+to pass the solid, brass-bound door, must first prevail upon him to
+unlock it.</p>
+<p>For some time all went well. The king went to the treasury every
+morning, and found everything in its place. Evidently he had been
+too clever for the thieves.</p>
+<p>In the mean time the architect was lying ill in bed, and day by
+day he grew weaker and weaker; until at length he knew that his end
+was approaching, and, calling his two sons to his bedside, he told
+them of the secret way into the treasure-chamber.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I have little of my own to leave you, my sons,&rdquo; he
+said, &ldquo;and I have but little influence at court; but by the
+aid of this secret, which I devised for your sake, you may become
+rich men, and hold the office of king&rsquo;s treasurers for
+life.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The young men were delighted at his words, and so impatient were
+they to enjoy their good fortune, that on the very night of their
+father&rsquo;s funeral they stole away quietly to the place where
+the treasure-house stood. They found the sliding stone exactly as
+their father had described it. The younger and slimmer of the two
+brothers crawled through the opening and found himself in a dark
+chamber, surrounded by heavy chests and jars with sealed covers.
+Breaking open one of the latter, he put in his hand and drew out a
+handful of gold, which sparkled and twinkled at him even in the
+faint light which came through the hole in the wall. Handful after
+handful he drew out and passed to his brother, at the same time
+filling the bags he had brought with him, until both had as much as
+they could conveniently carry. Then they replaced the stone, and
+returned to lay the treasure before their mother; for in those days
+stealing was considered rather a clever trick, and even the
+thief&rsquo;s mother did not scold him, so long as he was not so
+clumsy as to be caught.</p>
+<p>Imagine the consternation of King Rhampsinitus when he visited
+the chamber the following morning! Everything seemed as secure as
+ever, and yet, when he opened the door, there lay one of the great
+jars turned over and empty, while the lid of one of the chests was
+broken open and part of the contents scattered on the floor. He
+examined every nook and cranny of the chamber from floor to
+ceiling, and there was no sign of any one&rsquo;s having forced an
+entrance. The fastenings of the door were firm, and the lock was
+one which it was perfectly impossible to pick. For greater
+security, however, Rhampsinitus sent at once for a locksmith, and
+commanded him to fit the door with a second lock, the key of which
+he kept with the other.</p>
+<p>Notwithstanding this precaution, the treasure-chamber was robbed
+again on the next night, and this time the thieves had broken open
+a great many of the chests, and carried away some of the most
+valuable jewels. On the following night a sentinel was posted, and
+still the treasury was robbed. The sentinel vowed that he had stood
+with his back to the door all night, and there is little doubt that
+he spoke the truth, though the poor fellow was accused of sleeping
+at his post, and punished for his negligence.</p>
+<p>Then the king took counsel of the fan-bearer on the right hand,
+who was also prime minister. He made a long speech, beginning with
+his regret that his majesty had not thought fit to consult him
+earlier, and concluding with a learned discourse on the habits of
+rats.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;This is all very interesting,&rdquo; said Rhampsinitus,
+&ldquo;but I do not see that it helps very much to protect my
+treasure.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I crave your majesty&rsquo;s pardon,&rdquo; the prime
+minister answered. &ldquo;I was about to observe that the best way
+to catch a rat is first to study the habits and tastes of the rat,
+and next to apply the knowledge so gained in setting a
+trap.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>From which one may see that the prime minister was a very
+learned man, and could not be expected to come to the point all at
+once. The king thanked him for his valuable advice, and procured
+two or three powerful man-traps, which he placed within his
+treasure-chamber.</p>
+<p>Night came on, and the two thieves set to work as before, but no
+sooner had the younger brother disappeared through the hole in the
+wall than he began to utter loud cries of agony.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Peace, brother! You will rouse the guard,&rdquo; said the
+elder. &ldquo;What can have befallen you?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The other controlled himself, and said with a groan,
+&ldquo;Ladronius, we are ruined. I am held fast in a trap, and I
+think my leg is broken. O Horus, Lord of Life, deliver
+me!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>With some difficulty Ladronius crawled through the opening to
+aid his brother, for, though a thief, he was no coward.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Go back, Ladronius, go back!&rdquo; cried his brother.
+&ldquo;Leave me to my fate! I think I hear the cries of the guard.
+No, brother, waste no more time!&rdquo; he entreated, as Ladronius
+tugged in vain at the cruel teeth of the trap. &ldquo;One thing
+remains to be done. Cut off my head, and take it away with you,
+that I may not be recognized and so we both perish! I hear the
+footsteps of men approaching. Do not rob our mother of both her
+sons!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Ladronius, seeing that there was nothing else to be done,
+drew his sword, cut off his brother&rsquo;s head, and escaped
+through the opening, not forgetting to replace the stone behind
+him. He was only just in time, for scarcely had he gained the cover
+of a clump of trees, when the soldiers of the guard came running to
+the place and began to belabor the door. To their surprise they
+found everything quiet and nothing displaced. They examined the
+outside of the building thoroughly, and then, supposing that they
+had been roused by a false alarm, they returned to the palace.</p>
+<p>In the morning, Rhampsinitus paid his daily visit to the
+chamber, and discovered the headless body in the trap. He was more
+puzzled than ever. He examined the fastenings of the door and the
+whole of the chamber over and over again, and no hole nor crevice
+could he find.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nevertheless,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;I have now bait for
+my trap. What can I do better than set a thief to catch a
+thief?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So he ordered the body to be hung from the outer wall of the
+chamber, and placed sentinels to guard it, strictly charging them
+to bring before him any one who showed pity or sorrow for the
+dead.</p>
+<p>When the mother heard of her son&rsquo;s death and how the body
+had been treated, she reproached Ladronius bitterly for his
+cowardice, and implored him with many tears to bring back the body
+for proper burial. For the Egyptians thought that unless a
+man&rsquo;s body were properly embalmed and buried whole, he could
+have no life in the next world; so that it would be a terrible
+misfortune if the head and the body were buried separately.
+Ladronius attempted to comfort his mother, but did not dare to
+carry off his brother&rsquo;s body so long as the sentinels were
+watching. In vain his mother wept and entreated him, until at last
+her grief was turned to anger, and she vowed that, if he did not
+obey her, she would go to the king and tell him the whole story.
+Then Ladronius, seeing her so determined, promised to do as she
+wished, and set his wits to work to invent some means of carrying
+off the body without being caught by the sentinels. At last he
+thought of a plan, which seemed to have some chance of success. He
+hired two donkeys, and having bought some wineskins, which were
+used in the place of bottles, he filled them with strong wine and
+placed them on the donkeys&rsquo; backs.</p>
+<p>Thus equipped, and dressed up to look like an old merchant, he
+set out for the place where his brother&rsquo;s body was suspended.
+When he drew near to the sentinels, he secretly loosened some of
+the strings which fastened the necks of the wineskins, and then
+whipping the donkeys and letting them run on a little way in front,
+he pursued them with loud cries.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, miserable wretch that I am!&rdquo; he cried, beating
+his head and looking the very picture of despair. &ldquo;All my
+good wine wasted on the ground! What shall I do? Oh, what shall I
+do? Stop, most ungrateful of donkeys, children of Set, that devour
+my substance and waste my wine as if it were water! May Tefnet
+plague you with gadflies, and Renenutet poison the thistles! Oh
+dear! oh dear! I am a ruined man.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The soldiers, supposing it to be a genuine accident, laughed
+loudly at the fellow&rsquo;s distress, and while some chased and
+caught the donkeys, the others brought bowls and pitchers and began
+to drink the wine, as it ran out of the skins.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Never mind, worthy sir!&rdquo; they said to Ladronius.
+&ldquo;The wine is serving a very good purpose. Here is to our
+future friendship and your excellency&rsquo;s very good
+health!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Ladronius pretended to fly into a great passion, and called them
+thieves and monsters of iniquity for robbing a poor man of his
+wine.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ay, laugh away!&rdquo; he cried. &ldquo;But a day of
+reckoning will come for your wickedness. See how the law treats
+robbers!&rdquo; And he pointed to his brother&rsquo;s body hanging
+on the wall.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Now, by Anubis, the fellow speaks truth,&rdquo; said one
+of the soldiers. &ldquo;We are but sorry fellows to drink away a
+poor man&rsquo;s living, and if this were to come to the ears of
+the king, we should be in evil case for leaving our
+duty.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The others laughed good-humoredly, as they tied up some of the
+skins, and did their best to put the merchant into a good temper.
+Ladronius, after a little more grumbling, appeared to be pacified,
+and, as a sign of good-will, presented a wineskin to the soldier
+who had first spoken in his favor.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;May you never want a young friend to speak for you in
+your old age,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;and may you meet with no worse
+companions than these; for though they seem to be somewhat
+headstrong, yet I perceive that I spoke hard words in my
+anger.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The soldiers, who by this time had sat down on the grass and
+were passing the wineskin from one to another, declared that the
+merchant was a good-hearted old fellow and invited him to come and
+drink their health.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nay, my masters,&rdquo; said Ladronius, pretending to
+adjust the straps on the donkeys&rsquo; backs. &ldquo;I have far to
+go, and I am but a little way on my journey.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But, as they pressed him, he consented to drink one cup with
+them before he went. &ldquo;Though in truth,&rdquo; he added,
+&ldquo;if I mistake not, the skin is emptied already. I see that
+you would force me to part with another, before I set
+out.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>As he spoke, he produced another wineskin, and the soldiers, who
+were growing merry, greeted him with a shout of delight, and
+insisted on his sitting down with them. Ladronius, still declaring
+that he could stay only long enough to drink one cup with them,
+allowed himself to be placed in the midst, where he presently
+proved himself so good a companion and told so many merry tales
+that the soldiers would not hear of his departure. They drank more
+and more heavily, until at length a third skin was opened, and one
+by one the sentinels were overpowered by the strong wine, and all
+lay asleep on the ground.</p>
+<p>By this time it had grown dark, and Ladronius, who had pretended
+to be as drunk as the rest, cautiously raised his head, and finding
+that all the sentinels were snoring, he took down his
+brother&rsquo;s body and carried it off. But, before he went, he
+shaved the right side of the head of each of the sentinels, to show
+his contempt for the king&rsquo;s precautions.</p>
+<p>The king was furious when he discovered the failure of his plan
+and the insult offered to his guards, all of whom were beheaded for
+their disobedience to his orders. He was more determined than ever
+to catch the thief, and after taking counsel once more with his
+prime minister, he decided upon another plan. He caused a
+proclamation to be made, in which he promised the hand of his
+daughter to the man whom she should consider the cleverest and most
+wicked of all men. He commanded the princess to sit on a throne in
+the temple of Ra, the sun-god, and to speak to all who came to pay
+their homage to her, asking them what was the cleverest and most
+wicked deed they had done. But secretly Rhampsinitus told her that,
+if any one related the story of the robbing of the treasury, she
+was to seize him by the hand, and hold him till the guards came and
+secured him.</p>
+<p>The moment Ladronius heard the proclamation, he saw that it was
+another trick to catch him, but he was so daring and so fond of
+adventure that he could not resist the temptation to outdo the king
+in cunning once more. He determined actually to put his head in the
+lion&rsquo;s mouth&mdash;in other words, to go boldly to the temple
+and talk to the princess. He took with him under his cloak the
+strangest of presents, an arm cut from a dead man&rsquo;s body.</p>
+<p>When he entered the temple, he beheld the princess seated on her
+throne, looking very beautiful in her royal robes, with her dark
+curls flowing over her shoulders, and the golden vulture of Egypt
+spreading his wings over her head. She looked a little pale and
+weary too, for she had talked with many scores of suitors, all of
+whom had told her tales which were very much alike and nothing at
+all to do with her father&rsquo;s treasure-chamber. And when the
+princess looked up and saw Ladronius standing there, with his bold,
+handsome face, and resolute eyes, she had a suspicion that this was
+the robber of the treasury. At the same time she felt some pity for
+the young man, whom she was to be the means of punishing for his
+bravery. However, she could only obey her father, and motioning to
+Ladronius to approach, she addressed him with great courtesy,
+saying, &ldquo;You seem, sir, by your bearing, to be a man of some
+strength and courage. Tell me now, what is the most wicked thing,
+and what the cleverest, you ever did in your life?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Ladronius looked her straight in the face and answered,
+&ldquo;Most gracious princess, the most wicked thing I ever did in
+my life was to cut off my brother&rsquo;s head in His
+Majesty&rsquo;s treasure-house, and the cleverest was when I made
+the sentinels drunk and carried off my brother&rsquo;s
+body.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Scarcely were the words out of his mouth, when the princess
+jumped up and caught him, as she supposed, by the arm, at the same
+time crying out for the guards, who were concealed behind the
+throne. But, to her dismay, the arm seemed to part company with the
+rest of the body, and she was left with the cloak of Ladronius and
+the arm of the dead man, while Ladronius himself was out of the
+temple before she had recovered from her surprise; nor could the
+guards find any trace of him outside.</p>
+<p>The princess went back to her father in fear and trembling, and
+related how Ladronius had escaped once more; but the king was so
+amazed at the daring and skill of the young man, that he quite
+forgot to be angry.</p>
+<p>The picture of the princess holding the arm that had no body
+attached to it, and gazing blankly after the departing figure of
+Ladronius, so took his fancy, that he lay back on his couch, and
+laughed till his sides ached.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Bast!&rdquo; he cried at length. &ldquo;If the youth is
+really as clever as this, I would rather have him my friend than my
+enemy. Such a man should be rewarded and not punished for his
+genius. So he made you a present of his cloak too, did he?&rdquo;
+And the king collapsed once more.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;And what manner of youth is he?&rdquo; he asked the
+princess; the princess answered, with a blush, that he looked like
+a brave young man.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That I am sure he is,&rdquo; said the king. &ldquo;I have
+learnt it to my cost. And he is not ill-looking?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;No,&rdquo; said the princess; she would not describe him
+as ill-looking.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah! well,&rdquo; said the king dryly, &ldquo;we must see
+whether we cannot find some means of securing his
+friendship.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So King Rhampsinitus ordered another proclamation to be made,
+promising that if the robber would present himself to the king and
+confess how he had broken into the treasury, the king would grant
+him a free pardon and a great reward beside.</p>
+<p>Ladronius was not long in making up his mind. He knew that kings
+were not always above treachery, but he had survived so many
+dangers that he determined to risk this also. He arrayed himself,
+therefore, in his best attire, and boldly presented himself to the
+king, who was delighted with his courage and bade him relate the
+whole story fearlessly. And when Rhampsinitus heard of the secret
+way into his treasury, he would not rest until he had seen the
+sliding stone and moved it for himself. He laughed heartily when he
+remembered how he had put another lock on the door, and how he had
+posted a sentinel in the one place where he could see nothing of
+the thieves. Then he returned to the palace, and sent for the
+princess, his daughter. Presently she entered with her train of
+maidens, and Ladronius was so overcome by her fresh, girlish
+beauty, that he could hardly find voice enough to reply to the
+king&rsquo;s questions. The king rose and embraced his daughter,
+and then, addressing Ladronius before the assembled courtiers, he
+said, &ldquo;Ladronius, the Egyptians are the most cunning of all
+nations on the face of the earth, and you have proved yourself more
+cunning than all the Egyptians. And now, after robbing me of so
+many treasures, you are about to rob me of the best and most
+priceless of all.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, he took his daughter by the hand, and led her to
+Ladronius.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Take her, my son!&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;A good and
+obedient daughter should make a faithful and loving
+wife.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The princess stood with her eyes cast down, blushing very
+prettily, and Ladronius looked very handsome as he knelt and kissed
+her hand. Then the trumpets began to blare, the drums rattled, the
+cymbals clashed, and the courtiers shouted, &ldquo;Long live our
+gracious princess! Long live Rhampsinitus and his son-in-law
+Ladronius!&rdquo; The royal minstrel brought his harp and sang a
+solemn chant, all about the beauty of the princess and the bravery
+of Ladronius; and the maids of honor performed a graceful dance to
+the music, winding wreaths of lotus flowers about the bride and
+bridegroom. As the music ceased, the venerable High Priest of Ra, a
+tall old man with his head clean-shaven, came forward to bless and
+anoint them, and to tell how he had foreseen it all from the
+beginning.</p>
+<p>So Ladronius and the beautiful princess were married, and,
+though it is not in the story, there can be no doubt that they
+lived very happily for the rest of their lives.</p>
+<h3><a id="Arion" name="Arion">Arion and the Dolphin</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>Retold by G.H. Boden and W. Barrington
+d&rsquo;Almeida</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>It happened once upon a time, in the olden days, that a young
+man, Periander of Corinth, started from a port in the south of
+Greece to sail to Miletus. Being caught in a storm, the boat was
+carried out of her course as far as the island of Lesbos, where she
+stayed for several days, in order that the damage caused by the
+storm might be repaired. In the mean time Periander landed, and
+occupied himself in wandering about the island and watching the
+inhabitants. In his wanderings, he came one evening upon a group of
+men and women, the sight of whom made him pause with a longing to
+join them. They had been working hard all day, gathering the
+grapes, and pressing them in big, wooden vats, to extract the wine
+for which Lesbos was famous; and now, in the beautiful autumn
+evening, they were making merry after their labors.</p>
+<p>No wonder Periander stayed to watch them, for they made a very
+pretty picture,&mdash;the handsome youths, with their bronzed faces
+and strong, fine limbs; the women with their gay dresses and bare
+feet, that seemed to have been made for dancing; the vine-clad hill
+at the back, and, over it all, the glow of the setting sun. In the
+centre of the dancers sat a boy, playing upon a small lute with
+seven strings. To this accompaniment the dancers chanted a song in
+praise of Dionysus, the god of the vine. Gradually the music went
+faster and faster; and faster and faster the feet of the dancers
+sped over the ground, until they were all out of breath, and lay
+laughing on the grass.</p>
+<p>Then, as the boy struck another chord, all laughter was hushed,
+and he began to sing; it was a simple, plaintive little song, but
+there was a magic in his voice which held the listeners spellbound.
+The last rays of the setting sun played about his golden curls, and
+lit up his sweet, childish face, as he sang:&mdash;</p>
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<p>&ldquo;Why should you grieve for me, my love,</p>
+<p class="i2">When I am laid to rest?</p>
+<p>Our lives are shaped by the gods above,</p>
+<p class="i2">And they know best.</p>
+<p>What though I stand on the farther shore,</p>
+<p>Others have crossed the stream before&mdash;</p>
+<p class="i2">Why weep in vain?</p>
+<p>Life is but a drop in the deep,</p>
+<p>Soon we wake from the last, lone sleep,</p>
+<p class="i2">And meet again.&rdquo;</p>
+</div>
+</div>
+<p>As the last note died away, a sigh came from the listeners; some
+of the women turned away their faces, and the young men began to
+talk hastily, as if to hide their emotion.</p>
+<p>Periander waited until the group began to break up. Then he
+stepped forward and laid his hand on the boy&rsquo;s shoulder. The
+boy looked up with a smile.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What is your name, my fair minstrel?&rdquo; asked
+Periander.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;My name is Arion,&rdquo; answered the boy, as if he were
+used to being questioned. &ldquo;I come from Methymna beyond the
+hills, where I used to tend the goats.&rdquo; And he told Periander
+that his mother and father died before he could remember, and that
+he was brought up by an old goat-herd; until a traveling minstrel,
+who happened one day to hear him singing on the hills, took charge
+of him and taught him to play the lute.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That was one of his own songs I was singing,&rdquo; said
+Arion. &ldquo;He always liked me to sing his songs; but, when I am
+a man, I shall make my own songs, and sing them in the great cities
+over the sea.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;And so you shall,&rdquo; said Periander. &ldquo;Now,
+listen to me, Arion! Some day, perhaps, I also may be a great man,
+able to help you to become a great singer. Remember, when you have
+need of a friend, that Periander of Corinth will help you, if he
+can!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And, when he departed, Periander left a sum of money with a
+worthy old couple, who promised to look after the boy, and see that
+he wanted nothing.</p>
+<p>After some years, Periander became king of Corinth, and having a
+love of everything beautiful, he soon gathered about him a little
+band of poets, artists, and musicians. One day, when he was
+listening to one of the court musicians, something&mdash;it might
+have been a chord in the music&mdash;reminded him of the little
+Lesbian Arion. He seemed to see once more the boy with the golden
+light on his curls, and the upturned faces of the peasants grouped
+around him; and the very words of the song ran in his head.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;By Apollo!&rdquo; he cried, so suddenly that the musician
+nearly fell off his seat. &ldquo;We will have the little Lesbian at
+court, and make a famous singer of him. Where is Glaucus? Ho,
+there! Bid Glaucus attend the king!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>When Glaucus appeared, the king bade him take a boat and sail
+for Lesbos. &ldquo;There you will make search for one Arion, a
+singer,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;And when you have found him, say,
+&lsquo;Periander of Corinth has need of his friend Arion.&rsquo;
+And see that you bring him safely to Corinth!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Glaucus did as he was bidden, and in due time found Arion, now
+grown into a tall, graceful youth. Arion, when he heard the
+message, consented to accompany Glaucus to Corinth, where he was
+greeted with great kindness by Periander. He very soon became a
+great favorite among the Corinthians, and all the musicians envied
+him his beautiful voice and his skill in playing on the lute. No
+one had such power to soothe the king in his black moods; nor was
+it at court alone that his fame as a singer was known, for he was
+ever ready to sing to the people, who idolized him and called him
+the son of Apollo. Among other things he taught them the song and
+dance of the Lesbians in honor of Dionysus and the vine; it
+afterwards became one of the most famous songs of Greece.</p>
+<p>Many years Arion stayed with Periander, who held him in high
+honor and loaded him with costly presents. His fame spread as far
+as Italy and Sicily, and he had many requests that he would go over
+and sing to the people there. At length, he determined to make the
+journey, not only from curiosity to see new countries, but also
+because he had heard of the songs sung by the Sicilian shepherds,
+and had a great desire to study them. Periander tried to dissuade
+him, but, finding him resolved, he assisted him in his
+preparations, and on his departure exacted from him a promise that
+he would return to Corinth.</p>
+<p>Arion traveled about Italy and Sicily for a long time, and made
+a great fortune by his singing. But growing tired at last of the
+wandering life, he went to Tarentum to find a ship which would take
+him back to Corinth. There were two or three ships ready to make
+the journey, among them one named the Nausicaa, which was manned by
+a crew of Corinthians. This he chose, being somewhat nervous about
+the large sum of money he was carrying, and thinking that he could
+trust the Corinthians, whom he knew, better than a crew of
+foreigners.</p>
+<p>The Nausicaa was a strange-looking vessel, with a single sail,
+and long oars pulled by men who sat on benches along the side. The
+prow, which was carved to represent the maiden Nausicaa, stood well
+out of the water, and the bulwarks descended in a graceful curve to
+rise again at the stern, where the captain stood and shaped his
+course by means of a broad paddle, which was hung over the
+side.</p>
+<p>The voyage began happily enough, the wind being favorable, and
+the captain and crew all deference and politeness. But when they
+were well out to sea, the behavior of the crew changed; they
+answered Arion&rsquo;s questions with scant politeness, and held
+many whispered consultations, which, from the black glances cast at
+him, made him uneasy as to his safety. On the second evening,
+waking out of a light sleep, he heard them conspiring to throw him
+overboard and divide his wealth among them. Arion started up and
+implored them not to carry out their evil purpose, offering to hand
+over all his wealth, if they would spare his life. His entreaties
+and promises were all in vain.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;We give you a fair choice,&rdquo; said the captain
+brutally. &ldquo;Either leap into the sea at once, or kill yourself
+in some other way, and we will bury you decently on
+shore.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Abandoning his vain appeals for mercy, Arion begged them, as a
+last favor, to let him sing once more before he died.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That we will not refuse,&rdquo; the captain answered;
+&ldquo;though, if you think to move us by your wailing, let me tell
+you that you waste your breath!&rdquo; In reality, he was not
+displeased to have an opportunity of hearing the most famous singer
+in the world.</p>
+<p>Arion put on his sacred robes, in which he used to sing in the
+temple of Apollo, and taking his lute he stepped firmly to the prow
+of the vessel. There he stood, pale and calm, in the silvery light
+of the moon, his fair hair playing with the wind, while the little
+waves lifted themselves to look at him, and then ran playfully into
+the shadow of the boat, to dash their heads against the beams and
+be broken into spray. The sailors were awed in spite of themselves,
+as that beautiful voice rose on the breeze. He sang the old song
+which he had sung in the Lesbian vineyards when Periander saw him
+first. And when he came to the last lines,&mdash;</p>
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<p>&ldquo;Life is but a drop in the deep,</p>
+<p>Soon we wake from the last, lone sleep,</p>
+<p class="i2">And meet again,&rdquo;</p>
+</div>
+</div>
+<p>Arion leapt over the side of the vessel, just as he was.</p>
+<p>The captain, fearing that some of the crew might be moved to
+lend him assistance, gave the order to make all speed ahead. Had he
+waited, he might have seen a most wonderful sight. For, as Arion
+fell into the sea, the water seemed to become alive beneath him,
+and he felt it lifting him up, and carrying him rapidly away from
+the ship. Then he discovered that he was seated astride on a great,
+black fish, which was swimming very rapidly on the top of the
+water, and he knew it must be a dolphin, which had been attracted
+by his singing; for the dolphins, unlike most things that live in
+the sea, have sharp ears, and are very fond of music. He touched
+his lute, to see if the strings had suffered from the water, and,
+as he did so, the great back quivered beneath him. Finding,
+therefore, that the dolphin liked the music, and thinking that he
+owed it some return for saving his life, Arion began to sing, and
+sang song after song; whenever he stopped, the dolphin ceased from
+swimming, as if to inquire the reason; and when Arion began again,
+the dolphin bounded through the water with great strokes of his
+broad tail. A strange sight it must have been, had there been any
+one there to see! But the dolphin went straight across the open
+sea, where no ships were to be seen; for the sailors of that day
+did not care to lose sight of the coast, but would sail all the way
+round a large bay rather than straight across it. So it was that
+Arion came to T&aelig;narus in Greece, without having been seen by
+any man. The dolphin took him close to the shore, where he bade it
+good-by, and watched it swim away disconsolately.</p>
+<p>From T&aelig;narus he made his way on foot to Corinth. Periander
+was overjoyed to see him once more; and when he marveled at the
+strange costume in which Arion had traveled, Arion related the
+whole story.</p>
+<p>Periander listened attentively, and, when it was finished,
+remarked gravely, &ldquo;Are you then so little satisfied with your
+victories over the musicians, Arion, that you have determined to be
+king of story-tellers also?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Does your majesty intend to throw doubt on my
+story?&rdquo; asked Arion.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Far be it from me!&rdquo; answered Periander. &ldquo;The
+story pleases me well, and if you will tell me another such, I will
+take pains to believe that also.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Then Zeus be my witness! I will find means to prove
+it,&rdquo; cried Arion.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Have I not said that I doubted not?&rdquo; asked
+Periander. &ldquo;Yet I would gladly see the proof. My crown to
+your lute upon the issue!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;So be it!&rdquo; said Arion. &ldquo;But first I must ask
+your majesty that none may speak of my return; and when the ship
+<em>Nausicaa</em> comes to port, let the seamen be dealt with as I
+shall appoint!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The king assented laughing, for he deemed the tale impossible.
+After some days, however, it was announced that the ship
+<em>Nausicaa</em> was in the harbor. Periander summoned the captain
+and all the crew to the palace, and asked them whether they had
+brought any news of his minstrel Arion. The captain replied that
+men said at Tarentum that Arion was still in Italy, traveling from
+place to place, and received everywhere with great honor. The rest
+of the sailors confirmed the story, and one of them added that
+Arion was said to prefer Italy to Greece, nor had he any intention
+of returning to Corinth.</p>
+<p>At that moment a curtain was drawn and disclosed Arion, standing
+in his sacred robes and holding his lute, just as they had seen him
+last in the prow of the ship. The sailors, supposing that they
+beheld his spirit, were seized with terror, and fell at the
+king&rsquo;s feet, confessing all their wickedness and begging for
+mercy. But Periander was filled with indignation, and spurned them
+angrily. Arion interposed, urging the king to be merciful, now that
+the seamen had seen their wickedness, and were willing to make
+restitution. Periander, however, would not hear of mercy.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Your compassion bears witness to your noble spirit,
+Arion,&rdquo; he replied. &ldquo;But these men have planned a most
+cruel and cowardly murder, and cruelly shall they suffer for it.
+Seize me these men, guards, and bind them!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The guards came forward and began to lead away the trembling
+wretches.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Stay!&rdquo; cried Arion. &ldquo;It is I who am king. Did
+not your majesty stake your crown against my lute, and can the
+royal word be broken? Back, guards! I claim my wager.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Periander could not refrain from laughter, but confessed himself
+beaten by this piece of strategy. &ldquo;The wit of Arion,&rdquo;
+he said, &ldquo;is stronger than the tears of repentance. Release
+the prisoners!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That being so,&rdquo; said Arion, &ldquo;and seeing that
+I find myself more easy with the lute, I will restore the royal
+crown to Periander.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So the men were set at liberty, after having restored the
+property of Arion, and departed full of gratitude, invoking
+blessings on his head.</p>
+<p>And lest any man should doubt the truth of the story in time to
+come, Arion erected at T&aelig;narus a statue in bronze,
+representing a man riding on a dolphin&rsquo;s back.</p>
+<h2><a id="Livy" name="Livy">STORIES FROM LIVY</a></h2>
+<h3><a id="Romulus" name="Romulus">Romulus, Founder of
+Rome</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>Adapted by Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>&AElig;neas of Troy, coming to the land of Italy, took to wife
+Lavinia, daughter of King Latinus, and built him a city, which he
+called Lavinium, after the name of his wife. And, after thirty
+years, his son Ascanius went forth from Lavinium with much people,
+and built him a new city, which he called Alba. In this city
+reigned kings of the house and lineage of &AElig;neas for twelve
+generations. Of these kings the eleventh in descent was one Procas,
+who, having two sons, Numitor and Amulius, left his kingdom,
+according to the custom, to Numitor, the elder. But Amulius drove
+out his brother, and reigned in his stead. Nor was he content with
+this wickedness, but slew all the male children of his brother. And
+the daughter of his brother, that was named Rhea Silvia, he chose
+to be a priestess of Vesta, making as though he would do the maiden
+honor, but his thought was that the name of his brother should
+perish, for they that serve Vesta are vowed to perpetual
+virginity.</p>
+<p>But it came to pass that Rhea bare twin sons, whose father, it
+was said, was the god Mars. Very wroth was Amulius when he heard
+this thing; Rhea he made fast in prison, and the children he gave
+to certain of his servants that they should cast them into the
+river. Now it chanced that at this season Tiber had overflowed his
+banks, neither could the servants come near to the stream of the
+river; nevertheless they did not doubt that the children would
+perish, for all that the overflowing of the water was neither deep
+nor of a swift current. Thinking, then, that they had duly
+performed the commandment of the king, they set down the babes in
+the flood and departed. But after a while the flood abated, and
+left the basket wherein the children had been laid on dry ground.
+And a she-wolf, coming down from the hill to drink at the river
+(for the country in those days was desert and abounding in wild
+beasts), heard the crying of the children and ran to them. Nor did
+she devour them, but gave them suck; nay, so gentle was she that
+Faustulus, the king&rsquo;s shepherd, chancing to go by, saw that
+she licked them with her tongue. This Faustulus took the children
+and gave them to his wife to rear; and these, when they were of age
+to go by themselves, were not willing to abide with the flocks and
+herds, but were hunters, wandering through the forests that were in
+those parts. And afterward, being now come to full strength, they
+were not content to slay wild beasts only, but would assail troops
+of robbers, as these were returning laden with their booty, and
+would divide the spoils among the shepherds. Now there was held in
+those days, on the hill that is now called the Palatine, a yearly
+festival to the god Pan. This festival King Evander first ordained,
+having come from Arcadia, in which land, being a land of shepherds,
+Pan, that is the god of shepherds, is greatly honored. And when the
+young men and their company (for they had gathered a great company
+of shepherds about them, and led them in all matters both of
+business and of sport) were busy with the festival, there came upon
+them certain robbers that had made an ambush in the place, being
+very wroth by reason of the booty which they had lost. These laid
+hands on Remus, but Romulus they could not take, so fiercely did he
+fight against them. Remus, therefore, they delivered up to King
+Amulius, accusing him of many things, and chiefly of this, that he
+and his companions had invaded the land of Numitor, dealing with
+them in the fashion of an enemy and carrying off much spoil. To
+Numitor, therefore, did the king deliver Remus, that he might put
+him to death. Now Faustulus had believed from the beginning that
+the children were of the royal house, for he knew that the babes
+had been cast into the river by the king&rsquo;s command, and the
+time also of his finding them agreed thereto. Nevertheless he had
+not judged it expedient to open the matter before due time, but
+waited till occasion or necessity should arise. But now, there
+being such necessity, he opened the matter to Romulus. Numitor
+also, when he had the young man Remus in his custody, knowing that
+he and his brother were twins, and that the time agreed, and seeing
+that they were of a high spirit, bethought him of his grandsons;
+and, indeed, having asked many questions of Remus, was come nigh to
+knowing of what race he was. And now also Romulus was ready to help
+his brother. To come openly with his whole company he dared not,
+for he was not a match for the power of King Amulius; but he bade
+sundry shepherds make their way to the palace, each as best he
+could, appointing to them a time at which they should meet. And now
+came Remus also, with a troop of youths gathered together from the
+household of Numitor. Then did Romulus and Remus slay King Amulius.
+In the meanwhile Numitor gathered the youth of Alba to the citadel,
+crying out that they must make the place safe, for that the enemy
+was upon them; but when he perceived that the young men had done
+the deed, forthwith he called an assembly of the citizens, and set
+forth to them the wickedness which his brother had wrought against
+him, and how his grandsons had been born and bred and made known to
+him, and then, in order, how the tyrant had been slain, himself
+having counseled the deed. When he had so spoken the young men came
+with their company into the midst of the assembly, and saluted him
+as king; to which thing the whole multitude agreeing with one
+consent, Numitor was established upon the throne.</p>
+<p>After this Romulus and his brother conceived this purpose, that,
+leaving their grandfather to be king at Alba, they should build for
+themselves a new city in the place where, having been at the first
+left to die, they had been brought up by Faustulus the shepherd.
+And to this purpose many agreed both of the men of Alba and of the
+Latins, and also of the shepherds that had followed them from the
+first, holding it for certain all of them that Alba and Lavinium
+would be of small account in comparison of this new city which they
+should build together. But while the brothers were busy with these
+things, there sprang up afresh the same evil thing which had before
+wrought such trouble in their house, even the lust of power. For
+though the beginnings of the strife between them were peaceful, yet
+did it end in great wickedness. The matter fell out in this wise.
+Seeing that the brothers were twins, and that neither could claim
+to have the preference to the other in respect of his age, it was
+agreed between them that the gods that were the guardians of that
+country should make known by means of augury which of the two they
+chose to give his name to the new city. Then Romulus stood on the
+Palatine hill, and when there had been marked out for him a certain
+region of the sky, watched therein for a sign; and Remus watched in
+like manner, standing on the Aventine. And to Remus first came a
+sign, six vultures; but so soon as the sign had been proclaimed
+there came another to Romulus, even twelve vultures. Then they that
+favored Remus clamored that the gods had chosen him for king,
+because he had first seen the birds; and they that favored Romulus
+answered that he was to be preferred because he had seen more in
+number. This dispute waxed so hot that they fell to fighting; and
+in the fight it chanced that Remus was slain. But some say that
+when Romulus had marked out the borders of the town which he would
+build, and had caused a wall to be built round it, Remus leapt over
+the wall, scorning it because it was mean and low; and that Romulus
+slew him, crying out, &ldquo;Thus shall every man perish that shall
+dare to leap over my walls.&rdquo; Only others will have it that
+though he perished for this cause Romulus slew him not, but a
+certain Celer. This much is certain, that Romulus gained the whole
+kingdom for himself, and called the city after his own name.</p>
+<p>And now, having first done sacrifice to the Gods, he called a
+general assembly of the people, that he might give them laws,
+knowing that without laws no city can endure. And judging that
+these would be the better kept of his subjects if he should himself
+bear something of the show of royal majesty, he took certain signs
+of dignity, and especially twelve men that should continually
+attend him, bearing bundles of rods, and in the midst of the rods
+an axe; these men they called <em>lictors</em>. Meanwhile the city
+increased, for the king and his people enlarged their borders,
+looking rather to the greatness for which they hoped than to that
+which they had. And that this increase might not be altogether
+empty walls without men, Romulus set up a sanctuary, to which were
+gathered a great multitude of men from the nations round about. All
+that were discontented and lovers of novelty came to him. Nor did
+he take any account of their condition, whether they were bond or
+free, but received them all. Thus was there added to the city great
+strength. And the king, when he judged that there was strength
+sufficient, was minded to add to the strength counsel. Wherefore he
+chose a hundred men for counselors. A hundred he chose, either
+because he held that number to be sufficient, or because there were
+no more that were fit to bear this dignity and be called Fathers,
+for this was the name of these counselors.</p>
+<p>After this the people bethought themselves how they should get
+for themselves wives, for there were no women in the place.
+Wherefore Romulus sent ambassadors to the nations round about,
+praying that they should give their daughters to his people for
+wives. &ldquo;Cities,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;have humble beginnings
+even as all other things. Nevertheless they that have the Gods and
+their own valor to help become great. Now that the gods are with
+us, as ye know, be assured also that valor shall not be
+wanting.&rdquo; But the nations round about would not hearken to
+him, thinking scorn of this gathering of robbers and slaves and
+runaways, so that they said, &ldquo;Why do ye not open a sanctuary
+for women also that so ye may find fit wives for your
+people?&rdquo; Also they feared for themselves and their children
+what this new city might grow to. Now when the ambassadors brought
+back this answer the Romans were greatly wroth, and would take by
+force that which their neighbors would not give of their free will.
+And to the end that they might do this more easily, King Romulus
+appointed certain days whereon he and his people would hold a
+festival with games to Neptune; and to this festival he called all
+them that dwelt in the cities round about. But when many were
+gathered together (for they were fain to see what this new city
+might be), and were now wholly bent on the spectacle of the games,
+the young men of the Romans ran in upon them, and carried off all
+such as were unwedded among the women. To these King Romulus spake
+kindly, saying, &ldquo;The fault is not with us but with your
+fathers, who dealt proudly with us, and would not give you to us in
+marriage. But now ye shall be held in all honor as our wives, and
+shall have your portion of all that we possess. Put away therefore
+your anger, for ye shall find us so much the better husbands than
+other men, as we must be to you not for husbands only but parents
+also and native country.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>In the meanwhile the parents of them that had been carried off
+put on sackcloth, and went about through the cities crying out for
+vengeance upon the Romans. And chiefly they sought for help from
+Titus Tatius, that was king of the Sabines in those days, and of
+great power and renown. But when the Sabines seemed to be tardy in
+the matter, the men of C&aelig;re first gathered together their
+army and marched into the country of the Romans. Against these King
+Romulus led forth his men and put them to flight without much ado,
+having first slain their king with his own hand. Then, after
+returning to Rome, he carried the arms which he had taken from the
+body of the king to the hill of the Capitol, and laid them down at
+the shepherds&rsquo; oak that stood thereon in those days. And when
+he had measured out the length and breadth of a temple that he
+would build to Jupiter upon the hill, he said, &ldquo;O Jupiter, I,
+King Romulus, offer to thee these arms of a king, and dedicate
+therewith a temple in this place, in which temple they that come
+after me shall offer to thee like spoils in like manner, when it
+shall chance that the leader of our host shall himself slay with
+his own hands the leader of the host of the enemy.&rdquo; And this
+was the first temple that was dedicated in Rome. And in all the
+time to come two only offered in this manner, to wit, Cornelius
+Cossus that slew Lars Tolumnius, king of Veii, and Claudius
+Marcellus that slew Britomarus, king of the Gauls.</p>
+<p>After this, King Tatius and the Sabines came up against Rome
+with a great army. And first of all they gained the citadel by
+treachery in this manner. One Tarpeius was governor of the citadel,
+whose daughter, Tarpeia by name, going forth from the walls to
+fetch water for a sacrifice, took money from the king that she
+should receive certain of the soldiers within the citadel; but when
+they had been so received, the men cast their shields upon her,
+slaying her with the weight of them. This they did either that they
+might be thought to have taken the place by force, or that they
+judged it to be well that no faith should be kept with traitors.
+Some also tell this tale, that the Sabines wore great bracelets of
+gold on their left arms, and on their left hands fair rings with
+precious stones therein, and that when the maiden covenanted with
+them that she should have for a reward that which they carried in
+their left hands, they cast their shields upon her. And others say
+that she asked for their shields having the purpose to betray them,
+and for this cause was slain.</p>
+<p>Thus the Sabines had possession of the citadel; and the next day
+King Romulus set the battle in array on the plain that lay between
+the hill of the Capitol and the hill of the Palatine. And first the
+Romans were very eager to recover the citadel, a certain Hostilius
+being their leader. But when this man, fighting in the forefront of
+the battle, was slain, the Romans turned their backs and fled
+before the Sabines, even unto the gate of the Palatine. Then King
+Romulus (for he himself had been carried away by the crowd of them
+that fled) held up his sword and his spear to the heavens, and
+cried aloud, &ldquo;O Jupiter, here in the Palatine didst thou
+first, by the tokens which thou sentest me, lay the foundations of
+my city. And lo! the Sabines have taken the citadel by wicked
+craft, and have crossed the valley, and are come up even hither.
+But if thou sufferest them so far, do thou at the least defend this
+place against them, and stay this shameful flight of my people. So
+will I build a temple for thee in this place, even a temple of
+Jupiter the Stayer, that may be a memorial to after generations of
+how thou didst this day save this city.&rdquo; And when he had so
+spoken, even as though he knew that the prayer had been heard, he
+cried, &ldquo;Ye men of Rome, Jupiter bids you stand fast in this
+place and renew the battle.&rdquo; And when the men of Rome heard
+these words, it was as if a voice from heaven had spoken to them,
+and they stood fast, and the king himself went forward and stood
+among the foremost. Now the leader of the Sabines was one Curtius.
+This man, as he drave the Romans before him, cried out to his
+comrades, &ldquo;See, we have conquered these men, false hosts and
+feeble foes that they are! Surely now they know that it is one
+thing to carry off maidens and another to fight with men.&rdquo;
+But whilst he boasted himself thus, King Romulus and a company of
+the youth rushed upon him. Now Curtius was fighting on horseback,
+and being thus assailed he fled, plunging into a certain pool which
+lay between the Palatine hill and the Capitol. Thus did he barely
+escape with his life, and the lake was called thereafter
+Curtius&rsquo; pool. And now the Sabines began to give way to the
+Romans, when suddenly the women for whose sake they fought, having
+their hair loosened and their garments rent, ran in between them
+that fought, crying out, &ldquo;Shed ye not each other&rsquo;s
+blood, ye that are fathers-in-law and sons-in-law to each other.
+But if ye break this bond that is between you, slay us that are the
+cause of this trouble. And surely it were better for us to die than
+to live if we be bereaved of our fathers or of our husbands.&rdquo;
+With these words they stirred the hearts both of the chiefs and of
+the people, so that there was suddenly made a great silence. And
+afterward the leaders came forth to make a covenant; and these
+indeed so ordered matters that there was not peace only, but one
+state where there had been two. For the Sabines came to Rome and
+dwelt there; and King Romulus and King Tatius reigned together.
+Only, after a while, certain men of Lanuvium slew King Tatius as he
+was sacrificing to the Gods at Lavinium; and thereafter Romulus
+only was king as before.</p>
+<p>When he had reigned thirty and seven years there befell the
+thing that shall now be told. On a certain day he called the people
+together on the field of Mars, and held a review of his army. But
+while he did this there arose suddenly a great storm, with loud
+thunderings and very thick clouds, so that the king was hidden away
+from the eyes of all the people. Nor indeed was he ever again seen
+upon the earth. And when men were recovered of their fear they were
+in great trouble, because they had lost their king, though indeed
+the Fathers would have it that he had been carried by a whirlwind
+into heaven. Yet after a while they began to worship him as being
+now a god; and when nevertheless some doubted, and would even
+whisper among themselves that Romulus had been torn in pieces by
+the Fathers, there came forward a certain Proculus, who spake after
+this manner: &ldquo;Ye men of Rome, this day, in the early morning,
+I saw Romulus, the father of this city, come down from heaven and
+stand before me. And when great fear came upon me, I prayed that it
+might be lawful for me to look upon him face to face. Then said he
+to me, &lsquo;Go thy way, tell the men of Rome that it is the will
+of them that dwell in heaven that Rome should be the chiefest city
+in the world. Bid them therefore be diligent in war; and let them
+know for themselves and tell their children after them that there
+is no power on earth so great that it shall be able to stand
+against them.&rsquo; And when he had thus spoken, he departed from
+me, going up into heaven.&rdquo; All men believed Proculus when he
+thus spake, and the people ceased from their sorrow when they knew
+that King Romulus had been taken up into heaven.</p>
+<h3><a id="Horatius" name="Horatius">How Horatius Held the
+Bridge</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>Adapted by Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p class="quote">[King Tarquin had been driven from Rome because of
+his tyranny.]</p>
+<p>King Tarquin and his son Lucius (for he only remained to him of
+the three) fled to Lars Porsenna, king of Clusium, and besought him
+that he would help them. &ldquo;Suffer not,&rdquo; they said,
+&ldquo;that we, who are Tuscans by birth, should remain any more in
+poverty and exile. And take heed also to thyself and thine own
+kingdom if thou permit this new fashion of driving forth kings to
+go unpunished. For surely there is that in freedom which men
+greatly desire, and if they that be kings defend not their dignity
+as stoutly as others seek to overthrow it, then shall the highest
+be made even as the lowest, and there shall be an end of kingship,
+than which there is nothing more honorable under heaven.&rdquo;
+With these words they persuaded King Porsenna, who judging it well
+for the Etrurians that there should be a king at Rome, and that
+king an Etrurian by birth, gathered together a great army and came
+up against Rome. But when men heard of his coming, so mighty a city
+was Clusium in those days, and so great the fame of King Porsenna,
+there was such fear as had never been before. Nevertheless they
+were steadfastly purposed to hold out. And first all that were in
+the country fled into the city, and round about the city they set
+guards to keep it, part thereof being defended by walls, and part,
+for so it seemed, being made safe by the river. But here a great
+peril had well-nigh overtaken the city; for there was a wooden
+bridge on the river by which the enemy had crossed but for the
+courage of a certain Horatius Cocles. The matter fell out in this
+wise.</p>
+<p>There was a certain hill which men called Janiculum on the side
+of the river, and this hill King Porsenna took by a sudden attack.
+Which when Horatius saw (for he chanced to have been set to guard
+the bridge, and saw also how the enemy were running at full speed
+to the place, and how the Romans were fleeing in confusion and
+threw away their arms as they ran), he cried with a loud voice,
+&ldquo;Men of Rome, it is to no purpose that ye thus leave your
+post and flee, for if ye leave this bridge behind you for men to
+pass over, ye shall soon find that ye have more enemies in your
+city than in Janiculum. Do ye therefore break it down with axe and
+fire as best ye can. In the meanwhile I, so far as one man may do,
+will stay the enemy.&rdquo; And as he spake he ran forward to the
+farther end of the bridge and made ready to keep the way against
+the enemy. Nevertheless there stood two with him, Lartius and
+Herminius by name, men of noble birth both of them and of great
+renown in arms. So these three for a while stayed the first onset
+of the enemy; and the men of Rome meanwhile brake down the bridge.
+And when there was but a small part remaining, and they that brake
+it down called to the three that they should come back, Horatius
+bade Lartius and Herminius return, but he himself remained on the
+farther side, turning his eyes full of wrath in threatening fashion
+on the princes of the Etrurians, and crying, &ldquo;Dare ye now to
+fight with me? or why are ye thus come at the bidding of your
+master, King Porsenna, to rob others of the freedom that ye care
+not to have for yourselves?&rdquo; For a while they delayed,
+looking each man to his neighbor, who should first deal with this
+champion of the Romans. Then, for very shame, they all ran forward,
+and raising a great shout, threw their javelins at him. These all
+he took upon his shield, nor stood the less firmly in his place on
+the bridge, from which when they would have thrust him by force, of
+a sudden the men of Rome raised a great shout, for the bridge was
+now altogether broken down, and fell with a great crash into the
+river. And as the enemy stayed a while for fear, Horatius turned
+him to the river and said, &ldquo;O Father Tiber, I beseech thee
+this day with all reverence that thou kindly receive this soldier
+and his arms.&rdquo; And as he spake he leapt with all his arms
+into the river and swam across to his own people, and though many
+javelins of the enemy fell about him, he was not one whit hurt. Nor
+did such valor fail to receive due honor from the city. For the
+citizens set up a statue of Horatius in the market-place; and they
+gave him of the public land so much as he could plough about in one
+day. Also there was this honor paid him, that each citizen took
+somewhat of his own store and gave it to him, for food was scarce
+in the city by reason of the siege.</p>
+<h3><a id="Cincinnatus" name="Cincinnatus">How Cincinnatus Saved
+Rome</a></h3>
+<p class="rgt"><em>Adapted by Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>It came to pass that the &AElig;quians brake the treaty of peace
+which they had made with Rome, and, taking one Gracchus
+Cl&oelig;lius for their leader, marched into the land of Tusculum;
+and when they had plundered the country thereabouts, and had
+gathered together much booty, they pitched their camp on Mount
+&AElig;gidus. To them the Romans sent three ambassadors, who should
+complain of the wrong done, and seek redress. But when they would
+have fulfilled their errand, Gracchus the &AElig;quian spake,
+saying, &ldquo;If ye have any message from the Senate of Rome, tell
+it to this oak, for I have other business to do;&rdquo; for it
+chanced that there was a great oak that stood hard by, and made a
+shadow over the general&rsquo;s tent. Then one of the ambassadors,
+as he turned to depart, made reply, &ldquo;Yes, let this sacred oak
+and all the gods that are in heaven hear how ye have wrongfully
+broken the treaty of peace; and let them that hear help us also in
+the day of battle, when we shall avenge on you the laws both of
+gods and of men that ye have set at nought.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>When the ambassadors had returned to Rome the Senate commanded
+that there should be levied two armies; and that Minucius the
+Consul should march with the one against the &AElig;quians on Mount
+&AElig;gidus, and that the other should hinder the enemy from their
+plundering. This levying the tribunes of the Commons sought to
+hinder; and perchance had done so, but there also came well-nigh to
+the walls of the city a great host of the Sabines plundering all
+the country. Thereupon the people willingly offered themselves, and
+there were levied forthwith two great armies. Nevertheless when the
+Consul Minucius had marched to Mount &AElig;gidus, and had pitched
+his camp not far from the &AElig;quians, he did nought for fear of
+the enemy, but kept himself within his entrenchments. And when the
+enemy perceived that he was afraid, growing the bolder for his lack
+of courage, they drew lines about him, keeping him in on every
+side. Yet before that he was altogether shut up there escaped from
+his camp five horsemen, that bare tidings to Rome how that the
+Consul, together with his army, was besieged. The people were
+sorely dismayed to hear such tidings; nor, when they cast about for
+help, saw they any man that might be sufficient for such peril,
+save only Cincinnatus. By common consent, therefore, he was made
+Dictator for six months, a thing that may well be noted by those
+who hold that nothing is to be accounted of in comparison of
+riches, and that no man may win great honor or show forth singular
+virtue unless he be well furnished with wealth. For here in this
+great peril of the Roman people there was no hope of safety but in
+one who was cultivating with his own hand a little plot of scarcely
+three acres of ground. For when the messengers of the people came
+to him they found him ploughing, or, as some say, digging a ditch.
+When they had greeted each the other, the messengers said,
+&ldquo;May the Gods prosper this thing to the Roman people and to
+thee. Put on thy robe and hear the words of the people.&rdquo; Then
+said Cincinnatus, being not a little astonished, &ldquo;Is all
+well?&rdquo; and at the same time he called to his wife Racilia
+that she should bring forth his robe from the cottage. So she
+brought it forth, and the man wiped from him the dust and the
+sweat, and clad himself in his robe, and stood before the
+messengers. These said to him, &ldquo;The people of Rome make thee
+Dictator, and bid thee come forthwith to the city.&rdquo; And at
+the same time they told how the Consul and his army were besieged
+by the &AElig;quians. So Cincinnatus departed to Rome; and when he
+came to the other side of the Tiber there met him first his three
+sons, and next many of his kinsfolk and friends, and after them a
+numerous company of the nobles. These all conducted him to his
+house, the lictors, four and twenty in number, marching before him.
+There was also assembled a very great concourse of the people,
+fearing much how the Dictator might deal with them, for they knew
+what manner of man he was, and that there was no limit to his
+power, nor any appeal from him.</p>
+<p>The next day before dawn the Dictator came into the
+market-place, and appointed one Lucius Tarquinius to be Master of
+the Horse. This Tarquinius was held by common consent to excel all
+other men in exercises of war; only, though, being a noble by
+birth, he should have been among the horsemen, he had served, for
+lack of means, as a foot soldier. This done he called an assembly
+of the people and commanded that all the shops in the city should
+be shut; that no man should concern himself with any private
+business, but all that were of an age to go to the war should be
+present before sunset in the Field of Mars, each man having with
+him provisions of cooked food for five days, and twelve stakes. As
+for them that were past the age, they should prepare the food while
+the young men made ready their arms and sought for the stakes.
+These last they took as they found them, no man hindering them; and
+when the time appointed by the Dictator was come, all were
+assembled, ready, as occasion might serve, either to march or to
+give battle. Forthwith they set out, the Dictator leading the foot
+soldiers by their legions, and Tarquinius the horsemen, and each
+bidding them that followed make all haste. &ldquo;We must needs
+come,&rdquo; they said, &ldquo;to our journey&rsquo;s end while it
+is yet night. Remember that the Consul and his army have been
+besieged now for three days, and that no man knows what a day or a
+night may bring forth.&rdquo; The soldiers themselves also were
+zealous to obey, crying out to the standard-bearers that they
+should quicken their steps, and to their fellows that they should
+not lag behind. Thus they came at midnight to Mount &AElig;gidus,
+and when they perceived that the enemy was at hand they halted the
+standards. Then the Dictator rode forward to see, so far as the
+darkness would suffer him, how great was the camp of the
+&AElig;quians and after what fashion it was pitched. This done he
+commanded that the baggage should be gathered together into a heap,
+and that the soldiers should stand every man in his own place.
+After this he compassed about the whole army of the enemy with his
+own army, and commanded that at a set signal every man should
+shout, and when they had shouted should dig a trench and set up
+therein the stakes. This the soldiers did, and the noise of the
+shouting passed over the camp of the enemy and came into the city,
+causing therein great joy, even as it caused great fear in the
+camp. For the Romans cried, &ldquo;These be our countrymen, and
+they bring us help.&rdquo; Then said the Consul, &ldquo;We must
+make no delay. By that shout is signified, not that they are come
+only, but that they are already dealing with the enemy. Doubtless
+the camp of the &AElig;quians is even now assailed from without.
+Take ye your arms and follow me.&rdquo; So the legion went forth,
+it being yet night, to the battle, and as they went they shouted,
+that the Dictator might be aware. Now the &AElig;quians had set
+themselves to hinder the making of a ditch and rampart which should
+shut them in; but when the Romans from the camp fell upon them,
+fearing lest these should make their way through the midst of their
+camp, they left them that were with Cincinnatus to finish their
+entrenching, and fought with the Consul. And when it was now light,
+lo! they were already shut in, and the Romans, having finished
+their entrenching, began to trouble them. And when the
+&AElig;quians perceived that the battle was now on either side of
+them, they could withstand no longer, but sent ambassadors praying
+for peace, and saying, &ldquo;Ye have prevailed; slay us not, but
+rather permit us to depart, leaving our arms behind us.&rdquo; Then
+said the Dictator, &ldquo;I care not to have the blood of the
+&AElig;quians. Ye may depart, but ye shall depart passing under the
+yoke, that ye may thus acknowledge to all men that ye are indeed
+vanquished.&rdquo; Now the yoke is thus made. There are set up in
+the ground two spears, and over them is bound by ropes a third
+spear. So the &AElig;quians passed under the yoke.</p>
+<p>In the camp of the enemy there was found abundance of spoil.
+This the Dictator gave wholly to his own soldiers. &ldquo;Ye were
+well-nigh a spoil to the enemy,&rdquo; said he to the army of the
+Consul, &ldquo;therefore ye shall have no share in the spoiling of
+them. As for thee, Minucius, be thou a lieutenant only till thou
+hast learnt how to bear thyself as a consul.&rdquo; Meanwhile at
+Rome there was held a meeting of the Senate, at which it was
+commanded that Cincinnatus should enter the city in triumph, his
+soldiers following him in order of march. Before his chariot there
+were led the generals of the enemy; also the standards were carried
+in the front; and after these came the army, every man laden with
+spoil. That day there was great rejoicing in the city, every man
+setting forth a banquet before his doors in the street.</p>
+<p>After this, Virginius, that had borne false witness against
+C&aelig;so, was found guilty of perjury, and went into exile. And
+when Cincinnatus saw that justice had been done to this evil-doer,
+he resigned his dictatorship, having held it for sixteen days
+only.</p>
+<h3><a id="Virginia" name="Virginia">The Story of Virginia</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>Adapted by Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>It was agreed between the nobles and the commons that, to make
+an end of disputing about the laws, ambassadors should be sent into
+Greece, and especially to Athens (which city and its lawgiver,
+Solon, were held in high repute in those days), to learn what
+manner of laws and customs they had, and to bring back a report of
+them. And when the ambassadors had brought back their report, it
+seemed good to the people that in the following year there should
+be appointed neither consuls nor any other magistrate, but
+decemvirs only; that is to say, ten men, who should set in order
+the laws of Rome. Thus it came to pass in the ninety and first year
+from the driving out of the kings, that decemvirs were appointed in
+the stead of consuls, Appius Claudius being the chief of the
+ten.</p>
+<p>For a while these pleased the people well, doing justice equally
+between man and man. And the custom was that each day one of the
+ten sat as judge with the twelve lictors about him, the nine others
+sitting with one minister only. Also they busied themselves with
+the ordering of the laws; and at last set forth ten tables on which
+these were written. At the same time they called the people
+together to an assembly, and spake to them thus: &ldquo;The Gods
+grant that this undertaking may turn to the credit of the state,
+and of you, and of your children. Go, therefore, and read these
+laws which we have set forth; for though we have done what ten men
+could do to provide laws that should be just to all, whether they
+be high or low, yet the understandings of many men may yet change
+many things for the better. Consider therefore all these matters in
+your own minds, and debate them among yourselves. For we will that
+the Roman people should be bound by such laws only as they shall
+have agreed together to establish.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The ten tables were therefore set forth, and when these had been
+sufficiently considered, and such corrections made therein as
+seemed good, a regular assembly of the people was called, and the
+laws were duly established. But now there was spread abroad a
+report that two tables were yet wanting, and that when these should
+have been added the whole would be complete; and thence there arose
+a desire that the Ten should be appointed to hold office a second
+year. This indeed was done; but Appius Claudius so ordered matters
+that there were elected together with him none of the chief men of
+the state, but only such as were of an inferior condition and
+fortune.</p>
+<p>After this the Ten began more and more to set aside all law and
+right. Thus whereas at the first one only on each day was followed
+by the twelve lictors, each of the Ten came daily into the
+market-place so attended, and whereas before the lictors carried
+bundles of rods only, now there was bound up with the rods an axe;
+whereby was signified the power of life and death. Their actions
+also agreed with this show, for they and their ministers plundered
+the goods and chattels of the people. Some also they scourged, and
+some they beheaded. And when they had so put a man to death, they
+would divide his substance among those that waited upon them to do
+their pleasure.</p>
+<p>Among their misdeeds two were especially notable. There was a
+certain Sicinius in the host, a man of singular strength and
+courage, who took it ill that the Ten should thus set themselves
+above all law, and was wont to say to his comrades that the commons
+should depart from the city as they had done in time past, or
+should at the least make them tribunes to be their champions as of
+old. This Sicinius the Ten sent on before the army, there being
+then war with the Sabines, to search out a place for a camp; and
+with him they sent certain others, bidding them slay him when they
+should have come to some convenient place. This they did, but not
+without suffering much loss; for the man fought for his life and
+defended himself, slaying many of his enemies. Then they that
+escaped ran into the camp, saying that Sicinius had fallen into an
+ambuscade, and had died along with certain others of the soldiers.
+At the first, indeed, this story was believed; but afterward, when,
+by permission of the Ten, there went some to bury the dead, they
+found that none of the dead bodies had been spoiled, and that
+Sicinius lay with his arms in the midst, the others having their
+faces toward him; also that there was no dead body of an enemy in
+the place, nor any track as of them that had gone from the place;
+for which reasons they brought back tidings that Sicinius had
+certainly been slain by his own comrades. At this there was great
+wrath in the camp; and the soldiers were ready to carry the body of
+Sicinius to Rome, but that the Ten made a military funeral for him
+at the public cost. So they buried Sicinius with great lamentation;
+but the Ten were thereafter in very ill repute among the
+soldiers.</p>
+<p>Again, there was a certain centurion, Lucius Virginius by name,
+an upright man and of good credit both at home and abroad. This
+Virginius had a daughter, Virginia, a very fair and virtuous
+maiden, whom he had espoused to a certain Icilius that had once
+been a tribune of the commons. On this maiden Appius Claudius, the
+chief of the Ten, sought to lay hands, and for this end gave
+commandment to one Marcus Claudius, who was one of the clients of
+his house, that he should claim the girl for a slave. On the morrow
+therefore, as Virginia passed across the market-place, being on her
+way to school (for the schools in those days were held in the
+market-place), this Claudius seized her, affirming that she was
+born of a woman that was a slave, and was therefore by right a
+slave herself. The maiden standing still for fear, the nurse that
+attended her set up a great cry and called the citizens to help.
+Straightway there was a great concourse, for many knew the
+maiden&rsquo;s father Virginius, and Icilius to whom she was
+betrothed. Then said Claudius, seeing that he could not take her by
+force, &ldquo;There is no need of tumult or of gathering a crowd. I
+would proceed by law, not by force.&rdquo; Thereupon he summoned
+the girl before the judge. When they came to the judgment-seat of
+Appius the man told a tale that had already been agreed upon
+between the two. &ldquo;This girl,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;was born
+in my house, and was thence secretly taken to the house of
+Virginius, and passed off on the man as his daughter. Of this I
+will bring proof sufficient, such as will convince Virginius
+himself, who doubtless has received the chief wrong in this matter.
+But in the meanwhile it is reasonable that the slave should remain
+in the house of her master.&rdquo; To this the friends of the girl
+made answer, &ldquo;Virginius is absent on the service of the
+state, and will be here within the space of two days, if tidings of
+this matter be sent to him. Now it is manifestly wrong that
+judgment concerning a man&rsquo;s children should be given while he
+is himself absent. Let the cause, therefore, be postponed till he
+come. Meanwhile let the maiden have her freedom, according to the
+law which Appius and his fellows have themselves
+established.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Appius gave sentence in these words: &ldquo;That I am a favorer
+of freedom is manifest from this law of which ye make mention. Yet
+this law must be observed in all cases and without respect of
+persons; and as to this girl, there is none but her father only to
+whom her owner may yield the custody of her. Let her father
+therefore be sent for; but in the meanwhile Claudius must have
+custody of her, as is his right, only giving security that he will
+produce her on the morrow.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At this decree, so manifestly unrighteous was it, there was much
+murmuring, yet none dared to oppose it, till Numitorius, the
+girl&rsquo;s uncle, and Icilius came forth from the crowd. The
+lictor cried, &ldquo;Sentence has been given,&rdquo; and bade
+Icilius give place. Then Icilius turned to Appius, saying,
+&ldquo;Appius, thou must drive me hence with the sword before thou
+canst have thy will in this matter. This maiden is my espoused
+wife; and verily, though thou call hither all thy lictors and the
+lictors of thy colleagues, she shall not remain in any house save
+the house of her father.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>To this Appius, seeing that the multitude was greatly moved and
+were ready to break forth into open violence, made this reply:
+&ldquo;Icilius cares not for Virginia, but being a lover of
+sedition and tumult, seeks an occasion for strife. Such occasion I
+will not give him to-day. But that he may know that I yield not to
+his insolence, but have regard to the rights of a father, I
+pronounce no sentence. I ask of Marcus Claudius that he will
+concede something of his right, and suffer surety to be given for
+the girl against the morrow. But if on the morrow the father be not
+present here, then I tell Icilius and his fellows that he who is
+the author of this law will not fail to execute it. Neither will I
+call in the lictors of my colleague to put down them that raise a
+tumult. For this my own lictors shall suffice.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So much time being thus gained, it seemed good to the friends of
+the maiden that the son of Numitorius and the brother of Icilius,
+young men both of them and active, should hasten with all speed to
+the camp, and bring Virginius thence as quickly as might be. So the
+two set out, and putting their horses to their full speed, carried
+tidings of the matter to the father. As for Appius, he sat awhile
+on the judgment-seat, waiting for other business to be brought
+before him, for he would not have it seem that he had come for this
+cause only; but finding that there was none, and indeed the people
+were wholly intent on the matter of Virginia, he departed to his
+own house. Thence he sent an epistle to his colleagues that were at
+the camp, saying, &ldquo;Grant no leave of absence to Virginius,
+but keep him in safe custody with you.&rdquo; But this availed
+nothing, for already, before ever the epistle was brought to the
+camp, at the very first watch of the night, Virginius had set
+forth.</p>
+<p>When Virginius was come to the city, it being then early dawn,
+he put on mean apparel, as was the custom with such as were in
+danger of life or liberty, and carried about his daughter, who was
+clad in like manner, praying all that he met to help and succor
+him. &ldquo;Remember,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;that day by day I
+stand fighting for you and for your children against your enemies.
+But what shall this profit you or me if this city being safe,
+nevertheless our children stand in peril of slavery and
+shame?&rdquo; Icilius spake in like manner, and the women (for a
+company of matrons followed Virginia) wept silently, stirring
+greatly the hearts of all that looked upon them. But Appius, so set
+was his heart on evil, heeded none of these things; but so soon as
+he had sat him down on the seat of judgment, and he that claimed
+the girl had said a few words complaining that right had not been
+done to him, he gave his sentence, suffering not Virginius to
+speak. What pretense of reason he gave can scarce be imagined, but
+the sentence (for this only is certain) was that the girl should be
+in the custody of Claudius till the matter should be decided by
+law. But when Claudius came to take the maiden, her friends and all
+the women that bare her company thrust him back. Then said Appius,
+&ldquo;I have sure proof, and this not from the violence only of
+Icilius, but from what is told to me of gatherings by night in the
+city, that there is a purpose in certain men to stir up sedition.
+Knowing this I have come hither with armed men; not to trouble
+quiet citizens, but to punish such as would break the peace of the
+state. Such as be wise, therefore, will keep themselves quiet.
+Lictor, remove this crowd, and make room for the master that he may
+take his slave.&rdquo; These words he thundered forth in great
+anger; and the people, when they heard them, fell back in fear, so
+that the maiden stood without defense. Then Virginius, seeing that
+there were none to help him, said to Appius, &ldquo;I pray thee,
+Appius, if I have said aught that was harsh to thee, that thou wilt
+pardon it, knowing how a father must needs suffer in such a case.
+But now suffer me to inquire somewhat of this woman that is the
+girl&rsquo;s nurse, that I may know what is the truth of the
+matter. For if I have been deceived in the matter, and am not in
+truth father to the girl, I shall be more content.&rdquo; Then,
+Appius giving permission, he led his daughter and her nurse a
+little space aside, to the shops that are by the temple of
+Cloacina, and snatching a knife from a butcher&rsquo;s, said,
+&ldquo;My daughter, there is but this one way that I can make thee
+free,&rdquo; and he drave the knife into her breast. Then he looked
+back to the judgment-seat and cried, &ldquo;With this blood,
+Appius, I devote thee and thy life to perdition.&rdquo; There went
+up a great cry from all that stood there when they saw so dreadful
+a deed, and Appius commanded that they should seize him. But no man
+laid hands on him, for he made a way for himself with the knife
+that he carried in his hand, and they that followed defended him,
+till he came to the gate of the city. Then Icilius and Numitorius
+took up the dead body of the maiden and showed it to the people,
+saying much of the wickedness of him who had driven a father to do
+such a deed, and much also of the liberty which had been taken from
+them, and which, if they would only use this occasion, they might
+now recover. As for Appius, he cried out to his lictors that they
+should lay hands on Icilius, and when the crowd suffered not the
+lictors to approach, would himself have made a way to him, by the
+help of the young nobles that stood by him. But now the crowd had
+leaders, themselves also nobles, Valerius and Horatius. These said,
+&ldquo;If Appius would deal with Icilius according to law we will
+be securities for him; if he mean to use violence, we are ready to
+meet him.&rdquo; And when the lictor would have laid hands on these
+two the multitude brake his rods to pieces. Then Appius would have
+spoken to the people, but they clamored against him, so that at
+last, losing all courage and fearing for his life, he covered his
+head and fled secretly to his own house.</p>
+<p>Meanwhile Virginius had made his way to the camp, which was now
+on Mount Vecilius, and stirred up the army yet more than he had
+stirred the city. &ldquo;Lay not to my charge,&rdquo; he said,
+&ldquo;that which is in truth the wickedness of Appius; neither
+turn from me as from the murderer of my daughter. Her indeed I
+slew, thinking that death was better than slavery and shame; nor
+indeed had I survived her but that I hoped to avenge her death by
+the help of my comrades.&rdquo; Others also that had come from the
+city persuaded the soldiers; some saying that the power of the Ten
+was overthrown, and others that Appius had gone of his own accord
+into banishment. These words so prevailed with the soldiers that,
+without any bidding from their generals, they took up their arms,
+and, with their standards carried before them, came to Rome and
+pitched their camp on the Aventine.</p>
+<p>Nevertheless, the Ten were still obstinate, affirming that they
+would not resign their authority till they had finished the work
+for which they had been appointed, namely, the drawing up of the
+twelve tables of the laws. And when the army perceived this they
+marched from the Aventine and took up their abode on the Sacred
+Hill, all the commons following them, so that there was not left in
+the city a single man that had ability to move; nor did the women
+and children stay behind, but all, as many as could move, bare them
+company; for Duilius, that had been tribune, said, &ldquo;Unless
+the Senate see the city deserted, they will take no heed of your
+complaints.&rdquo; And indeed, when these perceived what had taken
+place, they were more urgent than before that the Ten should resign
+their office. And these at last consented. &ldquo;Only,&rdquo; said
+they, &ldquo;do not suffer us to perish from the rage of the
+commons. It will be an ill day for the nobles when the people shall
+learn to take vengeance on them.&rdquo; And the Senate so wrought
+that though at the first the commons in their great fury demanded
+that the Ten should be burned alive, yet they were persuaded to
+yield, it being agreed that each man should be judged by the law
+according to his deserts. Appius, therefore, was accused by
+Virginius, and being cast into prison, slew himself before the day
+appointed for the trial. Oppius also, another of the Ten, whom the
+commons hated for his misdeeds next after Appius, was accused and
+died in like manner. As for Claudius, that had claimed Virginia for
+his slave, he was condemned to be banished. And thus at the last,
+the guilty having been punished, the spirit of Virginia had
+rest.</p>
+<h3><a id="Curtius" name="Curtius">The Sacrifice of Marcus
+Curtius</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>Adapted by Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>In the three hundred and ninety-third year after the building of
+the city there was seen suddenly to open in the market-place a
+great gulf of a deepness that no man could measure. And this gulf
+could not be filled up, though all the people brought earth and
+stones and the like to cast into it. But at the last there was sent
+a message from the Gods that the Romans must inquire what was that
+by which more than all things the state was made strong.
+&ldquo;For,&rdquo; said the soothsayer, &ldquo;this thing must be
+dedicated to the Gods in this place if the commonwealth of Rome is
+to stand fast forever.&rdquo; And while they doubted, one Marcus
+Curtius, a youth that had won great renown in war, rebuked them,
+saying, &ldquo;Can ye doubt that Rome hath nothing better than arms
+and valor?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then all the people stood silent; and Curtius, first beholding
+the temples of the immortal Gods that hung over the market-place
+and the Capitol, and afterward stretching forth his hands both to
+heaven above and to this gulf that opened its mouth to the very
+pit, as it were, of hell, devoted himself for his country; and
+so&mdash;being clothed in armor and with arms in his hand, and
+having his horse arrayed as sumptuously as might be&mdash;he leapt
+into the gulf; and the multitude, both of men and women, threw in
+gifts and offerings of the fruits of the earth, and afterward the
+earth closed together.</p>
+<h2><a id="Ovid" name="Ovid">STORIES FROM OVID</a></h2>
+<h3><a id="Pitcher" name="Pitcher">The Miraculous Pitcher</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Nathaniel Hawthorne</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>One evening, in times long ago, old Philemon and his old wife
+Baucis sat at their cottage door, enjoying the calm and beautiful
+sunset. They had already eaten their frugal supper, and intended
+now to spend a quiet hour or two before bedtime. So they talked
+together about their garden, and their cow, and their bees, and
+their grapevine, which clambered over the cottage wall, and on
+which the grapes were beginning to turn purple. But the rude shouts
+of children, and the fierce barking of dogs, in the village near at
+hand, grew louder and louder, until, at last, it was hardly
+possible for Baucis and Philemon to hear each other speak.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah, wife,&rdquo; cried Philemon, &ldquo;I fear some poor
+traveler is seeking hospitality among our neighbors yonder, and,
+instead of giving him food and lodging, they have set their dogs at
+him, as their custom is!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Well-a-day!&rdquo; answered old Baucis, &ldquo;I do wish
+our neighbors felt a little more kindness for their
+fellow-creatures. And only think of bringing up their children in
+this naughty way, and patting them on the head when they fling
+stones at strangers!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Those children will never come to any good,&rdquo; said
+Philemon, shaking his white head. &ldquo;To tell you the truth,
+wife, I should not wonder if some terrible thing were to happen to
+all the people in the village, unless they mend their manners. But,
+as for you and me, so long as Providence affords us a crust of
+bread, let us be ready to give half to any poor, homeless stranger
+that may come along and need it.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s right, husband!&rdquo; said Baucis.
+&ldquo;So we will!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>These old folks, you must know, were quite poor, and had to work
+pretty hard for a living. Old Philemon toiled diligently in his
+garden, while Baucis was always busy with her distaff, or making a
+little butter and cheese with their cow&rsquo;s milk, or doing one
+thing and another about the cottage. Their food was seldom anything
+but bread, milk, and vegetables, with sometimes a portion of honey
+from their beehive, and now and then a bunch of grapes, that had
+ripened against the cottage wall. But they were two of the kindest
+old people in the world, and would cheerfully have gone without
+their dinners, any day, rather than refuse a slice of their brown
+loaf, a cup of new milk, and a spoonful of honey, to the weary
+traveler who might pause before their door. They felt as if such
+guests had a sort of holiness, and that they ought, therefore, to
+treat them better and more bountifully than their own selves.</p>
+<p>Their cottage stood on a rising ground, at some short distance
+from a village, which lay in a hollow valley, that was about half a
+mile in breadth. This valley, in past ages, when the world was new,
+had probably been the bed of a lake. There fishes had glided to and
+fro in the depths, and water-weeds had grown along the margin, and
+trees and hills had seen their reflected images in the broad and
+peaceful mirror. But, as the waters subsided, men had cultivated
+the soil, and built houses on it, so that it was now a fertile
+spot, and bore no traces of the ancient lake, except a very small
+brook, which meandered through the midst of the village, and
+supplied the inhabitants with water. The valley had been dry land
+so long that oaks had sprung up, and grown great and high, and
+perished with old age, and been succeeded by others, as tall and
+stately as the first. Never was there a prettier or more fruitful
+valley. The very sight of the plenty around them should have made
+the inhabitants kind and gentle, and ready to show their gratitude
+to Providence by doing good to their fellow-creatures.</p>
+<p>But, we are sorry to say, the people of this lovely village were
+not worthy to dwell in a spot on which Heaven had smiled so
+beneficently. They were a very selfish and hard-hearted people, and
+had no pity for the poor, nor sympathy with the homeless. They
+would only have laughed, had anybody told them that human beings
+owe a debt of love to one another, because there is no other method
+of paying the debt of love and care which all of us owe to
+Providence. You will hardly believe what I am going to tell you.
+These naughty people taught their children to be no better than
+themselves, and used to clap their hands, by way of encouragement,
+when they saw the little boys and girls run after some poor
+stranger, shouting at his heels, and pelting him with stones. They
+kept large and fierce dogs, and whenever a traveler ventured to
+show himself in the village street, this pack of disagreeable curs
+scampered to meet him, barking, snarling, and showing their teeth.
+Then they would seize him by his leg, or by his clothes, just as it
+happened; and if he were ragged when he came, he was generally a
+pitiable object before he had time to run away. This was a very
+terrible thing to poor travelers, as you may suppose, especially
+when they chanced to be sick, or feeble, or lame, or old. Such
+persons (if they once knew how badly these unkind people, and their
+unkind children and curs, were in the habit of behaving) would go
+miles and miles out of their way, rather than try to pass through
+the village again.</p>
+<p>What made the matter seem worse, if possible, was that when rich
+persons came in their chariots, or riding on beautiful horses, with
+their servants in rich liveries attending on them, nobody could be
+more civil and obsequious than the inhabitants of the village. They
+would take off their hats, and make the humblest bows you ever saw.
+If the children were rude, they were pretty certain to get their
+ears boxed; and as for the dogs, if a single cur in the pack
+presumed to yelp, his master instantly beat him with a club, and
+tied him up without any supper. This would have been all very well,
+only it proved that the villagers cared much about the money that a
+stranger had in his pocket, and nothing whatever for the human
+soul, which lives equally in the beggar and the prince.</p>
+<p>So now you can understand why old Philemon spoke so sorrowfully,
+when he heard the shouts of the children and the barking of the
+dogs, at the farther extremity of the village street. There was a
+confused din, which lasted a good while, and seemed to pass quite
+through the breadth of the valley.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I never heard the dogs so loud!&rdquo; observed the good
+old man.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nor the children so rude!&rdquo; answered his good old
+wife.</p>
+<p>They sat shaking their heads, one to the other, while the noise
+came nearer and nearer; until, at the foot of the little eminence
+on which their cottage stood, they saw two travelers approaching on
+foot. Close behind them came the fierce dogs, snarling at their
+very heels. A little farther off ran a crowd of children, who sent
+up shrill cries, and flung stones at the two strangers, with all
+their might. Once or twice, the younger of the two men (he was a
+slender and very active figure) turned about and drove back the
+dogs with a staff which he carried in his hand. His companion, who
+was a very tall person, walked calmly along as if disdaining to
+notice either the naughty children or the pack of curs, whose
+manners the children seemed to imitate.</p>
+<p>Both of the travelers were very humbly clad, and looked as if
+they might not have money enough in their pockets to pay for a
+night&rsquo;s lodging. And this, I am afraid, was the reason why
+the villagers had allowed their children and dogs to treat them so
+rudely.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Come, wife,&rdquo; said Philemon to Baucis, &ldquo;let us
+go and meet these poor people. No doubt, they feel almost too
+heavy-hearted to climb the hill.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Go you and meet them,&rdquo; answered Baucis,
+&ldquo;while I make haste within doors, and see whether we can get
+them anything for supper. A comfortable bowl of bread and milk
+would do wonders towards raising their spirits.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Accordingly, she hastened into the cottage. Philemon, on his
+part, went forward, and extended his hand with so hospitable an
+aspect that there was no need of saying what nevertheless he did
+say, in the heartiest tone imaginable,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Welcome, strangers! welcome!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Thank you!&rdquo; replied the younger of the two, in a
+lively kind of way, notwithstanding his weariness and trouble.
+&ldquo;This is quite another greeting than we have met with yonder
+in the village. Pray, why do you live in such a bad
+neighborhood?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; observed old Philemon, with a quiet and benign
+smile, &ldquo;Providence put me here, I hope, among other reasons,
+in order that I may make you what amends I can for the
+inhospitality of my neighbors.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Well said, old father!&rdquo; cried the traveler,
+laughing; &ldquo;and, if the truth must be told, my companion and
+myself need some amends. Those children (the little rascals!) have
+bespattered us finely with their mud-balls; and one of the curs has
+torn my cloak, which was ragged enough already. But I took him
+across the muzzle with my staff; and I think you may have heard him
+yelp, even thus far off.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Philemon was glad to see him in such good spirits; nor, indeed,
+would you have fancied, by the traveler&rsquo;s look and manner,
+that he was weary with a long day&rsquo;s journey, besides being
+disheartened by rough treatment at the end of it. He was dressed in
+rather an odd way, with a sort of cap on his head, the brim of
+which stuck out over both ears. Though it was a summer evening, he
+wore a cloak, which he kept wrapt closely about him, perhaps
+because his under garments were shabby. Philemon perceived, too,
+that he had on a singular pair of shoes; but, as it was now growing
+dusk, and as the old man&rsquo;s eyesight was none the sharpest, he
+could not precisely tell in what the strangeness consisted. One
+thing, certainly, seemed queer. The traveler was so wonderfully
+light and active, that it appeared as if his feet sometimes rose
+from the ground of their own accord, or could only be kept down by
+an effort.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I used to be light-footed, in my youth,&rdquo; said
+Philemon to the traveler. &ldquo;But I always found my feet grow
+heavier towards nightfall.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;There is nothing like a good staff to help one
+along,&rdquo; answered the stranger; &ldquo;and I happen to have an
+excellent one, as you see.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>This staff, in fact, was the oddest-looking staff that Philemon
+had ever beheld. It was made of olive-wood, and had something like
+a little pair of wings near the top. Two snakes, carved in the
+wood, were represented as twining themselves about the staff, and
+were so very skillfully executed that old Philemon (whose eyes, you
+know, were getting rather dim) almost thought them alive, and that
+he could see them wriggling and twisting.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;A curious piece of work, sure enough!&rdquo; said he.
+&ldquo;A staff with wings! It would be an excellent kind of stick
+for a little boy to ride astride of!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>By this time Philemon and his two guests had reached the cottage
+door.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Friends,&rdquo; said the old man, &ldquo;sit down and
+rest yourselves here on this bench. My good wife Baucis has gone to
+see what you can have for supper. We are poor folks; but you shall
+be welcome to whatever we have in the cupboard.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The younger stranger threw himself carelessly on the bench,
+letting his staff fall, as he did so. And here happened something
+rather marvelous, though trifling enough, too. The staff seemed to
+get up from the ground of its own accord, and, spreading its little
+pair of wings, it half hopped, half flew, and leaned itself against
+the wall of the cottage. There it stood quite still, except that
+the snakes continued to wriggle. But, in my private opinion, old
+Philemon&rsquo;s eyesight had been playing him tricks again.</p>
+<p>Before he could ask any questions, the elder stranger drew his
+attention from the wonderful staff, by speaking to him.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Was there not,&rdquo; asked the stranger, in a remarkably
+deep tone of voice, &ldquo;a lake, in very ancient times, covering
+the spot where now stands yonder village?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Not in my day, friend,&rdquo; answered Philemon;
+&ldquo;and yet I am an old man, as you see. There were always the
+fields and meadows, just as they are now, and the old trees, and
+the little stream murmuring through the midst of the valley. My
+father, nor his father before him, ever saw it otherwise, so far as
+I know; and doubtless it will still be the same, when old Philemon
+shall be gone and forgotten!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That is more than can be safely foretold,&rdquo; observed
+the stranger; and there was something very stern in his deep voice.
+He shook his head, too, so that his dark and heavy curls were
+shaken with the movement. &ldquo;Since the inhabitants of yonder
+village have forgotten the affections and sympathies of their
+nature, it were better that the lake should be rippling over their
+dwellings again!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The traveler looked so stern that Philemon was really almost
+frightened; the more so, that, at his frown, the twilight seemed
+suddenly to grow darker, and that, when he shook his head, there
+was a roll as of thunder in the air.</p>
+<p>But, in a moment afterwards, the stranger&rsquo;s face became so
+kindly and mild that the old man quite forgot his terror.
+Nevertheless, he could not help feeling that this elder traveler
+must be no ordinary personage, although he happened now to be
+attired so humbly and to be journeying on foot. Not that Philemon
+fancied him a prince in disguise, or any character of that sort;
+but rather some exceedingly wise man, who went about the world in
+this poor garb, despising wealth and all worldly objects, and
+seeking everywhere to add a mite to his wisdom. This idea appeared
+the more probable, because, when Philemon raised his eyes to the
+stranger&rsquo;s face, he seemed to see more thought there, in one
+look, than he could have studied out in a lifetime.</p>
+<p>While Baucis was getting the supper, the travelers both began to
+talk very sociably with Philemon. The younger, indeed, was
+extremely loquacious, and made such shrewd and witty remarks that
+the good old man continually burst out a-laughing, and pronounced
+him the merriest fellow whom he had seen for many a day.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Pray, my young friend,&rdquo; said he, as they grew
+familiar together, &ldquo;what may I call your name?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Why, I am very nimble, as you see,&rdquo; answered the
+traveler. &ldquo;So, if you call me Quicksilver, the name will fit
+tolerably well.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Quicksilver? Quicksilver?&rdquo; repeated Philemon,
+looking in the traveler&rsquo;s face, to see if he were making fun
+of him. &ldquo;It is a very odd name! And your companion there? Has
+he as strange a one?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You must ask the thunder to tell it you!&rdquo; replied
+Quicksilver, putting on a mysterious look. &ldquo;No other voice is
+loud enough.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>This remark, whether it were serious or in jest, might have
+caused Philemon to conceive a very great awe of the elder stranger,
+if, on venturing to gaze at him, he had not beheld so much
+beneficence in his visage. But undoubtedly here was the grandest
+figure that ever sat so humbly beside a cottage door. When the
+stranger conversed, it was with gravity, and in such a way that
+Philemon felt irresistibly moved to tell him everything which he
+had most at heart. This is always the feeling that people have when
+they meet with any one wise enough to comprehend all their good and
+evil, and to despise not a tittle of it.</p>
+<p>But Philemon, simple and kind-hearted old man that he was, had
+not many secrets to disclose. He talked, however, quite
+garrulously, about the events of his past life, in the whole course
+of which he had never been a score of miles from this very spot.
+His wife Baucis and himself had dwelt in the cottage from their
+youth upward, earning their bread by honest labor, always poor, but
+still contented. He told what excellent butter and cheese Baucis
+made, and how nice were the vegetables which he raised in his
+garden. He said, too, that, because they loved one another so very
+much, it was the wish of both that death might not separate them,
+but that they should die, as they had lived, together.</p>
+<p>As the stranger listened, a smile beamed over his countenance,
+and made its expression as sweet as it was grand.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You are a good old man,&rdquo; said he to Philemon,
+&ldquo;and you have a good old wife to be your helpmeet. It is fit
+that your wish be granted.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And it seemed to Philemon, just then, as if the sunset clouds
+threw up a bright flash from the west, and kindled a sudden light
+in the sky.</p>
+<p>Baucis had now got supper ready, and, coming to the door, began
+to make apologies for the poor fare which she was forced to set
+before her guests.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Had we known you were coming,&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;my
+good man and myself would have gone without a morsel, rather than
+you should lack a better supper. But I took the most part of
+to-day&rsquo;s milk to make cheese; and our last loaf is already
+half eaten. Ah me! I never feel the sorrow of being poor, save when
+a poor traveler knocks at our door.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;All will be very well; do not trouble yourself, my good
+dame,&rdquo; replied the elder stranger kindly. &ldquo;An honest,
+hearty welcome to a guest works miracles with the fare, and is
+capable of turning the coarsest food to nectar and
+ambrosia.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;A welcome you shall have,&rdquo; cried Baucis, &ldquo;and
+likewise a little honey that we happen to have left, and a bunch of
+purple grapes besides.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Why, Mother Baucis, it is a feast!&rdquo; exclaimed
+Quicksilver, laughing; &ldquo;an absolute feast! and you shall see
+how bravely I will play my part at it! I think I never felt
+hungrier in my life.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Mercy on us!&rdquo; whispered Baucis to her husband.
+&ldquo;If the young man has such a terrible appetite, I am afraid
+there will not be half enough supper!&rdquo;</p>
+<div class="figure"><a href="images/big_100.jpg"><img src=
+"images/small_100.jpg" alt=
+"A man pours milk into an overflowing bowl." id="img02" name=
+"img02" width="360" height="568" /></a>
+<p>&ldquo;I AM AFRAID THERE WILL NOT BE HALF ENOUGH
+SUPPER&rdquo;</p>
+</div>
+<p>They all went into the cottage.</p>
+<p>And now, my little auditors, shall I tell you something that
+will make you open your eyes very wide? It is really one of the
+oddest circumstances in the whole story. Quicksilver&rsquo;s staff,
+you recollect, had set itself up against the wall of the cottage.
+Well, when its master entered the door, leaving this wonderful
+staff behind, what should it do but immediately spread its little
+wings, and go hopping and fluttering up the doorsteps! Tap, tap,
+went the staff, on the kitchen floor; nor did it rest until it had
+stood itself on end, with the greatest gravity and decorum, beside
+Quicksilver&rsquo;s chair. Old Philemon, however, as well as his
+wife, was so taken up in attending to their guests that no notice
+was given to what the staff had been about.</p>
+<p>As Baucis had said, there was but a scanty supper for two hungry
+travelers. In the middle of the table was the remnant of a brown
+loaf, with a piece of cheese on one side of it, and a dish of
+honeycomb on the other. There was a pretty good bunch of grapes for
+each of the guests. A moderately sized earthen pitcher, nearly full
+of milk, stood at a corner of the board; and when Baucis had filled
+two bowls, and set them before the strangers, only a little milk
+remained in the bottom of the pitcher. Alas! it is a very sad
+business, when a bountiful heart finds itself pinched and squeezed
+among narrow circumstances. Poor Baucis kept wishing that she might
+starve for a week to come, if it were possible, by so doing, to
+provide these hungry folks a more plentiful supper.</p>
+<p>And, since the supper was so exceedingly small, she could not
+help wishing that their appetites had not been quite so large. Why,
+at their very first sitting down, the travelers both drank off all
+the milk in their two bowls, at a draught.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;A little more milk, kind Mother Baucis, if you
+please,&rdquo; said Quicksilver. &ldquo;The day has been hot, and I
+am very much athirst.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Now, my dear people,&rdquo; answered Baucis, in great
+confusion, &ldquo;I am so sorry and ashamed! But the truth is,
+there is hardly a drop more milk in the pitcher. O husband,
+husband, why didn&rsquo;t we go without our supper?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Why, it appears to me,&rdquo; cried Quicksilver, starting
+up from table and taking the pitcher by the handle, &ldquo;it
+really appears to me that matters are not quite so bad as you
+represent them. Here is certainly more milk in the
+pitcher.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, and to the vast astonishment of Baucis, he proceeded
+to fill, not only his own bowl, but his companion&rsquo;s likewise,
+from the pitcher that was supposed to be almost empty. The good
+woman could scarcely believe her eyes. She had certainly poured out
+nearly all the milk, and had peeped in afterwards, and seen the
+bottom of the pitcher, as she set it down upon the table.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;But I am old,&rdquo; thought Baucis to herself,
+&ldquo;and apt to be forgetful. I suppose I must have made a
+mistake. At all events, the pitcher cannot help being empty now,
+after filling the bowls twice over.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What excellent milk!&rdquo; observed Quicksilver, after
+quaffing the contents of the second bowl. &ldquo;Excuse me, my kind
+hostess, but I must really ask you for a little more.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Now Baucis had seen, as plainly as she could see anything, that
+Quicksilver had turned the pitcher upside down, and consequently
+had poured out every drop of milk, in filling the last bowl. Of
+course, there could not possibly be any left. However, in order to
+let him know precisely how the case was, she lifted the pitcher,
+and made a gesture as if pouring milk into Quicksilver&rsquo;s
+bowl, but without the remotest idea that any milk would stream
+forth. What was her surprise, therefore, when such an abundant
+cascade fell bubbling into the bowl, that it was immediately filled
+to the brim, and overflowed upon the table! The two snakes that
+were twisted about Quicksilver&rsquo;s staff (but neither Baucis
+nor Philemon happened to observe this circumstance) stretched out
+their heads, and began to lap up the spilt milk.</p>
+<p>And then what a delicious fragrance the milk had! It seemed as
+if Philemon&rsquo;s only cow must have pastured, that day, on the
+richest herbage that could be found anywhere in the world. I only
+wish that each of you, my beloved little souls, could have a bowl
+of such nice milk, at supper-time!</p>
+<p>&ldquo;And now a slice of your brown loaf, Mother Baucis,&rdquo;
+said Quicksilver, &ldquo;and a little of that honey!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Baucis cut him a slice accordingly; and though the loaf, when
+she and her husband ate of it, had been rather too dry and crusty
+to be palatable, it was now as light and moist as if but a few
+hours out of the oven. Tasting a crumb, which had fallen on the
+table, she found it more delicious than bread ever was before, and
+could hardly believe that it was a loaf of her own kneading and
+baking. Yet, what other loaf could it possibly be?</p>
+<p>But oh, the honey! I may just as well let it alone, without
+trying to describe how exquisitely it smelt and looked. Its color
+was that of the purest and most transparent gold; and it had the
+odor of a thousand flowers; but of such flowers as never grew in an
+earthly garden, and to seek which the bees must have flown high
+above the clouds. The wonder is, that, after alighting on a
+flower-bed of so delicious fragrance and immortal bloom, they
+should have been content to fly down again to their hive in
+Philemon&rsquo;s garden. Never was such honey tasted, seen, or
+smelt. The perfume floated around the kitchen, and made it so
+delightful, that, had you closed your eyes, you would instantly
+have forgotten the low ceiling and smoky walls, and have fancied
+yourself in an arbor, with celestial honeysuckles creeping over
+it.</p>
+<p>Although good Mother Baucis was a simple old dame, she could not
+but think that there was something rather out of the common way in
+all that had been going on. So, after helping the guests to bread
+and honey, and laying a bunch of grapes by each of their plates,
+she sat down by Philemon, and told him what she had seen, in a
+whisper.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Did you ever hear the like?&rdquo; asked she.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;No, I never did,&rdquo; answered Philemon, with a smile.
+&ldquo;And I rather think, my dear old wife, you have been walking
+about in a sort of a dream. If I had poured out the milk, I should
+have seen through the business at once. There happened to be a
+little more in the pitcher than you thought,&mdash;that is
+all.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah, husband,&rdquo; said Baucis, &ldquo;say what you
+will, these are very uncommon people.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Well, well,&rdquo; replied Philemon, still smiling,
+&ldquo;perhaps they are. They certainly do look as if they had seen
+better days; and I am heartily glad to see them making so
+comfortable a supper.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Each of the guests had now taken his bunch of grapes upon his
+plate. Baucis (who rubbed her eyes, in order to see the more
+clearly) was of opinion that the clusters had grown larger and
+richer, and that each separate grape seemed to be on the point of
+bursting with ripe juice. It was entirely a mystery to her how such
+grapes could ever have been produced from the old stunted vine that
+climbed against the cottage wall.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Very admirable grapes these!&rdquo; observed Quicksilver,
+as he swallowed one after another, without apparently diminishing
+his cluster. &ldquo;Pray, my good host, whence did you gather
+them?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;From my own vine,&rdquo; answered Philemon. &ldquo;You
+may see one of its branches twisting across the window, yonder. But
+wife and I never thought the grapes very fine ones.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I never tasted better,&rdquo; said the guest.
+&ldquo;Another cup of this delicious milk, if you please, and I
+shall then have supped better than a prince.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>This time, old Philemon bestirred himself, and took up the
+pitcher; for he was curious to discover whether there was any
+reality in the marvels which Baucis had whispered to him. He knew
+that his good old wife was incapable of falsehood, and that she was
+seldom mistaken in what she supposed to be true; but this was so
+very singular a case, that he wanted to see into it with his own
+eyes. On taking up the pitcher, therefore, he slyly peeped into it,
+and was fully satisfied that it contained not so much as a single
+drop. All at once, however, he beheld a little white fountain,
+which gushed up from the bottom of the pitcher, and speedily filled
+it to the brim with foaming and deliciously fragrant milk. It was
+lucky that Philemon, in his surprise, did not drop the miraculous
+pitcher from his hand.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Who are ye, wonder-working strangers!&rdquo; cried he,
+even more bewildered than his wife had been.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Your guests, my good Philemon, and your friends,&rdquo;
+replied the elder traveler, in his mild, deep voice, that had
+something at once sweet and awe-inspiring in it. &ldquo;Give me
+likewise a cup of the milk; and may your pitcher never be empty for
+kind Baucis and yourself, any more than for the needy
+wayfarer!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The supper being now over, the strangers requested to be shown
+to their place of repose. The old people would gladly have talked
+with them a little longer, and have expressed the wonder which they
+felt, and their delight at finding the poor and meagre supper prove
+so much better and more abundant than they hoped. But the elder
+traveler had inspired them with such reverence that they dared not
+ask him any questions. And when Philemon drew Quicksilver aside,
+and inquired how under the sun a fountain of milk could have got
+into an old earthen pitcher, this latter personage pointed to his
+staff.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;There is the whole mystery of the affair,&rdquo; quoth
+Quicksilver; &ldquo;and if you can make it out, I&rsquo;ll thank
+you to let me know. I can&rsquo;t tell what to make of my staff. It
+is always playing such odd tricks as this; sometimes getting me a
+supper, and, quite as often, stealing it away. If I had any faith
+in such nonsense, I should say the stick was bewitched!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He said no more, but looked so slyly in their faces, that they
+rather fancied he was laughing at them. The magic staff went
+hopping at his heels, as Quicksilver quitted the room. When left
+alone, the good old couple spent some little time in conversation
+about the events of the evening, and then lay down on the floor,
+and fell fast asleep. They had given up their sleeping-room to the
+guests, and had no other bed for themselves, save these planks,
+which I wish had been as soft as their own hearts.</p>
+<p>The old man and his wife were stirring, betimes, in the morning,
+and the strangers likewise arose with the sun, and made their
+preparations to depart. Philemon hospitably entreated them to
+remain a little longer, until Baucis could milk the cow, and bake a
+cake upon the hearth, and, perhaps, find them a few fresh eggs, for
+breakfast. The guests, however, seemed to think it better to
+accomplish a good part of their journey before the heat of the day
+should come on. They, therefore, persisted in setting out
+immediately, but asked Philemon and Baucis to walk forth with them
+a short distance, and show them the road which they were to
+take.</p>
+<p>So they all four issued from the cottage, chatting together like
+old friends. It was very remarkable, indeed, how familiar the old
+couple insensibly grew with the elder traveler, and how their good
+and simple spirits melted into his, even as two drops of water
+would melt into the illimitable ocean. And as for Quicksilver, with
+his keen, quick, laughing wits, he appeared to discover every
+little thought that but peeped into their minds, before they
+suspected it themselves. They sometimes wished, it is true, that he
+had not been quite so quick-witted, and also that he would fling
+away his staff, which looked so mysteriously mischievous, with the
+snakes always writhing about it. But then, again, Quicksilver
+showed himself so very good-humored, that they would have been
+rejoiced to keep him in their cottage, staff, snakes, and all,
+every day, and the whole day long.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah me! Well-a-day!&rdquo; exclaimed Philemon, when they
+had walked a little way from their door. &ldquo;If our neighbors
+only knew what a blessed thing it is to show hospitality to
+strangers, they would tie up all their dogs, and never allow their
+children to fling another stone.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It is a sin and shame for them to behave so,&mdash;that
+it is!&rdquo; cried good old Baucis vehemently. &ldquo;And I mean
+to go this very day, and tell some of them what naughty people they
+are!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I fear,&rdquo; remarked Quicksilver; slyly smiling,
+&ldquo;that you will find none of them at home.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The elder traveler&rsquo;s brow, just then, assumed such a
+grave, stern, and awful grandeur, yet serene withal, that neither
+Baucis nor Philemon dared to speak a word. They gazed reverently
+into his face, as if they had been gazing at the sky.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;When men do not feel towards the humblest stranger as if
+he were a brother,&rdquo; said the traveler, in tones so deep that
+they sounded like those of an organ, &ldquo;they are unworthy to
+exist on earth, which was created as the abode of a great human
+brotherhood!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;And, by the by, my dear old people,&rdquo; cried
+Quicksilver, with the liveliest look of fun and mischief in his
+eyes, &ldquo;where is this same village that you talk about? On
+which side of us does it lie? Methinks I do not see it
+hereabouts.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Philemon and his wife turned towards the valley, where, at
+sunset, only the day before, they had seen the meadows, the houses,
+the gardens, the clumps of trees, the wide, green-margined street,
+with children playing in it, and all the tokens of business,
+enjoyment, and prosperity. But what was their astonishment! There
+was no longer any appearance of a village! Even the fertile vale,
+in the hollow of which it lay, had ceased to have existence. In its
+stead, they beheld the broad, blue surface of a lake, which filled
+the great basin of the valley from brim to brim, and reflected the
+surrounding hills in its bosom with as tranquil an image as if it
+had been there ever since the creation of the world. For an
+instant, the lake remained perfectly smooth. Then a little breeze
+sprang up, and caused the water to dance, glitter, and sparkle in
+the early sunbeams, and to dash, with a pleasant rippling murmur,
+against the hither shore.</p>
+<p>The lake seemed so strangely familiar, that the old couple were
+greatly perplexed, and felt as if they could only have been
+dreaming about a village having lain there. But, the next moment,
+they remembered the vanished dwellings, and the faces and
+characters of the inhabitants, far too distinctly for a dream. The
+village had been there yesterday, and now was gone!</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Alas!&rdquo; cried these kind-hearted old people,
+&ldquo;what has become of our poor neighbors?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;They no longer exist as men and women,&rdquo; said the
+elder traveler, in his grand and deep voice, while a roll of
+thunder seemed to echo it at a distance. &ldquo;There was neither
+use nor beauty in such a life as theirs; for they never softened or
+sweetened the hard lot of mortality by the exercise of kindly
+affections between man and man. They retained no image of the
+better life in their bosoms; therefore, the lake, that was of old,
+has spread itself forth again, to reflect the sky!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;And as for those foolish people,&rdquo; said Quicksilver,
+with his mischievous smile, &ldquo;they are all transformed to
+fishes. There needed but little change, for they were already a
+scaly set of rascals, and the coldest-blooded beings in existence.
+So, kind Mother Baucis, whenever you or your husband have an
+appetite for a dish of broiled trout, he can throw in a line, and
+pull out half a dozen of your old neighbors!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah,&rdquo; cried Baucis shuddering, &ldquo;I would not,
+for the world, put one of them on the gridiron!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;No,&rdquo; added Philemon, making a wry face, &ldquo;we
+could never relish them!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;As for you, good Philemon,&rdquo; continued the elder
+traveler,&mdash;&ldquo;and you, kind Baucis,&mdash;you, with your
+scanty means, have mingled so much heartfelt hospitality with your
+entertainment of the homeless stranger, that the milk became an
+inexhaustible fount of nectar, and the brown loaf and the honey
+were ambrosia. Thus, the divinities have feasted, at your board,
+off the same viands that supply their banquets on Olympus. You have
+done well, my dear old friends. Wherefore, request whatever favor
+you have most at heart, and it is granted.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Philemon and Baucis looked at one another, and then&mdash;I know
+not which of the two it was who spoke, but that one uttered the
+desire of both their hearts.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Let us live together, while we live, and leave the world
+at the same instant, when we die! For we have always loved one
+another!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Be it so!&rdquo; replied the stranger, with majestic
+kindness. &ldquo;Now, look towards your cottage!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>They did so. But what was their surprise on beholding a tall
+edifice of white marble, with a wide-open portal, occupying the
+spot where their humble residence had so lately stood!</p>
+<p>&ldquo;There is your home,&rdquo; said the stranger,
+beneficently smiling on them both. &ldquo;Exercise your hospitality
+in yonder palace as freely as in the poor hovel to which you
+welcomed us last evening.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The old folks fell on their knees to thank him; but, behold!
+neither he nor Quicksilver was there.</p>
+<p>So Philemon and Baucis took up their residence in the marble
+palace, and spent their time, with vast satisfaction to themselves,
+in making everybody jolly and comfortable who happened to pass that
+way. The milk-pitcher, I must not forget to say, retained its
+marvelous quality of being never empty, when it was desirable to
+have it full. Whenever an honest, good-humored, and free-hearted
+guest took a draught from this pitcher, he invariably found it the
+sweetest and most invigorating fluid that ever ran down his throat.
+But, if a cross and disagreeable curmudgeon happened to sip, he was
+pretty certain to twist his visage into a hard knot, and pronounce
+it a pitcher of sour milk!</p>
+<p>Thus the old couple lived in their palace a great, great while,
+and grew older and older, and very old indeed. At length, however,
+there came a summer morning when Philemon and Baucis failed to make
+their appearance, as on other mornings, with one hospitable smile
+overspreading both their pleasant faces, to invite the guests of
+over-night to breakfast. The guests searched everywhere, from top
+to bottom of the spacious palace, and all to no purpose. But, after
+a great deal of perplexity, they espied, in front of the portal,
+two venerable trees, which nobody could remember to have seen there
+the day before. Yet there they stood, with their roots fastened
+deep into the soil, and a huge breadth of foliage overshadowing the
+whole front of the edifice. One was an oak, and the other a
+linden-tree. Their boughs&mdash;it was strange and beautiful to
+see&mdash;were intertwined together, and embraced one another, so
+that each tree seemed to live in the other tree&rsquo;s bosom much
+more than in its own.</p>
+<p>While the guests were marveling how these trees, that must have
+required at least a century to grow, could have come to be so tall
+and venerable in a single night, a breeze sprang up, and set their
+intermingled boughs astir. And then there was a deep, broad murmur
+in the air, as if the two mysterious trees were speaking.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I am old Philemon!&rdquo; murmured the oak.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I am old Baucis!&rdquo; murmured the linden-tree.</p>
+<p>But, as the breeze grew stronger, the trees both spoke at
+once,&mdash;&ldquo;Philemon! Baucis! Baucis!
+Philemon!&rdquo;&mdash;as if one were both and both were one, and
+talking together in the depths of their mutual heart. It was plain
+enough to perceive that the good old couple had renewed their age,
+and were now to spend a quiet and delightful hundred years or so,
+Philemon as an oak, and Baucis as a linden-tree. And oh, what a
+hospitable shade did they fling around them! Whenever a wayfarer
+paused beneath it, he heard a pleasant whisper of the leaves above
+his head, and wondered how the sound should so much resemble words
+like these:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Welcome, welcome, dear traveler, welcome!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And some kind soul, that knew what would have pleased old Baucis
+and old Philemon best, built a circular seat around both their
+trunks, where, for a great while afterwards, the weary, and the
+hungry, and the thirsty used to repose themselves, and quaff milk
+abundantly from the miraculous pitcher.</p>
+<p>And I wish, for all our sakes, that we had the pitcher here
+now!</p>
+<h3><a id="Touch" name="Touch">The Golden Touch</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Nathaniel Hawthorne</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Once upon a time, there lived a very rich man, and a king
+besides, whose name was Midas; and he had a little daughter, whom
+nobody but myself ever heard of, and whose name I either never knew
+or have entirely forgotten. So, because I love odd names for little
+girls, I choose to call her Marygold.</p>
+<p>This King Midas was fonder of gold than of anything else in the
+world. He valued his royal crown chiefly because it was composed of
+that precious metal. If he loved anything better, or half so well,
+it was the one little maiden who played so merrily around her
+father&rsquo;s footstool. But the more Midas loved his daughter,
+the more did he desire and seek for wealth. He thought, foolish
+man! that the best thing he could possibly do for this dear child
+would be to bequeath her the immensest pile of yellow, glistening
+coin, that had ever been heaped together since the world was made.
+Thus, he gave all his thoughts and all his time to this one
+purpose. If ever he happened to gaze for an instant at the
+gold-tinted clouds of sunset, he wished that they were real gold,
+and that they could be squeezed safely into his strong box. When
+little Marygold ran to meet him with a bunch of buttercups and
+dandelions, he used to say, &ldquo;Poh, poh, child! If these
+flowers were as golden as they look, they would be worth the
+plucking!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And yet, in his earlier days, before he was so entirely
+possessed of this insane desire for riches, King Midas had shown a
+great taste for flowers. He had planted a garden, in which grew the
+biggest and beautifulest and sweetest roses that any mortal ever
+saw or smelt. These roses were still growing in the garden, as
+large, as lovely, and as fragrant as when Midas used to pass whole
+hours in gazing at them and inhaling their perfume. But now, if he
+looked at them at all, it was only to calculate how much the garden
+would be worth if each of the innumerable rose-petals were a thin
+plate of gold. And though he once was fond of music (in spite of an
+idle story about his ears, which were said to resemble those of an
+ass), the only music for poor Midas, now, was the chink of one coin
+against another.</p>
+<p>At length (as people always grow more and more foolish, unless
+they take care to grow wiser and wiser), Midas had got to be so
+exceedingly unreasonable, that he could scarcely bear to see or
+touch any object that was not gold. He made it his custom,
+therefore, to pass a large portion of every day in a dark and
+dreary apartment, under ground, at the basement of his palace. It
+was here that he kept his wealth. To this dismal hole&mdash;for it
+was little better than a dungeon&mdash;Midas betook himself,
+whenever he wanted to be particularly happy. Here, after carefully
+locking the door, he would take a bag of gold coin, or a gold cup
+as big as a washbowl, or a heavy golden bar, or a peck-measure of
+gold-dust, and bring them from the obscure corners of the room into
+the one bright and narrow sunbeam that fell from the dungeon-like
+window. He valued the sunbeam for no other reason but that his
+treasure would not shine without its help. And then would he reckon
+over the coins in the bag; toss up the bar, and catch it as it came
+down; sift the gold-dust through his fingers; look at the funny
+image of his own face, as reflected in the burnished circumference
+of the cup; and whisper to himself, &ldquo;O Midas, rich King
+Midas, what a happy man art thou!&rdquo; But it was laughable to
+see how the image of his face kept grinning at him, out of the
+polished surface of the cup. It seemed to be aware of his foolish
+behavior, and to have a naughty inclination to make fun of him.</p>
+<p>Midas called himself a happy man, but felt that he was not yet
+quite so happy as he might be. The very tiptop of enjoyment would
+never be reached, unless the whole world were to become his
+treasure-room, and be filled with yellow metal which should be all
+his own.</p>
+<p>Now, I need hardly remind such wise little people as you are,
+that in the old, old times, when King Midas was alive, a great many
+things came to pass, which we should consider wonderful if they
+were to happen in our own day and country. And, on the other hand,
+a great many things take place nowadays, which seem not only
+wonderful to us, but at which the people of old times would have
+stared their eyes out. On the whole, I regard our own times as the
+strangest of the two; but, however that may be, I must go on with
+my story.</p>
+<p>Midas was enjoying himself in his treasure-room, one day, as
+usual, when he perceived a shadow fall over the heaps of gold; and,
+looking suddenly up, what should he behold but the figure of a
+stranger, standing in the bright and narrow sunbeam! It was a young
+man, with a cheerful and ruddy face. Whether it was that the
+imagination of King Midas threw a yellow tinge over everything, or
+whatever the cause might be, he could not help fancying that the
+smile with which the stranger regarded him had a kind of golden
+radiance in it. Certainly, although his figure intercepted the
+sunshine, there was now a brighter gleam upon all the piled-up
+treasures than before. Even the remotest corners had their share of
+it, and were lighted up, when the stranger smiled, as with tips of
+flame and sparkles of fire. As Midas knew that he had carefully
+turned the key in the lock, and that no mortal strength could
+possibly break into his treasure-room, he, of course, concluded
+that his visitor must be something more than mortal. It is no
+matter about telling you who he was. In those days, when the earth
+was comparatively a new affair, it was supposed to be often the
+resort of beings endowed with supernatural power, and who used to
+interest themselves in the joys and sorrows of men, women, and
+children, half playfully and half seriously. Midas had met such
+beings before now, and was not sorry to meet one of them again. The
+stranger&rsquo;s aspect, indeed, was so good-humored and kindly, if
+not beneficent, that it would have been unreasonable to suspect him
+of intending any mischief. It was far more probable that he came to
+do Midas a favor. And what could that favor be, unless to multiply
+his heaps of treasure?</p>
+<p>The stranger gazed about the room; and when his lustrous smile
+had glistened upon all the golden objects that were there, he
+turned again to Midas.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You are a wealthy man, friend Midas!&rdquo; he observed.
+&ldquo;I doubt whether any other four walls, on earth, contain so
+much gold as you have contrived to pile up in this room.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I have done pretty well,&mdash;pretty well,&rdquo;
+answered Midas, in a discontented tone. &ldquo;But, after all, it
+is but a trifle, when you consider that it has taken me my whole
+life to get it together. If one could live a thousand years, he
+might have time to grow rich!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What!&rdquo; exclaimed the stranger. &ldquo;Then you are
+not satisfied?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Midas shook his head.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;And pray what would satisfy you?&rdquo; asked the
+stranger. &ldquo;Merely for the curiosity of the thing, I should be
+glad to know.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Midas paused and meditated. He felt a presentiment that this
+stranger, with such a golden lustre in his good-humored smile, had
+come hither with both the power and the purpose of gratifying his
+utmost wishes. Now, therefore, was the fortunate moment, when he
+had but to speak, and obtain whatever possible, or seemingly
+impossible thing, it might come into his head to ask. So he
+thought, and thought, and thought, and heaped up one golden
+mountain upon another, in his imagination, without being able to
+imagine them big enough. At last, a bright idea occurred to King
+Midas. It seemed really as bright as the glistening metal which he
+loved so much.</p>
+<p>Raising his head, he looked the lustrous stranger in the
+face.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Well, Midas,&rdquo; observed his visitor, &ldquo;I see
+that you have at length hit upon something that will satisfy you.
+Tell me your wish.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It is only this,&rdquo; replied Midas. &ldquo;I am weary
+of collecting my treasures with so much trouble, and beholding the
+heap so diminutive, after I have done my best. I wish everything
+that I touch to be changed to gold!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The stranger&rsquo;s smile grew so very broad, that it seemed to
+fill the room like an outburst of the sun, gleaming into a shadowy
+dell where the yellow autumnal leaves&mdash;for so looked the lumps
+and particles of gold&mdash;lie strewn in the glow of light.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;The Golden Touch!&rdquo; exclaimed he. &ldquo;You
+certainly deserve credit, friend Midas, for striking out so
+brilliant a conception. But are you quite sure that this will
+satisfy you?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;How could it fail?&rdquo; said Midas.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;And will you never regret the possession of
+it?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What could induce me?&rdquo; asked Midas. &ldquo;I ask
+nothing else, to render me perfectly happy.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Be it as you wish, then,&rdquo; replied the stranger,
+waving his hand in token of farewell. &ldquo;To-morrow, at sunrise,
+you will find yourself gifted with the Golden Touch.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The figure of the stranger then became exceedingly bright, and
+Midas involuntarily closed his eyes. On opening them again, he
+beheld only one yellow sunbeam in the room, and, all around him,
+the glistening of the precious metal which he had spent his life in
+hoarding up.</p>
+<p>Whether Midas slept as usual that night, the story does not say.
+Asleep or awake, however, his mind was probably in the state of a
+child&rsquo;s, to whom a beautiful new plaything has been promised
+in the morning. At any rate, day had hardly peeped over the hills,
+when King Midas was broad awake, and, stretching his arms out of
+bed, began to touch the objects that were within reach. He was
+anxious to prove whether the Golden Touch had really come,
+according to the stranger&rsquo;s promise. So he laid his finger on
+a chair by the bedside, and on various other things, but was
+grievously disappointed to perceive that they remained of exactly
+the same substance as before. Indeed, he felt very much afraid that
+he had only dreamed about the lustrous stranger, or else that the
+latter had been making game of him. And what a miserable affair
+would it be, if, after all his hopes, Midas must content himself
+with what little gold he could scrape together by ordinary means,
+instead of creating it by a touch!</p>
+<p>All this while it was only the gray of the morning, with but a
+streak of brightness along the edge of the sky, where Midas could
+not see it. He lay in a very disconsolate mood, regretting the
+downfall of his hopes, and kept growing sadder and sadder, until
+the earliest sunbeam shone through the window, and gilded the
+ceiling over his head. It seemed to Midas that this bright yellow
+sunbeam was reflected in rather a singular way on the white
+covering of the bed. Looking more closely, what was his
+astonishment and delight, when he found that this linen fabric had
+been transmuted to what seemed a woven texture of the purest and
+brightest gold! The Golden Touch had come to him with the first
+sunbeam!</p>
+<p>Midas started up, in a kind of joyful frenzy, and ran about the
+room, grasping at everything that happened to be in his way. He
+seized one of the bed-posts, and it became immediately a fluted
+golden pillar. He pulled aside a window-curtain, in order to admit
+a clear spectacle of the wonders which he was performing; and the
+tassel grew heavy in his hand,&mdash;a mass of gold. He took up a
+book from the table. At his first touch, it assumed the appearance
+of such a splendidly bound and gilt-edged volume as one often meets
+with, nowadays; but, on running his fingers through the leaves,
+behold! it was a bundle of thin golden plates, in which all the
+wisdom of the book had grown illegible. He hurriedly put on his
+clothes, and was enraptured to see himself in a magnificent suit of
+gold cloth, which retained its flexibility and softness, although
+it burdened him a little with its weight. He drew out his
+handkerchief, which little Marygold had hemmed for him. That was
+likewise gold, with the dear child&rsquo;s neat and pretty stitches
+running all along the border, in gold thread!</p>
+<p>Somehow or other, this last transformation did not quite please
+King Midas. He would rather that his little daughter&rsquo;s
+handiwork should have remained just the same as when she climbed
+his knee and put it into his hand.</p>
+<p>But it was not worth while to vex himself about a trifle. Midas
+now took his spectacles from his pocket, and put them on his nose,
+in order that he might see more distinctly what he was about. In
+those days, spectacles for common people had not been invented, but
+were already worn by kings; else, how could Midas have had any? To
+his great perplexity, however, excellent as the glasses were, he
+discovered that he could not possibly see through them. But this
+was the most natural thing in the world; for on taking them off,
+the transparent crystals turned out to be plates of yellow metal,
+and, of course, were worthless as spectacles, though valuable as
+gold. It struck Midas as rather inconvenient that, with all his
+wealth, he could never again be rich enough to own a pair of
+serviceable spectacles.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It is no great matter, nevertheless,&rdquo; said he to
+himself, very philosophically. &ldquo;We cannot expect any great
+good, without its being accompanied with some small inconvenience.
+The Golden Touch is worth the sacrifice of a pair of spectacles, at
+least, if not of one&rsquo;s very eyesight. My own eyes will serve
+for ordinary purposes, and little Marygold will soon be old enough
+to read to me.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Wise King Midas was so exalted by his good fortune that the
+palace seemed not sufficiently spacious to contain him. He
+therefore went downstairs, and smiled, on observing that the
+balustrade of the staircase became a bar of burnished gold, as his
+hand passed over it in his descent. He lifted the door-latch (it
+was brass only a moment ago, but golden when his fingers quitted
+it), and emerged into the garden. Here, as it happened, he found a
+great number of beautiful roses in full bloom, and others in all
+the stages of lovely bud and blossom. Very delicious was their
+fragrance in the morning breeze. Their delicate blush was one of
+the fairest sights in the world; so gentle, so modest, and so full
+of sweet tranquillity did these roses seem to be.</p>
+<p>But Midas knew a way to make them far more precious, according
+to his way of thinking, than roses had ever been before. So he took
+great pains in going from bush to bush, and exercised his magic
+touch most indefatigably; until every individual flower and bud,
+and even the worms at the heart of some of them, were changed to
+gold. By the time this good work was completed, King Midas was
+summoned to breakfast; and as the morning air had given him an
+excellent appetite, he made haste back to the palace.</p>
+<p>What was usually a king&rsquo;s breakfast in the days of Midas,
+I really do not know, and cannot stop now to investigate. To the
+best of my belief, however, on this particular morning, the
+breakfast consisted of hot cakes, some nice little brook trout,
+roasted potatoes, fresh boiled eggs, and coffee, for King Midas
+himself, and a bowl of bread and milk for his daughter Marygold. At
+all events, this is a breakfast fit to set before a king; and,
+whether he had it or not, King Midas could not have had a
+better.</p>
+<p>Little Marygold had not yet made her appearance. Her father
+ordered her to be called, and, seating himself at table, awaited
+the child&rsquo;s coming, in order to begin his own breakfast. To
+do Midas justice, he really loved his daughter, and loved her so
+much the more this morning, on account of the good fortune which
+had befallen him. It was not a great while before he heard her
+coming along the passage-way crying bitterly. This circumstance
+surprised him, because Marygold was one of the cheerfullest little
+people whom you would see in a summer&rsquo;s day, and hardly shed
+a thimbleful of tears in a twelvemonth. When Midas heard her sobs,
+he determined to put little Marygold into better spirits, by an
+agreeable surprise; so, leaning across the table, he touched his
+daughter&rsquo;s bowl (which was a China one, with pretty figures
+all around it), and transmuted it to gleaming gold.</p>
+<p>Meanwhile, Marygold slowly and disconsolately opened the door,
+and showed herself with her apron at her eyes, still sobbing as if
+her heart would break.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;How now, my little lady!&rdquo; cried Midas. &ldquo;Pray
+what is the matter with you, this bright morning?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Marygold, without taking the apron from her eyes, held out her
+hand, in which was one of the roses which Midas had so recently
+transmuted.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Beautiful!&rdquo; exclaimed her father. &ldquo;And what
+is there in this magnificent golden rose to make you
+cry?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah, dear father!&rdquo; answered the child, as well as
+her sobs would let her; &ldquo;it is not beautiful, but the ugliest
+flower that ever grew! As soon as I was dressed I ran into the
+garden to gather some roses for you; because I know you like them,
+and like them the better when gathered by your little daughter.
+But, oh dear, dear me! What do you think has happened? Such a
+misfortune! All the beautiful roses, that smelled so sweet and had
+so many lovely blushes, are blighted and spoilt! They are grown
+quite yellow, as you see this one, and have no longer any
+fragrance! What can have been the matter with them?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Poh, my dear little girl,&mdash;pray don&rsquo;t cry
+about it!&rdquo; said Midas, who was ashamed to confess that he
+himself had wrought the change which so greatly afflicted her.
+&ldquo;Sit down and eat your bread and milk! You will find it easy
+enough to exchange a golden rose like that (which will last
+hundreds of years) for an ordinary one which would wither in a
+day.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t care for such roses as this!&rdquo; cried
+Marygold, tossing it contemptuously away. &ldquo;It has no smell,
+and the hard petals prick my nose!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The child now sat down to table, but was so occupied with her
+grief for the blighted roses that she did not even notice the
+wonderful transmutation of her China bowl. Perhaps this was all the
+better; for Marygold was accustomed to take pleasure in looking at
+the queer figures, and strange trees and houses, that were painted
+on the circumference of the bowl; and these ornaments were now
+entirely lost in the yellow hue of the metal.</p>
+<p>Midas, meanwhile, had poured out a cup of coffee, and, as a
+matter of course, the coffee-pot, whatever metal it may have been
+when he took it up, was gold when he set it down. He thought to
+himself, that it was rather an extravagant style of splendor, in a
+king of his simple habits, to breakfast off a service of gold, and
+began to be puzzled with the difficulty of keeping his treasures
+safe. The cupboard and the kitchen would no longer be a secure
+place of deposit for articles so valuable as golden bowls and
+coffee-pots.</p>
+<p>Amid these thoughts, he lifted a spoonful of coffee to his lips,
+and, sipping it, was astonished to perceive that the instant his
+lips touched the liquid, it became molten gold, and the next
+moment, hardened into a lump!</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ha!&rdquo; exclaimed Midas, rather aghast.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What is the matter, father?&rdquo; asked little Marygold,
+gazing at him, with the tears still standing in her eyes.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nothing, child, nothing!&rdquo; said Midas. &ldquo;Eat
+your milk, before it gets quite cold.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He took one of the nice little trouts on his plate, and, by way
+of experiment, touched its tail with his finger. To his horror, it
+was immediately transmuted from an admirably fried brook trout into
+a gold-fish, though not one of those gold-fishes which people often
+keep in glass globes, as ornaments for the parlor. No; but it was
+really a metallic fish, and looked as if it had been very cunningly
+made by the nicest goldsmith in the world. Its little bones were
+now golden wires; its fins and tail were thin plates of gold; and
+there were the marks of the fork in it, and all the delicate,
+frothy appearance of a nicely fried fish, exactly imitated in
+metal. A very pretty piece of work, as you may suppose; only King
+Midas, just at that moment, would much rather have had a real trout
+in his dish than this elaborate and valuable imitation of one.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t quite see,&rdquo; thought he to himself,
+&ldquo;how I am to get any breakfast!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He took one of the smoking-hot cakes, and had scarcely broken
+it, when, to his cruel mortification, though, a moment before, it
+had been of the whitest wheat, it assumed the yellow hue of Indian
+meal. To say the truth, if it had really been a hot Indian cake,
+Midas would have prized it a good deal more than he now did, when
+its solidity and increased weight made him too bitterly sensible
+that it was gold. Almost in despair, he helped himself to a boiled
+egg, which immediately underwent a change similar to those of the
+trout and the cake. The egg, indeed, might have been mistaken for
+one of those which the famous goose, in the story-book, was in the
+habit of laying; but King Midas was the only goose that had had
+anything to do with the matter.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Well, this is a quandary!&rdquo; thought he, leaning back
+in his chair, and looking quite enviously at little Marygold, who
+was now eating her bread and milk with great satisfaction.
+&ldquo;Such a costly breakfast before me, and nothing that can be
+eaten!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Hoping that, by dint of great dispatch, he might avoid what he
+now felt to be a considerable inconvenience, King Midas next
+snatched a hot potato, and attempted to cram it into his mouth, and
+swallow it in a hurry. But the Golden Touch was too nimble for him.
+He found his mouth full, not of mealy potato, but of solid metal,
+which so burnt his tongue that he roared aloud, and, jumping up
+from the table, began to dance and stamp about the room, both with
+pain and affright.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Father, dear father!&rdquo; cried little Marygold, who
+was a very affectionate child, &ldquo;pray what is the matter? Have
+you burnt your mouth?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah, dear child,&rdquo; groaned Midas dolefully, &ldquo;I
+don&rsquo;t know what is to become of your poor father!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And, truly, my dear little folks, did you ever hear of such a
+pitiable case in all your lives? Here was literally the richest
+breakfast that could be set before a king, and its very richness
+made it absolutely good for nothing. The poorest laborer, sitting
+down to his crust of bread and cup of water, was far better off
+than King Midas, whose delicate food was really worth its weight in
+gold. And what was to be done? Already, at breakfast, Midas was
+excessively hungry. Would he be less so by dinner-time? And how
+ravenous would be his appetite for supper, which must undoubtedly
+consist of the same sort of indigestible dishes as those now before
+him! How many days, think you, would he survive a continuance of
+this rich fare?</p>
+<p>These reflections so troubled wise King Midas, that he began to
+doubt whether, after all, riches are the one desirable thing in the
+world, or even the most desirable. But this was only a passing
+thought. So fascinated was Midas with the glitter of the yellow
+metal, that he would still have refused to give up the Golden Touch
+for so paltry a consideration as a breakfast. Just imagine what a
+price for one meal&rsquo;s victuals! It would have been the same as
+paying millions and millions of money (and as many millions more as
+would take forever to reckon up) for some fried trout, an egg, a
+potato, a hot cake, and a cup of coffee!</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It would be quite too dear,&rdquo; thought Midas.</p>
+<p>Nevertheless, so great was his hunger, and the perplexity of his
+situation, that he again groaned aloud, and very grievously too.
+Our pretty Marygold could endure it no longer. She sat, a moment,
+gazing at her father, and trying with all the might of her little
+wits to find out what was the matter with him. Then, with a sweet
+and sorrowful impulse to comfort him, she started from her chair,
+and, running to Midas, threw her arms affectionately about his
+knees. He bent down and kissed her. He felt that his little
+daughter&rsquo;s love was worth a thousand times more than he had
+gained by the Golden Touch.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;My precious, precious Marygold!&rdquo; cried he.</p>
+<p>But Marygold made no answer.</p>
+<p>Alas, what had he done? How fatal was the gift which the
+stranger bestowed! The moment the lips of Midas touched
+Marygold&rsquo;s forehead, a change had taken place. Her sweet,
+rosy face, so full of affection as it had been, assumed a
+glittering yellow color, with yellow teardrops congealing on her
+cheeks. Her beautiful brown ringlets took the same tint. Her soft
+and tender little form grew hard and inflexible within her
+father&rsquo;s encircling arms. Oh, terrible misfortune! The victim
+of his insatiable desire for wealth, little Marygold was a human
+child no longer, but a golden statue!</p>
+<p>Yes, there she was, with the questioning look of love, grief,
+and pity, hardened into her face. It was the prettiest and most
+woeful sight that ever mortal saw. All the features and tokens of
+Marygold were there; even the beloved little dimple remained in her
+golden chin. But the more perfect was the resemblance, the greater
+was the father&rsquo;s agony at beholding this golden image, which
+was all that was left him of a daughter. It had been a favorite
+phrase of Midas, whenever he felt particularly fond of the child,
+to say that she was worth her weight in gold. And now the phrase
+had become literally true. And now, at last, when it was too late,
+he felt how infinitely a warm and tender heart, that loved him,
+exceeded in value all the wealth that could be piled up betwixt the
+earth and sky!</p>
+<p>It would be too sad a story, if I were to tell you how Midas, in
+the fullness of all his gratified desires, began to wring his hands
+and bemoan himself; and how he could neither bear to look at
+Marygold, nor yet to look away from her. Except when his eyes were
+fixed on the image, he could not possibly believe that she was
+changed to gold. But stealing another glance, there was the
+precious little figure, with a yellow tear-drop on its yellow
+cheek, and a look so piteous and tender that it seemed as if that
+very expression must needs soften the gold, and make it flesh
+again. This, however, could not be. So Midas had only to wring his
+hands, and to wish that he were the poorest man in the wide world,
+if the loss of all his wealth might bring back the faintest
+rose-color to his dear child&rsquo;s face.</p>
+<p>While he was in this tumult of despair, he suddenly beheld a
+stranger standing near the door. Midas bent down his head, without
+speaking; for he recognized the same figure which had appeared to
+him, the day before, in the treasure-room, and had bestowed on him
+this disastrous faculty of the Golden Touch. The stranger&rsquo;s
+countenance still wore a smile, which seemed to shed a yellow
+lustre all about the room, and gleamed on little Marygold&rsquo;s
+image, and on the other objects that had been transmuted by the
+touch of Midas.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Well, friend Midas,&rdquo; said the stranger, &ldquo;pray
+how do you succeed with the Golden Touch?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Midas shook his head.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I am very miserable,&rdquo; said he.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Very miserable, indeed!&rdquo; exclaimed the stranger.
+&ldquo;And how happens that? Have I not faithfully kept my promise
+with you? Have you not everything that your heart
+desired?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Gold is not everything,&rdquo; answered Midas. &ldquo;And
+I have lost all that my heart really cared for.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah! So you have made a discovery, since yesterday?&rdquo;
+observed the stranger. &ldquo;Let us see, then. Which of these two
+things do you think is really worth the most,&mdash;the gift of the
+Golden Touch, or one cup of clear cold water?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;O blessed water!&rdquo; exclaimed Midas. &ldquo;It will
+never moisten my parched throat again!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;The Golden Touch,&rdquo; continued the stranger,
+&ldquo;or a crust of bread?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;A piece of bread,&rdquo; answered Midas, &ldquo;is worth
+all the gold on earth!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;The Golden Touch,&rdquo; asked the stranger, &ldquo;or
+your own little Marygold, warm, soft, and loving as she was an hour
+ago?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, my child, my dear child!&rdquo; cried poor Midas,
+wringing his hands. &ldquo;I would not have given that one small
+dimple in her chin for the power of changing this whole big earth
+into a solid lump of gold!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You are wiser than you were, King Midas!&rdquo; said the
+stranger, looking seriously at him. &ldquo;Your own heart, I
+perceive, has not been entirely changed from flesh to gold. Were it
+so, your case would indeed be desperate. But you appear to be still
+capable of understanding that the commonest things, such as lie
+within everybody&rsquo;s grasp, are more valuable than the riches
+which so many mortals sigh and struggle after. Tell me, now, do you
+sincerely desire to rid yourself of this Golden Touch?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It is hateful to me!&rdquo; replied Midas.</p>
+<p>A fly settled on his nose, but immediately fell to the floor;
+for it, too, had become gold. Midas shuddered.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Go, then,&rdquo; said the stranger, &ldquo;and plunge
+into the river that glides past the bottom of your garden. Take
+likewise a vase of the same water, and sprinkle it over any object
+that you may desire to change back again from gold into its former
+substance. If you do this in earnestness and sincerity, it may
+possibly repair the mischief which your avarice has
+occasioned.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>King Midas bowed low; and when he lifted his head, the lustrous
+stranger had vanished.</p>
+<p>You will easily believe that Midas lost no time in snatching up
+a great earthen pitcher (but, alas me! it was no longer earthen
+after he touched it), and hastening to the riverside. As he
+scampered along, and forced his way through the shrubbery, it was
+positively marvelous to see how the foliage turned yellow behind
+him, as if the autumn had been there, and nowhere else. On reaching
+the river&rsquo;s brink, he plunged headlong in, without waiting so
+much as to pull off his shoes.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Poof! poof! poof!&rdquo; snorted King Midas, as his head
+emerged out of the water. &ldquo;Well; this is really a refreshing
+bath, and I think it must have quite washed away the Golden Touch.
+And now for filling my pitcher!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>As he dipped the pitcher into the water, it gladdened his very
+heart to see it change from gold into the same good, honest earthen
+vessel which it had been before he touched it. He was conscious,
+also, of a change within himself. A cold, hard, and heavy weight
+seemed to have gone out of his bosom. No doubt his heart had been
+gradually losing its human substance, and transmuting itself into
+insensible metal, but had now softened back again into flesh.
+Perceiving a violet, that grew on the bank of the river, Midas
+touched it with his finger, and was overjoyed to find that the
+delicate flower retained its purple hue, instead of undergoing a
+yellow blight. The curse of the Golden Touch had therefore really
+been removed from him.</p>
+<p>King Midas hastened back to the palace; and I suppose the
+servants knew not what to make of it when they saw their royal
+master so carefully bringing home an earthen pitcher of water. But
+that water, which was to undo all the mischief that his folly had
+wrought, was more precious to Midas, than an ocean of molten gold
+could have been. The first thing he did, as you need hardly be
+told, was to sprinkle it by handfuls over the golden figure of
+little Marygold.</p>
+<p>No sooner did it fall on her than you would have laughed to see
+how the rosy color came back to the dear child&rsquo;s cheek! and
+how she began to sneeze and sputter!&mdash;and how astonished she
+was to find herself dripping wet, and her father still throwing
+more water over her!</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Pray do not, dear father!&rdquo; cried she. &ldquo;See
+how you have wet my nice frock, which I put on only this
+morning!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>For Marygold did not know that she had been a little golden
+statue; nor could she remember anything that had happened since the
+moment when she ran with outstretched arms to comfort poor King
+Midas.</p>
+<p>Her father did not think it necessary to tell his beloved child
+how very foolish he had been, but contented himself with showing
+how much wiser he had now grown. For this purpose he led little
+Marygold into the garden, where he sprinkled all the remainder of
+the water over the rose-bushes, and with such good effect that
+above five thousand roses recovered their beautiful bloom. There
+were two circumstances, however, which, as long as he lived, used
+to put King Midas in mind of the Golden Touch. One was, that the
+sands of the river sparkled like gold; the other, that little
+Marygold&rsquo;s hair had now a golden tinge, which he had never
+observed in it before she had been transmuted by the effect of his
+kiss. This change of hue was really an improvement, and made
+Marygold&rsquo;s hair richer than in her babyhood.</p>
+<p>When King Midas had grown quite an old man, and used to trot
+Marygold&rsquo;s children on his knee, he was fond of telling them
+this marvelous story, pretty much as I have now told it to you. And
+then would he stroke their glossy ringlets, and tell them that
+their hair, likewise, had a rich shade of gold, which they had
+inherited from their mother.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;And to tell you the truth, my precious little
+folks,&rdquo; quoth King Midas, diligently trotting the children
+all the while, &ldquo;ever since that morning, I have hated the
+very sight of all other gold, save this!&rdquo;</p>
+<h3><a id="Pomegranate" name="Pomegranate">The Pomegranate
+Seeds</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Nathaniel Hawthorne</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Mother Ceres was exceedingly fond of her daughter Proserpina,
+and seldom let her go alone into the fields. But, just at the time
+when my story begins, the good lady was very busy, because she had
+the care of the wheat, and the Indian corn, and the rye and barley,
+and, in short, of the crops of every kind, all over the earth; and
+as the season had thus far been uncommonly backward, it was
+necessary to make the harvest ripen more speedily than usual. So
+she put on her turban, made of poppies (a kind of flower which she
+was always noted for wearing), and got into her car drawn by a pair
+of winged dragons, and was just ready to set off.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Dear mother,&rdquo; said Proserpina, &ldquo;I shall be
+very lonely while you are away. May I not run down to the shore,
+and ask some of the sea-nymphs to come up out of the waves and play
+with me?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, child,&rdquo; answered Mother Ceres. &ldquo;The
+sea-nymphs are good creatures, and will never lead you into any
+harm. But you must take care not to stray away from them, nor go
+wandering about the fields by yourself. Young girls, without their
+mothers to take care of them, are very apt to get into
+mischief.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The child promised to be as prudent as if she were a grown-up
+woman, and, by the time the winged dragons had whirled the car out
+of sight, she was already on the shore, calling to the sea-nymphs
+to come and play with her. They knew Proserpina&rsquo;s voice, and
+were not long in showing their glistening faces and sea-green hair
+above the water, at the bottom of which was their home. They
+brought along with them a great many beautiful shells; and, sitting
+down on the moist sand, where the surf wave broke over them, they
+busied themselves in making a necklace, which they hung round
+Proserpina&rsquo;s neck. By way of showing her gratitude, the child
+besought them to go with her a little way into the fields, so that
+they might gather abundance of flowers, with which she would make
+each of her kind playmates a wreath.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, no, dear Proserpina,&rdquo; cried the sea-nymphs;
+&ldquo;we dare not go with you upon the dry land. We are apt to
+grow faint, unless at every breath we can snuff up the salt breeze
+of the ocean. And don&rsquo;t you see how careful we are to let the
+surf wave break over us every moment or two, so as to keep
+ourselves comfortably moist? If it were not for that, we should
+soon look like bunches of uprooted sea-weed dried in the
+sun.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It is a great pity,&rdquo; said Proserpina, &ldquo;but do
+you wait for me here, and I will run and gather my apron full of
+flowers, and be back again before the surf wave has broken ten
+times over you. I long to make you some wreaths that shall be as
+lovely as this necklace of many-colored shells.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;We will wait, then,&rdquo; answered the sea-nymphs.
+&ldquo;But while you are gone, we may as well lie down on a bank of
+soft sponge, under the water. The air to-day is a little too dry
+for our comfort. But we will pop up our heads every few minutes to
+see if you are coming.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The young Proserpina ran quickly to a spot where, only the day
+before, she had seen a great many flowers. These, however, were now
+a little past their bloom; and wishing to give her friends the
+freshest and loveliest blossoms, she strayed farther into the
+fields, and found some that made her scream with delight. Never had
+she met with such exquisite flowers before,&mdash;violets, so large
+and fragrant,&mdash;roses, with so rich and delicate a
+blush,&mdash;such superb hyacinths and such aromatic
+pinks,&mdash;and many others, some of which seemed to be of new
+shapes and colors. Two or three times, moreover, she could not help
+thinking that a tuft of most splendid flowers had suddenly sprouted
+out of the earth before her very eyes, as if on purpose to tempt
+her a few steps farther. Proserpina&rsquo;s apron was soon filled
+and brimming over with delightful blossoms. She was on the point of
+turning back in order to rejoin the sea-nymphs, and sit with them
+on the moist sands, all twining wreaths together. But, a little
+farther on, what should she behold? It was a large shrub,
+completely covered with the most magnificent flowers in the
+world.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;The darlings!&rdquo; cried Proserpina; and then she
+thought to herself, &ldquo;I was looking at that spot only a moment
+ago. How strange it is that I did not see the flowers!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The nearer she approached the shrub, the more attractive it
+looked, until she came quite close to it; and then, although its
+beauty was richer than words can tell, she hardly knew whether to
+like it or not. It bore above a hundred flowers of the most
+brilliant hues, and each different from the others, but all having
+a kind of resemblance among themselves, which showed them to be
+sister blossoms. But there was a deep, glossy lustre on the leaves
+of the shrub, and on the petals of the flowers, that made
+Proserpina doubt whether they might not be poisonous. To tell you
+the truth, foolish as it may seem, she was half inclined to turn
+round and run away.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What a silly child I am!&rdquo; thought she, taking
+courage. &ldquo;It is really the most beautiful shrub that ever
+sprang out of the earth. I will pull it up by the roots, and carry
+it home, and plant it in my mother&rsquo;s garden.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Holding up her apron full of flowers with her left hand,
+Proserpina seized the large shrub with the other, and pulled and
+pulled, but was hardly able to loosen the soil about its roots.
+What a deep-rooted plant it was! Again the girl pulled with all her
+might, and observed that the earth began to stir and crack to some
+distance around the stem. She gave another pull, but relaxed her
+hold, fancying that there was a rumbling sound right beneath her
+feet. Did the roots extend down into some enchanted cavern? Then,
+laughing at herself for so childish a notion, she made another
+effort; up came the shrub, and Proserpina staggered back, holding
+the stem triumphantly in her hand, and gazing at the deep hole
+which its roots had left in the soil.</p>
+<p>Much to her astonishment this hole kept spreading wider and
+wider, and growing deeper and deeper, until it really seemed to
+have no bottom; and all the while, there came a rumbling noise out
+of its depths, louder and louder, and nearer and nearer, and
+sounding like the tramp of horses&rsquo; hoofs and the rattling of
+wheels. Too much frightened to run away, she stood straining her
+eyes into this wonderful cavity, and soon saw a team of four sable
+horses, snorting smoke out of their nostrils, and tearing their way
+out of the earth with a splendid golden chariot whirling at their
+heels. They leaped out of the bottomless hole, chariot and all; and
+there they were, tossing their black manes, flourishing their black
+tails, and curvetting with every one of their hoofs off the ground
+at once, close by the spot where Proserpina stood. In the chariot
+sat the figure of a man, richly dressed, with a crown on his head,
+all flaming with diamonds. He was of a noble aspect, and rather
+handsome, but looked sullen and discontented; and he kept rubbing
+his eyes and shading them with his hand, as if he did not live
+enough in the sunshine to be very fond of its light.</p>
+<div class="figure"><a href="images/big_142.jpg"><img src=
+"images/small_142.jpg" alt="A chariot races towards Prosperpina"
+id="img03" name="img03" width="360" height="565" /></a>
+<p>THEY LEAPED OUT OF THE BOTTOMLESS HOLE, CHARIOT AND ALL; AND
+THERE THEY WERE TOSSING THEIR BLACK TAILS, AND CURVETTING WITH
+EVERY ONE OF THEIR HOOFS OFF THE GROUND AT ONCE, CLOSE BY THE SPOT
+WHERE PROSERPINA STOOD. IN THE CHARIOT SAT THE FIGURE OF A MAN</p>
+</div>
+<p>As soon as this personage saw the affrighted Proserpina, he
+beckoned her to come a little nearer.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Do not be afraid,&rdquo; said he, with as cheerful a
+smile as he knew how to put on. &ldquo;Come! Will not you like to
+ride a little way with me, in my beautiful chariot?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Proserpina was so alarmed that she wished for nothing but to
+get out of his reach. And no wonder. The stranger did not look
+remarkably good-natured, in spite of his smile; and as for his
+voice, its tones were deep and stern, and sounded as much like the
+rumbling of an earthquake under ground as anything else. As is
+always the case with children in trouble, Proserpina&rsquo;s first
+thought was to call for her mother.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Mother, Mother Ceres!&rdquo; cried she, all in a tremble.
+&ldquo;Come quickly and save me.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But her voice was too faint for her mother to hear. Indeed, it
+is most probable that Ceres was then a thousand miles off, making
+the corn grow in some far-distant country. Nor could it have
+availed her poor daughter, even had she been within hearing; for no
+sooner did Proserpina begin to cry out, than the stranger leaped to
+the ground, caught the child in his arms, and again mounting the
+chariot, shook the reins, and shouted to the four black horses to
+set off. They immediately broke into so swift a gallop that it
+seemed rather like flying through the air than running along the
+earth. In a moment, Proserpina lost sight of the pleasant vale of
+Enna, in which she had always dwelt. Another instant, and even the
+summit of Mount &AElig;tna had become so blue in the distance that
+she could scarcely distinguish it from the smoke that gushed out of
+its crater. But still the poor child screamed, and scattered her
+apron full of flowers along the way, and left a long cry trailing
+behind the chariot; and many mothers, to whose ears it came, ran
+quickly to see if any mischief had befallen their children. But
+Mother Ceres was a great way off, and could not hear the cry.</p>
+<p>As they rode on, the stranger did his best to soothe her.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Why should you be so frightened, my pretty child?&rdquo;
+said he, trying to soften his rough voice. &ldquo;I promise not to
+do you any harm. What! You have been gathering flowers? Wait till
+we come to my palace, and I will give you a garden full of prettier
+flowers than those, all made of pearls, and diamonds, and rubies.
+Can you guess who I am? They call my name Pluto, and I am the king
+of diamonds and all other precious stones. Every atom of the gold
+and silver that lies under the earth belongs to me, to say nothing
+of the copper and iron, and of the coal-mines, which supply me with
+abundance of fuel. Do you see this splendid crown upon my head? You
+may have it for a plaything. Oh, we shall be very good friends, and
+you will find me more agreeable than you expect, when once we get
+out of this troublesome sunshine.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Let me go home!&rdquo; cried Proserpina. &ldquo;Let me go
+home!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;My home is better than your mother&rsquo;s,&rdquo;
+answered King Pluto &ldquo;It is a palace, all made of gold, with
+crystal windows; and because there is little or no sunshine
+thereabouts, the apartments are illuminated with diamond lamps. You
+never saw anything half so magnificent as my throne. If you like,
+you may sit down on it, and be my little queen, and I will sit on
+the footstool.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t care for golden palaces and thrones,&rdquo;
+sobbed Proserpina. &ldquo;Oh, my mother, my mother! Carry me back
+to my mother!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But King Pluto, as he called himself, only shouted to his steeds
+to go faster.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Pray do not be foolish, Proserpina,&rdquo; said he, in
+rather a sullen tone. &ldquo;I offer you my palace and my crown,
+and all the riches that are under the earth; and you treat me as if
+I were doing you an injury. The one thing which my palace needs is
+a merry little maid, to run upstairs and down, and cheer up the
+rooms with her smile. And this is what you must do for King
+Pluto.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Never!&rdquo; answered Proserpina, looking as miserable
+as she could. &ldquo;I shall never smile again till you set me down
+at my mother&rsquo;s door.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But she might just as well have talked to the wind that whistled
+past them; for Pluto urged on his horses, and went faster than
+ever. Proserpina continued to cry out, and screamed so long and so
+loudly, that her poor little voice was almost screamed away; and
+when it was nothing but a whisper, she happened to cast her eyes
+over a great, broad field of waving grain&mdash;and whom do you
+think she saw? Who, but Mother Ceres, making the corn grow, and too
+busy to notice the golden chariot as it went rattling along. The
+child mustered all her strength, and gave one more scream, but was
+out of sight before Ceres had time to turn her head.</p>
+<p>King Pluto had taken a road which now began to grow excessively
+gloomy. It was bordered on each side with rocks and precipices,
+between which the rumbling of the chariot-wheels was reverberated
+with a noise like rolling thunder. The trees and bushes that grew
+in the crevices of the rocks had very dismal foliage; and by and
+by, although it was hardly noon, the air became obscured with a
+gray twilight. The black horses had rushed along so swiftly, that
+they were already beyond the limits of the sunshine. But the
+duskier it grew, the more did Pluto&rsquo;s visage assume an air of
+satisfaction. After all, he was not an ill-looking person,
+especially when he left off twisting his features into a smile that
+did not belong to them. Proserpina peeped at his face through the
+gathering dusk, and hoped that he might not be so very wicked as
+she at first thought him.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah, this twilight is truly refreshing,&rdquo; said King
+Pluto, &ldquo;after being so tormented with that ugly and
+impertinent glare of the sun. How much more agreeable is lamplight
+or torchlight, more particularly when reflected from diamonds! It
+will be a magnificent sight when we get to my palace.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Is it much farther?&rdquo; asked Proserpina. &ldquo;And
+will you carry me back when I have seen it?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;We will talk of that by and by,&rdquo; answered Pluto.
+&ldquo;We are just entering my dominions. Do you see that tall
+gateway before us? When we pass those gates, we are at home. And
+there lies my faithful mastiff at the threshold. Cerberus!
+Cerberus! Come hither, my good dog!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, Pluto pulled at the reins, and stopped the chariot
+right between the tall, massive pillars of the gateway. The mastiff
+of which he had spoken got up from the threshold, and stood on his
+hinder legs, so as to put his forepaws on the chariot-wheel. But,
+my stars, what a strange dog it was! Why, he was a big, rough,
+ugly-looking monster, with three separate heads, and each of them
+fiercer than the two others; but, fierce as they were, King Pluto
+patted them all. He seemed as fond of his three-headed dog as if it
+had been a sweet little spaniel, with silken ears and curly hair.
+Cerberus, on the other hand, was evidently rejoiced to see his
+master, and expressed his attachment, as other dogs do, by wagging
+his tail at a great rate. Proserpina&rsquo;s eyes being drawn to it
+by its brisk motion, she saw that this tail was neither more nor
+less than a live dragon, with fiery eyes, and fangs that had a very
+poisonous aspect. And while the three-headed Cerberus was fawning
+so lovingly on King Pluto, there was the dragon tail wagging
+against its will, and looking as cross and ill-natured as you can
+imagine, on its own separate account.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Will the dog bite me?&rdquo; asked Proserpina, shrinking
+closer to Pluto. &ldquo;What an ugly creature he is!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, never fear,&rdquo; answered her companion. &ldquo;He
+never harms people unless they try to enter my dominions without
+being sent for, or to get away when I wish to keep them here. Down,
+Cerberus! Now, my pretty Proserpina, we will drive on.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>On went the chariot, and King Pluto seemed greatly pleased to
+find himself once more in his own kingdom. He drew
+Proserpina&rsquo;s attention to the rich veins of gold that were to
+be seen among the rocks, and pointed to several places where one
+stroke of a pick-axe would loosen a bushel of diamonds. All along
+the road, indeed, there were sparkling gems, which would have been
+of inestimable value above ground, but which were here reckoned of
+the meaner sort, and hardly worth a beggar&rsquo;s stooping
+for.</p>
+<p>Not far from the gateway, they came to a bridge, which seemed to
+be built of iron. Pluto stopped the chariot, and bade Proserpina
+look at the stream which was gliding so lazily beneath it. Never in
+her life had she beheld so torpid, so black, so muddy-looking a
+stream: its waters reflected no images of anything that was on the
+banks, and it moved as sluggishly as if it had quite forgotten
+which way it ought to flow, and had rather stagnate than flow
+either one way or the other.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;This is the river Lethe,&rdquo; observed King Pluto.
+&ldquo;Is it not a very pleasant stream?&rdquo; &ldquo;I think it a
+very dismal one,&rdquo; said Proserpina. &ldquo;It suits my taste,
+however,&rdquo; answered Pluto, who was apt to be sullen when
+anybody disagreed with him. &ldquo;At all events, its water has one
+very excellent quality; for a single draught of it makes people
+forget every care and sorrow that has hitherto tormented them. Only
+sip a little of it, my dear Proserpina, and you will instantly
+cease to grieve for your mother, and will have nothing in your
+memory that can prevent your being perfectly happy in my palace. I
+will send for some, in a golden goblet, the moment we
+arrive.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, no, no, no!&rdquo; cried Proserpina, weeping afresh.
+&ldquo;I had a thousand times rather be miserable with remembering
+my mother than be happy in forgetting her. That dear, dear mother!
+I never, never will forget her.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;We shall see,&rdquo; said King Pluto. &ldquo;You do not
+know what fine times we will have in my palace. Here we are just at
+the portal. These pillars are solid gold, I assure you.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He alighted from the chariot, and taking Proserpina in his arms,
+carried her up a lofty flight of steps into the great hall of the
+palace. It was splendidly illuminated by means of large precious
+stones, of various hues, which seemed to burn like so many lamps,
+and glowed with a hundred-fold radiance all through the vast
+apartment. And yet there was a kind of gloom in the midst of this
+enchanted light; nor was there a single object in the hall that was
+really agreeable to behold, except the little Proserpina herself, a
+lovely child, with one earthly flower which she had not let fall
+from her hand. It is my opinion that even King Pluto had never been
+happy in his palace, and that this was the true reason why he had
+stolen away Proserpina, in order that he might have something to
+love, instead of cheating his heart any longer with this tiresome
+magnificence. And, though he pretended to dislike the sunshine of
+the upper world, yet the effect of the child&rsquo;s presence,
+bedimmed as she was by her tears, was as if a faint and watery
+sunbeam had somehow or other found its way into the enchanted
+hall.</p>
+<p>Pluto now summoned his domestics, and bade them lose no time in
+preparing a most sumptuous banquet, and above all things, not to
+fail of setting a golden beaker of the water of Lethe by
+Proserpina&rsquo;s plate.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I will neither drink that nor anything else,&rdquo; said
+Proserpina. &ldquo;Nor will I taste a morsel of food, even if you
+keep me forever in your palace.&rdquo; on the seashore, she
+hastened thither as fast as she could, and there beheld the wet
+faces of the poor sea-nymphs peeping over a wave. All this while,
+the good creatures had been waiting on the bank of sponge, and once
+every half-minute or so, had popped up their four heads above
+water, to see if their playmate were yet coming back. When they saw
+Mother Ceres, they sat down on the crest of the surf wave, and let
+it toss them ashore at her feet.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Where is Proserpina?&rdquo; cried Ceres. &ldquo;Where is
+my child? Tell me, you naughty sea-nymphs, have you enticed her
+under the sea?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, no, good Mother Ceres,&rdquo; said the innocent
+sea-nymphs, tossing back their green ringlets, and looking her in
+the face. &ldquo;We never should dream of such a thing. Proserpina
+has been at play with us, it is true; but she left us a long while
+ago, meaning only to run a little way upon the dry land, and gather
+some flowers for a wreath. This was early in the day, and we have
+seen nothing of her since.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Ceres scarcely waited to hear what the nymphs had to say, before
+she hurried off to make inquiries all through the neighborhood. But
+nobody told her anything that could enable the poor mother to guess
+what had become of Proserpina. A fisherman, it is true, had noticed
+her little footprints in the sand, as he went homeward along the
+beach with a basket of fish; a rustic had seen the child stooping
+to gather flowers; several persons had heard either the rattling of
+chariot-wheels or the rumbling of distant thunder; and one old
+woman, while plucking vervain and catnip, had heard a scream, but
+supposed it to be some childish nonsense, and therefore did not
+take the trouble to look up. The stupid people! It took them such a
+tedious while to tell the nothing that they knew, that it was dark
+night before Mother Ceres found out that she must seek her daughter
+elsewhere. So she lighted a torch, and set forth, resolving never
+to come back until Proserpina was discovered.</p>
+<p>In her haste and trouble of mind, she quite forgot her car and
+the winged dragons; or, it may be, she thought that she could
+follow up the search more thoroughly on foot. At all events, this
+was the way in which she began her sorrowful journey, holding her
+torch before her, and looking carefully at every object along the
+path. And as it happened, she had not gone far before she found one
+of the magnificent flowers which grew on the shrub that Proserpina
+had pulled up.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ha!&rdquo; thought Mother Ceres, examining it by
+torchlight. &ldquo;Here is mischief in this flower! The earth did
+not produce it by any help of mine, nor of its own accord. It is
+the work of enchantment, and is therefore poisonous; and perhaps it
+has poisoned my poor child.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But she put the poisonous flower in her bosom, not knowing
+whether she might ever find any other memorial of Proserpina.</p>
+<p>All night long, at the door of every cottage and farmhouse,
+Ceres knocked, and called up the weary laborers to inquire if they
+had seen her child; and they stood, gaping and half asleep, at the
+threshold, and answered her pityingly, and besought her to come in
+and rest. At the portal of every palace, too, she made so loud a
+summons that the menials hurried to throw open the gate, thinking
+that it must be some great king or queen, who would demand a
+banquet for supper and a stately chamber to repose in. And when
+they saw only a sad and anxious woman, with a torch in her hand and
+a wreath of withered poppies on her head, they spoke rudely, and
+sometimes threatened to set the dogs upon her. But nobody had seen
+Proserpina, nor could give Mother Ceres the least hint which way to
+seek her. Thus passed the night; and still she continued her search
+without sitting down to rest, or stopping to take food, or even
+remembering to put down the torch; although first the rosy dawn,
+and then the glad light of the morning sun, made its red flame look
+thin and pale. But I wonder what sort of stuff this torch was made
+of; for it burned dimly through the day, and at night was as bright
+as ever, and never was extinguished by the rain or wind, in all the
+weary days and nights while Ceres was seeking for Proserpina.</p>
+<p>It was not merely of human beings that she asked tidings of her
+daughter. In the woods and by the streams, she met creatures of
+another nature, who used, in those old times, to haunt the pleasant
+and solitary places, and were very sociable with persons who
+understood their language and customs, as Mother Ceres did.
+Sometimes, for instance, she tapped with her finger against the
+knotted trunk of a majestic oak; and immediately its rude bark
+would cleave asunder, and forth would step a beautiful maiden, who
+was the hamadryad of the oak, dwelling inside of it, and sharing
+its long life, and rejoicing when its green leaves sported with the
+breeze. But not one of these leafy damsels had seen Proserpina.
+Then, going a little farther, Ceres would, perhaps, come to a
+fountain, gushing out of a pebbly hollow in the earth, and would
+dabble with her hand in the water. Behold, up through its sandy and
+pebbly bed, along with the fountain&rsquo;s gush, a young woman
+with dripping hair would arise, and stand gazing at Mother Ceres,
+half out of the water, and undulating up and down with its
+ever-restless motion. But when the mother asked whether her poor
+lost child had stopped to drink out of the fountain, the naiad,
+with weeping eyes (for these water-nymphs had tears to spare for
+everybody&rsquo;s grief), would answer, &ldquo;No!&rdquo; in a
+murmuring voice, which was just like the murmur of the stream.</p>
+<p>Often, likewise, she encountered fauns, who looked like sunburnt
+country people, except that they had hairy ears, and little horns
+upon their foreheads, and the hinder legs of goats, on which they
+gamboled merrily about the woods and fields. They were a frolicsome
+kind of creature, but grew as sad as their cheerful dispositions
+would allow when Ceres inquired for her daughter, and they had no
+good news to tell. But sometimes she came suddenly upon a rude gang
+of satyrs, who had faces like monkeys and horses&rsquo; tails
+behind them, and who were generally dancing in a very boisterous
+manner, with shouts of noisy laughter. When she stopped to question
+them, they would only laugh the louder, and make new merriment out
+of the lone woman&rsquo;s distress. How unkind of those ugly
+satyrs! And once, while crossing a solitary sheep pasture, she saw
+a personage named Pan, seated at the foot of a tall rock. And
+making music on a shepherd&rsquo;s flute. He, too, had horns and
+hairy ears, and goat&rsquo;s feet; but being acquainted with Mother
+Ceres, he answered her question as civilly as he knew how, and
+invited her to taste some milk and honey out of a wooden bowl. But
+neither could Pan tell her what had become of Proserpina, any
+better than the rest of these wild people.</p>
+<p>And thus Mother Ceres went wandering about for nine long days
+and nights, finding no trace of Proserpina, unless it were now and
+then a withered flower; and these, she picked up and put in her
+bosom, because she fancied that they might have fallen from her
+poor child&rsquo;s hand. All day she traveled onward through the
+hot sun; and at night, again, the flame of the torch would redden
+and gleam along the pathway, and she continued her search by its
+light, without ever sitting down to rest.</p>
+<p>On the tenth day, she chanced to espy the mouth of a cavern,
+within which (though it was bright noon everywhere else) there
+would have been only a dusky twilight: but it so happened that a
+torch was burning there. It flickered and struggled with the
+duskiness, but could not half light up the gloomy cavern with all
+its melancholy glimmer. Ceres was resolved to leave no spot without
+a search; so she peeped into the entrance of the cave, and lighted
+it up a little more by holding her own torch before her. In so
+doing, she caught a glimpse of what seemed to be a woman, sitting
+on the brown leaves of the last autumn, a great heap of which had
+been swept into the cave by the wind. This woman (if woman it were)
+was by no means so beautiful as many of her sex: for her head, they
+tell me, was shaped very much like a dog&rsquo;s, and, by way of
+ornament, she wore a wreath of snakes around it. But Mother Ceres,
+the moment she saw her, knew that this was an odd kind of a person,
+who put all her enjoyment in being miserable, and never would have
+a word to say to other people, unless they were as melancholy and
+wretched as she herself delighted to be.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I am wretched enough now,&rdquo; thought poor Ceres,
+&ldquo;to talk with this melancholy Hecate, were she ten times
+sadder than ever she was yet.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So she stepped into the cave, and sat down, on the withered
+leaves by the dog-headed woman&rsquo;s side. In all the world,
+since her daughter&rsquo;s loss, she had found no other
+companion.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;O Hecate.&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;if ever you lose a
+daughter, you will know what sorrow is. Tell me, for pity&rsquo;s
+sake, have you seen my poor child Proserpina pass by the mouth of
+your cavern?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;No.&rdquo; answered Hecate, in a cracked voice, and
+sighing betwixt every word or two.&mdash;&ldquo;no. Mother Ceres, I
+have seen nothing of your daughter. But my ears, you must know, are
+made in such a way that all cries of distress and affright, all
+over the world, are pretty sure to find their way to them: and nine
+days ago, as I sat in my cave, making myself very miserable. I
+heard the voice of a young girl, shrieking as if in great distress.
+Something terrible has happened to the child, you may rest assured.
+As well as I could judge, a dragon, or some other cruel monster,
+was carrying her away.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You kill me by saying so,&rdquo; cried Ceres, almost
+ready to faint. &ldquo;Where was the sound, and which way did it
+seem to go?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It passed very swiftly along,&rdquo; said Hecate,
+&ldquo;and, at the same time, there was a heavy rumbling of wheels
+towards the eastward. I can tell you nothing more, except that, in
+my honest opinion, you will never see your daughter again. The best
+advice I can give you is to take up your abode in this cavern,
+where we will be the two most wretched women in the
+world.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Not yet, dark Hecate.&rdquo; replied Ceres, &ldquo;But do
+you first come with your torch, and help me to seek for my lost
+child. And when there shall be no more hope of finding her (if that
+black day is ordained to come), then, if you will give me room to
+fling myself down, either on these withered leaves or on the naked
+rock, I will show you what it is to be miserable. But until I know
+that she has perished from the face of the earth, I will not allow
+myself space even to grieve.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The dismal Hecate did not much like the idea of going abroad
+into the sunny world. But then she reflected that the sorrow of the
+disconsolate Ceres would be like a gloomy twilight round about them
+both, let the sun shine ever so brightly, and that therefore she
+might enjoy her bad spirits quite as well as if she were to stay in
+the cave. So she finally consented to go, and they set out
+together, both carrying torches, although it was broad daylight and
+clear sunshine. The torchlight seemed to make a gloom; so that the
+people whom they met along the road could not very distinctly see
+their figures; and, indeed, if they once caught a glimpse of
+Hecate, with the wreath of snakes round her forehead, they
+generally thought it prudent to run away, without waiting for a
+second glance.</p>
+<p>As the pair traveled along in this woebegone manner, a thought
+struck Ceres.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;There is one person.&rdquo; she exclaimed, &ldquo;who
+must have seen my poor child, and can doubtless tell what has
+become of her. Why did not I think of him before? It is
+Ph&oelig;bus.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What,&rdquo; said Hecate, &ldquo;the young man that
+always sits in the sunshine? Oh, pray do not think of going near
+him. He is a gay, light, frivolous young fellow, and will only
+smile in your face. And besides, there is such a glare of the sun
+about him, that he will quite blind my poor eyes, which I have
+almost wept away already.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You have promised to be my companion,&rdquo; answered
+Ceres. &ldquo;Come, let us make haste, or the sunshine will be
+gone, and Ph&oelig;bus along with it.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Accordingly, they went along in quest of Ph&oelig;bus, both of
+them, sighing grievously, and Hecate, to say the truth, making a
+great deal worse lamentation than Ceres; for all the pleasure she
+had, you know, lay in being miserable, and therefore she made the
+most of it. By and by, after a pretty long journey, they arrived at
+the sunniest spot in the whole world. There they beheld a beautiful
+young man, with long, curling ringlets, which seemed to be made of
+golden sunbeams; his garments were like light summer clouds; and
+the expression of his face was so exceedingly vivid, that Hecate
+held her hands before her eyes, muttering that he ought to wear a
+black veil. Ph&oelig;bus (for this was the very person whom they
+were seeking) had a lyre in his hands, and was making its chords
+tremble with sweet music; at the same time singing a most exquisite
+song, which he had recently composed. For besides a great many
+other accomplishments, this young man was renowned for his
+admirable poetry.</p>
+<p>As Ceres and her dismal companion approached him, Ph&oelig;bus
+smiled on them so cheerfully that Hecate&rsquo;s wreath of snakes
+gave a spiteful hiss, and Hecate heartily wished herself back in
+her cave. But as for Ceres, she was too earnest in her grief either
+to know or care whether Ph&oelig;bus smiled or frowned.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ph&oelig;bus!&rdquo; exclaimed she, &ldquo;I am in great
+trouble, and have come to you for assistance. Can you tell me what
+has become of my dear child Proserpina?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Proserpina! Proserpina, did you call her name?&rdquo;
+answered Ph&oelig;bus, endeavoring to recollect; for there was such
+a continual flow of pleasant ideas in his mind that he was apt to
+forget what had happened no longer ago than yesterday. &ldquo;Ah,
+yes, I remember her now. A very lovely child, indeed. I am happy to
+tell you, my dear madam, that I did see the little Proserpina not
+many days ago. You may make yourself perfectly easy about her. She
+is safe, and in excellent hands.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, where is my dear child?&rdquo; cried Ceres, clasping
+her hands and flinging herself at his feet.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Why,&rdquo; said Ph&oelig;bus,&mdash;and as he spoke, he
+kept touching his lyre so as to make a thread of music run in and
+out among his words,&mdash;&ldquo;as the little damsel was
+gathering flowers (and she has really a very exquisite taste for
+flowers) she was suddenly snatched up by King Pluto, and carried
+off to his dominions. I have never been in that part of the
+universe; but the royal palace, I am told, is built in a very noble
+style of architecture, and of the most splendid and costly
+materials. Gold, diamonds, pearls, and all manner of precious
+stones will be your daughter&rsquo;s ordinary playthings. I
+recommend to you, my dear lady, to give yourself no uneasiness.
+Proserpina&rsquo;s sense of beauty will be duly gratified, and,
+even in spite of the lack of sunshine, she will lead a very
+enviable life.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Hush! Say not such a word!&rdquo; answered Ceres
+indignantly. &ldquo;What is there to gratify her heart? What are
+all the splendors you speak of, without affection? I must have her
+back again. Will you go with me, Ph&oelig;bus, to demand my
+daughter of this wicked Pluto?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Pray excuse me,&rdquo; replied Ph&oelig;bus, with an
+elegant obeisance. &ldquo;I certainly wish you success, and regret
+that my own affairs are so immediately pressing that I cannot have
+the pleasure of attending you. Besides, I am not upon the best of
+terms with King Pluto. To tell you the truth, his three-headed
+mastiff would never let me pass the gateway; for I should be
+compelled to take a sheaf of sunbeams along with me, and those, you
+know, are forbidden things in Pluto&rsquo;s kingdom.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah, Ph&oelig;bus,&rdquo; said Ceres, with bitter meaning
+in her words, &ldquo;you have a harp instead of a heart.
+Farewell.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Will not you stay a moment,&rdquo; asked Ph&oelig;bus,
+&ldquo;and hear me turn the pretty and touching story of Proserpina
+into extemporary verses?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Ceres shook her head, and hastened away, along with Hecate.
+Ph&oelig;bus (who, as I have told you, was an exquisite poet)
+forthwith began to make an ode about the poor mother&rsquo;s grief;
+and, if we were to judge of his sensibility by this beautiful
+production, he must have been endowed with a very tender heart. But
+when a poet gets into the habit of using his heartstrings to make
+chords for his lyre, he may thrum upon them as much as he will,
+without any great pain to himself. Accordingly, though Ph&oelig;bus
+sang a very sad song, he was as merry all the while as were the
+sunbeams amid which he dwelt.</p>
+<p>Poor Mother Ceres had now found out what had become of her
+daughter, but was not a whit happier than before. Her case, on the
+contrary, looked more desperate than ever. As long as Proserpina
+was above ground there might have been hopes of regaining her. But
+now that the poor child was shut up within the iron gates of the
+king of the mines, at the threshold of which lay the three-headed
+Cerberus, there seemed no possibility of her ever making her
+escape. The dismal Hecate, who loved to take the darkest view of
+things, told Ceres that she had better come with her to the cavern,
+and spend the rest of her life in being miserable. Ceres answered
+that Hecate was welcome to go back thither herself, but that, for
+her part, she would wander about the earth in quest of the entrance
+to King Pluto&rsquo;s dominions. And Hecate took her at her word,
+and hurried back to her beloved cave, frightening a great many
+little children with a glimpse of her dog&rsquo;s face, as she
+went.</p>
+<p>Poor Mother Ceres! It is melancholy to think of her, pursuing
+her toilsome way all alone, and holding up that never-dying torch,
+the flame of which seemed an emblem of the grief and hope that
+burned together in her heart. So much did she suffer, that, though
+her aspect had been quite youthful when her troubles began, she
+grew to look like an elderly person in a very brief time. She cared
+not how she was dressed, nor had she ever thought of flinging away
+the wreath of withered poppies, which she put on the very morning
+of Proserpina&rsquo;s disappearance. She roamed about in so wild a
+way, and with her hair so dishevelled, that people took her for
+some distracted creature, and never dreamed that this was Mother
+Ceres, who had the oversight of every seed which the husbandman
+planted. Nowadays, however, she gave herself no trouble about
+seed-time nor harvest, but left the farmers to take care of their
+own affairs, and the crops to fade or flourish, as the case might
+be. There was nothing, now, in which Ceres seemed to feel an
+interest, unless when she saw children at play or gathering flowers
+along the wayside. Then, indeed, she would stand and gaze at them
+with tears in her eyes. The children, too, appeared to have a
+sympathy with her grief, and would cluster themselves in a little
+group about her knees, and look up wistfully in her face; and
+Ceres, after giving them a kiss all around, would lead them to
+their homes, and advise their mothers never to let them stray out
+of sight.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;For if you do,&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;it may happen to
+you, as it has to me, that the iron-hearted King Pluto will take a
+liking to your darlings, and snatch them up in his chariot, and
+carry them away.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>One day, during her pilgrimage in quest of the entrance to
+Pluto&rsquo;s kingdom, she came to the palace of King Celeus, who
+reigned at Eleusis. Ascending a lofty flight of steps, she entered
+the portal, and found the royal household in very great alarm about
+the queen&rsquo;s baby. The infant, it seems, was sickly (being
+troubled with its teeth, I suppose), and would take no food, and
+was all the time moaning with pain. The queen&mdash;her name was
+Metanira&mdash;was desirous of finding a nurse; and when she beheld
+a woman of matronly aspect coming up the palace steps, she thought,
+in her own mind that here was the very person whom she needed. So
+Queen Metanira ran to the door, with the poor wailing baby in her
+arms, and besought Ceres to take charge of it, or, at least, to
+tell her what would do it good.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Will you trust the child entirely to me?&rdquo; asked
+Ceres.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, and gladly too,&rdquo; answered the queen, &ldquo;if
+you will devote all your time to him. For I can see that you have
+been a mother.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You are right,&rdquo; said Ceres. &ldquo;I once had a
+child of my own. Well, I will be the nurse of this poor, sickly
+boy. But beware, I warn you, that you do not interfere with any
+kind of treatment which I may judge proper for him. If you do so,
+the poor infant must suffer for his mother&rsquo;s
+folly.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then she kissed the child, and it seemed to do him good, for he
+smiled and nestled closely into her bosom.</p>
+<p>So Mother Ceres set her torch in a corner (where it kept burning
+all the while), and took up her abode in the palace of King Celeus,
+as nurse to the little Prince Demoph&ouml;on. She treated him as if
+he were her own child, and allowed neither the king nor the queen
+to say whether he should be bathed in warm or cold water, or what
+he should eat, or how often he should take the air, or when he
+should be put to bed. You would hardly believe me, if I were to
+tell how quickly the baby prince got rid of his ailments, and grew
+fat, and rosy, and strong, and how he had two rows of ivory teeth
+in less time than any other little fellow, before or since. Instead
+of the palest, and wretchedest, and puniest imp in the world (as
+his own mother confessed him to be when Ceres first took him in
+charge), he was now a strapping baby, crowing, laughing, kicking up
+his heels, and rolling from one end of the room to the other. All
+the good women of the neighborhood crowded to the palace, and held
+up their hands, in unutterable amazement, at the beauty and
+wholesomeness of this darling little prince. Their wonder was the
+greater, because he was never seen to taste any food,&mdash;not
+even so much as a cup of milk.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Pray, nurse,&rdquo; the queen kept saying, &ldquo;how is
+it that you make the child thrive so?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I was a mother once,&rdquo; Ceres replied always;
+&ldquo;and having nursed my own child, I know what other children
+need.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Queen Metanira, as was very natural, had a great curiosity
+to know precisely what the nurse did to her child. One night,
+therefore, she hid herself in the chamber where Ceres and the
+little prince were accustomed to sleep. There was a fire in the
+chimney, and it had now crumbled into great coals and embers, which
+lay glowing on the hearth, with a blaze flickering up now and then,
+and flinging a warm and ruddy light upon the walls. Ceres sat
+before the hearth with the child in her lap, and the firelight
+making her shadow dance upon the ceiling overhead. She undressed
+the little prince, and bathed him all over with some fragrant
+liquid out of a vase. The next thing she did was to rake back the
+red embers, and make a hollow place among them, just where the
+backlog had been. At last, while the baby was crowing and clapping
+its fat little hands, and laughing in the nurse&rsquo;s face (just
+as you may have seen your little brother or sister do before going
+into its warm bath), Ceres suddenly laid him, all naked as he was,
+in the hollow, among the red-hot embers. She then raked the ashes
+over him, and turned quietly away.</p>
+<p>You may imagine, if you can, how Queen Metanira shrieked,
+thinking nothing less than that her dear child would be burned to a
+cinder. She burst forth from her hiding-place, and running to the
+hearth, raked open the fire, and snatched up poor little Prince
+Demoph&ouml;on out of his bed of live coals, one of which he was
+griping in each of his fists. He immediately set up a grievous cry,
+as babies are apt to do when rudely startled out of a sound sleep.
+To the queen&rsquo;s astonishment and joy, she could perceive no
+token of the child&rsquo;s being injured by the hot fire in which
+he had lain. She now turned to Mother Ceres, and asked her to
+explain the mystery.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Foolish woman,&rdquo; answered Ceres, &ldquo;did you not
+promise to intrust this poor infant entirely to me? You little know
+the mischief you have done him. Had you left him to my care, he
+would have grown up like a child of celestial birth, endowed with
+superhuman strength and intelligence, and would have lived forever.
+Do you imagine that earthly children are to become immortal without
+being tempered to it in the fiercest heat of the fire? But you have
+ruined your own son. For though he will be a strong man and a hero
+in his day, yet, on account of your folly, he will grow old, and
+finally die, like the sons of other women. The weak tenderness of
+his mother has cost the poor boy an immortality.
+Farewell.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Saying these words, she kissed the little prince Demoph&ouml;on,
+and sighed to think what he had lost, and took her departure
+without heeding Queen Metanira, who entreated her to remain, and
+cover up the child among the hot embers as often as she pleased.
+Poor baby! He never slept so warmly again.</p>
+<p>While she dwelt in the king&rsquo;s palace, Mother Ceres had
+been so continually occupied with taking care of the young prince,
+that her heart was a little lightened of its grief for Proserpina.
+But now, having nothing else to busy herself about, she became just
+as wretched as before. At length, in her despair, she came to the
+dreadful resolution that not a stalk of grain, nor a blade of
+grass, not a potato, nor a turnip, nor any other vegetable that was
+good for man or beast to eat, should be suffered to grow until her
+daughter were restored. She even forbade the flowers to bloom, lest
+somebody&rsquo;s heart should be cheered by their beauty.</p>
+<p>Now, as not so much as a head of asparagus ever presumed to poke
+itself out of the ground, without the especial permission of Ceres,
+you may conceive what a terrible calamity had here fallen upon the
+earth. The husbandmen ploughed and planted as usual; but there lay
+the rich black furrows, all as barren as a desert of sand. The
+pastures looked as brown in the sweet month of June as ever they
+did in chill November. The rich man&rsquo;s broad acres and the
+cottager&rsquo;s small garden-patch were equally blighted. Every
+little girl&rsquo;s flower-bed showed nothing but dry stalks. The
+old people shook their white heads, and said that the earth had
+grown aged like themselves, and was no longer capable of wearing
+the warm smile of summer on its face. It was really piteous to see
+the poor starving cattle and sheep, how they followed behind Ceres,
+lowing and bleating, as if their instinct taught them to expect
+help from her; and everybody that was acquainted with her power
+besought her to have mercy on the human race, and, at all events,
+to let the grass grow. But Mother Ceres, though naturally of an
+affectionate disposition, was now inexorable.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Never,&rdquo; said she. &ldquo;If the earth is ever again
+to see any verdure, it must first grow along the path which my
+daughter will tread in coming back to me.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Finally, as there seemed to be no other remedy, our old friend
+Quicksilver was sent post haste to King Pluto, in hopes that he
+might be persuaded to undo the mischief he had done, and to set
+everything right again, by giving up Proserpina. Quicksilver
+accordingly made the best of his way to the great gate, took a
+flying leap right over the three-headed mastiff, and stood at the
+door of the palace in an inconceivably short time. The servants
+knew him both by his face and garb; for his short cloak and his
+winged cap and shoes and his snaky staff had often been seen
+thereabouts in times gone by. He requested to be shown immediately
+into the king&rsquo;s presence; and Pluto, who heard his voice from
+the top of the stairs, and who loved to recreate himself with
+Quicksilver&rsquo;s merry talk, called out to him to come up. And
+while they settle their business together, we must inquire what
+Proserpina has been doing ever since we saw her last.</p>
+<p>The child had declared, as you may remember, that she would not
+taste a mouthful of food as long as she should be compelled to
+remain in King Pluto&rsquo;s palace. How she contrived to maintain
+her resolution, and at the same time to keep herself tolerably
+plump and rosy, is more than I can explain; but some young ladies,
+I am given to understand, possess the faculty of living on air, and
+Proserpina seems to have possessed it too. At any rate, it was now
+six months since she left the outside of the earth; and not a
+morsel, so far as the attendants were able to testify, had yet
+passed between her teeth. This was the more creditable to
+Proserpina, inasmuch as King Pluto had caused her to be tempted day
+after day, with all manner of sweetmeats, and richly preserved
+fruits, and delicacies of every sort, such as young people are
+generally most fond of. But her good mother had often told her of
+the hurtfulness of these things; and for that reason alone, if
+there had been no other, she would have resolutely refused to taste
+them.</p>
+<p>All this time, being of a cheerful and active disposition, the
+little damsel was not quite so unhappy as you may have supposed.
+The immense palace had a thousand rooms, and was full of beautiful
+and wonderful objects. There was a never-ceasing gloom, it is true,
+which half hid itself among the innumerable pillars, gliding before
+the child as she wandered among them, and treading stealthily
+behind her in the echo of her footsteps. Neither was all the dazzle
+of the precious stones, which flamed with their own light, worth
+one gleam of natural sunshine; nor could the most brilliant of the
+many-colored gems which Proserpina had for playthings vie with the
+simple beauty of the flowers she used to gather. But still,
+wherever the girl went, among those gilded halls and chambers, it
+seemed as if she carried nature and sunshine along with her, and as
+if she scattered dewy blossoms on her right hand and on her left.
+After Proserpina came, the palace was no longer the same abode of
+stately artifice and dismal magnificence that it had before been.
+The inhabitants all felt this, and King Pluto more than any of
+them.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;My own little Proserpina,&rdquo; he used to say, &ldquo;I
+wish you could like me a little better. We gloomy and
+cloudy-natured persons have often as warm hearts at bottom as those
+of a more cheerful character. If you would only stay with me of
+your own accord, it would make me happier than the possession of a
+hundred such palaces as this.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah,&rdquo; said Proserpina, &ldquo;you should have tried
+to make me like you before carrying me off. And the best thing you
+can do now is to let me go again. Then I might remember you
+sometimes, and think that you were as kind as you knew how to be.
+Perhaps, too, one day or other, I might come back, and pay you a
+visit.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;No, no,&rdquo; answered Pluto, with his gloomy smile,
+&ldquo;I will not trust you for that. You are too fond of living in
+the broad daylight, and gathering flowers. What an idle and
+childish taste that is! Are not these gems, which I have ordered to
+be dug for you, and which are richer than any in my
+crown,&mdash;are they not prettier than a violet?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Not half so pretty,&rdquo; said Proserpina, snatching the
+gems from Pluto&rsquo;s hand, and flinging them to the other end of
+the hall. &ldquo;Oh, my sweet violets, shall I never see you
+again?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And then she burst into tears. But young people&rsquo;s tears
+have very little saltness or acidity in them, and do not inflame
+the eyes so much as those of grown persons; so that it is not to be
+wondered at if, a few moments afterwards, Proserpina was sporting
+through the hall almost as merrily as she and the four sea-nymphs
+had sported along the edge of the surf wave, King Pluto gazed after
+her, and wished that he, too was a child. And little Proserpina,
+when she turned about, and beheld this great king standing in his
+splendid hall, and looking so grand, and so melancholy, and so
+lonesome, was smitten with a kind of pity. She ran back to him,
+and, for the first time in all her life, put her small, soft hand
+in his.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I love you a little,&rdquo; whispered she, looking up in
+his face.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Do you, indeed, my dear child?&rdquo; cried Pluto,
+bending his dark face down to kiss her; but Proserpina shrank away
+from the kiss, for though his features were noble, they were very
+dusky and grim. &ldquo;Well, I have not deserved it of you, after
+keeping you a prisoner for so many months, and starving you,
+besides. Are you not terribly hungry? Is there nothing which I can
+get you to eat?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>In asking this question, the king of the mines had a very
+cunning purpose; for, you will recollect, if Proserpina tasted a
+morsel of food in his dominions, she would never afterwards be at
+liberty to quit them.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;No, indeed,&rdquo; said Proserpina. &ldquo;Your head cook
+is always baking, and stewing, and roasting, and rolling out paste,
+and contriving one dish or another, which he imagines may be to my
+liking. But he might just as well save himself the trouble, poor,
+fat little man that he is. I have no appetite for anything in the
+world, unless it were a slice of bread of my mother&rsquo;s own
+baking, or a little fruit out of her garden.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>When Pluto heard this, he began to see that he had mistaken the
+best method of tempting Proserpina to eat. The cook&rsquo;s made
+dishes and artificial dainties were not half so delicious, in the
+good child&rsquo;s opinion, as the simple fare to which Mother
+Ceres had accustomed her. Wondering that he had never thought of it
+before, the king now sent one of his trusty attendants, with a
+large basket, to get some of the finest and juiciest pears,
+peaches, and plums which could anywhere be found in the upper
+world. Unfortunately, however, this was during the time when Ceres
+had forbidden any fruits or vegetables to grow; and, after seeking
+all over the earth, King Pluto&rsquo;s servants found only a single
+pomegranate, and that so dried up as to be not worth eating.
+Nevertheless, since there was no better to be had, he brought this
+dry, old, withered pomegranate home to the palace, put it on a
+magnificent golden salver, and carried it up to Proserpina. Now it
+happened, curiously enough, that, just as the servant was bringing
+the pomegranate into the back door of the palace, our friend
+Quicksilver had gone up the front steps, on his errand to get
+Proserpina away from King Pluto.</p>
+<p>As soon as Proserpina saw the pomegranate on the golden salver,
+she told the servant he had better take it away again.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I shall not touch it, I assure you,&rdquo; said she.
+&ldquo;If I were ever so hungry, I should never think of eating
+such a miserable, dry pomegranate as that.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It is the only one in the world,&rdquo; said the
+servant.</p>
+<p>He set down the golden salver, with the wizened pomegranate upon
+it, and left the room. When he was gone, Proserpina could not help
+coming close to the table, and looking at this poor specimen of
+dried fruit with a great deal of eagerness; for, to say the truth,
+on seeing something that suited her taste, she felt all the six
+months&rsquo; appetite taking possession of her at once. To be
+sure, it was a very wretched-looking pomegranate, and seemed to
+have no more juice in it than an oyster-shell. But there was no
+choice of such things in King Pluto&rsquo;s palace. This was the
+first fruit she had seen there, and the last she was ever likely to
+see; and unless she ate it up immediately, it would grow drier than
+it already was, and be wholly unfit to eat.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;At least, I may smell it,&rdquo; thought Proserpina.</p>
+<p>So she took up the pomegranate, and applied it to her nose; and,
+somehow or other, being in such close neighborhood to her mouth,
+the fruit found its way into that little red cave. Dear me! what an
+everlasting pity! Before Proserpina knew what she was about, her
+teeth had actually bitten it, of their own accord. Just as this
+fatal deed was done, the door of the apartment opened, and in came
+King Pluto, followed by Quicksilver, who had been urging him to let
+his little prisoner go. At the first noise of their entrance,
+Proserpina withdrew the pomegranate from her mouth. But Quicksilver
+(whose eyes were very keen, and his wits the sharpest that ever
+anybody had) perceived that the child was a little confused; and
+seeing the empty salver, he suspected that she had been taking a
+sly nibble of something or other. As for honest Pluto, he never
+guessed at the secret.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;My little Proserpina,&rdquo; said the king, sitting down,
+and affectionately drawing her between his knees, &ldquo;here is
+Quicksilver, who tells me that a great many misfortunes have
+befallen innocent people on account of my detaining you in my
+dominions. To confess the truth, I myself had already reflected
+that it was an unjustifiable act to take you away from your good
+mother. But, then, you must consider, my dear child, that this vast
+palace is apt to be gloomy (although the precious stones certainly
+shine very bright), and that I am not of the most cheerful
+disposition, and that therefore it was a natural thing enough to
+seek for the society of some merrier creature than myself. I hoped
+you would take my crown for a plaything, and me&mdash;ah, you
+laugh, naughty Proserpina&mdash;me, grim as I am, for a playmate.
+It was a silly expectation.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Not so extremely silly,&rdquo; whispered Proserpina.
+&ldquo;You have really amused me very much, sometimes.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Thank you,&rdquo; said King Pluto, rather dryly.
+&ldquo;But I can see, plainly enough, that you think my palace a
+dusky prison, and me the iron-hearted keeper of it. And an iron
+heart I should surely have, if I could detain you here any longer,
+my poor child, when it is now six months since you tasted food. I
+give you your liberty. Go with Quicksilver. Hasten home to your
+dear mother.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Now, although you may not have supposed it, Proserpina found it
+impossible to take leave of poor King Pluto without some regrets,
+and a good deal of compunction for not telling him about the
+pomegranate. She even shed a tear or two, thinking how lonely and
+cheerless the great palace would seem to him, with all its ugly
+glare of artificial light, after she herself,&mdash;his one little
+ray of natural sunshine, whom he had stolen, to be sure, but only
+because he valued her so much,&mdash;after she should have
+departed. I know not how many kind things she might have said to
+the disconsolate king of the mines, had not Quicksilver hurried her
+away.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Come along quickly,&rdquo; whispered he in her ear,
+&ldquo;or his majesty may change his royal mind. And take care,
+above all things, that you say nothing of what was brought you on
+the golden salver.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>In a very short time, they had passed the great gateway (leaving
+the three-headed Cerberus, barking and yelping, and growling, with
+threefold din, behind them), and emerged upon the surface of the
+earth. It was delightful to behold, as Proserpina hastened along,
+how the path grew verdant behind and on either side of her.
+Wherever she set her blessed foot, there was at once a dewy flower.
+The violets gushed up along the wayside. The grass and the grain
+began to sprout with tenfold vigor and luxuriance, to make up for
+the dreary months that had been wasted in barrenness. The starved
+cattle immediately set to work grazing, after their long fast, and
+ate enormously all day, and got up at midnight to eat more. But I
+can assure you it was a busy time of year with the farmers, when
+they found the summer coming upon them with such a rush. Nor must I
+forget to say that all the birds in the whole world hopped about
+upon the newly blossoming trees, and sang together in a prodigious
+ecstasy of joy.</p>
+<p>Mother Ceres had returned to her deserted home, and was sitting
+disconsolately on the doorstep, with her torch burning in her hand.
+She had been idly watching the flame for some moments past, when,
+all at once, it flickered and went out.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What does this mean?&rdquo; thought she. &ldquo;It was an
+enchanted torch, and should have kept burning till my child came
+back.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Lifting her eyes, she was surprised to see a sudden verdure
+flashing over the brown and barren fields, exactly as you may have
+observed a golden hue gleaming far and wide across the landscape,
+from the just risen sun.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Does the earth disobey me?&rdquo; exclaimed Mother Ceres
+indignantly. &ldquo;Does it presume to be green, when I have bidden
+it be barren until my daughter shall be restored to my
+arms?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Then open your arms, dear mother,&rdquo; cried a
+well-known voice, &ldquo;and take your little daughter into
+them.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Proserpina came running, and flung herself upon her
+mother&rsquo;s bosom. Their mutual transport is not to be
+described. The grief of their separation had caused both of them to
+shed a great many tears; and now they shed a great many more,
+because their joy could not so well express itself in any other
+way.</p>
+<p>When their hearts had grown a little more quiet, Mother Ceres
+looked anxiously at Proserpina.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;My child,&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;did you taste any food
+while you were in King Pluto&rsquo;s palace?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Dearest mother,&rdquo; answered Proserpina. &ldquo;I will
+tell you the whole truth. Until this very morning, not a morsel of
+food had passed my lips. But to-day, they brought me a pomegranate
+(a very dry one it was, and all shriveled up, till there was little
+left of it but seeds and skin), and having seen no fruit for so
+long a time, and being faint with hunger, I was tempted just to
+bite it. The instant I tasted it, King Pluto and Quicksilver came
+into the room. I had not swallowed a morsel; but&mdash;dear mother,
+I hope it was no harm&mdash;but six of the pomegranate seeds, I am
+afraid, remained in my mouth.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah, unfortunate child, and miserable me!&rdquo; exclaimed
+Ceres. &ldquo;For each of those six pomegranate seeds you must
+spend one month of each year in King Pluto&rsquo;s palace. You are
+but half restored to your mother. Only six months with me, and six
+with that good-for-nothing King of Darkness!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Do not speak so harshly of poor King Pluto,&rdquo; said
+Proserpina, kissing her mother. &ldquo;He has some very good
+qualities, and I really think I can bear to spend six months in his
+palace, if he will only let me spend the other six with you. He
+certainly did very wrong to carry me off; but then, as he says, it
+was but a dismal sort of life for him, to live in that great gloomy
+place, all alone; and it has made a wonderful change in his spirits
+to have a little girl to run up stairs and down. There is some
+comfort in making him so happy; and so, upon the whole, dearest
+mother, let us be thankful that he is not to keep me the whole year
+round.&rdquo;</p>
+<h2><a id="FolkStories" name="FolkStories">OLD GREEK
+FOLK-STORIES</a></h2>
+<h3><a id="Orpheus" name="Orpheus">Orpheus and Eurydice</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Josephine Preston Peabody</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>When gods and shepherds piped and the stars sang, that was the
+day of musicians! But the triumph of Ph&oelig;bus Apollo himself
+was not so wonderful as the triumph of a mortal man who lived on
+earth, though some say that he came of divine lineage. This was
+Orpheus, that best of harpers, who went with the Grecian heroes of
+the great ship Argo in search of the Golden Fleece.</p>
+<p>After his return from the quest, he won Eurydice for his wife,
+and they were as happy as people can be who love each other and
+every one else. The very wild beasts loved them, and the trees
+clustered about their home as if they were watered with music. But
+even the gods themselves were not always free from sorrow, and one
+day misfortune came upon that harper Orpheus whom all men loved to
+honor.</p>
+<p>Eurydice, his lovely wife, as she was wandering with the nymphs,
+unwittingly trod upon a serpent in the grass. Surely, if Orpheus
+had been with her, playing upon his lyre, no creature could have
+harmed her. But Orpheus came too late. She died of the sting, and
+was lost to him in the Underworld.</p>
+<p>For days he wandered from his home, singing the story of his
+loss and his despair to the helpless passers-by. His grief moved
+the very stones in the wilderness, and roused a dumb distress in
+the hearts of savage beasts. Even the gods on Mount Olympus gave
+ear, but they held no power over the darkness of Hades.</p>
+<p>Wherever Orpheus wandered with his lyre, no one had the will to
+forbid him entrance; and at length he found unguarded that very
+cave that leads to the Underworld, where Pluto rules the spirits of
+the dead. He went down without fear. The fire in his living heart
+found him a way through the gloom of that place. He crossed the
+Styx, the black river that the Gods name as their most sacred oath.
+Charon, the harsh old ferryman who takes the shades across, forgot
+to ask of him the coin that every soul must pay. For Orpheus sang.
+There in the Underworld the song of Apollo would not have moved the
+poor ghosts so much. It would have amazed them, like a star far off
+that no one understands. But here was a human singer, and he sang
+of things that grow in every human heart, youth and love and death,
+the sweetness of the Earth, and the bitterness of losing aught that
+is dear to us.</p>
+<p>Now the dead, when they go to the Underworld, drink of the pool
+of Lethe; and forgetfulness of all that has passed comes upon them
+like a sleep, and they lose their longing for the world, they lose
+their memory of pain, and live content with that cool twilight. But
+not the pool of Lethe itself could withstand the song of Orpheus;
+and in the hearts of the shades all the old dreams awoke wondering.
+They remembered once more the life of men on earth, the glory of
+the sun and moon, the sweetness of new grass, the warmth of their
+homes, all the old joy and grief that they had known. And they
+wept.</p>
+<p>Even the Furies were moved to pity. Those, too, who were
+suffering punishment for evil deeds ceased to be tormented for
+themselves, and grieved only for the innocent Orpheus who had lost
+Eurydice. Sisyphus, that fraudulent king (who is doomed to roll a
+monstrous boulder uphill forever), stopped to listen. The daughters
+of Danaus left off their task of drawing water in a sieve. Tantalus
+forgot hunger and thirst, though before his eyes hung magical
+fruits that were wont to vanish out of his grasp, and just beyond
+reach bubbled the water that was a torment to his ears; he did not
+hear it while Orpheus sang.</p>
+<p>So, among a crowd of eager ghosts, Orpheus came, singing with
+all his heart, before the king and queen of Hades. And the queen
+Proserpina wept as she listened and grew homesick, remembering the
+fields of Enna and the growing of the wheat, and her own beautiful
+mother, Demeter. Then Pluto gave way.</p>
+<p>They called Eurydice and she came, like a young guest unused to
+the darkness of the Underworld. She was to return with Orpheus, but
+on one condition. If he turned to look at her once before they
+reached the upper air, he must lose her again and go back to the
+world alone.</p>
+<p>Rapt with joy, the happy Orpheus hastened on the way, thinking
+only of Eurydice, who was following him. Past Lethe, across the
+Styx they went, he and his lovely wife, still silent as a shade.
+But the place was full of gloom, the silence weighed upon him, he
+had not seen her for so long; her footsteps made no sound; and he
+could hardly believe the miracle, for Pluto seldom relents. When
+the first gleam of upper daylight broke through the cleft to the
+dismal world, he forgot all, save that he must know if she still
+followed. He turned to see her face, and the promise was
+broken!</p>
+<p>She smiled at him forgivingly, but it was too late. He stretched
+out his arms to take her, but she faded from them, as the bright
+snow, that none may keep, melts in our very hands. A murmur of
+farewell came to his ears,&mdash;no more. She was gone.</p>
+<p>He would have followed, but Charon, now on guard, drove him
+back. Seven days he lingered there between the worlds of life and
+death, but after the broken promise Hades would not listen to his
+song. Back to the earth he wandered, though it was sweet to him no
+longer. He died young, singing to the last, and round about the
+place where his body rested, nightingales nested in the trees. His
+lyre was set among the stars; and he himself went down to join
+Eurydice, unforbidden.</p>
+<p>Those two had no need of Lethe, for their life on earth had been
+wholly fair, and now that they are together they no longer own a
+sorrow.</p>
+<h3><a id="Icarus" name="Icarus">Icarus and D&aelig;dalus</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Josephine Preston Peabody</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Among all those mortals who grew so wise that they learned the
+secrets of the gods, none was more cunning than D&aelig;dalus.</p>
+<p>He once built, for King Minos of Crete, a wonderful Labyrinth of
+winding ways so cunningly tangled up and twisted around that, once
+inside, you could never find your way out again without a magic
+clue. But the king&rsquo;s favor veered with the wind, and one day
+he had his master architect imprisoned in a tower. D&aelig;dalus
+managed to escape from his cell; but it seemed impossible to leave
+the island, since every ship that came or went was well guarded by
+order of the king.</p>
+<p>At length, watching the sea-gulls in the air,&mdash;the only
+creatures that were sure of liberty,&mdash;he thought of a plan for
+himself and his young son Icarus, who was captive with him.</p>
+<p>Little by little, he gathered a store of feathers great and
+small. He fastened these together with thread, moulded them in with
+wax, and so fashioned two great wings like those of a bird. When
+they were done, D&aelig;dalus fitted them to his own shoulders, and
+after one or two efforts, he found that by waving his arms he could
+winnow the air and cleave it, as a swimmer does the sea. He held
+himself aloft, wavered this way and that, with the wind, and at
+last, like a great fledgling, he learned to fly.</p>
+<p>Without delay, he fell to work on a pair of wings for the boy
+Icarus, and taught him carefully how to use them, bidding him
+beware of rash adventures among the stars. &ldquo;Remember,&rdquo;
+said the father, &ldquo;never to fly very low or very high, for the
+fogs about the earth would weigh you down, but the blaze of the sun
+will surely melt your feathers apart if you go too near.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>For Icarus, these cautions went in at one ear and out by the
+other. Who could remember to be careful when he was to fly for the
+first time? Are birds careful? Not they! And not an idea remained
+in the boy&rsquo;s head but the one joy of escape.</p>
+<p>The day came, and the fair wind that was to set them free. The
+father bird put on his wings, and, while the light urged them to be
+gone, he waited to see that all was well with Icarus, for the two
+could not fly hand in hand. Up they rose, the boy after his father.
+The hateful ground of Crete sank beneath them; and the country
+folk, who caught a glimpse of them when they were high above the
+tree-tops, took it for a vision of the gods,&mdash;Apollo, perhaps,
+with Cupid after him.</p>
+<p>At first there was a terror in the joy. The wide vacancy of the
+air dazed them,&mdash;a glance downward made their brains reel. But
+when a great wind filled their wings, and Icarus felt himself
+sustained, like a halcyon-bird in the hollow of a wave, like a
+child uplifted by his mother, he forgot everything in the world but
+joy. He forgot Crete and the other islands that he had passed over:
+he saw but vaguely that winged thing in the distance before him
+that was his father D&aelig;dalus. He longed for one draught of
+flight to quench the thirst of his captivity: he stretched out his
+arms to the sky and made towards the highest heavens.</p>
+<p>Alas for him! Warmer and warmer grew the air. Those arms, that
+had seemed to uphold him, relaxed. His wings wavered, drooped. He
+fluttered his young hands vainly,&mdash;he was falling,&mdash;and
+in that terror he remembered. The heat of the sun had melted the
+wax from his wings; the feathers were falling, one by one, like
+snowflakes; and there was none to help.</p>
+<p>He fell like a leaf tossed down the wind, down, down, with one
+cry that overtook D&aelig;dalus far away. When he returned, and
+sought high and low for the poor boy, he saw nothing but the
+bird-like feathers afloat on the water, and he knew that Icarus was
+drowned.</p>
+<p>The nearest island he named Icaria, in memory of the child; but
+he, in heavy grief, went to the temple of Apollo in Sicily, and
+there hung up his wings as an offering. Never again did he attempt
+to fly.</p>
+<h3><a id="Phaethon" name="Phaethon">Phaethon</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Josephine Preston Peabody</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Once upon a time, the reckless whim of a lad came near to
+destroying the Earth and robbing the spheres of their wits.</p>
+<p>There were two playmates, said to be of heavenly parentage. One
+was Epaphus, who claimed Zeus as a father; and one was Phaethon,
+the earthly child of Ph&oelig;bus Apollo (or Helios, as some name
+the sun-god). One day they were boasting together, each of his own
+father, and Epaphus, angry at the other&rsquo;s fine story, dared
+him to go prove his kinship with the Sun.</p>
+<p>Full of rage and humiliation, Phaethon went to his mother,
+Clymene, where she sat with his young sisters, the Heliades.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It is true, my child,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;I swear it
+in the light of yonder Sun. If you have any doubt, go to the land
+whence he rises at morning and ask of him any gift you will; he is
+your father, and he cannot refuse you.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>As soon as might be, Phaethon set out for the country of
+sunrise. He journeyed by day and by night far into the east, till
+he came to the palace of the Sun. It towered high as the clouds,
+glorious with gold and all manner of gems that looked like frozen
+fire, if that might be. The mighty walls were wrought with images
+of earth and sea and sky. Vulcan, the smith of the Gods, had made
+them in his workshop (for Mount &AElig;tna is one of his forges,
+and he has the central fires of the earth to help him fashion gold
+and iron, as men do glass). On the doors blazed the twelve signs of
+the Zodiac, in silver that shone like snow in the sunlight.
+Phaethon was dazzled with the sight, but when he entered the palace
+hall he could hardly bear the radiance.</p>
+<p>In one glimpse through his half-shut eyes, he beheld a glorious
+being, none other than Ph&oelig;bus himself, seated upon a throne.
+He was clothed in purple raiment, and round his head there shone a
+blinding light, that enveloped even his courtiers upon the right
+and upon the left,&mdash;the Seasons with their emblems, Day,
+Month, Year, and the beautiful young Hours in a row. In one glance
+of those all-seeing eyes, the sun-god knew his child; but in order
+to try him he asked the boy his errand.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;O my father,&rdquo; stammered Phaethon, &ldquo;if you are
+my father indeed&rdquo;&mdash;and then he took courage; for the god
+came down from his throne, put off the glorious halo that hurt
+mortal eyes, and embraced him tenderly.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Indeed, thou art my son,&rdquo; said he. &ldquo;Ask any
+gift of me, and it shall be thine; I call the Styx to
+witness.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; cried Phaethon rapturously. &ldquo;Let me
+drive thy chariot for one day!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>For an instant the Sun&rsquo;s looks clouded. &ldquo;Choose
+again, my child,&rdquo; said he. &ldquo;Thou art only a mortal, and
+this task is mine alone of all the Gods. Not Zeus himself dare
+drive the chariot of the Sun. The way is full of terrors, both for
+the horses and for all the stars along the roadside, and for the
+Earth, who has all blessings from me. Listen, and choose
+again.&rdquo; And therewith he warned Phaethon of all the dangers
+that beset the way,&mdash;the great steep that the steeds must
+climb, the numbing dizziness of the height, the fierce
+constellations that breathe out fire, and that descent in the west
+where the Sun seems to go headlong.</p>
+<p>But these counsels only made the reckless boy more eager to win
+honor of such a high enterprise.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I will take care; only let me go,&rdquo; he begged.</p>
+<p>Now Ph&oelig;bus had sworn by the black river Styx, an oath that
+none of the Gods dare break, and he was forced to keep his
+promise.</p>
+<p>Already Aurora, goddess of dawn, had thrown open the gates of
+the east, and the stars were beginning to wane. The Hours came
+forth to harness the four horses, and Phaethon looked with
+exultation at the splendid creatures, whose lord he was for a day.
+Wild, immortal steeds they were, fed with ambrosia, untamed as the
+winds; their very pet names signified flame, and all that flame can
+do,&mdash;Pyrois, Eo&uuml;s, &AElig;thon, Phlegon.</p>
+<p>As the lad stood by, watching, Ph&oelig;bus anointed his face
+with a philter that should make him strong to endure the terrible
+heat and light, then set the halo upon his head, with a last word
+of counsel.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Follow the road,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;and never turn
+aside. Go not too high or too low, for the sake of heavens and
+earth; else men and Gods will suffer. The Fates alone know whether
+evil is to come of this. Yet if your heart fails you, as I hope,
+abide here and I will make the journey, as I am wont to
+do.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Phaethon held to his choice and bade his father farewell. He
+took his place in the chariot, gathered up the reins, and the
+horses sprang away, eager for the road.</p>
+<p>As they went, they bent their splendid necks to see the meaning
+of the strange hand upon the reins,&mdash;the slender weight in the
+chariot. They turned their wild eyes upon Phaethon, to his secret
+foreboding, and neighed one to another. This was no master
+charioteer, but a mere lad, a feather riding the wind. It was
+holiday for the horses of the Sun, and away they went.</p>
+<p>Grasping the reins that dragged him after, like an enemy,
+Phaethon looked down from the fearful ascent and saw the Earth far
+beneath him, dim and fair. He was blind with dizziness and
+bewilderment. His hold slackened and the horses redoubled their
+speed, wild with new liberty. They left the old tracks. Before he
+knew where he was, they had startled the constellations and
+well-nigh grazed the Serpent, so that it woke from its torpor and
+hissed.</p>
+<p>The steeds took fright. This way and that they went, terrified
+by the monsters they had never encountered before, shaking out of
+their silver quiet the cool stars towards the north, then fleeing
+as far to the south among new wonders. The heavens were full of
+terror.</p>
+<p>Up, far above the clouds, they went, and down again, towards the
+defenseless Earth, that could not flee from the chariot of the Sun.
+Great rivers hid themselves in the ground, and mountains were
+consumed. Harvests perished like a moth that is singed in a
+candle-flame.</p>
+<p>In vain did Phaethon call to the horses and pull upon the reins.
+As in a hideous dream, he saw his own Earth, his beautiful home and
+the home of all men, his kindred, parched by the fires of this mad
+chariot, and blackening beneath him. The ground cracked open and
+the sea shrank. Heedless water-nymphs, who had lingered in the
+shallows, were left gasping like bright fishes. The dryads shrank,
+and tried to cover themselves from the scorching heat. The poor
+Earth lifted her withered face in a last prayer to Zeus to save her
+if he might.</p>
+<p>Then Zeus, calling all the Gods to witness that there was no
+other means of safety, hurled his thunderbolt; and Phaethon knew no
+more.</p>
+<p>His body fell through the heavens, aflame like a shooting star;
+and the horses of the Sun dashed homeward with the empty
+chariot.</p>
+<p>Poor Clymene grieved sore over the boy&rsquo;s death; but the
+young Heliades, daughters of the Sun, refused all comfort. Day and
+night they wept together about their brother&rsquo;s grave by the
+river, until the Gods took pity and changed them all into
+poplar-trees. And ever after that they wept sweet tears of amber,
+clear as sunlight.</p>
+<h3><a id="Niobe" name="Niobe">Niobe</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Josephine Preston Peabody</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>There are so many tales of the vanity of kings and queens that
+the half of them cannot be told.</p>
+<p>There was Cassiop&aelig;ia, queen of &AElig;thiopia, who boasted
+that her beauty outshone the beauty of all the sea-nymphs, so that
+in anger they sent a horrible sea-serpent to ravage the coast. The
+king prayed of an oracle to know how the monster might be appeased,
+and learned that he must offer up his own daughter, Andromeda. The
+maiden was therefore chained to a rock by the sea-side, and left to
+her fate. But who should come to rescue her but a certain young
+hero, Perseus, who was hastening homeward after a perilous
+adventure with the snaky-haired Gorgons. Filled with pity at the
+story of Andromeda, he waited for the dragon, met and slew him, and
+set the maiden free. As for the boastful queen, the Gods forgave
+her, and at her death she was set among the stars. That story ended
+well.</p>
+<p>But there was once a queen of Thebes, Niobe, fortunate above all
+women, and yet arrogant in the face of the gods. Very beautiful she
+was, and nobly born, but above all things she boasted of her
+children, for she had seven sons and seven daughters.</p>
+<p>Now there came the day when the people were wont to celebrate
+the feast of Latona, mother of Apollo and Diana; and Niobe, as she
+stood looking upon the worshipers on their way to the temple, was
+filled with overweening pride.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Why do you worship Latona before me?&rdquo; she cried
+out. &ldquo;What does she possess that I have not in greater
+abundance? She has but two children, while I have seven sons and as
+many daughters. Nay, if she robbed me out of envy, I should still
+be rich. Go back to your houses; you have not eyes to know the
+rightful goddess.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Such impiety was enough to frighten any one, and her subjects
+returned to their daily work, awestruck and silent.</p>
+<p>But Apollo and Diana were filled with wrath at this insult to
+their divine mother. Not only was she a great goddess and a power
+in the heavens, but during her life on earth she had suffered many
+hardships for their sake. The serpent Python had been sent to
+torment her; and, driven from land to land, under an evil spell,
+beset with dangers, she had found no resting-place but the island
+of Delos, held sacred ever after to her and her children. Once she
+had even been refused water by some churlish peasants, who could
+not believe in a goddess if she appeared in humble guise and
+travel-worn. But these men were all changed into frogs.</p>
+<p>It needed no word from Latona herself to rouse her children to
+vengeance. Swift as a thought, the two immortal archers, brother
+and sister, stood in Thebes, upon the towers of the citadel. Near
+by, the youth were pursuing their sports, while the feast of Latona
+went neglected. The sons of Queen Niobe were there, and against
+them Apollo bent his golden bow. An arrow crossed the air like a
+sunbeam, and without a word the eldest prince fell from his horse.
+One by one his brothers died by the same hand, so swiftly that they
+knew not what had befallen them, till all the sons of the royal
+house lay slain. Only the people of Thebes, stricken with terror,
+bore the news to Queen Niobe, where she sat with her seven
+daughters. She would not believe in such a sorrow.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Savage Latona,&rdquo; she cried, lifting her arms against
+the heavens, &ldquo;never think that you have conquered. I am still
+the greater.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At that moment one of her daughters sank beside her. Diana had
+sped an arrow from her bow that is like the crescent moon. Without
+a cry, nay, even as they murmured words of comfort, the sisters
+died, one by one. It was all as swift and soundless as
+snowfall.</p>
+<p>Only the guilty mother was left, transfixed with grief. Tears
+flowed from her eyes, but she spoke not a word, her heart never
+softened; and at last she turned to stone, and the tears flowed
+down her cold face forever.</p>
+<h3><a id="Pyramus" name="Pyramus">Pyramus and Thisbe</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Josephine Preston Peabody</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Venus did not always befriend true lovers, as she had befriended
+Hippomenes, with her three golden apples. Sometimes, in the
+enchanted island of Cyprus, she forgot her worshipers far away, and
+they called on her in vain.</p>
+<p>So it was in the sad story of Hero and Leander, who lived on
+opposite borders of the Hellespont. Hero dwelt at Sestos, where she
+served as a priestess, in the very temple of Venus; and
+Leander&rsquo;s home was in Abydos, a town on the opposite shore.
+But every night this lover would swim across the water to see Hero,
+guided by the light which she was wont to set in her tower. Even
+such loyalty could not conquer fate. There came a great storm, one
+night, that put out the beacon, and washed Leander&rsquo;s body up
+with the waves to Hero, and she sprang into the water to rejoin
+him, and so perished.</p>
+<p>Not wholly unlike this was the fate of Halcyone, a queen of
+Thessaly, who dreamed that her husband Ceyx had been drowned, and
+on waking hastened to the shore to look for him. There she saw her
+dream come true,&mdash;his lifeless body floating towards her on
+the tide; and as she flung herself after him, mad with grief, the
+air upheld her and she seemed to fly. Husband and wife were changed
+into birds; and there on the very water, at certain seasons, they
+build a nest that floats unhurt,&mdash;a portent of calm for many
+days and safe voyage for the ships. So it is that seamen love these
+birds and look for halcyon weather.</p>
+<p>But there once lived in Babylonia two lovers named Pyramus and
+Thisbe, who were parted by a strange mischance. For they lived in
+adjoining houses; and although their parents had forbidden them to
+marry, these two had found a means of talking together through a
+crevice in the wall.</p>
+<p>Here, again and again, Pyramus on his side of the wall and
+Thisbe on hers, they would meet to tell each other all that had
+happened during the day, and to complain of their cruel parents. At
+length they decided that they would endure it no longer, but that
+they would leave their homes and be married, come what might. They
+planned to meet, on a certain evening, by a mulberry-tree near the
+tomb of King Ninus, outside the city gates. Once safely met, they
+were resolved to brave fortune together.</p>
+<p>So far all went well. At the appointed time, Thisbe, heavily
+veiled, managed to escape from home unnoticed, and after a stealthy
+journey through the streets of Babylon, she came to the grove of
+mulberries near the tomb of Ninus. The place was deserted, and once
+there she put off the veil from her face to see if Pyramus waited
+anywhere among the shadows. She heard the sound of a footfall and
+turned to behold&mdash;not Pyramus, but a creature unwelcome to any
+tryst&mdash;none other than a lioness crouching to drink from the
+pool hard by.</p>
+<p>Without a cry, Thisbe fled, dropping her veil as she ran. She
+found a hiding-place among the rocks at some distance, and there
+she waited, not knowing what else to do.</p>
+<p>The lioness, having quenched her thirst (after some ferocious
+meal), turned from the spring and, coming upon the veil, sniffed at
+it curiously, tore and tossed it with her reddened jaws,&mdash;as
+she would have done with Thisbe herself,&mdash;then dropped the
+plaything and crept away to the forest once more.</p>
+<p>It was but a little after this that Pyramus came hurrying to the
+meeting-place, breathless with eagerness to find Thisbe and tell
+her what had delayed him. He found no Thisbe there. For a moment he
+was confounded. Then he looked about for some signs of her, some
+footprint by the pool. There was the trail of a wild beast in the
+grass, and near by a woman&rsquo;s veil, torn and stained with
+blood; he caught it up and knew it for Thisbe&rsquo;s.</p>
+<p>So she had come at the appointed hour, true to her word; she had
+waited there for him alone and defenseless, and she had fallen a
+prey to some beast from the jungle! As these thoughts rushed upon
+the young man&rsquo;s mind, he could endure no more.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Was it to meet me, Thisbe, that you came to such a
+death!&rdquo; cried he. &ldquo;And I followed all too late. But I
+will atone. Even now I come lagging, but by no will of
+mine!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, the poor youth drew his sword and fell upon it, there
+at the foot of that mulberry-tree which he had named as the
+trysting-place, and his life-blood ran about the roots.</p>
+<p>During these very moments, Thisbe, hearing no sound and a little
+reassured, had stolen from her hiding-place and was come to the
+edge of the grove. She saw that the lioness had left the spring,
+and, eager to show her lover that she had dared all things to keep
+faith, she came slowly, little by little, back to the
+mulberry-tree.</p>
+<p>She found Pyramus there, according to his promise. His own sword
+was in his heart, the empty scabbard by his side, and in his hand
+he held her veil still clasped. Thisbe saw these things as in a
+dream, and suddenly the truth awoke her. She saw the piteous
+mischance of all; and when the dying Pyramus opened his eyes and
+fixed them upon her, her heart broke. With the same sword she
+stabbed herself, and the lovers died together.</p>
+<p>There the parents found them, after a weary search, and they
+were buried together in the same tomb. But the berries of the
+mulberry-tree turned red that day, and red they have remained ever
+since.</p>
+<h2><a id="Trojan" name="Trojan">STORIES OF THE TROJAN WAR</a></h2>
+<h3><a id="Discord" name="Discord">The Apple of Discord</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Josephine Preston Peabody</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>There was once a war so great that the sound of it has come
+ringing down the centuries from singer to singer, and will never
+die.</p>
+<p>The rivalries of men and gods brought about many calamities, but
+none so heavy as this; and it would never have come to pass, they
+say, if it had not been for jealousy among the immortals,&mdash;all
+because of a golden apple! But Destiny has nurtured ominous plants
+from little seeds; and this is how one evil grew great enough to
+overshadow heaven and earth.</p>
+<p>The sea-nymph Thetis (whom Zeus himself had once desired for his
+wife) was given in marriage to a mortal, Peleus, and there was a
+great wedding-feast in heaven. Thither all the immortals were
+bidden, save one, Eris, the goddess of Discord, ever an unwelcome
+guest. But she came unbidden. While the wedding-guests sat at
+feast, she broke in upon their mirth, flung among them a golden
+apple, and departed with looks that boded ill. Some one picked up
+the strange missile and read its inscription, &ldquo;For the
+Fairest;&rdquo; and at once discussion arose among the goddesses.
+They were all eager to claim the prize, but only three
+persisted.</p>
+<p>Venus, the very goddess of beauty, said that it was hers by
+right; but Juno could not endure to own herself less fair than
+another, and even Athene coveted the palm of beauty as well as of
+wisdom, and would not give it up! Discord had indeed come to the
+wedding-feast. Not one of the Gods dared to decide so dangerous a
+question,&mdash;not Zeus himself,&mdash;and the three rivals were
+forced to choose a judge among mortals.</p>
+<p>Now there lived on Mount Ida, near the city of Troy, a certain
+young shepherd by the name of Paris. He was as comely as Ganymede
+himself,&mdash;that Trojan youth whom Zeus, in the shape of an
+eagle, seized and bore away to Olympus, to be a cup-bearer to the
+gods. Paris, too, was a Trojan of royal birth, but like
+&OElig;dipus, he had been left on the mountain in his infancy,
+because the oracle had foretold that he would be the death of his
+kindred and the ruin of his country. Destiny saved and nurtured him
+to fulfill that prophecy. He grew up as a shepherd and tended his
+flocks on the mountain, but his beauty held the favor of all the
+wood-folk there and won the heart of the nymph &OElig;none.</p>
+<p>To him, at last, the three goddesses intrusted the judgment and
+the golden apple. Juno first stood before him in all her glory as
+queen of Gods and men, and attended by her favorite peacocks as
+gorgeous to see as royal fan-bearers.</p>
+<div class="figure"><a href="images/big_204.jpg"><img src=
+"images/small_204.jpg" alt="Paris is cajoled by a goddess." id=
+"img04" name="img04" width="620" height="360" /></a>
+<p>TO HIM AT LAST THE THREE GODDESSES INTRUSTED THE JUDGMENT AND
+THE GOLDEN APPLE</p>
+</div>
+<p>&ldquo;Use but the judgment of a prince, Paris,&rdquo; she said,
+&ldquo;and I will give thee wealth and kingly power.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Such majesty and such promises would have moved the heart of any
+man; but the eager Paris had at least to hear the claims of the
+other rivals. Athene rose before him, a vision welcome as daylight,
+with her sea-gray eyes and golden hair beneath a golden helmet.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Be wise in honoring me, Paris,&rdquo; she said,
+&ldquo;and I will give thee wisdom that shall last forever, great
+glory among men, and renown in war.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Last of all, Venus shone upon him, beautiful as none can ever
+hope to be. If she had come, unnamed, as any country maid, her
+loveliness would have dazzled him like sea-foam in the sun; but she
+was girt with her magical Cestus, a spell of beauty that no one can
+resist.</p>
+<p>Without a bribe she might have conquered, and she smiled upon
+his dumb amazement, saying, &ldquo;Paris, thou shalt yet have for
+wife the fairest woman in the world.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At these words, the happy shepherd fell on his knees and offered
+her the golden apple. He took no heed of the slighted goddesses,
+who vanished in a cloud that boded storm.</p>
+<p>From that hour he sought only the counsel of Venus, and only
+cared to find the highway to his new fortunes. From her he learned
+that he was the son of King Priam of Troy, and with her assistance
+he deserted the nymph &OElig;none, whom he had married, and went in
+search of his royal kindred.</p>
+<p>For it chanced at that time that Priam proclaimed a contest of
+strength between his sons and certain other princes, and promised
+as prize the most splendid bull that could be found among the herds
+of Mount Ida. Thither came the herdsmen to choose, and when they
+led away the pride of Paris&rsquo;s heart, he followed to Troy,
+thinking that he would try his fortune and perhaps win back his
+own.</p>
+<p>The games took place before Priam and Hecuba and all their
+children, including those noble princes Hector and Helenus, and the
+young Cassandra, their sister. This poor maiden had a sad story, in
+spite of her royalty; for, because she had once disdained Apollo,
+she was fated to foresee all things, and ever to have her
+prophecies disbelieved. On this fateful day, she alone was
+oppressed with strange forebodings.</p>
+<p>But if he who was to be the ruin of his country had returned, he
+had come victoriously. Paris won the contest. At the very moment of
+his honor, poor Cassandra saw him with her prophetic eyes; and
+seeing as well all the guilt and misery that he was to bring upon
+them, she broke into bitter lamentations, and would have warned her
+kindred against the evil to come. But the Trojans gave little heed;
+they were wont to look upon her visions as spells of madness. Paris
+had come back to them a glorious youth and a victor; and when he
+made known the secret of his birth, they cast the words of the
+oracle to the winds, and received the shepherd as a long-lost
+prince.</p>
+<p>Thus far all went happily. But Venus, whose promise had not yet
+been fulfilled, bade Paris procure a ship and go in search of his
+destined bride. The prince said nothing of this quest, but urged
+his kindred to let him go; and giving out a rumor that he was to
+find his father&rsquo;s lost sister Hesione, he set sail for
+Greece, and finally landed at Sparta.</p>
+<p>There he was kindly received by Menelaus, the king, and his
+wife, Fair Helen.</p>
+<p>This queen had been reared as the daughter of Tyndarus and Queen
+Leda, but some say that she was the child of an enchanted swan, and
+there was indeed a strange spell about her. All the greatest heroes
+of Greece had wooed her before she left her father&rsquo;s palace
+to be the wife of King Menelaus, and Tyndarus, fearing for her
+peace, had bound her many suitors by an oath. According to this
+pledge, they were to respect her choice, and to go to the aid of
+her husband if ever she should be stolen away from him. For in all
+Greece there was nothing so beautiful as the beauty of Helen. She
+was the fairest woman in the world.</p>
+<p>Now thus did Venus fulfill her promise and the shepherd win his
+reward with dishonor. Paris dwelt at the court of Menelaus for a
+long time, treated with a royal courtesy which he ill repaid. For
+at length, while the king was absent on a journey to Crete, his
+guest won the heart of Fair Helen, and persuaded her to forsake her
+husband and sail away to Troy, or Ilium.</p>
+<p>King Menelaus returned to find the nest empty of the swan. Paris
+and the fairest woman in the world were well across the sea.</p>
+<p>When this treachery came to light, all Greece took fire with
+indignation. The heroes remembered their pledge, and wrath came
+upon them at the wrong done to Menelaus. But they were less angered
+with Fair Helen than with Paris, for they felt assured that the
+queen had been lured from her country and out of her own senses by
+some spell of enchantment. So they took counsel how they might
+bring back Fair Helen to her home and husband.</p>
+<p>Years had come and gone since that wedding-feast when Eris had
+flung the apple of discord, like a firebrand, among the guests. But
+the spark of dissension that had smouldered so long burst into
+flame now, and, fanned by the enmities of men and the rivalries of
+the Gods, it seemed like to fire heaven and earth.</p>
+<p>A few of the heroes answered the call to arms unwillingly. Time
+had reconciled them to the loss of Fair Helen, and they were loath
+to leave home and happiness for war, even in her cause.</p>
+<p>One of these was Odysseus, or Ulysses, king of Ithaca, who had
+married Penelope, and was quite content with his kingdom and his
+little son Telemachus. Indeed, he was so unwilling to leave them
+that he feigned madness in order to escape service, appeared to
+forget his own kindred, and went ploughing the seashore and sowing
+salt in the furrows. But a messenger, Palamedes, who came with the
+summons to war, suspected that this sudden madness might be a
+stratagem, for the king was far famed as a man of many devices. He
+therefore stood by, one day (while Ulysses, pretending to take no
+heed of him, went ploughing the sand) and he laid the baby
+Telemachus directly in the way of the ploughshare. For once the
+wise man&rsquo;s craft deserted him. Ulysses turned the plough
+sharply, caught up the little prince, and there his fatherly wits
+were manifest! After this he could no longer play madman. He had to
+take leave of his beloved wife Penelope and set out to join the
+heroes, little dreaming that he was not to return for twenty years.
+Once embarked, however, he set himself to work in the common cause
+of the heroes, and was soon as ingenious as Palamedes in rousing
+laggard warriors.</p>
+<p>There remained one who was destined to be the greatest warrior
+of all. This was Achilles, the son of Thetis,&mdash;foretold in the
+day of Prometheus as a man who should far outstrip his own father
+in glory and greatness. Years had passed since the marriage of
+Thetis to King Peleus, and their son Achilles was now grown to
+manhood, a wonder of strength indeed, and, moreover, invulnerable.
+For his mother, forewarned of his death in the Trojan War, had
+dipped him in the sacred river Styx when he was a baby, so that he
+could take no hurt from any weapon. From head to foot she had
+plunged him in, only forgetting the little heel that she held him
+by, and this alone could be wounded by any chance. But even with
+such precautions Thetis was not content. Fearful at the rumors of
+war to be, she had her son brought up, in woman&rsquo;s dress,
+among the daughters of King Lycomedes of Scyros, that he might
+escape the notice of men and cheat his destiny.</p>
+<p>To this very palace, however, came Ulysses in the guise of a
+merchant, and he spread his wares before the royal
+household,&mdash;jewels and ivory, fine fabrics, and curiously
+wrought weapons. The king&rsquo;s daughters chose girdles and veils
+and such things as women delight in; but Achilles, heedless of the
+like, sought out the weapons, and handled them with such manly
+pleasure that his nature stood revealed. So he, too, yielded to his
+destiny and set out to join the heroes.</p>
+<p>Everywhere men were banded together, building the ships and
+gathering supplies. The allied forces of Greece (the Achaians, as
+they called themselves) chose Agamemnon for their
+commander-in-chief. He was a mighty man, king of Mycen&aelig; and
+Argos, and the brother of the wronged Menelaus. Second to Achilles
+in strength was the giant Ajax; after him Diomedes, then wise
+Ulysses, and Nestor, held in great reverence because of his
+experienced age and fame. These were the chief heroes. After two
+years of busy preparation, they reached the port of Aulis, whence
+they were to sail for Troy.</p>
+<p>But here delay held them. Agamemnon had chanced to kill a stag
+which was sacred to Diana, and the army was visited by pestilence,
+while a great calm kept the ships imprisoned. At length the oracle
+made known the reason of this misfortune and demanded for atonement
+the maiden Iphigenia, Agamemnon&rsquo;s own daughter. In helpless
+grief the king consented to offer her up as a victim, and the
+maiden was brought, ready for sacrifice. But at the last moment
+Diana caught her away in a cloud, leaving a white hind in her
+place, and carried her to Tauris in Scythia, there to serve as a
+priestess in the temple. In the mean time, her kinsfolk, who were
+at a loss to understand how she had disappeared, mourned her as
+dead. But Diana had accepted their child as an offering, and
+healing came to the army, and the winds blew again. So the ships
+set sail.</p>
+<p>Meanwhile, in Troy across the sea, the aged Priam and Hecuba
+gave shelter to their son Paris and his stolen bride. They were not
+without misgivings as to these guests, but they made ready to
+defend their kindred and the citadel.</p>
+<p>There were many heroes among the Trojans and their allies, brave
+and upright men, who little deserved that such reproach should be
+brought upon them by the guilt of Prince Paris. There were
+&AElig;neas and De&iuml;phobus, Glaucus and Sarpedon, and
+Priam&rsquo;s most noble son Hector, chief of all the forces, and
+the very bulwark of Troy. These and many more were bitterly to
+regret the day that had brought Paris back to his home. But he had
+taken refuge with his own people, and the Trojans had to take up
+his cause against the hostile fleet that was coming across the
+sea.</p>
+<p>Even the Gods took sides. Juno and Athene, who had never
+forgiven the judgment of Paris, condemned all Troy with him and
+favored the Greeks, as did also Neptune, god of the sea. But Venus,
+true to her favorite, furthered the interests of the Trojans with
+all her power, and persuaded the warlike Mars to do likewise. Zeus
+and Apollo strove to be impartial, but they were yet to aid now one
+side, now another, according to the fortunes of the heroes whom
+they loved.</p>
+<p>Over the sea came the great embassy of ships, sped hither safely
+by the god Neptune; and the heroes made their camp on the plain
+before Troy. First of all Ulysses and King Menelaus himself went
+into the city and demanded that Fair Helen should be given back to
+her rightful husband. This the Trojans refused, and so began the
+siege of Troy.</p>
+<h3><a id="Agamemnon" name="Agamemnon">The Quarrel between
+Agamemnon and Achilles</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>The Greeks sacked the city of Chryse, where was a temple of
+Apollo, and a priest that served the temple. And when they divided
+the spoil, they gave to King Agamemnon with other gifts, the
+priest&rsquo;s daughter, Chryse&iuml;s. Thereupon there came to the
+camp Chryses, the priest, wishing to ransom his daughter. Much gold
+he brought with him, and on his staff of gold he carried the holy
+garland, that men might reverence him the more. He went to all the
+chiefs, and to the sons of Atreus first of all, saying,&mdash;
+&ldquo;Loose, I pray you, my dear daughter, and take the ransom for
+her; so may the gods that dwell in Olympus grant you to take the
+city of Troy, and to have safe return to your homes.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then all the others spake him fair, and would have done what he
+wished. Only Agamemnon would not have it so.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Get thee out, graybeard!&rdquo; he cried in great wrath.
+&ldquo;Let me not find thee lingering now by the ships, neither
+coming hither again, or it shall be the worse for thee, for all thy
+priesthood. And as for thy daughter, I shall carry her away to
+Argos, when I shall have taken this city of Troy.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the old man went out hastily in great fear and trouble. And
+he walked in his sorrow by the shore of the sounding sea, and
+prayed to his god Apollo.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Hear me, god of the silver bow! If I have built thee a
+temple, and offered thee fat of many bullocks and rams, hear me,
+and avenge my tears on the Greeks with thine arrows!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Apollo heard him. Wroth was he that men had so dishonored
+his priest, and he came down from the top of Olympus, where he
+dwelt. Dreadful was the rattle of his arrows as he went, and his
+coming was as the night when it cometh over the sky. Then he shot
+the arrows of death, first on the dogs and the mules, and then on
+the men; and soon all along the shore rolled the black smoke from
+the piles of wood on which they burnt the bodies of the dead.</p>
+<p>For nine days the shafts of the god went throughout the host;
+but on the tenth day Achilles called the people to an assembly. So
+Juno bade him, for she loved the Greeks, and grieved to see them
+die. When they were gathered together he stood up among them, and
+spake to Agamemnon:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Surely it were better to return home, than that we should
+all perish here by war or plague. But come, let us ask some prophet
+or priest or dreamer of dreams why it is that Apollo is so wroth
+with us.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then stood up Calchas, best of seers, who knew what had been,
+and what was, and what was to come, and spake:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Achilles, thou biddest me tell the people why Apollo is
+wroth with them. Lo! I will tell thee, but thou must first swear to
+stand by me, for I know that what I shall say will anger King
+Agamemnon, and it goes ill with common men when kings are
+angry.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Speak out, thou wise man!&rdquo; cried Achilles;
+&ldquo;for I swear by Apollo that while I live no one shall lay
+hands on thee, no, not Agamemnon&rsquo;s self, though he be
+sovereign lord of the Greeks.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the blameless seer took heart, and spake: &ldquo;It is not
+for vow or offering that Apollo is wroth; it is for his servant the
+priest, for he came to ransom his daughter, but Agamemnon scorned
+him, and would not let the maiden go. Now, then, ye must send her
+back to Chryse without ransom, and with her a hundred beasts for
+sacrifice, so that the plague may be stayed.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Agamemnon stood up in a fury, his eyes blazing like
+fire.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Never,&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;hast thou spoken good
+concerning me, ill prophet that thou art, and now thou tellest me
+to give up this maiden! I will do it, for I would not that the
+people should perish. Only take care, ye Greeks, that there be a
+share of the spoil for me, for it would ill beseem the lord of all
+the host that he alone should be without his share.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nay, my lord Agamemnon,&rdquo; cried Achilles,
+&ldquo;thou art too eager for gain. We have no treasures out of
+which we may make up thy loss, for what we got out of the towns we
+have either sold or divided; nor would it be fitting that the
+people should give back what has been given to them. Give up the
+maiden, then, without conditions, and when we shall have taken this
+city of Troy, we will repay thee three and four fold.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nay, great Achilles,&rdquo; said Agamemnon, &ldquo;thou
+shalt not cheat me thus. If the Greeks will give me such a share as
+I should have, well and good. But if not, I will take one for
+myself, whether it be from thee or from Ajax or from Ulysses; for
+my share I will have. But of this hereafter. Now let us see that
+this maiden be sent back. Let them get ready a ship, and put her
+herein, and with her a hundred victims, and let some chief go with
+the ship, and see that all things be rightly done.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then cried Achilles, and his face was as black as a
+thunder-storm: &ldquo;Surely thou art altogether shameless and
+greedy, and, in truth, an ill ruler of men. No quarrel have I with
+the Trojans. They never harried oxen or sheep of mine in fertile
+Phthia, for many murky mountains lie between, and a great breadth
+of roaring sea. But I have been fighting in thy cause, and that of
+thy brother Menelaus. Naught carest thou for that. Thou leavest me
+to fight, and sittest in thy tent at ease. But when the spoil is
+divided, thine is always the lion&rsquo;s share. Small, indeed, is
+my part,&mdash;&lsquo;a little thing, but dear.&rsquo; And this,
+forsooth, thou wilt take away! Now am I resolved to go home. I have
+no mind to heap up goods and gold for thee, and be myself
+dishonored.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And King Agamemnon answered, &ldquo;Go, and thy Myrmidons with
+thee! I have other chieftains as good as thou art, and ready, as
+thou art not, to pay me due respect; and Zeus, the god of council,
+is with me. I hate thee, for thou always lovest war and strife. And
+as for the matter of the spoil, know that I will take thy share,
+the girl Brise&iuml;s, and fetch her myself, if need be, that all
+may know that I am sovereign lord here in the host of the
+Greeks.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Achilles was mad with anger, and he thought in his heart,
+&ldquo;Shall I arise and slay this caitiff, or shall I keep down
+the wrath in my breast?&rdquo; And as he thought he laid his hand
+on his sword-hilt, and had half-drawn his sword from the scabbard,
+when lo! the goddess Athene stood behind him (for Juno, who loved
+both this chieftain and that, had sent her), and caught him by the
+long locks of his yellow hair. But Achilles marveled much to feel
+the mighty grasp, and turned and looked, and knew the goddess, but
+no one else in the assembly might see her. Terrible was the flash
+of his eyes as he cried, &ldquo;Art thou come, child of Zeus, to
+see the insolence of Agamemnon? Of a truth, I think that he will
+perish for his folly.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Athene said, &ldquo;Nay, but I am come from heaven to abate
+thy wrath, if thou wilt hear me; white-armed Juno sent me, for she
+loveth and cherisheth you both alike. Draw not thy sword; but use
+bitter words, even as thou wilt. Of a truth, I tell thee that for
+this insolence of to-day he will bring thee hereafter splendid
+gifts, threefold and fourfold for all that he may take away. Only
+refrain thyself and do my bidding.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Achilles answered, &ldquo;I will abide by thy command for
+all my wrath, for the man who hearkens to the immortal gods is also
+heard of them.&rdquo; And as he spake he laid his heavy hand upon
+the hilt, and thrust back the sword into the scabbard, and Athene
+went her way to Olympus.</p>
+<p>Then he turned him to King Agamemnon, and spake again, for his
+anger was not spent. &ldquo;Drunkard, with the eyes of a dog and
+the heart of a deer! never fighting in the front of the battle, nor
+daring to lie in the ambush! &rsquo;Tis a race of dastards that
+thou rulest, or this had been thy last wrong. But this I tell thee,
+and confirm my words with a mighty oath&mdash;by this sceptre do I
+swear. Once it was the branch of a tree, but now the sons of the
+Greeks bear it in their hands, even they who maintain the laws of
+Zeus; as surely as it shall never again have bark, or leaves, or
+shoot, so surely shall the Greeks one day miss Achilles, when they
+fall in heaps before the dreadful Hector; and thou shalt eat thy
+heart for rage, to think that thou hast wronged the bravest of thy
+host.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And as he spake he dashed the sceptre, all embossed with studs
+of gold, upon the ground, and sat down. And on the other side
+Agamemnon sat in furious anger. Then Nestor rose, an old man of a
+hundred years and more, and counseled peace. Let them listen, he
+said, to his counsel. Great chiefs in the old days, with whom no
+man now alive would dare to fight, had listened. Let not Agamemnon
+take away from the bravest of the Greeks the prize of war; let not
+Achilles, though he was mightier in battle than all other men,
+contend with Agamemnon, who was sovereign lord of all the hosts of
+Greece. But he spake in vain. For Agamemnon answered,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nestor, thou speakest well, and peace is good. But this
+fellow would lord it over all; yet there are some, methinks, who
+will not obey him. For if the immortal Gods have made him a great
+warrior, do they therefore grant him leave to speak lawless words?
+Verily he must be taught that there is one here, at least, who is
+better than he.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Achilles said, &ldquo;I were a slave and a coward if I owned
+thee as my lord. Not so; play the master over others, but think not
+to master me. As for the prize which the Greeks gave me, let them
+do as they will. They gave it; let them take it away. But if thou
+darest to touch aught that is mine own, that hour thy life-blood
+shall redden on my spear.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the assembly was dismissed. Chryse&iuml;s was sent to her
+home with due offerings to the god, the wise Ulysses going with
+her. And all the people purified themselves, and offered offerings
+to the Gods; and the sweet savor went up to heaven in the wreathing
+smoke.</p>
+<p>But King Agamemnon would not go back from his purpose. So he
+called to him the heralds, Talthybius and Eurybates, and
+said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Heralds, go to the tents of Achilles, and fetch the
+maiden Brise&iuml;s. But if he will not let her go, say that I will
+come myself with many others to fetch her; so will it be the worse
+for him.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Sorely against their will the heralds went. Along the seashore
+they walked, till they came to where, amidst the Myrmidons, were
+the tents of Achilles. There they found him, sitting between his
+tent and his ship. He did not rejoice to see them, and they stood
+in great terror and shame. But he knew in his heart wherefore they
+had come, and cried aloud, &ldquo;Come near, ye heralds, messengers
+of Gods and men. &rsquo;Tis no fault of yours that ye are come on
+such an errand.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he turned to Patroclus (now Patroclus was his dearest
+friend) and said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Bring the maiden from her tent, and let the heralds lead
+her away. But let them be witnesses, before gods and men, and
+before this evil-minded king, against the day when he shall have
+sore need of me to save his hosts from destruction. Fool that he
+is, who knoweth not to look back and to look forward, that his
+people may be safe!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Patroclus brought forth the maiden from her tent, and gave
+her to the heralds. And they led her away; but it was sorely
+against her will that she went. But Achilles went apart from his
+comrades, and sat upon the seashore, falling into a great passion
+of tears, and stretching out his hands with loud prayer to his
+mother, Thetis, daughter of the sea. She heard him where she sat in
+the depths by her father, the old god of the sea, and rose from the
+gray sea, as a vapor rises, and came to where he was weeping, and
+stroked him with her hand, and called him by his name.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What ails thee, my son?&rdquo; she said.</p>
+<p>Then he told her the story of his wrong, and when he had ended
+he said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Go, I pray thee, to the top of Olympus, to the palace of
+Zeus. Often have I heard thee in my father&rsquo;s hall boast how,
+long ago, thou didst help him when the other gods would have bound
+him, fetching Briareus of the hundred hands, who sat by him in his
+strength, so that the Gods feared to touch him. Go now, and call
+these things to his mind, and pray him that he help the sons of
+Troy, and give them victory in the battle, so that the Greeks, as
+they flee before them, may have joy of this king of theirs, who has
+done such wrong to the bravest of his host.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And his mother answered him, &ldquo;Surely thine is an evil lot,
+my son. This life is short, and it should of right be without tears
+and full of joy; but now it seems to me to be both short and sad.
+But I will go as thou sayest to Olympus, to the palace of Zeus; but
+not now, for he has gone, and the other Gods with him, to a twelve
+days&rsquo; feast with the pious Ethiopians. But when he cometh
+back I will entreat and persuade him. And do thou sit still, nor go
+forth to battle.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Meanwhile Ulysses drew near to Chryse with the holy offerings.
+And when they were come within the haven, they furled the sail, and
+laid it in the ship, and lowered the mast, and rowed the ship to
+her moorings. They cast out the anchor stones, and made fast the
+cables from the stern. After that they landed, taking with them the
+offerings and the maid Chryse&iuml;s. To the altar they brought the
+maid, and gave her into the arms of her father, and the wise
+Ulysses said, &ldquo;See now; Agamemnon, King of men, sends back
+thy daughter, and with her a hundred beasts for sacrifice, that we
+may appease the god who hath smitten the Greeks in his
+wrath.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the priest received his daughter right gladly, and when
+they had ranged the beasts about the altar, and poured out the
+water of purification, and taken up handfuls of bruised barley,
+then the priest prayed, &ldquo;Hear me, God of the silver bow! If
+before thou didst hearken to my prayer, and grievously afflict the
+Greeks, so hear me now, and stay this plague which is come upon
+them.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So prayed he, and the god gave ear.</p>
+<p>Then they cast the barley on the heads of the cattle, and slew
+them, and flayed them, and they cut out the thigh-bones and wrapped
+them up in folds of fat, and laid raw morsels on them. These the
+priest burned on fagots, pouring on sparkling wine; and the young
+men stood by, having the five-pronged forks in their hands. And
+when the thighs were consumed, then they cut up the rest, and
+broiled the pieces carefully on spits. This being done, they made
+their meal, nor did any one lack his share. And when the meal was
+ended, then they poured a little wine into the cups to serve for
+libations to the Gods. After that they sat till sunset, singing a
+hymn to the Archer God, and making merry; and he heard their voice
+and was pleased.</p>
+<p>When the sun went down, they slept beside the stern-cables; and
+when the dawn appeared, then they embarked, raising the mast and
+spreading the sail; and Apollo sent them a favoring wind, and the
+dark blue wave hissed about the stem of the ship as she went: so
+they came to the camp of the Greeks.</p>
+<p>But all the time Achilles sat in wrath beside his ships; he went
+not to the war, nor yet to the assembly, but sat fretting in his
+heart, because he longed for the cry of the battle.</p>
+<h3><a id="Menelaus" name="Menelaus">The Fight between Paris and
+Menelaus</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Walter C. Perry</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>In obedience to the summons of their leaders, the great host of
+the Achaians assembled on the plain of the flowing river Scamander,
+innumerable as the leaves and flowers in the season of spring. And
+in the midst of them stood the great ruler, Agamemnon: his head and
+eyes like those of Loud-thundering Zeus; his waist like that of the
+Man-slaying Mars; and with a breast like that of Neptune, the Ruler
+of the Sea. As the mail-clad Argives marched on, and rushed across
+the plain, the earth groaned beneath them.</p>
+<p>Now &AElig;gis-bearing Zeus sent his messenger, Iris, to the
+assembly of the Trojans, with the voice of Polites, son of Priam,
+their sentinel at Priam&rsquo;s gate, and spake thus to Hector:
+&ldquo;This is no time for idle words, for stern war is already
+upon you. But to thee, O Hector, do I especially speak; and do thou
+obey my voice! As thou hast many allies, of diverse nations and
+tongues, let each chief marshal and command his own people, and
+lead them forth to war.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the glorious Hector knew the voice of the messenger, and
+hastened to obey. He straightway dissolved the assembly. The gates
+of Troy were then thrown open, and the Trojan host rushed forth,
+with a mighty din. The blameless Hector, with his glancing helmet,
+was foremost of all, and led the bravest and strongest of the men;
+&AElig;neas, son of the goddess Aphrodite, or Venus, born amidst
+the peaks of Ida, led the Dardans; and of the other leaders of the
+allies, the most famous were Sarpedon, son of Zeus, and blameless
+Glaucus, who led the Lycians, from distant Lycia, by the
+swift-eddying Xanthus.</p>
+<p>And, as the countless hosts advanced, to meet each other in
+deadly conflict, the Trojans marched with noisy shouts, like the
+clamor of the cranes, when they fly to the streams of Oceanus, in
+the early morning, screaming, and bringing death and destruction to
+the Pigmy men; but the Achaieans came on in silence, breathing
+dauntless courage.</p>
+<p>But when they came near to each other, the goodly Paris went
+before the front rank of the Trojans, and brandished his spear, and
+challenged all the Argive chiefs to single combat. When the warlike
+Menelaus, whom Paris had so deeply wronged by carrying off his
+wife, the beautiful Helen, saw Paris there, he was glad, thinking
+that he should now punish the false traitor for his wickedness. So
+he leaped from his chariot, in his clanging armor, and advanced to
+meet the challenger. And Paris saw him; and pale fear got hold of
+him, like to a man who has trodden on a serpent, in a wooded valley
+among the mountains; and he shrank back among the lordly
+Trojans.</p>
+<p>His brother Hector saw him, and reproached him with scornful
+words. &ldquo;Base deceiver of women, beautiful in appearance and
+favor, but coward at heart! would that thou hadst never been born,
+or that thou hadst died unwedded! Now thou seest what kind of man
+is he, whose lovely wife thou hast carried off by stealth. Of no
+avail will be thy sounding lyre, thy beauteous face and curling
+hair, or all the gifts of golden Venus, when thou liest groveling
+in the dust.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the goodly Paris answered him, &ldquo;Hector, thou rightly
+chidest me, and not more than I deserve. <em>Thy</em> heart is ever
+undaunted, and keen as the axe, which cutteth the strong oak, in
+the hands of a skillful shipwright. But reproach me not for the
+lovely gifts of golden Aphrodite; for no man can obtain them by
+wishing for them, for they are among the precious gifts of the
+blessed Gods. But if thou desirest that I should do battle with the
+valiant Menelaus, make the Trojans and the Achaians sit down; and
+set me and Menelaus in the midst, to fight for Helen and for all
+the treasures which were taken away with her. And whichever of us
+twain shall be the victor, let him bear away the woman and the
+treasure, and take them home.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So spake he, and they all kept silence; but Menelaus of the loud
+war-cry stood forward amongst the Greeks and made harangue,
+&ldquo;Hearken now to me, for my heart hath endured the greatest
+grief. Whosoever of us twain shall fall, there let him lie. But now
+bring a goodly sacrifice, a white ram and a black ewe, for the
+Earth and for the Sun; and another for Loud-thundering Zeus; and
+summon hither the great King Priam, that he may take the pledge;
+for his sons are reckless and faithless; young men&rsquo;s hearts
+are too frivolous and fickle, but an old man looketh to the future
+and the past.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Hector sent heralds to the city, to fetch two lambs, and to
+summon Priam; while Agamemnon sent Talthybius for a ram. Now Iris,
+in Troy, came to Helen, in the semblance of Laodice, Paris&rsquo;s
+sister, fairest of Priam&rsquo;s daughters, wife of Helicaon, the
+son of Antenor. She found Helen weaving a great purple web, on
+which she was embroidering the battles of the Argives and the
+Trojans. The swift-footed Iris came near her, and said, &ldquo;Come
+hither, dear lady, come with me, to see the wondrous deeds of the
+horse-taming Trojans and the mail-clad Argives; for now the battle
+is suspended, while Paris, and Menelaus, dear to Mars, will fight
+alone with their spears, for <em>thee</em>; and thou wilt be the
+fair wife of the victor.&rdquo; So Iris spoke, and put into
+Helen&rsquo;s bosom a longing for her former husband, and for her
+darling daughter. Then Helen veiled her face, and went straightway
+to the Sc&aelig;an Gate, letting fall a tear; and her two
+handmaidens, &AElig;thre and Clymene, followed her.</p>
+<p>On the tower above the Sc&aelig;an Gate, she found the Trojan
+elders. These, on account of their age, had ceased from war, but
+were still good orators, with voices like the grasshoppers which
+sit upon a tree, and send forth their lily-like voice; so sat the
+elders of the Trojans on the Tower. When those ancient sages saw
+the fair Helen coming to them, they were astounded, and whispered
+one to another, &ldquo;No wonder that the Trojans and the Achaians
+have suffered so many things for such a glorious woman! But, fair
+as she is, let her sail away, and not stay here to trouble us and
+our children after us.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But the aged King Priam addressed her kindly. &ldquo;Dear
+Daughter! come hither, and see thy former husband and kinsmen! I do
+not blame <em>thee</em>, but the Gods, and especially Venus, by
+whom this sad war has been brought upon us. But tell me who is that
+huge Achaian warrior? Many are taller than he, but I have never
+seen a man so stately and royal.&rdquo; And the fair Helen, the
+daughter of Zeus, replied, &ldquo;O venerable Father of my lord!
+would that death had been my lot, when I followed thy son to Troy,
+and left my home and husband, and my dear young daughter, and all
+the loved companions of my girlhood! But that was not to be, and
+therefore I mourn and weep. The man of whom thou speakest is
+Atreides, the wide-ruling monarch Agamemnon, who is both a stately
+king and a doughty warrior; he is the brother of Menelaus my
+husband&mdash;shameless thing that I am!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the aged Priam asked her about the other Achaian
+chiefs,&mdash;Ulysses, and the gigantic Ajax, the bulwark of the
+host, and the godlike Idomeneus; and the lovely Helen told him all,
+and said, &ldquo;I see all the other bright-eyed Achaians, and
+could tell their names; but two I see not, even mine own brothers,
+horse-taming Castor and the boxer Pollux; peradventure they came
+not with the Achaians; or if they came, they fight not, for fear of
+the revilings which men heap on me&mdash;shameless that I
+am!&rdquo; She knew not that the earth already covered them, in
+Laced&aelig;mon, their dear native land. Now the aged Priam drove
+out through the Sc&aelig;an Gate, with Antenor by his side; and,
+when he had come to the Achaians and the Trojans, he descended from
+his chariot, and stood on the Earth, the bounteous grain-giver.
+Then Agamemnon, the king of men, and Ulysses, the man of many
+devices, rose up; and the stately heralds brought the holy
+oath-offerings to the gods, and mixed the ruddy wine in the
+mixing-bowl, from which they gave portions to the Achaian and the
+Trojan chiefs. Agamemnon raised his hands to heaven and prayed,
+&ldquo;O Father Zeus, most great and glorious! O Sun, who seest and
+hearest all things! O ye Rivers, and thou, Mother Earth! be ye all
+witnesses to our oaths! If Paris shall kill Menelaus, then let him
+keep Helen and all her possessions; but if the yellow-haired
+Menelaus slay Paris, then let the Trojans give back Helen and her
+treasures!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the lordly Agamemnon slew the lambs, and prayed again to
+Zeus. But Priam spake unto the Achaians and the Trojans. &ldquo;I
+verily will return to breezy Ilium; for I cannot bear to see my own
+son engaged in deadly conflict with the war-loving
+Menelaus.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the goodly Paris, lord of the fair-haired Helen, put on his
+beautiful armor. First he set the splendid greaves upon his legs,
+fastened round the ankles with silver clasps; then he donned the
+corslet, which he had borrowed from his brother Lycaon; and he
+threw over his shoulders the silver-studded sword-belt with his
+sword, and took up his mighty shield; and upon his beauteous head
+he placed the helmet, with a horsehair crest, and the plume nodded
+terribly; and he took a strong spear in his hand.</p>
+<p>Then he and Menelaus stood face to face, on the ground which
+Hector and Ulysses had meted out; and they brandished their spears,
+with wrath against each other. Paris drew the lot to be the first
+to cast his long-shafted spear; he threw it, and it struck the
+round shield of Atreides Menelaus, but did not pierce it; for the
+point of the spear was turned.</p>
+<p>Then Menelaus, poising his lance, prayed to Zeus, &ldquo;O
+Father Zeus! grant me to take vengeance on goodly Paris, who did me
+such foul wrong&mdash;<em>me</em>, who had shown him so much
+kindness!&rdquo; He said, and hurled his strong spear, which struck
+the bright shield of the son of Priam; and the sharp point passed
+through it, and through his breastplate, and rent the tunic, close
+to the side of his body; but Paris swerved from it, and shunned the
+black fate of death. Then Menelaus drew his sword from the
+silver-studded sheath, and smote on the helmet of Paris, but the
+sword was shattered, and fell in pieces from his hand. Then he
+looked up to heaven, and exclaimed, &ldquo;O Father Zeus! thou art
+the most cruel of all the Gods!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, he caught Paris by his horse-hair crest, and dragged
+him towards the well-greaved Achaians, and the embroidered strap of
+the helmet went nigh to strangle him. But Venus, daughter of great
+Zeus, who loved the beauteous Paris, drew near him, and tore the
+strap of leather; and the helmet came away, empty, in the strong
+hand of the son of Atreus. Full of wrath, he hurled it towards his
+trusty companions, and they took it up. He then rushed back again,
+to slay his enemy; but golden-haired Venus, being a goddess, easily
+caught up Paris, and hid him in thick darkness, and carried him
+into Troy, to his high and fragrant chamber.</p>
+<p>Venus, the golden Goddess of Love, then went to summon Helen, in
+the likeness of an old woman, a wool-comber, who had worked for
+Helen in Laced&aelig;mon, and whom she greatly loved. She found the
+white-armed Helen on the high tower, and spake: &ldquo;Come hither
+to Paris, who sends for thee; he is there in the fragrant chamber,
+shining in beauty&mdash;</p>
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<p>&ldquo;Not like a warrior parted from the foe,</p>
+<p>But some fair dancer from the public show.&rdquo;</p>
+</div>
+<p class="i8">(Pope&rsquo;s Translation of the <em>Iliad</em>.)</p>
+</div>
+<p>But Helen&rsquo;s heart was greatly moved; she knew the golden
+Venus, saw her fair neck and sparkling eyes, and called her by her
+name. &ldquo;O thou strange Goddess! wouldst thou again deceive me?
+Now Menelaus hath conquered Paris, and will carry me
+home&mdash;accursed as I am! And now do <em>thou</em> no more
+return to Olympus, but leave the dwelling of the Gods, and go and
+sit by Paris, till he make <em>thee</em> his wife&mdash;or
+perchance, his slave. But <em>I</em> will not go to him; for all
+the Trojan women would justly blame me hereafter; I have
+innumerable griefs within my heart.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then was the bright goddess sore displeased, and spake harshly
+to her. &ldquo;Beware! thou foolish woman! lest in my wrath I leave
+thee, and henceforth hate thee, as I have loved thee until
+now!&rdquo; Venus spake, and Helen, daughter of great Zeus,
+trembled and obeyed, wrapping her beautiful garments about her; and
+the goddess led her to the fragrant chamber in the palace, and set
+her on a chair before the goodly Paris.</p>
+<p>But Helen looked askance at her lord, and chode him with bitter
+words. &ldquo;Would that thou hadst never come back from the fight,
+but hadst perished by the arm of the warrior who was once my
+husband! Thou didst boast thyself to be a better man than Menelaus!
+Go then, and challenge him again, to meet thee face to face once
+more!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Yet Helen, though she could not but despise Paris, soon became
+reconciled to him, partly from a remnant of her former love for
+him, and partly from her fear of Venus.</p>
+<p>In the meantime, Menelaus was raging through the field in search
+of him. Nor could any of the Trojans find him, or they would have
+given him up; for they hated him like death, as the cause of all
+their sufferings.</p>
+<p>And King Agamemnon said to the Trojans, &ldquo;Now that the
+Mars-loving Menelaus hath conquered Paris do ye give back to us
+Helen and all her treasures!&rdquo; But this was not to be.</p>
+<h3><a id="Ajax" name="Ajax">The Duel between Hector and
+Ajax</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Walter C. Perry</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>And now we must speak of Hector, the noble Trojan prince, who,
+after Achilles, was the most famous warrior of the two hostile
+armies. Achilles, indeed, was the son of a goddess, even
+silver-footed Thetis; while Hector&rsquo;s mother, Hecuba, was a
+mortal woman.</p>
+<p>Well knowing the dangers to which he was exposed, and how soon
+he might fall in battle, Hector now bethought him of his lovely
+wife, Andromache, and his little boy Astyanax. When he came to the
+Sc&aelig;an Gate, the Trojan women came running to him, with eager
+questions about their husbands, sons, and brothers; and sorrow
+filled their hearts. Among them came his fond and generous mother,
+Hecuba, leading by the hand the fairest of her daughters, Laodice,
+and she called him by his name, and spoke: &ldquo;Dear Son! why
+hast thou left the field? Do the Achaians press thee hard? Dost
+thou come to make prayers to Father Zeus, from the Citadel? But
+come, I will bring thee honey-sweet wine, that thou mayest pour out
+a libation to Almighty Zeus, the Son of Cronos, and refresh thyself
+with a draught.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Hector answered her, &ldquo;Bring me no luscious wine, dear
+mother! lest thou rob me of my strength and courage. Nor dare I
+make a libation to Zeus, with hands unwashen and soiled with blood.
+But go thou to the Temple of Athene, driver of the spoil; and lay
+the finest robe, the most precious to thyself, upon her knees; and
+vow to sacrifice twelve fat kine to her; and beg her to have mercy
+on the Trojans, and on their wives and little children! So,
+perhaps, she will hold back the terrible warrior, Tydides, from
+sacred Ilium. And I will go and seek out Paris; would that the
+earth would swallow him up! for Zeus hath cherished him to be the
+bane of his country, and of his father Priam.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Hecuba went to her ambrosial chamber, and took the finest
+of her embroidered robes, the work of Sidonian women, which shone
+like a star; and went, with other aged women, to the temple of
+Athene. And the fair-cheeked Theano, daughter of Kisseus, the
+priestess, wife of Antenor, opened the temple gates, and took the
+shining robe, and laid it upon Athene&rsquo;s knees, and prayed to
+the great daughter of Zeus. But the goddess did not grant her
+prayer.</p>
+<p>But Hector went his way to the fair palace of Paris, and found
+him in his chamber, polishing his beautiful armor, and proving his
+curved bow. Then, when Hector saw him, he reproached him with
+bitter words. &ldquo;O thou strange man! thou dost not well to
+nurse thy spite against the Trojans, who are now perishing before
+the city, and all for thy sake! Rise, then, now, lest the city be
+burned with fire!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the goodly Paris answered, &ldquo;It is not so much by
+reason of my wrath against the Trojans, but I would fain indulge my
+sorrow. My wife, too, hath urged me to the battle. Tarry then
+awhile, and I will don my armor; or go thou before, and I will
+follow.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the divine Helen, daughter of great Zeus, came and spoke
+gently to Hector, and said, &ldquo;O brother! brother of vile
+<em>me</em>, who am a dog&mdash;would that, when my mother bare me,
+the storm-wind had snatched me away to a mountain, or a billow of
+the loud-roaring sea had swept me away, before all these evil
+things had befallen me! Would that I had been mated with a better
+man than Paris, whose heart is not sound, and never will be. But
+come, my brother, and sit by me; for thou verily hast suffered most
+for me, who am a dog, and for the grievous sin of Paris, upon whom,
+surely, Zeus is bringing evil days; he will be, hereafter, a song
+of scorn in the mouths of future men, through all time to
+come.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But noble Hector answered her, &ldquo;If thou lovest me, dear
+Helen, bid me not stay; for I go to succor my friends, who long for
+me in my absence. But do thou try and rouse this husband of thine,
+and bid him overtake me. As for me, I shall first go to my home,
+and to my wife and my little son; for who knoweth whether I shall
+ever return to them again?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So spake the glorious Hector, and went his way to his own
+well-furnished house; but he found not Andromache there; for she
+had gone to the tower, with her fair-robed nurse and with her boy,
+all bathed in tears. Hector asked the servants whither the
+white-armed Andromache was gone; and the busy matron of the house
+replied, &ldquo;She is gone to the tower of holy Troy; for she
+heard that the Trojans were defeated, and the Achaians
+victorious.&rdquo; Then Hector returned, by the same way, down the
+wide streets, and came to the Sc&aelig;an Gate.</p>
+<p>And his peerless wife, even Andromache, daughter of the
+high-minded E&euml;tion, king of Cilicia&mdash;she whom he had won
+by countless gifts&mdash;came running to meet him. And with her
+came the handmaid, the nurse, bearing in her arms Hector&rsquo;s
+tender boy, Astyanax, beautiful as the morning star. And Hector
+smiled, and looked on his darling boy, while Andromache stood
+beside him weeping. And she clasped his hand, and called him by his
+name. &ldquo;O my dear lord, thy dauntless courage will destroy
+thee! Hast thou no pity for thy infant child, and for thy hapless
+wife, who soon will be a widow? It were far better for me to die,
+if I lose <em>thee</em>; for nevermore can I know comfort, but only
+pain and sorrow. For I shall be utterly alone. I have neither
+father nor mother; for E&euml;tion, my royal sire, was slain by
+great Achilles. And all my seven brothers went down to Hades on the
+selfsame day! they too were slain by swift-footed Pelides. But my
+mother was smitten in her father&rsquo;s halls, by the gentle
+arrows of the archer Artemis. Lo! now, <em>thou</em> art all in all
+to me, father, mother, brother, and dearly loved husband! Come,
+then, take pity on us, and abide in the tower, and make not thy boy
+an orphan, and thy wife a widow!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the glorious Hector of the glancing helm answered her, and
+said, &ldquo;Dear Wife! I too think of all these things. But how
+can I shun the battle, like a coward, to be the mock of the
+Trojans, and of the Trojan dames with trailing robes? I, who have
+always fought in the van of battle, and won glory for my father and
+myself? I know that the day will come, when sacred Ilium shall be
+leveled with the ground, and Priam and the people of Priam shall
+perish. But it is not so much the fate of Priam, and of my mother,
+Hecuba, and of my brethren, which fills my soul with anguish; but
+it is <em>thy</em> misery, dear one, in the day when some Achaian
+warrior shall bear thee away, weeping, and rob thee of thy freedom.
+Thou, alas! wilt abide in Argos, and ply the loom, the slave of
+another woman; or bear water from the Hypereian fount, being
+harshly treated! And one will say, as he looketh upon thee,
+&lsquo;This was the wife of Hector, the foremost of the
+horse-taming Trojans in the war round Ilium.&rsquo; But may the
+deep earth cover <em>me</em>, ere I hear thee crying in the day of
+thy captivity.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So spake he, and held out his arms to take his darling boy. But
+the child shrank crying, and nestled in the bosom of his
+well-girdled nurse; for he feared the horsehair crest, nodding
+terribly from the brazen helmet. Then the fond parents laughed; and
+Hector doffed his helmet, and laid it on the ground. And he kissed
+his dear child, and fondled him, and prayed thus to
+Zeus:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;O Zeus! and all ye Gods! grant that this, my son, may
+like me be foremost to fight among the Trojans, and rule as a king
+in Ilium; so that men may say, &lsquo;He is far better than his
+father&rsquo;!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Thus speaking, he laid the child in the fragrant bosom of his
+dear wife Andromache; and he pitied her, and caressed her with his
+hand, and called her by her name. &ldquo;Dear one! be not thus
+utterly cast down. No man can slay me till my hour of destiny is
+come. But no man, when once he hath been born, can escape his fate,
+be he a brave man or a coward. Go thou to thy house, to the distaff
+and the loom, and make thy maidens ply their labors. But
+<em>men</em> shall engage in war, and I the first of all in
+Troy.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So spake Hector of the glancing helmet, and went his way. And
+his dear wife went to her home, looking back at him as she went,
+shedding bitter tears. And she found her maidens there, and with
+them she bewailed her lord, while yet he lived; for they feared
+that he would never again return from battle.</p>
+<p>And the goodly Paris donned his beautiful armor, and hastened
+after his brother, whom he overtook, and he made excuse for his
+long tarrying. And Hector answered him, &ldquo;No man can justly
+speak lightly of thy deeds, for thou art strong; but thou art slack
+and careless, and I am grieved when I hear shameful things said of
+thee by the Trojans, who for thee bear so much toil. But let us be
+going.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So the twain brothers, the glorious Hector and the goodly Paris,
+went forth to the battle. And Paris slew Menesthius, of Arne, son
+of Are&iuml;thous; and Hector smote noble E&iuml;oneus in the neck,
+and relaxed his limbs in death. And Glaucus, captain of the Lycian
+allies, cast his spear at Iphinous, and pierced his shoulder; and
+he fell from his chariot, and his limbs were loosened.</p>
+<p>But when the fierce-eyed Athene saw the Trojans making havoc of
+the Achaians, she rushed down from the peaks of Olympus, to sacred
+Ilium. And Apollo, who favored the Trojans, saw her from Pergamus,
+and hastened to meet her; and they met by the beech-tree, and
+Apollo of the Silver Bow addressed her: &ldquo;Why dost thou come,
+O Daughter of the Loud-Thunderer? Is it to bring victory to the
+Greeks? for thou hast no pity on the Trojans. But hearken unto me,
+and let us stop the battle for this day&mdash;hereafter they shall
+fight again.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the fierce-eyed goddess answered him, &ldquo;Be it so,
+Far-Darter! for this was my purpose when I came from high Olympus.
+But how thinkest thou to make the war to cease?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then King Apollo spake. &ldquo;Let us rouse the valiant spirit
+of horse-taming Hector, to challenge one of the Greeks to deadly
+single combat.&rdquo; And the fierce-eyed Maid assented to his
+words.</p>
+<p>And the dear son of royal Priam, Helenus, the wise augur, who
+knew the counsel of the Gods, drew near to Hector, and spake thus
+to him: &ldquo;Dear brother, who art peer of Zeus in counsel,
+wouldst thou listen to me? Make the Trojans and the Achaians sit
+down; and do thou challenge the bravest of the Achaians to meet
+thee in single combat. I hear the voice of the deathless Gods, that
+it is not yet thy lot to die.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the great Hector rejoiced at his words; and going into the
+throng, he held back the companies of the Trojans with his spear,
+holding it in the middle, and made them all sit down. And Agamemnon
+made the well-greaved Achaians sit down. And Athene and Apollo, in
+the form of vultures, sat on a lofty tree, and watched the hosts.
+And Hector stood between the two armies, and spake: &ldquo;Hear me,
+ye Trojans and Achaians! Amongst you are the great chiefs of the
+Achaians. Now let one of these be your champion, to fight with me,
+Hector: and I call Zeus to witness, that if he slay me, you shall
+let him carry off my armor, but give my body to the Trojans, that
+they may render to me the honor of the funeral pyre. But if the
+Far-Darter shall grant me glory, that I may slay <em>him</em>, then
+will I strip him of his armor, and hang it in the Temple of Apollo;
+but his lifeless body I will give back to the long-haired Achaians,
+that they may bury him, and build him a barrow by the
+Hellespont.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Thus spake the glorious Hector; but all were silent; for they
+were afraid to meet him. Then, at last, Menelaus, groaning deeply,
+reproached the Achaians, and said, &ldquo;O ye women of Achaia, no
+longer <em>men!</em> surely this will be an everlasting shame to
+us, if none of the Greeks dare to fight with the noble Hector! But
+I myself will arm me; for the issues of victory are with the
+Gods.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And he began to put on his dazzling armor. And now wouldst thou,
+Menelaus, have yielded up thy life at the hands of Hector; but the
+great ruler, Agamemnon, rose up and stayed thee. &ldquo;Art thou
+mad, O foster-son of Zeus? Draw back, though with grief and pain;
+and think not to fight with Hector, the man-slaying son of Priam;
+for he is a far better man than thou, even godlike Achilles feareth
+to meet this man in battle. Go then and sit down; and we will
+choose another champion.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the fair-haired Menelaus obeyed his brother&rsquo;s words,
+and his henchmen gladly took off his bright armor. And the wise
+Nestor arose, and upbraided all the Achaian chiefs: &ldquo;Fie on
+us! Shame and lamentation have come upon us all. Surely the aged
+Peleus, the goodly king of the Myrmidons, would deeply groan, if he
+heard that we are all cowering before great Hector; he would pray
+that his soul might leave his body and go down to Hades. Would to
+Zeus, and to Athene and Apollo, that I were young, as when the
+Pylians met the Arcadians in battle, and Ereuthalion, the squire of
+King Lycurgus of Arcadia, wearing the divine armor of
+Are&iuml;thous, of the iron mace, before the walls of Pheia, by the
+waters of Iardanus, challenged all our host; and they were afraid
+and trembled. Then I, the youngest of all, stood up and fought with
+him, and Athene gave me great glory; for he was the tallest man,
+and of the greatest bulk, that I have ever slain. Would that I were
+still so young and strong! But of you, leaders of the Achaians, not
+one has heart enough to meet great Hector.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The wise old man&rsquo;s reproaches filled the Achaian chiefs
+with shame; and nine of them rose up, ready to fight; namely,
+Agamemnon, king of men; and the stalwart Diomedes; and Idomeneus,
+and his brother in arms, Meriones, equal in fight to murderous
+Mars; and Eurypylus, and Thaus, and the wily Ulysses, and two
+others. Then Nestor spake again. &ldquo;Now cast lots for him that
+shall be champion.&rdquo; Then each man marked his lot, and threw
+it into Agamemnon&rsquo;s helmet; and all men prayed that the lot
+might fall on Ajax or Diomedes, or the king of rich Mycen&aelig;.
+Then Nestor shook the helmet, and the lot of Ajax leapt out; and
+the herald placed it in the hand of mighty Ajax, and he was glad;
+for he said, &ldquo;I think that I shall vanquish goodly
+Hector.&rdquo; And they all prayed to the Son of Cronos, to give
+victory to Ajax, or to grant unto each of them equal glory and
+renown.</p>
+<p>Then huge Ajax donned his bright armor of bronze, and came forth
+like the war-god Mars when he goeth to battle. The Achaians were
+glad, but the Trojans trembled; and even the brave Hector felt his
+heart beat quicker in his breast. But he would not shrink from the
+combat, seeing that he had himself challenged all the Achaians. And
+Ajax came on, bearing a mighty shield, like a tower, which Tychius,
+the cunning leather-worker, had made for him, of sevenfold hides of
+lusty bulls, all overlaid with bronze. And he stood near godlike
+Hector, and spake: &ldquo;Now shalt thou see what manner of men the
+Greeks have among them, even now when Achilles, the lion-hearted,
+hath left us in his wrath. But do thou begin the fight!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Hector answered him, &ldquo;Great Ajax, son of Telamon,
+sprung from Zeus! speak not to me as if I were a poor weak boy, or
+a woman! for I too have knowledge of war and slaughter. I know how
+to charge into the midst of the chariots, or, at close quarters, to
+join in the wild dance of Mars.&rdquo; He said, and hurled his
+long-shafted spear, and struck the sevenfold shield of Ajax; it
+passed through six folds, but was stopped by the seventh.</p>
+<p>Then Ajax, sprung from Zeus, threw his ponderous lance at the
+shield of mighty Priam&rsquo;s son. It passed right through the
+bright shield, and through the well-wrought corselet, and rent his
+tunic; but he swerved aside, and escaped gloomy death. Then the two
+fell upon each other, like ravening lions or wild boars; and Hector
+smote the shield of Ajax with his spear, but the sharp point was
+turned by the stout buckler. Then Ajax leapt upon him, and drove
+his spear at Hector&rsquo;s neck, making a wound from which the
+dark blood flowed.</p>
+<p>But Hector, undismayed, took up a great stone from the ground,
+and with it smote the boss of Ajax&rsquo;s shield. And Ajax heaved
+up a far bigger stone and threw it on the buckler of Hector, and it
+fell on him like a huge millstone, and stretched him on his back!
+But Apollo raised him, and set him on his legs again.</p>
+<p>Then they would have furiously attacked each other with their
+swords, had not the Achaian herald, Talthybius, and the Trojan
+herald, Idaius, intervened and stopped the fight, holding their
+staves of office between the godlike warriors; and Idaius spake to
+them: &ldquo;Fight no longer, brave youths; for Zeus loveth you
+both; and we know well what gallant warriors ye are. Night is upon
+us, whose commands it behooveth us to obey.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the Telamonian Ajax answered, &ldquo;Let Hector say those
+words; for it was he who challenged us.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Hector of the shining helmet said, &ldquo;Ajax, since thou
+hast received strength and wisdom from the Gods, and dost excel all
+the Achaians in the fight, let us now cease from battle for the
+day, and hereafter we will fight again, until the Gods shall give
+victory to one of us. Go now, and rejoice thy friends and kinsmen
+by the ships, and I will gladden the hearts of Trojan men and
+long-robed dames in the holy city of King Priam. But now let us
+exchange costly gifts, that Trojans and Achaians may say of us that
+we, having met in this heart-gnawing strife, have parted like good
+friends.&rdquo; He spake, and gave to Ajax a silver-studded sword;
+and Ajax gave him a purple belt. So they parted, and went their
+way; the one to the ships of the Achaians, and the other to the
+holy city of Troy. And the Trojans rejoiced that Hector had escaped
+unhurt from the unapproachable hands of mighty Ajax.</p>
+<h3><a id="Patroclus" name="Patroclus">The Death of Patroclus and
+the Battle of the River</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Patroclus came and stood by the side of Achilles weeping. Then
+said Achilles, &ldquo;What ails thee, Patroclus, that thou weepest
+like a girl-child that runs along by her mother&rsquo;s side, and
+would be taken up, holding her gown, and looking at her with
+tearful eyes till she lift her in her arms? Hast thou heard evil
+news from Phthia? Menoetius yet lives, they say, and Peleus. Or art
+thou weeping for the Greeks, because they perish for their
+folly?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said Patroclus, &ldquo;Be not wroth with me, great
+Achilles, for indeed the Greeks are in grievous straits, and all
+their bravest are wounded, and still thou cherishest thy wrath.
+Surely Peleus was not thy father, nor Thetis thy mother; but the
+rocks begat thee, and the sea brought thee forth. Or if thou goest
+not to battle, fearing some warning from the Gods, yet let me go,
+and thy Myrmidons with me. And let me put thy armor on me; so shall
+the Greeks have breathing-space from the war.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So he spake, entreating, nor knew that for his own doom he
+entreated. And Achilles made reply,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It is no warning that I heed, that I keep back from the
+war. But these men took from me my prize, which I won with my own
+hands. But let the past be past. I said I would not rise up till
+the battle should come nigh to my own ships. But thou mayest put my
+armor upon thee, and lead my Myrmidons to the fight. For in truth
+the men of Troy are gathered as a dark cloud about the ships, and
+the Greeks have scarce standing-ground between them and the sea.
+For they see not the gleam of my helmet. And Diomed is not there
+with his spear; nor do I hear the voice of Agamemnon, but only the
+voice of Hector as he calls the men of Troy to the battle. Go,
+therefore, Patroclus, and drive the fire from the ships. And then
+come thou back, nor fight any more with the Trojans, lest thou take
+my glory from me. And go not near, in the delight of the battle, to
+the walls of Troy, lest one of the Gods meet thee to thy hurt; and,
+of a truth, the keen Archer Apollo loves the Trojans
+well.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But as they talked the one to the other, Ajax could hold out no
+longer. For swords and javelins came thick upon him, and clattered
+on his helmet, and his shoulder was weary with the great shield
+which he held; and he breathed heavily and hard, and the great
+drops of sweat fell upon the ground. Then at the last Hector came
+near and smote his spear with a great sword, so that the head fell
+off. Then was Ajax sore afraid, and gave way, and the men of Troy
+set torches to the ship&rsquo;s stem, and a great flame shot up to
+the sky. And Achilles saw it, and smote his thigh and
+spake:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Haste thee, Patroclus, for I see the fire rising up from
+the ships. Put thou on the armor, and I will call my people to the
+war.&rdquo; So Patroclus put on the armor&mdash;corselet, and
+shield, and helmet&mdash;and bound upon his shoulder the
+silver-studded sword, and took a mighty spear in his hand. But the
+great Pelian spear he took not, for that no man but Achilles might
+wield. Then Automedon yoked the horses to the chariot, Bayard and
+Piebald, and with them in the side harness, Pedasus; and they two
+were deathless steeds, but he was mortal.</p>
+<p>Meanwhile Achilles had called the Myrmidons to battle. Fifty
+ships had he brought to Troy, and in each there were fifty men.
+Five leaders they had, and the bravest of the five was
+Pisander.</p>
+<p>Then Achilles said, &ldquo;Forget not, ye Myrmidons, the bold
+words that ye spake against the men of Troy during the days of my
+wrath, making complaint that I kept you from the battle against
+your will. Now, therefore, ye have that which you
+desired.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So the Myrmidons went to the battle in close array, helmet to
+helmet, and shield to shield, close as the stones with which a
+builder builds a wall. And in front went Patroclus, and Automedon
+in the chariot beside him. Then Achilles went to his tent and took
+a great cup from the chest, which Thetis his mother had given him.
+Now no man drank of that cup but he only, nor did he pour out of it
+libations to any of the Gods, but only to Zeus. This first he
+cleansed with sulphur, and then with water from the spring. And
+after this he washed his hands, and stood in the midst of the space
+before his tent, and poured out of it to Zeus, saying, &ldquo;O
+Zeus, I send my comrade to this battle; make him strong and bold,
+and give him glory, and bring him home safe to the ships, and my
+people with him.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So he prayed, and Father Zeus heard him, and part he granted and
+part denied.</p>
+<p>But now Patroclus with the Myrmidons had come to where the
+battle was raging about the ship of Protesilaus, and when the men
+of Troy beheld him they thought that Achilles had forgotten his
+wrath and was come forth to the war. And first Patroclus slew
+Pyr&aelig;chmes, who was the chief of the P&aelig;onians who live
+on the banks of the broad Axius. Then the men of Troy turned to
+flee, and many chiefs of fame fell by the spears of the Greeks. So
+the battle rolled back to the trench, and in the trench many
+chariots of the Trojans were broken, but the horses of Achilles
+went across it at a stride, so nimble were they and strong. And the
+heart of Patroclus was set to slay Hector; but he could not
+overtake him, so swift were his horses. Then did Patroclus turn his
+chariot, and keep back those that fled, that they should not go to
+the city, and rushed hither and thither, still slaying as he
+went.</p>
+<p>But Sarpedon, when he saw the Lycians dismayed and scattered,
+called to them that they should be of good courage, saying that he
+would himself make trial of this great warrior. So he leapt down
+from his chariot, and Patroclus also leapt down, and they rushed at
+each other as two eagles rush together. Then first Patroclus struck
+down Thrasymelus, who was the comrade of Sarpedon; and Sarpedon,
+who had a spear in either hand, with the one struck the horse
+Pedasus, which was of mortal breed, on the right shoulder, and with
+the other missed his aim, sending it over the left shoulder of
+Patroclus. But Patroclus missed not his aim, driving his spear into
+Sarpedon&rsquo;s heart. Then fell the great Lycian chief, as an
+oak, or a poplar, or a pine falls upon the hills before the axe.
+But he called to Glaucus, his companion, saying, &ldquo;Now must
+thou show thyself a good warrior, Glaucus. First call the men of
+Lycia to fight for me, and do thou fight thyself, for it would be
+foul shame to thee, all thy days, if the Greeks should spoil me of
+my arms.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he died. But Glaucus was sore troubled, for he could not
+help him, so grievous was the wound where Teucer had wounded him.
+Therefore he prayed to Apollo, and Apollo helped him and made him
+whole. Then he went first to the Lycians, bidding them fight for
+their king, and then to the chiefs of the Trojans, that they should
+save the body of Sarpedon. And to Hector he said, &ldquo;Little
+carest thou for thy allies. Lo! Sarpedon is dead, slain by
+Patroclus. Suffer not the Myrmidons to carry him off and do
+dishonor to his body.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Hector was troubled to hear such news, and so were all the
+sons of Troy, for Sarpedon was the bravest of the allies, and led
+most people to the battle. So with a great shout they charged, and
+drove the Greeks back a space from the body; and then again the
+Greeks did the like. And so the battle raged, till no one would
+have known the great Sarpedon, so covered was he with spears and
+blood and dust. But at the last the Greeks drave back the men of
+Troy from the body, and stripped the arms, but the body itself they
+harmed not. For Apollo came down at the bidding of Zeus, and
+carried it out of the midst of the battle, and washed it with
+water, and anointed it with ambrosia, and wrapped it in garments of
+the Gods. And then he gave it to Sleep and Death, and these two
+carried it to Lycia, his fatherland.</p>
+<p>Then did Patroclus forget the word which Achilles had spoken to
+him, that he should not go near to Troy, for he pursued the men of
+the city even to the wall. Thrice he mounted on the angle of the
+wall, and thrice Apollo himself drove him back, pushing his shining
+shield. But the fourth time the god said, &ldquo;Go thou back,
+Patroclus. It is not for thee to take the city of Troy; no, nor for
+Achilles, who is far better than thou art.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So Patroclus went back, fearing the wrath of the archer god.
+Then Apollo stirred up the spirit of Hector, that he should go
+against Patroclus. Therefore he went, with his brother Cebriones
+for driver of his chariot. But when they came near, Patroclus cast
+a great stone which he had in his hand, and smote Cebriones on the
+forehead, crushing it in, so that he fell headlong from the
+chariot. And Patroclus mocked him, saying,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;How nimble is this man! how lightly he dives! What spoil
+he would take of oysters, diving from a ship, even in a stormy sea!
+Who would have thought that there were such skillful divers in
+Troy!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then again the battle waxed hot about the body of Cebriones, and
+this too, at the last, the Greeks drew unto themselves, and spoiled
+it of the arms. And this being accomplished, Patroclus rushed
+against the men of Troy. Thrice he rushed, and each time he slew
+nine chiefs of fame. But the fourth time Apollo stood behind him
+and struck him on the head and shoulders, so that his eyes were
+darkened. And the helmet fell from off his head, so that the
+horse-hair plumes were soiled with dust. Never before had it
+touched the ground, for it was the helmet of Achilles. And also the
+god brake the spear in his hand, and struck the shield from his
+arms, and loosed his corselet. All amazed he stood, and then
+Euphorbus, son of Panthous, smote him on the back with his spear,
+but slew him not. Then Patroclus sought to flee to the ranks of his
+comrades. But Hector saw him, and thrust at him with his spear,
+smiting him in the groin, so that he fell. And when the Greeks saw
+him fall, they sent up a terrible cry. Then Hector stood over him
+and cried,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Didst thou think to spoil our city, Patroclus, and to
+carry away our wives and daughters in the ships? But lo! I have
+slain thee, and the fowls of the air shall eat thy flesh; nor shall
+the great Achilles help thee at all,&mdash;Achilles, who bade thee,
+I trow, strip the tunic from my breast, and thou thoughtest in thy
+folly to do it.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Patroclus answered, &ldquo;Thou boasteth much, Hector. Yet
+<em>thou</em> didst not slay me, but Apollo, who took from me my
+arms, for had twenty such as thou met me, I had slain them all. And
+mark thou this: death and fate are close to thee by the hand of the
+great Achilles.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Hector answered, but Patroclus was dead already, &ldquo;Why
+dost thou prophesy death to me? Maybe the great Achilles himself
+shall fall by my hand.&rdquo; Then he drew his spear from the
+wound, and went after Automedon, to slay him, but the swift horse
+of Achilles carried him away.</p>
+<p>Fierce was the fight about the body of Patroclus, and many
+heroes fell, both on this side and on that.</p>
+<div class="figure"><a href="images/big_252.jpg"><img src=
+"images/small_252.jpg" alt=
+"A large battle scene with horses and swords." id="img05" name=
+"img05" width="551" height="360" /></a>
+<p>FIERCE WAS THE FIGHT ABOUT THE BODY OF PATROCLUS AND MANY HEROES
+FELL</p>
+</div>
+<p>Meanwhile Antilochus, son of Nestor, ran to Achilles and said,
+&ldquo;I bring ill news; Patroclus lies low. The Greeks fight for
+his body, but Hector hath his arms.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Achilles took of the dust of the plain in his hand, and
+poured it on his head, and lay at his length upon the ground, and
+tare his hair. And all the women wailed. And Antilochus sat
+weeping; but ever he held the hands of Achilles, lest he should
+slay himself in his great grief.</p>
+<p>Then came his mother, hearing his cry, from where she sat in the
+depths of the sea, and laid her hand on him and said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Why weepest thou, my son? Hide not the matter from me,
+but tell me.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Achilles answered, &ldquo;All that Zeus promised thee for me
+he hath fulfilled. But what profit have I, for my friend Patroclus
+is dead, and Hector has the arms which I gave him to wear. And as
+for me, I care not to live, except I can avenge me upon
+him.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said Thetis, &ldquo;Nay, my son, speak not thus. For when
+Hector dieth, thy doom also is near.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Achilles spake in great wrath: &ldquo;Would that I might die
+this hour, seeing that I could not help my friend, but am a burden
+on the earth,&mdash;I, who am better in battle than all the Greeks
+besides. Cursed be the wrath that sets men to strive the one with
+the other, even as it set me to strive with King Agamemnon! But let
+the past be past. And as for my fate&mdash;let it come when it may,
+so that I first avenge myself on Hector. Wherefore, seek not to
+keep me back from the battle.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Thetis said, &ldquo;Be it so; only thou canst not go
+without thy arms which Hector hath. But to-morrow will I go to
+Vulcan, that he may furnish thee anew.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But while they talked the men of Troy pressed the Greeks more
+and more, and the two heroes, Ajax the Greater and Ajax the Less,
+could no longer keep Hector back, but that he should lay hold of
+the body of Patroclus. And indeed he would have taken it, but that
+Zeus sent Iris to Achilles, who said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Rouse thee, son of Peleus, or Patroclus will be a prey
+for the dogs of Troy.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Achilles said, &ldquo;How shall I go?&mdash;for arms have I
+none, nor know I whose I might wear. Haply I could shift with the
+shield of Ajax, son of Telamon, but he, I know, is carrying it in
+the front of the battle.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then answered Iris, &ldquo;Go only to the trench and show
+thyself; so shall the men of Troy tremble and cease from the
+battle, and the Greeks shall have breathing-space.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So he went, and Athene put her &aelig;gis about his mighty
+shoulders, and a golden halo about his head, making it shine as a
+flame of fire, even as the watch-fires shine at night from some
+city that is beseiged. Then went he to the trench; with the battle
+he mingled not, heeding his mother&rsquo;s commands, but he shouted
+aloud, and his voice was as the sound of a trumpet. And when the
+men of Troy heard, they were stricken with fear, and the horses
+backed with the chariots, and the drivers were astonished when they
+saw the flaming fire above his head which Athene had kindled.
+Thrice across the trench the great Achilles shouted, and thrice the
+men of Troy fell back. And that hour there perished twelve chiefs
+of fame, wounded by their own spears or trampled by their own
+steeds, so great was the terror among the men of Troy.</p>
+<p>Right gladly did the Greeks take Patroclus out of the press.
+Then they laid him on a bier, and carried him to the tent, Achilles
+walking with many tears by his side.</p>
+<p>But on the other side the men of Troy held an assembly. Standing
+they held it, for none dared to sit, lest Achilles should be upon
+them.</p>
+<p>Then spake Polydamas: &ldquo;Let us not wait here for the
+morning. It was well for us to fight at the ships while Achilles
+yet kept his wrath against Agamemnon. But now it is not so, for
+to-morrow he will come against us in his anger, and many will fall
+before him. Wherefore, let us go back to the city, for high are the
+walls and strong the gates, and he will perish before he pass
+them.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said Hector, &ldquo;This is ill counsel, Polydamas. Shall
+we shut ourselves up in the city, where all our goods are wasted
+already, buying meat for the people? Nay, let us watch to-night,
+and to-morrow will we fight with the Greeks. And if Achilles be
+indeed come forth from his tent, be it so. I will not shun to meet
+him, for Mars gives the victory now to one man and now to
+another.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So he spake, and all the people applauded, not knowing what the
+morrow should bring forth.</p>
+<p>Thus did it come to pass that Achilles went again into the
+battle, eager above all things to meet with Hector and to slay
+him.</p>
+<p>But Apollo stood by &AElig;neas, and spake to him:
+&ldquo;&AElig;neas, where are now thy boastings that thou wouldst
+meet Achilles face to face?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then &AElig;neas answered, &ldquo;Nay, I have stood up against
+him in the day when he took the town of Lyrnessus. But I fled
+before him, and only my nimble feet saved me from falling by his
+spear. Surely a god is ever with him, making his spear to fly
+aright.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Him Apollo answered again, &ldquo;Thou, too, art the son of a
+goddess, and thy mother is greater than his, for she is but a
+daughter of the sea. Drive straight at him with thy spear, and let
+not his threats dismay thee.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then &AElig;neas stood out from the press to meet Achilles and
+Achilles said, &ldquo;Fightest thou with me because thou hopest to
+reign over the men of Troy, or have they given thee a choice
+portion of ground, ploughland and orchard, to be thine when thou
+hast slain me? Thou wilt not find it easy. Dost thou not remember
+how thou fleddest before me in the day that I took
+Lyrnessus?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then &AElig;neas answered, &ldquo;Think not to terrify me with
+words, son of Peleus, for I, too, am the son of a goddess. Let us
+make a trial one of the other.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he cast his spear, and it struck the shield of Achilles
+with so dreadful a sound that the hero feared lest it should pierce
+it through, knowing not that the gifts of the Gods are not easy for
+mortal man to vanquish. Two folds, indeed, it pierced, that were of
+bronze, but in the gold it was stayed, and there were yet two of
+tin within. Then Achilles cast his spear. Through the shield of
+&AElig;neas it passed, and though it wounded him not, yet was he
+sore dismayed, so near it came. Then Achilles drew his sword, and
+rushed on &AElig;neas, and &AElig;neas caught up a great stone to
+cast at him. But it was not the will of the Gods that &AElig;neas
+should perish, seeing that he and his sons after him should rule
+over the men of Troy in the ages to come. Therefore Neptune lifted
+him up, and bore him over the ranks of men to the left of the
+battle, but first he drew the spear out of the shield, and laid it
+at the feet of Achilles. Much the hero marveled to see it, crying,
+&ldquo;This is a great wonder that I behold with mine eyes. For I
+see my spear before me, but the man whom I sought to slay, I see
+not. Of a truth &AElig;neas spake truth, saying that he was dear to
+the immortal Gods.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he rushed into the battle, slaying as he went. And Hector
+would have met him, but Apollo stood by him and said, &ldquo;Fight
+not with Achilles, lest he slay thee.&rdquo; Therefore he went back
+among the men of Troy. Many did Achilles slay, and among them
+Polydorus, son of Priam, who, because he was the youngest and very
+dear, his father suffered not to go to the battle. Yet he went, in
+his folly, and being very swift of foot, he trusted in his speed,
+running through the foremost of the fighters. But as he ran
+Achilles smote him and wounded him to the death. When Hector saw
+it, he could not bear any more to stand apart. Therefore he rushed
+at Achilles, and Achilles rejoiced to see him, saying, &ldquo;This
+is the man who slew my comrade;&rdquo; and to Hector he cried,
+&ldquo;Come hither, and taste of death.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Hector made answer, &ldquo;Son of Peleus, seek not to make
+me afraid with words. For though I be weaker than thou, yet victory
+lieth on the knees of the Gods, and I, too, bear a
+spear.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he cast his spear, but Athene turned it aside with her
+breath, and laid it again at his feet. And when Achilles leapt upon
+Hector with a shout, Apollo snatched him away. Three times did
+Achilles leap upon him, and three times he struck only the mist.
+But the fourth time he cried with a terrible voice, &ldquo;Dog,
+thou hast escaped from death, Apollo helping thee; but I shall meet
+thee again, and make an end of thee.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Achilles turned to the others, and slew multitudes of them,
+so that they fled, some across the plain, and some to the river,
+the eddying Xanthus. And these leapt into the water as locusts leap
+into a river when a fire which men light drives them from the
+fields. And all the river was full of horses and men. Then Achilles
+leapt into the stream, leaving his spear on the bank, resting on
+the tamarisk trees. Only his sword had he, and with this he slew
+many; and they were as fishes which fly from some great dolphin in
+the sea. In all the bays of a harbor they hide themselves, for the
+great beast devours them apace. So did the Trojans hide themselves
+under the banks of the river. And when Achilles was weary of
+slaying, he took twelve alive, whom he would slay on the tomb of
+Patroclus.</p>
+<p>Yet there was one man who dared to stand up against him, while
+the others fled. This was Asterop&aelig;us, who was the grandson of
+the river-god Axius, and led the men of P&aelig;onia. And Achilles
+wondered to see him, and said, &ldquo;Who art thou that standest
+against me?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And he said, &ldquo;I am the grandson of the river-god Axius,
+fairest of all the streams on the earth, and I lead the men of
+P&aelig;onia.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And as he spake he cast two spears, one with each hand, for he
+could use either alike; and the one struck the shield, nor pierced
+it through, for the gold staved it, and the other grazed the right
+hand of Achilles so that the blood spurted forth. Then did Achilles
+cast his spear, but missed his aim, and the great spear stood fast
+in the bank. And thrice Asterop&aelig;us strove to draw it forth.
+Thrice he strove in vain, and the fourth time he strove to break
+the spear. But as he strove Achilles smote him that he died. Yet
+had he some glory, for that he wounded the great Achilles.</p>
+<p>When the River saw that Asterop&aelig;us was dead, and that
+Achilles was slaying many of the P&aelig;onians&mdash;for these
+were troubled, their chief being dead&mdash;he took upon him the
+shape of a man, and spake to Achilles, saying, &ldquo;Truly,
+Achilles, thou excellest all other men in might and deeds of blood,
+for the Gods themselves protect thee. It may be that Zeus hath
+given thee to slay all the sons of Troy; nevertheless, depart from
+me and work thy will upon the plain; for my stream is choked with
+the multitude of corpses, nor can I pass to the sea. Do thou,
+therefore, cease from troubling me.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>To him Achilles made answer, &ldquo;This shall be as thou wilt,
+O Scamander. But the Trojans I will not cease from slaying till I
+have driven them into their city and have made trial of Hector,
+whether I shall vanquish him or he shall vanquish me.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And as he spake he sped on, pursuing the Trojans. Then the River
+cried to Apollo, &ldquo;Little thou doest the will of thy father,
+thou of the Silver Bow, who bade thee stand by the men of Troy and
+help them till darkness should cover the land.&rdquo; And he rushed
+on with a great wave, stirring together all his streams. The dead
+bodies he threw upon the shore, roaring as a bull roareth; and them
+that lived he hid in the depths of his eddies. And all about
+Achilles rose up the flood, beating full upon his shield, so that
+he could not stand fast upon his feet. Then Achilles laid hold of a
+lime-tree, fair and tall, that grew upon the bank; but the tree
+brake therefrom with all its roots, and tare down the bank, and lay
+across the River, staying its flood, for it had many branches.
+Thereupon Achilles leapt out of the water and sped across the
+plain, being sore afraid. But the River ceased not from pursuing
+him, that he might stay him from slaughter and save the sons of
+Troy. So far as a man may throw a spear, so far did Achilles leap;
+strong as an eagle was he, the hunting-bird that is the strongest
+and swiftest of all birds. And still as he fled the River pursued
+after him with a great roar. Even as it is with a man that would
+water his garden, bringing a stream from a fountain; he has a
+pick-axe in his hand to break down all that would stay the water;
+and the stream runs on, rolling the pebbles along with it, and
+overtakes him that guides it. Even so did the River overtake
+Achilles, for all that he was swift of foot, for indeed the Gods
+are mightier than men. And when Achilles would have stood against
+the River, seeking to know whether indeed all the Gods were against
+him, then the great wave smote upon his shoulders; and when he
+leapt into the air, it bowed his knees beneath him and devoured the
+ground from under his feet. Then Achilles looked up to heaven and
+groaned, crying out, &ldquo;O Zeus, will none of the Gods pity me,
+and save me from the River? I care not what else may befall me.
+Truly my mother hath deceived me, saying that I should perish under
+the walls of Troy by the arrows of Apollo. Surely it had been
+better that Hector should slay me, for he is the bravest of the men
+of Troy, but now I shall perish miserably in the River, as some
+herd-boy perisheth whom a torrent sweeps away in a
+storm.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So he spake; but Poseidon and Athene stood by him, having taken
+upon them the shape of men, and took him by the hand and
+strengthened him with comforting words, for Poseidon spake, saying,
+&ldquo;Son of Peleus, tremble not, neither be afraid. It is not thy
+fate to be mastered by the River. He shall soon cease from
+troubling thee. And do thou heed what we say. Stay not thy hands
+from the battle, till thou shalt have driven all the sons of Troy
+that escape thee within the walls of the city. And when thou shalt
+have slain Hector, go back to the ships; for this day is the day of
+thy glory.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the two departed from him. Now all the plain was covered
+with water, wherein floated much fair armor and many dead bodies.
+But Achilles went on even against the stream, nor could the River
+hold him back; for Athene put great might into his heart. Yet did
+not Scamander cease from his wrath, but lifted his waves yet
+higher, and cried aloud to Simois, &ldquo;Dear brother, let us two
+stay the fury of this man, or else of a surety he will destroy the
+city of Priam. Come now, fill all thy streams and rouse thy
+torrents against him, and lift up against him a mighty wave with a
+great concourse of tree-trunks and stones, that we may stay this
+wild man from his fighting. Very high thoughts hath he, even as a
+god; yet shall neither his might nor his beauty nor his fair form
+profit him; for they shall be covered with much mud; and over
+himself will I heap abundance of sand beyond all counting. Neither
+shall the Greeks be able to gather his bones together, with such a
+heap will I hide them. Surely a great tomb will I build for him;
+nor will his people have need to make a mound over him when they
+would bury him.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he rushed again upon Achilles, swelling high with foam and
+blood and dead bodies of men. Very dark was the wave as it rose,
+and was like to have overwhelmed the man, so that Juno greatly
+feared for him, lest the River should sweep him away. And she cried
+to Vulcan, her son, saying, &ldquo;Rouse thee, Haltfoot, my son! I
+thought that thou wouldst have been a match for Scamander in
+battle. But come, help us, and bring much fire with thee; and I
+will call the west wind and the south wind from the sea, with such
+a storm as shall consume the sons of Troy, both them and their
+arms. And do thou burn the trees that are by the banks of Xanthus,
+yea, and the River himself. And let him not turn thee from thy
+purpose by fury or by craft; but burn till I shall bid thee
+cease.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Vulcan lit a great fire. First he burned the dead bodies
+that lay upon the plain, and it dried all the plain, as the north
+wind in the autumn time dries a field, to the joy of him that tills
+it. After this it laid hold of the River. The lime-trees and the
+willows and the tamarisks it burned; also the plants that grew in
+the streams. And the eels and the fishes were sore distressed,
+twisting hither and thither in the water, being troubled by the
+breath of Vulcan. So the might of the River was subdued, and he
+cried aloud, &ldquo;O Vulcan, no one of the Gods can match himself
+with thee. Cease now from consuming me; and Achilles may drive the
+men of Troy from their city if he will. What have I to do with the
+strife and sorrow of men?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So he spake, for all his streams were boiling&mdash;as a
+cauldron boils with a great fire beneath it, when a man would melt
+the fat of a great hog; nor could he flow any longer to the sea, so
+sorely did the breath of the Fire-god trouble him. Then he cried
+aloud to Juno, entreating her: &ldquo;O Juno, why doth thy son
+torment me only among all? Why should I be blamed more than others
+that help the men of Troy? Verily, I will cease from helping them,
+if he also will cease. Nay, I will swear a great oath that I will
+keep no more the day of doom from the sons of Troy; no, not when
+all the city shall be consumed with fire.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Queen Juno heard him, and called to Vulcan, saying,
+&ldquo;Cease, my son; it doth not beseem thee to work such damage
+to a god for the sake of a mortal man.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So Vulcan quenched his fire, and the River flowed as he flowed
+before.</p>
+<h3><a id="Vulcan" name="Vulcan">Vulcan Makes Armor for
+Achilles</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Walter C. Perry</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>On high Olympus, the Loud-thundering Zeus spake mockingly to his
+consort, Juno, and said, &ldquo;At length, thou hast what thou
+desirest, and hast roused Achilles to fight against the Trojans.
+Surely, the long-haired Achaians must be thine own children, since
+thou lovest them so dearly!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the ox-eyed queen replied, &ldquo;Dread son of Cronos! what
+words are these which have passed the barrier of thy teeth? Even a
+mortal man doth what he can to help another; and shall not I, the
+chief of goddesses by birth and as thy wife&mdash;O thou king of
+the deathless Gods!&mdash;shall not <em>I</em> avenge myself upon
+the men of Troy?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Thus these two strove with one another.</p>
+<p>Meantime, the silver-footed Thetis came to the splendid palace
+of Vulcan, bright and immortal, which shone like a star among the
+mansions of the Gods. She found him at his bellows, sweating from
+his mighty toil; for he was forging twenty tripods, to stand round
+the walls of his well-built mansion. Beneath each of them he placed
+wheels of gold; and they move, of themselves, into the assembly of
+the Gods, and so return.</p>
+<p>While he was thus employed, the silver-footed Thetis approached
+the house. And Charis, of the shining veil, the wedded wife of
+Vulcan (whose first wife had been Aphrodite or Venus), came forth
+to meet her, and took her by the hand, and called her by her name.
+&ldquo;O long-robed Thetis! dear and honored as thou art! not oft,
+I ween, dost thou come to visit us. But follow me, that I may show
+thee due hospitality.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then she led the way in, and seated Thetis on a lofty chair with
+silver studs, beautiful, and cunningly wrought, and placed a
+footstool beneath her shining feet. And she called to Vulcan, the
+divine artificer, &ldquo;Come hither, Vulcan! for the silver-footed
+Thetis seeketh thine aid.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the glorious lame god answered, &ldquo;Revered and dear to
+me is she; for she saved me, when my shameless mother threw me down
+from heaven; and I should have suffered dire anguish had not
+Eurynome, daughter of Oceanos, and Thetis taken me to their hearts
+and comforted me. Nine years I spent with them, and fashioned all
+kinds of curious work of bronze&mdash;clasps, and spiral bracelets,
+and ear-rings, like the calyx of a flower, and necklaces&mdash;in
+the hollow grot, while all around me roared the streams of great
+Oceanus. And none of the other Gods knew where I was, but only
+Thetis and Eurynome. And now that she is come, a welcome guest, to
+my house, I will repay the fair-haired nymph in every way, for
+saving my life.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, he raised his mighty bulk from the block, and,
+limping on his slender legs, moved quickly; and he put away his
+bellows, and placed his tools in a silver chest, and sponged his
+face and hands, his strong neck and hairy breast; then he donned
+his tunic, and leaning on a staff, he limped along. And golden
+handmaids, in the form of living maidens, came to help their lord;
+these have intelligent minds, and human voices, and skill from the
+deathless Gods. And he went with halting gait, and seated himself
+on a shining throne, near the silver-footed Thetis; and he took her
+by the hand, and said to her, &ldquo;O dear and honored Thetis of
+the flowing robes! why comest thou to our house, thou, an
+infrequent guest?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the silver-footed goddess answered him, &ldquo;O Vulcan!
+hath Zeus, the son of Cronos, laid on any other goddess in Olympus
+such grievous woes as on <em>me</em>, unhappy that I am? He chose
+out me, from all the sea nymphs, to endure marriage with a mortal.
+A son I bare, the greatest of heroes. I brought him up, like a
+young tree in a fruitful soil, and sent him in a high-peaked ship
+to war against the Trojans; but never again will he return to me,
+in the halls of his aged father Peleus. And even while I yet see
+him, and he beholdeth the light of the sun, he is full of grief,
+and I cannot help him. For King Agamemnon took away his prize, the
+dearly loved maiden Brise&iuml;s. For the loss of her, he pined and
+wept; nor would he allow his Myrmidons to join in the battle,
+though the Achaians were hard pressed and driven to their ships.
+The chiefs of the Argives came to him with prayers and tears, and
+many costly gifts. And though he refused himself to rescue them, he
+suffered Patroclus to put on his divine armor, and sent many of the
+Myrmidons with him to the battle. And the son of Menoetius
+performed high deeds of valor, and went near to sack the city. But
+the Far-Darting Apollo and glorious Hector slew him, and gained
+immortal glory. And now, I come as a suppliant, to clasp thy knees,
+and to pray that thou wouldst give my short-lived son a shield, a
+helmet, a breastplate, and goodly greaves.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the lame god, the famous artificer, replied, &ldquo;Be of
+good cheer, O silver-footed Queen, and be not troubled about these
+things! Would that I could as surely save him from mournful death,
+as that I will supply him with goodly armor, a wonder to
+behold!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And he returned to his workshop, and bade his
+bellows&mdash;there were twenty of them&mdash;blow the blasts on
+the fire and prepare the earthen moulds; and as Vulcan willed, the
+work was done. He melted the tough bronze and tin, the gold and
+silver, with the fire; and placed an anvil and took a strong hammer
+in one hand, and tongs in the other, and with these he worked.</p>
+<p>First, he made the shield, broad and strong, with many
+decorations. Around it he placed a triple bright rim, and a silver
+strap depended from it. The shield itself was formed with five
+zones, in each of which he fashioned many curious works.</p>
+<p>Therein he fashioned the Earth, the Sky, the Sea, the unwearied
+Sun, the Moon at the full, and all the bright luminaries which
+crown the azure firmament: the Pleiades, daughters of Atlas, the
+Hyades, the mighty Orion, and, turning about to watch Orion, the
+Bear, which alone of all the stars bathes not in the streams of
+Oceanus.</p>
+<p>Also, on the shield, he sculptured two fair cities of
+articulate-speaking men. In one of these were wedding-festivals;
+and, with a blaze of torchlight, the brides were conducted from
+their chambers along the streets; while the hymeneal song was loud,
+and the youths whirled round and round in the giddy dance, to the
+music of flute and harp; while the women stood at their doors,
+watching and admiring. In that city he also fashioned an assembly
+of the people, in which a contention had arisen, about the
+blood-fine or &ldquo;were-geld&rdquo; for a murdered man; the
+people, with noisy shouts, cheered, on either side; but the heralds
+stilled the tumult, holding their staves of office in their hands;
+and then the judges rose up, to pronounce their verdict.</p>
+<p>Around the other city lay two armies besieging it, with flashing
+arms. Two plans were considered: either to destroy the town, or to
+divide the wealth thereof with its citizens. But the beleaguered
+garrison had not yet yielded, but armed themselves and set an
+ambush. Their dear wives and children, and the old men, stood on
+the walls to defend it, while the strong men went forth to fight.
+And they were led by Mars and Athene, whose forms were fashioned in
+gold, with golden raiment; and, as gods, he made them larger and
+more beautiful than the mortals around them.</p>
+<p>The men in ambush set upon the herdsmen who were driving oxen to
+the watering-place of the army, and making music with their pipes.
+They carried off the cattle; but the besiegers, as they sat before
+the rostra, heard the lowing of the oxen and drove up, with their
+high-stepping horses, to repel the raid. Then a fierce conflict
+arose; and in it were seen Strife, and Uproar, and Dire Fate; like
+living warriors, they rushed on one another, and haled away the
+dead whom they slew.</p>
+<p>In another part of the shield, he represented a rich,
+deep-soiled, fallow field, thrice ploughed; and when the ploughers
+came to the end of the furrow, a man would give to each of them a
+goblet of sweet wine. And the ploughed ground grew black behind
+them, like real soil, although it was of gold. Then there, too, was
+a rich field of corn, where reapers were cutting the harvest with
+their sickles and it fell in rows; and others were binding it with
+bands of straw; while the lord looked on, and was glad at heart.
+And under a spreading oak a feast was being made ready for the
+reapers.</p>
+<p>And he fashioned therein a vineyard, rich with clusters of black
+grapes, which the youths and maidens, in their glee, carried in
+baskets; while a boy, in their midst, made sweet music on a
+clear-sounding harp; and he sang the &ldquo;Song of Linos,&rdquo;
+and the rest kept time with their feet.</p>
+<p>And there was a herd of straight-horned oxen, all of gold and
+tin, hurrying to the pasture beside the gently murmuring stream and
+the waving rushes. Four herdsmen, of gold, followed them, and nine
+fleet dogs. And two terrible lions seized a bellowing bull. The
+herdsmen followed, but they could not set on their dogs to bite the
+lions, for the dogs shrank back, barking and whining, and turned
+away.</p>
+<p>And therein the glorious divine artist placed a wide pasture
+full of white sheep, with folds and tents and huts. And he made a
+dancing-ground, like that which D&aelig;dalus wrought at Gnosos for
+lovely fair-haired Ariadne. There, lusty youths in shining tunics
+glistening with oil, danced with fair maidens of costly wooing. The
+maidens had wreaths of flowers upon their heads; and the youths
+wore daggers banging from silver sword-belts. They whirled round,
+with lightly tripping feet, swift as the potter&rsquo;s wheel,
+holding each other by the wrist; and then they ran, in lines, to
+meet each other. A crowd of friends stood round and joyfully
+watched the dance, and a divine minstrel made sweet music with his
+harp, while a pair of tumblers diverted the crowd.</p>
+<p>Lastly, around the margin of the shield, Vulcan made the stream
+of the mighty river Oceanus, which encircleth the earth.</p>
+<p>And when he had finished this strong and splendid shield, he
+wrought the breastplate, glowing with blazing fire; and he made a
+heavy helmet for the head, beautiful, and adorned with curious art;
+upon it was a crest of gold. But the goodly greaves he made of
+flexible tin. When he had completed the whole suit of glorious
+armor, he laid it before the silver-footed Thetis, the mother of
+Achilles; and she darted, swift as a hawk, from snowy Olympus,
+bearing the brightly glittering arms to her dear son.</p>
+<h3><a id="Hector" name="Hector">The Slaying of Hector</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Walter C. Perry</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Meantime, Achilles went on slaughtering the Trojans; and the
+aged Priam stood on the sacred tower, and saw the son of Peleus
+driving the Trojans before him. And he shouted aloud to the brave
+warders of the gates, &ldquo;Open the gates, that the fugitives may
+enter!&rdquo; And the Far-Darter went to the front, to save the
+Trojans who were fleeing to the sheltering walls, with Achilles
+behind them in hot pursuit.</p>
+<p>Then would the Achaians have stormed the lofty gates of Troy,
+had not Ph&oelig;bus Apollo roused Agenor, a brave and noble
+prince, son of Antenor. Apollo stood by this man&rsquo;s side,
+leaning on an oak, and shrouded in mist, and put courage into his
+heart, that he might ward off fate from the Trojans. And when
+Agenor saw Achilles, he stood irresolute, and said to his mighty
+heart, &ldquo;If I too flee before Achilles, he will catch me and
+slay me as a coward. Or shall I fly by another way, and hide me in
+the spurs of Ida? How, then, if I go forth to meet him? for his
+flesh, too, may surely be pierced by the keen bronze, and he has
+but one life, like other mortals.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And his heart grew strong within him, to stay and fight. And he
+cried out aloud to Achilles, &ldquo;Surely, thou thinkest this very
+day to sack the proud city of Troy? Fool! many terrible things will
+happen before <em>that</em>; for there are many of us&mdash;many
+and brave&mdash;to protect our dear parents and wives and little
+children, and to guard holy Ilium. Thou, too, perhaps, mighty as
+thou art, mayest here meet death.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He spake and hurled a spear at Achilles with his strong hand.
+And it smote him below the knee, and the tin-wrought greave rang
+loudly; but the stout spear bounded off, for it could not pierce
+the work of Vulcan.</p>
+<p>Then Achilles rushed on godlike Agenor; but him Apollo caught in
+a mist, and carried him safely out of the fray. And the god took
+the form of Agenor, and ran a little way before Achilles, towards
+the deep-flowing Scamander. And while Apollo thus deceived the
+mighty son of Peleus, the routed Trojans ran, well pleased, to
+their stronghold, and the great city was filled with their
+multitude.</p>
+<p>Then as he ran before Achilles, the mighty Far-Darter addressed
+him, and spake: &ldquo;O son of Peleus! why dost thou, being a
+mortal man, pursue <em>me</em> with thy swift feet, who am a
+deathless god?&rdquo; Then, in wrath, the son of Peleus answered
+him: &ldquo;Thou hast blinded me, most mischievous of all the Gods!
+and lured me away from the walls; else would many a Trojan have
+fallen, or ever he had reached the city.&rdquo; He then went
+towards the city, with a proud heart, like a war-horse victorious
+in a chariot race; and the aged Priam saw him, blazing like the
+star in autumn brightest of all, which men call
+&ldquo;Orion&rsquo;s Dog,&rdquo; that bringeth fever upon wretched
+mortals.</p>
+<p>And the old man cried aloud, in his agony, and beat his head
+with his fists, and called in a piercing voice to his dear son
+Hector. For the brave hero, when all the others had escaped into
+the city, remained alone at the Sc&aelig;an Gate eager to fight
+with Achilles. And his wretched father stretched forth his withered
+hands, and pleaded piteously to his son:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Hector! dear Hector! do not meet this terrible man alone,
+for he is far mightier than thou, and knoweth no pity. Already hath
+he robbed me of many a brave son; and now I no longer see two of my
+children, Lycaon and the goodly Polydorus, whom Laotho&euml;,
+princess among women, bare to me. But the death of others will
+cause us briefer grief, if thou, dear Hector, art not slain. Come,
+then, within the walls, and save the men and women of Troy! And
+have pity on me, too, to whom the son of Cronos hath allotted a
+terrible doom in my old age&mdash;to see my brave sons dragged
+away, and my fair daughters carried off, as captives, by the cruel
+hands of the Achaians. Last of all, I too shall be torn, on my own
+threshold, by ravenous dogs&mdash;even the dogs which I myself have
+reared with food from my table, to guard my house. They will tear
+my flesh and drink my blood! It may well become a <em>young</em>
+man to lie slain on the field, for he is highly honored in his
+death; but when dogs defile an old man&rsquo;s head and beard, this
+is the most lamentable thing that befalleth wretched
+mortals.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the old man tore his hair in his sore agony; but even he
+prevailed not with the soul of Hector. And then his dear mother,
+Hecuba, took up the plaint and spake through her piteous tears.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Hector! my child! have respect to the mother who bare
+thee and nursed thee on this bosom! Pity <em>me</em>! and fight the
+foe from this side of the wall! For if he slay thee, not on a
+funeral bed shall I, and thy dear wife, won by so many gifts,
+deplore thee; but the swift dogs shall devour thee, far away from
+us, by the black ships of the Argives.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Thus wailed they over their glorious son, beseeching him; but
+they could not prevail, for honor held him fast. Meanwhile,
+Achilles drew nigh, in strength like a giant; but Hector awaited
+him undismayed, leaning his shield against the tower. And he
+communed thus with his brave soul: &ldquo;Alas, if I go through the
+gates, Polydamas will justly blame me; for he gave me good
+advice&mdash;that I should lead the host into the city on that
+fatal night, when the noble Achilles returned to the war. And I
+would not hearken to him, although he counseled well. And now that
+I have brought this evil on the city by my folly, I am ashamed to
+appear before the men, and the proud dames with trailing robes,
+lest some one should taunt me and say, &lsquo;Hector in his pride
+hath ruined us.&rsquo; Better then would it be for me to meet
+Achilles, and either slay him or fall with glory before the city.
+Or how would it be if I should lay aside all my arms, and go to
+meet the son of Peleus, and offer to restore Argive Helen and all
+her possessions to Menelaus and Agamemnon, and to divide the wealth
+of Troy with the Achaians? But no! I might come to him unarmed, but
+he is merciless, and would slay me on the spot, as if I were a
+woman. But why do I hesitate? This is no time to hold dalliance
+with him, from oak or rock, like youths and maidens. Better to
+fight at once, and see to whom Olympian Zeus will give the
+victory!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>While he thus pondered, Achilles, peer of Mars, came on, poising
+his terrible spear of Pelian ash; and his divine armor, the work of
+a god, blazed like fire or the rising sun. And when Hector saw him
+he was seized with panic, and he fled from the gates in terror.</p>
+<p>But Achilles, swift of foot, rushed after him. As a falcon,
+swiftest of all birds, swoops upon the trembling dove, and takes no
+heed of her piteous screaming, so Achilles flew straight at Hector.
+And pursuer and pursued passed by the guard and the wild fig-tree,
+the sport of the winds, and came to the two springs of water, which
+feed the deep-whirling Scamander. Brave was he who fled, but
+mightier far was he who chased him on his swift feet; and they were
+racing not for some prize in the games, but for the life of the
+noble horse-taming Hector. And like horses in the race for a great
+prize&mdash;a tripod or a woman&mdash;so the twain ran thrice round
+the sacred city of King Priam; and all the Gods were looking
+on.</p>
+<p>And Zeus, the great father of Gods and men, spake first:
+&ldquo;Alas! I see a man whom I love above all others chased round
+the walls of Troy. Come now, let us take some counsel, whether to
+save him or leave him to be slain by the son of Peleus.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the fierce-eyed Athene answered him, &ldquo;O thou great
+Lord of the Lightning, Cloud-girt King! what a word hast thou
+spoken! Wouldst thou indeed save a mortal long ago doomed by Fate?
+Do as thou pleasest; but we Gods shall not praise thee.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And her great father, the Cloud-Gatherer, answered with gentle
+words, &ldquo;O Trito-born, my dear child! be of good cheer. I
+spake not in earnest, and would fain please thee. Do as seemeth
+good to thee.&rdquo; And Athene, full of joy, sped down from high
+Olympus.</p>
+<p>Achilles, with all speed, was chasing the noble Hector, as the
+dogs hunt the fawn of a deer through dale and woodland; and though
+the fawn hideth behind a bush, they follow by the scent until they
+find it; so Hector could not escape from the swift-footed son of
+Peleus. Often did Hector rush along the strong walls, in hopes that
+the Trojans within might succor him from above with their arrows.
+But Achilles gained on him and turned him into the plain again.</p>
+<p>And so, though Hector failed in his flight and Achilles in his
+pursuit, yet might Hector have escaped his doom, had not this been
+the last time that Apollo the Far-Darter came nigh to him, to nerve
+his heart and his swift knees. Achilles had made a sign to his
+comrades, and forbade them to launch their darts against the noble
+Hector, lest one of them should gain high honor, and he come only
+second. And when they had, for the fourth time, run round the walls
+and reached the springs, then Zeus, the Great Father, raised his
+golden scales, and placed in each the lot of gloomy
+death,&mdash;one for Hector, and the other for Achilles. And he
+held the scales by the middle, and poised them; and the noble
+Hector&rsquo;s scale sank down to Hades; and Ph&oelig;bus Apollo
+left him.</p>
+<p>But the fierce-eyed goddess Athene came near to Achilles and
+spake winged words: &ldquo;Now, at last, O godlike Achilles! shall
+we twain carry off great glory to the Achaian ships! He cannot now
+escape us, though the Far-Darter should grovel at the feet of Zeus
+with fruitless prayers. But do thou stay and recover thy breath;
+and I will go and persuade Hector to stand up against thee in
+fight.&rdquo; And he gladly obeyed her voice, and stood leaning on
+his ashen spear.</p>
+<p>And she, Athene, came to noble Hector in the likeness of his
+brother De&iuml;phobus, and spake to him: &ldquo;Dear Lord and
+elder Brother, surely the fleet-footed son of Peleus hath done
+great violence against thee, chasing thee round the walls! But let
+us twain make a stand against him!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the great Hector answered, &ldquo;De&iuml;phobus, thou wert
+ever the dearest of my brothers; now I honor thee still more,
+because thou hast dared to come out from behind the walls to aid
+me, while others skulk within.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The fierce-eyed goddess, as De&iuml;phobus, spake again:
+&ldquo;It is true that my father, and my queenly mother, and all my
+comrades, besought me to stay with them, so greatly do they fear
+the mighty son of Peleus; but my heart was sore for thee, dear
+brother! But let us fight amain, and see whether he will carry our
+spoils to his ships, or fall beneath thy spear!&rdquo; And so, with
+her cunning words, she led him on to death.</p>
+<p>And when he and Achilles were come near to each other, the noble
+Hector spake: &ldquo;O mighty Achilles, thrice did I flee before
+thee round the great city of Priam, and dared not await thy
+onslaught. But now I will stand up against thee, to slay or to be
+slain. But come, let us make a covenant with one another, and call
+the Gods, the best guardians of oaths, to witness. If Zeus grant me
+to take thy life, and despoil thee of thy divine armor, then will I
+give back thy body to the warlike Achaians; and do thou the same by
+me!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Achilles, with a malignant scowl, replied, &ldquo;Speak not
+to me of covenants! There is no covenant between men and lions, or
+between wolves and sheep, but only eternal war. And there can be no
+pledge of faith between us twain, until one of us hath sated the
+murderous Mars with his blood. Therefore, show thyself a good
+spearman and a brave man of war! There is no escape for thee; for
+Pallas Athene hath delivered thee into my hands.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He spake, and cast his long-shafted spear at Hector. But Hector
+stooped, and the strong bronze spear flew over his head; but Athene
+picked it up, unknown to Hector, and gave it back to Achilles. Then
+Hector, rejoicing, spake to the son of Peleus: &ldquo;Thou hast
+missed! Nor dost thou surely know the day of my doom, as thou
+pretendest. Thou shalt not plant thy spear in my back, as I flee
+before thee; but in my breast, if the Gods allow it. But now, in
+thy turn, avoid <em>my</em> spear!&rdquo; So spake he, and smote
+the middle of Achilles&rsquo; shield with his long-shafted spear,
+but it bounded back from the shield. Then Hector was dismayed, for
+he had no second spear to throw. And he called aloud to his
+brother, De&iuml;phobus; but no answer came, for <em>he</em> was
+far away. Then Hector knew that he was betrayed, and that Athene
+had deceived him, in the likeness of his brother.
+&ldquo;Now,&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;is Death come near me, and
+there is no way of escape! This is the will of Zeus and of the
+Far-Darter, who once were wont to succor me. But I will not die
+ingloriously, but yet perform some notable deed of arms.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He said, and, with his sharp sword, swooped down upon Achilles.
+But Achilles rushed at him, wild with fury, brandishing his spear,
+with evil intent against noble Hector, and eyed him over, to see
+where he might pierce his flesh most easily. The rest of
+Hector&rsquo;s body was protected by the splendid armor which he
+had stripped from the body of Patroclus; but there was one chink,
+between the collar-bone and the throat, through which Achilles
+thrust his spear. Yet it cut not the windpipe; and Hector was able
+to speak faint words to his insulting foe, after he had fallen to
+the ground.</p>
+<p>Achilles triumphed over him: &ldquo;Ah, Hector! when thou wert
+stripping Patroclus of my goodly armor, thou caredst nothing for
+me, who was far away! I, his friend and avenger, was left among the
+black ships&mdash;even I, a mightier man than he! Thee shall the
+dogs and birds devour; but he shall have honorable
+burial.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then, with his last breath, the noble Hector of the bright helm
+addressed his pitiless foe: &ldquo;Achilles! I pray thee, by thy
+soul, and by thy parents&rsquo; heads, let not Achaian dogs devour
+me by the ships! but accept great store of gold and bronze from my
+father and my queenly mother, and restore my body to them, that the
+Trojans may deck my funeral pyre with all due honor!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Achilles, with a grim scowl, replied, &ldquo;Clasp not my
+knees, vile dog! nor speak to me of parents! Such evil hast thou
+done me, that I could devour thee raw! Not for thy weight in gold
+would I give thee to thy queenly mother, to mourn over thee; but
+dogs and birds shall batten on thy flesh!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the dying Hector uttered his last words: &ldquo;Thou
+iron-hearted man! now I know thee; nor did I think to prevail upon
+thee. But beware of the wrath of the Gods, when Paris and the
+Far-Darter slay thee, at the Sc&aelig;an Gate, brave though thou
+art!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He spake; and Death overshadowed him; and his soul went down to
+Hades, wailing to leave beauty, youth, and vigor.</p>
+<p>And Achilles spake again to the dead Hector: &ldquo;Lie thou
+there! And as for me, I will die when it seemeth good to the
+deathless Gods!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the Achaians ran up, and looked with wonder at the noble
+stature and beauty of the Trojan hero. And they all inflicted
+wounds upon him, as he lay, saying, &ldquo;He is easier to deal
+with now than when he was burning our ships with flames of
+fire.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And when the son of Peleus had stripped him of his armor, he
+stood up, and spake to the Achaians:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Great chiefs and counselors of the Argives! at last the
+Gods have granted us to slay this man, whose single arm hath
+wrought more evil to us than all the rest together. Let us now
+approach the city, and learn the purpose of the Trojans; whether
+they will now surrender the citadel or go on fighting, though great
+Hector is no more. But why do I thus ponder in my mind? Patroclus
+is lying unburied and unwept by the ships. Never can I forget him,
+while I live; and even in the House of Hades, I will remember my
+dearest friend. Come, then! let us raise the chant of victory, and
+bear our deadliest foe to the black ships!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he foully outraged the dead body of glorious Hector;
+slitting the sinews of both feet, from heel to ankle, he passed
+ox-hide straps through them, and fastened them to his chariot,
+leaving the goodly head to trail upon the ground. Then he laid the
+armor on the chariot; and mounting it, lashed his willing horses to
+full speed. And in the dust lay the once beautiful head, with its
+flowing hair; for Zeus had now given Hector up to his enemies, to
+be foully used in his own native land.</p>
+<p>And when his dear mother, Hecuba, saw her much-loved son dragged
+along, begrimed with dust, she tore her hair, and shrieked aloud,
+and tossed far away her glistening veil. And his father, King
+Priam, wailed and mourned; and with him all the men and women in
+the city, as if the beetling towers of Ilium were already
+smouldering in fire. Hardly could they keep the aged father from
+rushing through the gates; for he threw himself in the dust and
+supplicated each man by name: &ldquo;O friend, forbear! and if you
+love me, let me go to the ships of the Achaians, and pray to this
+arrogant, this fearful man!&rdquo; Thus wailed old Priam; and the
+men wailed with him. And Queen Hecuba led the loud lamentations of
+the women. &ldquo;Why,&rdquo; she cried, &ldquo;should I yet live,
+when thou, my son, my boast, my glory, art dead? the pride and
+blessing of all, both men and women of the city, who honored thee
+as a god; for in thy life thou wert an honor to them all!&rdquo;
+Thus mourned his unhappy mother.</p>
+<p>But to his wife, the noble, beautiful, tender-hearted
+Andromache, no messenger had brought the fearful tidings that
+Hector had remained without the gates. All unconscious, she was
+sitting in the inner chamber of her lofty palace, weaving a purple
+web of double woof, and embroidering it with many flowers. And she
+was ordering her handmaids to prepare a warm bath for her dear
+husband, when he should return from the battle; poor child! little
+knowing that the fierce-eyed Athene had treacherously slain him, by
+the hand of Achilles! But when she heard shrieks and lamentations
+from the walls, she reeled, and the shuttle dropped from her hands.
+And she spake again to her fair-haired maidens: &ldquo;Surely, that
+was the cry of Hector&rsquo;s noble mother! Some terrible thing
+must have befallen my godlike husband! Come, then, follow me, that
+I may learn what has happened; I greatly fear that he has been cut
+off from the city by Achilles; for he would never retreat among the
+throng, or yield to any man, in his high courage.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And she rushed, all frantic, through the house, followed by her
+maidens, and came to the walls, and saw Hector dragged through the
+dust, towards the black ships of the Achaians. Then darkness
+shrouded her fair eyes, and she fell backwards in a swoon. And when
+roused, she tore from her head the net, the fillet, and the nuptial
+veil which golden Venus had given her, when noble Hector of the
+shining helm led her forth, from King E&euml;tion&rsquo;s palace,
+as his bride. And the sisters-in-law of her dear husband gathered
+round her, and raised her from the ground, all distracted as she
+was and nigh unto death. When she had recovered from her swoon, she
+sobbed and wailed, crying, &ldquo;O Hector! to the same evil fate
+were we twain born, thou in Troy, and I in Thebes, where my great
+father, E&euml;tion, reared me as a little child. Would that I had
+never been born, since thou leavest me a hapless widow! And our
+son, thine and mine, ill-fated one! is but a little child; and thou
+canst no more profit him, nor he be a joy to thee, since thou art
+dead! A helpless orphan, he is cut off from his playmates; and if
+he pluck the robe of his father&rsquo;s friends, one may, in pity,
+just hold the cup to his lips, but give him not to satisfy his
+hunger and his thirst; while other children, whose parents still
+live, will drive him from their feast, with taunts and blows,
+saying, &lsquo;Away with thee! thou hast no father at our
+table!&rsquo; Then will he come back to me, his lonely mother; he,
+who so lately sat on his father&rsquo;s knee, and fed on the
+choicest of food! and when sleep fell upon him, tired with his
+childish play, he nestled in a soft bed in his nurse&rsquo;s arms.
+But now that his father is no more, he shall suffer untold griefs,
+even he whom the Trojans called &lsquo;Astyanax,&rsquo; king of the
+city, because thou, O my beloved lord! wert the sole defense and
+glory of their lofty walls.&rdquo; Thus wailed the fair Andromache;
+and the women moaned around her.</p>
+<h3><a id="Funeral" name="Funeral">The Funeral Games in Honor of
+Patroclus</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Walter C. Perry</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>The noble Achilles could not do enough in honor of his lost
+friend, Patroclus, and he had determined to hold games, of every
+kind, in which the mail-clad Achaians might compete for prizes; and
+to this end he had brought goodly treasures from his
+ships,&mdash;tripods, and caldrons, horses, mules, and oxen,
+well-girdled women, and hoary iron. The first and most important
+contest was a chariot race, for which he offered a woman skilled in
+needlework, and a two-handled tripod, holding two-and-twenty
+measures&mdash;these, for the best man of all; the second prize was
+a mare, six years old, with a mule foal; the third prize was a fair
+new caldron, of four measures; the fourth was two talents of bright
+gold; the fifth was a two-handled vase, untarnished by the
+fire.</p>
+<p>And Achilles addressed the chiefs, and said, &ldquo;If the race
+were in honor of some other warrior, then should I enter the lists,
+and bear away the prize; for ye know that my horses are immortal,
+and by far the best; Neptune, the Earth-Girdler, gave them to my
+father, and he to me. But I and they will stand aside; for they
+have lost a noble and gentle driver, who oft-times washed them with
+clear water and then poured soft oil upon their goodly manes! And
+now they stand with sorrow in their breasts, and their full long
+manes are trailing on the earth. But now, let whoever of you
+trusteth in his horses and his strong chariot take his place in the
+lists!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And first came forward Eumelus, son of Admetus; next came the
+mighty Diomedes, with the famous horses of Tros, which he had taken
+from &AElig;neas; then arose Menelaus,&mdash;the fair-haired,
+godlike Menelaus, with Aithe, Agamemnon&rsquo;s mare, and his own
+horse, Podargus; and the fourth was Antilochus, son of the wise
+Nestor, who yoked swift Pylian horses to his chariot.</p>
+<p>His father Nestor, son of Neleus, stood by Antilochus, and gave
+him good advice, although he himself was wise. &ldquo;Antilochus,
+my son,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;though thou art young, yet Zeus and
+Neptune have loved thee, and made thee a perfect horseman; and
+there is little need for me to teach thee. But the other horses are
+better than thine; and I fear that much trouble is in store for
+thee. But skill and cunning are better than force, and so one
+charioteer defeats another. Look well to the posts at either end,
+and run closely by them. Now I will tell thee another thing. Some
+six feet above the ground, there stands the withered stump of a
+tree, with two white stones, on either side; this is the mark fixed
+by the swift-footed Achilles. Do thou drive thy horses hard by
+this, and lean slightly to the left, and lash the off horse and
+give him rein; but let the near horse so closely skirt the post
+that the nave of the wheel of thy car may seem to graze the stone;
+but beware of touching it!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Next, Meriones made ready his chariot; and so did the others.
+Then they mounted their cars, and drew lots for their places. Great
+Diomedes drew the best. Achilles ranged them all side by side, and
+pointed to the turning-post, in the plain, near which he posted old
+Ph&oelig;nix, as umpire.</p>
+<p>Then, at a signal from the son of Peleus, they raised their long
+whips, together, standing upright, and lashed their horses, and
+encouraged them by hand and voice. And the chariots now ran evenly
+on the ground, and now bounded high in air. But when they entered
+the last part of the course, driving towards the sea, the fleet
+mares of Eumelus, grandson of Pheres, rushed to the front; and next
+came Diomedes, with the stallions of Tros, so near that they seemed
+to be mounting the car of Eumelus, and with their hot breath
+covered his back and shoulders. Then Tydides would either have
+gained a victory, or it would have been at least a dead heat; but
+Ph&oelig;bus Apollo was angry with him, and dashed his shining whip
+from his hand. He shed hot tears of fury, when he saw that the
+mares of Eumelus were still at their utmost speed, while his own
+horses slackened their speed, no longer feeling the lash. But,
+luckily for Diomedes, his constant friend Athene marked the trick
+of Apollo; and, speeding after Diomedes, she gave him back the
+scourge, and put fresh mettle into his steeds. She then pursued
+Eumelus, and brake the yoke of his horses; they bolted from the
+course, and he was hurled off his car into the dust. Meanwhile,
+Tydides rushed on before the others, for Athene was shedding glory
+on his head.</p>
+<p>Next to him ran the horses of Menelaus, son of Atreus. Then came
+Antilochus, son of Nestor, who spake thus to his father&rsquo;s
+Pylian horses: &ldquo;I do not ask you to contend with Tydides,
+whose horses Athene herself is speeding; but I pray you to catch up
+the chariot of Atrides; and be not beaten by Aithe, lest she, who
+is only a mare, pour ridicule upon you.&rdquo; Thus spake
+Antilochus, and his horses were afraid, and sped on more swiftly.
+But Antilochus noted a narrow gully, where the rain had collected
+and had carried away a part of the course. There Menelaus was
+driving, when Antilochus turned his horses out of the way, and
+followed him at one side. Then Menelaus, fearing a collision,
+shouted loudly to the son of Nestor: &ldquo;Antilochus, hold in thy
+horses! and drive not so recklessly! close ahead there is a wider
+space, where we can pass one another!&rdquo; But Antilochus, as if
+he heard him not, drove on more madly than ever and plied the lash;
+and the golden-haired son of Atreus called again to him, reproving
+him: &ldquo;Antilochus, there is no man more spiteful than thou;
+away with thee! wrongly have we called thee <em>wise</em>!&rdquo;
+Then he called on his horses, and they increased their speed,
+fearing the anger of their lord, and quickly overtook the
+others.</p>
+<p>Now the Argive chiefs sat together, watching the race as the
+chariots flew along the course. The first to see them coming was
+Idomeneus, the Cretan prince, the son of Deucalion; he was sitting
+apart from the rest on the highest place, and he could distinguish
+the voices of the drivers. He noticed a chestnut horse, with a
+white star on his forehead, round like the full moon; and he stood
+up and spake: &ldquo;Friends and Counselors of the Argives! can ye
+see the horses as I do? To me, there appeareth a new chariot and
+horses; and the mares which led at the start I can no longer
+see.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the son of O&iuml;leus, Ajax, rebuked him in boorish
+fashion: &ldquo;Idomeneus, why chatterest thou before the time?
+Thou art not one of the youngest, nor are thine eyes of the
+sharpest. The same mares of Eumelus are still leading, and he is
+standing up in the chariot.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the great chief, Idomeneus, answered in great wrath,
+&ldquo;Ajax, ever ready to abuse, inconsiderate slanderer! thou art
+in all respects inferior to the other Argives, for thy mind is
+rude.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Thus spoke the Cretan hero. And the son of O&iuml;leus rose
+again, to reply with scornful words; but Achilles himself stood
+forward and said, &ldquo;No longer, Idomeneus and Ajax, bandy
+insulting words with one another; for it is not meet! Sit ye still,
+and watch; and soon will ye know which horses are leading.&rdquo;
+He spake; and straightway Tydides came driving up in his fair
+chariot, overlaid with gold and tin, which ran lightly behind the
+horses, and scarcely left a trace in the fine dust of the plain.
+Checking his horses in the middle of the crowd, he leapt to the
+ground and claimed the splendid prize; and the gallant Sthenelus
+made no delay, but gave to his victorious comrade the woman and the
+tripod to bear away.</p>
+<p>Next to Diomedes came the son of Nestor, Antilochus, who had
+passed by Menelaus by a clever stratagem, though his horses were
+inferior; but even so, Menelaus had pressed him hard, and was
+behind him only so far as a horse is from the wheel of the chariot
+which he draweth.</p>
+<p>But Meriones, the brave charioteer of Idomeneus, came in about
+the cast of a lance behind Menelaus; for his horses were the
+slowest, and he was himself but a sluggish driver. Last of all came
+Eumelus, the son of Admetus, dragging his broken chariot. The
+swift-footed Achilles, son of Peleus, pitied him, and spake winged
+words to the chiefs: &ldquo;Lo! the best man of all comes last; but
+let us give him a prize&mdash;the second! And let Tydides bear away
+the first!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>All the Achaians heard him, and shouted applause; and the noble
+Achilles would have given him the mare had not Antilochus, son of
+the wise and glorious Nestor, stood up in defense of his claim:
+&ldquo;O Achilles!&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;justly shall I be wroth
+with thee, if thou takest away the prize which I have fairly won.
+Thou thinkest only of the unlucky chance which hath befallen
+Eumelus and his horses; but he ought to have made prayer to the
+deathless Gods, and then he would not have come in last of all. If
+thou pitiest him, there is much treasure in thy house,&mdash;gold,
+and bronze, and sheep, and handmaids, and horses. Give him, if it
+pleaseth thee and the Achaians, a still richer prize. But I will
+not give up the mare; for she is <em>mine</em>.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Achilles smiled on his comrade Antilochus, whom he dearly
+loved, and answered him, &ldquo;Antilochus, I will do as thou
+sayest: I will give him the bronze cuirass, edged with shining tin,
+which I took from Asterop&aelig;us.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But the great Menelaus arose, filled with insatiable wrath
+against Antilochus. The herald placed a sceptre in his hand, and
+called for silence. Then the godlike king made harangue, and said,
+&ldquo;Antilochus! thou who wert once accounted wise&mdash;what is
+this that thou hast done? Thou hast disgraced my skill, and
+discomfited my horses, by thrusting thine, which are far worse, in
+front of them. Come then, great chiefs of the Argives! give
+judgment, without favor, between him and me! That no one may say
+hereafter, that ye favored me for my power and rank, I will myself
+set the issue before you; so that no one may reproach me. Stand
+forth, Antilochus, before thy chariot; and take thy whip, and lay
+thy hand upon thy horses, and swear by the great Girdler and Shaker
+of the Earth, that thou didst not, by set purpose and malice,
+hinder my chariot in the course!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Antilochus made prudent answer, &ldquo;Be patient with me,
+King Menelaus! for I am younger, and thou art in all respects my
+better. Bear with me, then: and I will myself give thee the mare,
+my prize, rather than lose my place in thy heart, O thou beloved of
+Zeus!&rdquo; Thus spake the noble-minded son of Nestor; and he gave
+the mare to Menelaus, king of men.</p>
+<p>And the heart of the son of Atreus rejoiced, as the ripe ears of
+corn, when the dew descendeth upon them, in the glistening
+cornfield. And he spake kindly to Antilochus, and said, &ldquo;Lo!
+at once do I put away my anger; for of old thou wert never rash or
+light-minded; but now thy reason was overborne by the impetuosity
+of youth. Therefore I grant thy prayer, and will even give thee the
+mare; for I am in no wise covetous or unforgiving.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He spake, and gave the mare to No&euml;mon, the comrade of
+Antilochus, to lead away; but he took the bright caldron to
+himself. And Meriones, who came in fourth, took the two talents of
+gold. But the fifth prize, a vase with two handles, was not
+obtained; and the noble Achilles gave this to Nestor, and, standing
+by him, uttered winged words:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Let this, O Father! be for thee an heirloom, and a
+memorial of Patroclus&rsquo; funeral games&mdash;of him, whom thou
+wilt never see again! I give it to thee since thou mayest not
+contend in boxing, nor in wrestling, nor in throwing the lance, nor
+in the foot-race; for rueful old age weigheth heavily upon
+thee.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Nestor gladly received the splendid gift, and spake: &ldquo;True
+and fitting are thy words, dear friend! My limbs are no longer
+sound, nor do my arms move easily from my shoulders; and I must
+make way for younger men. But I accept thy free gift with joy, and
+rejoice that thou dost remember our old friendship.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Pelides brought forward the prizes for the rough, fierce
+boxing-match: a six-year-old unbroken mule for the winner; and a
+two-handled goblet for the loser. Then quickly rose the famous
+boxer Epeius, and laid his hand on the stubborn mule, and boasted
+aloud: &ldquo;Let who will bear away the goblet; but the mule is
+mine! for no one will beat me with his fists!&rdquo; They all kept
+silence, and feared. Only one came forward, even Euryalus, the
+gallant son of King Mecistus. The famous warrior Tydides made him
+ready for the fight, and bade him God speed. The twain went into
+the ring, and fell to work; and terrible was the gnashing of their
+teeth, and the sweat ran down from their limbs. Epeius came on
+fiercely, and struck Euryalus on the cheek, and that was enough;
+for all his limbs were loosened. As a fish on a weedy beach, in the
+ripple caused by Boreas, leapeth high in air, so Euryalus leapt up
+in his anguish. But the generous Epeius raised him again to his
+feet, and his comrades led him away, with dragging feet and
+drooping head, and spitting out black blood.</p>
+<p>Next came the terrible wrestling match; and for this the
+glorious Achilles brought out two costly prizes: for the winner, a
+fireproof tripod, worth twelve oxen; and for the loser, a woman
+skilled in handiwork, valued at four oxen. And he cried aloud to
+the Achaians, &ldquo;Stand forward all ye who will enter into this
+contest!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then rose Telamonian Ajax and the crafty Ulysses, and faced each
+other. And they entered the ring, and grasped each other with their
+strong hands, like the rafters of a house, joined by some skillful
+builder to withstand the wind. Their backbones grated and creaked
+beneath the strain; the sweat poured down from their limbs, and
+bloody weals streaked their sides and shoulders, as they struggled
+for the well-wrought tripod. But neither could Ulysses throw the
+burly Ajax, nor Ajax him. And when the Achaians grew tired of the
+futile contest, Ajax spake to Ulysses: &ldquo;O thou offspring of
+the Gods, Laertes&rsquo; son! do thou lift me, or I will lift thee,
+and the issue will be on the lap of Zeus!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, he raised Ulysses. But the Wily One did not forget
+his craft. From behind, he struck the hollow of Ajax&rsquo;s knee,
+and threw him on his back; and Ulysses fell upon him; and the
+people marveled. Then, in his turn, Ulysses tried to lift huge
+Ajax, but could not; so he thrust his crooked knee into the hollow
+of the other&rsquo;s; and they again both fell to the ground,
+covered with dust. When they rose for a third bout, Achilles
+restrained them. &ldquo;No longer wear ye one another out, with
+toil and pain! Ye both have won and shall receive equal
+prizes!&rdquo; And they cleansed themselves, and put on their
+doublets.</p>
+<p>Then the noble son of Peleus offered prizes for the foot-race;
+the first, a silver krater holding six measures, curiously chased
+by Sidonian artists&mdash;by far the most beautiful mixing-cup in
+the whole world. For the second he offered a stalled ox; and for
+the third, half a talent of gold. The wondrous krater
+Ph&oelig;nicians had brought by sea, and given it to Thoas, the
+ruler of Lemnos; and Euneus, son of Jason, inherited it from Jason,
+who received it from Thoas, his father-in-law; and Euneus gave it
+to the hero Patroclus, as a ransom for Lycaon, son of Priam; this
+splendid goblet was offered to the swiftest of foot.</p>
+<p>Then three valiant heroes arose: Ajax, son of O&iuml;leus;
+Ulysses, the wily one; and Antilochus, the best runner of the
+youths. Achilles ranged them side by side, and showed them the
+goal. All started at full speed; but Ajax soon took the lead; and
+Ulysses came close behind him, near as the shuttle to the breast of
+a fair-girdled woman when she is weaving,&mdash;so near that his
+breath was warm on the back of Ajax. But as they neared the goal,
+the wily Ulysses prayed to the fierce-eyed Athene, &ldquo;O
+goddess, come and help my feet!&rdquo; And Athene heard her
+favorite, and strengthened all his limbs. But just as they were
+about to pounce upon the prize, Ajax slipped in the blood of the
+slaughtered oxen, and fell; his mouth and nostrils were filled with
+dirt and gore. So the patient Ulysses took the priceless krater,
+and Ajax the fatted ox. But Ajax, holding his prize by the horn,
+and spitting the filth from his mouth, spake to the Achaians:
+&ldquo;O fie upon it! it was the goddess who betrayed me; she who
+is ever near to Ulysses, as a mother to her child.&rdquo; And the
+Achaians laughed merrily, to see him in such a sorry plight.</p>
+<p>Antilochus, smiling, took the last prize, half a talent of gold;
+and he too spake winged words to the Argives: &ldquo;My friends, ye
+too will agree with me that the deathless Gods show favor to the
+older men. Ajax is a little older than I; but Ulysses is of a
+former generation. It were not easy for any one, except Achilles,
+fleet of foot, to outrun <em>him</em>.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Achilles was pleased at the honor done to his swiftness.
+&ldquo;Not unrewarded,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;shall the praise be
+which thou hast bestowed on me: I give thee another half-talent of
+gold.&rdquo; Antilochus received it gladly. Then the assembly was
+dissolved, and the Achaians dispersed, each to his own ship.</p>
+<h3><a id="Horse" name="Horse">The Wooden Horse and the Fall of
+Troy</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Josephine Preston Peabody</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Nine years the Greeks laid siege to Troy, and Troy held out
+against every device. On both sides the lives of many heroes were
+spent, and they were forced to acknowledge each other enemies of
+great valor.</p>
+<p>Sometimes the chief warriors fought in single combat, while the
+armies looked on, and the old men of Troy, with the women, came out
+to watch afar off from the city walls. King Priam and Queen Hecuba
+would come, and Cassandra, sad with foreknowledge of their doom,
+and Andromache, the lovely young wife of Hector, with her little
+son, whom the people called the city&rsquo;s king. Sometimes fair
+Helen came to look across the plain to the fellow-countrymen whom
+she had forsaken; and although she was the cause of all this war,
+the Trojans half forgave her when she passed by, because her beauty
+was like a spell, and warmed hard hearts as the sunshine mellows
+apples. So for nine years the Greeks plundered the neighboring
+towns, but the city Troy stood fast, and the Grecian ships waited
+with folded wings.</p>
+<p>In the tenth year of the war the Greeks, who could not take the
+city by force, pondered how they might take it by craft. At length,
+with the aid of Ulysses, they devised a plan.</p>
+<p>A portion of the Grecian host broke up camp and set sail as if
+they were homeward bound; but, once out of sight, they anchored
+their ships behind a neighboring island. The rest of the army then
+fell to work upon a great image of a horse. They built it of wood,
+fitted and carved, and with a door so cunningly concealed that none
+might notice it. When it was finished the horse looked like a
+prodigious idol; but it was hollow, skillfully pierced here and
+there, and so spacious that a band of men could lie hidden within
+and take no harm. Into this hiding-place went Ulysses, Menelaus,
+and the other chiefs, fully armed, and when the door was shut upon
+them, the rest of the Grecian army broke camp and went away.</p>
+<div class="figure"><a href="images/big_298.jpg"><img src=
+"images/small_298.jpg" alt=
+"The Trojan Horse with a crowd around it." id="img06" name="img06"
+width="360" height="555" /></a>
+<p>A GREAT IMAGE OF A HORSE. THEY BUILT IT OF WOOD, FITTED AND
+CARVED, AND WITH A DOOR SO CUNNINGLY CONCEALED THAT NONE MIGHT
+NOTICE IT. WHEN IT WAS FINISHED THE HORSE LOOKED LIKE A PRODIGIOUS
+IDOL, BUT IT WAS HOLLOW, SKILLFULLY PIERCED HERE AND THERE</p>
+</div>
+<p>Meanwhile, in Troy, the people had seen the departure of the
+ships, and the news had spread like wildfire. The great enemy had
+lost heart,&mdash;after ten years of war! Part of the army had
+gone,&mdash;the rest were going. Already the last of the ships had
+set sail, and the camp was deserted. The tents that had whitened
+the plain were gone like a frost before the sun. The war was
+over!</p>
+<p>The whole city went wild with joy. Like one who has been a
+prisoner for many years, it flung off all restraint, and the people
+rose as a single man to test the truth of new liberty. The gates
+were thrown wide, and the Trojans&mdash;men, women, and
+children&mdash;thronged over the plain and into the empty camp of
+the enemy. There stood the Wooden Horse.</p>
+<p>No one knew what it could be. Fearful at first, they gathered
+around it, as children gather around a live horse; they marveled at
+its wondrous height and girth, and were for moving it into the city
+as a trophy of war.</p>
+<p>At this, one man interposed,&mdash;Laoco&ouml;n, a priest of
+Neptune. &ldquo;Take heed, citizens,&rdquo; said he. &ldquo;Beware
+of all that comes from the Greeks. Have you fought them for ten
+years without learning their devices? This is some piece of
+treachery.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But there was another outcry in the crowd, and at that moment
+certain of the Trojans dragged forward a wretched man who wore the
+garments of a Greek. He seemed the sole remnant of the Grecian
+army, and as such they consented to spare his life, if he would
+tell them the truth.</p>
+<p>Sinon, for this was the spy&rsquo;s name, said that he had been
+left behind by the malice of Ulysses, and he told them that the
+Greeks had built the Wooden Horse as an offering to Athene, and
+that they had made it so huge in order to keep it from being moved
+out of the camp, since it was destined to bring triumph to its
+possessors.</p>
+<p>At this the joy of the Trojans was redoubled, and they set their
+wits to find out how they might soonest drag the great horse across
+the plain and into the city to insure victory. While they stood
+talking, two immense serpents rose out of the sea and made towards
+the camp. Some of the people took flight, others were transfixed
+with terror; but all, near and far, watched this new omen. Rearing
+their crests, the sea-serpents crossed the shore, swift, shining,
+terrible as a risen water-flood that descends upon a helpless
+little town. Straight through the crowd they swept, and seized the
+priest Laoco&ouml;n where he stood, with his two sons, and wrapped
+them all round and round in fearful coils. There was no chance of
+escape. Father and sons perished together; and when the monsters
+had devoured the three men, into the sea they slipped again,
+leaving no trace of the horror.</p>
+<p>The terrified Trojans saw an omen in this. To their minds
+punishment had come upon Laoco&ouml;n for his words against the
+Wooden Horse. Surely, it was sacred to the Gods; he had spoken
+blasphemy, and had perished before their eyes. They flung his
+warning to the winds. They wreathed the horse with garlands, amid
+great acclaim; and then, all lending a hand, they dragged it,
+little by little, out of the camp and into the city of Troy. With
+the close of that victorious day, they gave up every memory of
+danger and made merry after ten years of privation.</p>
+<p>That very night Sinon the spy opened the hidden door of the
+Wooden Horse, and in the darkness, Ulysses, Menelaus, and the other
+chiefs who had lain hidden there crept out and gave the signal to
+the Grecian army. For, under cover of night, those ships that had
+been moored behind the island had sailed back again, and the Greeks
+were come upon Troy.</p>
+<p>Not a Trojan was on guard. The whole city was at feast when the
+enemy rose in its midst, and the warning of Laoco&ouml;n was
+fulfilled.</p>
+<p>Priam and his warriors fell by the sword, and their kingdom was
+plundered of all its fair possessions, women and children and
+treasure. Last of all, the city itself was burned to its very
+foundations.</p>
+<p>Homeward sailed the Greeks, taking as royal captives poor
+Cassandra and Andromache and many another Trojan. And home at last
+went fair Helen, the cause of all this sorrow, eager to be forgiven
+by her husband, King Menelaus. For she had awakened from the
+enchantment of Venus, and even before the death of Paris she had
+secretly longed for her home and kindred. Home to Sparta she came
+with the king after a long and stormy voyage, and there she lived
+and died the fairest of women.</p>
+<p>But the kingdom of Troy was fallen. Nothing remained of all its
+glory but the glory of its dead heroes and fair women, and the
+ruins of its citadel by the river Scamander. There even now,
+beneath the foundations of later homes that were built and burned,
+built and burned, in the wars of a thousand years after, the ruins
+of ancient Troy lie hidden, like mouldered leaves deep under the
+new grass. And there, to this very day, men who love the story are
+delving after the dead city as you might search for a buried
+treasure.</p>
+<h2><a id="UlyssesWanderings" name="UlyssesWanderings">THE
+WANDERINGS OF ULYSSES</a></h2>
+<h3><a id="Cyclops" name="Cyclops">An Adventure with the
+Cyclops</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p class="quote">[After the fall of Troy the Greeks set out for
+home, but many of them had troubles and dangers to meet before they
+saw again the shores of their native land. The one who suffered
+most was Ulysses, and the following is his story of his adventure
+with the one-eyed giant, the Cyclops.]</p>
+<p>The wind that bore me from Troy brought me to Ismarus, a city of
+the Ciconians. This I sacked, slaying the people that dwelt
+therein. Much spoil did we take out of the city, dividing it among
+the people, so that each man had his share. And when we had done
+this, I commanded my men that they should depart with all speed;
+but they, in their folly, would not hear me. For there was much
+wine to drink, and sheep and kine to slay; therefore they sat on
+the shore and feasted. Meanwhile the people of the city fetched
+others, their kinsmen that dwelt in the mountains, and were more in
+number and more valiant than they, and skillful in all manner of
+fighting. In the early morning they assembled themselves together,
+thick as the flowers and the leaves that grow in the springtime,
+and set the battle in array. Then we fought with them; while the
+day waxed we prevailed over them, and beat them back, though they
+were more in number than we; but when the sun was descending in the
+heavens, then the Cicones overcame us, and drave us to our ships.
+Six from each ship perished, but the remnant of us escaped from
+death.</p>
+<p>On the tenth day after this we came to the land where the lotus
+grows&mdash;a wondrous fruit of which whosoever eats cares not to
+see country or wife or children again. Now the Lotus-Eaters, for
+they so called the people of the land, were a kindly folk, and gave
+of the fruit to some of the sailors, not meaning them any harm, but
+thinking it to be the best that they had to give. These, when they
+had eaten, said that they would not sail any more over the sea;
+which, when I heard, I bade their comrades bind them and carry
+them, sadly complaining, to the ships.</p>
+<p>Then, the wind having abated, we took to our oars, and rowed for
+many days till we came to the country where the Cyclops dwell. Now,
+a mile or so from the shore there was an island, very fair and
+fertile, but no man dwells there or tills the soil, and in the
+island a harbor where a ship may be safe from all winds, and at the
+head of the harbor a stream falling from a rock, and whispering
+alders all about it. Into this the ships passed safely, and were
+hauled up on the beach, and the crews slept by them, waiting for
+the morning.</p>
+<p>When the dawn appeared, then we wandered through the island; and
+the nymphs of the land started the wild goats that my company might
+have food to eat. Thereupon we took our bows and our spears from
+the ships, and shot at the goats; and the Gods gave us plenty of
+prey. Twelve ships I had in my company, and each ship had nine
+goats for its share, and my own portion was ten.</p>
+<p>Then all the day we sat and feasted, drinking the sweet wine
+which we had taken from the city of the Cicones, and eating the
+flesh of the goats; and as we sat we looked across to the land of
+the Cyclops, seeing the smoke and hearing the voices of the men and
+of the sheep and of the goats. And when the sun set and darkness
+came over the land, we lay down upon the seashore and slept.</p>
+<p>The next day I gathered my men together, and said, &ldquo;Abide
+ye here, dear friends; I with my own ship and my own company will
+go and make trial of the folk that dwell in yonder island, whether
+they are just or unjust.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So I climbed into my ship, and bade my company follow me; so we
+came to the land of the Cyclops. Close to the shore was a cave,
+with laurels round about the mouth. This was the dwelling of the
+Cyclops. Alone he dwelt, a creature without law. Nor was he like to
+mortal men, but rather to some wooded peak of the hills that stands
+out apart from all the rest.</p>
+<p>Then I bade the rest of my comrades abide by the ship, and keep
+it, but I took twelve men, the bravest that there were in the crew,
+and went forth. I had with me a goat-skin full of the wine, dark
+red, and sweet, which the priest of Apollo at Ismarus had given me.
+Because we kept him and his wife and child from harm when we sacked
+the city, reverencing the god, therefore did he give it me. Three
+things did he give me,&mdash;seven talents of gold, and a
+mixing-bowl of silver, and of wine twelve jars. So precious was it
+that none in his house knew of it saving himself and his wife and
+one dame that kept the house. When they drank of it they mixed
+twenty measures of water with one of wine, and the smell that went
+up from it was wondrous sweet. No man could easily refrain from
+drinking it. With this wine I filled a great skin and bore it with
+me; also I bare corn in a wallet, for my heart within me boded that
+I should need it.</p>
+<p>So we entered the cave, and judged that it was the dwelling of
+some rich and skillful shepherd. For within there were pens for the
+young of the sheep and of the goats, divided all according to their
+age, and there were baskets full of cheeses, and full milkpails
+ranged along the wall. But the Cyclops himself was away in the
+pastures. Then my companions besought me that I would depart,
+taking with me, if I would, a store of cheeses and sundry of the
+lambs and of the kids. But I would not, for I wished to see, after
+my wont, what manner of host this strange shepherd might be, and,
+if it might be, to take a gift from his hand, such as is the due of
+strangers. Verily, his coming was not to be a joy to my
+company.</p>
+<p>It was evening when the Cyclops came home,&mdash;a mighty giant,
+very tall of stature, and when we saw him we fled into the sacred
+place of the cave in great fear. On his shoulder he bore a vast
+bundle of pine logs for his fire, and threw them down outside the
+cave with a great crash, and drove the flocks within, and closed
+the entrance with a huge rock, which twenty wagons and more could
+not bear. Then he milked the ewes and all the she-goats, and half
+of the milk he curdled for cheese, and half he set ready for
+himself, when he should sup. Next he kindled a fire with the pine
+logs, and the flame lighted up all the cave, showing to him both me
+and my comrades.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Who are ye?&rdquo; cried Polyphemus, for that was the
+giant&rsquo;s name. &ldquo;Are ye traders, or, haply,
+pirates?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>I shuddered at the dreadful voice and shape, but bare me
+bravely, and answered, &ldquo;We are no pirates, mighty sir, but
+Greeks sailing back from Troy, and subjects of the great King
+Agamemnon, whose fame is spread from one end of heaven to the
+other. And we are come to beg hospitality of thee in the name of
+Zeus, who rewards or punishes hosts and guests, according as they
+be faithful the one to the other, or no.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nay,&rdquo; said the giant; &ldquo;it is but idle talk to
+tell me of Zeus and the other Gods. We Cyclops take no account of
+gods, holding ourselves to be much better and stronger than they.
+But come, tell me, where have you left your ship?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But I saw his thought when he asked about the ship, how he was
+minded to break it, and take from us all hope of flight. Therefore
+I answered him craftily,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ship have we none, for that which was ours King Neptune
+brake, driving it on a jutting rock on this coast, and we whom thou
+seest are all that are escaped from the waves.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Polyphemus answered nothing, but without more ado caught up two
+of the men, as a man might catch up the whelps of a dog, and dashed
+them on the ground, and tare them limb from limb, and devoured
+them, with huge draughts of milk between, leaving not a morsel, not
+even the very bones. But we that were left, when we saw the
+dreadful deed, could only weep and pray to Zeus for help. And when
+the giant had filled his maw with human flesh and with the milk of
+the flocks, he lay down among his sheep and slept.</p>
+<p>Then I questioned much in my heart whether I should slay the
+monster as he slept, for I doubted not that my good sword would
+pierce to the giant&rsquo;s heart, mighty as he was. But my second
+thought kept me back, for I remembered that, should I slay him, I
+and my comrades would yet perish miserably. For who should move
+away the great rock that lay against the door of the cave? So we
+waited till the morning, with grief in our hearts. And the monster
+woke, and milked his flocks, and afterwards, seizing two men,
+devoured them for his meal. Then he went to the pastures, but put
+the great rock on the mouth of the cave, just as a man puts down
+the lid upon his quiver.</p>
+<p>All that day I was thinking what I might best do to save myself
+and my companions, and the end of my thinking was this: there was a
+mighty pole in the cave, green wood of an olive-tree, big as a
+ship&rsquo;s mast, which Polyphemus purposed to use, when the smoke
+should have dried it, as a walking-staff. Of this I cut off a
+fathom&rsquo;s length, and my comrades sharpened it and hardened it
+in the fire, and then hid it away. At evening the giant came back,
+and drove his sheep into the cave, nor left the rams outside, as he
+had been wont to do before, but shut them in. And having duly done
+his shepherd&rsquo;s work, he took, as before, two of my comrades,
+and devoured them. And when he had finished his supper, I came
+forward, holding the wineskin in my hand, and said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Drink, Cyclops, now that thou hast feasted. Drink, and
+see what precious things we had in our ship. But no one hereafter
+will come to thee with such like, if thou dealest with strangers as
+cruelly as thou hast dealt with us.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the Cyclops drank, and was mightily pleased, and said,
+&ldquo;Give me again to drink, and tell me thy name, stranger, and
+I will give thee a gift such as a host should give. In good truth
+this is a rare liquor. We, too, have vines, but they bear not wine
+like this, which, indeed, must be such as the Gods drink in
+heaven.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then I gave him the cup again, and he drank. Thrice I gave it to
+him, and thrice he drank, not knowing what it was, and how it would
+work within his brain.</p>
+<p>Then I spake to him: &ldquo;Thou didst ask my name, Cyclops. My
+name is No Man. And now that thou knowest my name, thou shouldst
+give me thy gift.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And he said, &ldquo;My gift shall be that I will eat thee last
+of all thy company.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And as he spake, he fell back in a drunken sleep. Then I bade my
+comrades be of good courage, for the time was come when they should
+be delivered. And they thrust the stake of olive-wood into the fire
+till it was ready, green as it was, to burst into flame, and they
+thrust it into the monster&rsquo;s eye; for he had but one eye, and
+that in the midst of his forehead, with the eyebrow below it. And
+I, standing above, leant with all my force upon the stake, and
+turned it about, as a man bores the timber of a ship with a drill.
+And the burning wood hissed in the eye, just as the red-hot iron
+hisses in the water when a man seeks to temper steel for a
+sword.</p>
+<p>Then the giant leapt up, and tore away the stake, and cried
+aloud, so that all the Cyclops who dwelt on the mountain-side heard
+him and came about his cave, asking him, &ldquo;What aileth thee,
+Polyphemus, that thou makest this uproar in the peaceful night,
+driving away sleep? Is any one robbing thee of thy sheep, or
+seeking to slay thee by craft or force?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the giant answered, &ldquo;No Man slays me by
+craft.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nay, but,&rdquo; they said, &ldquo;if no man does thee
+wrong we cannot help thee. The sickness which great Zeus may send,
+who can avoid? Pray to our father, Neptune, for help.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So they spake, and I laughed in my heart when I saw how I had
+beguiled them by the name that I had given.</p>
+<p>But the Cyclops rolled away the great stone from the door of the
+cave, and sat in the midst, stretching out his hands, to feel
+whether perchance the men within the cave would seek to go out
+among the sheep.</p>
+<p>Long did I think how I and my comrades should best escape. At
+last I lighted upon a device that seemed better than all the rest,
+and much I thanked Zeus for that this once the giant had driven the
+rams with the other sheep into the cave. For, these being great and
+strong, I fastened my comrades under the bellies of the beasts,
+tying them with osier twigs, of which the giant made his bed. One
+ram I took, and fastened a man beneath it, and two rams I set, one
+on either side. So I did with the six, for but six were left out of
+the twelve who had ventured with me from the ship. And there was
+one mighty ram far larger than all the others, and to this I clung,
+grasping the fleece tight with both my hands. So we all waited for
+the morning. And when the morning came, the rams rushed forth to
+the pasture; but the giant sat in the door and felt the back of
+each as it went by, nor thought to try what might be underneath.
+Last of all went the great ram. And the Cyclops knew him as he
+passed, and said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;How is this, thou who art the leader of the flock? Thou
+art not wont thus to lag behind. Thou hast always been the first to
+run to the pastures and streams in the morning, and the first to
+come back to the fold when evening fell; and now thou art last of
+all. Perhaps thou art troubled about thy master&rsquo;s eye, which
+some wretch&mdash;No Man, they call him&mdash;has destroyed, having
+first mastered me with wine. He has not escaped, I ween. I would
+that thou couldst speak, and tell me where he is lurking. Of a
+truth, I would dash out his brains upon the ground, and avenge me
+of this No Man.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So speaking, he let the ram pass out of the cave. But when we
+were now out of reach of the giant, I loosed my hold of the ram,
+and then unbound my comrades. And we hastened to our ship, not
+forgetting to drive the sheep before us, and often looking back
+till we came to the seashore. Right glad were those that had abode
+by the ship to see us. Nor did they lament for those that had died,
+though we were fain to do so, for I forbade, fearing lest the noise
+of their weeping should betray us to the giant, where we were. Then
+we all climbed into the ship, and sitting well in order on the
+benches smote the sea with our oars, laying to right lustily, that
+we might the sooner get away from the accursed land. And when we
+had rowed a hundred yards or so, so that a man&rsquo;s voice could
+yet be heard by one who stood upon the shore, I stood up in the
+ship and shouted,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;He was no coward, O Cyclops, whose comrades thou didst so
+foully slay in thy den. Justly art thou punished, monster, that
+devourest thy guests in thy dwelling. May the Gods make thee suffer
+worse things than these!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the Cyclops in his wrath brake off the top of a great hill,
+a mighty rock, and hurled it where he had heard the voice. Right in
+front of the ship&rsquo;s bow it fell, and a great wave rose as it
+sank, and washed the ship back to the shore. But I seized a long
+pole with both hands, and pushed the ship from the land, and bade
+my comrades ply their oars, nodding with my head, for I would not
+speak, lest the Cyclops should know where we were. Then they rowed
+with all their might and main.</p>
+<div class="figure"><a href="images/big_316.jpg"><img src=
+"images/small_316.jpg" alt="The Cyclops throws rocks at a ship."
+id="img07" name="img07" width="538" height="360" /></a>
+<p>THE CYCLOPS IN HIS WRATH BRAKE OFF THE TOP OF A GREAT HILL</p>
+</div>
+<p>And when we had gotten twice as far as before I made as if I
+would speak again; but my comrades sought to hinder me, saying,
+&ldquo;Nay, my lord, anger not the giant any more. Surely we
+thought we were lost before, when he threw the great rock, and
+washed our ship back to the shore. And if he hear thee now, he may
+crush our ship and us, for the man throws a mighty bolt, and throws
+it far.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But I would not be persuaded, but stood up and said,
+&ldquo;Hear, Cyclops! If any man ask who blinded thee, say that it
+was the warrior Ulysses, son of Laertes, dwelling in
+Ithaca.&rdquo;</p>
+<h3><a id="Circe" name="Circe">Circe&rsquo;s Palace</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Nathaniel Hawthorne</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>At one time in the course of Ulysses&rsquo; weary voyage, he
+arrived at an island that looked very green and pleasant, but the
+name of which was unknown to him. For, only a little while before
+he came thither, he had met with a terrible hurricane, or rather a
+great many hurricanes at once, which drove his fleet of vessels
+into a strange part of the sea, where neither himself nor any of
+his mariners had ever sailed. This misfortune was entirely owing to
+the foolish curiosity of his shipmates, who, while Ulysses lay
+asleep, had untied some very bulky leathern bags, in which they
+supposed a valuable treasure to be concealed. But in each of these
+stout bags, King &AElig;olus, the ruler of the winds, had tied up a
+tempest, and had given it to Ulysses to keep, in order that he
+might be sure of a favorable passage homeward to Ithaca; and when
+the strings were loosened, forth rushed the whistling blasts, like
+air out of a blown bladder, whitening the sea with foam, and
+scattering the vessels nobody could tell whither.</p>
+<p>Immediately after escaping from this peril, a still greater one
+had befallen him. Scudding before the hurricane, he reached a place
+which, as he afterwards found, was called L&aelig;strygonia, where
+some monstrous giants had eaten up many of his companions, and had
+sunk every one of his vessels, except that in which he himself
+sailed, by flinging great masses of rock at them, from the cliffs
+along the shore. After going through such troubles as these, you
+cannot wonder that King Ulysses was glad to moor his tempest-beaten
+bark in a quiet cove of the green island, which I began with
+telling you about. But he had encountered so many dangers from
+giants, and one-eyed Cyclops, and monsters of the sea and land,
+that he could not help dreading some mischief, even in this
+pleasant and seemingly solitary spot. For two days, therefore, the
+poor weather-worn voyagers kept quiet, and either stayed on board
+of their vessel or merely crept along under cliffs that bordered
+the shore; and to keep themselves alive, they dug shell-fish out of
+the sand, and sought for any little rill of fresh water that might
+be running towards the sea.</p>
+<p>Before the two days were spent, they grew very weary of this
+kind of life; for the followers of King Ulysses, as you will find
+it important to remember, were terrible gormandizers, and pretty
+sure to grumble if they missed their regular meals, and their
+irregular ones besides. Their stock of provisions was quite
+exhausted, and even the shell-fish began to get scarce, so that
+they had now to choose between starving to death or venturing into
+the interior of the island, where, perhaps, some huge three-headed
+dragon or other horrible monster had his den. Such misshapen
+creatures were very numerous in those days; and nobody ever
+expected to make a voyage or take a journey without running more or
+less risk of being devoured by them.</p>
+<p>But King Ulysses was a bold man as well as a prudent one; and on
+the third morning he determined to discover what sort of a place
+the island was, and whether it were possible to obtain a supply of
+food for the hungry mouths of his companions. So, taking a spear in
+his hand, he clambered to the summit of a cliff, and gazed round
+about him. At a distance, towards the centre of the island, he
+beheld the stately towers of what seemed to be a palace, built of
+snow-white marble, and rising in the midst of a grove of lofty
+trees. The thick branches of these trees stretched across the front
+of the edifice, and more than half concealed it, although, from the
+portion which he saw, Ulysses judged it to be spacious and
+exceedingly beautiful, and probably the residence of some great
+nobleman or prince. A blue smoke went curling up from the chimney,
+and was almost the pleasantest part of the spectacle to Ulysses.
+For, from the abundance of this smoke, it was reasonable to
+conclude that there was a good fire in the kitchen, and that, at
+dinnertime, a plentiful banquet would be served up to the
+inhabitants of the palace, and to whatever guests might happen to
+drop in.</p>
+<p>With so agreeable a prospect before him, Ulysses fancied that he
+could not do better than to go straight to the palace gate, and
+tell the master of it that there was a crew of poor shipwrecked
+mariners, not far off, who had eaten nothing for a day or two save
+a few clams and oysters, and would therefore be thankful for a
+little food. And the prince or nobleman must be a very stingy
+curmudgeon, to be sure, if, at least, when his own dinner was over,
+he would not bid them welcome to the broken victuals from the
+table.</p>
+<p>Pleasing himself with this idea, King Ulysses had made a few
+steps in the direction of the palace, when there was a great
+twittering and chirping from the branch of a neighboring tree. A
+moment afterwards, a bird came flying towards him, and hovered in
+the air, so as almost to brush his face with its wings. It was a
+very pretty little bird, with purple wings and body, and yellow
+legs, and a circle of golden feathers round its neck, and on its
+head a golden tuft, which looked like a king&rsquo;s crown in
+miniature. Ulysses tried to catch the bird. But it fluttered nimbly
+out of his reach, still chirping in a piteous tone, as if it could
+have told a lamentable story, had it only been gifted with human
+language. And when he attempted to drive it away, the bird flew no
+farther than the bough of the next tree, and again came fluttering
+about his head, with its doleful chirp, as soon as he showed a
+purpose of going forward.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Have you anything to tell me, little bird?&rdquo; asked
+Ulysses.</p>
+<p>And he was ready to listen attentively to whatever the bird
+might communicate; for at the siege of Troy and elsewhere he had
+known such odd things to happen that he would not have considered
+it much out of the common run had this little feathered creature
+talked as plainly as himself.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Peep!&rdquo; said the bird. &ldquo;Peep, peep,
+pe&mdash;weep!&rdquo; And nothing else would it say, but only,
+&ldquo;Peep, peep, pe&mdash;weep!&rdquo; in a melancholy cadence,
+and over and over and over again. As often as Ulysses moved
+forward, however, the bird showed the greatest alarm, and did its
+best to drive him back, with the anxious flutter of its purple
+wings. Its unaccountable behavior made him conclude, at last, that
+the bird knew of some danger that awaited him, and which must needs
+be very terrible, beyond all question, since it moved even a little
+fowl to feel compassion for a human being. So he resolved, for the
+present, to return to the vessel, and tell his companions what he
+had seen.</p>
+<p>This appeared to satisfy the bird. As soon as Ulysses turned
+back, it ran up the trunk of a tree, and began to pick insects out
+of the bark with its long, sharp bill; for it was a kind of
+woodpecker, you must know, and had to get its living in the same
+manner as other birds of that species. But every little while, as
+it pecked at the bark of the tree, the purple bird bethought itself
+of some secret sorrow, and repeated its plaintive note of
+&ldquo;Peep, peep, pe&mdash;weep!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>On his way to the shore, Ulysses had the good luck to kill a
+large stag by thrusting his spear into its back. Taking it on his
+shoulders (for he was a remarkably strong man), he lugged it along
+with him, and flung it down before his hungry companions. I have
+already hinted to you what gormandizers some of the comrades of
+King Ulysses were. From what is related of them, I reckon that
+their favorite diet was pork, and that they had lived upon it until
+a good part of their physical substance was swine&rsquo;s flesh,
+and their tempers and dispositions were very much akin to the hog.
+A dish of venison, however, was no unacceptable meal to them,
+especially after feeding so long on oysters and clams. So,
+beholding the dead stag, they felt of its ribs in a knowing way,
+and lost no time in kindling a fire, of drift-wood, to cook it. The
+rest of the day was spent in feasting; and if these enormous eaters
+got up from table at sunset, it was only because they could not
+scrape another morsel off the poor animal&rsquo;s bones.</p>
+<p>The next morning their appetites were as sharp as ever. They
+looked at Ulysses, as if they expected him to clamber up the cliff
+again, and come back with another fat deer upon his shoulders.
+Instead of setting out, however, he summoned the whole crew
+together, and told them it was in vain to hope that he could kill a
+stag every day for their dinner, and therefore it was advisable to
+think of some other mode of satisfying their hunger.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Now,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;when I was on the cliff
+yesterday, I discovered that this island is inhabited. At a
+considerable distance from the shore stood a marble palace, which
+appeared to be very spacious, and had a great deal of smoke curling
+out of one of its chimneys.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Aha!&rdquo; muttered some of his companions, smacking
+their lips. &ldquo;That smoke must have come from the kitchen fire.
+There was a good dinner on the spit; and no doubt there will be as
+good a one to-day.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;But,&rdquo; continued the wise Ulysses, &ldquo;you must
+remember, my good friends, our misadventure in the cavern of
+one-eyed Polyphemus, the Cyclops! Instead of his ordinary milk
+diet, did he not eat up two of our comrades for his supper, and a
+couple more for breakfast, and two at his supper again? Methinks I
+see him yet, the hideous monster, scanning us with that great red
+eye, in the middle of his forehead, to single out the fattest. And
+then again, only a few days ago, did we not fall into the hands of
+the king of the L&aelig;strygons, and those other horrible giants,
+his subjects, who devoured a great many more of us than are now
+left? To tell you the truth, if we go to yonder palace, there can
+be no question that we shall make our appearance at the
+dinner-table; but whether seated as guests or served up as food, is
+a point to be seriously considered.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Either way,&rdquo; murmured some of the hungriest of the
+crew, &ldquo;it will be better than starvation; particularly if one
+could be sure of being well fattened beforehand and daintily cooked
+afterwards.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That is a matter of taste,&rdquo; said King Ulysses,
+&ldquo;and, for my own part, neither the most careful fattening nor
+the daintiest of cookery would reconcile me to being dished at
+last. My proposal is, therefore, that we divide ourselves into two
+equal parties, and ascertain, by drawing lots, which of the two
+shall go to the palace, and beg for food and assistance. If these
+can be obtained, all is well. If not, and if the inhabitants prove
+as inhospitable as Polyphemus or the L&aelig;strygons, then there
+will but half of us perish, and the remainder may set sail and
+escape.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>As nobody objected to this scheme, Ulysses proceeded to count
+the whole band, and found that there were forty-six men, including
+himself. He then numbered off twenty-two of them, and put
+Eurylochus (who was one of his chief officers, and second only to
+himself in sagacity) at their head. Ulysses took command of the
+remaining twenty-two men, in person. Then, taking off his helmet,
+he put two shells into it, on one of which was written,
+&ldquo;Go,&rdquo; and on the other, &ldquo;Stay.&rdquo; Another
+person now held the helmet, while Ulysses and Eurylochus drew out
+each a shell; and the word &ldquo;Go&rdquo; was found written on
+that which Eurylochus had drawn. In this manner it was decided that
+Ulysses and his twenty-two men were to remain at the seaside until
+the other party should have found out what sort of treatment they
+might expect at the mysterious palace. As there was no help for it,
+Eurylochus immediately set forth at the head of his twenty-two
+followers, who went off in a very melancholy state of mind, leaving
+their friends in hardly better spirits than themselves.</p>
+<p>No sooner had they clambered up the cliff, than they discerned
+the tall marble towers of the palace, ascending, as white as snow,
+out of the lovely green shadow of the trees which surrounded it. A
+gush of smoke came from a chimney in the rear of the edifice. This
+vapor rose high in the air, and meeting with a breeze, was wafted
+seaward, and made to pass over the heads of the hungry mariners.
+When people&rsquo;s appetites are keen, they have a very quick
+scent for anything savory in the wind.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That smoke comes from the kitchen!&rdquo; cried one of
+them, turning up his nose as high as he could, and snuffing
+eagerly. &ldquo;And, as sure as I&rsquo;m a half-starved vagabond,
+I smell roast meat in it.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Pig, roast pig!&rdquo; said another. &ldquo;Ah, the
+dainty little porker! My mouth waters for him.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Let us make haste,&rdquo; cried the others, &ldquo;or we
+shall be too late for the good cheer!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But scarcely had they made half a dozen steps from the edge of
+the cliff, when a bird came fluttering to meet them. It was the
+same pretty little bird, with the purple wings and body, the yellow
+legs, the golden collar round its neck, and the crown-like tuft
+upon its head, whose behavior had so much surprised Ulysses. It
+hovered about Eurylochus, and almost brushed his face with its
+wings.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Peep, peep, pe&mdash;weep!&rdquo; chirped the bird.</p>
+<p>So plaintively intelligent was the sound, that it seemed as if
+the little creature were going to break its heart with some mighty
+secret that it had to tell, and only this one poor note to tell it
+with.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;My pretty bird,&rdquo; said Eurylochus,&mdash;for he was
+a wary person, and let no token of harm escape his
+notice,&mdash;&ldquo;my pretty bird, who sent you hither? And what
+is the message which you bring?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Peep, peep, pe&mdash;weep!&rdquo; replied the bird, very
+sorrowfully.</p>
+<p>Then it flew towards the edge of the cliff, and looked round at
+them, as if exceedingly anxious that they should return whence they
+came. Eurylochus and a few of the others were inclined to turn
+back. They could not help suspecting that the purple bird must be
+aware of something mischievous that would befall them at the
+palace, and the knowledge of which affected its airy spirit with a
+human sympathy and sorrow. But the rest of the voyagers, snuffing
+up the smoke from the palace kitchen, ridiculed the idea of
+returning to the vessel. One of them (more brutal than his fellows,
+and the most notorious gormandizer in the whole crew) said such a
+cruel and wicked thing, that I wonder the mere thought did not turn
+him into a wild beast in shape, as he already was in his
+nature.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;This troublesome and impertinent little fowl,&rdquo; said
+he, &ldquo;would make a delicate titbit to begin dinner with. Just
+one plump morsel, melting away between the teeth. If he comes
+within my reach, I&rsquo;ll catch him, and give him to the palace
+cook to be roasted on a skewer.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The words were hardly out of his mouth, before the purple bird
+flew away, crying, &ldquo;Peep, peep, pe&mdash;weep,&rdquo; more
+dolorously than ever.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That bird,&rdquo; remarked Eurylochus, &ldquo;knows more
+than we do about what awaits us at the palace.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Come on, then,&rdquo; cried his comrades, &ldquo;and
+we&rsquo;ll soon know as much as he does.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The party, accordingly, went onward through the green and
+pleasant wood. Every little while they caught new glimpses of the
+marble palace, which looked more and more beautiful the nearer they
+approached it. They soon entered a broad pathway, which seemed to
+be very neatly kept, and which went winding along with streaks of
+sunshine falling across it, and specks of light quivering among the
+deepest shadows that fell from the lofty trees. It was bordered,
+too, with a great many sweet-smelling flowers, such as the mariners
+had never seen before. So rich and beautiful they were that, if the
+shrubs grew wild here and were native in the soil, then this island
+was surely the flower-garden of the whole earth; or, if
+transplanted from some other clime, it must have been from the
+Happy Islands that lay towards the golden sunset.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;There has been a great deal of pains foolishly wasted on
+these flowers,&rdquo; observed one of the company; and I tell you
+what he said, that you may keep in mind what gormandizers they
+were. &ldquo;For my part, if I were the owner of the palace, I
+would bid my gardener cultivate nothing but savory potherbs to make
+a stuffing for roast meat, or to flavor a stew with.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Well said!&rdquo; cried the others. &ldquo;But I&rsquo;ll
+warrant you there&rsquo;s a kitchen garden in the rear of the
+palace.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At one place they came to a crystal spring, and paused to drink
+at it for want of liquor which they liked better. Looking into its
+bosom, they beheld their own faces dimly reflected, but so
+extravagantly distorted by the gush and motion of the water, that
+each one of them appeared to be laughing at himself and all his
+companions. So ridiculous were these images of themselves, indeed,
+that they did really laugh aloud, and could hardly be grave again
+as soon as they wished. And after they had drunk, they grew still
+merrier than before.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It has a twang of the wine-cask in it,&rdquo; said one,
+smacking his lips.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Make haste!&rdquo; cried his fellows; &ldquo;we&rsquo;ll
+find the wine-cask itself at the palace; and that will be better
+than a hundred crystal fountains.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then they quickened their pace, and capered for joy at the
+thought of the savory banquet at which they hoped to be guests. But
+Eurylochus told them that he felt as if he were walking in a
+dream.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;If I am really awake,&rdquo; continued he, &ldquo;then,
+in my opinion, we are on the point of meeting with some stranger
+adventure than any that befell us in the cave of Polyphemus, or
+among the gigantic man-eating L&aelig;strygons, or in the windy
+palace of King &AElig;olus, which stands on a brazen-walled island.
+This kind of dreamy feeling always comes over me before any
+wonderful occurrence. If you take my advice, you will turn
+back.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;No, no,&rdquo; answered his comrades, snuffing the air,
+in which the scent from the palace kitchen was now very
+perceptible. &ldquo;We would not turn back, though we were certain
+that the king of the L&aelig;strygons, as big as a mountain, would
+sit at the head of the table, and huge Polyphemus, the one-eyed
+Cyclops, at its foot.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At length they came within full sight of the palace, which
+proved to be very large and lofty, with a great number of airy
+pinnacles upon its roof. Though it was now midday, and the sun
+shone brightly over the marble front, yet its snowy whiteness and
+its fantastic style of architecture made it look unreal, like the
+frostwork on a window-pane, or like the shapes of castles which one
+sees among the clouds by moonlight. But just then a puff of wind
+brought down the smoke of the kitchen chimney among them, and
+caused each man to smell the odor of the dish that he liked best;
+and, after scenting it, they thought everything else moonshine, and
+nothing real save this palace, and save the banquet that was
+evidently ready to be served up in it.</p>
+<p>So they hastened their steps towards the portal, but had not got
+half-way across the wide lawn, when a pack of lions, tigers, and
+wolves came bounding to meet them. The terrified mariners started
+back, expecting no better fate than to be torn to pieces and
+devoured. To their surprise and joy, however, these wild beasts
+merely capered around them, wagging their tails, offering their
+heads to be stroked and patted, and behaving just like so many
+well-bred house-dogs, when they wish to express their delight at
+meeting their master or their master&rsquo;s friends. The biggest
+lion licked the feet of Eurylochus; and every other lion, and every
+wolf and tiger, singled out one of his two and twenty followers,
+whom the beast fondled as if he loved him better than a
+beef-bone.</p>
+<p>But, for all that, Eurylochus imagined that he saw something
+fierce and savage in their eyes; nor would he have been surprised,
+at any moment, to feel the big lion&rsquo;s terrible claws, or to
+see each of the tigers make a deadly spring, or each wolf leap at
+the throat of the man whom he had fondled. Their mildness seemed
+unreal, and a mere freak; but their savage nature was as true as
+their teeth and claws.</p>
+<p>Nevertheless, the men went safely across the lawn with the wild
+beasts frisking about them, and doing no manner of harm; although,
+as they mounted the steps of the palace, you might possibly have
+heard a low growl, particularly from the wolves, as if they thought
+it a pity, after all, to let the strangers pass without so much as
+tasting what they were made of.</p>
+<p>Eurylochus and his followers now passed under a lofty portal,
+and looked through the open doorway into the interior of the
+palace. The first thing that they saw was a spacious hall, and a
+fountain in the middle of it, gushing up towards the ceiling out of
+a marble basin, and falling back into it with a continual plash.
+The water of this fountain, as it spouted upward, was constantly
+taking new shapes, not very distinctly, but plainly enough for a
+nimble fancy to recognize what they were. Now it was the shape of a
+man in a long robe, the fleecy whiteness of which was made out of
+the fountain&rsquo;s spray; now it was a lion, or a tiger, or a
+wolf, or an ass, or, as often as anything else, a hog, wallowing in
+the marble basin as if it were his sty. It was either magic or some
+very curious machinery that caused the gushing waterspout to assume
+all these forms. But, before the strangers had time to look closely
+at this wonderful sight, their attention was drawn off by a very
+sweet and agreeable sound. A woman&rsquo;s voice was singing
+melodiously in another room of the palace, and with her voice was
+mingled the noise of a loom, at which she was probably seated,
+weaving a rich texture of cloth, and intertwining the high and low
+sweetness of her voice into a rich tissue of harmony.</p>
+<p>By and by the song came to an end; and then, all at once, there
+were several feminine voices, talking airily and cheerfully, with
+now and then a merry burst of laughter, such as you may always hear
+when three or four young women sit at work together.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What a sweet song that was!&rdquo; exclaimed one of the
+voyagers.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Too sweet, indeed,&rdquo; answered Eurylochus, shaking
+his head. &ldquo;Yet it was not so sweet as the song of the Sirens,
+those birdlike damsels who wanted to tempt us on the rocks, so that
+our vessel might be wrecked, and our bones left whitening along the
+shore.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;But just listen to the pleasant voices of those maidens,
+and that buzz of the loom, as the shuttle passes to and fro,&rdquo;
+said another comrade. &ldquo;What a domestic, household, homelike
+sound it is! Ah, before that weary siege of Troy, I used to hear
+the buzzing loom and the women&rsquo;s voices under my own roof.
+Shall I never hear them again? nor taste those nice little savory
+dishes which my dearest wife knew how to serve up?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Tush! we shall fare better here,&rdquo; said another.
+&ldquo;But how innocently those women are babbling together,
+without guessing that we overhear them! And mark that richest voice
+of all, so pleasant and familiar, but which yet seems to have the
+authority of a mistress among them. Let us show ourselves at once.
+What harm can the lady of the palace and her maidens do to mariners
+and warriors like us?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Remember,&rdquo; said Eurylochus, &ldquo;that it was a
+young maiden who beguiled three of our friends into the palace of
+the king of the L&aelig;strygons, who ate up one of them in the
+twinkling of an eye.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>No warning or persuasion, however, had any effect on his
+companions. They went up to a pair of folding-doors at the farther
+end of the hall, and, throwing them wide open, passed into the next
+room. Eurylochus, meanwhile, had stepped behind a pillar. In the
+short moment while the folding-doors opened and closed again, he
+caught a glimpse of a very beautiful woman rising from the loom and
+coming to meet the poor weather-beaten wanderers, with a hospitable
+smile and her hand stretched out in welcome. There were four other
+young women, who joined their hands and danced merrily forward,
+making gestures of obeisance to the strangers. They were only less
+beautiful than the lady who seemed to be their mistress. Yet
+Eurylochus fancied that one of them had sea-green hair, and that
+the close-fitting bodice of a second looked like the bark of a
+tree, and that both the others had something odd in their aspect,
+although he could not quite determine what it was, in the little
+while that he had to examine them.</p>
+<p>The folding-doors swung quickly back, and left him standing
+behind the pillar, in the solitude of the outer hall. There
+Eurylochus waited until he was quite weary, and listened eagerly to
+every sound, but without hearing anything that could help him to
+guess what had become of his friends. Footsteps, it is true, seemed
+to be passing and repassing in other parts of the palace. Then
+there was a clatter of silver dishes, or golden ones, which made
+him imagine a rich feast in a splendid banqueting-hall. But by and
+by he heard a tremendous grunting and squealing, and then a sudden
+scampering, like that of small, hard hoofs over a marble floor,
+while the voices of the mistress and her four handmaidens were
+screaming all together, in tones of anger and derision. Eurylochus
+could not conceive what had happened, unless a drove of swine had
+broken into the palace, attracted by the smell of the feast.
+Chancing to cast his eyes at the fountain, he saw that it did not
+shift its shape, as formerly, nor looked either like a long-robed
+man, or a lion, a tiger, a wolf, or an ass. It looked like nothing
+but a hog, which lay wallowing in the marble basin, and filled it
+from brim to brim.</p>
+<p>But we must leave the prudent Eurylochus waiting in the outer
+hall, and follow his friends into the inner secrecy of the palace.
+As soon as the beautiful woman saw them, she arose from the loom,
+as I have told you, and came forward, smiling, and stretching out
+her hand. She took the hand of the foremost among them, and bade
+him and the whole party welcome.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You have been long expected, my good friends,&rdquo; said
+she. &ldquo;I and my maidens are well acquainted with you, although
+you do not appear to recognize us. Look at this piece of tapestry,
+and judge if your faces must not have been familiar to
+us.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So the voyagers examined the web of cloth which the beautiful
+woman had been weaving in her loom; and to their vast astonishment
+they saw their own figures perfectly represented in different
+colored threads. It was a lifelike picture of their recent
+adventures, showing them in the cave of Polyphemus, and how they
+had put out his one great moony eye; while in another part of the
+tapestry they were untying the leathern bags, puffed out with
+contrary winds; and farther on, they beheld themselves scampering
+away from the gigantic king of the L&aelig;strygons, who had caught
+one of them by the leg. Lastly, there they were, sitting on the
+desolate shore of this very island, hungry and downcast, and
+looking ruefully at the bare bones of the stag which they devoured
+yesterday. This was as far as the work had yet proceeded; but when
+the beautiful woman should again sit down at her loom, she would
+probably make a picture of what had since happened to the
+strangers, and of what was now going to happen.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You see,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;that I know all about
+your troubles; and you cannot doubt that I desire to make you happy
+for as long a time as you may remain with me. For this purpose, my
+honored guests, I have ordered a banquet to be prepared. Fish,
+fowl, and flesh, roasted, and in luscious stews, and seasoned, I
+trust, to all your tastes, are ready to be served up. If your
+appetites tell you it is dinner-time, then come with me to the
+festal saloon.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At this kind invitation, the hungry mariners were quite
+overjoyed; and one of them, taking upon himself to be spokesman,
+assured their hospitable hostess that any hour of the day was
+dinner-time with them, whenever they could get flesh to put in the
+pot, and fire to boil it with. So the beautiful woman led the way;
+and the four maidens (one of them had sea-green hair, another a
+bodice of oak-bark, a third sprinkled a shower of water-drops from
+her fingers&rsquo; ends, and the fourth had some other oddity,
+which I have forgotten), all these followed behind, and hurried the
+guests along, until they entered a magnificent saloon. It was built
+in a perfect oval, and lighted from a crystal dome above. Around
+the walls were ranged two and twenty thrones, overhung by canopies
+of crimson and gold, and provided with the softest of cushions,
+which were tasseled and fringed with gold cord. Each of the
+strangers was invited to sit down; and there they were, two and
+twenty storm-beaten mariners, in worn and tattered garb, sitting on
+two and twenty cushioned and canopied thrones, so rich and gorgeous
+that the proudest monarch had nothing more splendid in his
+stateliest hall.</p>
+<p>Then you might have seen the guests nodding, winking with one
+eye, and leaning from one throne to another, to communicate their
+satisfaction in hoarse whispers.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Our good hostess has made kings of us all,&rdquo; said
+one. &ldquo;Ha! do you smell the feast? I&rsquo;ll engage it will
+be fit to set before two-and-twenty kings.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I hope,&rdquo; said another, &ldquo;it will be, mainly,
+good substantial joints, sirloins, spareribs, and hinder quarters,
+without too many kickshaws. If I thought the good lady would not
+take it amiss, I should call for a fat slice of fried bacon to
+begin with.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Ah, the gluttons and gormandizers! You see how it was with them.
+In the loftiest seats of dignity, on royal thrones, they could
+think of nothing but their greedy appetite, which was the portion
+of their nature that they shared with wolves and swine; so that
+they resembled those vilest of animals far more than they did
+kings,&mdash;if, indeed, kings were what they ought to be.</p>
+<p>But the beautiful woman now clapped her hands; and immediately
+there entered a train of two and twenty serving-men, bringing
+dishes of the richest food, all hot from the kitchen fire, and
+sending up such a steam that it hung like a cloud below the crystal
+dome of the saloon. An equal number of attendants brought great
+flagons of wine, of various kinds, some of which sparkled as it was
+poured out, and went bubbling down the throat; while, of other
+sorts, the purple liquor was so clear that you could see the
+wrought figures at the bottom of the goblet. While the servants
+supplied the two and twenty guests with food and drink, the hostess
+and her four maidens went from one throne to another, exhorting
+them to eat their fill, and to quaff wine abundantly, and thus to
+recompense themselves, at this one banquet, for the many days when
+they had gone without a dinner. But, whenever the mariners were not
+looking at them (which was pretty often, as they looked chiefly
+into the basins and platters), the beautiful woman and her damsels
+turned aside and laughed. Even the servants, as they knelt down to
+present the dishes, might be seen to grin and sneer, while the
+guests were helping themselves to the offered dainties.</p>
+<p>And once in a while the strangers seemed to taste something that
+they did not like.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Here is an odd kind of a spice in this dish,&rdquo; said
+one. &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t say it quite suits my palate. Down it
+goes, however.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Send a good draught of wine down your throat,&rdquo; said
+his comrade on the next throne. &ldquo;That is the stuff to make
+this sort of cookery relish well. Though I must needs say, the wine
+has a queer taste too. But the more I drink of it the better I like
+the flavor.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Whatever little fault they might find with the dishes, they sat
+at dinner a prodigiously long while; and it would really have made
+you ashamed to see how they swilled down the liquor and gobbled up
+the food. They sat, on golden thrones, to be sure; but they behaved
+like pigs in a sty, and, if they had had their wits about them,
+they might have guessed that this was the opinion of their
+beautiful hostess and her maidens. It brings a blush into my face
+to reckon up, in my own mind, what mountains of meat and pudding,
+and what gallons of wine, these two and twenty guzzlers and
+gormandizers ate and drank. They forgot all about their homes, and
+their wives, and children, and all about Ulysses, and everything
+else, except this banquet, at which they wanted to keep feasting
+forever. But at length they began to give over, from mere
+incapacity to hold any more.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That last bit of fat is too much for me,&rdquo; said
+one.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;And I have not room for another morsel,&rdquo; said his
+next neighbor, heaving a sigh. &ldquo;What a pity! My appetite is
+as sharp as ever.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>In short, they all left off eating, and leaned back on their
+thrones, with such a stupid and helpless aspect as made them
+ridiculous to behold. When their hostess saw this, she laughed
+aloud; so did her four damsels; so did the two-and-twenty serving
+men that bore the dishes, and their two-and-twenty fellows that
+poured out the wine. And the louder they all laughed, the more
+stupid and helpless did the two-and-twenty gormandizers look. Then
+the beautiful woman took her stand in the middle of the saloon, and
+stretching out a slender rod (it had been all the while in her
+hand, although they never noticed it till this moment), she turned
+it from one guest to another, until each had felt it pointed at
+himself. Beautiful as her face was, and though there was a smile on
+it, it looked just as wicked and mischievous as the ugliest serpent
+that ever was seen; and fat-witted as the voyagers had made
+themselves, they began to suspect that they had fallen into the
+power of an evil-minded enchantress.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Wretches,&rdquo; cried she, &ldquo;you have abused a
+lady&rsquo;s hospitality; and in this princely saloon your behavior
+has been suited to a hogpen. You are already swine in everything
+but the human form, which you disgrace, and which I myself should
+be ashamed to keep a moment longer, were you to share it with me.
+But it will require only the slightest exercise of magic to make
+the exterior conform to the hoggish disposition. Assume your proper
+shapes, gormandizers, and begone to the sty!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Uttering these last words, she waved her wand; and stamping her
+foot imperiously, each of the guests was struck aghast at
+beholding, instead of his comrades in human shape, one and twenty
+hogs sitting on the same number of golden thrones. Each man (as he
+still supposed himself to be) essayed to give a cry of surprise,
+but found that he could merely grunt, and that, in a word, he was
+just such another beast as his companions. It looked so intolerably
+absurd to see hogs on cushioned thrones, that they made haste to
+wallow down upon all fours, like other swine. They tried to groan
+and beg for mercy, but forthwith emitted the most awful grunting
+and squealing that ever came out of swinish throats. They would
+have wrung their hands in despair, but, attempting to do so, grew
+all the more desperate for seeing themselves squatted on their
+hams, and pawing the air with their fore trotters. Dear me! what
+pendulous ears they had! what little red eyes, half buried in fat!
+and what long snouts, instead of Grecian noses!</p>
+<p>But brutes as they certainly were, they yet had enough of human
+nature in them to be shocked at their own hideousness; and still
+intending to groan, they uttered a viler grunt and squeal than
+before. So harsh and ear-piercing it was, that you would have
+fancied a butcher was sticking his knife into each of their
+throats, or, at the very least, that somebody was pulling every hog
+by his funny little twist of a tail.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Begone to your sty!&rdquo; cried the enchantress, giving
+them some smart strokes with her wand; and then she turned to the
+serving-men. &ldquo;Drive out these swine, and throw down some
+acorns for them to eat.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The door of the saloon being flung open, the drove of hogs ran
+in all directions save the right one, in accordance with their
+hoggish perversity, but were finally driven into the back yard of
+the palace. It was a sight to bring tears into one&rsquo;s eyes
+(and I hope none of you will be cruel enough to laugh at it) to see
+the poor creatures go snuffing along, picking up here a cabbage
+leaf and there a turnip-top, and rooting their noses in the earth
+for whatever they could find. In their sty, moreover, they behaved
+more piggishly than the pigs that had been born so; for they bit
+and snorted at one another, put their feet in the trough, and
+gobbled up their victuals in a ridiculous hurry; and, when there
+was nothing more to be had, they made a great pile of themselves
+among some unclean straw and fell fast asleep. If they had any
+human reason left, it was just enough to keep them wondering when
+they should be slaughtered, and what quality of bacon they should
+make.</p>
+<p>Meantime, as I told you before, Eurylochus had waited, and
+waited, and waited, in the entrance-hall of the palace, without
+being able to comprehend what had befallen his friends. At last,
+when the swinish uproar resounded through the palace, and when he
+saw the image of a hog in the marble basin, he thought it best to
+hasten back to the vessel, and inform the wise Ulysses of these
+marvelous occurrences. So he ran as fast as he could down the
+steps, and never stopped to draw breath till he reached the
+shore.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Why do you come alone?&rdquo; asked King Ulysses, as soon
+as he saw him. &ldquo;Where are your two and twenty
+comrades?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At these questions Eurylochus burst into tears.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Alas!&rdquo; cried he, &ldquo;I greatly fear that we
+shall never see one of their faces again.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he told Ulysses all that had happened, as far as he knew
+it, and added that he suspected the beautiful woman to be a vile
+enchantress, and the marble palace, magnificent as it looked, to be
+only a dismal cavern in reality. As for his companions, he could
+not imagine what had become of them, unless they had been given to
+the swine to be devoured alive. At this intelligence all the
+voyagers were greatly affrighted. But Ulysses lost no time in
+girding on his sword, and hanging his bow and quiver over his
+shoulders, and taking a spear in his right hand. When his followers
+saw their wise leader making these preparations, they inquired
+whither he was going, and earnestly besought him not to leave
+them.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You are our king,&rdquo; cried they; &ldquo;and what is
+more, you are the wisest man in the whole world, and nothing but
+your wisdom and courage can get us out of this danger. If you
+desert us, and go to the enchanted palace, you will suffer the same
+fate as our poor companions, and not a soul of us will ever see our
+dear Ithaca again.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;As I am your king,&rdquo; answered Ulysses, &ldquo;and
+wiser than any of you, it is therefore the more my duty to see what
+has befallen our comrades, and whether anything can yet be done to
+rescue them. Wait for me here until to-morrow. If I do not then
+return, you must hoist sail, and endeavor to find your way to our
+native land. For my part, I am answerable for the fate of these
+poor mariners, who have stood by my side in battle, and been so
+often drenched to the skin, along with me, by the same tempestuous
+surges. I will either bring them back with me or perish.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Had his followers dared, they would have detained him by force.
+But King Ulysses frowned sternly on them, and shook his spear, and
+bade them stop him at their peril. Seeing him so determined, they
+let him go, and sat down on the sand, as disconsolate a set of
+people as could be, waiting and praying for his return.</p>
+<p>It happened to Ulysses, just as before, that, when he had gone a
+few steps from the edge of the cliff, the purple bird came
+fluttering towards him, crying, &ldquo;Peep, peep,
+pe&mdash;weep!&rdquo; and using all the art it could to persuade
+him to go no farther.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What mean you, little bird?&rdquo; cried Ulysses.
+&ldquo;You are arrayed like a king in purple and gold, and wear a
+golden crown upon your head. Is it because I too am a king that you
+desire so earnestly to speak with me? If you can talk in human
+language, say what you would have me do.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Peep!&rdquo; answered the purple bird, very dolorously.
+&ldquo;Peep, peep, pe&mdash;we&mdash;ep!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Certainly there lay some heavy anguish at the little
+bird&rsquo;s heart; and it was a sorrowful predicament that he
+could not, at least, have the consolation of telling what it was.
+But Ulysses had no time to waste in trying to get at the mystery.
+He therefore quickened his pace, and had gone a good way along the
+pleasant wood-path, when there met him a young man of very brisk
+and intelligent aspect, and clad in a rather singular garb. He wore
+a short cloak, and a sort of cap that seemed to be furnished with a
+pair of wings; and from the lightness of his step, you would have
+supposed that there might likewise be wings on his feet. To enable
+him to walk still better (for he was always on one journey or
+another), he carried a winged staff, around which two serpents were
+wriggling and twisting. In short, I have said enough to make you
+guess that it was Quicksilver; and Ulysses (who knew him of old,
+and had learned a great deal of his wisdom from him) recognized him
+in a moment.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Whither are you going in such a hurry, wise
+Ulysses?&rdquo; asked Quicksilver. &ldquo;Do you not know that this
+island is enchanted? The wicked enchantress (whose name is Circe,
+the sister of King &AElig;etes) dwells in the marble palace which
+you see yonder among the trees. By her magic arts, she changes
+every human being into the brute, beast, or fowl whom he happens
+most to resemble.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That little bird which met me at the edge of the
+cliff,&rdquo; exclaimed Ulysses; &ldquo;was he a human being
+once?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; answered Quicksilver. &ldquo;He was once a
+king, named Picus, and a pretty good sort of a king too, only
+rather too proud of his purple robe, and his crown, and the golden
+chain about his neck; so he was forced to take the shape of a
+gaudy-feathered bird. The lions, and wolves, and tigers who will
+come running to meet you, in front of the palace, were formerly
+fierce and cruel men, resembling in their dispositions the wild
+beasts whose forms they now rightfully wear.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;And my poor companions,&rdquo; said Ulysses. &ldquo;Have
+they undergone a similar change, through the arts of this wicked
+Circe?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You well know what gormandizers they were,&rdquo; replied
+Quicksilver; and, rogue that he was, he could not help laughing at
+the joke. &ldquo;So you will not be surprised to hear that they
+have all taken the shapes of swine! If Circe had never done
+anything worse, I really should not think her so very much to
+blame.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;But can I do nothing to help them?&rdquo; inquired
+Ulysses.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It will require all your wisdom,&rdquo; said Quicksilver,
+&ldquo;and a little of my own into the bargain, to keep your royal
+and sagacious self from being transformed into a fox. But do as I
+bid you, and the matter may end better than it has
+begun.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>While he was speaking, Quicksilver seemed to be in search of
+something; he went stooping along the ground, and soon laid his
+hand on a little plant with a snow-white flower, which he plucked
+and smelt of. Ulysses had been looking at that very spot only just
+before; and it appeared to him that the plant had burst into full
+flower the instant when Quicksilver touched it with his
+fingers.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Take this flower, King Ulysses,&rdquo; said he.
+&ldquo;Guard it as you do your eyesight; for I can assure you it is
+exceedingly rare and precious, and you might seek the whole earth
+over without ever finding another like it. Keep it in your hand,
+and smell of it frequently after you enter the palace, and while
+you are talking with the enchantress. Especially when she offers
+you food, or a draught of wine out of her goblet, be careful to
+fill your nostrils with the flower&rsquo;s fragrance. Follow these
+directions, and you may defy her magic arts to change you into a
+fox.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Quicksilver then gave him some further advice how to behave,
+and, bidding him be bold and prudent, again assured him that,
+powerful as Circe was, he would have a fair prospect of coming
+safely out of her enchanted palace. After listening attentively,
+Ulysses thanked his good friend, and resumed his way. But he had
+taken only a few steps, when, recollecting some other questions
+which he wished to ask, he turned round again, and beheld nobody on
+the spot where Quicksilver had stood; for that winged cap of his,
+and those winged shoes with the help of the winged staff, had
+carried him quickly out of sight.</p>
+<p>When Ulysses reached the lawn in front of the palace, the lions
+and other savage animals came bounding to meet him, and would have
+fawned upon him and licked his feet. But the wise king struck at
+them with his long spear, and sternly bade them begone out of his
+path; for he knew that they had once been bloodthirsty men, and
+would now tear him limb from limb, instead of fawning upon him,
+could they do the mischief that was in their hearts. The wild
+beasts yelped and glared at him, and stood at a distance while he
+ascended the palace steps.</p>
+<p>On entering the hall, Ulysses saw the magic fountain in the
+centre of it. The up-gushing water had now again taken the shape of
+a man in a long, white, fleecy robe, who appeared to be making
+gestures of welcome. The king likewise heard the noise of the
+shuttle in the loom, and the sweet melody of the beautiful
+woman&rsquo;s song, and then the pleasant voices of herself and the
+four maidens talking together, with peals of merry laughter
+intermixed. But Ulysses did not waste much time in listening to the
+laughter or the song. He leaned his spear against one of the
+pillars of the hall, and then, after loosening his sword in the
+scabbard, stepped boldly forward, and threw the folding-doors wide
+open. The moment she beheld his stately figure standing in the
+doorway, the beautiful woman rose from the loom, and ran to meet
+him with a glad smile throwing its sunshine over her face, and both
+her hands extended.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Welcome, brave stranger!&rdquo; cried she. &ldquo;We were
+expecting you.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the nymph with the sea-green hair made a courtesy down to
+the ground, and likewise bade him welcome; so did her sister with
+the bodice of oaken bark, and she that sprinkled dew-drops from her
+fingers&rsquo; ends, and the fourth one with some oddity which I
+cannot remember. And Circe, as the beautiful enchantress was called
+(who had deluded so many persons that she did not doubt of being
+able to delude Ulysses, not imagining how wise he was), again
+addressed him.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Your companions,&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;have already
+been received into my palace, and have enjoyed the hospitable
+treatment to which the propriety of their behavior so well entitles
+them. If such be your pleasure, you shall first take some
+refreshment, and then join them in the elegant apartments which
+they now occupy. See, I and my maidens have been weaving their
+figures into this piece of tapestry.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>She pointed to the web of beautifully woven cloth in the loom.
+Circe and the four nymphs must have been very diligently at work
+since the arrival of the mariners; for a great many yards of
+tapestry had now been wrought, in addition to what I before
+described. In this new part, Ulysses saw his two and twenty friends
+represented as sitting on cushioned and canopied thrones, greedily
+devouring dainties and quaffing deep draughts of wine. The work had
+not yet gone any further. Oh, no, indeed! The enchantress was far
+too cunning to let Ulysses see the mischief which her magic arts
+had since brought upon the gormandizers.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;As for yourself, valiant sir,&rdquo; said Circe,
+&ldquo;judging by the dignity of your aspect, I take you to be
+nothing less than a king. Deign to follow me, and you shall be
+treated as befits your rank.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So Ulysses followed her into the oval saloon, where his two and
+twenty comrades had devoured the banquet which ended so
+disastrously for themselves. But all this while he had held the
+snow-white flower in his hand, and had constantly smelt of it while
+Circe was speaking; and as he crossed the threshold of the saloon,
+he took good care to inhale several long and deep snuffs of its
+fragrance. Instead of two and twenty thrones, which had before been
+ranged around the wall, there was now only a single throne, in the
+centre of the apartment. But this was surely the most magnificent
+seat that ever a king or an emperor reposed himself upon, all made
+of chased gold, studded with precious stones, with a cushion that
+looked like a soft heap of living roses, and overhung by a canopy
+of sunlight which Circe knew how to weave into drapery. The
+enchantress took Ulysses by the hand, and made him sit down upon
+this dazzling throne. Then, clapping her hands, she summoned the
+chief butler.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Bring hither,&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;the goblet that is
+set apart for kings to drink out of. And fill it with the same
+delicious wine which my royal brother, King &AElig;etes, praised so
+highly, when he visited me with my fair daughter Medea. That good
+and amiable child! Were she now here, it would delight her to see
+me offering this wine to my honored guest.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Ulysses, while the butler was gone for the wine, held the
+snow-white flower to his nose.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Is it a wholesome wine?&rdquo; he asked.</p>
+<p>At this the four maidens tittered; whereupon the enchantress
+looked round at them, with an aspect of severity.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It is the wholesomest juice that ever was squeezed out of
+the grape,&rdquo; said she; &ldquo;for, instead of disguising a
+man, as other liquor is apt to do, it brings him to his true self,
+and shows him as he ought to be.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The chief butler liked nothing better than to see people turned
+into swine, or making any kind of a beast of themselves; so he made
+haste to bring the royal goblet, filled with a liquid as bright as
+gold, and which kept sparkling upward, and throwing a sunny spray
+over the brim. But, delightfully as the wine looked, it was mingled
+with the most potent enchantments that Circe knew how to concoct.
+For every drop of the pure grape-juice there were two drops of the
+pure mischief; and the danger of the thing was, that the mischief
+made it taste all the better. The mere smell of the bubbles, which
+effervesced at the brim, was enough to turn a man&rsquo;s beard
+into pig&rsquo;s bristles, or make a lion&rsquo;s claws grow out of
+his fingers, or a fox&rsquo;s brush behind him.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Drink, my noble guest,&rdquo; said Circe, smiling as she
+presented him with the goblet. &ldquo;You will find in this draught
+a solace for all your troubles.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>King Ulysses took the goblet with his right hand, while with his
+left he held the snow-white flower to his nostrils, and drew in so
+long a breath that his lungs were quite filled with its pure and
+simple fragrance. Then, drinking off all the wine, he looked the
+enchantress calmly in the face.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Wretch,&rdquo; cried Circe, giving him a smart stroke
+with her wand, &ldquo;how dare you keep your human shape a moment
+longer? Take the form of the brute whom you most resemble. If a
+hog, go join your fellow swine in the sty; if a lion, a wolf, a
+tiger, go howl with the wild beasts on the lawn; if a fox, go
+exercise your craft in stealing poultry. Thou hast quaffed off my
+wine, and canst be man no longer.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But, such was the virtue of the snow-white flower, instead of
+wallowing down from his throne in swinish shape or taking any other
+brutal form, Ulysses looked even more manly and kinglike than
+before. He gave the magic goblet a toss, and sent it clashing over
+the marble floor, to the farthest end of the saloon. Then, drawing
+his sword, he seized the enchantress by her beautiful ringlets, and
+made a gesture as if he meant to strike off her head at one
+blow.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Wicked Circe,&rdquo; cried he, in a terrible voice,
+&ldquo;this sword shall put an end to thy enchantments. Thou shalt
+die, vile wretch, and do no more mischief in the world, by tempting
+human beings into the vices which make beasts of them.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The tone and countenance of Ulysses were so awful, and his sword
+gleamed so brightly and seemed to have so intolerably keen an edge,
+that Circe was almost killed by the mere fright, without waiting
+for a blow. The chief butler scrambled out of the saloon, picking
+up the golden goblet as he went; and the enchantress and the four
+maidens fell on their knees, wringing their hands and screaming for
+mercy.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Spare me!&rdquo; cried Circe,&mdash;&ldquo;spare me,
+royal and wise Ulysses. For now I know that thou art he of whom
+Quicksilver forewarned me, the most prudent of mortals, against
+whom no enchantments can prevail. Thou only couldst have conquered
+Circe. Spare me, wisest of men. I will show thee true hospitality,
+and even give myself to be thy slave, and this magnificent palace
+to be henceforth thy home.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The four nymphs, meanwhile, were making a most piteous ado; and
+especially the ocean nymph, with the sea-green hair, wept a great
+deal of salt water, and the fountain nymph, besides scattering
+dewdrops from her fingers&rsquo; ends, nearly melted away into
+tears. But Ulysses would not be pacified until Circe had taken a
+solemn oath to change back his companions, and as many others as he
+should direct, from their present forms of beast or bird into their
+former shapes of men.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;On these conditions,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;I consent to
+spare your life. Otherwise you must die upon the spot.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>With a drawn sword hanging over her, the enchantress would
+readily have consented to do as much good as she had hitherto done
+mischief, however little she might like such employment. She
+therefore led Ulysses out of the back entrance of the palace, and
+showed him the swine in their sty. There were about fifty of these
+unclean beasts in the whole herd; and though the greater part were
+hogs by birth and education, there was wonderfully little
+difference to be seen betwixt them and their new brethren who had
+so recently worn the human shape. To speak critically, indeed, the
+latter rather carried the thing to excess, and seemed to make it a
+point to wallow in the miriest part of the sty, and otherwise to
+outdo the original swine in their own natural vocation. When men
+once turn to brutes, the trifle of man&rsquo;s wit that remains in
+them adds tenfold to their brutality.</p>
+<p>The comrades of Ulysses, however, had not quite lost the
+remembrance of having formerly stood erect. When he approached the
+sty, two and twenty enormous swine separated themselves from the
+herd, and scampered towards him, with such a chorus of horrible
+squealing as made him clap both hands to his ears. And yet they did
+not seem to know what they wanted, nor whether they were merely
+hungry or miserable from some other cause. It was curious, in the
+midst of their distress, to observe them thrusting their noses into
+the mire, in quest of something to eat. The nymph with the bodice
+of oaken bark (she was the hamadryad of an oak) threw a handful of
+acorns among them; and the two and twenty hogs scrambled and fought
+for the prize, as if they had tasted not so much as a noggin of
+sour milk for a twelvemonth.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;These must certainly be my comrades,&rdquo; said Ulysses.
+&ldquo;I recognize their dispositions. They are hardly worth the
+trouble of changing them into the human form again. Nevertheless,
+we will have it done, lest their bad example should corrupt the
+other hogs. Let them take their original shapes, therefore, Dame
+Circe, if your skill is equal to the task. It will require greater
+magic, I trow, than it did to make swine of them.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So Circe waved her wand again, and repeated a few magic words,
+at the sound of which the two and twenty hogs pricked up their
+pendulous ears. It was a wonder to behold how their snouts grew
+shorter and shorter, and their mouths (which they seemed to be
+sorry for, because they could not gobble so expeditiously) smaller
+and smaller, and how one and another began to stand upon his hind
+legs, and scratch his nose with his fore trotters. At first the
+spectators hardly knew whether to call them hogs or men, but by and
+by came to the conclusion that they rather resembled the latter.
+Finally, there stood the twenty-two comrades of Ulysses, looking
+pretty much the same as when they left the vessel.</p>
+<p>You must not imagine, however, that the swinish quality had
+entirely gone out of them. When once it fastens itself into a
+person&rsquo;s character, it is very difficult getting rid of it.
+This was proved by the hamadryad, who, being exceedingly fond of
+mischief, threw another handful of acorns before the twenty-two
+newly restored people; whereupon down they wallowed, in a moment,
+and gobbled them up in a very shameful way. Then, recollecting
+themselves, they scrambled to their feet, and looked more than
+commonly foolish.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Thanks, noble Ulysses!&rdquo; they cried. &ldquo;From
+brute beasts you have restored us to the condition of men
+again.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Do not put yourselves to the trouble of thanking
+me,&rdquo; said the wise king. &ldquo;I fear I have done but little
+for you.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>To say the truth, there was a suspicious kind of a grunt in
+their voices, and for a long time afterwards they spoke gruffly,
+and were apt to set up a squeal.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It must depend on your own future behavior,&rdquo; added
+Ulysses, &ldquo;whether you do not find your way back to the
+sty.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At this moment, the note of a bird sounded from the branch of a
+neighboring tree.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Peep, peep, pe&mdash;wee&mdash;ep!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>It was the purple bird, who, all this while, had been sitting
+over their heads, watching what was going forward, and hoping that
+Ulysses would remember how he had done his utmost to keep him and
+his followers out of harm&rsquo;s way. Ulysses ordered Circe
+instantly to make a king of this good little fowl, and leave him
+exactly as she found him. Hardly were the words spoken, and before
+the bird had time to utter another &ldquo;Pe&mdash;weep,&rdquo;
+King Picus leaped down from the bough of the tree, as majestic a
+sovereign as any in the world, dressed in a long purple robe and
+gorgeous yellow stockings, with a splendidly wrought collar about
+his neck, and a golden crown upon his head. He and King Ulysses
+exchanged with one another the courtesies which belonged to their
+elevated rank. But from that time forth, King Picus was no longer
+proud of his crown and his trappings of royalty, nor of the fact of
+his being a king; he felt himself merely the upper servant of his
+people, and that it must be his lifelong labor to make them better
+and happier.</p>
+<p>As for the lions, tigers, and wolves (though Circe would have
+restored them to their former shapes at his slightest word),
+Ulysses thought it advisable that they should remain as they now
+were, and thus give warning of their cruel dispositions, instead of
+going about under the guise of men, and pretending to human
+sympathies, while their hearts had the blood-thirstiness of wild
+beasts. So he let them howl as much as they liked, but never
+troubled his head about them. And, when everything was settled
+according to his pleasure, he sent to summon the remainder of his
+comrades, whom he had left at the seashore. These being arrived,
+with the prudent Eurylochus at their head, they all made themselves
+comfortable in Circe&rsquo;s enchanted palace until quite rested
+and refreshed from the toils and hardships of their voyage.</p>
+<h3><a id="Sirens" name="Sirens">The Sirens&mdash;Scylla and
+Charybdis</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>Translated by George Herbert Palmer</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>I turned me toward my ship, and called my crew to come on board
+and loose the cables. Quickly they came, took places at the pins,
+and sitting in order smote the foaming water with their oars. And
+for our aid behind our dark-bowed ship came a fair wind to fill our
+sail, a welcome comrade, sent us by fair-haired Circe, the mighty
+goddess, human of speech. When we had done our work at the several
+ropes about the ship, we sat us down, while wind and helmsman kept
+her steady.</p>
+<p>Now to my men, with aching heart, I said, &ldquo;My friends, it
+is not right for only one or two to know the oracles which Circe
+told, that heavenly goddess. Therefore I speak, that, knowing all,
+we so may die, or fleeing death and doom, we may escape. She warns
+us first against the marvelous Sirens, and bids us flee their voice
+and flowery meadow. Only myself she bade to hear their song; but
+bind me with galling cords, to hold me firm, upright upon the
+mast-block,&mdash;round it let the rope be wound. And if I should
+entreat you, and bid you set me free, thereat with still more
+fetters bind me fast.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Thus I, relating all my tale, talked with my comrades. Meanwhile
+our stanch ship swiftly neared the Sirens&rsquo; island; a fair
+wind swept her on. On a sudden the wind ceased; there came a
+breathless calm; Heaven hushed the waves. My comrades, rising,
+furled the sail, stowed it on board the hollow ship, then sitting
+at their oars whitened the water with the polished blades. But I
+with my sharp sword cut a great cake of wax into small bits, which
+I then kneaded in my sturdy hands. Soon the wax warmed, forced by
+the powerful pressure and by the rays of the exalted sun, the lord
+of all. Then one by one I stopped the ears of all my crew; and on
+the deck they bound me hand and foot, upright upon the mast-block,
+round which they wound the rope; and sitting down they smote the
+foaming water with their oars. But when we were as far away as one
+can call, and driving swiftly onward, our speeding ship, as it drew
+near, did not escape the Sirens, and thus they lifted up their
+penetrating voice:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Come hither, come, Ulysses, whom all praise! great glory
+to the Achaians! Bring on your ship, and listen to our song. For
+none has ever passed us in a black-hulled ship till from our lips
+he heard ecstatic song, then went his way rejoicing and with larger
+knowledge. For we know all that on the plain of Troy Argives and
+Trojans suffered at the Gods&rsquo; behest; we know whatever
+happens on the bounteous earth.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So spoke they, sending forth their glorious song, and my heart
+longed to listen. Knitting my brows, I signed my men to set me
+free; but bending forward, on they rowed. And straightway Perimedes
+and Eurylochus arose and laid upon me still more cords, and drew
+them tighter. Then, after passing by, when we could hear no more
+the Sirens&rsquo; voice nor any singing, quickly my trusty crew
+removed the wax with which I stopped their ears, and set me free
+from bondage.</p>
+<p>Soon after we left the island, I observed a smoke, I saw high
+waves and heard a plunging sound. From the hands of my frightened
+men down fell the oars, and splashed against the current. There the
+ship stayed, for they worked the tapering oars no more. Along the
+ship I passed, inspiriting my men with cheering words, standing by
+each in turn:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Friends, hitherto we have not been untried in danger.
+Here is no greater danger than when the Cyclops penned us with
+brutal might in the deep cave. Yet out of that, through energy of
+mine, through will and wisdom, we escaped. These dangers, too, I
+think some day we shall remember. Come then, and what I say let us
+all follow. You with your oars strike the deep breakers of the sea,
+while sitting at the pins, and see if Zeus will set us free from
+present death and let us go in safety. And, helmsman, these are my
+commands for you; lay them to heart, for you control the rudders of
+our hollow ship: keep the ship off that smoke and surf and hug the
+crags, or else, before you know it, she may veer off that way, and
+you will bring us into danger.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So I spoke, and my words they quickly heeded. But Scylla I did
+not name,&mdash;that hopeless horror,&mdash;for fear through fright
+my men might cease to row, and huddle all together in the hold. I
+disregarded too the hard behest of Circe, when she had said I must
+by no means arm. Putting on my glittering armor and taking in my
+hands my two long spears, I went upon the ship&rsquo;s fore-deck,
+for thence I looked for the first sight of Scylla of the rocks, who
+brought my men disaster. Nowhere could I descry her; I tried my
+eyes with searching up and down the dusky cliff.</p>
+<p>So up the strait we sailed in sadness; for here lay Scylla, and
+there divine Charybdis fearfully sucked the salt sea-water down.
+Whenever she belched it forth, like a kettle in fierce flame all
+would foam swirling up, and overhead spray fell upon the tops of
+both the crags. But when she gulped the salt sea-water down, then
+all within seemed in a whirl; the rock around roared fearfully, and
+down below the bottom showed, dark with the sand. Pale terror
+seized my men; on her we looked and feared to die.</p>
+<p>And now it was that Scylla snatched from the hollow ship six of
+my comrades who were best in skill and strength. Turning my eyes
+toward my swift ship to seek my men, I saw their feet and hands
+already in the air as they were carried up. They screamed aloud and
+called my name for the last time, in agony of heart. As when a
+fisher, on a jutting rock, with long rod throws a bait to lure the
+little fishes, casting into the deep the horn of stall-fed ox;
+then, catching a fish, flings it ashore writhing,&mdash;even so
+were these drawn writhing up the rocks. There at her door she ate
+them, loudly shrieking and stretching forth their hands in mortal
+pangs toward me. That was the saddest sight my eyes have ever seen,
+in all my toils, searching the ocean pathways.</p>
+<h2><a id="UlyssesIthaca" name="UlyssesIthaca">ULYSSES IN
+ITHACA</a></h2>
+<h3><a id="UlyssesLands" name="UlyssesLands">Ulysses Lands on the
+Shore of Ithaca</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By F.S. Marvin, R.J.C. Mayor, and F.M.
+Stowell</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p class="quote">[For ten years Ulysses was driven hither and
+thither over the water, seeking for his homeland, Ithaca. At length
+he was shipwrecked on the shores of Ph&oelig;acia. The king,
+Alcinous, entertained him most hospitably, and Ulysses related to
+him the story of his wanderings.]</p>
+<p>When Ulysses had finished his story, there was silence in the
+hall till Alcinous said, &ldquo;Ulysses, now that you have come to
+my house after all these troubles, you shall return without more
+wandering to your home.&rdquo; And then he bade the princes go home
+for the night and meet again in the morning to bring their
+gifts.</p>
+<p>So next day the Sea-kings went down to the ship and put their
+gifts on board and then returned to the palace and sacrificed an ox
+to Zeus. And then they feasted and drank their good wine and waited
+till the sun went down. And the minstrel sang to them, but Ulysses
+kept looking at the sun impatiently, like a hungry ploughman tired
+out at the close of day. At last the time arrived, and then Ulysses
+said, &ldquo;Alcinous, let me go now, and fare you well. My escort
+and my gifts are all prepared, and I could wish no more. May I but
+find my wife and my dear ones all safe and sound at home! And may
+Heaven grant you, too, happy homes and every blessing and no
+distress among your people!&rdquo; And to Queen Arete he said,
+&ldquo;Lady, may you live happily with your husband and children,
+and all this people, till old age comes to you and death, which
+must come to all!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the herald led the way and Ulysses followed to the ship,
+and the queen sent her servants with him to carry warm clothing for
+the voyage and food and drink. And when they had stored the ship he
+lay down silently in the stern, and the rowers took their places in
+the benches and plied their oars, while a deep, sweet sleep fell
+upon him, like the sleep of death. Then the wonderful ship leapt
+forward on her way, like a team of chariot horses plunging beneath
+the whip, and the great dark wave roared round the stern. No hawk
+could fly so quickly as that ship flew through the waves, and the
+hawk is the swiftest of all birds. And as she sped, the man who had
+suffered so much and was as wise as the Gods lay peacefully asleep,
+and forgot his sufferings.</p>
+<p>But when the bright star rose that tells of the approach of day,
+the ship drew near the island of Ithaca. There is a haven there
+between two steep headlands which break the waves, so that ships
+can ride in safety without a mooring rope, and at the head of it an
+olive-tree, and a shadowy cave where the water fairies come and
+tend their bees and weave their sea-blue garments on the hanging
+looms and mix their wine in bowls and jars of stone. There are
+springs of water in the cave, and two ways into it, one to the
+north for men to enter, and one to the south where none but the
+Gods may pass.</p>
+<p>The Sea-kings knew this harbor and rowed straight into it and
+ran their ship half a keel&rsquo;s length ashore. Then they lifted
+Ulysses out of the stern, wrapt in the rugs and coverlet, and laid
+him still asleep upon the sand. And the gifts they placed in a heap
+by the trunk of the olive-tree, a little out of the road, so that
+no passer-by might rob him as he slept.</p>
+<p>Then they sailed away; and after they were gone Ulysses awoke,
+but he could not recognize the land where he lay, for Athene had
+cast a mist about him so that everything looked strange, though he
+was the lord of it all. There were the mountain paths and the
+sheltering creeks, the high, steep rocks and the trees in bloom;
+but he could not see it aright, and started up and smote his hands
+upon his thighs and cried aloud,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What land have I come to now? And what can I do with all
+this treasure? If the Sea-kings did not really mean to send me back
+to Ithaca they should have conveyed me to some other people who
+would have sent me home.&rdquo; And then he counted the gifts over,
+the golden vessels, and the beautiful garments, and found nothing
+missing, but they gave him no pleasure; and he turned sadly to walk
+along the shore and dream of home, when a young herdsman met him,
+of noble figure, with a javelin in his hand and a fine mantle in
+double folds upon his shoulders. Ulysses was glad to greet him, and
+asked what country he had reached. It was Athene in disguise, and
+she answered, &ldquo;Truly, stranger, you must have come from far
+indeed. For this is a famous island that all men know, whether they
+live in the east or in the west. It is a rugged land, and no place
+for horses and chariots, but though it is narrow, it is not so
+poor; for there are stores of corn and wine, plenty of water for
+the cattle and plenty of wood. Its name is Ithaca, and some men
+have heard of it even at Troy, which they say is a long way
+off.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then brave Ulysses rejoiced in his heart to hear that it was his
+native land; but he would not tell the herdsman who he was, and
+made up a cunning story that he had escaped as an outlaw from Crete
+and had been left upon the island by a Ph&oelig;nician crew. And
+the goddess smiled to hear him, and stood forth in her own true
+form, a wise and noble woman, tall and fair, and put her hand upon
+his shoulder, and said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Come, let us practice no more craft on one another,
+Ulysses, for we are both famous for our wit and wiles, you among
+mortals and I among the Gods. I am Pallas Athene, daughter of Zeus,
+and I have stood beside you and protected you in all your
+wanderings and toil. And now I have come here to tell you of the
+troubles that await you in your house, and to help you with my
+counsel. But you must still endure in silence, and tell no one that
+Ulysses has returned.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Ulysses made answer, &ldquo;It is hard, goddess, for a
+mortal to know you, wise though he may be, for you come in many
+shapes. Truly I have known your kindness from of old in Troy, but
+when we went on board the ships, I never saw you at my side again.
+Tell me, I pray you, if this is Ithaca indeed, my native
+land.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the goddess answered, &ldquo;I see, Ulysses, that you keep
+your ready wit and steadfast mind. I could not show myself your
+friend before for fear of angering Neptune, my own father&rsquo;s
+brother. But come now, and I will show you Ithaca; there is the
+haven and the olive with its slender leaves, and the cave where you
+once made many an offering to the water nymphs.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And then she rolled away the mist, and the long-suffering hero
+rejoiced to see his native land again. He kissed the kindly earth,
+and vowed to the nymphs that he would bring them offerings as of
+old if he lived to see his dear son a man.</p>
+<p>Then the goddess bade him be of good cheer, and showed him a
+hiding-place in the cavern for the gifts. And then they sat down by
+the trunk of the olive-tree, and Athene told him all the misdeeds
+of the suitors, and how his wife had beguiled them and kept them
+waiting till his return, and how he must avenge himself and
+her.</p>
+<p>Then Ulysses said, &ldquo;Truly, I should have perished in my
+own halls, like Agamemnon, if you had not warned me. Help me,
+therefore, with your wisdom, and stand beside me again and put
+strength and courage within me as in the days of Troy. For with you
+by my side I could fight against three hundred men.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Pallas Athene made answer, &ldquo;I will be with you,
+Ulysses, when the hour of the conflict is come, and the blood of
+the suitors who eat up your substance shall be shed at last. But
+now I will change you into a poor beggar, so old and so wretched
+that no one will know you, and in that guise you must go and stay
+with the herdsman Eum&aelig;us, who tends your swine, until I have
+brought your son Telemachus from Sparta, where he has gone to seek
+tidings of you.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then she touched him with her magic wand, and the fair flesh
+withered on his limbs, and the golden locks fell from his head, and
+he was changed into an old man. His skin was shriveled and his
+bright eyes dimmed, and for his covering she gave him a tattered
+wrap, begrimed with smoke, and a worn deerskin on his shoulder, and
+a wallet and a staff in his hand.</p>
+<p>Then she vanished, and left him to take his way alone across the
+hills.</p>
+<h3><a id="Swineherd" name="Swineherd">Ulysses at the House of the
+Swineherd</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By F.S. Marvin, R.J.C. Mayor, and F.M.
+Stowell</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Ulysses went up along the rough mountain path, through the
+forest and over the hills, till he came to the house where his
+faithful steward lived. It stood in an open space, and there was a
+large courtyard in front with a wall of heavy stones and hawthorn
+boughs and a stout oak palisade. Inside the yard there were twelve
+sties for the pigs, and the swineherd kept four watch-dogs to guard
+the place, great beasts and fierce as wolves, that he had reared
+himself. Ulysses found him at home, sitting in the porch alone, and
+cutting himself a pair of sandals from a brown oxhide.</p>
+<p>The dogs caught sight of the king as soon as he came up and flew
+at him, barking, but he had the wit to let go his staff and sit
+down at once on the ground. Still it might have gone hard with him
+there in front of his own servant&rsquo;s house had not
+Eum&aelig;us rushed out of the porch, dropping the leather in his
+haste, and scolded the dogs, driving them off with a volley of
+stones.</p>
+<p>Then he said to Ulysses, &ldquo;A little more, old man, and the
+dogs would have torn you in pieces, and disgraced me forever. And I
+have my full share of trouble as it is, for I have lost the best
+master in all the world and must sit here to mourn for him and
+fatten his swine for other men, while he is wandering somewhere in
+foreign lands, hungry and thirsty perhaps, if he is still alive at
+all. But now come in yourself, and let me give you food and drink
+and tell me your own tale.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So he took Ulysses into the house and made a seat for him with a
+pile of brushwood boughs and a great thick shaggy goat-skin which
+he used for his own bed, and all with so kind a welcome that it
+warmed the king&rsquo;s heart and made him pray the Gods to bless
+him for his goodness. But Eum&aelig;us only said, &ldquo;How could
+I neglect a stranger, though he were a worse man than you? All
+strangers and beggars are sent to us by Zeus. Take my gift and
+welcome, though it is little enough I have to give, a servant such
+as I, with new masters to lord it over him. For we have lost the
+king who would have loved me and given me house and lands and all
+that a faithful servant ought to have, whose work is blest by the
+Gods and prospers, as mine does here. Alas! he is dead and gone! he
+went away with Agamemnon to fight at Troy and never came home
+again.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, the good swineherd rose and fetched what meat and
+wine he had, and set it before Ulysses, grieving that he had
+nothing better for him because the shameless suitors plundered
+everything.</p>
+<p>But Ulysses ate and drank eagerly, and when his strength had
+come again he asked Eum&aelig;us, &ldquo;My friend, who is this
+master of yours you tell me of? Did you not say he was lost for
+Agamemnon&rsquo;s sake? Perhaps I may have seen him, for I have
+traveled far.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But the swineherd answered, &ldquo;Old man, his wife and son
+will believe no traveler&rsquo;s tale. They have heard too many
+such. Every wandering beggar who comes to Ithaca goes to my
+mistress with some empty story to get a meal for himself, and she
+welcomes him and treats him kindly and asks him about it all, with
+the tears running down her cheeks in a woman&rsquo;s way. Yes, even
+you, old man, might learn to weave such tales if you thought they
+would get you a cloak or a vest. No, he is dead, and dogs and birds
+have eaten him, or else he has fed the fishes and his bones lie
+somewhere on the seashore, buried in the sand. And he has left us
+all to grieve for him, but no one more than me, who can never have
+so kind a master again, not though I had my heart&rsquo;s desire
+and went back to my native land and saw my father and mother, and
+the dear home where I was born. It is Ulysses above all whom I long
+to see once more. There, stranger, I have called him by his name,
+and that I should not do; for he is still my dear master though he
+is far away.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Ulysses said, &ldquo;My friend, your hope has gone and you
+will never believe me. But I tell you this and seal it with an
+oath: Ulysses will return! Poor as I am, I will take no reward for
+my news till he comes to his own again, but you shall give me a new
+vest and cloak that day, and I will wear them.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But the swineherd answered, &ldquo;Ah, my friend, I shall never
+need to pay you that reward. He will never come back again. But now
+drink your wine in peace, and let us talk of something else, and do
+not call to mind the sorrow that almost breaks my heart. Tell me of
+yourself and your own troubles and who you are, and what ship
+brought you here, for you will not say you came afoot.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Ulysses pretended he was a Cretan and had fought at Troy,
+and told Eum&aelig;us a long tale of adventures and how he had been
+wrecked at last on the coast of Epirus. The king of the country, he
+said, had rescued him, and he had learned that Ulysses had been
+there a little while before, and was already on his way to
+Ithaca.</p>
+<p>The swineherd listened eagerly to it all, but when Ulysses had
+finished he said, &ldquo;Poor friend, my heart aches to hear of all
+your sufferings. But there is one thing you should not have said,
+one thing I can never believe, and that is that Ulysses will
+return. And why need you lie to please me? I can see for myself
+that you are old and unhappy, a wanderer whom the Gods have sent to
+me. It is not for such a tale I will show you the kindness that you
+need, but because I pity you myself and reverence the law of
+Zeus.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;If I lie,&rdquo; Ulysses answered, &ldquo;you may have me
+thrown from the cliff as a warning to other cheats. I swear it, and
+call the Gods to witness.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But the true-hearted swineherd only said, &ldquo;I should get a
+good name by that, my friend, if I took you into nay house and had
+you for my guest, and then murdered you brutally! Do you think I
+could pray to Zeus after that without a fear? But now it is
+supper-time, and my men will be coming home.&rdquo; While they
+spoke, the herdsmen came up with the swine, and the sows were
+driven into the pens, grunting and squealing noisily as they
+settled in for the night. Then Eum&aelig;us called out,
+&ldquo;Bring in the fattest boar, and let us make a sacrifice in
+honor of our guest, and get some reward ourselves for all the
+trouble we have spent upon the drove,&mdash;trouble lost, since
+strangers take the fruit of it all.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So they brought in a big fat white-tusked boar, while
+Eum&aelig;us split the wood for the fire. And he did not forget the
+Immortals, for he had a pious heart: he made the due offerings
+first and prayed for his master&rsquo;s return, and then he stood
+up at the board to carve, and gave each man his share and a special
+slice for his guest from the whole length of the chine. Ulysses
+took it and thanked him with all his heart:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;May Father Zeus be your friend, Eum&aelig;us, and give
+you what I would give you for your kindness to a poor old man like
+me.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But the swineherd said, &ldquo;Take it, my good friend, take it
+and enjoy it. Zeus will give or withhold as it may please him, for
+he can do all things.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So they sat down to the feast, and after they had had their fill
+the swineherd&rsquo;s servant cleared everything away, and then
+they made ready for sleep. The evening closed in black and stormy,
+and a west wind sprang up bringing the rain with it, and blew hard
+all the night; so Eum&aelig;us made up a bed of fleeces for Ulysses
+by the fire and gave him a great thick cloak as well, that he kept
+for the roughest weather. But he could not bring himself to stay
+there too, away from his herd of pigs, and he wrapped himself up
+warmly and went out to sleep beside them in the open. Ulysses saw,
+and smiled to see, what care he took of everything, while he
+thought his master was far away.</p>
+<p>[On the following morning] Ulysses and the swineherd were
+already preparing their breakfast when Telemachus came up. The dogs
+knew him and played round him lovingly. &ldquo;Eum&aelig;us,&rdquo;
+said Ulysses, &ldquo;some friend of yours is coming, for I hear
+footsteps, and the dogs are pleased and do not bark.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He had hardly finished speaking when his own dear son stood in
+the doorway. The swineherd started up and dropped the vessels in
+which he was mixing the wine. He went to meet his young master and
+fell on his neck and kissed him as a father would kiss an only son
+escaped from death. &ldquo;Light of my eyes, dear son, have you
+come home at last? When you sailed away to Pylos, I never thought
+to see you again. But come in and let me feast my eyes upon you;
+for you do not often visit us, but are kept at home in the town,
+watching that crowd of ruinous suitors.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Telemachus answered, &ldquo;Gladly, good father; I have come
+to see you, and to hear tidings of my mother.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the swineherd told him that his mother still waited
+patiently at home, and spent her days and nights in weeping.</p>
+<div class="figure"><a href="images/big_376.jpg"><img src=
+"images/small_376.jpg" alt="A man kisses his son." id="img08" name=
+"img08" width="360" height="563" /></a>
+<p>&ldquo;DEAR SON, HAVE YOU COME HOME AT LAST? WHEN YOU SAILED
+AWAY TO PYLOS, I NEVER THOUGHT TO SEE YOU AGAIN. BUT COME IN AND
+LET ME FEAST MY EYES UPON YOU; FOR YOU DO NOT OFTEN VISIT US, BUT
+ARE KEPT AT HOME IN THE TOWN, WATCHING THAT CROWD OF RUINOUS
+SUITORS.&rdquo; AND TELEMACHUS ANSWERED, &ldquo;GLADLY, GOOD
+FATHER; I HAVE COME TO SEE YOU, AND TO HEAR TIDINGS OF MY
+MOTHER.&rdquo; THEN THE SWINEHERD TOLD HIM THAT HIS MOTHER STILL
+WAITED PATIENTLY AT HOME.</p>
+</div>
+<p>Then Telemachus went into the house, and as he came up Ulysses
+rose to give him his seat, but he would not take it, and said,
+&ldquo;Keep your seat, stranger, this man shall make up another for
+me.&rdquo; So Ulysses sat down again, and the swineherd made a seat
+for Telemachus of the green brushwood and put a fleece upon it.
+Then he set food before them, and when they had eaten, Telemachus
+asked who the stranger was, and how he had come to Ithaca. And
+Eum&aelig;us told him Ulysses&rsquo;s own story and begged him to
+protect the wanderer. But Telemachus thought of the suitors and did
+not wish to take him to the palace.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I will give him a coat and a vest,&rdquo; he said,
+&ldquo;and shoes for his feet, and a two-edged sword, and I will
+send him on his way. But I cannot take him into the house, where
+the suitors would mock at him and use him ill. One man cannot
+restrain them, and he so young as I.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Ulysses said, &ldquo;Sir, if I may speak, I would say foul
+wrong is done you in your house, and my heart burns at the thought.
+Do your people hate you, or will your brothers give you no support?
+Would that I were as young as you are, and were Ulysses&rsquo;s son
+or Ulysses himself. I would go to the palace and fall upon all the
+throng, and die there, one man against a hundred, sooner than see
+the shameful deeds that are done in that glorious house.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Telemachus answered, &ldquo;Hear me, stranger, and I will
+tell you all. My people do not hate me, and I have no quarrel with
+them. But I have no brothers to stand by me, for Zeus has never
+given more than one son to each generation of our line. And there
+are many foemen in the house, all the princes of the islands, and
+they too woo my mother and threaten my life, and I cannot see how
+it will end.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he said to Eum&aelig;us, &ldquo;Go up to the house, old
+father, as quickly as you can, and tell my mother that I am come
+back safe from Pylos, and I will wait for you here.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Eum&aelig;us answered, &ldquo;I hear, master, and
+understand. But shall I not go to Laertes on my way and tell him
+too? For since you set sail for Pylos, they say he has not eaten or
+drunk or gone about his work, but sits in his house sorrowing and
+wasting away with grief.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Telemachus bade him go straight to the palace and return at
+once, and let the queen send word to Laertes by one of the maids.
+So Eum&aelig;us went forth, and when Athene saw him go, she drew
+near, and came and stood by the gateway and showed herself to
+Ulysses, a tall and beautiful woman, with wisdom in her look. The
+dogs saw her too and were afraid, and shrank away whining into the
+corner of the yard, but Telemachus could not see her. Then the
+goddess nodded to Ulysses, and he went out and stood before her,
+and she said, &ldquo;Noble Ulysses, now is the time to reveal
+yourself to your son, and go forth with him to the town, with death
+and doom for the suitors. I shall be near you in the battle and
+eager to fight.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then she touched him with her golden wand and gave him his
+beauty and stature once more, and his old bronzed color came back
+and his beard grew thick and his garments shone bright again: and
+so she sent him to the hut. And when Telemachus saw him, he
+marveled and turned away his eyes, for he thought it must be a
+god.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Stranger,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;you are changed since a
+moment ago; your color is not the same, nor your garments. If you
+are one of the Immortals, be gracious to us, and let us offer you
+gifts and sacrifice.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Ulysses cried out, &ldquo;I am no god, but your own dear
+father, for whose sake you are suffering cruel wrongs and the spite
+of men.&rdquo; And then he kissed his son and let his tears take
+their way at last.</p>
+<p>But Telemachus could not believe it, and said, &ldquo;You cannot
+be my father, but a god come down to deceive me and make me grieve
+still more. No mortal could do what you have done, for a moment
+since you were old and wretched, and poorly clad, and now you seem
+like one of the heavenly Gods.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then his father answered, &ldquo;My son, no other Ulysses will
+ever come back to you. Athene has done this wonder, for she is a
+goddess and can make men what she will, now poor, now rich, now
+old, now young; such power have the lords of heaven to exalt us or
+bring us low.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Telemachus fell on his neck, and they wept aloud together.
+And they would have wept out their hearts till evening, had not
+Telemachus asked his father how he had come to Ithaca at last; and
+Ulysses told him that the sea-kings had brought him and put him on
+shore asleep, and that Athene had sent him to the swineherd&rsquo;s
+hut. &ldquo;But now tell me of the suitors. How many are they and
+what manner of men? Can the two of us make head against the
+throng?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Father,&rdquo; he answered, &ldquo;I know well your fame,
+mighty and wise in war. But this we could never dare, two men
+against a host. They are a hundred and twenty in all, the best
+fighting men from Ithaca and the islands round. Think, if you can,
+of some champion who would befriend us and give us help.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Ulysses made answer, &ldquo;What think you, if Father Zeus
+and the goddess Athene stood by our side? Should we still need
+other help?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Truly they are the best of champions,&rdquo; said
+Telemachus, &ldquo;though they sit on high among the clouds; and
+they rule both men and Gods.&rdquo; &ldquo;And they will be with
+us,&rdquo; said his father, &ldquo;when we come to the trial of
+war. Now at daybreak you must go home and mix with the suitors, and
+later on the swineherd will bring me to the town, disguised again
+as the old beggar-man; and if they ill-treat me or even strike me
+or drag me out of the house, you must look on and bear it. You may
+check them by speaking, but they will not listen, for the day of
+their doom is at hand. And tell no one that Ulysses has come home,
+not even Laertes nor the swineherd nor Penelope herself; we must
+keep the secret until we are sure of our friends.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Telemachus said that his father might trust him, and so
+they talked on together. Meanwhile Eum&aelig;us had reached the
+palace with the tidings that Telemachus had returned; and the
+suitors who were in the hall heard it and were dismayed, for they
+saw that their plot had failed. They went out of the palace and sat
+down before the gates, and were talking of sending word to their
+ship that was lying in wait for Telemachus, when the ship itself
+came into the harbor, with the other princes on board. So they all
+went up together to the public square and debated what to do, and
+they resolved to murder Telemachus as soon as they found another
+chance. Then they went back and sat down again on the polished
+seats in the hall.</p>
+<p>Now Medon the herald had heard them plotting together in the
+square, and went and told Penelope all they had said, and how they
+had purposed putting her son to death. She went down at once to the
+hall with her women, and stood in the doorway with her bright veil
+before her face and spoke to Antinous and said, &ldquo;Wicked and
+insolent man, can it be that they call you in Ithaca one of their
+wisest men? No, it is a fool&rsquo;s work you are doing, plotting
+to kill my son. He is helpless before you now, but Zeus is the
+friend of the helpless and avenges their wrongs. Impious and
+ungrateful too! Did not Ulysses once shield your father from his
+enemies and save his life? Yet you waste his substance and would
+murder his son?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Eurymachus spoke and tried to soothe her. No one, he said,
+should injure Telemachus while he was alive, for he loved him more
+than any man on earth. Eurymachus&rsquo;s words were fair, and
+Penelope could say no more; yet all the while he was planning the
+death of her son.</p>
+<p>In the evening the swineherd reached his hut again, and found
+Ulysses changed to the old beggar-man once more, preparing supper
+with Telemachus.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What news, good Eum&aelig;us?&rdquo; said the young man.
+&ldquo;Have the proud lords come home from their ambush, or are
+they still waiting out yonder to take me as I return?&rdquo; And
+Eum&aelig;us replied, &ldquo;I did not stay, master, to go through
+the town and find out the news, for when I had given my message I
+wanted to be at home. But one thing I saw from the brow of the hill
+as I came along. A swift ship was entering the harbor, full of
+armor and armed men. They may have been the princes, but I cannot
+say.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>As he heard this, Telemachus looked at his father and smiled,
+but he took good care that the swineherd should not see.</p>
+<h3><a id="Vengeance" name="Vengeance">The Vengeance of
+Ulysses</a></h3>
+<h4><a id="Reception" name="Reception">A. His Reception at the
+Palace</a></h4>
+<p class="byline"><em>By F.S. Marvin, R.J.C. Mayor, and F.M.
+Stowell</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Early next morning, when the rosy-fingered dawn was in the sky,
+Telemachus bound on his sandals and took his stout spear in his
+hand, and said to the swineherd, &ldquo;Old friend, I must now be
+off to the city and let my mother see me, for I know she will weep
+and sigh until I am there myself. And as for this poor stranger, I
+would have you take him to the town and let him beg for bite and
+sup from door to door, and those who choose can give. For I cannot
+be host to every wanderer with all the trouble I have to bear. And
+if that makes him angry&mdash;well! it is only the worse for him; I
+am a man that speaks his mind.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Ulysses answered readily, &ldquo;Sir, I do not ask to stay
+here myself; a beggar should not beg in the fields. Nor am I young
+enough to work on a farm at a master&rsquo;s beck and call. So go
+your ways, and your man shall take me with him to the town. But I
+will wait till the sun is high, for I am afraid of the morning
+frost with these threadbare rags of mine.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So Telemachus strode away until he reached the palace, and went
+into the hall. The old nurse Eurycleia was there with the maids,
+spreading fleeces on the inlaid stools and chairs; and she saw him
+at once and went up to him with tears in her eyes, and then all the
+women gathered round and kissed him and welcomed him home again.
+And Penelope came down from her chamber and flung her arms round
+her son, and kissed his head and both his eyes, and said to him
+tearfully, &ldquo;You have come home, Telemachus, light of my eyes!
+I thought I should never see you again, when you sailed away to
+Pylos secretly, against my will, to get tidings of your father. And
+now tell me all you heard.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Telemachus said to her, &ldquo;Mother, why make me think of
+trouble now, when I have just escaped from death? Rather put on
+your fairest robes, and go and pray the Gods to grant us a day of
+vengeance. But I must be off to the public square to meet a guest
+of mine whom I brought here in my ship. I sent him on before me
+with the crew, and bade one of them take him to his house until I
+came myself.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So Penelope went away and prayed to the Gods, while the prince
+went down to the public square and found Theoclymenus and brought
+him back to the palace, and they sat down together in the hall.
+Then one of the old servants brought up a polished table and spread
+it for them with good things for their meal, and Penelope came and
+sat beside the door, spinning her fine soft yarn. She did not speak
+till they had finished, but then she said to her son,
+&ldquo;Telemachus, I see I must go up to my room and lie down on my
+bed, the bed I have watered with my tears ever since Ulysses went
+away to Troy; for you are determined not to talk to me and tell me
+the news of your father before the suitors come into the
+hall!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Telemachus said, &ldquo;Mother, I will tell you all I know.
+We reached Pylos and found Nestor there, and he took me into his
+splendid house, and welcomed me as lovingly as though I had been a
+long-lost son of his own. But he could tell me nothing of my
+father, not even if he were alive or dead, and so he sent me on to
+Sparta, to the house of Menelaus. There I saw Helen, the fairest of
+women, for whom the Greeks and Trojans fought and suffered so long.
+Menelaus asked me why I came and I told him about the suitors and
+all the wrong they did. Then he cried, &lsquo;Curse on them! The
+dastards in the hero&rsquo;s place! Oh, that Ulysses would return!
+They would soon have cause enough to hate this suit of
+theirs!&rsquo; And then he told me how he had heard tidings of my
+father from Proteus, the wizard of the sea. He was living still, so
+the wizard said, on an island far away, in the cave of a wood nymph
+called Calypso, who kept him there against his will, and he had no
+ship to carry him over the broad sea. That was all Menelaus could
+tell me; and when I had done my errand I came away, and the Gods
+have brought me home in safety.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And as Penelope listened her heart filled with sorrow; but
+Theoclymenus, the seer, said to her, &ldquo;Listen to me, wife of
+Ulysses, and I will prophesy to you; for your son has heard nothing
+certain, but I have seen omens that are sure. I swear by Zeus, the
+ruler of the Gods, and by the board and the hearth of Ulysses
+himself where I am standing now, he is already here in Ithaca, he
+knows of all this wickedness, and is waiting to punish the suitors
+as they deserve.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At that moment the princes came in from their sport and flung
+their cloaks aside, and set about slaughtering the sheep and the
+fatted goats and the swine for their feast.</p>
+<p>Meanwhile Ulysses was starting for the town, with the swineherd
+to show him the way. He had slung the tattered wallet across his
+shoulder, and Eum&aelig;us had given him a staff, and every one who
+met them would have taken the king for a poor old beggar-man,
+hobbling along with his crutch.</p>
+<p>So they went down the rocky path till they reached a running
+spring by the wayside where the townsfolk got their water. There
+was a grove of tall poplars round it, and the cool stream bubbled
+down from the rock overhead, and above the fountain there was an
+altar to the nymphs where the passers-by laid their offerings.</p>
+<p>There they chanced to meet Melanthius, the king&rsquo;s
+goatherd, driving his fattest goats to the town for the
+suitors&rsquo; feast. He was a favorite of theirs, and did all he
+could to please them. Now as soon as he saw the two he broke out
+into scoffs and gibes, till the heart of Ulysses grew hot with
+anger.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Look there!&rdquo; he shouted, &ldquo;one rascal leading
+another! Trust a man to find his mate! A plague on you, swineherd,
+where are you taking that pitiful wretch? Another beggar, I
+suppose, to hang about the doors and cringe for the scraps and
+spoil our feasts? Now if you would only let me have him to watch my
+farm and sweep out my stalls and fetch fodder for my kids, he could
+drink as much whey as he liked and get some flesh on his bones. But
+no! His tricks have spoilt him for any honest work!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So he jeered at them in his folly, and as he passed he kicked
+Ulysses on the thigh, but the king stood firm, and took the blow in
+silence, though he could have found it in his heart to strike the
+man dead on the spot. But Eum&aelig;us turned round fiercely, and
+cried to the Gods for vengeance.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nymphs of the spring,&rdquo; he prayed, &ldquo;if ever my
+master honored you, hear my prayer, and send him home again! He
+would make a sweep of all your insolence, you good-for-nothing
+wretch, loitering here in the city while your flocks are left to
+ruin!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Oho!&rdquo; cried Melanthius. &ldquo;Listen to the
+foul-mouthed dog! I must put him on board a ship and sell him in a
+foreign land, and make some use of him that way! Why, Ulysses will
+never see the day of his return! He is dead and gone; I wish his
+son would follow him!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>With that he turned on his heel and hastened away to the palace
+hall, where he sat down with the suitors at their feast. And the
+other two followed slowly until they reached the gate. There they
+paused, and Ulysses caught the swineherd by the hand, and
+cried,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Eum&aelig;us, this must be the palace of the king! No one
+could mistake it. See, there is room after room, and a spacious
+courtyard with a wall and coping-stones and solid double doors to
+make it safe. And I am sure that a great company is seated there at
+the banquet, for I can smell the roasted meat and hear the sound of
+the lyre.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Eum&aelig;us said, &ldquo;Your wits are quick enough; it is
+the very place. And now tell me: would you rather go in alone and
+face the princes while I wait here, or will you stay behind and let
+me go in first? But if you wait here, you must not wait too long,
+for some one might catch sight of you and strike you and drive you
+from the gate.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the hero said to him, &ldquo;I understand; I knew what I
+had to meet. Do you go first and I will wait behind. For I have
+some knowledge of thrusts and blows, and my heart has learned to
+endure; for I have suffered much in storm and battle, and I can
+bear this like the rest.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But while they were talking, a dog who was lying there lifted
+his head and pricked his ears. It was the hound Argus, whom Ulysses
+had reared himself long ago before the war, but had to leave behind
+when he went away to Troy. Once he used to follow the hunters to
+the chase, but no one cared for him now when his master was away,
+and he lay there covered with vermin, on a dung-heap in front of
+the gates. Yet even so, when he felt that Ulysses was near him, he
+wagged his tail and dropped his ears; but he had not strength
+enough to drag himself up to his master. And when Ulysses saw it,
+he turned away his face so that Eum&aelig;us should not see the
+tears in his eyes, and said, &ldquo;Eum&aelig;us, it is strange
+that they let that dog lie there in the dung. He looks a noble
+creature, but perhaps he has never been swift enough for the chase,
+and they have only kept him for his beauty.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah, yes!&rdquo; Eum&aelig;us answered, &ldquo;it is easy
+to see that he has no master now. If you had been here when Ulysses
+went to Troy, you would have wondered at the creature&rsquo;s pace
+and strength. In the thickest depth of the forest no quarry could
+escape him, and no hound was ever keener-scented. But now he is old
+and wretched and his lord has perished far away, and the heedless
+women take no care of him. Slaves can do nothing as they ought when
+the master is not there, for a man loses half his manhood when he
+falls into slavery.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Eum&aelig;us went on into the palace and up to the hall
+where the suitors were. But Argus had seen his master again at
+last, and when he had seen him, he died.</p>
+<p>As soon as the swineherd came in, Telemachus caught sight of
+him, and beckoned him to a stool at his side, and gave him his
+share of the feast. After a little while Ulysses came up too, and
+sat down on the threshold like a poor old beggar-man. Then his son
+sent him meat and bread by the swineherd, and said that a beggar
+should be bold, and he ought to go among the princes and ask each
+man for a dole. So he went round from one to the other, stretching
+out his hand for a morsel in the true beggar&rsquo;s way. And every
+one else felt some pity and gave him an alms, but Antinous mocked
+at them all and told them they were ready enough to be generous
+with another&rsquo;s wealth. And at last he grew angry and cursed
+Ulysses for a whining rascal, and hurled a footstool at his head,
+bidding him begone and trouble them no more. The stool struck
+Ulysses on the shoulder, but he stood like a rock, motionless and
+silent, with black thoughts in his heart. Then he went back
+straight to the threshold and sat down and spoke to all the
+company:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Listen to me, my lords! No man bears any rancor for a
+blow in open war, but Antinous has struck me because I am a beggar
+and know the curse of hunger. If there be any gods who avenge the
+poor man&rsquo;s cause, I pray that he may die before his marriage
+day!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At that the others felt shame, and told Antinous he did wrong to
+strike the homeless wanderer.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Who knows?&rdquo; they said. &ldquo;He might be one of
+the heavenly Gods, and woe to you if he were! For sometimes the
+Immortals take upon themselves the likeness of strangers, and enter
+our cities, and go about among men, watching the good and evil that
+they do.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Thus they warned him, but he cared little for all they said. And
+Telemachus sat there full of rage and grief to see his father
+struck, but he kept back the tears and held his peace.</p>
+<p>Now Penelope was sitting in her room behind the hall, and she
+saw what had happened, and was angry with Antinous, and called the
+swineherd to her side.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Go, good Eum&aelig;us, and tell the stranger to come
+here. And I will ask him if he has ever heard of Ulysses, for he
+looks like a man who has wandered far.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the swineherd said, &ldquo;Yes, he is a Cretan, and has had
+all kinds of adventures before he was driven here, and he could
+tell you stories that would charm you like a minstrel&rsquo;s
+sweetest song, and you would never tire of listening. And he says
+that he has heard of Ulysses, near home, in the rich land of
+Epirus, and that he is already on his way to us, bringing a store
+of treasures with him.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Penelope said, &ldquo;Quick, bring the stranger here at
+once, and let him speak with me face to face. And if I see that he
+tells the truth I will give him a vest and a cloak for
+himself.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So the swineherd hurried back with the message; but Ulysses said
+he dared not face the princes a second time and it would be better
+to speak with Penelope later in the evening, alone by the fireside;
+and when the queen heard this, she said that the stranger was
+right. By this time it was afternoon, and Eum&aelig;us went up to
+Telemachus and whispered that he must be off to his work again.
+Telemachus said he might go, but bade him have supper first and
+told him to come back next morning without fail. So the swineherd
+took his food in the hall, and then started home for his farm, to
+look after his pigs and everything that he had charge of there.</p>
+<h4><a id="Bow" name="Bow">B. The Trial of the Bow</a></h4>
+<p class="byline"><em>Translated by George Herbert Palmer</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>And now the goddess, clear-eyed Athene, put in the mind of
+Icarius&rsquo;s daughter, heedful Penelope, to offer to the suitors
+in the hall the bow and the gray steel, as means of sport and
+harbingers of death. She mounted the long stairway of her house,
+holding a crooked key in her firm hand,&mdash;a goodly key of
+bronze, having an ivory handle,&mdash;and hastened with her damsels
+to a far-off room where her lord&rsquo;s treasure lay, bronze,
+gold, and well-wrought steel. Here also lay his curved bow and the
+quiver for his arrows,&mdash;and many grievous shafts were in it
+still,&mdash;gifts which a friend had given Ulysses when he met him
+once in Laced&aelig;mon,&mdash;Iphitus, son of Eurytus, a man like
+the Immortals. At Messene the two met, in the house of wise
+Orsilochus. Ulysses had come hither to claim a debt, which the
+whole district owed him; for upon ships of many oars Messenians
+carried off from Ithaca three hundred sheep together with their
+herdsmen. In the long quest for these, Ulysses took the journey
+when he was but a youth; for his father and the other elders sent
+him forth. Iphitus, on the other hand, was seeking horses; for
+twelve mares had been lost, which had as foals twelve hardy mules.
+These afterwards became the death and doom of Iphitus when he met
+the stalwart son of Zeus, the hero Hercules, who well knew deeds of
+daring; for Hercules slew Iphitus in his own house, although his
+guest, and recklessly did not regard the anger of the Gods nor yet
+the proffered table, but slew the man and kept at his own hall the
+strong-hoofed mares. It was when seeking these that Iphitus had met
+Ulysses and given the bow which in old days great Eurytus was wont
+to bear, and which on dying in his lofty hall he left his son. To
+Iphitus Ulysses gave a sharp-edged sword and a stout spear, as the
+beginning of a loving friendship. They never sat, however, at one
+another&rsquo;s table; ere that could be, the son of Zeus slew
+godlike Iphitus, the son of Eurytus, who gave the bow. Royal
+Ulysses, when going off to war in the black ships, would never take
+this bow. It always stood in its own place at home, as a memorial
+of his honored friend. In his own land he bore it.</p>
+<p>Now when the royal lady reached this room and stood on the oaken
+threshold,&mdash;which long ago the carpenter had smoothed with
+skill and leveled to the line, fitting the posts thereto and
+setting the shining doors,&mdash;then quickly from its ring she
+loosed the strap, thrust in the key, and with a careful aim shot
+back the door-bolts. As a bull roars when feeding in the field, so
+roared the goodly door touched by the key, and open flew before
+her. She stepped to a raised dais where stood some chests in which
+lay fragrant garments. Thence reaching up, she took from its peg
+the bow in the glittering case which held it. And now she sat her
+down and laid the case upon her lap, and loudly weeping drew her
+lord&rsquo;s bow forth. But when she had had her fill of tears and
+sighs, she hastened to the hall to meet the lordly suitors, bearing
+in hand the curved bow and the quiver for the arrows, and many
+grievous shafts were in it still. Beside her, damsels bore a box in
+which lay many a piece of steel and bronze, implements of her
+lord&rsquo;s for games like these. And when the royal lady reached
+the suitors, she stood beside a column of the strong-built roof,
+holding before her face her delicate wimple, the while a faithful
+damsel stood on either hand. And straightway she addressed the
+suitors, speaking thus:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Hearken, you haughty suitors who beset this house, eating
+and drinking ever, now my husband is long gone; no word of excuse
+can you suggest except your wish to marry me and win me for your
+wife. Well then, my suitors,&mdash;since before you stands your
+prize,&mdash;I offer you the mighty bow of prince Ulysses; and
+whoever with his hands shall lightliest bend the bow and shoot
+through all twelve axes, him will I follow and forsake this home,
+this bridal home, so very beautiful and full of wealth, a place I
+think I ever shall remember, even in my dreams.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, she bade Eum&aelig;us, the noble swineherd, deliver
+to the suitors the bow and the gray steel. With tears Eum&aelig;us
+took the arms and laid them down before them. Near by, the neatherd
+also wept to see his master&rsquo;s bow. But Antinous rebuked them,
+and spoke to them and said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You stupid boors, who only mind the passing minute,
+wretched pair, what do you mean by shedding tears, troubling this
+lady&rsquo;s heart, when already her heart is prostrated with grief
+at losing her dear husband? Sit down and eat in silence, or else go
+forth and weep, but leave the bow behind, a dread ordeal for the
+suitors; for I am sure this polished bow will not be bent with
+ease. There is not a man of all now here so powerful as Ulysses. I
+saw him once myself, and well recall him, though I was then a
+child.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He spoke, but in his breast his heart was hoping to draw the
+string and send an arrow through the steel; yet he was to be the
+first to taste the shaft of good Ulysses, whom he now wronged
+though seated in his hall, while to like outrage he encouraged all
+his comrades. To these now spoke revered Telemachus:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ha! Zeus the son of Cronos has made me play the fool! My
+mother&mdash;and wise she is&mdash;says she will follow some
+strange man and quit this house; and I but laugh and in my silly
+soul am glad. Come then, you suitors, since before you stands your
+prize, a lady whose like cannot be found throughout Achaian land,
+in sacred Pylos, Argos, or Mycen&aelig;, in Ithaca itself, or the
+dark mainland, as you yourselves well know,&mdash;what needs my
+mother praise?&mdash;come then, delay not with excuse nor longer
+hesitate to bend the bow, but let us learn what is to be. I too
+might try the bow. And if I stretch it and send an arrow through
+the steel, then with no shame to me my honored mother may forsake
+this house and follow some one else, leaving me here behind; for I
+shall then be able to wield my father&rsquo;s arms.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He spoke, and flung his red cloak from his shoulders, rising
+full height, and put away the sharp sword also from his shoulder.
+First then he set the axes, marking one long furrow for them all,
+aligned by cord. The earth on the two sides he stamped down flat.
+Surprise filled all beholders to see how properly he set them,
+though he had never seen the game before. Then he went and stood
+upon the threshold and began to try the bow. Three times he made it
+tremble as he sought to make it bend. Three times he slacked his
+strain, still hoping in his heart to draw the string and send an
+arrow through the steel. And now he might have drawn it by force of
+a fourth tug, had not Ulysses shaken his head and stayed the eager
+boy. So to the suitors once more spoke revered
+Telemachus:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Fie! Shall I ever be a coward and a weakling, or am I
+still but young and cannot trust my arm to right me with the man
+who wrongs me first? But come, you who are stronger men than I,
+come try the bow and end the contest.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, he laid by the bow and stood it on the ground,
+leaning it on the firm-set polished door. The swift shaft, too, he
+likewise leaned against the bow&rsquo;s fair knob, and once more
+took the seat from which he first arose. Then said to them
+Antinous, Eupeithes&rsquo; son,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Rise up in order all, from left to right, beginning where
+the cupbearer begins to pour the wine.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So said Antinous, and his saying pleased them. Then first arose
+Leiodes, son of &OElig;nops, who was their soothsayer and had his
+place beside the goodly mixer, farthest along the hall. To him
+alone their lawlessness was hateful; he abhorred the suitor crowd.
+He it was now who first took up the bow and the swift shaft; and
+going to the threshold, he stood and tried the bow. He could not
+bend it. Tugging the string wearied his hands,&mdash;his soft,
+unhorny hands,&mdash;and to the suitors thus he spoke:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;No, friends, I cannot bend it. Let some other take the
+bow. Ah, many chiefs this bow shall rob of life and breath! Yet
+better far to die than live and still to fail in that for which we
+constantly are gathered, waiting expectantly from day to day! Now
+each man hopes and purposes at heart to win Penelope,
+Ulysses&rsquo; wife. But when he shall have tried the bow and seen
+his failure, then to some other fair-robed woman of Achaia let each
+go, and offer her his suit and woo her with his gifts. So may
+Penelope marry the man who gives her most and comes with fate to
+favor!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>When he had spoken, he laid by the bow, leaning it on the
+firm-set polished door. The swift shaft, too, he likewise leaned
+against the bow&rsquo;s fair knob, and once more took the seat from
+which he first arose. But Antinous rebuked him, and spoke to him,
+and said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Leiodes, what words have passed the barrier of your
+teeth? Strange words and harsh! Vexatious words to hear! As if this
+bow must rob our chiefs of life and breath because you cannot bend
+it! Why, your good mother did not bear you for a brandisher of bows
+and arrows. But others among the lordly suitors will bend it by and
+by.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, he gave an order to Melanthius, the goatherd:
+&ldquo;Hasten, Melanthius, and light a fire in the hall and set a
+long bench near, with fleeces on it; then bring me the large cake
+of fat which lies inside the door, that after we have warmed the
+bow and greased it well, we young men may try the bow and end the
+contest.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He spoke, and straightway Melanthius kindled a steady fire, and
+set a bench beside it with a fleece thereon, and brought out the
+large cake of fat which lay inside the door, and so the young men
+warmed the bow and made their trial. But yet they could not bend
+it; they fell far short of power. Antinous, however, still held
+back, and prince Eurymachus, who were the suitors&rsquo; leaders;
+for they in manly excellence were quite the best of all.</p>
+<p>Meanwhile out of the house at the same moment came two men,
+princely Ulysses&rsquo; herdsmen of the oxen and the swine; and
+after them came royal Ulysses also from the house. And when they
+were outside the gate, beyond the yard, speaking in gentle words
+Ulysses said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Neatherd, and you too, swineherd, may I tell a certain
+tale, or shall I hide it still? My heart bids me speak. How ready
+would you be to aid Ulysses if he should come from somewhere, thus,
+on a sudden, and a god should bring him home? Would you support the
+suitors or Ulysses? Speak freely, as your heart and spirit bid you
+speak.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said to him the herdsman of the cattle, &ldquo;O father
+Zeus, grant this my prayer! May he return and Heaven be his guide!
+Then shall you know what might is mine and how my hands
+obey.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So prayed Eum&aelig;us too to all the Gods, that wise Ulysses
+might return to his own home. So when he knew with certainty the
+heart of each, finding his words once more Ulysses said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Lo, it is I, through many grievous toils now in the
+twentieth year come to my native land! And yet I know that of my
+servants none but you desire my coming. From all the rest I have
+not heard one prayer that I return. To you then I will truly tell
+what shall hereafter be. If God by me subdues the lordly suitors, I
+will obtain you wives and give you wealth and homes established
+near my own; and henceforth in my eyes you shall be friends and
+brethren of Telemachus. Come, then, and I will show you too a very
+trusty sign,&mdash;that you may know me certainly and be assured in
+heart,&mdash;the scar the boar dealt long ago with his white tusk,
+when I once journeyed to Parnassus with Autolycus&rsquo;s
+sons.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, he drew aside his rags from the great scar. And when
+the two beheld and understood it all, their tears burst forth; they
+threw their arms round wise Ulysses, and passionately kissed his
+face and neck. So likewise did Ulysses kiss their heads and hands.
+And daylight had gone down upon their weeping had not Ulysses
+stayed their tears and said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Have done with grief and wailing, or somebody in coming
+from the hall may see, and tell the tale indoors. Nay, go in one by
+one, not all together. I will go first, you after. And let this be
+agreed: the rest within, the lordly suitors, will not allow me to
+receive the bow and quiver. But, noble Eum&aelig;us, bring the bow
+along the room and lay it in my hands. Then tell the women to lock
+the hall&rsquo;s close-fitting doors; and if from their inner room
+they hear a moaning or a strife within our walls, let no one
+venture forth, but stay in silence at her work. And noble
+Philoetius, in your care I put the courtyard gates. Bolt with the
+bar and quickly lash the fastening.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, Ulysses made his way into the stately house, and went
+and took the seat from which he first arose. And soon the
+serving-men of princely Ulysses entered too.</p>
+<p>Now Eurymachus held the bow and turned it up and down, trying to
+heat it at the glowing fire. But still, with all his pains, he
+could not bend it; his proud soul groaned aloud. Then bitterly he
+spoke; these were the words he said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah! here is woe for me and woe for all! Not that I so
+much mourn missing the marriage, though vexed I am at that. Still,
+there are enough more women of Achaia, both here in sea-girt Ithaca
+and in the other cities. But if in strength we fall so short of
+princely Ulysses that we cannot bend his bow&mdash;oh, the disgrace
+for future times to know!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said Antinous, Eupeithes&rsquo; son, &ldquo;Not so,
+Eurymachus, and you yourself know better. To-day throughout the
+land is the archer-god&rsquo;s high feast. Who then could bend a
+bow? Nay, quietly lay it by; and for the axes, what if we leave
+them standing? Nobody. I am sure, will carry one away and trespass
+on the house of Laertes&rsquo; son, Ulysses. Come then, and let the
+wine-pourer give pious portions to our cups, that after a libation
+we may lay aside curved bows. To-morrow morning tell Melanthius,
+the goatherd, to drive us here the choicest goats of all his flock;
+and we will set the thighs before the archer-god, Apollo, then try
+the bow and end the contest.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So said Antinous, and his saying pleased them. Pages poured
+water on their hands; young men brimmed bowls with drink and served
+to all, with a first pious portion for the cups. And after they had
+poured and drunk as their hearts would, then in his subtlety said
+wise Ulysses,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Hearken, you suitors of the illustrious queen, and let me
+tell you what the heart within me bids. I beg a special favor of
+Eurymachus, and great Antinous too; for his advice was wise, that
+you now drop the bow and leave the matter with the Gods, and in the
+morning God shall grant the power to whom he may. But give me now
+the polished bow, and let me in your presence prove my skill and
+power and see if I have yet such vigor left as once there was
+within my supple limbs, or whether wanderings and neglect have
+ruined all.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At these his words all were exceeding wroth, fearing that he
+might bend the polished bow. But Antinous rebuked him, and spoke to
+him and said, &ldquo;You scurvy stranger, with not a whit of sense,
+are you not satisfied to eat in peace with us, your betters,
+unstinted in your food and hearing all we say? Nobody else,
+stranger or beggar, hears our talk. &rsquo;Tis wine that goads you,
+honeyed wine, a thing that has brought others trouble, when taken
+greedily and drunk without due measure. Wine crazed the Centaur,
+famed Eurytion, at the house of bold Peirithous, on his visit to
+the Lapith&aelig;. And when his wits were crazed with wine, he
+madly wrought foul outrage on the household of Peirithous. So
+indignation seized the heroes. Through the porch and out of doors
+they rushed, dragging Eurytion forth, shorn by the pitiless sword
+of ears and nose. Crazed in his wits, he went his way, bearing in
+his bewildered heart the burden of his guilt. And hence arose a
+feud between the Centaurs and mankind; but the beginning of the woe
+he himself caused by wine. Even so I prophesy great harm to you, if
+you shall bend the bow. No kindness will you meet from any in our
+land, but we will send you by black ship straight to King Echetus,
+the bane of all mankind, out of whose hands you never shall come
+clear. Be quiet, then, and take your drink! Do not presume to vie
+with younger men!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said to him heedful Penelope, &ldquo;Antinous, it is
+neither honorable nor fitting to worry strangers who may reach this
+palace of Telemachus. Do you suppose the stranger, if he bends the
+great bow of Ulysses, confident in his skill and strength of arm,
+will lead me home and take me for his wife? He in his inmost soul
+imagines no such thing. Let none of you sit at the table disturbed
+by such a thought; for that could never, never, be!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then answered her Eurymachus, the son of Polybus,
+&ldquo;Daughter of Icarius, heedful Penelope, we do not think the
+man will marry you. Of course that could not be. And yet we dread
+the talk of men and women, and fear that one of the baser sort of
+the Achaians say,&rsquo;Men far inferior sue for a good man&rsquo;s
+wife, and cannot bend his polished bow. But somebody else&mdash;a
+wandering beggar&mdash;came, and easily bent the bow and sent an
+arrow through the steel.&rsquo; This they will say, to us a shame
+indeed.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said to him heedful Penelope, &ldquo;Eurymachus, men cannot
+be in honor in the land and rudely rob the household of their
+prince. Why, then, count this a shame? The stranger is right tall,
+and well-knit too, and calls himself the son of a good father. Give
+him the polished bow, and let us see. For this I tell you, and it
+shall be done: if he shall bend it and Apollo grants his prayer, I
+will clothe him in a coat and tunic, goodly garments, give him a
+pointed spear to keep off dogs and men, a two-edged sword, and
+sandals for his feet, and I will send him where his heart and soul
+may bid him go.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then answered her discreet Telemachus, &ldquo;My mother, no
+Achaian has better right than I to give or to refuse the bow to any
+as I will. And out of all who rule in rocky Ithaca, or in the
+islands off toward grazing Elis, none may oppose my will, even if I
+wished to put the bows into the stranger&rsquo;s hands and let him
+take them once for all away. Then seek your chamber and attend to
+matters of your own,&mdash;the loom, the distaff,&mdash;and bid the
+women ply their tasks. Bows are for men, for all, especially for
+me; for power within this house rests here.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Amazed, she turned to her own room again, for the wise saying of
+her son she laid to heart. And coming to the upper chamber with her
+maids, she there bewailed Ulysses, her dear husband, till on her
+lids clear-eyed Athene caused a sweet sleep to fall.</p>
+<p>Meanwhile the noble swineherd, taking the curved bow, was
+bearing it away. But the suitors all broke into uproar in the hall,
+and a rude youth would say, &ldquo;Where are you carrying the
+curved bow, you miserable swineherd? Crazy fool! Soon out among the
+swine, away from men, swift dogs shall eat you,&mdash;dogs you
+yourself have bred,&mdash;will but Apollo and the other deathless
+Gods be gracious!&rdquo; At these their words the bearer of the bow
+laid it down where he stood, frightened because the crowd within
+the hall cried out upon him. But from the other side Telemachus
+called threatening aloud, &ldquo;Nay, father! Carry on the bow! You
+cannot well heed all. Take care, or I, a nimbler man than you, will
+drive you to the fields with pelting stones. Superior in strength I
+am to you. Ah, would I were as much beyond the others in the house,
+beyond these suitors, in my skill and strength of arm! Then would I
+soon send somebody away in sorrow from my house; for men work evil
+here.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He spoke, and all burst into merry laughter and laid aside their
+bitter anger with Telemachus. And so the swineherd, bearing the bow
+along the hall, drew near to wise Ulysses and put it in his hands;
+then calling aside nurse Eurycleia, thus he said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Telemachus bids you, heedful Eurycleia, to lock the
+hall&rsquo;s close-fitting doors; and if a woman from the inner
+room hears moaning or a strife within our walls, let her not
+venture forth, but stay in silence at her work.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Such were his words; unwinged, they rested with her. She locked
+the doors of the stately hall. Then silently from the house
+Philoetius stole forth and straightway barred the gates of the
+fenced court. Beneath the portico there lay a curved ship&rsquo;s
+cable, made of biblus plant. With this he lashed the gates, then
+passed indoors himself, and went and took the seat from which he
+first arose, eyeing Ulysses. Now Ulysses already held the bow and
+turned it round and round, trying it here and there to see if worms
+had gnawed the horn while its lord was far away. And glancing at
+his neighbor one would say,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;A sort of fancier and a trickster with the bow this
+fellow is. No doubt at home he has himself a bow like that, or
+means to make one like it. See how he turns it in his hands this
+way and that, ready for mischief,&mdash;rascal!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then would another rude youth answer thus: &ldquo;Oh, may he
+always meet with luck as good as when he is unable now to bend the
+bow!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So talked the suitors. Meantime wise Ulysses, when he had
+handled the great bow and scanned it closely,&mdash;even as one
+well skilled to play the lyre and sing stretches with ease round
+its new peg a string, securing at each end the twisted sheep-gut,
+so without effort did Ulysses string the mighty bow. Holding it now
+with his right hand, he tried its cord; and clear to the touch it
+sang, voiced like the swallow. Great consternation came upon the
+suitors. All faces then changed color. Zeus thundered loud for
+signal. And glad was long-tried royal Ulysses to think the son of
+crafty Cronos had sent an omen. He picked up a swift shaft which
+lay beside him on the table, drawn. Within the hollow quiver still
+remained the rest, which the Achaians soon should prove. Then
+laying the arrow on the arch, he drew the string and arrow notches,
+and forth from the bench on which he sat let fly the shaft, with
+careful aim, and did not miss an axe&rsquo;s ring from first to
+last, but clean through all sped on the bronze-tipped arrow; and to
+Telemachus he said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Telemachus, the guest now sitting in your hall brings you
+no shame. I did not miss my mark, nor in the bending of the bow
+make a long labor. My strength is sound as ever, not what the
+mocking suitors here despised. But it is time for the Achaians to
+make supper ready, while it is daylight still; and then for us in
+other ways to make them sport,&mdash;with dance and lyre; for these
+attend a feast.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He spoke and frowned the sign. His sharp sword then Telemachus
+girt on, the son of princely Ulysses clasped his right hand around
+his spear, and close beside his father&rsquo;s seat he took his
+stand, armed with the gleaming bronze.</p>
+<h4><a id="Suitors" name="Suitors">C. The Slaying of the
+Suitors</a></h4>
+<p class="byline"><em>By F.S. Marvin, R.J.C. Mayor, and F.M.
+Stowell</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Ulysses sprang to the great threshold with the bow and quiver in
+his hand. He poured out the arrows at his feet, and shouted to the
+princes, &ldquo;So ends the game you could not play! Now for
+another mark which no man has ever hit before!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>With that he shot at Antinous. He, as it chanced, was just
+lifting a golden cup from the board, never dreaming that death
+would meet him there with all his comrades round him at the feast.
+But before the wine touched his lips the arrow struck him in the
+throat, and the cup dropped from his hand, and he fell dying to the
+floor. The princes sprang to their feet when they saw their comrade
+fallen, and looked round the walls for armor, but there was not a
+spear or shield to be found. Then they turned in fury on Ulysses:
+&ldquo;Madman, are you shooting at men? You have slain the noblest
+youth in Ithaca, and you shall not live to draw bow
+again.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Ulysses faced them sternly and said, &ldquo;Dogs, you
+thought that I should never return. You have rioted in my home, and
+outraged the women of my household, and you have wooed my own wife
+while I was yet a living man. You took no thought for the Gods who
+rule in heaven, nor for the indignation of men in days hereafter.
+Now your time is come.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>All grew pale as he spoke, and Eurymachus alone found words:
+&ldquo;If you are in truth King Ulysses, your words are just; there
+have been many shameful deeds done upon your lands and in your
+house. But Antinous, who was the cause of all, lies dead; it was he
+who lead us on, hoping that he might take your kingdom for himself.
+Spare us now that he has met his doom, for we are your own people;
+and we will make you full atonement for all that has been eaten and
+drunk in your halls.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Eurymachus, you might give me all you have, but even then
+I would not hold my hands until I had taken vengeance for every
+wrong. You have your choice. Fight, or fly, if you think that
+flight can save you.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At that their knees shook beneath them, but Eurymachus cried,
+&ldquo;Comrades, this man will have no mercy. He has got the bow in
+his hands, and he will shoot us down from the threshold, so long as
+there is one of us left alive. Draw your swords, and guard
+yourselves, with the tables; and let us all set upon him at once
+and drive him from the doorway. If we can reach the city, we are
+safe.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>As he spoke he drew his sword and sprang forward with a cry; and
+at the same moment Ulysses shot. The arrow struck him in the
+breast, and he dropped forward over the table, while the mist of
+death sank upon his eyes. Then Amphinomus made a rush on the
+doorway. But Telemachus was too quick for him; he hurled his spear
+and struck him from behind between the shoulders, and he fell
+crashing on the floor. Telemachus sprang back, leaving the spear,
+for he dared not wait to draw it out. He darted to his
+father&rsquo;s side. &ldquo;Father, we ought to have armor; I will
+go and get weapons for us.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Run and bring them,&rdquo; said. Ulysses, &ldquo;while I
+have arrows left; when these are gone I cannot hold the doorway
+against them all.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So Telemachus ran to the armory and hurried back with helmets
+and shields and spears; and he armed himself and made the two
+servants do the same, and they took their stand beside the king.
+While the arrows lasted, Ulysses shot, and struck down the wooers
+man by man. And then he leant the bow against the doorpost, and
+slung the shield about him and put on the helmet and took two
+spears in his hand.</p>
+<p>Now there was a postern in the hall, close beside the great
+doorway and opening on the corridor. Ulysses had put the swineherd
+to guard it, and now the boldest of the suitors said to the rest,
+&ldquo;Could not some of us force a passage there and raise the cry
+for rescue?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Little use in that,&rdquo; said Melanthius, &ldquo;the
+great doorway is too close, and one brave man might stop us all
+before we reached the court. I have a better plan. Ulysses and his
+son have stowed away the weapons, and I think I know where they
+are. I will go and fetch you what you need.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>With these words he clambered up through the lights of the hall
+and got into the armory, and fetched out twelve shields and as many
+spears and helmets, and brought them to the princes. The heart of
+Ulysses misgave him when he saw the armor and the long spears in
+their hands; and he felt that the fight would go hard, and said to
+Telemachus, &ldquo;Melanthius or one of the women has betrayed
+us.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Father, it was my fault,&rdquo; said Telemachus; &ldquo;I
+left the door of the armory open, and one of them must have kept
+sharper watch than I did. Go, Eum&aelig;us, make fast the door, and
+see whether this is the doing of Melanthius, as I guess.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>While they spoke, Melanthius went again to fetch more armor, and
+the swineherd spied him and said, &ldquo;There is the villain going
+to the armory, as we thought; tell me, shall I kill him, if I can
+master him, or shall I bring him here to suffer for his
+sins?&rdquo; &ldquo;Telemachus and I will guard the doorway
+here,&rdquo; said Ulysses, &ldquo;and you and the shepherd shall
+bind him hand and foot and leave him in the chamber to wait his
+doom.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So the two went up to the armory, and stood in wait on either
+side of the door; and as Melanthius came out, they leapt upon him
+and dragged him back by the hair and flung him on the ground and
+bound him tightly to a pillar hand and foot. &ldquo;Lie
+there,&rdquo; said Eum&aelig;us, &ldquo;and take your ease: the
+dawn will not find you sleeping, when it is time for you to rise
+and drive out your goats.&rdquo; With that they went back to join
+Ulysses, and the four stood together at the threshold,&mdash;four
+men against a host.</p>
+<p>Then Athene came among them in the likeness of Mentor, and
+Ulysses knew her and rejoiced. &ldquo;Mentor,&rdquo; he shouted,
+&ldquo;help me in my need, for we are comrades from of old.&rdquo;
+And the wooers sent up another shout, &ldquo;Do not listen to him,
+Mentor; or your turn will come when he is slain.&rdquo; But Athene
+taunted Ulysses and spurred him to the fight: &ldquo;Have you lost
+your strength and courage, Ulysses? It was not thus you did battle
+for Helen in the ten years&rsquo; war at Troy. Is it so hard to
+face the suitors in your own house and home? Come, stand by me, and
+see if Mentor forgets old friendship.&rdquo; Yet she left the
+victory still uncertain, that she might prove his courage to the
+full. She turned herself into a swallow and flew up into the roof
+and perched on a blackened rafter overhead.</p>
+<p>Then the wooers took courage, when they saw that Mentor was
+gone, and that the four stood alone in the doorway. And one of them
+said to the rest, &ldquo;Let six of us hurl our spears together at
+Ulysses. If once he falls, there will be little trouble with the
+rest.&rdquo; So they flung their spears as he bade them; but all of
+them missed the mark. Then Ulysses gave the word to his men, and
+they all took steady aim and threw, and each one killed his man;
+and the wooers fell back into the farther end of the hall, while
+the four dashed on together and drew out their spears from the
+bodies of the slain. Once more the suitors hurled, and Telemachus
+and the swineherd were wounded; but the other spears fell wide.
+Then at last Athene lifted her shield of war high
+overhead,&mdash;the shield that brings death to men,&mdash;and
+panic seized the wooers, and they fled through the hall like a
+drove of cattle when the gadfly stings them. But the four leapt on
+them like vultures swooping from the clouds; and they fled left and
+right through the hall, but there was no escape.</p>
+<p>Only Phemius, the minstrel, whom the wooers had forced to sing
+before them, sprang forward and clasped the knees of Ulysses and
+said, &ldquo;Have mercy on me, Ulysses: you would not slay a
+minstrel, who gladdens the hearts of Gods and men? The princes
+forced me here against my will.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Telemachus heard and said to his father, &ldquo;Do not hurt
+him, for he is not to blame: and let us save the herald too, if he
+is yet alive, for he took care of me when I was a child.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Now the herald had hidden himself under a stool and pulled an
+ox-hide over him, and when he heard this he crept out and clasped
+the knees of Telemachus and begged that he would plead for him.
+&ldquo;Have no fear,&rdquo; said Ulysses; &ldquo;my son has saved
+your life. Go out, you and the minstrel, and wait in the courtyard,
+for I have other work to do within.&rdquo; So the two went out into
+the courtyard, and sat down beside the altar, looking for their
+death each moment.</p>
+<p>Then Ulysses searched through the hall, to see if any one was
+yet lurking alive. But they all lay round him fallen in the dust
+and blood, heaped upon each other like fishes on a sunny beach when
+the fisherman has drawn his net to land. Then he told Telemachus to
+call out the old nurse Eurycleia. She came and found Ulysses
+standing among the bodies of the slain, with his hands and feet all
+stained with blood, and she was ready to shout aloud for triumph
+when she saw the great work accomplished. But Ulysses checked her
+cry and said, &ldquo;Keep your joy unspoken, old nurse; there
+should be no shout of triumph over the slain. It is the judgment of
+Heaven that has repaid them for the evil deeds they did.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he gave orders that the bodies of the dead should be
+carried out and that the blood should be washed away. And when this
+was done he turned to Eurycleia and said, &ldquo;Bring fire and
+sulphur now and I will purify the hall. Then bid Penelope meet me
+here.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, my child,&rdquo; said the old nurse, &ldquo;I will
+obey you. But let me bring you a mantle first: it is not fitting
+that you should stand here with only your rags to cover you.&rdquo;
+But Ulysses said that she must do his bidding at once. So she
+brought sulphur and lit a fire, and Ulysses purified the hall.</p>
+<h4><a id="Penelope" name="Penelope">D. Penelope Recognizes
+Ulysses</a></h4>
+<p class="byline"><em>Translated by George Herbert Palmer</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>The old woman, full of glee, went to the upper chamber to tell
+her mistress her dear lord was in the house. Her knees grew strong;
+her feet outran themselves. By Penelope&rsquo;s head she paused,
+and thus she spoke:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Awake, Penelope, dear child, to see with your own eyes
+what you have hoped to see this many a day! Ulysses is here! He has
+come home at last, and slain the haughty suitors, the men who vexed
+his house, devoured his substance, and oppressed his
+son.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then heedful Penelope said to her, &ldquo;Dear nurse, the Gods
+have crazed you. They can befool one who is very wise, and often
+they have set the simple in the paths of prudence. They have
+confused you; you were sober-minded heretofore. Why mock me when my
+heart is full of sorrow, telling wild tales like these? And why
+arouse me from the sleep that sweetly bound me and kept my eyelids
+closed? I have not slept so soundly since Ulysses went away to see
+accursed Ilium,&mdash;name never to be named. Nay then, go down,
+back to the hall. If any other of my maids had come and told me
+this and waked me out of sleep, I would soon have sent her off in
+sorry wise into the hall once more. This time age serves you
+well.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said to her the good nurse Eurycleia, &ldquo;Dear child, I
+do not mock you. In very truth it is Ulysses; he is come, as I have
+said. He is the stranger whom everybody in the hall has set at
+naught. Telemachus knew long ago that he was here, but out of
+prudence hid his knowledge of his father till he should have
+revenge from those bold men for wicked deeds.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So spoke she; and Penelope was glad, and, springing from her
+bed, fell on the woman&rsquo;s neck, and let the tears burst from
+her eyes; and, speaking in winged words, she said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nay, tell me, then, dear nurse, and tell me truly; if he
+is really come as you declare, how was it he laid hands upon the
+shameless suitors, being alone, while they were always here
+together?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then answered her the good nurse Eurycleia, &ldquo;I did not
+see; I did not ask; I only heard the groans of dying men. In a
+corner of our protected chamber we sat and trembled,&mdash;the
+doors were tightly closed,&mdash;until your son Telemachus called
+to me from the hall; for his father bade him call. And there among
+the bodies of the slain I found Ulysses standing. All around,
+covering the trodden floor, they lay, one on another. It would have
+warmed your heart to see him, like a lion, dabbled with blood and
+gore. Now all the bodies are collected at the courtyard gate, while
+he is fumigating the fair house by lighting a great fire. He sent
+me here to call you. Follow me, then, that you may come to gladness
+in your true hearts together, for sorely have you suffered. Now the
+long hope has been at last fulfilled. He has come back alive to his
+own hearth, and found you still, you and his son, within his hall;
+and upon those who did him wrong, the suitors, on all of them here
+in his home he has obtained revenge.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then heedful Penelope said to her, &ldquo;Dear nurse, be not too
+boastful yet, nor filled with glee. You know how welcome here the
+sight of him would be to all, and most to me and to the son we had.
+But this is no true tale you tell. Nay, rather some immortal slew
+the lordly suitors, in anger at their galling insolence and wicked
+deeds; for they respected nobody on earth, bad man or good, who
+came among them. So for their sins they suffered. But Ulysses, far
+from Achaia, lost the hope of coming home; nay, he himself was
+lost.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then answered her the good nurse Eurycleia, &ldquo;My child,
+what word has passed the barrier of your teeth, to say your
+husband, who is now beside your hearth, will never come! Your heart
+is always doubting. Come, then, and let me name another sign most
+sure,&mdash;the scar the boar dealt long ago with his white tusk. I
+found it as I washed him, and I would have told you then; but he
+laid his hand upon my mouth, and in his watchful wisdom would not
+let me speak. But follow me. I stake my very life; if I deceive
+you, slay me by the vilest death.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then heedful Penelope answered her, &ldquo;Dear nurse,
+&lsquo;tis hard for you to trace the counsels of the everlasting
+Gods, however wise you are. Nevertheless, let us go down to meet my
+son, and see the suitors who are dead, and him who slew
+them.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, she went from her chamber to the hall, and much her
+heart debated whether aloof to question her dear husband, or to
+draw near and kiss his face and take his hand. But when she
+entered, crossing the stone threshold, she sat down opposite
+Ulysses, in the firelight, beside the farther wall. He sat by a
+tall pillar, looking down, waiting to hear if his stately wife
+would speak when she should look his way. But she sat silent long;
+amazement filled her heart. Now she would gaze with a long look
+upon his face, and now she would not know him for the mean clothes
+that he wore. But Telemachus rebuked her, and spoke to her and
+said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Mother, hard mother, of ungentle heart, why do you hold
+aloof so from my father, and do not sit beside him, plying him with
+words and questions? There is no other woman of such stubborn
+spirit to stand off from the husband who, after many grievous
+toils, comes in the twentieth year home to his native land. Your
+heart is always harder than a stone!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said to him heedful Penelope, &ldquo;My child, my soul
+within is dazed with wonder. I cannot speak to him, nor ask a
+question, nor look him in the face. But if this indeed is Ulysses,
+come at last, we certainly shall know each other better than others
+know; for we have signs which we two understand,&mdash;signs hidden
+from the rest.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>As she, long tried, spoke thus, royal Ulysses smiled, and said
+to Telemachus forthwith in winged words, &ldquo;Telemachus, leave
+your mother in the hall to try my truth. She soon will know me
+better. Now, because I am foul and dressed in sorry clothes, she
+holds me in dishonor, and says I am not he. But you and I have yet
+to plan how all may turn out well. For whoso kills one man among a
+tribe, though the man leaves few champions behind, becomes an
+exile, quitting kin and country. We have destroyed the pillars of
+the state, the very noblest youths of Ithaca. Form, then, a plan, I
+pray.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then answered him discreet Telemachus, &ldquo;Look you to that,
+dear father. Your wisdom is, they say, the best among mankind. No
+mortal man can rival you. Zealously will we follow, and not fail, I
+think, in daring, so far as power is ours.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then wise Ulysses answered him and said, &ldquo;Then I will tell
+you what seems best to me. First wash and put on tunics, and bid
+the maids about the house array themselves. Then let the sacred
+bard with tuneful lyre lead us in sportive dancing, that men may
+say, hearing us from without, &lsquo;It is a wedding,&rsquo;
+whether such men be passers-by or neighboring folk; and so broad
+rumor may not reach the town about the suitors&rsquo; murder till
+we are gone to our well-wooded farm. There will we plan as the
+Olympian shall grant us wisdom.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So he spoke, and willingly they heeded and obeyed. For first
+they washed themselves and put on tunics, and the women also put on
+their attire. And then the noble bard took up his hollow lyre, and
+in them stirred desire for merry music and the gallant dance; and
+the great house resounded to the tread of lusty men and gay-girt
+women. And one who heard the dancing from without would say,
+&ldquo;Well, well! some man has married the long-courted queen.
+Hard-hearted! For the husband of her youth she would not guard her
+great house to the end, till he should come.&rdquo; So they would
+say, but knew not how things were.</p>
+<p>Meanwhile within the house Eurynome, the housekeeper, bathed
+resolute Ulysses and anointed him with oil, and on him put a goodly
+robe and tunic. Upon his face Athene cast great beauty; she made
+him taller than before, and stouter to behold, and made the curling
+locks to fall round his head as on the hyacinth flower. As when a
+man lays gold on silver,&mdash;some skillful man whom Vulcan and
+Pallas Athene have trained in every art, and he fashions graceful
+work, so did she cast a grace upon his head and shoulders. Forth
+from the bath he came, in bearing like the Immortals, and once more
+took the seat from which he first arose, facing his wife, and spoke
+to her these words:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Lady, a heart impenetrable beyond the sex of women the
+dwellers on Olympus gave to you. There is no other woman of such
+stubborn spirit to stand off from the husband who, after many
+grievous toils, comes in the twentieth year home to his native
+land. Come, then, good nurse, and make my bed, that I may lie
+alone. For certainly of iron is the heart within her
+breast.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said to him heedful Penelope, &ldquo;Nay, sir, I am not
+proud, nor contemptuous of you, nor too much dazed with wonder. I
+very well remember what you were when you went upon your long-oared
+ship away from Ithaca. However, Eurycleia, make up his massive bed
+outside that stately chamber which he himself once built. Move the
+massive frame out there, and throw the bedding on,&mdash;the
+fleeces, robes, and bright-hued rugs.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>She said this in the hope to prove her husband, but Ulysses
+spoke in anger to his faithful wife: &ldquo;Woman, these are bitter
+words which you have said! Who set my bed elsewhere? A hard task
+that would be for one, however skilled,&mdash;unless a god should
+come and by his will set it with ease upon some other spot; but
+among men no living being, even in his prime, could lightly shift
+it; for a great token is inwrought into its curious frame. I built
+it; no one else. There grew a thick-leaved olive shrub inside the
+yard, full-grown and vigorous, in girth much like a pillar. Round
+this I formed my chamber, and I worked till it was done, building
+it out of close-set stones, and roofing it over well. Framed and
+tight-fitting doors I added to it. Then I lopped the thick-leaved
+olive&rsquo;s crest, cutting the stem high up above the roots,
+neatly and skillfully smoothed with my axe the sides, and to the
+line I kept all true to shape my post, and with an auger I bored it
+all along. Starting with this, I fashioned me the bed till it was
+finished, and I inlaid it well with gold, with silver, and with
+ivory. On it I stretched a thong of ox-hide, gay with purple. This
+is the token I now tell. I do not know whether the bed still stands
+there, wife, or whether somebody has set it elsewhere, cutting the
+olive trunk.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>As he spoke thus, her knees grew feeble and her very soul, when
+she recognized the tokens which Ulysses exactly told. Then bursting
+into tears, she ran straight toward him, threw her arms round
+Ulysses&rsquo; neck and kissed his face, and said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ulysses, do not scorn me! Ever before, you were the
+wisest of mankind. The Gods have sent us sorrow, and grudged our
+staying side by side to share the joys of youth and reach the
+threshold of old age. But do not be angry with me now, nor take it
+ill that then when I first saw you I did not greet you thus; for
+the heart within my breast was always trembling. I feared some man
+might come and cheat me with his tale. Many a man makes wicked
+schemes for gain. Nay, Argive Helen, the daughter of Zeus, would
+not have given herself to love a stranger if she had known how
+warrior sons of the Achaians would bring her home again, back to
+her native land. And yet it was a god prompted her deed of shame.
+Before, she did not cherish in her heart such sin, such grievous
+sin, from which began the woe which stretched to us. But now, when
+you have clearly told the tokens of our bed, which no one else has
+seen, but only you and I and the single servant, Actoris, whom my
+father gave me on my coming here to keep the door of our closed
+chamber,&mdash;you make even my ungentle heart believe.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So she spoke, and stirred still more his yearning after tears;
+and he began to weep, holding his loved and faithful wife. As when
+the welcome land appears to swimmers, whose sturdy ship Neptune
+wrecked at sea, confounded by the winds and solid waters; a few
+escape the foaming sea and swim ashore; thick salt foam crusts
+their flesh; they climb the welcome land, and are escaped from
+danger; so welcome to her gazing eyes appeared her husband. From
+round his neck she never let her white arms go. And rosy-fingered
+dawn had found them weeping, but a different plan the goddess
+formed, clear-eyed Athene. She checked the long night in its
+passage, and at the ocean-stream she stayed the gold-throned dawn,
+and did not suffer it to yoke the swift-paced horses which carry
+light to men, Lampus and Phaethon, which bear the dawn. And now to
+his wife said wise Ulysses,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;O wife, we have not reached the end of all our trials
+yet. Hereafter comes a task immeasurable, long and severe, which I
+must needs fulfill; for so the spirit of Tiresias told me, that day
+when I descended to the house of Hades to learn about the journey
+of my comrades and myself. But come, my wife, let us to bed, that
+there at last we may refresh ourselves with pleasant
+sleep.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said to him heedful Penelope, &ldquo;The bed shall be
+prepared whenever your heart wills, now that the Gods have let you
+reach your stately house and native land. But since you speak of
+this, and God inspires your heart, come, tell that trial. In time
+to come, I know, I shall experience it. To learn about it now,
+makes it no worse.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then wise Ulysses answered her and said, &ldquo;Lady, why urge
+me so insistently to tell? Well, I will speak it out; I will not
+hide it. Yet your heart will feel no joy; I have no joy myself; for
+Tiresias bade me go to many a peopled town, bearing in hand a
+shapely oar, till I should reach the men that know no sea and do
+not eat food mixed with salt. These, therefore, have no knowledge
+of the red-cheeked ships, nor of the shapely oars which are the
+wings of ships. And this was the sign, he said, easy to be
+observed. I will not hide it from you. When another traveler,
+meeting me, should say I had a winnowing-fan on my white shoulder,
+there in the ground he bade me fix my oar and make fit offerings to
+lord Neptune,&mdash;a ram, a bull, and the sow&rsquo;s mate, a
+boar,&mdash;and, turning homeward, to offer sacred hecatombs to the
+immortal gods who hold the open sky, all in the order due. And on
+myself death from the sea shall very gently come and cut me off,
+bowed down with hale old age. Round me shall be a prosperous
+people. All this, he said, should be fulfilled.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said to him heedful Penelope, &ldquo;If gods can make old
+age the better time, then there is hope there will be rest from
+trouble.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So they conversed together. Meanwhile, Eurynome and the nurse
+prepared their bed with clothing soft, under the light of blazing
+torches. And after they had spread the comfortable bed, with busy
+speed, the old woman departed to her room to rest; while the
+chamber-servant, Eurynome, with torch in hand, walked on before, as
+they two came to bed. She brought them to their chamber, and then
+she went her way. So they came gladly to their old bed&rsquo;s
+rites. And now Telemachus, the neatherd, and the swineherd stayed
+their feet from dancing, and bade the women stay, and all betook
+themselves to rest throughout the dusky halls.</p>
+<p>So when the pair had joyed in happy love, they joyed in talking
+too, each one relating; she, the royal lady, what she endured at
+home, watching the wasteful throng of suitors, who, making excuse
+of her, slew many cattle, beeves, and sturdy sheep, and stores of
+wine were drained from out the casks; he, high-born Ulysses, what
+miseries he brought on other men and what he bore himself in
+anguish,&mdash;all he told, and she was glad to listen. No sleep
+fell on her eyelids till he had told her all.</p>
+<p>He began with how at first he conquered the Ciconians, and came
+thereafter to the fruitful land of Lotus-Eaters; then what the
+Cyclops did, and how he took revenge for the brave comrades whom
+the Cyclops ate, and never pitied; then how he came to &AElig;olus,
+who gave him hearty welcome and sent him on his way; but it was
+fated that he should not reach his dear land yet, for a sweeping
+storm bore him once more along the swarming sea, loudly lamenting;
+how he came to Telepylus in L&aelig;strygonia, where the men
+destroyed his ships and his mailed comrades, all of them; Ulysses
+fled in his black ship alone. He told of Circe, too, and all her
+crafty guile; and how on a ship of many oars he came to the
+mouldering house of Hades, there to consult the spirit of Teiresias
+of Thebes, and looked on all his comrades, and on the mother who
+had borne him and cared for him when little; how he had heard the
+full-voiced Sirens&rsquo; song; how he came to the Wandering Rocks,
+to dire Charybdis and to Scylla, past whom none goes unharmed; how
+then his crew slew the Sun&rsquo;s kine; how Zeus with a blazing
+bolt smote his swift ship,&mdash;Zeus, thundering from on
+high,&mdash;and his good comrades perished, utterly, all, while he
+escaped their evil doom; how he came to the island of Ogygia and to
+the nymph Calypso, who held him in her hollow grotto, wishing him
+to be her husband, cherishing him, and saying she would make him an
+immortal, young forever, but she never beguiled the heart within
+his breast; then how he came through many toils to the
+Ph&aelig;acians, who honored him exceedingly, as if he were a god,
+and brought him on his way to his native land, giving him stores of
+bronze and gold and clothing. This was the latest tale he told,
+when pleasant sleep fell on him, easing his limbs and from his
+heart removing care.</p>
+<h2><a id="TrojanWanderings" name="TrojanWanderings">THE WANDERINGS
+OF THE TROJAN &AElig;NEAS</a></h2>
+<h3><a id="Flight" name="Flight">The Flight of &AElig;neas from the
+Ruins of Troy</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>&AElig;neas, a famous Trojan warrior, fought bravely as long as
+the city stood; but when it had fallen, he bethought himself of his
+father Anchises, and his wife Creusa, and of his little son
+Ascanius, and how he had left them without defense at home. But as
+he turned to seek them, the night being now, by reason of many
+fires, as clear as the day, he espied Helen sitting in the temple
+of Vesta, where she had sought sanctuary; for she feared the men of
+Troy, to whom she had brought ruin and destruction, and not less
+her own husband, whom she had deceived. Then was his wrath kindled,
+and he spake to himself, &ldquo;Shall this evil woman return safe
+to Sparta? Shall she see again her home and her children, with
+Trojan women forsooth to be her handmaidens? Shall Troy be burnt
+and King Priam be slain, and she take no harm? Not so; for though
+there be no glory to be won from such a deed, yet shall I satisfy
+myself, taking vengeance upon her for my kinsmen and my
+countrymen.&rdquo; But while he thought these things in his heart,
+lo! there appeared unto him Venus, his mother, made manifest as he
+had never seen her before, as fair and as tall as the dwellers in
+heaven behold her. Then Venus spake thus: &ldquo;What meaneth all
+this rage, my son? Hast thou no care for me? Hast thou forgotten
+thy father Anchises, and thy wife, and thy little son? Of a surety
+the fire and the sword had consumed them long since but that I
+cared for them and saved them. It is not Helen, no, nor Paris, that
+hath laid low this great city of Troy, but the wrath of the Gods.
+See now, for I will take away the mist that covers thine eyes; see
+how Neptune with his trident is overthrowing the walls and rooting
+up the city from its foundations; and how Juno stands with spear
+and shield in the Sc&aelig;an Gate and calls fresh hosts from the
+ships; and how Pallas sits on the height with the storm-cloud about
+her and her Gorgon shield; and how Father Jupiter himself stirs up
+the enemy against Troy. Fly, therefore, my son. I will not leave
+thee till thou shalt reach thy father&rsquo;s house.&rdquo; And as
+she spake she vanished in the darkness.</p>
+<p>Then did &AElig;neas see dreadful forms and gods who were
+enemies of Troy, and before his eyes the whole city seemed to sink
+down into the fire. Even as a mountain oak upon the hills on which
+the woodmen ply their axes bows its head while all its boughs shake
+about it, till at last, as blow comes after blow, with a mighty
+groan it falls crashing down from the height, even so the city
+seemed to fall. Then did &AElig;neas pass on his way, the goddess
+leading him, and the flames gave place to him, and the javelins
+harmed him not.</p>
+<p>But when he was come to his house he bethought him first of the
+old man his father; but when he would have carried him to the
+hills, Anchises would not, being loath to live in some strange
+country when Troy had perished. &ldquo;Nay,&rdquo; said he,
+&ldquo;fly ye who are strong and in the flower of your days. But as
+for me, if the Gods had willed that I should live, they had saved
+this dwelling for me. Enough it is, yea, and more than enough, that
+once I have seen this city taken, and lived. Bid me, then, farewell
+as though I were dead. Death will I find for myself. And truly I
+have long lingered here a useless stock and hated of the Gods,
+since Jupiter smote me with the blast of his thunder.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Nor could the old man be moved from his purpose, though his son
+and his son&rsquo;s wife, and even the child Ascanius, besought him
+with many tears that he should not make yet heavier the doom that
+was upon them. Then was &AElig;neas minded to go back to the battle
+and die. For what hope was left? &ldquo;Thoughtest thou, my
+father,&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;that I should flee and leave thee
+behind? What evil word is this that has fallen from thy lips? If
+the Gods will have it that nought of Troy should be left, and thou
+be minded that thou and thine should perish with the city, be it
+so. The way is easy; soon will Pyrrhus be here: Pyrrhus, red with
+Priam&rsquo;s blood; Pyrrhus, who slays the son before the face of
+the father, and the father at the altar. Was it for this, kind
+Mother Venus, that thou broughtest me safe through fire and sword,
+to see the enemy in my home, and my father and my wife and my son
+lying slaughtered together? Comrades, give me my arms, and take me
+back to the battle. At the least I will die avenged.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But as he girded on his arms and would have departed from the
+house, his wife Creusa caught his feet upon the threshold, staying
+him, and held out the little Ascanius, saying, &ldquo;If thou goest
+to thy death, take wife and child with thee; but if thou hopest
+aught from arms, guard first the house where thou hast father and
+wife and child.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And lo! as she spake there befell a mighty marvel, for before
+the face of father and mother there was seen to shine a light on
+the head of the boy Ascanius, and to play upon his waving hair and
+glitter on his temples. And when they feared to see this thing, and
+would have stifled the flame or quenched it with water, the old man
+Anchises in great joy raised his eyes to heaven, and cried aloud,
+&ldquo;O Father Jupiter, if prayer move thee at all, give thine aid
+and make this omen sure.&rdquo; And even as he spake the thunder
+rolled on his left hand, and a star shot through the skies, leaving
+a long trail of light behind, and passed over the house-tops till
+it was hidden in the woods of Ida. Then the old man lifted himself
+up and did obeisance to the star, and said, &ldquo;I delay no more:
+whithersoever ye lead I will follow. Gods of my country, save my
+house and my grandson. This omen is of you. And now, my son, I
+refuse not to go.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said &AElig;neas, and as he spake the fire came nearer, and
+the light was clearer to see, and the heat more fierce,
+&ldquo;Climb, dear father, on my shoulders; I will bear thee, nor
+grow weary with the weight. We will be saved or perish together.
+The little Ascanius shall go with me, and my wife follow behind,
+not over near. And ye, servants of my house, hearken to me; ye mind
+how that to one who passes out of the city there is a tomb and a
+temple of Ceres in a lonely place, and an ancient cypress-tree hard
+by. There will we gather by divers ways. And do thou, my father,
+take the holy images in thy hands, for as for me, who have but
+newly come from battle, I may not touch them till I have washed me
+in the running stream.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And as he spake he put a cloak of lion&rsquo;s skin upon his
+shoulders, and the old man sat thereon. Ascanius also laid hold of
+his hand, and Creusa followed behind. So he went in much dread and
+trembling. For indeed before sword and spear of the enemy he had
+not feared, but now he feared for them that were with him. But when
+he was come nigh unto the gates, and the journey was well-nigh
+finished, there befell a grievous mischance, for there was heard a
+sound as of many feet through the darkness; and the old man cried
+to him, &ldquo;Fly, my son, fly; they are coming. I see the
+flashing of shields and swords.&rdquo; But as &AElig;neas hasted to
+go, Creusa his wife was severed from him. But whether she wandered
+from the way or sat down in weariness, no man may say. Only he saw
+her no more, nor knew her to be lost, till all his company being
+met at the temple of Ceres, she only was found wanting. Very
+grievous did the thing seem to him, nor did he cease to cry out in
+his wrath against Gods and men. Also he bade his comrades have a
+care of his father and his son, and of the household gods, and
+girded him again with arms, and so passed into the city. And first
+he went to the wall and to the gate by which he had come forth, and
+then to his house, if haply she had returned thither. But there
+indeed the men of Greece were come, and the fire had well-nigh
+mastered it. And after that he went to the citadel and to the
+palace of King Priam. And lo! in the porch of Juno&rsquo;s temple,
+Ph&oelig;nix and Ulysses were keeping guard over the spoil, even
+the treasure of the temples, tables of the Gods, and solid cups of
+gold, and raiment, and a long array of them that had been taken
+captive, children and women. But not the less did he seek his wife
+through all the streets of the city, yea, and called her aloud by
+name. But lo! as he called, the image of her whom he sought seemed
+to stand before him, only greater than she had been while she was
+yet alive. And the spirit spake, saying, &ldquo;Why art thou vainly
+troubled? These things have not befallen us against the pleasure of
+the Gods. The ruler of Olympus willeth not that Creusa should bear
+thee company in thy journey. For thou hast a long journey to take,
+and many seas to cross, till thou come to the Hesperian shore,
+where Lydian Tiber flows softly through a good land and a fertile.
+There shalt thou have great prosperity, and take to thyself a wife
+of royal race. Weep not, then, for Creusa, whom thou lovest, nor
+think that I shall be carried away to be a bond-slave to some
+Grecian woman. Such fate befits not a daughter of Dardanus and
+daughter-in-law of Venus. The mighty mother of the Gods keepeth me
+in this land to serve her. And now, farewell, and love the young
+Ascanius, even thy son and mine.&rdquo;</p>
+<div class="figure"><a href="images/big_434.jpg"><img src=
+"images/small_434.jpg" alt=
+"A man carries another on his back, while a woman and child follow."
+id="img09" name="img09" width="360" height="558" /></a>
+<p>AND AS HE SPAKE HE PUT A CLOAK OF LION&rsquo;S SKIN UPON HIS
+SHOULDERS, AND THE OLD MAN SAT THEREON. ASCANIUS ALSO LAID HOLD OF
+HIS HAND, AND CREUSA FOLLOWED BEHIND. SO HE WENT IN MUCH DREAD AND
+TREMBLING, FOR INDEED BEFORE SWORD AND SPEAR OF THE ENEMY HE HAD
+NOT FEARED, BUT NOW HE FEARED MUCH FOR THEM THAT WERE WITH HIM</p>
+</div>
+<p>So spake the spirit, and when &AElig;neas wept and would have
+spoken, vanished out of his sight. Thrice he would have cast his
+arms about her neck, and thrice the image mocked him, being thin as
+air and fleeting as a dream. Then, the night being now spent, he
+sought his comrades, and found with much joy and wonder that a
+great company of men and women were gathered together, and were
+willing, all of them, to follow him whithersoever he went. And now
+the morning star rose over Mount Ida, and &AElig;neas, seeing that
+the Greeks held the city, and that there was no longer any hope of
+succor, went his way to the mountains, taking with him his
+father.</p>
+<h3><a id="Harpies" name="Harpies">&AElig;neas&rsquo;s Adventure
+with the Harpies</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Charles Henry Hanson</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p class="quote">[For three days the vessels of &AElig;neas were
+tossed about by terrible storm winds.]</p>
+<p>At last, on the fourth day, the fury of the storm abated, and
+they came in sight of land,&mdash;at first lofty mountains, and
+afterwards, as they drew nearer, rich grassy plains, on which the
+wanderers saw herds of cattle and flocks of goats grazing without a
+keeper. As soon as the storm-beaten vessels could be brought to the
+shore, the Trojans hastened to land, and slaughtered some of the
+cattle, preparing a luxurious banquet. But this they were not
+destined to enjoy in peace; for scarcely had they stretched
+themselves on the couches they had hurriedly prepared beside the
+food when there was a sudden rushing of wings, and three ghastly
+creatures swooped down upon the feast, devoured a large part of it,
+and so defiled the rest with their loathsome touch that very little
+was eatable. These were the Harpies, and by their appearance
+&AElig;neas knew that he and his companions had arrived at the
+Strophades, two islands in the Ionian Sea which for many years had
+been given up to the monsters. They were fearful of aspect: down to
+the breast they resembled women, with scanty black hair and glaring
+red-rimmed eyes, and on their faces ever a famine-stricken look;
+but they had wings instead of arms, and their bodies and lower
+limbs were those of huge birds, foul and uncleanly. These hateful
+creatures had long before been sent by the Gods to plague Pheneus
+the Blind, king of Thrace, who had cruelly treated his sons.
+Whenever a meal was spread for the king, the Harpies used to
+descend and devour it. At last some brave warriors, who were
+passing through Thrace, were persuaded by the promise of rewards
+from Pheneus to rid him of the monsters, and drove them to the far
+Strophades, where they had ever since dwelt.</p>
+<p>Irritated at the loss of their feast, &AElig;neas and his
+companions prepared more food, and determined, if necessary, to
+defend it with their swords. They accordingly concealed their
+weapons in the grass, and stationed one of their number on the
+watch, to give notice with the sound of a trumpet when the Harpies
+were approaching. This was done accordingly, and the obscene
+creatures, when they again swooped down to seize on the cooked
+meats, which they relished more than any other food, were driven
+off, though not without difficulty. But one of them, perching on a
+high rock, croaked forth to the astonished mariners this dismal
+prophecy:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Woe to you, Trojans! Do you dare to make war upon us
+after having slain our oxen, and to banish the innocent Harpies
+from the kingdom which is theirs by right? Fix, then, in your minds
+these words, which the father of Gods and men revealed to
+Ph&oelig;bus Apollo, and Apollo to me. Italy is the land you seek,
+and Italy you shall reach at last, after many perils; but you shall
+not build up the walls of your new-founded city until dire famine
+and suffering, visiting you because you have injured us, shall
+compel you to devour your tables as well as the food that is upon
+them.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The gloomy prediction terrified most of the wanderers, and they
+urged &AElig;neas to endeavor to propitiate the unclean monsters
+with invocations and sacrifices. But Anchises, after imploring
+Jupiter to ward off the threatened calamities, commanded that the
+expedition should at once quit that melancholy shore. After passing
+the rugged cliffs of Ithaca, and uttering maledictions on the land
+that bred Ulysses, the most cunning enemy of Troy, the exiles
+arrived in safety at the harbor of Leucadia, where the ships were
+anchored, and the travelers landed to rest awhile after the
+fatigues of the voyage. Here they celebrated the games of their
+country; and &AElig;neas hung on the door-posts of an ancient and
+famous temple of Apollo a suit of armor, which he had taken from a
+Greek warrior slain before Troy, placing above it an inscription,
+&ldquo;These arms &AElig;neas won from the victorious
+Greeks.&rdquo;</p>
+<h3><a id="Cyclops2" name="Cyclops2">&AElig;neas in the Land of the
+Cyclops</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Charles Henry Hanson</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>A day&rsquo;s sail over the blue Mediterranean brought
+&AElig;neas and his followers in sight of the southeastern shores
+of Italy; and as they saw the swelling hills and grassy plains of
+the promised land, they broke into cries of joy. The ships were run
+into a secure harbor, and sacrifices offered up for the
+propitiation of Minerva and of Juno; after which, mindful of the
+injunctions of Helenus to avoid those parts of Italy which lay
+nearest to Greece, the adventurers resumed their voyage. Keeping
+near the coast, they passed the Bay of Tarentum and the lofty
+promontories of Calabria. Now came in sight the immense bulk of
+Etna, lifting its fire-crowned head into the clouds; and the
+roaring of the terrible Charybdis could be distinctly heard.
+Remembering the warnings of Helenus, they hastily turned to the
+left, and avoided the perilous strait, but sought refuge in a place
+scarcely less dangerous; for they landed in the country of the
+Cyclops, where, only a little while before, Ulysses had been with
+his comrades, and had endured great sufferings at the hands of the
+giant Polyphemus. The Cyclops, it will be remembered, were a race
+of savage shepherds, of immense stature, having each but one eye in
+the middle of his forehead. They dwelt in caves, and kept great
+flocks and herds. Polyphemus was the largest and fiercest of them
+all; and when Ulysses and his companions entered his cave he kept
+them prisoners, and devoured several of them. The hero himself and
+the rest of his followers had escaped him by making him drunk with
+wine they had brought on shore from their ships, and then putting
+out his eye with a sharpened stake, the point of which they had
+hardened in the fire. The knowledge of this adventure came to
+&AElig;neas and his Trojans in a strange fashion. On the morning
+after their arrival in the country of the Cyclops, they were on the
+shore, when they were surprised to see a man emerge from the woods,
+and approach them with suppliant gestures. His appearance was wild
+and emaciated, his beard overgrown, his garments ragged; but
+nevertheless it was easy to perceive that he was a Greek. When he
+saw that the voyagers wore Trojan dress and arms, he paused in
+fear, but the next moment he hurried toward them with tears and
+entreaties.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I conjure you,&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;by the stars, by
+the powers above, by the light of heaven, ye Trojans, take me
+hence. Carry me where you will, do with me what you will, I shall
+be content. I confess that I was one who bore arms against Troy; if
+you deem that a crime, put me to death for it. At least I shall
+have the satisfaction of dying by the hands of men.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&AElig;neas and Anchises received the stranger kindly, assured
+him of his safety, and asked him who he was, and how he came to be
+in that desolate country. He answered that he was an Ithacan, his
+name Ach&aelig;menides, and that he had been one of the companions
+of Ulysses in his wanderings. He related the adventures of the
+Ithacan hero in the cave of Polyphemus, and told how he himself,
+having been by accident left behind when his comrades escaped, had
+since led a wretched existence in the woods, living on wild berries
+and roots, and continually in dread lest he should be seen by the
+Cyclops. He advised &AElig;neas to lose no time in quitting the
+country, lest the ferocious shepherds should discover and destroy
+them. Even as Ach&aelig;menides spoke, Polyphemus was seen
+accompanying his flock to their pasture. So tall was he of stature
+that he carried the trunk of a pine-tree as a staff to guide his
+footsteps. Reaching the sea he stepped into it, and bent down to
+bathe the wound inflicted by Ulysses. The Trojans hastened to cut
+their cables, and rowed out to sea. The giant heard the sound of
+their oars, and turned to follow them; but in his blindness he
+dared not follow far, and therefore he called on his brethren with
+a cry so loud that the very sea was shaken in its depths. Forthwith
+the huge Cyclops came trooping to the shore, like a wood of lofty
+trees endued with life and motion; but by this time the Trojan
+vessels had got beyond their reach.</p>
+<h3><a id="Dido" name="Dido">&AElig;neas and Queen Dido</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p class="quote">[&AElig;neas was driven by a storm upon the shores
+of Carthage.]</p>
+<p>Now it came to pass on the next day that &AElig;neas, having
+first hidden his ships in a bay that was well covered with trees,
+went forth to spy out the new land whither he was come, and Achates
+only went with him. And &AElig;neas had in each hand a
+broad-pointed spear. And as he went there met him in the middle of
+the wood his mother, but habited as a Spartan virgin, for she had
+hung a bow from her shoulders after the fashion of a huntress, and
+her hair was loose, and her tunic short to the knees, and her
+garments gathered in a knot upon her breast. Then first the false
+huntress spake: &ldquo;If perchance ye have seen one of my sisters
+wandering hereabouts, make known to me the place. She is girded
+with a quiver, and is clothed with the skin of a spotted lynx, or,
+maybe, she hunts a wild boar with horn and hound.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>To whom &AElig;neas, &ldquo;I have not seen nor heard sister of
+thine, O virgin&mdash;for what shall I call thee? for, of a surety,
+neither is thy look as of a mortal woman, nor yet thy voice. A
+goddess certainly thou art, sister of Ph&oelig;bus, or, haply, one
+of the nymphs. But whosoever thou art, look favorably upon us and
+help us. Tell us in what land we be, for the winds have driven us
+hither, and we know not aught of place or people.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Venus said, &ldquo;Nay, stranger, I am not such as ye think.
+We virgins of Tyre are wont to carry a quiver and to wear a buskin
+of purple. For indeed it is a Tyrian city that is hard by, though
+the land be Libya. And of this city Dido is queen, having come
+hither from Tyre, flying from the wrong-doing of her brother. And
+indeed the story of the thing is long, but I will recount the chief
+matter thereof to thee. The husband of this Dido was one
+Sich&aelig;us, richest among all the men of Ph&oelig;nicia, and
+greatly beloved of his wife, whom he married from a virgin. Now the
+brother of this Sich&aelig;us was Pygmalion, the king of the
+country, and he exceeded all men in wickedness. And when there
+arose a quarrel between them, the king, being exceedingly mad after
+gold, took him unaware, even as he did sacrifice at the altar, and
+slew him. And the king hid the matter many days from Dido, and
+cheated her with false hopes. But at the last there came to her in
+her dreams the likeness of the dead man, baring his wounds and
+showing the wickedness which had been done. Also he bade her make
+haste and fly from that land, and, that she might do this the more
+easily, told her of great treasure, gold and silver, that was
+hidden in the earth. And Dido, being much moved by these things,
+made ready for flight; also she sought for companions, and there
+came together to her as many as hated the king or feared him. Then
+did they seize ships that chanced to be ready and laded them with
+gold, even the treasure of King Pygmalion, and so fled across the
+sea. And in all this was a woman the leader. Then came they to this
+place, where thou seest the walls and citadel of Carthage, and
+bought so much land as they could cover with a bull&rsquo;s hide.
+And now do ye answer me this, Whence come ye, and whither do ye
+go?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then answered &AElig;neas, &ldquo;Should I tell the whole story
+of our wanderings, and thou have leisure to hear, evening would
+come ere I could make an end. We are men of Troy, who, having
+journeyed over many seas, have now been driven by storms to this
+shore of Libya. And as for me, men call me Prince &AElig;neas. The
+land I seek is Italy, and my race is from Jupiter himself. With
+twenty ships did I set sail, going in the way whereon the Gods sent
+me. And of these scarce seven are left. And now, seeing that Europe
+and Asia endure me not, I wander over the desert places of
+Africa.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Venus suffered him not to speak more, but said,
+&ldquo;Whoever thou art, stranger, that art come to this Tyrian
+city, thou art surely beloved by the Gods. And now go, show thyself
+to the queen. And as for thy ships and thy companions, I tell thee
+that they are safe in the haven, if I have not learnt augury in
+vain. See those twenty swans, how joyously they fly! And now there
+cometh an eagle swooping down from the sky, putting them to
+confusion, but now again they move in due order, and some are
+settling on the earth and some are preparing to settle. Even so
+doth it fare with thy ships, for either are they already in the
+haven or enter thereinto with sails full set.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And as she spoke she turned away, and there shone a rosy light
+from her neck, also there came from her hair a sweet savor as of
+ambrosia, and her garments grew under her feet; and &AElig;neas
+perceived that she was his mother, and cried aloud,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;O my mother, why dost thou mock me so often with false
+shows, nor sufferest me to join my hand unto thy hand, and to speak
+with thee face to face?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And he went towards the walls of the city. But Venus covered him
+and his companions with a mist, that no man might see them, or
+hinder them, or inquire of their business, and then departed to
+Paphos, where was her temple and also many altars of incense. Then
+the men hastened on their way, and mounting a hill which hung over
+the city, marveled to behold it, for indeed it was very great and
+noble, with mighty gates and streets, and a multitude that walked
+therein. For some built the walls and the citadel, rolling great
+stones with their hands, and others marked out places for houses.
+Also they chose those that should give judgment and bear rule in
+the city. Some, too, digged out harbors, and others laid the
+foundations of a theatre, and cut out great pillars of stone. Like
+to bees they were, when, the summer being newly come, the young
+swarms go forth, or when they labor filling the cells with honey,
+and some receive the burdens of those that return from the fields,
+and others keep off the drones from the hive. Even so labored the
+men of Tyre. And when &AElig;neas beheld them he cried,
+&ldquo;Happy ye, who even now have a city to dwell in!&rdquo; And
+being yet hidden by the mist, he went in at the gate and mingled
+with the men, being seen of none.</p>
+<p>Now in the midst of the city was a wood, very thick with trees,
+and here the men of Carthage, first come to the land from their
+voyage, had digged out of the ground that which Juno had said
+should be a sign to them, even a horse&rsquo;s head; for that,
+finding this, their city would be mighty in war, and full of
+riches. Here, then, Dido was building a temple to Juno, very
+splendid, with threshold of bronze, and many steps thereunto; of
+bronze also were the door-posts and the gates. And here befell a
+thing which gave much comfort and courage to &AElig;neas; for as he
+stood and regarded the place, waiting also for the queen, he saw
+set forth in order upon the walls the battles that had been fought
+at Troy, the sons of Atreus also, and King Priam, and fierce
+Achilles. Then said he, not without tears, &ldquo;Is there any
+land, O Achates, that is not filled with our sorrows? Seest thou
+Priam? Yet withal there is a reward for virtue here also, and tears
+and pity for the troubles of men. Fear not, therefore. Surely the
+fame of these things shall profit us.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he looked, satisfying his soul with the paintings on the
+walls. For there was the city of Troy. In this part of the field
+the Greeks fled and the youth of Troy pursued them, and in that the
+men of Troy fled, and Achilles followed hard upon them in his
+chariot. Also he saw the white tents of Rhesus, king of Thrace,
+whom the fierce Diomed slew in his sleep, when he was newly come to
+Troy, and drave his horses to the camp before they ate of the grass
+of the fields of Troy or drank the waters of Nanthus. There also
+Troilus was pictured, ill matched in battle with Achilles. His
+horses bare him along; but he lay on his back in the chariot, yet
+holding the reins, and his neck and head were dragged upon the
+earth, and the spear-point made a trail in the dust. And in another
+place the women of Troy went suppliant-wise to the temple of
+Minerva, bearing a great and beautiful robe, sad and beating their
+breasts, and with hair unbound; but the goddess regarded them not.
+Also Achilles dragged the body of Hector three times round the
+walls of Troy, and was selling it for gold. And &AElig;neas groaned
+when he saw the man whom he loved, and the old man Priam reaching
+out helpless hands. Also he knew himself, fighting in the midst of
+the Grecian chiefs; black Memnon also he knew, and the hosts of the
+East; and Penthesilea leading the army of the Amazons with shields
+shaped as the moon. Fierce she was to see, with one breast bared
+for battle, and a golden girdle beneath it, a damsel daring to
+fight with men.</p>
+<p>But while &AElig;neas marveled to see these things, lo! there
+came, with a great throng of youths behind her, Dido, most
+beautiful of women, fair as Diana, when, on the banks of Eurotas or
+on the hills of Cynthus, she leads the dance with a thousand nymphs
+of the mountains about her. On her shoulder she bears a quiver, and
+overtops them all, and her mother, even Latona, silently rejoices
+to behold her. So fair and seemly to see was Dido as she bare
+herself right nobly in the midst, being busy in the work of her
+kingdom. Then she sat herself down on a lofty throne in the gate of
+the temple, with many armed men about her. And she did justice
+between man and man; also she divided the work of the city, sharing
+it equally or parting by lot.</p>
+<p>Then of a sudden &AElig;neas heard a great clamor, and saw a
+company of men come quickly to the place, among whom were Antheus
+and Sergestus and Cloanthus, and others of the men of Troy that had
+been parted from him in the storm. Right glad was he to behold
+them, yet was not without fear; and though he would fain have come
+forth and caught them by the hand, yet did he tarry, waiting to
+hear how the men had fared, where they had left their ships, and
+wherefore they were come.</p>
+<p>Then Ilioneus, leave being now given that he should speak, thus
+began: &ldquo;O Queen, whom Jupiter permits to build a new city in
+these lands, we men of Troy, whom the winds have carried over many
+seas, pray thee that thou save our ships from fire, and spare a
+people that serveth the Gods. For, indeed, we are not come to waste
+the dwellings of this land, or to carry off spoils to our ships.
+For, of a truth, they who have suffered so much think not of such
+deeds. There is a land which the Greeks call Hesperia, but the
+people themselves Italy, after the name of their chief; an ancient
+land, mighty in arms and fertile of corn. Hither, were we
+journeying, when a storm arising scattered our ships, and only
+these few that thou seest escaped to the land. And can there be
+nation so savage that it receiveth not shipwrecked men on its
+shore, but beareth arms against them, and forbiddeth them to land?
+Nay, but if ye care not for men, yet regard the Gods, who forget
+neither them that do righteously nor them that transgress. We had a
+king, &AElig;neas, than whom there lived not a man more dutiful to
+Gods and men, and greater in war. If indeed he be yet alive, then
+we fear not at all. For of a truth it will not repent thee to have
+helped us. And if not, other friends have we, as Acestes of Sicily.
+Grant us, therefore, to shelter our ships from the wind; also to
+fit them with fresh timber from the woods, and to make ready oars
+for rowing, so that, finding again our king and our companions, we
+may gain the land of Italy. But if he be dead, and Ascanius his son
+lost also, then there is a dwelling ready for us in the land of
+Sicily, with Acestes, who is our friend.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Dido, her eyes bent on the ground, thus spake: &ldquo;Fear
+not, men of Troy. If we have seemed to deal harshly with you,
+pardon us, seeing that, being newly settled in this land, we must
+keep watch and ward over our coasts. But as for the men of Troy,
+and their deeds in arms, who knows them not? Think not that we in
+Carthage are so dull of heart, or dwell so remote from man, that we
+are ignorant of these things. Whether, therefore, ye will journey
+to Italy or rather return to Sicily and King Acestes, know that I
+will give you all help, and protect you; or, if ye will, settle in
+this land of ours. Yours is this city which I am building. I will
+make no difference between man of Troy and man of Tyre. Would that
+your king also were here! Surely I will send those that shall seek
+him in all parts of Libya, lest haply he should be gone astray in
+any forest or strange city of the land.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And when &AElig;neas and Achates heard these things they were
+glad, and would have come forth from the cloud, and Achates said,
+&ldquo;What thinkest thou? Lo, thy comrades are safe, saving him
+whom we saw with our own eyes drowned in the waves; and all other
+things are according as thy mother said.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And even as he spake the cloud parted from about them, and
+&AElig;neas stood forth, very bright to behold, with face and
+breast as of a god, for his mother had given to him hair beautiful
+to see, and cast about him the purple light of youth, even as a
+workman sets ivory in some fair ornament, or compasseth about
+silver or marble of Paros with gold. Then spake he to the queen:
+&ldquo;Lo! I am he whom ye seek, even &AElig;neas of Troy, scarcely
+saved from the waters of the sea. And as for thee, O Queen, seeing
+that thou only hast been found to pity the unspeakable sorrows of
+Troy, and biddest us, though we be but poor exiles and lacking all
+things, to share thy city and thy home, may the Gods do so to thee
+as thou deservest. And, of a truth, so long as the rivers run to
+the seas, and the shadows fall on the hollows of the hills, so long
+will thy name and thy glory survive, whatever be the land to which
+the Gods shall bring me.&rdquo; Then gave he his right hand to
+Ilioneus, and his left hand to Sergestus, and greeted them with
+great joy.</p>
+<p>And Dido, hearing these things, was silent for a while, but at
+the last she spake. &ldquo;What ill fortune brings thee into perils
+so great? what power drave thee to these savage shores? Well do I
+mind me how in days gone by there came to Sidon one Teucer, who,
+having been banished from his country, sought help from Belus that
+he might find a kingdom for himself. And it chanced that in those
+days Belus, my father, had newly conquered the land of Cyprus. From
+that day did I know the tale of Troy, and thy name also, and the
+chiefs of Greece. Also I remember that Teucer spake honorably of
+the men of Troy, saying that he was himself sprung of the old
+Teucrian stock. Come ye, therefore to my palace. I too have
+wandered far, even as you, and so have come to this land, and
+having suffered much, have learnt to succor them that
+suffer.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying she led &AElig;neas into her palace; also she sent to
+his companions in the ships great store of provisions, even twenty
+oxen and a hundred bristly swine and a hundred ewe sheep with their
+lambs. But in the palace a great feast was set forth, couches
+covered with broidered purple and silver vessels without end, and
+cups of gold, whereon were embossed the mighty deeds of the men of
+old time.</p>
+<p>And in the mean time &AElig;neas sent Achates in haste to the
+ships, that he might fetch Ascanius to the feast. Also he bade that
+the boy should bring with him gifts of such things as they had
+saved from the ruins of Troy,&mdash;a mantle stiff with broidery of
+gold and a veil bordered with yellow acanthus, which the fair Helen
+had taken with her, flying from her home; but Leda, her mother, had
+given them to Helen; a sceptre likewise which Ilione, first-born of
+the daughters of Priam, had carried, and a necklace of pearls and a
+double crown of jewels and gold.</p>
+<p>But Venus was troubled in heart, fearing evil to her son should
+the men of Tyre be treacherous, after their wont, and Juno remember
+her wrath. Wherefore, taking counsel with herself, she called to
+the winged boy, even Love, that was her son, and spake: &ldquo;My
+son, who art all my power and strength, who laughest at the
+thunders of Jupiter, thou knowest how Juno, being exceedingly wroth
+against thy brother &AElig;neas, causeth him to wander out of the
+way over all lands. This day Dido hath him in her palace, and
+speaketh him fair; but I fear me much how these things may end.
+Wherefore hear thou that which I purpose. Thy brother hath even now
+sent for the boy Ascanius, that he may come to the palace, bringing
+with him gifts of such things as they saved from the ruins of Troy.
+Him will I cause to fall into a deep sleep and hide in Cythera or
+Idalium, and do thou for one night take upon thee his likeness. And
+when Queen Dido at the feast shall hold thee in her lap, and kiss
+and embrace thee, do thou breathe by stealth thy fire into her
+heart.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then did Love as his mother bade him, and put off his wings, and
+took upon him the shape of Ascanius, but on the boy Venus caused
+there to fall a deep sleep, and carried him to the woods of
+Idalium, and lapped him in sweet-smelling flowers. And in his stead
+Love carried the gifts to the queen. And when he was come they sat
+down to the feast, the queen being in the midst under a canopy.
+&AElig;neas also and the men of Troy lay on coverlets of purple, to
+whom serving-men brought water and bread in baskets and napkins;
+and within fifty handmaids were ready to replenish the store of
+victual and to fan the fire; and a hundred others, with pages as
+many, loaded the tables with dishes and drinking-cups. Many men of
+Tyre also were bidden to the feast. Much they marveled at the gifts
+of &AElig;neas, and much at the false Ascanius. Dido also could not
+satisfy herself with looking on him, nor knew what trouble he was
+preparing for her in the time to come. And he, having first
+embraced the father who was not his father, and clung about his
+neck, addressed himself to Queen Dido, and she ever followed him
+with her eyes, and sometimes would hold him on her lap. And still
+he worked upon her that she should forget the dead Sich&aelig;us
+and conceive a new love in her heart.</p>
+<p>But when they first paused from the feast, lo! men set great
+bowls upon the table and filled them to the brim with wine. Then
+did the queen call for a great vessel of gold, with many jewels
+upon it, from which Belus, and all the kings from Belus, had drunk,
+and called for wine, and having filled it she cried, &ldquo;O
+Jupiter, whom they call the god of hosts and guests, cause that
+this be a day of joy for the men of Troy and for them of Tyre, and
+that our children remember it forever. Also Bacchus, giver of joy,
+be present, and kindly Juno.&rdquo; And when she had touched the
+wine with her lips, she handed the great cup to Prince Bitias, who
+drank thereout a mighty draught, and the other princes after him.
+Then the minstrel Iopas, whom Atlas himself had taught, sang to the
+harp, of the moon, how she goes on her way, and of the sun, how his
+light is darkened. He sang also of men, and of the beasts of the
+field, whence they come; and of the stars, Arcturus, and the
+Greater Bear and the Less, and the Hyades; and of the winter sun,
+why he hastens to dip himself in the ocean; and of the winter
+nights, why they tarry so long. The queen also talked much of the
+story of Troy, of Priam, and of Hector, asking many things, as of
+the arms of Memnon, and of the horses of Diomed, and of Achilles,
+how great he was. And at last she said to &AElig;neas, &ldquo;Tell
+us now thy story, how Troy was taken, and thy wanderings over land
+and sea.&rdquo; And &AElig;neas made answer, &ldquo;Nay, O Queen,
+but thou biddest me renew a sorrow unspeakable. Yet, if thou art
+minded to hear these things, hearken.&rdquo; And he told her all
+that had befallen him, even to the day when his father Anchises
+died.</p>
+<p>Much was Queen Dido moved by the story, and much did she marvel
+at him that told it, and scarce could sleep for thinking of him.
+And the next day she spake to Anna, her sister, &ldquo;O my sister,
+I have been troubled this night with ill dreams, and my heart is
+disquieted within me. What a man is this stranger that hath come to
+our shores! How noble of mien! How bold in war! Sure I am that he
+is of the sons of the Gods. What fortunes have been his! Of what
+wars he told us! Surely were I not steadfastly purposed that I
+would not yoke me again in marriage, this were the man to whom I
+might yield. Only he&mdash;for I will tell thee the truth, my
+sister&mdash;only he, since the day when Sich&aelig;us died by our
+brother&rsquo;s hand, hath moved my heart. But may the earth
+swallow me up, or the almighty Father strike me with lightning, ere
+I stoop to such baseness. The husband of my youth hath carried with
+him my love, and he shall keep it in his grave.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So she spake, with many tears. And her sister made answer,
+&ldquo;Why wilt thou waste thy youth in sorrow, without child or
+husband? Thinkest thou that there is care or remembrance of such
+things in the grave? No suitors indeed have pleased thee here or in
+Tyre, but wilt thou also contend with a love that is after thine
+own heart? Think too of the nations among whom thou dwellest, how
+fierce they are, and of thy brother at Tyre, what he threatens
+against thee. Surely it was by the will of the Gods, and of Juno
+chiefly, that the ships of Troy came hither. And this city, which
+thou buildest, to what greatness will it grow if only thou wilt
+make for thyself such alliance! How great will be the glory of
+Carthage if the strength of Troy be joined unto her! Only do thou
+pray to the Gods and offer sacrifices; and, for the present, seeing
+that the time of sailing is now past, make excuse that these
+strangers tarry with thee awhile.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Thus did Anna comfort her sister and encourage her. And first
+the two offered sacrifice to the Gods, chiefly to Juno, who careth
+for the bond of marriage. Also, examining the entrails of slain
+beasts, they sought to learn the things that should happen
+thereafter. And ever Dido would company with &AElig;neas, leading
+him about the walls of the city which she builded. And often she
+would begin to speak and stay in the midst of her words. And when
+even was come, she would hear again and again at the banquet the
+tale of Troy, and while others slept would watch, and while he was
+far away would seem to see him and to hear him. Ascanius, too, she
+would embrace for love of his father, if so she might cheat her own
+heart. But the work of the city was stayed meanwhile; nor did the
+towers rise in their places, nor the youth practice themselves in
+arms.</p>
+<p>Then Juno, seeing how it fared with the queen, spake to Venus:
+&ldquo;Are ye satisfied with your victory, thou and thy son, that
+ye have vanquished, the two of you, one woman? Well I knew that
+thou fearedst lest this Carthage should harm thy favorite. But why
+should there be war between us? Thou hast what thou seekest. Let us
+make alliance. Let Dido obey a Phrygian husband, and bring the men
+of Tyre as her dowry.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Venus knew that she spake with ill intent, to the end that
+the men of Troy should not reign in the land of Italy. Nevertheless
+she dissembled with her tongue, and spake: &ldquo;Who would not
+rather have peace with thee than war? Only I doubt whether this
+thing shall be to the pleasure of Jupiter. This thou must learn,
+seeing that thou art his wife, and where thou leadest I will
+follow.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So the two, taking counsel together, ordered things in this
+wise. The next day a great hunting was prepared. For as soon as
+ever the sun was risen upon the earth, the youth of the city
+assembled, with nets and hunting spears and dogs that ran by scent.
+And the princes of Carthage waited for the queen at the palace
+door, where her horse stood champing the bit, with trappings of
+purple and gold. And after a while she came forth, with many
+following her. And she had upon her a Sidonian mantle, with a
+border wrought with divers colors; of gold was her quiver, and of
+gold the knot of her hair, and of gold the clasp to her mantle.
+&AElig;neas likewise came forth, beautiful as is Apollo when he
+leaveth Lydia and the stream of Xanthus, coming to Delos, and hath
+about his hair a wreath of bay-leaves and a circlet of gold. So
+fair was &AElig;neas to see. And when the hunters came to the hills
+they found great store of goats and stags, which they chased. And
+of all the company Ascanius was the foremost, thinking scorn of
+such hunting, and wishing that a wild boar or a lion out of the
+hills would come forth to be his prey.</p>
+<p>And now befell a great storm, with much thunder and hail, from
+which the hunters sought shelter. But &AElig;neas and the queen,
+being left of all their company, came together to the same cave.
+And there they plighted their troth one to the other. Nor did the
+queen after that make secret of her love, but called &AElig;neas
+her husband.</p>
+<p>Straightway went Rumor and told these things through the cities
+of Libya. Now Rumor, men say, is the youngest daughter of Earth, a
+marvelous creature, moving very swiftly with feet and wings, and
+having many feathers upon her, and under every feather an eye and a
+tongue and a mouth and an ear. In the night she flieth between
+heaven and earth, and sleepeth not; and in the day she sitteth on
+some housetop or lofty tower, or spreadeth fear over mighty cities;
+and she loveth that which is false even as she loveth that which is
+true. So now she went telling through Libya how &AElig;neas of Troy
+was come, and Dido was wedded to him, and how they lived careless
+and at ease, and thinking not of the work to which they were
+called.</p>
+<p>And first of all she went to Prince Iarbas, who himself had
+sought Dido in marriage. And Iarbas was very wroth when he heard
+it, and, coming to the temple of Jupiter, spread his grief before
+the Gods, how that he had given a place on his coasts to this Dido,
+and would have taken her to wife, but that she had married a
+stranger from Phrygia, another Paris, whose dress and adornments
+were of a woman rather than of a man.</p>
+<p>And Jupiter saw that this was so, and he said to Mercury, who
+was his messenger, &ldquo;Go speak to &AElig;neas these words:
+&lsquo;Thus saith the king of Gods and men. Is this what thy mother
+promised of thee, twice saving thee from the spear of the Greeks?
+Art thou he that shall rule Italy and its mighty men of war, and
+spread thy dominion to the ends of the world? If thou thyself
+forgettest these things, dost thou grudge to thy son the citadels
+of Rome? What doest thou here? Why lookest thou not to Italy?
+Depart and tarry not.&rsquo;&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Mercury fitted the winged sandals to his feet, and took the
+wand with which he driveth the spirits of the dead, and came right
+soon to Mount Atlas, which standeth bearing the heaven on his head,
+and having always clouds about his top, and snow upon his
+shoulders, and a beard that is stiff with ice. There Mercury stood
+awhile; then, as a bird which seeks its prey in the sea, shot
+headlong down, and came to &AElig;neas where he stood, with a
+yellow jasper in his sword-hilt, and a cloak of purple shot with
+gold about his shoulders, and spake: &ldquo;Buildest thou Carthage,
+forgetting thine own work? The Almighty Father saith to thee,
+&lsquo;What meanest thou? Why tarriest thou here? If thou carest
+not for thyself, yet think of thy son, and that the Fates have
+given to him Italy and Rome.&rsquo;&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And &AElig;neas saw him no more. And he stood stricken with fear
+and doubt. Fain would he obey the voice, and go as the Gods
+commanded. But how should he tell this purpose to the queen? But at
+the last it seemed good to him to call certain of the chiefs, as
+Mnestheus, and Sergestus, and Antheus, and bid them make ready the
+ships in silence, and gather together the people, but dissemble the
+cause, and he himself would watch a fitting time to speak and
+unfold the matter to the queen.</p>
+<p>Yet was not Dido deceived, for love is keen of sight. Rumor also
+told her that they made ready the ships for sailing. Then, flying
+through the city, even as one on whom has come the frenzy of
+Bacchus flies by night over Mount Cith&aelig;ron, she came upon
+&AElig;neas, and spake: &ldquo;Thoughtest thou to hide thy crime,
+and to depart in silence from this land? Carest thou not for her
+whom thou leavest to die? And hast thou no fear of winter storms
+that vex the sea? By all that I have done for thee and given thee,
+if there be yet any place for repentance, repent thee of this
+purpose. For thy sake I suffer the wrath of the princes of Libya
+and of my own people; and if thou leavest me, for what should I
+live?&mdash;till my brother overthrow my city, or Iarbas carry me
+away captive? If but I had a little &AElig;neas to play in my halls
+I should not seem so altogether desolate.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But &AElig;neas, fearing the words of Jupiter, stood with eyes
+that relented not. At the last he spake: &ldquo;I deny not, O
+Queen, the benefits that thou hast done unto me, nor ever, while I
+live, shall I forget Dido. I sought not to fly by stealth; yet did
+I never promise that I would abide in this place. Could I have
+chosen according to my will I had built again the city of Troy
+where it stood; but the Gods command that I should seek Italy. Thou
+hast thy Carthage; why dost thou grudge Italy to us? Nor may I
+tarry. Night after night have I seen my father Anchises warning me
+in dreams. Also even now the messenger of Jupiter came to
+me&mdash;with these ears I heard him&mdash;and bade me
+depart.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then, in great wrath, with eyes askance, did Dido break forth
+upon him: &ldquo;Surely no goddess was thy mother, nor art thou
+come of the race of Dardanus. The rocks of Caucasus brought thee
+forth, and an Hyrcanian tigress gave thee suck. For why should I
+dissemble? Was he moved at all my tears? Did he pity my love? Nay,
+the very Gods are against me. This man I took to myself when he was
+shipwrecked and ready to perish. I brought back his ships, his
+companions from destruction. And now forsooth comes the messenger
+of Jupiter with dreadful commands from the Gods. As for thee, I
+keep thee not. Go, seek thy Italy across the seas: only, if there
+is any vengeance in heaven, thou wilt pay the penalty for this
+wrong, being wrecked on some rock in their midst. Then wilt thou
+call on Dido in vain. Aye, and where-ever thou shalt go I will
+haunt thee, and rejoice in the dwellings below to hear thy
+doom.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then she turned, and hasted to go into the house. But her spirit
+left her, so that her maidens bare her to her chamber and laid her
+on her bed.</p>
+<p>Then &AElig;neas, though indeed he was much troubled in heart,
+and would fain have comforted the queen, was obedient to the
+heavenly word, and departed to his ships. And the men of Troy
+busied themselves in making them ready for the voyage. Even as the
+ants spoil a great heap of corn and store it in their dwellings
+against winter, moving in a black line across the field, and some
+carry the great grains, and some chide those that linger, even so
+did the Trojans swarm along the ways and labor at the work.</p>
+<p>But when Dido saw it she called to Anna her sister and said,
+&ldquo;Seest thou how they hasten the work along the shore? Even
+now the sails are ready for the winds, and the sailors have
+wreathed the ships with garlands, as if for departure. Go
+thou&mdash;the deceiver always trusted thee, and thou knowest how
+best to move him&mdash;go and entreat him. I harmed not him nor his
+people; let him then grant me this only. Let him wait for a fairer
+time for his journey. I ask not that he give up his purpose; only
+that he grant me a short breathing space, till I may learn how to
+bear this sorrow.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Anna hearkened to her sister, and took the message to
+&AElig;neas, yet profited nothing, for the Gods shut his ears that
+he should not hear. Even as the oak stands firm when the north wind
+would root it up from the earth,&mdash;its leaves are scattered all
+around, yet doth it remain firm, for its roots go down to the
+regions below, even as far as its branches reach to
+heaven,&mdash;so stood &AElig;neas firm, and, though he wept many
+tears, changed not his purpose.</p>
+<p>Then did Dido grow weary of her life. For when she did
+sacrifice, the pure water would grow black and the wine be changed
+to blood. Also from the shrine of her husband, which was in the
+midst of her palace, was heard a voice calling her, and the owl
+cried aloud from the house-top. And in her dreams the cruel
+&AElig;neas seemed to drive her before him; or she seemed to be
+going a long way with none to bear her company, and be seeking her
+own people in a land that was desert. Therefore, hiding the thing
+that was in her heart, she spake to her sister, saying, &ldquo;I
+have found a way, my sister, that shall bring him back to me or set
+me free from him. Near the shore of the Great Sea, where the
+&AElig;thiopians dwell, is a priestess, who guards the temple of
+the daughters of Hesperus, being wont to feed the dragons that kept
+the apples of gold. She is able by her charms to loose the heart
+from care or to bind it, and to stay rivers also, and to turn the
+courses of the stars, and to call up the spirits of the dead. Do
+thou, therefore&mdash;for this is what the priestess
+commands&mdash;build a pile in the open court, and put thereon the
+sword which he left hanging in our chamber, and the garments he
+wore, and the couch on which he lay, even all that was his, so that
+they may perish together.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And when these things were done&mdash;for Anna knew not of her
+purpose&mdash;and also an image of &AElig;neas was laid upon the
+pile, the priestess, with her hair unbound, called upon all the
+gods that dwell below, sprinkling thereon water that was drawn, she
+said, from the lake of Avernus, and scattering evil herbs that had
+been cut at the full moon with a sickle of bronze. Dido also, with
+one foot bare and her garments loosened, threw meal upon the fire
+and called upon the gods, if haply there be any, that look upon
+those that love and suffer wrong.</p>
+<p>In the mean time &AElig;neas lay asleep in the hind part of his
+ship, when there appeared to him in a dream the god Mercury, even
+as he had seen him when he brought the commandment of Jupiter. And
+Mercury spake, saying, &ldquo;Son of Venus, canst thou sleep? seest
+thou not what perils surround thee, nor hearest how the favorable
+west wind calls? The queen purposes evil against thee. If thou
+lingerest till the morning come thou wilt see the shore covered
+with them that wish thee harm. Fly, then, and tarry not; for a
+woman is ever of many minds.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then did &AElig;neas in great fear start from his sleep, and
+call his companions, saying, &ldquo;Wake, and sit on the benches,
+and loose the sails. &rsquo;Tis a god thus bids us fly.&rdquo; And
+even as he spake he cut the cable with his sword. And all hasted to
+follow him, and sped over the sea.</p>
+<p>And now it was morning, and Queen Dido, from her watch-tower,
+saw the ships upon the sea. Then she smote upon her breast and tore
+her hair, and cried, &ldquo;Shall this stranger mock us thus?
+Hasten to follow him. Bring down the ships from the docks, make
+ready sword and fire. And this was the man who bare upon his
+shoulders his aged father. Why did I not tear him to pieces, and
+slay his companions with the sword, and serve up the young Ascanius
+at his meal? And if I had perished, what then? for I die to-day. O
+Sun, that regardest all the earth, and Juno, that carest for
+marriage bonds, and Hecate, Queen of the dead, and ye Furies that
+take vengeance on evil-doers, hear me. If it be ordered that he
+reach that land, yet grant that he suffer many things from his
+enemies, and be driven from his city, and beg for help from
+strangers, and see his people cruelly slain with the sword; and,
+when he shall have made peace on ill conditions, that he enjoy not
+long his kingdoms, but die before his day, and lie unburied on the
+plain. And ye, men of Tyre, hate his children and his people
+forever. Let there be no love or peace between you. And may some
+avenger arise from my grave who shall persecute the race of
+Dardanus with fire and sword. So shall there be war forever between
+him and me.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then she spake to old Barce, who had been nurse to her husband
+Sich&aelig;us, &ldquo;Bid my sister bathe herself in water, and
+bring with her beasts for sacrifice. And do thou also put a garland
+about thy head, for I am minded to finish this sacrifice which I
+have begun, and to burn the image of the man of Troy.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And when the old woman made haste to do her bidding, Queen Dido
+ran to the court where the pile was made for the burning, and
+mounted on the pile, and drew the sword of &AElig;neas from the
+scabbard. Then did she throw herself upon the bed, and cry,</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Now do I yield up my life. I have finished my course. I
+have built a mighty city. I have avenged my husband on him that
+slew him. Happy had I been, yea, too happy! had the ships of Troy
+never come to this land.&rdquo; Then she kissed the bed and cried,
+&ldquo;Shall I die unavenged? Nevertheless let me die. The man of
+Troy shall see this fire from the sea whereon he journeys, and
+carry with him an augury of death.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And when her maidens looked, lo! she had fallen upon the sword,
+and the blood was upon her hands. And a great cry went up through
+the palace, exceeding loud and bitter, even as if the enemy had
+taken Carthage or ancient Tyre, and the fire were mounting over the
+dwellings of men and of Gods. And Anna her sister heard it, and
+rushing through the midst called her by name: &ldquo;O my sister,
+was this thy purpose? Were the pile and the sword and the fire for
+this? Why wouldst thou not suffer that I should die with thee? For
+surely, my sister, thou hast slain thyself, and me, and thy people,
+and thy city. But give me water, ye maidens, that I may wash her
+wounds, and if there be any breath left in her, we may yet stay
+it.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then she climbed on to the pile, and caught her sister in her
+arms, and sought to staunch the blood with her garments. Three
+times did Dido strive to raise her eyes; three times did her spirit
+leave her. Three times she would have raised herself upon her
+elbow; three times she fell back upon the bed, looking with
+wandering eyes for the light, and groaning that she yet beheld
+it.</p>
+<p>Then Juno, looking down from heaven, saw that her pain was long,
+and pitied her, and sent down Iris, her messenger, that she might
+loose the soul that struggled to be free. For, seeing that she died
+not by nature, nor yet by the hand of man, but before her time and
+of her own madness, Queen Proserpine had not shred the ringlet from
+her head which she shreds from them that die. Wherefore Iris,
+flying down with dewy wings from heaven, with a thousand colors
+about her from the light of the sun, stood about her head and said,
+&ldquo;I give thee to death, even as I am bidden, and loose thee
+from thy body.&rdquo; Then she shred the lock, and Queen Dido gave
+up the ghost.</p>
+<h3><a id="Anchises" name="Anchises">The Funeral Games of
+Anchises</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Charles Henry Hanson</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>&AElig;neas called together all his followers, and reminded
+minded them that a year had now passed since the death of his
+father. Not of their own purpose, but doubtless by the will of the
+Gods, they had now returned to the friendly land where his bones
+had been laid. It was therefore his intention to celebrate funeral
+games. For eight days there should be feasting, for which Acestes
+had generously provided two oxen for each ship; and on the ninth
+day he would give prizes to be contested in the foot-race, in
+shooting with the bow, and in boxing with the cestus.</p>
+<p>Having thus spoken, the hero, according to the custom of that
+time, placed a wreath of myrtle upon his head and proceeded to the
+tomb of his father, where he poured out, as a libation to the Gods,
+two bowls of wine, two of new milk, and two of sacred blood. Then
+he scattered flowers over the tomb, and offered up a prayer to his
+father&rsquo;s shade. Immediately there came forth from the tomb a
+huge snake with glittering scales of blue and gold, which, after
+tasting of what had been poured out, retired again to the recesses
+of the vault. Believing this creature to be an attendant on his
+father&rsquo;s spirit, &AElig;neas offered rich
+sacrifices&mdash;ewes, sows, and bullocks&mdash;and his companions
+followed his example. The eight days of feasting passed pleasantly
+enough, and the morning appointed for the funeral games dawned
+bright and serene. A joyous crowd assembled on the shore, some to
+take part in the contests, and others to watch them. The first of
+the games was a race between galleys, and four ships had been
+entered to take part in it. The first was the Pristis, or Shark, of
+which Mnestheus was the captain. The Chimera, a vessel of immense
+size, was commanded by Gyas. The other vessels were the Centaur and
+the Scylla,&mdash;the first commanded by Sergestus, and the second
+by Cloanthus. Some way out in the sea, opposite to the
+starting-point, a rock rose amid the restless waters. The galleys
+were to round this rock, on which &AElig;neas had planted an
+oak-tree as a mark, and then return to the shore. The vessels were
+assigned their places by lot, and the captain of each took his
+place on the poop; while the rowers, stripped to the waist, their
+shoulders glistening with oil, sat with their arms stretched to the
+oars, eager for the signal. At the blast of a trumpet all the oars
+struck the sea at once, and beat it into foam, and the vessels shot
+forward amid the loud shouts of the multitude. The Chimera, under
+Gyas&rsquo;s skillful guidance, took the lead; next followed the
+Scylla, whose rowers were more efficient, but were unable to make
+such progress, because the vessel was naturally slower. Behind the
+Shark and the Centaur followed close together, and first the one
+and then the other gained a slight advantage. The two leading
+vessels were rapidly nearing the rock when Gyas perceived that his
+helmsman, Menoetes, was keeping a course too far to the right, in
+fear of some hidden crags, and was thus losing the advantage that
+had been gained. He urged him to steer more to the left, nor to
+care even if the oars grazed the rock; but Menoetes was afraid to
+obey the command. And now Cloanthus in the Scylla, taking the very
+course Gyas had wished to follow, ran boldly between the Chimera
+and the rock, and so got round the goal in front of his antagonist.
+When Gyas beheld this he was full of wrath. Rushing to the helm, he
+seized the over-cautious Menoetes and hurled him into the sea; then
+he himself took the helm, and at once guided his ship and issued
+commands and cries of encouragement to his oarsmen. The luckless
+Menoetes with difficulty contrived to scramble out of the sea onto
+the rock, and sat there in his dripping garments, while the
+spectators roared with laughter at his misadventure. But now
+Mnestheus in the Shark and Sergestus in the Centaur pushed forward
+with redoubled zeal in the hope of obtaining the lead. Sergestus
+got a little in front of his competitor, but Mnestheus, walking
+among his rowers, urged them to put forth their utmost strength,
+and at least not to suffer the disgrace of being last. In response
+to his appeal they bent to the oar with new vigor; the ship
+trembled under their strokes and the water seemed to fly from
+beneath her keel. Suddenly, while the Centaur, in full career, was
+pressing close to the rock to prevent the Shark from passing on the
+inner side, she ran upon a jutting point where she remained fast,
+while the oars were shattered against the hard rocks. In a moment
+the Shark shot past, and having rounded the goal, dashed on the
+homeward way. Ere long Mnestheus had overtaken the Chimera, which
+had lost ground because she was deprived of her steersman.
+Cloanthus in the Scylla was now alone in front of the Shark; and
+though the race was nearly over, the frantic efforts of
+Mnestheus&rsquo; crew might have gained him the victory, but that
+Cloanthus poured forth passionate prayers to the marine deities,
+and promised them ample offerings if the first prize became his.
+They heard his vows, and gathering underneath his vessel, pushed it
+forward, so that it entered the harbor just in front of the Shark.
+Then &AElig;neas proclaimed Cloanthus the victor, and gave him a
+mantle embroidered with gold and ornamented with a thick fringe of
+the costly Melib&oelig;an purple. On Mnestheus, who had so
+gallantly gained the second place, he bestowed a ponderous coat of
+mail worked in gold and brass, which he had himself taken from a
+famous Greek warrior, Demoleus, whom he had slain before Troy. Gyas
+received two caldrons of brass, and some silver bowls ornamented
+with rich carvings. Lastly, when Sergestus had slowly brought back
+to port his crippled galley, his chief bestowed on him, in reward
+for having rescued the vessel from her perilous position, a Cretan
+female slave with her two children.</p>
+<p>Thus ended the galley race; and the assembled multitude now
+proceeded to a grassy plain a little way inland, where thrones were
+placed for Acestes, &AElig;neas, and the other leaders. Here the
+remaining games were to be celebrated, and first of all a foot
+race. Among the competitors in this were Euryalus, a Trojan youth
+distinguished for his personal beauty; Nisus, a brave warrior, who
+was his constant friend and companion; Diores, Salius, and Patron,
+three other Trojans; and two Sicilian youths famous for their
+speed, named Elymus and Panopes. &AElig;neas announced that he
+would give two Cretan javelins of bright steel and a carved
+battle-axe of silver to each who took part in the race, and to the
+three who came in first other rich prizes: to the first a war-horse
+with costly trappings; to the second a quiver full of Thracian
+arrows, with a gold belt and jeweled buckle; and to the third a
+Grecian helmet. The runners having been placed in proper order, the
+signal was given, and they darted forward like a tempest. Nisus led
+the way, Salius coming second, and Euryalus third, with the rest
+following close behind. Already Nisus was near the goal, when
+unluckily his foot slipped at a spot where some victims had been
+sacrificed for the altar, and the blood soaking into the grass had
+made it slippery. Down he fell into the puddle, and in a moment his
+chance of victory had disappeared. But even then, in spite of his
+disappointment, he was mindful of his affection for Euryalus, and
+resolved that since he could not win the race, his friend should do
+so. He rose to his feet just as Salius was coming up, and contrived
+to stand in his way so as to overturn him. Euryalus, who had still
+kept the third place, now sprang forward, and was easily victorious
+amid the applause of the crowd. Elymus came in next, and close
+behind him Diores. But Salius loudly demanded that the first prize
+of right belonged to him, because he had been deprived of the
+victory by unfair means. The spectators, however, favored the claim
+of Euryalus because of his youth and beauty; and Diores vehemently
+took the same side, since, if Salius were adjudged the victory, he
+would not receive a prize at all. &AElig;neas speedily silenced all
+contention by declaring that the promised rewards should go to the
+three who had arrived first at the winning-post; but he added that
+he would show his sympathy for the disaster which had befallen
+Salius, and therefore bestowed on him the shaggy hide of a Getulian
+lion, still retaining the claws, which had been gilt. Upon this,
+Nisus also merrily asked for some consolation, since but for an
+accident the first prize would have been his, and he showed his
+face and limbs all besmeared with mud. His chief entered into the
+jest, and gave him a buckler, finely carved, which had once hung on
+the walls of Neptune&rsquo;s temple at Troy.</p>
+<div class="figure"><a href="images/big_474.jpg"><img src=
+"images/small_474.jpg" alt="A fracas at a foot race." id="img10"
+name="img10" width="360" height="571" /></a>
+<p>HE ROSE TO HIS FEET JUST AT THE MOMENT THAT SALIUS WAS COMING
+UP, AND CONTRIVED TO STAND IN HIS WAY SO AS TO OVERTURN HIM.
+EURYALUS, WHO HAD STILL KEPT THE THIRD PLACE, NOW SPRANG FORWARD,
+AND WAS EASILY VICTORIOUS AMID THE APPLAUSE OF THE CROWD. ELYMUS
+CAME IN NEXT, AND CLOSE BEHIND HIM DIORES. BUT SALIUS LOUDLY
+DEMANDED THAT THE FIRST PRIZE OF RIGHT BELONGED TO HIM.</p>
+</div>
+<p>The next contest was that with the cestus, the boxing-glove of
+the ancients, a formidable implement, intended not to soften the
+blows dealt by the boxers, but to make them more painful, for it
+was composed of strips of hardened oxhide. To the competitors in
+this sport&mdash;if such it could be called&mdash;&AElig;neas
+offered two prizes,&mdash;the first a bullock, decked with gold and
+fillets, and the second a sword and a shining helmet. A noted
+Trojan warrior named Dares, a man of immense strength and bulk, who
+was also celebrated for his skill with the cestus, presented
+himself to contest this prize. He brandished his huge fists in the
+air, and paced vaingloriously backward and forward in the arena,
+challenging any one in the assembly to meet him. But there was no
+response; his friends were too well acquainted with his skill, and
+the Sicilians were awed by his formidable appearance. At last,
+therefore, imagining that nobody would venture to encounter him, he
+advanced to &AElig;neas and asked that the prize might be given up
+to him. It seemed, indeed, that this would have to be done, when
+King Acestes turned to one of his elders, a venerable Sicilian
+chief named Entellus, and asked how it was that he thus allowed
+such splendid prizes to be taken before his eyes without striking a
+blow for them. Entellus had, in his younger days, been a great
+champion with the cestus, having been taught the use of the weapon
+by none other than Eryx, at that time king of Sicily, and one of
+the most expert boxers in the world. So confident had Eryx been in
+his powers, that when the mighty Hercules passed through Sicily on
+his way from Spain, where he had slain King Geryon and carried off
+his splendid cattle, the Sicilian monarch ventured to challenge the
+hero to a combat with the cestus, staking his kingdom against the
+cattle which Hercules was bearing away to Greece. Hercules had
+accepted the challenge, and had slain Eryx in the encounter; but
+the tradition of his skill had been preserved by his pupil
+Entellus. The chief was now old, and disinclined for exertion; but
+when thus urged by King Acestes, he slowly rose and threw into the
+arena the gauntlets which King Eryx had been accustomed to use.
+Terrible weapons indeed they-were, with heavy pieces of iron and
+lead sewn into them underneath the oxhide. At the mere sight of
+them Dares shrank back appalled, and refused to fight with such
+implements. &ldquo;These,&rdquo; said Entellus, &ldquo;were the
+gauntlets with which my master Eryx encountered Hercules; and
+these, after his death, I myself was accustomed to use. But if
+Dares likes not such gloves, let &AElig;neas provide others for
+both of us.&rdquo; With these words he threw off his upper garments
+and bared his massive shoulders and sinewy arms. The Trojan chief
+brought out two pairs of gauntlets of less formidable make, with
+which the two champions armed themselves; and then they stood face
+to face, and both raised their arms for the encounter. For some
+time they stood parrying each other&rsquo;s blows and watching for
+an opportunity. Presently, as they grew warmer, many heavy strokes
+were given on each side, now on the head, now on the breast.
+Entellus stood stiff and unmoved in the same firm posture, only
+bending to evade Dares&rsquo;s blows, and always closely watching
+his antagonist, who, more active, wheeled round him, trying first
+one method of attack, then another. At last Entellus uplifted his
+right arm, thinking he saw an opportunity for delivering a decisive
+stroke; but Dares with great agility slipped out of the way, and as
+the arm of Entellus encountered no resistance save from the empty
+air, he fell forward on the ground through the violence of his own
+effort. Acclamations burst from all the onlookers, and Acestes
+himself stepped forward to assist his old companion to his feet.
+But the mishap had only aroused Entellus&rsquo;s anger; he no
+longer acted on the defensive, but rushed upon his opponent with
+irresistible ardor, and smote blow after blow, driving Dares
+headlong over the field, pouring down strokes as incessantly as a
+shower of hail rattles upon the house-tops. &AElig;neas now deemed
+it high time to put a stop to the combat, and called upon Dares,
+who indeed was quite overpowered, to yield. His comrades led the
+beaten champion to the ships, with the blood flowing from his
+battered head and face, and on his behalf they took away the helmet
+and sword, leaving the bull to the conqueror. Entellus, proud of
+his victory, laid hold of the animal, and exclaimed, &ldquo;Behold,
+O chief, and you Trojans, from this what my strength once was, and
+also from what death you have saved Dares.&rdquo; With these words
+he smote the bull on the forehead with the cestus so mightily that
+the skull was battered in and the brute sank dead at his feet.</p>
+<p>After this exciting competition came a more peaceful
+sport,&mdash;a trial of skill with the bow. A mast was planted on a
+sward, and to the top of it a living dove was secured by a cord.
+This was the mark, and four archers came forward to contend for the
+prizes,&mdash;Hippoco&ouml;n, the brother of Nisus and one of
+&AElig;neas&rsquo;s dearest friends; Mnestheus, the winner of the
+second prize in the galley race; Eurytion, a brother of that
+Pandarus who was one of the most skillful archers that fought in
+the Trojan war, and who, after wounding Menelaus, was slain by
+Diomedes; and lastly, King Acestes himself. Hippoco&ouml;n shot
+first, and his arrow, whizzing past the fluttering dove, pierced
+the pole to which she was fastened. This, though it did not hit the
+mark, was an excellent shot, and it won loud applause from the
+spectators. Mnestheus next discharged his dart, taking a long and
+steady aim; but his arrow, instead of striking the bird, cut in two
+the cord by which she was fastened, and, spreading her wings, the
+dove at once flew away. Instantly, however, Eurytion raised his
+bow, and shot with so true an aim that he struck the bird even in
+mid-flight, and brought her lifeless to the earth. There was thus
+no longer a mark at which Acestes could aim; but notwithstanding he
+drew his bow and discharged a shaft high into the air. And now a
+strange prodigy happened; for the arrow, soaring upward, took fire
+as it flew, and marked out a path of flame, till, being quite
+consumed, it vanished into the air. This spectacle naturally
+excited the wonder and reverence of the assembled multitude; and
+&AElig;neas, embracing Acestes, declared that the incident was an
+omen from the Gods awarding to him the first prize. He therefore
+bestowed on him a splendid bowl, embossed with figures, which had
+once belonged to Anchises, nor did the other competitors dispute
+the justice of the decision.</p>
+<p>But the games were not yet ended. The Trojan chief had prepared
+a closing spectacle as a surprise for the spectators. He sent a
+messenger to summon Ascanius, and in the mean time ordered a large
+space of ground to be cleared. Then suddenly his son entered on
+horseback at the head of a numerous company,&mdash;all the youths
+of the expedition. They were attired alike, with garlands on their
+heads and circles of gold about their necks; and each carried two
+spears of cornel-wood, tipped with steel. The young equestrians
+were divided into three companies; one was commanded by Ascanius
+himself, mounted on a beautiful Sidonian steed which had been given
+him by Queen Dido; a second by the youthful Priam, a son of that
+Polites whom Pyrrhus slew at the fall of Troy; and the third by
+Atys, a boy who was Ascanius&rsquo; especial friend and companion.
+They went through a series of evolutions, now advancing in line,
+again forming in different bands and pretending to charge one
+another, and afterwards going through many other intricate
+man&oelig;uvres. The scene was a most picturesque one, and gave
+great pleasure to those who witnessed it.</p>
+<h3><a id="LowerWorld" name="LowerWorld">&AElig;neas&rsquo;s Visit
+to the Lower World</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Charles Henry Hanson</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Continuing his voyage, &AElig;neas reached the shore of the
+country afterwards named Campania, the modern province of Naples.
+Here the ships were carefully moored, and the crews disembarked.
+Some busied themselves in kindling fires and preparing a meal;
+others explored the country in search of game. &AElig;neas,
+however, hastened at once to seek the temple of Apollo and the
+adjoining cave of the Cum&aelig;an Sibyl,&mdash;the most famous of
+all the oracles of antiquity. The temple and cave were situated in
+a thick wood, closely adjoining the gloomy lake of Avernus, a black
+pool of unknown depth, hedged in by precipitous cliffs, and
+emitting gases so poisonous that no bird was able to fly over it in
+safety. In the rocks at one side of the lake there yawned a sombre
+cavern, which was believed in those days to be the entrance to the
+kingdom of Pluto&mdash;the abode of the dead.</p>
+<p>&AElig;neas was surveying the temple,&mdash;an edifice of great
+splendor, adorned with pictures wrought in metal by the cunning
+hand of D&aelig;dalus,&mdash;when Achates, whom he had sent before
+him to the Sibyl&rsquo;s cave, approached, conducting the
+priestess. &ldquo;O prince,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;this is not the
+time for admiring the works of men. It will be more fitting for you
+to propitiate the god with sacrifices, so that he may inspire
+me.&rdquo; With this mandate the hero at once complied, and then
+the Sibyl summoned him and his followers to the entrance of her
+cave,&mdash;a vast apartment carved out of the living rock, whence
+issued a hundred corridors. Scarcely had the Trojans approached the
+threshold when the virgin exclaimed, &ldquo;Now is the time to
+consult your fate! The god! lo, the god!&rdquo; As she cried out
+thus her looks suddenly changed, her color came and went, her hair
+fell in disorder over her shoulders, her bosom heaved, and she was
+shaken by an uncontrollable passion. Her very form seemed to
+dilate, and the tone of her voice was no longer that of a mere
+mortal, since she was inspired by the influence of the god.
+&ldquo;Trojan &AElig;neas!&rdquo; she exclaimed, &ldquo;delay no
+longer to offer thy prayers for the knowledge which thou seekest;
+for not till then can I reveal to thee the secrets of the
+future.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Earnestly did &AElig;neas implore pity and aid from Apollo; and
+of the Sibyl he entreated that she should proclaim her revelations
+by word of mouth, and not, as was her custom, write them on leaves
+of trees, lest they should become the sport of the winds. At first
+the prophetess did not answer; she was not yet fully possessed by
+the spirit of the god, and raved in wild ecstasy in the cave,
+struggling, as it were, to resist the will of Ph&oelig;bus, who, on
+his part, wearied her foaming lips, subdued her fierce heart, and
+moulded her to his will. Then all at once the hundred doors of the
+cavern flew open of their own accord, and the Sibyl proclaimed the
+divine response,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;O thou who hast at length overpassed the perils of the
+ocean, yet more terrible trials await thee on shore. Thou and thy
+Trojans shall indeed reach the promised land&mdash;that is assured;
+but ye shall wish that ye had never come thither. Wars, horrid
+wars, I foresee, and Tiber foaming with a deluge of blood. Another
+Achilles awaits thee in Latium&mdash;he also the son of a goddess.
+Nor shall the persecutions of Juno cease to follow the Trojans
+wherever they may be; and in your distress you will humbly
+supplicate all the surrounding Italian states for aid. Once more
+shall a marriage with a foreign wife be a source of affliction to
+you. But yield not under your sufferings; encounter them resolutely
+in the teeth of adverse fortune, and when you least expect it, the
+means of deliverance shall come to you from a Greek
+city.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So, under the inspiration of Apollo, spoke the Sibyl. When she
+had ceased, &AElig;neas answered that no prospect of further trials
+could appall him, for he was prepared to endure the worst that
+could befall. But he now entreated, since it was said that the
+entrance to the shades was near, that the Sibyl should conduct him
+into those dark regions, in order that he might obtain an interview
+with the spectre of his father. It was Anchises&rsquo; self, he
+added, who had bidden him make this request; and filial devotion
+would enable him to perform a task which Orpheus had achieved out
+of love for his wife Eurydice, and Pollux through his attachment to
+his brother Castor.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;&AElig;neas,&rdquo; replied the priestess, &ldquo;easy is
+the descent into Hades: grim Pluto&rsquo;s gate stands open night
+and day, but to retrace your steps and escape to the upper regions
+will be a difficult task indeed, and one which few have hitherto
+been able to accomplish. If, however, you are fixed in the resolve
+to pursue so desperate an enterprise, learn what first is to be
+done. There is in the dark woods which surround the Lake of Avernus
+a certain tree, dense of foliage, on which grows a single bough of
+gold, with leaves and twigs of the same precious metal, and no
+living mortal can enter Hades unless he has first found and plucked
+this bough, which is demanded by Proserpine, the consort of Pluto
+and queen of the infernal realms, as her peculiar tribute. When the
+bough is torn off, another always grows in its place. Therefore
+search for it diligently, and when you have discovered it grasp it
+with your hand. If the Fates are propitious to your enterprise, you
+will be able to pluck it easily; if otherwise, your whole strength
+could not tear it from the tree, nor could you ever sever it with
+your sword. In the mean time the body of one of your friends lies
+lifeless, and demands the funeral rites. First bury him with proper
+ceremonies, and then return to me with black cattle for the
+sacrifices; and then you shall be able to visit the realms of
+Hades, to which most living men are denied an entrance.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>With sorrowful thoughts &AElig;neas, closely followed by
+Achates, now withdrew from the shrine, and took the way to the
+shore. Both were greatly perplexed to know what was the corpse
+needing burial of which the Sibyl had spoken. But while they were
+wondering they came to the beach, and there, before them, they saw
+lying the body of Misenus, who had come to a lamentable end.
+Misenus was the most skilled among all the Trojans in the art of
+blowing the trumpet. He had been, besides, a famous warrior, and
+during the siege of Troy was accustomed to be the companion of
+Hector in the field, and to fight by his side. When Hector fell, he
+attached himself to &AElig;neas, scorning to follow any less
+illustrious chief, and so had formed one of the band which the hero
+was conducting to Latium. But he was inordinately vain of his skill
+with the trumpet, and believed himself superior even to the
+Tritons, the sea-deities whose especial province it was to lull the
+seas at the command of Neptune by blowing upon instruments made of
+shells. These Tritons Misenus had challenged to a trial of skill,
+and by way of defiance had blown so loud a note that the deities
+were afraid to respond to his challenge; but being full of
+jealousy, they had now contrived to lure him into the sea and drown
+him. The discovery of his lifeless body filled all his comrades
+with sadness. They gathered about him with loud lamentations, and
+then prepared to erect his funeral pyre, hastening with axes into
+the thick surrounding woods, and cutting down huge oaks and pines
+and ash-trees.</p>
+<p>&AElig;neas himself led the way in the performance of this task,
+and while he was engaged in it he could not help exclaiming, as his
+glance surveyed the wide forest, &ldquo;Would that I could now
+perceive the golden bough which I must find before entering Hades;
+for in this ample forest, how can I begin to search for it?&rdquo;
+Scarcely had he spoken when two pigeons suddenly swooped down from
+the upper air and alighted at his feet. He guessed at once that
+these doves, his mother&rsquo;s favorite birds, had been sent for
+his guidance, and he entreated them to conduct him to the place
+where the precious bough was growing. The doves, feeding and flying
+by turns, advanced through the wood at such a speed that
+&AElig;neas could easily keep them in sight, and presently, having
+reached the very edge of Lake Avernus, both rose at once into the
+air, and settled on a great tree of very dense foliage. The hero
+hastened to the spot, and there indeed, on one of the lower limbs
+of the tree, gleamed the bough, the rich yellow lustre of its
+leaves and twigs contrasting vividly with the deep green of the
+surrounding foliage. &AElig;neas with delight grasped it, and
+plucked it from its place, and, bearing it carefully in his hand,
+hastened to rejoin his companions.</p>
+<p>They, in the mean time, had reared on the shore a vast pile of
+logs of pine and oak, the sides of which they had interlaced with
+smaller boughs. After having carefully washed and purified the body
+of Misenus, they first made a couch upon the pyre, with the apparel
+of the dead man, and then, with renewed cries of grief, placed the
+body upon it. His arms, too, they laid beside him, and having
+poured incense and oil abundantly upon the pile, they set it on
+fire. When only smouldering embers were left, these were quenched
+with wine, and the ashes of the dead were carefully collected and
+placed in a brazen urn. This urn was afterwards deposited in a
+lofty tomb which &AElig;neas erected on a promontory that
+henceforth bore the name of Misenus.</p>
+<p>The funeral ceremonies having thus duly been performed, the hero
+proceeded to the cave of the Sibyl, and called upon her to fulfill
+her promise, and accompany him to the kingdom of the dead. She led
+him to the mouth of the black cavern at the side of Lake Avernus,
+and there offered up sacrifices of black cattle and sheep, uttering
+various invocations. Presently the ground began to rumble beneath
+their feet; upon which the Sibyl ordered those of
+&AElig;neas&rsquo;s followers who had attended him to withdraw from
+the spot, and exhorted the chief himself, drawing his sword from
+its sheath, to march firmly forward. So saying she plunged into the
+cave, nor did he hesitate to follow.</p>
+<p>At first they moved along through a region that was utterly
+waste, void, and covered with an intense gloom, deep as that of a
+winter&rsquo;s night when the moon is obscured by clouds. But this
+desolate tract was not wholly untenanted, for &AElig;neas saw
+flitting about certain hideous shadowy forms. The spirits of Grief
+and Revenge and pale Disease, Fear and Famine and deformed
+Indigence, had their abode in this vestibule of Hades; and so, too,
+Death and Toil, and murderous War, and frantic Discord, her head
+crowned with curling vipers and bound by a blood-dyed fillet. Here,
+also, were the iron chambers in which dwelt the terrible Furies. In
+the midst rose a gloomy elm, which was the haunt of vain Dreams,
+who dwelt under every leaf. Beyond this tree were many huge and
+misshapen monsters,&mdash;Centaurs, and double-formed Scyllas, and
+the great dragon of the Lern&aelig;an lake, which, when it plagued
+the upper earth, was slain by Hercules. Here, also, was the huge
+Chim&aelig;ra, with its three heads vomiting flames; Gorgons,
+Harpies, and other ghastly forms flitted about. At so fearful a
+sight. &AElig;neas was seized with sudden fear; he drew his sword,
+and would have struck at the monsters, if the Sibyl had not
+restrained his hand and reminded him that they were but disembodied
+shadows.</p>
+<p>The path now led them to a place where the three infernal
+rivers, Acheron, Cocytus, and Styx, met in one deep, black, and
+boiling flood. Here there kept guard the grim ferryman Charon, an
+infernal deity of fearful aspect. A long gray beard fell all
+tangled and neglected from his chin; his filthy and ragged garments
+were knotted over his shoulders; his eyes glittered with baleful
+light. He sat on a great black barge, which he pushed to and fro
+across the river with a pole. An immense crowd of shades was
+incessantly pouring to the banks,&mdash;young and old, matrons and
+virgins, warriors who had endured the toils of a long life and
+tender boys who had died while yet under the care of their parents.
+All were eager to cross the stream, and stretched their hands in
+earnest entreaty to Charon to admit them into his boat. But the
+sullen ferryman only consented to receive some; others he drove
+back with his pole, and would on no account permit them to
+cross.</p>
+<p>&AElig;neas was amazed at this scene, and asked the Sibyl to
+explain to him its meaning. &ldquo;You see before you,&rdquo; she
+replied, &ldquo;the deep pools of Cocytus, and the Stygian lake, by
+which the Gods are accustomed to swear when they take an oath which
+they dare not violate. All that crowd which Charon will not ferry
+across is composed of persons who after death received not the
+rites of burial; those only are permitted to enter the boat who
+have been interred with proper ceremonies. As for the others, they
+wander unquiet about these shores for a hundred years before they
+are allowed to cross to the regions beyond.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>When &AElig;neas heard this he was filled with sadness, for
+among the spectres of the unburied who crowded on the bank he saw
+many of his own comrades who had perished during the storms he had
+had to encounter during his long voyages. As he looked, there
+advanced, slow and mournful, the pilot Palinurus, who had been
+thrown overboard by Somnus during the recent voyage from Sicily.
+The hero accosted him, and asked him what god had torn him from his
+post and overwhelmed him in the midst of the ocean. The oracle of
+Apollo, he said, had assured him that Palinurus would be safe on
+the sea, and would arrive on the Italian coast; and yet it would
+seem that the oracle had been falsified. The shade of Palinurus,
+knowing nothing of the enchantment which had been wrought on him by
+Somnus, replied that no god had destroyed him, and that the oracle
+had spoken truly. He had fallen into the sea through being overcome
+by slumber, and having kept afloat for three days and nights, had
+on the fourth day reached the Italian shore alive, but had been
+cruelly murdered by the savage people while clambering up the
+cliffs. Now his body was tossing on the waves, sometimes thrown on
+the shore and then washed off again. But he passionately entreated
+&AElig;neas either to find his corpse and inter it with proper
+solemnities, or else to contrive some means of taking him as his
+companion across the black waters of Styx, unburied as he was, that
+at last his soul might find rest. The Sibyl, however, rebuked him
+for expressing so impious a desire, and for hoping that the fixed
+decrees of the Gods could be violated for the benefit of one
+insignificant mortal. But by way of consolation she informed him
+that the people of the country where he had met with his death,
+compelled by terrible plagues sent by Jupiter, would offer solemn
+atonement to his remains, erect a tomb to his memory, and give his
+name to the place where it stood.</p>
+<p>&AElig;neas and the Sibyl now advanced toward the river; but
+when Charon saw them approaching, he called out, &ldquo;Whoever
+thou mayest be that art now coming armed and in life to our rivers,
+say quickly on what errand thou art coming. This is the region of
+ghosts and death; to waft over the bodies of the living in my boat
+is not permitted. Nor was it joyful to me to receive Hercules when
+he came, nor Theseus and Pirithous, though they were descendants of
+the Gods and unconquerable in war. Hercules dared to bind in chains
+Cerberus himself, the keeper of the gate of Tartarus, and dragged
+him trembling from the very throne of Pluto. The others attempted a
+feat scarcely less perilous, for they sought to carry off our queen
+Proserpine.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Be not disturbed,&rdquo; answered the Sibyl; &ldquo;we at
+least meditate no such plots, nor does this mortal bring with him
+his arms for any purpose of violence. He is &AElig;neas of Troy,
+illustrious for piety and skill in arms, and he penetrates these
+gloomy abodes to have converse with his father Anchises. If your
+compassion is not moved by his filial devotion, at least pay regard
+to this branch.&rdquo; And so saying, she produced the golden
+bough. The surly ferryman, though filled with rage at being forced
+to obey, was at once silenced. He brought his boat to the bank, and
+silently received into it &AElig;neas and his companion, driving
+back the ghosts that at the same time eagerly strove to enter the
+vessel. It was old and leaky, and sank deep in the black flood
+under the unaccustomed weight of living mortals; but Charon ferried
+them safely across, and landed them on the farther side, where, in
+a huge den at the gate of the infernal regions, lay Cerberus, the
+terrible three-headed dog which was the guardian of the
+place&mdash;a ferocious brute which only Hercules among living men
+had been able to subdue. When &AElig;neas approached he opened his
+huge jaws and made all Hades resound with his barking; but the
+Sibyl threw to him a medicated cake, which he at once devoured, and
+was thereby lulled into profound sleep. The way was now safe; the
+Trojan chief and his companion passed quickly through the open
+gate, and entered the dread region where Minos and his fellow
+judges pronounced on the fate of each ghost that came before
+them.</p>
+<p>The first place within the gate was assigned to the shades of
+infants, cut off in the very beginning of life, who filled their
+allotted region with loud wailings and weeping. Beyond these were
+placed persons who had been put to death in consequence of false
+accusations. Not even the unjust suffering which such persons had
+endured on earth could at once procure for them a place among those
+happy spirits declared free of guilt. Here they were doomed to wait
+till the inexorable Minos examined each case and gave his award.
+Immediately adjoining was the place allotted to those who, though
+unstained by crime, had become weary of life and had committed
+self-destruction. Gladly, indeed, would they have now returned to
+the upper world they had despised, but no such return was possible
+to them.</p>
+<p>&AElig;neas and his companion next viewed a region named the
+Fields of Mourning,&mdash;a wide tract, with shady paths and thick
+myrtle groves, dedicated to those who had died through unrequited
+love, and were held to have been emancipated by the miseries they
+had endured on earth from suffering any punishment below. Here were
+to be seen, wandering disconsolately, many women of whom
+&AElig;neas had heard in old legends of Greece and Troy. Among them
+he beheld, with sorrow and pity, the ill-starred Queen of Carthage,
+the wound she had herself inflicted yet gaping in her fair bosom.
+&ldquo;Dido!&rdquo; he exclaimed with tears, &ldquo;was it then a
+true rumor that reached me of your having died after my departure,
+and by your own hand? If I have been the cause of your death, I am
+indeed unhappy. By all I hold sacred, fair queen, I swear to you
+that it was against my own will I quitted Carthage. The will of the
+Gods, which now has brought me, while yet living, into these
+melancholy realms, drove me from you; but I dreamt not that our
+separation would bring upon you such extreme suffering. Why will
+you not speak to me? Why do you fly from me? Never again will the
+Fates permit us to meet together.&rdquo; But all his entreaties and
+his tears were vain. The spectre gazed upon him awhile with eyes of
+inexorable hate, and then turned away, with a gesture of
+unrelenting aversion, to a shady recess near by, where she was
+joined by the ghost of her first lord, Sich&aelig;us, who by the
+compassion of Pluto had been permitted to bear her company.
+&AElig;neas resumed his journey, pondering sadly over the fate of
+the woman who but a little since had loved him so ardently and to
+whom he had unwillingly brought such misfortunes. He and his guide
+now came to a place dedicated to the shades of renowned warriors.
+Here he saw numbers of those brave Trojans, once his companions in
+arms, who had fallen before Troy. They eagerly crowded around him,
+pressed his hands, and questioned him as to the circumstances which
+had brought him, while yet alive, amongst them. There, too, were
+many Greeks who had perished during the Trojan war; but when they
+beheld the hero in the flesh, and wearing his gleaming armor, they
+fled from him in dismay. As he passed on, after exchanging
+affectionate words with many of his old comrades, he met
+De&iuml;phobus, that son of Priam who, after the death of Paris,
+became the husband of Helen. The spectre of the prince was cruelly
+mutilated,&mdash;so that &AElig;neas scarcely knew him. &ldquo;Who,
+O De&iuml;phobus,&rdquo; he exclaimed, &ldquo;could have inflicted
+such shameful wounds upon you? After I had escaped from Troy a
+story was brought to me that you had indeed perished, but honorably
+and in fair fight, having slain many of the enemy. Then I erected
+in your honor an empty tomb on the shore under Mount Ida, and
+offered proper funeral rites, for your body I was unable to
+find.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You, my friend,&rdquo; answered De&iuml;phobus,
+&ldquo;omitted no duty towards my corpse that you could perform.
+But I owe my death and these infamous wounds to the wickedness of
+Helen; they are the marks of her love. On the night after the fatal
+horse was brought into Troy, I was lying asleep in my chamber,
+enjoying needful repose. Then my faithless wife removed all the
+arms from my palace, and even took away my sword from the side of
+my couch. That done, she threw open the gates, and herself summoned
+her former husband, Menelaus, and he and Ulysses burst into my
+apartment and inflicted on me these wounds, for which I pray the
+Gods that they may be requited.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&AElig;neas would have spent yet more time in conversing with
+the shades of his former comrades; but the Sibyl reminded him that
+the hour was approaching when he must return to the upper world.
+&ldquo;Here,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;the path is divided. To the
+right, past the palace of Pluto, lies our way to the Elysian
+Fields; on the left is the way to Tartarus, the place of punishment
+for the wicked.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>As they proceeded toward Elysium, &AElig;neas looked around him,
+and beheld to the left a vast prison, enclosed by mighty walls, at
+the foot of which ran Phlegethon, the river of fire, whirling along
+great rocks in its furious current. Across the stream, just
+opposite to where he was standing, was a lofty gate, with columns
+of solid adamant. In an iron tower adjoining sat Tisiphone, the
+eldest of the Furies, watching the gate. From within sounds were
+heard&mdash;groans of pain, the sound of cruel lashes, and the
+clanking of chains. &AElig;neas asked his companion what
+punishments were being inflicted within, and who were the
+sufferers. &ldquo;This,&rdquo; replied the Sibyl, &ldquo;is
+Tartarus, whereinto no righteous person can enter. Here
+Rhadamanthus presides: he searches into the deeds of all who are
+sent hither, obliges them to confess all the crimes they have
+committed in the upper world, and awards the punishment. As soon as
+the sentence is pronounced, Tisiphone scourges the doomed one with
+a whip of scorpions, and then consigns him to the fierce attendants
+of her sister Furies. Immediately the gates, creaking on their
+hinges, fly open. Within, the entrance is guarded by a hideous
+Hydra, with fifty black and gaping mouths. In the pit of Tartarus
+beyond, the giants who waged war against the ruler of the Gods lie
+prostrated by his thunderbolts. Beside them, enduring terrible
+tortures, is Salmoneus. He was a king of Elis in Greece, and was so
+puffed up by pride that he rode through his city on a high chariot
+drawn by four prancing horses, waving in his hand a torch, and
+pretending to be Jupiter himself, wielding his thunderbolts. The
+Almighty Sire punished his impiety by hurling from Olympus a real
+thunderbolt, which deprived him of life; and now he pays the
+penalty of his mad pride by eternal sufferings in Tartarus. There
+also lies Tityus, the huge giant who, having insulted the goddess
+Latona, was slain by the darts of her children, Apollo and Diana,
+and whose writhing body now lies extended over nine acres of
+ground, while insatiable vultures perpetually prey on his vitals,
+that are renewed as fast as they are devoured. Beyond him is Ixion,
+bound to a wheel that never ceases to revolve, while he is scourged
+by attendant Furies. He it was who, being admitted to Olympus by
+the generosity of Jupiter himself, dared to seek the love of the
+queen of the Gods. Not less dreadful is the punishment allotted to
+Pirithous, who, along with Theseus, endeavored to carry off the
+Queen of Hades, Proserpine, from the side of Pluto. Over his head
+hangs a huge rock, which every moment seems about to fall and crush
+him, but yet never actually descends; moreover, he is plagued with
+a gnawing hunger, and a rich banquet is always before him, which
+yet he is never able to reach. Myriads of other unhappy shades,
+whose course on earth has been stained by detestable crime, here
+expiate the evil they have done; but had I a hundred mouths and a
+hundred tongues, I could not recount all their offenses and the
+varieties of their punishment. It is necessary that we should go
+forward, since yonder stands the palace of Pluto, where thou, O
+&AElig;neas, must deposit the bough which has gained thee admission
+here.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Obedient to his guide, &AElig;neas advanced to the vast portals
+of the palace where Pluto, the brother of Jupiter and monarch of
+the infernal kingdom, had his abode with his lovely queen
+Proserpine, the daughter of Ceres, whom ages before he had carried
+off from the upper world. There he made due reverence before the
+goddess, and deposited the golden bough at her feet. Advancing
+beyond, &AElig;neas and the Sibyl came at last to the Elysian
+Fields,&mdash;the abode of joy assigned to those who during life
+had been distinguished for piety, virtue, and heroic actions. Here
+were lovely green fields and pleasant groves; the air was pure and
+balmy, the sky was blue, and all was glowing-in the light of the
+blessed sun. Some of the happy spirits who dwelt in this region
+were amusing themselves by wrestling on the greensward, and other
+sports in which they had delighted on earth, such as
+chariot-racing, exercises with the spear and the bow. Others were
+dancing and singing to the delicious notes which Orpheus, the most
+skillful of musicians, produced from his lyre. On the bank of the
+river Eridanus, which pours its clear waters through Elysium over
+sands of gold, were gathered a band whose heads were adorned with
+snow-white fillets. These were priests who had kept unstained the
+purity and sanctity of their office; poets who had sung the praises
+of the Gods in immortal verse; and those who had made human life
+more happy by the invention of useful arts. Among them the Sibyl
+sought out Musseus, the father of the poets, and besought him to
+reveal in what retreat they should find Anchises, on whose account
+she and her companion had traversed all the regions of the
+shades.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;None of us,&rdquo; answered the venerable shade,
+&ldquo;have here any fixed abode. We wander at our will among the
+shady groves and by the pleasant banks of the river. But if you
+mount with me this little eminence, I will show you him whom you
+seek.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>As he spoke, he led them to a spot where they could survey all
+the shining plains around, and pointed to where Anchises, reclined
+in a secluded vale, was surveying the souls of his descendants who
+were destined in future times to visit the earth, and were enacting
+beforehand the achievements they were fated to accomplish during
+life. As soon as he saw &AElig;neas advancing toward him, he rose
+with hands stretched out and joyful tears pouring down his
+face.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Are you indeed,&rdquo; he exclaimed, &ldquo;come to me at
+last, my son? Am I permitted once more to see your face, and to
+listen to the tones of your dear voice? Now indeed the hopes which
+I cherished are fulfilled. By how many dangers have you been
+threatened since we parted! I was filled with dread lest you should
+be prevented from accomplishing your task by the temptations which
+beset you at Carthage.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Thy apparition, beloved father,&rdquo; answered
+&AElig;neas, &ldquo;continually appearing to me in dreams, urged me
+forward even to these regions. Permit me now to clasp thee in my
+arms, and do not withdraw from my embrace.&rdquo; Thrice did he
+attempt to throw his arms about the shade, which being only
+composed of thin air, was not perceptible to his touch. While the
+two conversed together, &AElig;neas observed at no great distance
+from them a stream, at which prodigious numbers of ghosts were
+incessantly crowding to drink, swarming like bees round their hive.
+Astonished at this spectacle, the hero inquired of his father what
+that stream was, and why those spectres were so eager to drink of
+it. &ldquo;These,&rdquo; answered Anchises, &ldquo;are souls
+destined by fate to occupy other bodies in the upper world; and the
+stream is Lethe, one draught of which is sufficient to destroy all
+recollection of their former condition.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;But surely,&rdquo; said &AElig;neas, &ldquo;it is not to
+be believed that any souls which have tasted the delights of this
+abode will be desirous to return again to the life of earth, with
+its uncertainties and its miseries. How comes it that this impulse
+possesses them?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>In reply to this question, Anchises entered into a long
+explanation, the substance of which was that all the spirits of the
+departed had to endure in the regions below a process of expiation
+for their earthly sins, longer or shorter according to the nature
+of their transgressions. Those that were not consigned to the pains
+of Tartarus entered the Elysian Fields, where, after they had
+remained a thousand years, they were summoned to drink of the
+waters of Lethe, and thus lose all recollection of their former
+lives; after which, being purified from all stain, they were fitted
+to return to the upper world and inhabit new bodies. Anchises added
+that he would show to his son the forms of his own descendants in
+the Italian kingdom he was destined to establish, and would trace
+for him their achievements. Leading &AElig;neas and the Sibyl onto
+a rising ground, in the midst of the souls which were crowding
+about the magic stream of Lethe, he pointed out to him a long array
+of future kings of Latium,&mdash;Silvius, who was to be the son of
+&AElig;neas&rsquo;s old age by his consort Lavinia; Procas, Capys,
+and Numitor, destined to be monarchs of Alba Longa; and Romulus,
+the future founder of the great city of Rome, which would extend
+over seven hills, and would spread her dominion over the whole
+earth. Not far from these were the souls of Romulus&rsquo;s
+successors in the&rsquo; early days of Rome,&mdash;Numa Pompilius,
+who first would give his country laws, and encourage the arts of
+peace; Tullus Hostilius, who would wage victorious wars, and extend
+the territories of Rome; Ancus Martius, not less successful in the
+field; and Tarquin, destined to lose the throne through his
+oppressive reign. Anchises proceeded to indicate to his wondering
+son many of the patriots and generals who in future years were to
+contribute to the glory and power of the Roman State,&mdash;more
+especially the great Julius Caesar, the lineal descendant of
+&AElig;neas himself; and Augustus, who would once more establish
+the golden age in Latium, and whose empire would extend to
+countries as yet unknown. The venerable shade concluded his
+forecast of the future with a splendid description of the part
+which Rome was destined to play in the world&rsquo;s
+history:&mdash;</p>
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<p>&ldquo;Let others better mould the running mass</p>
+<p>Of metals, and inform the breathing brass,</p>
+<p>And soften into flesh a marble face;</p>
+<p>Plead better at the bar; describes the skies,</p>
+<p>And when the stars descend, and when they rise:</p>
+<p>But Rome! &rsquo;tis thine alone, with awful sway</p>
+<p>To rule mankind, and make the world obey,</p>
+<p>Disposing peace and war thy own majestic way;</p>
+<p>To tame the proud, the fettered slave to free,&mdash;</p>
+<p>These are imperial arts, and worthy thee.&rdquo;</p>
+</div>
+</div>
+<p>Having thus inspired &AElig;neas with renewed determination by
+showing him the brilliant future that was awaiting his descendants,
+Anchises conducted him over those parts of the Elysian Fields which
+he had not yet visited, and showed him everything that was of
+peculiar interest. As they went, he discoursed to him respecting
+the wars which he would have to wage in Latium, and gave him
+counsel as to the means by which he should overcome every
+difficulty. Then at last, having brought him to the ivory gate
+whence the gods were accustomed to send false dreams to the upper
+world, he bade him farewell. By that gate &AElig;neas and the Sibyl
+quitted the abodes of the dead, and ascended without difficulty or
+adventure to the cave of the oracle, whence the hero hastened at
+once to his ships. Without loss of time he ordered the sails to be
+spread, and the ships were steered along the coast, drawing nearer
+ever hour to their final destination.</p>
+<h3><a id="Battle" name="Battle">&AElig;neas&rsquo;s First Great
+Battle with the Latins</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Charles Henry Hanson</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p class="quote">[&AElig;neas finally lands in Italy, the country
+promised him by the Gods as a home for his race. The Italian king,
+Latinus, has been warned by signs and omens that the hand of his
+daughter Lavinia must not be given to an Italian prince, but to a
+stranger coming from a far country. He believes that &AElig;neas is
+the hero chosen by the Fates as her husband, and greets him in most
+friendly manner. Queen Amata, however, is influenced by the
+Trojan-hating Juno to oppose this marriage. Turnus, chief of the
+Rutuli, a suitor of Lavinia, is next aroused, and soon the whole
+kingdom is in a turmoil. A fierce battle ensues.]</p>
+<p>Turnus, having brought the bulk of his forces from before the
+beseiged camp, hurled them against the army of &AElig;neas before
+its ranks were properly formed, and a furious conflict at once
+began to rage. The Trojan hero, rejoicing to find himself once more
+on a field of battle, first encountered the Latian warriors, who
+chanced to be in his front. Their leader was Theron, a man of
+gigantic stature, who did not hesitate to engage &AElig;neas hand
+to hand; but he paid dearly for his rashness, for the sword which
+Vulcan had forged&mdash;so keen was its edge, so excellent its
+temper&mdash;pierced through his brazen buckler and his tunic
+stiffened by bars of gold, and penetrating his side, drained the
+life-blood. Next the hero struck down Lycas; and rushing onward,
+encountered two stalwart rustics, Cisseus and Gyas, who were making
+havoc among the Trojans by beating them down with ponderous clubs.
+On the divine armor the heavy blows of these rude weapons fell
+harmless, while the spear of &AElig;neas proved fatal to both those
+who wielded them. An insolent warrior named Pharus was defying the
+hero from a short distance with taunting speech, when he hurled a
+javelin, which struck the boaster full in the mouth, and
+transfixing the throat, silenced him forever. Now a band of seven
+brothers, the sons of Phorcus, all at once attacked &AElig;neas
+with darts, throwing them together. Some of the weapons struck his
+helmet and shield, and rebounded; others, turned aside by the care
+of Venus, grazed his skin. &AElig;neas called to Achates to bring
+him more spears, and snatching one as soon as it was offered,
+hurled it against M&aelig;on, one of the brothers, with such force
+that it penetrated his shield and corselet, and inflicted a mortal
+wound in his breast. Another brother, Alcanor, hurrying up to
+M&aelig;on&rsquo;s assistance, he smote with a second spear, just
+where the arm and shoulder join, leaving the arm hanging to the
+body only by two or three shreds of skin and muscle. Seeing the
+slaughter that &AElig;neas was spreading around him, Hal&aelig;sus
+and Messapus hurried up with their bands to confront him, and so in
+that part of the field the battle grew still more furious.</p>
+<p>In another part, where Pallas was fighting at the head of his
+Arcadian horsemen, the ground had been rendered so uneven by the
+winter torrents that they were obliged to dismount, and being
+unaccustomed to fight on foot, they began to retreat before the
+fierce assault of the Rutulians. At this sight their brave young
+leader was overwhelmed with shame and mortification.
+&ldquo;Whither,&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;my fellow countrymen, do
+you fly? I implore you, by the memory of your gallant deeds in the
+past, by the name of Evander, the king you love, by my own hopes of
+glory, not to flee. Your way lies through your foes, not from them;
+with your swords must you cut a passage where they crowd most
+densely. These are not gods who pursue us; they are mortals, like
+ourselves, and they are not stronger or more numerous than we. The
+ocean hems us in with an impassable barrier on the one side; the
+enemy confronts us on the other, and separates us from our friends.
+Whether shall we fly into the sea, or force our way toward the
+Trojans?&rdquo; So saying, he turned, and dashed into the midst of
+the hostile ranks. Tagus was the first who fell a victim to his
+noble wrath; for as he was stooping to pick up a heavy stone, the
+spear of Pallas struck him in the middle of the back, and shattered
+the spine and ribs. As the young hero was withdrawing the weapon,
+Hisbon rushed on and struck at him from above; but the blow fell
+short, and before he could recover his guard Pallas buried his
+sword deep in his body. Warrior after warrior he struck down,
+restored the confidence of his followers, and spread confusion and
+dismay in the opposite ranks, raging among them as the flames lit
+by the husbandman in the autumn spread through the stubble, and
+destroy everything in their path. But now the Auruncian chief,
+Hal&aelig;sus, summoned by some of his followers to their aid,
+opposed the advance of the Arcadians. He was a tried and fierce
+warrior, and he slew five of the bravest of Pallas&rsquo;s men
+before the young chief could confront him. Then, however, the son
+of Evander hurled a spear with such skill and certainty of aim that
+he pierced Hal&aelig;sus&rsquo;s heart, and the grim leader of the
+Aurunci sank lifeless on the field. His fall was a sore
+discouragement to the troops of Turnus, which would have sought
+safety in flight, had not Lausus, the gallant son of
+Mezentius,&mdash;noble and upright offspring of an unworthy
+father,&mdash;suddenly come to their aid. First encountering Abas,
+leader of the Populonians, he slew him with a single blow of his
+sword, and followed up his success with a furious slaughter of
+Arcadians and Etrurians. Thus the battle continued: on the one side
+Pallas impetuously urged the attack; on the other Lausus not less
+obstinately maintained the defense. They were equal in years, and
+in beauty and grace of form; and to both alike the Fates had
+assigned a place among the victims of the war. But the Gods had
+ordained that they should not encounter hand to hand; each was
+destined to succumb to a superior foe.</p>
+<p>Turnus was leading his troops in another quarter of the field,
+when he was summoned to hasten to the assistance of Lausus, who
+alone was bearing up the battle against Pallas and his Arcadians.
+Quickly he turned his chariot in that direction, and as soon as he
+reached the spot, called on his warriors to withdraw from the
+conflict. &ldquo;I alone,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;will encounter
+Pallas; to me his life is given. Would to Heaven his father were
+here to witness our combat.&rdquo; The Rutulians obeyed the command
+of their king, and fell back; while Pallas, amazed at their retreat
+and the sudden appearance of Turnus, gazed on his opponent. Then,
+in reply to his vaunting speech, he said, &ldquo;Now, either by
+carrying off thy spoils or by a noble death at thy hands, I shall
+be rendered famous. My sire knows how to bear either extremity of
+fortune. Cease thy threatenings and let us engage.&rdquo; As he
+spoke, the hearts of the Arcadians, who loved him, were filled with
+fear and sorrow. Turnus sprang from his chariot, and came forward
+to the encounter on foot, advancing as a lion bounds toward his
+prey. As soon as Pallas thought him within reach of his spear, he
+prepared to throw it, and uttered this prayer to Hercules:
+&ldquo;By my father&rsquo;s hospitality, and that abode which thou,
+his guest, didst visit, O Alcides, aid, I implore thee, my arduous
+attempt. May the dying eyes of Turnus behold me strip him,
+expiring, of his bloody armor, and endure the sight of a victorious
+foe.&rdquo; Hercules, from his place on Olympus, heard the prayer,
+and knowing that the decree of Fate was otherwise, answered with
+heavy groans and unavailing tears. These were not unseen by
+Jupiter, who strove to console his immortal son. &ldquo;To every
+one,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;his day is fixed; a short and
+irretrievable term of life is given to all; but to lengthen out
+fame by heroic deeds is the best that man can do. Under the lofty
+walls of Troy many sons of gods themselves perished,&mdash;among
+them the heroic Sarpedon, my own offspring, perished; Turnus, too,
+is summoned by the Fates, and has nearly reached his term of
+life.&rdquo; He spoke, and turned away his gaze from the
+battlefield, himself pitying the untimely death of Pallas.</p>
+<p>And now the brave son of Evander with his utmost force hurled
+his spear, and then hastened to draw his sword from its scabbard.
+The weapon struck Turnus where the shoulder was protected by the
+corselet, and piercing through the solid brass, slightly grazed the
+hero&rsquo;s body. Then Turnus, poising a steel-tipped javelin,
+darted it at Pallas, exclaiming, &ldquo;See whether mine be not the
+more penetrating shaft.&rdquo; Cast with irresistible might, it
+tore its way through the youth&rsquo;s shield, composed though it
+was of thick plates of brass and iron, and through his cuirass, and
+inflicted a ghastly wound in his breast. In vain he wrenched out
+the deadly missile from his body; even as he withdrew it life
+deserted his quivering form, and he fell to the ground. Bestriding
+the corpse, Turnus cried, &ldquo;Ye Arcadians, faithfully report to
+Evander this message,&mdash;I send him back his Pallas in such a
+plight as he deserved. Whatever honor is in a tomb, whatever solace
+in the performance of funeral rites, I freely grant him. His league
+with the Trojan intruder shall cost him dear.&rdquo; So saying, he
+pressed his foot on the body, and tore away a massive belt, adorned
+with figures richly carved in gold. This spoil Turnus exultingly
+clasped around his own body, little dreaming that the time would
+come when he would wish that he had never taken it, and that he and
+Pallas had never met. But now the lifeless corpse of the youth,
+stripped of its arms and still bleeding from the fatal wound
+inflicted by the Rutulian chief, was laid on a shield and borne
+away by his weeping followers. Thus the first day on which he took
+a part in war saw also the young hero&rsquo;s death, though not,
+indeed, before he had strewn the plain with Rutulian corpses.</p>
+<p>Speedily the news of this sad disaster, and of the consequent
+retreat of his forces in that part of the field, was borne to
+&AElig;neas. Rendered furious by the event, he impetuously mowed
+with his sword a bloody passage through the hostile ranks in search
+of Turnus, on whom he was eager to avenge the death of his friend.
+The thought of the bright youth who had thus perished in his cause,
+of the hoary father bereaved of all that made life dear to him,
+filled his heart with sorrow as he recalled the kindness which both
+had shown to him, and the pledges of enduring friendship he had
+exchanged with them. Eight Rutulian warriors he struck down, and
+captured them alive, destining them as victims to be offered to the
+shade of Pallas, and to drench with their blood the flames of the
+hero&rsquo;s funeral pyre. Next, &AElig;neas having hurled a
+javelin at a Latian named Magus, the trembling wretch evaded the
+dart by stooping, and as &AElig;neas rushed upon him with uplifted
+sword, he clasped his knees, and implored him to spare his life,
+proffering a large ransom of silver and gold which lay concealed
+underground in his house. Sternly the Trojan chief bade him keep
+his treasures for his sons; as for showing mercy, that was
+forbidden to him from the moment that Pallas fell by the hand of
+Turnus. Then grasping the suppliant&rsquo;s helmet, and forcing
+back his head so as to expose the neck, even as Magus renewed his
+petition he plunged the sword into his body to the hilt. Near by,
+the luckless &AElig;monides, a priest of Apollo and Diana, who wore
+a sacred fillet on his temples and shone in burnished armor, fell a
+victim to his relentless spear, and the splendid arms he had worn
+were carried off by Serestus as an offering to Mars. The Rutulians
+fled in terror before the raging chief; but King C&aelig;culus of
+Pr&aelig;neste, and Umbro, the leader of the Marsians, renewed the
+struggle. A huge warrior named Tarquitus, the son of the nymph
+Dryope, dared to oppose himself to &AElig;neas, but his fate was
+soon decided. The hero first pierced his corselet with a spear, and
+then, as he lay wounded and imploring mercy, smote off his head
+with his sword. Spurning the bleeding trunk, he furiously cried,
+&ldquo;Lie there, haughty champion! Thee no tender mother shall
+lodge in the earth, or place a tomb above thy body; to birds of
+prey thou shalt be left, or cast in the sea to be devoured by
+fishes.&rdquo; Still insatiable of slaughter, he drove into
+terrified flight Ant&aelig;us and Lycas, two of Turnus&rsquo;s
+bravest followers. But now the fierce Lucagus approached in a
+chariot drawn by two snow-white coursers. These were guided by his
+brother Liger, while he himself flourished his sword in the air,
+and prepared to encounter &AElig;neas, who on his part rushed
+forward to meet them. &ldquo;These,&rdquo; cried Liger, &ldquo;are
+not the steeds of Diomedes, nor this the plain of Troy. Here an end
+shall be put at once to thy life and to the war.&rdquo; Against
+these insults &AElig;neas prepared to give an answer otherwise than
+in words, and as Lucagus bent forward in readiness for the fight,
+the Trojan javelin whizzed through the rim of his shield, smote him
+in the groin, and hurled him, quivering in the pangs of death, out
+of the chariot. &AElig;neas assailed his dying ears with a bitter
+scoff: &ldquo;It is not, O Lucagus, the slowness of thy steeds in
+flight that hath lost thee thy chariot, but thou thyself, springing
+from thy seat, hast abandoned it.&rdquo; So saying, he seized the
+chariot; and now the miserable Liger, extending his hands in
+supplication, begged for his life. &ldquo;It was not in this
+fashion that thou spokest a little while since,&rdquo; replied the
+relentless hero. &ldquo;It would not be fitting that thou shouldst
+desert thy brother. Die, therefore, and attend him to the
+shades.&rdquo; With that he thrust the avenging sword through his
+heart, whence the trembling soul fled with a shriek.</p>
+<p>So &AElig;neas spread havoc amid the hostile ranks, and drove
+the forces of Turnus back in headlong rout, so that Ascanius and
+those who had hitherto been shut up in the fortifications were able
+to issue forth into the field. Meanwhile Jupiter, watching from
+Olympus the fortunes of the day, accosted his consort. &ldquo;Thou
+art in the right, my cherished queen, in alleging that Venus gives
+her aid to the Trojans; for without divine aid, how would it be
+possible for any mortal to achieve such deeds as &AElig;neas is now
+accomplishing?&rdquo; &ldquo;Why,&rdquo; submissively answered
+Juno, &ldquo;dost thou tease me, who am already oppressed with
+anguish for the fate of the people I befriend? Had I that share in
+your love which I once enjoyed, and which it is fitting for me to
+possess, thou surely couldst not refuse me this much, that I might
+have permission to rescue Turnus from the fate that threatens him,
+and restore him safe to his father Daunus. But since that cannot
+be, let him die, and glut the vengeance of the Trojan with his
+blood; yet his origin is divine, and often has he piled thy altars
+with sacrifices.&rdquo; Not unmoved, the ruler of the Gods replied,
+&ldquo;If you plead for a respite from immediate death, and a
+little breathing-time for the youth, I grant you to bear him from
+the field, and for a short time to preserve him. So far I will
+indulge you; but if you hope to gain any greater favor, and imagine
+that the whole predetermined course of the war is to be altered at
+your entreaty, you delude yourself with empty hopes.&rdquo; With
+tears Juno responded, &ldquo;What if thou shouldst grant in thy
+heart what in words thou dost refuse, and continue the life of
+Turnus for its natural duration? I fear much that a speedy end
+awaits the brave youth; but oh! I pray that I may be misled by
+groundless alarms, and that thou, to whom all power belongs, may
+alter thy purpose for the better.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Not daring to say more, the queen of heaven hastily descended
+from Olympus towards the contending armies. Then she devised an
+airy phantom, wearing armor which exactly resembled that of
+&AElig;neas, and imitating to the life his walk and mien. This
+shadow she caused to flutter in the forefront of the battle, full
+in the view of Turnus, and to provoke him with darts and insolent
+words. The enraged Rutulian eagerly pressed upon it, and from a
+distance hurled against it a spear. Immediately the spectre,
+wheeling about, took to flight. Turnus, imagining that in very
+truth it was the Trojan chief who feared to meet him, and filled
+with baseless exultation, cried out, &ldquo;&AElig;neas, whither
+dost thou fly? Desert not thus thy promised bride; with this right
+hand will I bestow upon thee the settled abode thou hast sought in
+vain through so many lands and seas.&rdquo; Thus vociferating, he
+madly pursued the deceitful phantom. It chanced that near the shore
+there lay a vessel, joined to the land by a temporary bridge of
+planks. Hither Juno led the shadow, and caused it in seeming fear
+to leap on board and throw itself into a hiding-place. With not
+less speed Turnus followed, bounded along the bridge, and mounted
+to the lofty prow of the ship in search of the supposed fugitive.
+Instantly the goddess severed the cable, and drove the vessel over
+the foaming waves. Then the phantom melted into the air, and the
+Rutulian, utterly bewildered, gazed about him in despair, nor did
+he feel at all thankful to the guardian deity for having thus
+preserved him from the arms of &AElig;neas. &ldquo;Almighty
+Father,&rdquo; he cried, raising his eyes and hands towards heaven,
+&ldquo;why dost thou think me worthy of such shame as this? What
+have I done to merit such a punishment? whither am I borne? How
+shall I venture again to enter the walls of Laurentum or look upon
+my camp? What will be said of me by the warriors who have followed
+me into this war, and whom&mdash;unutterable shame!&mdash;I have
+abandoned to the bloodthirsty Trojans! O winds! take pity on me, I
+entreat you; dash this vessel on some rugged crag, and overwhelm me
+so that I can no longer be conscious either of my humiliation or of
+the reproaches of my Rutulians.&rdquo; While he thus lamented, he
+was uncertain whether he should put an end to his own life with his
+sword or plunge into the sea and endeavor to regain the land by
+swimming. Three times he attempted each expedient, and as often
+Juno, full of pity, restrained him. Carried along by a favorable
+wind, the ship bore him safely to the capital of his father, King
+Daunus.</p>
+<p>Meanwhile &AElig;neas raged through the battle-field in search
+of the victim whom the queen of the Gods had thus snatched from his
+conquering hands. Under his leadership the Trojans and their
+allies, flushed with success, pressed more eagerly on their
+discomfited foe; but Mezentius now advanced to restore the courage
+of the Rutulians. The Etrurians, as soon as they saw their expelled
+monarch, out of hostility to whom they had engaged in the war,
+rushed upon him with shouts of rage; but he, as fearless as he was
+wicked, stood as firmly against them as a great rock on the shore
+meets all the fury of the winds and waves. Three warriors he
+overthrew in quick succession: Hebrus he cut down with his sword,
+Latagus he slew by hurling a great stone which battered in his
+face, and at Palmus he threw a javelin which pierced his thigh and
+extended him helpless on the ground. Then the raging king slew Evas
+the Phrygian, and a Trojan named Mimas, who in former days had been
+the companion of Paris, having been born in Troy on the same night
+that gave to the light the ill-starred son of Priam. Paris now lay
+in eternal repose amid the ruins of his native city, while to Mimas
+the sword of Mezentius assigned an unknown grave on the distant
+shore of Italy. And just as when an old wild boar, chased from his
+retreat amid the wooded Alps, stands at bay among the underwood,
+and the hunters, afraid to approach him, ply him with darts from a
+distance, while he gnashes his tusks with rage and faces them
+undaunted, so stood Mezentius; while his former subjects, though
+filled with just anger against him, and eager for his destruction,
+dare not come within reach of his dreaded sword, but galled him
+with spears and useless clamor. It chanced that a Greek from
+Corytus, named Acron, presented himself in the front, conspicuous
+in nodding plumes, and in purple trappings that had been worked for
+him by his betrothed wife. His gay attire caught the eye of
+Mezentius, who rushed forward and smote down the luckless Greek;
+then, as the others fell back, he cut off the retreat of an
+Etrurian chief, Orodes, forced him to engage hand to hand, and
+speedily slew him. Pressing his foot on the expiring warrior to
+draw out his lance from his body, Mezentius cried to his followers,
+&ldquo;Behold, friends! Orodes has fallen&mdash;not the meanest of
+our foes.&rdquo; The Rutulians raised a joyful shout, but the dying
+Orodes faintly answered, &ldquo;Not long shall thou rejoice with
+impunity over me; a similar fate awaits thyself, and soon shalt
+thou also be stretched lifeless on this same field.&rdquo; Smiling
+scornfully, Mezentius returned, &ldquo;Die thou, and leave my fate
+to the Gods, in whose hands it rests.&rdquo; His example inspired
+other of the Rutulians; they pressed fiercely forward and drove
+back the troops of &AElig;neas. Mezentius advanced at their head,
+and as he strode along, the Trojan hero espied him, and hastened
+towards him. Unawed by the prospect of an encounter even with so
+terrible a foe, Mezentius stood firm, and poising a huge spear in
+his hand, exclaimed,&mdash;for he was a contemner of the Gods, and
+never offered invocations to them,&mdash;&ldquo;Now let this right
+hand and this good dart be my aid; and then I vow that my son, my
+dear Lausus, shall be clad in the bright arms torn from the body of
+yon Trojan pirate.&rdquo; With these words he drew the spear. Sent
+with a true aim, it struck the shield of &AElig;neas, but glanced
+from the hardened surface, and turning aside, pierced the side of
+Antores, a faithful follower of Evander, who had come with Pallas
+to the war. Thus died Antores, by a weapon never aimed at him, but
+he was speedily avenged. &AElig;neas, putting all his might into
+the cast, now in his turn hurled his spear. It tore its way through
+the triple plates of Mezentius&rsquo; shield, through his corselet,
+and inflicted a severe wound in his groin, though its force was so
+far spent that the injury was not mortal.</p>
+<p>Overjoyed at the sight of his enemy&rsquo;s blood, &AElig;neas
+drew his sword from its sheath, and rushed upon Mezentius, who was
+as yet bewildered by the blow. When Lausus saw his father in such
+peril he sprang forward and stood before &AElig;neas, while
+Mezentius fell back among his friends, the Trojan lance still
+trailing in his armor. Lausus received the first stroke of
+&AElig;neas&rsquo; sword on his buckler, while the Rutulians with
+loud shouts applauded him, and poured on the Trojan hero a tempest
+of darts. Against this he protected himself with his shield, and
+meanwhile, pitying the youth and courage of Lausus, spoke to him in
+words of warning: &ldquo;Why do you thus rush on your own
+destruction, and attempt what is beyond your strength? Your filial
+devotion blinds you to your danger.&rdquo; But Lausus, resolute to
+defend his wounded sire, returned a haughty defiance. Then
+&AElig;neas could no longer control his wrath; he exerted all his
+strength, and thrust his terrible sword up to the hilt through the
+body of the youth, who sank lifeless on the blood-steeped ground.
+When &AElig;neas saw the comely young warrior stretched dead before
+him, his heart was filled with pity. &ldquo;Ill-fated youth!&rdquo;
+he cried, &ldquo;how can I testify my reverence for thy filial
+piety and thy undaunted valor? Thou shalt at least retain those
+arms which it was thy delight to wear, and thy body shall be given
+up unspoiled to thy friends.&rdquo; With that he summoned the
+dismayed followers of Lausus, and with his own hands raised from
+the ground the comely body, all disfigured with blood and wounds.
+Meantime Mezentius had retreated to the bank of the Tiber, where he
+took off his armor, and bathed his wound with water. While he was
+thus resting from the fatigues of the battle, he was full of
+anxiety for his son, and sent messenger after messenger to recall
+him from the fight. But too soon a crowd of weeping warriors
+appeared, carrying the corpse of Lausus in their arms. The
+sorrowing father divined what had occurred from their lamentations,
+even before the body was brought to him. He threw dust upon his
+head, he clasped the loved form in his arms, and bedewed the pallid
+face with his tears. &ldquo;O my son,&rdquo; he exclaimed,
+&ldquo;was I possessed with such a fond desire of life as to suffer
+thee to offer thyself in my place to the relentless foe? Am I
+preserved at the cost of these cruel wounds? Now, indeed, I feel
+the calamity of exile. My crimes have cost thee not only thy
+paternal throne and sceptre, but thy life also. It was I that owed
+expiation to my country, and should have satisfied my people by a
+deserved death. And yet I live! yet I do not quit the detested
+light! but I will quickly follow thee.&rdquo; Then he rose up, and
+though crippled by the wound in his thigh, and suffering anguish
+from its smart, he did not flinch, but ordered his attendants to
+bring his courser. This was a horse famous for its speed and its
+prompt obedience to the rein. When it was brought, he accosted it:
+&ldquo;Long have we lived together, Rh&oelig;bus, and many great
+deeds have we accomplished. To-day we shall either bear away the
+head of &AElig;neas and his arms all spattered with his blood, or
+we shall perish together; for I am assured that thou wilt never
+condescend to bear a Trojan lord.&rdquo; Then mounting the noble
+steed, he filled both hands with darts, and dashed recklessly into
+the midst of the battle. His heart swelling with rage and shame and
+grief, he thrice loudly summoned &AElig;neas to the combat.
+&AElig;neas heard, and rejoiced at the challenge; and with
+threatening spear advanced to meet his foe. &ldquo;Barbarous
+wretch,&rdquo; cried Mezentius, &ldquo;thinkest thou to affright me
+with thy weapons, now that thou hast robbed me of my son? That was
+the only means by which thou couldst destroy me. I fear neither
+death nor the anger of any of your gods. Forbear threats; now am I
+come hither to die, but first I bring you these gifts.&rdquo; So
+saying, he rapidly hurled one dart after another at the hero,
+whirling swiftly round him on his horse; but the shield framed by
+Vulcan&rsquo;s hands received all the shafts and repelled them.
+Wearied at last of so unequal a fight, in which he had to endure
+ceaseless attacks without striking a blow, &AElig;neas stepped
+forward, and hurled his spear against the charger, piercing its
+skull betwixt the ears. The fiery horse reared upward in the death
+agony, and then fell backward upon his rider, pressing him to the
+earth. The spectators of this fierce combat uplifted their voices
+in shouts, some in joy and others in sorrow, as &AElig;neas rushed
+up to the fallen warrior, and lifting his sword to deal the fatal
+blow, cried, &ldquo;Where is now the stern Mezentius?&rdquo; The
+Etrurian, on the other hand, replied, &ldquo;Spiteful foe, why dost
+thou threaten and insult before thou strikest? Thou wilt do me no
+wrong in slaying me. I sought thee expecting nothing else, and
+neither I nor my son has asked mercy at thy hands. One favor alone
+I implore of thee, that thou wilt give burial to my corpse. I know
+well that the hate of my former subjects would pursue me after
+death. Defend my remains, I entreat, from outrage, and grant me a
+grave along with my son.&rdquo; He said no more, but extended his
+throat to receive the fatal blow, which descended and drew forth
+his life as the blood poured over his armor.</p>
+<p>The shades of night were now gathering, and as the Rutulians and
+Latins had quitted the field in confusion, the conflicts of that
+sanguinary day were at last, ended.</p>
+<h3><a id="Conquers" name="Conquers">&AElig;neas Finally Conquers
+the Latins</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Prince Turnus was filled with rage. Even as a lion which a
+hunter hath wounded breaketh the arrow wherewith he hath been
+stricken, and rouseth himself to battle, shaking his mane and
+roaring, so Turnus arose. And first he spake to King Latinus,
+saying, &ldquo;I will meet this man face to face, and slay him
+while ye look on; or, if the Gods will that he vanquish me so, he
+shall rule over you, and have Lavinia to wife.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But King Latinus made answer, &ldquo;Yet think awhile, my son.
+Thou hast the kingdom of thy father Daunus; and there are other
+noble virgins in Latium whom thou mayest have to wife. Wilt thou
+not then be content? For to give my daughter to any husband of this
+nation I was forbidden, as thou knowest. Yet did I disobey, being
+moved by love of thee, my wife also beseeching me with many tears.
+Thou seest what troubles I and my people, and thou more than all,
+have suffered from that time. Twice have we fled in the battle, and
+now the city only is left to us. If I must yield me to these men,
+let me yield whilst thou art yet alive. For what doth it profit me
+that thou shouldst die? Nay, but all men would cry shame on me if I
+gave thee to death!&rdquo; Now for a space Turnus spake not for
+wrath. Then he said, &ldquo;Be not troubled for me, my father. For
+I, too, can smite with the spear; and as for this &AElig;neas, his
+mother will not be at hand to snatch him in a cloud from my
+sight.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Amata cried to him, saying, &ldquo;Fight not, I beseech
+thee, with these men of Troy, my son; for surely what thou
+sufferest I also shall suffer. Nor will I live to see &AElig;neas
+my son-in-law.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Lavinia heard the voice of her mother, and wept. As a man
+stains ivory with crimson, or as roses are seen mixed with lilies,
+even so the virgin&rsquo;s face burned with crimson. And Turnus,
+regarding her, loved her exceedingly, and made answer,
+&ldquo;Trouble me not with tears or idle words, my mother, for to
+this battle I must go. And do thou, Idmon the herald, say to the
+Phrygian king, &lsquo;To-morrow, when the sun shall rise, let the
+people have peace, but we two will fight together. And let him that
+prevaileth have Lavinia to wife.&rsquo;&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then first he went to the stalls of his horses. The wife of the
+North Wind gave them to Pilumnus. Whiter than snow were they, and
+swifter than the wind. Then he put the coat of mail about his
+shoulders, and fitted a helmet on his head, and took the great
+sword which Vulcan had made for Daunus his father, and had dipped
+it when it was white-hot in the river of Styx. His spear also he
+took where it stood against a pillar, saying, &ldquo;Serve me well,
+my spear, that hast never failed me before, that I may lay low this
+womanish robber of Phrygia, and soil with dust his curled and
+perfumed hair.&rdquo; The next day the men of Italy and the men of
+Troy measured out a space for the battle. And in the midst they
+builded an altar of turf. And the two armies sat on the one side
+and on the other, having fixed their spears in the earth and laid
+down their shields. Also the women and the old men stood on the
+towers and roofs of the city, that they might see the fight.</p>
+<p>But Queen Juno spake to Juturna, the sister of Turnus, saying,
+&ldquo;Seest thou how these two are now about to fight, face to
+face? And indeed Turnus goeth to his death. As for me, I endure not
+to look upon this covenant or this battle. But if thou canst do
+aught for thy brother, lo! the time is at hand.&rdquo; And when the
+nymph wept and beat her breast, Juno said, &ldquo;This is no time
+for tears. Save thy brother, if thou canst, from death; or cause
+that they break this covenant.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>After this came the kings, that they might make the covenant
+together. And King Latinus rode in a chariot with four horses, and
+he had on his head a crown with twelve rays of gold, for he was of
+the race of the sun; and Turnus came in a chariot with two white
+horses, having a javelin in either hand; and &AElig;neas had donned
+the arms which Vulcan had made, and with him was the young Iulus.
+And after due offering &AElig;neas sware, calling on all the Gods,
+&ldquo;If the victory shall fall this day to Turnus, the men of
+Troy shall depart to the city of Evander, nor trouble this land any
+more. But if it fall to me, I will not that the Latins should serve
+the men of Troy. Let the nations be equal one with the other. The
+gods that I bring we will worship together, but King Latinus shall
+reign as before. A new city shall the men of Troy build for me, and
+Lavinia shall call it after her own name.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then King Latinus sware, calling on the gods that are above and
+the gods that are below, saying, &ldquo;This covenant shall stand
+forever, whatsoever may befall. As sure as this sceptre which I
+bear&mdash;once it was a tree, but a cunning workman closed it in
+bronze, to be the glory of the Latian kings&mdash;shall never again
+bear twig or leaf, so surely shall this covenant be
+kept.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But the thing pleased not the Latins; for before, indeed, they
+judged that the battle would not be equal between two; and now were
+they the more assured, seeing them when they came together, and
+that Turnus walked with eyes cast to the ground, and was pale and
+wan. Wherefore there arose a murmuring among the people, which when
+Juturna perceived, she took upon herself the likeness of Camertus,
+who was a prince and a great warrior among them, and passed through
+the host saying, &ldquo;Are ye not ashamed, men of Italy, that one
+man should do battle for you all? For count these men; surely they
+are scarce one against two. And if he be vanquished, what shame for
+you! As for him, indeed, though he die, yet shall his glory reach
+to the heavens; but ye shall suffer disgrace, serving these
+strangers forever.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And when she saw that the people were moved, she gave also a
+sign from heaven. For lo! an eagle, that drave a crowd of sea-fowl
+before him, swooped down to the water, and caught a great swan; and
+even while the Italians looked, the birds that before had fled
+turned and pursued the eagle, and drave him before them, so that he
+dropped the swan and fled away. Which thing when the Italians
+perceived they shouted, and made them ready for battle. And the
+augur Tolumnius cried, &ldquo;This is the token that I have looked
+for. For this eagle is the stranger, and ye are the birds, which
+before, indeed, have fled, but shall now make him to
+flee.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And he ran forward and cast his spear, smiting a man of Arcadia
+below the belt, upon the groin. One of nine brothers was he, sons
+of a Tuscan mother, but their father was a Greek; and they, when
+they saw him slain, caught swords and spears, and ran forward. And
+straightway the battle was begun. First they brake down the altars,
+that they might take firebrands therefrom; and King Latinus fled
+from the place. Then did Messapus drive his horses against King
+Aulestes of Mantua, who, being fain to fly, stumbled upon the altar
+and fell headlong on the ground. And Messapus smote him with a
+spear that was like a weaver&rsquo;s beam, saying, &ldquo;This, of
+a truth, is a worthier victim.&rdquo; After this Coryneus, the
+Arcadian, when Ebysus would have smitten him, snatched a brand from
+the altar and set fire to the beard of the man, and, before he came
+to himself, caught him by the hair, and thrusting him to the
+ground, so slew him. And when Podalirius pursued Alsus the
+shepherd, and now held his sword over him ready to strike, the
+other turned, and with a battle-axe cleft the man&rsquo;s head from
+forehead to chin.</p>
+<p>But all the while the righteous &AElig;neas, having his head
+bare, and holding neither spear nor sword, cried to the people,
+&ldquo;What seek ye? what madness is this? The covenant is
+established, and I only have the right to do battle.&rdquo; But
+even while he spake an arrow smote him, wounding him. But who let
+it fly no man knoweth; for who, of a truth, would boast that he had
+wounded &AElig;neas? And he departed from the battle.</p>
+<p>Now when Turnus saw that &AElig;neas had departed from the
+battle he called for his chariot. And when he had mounted thereon
+he drave it through the host of the enemy, slaying many valiant
+heroes, as Sthenelus and Pholus, and the two sons of Imbrasus the
+Lycian, Glaucus and Lades. Then he saw Eumedes, son of that Dolon
+who would have spied out the camp of the Greeks, asking as his
+reward the horses of Achilles (but Diomed slew him). Him Turnus
+smote with a javelin from afar, and, when he fell, came near and
+put his foot upon him, and taking his sword drave it into his neck,
+saying, &ldquo;Lo! now thou hast the land which thou soughtest. Lie
+there and measure out Italy for thyself.&rdquo; Many others he
+slew, for the army fled before him. Yet did one man, Phegeus by
+name, stand against him, and would have stayed the chariot,
+clutching the bridles of the horses in his hand. But as he clung to
+the yoke and was dragged along, Turnus broke his cuirass with his
+spear, and wounded him. And when the man set his shield before him,
+and made at Turnus with his sword, the wheels dashed him to the
+ground, and Turnus struck him between the helmet and the
+breastplate and smote off his head.</p>
+<p>But in the meanwhile Mnestheus and Achates and Iulus led
+&AElig;neas to the camp, leaning on his spear. Very wroth was he,
+and strove to draw forth the arrow. And when he could not, he
+commanded that they should open the wound with the knife, and so
+send him back to the battle. Iapis also, the physician, ministered
+to him. Now this Iapis was dearer than all other men to Apollo, and
+when the god would have given him all his arts, even prophecy and
+music and archery, he chose rather to know the virtues of herbs and
+the art of healing, that so he might prolong the life of his
+father, who was even ready to die. This Iapis, then, having his
+garments girt about him in healer&rsquo;s fashion, would have drawn
+forth the arrow with the pincers, but could not. And while he
+strove, the battle came nearer, and the sky was hidden by clouds of
+dust, and javelins fell thick into the camp. But when Venus saw how
+grievously her son was troubled, she brought from Ida, which is a
+mountain of Crete, the herb dittany. A hairy stalk it hath and a
+purple flower. The wild goats know it well if so be that they have
+been wounded by arrows. This, then, Venus, having hidden her face,
+brought and dipped into the water, and sprinkled there with
+ambrosia and sweet-smelling panacea.</p>
+<p>And Iapis, unawares, applied the water that had been healed; and
+lo! the pain was stayed and the blood was staunched and the arrow
+came forth, though no man drew it, and &AElig;neas&rsquo;s strength
+came back to him as before. Then said lapis, &ldquo;Art of mine
+hath not healed thee, my son. The Gods call thee to thy
+work.&rdquo; Then did &AElig;neas arm himself again, and when he
+had kissed Iulus and bidden him farewell, he went forth to the
+battle. And all the chiefs went with him, and the men of Troy took
+courage and drave back the Latins. Then befell a great slaughter,
+for Gyas slew Ufens, who was the leader of the &AElig;quians; also
+Tolumnius, the great augur, was slain, who had first broken the
+covenant, slaying a man with his spear. But &AElig;neas deigned not
+to turn his hand against any man, seeking only for Turnus, that he
+might fight with him. But when the nymph Juturna perceived this she
+was sore afraid. Therefore she came near to the chariot of her
+brother, and thrust out Metiscus, his charioteer, where he held the
+reins, and herself stood in his room, having made herself like to
+him in shape and voice. Then as a swallow flies through the halls
+and arcades of some rich man&rsquo;s house, seeking food for its
+young, so Juturna drave the chariot of her brother hither and
+thither. And ever &AElig;neas followed behind, and called to him
+that he should stay; but whenever he espied the man, and would have
+overtaken him by running, then again did Juturna turn the horses
+about and flee. And as he sped Messapus cast a spear at him. But
+&AElig;neas saw it coming, and put his shield over him, resting on
+his knee. Yet did the spear smite him on the helmet-top and shear
+off the crest. Then indeed was his wrath kindled, and he rushed
+into the army of the enemy, slaying many as he went.</p>
+<p>Then was there a great slaughter made on this side and on that.
+But after a while Venus put it into the heart of &AElig;neas that
+he should lead his army against the city. Therefore he called
+together the chiefs, and, standing in the midst of them on a mound,
+spake, saying, &ldquo;Hearken now to my words, and delay not to
+fulfill them, for of a truth Jupiter is on our side. I am purposed
+this day to lay this city of Latinus even with the ground, if they
+still refuse to obey. For why should I wait for Turnus till it
+please him to meet me in battle?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then did the whole array make for the walls of the city. And
+some carried firebrands, and some scaling-ladders, and some slew
+the warders at the gates, and cast javelins at them who stood on
+the walls. And then there arose a great strife in the city, for
+some would have opened the gates that the men of Troy might enter,
+and others made haste to defend the walls. Hither and thither did
+they run with much tumult, even as bees in a hive in a rock which a
+shepherd hath filled with smoke, having first shut all the doors
+thereof.</p>
+<p>Then also did other ill fortune befall the Latins, for when
+Queen Amata saw from the roof of the palace that the enemy were
+come near to the walls, and saw not anywhere the army of the
+Latins, she supposed Turnus to have fallen in the battle.
+Whereupon, crying out that she was the cause of all these woes, she
+made a noose of the purple garment wherewith she was clad, and
+hanged herself from a beam of the roof. Then did lamentation go
+through the city, for the women wailed and tore their hair, and
+King Latinus rent his clothes and threw dust upon his head.</p>
+<p>But the cry that went up from the city came to the ears of
+Turnus where he fought in the farthest part of the plain. And he
+caught the reins and said, &ldquo;What meaneth this sound of
+trouble and wailing that I hear?&rdquo; And the false Metiscus, who
+was in truth his sister, made answer, &ldquo;Let us fight, O
+Turnus, here where the Gods give us victory. There are enough to
+defend the city.&rdquo; But Turnus spake, saying, &ldquo;Nay, my
+sister, for who thou art I have known even from the beginning; it
+must not be so. Why camest thou down from heaven? Was it to see thy
+brother die? And now what shall I do? Have I not seen Murranus die,
+and Ufens the &AElig;quian? And shall I suffer this city to be
+destroyed? Shall this land see Turnus flee before his enemies? Be
+ye kind to me, O gods of the dead, seeing that the gods of heaven
+hate me. I come down to you a righteous spirit, and not unworthy of
+my fathers.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And even as he spake came Saces, riding on a horse that was
+covered with foam, and on his face was the wound of an arrow. And
+he cried, &ldquo;O Turnus, our last hopes are in thee. For
+&AElig;neas is about to destroy the city, and the firebrands are
+cast upon the roofs. And King Latinus is sore tried with doubt, and
+the Queen hath laid hands upon herself and is dead. And now only
+Messapus and Atinas maintain the battle, and the fight grows fierce
+around them, whilst thou drivest thy chariot about these empty
+fields.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then for a while Turnus stood speechless, and shame and grief
+and madness were in his soul; and he looked to the city, and lo!
+the fire went up even to the top of the tower which he himself had
+builded upon the walls to be a defense against the enemy. And when
+he saw it, he cried, &ldquo;It is enough, my sister; I go whither
+the Gods call me. I will meet with &AElig;neas face to face, and
+endure my doom.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And as he spake he leapt down from his chariot, and ran across
+the plain till he came near to the city, even where the blood was
+deepest upon the earth, and the arrows were thickest in the air.
+And he beckoned with the hand and called to the Italians, saying,
+&ldquo;Stay now your arrows. I am come to fight this battle for you
+all.&rdquo; And when they heard it they left a space in the midst.
+&AElig;neas also, when he heard the name of Turnus, left attacking
+the city, and came to meet him, mighty as Athos, or Eryx, or Father
+Apenninus, that raiseth his snowy head to the heavens. And the men
+of Troy and the Latins and King Latinus marveled to see them meet,
+so mighty they were.</p>
+<p>First they cast their spears at each other, and then ran
+together, and their shields struck one against the other with a
+crash that went up to the sky. And Jupiter held the balance in
+heaven, weighing their doom. Then Turnus, rising to the stroke,
+smote fiercely with his sword. And the men of Troy and the Latins
+cried out when they saw him strike. But the treacherous sword brake
+in the blow. And when he saw the empty hilt in his hand he turned
+to flee. They say that when he mounted his chariot that day to
+enter the battle, not heeding the matter in his haste, he left his
+father&rsquo;s sword behind him, and took the sword of Metiscus,
+which, indeed, served him well while the men of Troy fled before
+him, but brake, even as ice breaks, when it came to the shield
+which Vulcan had made. Thereupon Turnus fled, and &AElig;neas,
+though the wound which the arrow had made hindered him, pursued.
+Even as a hound follows a stag that is penned within some narrow
+space, for the beast flees hither and thither, and the staunch
+Umbrian hound follows close upon him, and almost holds him, and
+snaps his teeth, yet bites him not, so did &AElig;neas follow hard
+on Turnus. And still Turnus cried out that some one should give him
+his sword, and &AElig;neas threatened that he would destroy the
+city if any should help him. Five times about the space they ran;
+not for some prize they strove, but for the life of Turnus. Now
+there stood in the plain the stump of a wild olive-tree. The tree
+was sacred to Faunus, but the men of Troy had cut it, and the stump
+only was left. Herein the spear of &AElig;neas was fixed, and now
+he would have drawn it forth that he might slay Turnus therewith,
+seeing that he could not overtake him by running. Which when Turnus
+perceived, he cried to Faunus, saying, &ldquo;O Faunus, if I have
+kept holy for thee that which the men of Troy have profaned, hold
+fast this spear.&rdquo; And the god heard him; nor could
+&AElig;neas draw it forth. But while he strove, Juturna, taking
+again the form of Metiscus, ran and gave to Turnus his sword. And
+Venus, perceiving it, wrenched forth the spear from the stump. So
+the two stood again face to face.</p>
+<p>Then spake Jupiter to Juno, where she sat in a cloud watching
+the battle, &ldquo;How long wilt thou fight against fate? What
+purpose hast thou now in thy heart? Was it well that
+Juturna&mdash;for what could she avail without thy
+help?&mdash;should give back to Turnus his sword? Thou hast driven
+the men of Troy over land and sea, and kindled a dreadful war, and
+mingled the song of marriage with mourning. Further thou mayest not
+go.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Juno humbly made answer, &ldquo;This is thy will, great
+Father; else had I not sat here, but stood in the battle smiting
+the men of Troy. And indeed I spake to Juturna that she should help
+her brother; but aught else I know not. And now I yield. Yet grant
+me this. Suffer not that the Latins should be called after the name
+of Troy, nor change their speech, nor their garb. Let Rome rule the
+world, but let Troy perish forever.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then spake with a smile the Maker of all things, &ldquo;Truly
+thou art a daughter of Saturn, so fierce is the wrath of thy soul.
+And now what thou prayest I give. The Italians shall not change
+name, nor speech, nor garb. The men of Troy shall mingle with them,
+and I will give them a new worship, and call them all Latins. Nor
+shall any race pay thee more honor than they.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Jupiter sent a fury from the pit. And she took the form of
+a bird, even of an owl that sitteth by night on the roof of a
+desolate house, and flew before the face of Turnus and flapped her
+wings against his shield. Then was Turnus stricken with great fear,
+so that his hair stood up and his tongue clave to the roof of his
+mouth. And when Juturna knew the sound of the false bird what it
+was, she cried aloud for fear, and left her brother and fled,
+hiding herself in the river of Tiber.</p>
+<p>But &AElig;neas came on, shaking his spear that was like unto a
+tree, and said, &ldquo;Why delayest thou, O Turnus? Why drawest
+thou back? Fly now if thou canst through the air, or hide thyself
+in the earth.&rdquo; And Turnus made answer, &ldquo;I fear not thy
+threats, but the Gods and Jupiter, that are against me this
+day.&rdquo; And as he spake he saw-a great stone which lay hard by,
+the landmark of a field. Scarce could twelve chosen men, such as
+men are now, lift it on their shoulders. This he caught from the
+earth and cast it at his enemy, running forward as he cast. But he
+knew not, so troubled was he in his soul, that he ran or that he
+cast, for his knees tottered beneath him and his blood grew cold
+with fear. And the stone fell short, nor reached the mark. Even as
+in a dream, when dull sleep is on the eyes of a man, he would fain
+run but cannot, for his strength faileth him, neither cometh there
+any voice when he would speak; so it fared with Turnus. For he
+looked to the Latins and to the city, and saw the dreadful spear
+approach, nor knew how he might fly, neither how he might fight,
+and could not spy anywhere his chariot or his sister. And all the
+while &AElig;neas shook his spear and waited that his aim should be
+sure. And at the last he threw it with all his might. Even as a
+whirlwind it flew, and brake through the seven folds of the shield
+and pierced the thigh. And Turnus dropped with his knee bent to the
+ground. And all the Latins groaned aloud to see him fall. Then he
+entreated &AElig;neas, saying, &ldquo;I have deserved my fate. Take
+thou that which thou hast won. Yet perchance thou mayest have pity
+on the old man, my father, even Daunus, for such an one was thy
+father Anchises, and give me back to my own people, if it be but my
+body that thou givest. Yet hast thou conquered, and the Latins have
+seen me beg my life of thee, and Lavinia is thine. Therefore I pray
+thee, stay now thy wrath.&rdquo; Then for a while &AElig;neas stood
+doubting; aye, and might have spared the man, when lo! he spied
+upon his shoulders the belt of Pallas, whom he had slain. And his
+wrath was greatly kindled, and he cried with a dreadful voice,
+&ldquo;Shalt thou who art clothed with the spoils of my friends
+escape me? &rsquo;Tis Pallas slays thee with this wound, and takes
+vengeance on thy accursed blood.&rdquo; And as he spake he drave
+the steel into his breast. And with a groan the wrathful spirit
+passed into darkness.</p>
+<hr class="short" />
+<p>According to the old legends &AElig;neas wedded the fair
+Lavinia, founded his city of Lavinium, and ruled over it for three
+years. Then in a battle with the Rutulians, or some other Italian
+people, he disappeared; and as his body was not found after the
+conflict was over, it was believed that the Gods had taken him up
+to heaven. His son Ascanius peacefully succeeded him, and removed
+the capital of his kingdom to Alba Longa, which city again, after
+the lapse of centuries, gave birth to mighty Rome.</p>
+<hr />
+<h2>End of Volume III</h2>
+
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<div>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 14752 ***</div>
+</body>
+</html>
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+This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements,
+metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be
+in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES.
+
+Procedures for determining public domain status are described in
+the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org.
+
+No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in
+jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize
+this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright
+status under the laws that apply to them.
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+Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for
+eBook #14752 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/14752)
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+The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Children's Hour, Volume 3 (of 10), by
+Various, Edited by Eva March Tappan
+
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+
+
+
+Title: The Children's Hour, Volume 3 (of 10)
+
+Author: Various
+
+Release Date: January 21, 2005  [eBook #14752]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+
+***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CHILDREN'S HOUR, VOLUME 3 (OF
+10)***
+
+
+E-text prepared by Bill Tozier, Barbara Tozier, and the Project Gutenberg
+Online Distributed Proofreading Team
+
+
+
+Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this
+      file which includes the original illustrations.
+      See 14752-h.htm or 14752-h.zip:
+      (https://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/1/4/7/5/14752/14752-h/14752-h.htm)
+      or
+      (https://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/1/4/7/5/14752/14752-h.zip)
+
+
+
+
+
+THE CHILDREN'S HOUR
+
+In Ten Volumes
+
+Illustrated
+
+VOLUME III
+
+STORIES FROM THE CLASSICS
+
+Selected & Arranged by
+
+EVA MARCH TAPPAN
+
+Houghton Mifflin Company
+
+1907
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration: "_It is strange that they let that dog lie there_"]
+
+
+
+
+Between the dark and the daylight, when the night is beginning to lower
+comes a pause in the days occupations, that is known as the Children's
+Hour.
+
+
+
+
+NOTE
+
+
+All rights in stories in this volume are reserved by the holders of the
+copyrights. The publishers and others named in the subjoined list are the
+proprietors, either in their own right or as agents for the authors, of
+the stories taken from the works enumerated, of which the ownership is
+hereby acknowledged. The editor takes this opportunity to thank both
+authors and publishers for the ready generosity with which they have
+allowed her to include these stories in "The Children's Hour."
+
+"The Wonder-Book," and "Tanglewood Tales," by Nathaniel Hawthorne;
+published by Houghton, Mifflin & Company.
+
+"Old Greek Folk Stories," by Josephine Preston Peabody; published by
+Houghton, Mifflin & Company.
+
+"The Odyssey of Homer," English prose version by George Herbert Palmer;
+published by Houghton, Mifflin & Company.
+
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+  TO THE CHILDREN
+
+  STORIES FROM HERODOTUS
+    LADRONIUS, THE PRINCE OF THIEVES
+                  Retold by G. H. Boden and W. Barrington d'Almeida
+    ARION AND THE DOLPHIN
+                  Retold by G. H. Boden and W. Barrington d'Almeida
+
+  STORIES FROM LIVY
+    ROMULUS, FOUNDER OF ROME                       Alfred J. Church
+    HOW HORATIUS HELD THE BRIDGE                   Alfred J. Church
+    HOW CINCINNATUS SAVED ROME                     Alfred J. Church
+    THE STORY OF VIRGINIA                          Alfred J. Church
+    THE SACRIFICE OF MARCUS CURTIUS                Alfred J. Church
+
+  STORIES FROM OVID
+    THE MIRACULOUS PITCHER                      Nathaniel Hawthorne
+    THE GOLDEN TOUCH                            Nathaniel Hawthorne
+    THE POMEGRANATE SEEDS                       Nathaniel Hawthorne
+
+  OLD GREEK FOLK-STORIES
+    ORPHEUS AND EURYDICE                  Josephine Preston Peabody
+    ICARUS AND DÆDALUS                    Josephine Preston Peabody
+    PHAETHON                              Josephine Preston Peabody
+    NIOBE                                 Josephine Preston Peabody
+    PYRAMUS AND THISBE                    Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+  STORIES OF THE TROJAN WAR
+    THE APPLE OF DISCORD                  Josephine Preston Peabody
+    THE QUARREL BETWEEN AGAMEMNON AND ACHILLES     Alfred J. Church
+    THE FIGHT BETWEEN PARIS AND MENELAUS            Walter C. Perry
+    THE DUEL BETWEEN HECTOR AND AJAX                Walter C. Perry
+    THE DEATH OF PATROCLUS AND THE BATTLE OF THE RIVER
+                                                   Alfred J. Church
+    VULCAN MAKES ARMOR FOR ACHILLES                 Walter C. Perry
+    THE SLAYING OF HECTOR                           Walter C. Perry
+    THE FUNERAL GAMES IN HONOR OF PATROCLUS         Walter C. Perry
+    THE WOODEN HORSE AND THE FALL OF TROY Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+  THE WANDERINGS OF ULYSSES
+    AN ADVENTURE WITH THE CYCLOPS                  Alfred J. Church
+    CIRCE'S PALACE                              Nathaniel Hawthorne
+    THE SIRENS--SCYLLA AND CHARYBDIS
+                                Translated by George Herbert Palmer
+
+  ULYSSES IN ITHACA
+    ULYSSES LANDS ON THE SHORE OF ITHACA
+                    F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+    ULYSSES AT THE HOUSE OF THE SWINEHERD
+                    F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+    THE VENGEANCE OF ULYSSES
+      A. HIS RECEPTION AT THE PALACE
+                    F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+      B. THE TRIAL OF THE BOW
+                                Translated by George Herbert Palmer
+      C. THE SLAYING OF THE SUITORS
+                    F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+      D. PENELOPE RECOGNIZES ULYSSES
+                                Translated by George Herbert Palmer
+
+  THE WANDERINGS OF THE TROJAN ÆNEAS
+    THE FLIGHT OF ÆNEAS FROM THE RUINS OF TROY     Alfred J. Church
+    ÆNEAS'S ADVENTURE WITH THE HARPIES         Charles Henry Hanson
+    ÆNEAS IN THE LAND OF THE CYCLOPS           Charles Henry Hanson
+    ÆNEAS AND QUEEN DIDO                           Alfred J. Church
+    THE FUNERAL GAMES OF ANCHISES              Charles Henry Hanson
+    ÆNEAS'S VISIT TO THE LOWER WORLD           Charles Henry Hanson
+    ÆNEAS'S FIRST GREAT BATTLE WITH THE LATINS Charles Henry Hanson
+    ÆNEAS FINALLY CONQUERS THE LATINS              Alfred J. Church
+
+
+
+
+ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+
+  "IT IS STRANGE THAT THEY LET THAT DOG LIE THERE"
+                                                L.F. Schutzenberger
+
+  "I AM AFRAID THERE WILL NOT BE HALF ENOUGH SUPPER"   Walter Crane
+
+  THEY LEAPED OUT OF THE BOTTOMLESS HOLE     George Wharton Edwards
+
+  TO HIM AT LAST THE THREE GODDESSES INTRUSTED THE JUDGMENT
+  AND THE GOLDEN APPLE                                Giulio Romano
+
+  FIERCE WAS THE FIGHT ABOUT THE BODY OF PATROCLUS    Giulio Romano
+
+  A GREAT IMAGE OF A HORSE                              Franz Cleyn
+
+  THE CYCLOPS IN HIS WRATH BRAKE OFF THE TOP OF A GREAT HILL
+                                                L.F. Schutzenberger
+
+  "DEAR SON, HAVE YOU COME HOME AT LAST?"              G. Truffault
+
+  THE FLIGHT FROM TROY                                  Franz Cleyn
+
+  THE VICTORY OF EURYALUS                               Franz Cleyn
+
+
+
+
+TO THE CHILDREN
+
+
+The greater part of this book is made up of stories from the poems of
+Homer and Virgil. Homer is thought to have lived in Greece about three
+thousand years ago, and yet his poems never seem old-fashioned and people
+do not tire of reading them. Boys and girls almost always like them,
+because they are so full of stories. If you want to read about giants or
+mermaids or shipwrecks or athletic contests or enchanters or furious
+battles or the capture of cities or voyages to strange countries, all you
+have to do is to open the Iliad and the Odyssey, and you will find stories
+on all of these subjects. Homer can describe a foot-race or the throwing
+of a discus so that you hold your breath to see who will win; and he can
+picture a battle so vividly that you almost try to dodge the arrows and
+spears. He can make the tears come into your eyes by telling you of the
+grief of the warrior's wife when he leaves her and their baby son to go to
+battle; and he can almost make you shout, "Hurrah for the brave champion!"
+when he tells you what wonderful deeds of prowess have been done. He can
+describe a shield so minutely that you could make one like it; and he can
+paint a scene of feasting so perfectly that you feel as if you had been in
+the very room.
+
+How is it that Homer makes his stories seem so real? There are several
+reasons, but one of the strongest is because he tells the little things
+that writers often forget to put in. When he describes the welcome given
+to two strangers at the house of the lost Ulysses, by Telemachus, son of
+the wanderer, he begins, "When they were come within the lofty hall, he
+carried the spear to a tall pillar and set it in a well-worn rack." That
+one word, "well-worn," gives us the feeling that Homer is not making up a
+story, but that he has really seen the rack and noticed how it looked. The
+same sentence shows why it is that people do not tire of reading Homer. It
+ends, "where also stood many a spear of hardy Ulysses." This reminds the
+reader that in spite of the hero's long years of absence, no one has been
+allowed to remove his weapons from their old place. From this one phrase,
+then, we can realize how much his wife and son love him, and how they have
+mourned for him. Telemachus welcomes the strangers, but we can feel how
+eager he is for them to be made comfortable as soon as possible so he can
+talk of his father and learn whether they have chanced to meet him in
+their wanderings. Homer's poems are full of such sentences as these; and,
+no matter how many times one reads them, some thought, unnoticed before,
+is ever coming to light. That is why they are always fresh and new and
+interesting.
+
+There is a tradition that Homer was blind, and that he wandered about from
+one place to another, singing or reciting his poems; but this is only
+tradition, and there is little hope that we shall ever be able to find out
+whether it is true or not.
+
+Homer's great poem, the Iliad, is the account of the Trojan War. His
+Odyssey relates the adventures of the hero Ulysses, or Odysseus, as the
+Greeks called him, in many years of wandering at the close of the war
+before his enemies among the Gods would permit him to return to his home.
+There were Trojan heroes, however, as well as Greek, and Æneas was one of
+them. Virgil, the Latin poet, has told in the Æneid the story of his
+troubles and adventures. Æneas, too, was driven over the waters, for the
+Gods had told him it was the will of Jupiter, or Zeus, as it is in Greek,
+for him to seek Italy and there found a city. Part of his journey is the
+same as that of Ulysses. He, too, stops at the country of the one-eyed
+giants and has to row as fast as he can to escape the rocks that they
+throw at his vessel. He, too, hears the thunders of Mount Ætna and sees
+the flashing of the fires of the volcano. His sailors point to it in fear
+and whisper to one another, "That is the giant Enceladus. He rebelled
+against the Gods and they piled the mountain on top of him. The fires of
+Jupiter burn him, and he breathes out glowing flames. When he tosses from
+one side to the other, the whole island of Sicily is shaken with a mighty
+earthquake."
+
+Virgil was no homeless singer; he was one of the great literary men of
+Rome, and he read his poems aloud to the Emperor Augustus. He had a
+handsome villa and a troop of friends. He enjoyed everything that was
+beautiful and seemed as happy when a friend had written a good poem as if
+he had composed it himself. He was never satisfied with his verse till he
+had made every line as perfect as possible. When he was ill and knew that
+he could not recover, he made a will, and in it he ordered the Æneid to be
+burned, because it was not so polished as he wished. "I meant to spend
+three years more on it," he said. Fortunately for all the people who enjoy
+a great poem, the Emperor forbade that this part of the will should be
+carried out. He gave the manuscript to three friends of Virgil, all of
+them poets, with orders to strike out every phrase that they believed
+Virgil would have struck out on revision, but not to add one word. This is
+the way that the Æneid was saved for us. If it had been destroyed, we
+should have lost the work of one of the best storytellers that have ever
+lived.
+
+Livy, too, was a friend of the Emperor Augustus, He lived in Rome,
+enjoying his companions, the libraries of the city, and, most of all, his
+independence. Even Virgil was ready to insert a few lines here and there
+in a poem to gratify his friends, or to choose a subject that he knew
+would please the Emperor; but Livy wrote on the subject that pleased him
+and treated it just as he believed to be best. His great work was his
+history, and this he begins with a little preface, as independent as it is
+graceful. "Whether I shall gain any share of glory," he says, "by writing
+a history of the Roman people, I do not know. The work, however, will be a
+pleasure to me; and even if any fame that might otherwise be mine should
+be hidden by the success of other writers, I shall console myself by
+thinking of their excellence and greatness." No such thing happened,
+however, for the kindly historian was so praised and his work so fully
+appreciated that he said he had all the fame he could wish.
+
+Herodotus was a Greek who liked to travel. The world was very small in his
+day, for little of it was known except some of the lands bordering on the
+Mediterranean. To visit Tyre, Babylon, Egypt, Palestine, and the islands
+of the eastern Mediterranean, as he did, made a man a great traveler five
+centuries before Christ. Herodotus enjoyed all these wanderings, but they
+also "meant business" to him. Whenever he came to a place of historical
+interest, he stayed awhile. He explored the country thereabouts, he
+measured the important buildings, he talked with the people who knew most
+about the place. Then, when he came to write of its history, he did not
+write like a man who had read an article or two in an encyclopædia and was
+trying to recite what he had learned, but like one who knew the place
+which he was describing and liked to talk about it, and about what had
+happened there. It is no wonder that his history has always been a
+favorite; and to be a favorite author for twenty centuries is no small
+glory.
+
+Ovid was a Latin poet who knew how to tell a story. He could not only
+invent a tale, but he could tell it so well that the reader feels as if it
+must be true. His most interesting stories, however, he did not invent,
+for they are a rewriting of the old mythological tales. In one respect he
+is like Homer; he never forgets the little things, and he tells so many
+details that we can hardly believe he is imagining them. In his story of
+Baucis and Philemon, for instance, Ovid does not forget to say that the
+cottage door was so low that the two gods had to stoop to pass through it;
+that Baucis hurried to brighten the fire with dry leaves and bits of bark;
+that one leg of the table was too short and had to be propped up with a
+piece of tile. He tells us that the kindhearted couple tried to catch
+their one goose so as to cook it for the supper of their guests; but that
+they were so old, and the goose so nimble of wing, that he escaped them
+and flew to the Gods for refuge. We are so accustomed to think of Latin as
+a grave, dignified language that almost every line of Ovid's
+"Metamorphoses" is a pleasant surprise. The stories that he tells, "The
+Miraculous Pitcher", "The Golden Touch", "The Pomegranate Seeds", and
+others, retold by Hawthorne, are favorites among the boys and girls of
+to-day, and they must have been liked just as well by the Roman children.
+In Rome the children read the great poets in school, and I fancy that they
+were always glad when the hour came to read the "Metamorphoses."
+
+
+
+
+STORIES FROM HERODOTUS
+
+
+LADRONIUS, THE PRINCE OF THIEVES
+
+Retold by G. H. Boden and W. Barrington d'Almeida
+
+
+Many hundreds of years ago, not long after the Greeks returned from the
+famous siege of Troy, there lived a king of Egypt, whose name was
+Rhampsinitus. So great a king was he, that he kept a small army constantly
+employed in supplying the royal household with food, and another small
+army was required to keep the gardens of the palace in order. And had any
+one been bold enough to doubt the greatness of the king, he need only have
+looked at his magnificent dress to set all doubts at rest forever. Upon
+the neck of the king was a heavy necklace, glittering with priceless
+jewels, and on his arms were massive bracelets of pure gold. A golden
+serpent, the symbol of royalty, gleamed from his forehead, and his golden
+breastplate showed the sacred beetle worked in precious stones, to protect
+him from evil spirits. Whenever he appeared in the streets of his capital,
+he was borne in the royal chair on the shoulders of eight of his
+courtiers, while on each side walked a great noble carrying a fan, shaped
+like a palm leaf, with a long, straight stem. In front marched the
+bodyguard of Sardinians, men with fair skins and blue eyes, who looked
+very much out of place among the swarthy Egyptians; and last of all came
+the grim, black guards from Ethiopia, with their sabres flashing in the
+sun. And all the people fell on their faces and kissed the dust before
+their royal master. Moreover, King Rhampsinitus erected several enormous
+statues of himself, as well as many fine palaces and a beautiful temple,
+bearing inscriptions which related all his great and glorious deeds, so
+that the people who lived after him might know how great a king he had
+been.
+
+But, in spite of all his greatness, there was one thing that prevented
+King Rhampsinitus from being a happy man. He had so many treasures--masses
+of silver, nuggets of gold, and bags of gold-dust, jewelry, precious
+stones, and carvings in ivory--that he lived in constant fear of being
+robbed. He had all his treasures packed in large jars and strong chests,
+which were securely fastened, sealed up, and stowed away in a strong room
+of the palace; but even then he did not feel comfortable, for might not
+the palace be broken into by a clever thief and part of his treasure
+stolen, while he slept? Besides, there was so much treasure packed away
+already, that it was difficult to find a safe place for any more. His
+anxiety made the king so unhappy, and caused him so many sleepless nights,
+that he determined at last to build a large chamber of stone, with walls
+too thick for any thief to break through. He sent for his chief architect,
+who collected a great multitude of workmen and set to work building the
+chamber without delay. Whole villages were compelled to join in the work;
+even the old men and children were employed in carrying away rubbish,
+bringing water and clay, and doing other work that was not too hard for
+them. The stronger and more skillful workmen hewed great blocks of
+granite, which were dragged to the place on wooden sledges; and, as they
+had no cranes to lift the stones into their places on the walls, they were
+obliged to build mounds of sand and rough bricks, and roll up each stone
+gradually with wooden levers, until they got it into its proper place. It
+was terribly hard work, but there were so many workmen, and the foremen
+used their whips so unmercifully, that the walls rose very rapidly.
+
+Now the architect was a cunning man, and guessed what the chamber was
+intended to hold. He therefore fitted one stone in such a way that it
+would slide down and leave a hole just large enough for a man to crawl
+through; and yet, when you looked at the wall, there was no sign at all by
+which the secret could be discovered. Nor did the architect think it
+necessary to mention the secret opening to his majesty, when he showed the
+chamber to him and told him that it was as strong as he could make it.
+
+Rhampsinitus lost no time in moving his treasures into the new
+treasure-chamber. The key he kept with him night and day, so that at last
+he could sleep peacefully, knowing that any one who wished to pass the
+solid, brass-bound door, must first prevail upon him to unlock it.
+
+For some time all went well. The king went to the treasury every morning,
+and found everything in its place. Evidently he had been too clever for
+the thieves.
+
+In the mean time the architect was lying ill in bed, and day by day he
+grew weaker and weaker; until at length he knew that his end was
+approaching, and, calling his two sons to his bedside, he told them of the
+secret way into the treasure-chamber.
+
+"I have little of my own to leave you, my sons," he said, "and I have but
+little influence at court; but by the aid of this secret, which I devised
+for your sake, you may become rich men, and hold the office of king's
+treasurers for life."
+
+The young men were delighted at his words, and so impatient were they to
+enjoy their good fortune, that on the very night of their father's funeral
+they stole away quietly to the place where the treasure-house stood. They
+found the sliding stone exactly as their father had described it. The
+younger and slimmer of the two brothers crawled through the opening and
+found himself in a dark chamber, surrounded by heavy chests and jars with
+sealed covers. Breaking open one of the latter, he put in his hand and
+drew out a handful of gold, which sparkled and twinkled at him even in the
+faint light which came through the hole in the wall. Handful after handful
+he drew out and passed to his brother, at the same time filling the bags
+he had brought with him, until both had as much as they could conveniently
+carry. Then they replaced the stone, and returned to lay the treasure
+before their mother; for in those days stealing was considered rather a
+clever trick, and even the thief's mother did not scold him, so long as he
+was not so clumsy as to be caught.
+
+Imagine the consternation of King Rhampsinitus when he visited the chamber
+the following morning! Everything seemed as secure as ever, and yet, when
+he opened the door, there lay one of the great jars turned over and empty,
+while the lid of one of the chests was broken open and part of the
+contents scattered on the floor. He examined every nook and cranny of the
+chamber from floor to ceiling, and there was no sign of any one's having
+forced an entrance. The fastenings of the door were firm, and the lock was
+one which it was perfectly impossible to pick. For greater security,
+however, Rhampsinitus sent at once for a locksmith, and commanded him to
+fit the door with a second lock, the key of which he kept with the other.
+
+Notwithstanding this precaution, the treasure-chamber was robbed again on
+the next night, and this time the thieves had broken open a great many of
+the chests, and carried away some of the most valuable jewels. On the
+following night a sentinel was posted, and still the treasury was robbed.
+The sentinel vowed that he had stood with his back to the door all night,
+and there is little doubt that he spoke the truth, though the poor fellow
+was accused of sleeping at his post, and punished for his negligence.
+
+Then the king took counsel of the fan-bearer on the right hand, who was
+also prime minister. He made a long speech, beginning with his regret that
+his majesty had not thought fit to consult him earlier, and concluding
+with a learned discourse on the habits of rats.
+
+"This is all very interesting," said Rhampsinitus, "but I do not see that
+it helps very much to protect my treasure."
+
+"I crave your majesty's pardon," the prime minister answered. "I was about
+to observe that the best way to catch a rat is first to study the habits
+and tastes of the rat, and next to apply the knowledge so gained in
+setting a trap."
+
+From which one may see that the prime minister was a very learned man, and
+could not be expected to come to the point all at once. The king thanked
+him for his valuable advice, and procured two or three powerful man-traps,
+which he placed within his treasure-chamber.
+
+Night came on, and the two thieves set to work as before, but no sooner
+had the younger brother disappeared through the hole in the wall than he
+began to utter loud cries of agony.
+
+"Peace, brother! You will rouse the guard," said the elder. "What can have
+befallen you?"
+
+The other controlled himself, and said with a groan, "Ladronius, we are
+ruined. I am held fast in a trap, and I think my leg is broken. O Horus,
+Lord of Life, deliver me!"
+
+With some difficulty Ladronius crawled through the opening to aid his
+brother, for, though a thief, he was no coward.
+
+"Go back, Ladronius, go back!" cried his brother. "Leave me to my fate! I
+think I hear the cries of the guard. No, brother, waste no more time!" he
+entreated, as Ladronius tugged in vain at the cruel teeth of the trap.
+"One thing remains to be done. Cut off my head, and take it away with you,
+that I may not be recognized and so we both perish! I hear the footsteps
+of men approaching. Do not rob our mother of both her sons!"
+
+And Ladronius, seeing that there was nothing else to be done, drew his
+sword, cut off his brother's head, and escaped through the opening, not
+forgetting to replace the stone behind him. He was only just in time, for
+scarcely had he gained the cover of a clump of trees, when the soldiers of
+the guard came running to the place and began to belabor the door. To
+their surprise they found everything quiet and nothing displaced. They
+examined the outside of the building thoroughly, and then, supposing that
+they had been roused by a false alarm, they returned to the palace.
+
+In the morning, Rhampsinitus paid his daily visit to the chamber, and
+discovered the headless body in the trap. He was more puzzled than ever.
+He examined the fastenings of the door and the whole of the chamber over
+and over again, and no hole nor crevice could he find.
+
+"Nevertheless," said he, "I have now bait for my trap. What can I do
+better than set a thief to catch a thief?"
+
+So he ordered the body to be hung from the outer wall of the chamber, and
+placed sentinels to guard it, strictly charging them to bring before him
+any one who showed pity or sorrow for the dead.
+
+When the mother heard of her son's death and how the body had been
+treated, she reproached Ladronius bitterly for his cowardice, and implored
+him with many tears to bring back the body for proper burial. For the
+Egyptians thought that unless a man's body were properly embalmed and
+buried whole, he could have no life in the next world; so that it would be
+a terrible misfortune if the head and the body were buried separately.
+Ladronius attempted to comfort his mother, but did not dare to carry off
+his brother's body so long as the sentinels were watching. In vain his
+mother wept and entreated him, until at last her grief was turned to
+anger, and she vowed that, if he did not obey her, she would go to the
+king and tell him the whole story. Then Ladronius, seeing her so
+determined, promised to do as she wished, and set his wits to work to
+invent some means of carrying off the body without being caught by the
+sentinels. At last he thought of a plan, which seemed to have some chance
+of success. He hired two donkeys, and having bought some wineskins, which
+were used in the place of bottles, he filled them with strong wine and
+placed them on the donkeys' backs.
+
+Thus equipped, and dressed up to look like an old merchant, he set out for
+the place where his brother's body was suspended. When he drew near to the
+sentinels, he secretly loosened some of the strings which fastened the
+necks of the wineskins, and then whipping the donkeys and letting them run
+on a little way in front, he pursued them with loud cries.
+
+"Oh, miserable wretch that I am!" he cried, beating his head and looking
+the very picture of despair. "All my good wine wasted on the ground! What
+shall I do? Oh, what shall I do? Stop, most ungrateful of donkeys,
+children of Set, that devour my substance and waste my wine as if it were
+water! May Tefnet plague you with gadflies, and Renenutet poison the
+thistles! Oh dear! oh dear! I am a ruined man."
+
+The soldiers, supposing it to be a genuine accident, laughed loudly at the
+fellow's distress, and while some chased and caught the donkeys, the
+others brought bowls and pitchers and began to drink the wine, as it ran
+out of the skins.
+
+"Never mind, worthy sir!" they said to Ladronius. "The wine is serving a
+very good purpose. Here is to our future friendship and your excellency's
+very good health!"
+
+Ladronius pretended to fly into a great passion, and called them thieves
+and monsters of iniquity for robbing a poor man of his wine.
+
+"Ay, laugh away!" he cried. "But a day of reckoning will come for your
+wickedness. See how the law treats robbers!" And he pointed to his
+brother's body hanging on the wall.
+
+"Now, by Anubis, the fellow speaks truth," said one of the soldiers. "We
+are but sorry fellows to drink away a poor man's living, and if this were
+to come to the ears of the king, we should be in evil case for leaving our
+duty."
+
+The others laughed good-humoredly, as they tied up some of the skins, and
+did their best to put the merchant into a good temper. Ladronius, after a
+little more grumbling, appeared to be pacified, and, as a sign of
+good-will, presented a wineskin to the soldier who had first spoken in his
+favor.
+
+"May you never want a young friend to speak for you in your old age," said
+he, "and may you meet with no worse companions than these; for though they
+seem to be somewhat headstrong, yet I perceive that I spoke hard words in
+my anger."
+
+The soldiers, who by this time had sat down on the grass and were passing
+the wineskin from one to another, declared that the merchant was a
+good-hearted old fellow and invited him to come and drink their health.
+
+"Nay, my masters," said Ladronius, pretending to adjust the straps on the
+donkeys' backs. "I have far to go, and I am but a little way on my
+journey."
+
+But, as they pressed him, he consented to drink one cup with them before
+he went. "Though in truth," he added, "if I mistake not, the skin is
+emptied already. I see that you would force me to part with another,
+before I set out."
+
+As he spoke, he produced another wineskin, and the soldiers, who were
+growing merry, greeted him with a shout of delight, and insisted on his
+sitting down with them. Ladronius, still declaring that he could stay only
+long enough to drink one cup with them, allowed himself to be placed in
+the midst, where he presently proved himself so good a companion and told
+so many merry tales that the soldiers would not hear of his departure.
+They drank more and more heavily, until at length a third skin was opened,
+and one by one the sentinels were overpowered by the strong wine, and all
+lay asleep on the ground.
+
+By this time it had grown dark, and Ladronius, who had pretended to be as
+drunk as the rest, cautiously raised his head, and finding that all the
+sentinels were snoring, he took down his brother's body and carried it
+off. But, before he went, he shaved the right side of the head of each of
+the sentinels, to show his contempt for the king's precautions.
+
+The king was furious when he discovered the failure of his plan and the
+insult offered to his guards, all of whom were beheaded for their
+disobedience to his orders. He was more determined than ever to catch the
+thief, and after taking counsel once more with his prime minister, he
+decided upon another plan. He caused a proclamation to be made, in which
+he promised the hand of his daughter to the man whom she should consider
+the cleverest and most wicked of all men. He commanded the princess to sit
+on a throne in the temple of Ra, the sun-god, and to speak to all who came
+to pay their homage to her, asking them what was the cleverest and most
+wicked deed they had done. But secretly Rhampsinitus told her that, if any
+one related the story of the robbing of the treasury, she was to seize him
+by the hand, and hold him till the guards came and secured him.
+
+The moment Ladronius heard the proclamation, he saw that it was another
+trick to catch him, but he was so daring and so fond of adventure that he
+could not resist the temptation to outdo the king in cunning once more. He
+determined actually to put his head in the lion's mouth--in other words,
+to go boldly to the temple and talk to the princess. He took with him
+under his cloak the strangest of presents, an arm cut from a dead man's
+body.
+
+When he entered the temple, he beheld the princess seated on her throne,
+looking very beautiful in her royal robes, with her dark curls flowing
+over her shoulders, and the golden vulture of Egypt spreading his wings
+over her head. She looked a little pale and weary too, for she had talked
+with many scores of suitors, all of whom had told her tales which were
+very much alike and nothing at all to do with her father's
+treasure-chamber. And when the princess looked up and saw Ladronius
+standing there, with his bold, handsome face, and resolute eyes, she had a
+suspicion that this was the robber of the treasury. At the same time she
+felt some pity for the young man, whom she was to be the means of
+punishing for his bravery. However, she could only obey her father, and
+motioning to Ladronius to approach, she addressed him with great courtesy,
+saying, "You seem, sir, by your bearing, to be a man of some strength and
+courage. Tell me now, what is the most wicked thing, and what the
+cleverest, you ever did in your life?"
+
+And Ladronius looked her straight in the face and answered, "Most gracious
+princess, the most wicked thing I ever did in my life was to cut off my
+brother's head in His Majesty's treasure-house, and the cleverest was when
+I made the sentinels drunk and carried off my brother's body."
+
+Scarcely were the words out of his mouth, when the princess jumped up and
+caught him, as she supposed, by the arm, at the same time crying out for
+the guards, who were concealed behind the throne. But, to her dismay, the
+arm seemed to part company with the rest of the body, and she was left
+with the cloak of Ladronius and the arm of the dead man, while Ladronius
+himself was out of the temple before she had recovered from her surprise;
+nor could the guards find any trace of him outside.
+
+The princess went back to her father in fear and trembling, and related
+how Ladronius had escaped once more; but the king was so amazed at the
+daring and skill of the young man, that he quite forgot to be angry.
+
+The picture of the princess holding the arm that had no body attached to
+it, and gazing blankly after the departing figure of Ladronius, so took
+his fancy, that he lay back on his couch, and laughed till his sides
+ached.
+
+"Bast!" he cried at length. "If the youth is really as clever as this, I
+would rather have him my friend than my enemy. Such a man should be
+rewarded and not punished for his genius. So he made you a present of his
+cloak too, did he?" And the king collapsed once more.
+
+"And what manner of youth is he?" he asked the princess; the princess
+answered, with a blush, that he looked like a brave young man.
+
+"That I am sure he is," said the king. "I have learnt it to my cost. And
+he is not ill-looking?"
+
+"No," said the princess; she would not describe him as ill-looking.
+
+"Ah! well," said the king dryly, "we must see whether we cannot find some
+means of securing his friendship."
+
+So King Rhampsinitus ordered another proclamation to be made, promising
+that if the robber would present himself to the king and confess how he
+had broken into the treasury, the king would grant him a free pardon and a
+great reward beside.
+
+Ladronius was not long in making up his mind. He knew that kings were not
+always above treachery, but he had survived so many dangers that he
+determined to risk this also. He arrayed himself, therefore, in his best
+attire, and boldly presented himself to the king, who was delighted with
+his courage and bade him relate the whole story fearlessly. And when
+Rhampsinitus heard of the secret way into his treasury, he would not rest
+until he had seen the sliding stone and moved it for himself. He laughed
+heartily when he remembered how he had put another lock on the door, and
+how he had posted a sentinel in the one place where he could see nothing
+of the thieves. Then he returned to the palace, and sent for the princess,
+his daughter. Presently she entered with her train of maidens, and
+Ladronius was so overcome by her fresh, girlish beauty, that he could
+hardly find voice enough to reply to the king's questions. The king rose
+and embraced his daughter, and then, addressing Ladronius before the
+assembled courtiers, he said, "Ladronius, the Egyptians are the most
+cunning of all nations on the face of the earth, and you have proved
+yourself more cunning than all the Egyptians. And now, after robbing me of
+so many treasures, you are about to rob me of the best and most priceless
+of all."
+
+So saying, he took his daughter by the hand, and led her to Ladronius.
+
+"Take her, my son!" he said. "A good and obedient daughter should make a
+faithful and loving wife."
+
+The princess stood with her eyes cast down, blushing very prettily, and
+Ladronius looked very handsome as he knelt and kissed her hand. Then the
+trumpets began to blare, the drums rattled, the cymbals clashed, and the
+courtiers shouted, "Long live our gracious princess! Long live
+Rhampsinitus and his son-in-law Ladronius!" The royal minstrel brought his
+harp and sang a solemn chant, all about the beauty of the princess and the
+bravery of Ladronius; and the maids of honor performed a graceful dance to
+the music, winding wreaths of lotus flowers about the bride and
+bridegroom. As the music ceased, the venerable High Priest of Ra, a tall
+old man with his head clean-shaven, came forward to bless and anoint them,
+and to tell how he had foreseen it all from the beginning.
+
+So Ladronius and the beautiful princess were married, and, though it is
+not in the story, there can be no doubt that they lived very happily for
+the rest of their lives.
+
+
+
+
+ARION AND THE DOLPHIN
+
+Retold by G. H. Boden and W. Barrington d'Almeida
+
+
+It happened once upon a time, in the olden days, that a young man,
+Periander of Corinth, started from a port in the south of Greece to sail
+to Miletus. Being caught in a storm, the boat was carried out of her
+course as far as the island of Lesbos, where she stayed for several days,
+in order that the damage caused by the storm might be repaired. In the
+mean time Periander landed, and occupied himself in wandering about the
+island and watching the inhabitants. In his wanderings, he came one
+evening upon a group of men and women, the sight of whom made him pause
+with a longing to join them. They had been working hard all day, gathering
+the grapes, and pressing them in big, wooden vats, to extract the wine for
+which Lesbos was famous; and now, in the beautiful autumn evening, they
+were making merry after their labors.
+
+No wonder Periander stayed to watch them, for they made a very pretty
+picture,--the handsome youths, with their bronzed faces and strong, fine
+limbs; the women with their gay dresses and bare feet, that seemed to have
+been made for dancing; the vine-clad hill at the back, and, over it all,
+the glow of the setting sun. In the centre of the dancers sat a boy,
+playing upon a small lute with seven strings. To this accompaniment the
+dancers chanted a song in praise of Dionysus, the god of the vine.
+Gradually the music went faster and faster; and faster and faster the feet
+of the dancers sped over the ground, until they were all out of breath,
+and lay laughing on the grass.
+
+Then, as the boy struck another chord, all laughter was hushed, and he
+began to sing; it was a simple, plaintive little song, but there was a
+magic in his voice which held the listeners spellbound. The last rays of
+the setting sun played about his golden curls, and lit up his sweet,
+childish face, as he sang:--
+
+  "Why should you grieve for me, my love,
+    When I am laid to rest?
+  Our lives are shaped by the gods above,
+    And they know best.
+  What though I stand on the farther shore,
+  Others have crossed the stream before--
+    Why weep in vain?
+  Life is but a drop in the deep,
+  Soon we wake from the last, lone sleep,
+    And meet again."
+
+As the last note died away, a sigh came from the listeners; some of the
+women turned away their faces, and the young men began to talk hastily, as
+if to hide their emotion.
+
+Periander waited until the group began to break up. Then he stepped
+forward and laid his hand on the boy's shoulder. The boy looked up with a
+smile.
+
+"What is your name, my fair minstrel?" asked Periander.
+
+"My name is Arion," answered the boy, as if he were used to being
+questioned. "I come from Methymna beyond the hills, where I used to tend
+the goats." And he told Periander that his mother and father died before
+he could remember, and that he was brought up by an old goat-herd; until a
+traveling minstrel, who happened one day to hear him singing on the hills,
+took charge of him and taught him to play the lute.
+
+"That was one of his own songs I was singing," said Arion. "He always
+liked me to sing his songs; but, when I am a man, I shall make my own
+songs, and sing them in the great cities over the sea."
+
+"And so you shall," said Periander. "Now, listen to me, Arion! Some day,
+perhaps, I also may be a great man, able to help you to become a great
+singer. Remember, when you have need of a friend, that Periander of
+Corinth will help you, if he can!"
+
+And, when he departed, Periander left a sum of money with a worthy old
+couple, who promised to look after the boy, and see that he wanted
+nothing.
+
+After some years, Periander became king of Corinth, and having a love of
+everything beautiful, he soon gathered about him a little band of poets,
+artists, and musicians. One day, when he was listening to one of the court
+musicians, something--it might have been a chord in the music--reminded
+him of the little Lesbian Arion. He seemed to see once more the boy with
+the golden light on his curls, and the upturned faces of the peasants
+grouped around him; and the very words of the song ran in his head.
+
+"By Apollo!" he cried, so suddenly that the musician nearly fell off his
+seat. "We will have the little Lesbian at court, and make a famous singer
+of him. Where is Glaucus? Ho, there! Bid Glaucus attend the king!"
+
+When Glaucus appeared, the king bade him take a boat and sail for Lesbos.
+"There you will make search for one Arion, a singer," he said. "And when
+you have found him, say, 'Periander of Corinth has need of his friend
+Arion.' And see that you bring him safely to Corinth!"
+
+Glaucus did as he was bidden, and in due time found Arion, now grown into
+a tall, graceful youth. Arion, when he heard the message, consented to
+accompany Glaucus to Corinth, where he was greeted with great kindness by
+Periander. He very soon became a great favorite among the Corinthians, and
+all the musicians envied him his beautiful voice and his skill in playing
+on the lute. No one had such power to soothe the king in his black moods;
+nor was it at court alone that his fame as a singer was known, for he was
+ever ready to sing to the people, who idolized him and called him the son
+of Apollo. Among other things he taught them the song and dance of the
+Lesbians in honor of Dionysus and the vine; it afterwards became one of
+the most famous songs of Greece.
+
+Many years Arion stayed with Periander, who held him in high honor and
+loaded him with costly presents. His fame spread as far as Italy and
+Sicily, and he had many requests that he would go over and sing to the
+people there. At length, he determined to make the journey, not only from
+curiosity to see new countries, but also because he had heard of the songs
+sung by the Sicilian shepherds, and had a great desire to study them.
+Periander tried to dissuade him, but, finding him resolved, he assisted
+him in his preparations, and on his departure exacted from him a promise
+that he would return to Corinth.
+
+Arion traveled about Italy and Sicily for a long time, and made a great
+fortune by his singing. But growing tired at last of the wandering life,
+he went to Tarentum to find a ship which would take him back to Corinth.
+There were two or three ships ready to make the journey, among them one
+named the Nausicaa, which was manned by a crew of Corinthians. This he
+chose, being somewhat nervous about the large sum of money he was
+carrying, and thinking that he could trust the Corinthians, whom he knew,
+better than a crew of foreigners.
+
+The Nausicaa was a strange-looking vessel, with a single sail, and long
+oars pulled by men who sat on benches along the side. The prow, which was
+carved to represent the maiden Nausicaa, stood well out of the water, and
+the bulwarks descended in a graceful curve to rise again at the stern,
+where the captain stood and shaped his course by means of a broad paddle,
+which was hung over the side.
+
+The voyage began happily enough, the wind being favorable, and the captain
+and crew all deference and politeness. But when they were well out to sea,
+the behavior of the crew changed; they answered Arion's questions with
+scant politeness, and held many whispered consultations, which, from the
+black glances cast at him, made him uneasy as to his safety. On the second
+evening, waking out of a light sleep, he heard them conspiring to throw
+him overboard and divide his wealth among them. Arion started up and
+implored them not to carry out their evil purpose, offering to hand over
+all his wealth, if they would spare his life. His entreaties and promises
+were all in vain.
+
+"We give you a fair choice," said the captain brutally. "Either leap into
+the sea at once, or kill yourself in some other way, and we will bury you
+decently on shore."
+
+Abandoning his vain appeals for mercy, Arion begged them, as a last favor,
+to let him sing once more before he died.
+
+"That we will not refuse," the captain answered; "though, if you think to
+move us by your wailing, let me tell you that you waste your breath!" In
+reality, he was not displeased to have an opportunity of hearing the most
+famous singer in the world.
+
+Arion put on his sacred robes, in which he used to sing in the temple of
+Apollo, and taking his lute he stepped firmly to the prow of the vessel.
+There he stood, pale and calm, in the silvery light of the moon, his fair
+hair playing with the wind, while the little waves lifted themselves to
+look at him, and then ran playfully into the shadow of the boat, to dash
+their heads against the beams and be broken into spray. The sailors were
+awed in spite of themselves, as that beautiful voice rose on the breeze.
+He sang the old song which he had sung in the Lesbian vineyards when
+Periander saw him first. And when he came to the last lines,--
+
+  "Life is but a drop in the deep,
+  Soon we wake from the last, lone sleep,
+     And meet again,"
+
+Arion leapt over the side of the vessel, just as he was.
+
+The captain, fearing that some of the crew might be moved to lend him
+assistance, gave the order to make all speed ahead. Had he waited, he
+might have seen a most wonderful sight. For, as Arion fell into the sea,
+the water seemed to become alive beneath him, and he felt it lifting him
+up, and carrying him rapidly away from the ship. Then he discovered that
+he was seated astride on a great, black fish, which was swimming very
+rapidly on the top of the water, and he knew it must be a dolphin, which
+had been attracted by his singing; for the dolphins, unlike most things
+that live in the sea, have sharp ears, and are very fond of music. He
+touched his lute, to see if the strings had suffered from the water, and,
+as he did so, the great back quivered beneath him. Finding, therefore,
+that the dolphin liked the music, and thinking that he owed it some return
+for saving his life, Arion began to sing, and sang song after song;
+whenever he stopped, the dolphin ceased from swimming, as if to inquire
+the reason; and when Arion began again, the dolphin bounded through the
+water with great strokes of his broad tail. A strange sight it must have
+been, had there been any one there to see! But the dolphin went straight
+across the open sea, where no ships were to be seen; for the sailors of
+that day did not care to lose sight of the coast, but would sail all the
+way round a large bay rather than straight across it. So it was that Arion
+came to Tænarus in Greece, without having been seen by any man. The
+dolphin took him close to the shore, where he bade it good-by, and watched
+it swim away disconsolately.
+
+From Tænarus he made his way on foot to Corinth. Periander was overjoyed
+to see him once more; and when he marveled at the strange costume in which
+Arion had traveled, Arion related the whole story.
+
+Periander listened attentively, and, when it was finished, remarked
+gravely, "Are you then so little satisfied with your victories over the
+musicians, Arion, that you have determined to be king of story-tellers
+also?"
+
+"Does your majesty intend to throw doubt on my story?" asked Arion.
+
+"Far be it from me!" answered Periander. "The story pleases me well, and
+if you will tell me another such, I will take pains to believe that also."
+
+"Then Zeus be my witness! I will find means to prove it," cried Arion.
+
+"Have I not said that I doubted not?" asked Periander. "Yet I would gladly
+see the proof. My crown to your lute upon the issue!"
+
+"So be it!" said Arion. "But first I must ask your majesty that none may
+speak of my return; and when the ship _Nausicaa_ comes to port, let the
+seamen be dealt with as I shall appoint!"
+
+The king assented laughing, for he deemed the tale impossible. After some
+days, however, it was announced that the ship _Nausicaa_ was in the
+harbor. Periander summoned the captain and all the crew to the palace, and
+asked them whether they had brought any news of his minstrel Arion. The
+captain replied that men said at Tarentum that Arion was still in Italy,
+traveling from place to place, and received everywhere with great honor.
+The rest of the sailors confirmed the story, and one of them added that
+Arion was said to prefer Italy to Greece, nor had he any intention of
+returning to Corinth.
+
+At that moment a curtain was drawn and disclosed Arion, standing in his
+sacred robes and holding his lute, just as they had seen him last in the
+prow of the ship. The sailors, supposing that they beheld his spirit, were
+seized with terror, and fell at the king's feet, confessing all their
+wickedness and begging for mercy. But Periander was filled with
+indignation, and spurned them angrily. Arion interposed, urging the king
+to be merciful, now that the seamen had seen their wickedness, and were
+willing to make restitution. Periander, however, would not hear of mercy.
+
+"Your compassion bears witness to your noble spirit, Arion," he replied.
+"But these men have planned a most cruel and cowardly murder, and cruelly
+shall they suffer for it. Seize me these men, guards, and bind them!"
+
+The guards came forward and began to lead away the trembling wretches.
+
+"Stay!" cried Arion. "It is I who am king. Did not your majesty stake your
+crown against my lute, and can the royal word be broken? Back, guards! I
+claim my wager."
+
+Periander could not refrain from laughter, but confessed himself beaten by
+this piece of strategy. "The wit of Arion," he said, "is stronger than the
+tears of repentance. Release the prisoners!"
+
+"That being so," said Arion, "and seeing that I find myself more easy with
+the lute, I will restore the royal crown to Periander."
+
+So the men were set at liberty, after having restored the property of
+Arion, and departed full of gratitude, invoking blessings on his head.
+
+And lest any man should doubt the truth of the story in time to come,
+Arion erected at Tænarus a statue in bronze, representing a man riding on
+a dolphin's back.
+
+
+
+
+STORIES FROM LIVY
+
+
+ROMULUS, FOUNDER OF ROME
+
+Adapted by Alfred J. Church
+
+
+Æneas of Troy, coming to the land of Italy, took to wife Lavinia, daughter
+of King Latinus, and built him a city, which he called Lavinium, after the
+name of his wife. And, after thirty years, his son Ascanius went forth
+from Lavinium with much people, and built him a new city, which he called
+Alba. In this city reigned kings of the house and lineage of Æneas for
+twelve generations. Of these kings the eleventh in descent was one Procas,
+who, having two sons, Numitor and Amulius, left his kingdom, according to
+the custom, to Numitor, the elder. But Amulius drove out his brother, and
+reigned in his stead. Nor was he content with this wickedness, but slew
+all the male children of his brother. And the daughter of his brother,
+that was named Rhea Silvia, he chose to be a priestess of Vesta, making as
+though he would do the maiden honor, but his thought was that the name of
+his brother should perish, for they that serve Vesta are vowed to
+perpetual virginity.
+
+But it came to pass that Rhea bare twin sons, whose father, it was said,
+was the god Mars. Very wroth was Amulius when he heard this thing; Rhea he
+made fast in prison, and the children he gave to certain of his servants
+that they should cast them into the river. Now it chanced that at this
+season Tiber had overflowed his banks, neither could the servants come
+near to the stream of the river; nevertheless they did not doubt that the
+children would perish, for all that the overflowing of the water was
+neither deep nor of a swift current. Thinking, then, that they had duly
+performed the commandment of the king, they set down the babes in the
+flood and departed. But after a while the flood abated, and left the
+basket wherein the children had been laid on dry ground. And a she-wolf,
+coming down from the hill to drink at the river (for the country in those
+days was desert and abounding in wild beasts), heard the crying of the
+children and ran to them. Nor did she devour them, but gave them suck;
+nay, so gentle was she that Faustulus, the king's shepherd, chancing to go
+by, saw that she licked them with her tongue. This Faustulus took the
+children and gave them to his wife to rear; and these, when they were of
+age to go by themselves, were not willing to abide with the flocks and
+herds, but were hunters, wandering through the forests that were in those
+parts. And afterward, being now come to full strength, they were not
+content to slay wild beasts only, but would assail troops of robbers, as
+these were returning laden with their booty, and would divide the spoils
+among the shepherds. Now there was held in those days, on the hill that is
+now called the Palatine, a yearly festival to the god Pan. This festival
+King Evander first ordained, having come from Arcadia, in which land,
+being a land of shepherds, Pan, that is the god of shepherds, is greatly
+honored. And when the young men and their company (for they had gathered a
+great company of shepherds about them, and led them in all matters both of
+business and of sport) were busy with the festival, there came upon them
+certain robbers that had made an ambush in the place, being very wroth by
+reason of the booty which they had lost. These laid hands on Remus, but
+Romulus they could not take, so fiercely did he fight against them. Remus,
+therefore, they delivered up to King Amulius, accusing him of many things,
+and chiefly of this, that he and his companions had invaded the land of
+Numitor, dealing with them in the fashion of an enemy and carrying off
+much spoil. To Numitor, therefore, did the king deliver Remus, that he
+might put him to death. Now Faustulus had believed from the beginning that
+the children were of the royal house, for he knew that the babes had been
+cast into the river by the king's command, and the time also of his
+finding them agreed thereto. Nevertheless he had not judged it expedient
+to open the matter before due time, but waited till occasion or necessity
+should arise. But now, there being such necessity, he opened the matter to
+Romulus. Numitor also, when he had the young man Remus in his custody,
+knowing that he and his brother were twins, and that the time agreed, and
+seeing that they were of a high spirit, bethought him of his grandsons;
+and, indeed, having asked many questions of Remus, was come nigh to
+knowing of what race he was. And now also Romulus was ready to help his
+brother. To come openly with his whole company he dared not, for he was
+not a match for the power of King Amulius; but he bade sundry shepherds
+make their way to the palace, each as best he could, appointing to them a
+time at which they should meet. And now came Remus also, with a troop of
+youths gathered together from the household of Numitor. Then did Romulus
+and Remus slay King Amulius. In the meanwhile Numitor gathered the youth
+of Alba to the citadel, crying out that they must make the place safe, for
+that the enemy was upon them; but when he perceived that the young men had
+done the deed, forthwith he called an assembly of the citizens, and set
+forth to them the wickedness which his brother had wrought against him,
+and how his grandsons had been born and bred and made known to him, and
+then, in order, how the tyrant had been slain, himself having counseled
+the deed. When he had so spoken the young men came with their company into
+the midst of the assembly, and saluted him as king; to which thing the
+whole multitude agreeing with one consent, Numitor was established upon
+the throne.
+
+After this Romulus and his brother conceived this purpose, that, leaving
+their grandfather to be king at Alba, they should build for themselves a
+new city in the place where, having been at the first left to die, they
+had been brought up by Faustulus the shepherd. And to this purpose many
+agreed both of the men of Alba and of the Latins, and also of the
+shepherds that had followed them from the first, holding it for certain
+all of them that Alba and Lavinium would be of small account in comparison
+of this new city which they should build together. But while the brothers
+were busy with these things, there sprang up afresh the same evil thing
+which had before wrought such trouble in their house, even the lust of
+power. For though the beginnings of the strife between them were peaceful,
+yet did it end in great wickedness. The matter fell out in this wise.
+Seeing that the brothers were twins, and that neither could claim to have
+the preference to the other in respect of his age, it was agreed between
+them that the gods that were the guardians of that country should make
+known by means of augury which of the two they chose to give his name to
+the new city. Then Romulus stood on the Palatine hill, and when there had
+been marked out for him a certain region of the sky, watched therein for a
+sign; and Remus watched in like manner, standing on the Aventine. And to
+Remus first came a sign, six vultures; but so soon as the sign had been
+proclaimed there came another to Romulus, even twelve vultures. Then they
+that favored Remus clamored that the gods had chosen him for king, because
+he had first seen the birds; and they that favored Romulus answered that
+he was to be preferred because he had seen more in number. This dispute
+waxed so hot that they fell to fighting; and in the fight it chanced that
+Remus was slain. But some say that when Romulus had marked out the borders
+of the town which he would build, and had caused a wall to be built round
+it, Remus leapt over the wall, scorning it because it was mean and low;
+and that Romulus slew him, crying out, "Thus shall every man perish that
+shall dare to leap over my walls." Only others will have it that though he
+perished for this cause Romulus slew him not, but a certain Celer. This
+much is certain, that Romulus gained the whole kingdom for himself, and
+called the city after his own name.
+
+And now, having first done sacrifice to the Gods, he called a general
+assembly of the people, that he might give them laws, knowing that without
+laws no city can endure. And judging that these would be the better kept
+of his subjects if he should himself bear something of the show of royal
+majesty, he took certain signs of dignity, and especially twelve men that
+should continually attend him, bearing bundles of rods, and in the midst
+of the rods an axe; these men they called _lictors_. Meanwhile the city
+increased, for the king and his people enlarged their borders, looking
+rather to the greatness for which they hoped than to that which they had.
+And that this increase might not be altogether empty walls without men,
+Romulus set up a sanctuary, to which were gathered a great multitude of
+men from the nations round about. All that were discontented and lovers of
+novelty came to him. Nor did he take any account of their condition,
+whether they were bond or free, but received them all. Thus was there
+added to the city great strength. And the king, when he judged that there
+was strength sufficient, was minded to add to the strength counsel.
+Wherefore he chose a hundred men for counselors. A hundred he chose,
+either because he held that number to be sufficient, or because there were
+no more that were fit to bear this dignity and be called Fathers, for this
+was the name of these counselors.
+
+After this the people bethought themselves how they should get for
+themselves wives, for there were no women in the place. Wherefore Romulus
+sent ambassadors to the nations round about, praying that they should give
+their daughters to his people for wives. "Cities," he said, "have humble
+beginnings even as all other things. Nevertheless they that have the Gods
+and their own valor to help become great. Now that the gods are with us,
+as ye know, be assured also that valor shall not be wanting." But the
+nations round about would not hearken to him, thinking scorn of this
+gathering of robbers and slaves and runaways, so that they said, "Why do
+ye not open a sanctuary for women also that so ye may find fit wives for
+your people?" Also they feared for themselves and their children what this
+new city might grow to. Now when the ambassadors brought back this answer
+the Romans were greatly wroth, and would take by force that which their
+neighbors would not give of their free will. And to the end that they
+might do this more easily, King Romulus appointed certain days whereon he
+and his people would hold a festival with games to Neptune; and to this
+festival he called all them that dwelt in the cities round about. But when
+many were gathered together (for they were fain to see what this new city
+might be), and were now wholly bent on the spectacle of the games, the
+young men of the Romans ran in upon them, and carried off all such as were
+unwedded among the women. To these King Romulus spake kindly, saying, "The
+fault is not with us but with your fathers, who dealt proudly with us, and
+would not give you to us in marriage. But now ye shall be held in all
+honor as our wives, and shall have your portion of all that we possess.
+Put away therefore your anger, for ye shall find us so much the better
+husbands than other men, as we must be to you not for husbands only but
+parents also and native country."
+
+In the meanwhile the parents of them that had been carried off put on
+sackcloth, and went about through the cities crying out for vengeance upon
+the Romans. And chiefly they sought for help from Titus Tatius, that was
+king of the Sabines in those days, and of great power and renown. But when
+the Sabines seemed to be tardy in the matter, the men of Cære first
+gathered together their army and marched into the country of the Romans.
+Against these King Romulus led forth his men and put them to flight
+without much ado, having first slain their king with his own hand. Then,
+after returning to Rome, he carried the arms which he had taken from the
+body of the king to the hill of the Capitol, and laid them down at the
+shepherds' oak that stood thereon in those days. And when he had measured
+out the length and breadth of a temple that he would build to Jupiter upon
+the hill, he said, "O Jupiter, I, King Romulus, offer to thee these arms
+of a king, and dedicate therewith a temple in this place, in which temple
+they that come after me shall offer to thee like spoils in like manner,
+when it shall chance that the leader of our host shall himself slay with
+his own hands the leader of the host of the enemy." And this was the first
+temple that was dedicated in Rome. And in all the time to come two only
+offered in this manner, to wit, Cornelius Cossus that slew Lars Tolumnius,
+king of Veii, and Claudius Marcellus that slew Britomarus, king of the
+Gauls.
+
+After this, King Tatius and the Sabines came up against Rome with a great
+army. And first of all they gained the citadel by treachery in this
+manner. One Tarpeius was governor of the citadel, whose daughter, Tarpeia
+by name, going forth from the walls to fetch water for a sacrifice, took
+money from the king that she should receive certain of the soldiers within
+the citadel; but when they had been so received, the men cast their
+shields upon her, slaying her with the weight of them. This they did
+either that they might be thought to have taken the place by force, or
+that they judged it to be well that no faith should be kept with traitors.
+Some also tell this tale, that the Sabines wore great bracelets of gold on
+their left arms, and on their left hands fair rings with precious stones
+therein, and that when the maiden covenanted with them that she should
+have for a reward that which they carried in their left hands, they cast
+their shields upon her. And others say that she asked for their shields
+having the purpose to betray them, and for this cause was slain.
+
+Thus the Sabines had possession of the citadel; and the next day King
+Romulus set the battle in array on the plain that lay between the hill of
+the Capitol and the hill of the Palatine. And first the Romans were very
+eager to recover the citadel, a certain Hostilius being their leader. But
+when this man, fighting in the forefront of the battle, was slain, the
+Romans turned their backs and fled before the Sabines, even unto the gate
+of the Palatine. Then King Romulus (for he himself had been carried away
+by the crowd of them that fled) held up his sword and his spear to the
+heavens, and cried aloud, "O Jupiter, here in the Palatine didst thou
+first, by the tokens which thou sentest me, lay the foundations of my
+city. And lo! the Sabines have taken the citadel by wicked craft, and have
+crossed the valley, and are come up even hither. But if thou sufferest
+them so far, do thou at the least defend this place against them, and stay
+this shameful flight of my people. So will I build a temple for thee in
+this place, even a temple of Jupiter the Stayer, that may be a memorial to
+after generations of how thou didst this day save this city." And when he
+had so spoken, even as though he knew that the prayer had been heard, he
+cried, "Ye men of Rome, Jupiter bids you stand fast in this place and
+renew the battle." And when the men of Rome heard these words, it was as
+if a voice from heaven had spoken to them, and they stood fast, and the
+king himself went forward and stood among the foremost. Now the leader of
+the Sabines was one Curtius. This man, as he drave the Romans before him,
+cried out to his comrades, "See, we have conquered these men, false hosts
+and feeble foes that they are! Surely now they know that it is one thing
+to carry off maidens and another to fight with men." But whilst he boasted
+himself thus, King Romulus and a company of the youth rushed upon him. Now
+Curtius was fighting on horseback, and being thus assailed he fled,
+plunging into a certain pool which lay between the Palatine hill and the
+Capitol. Thus did he barely escape with his life, and the lake was called
+thereafter Curtius' pool. And now the Sabines began to give way to the
+Romans, when suddenly the women for whose sake they fought, having their
+hair loosened and their garments rent, ran in between them that fought,
+crying out, "Shed ye not each other's blood, ye that are fathers-in-law
+and sons-in-law to each other. But if ye break this bond that is between
+you, slay us that are the cause of this trouble. And surely it were better
+for us to die than to live if we be bereaved of our fathers or of our
+husbands." With these words they stirred the hearts both of the chiefs and
+of the people, so that there was suddenly made a great silence. And
+afterward the leaders came forth to make a covenant; and these indeed so
+ordered matters that there was not peace only, but one state where there
+had been two. For the Sabines came to Rome and dwelt there; and King
+Romulus and King Tatius reigned together. Only, after a while, certain men
+of Lanuvium slew King Tatius as he was sacrificing to the Gods at
+Lavinium; and thereafter Romulus only was king as before.
+
+When he had reigned thirty and seven years there befell the thing that
+shall now be told. On a certain day he called the people together on the
+field of Mars, and held a review of his army. But while he did this there
+arose suddenly a great storm, with loud thunderings and very thick clouds,
+so that the king was hidden away from the eyes of all the people. Nor
+indeed was he ever again seen upon the earth. And when men were recovered
+of their fear they were in great trouble, because they had lost their
+king, though indeed the Fathers would have it that he had been carried by
+a whirlwind into heaven. Yet after a while they began to worship him as
+being now a god; and when nevertheless some doubted, and would even
+whisper among themselves that Romulus had been torn in pieces by the
+Fathers, there came forward a certain Proculus, who spake after this
+manner: "Ye men of Rome, this day, in the early morning, I saw Romulus,
+the father of this city, come down from heaven and stand before me. And
+when great fear came upon me, I prayed that it might be lawful for me to
+look upon him face to face. Then said he to me, 'Go thy way, tell the men
+of Rome that it is the will of them that dwell in heaven that Rome should
+be the chiefest city in the world. Bid them therefore be diligent in war;
+and let them know for themselves and tell their children after them that
+there is no power on earth so great that it shall be able to stand against
+them.' And when he had thus spoken, he departed from me, going up into
+heaven." All men believed Proculus when he thus spake, and the people
+ceased from their sorrow when they knew that King Romulus had been taken
+up into heaven.
+
+
+
+
+HOW HORATIUS HELD THE BRIDGE
+
+Adapted by Alfred J. Church
+
+
+    [King Tarquin had been driven from Rome because of his tyranny.]
+
+
+King Tarquin and his son Lucius (for he only remained to him of the three)
+fled to Lars Porsenna, king of Clusium, and besought him that he would
+help them. "Suffer not," they said, "that we, who are Tuscans by birth,
+should remain any more in poverty and exile. And take heed also to thyself
+and thine own kingdom if thou permit this new fashion of driving forth
+kings to go unpunished. For surely there is that in freedom which men
+greatly desire, and if they that be kings defend not their dignity as
+stoutly as others seek to overthrow it, then shall the highest be made
+even as the lowest, and there shall be an end of kingship, than which
+there is nothing more honorable under heaven." With these words they
+persuaded King Porsenna, who judging it well for the Etrurians that there
+should be a king at Rome, and that king an Etrurian by birth, gathered
+together a great army and came up against Rome. But when men heard of his
+coming, so mighty a city was Clusium in those days, and so great the fame
+of King Porsenna, there was such fear as had never been before.
+Nevertheless they were steadfastly purposed to hold out. And first all
+that were in the country fled into the city, and round about the city they
+set guards to keep it, part thereof being defended by walls, and part, for
+so it seemed, being made safe by the river. But here a great peril had
+well-nigh overtaken the city; for there was a wooden bridge on the river
+by which the enemy had crossed but for the courage of a certain Horatius
+Cocles. The matter fell out in this wise.
+
+There was a certain hill which men called Janiculum on the side of the
+river, and this hill King Porsenna took by a sudden attack. Which when
+Horatius saw (for he chanced to have been set to guard the bridge, and saw
+also how the enemy were running at full speed to the place, and how the
+Romans were fleeing in confusion and threw away their arms as they ran),
+he cried with a loud voice, "Men of Rome, it is to no purpose that ye thus
+leave your post and flee, for if ye leave this bridge behind you for men
+to pass over, ye shall soon find that ye have more enemies in your city
+than in Janiculum. Do ye therefore break it down with axe and fire as best
+ye can. In the meanwhile I, so far as one man may do, will stay the
+enemy." And as he spake he ran forward to the farther end of the bridge
+and made ready to keep the way against the enemy. Nevertheless there stood
+two with him, Lartius and Herminius by name, men of noble birth both of
+them and of great renown in arms. So these three for a while stayed the
+first onset of the enemy; and the men of Rome meanwhile brake down the
+bridge. And when there was but a small part remaining, and they that brake
+it down called to the three that they should come back, Horatius bade
+Lartius and Herminius return, but he himself remained on the farther side,
+turning his eyes full of wrath in threatening fashion on the princes of
+the Etrurians, and crying, "Dare ye now to fight with me? or why are ye
+thus come at the bidding of your master, King Porsenna, to rob others of
+the freedom that ye care not to have for yourselves?" For a while they
+delayed, looking each man to his neighbor, who should first deal with this
+champion of the Romans. Then, for very shame, they all ran forward, and
+raising a great shout, threw their javelins at him. These all he took upon
+his shield, nor stood the less firmly in his place on the bridge, from
+which when they would have thrust him by force, of a sudden the men of
+Rome raised a great shout, for the bridge was now altogether broken down,
+and fell with a great crash into the river. And as the enemy stayed a
+while for fear, Horatius turned him to the river and said, "O Father
+Tiber, I beseech thee this day with all reverence that thou kindly receive
+this soldier and his arms." And as he spake he leapt with all his arms
+into the river and swam across to his own people, and though many javelins
+of the enemy fell about him, he was not one whit hurt. Nor did such valor
+fail to receive due honor from the city. For the citizens set up a statue
+of Horatius in the market-place; and they gave him of the public land so
+much as he could plough about in one day. Also there was this honor paid
+him, that each citizen took somewhat of his own store and gave it to him,
+for food was scarce in the city by reason of the siege.
+
+
+
+
+HOW CINCINNATUS SAVED ROME
+
+Adapted by Alfred J. Church
+
+
+It came to pass that the Æquians brake the treaty of peace which they had
+made with Rome, and, taking one Gracchus Cloelius for their leader,
+marched into the land of Tusculum; and when they had plundered the country
+thereabouts, and had gathered together much booty, they pitched their camp
+on Mount Ægidus. To them the Romans sent three ambassadors, who should
+complain of the wrong done, and seek redress. But when they would have
+fulfilled their errand, Gracchus the Æquian spake, saying, "If ye have any
+message from the Senate of Rome, tell it to this oak, for I have other
+business to do;" for it chanced that there was a great oak that stood hard
+by, and made a shadow over the general's tent. Then one of the
+ambassadors, as he turned to depart, made reply, "Yes, let this sacred oak
+and all the gods that are in heaven hear how ye have wrongfully broken the
+treaty of peace; and let them that hear help us also in the day of battle,
+when we shall avenge on you the laws both of gods and of men that ye have
+set at nought."
+
+When the ambassadors had returned to Rome the Senate commanded that there
+should be levied two armies; and that Minucius the Consul should march
+with the one against the Æquians on Mount Ægidus, and that the other
+should hinder the enemy from their plundering. This levying the tribunes
+of the Commons sought to hinder; and perchance had done so, but there also
+came well-nigh to the walls of the city a great host of the Sabines
+plundering all the country. Thereupon the people willingly offered
+themselves, and there were levied forthwith two great armies. Nevertheless
+when the Consul Minucius had marched to Mount Ægidus, and had pitched his
+camp not far from the Æquians, he did nought for fear of the enemy, but
+kept himself within his entrenchments. And when the enemy perceived that
+he was afraid, growing the bolder for his lack of courage, they drew lines
+about him, keeping him in on every side. Yet before that he was altogether
+shut up there escaped from his camp five horsemen, that bare tidings to
+Rome how that the Consul, together with his army, was besieged. The people
+were sorely dismayed to hear such tidings; nor, when they cast about for
+help, saw they any man that might be sufficient for such peril, save only
+Cincinnatus. By common consent, therefore, he was made Dictator for six
+months, a thing that may well be noted by those who hold that nothing is
+to be accounted of in comparison of riches, and that no man may win great
+honor or show forth singular virtue unless he be well furnished with
+wealth. For here in this great peril of the Roman people there was no hope
+of safety but in one who was cultivating with his own hand a little plot
+of scarcely three acres of ground. For when the messengers of the people
+came to him they found him ploughing, or, as some say, digging a ditch.
+When they had greeted each the other, the messengers said, "May the Gods
+prosper this thing to the Roman people and to thee. Put on thy robe and
+hear the words of the people." Then said Cincinnatus, being not a little
+astonished, "Is all well?" and at the same time he called to his wife
+Racilia that she should bring forth his robe from the cottage. So she
+brought it forth, and the man wiped from him the dust and the sweat, and
+clad himself in his robe, and stood before the messengers. These said to
+him, "The people of Rome make thee Dictator, and bid thee come forthwith
+to the city." And at the same time they told how the Consul and his army
+were besieged by the Æquians. So Cincinnatus departed to Rome; and when he
+came to the other side of the Tiber there met him first his three sons,
+and next many of his kinsfolk and friends, and after them a numerous
+company of the nobles. These all conducted him to his house, the lictors,
+four and twenty in number, marching before him. There was also assembled a
+very great concourse of the people, fearing much how the Dictator might
+deal with them, for they knew what manner of man he was, and that there
+was no limit to his power, nor any appeal from him.
+
+The next day before dawn the Dictator came into the market-place, and
+appointed one Lucius Tarquinius to be Master of the Horse. This Tarquinius
+was held by common consent to excel all other men in exercises of war;
+only, though, being a noble by birth, he should have been among the
+horsemen, he had served, for lack of means, as a foot soldier. This done
+he called an assembly of the people and commanded that all the shops in
+the city should be shut; that no man should concern himself with any
+private business, but all that were of an age to go to the war should be
+present before sunset in the Field of Mars, each man having with him
+provisions of cooked food for five days, and twelve stakes. As for them
+that were past the age, they should prepare the food while the young men
+made ready their arms and sought for the stakes. These last they took as
+they found them, no man hindering them; and when the time appointed by the
+Dictator was come, all were assembled, ready, as occasion might serve,
+either to march or to give battle. Forthwith they set out, the Dictator
+leading the foot soldiers by their legions, and Tarquinius the horsemen,
+and each bidding them that followed make all haste. "We must needs come,"
+they said, "to our journey's end while it is yet night. Remember that the
+Consul and his army have been besieged now for three days, and that no man
+knows what a day or a night may bring forth." The soldiers themselves also
+were zealous to obey, crying out to the standard-bearers that they should
+quicken their steps, and to their fellows that they should not lag behind.
+Thus they came at midnight to Mount Ægidus, and when they perceived that
+the enemy was at hand they halted the standards. Then the Dictator rode
+forward to see, so far as the darkness would suffer him, how great was the
+camp of the Æquians and after what fashion it was pitched. This done he
+commanded that the baggage should be gathered together into a heap, and
+that the soldiers should stand every man in his own place. After this he
+compassed about the whole army of the enemy with his own army, and
+commanded that at a set signal every man should shout, and when they had
+shouted should dig a trench and set up therein the stakes. This the
+soldiers did, and the noise of the shouting passed over the camp of the
+enemy and came into the city, causing therein great joy, even as it caused
+great fear in the camp. For the Romans cried, "These be our countrymen,
+and they bring us help." Then said the Consul, "We must make no delay. By
+that shout is signified, not that they are come only, but that they are
+already dealing with the enemy. Doubtless the camp of the Æquians is even
+now assailed from without. Take ye your arms and follow me." So the legion
+went forth, it being yet night, to the battle, and as they went they
+shouted, that the Dictator might be aware. Now the Æquians had set
+themselves to hinder the making of a ditch and rampart which should shut
+them in; but when the Romans from the camp fell upon them, fearing lest
+these should make their way through the midst of their camp, they left
+them that were with Cincinnatus to finish their entrenching, and fought
+with the Consul. And when it was now light, lo! they were already shut in,
+and the Romans, having finished their entrenching, began to trouble them.
+And when the Æquians perceived that the battle was now on either side of
+them, they could withstand no longer, but sent ambassadors praying for
+peace, and saying, "Ye have prevailed; slay us not, but rather permit us
+to depart, leaving our arms behind us." Then said the Dictator, "I care
+not to have the blood of the Æquians. Ye may depart, but ye shall depart
+passing under the yoke, that ye may thus acknowledge to all men that ye
+are indeed vanquished." Now the yoke is thus made. There are set up in the
+ground two spears, and over them is bound by ropes a third spear. So the
+Æquians passed under the yoke.
+
+In the camp of the enemy there was found abundance of spoil. This the
+Dictator gave wholly to his own soldiers. "Ye were well-nigh a spoil to
+the enemy," said he to the army of the Consul, "therefore ye shall have no
+share in the spoiling of them. As for thee, Minucius, be thou a lieutenant
+only till thou hast learnt how to bear thyself as a consul." Meanwhile at
+Rome there was held a meeting of the Senate, at which it was commanded
+that Cincinnatus should enter the city in triumph, his soldiers following
+him in order of march. Before his chariot there were led the generals of
+the enemy; also the standards were carried in the front; and after these
+came the army, every man laden with spoil. That day there was great
+rejoicing in the city, every man setting forth a banquet before his doors
+in the street.
+
+After this, Virginius, that had borne false witness against Cæso, was
+found guilty of perjury, and went into exile. And when Cincinnatus saw
+that justice had been done to this evil-doer, he resigned his
+dictatorship, having held it for sixteen days only.
+
+
+
+
+THE STORY OF VIRGINIA
+
+Adapted by Alfred J. Church
+
+
+It was agreed between the nobles and the commons that, to make an end of
+disputing about the laws, ambassadors should be sent into Greece, and
+especially to Athens (which city and its lawgiver, Solon, were held in
+high repute in those days), to learn what manner of laws and customs they
+had, and to bring back a report of them. And when the ambassadors had
+brought back their report, it seemed good to the people that in the
+following year there should be appointed neither consuls nor any other
+magistrate, but decemvirs only; that is to say, ten men, who should set in
+order the laws of Rome. Thus it came to pass in the ninety and first year
+from the driving out of the kings, that decemvirs were appointed in the
+stead of consuls, Appius Claudius being the chief of the ten.
+
+For a while these pleased the people well, doing justice equally between
+man and man. And the custom was that each day one of the ten sat as judge
+with the twelve lictors about him, the nine others sitting with one
+minister only. Also they busied themselves with the ordering of the laws;
+and at last set forth ten tables on which these were written. At the same
+time they called the people together to an assembly, and spake to them
+thus: "The Gods grant that this undertaking may turn to the credit of the
+state, and of you, and of your children. Go, therefore, and read these
+laws which we have set forth; for though we have done what ten men could
+do to provide laws that should be just to all, whether they be high or
+low, yet the understandings of many men may yet change many things for the
+better. Consider therefore all these matters in your own minds, and debate
+them among yourselves. For we will that the Roman people should be bound
+by such laws only as they shall have agreed together to establish."
+
+The ten tables were therefore set forth, and when these had been
+sufficiently considered, and such corrections made therein as seemed good,
+a regular assembly of the people was called, and the laws were duly
+established. But now there was spread abroad a report that two tables were
+yet wanting, and that when these should have been added the whole would be
+complete; and thence there arose a desire that the Ten should be appointed
+to hold office a second year. This indeed was done; but Appius Claudius so
+ordered matters that there were elected together with him none of the
+chief men of the state, but only such as were of an inferior condition and
+fortune.
+
+After this the Ten began more and more to set aside all law and right.
+Thus whereas at the first one only on each day was followed by the twelve
+lictors, each of the Ten came daily into the market-place so attended, and
+whereas before the lictors carried bundles of rods only, now there was
+bound up with the rods an axe; whereby was signified the power of life and
+death. Their actions also agreed with this show, for they and their
+ministers plundered the goods and chattels of the people. Some also they
+scourged, and some they beheaded. And when they had so put a man to death,
+they would divide his substance among those that waited upon them to do
+their pleasure.
+
+Among their misdeeds two were especially notable. There was a certain
+Sicinius in the host, a man of singular strength and courage, who took it
+ill that the Ten should thus set themselves above all law, and was wont to
+say to his comrades that the commons should depart from the city as they
+had done in time past, or should at the least make them tribunes to be
+their champions as of old. This Sicinius the Ten sent on before the army,
+there being then war with the Sabines, to search out a place for a camp;
+and with him they sent certain others, bidding them slay him when they
+should have come to some convenient place. This they did, but not without
+suffering much loss; for the man fought for his life and defended himself,
+slaying many of his enemies. Then they that escaped ran into the camp,
+saying that Sicinius had fallen into an ambuscade, and had died along with
+certain others of the soldiers. At the first, indeed, this story was
+believed; but afterward, when, by permission of the Ten, there went some
+to bury the dead, they found that none of the dead bodies had been
+spoiled, and that Sicinius lay with his arms in the midst, the others
+having their faces toward him; also that there was no dead body of an
+enemy in the place, nor any track as of them that had gone from the place;
+for which reasons they brought back tidings that Sicinius had certainly
+been slain by his own comrades. At this there was great wrath in the camp;
+and the soldiers were ready to carry the body of Sicinius to Rome, but
+that the Ten made a military funeral for him at the public cost. So they
+buried Sicinius with great lamentation; but the Ten were thereafter in
+very ill repute among the soldiers.
+
+Again, there was a certain centurion, Lucius Virginius by name, an upright
+man and of good credit both at home and abroad. This Virginius had a
+daughter, Virginia, a very fair and virtuous maiden, whom he had espoused
+to a certain Icilius that had once been a tribune of the commons. On this
+maiden Appius Claudius, the chief of the Ten, sought to lay hands, and for
+this end gave commandment to one Marcus Claudius, who was one of the
+clients of his house, that he should claim the girl for a slave. On the
+morrow therefore, as Virginia passed across the market-place, being on her
+way to school (for the schools in those days were held in the
+market-place), this Claudius seized her, affirming that she was born of a
+woman that was a slave, and was therefore by right a slave herself. The
+maiden standing still for fear, the nurse that attended her set up a great
+cry and called the citizens to help. Straightway there was a great
+concourse, for many knew the maiden's father Virginius, and Icilius to
+whom she was betrothed. Then said Claudius, seeing that he could not take
+her by force, "There is no need of tumult or of gathering a crowd. I would
+proceed by law, not by force." Thereupon he summoned the girl before the
+judge. When they came to the judgment-seat of Appius the man told a tale
+that had already been agreed upon between the two. "This girl," he said,
+"was born in my house, and was thence secretly taken to the house of
+Virginius, and passed off on the man as his daughter. Of this I will bring
+proof sufficient, such as will convince Virginius himself, who doubtless
+has received the chief wrong in this matter. But in the meanwhile it is
+reasonable that the slave should remain in the house of her master." To
+this the friends of the girl made answer, "Virginius is absent on the
+service of the state, and will be here within the space of two days, if
+tidings of this matter be sent to him. Now it is manifestly wrong that
+judgment concerning a man's children should be given while he is himself
+absent. Let the cause, therefore, be postponed till he come. Meanwhile let
+the maiden have her freedom, according to the law which Appius and his
+fellows have themselves established."
+
+Appius gave sentence in these words: "That I am a favorer of freedom is
+manifest from this law of which ye make mention. Yet this law must be
+observed in all cases and without respect of persons; and as to this girl,
+there is none but her father only to whom her owner may yield the custody
+of her. Let her father therefore be sent for; but in the meanwhile
+Claudius must have custody of her, as is his right, only giving security
+that he will produce her on the morrow."
+
+At this decree, so manifestly unrighteous was it, there was much
+murmuring, yet none dared to oppose it, till Numitorius, the girl's uncle,
+and Icilius came forth from the crowd. The lictor cried, "Sentence has
+been given," and bade Icilius give place. Then Icilius turned to Appius,
+saying, "Appius, thou must drive me hence with the sword before thou canst
+have thy will in this matter. This maiden is my espoused wife; and verily,
+though thou call hither all thy lictors and the lictors of thy colleagues,
+she shall not remain in any house save the house of her father."
+
+To this Appius, seeing that the multitude was greatly moved and were ready
+to break forth into open violence, made this reply: "Icilius cares not for
+Virginia, but being a lover of sedition and tumult, seeks an occasion for
+strife. Such occasion I will not give him to-day. But that he may know
+that I yield not to his insolence, but have regard to the rights of a
+father, I pronounce no sentence. I ask of Marcus Claudius that he will
+concede something of his right, and suffer surety to be given for the girl
+against the morrow. But if on the morrow the father be not present here,
+then I tell Icilius and his fellows that he who is the author of this law
+will not fail to execute it. Neither will I call in the lictors of my
+colleague to put down them that raise a tumult. For this my own lictors
+shall suffice."
+
+So much time being thus gained, it seemed good to the friends of the
+maiden that the son of Numitorius and the brother of Icilius, young men
+both of them and active, should hasten with all speed to the camp, and
+bring Virginius thence as quickly as might be. So the two set out, and
+putting their horses to their full speed, carried tidings of the matter to
+the father. As for Appius, he sat awhile on the judgment-seat, waiting for
+other business to be brought before him, for he would not have it seem
+that he had come for this cause only; but finding that there was none, and
+indeed the people were wholly intent on the matter of Virginia, he
+departed to his own house. Thence he sent an epistle to his colleagues
+that were at the camp, saying, "Grant no leave of absence to Virginius,
+but keep him in safe custody with you." But this availed nothing, for
+already, before ever the epistle was brought to the camp, at the very
+first watch of the night, Virginius had set forth.
+
+When Virginius was come to the city, it being then early dawn, he put on
+mean apparel, as was the custom with such as were in danger of life or
+liberty, and carried about his daughter, who was clad in like manner,
+praying all that he met to help and succor him. "Remember," said he, "that
+day by day I stand fighting for you and for your children against your
+enemies. But what shall this profit you or me if this city being safe,
+nevertheless our children stand in peril of slavery and shame?" Icilius
+spake in like manner, and the women (for a company of matrons followed
+Virginia) wept silently, stirring greatly the hearts of all that looked
+upon them. But Appius, so set was his heart on evil, heeded none of these
+things; but so soon as he had sat him down on the seat of judgment, and he
+that claimed the girl had said a few words complaining that right had not
+been done to him, he gave his sentence, suffering not Virginius to speak.
+What pretense of reason he gave can scarce be imagined, but the sentence
+(for this only is certain) was that the girl should be in the custody of
+Claudius till the matter should be decided by law. But when Claudius came
+to take the maiden, her friends and all the women that bare her company
+thrust him back. Then said Appius, "I have sure proof, and this not from
+the violence only of Icilius, but from what is told to me of gatherings by
+night in the city, that there is a purpose in certain men to stir up
+sedition. Knowing this I have come hither with armed men; not to trouble
+quiet citizens, but to punish such as would break the peace of the state.
+Such as be wise, therefore, will keep themselves quiet. Lictor, remove
+this crowd, and make room for the master that he may take his slave."
+These words he thundered forth in great anger; and the people, when they
+heard them, fell back in fear, so that the maiden stood without defense.
+Then Virginius, seeing that there were none to help him, said to Appius,
+"I pray thee, Appius, if I have said aught that was harsh to thee, that
+thou wilt pardon it, knowing how a father must needs suffer in such a
+case. But now suffer me to inquire somewhat of this woman that is the
+girl's nurse, that I may know what is the truth of the matter. For if I
+have been deceived in the matter, and am not in truth father to the girl,
+I shall be more content." Then, Appius giving permission, he led his
+daughter and her nurse a little space aside, to the shops that are by the
+temple of Cloacina, and snatching a knife from a butcher's, said, "My
+daughter, there is but this one way that I can make thee free," and he
+drave the knife into her breast. Then he looked back to the judgment-seat
+and cried, "With this blood, Appius, I devote thee and thy life to
+perdition." There went up a great cry from all that stood there when they
+saw so dreadful a deed, and Appius commanded that they should seize him.
+But no man laid hands on him, for he made a way for himself with the knife
+that he carried in his hand, and they that followed defended him, till he
+came to the gate of the city. Then Icilius and Numitorius took up the dead
+body of the maiden and showed it to the people, saying much of the
+wickedness of him who had driven a father to do such a deed, and much also
+of the liberty which had been taken from them, and which, if they would
+only use this occasion, they might now recover. As for Appius, he cried
+out to his lictors that they should lay hands on Icilius, and when the
+crowd suffered not the lictors to approach, would himself have made a way
+to him, by the help of the young nobles that stood by him. But now the
+crowd had leaders, themselves also nobles, Valerius and Horatius. These
+said, "If Appius would deal with Icilius according to law we will be
+securities for him; if he mean to use violence, we are ready to meet him."
+And when the lictor would have laid hands on these two the multitude brake
+his rods to pieces. Then Appius would have spoken to the people, but they
+clamored against him, so that at last, losing all courage and fearing for
+his life, he covered his head and fled secretly to his own house.
+
+Meanwhile Virginius had made his way to the camp, which was now on Mount
+Vecilius, and stirred up the army yet more than he had stirred the city.
+"Lay not to my charge," he said, "that which is in truth the wickedness of
+Appius; neither turn from me as from the murderer of my daughter. Her
+indeed I slew, thinking that death was better than slavery and shame; nor
+indeed had I survived her but that I hoped to avenge her death by the help
+of my comrades." Others also that had come from the city persuaded the
+soldiers; some saying that the power of the Ten was overthrown, and others
+that Appius had gone of his own accord into banishment. These words so
+prevailed with the soldiers that, without any bidding from their generals,
+they took up their arms, and, with their standards carried before them,
+came to Rome and pitched their camp on the Aventine.
+
+Nevertheless, the Ten were still obstinate, affirming that they would not
+resign their authority till they had finished the work for which they had
+been appointed, namely, the drawing up of the twelve tables of the laws.
+And when the army perceived this they marched from the Aventine and took
+up their abode on the Sacred Hill, all the commons following them, so that
+there was not left in the city a single man that had ability to move; nor
+did the women and children stay behind, but all, as many as could move,
+bare them company; for Duilius, that had been tribune, said, "Unless the
+Senate see the city deserted, they will take no heed of your complaints."
+And indeed, when these perceived what had taken place, they were more
+urgent than before that the Ten should resign their office. And these at
+last consented. "Only," said they, "do not suffer us to perish from the
+rage of the commons. It will be an ill day for the nobles when the people
+shall learn to take vengeance on them." And the Senate so wrought that
+though at the first the commons in their great fury demanded that the Ten
+should be burned alive, yet they were persuaded to yield, it being agreed
+that each man should be judged by the law according to his deserts.
+Appius, therefore, was accused by Virginius, and being cast into prison,
+slew himself before the day appointed for the trial. Oppius also, another
+of the Ten, whom the commons hated for his misdeeds next after Appius, was
+accused and died in like manner. As for Claudius, that had claimed
+Virginia for his slave, he was condemned to be banished. And thus at the
+last, the guilty having been punished, the spirit of Virginia had rest.
+
+
+
+
+THE SACRIFICE OF MARCUS CURTIUS
+
+Adapted by Alfred J. Church
+
+
+In the three hundred and ninety-third year after the building of the city
+there was seen suddenly to open in the market-place a great gulf of a
+deepness that no man could measure. And this gulf could not be filled up,
+though all the people brought earth and stones and the like to cast into
+it. But at the last there was sent a message from the Gods that the Romans
+must inquire what was that by which more than all things the state was
+made strong. "For," said the soothsayer, "this thing must be dedicated to
+the Gods in this place if the commonwealth of Rome is to stand fast
+forever." And while they doubted, one Marcus Curtius, a youth that had won
+great renown in war, rebuked them, saying, "Can ye doubt that Rome hath
+nothing better than arms and valor?"
+
+Then all the people stood silent; and Curtius, first beholding the temples
+of the immortal Gods that hung over the market-place and the Capitol, and
+afterward stretching forth his hands both to heaven above and to this gulf
+that opened its mouth to the very pit, as it were, of hell, devoted
+himself for his country; and so--being clothed in armor and with arms in
+his hand, and having his horse arrayed as sumptuously as might be--he
+leapt into the gulf; and the multitude, both of men and women, threw in
+gifts and offerings of the fruits of the earth, and afterward the earth
+closed together.
+
+
+
+
+STORIES FROM OVID
+
+
+THE MIRACULOUS PITCHER
+
+By Nathaniel Hawthorne
+
+
+One evening, in times long ago, old Philemon and his old wife Baucis sat
+at their cottage door, enjoying the calm and beautiful sunset. They had
+already eaten their frugal supper, and intended now to spend a quiet hour
+or two before bedtime. So they talked together about their garden, and
+their cow, and their bees, and their grapevine, which clambered over the
+cottage wall, and on which the grapes were beginning to turn purple. But
+the rude shouts of children, and the fierce barking of dogs, in the
+village near at hand, grew louder and louder, until, at last, it was
+hardly possible for Baucis and Philemon to hear each other speak.
+
+"Ah, wife," cried Philemon, "I fear some poor traveler is seeking
+hospitality among our neighbors yonder, and, instead of giving him food
+and lodging, they have set their dogs at him, as their custom is!"
+
+"Well-a-day!" answered old Baucis, "I do wish our neighbors felt a little
+more kindness for their fellow-creatures. And only think of bringing up
+their children in this naughty way, and patting them on the head when they
+fling stones at strangers!"
+
+"Those children will never come to any good," said Philemon, shaking his
+white head. "To tell you the truth, wife, I should not wonder if some
+terrible thing were to happen to all the people in the village, unless
+they mend their manners. But, as for you and me, so long as Providence
+affords us a crust of bread, let us be ready to give half to any poor,
+homeless stranger that may come along and need it."
+
+"That's right, husband!" said Baucis. "So we will!"
+
+These old folks, you must know, were quite poor, and had to work pretty
+hard for a living. Old Philemon toiled diligently in his garden, while
+Baucis was always busy with her distaff, or making a little butter and
+cheese with their cow's milk, or doing one thing and another about the
+cottage. Their food was seldom anything but bread, milk, and vegetables,
+with sometimes a portion of honey from their beehive, and now and then a
+bunch of grapes, that had ripened against the cottage wall. But they were
+two of the kindest old people in the world, and would cheerfully have gone
+without their dinners, any day, rather than refuse a slice of their brown
+loaf, a cup of new milk, and a spoonful of honey, to the weary traveler
+who might pause before their door. They felt as if such guests had a sort
+of holiness, and that they ought, therefore, to treat them better and more
+bountifully than their own selves.
+
+Their cottage stood on a rising ground, at some short distance from a
+village, which lay in a hollow valley, that was about half a mile in
+breadth. This valley, in past ages, when the world was new, had probably
+been the bed of a lake. There fishes had glided to and fro in the depths,
+and water-weeds had grown along the margin, and trees and hills had seen
+their reflected images in the broad and peaceful mirror. But, as the
+waters subsided, men had cultivated the soil, and built houses on it, so
+that it was now a fertile spot, and bore no traces of the ancient lake,
+except a very small brook, which meandered through the midst of the
+village, and supplied the inhabitants with water. The valley had been dry
+land so long that oaks had sprung up, and grown great and high, and
+perished with old age, and been succeeded by others, as tall and stately
+as the first. Never was there a prettier or more fruitful valley. The very
+sight of the plenty around them should have made the inhabitants kind and
+gentle, and ready to show their gratitude to Providence by doing good to
+their fellow-creatures.
+
+But, we are sorry to say, the people of this lovely village were not
+worthy to dwell in a spot on which Heaven had smiled so beneficently. They
+were a very selfish and hard-hearted people, and had no pity for the poor,
+nor sympathy with the homeless. They would only have laughed, had anybody
+told them that human beings owe a debt of love to one another, because
+there is no other method of paying the debt of love and care which all of
+us owe to Providence. You will hardly believe what I am going to tell you.
+These naughty people taught their children to be no better than
+themselves, and used to clap their hands, by way of encouragement, when
+they saw the little boys and girls run after some poor stranger, shouting
+at his heels, and pelting him with stones. They kept large and fierce
+dogs, and whenever a traveler ventured to show himself in the village
+street, this pack of disagreeable curs scampered to meet him, barking,
+snarling, and showing their teeth. Then they would seize him by his leg,
+or by his clothes, just as it happened; and if he were ragged when he
+came, he was generally a pitiable object before he had time to run away.
+This was a very terrible thing to poor travelers, as you may suppose,
+especially when they chanced to be sick, or feeble, or lame, or old. Such
+persons (if they once knew how badly these unkind people, and their unkind
+children and curs, were in the habit of behaving) would go miles and miles
+out of their way, rather than try to pass through the village again.
+
+What made the matter seem worse, if possible, was that when rich persons
+came in their chariots, or riding on beautiful horses, with their servants
+in rich liveries attending on them, nobody could be more civil and
+obsequious than the inhabitants of the village. They would take off their
+hats, and make the humblest bows you ever saw. If the children were rude,
+they were pretty certain to get their ears boxed; and as for the dogs, if
+a single cur in the pack presumed to yelp, his master instantly beat him
+with a club, and tied him up without any supper. This would have been all
+very well, only it proved that the villagers cared much about the money
+that a stranger had in his pocket, and nothing whatever for the human
+soul, which lives equally in the beggar and the prince.
+
+So now you can understand why old Philemon spoke so sorrowfully, when he
+heard the shouts of the children and the barking of the dogs, at the
+farther extremity of the village street. There was a confused din, which
+lasted a good while, and seemed to pass quite through the breadth of the
+valley.
+
+"I never heard the dogs so loud!" observed the good old man.
+
+"Nor the children so rude!" answered his good old wife.
+
+They sat shaking their heads, one to the other, while the noise came
+nearer and nearer; until, at the foot of the little eminence on which
+their cottage stood, they saw two travelers approaching on foot. Close
+behind them came the fierce dogs, snarling at their very heels. A little
+farther off ran a crowd of children, who sent up shrill cries, and flung
+stones at the two strangers, with all their might. Once or twice, the
+younger of the two men (he was a slender and very active figure) turned
+about and drove back the dogs with a staff which he carried in his hand.
+His companion, who was a very tall person, walked calmly along as if
+disdaining to notice either the naughty children or the pack of curs,
+whose manners the children seemed to imitate.
+
+Both of the travelers were very humbly clad, and looked as if they might
+not have money enough in their pockets to pay for a night's lodging. And
+this, I am afraid, was the reason why the villagers had allowed their
+children and dogs to treat them so rudely.
+
+"Come, wife," said Philemon to Baucis, "let us go and meet these poor
+people. No doubt, they feel almost too heavy-hearted to climb the hill."
+
+"Go you and meet them," answered Baucis, "while I make haste within doors,
+and see whether we can get them anything for supper. A comfortable bowl of
+bread and milk would do wonders towards raising their spirits."
+
+Accordingly, she hastened into the cottage. Philemon, on his part, went
+forward, and extended his hand with so hospitable an aspect that there was
+no need of saying what nevertheless he did say, in the heartiest tone
+imaginable,--
+
+"Welcome, strangers! welcome!"
+
+"Thank you!" replied the younger of the two, in a lively kind of way,
+notwithstanding his weariness and trouble. "This is quite another greeting
+than we have met with yonder in the village. Pray, why do you live in such
+a bad neighborhood?"
+
+"Ah!" observed old Philemon, with a quiet and benign smile, "Providence
+put me here, I hope, among other reasons, in order that I may make you
+what amends I can for the inhospitality of my neighbors."
+
+"Well said, old father!" cried the traveler, laughing; "and, if the truth
+must be told, my companion and myself need some amends. Those children
+(the little rascals!) have bespattered us finely with their mud-balls; and
+one of the curs has torn my cloak, which was ragged enough already. But I
+took him across the muzzle with my staff; and I think you may have heard
+him yelp, even thus far off."
+
+Philemon was glad to see him in such good spirits; nor, indeed, would you
+have fancied, by the traveler's look and manner, that he was weary with a
+long day's journey, besides being disheartened by rough treatment at the
+end of it. He was dressed in rather an odd way, with a sort of cap on his
+head, the brim of which stuck out over both ears. Though it was a summer
+evening, he wore a cloak, which he kept wrapt closely about him, perhaps
+because his under garments were shabby. Philemon perceived, too, that he
+had on a singular pair of shoes; but, as it was now growing dusk, and as
+the old man's eyesight was none the sharpest, he could not precisely tell
+in what the strangeness consisted. One thing, certainly, seemed queer. The
+traveler was so wonderfully light and active, that it appeared as if his
+feet sometimes rose from the ground of their own accord, or could only be
+kept down by an effort.
+
+"I used to be light-footed, in my youth," said Philemon to the traveler.
+"But I always found my feet grow heavier towards nightfall."
+
+"There is nothing like a good staff to help one along," answered the
+stranger; "and I happen to have an excellent one, as you see."
+
+This staff, in fact, was the oddest-looking staff that Philemon had ever
+beheld. It was made of olive-wood, and had something like a little pair of
+wings near the top. Two snakes, carved in the wood, were represented as
+twining themselves about the staff, and were so very skillfully executed
+that old Philemon (whose eyes, you know, were getting rather dim) almost
+thought them alive, and that he could see them wriggling and twisting.
+
+"A curious piece of work, sure enough!" said he. "A staff with wings! It
+would be an excellent kind of stick for a little boy to ride astride of!"
+
+By this time Philemon and his two guests had reached the cottage door.
+
+"Friends," said the old man, "sit down and rest yourselves here on this
+bench. My good wife Baucis has gone to see what you can have for supper.
+We are poor folks; but you shall be welcome to whatever we have in the
+cupboard."
+
+The younger stranger threw himself carelessly on the bench, letting his
+staff fall, as he did so. And here happened something rather marvelous,
+though trifling enough, too. The staff seemed to get up from the ground of
+its own accord, and, spreading its little pair of wings, it half hopped,
+half flew, and leaned itself against the wall of the cottage. There it
+stood quite still, except that the snakes continued to wriggle. But, in my
+private opinion, old Philemon's eyesight had been playing him tricks
+again.
+
+Before he could ask any questions, the elder stranger drew his attention
+from the wonderful staff, by speaking to him.
+
+"Was there not," asked the stranger, in a remarkably deep tone of voice,
+"a lake, in very ancient times, covering the spot where now stands yonder
+village?"
+
+"Not in my day, friend," answered Philemon; "and yet I am an old man, as
+you see. There were always the fields and meadows, just as they are now,
+and the old trees, and the little stream murmuring through the midst of
+the valley. My father, nor his father before him, ever saw it otherwise,
+so far as I know; and doubtless it will still be the same, when old
+Philemon shall be gone and forgotten!"
+
+"That is more than can be safely foretold," observed the stranger; and
+there was something very stern in his deep voice. He shook his head, too,
+so that his dark and heavy curls were shaken with the movement. "Since the
+inhabitants of yonder village have forgotten the affections and sympathies
+of their nature, it were better that the lake should be rippling over
+their dwellings again!"
+
+The traveler looked so stern that Philemon was really almost frightened;
+the more so, that, at his frown, the twilight seemed suddenly to grow
+darker, and that, when he shook his head, there was a roll as of thunder
+in the air.
+
+But, in a moment afterwards, the stranger's face became so kindly and mild
+that the old man quite forgot his terror. Nevertheless, he could not help
+feeling that this elder traveler must be no ordinary personage, although
+he happened now to be attired so humbly and to be journeying on foot. Not
+that Philemon fancied him a prince in disguise, or any character of that
+sort; but rather some exceedingly wise man, who went about the world in
+this poor garb, despising wealth and all worldly objects, and seeking
+everywhere to add a mite to his wisdom. This idea appeared the more
+probable, because, when Philemon raised his eyes to the stranger's face,
+he seemed to see more thought there, in one look, than he could have
+studied out in a lifetime.
+
+While Baucis was getting the supper, the travelers both began to talk very
+sociably with Philemon. The younger, indeed, was extremely loquacious, and
+made such shrewd and witty remarks that the good old man continually burst
+out a-laughing, and pronounced him the merriest fellow whom he had seen
+for many a day.
+
+"Pray, my young friend," said he, as they grew familiar together, "what
+may I call your name?"
+
+"Why, I am very nimble, as you see," answered the traveler. "So, if you
+call me Quicksilver, the name will fit tolerably well."
+
+"Quicksilver? Quicksilver?" repeated Philemon, looking in the traveler's
+face, to see if he were making fun of him. "It is a very odd name! And
+your companion there? Has he as strange a one?"
+
+"You must ask the thunder to tell it you!" replied Quicksilver, putting on
+a mysterious look. "No other voice is loud enough."
+
+This remark, whether it were serious or in jest, might have caused
+Philemon to conceive a very great awe of the elder stranger, if, on
+venturing to gaze at him, he had not beheld so much beneficence in his
+visage. But undoubtedly here was the grandest figure that ever sat so
+humbly beside a cottage door. When the stranger conversed, it was with
+gravity, and in such a way that Philemon felt irresistibly moved to tell
+him everything which he had most at heart. This is always the feeling that
+people have when they meet with any one wise enough to comprehend all
+their good and evil, and to despise not a tittle of it.
+
+But Philemon, simple and kind-hearted old man that he was, had not many
+secrets to disclose. He talked, however, quite garrulously, about the
+events of his past life, in the whole course of which he had never been a
+score of miles from this very spot. His wife Baucis and himself had dwelt
+in the cottage from their youth upward, earning their bread by honest
+labor, always poor, but still contented. He told what excellent butter and
+cheese Baucis made, and how nice were the vegetables which he raised in
+his garden. He said, too, that, because they loved one another so very
+much, it was the wish of both that death might not separate them, but that
+they should die, as they had lived, together.
+
+As the stranger listened, a smile beamed over his countenance, and made
+its expression as sweet as it was grand.
+
+"You are a good old man," said he to Philemon, "and you have a good old
+wife to be your helpmeet. It is fit that your wish be granted."
+
+And it seemed to Philemon, just then, as if the sunset clouds threw up a
+bright flash from the west, and kindled a sudden light in the sky.
+
+Baucis had now got supper ready, and, coming to the door, began to make
+apologies for the poor fare which she was forced to set before her guests.
+
+"Had we known you were coming," said she, "my good man and myself would
+have gone without a morsel, rather than you should lack a better supper.
+But I took the most part of to-day's milk to make cheese; and our last
+loaf is already half eaten. Ah me! I never feel the sorrow of being poor,
+save when a poor traveler knocks at our door."
+
+"All will be very well; do not trouble yourself, my good dame," replied
+the elder stranger kindly. "An honest, hearty welcome to a guest works
+miracles with the fare, and is capable of turning the coarsest food to
+nectar and ambrosia."
+
+"A welcome you shall have," cried Baucis, "and likewise a little honey
+that we happen to have left, and a bunch of purple grapes besides."
+
+"Why, Mother Baucis, it is a feast!" exclaimed Quicksilver, laughing; "an
+absolute feast! and you shall see how bravely I will play my part at it! I
+think I never felt hungrier in my life."
+
+"Mercy on us!" whispered Baucis to her husband. "If the young man has such
+a terrible appetite, I am afraid there will not be half enough supper!"
+
+[Illustration: "I AM AFRAID THERE WILL NOT BE HALF ENOUGH SUPPER"]
+
+They all went into the cottage.
+
+And now, my little auditors, shall I tell you something that will make you
+open your eyes very wide? It is really one of the oddest circumstances in
+the whole story. Quicksilver's staff, you recollect, had set itself up
+against the wall of the cottage. Well, when its master entered the door,
+leaving this wonderful staff behind, what should it do but immediately
+spread its little wings, and go hopping and fluttering up the doorsteps!
+Tap, tap, went the staff, on the kitchen floor; nor did it rest until it
+had stood itself on end, with the greatest gravity and decorum, beside
+Quicksilver's chair. Old Philemon, however, as well as his wife, was so
+taken up in attending to their guests that no notice was given to what the
+staff had been about.
+
+As Baucis had said, there was but a scanty supper for two hungry
+travelers. In the middle of the table was the remnant of a brown loaf,
+with a piece of cheese on one side of it, and a dish of honeycomb on the
+other. There was a pretty good bunch of grapes for each of the guests. A
+moderately sized earthen pitcher, nearly full of milk, stood at a corner
+of the board; and when Baucis had filled two bowls, and set them before
+the strangers, only a little milk remained in the bottom of the pitcher.
+Alas! it is a very sad business, when a bountiful heart finds itself
+pinched and squeezed among narrow circumstances. Poor Baucis kept wishing
+that she might starve for a week to come, if it were possible, by so
+doing, to provide these hungry folks a more plentiful supper.
+
+And, since the supper was so exceedingly small, she could not help wishing
+that their appetites had not been quite so large. Why, at their very first
+sitting down, the travelers both drank off all the milk in their two
+bowls, at a draught.
+
+"A little more milk, kind Mother Baucis, if you please," said Quicksilver.
+"The day has been hot, and I am very much athirst."
+
+"Now, my dear people," answered Baucis, in great confusion, "I am so sorry
+and ashamed! But the truth is, there is hardly a drop more milk in the
+pitcher. O husband, husband, why didn't we go without our supper?"
+
+"Why, it appears to me," cried Quicksilver, starting up from table and
+taking the pitcher by the handle, "it really appears to me that matters
+are not quite so bad as you represent them. Here is certainly more milk in
+the pitcher."
+
+So saying, and to the vast astonishment of Baucis, he proceeded to fill,
+not only his own bowl, but his companion's likewise, from the pitcher that
+was supposed to be almost empty. The good woman could scarcely believe her
+eyes. She had certainly poured out nearly all the milk, and had peeped in
+afterwards, and seen the bottom of the pitcher, as she set it down upon
+the table.
+
+"But I am old," thought Baucis to herself, "and apt to be forgetful. I
+suppose I must have made a mistake. At all events, the pitcher cannot help
+being empty now, after filling the bowls twice over."
+
+"What excellent milk!" observed Quicksilver, after quaffing the contents
+of the second bowl. "Excuse me, my kind hostess, but I must really ask you
+for a little more."
+
+Now Baucis had seen, as plainly as she could see anything, that
+Quicksilver had turned the pitcher upside down, and consequently had
+poured out every drop of milk, in filling the last bowl. Of course, there
+could not possibly be any left. However, in order to let him know
+precisely how the case was, she lifted the pitcher, and made a gesture as
+if pouring milk into Quicksilver's bowl, but without the remotest idea
+that any milk would stream forth. What was her surprise, therefore, when
+such an abundant cascade fell bubbling into the bowl, that it was
+immediately filled to the brim, and overflowed upon the table! The two
+snakes that were twisted about Quicksilver's staff (but neither Baucis nor
+Philemon happened to observe this circumstance) stretched out their heads,
+and began to lap up the spilt milk.
+
+And then what a delicious fragrance the milk had! It seemed as if
+Philemon's only cow must have pastured, that day, on the richest herbage
+that could be found anywhere in the world. I only wish that each of you,
+my beloved little souls, could have a bowl of such nice milk, at
+supper-time!
+
+"And now a slice of your brown loaf, Mother Baucis," said Quicksilver,
+"and a little of that honey!"
+
+Baucis cut him a slice accordingly; and though the loaf, when she and her
+husband ate of it, had been rather too dry and crusty to be palatable, it
+was now as light and moist as if but a few hours out of the oven. Tasting
+a crumb, which had fallen on the table, she found it more delicious than
+bread ever was before, and could hardly believe that it was a loaf of her
+own kneading and baking. Yet, what other loaf could it possibly be?
+
+But oh, the honey! I may just as well let it alone, without trying to
+describe how exquisitely it smelt and looked. Its color was that of the
+purest and most transparent gold; and it had the odor of a thousand
+flowers; but of such flowers as never grew in an earthly garden, and to
+seek which the bees must have flown high above the clouds. The wonder is,
+that, after alighting on a flower-bed of so delicious fragrance and
+immortal bloom, they should have been content to fly down again to their
+hive in Philemon's garden. Never was such honey tasted, seen, or smelt.
+The perfume floated around the kitchen, and made it so delightful, that,
+had you closed your eyes, you would instantly have forgotten the low
+ceiling and smoky walls, and have fancied yourself in an arbor, with
+celestial honeysuckles creeping over it.
+
+Although good Mother Baucis was a simple old dame, she could not but think
+that there was something rather out of the common way in all that had been
+going on. So, after helping the guests to bread and honey, and laying a
+bunch of grapes by each of their plates, she sat down by Philemon, and
+told him what she had seen, in a whisper.
+
+"Did you ever hear the like?" asked she.
+
+"No, I never did," answered Philemon, with a smile. "And I rather think,
+my dear old wife, you have been walking about in a sort of a dream. If I
+had poured out the milk, I should have seen through the business at once.
+There happened to be a little more in the pitcher than you thought,--that
+is all."
+
+"Ah, husband," said Baucis, "say what you will, these are very uncommon
+people."
+
+"Well, well," replied Philemon, still smiling, "perhaps they are. They
+certainly do look as if they had seen better days; and I am heartily glad
+to see them making so comfortable a supper."
+
+Each of the guests had now taken his bunch of grapes upon his plate.
+Baucis (who rubbed her eyes, in order to see the more clearly) was of
+opinion that the clusters had grown larger and richer, and that each
+separate grape seemed to be on the point of bursting with ripe juice. It
+was entirely a mystery to her how such grapes could ever have been
+produced from the old stunted vine that climbed against the cottage wall.
+
+"Very admirable grapes these!" observed Quicksilver, as he swallowed one
+after another, without apparently diminishing his cluster. "Pray, my good
+host, whence did you gather them?"
+
+"From my own vine," answered Philemon. "You may see one of its branches
+twisting across the window, yonder. But wife and I never thought the
+grapes very fine ones."
+
+"I never tasted better," said the guest. "Another cup of this delicious
+milk, if you please, and I shall then have supped better than a prince."
+
+This time, old Philemon bestirred himself, and took up the pitcher; for he
+was curious to discover whether there was any reality in the marvels which
+Baucis had whispered to him. He knew that his good old wife was incapable
+of falsehood, and that she was seldom mistaken in what she supposed to be
+true; but this was so very singular a case, that he wanted to see into it
+with his own eyes. On taking up the pitcher, therefore, he slyly peeped
+into it, and was fully satisfied that it contained not so much as a single
+drop. All at once, however, he beheld a little white fountain, which
+gushed up from the bottom of the pitcher, and speedily filled it to the
+brim with foaming and deliciously fragrant milk. It was lucky that
+Philemon, in his surprise, did not drop the miraculous pitcher from his
+hand.
+
+"Who are ye, wonder-working strangers!" cried he, even more bewildered
+than his wife had been.
+
+"Your guests, my good Philemon, and your friends," replied the elder
+traveler, in his mild, deep voice, that had something at once sweet and
+awe-inspiring in it. "Give me likewise a cup of the milk; and may your
+pitcher never be empty for kind Baucis and yourself, any more than for the
+needy wayfarer!"
+
+The supper being now over, the strangers requested to be shown to their
+place of repose. The old people would gladly have talked with them a
+little longer, and have expressed the wonder which they felt, and their
+delight at finding the poor and meagre supper prove so much better and
+more abundant than they hoped. But the elder traveler had inspired them
+with such reverence that they dared not ask him any questions. And when
+Philemon drew Quicksilver aside, and inquired how under the sun a fountain
+of milk could have got into an old earthen pitcher, this latter personage
+pointed to his staff.
+
+"There is the whole mystery of the affair," quoth Quicksilver; "and if you
+can make it out, I'll thank you to let me know. I can't tell what to make
+of my staff. It is always playing such odd tricks as this; sometimes
+getting me a supper, and, quite as often, stealing it away. If I had any
+faith in such nonsense, I should say the stick was bewitched!"
+
+He said no more, but looked so slyly in their faces, that they rather
+fancied he was laughing at them. The magic staff went hopping at his
+heels, as Quicksilver quitted the room. When left alone, the good old
+couple spent some little time in conversation about the events of the
+evening, and then lay down on the floor, and fell fast asleep. They had
+given up their sleeping-room to the guests, and had no other bed for
+themselves, save these planks, which I wish had been as soft as their own
+hearts.
+
+The old man and his wife were stirring, betimes, in the morning, and the
+strangers likewise arose with the sun, and made their preparations to
+depart. Philemon hospitably entreated them to remain a little longer,
+until Baucis could milk the cow, and bake a cake upon the hearth, and,
+perhaps, find them a few fresh eggs, for breakfast. The guests, however,
+seemed to think it better to accomplish a good part of their journey
+before the heat of the day should come on. They, therefore, persisted in
+setting out immediately, but asked Philemon and Baucis to walk forth with
+them a short distance, and show them the road which they were to take.
+
+So they all four issued from the cottage, chatting together like old
+friends. It was very remarkable, indeed, how familiar the old couple
+insensibly grew with the elder traveler, and how their good and simple
+spirits melted into his, even as two drops of water would melt into the
+illimitable ocean. And as for Quicksilver, with his keen, quick, laughing
+wits, he appeared to discover every little thought that but peeped into
+their minds, before they suspected it themselves. They sometimes wished,
+it is true, that he had not been quite so quick-witted, and also that he
+would fling away his staff, which looked so mysteriously mischievous, with
+the snakes always writhing about it. But then, again, Quicksilver showed
+himself so very good-humored, that they would have been rejoiced to keep
+him in their cottage, staff, snakes, and all, every day, and the whole day
+long.
+
+"Ah me! Well-a-day!" exclaimed Philemon, when they had walked a little way
+from their door. "If our neighbors only knew what a blessed thing it is to
+show hospitality to strangers, they would tie up all their dogs, and never
+allow their children to fling another stone."
+
+"It is a sin and shame for them to behave so,--that it is!" cried good old
+Baucis vehemently. "And I mean to go this very day, and tell some of them
+what naughty people they are!"
+
+"I fear," remarked Quicksilver; slyly smiling, "that you will find none of
+them at home."
+
+The elder traveler's brow, just then, assumed such a grave, stern, and
+awful grandeur, yet serene withal, that neither Baucis nor Philemon dared
+to speak a word. They gazed reverently into his face, as if they had been
+gazing at the sky.
+
+"When men do not feel towards the humblest stranger as if he were a
+brother," said the traveler, in tones so deep that they sounded like those
+of an organ, "they are unworthy to exist on earth, which was created as
+the abode of a great human brotherhood!"
+
+"And, by the by, my dear old people," cried Quicksilver, with the
+liveliest look of fun and mischief in his eyes, "where is this same
+village that you talk about? On which side of us does it lie? Methinks I
+do not see it hereabouts."
+
+Philemon and his wife turned towards the valley, where, at sunset, only
+the day before, they had seen the meadows, the houses, the gardens, the
+clumps of trees, the wide, green-margined street, with children playing in
+it, and all the tokens of business, enjoyment, and prosperity. But what
+was their astonishment! There was no longer any appearance of a village!
+Even the fertile vale, in the hollow of which it lay, had ceased to have
+existence. In its stead, they beheld the broad, blue surface of a lake,
+which filled the great basin of the valley from brim to brim, and
+reflected the surrounding hills in its bosom with as tranquil an image as
+if it had been there ever since the creation of the world. For an instant,
+the lake remained perfectly smooth. Then a little breeze sprang up, and
+caused the water to dance, glitter, and sparkle in the early sunbeams, and
+to dash, with a pleasant rippling murmur, against the hither shore.
+
+The lake seemed so strangely familiar, that the old couple were greatly
+perplexed, and felt as if they could only have been dreaming about a
+village having lain there. But, the next moment, they remembered the
+vanished dwellings, and the faces and characters of the inhabitants, far
+too distinctly for a dream. The village had been there yesterday, and now
+was gone!
+
+"Alas!" cried these kind-hearted old people, "what has become of our poor
+neighbors?"
+
+"They no longer exist as men and women," said the elder traveler, in his
+grand and deep voice, while a roll of thunder seemed to echo it at a
+distance. "There was neither use nor beauty in such a life as theirs; for
+they never softened or sweetened the hard lot of mortality by the exercise
+of kindly affections between man and man. They retained no image of the
+better life in their bosoms; therefore, the lake, that was of old, has
+spread itself forth again, to reflect the sky!"
+
+"And as for those foolish people," said Quicksilver, with his mischievous
+smile, "they are all transformed to fishes. There needed but little
+change, for they were already a scaly set of rascals, and the
+coldest-blooded beings in existence. So, kind Mother Baucis, whenever you
+or your husband have an appetite for a dish of broiled trout, he can throw
+in a line, and pull out half a dozen of your old neighbors!"
+
+"Ah," cried Baucis shuddering, "I would not, for the world, put one of
+them on the gridiron!"
+
+"No," added Philemon, making a wry face, "we could never relish them!"
+
+"As for you, good Philemon," continued the elder traveler,--"and you, kind
+Baucis,--you, with your scanty means, have mingled so much heartfelt
+hospitality with your entertainment of the homeless stranger, that the
+milk became an inexhaustible fount of nectar, and the brown loaf and the
+honey were ambrosia. Thus, the divinities have feasted, at your board, off
+the same viands that supply their banquets on Olympus. You have done well,
+my dear old friends. Wherefore, request whatever favor you have most at
+heart, and it is granted."
+
+Philemon and Baucis looked at one another, and then--I know not which of
+the two it was who spoke, but that one uttered the desire of both their
+hearts.
+
+"Let us live together, while we live, and leave the world at the same
+instant, when we die! For we have always loved one another!"
+
+"Be it so!" replied the stranger, with majestic kindness. "Now, look
+towards your cottage!"
+
+They did so. But what was their surprise on beholding a tall edifice of
+white marble, with a wide-open portal, occupying the spot where their
+humble residence had so lately stood!
+
+"There is your home," said the stranger, beneficently smiling on them
+both. "Exercise your hospitality in yonder palace as freely as in the poor
+hovel to which you welcomed us last evening."
+
+The old folks fell on their knees to thank him; but, behold! neither he
+nor Quicksilver was there.
+
+So Philemon and Baucis took up their residence in the marble palace, and
+spent their time, with vast satisfaction to themselves, in making
+everybody jolly and comfortable who happened to pass that way. The
+milk-pitcher, I must not forget to say, retained its marvelous quality of
+being never empty, when it was desirable to have it full. Whenever an
+honest, good-humored, and free-hearted guest took a draught from this
+pitcher, he invariably found it the sweetest and most invigorating fluid
+that ever ran down his throat. But, if a cross and disagreeable curmudgeon
+happened to sip, he was pretty certain to twist his visage into a hard
+knot, and pronounce it a pitcher of sour milk!
+
+Thus the old couple lived in their palace a great, great while, and grew
+older and older, and very old indeed. At length, however, there came a
+summer morning when Philemon and Baucis failed to make their appearance,
+as on other mornings, with one hospitable smile overspreading both their
+pleasant faces, to invite the guests of over-night to breakfast. The
+guests searched everywhere, from top to bottom of the spacious palace, and
+all to no purpose. But, after a great deal of perplexity, they espied, in
+front of the portal, two venerable trees, which nobody could remember to
+have seen there the day before. Yet there they stood, with their roots
+fastened deep into the soil, and a huge breadth of foliage overshadowing
+the whole front of the edifice. One was an oak, and the other a
+linden-tree. Their boughs--it was strange and beautiful to see--were
+intertwined together, and embraced one another, so that each tree seemed
+to live in the other tree's bosom much more than in its own.
+
+While the guests were marveling how these trees, that must have required
+at least a century to grow, could have come to be so tall and venerable in
+a single night, a breeze sprang up, and set their intermingled boughs
+astir. And then there was a deep, broad murmur in the air, as if the two
+mysterious trees were speaking.
+
+"I am old Philemon!" murmured the oak.
+
+"I am old Baucis!" murmured the linden-tree.
+
+But, as the breeze grew stronger, the trees both spoke at
+once,--"Philemon! Baucis! Baucis! Philemon!"--as if one were both and both
+were one, and talking together in the depths of their mutual heart. It was
+plain enough to perceive that the good old couple had renewed their age,
+and were now to spend a quiet and delightful hundred years or so, Philemon
+as an oak, and Baucis as a linden-tree. And oh, what a hospitable shade
+did they fling around them! Whenever a wayfarer paused beneath it, he
+heard a pleasant whisper of the leaves above his head, and wondered how
+the sound should so much resemble words like these:--
+
+"Welcome, welcome, dear traveler, welcome!"
+
+And some kind soul, that knew what would have pleased old Baucis and old
+Philemon best, built a circular seat around both their trunks, where, for
+a great while afterwards, the weary, and the hungry, and the thirsty used
+to repose themselves, and quaff milk abundantly from the miraculous
+pitcher.
+
+And I wish, for all our sakes, that we had the pitcher here now!
+
+
+
+
+THE GOLDEN TOUCH
+
+By Nathaniel Hawthorne
+
+
+Once upon a time, there lived a very rich man, and a king besides, whose
+name was Midas; and he had a little daughter, whom nobody but myself ever
+heard of, and whose name I either never knew or have entirely forgotten.
+So, because I love odd names for little girls, I choose to call her
+Marygold.
+
+This King Midas was fonder of gold than of anything else in the world. He
+valued his royal crown chiefly because it was composed of that precious
+metal. If he loved anything better, or half so well, it was the one little
+maiden who played so merrily around her father's footstool. But the more
+Midas loved his daughter, the more did he desire and seek for wealth. He
+thought, foolish man! that the best thing he could possibly do for this
+dear child would be to bequeath her the immensest pile of yellow,
+glistening coin, that had ever been heaped together since the world was
+made. Thus, he gave all his thoughts and all his time to this one purpose.
+If ever he happened to gaze for an instant at the gold-tinted clouds of
+sunset, he wished that they were real gold, and that they could be
+squeezed safely into his strong box. When little Marygold ran to meet him
+with a bunch of buttercups and dandelions, he used to say, "Poh, poh,
+child! If these flowers were as golden as they look, they would be worth
+the plucking!"
+
+And yet, in his earlier days, before he was so entirely possessed of this
+insane desire for riches, King Midas had shown a great taste for flowers.
+He had planted a garden, in which grew the biggest and beautifulest and
+sweetest roses that any mortal ever saw or smelt. These roses were still
+growing in the garden, as large, as lovely, and as fragrant as when Midas
+used to pass whole hours in gazing at them and inhaling their perfume. But
+now, if he looked at them at all, it was only to calculate how much the
+garden would be worth if each of the innumerable rose-petals were a thin
+plate of gold. And though he once was fond of music (in spite of an idle
+story about his ears, which were said to resemble those of an ass), the
+only music for poor Midas, now, was the chink of one coin against another.
+
+At length (as people always grow more and more foolish, unless they take
+care to grow wiser and wiser), Midas had got to be so exceedingly
+unreasonable, that he could scarcely bear to see or touch any object that
+was not gold. He made it his custom, therefore, to pass a large portion of
+every day in a dark and dreary apartment, under ground, at the basement of
+his palace. It was here that he kept his wealth. To this dismal hole--for
+it was little better than a dungeon--Midas betook himself, whenever he
+wanted to be particularly happy. Here, after carefully locking the door,
+he would take a bag of gold coin, or a gold cup as big as a washbowl, or a
+heavy golden bar, or a peck-measure of gold-dust, and bring them from the
+obscure corners of the room into the one bright and narrow sunbeam that
+fell from the dungeon-like window. He valued the sunbeam for no other
+reason but that his treasure would not shine without its help. And then
+would he reckon over the coins in the bag; toss up the bar, and catch it
+as it came down; sift the gold-dust through his fingers; look at the funny
+image of his own face, as reflected in the burnished circumference of the
+cup; and whisper to himself, "O Midas, rich King Midas, what a happy man
+art thou!" But it was laughable to see how the image of his face kept
+grinning at him, out of the polished surface of the cup. It seemed to be
+aware of his foolish behavior, and to have a naughty inclination to make
+fun of him.
+
+Midas called himself a happy man, but felt that he was not yet quite so
+happy as he might be. The very tiptop of enjoyment would never be reached,
+unless the whole world were to become his treasure-room, and be filled
+with yellow metal which should be all his own.
+
+Now, I need hardly remind such wise little people as you are, that in the
+old, old times, when King Midas was alive, a great many things came to
+pass, which we should consider wonderful if they were to happen in our own
+day and country. And, on the other hand, a great many things take place
+nowadays, which seem not only wonderful to us, but at which the people of
+old times would have stared their eyes out. On the whole, I regard our own
+times as the strangest of the two; but, however that may be, I must go on
+with my story.
+
+Midas was enjoying himself in his treasure-room, one day, as usual, when
+he perceived a shadow fall over the heaps of gold; and, looking suddenly
+up, what should he behold but the figure of a stranger, standing in the
+bright and narrow sunbeam! It was a young man, with a cheerful and ruddy
+face. Whether it was that the imagination of King Midas threw a yellow
+tinge over everything, or whatever the cause might be, he could not help
+fancying that the smile with which the stranger regarded him had a kind of
+golden radiance in it. Certainly, although his figure intercepted the
+sunshine, there was now a brighter gleam upon all the piled-up treasures
+than before. Even the remotest corners had their share of it, and were
+lighted up, when the stranger smiled, as with tips of flame and sparkles
+of fire. As Midas knew that he had carefully turned the key in the lock,
+and that no mortal strength could possibly break into his treasure-room,
+he, of course, concluded that his visitor must be something more than
+mortal. It is no matter about telling you who he was. In those days, when
+the earth was comparatively a new affair, it was supposed to be often the
+resort of beings endowed with supernatural power, and who used to interest
+themselves in the joys and sorrows of men, women, and children, half
+playfully and half seriously. Midas had met such beings before now, and
+was not sorry to meet one of them again. The stranger's aspect, indeed,
+was so good-humored and kindly, if not beneficent, that it would have been
+unreasonable to suspect him of intending any mischief. It was far more
+probable that he came to do Midas a favor. And what could that favor be,
+unless to multiply his heaps of treasure?
+
+The stranger gazed about the room; and when his lustrous smile had
+glistened upon all the golden objects that were there, he turned again to
+Midas.
+
+"You are a wealthy man, friend Midas!" he observed. "I doubt whether any
+other four walls, on earth, contain so much gold as you have contrived to
+pile up in this room."
+
+"I have done pretty well,--pretty well," answered Midas, in a discontented
+tone. "But, after all, it is but a trifle, when you consider that it has
+taken me my whole life to get it together. If one could live a thousand
+years, he might have time to grow rich!"
+
+"What!" exclaimed the stranger. "Then you are not satisfied?"
+
+Midas shook his head.
+
+"And pray what would satisfy you?" asked the stranger. "Merely for the
+curiosity of the thing, I should be glad to know."
+
+Midas paused and meditated. He felt a presentiment that this stranger,
+with such a golden lustre in his good-humored smile, had come hither with
+both the power and the purpose of gratifying his utmost wishes. Now,
+therefore, was the fortunate moment, when he had but to speak, and obtain
+whatever possible, or seemingly impossible thing, it might come into his
+head to ask. So he thought, and thought, and thought, and heaped up one
+golden mountain upon another, in his imagination, without being able to
+imagine them big enough. At last, a bright idea occurred to King Midas. It
+seemed really as bright as the glistening metal which he loved so much.
+
+Raising his head, he looked the lustrous stranger in the face.
+
+"Well, Midas," observed his visitor, "I see that you have at length hit
+upon something that will satisfy you. Tell me your wish."
+
+"It is only this," replied Midas. "I am weary of collecting my treasures
+with so much trouble, and beholding the heap so diminutive, after I have
+done my best. I wish everything that I touch to be changed to gold!"
+
+The stranger's smile grew so very broad, that it seemed to fill the room
+like an outburst of the sun, gleaming into a shadowy dell where the yellow
+autumnal leaves--for so looked the lumps and particles of gold--lie strewn
+in the glow of light.
+
+"The Golden Touch!" exclaimed he. "You certainly deserve credit, friend
+Midas, for striking out so brilliant a conception. But are you quite sure
+that this will satisfy you?"
+
+"How could it fail?" said Midas.
+
+"And will you never regret the possession of it?"
+
+"What could induce me?" asked Midas. "I ask nothing else, to render me
+perfectly happy."
+
+"Be it as you wish, then," replied the stranger, waving his hand in token
+of farewell. "To-morrow, at sunrise, you will find yourself gifted with
+the Golden Touch."
+
+The figure of the stranger then became exceedingly bright, and Midas
+involuntarily closed his eyes. On opening them again, he beheld only one
+yellow sunbeam in the room, and, all around him, the glistening of the
+precious metal which he had spent his life in hoarding up.
+
+Whether Midas slept as usual that night, the story does not say. Asleep or
+awake, however, his mind was probably in the state of a child's, to whom a
+beautiful new plaything has been promised in the morning. At any rate, day
+had hardly peeped over the hills, when King Midas was broad awake, and,
+stretching his arms out of bed, began to touch the objects that were
+within reach. He was anxious to prove whether the Golden Touch had really
+come, according to the stranger's promise. So he laid his finger on a
+chair by the bedside, and on various other things, but was grievously
+disappointed to perceive that they remained of exactly the same substance
+as before. Indeed, he felt very much afraid that he had only dreamed about
+the lustrous stranger, or else that the latter had been making game of
+him. And what a miserable affair would it be, if, after all his hopes,
+Midas must content himself with what little gold he could scrape together
+by ordinary means, instead of creating it by a touch!
+
+All this while it was only the gray of the morning, with but a streak of
+brightness along the edge of the sky, where Midas could not see it. He lay
+in a very disconsolate mood, regretting the downfall of his hopes, and
+kept growing sadder and sadder, until the earliest sunbeam shone through
+the window, and gilded the ceiling over his head. It seemed to Midas that
+this bright yellow sunbeam was reflected in rather a singular way on the
+white covering of the bed. Looking more closely, what was his astonishment
+and delight, when he found that this linen fabric had been transmuted to
+what seemed a woven texture of the purest and brightest gold! The Golden
+Touch had come to him with the first sunbeam!
+
+Midas started up, in a kind of joyful frenzy, and ran about the room,
+grasping at everything that happened to be in his way. He seized one of
+the bed-posts, and it became immediately a fluted golden pillar. He pulled
+aside a window-curtain, in order to admit a clear spectacle of the wonders
+which he was performing; and the tassel grew heavy in his hand,--a mass of
+gold. He took up a book from the table. At his first touch, it assumed the
+appearance of such a splendidly bound and gilt-edged volume as one often
+meets with, nowadays; but, on running his fingers through the leaves,
+behold! it was a bundle of thin golden plates, in which all the wisdom of
+the book had grown illegible. He hurriedly put on his clothes, and was
+enraptured to see himself in a magnificent suit of gold cloth, which
+retained its flexibility and softness, although it burdened him a little
+with its weight. He drew out his handkerchief, which little Marygold had
+hemmed for him. That was likewise gold, with the dear child's neat and
+pretty stitches running all along the border, in gold thread!
+
+Somehow or other, this last transformation did not quite please King
+Midas. He would rather that his little daughter's handiwork should have
+remained just the same as when she climbed his knee and put it into his
+hand.
+
+But it was not worth while to vex himself about a trifle. Midas now took
+his spectacles from his pocket, and put them on his nose, in order that he
+might see more distinctly what he was about. In those days, spectacles for
+common people had not been invented, but were already worn by kings; else,
+how could Midas have had any? To his great perplexity, however, excellent
+as the glasses were, he discovered that he could not possibly see through
+them. But this was the most natural thing in the world; for on taking them
+off, the transparent crystals turned out to be plates of yellow metal,
+and, of course, were worthless as spectacles, though valuable as gold. It
+struck Midas as rather inconvenient that, with all his wealth, he could
+never again be rich enough to own a pair of serviceable spectacles.
+
+"It is no great matter, nevertheless," said he to himself, very
+philosophically. "We cannot expect any great good, without its being
+accompanied with some small inconvenience. The Golden Touch is worth the
+sacrifice of a pair of spectacles, at least, if not of one's very
+eyesight. My own eyes will serve for ordinary purposes, and little
+Marygold will soon be old enough to read to me."
+
+Wise King Midas was so exalted by his good fortune that the palace seemed
+not sufficiently spacious to contain him. He therefore went downstairs,
+and smiled, on observing that the balustrade of the staircase became a bar
+of burnished gold, as his hand passed over it in his descent. He lifted
+the door-latch (it was brass only a moment ago, but golden when his
+fingers quitted it), and emerged into the garden. Here, as it happened, he
+found a great number of beautiful roses in full bloom, and others in all
+the stages of lovely bud and blossom. Very delicious was their fragrance
+in the morning breeze. Their delicate blush was one of the fairest sights
+in the world; so gentle, so modest, and so full of sweet tranquillity did
+these roses seem to be.
+
+But Midas knew a way to make them far more precious, according to his way
+of thinking, than roses had ever been before. So he took great pains in
+going from bush to bush, and exercised his magic touch most indefatigably;
+until every individual flower and bud, and even the worms at the heart of
+some of them, were changed to gold. By the time this good work was
+completed, King Midas was summoned to breakfast; and as the morning air
+had given him an excellent appetite, he made haste back to the palace.
+
+What was usually a king's breakfast in the days of Midas, I really do not
+know, and cannot stop now to investigate. To the best of my belief,
+however, on this particular morning, the breakfast consisted of hot cakes,
+some nice little brook trout, roasted potatoes, fresh boiled eggs, and
+coffee, for King Midas himself, and a bowl of bread and milk for his
+daughter Marygold. At all events, this is a breakfast fit to set before a
+king; and, whether he had it or not, King Midas could not have had a
+better.
+
+Little Marygold had not yet made her appearance. Her father ordered her to
+be called, and, seating himself at table, awaited the child's coming, in
+order to begin his own breakfast. To do Midas justice, he really loved his
+daughter, and loved her so much the more this morning, on account of the
+good fortune which had befallen him. It was not a great while before he
+heard her coming along the passage-way crying bitterly. This circumstance
+surprised him, because Marygold was one of the cheerfullest little people
+whom you would see in a summer's day, and hardly shed a thimbleful of
+tears in a twelvemonth. When Midas heard her sobs, he determined to put
+little Marygold into better spirits, by an agreeable surprise; so, leaning
+across the table, he touched his daughter's bowl (which was a China one,
+with pretty figures all around it), and transmuted it to gleaming gold.
+
+Meanwhile, Marygold slowly and disconsolately opened the door, and showed
+herself with her apron at her eyes, still sobbing as if her heart would
+break.
+
+"How now, my little lady!" cried Midas. "Pray what is the matter with you,
+this bright morning?"
+
+Marygold, without taking the apron from her eyes, held out her hand, in
+which was one of the roses which Midas had so recently transmuted.
+
+"Beautiful!" exclaimed her father. "And what is there in this magnificent
+golden rose to make you cry?"
+
+"Ah, dear father!" answered the child, as well as her sobs would let her;
+"it is not beautiful, but the ugliest flower that ever grew! As soon as I
+was dressed I ran into the garden to gather some roses for you; because I
+know you like them, and like them the better when gathered by your little
+daughter. But, oh dear, dear me! What do you think has happened? Such a
+misfortune! All the beautiful roses, that smelled so sweet and had so many
+lovely blushes, are blighted and spoilt! They are grown quite yellow, as
+you see this one, and have no longer any fragrance! What can have been the
+matter with them?"
+
+"Poh, my dear little girl,--pray don't cry about it!" said Midas, who was
+ashamed to confess that he himself had wrought the change which so greatly
+afflicted her. "Sit down and eat your bread and milk! You will find it
+easy enough to exchange a golden rose like that (which will last hundreds
+of years) for an ordinary one which would wither in a day."
+
+"I don't care for such roses as this!" cried Marygold, tossing it
+contemptuously away. "It has no smell, and the hard petals prick my nose!"
+
+The child now sat down to table, but was so occupied with her grief for
+the blighted roses that she did not even notice the wonderful
+transmutation of her China bowl. Perhaps this was all the better; for
+Marygold was accustomed to take pleasure in looking at the queer figures,
+and strange trees and houses, that were painted on the circumference of
+the bowl; and these ornaments were now entirely lost in the yellow hue of
+the metal.
+
+Midas, meanwhile, had poured out a cup of coffee, and, as a matter of
+course, the coffee-pot, whatever metal it may have been when he took it
+up, was gold when he set it down. He thought to himself, that it was
+rather an extravagant style of splendor, in a king of his simple habits,
+to breakfast off a service of gold, and began to be puzzled with the
+difficulty of keeping his treasures safe. The cupboard and the kitchen
+would no longer be a secure place of deposit for articles so valuable as
+golden bowls and coffee-pots.
+
+Amid these thoughts, he lifted a spoonful of coffee to his lips, and,
+sipping it, was astonished to perceive that the instant his lips touched
+the liquid, it became molten gold, and the next moment, hardened into a
+lump!
+
+"Ha!" exclaimed Midas, rather aghast.
+
+"What is the matter, father?" asked little Marygold, gazing at him, with
+the tears still standing in her eyes.
+
+"Nothing, child, nothing!" said Midas. "Eat your milk, before it gets
+quite cold."
+
+He took one of the nice little trouts on his plate, and, by way of
+experiment, touched its tail with his finger. To his horror, it was
+immediately transmuted from an admirably fried brook trout into a
+gold-fish, though not one of those gold-fishes which people often keep in
+glass globes, as ornaments for the parlor. No; but it was really a
+metallic fish, and looked as if it had been very cunningly made by the
+nicest goldsmith in the world. Its little bones were now golden wires; its
+fins and tail were thin plates of gold; and there were the marks of the
+fork in it, and all the delicate, frothy appearance of a nicely fried
+fish, exactly imitated in metal. A very pretty piece of work, as you may
+suppose; only King Midas, just at that moment, would much rather have had
+a real trout in his dish than this elaborate and valuable imitation of
+one.
+
+"I don't quite see," thought he to himself, "how I am to get any
+breakfast!"
+
+He took one of the smoking-hot cakes, and had scarcely broken it, when, to
+his cruel mortification, though, a moment before, it had been of the
+whitest wheat, it assumed the yellow hue of Indian meal. To say the truth,
+if it had really been a hot Indian cake, Midas would have prized it a good
+deal more than he now did, when its solidity and increased weight made him
+too bitterly sensible that it was gold. Almost in despair, he helped
+himself to a boiled egg, which immediately underwent a change similar to
+those of the trout and the cake. The egg, indeed, might have been mistaken
+for one of those which the famous goose, in the story-book, was in the
+habit of laying; but King Midas was the only goose that had had anything
+to do with the matter.
+
+"Well, this is a quandary!" thought he, leaning back in his chair, and
+looking quite enviously at little Marygold, who was now eating her bread
+and milk with great satisfaction. "Such a costly breakfast before me, and
+nothing that can be eaten!"
+
+Hoping that, by dint of great dispatch, he might avoid what he now felt to
+be a considerable inconvenience, King Midas next snatched a hot potato,
+and attempted to cram it into his mouth, and swallow it in a hurry. But
+the Golden Touch was too nimble for him. He found his mouth full, not of
+mealy potato, but of solid metal, which so burnt his tongue that he roared
+aloud, and, jumping up from the table, began to dance and stamp about the
+room, both with pain and affright.
+
+"Father, dear father!" cried little Marygold, who was a very affectionate
+child, "pray what is the matter? Have you burnt your mouth?"
+
+"Ah, dear child," groaned Midas dolefully, "I don't know what is to become
+of your poor father!"
+
+And, truly, my dear little folks, did you ever hear of such a pitiable
+case in all your lives? Here was literally the richest breakfast that
+could be set before a king, and its very richness made it absolutely good
+for nothing. The poorest laborer, sitting down to his crust of bread and
+cup of water, was far better off than King Midas, whose delicate food was
+really worth its weight in gold. And what was to be done? Already, at
+breakfast, Midas was excessively hungry. Would he be less so by
+dinner-time? And how ravenous would be his appetite for supper, which must
+undoubtedly consist of the same sort of indigestible dishes as those now
+before him! How many days, think you, would he survive a continuance of
+this rich fare?
+
+These reflections so troubled wise King Midas, that he began to doubt
+whether, after all, riches are the one desirable thing in the world, or
+even the most desirable. But this was only a passing thought. So
+fascinated was Midas with the glitter of the yellow metal, that he would
+still have refused to give up the Golden Touch for so paltry a
+consideration as a breakfast. Just imagine what a price for one meal's
+victuals! It would have been the same as paying millions and millions of
+money (and as many millions more as would take forever to reckon up) for
+some fried trout, an egg, a potato, a hot cake, and a cup of coffee!
+
+"It would be quite too dear," thought Midas.
+
+Nevertheless, so great was his hunger, and the perplexity of his
+situation, that he again groaned aloud, and very grievously too. Our
+pretty Marygold could endure it no longer. She sat, a moment, gazing at
+her father, and trying with all the might of her little wits to find out
+what was the matter with him. Then, with a sweet and sorrowful impulse to
+comfort him, she started from her chair, and, running to Midas, threw her
+arms affectionately about his knees. He bent down and kissed her. He felt
+that his little daughter's love was worth a thousand times more than he
+had gained by the Golden Touch.
+
+"My precious, precious Marygold!" cried he.
+
+But Marygold made no answer.
+
+Alas, what had he done? How fatal was the gift which the stranger
+bestowed! The moment the lips of Midas touched Marygold's forehead, a
+change had taken place. Her sweet, rosy face, so full of affection as it
+had been, assumed a glittering yellow color, with yellow teardrops
+congealing on her cheeks. Her beautiful brown ringlets took the same tint.
+Her soft and tender little form grew hard and inflexible within her
+father's encircling arms. Oh, terrible misfortune! The victim of his
+insatiable desire for wealth, little Marygold was a human child no longer,
+but a golden statue!
+
+Yes, there she was, with the questioning look of love, grief, and pity,
+hardened into her face. It was the prettiest and most woeful sight that
+ever mortal saw. All the features and tokens of Marygold were there; even
+the beloved little dimple remained in her golden chin. But the more
+perfect was the resemblance, the greater was the father's agony at
+beholding this golden image, which was all that was left him of a
+daughter. It had been a favorite phrase of Midas, whenever he felt
+particularly fond of the child, to say that she was worth her weight in
+gold. And now the phrase had become literally true. And now, at last, when
+it was too late, he felt how infinitely a warm and tender heart, that
+loved him, exceeded in value all the wealth that could be piled up betwixt
+the earth and sky!
+
+It would be too sad a story, if I were to tell you how Midas, in the
+fullness of all his gratified desires, began to wring his hands and bemoan
+himself; and how he could neither bear to look at Marygold, nor yet to
+look away from her. Except when his eyes were fixed on the image, he could
+not possibly believe that she was changed to gold. But stealing another
+glance, there was the precious little figure, with a yellow tear-drop on
+its yellow cheek, and a look so piteous and tender that it seemed as if
+that very expression must needs soften the gold, and make it flesh again.
+This, however, could not be. So Midas had only to wring his hands, and to
+wish that he were the poorest man in the wide world, if the loss of all
+his wealth might bring back the faintest rose-color to his dear child's
+face.
+
+While he was in this tumult of despair, he suddenly beheld a stranger
+standing near the door. Midas bent down his head, without speaking; for he
+recognized the same figure which had appeared to him, the day before, in
+the treasure-room, and had bestowed on him this disastrous faculty of the
+Golden Touch. The stranger's countenance still wore a smile, which seemed
+to shed a yellow lustre all about the room, and gleamed on little
+Marygold's image, and on the other objects that had been transmuted by the
+touch of Midas.
+
+"Well, friend Midas," said the stranger, "pray how do you succeed with the
+Golden Touch?"
+
+Midas shook his head.
+
+"I am very miserable," said he.
+
+"Very miserable, indeed!" exclaimed the stranger. "And how happens that?
+Have I not faithfully kept my promise with you? Have you not everything
+that your heart desired?"
+
+"Gold is not everything," answered Midas. "And I have lost all that my
+heart really cared for."
+
+"Ah! So you have made a discovery, since yesterday?" observed the
+stranger. "Let us see, then. Which of these two things do you think is
+really worth the most,--the gift of the Golden Touch, or one cup of clear
+cold water?"
+
+"O blessed water!" exclaimed Midas. "It will never moisten my parched
+throat again!"
+
+"The Golden Touch," continued the stranger, "or a crust of bread?"
+
+"A piece of bread," answered Midas, "is worth all the gold on earth!"
+
+"The Golden Touch," asked the stranger, "or your own little Marygold,
+warm, soft, and loving as she was an hour ago?"
+
+"Oh, my child, my dear child!" cried poor Midas, wringing his hands. "I
+would not have given that one small dimple in her chin for the power of
+changing this whole big earth into a solid lump of gold!"
+
+"You are wiser than you were, King Midas!" said the stranger, looking
+seriously at him. "Your own heart, I perceive, has not been entirely
+changed from flesh to gold. Were it so, your case would indeed be
+desperate. But you appear to be still capable of understanding that the
+commonest things, such as lie within everybody's grasp, are more valuable
+than the riches which so many mortals sigh and struggle after. Tell me,
+now, do you sincerely desire to rid yourself of this Golden Touch?"
+
+"It is hateful to me!" replied Midas.
+
+A fly settled on his nose, but immediately fell to the floor; for it, too,
+had become gold. Midas shuddered.
+
+"Go, then," said the stranger, "and plunge into the river that glides past
+the bottom of your garden. Take likewise a vase of the same water, and
+sprinkle it over any object that you may desire to change back again from
+gold into its former substance. If you do this in earnestness and
+sincerity, it may possibly repair the mischief which your avarice has
+occasioned."
+
+King Midas bowed low; and when he lifted his head, the lustrous stranger
+had vanished.
+
+You will easily believe that Midas lost no time in snatching up a great
+earthen pitcher (but, alas me! it was no longer earthen after he touched
+it), and hastening to the riverside. As he scampered along, and forced his
+way through the shrubbery, it was positively marvelous to see how the
+foliage turned yellow behind him, as if the autumn had been there, and
+nowhere else. On reaching the river's brink, he plunged headlong in,
+without waiting so much as to pull off his shoes.
+
+"Poof! poof! poof!" snorted King Midas, as his head emerged out of the
+water. "Well; this is really a refreshing bath, and I think it must have
+quite washed away the Golden Touch. And now for filling my pitcher!"
+
+As he dipped the pitcher into the water, it gladdened his very heart to
+see it change from gold into the same good, honest earthen vessel which it
+had been before he touched it. He was conscious, also, of a change within
+himself. A cold, hard, and heavy weight seemed to have gone out of his
+bosom. No doubt his heart had been gradually losing its human substance,
+and transmuting itself into insensible metal, but had now softened back
+again into flesh. Perceiving a violet, that grew on the bank of the river,
+Midas touched it with his finger, and was overjoyed to find that the
+delicate flower retained its purple hue, instead of undergoing a yellow
+blight. The curse of the Golden Touch had therefore really been removed
+from him.
+
+King Midas hastened back to the palace; and I suppose the servants knew
+not what to make of it when they saw their royal master so carefully
+bringing home an earthen pitcher of water. But that water, which was to
+undo all the mischief that his folly had wrought, was more precious to
+Midas, than an ocean of molten gold could have been. The first thing he
+did, as you need hardly be told, was to sprinkle it by handfuls over the
+golden figure of little Marygold.
+
+No sooner did it fall on her than you would have laughed to see how the
+rosy color came back to the dear child's cheek! and how she began to
+sneeze and sputter!--and how astonished she was to find herself dripping
+wet, and her father still throwing more water over her!
+
+"Pray do not, dear father!" cried she. "See how you have wet my nice
+frock, which I put on only this morning!"
+
+For Marygold did not know that she had been a little golden statue; nor
+could she remember anything that had happened since the moment when she
+ran with outstretched arms to comfort poor King Midas.
+
+Her father did not think it necessary to tell his beloved child how very
+foolish he had been, but contented himself with showing how much wiser he
+had now grown. For this purpose he led little Marygold into the garden,
+where he sprinkled all the remainder of the water over the rose-bushes,
+and with such good effect that above five thousand roses recovered their
+beautiful bloom. There were two circumstances, however, which, as long as
+he lived, used to put King Midas in mind of the Golden Touch. One was,
+that the sands of the river sparkled like gold; the other, that little
+Marygold's hair had now a golden tinge, which he had never observed in it
+before she had been transmuted by the effect of his kiss. This change of
+hue was really an improvement, and made Marygold's hair richer than in her
+babyhood.
+
+When King Midas had grown quite an old man, and used to trot Marygold's
+children on his knee, he was fond of telling them this marvelous story,
+pretty much as I have now told it to you. And then would he stroke their
+glossy ringlets, and tell them that their hair, likewise, had a rich shade
+of gold, which they had inherited from their mother.
+
+"And to tell you the truth, my precious little folks," quoth King Midas,
+diligently trotting the children all the while, "ever since that morning,
+I have hated the very sight of all other gold, save this!"
+
+
+
+
+THE POMEGRANATE SEEDS
+
+By Nathaniel Hawthorne
+
+
+Mother Ceres was exceedingly fond of her daughter Proserpina, and seldom
+let her go alone into the fields. But, just at the time when my story
+begins, the good lady was very busy, because she had the care of the
+wheat, and the Indian corn, and the rye and barley, and, in short, of the
+crops of every kind, all over the earth; and as the season had thus far
+been uncommonly backward, it was necessary to make the harvest ripen more
+speedily than usual. So she put on her turban, made of poppies (a kind of
+flower which she was always noted for wearing), and got into her car drawn
+by a pair of winged dragons, and was just ready to set off.
+
+"Dear mother," said Proserpina, "I shall be very lonely while you are
+away. May I not run down to the shore, and ask some of the sea-nymphs to
+come up out of the waves and play with me?"
+
+"Yes, child," answered Mother Ceres. "The sea-nymphs are good creatures,
+and will never lead you into any harm. But you must take care not to stray
+away from them, nor go wandering about the fields by yourself. Young
+girls, without their mothers to take care of them, are very apt to get
+into mischief."
+
+The child promised to be as prudent as if she were a grown-up woman, and,
+by the time the winged dragons had whirled the car out of sight, she was
+already on the shore, calling to the sea-nymphs to come and play with her.
+They knew Proserpina's voice, and were not long in showing their
+glistening faces and sea-green hair above the water, at the bottom of
+which was their home. They brought along with them a great many beautiful
+shells; and, sitting down on the moist sand, where the surf wave broke
+over them, they busied themselves in making a necklace, which they hung
+round Proserpina's neck. By way of showing her gratitude, the child
+besought them to go with her a little way into the fields, so that they
+might gather abundance of flowers, with which she would make each of her
+kind playmates a wreath.
+
+"Oh, no, dear Proserpina," cried the sea-nymphs; "we dare not go with you
+upon the dry land. We are apt to grow faint, unless at every breath we can
+snuff up the salt breeze of the ocean. And don't you see how careful we
+are to let the surf wave break over us every moment or two, so as to keep
+ourselves comfortably moist? If it were not for that, we should soon look
+like bunches of uprooted sea-weed dried in the sun."
+
+"It is a great pity," said Proserpina, "but do you wait for me here, and I
+will run and gather my apron full of flowers, and be back again before the
+surf wave has broken ten times over you. I long to make you some wreaths
+that shall be as lovely as this necklace of many-colored shells."
+
+"We will wait, then," answered the sea-nymphs. "But while you are gone, we
+may as well lie down on a bank of soft sponge, under the water. The air
+to-day is a little too dry for our comfort. But we will pop up our heads
+every few minutes to see if you are coming."
+
+The young Proserpina ran quickly to a spot where, only the day before, she
+had seen a great many flowers. These, however, were now a little past
+their bloom; and wishing to give her friends the freshest and loveliest
+blossoms, she strayed farther into the fields, and found some that made
+her scream with delight. Never had she met with such exquisite flowers
+before,--violets, so large and fragrant,--roses, with so rich and delicate
+a blush,--such superb hyacinths and such aromatic pinks,--and many others,
+some of which seemed to be of new shapes and colors. Two or three times,
+moreover, she could not help thinking that a tuft of most splendid flowers
+had suddenly sprouted out of the earth before her very eyes, as if on
+purpose to tempt her a few steps farther. Proserpina's apron was soon
+filled and brimming over with delightful blossoms. She was on the point of
+turning back in order to rejoin the sea-nymphs, and sit with them on the
+moist sands, all twining wreaths together. But, a little farther on, what
+should she behold? It was a large shrub, completely covered with the most
+magnificent flowers in the world.
+
+"The darlings!" cried Proserpina; and then she thought to herself, "I was
+looking at that spot only a moment ago. How strange it is that I did not
+see the flowers!"
+
+The nearer she approached the shrub, the more attractive it looked, until
+she came quite close to it; and then, although its beauty was richer than
+words can tell, she hardly knew whether to like it or not. It bore above a
+hundred flowers of the most brilliant hues, and each different from the
+others, but all having a kind of resemblance among themselves, which
+showed them to be sister blossoms. But there was a deep, glossy lustre on
+the leaves of the shrub, and on the petals of the flowers, that made
+Proserpina doubt whether they might not be poisonous. To tell you the
+truth, foolish as it may seem, she was half inclined to turn round and run
+away.
+
+"What a silly child I am!" thought she, taking courage. "It is really the
+most beautiful shrub that ever sprang out of the earth. I will pull it up
+by the roots, and carry it home, and plant it in my mother's garden."
+
+Holding up her apron full of flowers with her left hand, Proserpina seized
+the large shrub with the other, and pulled and pulled, but was hardly able
+to loosen the soil about its roots. What a deep-rooted plant it was! Again
+the girl pulled with all her might, and observed that the earth began to
+stir and crack to some distance around the stem. She gave another pull,
+but relaxed her hold, fancying that there was a rumbling sound right
+beneath her feet. Did the roots extend down into some enchanted cavern?
+Then, laughing at herself for so childish a notion, she made another
+effort; up came the shrub, and Proserpina staggered back, holding the stem
+triumphantly in her hand, and gazing at the deep hole which its roots had
+left in the soil.
+
+Much to her astonishment this hole kept spreading wider and wider, and
+growing deeper and deeper, until it really seemed to have no bottom; and
+all the while, there came a rumbling noise out of its depths, louder and
+louder, and nearer and nearer, and sounding like the tramp of horses'
+hoofs and the rattling of wheels. Too much frightened to run away, she
+stood straining her eyes into this wonderful cavity, and soon saw a team
+of four sable horses, snorting smoke out of their nostrils, and tearing
+their way out of the earth with a splendid golden chariot whirling at
+their heels. They leaped out of the bottomless hole, chariot and all; and
+there they were, tossing their black manes, flourishing their black tails,
+and curvetting with every one of their hoofs off the ground at once, close
+by the spot where Proserpina stood. In the chariot sat the figure of a
+man, richly dressed, with a crown on his head, all flaming with diamonds.
+He was of a noble aspect, and rather handsome, but looked sullen and
+discontented; and he kept rubbing his eyes and shading them with his hand,
+as if he did not live enough in the sunshine to be very fond of its light.
+
+[Illustration: THEY LEAPED OUT OF THE BOTTOMLESS HOLE, CHARIOT AND ALL;
+AND THERE THEY WERE TOSSING THEIR BLACK TAILS, AND CURVETTING WITH EVERY
+ONE OF THEIR HOOFS OFF THE GROUND AT ONCE, CLOSE BY THE SPOT WHERE
+PROSERPINA STOOD. IN THE CHARIOT SAT THE FIGURE OF A MAN]
+
+As soon as this personage saw the affrighted Proserpina, he beckoned her
+to come a little nearer.
+
+"Do not be afraid," said he, with as cheerful a smile as he knew how to
+put on. "Come! Will not you like to ride a little way with me, in my
+beautiful chariot?"
+
+But Proserpina was so alarmed that she wished for nothing but to get out
+of his reach. And no wonder. The stranger did not look remarkably
+good-natured, in spite of his smile; and as for his voice, its tones were
+deep and stern, and sounded as much like the rumbling of an earthquake
+under ground as anything else. As is always the case with children in
+trouble, Proserpina's first thought was to call for her mother.
+
+"Mother, Mother Ceres!" cried she, all in a tremble. "Come quickly and
+save me."
+
+But her voice was too faint for her mother to hear. Indeed, it is most
+probable that Ceres was then a thousand miles off, making the corn grow in
+some far-distant country. Nor could it have availed her poor daughter,
+even had she been within hearing; for no sooner did Proserpina begin to
+cry out, than the stranger leaped to the ground, caught the child in his
+arms, and again mounting the chariot, shook the reins, and shouted to the
+four black horses to set off. They immediately broke into so swift a
+gallop that it seemed rather like flying through the air than running
+along the earth. In a moment, Proserpina lost sight of the pleasant vale
+of Enna, in which she had always dwelt. Another instant, and even the
+summit of Mount Ætna had become so blue in the distance that she could
+scarcely distinguish it from the smoke that gushed out of its crater. But
+still the poor child screamed, and scattered her apron full of flowers
+along the way, and left a long cry trailing behind the chariot; and many
+mothers, to whose ears it came, ran quickly to see if any mischief had
+befallen their children. But Mother Ceres was a great way off, and could
+not hear the cry.
+
+As they rode on, the stranger did his best to soothe her.
+
+"Why should you be so frightened, my pretty child?" said he, trying to
+soften his rough voice. "I promise not to do you any harm. What! You have
+been gathering flowers? Wait till we come to my palace, and I will give
+you a garden full of prettier flowers than those, all made of pearls, and
+diamonds, and rubies. Can you guess who I am? They call my name Pluto, and
+I am the king of diamonds and all other precious stones. Every atom of the
+gold and silver that lies under the earth belongs to me, to say nothing of
+the copper and iron, and of the coal-mines, which supply me with abundance
+of fuel. Do you see this splendid crown upon my head? You may have it for
+a plaything. Oh, we shall be very good friends, and you will find me more
+agreeable than you expect, when once we get out of this troublesome
+sunshine."
+
+"Let me go home!" cried Proserpina. "Let me go home!"
+
+"My home is better than your mother's," answered King Pluto "It is a
+palace, all made of gold, with crystal windows; and because there is
+little or no sunshine thereabouts, the apartments are illuminated with
+diamond lamps. You never saw anything half so magnificent as my throne. If
+you like, you may sit down on it, and be my little queen, and I will sit
+on the footstool."
+
+"I don't care for golden palaces and thrones," sobbed Proserpina. "Oh, my
+mother, my mother! Carry me back to my mother!"
+
+But King Pluto, as he called himself, only shouted to his steeds to go
+faster.
+
+"Pray do not be foolish, Proserpina," said he, in rather a sullen tone. "I
+offer you my palace and my crown, and all the riches that are under the
+earth; and you treat me as if I were doing you an injury. The one thing
+which my palace needs is a merry little maid, to run upstairs and down,
+and cheer up the rooms with her smile. And this is what you must do for
+King Pluto."
+
+"Never!" answered Proserpina, looking as miserable as she could. "I shall
+never smile again till you set me down at my mother's door."
+
+But she might just as well have talked to the wind that whistled past
+them; for Pluto urged on his horses, and went faster than ever. Proserpina
+continued to cry out, and screamed so long and so loudly, that her poor
+little voice was almost screamed away; and when it was nothing but a
+whisper, she happened to cast her eyes over a great, broad field of waving
+grain--and whom do you think she saw? Who, but Mother Ceres, making the
+corn grow, and too busy to notice the golden chariot as it went rattling
+along. The child mustered all her strength, and gave one more scream, but
+was out of sight before Ceres had time to turn her head.
+
+King Pluto had taken a road which now began to grow excessively gloomy. It
+was bordered on each side with rocks and precipices, between which the
+rumbling of the chariot-wheels was reverberated with a noise like rolling
+thunder. The trees and bushes that grew in the crevices of the rocks had
+very dismal foliage; and by and by, although it was hardly noon, the air
+became obscured with a gray twilight. The black horses had rushed along so
+swiftly, that they were already beyond the limits of the sunshine. But the
+duskier it grew, the more did Pluto's visage assume an air of
+satisfaction. After all, he was not an ill-looking person, especially when
+he left off twisting his features into a smile that did not belong to
+them. Proserpina peeped at his face through the gathering dusk, and hoped
+that he might not be so very wicked as she at first thought him.
+
+"Ah, this twilight is truly refreshing," said King Pluto, "after being so
+tormented with that ugly and impertinent glare of the sun. How much more
+agreeable is lamplight or torchlight, more particularly when reflected
+from diamonds! It will be a magnificent sight when we get to my palace."
+
+"Is it much farther?" asked Proserpina. "And will you carry me back when I
+have seen it?"
+
+"We will talk of that by and by," answered Pluto. "We are just entering my
+dominions. Do you see that tall gateway before us? When we pass those
+gates, we are at home. And there lies my faithful mastiff at the
+threshold. Cerberus! Cerberus! Come hither, my good dog!"
+
+So saying, Pluto pulled at the reins, and stopped the chariot right
+between the tall, massive pillars of the gateway. The mastiff of which he
+had spoken got up from the threshold, and stood on his hinder legs, so as
+to put his forepaws on the chariot-wheel. But, my stars, what a strange
+dog it was! Why, he was a big, rough, ugly-looking monster, with three
+separate heads, and each of them fiercer than the two others; but, fierce
+as they were, King Pluto patted them all. He seemed as fond of his
+three-headed dog as if it had been a sweet little spaniel, with silken
+ears and curly hair. Cerberus, on the other hand, was evidently rejoiced
+to see his master, and expressed his attachment, as other dogs do, by
+wagging his tail at a great rate. Proserpina's eyes being drawn to it by
+its brisk motion, she saw that this tail was neither more nor less than a
+live dragon, with fiery eyes, and fangs that had a very poisonous aspect.
+And while the three-headed Cerberus was fawning so lovingly on King Pluto,
+there was the dragon tail wagging against its will, and looking as cross
+and ill-natured as you can imagine, on its own separate account.
+
+"Will the dog bite me?" asked Proserpina, shrinking closer to Pluto. "What
+an ugly creature he is!"
+
+"Oh, never fear," answered her companion. "He never harms people unless
+they try to enter my dominions without being sent for, or to get away when
+I wish to keep them here. Down, Cerberus! Now, my pretty Proserpina, we
+will drive on."
+
+On went the chariot, and King Pluto seemed greatly pleased to find himself
+once more in his own kingdom. He drew Proserpina's attention to the rich
+veins of gold that were to be seen among the rocks, and pointed to several
+places where one stroke of a pick-axe would loosen a bushel of diamonds.
+All along the road, indeed, there were sparkling gems, which would have
+been of inestimable value above ground, but which were here reckoned of
+the meaner sort, and hardly worth a beggar's stooping for.
+
+Not far from the gateway, they came to a bridge, which seemed to be built
+of iron. Pluto stopped the chariot, and bade Proserpina look at the stream
+which was gliding so lazily beneath it. Never in her life had she beheld
+so torpid, so black, so muddy-looking a stream: its waters reflected no
+images of anything that was on the banks, and it moved as sluggishly as if
+it had quite forgotten which way it ought to flow, and had rather stagnate
+than flow either one way or the other.
+
+"This is the river Lethe," observed King Pluto. "Is it not a very pleasant
+stream?" "I think it a very dismal one," said Proserpina. "It suits my
+taste, however," answered Pluto, who was apt to be sullen when anybody
+disagreed with him. "At all events, its water has one very excellent
+quality; for a single draught of it makes people forget every care and
+sorrow that has hitherto tormented them. Only sip a little of it, my dear
+Proserpina, and you will instantly cease to grieve for your mother, and
+will have nothing in your memory that can prevent your being perfectly
+happy in my palace. I will send for some, in a golden goblet, the moment
+we arrive."
+
+"Oh, no, no, no!" cried Proserpina, weeping afresh. "I had a thousand
+times rather be miserable with remembering my mother than be happy in
+forgetting her. That dear, dear mother! I never, never will forget her."
+
+"We shall see," said King Pluto. "You do not know what fine times we will
+have in my palace. Here we are just at the portal. These pillars are solid
+gold, I assure you."
+
+He alighted from the chariot, and taking Proserpina in his arms, carried
+her up a lofty flight of steps into the great hall of the palace. It was
+splendidly illuminated by means of large precious stones, of various hues,
+which seemed to burn like so many lamps, and glowed with a hundred-fold
+radiance all through the vast apartment. And yet there was a kind of gloom
+in the midst of this enchanted light; nor was there a single object in the
+hall that was really agreeable to behold, except the little Proserpina
+herself, a lovely child, with one earthly flower which she had not let
+fall from her hand. It is my opinion that even King Pluto had never been
+happy in his palace, and that this was the true reason why he had stolen
+away Proserpina, in order that he might have something to love, instead of
+cheating his heart any longer with this tiresome magnificence. And, though
+he pretended to dislike the sunshine of the upper world, yet the effect of
+the child's presence, bedimmed as she was by her tears, was as if a faint
+and watery sunbeam had somehow or other found its way into the enchanted
+hall.
+
+Pluto now summoned his domestics, and bade them lose no time in preparing
+a most sumptuous banquet, and above all things, not to fail of setting a
+golden beaker of the water of Lethe by Proserpina's plate.
+
+"I will neither drink that nor anything else," said Proserpina. "Nor will
+I taste a morsel of food, even if you keep me forever in your palace." on
+the seashore, she hastened thither as fast as she could, and there beheld
+the wet faces of the poor sea-nymphs peeping over a wave. All this while,
+the good creatures had been waiting on the bank of sponge, and once every
+half-minute or so, had popped up their four heads above water, to see if
+their playmate were yet coming back. When they saw Mother Ceres, they sat
+down on the crest of the surf wave, and let it toss them ashore at her
+feet.
+
+"Where is Proserpina?" cried Ceres. "Where is my child? Tell me, you
+naughty sea-nymphs, have you enticed her under the sea?"
+
+"Oh, no, good Mother Ceres," said the innocent sea-nymphs, tossing back
+their green ringlets, and looking her in the face. "We never should dream
+of such a thing. Proserpina has been at play with us, it is true; but she
+left us a long while ago, meaning only to run a little way upon the dry
+land, and gather some flowers for a wreath. This was early in the day, and
+we have seen nothing of her since."
+
+Ceres scarcely waited to hear what the nymphs had to say, before she
+hurried off to make inquiries all through the neighborhood. But nobody
+told her anything that could enable the poor mother to guess what had
+become of Proserpina. A fisherman, it is true, had noticed her little
+footprints in the sand, as he went homeward along the beach with a basket
+of fish; a rustic had seen the child stooping to gather flowers; several
+persons had heard either the rattling of chariot-wheels or the rumbling of
+distant thunder; and one old woman, while plucking vervain and catnip, had
+heard a scream, but supposed it to be some childish nonsense, and
+therefore did not take the trouble to look up. The stupid people! It took
+them such a tedious while to tell the nothing that they knew, that it was
+dark night before Mother Ceres found out that she must seek her daughter
+elsewhere. So she lighted a torch, and set forth, resolving never to come
+back until Proserpina was discovered.
+
+In her haste and trouble of mind, she quite forgot her car and the winged
+dragons; or, it may be, she thought that she could follow up the search
+more thoroughly on foot. At all events, this was the way in which she
+began her sorrowful journey, holding her torch before her, and looking
+carefully at every object along the path. And as it happened, she had not
+gone far before she found one of the magnificent flowers which grew on the
+shrub that Proserpina had pulled up.
+
+"Ha!" thought Mother Ceres, examining it by torchlight. "Here is mischief
+in this flower! The earth did not produce it by any help of mine, nor of
+its own accord. It is the work of enchantment, and is therefore poisonous;
+and perhaps it has poisoned my poor child."
+
+But she put the poisonous flower in her bosom, not knowing whether she
+might ever find any other memorial of Proserpina.
+
+All night long, at the door of every cottage and farmhouse, Ceres knocked,
+and called up the weary laborers to inquire if they had seen her child;
+and they stood, gaping and half asleep, at the threshold, and answered her
+pityingly, and besought her to come in and rest. At the portal of every
+palace, too, she made so loud a summons that the menials hurried to throw
+open the gate, thinking that it must be some great king or queen, who
+would demand a banquet for supper and a stately chamber to repose in. And
+when they saw only a sad and anxious woman, with a torch in her hand and a
+wreath of withered poppies on her head, they spoke rudely, and sometimes
+threatened to set the dogs upon her. But nobody had seen Proserpina, nor
+could give Mother Ceres the least hint which way to seek her. Thus passed
+the night; and still she continued her search without sitting down to
+rest, or stopping to take food, or even remembering to put down the torch;
+although first the rosy dawn, and then the glad light of the morning sun,
+made its red flame look thin and pale. But I wonder what sort of stuff
+this torch was made of; for it burned dimly through the day, and at night
+was as bright as ever, and never was extinguished by the rain or wind, in
+all the weary days and nights while Ceres was seeking for Proserpina.
+
+It was not merely of human beings that she asked tidings of her daughter.
+In the woods and by the streams, she met creatures of another nature, who
+used, in those old times, to haunt the pleasant and solitary places, and
+were very sociable with persons who understood their language and customs,
+as Mother Ceres did. Sometimes, for instance, she tapped with her finger
+against the knotted trunk of a majestic oak; and immediately its rude bark
+would cleave asunder, and forth would step a beautiful maiden, who was the
+hamadryad of the oak, dwelling inside of it, and sharing its long life,
+and rejoicing when its green leaves sported with the breeze. But not one
+of these leafy damsels had seen Proserpina. Then, going a little farther,
+Ceres would, perhaps, come to a fountain, gushing out of a pebbly hollow
+in the earth, and would dabble with her hand in the water. Behold, up
+through its sandy and pebbly bed, along with the fountain's gush, a young
+woman with dripping hair would arise, and stand gazing at Mother Ceres,
+half out of the water, and undulating up and down with its ever-restless
+motion. But when the mother asked whether her poor lost child had stopped
+to drink out of the fountain, the naiad, with weeping eyes (for these
+water-nymphs had tears to spare for everybody's grief), would answer,
+"No!" in a murmuring voice, which was just like the murmur of the stream.
+
+Often, likewise, she encountered fauns, who looked like sunburnt country
+people, except that they had hairy ears, and little horns upon their
+foreheads, and the hinder legs of goats, on which they gamboled merrily
+about the woods and fields. They were a frolicsome kind of creature, but
+grew as sad as their cheerful dispositions would allow when Ceres inquired
+for her daughter, and they had no good news to tell. But sometimes she
+came suddenly upon a rude gang of satyrs, who had faces like monkeys and
+horses' tails behind them, and who were generally dancing in a very
+boisterous manner, with shouts of noisy laughter. When she stopped to
+question them, they would only laugh the louder, and make new merriment
+out of the lone woman's distress. How unkind of those ugly satyrs! And
+once, while crossing a solitary sheep pasture, she saw a personage named
+Pan, seated at the foot of a tall rock. And making music on a shepherd's
+flute. He, too, had horns and hairy ears, and goat's feet; but being
+acquainted with Mother Ceres, he answered her question as civilly as he
+knew how, and invited her to taste some milk and honey out of a wooden
+bowl. But neither could Pan tell her what had become of Proserpina, any
+better than the rest of these wild people.
+
+And thus Mother Ceres went wandering about for nine long days and nights,
+finding no trace of Proserpina, unless it were now and then a withered
+flower; and these, she picked up and put in her bosom, because she fancied
+that they might have fallen from her poor child's hand. All day she
+traveled onward through the hot sun; and at night, again, the flame of the
+torch would redden and gleam along the pathway, and she continued her
+search by its light, without ever sitting down to rest.
+
+On the tenth day, she chanced to espy the mouth of a cavern, within which
+(though it was bright noon everywhere else) there would have been only a
+dusky twilight: but it so happened that a torch was burning there. It
+flickered and struggled with the duskiness, but could not half light up
+the gloomy cavern with all its melancholy glimmer. Ceres was resolved to
+leave no spot without a search; so she peeped into the entrance of the
+cave, and lighted it up a little more by holding her own torch before her.
+In so doing, she caught a glimpse of what seemed to be a woman, sitting on
+the brown leaves of the last autumn, a great heap of which had been swept
+into the cave by the wind. This woman (if woman it were) was by no means
+so beautiful as many of her sex: for her head, they tell me, was shaped
+very much like a dog's, and, by way of ornament, she wore a wreath of
+snakes around it. But Mother Ceres, the moment she saw her, knew that this
+was an odd kind of a person, who put all her enjoyment in being miserable,
+and never would have a word to say to other people, unless they were as
+melancholy and wretched as she herself delighted to be.
+
+"I am wretched enough now," thought poor Ceres, "to talk with this
+melancholy Hecate, were she ten times sadder than ever she was yet."
+
+So she stepped into the cave, and sat down, on the withered leaves by the
+dog-headed woman's side. In all the world, since her daughter's loss, she
+had found no other companion.
+
+"O Hecate." said she, "if ever you lose a daughter, you will know what
+sorrow is. Tell me, for pity's sake, have you seen my poor child
+Proserpina pass by the mouth of your cavern?"
+
+"No." answered Hecate, in a cracked voice, and sighing betwixt every word
+or two.--"no. Mother Ceres, I have seen nothing of your daughter. But my
+ears, you must know, are made in such a way that all cries of distress and
+affright, all over the world, are pretty sure to find their way to them:
+and nine days ago, as I sat in my cave, making myself very miserable. I
+heard the voice of a young girl, shrieking as if in great distress.
+Something terrible has happened to the child, you may rest assured. As
+well as I could judge, a dragon, or some other cruel monster, was carrying
+her away."
+
+"You kill me by saying so," cried Ceres, almost ready to faint. "Where was
+the sound, and which way did it seem to go?"
+
+"It passed very swiftly along," said Hecate, "and, at the same time, there
+was a heavy rumbling of wheels towards the eastward. I can tell you
+nothing more, except that, in my honest opinion, you will never see your
+daughter again. The best advice I can give you is to take up your abode in
+this cavern, where we will be the two most wretched women in the world."
+
+"Not yet, dark Hecate." replied Ceres, "But do you first come with your
+torch, and help me to seek for my lost child. And when there shall be no
+more hope of finding her (if that black day is ordained to come), then, if
+you will give me room to fling myself down, either on these withered
+leaves or on the naked rock, I will show you what it is to be miserable.
+But until I know that she has perished from the face of the earth, I will
+not allow myself space even to grieve."
+
+The dismal Hecate did not much like the idea of going abroad into the
+sunny world. But then she reflected that the sorrow of the disconsolate
+Ceres would be like a gloomy twilight round about them both, let the sun
+shine ever so brightly, and that therefore she might enjoy her bad spirits
+quite as well as if she were to stay in the cave. So she finally consented
+to go, and they set out together, both carrying torches, although it was
+broad daylight and clear sunshine. The torchlight seemed to make a gloom;
+so that the people whom they met along the road could not very distinctly
+see their figures; and, indeed, if they once caught a glimpse of Hecate,
+with the wreath of snakes round her forehead, they generally thought it
+prudent to run away, without waiting for a second glance.
+
+As the pair traveled along in this woebegone manner, a thought struck
+Ceres.
+
+"There is one person." she exclaimed, "who must have seen my poor child,
+and can doubtless tell what has become of her. Why did not I think of him
+before? It is Phoebus."
+
+"What," said Hecate, "the young man that always sits in the sunshine? Oh,
+pray do not think of going near him. He is a gay, light, frivolous young
+fellow, and will only smile in your face. And besides, there is such a
+glare of the sun about him, that he will quite blind my poor eyes, which I
+have almost wept away already."
+
+"You have promised to be my companion," answered Ceres. "Come, let us make
+haste, or the sunshine will be gone, and Phoebus along with it."
+
+Accordingly, they went along in quest of Phoebus, both of them, sighing
+grievously, and Hecate, to say the truth, making a great deal worse
+lamentation than Ceres; for all the pleasure she had, you know, lay in
+being miserable, and therefore she made the most of it. By and by, after a
+pretty long journey, they arrived at the sunniest spot in the whole world.
+There they beheld a beautiful young man, with long, curling ringlets,
+which seemed to be made of golden sunbeams; his garments were like light
+summer clouds; and the expression of his face was so exceedingly vivid,
+that Hecate held her hands before her eyes, muttering that he ought to
+wear a black veil. Phoebus (for this was the very person whom they were
+seeking) had a lyre in his hands, and was making its chords tremble with
+sweet music; at the same time singing a most exquisite song, which he had
+recently composed. For besides a great many other accomplishments, this
+young man was renowned for his admirable poetry.
+
+As Ceres and her dismal companion approached him, Phoebus smiled on them
+so cheerfully that Hecate's wreath of snakes gave a spiteful hiss, and
+Hecate heartily wished herself back in her cave. But as for Ceres, she was
+too earnest in her grief either to know or care whether Phoebus smiled or
+frowned.
+
+"Phoebus!" exclaimed she, "I am in great trouble, and have come to you for
+assistance. Can you tell me what has become of my dear child Proserpina?"
+
+"Proserpina! Proserpina, did you call her name?" answered Phoebus,
+endeavoring to recollect; for there was such a continual flow of pleasant
+ideas in his mind that he was apt to forget what had happened no longer
+ago than yesterday. "Ah, yes, I remember her now. A very lovely child,
+indeed. I am happy to tell you, my dear madam, that I did see the little
+Proserpina not many days ago. You may make yourself perfectly easy about
+her. She is safe, and in excellent hands."
+
+"Oh, where is my dear child?" cried Ceres, clasping her hands and flinging
+herself at his feet.
+
+"Why," said Phoebus,--and as he spoke, he kept touching his lyre so as to
+make a thread of music run in and out among his words,--"as the little
+damsel was gathering flowers (and she has really a very exquisite taste
+for flowers) she was suddenly snatched up by King Pluto, and carried off
+to his dominions. I have never been in that part of the universe; but the
+royal palace, I am told, is built in a very noble style of architecture,
+and of the most splendid and costly materials. Gold, diamonds, pearls, and
+all manner of precious stones will be your daughter's ordinary playthings.
+I recommend to you, my dear lady, to give yourself no uneasiness.
+Proserpina's sense of beauty will be duly gratified, and, even in spite of
+the lack of sunshine, she will lead a very enviable life."
+
+"Hush! Say not such a word!" answered Ceres indignantly. "What is there to
+gratify her heart? What are all the splendors you speak of, without
+affection? I must have her back again. Will you go with me, Phoebus, to
+demand my daughter of this wicked Pluto?"
+
+"Pray excuse me," replied Phoebus, with an elegant obeisance. "I certainly
+wish you success, and regret that my own affairs are so immediately
+pressing that I cannot have the pleasure of attending you. Besides, I am
+not upon the best of terms with King Pluto. To tell you the truth, his
+three-headed mastiff would never let me pass the gateway; for I should be
+compelled to take a sheaf of sunbeams along with me, and those, you know,
+are forbidden things in Pluto's kingdom."
+
+"Ah, Phoebus," said Ceres, with bitter meaning in her words, "you have a
+harp instead of a heart. Farewell."
+
+"Will not you stay a moment," asked Phoebus, "and hear me turn the pretty
+and touching story of Proserpina into extemporary verses?"
+
+But Ceres shook her head, and hastened away, along with Hecate. Phoebus
+(who, as I have told you, was an exquisite poet) forthwith began to make
+an ode about the poor mother's grief; and, if we were to judge of his
+sensibility by this beautiful production, he must have been endowed with a
+very tender heart. But when a poet gets into the habit of using his
+heartstrings to make chords for his lyre, he may thrum upon them as much
+as he will, without any great pain to himself. Accordingly, though Phoebus
+sang a very sad song, he was as merry all the while as were the sunbeams
+amid which he dwelt.
+
+Poor Mother Ceres had now found out what had become of her daughter, but
+was not a whit happier than before. Her case, on the contrary, looked more
+desperate than ever. As long as Proserpina was above ground there might
+have been hopes of regaining her. But now that the poor child was shut up
+within the iron gates of the king of the mines, at the threshold of which
+lay the three-headed Cerberus, there seemed no possibility of her ever
+making her escape. The dismal Hecate, who loved to take the darkest view
+of things, told Ceres that she had better come with her to the cavern, and
+spend the rest of her life in being miserable. Ceres answered that Hecate
+was welcome to go back thither herself, but that, for her part, she would
+wander about the earth in quest of the entrance to King Pluto's dominions.
+And Hecate took her at her word, and hurried back to her beloved cave,
+frightening a great many little children with a glimpse of her dog's face,
+as she went.
+
+Poor Mother Ceres! It is melancholy to think of her, pursuing her toilsome
+way all alone, and holding up that never-dying torch, the flame of which
+seemed an emblem of the grief and hope that burned together in her heart.
+So much did she suffer, that, though her aspect had been quite youthful
+when her troubles began, she grew to look like an elderly person in a very
+brief time. She cared not how she was dressed, nor had she ever thought of
+flinging away the wreath of withered poppies, which she put on the very
+morning of Proserpina's disappearance. She roamed about in so wild a way,
+and with her hair so dishevelled, that people took her for some distracted
+creature, and never dreamed that this was Mother Ceres, who had the
+oversight of every seed which the husbandman planted. Nowadays, however,
+she gave herself no trouble about seed-time nor harvest, but left the
+farmers to take care of their own affairs, and the crops to fade or
+flourish, as the case might be. There was nothing, now, in which Ceres
+seemed to feel an interest, unless when she saw children at play or
+gathering flowers along the wayside. Then, indeed, she would stand and
+gaze at them with tears in her eyes. The children, too, appeared to have a
+sympathy with her grief, and would cluster themselves in a little group
+about her knees, and look up wistfully in her face; and Ceres, after
+giving them a kiss all around, would lead them to their homes, and advise
+their mothers never to let them stray out of sight.
+
+"For if you do," said she, "it may happen to you, as it has to me, that
+the iron-hearted King Pluto will take a liking to your darlings, and
+snatch them up in his chariot, and carry them away."
+
+One day, during her pilgrimage in quest of the entrance to Pluto's
+kingdom, she came to the palace of King Celeus, who reigned at Eleusis.
+Ascending a lofty flight of steps, she entered the portal, and found the
+royal household in very great alarm about the queen's baby. The infant, it
+seems, was sickly (being troubled with its teeth, I suppose), and would
+take no food, and was all the time moaning with pain. The queen--her name
+was Metanira--was desirous of finding a nurse; and when she beheld a woman
+of matronly aspect coming up the palace steps, she thought, in her own
+mind that here was the very person whom she needed. So Queen Metanira ran
+to the door, with the poor wailing baby in her arms, and besought Ceres to
+take charge of it, or, at least, to tell her what would do it good."
+
+"Will you trust the child entirely to me?" asked Ceres.
+
+"Yes, and gladly too," answered the queen, "if you will devote all your
+time to him. For I can see that you have been a mother."
+
+"You are right," said Ceres. "I once had a child of my own. Well, I will
+be the nurse of this poor, sickly boy. But beware, I warn you, that you do
+not interfere with any kind of treatment which I may judge proper for him.
+If you do so, the poor infant must suffer for his mother's folly."
+
+Then she kissed the child, and it seemed to do him good, for he smiled and
+nestled closely into her bosom.
+
+So Mother Ceres set her torch in a corner (where it kept burning all the
+while), and took up her abode in the palace of King Celeus, as nurse to
+the little Prince Demophöon. She treated him as if he were her own child,
+and allowed neither the king nor the queen to say whether he should be
+bathed in warm or cold water, or what he should eat, or how often he
+should take the air, or when he should be put to bed. You would hardly
+believe me, if I were to tell how quickly the baby prince got rid of his
+ailments, and grew fat, and rosy, and strong, and how he had two rows of
+ivory teeth in less time than any other little fellow, before or since.
+Instead of the palest, and wretchedest, and puniest imp in the world (as
+his own mother confessed him to be when Ceres first took him in charge),
+he was now a strapping baby, crowing, laughing, kicking up his heels, and
+rolling from one end of the room to the other. All the good women of the
+neighborhood crowded to the palace, and held up their hands, in
+unutterable amazement, at the beauty and wholesomeness of this darling
+little prince. Their wonder was the greater, because he was never seen to
+taste any food,--not even so much as a cup of milk.
+
+"Pray, nurse," the queen kept saying, "how is it that you make the child
+thrive so?"
+
+"I was a mother once," Ceres replied always; "and having nursed my own
+child, I know what other children need."
+
+But Queen Metanira, as was very natural, had a great curiosity to know
+precisely what the nurse did to her child. One night, therefore, she hid
+herself in the chamber where Ceres and the little prince were accustomed
+to sleep. There was a fire in the chimney, and it had now crumbled into
+great coals and embers, which lay glowing on the hearth, with a blaze
+flickering up now and then, and flinging a warm and ruddy light upon the
+walls. Ceres sat before the hearth with the child in her lap, and the
+firelight making her shadow dance upon the ceiling overhead. She undressed
+the little prince, and bathed him all over with some fragrant liquid out
+of a vase. The next thing she did was to rake back the red embers, and
+make a hollow place among them, just where the backlog had been. At last,
+while the baby was crowing and clapping its fat little hands, and laughing
+in the nurse's face (just as you may have seen your little brother or
+sister do before going into its warm bath), Ceres suddenly laid him, all
+naked as he was, in the hollow, among the red-hot embers. She then raked
+the ashes over him, and turned quietly away.
+
+You may imagine, if you can, how Queen Metanira shrieked, thinking nothing
+less than that her dear child would be burned to a cinder. She burst forth
+from her hiding-place, and running to the hearth, raked open the fire, and
+snatched up poor little Prince Demophöon out of his bed of live coals, one
+of which he was griping in each of his fists. He immediately set up a
+grievous cry, as babies are apt to do when rudely startled out of a sound
+sleep. To the queen's astonishment and joy, she could perceive no token of
+the child's being injured by the hot fire in which he had lain. She now
+turned to Mother Ceres, and asked her to explain the mystery.
+
+"Foolish woman," answered Ceres, "did you not promise to intrust this poor
+infant entirely to me? You little know the mischief you have done him. Had
+you left him to my care, he would have grown up like a child of celestial
+birth, endowed with superhuman strength and intelligence, and would have
+lived forever. Do you imagine that earthly children are to become immortal
+without being tempered to it in the fiercest heat of the fire? But you
+have ruined your own son. For though he will be a strong man and a hero in
+his day, yet, on account of your folly, he will grow old, and finally die,
+like the sons of other women. The weak tenderness of his mother has cost
+the poor boy an immortality. Farewell."
+
+Saying these words, she kissed the little prince Demophöon, and sighed to
+think what he had lost, and took her departure without heeding Queen
+Metanira, who entreated her to remain, and cover up the child among the
+hot embers as often as she pleased. Poor baby! He never slept so warmly
+again.
+
+While she dwelt in the king's palace, Mother Ceres had been so continually
+occupied with taking care of the young prince, that her heart was a little
+lightened of its grief for Proserpina. But now, having nothing else to
+busy herself about, she became just as wretched as before. At length, in
+her despair, she came to the dreadful resolution that not a stalk of
+grain, nor a blade of grass, not a potato, nor a turnip, nor any other
+vegetable that was good for man or beast to eat, should be suffered to
+grow until her daughter were restored. She even forbade the flowers to
+bloom, lest somebody's heart should be cheered by their beauty.
+
+Now, as not so much as a head of asparagus ever presumed to poke itself
+out of the ground, without the especial permission of Ceres, you may
+conceive what a terrible calamity had here fallen upon the earth. The
+husbandmen ploughed and planted as usual; but there lay the rich black
+furrows, all as barren as a desert of sand. The pastures looked as brown
+in the sweet month of June as ever they did in chill November. The rich
+man's broad acres and the cottager's small garden-patch were equally
+blighted. Every little girl's flower-bed showed nothing but dry stalks.
+The old people shook their white heads, and said that the earth had grown
+aged like themselves, and was no longer capable of wearing the warm smile
+of summer on its face. It was really piteous to see the poor starving
+cattle and sheep, how they followed behind Ceres, lowing and bleating, as
+if their instinct taught them to expect help from her; and everybody that
+was acquainted with her power besought her to have mercy on the human
+race, and, at all events, to let the grass grow. But Mother Ceres, though
+naturally of an affectionate disposition, was now inexorable.
+
+"Never," said she. "If the earth is ever again to see any verdure, it must
+first grow along the path which my daughter will tread in coming back to
+me."
+
+Finally, as there seemed to be no other remedy, our old friend Quicksilver
+was sent post haste to King Pluto, in hopes that he might be persuaded to
+undo the mischief he had done, and to set everything right again, by
+giving up Proserpina. Quicksilver accordingly made the best of his way to
+the great gate, took a flying leap right over the three-headed mastiff,
+and stood at the door of the palace in an inconceivably short time. The
+servants knew him both by his face and garb; for his short cloak and his
+winged cap and shoes and his snaky staff had often been seen thereabouts
+in times gone by. He requested to be shown immediately into the king's
+presence; and Pluto, who heard his voice from the top of the stairs, and
+who loved to recreate himself with Quicksilver's merry talk, called out to
+him to come up. And while they settle their business together, we must
+inquire what Proserpina has been doing ever since we saw her last.
+
+The child had declared, as you may remember, that she would not taste a
+mouthful of food as long as she should be compelled to remain in King
+Pluto's palace. How she contrived to maintain her resolution, and at the
+same time to keep herself tolerably plump and rosy, is more than I can
+explain; but some young ladies, I am given to understand, possess the
+faculty of living on air, and Proserpina seems to have possessed it too.
+At any rate, it was now six months since she left the outside of the
+earth; and not a morsel, so far as the attendants were able to testify,
+had yet passed between her teeth. This was the more creditable to
+Proserpina, inasmuch as King Pluto had caused her to be tempted day after
+day, with all manner of sweetmeats, and richly preserved fruits, and
+delicacies of every sort, such as young people are generally most fond of.
+But her good mother had often told her of the hurtfulness of these things;
+and for that reason alone, if there had been no other, she would have
+resolutely refused to taste them.
+
+All this time, being of a cheerful and active disposition, the little
+damsel was not quite so unhappy as you may have supposed. The immense
+palace had a thousand rooms, and was full of beautiful and wonderful
+objects. There was a never-ceasing gloom, it is true, which half hid
+itself among the innumerable pillars, gliding before the child as she
+wandered among them, and treading stealthily behind her in the echo of her
+footsteps. Neither was all the dazzle of the precious stones, which flamed
+with their own light, worth one gleam of natural sunshine; nor could the
+most brilliant of the many-colored gems which Proserpina had for
+playthings vie with the simple beauty of the flowers she used to gather.
+But still, wherever the girl went, among those gilded halls and chambers,
+it seemed as if she carried nature and sunshine along with her, and as if
+she scattered dewy blossoms on her right hand and on her left. After
+Proserpina came, the palace was no longer the same abode of stately
+artifice and dismal magnificence that it had before been. The inhabitants
+all felt this, and King Pluto more than any of them.
+
+"My own little Proserpina," he used to say, "I wish you could like me a
+little better. We gloomy and cloudy-natured persons have often as warm
+hearts at bottom as those of a more cheerful character. If you would only
+stay with me of your own accord, it would make me happier than the
+possession of a hundred such palaces as this."
+
+"Ah," said Proserpina, "you should have tried to make me like you before
+carrying me off. And the best thing you can do now is to let me go again.
+Then I might remember you sometimes, and think that you were as kind as
+you knew how to be. Perhaps, too, one day or other, I might come back, and
+pay you a visit."
+
+"No, no," answered Pluto, with his gloomy smile, "I will not trust you for
+that. You are too fond of living in the broad daylight, and gathering
+flowers. What an idle and childish taste that is! Are not these gems,
+which I have ordered to be dug for you, and which are richer than any in
+my crown,--are they not prettier than a violet?"
+
+"Not half so pretty," said Proserpina, snatching the gems from Pluto's
+hand, and flinging them to the other end of the hall. "Oh, my sweet
+violets, shall I never see you again?"
+
+And then she burst into tears. But young people's tears have very little
+saltness or acidity in them, and do not inflame the eyes so much as those
+of grown persons; so that it is not to be wondered at if, a few moments
+afterwards, Proserpina was sporting through the hall almost as merrily as
+she and the four sea-nymphs had sported along the edge of the surf wave,
+King Pluto gazed after her, and wished that he, too was a child. And
+little Proserpina, when she turned about, and beheld this great king
+standing in his splendid hall, and looking so grand, and so melancholy,
+and so lonesome, was smitten with a kind of pity. She ran back to him,
+and, for the first time in all her life, put her small, soft hand in his.
+
+"I love you a little," whispered she, looking up in his face.
+
+"Do you, indeed, my dear child?" cried Pluto, bending his dark face down
+to kiss her; but Proserpina shrank away from the kiss, for though his
+features were noble, they were very dusky and grim. "Well, I have not
+deserved it of you, after keeping you a prisoner for so many months, and
+starving you, besides. Are you not terribly hungry? Is there nothing which
+I can get you to eat?"
+
+In asking this question, the king of the mines had a very cunning purpose;
+for, you will recollect, if Proserpina tasted a morsel of food in his
+dominions, she would never afterwards be at liberty to quit them.
+
+"No, indeed," said Proserpina. "Your head cook is always baking, and
+stewing, and roasting, and rolling out paste, and contriving one dish or
+another, which he imagines may be to my liking. But he might just as well
+save himself the trouble, poor, fat little man that he is. I have no
+appetite for anything in the world, unless it were a slice of bread of my
+mother's own baking, or a little fruit out of her garden."
+
+When Pluto heard this, he began to see that he had mistaken the best
+method of tempting Proserpina to eat. The cook's made dishes and
+artificial dainties were not half so delicious, in the good child's
+opinion, as the simple fare to which Mother Ceres had accustomed her.
+Wondering that he had never thought of it before, the king now sent one of
+his trusty attendants, with a large basket, to get some of the finest and
+juiciest pears, peaches, and plums which could anywhere be found in the
+upper world. Unfortunately, however, this was during the time when Ceres
+had forbidden any fruits or vegetables to grow; and, after seeking all
+over the earth, King Pluto's servants found only a single pomegranate, and
+that so dried up as to be not worth eating. Nevertheless, since there was
+no better to be had, he brought this dry, old, withered pomegranate home
+to the palace, put it on a magnificent golden salver, and carried it up to
+Proserpina. Now it happened, curiously enough, that, just as the servant
+was bringing the pomegranate into the back door of the palace, our friend
+Quicksilver had gone up the front steps, on his errand to get Proserpina
+away from King Pluto.
+
+As soon as Proserpina saw the pomegranate on the golden salver, she told
+the servant he had better take it away again.
+
+"I shall not touch it, I assure you," said she. "If I were ever so hungry,
+I should never think of eating such a miserable, dry pomegranate as that."
+
+"It is the only one in the world," said the servant.
+
+He set down the golden salver, with the wizened pomegranate upon it, and
+left the room. When he was gone, Proserpina could not help coming close to
+the table, and looking at this poor specimen of dried fruit with a great
+deal of eagerness; for, to say the truth, on seeing something that suited
+her taste, she felt all the six months' appetite taking possession of her
+at once. To be sure, it was a very wretched-looking pomegranate, and
+seemed to have no more juice in it than an oyster-shell. But there was no
+choice of such things in King Pluto's palace. This was the first fruit she
+had seen there, and the last she was ever likely to see; and unless she
+ate it up immediately, it would grow drier than it already was, and be
+wholly unfit to eat.
+
+"At least, I may smell it," thought Proserpina.
+
+So she took up the pomegranate, and applied it to her nose; and, somehow
+or other, being in such close neighborhood to her mouth, the fruit found
+its way into that little red cave. Dear me! what an everlasting pity!
+Before Proserpina knew what she was about, her teeth had actually bitten
+it, of their own accord. Just as this fatal deed was done, the door of the
+apartment opened, and in came King Pluto, followed by Quicksilver, who had
+been urging him to let his little prisoner go. At the first noise of their
+entrance, Proserpina withdrew the pomegranate from her mouth. But
+Quicksilver (whose eyes were very keen, and his wits the sharpest that
+ever anybody had) perceived that the child was a little confused; and
+seeing the empty salver, he suspected that she had been taking a sly
+nibble of something or other. As for honest Pluto, he never guessed at the
+secret.
+
+"My little Proserpina," said the king, sitting down, and affectionately
+drawing her between his knees, "here is Quicksilver, who tells me that a
+great many misfortunes have befallen innocent people on account of my
+detaining you in my dominions. To confess the truth, I myself had already
+reflected that it was an unjustifiable act to take you away from your good
+mother. But, then, you must consider, my dear child, that this vast palace
+is apt to be gloomy (although the precious stones certainly shine very
+bright), and that I am not of the most cheerful disposition, and that
+therefore it was a natural thing enough to seek for the society of some
+merrier creature than myself. I hoped you would take my crown for a
+plaything, and me--ah, you laugh, naughty Proserpina--me, grim as I am,
+for a playmate. It was a silly expectation."
+
+"Not so extremely silly," whispered Proserpina. "You have really amused me
+very much, sometimes."
+
+"Thank you," said King Pluto, rather dryly. "But I can see, plainly
+enough, that you think my palace a dusky prison, and me the iron-hearted
+keeper of it. And an iron heart I should surely have, if I could detain
+you here any longer, my poor child, when it is now six months since you
+tasted food. I give you your liberty. Go with Quicksilver. Hasten home to
+your dear mother."
+
+Now, although you may not have supposed it, Proserpina found it impossible
+to take leave of poor King Pluto without some regrets, and a good deal of
+compunction for not telling him about the pomegranate. She even shed a
+tear or two, thinking how lonely and cheerless the great palace would seem
+to him, with all its ugly glare of artificial light, after she
+herself,--his one little ray of natural sunshine, whom he had stolen, to
+be sure, but only because he valued her so much,--after she should have
+departed. I know not how many kind things she might have said to the
+disconsolate king of the mines, had not Quicksilver hurried her away.
+
+"Come along quickly," whispered he in her ear, "or his majesty may change
+his royal mind. And take care, above all things, that you say nothing of
+what was brought you on the golden salver."
+
+In a very short time, they had passed the great gateway (leaving the
+three-headed Cerberus, barking and yelping, and growling, with threefold
+din, behind them), and emerged upon the surface of the earth. It was
+delightful to behold, as Proserpina hastened along, how the path grew
+verdant behind and on either side of her. Wherever she set her blessed
+foot, there was at once a dewy flower. The violets gushed up along the
+wayside. The grass and the grain began to sprout with tenfold vigor and
+luxuriance, to make up for the dreary months that had been wasted in
+barrenness. The starved cattle immediately set to work grazing, after
+their long fast, and ate enormously all day, and got up at midnight to eat
+more. But I can assure you it was a busy time of year with the farmers,
+when they found the summer coming upon them with such a rush. Nor must I
+forget to say that all the birds in the whole world hopped about upon the
+newly blossoming trees, and sang together in a prodigious ecstasy of joy.
+
+Mother Ceres had returned to her deserted home, and was sitting
+disconsolately on the doorstep, with her torch burning in her hand. She
+had been idly watching the flame for some moments past, when, all at once,
+it flickered and went out.
+
+"What does this mean?" thought she. "It was an enchanted torch, and should
+have kept burning till my child came back."
+
+Lifting her eyes, she was surprised to see a sudden verdure flashing over
+the brown and barren fields, exactly as you may have observed a golden hue
+gleaming far and wide across the landscape, from the just risen sun.
+
+"Does the earth disobey me?" exclaimed Mother Ceres indignantly. "Does it
+presume to be green, when I have bidden it be barren until my daughter
+shall be restored to my arms?"
+
+"Then open your arms, dear mother," cried a well-known voice, "and take
+your little daughter into them."
+
+And Proserpina came running, and flung herself upon her mother's bosom.
+Their mutual transport is not to be described. The grief of their
+separation had caused both of them to shed a great many tears; and now
+they shed a great many more, because their joy could not so well express
+itself in any other way.
+
+When their hearts had grown a little more quiet, Mother Ceres looked
+anxiously at Proserpina.
+
+"My child," said she, "did you taste any food while you were in King
+Pluto's palace?"
+
+"Dearest mother," answered Proserpina. "I will tell you the whole truth.
+Until this very morning, not a morsel of food had passed my lips. But
+to-day, they brought me a pomegranate (a very dry one it was, and all
+shriveled up, till there was little left of it but seeds and skin), and
+having seen no fruit for so long a time, and being faint with hunger, I
+was tempted just to bite it. The instant I tasted it, King Pluto and
+Quicksilver came into the room. I had not swallowed a morsel; but--dear
+mother, I hope it was no harm--but six of the pomegranate seeds, I am
+afraid, remained in my mouth."
+
+"Ah, unfortunate child, and miserable me!" exclaimed Ceres. "For each of
+those six pomegranate seeds you must spend one month of each year in King
+Pluto's palace. You are but half restored to your mother. Only six months
+with me, and six with that good-for-nothing King of Darkness!"
+
+"Do not speak so harshly of poor King Pluto," said Proserpina, kissing her
+mother. "He has some very good qualities, and I really think I can bear to
+spend six months in his palace, if he will only let me spend the other six
+with you. He certainly did very wrong to carry me off; but then, as he
+says, it was but a dismal sort of life for him, to live in that great
+gloomy place, all alone; and it has made a wonderful change in his spirits
+to have a little girl to run up stairs and down. There is some comfort in
+making him so happy; and so, upon the whole, dearest mother, let us be
+thankful that he is not to keep me the whole year round."
+
+
+
+
+OLD GREEK FOLK-STORIES
+
+
+ORPHEUS AND EURYDICE
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+When gods and shepherds piped and the stars sang, that was the day of
+musicians! But the triumph of Phoebus Apollo himself was not so wonderful
+as the triumph of a mortal man who lived on earth, though some say that he
+came of divine lineage. This was Orpheus, that best of harpers, who went
+with the Grecian heroes of the great ship Argo in search of the Golden
+Fleece.
+
+After his return from the quest, he won Eurydice for his wife, and they
+were as happy as people can be who love each other and every one else. The
+very wild beasts loved them, and the trees clustered about their home as
+if they were watered with music. But even the gods themselves were not
+always free from sorrow, and one day misfortune came upon that harper
+Orpheus whom all men loved to honor.
+
+Eurydice, his lovely wife, as she was wandering with the nymphs,
+unwittingly trod upon a serpent in the grass. Surely, if Orpheus had been
+with her, playing upon his lyre, no creature could have harmed her. But
+Orpheus came too late. She died of the sting, and was lost to him in the
+Underworld.
+
+For days he wandered from his home, singing the story of his loss and his
+despair to the helpless passers-by. His grief moved the very stones in the
+wilderness, and roused a dumb distress in the hearts of savage beasts.
+Even the gods on Mount Olympus gave ear, but they held no power over the
+darkness of Hades.
+
+Wherever Orpheus wandered with his lyre, no one had the will to forbid him
+entrance; and at length he found unguarded that very cave that leads to
+the Underworld, where Pluto rules the spirits of the dead. He went down
+without fear. The fire in his living heart found him a way through the
+gloom of that place. He crossed the Styx, the black river that the Gods
+name as their most sacred oath. Charon, the harsh old ferryman who takes
+the shades across, forgot to ask of him the coin that every soul must pay.
+For Orpheus sang. There in the Underworld the song of Apollo would not
+have moved the poor ghosts so much. It would have amazed them, like a star
+far off that no one understands. But here was a human singer, and he sang
+of things that grow in every human heart, youth and love and death, the
+sweetness of the Earth, and the bitterness of losing aught that is dear to
+us.
+
+Now the dead, when they go to the Underworld, drink of the pool of Lethe;
+and forgetfulness of all that has passed comes upon them like a sleep, and
+they lose their longing for the world, they lose their memory of pain, and
+live content with that cool twilight. But not the pool of Lethe itself
+could withstand the song of Orpheus; and in the hearts of the shades all
+the old dreams awoke wondering. They remembered once more the life of men
+on earth, the glory of the sun and moon, the sweetness of new grass, the
+warmth of their homes, all the old joy and grief that they had known. And
+they wept.
+
+Even the Furies were moved to pity. Those, too, who were suffering
+punishment for evil deeds ceased to be tormented for themselves, and
+grieved only for the innocent Orpheus who had lost Eurydice. Sisyphus,
+that fraudulent king (who is doomed to roll a monstrous boulder uphill
+forever), stopped to listen. The daughters of Danaus left off their task
+of drawing water in a sieve. Tantalus forgot hunger and thirst, though
+before his eyes hung magical fruits that were wont to vanish out of his
+grasp, and just beyond reach bubbled the water that was a torment to his
+ears; he did not hear it while Orpheus sang.
+
+So, among a crowd of eager ghosts, Orpheus came, singing with all his
+heart, before the king and queen of Hades. And the queen Proserpina wept
+as she listened and grew homesick, remembering the fields of Enna and the
+growing of the wheat, and her own beautiful mother, Demeter. Then Pluto
+gave way.
+
+They called Eurydice and she came, like a young guest unused to the
+darkness of the Underworld. She was to return with Orpheus, but on one
+condition. If he turned to look at her once before they reached the upper
+air, he must lose her again and go back to the world alone.
+
+Rapt with joy, the happy Orpheus hastened on the way, thinking only of
+Eurydice, who was following him. Past Lethe, across the Styx they went, he
+and his lovely wife, still silent as a shade. But the place was full of
+gloom, the silence weighed upon him, he had not seen her for so long; her
+footsteps made no sound; and he could hardly believe the miracle, for
+Pluto seldom relents. When the first gleam of upper daylight broke through
+the cleft to the dismal world, he forgot all, save that he must know if
+she still followed. He turned to see her face, and the promise was broken!
+
+She smiled at him forgivingly, but it was too late. He stretched out his
+arms to take her, but she faded from them, as the bright snow, that none
+may keep, melts in our very hands. A murmur of farewell came to his
+ears,--no more. She was gone.
+
+He would have followed, but Charon, now on guard, drove him back. Seven
+days he lingered there between the worlds of life and death, but after the
+broken promise Hades would not listen to his song. Back to the earth he
+wandered, though it was sweet to him no longer. He died young, singing to
+the last, and round about the place where his body rested, nightingales
+nested in the trees. His lyre was set among the stars; and he himself went
+down to join Eurydice, unforbidden.
+
+Those two had no need of Lethe, for their life on earth had been wholly
+fair, and now that they are together they no longer own a sorrow.
+
+
+
+
+ICARUS AND DÆDALUS
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+Among all those mortals who grew so wise that they learned the secrets of
+the gods, none was more cunning than Dædalus.
+
+He once built, for King Minos of Crete, a wonderful Labyrinth of winding
+ways so cunningly tangled up and twisted around that, once inside, you
+could never find your way out again without a magic clue. But the king's
+favor veered with the wind, and one day he had his master architect
+imprisoned in a tower. Dædalus managed to escape from his cell; but it
+seemed impossible to leave the island, since every ship that came or went
+was well guarded by order of the king.
+
+At length, watching the sea-gulls in the air,--the only creatures that
+were sure of liberty,--he thought of a plan for himself and his young son
+Icarus, who was captive with him.
+
+Little by little, he gathered a store of feathers great and small. He
+fastened these together with thread, moulded them in with wax, and so
+fashioned two great wings like those of a bird. When they were done,
+Dædalus fitted them to his own shoulders, and after one or two efforts, he
+found that by waving his arms he could winnow the air and cleave it, as a
+swimmer does the sea. He held himself aloft, wavered this way and that,
+with the wind, and at last, like a great fledgling, he learned to fly.
+
+Without delay, he fell to work on a pair of wings for the boy Icarus, and
+taught him carefully how to use them, bidding him beware of rash
+adventures among the stars. "Remember," said the father, "never to fly
+very low or very high, for the fogs about the earth would weigh you down,
+but the blaze of the sun will surely melt your feathers apart if you go
+too near."
+
+For Icarus, these cautions went in at one ear and out by the other. Who
+could remember to be careful when he was to fly for the first time? Are
+birds careful? Not they! And not an idea remained in the boy's head but
+the one joy of escape.
+
+The day came, and the fair wind that was to set them free. The father bird
+put on his wings, and, while the light urged them to be gone, he waited to
+see that all was well with Icarus, for the two could not fly hand in hand.
+Up they rose, the boy after his father. The hateful ground of Crete sank
+beneath them; and the country folk, who caught a glimpse of them when they
+were high above the tree-tops, took it for a vision of the gods,--Apollo,
+perhaps, with Cupid after him.
+
+At first there was a terror in the joy. The wide vacancy of the air dazed
+them,--a glance downward made their brains reel. But when a great wind
+filled their wings, and Icarus felt himself sustained, like a halcyon-bird
+in the hollow of a wave, like a child uplifted by his mother, he forgot
+everything in the world but joy. He forgot Crete and the other islands
+that he had passed over: he saw but vaguely that winged thing in the
+distance before him that was his father Dædalus. He longed for one draught
+of flight to quench the thirst of his captivity: he stretched out his arms
+to the sky and made towards the highest heavens.
+
+Alas for him! Warmer and warmer grew the air. Those arms, that had seemed
+to uphold him, relaxed. His wings wavered, drooped. He fluttered his young
+hands vainly,--he was falling,--and in that terror he remembered. The heat
+of the sun had melted the wax from his wings; the feathers were falling,
+one by one, like snowflakes; and there was none to help.
+
+He fell like a leaf tossed down the wind, down, down, with one cry that
+overtook Dædalus far away. When he returned, and sought high and low for
+the poor boy, he saw nothing but the bird-like feathers afloat on the
+water, and he knew that Icarus was drowned.
+
+The nearest island he named Icaria, in memory of the child; but he, in
+heavy grief, went to the temple of Apollo in Sicily, and there hung up his
+wings as an offering. Never again did he attempt to fly.
+
+
+
+
+PHAETHON
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+Once upon a time, the reckless whim of a lad came near to destroying the
+Earth and robbing the spheres of their wits.
+
+There were two playmates, said to be of heavenly parentage. One was
+Epaphus, who claimed Zeus as a father; and one was Phaethon, the earthly
+child of Phoebus Apollo (or Helios, as some name the sun-god). One day
+they were boasting together, each of his own father, and Epaphus, angry at
+the other's fine story, dared him to go prove his kinship with the Sun.
+
+Full of rage and humiliation, Phaethon went to his mother, Clymene, where
+she sat with his young sisters, the Heliades.
+
+"It is true, my child," she said, "I swear it in the light of yonder Sun.
+If you have any doubt, go to the land whence he rises at morning and ask
+of him any gift you will; he is your father, and he cannot refuse you."
+
+As soon as might be, Phaethon set out for the country of sunrise. He
+journeyed by day and by night far into the east, till he came to the
+palace of the Sun. It towered high as the clouds, glorious with gold and
+all manner of gems that looked like frozen fire, if that might be. The
+mighty walls were wrought with images of earth and sea and sky. Vulcan,
+the smith of the Gods, had made them in his workshop (for Mount Ætna is
+one of his forges, and he has the central fires of the earth to help him
+fashion gold and iron, as men do glass). On the doors blazed the twelve
+signs of the Zodiac, in silver that shone like snow in the sunlight.
+Phaethon was dazzled with the sight, but when he entered the palace hall
+he could hardly bear the radiance.
+
+In one glimpse through his half-shut eyes, he beheld a glorious being,
+none other than Phoebus himself, seated upon a throne. He was clothed in
+purple raiment, and round his head there shone a blinding light, that
+enveloped even his courtiers upon the right and upon the left,--the
+Seasons with their emblems, Day, Month, Year, and the beautiful young
+Hours in a row. In one glance of those all-seeing eyes, the sun-god knew
+his child; but in order to try him he asked the boy his errand.
+
+"O my father," stammered Phaethon, "if you are my father indeed"--and then
+he took courage; for the god came down from his throne, put off the
+glorious halo that hurt mortal eyes, and embraced him tenderly.
+
+"Indeed, thou art my son," said he. "Ask any gift of me, and it shall be
+thine; I call the Styx to witness."
+
+"Ah!" cried Phaethon rapturously. "Let me drive thy chariot for one day!"
+
+For an instant the Sun's looks clouded. "Choose again, my child," said he.
+"Thou art only a mortal, and this task is mine alone of all the Gods. Not
+Zeus himself dare drive the chariot of the Sun. The way is full of
+terrors, both for the horses and for all the stars along the roadside, and
+for the Earth, who has all blessings from me. Listen, and choose again."
+And therewith he warned Phaethon of all the dangers that beset the
+way,--the great steep that the steeds must climb, the numbing dizziness of
+the height, the fierce constellations that breathe out fire, and that
+descent in the west where the Sun seems to go headlong.
+
+But these counsels only made the reckless boy more eager to win honor of
+such a high enterprise.
+
+"I will take care; only let me go," he begged.
+
+Now Phoebus had sworn by the black river Styx, an oath that none of the
+Gods dare break, and he was forced to keep his promise.
+
+Already Aurora, goddess of dawn, had thrown open the gates of the east,
+and the stars were beginning to wane. The Hours came forth to harness the
+four horses, and Phaethon looked with exultation at the splendid
+creatures, whose lord he was for a day. Wild, immortal steeds they were,
+fed with ambrosia, untamed as the winds; their very pet names signified
+flame, and all that flame can do,--Pyrois, Eoüs, Æthon, Phlegon.
+
+As the lad stood by, watching, Phoebus anointed his face with a philter
+that should make him strong to endure the terrible heat and light, then
+set the halo upon his head, with a last word of counsel.
+
+"Follow the road," said he, "and never turn aside. Go not too high or too
+low, for the sake of heavens and earth; else men and Gods will suffer. The
+Fates alone know whether evil is to come of this. Yet if your heart fails
+you, as I hope, abide here and I will make the journey, as I am wont to
+do."
+
+But Phaethon held to his choice and bade his father farewell. He took his
+place in the chariot, gathered up the reins, and the horses sprang away,
+eager for the road.
+
+As they went, they bent their splendid necks to see the meaning of the
+strange hand upon the reins,--the slender weight in the chariot. They
+turned their wild eyes upon Phaethon, to his secret foreboding, and
+neighed one to another. This was no master charioteer, but a mere lad, a
+feather riding the wind. It was holiday for the horses of the Sun, and
+away they went.
+
+Grasping the reins that dragged him after, like an enemy, Phaethon looked
+down from the fearful ascent and saw the Earth far beneath him, dim and
+fair. He was blind with dizziness and bewilderment. His hold slackened and
+the horses redoubled their speed, wild with new liberty. They left the old
+tracks. Before he knew where he was, they had startled the constellations
+and well-nigh grazed the Serpent, so that it woke from its torpor and
+hissed.
+
+The steeds took fright. This way and that they went, terrified by the
+monsters they had never encountered before, shaking out of their silver
+quiet the cool stars towards the north, then fleeing as far to the south
+among new wonders. The heavens were full of terror.
+
+Up, far above the clouds, they went, and down again, towards the
+defenseless Earth, that could not flee from the chariot of the Sun. Great
+rivers hid themselves in the ground, and mountains were consumed. Harvests
+perished like a moth that is singed in a candle-flame.
+
+In vain did Phaethon call to the horses and pull upon the reins. As in a
+hideous dream, he saw his own Earth, his beautiful home and the home of
+all men, his kindred, parched by the fires of this mad chariot, and
+blackening beneath him. The ground cracked open and the sea shrank.
+Heedless water-nymphs, who had lingered in the shallows, were left gasping
+like bright fishes. The dryads shrank, and tried to cover themselves from
+the scorching heat. The poor Earth lifted her withered face in a last
+prayer to Zeus to save her if he might.
+
+Then Zeus, calling all the Gods to witness that there was no other means
+of safety, hurled his thunderbolt; and Phaethon knew no more.
+
+His body fell through the heavens, aflame like a shooting star; and the
+horses of the Sun dashed homeward with the empty chariot.
+
+Poor Clymene grieved sore over the boy's death; but the young Heliades,
+daughters of the Sun, refused all comfort. Day and night they wept
+together about their brother's grave by the river, until the Gods took
+pity and changed them all into poplar-trees. And ever after that they wept
+sweet tears of amber, clear as sunlight.
+
+
+
+
+NIOBE
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+There are so many tales of the vanity of kings and queens that the half of
+them cannot be told.
+
+There was Cassiopæia, queen of Æthiopia, who boasted that her beauty
+outshone the beauty of all the sea-nymphs, so that in anger they sent a
+horrible sea-serpent to ravage the coast. The king prayed of an oracle to
+know how the monster might be appeased, and learned that he must offer up
+his own daughter, Andromeda. The maiden was therefore chained to a rock by
+the sea-side, and left to her fate. But who should come to rescue her but
+a certain young hero, Perseus, who was hastening homeward after a perilous
+adventure with the snaky-haired Gorgons. Filled with pity at the story of
+Andromeda, he waited for the dragon, met and slew him, and set the maiden
+free. As for the boastful queen, the Gods forgave her, and at her death
+she was set among the stars. That story ended well.
+
+But there was once a queen of Thebes, Niobe, fortunate above all women,
+and yet arrogant in the face of the gods. Very beautiful she was, and
+nobly born, but above all things she boasted of her children, for she had
+seven sons and seven daughters.
+
+Now there came the day when the people were wont to celebrate the feast of
+Latona, mother of Apollo and Diana; and Niobe, as she stood looking upon
+the worshipers on their way to the temple, was filled with overweening
+pride.
+
+"Why do you worship Latona before me?" she cried out. "What does she
+possess that I have not in greater abundance? She has but two children,
+while I have seven sons and as many daughters. Nay, if she robbed me out
+of envy, I should still be rich. Go back to your houses; you have not eyes
+to know the rightful goddess."
+
+Such impiety was enough to frighten any one, and her subjects returned to
+their daily work, awestruck and silent.
+
+But Apollo and Diana were filled with wrath at this insult to their divine
+mother. Not only was she a great goddess and a power in the heavens, but
+during her life on earth she had suffered many hardships for their sake.
+The serpent Python had been sent to torment her; and, driven from land to
+land, under an evil spell, beset with dangers, she had found no
+resting-place but the island of Delos, held sacred ever after to her and
+her children. Once she had even been refused water by some churlish
+peasants, who could not believe in a goddess if she appeared in humble
+guise and travel-worn. But these men were all changed into frogs.
+
+It needed no word from Latona herself to rouse her children to vengeance.
+Swift as a thought, the two immortal archers, brother and sister, stood in
+Thebes, upon the towers of the citadel. Near by, the youth were pursuing
+their sports, while the feast of Latona went neglected. The sons of Queen
+Niobe were there, and against them Apollo bent his golden bow. An arrow
+crossed the air like a sunbeam, and without a word the eldest prince fell
+from his horse. One by one his brothers died by the same hand, so swiftly
+that they knew not what had befallen them, till all the sons of the royal
+house lay slain. Only the people of Thebes, stricken with terror, bore the
+news to Queen Niobe, where she sat with her seven daughters. She would not
+believe in such a sorrow.
+
+"Savage Latona," she cried, lifting her arms against the heavens, "never
+think that you have conquered. I am still the greater."
+
+At that moment one of her daughters sank beside her. Diana had sped an
+arrow from her bow that is like the crescent moon. Without a cry, nay,
+even as they murmured words of comfort, the sisters died, one by one. It
+was all as swift and soundless as snowfall.
+
+Only the guilty mother was left, transfixed with grief. Tears flowed from
+her eyes, but she spoke not a word, her heart never softened; and at last
+she turned to stone, and the tears flowed down her cold face forever.
+
+
+
+
+PYRAMUS AND THISBE
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+Venus did not always befriend true lovers, as she had befriended
+Hippomenes, with her three golden apples. Sometimes, in the enchanted
+island of Cyprus, she forgot her worshipers far away, and they called on
+her in vain.
+
+So it was in the sad story of Hero and Leander, who lived on opposite
+borders of the Hellespont. Hero dwelt at Sestos, where she served as a
+priestess, in the very temple of Venus; and Leander's home was in Abydos,
+a town on the opposite shore. But every night this lover would swim across
+the water to see Hero, guided by the light which she was wont to set in
+her tower. Even such loyalty could not conquer fate. There came a great
+storm, one night, that put out the beacon, and washed Leander's body up
+with the waves to Hero, and she sprang into the water to rejoin him, and
+so perished.
+
+Not wholly unlike this was the fate of Halcyone, a queen of Thessaly, who
+dreamed that her husband Ceyx had been drowned, and on waking hastened to
+the shore to look for him. There she saw her dream come true,--his
+lifeless body floating towards her on the tide; and as she flung herself
+after him, mad with grief, the air upheld her and she seemed to fly.
+Husband and wife were changed into birds; and there on the very water, at
+certain seasons, they build a nest that floats unhurt,--a portent of calm
+for many days and safe voyage for the ships. So it is that seamen love
+these birds and look for halcyon weather.
+
+But there once lived in Babylonia two lovers named Pyramus and Thisbe, who
+were parted by a strange mischance. For they lived in adjoining houses;
+and although their parents had forbidden them to marry, these two had
+found a means of talking together through a crevice in the wall.
+
+Here, again and again, Pyramus on his side of the wall and Thisbe on hers,
+they would meet to tell each other all that had happened during the day,
+and to complain of their cruel parents. At length they decided that they
+would endure it no longer, but that they would leave their homes and be
+married, come what might. They planned to meet, on a certain evening, by a
+mulberry-tree near the tomb of King Ninus, outside the city gates. Once
+safely met, they were resolved to brave fortune together.
+
+So far all went well. At the appointed time, Thisbe, heavily veiled,
+managed to escape from home unnoticed, and after a stealthy journey
+through the streets of Babylon, she came to the grove of mulberries near
+the tomb of Ninus. The place was deserted, and once there she put off the
+veil from her face to see if Pyramus waited anywhere among the shadows.
+She heard the sound of a footfall and turned to behold--not Pyramus, but a
+creature unwelcome to any tryst--none other than a lioness crouching to
+drink from the pool hard by.
+
+Without a cry, Thisbe fled, dropping her veil as she ran. She found a
+hiding-place among the rocks at some distance, and there she waited, not
+knowing what else to do.
+
+The lioness, having quenched her thirst (after some ferocious meal),
+turned from the spring and, coming upon the veil, sniffed at it curiously,
+tore and tossed it with her reddened jaws,--as she would have done with
+Thisbe herself,--then dropped the plaything and crept away to the forest
+once more.
+
+It was but a little after this that Pyramus came hurrying to the
+meeting-place, breathless with eagerness to find Thisbe and tell her what
+had delayed him. He found no Thisbe there. For a moment he was confounded.
+Then he looked about for some signs of her, some footprint by the pool.
+There was the trail of a wild beast in the grass, and near by a woman's
+veil, torn and stained with blood; he caught it up and knew it for
+Thisbe's.
+
+So she had come at the appointed hour, true to her word; she had waited
+there for him alone and defenseless, and she had fallen a prey to some
+beast from the jungle! As these thoughts rushed upon the young man's mind,
+he could endure no more.
+
+"Was it to meet me, Thisbe, that you came to such a death!" cried he. "And
+I followed all too late. But I will atone. Even now I come lagging, but by
+no will of mine!"
+
+So saying, the poor youth drew his sword and fell upon it, there at the
+foot of that mulberry-tree which he had named as the trysting-place, and
+his life-blood ran about the roots.
+
+During these very moments, Thisbe, hearing no sound and a little
+reassured, had stolen from her hiding-place and was come to the edge of
+the grove. She saw that the lioness had left the spring, and, eager to
+show her lover that she had dared all things to keep faith, she came
+slowly, little by little, back to the mulberry-tree.
+
+She found Pyramus there, according to his promise. His own sword was in
+his heart, the empty scabbard by his side, and in his hand he held her
+veil still clasped. Thisbe saw these things as in a dream, and suddenly
+the truth awoke her. She saw the piteous mischance of all; and when the
+dying Pyramus opened his eyes and fixed them upon her, her heart broke.
+With the same sword she stabbed herself, and the lovers died together.
+
+There the parents found them, after a weary search, and they were buried
+together in the same tomb. But the berries of the mulberry-tree turned red
+that day, and red they have remained ever since.
+
+
+
+
+STORIES OF THE TROJAN WAR
+
+
+THE APPLE OF DISCORD
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+There was once a war so great that the sound of it has come ringing down
+the centuries from singer to singer, and will never die.
+
+The rivalries of men and gods brought about many calamities, but none so
+heavy as this; and it would never have come to pass, they say, if it had
+not been for jealousy among the immortals,--all because of a golden apple!
+But Destiny has nurtured ominous plants from little seeds; and this is how
+one evil grew great enough to overshadow heaven and earth.
+
+The sea-nymph Thetis (whom Zeus himself had once desired for his wife) was
+given in marriage to a mortal, Peleus, and there was a great wedding-feast
+in heaven. Thither all the immortals were bidden, save one, Eris, the
+goddess of Discord, ever an unwelcome guest. But she came unbidden. While
+the wedding-guests sat at feast, she broke in upon their mirth, flung
+among them a golden apple, and departed with looks that boded ill. Some
+one picked up the strange missile and read its inscription, "For the
+Fairest;" and at once discussion arose among the goddesses. They were all
+eager to claim the prize, but only three persisted.
+
+Venus, the very goddess of beauty, said that it was hers by right; but
+Juno could not endure to own herself less fair than another, and even
+Athene coveted the palm of beauty as well as of wisdom, and would not give
+it up! Discord had indeed come to the wedding-feast. Not one of the Gods
+dared to decide so dangerous a question,--not Zeus himself,--and the three
+rivals were forced to choose a judge among mortals.
+
+Now there lived on Mount Ida, near the city of Troy, a certain young
+shepherd by the name of Paris. He was as comely as Ganymede himself,--that
+Trojan youth whom Zeus, in the shape of an eagle, seized and bore away to
+Olympus, to be a cup-bearer to the gods. Paris, too, was a Trojan of royal
+birth, but like Oedipus, he had been left on the mountain in his infancy,
+because the oracle had foretold that he would be the death of his kindred
+and the ruin of his country. Destiny saved and nurtured him to fulfill
+that prophecy. He grew up as a shepherd and tended his flocks on the
+mountain, but his beauty held the favor of all the wood-folk there and won
+the heart of the nymph Oenone.
+
+To him, at last, the three goddesses intrusted the judgment and the golden
+apple. Juno first stood before him in all her glory as queen of Gods and
+men, and attended by her favorite peacocks as gorgeous to see as royal
+fan-bearers.
+
+[Illustration: TO HIM, AT LAST, THE THREE GODDESSES INTRUSTED THE JUDGMENT
+AND THE GOLDEN APPLE]
+
+"Use but the judgment of a prince, Paris," she said, "and I will give thee
+wealth and kingly power."
+
+Such majesty and such promises would have moved the heart of any man; but
+the eager Paris had at least to hear the claims of the other rivals.
+Athene rose before him, a vision welcome as daylight, with her sea-gray
+eyes and golden hair beneath a golden helmet.
+
+"Be wise in honoring me, Paris," she said, "and I will give thee wisdom
+that shall last forever, great glory among men, and renown in war."
+
+Last of all, Venus shone upon him, beautiful as none can ever hope to be.
+If she had come, unnamed, as any country maid, her loveliness would have
+dazzled him like sea-foam in the sun; but she was girt with her magical
+Cestus, a spell of beauty that no one can resist.
+
+Without a bribe she might have conquered, and she smiled upon his dumb
+amazement, saying, "Paris, thou shalt yet have for wife the fairest woman
+in the world."
+
+At these words, the happy shepherd fell on his knees and offered her the
+golden apple. He took no heed of the slighted goddesses, who vanished in a
+cloud that boded storm.
+
+From that hour he sought only the counsel of Venus, and only cared to find
+the highway to his new fortunes. From her he learned that he was the son
+of King Priam of Troy, and with her assistance he deserted the nymph
+Oenone, whom he had married, and went in search of his royal kindred.
+
+For it chanced at that time that Priam proclaimed a contest of strength
+between his sons and certain other princes, and promised as prize the most
+splendid bull that could be found among the herds of Mount Ida. Thither
+came the herdsmen to choose, and when they led away the pride of Paris's
+heart, he followed to Troy, thinking that he would try his fortune and
+perhaps win back his own.
+
+The games took place before Priam and Hecuba and all their children,
+including those noble princes Hector and Helenus, and the young Cassandra,
+their sister. This poor maiden had a sad story, in spite of her royalty;
+for, because she had once disdained Apollo, she was fated to foresee all
+things, and ever to have her prophecies disbelieved. On this fateful day,
+she alone was oppressed with strange forebodings.
+
+But if he who was to be the ruin of his country had returned, he had come
+victoriously. Paris won the contest. At the very moment of his honor, poor
+Cassandra saw him with her prophetic eyes; and seeing as well all the
+guilt and misery that he was to bring upon them, she broke into bitter
+lamentations, and would have warned her kindred against the evil to come.
+But the Trojans gave little heed; they were wont to look upon her visions
+as spells of madness. Paris had come back to them a glorious youth and a
+victor; and when he made known the secret of his birth, they cast the
+words of the oracle to the winds, and received the shepherd as a long-lost
+prince.
+
+Thus far all went happily. But Venus, whose promise had not yet been
+fulfilled, bade Paris procure a ship and go in search of his destined
+bride. The prince said nothing of this quest, but urged his kindred to let
+him go; and giving out a rumor that he was to find his father's lost
+sister Hesione, he set sail for Greece, and finally landed at Sparta.
+
+There he was kindly received by Menelaus, the king, and his wife, Fair
+Helen.
+
+This queen had been reared as the daughter of Tyndarus and Queen Leda, but
+some say that she was the child of an enchanted swan, and there was indeed
+a strange spell about her. All the greatest heroes of Greece had wooed her
+before she left her father's palace to be the wife of King Menelaus, and
+Tyndarus, fearing for her peace, had bound her many suitors by an oath.
+According to this pledge, they were to respect her choice, and to go to
+the aid of her husband if ever she should be stolen away from him. For in
+all Greece there was nothing so beautiful as the beauty of Helen. She was
+the fairest woman in the world.
+
+Now thus did Venus fulfill her promise and the shepherd win his reward
+with dishonor. Paris dwelt at the court of Menelaus for a long time,
+treated with a royal courtesy which he ill repaid. For at length, while
+the king was absent on a journey to Crete, his guest won the heart of Fair
+Helen, and persuaded her to forsake her husband and sail away to Troy, or
+Ilium.
+
+King Menelaus returned to find the nest empty of the swan. Paris and the
+fairest woman in the world were well across the sea.
+
+When this treachery came to light, all Greece took fire with indignation.
+The heroes remembered their pledge, and wrath came upon them at the wrong
+done to Menelaus. But they were less angered with Fair Helen than with
+Paris, for they felt assured that the queen had been lured from her
+country and out of her own senses by some spell of enchantment. So they
+took counsel how they might bring back Fair Helen to her home and husband.
+
+Years had come and gone since that wedding-feast when Eris had flung the
+apple of discord, like a firebrand, among the guests. But the spark of
+dissension that had smouldered so long burst into flame now, and, fanned
+by the enmities of men and the rivalries of the Gods, it seemed like to
+fire heaven and earth.
+
+A few of the heroes answered the call to arms unwillingly. Time had
+reconciled them to the loss of Fair Helen, and they were loath to leave
+home and happiness for war, even in her cause.
+
+One of these was Odysseus, or Ulysses, king of Ithaca, who had married
+Penelope, and was quite content with his kingdom and his little son
+Telemachus. Indeed, he was so unwilling to leave them that he feigned
+madness in order to escape service, appeared to forget his own kindred,
+and went ploughing the seashore and sowing salt in the furrows. But a
+messenger, Palamedes, who came with the summons to war, suspected that
+this sudden madness might be a stratagem, for the king was far famed as a
+man of many devices. He therefore stood by, one day (while Ulysses,
+pretending to take no heed of him, went ploughing the sand) and he laid
+the baby Telemachus directly in the way of the ploughshare. For once the
+wise man's craft deserted him. Ulysses turned the plough sharply, caught
+up the little prince, and there his fatherly wits were manifest! After
+this he could no longer play madman. He had to take leave of his beloved
+wife Penelope and set out to join the heroes, little dreaming that he was
+not to return for twenty years. Once embarked, however, he set himself to
+work in the common cause of the heroes, and was soon as ingenious as
+Palamedes in rousing laggard warriors.
+
+There remained one who was destined to be the greatest warrior of all.
+This was Achilles, the son of Thetis,--foretold in the day of Prometheus
+as a man who should far outstrip his own father in glory and greatness.
+Years had passed since the marriage of Thetis to King Peleus, and their
+son Achilles was now grown to manhood, a wonder of strength indeed, and,
+moreover, invulnerable. For his mother, forewarned of his death in the
+Trojan War, had dipped him in the sacred river Styx when he was a baby, so
+that he could take no hurt from any weapon. From head to foot she had
+plunged him in, only forgetting the little heel that she held him by, and
+this alone could be wounded by any chance. But even with such precautions
+Thetis was not content. Fearful at the rumors of war to be, she had her
+son brought up, in woman's dress, among the daughters of King Lycomedes of
+Scyros, that he might escape the notice of men and cheat his destiny.
+
+To this very palace, however, came Ulysses in the guise of a merchant, and
+he spread his wares before the royal household,--jewels and ivory, fine
+fabrics, and curiously wrought weapons. The king's daughters chose girdles
+and veils and such things as women delight in; but Achilles, heedless of
+the like, sought out the weapons, and handled them with such manly
+pleasure that his nature stood revealed. So he, too, yielded to his
+destiny and set out to join the heroes.
+
+Everywhere men were banded together, building the ships and gathering
+supplies. The allied forces of Greece (the Achaians, as they called
+themselves) chose Agamemnon for their commander-in-chief. He was a mighty
+man, king of Mycenæ and Argos, and the brother of the wronged Menelaus.
+Second to Achilles in strength was the giant Ajax; after him Diomedes,
+then wise Ulysses, and Nestor, held in great reverence because of his
+experienced age and fame. These were the chief heroes. After two years of
+busy preparation, they reached the port of Aulis, whence they were to sail
+for Troy.
+
+But here delay held them. Agamemnon had chanced to kill a stag which was
+sacred to Diana, and the army was visited by pestilence, while a great
+calm kept the ships imprisoned. At length the oracle made known the reason
+of this misfortune and demanded for atonement the maiden Iphigenia,
+Agamemnon's own daughter. In helpless grief the king consented to offer
+her up as a victim, and the maiden was brought, ready for sacrifice. But
+at the last moment Diana caught her away in a cloud, leaving a white hind
+in her place, and carried her to Tauris in Scythia, there to serve as a
+priestess in the temple. In the mean time, her kinsfolk, who were at a
+loss to understand how she had disappeared, mourned her as dead. But Diana
+had accepted their child as an offering, and healing came to the army, and
+the winds blew again. So the ships set sail.
+
+Meanwhile, in Troy across the sea, the aged Priam and Hecuba gave shelter
+to their son Paris and his stolen bride. They were not without misgivings
+as to these guests, but they made ready to defend their kindred and the
+citadel.
+
+There were many heroes among the Trojans and their allies, brave and
+upright men, who little deserved that such reproach should be brought upon
+them by the guilt of Prince Paris. There were Æneas and Deïphobus, Glaucus
+and Sarpedon, and Priam's most noble son Hector, chief of all the forces,
+and the very bulwark of Troy. These and many more were bitterly to regret
+the day that had brought Paris back to his home. But he had taken refuge
+with his own people, and the Trojans had to take up his cause against the
+hostile fleet that was coming across the sea.
+
+Even the Gods took sides. Juno and Athene, who had never forgiven the
+judgment of Paris, condemned all Troy with him and favored the Greeks, as
+did also Neptune, god of the sea. But Venus, true to her favorite,
+furthered the interests of the Trojans with all her power, and persuaded
+the warlike Mars to do likewise. Zeus and Apollo strove to be impartial,
+but they were yet to aid now one side, now another, according to the
+fortunes of the heroes whom they loved.
+
+Over the sea came the great embassy of ships, sped hither safely by the
+god Neptune; and the heroes made their camp on the plain before Troy.
+First of all Ulysses and King Menelaus himself went into the city and
+demanded that Fair Helen should be given back to her rightful husband.
+This the Trojans refused, and so began the siege of Troy.
+
+
+
+
+THE QUARREL BETWEEN AGAMEMNON AND ACHILLES
+
+By Alfred J. Church
+
+
+The Greeks sacked the city of Chryse, where was a temple of Apollo, and a
+priest that served the temple. And when they divided the spoil, they gave
+to King Agamemnon with other gifts, the priest's daughter, Chryseïs.
+Thereupon there came to the camp Chryses, the priest, wishing to ransom
+his daughter. Much gold he brought with him, and on his staff of gold he
+carried the holy garland, that men might reverence him the more. He went
+to all the chiefs, and to the sons of Atreus first of all, saying,--
+"Loose, I pray you, my dear daughter, and take the ransom for her; so may
+the gods that dwell in Olympus grant you to take the city of Troy, and to
+have safe return to your homes."
+
+Then all the others spake him fair, and would have done what he wished.
+Only Agamemnon would not have it so.
+
+"Get thee out, graybeard!" he cried in great wrath. "Let me not find thee
+lingering now by the ships, neither coming hither again, or it shall be
+the worse for thee, for all thy priesthood. And as for thy daughter, I
+shall carry her away to Argos, when I shall have taken this city of Troy."
+
+Then the old man went out hastily in great fear and trouble. And he walked
+in his sorrow by the shore of the sounding sea, and prayed to his god
+Apollo.
+
+"Hear me, god of the silver bow! If I have built thee a temple, and
+offered thee fat of many bullocks and rams, hear me, and avenge my tears
+on the Greeks with thine arrows!"
+
+And Apollo heard him. Wroth was he that men had so dishonored his priest,
+and he came down from the top of Olympus, where he dwelt. Dreadful was the
+rattle of his arrows as he went, and his coming was as the night when it
+cometh over the sky. Then he shot the arrows of death, first on the dogs
+and the mules, and then on the men; and soon all along the shore rolled
+the black smoke from the piles of wood on which they burnt the bodies of
+the dead.
+
+For nine days the shafts of the god went throughout the host; but on the
+tenth day Achilles called the people to an assembly. So Juno bade him, for
+she loved the Greeks, and grieved to see them die. When they were gathered
+together he stood up among them, and spake to Agamemnon:--
+
+"Surely it were better to return home, than that we should all perish here
+by war or plague. But come, let us ask some prophet or priest or dreamer
+of dreams why it is that Apollo is so wroth with us."
+
+Then stood up Calchas, best of seers, who knew what had been, and what
+was, and what was to come, and spake:--
+
+"Achilles, thou biddest me tell the people why Apollo is wroth with them.
+Lo! I will tell thee, but thou must first swear to stand by me, for I know
+that what I shall say will anger King Agamemnon, and it goes ill with
+common men when kings are angry."
+
+"Speak out, thou wise man!" cried Achilles; "for I swear by Apollo that
+while I live no one shall lay hands on thee, no, not Agamemnon's self,
+though he be sovereign lord of the Greeks."
+
+Then the blameless seer took heart, and spake: "It is not for vow or
+offering that Apollo is wroth; it is for his servant the priest, for he
+came to ransom his daughter, but Agamemnon scorned him, and would not let
+the maiden go. Now, then, ye must send her back to Chryse without ransom,
+and with her a hundred beasts for sacrifice, so that the plague may be
+stayed."
+
+Then Agamemnon stood up in a fury, his eyes blazing like fire.
+
+"Never," he cried, "hast thou spoken good concerning me, ill prophet that
+thou art, and now thou tellest me to give up this maiden! I will do it,
+for I would not that the people should perish. Only take care, ye Greeks,
+that there be a share of the spoil for me, for it would ill beseem the
+lord of all the host that he alone should be without his share."
+
+"Nay, my lord Agamemnon," cried Achilles, "thou art too eager for gain. We
+have no treasures out of which we may make up thy loss, for what we got
+out of the towns we have either sold or divided; nor would it be fitting
+that the people should give back what has been given to them. Give up the
+maiden, then, without conditions, and when we shall have taken this city
+of Troy, we will repay thee three and four fold."
+
+"Nay, great Achilles," said Agamemnon, "thou shalt not cheat me thus. If
+the Greeks will give me such a share as I should have, well and good. But
+if not, I will take one for myself, whether it be from thee or from Ajax
+or from Ulysses; for my share I will have. But of this hereafter. Now let
+us see that this maiden be sent back. Let them get ready a ship, and put
+her herein, and with her a hundred victims, and let some chief go with the
+ship, and see that all things be rightly done."
+
+Then cried Achilles, and his face was as black as a thunder-storm: "Surely
+thou art altogether shameless and greedy, and, in truth, an ill ruler of
+men. No quarrel have I with the Trojans. They never harried oxen or sheep
+of mine in fertile Phthia, for many murky mountains lie between, and a
+great breadth of roaring sea. But I have been fighting in thy cause, and
+that of thy brother Menelaus. Naught carest thou for that. Thou leavest me
+to fight, and sittest in thy tent at ease. But when the spoil is divided,
+thine is always the lion's share. Small, indeed, is my part,--'a little
+thing, but dear.' And this, forsooth, thou wilt take away! Now am I
+resolved to go home. I have no mind to heap up goods and gold for thee,
+and be myself dishonored."
+
+And King Agamemnon answered, "Go, and thy Myrmidons with thee! I have
+other chieftains as good as thou art, and ready, as thou art not, to pay
+me due respect; and Zeus, the god of council, is with me. I hate thee, for
+thou always lovest war and strife. And as for the matter of the spoil,
+know that I will take thy share, the girl Briseïs, and fetch her myself,
+if need be, that all may know that I am sovereign lord here in the host of
+the Greeks."
+
+Then Achilles was mad with anger, and he thought in his heart, "Shall I
+arise and slay this caitiff, or shall I keep down the wrath in my breast?"
+And as he thought he laid his hand on his sword-hilt, and had half-drawn
+his sword from the scabbard, when lo! the goddess Athene stood behind him
+(for Juno, who loved both this chieftain and that, had sent her), and
+caught him by the long locks of his yellow hair. But Achilles marveled
+much to feel the mighty grasp, and turned and looked, and knew the
+goddess, but no one else in the assembly might see her. Terrible was the
+flash of his eyes as he cried, "Art thou come, child of Zeus, to see the
+insolence of Agamemnon? Of a truth, I think that he will perish for his
+folly."
+
+But Athene said, "Nay, but I am come from heaven to abate thy wrath, if
+thou wilt hear me; white-armed Juno sent me, for she loveth and cherisheth
+you both alike. Draw not thy sword; but use bitter words, even as thou
+wilt. Of a truth, I tell thee that for this insolence of to-day he will
+bring thee hereafter splendid gifts, threefold and fourfold for all that
+he may take away. Only refrain thyself and do my bidding."
+
+Then Achilles answered, "I will abide by thy command for all my wrath, for
+the man who hearkens to the immortal gods is also heard of them." And as
+he spake he laid his heavy hand upon the hilt, and thrust back the sword
+into the scabbard, and Athene went her way to Olympus.
+
+Then he turned him to King Agamemnon, and spake again, for his anger was
+not spent. "Drunkard, with the eyes of a dog and the heart of a deer!
+never fighting in the front of the battle, nor daring to lie in the
+ambush! 'Tis a race of dastards that thou rulest, or this had been thy
+last wrong. But this I tell thee, and confirm my words with a mighty
+oath--by this sceptre do I swear. Once it was the branch of a tree, but
+now the sons of the Greeks bear it in their hands, even they who maintain
+the laws of Zeus; as surely as it shall never again have bark, or leaves,
+or shoot, so surely shall the Greeks one day miss Achilles, when they fall
+in heaps before the dreadful Hector; and thou shalt eat thy heart for
+rage, to think that thou hast wronged the bravest of thy host."
+
+And as he spake he dashed the sceptre, all embossed with studs of gold,
+upon the ground, and sat down. And on the other side Agamemnon sat in
+furious anger. Then Nestor rose, an old man of a hundred years and more,
+and counseled peace. Let them listen, he said, to his counsel. Great
+chiefs in the old days, with whom no man now alive would dare to fight,
+had listened. Let not Agamemnon take away from the bravest of the Greeks
+the prize of war; let not Achilles, though he was mightier in battle than
+all other men, contend with Agamemnon, who was sovereign lord of all the
+hosts of Greece. But he spake in vain. For Agamemnon answered,--
+
+"Nestor, thou speakest well, and peace is good. But this fellow would lord
+it over all; yet there are some, methinks, who will not obey him. For if
+the immortal Gods have made him a great warrior, do they therefore grant
+him leave to speak lawless words? Verily he must be taught that there is
+one here, at least, who is better than he."
+
+And Achilles said, "I were a slave and a coward if I owned thee as my
+lord. Not so; play the master over others, but think not to master me. As
+for the prize which the Greeks gave me, let them do as they will. They
+gave it; let them take it away. But if thou darest to touch aught that is
+mine own, that hour thy life-blood shall redden on my spear."
+
+Then the assembly was dismissed. Chryseïs was sent to her home with due
+offerings to the god, the wise Ulysses going with her. And all the people
+purified themselves, and offered offerings to the Gods; and the sweet
+savor went up to heaven in the wreathing smoke.
+
+But King Agamemnon would not go back from his purpose. So he called to him
+the heralds, Talthybius and Eurybates, and said,--
+
+"Heralds, go to the tents of Achilles, and fetch the maiden Briseïs. But
+if he will not let her go, say that I will come myself with many others to
+fetch her; so will it be the worse for him."
+
+Sorely against their will the heralds went. Along the seashore they
+walked, till they came to where, amidst the Myrmidons, were the tents of
+Achilles. There they found him, sitting between his tent and his ship. He
+did not rejoice to see them, and they stood in great terror and shame. But
+he knew in his heart wherefore they had come, and cried aloud, "Come near,
+ye heralds, messengers of Gods and men. 'Tis no fault of yours that ye are
+come on such an errand."
+
+Then he turned to Patroclus (now Patroclus was his dearest friend) and
+said,--
+
+"Bring the maiden from her tent, and let the heralds lead her away. But
+let them be witnesses, before gods and men, and before this evil-minded
+king, against the day when he shall have sore need of me to save his hosts
+from destruction. Fool that he is, who knoweth not to look back and to
+look forward, that his people may be safe!"
+
+Then Patroclus brought forth the maiden from her tent, and gave her to the
+heralds. And they led her away; but it was sorely against her will that
+she went. But Achilles went apart from his comrades, and sat upon the
+seashore, falling into a great passion of tears, and stretching out his
+hands with loud prayer to his mother, Thetis, daughter of the sea. She
+heard him where she sat in the depths by her father, the old god of the
+sea, and rose from the gray sea, as a vapor rises, and came to where he
+was weeping, and stroked him with her hand, and called him by his name.
+
+"What ails thee, my son?" she said.
+
+Then he told her the story of his wrong, and when he had ended he said,--
+
+"Go, I pray thee, to the top of Olympus, to the palace of Zeus. Often have
+I heard thee in my father's hall boast how, long ago, thou didst help him
+when the other gods would have bound him, fetching Briareus of the hundred
+hands, who sat by him in his strength, so that the Gods feared to touch
+him. Go now, and call these things to his mind, and pray him that he help
+the sons of Troy, and give them victory in the battle, so that the Greeks,
+as they flee before them, may have joy of this king of theirs, who has
+done such wrong to the bravest of his host."
+
+And his mother answered him, "Surely thine is an evil lot, my son. This
+life is short, and it should of right be without tears and full of joy;
+but now it seems to me to be both short and sad. But I will go as thou
+sayest to Olympus, to the palace of Zeus; but not now, for he has gone,
+and the other Gods with him, to a twelve days' feast with the pious
+Ethiopians. But when he cometh back I will entreat and persuade him. And
+do thou sit still, nor go forth to battle."
+
+Meanwhile Ulysses drew near to Chryse with the holy offerings. And when
+they were come within the haven, they furled the sail, and laid it in the
+ship, and lowered the mast, and rowed the ship to her moorings. They cast
+out the anchor stones, and made fast the cables from the stern. After that
+they landed, taking with them the offerings and the maid Chryseïs. To the
+altar they brought the maid, and gave her into the arms of her father, and
+the wise Ulysses said, "See now; Agamemnon, King of men, sends back thy
+daughter, and with her a hundred beasts for sacrifice, that we may appease
+the god who hath smitten the Greeks in his wrath."
+
+Then the priest received his daughter right gladly, and when they had
+ranged the beasts about the altar, and poured out the water of
+purification, and taken up handfuls of bruised barley, then the priest
+prayed, "Hear me, God of the silver bow! If before thou didst hearken to
+my prayer, and grievously afflict the Greeks, so hear me now, and stay
+this plague which is come upon them."
+
+So prayed he, and the god gave ear.
+
+Then they cast the barley on the heads of the cattle, and slew them, and
+flayed them, and they cut out the thigh-bones and wrapped them up in folds
+of fat, and laid raw morsels on them. These the priest burned on fagots,
+pouring on sparkling wine; and the young men stood by, having the
+five-pronged forks in their hands. And when the thighs were consumed, then
+they cut up the rest, and broiled the pieces carefully on spits. This
+being done, they made their meal, nor did any one lack his share. And when
+the meal was ended, then they poured a little wine into the cups to serve
+for libations to the Gods. After that they sat till sunset, singing a hymn
+to the Archer God, and making merry; and he heard their voice and was
+pleased.
+
+When the sun went down, they slept beside the stern-cables; and when the
+dawn appeared, then they embarked, raising the mast and spreading the
+sail; and Apollo sent them a favoring wind, and the dark blue wave hissed
+about the stem of the ship as she went: so they came to the camp of the
+Greeks.
+
+But all the time Achilles sat in wrath beside his ships; he went not to
+the war, nor yet to the assembly, but sat fretting in his heart, because
+he longed for the cry of the battle.
+
+
+
+
+THE FIGHT BETWEEN PARIS AND MENELAUS
+
+By Walter C. Perry
+
+
+In obedience to the summons of their leaders, the great host of the
+Achaians assembled on the plain of the flowing river Scamander,
+innumerable as the leaves and flowers in the season of spring. And in the
+midst of them stood the great ruler, Agamemnon: his head and eyes like
+those of Loud-thundering Zeus; his waist like that of the Man-slaying
+Mars; and with a breast like that of Neptune, the Ruler of the Sea. As the
+mail-clad Argives marched on, and rushed across the plain, the earth
+groaned beneath them.
+
+Now Ægis-bearing Zeus sent his messenger, Iris, to the assembly of the
+Trojans, with the voice of Polites, son of Priam, their sentinel at
+Priam's gate, and spake thus to Hector: "This is no time for idle words,
+for stern war is already upon you. But to thee, O Hector, do I especially
+speak; and do thou obey my voice! As thou hast many allies, of diverse
+nations and tongues, let each chief marshal and command his own people,
+and lead them forth to war."
+
+And the glorious Hector knew the voice of the messenger, and hastened to
+obey. He straightway dissolved the assembly. The gates of Troy were then
+thrown open, and the Trojan host rushed forth, with a mighty din. The
+blameless Hector, with his glancing helmet, was foremost of all, and led
+the bravest and strongest of the men; Æneas, son of the goddess Aphrodite,
+or Venus, born amidst the peaks of Ida, led the Dardans; and of the other
+leaders of the allies, the most famous were Sarpedon, son of Zeus, and
+blameless Glaucus, who led the Lycians, from distant Lycia, by the
+swift-eddying Xanthus.
+
+And, as the countless hosts advanced, to meet each other in deadly
+conflict, the Trojans marched with noisy shouts, like the clamor of the
+cranes, when they fly to the streams of Oceanus, in the early morning,
+screaming, and bringing death and destruction to the Pigmy men; but the
+Achaieans came on in silence, breathing dauntless courage.
+
+But when they came near to each other, the goodly Paris went before the
+front rank of the Trojans, and brandished his spear, and challenged all
+the Argive chiefs to single combat. When the warlike Menelaus, whom Paris
+had so deeply wronged by carrying off his wife, the beautiful Helen, saw
+Paris there, he was glad, thinking that he should now punish the false
+traitor for his wickedness. So he leaped from his chariot, in his clanging
+armor, and advanced to meet the challenger. And Paris saw him; and pale
+fear got hold of him, like to a man who has trodden on a serpent, in a
+wooded valley among the mountains; and he shrank back among the lordly
+Trojans.
+
+His brother Hector saw him, and reproached him with scornful words. "Base
+deceiver of women, beautiful in appearance and favor, but coward at heart!
+would that thou hadst never been born, or that thou hadst died unwedded!
+Now thou seest what kind of man is he, whose lovely wife thou hast carried
+off by stealth. Of no avail will be thy sounding lyre, thy beauteous face
+and curling hair, or all the gifts of golden Venus, when thou liest
+groveling in the dust."
+
+And the goodly Paris answered him, "Hector, thou rightly chidest me, and
+not more than I deserve. _Thy_ heart is ever undaunted, and keen as the
+axe, which cutteth the strong oak, in the hands of a skillful shipwright.
+But reproach me not for the lovely gifts of golden Aphrodite; for no man
+can obtain them by wishing for them, for they are among the precious gifts
+of the blessed Gods. But if thou desirest that I should do battle with the
+valiant Menelaus, make the Trojans and the Achaians sit down; and set me
+and Menelaus in the midst, to fight for Helen and for all the treasures
+which were taken away with her. And whichever of us twain shall be the
+victor, let him bear away the woman and the treasure, and take them home."
+
+So spake he, and they all kept silence; but Menelaus of the loud war-cry
+stood forward amongst the Greeks and made harangue, "Hearken now to me,
+for my heart hath endured the greatest grief. Whosoever of us twain shall
+fall, there let him lie. But now bring a goodly sacrifice, a white ram and
+a black ewe, for the Earth and for the Sun; and another for
+Loud-thundering Zeus; and summon hither the great King Priam, that he may
+take the pledge; for his sons are reckless and faithless; young men's
+hearts are too frivolous and fickle, but an old man looketh to the future
+and the past."
+
+And Hector sent heralds to the city, to fetch two lambs, and to summon
+Priam; while Agamemnon sent Talthybius for a ram. Now Iris, in Troy, came
+to Helen, in the semblance of Laodice, Paris's sister, fairest of Priam's
+daughters, wife of Helicaon, the son of Antenor. She found Helen weaving a
+great purple web, on which she was embroidering the battles of the Argives
+and the Trojans. The swift-footed Iris came near her, and said, "Come
+hither, dear lady, come with me, to see the wondrous deeds of the
+horse-taming Trojans and the mail-clad Argives; for now the battle is
+suspended, while Paris, and Menelaus, dear to Mars, will fight alone with
+their spears, for _thee_; and thou wilt be the fair wife of the victor."
+So Iris spoke, and put into Helen's bosom a longing for her former
+husband, and for her darling daughter. Then Helen veiled her face, and
+went straightway to the Scæan Gate, letting fall a tear; and her two
+handmaidens, Æthre and Clymene, followed her.
+
+On the tower above the Scæan Gate, she found the Trojan elders. These, on
+account of their age, had ceased from war, but were still good orators,
+with voices like the grasshoppers which sit upon a tree, and send forth
+their lily-like voice; so sat the elders of the Trojans on the Tower. When
+those ancient sages saw the fair Helen coming to them, they were
+astounded, and whispered one to another, "No wonder that the Trojans and
+the Achaians have suffered so many things for such a glorious woman! But,
+fair as she is, let her sail away, and not stay here to trouble us and our
+children after us."
+
+But the aged King Priam addressed her kindly. "Dear Daughter! come hither,
+and see thy former husband and kinsmen! I do not blame _thee_, but the
+Gods, and especially Venus, by whom this sad war has been brought upon us.
+But tell me who is that huge Achaian warrior? Many are taller than he, but
+I have never seen a man so stately and royal." And the fair Helen, the
+daughter of Zeus, replied, "O venerable Father of my lord! would that
+death had been my lot, when I followed thy son to Troy, and left my home
+and husband, and my dear young daughter, and all the loved companions of
+my girlhood! But that was not to be, and therefore I mourn and weep. The
+man of whom thou speakest is Atreides, the wide-ruling monarch Agamemnon,
+who is both a stately king and a doughty warrior; he is the brother of
+Menelaus my husband--shameless thing that I am!"
+
+Then the aged Priam asked her about the other Achaian chiefs,--Ulysses,
+and the gigantic Ajax, the bulwark of the host, and the godlike Idomeneus;
+and the lovely Helen told him all, and said, "I see all the other
+bright-eyed Achaians, and could tell their names; but two I see not, even
+mine own brothers, horse-taming Castor and the boxer Pollux; peradventure
+they came not with the Achaians; or if they came, they fight not, for fear
+of the revilings which men heap on me--shameless that I am!" She knew not
+that the earth already covered them, in Lacedæmon, their dear native land.
+Now the aged Priam drove out through the Scæan Gate, with Antenor by his
+side; and, when he had come to the Achaians and the Trojans, he descended
+from his chariot, and stood on the Earth, the bounteous grain-giver. Then
+Agamemnon, the king of men, and Ulysses, the man of many devices, rose up;
+and the stately heralds brought the holy oath-offerings to the gods, and
+mixed the ruddy wine in the mixing-bowl, from which they gave portions to
+the Achaian and the Trojan chiefs. Agamemnon raised his hands to heaven
+and prayed, "O Father Zeus, most great and glorious! O Sun, who seest and
+hearest all things! O ye Rivers, and thou, Mother Earth! be ye all
+witnesses to our oaths! If Paris shall kill Menelaus, then let him keep
+Helen and all her possessions; but if the yellow-haired Menelaus slay
+Paris, then let the Trojans give back Helen and her treasures!"
+
+Then the lordly Agamemnon slew the lambs, and prayed again to Zeus. But
+Priam spake unto the Achaians and the Trojans. "I verily will return to
+breezy Ilium; for I cannot bear to see my own son engaged in deadly
+conflict with the war-loving Menelaus."
+
+Then the goodly Paris, lord of the fair-haired Helen, put on his beautiful
+armor. First he set the splendid greaves upon his legs, fastened round the
+ankles with silver clasps; then he donned the corslet, which he had
+borrowed from his brother Lycaon; and he threw over his shoulders the
+silver-studded sword-belt with his sword, and took up his mighty shield;
+and upon his beauteous head he placed the helmet, with a horsehair crest,
+and the plume nodded terribly; and he took a strong spear in his hand.
+
+Then he and Menelaus stood face to face, on the ground which Hector and
+Ulysses had meted out; and they brandished their spears, with wrath
+against each other. Paris drew the lot to be the first to cast his
+long-shafted spear; he threw it, and it struck the round shield of
+Atreides Menelaus, but did not pierce it; for the point of the spear was
+turned.
+
+Then Menelaus, poising his lance, prayed to Zeus, "O Father Zeus! grant me
+to take vengeance on goodly Paris, who did me such foul wrong--_me_, who
+had shown him so much kindness!" He said, and hurled his strong spear,
+which struck the bright shield of the son of Priam; and the sharp point
+passed through it, and through his breastplate, and rent the tunic, close
+to the side of his body; but Paris swerved from it, and shunned the black
+fate of death. Then Menelaus drew his sword from the silver-studded
+sheath, and smote on the helmet of Paris, but the sword was shattered, and
+fell in pieces from his hand. Then he looked up to heaven, and exclaimed,
+"O Father Zeus! thou art the most cruel of all the Gods!"
+
+So saying, he caught Paris by his horse-hair crest, and dragged him
+towards the well-greaved Achaians, and the embroidered strap of the helmet
+went nigh to strangle him. But Venus, daughter of great Zeus, who loved
+the beauteous Paris, drew near him, and tore the strap of leather; and the
+helmet came away, empty, in the strong hand of the son of Atreus. Full of
+wrath, he hurled it towards his trusty companions, and they took it up. He
+then rushed back again, to slay his enemy; but golden-haired Venus, being
+a goddess, easily caught up Paris, and hid him in thick darkness, and
+carried him into Troy, to his high and fragrant chamber.
+
+Venus, the golden Goddess of Love, then went to summon Helen, in the
+likeness of an old woman, a wool-comber, who had worked for Helen in
+Lacedæmon, and whom she greatly loved. She found the white-armed Helen on
+the high tower, and spake: "Come hither to Paris, who sends for thee; he
+is there in the fragrant chamber, shining in beauty--
+
+  "Not like a warrior parted from the foe,
+  But some fair dancer from the public show."
+          (Pope's Translation of the _Iliad_.)
+
+But Helen's heart was greatly moved; she knew the golden Venus, saw her
+fair neck and sparkling eyes, and called her by her name. "O thou strange
+Goddess! wouldst thou again deceive me? Now Menelaus hath conquered Paris,
+and will carry me home--accursed as I am! And now do _thou_ no more return
+to Olympus, but leave the dwelling of the Gods, and go and sit by Paris,
+till he make _thee_ his wife--or perchance, his slave. But _I_ will not go
+to him; for all the Trojan women would justly blame me hereafter; I have
+innumerable griefs within my heart."
+
+Then was the bright goddess sore displeased, and spake harshly to her.
+"Beware! thou foolish woman! lest in my wrath I leave thee, and henceforth
+hate thee, as I have loved thee until now!" Venus spake, and Helen,
+daughter of great Zeus, trembled and obeyed, wrapping her beautiful
+garments about her; and the goddess led her to the fragrant chamber in the
+palace, and set her on a chair before the goodly Paris.
+
+But Helen looked askance at her lord, and chode him with bitter words.
+"Would that thou hadst never come back from the fight, but hadst perished
+by the arm of the warrior who was once my husband! Thou didst boast
+thyself to be a better man than Menelaus! Go then, and challenge him
+again, to meet thee face to face once more!"
+
+Yet Helen, though she could not but despise Paris, soon became reconciled
+to him, partly from a remnant of her former love for him, and partly from
+her fear of Venus.
+
+In the meantime, Menelaus was raging through the field in search of him.
+Nor could any of the Trojans find him, or they would have given him up;
+for they hated him like death, as the cause of all their sufferings.
+
+And King Agamemnon said to the Trojans, "Now that the Mars-loving Menelaus
+hath conquered Paris do ye give back to us Helen and all her treasures!"
+But this was not to be.
+
+
+
+
+THE DUEL BETWEEN HECTOR AND AJAX
+
+By Walter C. Perry
+
+
+And now we must speak of Hector, the noble Trojan prince, who, after
+Achilles, was the most famous warrior of the two hostile armies. Achilles,
+indeed, was the son of a goddess, even silver-footed Thetis; while
+Hector's mother, Hecuba, was a mortal woman.
+
+Well knowing the dangers to which he was exposed, and how soon he might
+fall in battle, Hector now bethought him of his lovely wife, Andromache,
+and his little boy Astyanax. When he came to the Scæan Gate, the Trojan
+women came running to him, with eager questions about their husbands,
+sons, and brothers; and sorrow filled their hearts. Among them came his
+fond and generous mother, Hecuba, leading by the hand the fairest of her
+daughters, Laodice, and she called him by his name, and spoke: "Dear Son!
+why hast thou left the field? Do the Achaians press thee hard? Dost thou
+come to make prayers to Father Zeus, from the Citadel? But come, I will
+bring thee honey-sweet wine, that thou mayest pour out a libation to
+Almighty Zeus, the Son of Cronos, and refresh thyself with a draught."
+
+But Hector answered her, "Bring me no luscious wine, dear mother! lest
+thou rob me of my strength and courage. Nor dare I make a libation to
+Zeus, with hands unwashen and soiled with blood. But go thou to the Temple
+of Athene, driver of the spoil; and lay the finest robe, the most precious
+to thyself, upon her knees; and vow to sacrifice twelve fat kine to her;
+and beg her to have mercy on the Trojans, and on their wives and little
+children! So, perhaps, she will hold back the terrible warrior, Tydides,
+from sacred Ilium. And I will go and seek out Paris; would that the earth
+would swallow him up! for Zeus hath cherished him to be the bane of his
+country, and of his father Priam."
+
+Then Hecuba went to her ambrosial chamber, and took the finest of her
+embroidered robes, the work of Sidonian women, which shone like a star;
+and went, with other aged women, to the temple of Athene. And the
+fair-cheeked Theano, daughter of Kisseus, the priestess, wife of Antenor,
+opened the temple gates, and took the shining robe, and laid it upon
+Athene's knees, and prayed to the great daughter of Zeus. But the goddess
+did not grant her prayer.
+
+But Hector went his way to the fair palace of Paris, and found him in his
+chamber, polishing his beautiful armor, and proving his curved bow. Then,
+when Hector saw him, he reproached him with bitter words. "O thou strange
+man! thou dost not well to nurse thy spite against the Trojans, who are
+now perishing before the city, and all for thy sake! Rise, then, now, lest
+the city be burned with fire!"
+
+And the goodly Paris answered, "It is not so much by reason of my wrath
+against the Trojans, but I would fain indulge my sorrow. My wife, too,
+hath urged me to the battle. Tarry then awhile, and I will don my armor;
+or go thou before, and I will follow."
+
+Then the divine Helen, daughter of great Zeus, came and spoke gently to
+Hector, and said, "O brother! brother of vile _me_, who am a dog--would
+that, when my mother bare me, the storm-wind had snatched me away to a
+mountain, or a billow of the loud-roaring sea had swept me away, before
+all these evil things had befallen me! Would that I had been mated with a
+better man than Paris, whose heart is not sound, and never will be. But
+come, my brother, and sit by me; for thou verily hast suffered most for
+me, who am a dog, and for the grievous sin of Paris, upon whom, surely,
+Zeus is bringing evil days; he will be, hereafter, a song of scorn in the
+mouths of future men, through all time to come."
+
+But noble Hector answered her, "If thou lovest me, dear Helen, bid me not
+stay; for I go to succor my friends, who long for me in my absence. But do
+thou try and rouse this husband of thine, and bid him overtake me. As for
+me, I shall first go to my home, and to my wife and my little son; for who
+knoweth whether I shall ever return to them again?"
+
+So spake the glorious Hector, and went his way to his own well-furnished
+house; but he found not Andromache there; for she had gone to the tower,
+with her fair-robed nurse and with her boy, all bathed in tears. Hector
+asked the servants whither the white-armed Andromache was gone; and the
+busy matron of the house replied, "She is gone to the tower of holy Troy;
+for she heard that the Trojans were defeated, and the Achaians
+victorious." Then Hector returned, by the same way, down the wide streets,
+and came to the Scæan Gate.
+
+And his peerless wife, even Andromache, daughter of the high-minded
+Eëtion, king of Cilicia--she whom he had won by countless gifts--came
+running to meet him. And with her came the handmaid, the nurse, bearing in
+her arms Hector's tender boy, Astyanax, beautiful as the morning star. And
+Hector smiled, and looked on his darling boy, while Andromache stood
+beside him weeping. And she clasped his hand, and called him by his name.
+"O my dear lord, thy dauntless courage will destroy thee! Hast thou no
+pity for thy infant child, and for thy hapless wife, who soon will be a
+widow? It were far better for me to die, if I lose _thee_; for nevermore
+can I know comfort, but only pain and sorrow. For I shall be utterly
+alone. I have neither father nor mother; for Eëtion, my royal sire, was
+slain by great Achilles. And all my seven brothers went down to Hades on
+the selfsame day! they too were slain by swift-footed Pelides. But my
+mother was smitten in her father's halls, by the gentle arrows of the
+archer Artemis. Lo! now, _thou_ art all in all to me, father, mother,
+brother, and dearly loved husband! Come, then, take pity on us, and abide
+in the tower, and make not thy boy an orphan, and thy wife a widow!"
+
+And the glorious Hector of the glancing helm answered her, and said, "Dear
+Wife! I too think of all these things. But how can I shun the battle, like
+a coward, to be the mock of the Trojans, and of the Trojan dames with
+trailing robes? I, who have always fought in the van of battle, and won
+glory for my father and myself? I know that the day will come, when sacred
+Ilium shall be leveled with the ground, and Priam and the people of Priam
+shall perish. But it is not so much the fate of Priam, and of my mother,
+Hecuba, and of my brethren, which fills my soul with anguish; but it is
+_thy_ misery, dear one, in the day when some Achaian warrior shall bear
+thee away, weeping, and rob thee of thy freedom. Thou, alas! wilt abide in
+Argos, and ply the loom, the slave of another woman; or bear water from
+the Hypereian fount, being harshly treated! And one will say, as he
+looketh upon thee, 'This was the wife of Hector, the foremost of the
+horse-taming Trojans in the war round Ilium.' But may the deep earth cover
+_me_, ere I hear thee crying in the day of thy captivity."
+
+So spake he, and held out his arms to take his darling boy. But the child
+shrank crying, and nestled in the bosom of his well-girdled nurse; for he
+feared the horsehair crest, nodding terribly from the brazen helmet. Then
+the fond parents laughed; and Hector doffed his helmet, and laid it on the
+ground. And he kissed his dear child, and fondled him, and prayed thus to
+Zeus:--
+
+"O Zeus! and all ye Gods! grant that this, my son, may like me be foremost
+to fight among the Trojans, and rule as a king in Ilium; so that men may
+say, 'He is far better than his father'!"
+
+Thus speaking, he laid the child in the fragrant bosom of his dear wife
+Andromache; and he pitied her, and caressed her with his hand, and called
+her by her name. "Dear one! be not thus utterly cast down. No man can slay
+me till my hour of destiny is come. But no man, when once he hath been
+born, can escape his fate, be he a brave man or a coward. Go thou to thy
+house, to the distaff and the loom, and make thy maidens ply their labors.
+But _men_ shall engage in war, and I the first of all in Troy."
+
+So spake Hector of the glancing helmet, and went his way. And his dear
+wife went to her home, looking back at him as she went, shedding bitter
+tears. And she found her maidens there, and with them she bewailed her
+lord, while yet he lived; for they feared that he would never again return
+from battle.
+
+And the goodly Paris donned his beautiful armor, and hastened after his
+brother, whom he overtook, and he made excuse for his long tarrying. And
+Hector answered him, "No man can justly speak lightly of thy deeds, for
+thou art strong; but thou art slack and careless, and I am grieved when I
+hear shameful things said of thee by the Trojans, who for thee bear so
+much toil. But let us be going."
+
+So the twain brothers, the glorious Hector and the goodly Paris, went
+forth to the battle. And Paris slew Menesthius, of Arne, son of Areïthous;
+and Hector smote noble Eïoneus in the neck, and relaxed his limbs in
+death. And Glaucus, captain of the Lycian allies, cast his spear at
+Iphinous, and pierced his shoulder; and he fell from his chariot, and his
+limbs were loosened.
+
+But when the fierce-eyed Athene saw the Trojans making havoc of the
+Achaians, she rushed down from the peaks of Olympus, to sacred Ilium. And
+Apollo, who favored the Trojans, saw her from Pergamus, and hastened to
+meet her; and they met by the beech-tree, and Apollo of the Silver Bow
+addressed her: "Why dost thou come, O Daughter of the Loud-Thunderer? Is
+it to bring victory to the Greeks? for thou hast no pity on the Trojans.
+But hearken unto me, and let us stop the battle for this day--hereafter
+they shall fight again."
+
+And the fierce-eyed goddess answered him, "Be it so, Far-Darter! for this
+was my purpose when I came from high Olympus. But how thinkest thou to
+make the war to cease?"
+
+Then King Apollo spake. "Let us rouse the valiant spirit of horse-taming
+Hector, to challenge one of the Greeks to deadly single combat." And the
+fierce-eyed Maid assented to his words.
+
+And the dear son of royal Priam, Helenus, the wise augur, who knew the
+counsel of the Gods, drew near to Hector, and spake thus to him: "Dear
+brother, who art peer of Zeus in counsel, wouldst thou listen to me? Make
+the Trojans and the Achaians sit down; and do thou challenge the bravest
+of the Achaians to meet thee in single combat. I hear the voice of the
+deathless Gods, that it is not yet thy lot to die."
+
+And the great Hector rejoiced at his words; and going into the throng, he
+held back the companies of the Trojans with his spear, holding it in the
+middle, and made them all sit down. And Agamemnon made the well-greaved
+Achaians sit down. And Athene and Apollo, in the form of vultures, sat on
+a lofty tree, and watched the hosts. And Hector stood between the two
+armies, and spake: "Hear me, ye Trojans and Achaians! Amongst you are the
+great chiefs of the Achaians. Now let one of these be your champion, to
+fight with me, Hector: and I call Zeus to witness, that if he slay me, you
+shall let him carry off my armor, but give my body to the Trojans, that
+they may render to me the honor of the funeral pyre. But if the Far-Darter
+shall grant me glory, that I may slay _him_, then will I strip him of his
+armor, and hang it in the Temple of Apollo; but his lifeless body I will
+give back to the long-haired Achaians, that they may bury him, and build
+him a barrow by the Hellespont."
+
+Thus spake the glorious Hector; but all were silent; for they were afraid
+to meet him. Then, at last, Menelaus, groaning deeply, reproached the
+Achaians, and said, "O ye women of Achaia, no longer _men!_ surely this
+will be an everlasting shame to us, if none of the Greeks dare to fight
+with the noble Hector! But I myself will arm me; for the issues of victory
+are with the Gods."
+
+And he began to put on his dazzling armor. And now wouldst thou, Menelaus,
+have yielded up thy life at the hands of Hector; but the great ruler,
+Agamemnon, rose up and stayed thee. "Art thou mad, O foster-son of Zeus?
+Draw back, though with grief and pain; and think not to fight with Hector,
+the man-slaying son of Priam; for he is a far better man than thou, even
+godlike Achilles feareth to meet this man in battle. Go then and sit down;
+and we will choose another champion."
+
+And the fair-haired Menelaus obeyed his brother's words, and his henchmen
+gladly took off his bright armor. And the wise Nestor arose, and upbraided
+all the Achaian chiefs: "Fie on us! Shame and lamentation have come upon
+us all. Surely the aged Peleus, the goodly king of the Myrmidons, would
+deeply groan, if he heard that we are all cowering before great Hector; he
+would pray that his soul might leave his body and go down to Hades. Would
+to Zeus, and to Athene and Apollo, that I were young, as when the Pylians
+met the Arcadians in battle, and Ereuthalion, the squire of King Lycurgus
+of Arcadia, wearing the divine armor of Areïthous, of the iron mace,
+before the walls of Pheia, by the waters of Iardanus, challenged all our
+host; and they were afraid and trembled. Then I, the youngest of all,
+stood up and fought with him, and Athene gave me great glory; for he was
+the tallest man, and of the greatest bulk, that I have ever slain. Would
+that I were still so young and strong! But of you, leaders of the
+Achaians, not one has heart enough to meet great Hector."
+
+The wise old man's reproaches filled the Achaian chiefs with shame; and
+nine of them rose up, ready to fight; namely, Agamemnon, king of men; and
+the stalwart Diomedes; and Idomeneus, and his brother in arms, Meriones,
+equal in fight to murderous Mars; and Eurypylus, and Thaus, and the wily
+Ulysses, and two others. Then Nestor spake again. "Now cast lots for him
+that shall be champion." Then each man marked his lot, and threw it into
+Agamemnon's helmet; and all men prayed that the lot might fall on Ajax or
+Diomedes, or the king of rich Mycenæ. Then Nestor shook the helmet, and
+the lot of Ajax leapt out; and the herald placed it in the hand of mighty
+Ajax, and he was glad; for he said, "I think that I shall vanquish goodly
+Hector." And they all prayed to the Son of Cronos, to give victory to
+Ajax, or to grant unto each of them equal glory and renown.
+
+Then huge Ajax donned his bright armor of bronze, and came forth like the
+war-god Mars when he goeth to battle. The Achaians were glad, but the
+Trojans trembled; and even the brave Hector felt his heart beat quicker in
+his breast. But he would not shrink from the combat, seeing that he had
+himself challenged all the Achaians. And Ajax came on, bearing a mighty
+shield, like a tower, which Tychius, the cunning leather-worker, had made
+for him, of sevenfold hides of lusty bulls, all overlaid with bronze. And
+he stood near godlike Hector, and spake: "Now shalt thou see what manner
+of men the Greeks have among them, even now when Achilles, the
+lion-hearted, hath left us in his wrath. But do thou begin the fight!"
+
+And Hector answered him, "Great Ajax, son of Telamon, sprung from Zeus!
+speak not to me as if I were a poor weak boy, or a woman! for I too have
+knowledge of war and slaughter. I know how to charge into the midst of the
+chariots, or, at close quarters, to join in the wild dance of Mars." He
+said, and hurled his long-shafted spear, and struck the sevenfold shield
+of Ajax; it passed through six folds, but was stopped by the seventh.
+
+Then Ajax, sprung from Zeus, threw his ponderous lance at the shield of
+mighty Priam's son. It passed right through the bright shield, and through
+the well-wrought corselet, and rent his tunic; but he swerved aside, and
+escaped gloomy death. Then the two fell upon each other, like ravening
+lions or wild boars; and Hector smote the shield of Ajax with his spear,
+but the sharp point was turned by the stout buckler. Then Ajax leapt upon
+him, and drove his spear at Hector's neck, making a wound from which the
+dark blood flowed.
+
+But Hector, undismayed, took up a great stone from the ground, and with it
+smote the boss of Ajax's shield. And Ajax heaved up a far bigger stone and
+threw it on the buckler of Hector, and it fell on him like a huge
+millstone, and stretched him on his back! But Apollo raised him, and set
+him on his legs again.
+
+Then they would have furiously attacked each other with their swords, had
+not the Achaian herald, Talthybius, and the Trojan herald, Idaius,
+intervened and stopped the fight, holding their staves of office between
+the godlike warriors; and Idaius spake to them: "Fight no longer, brave
+youths; for Zeus loveth you both; and we know well what gallant warriors
+ye are. Night is upon us, whose commands it behooveth us to obey."
+
+And the Telamonian Ajax answered, "Let Hector say those words; for it was
+he who challenged us."
+
+And Hector of the shining helmet said, "Ajax, since thou hast received
+strength and wisdom from the Gods, and dost excel all the Achaians in the
+fight, let us now cease from battle for the day, and hereafter we will
+fight again, until the Gods shall give victory to one of us. Go now, and
+rejoice thy friends and kinsmen by the ships, and I will gladden the
+hearts of Trojan men and long-robed dames in the holy city of King Priam.
+But now let us exchange costly gifts, that Trojans and Achaians may say of
+us that we, having met in this heart-gnawing strife, have parted like good
+friends." He spake, and gave to Ajax a silver-studded sword; and Ajax gave
+him a purple belt. So they parted, and went their way; the one to the
+ships of the Achaians, and the other to the holy city of Troy. And the
+Trojans rejoiced that Hector had escaped unhurt from the unapproachable
+hands of mighty Ajax.
+
+
+
+
+THE DEATH OF PATROCLUS AND THE BATTLE OF THE RIVER
+
+By Alfred J. Church
+
+
+Patroclus came and stood by the side of Achilles weeping. Then said
+Achilles, "What ails thee, Patroclus, that thou weepest like a girl-child
+that runs along by her mother's side, and would be taken up, holding her
+gown, and looking at her with tearful eyes till she lift her in her arms?
+Hast thou heard evil news from Phthia? Menoetius yet lives, they say, and
+Peleus. Or art thou weeping for the Greeks, because they perish for their
+folly?"
+
+Then said Patroclus, "Be not wroth with me, great Achilles, for indeed the
+Greeks are in grievous straits, and all their bravest are wounded, and
+still thou cherishest thy wrath. Surely Peleus was not thy father, nor
+Thetis thy mother; but the rocks begat thee, and the sea brought thee
+forth. Or if thou goest not to battle, fearing some warning from the Gods,
+yet let me go, and thy Myrmidons with me. And let me put thy armor on me;
+so shall the Greeks have breathing-space from the war."
+
+So he spake, entreating, nor knew that for his own doom he entreated. And
+Achilles made reply,--
+
+"It is no warning that I heed, that I keep back from the war. But these
+men took from me my prize, which I won with my own hands. But let the past
+be past. I said I would not rise up till the battle should come nigh to my
+own ships. But thou mayest put my armor upon thee, and lead my Myrmidons
+to the fight. For in truth the men of Troy are gathered as a dark cloud
+about the ships, and the Greeks have scarce standing-ground between them
+and the sea. For they see not the gleam of my helmet. And Diomed is not
+there with his spear; nor do I hear the voice of Agamemnon, but only the
+voice of Hector as he calls the men of Troy to the battle. Go, therefore,
+Patroclus, and drive the fire from the ships. And then come thou back, nor
+fight any more with the Trojans, lest thou take my glory from me. And go
+not near, in the delight of the battle, to the walls of Troy, lest one of
+the Gods meet thee to thy hurt; and, of a truth, the keen Archer Apollo
+loves the Trojans well."
+
+But as they talked the one to the other, Ajax could hold out no longer.
+For swords and javelins came thick upon him, and clattered on his helmet,
+and his shoulder was weary with the great shield which he held; and he
+breathed heavily and hard, and the great drops of sweat fell upon the
+ground. Then at the last Hector came near and smote his spear with a great
+sword, so that the head fell off. Then was Ajax sore afraid, and gave way,
+and the men of Troy set torches to the ship's stem, and a great flame shot
+up to the sky. And Achilles saw it, and smote his thigh and spake:--
+
+"Haste thee, Patroclus, for I see the fire rising up from the ships. Put
+thou on the armor, and I will call my people to the war." So Patroclus put
+on the armor--corselet, and shield, and helmet--and bound upon his
+shoulder the silver-studded sword, and took a mighty spear in his hand.
+But the great Pelian spear he took not, for that no man but Achilles might
+wield. Then Automedon yoked the horses to the chariot, Bayard and Piebald,
+and with them in the side harness, Pedasus; and they two were deathless
+steeds, but he was mortal.
+
+Meanwhile Achilles had called the Myrmidons to battle. Fifty ships had he
+brought to Troy, and in each there were fifty men. Five leaders they had,
+and the bravest of the five was Pisander.
+
+Then Achilles said, "Forget not, ye Myrmidons, the bold words that ye
+spake against the men of Troy during the days of my wrath, making
+complaint that I kept you from the battle against your will. Now,
+therefore, ye have that which you desired."
+
+So the Myrmidons went to the battle in close array, helmet to helmet, and
+shield to shield, close as the stones with which a builder builds a wall.
+And in front went Patroclus, and Automedon in the chariot beside him. Then
+Achilles went to his tent and took a great cup from the chest, which
+Thetis his mother had given him. Now no man drank of that cup but he only,
+nor did he pour out of it libations to any of the Gods, but only to Zeus.
+This first he cleansed with sulphur, and then with water from the spring.
+And after this he washed his hands, and stood in the midst of the space
+before his tent, and poured out of it to Zeus, saying, "O Zeus, I send my
+comrade to this battle; make him strong and bold, and give him glory, and
+bring him home safe to the ships, and my people with him."
+
+So he prayed, and Father Zeus heard him, and part he granted and part
+denied.
+
+But now Patroclus with the Myrmidons had come to where the battle was
+raging about the ship of Protesilaus, and when the men of Troy beheld him
+they thought that Achilles had forgotten his wrath and was come forth to
+the war. And first Patroclus slew Pyræchmes, who was the chief of the
+Pæonians who live on the banks of the broad Axius. Then the men of Troy
+turned to flee, and many chiefs of fame fell by the spears of the Greeks.
+So the battle rolled back to the trench, and in the trench many chariots
+of the Trojans were broken, but the horses of Achilles went across it at a
+stride, so nimble were they and strong. And the heart of Patroclus was set
+to slay Hector; but he could not overtake him, so swift were his horses.
+Then did Patroclus turn his chariot, and keep back those that fled, that
+they should not go to the city, and rushed hither and thither, still
+slaying as he went.
+
+But Sarpedon, when he saw the Lycians dismayed and scattered, called to
+them that they should be of good courage, saying that he would himself
+make trial of this great warrior. So he leapt down from his chariot, and
+Patroclus also leapt down, and they rushed at each other as two eagles
+rush together. Then first Patroclus struck down Thrasymelus, who was the
+comrade of Sarpedon; and Sarpedon, who had a spear in either hand, with
+the one struck the horse Pedasus, which was of mortal breed, on the right
+shoulder, and with the other missed his aim, sending it over the left
+shoulder of Patroclus. But Patroclus missed not his aim, driving his spear
+into Sarpedon's heart. Then fell the great Lycian chief, as an oak, or a
+poplar, or a pine falls upon the hills before the axe. But he called to
+Glaucus, his companion, saying, "Now must thou show thyself a good
+warrior, Glaucus. First call the men of Lycia to fight for me, and do thou
+fight thyself, for it would be foul shame to thee, all thy days, if the
+Greeks should spoil me of my arms."
+
+Then he died. But Glaucus was sore troubled, for he could not help him, so
+grievous was the wound where Teucer had wounded him. Therefore he prayed
+to Apollo, and Apollo helped him and made him whole. Then he went first to
+the Lycians, bidding them fight for their king, and then to the chiefs of
+the Trojans, that they should save the body of Sarpedon. And to Hector he
+said, "Little carest thou for thy allies. Lo! Sarpedon is dead, slain by
+Patroclus. Suffer not the Myrmidons to carry him off and do dishonor to
+his body."
+
+But Hector was troubled to hear such news, and so were all the sons of
+Troy, for Sarpedon was the bravest of the allies, and led most people to
+the battle. So with a great shout they charged, and drove the Greeks back
+a space from the body; and then again the Greeks did the like. And so the
+battle raged, till no one would have known the great Sarpedon, so covered
+was he with spears and blood and dust. But at the last the Greeks drave
+back the men of Troy from the body, and stripped the arms, but the body
+itself they harmed not. For Apollo came down at the bidding of Zeus, and
+carried it out of the midst of the battle, and washed it with water, and
+anointed it with ambrosia, and wrapped it in garments of the Gods. And
+then he gave it to Sleep and Death, and these two carried it to Lycia, his
+fatherland.
+
+Then did Patroclus forget the word which Achilles had spoken to him, that
+he should not go near to Troy, for he pursued the men of the city even to
+the wall. Thrice he mounted on the angle of the wall, and thrice Apollo
+himself drove him back, pushing his shining shield. But the fourth time
+the god said, "Go thou back, Patroclus. It is not for thee to take the
+city of Troy; no, nor for Achilles, who is far better than thou art."
+
+So Patroclus went back, fearing the wrath of the archer god. Then Apollo
+stirred up the spirit of Hector, that he should go against Patroclus.
+Therefore he went, with his brother Cebriones for driver of his chariot.
+But when they came near, Patroclus cast a great stone which he had in his
+hand, and smote Cebriones on the forehead, crushing it in, so that he fell
+headlong from the chariot. And Patroclus mocked him, saying,--
+
+"How nimble is this man! how lightly he dives! What spoil he would take of
+oysters, diving from a ship, even in a stormy sea! Who would have thought
+that there were such skillful divers in Troy!"
+
+Then again the battle waxed hot about the body of Cebriones, and this too,
+at the last, the Greeks drew unto themselves, and spoiled it of the arms.
+And this being accomplished, Patroclus rushed against the men of Troy.
+Thrice he rushed, and each time he slew nine chiefs of fame. But the
+fourth time Apollo stood behind him and struck him on the head and
+shoulders, so that his eyes were darkened. And the helmet fell from off
+his head, so that the horse-hair plumes were soiled with dust. Never
+before had it touched the ground, for it was the helmet of Achilles. And
+also the god brake the spear in his hand, and struck the shield from his
+arms, and loosed his corselet. All amazed he stood, and then Euphorbus,
+son of Panthous, smote him on the back with his spear, but slew him not.
+Then Patroclus sought to flee to the ranks of his comrades. But Hector saw
+him, and thrust at him with his spear, smiting him in the groin, so that
+he fell. And when the Greeks saw him fall, they sent up a terrible cry.
+Then Hector stood over him and cried,--
+
+"Didst thou think to spoil our city, Patroclus, and to carry away our
+wives and daughters in the ships? But lo! I have slain thee, and the fowls
+of the air shall eat thy flesh; nor shall the great Achilles help thee at
+all,--Achilles, who bade thee, I trow, strip the tunic from my breast, and
+thou thoughtest in thy folly to do it."
+
+But Patroclus answered, "Thou boasteth much, Hector. Yet _thou_ didst not
+slay me, but Apollo, who took from me my arms, for had twenty such as thou
+met me, I had slain them all. And mark thou this: death and fate are close
+to thee by the hand of the great Achilles."
+
+And Hector answered, but Patroclus was dead already, "Why dost thou
+prophesy death to me? Maybe the great Achilles himself shall fall by my
+hand." Then he drew his spear from the wound, and went after Automedon, to
+slay him, but the swift horse of Achilles carried him away.
+
+Fierce was the fight about the body of Patroclus, and many heroes fell,
+both on this side and on that.
+
+[Illustration: FIERCE WAS THE FIGHT ABOUT THE BODY OF PATROCLUS AND MANY
+HEROES FELL]
+
+Meanwhile Antilochus, son of Nestor, ran to Achilles and said, "I bring
+ill news; Patroclus lies low. The Greeks fight for his body, but Hector
+hath his arms."
+
+Then Achilles took of the dust of the plain in his hand, and poured it on
+his head, and lay at his length upon the ground, and tare his hair. And
+all the women wailed. And Antilochus sat weeping; but ever he held the
+hands of Achilles, lest he should slay himself in his great grief.
+
+Then came his mother, hearing his cry, from where she sat in the depths of
+the sea, and laid her hand on him and said,--
+
+"Why weepest thou, my son? Hide not the matter from me, but tell me."
+
+And Achilles answered, "All that Zeus promised thee for me he hath
+fulfilled. But what profit have I, for my friend Patroclus is dead, and
+Hector has the arms which I gave him to wear. And as for me, I care not to
+live, except I can avenge me upon him."
+
+Then said Thetis, "Nay, my son, speak not thus. For when Hector dieth, thy
+doom also is near."
+
+And Achilles spake in great wrath: "Would that I might die this hour,
+seeing that I could not help my friend, but am a burden on the earth,--I,
+who am better in battle than all the Greeks besides. Cursed be the wrath
+that sets men to strive the one with the other, even as it set me to
+strive with King Agamemnon! But let the past be past. And as for my
+fate--let it come when it may, so that I first avenge myself on Hector.
+Wherefore, seek not to keep me back from the battle."
+
+Then Thetis said, "Be it so; only thou canst not go without thy arms which
+Hector hath. But to-morrow will I go to Vulcan, that he may furnish thee
+anew."
+
+But while they talked the men of Troy pressed the Greeks more and more,
+and the two heroes, Ajax the Greater and Ajax the Less, could no longer
+keep Hector back, but that he should lay hold of the body of Patroclus.
+And indeed he would have taken it, but that Zeus sent Iris to Achilles,
+who said,--
+
+"Rouse thee, son of Peleus, or Patroclus will be a prey for the dogs of
+Troy."
+
+But Achilles said, "How shall I go?--for arms have I none, nor know I
+whose I might wear. Haply I could shift with the shield of Ajax, son of
+Telamon, but he, I know, is carrying it in the front of the battle."
+
+Then answered Iris, "Go only to the trench and show thyself; so shall the
+men of Troy tremble and cease from the battle, and the Greeks shall have
+breathing-space."
+
+So he went, and Athene put her ægis about his mighty shoulders, and a
+golden halo about his head, making it shine as a flame of fire, even as
+the watch-fires shine at night from some city that is beseiged. Then went
+he to the trench; with the battle he mingled not, heeding his mother's
+commands, but he shouted aloud, and his voice was as the sound of a
+trumpet. And when the men of Troy heard, they were stricken with fear, and
+the horses backed with the chariots, and the drivers were astonished when
+they saw the flaming fire above his head which Athene had kindled. Thrice
+across the trench the great Achilles shouted, and thrice the men of Troy
+fell back. And that hour there perished twelve chiefs of fame, wounded by
+their own spears or trampled by their own steeds, so great was the terror
+among the men of Troy.
+
+Right gladly did the Greeks take Patroclus out of the press. Then they
+laid him on a bier, and carried him to the tent, Achilles walking with
+many tears by his side.
+
+But on the other side the men of Troy held an assembly. Standing they held
+it, for none dared to sit, lest Achilles should be upon them.
+
+Then spake Polydamas: "Let us not wait here for the morning. It was well
+for us to fight at the ships while Achilles yet kept his wrath against
+Agamemnon. But now it is not so, for to-morrow he will come against us in
+his anger, and many will fall before him. Wherefore, let us go back to the
+city, for high are the walls and strong the gates, and he will perish
+before he pass them."
+
+Then said Hector, "This is ill counsel, Polydamas. Shall we shut ourselves
+up in the city, where all our goods are wasted already, buying meat for
+the people? Nay, let us watch to-night, and to-morrow will we fight with
+the Greeks. And if Achilles be indeed come forth from his tent, be it so.
+I will not shun to meet him, for Mars gives the victory now to one man and
+now to another."
+
+So he spake, and all the people applauded, not knowing what the morrow
+should bring forth.
+
+Thus did it come to pass that Achilles went again into the battle, eager
+above all things to meet with Hector and to slay him.
+
+But Apollo stood by Æneas, and spake to him: "Æneas, where are now thy
+boastings that thou wouldst meet Achilles face to face?"
+
+Then Æneas answered, "Nay, I have stood up against him in the day when he
+took the town of Lyrnessus. But I fled before him, and only my nimble feet
+saved me from falling by his spear. Surely a god is ever with him, making
+his spear to fly aright."
+
+Him Apollo answered again, "Thou, too, art the son of a goddess, and thy
+mother is greater than his, for she is but a daughter of the sea. Drive
+straight at him with thy spear, and let not his threats dismay thee."
+
+Then Æneas stood out from the press to meet Achilles and Achilles said,
+"Fightest thou with me because thou hopest to reign over the men of Troy,
+or have they given thee a choice portion of ground, ploughland and
+orchard, to be thine when thou hast slain me? Thou wilt not find it easy.
+Dost thou not remember how thou fleddest before me in the day that I took
+Lyrnessus?"
+
+Then Æneas answered, "Think not to terrify me with words, son of Peleus,
+for I, too, am the son of a goddess. Let us make a trial one of the
+other."
+
+Then he cast his spear, and it struck the shield of Achilles with so
+dreadful a sound that the hero feared lest it should pierce it through,
+knowing not that the gifts of the Gods are not easy for mortal man to
+vanquish. Two folds, indeed, it pierced, that were of bronze, but in the
+gold it was stayed, and there were yet two of tin within. Then Achilles
+cast his spear. Through the shield of Æneas it passed, and though it
+wounded him not, yet was he sore dismayed, so near it came. Then Achilles
+drew his sword, and rushed on Æneas, and Æneas caught up a great stone to
+cast at him. But it was not the will of the Gods that Æneas should perish,
+seeing that he and his sons after him should rule over the men of Troy in
+the ages to come. Therefore Neptune lifted him up, and bore him over the
+ranks of men to the left of the battle, but first he drew the spear out of
+the shield, and laid it at the feet of Achilles. Much the hero marveled to
+see it, crying, "This is a great wonder that I behold with mine eyes. For
+I see my spear before me, but the man whom I sought to slay, I see not. Of
+a truth Æneas spake truth, saying that he was dear to the immortal Gods."
+
+Then he rushed into the battle, slaying as he went. And Hector would have
+met him, but Apollo stood by him and said, "Fight not with Achilles, lest
+he slay thee." Therefore he went back among the men of Troy. Many did
+Achilles slay, and among them Polydorus, son of Priam, who, because he was
+the youngest and very dear, his father suffered not to go to the battle.
+Yet he went, in his folly, and being very swift of foot, he trusted in his
+speed, running through the foremost of the fighters. But as he ran
+Achilles smote him and wounded him to the death. When Hector saw it, he
+could not bear any more to stand apart. Therefore he rushed at Achilles,
+and Achilles rejoiced to see him, saying, "This is the man who slew my
+comrade;" and to Hector he cried, "Come hither, and taste of death."
+
+And Hector made answer, "Son of Peleus, seek not to make me afraid with
+words. For though I be weaker than thou, yet victory lieth on the knees of
+the Gods, and I, too, bear a spear."
+
+Then he cast his spear, but Athene turned it aside with her breath, and
+laid it again at his feet. And when Achilles leapt upon Hector with a
+shout, Apollo snatched him away. Three times did Achilles leap upon him,
+and three times he struck only the mist. But the fourth time he cried with
+a terrible voice, "Dog, thou hast escaped from death, Apollo helping thee;
+but I shall meet thee again, and make an end of thee."
+
+Then Achilles turned to the others, and slew multitudes of them, so that
+they fled, some across the plain, and some to the river, the eddying
+Xanthus. And these leapt into the water as locusts leap into a river when
+a fire which men light drives them from the fields. And all the river was
+full of horses and men. Then Achilles leapt into the stream, leaving his
+spear on the bank, resting on the tamarisk trees. Only his sword had he,
+and with this he slew many; and they were as fishes which fly from some
+great dolphin in the sea. In all the bays of a harbor they hide
+themselves, for the great beast devours them apace. So did the Trojans
+hide themselves under the banks of the river. And when Achilles was weary
+of slaying, he took twelve alive, whom he would slay on the tomb of
+Patroclus.
+
+Yet there was one man who dared to stand up against him, while the others
+fled. This was Asteropæus, who was the grandson of the river-god Axius,
+and led the men of Pæonia. And Achilles wondered to see him, and said,
+"Who art thou that standest against me?"
+
+And he said, "I am the grandson of the river-god Axius, fairest of all the
+streams on the earth, and I lead the men of Pæonia."
+
+And as he spake he cast two spears, one with each hand, for he could use
+either alike; and the one struck the shield, nor pierced it through, for
+the gold staved it, and the other grazed the right hand of Achilles so
+that the blood spurted forth. Then did Achilles cast his spear, but missed
+his aim, and the great spear stood fast in the bank. And thrice Asteropæus
+strove to draw it forth. Thrice he strove in vain, and the fourth time he
+strove to break the spear. But as he strove Achilles smote him that he
+died. Yet had he some glory, for that he wounded the great Achilles.
+
+When the River saw that Asteropæus was dead, and that Achilles was slaying
+many of the Pæonians--for these were troubled, their chief being dead--he
+took upon him the shape of a man, and spake to Achilles, saying, "Truly,
+Achilles, thou excellest all other men in might and deeds of blood, for
+the Gods themselves protect thee. It may be that Zeus hath given thee to
+slay all the sons of Troy; nevertheless, depart from me and work thy will
+upon the plain; for my stream is choked with the multitude of corpses, nor
+can I pass to the sea. Do thou, therefore, cease from troubling me."
+
+To him Achilles made answer, "This shall be as thou wilt, O Scamander. But
+the Trojans I will not cease from slaying till I have driven them into
+their city and have made trial of Hector, whether I shall vanquish him or
+he shall vanquish me."
+
+And as he spake he sped on, pursuing the Trojans. Then the River cried to
+Apollo, "Little thou doest the will of thy father, thou of the Silver Bow,
+who bade thee stand by the men of Troy and help them till darkness should
+cover the land." And he rushed on with a great wave, stirring together all
+his streams. The dead bodies he threw upon the shore, roaring as a bull
+roareth; and them that lived he hid in the depths of his eddies. And all
+about Achilles rose up the flood, beating full upon his shield, so that he
+could not stand fast upon his feet. Then Achilles laid hold of a
+lime-tree, fair and tall, that grew upon the bank; but the tree brake
+therefrom with all its roots, and tare down the bank, and lay across the
+River, staying its flood, for it had many branches. Thereupon Achilles
+leapt out of the water and sped across the plain, being sore afraid. But
+the River ceased not from pursuing him, that he might stay him from
+slaughter and save the sons of Troy. So far as a man may throw a spear, so
+far did Achilles leap; strong as an eagle was he, the hunting-bird that is
+the strongest and swiftest of all birds. And still as he fled the River
+pursued after him with a great roar. Even as it is with a man that would
+water his garden, bringing a stream from a fountain; he has a pick-axe in
+his hand to break down all that would stay the water; and the stream runs
+on, rolling the pebbles along with it, and overtakes him that guides it.
+Even so did the River overtake Achilles, for all that he was swift of
+foot, for indeed the Gods are mightier than men. And when Achilles would
+have stood against the River, seeking to know whether indeed all the Gods
+were against him, then the great wave smote upon his shoulders; and when
+he leapt into the air, it bowed his knees beneath him and devoured the
+ground from under his feet. Then Achilles looked up to heaven and groaned,
+crying out, "O Zeus, will none of the Gods pity me, and save me from the
+River? I care not what else may befall me. Truly my mother hath deceived
+me, saying that I should perish under the walls of Troy by the arrows of
+Apollo. Surely it had been better that Hector should slay me, for he is
+the bravest of the men of Troy, but now I shall perish miserably in the
+River, as some herd-boy perisheth whom a torrent sweeps away in a storm."
+
+So he spake; but Poseidon and Athene stood by him, having taken upon them
+the shape of men, and took him by the hand and strengthened him with
+comforting words, for Poseidon spake, saying, "Son of Peleus, tremble not,
+neither be afraid. It is not thy fate to be mastered by the River. He
+shall soon cease from troubling thee. And do thou heed what we say. Stay
+not thy hands from the battle, till thou shalt have driven all the sons of
+Troy that escape thee within the walls of the city. And when thou shalt
+have slain Hector, go back to the ships; for this day is the day of thy
+glory."
+
+Then the two departed from him. Now all the plain was covered with water,
+wherein floated much fair armor and many dead bodies. But Achilles went on
+even against the stream, nor could the River hold him back; for Athene put
+great might into his heart. Yet did not Scamander cease from his wrath,
+but lifted his waves yet higher, and cried aloud to Simois, "Dear brother,
+let us two stay the fury of this man, or else of a surety he will destroy
+the city of Priam. Come now, fill all thy streams and rouse thy torrents
+against him, and lift up against him a mighty wave with a great concourse
+of tree-trunks and stones, that we may stay this wild man from his
+fighting. Very high thoughts hath he, even as a god; yet shall neither his
+might nor his beauty nor his fair form profit him; for they shall be
+covered with much mud; and over himself will I heap abundance of sand
+beyond all counting. Neither shall the Greeks be able to gather his bones
+together, with such a heap will I hide them. Surely a great tomb will I
+build for him; nor will his people have need to make a mound over him when
+they would bury him."
+
+Then he rushed again upon Achilles, swelling high with foam and blood and
+dead bodies of men. Very dark was the wave as it rose, and was like to
+have overwhelmed the man, so that Juno greatly feared for him, lest the
+River should sweep him away. And she cried to Vulcan, her son, saying,
+"Rouse thee, Haltfoot, my son! I thought that thou wouldst have been a
+match for Scamander in battle. But come, help us, and bring much fire with
+thee; and I will call the west wind and the south wind from the sea, with
+such a storm as shall consume the sons of Troy, both them and their arms.
+And do thou burn the trees that are by the banks of Xanthus, yea, and the
+River himself. And let him not turn thee from thy purpose by fury or by
+craft; but burn till I shall bid thee cease."
+
+Then Vulcan lit a great fire. First he burned the dead bodies that lay
+upon the plain, and it dried all the plain, as the north wind in the
+autumn time dries a field, to the joy of him that tills it. After this it
+laid hold of the River. The lime-trees and the willows and the tamarisks
+it burned; also the plants that grew in the streams. And the eels and the
+fishes were sore distressed, twisting hither and thither in the water,
+being troubled by the breath of Vulcan. So the might of the River was
+subdued, and he cried aloud, "O Vulcan, no one of the Gods can match
+himself with thee. Cease now from consuming me; and Achilles may drive the
+men of Troy from their city if he will. What have I to do with the strife
+and sorrow of men?"
+
+So he spake, for all his streams were boiling--as a cauldron boils with a
+great fire beneath it, when a man would melt the fat of a great hog; nor
+could he flow any longer to the sea, so sorely did the breath of the
+Fire-god trouble him. Then he cried aloud to Juno, entreating her: "O
+Juno, why doth thy son torment me only among all? Why should I be blamed
+more than others that help the men of Troy? Verily, I will cease from
+helping them, if he also will cease. Nay, I will swear a great oath that I
+will keep no more the day of doom from the sons of Troy; no, not when all
+the city shall be consumed with fire."
+
+And Queen Juno heard him, and called to Vulcan, saying, "Cease, my son; it
+doth not beseem thee to work such damage to a god for the sake of a mortal
+man."
+
+So Vulcan quenched his fire, and the River flowed as he flowed before.
+
+
+
+
+VULCAN MAKES ARMOR FOR ACHILLES
+
+By Walter C. Perry
+
+
+On high Olympus, the Loud-thundering Zeus spake mockingly to his consort,
+Juno, and said, "At length, thou hast what thou desirest, and hast roused
+Achilles to fight against the Trojans. Surely, the long-haired Achaians
+must be thine own children, since thou lovest them so dearly!"
+
+And the ox-eyed queen replied, "Dread son of Cronos! what words are these
+which have passed the barrier of thy teeth? Even a mortal man doth what he
+can to help another; and shall not I, the chief of goddesses by birth and
+as thy wife--O thou king of the deathless Gods!--shall not _I_ avenge
+myself upon the men of Troy?"
+
+Thus these two strove with one another.
+
+Meantime, the silver-footed Thetis came to the splendid palace of Vulcan,
+bright and immortal, which shone like a star among the mansions of the
+Gods. She found him at his bellows, sweating from his mighty toil; for he
+was forging twenty tripods, to stand round the walls of his well-built
+mansion. Beneath each of them he placed wheels of gold; and they move, of
+themselves, into the assembly of the Gods, and so return.
+
+While he was thus employed, the silver-footed Thetis approached the house.
+And Charis, of the shining veil, the wedded wife of Vulcan (whose first
+wife had been Aphrodite or Venus), came forth to meet her, and took her by
+the hand, and called her by her name. "O long-robed Thetis! dear and
+honored as thou art! not oft, I ween, dost thou come to visit us. But
+follow me, that I may show thee due hospitality."
+
+Then she led the way in, and seated Thetis on a lofty chair with silver
+studs, beautiful, and cunningly wrought, and placed a footstool beneath
+her shining feet. And she called to Vulcan, the divine artificer, "Come
+hither, Vulcan! for the silver-footed Thetis seeketh thine aid."
+
+And the glorious lame god answered, "Revered and dear to me is she; for
+she saved me, when my shameless mother threw me down from heaven; and I
+should have suffered dire anguish had not Eurynome, daughter of Oceanos,
+and Thetis taken me to their hearts and comforted me. Nine years I spent
+with them, and fashioned all kinds of curious work of bronze--clasps, and
+spiral bracelets, and ear-rings, like the calyx of a flower, and
+necklaces--in the hollow grot, while all around me roared the streams of
+great Oceanus. And none of the other Gods knew where I was, but only
+Thetis and Eurynome. And now that she is come, a welcome guest, to my
+house, I will repay the fair-haired nymph in every way, for saving my
+life."
+
+So saying, he raised his mighty bulk from the block, and, limping on his
+slender legs, moved quickly; and he put away his bellows, and placed his
+tools in a silver chest, and sponged his face and hands, his strong neck
+and hairy breast; then he donned his tunic, and leaning on a staff, he
+limped along. And golden handmaids, in the form of living maidens, came to
+help their lord; these have intelligent minds, and human voices, and skill
+from the deathless Gods. And he went with halting gait, and seated himself
+on a shining throne, near the silver-footed Thetis; and he took her by the
+hand, and said to her, "O dear and honored Thetis of the flowing robes!
+why comest thou to our house, thou, an infrequent guest?"
+
+Then the silver-footed goddess answered him, "O Vulcan! hath Zeus, the son
+of Cronos, laid on any other goddess in Olympus such grievous woes as on
+_me_, unhappy that I am? He chose out me, from all the sea nymphs, to
+endure marriage with a mortal. A son I bare, the greatest of heroes. I
+brought him up, like a young tree in a fruitful soil, and sent him in a
+high-peaked ship to war against the Trojans; but never again will he
+return to me, in the halls of his aged father Peleus. And even while I yet
+see him, and he beholdeth the light of the sun, he is full of grief, and I
+cannot help him. For King Agamemnon took away his prize, the dearly loved
+maiden Briseïs. For the loss of her, he pined and wept; nor would he allow
+his Myrmidons to join in the battle, though the Achaians were hard pressed
+and driven to their ships. The chiefs of the Argives came to him with
+prayers and tears, and many costly gifts. And though he refused himself to
+rescue them, he suffered Patroclus to put on his divine armor, and sent
+many of the Myrmidons with him to the battle. And the son of Menoetius
+performed high deeds of valor, and went near to sack the city. But the
+Far-Darting Apollo and glorious Hector slew him, and gained immortal
+glory. And now, I come as a suppliant, to clasp thy knees, and to pray
+that thou wouldst give my short-lived son a shield, a helmet, a
+breastplate, and goodly greaves."
+
+Then the lame god, the famous artificer, replied, "Be of good cheer, O
+silver-footed Queen, and be not troubled about these things! Would that I
+could as surely save him from mournful death, as that I will supply him
+with goodly armor, a wonder to behold!"
+
+And he returned to his workshop, and bade his bellows--there were twenty
+of them--blow the blasts on the fire and prepare the earthen moulds; and
+as Vulcan willed, the work was done. He melted the tough bronze and tin,
+the gold and silver, with the fire; and placed an anvil and took a strong
+hammer in one hand, and tongs in the other, and with these he worked.
+
+First, he made the shield, broad and strong, with many decorations. Around
+it he placed a triple bright rim, and a silver strap depended from it. The
+shield itself was formed with five zones, in each of which he fashioned
+many curious works.
+
+Therein he fashioned the Earth, the Sky, the Sea, the unwearied Sun, the
+Moon at the full, and all the bright luminaries which crown the azure
+firmament: the Pleiades, daughters of Atlas, the Hyades, the mighty Orion,
+and, turning about to watch Orion, the Bear, which alone of all the stars
+bathes not in the streams of Oceanus.
+
+Also, on the shield, he sculptured two fair cities of articulate-speaking
+men. In one of these were wedding-festivals; and, with a blaze of
+torchlight, the brides were conducted from their chambers along the
+streets; while the hymeneal song was loud, and the youths whirled round
+and round in the giddy dance, to the music of flute and harp; while the
+women stood at their doors, watching and admiring. In that city he also
+fashioned an assembly of the people, in which a contention had arisen,
+about the blood-fine or "were-geld" for a murdered man; the people, with
+noisy shouts, cheered, on either side; but the heralds stilled the tumult,
+holding their staves of office in their hands; and then the judges rose
+up, to pronounce their verdict.
+
+Around the other city lay two armies besieging it, with flashing arms. Two
+plans were considered: either to destroy the town, or to divide the wealth
+thereof with its citizens. But the beleaguered garrison had not yet
+yielded, but armed themselves and set an ambush. Their dear wives and
+children, and the old men, stood on the walls to defend it, while the
+strong men went forth to fight. And they were led by Mars and Athene,
+whose forms were fashioned in gold, with golden raiment; and, as gods, he
+made them larger and more beautiful than the mortals around them.
+
+The men in ambush set upon the herdsmen who were driving oxen to the
+watering-place of the army, and making music with their pipes. They
+carried off the cattle; but the besiegers, as they sat before the rostra,
+heard the lowing of the oxen and drove up, with their high-stepping
+horses, to repel the raid. Then a fierce conflict arose; and in it were
+seen Strife, and Uproar, and Dire Fate; like living warriors, they rushed
+on one another, and haled away the dead whom they slew.
+
+In another part of the shield, he represented a rich, deep-soiled, fallow
+field, thrice ploughed; and when the ploughers came to the end of the
+furrow, a man would give to each of them a goblet of sweet wine. And the
+ploughed ground grew black behind them, like real soil, although it was of
+gold. Then there, too, was a rich field of corn, where reapers were
+cutting the harvest with their sickles and it fell in rows; and others
+were binding it with bands of straw; while the lord looked on, and was
+glad at heart. And under a spreading oak a feast was being made ready for
+the reapers.
+
+And he fashioned therein a vineyard, rich with clusters of black grapes,
+which the youths and maidens, in their glee, carried in baskets; while a
+boy, in their midst, made sweet music on a clear-sounding harp; and he
+sang the "Song of Linos," and the rest kept time with their feet.
+
+And there was a herd of straight-horned oxen, all of gold and tin,
+hurrying to the pasture beside the gently murmuring stream and the waving
+rushes. Four herdsmen, of gold, followed them, and nine fleet dogs. And
+two terrible lions seized a bellowing bull. The herdsmen followed, but
+they could not set on their dogs to bite the lions, for the dogs shrank
+back, barking and whining, and turned away.
+
+And therein the glorious divine artist placed a wide pasture full of white
+sheep, with folds and tents and huts. And he made a dancing-ground, like
+that which Dædalus wrought at Gnosos for lovely fair-haired Ariadne.
+There, lusty youths in shining tunics glistening with oil, danced with
+fair maidens of costly wooing. The maidens had wreaths of flowers upon
+their heads; and the youths wore daggers banging from silver sword-belts.
+They whirled round, with lightly tripping feet, swift as the potter's
+wheel, holding each other by the wrist; and then they ran, in lines, to
+meet each other. A crowd of friends stood round and joyfully watched the
+dance, and a divine minstrel made sweet music with his harp, while a pair
+of tumblers diverted the crowd.
+
+Lastly, around the margin of the shield, Vulcan made the stream of the
+mighty river Oceanus, which encircleth the earth.
+
+And when he had finished this strong and splendid shield, he wrought the
+breastplate, glowing with blazing fire; and he made a heavy helmet for the
+head, beautiful, and adorned with curious art; upon it was a crest of
+gold. But the goodly greaves he made of flexible tin. When he had
+completed the whole suit of glorious armor, he laid it before the
+silver-footed Thetis, the mother of Achilles; and she darted, swift as a
+hawk, from snowy Olympus, bearing the brightly glittering arms to her dear
+son.
+
+
+
+
+THE SLAYING OF HECTOR
+
+By Walter C. Perry
+
+
+Meantime, Achilles went on slaughtering the Trojans; and the aged Priam
+stood on the sacred tower, and saw the son of Peleus driving the Trojans
+before him. And he shouted aloud to the brave warders of the gates, "Open
+the gates, that the fugitives may enter!" And the Far-Darter went to the
+front, to save the Trojans who were fleeing to the sheltering walls, with
+Achilles behind them in hot pursuit.
+
+Then would the Achaians have stormed the lofty gates of Troy, had not
+Phoebus Apollo roused Agenor, a brave and noble prince, son of Antenor.
+Apollo stood by this man's side, leaning on an oak, and shrouded in mist,
+and put courage into his heart, that he might ward off fate from the
+Trojans. And when Agenor saw Achilles, he stood irresolute, and said to
+his mighty heart, "If I too flee before Achilles, he will catch me and
+slay me as a coward. Or shall I fly by another way, and hide me in the
+spurs of Ida? How, then, if I go forth to meet him? for his flesh, too,
+may surely be pierced by the keen bronze, and he has but one life, like
+other mortals."
+
+And his heart grew strong within him, to stay and fight. And he cried out
+aloud to Achilles, "Surely, thou thinkest this very day to sack the proud
+city of Troy? Fool! many terrible things will happen before _that_; for
+there are many of us--many and brave--to protect our dear parents and
+wives and little children, and to guard holy Ilium. Thou, too, perhaps,
+mighty as thou art, mayest here meet death."
+
+He spake and hurled a spear at Achilles with his strong hand. And it smote
+him below the knee, and the tin-wrought greave rang loudly; but the stout
+spear bounded off, for it could not pierce the work of Vulcan.
+
+Then Achilles rushed on godlike Agenor; but him Apollo caught in a mist,
+and carried him safely out of the fray. And the god took the form of
+Agenor, and ran a little way before Achilles, towards the deep-flowing
+Scamander. And while Apollo thus deceived the mighty son of Peleus, the
+routed Trojans ran, well pleased, to their stronghold, and the great city
+was filled with their multitude.
+
+Then as he ran before Achilles, the mighty Far-Darter addressed him, and
+spake: "O son of Peleus! why dost thou, being a mortal man, pursue _me_
+with thy swift feet, who am a deathless god?" Then, in wrath, the son of
+Peleus answered him: "Thou hast blinded me, most mischievous of all the
+Gods! and lured me away from the walls; else would many a Trojan have
+fallen, or ever he had reached the city." He then went towards the city,
+with a proud heart, like a war-horse victorious in a chariot race; and the
+aged Priam saw him, blazing like the star in autumn brightest of all,
+which men call "Orion's Dog," that bringeth fever upon wretched mortals.
+
+And the old man cried aloud, in his agony, and beat his head with his
+fists, and called in a piercing voice to his dear son Hector. For the
+brave hero, when all the others had escaped into the city, remained alone
+at the Scæan Gate eager to fight with Achilles. And his wretched father
+stretched forth his withered hands, and pleaded piteously to his son:--
+
+"Hector! dear Hector! do not meet this terrible man alone, for he is far
+mightier than thou, and knoweth no pity. Already hath he robbed me of many
+a brave son; and now I no longer see two of my children, Lycaon and the
+goodly Polydorus, whom Laothoë, princess among women, bare to me. But the
+death of others will cause us briefer grief, if thou, dear Hector, art not
+slain. Come, then, within the walls, and save the men and women of Troy!
+And have pity on me, too, to whom the son of Cronos hath allotted a
+terrible doom in my old age--to see my brave sons dragged away, and my
+fair daughters carried off, as captives, by the cruel hands of the
+Achaians. Last of all, I too shall be torn, on my own threshold, by
+ravenous dogs--even the dogs which I myself have reared with food from my
+table, to guard my house. They will tear my flesh and drink my blood! It
+may well become a _young_ man to lie slain on the field, for he is highly
+honored in his death; but when dogs defile an old man's head and beard,
+this is the most lamentable thing that befalleth wretched mortals."
+
+And the old man tore his hair in his sore agony; but even he prevailed not
+with the soul of Hector. And then his dear mother, Hecuba, took up the
+plaint and spake through her piteous tears.
+
+"Hector! my child! have respect to the mother who bare thee and nursed
+thee on this bosom! Pity _me_! and fight the foe from this side of the
+wall! For if he slay thee, not on a funeral bed shall I, and thy dear
+wife, won by so many gifts, deplore thee; but the swift dogs shall devour
+thee, far away from us, by the black ships of the Argives."
+
+Thus wailed they over their glorious son, beseeching him; but they could
+not prevail, for honor held him fast. Meanwhile, Achilles drew nigh, in
+strength like a giant; but Hector awaited him undismayed, leaning his
+shield against the tower. And he communed thus with his brave soul: "Alas,
+if I go through the gates, Polydamas will justly blame me; for he gave me
+good advice--that I should lead the host into the city on that fatal
+night, when the noble Achilles returned to the war. And I would not
+hearken to him, although he counseled well. And now that I have brought
+this evil on the city by my folly, I am ashamed to appear before the men,
+and the proud dames with trailing robes, lest some one should taunt me and
+say, 'Hector in his pride hath ruined us.' Better then would it be for me
+to meet Achilles, and either slay him or fall with glory before the city.
+Or how would it be if I should lay aside all my arms, and go to meet the
+son of Peleus, and offer to restore Argive Helen and all her possessions
+to Menelaus and Agamemnon, and to divide the wealth of Troy with the
+Achaians? But no! I might come to him unarmed, but he is merciless, and
+would slay me on the spot, as if I were a woman. But why do I hesitate?
+This is no time to hold dalliance with him, from oak or rock, like youths
+and maidens. Better to fight at once, and see to whom Olympian Zeus will
+give the victory!"
+
+While he thus pondered, Achilles, peer of Mars, came on, poising his
+terrible spear of Pelian ash; and his divine armor, the work of a god,
+blazed like fire or the rising sun. And when Hector saw him he was seized
+with panic, and he fled from the gates in terror.
+
+But Achilles, swift of foot, rushed after him. As a falcon, swiftest of
+all birds, swoops upon the trembling dove, and takes no heed of her
+piteous screaming, so Achilles flew straight at Hector. And pursuer and
+pursued passed by the guard and the wild fig-tree, the sport of the winds,
+and came to the two springs of water, which feed the deep-whirling
+Scamander. Brave was he who fled, but mightier far was he who chased him
+on his swift feet; and they were racing not for some prize in the games,
+but for the life of the noble horse-taming Hector. And like horses in the
+race for a great prize--a tripod or a woman--so the twain ran thrice round
+the sacred city of King Priam; and all the Gods were looking on.
+
+And Zeus, the great father of Gods and men, spake first: "Alas! I see a
+man whom I love above all others chased round the walls of Troy. Come now,
+let us take some counsel, whether to save him or leave him to be slain by
+the son of Peleus."
+
+And the fierce-eyed Athene answered him, "O thou great Lord of the
+Lightning, Cloud-girt King! what a word hast thou spoken! Wouldst thou
+indeed save a mortal long ago doomed by Fate? Do as thou pleasest; but we
+Gods shall not praise thee."
+
+And her great father, the Cloud-Gatherer, answered with gentle words, "O
+Trito-born, my dear child! be of good cheer. I spake not in earnest, and
+would fain please thee. Do as seemeth good to thee." And Athene, full of
+joy, sped down from high Olympus.
+
+Achilles, with all speed, was chasing the noble Hector, as the dogs hunt
+the fawn of a deer through dale and woodland; and though the fawn hideth
+behind a bush, they follow by the scent until they find it; so Hector
+could not escape from the swift-footed son of Peleus. Often did Hector
+rush along the strong walls, in hopes that the Trojans within might succor
+him from above with their arrows. But Achilles gained on him and turned
+him into the plain again.
+
+And so, though Hector failed in his flight and Achilles in his pursuit,
+yet might Hector have escaped his doom, had not this been the last time
+that Apollo the Far-Darter came nigh to him, to nerve his heart and his
+swift knees. Achilles had made a sign to his comrades, and forbade them to
+launch their darts against the noble Hector, lest one of them should gain
+high honor, and he come only second. And when they had, for the fourth
+time, run round the walls and reached the springs, then Zeus, the Great
+Father, raised his golden scales, and placed in each the lot of gloomy
+death,--one for Hector, and the other for Achilles. And he held the scales
+by the middle, and poised them; and the noble Hector's scale sank down to
+Hades; and Phoebus Apollo left him.
+
+But the fierce-eyed goddess Athene came near to Achilles and spake winged
+words: "Now, at last, O godlike Achilles! shall we twain carry off great
+glory to the Achaian ships! He cannot now escape us, though the Far-Darter
+should grovel at the feet of Zeus with fruitless prayers. But do thou stay
+and recover thy breath; and I will go and persuade Hector to stand up
+against thee in fight." And he gladly obeyed her voice, and stood leaning
+on his ashen spear.
+
+And she, Athene, came to noble Hector in the likeness of his brother
+Deïphobus, and spake to him: "Dear Lord and elder Brother, surely the
+fleet-footed son of Peleus hath done great violence against thee, chasing
+thee round the walls! But let us twain make a stand against him!"
+
+And the great Hector answered, "Deïphobus, thou wert ever the dearest of
+my brothers; now I honor thee still more, because thou hast dared to come
+out from behind the walls to aid me, while others skulk within."
+
+The fierce-eyed goddess, as Deïphobus, spake again: "It is true that my
+father, and my queenly mother, and all my comrades, besought me to stay
+with them, so greatly do they fear the mighty son of Peleus; but my heart
+was sore for thee, dear brother! But let us fight amain, and see whether
+he will carry our spoils to his ships, or fall beneath thy spear!" And so,
+with her cunning words, she led him on to death.
+
+And when he and Achilles were come near to each other, the noble Hector
+spake: "O mighty Achilles, thrice did I flee before thee round the great
+city of Priam, and dared not await thy onslaught. But now I will stand up
+against thee, to slay or to be slain. But come, let us make a covenant
+with one another, and call the Gods, the best guardians of oaths, to
+witness. If Zeus grant me to take thy life, and despoil thee of thy divine
+armor, then will I give back thy body to the warlike Achaians; and do thou
+the same by me!"
+
+And Achilles, with a malignant scowl, replied, "Speak not to me of
+covenants! There is no covenant between men and lions, or between wolves
+and sheep, but only eternal war. And there can be no pledge of faith
+between us twain, until one of us hath sated the murderous Mars with his
+blood. Therefore, show thyself a good spearman and a brave man of war!
+There is no escape for thee; for Pallas Athene hath delivered thee into my
+hands."
+
+He spake, and cast his long-shafted spear at Hector. But Hector stooped,
+and the strong bronze spear flew over his head; but Athene picked it up,
+unknown to Hector, and gave it back to Achilles. Then Hector, rejoicing,
+spake to the son of Peleus: "Thou hast missed! Nor dost thou surely know
+the day of my doom, as thou pretendest. Thou shalt not plant thy spear in
+my back, as I flee before thee; but in my breast, if the Gods allow it.
+But now, in thy turn, avoid _my_ spear!" So spake he, and smote the middle
+of Achilles' shield with his long-shafted spear, but it bounded back from
+the shield. Then Hector was dismayed, for he had no second spear to throw.
+And he called aloud to his brother, Deïphobus; but no answer came, for
+_he_ was far away. Then Hector knew that he was betrayed, and that Athene
+had deceived him, in the likeness of his brother. "Now," he cried, "is
+Death come near me, and there is no way of escape! This is the will of
+Zeus and of the Far-Darter, who once were wont to succor me. But I will
+not die ingloriously, but yet perform some notable deed of arms."
+
+He said, and, with his sharp sword, swooped down upon Achilles. But
+Achilles rushed at him, wild with fury, brandishing his spear, with evil
+intent against noble Hector, and eyed him over, to see where he might
+pierce his flesh most easily. The rest of Hector's body was protected by
+the splendid armor which he had stripped from the body of Patroclus; but
+there was one chink, between the collar-bone and the throat, through which
+Achilles thrust his spear. Yet it cut not the windpipe; and Hector was
+able to speak faint words to his insulting foe, after he had fallen to the
+ground.
+
+Achilles triumphed over him: "Ah, Hector! when thou wert stripping
+Patroclus of my goodly armor, thou caredst nothing for me, who was far
+away! I, his friend and avenger, was left among the black ships--even I, a
+mightier man than he! Thee shall the dogs and birds devour; but he shall
+have honorable burial."
+
+Then, with his last breath, the noble Hector of the bright helm addressed
+his pitiless foe: "Achilles! I pray thee, by thy soul, and by thy parents'
+heads, let not Achaian dogs devour me by the ships! but accept great store
+of gold and bronze from my father and my queenly mother, and restore my
+body to them, that the Trojans may deck my funeral pyre with all due
+honor!"
+
+And Achilles, with a grim scowl, replied, "Clasp not my knees, vile dog!
+nor speak to me of parents! Such evil hast thou done me, that I could
+devour thee raw! Not for thy weight in gold would I give thee to thy
+queenly mother, to mourn over thee; but dogs and birds shall batten on thy
+flesh!"
+
+Then the dying Hector uttered his last words: "Thou iron-hearted man! now
+I know thee; nor did I think to prevail upon thee. But beware of the wrath
+of the Gods, when Paris and the Far-Darter slay thee, at the Scæan Gate,
+brave though thou art!"
+
+He spake; and Death overshadowed him; and his soul went down to Hades,
+wailing to leave beauty, youth, and vigor.
+
+And Achilles spake again to the dead Hector: "Lie thou there! And as for
+me, I will die when it seemeth good to the deathless Gods!"
+
+And the Achaians ran up, and looked with wonder at the noble stature and
+beauty of the Trojan hero. And they all inflicted wounds upon him, as he
+lay, saying, "He is easier to deal with now than when he was burning our
+ships with flames of fire."
+
+And when the son of Peleus had stripped him of his armor, he stood up, and
+spake to the Achaians:--
+
+"Great chiefs and counselors of the Argives! at last the Gods have granted
+us to slay this man, whose single arm hath wrought more evil to us than
+all the rest together. Let us now approach the city, and learn the purpose
+of the Trojans; whether they will now surrender the citadel or go on
+fighting, though great Hector is no more. But why do I thus ponder in my
+mind? Patroclus is lying unburied and unwept by the ships. Never can I
+forget him, while I live; and even in the House of Hades, I will remember
+my dearest friend. Come, then! let us raise the chant of victory, and bear
+our deadliest foe to the black ships!"
+
+Then he foully outraged the dead body of glorious Hector; slitting the
+sinews of both feet, from heel to ankle, he passed ox-hide straps through
+them, and fastened them to his chariot, leaving the goodly head to trail
+upon the ground. Then he laid the armor on the chariot; and mounting it,
+lashed his willing horses to full speed. And in the dust lay the once
+beautiful head, with its flowing hair; for Zeus had now given Hector up to
+his enemies, to be foully used in his own native land.
+
+And when his dear mother, Hecuba, saw her much-loved son dragged along,
+begrimed with dust, she tore her hair, and shrieked aloud, and tossed far
+away her glistening veil. And his father, King Priam, wailed and mourned;
+and with him all the men and women in the city, as if the beetling towers
+of Ilium were already smouldering in fire. Hardly could they keep the aged
+father from rushing through the gates; for he threw himself in the dust
+and supplicated each man by name: "O friend, forbear! and if you love me,
+let me go to the ships of the Achaians, and pray to this arrogant, this
+fearful man!" Thus wailed old Priam; and the men wailed with him. And
+Queen Hecuba led the loud lamentations of the women. "Why," she cried,
+"should I yet live, when thou, my son, my boast, my glory, art dead? the
+pride and blessing of all, both men and women of the city, who honored
+thee as a god; for in thy life thou wert an honor to them all!" Thus
+mourned his unhappy mother.
+
+But to his wife, the noble, beautiful, tender-hearted Andromache, no
+messenger had brought the fearful tidings that Hector had remained without
+the gates. All unconscious, she was sitting in the inner chamber of her
+lofty palace, weaving a purple web of double woof, and embroidering it
+with many flowers. And she was ordering her handmaids to prepare a warm
+bath for her dear husband, when he should return from the battle; poor
+child! little knowing that the fierce-eyed Athene had treacherously slain
+him, by the hand of Achilles! But when she heard shrieks and lamentations
+from the walls, she reeled, and the shuttle dropped from her hands. And
+she spake again to her fair-haired maidens: "Surely, that was the cry of
+Hector's noble mother! Some terrible thing must have befallen my godlike
+husband! Come, then, follow me, that I may learn what has happened; I
+greatly fear that he has been cut off from the city by Achilles; for he
+would never retreat among the throng, or yield to any man, in his high
+courage."
+
+And she rushed, all frantic, through the house, followed by her maidens,
+and came to the walls, and saw Hector dragged through the dust, towards
+the black ships of the Achaians. Then darkness shrouded her fair eyes, and
+she fell backwards in a swoon. And when roused, she tore from her head the
+net, the fillet, and the nuptial veil which golden Venus had given her,
+when noble Hector of the shining helm led her forth, from King Eëtion's
+palace, as his bride. And the sisters-in-law of her dear husband gathered
+round her, and raised her from the ground, all distracted as she was and
+nigh unto death. When she had recovered from her swoon, she sobbed and
+wailed, crying, "O Hector! to the same evil fate were we twain born, thou
+in Troy, and I in Thebes, where my great father, Eëtion, reared me as a
+little child. Would that I had never been born, since thou leavest me a
+hapless widow! And our son, thine and mine, ill-fated one! is but a little
+child; and thou canst no more profit him, nor he be a joy to thee, since
+thou art dead! A helpless orphan, he is cut off from his playmates; and if
+he pluck the robe of his father's friends, one may, in pity, just hold the
+cup to his lips, but give him not to satisfy his hunger and his thirst;
+while other children, whose parents still live, will drive him from their
+feast, with taunts and blows, saying, 'Away with thee! thou hast no father
+at our table!' Then will he come back to me, his lonely mother; he, who so
+lately sat on his father's knee, and fed on the choicest of food! and when
+sleep fell upon him, tired with his childish play, he nestled in a soft
+bed in his nurse's arms. But now that his father is no more, he shall
+suffer untold griefs, even he whom the Trojans called 'Astyanax,' king of
+the city, because thou, O my beloved lord! wert the sole defense and glory
+of their lofty walls." Thus wailed the fair Andromache; and the women
+moaned around her.
+
+
+
+
+THE FUNERAL GAMES IN HONOR OF PATROCLUS
+
+By Walter C. Perry
+
+
+The noble Achilles could not do enough in honor of his lost friend,
+Patroclus, and he had determined to hold games, of every kind, in which
+the mail-clad Achaians might compete for prizes; and to this end he had
+brought goodly treasures from his ships,--tripods, and caldrons, horses,
+mules, and oxen, well-girdled women, and hoary iron. The first and most
+important contest was a chariot race, for which he offered a woman skilled
+in needlework, and a two-handled tripod, holding two-and-twenty
+measures--these, for the best man of all; the second prize was a mare, six
+years old, with a mule foal; the third prize was a fair new caldron, of
+four measures; the fourth was two talents of bright gold; the fifth was a
+two-handled vase, untarnished by the fire.
+
+And Achilles addressed the chiefs, and said, "If the race were in honor of
+some other warrior, then should I enter the lists, and bear away the
+prize; for ye know that my horses are immortal, and by far the best;
+Neptune, the Earth-Girdler, gave them to my father, and he to me. But I
+and they will stand aside; for they have lost a noble and gentle driver,
+who oft-times washed them with clear water and then poured soft oil upon
+their goodly manes! And now they stand with sorrow in their breasts, and
+their full long manes are trailing on the earth. But now, let whoever of
+you trusteth in his horses and his strong chariot take his place in the
+lists!"
+
+And first came forward Eumelus, son of Admetus; next came the mighty
+Diomedes, with the famous horses of Tros, which he had taken from Æneas;
+then arose Menelaus,--the fair-haired, godlike Menelaus, with Aithe,
+Agamemnon's mare, and his own horse, Podargus; and the fourth was
+Antilochus, son of the wise Nestor, who yoked swift Pylian horses to his
+chariot.
+
+His father Nestor, son of Neleus, stood by Antilochus, and gave him good
+advice, although he himself was wise. "Antilochus, my son," he said,
+"though thou art young, yet Zeus and Neptune have loved thee, and made
+thee a perfect horseman; and there is little need for me to teach thee.
+But the other horses are better than thine; and I fear that much trouble
+is in store for thee. But skill and cunning are better than force, and so
+one charioteer defeats another. Look well to the posts at either end, and
+run closely by them. Now I will tell thee another thing. Some six feet
+above the ground, there stands the withered stump of a tree, with two
+white stones, on either side; this is the mark fixed by the swift-footed
+Achilles. Do thou drive thy horses hard by this, and lean slightly to the
+left, and lash the off horse and give him rein; but let the near horse so
+closely skirt the post that the nave of the wheel of thy car may seem to
+graze the stone; but beware of touching it!"
+
+Next, Meriones made ready his chariot; and so did the others. Then they
+mounted their cars, and drew lots for their places. Great Diomedes drew
+the best. Achilles ranged them all side by side, and pointed to the
+turning-post, in the plain, near which he posted old Phoenix, as umpire.
+
+Then, at a signal from the son of Peleus, they raised their long whips,
+together, standing upright, and lashed their horses, and encouraged them
+by hand and voice. And the chariots now ran evenly on the ground, and now
+bounded high in air. But when they entered the last part of the course,
+driving towards the sea, the fleet mares of Eumelus, grandson of Pheres,
+rushed to the front; and next came Diomedes, with the stallions of Tros,
+so near that they seemed to be mounting the car of Eumelus, and with their
+hot breath covered his back and shoulders. Then Tydides would either have
+gained a victory, or it would have been at least a dead heat; but Phoebus
+Apollo was angry with him, and dashed his shining whip from his hand. He
+shed hot tears of fury, when he saw that the mares of Eumelus were still
+at their utmost speed, while his own horses slackened their speed, no
+longer feeling the lash. But, luckily for Diomedes, his constant friend
+Athene marked the trick of Apollo; and, speeding after Diomedes, she gave
+him back the scourge, and put fresh mettle into his steeds. She then
+pursued Eumelus, and brake the yoke of his horses; they bolted from the
+course, and he was hurled off his car into the dust. Meanwhile, Tydides
+rushed on before the others, for Athene was shedding glory on his head.
+
+Next to him ran the horses of Menelaus, son of Atreus. Then came
+Antilochus, son of Nestor, who spake thus to his father's Pylian horses:
+"I do not ask you to contend with Tydides, whose horses Athene herself is
+speeding; but I pray you to catch up the chariot of Atrides; and be not
+beaten by Aithe, lest she, who is only a mare, pour ridicule upon you."
+Thus spake Antilochus, and his horses were afraid, and sped on more
+swiftly. But Antilochus noted a narrow gully, where the rain had collected
+and had carried away a part of the course. There Menelaus was driving,
+when Antilochus turned his horses out of the way, and followed him at one
+side. Then Menelaus, fearing a collision, shouted loudly to the son of
+Nestor: "Antilochus, hold in thy horses! and drive not so recklessly!
+close ahead there is a wider space, where we can pass one another!" But
+Antilochus, as if he heard him not, drove on more madly than ever and
+plied the lash; and the golden-haired son of Atreus called again to him,
+reproving him: "Antilochus, there is no man more spiteful than thou; away
+with thee! wrongly have we called thee _wise_!" Then he called on his
+horses, and they increased their speed, fearing the anger of their lord,
+and quickly overtook the others.
+
+Now the Argive chiefs sat together, watching the race as the chariots flew
+along the course. The first to see them coming was Idomeneus, the Cretan
+prince, the son of Deucalion; he was sitting apart from the rest on the
+highest place, and he could distinguish the voices of the drivers. He
+noticed a chestnut horse, with a white star on his forehead, round like
+the full moon; and he stood up and spake: "Friends and Counselors of the
+Argives! can ye see the horses as I do? To me, there appeareth a new
+chariot and horses; and the mares which led at the start I can no longer
+see."
+
+Then the son of Oïleus, Ajax, rebuked him in boorish fashion: "Idomeneus,
+why chatterest thou before the time? Thou art not one of the youngest, nor
+are thine eyes of the sharpest. The same mares of Eumelus are still
+leading, and he is standing up in the chariot."
+
+And the great chief, Idomeneus, answered in great wrath, "Ajax, ever ready
+to abuse, inconsiderate slanderer! thou art in all respects inferior to
+the other Argives, for thy mind is rude."
+
+Thus spoke the Cretan hero. And the son of Oïleus rose again, to reply
+with scornful words; but Achilles himself stood forward and said, "No
+longer, Idomeneus and Ajax, bandy insulting words with one another; for it
+is not meet! Sit ye still, and watch; and soon will ye know which horses
+are leading." He spake; and straightway Tydides came driving up in his
+fair chariot, overlaid with gold and tin, which ran lightly behind the
+horses, and scarcely left a trace in the fine dust of the plain. Checking
+his horses in the middle of the crowd, he leapt to the ground and claimed
+the splendid prize; and the gallant Sthenelus made no delay, but gave to
+his victorious comrade the woman and the tripod to bear away.
+
+Next to Diomedes came the son of Nestor, Antilochus, who had passed by
+Menelaus by a clever stratagem, though his horses were inferior; but even
+so, Menelaus had pressed him hard, and was behind him only so far as a
+horse is from the wheel of the chariot which he draweth.
+
+But Meriones, the brave charioteer of Idomeneus, came in about the cast of
+a lance behind Menelaus; for his horses were the slowest, and he was
+himself but a sluggish driver. Last of all came Eumelus, the son of
+Admetus, dragging his broken chariot. The swift-footed Achilles, son of
+Peleus, pitied him, and spake winged words to the chiefs: "Lo! the best
+man of all comes last; but let us give him a prize--the second! And let
+Tydides bear away the first!"
+
+All the Achaians heard him, and shouted applause; and the noble Achilles
+would have given him the mare had not Antilochus, son of the wise and
+glorious Nestor, stood up in defense of his claim: "O Achilles!" he said,
+"justly shall I be wroth with thee, if thou takest away the prize which I
+have fairly won. Thou thinkest only of the unlucky chance which hath
+befallen Eumelus and his horses; but he ought to have made prayer to the
+deathless Gods, and then he would not have come in last of all. If thou
+pitiest him, there is much treasure in thy house,--gold, and bronze, and
+sheep, and handmaids, and horses. Give him, if it pleaseth thee and the
+Achaians, a still richer prize. But I will not give up the mare; for she
+is _mine_."
+
+And Achilles smiled on his comrade Antilochus, whom he dearly loved, and
+answered him, "Antilochus, I will do as thou sayest: I will give him the
+bronze cuirass, edged with shining tin, which I took from Asteropæus."
+
+But the great Menelaus arose, filled with insatiable wrath against
+Antilochus. The herald placed a sceptre in his hand, and called for
+silence. Then the godlike king made harangue, and said, "Antilochus! thou
+who wert once accounted wise--what is this that thou hast done? Thou hast
+disgraced my skill, and discomfited my horses, by thrusting thine, which
+are far worse, in front of them. Come then, great chiefs of the Argives!
+give judgment, without favor, between him and me! That no one may say
+hereafter, that ye favored me for my power and rank, I will myself set the
+issue before you; so that no one may reproach me. Stand forth, Antilochus,
+before thy chariot; and take thy whip, and lay thy hand upon thy horses,
+and swear by the great Girdler and Shaker of the Earth, that thou didst
+not, by set purpose and malice, hinder my chariot in the course!"
+
+Then Antilochus made prudent answer, "Be patient with me, King Menelaus!
+for I am younger, and thou art in all respects my better. Bear with me,
+then: and I will myself give thee the mare, my prize, rather than lose my
+place in thy heart, O thou beloved of Zeus!" Thus spake the noble-minded
+son of Nestor; and he gave the mare to Menelaus, king of men.
+
+And the heart of the son of Atreus rejoiced, as the ripe ears of corn,
+when the dew descendeth upon them, in the glistening cornfield. And he
+spake kindly to Antilochus, and said, "Lo! at once do I put away my anger;
+for of old thou wert never rash or light-minded; but now thy reason was
+overborne by the impetuosity of youth. Therefore I grant thy prayer, and
+will even give thee the mare; for I am in no wise covetous or
+unforgiving."
+
+He spake, and gave the mare to Noëmon, the comrade of Antilochus, to lead
+away; but he took the bright caldron to himself. And Meriones, who came in
+fourth, took the two talents of gold. But the fifth prize, a vase with two
+handles, was not obtained; and the noble Achilles gave this to Nestor,
+and, standing by him, uttered winged words:--
+
+"Let this, O Father! be for thee an heirloom, and a memorial of Patroclus'
+funeral games--of him, whom thou wilt never see again! I give it to thee
+since thou mayest not contend in boxing, nor in wrestling, nor in throwing
+the lance, nor in the foot-race; for rueful old age weigheth heavily upon
+thee."
+
+Nestor gladly received the splendid gift, and spake: "True and fitting are
+thy words, dear friend! My limbs are no longer sound, nor do my arms move
+easily from my shoulders; and I must make way for younger men. But I
+accept thy free gift with joy, and rejoice that thou dost remember our old
+friendship."
+
+Then Pelides brought forward the prizes for the rough, fierce
+boxing-match: a six-year-old unbroken mule for the winner; and a
+two-handled goblet for the loser. Then quickly rose the famous boxer
+Epeius, and laid his hand on the stubborn mule, and boasted aloud: "Let
+who will bear away the goblet; but the mule is mine! for no one will beat
+me with his fists!" They all kept silence, and feared. Only one came
+forward, even Euryalus, the gallant son of King Mecistus. The famous
+warrior Tydides made him ready for the fight, and bade him God speed. The
+twain went into the ring, and fell to work; and terrible was the gnashing
+of their teeth, and the sweat ran down from their limbs. Epeius came on
+fiercely, and struck Euryalus on the cheek, and that was enough; for all
+his limbs were loosened. As a fish on a weedy beach, in the ripple caused
+by Boreas, leapeth high in air, so Euryalus leapt up in his anguish. But
+the generous Epeius raised him again to his feet, and his comrades led him
+away, with dragging feet and drooping head, and spitting out black blood.
+
+Next came the terrible wrestling match; and for this the glorious Achilles
+brought out two costly prizes: for the winner, a fireproof tripod, worth
+twelve oxen; and for the loser, a woman skilled in handiwork, valued at
+four oxen. And he cried aloud to the Achaians, "Stand forward all ye who
+will enter into this contest!"
+
+Then rose Telamonian Ajax and the crafty Ulysses, and faced each other.
+And they entered the ring, and grasped each other with their strong hands,
+like the rafters of a house, joined by some skillful builder to withstand
+the wind. Their backbones grated and creaked beneath the strain; the sweat
+poured down from their limbs, and bloody weals streaked their sides and
+shoulders, as they struggled for the well-wrought tripod. But neither
+could Ulysses throw the burly Ajax, nor Ajax him. And when the Achaians
+grew tired of the futile contest, Ajax spake to Ulysses: "O thou offspring
+of the Gods, Laertes' son! do thou lift me, or I will lift thee, and the
+issue will be on the lap of Zeus!"
+
+So saying, he raised Ulysses. But the Wily One did not forget his craft.
+From behind, he struck the hollow of Ajax's knee, and threw him on his
+back; and Ulysses fell upon him; and the people marveled. Then, in his
+turn, Ulysses tried to lift huge Ajax, but could not; so he thrust his
+crooked knee into the hollow of the other's; and they again both fell to
+the ground, covered with dust. When they rose for a third bout, Achilles
+restrained them. "No longer wear ye one another out, with toil and pain!
+Ye both have won and shall receive equal prizes!" And they cleansed
+themselves, and put on their doublets.
+
+Then the noble son of Peleus offered prizes for the foot-race; the first,
+a silver krater holding six measures, curiously chased by Sidonian
+artists--by far the most beautiful mixing-cup in the whole world. For the
+second he offered a stalled ox; and for the third, half a talent of gold.
+The wondrous krater Phoenicians had brought by sea, and given it to Thoas,
+the ruler of Lemnos; and Euneus, son of Jason, inherited it from Jason,
+who received it from Thoas, his father-in-law; and Euneus gave it to the
+hero Patroclus, as a ransom for Lycaon, son of Priam; this splendid goblet
+was offered to the swiftest of foot.
+
+Then three valiant heroes arose: Ajax, son of Oïleus; Ulysses, the wily
+one; and Antilochus, the best runner of the youths. Achilles ranged them
+side by side, and showed them the goal. All started at full speed; but
+Ajax soon took the lead; and Ulysses came close behind him, near as the
+shuttle to the breast of a fair-girdled woman when she is weaving,--so
+near that his breath was warm on the back of Ajax. But as they neared the
+goal, the wily Ulysses prayed to the fierce-eyed Athene, "O goddess, come
+and help my feet!" And Athene heard her favorite, and strengthened all his
+limbs. But just as they were about to pounce upon the prize, Ajax slipped
+in the blood of the slaughtered oxen, and fell; his mouth and nostrils
+were filled with dirt and gore. So the patient Ulysses took the priceless
+krater, and Ajax the fatted ox. But Ajax, holding his prize by the horn,
+and spitting the filth from his mouth, spake to the Achaians: "O fie upon
+it! it was the goddess who betrayed me; she who is ever near to Ulysses,
+as a mother to her child." And the Achaians laughed merrily, to see him in
+such a sorry plight.
+
+Antilochus, smiling, took the last prize, half a talent of gold; and he
+too spake winged words to the Argives: "My friends, ye too will agree with
+me that the deathless Gods show favor to the older men. Ajax is a little
+older than I; but Ulysses is of a former generation. It were not easy for
+any one, except Achilles, fleet of foot, to outrun _him_."
+
+Achilles was pleased at the honor done to his swiftness. "Not unrewarded,"
+he said, "shall the praise be which thou hast bestowed on me: I give thee
+another half-talent of gold." Antilochus received it gladly. Then the
+assembly was dissolved, and the Achaians dispersed, each to his own ship.
+
+
+
+
+THE WOODEN HORSE AND THE FALL OF TROY
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+Nine years the Greeks laid siege to Troy, and Troy held out against every
+device. On both sides the lives of many heroes were spent, and they were
+forced to acknowledge each other enemies of great valor.
+
+Sometimes the chief warriors fought in single combat, while the armies
+looked on, and the old men of Troy, with the women, came out to watch afar
+off from the city walls. King Priam and Queen Hecuba would come, and
+Cassandra, sad with foreknowledge of their doom, and Andromache, the
+lovely young wife of Hector, with her little son, whom the people called
+the city's king. Sometimes fair Helen came to look across the plain to the
+fellow-countrymen whom she had forsaken; and although she was the cause of
+all this war, the Trojans half forgave her when she passed by, because her
+beauty was like a spell, and warmed hard hearts as the sunshine mellows
+apples. So for nine years the Greeks plundered the neighboring towns, but
+the city Troy stood fast, and the Grecian ships waited with folded wings.
+
+In the tenth year of the war the Greeks, who could not take the city by
+force, pondered how they might take it by craft. At length, with the aid
+of Ulysses, they devised a plan.
+
+A portion of the Grecian host broke up camp and set sail as if they were
+homeward bound; but, once out of sight, they anchored their ships behind a
+neighboring island. The rest of the army then fell to work upon a great
+image of a horse. They built it of wood, fitted and carved, and with a
+door so cunningly concealed that none might notice it. When it was
+finished the horse looked like a prodigious idol; but it was hollow,
+skillfully pierced here and there, and so spacious that a band of men
+could lie hidden within and take no harm. Into this hiding-place went
+Ulysses, Menelaus, and the other chiefs, fully armed, and when the door
+was shut upon them, the rest of the Grecian army broke camp and went away.
+
+[Illustration: A GREAT IMAGE OF A HORSE. THEY BUILT IT OF WOOD, FITTED AND
+CARVED, AND WITH A DOOR SO CUNNINGLY CONCEALED THAT NONE MIGHT NOTICE IT.
+WHEN IT WAS FINISHED THE HORSE LOOKED LIKE A PRODIGIOUS IDOL, BUT IT WAS
+HOLLOW, SKILLFULLY PIERCED HERE AND THERE]
+
+Meanwhile, in Troy, the people had seen the departure of the ships, and
+the news had spread like wildfire. The great enemy had lost heart,--after
+ten years of war! Part of the army had gone,--the rest were going. Already
+the last of the ships had set sail, and the camp was deserted. The tents
+that had whitened the plain were gone like a frost before the sun. The war
+was over!
+
+The whole city went wild with joy. Like one who has been a prisoner for
+many years, it flung off all restraint, and the people rose as a single
+man to test the truth of new liberty. The gates were thrown wide, and the
+Trojans--men, women, and children--thronged over the plain and into the
+empty camp of the enemy. There stood the Wooden Horse.
+
+No one knew what it could be. Fearful at first, they gathered around it,
+as children gather around a live horse; they marveled at its wondrous
+height and girth, and were for moving it into the city as a trophy of war.
+
+At this, one man interposed,--Laocoön, a priest of Neptune. "Take heed,
+citizens," said he. "Beware of all that comes from the Greeks. Have you
+fought them for ten years without learning their devices? This is some
+piece of treachery."
+
+But there was another outcry in the crowd, and at that moment certain of
+the Trojans dragged forward a wretched man who wore the garments of a
+Greek. He seemed the sole remnant of the Grecian army, and as such they
+consented to spare his life, if he would tell them the truth.
+
+Sinon, for this was the spy's name, said that he had been left behind by
+the malice of Ulysses, and he told them that the Greeks had built the
+Wooden Horse as an offering to Athene, and that they had made it so huge
+in order to keep it from being moved out of the camp, since it was
+destined to bring triumph to its possessors.
+
+At this the joy of the Trojans was redoubled, and they set their wits to
+find out how they might soonest drag the great horse across the plain and
+into the city to insure victory. While they stood talking, two immense
+serpents rose out of the sea and made towards the camp. Some of the people
+took flight, others were transfixed with terror; but all, near and far,
+watched this new omen. Rearing their crests, the sea-serpents crossed the
+shore, swift, shining, terrible as a risen water-flood that descends upon
+a helpless little town. Straight through the crowd they swept, and seized
+the priest Laocoön where he stood, with his two sons, and wrapped them all
+round and round in fearful coils. There was no chance of escape. Father
+and sons perished together; and when the monsters had devoured the three
+men, into the sea they slipped again, leaving no trace of the horror.
+
+The terrified Trojans saw an omen in this. To their minds punishment had
+come upon Laocoön for his words against the Wooden Horse. Surely, it was
+sacred to the Gods; he had spoken blasphemy, and had perished before their
+eyes. They flung his warning to the winds. They wreathed the horse with
+garlands, amid great acclaim; and then, all lending a hand, they dragged
+it, little by little, out of the camp and into the city of Troy. With the
+close of that victorious day, they gave up every memory of danger and made
+merry after ten years of privation.
+
+That very night Sinon the spy opened the hidden door of the Wooden Horse,
+and in the darkness, Ulysses, Menelaus, and the other chiefs who had lain
+hidden there crept out and gave the signal to the Grecian army. For, under
+cover of night, those ships that had been moored behind the island had
+sailed back again, and the Greeks were come upon Troy.
+
+Not a Trojan was on guard. The whole city was at feast when the enemy rose
+in its midst, and the warning of Laocoön was fulfilled.
+
+Priam and his warriors fell by the sword, and their kingdom was plundered
+of all its fair possessions, women and children and treasure. Last of all,
+the city itself was burned to its very foundations.
+
+Homeward sailed the Greeks, taking as royal captives poor Cassandra and
+Andromache and many another Trojan. And home at last went fair Helen, the
+cause of all this sorrow, eager to be forgiven by her husband, King
+Menelaus. For she had awakened from the enchantment of Venus, and even
+before the death of Paris she had secretly longed for her home and
+kindred. Home to Sparta she came with the king after a long and stormy
+voyage, and there she lived and died the fairest of women.
+
+But the kingdom of Troy was fallen. Nothing remained of all its glory but
+the glory of its dead heroes and fair women, and the ruins of its citadel
+by the river Scamander. There even now, beneath the foundations of later
+homes that were built and burned, built and burned, in the wars of a
+thousand years after, the ruins of ancient Troy lie hidden, like mouldered
+leaves deep under the new grass. And there, to this very day, men who love
+the story are delving after the dead city as you might search for a buried
+treasure.
+
+
+
+
+THE WANDERINGS OF ULYSSES
+
+
+AN ADVENTURE WITH THE CYCLOPS
+
+By Alfred J. Church
+
+
+    [After the fall of Troy the Greeks set out for home, but many of
+    them had troubles and dangers to meet before they saw again the
+    shores of their native land. The one who suffered most was
+    Ulysses, and the following is his story of his adventure with the
+    one-eyed giant, the Cyclops.]
+
+
+The wind that bore me from Troy brought me to Ismarus, a city of the
+Ciconians. This I sacked, slaying the people that dwelt therein. Much
+spoil did we take out of the city, dividing it among the people, so that
+each man had his share. And when we had done this, I commanded my men that
+they should depart with all speed; but they, in their folly, would not
+hear me. For there was much wine to drink, and sheep and kine to slay;
+therefore they sat on the shore and feasted. Meanwhile the people of the
+city fetched others, their kinsmen that dwelt in the mountains, and were
+more in number and more valiant than they, and skillful in all manner of
+fighting. In the early morning they assembled themselves together, thick
+as the flowers and the leaves that grow in the springtime, and set the
+battle in array. Then we fought with them; while the day waxed we
+prevailed over them, and beat them back, though they were more in number
+than we; but when the sun was descending in the heavens, then the Cicones
+overcame us, and drave us to our ships. Six from each ship perished, but
+the remnant of us escaped from death.
+
+On the tenth day after this we came to the land where the lotus grows--a
+wondrous fruit of which whosoever eats cares not to see country or wife or
+children again. Now the Lotus-Eaters, for they so called the people of the
+land, were a kindly folk, and gave of the fruit to some of the sailors,
+not meaning them any harm, but thinking it to be the best that they had to
+give. These, when they had eaten, said that they would not sail any more
+over the sea; which, when I heard, I bade their comrades bind them and
+carry them, sadly complaining, to the ships.
+
+Then, the wind having abated, we took to our oars, and rowed for many days
+till we came to the country where the Cyclops dwell. Now, a mile or so
+from the shore there was an island, very fair and fertile, but no man
+dwells there or tills the soil, and in the island a harbor where a ship
+may be safe from all winds, and at the head of the harbor a stream falling
+from a rock, and whispering alders all about it. Into this the ships
+passed safely, and were hauled up on the beach, and the crews slept by
+them, waiting for the morning.
+
+When the dawn appeared, then we wandered through the island; and the
+nymphs of the land started the wild goats that my company might have food
+to eat. Thereupon we took our bows and our spears from the ships, and shot
+at the goats; and the Gods gave us plenty of prey. Twelve ships I had in
+my company, and each ship had nine goats for its share, and my own portion
+was ten.
+
+Then all the day we sat and feasted, drinking the sweet wine which we had
+taken from the city of the Cicones, and eating the flesh of the goats; and
+as we sat we looked across to the land of the Cyclops, seeing the smoke
+and hearing the voices of the men and of the sheep and of the goats. And
+when the sun set and darkness came over the land, we lay down upon the
+seashore and slept.
+
+The next day I gathered my men together, and said, "Abide ye here, dear
+friends; I with my own ship and my own company will go and make trial of
+the folk that dwell in yonder island, whether they are just or unjust."
+
+So I climbed into my ship, and bade my company follow me; so we came to
+the land of the Cyclops. Close to the shore was a cave, with laurels round
+about the mouth. This was the dwelling of the Cyclops. Alone he dwelt, a
+creature without law. Nor was he like to mortal men, but rather to some
+wooded peak of the hills that stands out apart from all the rest.
+
+Then I bade the rest of my comrades abide by the ship, and keep it, but I
+took twelve men, the bravest that there were in the crew, and went forth.
+I had with me a goat-skin full of the wine, dark red, and sweet, which the
+priest of Apollo at Ismarus had given me. Because we kept him and his wife
+and child from harm when we sacked the city, reverencing the god,
+therefore did he give it me. Three things did he give me,--seven talents
+of gold, and a mixing-bowl of silver, and of wine twelve jars. So precious
+was it that none in his house knew of it saving himself and his wife and
+one dame that kept the house. When they drank of it they mixed twenty
+measures of water with one of wine, and the smell that went up from it was
+wondrous sweet. No man could easily refrain from drinking it. With this
+wine I filled a great skin and bore it with me; also I bare corn in a
+wallet, for my heart within me boded that I should need it.
+
+So we entered the cave, and judged that it was the dwelling of some rich
+and skillful shepherd. For within there were pens for the young of the
+sheep and of the goats, divided all according to their age, and there were
+baskets full of cheeses, and full milkpails ranged along the wall. But the
+Cyclops himself was away in the pastures. Then my companions besought me
+that I would depart, taking with me, if I would, a store of cheeses and
+sundry of the lambs and of the kids. But I would not, for I wished to see,
+after my wont, what manner of host this strange shepherd might be, and, if
+it might be, to take a gift from his hand, such as is the due of
+strangers. Verily, his coming was not to be a joy to my company.
+
+It was evening when the Cyclops came home,--a mighty giant, very tall of
+stature, and when we saw him we fled into the sacred place of the cave in
+great fear. On his shoulder he bore a vast bundle of pine logs for his
+fire, and threw them down outside the cave with a great crash, and drove
+the flocks within, and closed the entrance with a huge rock, which twenty
+wagons and more could not bear. Then he milked the ewes and all the
+she-goats, and half of the milk he curdled for cheese, and half he set
+ready for himself, when he should sup. Next he kindled a fire with the
+pine logs, and the flame lighted up all the cave, showing to him both me
+and my comrades.
+
+"Who are ye?" cried Polyphemus, for that was the giant's name. "Are ye
+traders, or, haply, pirates?"
+
+I shuddered at the dreadful voice and shape, but bare me bravely, and
+answered, "We are no pirates, mighty sir, but Greeks sailing back from
+Troy, and subjects of the great King Agamemnon, whose fame is spread from
+one end of heaven to the other. And we are come to beg hospitality of thee
+in the name of Zeus, who rewards or punishes hosts and guests, according
+as they be faithful the one to the other, or no."
+
+"Nay," said the giant; "it is but idle talk to tell me of Zeus and the
+other Gods. We Cyclops take no account of gods, holding ourselves to be
+much better and stronger than they. But come, tell me, where have you left
+your ship?"
+
+But I saw his thought when he asked about the ship, how he was minded to
+break it, and take from us all hope of flight. Therefore I answered him
+craftily,--
+
+"Ship have we none, for that which was ours King Neptune brake, driving it
+on a jutting rock on this coast, and we whom thou seest are all that are
+escaped from the waves."
+
+Polyphemus answered nothing, but without more ado caught up two of the
+men, as a man might catch up the whelps of a dog, and dashed them on the
+ground, and tare them limb from limb, and devoured them, with huge
+draughts of milk between, leaving not a morsel, not even the very bones.
+But we that were left, when we saw the dreadful deed, could only weep and
+pray to Zeus for help. And when the giant had filled his maw with human
+flesh and with the milk of the flocks, he lay down among his sheep and
+slept.
+
+Then I questioned much in my heart whether I should slay the monster as he
+slept, for I doubted not that my good sword would pierce to the giant's
+heart, mighty as he was. But my second thought kept me back, for I
+remembered that, should I slay him, I and my comrades would yet perish
+miserably. For who should move away the great rock that lay against the
+door of the cave? So we waited till the morning, with grief in our hearts.
+And the monster woke, and milked his flocks, and afterwards, seizing two
+men, devoured them for his meal. Then he went to the pastures, but put the
+great rock on the mouth of the cave, just as a man puts down the lid upon
+his quiver.
+
+All that day I was thinking what I might best do to save myself and my
+companions, and the end of my thinking was this: there was a mighty pole
+in the cave, green wood of an olive-tree, big as a ship's mast, which
+Polyphemus purposed to use, when the smoke should have dried it, as a
+walking-staff. Of this I cut off a fathom's length, and my comrades
+sharpened it and hardened it in the fire, and then hid it away. At evening
+the giant came back, and drove his sheep into the cave, nor left the rams
+outside, as he had been wont to do before, but shut them in. And having
+duly done his shepherd's work, he took, as before, two of my comrades, and
+devoured them. And when he had finished his supper, I came forward,
+holding the wineskin in my hand, and said,--
+
+"Drink, Cyclops, now that thou hast feasted. Drink, and see what precious
+things we had in our ship. But no one hereafter will come to thee with
+such like, if thou dealest with strangers as cruelly as thou hast dealt
+with us."
+
+Then the Cyclops drank, and was mightily pleased, and said, "Give me again
+to drink, and tell me thy name, stranger, and I will give thee a gift such
+as a host should give. In good truth this is a rare liquor. We, too, have
+vines, but they bear not wine like this, which, indeed, must be such as
+the Gods drink in heaven."
+
+Then I gave him the cup again, and he drank. Thrice I gave it to him, and
+thrice he drank, not knowing what it was, and how it would work within his
+brain.
+
+Then I spake to him: "Thou didst ask my name, Cyclops. My name is No Man.
+And now that thou knowest my name, thou shouldst give me thy gift."
+
+And he said, "My gift shall be that I will eat thee last of all thy
+company."
+
+And as he spake, he fell back in a drunken sleep. Then I bade my comrades
+be of good courage, for the time was come when they should be delivered.
+And they thrust the stake of olive-wood into the fire till it was ready,
+green as it was, to burst into flame, and they thrust it into the
+monster's eye; for he had but one eye, and that in the midst of his
+forehead, with the eyebrow below it. And I, standing above, leant with all
+my force upon the stake, and turned it about, as a man bores the timber of
+a ship with a drill. And the burning wood hissed in the eye, just as the
+red-hot iron hisses in the water when a man seeks to temper steel for a
+sword.
+
+Then the giant leapt up, and tore away the stake, and cried aloud, so that
+all the Cyclops who dwelt on the mountain-side heard him and came about
+his cave, asking him, "What aileth thee, Polyphemus, that thou makest this
+uproar in the peaceful night, driving away sleep? Is any one robbing thee
+of thy sheep, or seeking to slay thee by craft or force?"
+
+And the giant answered, "No Man slays me by craft."
+
+"Nay, but," they said, "if no man does thee wrong we cannot help thee. The
+sickness which great Zeus may send, who can avoid? Pray to our father,
+Neptune, for help."
+
+So they spake, and I laughed in my heart when I saw how I had beguiled
+them by the name that I had given.
+
+But the Cyclops rolled away the great stone from the door of the cave, and
+sat in the midst, stretching out his hands, to feel whether perchance the
+men within the cave would seek to go out among the sheep.
+
+Long did I think how I and my comrades should best escape. At last I
+lighted upon a device that seemed better than all the rest, and much I
+thanked Zeus for that this once the giant had driven the rams with the
+other sheep into the cave. For, these being great and strong, I fastened
+my comrades under the bellies of the beasts, tying them with osier twigs,
+of which the giant made his bed. One ram I took, and fastened a man
+beneath it, and two rams I set, one on either side. So I did with the six,
+for but six were left out of the twelve who had ventured with me from the
+ship. And there was one mighty ram far larger than all the others, and to
+this I clung, grasping the fleece tight with both my hands. So we all
+waited for the morning. And when the morning came, the rams rushed forth
+to the pasture; but the giant sat in the door and felt the back of each as
+it went by, nor thought to try what might be underneath. Last of all went
+the great ram. And the Cyclops knew him as he passed, and said,--
+
+"How is this, thou who art the leader of the flock? Thou art not wont thus
+to lag behind. Thou hast always been the first to run to the pastures and
+streams in the morning, and the first to come back to the fold when
+evening fell; and now thou art last of all. Perhaps thou art troubled
+about thy master's eye, which some wretch--No Man, they call him--has
+destroyed, having first mastered me with wine. He has not escaped, I ween.
+I would that thou couldst speak, and tell me where he is lurking. Of a
+truth, I would dash out his brains upon the ground, and avenge me of this
+No Man."
+
+So speaking, he let the ram pass out of the cave. But when we were now out
+of reach of the giant, I loosed my hold of the ram, and then unbound my
+comrades. And we hastened to our ship, not forgetting to drive the sheep
+before us, and often looking back till we came to the seashore. Right glad
+were those that had abode by the ship to see us. Nor did they lament for
+those that had died, though we were fain to do so, for I forbade, fearing
+lest the noise of their weeping should betray us to the giant, where we
+were. Then we all climbed into the ship, and sitting well in order on the
+benches smote the sea with our oars, laying to right lustily, that we
+might the sooner get away from the accursed land. And when we had rowed a
+hundred yards or so, so that a man's voice could yet be heard by one who
+stood upon the shore, I stood up in the ship and shouted,--
+
+"He was no coward, O Cyclops, whose comrades thou didst so foully slay in
+thy den. Justly art thou punished, monster, that devourest thy guests in
+thy dwelling. May the Gods make thee suffer worse things than these!"
+
+Then the Cyclops in his wrath brake off the top of a great hill, a mighty
+rock, and hurled it where he had heard the voice. Right in front of the
+ship's bow it fell, and a great wave rose as it sank, and washed the ship
+back to the shore. But I seized a long pole with both hands, and pushed
+the ship from the land, and bade my comrades ply their oars, nodding with
+my head, for I would not speak, lest the Cyclops should know where we
+were. Then they rowed with all their might and main.
+
+[Illustration: THE CYCLOPS IN HIS WRATH BRAKE OFF THE TOP OF A GREAT HILL]
+
+And when we had gotten twice as far as before I made as if I would speak
+again; but my comrades sought to hinder me, saying, "Nay, my lord, anger
+not the giant any more. Surely we thought we were lost before, when he
+threw the great rock, and washed our ship back to the shore. And if he
+hear thee now, he may crush our ship and us, for the man throws a mighty
+bolt, and throws it far."
+
+But I would not be persuaded, but stood up and said, "Hear, Cyclops! If
+any man ask who blinded thee, say that it was the warrior Ulysses, son of
+Laertes, dwelling in Ithaca."
+
+
+
+
+CIRCE'S PALACE
+
+By Nathaniel Hawthorne
+
+
+At one time in the course of Ulysses' weary voyage, he arrived at an
+island that looked very green and pleasant, but the name of which was
+unknown to him. For, only a little while before he came thither, he had
+met with a terrible hurricane, or rather a great many hurricanes at once,
+which drove his fleet of vessels into a strange part of the sea, where
+neither himself nor any of his mariners had ever sailed. This misfortune
+was entirely owing to the foolish curiosity of his shipmates, who, while
+Ulysses lay asleep, had untied some very bulky leathern bags, in which
+they supposed a valuable treasure to be concealed. But in each of these
+stout bags, King Æolus, the ruler of the winds, had tied up a tempest, and
+had given it to Ulysses to keep, in order that he might be sure of a
+favorable passage homeward to Ithaca; and when the strings were loosened,
+forth rushed the whistling blasts, like air out of a blown bladder,
+whitening the sea with foam, and scattering the vessels nobody could tell
+whither.
+
+Immediately after escaping from this peril, a still greater one had
+befallen him. Scudding before the hurricane, he reached a place which, as
+he afterwards found, was called Læstrygonia, where some monstrous giants
+had eaten up many of his companions, and had sunk every one of his
+vessels, except that in which he himself sailed, by flinging great masses
+of rock at them, from the cliffs along the shore. After going through such
+troubles as these, you cannot wonder that King Ulysses was glad to moor
+his tempest-beaten bark in a quiet cove of the green island, which I began
+with telling you about. But he had encountered so many dangers from
+giants, and one-eyed Cyclops, and monsters of the sea and land, that he
+could not help dreading some mischief, even in this pleasant and seemingly
+solitary spot. For two days, therefore, the poor weather-worn voyagers
+kept quiet, and either stayed on board of their vessel or merely crept
+along under cliffs that bordered the shore; and to keep themselves alive,
+they dug shell-fish out of the sand, and sought for any little rill of
+fresh water that might be running towards the sea.
+
+Before the two days were spent, they grew very weary of this kind of life;
+for the followers of King Ulysses, as you will find it important to
+remember, were terrible gormandizers, and pretty sure to grumble if they
+missed their regular meals, and their irregular ones besides. Their stock
+of provisions was quite exhausted, and even the shell-fish began to get
+scarce, so that they had now to choose between starving to death or
+venturing into the interior of the island, where, perhaps, some huge
+three-headed dragon or other horrible monster had his den. Such misshapen
+creatures were very numerous in those days; and nobody ever expected to
+make a voyage or take a journey without running more or less risk of being
+devoured by them.
+
+But King Ulysses was a bold man as well as a prudent one; and on the third
+morning he determined to discover what sort of a place the island was, and
+whether it were possible to obtain a supply of food for the hungry mouths
+of his companions. So, taking a spear in his hand, he clambered to the
+summit of a cliff, and gazed round about him. At a distance, towards the
+centre of the island, he beheld the stately towers of what seemed to be a
+palace, built of snow-white marble, and rising in the midst of a grove of
+lofty trees. The thick branches of these trees stretched across the front
+of the edifice, and more than half concealed it, although, from the
+portion which he saw, Ulysses judged it to be spacious and exceedingly
+beautiful, and probably the residence of some great nobleman or prince. A
+blue smoke went curling up from the chimney, and was almost the
+pleasantest part of the spectacle to Ulysses. For, from the abundance of
+this smoke, it was reasonable to conclude that there was a good fire in
+the kitchen, and that, at dinnertime, a plentiful banquet would be served
+up to the inhabitants of the palace, and to whatever guests might happen
+to drop in.
+
+With so agreeable a prospect before him, Ulysses fancied that he could not
+do better than to go straight to the palace gate, and tell the master of
+it that there was a crew of poor shipwrecked mariners, not far off, who
+had eaten nothing for a day or two save a few clams and oysters, and would
+therefore be thankful for a little food. And the prince or nobleman must
+be a very stingy curmudgeon, to be sure, if, at least, when his own dinner
+was over, he would not bid them welcome to the broken victuals from the
+table.
+
+Pleasing himself with this idea, King Ulysses had made a few steps in the
+direction of the palace, when there was a great twittering and chirping
+from the branch of a neighboring tree. A moment afterwards, a bird came
+flying towards him, and hovered in the air, so as almost to brush his face
+with its wings. It was a very pretty little bird, with purple wings and
+body, and yellow legs, and a circle of golden feathers round its neck, and
+on its head a golden tuft, which looked like a king's crown in miniature.
+Ulysses tried to catch the bird. But it fluttered nimbly out of his reach,
+still chirping in a piteous tone, as if it could have told a lamentable
+story, had it only been gifted with human language. And when he attempted
+to drive it away, the bird flew no farther than the bough of the next
+tree, and again came fluttering about his head, with its doleful chirp, as
+soon as he showed a purpose of going forward.
+
+"Have you anything to tell me, little bird?" asked Ulysses.
+
+And he was ready to listen attentively to whatever the bird might
+communicate; for at the siege of Troy and elsewhere he had known such odd
+things to happen that he would not have considered it much out of the
+common run had this little feathered creature talked as plainly as
+himself.
+
+"Peep!" said the bird. "Peep, peep, pe--weep!" And nothing else would it
+say, but only, "Peep, peep, pe--weep!" in a melancholy cadence, and over
+and over and over again. As often as Ulysses moved forward, however, the
+bird showed the greatest alarm, and did its best to drive him back, with
+the anxious flutter of its purple wings. Its unaccountable behavior made
+him conclude, at last, that the bird knew of some danger that awaited him,
+and which must needs be very terrible, beyond all question, since it moved
+even a little fowl to feel compassion for a human being. So he resolved,
+for the present, to return to the vessel, and tell his companions what he
+had seen.
+
+This appeared to satisfy the bird. As soon as Ulysses turned back, it ran
+up the trunk of a tree, and began to pick insects out of the bark with its
+long, sharp bill; for it was a kind of woodpecker, you must know, and had
+to get its living in the same manner as other birds of that species. But
+every little while, as it pecked at the bark of the tree, the purple bird
+bethought itself of some secret sorrow, and repeated its plaintive note of
+"Peep, peep, pe--weep!"
+
+On his way to the shore, Ulysses had the good luck to kill a large stag by
+thrusting his spear into its back. Taking it on his shoulders (for he was
+a remarkably strong man), he lugged it along with him, and flung it down
+before his hungry companions. I have already hinted to you what
+gormandizers some of the comrades of King Ulysses were. From what is
+related of them, I reckon that their favorite diet was pork, and that they
+had lived upon it until a good part of their physical substance was
+swine's flesh, and their tempers and dispositions were very much akin to
+the hog. A dish of venison, however, was no unacceptable meal to them,
+especially after feeding so long on oysters and clams. So, beholding the
+dead stag, they felt of its ribs in a knowing way, and lost no time in
+kindling a fire, of drift-wood, to cook it. The rest of the day was spent
+in feasting; and if these enormous eaters got up from table at sunset, it
+was only because they could not scrape another morsel off the poor
+animal's bones.
+
+The next morning their appetites were as sharp as ever. They looked at
+Ulysses, as if they expected him to clamber up the cliff again, and come
+back with another fat deer upon his shoulders. Instead of setting out,
+however, he summoned the whole crew together, and told them it was in vain
+to hope that he could kill a stag every day for their dinner, and
+therefore it was advisable to think of some other mode of satisfying their
+hunger.
+
+"Now," said he, "when I was on the cliff yesterday, I discovered that this
+island is inhabited. At a considerable distance from the shore stood a
+marble palace, which appeared to be very spacious, and had a great deal of
+smoke curling out of one of its chimneys."
+
+"Aha!" muttered some of his companions, smacking their lips. "That smoke
+must have come from the kitchen fire. There was a good dinner on the spit;
+and no doubt there will be as good a one to-day."
+
+"But," continued the wise Ulysses, "you must remember, my good friends,
+our misadventure in the cavern of one-eyed Polyphemus, the Cyclops!
+Instead of his ordinary milk diet, did he not eat up two of our comrades
+for his supper, and a couple more for breakfast, and two at his supper
+again? Methinks I see him yet, the hideous monster, scanning us with that
+great red eye, in the middle of his forehead, to single out the fattest.
+And then again, only a few days ago, did we not fall into the hands of the
+king of the Læstrygons, and those other horrible giants, his subjects, who
+devoured a great many more of us than are now left? To tell you the truth,
+if we go to yonder palace, there can be no question that we shall make our
+appearance at the dinner-table; but whether seated as guests or served up
+as food, is a point to be seriously considered."
+
+"Either way," murmured some of the hungriest of the crew, "it will be
+better than starvation; particularly if one could be sure of being well
+fattened beforehand and daintily cooked afterwards."
+
+"That is a matter of taste," said King Ulysses, "and, for my own part,
+neither the most careful fattening nor the daintiest of cookery would
+reconcile me to being dished at last. My proposal is, therefore, that we
+divide ourselves into two equal parties, and ascertain, by drawing lots,
+which of the two shall go to the palace, and beg for food and assistance.
+If these can be obtained, all is well. If not, and if the inhabitants
+prove as inhospitable as Polyphemus or the Læstrygons, then there will but
+half of us perish, and the remainder may set sail and escape."
+
+As nobody objected to this scheme, Ulysses proceeded to count the whole
+band, and found that there were forty-six men, including himself. He then
+numbered off twenty-two of them, and put Eurylochus (who was one of his
+chief officers, and second only to himself in sagacity) at their head.
+Ulysses took command of the remaining twenty-two men, in person. Then,
+taking off his helmet, he put two shells into it, on one of which was
+written, "Go," and on the other, "Stay." Another person now held the
+helmet, while Ulysses and Eurylochus drew out each a shell; and the word
+"Go" was found written on that which Eurylochus had drawn. In this manner
+it was decided that Ulysses and his twenty-two men were to remain at the
+seaside until the other party should have found out what sort of treatment
+they might expect at the mysterious palace. As there was no help for it,
+Eurylochus immediately set forth at the head of his twenty-two followers,
+who went off in a very melancholy state of mind, leaving their friends in
+hardly better spirits than themselves.
+
+No sooner had they clambered up the cliff, than they discerned the tall
+marble towers of the palace, ascending, as white as snow, out of the
+lovely green shadow of the trees which surrounded it. A gush of smoke came
+from a chimney in the rear of the edifice. This vapor rose high in the
+air, and meeting with a breeze, was wafted seaward, and made to pass over
+the heads of the hungry mariners. When people's appetites are keen, they
+have a very quick scent for anything savory in the wind.
+
+"That smoke comes from the kitchen!" cried one of them, turning up his
+nose as high as he could, and snuffing eagerly. "And, as sure as I'm a
+half-starved vagabond, I smell roast meat in it."
+
+"Pig, roast pig!" said another. "Ah, the dainty little porker! My mouth
+waters for him."
+
+"Let us make haste," cried the others, "or we shall be too late for the
+good cheer!"
+
+But scarcely had they made half a dozen steps from the edge of the cliff,
+when a bird came fluttering to meet them. It was the same pretty little
+bird, with the purple wings and body, the yellow legs, the golden collar
+round its neck, and the crown-like tuft upon its head, whose behavior had
+so much surprised Ulysses. It hovered about Eurylochus, and almost brushed
+his face with its wings.
+
+"Peep, peep, pe--weep!" chirped the bird.
+
+So plaintively intelligent was the sound, that it seemed as if the little
+creature were going to break its heart with some mighty secret that it had
+to tell, and only this one poor note to tell it with.
+
+"My pretty bird," said Eurylochus,--for he was a wary person, and let no
+token of harm escape his notice,--"my pretty bird, who sent you hither?
+And what is the message which you bring?"
+
+"Peep, peep, pe--weep!" replied the bird, very sorrowfully.
+
+Then it flew towards the edge of the cliff, and looked round at them, as
+if exceedingly anxious that they should return whence they came.
+Eurylochus and a few of the others were inclined to turn back. They could
+not help suspecting that the purple bird must be aware of something
+mischievous that would befall them at the palace, and the knowledge of
+which affected its airy spirit with a human sympathy and sorrow. But the
+rest of the voyagers, snuffing up the smoke from the palace kitchen,
+ridiculed the idea of returning to the vessel. One of them (more brutal
+than his fellows, and the most notorious gormandizer in the whole crew)
+said such a cruel and wicked thing, that I wonder the mere thought did not
+turn him into a wild beast in shape, as he already was in his nature.
+
+"This troublesome and impertinent little fowl," said he, "would make a
+delicate titbit to begin dinner with. Just one plump morsel, melting away
+between the teeth. If he comes within my reach, I'll catch him, and give
+him to the palace cook to be roasted on a skewer."
+
+The words were hardly out of his mouth, before the purple bird flew away,
+crying, "Peep, peep, pe--weep," more dolorously than ever.
+
+"That bird," remarked Eurylochus, "knows more than we do about what awaits
+us at the palace."
+
+"Come on, then," cried his comrades, "and we'll soon know as much as he
+does."
+
+The party, accordingly, went onward through the green and pleasant wood.
+Every little while they caught new glimpses of the marble palace, which
+looked more and more beautiful the nearer they approached it. They soon
+entered a broad pathway, which seemed to be very neatly kept, and which
+went winding along with streaks of sunshine falling across it, and specks
+of light quivering among the deepest shadows that fell from the lofty
+trees. It was bordered, too, with a great many sweet-smelling flowers,
+such as the mariners had never seen before. So rich and beautiful they
+were that, if the shrubs grew wild here and were native in the soil, then
+this island was surely the flower-garden of the whole earth; or, if
+transplanted from some other clime, it must have been from the Happy
+Islands that lay towards the golden sunset.
+
+"There has been a great deal of pains foolishly wasted on these flowers,"
+observed one of the company; and I tell you what he said, that you may
+keep in mind what gormandizers they were. "For my part, if I were the
+owner of the palace, I would bid my gardener cultivate nothing but savory
+potherbs to make a stuffing for roast meat, or to flavor a stew with."
+
+"Well said!" cried the others. "But I'll warrant you there's a kitchen
+garden in the rear of the palace."
+
+At one place they came to a crystal spring, and paused to drink at it for
+want of liquor which they liked better. Looking into its bosom, they
+beheld their own faces dimly reflected, but so extravagantly distorted by
+the gush and motion of the water, that each one of them appeared to be
+laughing at himself and all his companions. So ridiculous were these
+images of themselves, indeed, that they did really laugh aloud, and could
+hardly be grave again as soon as they wished. And after they had drunk,
+they grew still merrier than before.
+
+"It has a twang of the wine-cask in it," said one, smacking his lips.
+
+"Make haste!" cried his fellows; "we'll find the wine-cask itself at the
+palace; and that will be better than a hundred crystal fountains."
+
+Then they quickened their pace, and capered for joy at the thought of the
+savory banquet at which they hoped to be guests. But Eurylochus told them
+that he felt as if he were walking in a dream.
+
+"If I am really awake," continued he, "then, in my opinion, we are on the
+point of meeting with some stranger adventure than any that befell us in
+the cave of Polyphemus, or among the gigantic man-eating Læstrygons, or in
+the windy palace of King Æolus, which stands on a brazen-walled island.
+This kind of dreamy feeling always comes over me before any wonderful
+occurrence. If you take my advice, you will turn back."
+
+"No, no," answered his comrades, snuffing the air, in which the scent from
+the palace kitchen was now very perceptible. "We would not turn back,
+though we were certain that the king of the Læstrygons, as big as a
+mountain, would sit at the head of the table, and huge Polyphemus, the
+one-eyed Cyclops, at its foot."
+
+At length they came within full sight of the palace, which proved to be
+very large and lofty, with a great number of airy pinnacles upon its roof.
+Though it was now midday, and the sun shone brightly over the marble
+front, yet its snowy whiteness and its fantastic style of architecture
+made it look unreal, like the frostwork on a window-pane, or like the
+shapes of castles which one sees among the clouds by moonlight. But just
+then a puff of wind brought down the smoke of the kitchen chimney among
+them, and caused each man to smell the odor of the dish that he liked
+best; and, after scenting it, they thought everything else moonshine, and
+nothing real save this palace, and save the banquet that was evidently
+ready to be served up in it.
+
+So they hastened their steps towards the portal, but had not got half-way
+across the wide lawn, when a pack of lions, tigers, and wolves came
+bounding to meet them. The terrified mariners started back, expecting no
+better fate than to be torn to pieces and devoured. To their surprise and
+joy, however, these wild beasts merely capered around them, wagging their
+tails, offering their heads to be stroked and patted, and behaving just
+like so many well-bred house-dogs, when they wish to express their delight
+at meeting their master or their master's friends. The biggest lion licked
+the feet of Eurylochus; and every other lion, and every wolf and tiger,
+singled out one of his two and twenty followers, whom the beast fondled as
+if he loved him better than a beef-bone.
+
+But, for all that, Eurylochus imagined that he saw something fierce and
+savage in their eyes; nor would he have been surprised, at any moment, to
+feel the big lion's terrible claws, or to see each of the tigers make a
+deadly spring, or each wolf leap at the throat of the man whom he had
+fondled. Their mildness seemed unreal, and a mere freak; but their savage
+nature was as true as their teeth and claws.
+
+Nevertheless, the men went safely across the lawn with the wild beasts
+frisking about them, and doing no manner of harm; although, as they
+mounted the steps of the palace, you might possibly have heard a low
+growl, particularly from the wolves, as if they thought it a pity, after
+all, to let the strangers pass without so much as tasting what they were
+made of.
+
+Eurylochus and his followers now passed under a lofty portal, and looked
+through the open doorway into the interior of the palace. The first thing
+that they saw was a spacious hall, and a fountain in the middle of it,
+gushing up towards the ceiling out of a marble basin, and falling back
+into it with a continual plash. The water of this fountain, as it spouted
+upward, was constantly taking new shapes, not very distinctly, but plainly
+enough for a nimble fancy to recognize what they were. Now it was the
+shape of a man in a long robe, the fleecy whiteness of which was made out
+of the fountain's spray; now it was a lion, or a tiger, or a wolf, or an
+ass, or, as often as anything else, a hog, wallowing in the marble basin
+as if it were his sty. It was either magic or some very curious machinery
+that caused the gushing waterspout to assume all these forms. But, before
+the strangers had time to look closely at this wonderful sight, their
+attention was drawn off by a very sweet and agreeable sound. A woman's
+voice was singing melodiously in another room of the palace, and with her
+voice was mingled the noise of a loom, at which she was probably seated,
+weaving a rich texture of cloth, and intertwining the high and low
+sweetness of her voice into a rich tissue of harmony.
+
+By and by the song came to an end; and then, all at once, there were
+several feminine voices, talking airily and cheerfully, with now and then
+a merry burst of laughter, such as you may always hear when three or four
+young women sit at work together.
+
+"What a sweet song that was!" exclaimed one of the voyagers.
+
+"Too sweet, indeed," answered Eurylochus, shaking his head. "Yet it was
+not so sweet as the song of the Sirens, those birdlike damsels who wanted
+to tempt us on the rocks, so that our vessel might be wrecked, and our
+bones left whitening along the shore."
+
+"But just listen to the pleasant voices of those maidens, and that buzz of
+the loom, as the shuttle passes to and fro," said another comrade. "What a
+domestic, household, homelike sound it is! Ah, before that weary siege of
+Troy, I used to hear the buzzing loom and the women's voices under my own
+roof. Shall I never hear them again? nor taste those nice little savory
+dishes which my dearest wife knew how to serve up?"
+
+"Tush! we shall fare better here," said another. "But how innocently those
+women are babbling together, without guessing that we overhear them! And
+mark that richest voice of all, so pleasant and familiar, but which yet
+seems to have the authority of a mistress among them. Let us show
+ourselves at once. What harm can the lady of the palace and her maidens do
+to mariners and warriors like us?"
+
+"Remember," said Eurylochus, "that it was a young maiden who beguiled
+three of our friends into the palace of the king of the Læstrygons, who
+ate up one of them in the twinkling of an eye."
+
+No warning or persuasion, however, had any effect on his companions. They
+went up to a pair of folding-doors at the farther end of the hall, and,
+throwing them wide open, passed into the next room. Eurylochus, meanwhile,
+had stepped behind a pillar. In the short moment while the folding-doors
+opened and closed again, he caught a glimpse of a very beautiful woman
+rising from the loom and coming to meet the poor weather-beaten wanderers,
+with a hospitable smile and her hand stretched out in welcome. There were
+four other young women, who joined their hands and danced merrily forward,
+making gestures of obeisance to the strangers. They were only less
+beautiful than the lady who seemed to be their mistress. Yet Eurylochus
+fancied that one of them had sea-green hair, and that the close-fitting
+bodice of a second looked like the bark of a tree, and that both the
+others had something odd in their aspect, although he could not quite
+determine what it was, in the little while that he had to examine them.
+
+The folding-doors swung quickly back, and left him standing behind the
+pillar, in the solitude of the outer hall. There Eurylochus waited until
+he was quite weary, and listened eagerly to every sound, but without
+hearing anything that could help him to guess what had become of his
+friends. Footsteps, it is true, seemed to be passing and repassing in
+other parts of the palace. Then there was a clatter of silver dishes, or
+golden ones, which made him imagine a rich feast in a splendid
+banqueting-hall. But by and by he heard a tremendous grunting and
+squealing, and then a sudden scampering, like that of small, hard hoofs
+over a marble floor, while the voices of the mistress and her four
+handmaidens were screaming all together, in tones of anger and derision.
+Eurylochus could not conceive what had happened, unless a drove of swine
+had broken into the palace, attracted by the smell of the feast. Chancing
+to cast his eyes at the fountain, he saw that it did not shift its shape,
+as formerly, nor looked either like a long-robed man, or a lion, a tiger,
+a wolf, or an ass. It looked like nothing but a hog, which lay wallowing
+in the marble basin, and filled it from brim to brim.
+
+But we must leave the prudent Eurylochus waiting in the outer hall, and
+follow his friends into the inner secrecy of the palace. As soon as the
+beautiful woman saw them, she arose from the loom, as I have told you, and
+came forward, smiling, and stretching out her hand. She took the hand of
+the foremost among them, and bade him and the whole party welcome.
+
+"You have been long expected, my good friends," said she. "I and my
+maidens are well acquainted with you, although you do not appear to
+recognize us. Look at this piece of tapestry, and judge if your faces must
+not have been familiar to us."
+
+So the voyagers examined the web of cloth which the beautiful woman had
+been weaving in her loom; and to their vast astonishment they saw their
+own figures perfectly represented in different colored threads. It was a
+lifelike picture of their recent adventures, showing them in the cave of
+Polyphemus, and how they had put out his one great moony eye; while in
+another part of the tapestry they were untying the leathern bags, puffed
+out with contrary winds; and farther on, they beheld themselves scampering
+away from the gigantic king of the Læstrygons, who had caught one of them
+by the leg. Lastly, there they were, sitting on the desolate shore of this
+very island, hungry and downcast, and looking ruefully at the bare bones
+of the stag which they devoured yesterday. This was as far as the work had
+yet proceeded; but when the beautiful woman should again sit down at her
+loom, she would probably make a picture of what had since happened to the
+strangers, and of what was now going to happen.
+
+"You see," she said, "that I know all about your troubles; and you cannot
+doubt that I desire to make you happy for as long a time as you may remain
+with me. For this purpose, my honored guests, I have ordered a banquet to
+be prepared. Fish, fowl, and flesh, roasted, and in luscious stews, and
+seasoned, I trust, to all your tastes, are ready to be served up. If your
+appetites tell you it is dinner-time, then come with me to the festal
+saloon."
+
+At this kind invitation, the hungry mariners were quite overjoyed; and one
+of them, taking upon himself to be spokesman, assured their hospitable
+hostess that any hour of the day was dinner-time with them, whenever they
+could get flesh to put in the pot, and fire to boil it with. So the
+beautiful woman led the way; and the four maidens (one of them had
+sea-green hair, another a bodice of oak-bark, a third sprinkled a shower
+of water-drops from her fingers' ends, and the fourth had some other
+oddity, which I have forgotten), all these followed behind, and hurried
+the guests along, until they entered a magnificent saloon. It was built in
+a perfect oval, and lighted from a crystal dome above. Around the walls
+were ranged two and twenty thrones, overhung by canopies of crimson and
+gold, and provided with the softest of cushions, which were tasseled and
+fringed with gold cord. Each of the strangers was invited to sit down; and
+there they were, two and twenty storm-beaten mariners, in worn and
+tattered garb, sitting on two and twenty cushioned and canopied thrones,
+so rich and gorgeous that the proudest monarch had nothing more splendid
+in his stateliest hall.
+
+Then you might have seen the guests nodding, winking with one eye, and
+leaning from one throne to another, to communicate their satisfaction in
+hoarse whispers.
+
+"Our good hostess has made kings of us all," said one. "Ha! do you smell
+the feast? I'll engage it will be fit to set before two-and-twenty kings."
+
+"I hope," said another, "it will be, mainly, good substantial joints,
+sirloins, spareribs, and hinder quarters, without too many kickshaws. If I
+thought the good lady would not take it amiss, I should call for a fat
+slice of fried bacon to begin with."
+
+Ah, the gluttons and gormandizers! You see how it was with them. In the
+loftiest seats of dignity, on royal thrones, they could think of nothing
+but their greedy appetite, which was the portion of their nature that they
+shared with wolves and swine; so that they resembled those vilest of
+animals far more than they did kings,--if, indeed, kings were what they
+ought to be.
+
+But the beautiful woman now clapped her hands; and immediately there
+entered a train of two and twenty serving-men, bringing dishes of the
+richest food, all hot from the kitchen fire, and sending up such a steam
+that it hung like a cloud below the crystal dome of the saloon. An equal
+number of attendants brought great flagons of wine, of various kinds, some
+of which sparkled as it was poured out, and went bubbling down the throat;
+while, of other sorts, the purple liquor was so clear that you could see
+the wrought figures at the bottom of the goblet. While the servants
+supplied the two and twenty guests with food and drink, the hostess and
+her four maidens went from one throne to another, exhorting them to eat
+their fill, and to quaff wine abundantly, and thus to recompense
+themselves, at this one banquet, for the many days when they had gone
+without a dinner. But, whenever the mariners were not looking at them
+(which was pretty often, as they looked chiefly into the basins and
+platters), the beautiful woman and her damsels turned aside and laughed.
+Even the servants, as they knelt down to present the dishes, might be seen
+to grin and sneer, while the guests were helping themselves to the offered
+dainties.
+
+And once in a while the strangers seemed to taste something that they did
+not like.
+
+"Here is an odd kind of a spice in this dish," said one. "I can't say it
+quite suits my palate. Down it goes, however."
+
+"Send a good draught of wine down your throat," said his comrade on the
+next throne. "That is the stuff to make this sort of cookery relish well.
+Though I must needs say, the wine has a queer taste too. But the more I
+drink of it the better I like the flavor."
+
+Whatever little fault they might find with the dishes, they sat at dinner
+a prodigiously long while; and it would really have made you ashamed to
+see how they swilled down the liquor and gobbled up the food. They sat, on
+golden thrones, to be sure; but they behaved like pigs in a sty, and, if
+they had had their wits about them, they might have guessed that this was
+the opinion of their beautiful hostess and her maidens. It brings a blush
+into my face to reckon up, in my own mind, what mountains of meat and
+pudding, and what gallons of wine, these two and twenty guzzlers and
+gormandizers ate and drank. They forgot all about their homes, and their
+wives, and children, and all about Ulysses, and everything else, except
+this banquet, at which they wanted to keep feasting forever. But at length
+they began to give over, from mere incapacity to hold any more.
+
+"That last bit of fat is too much for me," said one.
+
+"And I have not room for another morsel," said his next neighbor, heaving
+a sigh. "What a pity! My appetite is as sharp as ever."
+
+In short, they all left off eating, and leaned back on their thrones, with
+such a stupid and helpless aspect as made them ridiculous to behold. When
+their hostess saw this, she laughed aloud; so did her four damsels; so did
+the two-and-twenty serving men that bore the dishes, and their
+two-and-twenty fellows that poured out the wine. And the louder they all
+laughed, the more stupid and helpless did the two-and-twenty gormandizers
+look. Then the beautiful woman took her stand in the middle of the saloon,
+and stretching out a slender rod (it had been all the while in her hand,
+although they never noticed it till this moment), she turned it from one
+guest to another, until each had felt it pointed at himself. Beautiful as
+her face was, and though there was a smile on it, it looked just as wicked
+and mischievous as the ugliest serpent that ever was seen; and fat-witted
+as the voyagers had made themselves, they began to suspect that they had
+fallen into the power of an evil-minded enchantress.
+
+"Wretches," cried she, "you have abused a lady's hospitality; and in this
+princely saloon your behavior has been suited to a hogpen. You are already
+swine in everything but the human form, which you disgrace, and which I
+myself should be ashamed to keep a moment longer, were you to share it
+with me. But it will require only the slightest exercise of magic to make
+the exterior conform to the hoggish disposition. Assume your proper
+shapes, gormandizers, and begone to the sty!"
+
+Uttering these last words, she waved her wand; and stamping her foot
+imperiously, each of the guests was struck aghast at beholding, instead of
+his comrades in human shape, one and twenty hogs sitting on the same
+number of golden thrones. Each man (as he still supposed himself to be)
+essayed to give a cry of surprise, but found that he could merely grunt,
+and that, in a word, he was just such another beast as his companions. It
+looked so intolerably absurd to see hogs on cushioned thrones, that they
+made haste to wallow down upon all fours, like other swine. They tried to
+groan and beg for mercy, but forthwith emitted the most awful grunting and
+squealing that ever came out of swinish throats. They would have wrung
+their hands in despair, but, attempting to do so, grew all the more
+desperate for seeing themselves squatted on their hams, and pawing the air
+with their fore trotters. Dear me! what pendulous ears they had! what
+little red eyes, half buried in fat! and what long snouts, instead of
+Grecian noses!
+
+But brutes as they certainly were, they yet had enough of human nature in
+them to be shocked at their own hideousness; and still intending to groan,
+they uttered a viler grunt and squeal than before. So harsh and
+ear-piercing it was, that you would have fancied a butcher was sticking
+his knife into each of their throats, or, at the very least, that somebody
+was pulling every hog by his funny little twist of a tail.
+
+"Begone to your sty!" cried the enchantress, giving them some smart
+strokes with her wand; and then she turned to the serving-men. "Drive out
+these swine, and throw down some acorns for them to eat."
+
+The door of the saloon being flung open, the drove of hogs ran in all
+directions save the right one, in accordance with their hoggish
+perversity, but were finally driven into the back yard of the palace. It
+was a sight to bring tears into one's eyes (and I hope none of you will be
+cruel enough to laugh at it) to see the poor creatures go snuffing along,
+picking up here a cabbage leaf and there a turnip-top, and rooting their
+noses in the earth for whatever they could find. In their sty, moreover,
+they behaved more piggishly than the pigs that had been born so; for they
+bit and snorted at one another, put their feet in the trough, and gobbled
+up their victuals in a ridiculous hurry; and, when there was nothing more
+to be had, they made a great pile of themselves among some unclean straw
+and fell fast asleep. If they had any human reason left, it was just
+enough to keep them wondering when they should be slaughtered, and what
+quality of bacon they should make.
+
+Meantime, as I told you before, Eurylochus had waited, and waited, and
+waited, in the entrance-hall of the palace, without being able to
+comprehend what had befallen his friends. At last, when the swinish uproar
+resounded through the palace, and when he saw the image of a hog in the
+marble basin, he thought it best to hasten back to the vessel, and inform
+the wise Ulysses of these marvelous occurrences. So he ran as fast as he
+could down the steps, and never stopped to draw breath till he reached the
+shore.
+
+"Why do you come alone?" asked King Ulysses, as soon as he saw him. "Where
+are your two and twenty comrades?"
+
+At these questions Eurylochus burst into tears.
+
+"Alas!" cried he, "I greatly fear that we shall never see one of their
+faces again."
+
+Then he told Ulysses all that had happened, as far as he knew it, and
+added that he suspected the beautiful woman to be a vile enchantress, and
+the marble palace, magnificent as it looked, to be only a dismal cavern in
+reality. As for his companions, he could not imagine what had become of
+them, unless they had been given to the swine to be devoured alive. At
+this intelligence all the voyagers were greatly affrighted. But Ulysses
+lost no time in girding on his sword, and hanging his bow and quiver over
+his shoulders, and taking a spear in his right hand. When his followers
+saw their wise leader making these preparations, they inquired whither he
+was going, and earnestly besought him not to leave them.
+
+"You are our king," cried they; "and what is more, you are the wisest man
+in the whole world, and nothing but your wisdom and courage can get us out
+of this danger. If you desert us, and go to the enchanted palace, you will
+suffer the same fate as our poor companions, and not a soul of us will
+ever see our dear Ithaca again."
+
+"As I am your king," answered Ulysses, "and wiser than any of you, it is
+therefore the more my duty to see what has befallen our comrades, and
+whether anything can yet be done to rescue them. Wait for me here until
+to-morrow. If I do not then return, you must hoist sail, and endeavor to
+find your way to our native land. For my part, I am answerable for the
+fate of these poor mariners, who have stood by my side in battle, and been
+so often drenched to the skin, along with me, by the same tempestuous
+surges. I will either bring them back with me or perish."
+
+Had his followers dared, they would have detained him by force. But King
+Ulysses frowned sternly on them, and shook his spear, and bade them stop
+him at their peril. Seeing him so determined, they let him go, and sat
+down on the sand, as disconsolate a set of people as could be, waiting and
+praying for his return.
+
+It happened to Ulysses, just as before, that, when he had gone a few steps
+from the edge of the cliff, the purple bird came fluttering towards him,
+crying, "Peep, peep, pe--weep!" and using all the art it could to persuade
+him to go no farther.
+
+"What mean you, little bird?" cried Ulysses. "You are arrayed like a king
+in purple and gold, and wear a golden crown upon your head. Is it because
+I too am a king that you desire so earnestly to speak with me? If you can
+talk in human language, say what you would have me do."
+
+"Peep!" answered the purple bird, very dolorously. "Peep, peep,
+pe--we--ep!"
+
+Certainly there lay some heavy anguish at the little bird's heart; and it
+was a sorrowful predicament that he could not, at least, have the
+consolation of telling what it was. But Ulysses had no time to waste in
+trying to get at the mystery. He therefore quickened his pace, and had
+gone a good way along the pleasant wood-path, when there met him a young
+man of very brisk and intelligent aspect, and clad in a rather singular
+garb. He wore a short cloak, and a sort of cap that seemed to be furnished
+with a pair of wings; and from the lightness of his step, you would have
+supposed that there might likewise be wings on his feet. To enable him to
+walk still better (for he was always on one journey or another), he
+carried a winged staff, around which two serpents were wriggling and
+twisting. In short, I have said enough to make you guess that it was
+Quicksilver; and Ulysses (who knew him of old, and had learned a great
+deal of his wisdom from him) recognized him in a moment.
+
+"Whither are you going in such a hurry, wise Ulysses?" asked Quicksilver.
+"Do you not know that this island is enchanted? The wicked enchantress
+(whose name is Circe, the sister of King Æetes) dwells in the marble
+palace which you see yonder among the trees. By her magic arts, she
+changes every human being into the brute, beast, or fowl whom he happens
+most to resemble."
+
+"That little bird which met me at the edge of the cliff," exclaimed
+Ulysses; "was he a human being once?"
+
+"Yes," answered Quicksilver. "He was once a king, named Picus, and a
+pretty good sort of a king too, only rather too proud of his purple robe,
+and his crown, and the golden chain about his neck; so he was forced to
+take the shape of a gaudy-feathered bird. The lions, and wolves, and
+tigers who will come running to meet you, in front of the palace, were
+formerly fierce and cruel men, resembling in their dispositions the wild
+beasts whose forms they now rightfully wear."
+
+"And my poor companions," said Ulysses. "Have they undergone a similar
+change, through the arts of this wicked Circe?"
+
+"You well know what gormandizers they were," replied Quicksilver; and,
+rogue that he was, he could not help laughing at the joke. "So you will
+not be surprised to hear that they have all taken the shapes of swine! If
+Circe had never done anything worse, I really should not think her so very
+much to blame."
+
+"But can I do nothing to help them?" inquired Ulysses.
+
+"It will require all your wisdom," said Quicksilver, "and a little of my
+own into the bargain, to keep your royal and sagacious self from being
+transformed into a fox. But do as I bid you, and the matter may end better
+than it has begun."
+
+While he was speaking, Quicksilver seemed to be in search of something; he
+went stooping along the ground, and soon laid his hand on a little plant
+with a snow-white flower, which he plucked and smelt of. Ulysses had been
+looking at that very spot only just before; and it appeared to him that
+the plant had burst into full flower the instant when Quicksilver touched
+it with his fingers.
+
+"Take this flower, King Ulysses," said he. "Guard it as you do your
+eyesight; for I can assure you it is exceedingly rare and precious, and
+you might seek the whole earth over without ever finding another like it.
+Keep it in your hand, and smell of it frequently after you enter the
+palace, and while you are talking with the enchantress. Especially when
+she offers you food, or a draught of wine out of her goblet, be careful to
+fill your nostrils with the flower's fragrance. Follow these directions,
+and you may defy her magic arts to change you into a fox."
+
+Quicksilver then gave him some further advice how to behave, and, bidding
+him be bold and prudent, again assured him that, powerful as Circe was, he
+would have a fair prospect of coming safely out of her enchanted palace.
+After listening attentively, Ulysses thanked his good friend, and resumed
+his way. But he had taken only a few steps, when, recollecting some other
+questions which he wished to ask, he turned round again, and beheld nobody
+on the spot where Quicksilver had stood; for that winged cap of his, and
+those winged shoes with the help of the winged staff, had carried him
+quickly out of sight.
+
+When Ulysses reached the lawn in front of the palace, the lions and other
+savage animals came bounding to meet him, and would have fawned upon him
+and licked his feet. But the wise king struck at them with his long spear,
+and sternly bade them begone out of his path; for he knew that they had
+once been bloodthirsty men, and would now tear him limb from limb, instead
+of fawning upon him, could they do the mischief that was in their hearts.
+The wild beasts yelped and glared at him, and stood at a distance while he
+ascended the palace steps.
+
+On entering the hall, Ulysses saw the magic fountain in the centre of it.
+The up-gushing water had now again taken the shape of a man in a long,
+white, fleecy robe, who appeared to be making gestures of welcome. The
+king likewise heard the noise of the shuttle in the loom, and the sweet
+melody of the beautiful woman's song, and then the pleasant voices of
+herself and the four maidens talking together, with peals of merry
+laughter intermixed. But Ulysses did not waste much time in listening to
+the laughter or the song. He leaned his spear against one of the pillars
+of the hall, and then, after loosening his sword in the scabbard, stepped
+boldly forward, and threw the folding-doors wide open. The moment she
+beheld his stately figure standing in the doorway, the beautiful woman
+rose from the loom, and ran to meet him with a glad smile throwing its
+sunshine over her face, and both her hands extended.
+
+"Welcome, brave stranger!" cried she. "We were expecting you."
+
+And the nymph with the sea-green hair made a courtesy down to the ground,
+and likewise bade him welcome; so did her sister with the bodice of oaken
+bark, and she that sprinkled dew-drops from her fingers' ends, and the
+fourth one with some oddity which I cannot remember. And Circe, as the
+beautiful enchantress was called (who had deluded so many persons that she
+did not doubt of being able to delude Ulysses, not imagining how wise he
+was), again addressed him.
+
+"Your companions," said she, "have already been received into my palace,
+and have enjoyed the hospitable treatment to which the propriety of their
+behavior so well entitles them. If such be your pleasure, you shall first
+take some refreshment, and then join them in the elegant apartments which
+they now occupy. See, I and my maidens have been weaving their figures
+into this piece of tapestry."
+
+She pointed to the web of beautifully woven cloth in the loom. Circe and
+the four nymphs must have been very diligently at work since the arrival
+of the mariners; for a great many yards of tapestry had now been wrought,
+in addition to what I before described. In this new part, Ulysses saw his
+two and twenty friends represented as sitting on cushioned and canopied
+thrones, greedily devouring dainties and quaffing deep draughts of wine.
+The work had not yet gone any further. Oh, no, indeed! The enchantress was
+far too cunning to let Ulysses see the mischief which her magic arts had
+since brought upon the gormandizers.
+
+"As for yourself, valiant sir," said Circe, "judging by the dignity of
+your aspect, I take you to be nothing less than a king. Deign to follow
+me, and you shall be treated as befits your rank."
+
+So Ulysses followed her into the oval saloon, where his two and twenty
+comrades had devoured the banquet which ended so disastrously for
+themselves. But all this while he had held the snow-white flower in his
+hand, and had constantly smelt of it while Circe was speaking; and as he
+crossed the threshold of the saloon, he took good care to inhale several
+long and deep snuffs of its fragrance. Instead of two and twenty thrones,
+which had before been ranged around the wall, there was now only a single
+throne, in the centre of the apartment. But this was surely the most
+magnificent seat that ever a king or an emperor reposed himself upon, all
+made of chased gold, studded with precious stones, with a cushion that
+looked like a soft heap of living roses, and overhung by a canopy of
+sunlight which Circe knew how to weave into drapery. The enchantress took
+Ulysses by the hand, and made him sit down upon this dazzling throne.
+Then, clapping her hands, she summoned the chief butler.
+
+"Bring hither," said she, "the goblet that is set apart for kings to drink
+out of. And fill it with the same delicious wine which my royal brother,
+King Æetes, praised so highly, when he visited me with my fair daughter
+Medea. That good and amiable child! Were she now here, it would delight
+her to see me offering this wine to my honored guest."
+
+But Ulysses, while the butler was gone for the wine, held the snow-white
+flower to his nose.
+
+"Is it a wholesome wine?" he asked.
+
+At this the four maidens tittered; whereupon the enchantress looked round
+at them, with an aspect of severity.
+
+"It is the wholesomest juice that ever was squeezed out of the grape,"
+said she; "for, instead of disguising a man, as other liquor is apt to do,
+it brings him to his true self, and shows him as he ought to be."
+
+The chief butler liked nothing better than to see people turned into
+swine, or making any kind of a beast of themselves; so he made haste to
+bring the royal goblet, filled with a liquid as bright as gold, and which
+kept sparkling upward, and throwing a sunny spray over the brim. But,
+delightfully as the wine looked, it was mingled with the most potent
+enchantments that Circe knew how to concoct. For every drop of the pure
+grape-juice there were two drops of the pure mischief; and the danger of
+the thing was, that the mischief made it taste all the better. The mere
+smell of the bubbles, which effervesced at the brim, was enough to turn a
+man's beard into pig's bristles, or make a lion's claws grow out of his
+fingers, or a fox's brush behind him.
+
+"Drink, my noble guest," said Circe, smiling as she presented him with the
+goblet. "You will find in this draught a solace for all your troubles."
+
+King Ulysses took the goblet with his right hand, while with his left he
+held the snow-white flower to his nostrils, and drew in so long a breath
+that his lungs were quite filled with its pure and simple fragrance. Then,
+drinking off all the wine, he looked the enchantress calmly in the face.
+
+"Wretch," cried Circe, giving him a smart stroke with her wand, "how dare
+you keep your human shape a moment longer? Take the form of the brute whom
+you most resemble. If a hog, go join your fellow swine in the sty; if a
+lion, a wolf, a tiger, go howl with the wild beasts on the lawn; if a fox,
+go exercise your craft in stealing poultry. Thou hast quaffed off my wine,
+and canst be man no longer."
+
+But, such was the virtue of the snow-white flower, instead of wallowing
+down from his throne in swinish shape or taking any other brutal form,
+Ulysses looked even more manly and kinglike than before. He gave the magic
+goblet a toss, and sent it clashing over the marble floor, to the farthest
+end of the saloon. Then, drawing his sword, he seized the enchantress by
+her beautiful ringlets, and made a gesture as if he meant to strike off
+her head at one blow.
+
+"Wicked Circe," cried he, in a terrible voice, "this sword shall put an
+end to thy enchantments. Thou shalt die, vile wretch, and do no more
+mischief in the world, by tempting human beings into the vices which make
+beasts of them."
+
+The tone and countenance of Ulysses were so awful, and his sword gleamed
+so brightly and seemed to have so intolerably keen an edge, that Circe was
+almost killed by the mere fright, without waiting for a blow. The chief
+butler scrambled out of the saloon, picking up the golden goblet as he
+went; and the enchantress and the four maidens fell on their knees,
+wringing their hands and screaming for mercy.
+
+"Spare me!" cried Circe,--"spare me, royal and wise Ulysses. For now I
+know that thou art he of whom Quicksilver forewarned me, the most prudent
+of mortals, against whom no enchantments can prevail. Thou only couldst
+have conquered Circe. Spare me, wisest of men. I will show thee true
+hospitality, and even give myself to be thy slave, and this magnificent
+palace to be henceforth thy home."
+
+The four nymphs, meanwhile, were making a most piteous ado; and especially
+the ocean nymph, with the sea-green hair, wept a great deal of salt water,
+and the fountain nymph, besides scattering dewdrops from her fingers'
+ends, nearly melted away into tears. But Ulysses would not be pacified
+until Circe had taken a solemn oath to change back his companions, and as
+many others as he should direct, from their present forms of beast or bird
+into their former shapes of men.
+
+"On these conditions," said he, "I consent to spare your life. Otherwise
+you must die upon the spot."
+
+With a drawn sword hanging over her, the enchantress would readily have
+consented to do as much good as she had hitherto done mischief, however
+little she might like such employment. She therefore led Ulysses out of
+the back entrance of the palace, and showed him the swine in their sty.
+There were about fifty of these unclean beasts in the whole herd; and
+though the greater part were hogs by birth and education, there was
+wonderfully little difference to be seen betwixt them and their new
+brethren who had so recently worn the human shape. To speak critically,
+indeed, the latter rather carried the thing to excess, and seemed to make
+it a point to wallow in the miriest part of the sty, and otherwise to
+outdo the original swine in their own natural vocation. When men once turn
+to brutes, the trifle of man's wit that remains in them adds tenfold to
+their brutality.
+
+The comrades of Ulysses, however, had not quite lost the remembrance of
+having formerly stood erect. When he approached the sty, two and twenty
+enormous swine separated themselves from the herd, and scampered towards
+him, with such a chorus of horrible squealing as made him clap both hands
+to his ears. And yet they did not seem to know what they wanted, nor
+whether they were merely hungry or miserable from some other cause. It was
+curious, in the midst of their distress, to observe them thrusting their
+noses into the mire, in quest of something to eat. The nymph with the
+bodice of oaken bark (she was the hamadryad of an oak) threw a handful of
+acorns among them; and the two and twenty hogs scrambled and fought for
+the prize, as if they had tasted not so much as a noggin of sour milk for
+a twelvemonth.
+
+"These must certainly be my comrades," said Ulysses. "I recognize their
+dispositions. They are hardly worth the trouble of changing them into the
+human form again. Nevertheless, we will have it done, lest their bad
+example should corrupt the other hogs. Let them take their original
+shapes, therefore, Dame Circe, if your skill is equal to the task. It will
+require greater magic, I trow, than it did to make swine of them."
+
+So Circe waved her wand again, and repeated a few magic words, at the
+sound of which the two and twenty hogs pricked up their pendulous ears. It
+was a wonder to behold how their snouts grew shorter and shorter, and
+their mouths (which they seemed to be sorry for, because they could not
+gobble so expeditiously) smaller and smaller, and how one and another
+began to stand upon his hind legs, and scratch his nose with his fore
+trotters. At first the spectators hardly knew whether to call them hogs or
+men, but by and by came to the conclusion that they rather resembled the
+latter. Finally, there stood the twenty-two comrades of Ulysses, looking
+pretty much the same as when they left the vessel.
+
+You must not imagine, however, that the swinish quality had entirely gone
+out of them. When once it fastens itself into a person's character, it is
+very difficult getting rid of it. This was proved by the hamadryad, who,
+being exceedingly fond of mischief, threw another handful of acorns before
+the twenty-two newly restored people; whereupon down they wallowed, in a
+moment, and gobbled them up in a very shameful way. Then, recollecting
+themselves, they scrambled to their feet, and looked more than commonly
+foolish.
+
+"Thanks, noble Ulysses!" they cried. "From brute beasts you have restored
+us to the condition of men again."
+
+"Do not put yourselves to the trouble of thanking me," said the wise king.
+"I fear I have done but little for you."
+
+To say the truth, there was a suspicious kind of a grunt in their voices,
+and for a long time afterwards they spoke gruffly, and were apt to set up
+a squeal.
+
+"It must depend on your own future behavior," added Ulysses, "whether you
+do not find your way back to the sty."
+
+At this moment, the note of a bird sounded from the branch of a
+neighboring tree.
+
+"Peep, peep, pe--wee--ep!"
+
+It was the purple bird, who, all this while, had been sitting over their
+heads, watching what was going forward, and hoping that Ulysses would
+remember how he had done his utmost to keep him and his followers out of
+harm's way. Ulysses ordered Circe instantly to make a king of this good
+little fowl, and leave him exactly as she found him. Hardly were the words
+spoken, and before the bird had time to utter another "Pe--weep," King
+Picus leaped down from the bough of the tree, as majestic a sovereign as
+any in the world, dressed in a long purple robe and gorgeous yellow
+stockings, with a splendidly wrought collar about his neck, and a golden
+crown upon his head. He and King Ulysses exchanged with one another the
+courtesies which belonged to their elevated rank. But from that time
+forth, King Picus was no longer proud of his crown and his trappings of
+royalty, nor of the fact of his being a king; he felt himself merely the
+upper servant of his people, and that it must be his lifelong labor to
+make them better and happier.
+
+As for the lions, tigers, and wolves (though Circe would have restored
+them to their former shapes at his slightest word), Ulysses thought it
+advisable that they should remain as they now were, and thus give warning
+of their cruel dispositions, instead of going about under the guise of
+men, and pretending to human sympathies, while their hearts had the
+blood-thirstiness of wild beasts. So he let them howl as much as they
+liked, but never troubled his head about them. And, when everything was
+settled according to his pleasure, he sent to summon the remainder of his
+comrades, whom he had left at the seashore. These being arrived, with the
+prudent Eurylochus at their head, they all made themselves comfortable in
+Circe's enchanted palace until quite rested and refreshed from the toils
+and hardships of their voyage.
+
+
+
+
+THE SIRENS--SCYLLA AND CHARYBDIS
+
+Translated by George Herbert Palmer
+
+
+I turned me toward my ship, and called my crew to come on board and loose
+the cables. Quickly they came, took places at the pins, and sitting in
+order smote the foaming water with their oars. And for our aid behind our
+dark-bowed ship came a fair wind to fill our sail, a welcome comrade, sent
+us by fair-haired Circe, the mighty goddess, human of speech. When we had
+done our work at the several ropes about the ship, we sat us down, while
+wind and helmsman kept her steady.
+
+Now to my men, with aching heart, I said, "My friends, it is not right for
+only one or two to know the oracles which Circe told, that heavenly
+goddess. Therefore I speak, that, knowing all, we so may die, or fleeing
+death and doom, we may escape. She warns us first against the marvelous
+Sirens, and bids us flee their voice and flowery meadow. Only myself she
+bade to hear their song; but bind me with galling cords, to hold me firm,
+upright upon the mast-block,--round it let the rope be wound. And if I
+should entreat you, and bid you set me free, thereat with still more
+fetters bind me fast."
+
+Thus I, relating all my tale, talked with my comrades. Meanwhile our
+stanch ship swiftly neared the Sirens' island; a fair wind swept her on.
+On a sudden the wind ceased; there came a breathless calm; Heaven hushed
+the waves. My comrades, rising, furled the sail, stowed it on board the
+hollow ship, then sitting at their oars whitened the water with the
+polished blades. But I with my sharp sword cut a great cake of wax into
+small bits, which I then kneaded in my sturdy hands. Soon the wax warmed,
+forced by the powerful pressure and by the rays of the exalted sun, the
+lord of all. Then one by one I stopped the ears of all my crew; and on the
+deck they bound me hand and foot, upright upon the mast-block, round which
+they wound the rope; and sitting down they smote the foaming water with
+their oars. But when we were as far away as one can call, and driving
+swiftly onward, our speeding ship, as it drew near, did not escape the
+Sirens, and thus they lifted up their penetrating voice:--
+
+"Come hither, come, Ulysses, whom all praise! great glory to the Achaians!
+Bring on your ship, and listen to our song. For none has ever passed us in
+a black-hulled ship till from our lips he heard ecstatic song, then went
+his way rejoicing and with larger knowledge. For we know all that on the
+plain of Troy Argives and Trojans suffered at the Gods' behest; we know
+whatever happens on the bounteous earth."
+
+So spoke they, sending forth their glorious song, and my heart longed to
+listen. Knitting my brows, I signed my men to set me free; but bending
+forward, on they rowed. And straightway Perimedes and Eurylochus arose and
+laid upon me still more cords, and drew them tighter. Then, after passing
+by, when we could hear no more the Sirens' voice nor any singing, quickly
+my trusty crew removed the wax with which I stopped their ears, and set me
+free from bondage.
+
+Soon after we left the island, I observed a smoke, I saw high waves and
+heard a plunging sound. From the hands of my frightened men down fell the
+oars, and splashed against the current. There the ship stayed, for they
+worked the tapering oars no more. Along the ship I passed, inspiriting my
+men with cheering words, standing by each in turn:--
+
+"Friends, hitherto we have not been untried in danger. Here is no greater
+danger than when the Cyclops penned us with brutal might in the deep cave.
+Yet out of that, through energy of mine, through will and wisdom, we
+escaped. These dangers, too, I think some day we shall remember. Come
+then, and what I say let us all follow. You with your oars strike the deep
+breakers of the sea, while sitting at the pins, and see if Zeus will set
+us free from present death and let us go in safety. And, helmsman, these
+are my commands for you; lay them to heart, for you control the rudders of
+our hollow ship: keep the ship off that smoke and surf and hug the crags,
+or else, before you know it, she may veer off that way, and you will bring
+us into danger."
+
+So I spoke, and my words they quickly heeded. But Scylla I did not
+name,--that hopeless horror,--for fear through fright my men might cease
+to row, and huddle all together in the hold. I disregarded too the hard
+behest of Circe, when she had said I must by no means arm. Putting on my
+glittering armor and taking in my hands my two long spears, I went upon
+the ship's fore-deck, for thence I looked for the first sight of Scylla of
+the rocks, who brought my men disaster. Nowhere could I descry her; I
+tried my eyes with searching up and down the dusky cliff.
+
+So up the strait we sailed in sadness; for here lay Scylla, and there
+divine Charybdis fearfully sucked the salt sea-water down. Whenever she
+belched it forth, like a kettle in fierce flame all would foam swirling
+up, and overhead spray fell upon the tops of both the crags. But when she
+gulped the salt sea-water down, then all within seemed in a whirl; the
+rock around roared fearfully, and down below the bottom showed, dark with
+the sand. Pale terror seized my men; on her we looked and feared to die.
+
+And now it was that Scylla snatched from the hollow ship six of my
+comrades who were best in skill and strength. Turning my eyes toward my
+swift ship to seek my men, I saw their feet and hands already in the air
+as they were carried up. They screamed aloud and called my name for the
+last time, in agony of heart. As when a fisher, on a jutting rock, with
+long rod throws a bait to lure the little fishes, casting into the deep
+the horn of stall-fed ox; then, catching a fish, flings it ashore
+writhing,--even so were these drawn writhing up the rocks. There at her
+door she ate them, loudly shrieking and stretching forth their hands in
+mortal pangs toward me. That was the saddest sight my eyes have ever seen,
+in all my toils, searching the ocean pathways.
+
+
+
+
+ULYSSES IN ITHACA
+
+
+ULYSSES LANDS ON THE SHORE OF ITHACA
+
+By F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+
+
+    [For ten years Ulysses was driven hither and thither over the
+    water, seeking for his homeland, Ithaca. At length he was
+    shipwrecked on the shores of Phoeacia. The king, Alcinous,
+    entertained him most hospitably, and Ulysses related to him the
+    story of his wanderings.]
+
+
+When Ulysses had finished his story, there was silence in the hall till
+Alcinous said, "Ulysses, now that you have come to my house after all
+these troubles, you shall return without more wandering to your home." And
+then he bade the princes go home for the night and meet again in the
+morning to bring their gifts.
+
+So next day the Sea-kings went down to the ship and put their gifts on
+board and then returned to the palace and sacrificed an ox to Zeus. And
+then they feasted and drank their good wine and waited till the sun went
+down. And the minstrel sang to them, but Ulysses kept looking at the sun
+impatiently, like a hungry ploughman tired out at the close of day. At
+last the time arrived, and then Ulysses said, "Alcinous, let me go now,
+and fare you well. My escort and my gifts are all prepared, and I could
+wish no more. May I but find my wife and my dear ones all safe and sound
+at home! And may Heaven grant you, too, happy homes and every blessing and
+no distress among your people!" And to Queen Arete he said, "Lady, may you
+live happily with your husband and children, and all this people, till old
+age comes to you and death, which must come to all!"
+
+Then the herald led the way and Ulysses followed to the ship, and the
+queen sent her servants with him to carry warm clothing for the voyage and
+food and drink. And when they had stored the ship he lay down silently in
+the stern, and the rowers took their places in the benches and plied their
+oars, while a deep, sweet sleep fell upon him, like the sleep of death.
+Then the wonderful ship leapt forward on her way, like a team of chariot
+horses plunging beneath the whip, and the great dark wave roared round the
+stern. No hawk could fly so quickly as that ship flew through the waves,
+and the hawk is the swiftest of all birds. And as she sped, the man who
+had suffered so much and was as wise as the Gods lay peacefully asleep,
+and forgot his sufferings.
+
+But when the bright star rose that tells of the approach of day, the ship
+drew near the island of Ithaca. There is a haven there between two steep
+headlands which break the waves, so that ships can ride in safety without
+a mooring rope, and at the head of it an olive-tree, and a shadowy cave
+where the water fairies come and tend their bees and weave their sea-blue
+garments on the hanging looms and mix their wine in bowls and jars of
+stone. There are springs of water in the cave, and two ways into it, one
+to the north for men to enter, and one to the south where none but the
+Gods may pass.
+
+The Sea-kings knew this harbor and rowed straight into it and ran their
+ship half a keel's length ashore. Then they lifted Ulysses out of the
+stern, wrapt in the rugs and coverlet, and laid him still asleep upon the
+sand. And the gifts they placed in a heap by the trunk of the olive-tree,
+a little out of the road, so that no passer-by might rob him as he slept.
+
+Then they sailed away; and after they were gone Ulysses awoke, but he
+could not recognize the land where he lay, for Athene had cast a mist
+about him so that everything looked strange, though he was the lord of it
+all. There were the mountain paths and the sheltering creeks, the high,
+steep rocks and the trees in bloom; but he could not see it aright, and
+started up and smote his hands upon his thighs and cried aloud,--
+
+"What land have I come to now? And what can I do with all this treasure?
+If the Sea-kings did not really mean to send me back to Ithaca they should
+have conveyed me to some other people who would have sent me home." And
+then he counted the gifts over, the golden vessels, and the beautiful
+garments, and found nothing missing, but they gave him no pleasure; and he
+turned sadly to walk along the shore and dream of home, when a young
+herdsman met him, of noble figure, with a javelin in his hand and a fine
+mantle in double folds upon his shoulders. Ulysses was glad to greet him,
+and asked what country he had reached. It was Athene in disguise, and she
+answered, "Truly, stranger, you must have come from far indeed. For this
+is a famous island that all men know, whether they live in the east or in
+the west. It is a rugged land, and no place for horses and chariots, but
+though it is narrow, it is not so poor; for there are stores of corn and
+wine, plenty of water for the cattle and plenty of wood. Its name is
+Ithaca, and some men have heard of it even at Troy, which they say is a
+long way off."
+
+Then brave Ulysses rejoiced in his heart to hear that it was his native
+land; but he would not tell the herdsman who he was, and made up a cunning
+story that he had escaped as an outlaw from Crete and had been left upon
+the island by a Phoenician crew. And the goddess smiled to hear him, and
+stood forth in her own true form, a wise and noble woman, tall and fair,
+and put her hand upon his shoulder, and said,--
+
+"Come, let us practice no more craft on one another, Ulysses, for we are
+both famous for our wit and wiles, you among mortals and I among the Gods.
+I am Pallas Athene, daughter of Zeus, and I have stood beside you and
+protected you in all your wanderings and toil. And now I have come here to
+tell you of the troubles that await you in your house, and to help you
+with my counsel. But you must still endure in silence, and tell no one
+that Ulysses has returned."
+
+And Ulysses made answer, "It is hard, goddess, for a mortal to know you,
+wise though he may be, for you come in many shapes. Truly I have known
+your kindness from of old in Troy, but when we went on board the ships, I
+never saw you at my side again. Tell me, I pray you, if this is Ithaca
+indeed, my native land."
+
+Then the goddess answered, "I see, Ulysses, that you keep your ready wit
+and steadfast mind. I could not show myself your friend before for fear of
+angering Neptune, my own father's brother. But come now, and I will show
+you Ithaca; there is the haven and the olive with its slender leaves, and
+the cave where you once made many an offering to the water nymphs."
+
+And then she rolled away the mist, and the long-suffering hero rejoiced to
+see his native land again. He kissed the kindly earth, and vowed to the
+nymphs that he would bring them offerings as of old if he lived to see his
+dear son a man.
+
+Then the goddess bade him be of good cheer, and showed him a hiding-place
+in the cavern for the gifts. And then they sat down by the trunk of the
+olive-tree, and Athene told him all the misdeeds of the suitors, and how
+his wife had beguiled them and kept them waiting till his return, and how
+he must avenge himself and her.
+
+Then Ulysses said, "Truly, I should have perished in my own halls, like
+Agamemnon, if you had not warned me. Help me, therefore, with your wisdom,
+and stand beside me again and put strength and courage within me as in the
+days of Troy. For with you by my side I could fight against three hundred
+men."
+
+And Pallas Athene made answer, "I will be with you, Ulysses, when the hour
+of the conflict is come, and the blood of the suitors who eat up your
+substance shall be shed at last. But now I will change you into a poor
+beggar, so old and so wretched that no one will know you, and in that
+guise you must go and stay with the herdsman Eumæus, who tends your swine,
+until I have brought your son Telemachus from Sparta, where he has gone to
+seek tidings of you."
+
+Then she touched him with her magic wand, and the fair flesh withered on
+his limbs, and the golden locks fell from his head, and he was changed
+into an old man. His skin was shriveled and his bright eyes dimmed, and
+for his covering she gave him a tattered wrap, begrimed with smoke, and a
+worn deerskin on his shoulder, and a wallet and a staff in his hand.
+
+Then she vanished, and left him to take his way alone across the hills.
+
+
+
+
+ULYSSES AT THE HOUSE OF THE SWINEHERD
+
+By F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+
+
+Ulysses went up along the rough mountain path, through the forest and over
+the hills, till he came to the house where his faithful steward lived. It
+stood in an open space, and there was a large courtyard in front with a
+wall of heavy stones and hawthorn boughs and a stout oak palisade. Inside
+the yard there were twelve sties for the pigs, and the swineherd kept four
+watch-dogs to guard the place, great beasts and fierce as wolves, that he
+had reared himself. Ulysses found him at home, sitting in the porch alone,
+and cutting himself a pair of sandals from a brown oxhide.
+
+The dogs caught sight of the king as soon as he came up and flew at him,
+barking, but he had the wit to let go his staff and sit down at once on
+the ground. Still it might have gone hard with him there in front of his
+own servant's house had not Eumæus rushed out of the porch, dropping the
+leather in his haste, and scolded the dogs, driving them off with a volley
+of stones.
+
+Then he said to Ulysses, "A little more, old man, and the dogs would have
+torn you in pieces, and disgraced me forever. And I have my full share of
+trouble as it is, for I have lost the best master in all the world and
+must sit here to mourn for him and fatten his swine for other men, while
+he is wandering somewhere in foreign lands, hungry and thirsty perhaps, if
+he is still alive at all. But now come in yourself, and let me give you
+food and drink and tell me your own tale."
+
+So he took Ulysses into the house and made a seat for him with a pile of
+brushwood boughs and a great thick shaggy goat-skin which he used for his
+own bed, and all with so kind a welcome that it warmed the king's heart
+and made him pray the Gods to bless him for his goodness. But Eumæus only
+said, "How could I neglect a stranger, though he were a worse man than
+you? All strangers and beggars are sent to us by Zeus. Take my gift and
+welcome, though it is little enough I have to give, a servant such as I,
+with new masters to lord it over him. For we have lost the king who would
+have loved me and given me house and lands and all that a faithful servant
+ought to have, whose work is blest by the Gods and prospers, as mine does
+here. Alas! he is dead and gone! he went away with Agamemnon to fight at
+Troy and never came home again."
+
+So saying, the good swineherd rose and fetched what meat and wine he had,
+and set it before Ulysses, grieving that he had nothing better for him
+because the shameless suitors plundered everything.
+
+But Ulysses ate and drank eagerly, and when his strength had come again he
+asked Eumæus, "My friend, who is this master of yours you tell me of? Did
+you not say he was lost for Agamemnon's sake? Perhaps I may have seen him,
+for I have traveled far."
+
+But the swineherd answered, "Old man, his wife and son will believe no
+traveler's tale. They have heard too many such. Every wandering beggar who
+comes to Ithaca goes to my mistress with some empty story to get a meal
+for himself, and she welcomes him and treats him kindly and asks him about
+it all, with the tears running down her cheeks in a woman's way. Yes, even
+you, old man, might learn to weave such tales if you thought they would
+get you a cloak or a vest. No, he is dead, and dogs and birds have eaten
+him, or else he has fed the fishes and his bones lie somewhere on the
+seashore, buried in the sand. And he has left us all to grieve for him,
+but no one more than me, who can never have so kind a master again, not
+though I had my heart's desire and went back to my native land and saw my
+father and mother, and the dear home where I was born. It is Ulysses above
+all whom I long to see once more. There, stranger, I have called him by
+his name, and that I should not do; for he is still my dear master though
+he is far away."
+
+Then Ulysses said, "My friend, your hope has gone and you will never
+believe me. But I tell you this and seal it with an oath: Ulysses will
+return! Poor as I am, I will take no reward for my news till he comes to
+his own again, but you shall give me a new vest and cloak that day, and I
+will wear them."
+
+But the swineherd answered, "Ah, my friend, I shall never need to pay you
+that reward. He will never come back again. But now drink your wine in
+peace, and let us talk of something else, and do not call to mind the
+sorrow that almost breaks my heart. Tell me of yourself and your own
+troubles and who you are, and what ship brought you here, for you will not
+say you came afoot."
+
+Then Ulysses pretended he was a Cretan and had fought at Troy, and told
+Eumæus a long tale of adventures and how he had been wrecked at last on
+the coast of Epirus. The king of the country, he said, had rescued him,
+and he had learned that Ulysses had been there a little while before, and
+was already on his way to Ithaca.
+
+The swineherd listened eagerly to it all, but when Ulysses had finished he
+said, "Poor friend, my heart aches to hear of all your sufferings. But
+there is one thing you should not have said, one thing I can never
+believe, and that is that Ulysses will return. And why need you lie to
+please me? I can see for myself that you are old and unhappy, a wanderer
+whom the Gods have sent to me. It is not for such a tale I will show you
+the kindness that you need, but because I pity you myself and reverence
+the law of Zeus."
+
+"If I lie," Ulysses answered, "you may have me thrown from the cliff as a
+warning to other cheats. I swear it, and call the Gods to witness."
+
+But the true-hearted swineherd only said, "I should get a good name by
+that, my friend, if I took you into nay house and had you for my guest,
+and then murdered you brutally! Do you think I could pray to Zeus after
+that without a fear? But now it is supper-time, and my men will be coming
+home." While they spoke, the herdsmen came up with the swine, and the sows
+were driven into the pens, grunting and squealing noisily as they settled
+in for the night. Then Eumæus called out, "Bring in the fattest boar, and
+let us make a sacrifice in honor of our guest, and get some reward
+ourselves for all the trouble we have spent upon the drove,--trouble lost,
+since strangers take the fruit of it all."
+
+So they brought in a big fat white-tusked boar, while Eumæus split the
+wood for the fire. And he did not forget the Immortals, for he had a pious
+heart: he made the due offerings first and prayed for his master's return,
+and then he stood up at the board to carve, and gave each man his share
+and a special slice for his guest from the whole length of the chine.
+Ulysses took it and thanked him with all his heart:--
+
+"May Father Zeus be your friend, Eumæus, and give you what I would give
+you for your kindness to a poor old man like me."
+
+But the swineherd said, "Take it, my good friend, take it and enjoy it.
+Zeus will give or withhold as it may please him, for he can do all
+things."
+
+So they sat down to the feast, and after they had had their fill the
+swineherd's servant cleared everything away, and then they made ready for
+sleep. The evening closed in black and stormy, and a west wind sprang up
+bringing the rain with it, and blew hard all the night; so Eumæus made up
+a bed of fleeces for Ulysses by the fire and gave him a great thick cloak
+as well, that he kept for the roughest weather. But he could not bring
+himself to stay there too, away from his herd of pigs, and he wrapped
+himself up warmly and went out to sleep beside them in the open. Ulysses
+saw, and smiled to see, what care he took of everything, while he thought
+his master was far away.
+
+[On the following morning] Ulysses and the swineherd were already
+preparing their breakfast when Telemachus came up. The dogs knew him and
+played round him lovingly. "Eumæus," said Ulysses, "some friend of yours
+is coming, for I hear footsteps, and the dogs are pleased and do not
+bark."
+
+He had hardly finished speaking when his own dear son stood in the
+doorway. The swineherd started up and dropped the vessels in which he was
+mixing the wine. He went to meet his young master and fell on his neck and
+kissed him as a father would kiss an only son escaped from death. "Light
+of my eyes, dear son, have you come home at last? When you sailed away to
+Pylos, I never thought to see you again. But come in and let me feast my
+eyes upon you; for you do not often visit us, but are kept at home in the
+town, watching that crowd of ruinous suitors."
+
+And Telemachus answered, "Gladly, good father; I have come to see you, and
+to hear tidings of my mother."
+
+Then the swineherd told him that his mother still waited patiently at
+home, and spent her days and nights in weeping.
+
+[Illustration: "DEAR SON, HAVE YOU COME HOME AT LAST? WHEN YOU SAILED AWAY
+TO PYLOS, I NEVER THOUGHT TO SEE YOU AGAIN. BUT COME IN AND LET ME FEAST
+MY EYES UPON YOU; FOR YOU DO NOT OFTEN VISIT US, BUT ARE KEPT AT HOME IN
+THE TOWN, WATCHING THAT CROWD OF RUINOUS SUITORS." AND TELEMACHUS
+ANSWERED, "GLADLY, GOOD FATHER; I HAVE COME TO SEE YOU, AND TO HEAR
+TIDINGS OF MY MOTHER." THEN THE SWINEHERD TOLD HIM THAT HIS MOTHER STILL
+WAITED PATIENTLY AT HOME.]
+
+Then Telemachus went into the house, and as he came up Ulysses rose to
+give him his seat, but he would not take it, and said, "Keep your seat,
+stranger, this man shall make up another for me." So Ulysses sat down
+again, and the swineherd made a seat for Telemachus of the green brushwood
+and put a fleece upon it. Then he set food before them, and when they had
+eaten, Telemachus asked who the stranger was, and how he had come to
+Ithaca. And Eumæus told him Ulysses's own story and begged him to protect
+the wanderer. But Telemachus thought of the suitors and did not wish to
+take him to the palace.
+
+"I will give him a coat and a vest," he said, "and shoes for his feet, and
+a two-edged sword, and I will send him on his way. But I cannot take him
+into the house, where the suitors would mock at him and use him ill. One
+man cannot restrain them, and he so young as I."
+
+Then Ulysses said, "Sir, if I may speak, I would say foul wrong is done
+you in your house, and my heart burns at the thought. Do your people hate
+you, or will your brothers give you no support? Would that I were as young
+as you are, and were Ulysses's son or Ulysses himself. I would go to the
+palace and fall upon all the throng, and die there, one man against a
+hundred, sooner than see the shameful deeds that are done in that glorious
+house."
+
+And Telemachus answered, "Hear me, stranger, and I will tell you all. My
+people do not hate me, and I have no quarrel with them. But I have no
+brothers to stand by me, for Zeus has never given more than one son to
+each generation of our line. And there are many foemen in the house, all
+the princes of the islands, and they too woo my mother and threaten my
+life, and I cannot see how it will end."
+
+Then he said to Eumæus, "Go up to the house, old father, as quickly as you
+can, and tell my mother that I am come back safe from Pylos, and I will
+wait for you here."
+
+And Eumæus answered, "I hear, master, and understand. But shall I not go
+to Laertes on my way and tell him too? For since you set sail for Pylos,
+they say he has not eaten or drunk or gone about his work, but sits in his
+house sorrowing and wasting away with grief."
+
+But Telemachus bade him go straight to the palace and return at once, and
+let the queen send word to Laertes by one of the maids. So Eumæus went
+forth, and when Athene saw him go, she drew near, and came and stood by
+the gateway and showed herself to Ulysses, a tall and beautiful woman,
+with wisdom in her look. The dogs saw her too and were afraid, and shrank
+away whining into the corner of the yard, but Telemachus could not see
+her. Then the goddess nodded to Ulysses, and he went out and stood before
+her, and she said, "Noble Ulysses, now is the time to reveal yourself to
+your son, and go forth with him to the town, with death and doom for the
+suitors. I shall be near you in the battle and eager to fight."
+
+Then she touched him with her golden wand and gave him his beauty and
+stature once more, and his old bronzed color came back and his beard grew
+thick and his garments shone bright again: and so she sent him to the hut.
+And when Telemachus saw him, he marveled and turned away his eyes, for he
+thought it must be a god.
+
+"Stranger," he said, "you are changed since a moment ago; your color is
+not the same, nor your garments. If you are one of the Immortals, be
+gracious to us, and let us offer you gifts and sacrifice."
+
+Then Ulysses cried out, "I am no god, but your own dear father, for whose
+sake you are suffering cruel wrongs and the spite of men." And then he
+kissed his son and let his tears take their way at last.
+
+But Telemachus could not believe it, and said, "You cannot be my father,
+but a god come down to deceive me and make me grieve still more. No mortal
+could do what you have done, for a moment since you were old and wretched,
+and poorly clad, and now you seem like one of the heavenly Gods."
+
+Then his father answered, "My son, no other Ulysses will ever come back to
+you. Athene has done this wonder, for she is a goddess and can make men
+what she will, now poor, now rich, now old, now young; such power have the
+lords of heaven to exalt us or bring us low."
+
+Then Telemachus fell on his neck, and they wept aloud together. And they
+would have wept out their hearts till evening, had not Telemachus asked
+his father how he had come to Ithaca at last; and Ulysses told him that
+the sea-kings had brought him and put him on shore asleep, and that Athene
+had sent him to the swineherd's hut. "But now tell me of the suitors. How
+many are they and what manner of men? Can the two of us make head against
+the throng?"
+
+"Father," he answered, "I know well your fame, mighty and wise in war. But
+this we could never dare, two men against a host. They are a hundred and
+twenty in all, the best fighting men from Ithaca and the islands round.
+Think, if you can, of some champion who would befriend us and give us
+help."
+
+And Ulysses made answer, "What think you, if Father Zeus and the goddess
+Athene stood by our side? Should we still need other help?"
+
+"Truly they are the best of champions," said Telemachus, "though they sit
+on high among the clouds; and they rule both men and Gods." "And they will
+be with us," said his father, "when we come to the trial of war. Now at
+daybreak you must go home and mix with the suitors, and later on the
+swineherd will bring me to the town, disguised again as the old
+beggar-man; and if they ill-treat me or even strike me or drag me out of
+the house, you must look on and bear it. You may check them by speaking,
+but they will not listen, for the day of their doom is at hand. And tell
+no one that Ulysses has come home, not even Laertes nor the swineherd nor
+Penelope herself; we must keep the secret until we are sure of our
+friends."
+
+Then Telemachus said that his father might trust him, and so they talked
+on together. Meanwhile Eumæus had reached the palace with the tidings that
+Telemachus had returned; and the suitors who were in the hall heard it and
+were dismayed, for they saw that their plot had failed. They went out of
+the palace and sat down before the gates, and were talking of sending word
+to their ship that was lying in wait for Telemachus, when the ship itself
+came into the harbor, with the other princes on board. So they all went up
+together to the public square and debated what to do, and they resolved to
+murder Telemachus as soon as they found another chance. Then they went
+back and sat down again on the polished seats in the hall.
+
+Now Medon the herald had heard them plotting together in the square, and
+went and told Penelope all they had said, and how they had purposed
+putting her son to death. She went down at once to the hall with her
+women, and stood in the doorway with her bright veil before her face and
+spoke to Antinous and said, "Wicked and insolent man, can it be that they
+call you in Ithaca one of their wisest men? No, it is a fool's work you
+are doing, plotting to kill my son. He is helpless before you now, but
+Zeus is the friend of the helpless and avenges their wrongs. Impious and
+ungrateful too! Did not Ulysses once shield your father from his enemies
+and save his life? Yet you waste his substance and would murder his son?"
+
+Then Eurymachus spoke and tried to soothe her. No one, he said, should
+injure Telemachus while he was alive, for he loved him more than any man
+on earth. Eurymachus's words were fair, and Penelope could say no more;
+yet all the while he was planning the death of her son.
+
+In the evening the swineherd reached his hut again, and found Ulysses
+changed to the old beggar-man once more, preparing supper with Telemachus.
+
+"What news, good Eumæus?" said the young man. "Have the proud lords come
+home from their ambush, or are they still waiting out yonder to take me as
+I return?" And Eumæus replied, "I did not stay, master, to go through the
+town and find out the news, for when I had given my message I wanted to be
+at home. But one thing I saw from the brow of the hill as I came along. A
+swift ship was entering the harbor, full of armor and armed men. They may
+have been the princes, but I cannot say."
+
+As he heard this, Telemachus looked at his father and smiled, but he took
+good care that the swineherd should not see.
+
+
+
+
+THE VENGEANCE OF ULYSSES
+
+
+A. HIS RECEPTION AT THE PALACE.
+
+By F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+
+
+Early next morning, when the rosy-fingered dawn was in the sky, Telemachus
+bound on his sandals and took his stout spear in his hand, and said to the
+swineherd, "Old friend, I must now be off to the city and let my mother
+see me, for I know she will weep and sigh until I am there myself. And as
+for this poor stranger, I would have you take him to the town and let him
+beg for bite and sup from door to door, and those who choose can give. For
+I cannot be host to every wanderer with all the trouble I have to bear.
+And if that makes him angry--well! it is only the worse for him; I am a
+man that speaks his mind."
+
+Then Ulysses answered readily, "Sir, I do not ask to stay here myself; a
+beggar should not beg in the fields. Nor am I young enough to work on a
+farm at a master's beck and call. So go your ways, and your man shall take
+me with him to the town. But I will wait till the sun is high, for I am
+afraid of the morning frost with these threadbare rags of mine."
+
+So Telemachus strode away until he reached the palace, and went into the
+hall. The old nurse Eurycleia was there with the maids, spreading fleeces
+on the inlaid stools and chairs; and she saw him at once and went up to
+him with tears in her eyes, and then all the women gathered round and
+kissed him and welcomed him home again. And Penelope came down from her
+chamber and flung her arms round her son, and kissed his head and both his
+eyes, and said to him tearfully, "You have come home, Telemachus, light of
+my eyes! I thought I should never see you again, when you sailed away to
+Pylos secretly, against my will, to get tidings of your father. And now
+tell me all you heard."
+
+But Telemachus said to her, "Mother, why make me think of trouble now,
+when I have just escaped from death? Rather put on your fairest robes, and
+go and pray the Gods to grant us a day of vengeance. But I must be off to
+the public square to meet a guest of mine whom I brought here in my ship.
+I sent him on before me with the crew, and bade one of them take him to
+his house until I came myself."
+
+So Penelope went away and prayed to the Gods, while the prince went down
+to the public square and found Theoclymenus and brought him back to the
+palace, and they sat down together in the hall. Then one of the old
+servants brought up a polished table and spread it for them with good
+things for their meal, and Penelope came and sat beside the door, spinning
+her fine soft yarn. She did not speak till they had finished, but then she
+said to her son, "Telemachus, I see I must go up to my room and lie down
+on my bed, the bed I have watered with my tears ever since Ulysses went
+away to Troy; for you are determined not to talk to me and tell me the
+news of your father before the suitors come into the hall!"
+
+Then Telemachus said, "Mother, I will tell you all I know. We reached
+Pylos and found Nestor there, and he took me into his splendid house, and
+welcomed me as lovingly as though I had been a long-lost son of his own.
+But he could tell me nothing of my father, not even if he were alive or
+dead, and so he sent me on to Sparta, to the house of Menelaus. There I
+saw Helen, the fairest of women, for whom the Greeks and Trojans fought
+and suffered so long. Menelaus asked me why I came and I told him about
+the suitors and all the wrong they did. Then he cried, 'Curse on them! The
+dastards in the hero's place! Oh, that Ulysses would return! They would
+soon have cause enough to hate this suit of theirs!' And then he told me
+how he had heard tidings of my father from Proteus, the wizard of the sea.
+He was living still, so the wizard said, on an island far away, in the
+cave of a wood nymph called Calypso, who kept him there against his will,
+and he had no ship to carry him over the broad sea. That was all Menelaus
+could tell me; and when I had done my errand I came away, and the Gods
+have brought me home in safety."
+
+And as Penelope listened her heart filled with sorrow; but Theoclymenus,
+the seer, said to her, "Listen to me, wife of Ulysses, and I will prophesy
+to you; for your son has heard nothing certain, but I have seen omens that
+are sure. I swear by Zeus, the ruler of the Gods, and by the board and the
+hearth of Ulysses himself where I am standing now, he is already here in
+Ithaca, he knows of all this wickedness, and is waiting to punish the
+suitors as they deserve."
+
+At that moment the princes came in from their sport and flung their cloaks
+aside, and set about slaughtering the sheep and the fatted goats and the
+swine for their feast.
+
+Meanwhile Ulysses was starting for the town, with the swineherd to show
+him the way. He had slung the tattered wallet across his shoulder, and
+Eumæus had given him a staff, and every one who met them would have taken
+the king for a poor old beggar-man, hobbling along with his crutch.
+
+So they went down the rocky path till they reached a running spring by the
+wayside where the townsfolk got their water. There was a grove of tall
+poplars round it, and the cool stream bubbled down from the rock overhead,
+and above the fountain there was an altar to the nymphs where the
+passers-by laid their offerings.
+
+There they chanced to meet Melanthius, the king's goatherd, driving his
+fattest goats to the town for the suitors' feast. He was a favorite of
+theirs, and did all he could to please them. Now as soon as he saw the two
+he broke out into scoffs and gibes, till the heart of Ulysses grew hot
+with anger.
+
+"Look there!" he shouted, "one rascal leading another! Trust a man to find
+his mate! A plague on you, swineherd, where are you taking that pitiful
+wretch? Another beggar, I suppose, to hang about the doors and cringe for
+the scraps and spoil our feasts? Now if you would only let me have him to
+watch my farm and sweep out my stalls and fetch fodder for my kids, he
+could drink as much whey as he liked and get some flesh on his bones. But
+no! His tricks have spoilt him for any honest work!"
+
+So he jeered at them in his folly, and as he passed he kicked Ulysses on
+the thigh, but the king stood firm, and took the blow in silence, though
+he could have found it in his heart to strike the man dead on the spot.
+But Eumæus turned round fiercely, and cried to the Gods for vengeance.
+
+"Nymphs of the spring," he prayed, "if ever my master honored you, hear my
+prayer, and send him home again! He would make a sweep of all your
+insolence, you good-for-nothing wretch, loitering here in the city while
+your flocks are left to ruin!"
+
+"Oho!" cried Melanthius. "Listen to the foul-mouthed dog! I must put him
+on board a ship and sell him in a foreign land, and make some use of him
+that way! Why, Ulysses will never see the day of his return! He is dead
+and gone; I wish his son would follow him!"
+
+With that he turned on his heel and hastened away to the palace hall,
+where he sat down with the suitors at their feast. And the other two
+followed slowly until they reached the gate. There they paused, and
+Ulysses caught the swineherd by the hand, and cried,--
+
+"Eumæus, this must be the palace of the king! No one could mistake it.
+See, there is room after room, and a spacious courtyard with a wall and
+coping-stones and solid double doors to make it safe. And I am sure that a
+great company is seated there at the banquet, for I can smell the roasted
+meat and hear the sound of the lyre."
+
+Then Eumæus said, "Your wits are quick enough; it is the very place. And
+now tell me: would you rather go in alone and face the princes while I
+wait here, or will you stay behind and let me go in first? But if you wait
+here, you must not wait too long, for some one might catch sight of you
+and strike you and drive you from the gate."
+
+Then the hero said to him, "I understand; I knew what I had to meet. Do
+you go first and I will wait behind. For I have some knowledge of thrusts
+and blows, and my heart has learned to endure; for I have suffered much in
+storm and battle, and I can bear this like the rest."
+
+But while they were talking, a dog who was lying there lifted his head and
+pricked his ears. It was the hound Argus, whom Ulysses had reared himself
+long ago before the war, but had to leave behind when he went away to
+Troy. Once he used to follow the hunters to the chase, but no one cared
+for him now when his master was away, and he lay there covered with
+vermin, on a dung-heap in front of the gates. Yet even so, when he felt
+that Ulysses was near him, he wagged his tail and dropped his ears; but he
+had not strength enough to drag himself up to his master. And when Ulysses
+saw it, he turned away his face so that Eumæus should not see the tears in
+his eyes, and said, "Eumæus, it is strange that they let that dog lie
+there in the dung. He looks a noble creature, but perhaps he has never
+been swift enough for the chase, and they have only kept him for his
+beauty."
+
+"Ah, yes!" Eumæus answered, "it is easy to see that he has no master now.
+If you had been here when Ulysses went to Troy, you would have wondered at
+the creature's pace and strength. In the thickest depth of the forest no
+quarry could escape him, and no hound was ever keener-scented. But now he
+is old and wretched and his lord has perished far away, and the heedless
+women take no care of him. Slaves can do nothing as they ought when the
+master is not there, for a man loses half his manhood when he falls into
+slavery."
+
+Then Eumæus went on into the palace and up to the hall where the suitors
+were. But Argus had seen his master again at last, and when he had seen
+him, he died.
+
+As soon as the swineherd came in, Telemachus caught sight of him, and
+beckoned him to a stool at his side, and gave him his share of the feast.
+After a little while Ulysses came up too, and sat down on the threshold
+like a poor old beggar-man. Then his son sent him meat and bread by the
+swineherd, and said that a beggar should be bold, and he ought to go among
+the princes and ask each man for a dole. So he went round from one to the
+other, stretching out his hand for a morsel in the true beggar's way. And
+every one else felt some pity and gave him an alms, but Antinous mocked at
+them all and told them they were ready enough to be generous with
+another's wealth. And at last he grew angry and cursed Ulysses for a
+whining rascal, and hurled a footstool at his head, bidding him begone and
+trouble them no more. The stool struck Ulysses on the shoulder, but he
+stood like a rock, motionless and silent, with black thoughts in his
+heart. Then he went back straight to the threshold and sat down and spoke
+to all the company:--
+
+"Listen to me, my lords! No man bears any rancor for a blow in open war,
+but Antinous has struck me because I am a beggar and know the curse of
+hunger. If there be any gods who avenge the poor man's cause, I pray that
+he may die before his marriage day!"
+
+At that the others felt shame, and told Antinous he did wrong to strike
+the homeless wanderer.
+
+"Who knows?" they said. "He might be one of the heavenly Gods, and woe to
+you if he were! For sometimes the Immortals take upon themselves the
+likeness of strangers, and enter our cities, and go about among men,
+watching the good and evil that they do."
+
+Thus they warned him, but he cared little for all they said. And
+Telemachus sat there full of rage and grief to see his father struck, but
+he kept back the tears and held his peace.
+
+Now Penelope was sitting in her room behind the hall, and she saw what had
+happened, and was angry with Antinous, and called the swineherd to her
+side.
+
+"Go, good Eumæus, and tell the stranger to come here. And I will ask him
+if he has ever heard of Ulysses, for he looks like a man who has wandered
+far."
+
+And the swineherd said, "Yes, he is a Cretan, and has had all kinds of
+adventures before he was driven here, and he could tell you stories that
+would charm you like a minstrel's sweetest song, and you would never tire
+of listening. And he says that he has heard of Ulysses, near home, in the
+rich land of Epirus, and that he is already on his way to us, bringing a
+store of treasures with him."
+
+Then Penelope said, "Quick, bring the stranger here at once, and let him
+speak with me face to face. And if I see that he tells the truth I will
+give him a vest and a cloak for himself."
+
+So the swineherd hurried back with the message; but Ulysses said he dared
+not face the princes a second time and it would be better to speak with
+Penelope later in the evening, alone by the fireside; and when the queen
+heard this, she said that the stranger was right. By this time it was
+afternoon, and Eumæus went up to Telemachus and whispered that he must be
+off to his work again. Telemachus said he might go, but bade him have
+supper first and told him to come back next morning without fail. So the
+swineherd took his food in the hall, and then started home for his farm,
+to look after his pigs and everything that he had charge of there.
+
+
+
+
+B. THE TRIAL OF THE BOW
+
+Translated by George Herbert Palmer
+
+
+And now the goddess, clear-eyed Athene, put in the mind of Icarius's
+daughter, heedful Penelope, to offer to the suitors in the hall the bow
+and the gray steel, as means of sport and harbingers of death. She mounted
+the long stairway of her house, holding a crooked key in her firm hand,--a
+goodly key of bronze, having an ivory handle,--and hastened with her
+damsels to a far-off room where her lord's treasure lay, bronze, gold, and
+well-wrought steel. Here also lay his curved bow and the quiver for his
+arrows,--and many grievous shafts were in it still,--gifts which a friend
+had given Ulysses when he met him once in Lacedæmon,--Iphitus, son of
+Eurytus, a man like the Immortals. At Messene the two met, in the house of
+wise Orsilochus. Ulysses had come hither to claim a debt, which the whole
+district owed him; for upon ships of many oars Messenians carried off from
+Ithaca three hundred sheep together with their herdsmen. In the long quest
+for these, Ulysses took the journey when he was but a youth; for his
+father and the other elders sent him forth. Iphitus, on the other hand,
+was seeking horses; for twelve mares had been lost, which had as foals
+twelve hardy mules. These afterwards became the death and doom of Iphitus
+when he met the stalwart son of Zeus, the hero Hercules, who well knew
+deeds of daring; for Hercules slew Iphitus in his own house, although his
+guest, and recklessly did not regard the anger of the Gods nor yet the
+proffered table, but slew the man and kept at his own hall the
+strong-hoofed mares. It was when seeking these that Iphitus had met
+Ulysses and given the bow which in old days great Eurytus was wont to
+bear, and which on dying in his lofty hall he left his son. To Iphitus
+Ulysses gave a sharp-edged sword and a stout spear, as the beginning of a
+loving friendship. They never sat, however, at one another's table; ere
+that could be, the son of Zeus slew godlike Iphitus, the son of Eurytus,
+who gave the bow. Royal Ulysses, when going off to war in the black ships,
+would never take this bow. It always stood in its own place at home, as a
+memorial of his honored friend. In his own land he bore it.
+
+Now when the royal lady reached this room and stood on the oaken
+threshold,--which long ago the carpenter had smoothed with skill and
+leveled to the line, fitting the posts thereto and setting the shining
+doors,--then quickly from its ring she loosed the strap, thrust in the
+key, and with a careful aim shot back the door-bolts. As a bull roars when
+feeding in the field, so roared the goodly door touched by the key, and
+open flew before her. She stepped to a raised dais where stood some chests
+in which lay fragrant garments. Thence reaching up, she took from its peg
+the bow in the glittering case which held it. And now she sat her down and
+laid the case upon her lap, and loudly weeping drew her lord's bow forth.
+But when she had had her fill of tears and sighs, she hastened to the hall
+to meet the lordly suitors, bearing in hand the curved bow and the quiver
+for the arrows, and many grievous shafts were in it still. Beside her,
+damsels bore a box in which lay many a piece of steel and bronze,
+implements of her lord's for games like these. And when the royal lady
+reached the suitors, she stood beside a column of the strong-built roof,
+holding before her face her delicate wimple, the while a faithful damsel
+stood on either hand. And straightway she addressed the suitors, speaking
+thus:--
+
+"Hearken, you haughty suitors who beset this house, eating and drinking
+ever, now my husband is long gone; no word of excuse can you suggest
+except your wish to marry me and win me for your wife. Well then, my
+suitors,--since before you stands your prize,--I offer you the mighty bow
+of prince Ulysses; and whoever with his hands shall lightliest bend the
+bow and shoot through all twelve axes, him will I follow and forsake this
+home, this bridal home, so very beautiful and full of wealth, a place I
+think I ever shall remember, even in my dreams."
+
+So saying, she bade Eumæus, the noble swineherd, deliver to the suitors
+the bow and the gray steel. With tears Eumæus took the arms and laid them
+down before them. Near by, the neatherd also wept to see his master's bow.
+But Antinous rebuked them, and spoke to them and said,--
+
+"You stupid boors, who only mind the passing minute, wretched pair, what
+do you mean by shedding tears, troubling this lady's heart, when already
+her heart is prostrated with grief at losing her dear husband? Sit down
+and eat in silence, or else go forth and weep, but leave the bow behind, a
+dread ordeal for the suitors; for I am sure this polished bow will not be
+bent with ease. There is not a man of all now here so powerful as Ulysses.
+I saw him once myself, and well recall him, though I was then a child."
+
+He spoke, but in his breast his heart was hoping to draw the string and
+send an arrow through the steel; yet he was to be the first to taste the
+shaft of good Ulysses, whom he now wronged though seated in his hall,
+while to like outrage he encouraged all his comrades. To these now spoke
+revered Telemachus:--
+
+"Ha! Zeus the son of Cronos has made me play the fool! My mother--and wise
+she is--says she will follow some strange man and quit this house; and I
+but laugh and in my silly soul am glad. Come then, you suitors, since
+before you stands your prize, a lady whose like cannot be found throughout
+Achaian land, in sacred Pylos, Argos, or Mycenæ, in Ithaca itself, or the
+dark mainland, as you yourselves well know,--what needs my mother
+praise?--come then, delay not with excuse nor longer hesitate to bend the
+bow, but let us learn what is to be. I too might try the bow. And if I
+stretch it and send an arrow through the steel, then with no shame to me
+my honored mother may forsake this house and follow some one else, leaving
+me here behind; for I shall then be able to wield my father's arms."
+
+He spoke, and flung his red cloak from his shoulders, rising full height,
+and put away the sharp sword also from his shoulder. First then he set the
+axes, marking one long furrow for them all, aligned by cord. The earth on
+the two sides he stamped down flat. Surprise filled all beholders to see
+how properly he set them, though he had never seen the game before. Then
+he went and stood upon the threshold and began to try the bow. Three times
+he made it tremble as he sought to make it bend. Three times he slacked
+his strain, still hoping in his heart to draw the string and send an arrow
+through the steel. And now he might have drawn it by force of a fourth
+tug, had not Ulysses shaken his head and stayed the eager boy. So to the
+suitors once more spoke revered Telemachus:--
+
+"Fie! Shall I ever be a coward and a weakling, or am I still but young and
+cannot trust my arm to right me with the man who wrongs me first? But
+come, you who are stronger men than I, come try the bow and end the
+contest."
+
+So saying, he laid by the bow and stood it on the ground, leaning it on
+the firm-set polished door. The swift shaft, too, he likewise leaned
+against the bow's fair knob, and once more took the seat from which he
+first arose. Then said to them Antinous, Eupeithes' son,--
+
+"Rise up in order all, from left to right, beginning where the cupbearer
+begins to pour the wine."
+
+So said Antinous, and his saying pleased them. Then first arose Leiodes,
+son of Oenops, who was their soothsayer and had his place beside the
+goodly mixer, farthest along the hall. To him alone their lawlessness was
+hateful; he abhorred the suitor crowd. He it was now who first took up the
+bow and the swift shaft; and going to the threshold, he stood and tried
+the bow. He could not bend it. Tugging the string wearied his hands,--his
+soft, unhorny hands,--and to the suitors thus he spoke:--
+
+"No, friends, I cannot bend it. Let some other take the bow. Ah, many
+chiefs this bow shall rob of life and breath! Yet better far to die than
+live and still to fail in that for which we constantly are gathered,
+waiting expectantly from day to day! Now each man hopes and purposes at
+heart to win Penelope, Ulysses' wife. But when he shall have tried the bow
+and seen his failure, then to some other fair-robed woman of Achaia let
+each go, and offer her his suit and woo her with his gifts. So may
+Penelope marry the man who gives her most and comes with fate to favor!"
+
+When he had spoken, he laid by the bow, leaning it on the firm-set
+polished door. The swift shaft, too, he likewise leaned against the bow's
+fair knob, and once more took the seat from which he first arose. But
+Antinous rebuked him, and spoke to him, and said,--
+
+"Leiodes, what words have passed the barrier of your teeth? Strange words
+and harsh! Vexatious words to hear! As if this bow must rob our chiefs of
+life and breath because you cannot bend it! Why, your good mother did not
+bear you for a brandisher of bows and arrows. But others among the lordly
+suitors will bend it by and by."
+
+So saying, he gave an order to Melanthius, the goatherd: "Hasten,
+Melanthius, and light a fire in the hall and set a long bench near, with
+fleeces on it; then bring me the large cake of fat which lies inside the
+door, that after we have warmed the bow and greased it well, we young men
+may try the bow and end the contest."
+
+He spoke, and straightway Melanthius kindled a steady fire, and set a
+bench beside it with a fleece thereon, and brought out the large cake of
+fat which lay inside the door, and so the young men warmed the bow and
+made their trial. But yet they could not bend it; they fell far short of
+power. Antinous, however, still held back, and prince Eurymachus, who were
+the suitors' leaders; for they in manly excellence were quite the best of
+all.
+
+Meanwhile out of the house at the same moment came two men, princely
+Ulysses' herdsmen of the oxen and the swine; and after them came royal
+Ulysses also from the house. And when they were outside the gate, beyond
+the yard, speaking in gentle words Ulysses said,--
+
+"Neatherd, and you too, swineherd, may I tell a certain tale, or shall I
+hide it still? My heart bids me speak. How ready would you be to aid
+Ulysses if he should come from somewhere, thus, on a sudden, and a god
+should bring him home? Would you support the suitors or Ulysses? Speak
+freely, as your heart and spirit bid you speak."
+
+Then said to him the herdsman of the cattle, "O father Zeus, grant this my
+prayer! May he return and Heaven be his guide! Then shall you know what
+might is mine and how my hands obey."
+
+So prayed Eumæus too to all the Gods, that wise Ulysses might return to
+his own home. So when he knew with certainty the heart of each, finding
+his words once more Ulysses said,--
+
+"Lo, it is I, through many grievous toils now in the twentieth year come
+to my native land! And yet I know that of my servants none but you desire
+my coming. From all the rest I have not heard one prayer that I return. To
+you then I will truly tell what shall hereafter be. If God by me subdues
+the lordly suitors, I will obtain you wives and give you wealth and homes
+established near my own; and henceforth in my eyes you shall be friends
+and brethren of Telemachus. Come, then, and I will show you too a very
+trusty sign,--that you may know me certainly and be assured in heart,--the
+scar the boar dealt long ago with his white tusk, when I once journeyed to
+Parnassus with Autolycus's sons."
+
+So saying, he drew aside his rags from the great scar. And when the two
+beheld and understood it all, their tears burst forth; they threw their
+arms round wise Ulysses, and passionately kissed his face and neck. So
+likewise did Ulysses kiss their heads and hands. And daylight had gone
+down upon their weeping had not Ulysses stayed their tears and said,--
+
+"Have done with grief and wailing, or somebody in coming from the hall may
+see, and tell the tale indoors. Nay, go in one by one, not all together. I
+will go first, you after. And let this be agreed: the rest within, the
+lordly suitors, will not allow me to receive the bow and quiver. But,
+noble Eumæus, bring the bow along the room and lay it in my hands. Then
+tell the women to lock the hall's close-fitting doors; and if from their
+inner room they hear a moaning or a strife within our walls, let no one
+venture forth, but stay in silence at her work. And noble Philoetius, in
+your care I put the courtyard gates. Bolt with the bar and quickly lash
+the fastening."
+
+So saying, Ulysses made his way into the stately house, and went and took
+the seat from which he first arose. And soon the serving-men of princely
+Ulysses entered too.
+
+Now Eurymachus held the bow and turned it up and down, trying to heat it
+at the glowing fire. But still, with all his pains, he could not bend it;
+his proud soul groaned aloud. Then bitterly he spoke; these were the words
+he said,--
+
+"Ah! here is woe for me and woe for all! Not that I so much mourn missing
+the marriage, though vexed I am at that. Still, there are enough more
+women of Achaia, both here in sea-girt Ithaca and in the other cities. But
+if in strength we fall so short of princely Ulysses that we cannot bend
+his bow--oh, the disgrace for future times to know!"
+
+Then said Antinous, Eupeithes' son, "Not so, Eurymachus, and you yourself
+know better. To-day throughout the land is the archer-god's high feast.
+Who then could bend a bow? Nay, quietly lay it by; and for the axes, what
+if we leave them standing? Nobody. I am sure, will carry one away and
+trespass on the house of Laertes' son, Ulysses. Come then, and let the
+wine-pourer give pious portions to our cups, that after a libation we may
+lay aside curved bows. To-morrow morning tell Melanthius, the goatherd, to
+drive us here the choicest goats of all his flock; and we will set the
+thighs before the archer-god, Apollo, then try the bow and end the
+contest."
+
+So said Antinous, and his saying pleased them. Pages poured water on their
+hands; young men brimmed bowls with drink and served to all, with a first
+pious portion for the cups. And after they had poured and drunk as their
+hearts would, then in his subtlety said wise Ulysses,--
+
+"Hearken, you suitors of the illustrious queen, and let me tell you what
+the heart within me bids. I beg a special favor of Eurymachus, and great
+Antinous too; for his advice was wise, that you now drop the bow and leave
+the matter with the Gods, and in the morning God shall grant the power to
+whom he may. But give me now the polished bow, and let me in your presence
+prove my skill and power and see if I have yet such vigor left as once
+there was within my supple limbs, or whether wanderings and neglect have
+ruined all."
+
+At these his words all were exceeding wroth, fearing that he might bend
+the polished bow. But Antinous rebuked him, and spoke to him and said,
+"You scurvy stranger, with not a whit of sense, are you not satisfied to
+eat in peace with us, your betters, unstinted in your food and hearing all
+we say? Nobody else, stranger or beggar, hears our talk. 'Tis wine that
+goads you, honeyed wine, a thing that has brought others trouble, when
+taken greedily and drunk without due measure. Wine crazed the Centaur,
+famed Eurytion, at the house of bold Peirithous, on his visit to the
+Lapithæ. And when his wits were crazed with wine, he madly wrought foul
+outrage on the household of Peirithous. So indignation seized the heroes.
+Through the porch and out of doors they rushed, dragging Eurytion forth,
+shorn by the pitiless sword of ears and nose. Crazed in his wits, he went
+his way, bearing in his bewildered heart the burden of his guilt. And
+hence arose a feud between the Centaurs and mankind; but the beginning of
+the woe he himself caused by wine. Even so I prophesy great harm to you,
+if you shall bend the bow. No kindness will you meet from any in our land,
+but we will send you by black ship straight to King Echetus, the bane of
+all mankind, out of whose hands you never shall come clear. Be quiet,
+then, and take your drink! Do not presume to vie with younger men!"
+
+Then said to him heedful Penelope, "Antinous, it is neither honorable nor
+fitting to worry strangers who may reach this palace of Telemachus. Do you
+suppose the stranger, if he bends the great bow of Ulysses, confident in
+his skill and strength of arm, will lead me home and take me for his wife?
+He in his inmost soul imagines no such thing. Let none of you sit at the
+table disturbed by such a thought; for that could never, never, be!"
+
+Then answered her Eurymachus, the son of Polybus, "Daughter of Icarius,
+heedful Penelope, we do not think the man will marry you. Of course that
+could not be. And yet we dread the talk of men and women, and fear that
+one of the baser sort of the Achaians say,'Men far inferior sue for a good
+man's wife, and cannot bend his polished bow. But somebody else--a
+wandering beggar--came, and easily bent the bow and sent an arrow through
+the steel.' This they will say, to us a shame indeed."
+
+Then said to him heedful Penelope, "Eurymachus, men cannot be in honor in
+the land and rudely rob the household of their prince. Why, then, count
+this a shame? The stranger is right tall, and well-knit too, and calls
+himself the son of a good father. Give him the polished bow, and let us
+see. For this I tell you, and it shall be done: if he shall bend it and
+Apollo grants his prayer, I will clothe him in a coat and tunic, goodly
+garments, give him a pointed spear to keep off dogs and men, a two-edged
+sword, and sandals for his feet, and I will send him where his heart and
+soul may bid him go."
+
+Then answered her discreet Telemachus, "My mother, no Achaian has better
+right than I to give or to refuse the bow to any as I will. And out of all
+who rule in rocky Ithaca, or in the islands off toward grazing Elis, none
+may oppose my will, even if I wished to put the bows into the stranger's
+hands and let him take them once for all away. Then seek your chamber and
+attend to matters of your own,--the loom, the distaff,--and bid the women
+ply their tasks. Bows are for men, for all, especially for me; for power
+within this house rests here."
+
+Amazed, she turned to her own room again, for the wise saying of her son
+she laid to heart. And coming to the upper chamber with her maids, she
+there bewailed Ulysses, her dear husband, till on her lids clear-eyed
+Athene caused a sweet sleep to fall.
+
+Meanwhile the noble swineherd, taking the curved bow, was bearing it away.
+But the suitors all broke into uproar in the hall, and a rude youth would
+say, "Where are you carrying the curved bow, you miserable swineherd?
+Crazy fool! Soon out among the swine, away from men, swift dogs shall eat
+you,--dogs you yourself have bred,--will but Apollo and the other
+deathless Gods be gracious!" At these their words the bearer of the bow
+laid it down where he stood, frightened because the crowd within the hall
+cried out upon him. But from the other side Telemachus called threatening
+aloud, "Nay, father! Carry on the bow! You cannot well heed all. Take
+care, or I, a nimbler man than you, will drive you to the fields with
+pelting stones. Superior in strength I am to you. Ah, would I were as much
+beyond the others in the house, beyond these suitors, in my skill and
+strength of arm! Then would I soon send somebody away in sorrow from my
+house; for men work evil here."
+
+He spoke, and all burst into merry laughter and laid aside their bitter
+anger with Telemachus. And so the swineherd, bearing the bow along the
+hall, drew near to wise Ulysses and put it in his hands; then calling
+aside nurse Eurycleia, thus he said,--
+
+"Telemachus bids you, heedful Eurycleia, to lock the hall's close-fitting
+doors; and if a woman from the inner room hears moaning or a strife within
+our walls, let her not venture forth, but stay in silence at her work."
+
+Such were his words; unwinged, they rested with her. She locked the doors
+of the stately hall. Then silently from the house Philoetius stole forth
+and straightway barred the gates of the fenced court. Beneath the portico
+there lay a curved ship's cable, made of biblus plant. With this he lashed
+the gates, then passed indoors himself, and went and took the seat from
+which he first arose, eyeing Ulysses. Now Ulysses already held the bow and
+turned it round and round, trying it here and there to see if worms had
+gnawed the horn while its lord was far away. And glancing at his neighbor
+one would say,--
+
+"A sort of fancier and a trickster with the bow this fellow is. No doubt
+at home he has himself a bow like that, or means to make one like it. See
+how he turns it in his hands this way and that, ready for
+mischief,--rascal!"
+
+Then would another rude youth answer thus: "Oh, may he always meet with
+luck as good as when he is unable now to bend the bow!"
+
+So talked the suitors. Meantime wise Ulysses, when he had handled the
+great bow and scanned it closely,--even as one well skilled to play the
+lyre and sing stretches with ease round its new peg a string, securing at
+each end the twisted sheep-gut, so without effort did Ulysses string the
+mighty bow. Holding it now with his right hand, he tried its cord; and
+clear to the touch it sang, voiced like the swallow. Great consternation
+came upon the suitors. All faces then changed color. Zeus thundered loud
+for signal. And glad was long-tried royal Ulysses to think the son of
+crafty Cronos had sent an omen. He picked up a swift shaft which lay
+beside him on the table, drawn. Within the hollow quiver still remained
+the rest, which the Achaians soon should prove. Then laying the arrow on
+the arch, he drew the string and arrow notches, and forth from the bench
+on which he sat let fly the shaft, with careful aim, and did not miss an
+axe's ring from first to last, but clean through all sped on the
+bronze-tipped arrow; and to Telemachus he said,--
+
+"Telemachus, the guest now sitting in your hall brings you no shame. I did
+not miss my mark, nor in the bending of the bow make a long labor. My
+strength is sound as ever, not what the mocking suitors here despised. But
+it is time for the Achaians to make supper ready, while it is daylight
+still; and then for us in other ways to make them sport,--with dance and
+lyre; for these attend a feast."
+
+He spoke and frowned the sign. His sharp sword then Telemachus girt on,
+the son of princely Ulysses clasped his right hand around his spear, and
+close beside his father's seat he took his stand, armed with the gleaming
+bronze.
+
+
+
+
+C. THE SLAYING OF THE SUITORS
+
+By F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+
+
+Ulysses sprang to the great threshold with the bow and quiver in his hand.
+He poured out the arrows at his feet, and shouted to the princes, "So ends
+the game you could not play! Now for another mark which no man has ever
+hit before!"
+
+With that he shot at Antinous. He, as it chanced, was just lifting a
+golden cup from the board, never dreaming that death would meet him there
+with all his comrades round him at the feast. But before the wine touched
+his lips the arrow struck him in the throat, and the cup dropped from his
+hand, and he fell dying to the floor. The princes sprang to their feet
+when they saw their comrade fallen, and looked round the walls for armor,
+but there was not a spear or shield to be found. Then they turned in fury
+on Ulysses: "Madman, are you shooting at men? You have slain the noblest
+youth in Ithaca, and you shall not live to draw bow again."
+
+But Ulysses faced them sternly and said, "Dogs, you thought that I should
+never return. You have rioted in my home, and outraged the women of my
+household, and you have wooed my own wife while I was yet a living man.
+You took no thought for the Gods who rule in heaven, nor for the
+indignation of men in days hereafter. Now your time is come."
+
+All grew pale as he spoke, and Eurymachus alone found words: "If you are
+in truth King Ulysses, your words are just; there have been many shameful
+deeds done upon your lands and in your house. But Antinous, who was the
+cause of all, lies dead; it was he who lead us on, hoping that he might
+take your kingdom for himself. Spare us now that he has met his doom, for
+we are your own people; and we will make you full atonement for all that
+has been eaten and drunk in your halls."
+
+"Eurymachus, you might give me all you have, but even then I would not
+hold my hands until I had taken vengeance for every wrong. You have your
+choice. Fight, or fly, if you think that flight can save you."
+
+At that their knees shook beneath them, but Eurymachus cried, "Comrades,
+this man will have no mercy. He has got the bow in his hands, and he will
+shoot us down from the threshold, so long as there is one of us left
+alive. Draw your swords, and guard yourselves, with the tables; and let us
+all set upon him at once and drive him from the doorway. If we can reach
+the city, we are safe."
+
+As he spoke he drew his sword and sprang forward with a cry; and at the
+same moment Ulysses shot. The arrow struck him in the breast, and he
+dropped forward over the table, while the mist of death sank upon his
+eyes. Then Amphinomus made a rush on the doorway. But Telemachus was too
+quick for him; he hurled his spear and struck him from behind between the
+shoulders, and he fell crashing on the floor. Telemachus sprang back,
+leaving the spear, for he dared not wait to draw it out. He darted to his
+father's side. "Father, we ought to have armor; I will go and get weapons
+for us."
+
+"Run and bring them," said. Ulysses, "while I have arrows left; when these
+are gone I cannot hold the doorway against them all."
+
+So Telemachus ran to the armory and hurried back with helmets and shields
+and spears; and he armed himself and made the two servants do the same,
+and they took their stand beside the king. While the arrows lasted,
+Ulysses shot, and struck down the wooers man by man. And then he leant the
+bow against the doorpost, and slung the shield about him and put on the
+helmet and took two spears in his hand.
+
+Now there was a postern in the hall, close beside the great doorway and
+opening on the corridor. Ulysses had put the swineherd to guard it, and
+now the boldest of the suitors said to the rest, "Could not some of us
+force a passage there and raise the cry for rescue?"
+
+"Little use in that," said Melanthius, "the great doorway is too close,
+and one brave man might stop us all before we reached the court. I have a
+better plan. Ulysses and his son have stowed away the weapons, and I think
+I know where they are. I will go and fetch you what you need."
+
+With these words he clambered up through the lights of the hall and got
+into the armory, and fetched out twelve shields and as many spears and
+helmets, and brought them to the princes. The heart of Ulysses misgave him
+when he saw the armor and the long spears in their hands; and he felt that
+the fight would go hard, and said to Telemachus, "Melanthius or one of the
+women has betrayed us."
+
+"Father, it was my fault," said Telemachus; "I left the door of the armory
+open, and one of them must have kept sharper watch than I did. Go, Eumæus,
+make fast the door, and see whether this is the doing of Melanthius, as I
+guess."
+
+While they spoke, Melanthius went again to fetch more armor, and the
+swineherd spied him and said, "There is the villain going to the armory,
+as we thought; tell me, shall I kill him, if I can master him, or shall I
+bring him here to suffer for his sins?" "Telemachus and I will guard the
+doorway here," said Ulysses, "and you and the shepherd shall bind him hand
+and foot and leave him in the chamber to wait his doom."
+
+So the two went up to the armory, and stood in wait on either side of the
+door; and as Melanthius came out, they leapt upon him and dragged him back
+by the hair and flung him on the ground and bound him tightly to a pillar
+hand and foot. "Lie there," said Eumæus, "and take your ease: the dawn
+will not find you sleeping, when it is time for you to rise and drive out
+your goats." With that they went back to join Ulysses, and the four stood
+together at the threshold,--four men against a host.
+
+Then Athene came among them in the likeness of Mentor, and Ulysses knew
+her and rejoiced. "Mentor," he shouted, "help me in my need, for we are
+comrades from of old." And the wooers sent up another shout, "Do not
+listen to him, Mentor; or your turn will come when he is slain." But
+Athene taunted Ulysses and spurred him to the fight: "Have you lost your
+strength and courage, Ulysses? It was not thus you did battle for Helen in
+the ten years' war at Troy. Is it so hard to face the suitors in your own
+house and home? Come, stand by me, and see if Mentor forgets old
+friendship." Yet she left the victory still uncertain, that she might
+prove his courage to the full. She turned herself into a swallow and flew
+up into the roof and perched on a blackened rafter overhead.
+
+Then the wooers took courage, when they saw that Mentor was gone, and that
+the four stood alone in the doorway. And one of them said to the rest,
+"Let six of us hurl our spears together at Ulysses. If once he falls,
+there will be little trouble with the rest." So they flung their spears as
+he bade them; but all of them missed the mark. Then Ulysses gave the word
+to his men, and they all took steady aim and threw, and each one killed
+his man; and the wooers fell back into the farther end of the hall, while
+the four dashed on together and drew out their spears from the bodies of
+the slain. Once more the suitors hurled, and Telemachus and the swineherd
+were wounded; but the other spears fell wide. Then at last Athene lifted
+her shield of war high overhead,--the shield that brings death to
+men,--and panic seized the wooers, and they fled through the hall like a
+drove of cattle when the gadfly stings them. But the four leapt on them
+like vultures swooping from the clouds; and they fled left and right
+through the hall, but there was no escape.
+
+Only Phemius, the minstrel, whom the wooers had forced to sing before
+them, sprang forward and clasped the knees of Ulysses and said, "Have
+mercy on me, Ulysses: you would not slay a minstrel, who gladdens the
+hearts of Gods and men? The princes forced me here against my will."
+
+And Telemachus heard and said to his father, "Do not hurt him, for he is
+not to blame: and let us save the herald too, if he is yet alive, for he
+took care of me when I was a child."
+
+Now the herald had hidden himself under a stool and pulled an ox-hide over
+him, and when he heard this he crept out and clasped the knees of
+Telemachus and begged that he would plead for him. "Have no fear," said
+Ulysses; "my son has saved your life. Go out, you and the minstrel, and
+wait in the courtyard, for I have other work to do within." So the two
+went out into the courtyard, and sat down beside the altar, looking for
+their death each moment.
+
+Then Ulysses searched through the hall, to see if any one was yet lurking
+alive. But they all lay round him fallen in the dust and blood, heaped
+upon each other like fishes on a sunny beach when the fisherman has drawn
+his net to land. Then he told Telemachus to call out the old nurse
+Eurycleia. She came and found Ulysses standing among the bodies of the
+slain, with his hands and feet all stained with blood, and she was ready
+to shout aloud for triumph when she saw the great work accomplished. But
+Ulysses checked her cry and said, "Keep your joy unspoken, old nurse;
+there should be no shout of triumph over the slain. It is the judgment of
+Heaven that has repaid them for the evil deeds they did."
+
+Then he gave orders that the bodies of the dead should be carried out and
+that the blood should be washed away. And when this was done he turned to
+Eurycleia and said, "Bring fire and sulphur now and I will purify the
+hall. Then bid Penelope meet me here."
+
+"Yes, my child," said the old nurse, "I will obey you. But let me bring
+you a mantle first: it is not fitting that you should stand here with only
+your rags to cover you." But Ulysses said that she must do his bidding at
+once. So she brought sulphur and lit a fire, and Ulysses purified the
+hall.
+
+
+
+
+D. PENELOPE RECOGNIZES ULYSSES
+
+Translated by George Herbert Palmer
+
+
+The old woman, full of glee, went to the upper chamber to tell her
+mistress her dear lord was in the house. Her knees grew strong; her feet
+outran themselves. By Penelope's head she paused, and thus she spoke:--
+
+"Awake, Penelope, dear child, to see with your own eyes what you have
+hoped to see this many a day! Ulysses is here! He has come home at last,
+and slain the haughty suitors, the men who vexed his house, devoured his
+substance, and oppressed his son."
+
+Then heedful Penelope said to her, "Dear nurse, the Gods have crazed you.
+They can befool one who is very wise, and often they have set the simple
+in the paths of prudence. They have confused you; you were sober-minded
+heretofore. Why mock me when my heart is full of sorrow, telling wild
+tales like these? And why arouse me from the sleep that sweetly bound me
+and kept my eyelids closed? I have not slept so soundly since Ulysses went
+away to see accursed Ilium,--name never to be named. Nay then, go down,
+back to the hall. If any other of my maids had come and told me this and
+waked me out of sleep, I would soon have sent her off in sorry wise into
+the hall once more. This time age serves you well."
+
+Then said to her the good nurse Eurycleia, "Dear child, I do not mock you.
+In very truth it is Ulysses; he is come, as I have said. He is the
+stranger whom everybody in the hall has set at naught. Telemachus knew
+long ago that he was here, but out of prudence hid his knowledge of his
+father till he should have revenge from those bold men for wicked deeds."
+
+So spoke she; and Penelope was glad, and, springing from her bed, fell on
+the woman's neck, and let the tears burst from her eyes; and, speaking in
+winged words, she said,--
+
+"Nay, tell me, then, dear nurse, and tell me truly; if he is really come
+as you declare, how was it he laid hands upon the shameless suitors, being
+alone, while they were always here together?"
+
+Then answered her the good nurse Eurycleia, "I did not see; I did not ask;
+I only heard the groans of dying men. In a corner of our protected chamber
+we sat and trembled,--the doors were tightly closed,--until your son
+Telemachus called to me from the hall; for his father bade him call. And
+there among the bodies of the slain I found Ulysses standing. All around,
+covering the trodden floor, they lay, one on another. It would have warmed
+your heart to see him, like a lion, dabbled with blood and gore. Now all
+the bodies are collected at the courtyard gate, while he is fumigating the
+fair house by lighting a great fire. He sent me here to call you. Follow
+me, then, that you may come to gladness in your true hearts together, for
+sorely have you suffered. Now the long hope has been at last fulfilled. He
+has come back alive to his own hearth, and found you still, you and his
+son, within his hall; and upon those who did him wrong, the suitors, on
+all of them here in his home he has obtained revenge."
+
+Then heedful Penelope said to her, "Dear nurse, be not too boastful yet,
+nor filled with glee. You know how welcome here the sight of him would be
+to all, and most to me and to the son we had. But this is no true tale you
+tell. Nay, rather some immortal slew the lordly suitors, in anger at their
+galling insolence and wicked deeds; for they respected nobody on earth,
+bad man or good, who came among them. So for their sins they suffered. But
+Ulysses, far from Achaia, lost the hope of coming home; nay, he himself
+was lost."
+
+Then answered her the good nurse Eurycleia, "My child, what word has
+passed the barrier of your teeth, to say your husband, who is now beside
+your hearth, will never come! Your heart is always doubting. Come, then,
+and let me name another sign most sure,--the scar the boar dealt long ago
+with his white tusk. I found it as I washed him, and I would have told you
+then; but he laid his hand upon my mouth, and in his watchful wisdom would
+not let me speak. But follow me. I stake my very life; if I deceive you,
+slay me by the vilest death."
+
+Then heedful Penelope answered her, "Dear nurse, 'tis hard for you to
+trace the counsels of the everlasting Gods, however wise you are.
+Nevertheless, let us go down to meet my son, and see the suitors who are
+dead, and him who slew them."
+
+So saying, she went from her chamber to the hall, and much her heart
+debated whether aloof to question her dear husband, or to draw near and
+kiss his face and take his hand. But when she entered, crossing the stone
+threshold, she sat down opposite Ulysses, in the firelight, beside the
+farther wall. He sat by a tall pillar, looking down, waiting to hear if
+his stately wife would speak when she should look his way. But she sat
+silent long; amazement filled her heart. Now she would gaze with a long
+look upon his face, and now she would not know him for the mean clothes
+that he wore. But Telemachus rebuked her, and spoke to her and said,--
+
+"Mother, hard mother, of ungentle heart, why do you hold aloof so from my
+father, and do not sit beside him, plying him with words and questions?
+There is no other woman of such stubborn spirit to stand off from the
+husband who, after many grievous toils, comes in the twentieth year home
+to his native land. Your heart is always harder than a stone!"
+
+Then said to him heedful Penelope, "My child, my soul within is dazed with
+wonder. I cannot speak to him, nor ask a question, nor look him in the
+face. But if this indeed is Ulysses, come at last, we certainly shall know
+each other better than others know; for we have signs which we two
+understand,--signs hidden from the rest."
+
+As she, long tried, spoke thus, royal Ulysses smiled, and said to
+Telemachus forthwith in winged words, "Telemachus, leave your mother in
+the hall to try my truth. She soon will know me better. Now, because I am
+foul and dressed in sorry clothes, she holds me in dishonor, and says I am
+not he. But you and I have yet to plan how all may turn out well. For
+whoso kills one man among a tribe, though the man leaves few champions
+behind, becomes an exile, quitting kin and country. We have destroyed the
+pillars of the state, the very noblest youths of Ithaca. Form, then, a
+plan, I pray."
+
+Then answered him discreet Telemachus, "Look you to that, dear father.
+Your wisdom is, they say, the best among mankind. No mortal man can rival
+you. Zealously will we follow, and not fail, I think, in daring, so far as
+power is ours."
+
+Then wise Ulysses answered him and said, "Then I will tell you what seems
+best to me. First wash and put on tunics, and bid the maids about the
+house array themselves. Then let the sacred bard with tuneful lyre lead us
+in sportive dancing, that men may say, hearing us from without, 'It is a
+wedding,' whether such men be passers-by or neighboring folk; and so broad
+rumor may not reach the town about the suitors' murder till we are gone to
+our well-wooded farm. There will we plan as the Olympian shall grant us
+wisdom."
+
+So he spoke, and willingly they heeded and obeyed. For first they washed
+themselves and put on tunics, and the women also put on their attire. And
+then the noble bard took up his hollow lyre, and in them stirred desire
+for merry music and the gallant dance; and the great house resounded to
+the tread of lusty men and gay-girt women. And one who heard the dancing
+from without would say, "Well, well! some man has married the long-courted
+queen. Hard-hearted! For the husband of her youth she would not guard her
+great house to the end, till he should come." So they would say, but knew
+not how things were.
+
+Meanwhile within the house Eurynome, the housekeeper, bathed resolute
+Ulysses and anointed him with oil, and on him put a goodly robe and tunic.
+Upon his face Athene cast great beauty; she made him taller than before,
+and stouter to behold, and made the curling locks to fall round his head
+as on the hyacinth flower. As when a man lays gold on silver,--some
+skillful man whom Vulcan and Pallas Athene have trained in every art, and
+he fashions graceful work, so did she cast a grace upon his head and
+shoulders. Forth from the bath he came, in bearing like the Immortals, and
+once more took the seat from which he first arose, facing his wife, and
+spoke to her these words:--
+
+"Lady, a heart impenetrable beyond the sex of women the dwellers on
+Olympus gave to you. There is no other woman of such stubborn spirit to
+stand off from the husband who, after many grievous toils, comes in the
+twentieth year home to his native land. Come, then, good nurse, and make
+my bed, that I may lie alone. For certainly of iron is the heart within
+her breast."
+
+Then said to him heedful Penelope, "Nay, sir, I am not proud, nor
+contemptuous of you, nor too much dazed with wonder. I very well remember
+what you were when you went upon your long-oared ship away from Ithaca.
+However, Eurycleia, make up his massive bed outside that stately chamber
+which he himself once built. Move the massive frame out there, and throw
+the bedding on,--the fleeces, robes, and bright-hued rugs."
+
+She said this in the hope to prove her husband, but Ulysses spoke in anger
+to his faithful wife: "Woman, these are bitter words which you have said!
+Who set my bed elsewhere? A hard task that would be for one, however
+skilled,--unless a god should come and by his will set it with ease upon
+some other spot; but among men no living being, even in his prime, could
+lightly shift it; for a great token is inwrought into its curious frame. I
+built it; no one else. There grew a thick-leaved olive shrub inside the
+yard, full-grown and vigorous, in girth much like a pillar. Round this I
+formed my chamber, and I worked till it was done, building it out of
+close-set stones, and roofing it over well. Framed and tight-fitting doors
+I added to it. Then I lopped the thick-leaved olive's crest, cutting the
+stem high up above the roots, neatly and skillfully smoothed with my axe
+the sides, and to the line I kept all true to shape my post, and with an
+auger I bored it all along. Starting with this, I fashioned me the bed
+till it was finished, and I inlaid it well with gold, with silver, and
+with ivory. On it I stretched a thong of ox-hide, gay with purple. This is
+the token I now tell. I do not know whether the bed still stands there,
+wife, or whether somebody has set it elsewhere, cutting the olive trunk."
+
+As he spoke thus, her knees grew feeble and her very soul, when she
+recognized the tokens which Ulysses exactly told. Then bursting into
+tears, she ran straight toward him, threw her arms round Ulysses' neck and
+kissed his face, and said,--
+
+"Ulysses, do not scorn me! Ever before, you were the wisest of mankind.
+The Gods have sent us sorrow, and grudged our staying side by side to
+share the joys of youth and reach the threshold of old age. But do not be
+angry with me now, nor take it ill that then when I first saw you I did
+not greet you thus; for the heart within my breast was always trembling. I
+feared some man might come and cheat me with his tale. Many a man makes
+wicked schemes for gain. Nay, Argive Helen, the daughter of Zeus, would
+not have given herself to love a stranger if she had known how warrior
+sons of the Achaians would bring her home again, back to her native land.
+And yet it was a god prompted her deed of shame. Before, she did not
+cherish in her heart such sin, such grievous sin, from which began the woe
+which stretched to us. But now, when you have clearly told the tokens of
+our bed, which no one else has seen, but only you and I and the single
+servant, Actoris, whom my father gave me on my coming here to keep the
+door of our closed chamber,--you make even my ungentle heart believe."
+
+So she spoke, and stirred still more his yearning after tears; and he
+began to weep, holding his loved and faithful wife. As when the welcome
+land appears to swimmers, whose sturdy ship Neptune wrecked at sea,
+confounded by the winds and solid waters; a few escape the foaming sea and
+swim ashore; thick salt foam crusts their flesh; they climb the welcome
+land, and are escaped from danger; so welcome to her gazing eyes appeared
+her husband. From round his neck she never let her white arms go. And
+rosy-fingered dawn had found them weeping, but a different plan the
+goddess formed, clear-eyed Athene. She checked the long night in its
+passage, and at the ocean-stream she stayed the gold-throned dawn, and did
+not suffer it to yoke the swift-paced horses which carry light to men,
+Lampus and Phaethon, which bear the dawn. And now to his wife said wise
+Ulysses,--
+
+"O wife, we have not reached the end of all our trials yet. Hereafter
+comes a task immeasurable, long and severe, which I must needs fulfill;
+for so the spirit of Tiresias told me, that day when I descended to the
+house of Hades to learn about the journey of my comrades and myself. But
+come, my wife, let us to bed, that there at last we may refresh ourselves
+with pleasant sleep."
+
+Then said to him heedful Penelope, "The bed shall be prepared whenever
+your heart wills, now that the Gods have let you reach your stately house
+and native land. But since you speak of this, and God inspires your heart,
+come, tell that trial. In time to come, I know, I shall experience it. To
+learn about it now, makes it no worse."
+
+Then wise Ulysses answered her and said, "Lady, why urge me so insistently
+to tell? Well, I will speak it out; I will not hide it. Yet your heart
+will feel no joy; I have no joy myself; for Tiresias bade me go to many a
+peopled town, bearing in hand a shapely oar, till I should reach the men
+that know no sea and do not eat food mixed with salt. These, therefore,
+have no knowledge of the red-cheeked ships, nor of the shapely oars which
+are the wings of ships. And this was the sign, he said, easy to be
+observed. I will not hide it from you. When another traveler, meeting me,
+should say I had a winnowing-fan on my white shoulder, there in the ground
+he bade me fix my oar and make fit offerings to lord Neptune,--a ram, a
+bull, and the sow's mate, a boar,--and, turning homeward, to offer sacred
+hecatombs to the immortal gods who hold the open sky, all in the order
+due. And on myself death from the sea shall very gently come and cut me
+off, bowed down with hale old age. Round me shall be a prosperous people.
+All this, he said, should be fulfilled."
+
+Then said to him heedful Penelope, "If gods can make old age the better
+time, then there is hope there will be rest from trouble."
+
+So they conversed together. Meanwhile, Eurynome and the nurse prepared
+their bed with clothing soft, under the light of blazing torches. And
+after they had spread the comfortable bed, with busy speed, the old woman
+departed to her room to rest; while the chamber-servant, Eurynome, with
+torch in hand, walked on before, as they two came to bed. She brought them
+to their chamber, and then she went her way. So they came gladly to their
+old bed's rites. And now Telemachus, the neatherd, and the swineherd
+stayed their feet from dancing, and bade the women stay, and all betook
+themselves to rest throughout the dusky halls.
+
+So when the pair had joyed in happy love, they joyed in talking too, each
+one relating; she, the royal lady, what she endured at home, watching the
+wasteful throng of suitors, who, making excuse of her, slew many cattle,
+beeves, and sturdy sheep, and stores of wine were drained from out the
+casks; he, high-born Ulysses, what miseries he brought on other men and
+what he bore himself in anguish,--all he told, and she was glad to listen.
+No sleep fell on her eyelids till he had told her all.
+
+He began with how at first he conquered the Ciconians, and came thereafter
+to the fruitful land of Lotus-Eaters; then what the Cyclops did, and how
+he took revenge for the brave comrades whom the Cyclops ate, and never
+pitied; then how he came to Æolus, who gave him hearty welcome and sent
+him on his way; but it was fated that he should not reach his dear land
+yet, for a sweeping storm bore him once more along the swarming sea,
+loudly lamenting; how he came to Telepylus in Læstrygonia, where the men
+destroyed his ships and his mailed comrades, all of them; Ulysses fled in
+his black ship alone. He told of Circe, too, and all her crafty guile; and
+how on a ship of many oars he came to the mouldering house of Hades, there
+to consult the spirit of Teiresias of Thebes, and looked on all his
+comrades, and on the mother who had borne him and cared for him when
+little; how he had heard the full-voiced Sirens' song; how he came to the
+Wandering Rocks, to dire Charybdis and to Scylla, past whom none goes
+unharmed; how then his crew slew the Sun's kine; how Zeus with a blazing
+bolt smote his swift ship,--Zeus, thundering from on high,--and his good
+comrades perished, utterly, all, while he escaped their evil doom; how he
+came to the island of Ogygia and to the nymph Calypso, who held him in her
+hollow grotto, wishing him to be her husband, cherishing him, and saying
+she would make him an immortal, young forever, but she never beguiled the
+heart within his breast; then how he came through many toils to the
+Phæacians, who honored him exceedingly, as if he were a god, and brought
+him on his way to his native land, giving him stores of bronze and gold
+and clothing. This was the latest tale he told, when pleasant sleep fell
+on him, easing his limbs and from his heart removing care.
+
+
+
+
+THE WANDERINGS OF THE TROJAN ÆNEAS
+
+
+THE FLIGHT OF ÆNEAS FROM THE RUINS OF TROY
+
+By Alfred J. Church
+
+
+Æneas, a famous Trojan warrior, fought bravely as long as the city stood;
+but when it had fallen, he bethought himself of his father Anchises, and
+his wife Creusa, and of his little son Ascanius, and how he had left them
+without defense at home. But as he turned to seek them, the night being
+now, by reason of many fires, as clear as the day, he espied Helen sitting
+in the temple of Vesta, where she had sought sanctuary; for she feared the
+men of Troy, to whom she had brought ruin and destruction, and not less
+her own husband, whom she had deceived. Then was his wrath kindled, and he
+spake to himself, "Shall this evil woman return safe to Sparta? Shall she
+see again her home and her children, with Trojan women forsooth to be her
+handmaidens? Shall Troy be burnt and King Priam be slain, and she take no
+harm? Not so; for though there be no glory to be won from such a deed, yet
+shall I satisfy myself, taking vengeance upon her for my kinsmen and my
+countrymen." But while he thought these things in his heart, lo! there
+appeared unto him Venus, his mother, made manifest as he had never seen
+her before, as fair and as tall as the dwellers in heaven behold her. Then
+Venus spake thus: "What meaneth all this rage, my son? Hast thou no care
+for me? Hast thou forgotten thy father Anchises, and thy wife, and thy
+little son? Of a surety the fire and the sword had consumed them long
+since but that I cared for them and saved them. It is not Helen, no, nor
+Paris, that hath laid low this great city of Troy, but the wrath of the
+Gods. See now, for I will take away the mist that covers thine eyes; see
+how Neptune with his trident is overthrowing the walls and rooting up the
+city from its foundations; and how Juno stands with spear and shield in
+the Scæan Gate and calls fresh hosts from the ships; and how Pallas sits
+on the height with the storm-cloud about her and her Gorgon shield; and
+how Father Jupiter himself stirs up the enemy against Troy. Fly,
+therefore, my son. I will not leave thee till thou shalt reach thy
+father's house." And as she spake she vanished in the darkness.
+
+Then did Æneas see dreadful forms and gods who were enemies of Troy, and
+before his eyes the whole city seemed to sink down into the fire. Even as
+a mountain oak upon the hills on which the woodmen ply their axes bows its
+head while all its boughs shake about it, till at last, as blow comes
+after blow, with a mighty groan it falls crashing down from the height,
+even so the city seemed to fall. Then did Æneas pass on his way, the
+goddess leading him, and the flames gave place to him, and the javelins
+harmed him not.
+
+But when he was come to his house he bethought him first of the old man
+his father; but when he would have carried him to the hills, Anchises
+would not, being loath to live in some strange country when Troy had
+perished. "Nay," said he, "fly ye who are strong and in the flower of your
+days. But as for me, if the Gods had willed that I should live, they had
+saved this dwelling for me. Enough it is, yea, and more than enough, that
+once I have seen this city taken, and lived. Bid me, then, farewell as
+though I were dead. Death will I find for myself. And truly I have long
+lingered here a useless stock and hated of the Gods, since Jupiter smote
+me with the blast of his thunder."
+
+Nor could the old man be moved from his purpose, though his son and his
+son's wife, and even the child Ascanius, besought him with many tears that
+he should not make yet heavier the doom that was upon them. Then was Æneas
+minded to go back to the battle and die. For what hope was left?
+"Thoughtest thou, my father," he cried, "that I should flee and leave thee
+behind? What evil word is this that has fallen from thy lips? If the Gods
+will have it that nought of Troy should be left, and thou be minded that
+thou and thine should perish with the city, be it so. The way is easy;
+soon will Pyrrhus be here: Pyrrhus, red with Priam's blood; Pyrrhus, who
+slays the son before the face of the father, and the father at the altar.
+Was it for this, kind Mother Venus, that thou broughtest me safe through
+fire and sword, to see the enemy in my home, and my father and my wife and
+my son lying slaughtered together? Comrades, give me my arms, and take me
+back to the battle. At the least I will die avenged."
+
+But as he girded on his arms and would have departed from the house, his
+wife Creusa caught his feet upon the threshold, staying him, and held out
+the little Ascanius, saying, "If thou goest to thy death, take wife and
+child with thee; but if thou hopest aught from arms, guard first the house
+where thou hast father and wife and child."
+
+And lo! as she spake there befell a mighty marvel, for before the face of
+father and mother there was seen to shine a light on the head of the boy
+Ascanius, and to play upon his waving hair and glitter on his temples. And
+when they feared to see this thing, and would have stifled the flame or
+quenched it with water, the old man Anchises in great joy raised his eyes
+to heaven, and cried aloud, "O Father Jupiter, if prayer move thee at all,
+give thine aid and make this omen sure." And even as he spake the thunder
+rolled on his left hand, and a star shot through the skies, leaving a long
+trail of light behind, and passed over the house-tops till it was hidden
+in the woods of Ida. Then the old man lifted himself up and did obeisance
+to the star, and said, "I delay no more: whithersoever ye lead I will
+follow. Gods of my country, save my house and my grandson. This omen is of
+you. And now, my son, I refuse not to go."
+
+Then said Æneas, and as he spake the fire came nearer, and the light was
+clearer to see, and the heat more fierce, "Climb, dear father, on my
+shoulders; I will bear thee, nor grow weary with the weight. We will be
+saved or perish together. The little Ascanius shall go with me, and my
+wife follow behind, not over near. And ye, servants of my house, hearken
+to me; ye mind how that to one who passes out of the city there is a tomb
+and a temple of Ceres in a lonely place, and an ancient cypress-tree hard
+by. There will we gather by divers ways. And do thou, my father, take the
+holy images in thy hands, for as for me, who have but newly come from
+battle, I may not touch them till I have washed me in the running stream."
+
+And as he spake he put a cloak of lion's skin upon his shoulders, and the
+old man sat thereon. Ascanius also laid hold of his hand, and Creusa
+followed behind. So he went in much dread and trembling. For indeed before
+sword and spear of the enemy he had not feared, but now he feared for them
+that were with him. But when he was come nigh unto the gates, and the
+journey was well-nigh finished, there befell a grievous mischance, for
+there was heard a sound as of many feet through the darkness; and the old
+man cried to him, "Fly, my son, fly; they are coming. I see the flashing
+of shields and swords." But as Æneas hasted to go, Creusa his wife was
+severed from him. But whether she wandered from the way or sat down in
+weariness, no man may say. Only he saw her no more, nor knew her to be
+lost, till all his company being met at the temple of Ceres, she only was
+found wanting. Very grievous did the thing seem to him, nor did he cease
+to cry out in his wrath against Gods and men. Also he bade his comrades
+have a care of his father and his son, and of the household gods, and
+girded him again with arms, and so passed into the city. And first he went
+to the wall and to the gate by which he had come forth, and then to his
+house, if haply she had returned thither. But there indeed the men of
+Greece were come, and the fire had well-nigh mastered it. And after that
+he went to the citadel and to the palace of King Priam. And lo! in the
+porch of Juno's temple, Phoenix and Ulysses were keeping guard over the
+spoil, even the treasure of the temples, tables of the Gods, and solid
+cups of gold, and raiment, and a long array of them that had been taken
+captive, children and women. But not the less did he seek his wife through
+all the streets of the city, yea, and called her aloud by name. But lo! as
+he called, the image of her whom he sought seemed to stand before him,
+only greater than she had been while she was yet alive. And the spirit
+spake, saying, "Why art thou vainly troubled? These things have not
+befallen us against the pleasure of the Gods. The ruler of Olympus willeth
+not that Creusa should bear thee company in thy journey. For thou hast a
+long journey to take, and many seas to cross, till thou come to the
+Hesperian shore, where Lydian Tiber flows softly through a good land and a
+fertile. There shalt thou have great prosperity, and take to thyself a
+wife of royal race. Weep not, then, for Creusa, whom thou lovest, nor
+think that I shall be carried away to be a bond-slave to some Grecian
+woman. Such fate befits not a daughter of Dardanus and daughter-in-law of
+Venus. The mighty mother of the Gods keepeth me in this land to serve her.
+And now, farewell, and love the young Ascanius, even thy son and mine."
+
+[Illustration: AND AS HE SPAKE HE PUT A CLOAK OF LION'S SKIN UPON HIS
+SHOULDERS, AND THE OLD MAN SAT THEREON. ASCANIUS ALSO LAID HOLD OF HIS
+HAND, AND CREUSA FOLLOWED BEHIND. SO HE WENT IN MUCH DREAD AND TREMBLING,
+FOR INDEED BEFORE SWORD AND SPEAR OF THE ENEMY HE HAD NOT FEARED, BUT NOW
+HE FEARED MUCH FOR THEM THAT WERE WITH HIM]
+
+So spake the spirit, and when Æneas wept and would have spoken, vanished
+out of his sight. Thrice he would have cast his arms about her neck, and
+thrice the image mocked him, being thin as air and fleeting as a dream.
+Then, the night being now spent, he sought his comrades, and found with
+much joy and wonder that a great company of men and women were gathered
+together, and were willing, all of them, to follow him whithersoever he
+went. And now the morning star rose over Mount Ida, and Æneas, seeing that
+the Greeks held the city, and that there was no longer any hope of succor,
+went his way to the mountains, taking with him his father.
+
+
+
+
+ÆNEAS'S ADVENTURE WITH THE HARPIES
+
+By Charles Henry Hanson
+
+
+    [For three days the vessels of Æneas were tossed about by terrible
+    storm winds.]
+
+
+At last, on the fourth day, the fury of the storm abated, and they came in
+sight of land,--at first lofty mountains, and afterwards, as they drew
+nearer, rich grassy plains, on which the wanderers saw herds of cattle and
+flocks of goats grazing without a keeper. As soon as the storm-beaten
+vessels could be brought to the shore, the Trojans hastened to land, and
+slaughtered some of the cattle, preparing a luxurious banquet. But this
+they were not destined to enjoy in peace; for scarcely had they stretched
+themselves on the couches they had hurriedly prepared beside the food when
+there was a sudden rushing of wings, and three ghastly creatures swooped
+down upon the feast, devoured a large part of it, and so defiled the rest
+with their loathsome touch that very little was eatable. These were the
+Harpies, and by their appearance Æneas knew that he and his companions had
+arrived at the Strophades, two islands in the Ionian Sea which for many
+years had been given up to the monsters. They were fearful of aspect: down
+to the breast they resembled women, with scanty black hair and glaring
+red-rimmed eyes, and on their faces ever a famine-stricken look; but they
+had wings instead of arms, and their bodies and lower limbs were those of
+huge birds, foul and uncleanly. These hateful creatures had long before
+been sent by the Gods to plague Pheneus the Blind, king of Thrace, who had
+cruelly treated his sons. Whenever a meal was spread for the king, the
+Harpies used to descend and devour it. At last some brave warriors, who
+were passing through Thrace, were persuaded by the promise of rewards from
+Pheneus to rid him of the monsters, and drove them to the far Strophades,
+where they had ever since dwelt.
+
+Irritated at the loss of their feast, Æneas and his companions prepared
+more food, and determined, if necessary, to defend it with their swords.
+They accordingly concealed their weapons in the grass, and stationed one
+of their number on the watch, to give notice with the sound of a trumpet
+when the Harpies were approaching. This was done accordingly, and the
+obscene creatures, when they again swooped down to seize on the cooked
+meats, which they relished more than any other food, were driven off,
+though not without difficulty. But one of them, perching on a high rock,
+croaked forth to the astonished mariners this dismal prophecy:--
+
+"Woe to you, Trojans! Do you dare to make war upon us after having slain
+our oxen, and to banish the innocent Harpies from the kingdom which is
+theirs by right? Fix, then, in your minds these words, which the father of
+Gods and men revealed to Phoebus Apollo, and Apollo to me. Italy is the
+land you seek, and Italy you shall reach at last, after many perils; but
+you shall not build up the walls of your new-founded city until dire
+famine and suffering, visiting you because you have injured us, shall
+compel you to devour your tables as well as the food that is upon them."
+
+The gloomy prediction terrified most of the wanderers, and they urged
+Æneas to endeavor to propitiate the unclean monsters with invocations and
+sacrifices. But Anchises, after imploring Jupiter to ward off the
+threatened calamities, commanded that the expedition should at once quit
+that melancholy shore. After passing the rugged cliffs of Ithaca, and
+uttering maledictions on the land that bred Ulysses, the most cunning
+enemy of Troy, the exiles arrived in safety at the harbor of Leucadia,
+where the ships were anchored, and the travelers landed to rest awhile
+after the fatigues of the voyage. Here they celebrated the games of their
+country; and Æneas hung on the door-posts of an ancient and famous temple
+of Apollo a suit of armor, which he had taken from a Greek warrior slain
+before Troy, placing above it an inscription, "These arms Æneas won from
+the victorious Greeks."
+
+
+
+
+ÆNEAS IN THE LAND OF THE CYCLOPS
+
+By Charles Henry Hanson
+
+
+A day's sail over the blue Mediterranean brought Æneas and his followers
+in sight of the southeastern shores of Italy; and as they saw the swelling
+hills and grassy plains of the promised land, they broke into cries of
+joy. The ships were run into a secure harbor, and sacrifices offered up
+for the propitiation of Minerva and of Juno; after which, mindful of the
+injunctions of Helenus to avoid those parts of Italy which lay nearest to
+Greece, the adventurers resumed their voyage. Keeping near the coast, they
+passed the Bay of Tarentum and the lofty promontories of Calabria. Now
+came in sight the immense bulk of Etna, lifting its fire-crowned head into
+the clouds; and the roaring of the terrible Charybdis could be distinctly
+heard. Remembering the warnings of Helenus, they hastily turned to the
+left, and avoided the perilous strait, but sought refuge in a place
+scarcely less dangerous; for they landed in the country of the Cyclops,
+where, only a little while before, Ulysses had been with his comrades, and
+had endured great sufferings at the hands of the giant Polyphemus. The
+Cyclops, it will be remembered, were a race of savage shepherds, of
+immense stature, having each but one eye in the middle of his forehead.
+They dwelt in caves, and kept great flocks and herds. Polyphemus was the
+largest and fiercest of them all; and when Ulysses and his companions
+entered his cave he kept them prisoners, and devoured several of them. The
+hero himself and the rest of his followers had escaped him by making him
+drunk with wine they had brought on shore from their ships, and then
+putting out his eye with a sharpened stake, the point of which they had
+hardened in the fire. The knowledge of this adventure came to Æneas and
+his Trojans in a strange fashion. On the morning after their arrival in
+the country of the Cyclops, they were on the shore, when they were
+surprised to see a man emerge from the woods, and approach them with
+suppliant gestures. His appearance was wild and emaciated, his beard
+overgrown, his garments ragged; but nevertheless it was easy to perceive
+that he was a Greek. When he saw that the voyagers wore Trojan dress and
+arms, he paused in fear, but the next moment he hurried toward them with
+tears and entreaties.
+
+"I conjure you," he cried, "by the stars, by the powers above, by the
+light of heaven, ye Trojans, take me hence. Carry me where you will, do
+with me what you will, I shall be content. I confess that I was one who
+bore arms against Troy; if you deem that a crime, put me to death for it.
+At least I shall have the satisfaction of dying by the hands of men."
+
+Æneas and Anchises received the stranger kindly, assured him of his
+safety, and asked him who he was, and how he came to be in that desolate
+country. He answered that he was an Ithacan, his name Achæmenides, and
+that he had been one of the companions of Ulysses in his wanderings. He
+related the adventures of the Ithacan hero in the cave of Polyphemus, and
+told how he himself, having been by accident left behind when his comrades
+escaped, had since led a wretched existence in the woods, living on wild
+berries and roots, and continually in dread lest he should be seen by the
+Cyclops. He advised Æneas to lose no time in quitting the country, lest
+the ferocious shepherds should discover and destroy them. Even as
+Achæmenides spoke, Polyphemus was seen accompanying his flock to their
+pasture. So tall was he of stature that he carried the trunk of a
+pine-tree as a staff to guide his footsteps. Reaching the sea he stepped
+into it, and bent down to bathe the wound inflicted by Ulysses. The
+Trojans hastened to cut their cables, and rowed out to sea. The giant
+heard the sound of their oars, and turned to follow them; but in his
+blindness he dared not follow far, and therefore he called on his brethren
+with a cry so loud that the very sea was shaken in its depths. Forthwith
+the huge Cyclops came trooping to the shore, like a wood of lofty trees
+endued with life and motion; but by this time the Trojan vessels had got
+beyond their reach.
+
+
+
+
+ÆNEAS AND QUEEN DIDO
+
+By Alfred J. Church
+
+
+    [Æneas was driven by a storm upon the shores of Carthage.]
+
+
+Now it came to pass on the next day that Æneas, having first hidden his
+ships in a bay that was well covered with trees, went forth to spy out the
+new land whither he was come, and Achates only went with him. And Æneas
+had in each hand a broad-pointed spear. And as he went there met him in
+the middle of the wood his mother, but habited as a Spartan virgin, for
+she had hung a bow from her shoulders after the fashion of a huntress, and
+her hair was loose, and her tunic short to the knees, and her garments
+gathered in a knot upon her breast. Then first the false huntress spake:
+"If perchance ye have seen one of my sisters wandering hereabouts, make
+known to me the place. She is girded with a quiver, and is clothed with
+the skin of a spotted lynx, or, maybe, she hunts a wild boar with horn and
+hound."
+
+To whom Æneas, "I have not seen nor heard sister of thine, O virgin--for
+what shall I call thee? for, of a surety, neither is thy look as of a
+mortal woman, nor yet thy voice. A goddess certainly thou art, sister of
+Phoebus, or, haply, one of the nymphs. But whosoever thou art, look
+favorably upon us and help us. Tell us in what land we be, for the winds
+have driven us hither, and we know not aught of place or people."
+
+And Venus said, "Nay, stranger, I am not such as ye think. We virgins of
+Tyre are wont to carry a quiver and to wear a buskin of purple. For indeed
+it is a Tyrian city that is hard by, though the land be Libya. And of this
+city Dido is queen, having come hither from Tyre, flying from the
+wrong-doing of her brother. And indeed the story of the thing is long, but
+I will recount the chief matter thereof to thee. The husband of this Dido
+was one Sichæus, richest among all the men of Phoenicia, and greatly
+beloved of his wife, whom he married from a virgin. Now the brother of
+this Sichæus was Pygmalion, the king of the country, and he exceeded all
+men in wickedness. And when there arose a quarrel between them, the king,
+being exceedingly mad after gold, took him unaware, even as he did
+sacrifice at the altar, and slew him. And the king hid the matter many
+days from Dido, and cheated her with false hopes. But at the last there
+came to her in her dreams the likeness of the dead man, baring his wounds
+and showing the wickedness which had been done. Also he bade her make
+haste and fly from that land, and, that she might do this the more easily,
+told her of great treasure, gold and silver, that was hidden in the earth.
+And Dido, being much moved by these things, made ready for flight; also
+she sought for companions, and there came together to her as many as hated
+the king or feared him. Then did they seize ships that chanced to be ready
+and laded them with gold, even the treasure of King Pygmalion, and so fled
+across the sea. And in all this was a woman the leader. Then came they to
+this place, where thou seest the walls and citadel of Carthage, and bought
+so much land as they could cover with a bull's hide. And now do ye answer
+me this, Whence come ye, and whither do ye go?"
+
+Then answered Æneas, "Should I tell the whole story of our wanderings, and
+thou have leisure to hear, evening would come ere I could make an end. We
+are men of Troy, who, having journeyed over many seas, have now been
+driven by storms to this shore of Libya. And as for me, men call me Prince
+Æneas. The land I seek is Italy, and my race is from Jupiter himself. With
+twenty ships did I set sail, going in the way whereon the Gods sent me.
+And of these scarce seven are left. And now, seeing that Europe and Asia
+endure me not, I wander over the desert places of Africa."
+
+But Venus suffered him not to speak more, but said, "Whoever thou art,
+stranger, that art come to this Tyrian city, thou art surely beloved by
+the Gods. And now go, show thyself to the queen. And as for thy ships and
+thy companions, I tell thee that they are safe in the haven, if I have not
+learnt augury in vain. See those twenty swans, how joyously they fly! And
+now there cometh an eagle swooping down from the sky, putting them to
+confusion, but now again they move in due order, and some are settling on
+the earth and some are preparing to settle. Even so doth it fare with thy
+ships, for either are they already in the haven or enter thereinto with
+sails full set."
+
+And as she spoke she turned away, and there shone a rosy light from her
+neck, also there came from her hair a sweet savor as of ambrosia, and her
+garments grew under her feet; and Æneas perceived that she was his mother,
+and cried aloud,--
+
+"O my mother, why dost thou mock me so often with false shows, nor
+sufferest me to join my hand unto thy hand, and to speak with thee face to
+face?"
+
+And he went towards the walls of the city. But Venus covered him and his
+companions with a mist, that no man might see them, or hinder them, or
+inquire of their business, and then departed to Paphos, where was her
+temple and also many altars of incense. Then the men hastened on their
+way, and mounting a hill which hung over the city, marveled to behold it,
+for indeed it was very great and noble, with mighty gates and streets, and
+a multitude that walked therein. For some built the walls and the citadel,
+rolling great stones with their hands, and others marked out places for
+houses. Also they chose those that should give judgment and bear rule in
+the city. Some, too, digged out harbors, and others laid the foundations
+of a theatre, and cut out great pillars of stone. Like to bees they were,
+when, the summer being newly come, the young swarms go forth, or when they
+labor filling the cells with honey, and some receive the burdens of those
+that return from the fields, and others keep off the drones from the hive.
+Even so labored the men of Tyre. And when Æneas beheld them he cried,
+"Happy ye, who even now have a city to dwell in!" And being yet hidden by
+the mist, he went in at the gate and mingled with the men, being seen of
+none.
+
+Now in the midst of the city was a wood, very thick with trees, and here
+the men of Carthage, first come to the land from their voyage, had digged
+out of the ground that which Juno had said should be a sign to them, even
+a horse's head; for that, finding this, their city would be mighty in war,
+and full of riches. Here, then, Dido was building a temple to Juno, very
+splendid, with threshold of bronze, and many steps thereunto; of bronze
+also were the door-posts and the gates. And here befell a thing which gave
+much comfort and courage to Æneas; for as he stood and regarded the place,
+waiting also for the queen, he saw set forth in order upon the walls the
+battles that had been fought at Troy, the sons of Atreus also, and King
+Priam, and fierce Achilles. Then said he, not without tears, "Is there any
+land, O Achates, that is not filled with our sorrows? Seest thou Priam?
+Yet withal there is a reward for virtue here also, and tears and pity for
+the troubles of men. Fear not, therefore. Surely the fame of these things
+shall profit us."
+
+Then he looked, satisfying his soul with the paintings on the walls. For
+there was the city of Troy. In this part of the field the Greeks fled and
+the youth of Troy pursued them, and in that the men of Troy fled, and
+Achilles followed hard upon them in his chariot. Also he saw the white
+tents of Rhesus, king of Thrace, whom the fierce Diomed slew in his sleep,
+when he was newly come to Troy, and drave his horses to the camp before
+they ate of the grass of the fields of Troy or drank the waters of
+Nanthus. There also Troilus was pictured, ill matched in battle with
+Achilles. His horses bare him along; but he lay on his back in the
+chariot, yet holding the reins, and his neck and head were dragged upon
+the earth, and the spear-point made a trail in the dust. And in another
+place the women of Troy went suppliant-wise to the temple of Minerva,
+bearing a great and beautiful robe, sad and beating their breasts, and
+with hair unbound; but the goddess regarded them not. Also Achilles
+dragged the body of Hector three times round the walls of Troy, and was
+selling it for gold. And Æneas groaned when he saw the man whom he loved,
+and the old man Priam reaching out helpless hands. Also he knew himself,
+fighting in the midst of the Grecian chiefs; black Memnon also he knew,
+and the hosts of the East; and Penthesilea leading the army of the Amazons
+with shields shaped as the moon. Fierce she was to see, with one breast
+bared for battle, and a golden girdle beneath it, a damsel daring to fight
+with men.
+
+But while Æneas marveled to see these things, lo! there came, with a great
+throng of youths behind her, Dido, most beautiful of women, fair as Diana,
+when, on the banks of Eurotas or on the hills of Cynthus, she leads the
+dance with a thousand nymphs of the mountains about her. On her shoulder
+she bears a quiver, and overtops them all, and her mother, even Latona,
+silently rejoices to behold her. So fair and seemly to see was Dido as she
+bare herself right nobly in the midst, being busy in the work of her
+kingdom. Then she sat herself down on a lofty throne in the gate of the
+temple, with many armed men about her. And she did justice between man and
+man; also she divided the work of the city, sharing it equally or parting
+by lot.
+
+Then of a sudden Æneas heard a great clamor, and saw a company of men come
+quickly to the place, among whom were Antheus and Sergestus and Cloanthus,
+and others of the men of Troy that had been parted from him in the storm.
+Right glad was he to behold them, yet was not without fear; and though he
+would fain have come forth and caught them by the hand, yet did he tarry,
+waiting to hear how the men had fared, where they had left their ships,
+and wherefore they were come.
+
+Then Ilioneus, leave being now given that he should speak, thus began: "O
+Queen, whom Jupiter permits to build a new city in these lands, we men of
+Troy, whom the winds have carried over many seas, pray thee that thou save
+our ships from fire, and spare a people that serveth the Gods. For,
+indeed, we are not come to waste the dwellings of this land, or to carry
+off spoils to our ships. For, of a truth, they who have suffered so much
+think not of such deeds. There is a land which the Greeks call Hesperia,
+but the people themselves Italy, after the name of their chief; an ancient
+land, mighty in arms and fertile of corn. Hither, were we journeying, when
+a storm arising scattered our ships, and only these few that thou seest
+escaped to the land. And can there be nation so savage that it receiveth
+not shipwrecked men on its shore, but beareth arms against them, and
+forbiddeth them to land? Nay, but if ye care not for men, yet regard the
+Gods, who forget neither them that do righteously nor them that
+transgress. We had a king, Æneas, than whom there lived not a man more
+dutiful to Gods and men, and greater in war. If indeed he be yet alive,
+then we fear not at all. For of a truth it will not repent thee to have
+helped us. And if not, other friends have we, as Acestes of Sicily. Grant
+us, therefore, to shelter our ships from the wind; also to fit them with
+fresh timber from the woods, and to make ready oars for rowing, so that,
+finding again our king and our companions, we may gain the land of Italy.
+But if he be dead, and Ascanius his son lost also, then there is a
+dwelling ready for us in the land of Sicily, with Acestes, who is our
+friend."
+
+Then Dido, her eyes bent on the ground, thus spake: "Fear not, men of
+Troy. If we have seemed to deal harshly with you, pardon us, seeing that,
+being newly settled in this land, we must keep watch and ward over our
+coasts. But as for the men of Troy, and their deeds in arms, who knows
+them not? Think not that we in Carthage are so dull of heart, or dwell so
+remote from man, that we are ignorant of these things. Whether, therefore,
+ye will journey to Italy or rather return to Sicily and King Acestes, know
+that I will give you all help, and protect you; or, if ye will, settle in
+this land of ours. Yours is this city which I am building. I will make no
+difference between man of Troy and man of Tyre. Would that your king also
+were here! Surely I will send those that shall seek him in all parts of
+Libya, lest haply he should be gone astray in any forest or strange city
+of the land."
+
+And when Æneas and Achates heard these things they were glad, and would
+have come forth from the cloud, and Achates said, "What thinkest thou? Lo,
+thy comrades are safe, saving him whom we saw with our own eyes drowned in
+the waves; and all other things are according as thy mother said."
+
+And even as he spake the cloud parted from about them, and Æneas stood
+forth, very bright to behold, with face and breast as of a god, for his
+mother had given to him hair beautiful to see, and cast about him the
+purple light of youth, even as a workman sets ivory in some fair ornament,
+or compasseth about silver or marble of Paros with gold. Then spake he to
+the queen: "Lo! I am he whom ye seek, even Æneas of Troy, scarcely saved
+from the waters of the sea. And as for thee, O Queen, seeing that thou
+only hast been found to pity the unspeakable sorrows of Troy, and biddest
+us, though we be but poor exiles and lacking all things, to share thy city
+and thy home, may the Gods do so to thee as thou deservest. And, of a
+truth, so long as the rivers run to the seas, and the shadows fall on the
+hollows of the hills, so long will thy name and thy glory survive,
+whatever be the land to which the Gods shall bring me." Then gave he his
+right hand to Ilioneus, and his left hand to Sergestus, and greeted them
+with great joy.
+
+And Dido, hearing these things, was silent for a while, but at the last
+she spake. "What ill fortune brings thee into perils so great? what power
+drave thee to these savage shores? Well do I mind me how in days gone by
+there came to Sidon one Teucer, who, having been banished from his
+country, sought help from Belus that he might find a kingdom for himself.
+And it chanced that in those days Belus, my father, had newly conquered
+the land of Cyprus. From that day did I know the tale of Troy, and thy
+name also, and the chiefs of Greece. Also I remember that Teucer spake
+honorably of the men of Troy, saying that he was himself sprung of the old
+Teucrian stock. Come ye, therefore to my palace. I too have wandered far,
+even as you, and so have come to this land, and having suffered much, have
+learnt to succor them that suffer."
+
+So saying she led Æneas into her palace; also she sent to his companions
+in the ships great store of provisions, even twenty oxen and a hundred
+bristly swine and a hundred ewe sheep with their lambs. But in the palace
+a great feast was set forth, couches covered with broidered purple and
+silver vessels without end, and cups of gold, whereon were embossed the
+mighty deeds of the men of old time.
+
+And in the mean time Æneas sent Achates in haste to the ships, that he
+might fetch Ascanius to the feast. Also he bade that the boy should bring
+with him gifts of such things as they had saved from the ruins of Troy,--a
+mantle stiff with broidery of gold and a veil bordered with yellow
+acanthus, which the fair Helen had taken with her, flying from her home;
+but Leda, her mother, had given them to Helen; a sceptre likewise which
+Ilione, first-born of the daughters of Priam, had carried, and a necklace
+of pearls and a double crown of jewels and gold.
+
+But Venus was troubled in heart, fearing evil to her son should the men of
+Tyre be treacherous, after their wont, and Juno remember her wrath.
+Wherefore, taking counsel with herself, she called to the winged boy, even
+Love, that was her son, and spake: "My son, who art all my power and
+strength, who laughest at the thunders of Jupiter, thou knowest how Juno,
+being exceedingly wroth against thy brother Æneas, causeth him to wander
+out of the way over all lands. This day Dido hath him in her palace, and
+speaketh him fair; but I fear me much how these things may end. Wherefore
+hear thou that which I purpose. Thy brother hath even now sent for the boy
+Ascanius, that he may come to the palace, bringing with him gifts of such
+things as they saved from the ruins of Troy. Him will I cause to fall into
+a deep sleep and hide in Cythera or Idalium, and do thou for one night
+take upon thee his likeness. And when Queen Dido at the feast shall hold
+thee in her lap, and kiss and embrace thee, do thou breathe by stealth thy
+fire into her heart."
+
+Then did Love as his mother bade him, and put off his wings, and took upon
+him the shape of Ascanius, but on the boy Venus caused there to fall a
+deep sleep, and carried him to the woods of Idalium, and lapped him in
+sweet-smelling flowers. And in his stead Love carried the gifts to the
+queen. And when he was come they sat down to the feast, the queen being in
+the midst under a canopy. Æneas also and the men of Troy lay on coverlets
+of purple, to whom serving-men brought water and bread in baskets and
+napkins; and within fifty handmaids were ready to replenish the store of
+victual and to fan the fire; and a hundred others, with pages as many,
+loaded the tables with dishes and drinking-cups. Many men of Tyre also
+were bidden to the feast. Much they marveled at the gifts of Æneas, and
+much at the false Ascanius. Dido also could not satisfy herself with
+looking on him, nor knew what trouble he was preparing for her in the time
+to come. And he, having first embraced the father who was not his father,
+and clung about his neck, addressed himself to Queen Dido, and she ever
+followed him with her eyes, and sometimes would hold him on her lap. And
+still he worked upon her that she should forget the dead Sichæus and
+conceive a new love in her heart.
+
+But when they first paused from the feast, lo! men set great bowls upon
+the table and filled them to the brim with wine. Then did the queen call
+for a great vessel of gold, with many jewels upon it, from which Belus,
+and all the kings from Belus, had drunk, and called for wine, and having
+filled it she cried, "O Jupiter, whom they call the god of hosts and
+guests, cause that this be a day of joy for the men of Troy and for them
+of Tyre, and that our children remember it forever. Also Bacchus, giver of
+joy, be present, and kindly Juno." And when she had touched the wine with
+her lips, she handed the great cup to Prince Bitias, who drank thereout a
+mighty draught, and the other princes after him. Then the minstrel Iopas,
+whom Atlas himself had taught, sang to the harp, of the moon, how she goes
+on her way, and of the sun, how his light is darkened. He sang also of
+men, and of the beasts of the field, whence they come; and of the stars,
+Arcturus, and the Greater Bear and the Less, and the Hyades; and of the
+winter sun, why he hastens to dip himself in the ocean; and of the winter
+nights, why they tarry so long. The queen also talked much of the story of
+Troy, of Priam, and of Hector, asking many things, as of the arms of
+Memnon, and of the horses of Diomed, and of Achilles, how great he was.
+And at last she said to Æneas, "Tell us now thy story, how Troy was taken,
+and thy wanderings over land and sea." And Æneas made answer, "Nay, O
+Queen, but thou biddest me renew a sorrow unspeakable. Yet, if thou art
+minded to hear these things, hearken." And he told her all that had
+befallen him, even to the day when his father Anchises died.
+
+Much was Queen Dido moved by the story, and much did she marvel at him
+that told it, and scarce could sleep for thinking of him. And the next day
+she spake to Anna, her sister, "O my sister, I have been troubled this
+night with ill dreams, and my heart is disquieted within me. What a man is
+this stranger that hath come to our shores! How noble of mien! How bold in
+war! Sure I am that he is of the sons of the Gods. What fortunes have been
+his! Of what wars he told us! Surely were I not steadfastly purposed that
+I would not yoke me again in marriage, this were the man to whom I might
+yield. Only he--for I will tell thee the truth, my sister--only he, since
+the day when Sichæus died by our brother's hand, hath moved my heart. But
+may the earth swallow me up, or the almighty Father strike me with
+lightning, ere I stoop to such baseness. The husband of my youth hath
+carried with him my love, and he shall keep it in his grave."
+
+So she spake, with many tears. And her sister made answer, "Why wilt thou
+waste thy youth in sorrow, without child or husband? Thinkest thou that
+there is care or remembrance of such things in the grave? No suitors
+indeed have pleased thee here or in Tyre, but wilt thou also contend with
+a love that is after thine own heart? Think too of the nations among whom
+thou dwellest, how fierce they are, and of thy brother at Tyre, what he
+threatens against thee. Surely it was by the will of the Gods, and of Juno
+chiefly, that the ships of Troy came hither. And this city, which thou
+buildest, to what greatness will it grow if only thou wilt make for
+thyself such alliance! How great will be the glory of Carthage if the
+strength of Troy be joined unto her! Only do thou pray to the Gods and
+offer sacrifices; and, for the present, seeing that the time of sailing is
+now past, make excuse that these strangers tarry with thee awhile."
+
+Thus did Anna comfort her sister and encourage her. And first the two
+offered sacrifice to the Gods, chiefly to Juno, who careth for the bond of
+marriage. Also, examining the entrails of slain beasts, they sought to
+learn the things that should happen thereafter. And ever Dido would
+company with Æneas, leading him about the walls of the city which she
+builded. And often she would begin to speak and stay in the midst of her
+words. And when even was come, she would hear again and again at the
+banquet the tale of Troy, and while others slept would watch, and while he
+was far away would seem to see him and to hear him. Ascanius, too, she
+would embrace for love of his father, if so she might cheat her own heart.
+But the work of the city was stayed meanwhile; nor did the towers rise in
+their places, nor the youth practice themselves in arms.
+
+Then Juno, seeing how it fared with the queen, spake to Venus: "Are ye
+satisfied with your victory, thou and thy son, that ye have vanquished,
+the two of you, one woman? Well I knew that thou fearedst lest this
+Carthage should harm thy favorite. But why should there be war between us?
+Thou hast what thou seekest. Let us make alliance. Let Dido obey a
+Phrygian husband, and bring the men of Tyre as her dowry."
+
+But Venus knew that she spake with ill intent, to the end that the men of
+Troy should not reign in the land of Italy. Nevertheless she dissembled
+with her tongue, and spake: "Who would not rather have peace with thee
+than war? Only I doubt whether this thing shall be to the pleasure of
+Jupiter. This thou must learn, seeing that thou art his wife, and where
+thou leadest I will follow."
+
+So the two, taking counsel together, ordered things in this wise. The next
+day a great hunting was prepared. For as soon as ever the sun was risen
+upon the earth, the youth of the city assembled, with nets and hunting
+spears and dogs that ran by scent. And the princes of Carthage waited for
+the queen at the palace door, where her horse stood champing the bit, with
+trappings of purple and gold. And after a while she came forth, with many
+following her. And she had upon her a Sidonian mantle, with a border
+wrought with divers colors; of gold was her quiver, and of gold the knot
+of her hair, and of gold the clasp to her mantle. Æneas likewise came
+forth, beautiful as is Apollo when he leaveth Lydia and the stream of
+Xanthus, coming to Delos, and hath about his hair a wreath of bay-leaves
+and a circlet of gold. So fair was Æneas to see. And when the hunters came
+to the hills they found great store of goats and stags, which they chased.
+And of all the company Ascanius was the foremost, thinking scorn of such
+hunting, and wishing that a wild boar or a lion out of the hills would
+come forth to be his prey.
+
+And now befell a great storm, with much thunder and hail, from which the
+hunters sought shelter. But Æneas and the queen, being left of all their
+company, came together to the same cave. And there they plighted their
+troth one to the other. Nor did the queen after that make secret of her
+love, but called Æneas her husband.
+
+Straightway went Rumor and told these things through the cities of Libya.
+Now Rumor, men say, is the youngest daughter of Earth, a marvelous
+creature, moving very swiftly with feet and wings, and having many
+feathers upon her, and under every feather an eye and a tongue and a mouth
+and an ear. In the night she flieth between heaven and earth, and sleepeth
+not; and in the day she sitteth on some housetop or lofty tower, or
+spreadeth fear over mighty cities; and she loveth that which is false even
+as she loveth that which is true. So now she went telling through Libya
+how Æneas of Troy was come, and Dido was wedded to him, and how they lived
+careless and at ease, and thinking not of the work to which they were
+called.
+
+And first of all she went to Prince Iarbas, who himself had sought Dido in
+marriage. And Iarbas was very wroth when he heard it, and, coming to the
+temple of Jupiter, spread his grief before the Gods, how that he had given
+a place on his coasts to this Dido, and would have taken her to wife, but
+that she had married a stranger from Phrygia, another Paris, whose dress
+and adornments were of a woman rather than of a man.
+
+And Jupiter saw that this was so, and he said to Mercury, who was his
+messenger, "Go speak to Æneas these words: 'Thus saith the king of Gods
+and men. Is this what thy mother promised of thee, twice saving thee from
+the spear of the Greeks? Art thou he that shall rule Italy and its mighty
+men of war, and spread thy dominion to the ends of the world? If thou
+thyself forgettest these things, dost thou grudge to thy son the citadels
+of Rome? What doest thou here? Why lookest thou not to Italy? Depart and
+tarry not.'"
+
+Then Mercury fitted the winged sandals to his feet, and took the wand with
+which he driveth the spirits of the dead, and came right soon to Mount
+Atlas, which standeth bearing the heaven on his head, and having always
+clouds about his top, and snow upon his shoulders, and a beard that is
+stiff with ice. There Mercury stood awhile; then, as a bird which seeks
+its prey in the sea, shot headlong down, and came to Æneas where he stood,
+with a yellow jasper in his sword-hilt, and a cloak of purple shot with
+gold about his shoulders, and spake: "Buildest thou Carthage, forgetting
+thine own work? The Almighty Father saith to thee, 'What meanest thou? Why
+tarriest thou here? If thou carest not for thyself, yet think of thy son,
+and that the Fates have given to him Italy and Rome.'"
+
+And Æneas saw him no more. And he stood stricken with fear and doubt. Fain
+would he obey the voice, and go as the Gods commanded. But how should he
+tell this purpose to the queen? But at the last it seemed good to him to
+call certain of the chiefs, as Mnestheus, and Sergestus, and Antheus, and
+bid them make ready the ships in silence, and gather together the people,
+but dissemble the cause, and he himself would watch a fitting time to
+speak and unfold the matter to the queen.
+
+Yet was not Dido deceived, for love is keen of sight. Rumor also told her
+that they made ready the ships for sailing. Then, flying through the city,
+even as one on whom has come the frenzy of Bacchus flies by night over
+Mount Cithæron, she came upon Æneas, and spake: "Thoughtest thou to hide
+thy crime, and to depart in silence from this land? Carest thou not for
+her whom thou leavest to die? And hast thou no fear of winter storms that
+vex the sea? By all that I have done for thee and given thee, if there be
+yet any place for repentance, repent thee of this purpose. For thy sake I
+suffer the wrath of the princes of Libya and of my own people; and if thou
+leavest me, for what should I live?--till my brother overthrow my city, or
+Iarbas carry me away captive? If but I had a little Æneas to play in my
+halls I should not seem so altogether desolate."
+
+But Æneas, fearing the words of Jupiter, stood with eyes that relented
+not. At the last he spake: "I deny not, O Queen, the benefits that thou
+hast done unto me, nor ever, while I live, shall I forget Dido. I sought
+not to fly by stealth; yet did I never promise that I would abide in this
+place. Could I have chosen according to my will I had built again the city
+of Troy where it stood; but the Gods command that I should seek Italy.
+Thou hast thy Carthage; why dost thou grudge Italy to us? Nor may I tarry.
+Night after night have I seen my father Anchises warning me in dreams.
+Also even now the messenger of Jupiter came to me--with these ears I heard
+him--and bade me depart."
+
+Then, in great wrath, with eyes askance, did Dido break forth upon him:
+"Surely no goddess was thy mother, nor art thou come of the race of
+Dardanus. The rocks of Caucasus brought thee forth, and an Hyrcanian
+tigress gave thee suck. For why should I dissemble? Was he moved at all my
+tears? Did he pity my love? Nay, the very Gods are against me. This man I
+took to myself when he was shipwrecked and ready to perish. I brought back
+his ships, his companions from destruction. And now forsooth comes the
+messenger of Jupiter with dreadful commands from the Gods. As for thee, I
+keep thee not. Go, seek thy Italy across the seas: only, if there is any
+vengeance in heaven, thou wilt pay the penalty for this wrong, being
+wrecked on some rock in their midst. Then wilt thou call on Dido in vain.
+Aye, and where-ever thou shalt go I will haunt thee, and rejoice in the
+dwellings below to hear thy doom."
+
+Then she turned, and hasted to go into the house. But her spirit left her,
+so that her maidens bare her to her chamber and laid her on her bed.
+
+Then Æneas, though indeed he was much troubled in heart, and would fain
+have comforted the queen, was obedient to the heavenly word, and departed
+to his ships. And the men of Troy busied themselves in making them ready
+for the voyage. Even as the ants spoil a great heap of corn and store it
+in their dwellings against winter, moving in a black line across the
+field, and some carry the great grains, and some chide those that linger,
+even so did the Trojans swarm along the ways and labor at the work.
+
+But when Dido saw it she called to Anna her sister and said, "Seest thou
+how they hasten the work along the shore? Even now the sails are ready for
+the winds, and the sailors have wreathed the ships with garlands, as if
+for departure. Go thou--the deceiver always trusted thee, and thou knowest
+how best to move him--go and entreat him. I harmed not him nor his people;
+let him then grant me this only. Let him wait for a fairer time for his
+journey. I ask not that he give up his purpose; only that he grant me a
+short breathing space, till I may learn how to bear this sorrow."
+
+And Anna hearkened to her sister, and took the message to Æneas, yet
+profited nothing, for the Gods shut his ears that he should not hear. Even
+as the oak stands firm when the north wind would root it up from the
+earth,--its leaves are scattered all around, yet doth it remain firm, for
+its roots go down to the regions below, even as far as its branches reach
+to heaven,--so stood Æneas firm, and, though he wept many tears, changed
+not his purpose.
+
+Then did Dido grow weary of her life. For when she did sacrifice, the pure
+water would grow black and the wine be changed to blood. Also from the
+shrine of her husband, which was in the midst of her palace, was heard a
+voice calling her, and the owl cried aloud from the house-top. And in her
+dreams the cruel Æneas seemed to drive her before him; or she seemed to be
+going a long way with none to bear her company, and be seeking her own
+people in a land that was desert. Therefore, hiding the thing that was in
+her heart, she spake to her sister, saying, "I have found a way, my
+sister, that shall bring him back to me or set me free from him. Near the
+shore of the Great Sea, where the Æthiopians dwell, is a priestess, who
+guards the temple of the daughters of Hesperus, being wont to feed the
+dragons that kept the apples of gold. She is able by her charms to loose
+the heart from care or to bind it, and to stay rivers also, and to turn
+the courses of the stars, and to call up the spirits of the dead. Do thou,
+therefore--for this is what the priestess commands--build a pile in the
+open court, and put thereon the sword which he left hanging in our
+chamber, and the garments he wore, and the couch on which he lay, even all
+that was his, so that they may perish together."
+
+And when these things were done--for Anna knew not of her purpose--and
+also an image of Æneas was laid upon the pile, the priestess, with her
+hair unbound, called upon all the gods that dwell below, sprinkling
+thereon water that was drawn, she said, from the lake of Avernus, and
+scattering evil herbs that had been cut at the full moon with a sickle of
+bronze. Dido also, with one foot bare and her garments loosened, threw
+meal upon the fire and called upon the gods, if haply there be any, that
+look upon those that love and suffer wrong.
+
+In the mean time Æneas lay asleep in the hind part of his ship, when there
+appeared to him in a dream the god Mercury, even as he had seen him when
+he brought the commandment of Jupiter. And Mercury spake, saying, "Son of
+Venus, canst thou sleep? seest thou not what perils surround thee, nor
+hearest how the favorable west wind calls? The queen purposes evil against
+thee. If thou lingerest till the morning come thou wilt see the shore
+covered with them that wish thee harm. Fly, then, and tarry not; for a
+woman is ever of many minds."
+
+Then did Æneas in great fear start from his sleep, and call his
+companions, saying, "Wake, and sit on the benches, and loose the sails.
+'Tis a god thus bids us fly." And even as he spake he cut the cable with
+his sword. And all hasted to follow him, and sped over the sea.
+
+And now it was morning, and Queen Dido, from her watch-tower, saw the
+ships upon the sea. Then she smote upon her breast and tore her hair, and
+cried, "Shall this stranger mock us thus? Hasten to follow him. Bring down
+the ships from the docks, make ready sword and fire. And this was the man
+who bare upon his shoulders his aged father. Why did I not tear him to
+pieces, and slay his companions with the sword, and serve up the young
+Ascanius at his meal? And if I had perished, what then? for I die to-day.
+O Sun, that regardest all the earth, and Juno, that carest for marriage
+bonds, and Hecate, Queen of the dead, and ye Furies that take vengeance on
+evil-doers, hear me. If it be ordered that he reach that land, yet grant
+that he suffer many things from his enemies, and be driven from his city,
+and beg for help from strangers, and see his people cruelly slain with the
+sword; and, when he shall have made peace on ill conditions, that he enjoy
+not long his kingdoms, but die before his day, and lie unburied on the
+plain. And ye, men of Tyre, hate his children and his people forever. Let
+there be no love or peace between you. And may some avenger arise from my
+grave who shall persecute the race of Dardanus with fire and sword. So
+shall there be war forever between him and me."
+
+Then she spake to old Barce, who had been nurse to her husband Sichæus,
+"Bid my sister bathe herself in water, and bring with her beasts for
+sacrifice. And do thou also put a garland about thy head, for I am minded
+to finish this sacrifice which I have begun, and to burn the image of the
+man of Troy."
+
+And when the old woman made haste to do her bidding, Queen Dido ran to the
+court where the pile was made for the burning, and mounted on the pile,
+and drew the sword of Æneas from the scabbard. Then did she throw herself
+upon the bed, and cry,
+
+"Now do I yield up my life. I have finished my course. I have built a
+mighty city. I have avenged my husband on him that slew him. Happy had I
+been, yea, too happy! had the ships of Troy never come to this land." Then
+she kissed the bed and cried, "Shall I die unavenged? Nevertheless let me
+die. The man of Troy shall see this fire from the sea whereon he journeys,
+and carry with him an augury of death."
+
+And when her maidens looked, lo! she had fallen upon the sword, and the
+blood was upon her hands. And a great cry went up through the palace,
+exceeding loud and bitter, even as if the enemy had taken Carthage or
+ancient Tyre, and the fire were mounting over the dwellings of men and of
+Gods. And Anna her sister heard it, and rushing through the midst called
+her by name: "O my sister, was this thy purpose? Were the pile and the
+sword and the fire for this? Why wouldst thou not suffer that I should die
+with thee? For surely, my sister, thou hast slain thyself, and me, and thy
+people, and thy city. But give me water, ye maidens, that I may wash her
+wounds, and if there be any breath left in her, we may yet stay it."
+
+Then she climbed on to the pile, and caught her sister in her arms, and
+sought to staunch the blood with her garments. Three times did Dido strive
+to raise her eyes; three times did her spirit leave her. Three times she
+would have raised herself upon her elbow; three times she fell back upon
+the bed, looking with wandering eyes for the light, and groaning that she
+yet beheld it.
+
+Then Juno, looking down from heaven, saw that her pain was long, and
+pitied her, and sent down Iris, her messenger, that she might loose the
+soul that struggled to be free. For, seeing that she died not by nature,
+nor yet by the hand of man, but before her time and of her own madness,
+Queen Proserpine had not shred the ringlet from her head which she shreds
+from them that die. Wherefore Iris, flying down with dewy wings from
+heaven, with a thousand colors about her from the light of the sun, stood
+about her head and said, "I give thee to death, even as I am bidden, and
+loose thee from thy body." Then she shred the lock, and Queen Dido gave up
+the ghost.
+
+
+
+
+THE FUNERAL GAMES OF ANCHISES
+
+By Charles Henry Hanson
+
+
+Æneas called together all his followers, and reminded minded them that a
+year had now passed since the death of his father. Not of their own
+purpose, but doubtless by the will of the Gods, they had now returned to
+the friendly land where his bones had been laid. It was therefore his
+intention to celebrate funeral games. For eight days there should be
+feasting, for which Acestes had generously provided two oxen for each
+ship; and on the ninth day he would give prizes to be contested in the
+foot-race, in shooting with the bow, and in boxing with the cestus.
+
+Having thus spoken, the hero, according to the custom of that time, placed
+a wreath of myrtle upon his head and proceeded to the tomb of his father,
+where he poured out, as a libation to the Gods, two bowls of wine, two of
+new milk, and two of sacred blood. Then he scattered flowers over the
+tomb, and offered up a prayer to his father's shade. Immediately there
+came forth from the tomb a huge snake with glittering scales of blue and
+gold, which, after tasting of what had been poured out, retired again to
+the recesses of the vault. Believing this creature to be an attendant on
+his father's spirit, Æneas offered rich sacrifices--ewes, sows, and
+bullocks--and his companions followed his example. The eight days of
+feasting passed pleasantly enough, and the morning appointed for the
+funeral games dawned bright and serene. A joyous crowd assembled on the
+shore, some to take part in the contests, and others to watch them. The
+first of the games was a race between galleys, and four ships had been
+entered to take part in it. The first was the Pristis, or Shark, of which
+Mnestheus was the captain. The Chimera, a vessel of immense size, was
+commanded by Gyas. The other vessels were the Centaur and the Scylla,--the
+first commanded by Sergestus, and the second by Cloanthus. Some way out in
+the sea, opposite to the starting-point, a rock rose amid the restless
+waters. The galleys were to round this rock, on which Æneas had planted an
+oak-tree as a mark, and then return to the shore. The vessels were
+assigned their places by lot, and the captain of each took his place on
+the poop; while the rowers, stripped to the waist, their shoulders
+glistening with oil, sat with their arms stretched to the oars, eager for
+the signal. At the blast of a trumpet all the oars struck the sea at once,
+and beat it into foam, and the vessels shot forward amid the loud shouts
+of the multitude. The Chimera, under Gyas's skillful guidance, took the
+lead; next followed the Scylla, whose rowers were more efficient, but were
+unable to make such progress, because the vessel was naturally slower.
+Behind the Shark and the Centaur followed close together, and first the
+one and then the other gained a slight advantage. The two leading vessels
+were rapidly nearing the rock when Gyas perceived that his helmsman,
+Menoetes, was keeping a course too far to the right, in fear of some
+hidden crags, and was thus losing the advantage that had been gained. He
+urged him to steer more to the left, nor to care even if the oars grazed
+the rock; but Menoetes was afraid to obey the command. And now Cloanthus
+in the Scylla, taking the very course Gyas had wished to follow, ran
+boldly between the Chimera and the rock, and so got round the goal in
+front of his antagonist. When Gyas beheld this he was full of wrath.
+Rushing to the helm, he seized the over-cautious Menoetes and hurled him
+into the sea; then he himself took the helm, and at once guided his ship
+and issued commands and cries of encouragement to his oarsmen. The
+luckless Menoetes with difficulty contrived to scramble out of the sea
+onto the rock, and sat there in his dripping garments, while the
+spectators roared with laughter at his misadventure. But now Mnestheus in
+the Shark and Sergestus in the Centaur pushed forward with redoubled zeal
+in the hope of obtaining the lead. Sergestus got a little in front of his
+competitor, but Mnestheus, walking among his rowers, urged them to put
+forth their utmost strength, and at least not to suffer the disgrace of
+being last. In response to his appeal they bent to the oar with new vigor;
+the ship trembled under their strokes and the water seemed to fly from
+beneath her keel. Suddenly, while the Centaur, in full career, was
+pressing close to the rock to prevent the Shark from passing on the inner
+side, she ran upon a jutting point where she remained fast, while the oars
+were shattered against the hard rocks. In a moment the Shark shot past,
+and having rounded the goal, dashed on the homeward way. Ere long
+Mnestheus had overtaken the Chimera, which had lost ground because she was
+deprived of her steersman. Cloanthus in the Scylla was now alone in front
+of the Shark; and though the race was nearly over, the frantic efforts of
+Mnestheus' crew might have gained him the victory, but that Cloanthus
+poured forth passionate prayers to the marine deities, and promised them
+ample offerings if the first prize became his. They heard his vows, and
+gathering underneath his vessel, pushed it forward, so that it entered the
+harbor just in front of the Shark. Then Æneas proclaimed Cloanthus the
+victor, and gave him a mantle embroidered with gold and ornamented with a
+thick fringe of the costly Meliboean purple. On Mnestheus, who had so
+gallantly gained the second place, he bestowed a ponderous coat of mail
+worked in gold and brass, which he had himself taken from a famous Greek
+warrior, Demoleus, whom he had slain before Troy. Gyas received two
+caldrons of brass, and some silver bowls ornamented with rich carvings.
+Lastly, when Sergestus had slowly brought back to port his crippled
+galley, his chief bestowed on him, in reward for having rescued the vessel
+from her perilous position, a Cretan female slave with her two children.
+
+Thus ended the galley race; and the assembled multitude now proceeded to a
+grassy plain a little way inland, where thrones were placed for Acestes,
+Æneas, and the other leaders. Here the remaining games were to be
+celebrated, and first of all a foot race. Among the competitors in this
+were Euryalus, a Trojan youth distinguished for his personal beauty;
+Nisus, a brave warrior, who was his constant friend and companion; Diores,
+Salius, and Patron, three other Trojans; and two Sicilian youths famous
+for their speed, named Elymus and Panopes. Æneas announced that he would
+give two Cretan javelins of bright steel and a carved battle-axe of silver
+to each who took part in the race, and to the three who came in first
+other rich prizes: to the first a war-horse with costly trappings; to the
+second a quiver full of Thracian arrows, with a gold belt and jeweled
+buckle; and to the third a Grecian helmet. The runners having been placed
+in proper order, the signal was given, and they darted forward like a
+tempest. Nisus led the way, Salius coming second, and Euryalus third, with
+the rest following close behind. Already Nisus was near the goal, when
+unluckily his foot slipped at a spot where some victims had been
+sacrificed for the altar, and the blood soaking into the grass had made it
+slippery. Down he fell into the puddle, and in a moment his chance of
+victory had disappeared. But even then, in spite of his disappointment, he
+was mindful of his affection for Euryalus, and resolved that since he
+could not win the race, his friend should do so. He rose to his feet just
+as Salius was coming up, and contrived to stand in his way so as to
+overturn him. Euryalus, who had still kept the third place, now sprang
+forward, and was easily victorious amid the applause of the crowd. Elymus
+came in next, and close behind him Diores. But Salius loudly demanded that
+the first prize of right belonged to him, because he had been deprived of
+the victory by unfair means. The spectators, however, favored the claim of
+Euryalus because of his youth and beauty; and Diores vehemently took the
+same side, since, if Salius were adjudged the victory, he would not
+receive a prize at all. Æneas speedily silenced all contention by
+declaring that the promised rewards should go to the three who had arrived
+first at the winning-post; but he added that he would show his sympathy
+for the disaster which had befallen Salius, and therefore bestowed on him
+the shaggy hide of a Getulian lion, still retaining the claws, which had
+been gilt. Upon this, Nisus also merrily asked for some consolation, since
+but for an accident the first prize would have been his, and he showed his
+face and limbs all besmeared with mud. His chief entered into the jest,
+and gave him a buckler, finely carved, which had once hung on the walls of
+Neptune's temple at Troy.
+
+[Illustration: HE ROSE TO HIS FEET JUST AT THE MOMENT THAT SALIUS WAS
+COMING UP, AND CONTRIVED TO STAND IN HIS WAY SO AS TO OVERTURN HIM.
+EURYALUS, WHO HAD STILL KEPT THE THIRD PLACE, NOW SPRANG FORWARD, AND WAS
+EASILY VICTORIOUS AMID THE APPLAUSE OF THE CROWD. ELYMUS CAME IN NEXT, AND
+CLOSE BEHIND HIM DIORES. BUT SALIUS LOUDLY DEMANDED THAT THE FIRST PRIZE
+OF RIGHT BELONGED TO HIM.]
+
+The next contest was that with the cestus, the boxing-glove of the
+ancients, a formidable implement, intended not to soften the blows dealt
+by the boxers, but to make them more painful, for it was composed of
+strips of hardened oxhide. To the competitors in this sport--if such it
+could be called--Æneas offered two prizes,--the first a bullock, decked
+with gold and fillets, and the second a sword and a shining helmet. A
+noted Trojan warrior named Dares, a man of immense strength and bulk, who
+was also celebrated for his skill with the cestus, presented himself to
+contest this prize. He brandished his huge fists in the air, and paced
+vaingloriously backward and forward in the arena, challenging any one in
+the assembly to meet him. But there was no response; his friends were too
+well acquainted with his skill, and the Sicilians were awed by his
+formidable appearance. At last, therefore, imagining that nobody would
+venture to encounter him, he advanced to Æneas and asked that the prize
+might be given up to him. It seemed, indeed, that this would have to be
+done, when King Acestes turned to one of his elders, a venerable Sicilian
+chief named Entellus, and asked how it was that he thus allowed such
+splendid prizes to be taken before his eyes without striking a blow for
+them. Entellus had, in his younger days, been a great champion with the
+cestus, having been taught the use of the weapon by none other than Eryx,
+at that time king of Sicily, and one of the most expert boxers in the
+world. So confident had Eryx been in his powers, that when the mighty
+Hercules passed through Sicily on his way from Spain, where he had slain
+King Geryon and carried off his splendid cattle, the Sicilian monarch
+ventured to challenge the hero to a combat with the cestus, staking his
+kingdom against the cattle which Hercules was bearing away to Greece.
+Hercules had accepted the challenge, and had slain Eryx in the encounter;
+but the tradition of his skill had been preserved by his pupil Entellus.
+The chief was now old, and disinclined for exertion; but when thus urged
+by King Acestes, he slowly rose and threw into the arena the gauntlets
+which King Eryx had been accustomed to use. Terrible weapons indeed
+they-were, with heavy pieces of iron and lead sewn into them underneath
+the oxhide. At the mere sight of them Dares shrank back appalled, and
+refused to fight with such implements. "These," said Entellus, "were the
+gauntlets with which my master Eryx encountered Hercules; and these, after
+his death, I myself was accustomed to use. But if Dares likes not such
+gloves, let Æneas provide others for both of us." With these words he
+threw off his upper garments and bared his massive shoulders and sinewy
+arms. The Trojan chief brought out two pairs of gauntlets of less
+formidable make, with which the two champions armed themselves; and then
+they stood face to face, and both raised their arms for the encounter. For
+some time they stood parrying each other's blows and watching for an
+opportunity. Presently, as they grew warmer, many heavy strokes were given
+on each side, now on the head, now on the breast. Entellus stood stiff and
+unmoved in the same firm posture, only bending to evade Dares's blows, and
+always closely watching his antagonist, who, more active, wheeled round
+him, trying first one method of attack, then another. At last Entellus
+uplifted his right arm, thinking he saw an opportunity for delivering a
+decisive stroke; but Dares with great agility slipped out of the way, and
+as the arm of Entellus encountered no resistance save from the empty air,
+he fell forward on the ground through the violence of his own effort.
+Acclamations burst from all the onlookers, and Acestes himself stepped
+forward to assist his old companion to his feet. But the mishap had only
+aroused Entellus's anger; he no longer acted on the defensive, but rushed
+upon his opponent with irresistible ardor, and smote blow after blow,
+driving Dares headlong over the field, pouring down strokes as incessantly
+as a shower of hail rattles upon the house-tops. Æneas now deemed it high
+time to put a stop to the combat, and called upon Dares, who indeed was
+quite overpowered, to yield. His comrades led the beaten champion to the
+ships, with the blood flowing from his battered head and face, and on his
+behalf they took away the helmet and sword, leaving the bull to the
+conqueror. Entellus, proud of his victory, laid hold of the animal, and
+exclaimed, "Behold, O chief, and you Trojans, from this what my strength
+once was, and also from what death you have saved Dares." With these words
+he smote the bull on the forehead with the cestus so mightily that the
+skull was battered in and the brute sank dead at his feet.
+
+After this exciting competition came a more peaceful sport,--a trial of
+skill with the bow. A mast was planted on a sward, and to the top of it a
+living dove was secured by a cord. This was the mark, and four archers
+came forward to contend for the prizes,--Hippocoön, the brother of Nisus
+and one of Æneas's dearest friends; Mnestheus, the winner of the second
+prize in the galley race; Eurytion, a brother of that Pandarus who was one
+of the most skillful archers that fought in the Trojan war, and who, after
+wounding Menelaus, was slain by Diomedes; and lastly, King Acestes
+himself. Hippocoön shot first, and his arrow, whizzing past the fluttering
+dove, pierced the pole to which she was fastened. This, though it did not
+hit the mark, was an excellent shot, and it won loud applause from the
+spectators. Mnestheus next discharged his dart, taking a long and steady
+aim; but his arrow, instead of striking the bird, cut in two the cord by
+which she was fastened, and, spreading her wings, the dove at once flew
+away. Instantly, however, Eurytion raised his bow, and shot with so true
+an aim that he struck the bird even in mid-flight, and brought her
+lifeless to the earth. There was thus no longer a mark at which Acestes
+could aim; but notwithstanding he drew his bow and discharged a shaft high
+into the air. And now a strange prodigy happened; for the arrow, soaring
+upward, took fire as it flew, and marked out a path of flame, till, being
+quite consumed, it vanished into the air. This spectacle naturally excited
+the wonder and reverence of the assembled multitude; and Æneas, embracing
+Acestes, declared that the incident was an omen from the Gods awarding to
+him the first prize. He therefore bestowed on him a splendid bowl,
+embossed with figures, which had once belonged to Anchises, nor did the
+other competitors dispute the justice of the decision.
+
+But the games were not yet ended. The Trojan chief had prepared a closing
+spectacle as a surprise for the spectators. He sent a messenger to summon
+Ascanius, and in the mean time ordered a large space of ground to be
+cleared. Then suddenly his son entered on horseback at the head of a
+numerous company,--all the youths of the expedition. They were attired
+alike, with garlands on their heads and circles of gold about their necks;
+and each carried two spears of cornel-wood, tipped with steel. The young
+equestrians were divided into three companies; one was commanded by
+Ascanius himself, mounted on a beautiful Sidonian steed which had been
+given him by Queen Dido; a second by the youthful Priam, a son of that
+Polites whom Pyrrhus slew at the fall of Troy; and the third by Atys, a
+boy who was Ascanius' especial friend and companion. They went through a
+series of evolutions, now advancing in line, again forming in different
+bands and pretending to charge one another, and afterwards going through
+many other intricate manoeuvres. The scene was a most picturesque one, and
+gave great pleasure to those who witnessed it.
+
+
+
+
+ÆNEAS'S VISIT TO THE LOWER WORLD
+
+By Charles Henry Hanson
+
+
+Continuing his voyage, Æneas reached the shore of the country afterwards
+named Campania, the modern province of Naples. Here the ships were
+carefully moored, and the crews disembarked. Some busied themselves in
+kindling fires and preparing a meal; others explored the country in search
+of game. Æneas, however, hastened at once to seek the temple of Apollo and
+the adjoining cave of the Cumæan Sibyl,--the most famous of all the
+oracles of antiquity. The temple and cave were situated in a thick wood,
+closely adjoining the gloomy lake of Avernus, a black pool of unknown
+depth, hedged in by precipitous cliffs, and emitting gases so poisonous
+that no bird was able to fly over it in safety. In the rocks at one side
+of the lake there yawned a sombre cavern, which was believed in those days
+to be the entrance to the kingdom of Pluto--the abode of the dead.
+
+Æneas was surveying the temple,--an edifice of great splendor, adorned
+with pictures wrought in metal by the cunning hand of Dædalus,--when
+Achates, whom he had sent before him to the Sibyl's cave, approached,
+conducting the priestess. "O prince," she said, "this is not the time for
+admiring the works of men. It will be more fitting for you to propitiate
+the god with sacrifices, so that he may inspire me." With this mandate the
+hero at once complied, and then the Sibyl summoned him and his followers
+to the entrance of her cave,--a vast apartment carved out of the living
+rock, whence issued a hundred corridors. Scarcely had the Trojans
+approached the threshold when the virgin exclaimed, "Now is the time to
+consult your fate! The god! lo, the god!" As she cried out thus her looks
+suddenly changed, her color came and went, her hair fell in disorder over
+her shoulders, her bosom heaved, and she was shaken by an uncontrollable
+passion. Her very form seemed to dilate, and the tone of her voice was no
+longer that of a mere mortal, since she was inspired by the influence of
+the god. "Trojan Æneas!" she exclaimed, "delay no longer to offer thy
+prayers for the knowledge which thou seekest; for not till then can I
+reveal to thee the secrets of the future."
+
+Earnestly did Æneas implore pity and aid from Apollo; and of the Sibyl he
+entreated that she should proclaim her revelations by word of mouth, and
+not, as was her custom, write them on leaves of trees, lest they should
+become the sport of the winds. At first the prophetess did not answer; she
+was not yet fully possessed by the spirit of the god, and raved in wild
+ecstasy in the cave, struggling, as it were, to resist the will of
+Phoebus, who, on his part, wearied her foaming lips, subdued her fierce
+heart, and moulded her to his will. Then all at once the hundred doors of
+the cavern flew open of their own accord, and the Sibyl proclaimed the
+divine response,--
+
+"O thou who hast at length overpassed the perils of the ocean, yet more
+terrible trials await thee on shore. Thou and thy Trojans shall indeed
+reach the promised land--that is assured; but ye shall wish that ye had
+never come thither. Wars, horrid wars, I foresee, and Tiber foaming with a
+deluge of blood. Another Achilles awaits thee in Latium--he also the son
+of a goddess. Nor shall the persecutions of Juno cease to follow the
+Trojans wherever they may be; and in your distress you will humbly
+supplicate all the surrounding Italian states for aid. Once more shall a
+marriage with a foreign wife be a source of affliction to you. But yield
+not under your sufferings; encounter them resolutely in the teeth of
+adverse fortune, and when you least expect it, the means of deliverance
+shall come to you from a Greek city."
+
+So, under the inspiration of Apollo, spoke the Sibyl. When she had ceased,
+Æneas answered that no prospect of further trials could appall him, for he
+was prepared to endure the worst that could befall. But he now entreated,
+since it was said that the entrance to the shades was near, that the Sibyl
+should conduct him into those dark regions, in order that he might obtain
+an interview with the spectre of his father. It was Anchises' self, he
+added, who had bidden him make this request; and filial devotion would
+enable him to perform a task which Orpheus had achieved out of love for
+his wife Eurydice, and Pollux through his attachment to his brother
+Castor.
+
+"Æneas," replied the priestess, "easy is the descent into Hades: grim
+Pluto's gate stands open night and day, but to retrace your steps and
+escape to the upper regions will be a difficult task indeed, and one which
+few have hitherto been able to accomplish. If, however, you are fixed in
+the resolve to pursue so desperate an enterprise, learn what first is to
+be done. There is in the dark woods which surround the Lake of Avernus a
+certain tree, dense of foliage, on which grows a single bough of gold,
+with leaves and twigs of the same precious metal, and no living mortal can
+enter Hades unless he has first found and plucked this bough, which is
+demanded by Proserpine, the consort of Pluto and queen of the infernal
+realms, as her peculiar tribute. When the bough is torn off, another
+always grows in its place. Therefore search for it diligently, and when
+you have discovered it grasp it with your hand. If the Fates are
+propitious to your enterprise, you will be able to pluck it easily; if
+otherwise, your whole strength could not tear it from the tree, nor could
+you ever sever it with your sword. In the mean time the body of one of
+your friends lies lifeless, and demands the funeral rites. First bury him
+with proper ceremonies, and then return to me with black cattle for the
+sacrifices; and then you shall be able to visit the realms of Hades, to
+which most living men are denied an entrance."
+
+With sorrowful thoughts Æneas, closely followed by Achates, now withdrew
+from the shrine, and took the way to the shore. Both were greatly
+perplexed to know what was the corpse needing burial of which the Sibyl
+had spoken. But while they were wondering they came to the beach, and
+there, before them, they saw lying the body of Misenus, who had come to a
+lamentable end. Misenus was the most skilled among all the Trojans in the
+art of blowing the trumpet. He had been, besides, a famous warrior, and
+during the siege of Troy was accustomed to be the companion of Hector in
+the field, and to fight by his side. When Hector fell, he attached himself
+to Æneas, scorning to follow any less illustrious chief, and so had formed
+one of the band which the hero was conducting to Latium. But he was
+inordinately vain of his skill with the trumpet, and believed himself
+superior even to the Tritons, the sea-deities whose especial province it
+was to lull the seas at the command of Neptune by blowing upon instruments
+made of shells. These Tritons Misenus had challenged to a trial of skill,
+and by way of defiance had blown so loud a note that the deities were
+afraid to respond to his challenge; but being full of jealousy, they had
+now contrived to lure him into the sea and drown him. The discovery of his
+lifeless body filled all his comrades with sadness. They gathered about
+him with loud lamentations, and then prepared to erect his funeral pyre,
+hastening with axes into the thick surrounding woods, and cutting down
+huge oaks and pines and ash-trees.
+
+Æneas himself led the way in the performance of this task, and while he
+was engaged in it he could not help exclaiming, as his glance surveyed the
+wide forest, "Would that I could now perceive the golden bough which I
+must find before entering Hades; for in this ample forest, how can I begin
+to search for it?" Scarcely had he spoken when two pigeons suddenly
+swooped down from the upper air and alighted at his feet. He guessed at
+once that these doves, his mother's favorite birds, had been sent for his
+guidance, and he entreated them to conduct him to the place where the
+precious bough was growing. The doves, feeding and flying by turns,
+advanced through the wood at such a speed that Æneas could easily keep
+them in sight, and presently, having reached the very edge of Lake
+Avernus, both rose at once into the air, and settled on a great tree of
+very dense foliage. The hero hastened to the spot, and there indeed, on
+one of the lower limbs of the tree, gleamed the bough, the rich yellow
+lustre of its leaves and twigs contrasting vividly with the deep green of
+the surrounding foliage. Æneas with delight grasped it, and plucked it
+from its place, and, bearing it carefully in his hand, hastened to rejoin
+his companions.
+
+They, in the mean time, had reared on the shore a vast pile of logs of
+pine and oak, the sides of which they had interlaced with smaller boughs.
+After having carefully washed and purified the body of Misenus, they first
+made a couch upon the pyre, with the apparel of the dead man, and then,
+with renewed cries of grief, placed the body upon it. His arms, too, they
+laid beside him, and having poured incense and oil abundantly upon the
+pile, they set it on fire. When only smouldering embers were left, these
+were quenched with wine, and the ashes of the dead were carefully
+collected and placed in a brazen urn. This urn was afterwards deposited in
+a lofty tomb which Æneas erected on a promontory that henceforth bore the
+name of Misenus.
+
+The funeral ceremonies having thus duly been performed, the hero proceeded
+to the cave of the Sibyl, and called upon her to fulfill her promise, and
+accompany him to the kingdom of the dead. She led him to the mouth of the
+black cavern at the side of Lake Avernus, and there offered up sacrifices
+of black cattle and sheep, uttering various invocations. Presently the
+ground began to rumble beneath their feet; upon which the Sibyl ordered
+those of Æneas's followers who had attended him to withdraw from the spot,
+and exhorted the chief himself, drawing his sword from its sheath, to
+march firmly forward. So saying she plunged into the cave, nor did he
+hesitate to follow.
+
+At first they moved along through a region that was utterly waste, void,
+and covered with an intense gloom, deep as that of a winter's night when
+the moon is obscured by clouds. But this desolate tract was not wholly
+untenanted, for Æneas saw flitting about certain hideous shadowy forms.
+The spirits of Grief and Revenge and pale Disease, Fear and Famine and
+deformed Indigence, had their abode in this vestibule of Hades; and so,
+too, Death and Toil, and murderous War, and frantic Discord, her head
+crowned with curling vipers and bound by a blood-dyed fillet. Here, also,
+were the iron chambers in which dwelt the terrible Furies. In the midst
+rose a gloomy elm, which was the haunt of vain Dreams, who dwelt under
+every leaf. Beyond this tree were many huge and misshapen
+monsters,--Centaurs, and double-formed Scyllas, and the great dragon of
+the Lernæan lake, which, when it plagued the upper earth, was slain by
+Hercules. Here, also, was the huge Chimæra, with its three heads vomiting
+flames; Gorgons, Harpies, and other ghastly forms flitted about. At so
+fearful a sight. Æneas was seized with sudden fear; he drew his sword, and
+would have struck at the monsters, if the Sibyl had not restrained his
+hand and reminded him that they were but disembodied shadows.
+
+The path now led them to a place where the three infernal rivers, Acheron,
+Cocytus, and Styx, met in one deep, black, and boiling flood. Here there
+kept guard the grim ferryman Charon, an infernal deity of fearful aspect.
+A long gray beard fell all tangled and neglected from his chin; his filthy
+and ragged garments were knotted over his shoulders; his eyes glittered
+with baleful light. He sat on a great black barge, which he pushed to and
+fro across the river with a pole. An immense crowd of shades was
+incessantly pouring to the banks,--young and old, matrons and virgins,
+warriors who had endured the toils of a long life and tender boys who had
+died while yet under the care of their parents. All were eager to cross
+the stream, and stretched their hands in earnest entreaty to Charon to
+admit them into his boat. But the sullen ferryman only consented to
+receive some; others he drove back with his pole, and would on no account
+permit them to cross.
+
+Æneas was amazed at this scene, and asked the Sibyl to explain to him its
+meaning. "You see before you," she replied, "the deep pools of Cocytus,
+and the Stygian lake, by which the Gods are accustomed to swear when they
+take an oath which they dare not violate. All that crowd which Charon will
+not ferry across is composed of persons who after death received not the
+rites of burial; those only are permitted to enter the boat who have been
+interred with proper ceremonies. As for the others, they wander unquiet
+about these shores for a hundred years before they are allowed to cross to
+the regions beyond."
+
+When Æneas heard this he was filled with sadness, for among the spectres
+of the unburied who crowded on the bank he saw many of his own comrades
+who had perished during the storms he had had to encounter during his long
+voyages. As he looked, there advanced, slow and mournful, the pilot
+Palinurus, who had been thrown overboard by Somnus during the recent
+voyage from Sicily. The hero accosted him, and asked him what god had torn
+him from his post and overwhelmed him in the midst of the ocean. The
+oracle of Apollo, he said, had assured him that Palinurus would be safe on
+the sea, and would arrive on the Italian coast; and yet it would seem that
+the oracle had been falsified. The shade of Palinurus, knowing nothing of
+the enchantment which had been wrought on him by Somnus, replied that no
+god had destroyed him, and that the oracle had spoken truly. He had fallen
+into the sea through being overcome by slumber, and having kept afloat for
+three days and nights, had on the fourth day reached the Italian shore
+alive, but had been cruelly murdered by the savage people while clambering
+up the cliffs. Now his body was tossing on the waves, sometimes thrown on
+the shore and then washed off again. But he passionately entreated Æneas
+either to find his corpse and inter it with proper solemnities, or else to
+contrive some means of taking him as his companion across the black waters
+of Styx, unburied as he was, that at last his soul might find rest. The
+Sibyl, however, rebuked him for expressing so impious a desire, and for
+hoping that the fixed decrees of the Gods could be violated for the
+benefit of one insignificant mortal. But by way of consolation she
+informed him that the people of the country where he had met with his
+death, compelled by terrible plagues sent by Jupiter, would offer solemn
+atonement to his remains, erect a tomb to his memory, and give his name to
+the place where it stood.
+
+Æneas and the Sibyl now advanced toward the river; but when Charon saw
+them approaching, he called out, "Whoever thou mayest be that art now
+coming armed and in life to our rivers, say quickly on what errand thou
+art coming. This is the region of ghosts and death; to waft over the
+bodies of the living in my boat is not permitted. Nor was it joyful to me
+to receive Hercules when he came, nor Theseus and Pirithous, though they
+were descendants of the Gods and unconquerable in war. Hercules dared to
+bind in chains Cerberus himself, the keeper of the gate of Tartarus, and
+dragged him trembling from the very throne of Pluto. The others attempted
+a feat scarcely less perilous, for they sought to carry off our queen
+Proserpine."
+
+"Be not disturbed," answered the Sibyl; "we at least meditate no such
+plots, nor does this mortal bring with him his arms for any purpose of
+violence. He is Æneas of Troy, illustrious for piety and skill in arms,
+and he penetrates these gloomy abodes to have converse with his father
+Anchises. If your compassion is not moved by his filial devotion, at least
+pay regard to this branch." And so saying, she produced the golden bough.
+The surly ferryman, though filled with rage at being forced to obey, was
+at once silenced. He brought his boat to the bank, and silently received
+into it Æneas and his companion, driving back the ghosts that at the same
+time eagerly strove to enter the vessel. It was old and leaky, and sank
+deep in the black flood under the unaccustomed weight of living mortals;
+but Charon ferried them safely across, and landed them on the farther
+side, where, in a huge den at the gate of the infernal regions, lay
+Cerberus, the terrible three-headed dog which was the guardian of the
+place--a ferocious brute which only Hercules among living men had been
+able to subdue. When Æneas approached he opened his huge jaws and made all
+Hades resound with his barking; but the Sibyl threw to him a medicated
+cake, which he at once devoured, and was thereby lulled into profound
+sleep. The way was now safe; the Trojan chief and his companion passed
+quickly through the open gate, and entered the dread region where Minos
+and his fellow judges pronounced on the fate of each ghost that came
+before them.
+
+The first place within the gate was assigned to the shades of infants, cut
+off in the very beginning of life, who filled their allotted region with
+loud wailings and weeping. Beyond these were placed persons who had been
+put to death in consequence of false accusations. Not even the unjust
+suffering which such persons had endured on earth could at once procure
+for them a place among those happy spirits declared free of guilt. Here
+they were doomed to wait till the inexorable Minos examined each case and
+gave his award. Immediately adjoining was the place allotted to those who,
+though unstained by crime, had become weary of life and had committed
+self-destruction. Gladly, indeed, would they have now returned to the
+upper world they had despised, but no such return was possible to them.
+
+Æneas and his companion next viewed a region named the Fields of
+Mourning,--a wide tract, with shady paths and thick myrtle groves,
+dedicated to those who had died through unrequited love, and were held to
+have been emancipated by the miseries they had endured on earth from
+suffering any punishment below. Here were to be seen, wandering
+disconsolately, many women of whom Æneas had heard in old legends of
+Greece and Troy. Among them he beheld, with sorrow and pity, the
+ill-starred Queen of Carthage, the wound she had herself inflicted yet
+gaping in her fair bosom. "Dido!" he exclaimed with tears, "was it then a
+true rumor that reached me of your having died after my departure, and by
+your own hand? If I have been the cause of your death, I am indeed
+unhappy. By all I hold sacred, fair queen, I swear to you that it was
+against my own will I quitted Carthage. The will of the Gods, which now
+has brought me, while yet living, into these melancholy realms, drove me
+from you; but I dreamt not that our separation would bring upon you such
+extreme suffering. Why will you not speak to me? Why do you fly from me?
+Never again will the Fates permit us to meet together." But all his
+entreaties and his tears were vain. The spectre gazed upon him awhile with
+eyes of inexorable hate, and then turned away, with a gesture of
+unrelenting aversion, to a shady recess near by, where she was joined by
+the ghost of her first lord, Sichæus, who by the compassion of Pluto had
+been permitted to bear her company. Æneas resumed his journey, pondering
+sadly over the fate of the woman who but a little since had loved him so
+ardently and to whom he had unwillingly brought such misfortunes. He and
+his guide now came to a place dedicated to the shades of renowned
+warriors. Here he saw numbers of those brave Trojans, once his companions
+in arms, who had fallen before Troy. They eagerly crowded around him,
+pressed his hands, and questioned him as to the circumstances which had
+brought him, while yet alive, amongst them. There, too, were many Greeks
+who had perished during the Trojan war; but when they beheld the hero in
+the flesh, and wearing his gleaming armor, they fled from him in dismay.
+As he passed on, after exchanging affectionate words with many of his old
+comrades, he met Deïphobus, that son of Priam who, after the death of
+Paris, became the husband of Helen. The spectre of the prince was cruelly
+mutilated,--so that Æneas scarcely knew him. "Who, O Deïphobus," he
+exclaimed, "could have inflicted such shameful wounds upon you? After I
+had escaped from Troy a story was brought to me that you had indeed
+perished, but honorably and in fair fight, having slain many of the enemy.
+Then I erected in your honor an empty tomb on the shore under Mount Ida,
+and offered proper funeral rites, for your body I was unable to find."
+
+"You, my friend," answered Deïphobus, "omitted no duty towards my corpse
+that you could perform. But I owe my death and these infamous wounds to
+the wickedness of Helen; they are the marks of her love. On the night
+after the fatal horse was brought into Troy, I was lying asleep in my
+chamber, enjoying needful repose. Then my faithless wife removed all the
+arms from my palace, and even took away my sword from the side of my
+couch. That done, she threw open the gates, and herself summoned her
+former husband, Menelaus, and he and Ulysses burst into my apartment and
+inflicted on me these wounds, for which I pray the Gods that they may be
+requited."
+
+Æneas would have spent yet more time in conversing with the shades of his
+former comrades; but the Sibyl reminded him that the hour was approaching
+when he must return to the upper world. "Here," she said, "the path is
+divided. To the right, past the palace of Pluto, lies our way to the
+Elysian Fields; on the left is the way to Tartarus, the place of
+punishment for the wicked."
+
+As they proceeded toward Elysium, Æneas looked around him, and beheld to
+the left a vast prison, enclosed by mighty walls, at the foot of which ran
+Phlegethon, the river of fire, whirling along great rocks in its furious
+current. Across the stream, just opposite to where he was standing, was a
+lofty gate, with columns of solid adamant. In an iron tower adjoining sat
+Tisiphone, the eldest of the Furies, watching the gate. From within sounds
+were heard--groans of pain, the sound of cruel lashes, and the clanking of
+chains. Æneas asked his companion what punishments were being inflicted
+within, and who were the sufferers. "This," replied the Sibyl, "is
+Tartarus, whereinto no righteous person can enter. Here Rhadamanthus
+presides: he searches into the deeds of all who are sent hither, obliges
+them to confess all the crimes they have committed in the upper world, and
+awards the punishment. As soon as the sentence is pronounced, Tisiphone
+scourges the doomed one with a whip of scorpions, and then consigns him to
+the fierce attendants of her sister Furies. Immediately the gates,
+creaking on their hinges, fly open. Within, the entrance is guarded by a
+hideous Hydra, with fifty black and gaping mouths. In the pit of Tartarus
+beyond, the giants who waged war against the ruler of the Gods lie
+prostrated by his thunderbolts. Beside them, enduring terrible tortures,
+is Salmoneus. He was a king of Elis in Greece, and was so puffed up by
+pride that he rode through his city on a high chariot drawn by four
+prancing horses, waving in his hand a torch, and pretending to be Jupiter
+himself, wielding his thunderbolts. The Almighty Sire punished his impiety
+by hurling from Olympus a real thunderbolt, which deprived him of life;
+and now he pays the penalty of his mad pride by eternal sufferings in
+Tartarus. There also lies Tityus, the huge giant who, having insulted the
+goddess Latona, was slain by the darts of her children, Apollo and Diana,
+and whose writhing body now lies extended over nine acres of ground, while
+insatiable vultures perpetually prey on his vitals, that are renewed as
+fast as they are devoured. Beyond him is Ixion, bound to a wheel that
+never ceases to revolve, while he is scourged by attendant Furies. He it
+was who, being admitted to Olympus by the generosity of Jupiter himself,
+dared to seek the love of the queen of the Gods. Not less dreadful is the
+punishment allotted to Pirithous, who, along with Theseus, endeavored to
+carry off the Queen of Hades, Proserpine, from the side of Pluto. Over his
+head hangs a huge rock, which every moment seems about to fall and crush
+him, but yet never actually descends; moreover, he is plagued with a
+gnawing hunger, and a rich banquet is always before him, which yet he is
+never able to reach. Myriads of other unhappy shades, whose course on
+earth has been stained by detestable crime, here expiate the evil they
+have done; but had I a hundred mouths and a hundred tongues, I could not
+recount all their offenses and the varieties of their punishment. It is
+necessary that we should go forward, since yonder stands the palace of
+Pluto, where thou, O Æneas, must deposit the bough which has gained thee
+admission here."
+
+Obedient to his guide, Æneas advanced to the vast portals of the palace
+where Pluto, the brother of Jupiter and monarch of the infernal kingdom,
+had his abode with his lovely queen Proserpine, the daughter of Ceres,
+whom ages before he had carried off from the upper world. There he made
+due reverence before the goddess, and deposited the golden bough at her
+feet. Advancing beyond, Æneas and the Sibyl came at last to the Elysian
+Fields,--the abode of joy assigned to those who during life had been
+distinguished for piety, virtue, and heroic actions. Here were lovely
+green fields and pleasant groves; the air was pure and balmy, the sky was
+blue, and all was glowing-in the light of the blessed sun. Some of the
+happy spirits who dwelt in this region were amusing themselves by
+wrestling on the greensward, and other sports in which they had delighted
+on earth, such as chariot-racing, exercises with the spear and the bow.
+Others were dancing and singing to the delicious notes which Orpheus, the
+most skillful of musicians, produced from his lyre. On the bank of the
+river Eridanus, which pours its clear waters through Elysium over sands of
+gold, were gathered a band whose heads were adorned with snow-white
+fillets. These were priests who had kept unstained the purity and sanctity
+of their office; poets who had sung the praises of the Gods in immortal
+verse; and those who had made human life more happy by the invention of
+useful arts. Among them the Sibyl sought out Musseus, the father of the
+poets, and besought him to reveal in what retreat they should find
+Anchises, on whose account she and her companion had traversed all the
+regions of the shades.
+
+"None of us," answered the venerable shade, "have here any fixed abode. We
+wander at our will among the shady groves and by the pleasant banks of the
+river. But if you mount with me this little eminence, I will show you him
+whom you seek."
+
+As he spoke, he led them to a spot where they could survey all the shining
+plains around, and pointed to where Anchises, reclined in a secluded vale,
+was surveying the souls of his descendants who were destined in future
+times to visit the earth, and were enacting beforehand the achievements
+they were fated to accomplish during life. As soon as he saw Æneas
+advancing toward him, he rose with hands stretched out and joyful tears
+pouring down his face.
+
+"Are you indeed," he exclaimed, "come to me at last, my son? Am I
+permitted once more to see your face, and to listen to the tones of your
+dear voice? Now indeed the hopes which I cherished are fulfilled. By how
+many dangers have you been threatened since we parted! I was filled with
+dread lest you should be prevented from accomplishing your task by the
+temptations which beset you at Carthage."
+
+"Thy apparition, beloved father," answered Æneas, "continually appearing
+to me in dreams, urged me forward even to these regions. Permit me now to
+clasp thee in my arms, and do not withdraw from my embrace." Thrice did he
+attempt to throw his arms about the shade, which being only composed of
+thin air, was not perceptible to his touch. While the two conversed
+together, Æneas observed at no great distance from them a stream, at which
+prodigious numbers of ghosts were incessantly crowding to drink, swarming
+like bees round their hive. Astonished at this spectacle, the hero
+inquired of his father what that stream was, and why those spectres were
+so eager to drink of it. "These," answered Anchises, "are souls destined
+by fate to occupy other bodies in the upper world; and the stream is
+Lethe, one draught of which is sufficient to destroy all recollection of
+their former condition."
+
+"But surely," said Æneas, "it is not to be believed that any souls which
+have tasted the delights of this abode will be desirous to return again to
+the life of earth, with its uncertainties and its miseries. How comes it
+that this impulse possesses them?"
+
+In reply to this question, Anchises entered into a long explanation, the
+substance of which was that all the spirits of the departed had to endure
+in the regions below a process of expiation for their earthly sins, longer
+or shorter according to the nature of their transgressions. Those that
+were not consigned to the pains of Tartarus entered the Elysian Fields,
+where, after they had remained a thousand years, they were summoned to
+drink of the waters of Lethe, and thus lose all recollection of their
+former lives; after which, being purified from all stain, they were fitted
+to return to the upper world and inhabit new bodies. Anchises added that
+he would show to his son the forms of his own descendants in the Italian
+kingdom he was destined to establish, and would trace for him their
+achievements. Leading Æneas and the Sibyl onto a rising ground, in the
+midst of the souls which were crowding about the magic stream of Lethe, he
+pointed out to him a long array of future kings of Latium,--Silvius, who
+was to be the son of Æneas's old age by his consort Lavinia; Procas,
+Capys, and Numitor, destined to be monarchs of Alba Longa; and Romulus,
+the future founder of the great city of Rome, which would extend over
+seven hills, and would spread her dominion over the whole earth. Not far
+from these were the souls of Romulus's successors in the' early days of
+Rome,--Numa Pompilius, who first would give his country laws, and
+encourage the arts of peace; Tullus Hostilius, who would wage victorious
+wars, and extend the territories of Rome; Ancus Martius, not less
+successful in the field; and Tarquin, destined to lose the throne through
+his oppressive reign. Anchises proceeded to indicate to his wondering son
+many of the patriots and generals who in future years were to contribute
+to the glory and power of the Roman State,--more especially the great
+Julius Caesar, the lineal descendant of Æneas himself; and Augustus, who
+would once more establish the golden age in Latium, and whose empire would
+extend to countries as yet unknown. The venerable shade concluded his
+forecast of the future with a splendid description of the part which Rome
+was destined to play in the world's history:--
+
+  "Let others better mould the running mass
+  Of metals, and inform the breathing brass,
+  And soften into flesh a marble face;
+  Plead better at the bar; describes the skies,
+  And when the stars descend, and when they rise:
+  But Rome! 'tis thine alone, with awful sway
+  To rule mankind, and make the world obey,
+  Disposing peace and war thy own majestic way;
+  To tame the proud, the fettered slave to free,--
+  These are imperial arts, and worthy thee."
+
+Having thus inspired Æneas with renewed determination by showing him the
+brilliant future that was awaiting his descendants, Anchises conducted him
+over those parts of the Elysian Fields which he had not yet visited, and
+showed him everything that was of peculiar interest. As they went, he
+discoursed to him respecting the wars which he would have to wage in
+Latium, and gave him counsel as to the means by which he should overcome
+every difficulty. Then at last, having brought him to the ivory gate
+whence the gods were accustomed to send false dreams to the upper world,
+he bade him farewell. By that gate Æneas and the Sibyl quitted the abodes
+of the dead, and ascended without difficulty or adventure to the cave of
+the oracle, whence the hero hastened at once to his ships. Without loss of
+time he ordered the sails to be spread, and the ships were steered along
+the coast, drawing nearer ever hour to their final destination.
+
+
+
+
+ÆNEAS'S FIRST GREAT BATTLE WITH THE LATINS
+
+By Charles Henry Hanson
+
+
+    [Æneas finally lands in Italy, the country promised him by the
+    Gods as a home for his race. The Italian king, Latinus, has been
+    warned by signs and omens that the hand of his daughter Lavinia
+    must not be given to an Italian prince, but to a stranger coming
+    from a far country. He believes that Æneas is the hero chosen by
+    the Fates as her husband, and greets him in most friendly manner.
+    Queen Amata, however, is influenced by the Trojan-hating Juno to
+    oppose this marriage. Turnus, chief of the Rutuli, a suitor of
+    Lavinia, is next aroused, and soon the whole kingdom is in a
+    turmoil. A fierce battle ensues.]
+
+
+Turnus, having brought the bulk of his forces from before the beseiged
+camp, hurled them against the army of Æneas before its ranks were properly
+formed, and a furious conflict at once began to rage. The Trojan hero,
+rejoicing to find himself once more on a field of battle, first
+encountered the Latian warriors, who chanced to be in his front. Their
+leader was Theron, a man of gigantic stature, who did not hesitate to
+engage Æneas hand to hand; but he paid dearly for his rashness, for the
+sword which Vulcan had forged--so keen was its edge, so excellent its
+temper--pierced through his brazen buckler and his tunic stiffened by bars
+of gold, and penetrating his side, drained the life-blood. Next the hero
+struck down Lycas; and rushing onward, encountered two stalwart rustics,
+Cisseus and Gyas, who were making havoc among the Trojans by beating them
+down with ponderous clubs. On the divine armor the heavy blows of these
+rude weapons fell harmless, while the spear of Æneas proved fatal to both
+those who wielded them. An insolent warrior named Pharus was defying the
+hero from a short distance with taunting speech, when he hurled a javelin,
+which struck the boaster full in the mouth, and transfixing the throat,
+silenced him forever. Now a band of seven brothers, the sons of Phorcus,
+all at once attacked Æneas with darts, throwing them together. Some of the
+weapons struck his helmet and shield, and rebounded; others, turned aside
+by the care of Venus, grazed his skin. Æneas called to Achates to bring
+him more spears, and snatching one as soon as it was offered, hurled it
+against Mæon, one of the brothers, with such force that it penetrated his
+shield and corselet, and inflicted a mortal wound in his breast. Another
+brother, Alcanor, hurrying up to Mæon's assistance, he smote with a second
+spear, just where the arm and shoulder join, leaving the arm hanging to
+the body only by two or three shreds of skin and muscle. Seeing the
+slaughter that Æneas was spreading around him, Halæsus and Messapus
+hurried up with their bands to confront him, and so in that part of the
+field the battle grew still more furious.
+
+In another part, where Pallas was fighting at the head of his Arcadian
+horsemen, the ground had been rendered so uneven by the winter torrents
+that they were obliged to dismount, and being unaccustomed to fight on
+foot, they began to retreat before the fierce assault of the Rutulians. At
+this sight their brave young leader was overwhelmed with shame and
+mortification. "Whither," he cried, "my fellow countrymen, do you fly? I
+implore you, by the memory of your gallant deeds in the past, by the name
+of Evander, the king you love, by my own hopes of glory, not to flee. Your
+way lies through your foes, not from them; with your swords must you cut a
+passage where they crowd most densely. These are not gods who pursue us;
+they are mortals, like ourselves, and they are not stronger or more
+numerous than we. The ocean hems us in with an impassable barrier on the
+one side; the enemy confronts us on the other, and separates us from our
+friends. Whether shall we fly into the sea, or force our way toward the
+Trojans?" So saying, he turned, and dashed into the midst of the hostile
+ranks. Tagus was the first who fell a victim to his noble wrath; for as he
+was stooping to pick up a heavy stone, the spear of Pallas struck him in
+the middle of the back, and shattered the spine and ribs. As the young
+hero was withdrawing the weapon, Hisbon rushed on and struck at him from
+above; but the blow fell short, and before he could recover his guard
+Pallas buried his sword deep in his body. Warrior after warrior he struck
+down, restored the confidence of his followers, and spread confusion and
+dismay in the opposite ranks, raging among them as the flames lit by the
+husbandman in the autumn spread through the stubble, and destroy
+everything in their path. But now the Auruncian chief, Halæsus, summoned
+by some of his followers to their aid, opposed the advance of the
+Arcadians. He was a tried and fierce warrior, and he slew five of the
+bravest of Pallas's men before the young chief could confront him. Then,
+however, the son of Evander hurled a spear with such skill and certainty
+of aim that he pierced Halæsus's heart, and the grim leader of the Aurunci
+sank lifeless on the field. His fall was a sore discouragement to the
+troops of Turnus, which would have sought safety in flight, had not
+Lausus, the gallant son of Mezentius,--noble and upright offspring of an
+unworthy father,--suddenly come to their aid. First encountering Abas,
+leader of the Populonians, he slew him with a single blow of his sword,
+and followed up his success with a furious slaughter of Arcadians and
+Etrurians. Thus the battle continued: on the one side Pallas impetuously
+urged the attack; on the other Lausus not less obstinately maintained the
+defense. They were equal in years, and in beauty and grace of form; and to
+both alike the Fates had assigned a place among the victims of the war.
+But the Gods had ordained that they should not encounter hand to hand;
+each was destined to succumb to a superior foe.
+
+Turnus was leading his troops in another quarter of the field, when he was
+summoned to hasten to the assistance of Lausus, who alone was bearing up
+the battle against Pallas and his Arcadians. Quickly he turned his chariot
+in that direction, and as soon as he reached the spot, called on his
+warriors to withdraw from the conflict. "I alone," he said, "will
+encounter Pallas; to me his life is given. Would to Heaven his father were
+here to witness our combat." The Rutulians obeyed the command of their
+king, and fell back; while Pallas, amazed at their retreat and the sudden
+appearance of Turnus, gazed on his opponent. Then, in reply to his
+vaunting speech, he said, "Now, either by carrying off thy spoils or by a
+noble death at thy hands, I shall be rendered famous. My sire knows how to
+bear either extremity of fortune. Cease thy threatenings and let us
+engage." As he spoke, the hearts of the Arcadians, who loved him, were
+filled with fear and sorrow. Turnus sprang from his chariot, and came
+forward to the encounter on foot, advancing as a lion bounds toward his
+prey. As soon as Pallas thought him within reach of his spear, he prepared
+to throw it, and uttered this prayer to Hercules: "By my father's
+hospitality, and that abode which thou, his guest, didst visit, O Alcides,
+aid, I implore thee, my arduous attempt. May the dying eyes of Turnus
+behold me strip him, expiring, of his bloody armor, and endure the sight
+of a victorious foe." Hercules, from his place on Olympus, heard the
+prayer, and knowing that the decree of Fate was otherwise, answered with
+heavy groans and unavailing tears. These were not unseen by Jupiter, who
+strove to console his immortal son. "To every one," he said, "his day is
+fixed; a short and irretrievable term of life is given to all; but to
+lengthen out fame by heroic deeds is the best that man can do. Under the
+lofty walls of Troy many sons of gods themselves perished,--among them the
+heroic Sarpedon, my own offspring, perished; Turnus, too, is summoned by
+the Fates, and has nearly reached his term of life." He spoke, and turned
+away his gaze from the battlefield, himself pitying the untimely death of
+Pallas.
+
+And now the brave son of Evander with his utmost force hurled his spear,
+and then hastened to draw his sword from its scabbard. The weapon struck
+Turnus where the shoulder was protected by the corselet, and piercing
+through the solid brass, slightly grazed the hero's body. Then Turnus,
+poising a steel-tipped javelin, darted it at Pallas, exclaiming, "See
+whether mine be not the more penetrating shaft." Cast with irresistible
+might, it tore its way through the youth's shield, composed though it was
+of thick plates of brass and iron, and through his cuirass, and inflicted
+a ghastly wound in his breast. In vain he wrenched out the deadly missile
+from his body; even as he withdrew it life deserted his quivering form,
+and he fell to the ground. Bestriding the corpse, Turnus cried, "Ye
+Arcadians, faithfully report to Evander this message,--I send him back his
+Pallas in such a plight as he deserved. Whatever honor is in a tomb,
+whatever solace in the performance of funeral rites, I freely grant him.
+His league with the Trojan intruder shall cost him dear." So saying, he
+pressed his foot on the body, and tore away a massive belt, adorned with
+figures richly carved in gold. This spoil Turnus exultingly clasped around
+his own body, little dreaming that the time would come when he would wish
+that he had never taken it, and that he and Pallas had never met. But now
+the lifeless corpse of the youth, stripped of its arms and still bleeding
+from the fatal wound inflicted by the Rutulian chief, was laid on a shield
+and borne away by his weeping followers. Thus the first day on which he
+took a part in war saw also the young hero's death, though not, indeed,
+before he had strewn the plain with Rutulian corpses.
+
+Speedily the news of this sad disaster, and of the consequent retreat of
+his forces in that part of the field, was borne to Æneas. Rendered furious
+by the event, he impetuously mowed with his sword a bloody passage through
+the hostile ranks in search of Turnus, on whom he was eager to avenge the
+death of his friend. The thought of the bright youth who had thus perished
+in his cause, of the hoary father bereaved of all that made life dear to
+him, filled his heart with sorrow as he recalled the kindness which both
+had shown to him, and the pledges of enduring friendship he had exchanged
+with them. Eight Rutulian warriors he struck down, and captured them
+alive, destining them as victims to be offered to the shade of Pallas, and
+to drench with their blood the flames of the hero's funeral pyre. Next,
+Æneas having hurled a javelin at a Latian named Magus, the trembling
+wretch evaded the dart by stooping, and as Æneas rushed upon him with
+uplifted sword, he clasped his knees, and implored him to spare his life,
+proffering a large ransom of silver and gold which lay concealed
+underground in his house. Sternly the Trojan chief bade him keep his
+treasures for his sons; as for showing mercy, that was forbidden to him
+from the moment that Pallas fell by the hand of Turnus. Then grasping the
+suppliant's helmet, and forcing back his head so as to expose the neck,
+even as Magus renewed his petition he plunged the sword into his body to
+the hilt. Near by, the luckless Æmonides, a priest of Apollo and Diana,
+who wore a sacred fillet on his temples and shone in burnished armor, fell
+a victim to his relentless spear, and the splendid arms he had worn were
+carried off by Serestus as an offering to Mars. The Rutulians fled in
+terror before the raging chief; but King Cæculus of Præneste, and Umbro,
+the leader of the Marsians, renewed the struggle. A huge warrior named
+Tarquitus, the son of the nymph Dryope, dared to oppose himself to Æneas,
+but his fate was soon decided. The hero first pierced his corselet with a
+spear, and then, as he lay wounded and imploring mercy, smote off his head
+with his sword. Spurning the bleeding trunk, he furiously cried, "Lie
+there, haughty champion! Thee no tender mother shall lodge in the earth,
+or place a tomb above thy body; to birds of prey thou shalt be left, or
+cast in the sea to be devoured by fishes." Still insatiable of slaughter,
+he drove into terrified flight Antæus and Lycas, two of Turnus's bravest
+followers. But now the fierce Lucagus approached in a chariot drawn by two
+snow-white coursers. These were guided by his brother Liger, while he
+himself flourished his sword in the air, and prepared to encounter Æneas,
+who on his part rushed forward to meet them. "These," cried Liger, "are
+not the steeds of Diomedes, nor this the plain of Troy. Here an end shall
+be put at once to thy life and to the war." Against these insults Æneas
+prepared to give an answer otherwise than in words, and as Lucagus bent
+forward in readiness for the fight, the Trojan javelin whizzed through the
+rim of his shield, smote him in the groin, and hurled him, quivering in
+the pangs of death, out of the chariot. Æneas assailed his dying ears with
+a bitter scoff: "It is not, O Lucagus, the slowness of thy steeds in
+flight that hath lost thee thy chariot, but thou thyself, springing from
+thy seat, hast abandoned it." So saying, he seized the chariot; and now
+the miserable Liger, extending his hands in supplication, begged for his
+life. "It was not in this fashion that thou spokest a little while since,"
+replied the relentless hero. "It would not be fitting that thou shouldst
+desert thy brother. Die, therefore, and attend him to the shades." With
+that he thrust the avenging sword through his heart, whence the trembling
+soul fled with a shriek.
+
+So Æneas spread havoc amid the hostile ranks, and drove the forces of
+Turnus back in headlong rout, so that Ascanius and those who had hitherto
+been shut up in the fortifications were able to issue forth into the
+field. Meanwhile Jupiter, watching from Olympus the fortunes of the day,
+accosted his consort. "Thou art in the right, my cherished queen, in
+alleging that Venus gives her aid to the Trojans; for without divine aid,
+how would it be possible for any mortal to achieve such deeds as Æneas is
+now accomplishing?" "Why," submissively answered Juno, "dost thou tease
+me, who am already oppressed with anguish for the fate of the people I
+befriend? Had I that share in your love which I once enjoyed, and which it
+is fitting for me to possess, thou surely couldst not refuse me this much,
+that I might have permission to rescue Turnus from the fate that threatens
+him, and restore him safe to his father Daunus. But since that cannot be,
+let him die, and glut the vengeance of the Trojan with his blood; yet his
+origin is divine, and often has he piled thy altars with sacrifices." Not
+unmoved, the ruler of the Gods replied, "If you plead for a respite from
+immediate death, and a little breathing-time for the youth, I grant you to
+bear him from the field, and for a short time to preserve him. So far I
+will indulge you; but if you hope to gain any greater favor, and imagine
+that the whole predetermined course of the war is to be altered at your
+entreaty, you delude yourself with empty hopes." With tears Juno
+responded, "What if thou shouldst grant in thy heart what in words thou
+dost refuse, and continue the life of Turnus for its natural duration? I
+fear much that a speedy end awaits the brave youth; but oh! I pray that I
+may be misled by groundless alarms, and that thou, to whom all power
+belongs, may alter thy purpose for the better."
+
+Not daring to say more, the queen of heaven hastily descended from Olympus
+towards the contending armies. Then she devised an airy phantom, wearing
+armor which exactly resembled that of Æneas, and imitating to the life his
+walk and mien. This shadow she caused to flutter in the forefront of the
+battle, full in the view of Turnus, and to provoke him with darts and
+insolent words. The enraged Rutulian eagerly pressed upon it, and from a
+distance hurled against it a spear. Immediately the spectre, wheeling
+about, took to flight. Turnus, imagining that in very truth it was the
+Trojan chief who feared to meet him, and filled with baseless exultation,
+cried out, "Æneas, whither dost thou fly? Desert not thus thy promised
+bride; with this right hand will I bestow upon thee the settled abode thou
+hast sought in vain through so many lands and seas." Thus vociferating, he
+madly pursued the deceitful phantom. It chanced that near the shore there
+lay a vessel, joined to the land by a temporary bridge of planks. Hither
+Juno led the shadow, and caused it in seeming fear to leap on board and
+throw itself into a hiding-place. With not less speed Turnus followed,
+bounded along the bridge, and mounted to the lofty prow of the ship in
+search of the supposed fugitive. Instantly the goddess severed the cable,
+and drove the vessel over the foaming waves. Then the phantom melted into
+the air, and the Rutulian, utterly bewildered, gazed about him in despair,
+nor did he feel at all thankful to the guardian deity for having thus
+preserved him from the arms of Æneas. "Almighty Father," he cried, raising
+his eyes and hands towards heaven, "why dost thou think me worthy of such
+shame as this? What have I done to merit such a punishment? whither am I
+borne? How shall I venture again to enter the walls of Laurentum or look
+upon my camp? What will be said of me by the warriors who have followed me
+into this war, and whom--unutterable shame!--I have abandoned to the
+bloodthirsty Trojans! O winds! take pity on me, I entreat you; dash this
+vessel on some rugged crag, and overwhelm me so that I can no longer be
+conscious either of my humiliation or of the reproaches of my Rutulians."
+While he thus lamented, he was uncertain whether he should put an end to
+his own life with his sword or plunge into the sea and endeavor to regain
+the land by swimming. Three times he attempted each expedient, and as
+often Juno, full of pity, restrained him. Carried along by a favorable
+wind, the ship bore him safely to the capital of his father, King Daunus.
+
+Meanwhile Æneas raged through the battle-field in search of the victim
+whom the queen of the Gods had thus snatched from his conquering hands.
+Under his leadership the Trojans and their allies, flushed with success,
+pressed more eagerly on their discomfited foe; but Mezentius now advanced
+to restore the courage of the Rutulians. The Etrurians, as soon as they
+saw their expelled monarch, out of hostility to whom they had engaged in
+the war, rushed upon him with shouts of rage; but he, as fearless as he
+was wicked, stood as firmly against them as a great rock on the shore
+meets all the fury of the winds and waves. Three warriors he overthrew in
+quick succession: Hebrus he cut down with his sword, Latagus he slew by
+hurling a great stone which battered in his face, and at Palmus he threw a
+javelin which pierced his thigh and extended him helpless on the ground.
+Then the raging king slew Evas the Phrygian, and a Trojan named Mimas, who
+in former days had been the companion of Paris, having been born in Troy
+on the same night that gave to the light the ill-starred son of Priam.
+Paris now lay in eternal repose amid the ruins of his native city, while
+to Mimas the sword of Mezentius assigned an unknown grave on the distant
+shore of Italy. And just as when an old wild boar, chased from his retreat
+amid the wooded Alps, stands at bay among the underwood, and the hunters,
+afraid to approach him, ply him with darts from a distance, while he
+gnashes his tusks with rage and faces them undaunted, so stood Mezentius;
+while his former subjects, though filled with just anger against him, and
+eager for his destruction, dare not come within reach of his dreaded
+sword, but galled him with spears and useless clamor. It chanced that a
+Greek from Corytus, named Acron, presented himself in the front,
+conspicuous in nodding plumes, and in purple trappings that had been
+worked for him by his betrothed wife. His gay attire caught the eye of
+Mezentius, who rushed forward and smote down the luckless Greek; then, as
+the others fell back, he cut off the retreat of an Etrurian chief, Orodes,
+forced him to engage hand to hand, and speedily slew him. Pressing his
+foot on the expiring warrior to draw out his lance from his body,
+Mezentius cried to his followers, "Behold, friends! Orodes has fallen--not
+the meanest of our foes." The Rutulians raised a joyful shout, but the
+dying Orodes faintly answered, "Not long shall thou rejoice with impunity
+over me; a similar fate awaits thyself, and soon shalt thou also be
+stretched lifeless on this same field." Smiling scornfully, Mezentius
+returned, "Die thou, and leave my fate to the Gods, in whose hands it
+rests." His example inspired other of the Rutulians; they pressed fiercely
+forward and drove back the troops of Æneas. Mezentius advanced at their
+head, and as he strode along, the Trojan hero espied him, and hastened
+towards him. Unawed by the prospect of an encounter even with so terrible
+a foe, Mezentius stood firm, and poising a huge spear in his hand,
+exclaimed,--for he was a contemner of the Gods, and never offered
+invocations to them,--"Now let this right hand and this good dart be my
+aid; and then I vow that my son, my dear Lausus, shall be clad in the
+bright arms torn from the body of yon Trojan pirate." With these words he
+drew the spear. Sent with a true aim, it struck the shield of Æneas, but
+glanced from the hardened surface, and turning aside, pierced the side of
+Antores, a faithful follower of Evander, who had come with Pallas to the
+war. Thus died Antores, by a weapon never aimed at him, but he was
+speedily avenged. Æneas, putting all his might into the cast, now in his
+turn hurled his spear. It tore its way through the triple plates of
+Mezentius' shield, through his corselet, and inflicted a severe wound in
+his groin, though its force was so far spent that the injury was not
+mortal.
+
+Overjoyed at the sight of his enemy's blood, Æneas drew his sword from its
+sheath, and rushed upon Mezentius, who was as yet bewildered by the blow.
+When Lausus saw his father in such peril he sprang forward and stood
+before Æneas, while Mezentius fell back among his friends, the Trojan
+lance still trailing in his armor. Lausus received the first stroke of
+Æneas' sword on his buckler, while the Rutulians with loud shouts
+applauded him, and poured on the Trojan hero a tempest of darts. Against
+this he protected himself with his shield, and meanwhile, pitying the
+youth and courage of Lausus, spoke to him in words of warning: "Why do you
+thus rush on your own destruction, and attempt what is beyond your
+strength? Your filial devotion blinds you to your danger." But Lausus,
+resolute to defend his wounded sire, returned a haughty defiance. Then
+Æneas could no longer control his wrath; he exerted all his strength, and
+thrust his terrible sword up to the hilt through the body of the youth,
+who sank lifeless on the blood-steeped ground. When Æneas saw the comely
+young warrior stretched dead before him, his heart was filled with pity.
+"Ill-fated youth!" he cried, "how can I testify my reverence for thy
+filial piety and thy undaunted valor? Thou shalt at least retain those
+arms which it was thy delight to wear, and thy body shall be given up
+unspoiled to thy friends." With that he summoned the dismayed followers of
+Lausus, and with his own hands raised from the ground the comely body, all
+disfigured with blood and wounds. Meantime Mezentius had retreated to the
+bank of the Tiber, where he took off his armor, and bathed his wound with
+water. While he was thus resting from the fatigues of the battle, he was
+full of anxiety for his son, and sent messenger after messenger to recall
+him from the fight. But too soon a crowd of weeping warriors appeared,
+carrying the corpse of Lausus in their arms. The sorrowing father divined
+what had occurred from their lamentations, even before the body was
+brought to him. He threw dust upon his head, he clasped the loved form in
+his arms, and bedewed the pallid face with his tears. "O my son," he
+exclaimed, "was I possessed with such a fond desire of life as to suffer
+thee to offer thyself in my place to the relentless foe? Am I preserved at
+the cost of these cruel wounds? Now, indeed, I feel the calamity of exile.
+My crimes have cost thee not only thy paternal throne and sceptre, but thy
+life also. It was I that owed expiation to my country, and should have
+satisfied my people by a deserved death. And yet I live! yet I do not quit
+the detested light! but I will quickly follow thee." Then he rose up, and
+though crippled by the wound in his thigh, and suffering anguish from its
+smart, he did not flinch, but ordered his attendants to bring his courser.
+This was a horse famous for its speed and its prompt obedience to the
+rein. When it was brought, he accosted it: "Long have we lived together,
+Rhoebus, and many great deeds have we accomplished. To-day we shall either
+bear away the head of Æneas and his arms all spattered with his blood, or
+we shall perish together; for I am assured that thou wilt never condescend
+to bear a Trojan lord." Then mounting the noble steed, he filled both
+hands with darts, and dashed recklessly into the midst of the battle. His
+heart swelling with rage and shame and grief, he thrice loudly summoned
+Æneas to the combat. Æneas heard, and rejoiced at the challenge; and with
+threatening spear advanced to meet his foe. "Barbarous wretch," cried
+Mezentius, "thinkest thou to affright me with thy weapons, now that thou
+hast robbed me of my son? That was the only means by which thou couldst
+destroy me. I fear neither death nor the anger of any of your gods.
+Forbear threats; now am I come hither to die, but first I bring you these
+gifts." So saying, he rapidly hurled one dart after another at the hero,
+whirling swiftly round him on his horse; but the shield framed by Vulcan's
+hands received all the shafts and repelled them. Wearied at last of so
+unequal a fight, in which he had to endure ceaseless attacks without
+striking a blow, Æneas stepped forward, and hurled his spear against the
+charger, piercing its skull betwixt the ears. The fiery horse reared
+upward in the death agony, and then fell backward upon his rider, pressing
+him to the earth. The spectators of this fierce combat uplifted their
+voices in shouts, some in joy and others in sorrow, as Æneas rushed up to
+the fallen warrior, and lifting his sword to deal the fatal blow, cried,
+"Where is now the stern Mezentius?" The Etrurian, on the other hand,
+replied, "Spiteful foe, why dost thou threaten and insult before thou
+strikest? Thou wilt do me no wrong in slaying me. I sought thee expecting
+nothing else, and neither I nor my son has asked mercy at thy hands. One
+favor alone I implore of thee, that thou wilt give burial to my corpse. I
+know well that the hate of my former subjects would pursue me after death.
+Defend my remains, I entreat, from outrage, and grant me a grave along
+with my son." He said no more, but extended his throat to receive the
+fatal blow, which descended and drew forth his life as the blood poured
+over his armor.
+
+The shades of night were now gathering, and as the Rutulians and Latins
+had quitted the field in confusion, the conflicts of that sanguinary day
+were at last, ended.
+
+
+
+
+ÆNEAS FINALLY CONQUERS THE LATINS
+
+By Alfred J. Church
+
+
+Prince Turnus was filled with rage. Even as a lion which a hunter hath
+wounded breaketh the arrow wherewith he hath been stricken, and rouseth
+himself to battle, shaking his mane and roaring, so Turnus arose. And
+first he spake to King Latinus, saying, "I will meet this man face to
+face, and slay him while ye look on; or, if the Gods will that he vanquish
+me so, he shall rule over you, and have Lavinia to wife."
+
+But King Latinus made answer, "Yet think awhile, my son. Thou hast the
+kingdom of thy father Daunus; and there are other noble virgins in Latium
+whom thou mayest have to wife. Wilt thou not then be content? For to give
+my daughter to any husband of this nation I was forbidden, as thou
+knowest. Yet did I disobey, being moved by love of thee, my wife also
+beseeching me with many tears. Thou seest what troubles I and my people,
+and thou more than all, have suffered from that time. Twice have we fled
+in the battle, and now the city only is left to us. If I must yield me to
+these men, let me yield whilst thou art yet alive. For what doth it profit
+me that thou shouldst die? Nay, but all men would cry shame on me if I
+gave thee to death!" Now for a space Turnus spake not for wrath. Then he
+said, "Be not troubled for me, my father. For I, too, can smite with the
+spear; and as for this Æneas, his mother will not be at hand to snatch him
+in a cloud from my sight."
+
+Then Amata cried to him, saying, "Fight not, I beseech thee, with these
+men of Troy, my son; for surely what thou sufferest I also shall suffer.
+Nor will I live to see Æneas my son-in-law."
+
+And Lavinia heard the voice of her mother, and wept. As a man stains ivory
+with crimson, or as roses are seen mixed with lilies, even so the virgin's
+face burned with crimson. And Turnus, regarding her, loved her
+exceedingly, and made answer, "Trouble me not with tears or idle words, my
+mother, for to this battle I must go. And do thou, Idmon the herald, say
+to the Phrygian king, 'To-morrow, when the sun shall rise, let the people
+have peace, but we two will fight together. And let him that prevaileth
+have Lavinia to wife.'"
+
+Then first he went to the stalls of his horses. The wife of the North Wind
+gave them to Pilumnus. Whiter than snow were they, and swifter than the
+wind. Then he put the coat of mail about his shoulders, and fitted a
+helmet on his head, and took the great sword which Vulcan had made for
+Daunus his father, and had dipped it when it was white-hot in the river of
+Styx. His spear also he took where it stood against a pillar, saying,
+"Serve me well, my spear, that hast never failed me before, that I may lay
+low this womanish robber of Phrygia, and soil with dust his curled and
+perfumed hair." The next day the men of Italy and the men of Troy measured
+out a space for the battle. And in the midst they builded an altar of
+turf. And the two armies sat on the one side and on the other, having
+fixed their spears in the earth and laid down their shields. Also the
+women and the old men stood on the towers and roofs of the city, that they
+might see the fight.
+
+But Queen Juno spake to Juturna, the sister of Turnus, saying, "Seest thou
+how these two are now about to fight, face to face? And indeed Turnus
+goeth to his death. As for me, I endure not to look upon this covenant or
+this battle. But if thou canst do aught for thy brother, lo! the time is
+at hand." And when the nymph wept and beat her breast, Juno said, "This is
+no time for tears. Save thy brother, if thou canst, from death; or cause
+that they break this covenant."
+
+After this came the kings, that they might make the covenant together. And
+King Latinus rode in a chariot with four horses, and he had on his head a
+crown with twelve rays of gold, for he was of the race of the sun; and
+Turnus came in a chariot with two white horses, having a javelin in either
+hand; and Æneas had donned the arms which Vulcan had made, and with him
+was the young Iulus. And after due offering Æneas sware, calling on all
+the Gods, "If the victory shall fall this day to Turnus, the men of Troy
+shall depart to the city of Evander, nor trouble this land any more. But
+if it fall to me, I will not that the Latins should serve the men of Troy.
+Let the nations be equal one with the other. The gods that I bring we will
+worship together, but King Latinus shall reign as before. A new city shall
+the men of Troy build for me, and Lavinia shall call it after her own
+name."
+
+Then King Latinus sware, calling on the gods that are above and the gods
+that are below, saying, "This covenant shall stand forever, whatsoever may
+befall. As sure as this sceptre which I bear--once it was a tree, but a
+cunning workman closed it in bronze, to be the glory of the Latian
+kings--shall never again bear twig or leaf, so surely shall this covenant
+be kept."
+
+But the thing pleased not the Latins; for before, indeed, they judged that
+the battle would not be equal between two; and now were they the more
+assured, seeing them when they came together, and that Turnus walked with
+eyes cast to the ground, and was pale and wan. Wherefore there arose a
+murmuring among the people, which when Juturna perceived, she took upon
+herself the likeness of Camertus, who was a prince and a great warrior
+among them, and passed through the host saying, "Are ye not ashamed, men
+of Italy, that one man should do battle for you all? For count these men;
+surely they are scarce one against two. And if he be vanquished, what
+shame for you! As for him, indeed, though he die, yet shall his glory
+reach to the heavens; but ye shall suffer disgrace, serving these
+strangers forever."
+
+And when she saw that the people were moved, she gave also a sign from
+heaven. For lo! an eagle, that drave a crowd of sea-fowl before him,
+swooped down to the water, and caught a great swan; and even while the
+Italians looked, the birds that before had fled turned and pursued the
+eagle, and drave him before them, so that he dropped the swan and fled
+away. Which thing when the Italians perceived they shouted, and made them
+ready for battle. And the augur Tolumnius cried, "This is the token that I
+have looked for. For this eagle is the stranger, and ye are the birds,
+which before, indeed, have fled, but shall now make him to flee."
+
+And he ran forward and cast his spear, smiting a man of Arcadia below the
+belt, upon the groin. One of nine brothers was he, sons of a Tuscan
+mother, but their father was a Greek; and they, when they saw him slain,
+caught swords and spears, and ran forward. And straightway the battle was
+begun. First they brake down the altars, that they might take firebrands
+therefrom; and King Latinus fled from the place. Then did Messapus drive
+his horses against King Aulestes of Mantua, who, being fain to fly,
+stumbled upon the altar and fell headlong on the ground. And Messapus
+smote him with a spear that was like a weaver's beam, saying, "This, of a
+truth, is a worthier victim." After this Coryneus, the Arcadian, when
+Ebysus would have smitten him, snatched a brand from the altar and set
+fire to the beard of the man, and, before he came to himself, caught him
+by the hair, and thrusting him to the ground, so slew him. And when
+Podalirius pursued Alsus the shepherd, and now held his sword over him
+ready to strike, the other turned, and with a battle-axe cleft the man's
+head from forehead to chin.
+
+But all the while the righteous Æneas, having his head bare, and holding
+neither spear nor sword, cried to the people, "What seek ye? what madness
+is this? The covenant is established, and I only have the right to do
+battle." But even while he spake an arrow smote him, wounding him. But who
+let it fly no man knoweth; for who, of a truth, would boast that he had
+wounded Æneas? And he departed from the battle.
+
+Now when Turnus saw that Æneas had departed from the battle he called for
+his chariot. And when he had mounted thereon he drave it through the host
+of the enemy, slaying many valiant heroes, as Sthenelus and Pholus, and
+the two sons of Imbrasus the Lycian, Glaucus and Lades. Then he saw
+Eumedes, son of that Dolon who would have spied out the camp of the
+Greeks, asking as his reward the horses of Achilles (but Diomed slew him).
+Him Turnus smote with a javelin from afar, and, when he fell, came near
+and put his foot upon him, and taking his sword drave it into his neck,
+saying, "Lo! now thou hast the land which thou soughtest. Lie there and
+measure out Italy for thyself." Many others he slew, for the army fled
+before him. Yet did one man, Phegeus by name, stand against him, and would
+have stayed the chariot, clutching the bridles of the horses in his hand.
+But as he clung to the yoke and was dragged along, Turnus broke his
+cuirass with his spear, and wounded him. And when the man set his shield
+before him, and made at Turnus with his sword, the wheels dashed him to
+the ground, and Turnus struck him between the helmet and the breastplate
+and smote off his head.
+
+But in the meanwhile Mnestheus and Achates and Iulus led Æneas to the
+camp, leaning on his spear. Very wroth was he, and strove to draw forth
+the arrow. And when he could not, he commanded that they should open the
+wound with the knife, and so send him back to the battle. Iapis also, the
+physician, ministered to him. Now this Iapis was dearer than all other men
+to Apollo, and when the god would have given him all his arts, even
+prophecy and music and archery, he chose rather to know the virtues of
+herbs and the art of healing, that so he might prolong the life of his
+father, who was even ready to die. This Iapis, then, having his garments
+girt about him in healer's fashion, would have drawn forth the arrow with
+the pincers, but could not. And while he strove, the battle came nearer,
+and the sky was hidden by clouds of dust, and javelins fell thick into the
+camp. But when Venus saw how grievously her son was troubled, she brought
+from Ida, which is a mountain of Crete, the herb dittany. A hairy stalk it
+hath and a purple flower. The wild goats know it well if so be that they
+have been wounded by arrows. This, then, Venus, having hidden her face,
+brought and dipped into the water, and sprinkled there with ambrosia and
+sweet-smelling panacea.
+
+And Iapis, unawares, applied the water that had been healed; and lo! the
+pain was stayed and the blood was staunched and the arrow came forth,
+though no man drew it, and Æneas's strength came back to him as before.
+Then said lapis, "Art of mine hath not healed thee, my son. The Gods call
+thee to thy work." Then did Æneas arm himself again, and when he had
+kissed Iulus and bidden him farewell, he went forth to the battle. And all
+the chiefs went with him, and the men of Troy took courage and drave back
+the Latins. Then befell a great slaughter, for Gyas slew Ufens, who was
+the leader of the Æquians; also Tolumnius, the great augur, was slain, who
+had first broken the covenant, slaying a man with his spear. But Æneas
+deigned not to turn his hand against any man, seeking only for Turnus,
+that he might fight with him. But when the nymph Juturna perceived this
+she was sore afraid. Therefore she came near to the chariot of her
+brother, and thrust out Metiscus, his charioteer, where he held the reins,
+and herself stood in his room, having made herself like to him in shape
+and voice. Then as a swallow flies through the halls and arcades of some
+rich man's house, seeking food for its young, so Juturna drave the chariot
+of her brother hither and thither. And ever Æneas followed behind, and
+called to him that he should stay; but whenever he espied the man, and
+would have overtaken him by running, then again did Juturna turn the
+horses about and flee. And as he sped Messapus cast a spear at him. But
+Æneas saw it coming, and put his shield over him, resting on his knee. Yet
+did the spear smite him on the helmet-top and shear off the crest. Then
+indeed was his wrath kindled, and he rushed into the army of the enemy,
+slaying many as he went.
+
+Then was there a great slaughter made on this side and on that. But after
+a while Venus put it into the heart of Æneas that he should lead his army
+against the city. Therefore he called together the chiefs, and, standing
+in the midst of them on a mound, spake, saying, "Hearken now to my words,
+and delay not to fulfill them, for of a truth Jupiter is on our side. I am
+purposed this day to lay this city of Latinus even with the ground, if
+they still refuse to obey. For why should I wait for Turnus till it please
+him to meet me in battle?"
+
+Then did the whole array make for the walls of the city. And some carried
+firebrands, and some scaling-ladders, and some slew the warders at the
+gates, and cast javelins at them who stood on the walls. And then there
+arose a great strife in the city, for some would have opened the gates
+that the men of Troy might enter, and others made haste to defend the
+walls. Hither and thither did they run with much tumult, even as bees in a
+hive in a rock which a shepherd hath filled with smoke, having first shut
+all the doors thereof.
+
+Then also did other ill fortune befall the Latins, for when Queen Amata
+saw from the roof of the palace that the enemy were come near to the
+walls, and saw not anywhere the army of the Latins, she supposed Turnus to
+have fallen in the battle. Whereupon, crying out that she was the cause of
+all these woes, she made a noose of the purple garment wherewith she was
+clad, and hanged herself from a beam of the roof. Then did lamentation go
+through the city, for the women wailed and tore their hair, and King
+Latinus rent his clothes and threw dust upon his head.
+
+But the cry that went up from the city came to the ears of Turnus where he
+fought in the farthest part of the plain. And he caught the reins and
+said, "What meaneth this sound of trouble and wailing that I hear?" And
+the false Metiscus, who was in truth his sister, made answer, "Let us
+fight, O Turnus, here where the Gods give us victory. There are enough to
+defend the city." But Turnus spake, saying, "Nay, my sister, for who thou
+art I have known even from the beginning; it must not be so. Why camest
+thou down from heaven? Was it to see thy brother die? And now what shall I
+do? Have I not seen Murranus die, and Ufens the Æquian? And shall I suffer
+this city to be destroyed? Shall this land see Turnus flee before his
+enemies? Be ye kind to me, O gods of the dead, seeing that the gods of
+heaven hate me. I come down to you a righteous spirit, and not unworthy of
+my fathers."
+
+And even as he spake came Saces, riding on a horse that was covered with
+foam, and on his face was the wound of an arrow. And he cried, "O Turnus,
+our last hopes are in thee. For Æneas is about to destroy the city, and
+the firebrands are cast upon the roofs. And King Latinus is sore tried
+with doubt, and the Queen hath laid hands upon herself and is dead. And
+now only Messapus and Atinas maintain the battle, and the fight grows
+fierce around them, whilst thou drivest thy chariot about these empty
+fields."
+
+Then for a while Turnus stood speechless, and shame and grief and madness
+were in his soul; and he looked to the city, and lo! the fire went up even
+to the top of the tower which he himself had builded upon the walls to be
+a defense against the enemy. And when he saw it, he cried, "It is enough,
+my sister; I go whither the Gods call me. I will meet with Æneas face to
+face, and endure my doom."
+
+And as he spake he leapt down from his chariot, and ran across the plain
+till he came near to the city, even where the blood was deepest upon the
+earth, and the arrows were thickest in the air. And he beckoned with the
+hand and called to the Italians, saying, "Stay now your arrows. I am come
+to fight this battle for you all." And when they heard it they left a
+space in the midst. Æneas also, when he heard the name of Turnus, left
+attacking the city, and came to meet him, mighty as Athos, or Eryx, or
+Father Apenninus, that raiseth his snowy head to the heavens. And the men
+of Troy and the Latins and King Latinus marveled to see them meet, so
+mighty they were.
+
+First they cast their spears at each other, and then ran together, and
+their shields struck one against the other with a crash that went up to
+the sky. And Jupiter held the balance in heaven, weighing their doom. Then
+Turnus, rising to the stroke, smote fiercely with his sword. And the men
+of Troy and the Latins cried out when they saw him strike. But the
+treacherous sword brake in the blow. And when he saw the empty hilt in his
+hand he turned to flee. They say that when he mounted his chariot that day
+to enter the battle, not heeding the matter in his haste, he left his
+father's sword behind him, and took the sword of Metiscus, which, indeed,
+served him well while the men of Troy fled before him, but brake, even as
+ice breaks, when it came to the shield which Vulcan had made. Thereupon
+Turnus fled, and Æneas, though the wound which the arrow had made hindered
+him, pursued. Even as a hound follows a stag that is penned within some
+narrow space, for the beast flees hither and thither, and the staunch
+Umbrian hound follows close upon him, and almost holds him, and snaps his
+teeth, yet bites him not, so did Æneas follow hard on Turnus. And still
+Turnus cried out that some one should give him his sword, and Æneas
+threatened that he would destroy the city if any should help him. Five
+times about the space they ran; not for some prize they strove, but for
+the life of Turnus. Now there stood in the plain the stump of a wild
+olive-tree. The tree was sacred to Faunus, but the men of Troy had cut it,
+and the stump only was left. Herein the spear of Æneas was fixed, and now
+he would have drawn it forth that he might slay Turnus therewith, seeing
+that he could not overtake him by running. Which when Turnus perceived, he
+cried to Faunus, saying, "O Faunus, if I have kept holy for thee that
+which the men of Troy have profaned, hold fast this spear." And the god
+heard him; nor could Æneas draw it forth. But while he strove, Juturna,
+taking again the form of Metiscus, ran and gave to Turnus his sword. And
+Venus, perceiving it, wrenched forth the spear from the stump. So the two
+stood again face to face.
+
+Then spake Jupiter to Juno, where she sat in a cloud watching the battle,
+"How long wilt thou fight against fate? What purpose hast thou now in thy
+heart? Was it well that Juturna--for what could she avail without thy
+help?--should give back to Turnus his sword? Thou hast driven the men of
+Troy over land and sea, and kindled a dreadful war, and mingled the song
+of marriage with mourning. Further thou mayest not go."
+
+And Juno humbly made answer, "This is thy will, great Father; else had I
+not sat here, but stood in the battle smiting the men of Troy. And indeed
+I spake to Juturna that she should help her brother; but aught else I know
+not. And now I yield. Yet grant me this. Suffer not that the Latins should
+be called after the name of Troy, nor change their speech, nor their garb.
+Let Rome rule the world, but let Troy perish forever."
+
+Then spake with a smile the Maker of all things, "Truly thou art a
+daughter of Saturn, so fierce is the wrath of thy soul. And now what thou
+prayest I give. The Italians shall not change name, nor speech, nor garb.
+The men of Troy shall mingle with them, and I will give them a new
+worship, and call them all Latins. Nor shall any race pay thee more honor
+than they."
+
+Then Jupiter sent a fury from the pit. And she took the form of a bird,
+even of an owl that sitteth by night on the roof of a desolate house, and
+flew before the face of Turnus and flapped her wings against his shield.
+Then was Turnus stricken with great fear, so that his hair stood up and
+his tongue clave to the roof of his mouth. And when Juturna knew the sound
+of the false bird what it was, she cried aloud for fear, and left her
+brother and fled, hiding herself in the river of Tiber.
+
+But Æneas came on, shaking his spear that was like unto a tree, and said,
+"Why delayest thou, O Turnus? Why drawest thou back? Fly now if thou canst
+through the air, or hide thyself in the earth." And Turnus made answer, "I
+fear not thy threats, but the Gods and Jupiter, that are against me this
+day." And as he spake he saw-a great stone which lay hard by, the landmark
+of a field. Scarce could twelve chosen men, such as men are now, lift it
+on their shoulders. This he caught from the earth and cast it at his
+enemy, running forward as he cast. But he knew not, so troubled was he in
+his soul, that he ran or that he cast, for his knees tottered beneath him
+and his blood grew cold with fear. And the stone fell short, nor reached
+the mark. Even as in a dream, when dull sleep is on the eyes of a man, he
+would fain run but cannot, for his strength faileth him, neither cometh
+there any voice when he would speak; so it fared with Turnus. For he
+looked to the Latins and to the city, and saw the dreadful spear approach,
+nor knew how he might fly, neither how he might fight, and could not spy
+anywhere his chariot or his sister. And all the while Æneas shook his
+spear and waited that his aim should be sure. And at the last he threw it
+with all his might. Even as a whirlwind it flew, and brake through the
+seven folds of the shield and pierced the thigh. And Turnus dropped with
+his knee bent to the ground. And all the Latins groaned aloud to see him
+fall. Then he entreated Æneas, saying, "I have deserved my fate. Take thou
+that which thou hast won. Yet perchance thou mayest have pity on the old
+man, my father, even Daunus, for such an one was thy father Anchises, and
+give me back to my own people, if it be but my body that thou givest. Yet
+hast thou conquered, and the Latins have seen me beg my life of thee, and
+Lavinia is thine. Therefore I pray thee, stay now thy wrath." Then for a
+while Æneas stood doubting; aye, and might have spared the man, when lo!
+he spied upon his shoulders the belt of Pallas, whom he had slain. And his
+wrath was greatly kindled, and he cried with a dreadful voice, "Shalt thou
+who art clothed with the spoils of my friends escape me? 'Tis Pallas
+slays thee with this wound, and takes vengeance on thy accursed blood."
+And as he spake he drave the steel into his breast. And with a groan the
+wrathful spirit passed into darkness.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+According to the old legends Æneas wedded the fair Lavinia, founded his
+city of Lavinium, and ruled over it for three years. Then in a battle with
+the Rutulians, or some other Italian people, he disappeared; and as his
+body was not found after the conflict was over, it was believed that the
+Gods had taken him up to heaven. His son Ascanius peacefully succeeded
+him, and removed the capital of his kingdom to Alba Longa, which city
+again, after the lapse of centuries, gave birth to mighty Rome.
+
+
+
+
+END OF VOLUME III
+
+
+
+***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CHILDREN'S HOUR, VOLUME 3 (OF
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+<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN"
+    "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
+<html>
+<head>
+<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1" />
+<title>The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Children's Hour, Volume 3 (of 10), by Various</title>
+<style type="text/css">
+/*<![CDATA[*/
+      <!--
+      body                    {font-family:Georgia, serif; margin-left: 15%; margin-right: 15%;}
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+      .returnTOC {text-align:right;font-size:.7em;}
+
+      .poem {margin-left:10%; margin-right:10%; margin-bottom: 1em; text-align: left;}
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+<body>
+<h1 class="pg">The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Children's Hour, Volume 3 (of 10), by
+Various, Edited by Eva March Tappan</h1>
+<pre>
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at <a href = "https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a></pre>
+<p>Title: The Children's Hour, Volume 3 (of 10)</p>
+<p>Author: Various</p>
+<p>Release Date: January 21, 2005  [eBook #14752]</p>
+<p>Language: English</p>
+<p>Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1</p>
+<p>***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CHILDREN'S HOUR, VOLUME 3 (OF 10)***</p>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<h3 class="pg">E-text prepared by Bill Tozier, Barbara Tozier,<br />
+               and the Project Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team</h3>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<hr class="full" />
+<h2>THE CHILDREN&rsquo;S HOUR</h2>
+<h4>IN TEN VOLUMES</h4>
+<h4>ILLUSTRATED</h4>
+<h2>VOLUME III</h2>
+<hr />
+<div class="figure"><a href="images/big_004.jpg"><img src=
+"images/small_004.jpg" alt=
+"A man looks at a melee while a dog lays in the street." id="img01"
+name="img01" width="252" height="321" /></a>
+<p>&ldquo;<em>It is strange that they let that dog lie
+there</em>&rdquo;</p>
+</div>
+<hr />
+<h2>The Children&rsquo;s Hour</h2>
+<h1>STORIES FROM THE CLASSICS</h1>
+<h4>Selected &amp; Arranged by</h4>
+<h2>Eva March Tappan</h2>
+<hr class="short" />
+<h3>1907</h3>
+<h6 class="pg">Houghton Mifflin Company</h6>
+<hr class="short" />
+<p class="quote" style="font-size:1.25em;text-align:center;">
+<em>Between the dark and the daylight, when the night is beginning
+to lower comes a pause in the days occupations, that is known as
+the Children&rsquo;s Hour.</em></p>
+<hr />
+<h3>NOTE</h3>
+<p>All rights in stories in this volume are reserved by the holders
+of the copyrights. The publishers and others named in the subjoined
+list are the proprietors, either in their own right or as agents
+for the authors, of the stories taken from the works enumerated, of
+which the ownership is hereby acknowledged. The editor takes this
+opportunity to thank both authors and publishers for the ready
+generosity with which they have allowed her to include these
+stories in &ldquo;The Children&rsquo;s Hour.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;The Wonder-Book,&rdquo; and &ldquo;Tanglewood
+Tales,&rdquo; by Nathaniel Hawthorne; published by Houghton,
+Mifflin &amp; Company.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Old Greek Folk Stories,&rdquo; by Josephine Preston
+Peabody; published by Houghton, Mifflin &amp; Company.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;The Odyssey of Homer,&rdquo; English prose version by
+George Herbert Palmer; published by Houghton, Mifflin &amp;
+Company.</p>
+<hr class="full" />
+<h2><a id="Contents" name="Contents">CONTENTS</a></h2>
+<table summary="Table of Contents">
+<tr>
+<td class="main" colspan="2"><a href="#Children">TO THE
+CHILDREN</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="main" colspan="2"><a href="#Herodotus">STORIES FROM
+HERODOTUS</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Ladronius">Ladronius, The Prince of
+Thieves</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Retold by G.H. Boden and W. Barrington
+d&rsquo;Almeida</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Arion">Arion and the
+Dolphin</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Retold by G.H. Boden and W. Barrington
+d&rsquo;Almeida</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="main" colspan="2"><a href="#Livy">STORIES FROM
+LIVY</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Romulus">Romulus, Founder of
+Rome</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Horatius">How Horatius Held the
+Bridge</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Cincinnatus">How Cincinnatus Saved
+Rome</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Virginia">The Story of
+Virginia</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Curtius">The Sacrifice of Marcus
+Curtius</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="main" colspan="2"><a href="#Ovid">STORIES FROM
+OVID</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Pitcher">The Miraculous
+Pitcher</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Nathaniel Hawthorne</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Touch">The Golden Touch</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Nathaniel Hawthorne</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Pomegranate">The Pomegranate
+Seeds</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Nathaniel Hawthorne</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="main" colspan="2"><a href="#FolkStories">OLD GREEK
+FOLK-STORIES</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Orpheus">Orpheus and
+Eurydice</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Josephine Preston Peabody</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Icarus">Icarus and
+D&aelig;dalus</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Josephine Preston Peabody</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Phaethon">Phaethon</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Josephine Preston Peabody</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Niobe">Niobe</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Josephine Preston Peabody</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Pyramus">Pyramus and Thisbe</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Josephine Preston Peabody</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="main" colspan="2"><a href="#Trojan">STORIES OF THE
+TROJAN WAR</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Discord">The Apple of
+Discord</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Josephine Preston Peabody</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Agamemnon">The Quarrel between
+Agamemnon and Achilles</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Menelaus">The Fight between Paris
+and Menelaus</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Walter C. Perry</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Ajax">The Duel between Hector and
+Ajax</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Walter C. Perry</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Patroclus">The Death of Patroclus
+and the Battle of the River</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Vulcan">Vulcan Makes Armor for
+Achilles</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Walter C. Perry</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Hector">The Slaying of
+Hector</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Walter C. Perry</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Funeral">The Funeral Games in Honor
+of Patroclus</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Walter C. Perry</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Horse">The Wooden Horse and the Fall
+of Troy</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Josephine Preston Peabody</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="main" colspan="2"><a href="#UlyssesWanderings">THE
+WANDERINGS OF ULYSSES</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Cyclops">An Adventure with the
+Cyclops</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Circe">Circe&rsquo;s Palace</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Nathaniel Hawthorne</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Sirens">The Sirens&mdash;Scylla and
+Charybdis</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Translated by George Herbert
+Palmer</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="main" colspan="2"><a href="#UlyssesIthaca">ULYSSES IN
+ITHACA</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#UlyssesLands">Ulysses Lands on the
+Shore of Ithaca</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>F.S. Marvin, R.J.C. Mayor, and F.M.
+Stowell</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Swineherd">Ulysses at the House of
+the Swineherd</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>F.S. Marvin, R.J.C. Mayor, and F.M.
+Stowell</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle" style="padding-top:0.5em;" colspan="2">
+<a href="#Vengeance">The Vengeance of Ulysses</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle" style="padding-left:2em;"><a href=
+"#Reception">A. His Reception at the Palace</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>F.S. Marvin, R.J.C. Mayor, and F.M.
+Stowell</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle" style="padding-left:2em;"><a href="#Bow">B.
+The Trial of the Bow</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Translated by George Herbert
+Palmer</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle" style="padding-left:2em;"><a href=
+"#Suitors">C. The Slaying of the Suitors</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>F.S. Marvin, R.J.C. Mayor, and F.M.
+Stowell</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle" style="padding-left:2em;"><a href=
+"#Penelope">D. Penelope Recognizes Ulysses</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Translated by George Herbert
+Palmer</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="main" colspan="2"><a href="#TrojanWanderings">THE
+WANDERINGS OF THE TROJAN &AElig;NEAS</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Flight">The Flight of &AElig;neas
+from the Ruins of Troy</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Harpies">&AElig;neas&rsquo;s
+Adventure with the Harpies</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Charles Henry Hanson</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Cyclops2">&AElig;neas in the Land of
+the Cyclops</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Charles Henry Hanson</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Dido">&AElig;neas and Queen
+Dido</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Anchises">The Funeral Games of
+Anchises</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Charles Henry Hanson</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#LowerWorld">&AElig;neas&rsquo;s
+Visit to the Lower World</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Charles Henry Hanson</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Battle">&AElig;neas&rsquo;s First
+Great Battle with the Latins</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Charles Henry Hanson</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#Conquers">&AElig;neas Finally
+Conquers the Latins</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Alfred J. Church</em></td>
+</tr>
+</table>
+<h3>ILLUSTRATIONS</h3>
+<table summary="List of Illustrations">
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#img01">&ldquo;It is strange that
+they let that dog lie there&rdquo;</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>L.F. Schutzenberger</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#img02">&ldquo;I am afraid there will
+not be half enough supper&rdquo;</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Walter Crane</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#img03">They leaped out of the
+Bottomless Hole</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>George Wharton Edwards</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#img04">To him at last the Three
+Goddesses intrusted the Judgment and the Golden Apple</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Giulio Romano</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#img05">Fierce was the Fight about
+the Body of Patroclus</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Giulio Romano</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#img06">A Great Image of a
+Horse</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Franz Cleyn</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#img07">The Cyclops in his Wrath
+brake off the Top of a Great Hill</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>L.F. Schutzenberger</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#img08">&ldquo;Dear son, have you
+come home at last?&rdquo;</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>G. Truffault</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#img09">The Flight from Troy</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Franz Cleyn</em></td>
+</tr>
+<tr>
+<td class="subtitle"><a href="#img10">The Victory of
+Euryalus</a></td>
+<td class="author"><em>Franz Cleyn</em></td>
+</tr>
+</table>
+<h2><a id="Children" name="Children">TO THE CHILDREN</a></h2>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>The greater part of this book is made up of stories from the
+poems of Homer and Virgil. Homer is thought to have lived in Greece
+about three thousand years ago, and yet his poems never seem
+old-fashioned and people do not tire of reading them. Boys and
+girls almost always like them, because they are so full of stories.
+If you want to read about giants or mermaids or shipwrecks or
+athletic contests or enchanters or furious battles or the capture
+of cities or voyages to strange countries, all you have to do is to
+open the Iliad and the Odyssey, and you will find stories on all of
+these subjects. Homer can describe a foot-race or the throwing of a
+discus so that you hold your breath to see who will win; and he can
+picture a battle so vividly that you almost try to dodge the arrows
+and spears. He can make the tears come into your eyes by telling
+you of the grief of the warrior&rsquo;s wife when he leaves her and
+their baby son to go to battle; and he can almost make you shout,
+&ldquo;Hurrah for the brave champion!&rdquo; when he tells you what
+wonderful deeds of prowess have been done. He can describe a shield
+so minutely that you could make one like it; and he can paint a
+scene of feasting so perfectly that you feel as if you had been in
+the very room.</p>
+<p>How is it that Homer makes his stories seem so real? There are
+several reasons, but one of the strongest is because he tells the
+little things that writers often forget to put in. When he
+describes the welcome given to two strangers at the house of the
+lost Ulysses, by Telemachus, son of the wanderer, he begins,
+&ldquo;When they were come within the lofty hall, he carried the
+spear to a tall pillar and set it in a well-worn rack.&rdquo; That
+one word, &ldquo;well-worn,&rdquo; gives us the feeling that Homer
+is not making up a story, but that he has really seen the rack and
+noticed how it looked. The same sentence shows why it is that
+people do not tire of reading Homer. It ends, &ldquo;where also
+stood many a spear of hardy Ulysses.&rdquo; This reminds the reader
+that in spite of the hero&rsquo;s long years of absence, no one has
+been allowed to remove his weapons from their old place. From this
+one phrase, then, we can realize how much his wife and son love
+him, and how they have mourned for him. Telemachus welcomes the
+strangers, but we can feel how eager he is for them to be made
+comfortable as soon as possible so he can talk of his father and
+learn whether they have chanced to meet him in their wanderings.
+Homer&rsquo;s poems are full of such sentences as these; and, no
+matter how many times one reads them, some thought, unnoticed
+before, is ever coming to light. That is why they are always fresh
+and new and interesting.</p>
+<p>There is a tradition that Homer was blind, and that he wandered
+about from one place to another, singing or reciting his poems; but
+this is only tradition, and there is little hope that we shall ever
+be able to find out whether it is true or not.</p>
+<p>Homer&rsquo;s great poem, the Iliad, is the account of the
+Trojan War. His Odyssey relates the adventures of the hero Ulysses,
+or Odysseus, as the Greeks called him, in many years of wandering
+at the close of the war before his enemies among the Gods would
+permit him to return to his home. There were Trojan heroes,
+however, as well as Greek, and &AElig;neas was one of them. Virgil,
+the Latin poet, has told in the &AElig;neid the story of his
+troubles and adventures. &AElig;neas, too, was driven over the
+waters, for the Gods had told him it was the will of Jupiter, or
+Zeus, as it is in Greek, for him to seek Italy and there found a
+city. Part of his journey is the same as that of Ulysses. He, too,
+stops at the country of the one-eyed giants and has to row as fast
+as he can to escape the rocks that they throw at his vessel. He,
+too, hears the thunders of Mount &AElig;tna and sees the flashing
+of the fires of the volcano. His sailors point to it in fear and
+whisper to one another, &ldquo;That is the giant Enceladus. He
+rebelled against the Gods and they piled the mountain on top of
+him. The fires of Jupiter burn him, and he breathes out glowing
+flames. When he tosses from one side to the other, the whole island
+of Sicily is shaken with a mighty earthquake.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Virgil was no homeless singer; he was one of the great literary
+men of Rome, and he read his poems aloud to the Emperor Augustus.
+He had a handsome villa and a troop of friends. He enjoyed
+everything that was beautiful and seemed as happy when a friend had
+written a good poem as if he had composed it himself. He was never
+satisfied with his verse till he had made every line as perfect as
+possible. When he was ill and knew that he could not recover, he
+made a will, and in it he ordered the &AElig;neid to be burned,
+because it was not so polished as he wished. &ldquo;I meant to
+spend three years more on it,&rdquo; he said. Fortunately for all
+the people who enjoy a great poem, the Emperor forbade that this
+part of the will should be carried out. He gave the manuscript to
+three friends of Virgil, all of them poets, with orders to strike
+out every phrase that they believed Virgil would have struck out on
+revision, but not to add one word. This is the way that the
+&AElig;neid was saved for us. If it had been destroyed, we should
+have lost the work of one of the best storytellers that have ever
+lived.</p>
+<p>Livy, too, was a friend of the Emperor Augustus, He lived in
+Rome, enjoying his companions, the libraries of the city, and, most
+of all, his independence. Even Virgil was ready to insert a few
+lines here and there in a poem to gratify his friends, or to choose
+a subject that he knew would please the Emperor; but Livy wrote on
+the subject that pleased him and treated it just as he believed to
+be best. His great work was his history, and this he begins with a
+little preface, as independent as it is graceful. &ldquo;Whether I
+shall gain any share of glory,&rdquo; he says, &ldquo;by writing a
+history of the Roman people, I do not know. The work, however, will
+be a pleasure to me; and even if any fame that might otherwise be
+mine should be hidden by the success of other writers, I shall
+console myself by thinking of their excellence and
+greatness.&rdquo; No such thing happened, however, for the kindly
+historian was so praised and his work so fully appreciated that he
+said he had all the fame he could wish.</p>
+<p>Herodotus was a Greek who liked to travel. The world was very
+small in his day, for little of it was known except some of the
+lands bordering on the Mediterranean. To visit Tyre, Babylon,
+Egypt, Palestine, and the islands of the eastern Mediterranean, as
+he did, made a man a great traveler five centuries before Christ.
+Herodotus enjoyed all these wanderings, but they also &ldquo;meant
+business&rdquo; to him. Whenever he came to a place of historical
+interest, he stayed awhile. He explored the country thereabouts, he
+measured the important buildings, he talked with the people who
+knew most about the place. Then, when he came to write of its
+history, he did not write like a man who had read an article or two
+in an encyclop&aelig;dia and was trying to recite what he had
+learned, but like one who knew the place which he was describing
+and liked to talk about it, and about what had happened there. It
+is no wonder that his history has always been a favorite; and to be
+a favorite author for twenty centuries is no small glory.</p>
+<p>Ovid was a Latin poet who knew how to tell a story. He could not
+only invent a tale, but he could tell it so well that the reader
+feels as if it must be true. His most interesting stories, however,
+he did not invent, for they are a rewriting of the old mythological
+tales. In one respect he is like Homer; he never forgets the little
+things, and he tells so many details that we can hardly believe he
+is imagining them. In his story of Baucis and Philemon, for
+instance, Ovid does not forget to say that the cottage door was so
+low that the two gods had to stoop to pass through it; that Baucis
+hurried to brighten the fire with dry leaves and bits of bark; that
+one leg of the table was too short and had to be propped up with a
+piece of tile. He tells us that the kindhearted couple tried to
+catch their one goose so as to cook it for the supper of their
+guests; but that they were so old, and the goose so nimble of wing,
+that he escaped them and flew to the Gods for refuge. We are so
+accustomed to think of Latin as a grave, dignified language that
+almost every line of Ovid&rsquo;s &ldquo;Metamorphoses&rdquo; is a
+pleasant surprise. The stories that he tells, <a href=
+"#Pitcher">&ldquo;The Miraculous Pitcher&rdquo;</a>, <a href=
+"#Touch">&ldquo;The Golden Touch&rdquo;</a>, <a href=
+"#Pomegranate">&ldquo;The Pomegranate Seeds&rdquo;</a>, and others,
+retold by Hawthorne, are favorites among the boys and girls of
+to-day, and they must have been liked just as well by the Roman
+children. In Rome the children read the great poets in school, and
+I fancy that they were always glad when the hour came to read the
+&ldquo;Metamorphoses.&rdquo;</p>
+<h2><a id="Herodotus" name="Herodotus">STORIES FROM
+HERODOTUS</a></h2>
+<h3><a id="Ladronius" name="Ladronius">Ladronius, The Prince of
+Thieves</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>Retold by G.H. Boden and W. Barrington
+d&rsquo;Almeida</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Many hundreds of years ago, not long after the Greeks returned
+from the famous siege of Troy, there lived a king of Egypt, whose
+name was Rhampsinitus. So great a king was he, that he kept a small
+army constantly employed in supplying the royal household with
+food, and another small army was required to keep the gardens of
+the palace in order. And had any one been bold enough to doubt the
+greatness of the king, he need only have looked at his magnificent
+dress to set all doubts at rest forever. Upon the neck of the king
+was a heavy necklace, glittering with priceless jewels, and on his
+arms were massive bracelets of pure gold. A golden serpent, the
+symbol of royalty, gleamed from his forehead, and his golden
+breastplate showed the sacred beetle worked in precious stones, to
+protect him from evil spirits. Whenever he appeared in the streets
+of his capital, he was borne in the royal chair on the shoulders of
+eight of his courtiers, while on each side walked a great noble
+carrying a fan, shaped like a palm leaf, with a long, straight
+stem. In front marched the bodyguard of Sardinians, men with fair
+skins and blue eyes, who looked very much out of place among the
+swarthy Egyptians; and last of all came the grim, black guards from
+Ethiopia, with their sabres flashing in the sun. And all the people
+fell on their faces and kissed the dust before their royal master.
+Moreover, King Rhampsinitus erected several enormous statues of
+himself, as well as many fine palaces and a beautiful temple,
+bearing inscriptions which related all his great and glorious
+deeds, so that the people who lived after him might know how great
+a king he had been.</p>
+<p>But, in spite of all his greatness, there was one thing that
+prevented King Rhampsinitus from being a happy man. He had so many
+treasures&mdash;masses of silver, nuggets of gold, and bags of
+gold-dust, jewelry, precious stones, and carvings in
+ivory&mdash;that he lived in constant fear of being robbed. He had
+all his treasures packed in large jars and strong chests, which
+were securely fastened, sealed up, and stowed away in a strong room
+of the palace; but even then he did not feel comfortable, for might
+not the palace be broken into by a clever thief and part of his
+treasure stolen, while he slept? Besides, there was so much
+treasure packed away already, that it was difficult to find a safe
+place for any more. His anxiety made the king so unhappy, and
+caused him so many sleepless nights, that he determined at last to
+build a large chamber of stone, with walls too thick for any thief
+to break through. He sent for his chief architect, who collected a
+great multitude of workmen and set to work building the chamber
+without delay. Whole villages were compelled to join in the work;
+even the old men and children were employed in carrying away
+rubbish, bringing water and clay, and doing other work that was not
+too hard for them. The stronger and more skillful workmen hewed
+great blocks of granite, which were dragged to the place on wooden
+sledges; and, as they had no cranes to lift the stones into their
+places on the walls, they were obliged to build mounds of sand and
+rough bricks, and roll up each stone gradually with wooden levers,
+until they got it into its proper place. It was terribly hard work,
+but there were so many workmen, and the foremen used their whips so
+unmercifully, that the walls rose very rapidly.</p>
+<p>Now the architect was a cunning man, and guessed what the
+chamber was intended to hold. He therefore fitted one stone in such
+a way that it would slide down and leave a hole just large enough
+for a man to crawl through; and yet, when you looked at the wall,
+there was no sign at all by which the secret could be discovered.
+Nor did the architect think it necessary to mention the secret
+opening to his majesty, when he showed the chamber to him and told
+him that it was as strong as he could make it.</p>
+<p>Rhampsinitus lost no time in moving his treasures into the new
+treasure-chamber. The key he kept with him night and day, so that
+at last he could sleep peacefully, knowing that any one who wished
+to pass the solid, brass-bound door, must first prevail upon him to
+unlock it.</p>
+<p>For some time all went well. The king went to the treasury every
+morning, and found everything in its place. Evidently he had been
+too clever for the thieves.</p>
+<p>In the mean time the architect was lying ill in bed, and day by
+day he grew weaker and weaker; until at length he knew that his end
+was approaching, and, calling his two sons to his bedside, he told
+them of the secret way into the treasure-chamber.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I have little of my own to leave you, my sons,&rdquo; he
+said, &ldquo;and I have but little influence at court; but by the
+aid of this secret, which I devised for your sake, you may become
+rich men, and hold the office of king&rsquo;s treasurers for
+life.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The young men were delighted at his words, and so impatient were
+they to enjoy their good fortune, that on the very night of their
+father&rsquo;s funeral they stole away quietly to the place where
+the treasure-house stood. They found the sliding stone exactly as
+their father had described it. The younger and slimmer of the two
+brothers crawled through the opening and found himself in a dark
+chamber, surrounded by heavy chests and jars with sealed covers.
+Breaking open one of the latter, he put in his hand and drew out a
+handful of gold, which sparkled and twinkled at him even in the
+faint light which came through the hole in the wall. Handful after
+handful he drew out and passed to his brother, at the same time
+filling the bags he had brought with him, until both had as much as
+they could conveniently carry. Then they replaced the stone, and
+returned to lay the treasure before their mother; for in those days
+stealing was considered rather a clever trick, and even the
+thief&rsquo;s mother did not scold him, so long as he was not so
+clumsy as to be caught.</p>
+<p>Imagine the consternation of King Rhampsinitus when he visited
+the chamber the following morning! Everything seemed as secure as
+ever, and yet, when he opened the door, there lay one of the great
+jars turned over and empty, while the lid of one of the chests was
+broken open and part of the contents scattered on the floor. He
+examined every nook and cranny of the chamber from floor to
+ceiling, and there was no sign of any one&rsquo;s having forced an
+entrance. The fastenings of the door were firm, and the lock was
+one which it was perfectly impossible to pick. For greater
+security, however, Rhampsinitus sent at once for a locksmith, and
+commanded him to fit the door with a second lock, the key of which
+he kept with the other.</p>
+<p>Notwithstanding this precaution, the treasure-chamber was robbed
+again on the next night, and this time the thieves had broken open
+a great many of the chests, and carried away some of the most
+valuable jewels. On the following night a sentinel was posted, and
+still the treasury was robbed. The sentinel vowed that he had stood
+with his back to the door all night, and there is little doubt that
+he spoke the truth, though the poor fellow was accused of sleeping
+at his post, and punished for his negligence.</p>
+<p>Then the king took counsel of the fan-bearer on the right hand,
+who was also prime minister. He made a long speech, beginning with
+his regret that his majesty had not thought fit to consult him
+earlier, and concluding with a learned discourse on the habits of
+rats.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;This is all very interesting,&rdquo; said Rhampsinitus,
+&ldquo;but I do not see that it helps very much to protect my
+treasure.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I crave your majesty&rsquo;s pardon,&rdquo; the prime
+minister answered. &ldquo;I was about to observe that the best way
+to catch a rat is first to study the habits and tastes of the rat,
+and next to apply the knowledge so gained in setting a
+trap.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>From which one may see that the prime minister was a very
+learned man, and could not be expected to come to the point all at
+once. The king thanked him for his valuable advice, and procured
+two or three powerful man-traps, which he placed within his
+treasure-chamber.</p>
+<p>Night came on, and the two thieves set to work as before, but no
+sooner had the younger brother disappeared through the hole in the
+wall than he began to utter loud cries of agony.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Peace, brother! You will rouse the guard,&rdquo; said the
+elder. &ldquo;What can have befallen you?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The other controlled himself, and said with a groan,
+&ldquo;Ladronius, we are ruined. I am held fast in a trap, and I
+think my leg is broken. O Horus, Lord of Life, deliver
+me!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>With some difficulty Ladronius crawled through the opening to
+aid his brother, for, though a thief, he was no coward.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Go back, Ladronius, go back!&rdquo; cried his brother.
+&ldquo;Leave me to my fate! I think I hear the cries of the guard.
+No, brother, waste no more time!&rdquo; he entreated, as Ladronius
+tugged in vain at the cruel teeth of the trap. &ldquo;One thing
+remains to be done. Cut off my head, and take it away with you,
+that I may not be recognized and so we both perish! I hear the
+footsteps of men approaching. Do not rob our mother of both her
+sons!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Ladronius, seeing that there was nothing else to be done,
+drew his sword, cut off his brother&rsquo;s head, and escaped
+through the opening, not forgetting to replace the stone behind
+him. He was only just in time, for scarcely had he gained the cover
+of a clump of trees, when the soldiers of the guard came running to
+the place and began to belabor the door. To their surprise they
+found everything quiet and nothing displaced. They examined the
+outside of the building thoroughly, and then, supposing that they
+had been roused by a false alarm, they returned to the palace.</p>
+<p>In the morning, Rhampsinitus paid his daily visit to the
+chamber, and discovered the headless body in the trap. He was more
+puzzled than ever. He examined the fastenings of the door and the
+whole of the chamber over and over again, and no hole nor crevice
+could he find.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nevertheless,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;I have now bait for
+my trap. What can I do better than set a thief to catch a
+thief?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So he ordered the body to be hung from the outer wall of the
+chamber, and placed sentinels to guard it, strictly charging them
+to bring before him any one who showed pity or sorrow for the
+dead.</p>
+<p>When the mother heard of her son&rsquo;s death and how the body
+had been treated, she reproached Ladronius bitterly for his
+cowardice, and implored him with many tears to bring back the body
+for proper burial. For the Egyptians thought that unless a
+man&rsquo;s body were properly embalmed and buried whole, he could
+have no life in the next world; so that it would be a terrible
+misfortune if the head and the body were buried separately.
+Ladronius attempted to comfort his mother, but did not dare to
+carry off his brother&rsquo;s body so long as the sentinels were
+watching. In vain his mother wept and entreated him, until at last
+her grief was turned to anger, and she vowed that, if he did not
+obey her, she would go to the king and tell him the whole story.
+Then Ladronius, seeing her so determined, promised to do as she
+wished, and set his wits to work to invent some means of carrying
+off the body without being caught by the sentinels. At last he
+thought of a plan, which seemed to have some chance of success. He
+hired two donkeys, and having bought some wineskins, which were
+used in the place of bottles, he filled them with strong wine and
+placed them on the donkeys&rsquo; backs.</p>
+<p>Thus equipped, and dressed up to look like an old merchant, he
+set out for the place where his brother&rsquo;s body was suspended.
+When he drew near to the sentinels, he secretly loosened some of
+the strings which fastened the necks of the wineskins, and then
+whipping the donkeys and letting them run on a little way in front,
+he pursued them with loud cries.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, miserable wretch that I am!&rdquo; he cried, beating
+his head and looking the very picture of despair. &ldquo;All my
+good wine wasted on the ground! What shall I do? Oh, what shall I
+do? Stop, most ungrateful of donkeys, children of Set, that devour
+my substance and waste my wine as if it were water! May Tefnet
+plague you with gadflies, and Renenutet poison the thistles! Oh
+dear! oh dear! I am a ruined man.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The soldiers, supposing it to be a genuine accident, laughed
+loudly at the fellow&rsquo;s distress, and while some chased and
+caught the donkeys, the others brought bowls and pitchers and began
+to drink the wine, as it ran out of the skins.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Never mind, worthy sir!&rdquo; they said to Ladronius.
+&ldquo;The wine is serving a very good purpose. Here is to our
+future friendship and your excellency&rsquo;s very good
+health!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Ladronius pretended to fly into a great passion, and called them
+thieves and monsters of iniquity for robbing a poor man of his
+wine.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ay, laugh away!&rdquo; he cried. &ldquo;But a day of
+reckoning will come for your wickedness. See how the law treats
+robbers!&rdquo; And he pointed to his brother&rsquo;s body hanging
+on the wall.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Now, by Anubis, the fellow speaks truth,&rdquo; said one
+of the soldiers. &ldquo;We are but sorry fellows to drink away a
+poor man&rsquo;s living, and if this were to come to the ears of
+the king, we should be in evil case for leaving our
+duty.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The others laughed good-humoredly, as they tied up some of the
+skins, and did their best to put the merchant into a good temper.
+Ladronius, after a little more grumbling, appeared to be pacified,
+and, as a sign of good-will, presented a wineskin to the soldier
+who had first spoken in his favor.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;May you never want a young friend to speak for you in
+your old age,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;and may you meet with no worse
+companions than these; for though they seem to be somewhat
+headstrong, yet I perceive that I spoke hard words in my
+anger.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The soldiers, who by this time had sat down on the grass and
+were passing the wineskin from one to another, declared that the
+merchant was a good-hearted old fellow and invited him to come and
+drink their health.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nay, my masters,&rdquo; said Ladronius, pretending to
+adjust the straps on the donkeys&rsquo; backs. &ldquo;I have far to
+go, and I am but a little way on my journey.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But, as they pressed him, he consented to drink one cup with
+them before he went. &ldquo;Though in truth,&rdquo; he added,
+&ldquo;if I mistake not, the skin is emptied already. I see that
+you would force me to part with another, before I set
+out.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>As he spoke, he produced another wineskin, and the soldiers, who
+were growing merry, greeted him with a shout of delight, and
+insisted on his sitting down with them. Ladronius, still declaring
+that he could stay only long enough to drink one cup with them,
+allowed himself to be placed in the midst, where he presently
+proved himself so good a companion and told so many merry tales
+that the soldiers would not hear of his departure. They drank more
+and more heavily, until at length a third skin was opened, and one
+by one the sentinels were overpowered by the strong wine, and all
+lay asleep on the ground.</p>
+<p>By this time it had grown dark, and Ladronius, who had pretended
+to be as drunk as the rest, cautiously raised his head, and finding
+that all the sentinels were snoring, he took down his
+brother&rsquo;s body and carried it off. But, before he went, he
+shaved the right side of the head of each of the sentinels, to show
+his contempt for the king&rsquo;s precautions.</p>
+<p>The king was furious when he discovered the failure of his plan
+and the insult offered to his guards, all of whom were beheaded for
+their disobedience to his orders. He was more determined than ever
+to catch the thief, and after taking counsel once more with his
+prime minister, he decided upon another plan. He caused a
+proclamation to be made, in which he promised the hand of his
+daughter to the man whom she should consider the cleverest and most
+wicked of all men. He commanded the princess to sit on a throne in
+the temple of Ra, the sun-god, and to speak to all who came to pay
+their homage to her, asking them what was the cleverest and most
+wicked deed they had done. But secretly Rhampsinitus told her that,
+if any one related the story of the robbing of the treasury, she
+was to seize him by the hand, and hold him till the guards came and
+secured him.</p>
+<p>The moment Ladronius heard the proclamation, he saw that it was
+another trick to catch him, but he was so daring and so fond of
+adventure that he could not resist the temptation to outdo the king
+in cunning once more. He determined actually to put his head in the
+lion&rsquo;s mouth&mdash;in other words, to go boldly to the temple
+and talk to the princess. He took with him under his cloak the
+strangest of presents, an arm cut from a dead man&rsquo;s body.</p>
+<p>When he entered the temple, he beheld the princess seated on her
+throne, looking very beautiful in her royal robes, with her dark
+curls flowing over her shoulders, and the golden vulture of Egypt
+spreading his wings over her head. She looked a little pale and
+weary too, for she had talked with many scores of suitors, all of
+whom had told her tales which were very much alike and nothing at
+all to do with her father&rsquo;s treasure-chamber. And when the
+princess looked up and saw Ladronius standing there, with his bold,
+handsome face, and resolute eyes, she had a suspicion that this was
+the robber of the treasury. At the same time she felt some pity for
+the young man, whom she was to be the means of punishing for his
+bravery. However, she could only obey her father, and motioning to
+Ladronius to approach, she addressed him with great courtesy,
+saying, &ldquo;You seem, sir, by your bearing, to be a man of some
+strength and courage. Tell me now, what is the most wicked thing,
+and what the cleverest, you ever did in your life?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Ladronius looked her straight in the face and answered,
+&ldquo;Most gracious princess, the most wicked thing I ever did in
+my life was to cut off my brother&rsquo;s head in His
+Majesty&rsquo;s treasure-house, and the cleverest was when I made
+the sentinels drunk and carried off my brother&rsquo;s
+body.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Scarcely were the words out of his mouth, when the princess
+jumped up and caught him, as she supposed, by the arm, at the same
+time crying out for the guards, who were concealed behind the
+throne. But, to her dismay, the arm seemed to part company with the
+rest of the body, and she was left with the cloak of Ladronius and
+the arm of the dead man, while Ladronius himself was out of the
+temple before she had recovered from her surprise; nor could the
+guards find any trace of him outside.</p>
+<p>The princess went back to her father in fear and trembling, and
+related how Ladronius had escaped once more; but the king was so
+amazed at the daring and skill of the young man, that he quite
+forgot to be angry.</p>
+<p>The picture of the princess holding the arm that had no body
+attached to it, and gazing blankly after the departing figure of
+Ladronius, so took his fancy, that he lay back on his couch, and
+laughed till his sides ached.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Bast!&rdquo; he cried at length. &ldquo;If the youth is
+really as clever as this, I would rather have him my friend than my
+enemy. Such a man should be rewarded and not punished for his
+genius. So he made you a present of his cloak too, did he?&rdquo;
+And the king collapsed once more.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;And what manner of youth is he?&rdquo; he asked the
+princess; the princess answered, with a blush, that he looked like
+a brave young man.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That I am sure he is,&rdquo; said the king. &ldquo;I have
+learnt it to my cost. And he is not ill-looking?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;No,&rdquo; said the princess; she would not describe him
+as ill-looking.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah! well,&rdquo; said the king dryly, &ldquo;we must see
+whether we cannot find some means of securing his
+friendship.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So King Rhampsinitus ordered another proclamation to be made,
+promising that if the robber would present himself to the king and
+confess how he had broken into the treasury, the king would grant
+him a free pardon and a great reward beside.</p>
+<p>Ladronius was not long in making up his mind. He knew that kings
+were not always above treachery, but he had survived so many
+dangers that he determined to risk this also. He arrayed himself,
+therefore, in his best attire, and boldly presented himself to the
+king, who was delighted with his courage and bade him relate the
+whole story fearlessly. And when Rhampsinitus heard of the secret
+way into his treasury, he would not rest until he had seen the
+sliding stone and moved it for himself. He laughed heartily when he
+remembered how he had put another lock on the door, and how he had
+posted a sentinel in the one place where he could see nothing of
+the thieves. Then he returned to the palace, and sent for the
+princess, his daughter. Presently she entered with her train of
+maidens, and Ladronius was so overcome by her fresh, girlish
+beauty, that he could hardly find voice enough to reply to the
+king&rsquo;s questions. The king rose and embraced his daughter,
+and then, addressing Ladronius before the assembled courtiers, he
+said, &ldquo;Ladronius, the Egyptians are the most cunning of all
+nations on the face of the earth, and you have proved yourself more
+cunning than all the Egyptians. And now, after robbing me of so
+many treasures, you are about to rob me of the best and most
+priceless of all.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, he took his daughter by the hand, and led her to
+Ladronius.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Take her, my son!&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;A good and
+obedient daughter should make a faithful and loving
+wife.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The princess stood with her eyes cast down, blushing very
+prettily, and Ladronius looked very handsome as he knelt and kissed
+her hand. Then the trumpets began to blare, the drums rattled, the
+cymbals clashed, and the courtiers shouted, &ldquo;Long live our
+gracious princess! Long live Rhampsinitus and his son-in-law
+Ladronius!&rdquo; The royal minstrel brought his harp and sang a
+solemn chant, all about the beauty of the princess and the bravery
+of Ladronius; and the maids of honor performed a graceful dance to
+the music, winding wreaths of lotus flowers about the bride and
+bridegroom. As the music ceased, the venerable High Priest of Ra, a
+tall old man with his head clean-shaven, came forward to bless and
+anoint them, and to tell how he had foreseen it all from the
+beginning.</p>
+<p>So Ladronius and the beautiful princess were married, and,
+though it is not in the story, there can be no doubt that they
+lived very happily for the rest of their lives.</p>
+<h3><a id="Arion" name="Arion">Arion and the Dolphin</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>Retold by G.H. Boden and W. Barrington
+d&rsquo;Almeida</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>It happened once upon a time, in the olden days, that a young
+man, Periander of Corinth, started from a port in the south of
+Greece to sail to Miletus. Being caught in a storm, the boat was
+carried out of her course as far as the island of Lesbos, where she
+stayed for several days, in order that the damage caused by the
+storm might be repaired. In the mean time Periander landed, and
+occupied himself in wandering about the island and watching the
+inhabitants. In his wanderings, he came one evening upon a group of
+men and women, the sight of whom made him pause with a longing to
+join them. They had been working hard all day, gathering the
+grapes, and pressing them in big, wooden vats, to extract the wine
+for which Lesbos was famous; and now, in the beautiful autumn
+evening, they were making merry after their labors.</p>
+<p>No wonder Periander stayed to watch them, for they made a very
+pretty picture,&mdash;the handsome youths, with their bronzed faces
+and strong, fine limbs; the women with their gay dresses and bare
+feet, that seemed to have been made for dancing; the vine-clad hill
+at the back, and, over it all, the glow of the setting sun. In the
+centre of the dancers sat a boy, playing upon a small lute with
+seven strings. To this accompaniment the dancers chanted a song in
+praise of Dionysus, the god of the vine. Gradually the music went
+faster and faster; and faster and faster the feet of the dancers
+sped over the ground, until they were all out of breath, and lay
+laughing on the grass.</p>
+<p>Then, as the boy struck another chord, all laughter was hushed,
+and he began to sing; it was a simple, plaintive little song, but
+there was a magic in his voice which held the listeners spellbound.
+The last rays of the setting sun played about his golden curls, and
+lit up his sweet, childish face, as he sang:&mdash;</p>
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<p>&ldquo;Why should you grieve for me, my love,</p>
+<p class="i2">When I am laid to rest?</p>
+<p>Our lives are shaped by the gods above,</p>
+<p class="i2">And they know best.</p>
+<p>What though I stand on the farther shore,</p>
+<p>Others have crossed the stream before&mdash;</p>
+<p class="i2">Why weep in vain?</p>
+<p>Life is but a drop in the deep,</p>
+<p>Soon we wake from the last, lone sleep,</p>
+<p class="i2">And meet again.&rdquo;</p>
+</div>
+</div>
+<p>As the last note died away, a sigh came from the listeners; some
+of the women turned away their faces, and the young men began to
+talk hastily, as if to hide their emotion.</p>
+<p>Periander waited until the group began to break up. Then he
+stepped forward and laid his hand on the boy&rsquo;s shoulder. The
+boy looked up with a smile.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What is your name, my fair minstrel?&rdquo; asked
+Periander.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;My name is Arion,&rdquo; answered the boy, as if he were
+used to being questioned. &ldquo;I come from Methymna beyond the
+hills, where I used to tend the goats.&rdquo; And he told Periander
+that his mother and father died before he could remember, and that
+he was brought up by an old goat-herd; until a traveling minstrel,
+who happened one day to hear him singing on the hills, took charge
+of him and taught him to play the lute.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That was one of his own songs I was singing,&rdquo; said
+Arion. &ldquo;He always liked me to sing his songs; but, when I am
+a man, I shall make my own songs, and sing them in the great cities
+over the sea.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;And so you shall,&rdquo; said Periander. &ldquo;Now,
+listen to me, Arion! Some day, perhaps, I also may be a great man,
+able to help you to become a great singer. Remember, when you have
+need of a friend, that Periander of Corinth will help you, if he
+can!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And, when he departed, Periander left a sum of money with a
+worthy old couple, who promised to look after the boy, and see that
+he wanted nothing.</p>
+<p>After some years, Periander became king of Corinth, and having a
+love of everything beautiful, he soon gathered about him a little
+band of poets, artists, and musicians. One day, when he was
+listening to one of the court musicians, something&mdash;it might
+have been a chord in the music&mdash;reminded him of the little
+Lesbian Arion. He seemed to see once more the boy with the golden
+light on his curls, and the upturned faces of the peasants grouped
+around him; and the very words of the song ran in his head.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;By Apollo!&rdquo; he cried, so suddenly that the musician
+nearly fell off his seat. &ldquo;We will have the little Lesbian at
+court, and make a famous singer of him. Where is Glaucus? Ho,
+there! Bid Glaucus attend the king!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>When Glaucus appeared, the king bade him take a boat and sail
+for Lesbos. &ldquo;There you will make search for one Arion, a
+singer,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;And when you have found him, say,
+&lsquo;Periander of Corinth has need of his friend Arion.&rsquo;
+And see that you bring him safely to Corinth!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Glaucus did as he was bidden, and in due time found Arion, now
+grown into a tall, graceful youth. Arion, when he heard the
+message, consented to accompany Glaucus to Corinth, where he was
+greeted with great kindness by Periander. He very soon became a
+great favorite among the Corinthians, and all the musicians envied
+him his beautiful voice and his skill in playing on the lute. No
+one had such power to soothe the king in his black moods; nor was
+it at court alone that his fame as a singer was known, for he was
+ever ready to sing to the people, who idolized him and called him
+the son of Apollo. Among other things he taught them the song and
+dance of the Lesbians in honor of Dionysus and the vine; it
+afterwards became one of the most famous songs of Greece.</p>
+<p>Many years Arion stayed with Periander, who held him in high
+honor and loaded him with costly presents. His fame spread as far
+as Italy and Sicily, and he had many requests that he would go over
+and sing to the people there. At length, he determined to make the
+journey, not only from curiosity to see new countries, but also
+because he had heard of the songs sung by the Sicilian shepherds,
+and had a great desire to study them. Periander tried to dissuade
+him, but, finding him resolved, he assisted him in his
+preparations, and on his departure exacted from him a promise that
+he would return to Corinth.</p>
+<p>Arion traveled about Italy and Sicily for a long time, and made
+a great fortune by his singing. But growing tired at last of the
+wandering life, he went to Tarentum to find a ship which would take
+him back to Corinth. There were two or three ships ready to make
+the journey, among them one named the Nausicaa, which was manned by
+a crew of Corinthians. This he chose, being somewhat nervous about
+the large sum of money he was carrying, and thinking that he could
+trust the Corinthians, whom he knew, better than a crew of
+foreigners.</p>
+<p>The Nausicaa was a strange-looking vessel, with a single sail,
+and long oars pulled by men who sat on benches along the side. The
+prow, which was carved to represent the maiden Nausicaa, stood well
+out of the water, and the bulwarks descended in a graceful curve to
+rise again at the stern, where the captain stood and shaped his
+course by means of a broad paddle, which was hung over the
+side.</p>
+<p>The voyage began happily enough, the wind being favorable, and
+the captain and crew all deference and politeness. But when they
+were well out to sea, the behavior of the crew changed; they
+answered Arion&rsquo;s questions with scant politeness, and held
+many whispered consultations, which, from the black glances cast at
+him, made him uneasy as to his safety. On the second evening,
+waking out of a light sleep, he heard them conspiring to throw him
+overboard and divide his wealth among them. Arion started up and
+implored them not to carry out their evil purpose, offering to hand
+over all his wealth, if they would spare his life. His entreaties
+and promises were all in vain.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;We give you a fair choice,&rdquo; said the captain
+brutally. &ldquo;Either leap into the sea at once, or kill yourself
+in some other way, and we will bury you decently on
+shore.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Abandoning his vain appeals for mercy, Arion begged them, as a
+last favor, to let him sing once more before he died.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That we will not refuse,&rdquo; the captain answered;
+&ldquo;though, if you think to move us by your wailing, let me tell
+you that you waste your breath!&rdquo; In reality, he was not
+displeased to have an opportunity of hearing the most famous singer
+in the world.</p>
+<p>Arion put on his sacred robes, in which he used to sing in the
+temple of Apollo, and taking his lute he stepped firmly to the prow
+of the vessel. There he stood, pale and calm, in the silvery light
+of the moon, his fair hair playing with the wind, while the little
+waves lifted themselves to look at him, and then ran playfully into
+the shadow of the boat, to dash their heads against the beams and
+be broken into spray. The sailors were awed in spite of themselves,
+as that beautiful voice rose on the breeze. He sang the old song
+which he had sung in the Lesbian vineyards when Periander saw him
+first. And when he came to the last lines,&mdash;</p>
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<p>&ldquo;Life is but a drop in the deep,</p>
+<p>Soon we wake from the last, lone sleep,</p>
+<p class="i2">And meet again,&rdquo;</p>
+</div>
+</div>
+<p>Arion leapt over the side of the vessel, just as he was.</p>
+<p>The captain, fearing that some of the crew might be moved to
+lend him assistance, gave the order to make all speed ahead. Had he
+waited, he might have seen a most wonderful sight. For, as Arion
+fell into the sea, the water seemed to become alive beneath him,
+and he felt it lifting him up, and carrying him rapidly away from
+the ship. Then he discovered that he was seated astride on a great,
+black fish, which was swimming very rapidly on the top of the
+water, and he knew it must be a dolphin, which had been attracted
+by his singing; for the dolphins, unlike most things that live in
+the sea, have sharp ears, and are very fond of music. He touched
+his lute, to see if the strings had suffered from the water, and,
+as he did so, the great back quivered beneath him. Finding,
+therefore, that the dolphin liked the music, and thinking that he
+owed it some return for saving his life, Arion began to sing, and
+sang song after song; whenever he stopped, the dolphin ceased from
+swimming, as if to inquire the reason; and when Arion began again,
+the dolphin bounded through the water with great strokes of his
+broad tail. A strange sight it must have been, had there been any
+one there to see! But the dolphin went straight across the open
+sea, where no ships were to be seen; for the sailors of that day
+did not care to lose sight of the coast, but would sail all the way
+round a large bay rather than straight across it. So it was that
+Arion came to T&aelig;narus in Greece, without having been seen by
+any man. The dolphin took him close to the shore, where he bade it
+good-by, and watched it swim away disconsolately.</p>
+<p>From T&aelig;narus he made his way on foot to Corinth. Periander
+was overjoyed to see him once more; and when he marveled at the
+strange costume in which Arion had traveled, Arion related the
+whole story.</p>
+<p>Periander listened attentively, and, when it was finished,
+remarked gravely, &ldquo;Are you then so little satisfied with your
+victories over the musicians, Arion, that you have determined to be
+king of story-tellers also?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Does your majesty intend to throw doubt on my
+story?&rdquo; asked Arion.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Far be it from me!&rdquo; answered Periander. &ldquo;The
+story pleases me well, and if you will tell me another such, I will
+take pains to believe that also.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Then Zeus be my witness! I will find means to prove
+it,&rdquo; cried Arion.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Have I not said that I doubted not?&rdquo; asked
+Periander. &ldquo;Yet I would gladly see the proof. My crown to
+your lute upon the issue!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;So be it!&rdquo; said Arion. &ldquo;But first I must ask
+your majesty that none may speak of my return; and when the ship
+<em>Nausicaa</em> comes to port, let the seamen be dealt with as I
+shall appoint!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The king assented laughing, for he deemed the tale impossible.
+After some days, however, it was announced that the ship
+<em>Nausicaa</em> was in the harbor. Periander summoned the captain
+and all the crew to the palace, and asked them whether they had
+brought any news of his minstrel Arion. The captain replied that
+men said at Tarentum that Arion was still in Italy, traveling from
+place to place, and received everywhere with great honor. The rest
+of the sailors confirmed the story, and one of them added that
+Arion was said to prefer Italy to Greece, nor had he any intention
+of returning to Corinth.</p>
+<p>At that moment a curtain was drawn and disclosed Arion, standing
+in his sacred robes and holding his lute, just as they had seen him
+last in the prow of the ship. The sailors, supposing that they
+beheld his spirit, were seized with terror, and fell at the
+king&rsquo;s feet, confessing all their wickedness and begging for
+mercy. But Periander was filled with indignation, and spurned them
+angrily. Arion interposed, urging the king to be merciful, now that
+the seamen had seen their wickedness, and were willing to make
+restitution. Periander, however, would not hear of mercy.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Your compassion bears witness to your noble spirit,
+Arion,&rdquo; he replied. &ldquo;But these men have planned a most
+cruel and cowardly murder, and cruelly shall they suffer for it.
+Seize me these men, guards, and bind them!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The guards came forward and began to lead away the trembling
+wretches.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Stay!&rdquo; cried Arion. &ldquo;It is I who am king. Did
+not your majesty stake your crown against my lute, and can the
+royal word be broken? Back, guards! I claim my wager.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Periander could not refrain from laughter, but confessed himself
+beaten by this piece of strategy. &ldquo;The wit of Arion,&rdquo;
+he said, &ldquo;is stronger than the tears of repentance. Release
+the prisoners!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That being so,&rdquo; said Arion, &ldquo;and seeing that
+I find myself more easy with the lute, I will restore the royal
+crown to Periander.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So the men were set at liberty, after having restored the
+property of Arion, and departed full of gratitude, invoking
+blessings on his head.</p>
+<p>And lest any man should doubt the truth of the story in time to
+come, Arion erected at T&aelig;narus a statue in bronze,
+representing a man riding on a dolphin&rsquo;s back.</p>
+<h2><a id="Livy" name="Livy">STORIES FROM LIVY</a></h2>
+<h3><a id="Romulus" name="Romulus">Romulus, Founder of
+Rome</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>Adapted by Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>&AElig;neas of Troy, coming to the land of Italy, took to wife
+Lavinia, daughter of King Latinus, and built him a city, which he
+called Lavinium, after the name of his wife. And, after thirty
+years, his son Ascanius went forth from Lavinium with much people,
+and built him a new city, which he called Alba. In this city
+reigned kings of the house and lineage of &AElig;neas for twelve
+generations. Of these kings the eleventh in descent was one Procas,
+who, having two sons, Numitor and Amulius, left his kingdom,
+according to the custom, to Numitor, the elder. But Amulius drove
+out his brother, and reigned in his stead. Nor was he content with
+this wickedness, but slew all the male children of his brother. And
+the daughter of his brother, that was named Rhea Silvia, he chose
+to be a priestess of Vesta, making as though he would do the maiden
+honor, but his thought was that the name of his brother should
+perish, for they that serve Vesta are vowed to perpetual
+virginity.</p>
+<p>But it came to pass that Rhea bare twin sons, whose father, it
+was said, was the god Mars. Very wroth was Amulius when he heard
+this thing; Rhea he made fast in prison, and the children he gave
+to certain of his servants that they should cast them into the
+river. Now it chanced that at this season Tiber had overflowed his
+banks, neither could the servants come near to the stream of the
+river; nevertheless they did not doubt that the children would
+perish, for all that the overflowing of the water was neither deep
+nor of a swift current. Thinking, then, that they had duly
+performed the commandment of the king, they set down the babes in
+the flood and departed. But after a while the flood abated, and
+left the basket wherein the children had been laid on dry ground.
+And a she-wolf, coming down from the hill to drink at the river
+(for the country in those days was desert and abounding in wild
+beasts), heard the crying of the children and ran to them. Nor did
+she devour them, but gave them suck; nay, so gentle was she that
+Faustulus, the king&rsquo;s shepherd, chancing to go by, saw that
+she licked them with her tongue. This Faustulus took the children
+and gave them to his wife to rear; and these, when they were of age
+to go by themselves, were not willing to abide with the flocks and
+herds, but were hunters, wandering through the forests that were in
+those parts. And afterward, being now come to full strength, they
+were not content to slay wild beasts only, but would assail troops
+of robbers, as these were returning laden with their booty, and
+would divide the spoils among the shepherds. Now there was held in
+those days, on the hill that is now called the Palatine, a yearly
+festival to the god Pan. This festival King Evander first ordained,
+having come from Arcadia, in which land, being a land of shepherds,
+Pan, that is the god of shepherds, is greatly honored. And when the
+young men and their company (for they had gathered a great company
+of shepherds about them, and led them in all matters both of
+business and of sport) were busy with the festival, there came upon
+them certain robbers that had made an ambush in the place, being
+very wroth by reason of the booty which they had lost. These laid
+hands on Remus, but Romulus they could not take, so fiercely did he
+fight against them. Remus, therefore, they delivered up to King
+Amulius, accusing him of many things, and chiefly of this, that he
+and his companions had invaded the land of Numitor, dealing with
+them in the fashion of an enemy and carrying off much spoil. To
+Numitor, therefore, did the king deliver Remus, that he might put
+him to death. Now Faustulus had believed from the beginning that
+the children were of the royal house, for he knew that the babes
+had been cast into the river by the king&rsquo;s command, and the
+time also of his finding them agreed thereto. Nevertheless he had
+not judged it expedient to open the matter before due time, but
+waited till occasion or necessity should arise. But now, there
+being such necessity, he opened the matter to Romulus. Numitor
+also, when he had the young man Remus in his custody, knowing that
+he and his brother were twins, and that the time agreed, and seeing
+that they were of a high spirit, bethought him of his grandsons;
+and, indeed, having asked many questions of Remus, was come nigh to
+knowing of what race he was. And now also Romulus was ready to help
+his brother. To come openly with his whole company he dared not,
+for he was not a match for the power of King Amulius; but he bade
+sundry shepherds make their way to the palace, each as best he
+could, appointing to them a time at which they should meet. And now
+came Remus also, with a troop of youths gathered together from the
+household of Numitor. Then did Romulus and Remus slay King Amulius.
+In the meanwhile Numitor gathered the youth of Alba to the citadel,
+crying out that they must make the place safe, for that the enemy
+was upon them; but when he perceived that the young men had done
+the deed, forthwith he called an assembly of the citizens, and set
+forth to them the wickedness which his brother had wrought against
+him, and how his grandsons had been born and bred and made known to
+him, and then, in order, how the tyrant had been slain, himself
+having counseled the deed. When he had so spoken the young men came
+with their company into the midst of the assembly, and saluted him
+as king; to which thing the whole multitude agreeing with one
+consent, Numitor was established upon the throne.</p>
+<p>After this Romulus and his brother conceived this purpose, that,
+leaving their grandfather to be king at Alba, they should build for
+themselves a new city in the place where, having been at the first
+left to die, they had been brought up by Faustulus the shepherd.
+And to this purpose many agreed both of the men of Alba and of the
+Latins, and also of the shepherds that had followed them from the
+first, holding it for certain all of them that Alba and Lavinium
+would be of small account in comparison of this new city which they
+should build together. But while the brothers were busy with these
+things, there sprang up afresh the same evil thing which had before
+wrought such trouble in their house, even the lust of power. For
+though the beginnings of the strife between them were peaceful, yet
+did it end in great wickedness. The matter fell out in this wise.
+Seeing that the brothers were twins, and that neither could claim
+to have the preference to the other in respect of his age, it was
+agreed between them that the gods that were the guardians of that
+country should make known by means of augury which of the two they
+chose to give his name to the new city. Then Romulus stood on the
+Palatine hill, and when there had been marked out for him a certain
+region of the sky, watched therein for a sign; and Remus watched in
+like manner, standing on the Aventine. And to Remus first came a
+sign, six vultures; but so soon as the sign had been proclaimed
+there came another to Romulus, even twelve vultures. Then they that
+favored Remus clamored that the gods had chosen him for king,
+because he had first seen the birds; and they that favored Romulus
+answered that he was to be preferred because he had seen more in
+number. This dispute waxed so hot that they fell to fighting; and
+in the fight it chanced that Remus was slain. But some say that
+when Romulus had marked out the borders of the town which he would
+build, and had caused a wall to be built round it, Remus leapt over
+the wall, scorning it because it was mean and low; and that Romulus
+slew him, crying out, &ldquo;Thus shall every man perish that shall
+dare to leap over my walls.&rdquo; Only others will have it that
+though he perished for this cause Romulus slew him not, but a
+certain Celer. This much is certain, that Romulus gained the whole
+kingdom for himself, and called the city after his own name.</p>
+<p>And now, having first done sacrifice to the Gods, he called a
+general assembly of the people, that he might give them laws,
+knowing that without laws no city can endure. And judging that
+these would be the better kept of his subjects if he should himself
+bear something of the show of royal majesty, he took certain signs
+of dignity, and especially twelve men that should continually
+attend him, bearing bundles of rods, and in the midst of the rods
+an axe; these men they called <em>lictors</em>. Meanwhile the city
+increased, for the king and his people enlarged their borders,
+looking rather to the greatness for which they hoped than to that
+which they had. And that this increase might not be altogether
+empty walls without men, Romulus set up a sanctuary, to which were
+gathered a great multitude of men from the nations round about. All
+that were discontented and lovers of novelty came to him. Nor did
+he take any account of their condition, whether they were bond or
+free, but received them all. Thus was there added to the city great
+strength. And the king, when he judged that there was strength
+sufficient, was minded to add to the strength counsel. Wherefore he
+chose a hundred men for counselors. A hundred he chose, either
+because he held that number to be sufficient, or because there were
+no more that were fit to bear this dignity and be called Fathers,
+for this was the name of these counselors.</p>
+<p>After this the people bethought themselves how they should get
+for themselves wives, for there were no women in the place.
+Wherefore Romulus sent ambassadors to the nations round about,
+praying that they should give their daughters to his people for
+wives. &ldquo;Cities,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;have humble beginnings
+even as all other things. Nevertheless they that have the Gods and
+their own valor to help become great. Now that the gods are with
+us, as ye know, be assured also that valor shall not be
+wanting.&rdquo; But the nations round about would not hearken to
+him, thinking scorn of this gathering of robbers and slaves and
+runaways, so that they said, &ldquo;Why do ye not open a sanctuary
+for women also that so ye may find fit wives for your
+people?&rdquo; Also they feared for themselves and their children
+what this new city might grow to. Now when the ambassadors brought
+back this answer the Romans were greatly wroth, and would take by
+force that which their neighbors would not give of their free will.
+And to the end that they might do this more easily, King Romulus
+appointed certain days whereon he and his people would hold a
+festival with games to Neptune; and to this festival he called all
+them that dwelt in the cities round about. But when many were
+gathered together (for they were fain to see what this new city
+might be), and were now wholly bent on the spectacle of the games,
+the young men of the Romans ran in upon them, and carried off all
+such as were unwedded among the women. To these King Romulus spake
+kindly, saying, &ldquo;The fault is not with us but with your
+fathers, who dealt proudly with us, and would not give you to us in
+marriage. But now ye shall be held in all honor as our wives, and
+shall have your portion of all that we possess. Put away therefore
+your anger, for ye shall find us so much the better husbands than
+other men, as we must be to you not for husbands only but parents
+also and native country.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>In the meanwhile the parents of them that had been carried off
+put on sackcloth, and went about through the cities crying out for
+vengeance upon the Romans. And chiefly they sought for help from
+Titus Tatius, that was king of the Sabines in those days, and of
+great power and renown. But when the Sabines seemed to be tardy in
+the matter, the men of C&aelig;re first gathered together their
+army and marched into the country of the Romans. Against these King
+Romulus led forth his men and put them to flight without much ado,
+having first slain their king with his own hand. Then, after
+returning to Rome, he carried the arms which he had taken from the
+body of the king to the hill of the Capitol, and laid them down at
+the shepherds&rsquo; oak that stood thereon in those days. And when
+he had measured out the length and breadth of a temple that he
+would build to Jupiter upon the hill, he said, &ldquo;O Jupiter, I,
+King Romulus, offer to thee these arms of a king, and dedicate
+therewith a temple in this place, in which temple they that come
+after me shall offer to thee like spoils in like manner, when it
+shall chance that the leader of our host shall himself slay with
+his own hands the leader of the host of the enemy.&rdquo; And this
+was the first temple that was dedicated in Rome. And in all the
+time to come two only offered in this manner, to wit, Cornelius
+Cossus that slew Lars Tolumnius, king of Veii, and Claudius
+Marcellus that slew Britomarus, king of the Gauls.</p>
+<p>After this, King Tatius and the Sabines came up against Rome
+with a great army. And first of all they gained the citadel by
+treachery in this manner. One Tarpeius was governor of the citadel,
+whose daughter, Tarpeia by name, going forth from the walls to
+fetch water for a sacrifice, took money from the king that she
+should receive certain of the soldiers within the citadel; but when
+they had been so received, the men cast their shields upon her,
+slaying her with the weight of them. This they did either that they
+might be thought to have taken the place by force, or that they
+judged it to be well that no faith should be kept with traitors.
+Some also tell this tale, that the Sabines wore great bracelets of
+gold on their left arms, and on their left hands fair rings with
+precious stones therein, and that when the maiden covenanted with
+them that she should have for a reward that which they carried in
+their left hands, they cast their shields upon her. And others say
+that she asked for their shields having the purpose to betray them,
+and for this cause was slain.</p>
+<p>Thus the Sabines had possession of the citadel; and the next day
+King Romulus set the battle in array on the plain that lay between
+the hill of the Capitol and the hill of the Palatine. And first the
+Romans were very eager to recover the citadel, a certain Hostilius
+being their leader. But when this man, fighting in the forefront of
+the battle, was slain, the Romans turned their backs and fled
+before the Sabines, even unto the gate of the Palatine. Then King
+Romulus (for he himself had been carried away by the crowd of them
+that fled) held up his sword and his spear to the heavens, and
+cried aloud, &ldquo;O Jupiter, here in the Palatine didst thou
+first, by the tokens which thou sentest me, lay the foundations of
+my city. And lo! the Sabines have taken the citadel by wicked
+craft, and have crossed the valley, and are come up even hither.
+But if thou sufferest them so far, do thou at the least defend this
+place against them, and stay this shameful flight of my people. So
+will I build a temple for thee in this place, even a temple of
+Jupiter the Stayer, that may be a memorial to after generations of
+how thou didst this day save this city.&rdquo; And when he had so
+spoken, even as though he knew that the prayer had been heard, he
+cried, &ldquo;Ye men of Rome, Jupiter bids you stand fast in this
+place and renew the battle.&rdquo; And when the men of Rome heard
+these words, it was as if a voice from heaven had spoken to them,
+and they stood fast, and the king himself went forward and stood
+among the foremost. Now the leader of the Sabines was one Curtius.
+This man, as he drave the Romans before him, cried out to his
+comrades, &ldquo;See, we have conquered these men, false hosts and
+feeble foes that they are! Surely now they know that it is one
+thing to carry off maidens and another to fight with men.&rdquo;
+But whilst he boasted himself thus, King Romulus and a company of
+the youth rushed upon him. Now Curtius was fighting on horseback,
+and being thus assailed he fled, plunging into a certain pool which
+lay between the Palatine hill and the Capitol. Thus did he barely
+escape with his life, and the lake was called thereafter
+Curtius&rsquo; pool. And now the Sabines began to give way to the
+Romans, when suddenly the women for whose sake they fought, having
+their hair loosened and their garments rent, ran in between them
+that fought, crying out, &ldquo;Shed ye not each other&rsquo;s
+blood, ye that are fathers-in-law and sons-in-law to each other.
+But if ye break this bond that is between you, slay us that are the
+cause of this trouble. And surely it were better for us to die than
+to live if we be bereaved of our fathers or of our husbands.&rdquo;
+With these words they stirred the hearts both of the chiefs and of
+the people, so that there was suddenly made a great silence. And
+afterward the leaders came forth to make a covenant; and these
+indeed so ordered matters that there was not peace only, but one
+state where there had been two. For the Sabines came to Rome and
+dwelt there; and King Romulus and King Tatius reigned together.
+Only, after a while, certain men of Lanuvium slew King Tatius as he
+was sacrificing to the Gods at Lavinium; and thereafter Romulus
+only was king as before.</p>
+<p>When he had reigned thirty and seven years there befell the
+thing that shall now be told. On a certain day he called the people
+together on the field of Mars, and held a review of his army. But
+while he did this there arose suddenly a great storm, with loud
+thunderings and very thick clouds, so that the king was hidden away
+from the eyes of all the people. Nor indeed was he ever again seen
+upon the earth. And when men were recovered of their fear they were
+in great trouble, because they had lost their king, though indeed
+the Fathers would have it that he had been carried by a whirlwind
+into heaven. Yet after a while they began to worship him as being
+now a god; and when nevertheless some doubted, and would even
+whisper among themselves that Romulus had been torn in pieces by
+the Fathers, there came forward a certain Proculus, who spake after
+this manner: &ldquo;Ye men of Rome, this day, in the early morning,
+I saw Romulus, the father of this city, come down from heaven and
+stand before me. And when great fear came upon me, I prayed that it
+might be lawful for me to look upon him face to face. Then said he
+to me, &lsquo;Go thy way, tell the men of Rome that it is the will
+of them that dwell in heaven that Rome should be the chiefest city
+in the world. Bid them therefore be diligent in war; and let them
+know for themselves and tell their children after them that there
+is no power on earth so great that it shall be able to stand
+against them.&rsquo; And when he had thus spoken, he departed from
+me, going up into heaven.&rdquo; All men believed Proculus when he
+thus spake, and the people ceased from their sorrow when they knew
+that King Romulus had been taken up into heaven.</p>
+<h3><a id="Horatius" name="Horatius">How Horatius Held the
+Bridge</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>Adapted by Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p class="quote">[King Tarquin had been driven from Rome because of
+his tyranny.]</p>
+<p>King Tarquin and his son Lucius (for he only remained to him of
+the three) fled to Lars Porsenna, king of Clusium, and besought him
+that he would help them. &ldquo;Suffer not,&rdquo; they said,
+&ldquo;that we, who are Tuscans by birth, should remain any more in
+poverty and exile. And take heed also to thyself and thine own
+kingdom if thou permit this new fashion of driving forth kings to
+go unpunished. For surely there is that in freedom which men
+greatly desire, and if they that be kings defend not their dignity
+as stoutly as others seek to overthrow it, then shall the highest
+be made even as the lowest, and there shall be an end of kingship,
+than which there is nothing more honorable under heaven.&rdquo;
+With these words they persuaded King Porsenna, who judging it well
+for the Etrurians that there should be a king at Rome, and that
+king an Etrurian by birth, gathered together a great army and came
+up against Rome. But when men heard of his coming, so mighty a city
+was Clusium in those days, and so great the fame of King Porsenna,
+there was such fear as had never been before. Nevertheless they
+were steadfastly purposed to hold out. And first all that were in
+the country fled into the city, and round about the city they set
+guards to keep it, part thereof being defended by walls, and part,
+for so it seemed, being made safe by the river. But here a great
+peril had well-nigh overtaken the city; for there was a wooden
+bridge on the river by which the enemy had crossed but for the
+courage of a certain Horatius Cocles. The matter fell out in this
+wise.</p>
+<p>There was a certain hill which men called Janiculum on the side
+of the river, and this hill King Porsenna took by a sudden attack.
+Which when Horatius saw (for he chanced to have been set to guard
+the bridge, and saw also how the enemy were running at full speed
+to the place, and how the Romans were fleeing in confusion and
+threw away their arms as they ran), he cried with a loud voice,
+&ldquo;Men of Rome, it is to no purpose that ye thus leave your
+post and flee, for if ye leave this bridge behind you for men to
+pass over, ye shall soon find that ye have more enemies in your
+city than in Janiculum. Do ye therefore break it down with axe and
+fire as best ye can. In the meanwhile I, so far as one man may do,
+will stay the enemy.&rdquo; And as he spake he ran forward to the
+farther end of the bridge and made ready to keep the way against
+the enemy. Nevertheless there stood two with him, Lartius and
+Herminius by name, men of noble birth both of them and of great
+renown in arms. So these three for a while stayed the first onset
+of the enemy; and the men of Rome meanwhile brake down the bridge.
+And when there was but a small part remaining, and they that brake
+it down called to the three that they should come back, Horatius
+bade Lartius and Herminius return, but he himself remained on the
+farther side, turning his eyes full of wrath in threatening fashion
+on the princes of the Etrurians, and crying, &ldquo;Dare ye now to
+fight with me? or why are ye thus come at the bidding of your
+master, King Porsenna, to rob others of the freedom that ye care
+not to have for yourselves?&rdquo; For a while they delayed,
+looking each man to his neighbor, who should first deal with this
+champion of the Romans. Then, for very shame, they all ran forward,
+and raising a great shout, threw their javelins at him. These all
+he took upon his shield, nor stood the less firmly in his place on
+the bridge, from which when they would have thrust him by force, of
+a sudden the men of Rome raised a great shout, for the bridge was
+now altogether broken down, and fell with a great crash into the
+river. And as the enemy stayed a while for fear, Horatius turned
+him to the river and said, &ldquo;O Father Tiber, I beseech thee
+this day with all reverence that thou kindly receive this soldier
+and his arms.&rdquo; And as he spake he leapt with all his arms
+into the river and swam across to his own people, and though many
+javelins of the enemy fell about him, he was not one whit hurt. Nor
+did such valor fail to receive due honor from the city. For the
+citizens set up a statue of Horatius in the market-place; and they
+gave him of the public land so much as he could plough about in one
+day. Also there was this honor paid him, that each citizen took
+somewhat of his own store and gave it to him, for food was scarce
+in the city by reason of the siege.</p>
+<h3><a id="Cincinnatus" name="Cincinnatus">How Cincinnatus Saved
+Rome</a></h3>
+<p class="rgt"><em>Adapted by Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>It came to pass that the &AElig;quians brake the treaty of peace
+which they had made with Rome, and, taking one Gracchus
+Cl&oelig;lius for their leader, marched into the land of Tusculum;
+and when they had plundered the country thereabouts, and had
+gathered together much booty, they pitched their camp on Mount
+&AElig;gidus. To them the Romans sent three ambassadors, who should
+complain of the wrong done, and seek redress. But when they would
+have fulfilled their errand, Gracchus the &AElig;quian spake,
+saying, &ldquo;If ye have any message from the Senate of Rome, tell
+it to this oak, for I have other business to do;&rdquo; for it
+chanced that there was a great oak that stood hard by, and made a
+shadow over the general&rsquo;s tent. Then one of the ambassadors,
+as he turned to depart, made reply, &ldquo;Yes, let this sacred oak
+and all the gods that are in heaven hear how ye have wrongfully
+broken the treaty of peace; and let them that hear help us also in
+the day of battle, when we shall avenge on you the laws both of
+gods and of men that ye have set at nought.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>When the ambassadors had returned to Rome the Senate commanded
+that there should be levied two armies; and that Minucius the
+Consul should march with the one against the &AElig;quians on Mount
+&AElig;gidus, and that the other should hinder the enemy from their
+plundering. This levying the tribunes of the Commons sought to
+hinder; and perchance had done so, but there also came well-nigh to
+the walls of the city a great host of the Sabines plundering all
+the country. Thereupon the people willingly offered themselves, and
+there were levied forthwith two great armies. Nevertheless when the
+Consul Minucius had marched to Mount &AElig;gidus, and had pitched
+his camp not far from the &AElig;quians, he did nought for fear of
+the enemy, but kept himself within his entrenchments. And when the
+enemy perceived that he was afraid, growing the bolder for his lack
+of courage, they drew lines about him, keeping him in on every
+side. Yet before that he was altogether shut up there escaped from
+his camp five horsemen, that bare tidings to Rome how that the
+Consul, together with his army, was besieged. The people were
+sorely dismayed to hear such tidings; nor, when they cast about for
+help, saw they any man that might be sufficient for such peril,
+save only Cincinnatus. By common consent, therefore, he was made
+Dictator for six months, a thing that may well be noted by those
+who hold that nothing is to be accounted of in comparison of
+riches, and that no man may win great honor or show forth singular
+virtue unless he be well furnished with wealth. For here in this
+great peril of the Roman people there was no hope of safety but in
+one who was cultivating with his own hand a little plot of scarcely
+three acres of ground. For when the messengers of the people came
+to him they found him ploughing, or, as some say, digging a ditch.
+When they had greeted each the other, the messengers said,
+&ldquo;May the Gods prosper this thing to the Roman people and to
+thee. Put on thy robe and hear the words of the people.&rdquo; Then
+said Cincinnatus, being not a little astonished, &ldquo;Is all
+well?&rdquo; and at the same time he called to his wife Racilia
+that she should bring forth his robe from the cottage. So she
+brought it forth, and the man wiped from him the dust and the
+sweat, and clad himself in his robe, and stood before the
+messengers. These said to him, &ldquo;The people of Rome make thee
+Dictator, and bid thee come forthwith to the city.&rdquo; And at
+the same time they told how the Consul and his army were besieged
+by the &AElig;quians. So Cincinnatus departed to Rome; and when he
+came to the other side of the Tiber there met him first his three
+sons, and next many of his kinsfolk and friends, and after them a
+numerous company of the nobles. These all conducted him to his
+house, the lictors, four and twenty in number, marching before him.
+There was also assembled a very great concourse of the people,
+fearing much how the Dictator might deal with them, for they knew
+what manner of man he was, and that there was no limit to his
+power, nor any appeal from him.</p>
+<p>The next day before dawn the Dictator came into the
+market-place, and appointed one Lucius Tarquinius to be Master of
+the Horse. This Tarquinius was held by common consent to excel all
+other men in exercises of war; only, though, being a noble by
+birth, he should have been among the horsemen, he had served, for
+lack of means, as a foot soldier. This done he called an assembly
+of the people and commanded that all the shops in the city should
+be shut; that no man should concern himself with any private
+business, but all that were of an age to go to the war should be
+present before sunset in the Field of Mars, each man having with
+him provisions of cooked food for five days, and twelve stakes. As
+for them that were past the age, they should prepare the food while
+the young men made ready their arms and sought for the stakes.
+These last they took as they found them, no man hindering them; and
+when the time appointed by the Dictator was come, all were
+assembled, ready, as occasion might serve, either to march or to
+give battle. Forthwith they set out, the Dictator leading the foot
+soldiers by their legions, and Tarquinius the horsemen, and each
+bidding them that followed make all haste. &ldquo;We must needs
+come,&rdquo; they said, &ldquo;to our journey&rsquo;s end while it
+is yet night. Remember that the Consul and his army have been
+besieged now for three days, and that no man knows what a day or a
+night may bring forth.&rdquo; The soldiers themselves also were
+zealous to obey, crying out to the standard-bearers that they
+should quicken their steps, and to their fellows that they should
+not lag behind. Thus they came at midnight to Mount &AElig;gidus,
+and when they perceived that the enemy was at hand they halted the
+standards. Then the Dictator rode forward to see, so far as the
+darkness would suffer him, how great was the camp of the
+&AElig;quians and after what fashion it was pitched. This done he
+commanded that the baggage should be gathered together into a heap,
+and that the soldiers should stand every man in his own place.
+After this he compassed about the whole army of the enemy with his
+own army, and commanded that at a set signal every man should
+shout, and when they had shouted should dig a trench and set up
+therein the stakes. This the soldiers did, and the noise of the
+shouting passed over the camp of the enemy and came into the city,
+causing therein great joy, even as it caused great fear in the
+camp. For the Romans cried, &ldquo;These be our countrymen, and
+they bring us help.&rdquo; Then said the Consul, &ldquo;We must
+make no delay. By that shout is signified, not that they are come
+only, but that they are already dealing with the enemy. Doubtless
+the camp of the &AElig;quians is even now assailed from without.
+Take ye your arms and follow me.&rdquo; So the legion went forth,
+it being yet night, to the battle, and as they went they shouted,
+that the Dictator might be aware. Now the &AElig;quians had set
+themselves to hinder the making of a ditch and rampart which should
+shut them in; but when the Romans from the camp fell upon them,
+fearing lest these should make their way through the midst of their
+camp, they left them that were with Cincinnatus to finish their
+entrenching, and fought with the Consul. And when it was now light,
+lo! they were already shut in, and the Romans, having finished
+their entrenching, began to trouble them. And when the
+&AElig;quians perceived that the battle was now on either side of
+them, they could withstand no longer, but sent ambassadors praying
+for peace, and saying, &ldquo;Ye have prevailed; slay us not, but
+rather permit us to depart, leaving our arms behind us.&rdquo; Then
+said the Dictator, &ldquo;I care not to have the blood of the
+&AElig;quians. Ye may depart, but ye shall depart passing under the
+yoke, that ye may thus acknowledge to all men that ye are indeed
+vanquished.&rdquo; Now the yoke is thus made. There are set up in
+the ground two spears, and over them is bound by ropes a third
+spear. So the &AElig;quians passed under the yoke.</p>
+<p>In the camp of the enemy there was found abundance of spoil.
+This the Dictator gave wholly to his own soldiers. &ldquo;Ye were
+well-nigh a spoil to the enemy,&rdquo; said he to the army of the
+Consul, &ldquo;therefore ye shall have no share in the spoiling of
+them. As for thee, Minucius, be thou a lieutenant only till thou
+hast learnt how to bear thyself as a consul.&rdquo; Meanwhile at
+Rome there was held a meeting of the Senate, at which it was
+commanded that Cincinnatus should enter the city in triumph, his
+soldiers following him in order of march. Before his chariot there
+were led the generals of the enemy; also the standards were carried
+in the front; and after these came the army, every man laden with
+spoil. That day there was great rejoicing in the city, every man
+setting forth a banquet before his doors in the street.</p>
+<p>After this, Virginius, that had borne false witness against
+C&aelig;so, was found guilty of perjury, and went into exile. And
+when Cincinnatus saw that justice had been done to this evil-doer,
+he resigned his dictatorship, having held it for sixteen days
+only.</p>
+<h3><a id="Virginia" name="Virginia">The Story of Virginia</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>Adapted by Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>It was agreed between the nobles and the commons that, to make
+an end of disputing about the laws, ambassadors should be sent into
+Greece, and especially to Athens (which city and its lawgiver,
+Solon, were held in high repute in those days), to learn what
+manner of laws and customs they had, and to bring back a report of
+them. And when the ambassadors had brought back their report, it
+seemed good to the people that in the following year there should
+be appointed neither consuls nor any other magistrate, but
+decemvirs only; that is to say, ten men, who should set in order
+the laws of Rome. Thus it came to pass in the ninety and first year
+from the driving out of the kings, that decemvirs were appointed in
+the stead of consuls, Appius Claudius being the chief of the
+ten.</p>
+<p>For a while these pleased the people well, doing justice equally
+between man and man. And the custom was that each day one of the
+ten sat as judge with the twelve lictors about him, the nine others
+sitting with one minister only. Also they busied themselves with
+the ordering of the laws; and at last set forth ten tables on which
+these were written. At the same time they called the people
+together to an assembly, and spake to them thus: &ldquo;The Gods
+grant that this undertaking may turn to the credit of the state,
+and of you, and of your children. Go, therefore, and read these
+laws which we have set forth; for though we have done what ten men
+could do to provide laws that should be just to all, whether they
+be high or low, yet the understandings of many men may yet change
+many things for the better. Consider therefore all these matters in
+your own minds, and debate them among yourselves. For we will that
+the Roman people should be bound by such laws only as they shall
+have agreed together to establish.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The ten tables were therefore set forth, and when these had been
+sufficiently considered, and such corrections made therein as
+seemed good, a regular assembly of the people was called, and the
+laws were duly established. But now there was spread abroad a
+report that two tables were yet wanting, and that when these should
+have been added the whole would be complete; and thence there arose
+a desire that the Ten should be appointed to hold office a second
+year. This indeed was done; but Appius Claudius so ordered matters
+that there were elected together with him none of the chief men of
+the state, but only such as were of an inferior condition and
+fortune.</p>
+<p>After this the Ten began more and more to set aside all law and
+right. Thus whereas at the first one only on each day was followed
+by the twelve lictors, each of the Ten came daily into the
+market-place so attended, and whereas before the lictors carried
+bundles of rods only, now there was bound up with the rods an axe;
+whereby was signified the power of life and death. Their actions
+also agreed with this show, for they and their ministers plundered
+the goods and chattels of the people. Some also they scourged, and
+some they beheaded. And when they had so put a man to death, they
+would divide his substance among those that waited upon them to do
+their pleasure.</p>
+<p>Among their misdeeds two were especially notable. There was a
+certain Sicinius in the host, a man of singular strength and
+courage, who took it ill that the Ten should thus set themselves
+above all law, and was wont to say to his comrades that the commons
+should depart from the city as they had done in time past, or
+should at the least make them tribunes to be their champions as of
+old. This Sicinius the Ten sent on before the army, there being
+then war with the Sabines, to search out a place for a camp; and
+with him they sent certain others, bidding them slay him when they
+should have come to some convenient place. This they did, but not
+without suffering much loss; for the man fought for his life and
+defended himself, slaying many of his enemies. Then they that
+escaped ran into the camp, saying that Sicinius had fallen into an
+ambuscade, and had died along with certain others of the soldiers.
+At the first, indeed, this story was believed; but afterward, when,
+by permission of the Ten, there went some to bury the dead, they
+found that none of the dead bodies had been spoiled, and that
+Sicinius lay with his arms in the midst, the others having their
+faces toward him; also that there was no dead body of an enemy in
+the place, nor any track as of them that had gone from the place;
+for which reasons they brought back tidings that Sicinius had
+certainly been slain by his own comrades. At this there was great
+wrath in the camp; and the soldiers were ready to carry the body of
+Sicinius to Rome, but that the Ten made a military funeral for him
+at the public cost. So they buried Sicinius with great lamentation;
+but the Ten were thereafter in very ill repute among the
+soldiers.</p>
+<p>Again, there was a certain centurion, Lucius Virginius by name,
+an upright man and of good credit both at home and abroad. This
+Virginius had a daughter, Virginia, a very fair and virtuous
+maiden, whom he had espoused to a certain Icilius that had once
+been a tribune of the commons. On this maiden Appius Claudius, the
+chief of the Ten, sought to lay hands, and for this end gave
+commandment to one Marcus Claudius, who was one of the clients of
+his house, that he should claim the girl for a slave. On the morrow
+therefore, as Virginia passed across the market-place, being on her
+way to school (for the schools in those days were held in the
+market-place), this Claudius seized her, affirming that she was
+born of a woman that was a slave, and was therefore by right a
+slave herself. The maiden standing still for fear, the nurse that
+attended her set up a great cry and called the citizens to help.
+Straightway there was a great concourse, for many knew the
+maiden&rsquo;s father Virginius, and Icilius to whom she was
+betrothed. Then said Claudius, seeing that he could not take her by
+force, &ldquo;There is no need of tumult or of gathering a crowd. I
+would proceed by law, not by force.&rdquo; Thereupon he summoned
+the girl before the judge. When they came to the judgment-seat of
+Appius the man told a tale that had already been agreed upon
+between the two. &ldquo;This girl,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;was born
+in my house, and was thence secretly taken to the house of
+Virginius, and passed off on the man as his daughter. Of this I
+will bring proof sufficient, such as will convince Virginius
+himself, who doubtless has received the chief wrong in this matter.
+But in the meanwhile it is reasonable that the slave should remain
+in the house of her master.&rdquo; To this the friends of the girl
+made answer, &ldquo;Virginius is absent on the service of the
+state, and will be here within the space of two days, if tidings of
+this matter be sent to him. Now it is manifestly wrong that
+judgment concerning a man&rsquo;s children should be given while he
+is himself absent. Let the cause, therefore, be postponed till he
+come. Meanwhile let the maiden have her freedom, according to the
+law which Appius and his fellows have themselves
+established.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Appius gave sentence in these words: &ldquo;That I am a favorer
+of freedom is manifest from this law of which ye make mention. Yet
+this law must be observed in all cases and without respect of
+persons; and as to this girl, there is none but her father only to
+whom her owner may yield the custody of her. Let her father
+therefore be sent for; but in the meanwhile Claudius must have
+custody of her, as is his right, only giving security that he will
+produce her on the morrow.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At this decree, so manifestly unrighteous was it, there was much
+murmuring, yet none dared to oppose it, till Numitorius, the
+girl&rsquo;s uncle, and Icilius came forth from the crowd. The
+lictor cried, &ldquo;Sentence has been given,&rdquo; and bade
+Icilius give place. Then Icilius turned to Appius, saying,
+&ldquo;Appius, thou must drive me hence with the sword before thou
+canst have thy will in this matter. This maiden is my espoused
+wife; and verily, though thou call hither all thy lictors and the
+lictors of thy colleagues, she shall not remain in any house save
+the house of her father.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>To this Appius, seeing that the multitude was greatly moved and
+were ready to break forth into open violence, made this reply:
+&ldquo;Icilius cares not for Virginia, but being a lover of
+sedition and tumult, seeks an occasion for strife. Such occasion I
+will not give him to-day. But that he may know that I yield not to
+his insolence, but have regard to the rights of a father, I
+pronounce no sentence. I ask of Marcus Claudius that he will
+concede something of his right, and suffer surety to be given for
+the girl against the morrow. But if on the morrow the father be not
+present here, then I tell Icilius and his fellows that he who is
+the author of this law will not fail to execute it. Neither will I
+call in the lictors of my colleague to put down them that raise a
+tumult. For this my own lictors shall suffice.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So much time being thus gained, it seemed good to the friends of
+the maiden that the son of Numitorius and the brother of Icilius,
+young men both of them and active, should hasten with all speed to
+the camp, and bring Virginius thence as quickly as might be. So the
+two set out, and putting their horses to their full speed, carried
+tidings of the matter to the father. As for Appius, he sat awhile
+on the judgment-seat, waiting for other business to be brought
+before him, for he would not have it seem that he had come for this
+cause only; but finding that there was none, and indeed the people
+were wholly intent on the matter of Virginia, he departed to his
+own house. Thence he sent an epistle to his colleagues that were at
+the camp, saying, &ldquo;Grant no leave of absence to Virginius,
+but keep him in safe custody with you.&rdquo; But this availed
+nothing, for already, before ever the epistle was brought to the
+camp, at the very first watch of the night, Virginius had set
+forth.</p>
+<p>When Virginius was come to the city, it being then early dawn,
+he put on mean apparel, as was the custom with such as were in
+danger of life or liberty, and carried about his daughter, who was
+clad in like manner, praying all that he met to help and succor
+him. &ldquo;Remember,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;that day by day I
+stand fighting for you and for your children against your enemies.
+But what shall this profit you or me if this city being safe,
+nevertheless our children stand in peril of slavery and
+shame?&rdquo; Icilius spake in like manner, and the women (for a
+company of matrons followed Virginia) wept silently, stirring
+greatly the hearts of all that looked upon them. But Appius, so set
+was his heart on evil, heeded none of these things; but so soon as
+he had sat him down on the seat of judgment, and he that claimed
+the girl had said a few words complaining that right had not been
+done to him, he gave his sentence, suffering not Virginius to
+speak. What pretense of reason he gave can scarce be imagined, but
+the sentence (for this only is certain) was that the girl should be
+in the custody of Claudius till the matter should be decided by
+law. But when Claudius came to take the maiden, her friends and all
+the women that bare her company thrust him back. Then said Appius,
+&ldquo;I have sure proof, and this not from the violence only of
+Icilius, but from what is told to me of gatherings by night in the
+city, that there is a purpose in certain men to stir up sedition.
+Knowing this I have come hither with armed men; not to trouble
+quiet citizens, but to punish such as would break the peace of the
+state. Such as be wise, therefore, will keep themselves quiet.
+Lictor, remove this crowd, and make room for the master that he may
+take his slave.&rdquo; These words he thundered forth in great
+anger; and the people, when they heard them, fell back in fear, so
+that the maiden stood without defense. Then Virginius, seeing that
+there were none to help him, said to Appius, &ldquo;I pray thee,
+Appius, if I have said aught that was harsh to thee, that thou wilt
+pardon it, knowing how a father must needs suffer in such a case.
+But now suffer me to inquire somewhat of this woman that is the
+girl&rsquo;s nurse, that I may know what is the truth of the
+matter. For if I have been deceived in the matter, and am not in
+truth father to the girl, I shall be more content.&rdquo; Then,
+Appius giving permission, he led his daughter and her nurse a
+little space aside, to the shops that are by the temple of
+Cloacina, and snatching a knife from a butcher&rsquo;s, said,
+&ldquo;My daughter, there is but this one way that I can make thee
+free,&rdquo; and he drave the knife into her breast. Then he looked
+back to the judgment-seat and cried, &ldquo;With this blood,
+Appius, I devote thee and thy life to perdition.&rdquo; There went
+up a great cry from all that stood there when they saw so dreadful
+a deed, and Appius commanded that they should seize him. But no man
+laid hands on him, for he made a way for himself with the knife
+that he carried in his hand, and they that followed defended him,
+till he came to the gate of the city. Then Icilius and Numitorius
+took up the dead body of the maiden and showed it to the people,
+saying much of the wickedness of him who had driven a father to do
+such a deed, and much also of the liberty which had been taken from
+them, and which, if they would only use this occasion, they might
+now recover. As for Appius, he cried out to his lictors that they
+should lay hands on Icilius, and when the crowd suffered not the
+lictors to approach, would himself have made a way to him, by the
+help of the young nobles that stood by him. But now the crowd had
+leaders, themselves also nobles, Valerius and Horatius. These said,
+&ldquo;If Appius would deal with Icilius according to law we will
+be securities for him; if he mean to use violence, we are ready to
+meet him.&rdquo; And when the lictor would have laid hands on these
+two the multitude brake his rods to pieces. Then Appius would have
+spoken to the people, but they clamored against him, so that at
+last, losing all courage and fearing for his life, he covered his
+head and fled secretly to his own house.</p>
+<p>Meanwhile Virginius had made his way to the camp, which was now
+on Mount Vecilius, and stirred up the army yet more than he had
+stirred the city. &ldquo;Lay not to my charge,&rdquo; he said,
+&ldquo;that which is in truth the wickedness of Appius; neither
+turn from me as from the murderer of my daughter. Her indeed I
+slew, thinking that death was better than slavery and shame; nor
+indeed had I survived her but that I hoped to avenge her death by
+the help of my comrades.&rdquo; Others also that had come from the
+city persuaded the soldiers; some saying that the power of the Ten
+was overthrown, and others that Appius had gone of his own accord
+into banishment. These words so prevailed with the soldiers that,
+without any bidding from their generals, they took up their arms,
+and, with their standards carried before them, came to Rome and
+pitched their camp on the Aventine.</p>
+<p>Nevertheless, the Ten were still obstinate, affirming that they
+would not resign their authority till they had finished the work
+for which they had been appointed, namely, the drawing up of the
+twelve tables of the laws. And when the army perceived this they
+marched from the Aventine and took up their abode on the Sacred
+Hill, all the commons following them, so that there was not left in
+the city a single man that had ability to move; nor did the women
+and children stay behind, but all, as many as could move, bare them
+company; for Duilius, that had been tribune, said, &ldquo;Unless
+the Senate see the city deserted, they will take no heed of your
+complaints.&rdquo; And indeed, when these perceived what had taken
+place, they were more urgent than before that the Ten should resign
+their office. And these at last consented. &ldquo;Only,&rdquo; said
+they, &ldquo;do not suffer us to perish from the rage of the
+commons. It will be an ill day for the nobles when the people shall
+learn to take vengeance on them.&rdquo; And the Senate so wrought
+that though at the first the commons in their great fury demanded
+that the Ten should be burned alive, yet they were persuaded to
+yield, it being agreed that each man should be judged by the law
+according to his deserts. Appius, therefore, was accused by
+Virginius, and being cast into prison, slew himself before the day
+appointed for the trial. Oppius also, another of the Ten, whom the
+commons hated for his misdeeds next after Appius, was accused and
+died in like manner. As for Claudius, that had claimed Virginia for
+his slave, he was condemned to be banished. And thus at the last,
+the guilty having been punished, the spirit of Virginia had
+rest.</p>
+<h3><a id="Curtius" name="Curtius">The Sacrifice of Marcus
+Curtius</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>Adapted by Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>In the three hundred and ninety-third year after the building of
+the city there was seen suddenly to open in the market-place a
+great gulf of a deepness that no man could measure. And this gulf
+could not be filled up, though all the people brought earth and
+stones and the like to cast into it. But at the last there was sent
+a message from the Gods that the Romans must inquire what was that
+by which more than all things the state was made strong.
+&ldquo;For,&rdquo; said the soothsayer, &ldquo;this thing must be
+dedicated to the Gods in this place if the commonwealth of Rome is
+to stand fast forever.&rdquo; And while they doubted, one Marcus
+Curtius, a youth that had won great renown in war, rebuked them,
+saying, &ldquo;Can ye doubt that Rome hath nothing better than arms
+and valor?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then all the people stood silent; and Curtius, first beholding
+the temples of the immortal Gods that hung over the market-place
+and the Capitol, and afterward stretching forth his hands both to
+heaven above and to this gulf that opened its mouth to the very
+pit, as it were, of hell, devoted himself for his country; and
+so&mdash;being clothed in armor and with arms in his hand, and
+having his horse arrayed as sumptuously as might be&mdash;he leapt
+into the gulf; and the multitude, both of men and women, threw in
+gifts and offerings of the fruits of the earth, and afterward the
+earth closed together.</p>
+<h2><a id="Ovid" name="Ovid">STORIES FROM OVID</a></h2>
+<h3><a id="Pitcher" name="Pitcher">The Miraculous Pitcher</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Nathaniel Hawthorne</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>One evening, in times long ago, old Philemon and his old wife
+Baucis sat at their cottage door, enjoying the calm and beautiful
+sunset. They had already eaten their frugal supper, and intended
+now to spend a quiet hour or two before bedtime. So they talked
+together about their garden, and their cow, and their bees, and
+their grapevine, which clambered over the cottage wall, and on
+which the grapes were beginning to turn purple. But the rude shouts
+of children, and the fierce barking of dogs, in the village near at
+hand, grew louder and louder, until, at last, it was hardly
+possible for Baucis and Philemon to hear each other speak.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah, wife,&rdquo; cried Philemon, &ldquo;I fear some poor
+traveler is seeking hospitality among our neighbors yonder, and,
+instead of giving him food and lodging, they have set their dogs at
+him, as their custom is!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Well-a-day!&rdquo; answered old Baucis, &ldquo;I do wish
+our neighbors felt a little more kindness for their
+fellow-creatures. And only think of bringing up their children in
+this naughty way, and patting them on the head when they fling
+stones at strangers!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Those children will never come to any good,&rdquo; said
+Philemon, shaking his white head. &ldquo;To tell you the truth,
+wife, I should not wonder if some terrible thing were to happen to
+all the people in the village, unless they mend their manners. But,
+as for you and me, so long as Providence affords us a crust of
+bread, let us be ready to give half to any poor, homeless stranger
+that may come along and need it.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s right, husband!&rdquo; said Baucis.
+&ldquo;So we will!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>These old folks, you must know, were quite poor, and had to work
+pretty hard for a living. Old Philemon toiled diligently in his
+garden, while Baucis was always busy with her distaff, or making a
+little butter and cheese with their cow&rsquo;s milk, or doing one
+thing and another about the cottage. Their food was seldom anything
+but bread, milk, and vegetables, with sometimes a portion of honey
+from their beehive, and now and then a bunch of grapes, that had
+ripened against the cottage wall. But they were two of the kindest
+old people in the world, and would cheerfully have gone without
+their dinners, any day, rather than refuse a slice of their brown
+loaf, a cup of new milk, and a spoonful of honey, to the weary
+traveler who might pause before their door. They felt as if such
+guests had a sort of holiness, and that they ought, therefore, to
+treat them better and more bountifully than their own selves.</p>
+<p>Their cottage stood on a rising ground, at some short distance
+from a village, which lay in a hollow valley, that was about half a
+mile in breadth. This valley, in past ages, when the world was new,
+had probably been the bed of a lake. There fishes had glided to and
+fro in the depths, and water-weeds had grown along the margin, and
+trees and hills had seen their reflected images in the broad and
+peaceful mirror. But, as the waters subsided, men had cultivated
+the soil, and built houses on it, so that it was now a fertile
+spot, and bore no traces of the ancient lake, except a very small
+brook, which meandered through the midst of the village, and
+supplied the inhabitants with water. The valley had been dry land
+so long that oaks had sprung up, and grown great and high, and
+perished with old age, and been succeeded by others, as tall and
+stately as the first. Never was there a prettier or more fruitful
+valley. The very sight of the plenty around them should have made
+the inhabitants kind and gentle, and ready to show their gratitude
+to Providence by doing good to their fellow-creatures.</p>
+<p>But, we are sorry to say, the people of this lovely village were
+not worthy to dwell in a spot on which Heaven had smiled so
+beneficently. They were a very selfish and hard-hearted people, and
+had no pity for the poor, nor sympathy with the homeless. They
+would only have laughed, had anybody told them that human beings
+owe a debt of love to one another, because there is no other method
+of paying the debt of love and care which all of us owe to
+Providence. You will hardly believe what I am going to tell you.
+These naughty people taught their children to be no better than
+themselves, and used to clap their hands, by way of encouragement,
+when they saw the little boys and girls run after some poor
+stranger, shouting at his heels, and pelting him with stones. They
+kept large and fierce dogs, and whenever a traveler ventured to
+show himself in the village street, this pack of disagreeable curs
+scampered to meet him, barking, snarling, and showing their teeth.
+Then they would seize him by his leg, or by his clothes, just as it
+happened; and if he were ragged when he came, he was generally a
+pitiable object before he had time to run away. This was a very
+terrible thing to poor travelers, as you may suppose, especially
+when they chanced to be sick, or feeble, or lame, or old. Such
+persons (if they once knew how badly these unkind people, and their
+unkind children and curs, were in the habit of behaving) would go
+miles and miles out of their way, rather than try to pass through
+the village again.</p>
+<p>What made the matter seem worse, if possible, was that when rich
+persons came in their chariots, or riding on beautiful horses, with
+their servants in rich liveries attending on them, nobody could be
+more civil and obsequious than the inhabitants of the village. They
+would take off their hats, and make the humblest bows you ever saw.
+If the children were rude, they were pretty certain to get their
+ears boxed; and as for the dogs, if a single cur in the pack
+presumed to yelp, his master instantly beat him with a club, and
+tied him up without any supper. This would have been all very well,
+only it proved that the villagers cared much about the money that a
+stranger had in his pocket, and nothing whatever for the human
+soul, which lives equally in the beggar and the prince.</p>
+<p>So now you can understand why old Philemon spoke so sorrowfully,
+when he heard the shouts of the children and the barking of the
+dogs, at the farther extremity of the village street. There was a
+confused din, which lasted a good while, and seemed to pass quite
+through the breadth of the valley.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I never heard the dogs so loud!&rdquo; observed the good
+old man.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nor the children so rude!&rdquo; answered his good old
+wife.</p>
+<p>They sat shaking their heads, one to the other, while the noise
+came nearer and nearer; until, at the foot of the little eminence
+on which their cottage stood, they saw two travelers approaching on
+foot. Close behind them came the fierce dogs, snarling at their
+very heels. A little farther off ran a crowd of children, who sent
+up shrill cries, and flung stones at the two strangers, with all
+their might. Once or twice, the younger of the two men (he was a
+slender and very active figure) turned about and drove back the
+dogs with a staff which he carried in his hand. His companion, who
+was a very tall person, walked calmly along as if disdaining to
+notice either the naughty children or the pack of curs, whose
+manners the children seemed to imitate.</p>
+<p>Both of the travelers were very humbly clad, and looked as if
+they might not have money enough in their pockets to pay for a
+night&rsquo;s lodging. And this, I am afraid, was the reason why
+the villagers had allowed their children and dogs to treat them so
+rudely.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Come, wife,&rdquo; said Philemon to Baucis, &ldquo;let us
+go and meet these poor people. No doubt, they feel almost too
+heavy-hearted to climb the hill.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Go you and meet them,&rdquo; answered Baucis,
+&ldquo;while I make haste within doors, and see whether we can get
+them anything for supper. A comfortable bowl of bread and milk
+would do wonders towards raising their spirits.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Accordingly, she hastened into the cottage. Philemon, on his
+part, went forward, and extended his hand with so hospitable an
+aspect that there was no need of saying what nevertheless he did
+say, in the heartiest tone imaginable,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Welcome, strangers! welcome!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Thank you!&rdquo; replied the younger of the two, in a
+lively kind of way, notwithstanding his weariness and trouble.
+&ldquo;This is quite another greeting than we have met with yonder
+in the village. Pray, why do you live in such a bad
+neighborhood?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; observed old Philemon, with a quiet and benign
+smile, &ldquo;Providence put me here, I hope, among other reasons,
+in order that I may make you what amends I can for the
+inhospitality of my neighbors.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Well said, old father!&rdquo; cried the traveler,
+laughing; &ldquo;and, if the truth must be told, my companion and
+myself need some amends. Those children (the little rascals!) have
+bespattered us finely with their mud-balls; and one of the curs has
+torn my cloak, which was ragged enough already. But I took him
+across the muzzle with my staff; and I think you may have heard him
+yelp, even thus far off.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Philemon was glad to see him in such good spirits; nor, indeed,
+would you have fancied, by the traveler&rsquo;s look and manner,
+that he was weary with a long day&rsquo;s journey, besides being
+disheartened by rough treatment at the end of it. He was dressed in
+rather an odd way, with a sort of cap on his head, the brim of
+which stuck out over both ears. Though it was a summer evening, he
+wore a cloak, which he kept wrapt closely about him, perhaps
+because his under garments were shabby. Philemon perceived, too,
+that he had on a singular pair of shoes; but, as it was now growing
+dusk, and as the old man&rsquo;s eyesight was none the sharpest, he
+could not precisely tell in what the strangeness consisted. One
+thing, certainly, seemed queer. The traveler was so wonderfully
+light and active, that it appeared as if his feet sometimes rose
+from the ground of their own accord, or could only be kept down by
+an effort.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I used to be light-footed, in my youth,&rdquo; said
+Philemon to the traveler. &ldquo;But I always found my feet grow
+heavier towards nightfall.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;There is nothing like a good staff to help one
+along,&rdquo; answered the stranger; &ldquo;and I happen to have an
+excellent one, as you see.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>This staff, in fact, was the oddest-looking staff that Philemon
+had ever beheld. It was made of olive-wood, and had something like
+a little pair of wings near the top. Two snakes, carved in the
+wood, were represented as twining themselves about the staff, and
+were so very skillfully executed that old Philemon (whose eyes, you
+know, were getting rather dim) almost thought them alive, and that
+he could see them wriggling and twisting.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;A curious piece of work, sure enough!&rdquo; said he.
+&ldquo;A staff with wings! It would be an excellent kind of stick
+for a little boy to ride astride of!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>By this time Philemon and his two guests had reached the cottage
+door.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Friends,&rdquo; said the old man, &ldquo;sit down and
+rest yourselves here on this bench. My good wife Baucis has gone to
+see what you can have for supper. We are poor folks; but you shall
+be welcome to whatever we have in the cupboard.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The younger stranger threw himself carelessly on the bench,
+letting his staff fall, as he did so. And here happened something
+rather marvelous, though trifling enough, too. The staff seemed to
+get up from the ground of its own accord, and, spreading its little
+pair of wings, it half hopped, half flew, and leaned itself against
+the wall of the cottage. There it stood quite still, except that
+the snakes continued to wriggle. But, in my private opinion, old
+Philemon&rsquo;s eyesight had been playing him tricks again.</p>
+<p>Before he could ask any questions, the elder stranger drew his
+attention from the wonderful staff, by speaking to him.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Was there not,&rdquo; asked the stranger, in a remarkably
+deep tone of voice, &ldquo;a lake, in very ancient times, covering
+the spot where now stands yonder village?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Not in my day, friend,&rdquo; answered Philemon;
+&ldquo;and yet I am an old man, as you see. There were always the
+fields and meadows, just as they are now, and the old trees, and
+the little stream murmuring through the midst of the valley. My
+father, nor his father before him, ever saw it otherwise, so far as
+I know; and doubtless it will still be the same, when old Philemon
+shall be gone and forgotten!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That is more than can be safely foretold,&rdquo; observed
+the stranger; and there was something very stern in his deep voice.
+He shook his head, too, so that his dark and heavy curls were
+shaken with the movement. &ldquo;Since the inhabitants of yonder
+village have forgotten the affections and sympathies of their
+nature, it were better that the lake should be rippling over their
+dwellings again!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The traveler looked so stern that Philemon was really almost
+frightened; the more so, that, at his frown, the twilight seemed
+suddenly to grow darker, and that, when he shook his head, there
+was a roll as of thunder in the air.</p>
+<p>But, in a moment afterwards, the stranger&rsquo;s face became so
+kindly and mild that the old man quite forgot his terror.
+Nevertheless, he could not help feeling that this elder traveler
+must be no ordinary personage, although he happened now to be
+attired so humbly and to be journeying on foot. Not that Philemon
+fancied him a prince in disguise, or any character of that sort;
+but rather some exceedingly wise man, who went about the world in
+this poor garb, despising wealth and all worldly objects, and
+seeking everywhere to add a mite to his wisdom. This idea appeared
+the more probable, because, when Philemon raised his eyes to the
+stranger&rsquo;s face, he seemed to see more thought there, in one
+look, than he could have studied out in a lifetime.</p>
+<p>While Baucis was getting the supper, the travelers both began to
+talk very sociably with Philemon. The younger, indeed, was
+extremely loquacious, and made such shrewd and witty remarks that
+the good old man continually burst out a-laughing, and pronounced
+him the merriest fellow whom he had seen for many a day.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Pray, my young friend,&rdquo; said he, as they grew
+familiar together, &ldquo;what may I call your name?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Why, I am very nimble, as you see,&rdquo; answered the
+traveler. &ldquo;So, if you call me Quicksilver, the name will fit
+tolerably well.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Quicksilver? Quicksilver?&rdquo; repeated Philemon,
+looking in the traveler&rsquo;s face, to see if he were making fun
+of him. &ldquo;It is a very odd name! And your companion there? Has
+he as strange a one?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You must ask the thunder to tell it you!&rdquo; replied
+Quicksilver, putting on a mysterious look. &ldquo;No other voice is
+loud enough.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>This remark, whether it were serious or in jest, might have
+caused Philemon to conceive a very great awe of the elder stranger,
+if, on venturing to gaze at him, he had not beheld so much
+beneficence in his visage. But undoubtedly here was the grandest
+figure that ever sat so humbly beside a cottage door. When the
+stranger conversed, it was with gravity, and in such a way that
+Philemon felt irresistibly moved to tell him everything which he
+had most at heart. This is always the feeling that people have when
+they meet with any one wise enough to comprehend all their good and
+evil, and to despise not a tittle of it.</p>
+<p>But Philemon, simple and kind-hearted old man that he was, had
+not many secrets to disclose. He talked, however, quite
+garrulously, about the events of his past life, in the whole course
+of which he had never been a score of miles from this very spot.
+His wife Baucis and himself had dwelt in the cottage from their
+youth upward, earning their bread by honest labor, always poor, but
+still contented. He told what excellent butter and cheese Baucis
+made, and how nice were the vegetables which he raised in his
+garden. He said, too, that, because they loved one another so very
+much, it was the wish of both that death might not separate them,
+but that they should die, as they had lived, together.</p>
+<p>As the stranger listened, a smile beamed over his countenance,
+and made its expression as sweet as it was grand.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You are a good old man,&rdquo; said he to Philemon,
+&ldquo;and you have a good old wife to be your helpmeet. It is fit
+that your wish be granted.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And it seemed to Philemon, just then, as if the sunset clouds
+threw up a bright flash from the west, and kindled a sudden light
+in the sky.</p>
+<p>Baucis had now got supper ready, and, coming to the door, began
+to make apologies for the poor fare which she was forced to set
+before her guests.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Had we known you were coming,&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;my
+good man and myself would have gone without a morsel, rather than
+you should lack a better supper. But I took the most part of
+to-day&rsquo;s milk to make cheese; and our last loaf is already
+half eaten. Ah me! I never feel the sorrow of being poor, save when
+a poor traveler knocks at our door.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;All will be very well; do not trouble yourself, my good
+dame,&rdquo; replied the elder stranger kindly. &ldquo;An honest,
+hearty welcome to a guest works miracles with the fare, and is
+capable of turning the coarsest food to nectar and
+ambrosia.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;A welcome you shall have,&rdquo; cried Baucis, &ldquo;and
+likewise a little honey that we happen to have left, and a bunch of
+purple grapes besides.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Why, Mother Baucis, it is a feast!&rdquo; exclaimed
+Quicksilver, laughing; &ldquo;an absolute feast! and you shall see
+how bravely I will play my part at it! I think I never felt
+hungrier in my life.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Mercy on us!&rdquo; whispered Baucis to her husband.
+&ldquo;If the young man has such a terrible appetite, I am afraid
+there will not be half enough supper!&rdquo;</p>
+<div class="figure"><a href="images/big_100.jpg"><img src=
+"images/small_100.jpg" alt=
+"A man pours milk into an overflowing bowl." id="img02" name=
+"img02" width="360" height="568" /></a>
+<p>&ldquo;I AM AFRAID THERE WILL NOT BE HALF ENOUGH
+SUPPER&rdquo;</p>
+</div>
+<p>They all went into the cottage.</p>
+<p>And now, my little auditors, shall I tell you something that
+will make you open your eyes very wide? It is really one of the
+oddest circumstances in the whole story. Quicksilver&rsquo;s staff,
+you recollect, had set itself up against the wall of the cottage.
+Well, when its master entered the door, leaving this wonderful
+staff behind, what should it do but immediately spread its little
+wings, and go hopping and fluttering up the doorsteps! Tap, tap,
+went the staff, on the kitchen floor; nor did it rest until it had
+stood itself on end, with the greatest gravity and decorum, beside
+Quicksilver&rsquo;s chair. Old Philemon, however, as well as his
+wife, was so taken up in attending to their guests that no notice
+was given to what the staff had been about.</p>
+<p>As Baucis had said, there was but a scanty supper for two hungry
+travelers. In the middle of the table was the remnant of a brown
+loaf, with a piece of cheese on one side of it, and a dish of
+honeycomb on the other. There was a pretty good bunch of grapes for
+each of the guests. A moderately sized earthen pitcher, nearly full
+of milk, stood at a corner of the board; and when Baucis had filled
+two bowls, and set them before the strangers, only a little milk
+remained in the bottom of the pitcher. Alas! it is a very sad
+business, when a bountiful heart finds itself pinched and squeezed
+among narrow circumstances. Poor Baucis kept wishing that she might
+starve for a week to come, if it were possible, by so doing, to
+provide these hungry folks a more plentiful supper.</p>
+<p>And, since the supper was so exceedingly small, she could not
+help wishing that their appetites had not been quite so large. Why,
+at their very first sitting down, the travelers both drank off all
+the milk in their two bowls, at a draught.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;A little more milk, kind Mother Baucis, if you
+please,&rdquo; said Quicksilver. &ldquo;The day has been hot, and I
+am very much athirst.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Now, my dear people,&rdquo; answered Baucis, in great
+confusion, &ldquo;I am so sorry and ashamed! But the truth is,
+there is hardly a drop more milk in the pitcher. O husband,
+husband, why didn&rsquo;t we go without our supper?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Why, it appears to me,&rdquo; cried Quicksilver, starting
+up from table and taking the pitcher by the handle, &ldquo;it
+really appears to me that matters are not quite so bad as you
+represent them. Here is certainly more milk in the
+pitcher.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, and to the vast astonishment of Baucis, he proceeded
+to fill, not only his own bowl, but his companion&rsquo;s likewise,
+from the pitcher that was supposed to be almost empty. The good
+woman could scarcely believe her eyes. She had certainly poured out
+nearly all the milk, and had peeped in afterwards, and seen the
+bottom of the pitcher, as she set it down upon the table.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;But I am old,&rdquo; thought Baucis to herself,
+&ldquo;and apt to be forgetful. I suppose I must have made a
+mistake. At all events, the pitcher cannot help being empty now,
+after filling the bowls twice over.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What excellent milk!&rdquo; observed Quicksilver, after
+quaffing the contents of the second bowl. &ldquo;Excuse me, my kind
+hostess, but I must really ask you for a little more.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Now Baucis had seen, as plainly as she could see anything, that
+Quicksilver had turned the pitcher upside down, and consequently
+had poured out every drop of milk, in filling the last bowl. Of
+course, there could not possibly be any left. However, in order to
+let him know precisely how the case was, she lifted the pitcher,
+and made a gesture as if pouring milk into Quicksilver&rsquo;s
+bowl, but without the remotest idea that any milk would stream
+forth. What was her surprise, therefore, when such an abundant
+cascade fell bubbling into the bowl, that it was immediately filled
+to the brim, and overflowed upon the table! The two snakes that
+were twisted about Quicksilver&rsquo;s staff (but neither Baucis
+nor Philemon happened to observe this circumstance) stretched out
+their heads, and began to lap up the spilt milk.</p>
+<p>And then what a delicious fragrance the milk had! It seemed as
+if Philemon&rsquo;s only cow must have pastured, that day, on the
+richest herbage that could be found anywhere in the world. I only
+wish that each of you, my beloved little souls, could have a bowl
+of such nice milk, at supper-time!</p>
+<p>&ldquo;And now a slice of your brown loaf, Mother Baucis,&rdquo;
+said Quicksilver, &ldquo;and a little of that honey!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Baucis cut him a slice accordingly; and though the loaf, when
+she and her husband ate of it, had been rather too dry and crusty
+to be palatable, it was now as light and moist as if but a few
+hours out of the oven. Tasting a crumb, which had fallen on the
+table, she found it more delicious than bread ever was before, and
+could hardly believe that it was a loaf of her own kneading and
+baking. Yet, what other loaf could it possibly be?</p>
+<p>But oh, the honey! I may just as well let it alone, without
+trying to describe how exquisitely it smelt and looked. Its color
+was that of the purest and most transparent gold; and it had the
+odor of a thousand flowers; but of such flowers as never grew in an
+earthly garden, and to seek which the bees must have flown high
+above the clouds. The wonder is, that, after alighting on a
+flower-bed of so delicious fragrance and immortal bloom, they
+should have been content to fly down again to their hive in
+Philemon&rsquo;s garden. Never was such honey tasted, seen, or
+smelt. The perfume floated around the kitchen, and made it so
+delightful, that, had you closed your eyes, you would instantly
+have forgotten the low ceiling and smoky walls, and have fancied
+yourself in an arbor, with celestial honeysuckles creeping over
+it.</p>
+<p>Although good Mother Baucis was a simple old dame, she could not
+but think that there was something rather out of the common way in
+all that had been going on. So, after helping the guests to bread
+and honey, and laying a bunch of grapes by each of their plates,
+she sat down by Philemon, and told him what she had seen, in a
+whisper.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Did you ever hear the like?&rdquo; asked she.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;No, I never did,&rdquo; answered Philemon, with a smile.
+&ldquo;And I rather think, my dear old wife, you have been walking
+about in a sort of a dream. If I had poured out the milk, I should
+have seen through the business at once. There happened to be a
+little more in the pitcher than you thought,&mdash;that is
+all.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah, husband,&rdquo; said Baucis, &ldquo;say what you
+will, these are very uncommon people.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Well, well,&rdquo; replied Philemon, still smiling,
+&ldquo;perhaps they are. They certainly do look as if they had seen
+better days; and I am heartily glad to see them making so
+comfortable a supper.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Each of the guests had now taken his bunch of grapes upon his
+plate. Baucis (who rubbed her eyes, in order to see the more
+clearly) was of opinion that the clusters had grown larger and
+richer, and that each separate grape seemed to be on the point of
+bursting with ripe juice. It was entirely a mystery to her how such
+grapes could ever have been produced from the old stunted vine that
+climbed against the cottage wall.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Very admirable grapes these!&rdquo; observed Quicksilver,
+as he swallowed one after another, without apparently diminishing
+his cluster. &ldquo;Pray, my good host, whence did you gather
+them?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;From my own vine,&rdquo; answered Philemon. &ldquo;You
+may see one of its branches twisting across the window, yonder. But
+wife and I never thought the grapes very fine ones.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I never tasted better,&rdquo; said the guest.
+&ldquo;Another cup of this delicious milk, if you please, and I
+shall then have supped better than a prince.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>This time, old Philemon bestirred himself, and took up the
+pitcher; for he was curious to discover whether there was any
+reality in the marvels which Baucis had whispered to him. He knew
+that his good old wife was incapable of falsehood, and that she was
+seldom mistaken in what she supposed to be true; but this was so
+very singular a case, that he wanted to see into it with his own
+eyes. On taking up the pitcher, therefore, he slyly peeped into it,
+and was fully satisfied that it contained not so much as a single
+drop. All at once, however, he beheld a little white fountain,
+which gushed up from the bottom of the pitcher, and speedily filled
+it to the brim with foaming and deliciously fragrant milk. It was
+lucky that Philemon, in his surprise, did not drop the miraculous
+pitcher from his hand.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Who are ye, wonder-working strangers!&rdquo; cried he,
+even more bewildered than his wife had been.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Your guests, my good Philemon, and your friends,&rdquo;
+replied the elder traveler, in his mild, deep voice, that had
+something at once sweet and awe-inspiring in it. &ldquo;Give me
+likewise a cup of the milk; and may your pitcher never be empty for
+kind Baucis and yourself, any more than for the needy
+wayfarer!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The supper being now over, the strangers requested to be shown
+to their place of repose. The old people would gladly have talked
+with them a little longer, and have expressed the wonder which they
+felt, and their delight at finding the poor and meagre supper prove
+so much better and more abundant than they hoped. But the elder
+traveler had inspired them with such reverence that they dared not
+ask him any questions. And when Philemon drew Quicksilver aside,
+and inquired how under the sun a fountain of milk could have got
+into an old earthen pitcher, this latter personage pointed to his
+staff.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;There is the whole mystery of the affair,&rdquo; quoth
+Quicksilver; &ldquo;and if you can make it out, I&rsquo;ll thank
+you to let me know. I can&rsquo;t tell what to make of my staff. It
+is always playing such odd tricks as this; sometimes getting me a
+supper, and, quite as often, stealing it away. If I had any faith
+in such nonsense, I should say the stick was bewitched!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He said no more, but looked so slyly in their faces, that they
+rather fancied he was laughing at them. The magic staff went
+hopping at his heels, as Quicksilver quitted the room. When left
+alone, the good old couple spent some little time in conversation
+about the events of the evening, and then lay down on the floor,
+and fell fast asleep. They had given up their sleeping-room to the
+guests, and had no other bed for themselves, save these planks,
+which I wish had been as soft as their own hearts.</p>
+<p>The old man and his wife were stirring, betimes, in the morning,
+and the strangers likewise arose with the sun, and made their
+preparations to depart. Philemon hospitably entreated them to
+remain a little longer, until Baucis could milk the cow, and bake a
+cake upon the hearth, and, perhaps, find them a few fresh eggs, for
+breakfast. The guests, however, seemed to think it better to
+accomplish a good part of their journey before the heat of the day
+should come on. They, therefore, persisted in setting out
+immediately, but asked Philemon and Baucis to walk forth with them
+a short distance, and show them the road which they were to
+take.</p>
+<p>So they all four issued from the cottage, chatting together like
+old friends. It was very remarkable, indeed, how familiar the old
+couple insensibly grew with the elder traveler, and how their good
+and simple spirits melted into his, even as two drops of water
+would melt into the illimitable ocean. And as for Quicksilver, with
+his keen, quick, laughing wits, he appeared to discover every
+little thought that but peeped into their minds, before they
+suspected it themselves. They sometimes wished, it is true, that he
+had not been quite so quick-witted, and also that he would fling
+away his staff, which looked so mysteriously mischievous, with the
+snakes always writhing about it. But then, again, Quicksilver
+showed himself so very good-humored, that they would have been
+rejoiced to keep him in their cottage, staff, snakes, and all,
+every day, and the whole day long.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah me! Well-a-day!&rdquo; exclaimed Philemon, when they
+had walked a little way from their door. &ldquo;If our neighbors
+only knew what a blessed thing it is to show hospitality to
+strangers, they would tie up all their dogs, and never allow their
+children to fling another stone.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It is a sin and shame for them to behave so,&mdash;that
+it is!&rdquo; cried good old Baucis vehemently. &ldquo;And I mean
+to go this very day, and tell some of them what naughty people they
+are!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I fear,&rdquo; remarked Quicksilver; slyly smiling,
+&ldquo;that you will find none of them at home.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The elder traveler&rsquo;s brow, just then, assumed such a
+grave, stern, and awful grandeur, yet serene withal, that neither
+Baucis nor Philemon dared to speak a word. They gazed reverently
+into his face, as if they had been gazing at the sky.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;When men do not feel towards the humblest stranger as if
+he were a brother,&rdquo; said the traveler, in tones so deep that
+they sounded like those of an organ, &ldquo;they are unworthy to
+exist on earth, which was created as the abode of a great human
+brotherhood!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;And, by the by, my dear old people,&rdquo; cried
+Quicksilver, with the liveliest look of fun and mischief in his
+eyes, &ldquo;where is this same village that you talk about? On
+which side of us does it lie? Methinks I do not see it
+hereabouts.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Philemon and his wife turned towards the valley, where, at
+sunset, only the day before, they had seen the meadows, the houses,
+the gardens, the clumps of trees, the wide, green-margined street,
+with children playing in it, and all the tokens of business,
+enjoyment, and prosperity. But what was their astonishment! There
+was no longer any appearance of a village! Even the fertile vale,
+in the hollow of which it lay, had ceased to have existence. In its
+stead, they beheld the broad, blue surface of a lake, which filled
+the great basin of the valley from brim to brim, and reflected the
+surrounding hills in its bosom with as tranquil an image as if it
+had been there ever since the creation of the world. For an
+instant, the lake remained perfectly smooth. Then a little breeze
+sprang up, and caused the water to dance, glitter, and sparkle in
+the early sunbeams, and to dash, with a pleasant rippling murmur,
+against the hither shore.</p>
+<p>The lake seemed so strangely familiar, that the old couple were
+greatly perplexed, and felt as if they could only have been
+dreaming about a village having lain there. But, the next moment,
+they remembered the vanished dwellings, and the faces and
+characters of the inhabitants, far too distinctly for a dream. The
+village had been there yesterday, and now was gone!</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Alas!&rdquo; cried these kind-hearted old people,
+&ldquo;what has become of our poor neighbors?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;They no longer exist as men and women,&rdquo; said the
+elder traveler, in his grand and deep voice, while a roll of
+thunder seemed to echo it at a distance. &ldquo;There was neither
+use nor beauty in such a life as theirs; for they never softened or
+sweetened the hard lot of mortality by the exercise of kindly
+affections between man and man. They retained no image of the
+better life in their bosoms; therefore, the lake, that was of old,
+has spread itself forth again, to reflect the sky!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;And as for those foolish people,&rdquo; said Quicksilver,
+with his mischievous smile, &ldquo;they are all transformed to
+fishes. There needed but little change, for they were already a
+scaly set of rascals, and the coldest-blooded beings in existence.
+So, kind Mother Baucis, whenever you or your husband have an
+appetite for a dish of broiled trout, he can throw in a line, and
+pull out half a dozen of your old neighbors!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah,&rdquo; cried Baucis shuddering, &ldquo;I would not,
+for the world, put one of them on the gridiron!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;No,&rdquo; added Philemon, making a wry face, &ldquo;we
+could never relish them!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;As for you, good Philemon,&rdquo; continued the elder
+traveler,&mdash;&ldquo;and you, kind Baucis,&mdash;you, with your
+scanty means, have mingled so much heartfelt hospitality with your
+entertainment of the homeless stranger, that the milk became an
+inexhaustible fount of nectar, and the brown loaf and the honey
+were ambrosia. Thus, the divinities have feasted, at your board,
+off the same viands that supply their banquets on Olympus. You have
+done well, my dear old friends. Wherefore, request whatever favor
+you have most at heart, and it is granted.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Philemon and Baucis looked at one another, and then&mdash;I know
+not which of the two it was who spoke, but that one uttered the
+desire of both their hearts.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Let us live together, while we live, and leave the world
+at the same instant, when we die! For we have always loved one
+another!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Be it so!&rdquo; replied the stranger, with majestic
+kindness. &ldquo;Now, look towards your cottage!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>They did so. But what was their surprise on beholding a tall
+edifice of white marble, with a wide-open portal, occupying the
+spot where their humble residence had so lately stood!</p>
+<p>&ldquo;There is your home,&rdquo; said the stranger,
+beneficently smiling on them both. &ldquo;Exercise your hospitality
+in yonder palace as freely as in the poor hovel to which you
+welcomed us last evening.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The old folks fell on their knees to thank him; but, behold!
+neither he nor Quicksilver was there.</p>
+<p>So Philemon and Baucis took up their residence in the marble
+palace, and spent their time, with vast satisfaction to themselves,
+in making everybody jolly and comfortable who happened to pass that
+way. The milk-pitcher, I must not forget to say, retained its
+marvelous quality of being never empty, when it was desirable to
+have it full. Whenever an honest, good-humored, and free-hearted
+guest took a draught from this pitcher, he invariably found it the
+sweetest and most invigorating fluid that ever ran down his throat.
+But, if a cross and disagreeable curmudgeon happened to sip, he was
+pretty certain to twist his visage into a hard knot, and pronounce
+it a pitcher of sour milk!</p>
+<p>Thus the old couple lived in their palace a great, great while,
+and grew older and older, and very old indeed. At length, however,
+there came a summer morning when Philemon and Baucis failed to make
+their appearance, as on other mornings, with one hospitable smile
+overspreading both their pleasant faces, to invite the guests of
+over-night to breakfast. The guests searched everywhere, from top
+to bottom of the spacious palace, and all to no purpose. But, after
+a great deal of perplexity, they espied, in front of the portal,
+two venerable trees, which nobody could remember to have seen there
+the day before. Yet there they stood, with their roots fastened
+deep into the soil, and a huge breadth of foliage overshadowing the
+whole front of the edifice. One was an oak, and the other a
+linden-tree. Their boughs&mdash;it was strange and beautiful to
+see&mdash;were intertwined together, and embraced one another, so
+that each tree seemed to live in the other tree&rsquo;s bosom much
+more than in its own.</p>
+<p>While the guests were marveling how these trees, that must have
+required at least a century to grow, could have come to be so tall
+and venerable in a single night, a breeze sprang up, and set their
+intermingled boughs astir. And then there was a deep, broad murmur
+in the air, as if the two mysterious trees were speaking.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I am old Philemon!&rdquo; murmured the oak.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I am old Baucis!&rdquo; murmured the linden-tree.</p>
+<p>But, as the breeze grew stronger, the trees both spoke at
+once,&mdash;&ldquo;Philemon! Baucis! Baucis!
+Philemon!&rdquo;&mdash;as if one were both and both were one, and
+talking together in the depths of their mutual heart. It was plain
+enough to perceive that the good old couple had renewed their age,
+and were now to spend a quiet and delightful hundred years or so,
+Philemon as an oak, and Baucis as a linden-tree. And oh, what a
+hospitable shade did they fling around them! Whenever a wayfarer
+paused beneath it, he heard a pleasant whisper of the leaves above
+his head, and wondered how the sound should so much resemble words
+like these:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Welcome, welcome, dear traveler, welcome!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And some kind soul, that knew what would have pleased old Baucis
+and old Philemon best, built a circular seat around both their
+trunks, where, for a great while afterwards, the weary, and the
+hungry, and the thirsty used to repose themselves, and quaff milk
+abundantly from the miraculous pitcher.</p>
+<p>And I wish, for all our sakes, that we had the pitcher here
+now!</p>
+<h3><a id="Touch" name="Touch">The Golden Touch</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Nathaniel Hawthorne</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Once upon a time, there lived a very rich man, and a king
+besides, whose name was Midas; and he had a little daughter, whom
+nobody but myself ever heard of, and whose name I either never knew
+or have entirely forgotten. So, because I love odd names for little
+girls, I choose to call her Marygold.</p>
+<p>This King Midas was fonder of gold than of anything else in the
+world. He valued his royal crown chiefly because it was composed of
+that precious metal. If he loved anything better, or half so well,
+it was the one little maiden who played so merrily around her
+father&rsquo;s footstool. But the more Midas loved his daughter,
+the more did he desire and seek for wealth. He thought, foolish
+man! that the best thing he could possibly do for this dear child
+would be to bequeath her the immensest pile of yellow, glistening
+coin, that had ever been heaped together since the world was made.
+Thus, he gave all his thoughts and all his time to this one
+purpose. If ever he happened to gaze for an instant at the
+gold-tinted clouds of sunset, he wished that they were real gold,
+and that they could be squeezed safely into his strong box. When
+little Marygold ran to meet him with a bunch of buttercups and
+dandelions, he used to say, &ldquo;Poh, poh, child! If these
+flowers were as golden as they look, they would be worth the
+plucking!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And yet, in his earlier days, before he was so entirely
+possessed of this insane desire for riches, King Midas had shown a
+great taste for flowers. He had planted a garden, in which grew the
+biggest and beautifulest and sweetest roses that any mortal ever
+saw or smelt. These roses were still growing in the garden, as
+large, as lovely, and as fragrant as when Midas used to pass whole
+hours in gazing at them and inhaling their perfume. But now, if he
+looked at them at all, it was only to calculate how much the garden
+would be worth if each of the innumerable rose-petals were a thin
+plate of gold. And though he once was fond of music (in spite of an
+idle story about his ears, which were said to resemble those of an
+ass), the only music for poor Midas, now, was the chink of one coin
+against another.</p>
+<p>At length (as people always grow more and more foolish, unless
+they take care to grow wiser and wiser), Midas had got to be so
+exceedingly unreasonable, that he could scarcely bear to see or
+touch any object that was not gold. He made it his custom,
+therefore, to pass a large portion of every day in a dark and
+dreary apartment, under ground, at the basement of his palace. It
+was here that he kept his wealth. To this dismal hole&mdash;for it
+was little better than a dungeon&mdash;Midas betook himself,
+whenever he wanted to be particularly happy. Here, after carefully
+locking the door, he would take a bag of gold coin, or a gold cup
+as big as a washbowl, or a heavy golden bar, or a peck-measure of
+gold-dust, and bring them from the obscure corners of the room into
+the one bright and narrow sunbeam that fell from the dungeon-like
+window. He valued the sunbeam for no other reason but that his
+treasure would not shine without its help. And then would he reckon
+over the coins in the bag; toss up the bar, and catch it as it came
+down; sift the gold-dust through his fingers; look at the funny
+image of his own face, as reflected in the burnished circumference
+of the cup; and whisper to himself, &ldquo;O Midas, rich King
+Midas, what a happy man art thou!&rdquo; But it was laughable to
+see how the image of his face kept grinning at him, out of the
+polished surface of the cup. It seemed to be aware of his foolish
+behavior, and to have a naughty inclination to make fun of him.</p>
+<p>Midas called himself a happy man, but felt that he was not yet
+quite so happy as he might be. The very tiptop of enjoyment would
+never be reached, unless the whole world were to become his
+treasure-room, and be filled with yellow metal which should be all
+his own.</p>
+<p>Now, I need hardly remind such wise little people as you are,
+that in the old, old times, when King Midas was alive, a great many
+things came to pass, which we should consider wonderful if they
+were to happen in our own day and country. And, on the other hand,
+a great many things take place nowadays, which seem not only
+wonderful to us, but at which the people of old times would have
+stared their eyes out. On the whole, I regard our own times as the
+strangest of the two; but, however that may be, I must go on with
+my story.</p>
+<p>Midas was enjoying himself in his treasure-room, one day, as
+usual, when he perceived a shadow fall over the heaps of gold; and,
+looking suddenly up, what should he behold but the figure of a
+stranger, standing in the bright and narrow sunbeam! It was a young
+man, with a cheerful and ruddy face. Whether it was that the
+imagination of King Midas threw a yellow tinge over everything, or
+whatever the cause might be, he could not help fancying that the
+smile with which the stranger regarded him had a kind of golden
+radiance in it. Certainly, although his figure intercepted the
+sunshine, there was now a brighter gleam upon all the piled-up
+treasures than before. Even the remotest corners had their share of
+it, and were lighted up, when the stranger smiled, as with tips of
+flame and sparkles of fire. As Midas knew that he had carefully
+turned the key in the lock, and that no mortal strength could
+possibly break into his treasure-room, he, of course, concluded
+that his visitor must be something more than mortal. It is no
+matter about telling you who he was. In those days, when the earth
+was comparatively a new affair, it was supposed to be often the
+resort of beings endowed with supernatural power, and who used to
+interest themselves in the joys and sorrows of men, women, and
+children, half playfully and half seriously. Midas had met such
+beings before now, and was not sorry to meet one of them again. The
+stranger&rsquo;s aspect, indeed, was so good-humored and kindly, if
+not beneficent, that it would have been unreasonable to suspect him
+of intending any mischief. It was far more probable that he came to
+do Midas a favor. And what could that favor be, unless to multiply
+his heaps of treasure?</p>
+<p>The stranger gazed about the room; and when his lustrous smile
+had glistened upon all the golden objects that were there, he
+turned again to Midas.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You are a wealthy man, friend Midas!&rdquo; he observed.
+&ldquo;I doubt whether any other four walls, on earth, contain so
+much gold as you have contrived to pile up in this room.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I have done pretty well,&mdash;pretty well,&rdquo;
+answered Midas, in a discontented tone. &ldquo;But, after all, it
+is but a trifle, when you consider that it has taken me my whole
+life to get it together. If one could live a thousand years, he
+might have time to grow rich!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What!&rdquo; exclaimed the stranger. &ldquo;Then you are
+not satisfied?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Midas shook his head.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;And pray what would satisfy you?&rdquo; asked the
+stranger. &ldquo;Merely for the curiosity of the thing, I should be
+glad to know.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Midas paused and meditated. He felt a presentiment that this
+stranger, with such a golden lustre in his good-humored smile, had
+come hither with both the power and the purpose of gratifying his
+utmost wishes. Now, therefore, was the fortunate moment, when he
+had but to speak, and obtain whatever possible, or seemingly
+impossible thing, it might come into his head to ask. So he
+thought, and thought, and thought, and heaped up one golden
+mountain upon another, in his imagination, without being able to
+imagine them big enough. At last, a bright idea occurred to King
+Midas. It seemed really as bright as the glistening metal which he
+loved so much.</p>
+<p>Raising his head, he looked the lustrous stranger in the
+face.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Well, Midas,&rdquo; observed his visitor, &ldquo;I see
+that you have at length hit upon something that will satisfy you.
+Tell me your wish.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It is only this,&rdquo; replied Midas. &ldquo;I am weary
+of collecting my treasures with so much trouble, and beholding the
+heap so diminutive, after I have done my best. I wish everything
+that I touch to be changed to gold!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The stranger&rsquo;s smile grew so very broad, that it seemed to
+fill the room like an outburst of the sun, gleaming into a shadowy
+dell where the yellow autumnal leaves&mdash;for so looked the lumps
+and particles of gold&mdash;lie strewn in the glow of light.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;The Golden Touch!&rdquo; exclaimed he. &ldquo;You
+certainly deserve credit, friend Midas, for striking out so
+brilliant a conception. But are you quite sure that this will
+satisfy you?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;How could it fail?&rdquo; said Midas.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;And will you never regret the possession of
+it?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What could induce me?&rdquo; asked Midas. &ldquo;I ask
+nothing else, to render me perfectly happy.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Be it as you wish, then,&rdquo; replied the stranger,
+waving his hand in token of farewell. &ldquo;To-morrow, at sunrise,
+you will find yourself gifted with the Golden Touch.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The figure of the stranger then became exceedingly bright, and
+Midas involuntarily closed his eyes. On opening them again, he
+beheld only one yellow sunbeam in the room, and, all around him,
+the glistening of the precious metal which he had spent his life in
+hoarding up.</p>
+<p>Whether Midas slept as usual that night, the story does not say.
+Asleep or awake, however, his mind was probably in the state of a
+child&rsquo;s, to whom a beautiful new plaything has been promised
+in the morning. At any rate, day had hardly peeped over the hills,
+when King Midas was broad awake, and, stretching his arms out of
+bed, began to touch the objects that were within reach. He was
+anxious to prove whether the Golden Touch had really come,
+according to the stranger&rsquo;s promise. So he laid his finger on
+a chair by the bedside, and on various other things, but was
+grievously disappointed to perceive that they remained of exactly
+the same substance as before. Indeed, he felt very much afraid that
+he had only dreamed about the lustrous stranger, or else that the
+latter had been making game of him. And what a miserable affair
+would it be, if, after all his hopes, Midas must content himself
+with what little gold he could scrape together by ordinary means,
+instead of creating it by a touch!</p>
+<p>All this while it was only the gray of the morning, with but a
+streak of brightness along the edge of the sky, where Midas could
+not see it. He lay in a very disconsolate mood, regretting the
+downfall of his hopes, and kept growing sadder and sadder, until
+the earliest sunbeam shone through the window, and gilded the
+ceiling over his head. It seemed to Midas that this bright yellow
+sunbeam was reflected in rather a singular way on the white
+covering of the bed. Looking more closely, what was his
+astonishment and delight, when he found that this linen fabric had
+been transmuted to what seemed a woven texture of the purest and
+brightest gold! The Golden Touch had come to him with the first
+sunbeam!</p>
+<p>Midas started up, in a kind of joyful frenzy, and ran about the
+room, grasping at everything that happened to be in his way. He
+seized one of the bed-posts, and it became immediately a fluted
+golden pillar. He pulled aside a window-curtain, in order to admit
+a clear spectacle of the wonders which he was performing; and the
+tassel grew heavy in his hand,&mdash;a mass of gold. He took up a
+book from the table. At his first touch, it assumed the appearance
+of such a splendidly bound and gilt-edged volume as one often meets
+with, nowadays; but, on running his fingers through the leaves,
+behold! it was a bundle of thin golden plates, in which all the
+wisdom of the book had grown illegible. He hurriedly put on his
+clothes, and was enraptured to see himself in a magnificent suit of
+gold cloth, which retained its flexibility and softness, although
+it burdened him a little with its weight. He drew out his
+handkerchief, which little Marygold had hemmed for him. That was
+likewise gold, with the dear child&rsquo;s neat and pretty stitches
+running all along the border, in gold thread!</p>
+<p>Somehow or other, this last transformation did not quite please
+King Midas. He would rather that his little daughter&rsquo;s
+handiwork should have remained just the same as when she climbed
+his knee and put it into his hand.</p>
+<p>But it was not worth while to vex himself about a trifle. Midas
+now took his spectacles from his pocket, and put them on his nose,
+in order that he might see more distinctly what he was about. In
+those days, spectacles for common people had not been invented, but
+were already worn by kings; else, how could Midas have had any? To
+his great perplexity, however, excellent as the glasses were, he
+discovered that he could not possibly see through them. But this
+was the most natural thing in the world; for on taking them off,
+the transparent crystals turned out to be plates of yellow metal,
+and, of course, were worthless as spectacles, though valuable as
+gold. It struck Midas as rather inconvenient that, with all his
+wealth, he could never again be rich enough to own a pair of
+serviceable spectacles.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It is no great matter, nevertheless,&rdquo; said he to
+himself, very philosophically. &ldquo;We cannot expect any great
+good, without its being accompanied with some small inconvenience.
+The Golden Touch is worth the sacrifice of a pair of spectacles, at
+least, if not of one&rsquo;s very eyesight. My own eyes will serve
+for ordinary purposes, and little Marygold will soon be old enough
+to read to me.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Wise King Midas was so exalted by his good fortune that the
+palace seemed not sufficiently spacious to contain him. He
+therefore went downstairs, and smiled, on observing that the
+balustrade of the staircase became a bar of burnished gold, as his
+hand passed over it in his descent. He lifted the door-latch (it
+was brass only a moment ago, but golden when his fingers quitted
+it), and emerged into the garden. Here, as it happened, he found a
+great number of beautiful roses in full bloom, and others in all
+the stages of lovely bud and blossom. Very delicious was their
+fragrance in the morning breeze. Their delicate blush was one of
+the fairest sights in the world; so gentle, so modest, and so full
+of sweet tranquillity did these roses seem to be.</p>
+<p>But Midas knew a way to make them far more precious, according
+to his way of thinking, than roses had ever been before. So he took
+great pains in going from bush to bush, and exercised his magic
+touch most indefatigably; until every individual flower and bud,
+and even the worms at the heart of some of them, were changed to
+gold. By the time this good work was completed, King Midas was
+summoned to breakfast; and as the morning air had given him an
+excellent appetite, he made haste back to the palace.</p>
+<p>What was usually a king&rsquo;s breakfast in the days of Midas,
+I really do not know, and cannot stop now to investigate. To the
+best of my belief, however, on this particular morning, the
+breakfast consisted of hot cakes, some nice little brook trout,
+roasted potatoes, fresh boiled eggs, and coffee, for King Midas
+himself, and a bowl of bread and milk for his daughter Marygold. At
+all events, this is a breakfast fit to set before a king; and,
+whether he had it or not, King Midas could not have had a
+better.</p>
+<p>Little Marygold had not yet made her appearance. Her father
+ordered her to be called, and, seating himself at table, awaited
+the child&rsquo;s coming, in order to begin his own breakfast. To
+do Midas justice, he really loved his daughter, and loved her so
+much the more this morning, on account of the good fortune which
+had befallen him. It was not a great while before he heard her
+coming along the passage-way crying bitterly. This circumstance
+surprised him, because Marygold was one of the cheerfullest little
+people whom you would see in a summer&rsquo;s day, and hardly shed
+a thimbleful of tears in a twelvemonth. When Midas heard her sobs,
+he determined to put little Marygold into better spirits, by an
+agreeable surprise; so, leaning across the table, he touched his
+daughter&rsquo;s bowl (which was a China one, with pretty figures
+all around it), and transmuted it to gleaming gold.</p>
+<p>Meanwhile, Marygold slowly and disconsolately opened the door,
+and showed herself with her apron at her eyes, still sobbing as if
+her heart would break.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;How now, my little lady!&rdquo; cried Midas. &ldquo;Pray
+what is the matter with you, this bright morning?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Marygold, without taking the apron from her eyes, held out her
+hand, in which was one of the roses which Midas had so recently
+transmuted.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Beautiful!&rdquo; exclaimed her father. &ldquo;And what
+is there in this magnificent golden rose to make you
+cry?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah, dear father!&rdquo; answered the child, as well as
+her sobs would let her; &ldquo;it is not beautiful, but the ugliest
+flower that ever grew! As soon as I was dressed I ran into the
+garden to gather some roses for you; because I know you like them,
+and like them the better when gathered by your little daughter.
+But, oh dear, dear me! What do you think has happened? Such a
+misfortune! All the beautiful roses, that smelled so sweet and had
+so many lovely blushes, are blighted and spoilt! They are grown
+quite yellow, as you see this one, and have no longer any
+fragrance! What can have been the matter with them?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Poh, my dear little girl,&mdash;pray don&rsquo;t cry
+about it!&rdquo; said Midas, who was ashamed to confess that he
+himself had wrought the change which so greatly afflicted her.
+&ldquo;Sit down and eat your bread and milk! You will find it easy
+enough to exchange a golden rose like that (which will last
+hundreds of years) for an ordinary one which would wither in a
+day.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t care for such roses as this!&rdquo; cried
+Marygold, tossing it contemptuously away. &ldquo;It has no smell,
+and the hard petals prick my nose!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The child now sat down to table, but was so occupied with her
+grief for the blighted roses that she did not even notice the
+wonderful transmutation of her China bowl. Perhaps this was all the
+better; for Marygold was accustomed to take pleasure in looking at
+the queer figures, and strange trees and houses, that were painted
+on the circumference of the bowl; and these ornaments were now
+entirely lost in the yellow hue of the metal.</p>
+<p>Midas, meanwhile, had poured out a cup of coffee, and, as a
+matter of course, the coffee-pot, whatever metal it may have been
+when he took it up, was gold when he set it down. He thought to
+himself, that it was rather an extravagant style of splendor, in a
+king of his simple habits, to breakfast off a service of gold, and
+began to be puzzled with the difficulty of keeping his treasures
+safe. The cupboard and the kitchen would no longer be a secure
+place of deposit for articles so valuable as golden bowls and
+coffee-pots.</p>
+<p>Amid these thoughts, he lifted a spoonful of coffee to his lips,
+and, sipping it, was astonished to perceive that the instant his
+lips touched the liquid, it became molten gold, and the next
+moment, hardened into a lump!</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ha!&rdquo; exclaimed Midas, rather aghast.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What is the matter, father?&rdquo; asked little Marygold,
+gazing at him, with the tears still standing in her eyes.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nothing, child, nothing!&rdquo; said Midas. &ldquo;Eat
+your milk, before it gets quite cold.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He took one of the nice little trouts on his plate, and, by way
+of experiment, touched its tail with his finger. To his horror, it
+was immediately transmuted from an admirably fried brook trout into
+a gold-fish, though not one of those gold-fishes which people often
+keep in glass globes, as ornaments for the parlor. No; but it was
+really a metallic fish, and looked as if it had been very cunningly
+made by the nicest goldsmith in the world. Its little bones were
+now golden wires; its fins and tail were thin plates of gold; and
+there were the marks of the fork in it, and all the delicate,
+frothy appearance of a nicely fried fish, exactly imitated in
+metal. A very pretty piece of work, as you may suppose; only King
+Midas, just at that moment, would much rather have had a real trout
+in his dish than this elaborate and valuable imitation of one.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t quite see,&rdquo; thought he to himself,
+&ldquo;how I am to get any breakfast!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He took one of the smoking-hot cakes, and had scarcely broken
+it, when, to his cruel mortification, though, a moment before, it
+had been of the whitest wheat, it assumed the yellow hue of Indian
+meal. To say the truth, if it had really been a hot Indian cake,
+Midas would have prized it a good deal more than he now did, when
+its solidity and increased weight made him too bitterly sensible
+that it was gold. Almost in despair, he helped himself to a boiled
+egg, which immediately underwent a change similar to those of the
+trout and the cake. The egg, indeed, might have been mistaken for
+one of those which the famous goose, in the story-book, was in the
+habit of laying; but King Midas was the only goose that had had
+anything to do with the matter.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Well, this is a quandary!&rdquo; thought he, leaning back
+in his chair, and looking quite enviously at little Marygold, who
+was now eating her bread and milk with great satisfaction.
+&ldquo;Such a costly breakfast before me, and nothing that can be
+eaten!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Hoping that, by dint of great dispatch, he might avoid what he
+now felt to be a considerable inconvenience, King Midas next
+snatched a hot potato, and attempted to cram it into his mouth, and
+swallow it in a hurry. But the Golden Touch was too nimble for him.
+He found his mouth full, not of mealy potato, but of solid metal,
+which so burnt his tongue that he roared aloud, and, jumping up
+from the table, began to dance and stamp about the room, both with
+pain and affright.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Father, dear father!&rdquo; cried little Marygold, who
+was a very affectionate child, &ldquo;pray what is the matter? Have
+you burnt your mouth?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah, dear child,&rdquo; groaned Midas dolefully, &ldquo;I
+don&rsquo;t know what is to become of your poor father!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And, truly, my dear little folks, did you ever hear of such a
+pitiable case in all your lives? Here was literally the richest
+breakfast that could be set before a king, and its very richness
+made it absolutely good for nothing. The poorest laborer, sitting
+down to his crust of bread and cup of water, was far better off
+than King Midas, whose delicate food was really worth its weight in
+gold. And what was to be done? Already, at breakfast, Midas was
+excessively hungry. Would he be less so by dinner-time? And how
+ravenous would be his appetite for supper, which must undoubtedly
+consist of the same sort of indigestible dishes as those now before
+him! How many days, think you, would he survive a continuance of
+this rich fare?</p>
+<p>These reflections so troubled wise King Midas, that he began to
+doubt whether, after all, riches are the one desirable thing in the
+world, or even the most desirable. But this was only a passing
+thought. So fascinated was Midas with the glitter of the yellow
+metal, that he would still have refused to give up the Golden Touch
+for so paltry a consideration as a breakfast. Just imagine what a
+price for one meal&rsquo;s victuals! It would have been the same as
+paying millions and millions of money (and as many millions more as
+would take forever to reckon up) for some fried trout, an egg, a
+potato, a hot cake, and a cup of coffee!</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It would be quite too dear,&rdquo; thought Midas.</p>
+<p>Nevertheless, so great was his hunger, and the perplexity of his
+situation, that he again groaned aloud, and very grievously too.
+Our pretty Marygold could endure it no longer. She sat, a moment,
+gazing at her father, and trying with all the might of her little
+wits to find out what was the matter with him. Then, with a sweet
+and sorrowful impulse to comfort him, she started from her chair,
+and, running to Midas, threw her arms affectionately about his
+knees. He bent down and kissed her. He felt that his little
+daughter&rsquo;s love was worth a thousand times more than he had
+gained by the Golden Touch.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;My precious, precious Marygold!&rdquo; cried he.</p>
+<p>But Marygold made no answer.</p>
+<p>Alas, what had he done? How fatal was the gift which the
+stranger bestowed! The moment the lips of Midas touched
+Marygold&rsquo;s forehead, a change had taken place. Her sweet,
+rosy face, so full of affection as it had been, assumed a
+glittering yellow color, with yellow teardrops congealing on her
+cheeks. Her beautiful brown ringlets took the same tint. Her soft
+and tender little form grew hard and inflexible within her
+father&rsquo;s encircling arms. Oh, terrible misfortune! The victim
+of his insatiable desire for wealth, little Marygold was a human
+child no longer, but a golden statue!</p>
+<p>Yes, there she was, with the questioning look of love, grief,
+and pity, hardened into her face. It was the prettiest and most
+woeful sight that ever mortal saw. All the features and tokens of
+Marygold were there; even the beloved little dimple remained in her
+golden chin. But the more perfect was the resemblance, the greater
+was the father&rsquo;s agony at beholding this golden image, which
+was all that was left him of a daughter. It had been a favorite
+phrase of Midas, whenever he felt particularly fond of the child,
+to say that she was worth her weight in gold. And now the phrase
+had become literally true. And now, at last, when it was too late,
+he felt how infinitely a warm and tender heart, that loved him,
+exceeded in value all the wealth that could be piled up betwixt the
+earth and sky!</p>
+<p>It would be too sad a story, if I were to tell you how Midas, in
+the fullness of all his gratified desires, began to wring his hands
+and bemoan himself; and how he could neither bear to look at
+Marygold, nor yet to look away from her. Except when his eyes were
+fixed on the image, he could not possibly believe that she was
+changed to gold. But stealing another glance, there was the
+precious little figure, with a yellow tear-drop on its yellow
+cheek, and a look so piteous and tender that it seemed as if that
+very expression must needs soften the gold, and make it flesh
+again. This, however, could not be. So Midas had only to wring his
+hands, and to wish that he were the poorest man in the wide world,
+if the loss of all his wealth might bring back the faintest
+rose-color to his dear child&rsquo;s face.</p>
+<p>While he was in this tumult of despair, he suddenly beheld a
+stranger standing near the door. Midas bent down his head, without
+speaking; for he recognized the same figure which had appeared to
+him, the day before, in the treasure-room, and had bestowed on him
+this disastrous faculty of the Golden Touch. The stranger&rsquo;s
+countenance still wore a smile, which seemed to shed a yellow
+lustre all about the room, and gleamed on little Marygold&rsquo;s
+image, and on the other objects that had been transmuted by the
+touch of Midas.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Well, friend Midas,&rdquo; said the stranger, &ldquo;pray
+how do you succeed with the Golden Touch?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Midas shook his head.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I am very miserable,&rdquo; said he.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Very miserable, indeed!&rdquo; exclaimed the stranger.
+&ldquo;And how happens that? Have I not faithfully kept my promise
+with you? Have you not everything that your heart
+desired?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Gold is not everything,&rdquo; answered Midas. &ldquo;And
+I have lost all that my heart really cared for.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah! So you have made a discovery, since yesterday?&rdquo;
+observed the stranger. &ldquo;Let us see, then. Which of these two
+things do you think is really worth the most,&mdash;the gift of the
+Golden Touch, or one cup of clear cold water?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;O blessed water!&rdquo; exclaimed Midas. &ldquo;It will
+never moisten my parched throat again!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;The Golden Touch,&rdquo; continued the stranger,
+&ldquo;or a crust of bread?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;A piece of bread,&rdquo; answered Midas, &ldquo;is worth
+all the gold on earth!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;The Golden Touch,&rdquo; asked the stranger, &ldquo;or
+your own little Marygold, warm, soft, and loving as she was an hour
+ago?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, my child, my dear child!&rdquo; cried poor Midas,
+wringing his hands. &ldquo;I would not have given that one small
+dimple in her chin for the power of changing this whole big earth
+into a solid lump of gold!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You are wiser than you were, King Midas!&rdquo; said the
+stranger, looking seriously at him. &ldquo;Your own heart, I
+perceive, has not been entirely changed from flesh to gold. Were it
+so, your case would indeed be desperate. But you appear to be still
+capable of understanding that the commonest things, such as lie
+within everybody&rsquo;s grasp, are more valuable than the riches
+which so many mortals sigh and struggle after. Tell me, now, do you
+sincerely desire to rid yourself of this Golden Touch?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It is hateful to me!&rdquo; replied Midas.</p>
+<p>A fly settled on his nose, but immediately fell to the floor;
+for it, too, had become gold. Midas shuddered.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Go, then,&rdquo; said the stranger, &ldquo;and plunge
+into the river that glides past the bottom of your garden. Take
+likewise a vase of the same water, and sprinkle it over any object
+that you may desire to change back again from gold into its former
+substance. If you do this in earnestness and sincerity, it may
+possibly repair the mischief which your avarice has
+occasioned.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>King Midas bowed low; and when he lifted his head, the lustrous
+stranger had vanished.</p>
+<p>You will easily believe that Midas lost no time in snatching up
+a great earthen pitcher (but, alas me! it was no longer earthen
+after he touched it), and hastening to the riverside. As he
+scampered along, and forced his way through the shrubbery, it was
+positively marvelous to see how the foliage turned yellow behind
+him, as if the autumn had been there, and nowhere else. On reaching
+the river&rsquo;s brink, he plunged headlong in, without waiting so
+much as to pull off his shoes.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Poof! poof! poof!&rdquo; snorted King Midas, as his head
+emerged out of the water. &ldquo;Well; this is really a refreshing
+bath, and I think it must have quite washed away the Golden Touch.
+And now for filling my pitcher!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>As he dipped the pitcher into the water, it gladdened his very
+heart to see it change from gold into the same good, honest earthen
+vessel which it had been before he touched it. He was conscious,
+also, of a change within himself. A cold, hard, and heavy weight
+seemed to have gone out of his bosom. No doubt his heart had been
+gradually losing its human substance, and transmuting itself into
+insensible metal, but had now softened back again into flesh.
+Perceiving a violet, that grew on the bank of the river, Midas
+touched it with his finger, and was overjoyed to find that the
+delicate flower retained its purple hue, instead of undergoing a
+yellow blight. The curse of the Golden Touch had therefore really
+been removed from him.</p>
+<p>King Midas hastened back to the palace; and I suppose the
+servants knew not what to make of it when they saw their royal
+master so carefully bringing home an earthen pitcher of water. But
+that water, which was to undo all the mischief that his folly had
+wrought, was more precious to Midas, than an ocean of molten gold
+could have been. The first thing he did, as you need hardly be
+told, was to sprinkle it by handfuls over the golden figure of
+little Marygold.</p>
+<p>No sooner did it fall on her than you would have laughed to see
+how the rosy color came back to the dear child&rsquo;s cheek! and
+how she began to sneeze and sputter!&mdash;and how astonished she
+was to find herself dripping wet, and her father still throwing
+more water over her!</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Pray do not, dear father!&rdquo; cried she. &ldquo;See
+how you have wet my nice frock, which I put on only this
+morning!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>For Marygold did not know that she had been a little golden
+statue; nor could she remember anything that had happened since the
+moment when she ran with outstretched arms to comfort poor King
+Midas.</p>
+<p>Her father did not think it necessary to tell his beloved child
+how very foolish he had been, but contented himself with showing
+how much wiser he had now grown. For this purpose he led little
+Marygold into the garden, where he sprinkled all the remainder of
+the water over the rose-bushes, and with such good effect that
+above five thousand roses recovered their beautiful bloom. There
+were two circumstances, however, which, as long as he lived, used
+to put King Midas in mind of the Golden Touch. One was, that the
+sands of the river sparkled like gold; the other, that little
+Marygold&rsquo;s hair had now a golden tinge, which he had never
+observed in it before she had been transmuted by the effect of his
+kiss. This change of hue was really an improvement, and made
+Marygold&rsquo;s hair richer than in her babyhood.</p>
+<p>When King Midas had grown quite an old man, and used to trot
+Marygold&rsquo;s children on his knee, he was fond of telling them
+this marvelous story, pretty much as I have now told it to you. And
+then would he stroke their glossy ringlets, and tell them that
+their hair, likewise, had a rich shade of gold, which they had
+inherited from their mother.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;And to tell you the truth, my precious little
+folks,&rdquo; quoth King Midas, diligently trotting the children
+all the while, &ldquo;ever since that morning, I have hated the
+very sight of all other gold, save this!&rdquo;</p>
+<h3><a id="Pomegranate" name="Pomegranate">The Pomegranate
+Seeds</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Nathaniel Hawthorne</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Mother Ceres was exceedingly fond of her daughter Proserpina,
+and seldom let her go alone into the fields. But, just at the time
+when my story begins, the good lady was very busy, because she had
+the care of the wheat, and the Indian corn, and the rye and barley,
+and, in short, of the crops of every kind, all over the earth; and
+as the season had thus far been uncommonly backward, it was
+necessary to make the harvest ripen more speedily than usual. So
+she put on her turban, made of poppies (a kind of flower which she
+was always noted for wearing), and got into her car drawn by a pair
+of winged dragons, and was just ready to set off.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Dear mother,&rdquo; said Proserpina, &ldquo;I shall be
+very lonely while you are away. May I not run down to the shore,
+and ask some of the sea-nymphs to come up out of the waves and play
+with me?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, child,&rdquo; answered Mother Ceres. &ldquo;The
+sea-nymphs are good creatures, and will never lead you into any
+harm. But you must take care not to stray away from them, nor go
+wandering about the fields by yourself. Young girls, without their
+mothers to take care of them, are very apt to get into
+mischief.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The child promised to be as prudent as if she were a grown-up
+woman, and, by the time the winged dragons had whirled the car out
+of sight, she was already on the shore, calling to the sea-nymphs
+to come and play with her. They knew Proserpina&rsquo;s voice, and
+were not long in showing their glistening faces and sea-green hair
+above the water, at the bottom of which was their home. They
+brought along with them a great many beautiful shells; and, sitting
+down on the moist sand, where the surf wave broke over them, they
+busied themselves in making a necklace, which they hung round
+Proserpina&rsquo;s neck. By way of showing her gratitude, the child
+besought them to go with her a little way into the fields, so that
+they might gather abundance of flowers, with which she would make
+each of her kind playmates a wreath.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, no, dear Proserpina,&rdquo; cried the sea-nymphs;
+&ldquo;we dare not go with you upon the dry land. We are apt to
+grow faint, unless at every breath we can snuff up the salt breeze
+of the ocean. And don&rsquo;t you see how careful we are to let the
+surf wave break over us every moment or two, so as to keep
+ourselves comfortably moist? If it were not for that, we should
+soon look like bunches of uprooted sea-weed dried in the
+sun.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It is a great pity,&rdquo; said Proserpina, &ldquo;but do
+you wait for me here, and I will run and gather my apron full of
+flowers, and be back again before the surf wave has broken ten
+times over you. I long to make you some wreaths that shall be as
+lovely as this necklace of many-colored shells.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;We will wait, then,&rdquo; answered the sea-nymphs.
+&ldquo;But while you are gone, we may as well lie down on a bank of
+soft sponge, under the water. The air to-day is a little too dry
+for our comfort. But we will pop up our heads every few minutes to
+see if you are coming.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The young Proserpina ran quickly to a spot where, only the day
+before, she had seen a great many flowers. These, however, were now
+a little past their bloom; and wishing to give her friends the
+freshest and loveliest blossoms, she strayed farther into the
+fields, and found some that made her scream with delight. Never had
+she met with such exquisite flowers before,&mdash;violets, so large
+and fragrant,&mdash;roses, with so rich and delicate a
+blush,&mdash;such superb hyacinths and such aromatic
+pinks,&mdash;and many others, some of which seemed to be of new
+shapes and colors. Two or three times, moreover, she could not help
+thinking that a tuft of most splendid flowers had suddenly sprouted
+out of the earth before her very eyes, as if on purpose to tempt
+her a few steps farther. Proserpina&rsquo;s apron was soon filled
+and brimming over with delightful blossoms. She was on the point of
+turning back in order to rejoin the sea-nymphs, and sit with them
+on the moist sands, all twining wreaths together. But, a little
+farther on, what should she behold? It was a large shrub,
+completely covered with the most magnificent flowers in the
+world.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;The darlings!&rdquo; cried Proserpina; and then she
+thought to herself, &ldquo;I was looking at that spot only a moment
+ago. How strange it is that I did not see the flowers!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The nearer she approached the shrub, the more attractive it
+looked, until she came quite close to it; and then, although its
+beauty was richer than words can tell, she hardly knew whether to
+like it or not. It bore above a hundred flowers of the most
+brilliant hues, and each different from the others, but all having
+a kind of resemblance among themselves, which showed them to be
+sister blossoms. But there was a deep, glossy lustre on the leaves
+of the shrub, and on the petals of the flowers, that made
+Proserpina doubt whether they might not be poisonous. To tell you
+the truth, foolish as it may seem, she was half inclined to turn
+round and run away.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What a silly child I am!&rdquo; thought she, taking
+courage. &ldquo;It is really the most beautiful shrub that ever
+sprang out of the earth. I will pull it up by the roots, and carry
+it home, and plant it in my mother&rsquo;s garden.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Holding up her apron full of flowers with her left hand,
+Proserpina seized the large shrub with the other, and pulled and
+pulled, but was hardly able to loosen the soil about its roots.
+What a deep-rooted plant it was! Again the girl pulled with all her
+might, and observed that the earth began to stir and crack to some
+distance around the stem. She gave another pull, but relaxed her
+hold, fancying that there was a rumbling sound right beneath her
+feet. Did the roots extend down into some enchanted cavern? Then,
+laughing at herself for so childish a notion, she made another
+effort; up came the shrub, and Proserpina staggered back, holding
+the stem triumphantly in her hand, and gazing at the deep hole
+which its roots had left in the soil.</p>
+<p>Much to her astonishment this hole kept spreading wider and
+wider, and growing deeper and deeper, until it really seemed to
+have no bottom; and all the while, there came a rumbling noise out
+of its depths, louder and louder, and nearer and nearer, and
+sounding like the tramp of horses&rsquo; hoofs and the rattling of
+wheels. Too much frightened to run away, she stood straining her
+eyes into this wonderful cavity, and soon saw a team of four sable
+horses, snorting smoke out of their nostrils, and tearing their way
+out of the earth with a splendid golden chariot whirling at their
+heels. They leaped out of the bottomless hole, chariot and all; and
+there they were, tossing their black manes, flourishing their black
+tails, and curvetting with every one of their hoofs off the ground
+at once, close by the spot where Proserpina stood. In the chariot
+sat the figure of a man, richly dressed, with a crown on his head,
+all flaming with diamonds. He was of a noble aspect, and rather
+handsome, but looked sullen and discontented; and he kept rubbing
+his eyes and shading them with his hand, as if he did not live
+enough in the sunshine to be very fond of its light.</p>
+<div class="figure"><a href="images/big_142.jpg"><img src=
+"images/small_142.jpg" alt="A chariot races towards Prosperpina"
+id="img03" name="img03" width="360" height="565" /></a>
+<p>THEY LEAPED OUT OF THE BOTTOMLESS HOLE, CHARIOT AND ALL; AND
+THERE THEY WERE TOSSING THEIR BLACK TAILS, AND CURVETTING WITH
+EVERY ONE OF THEIR HOOFS OFF THE GROUND AT ONCE, CLOSE BY THE SPOT
+WHERE PROSERPINA STOOD. IN THE CHARIOT SAT THE FIGURE OF A MAN</p>
+</div>
+<p>As soon as this personage saw the affrighted Proserpina, he
+beckoned her to come a little nearer.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Do not be afraid,&rdquo; said he, with as cheerful a
+smile as he knew how to put on. &ldquo;Come! Will not you like to
+ride a little way with me, in my beautiful chariot?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Proserpina was so alarmed that she wished for nothing but to
+get out of his reach. And no wonder. The stranger did not look
+remarkably good-natured, in spite of his smile; and as for his
+voice, its tones were deep and stern, and sounded as much like the
+rumbling of an earthquake under ground as anything else. As is
+always the case with children in trouble, Proserpina&rsquo;s first
+thought was to call for her mother.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Mother, Mother Ceres!&rdquo; cried she, all in a tremble.
+&ldquo;Come quickly and save me.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But her voice was too faint for her mother to hear. Indeed, it
+is most probable that Ceres was then a thousand miles off, making
+the corn grow in some far-distant country. Nor could it have
+availed her poor daughter, even had she been within hearing; for no
+sooner did Proserpina begin to cry out, than the stranger leaped to
+the ground, caught the child in his arms, and again mounting the
+chariot, shook the reins, and shouted to the four black horses to
+set off. They immediately broke into so swift a gallop that it
+seemed rather like flying through the air than running along the
+earth. In a moment, Proserpina lost sight of the pleasant vale of
+Enna, in which she had always dwelt. Another instant, and even the
+summit of Mount &AElig;tna had become so blue in the distance that
+she could scarcely distinguish it from the smoke that gushed out of
+its crater. But still the poor child screamed, and scattered her
+apron full of flowers along the way, and left a long cry trailing
+behind the chariot; and many mothers, to whose ears it came, ran
+quickly to see if any mischief had befallen their children. But
+Mother Ceres was a great way off, and could not hear the cry.</p>
+<p>As they rode on, the stranger did his best to soothe her.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Why should you be so frightened, my pretty child?&rdquo;
+said he, trying to soften his rough voice. &ldquo;I promise not to
+do you any harm. What! You have been gathering flowers? Wait till
+we come to my palace, and I will give you a garden full of prettier
+flowers than those, all made of pearls, and diamonds, and rubies.
+Can you guess who I am? They call my name Pluto, and I am the king
+of diamonds and all other precious stones. Every atom of the gold
+and silver that lies under the earth belongs to me, to say nothing
+of the copper and iron, and of the coal-mines, which supply me with
+abundance of fuel. Do you see this splendid crown upon my head? You
+may have it for a plaything. Oh, we shall be very good friends, and
+you will find me more agreeable than you expect, when once we get
+out of this troublesome sunshine.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Let me go home!&rdquo; cried Proserpina. &ldquo;Let me go
+home!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;My home is better than your mother&rsquo;s,&rdquo;
+answered King Pluto &ldquo;It is a palace, all made of gold, with
+crystal windows; and because there is little or no sunshine
+thereabouts, the apartments are illuminated with diamond lamps. You
+never saw anything half so magnificent as my throne. If you like,
+you may sit down on it, and be my little queen, and I will sit on
+the footstool.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t care for golden palaces and thrones,&rdquo;
+sobbed Proserpina. &ldquo;Oh, my mother, my mother! Carry me back
+to my mother!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But King Pluto, as he called himself, only shouted to his steeds
+to go faster.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Pray do not be foolish, Proserpina,&rdquo; said he, in
+rather a sullen tone. &ldquo;I offer you my palace and my crown,
+and all the riches that are under the earth; and you treat me as if
+I were doing you an injury. The one thing which my palace needs is
+a merry little maid, to run upstairs and down, and cheer up the
+rooms with her smile. And this is what you must do for King
+Pluto.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Never!&rdquo; answered Proserpina, looking as miserable
+as she could. &ldquo;I shall never smile again till you set me down
+at my mother&rsquo;s door.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But she might just as well have talked to the wind that whistled
+past them; for Pluto urged on his horses, and went faster than
+ever. Proserpina continued to cry out, and screamed so long and so
+loudly, that her poor little voice was almost screamed away; and
+when it was nothing but a whisper, she happened to cast her eyes
+over a great, broad field of waving grain&mdash;and whom do you
+think she saw? Who, but Mother Ceres, making the corn grow, and too
+busy to notice the golden chariot as it went rattling along. The
+child mustered all her strength, and gave one more scream, but was
+out of sight before Ceres had time to turn her head.</p>
+<p>King Pluto had taken a road which now began to grow excessively
+gloomy. It was bordered on each side with rocks and precipices,
+between which the rumbling of the chariot-wheels was reverberated
+with a noise like rolling thunder. The trees and bushes that grew
+in the crevices of the rocks had very dismal foliage; and by and
+by, although it was hardly noon, the air became obscured with a
+gray twilight. The black horses had rushed along so swiftly, that
+they were already beyond the limits of the sunshine. But the
+duskier it grew, the more did Pluto&rsquo;s visage assume an air of
+satisfaction. After all, he was not an ill-looking person,
+especially when he left off twisting his features into a smile that
+did not belong to them. Proserpina peeped at his face through the
+gathering dusk, and hoped that he might not be so very wicked as
+she at first thought him.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah, this twilight is truly refreshing,&rdquo; said King
+Pluto, &ldquo;after being so tormented with that ugly and
+impertinent glare of the sun. How much more agreeable is lamplight
+or torchlight, more particularly when reflected from diamonds! It
+will be a magnificent sight when we get to my palace.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Is it much farther?&rdquo; asked Proserpina. &ldquo;And
+will you carry me back when I have seen it?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;We will talk of that by and by,&rdquo; answered Pluto.
+&ldquo;We are just entering my dominions. Do you see that tall
+gateway before us? When we pass those gates, we are at home. And
+there lies my faithful mastiff at the threshold. Cerberus!
+Cerberus! Come hither, my good dog!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, Pluto pulled at the reins, and stopped the chariot
+right between the tall, massive pillars of the gateway. The mastiff
+of which he had spoken got up from the threshold, and stood on his
+hinder legs, so as to put his forepaws on the chariot-wheel. But,
+my stars, what a strange dog it was! Why, he was a big, rough,
+ugly-looking monster, with three separate heads, and each of them
+fiercer than the two others; but, fierce as they were, King Pluto
+patted them all. He seemed as fond of his three-headed dog as if it
+had been a sweet little spaniel, with silken ears and curly hair.
+Cerberus, on the other hand, was evidently rejoiced to see his
+master, and expressed his attachment, as other dogs do, by wagging
+his tail at a great rate. Proserpina&rsquo;s eyes being drawn to it
+by its brisk motion, she saw that this tail was neither more nor
+less than a live dragon, with fiery eyes, and fangs that had a very
+poisonous aspect. And while the three-headed Cerberus was fawning
+so lovingly on King Pluto, there was the dragon tail wagging
+against its will, and looking as cross and ill-natured as you can
+imagine, on its own separate account.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Will the dog bite me?&rdquo; asked Proserpina, shrinking
+closer to Pluto. &ldquo;What an ugly creature he is!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, never fear,&rdquo; answered her companion. &ldquo;He
+never harms people unless they try to enter my dominions without
+being sent for, or to get away when I wish to keep them here. Down,
+Cerberus! Now, my pretty Proserpina, we will drive on.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>On went the chariot, and King Pluto seemed greatly pleased to
+find himself once more in his own kingdom. He drew
+Proserpina&rsquo;s attention to the rich veins of gold that were to
+be seen among the rocks, and pointed to several places where one
+stroke of a pick-axe would loosen a bushel of diamonds. All along
+the road, indeed, there were sparkling gems, which would have been
+of inestimable value above ground, but which were here reckoned of
+the meaner sort, and hardly worth a beggar&rsquo;s stooping
+for.</p>
+<p>Not far from the gateway, they came to a bridge, which seemed to
+be built of iron. Pluto stopped the chariot, and bade Proserpina
+look at the stream which was gliding so lazily beneath it. Never in
+her life had she beheld so torpid, so black, so muddy-looking a
+stream: its waters reflected no images of anything that was on the
+banks, and it moved as sluggishly as if it had quite forgotten
+which way it ought to flow, and had rather stagnate than flow
+either one way or the other.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;This is the river Lethe,&rdquo; observed King Pluto.
+&ldquo;Is it not a very pleasant stream?&rdquo; &ldquo;I think it a
+very dismal one,&rdquo; said Proserpina. &ldquo;It suits my taste,
+however,&rdquo; answered Pluto, who was apt to be sullen when
+anybody disagreed with him. &ldquo;At all events, its water has one
+very excellent quality; for a single draught of it makes people
+forget every care and sorrow that has hitherto tormented them. Only
+sip a little of it, my dear Proserpina, and you will instantly
+cease to grieve for your mother, and will have nothing in your
+memory that can prevent your being perfectly happy in my palace. I
+will send for some, in a golden goblet, the moment we
+arrive.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, no, no, no!&rdquo; cried Proserpina, weeping afresh.
+&ldquo;I had a thousand times rather be miserable with remembering
+my mother than be happy in forgetting her. That dear, dear mother!
+I never, never will forget her.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;We shall see,&rdquo; said King Pluto. &ldquo;You do not
+know what fine times we will have in my palace. Here we are just at
+the portal. These pillars are solid gold, I assure you.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He alighted from the chariot, and taking Proserpina in his arms,
+carried her up a lofty flight of steps into the great hall of the
+palace. It was splendidly illuminated by means of large precious
+stones, of various hues, which seemed to burn like so many lamps,
+and glowed with a hundred-fold radiance all through the vast
+apartment. And yet there was a kind of gloom in the midst of this
+enchanted light; nor was there a single object in the hall that was
+really agreeable to behold, except the little Proserpina herself, a
+lovely child, with one earthly flower which she had not let fall
+from her hand. It is my opinion that even King Pluto had never been
+happy in his palace, and that this was the true reason why he had
+stolen away Proserpina, in order that he might have something to
+love, instead of cheating his heart any longer with this tiresome
+magnificence. And, though he pretended to dislike the sunshine of
+the upper world, yet the effect of the child&rsquo;s presence,
+bedimmed as she was by her tears, was as if a faint and watery
+sunbeam had somehow or other found its way into the enchanted
+hall.</p>
+<p>Pluto now summoned his domestics, and bade them lose no time in
+preparing a most sumptuous banquet, and above all things, not to
+fail of setting a golden beaker of the water of Lethe by
+Proserpina&rsquo;s plate.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I will neither drink that nor anything else,&rdquo; said
+Proserpina. &ldquo;Nor will I taste a morsel of food, even if you
+keep me forever in your palace.&rdquo; on the seashore, she
+hastened thither as fast as she could, and there beheld the wet
+faces of the poor sea-nymphs peeping over a wave. All this while,
+the good creatures had been waiting on the bank of sponge, and once
+every half-minute or so, had popped up their four heads above
+water, to see if their playmate were yet coming back. When they saw
+Mother Ceres, they sat down on the crest of the surf wave, and let
+it toss them ashore at her feet.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Where is Proserpina?&rdquo; cried Ceres. &ldquo;Where is
+my child? Tell me, you naughty sea-nymphs, have you enticed her
+under the sea?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, no, good Mother Ceres,&rdquo; said the innocent
+sea-nymphs, tossing back their green ringlets, and looking her in
+the face. &ldquo;We never should dream of such a thing. Proserpina
+has been at play with us, it is true; but she left us a long while
+ago, meaning only to run a little way upon the dry land, and gather
+some flowers for a wreath. This was early in the day, and we have
+seen nothing of her since.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Ceres scarcely waited to hear what the nymphs had to say, before
+she hurried off to make inquiries all through the neighborhood. But
+nobody told her anything that could enable the poor mother to guess
+what had become of Proserpina. A fisherman, it is true, had noticed
+her little footprints in the sand, as he went homeward along the
+beach with a basket of fish; a rustic had seen the child stooping
+to gather flowers; several persons had heard either the rattling of
+chariot-wheels or the rumbling of distant thunder; and one old
+woman, while plucking vervain and catnip, had heard a scream, but
+supposed it to be some childish nonsense, and therefore did not
+take the trouble to look up. The stupid people! It took them such a
+tedious while to tell the nothing that they knew, that it was dark
+night before Mother Ceres found out that she must seek her daughter
+elsewhere. So she lighted a torch, and set forth, resolving never
+to come back until Proserpina was discovered.</p>
+<p>In her haste and trouble of mind, she quite forgot her car and
+the winged dragons; or, it may be, she thought that she could
+follow up the search more thoroughly on foot. At all events, this
+was the way in which she began her sorrowful journey, holding her
+torch before her, and looking carefully at every object along the
+path. And as it happened, she had not gone far before she found one
+of the magnificent flowers which grew on the shrub that Proserpina
+had pulled up.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ha!&rdquo; thought Mother Ceres, examining it by
+torchlight. &ldquo;Here is mischief in this flower! The earth did
+not produce it by any help of mine, nor of its own accord. It is
+the work of enchantment, and is therefore poisonous; and perhaps it
+has poisoned my poor child.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But she put the poisonous flower in her bosom, not knowing
+whether she might ever find any other memorial of Proserpina.</p>
+<p>All night long, at the door of every cottage and farmhouse,
+Ceres knocked, and called up the weary laborers to inquire if they
+had seen her child; and they stood, gaping and half asleep, at the
+threshold, and answered her pityingly, and besought her to come in
+and rest. At the portal of every palace, too, she made so loud a
+summons that the menials hurried to throw open the gate, thinking
+that it must be some great king or queen, who would demand a
+banquet for supper and a stately chamber to repose in. And when
+they saw only a sad and anxious woman, with a torch in her hand and
+a wreath of withered poppies on her head, they spoke rudely, and
+sometimes threatened to set the dogs upon her. But nobody had seen
+Proserpina, nor could give Mother Ceres the least hint which way to
+seek her. Thus passed the night; and still she continued her search
+without sitting down to rest, or stopping to take food, or even
+remembering to put down the torch; although first the rosy dawn,
+and then the glad light of the morning sun, made its red flame look
+thin and pale. But I wonder what sort of stuff this torch was made
+of; for it burned dimly through the day, and at night was as bright
+as ever, and never was extinguished by the rain or wind, in all the
+weary days and nights while Ceres was seeking for Proserpina.</p>
+<p>It was not merely of human beings that she asked tidings of her
+daughter. In the woods and by the streams, she met creatures of
+another nature, who used, in those old times, to haunt the pleasant
+and solitary places, and were very sociable with persons who
+understood their language and customs, as Mother Ceres did.
+Sometimes, for instance, she tapped with her finger against the
+knotted trunk of a majestic oak; and immediately its rude bark
+would cleave asunder, and forth would step a beautiful maiden, who
+was the hamadryad of the oak, dwelling inside of it, and sharing
+its long life, and rejoicing when its green leaves sported with the
+breeze. But not one of these leafy damsels had seen Proserpina.
+Then, going a little farther, Ceres would, perhaps, come to a
+fountain, gushing out of a pebbly hollow in the earth, and would
+dabble with her hand in the water. Behold, up through its sandy and
+pebbly bed, along with the fountain&rsquo;s gush, a young woman
+with dripping hair would arise, and stand gazing at Mother Ceres,
+half out of the water, and undulating up and down with its
+ever-restless motion. But when the mother asked whether her poor
+lost child had stopped to drink out of the fountain, the naiad,
+with weeping eyes (for these water-nymphs had tears to spare for
+everybody&rsquo;s grief), would answer, &ldquo;No!&rdquo; in a
+murmuring voice, which was just like the murmur of the stream.</p>
+<p>Often, likewise, she encountered fauns, who looked like sunburnt
+country people, except that they had hairy ears, and little horns
+upon their foreheads, and the hinder legs of goats, on which they
+gamboled merrily about the woods and fields. They were a frolicsome
+kind of creature, but grew as sad as their cheerful dispositions
+would allow when Ceres inquired for her daughter, and they had no
+good news to tell. But sometimes she came suddenly upon a rude gang
+of satyrs, who had faces like monkeys and horses&rsquo; tails
+behind them, and who were generally dancing in a very boisterous
+manner, with shouts of noisy laughter. When she stopped to question
+them, they would only laugh the louder, and make new merriment out
+of the lone woman&rsquo;s distress. How unkind of those ugly
+satyrs! And once, while crossing a solitary sheep pasture, she saw
+a personage named Pan, seated at the foot of a tall rock. And
+making music on a shepherd&rsquo;s flute. He, too, had horns and
+hairy ears, and goat&rsquo;s feet; but being acquainted with Mother
+Ceres, he answered her question as civilly as he knew how, and
+invited her to taste some milk and honey out of a wooden bowl. But
+neither could Pan tell her what had become of Proserpina, any
+better than the rest of these wild people.</p>
+<p>And thus Mother Ceres went wandering about for nine long days
+and nights, finding no trace of Proserpina, unless it were now and
+then a withered flower; and these, she picked up and put in her
+bosom, because she fancied that they might have fallen from her
+poor child&rsquo;s hand. All day she traveled onward through the
+hot sun; and at night, again, the flame of the torch would redden
+and gleam along the pathway, and she continued her search by its
+light, without ever sitting down to rest.</p>
+<p>On the tenth day, she chanced to espy the mouth of a cavern,
+within which (though it was bright noon everywhere else) there
+would have been only a dusky twilight: but it so happened that a
+torch was burning there. It flickered and struggled with the
+duskiness, but could not half light up the gloomy cavern with all
+its melancholy glimmer. Ceres was resolved to leave no spot without
+a search; so she peeped into the entrance of the cave, and lighted
+it up a little more by holding her own torch before her. In so
+doing, she caught a glimpse of what seemed to be a woman, sitting
+on the brown leaves of the last autumn, a great heap of which had
+been swept into the cave by the wind. This woman (if woman it were)
+was by no means so beautiful as many of her sex: for her head, they
+tell me, was shaped very much like a dog&rsquo;s, and, by way of
+ornament, she wore a wreath of snakes around it. But Mother Ceres,
+the moment she saw her, knew that this was an odd kind of a person,
+who put all her enjoyment in being miserable, and never would have
+a word to say to other people, unless they were as melancholy and
+wretched as she herself delighted to be.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I am wretched enough now,&rdquo; thought poor Ceres,
+&ldquo;to talk with this melancholy Hecate, were she ten times
+sadder than ever she was yet.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So she stepped into the cave, and sat down, on the withered
+leaves by the dog-headed woman&rsquo;s side. In all the world,
+since her daughter&rsquo;s loss, she had found no other
+companion.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;O Hecate.&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;if ever you lose a
+daughter, you will know what sorrow is. Tell me, for pity&rsquo;s
+sake, have you seen my poor child Proserpina pass by the mouth of
+your cavern?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;No.&rdquo; answered Hecate, in a cracked voice, and
+sighing betwixt every word or two.&mdash;&ldquo;no. Mother Ceres, I
+have seen nothing of your daughter. But my ears, you must know, are
+made in such a way that all cries of distress and affright, all
+over the world, are pretty sure to find their way to them: and nine
+days ago, as I sat in my cave, making myself very miserable. I
+heard the voice of a young girl, shrieking as if in great distress.
+Something terrible has happened to the child, you may rest assured.
+As well as I could judge, a dragon, or some other cruel monster,
+was carrying her away.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You kill me by saying so,&rdquo; cried Ceres, almost
+ready to faint. &ldquo;Where was the sound, and which way did it
+seem to go?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It passed very swiftly along,&rdquo; said Hecate,
+&ldquo;and, at the same time, there was a heavy rumbling of wheels
+towards the eastward. I can tell you nothing more, except that, in
+my honest opinion, you will never see your daughter again. The best
+advice I can give you is to take up your abode in this cavern,
+where we will be the two most wretched women in the
+world.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Not yet, dark Hecate.&rdquo; replied Ceres, &ldquo;But do
+you first come with your torch, and help me to seek for my lost
+child. And when there shall be no more hope of finding her (if that
+black day is ordained to come), then, if you will give me room to
+fling myself down, either on these withered leaves or on the naked
+rock, I will show you what it is to be miserable. But until I know
+that she has perished from the face of the earth, I will not allow
+myself space even to grieve.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The dismal Hecate did not much like the idea of going abroad
+into the sunny world. But then she reflected that the sorrow of the
+disconsolate Ceres would be like a gloomy twilight round about them
+both, let the sun shine ever so brightly, and that therefore she
+might enjoy her bad spirits quite as well as if she were to stay in
+the cave. So she finally consented to go, and they set out
+together, both carrying torches, although it was broad daylight and
+clear sunshine. The torchlight seemed to make a gloom; so that the
+people whom they met along the road could not very distinctly see
+their figures; and, indeed, if they once caught a glimpse of
+Hecate, with the wreath of snakes round her forehead, they
+generally thought it prudent to run away, without waiting for a
+second glance.</p>
+<p>As the pair traveled along in this woebegone manner, a thought
+struck Ceres.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;There is one person.&rdquo; she exclaimed, &ldquo;who
+must have seen my poor child, and can doubtless tell what has
+become of her. Why did not I think of him before? It is
+Ph&oelig;bus.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What,&rdquo; said Hecate, &ldquo;the young man that
+always sits in the sunshine? Oh, pray do not think of going near
+him. He is a gay, light, frivolous young fellow, and will only
+smile in your face. And besides, there is such a glare of the sun
+about him, that he will quite blind my poor eyes, which I have
+almost wept away already.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You have promised to be my companion,&rdquo; answered
+Ceres. &ldquo;Come, let us make haste, or the sunshine will be
+gone, and Ph&oelig;bus along with it.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Accordingly, they went along in quest of Ph&oelig;bus, both of
+them, sighing grievously, and Hecate, to say the truth, making a
+great deal worse lamentation than Ceres; for all the pleasure she
+had, you know, lay in being miserable, and therefore she made the
+most of it. By and by, after a pretty long journey, they arrived at
+the sunniest spot in the whole world. There they beheld a beautiful
+young man, with long, curling ringlets, which seemed to be made of
+golden sunbeams; his garments were like light summer clouds; and
+the expression of his face was so exceedingly vivid, that Hecate
+held her hands before her eyes, muttering that he ought to wear a
+black veil. Ph&oelig;bus (for this was the very person whom they
+were seeking) had a lyre in his hands, and was making its chords
+tremble with sweet music; at the same time singing a most exquisite
+song, which he had recently composed. For besides a great many
+other accomplishments, this young man was renowned for his
+admirable poetry.</p>
+<p>As Ceres and her dismal companion approached him, Ph&oelig;bus
+smiled on them so cheerfully that Hecate&rsquo;s wreath of snakes
+gave a spiteful hiss, and Hecate heartily wished herself back in
+her cave. But as for Ceres, she was too earnest in her grief either
+to know or care whether Ph&oelig;bus smiled or frowned.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ph&oelig;bus!&rdquo; exclaimed she, &ldquo;I am in great
+trouble, and have come to you for assistance. Can you tell me what
+has become of my dear child Proserpina?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Proserpina! Proserpina, did you call her name?&rdquo;
+answered Ph&oelig;bus, endeavoring to recollect; for there was such
+a continual flow of pleasant ideas in his mind that he was apt to
+forget what had happened no longer ago than yesterday. &ldquo;Ah,
+yes, I remember her now. A very lovely child, indeed. I am happy to
+tell you, my dear madam, that I did see the little Proserpina not
+many days ago. You may make yourself perfectly easy about her. She
+is safe, and in excellent hands.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, where is my dear child?&rdquo; cried Ceres, clasping
+her hands and flinging herself at his feet.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Why,&rdquo; said Ph&oelig;bus,&mdash;and as he spoke, he
+kept touching his lyre so as to make a thread of music run in and
+out among his words,&mdash;&ldquo;as the little damsel was
+gathering flowers (and she has really a very exquisite taste for
+flowers) she was suddenly snatched up by King Pluto, and carried
+off to his dominions. I have never been in that part of the
+universe; but the royal palace, I am told, is built in a very noble
+style of architecture, and of the most splendid and costly
+materials. Gold, diamonds, pearls, and all manner of precious
+stones will be your daughter&rsquo;s ordinary playthings. I
+recommend to you, my dear lady, to give yourself no uneasiness.
+Proserpina&rsquo;s sense of beauty will be duly gratified, and,
+even in spite of the lack of sunshine, she will lead a very
+enviable life.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Hush! Say not such a word!&rdquo; answered Ceres
+indignantly. &ldquo;What is there to gratify her heart? What are
+all the splendors you speak of, without affection? I must have her
+back again. Will you go with me, Ph&oelig;bus, to demand my
+daughter of this wicked Pluto?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Pray excuse me,&rdquo; replied Ph&oelig;bus, with an
+elegant obeisance. &ldquo;I certainly wish you success, and regret
+that my own affairs are so immediately pressing that I cannot have
+the pleasure of attending you. Besides, I am not upon the best of
+terms with King Pluto. To tell you the truth, his three-headed
+mastiff would never let me pass the gateway; for I should be
+compelled to take a sheaf of sunbeams along with me, and those, you
+know, are forbidden things in Pluto&rsquo;s kingdom.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah, Ph&oelig;bus,&rdquo; said Ceres, with bitter meaning
+in her words, &ldquo;you have a harp instead of a heart.
+Farewell.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Will not you stay a moment,&rdquo; asked Ph&oelig;bus,
+&ldquo;and hear me turn the pretty and touching story of Proserpina
+into extemporary verses?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Ceres shook her head, and hastened away, along with Hecate.
+Ph&oelig;bus (who, as I have told you, was an exquisite poet)
+forthwith began to make an ode about the poor mother&rsquo;s grief;
+and, if we were to judge of his sensibility by this beautiful
+production, he must have been endowed with a very tender heart. But
+when a poet gets into the habit of using his heartstrings to make
+chords for his lyre, he may thrum upon them as much as he will,
+without any great pain to himself. Accordingly, though Ph&oelig;bus
+sang a very sad song, he was as merry all the while as were the
+sunbeams amid which he dwelt.</p>
+<p>Poor Mother Ceres had now found out what had become of her
+daughter, but was not a whit happier than before. Her case, on the
+contrary, looked more desperate than ever. As long as Proserpina
+was above ground there might have been hopes of regaining her. But
+now that the poor child was shut up within the iron gates of the
+king of the mines, at the threshold of which lay the three-headed
+Cerberus, there seemed no possibility of her ever making her
+escape. The dismal Hecate, who loved to take the darkest view of
+things, told Ceres that she had better come with her to the cavern,
+and spend the rest of her life in being miserable. Ceres answered
+that Hecate was welcome to go back thither herself, but that, for
+her part, she would wander about the earth in quest of the entrance
+to King Pluto&rsquo;s dominions. And Hecate took her at her word,
+and hurried back to her beloved cave, frightening a great many
+little children with a glimpse of her dog&rsquo;s face, as she
+went.</p>
+<p>Poor Mother Ceres! It is melancholy to think of her, pursuing
+her toilsome way all alone, and holding up that never-dying torch,
+the flame of which seemed an emblem of the grief and hope that
+burned together in her heart. So much did she suffer, that, though
+her aspect had been quite youthful when her troubles began, she
+grew to look like an elderly person in a very brief time. She cared
+not how she was dressed, nor had she ever thought of flinging away
+the wreath of withered poppies, which she put on the very morning
+of Proserpina&rsquo;s disappearance. She roamed about in so wild a
+way, and with her hair so dishevelled, that people took her for
+some distracted creature, and never dreamed that this was Mother
+Ceres, who had the oversight of every seed which the husbandman
+planted. Nowadays, however, she gave herself no trouble about
+seed-time nor harvest, but left the farmers to take care of their
+own affairs, and the crops to fade or flourish, as the case might
+be. There was nothing, now, in which Ceres seemed to feel an
+interest, unless when she saw children at play or gathering flowers
+along the wayside. Then, indeed, she would stand and gaze at them
+with tears in her eyes. The children, too, appeared to have a
+sympathy with her grief, and would cluster themselves in a little
+group about her knees, and look up wistfully in her face; and
+Ceres, after giving them a kiss all around, would lead them to
+their homes, and advise their mothers never to let them stray out
+of sight.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;For if you do,&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;it may happen to
+you, as it has to me, that the iron-hearted King Pluto will take a
+liking to your darlings, and snatch them up in his chariot, and
+carry them away.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>One day, during her pilgrimage in quest of the entrance to
+Pluto&rsquo;s kingdom, she came to the palace of King Celeus, who
+reigned at Eleusis. Ascending a lofty flight of steps, she entered
+the portal, and found the royal household in very great alarm about
+the queen&rsquo;s baby. The infant, it seems, was sickly (being
+troubled with its teeth, I suppose), and would take no food, and
+was all the time moaning with pain. The queen&mdash;her name was
+Metanira&mdash;was desirous of finding a nurse; and when she beheld
+a woman of matronly aspect coming up the palace steps, she thought,
+in her own mind that here was the very person whom she needed. So
+Queen Metanira ran to the door, with the poor wailing baby in her
+arms, and besought Ceres to take charge of it, or, at least, to
+tell her what would do it good.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Will you trust the child entirely to me?&rdquo; asked
+Ceres.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, and gladly too,&rdquo; answered the queen, &ldquo;if
+you will devote all your time to him. For I can see that you have
+been a mother.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You are right,&rdquo; said Ceres. &ldquo;I once had a
+child of my own. Well, I will be the nurse of this poor, sickly
+boy. But beware, I warn you, that you do not interfere with any
+kind of treatment which I may judge proper for him. If you do so,
+the poor infant must suffer for his mother&rsquo;s
+folly.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then she kissed the child, and it seemed to do him good, for he
+smiled and nestled closely into her bosom.</p>
+<p>So Mother Ceres set her torch in a corner (where it kept burning
+all the while), and took up her abode in the palace of King Celeus,
+as nurse to the little Prince Demoph&ouml;on. She treated him as if
+he were her own child, and allowed neither the king nor the queen
+to say whether he should be bathed in warm or cold water, or what
+he should eat, or how often he should take the air, or when he
+should be put to bed. You would hardly believe me, if I were to
+tell how quickly the baby prince got rid of his ailments, and grew
+fat, and rosy, and strong, and how he had two rows of ivory teeth
+in less time than any other little fellow, before or since. Instead
+of the palest, and wretchedest, and puniest imp in the world (as
+his own mother confessed him to be when Ceres first took him in
+charge), he was now a strapping baby, crowing, laughing, kicking up
+his heels, and rolling from one end of the room to the other. All
+the good women of the neighborhood crowded to the palace, and held
+up their hands, in unutterable amazement, at the beauty and
+wholesomeness of this darling little prince. Their wonder was the
+greater, because he was never seen to taste any food,&mdash;not
+even so much as a cup of milk.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Pray, nurse,&rdquo; the queen kept saying, &ldquo;how is
+it that you make the child thrive so?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I was a mother once,&rdquo; Ceres replied always;
+&ldquo;and having nursed my own child, I know what other children
+need.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Queen Metanira, as was very natural, had a great curiosity
+to know precisely what the nurse did to her child. One night,
+therefore, she hid herself in the chamber where Ceres and the
+little prince were accustomed to sleep. There was a fire in the
+chimney, and it had now crumbled into great coals and embers, which
+lay glowing on the hearth, with a blaze flickering up now and then,
+and flinging a warm and ruddy light upon the walls. Ceres sat
+before the hearth with the child in her lap, and the firelight
+making her shadow dance upon the ceiling overhead. She undressed
+the little prince, and bathed him all over with some fragrant
+liquid out of a vase. The next thing she did was to rake back the
+red embers, and make a hollow place among them, just where the
+backlog had been. At last, while the baby was crowing and clapping
+its fat little hands, and laughing in the nurse&rsquo;s face (just
+as you may have seen your little brother or sister do before going
+into its warm bath), Ceres suddenly laid him, all naked as he was,
+in the hollow, among the red-hot embers. She then raked the ashes
+over him, and turned quietly away.</p>
+<p>You may imagine, if you can, how Queen Metanira shrieked,
+thinking nothing less than that her dear child would be burned to a
+cinder. She burst forth from her hiding-place, and running to the
+hearth, raked open the fire, and snatched up poor little Prince
+Demoph&ouml;on out of his bed of live coals, one of which he was
+griping in each of his fists. He immediately set up a grievous cry,
+as babies are apt to do when rudely startled out of a sound sleep.
+To the queen&rsquo;s astonishment and joy, she could perceive no
+token of the child&rsquo;s being injured by the hot fire in which
+he had lain. She now turned to Mother Ceres, and asked her to
+explain the mystery.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Foolish woman,&rdquo; answered Ceres, &ldquo;did you not
+promise to intrust this poor infant entirely to me? You little know
+the mischief you have done him. Had you left him to my care, he
+would have grown up like a child of celestial birth, endowed with
+superhuman strength and intelligence, and would have lived forever.
+Do you imagine that earthly children are to become immortal without
+being tempered to it in the fiercest heat of the fire? But you have
+ruined your own son. For though he will be a strong man and a hero
+in his day, yet, on account of your folly, he will grow old, and
+finally die, like the sons of other women. The weak tenderness of
+his mother has cost the poor boy an immortality.
+Farewell.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Saying these words, she kissed the little prince Demoph&ouml;on,
+and sighed to think what he had lost, and took her departure
+without heeding Queen Metanira, who entreated her to remain, and
+cover up the child among the hot embers as often as she pleased.
+Poor baby! He never slept so warmly again.</p>
+<p>While she dwelt in the king&rsquo;s palace, Mother Ceres had
+been so continually occupied with taking care of the young prince,
+that her heart was a little lightened of its grief for Proserpina.
+But now, having nothing else to busy herself about, she became just
+as wretched as before. At length, in her despair, she came to the
+dreadful resolution that not a stalk of grain, nor a blade of
+grass, not a potato, nor a turnip, nor any other vegetable that was
+good for man or beast to eat, should be suffered to grow until her
+daughter were restored. She even forbade the flowers to bloom, lest
+somebody&rsquo;s heart should be cheered by their beauty.</p>
+<p>Now, as not so much as a head of asparagus ever presumed to poke
+itself out of the ground, without the especial permission of Ceres,
+you may conceive what a terrible calamity had here fallen upon the
+earth. The husbandmen ploughed and planted as usual; but there lay
+the rich black furrows, all as barren as a desert of sand. The
+pastures looked as brown in the sweet month of June as ever they
+did in chill November. The rich man&rsquo;s broad acres and the
+cottager&rsquo;s small garden-patch were equally blighted. Every
+little girl&rsquo;s flower-bed showed nothing but dry stalks. The
+old people shook their white heads, and said that the earth had
+grown aged like themselves, and was no longer capable of wearing
+the warm smile of summer on its face. It was really piteous to see
+the poor starving cattle and sheep, how they followed behind Ceres,
+lowing and bleating, as if their instinct taught them to expect
+help from her; and everybody that was acquainted with her power
+besought her to have mercy on the human race, and, at all events,
+to let the grass grow. But Mother Ceres, though naturally of an
+affectionate disposition, was now inexorable.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Never,&rdquo; said she. &ldquo;If the earth is ever again
+to see any verdure, it must first grow along the path which my
+daughter will tread in coming back to me.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Finally, as there seemed to be no other remedy, our old friend
+Quicksilver was sent post haste to King Pluto, in hopes that he
+might be persuaded to undo the mischief he had done, and to set
+everything right again, by giving up Proserpina. Quicksilver
+accordingly made the best of his way to the great gate, took a
+flying leap right over the three-headed mastiff, and stood at the
+door of the palace in an inconceivably short time. The servants
+knew him both by his face and garb; for his short cloak and his
+winged cap and shoes and his snaky staff had often been seen
+thereabouts in times gone by. He requested to be shown immediately
+into the king&rsquo;s presence; and Pluto, who heard his voice from
+the top of the stairs, and who loved to recreate himself with
+Quicksilver&rsquo;s merry talk, called out to him to come up. And
+while they settle their business together, we must inquire what
+Proserpina has been doing ever since we saw her last.</p>
+<p>The child had declared, as you may remember, that she would not
+taste a mouthful of food as long as she should be compelled to
+remain in King Pluto&rsquo;s palace. How she contrived to maintain
+her resolution, and at the same time to keep herself tolerably
+plump and rosy, is more than I can explain; but some young ladies,
+I am given to understand, possess the faculty of living on air, and
+Proserpina seems to have possessed it too. At any rate, it was now
+six months since she left the outside of the earth; and not a
+morsel, so far as the attendants were able to testify, had yet
+passed between her teeth. This was the more creditable to
+Proserpina, inasmuch as King Pluto had caused her to be tempted day
+after day, with all manner of sweetmeats, and richly preserved
+fruits, and delicacies of every sort, such as young people are
+generally most fond of. But her good mother had often told her of
+the hurtfulness of these things; and for that reason alone, if
+there had been no other, she would have resolutely refused to taste
+them.</p>
+<p>All this time, being of a cheerful and active disposition, the
+little damsel was not quite so unhappy as you may have supposed.
+The immense palace had a thousand rooms, and was full of beautiful
+and wonderful objects. There was a never-ceasing gloom, it is true,
+which half hid itself among the innumerable pillars, gliding before
+the child as she wandered among them, and treading stealthily
+behind her in the echo of her footsteps. Neither was all the dazzle
+of the precious stones, which flamed with their own light, worth
+one gleam of natural sunshine; nor could the most brilliant of the
+many-colored gems which Proserpina had for playthings vie with the
+simple beauty of the flowers she used to gather. But still,
+wherever the girl went, among those gilded halls and chambers, it
+seemed as if she carried nature and sunshine along with her, and as
+if she scattered dewy blossoms on her right hand and on her left.
+After Proserpina came, the palace was no longer the same abode of
+stately artifice and dismal magnificence that it had before been.
+The inhabitants all felt this, and King Pluto more than any of
+them.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;My own little Proserpina,&rdquo; he used to say, &ldquo;I
+wish you could like me a little better. We gloomy and
+cloudy-natured persons have often as warm hearts at bottom as those
+of a more cheerful character. If you would only stay with me of
+your own accord, it would make me happier than the possession of a
+hundred such palaces as this.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah,&rdquo; said Proserpina, &ldquo;you should have tried
+to make me like you before carrying me off. And the best thing you
+can do now is to let me go again. Then I might remember you
+sometimes, and think that you were as kind as you knew how to be.
+Perhaps, too, one day or other, I might come back, and pay you a
+visit.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;No, no,&rdquo; answered Pluto, with his gloomy smile,
+&ldquo;I will not trust you for that. You are too fond of living in
+the broad daylight, and gathering flowers. What an idle and
+childish taste that is! Are not these gems, which I have ordered to
+be dug for you, and which are richer than any in my
+crown,&mdash;are they not prettier than a violet?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Not half so pretty,&rdquo; said Proserpina, snatching the
+gems from Pluto&rsquo;s hand, and flinging them to the other end of
+the hall. &ldquo;Oh, my sweet violets, shall I never see you
+again?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And then she burst into tears. But young people&rsquo;s tears
+have very little saltness or acidity in them, and do not inflame
+the eyes so much as those of grown persons; so that it is not to be
+wondered at if, a few moments afterwards, Proserpina was sporting
+through the hall almost as merrily as she and the four sea-nymphs
+had sported along the edge of the surf wave, King Pluto gazed after
+her, and wished that he, too was a child. And little Proserpina,
+when she turned about, and beheld this great king standing in his
+splendid hall, and looking so grand, and so melancholy, and so
+lonesome, was smitten with a kind of pity. She ran back to him,
+and, for the first time in all her life, put her small, soft hand
+in his.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I love you a little,&rdquo; whispered she, looking up in
+his face.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Do you, indeed, my dear child?&rdquo; cried Pluto,
+bending his dark face down to kiss her; but Proserpina shrank away
+from the kiss, for though his features were noble, they were very
+dusky and grim. &ldquo;Well, I have not deserved it of you, after
+keeping you a prisoner for so many months, and starving you,
+besides. Are you not terribly hungry? Is there nothing which I can
+get you to eat?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>In asking this question, the king of the mines had a very
+cunning purpose; for, you will recollect, if Proserpina tasted a
+morsel of food in his dominions, she would never afterwards be at
+liberty to quit them.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;No, indeed,&rdquo; said Proserpina. &ldquo;Your head cook
+is always baking, and stewing, and roasting, and rolling out paste,
+and contriving one dish or another, which he imagines may be to my
+liking. But he might just as well save himself the trouble, poor,
+fat little man that he is. I have no appetite for anything in the
+world, unless it were a slice of bread of my mother&rsquo;s own
+baking, or a little fruit out of her garden.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>When Pluto heard this, he began to see that he had mistaken the
+best method of tempting Proserpina to eat. The cook&rsquo;s made
+dishes and artificial dainties were not half so delicious, in the
+good child&rsquo;s opinion, as the simple fare to which Mother
+Ceres had accustomed her. Wondering that he had never thought of it
+before, the king now sent one of his trusty attendants, with a
+large basket, to get some of the finest and juiciest pears,
+peaches, and plums which could anywhere be found in the upper
+world. Unfortunately, however, this was during the time when Ceres
+had forbidden any fruits or vegetables to grow; and, after seeking
+all over the earth, King Pluto&rsquo;s servants found only a single
+pomegranate, and that so dried up as to be not worth eating.
+Nevertheless, since there was no better to be had, he brought this
+dry, old, withered pomegranate home to the palace, put it on a
+magnificent golden salver, and carried it up to Proserpina. Now it
+happened, curiously enough, that, just as the servant was bringing
+the pomegranate into the back door of the palace, our friend
+Quicksilver had gone up the front steps, on his errand to get
+Proserpina away from King Pluto.</p>
+<p>As soon as Proserpina saw the pomegranate on the golden salver,
+she told the servant he had better take it away again.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I shall not touch it, I assure you,&rdquo; said she.
+&ldquo;If I were ever so hungry, I should never think of eating
+such a miserable, dry pomegranate as that.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It is the only one in the world,&rdquo; said the
+servant.</p>
+<p>He set down the golden salver, with the wizened pomegranate upon
+it, and left the room. When he was gone, Proserpina could not help
+coming close to the table, and looking at this poor specimen of
+dried fruit with a great deal of eagerness; for, to say the truth,
+on seeing something that suited her taste, she felt all the six
+months&rsquo; appetite taking possession of her at once. To be
+sure, it was a very wretched-looking pomegranate, and seemed to
+have no more juice in it than an oyster-shell. But there was no
+choice of such things in King Pluto&rsquo;s palace. This was the
+first fruit she had seen there, and the last she was ever likely to
+see; and unless she ate it up immediately, it would grow drier than
+it already was, and be wholly unfit to eat.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;At least, I may smell it,&rdquo; thought Proserpina.</p>
+<p>So she took up the pomegranate, and applied it to her nose; and,
+somehow or other, being in such close neighborhood to her mouth,
+the fruit found its way into that little red cave. Dear me! what an
+everlasting pity! Before Proserpina knew what she was about, her
+teeth had actually bitten it, of their own accord. Just as this
+fatal deed was done, the door of the apartment opened, and in came
+King Pluto, followed by Quicksilver, who had been urging him to let
+his little prisoner go. At the first noise of their entrance,
+Proserpina withdrew the pomegranate from her mouth. But Quicksilver
+(whose eyes were very keen, and his wits the sharpest that ever
+anybody had) perceived that the child was a little confused; and
+seeing the empty salver, he suspected that she had been taking a
+sly nibble of something or other. As for honest Pluto, he never
+guessed at the secret.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;My little Proserpina,&rdquo; said the king, sitting down,
+and affectionately drawing her between his knees, &ldquo;here is
+Quicksilver, who tells me that a great many misfortunes have
+befallen innocent people on account of my detaining you in my
+dominions. To confess the truth, I myself had already reflected
+that it was an unjustifiable act to take you away from your good
+mother. But, then, you must consider, my dear child, that this vast
+palace is apt to be gloomy (although the precious stones certainly
+shine very bright), and that I am not of the most cheerful
+disposition, and that therefore it was a natural thing enough to
+seek for the society of some merrier creature than myself. I hoped
+you would take my crown for a plaything, and me&mdash;ah, you
+laugh, naughty Proserpina&mdash;me, grim as I am, for a playmate.
+It was a silly expectation.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Not so extremely silly,&rdquo; whispered Proserpina.
+&ldquo;You have really amused me very much, sometimes.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Thank you,&rdquo; said King Pluto, rather dryly.
+&ldquo;But I can see, plainly enough, that you think my palace a
+dusky prison, and me the iron-hearted keeper of it. And an iron
+heart I should surely have, if I could detain you here any longer,
+my poor child, when it is now six months since you tasted food. I
+give you your liberty. Go with Quicksilver. Hasten home to your
+dear mother.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Now, although you may not have supposed it, Proserpina found it
+impossible to take leave of poor King Pluto without some regrets,
+and a good deal of compunction for not telling him about the
+pomegranate. She even shed a tear or two, thinking how lonely and
+cheerless the great palace would seem to him, with all its ugly
+glare of artificial light, after she herself,&mdash;his one little
+ray of natural sunshine, whom he had stolen, to be sure, but only
+because he valued her so much,&mdash;after she should have
+departed. I know not how many kind things she might have said to
+the disconsolate king of the mines, had not Quicksilver hurried her
+away.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Come along quickly,&rdquo; whispered he in her ear,
+&ldquo;or his majesty may change his royal mind. And take care,
+above all things, that you say nothing of what was brought you on
+the golden salver.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>In a very short time, they had passed the great gateway (leaving
+the three-headed Cerberus, barking and yelping, and growling, with
+threefold din, behind them), and emerged upon the surface of the
+earth. It was delightful to behold, as Proserpina hastened along,
+how the path grew verdant behind and on either side of her.
+Wherever she set her blessed foot, there was at once a dewy flower.
+The violets gushed up along the wayside. The grass and the grain
+began to sprout with tenfold vigor and luxuriance, to make up for
+the dreary months that had been wasted in barrenness. The starved
+cattle immediately set to work grazing, after their long fast, and
+ate enormously all day, and got up at midnight to eat more. But I
+can assure you it was a busy time of year with the farmers, when
+they found the summer coming upon them with such a rush. Nor must I
+forget to say that all the birds in the whole world hopped about
+upon the newly blossoming trees, and sang together in a prodigious
+ecstasy of joy.</p>
+<p>Mother Ceres had returned to her deserted home, and was sitting
+disconsolately on the doorstep, with her torch burning in her hand.
+She had been idly watching the flame for some moments past, when,
+all at once, it flickered and went out.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What does this mean?&rdquo; thought she. &ldquo;It was an
+enchanted torch, and should have kept burning till my child came
+back.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Lifting her eyes, she was surprised to see a sudden verdure
+flashing over the brown and barren fields, exactly as you may have
+observed a golden hue gleaming far and wide across the landscape,
+from the just risen sun.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Does the earth disobey me?&rdquo; exclaimed Mother Ceres
+indignantly. &ldquo;Does it presume to be green, when I have bidden
+it be barren until my daughter shall be restored to my
+arms?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Then open your arms, dear mother,&rdquo; cried a
+well-known voice, &ldquo;and take your little daughter into
+them.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Proserpina came running, and flung herself upon her
+mother&rsquo;s bosom. Their mutual transport is not to be
+described. The grief of their separation had caused both of them to
+shed a great many tears; and now they shed a great many more,
+because their joy could not so well express itself in any other
+way.</p>
+<p>When their hearts had grown a little more quiet, Mother Ceres
+looked anxiously at Proserpina.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;My child,&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;did you taste any food
+while you were in King Pluto&rsquo;s palace?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Dearest mother,&rdquo; answered Proserpina. &ldquo;I will
+tell you the whole truth. Until this very morning, not a morsel of
+food had passed my lips. But to-day, they brought me a pomegranate
+(a very dry one it was, and all shriveled up, till there was little
+left of it but seeds and skin), and having seen no fruit for so
+long a time, and being faint with hunger, I was tempted just to
+bite it. The instant I tasted it, King Pluto and Quicksilver came
+into the room. I had not swallowed a morsel; but&mdash;dear mother,
+I hope it was no harm&mdash;but six of the pomegranate seeds, I am
+afraid, remained in my mouth.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah, unfortunate child, and miserable me!&rdquo; exclaimed
+Ceres. &ldquo;For each of those six pomegranate seeds you must
+spend one month of each year in King Pluto&rsquo;s palace. You are
+but half restored to your mother. Only six months with me, and six
+with that good-for-nothing King of Darkness!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Do not speak so harshly of poor King Pluto,&rdquo; said
+Proserpina, kissing her mother. &ldquo;He has some very good
+qualities, and I really think I can bear to spend six months in his
+palace, if he will only let me spend the other six with you. He
+certainly did very wrong to carry me off; but then, as he says, it
+was but a dismal sort of life for him, to live in that great gloomy
+place, all alone; and it has made a wonderful change in his spirits
+to have a little girl to run up stairs and down. There is some
+comfort in making him so happy; and so, upon the whole, dearest
+mother, let us be thankful that he is not to keep me the whole year
+round.&rdquo;</p>
+<h2><a id="FolkStories" name="FolkStories">OLD GREEK
+FOLK-STORIES</a></h2>
+<h3><a id="Orpheus" name="Orpheus">Orpheus and Eurydice</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Josephine Preston Peabody</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>When gods and shepherds piped and the stars sang, that was the
+day of musicians! But the triumph of Ph&oelig;bus Apollo himself
+was not so wonderful as the triumph of a mortal man who lived on
+earth, though some say that he came of divine lineage. This was
+Orpheus, that best of harpers, who went with the Grecian heroes of
+the great ship Argo in search of the Golden Fleece.</p>
+<p>After his return from the quest, he won Eurydice for his wife,
+and they were as happy as people can be who love each other and
+every one else. The very wild beasts loved them, and the trees
+clustered about their home as if they were watered with music. But
+even the gods themselves were not always free from sorrow, and one
+day misfortune came upon that harper Orpheus whom all men loved to
+honor.</p>
+<p>Eurydice, his lovely wife, as she was wandering with the nymphs,
+unwittingly trod upon a serpent in the grass. Surely, if Orpheus
+had been with her, playing upon his lyre, no creature could have
+harmed her. But Orpheus came too late. She died of the sting, and
+was lost to him in the Underworld.</p>
+<p>For days he wandered from his home, singing the story of his
+loss and his despair to the helpless passers-by. His grief moved
+the very stones in the wilderness, and roused a dumb distress in
+the hearts of savage beasts. Even the gods on Mount Olympus gave
+ear, but they held no power over the darkness of Hades.</p>
+<p>Wherever Orpheus wandered with his lyre, no one had the will to
+forbid him entrance; and at length he found unguarded that very
+cave that leads to the Underworld, where Pluto rules the spirits of
+the dead. He went down without fear. The fire in his living heart
+found him a way through the gloom of that place. He crossed the
+Styx, the black river that the Gods name as their most sacred oath.
+Charon, the harsh old ferryman who takes the shades across, forgot
+to ask of him the coin that every soul must pay. For Orpheus sang.
+There in the Underworld the song of Apollo would not have moved the
+poor ghosts so much. It would have amazed them, like a star far off
+that no one understands. But here was a human singer, and he sang
+of things that grow in every human heart, youth and love and death,
+the sweetness of the Earth, and the bitterness of losing aught that
+is dear to us.</p>
+<p>Now the dead, when they go to the Underworld, drink of the pool
+of Lethe; and forgetfulness of all that has passed comes upon them
+like a sleep, and they lose their longing for the world, they lose
+their memory of pain, and live content with that cool twilight. But
+not the pool of Lethe itself could withstand the song of Orpheus;
+and in the hearts of the shades all the old dreams awoke wondering.
+They remembered once more the life of men on earth, the glory of
+the sun and moon, the sweetness of new grass, the warmth of their
+homes, all the old joy and grief that they had known. And they
+wept.</p>
+<p>Even the Furies were moved to pity. Those, too, who were
+suffering punishment for evil deeds ceased to be tormented for
+themselves, and grieved only for the innocent Orpheus who had lost
+Eurydice. Sisyphus, that fraudulent king (who is doomed to roll a
+monstrous boulder uphill forever), stopped to listen. The daughters
+of Danaus left off their task of drawing water in a sieve. Tantalus
+forgot hunger and thirst, though before his eyes hung magical
+fruits that were wont to vanish out of his grasp, and just beyond
+reach bubbled the water that was a torment to his ears; he did not
+hear it while Orpheus sang.</p>
+<p>So, among a crowd of eager ghosts, Orpheus came, singing with
+all his heart, before the king and queen of Hades. And the queen
+Proserpina wept as she listened and grew homesick, remembering the
+fields of Enna and the growing of the wheat, and her own beautiful
+mother, Demeter. Then Pluto gave way.</p>
+<p>They called Eurydice and she came, like a young guest unused to
+the darkness of the Underworld. She was to return with Orpheus, but
+on one condition. If he turned to look at her once before they
+reached the upper air, he must lose her again and go back to the
+world alone.</p>
+<p>Rapt with joy, the happy Orpheus hastened on the way, thinking
+only of Eurydice, who was following him. Past Lethe, across the
+Styx they went, he and his lovely wife, still silent as a shade.
+But the place was full of gloom, the silence weighed upon him, he
+had not seen her for so long; her footsteps made no sound; and he
+could hardly believe the miracle, for Pluto seldom relents. When
+the first gleam of upper daylight broke through the cleft to the
+dismal world, he forgot all, save that he must know if she still
+followed. He turned to see her face, and the promise was
+broken!</p>
+<p>She smiled at him forgivingly, but it was too late. He stretched
+out his arms to take her, but she faded from them, as the bright
+snow, that none may keep, melts in our very hands. A murmur of
+farewell came to his ears,&mdash;no more. She was gone.</p>
+<p>He would have followed, but Charon, now on guard, drove him
+back. Seven days he lingered there between the worlds of life and
+death, but after the broken promise Hades would not listen to his
+song. Back to the earth he wandered, though it was sweet to him no
+longer. He died young, singing to the last, and round about the
+place where his body rested, nightingales nested in the trees. His
+lyre was set among the stars; and he himself went down to join
+Eurydice, unforbidden.</p>
+<p>Those two had no need of Lethe, for their life on earth had been
+wholly fair, and now that they are together they no longer own a
+sorrow.</p>
+<h3><a id="Icarus" name="Icarus">Icarus and D&aelig;dalus</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Josephine Preston Peabody</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Among all those mortals who grew so wise that they learned the
+secrets of the gods, none was more cunning than D&aelig;dalus.</p>
+<p>He once built, for King Minos of Crete, a wonderful Labyrinth of
+winding ways so cunningly tangled up and twisted around that, once
+inside, you could never find your way out again without a magic
+clue. But the king&rsquo;s favor veered with the wind, and one day
+he had his master architect imprisoned in a tower. D&aelig;dalus
+managed to escape from his cell; but it seemed impossible to leave
+the island, since every ship that came or went was well guarded by
+order of the king.</p>
+<p>At length, watching the sea-gulls in the air,&mdash;the only
+creatures that were sure of liberty,&mdash;he thought of a plan for
+himself and his young son Icarus, who was captive with him.</p>
+<p>Little by little, he gathered a store of feathers great and
+small. He fastened these together with thread, moulded them in with
+wax, and so fashioned two great wings like those of a bird. When
+they were done, D&aelig;dalus fitted them to his own shoulders, and
+after one or two efforts, he found that by waving his arms he could
+winnow the air and cleave it, as a swimmer does the sea. He held
+himself aloft, wavered this way and that, with the wind, and at
+last, like a great fledgling, he learned to fly.</p>
+<p>Without delay, he fell to work on a pair of wings for the boy
+Icarus, and taught him carefully how to use them, bidding him
+beware of rash adventures among the stars. &ldquo;Remember,&rdquo;
+said the father, &ldquo;never to fly very low or very high, for the
+fogs about the earth would weigh you down, but the blaze of the sun
+will surely melt your feathers apart if you go too near.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>For Icarus, these cautions went in at one ear and out by the
+other. Who could remember to be careful when he was to fly for the
+first time? Are birds careful? Not they! And not an idea remained
+in the boy&rsquo;s head but the one joy of escape.</p>
+<p>The day came, and the fair wind that was to set them free. The
+father bird put on his wings, and, while the light urged them to be
+gone, he waited to see that all was well with Icarus, for the two
+could not fly hand in hand. Up they rose, the boy after his father.
+The hateful ground of Crete sank beneath them; and the country
+folk, who caught a glimpse of them when they were high above the
+tree-tops, took it for a vision of the gods,&mdash;Apollo, perhaps,
+with Cupid after him.</p>
+<p>At first there was a terror in the joy. The wide vacancy of the
+air dazed them,&mdash;a glance downward made their brains reel. But
+when a great wind filled their wings, and Icarus felt himself
+sustained, like a halcyon-bird in the hollow of a wave, like a
+child uplifted by his mother, he forgot everything in the world but
+joy. He forgot Crete and the other islands that he had passed over:
+he saw but vaguely that winged thing in the distance before him
+that was his father D&aelig;dalus. He longed for one draught of
+flight to quench the thirst of his captivity: he stretched out his
+arms to the sky and made towards the highest heavens.</p>
+<p>Alas for him! Warmer and warmer grew the air. Those arms, that
+had seemed to uphold him, relaxed. His wings wavered, drooped. He
+fluttered his young hands vainly,&mdash;he was falling,&mdash;and
+in that terror he remembered. The heat of the sun had melted the
+wax from his wings; the feathers were falling, one by one, like
+snowflakes; and there was none to help.</p>
+<p>He fell like a leaf tossed down the wind, down, down, with one
+cry that overtook D&aelig;dalus far away. When he returned, and
+sought high and low for the poor boy, he saw nothing but the
+bird-like feathers afloat on the water, and he knew that Icarus was
+drowned.</p>
+<p>The nearest island he named Icaria, in memory of the child; but
+he, in heavy grief, went to the temple of Apollo in Sicily, and
+there hung up his wings as an offering. Never again did he attempt
+to fly.</p>
+<h3><a id="Phaethon" name="Phaethon">Phaethon</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Josephine Preston Peabody</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Once upon a time, the reckless whim of a lad came near to
+destroying the Earth and robbing the spheres of their wits.</p>
+<p>There were two playmates, said to be of heavenly parentage. One
+was Epaphus, who claimed Zeus as a father; and one was Phaethon,
+the earthly child of Ph&oelig;bus Apollo (or Helios, as some name
+the sun-god). One day they were boasting together, each of his own
+father, and Epaphus, angry at the other&rsquo;s fine story, dared
+him to go prove his kinship with the Sun.</p>
+<p>Full of rage and humiliation, Phaethon went to his mother,
+Clymene, where she sat with his young sisters, the Heliades.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It is true, my child,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;I swear it
+in the light of yonder Sun. If you have any doubt, go to the land
+whence he rises at morning and ask of him any gift you will; he is
+your father, and he cannot refuse you.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>As soon as might be, Phaethon set out for the country of
+sunrise. He journeyed by day and by night far into the east, till
+he came to the palace of the Sun. It towered high as the clouds,
+glorious with gold and all manner of gems that looked like frozen
+fire, if that might be. The mighty walls were wrought with images
+of earth and sea and sky. Vulcan, the smith of the Gods, had made
+them in his workshop (for Mount &AElig;tna is one of his forges,
+and he has the central fires of the earth to help him fashion gold
+and iron, as men do glass). On the doors blazed the twelve signs of
+the Zodiac, in silver that shone like snow in the sunlight.
+Phaethon was dazzled with the sight, but when he entered the palace
+hall he could hardly bear the radiance.</p>
+<p>In one glimpse through his half-shut eyes, he beheld a glorious
+being, none other than Ph&oelig;bus himself, seated upon a throne.
+He was clothed in purple raiment, and round his head there shone a
+blinding light, that enveloped even his courtiers upon the right
+and upon the left,&mdash;the Seasons with their emblems, Day,
+Month, Year, and the beautiful young Hours in a row. In one glance
+of those all-seeing eyes, the sun-god knew his child; but in order
+to try him he asked the boy his errand.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;O my father,&rdquo; stammered Phaethon, &ldquo;if you are
+my father indeed&rdquo;&mdash;and then he took courage; for the god
+came down from his throne, put off the glorious halo that hurt
+mortal eyes, and embraced him tenderly.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Indeed, thou art my son,&rdquo; said he. &ldquo;Ask any
+gift of me, and it shall be thine; I call the Styx to
+witness.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; cried Phaethon rapturously. &ldquo;Let me
+drive thy chariot for one day!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>For an instant the Sun&rsquo;s looks clouded. &ldquo;Choose
+again, my child,&rdquo; said he. &ldquo;Thou art only a mortal, and
+this task is mine alone of all the Gods. Not Zeus himself dare
+drive the chariot of the Sun. The way is full of terrors, both for
+the horses and for all the stars along the roadside, and for the
+Earth, who has all blessings from me. Listen, and choose
+again.&rdquo; And therewith he warned Phaethon of all the dangers
+that beset the way,&mdash;the great steep that the steeds must
+climb, the numbing dizziness of the height, the fierce
+constellations that breathe out fire, and that descent in the west
+where the Sun seems to go headlong.</p>
+<p>But these counsels only made the reckless boy more eager to win
+honor of such a high enterprise.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I will take care; only let me go,&rdquo; he begged.</p>
+<p>Now Ph&oelig;bus had sworn by the black river Styx, an oath that
+none of the Gods dare break, and he was forced to keep his
+promise.</p>
+<p>Already Aurora, goddess of dawn, had thrown open the gates of
+the east, and the stars were beginning to wane. The Hours came
+forth to harness the four horses, and Phaethon looked with
+exultation at the splendid creatures, whose lord he was for a day.
+Wild, immortal steeds they were, fed with ambrosia, untamed as the
+winds; their very pet names signified flame, and all that flame can
+do,&mdash;Pyrois, Eo&uuml;s, &AElig;thon, Phlegon.</p>
+<p>As the lad stood by, watching, Ph&oelig;bus anointed his face
+with a philter that should make him strong to endure the terrible
+heat and light, then set the halo upon his head, with a last word
+of counsel.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Follow the road,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;and never turn
+aside. Go not too high or too low, for the sake of heavens and
+earth; else men and Gods will suffer. The Fates alone know whether
+evil is to come of this. Yet if your heart fails you, as I hope,
+abide here and I will make the journey, as I am wont to
+do.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Phaethon held to his choice and bade his father farewell. He
+took his place in the chariot, gathered up the reins, and the
+horses sprang away, eager for the road.</p>
+<p>As they went, they bent their splendid necks to see the meaning
+of the strange hand upon the reins,&mdash;the slender weight in the
+chariot. They turned their wild eyes upon Phaethon, to his secret
+foreboding, and neighed one to another. This was no master
+charioteer, but a mere lad, a feather riding the wind. It was
+holiday for the horses of the Sun, and away they went.</p>
+<p>Grasping the reins that dragged him after, like an enemy,
+Phaethon looked down from the fearful ascent and saw the Earth far
+beneath him, dim and fair. He was blind with dizziness and
+bewilderment. His hold slackened and the horses redoubled their
+speed, wild with new liberty. They left the old tracks. Before he
+knew where he was, they had startled the constellations and
+well-nigh grazed the Serpent, so that it woke from its torpor and
+hissed.</p>
+<p>The steeds took fright. This way and that they went, terrified
+by the monsters they had never encountered before, shaking out of
+their silver quiet the cool stars towards the north, then fleeing
+as far to the south among new wonders. The heavens were full of
+terror.</p>
+<p>Up, far above the clouds, they went, and down again, towards the
+defenseless Earth, that could not flee from the chariot of the Sun.
+Great rivers hid themselves in the ground, and mountains were
+consumed. Harvests perished like a moth that is singed in a
+candle-flame.</p>
+<p>In vain did Phaethon call to the horses and pull upon the reins.
+As in a hideous dream, he saw his own Earth, his beautiful home and
+the home of all men, his kindred, parched by the fires of this mad
+chariot, and blackening beneath him. The ground cracked open and
+the sea shrank. Heedless water-nymphs, who had lingered in the
+shallows, were left gasping like bright fishes. The dryads shrank,
+and tried to cover themselves from the scorching heat. The poor
+Earth lifted her withered face in a last prayer to Zeus to save her
+if he might.</p>
+<p>Then Zeus, calling all the Gods to witness that there was no
+other means of safety, hurled his thunderbolt; and Phaethon knew no
+more.</p>
+<p>His body fell through the heavens, aflame like a shooting star;
+and the horses of the Sun dashed homeward with the empty
+chariot.</p>
+<p>Poor Clymene grieved sore over the boy&rsquo;s death; but the
+young Heliades, daughters of the Sun, refused all comfort. Day and
+night they wept together about their brother&rsquo;s grave by the
+river, until the Gods took pity and changed them all into
+poplar-trees. And ever after that they wept sweet tears of amber,
+clear as sunlight.</p>
+<h3><a id="Niobe" name="Niobe">Niobe</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Josephine Preston Peabody</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>There are so many tales of the vanity of kings and queens that
+the half of them cannot be told.</p>
+<p>There was Cassiop&aelig;ia, queen of &AElig;thiopia, who boasted
+that her beauty outshone the beauty of all the sea-nymphs, so that
+in anger they sent a horrible sea-serpent to ravage the coast. The
+king prayed of an oracle to know how the monster might be appeased,
+and learned that he must offer up his own daughter, Andromeda. The
+maiden was therefore chained to a rock by the sea-side, and left to
+her fate. But who should come to rescue her but a certain young
+hero, Perseus, who was hastening homeward after a perilous
+adventure with the snaky-haired Gorgons. Filled with pity at the
+story of Andromeda, he waited for the dragon, met and slew him, and
+set the maiden free. As for the boastful queen, the Gods forgave
+her, and at her death she was set among the stars. That story ended
+well.</p>
+<p>But there was once a queen of Thebes, Niobe, fortunate above all
+women, and yet arrogant in the face of the gods. Very beautiful she
+was, and nobly born, but above all things she boasted of her
+children, for she had seven sons and seven daughters.</p>
+<p>Now there came the day when the people were wont to celebrate
+the feast of Latona, mother of Apollo and Diana; and Niobe, as she
+stood looking upon the worshipers on their way to the temple, was
+filled with overweening pride.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Why do you worship Latona before me?&rdquo; she cried
+out. &ldquo;What does she possess that I have not in greater
+abundance? She has but two children, while I have seven sons and as
+many daughters. Nay, if she robbed me out of envy, I should still
+be rich. Go back to your houses; you have not eyes to know the
+rightful goddess.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Such impiety was enough to frighten any one, and her subjects
+returned to their daily work, awestruck and silent.</p>
+<p>But Apollo and Diana were filled with wrath at this insult to
+their divine mother. Not only was she a great goddess and a power
+in the heavens, but during her life on earth she had suffered many
+hardships for their sake. The serpent Python had been sent to
+torment her; and, driven from land to land, under an evil spell,
+beset with dangers, she had found no resting-place but the island
+of Delos, held sacred ever after to her and her children. Once she
+had even been refused water by some churlish peasants, who could
+not believe in a goddess if she appeared in humble guise and
+travel-worn. But these men were all changed into frogs.</p>
+<p>It needed no word from Latona herself to rouse her children to
+vengeance. Swift as a thought, the two immortal archers, brother
+and sister, stood in Thebes, upon the towers of the citadel. Near
+by, the youth were pursuing their sports, while the feast of Latona
+went neglected. The sons of Queen Niobe were there, and against
+them Apollo bent his golden bow. An arrow crossed the air like a
+sunbeam, and without a word the eldest prince fell from his horse.
+One by one his brothers died by the same hand, so swiftly that they
+knew not what had befallen them, till all the sons of the royal
+house lay slain. Only the people of Thebes, stricken with terror,
+bore the news to Queen Niobe, where she sat with her seven
+daughters. She would not believe in such a sorrow.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Savage Latona,&rdquo; she cried, lifting her arms against
+the heavens, &ldquo;never think that you have conquered. I am still
+the greater.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At that moment one of her daughters sank beside her. Diana had
+sped an arrow from her bow that is like the crescent moon. Without
+a cry, nay, even as they murmured words of comfort, the sisters
+died, one by one. It was all as swift and soundless as
+snowfall.</p>
+<p>Only the guilty mother was left, transfixed with grief. Tears
+flowed from her eyes, but she spoke not a word, her heart never
+softened; and at last she turned to stone, and the tears flowed
+down her cold face forever.</p>
+<h3><a id="Pyramus" name="Pyramus">Pyramus and Thisbe</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Josephine Preston Peabody</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Venus did not always befriend true lovers, as she had befriended
+Hippomenes, with her three golden apples. Sometimes, in the
+enchanted island of Cyprus, she forgot her worshipers far away, and
+they called on her in vain.</p>
+<p>So it was in the sad story of Hero and Leander, who lived on
+opposite borders of the Hellespont. Hero dwelt at Sestos, where she
+served as a priestess, in the very temple of Venus; and
+Leander&rsquo;s home was in Abydos, a town on the opposite shore.
+But every night this lover would swim across the water to see Hero,
+guided by the light which she was wont to set in her tower. Even
+such loyalty could not conquer fate. There came a great storm, one
+night, that put out the beacon, and washed Leander&rsquo;s body up
+with the waves to Hero, and she sprang into the water to rejoin
+him, and so perished.</p>
+<p>Not wholly unlike this was the fate of Halcyone, a queen of
+Thessaly, who dreamed that her husband Ceyx had been drowned, and
+on waking hastened to the shore to look for him. There she saw her
+dream come true,&mdash;his lifeless body floating towards her on
+the tide; and as she flung herself after him, mad with grief, the
+air upheld her and she seemed to fly. Husband and wife were changed
+into birds; and there on the very water, at certain seasons, they
+build a nest that floats unhurt,&mdash;a portent of calm for many
+days and safe voyage for the ships. So it is that seamen love these
+birds and look for halcyon weather.</p>
+<p>But there once lived in Babylonia two lovers named Pyramus and
+Thisbe, who were parted by a strange mischance. For they lived in
+adjoining houses; and although their parents had forbidden them to
+marry, these two had found a means of talking together through a
+crevice in the wall.</p>
+<p>Here, again and again, Pyramus on his side of the wall and
+Thisbe on hers, they would meet to tell each other all that had
+happened during the day, and to complain of their cruel parents. At
+length they decided that they would endure it no longer, but that
+they would leave their homes and be married, come what might. They
+planned to meet, on a certain evening, by a mulberry-tree near the
+tomb of King Ninus, outside the city gates. Once safely met, they
+were resolved to brave fortune together.</p>
+<p>So far all went well. At the appointed time, Thisbe, heavily
+veiled, managed to escape from home unnoticed, and after a stealthy
+journey through the streets of Babylon, she came to the grove of
+mulberries near the tomb of Ninus. The place was deserted, and once
+there she put off the veil from her face to see if Pyramus waited
+anywhere among the shadows. She heard the sound of a footfall and
+turned to behold&mdash;not Pyramus, but a creature unwelcome to any
+tryst&mdash;none other than a lioness crouching to drink from the
+pool hard by.</p>
+<p>Without a cry, Thisbe fled, dropping her veil as she ran. She
+found a hiding-place among the rocks at some distance, and there
+she waited, not knowing what else to do.</p>
+<p>The lioness, having quenched her thirst (after some ferocious
+meal), turned from the spring and, coming upon the veil, sniffed at
+it curiously, tore and tossed it with her reddened jaws,&mdash;as
+she would have done with Thisbe herself,&mdash;then dropped the
+plaything and crept away to the forest once more.</p>
+<p>It was but a little after this that Pyramus came hurrying to the
+meeting-place, breathless with eagerness to find Thisbe and tell
+her what had delayed him. He found no Thisbe there. For a moment he
+was confounded. Then he looked about for some signs of her, some
+footprint by the pool. There was the trail of a wild beast in the
+grass, and near by a woman&rsquo;s veil, torn and stained with
+blood; he caught it up and knew it for Thisbe&rsquo;s.</p>
+<p>So she had come at the appointed hour, true to her word; she had
+waited there for him alone and defenseless, and she had fallen a
+prey to some beast from the jungle! As these thoughts rushed upon
+the young man&rsquo;s mind, he could endure no more.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Was it to meet me, Thisbe, that you came to such a
+death!&rdquo; cried he. &ldquo;And I followed all too late. But I
+will atone. Even now I come lagging, but by no will of
+mine!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, the poor youth drew his sword and fell upon it, there
+at the foot of that mulberry-tree which he had named as the
+trysting-place, and his life-blood ran about the roots.</p>
+<p>During these very moments, Thisbe, hearing no sound and a little
+reassured, had stolen from her hiding-place and was come to the
+edge of the grove. She saw that the lioness had left the spring,
+and, eager to show her lover that she had dared all things to keep
+faith, she came slowly, little by little, back to the
+mulberry-tree.</p>
+<p>She found Pyramus there, according to his promise. His own sword
+was in his heart, the empty scabbard by his side, and in his hand
+he held her veil still clasped. Thisbe saw these things as in a
+dream, and suddenly the truth awoke her. She saw the piteous
+mischance of all; and when the dying Pyramus opened his eyes and
+fixed them upon her, her heart broke. With the same sword she
+stabbed herself, and the lovers died together.</p>
+<p>There the parents found them, after a weary search, and they
+were buried together in the same tomb. But the berries of the
+mulberry-tree turned red that day, and red they have remained ever
+since.</p>
+<h2><a id="Trojan" name="Trojan">STORIES OF THE TROJAN WAR</a></h2>
+<h3><a id="Discord" name="Discord">The Apple of Discord</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Josephine Preston Peabody</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>There was once a war so great that the sound of it has come
+ringing down the centuries from singer to singer, and will never
+die.</p>
+<p>The rivalries of men and gods brought about many calamities, but
+none so heavy as this; and it would never have come to pass, they
+say, if it had not been for jealousy among the immortals,&mdash;all
+because of a golden apple! But Destiny has nurtured ominous plants
+from little seeds; and this is how one evil grew great enough to
+overshadow heaven and earth.</p>
+<p>The sea-nymph Thetis (whom Zeus himself had once desired for his
+wife) was given in marriage to a mortal, Peleus, and there was a
+great wedding-feast in heaven. Thither all the immortals were
+bidden, save one, Eris, the goddess of Discord, ever an unwelcome
+guest. But she came unbidden. While the wedding-guests sat at
+feast, she broke in upon their mirth, flung among them a golden
+apple, and departed with looks that boded ill. Some one picked up
+the strange missile and read its inscription, &ldquo;For the
+Fairest;&rdquo; and at once discussion arose among the goddesses.
+They were all eager to claim the prize, but only three
+persisted.</p>
+<p>Venus, the very goddess of beauty, said that it was hers by
+right; but Juno could not endure to own herself less fair than
+another, and even Athene coveted the palm of beauty as well as of
+wisdom, and would not give it up! Discord had indeed come to the
+wedding-feast. Not one of the Gods dared to decide so dangerous a
+question,&mdash;not Zeus himself,&mdash;and the three rivals were
+forced to choose a judge among mortals.</p>
+<p>Now there lived on Mount Ida, near the city of Troy, a certain
+young shepherd by the name of Paris. He was as comely as Ganymede
+himself,&mdash;that Trojan youth whom Zeus, in the shape of an
+eagle, seized and bore away to Olympus, to be a cup-bearer to the
+gods. Paris, too, was a Trojan of royal birth, but like
+&OElig;dipus, he had been left on the mountain in his infancy,
+because the oracle had foretold that he would be the death of his
+kindred and the ruin of his country. Destiny saved and nurtured him
+to fulfill that prophecy. He grew up as a shepherd and tended his
+flocks on the mountain, but his beauty held the favor of all the
+wood-folk there and won the heart of the nymph &OElig;none.</p>
+<p>To him, at last, the three goddesses intrusted the judgment and
+the golden apple. Juno first stood before him in all her glory as
+queen of Gods and men, and attended by her favorite peacocks as
+gorgeous to see as royal fan-bearers.</p>
+<div class="figure"><a href="images/big_204.jpg"><img src=
+"images/small_204.jpg" alt="Paris is cajoled by a goddess." id=
+"img04" name="img04" width="620" height="360" /></a>
+<p>TO HIM AT LAST THE THREE GODDESSES INTRUSTED THE JUDGMENT AND
+THE GOLDEN APPLE</p>
+</div>
+<p>&ldquo;Use but the judgment of a prince, Paris,&rdquo; she said,
+&ldquo;and I will give thee wealth and kingly power.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Such majesty and such promises would have moved the heart of any
+man; but the eager Paris had at least to hear the claims of the
+other rivals. Athene rose before him, a vision welcome as daylight,
+with her sea-gray eyes and golden hair beneath a golden helmet.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Be wise in honoring me, Paris,&rdquo; she said,
+&ldquo;and I will give thee wisdom that shall last forever, great
+glory among men, and renown in war.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Last of all, Venus shone upon him, beautiful as none can ever
+hope to be. If she had come, unnamed, as any country maid, her
+loveliness would have dazzled him like sea-foam in the sun; but she
+was girt with her magical Cestus, a spell of beauty that no one can
+resist.</p>
+<p>Without a bribe she might have conquered, and she smiled upon
+his dumb amazement, saying, &ldquo;Paris, thou shalt yet have for
+wife the fairest woman in the world.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At these words, the happy shepherd fell on his knees and offered
+her the golden apple. He took no heed of the slighted goddesses,
+who vanished in a cloud that boded storm.</p>
+<p>From that hour he sought only the counsel of Venus, and only
+cared to find the highway to his new fortunes. From her he learned
+that he was the son of King Priam of Troy, and with her assistance
+he deserted the nymph &OElig;none, whom he had married, and went in
+search of his royal kindred.</p>
+<p>For it chanced at that time that Priam proclaimed a contest of
+strength between his sons and certain other princes, and promised
+as prize the most splendid bull that could be found among the herds
+of Mount Ida. Thither came the herdsmen to choose, and when they
+led away the pride of Paris&rsquo;s heart, he followed to Troy,
+thinking that he would try his fortune and perhaps win back his
+own.</p>
+<p>The games took place before Priam and Hecuba and all their
+children, including those noble princes Hector and Helenus, and the
+young Cassandra, their sister. This poor maiden had a sad story, in
+spite of her royalty; for, because she had once disdained Apollo,
+she was fated to foresee all things, and ever to have her
+prophecies disbelieved. On this fateful day, she alone was
+oppressed with strange forebodings.</p>
+<p>But if he who was to be the ruin of his country had returned, he
+had come victoriously. Paris won the contest. At the very moment of
+his honor, poor Cassandra saw him with her prophetic eyes; and
+seeing as well all the guilt and misery that he was to bring upon
+them, she broke into bitter lamentations, and would have warned her
+kindred against the evil to come. But the Trojans gave little heed;
+they were wont to look upon her visions as spells of madness. Paris
+had come back to them a glorious youth and a victor; and when he
+made known the secret of his birth, they cast the words of the
+oracle to the winds, and received the shepherd as a long-lost
+prince.</p>
+<p>Thus far all went happily. But Venus, whose promise had not yet
+been fulfilled, bade Paris procure a ship and go in search of his
+destined bride. The prince said nothing of this quest, but urged
+his kindred to let him go; and giving out a rumor that he was to
+find his father&rsquo;s lost sister Hesione, he set sail for
+Greece, and finally landed at Sparta.</p>
+<p>There he was kindly received by Menelaus, the king, and his
+wife, Fair Helen.</p>
+<p>This queen had been reared as the daughter of Tyndarus and Queen
+Leda, but some say that she was the child of an enchanted swan, and
+there was indeed a strange spell about her. All the greatest heroes
+of Greece had wooed her before she left her father&rsquo;s palace
+to be the wife of King Menelaus, and Tyndarus, fearing for her
+peace, had bound her many suitors by an oath. According to this
+pledge, they were to respect her choice, and to go to the aid of
+her husband if ever she should be stolen away from him. For in all
+Greece there was nothing so beautiful as the beauty of Helen. She
+was the fairest woman in the world.</p>
+<p>Now thus did Venus fulfill her promise and the shepherd win his
+reward with dishonor. Paris dwelt at the court of Menelaus for a
+long time, treated with a royal courtesy which he ill repaid. For
+at length, while the king was absent on a journey to Crete, his
+guest won the heart of Fair Helen, and persuaded her to forsake her
+husband and sail away to Troy, or Ilium.</p>
+<p>King Menelaus returned to find the nest empty of the swan. Paris
+and the fairest woman in the world were well across the sea.</p>
+<p>When this treachery came to light, all Greece took fire with
+indignation. The heroes remembered their pledge, and wrath came
+upon them at the wrong done to Menelaus. But they were less angered
+with Fair Helen than with Paris, for they felt assured that the
+queen had been lured from her country and out of her own senses by
+some spell of enchantment. So they took counsel how they might
+bring back Fair Helen to her home and husband.</p>
+<p>Years had come and gone since that wedding-feast when Eris had
+flung the apple of discord, like a firebrand, among the guests. But
+the spark of dissension that had smouldered so long burst into
+flame now, and, fanned by the enmities of men and the rivalries of
+the Gods, it seemed like to fire heaven and earth.</p>
+<p>A few of the heroes answered the call to arms unwillingly. Time
+had reconciled them to the loss of Fair Helen, and they were loath
+to leave home and happiness for war, even in her cause.</p>
+<p>One of these was Odysseus, or Ulysses, king of Ithaca, who had
+married Penelope, and was quite content with his kingdom and his
+little son Telemachus. Indeed, he was so unwilling to leave them
+that he feigned madness in order to escape service, appeared to
+forget his own kindred, and went ploughing the seashore and sowing
+salt in the furrows. But a messenger, Palamedes, who came with the
+summons to war, suspected that this sudden madness might be a
+stratagem, for the king was far famed as a man of many devices. He
+therefore stood by, one day (while Ulysses, pretending to take no
+heed of him, went ploughing the sand) and he laid the baby
+Telemachus directly in the way of the ploughshare. For once the
+wise man&rsquo;s craft deserted him. Ulysses turned the plough
+sharply, caught up the little prince, and there his fatherly wits
+were manifest! After this he could no longer play madman. He had to
+take leave of his beloved wife Penelope and set out to join the
+heroes, little dreaming that he was not to return for twenty years.
+Once embarked, however, he set himself to work in the common cause
+of the heroes, and was soon as ingenious as Palamedes in rousing
+laggard warriors.</p>
+<p>There remained one who was destined to be the greatest warrior
+of all. This was Achilles, the son of Thetis,&mdash;foretold in the
+day of Prometheus as a man who should far outstrip his own father
+in glory and greatness. Years had passed since the marriage of
+Thetis to King Peleus, and their son Achilles was now grown to
+manhood, a wonder of strength indeed, and, moreover, invulnerable.
+For his mother, forewarned of his death in the Trojan War, had
+dipped him in the sacred river Styx when he was a baby, so that he
+could take no hurt from any weapon. From head to foot she had
+plunged him in, only forgetting the little heel that she held him
+by, and this alone could be wounded by any chance. But even with
+such precautions Thetis was not content. Fearful at the rumors of
+war to be, she had her son brought up, in woman&rsquo;s dress,
+among the daughters of King Lycomedes of Scyros, that he might
+escape the notice of men and cheat his destiny.</p>
+<p>To this very palace, however, came Ulysses in the guise of a
+merchant, and he spread his wares before the royal
+household,&mdash;jewels and ivory, fine fabrics, and curiously
+wrought weapons. The king&rsquo;s daughters chose girdles and veils
+and such things as women delight in; but Achilles, heedless of the
+like, sought out the weapons, and handled them with such manly
+pleasure that his nature stood revealed. So he, too, yielded to his
+destiny and set out to join the heroes.</p>
+<p>Everywhere men were banded together, building the ships and
+gathering supplies. The allied forces of Greece (the Achaians, as
+they called themselves) chose Agamemnon for their
+commander-in-chief. He was a mighty man, king of Mycen&aelig; and
+Argos, and the brother of the wronged Menelaus. Second to Achilles
+in strength was the giant Ajax; after him Diomedes, then wise
+Ulysses, and Nestor, held in great reverence because of his
+experienced age and fame. These were the chief heroes. After two
+years of busy preparation, they reached the port of Aulis, whence
+they were to sail for Troy.</p>
+<p>But here delay held them. Agamemnon had chanced to kill a stag
+which was sacred to Diana, and the army was visited by pestilence,
+while a great calm kept the ships imprisoned. At length the oracle
+made known the reason of this misfortune and demanded for atonement
+the maiden Iphigenia, Agamemnon&rsquo;s own daughter. In helpless
+grief the king consented to offer her up as a victim, and the
+maiden was brought, ready for sacrifice. But at the last moment
+Diana caught her away in a cloud, leaving a white hind in her
+place, and carried her to Tauris in Scythia, there to serve as a
+priestess in the temple. In the mean time, her kinsfolk, who were
+at a loss to understand how she had disappeared, mourned her as
+dead. But Diana had accepted their child as an offering, and
+healing came to the army, and the winds blew again. So the ships
+set sail.</p>
+<p>Meanwhile, in Troy across the sea, the aged Priam and Hecuba
+gave shelter to their son Paris and his stolen bride. They were not
+without misgivings as to these guests, but they made ready to
+defend their kindred and the citadel.</p>
+<p>There were many heroes among the Trojans and their allies, brave
+and upright men, who little deserved that such reproach should be
+brought upon them by the guilt of Prince Paris. There were
+&AElig;neas and De&iuml;phobus, Glaucus and Sarpedon, and
+Priam&rsquo;s most noble son Hector, chief of all the forces, and
+the very bulwark of Troy. These and many more were bitterly to
+regret the day that had brought Paris back to his home. But he had
+taken refuge with his own people, and the Trojans had to take up
+his cause against the hostile fleet that was coming across the
+sea.</p>
+<p>Even the Gods took sides. Juno and Athene, who had never
+forgiven the judgment of Paris, condemned all Troy with him and
+favored the Greeks, as did also Neptune, god of the sea. But Venus,
+true to her favorite, furthered the interests of the Trojans with
+all her power, and persuaded the warlike Mars to do likewise. Zeus
+and Apollo strove to be impartial, but they were yet to aid now one
+side, now another, according to the fortunes of the heroes whom
+they loved.</p>
+<p>Over the sea came the great embassy of ships, sped hither safely
+by the god Neptune; and the heroes made their camp on the plain
+before Troy. First of all Ulysses and King Menelaus himself went
+into the city and demanded that Fair Helen should be given back to
+her rightful husband. This the Trojans refused, and so began the
+siege of Troy.</p>
+<h3><a id="Agamemnon" name="Agamemnon">The Quarrel between
+Agamemnon and Achilles</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>The Greeks sacked the city of Chryse, where was a temple of
+Apollo, and a priest that served the temple. And when they divided
+the spoil, they gave to King Agamemnon with other gifts, the
+priest&rsquo;s daughter, Chryse&iuml;s. Thereupon there came to the
+camp Chryses, the priest, wishing to ransom his daughter. Much gold
+he brought with him, and on his staff of gold he carried the holy
+garland, that men might reverence him the more. He went to all the
+chiefs, and to the sons of Atreus first of all, saying,&mdash;
+&ldquo;Loose, I pray you, my dear daughter, and take the ransom for
+her; so may the gods that dwell in Olympus grant you to take the
+city of Troy, and to have safe return to your homes.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then all the others spake him fair, and would have done what he
+wished. Only Agamemnon would not have it so.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Get thee out, graybeard!&rdquo; he cried in great wrath.
+&ldquo;Let me not find thee lingering now by the ships, neither
+coming hither again, or it shall be the worse for thee, for all thy
+priesthood. And as for thy daughter, I shall carry her away to
+Argos, when I shall have taken this city of Troy.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the old man went out hastily in great fear and trouble. And
+he walked in his sorrow by the shore of the sounding sea, and
+prayed to his god Apollo.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Hear me, god of the silver bow! If I have built thee a
+temple, and offered thee fat of many bullocks and rams, hear me,
+and avenge my tears on the Greeks with thine arrows!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Apollo heard him. Wroth was he that men had so dishonored
+his priest, and he came down from the top of Olympus, where he
+dwelt. Dreadful was the rattle of his arrows as he went, and his
+coming was as the night when it cometh over the sky. Then he shot
+the arrows of death, first on the dogs and the mules, and then on
+the men; and soon all along the shore rolled the black smoke from
+the piles of wood on which they burnt the bodies of the dead.</p>
+<p>For nine days the shafts of the god went throughout the host;
+but on the tenth day Achilles called the people to an assembly. So
+Juno bade him, for she loved the Greeks, and grieved to see them
+die. When they were gathered together he stood up among them, and
+spake to Agamemnon:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Surely it were better to return home, than that we should
+all perish here by war or plague. But come, let us ask some prophet
+or priest or dreamer of dreams why it is that Apollo is so wroth
+with us.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then stood up Calchas, best of seers, who knew what had been,
+and what was, and what was to come, and spake:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Achilles, thou biddest me tell the people why Apollo is
+wroth with them. Lo! I will tell thee, but thou must first swear to
+stand by me, for I know that what I shall say will anger King
+Agamemnon, and it goes ill with common men when kings are
+angry.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Speak out, thou wise man!&rdquo; cried Achilles;
+&ldquo;for I swear by Apollo that while I live no one shall lay
+hands on thee, no, not Agamemnon&rsquo;s self, though he be
+sovereign lord of the Greeks.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the blameless seer took heart, and spake: &ldquo;It is not
+for vow or offering that Apollo is wroth; it is for his servant the
+priest, for he came to ransom his daughter, but Agamemnon scorned
+him, and would not let the maiden go. Now, then, ye must send her
+back to Chryse without ransom, and with her a hundred beasts for
+sacrifice, so that the plague may be stayed.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Agamemnon stood up in a fury, his eyes blazing like
+fire.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Never,&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;hast thou spoken good
+concerning me, ill prophet that thou art, and now thou tellest me
+to give up this maiden! I will do it, for I would not that the
+people should perish. Only take care, ye Greeks, that there be a
+share of the spoil for me, for it would ill beseem the lord of all
+the host that he alone should be without his share.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nay, my lord Agamemnon,&rdquo; cried Achilles,
+&ldquo;thou art too eager for gain. We have no treasures out of
+which we may make up thy loss, for what we got out of the towns we
+have either sold or divided; nor would it be fitting that the
+people should give back what has been given to them. Give up the
+maiden, then, without conditions, and when we shall have taken this
+city of Troy, we will repay thee three and four fold.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nay, great Achilles,&rdquo; said Agamemnon, &ldquo;thou
+shalt not cheat me thus. If the Greeks will give me such a share as
+I should have, well and good. But if not, I will take one for
+myself, whether it be from thee or from Ajax or from Ulysses; for
+my share I will have. But of this hereafter. Now let us see that
+this maiden be sent back. Let them get ready a ship, and put her
+herein, and with her a hundred victims, and let some chief go with
+the ship, and see that all things be rightly done.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then cried Achilles, and his face was as black as a
+thunder-storm: &ldquo;Surely thou art altogether shameless and
+greedy, and, in truth, an ill ruler of men. No quarrel have I with
+the Trojans. They never harried oxen or sheep of mine in fertile
+Phthia, for many murky mountains lie between, and a great breadth
+of roaring sea. But I have been fighting in thy cause, and that of
+thy brother Menelaus. Naught carest thou for that. Thou leavest me
+to fight, and sittest in thy tent at ease. But when the spoil is
+divided, thine is always the lion&rsquo;s share. Small, indeed, is
+my part,&mdash;&lsquo;a little thing, but dear.&rsquo; And this,
+forsooth, thou wilt take away! Now am I resolved to go home. I have
+no mind to heap up goods and gold for thee, and be myself
+dishonored.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And King Agamemnon answered, &ldquo;Go, and thy Myrmidons with
+thee! I have other chieftains as good as thou art, and ready, as
+thou art not, to pay me due respect; and Zeus, the god of council,
+is with me. I hate thee, for thou always lovest war and strife. And
+as for the matter of the spoil, know that I will take thy share,
+the girl Brise&iuml;s, and fetch her myself, if need be, that all
+may know that I am sovereign lord here in the host of the
+Greeks.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Achilles was mad with anger, and he thought in his heart,
+&ldquo;Shall I arise and slay this caitiff, or shall I keep down
+the wrath in my breast?&rdquo; And as he thought he laid his hand
+on his sword-hilt, and had half-drawn his sword from the scabbard,
+when lo! the goddess Athene stood behind him (for Juno, who loved
+both this chieftain and that, had sent her), and caught him by the
+long locks of his yellow hair. But Achilles marveled much to feel
+the mighty grasp, and turned and looked, and knew the goddess, but
+no one else in the assembly might see her. Terrible was the flash
+of his eyes as he cried, &ldquo;Art thou come, child of Zeus, to
+see the insolence of Agamemnon? Of a truth, I think that he will
+perish for his folly.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Athene said, &ldquo;Nay, but I am come from heaven to abate
+thy wrath, if thou wilt hear me; white-armed Juno sent me, for she
+loveth and cherisheth you both alike. Draw not thy sword; but use
+bitter words, even as thou wilt. Of a truth, I tell thee that for
+this insolence of to-day he will bring thee hereafter splendid
+gifts, threefold and fourfold for all that he may take away. Only
+refrain thyself and do my bidding.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Achilles answered, &ldquo;I will abide by thy command for
+all my wrath, for the man who hearkens to the immortal gods is also
+heard of them.&rdquo; And as he spake he laid his heavy hand upon
+the hilt, and thrust back the sword into the scabbard, and Athene
+went her way to Olympus.</p>
+<p>Then he turned him to King Agamemnon, and spake again, for his
+anger was not spent. &ldquo;Drunkard, with the eyes of a dog and
+the heart of a deer! never fighting in the front of the battle, nor
+daring to lie in the ambush! &rsquo;Tis a race of dastards that
+thou rulest, or this had been thy last wrong. But this I tell thee,
+and confirm my words with a mighty oath&mdash;by this sceptre do I
+swear. Once it was the branch of a tree, but now the sons of the
+Greeks bear it in their hands, even they who maintain the laws of
+Zeus; as surely as it shall never again have bark, or leaves, or
+shoot, so surely shall the Greeks one day miss Achilles, when they
+fall in heaps before the dreadful Hector; and thou shalt eat thy
+heart for rage, to think that thou hast wronged the bravest of thy
+host.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And as he spake he dashed the sceptre, all embossed with studs
+of gold, upon the ground, and sat down. And on the other side
+Agamemnon sat in furious anger. Then Nestor rose, an old man of a
+hundred years and more, and counseled peace. Let them listen, he
+said, to his counsel. Great chiefs in the old days, with whom no
+man now alive would dare to fight, had listened. Let not Agamemnon
+take away from the bravest of the Greeks the prize of war; let not
+Achilles, though he was mightier in battle than all other men,
+contend with Agamemnon, who was sovereign lord of all the hosts of
+Greece. But he spake in vain. For Agamemnon answered,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nestor, thou speakest well, and peace is good. But this
+fellow would lord it over all; yet there are some, methinks, who
+will not obey him. For if the immortal Gods have made him a great
+warrior, do they therefore grant him leave to speak lawless words?
+Verily he must be taught that there is one here, at least, who is
+better than he.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Achilles said, &ldquo;I were a slave and a coward if I owned
+thee as my lord. Not so; play the master over others, but think not
+to master me. As for the prize which the Greeks gave me, let them
+do as they will. They gave it; let them take it away. But if thou
+darest to touch aught that is mine own, that hour thy life-blood
+shall redden on my spear.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the assembly was dismissed. Chryse&iuml;s was sent to her
+home with due offerings to the god, the wise Ulysses going with
+her. And all the people purified themselves, and offered offerings
+to the Gods; and the sweet savor went up to heaven in the wreathing
+smoke.</p>
+<p>But King Agamemnon would not go back from his purpose. So he
+called to him the heralds, Talthybius and Eurybates, and
+said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Heralds, go to the tents of Achilles, and fetch the
+maiden Brise&iuml;s. But if he will not let her go, say that I will
+come myself with many others to fetch her; so will it be the worse
+for him.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Sorely against their will the heralds went. Along the seashore
+they walked, till they came to where, amidst the Myrmidons, were
+the tents of Achilles. There they found him, sitting between his
+tent and his ship. He did not rejoice to see them, and they stood
+in great terror and shame. But he knew in his heart wherefore they
+had come, and cried aloud, &ldquo;Come near, ye heralds, messengers
+of Gods and men. &rsquo;Tis no fault of yours that ye are come on
+such an errand.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he turned to Patroclus (now Patroclus was his dearest
+friend) and said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Bring the maiden from her tent, and let the heralds lead
+her away. But let them be witnesses, before gods and men, and
+before this evil-minded king, against the day when he shall have
+sore need of me to save his hosts from destruction. Fool that he
+is, who knoweth not to look back and to look forward, that his
+people may be safe!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Patroclus brought forth the maiden from her tent, and gave
+her to the heralds. And they led her away; but it was sorely
+against her will that she went. But Achilles went apart from his
+comrades, and sat upon the seashore, falling into a great passion
+of tears, and stretching out his hands with loud prayer to his
+mother, Thetis, daughter of the sea. She heard him where she sat in
+the depths by her father, the old god of the sea, and rose from the
+gray sea, as a vapor rises, and came to where he was weeping, and
+stroked him with her hand, and called him by his name.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What ails thee, my son?&rdquo; she said.</p>
+<p>Then he told her the story of his wrong, and when he had ended
+he said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Go, I pray thee, to the top of Olympus, to the palace of
+Zeus. Often have I heard thee in my father&rsquo;s hall boast how,
+long ago, thou didst help him when the other gods would have bound
+him, fetching Briareus of the hundred hands, who sat by him in his
+strength, so that the Gods feared to touch him. Go now, and call
+these things to his mind, and pray him that he help the sons of
+Troy, and give them victory in the battle, so that the Greeks, as
+they flee before them, may have joy of this king of theirs, who has
+done such wrong to the bravest of his host.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And his mother answered him, &ldquo;Surely thine is an evil lot,
+my son. This life is short, and it should of right be without tears
+and full of joy; but now it seems to me to be both short and sad.
+But I will go as thou sayest to Olympus, to the palace of Zeus; but
+not now, for he has gone, and the other Gods with him, to a twelve
+days&rsquo; feast with the pious Ethiopians. But when he cometh
+back I will entreat and persuade him. And do thou sit still, nor go
+forth to battle.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Meanwhile Ulysses drew near to Chryse with the holy offerings.
+And when they were come within the haven, they furled the sail, and
+laid it in the ship, and lowered the mast, and rowed the ship to
+her moorings. They cast out the anchor stones, and made fast the
+cables from the stern. After that they landed, taking with them the
+offerings and the maid Chryse&iuml;s. To the altar they brought the
+maid, and gave her into the arms of her father, and the wise
+Ulysses said, &ldquo;See now; Agamemnon, King of men, sends back
+thy daughter, and with her a hundred beasts for sacrifice, that we
+may appease the god who hath smitten the Greeks in his
+wrath.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the priest received his daughter right gladly, and when
+they had ranged the beasts about the altar, and poured out the
+water of purification, and taken up handfuls of bruised barley,
+then the priest prayed, &ldquo;Hear me, God of the silver bow! If
+before thou didst hearken to my prayer, and grievously afflict the
+Greeks, so hear me now, and stay this plague which is come upon
+them.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So prayed he, and the god gave ear.</p>
+<p>Then they cast the barley on the heads of the cattle, and slew
+them, and flayed them, and they cut out the thigh-bones and wrapped
+them up in folds of fat, and laid raw morsels on them. These the
+priest burned on fagots, pouring on sparkling wine; and the young
+men stood by, having the five-pronged forks in their hands. And
+when the thighs were consumed, then they cut up the rest, and
+broiled the pieces carefully on spits. This being done, they made
+their meal, nor did any one lack his share. And when the meal was
+ended, then they poured a little wine into the cups to serve for
+libations to the Gods. After that they sat till sunset, singing a
+hymn to the Archer God, and making merry; and he heard their voice
+and was pleased.</p>
+<p>When the sun went down, they slept beside the stern-cables; and
+when the dawn appeared, then they embarked, raising the mast and
+spreading the sail; and Apollo sent them a favoring wind, and the
+dark blue wave hissed about the stem of the ship as she went: so
+they came to the camp of the Greeks.</p>
+<p>But all the time Achilles sat in wrath beside his ships; he went
+not to the war, nor yet to the assembly, but sat fretting in his
+heart, because he longed for the cry of the battle.</p>
+<h3><a id="Menelaus" name="Menelaus">The Fight between Paris and
+Menelaus</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Walter C. Perry</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>In obedience to the summons of their leaders, the great host of
+the Achaians assembled on the plain of the flowing river Scamander,
+innumerable as the leaves and flowers in the season of spring. And
+in the midst of them stood the great ruler, Agamemnon: his head and
+eyes like those of Loud-thundering Zeus; his waist like that of the
+Man-slaying Mars; and with a breast like that of Neptune, the Ruler
+of the Sea. As the mail-clad Argives marched on, and rushed across
+the plain, the earth groaned beneath them.</p>
+<p>Now &AElig;gis-bearing Zeus sent his messenger, Iris, to the
+assembly of the Trojans, with the voice of Polites, son of Priam,
+their sentinel at Priam&rsquo;s gate, and spake thus to Hector:
+&ldquo;This is no time for idle words, for stern war is already
+upon you. But to thee, O Hector, do I especially speak; and do thou
+obey my voice! As thou hast many allies, of diverse nations and
+tongues, let each chief marshal and command his own people, and
+lead them forth to war.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the glorious Hector knew the voice of the messenger, and
+hastened to obey. He straightway dissolved the assembly. The gates
+of Troy were then thrown open, and the Trojan host rushed forth,
+with a mighty din. The blameless Hector, with his glancing helmet,
+was foremost of all, and led the bravest and strongest of the men;
+&AElig;neas, son of the goddess Aphrodite, or Venus, born amidst
+the peaks of Ida, led the Dardans; and of the other leaders of the
+allies, the most famous were Sarpedon, son of Zeus, and blameless
+Glaucus, who led the Lycians, from distant Lycia, by the
+swift-eddying Xanthus.</p>
+<p>And, as the countless hosts advanced, to meet each other in
+deadly conflict, the Trojans marched with noisy shouts, like the
+clamor of the cranes, when they fly to the streams of Oceanus, in
+the early morning, screaming, and bringing death and destruction to
+the Pigmy men; but the Achaieans came on in silence, breathing
+dauntless courage.</p>
+<p>But when they came near to each other, the goodly Paris went
+before the front rank of the Trojans, and brandished his spear, and
+challenged all the Argive chiefs to single combat. When the warlike
+Menelaus, whom Paris had so deeply wronged by carrying off his
+wife, the beautiful Helen, saw Paris there, he was glad, thinking
+that he should now punish the false traitor for his wickedness. So
+he leaped from his chariot, in his clanging armor, and advanced to
+meet the challenger. And Paris saw him; and pale fear got hold of
+him, like to a man who has trodden on a serpent, in a wooded valley
+among the mountains; and he shrank back among the lordly
+Trojans.</p>
+<p>His brother Hector saw him, and reproached him with scornful
+words. &ldquo;Base deceiver of women, beautiful in appearance and
+favor, but coward at heart! would that thou hadst never been born,
+or that thou hadst died unwedded! Now thou seest what kind of man
+is he, whose lovely wife thou hast carried off by stealth. Of no
+avail will be thy sounding lyre, thy beauteous face and curling
+hair, or all the gifts of golden Venus, when thou liest groveling
+in the dust.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the goodly Paris answered him, &ldquo;Hector, thou rightly
+chidest me, and not more than I deserve. <em>Thy</em> heart is ever
+undaunted, and keen as the axe, which cutteth the strong oak, in
+the hands of a skillful shipwright. But reproach me not for the
+lovely gifts of golden Aphrodite; for no man can obtain them by
+wishing for them, for they are among the precious gifts of the
+blessed Gods. But if thou desirest that I should do battle with the
+valiant Menelaus, make the Trojans and the Achaians sit down; and
+set me and Menelaus in the midst, to fight for Helen and for all
+the treasures which were taken away with her. And whichever of us
+twain shall be the victor, let him bear away the woman and the
+treasure, and take them home.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So spake he, and they all kept silence; but Menelaus of the loud
+war-cry stood forward amongst the Greeks and made harangue,
+&ldquo;Hearken now to me, for my heart hath endured the greatest
+grief. Whosoever of us twain shall fall, there let him lie. But now
+bring a goodly sacrifice, a white ram and a black ewe, for the
+Earth and for the Sun; and another for Loud-thundering Zeus; and
+summon hither the great King Priam, that he may take the pledge;
+for his sons are reckless and faithless; young men&rsquo;s hearts
+are too frivolous and fickle, but an old man looketh to the future
+and the past.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Hector sent heralds to the city, to fetch two lambs, and to
+summon Priam; while Agamemnon sent Talthybius for a ram. Now Iris,
+in Troy, came to Helen, in the semblance of Laodice, Paris&rsquo;s
+sister, fairest of Priam&rsquo;s daughters, wife of Helicaon, the
+son of Antenor. She found Helen weaving a great purple web, on
+which she was embroidering the battles of the Argives and the
+Trojans. The swift-footed Iris came near her, and said, &ldquo;Come
+hither, dear lady, come with me, to see the wondrous deeds of the
+horse-taming Trojans and the mail-clad Argives; for now the battle
+is suspended, while Paris, and Menelaus, dear to Mars, will fight
+alone with their spears, for <em>thee</em>; and thou wilt be the
+fair wife of the victor.&rdquo; So Iris spoke, and put into
+Helen&rsquo;s bosom a longing for her former husband, and for her
+darling daughter. Then Helen veiled her face, and went straightway
+to the Sc&aelig;an Gate, letting fall a tear; and her two
+handmaidens, &AElig;thre and Clymene, followed her.</p>
+<p>On the tower above the Sc&aelig;an Gate, she found the Trojan
+elders. These, on account of their age, had ceased from war, but
+were still good orators, with voices like the grasshoppers which
+sit upon a tree, and send forth their lily-like voice; so sat the
+elders of the Trojans on the Tower. When those ancient sages saw
+the fair Helen coming to them, they were astounded, and whispered
+one to another, &ldquo;No wonder that the Trojans and the Achaians
+have suffered so many things for such a glorious woman! But, fair
+as she is, let her sail away, and not stay here to trouble us and
+our children after us.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But the aged King Priam addressed her kindly. &ldquo;Dear
+Daughter! come hither, and see thy former husband and kinsmen! I do
+not blame <em>thee</em>, but the Gods, and especially Venus, by
+whom this sad war has been brought upon us. But tell me who is that
+huge Achaian warrior? Many are taller than he, but I have never
+seen a man so stately and royal.&rdquo; And the fair Helen, the
+daughter of Zeus, replied, &ldquo;O venerable Father of my lord!
+would that death had been my lot, when I followed thy son to Troy,
+and left my home and husband, and my dear young daughter, and all
+the loved companions of my girlhood! But that was not to be, and
+therefore I mourn and weep. The man of whom thou speakest is
+Atreides, the wide-ruling monarch Agamemnon, who is both a stately
+king and a doughty warrior; he is the brother of Menelaus my
+husband&mdash;shameless thing that I am!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the aged Priam asked her about the other Achaian
+chiefs,&mdash;Ulysses, and the gigantic Ajax, the bulwark of the
+host, and the godlike Idomeneus; and the lovely Helen told him all,
+and said, &ldquo;I see all the other bright-eyed Achaians, and
+could tell their names; but two I see not, even mine own brothers,
+horse-taming Castor and the boxer Pollux; peradventure they came
+not with the Achaians; or if they came, they fight not, for fear of
+the revilings which men heap on me&mdash;shameless that I
+am!&rdquo; She knew not that the earth already covered them, in
+Laced&aelig;mon, their dear native land. Now the aged Priam drove
+out through the Sc&aelig;an Gate, with Antenor by his side; and,
+when he had come to the Achaians and the Trojans, he descended from
+his chariot, and stood on the Earth, the bounteous grain-giver.
+Then Agamemnon, the king of men, and Ulysses, the man of many
+devices, rose up; and the stately heralds brought the holy
+oath-offerings to the gods, and mixed the ruddy wine in the
+mixing-bowl, from which they gave portions to the Achaian and the
+Trojan chiefs. Agamemnon raised his hands to heaven and prayed,
+&ldquo;O Father Zeus, most great and glorious! O Sun, who seest and
+hearest all things! O ye Rivers, and thou, Mother Earth! be ye all
+witnesses to our oaths! If Paris shall kill Menelaus, then let him
+keep Helen and all her possessions; but if the yellow-haired
+Menelaus slay Paris, then let the Trojans give back Helen and her
+treasures!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the lordly Agamemnon slew the lambs, and prayed again to
+Zeus. But Priam spake unto the Achaians and the Trojans. &ldquo;I
+verily will return to breezy Ilium; for I cannot bear to see my own
+son engaged in deadly conflict with the war-loving
+Menelaus.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the goodly Paris, lord of the fair-haired Helen, put on his
+beautiful armor. First he set the splendid greaves upon his legs,
+fastened round the ankles with silver clasps; then he donned the
+corslet, which he had borrowed from his brother Lycaon; and he
+threw over his shoulders the silver-studded sword-belt with his
+sword, and took up his mighty shield; and upon his beauteous head
+he placed the helmet, with a horsehair crest, and the plume nodded
+terribly; and he took a strong spear in his hand.</p>
+<p>Then he and Menelaus stood face to face, on the ground which
+Hector and Ulysses had meted out; and they brandished their spears,
+with wrath against each other. Paris drew the lot to be the first
+to cast his long-shafted spear; he threw it, and it struck the
+round shield of Atreides Menelaus, but did not pierce it; for the
+point of the spear was turned.</p>
+<p>Then Menelaus, poising his lance, prayed to Zeus, &ldquo;O
+Father Zeus! grant me to take vengeance on goodly Paris, who did me
+such foul wrong&mdash;<em>me</em>, who had shown him so much
+kindness!&rdquo; He said, and hurled his strong spear, which struck
+the bright shield of the son of Priam; and the sharp point passed
+through it, and through his breastplate, and rent the tunic, close
+to the side of his body; but Paris swerved from it, and shunned the
+black fate of death. Then Menelaus drew his sword from the
+silver-studded sheath, and smote on the helmet of Paris, but the
+sword was shattered, and fell in pieces from his hand. Then he
+looked up to heaven, and exclaimed, &ldquo;O Father Zeus! thou art
+the most cruel of all the Gods!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, he caught Paris by his horse-hair crest, and dragged
+him towards the well-greaved Achaians, and the embroidered strap of
+the helmet went nigh to strangle him. But Venus, daughter of great
+Zeus, who loved the beauteous Paris, drew near him, and tore the
+strap of leather; and the helmet came away, empty, in the strong
+hand of the son of Atreus. Full of wrath, he hurled it towards his
+trusty companions, and they took it up. He then rushed back again,
+to slay his enemy; but golden-haired Venus, being a goddess, easily
+caught up Paris, and hid him in thick darkness, and carried him
+into Troy, to his high and fragrant chamber.</p>
+<p>Venus, the golden Goddess of Love, then went to summon Helen, in
+the likeness of an old woman, a wool-comber, who had worked for
+Helen in Laced&aelig;mon, and whom she greatly loved. She found the
+white-armed Helen on the high tower, and spake: &ldquo;Come hither
+to Paris, who sends for thee; he is there in the fragrant chamber,
+shining in beauty&mdash;</p>
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<p>&ldquo;Not like a warrior parted from the foe,</p>
+<p>But some fair dancer from the public show.&rdquo;</p>
+</div>
+<p class="i8">(Pope&rsquo;s Translation of the <em>Iliad</em>.)</p>
+</div>
+<p>But Helen&rsquo;s heart was greatly moved; she knew the golden
+Venus, saw her fair neck and sparkling eyes, and called her by her
+name. &ldquo;O thou strange Goddess! wouldst thou again deceive me?
+Now Menelaus hath conquered Paris, and will carry me
+home&mdash;accursed as I am! And now do <em>thou</em> no more
+return to Olympus, but leave the dwelling of the Gods, and go and
+sit by Paris, till he make <em>thee</em> his wife&mdash;or
+perchance, his slave. But <em>I</em> will not go to him; for all
+the Trojan women would justly blame me hereafter; I have
+innumerable griefs within my heart.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then was the bright goddess sore displeased, and spake harshly
+to her. &ldquo;Beware! thou foolish woman! lest in my wrath I leave
+thee, and henceforth hate thee, as I have loved thee until
+now!&rdquo; Venus spake, and Helen, daughter of great Zeus,
+trembled and obeyed, wrapping her beautiful garments about her; and
+the goddess led her to the fragrant chamber in the palace, and set
+her on a chair before the goodly Paris.</p>
+<p>But Helen looked askance at her lord, and chode him with bitter
+words. &ldquo;Would that thou hadst never come back from the fight,
+but hadst perished by the arm of the warrior who was once my
+husband! Thou didst boast thyself to be a better man than Menelaus!
+Go then, and challenge him again, to meet thee face to face once
+more!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Yet Helen, though she could not but despise Paris, soon became
+reconciled to him, partly from a remnant of her former love for
+him, and partly from her fear of Venus.</p>
+<p>In the meantime, Menelaus was raging through the field in search
+of him. Nor could any of the Trojans find him, or they would have
+given him up; for they hated him like death, as the cause of all
+their sufferings.</p>
+<p>And King Agamemnon said to the Trojans, &ldquo;Now that the
+Mars-loving Menelaus hath conquered Paris do ye give back to us
+Helen and all her treasures!&rdquo; But this was not to be.</p>
+<h3><a id="Ajax" name="Ajax">The Duel between Hector and
+Ajax</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Walter C. Perry</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>And now we must speak of Hector, the noble Trojan prince, who,
+after Achilles, was the most famous warrior of the two hostile
+armies. Achilles, indeed, was the son of a goddess, even
+silver-footed Thetis; while Hector&rsquo;s mother, Hecuba, was a
+mortal woman.</p>
+<p>Well knowing the dangers to which he was exposed, and how soon
+he might fall in battle, Hector now bethought him of his lovely
+wife, Andromache, and his little boy Astyanax. When he came to the
+Sc&aelig;an Gate, the Trojan women came running to him, with eager
+questions about their husbands, sons, and brothers; and sorrow
+filled their hearts. Among them came his fond and generous mother,
+Hecuba, leading by the hand the fairest of her daughters, Laodice,
+and she called him by his name, and spoke: &ldquo;Dear Son! why
+hast thou left the field? Do the Achaians press thee hard? Dost
+thou come to make prayers to Father Zeus, from the Citadel? But
+come, I will bring thee honey-sweet wine, that thou mayest pour out
+a libation to Almighty Zeus, the Son of Cronos, and refresh thyself
+with a draught.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Hector answered her, &ldquo;Bring me no luscious wine, dear
+mother! lest thou rob me of my strength and courage. Nor dare I
+make a libation to Zeus, with hands unwashen and soiled with blood.
+But go thou to the Temple of Athene, driver of the spoil; and lay
+the finest robe, the most precious to thyself, upon her knees; and
+vow to sacrifice twelve fat kine to her; and beg her to have mercy
+on the Trojans, and on their wives and little children! So,
+perhaps, she will hold back the terrible warrior, Tydides, from
+sacred Ilium. And I will go and seek out Paris; would that the
+earth would swallow him up! for Zeus hath cherished him to be the
+bane of his country, and of his father Priam.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Hecuba went to her ambrosial chamber, and took the finest
+of her embroidered robes, the work of Sidonian women, which shone
+like a star; and went, with other aged women, to the temple of
+Athene. And the fair-cheeked Theano, daughter of Kisseus, the
+priestess, wife of Antenor, opened the temple gates, and took the
+shining robe, and laid it upon Athene&rsquo;s knees, and prayed to
+the great daughter of Zeus. But the goddess did not grant her
+prayer.</p>
+<p>But Hector went his way to the fair palace of Paris, and found
+him in his chamber, polishing his beautiful armor, and proving his
+curved bow. Then, when Hector saw him, he reproached him with
+bitter words. &ldquo;O thou strange man! thou dost not well to
+nurse thy spite against the Trojans, who are now perishing before
+the city, and all for thy sake! Rise, then, now, lest the city be
+burned with fire!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the goodly Paris answered, &ldquo;It is not so much by
+reason of my wrath against the Trojans, but I would fain indulge my
+sorrow. My wife, too, hath urged me to the battle. Tarry then
+awhile, and I will don my armor; or go thou before, and I will
+follow.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the divine Helen, daughter of great Zeus, came and spoke
+gently to Hector, and said, &ldquo;O brother! brother of vile
+<em>me</em>, who am a dog&mdash;would that, when my mother bare me,
+the storm-wind had snatched me away to a mountain, or a billow of
+the loud-roaring sea had swept me away, before all these evil
+things had befallen me! Would that I had been mated with a better
+man than Paris, whose heart is not sound, and never will be. But
+come, my brother, and sit by me; for thou verily hast suffered most
+for me, who am a dog, and for the grievous sin of Paris, upon whom,
+surely, Zeus is bringing evil days; he will be, hereafter, a song
+of scorn in the mouths of future men, through all time to
+come.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But noble Hector answered her, &ldquo;If thou lovest me, dear
+Helen, bid me not stay; for I go to succor my friends, who long for
+me in my absence. But do thou try and rouse this husband of thine,
+and bid him overtake me. As for me, I shall first go to my home,
+and to my wife and my little son; for who knoweth whether I shall
+ever return to them again?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So spake the glorious Hector, and went his way to his own
+well-furnished house; but he found not Andromache there; for she
+had gone to the tower, with her fair-robed nurse and with her boy,
+all bathed in tears. Hector asked the servants whither the
+white-armed Andromache was gone; and the busy matron of the house
+replied, &ldquo;She is gone to the tower of holy Troy; for she
+heard that the Trojans were defeated, and the Achaians
+victorious.&rdquo; Then Hector returned, by the same way, down the
+wide streets, and came to the Sc&aelig;an Gate.</p>
+<p>And his peerless wife, even Andromache, daughter of the
+high-minded E&euml;tion, king of Cilicia&mdash;she whom he had won
+by countless gifts&mdash;came running to meet him. And with her
+came the handmaid, the nurse, bearing in her arms Hector&rsquo;s
+tender boy, Astyanax, beautiful as the morning star. And Hector
+smiled, and looked on his darling boy, while Andromache stood
+beside him weeping. And she clasped his hand, and called him by his
+name. &ldquo;O my dear lord, thy dauntless courage will destroy
+thee! Hast thou no pity for thy infant child, and for thy hapless
+wife, who soon will be a widow? It were far better for me to die,
+if I lose <em>thee</em>; for nevermore can I know comfort, but only
+pain and sorrow. For I shall be utterly alone. I have neither
+father nor mother; for E&euml;tion, my royal sire, was slain by
+great Achilles. And all my seven brothers went down to Hades on the
+selfsame day! they too were slain by swift-footed Pelides. But my
+mother was smitten in her father&rsquo;s halls, by the gentle
+arrows of the archer Artemis. Lo! now, <em>thou</em> art all in all
+to me, father, mother, brother, and dearly loved husband! Come,
+then, take pity on us, and abide in the tower, and make not thy boy
+an orphan, and thy wife a widow!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the glorious Hector of the glancing helm answered her, and
+said, &ldquo;Dear Wife! I too think of all these things. But how
+can I shun the battle, like a coward, to be the mock of the
+Trojans, and of the Trojan dames with trailing robes? I, who have
+always fought in the van of battle, and won glory for my father and
+myself? I know that the day will come, when sacred Ilium shall be
+leveled with the ground, and Priam and the people of Priam shall
+perish. But it is not so much the fate of Priam, and of my mother,
+Hecuba, and of my brethren, which fills my soul with anguish; but
+it is <em>thy</em> misery, dear one, in the day when some Achaian
+warrior shall bear thee away, weeping, and rob thee of thy freedom.
+Thou, alas! wilt abide in Argos, and ply the loom, the slave of
+another woman; or bear water from the Hypereian fount, being
+harshly treated! And one will say, as he looketh upon thee,
+&lsquo;This was the wife of Hector, the foremost of the
+horse-taming Trojans in the war round Ilium.&rsquo; But may the
+deep earth cover <em>me</em>, ere I hear thee crying in the day of
+thy captivity.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So spake he, and held out his arms to take his darling boy. But
+the child shrank crying, and nestled in the bosom of his
+well-girdled nurse; for he feared the horsehair crest, nodding
+terribly from the brazen helmet. Then the fond parents laughed; and
+Hector doffed his helmet, and laid it on the ground. And he kissed
+his dear child, and fondled him, and prayed thus to
+Zeus:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;O Zeus! and all ye Gods! grant that this, my son, may
+like me be foremost to fight among the Trojans, and rule as a king
+in Ilium; so that men may say, &lsquo;He is far better than his
+father&rsquo;!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Thus speaking, he laid the child in the fragrant bosom of his
+dear wife Andromache; and he pitied her, and caressed her with his
+hand, and called her by her name. &ldquo;Dear one! be not thus
+utterly cast down. No man can slay me till my hour of destiny is
+come. But no man, when once he hath been born, can escape his fate,
+be he a brave man or a coward. Go thou to thy house, to the distaff
+and the loom, and make thy maidens ply their labors. But
+<em>men</em> shall engage in war, and I the first of all in
+Troy.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So spake Hector of the glancing helmet, and went his way. And
+his dear wife went to her home, looking back at him as she went,
+shedding bitter tears. And she found her maidens there, and with
+them she bewailed her lord, while yet he lived; for they feared
+that he would never again return from battle.</p>
+<p>And the goodly Paris donned his beautiful armor, and hastened
+after his brother, whom he overtook, and he made excuse for his
+long tarrying. And Hector answered him, &ldquo;No man can justly
+speak lightly of thy deeds, for thou art strong; but thou art slack
+and careless, and I am grieved when I hear shameful things said of
+thee by the Trojans, who for thee bear so much toil. But let us be
+going.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So the twain brothers, the glorious Hector and the goodly Paris,
+went forth to the battle. And Paris slew Menesthius, of Arne, son
+of Are&iuml;thous; and Hector smote noble E&iuml;oneus in the neck,
+and relaxed his limbs in death. And Glaucus, captain of the Lycian
+allies, cast his spear at Iphinous, and pierced his shoulder; and
+he fell from his chariot, and his limbs were loosened.</p>
+<p>But when the fierce-eyed Athene saw the Trojans making havoc of
+the Achaians, she rushed down from the peaks of Olympus, to sacred
+Ilium. And Apollo, who favored the Trojans, saw her from Pergamus,
+and hastened to meet her; and they met by the beech-tree, and
+Apollo of the Silver Bow addressed her: &ldquo;Why dost thou come,
+O Daughter of the Loud-Thunderer? Is it to bring victory to the
+Greeks? for thou hast no pity on the Trojans. But hearken unto me,
+and let us stop the battle for this day&mdash;hereafter they shall
+fight again.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the fierce-eyed goddess answered him, &ldquo;Be it so,
+Far-Darter! for this was my purpose when I came from high Olympus.
+But how thinkest thou to make the war to cease?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then King Apollo spake. &ldquo;Let us rouse the valiant spirit
+of horse-taming Hector, to challenge one of the Greeks to deadly
+single combat.&rdquo; And the fierce-eyed Maid assented to his
+words.</p>
+<p>And the dear son of royal Priam, Helenus, the wise augur, who
+knew the counsel of the Gods, drew near to Hector, and spake thus
+to him: &ldquo;Dear brother, who art peer of Zeus in counsel,
+wouldst thou listen to me? Make the Trojans and the Achaians sit
+down; and do thou challenge the bravest of the Achaians to meet
+thee in single combat. I hear the voice of the deathless Gods, that
+it is not yet thy lot to die.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the great Hector rejoiced at his words; and going into the
+throng, he held back the companies of the Trojans with his spear,
+holding it in the middle, and made them all sit down. And Agamemnon
+made the well-greaved Achaians sit down. And Athene and Apollo, in
+the form of vultures, sat on a lofty tree, and watched the hosts.
+And Hector stood between the two armies, and spake: &ldquo;Hear me,
+ye Trojans and Achaians! Amongst you are the great chiefs of the
+Achaians. Now let one of these be your champion, to fight with me,
+Hector: and I call Zeus to witness, that if he slay me, you shall
+let him carry off my armor, but give my body to the Trojans, that
+they may render to me the honor of the funeral pyre. But if the
+Far-Darter shall grant me glory, that I may slay <em>him</em>, then
+will I strip him of his armor, and hang it in the Temple of Apollo;
+but his lifeless body I will give back to the long-haired Achaians,
+that they may bury him, and build him a barrow by the
+Hellespont.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Thus spake the glorious Hector; but all were silent; for they
+were afraid to meet him. Then, at last, Menelaus, groaning deeply,
+reproached the Achaians, and said, &ldquo;O ye women of Achaia, no
+longer <em>men!</em> surely this will be an everlasting shame to
+us, if none of the Greeks dare to fight with the noble Hector! But
+I myself will arm me; for the issues of victory are with the
+Gods.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And he began to put on his dazzling armor. And now wouldst thou,
+Menelaus, have yielded up thy life at the hands of Hector; but the
+great ruler, Agamemnon, rose up and stayed thee. &ldquo;Art thou
+mad, O foster-son of Zeus? Draw back, though with grief and pain;
+and think not to fight with Hector, the man-slaying son of Priam;
+for he is a far better man than thou, even godlike Achilles feareth
+to meet this man in battle. Go then and sit down; and we will
+choose another champion.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the fair-haired Menelaus obeyed his brother&rsquo;s words,
+and his henchmen gladly took off his bright armor. And the wise
+Nestor arose, and upbraided all the Achaian chiefs: &ldquo;Fie on
+us! Shame and lamentation have come upon us all. Surely the aged
+Peleus, the goodly king of the Myrmidons, would deeply groan, if he
+heard that we are all cowering before great Hector; he would pray
+that his soul might leave his body and go down to Hades. Would to
+Zeus, and to Athene and Apollo, that I were young, as when the
+Pylians met the Arcadians in battle, and Ereuthalion, the squire of
+King Lycurgus of Arcadia, wearing the divine armor of
+Are&iuml;thous, of the iron mace, before the walls of Pheia, by the
+waters of Iardanus, challenged all our host; and they were afraid
+and trembled. Then I, the youngest of all, stood up and fought with
+him, and Athene gave me great glory; for he was the tallest man,
+and of the greatest bulk, that I have ever slain. Would that I were
+still so young and strong! But of you, leaders of the Achaians, not
+one has heart enough to meet great Hector.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The wise old man&rsquo;s reproaches filled the Achaian chiefs
+with shame; and nine of them rose up, ready to fight; namely,
+Agamemnon, king of men; and the stalwart Diomedes; and Idomeneus,
+and his brother in arms, Meriones, equal in fight to murderous
+Mars; and Eurypylus, and Thaus, and the wily Ulysses, and two
+others. Then Nestor spake again. &ldquo;Now cast lots for him that
+shall be champion.&rdquo; Then each man marked his lot, and threw
+it into Agamemnon&rsquo;s helmet; and all men prayed that the lot
+might fall on Ajax or Diomedes, or the king of rich Mycen&aelig;.
+Then Nestor shook the helmet, and the lot of Ajax leapt out; and
+the herald placed it in the hand of mighty Ajax, and he was glad;
+for he said, &ldquo;I think that I shall vanquish goodly
+Hector.&rdquo; And they all prayed to the Son of Cronos, to give
+victory to Ajax, or to grant unto each of them equal glory and
+renown.</p>
+<p>Then huge Ajax donned his bright armor of bronze, and came forth
+like the war-god Mars when he goeth to battle. The Achaians were
+glad, but the Trojans trembled; and even the brave Hector felt his
+heart beat quicker in his breast. But he would not shrink from the
+combat, seeing that he had himself challenged all the Achaians. And
+Ajax came on, bearing a mighty shield, like a tower, which Tychius,
+the cunning leather-worker, had made for him, of sevenfold hides of
+lusty bulls, all overlaid with bronze. And he stood near godlike
+Hector, and spake: &ldquo;Now shalt thou see what manner of men the
+Greeks have among them, even now when Achilles, the lion-hearted,
+hath left us in his wrath. But do thou begin the fight!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Hector answered him, &ldquo;Great Ajax, son of Telamon,
+sprung from Zeus! speak not to me as if I were a poor weak boy, or
+a woman! for I too have knowledge of war and slaughter. I know how
+to charge into the midst of the chariots, or, at close quarters, to
+join in the wild dance of Mars.&rdquo; He said, and hurled his
+long-shafted spear, and struck the sevenfold shield of Ajax; it
+passed through six folds, but was stopped by the seventh.</p>
+<p>Then Ajax, sprung from Zeus, threw his ponderous lance at the
+shield of mighty Priam&rsquo;s son. It passed right through the
+bright shield, and through the well-wrought corselet, and rent his
+tunic; but he swerved aside, and escaped gloomy death. Then the two
+fell upon each other, like ravening lions or wild boars; and Hector
+smote the shield of Ajax with his spear, but the sharp point was
+turned by the stout buckler. Then Ajax leapt upon him, and drove
+his spear at Hector&rsquo;s neck, making a wound from which the
+dark blood flowed.</p>
+<p>But Hector, undismayed, took up a great stone from the ground,
+and with it smote the boss of Ajax&rsquo;s shield. And Ajax heaved
+up a far bigger stone and threw it on the buckler of Hector, and it
+fell on him like a huge millstone, and stretched him on his back!
+But Apollo raised him, and set him on his legs again.</p>
+<p>Then they would have furiously attacked each other with their
+swords, had not the Achaian herald, Talthybius, and the Trojan
+herald, Idaius, intervened and stopped the fight, holding their
+staves of office between the godlike warriors; and Idaius spake to
+them: &ldquo;Fight no longer, brave youths; for Zeus loveth you
+both; and we know well what gallant warriors ye are. Night is upon
+us, whose commands it behooveth us to obey.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the Telamonian Ajax answered, &ldquo;Let Hector say those
+words; for it was he who challenged us.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Hector of the shining helmet said, &ldquo;Ajax, since thou
+hast received strength and wisdom from the Gods, and dost excel all
+the Achaians in the fight, let us now cease from battle for the
+day, and hereafter we will fight again, until the Gods shall give
+victory to one of us. Go now, and rejoice thy friends and kinsmen
+by the ships, and I will gladden the hearts of Trojan men and
+long-robed dames in the holy city of King Priam. But now let us
+exchange costly gifts, that Trojans and Achaians may say of us that
+we, having met in this heart-gnawing strife, have parted like good
+friends.&rdquo; He spake, and gave to Ajax a silver-studded sword;
+and Ajax gave him a purple belt. So they parted, and went their
+way; the one to the ships of the Achaians, and the other to the
+holy city of Troy. And the Trojans rejoiced that Hector had escaped
+unhurt from the unapproachable hands of mighty Ajax.</p>
+<h3><a id="Patroclus" name="Patroclus">The Death of Patroclus and
+the Battle of the River</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Patroclus came and stood by the side of Achilles weeping. Then
+said Achilles, &ldquo;What ails thee, Patroclus, that thou weepest
+like a girl-child that runs along by her mother&rsquo;s side, and
+would be taken up, holding her gown, and looking at her with
+tearful eyes till she lift her in her arms? Hast thou heard evil
+news from Phthia? Menoetius yet lives, they say, and Peleus. Or art
+thou weeping for the Greeks, because they perish for their
+folly?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said Patroclus, &ldquo;Be not wroth with me, great
+Achilles, for indeed the Greeks are in grievous straits, and all
+their bravest are wounded, and still thou cherishest thy wrath.
+Surely Peleus was not thy father, nor Thetis thy mother; but the
+rocks begat thee, and the sea brought thee forth. Or if thou goest
+not to battle, fearing some warning from the Gods, yet let me go,
+and thy Myrmidons with me. And let me put thy armor on me; so shall
+the Greeks have breathing-space from the war.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So he spake, entreating, nor knew that for his own doom he
+entreated. And Achilles made reply,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It is no warning that I heed, that I keep back from the
+war. But these men took from me my prize, which I won with my own
+hands. But let the past be past. I said I would not rise up till
+the battle should come nigh to my own ships. But thou mayest put my
+armor upon thee, and lead my Myrmidons to the fight. For in truth
+the men of Troy are gathered as a dark cloud about the ships, and
+the Greeks have scarce standing-ground between them and the sea.
+For they see not the gleam of my helmet. And Diomed is not there
+with his spear; nor do I hear the voice of Agamemnon, but only the
+voice of Hector as he calls the men of Troy to the battle. Go,
+therefore, Patroclus, and drive the fire from the ships. And then
+come thou back, nor fight any more with the Trojans, lest thou take
+my glory from me. And go not near, in the delight of the battle, to
+the walls of Troy, lest one of the Gods meet thee to thy hurt; and,
+of a truth, the keen Archer Apollo loves the Trojans
+well.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But as they talked the one to the other, Ajax could hold out no
+longer. For swords and javelins came thick upon him, and clattered
+on his helmet, and his shoulder was weary with the great shield
+which he held; and he breathed heavily and hard, and the great
+drops of sweat fell upon the ground. Then at the last Hector came
+near and smote his spear with a great sword, so that the head fell
+off. Then was Ajax sore afraid, and gave way, and the men of Troy
+set torches to the ship&rsquo;s stem, and a great flame shot up to
+the sky. And Achilles saw it, and smote his thigh and
+spake:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Haste thee, Patroclus, for I see the fire rising up from
+the ships. Put thou on the armor, and I will call my people to the
+war.&rdquo; So Patroclus put on the armor&mdash;corselet, and
+shield, and helmet&mdash;and bound upon his shoulder the
+silver-studded sword, and took a mighty spear in his hand. But the
+great Pelian spear he took not, for that no man but Achilles might
+wield. Then Automedon yoked the horses to the chariot, Bayard and
+Piebald, and with them in the side harness, Pedasus; and they two
+were deathless steeds, but he was mortal.</p>
+<p>Meanwhile Achilles had called the Myrmidons to battle. Fifty
+ships had he brought to Troy, and in each there were fifty men.
+Five leaders they had, and the bravest of the five was
+Pisander.</p>
+<p>Then Achilles said, &ldquo;Forget not, ye Myrmidons, the bold
+words that ye spake against the men of Troy during the days of my
+wrath, making complaint that I kept you from the battle against
+your will. Now, therefore, ye have that which you
+desired.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So the Myrmidons went to the battle in close array, helmet to
+helmet, and shield to shield, close as the stones with which a
+builder builds a wall. And in front went Patroclus, and Automedon
+in the chariot beside him. Then Achilles went to his tent and took
+a great cup from the chest, which Thetis his mother had given him.
+Now no man drank of that cup but he only, nor did he pour out of it
+libations to any of the Gods, but only to Zeus. This first he
+cleansed with sulphur, and then with water from the spring. And
+after this he washed his hands, and stood in the midst of the space
+before his tent, and poured out of it to Zeus, saying, &ldquo;O
+Zeus, I send my comrade to this battle; make him strong and bold,
+and give him glory, and bring him home safe to the ships, and my
+people with him.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So he prayed, and Father Zeus heard him, and part he granted and
+part denied.</p>
+<p>But now Patroclus with the Myrmidons had come to where the
+battle was raging about the ship of Protesilaus, and when the men
+of Troy beheld him they thought that Achilles had forgotten his
+wrath and was come forth to the war. And first Patroclus slew
+Pyr&aelig;chmes, who was the chief of the P&aelig;onians who live
+on the banks of the broad Axius. Then the men of Troy turned to
+flee, and many chiefs of fame fell by the spears of the Greeks. So
+the battle rolled back to the trench, and in the trench many
+chariots of the Trojans were broken, but the horses of Achilles
+went across it at a stride, so nimble were they and strong. And the
+heart of Patroclus was set to slay Hector; but he could not
+overtake him, so swift were his horses. Then did Patroclus turn his
+chariot, and keep back those that fled, that they should not go to
+the city, and rushed hither and thither, still slaying as he
+went.</p>
+<p>But Sarpedon, when he saw the Lycians dismayed and scattered,
+called to them that they should be of good courage, saying that he
+would himself make trial of this great warrior. So he leapt down
+from his chariot, and Patroclus also leapt down, and they rushed at
+each other as two eagles rush together. Then first Patroclus struck
+down Thrasymelus, who was the comrade of Sarpedon; and Sarpedon,
+who had a spear in either hand, with the one struck the horse
+Pedasus, which was of mortal breed, on the right shoulder, and with
+the other missed his aim, sending it over the left shoulder of
+Patroclus. But Patroclus missed not his aim, driving his spear into
+Sarpedon&rsquo;s heart. Then fell the great Lycian chief, as an
+oak, or a poplar, or a pine falls upon the hills before the axe.
+But he called to Glaucus, his companion, saying, &ldquo;Now must
+thou show thyself a good warrior, Glaucus. First call the men of
+Lycia to fight for me, and do thou fight thyself, for it would be
+foul shame to thee, all thy days, if the Greeks should spoil me of
+my arms.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he died. But Glaucus was sore troubled, for he could not
+help him, so grievous was the wound where Teucer had wounded him.
+Therefore he prayed to Apollo, and Apollo helped him and made him
+whole. Then he went first to the Lycians, bidding them fight for
+their king, and then to the chiefs of the Trojans, that they should
+save the body of Sarpedon. And to Hector he said, &ldquo;Little
+carest thou for thy allies. Lo! Sarpedon is dead, slain by
+Patroclus. Suffer not the Myrmidons to carry him off and do
+dishonor to his body.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Hector was troubled to hear such news, and so were all the
+sons of Troy, for Sarpedon was the bravest of the allies, and led
+most people to the battle. So with a great shout they charged, and
+drove the Greeks back a space from the body; and then again the
+Greeks did the like. And so the battle raged, till no one would
+have known the great Sarpedon, so covered was he with spears and
+blood and dust. But at the last the Greeks drave back the men of
+Troy from the body, and stripped the arms, but the body itself they
+harmed not. For Apollo came down at the bidding of Zeus, and
+carried it out of the midst of the battle, and washed it with
+water, and anointed it with ambrosia, and wrapped it in garments of
+the Gods. And then he gave it to Sleep and Death, and these two
+carried it to Lycia, his fatherland.</p>
+<p>Then did Patroclus forget the word which Achilles had spoken to
+him, that he should not go near to Troy, for he pursued the men of
+the city even to the wall. Thrice he mounted on the angle of the
+wall, and thrice Apollo himself drove him back, pushing his shining
+shield. But the fourth time the god said, &ldquo;Go thou back,
+Patroclus. It is not for thee to take the city of Troy; no, nor for
+Achilles, who is far better than thou art.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So Patroclus went back, fearing the wrath of the archer god.
+Then Apollo stirred up the spirit of Hector, that he should go
+against Patroclus. Therefore he went, with his brother Cebriones
+for driver of his chariot. But when they came near, Patroclus cast
+a great stone which he had in his hand, and smote Cebriones on the
+forehead, crushing it in, so that he fell headlong from the
+chariot. And Patroclus mocked him, saying,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;How nimble is this man! how lightly he dives! What spoil
+he would take of oysters, diving from a ship, even in a stormy sea!
+Who would have thought that there were such skillful divers in
+Troy!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then again the battle waxed hot about the body of Cebriones, and
+this too, at the last, the Greeks drew unto themselves, and spoiled
+it of the arms. And this being accomplished, Patroclus rushed
+against the men of Troy. Thrice he rushed, and each time he slew
+nine chiefs of fame. But the fourth time Apollo stood behind him
+and struck him on the head and shoulders, so that his eyes were
+darkened. And the helmet fell from off his head, so that the
+horse-hair plumes were soiled with dust. Never before had it
+touched the ground, for it was the helmet of Achilles. And also the
+god brake the spear in his hand, and struck the shield from his
+arms, and loosed his corselet. All amazed he stood, and then
+Euphorbus, son of Panthous, smote him on the back with his spear,
+but slew him not. Then Patroclus sought to flee to the ranks of his
+comrades. But Hector saw him, and thrust at him with his spear,
+smiting him in the groin, so that he fell. And when the Greeks saw
+him fall, they sent up a terrible cry. Then Hector stood over him
+and cried,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Didst thou think to spoil our city, Patroclus, and to
+carry away our wives and daughters in the ships? But lo! I have
+slain thee, and the fowls of the air shall eat thy flesh; nor shall
+the great Achilles help thee at all,&mdash;Achilles, who bade thee,
+I trow, strip the tunic from my breast, and thou thoughtest in thy
+folly to do it.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Patroclus answered, &ldquo;Thou boasteth much, Hector. Yet
+<em>thou</em> didst not slay me, but Apollo, who took from me my
+arms, for had twenty such as thou met me, I had slain them all. And
+mark thou this: death and fate are close to thee by the hand of the
+great Achilles.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Hector answered, but Patroclus was dead already, &ldquo;Why
+dost thou prophesy death to me? Maybe the great Achilles himself
+shall fall by my hand.&rdquo; Then he drew his spear from the
+wound, and went after Automedon, to slay him, but the swift horse
+of Achilles carried him away.</p>
+<p>Fierce was the fight about the body of Patroclus, and many
+heroes fell, both on this side and on that.</p>
+<div class="figure"><a href="images/big_252.jpg"><img src=
+"images/small_252.jpg" alt=
+"A large battle scene with horses and swords." id="img05" name=
+"img05" width="551" height="360" /></a>
+<p>FIERCE WAS THE FIGHT ABOUT THE BODY OF PATROCLUS AND MANY HEROES
+FELL</p>
+</div>
+<p>Meanwhile Antilochus, son of Nestor, ran to Achilles and said,
+&ldquo;I bring ill news; Patroclus lies low. The Greeks fight for
+his body, but Hector hath his arms.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Achilles took of the dust of the plain in his hand, and
+poured it on his head, and lay at his length upon the ground, and
+tare his hair. And all the women wailed. And Antilochus sat
+weeping; but ever he held the hands of Achilles, lest he should
+slay himself in his great grief.</p>
+<p>Then came his mother, hearing his cry, from where she sat in the
+depths of the sea, and laid her hand on him and said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Why weepest thou, my son? Hide not the matter from me,
+but tell me.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Achilles answered, &ldquo;All that Zeus promised thee for me
+he hath fulfilled. But what profit have I, for my friend Patroclus
+is dead, and Hector has the arms which I gave him to wear. And as
+for me, I care not to live, except I can avenge me upon
+him.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said Thetis, &ldquo;Nay, my son, speak not thus. For when
+Hector dieth, thy doom also is near.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Achilles spake in great wrath: &ldquo;Would that I might die
+this hour, seeing that I could not help my friend, but am a burden
+on the earth,&mdash;I, who am better in battle than all the Greeks
+besides. Cursed be the wrath that sets men to strive the one with
+the other, even as it set me to strive with King Agamemnon! But let
+the past be past. And as for my fate&mdash;let it come when it may,
+so that I first avenge myself on Hector. Wherefore, seek not to
+keep me back from the battle.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Thetis said, &ldquo;Be it so; only thou canst not go
+without thy arms which Hector hath. But to-morrow will I go to
+Vulcan, that he may furnish thee anew.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But while they talked the men of Troy pressed the Greeks more
+and more, and the two heroes, Ajax the Greater and Ajax the Less,
+could no longer keep Hector back, but that he should lay hold of
+the body of Patroclus. And indeed he would have taken it, but that
+Zeus sent Iris to Achilles, who said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Rouse thee, son of Peleus, or Patroclus will be a prey
+for the dogs of Troy.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Achilles said, &ldquo;How shall I go?&mdash;for arms have I
+none, nor know I whose I might wear. Haply I could shift with the
+shield of Ajax, son of Telamon, but he, I know, is carrying it in
+the front of the battle.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then answered Iris, &ldquo;Go only to the trench and show
+thyself; so shall the men of Troy tremble and cease from the
+battle, and the Greeks shall have breathing-space.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So he went, and Athene put her &aelig;gis about his mighty
+shoulders, and a golden halo about his head, making it shine as a
+flame of fire, even as the watch-fires shine at night from some
+city that is beseiged. Then went he to the trench; with the battle
+he mingled not, heeding his mother&rsquo;s commands, but he shouted
+aloud, and his voice was as the sound of a trumpet. And when the
+men of Troy heard, they were stricken with fear, and the horses
+backed with the chariots, and the drivers were astonished when they
+saw the flaming fire above his head which Athene had kindled.
+Thrice across the trench the great Achilles shouted, and thrice the
+men of Troy fell back. And that hour there perished twelve chiefs
+of fame, wounded by their own spears or trampled by their own
+steeds, so great was the terror among the men of Troy.</p>
+<p>Right gladly did the Greeks take Patroclus out of the press.
+Then they laid him on a bier, and carried him to the tent, Achilles
+walking with many tears by his side.</p>
+<p>But on the other side the men of Troy held an assembly. Standing
+they held it, for none dared to sit, lest Achilles should be upon
+them.</p>
+<p>Then spake Polydamas: &ldquo;Let us not wait here for the
+morning. It was well for us to fight at the ships while Achilles
+yet kept his wrath against Agamemnon. But now it is not so, for
+to-morrow he will come against us in his anger, and many will fall
+before him. Wherefore, let us go back to the city, for high are the
+walls and strong the gates, and he will perish before he pass
+them.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said Hector, &ldquo;This is ill counsel, Polydamas. Shall
+we shut ourselves up in the city, where all our goods are wasted
+already, buying meat for the people? Nay, let us watch to-night,
+and to-morrow will we fight with the Greeks. And if Achilles be
+indeed come forth from his tent, be it so. I will not shun to meet
+him, for Mars gives the victory now to one man and now to
+another.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So he spake, and all the people applauded, not knowing what the
+morrow should bring forth.</p>
+<p>Thus did it come to pass that Achilles went again into the
+battle, eager above all things to meet with Hector and to slay
+him.</p>
+<p>But Apollo stood by &AElig;neas, and spake to him:
+&ldquo;&AElig;neas, where are now thy boastings that thou wouldst
+meet Achilles face to face?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then &AElig;neas answered, &ldquo;Nay, I have stood up against
+him in the day when he took the town of Lyrnessus. But I fled
+before him, and only my nimble feet saved me from falling by his
+spear. Surely a god is ever with him, making his spear to fly
+aright.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Him Apollo answered again, &ldquo;Thou, too, art the son of a
+goddess, and thy mother is greater than his, for she is but a
+daughter of the sea. Drive straight at him with thy spear, and let
+not his threats dismay thee.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then &AElig;neas stood out from the press to meet Achilles and
+Achilles said, &ldquo;Fightest thou with me because thou hopest to
+reign over the men of Troy, or have they given thee a choice
+portion of ground, ploughland and orchard, to be thine when thou
+hast slain me? Thou wilt not find it easy. Dost thou not remember
+how thou fleddest before me in the day that I took
+Lyrnessus?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then &AElig;neas answered, &ldquo;Think not to terrify me with
+words, son of Peleus, for I, too, am the son of a goddess. Let us
+make a trial one of the other.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he cast his spear, and it struck the shield of Achilles
+with so dreadful a sound that the hero feared lest it should pierce
+it through, knowing not that the gifts of the Gods are not easy for
+mortal man to vanquish. Two folds, indeed, it pierced, that were of
+bronze, but in the gold it was stayed, and there were yet two of
+tin within. Then Achilles cast his spear. Through the shield of
+&AElig;neas it passed, and though it wounded him not, yet was he
+sore dismayed, so near it came. Then Achilles drew his sword, and
+rushed on &AElig;neas, and &AElig;neas caught up a great stone to
+cast at him. But it was not the will of the Gods that &AElig;neas
+should perish, seeing that he and his sons after him should rule
+over the men of Troy in the ages to come. Therefore Neptune lifted
+him up, and bore him over the ranks of men to the left of the
+battle, but first he drew the spear out of the shield, and laid it
+at the feet of Achilles. Much the hero marveled to see it, crying,
+&ldquo;This is a great wonder that I behold with mine eyes. For I
+see my spear before me, but the man whom I sought to slay, I see
+not. Of a truth &AElig;neas spake truth, saying that he was dear to
+the immortal Gods.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he rushed into the battle, slaying as he went. And Hector
+would have met him, but Apollo stood by him and said, &ldquo;Fight
+not with Achilles, lest he slay thee.&rdquo; Therefore he went back
+among the men of Troy. Many did Achilles slay, and among them
+Polydorus, son of Priam, who, because he was the youngest and very
+dear, his father suffered not to go to the battle. Yet he went, in
+his folly, and being very swift of foot, he trusted in his speed,
+running through the foremost of the fighters. But as he ran
+Achilles smote him and wounded him to the death. When Hector saw
+it, he could not bear any more to stand apart. Therefore he rushed
+at Achilles, and Achilles rejoiced to see him, saying, &ldquo;This
+is the man who slew my comrade;&rdquo; and to Hector he cried,
+&ldquo;Come hither, and taste of death.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Hector made answer, &ldquo;Son of Peleus, seek not to make
+me afraid with words. For though I be weaker than thou, yet victory
+lieth on the knees of the Gods, and I, too, bear a
+spear.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he cast his spear, but Athene turned it aside with her
+breath, and laid it again at his feet. And when Achilles leapt upon
+Hector with a shout, Apollo snatched him away. Three times did
+Achilles leap upon him, and three times he struck only the mist.
+But the fourth time he cried with a terrible voice, &ldquo;Dog,
+thou hast escaped from death, Apollo helping thee; but I shall meet
+thee again, and make an end of thee.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Achilles turned to the others, and slew multitudes of them,
+so that they fled, some across the plain, and some to the river,
+the eddying Xanthus. And these leapt into the water as locusts leap
+into a river when a fire which men light drives them from the
+fields. And all the river was full of horses and men. Then Achilles
+leapt into the stream, leaving his spear on the bank, resting on
+the tamarisk trees. Only his sword had he, and with this he slew
+many; and they were as fishes which fly from some great dolphin in
+the sea. In all the bays of a harbor they hide themselves, for the
+great beast devours them apace. So did the Trojans hide themselves
+under the banks of the river. And when Achilles was weary of
+slaying, he took twelve alive, whom he would slay on the tomb of
+Patroclus.</p>
+<p>Yet there was one man who dared to stand up against him, while
+the others fled. This was Asterop&aelig;us, who was the grandson of
+the river-god Axius, and led the men of P&aelig;onia. And Achilles
+wondered to see him, and said, &ldquo;Who art thou that standest
+against me?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And he said, &ldquo;I am the grandson of the river-god Axius,
+fairest of all the streams on the earth, and I lead the men of
+P&aelig;onia.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And as he spake he cast two spears, one with each hand, for he
+could use either alike; and the one struck the shield, nor pierced
+it through, for the gold staved it, and the other grazed the right
+hand of Achilles so that the blood spurted forth. Then did Achilles
+cast his spear, but missed his aim, and the great spear stood fast
+in the bank. And thrice Asterop&aelig;us strove to draw it forth.
+Thrice he strove in vain, and the fourth time he strove to break
+the spear. But as he strove Achilles smote him that he died. Yet
+had he some glory, for that he wounded the great Achilles.</p>
+<p>When the River saw that Asterop&aelig;us was dead, and that
+Achilles was slaying many of the P&aelig;onians&mdash;for these
+were troubled, their chief being dead&mdash;he took upon him the
+shape of a man, and spake to Achilles, saying, &ldquo;Truly,
+Achilles, thou excellest all other men in might and deeds of blood,
+for the Gods themselves protect thee. It may be that Zeus hath
+given thee to slay all the sons of Troy; nevertheless, depart from
+me and work thy will upon the plain; for my stream is choked with
+the multitude of corpses, nor can I pass to the sea. Do thou,
+therefore, cease from troubling me.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>To him Achilles made answer, &ldquo;This shall be as thou wilt,
+O Scamander. But the Trojans I will not cease from slaying till I
+have driven them into their city and have made trial of Hector,
+whether I shall vanquish him or he shall vanquish me.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And as he spake he sped on, pursuing the Trojans. Then the River
+cried to Apollo, &ldquo;Little thou doest the will of thy father,
+thou of the Silver Bow, who bade thee stand by the men of Troy and
+help them till darkness should cover the land.&rdquo; And he rushed
+on with a great wave, stirring together all his streams. The dead
+bodies he threw upon the shore, roaring as a bull roareth; and them
+that lived he hid in the depths of his eddies. And all about
+Achilles rose up the flood, beating full upon his shield, so that
+he could not stand fast upon his feet. Then Achilles laid hold of a
+lime-tree, fair and tall, that grew upon the bank; but the tree
+brake therefrom with all its roots, and tare down the bank, and lay
+across the River, staying its flood, for it had many branches.
+Thereupon Achilles leapt out of the water and sped across the
+plain, being sore afraid. But the River ceased not from pursuing
+him, that he might stay him from slaughter and save the sons of
+Troy. So far as a man may throw a spear, so far did Achilles leap;
+strong as an eagle was he, the hunting-bird that is the strongest
+and swiftest of all birds. And still as he fled the River pursued
+after him with a great roar. Even as it is with a man that would
+water his garden, bringing a stream from a fountain; he has a
+pick-axe in his hand to break down all that would stay the water;
+and the stream runs on, rolling the pebbles along with it, and
+overtakes him that guides it. Even so did the River overtake
+Achilles, for all that he was swift of foot, for indeed the Gods
+are mightier than men. And when Achilles would have stood against
+the River, seeking to know whether indeed all the Gods were against
+him, then the great wave smote upon his shoulders; and when he
+leapt into the air, it bowed his knees beneath him and devoured the
+ground from under his feet. Then Achilles looked up to heaven and
+groaned, crying out, &ldquo;O Zeus, will none of the Gods pity me,
+and save me from the River? I care not what else may befall me.
+Truly my mother hath deceived me, saying that I should perish under
+the walls of Troy by the arrows of Apollo. Surely it had been
+better that Hector should slay me, for he is the bravest of the men
+of Troy, but now I shall perish miserably in the River, as some
+herd-boy perisheth whom a torrent sweeps away in a
+storm.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So he spake; but Poseidon and Athene stood by him, having taken
+upon them the shape of men, and took him by the hand and
+strengthened him with comforting words, for Poseidon spake, saying,
+&ldquo;Son of Peleus, tremble not, neither be afraid. It is not thy
+fate to be mastered by the River. He shall soon cease from
+troubling thee. And do thou heed what we say. Stay not thy hands
+from the battle, till thou shalt have driven all the sons of Troy
+that escape thee within the walls of the city. And when thou shalt
+have slain Hector, go back to the ships; for this day is the day of
+thy glory.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the two departed from him. Now all the plain was covered
+with water, wherein floated much fair armor and many dead bodies.
+But Achilles went on even against the stream, nor could the River
+hold him back; for Athene put great might into his heart. Yet did
+not Scamander cease from his wrath, but lifted his waves yet
+higher, and cried aloud to Simois, &ldquo;Dear brother, let us two
+stay the fury of this man, or else of a surety he will destroy the
+city of Priam. Come now, fill all thy streams and rouse thy
+torrents against him, and lift up against him a mighty wave with a
+great concourse of tree-trunks and stones, that we may stay this
+wild man from his fighting. Very high thoughts hath he, even as a
+god; yet shall neither his might nor his beauty nor his fair form
+profit him; for they shall be covered with much mud; and over
+himself will I heap abundance of sand beyond all counting. Neither
+shall the Greeks be able to gather his bones together, with such a
+heap will I hide them. Surely a great tomb will I build for him;
+nor will his people have need to make a mound over him when they
+would bury him.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he rushed again upon Achilles, swelling high with foam and
+blood and dead bodies of men. Very dark was the wave as it rose,
+and was like to have overwhelmed the man, so that Juno greatly
+feared for him, lest the River should sweep him away. And she cried
+to Vulcan, her son, saying, &ldquo;Rouse thee, Haltfoot, my son! I
+thought that thou wouldst have been a match for Scamander in
+battle. But come, help us, and bring much fire with thee; and I
+will call the west wind and the south wind from the sea, with such
+a storm as shall consume the sons of Troy, both them and their
+arms. And do thou burn the trees that are by the banks of Xanthus,
+yea, and the River himself. And let him not turn thee from thy
+purpose by fury or by craft; but burn till I shall bid thee
+cease.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Vulcan lit a great fire. First he burned the dead bodies
+that lay upon the plain, and it dried all the plain, as the north
+wind in the autumn time dries a field, to the joy of him that tills
+it. After this it laid hold of the River. The lime-trees and the
+willows and the tamarisks it burned; also the plants that grew in
+the streams. And the eels and the fishes were sore distressed,
+twisting hither and thither in the water, being troubled by the
+breath of Vulcan. So the might of the River was subdued, and he
+cried aloud, &ldquo;O Vulcan, no one of the Gods can match himself
+with thee. Cease now from consuming me; and Achilles may drive the
+men of Troy from their city if he will. What have I to do with the
+strife and sorrow of men?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So he spake, for all his streams were boiling&mdash;as a
+cauldron boils with a great fire beneath it, when a man would melt
+the fat of a great hog; nor could he flow any longer to the sea, so
+sorely did the breath of the Fire-god trouble him. Then he cried
+aloud to Juno, entreating her: &ldquo;O Juno, why doth thy son
+torment me only among all? Why should I be blamed more than others
+that help the men of Troy? Verily, I will cease from helping them,
+if he also will cease. Nay, I will swear a great oath that I will
+keep no more the day of doom from the sons of Troy; no, not when
+all the city shall be consumed with fire.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Queen Juno heard him, and called to Vulcan, saying,
+&ldquo;Cease, my son; it doth not beseem thee to work such damage
+to a god for the sake of a mortal man.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So Vulcan quenched his fire, and the River flowed as he flowed
+before.</p>
+<h3><a id="Vulcan" name="Vulcan">Vulcan Makes Armor for
+Achilles</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Walter C. Perry</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>On high Olympus, the Loud-thundering Zeus spake mockingly to his
+consort, Juno, and said, &ldquo;At length, thou hast what thou
+desirest, and hast roused Achilles to fight against the Trojans.
+Surely, the long-haired Achaians must be thine own children, since
+thou lovest them so dearly!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the ox-eyed queen replied, &ldquo;Dread son of Cronos! what
+words are these which have passed the barrier of thy teeth? Even a
+mortal man doth what he can to help another; and shall not I, the
+chief of goddesses by birth and as thy wife&mdash;O thou king of
+the deathless Gods!&mdash;shall not <em>I</em> avenge myself upon
+the men of Troy?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Thus these two strove with one another.</p>
+<p>Meantime, the silver-footed Thetis came to the splendid palace
+of Vulcan, bright and immortal, which shone like a star among the
+mansions of the Gods. She found him at his bellows, sweating from
+his mighty toil; for he was forging twenty tripods, to stand round
+the walls of his well-built mansion. Beneath each of them he placed
+wheels of gold; and they move, of themselves, into the assembly of
+the Gods, and so return.</p>
+<p>While he was thus employed, the silver-footed Thetis approached
+the house. And Charis, of the shining veil, the wedded wife of
+Vulcan (whose first wife had been Aphrodite or Venus), came forth
+to meet her, and took her by the hand, and called her by her name.
+&ldquo;O long-robed Thetis! dear and honored as thou art! not oft,
+I ween, dost thou come to visit us. But follow me, that I may show
+thee due hospitality.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then she led the way in, and seated Thetis on a lofty chair with
+silver studs, beautiful, and cunningly wrought, and placed a
+footstool beneath her shining feet. And she called to Vulcan, the
+divine artificer, &ldquo;Come hither, Vulcan! for the silver-footed
+Thetis seeketh thine aid.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the glorious lame god answered, &ldquo;Revered and dear to
+me is she; for she saved me, when my shameless mother threw me down
+from heaven; and I should have suffered dire anguish had not
+Eurynome, daughter of Oceanos, and Thetis taken me to their hearts
+and comforted me. Nine years I spent with them, and fashioned all
+kinds of curious work of bronze&mdash;clasps, and spiral bracelets,
+and ear-rings, like the calyx of a flower, and necklaces&mdash;in
+the hollow grot, while all around me roared the streams of great
+Oceanus. And none of the other Gods knew where I was, but only
+Thetis and Eurynome. And now that she is come, a welcome guest, to
+my house, I will repay the fair-haired nymph in every way, for
+saving my life.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, he raised his mighty bulk from the block, and,
+limping on his slender legs, moved quickly; and he put away his
+bellows, and placed his tools in a silver chest, and sponged his
+face and hands, his strong neck and hairy breast; then he donned
+his tunic, and leaning on a staff, he limped along. And golden
+handmaids, in the form of living maidens, came to help their lord;
+these have intelligent minds, and human voices, and skill from the
+deathless Gods. And he went with halting gait, and seated himself
+on a shining throne, near the silver-footed Thetis; and he took her
+by the hand, and said to her, &ldquo;O dear and honored Thetis of
+the flowing robes! why comest thou to our house, thou, an
+infrequent guest?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the silver-footed goddess answered him, &ldquo;O Vulcan!
+hath Zeus, the son of Cronos, laid on any other goddess in Olympus
+such grievous woes as on <em>me</em>, unhappy that I am? He chose
+out me, from all the sea nymphs, to endure marriage with a mortal.
+A son I bare, the greatest of heroes. I brought him up, like a
+young tree in a fruitful soil, and sent him in a high-peaked ship
+to war against the Trojans; but never again will he return to me,
+in the halls of his aged father Peleus. And even while I yet see
+him, and he beholdeth the light of the sun, he is full of grief,
+and I cannot help him. For King Agamemnon took away his prize, the
+dearly loved maiden Brise&iuml;s. For the loss of her, he pined and
+wept; nor would he allow his Myrmidons to join in the battle,
+though the Achaians were hard pressed and driven to their ships.
+The chiefs of the Argives came to him with prayers and tears, and
+many costly gifts. And though he refused himself to rescue them, he
+suffered Patroclus to put on his divine armor, and sent many of the
+Myrmidons with him to the battle. And the son of Menoetius
+performed high deeds of valor, and went near to sack the city. But
+the Far-Darting Apollo and glorious Hector slew him, and gained
+immortal glory. And now, I come as a suppliant, to clasp thy knees,
+and to pray that thou wouldst give my short-lived son a shield, a
+helmet, a breastplate, and goodly greaves.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the lame god, the famous artificer, replied, &ldquo;Be of
+good cheer, O silver-footed Queen, and be not troubled about these
+things! Would that I could as surely save him from mournful death,
+as that I will supply him with goodly armor, a wonder to
+behold!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And he returned to his workshop, and bade his
+bellows&mdash;there were twenty of them&mdash;blow the blasts on
+the fire and prepare the earthen moulds; and as Vulcan willed, the
+work was done. He melted the tough bronze and tin, the gold and
+silver, with the fire; and placed an anvil and took a strong hammer
+in one hand, and tongs in the other, and with these he worked.</p>
+<p>First, he made the shield, broad and strong, with many
+decorations. Around it he placed a triple bright rim, and a silver
+strap depended from it. The shield itself was formed with five
+zones, in each of which he fashioned many curious works.</p>
+<p>Therein he fashioned the Earth, the Sky, the Sea, the unwearied
+Sun, the Moon at the full, and all the bright luminaries which
+crown the azure firmament: the Pleiades, daughters of Atlas, the
+Hyades, the mighty Orion, and, turning about to watch Orion, the
+Bear, which alone of all the stars bathes not in the streams of
+Oceanus.</p>
+<p>Also, on the shield, he sculptured two fair cities of
+articulate-speaking men. In one of these were wedding-festivals;
+and, with a blaze of torchlight, the brides were conducted from
+their chambers along the streets; while the hymeneal song was loud,
+and the youths whirled round and round in the giddy dance, to the
+music of flute and harp; while the women stood at their doors,
+watching and admiring. In that city he also fashioned an assembly
+of the people, in which a contention had arisen, about the
+blood-fine or &ldquo;were-geld&rdquo; for a murdered man; the
+people, with noisy shouts, cheered, on either side; but the heralds
+stilled the tumult, holding their staves of office in their hands;
+and then the judges rose up, to pronounce their verdict.</p>
+<p>Around the other city lay two armies besieging it, with flashing
+arms. Two plans were considered: either to destroy the town, or to
+divide the wealth thereof with its citizens. But the beleaguered
+garrison had not yet yielded, but armed themselves and set an
+ambush. Their dear wives and children, and the old men, stood on
+the walls to defend it, while the strong men went forth to fight.
+And they were led by Mars and Athene, whose forms were fashioned in
+gold, with golden raiment; and, as gods, he made them larger and
+more beautiful than the mortals around them.</p>
+<p>The men in ambush set upon the herdsmen who were driving oxen to
+the watering-place of the army, and making music with their pipes.
+They carried off the cattle; but the besiegers, as they sat before
+the rostra, heard the lowing of the oxen and drove up, with their
+high-stepping horses, to repel the raid. Then a fierce conflict
+arose; and in it were seen Strife, and Uproar, and Dire Fate; like
+living warriors, they rushed on one another, and haled away the
+dead whom they slew.</p>
+<p>In another part of the shield, he represented a rich,
+deep-soiled, fallow field, thrice ploughed; and when the ploughers
+came to the end of the furrow, a man would give to each of them a
+goblet of sweet wine. And the ploughed ground grew black behind
+them, like real soil, although it was of gold. Then there, too, was
+a rich field of corn, where reapers were cutting the harvest with
+their sickles and it fell in rows; and others were binding it with
+bands of straw; while the lord looked on, and was glad at heart.
+And under a spreading oak a feast was being made ready for the
+reapers.</p>
+<p>And he fashioned therein a vineyard, rich with clusters of black
+grapes, which the youths and maidens, in their glee, carried in
+baskets; while a boy, in their midst, made sweet music on a
+clear-sounding harp; and he sang the &ldquo;Song of Linos,&rdquo;
+and the rest kept time with their feet.</p>
+<p>And there was a herd of straight-horned oxen, all of gold and
+tin, hurrying to the pasture beside the gently murmuring stream and
+the waving rushes. Four herdsmen, of gold, followed them, and nine
+fleet dogs. And two terrible lions seized a bellowing bull. The
+herdsmen followed, but they could not set on their dogs to bite the
+lions, for the dogs shrank back, barking and whining, and turned
+away.</p>
+<p>And therein the glorious divine artist placed a wide pasture
+full of white sheep, with folds and tents and huts. And he made a
+dancing-ground, like that which D&aelig;dalus wrought at Gnosos for
+lovely fair-haired Ariadne. There, lusty youths in shining tunics
+glistening with oil, danced with fair maidens of costly wooing. The
+maidens had wreaths of flowers upon their heads; and the youths
+wore daggers banging from silver sword-belts. They whirled round,
+with lightly tripping feet, swift as the potter&rsquo;s wheel,
+holding each other by the wrist; and then they ran, in lines, to
+meet each other. A crowd of friends stood round and joyfully
+watched the dance, and a divine minstrel made sweet music with his
+harp, while a pair of tumblers diverted the crowd.</p>
+<p>Lastly, around the margin of the shield, Vulcan made the stream
+of the mighty river Oceanus, which encircleth the earth.</p>
+<p>And when he had finished this strong and splendid shield, he
+wrought the breastplate, glowing with blazing fire; and he made a
+heavy helmet for the head, beautiful, and adorned with curious art;
+upon it was a crest of gold. But the goodly greaves he made of
+flexible tin. When he had completed the whole suit of glorious
+armor, he laid it before the silver-footed Thetis, the mother of
+Achilles; and she darted, swift as a hawk, from snowy Olympus,
+bearing the brightly glittering arms to her dear son.</p>
+<h3><a id="Hector" name="Hector">The Slaying of Hector</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Walter C. Perry</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Meantime, Achilles went on slaughtering the Trojans; and the
+aged Priam stood on the sacred tower, and saw the son of Peleus
+driving the Trojans before him. And he shouted aloud to the brave
+warders of the gates, &ldquo;Open the gates, that the fugitives may
+enter!&rdquo; And the Far-Darter went to the front, to save the
+Trojans who were fleeing to the sheltering walls, with Achilles
+behind them in hot pursuit.</p>
+<p>Then would the Achaians have stormed the lofty gates of Troy,
+had not Ph&oelig;bus Apollo roused Agenor, a brave and noble
+prince, son of Antenor. Apollo stood by this man&rsquo;s side,
+leaning on an oak, and shrouded in mist, and put courage into his
+heart, that he might ward off fate from the Trojans. And when
+Agenor saw Achilles, he stood irresolute, and said to his mighty
+heart, &ldquo;If I too flee before Achilles, he will catch me and
+slay me as a coward. Or shall I fly by another way, and hide me in
+the spurs of Ida? How, then, if I go forth to meet him? for his
+flesh, too, may surely be pierced by the keen bronze, and he has
+but one life, like other mortals.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And his heart grew strong within him, to stay and fight. And he
+cried out aloud to Achilles, &ldquo;Surely, thou thinkest this very
+day to sack the proud city of Troy? Fool! many terrible things will
+happen before <em>that</em>; for there are many of us&mdash;many
+and brave&mdash;to protect our dear parents and wives and little
+children, and to guard holy Ilium. Thou, too, perhaps, mighty as
+thou art, mayest here meet death.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He spake and hurled a spear at Achilles with his strong hand.
+And it smote him below the knee, and the tin-wrought greave rang
+loudly; but the stout spear bounded off, for it could not pierce
+the work of Vulcan.</p>
+<p>Then Achilles rushed on godlike Agenor; but him Apollo caught in
+a mist, and carried him safely out of the fray. And the god took
+the form of Agenor, and ran a little way before Achilles, towards
+the deep-flowing Scamander. And while Apollo thus deceived the
+mighty son of Peleus, the routed Trojans ran, well pleased, to
+their stronghold, and the great city was filled with their
+multitude.</p>
+<p>Then as he ran before Achilles, the mighty Far-Darter addressed
+him, and spake: &ldquo;O son of Peleus! why dost thou, being a
+mortal man, pursue <em>me</em> with thy swift feet, who am a
+deathless god?&rdquo; Then, in wrath, the son of Peleus answered
+him: &ldquo;Thou hast blinded me, most mischievous of all the Gods!
+and lured me away from the walls; else would many a Trojan have
+fallen, or ever he had reached the city.&rdquo; He then went
+towards the city, with a proud heart, like a war-horse victorious
+in a chariot race; and the aged Priam saw him, blazing like the
+star in autumn brightest of all, which men call
+&ldquo;Orion&rsquo;s Dog,&rdquo; that bringeth fever upon wretched
+mortals.</p>
+<p>And the old man cried aloud, in his agony, and beat his head
+with his fists, and called in a piercing voice to his dear son
+Hector. For the brave hero, when all the others had escaped into
+the city, remained alone at the Sc&aelig;an Gate eager to fight
+with Achilles. And his wretched father stretched forth his withered
+hands, and pleaded piteously to his son:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Hector! dear Hector! do not meet this terrible man alone,
+for he is far mightier than thou, and knoweth no pity. Already hath
+he robbed me of many a brave son; and now I no longer see two of my
+children, Lycaon and the goodly Polydorus, whom Laotho&euml;,
+princess among women, bare to me. But the death of others will
+cause us briefer grief, if thou, dear Hector, art not slain. Come,
+then, within the walls, and save the men and women of Troy! And
+have pity on me, too, to whom the son of Cronos hath allotted a
+terrible doom in my old age&mdash;to see my brave sons dragged
+away, and my fair daughters carried off, as captives, by the cruel
+hands of the Achaians. Last of all, I too shall be torn, on my own
+threshold, by ravenous dogs&mdash;even the dogs which I myself have
+reared with food from my table, to guard my house. They will tear
+my flesh and drink my blood! It may well become a <em>young</em>
+man to lie slain on the field, for he is highly honored in his
+death; but when dogs defile an old man&rsquo;s head and beard, this
+is the most lamentable thing that befalleth wretched
+mortals.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the old man tore his hair in his sore agony; but even he
+prevailed not with the soul of Hector. And then his dear mother,
+Hecuba, took up the plaint and spake through her piteous tears.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Hector! my child! have respect to the mother who bare
+thee and nursed thee on this bosom! Pity <em>me</em>! and fight the
+foe from this side of the wall! For if he slay thee, not on a
+funeral bed shall I, and thy dear wife, won by so many gifts,
+deplore thee; but the swift dogs shall devour thee, far away from
+us, by the black ships of the Argives.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Thus wailed they over their glorious son, beseeching him; but
+they could not prevail, for honor held him fast. Meanwhile,
+Achilles drew nigh, in strength like a giant; but Hector awaited
+him undismayed, leaning his shield against the tower. And he
+communed thus with his brave soul: &ldquo;Alas, if I go through the
+gates, Polydamas will justly blame me; for he gave me good
+advice&mdash;that I should lead the host into the city on that
+fatal night, when the noble Achilles returned to the war. And I
+would not hearken to him, although he counseled well. And now that
+I have brought this evil on the city by my folly, I am ashamed to
+appear before the men, and the proud dames with trailing robes,
+lest some one should taunt me and say, &lsquo;Hector in his pride
+hath ruined us.&rsquo; Better then would it be for me to meet
+Achilles, and either slay him or fall with glory before the city.
+Or how would it be if I should lay aside all my arms, and go to
+meet the son of Peleus, and offer to restore Argive Helen and all
+her possessions to Menelaus and Agamemnon, and to divide the wealth
+of Troy with the Achaians? But no! I might come to him unarmed, but
+he is merciless, and would slay me on the spot, as if I were a
+woman. But why do I hesitate? This is no time to hold dalliance
+with him, from oak or rock, like youths and maidens. Better to
+fight at once, and see to whom Olympian Zeus will give the
+victory!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>While he thus pondered, Achilles, peer of Mars, came on, poising
+his terrible spear of Pelian ash; and his divine armor, the work of
+a god, blazed like fire or the rising sun. And when Hector saw him
+he was seized with panic, and he fled from the gates in terror.</p>
+<p>But Achilles, swift of foot, rushed after him. As a falcon,
+swiftest of all birds, swoops upon the trembling dove, and takes no
+heed of her piteous screaming, so Achilles flew straight at Hector.
+And pursuer and pursued passed by the guard and the wild fig-tree,
+the sport of the winds, and came to the two springs of water, which
+feed the deep-whirling Scamander. Brave was he who fled, but
+mightier far was he who chased him on his swift feet; and they were
+racing not for some prize in the games, but for the life of the
+noble horse-taming Hector. And like horses in the race for a great
+prize&mdash;a tripod or a woman&mdash;so the twain ran thrice round
+the sacred city of King Priam; and all the Gods were looking
+on.</p>
+<p>And Zeus, the great father of Gods and men, spake first:
+&ldquo;Alas! I see a man whom I love above all others chased round
+the walls of Troy. Come now, let us take some counsel, whether to
+save him or leave him to be slain by the son of Peleus.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the fierce-eyed Athene answered him, &ldquo;O thou great
+Lord of the Lightning, Cloud-girt King! what a word hast thou
+spoken! Wouldst thou indeed save a mortal long ago doomed by Fate?
+Do as thou pleasest; but we Gods shall not praise thee.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And her great father, the Cloud-Gatherer, answered with gentle
+words, &ldquo;O Trito-born, my dear child! be of good cheer. I
+spake not in earnest, and would fain please thee. Do as seemeth
+good to thee.&rdquo; And Athene, full of joy, sped down from high
+Olympus.</p>
+<p>Achilles, with all speed, was chasing the noble Hector, as the
+dogs hunt the fawn of a deer through dale and woodland; and though
+the fawn hideth behind a bush, they follow by the scent until they
+find it; so Hector could not escape from the swift-footed son of
+Peleus. Often did Hector rush along the strong walls, in hopes that
+the Trojans within might succor him from above with their arrows.
+But Achilles gained on him and turned him into the plain again.</p>
+<p>And so, though Hector failed in his flight and Achilles in his
+pursuit, yet might Hector have escaped his doom, had not this been
+the last time that Apollo the Far-Darter came nigh to him, to nerve
+his heart and his swift knees. Achilles had made a sign to his
+comrades, and forbade them to launch their darts against the noble
+Hector, lest one of them should gain high honor, and he come only
+second. And when they had, for the fourth time, run round the walls
+and reached the springs, then Zeus, the Great Father, raised his
+golden scales, and placed in each the lot of gloomy
+death,&mdash;one for Hector, and the other for Achilles. And he
+held the scales by the middle, and poised them; and the noble
+Hector&rsquo;s scale sank down to Hades; and Ph&oelig;bus Apollo
+left him.</p>
+<p>But the fierce-eyed goddess Athene came near to Achilles and
+spake winged words: &ldquo;Now, at last, O godlike Achilles! shall
+we twain carry off great glory to the Achaian ships! He cannot now
+escape us, though the Far-Darter should grovel at the feet of Zeus
+with fruitless prayers. But do thou stay and recover thy breath;
+and I will go and persuade Hector to stand up against thee in
+fight.&rdquo; And he gladly obeyed her voice, and stood leaning on
+his ashen spear.</p>
+<p>And she, Athene, came to noble Hector in the likeness of his
+brother De&iuml;phobus, and spake to him: &ldquo;Dear Lord and
+elder Brother, surely the fleet-footed son of Peleus hath done
+great violence against thee, chasing thee round the walls! But let
+us twain make a stand against him!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the great Hector answered, &ldquo;De&iuml;phobus, thou wert
+ever the dearest of my brothers; now I honor thee still more,
+because thou hast dared to come out from behind the walls to aid
+me, while others skulk within.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The fierce-eyed goddess, as De&iuml;phobus, spake again:
+&ldquo;It is true that my father, and my queenly mother, and all my
+comrades, besought me to stay with them, so greatly do they fear
+the mighty son of Peleus; but my heart was sore for thee, dear
+brother! But let us fight amain, and see whether he will carry our
+spoils to his ships, or fall beneath thy spear!&rdquo; And so, with
+her cunning words, she led him on to death.</p>
+<p>And when he and Achilles were come near to each other, the noble
+Hector spake: &ldquo;O mighty Achilles, thrice did I flee before
+thee round the great city of Priam, and dared not await thy
+onslaught. But now I will stand up against thee, to slay or to be
+slain. But come, let us make a covenant with one another, and call
+the Gods, the best guardians of oaths, to witness. If Zeus grant me
+to take thy life, and despoil thee of thy divine armor, then will I
+give back thy body to the warlike Achaians; and do thou the same by
+me!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Achilles, with a malignant scowl, replied, &ldquo;Speak not
+to me of covenants! There is no covenant between men and lions, or
+between wolves and sheep, but only eternal war. And there can be no
+pledge of faith between us twain, until one of us hath sated the
+murderous Mars with his blood. Therefore, show thyself a good
+spearman and a brave man of war! There is no escape for thee; for
+Pallas Athene hath delivered thee into my hands.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He spake, and cast his long-shafted spear at Hector. But Hector
+stooped, and the strong bronze spear flew over his head; but Athene
+picked it up, unknown to Hector, and gave it back to Achilles. Then
+Hector, rejoicing, spake to the son of Peleus: &ldquo;Thou hast
+missed! Nor dost thou surely know the day of my doom, as thou
+pretendest. Thou shalt not plant thy spear in my back, as I flee
+before thee; but in my breast, if the Gods allow it. But now, in
+thy turn, avoid <em>my</em> spear!&rdquo; So spake he, and smote
+the middle of Achilles&rsquo; shield with his long-shafted spear,
+but it bounded back from the shield. Then Hector was dismayed, for
+he had no second spear to throw. And he called aloud to his
+brother, De&iuml;phobus; but no answer came, for <em>he</em> was
+far away. Then Hector knew that he was betrayed, and that Athene
+had deceived him, in the likeness of his brother.
+&ldquo;Now,&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;is Death come near me, and
+there is no way of escape! This is the will of Zeus and of the
+Far-Darter, who once were wont to succor me. But I will not die
+ingloriously, but yet perform some notable deed of arms.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He said, and, with his sharp sword, swooped down upon Achilles.
+But Achilles rushed at him, wild with fury, brandishing his spear,
+with evil intent against noble Hector, and eyed him over, to see
+where he might pierce his flesh most easily. The rest of
+Hector&rsquo;s body was protected by the splendid armor which he
+had stripped from the body of Patroclus; but there was one chink,
+between the collar-bone and the throat, through which Achilles
+thrust his spear. Yet it cut not the windpipe; and Hector was able
+to speak faint words to his insulting foe, after he had fallen to
+the ground.</p>
+<p>Achilles triumphed over him: &ldquo;Ah, Hector! when thou wert
+stripping Patroclus of my goodly armor, thou caredst nothing for
+me, who was far away! I, his friend and avenger, was left among the
+black ships&mdash;even I, a mightier man than he! Thee shall the
+dogs and birds devour; but he shall have honorable
+burial.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then, with his last breath, the noble Hector of the bright helm
+addressed his pitiless foe: &ldquo;Achilles! I pray thee, by thy
+soul, and by thy parents&rsquo; heads, let not Achaian dogs devour
+me by the ships! but accept great store of gold and bronze from my
+father and my queenly mother, and restore my body to them, that the
+Trojans may deck my funeral pyre with all due honor!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Achilles, with a grim scowl, replied, &ldquo;Clasp not my
+knees, vile dog! nor speak to me of parents! Such evil hast thou
+done me, that I could devour thee raw! Not for thy weight in gold
+would I give thee to thy queenly mother, to mourn over thee; but
+dogs and birds shall batten on thy flesh!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the dying Hector uttered his last words: &ldquo;Thou
+iron-hearted man! now I know thee; nor did I think to prevail upon
+thee. But beware of the wrath of the Gods, when Paris and the
+Far-Darter slay thee, at the Sc&aelig;an Gate, brave though thou
+art!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He spake; and Death overshadowed him; and his soul went down to
+Hades, wailing to leave beauty, youth, and vigor.</p>
+<p>And Achilles spake again to the dead Hector: &ldquo;Lie thou
+there! And as for me, I will die when it seemeth good to the
+deathless Gods!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the Achaians ran up, and looked with wonder at the noble
+stature and beauty of the Trojan hero. And they all inflicted
+wounds upon him, as he lay, saying, &ldquo;He is easier to deal
+with now than when he was burning our ships with flames of
+fire.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And when the son of Peleus had stripped him of his armor, he
+stood up, and spake to the Achaians:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Great chiefs and counselors of the Argives! at last the
+Gods have granted us to slay this man, whose single arm hath
+wrought more evil to us than all the rest together. Let us now
+approach the city, and learn the purpose of the Trojans; whether
+they will now surrender the citadel or go on fighting, though great
+Hector is no more. But why do I thus ponder in my mind? Patroclus
+is lying unburied and unwept by the ships. Never can I forget him,
+while I live; and even in the House of Hades, I will remember my
+dearest friend. Come, then! let us raise the chant of victory, and
+bear our deadliest foe to the black ships!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he foully outraged the dead body of glorious Hector;
+slitting the sinews of both feet, from heel to ankle, he passed
+ox-hide straps through them, and fastened them to his chariot,
+leaving the goodly head to trail upon the ground. Then he laid the
+armor on the chariot; and mounting it, lashed his willing horses to
+full speed. And in the dust lay the once beautiful head, with its
+flowing hair; for Zeus had now given Hector up to his enemies, to
+be foully used in his own native land.</p>
+<p>And when his dear mother, Hecuba, saw her much-loved son dragged
+along, begrimed with dust, she tore her hair, and shrieked aloud,
+and tossed far away her glistening veil. And his father, King
+Priam, wailed and mourned; and with him all the men and women in
+the city, as if the beetling towers of Ilium were already
+smouldering in fire. Hardly could they keep the aged father from
+rushing through the gates; for he threw himself in the dust and
+supplicated each man by name: &ldquo;O friend, forbear! and if you
+love me, let me go to the ships of the Achaians, and pray to this
+arrogant, this fearful man!&rdquo; Thus wailed old Priam; and the
+men wailed with him. And Queen Hecuba led the loud lamentations of
+the women. &ldquo;Why,&rdquo; she cried, &ldquo;should I yet live,
+when thou, my son, my boast, my glory, art dead? the pride and
+blessing of all, both men and women of the city, who honored thee
+as a god; for in thy life thou wert an honor to them all!&rdquo;
+Thus mourned his unhappy mother.</p>
+<p>But to his wife, the noble, beautiful, tender-hearted
+Andromache, no messenger had brought the fearful tidings that
+Hector had remained without the gates. All unconscious, she was
+sitting in the inner chamber of her lofty palace, weaving a purple
+web of double woof, and embroidering it with many flowers. And she
+was ordering her handmaids to prepare a warm bath for her dear
+husband, when he should return from the battle; poor child! little
+knowing that the fierce-eyed Athene had treacherously slain him, by
+the hand of Achilles! But when she heard shrieks and lamentations
+from the walls, she reeled, and the shuttle dropped from her hands.
+And she spake again to her fair-haired maidens: &ldquo;Surely, that
+was the cry of Hector&rsquo;s noble mother! Some terrible thing
+must have befallen my godlike husband! Come, then, follow me, that
+I may learn what has happened; I greatly fear that he has been cut
+off from the city by Achilles; for he would never retreat among the
+throng, or yield to any man, in his high courage.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And she rushed, all frantic, through the house, followed by her
+maidens, and came to the walls, and saw Hector dragged through the
+dust, towards the black ships of the Achaians. Then darkness
+shrouded her fair eyes, and she fell backwards in a swoon. And when
+roused, she tore from her head the net, the fillet, and the nuptial
+veil which golden Venus had given her, when noble Hector of the
+shining helm led her forth, from King E&euml;tion&rsquo;s palace,
+as his bride. And the sisters-in-law of her dear husband gathered
+round her, and raised her from the ground, all distracted as she
+was and nigh unto death. When she had recovered from her swoon, she
+sobbed and wailed, crying, &ldquo;O Hector! to the same evil fate
+were we twain born, thou in Troy, and I in Thebes, where my great
+father, E&euml;tion, reared me as a little child. Would that I had
+never been born, since thou leavest me a hapless widow! And our
+son, thine and mine, ill-fated one! is but a little child; and thou
+canst no more profit him, nor he be a joy to thee, since thou art
+dead! A helpless orphan, he is cut off from his playmates; and if
+he pluck the robe of his father&rsquo;s friends, one may, in pity,
+just hold the cup to his lips, but give him not to satisfy his
+hunger and his thirst; while other children, whose parents still
+live, will drive him from their feast, with taunts and blows,
+saying, &lsquo;Away with thee! thou hast no father at our
+table!&rsquo; Then will he come back to me, his lonely mother; he,
+who so lately sat on his father&rsquo;s knee, and fed on the
+choicest of food! and when sleep fell upon him, tired with his
+childish play, he nestled in a soft bed in his nurse&rsquo;s arms.
+But now that his father is no more, he shall suffer untold griefs,
+even he whom the Trojans called &lsquo;Astyanax,&rsquo; king of the
+city, because thou, O my beloved lord! wert the sole defense and
+glory of their lofty walls.&rdquo; Thus wailed the fair Andromache;
+and the women moaned around her.</p>
+<h3><a id="Funeral" name="Funeral">The Funeral Games in Honor of
+Patroclus</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Walter C. Perry</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>The noble Achilles could not do enough in honor of his lost
+friend, Patroclus, and he had determined to hold games, of every
+kind, in which the mail-clad Achaians might compete for prizes; and
+to this end he had brought goodly treasures from his
+ships,&mdash;tripods, and caldrons, horses, mules, and oxen,
+well-girdled women, and hoary iron. The first and most important
+contest was a chariot race, for which he offered a woman skilled in
+needlework, and a two-handled tripod, holding two-and-twenty
+measures&mdash;these, for the best man of all; the second prize was
+a mare, six years old, with a mule foal; the third prize was a fair
+new caldron, of four measures; the fourth was two talents of bright
+gold; the fifth was a two-handled vase, untarnished by the
+fire.</p>
+<p>And Achilles addressed the chiefs, and said, &ldquo;If the race
+were in honor of some other warrior, then should I enter the lists,
+and bear away the prize; for ye know that my horses are immortal,
+and by far the best; Neptune, the Earth-Girdler, gave them to my
+father, and he to me. But I and they will stand aside; for they
+have lost a noble and gentle driver, who oft-times washed them with
+clear water and then poured soft oil upon their goodly manes! And
+now they stand with sorrow in their breasts, and their full long
+manes are trailing on the earth. But now, let whoever of you
+trusteth in his horses and his strong chariot take his place in the
+lists!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And first came forward Eumelus, son of Admetus; next came the
+mighty Diomedes, with the famous horses of Tros, which he had taken
+from &AElig;neas; then arose Menelaus,&mdash;the fair-haired,
+godlike Menelaus, with Aithe, Agamemnon&rsquo;s mare, and his own
+horse, Podargus; and the fourth was Antilochus, son of the wise
+Nestor, who yoked swift Pylian horses to his chariot.</p>
+<p>His father Nestor, son of Neleus, stood by Antilochus, and gave
+him good advice, although he himself was wise. &ldquo;Antilochus,
+my son,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;though thou art young, yet Zeus and
+Neptune have loved thee, and made thee a perfect horseman; and
+there is little need for me to teach thee. But the other horses are
+better than thine; and I fear that much trouble is in store for
+thee. But skill and cunning are better than force, and so one
+charioteer defeats another. Look well to the posts at either end,
+and run closely by them. Now I will tell thee another thing. Some
+six feet above the ground, there stands the withered stump of a
+tree, with two white stones, on either side; this is the mark fixed
+by the swift-footed Achilles. Do thou drive thy horses hard by
+this, and lean slightly to the left, and lash the off horse and
+give him rein; but let the near horse so closely skirt the post
+that the nave of the wheel of thy car may seem to graze the stone;
+but beware of touching it!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Next, Meriones made ready his chariot; and so did the others.
+Then they mounted their cars, and drew lots for their places. Great
+Diomedes drew the best. Achilles ranged them all side by side, and
+pointed to the turning-post, in the plain, near which he posted old
+Ph&oelig;nix, as umpire.</p>
+<p>Then, at a signal from the son of Peleus, they raised their long
+whips, together, standing upright, and lashed their horses, and
+encouraged them by hand and voice. And the chariots now ran evenly
+on the ground, and now bounded high in air. But when they entered
+the last part of the course, driving towards the sea, the fleet
+mares of Eumelus, grandson of Pheres, rushed to the front; and next
+came Diomedes, with the stallions of Tros, so near that they seemed
+to be mounting the car of Eumelus, and with their hot breath
+covered his back and shoulders. Then Tydides would either have
+gained a victory, or it would have been at least a dead heat; but
+Ph&oelig;bus Apollo was angry with him, and dashed his shining whip
+from his hand. He shed hot tears of fury, when he saw that the
+mares of Eumelus were still at their utmost speed, while his own
+horses slackened their speed, no longer feeling the lash. But,
+luckily for Diomedes, his constant friend Athene marked the trick
+of Apollo; and, speeding after Diomedes, she gave him back the
+scourge, and put fresh mettle into his steeds. She then pursued
+Eumelus, and brake the yoke of his horses; they bolted from the
+course, and he was hurled off his car into the dust. Meanwhile,
+Tydides rushed on before the others, for Athene was shedding glory
+on his head.</p>
+<p>Next to him ran the horses of Menelaus, son of Atreus. Then came
+Antilochus, son of Nestor, who spake thus to his father&rsquo;s
+Pylian horses: &ldquo;I do not ask you to contend with Tydides,
+whose horses Athene herself is speeding; but I pray you to catch up
+the chariot of Atrides; and be not beaten by Aithe, lest she, who
+is only a mare, pour ridicule upon you.&rdquo; Thus spake
+Antilochus, and his horses were afraid, and sped on more swiftly.
+But Antilochus noted a narrow gully, where the rain had collected
+and had carried away a part of the course. There Menelaus was
+driving, when Antilochus turned his horses out of the way, and
+followed him at one side. Then Menelaus, fearing a collision,
+shouted loudly to the son of Nestor: &ldquo;Antilochus, hold in thy
+horses! and drive not so recklessly! close ahead there is a wider
+space, where we can pass one another!&rdquo; But Antilochus, as if
+he heard him not, drove on more madly than ever and plied the lash;
+and the golden-haired son of Atreus called again to him, reproving
+him: &ldquo;Antilochus, there is no man more spiteful than thou;
+away with thee! wrongly have we called thee <em>wise</em>!&rdquo;
+Then he called on his horses, and they increased their speed,
+fearing the anger of their lord, and quickly overtook the
+others.</p>
+<p>Now the Argive chiefs sat together, watching the race as the
+chariots flew along the course. The first to see them coming was
+Idomeneus, the Cretan prince, the son of Deucalion; he was sitting
+apart from the rest on the highest place, and he could distinguish
+the voices of the drivers. He noticed a chestnut horse, with a
+white star on his forehead, round like the full moon; and he stood
+up and spake: &ldquo;Friends and Counselors of the Argives! can ye
+see the horses as I do? To me, there appeareth a new chariot and
+horses; and the mares which led at the start I can no longer
+see.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the son of O&iuml;leus, Ajax, rebuked him in boorish
+fashion: &ldquo;Idomeneus, why chatterest thou before the time?
+Thou art not one of the youngest, nor are thine eyes of the
+sharpest. The same mares of Eumelus are still leading, and he is
+standing up in the chariot.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the great chief, Idomeneus, answered in great wrath,
+&ldquo;Ajax, ever ready to abuse, inconsiderate slanderer! thou art
+in all respects inferior to the other Argives, for thy mind is
+rude.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Thus spoke the Cretan hero. And the son of O&iuml;leus rose
+again, to reply with scornful words; but Achilles himself stood
+forward and said, &ldquo;No longer, Idomeneus and Ajax, bandy
+insulting words with one another; for it is not meet! Sit ye still,
+and watch; and soon will ye know which horses are leading.&rdquo;
+He spake; and straightway Tydides came driving up in his fair
+chariot, overlaid with gold and tin, which ran lightly behind the
+horses, and scarcely left a trace in the fine dust of the plain.
+Checking his horses in the middle of the crowd, he leapt to the
+ground and claimed the splendid prize; and the gallant Sthenelus
+made no delay, but gave to his victorious comrade the woman and the
+tripod to bear away.</p>
+<p>Next to Diomedes came the son of Nestor, Antilochus, who had
+passed by Menelaus by a clever stratagem, though his horses were
+inferior; but even so, Menelaus had pressed him hard, and was
+behind him only so far as a horse is from the wheel of the chariot
+which he draweth.</p>
+<p>But Meriones, the brave charioteer of Idomeneus, came in about
+the cast of a lance behind Menelaus; for his horses were the
+slowest, and he was himself but a sluggish driver. Last of all came
+Eumelus, the son of Admetus, dragging his broken chariot. The
+swift-footed Achilles, son of Peleus, pitied him, and spake winged
+words to the chiefs: &ldquo;Lo! the best man of all comes last; but
+let us give him a prize&mdash;the second! And let Tydides bear away
+the first!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>All the Achaians heard him, and shouted applause; and the noble
+Achilles would have given him the mare had not Antilochus, son of
+the wise and glorious Nestor, stood up in defense of his claim:
+&ldquo;O Achilles!&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;justly shall I be wroth
+with thee, if thou takest away the prize which I have fairly won.
+Thou thinkest only of the unlucky chance which hath befallen
+Eumelus and his horses; but he ought to have made prayer to the
+deathless Gods, and then he would not have come in last of all. If
+thou pitiest him, there is much treasure in thy house,&mdash;gold,
+and bronze, and sheep, and handmaids, and horses. Give him, if it
+pleaseth thee and the Achaians, a still richer prize. But I will
+not give up the mare; for she is <em>mine</em>.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Achilles smiled on his comrade Antilochus, whom he dearly
+loved, and answered him, &ldquo;Antilochus, I will do as thou
+sayest: I will give him the bronze cuirass, edged with shining tin,
+which I took from Asterop&aelig;us.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But the great Menelaus arose, filled with insatiable wrath
+against Antilochus. The herald placed a sceptre in his hand, and
+called for silence. Then the godlike king made harangue, and said,
+&ldquo;Antilochus! thou who wert once accounted wise&mdash;what is
+this that thou hast done? Thou hast disgraced my skill, and
+discomfited my horses, by thrusting thine, which are far worse, in
+front of them. Come then, great chiefs of the Argives! give
+judgment, without favor, between him and me! That no one may say
+hereafter, that ye favored me for my power and rank, I will myself
+set the issue before you; so that no one may reproach me. Stand
+forth, Antilochus, before thy chariot; and take thy whip, and lay
+thy hand upon thy horses, and swear by the great Girdler and Shaker
+of the Earth, that thou didst not, by set purpose and malice,
+hinder my chariot in the course!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Antilochus made prudent answer, &ldquo;Be patient with me,
+King Menelaus! for I am younger, and thou art in all respects my
+better. Bear with me, then: and I will myself give thee the mare,
+my prize, rather than lose my place in thy heart, O thou beloved of
+Zeus!&rdquo; Thus spake the noble-minded son of Nestor; and he gave
+the mare to Menelaus, king of men.</p>
+<p>And the heart of the son of Atreus rejoiced, as the ripe ears of
+corn, when the dew descendeth upon them, in the glistening
+cornfield. And he spake kindly to Antilochus, and said, &ldquo;Lo!
+at once do I put away my anger; for of old thou wert never rash or
+light-minded; but now thy reason was overborne by the impetuosity
+of youth. Therefore I grant thy prayer, and will even give thee the
+mare; for I am in no wise covetous or unforgiving.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He spake, and gave the mare to No&euml;mon, the comrade of
+Antilochus, to lead away; but he took the bright caldron to
+himself. And Meriones, who came in fourth, took the two talents of
+gold. But the fifth prize, a vase with two handles, was not
+obtained; and the noble Achilles gave this to Nestor, and, standing
+by him, uttered winged words:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Let this, O Father! be for thee an heirloom, and a
+memorial of Patroclus&rsquo; funeral games&mdash;of him, whom thou
+wilt never see again! I give it to thee since thou mayest not
+contend in boxing, nor in wrestling, nor in throwing the lance, nor
+in the foot-race; for rueful old age weigheth heavily upon
+thee.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Nestor gladly received the splendid gift, and spake: &ldquo;True
+and fitting are thy words, dear friend! My limbs are no longer
+sound, nor do my arms move easily from my shoulders; and I must
+make way for younger men. But I accept thy free gift with joy, and
+rejoice that thou dost remember our old friendship.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Pelides brought forward the prizes for the rough, fierce
+boxing-match: a six-year-old unbroken mule for the winner; and a
+two-handled goblet for the loser. Then quickly rose the famous
+boxer Epeius, and laid his hand on the stubborn mule, and boasted
+aloud: &ldquo;Let who will bear away the goblet; but the mule is
+mine! for no one will beat me with his fists!&rdquo; They all kept
+silence, and feared. Only one came forward, even Euryalus, the
+gallant son of King Mecistus. The famous warrior Tydides made him
+ready for the fight, and bade him God speed. The twain went into
+the ring, and fell to work; and terrible was the gnashing of their
+teeth, and the sweat ran down from their limbs. Epeius came on
+fiercely, and struck Euryalus on the cheek, and that was enough;
+for all his limbs were loosened. As a fish on a weedy beach, in the
+ripple caused by Boreas, leapeth high in air, so Euryalus leapt up
+in his anguish. But the generous Epeius raised him again to his
+feet, and his comrades led him away, with dragging feet and
+drooping head, and spitting out black blood.</p>
+<p>Next came the terrible wrestling match; and for this the
+glorious Achilles brought out two costly prizes: for the winner, a
+fireproof tripod, worth twelve oxen; and for the loser, a woman
+skilled in handiwork, valued at four oxen. And he cried aloud to
+the Achaians, &ldquo;Stand forward all ye who will enter into this
+contest!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then rose Telamonian Ajax and the crafty Ulysses, and faced each
+other. And they entered the ring, and grasped each other with their
+strong hands, like the rafters of a house, joined by some skillful
+builder to withstand the wind. Their backbones grated and creaked
+beneath the strain; the sweat poured down from their limbs, and
+bloody weals streaked their sides and shoulders, as they struggled
+for the well-wrought tripod. But neither could Ulysses throw the
+burly Ajax, nor Ajax him. And when the Achaians grew tired of the
+futile contest, Ajax spake to Ulysses: &ldquo;O thou offspring of
+the Gods, Laertes&rsquo; son! do thou lift me, or I will lift thee,
+and the issue will be on the lap of Zeus!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, he raised Ulysses. But the Wily One did not forget
+his craft. From behind, he struck the hollow of Ajax&rsquo;s knee,
+and threw him on his back; and Ulysses fell upon him; and the
+people marveled. Then, in his turn, Ulysses tried to lift huge
+Ajax, but could not; so he thrust his crooked knee into the hollow
+of the other&rsquo;s; and they again both fell to the ground,
+covered with dust. When they rose for a third bout, Achilles
+restrained them. &ldquo;No longer wear ye one another out, with
+toil and pain! Ye both have won and shall receive equal
+prizes!&rdquo; And they cleansed themselves, and put on their
+doublets.</p>
+<p>Then the noble son of Peleus offered prizes for the foot-race;
+the first, a silver krater holding six measures, curiously chased
+by Sidonian artists&mdash;by far the most beautiful mixing-cup in
+the whole world. For the second he offered a stalled ox; and for
+the third, half a talent of gold. The wondrous krater
+Ph&oelig;nicians had brought by sea, and given it to Thoas, the
+ruler of Lemnos; and Euneus, son of Jason, inherited it from Jason,
+who received it from Thoas, his father-in-law; and Euneus gave it
+to the hero Patroclus, as a ransom for Lycaon, son of Priam; this
+splendid goblet was offered to the swiftest of foot.</p>
+<p>Then three valiant heroes arose: Ajax, son of O&iuml;leus;
+Ulysses, the wily one; and Antilochus, the best runner of the
+youths. Achilles ranged them side by side, and showed them the
+goal. All started at full speed; but Ajax soon took the lead; and
+Ulysses came close behind him, near as the shuttle to the breast of
+a fair-girdled woman when she is weaving,&mdash;so near that his
+breath was warm on the back of Ajax. But as they neared the goal,
+the wily Ulysses prayed to the fierce-eyed Athene, &ldquo;O
+goddess, come and help my feet!&rdquo; And Athene heard her
+favorite, and strengthened all his limbs. But just as they were
+about to pounce upon the prize, Ajax slipped in the blood of the
+slaughtered oxen, and fell; his mouth and nostrils were filled with
+dirt and gore. So the patient Ulysses took the priceless krater,
+and Ajax the fatted ox. But Ajax, holding his prize by the horn,
+and spitting the filth from his mouth, spake to the Achaians:
+&ldquo;O fie upon it! it was the goddess who betrayed me; she who
+is ever near to Ulysses, as a mother to her child.&rdquo; And the
+Achaians laughed merrily, to see him in such a sorry plight.</p>
+<p>Antilochus, smiling, took the last prize, half a talent of gold;
+and he too spake winged words to the Argives: &ldquo;My friends, ye
+too will agree with me that the deathless Gods show favor to the
+older men. Ajax is a little older than I; but Ulysses is of a
+former generation. It were not easy for any one, except Achilles,
+fleet of foot, to outrun <em>him</em>.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Achilles was pleased at the honor done to his swiftness.
+&ldquo;Not unrewarded,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;shall the praise be
+which thou hast bestowed on me: I give thee another half-talent of
+gold.&rdquo; Antilochus received it gladly. Then the assembly was
+dissolved, and the Achaians dispersed, each to his own ship.</p>
+<h3><a id="Horse" name="Horse">The Wooden Horse and the Fall of
+Troy</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Josephine Preston Peabody</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Nine years the Greeks laid siege to Troy, and Troy held out
+against every device. On both sides the lives of many heroes were
+spent, and they were forced to acknowledge each other enemies of
+great valor.</p>
+<p>Sometimes the chief warriors fought in single combat, while the
+armies looked on, and the old men of Troy, with the women, came out
+to watch afar off from the city walls. King Priam and Queen Hecuba
+would come, and Cassandra, sad with foreknowledge of their doom,
+and Andromache, the lovely young wife of Hector, with her little
+son, whom the people called the city&rsquo;s king. Sometimes fair
+Helen came to look across the plain to the fellow-countrymen whom
+she had forsaken; and although she was the cause of all this war,
+the Trojans half forgave her when she passed by, because her beauty
+was like a spell, and warmed hard hearts as the sunshine mellows
+apples. So for nine years the Greeks plundered the neighboring
+towns, but the city Troy stood fast, and the Grecian ships waited
+with folded wings.</p>
+<p>In the tenth year of the war the Greeks, who could not take the
+city by force, pondered how they might take it by craft. At length,
+with the aid of Ulysses, they devised a plan.</p>
+<p>A portion of the Grecian host broke up camp and set sail as if
+they were homeward bound; but, once out of sight, they anchored
+their ships behind a neighboring island. The rest of the army then
+fell to work upon a great image of a horse. They built it of wood,
+fitted and carved, and with a door so cunningly concealed that none
+might notice it. When it was finished the horse looked like a
+prodigious idol; but it was hollow, skillfully pierced here and
+there, and so spacious that a band of men could lie hidden within
+and take no harm. Into this hiding-place went Ulysses, Menelaus,
+and the other chiefs, fully armed, and when the door was shut upon
+them, the rest of the Grecian army broke camp and went away.</p>
+<div class="figure"><a href="images/big_298.jpg"><img src=
+"images/small_298.jpg" alt=
+"The Trojan Horse with a crowd around it." id="img06" name="img06"
+width="360" height="555" /></a>
+<p>A GREAT IMAGE OF A HORSE. THEY BUILT IT OF WOOD, FITTED AND
+CARVED, AND WITH A DOOR SO CUNNINGLY CONCEALED THAT NONE MIGHT
+NOTICE IT. WHEN IT WAS FINISHED THE HORSE LOOKED LIKE A PRODIGIOUS
+IDOL, BUT IT WAS HOLLOW, SKILLFULLY PIERCED HERE AND THERE</p>
+</div>
+<p>Meanwhile, in Troy, the people had seen the departure of the
+ships, and the news had spread like wildfire. The great enemy had
+lost heart,&mdash;after ten years of war! Part of the army had
+gone,&mdash;the rest were going. Already the last of the ships had
+set sail, and the camp was deserted. The tents that had whitened
+the plain were gone like a frost before the sun. The war was
+over!</p>
+<p>The whole city went wild with joy. Like one who has been a
+prisoner for many years, it flung off all restraint, and the people
+rose as a single man to test the truth of new liberty. The gates
+were thrown wide, and the Trojans&mdash;men, women, and
+children&mdash;thronged over the plain and into the empty camp of
+the enemy. There stood the Wooden Horse.</p>
+<p>No one knew what it could be. Fearful at first, they gathered
+around it, as children gather around a live horse; they marveled at
+its wondrous height and girth, and were for moving it into the city
+as a trophy of war.</p>
+<p>At this, one man interposed,&mdash;Laoco&ouml;n, a priest of
+Neptune. &ldquo;Take heed, citizens,&rdquo; said he. &ldquo;Beware
+of all that comes from the Greeks. Have you fought them for ten
+years without learning their devices? This is some piece of
+treachery.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But there was another outcry in the crowd, and at that moment
+certain of the Trojans dragged forward a wretched man who wore the
+garments of a Greek. He seemed the sole remnant of the Grecian
+army, and as such they consented to spare his life, if he would
+tell them the truth.</p>
+<p>Sinon, for this was the spy&rsquo;s name, said that he had been
+left behind by the malice of Ulysses, and he told them that the
+Greeks had built the Wooden Horse as an offering to Athene, and
+that they had made it so huge in order to keep it from being moved
+out of the camp, since it was destined to bring triumph to its
+possessors.</p>
+<p>At this the joy of the Trojans was redoubled, and they set their
+wits to find out how they might soonest drag the great horse across
+the plain and into the city to insure victory. While they stood
+talking, two immense serpents rose out of the sea and made towards
+the camp. Some of the people took flight, others were transfixed
+with terror; but all, near and far, watched this new omen. Rearing
+their crests, the sea-serpents crossed the shore, swift, shining,
+terrible as a risen water-flood that descends upon a helpless
+little town. Straight through the crowd they swept, and seized the
+priest Laoco&ouml;n where he stood, with his two sons, and wrapped
+them all round and round in fearful coils. There was no chance of
+escape. Father and sons perished together; and when the monsters
+had devoured the three men, into the sea they slipped again,
+leaving no trace of the horror.</p>
+<p>The terrified Trojans saw an omen in this. To their minds
+punishment had come upon Laoco&ouml;n for his words against the
+Wooden Horse. Surely, it was sacred to the Gods; he had spoken
+blasphemy, and had perished before their eyes. They flung his
+warning to the winds. They wreathed the horse with garlands, amid
+great acclaim; and then, all lending a hand, they dragged it,
+little by little, out of the camp and into the city of Troy. With
+the close of that victorious day, they gave up every memory of
+danger and made merry after ten years of privation.</p>
+<p>That very night Sinon the spy opened the hidden door of the
+Wooden Horse, and in the darkness, Ulysses, Menelaus, and the other
+chiefs who had lain hidden there crept out and gave the signal to
+the Grecian army. For, under cover of night, those ships that had
+been moored behind the island had sailed back again, and the Greeks
+were come upon Troy.</p>
+<p>Not a Trojan was on guard. The whole city was at feast when the
+enemy rose in its midst, and the warning of Laoco&ouml;n was
+fulfilled.</p>
+<p>Priam and his warriors fell by the sword, and their kingdom was
+plundered of all its fair possessions, women and children and
+treasure. Last of all, the city itself was burned to its very
+foundations.</p>
+<p>Homeward sailed the Greeks, taking as royal captives poor
+Cassandra and Andromache and many another Trojan. And home at last
+went fair Helen, the cause of all this sorrow, eager to be forgiven
+by her husband, King Menelaus. For she had awakened from the
+enchantment of Venus, and even before the death of Paris she had
+secretly longed for her home and kindred. Home to Sparta she came
+with the king after a long and stormy voyage, and there she lived
+and died the fairest of women.</p>
+<p>But the kingdom of Troy was fallen. Nothing remained of all its
+glory but the glory of its dead heroes and fair women, and the
+ruins of its citadel by the river Scamander. There even now,
+beneath the foundations of later homes that were built and burned,
+built and burned, in the wars of a thousand years after, the ruins
+of ancient Troy lie hidden, like mouldered leaves deep under the
+new grass. And there, to this very day, men who love the story are
+delving after the dead city as you might search for a buried
+treasure.</p>
+<h2><a id="UlyssesWanderings" name="UlyssesWanderings">THE
+WANDERINGS OF ULYSSES</a></h2>
+<h3><a id="Cyclops" name="Cyclops">An Adventure with the
+Cyclops</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p class="quote">[After the fall of Troy the Greeks set out for
+home, but many of them had troubles and dangers to meet before they
+saw again the shores of their native land. The one who suffered
+most was Ulysses, and the following is his story of his adventure
+with the one-eyed giant, the Cyclops.]</p>
+<p>The wind that bore me from Troy brought me to Ismarus, a city of
+the Ciconians. This I sacked, slaying the people that dwelt
+therein. Much spoil did we take out of the city, dividing it among
+the people, so that each man had his share. And when we had done
+this, I commanded my men that they should depart with all speed;
+but they, in their folly, would not hear me. For there was much
+wine to drink, and sheep and kine to slay; therefore they sat on
+the shore and feasted. Meanwhile the people of the city fetched
+others, their kinsmen that dwelt in the mountains, and were more in
+number and more valiant than they, and skillful in all manner of
+fighting. In the early morning they assembled themselves together,
+thick as the flowers and the leaves that grow in the springtime,
+and set the battle in array. Then we fought with them; while the
+day waxed we prevailed over them, and beat them back, though they
+were more in number than we; but when the sun was descending in the
+heavens, then the Cicones overcame us, and drave us to our ships.
+Six from each ship perished, but the remnant of us escaped from
+death.</p>
+<p>On the tenth day after this we came to the land where the lotus
+grows&mdash;a wondrous fruit of which whosoever eats cares not to
+see country or wife or children again. Now the Lotus-Eaters, for
+they so called the people of the land, were a kindly folk, and gave
+of the fruit to some of the sailors, not meaning them any harm, but
+thinking it to be the best that they had to give. These, when they
+had eaten, said that they would not sail any more over the sea;
+which, when I heard, I bade their comrades bind them and carry
+them, sadly complaining, to the ships.</p>
+<p>Then, the wind having abated, we took to our oars, and rowed for
+many days till we came to the country where the Cyclops dwell. Now,
+a mile or so from the shore there was an island, very fair and
+fertile, but no man dwells there or tills the soil, and in the
+island a harbor where a ship may be safe from all winds, and at the
+head of the harbor a stream falling from a rock, and whispering
+alders all about it. Into this the ships passed safely, and were
+hauled up on the beach, and the crews slept by them, waiting for
+the morning.</p>
+<p>When the dawn appeared, then we wandered through the island; and
+the nymphs of the land started the wild goats that my company might
+have food to eat. Thereupon we took our bows and our spears from
+the ships, and shot at the goats; and the Gods gave us plenty of
+prey. Twelve ships I had in my company, and each ship had nine
+goats for its share, and my own portion was ten.</p>
+<p>Then all the day we sat and feasted, drinking the sweet wine
+which we had taken from the city of the Cicones, and eating the
+flesh of the goats; and as we sat we looked across to the land of
+the Cyclops, seeing the smoke and hearing the voices of the men and
+of the sheep and of the goats. And when the sun set and darkness
+came over the land, we lay down upon the seashore and slept.</p>
+<p>The next day I gathered my men together, and said, &ldquo;Abide
+ye here, dear friends; I with my own ship and my own company will
+go and make trial of the folk that dwell in yonder island, whether
+they are just or unjust.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So I climbed into my ship, and bade my company follow me; so we
+came to the land of the Cyclops. Close to the shore was a cave,
+with laurels round about the mouth. This was the dwelling of the
+Cyclops. Alone he dwelt, a creature without law. Nor was he like to
+mortal men, but rather to some wooded peak of the hills that stands
+out apart from all the rest.</p>
+<p>Then I bade the rest of my comrades abide by the ship, and keep
+it, but I took twelve men, the bravest that there were in the crew,
+and went forth. I had with me a goat-skin full of the wine, dark
+red, and sweet, which the priest of Apollo at Ismarus had given me.
+Because we kept him and his wife and child from harm when we sacked
+the city, reverencing the god, therefore did he give it me. Three
+things did he give me,&mdash;seven talents of gold, and a
+mixing-bowl of silver, and of wine twelve jars. So precious was it
+that none in his house knew of it saving himself and his wife and
+one dame that kept the house. When they drank of it they mixed
+twenty measures of water with one of wine, and the smell that went
+up from it was wondrous sweet. No man could easily refrain from
+drinking it. With this wine I filled a great skin and bore it with
+me; also I bare corn in a wallet, for my heart within me boded that
+I should need it.</p>
+<p>So we entered the cave, and judged that it was the dwelling of
+some rich and skillful shepherd. For within there were pens for the
+young of the sheep and of the goats, divided all according to their
+age, and there were baskets full of cheeses, and full milkpails
+ranged along the wall. But the Cyclops himself was away in the
+pastures. Then my companions besought me that I would depart,
+taking with me, if I would, a store of cheeses and sundry of the
+lambs and of the kids. But I would not, for I wished to see, after
+my wont, what manner of host this strange shepherd might be, and,
+if it might be, to take a gift from his hand, such as is the due of
+strangers. Verily, his coming was not to be a joy to my
+company.</p>
+<p>It was evening when the Cyclops came home,&mdash;a mighty giant,
+very tall of stature, and when we saw him we fled into the sacred
+place of the cave in great fear. On his shoulder he bore a vast
+bundle of pine logs for his fire, and threw them down outside the
+cave with a great crash, and drove the flocks within, and closed
+the entrance with a huge rock, which twenty wagons and more could
+not bear. Then he milked the ewes and all the she-goats, and half
+of the milk he curdled for cheese, and half he set ready for
+himself, when he should sup. Next he kindled a fire with the pine
+logs, and the flame lighted up all the cave, showing to him both me
+and my comrades.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Who are ye?&rdquo; cried Polyphemus, for that was the
+giant&rsquo;s name. &ldquo;Are ye traders, or, haply,
+pirates?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>I shuddered at the dreadful voice and shape, but bare me
+bravely, and answered, &ldquo;We are no pirates, mighty sir, but
+Greeks sailing back from Troy, and subjects of the great King
+Agamemnon, whose fame is spread from one end of heaven to the
+other. And we are come to beg hospitality of thee in the name of
+Zeus, who rewards or punishes hosts and guests, according as they
+be faithful the one to the other, or no.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nay,&rdquo; said the giant; &ldquo;it is but idle talk to
+tell me of Zeus and the other Gods. We Cyclops take no account of
+gods, holding ourselves to be much better and stronger than they.
+But come, tell me, where have you left your ship?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But I saw his thought when he asked about the ship, how he was
+minded to break it, and take from us all hope of flight. Therefore
+I answered him craftily,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ship have we none, for that which was ours King Neptune
+brake, driving it on a jutting rock on this coast, and we whom thou
+seest are all that are escaped from the waves.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Polyphemus answered nothing, but without more ado caught up two
+of the men, as a man might catch up the whelps of a dog, and dashed
+them on the ground, and tare them limb from limb, and devoured
+them, with huge draughts of milk between, leaving not a morsel, not
+even the very bones. But we that were left, when we saw the
+dreadful deed, could only weep and pray to Zeus for help. And when
+the giant had filled his maw with human flesh and with the milk of
+the flocks, he lay down among his sheep and slept.</p>
+<p>Then I questioned much in my heart whether I should slay the
+monster as he slept, for I doubted not that my good sword would
+pierce to the giant&rsquo;s heart, mighty as he was. But my second
+thought kept me back, for I remembered that, should I slay him, I
+and my comrades would yet perish miserably. For who should move
+away the great rock that lay against the door of the cave? So we
+waited till the morning, with grief in our hearts. And the monster
+woke, and milked his flocks, and afterwards, seizing two men,
+devoured them for his meal. Then he went to the pastures, but put
+the great rock on the mouth of the cave, just as a man puts down
+the lid upon his quiver.</p>
+<p>All that day I was thinking what I might best do to save myself
+and my companions, and the end of my thinking was this: there was a
+mighty pole in the cave, green wood of an olive-tree, big as a
+ship&rsquo;s mast, which Polyphemus purposed to use, when the smoke
+should have dried it, as a walking-staff. Of this I cut off a
+fathom&rsquo;s length, and my comrades sharpened it and hardened it
+in the fire, and then hid it away. At evening the giant came back,
+and drove his sheep into the cave, nor left the rams outside, as he
+had been wont to do before, but shut them in. And having duly done
+his shepherd&rsquo;s work, he took, as before, two of my comrades,
+and devoured them. And when he had finished his supper, I came
+forward, holding the wineskin in my hand, and said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Drink, Cyclops, now that thou hast feasted. Drink, and
+see what precious things we had in our ship. But no one hereafter
+will come to thee with such like, if thou dealest with strangers as
+cruelly as thou hast dealt with us.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the Cyclops drank, and was mightily pleased, and said,
+&ldquo;Give me again to drink, and tell me thy name, stranger, and
+I will give thee a gift such as a host should give. In good truth
+this is a rare liquor. We, too, have vines, but they bear not wine
+like this, which, indeed, must be such as the Gods drink in
+heaven.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then I gave him the cup again, and he drank. Thrice I gave it to
+him, and thrice he drank, not knowing what it was, and how it would
+work within his brain.</p>
+<p>Then I spake to him: &ldquo;Thou didst ask my name, Cyclops. My
+name is No Man. And now that thou knowest my name, thou shouldst
+give me thy gift.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And he said, &ldquo;My gift shall be that I will eat thee last
+of all thy company.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And as he spake, he fell back in a drunken sleep. Then I bade my
+comrades be of good courage, for the time was come when they should
+be delivered. And they thrust the stake of olive-wood into the fire
+till it was ready, green as it was, to burst into flame, and they
+thrust it into the monster&rsquo;s eye; for he had but one eye, and
+that in the midst of his forehead, with the eyebrow below it. And
+I, standing above, leant with all my force upon the stake, and
+turned it about, as a man bores the timber of a ship with a drill.
+And the burning wood hissed in the eye, just as the red-hot iron
+hisses in the water when a man seeks to temper steel for a
+sword.</p>
+<p>Then the giant leapt up, and tore away the stake, and cried
+aloud, so that all the Cyclops who dwelt on the mountain-side heard
+him and came about his cave, asking him, &ldquo;What aileth thee,
+Polyphemus, that thou makest this uproar in the peaceful night,
+driving away sleep? Is any one robbing thee of thy sheep, or
+seeking to slay thee by craft or force?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the giant answered, &ldquo;No Man slays me by
+craft.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nay, but,&rdquo; they said, &ldquo;if no man does thee
+wrong we cannot help thee. The sickness which great Zeus may send,
+who can avoid? Pray to our father, Neptune, for help.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So they spake, and I laughed in my heart when I saw how I had
+beguiled them by the name that I had given.</p>
+<p>But the Cyclops rolled away the great stone from the door of the
+cave, and sat in the midst, stretching out his hands, to feel
+whether perchance the men within the cave would seek to go out
+among the sheep.</p>
+<p>Long did I think how I and my comrades should best escape. At
+last I lighted upon a device that seemed better than all the rest,
+and much I thanked Zeus for that this once the giant had driven the
+rams with the other sheep into the cave. For, these being great and
+strong, I fastened my comrades under the bellies of the beasts,
+tying them with osier twigs, of which the giant made his bed. One
+ram I took, and fastened a man beneath it, and two rams I set, one
+on either side. So I did with the six, for but six were left out of
+the twelve who had ventured with me from the ship. And there was
+one mighty ram far larger than all the others, and to this I clung,
+grasping the fleece tight with both my hands. So we all waited for
+the morning. And when the morning came, the rams rushed forth to
+the pasture; but the giant sat in the door and felt the back of
+each as it went by, nor thought to try what might be underneath.
+Last of all went the great ram. And the Cyclops knew him as he
+passed, and said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;How is this, thou who art the leader of the flock? Thou
+art not wont thus to lag behind. Thou hast always been the first to
+run to the pastures and streams in the morning, and the first to
+come back to the fold when evening fell; and now thou art last of
+all. Perhaps thou art troubled about thy master&rsquo;s eye, which
+some wretch&mdash;No Man, they call him&mdash;has destroyed, having
+first mastered me with wine. He has not escaped, I ween. I would
+that thou couldst speak, and tell me where he is lurking. Of a
+truth, I would dash out his brains upon the ground, and avenge me
+of this No Man.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So speaking, he let the ram pass out of the cave. But when we
+were now out of reach of the giant, I loosed my hold of the ram,
+and then unbound my comrades. And we hastened to our ship, not
+forgetting to drive the sheep before us, and often looking back
+till we came to the seashore. Right glad were those that had abode
+by the ship to see us. Nor did they lament for those that had died,
+though we were fain to do so, for I forbade, fearing lest the noise
+of their weeping should betray us to the giant, where we were. Then
+we all climbed into the ship, and sitting well in order on the
+benches smote the sea with our oars, laying to right lustily, that
+we might the sooner get away from the accursed land. And when we
+had rowed a hundred yards or so, so that a man&rsquo;s voice could
+yet be heard by one who stood upon the shore, I stood up in the
+ship and shouted,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;He was no coward, O Cyclops, whose comrades thou didst so
+foully slay in thy den. Justly art thou punished, monster, that
+devourest thy guests in thy dwelling. May the Gods make thee suffer
+worse things than these!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the Cyclops in his wrath brake off the top of a great hill,
+a mighty rock, and hurled it where he had heard the voice. Right in
+front of the ship&rsquo;s bow it fell, and a great wave rose as it
+sank, and washed the ship back to the shore. But I seized a long
+pole with both hands, and pushed the ship from the land, and bade
+my comrades ply their oars, nodding with my head, for I would not
+speak, lest the Cyclops should know where we were. Then they rowed
+with all their might and main.</p>
+<div class="figure"><a href="images/big_316.jpg"><img src=
+"images/small_316.jpg" alt="The Cyclops throws rocks at a ship."
+id="img07" name="img07" width="538" height="360" /></a>
+<p>THE CYCLOPS IN HIS WRATH BRAKE OFF THE TOP OF A GREAT HILL</p>
+</div>
+<p>And when we had gotten twice as far as before I made as if I
+would speak again; but my comrades sought to hinder me, saying,
+&ldquo;Nay, my lord, anger not the giant any more. Surely we
+thought we were lost before, when he threw the great rock, and
+washed our ship back to the shore. And if he hear thee now, he may
+crush our ship and us, for the man throws a mighty bolt, and throws
+it far.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But I would not be persuaded, but stood up and said,
+&ldquo;Hear, Cyclops! If any man ask who blinded thee, say that it
+was the warrior Ulysses, son of Laertes, dwelling in
+Ithaca.&rdquo;</p>
+<h3><a id="Circe" name="Circe">Circe&rsquo;s Palace</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Nathaniel Hawthorne</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>At one time in the course of Ulysses&rsquo; weary voyage, he
+arrived at an island that looked very green and pleasant, but the
+name of which was unknown to him. For, only a little while before
+he came thither, he had met with a terrible hurricane, or rather a
+great many hurricanes at once, which drove his fleet of vessels
+into a strange part of the sea, where neither himself nor any of
+his mariners had ever sailed. This misfortune was entirely owing to
+the foolish curiosity of his shipmates, who, while Ulysses lay
+asleep, had untied some very bulky leathern bags, in which they
+supposed a valuable treasure to be concealed. But in each of these
+stout bags, King &AElig;olus, the ruler of the winds, had tied up a
+tempest, and had given it to Ulysses to keep, in order that he
+might be sure of a favorable passage homeward to Ithaca; and when
+the strings were loosened, forth rushed the whistling blasts, like
+air out of a blown bladder, whitening the sea with foam, and
+scattering the vessels nobody could tell whither.</p>
+<p>Immediately after escaping from this peril, a still greater one
+had befallen him. Scudding before the hurricane, he reached a place
+which, as he afterwards found, was called L&aelig;strygonia, where
+some monstrous giants had eaten up many of his companions, and had
+sunk every one of his vessels, except that in which he himself
+sailed, by flinging great masses of rock at them, from the cliffs
+along the shore. After going through such troubles as these, you
+cannot wonder that King Ulysses was glad to moor his tempest-beaten
+bark in a quiet cove of the green island, which I began with
+telling you about. But he had encountered so many dangers from
+giants, and one-eyed Cyclops, and monsters of the sea and land,
+that he could not help dreading some mischief, even in this
+pleasant and seemingly solitary spot. For two days, therefore, the
+poor weather-worn voyagers kept quiet, and either stayed on board
+of their vessel or merely crept along under cliffs that bordered
+the shore; and to keep themselves alive, they dug shell-fish out of
+the sand, and sought for any little rill of fresh water that might
+be running towards the sea.</p>
+<p>Before the two days were spent, they grew very weary of this
+kind of life; for the followers of King Ulysses, as you will find
+it important to remember, were terrible gormandizers, and pretty
+sure to grumble if they missed their regular meals, and their
+irregular ones besides. Their stock of provisions was quite
+exhausted, and even the shell-fish began to get scarce, so that
+they had now to choose between starving to death or venturing into
+the interior of the island, where, perhaps, some huge three-headed
+dragon or other horrible monster had his den. Such misshapen
+creatures were very numerous in those days; and nobody ever
+expected to make a voyage or take a journey without running more or
+less risk of being devoured by them.</p>
+<p>But King Ulysses was a bold man as well as a prudent one; and on
+the third morning he determined to discover what sort of a place
+the island was, and whether it were possible to obtain a supply of
+food for the hungry mouths of his companions. So, taking a spear in
+his hand, he clambered to the summit of a cliff, and gazed round
+about him. At a distance, towards the centre of the island, he
+beheld the stately towers of what seemed to be a palace, built of
+snow-white marble, and rising in the midst of a grove of lofty
+trees. The thick branches of these trees stretched across the front
+of the edifice, and more than half concealed it, although, from the
+portion which he saw, Ulysses judged it to be spacious and
+exceedingly beautiful, and probably the residence of some great
+nobleman or prince. A blue smoke went curling up from the chimney,
+and was almost the pleasantest part of the spectacle to Ulysses.
+For, from the abundance of this smoke, it was reasonable to
+conclude that there was a good fire in the kitchen, and that, at
+dinnertime, a plentiful banquet would be served up to the
+inhabitants of the palace, and to whatever guests might happen to
+drop in.</p>
+<p>With so agreeable a prospect before him, Ulysses fancied that he
+could not do better than to go straight to the palace gate, and
+tell the master of it that there was a crew of poor shipwrecked
+mariners, not far off, who had eaten nothing for a day or two save
+a few clams and oysters, and would therefore be thankful for a
+little food. And the prince or nobleman must be a very stingy
+curmudgeon, to be sure, if, at least, when his own dinner was over,
+he would not bid them welcome to the broken victuals from the
+table.</p>
+<p>Pleasing himself with this idea, King Ulysses had made a few
+steps in the direction of the palace, when there was a great
+twittering and chirping from the branch of a neighboring tree. A
+moment afterwards, a bird came flying towards him, and hovered in
+the air, so as almost to brush his face with its wings. It was a
+very pretty little bird, with purple wings and body, and yellow
+legs, and a circle of golden feathers round its neck, and on its
+head a golden tuft, which looked like a king&rsquo;s crown in
+miniature. Ulysses tried to catch the bird. But it fluttered nimbly
+out of his reach, still chirping in a piteous tone, as if it could
+have told a lamentable story, had it only been gifted with human
+language. And when he attempted to drive it away, the bird flew no
+farther than the bough of the next tree, and again came fluttering
+about his head, with its doleful chirp, as soon as he showed a
+purpose of going forward.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Have you anything to tell me, little bird?&rdquo; asked
+Ulysses.</p>
+<p>And he was ready to listen attentively to whatever the bird
+might communicate; for at the siege of Troy and elsewhere he had
+known such odd things to happen that he would not have considered
+it much out of the common run had this little feathered creature
+talked as plainly as himself.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Peep!&rdquo; said the bird. &ldquo;Peep, peep,
+pe&mdash;weep!&rdquo; And nothing else would it say, but only,
+&ldquo;Peep, peep, pe&mdash;weep!&rdquo; in a melancholy cadence,
+and over and over and over again. As often as Ulysses moved
+forward, however, the bird showed the greatest alarm, and did its
+best to drive him back, with the anxious flutter of its purple
+wings. Its unaccountable behavior made him conclude, at last, that
+the bird knew of some danger that awaited him, and which must needs
+be very terrible, beyond all question, since it moved even a little
+fowl to feel compassion for a human being. So he resolved, for the
+present, to return to the vessel, and tell his companions what he
+had seen.</p>
+<p>This appeared to satisfy the bird. As soon as Ulysses turned
+back, it ran up the trunk of a tree, and began to pick insects out
+of the bark with its long, sharp bill; for it was a kind of
+woodpecker, you must know, and had to get its living in the same
+manner as other birds of that species. But every little while, as
+it pecked at the bark of the tree, the purple bird bethought itself
+of some secret sorrow, and repeated its plaintive note of
+&ldquo;Peep, peep, pe&mdash;weep!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>On his way to the shore, Ulysses had the good luck to kill a
+large stag by thrusting his spear into its back. Taking it on his
+shoulders (for he was a remarkably strong man), he lugged it along
+with him, and flung it down before his hungry companions. I have
+already hinted to you what gormandizers some of the comrades of
+King Ulysses were. From what is related of them, I reckon that
+their favorite diet was pork, and that they had lived upon it until
+a good part of their physical substance was swine&rsquo;s flesh,
+and their tempers and dispositions were very much akin to the hog.
+A dish of venison, however, was no unacceptable meal to them,
+especially after feeding so long on oysters and clams. So,
+beholding the dead stag, they felt of its ribs in a knowing way,
+and lost no time in kindling a fire, of drift-wood, to cook it. The
+rest of the day was spent in feasting; and if these enormous eaters
+got up from table at sunset, it was only because they could not
+scrape another morsel off the poor animal&rsquo;s bones.</p>
+<p>The next morning their appetites were as sharp as ever. They
+looked at Ulysses, as if they expected him to clamber up the cliff
+again, and come back with another fat deer upon his shoulders.
+Instead of setting out, however, he summoned the whole crew
+together, and told them it was in vain to hope that he could kill a
+stag every day for their dinner, and therefore it was advisable to
+think of some other mode of satisfying their hunger.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Now,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;when I was on the cliff
+yesterday, I discovered that this island is inhabited. At a
+considerable distance from the shore stood a marble palace, which
+appeared to be very spacious, and had a great deal of smoke curling
+out of one of its chimneys.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Aha!&rdquo; muttered some of his companions, smacking
+their lips. &ldquo;That smoke must have come from the kitchen fire.
+There was a good dinner on the spit; and no doubt there will be as
+good a one to-day.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;But,&rdquo; continued the wise Ulysses, &ldquo;you must
+remember, my good friends, our misadventure in the cavern of
+one-eyed Polyphemus, the Cyclops! Instead of his ordinary milk
+diet, did he not eat up two of our comrades for his supper, and a
+couple more for breakfast, and two at his supper again? Methinks I
+see him yet, the hideous monster, scanning us with that great red
+eye, in the middle of his forehead, to single out the fattest. And
+then again, only a few days ago, did we not fall into the hands of
+the king of the L&aelig;strygons, and those other horrible giants,
+his subjects, who devoured a great many more of us than are now
+left? To tell you the truth, if we go to yonder palace, there can
+be no question that we shall make our appearance at the
+dinner-table; but whether seated as guests or served up as food, is
+a point to be seriously considered.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Either way,&rdquo; murmured some of the hungriest of the
+crew, &ldquo;it will be better than starvation; particularly if one
+could be sure of being well fattened beforehand and daintily cooked
+afterwards.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That is a matter of taste,&rdquo; said King Ulysses,
+&ldquo;and, for my own part, neither the most careful fattening nor
+the daintiest of cookery would reconcile me to being dished at
+last. My proposal is, therefore, that we divide ourselves into two
+equal parties, and ascertain, by drawing lots, which of the two
+shall go to the palace, and beg for food and assistance. If these
+can be obtained, all is well. If not, and if the inhabitants prove
+as inhospitable as Polyphemus or the L&aelig;strygons, then there
+will but half of us perish, and the remainder may set sail and
+escape.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>As nobody objected to this scheme, Ulysses proceeded to count
+the whole band, and found that there were forty-six men, including
+himself. He then numbered off twenty-two of them, and put
+Eurylochus (who was one of his chief officers, and second only to
+himself in sagacity) at their head. Ulysses took command of the
+remaining twenty-two men, in person. Then, taking off his helmet,
+he put two shells into it, on one of which was written,
+&ldquo;Go,&rdquo; and on the other, &ldquo;Stay.&rdquo; Another
+person now held the helmet, while Ulysses and Eurylochus drew out
+each a shell; and the word &ldquo;Go&rdquo; was found written on
+that which Eurylochus had drawn. In this manner it was decided that
+Ulysses and his twenty-two men were to remain at the seaside until
+the other party should have found out what sort of treatment they
+might expect at the mysterious palace. As there was no help for it,
+Eurylochus immediately set forth at the head of his twenty-two
+followers, who went off in a very melancholy state of mind, leaving
+their friends in hardly better spirits than themselves.</p>
+<p>No sooner had they clambered up the cliff, than they discerned
+the tall marble towers of the palace, ascending, as white as snow,
+out of the lovely green shadow of the trees which surrounded it. A
+gush of smoke came from a chimney in the rear of the edifice. This
+vapor rose high in the air, and meeting with a breeze, was wafted
+seaward, and made to pass over the heads of the hungry mariners.
+When people&rsquo;s appetites are keen, they have a very quick
+scent for anything savory in the wind.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That smoke comes from the kitchen!&rdquo; cried one of
+them, turning up his nose as high as he could, and snuffing
+eagerly. &ldquo;And, as sure as I&rsquo;m a half-starved vagabond,
+I smell roast meat in it.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Pig, roast pig!&rdquo; said another. &ldquo;Ah, the
+dainty little porker! My mouth waters for him.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Let us make haste,&rdquo; cried the others, &ldquo;or we
+shall be too late for the good cheer!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But scarcely had they made half a dozen steps from the edge of
+the cliff, when a bird came fluttering to meet them. It was the
+same pretty little bird, with the purple wings and body, the yellow
+legs, the golden collar round its neck, and the crown-like tuft
+upon its head, whose behavior had so much surprised Ulysses. It
+hovered about Eurylochus, and almost brushed his face with its
+wings.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Peep, peep, pe&mdash;weep!&rdquo; chirped the bird.</p>
+<p>So plaintively intelligent was the sound, that it seemed as if
+the little creature were going to break its heart with some mighty
+secret that it had to tell, and only this one poor note to tell it
+with.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;My pretty bird,&rdquo; said Eurylochus,&mdash;for he was
+a wary person, and let no token of harm escape his
+notice,&mdash;&ldquo;my pretty bird, who sent you hither? And what
+is the message which you bring?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Peep, peep, pe&mdash;weep!&rdquo; replied the bird, very
+sorrowfully.</p>
+<p>Then it flew towards the edge of the cliff, and looked round at
+them, as if exceedingly anxious that they should return whence they
+came. Eurylochus and a few of the others were inclined to turn
+back. They could not help suspecting that the purple bird must be
+aware of something mischievous that would befall them at the
+palace, and the knowledge of which affected its airy spirit with a
+human sympathy and sorrow. But the rest of the voyagers, snuffing
+up the smoke from the palace kitchen, ridiculed the idea of
+returning to the vessel. One of them (more brutal than his fellows,
+and the most notorious gormandizer in the whole crew) said such a
+cruel and wicked thing, that I wonder the mere thought did not turn
+him into a wild beast in shape, as he already was in his
+nature.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;This troublesome and impertinent little fowl,&rdquo; said
+he, &ldquo;would make a delicate titbit to begin dinner with. Just
+one plump morsel, melting away between the teeth. If he comes
+within my reach, I&rsquo;ll catch him, and give him to the palace
+cook to be roasted on a skewer.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The words were hardly out of his mouth, before the purple bird
+flew away, crying, &ldquo;Peep, peep, pe&mdash;weep,&rdquo; more
+dolorously than ever.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That bird,&rdquo; remarked Eurylochus, &ldquo;knows more
+than we do about what awaits us at the palace.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Come on, then,&rdquo; cried his comrades, &ldquo;and
+we&rsquo;ll soon know as much as he does.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The party, accordingly, went onward through the green and
+pleasant wood. Every little while they caught new glimpses of the
+marble palace, which looked more and more beautiful the nearer they
+approached it. They soon entered a broad pathway, which seemed to
+be very neatly kept, and which went winding along with streaks of
+sunshine falling across it, and specks of light quivering among the
+deepest shadows that fell from the lofty trees. It was bordered,
+too, with a great many sweet-smelling flowers, such as the mariners
+had never seen before. So rich and beautiful they were that, if the
+shrubs grew wild here and were native in the soil, then this island
+was surely the flower-garden of the whole earth; or, if
+transplanted from some other clime, it must have been from the
+Happy Islands that lay towards the golden sunset.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;There has been a great deal of pains foolishly wasted on
+these flowers,&rdquo; observed one of the company; and I tell you
+what he said, that you may keep in mind what gormandizers they
+were. &ldquo;For my part, if I were the owner of the palace, I
+would bid my gardener cultivate nothing but savory potherbs to make
+a stuffing for roast meat, or to flavor a stew with.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Well said!&rdquo; cried the others. &ldquo;But I&rsquo;ll
+warrant you there&rsquo;s a kitchen garden in the rear of the
+palace.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At one place they came to a crystal spring, and paused to drink
+at it for want of liquor which they liked better. Looking into its
+bosom, they beheld their own faces dimly reflected, but so
+extravagantly distorted by the gush and motion of the water, that
+each one of them appeared to be laughing at himself and all his
+companions. So ridiculous were these images of themselves, indeed,
+that they did really laugh aloud, and could hardly be grave again
+as soon as they wished. And after they had drunk, they grew still
+merrier than before.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It has a twang of the wine-cask in it,&rdquo; said one,
+smacking his lips.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Make haste!&rdquo; cried his fellows; &ldquo;we&rsquo;ll
+find the wine-cask itself at the palace; and that will be better
+than a hundred crystal fountains.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then they quickened their pace, and capered for joy at the
+thought of the savory banquet at which they hoped to be guests. But
+Eurylochus told them that he felt as if he were walking in a
+dream.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;If I am really awake,&rdquo; continued he, &ldquo;then,
+in my opinion, we are on the point of meeting with some stranger
+adventure than any that befell us in the cave of Polyphemus, or
+among the gigantic man-eating L&aelig;strygons, or in the windy
+palace of King &AElig;olus, which stands on a brazen-walled island.
+This kind of dreamy feeling always comes over me before any
+wonderful occurrence. If you take my advice, you will turn
+back.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;No, no,&rdquo; answered his comrades, snuffing the air,
+in which the scent from the palace kitchen was now very
+perceptible. &ldquo;We would not turn back, though we were certain
+that the king of the L&aelig;strygons, as big as a mountain, would
+sit at the head of the table, and huge Polyphemus, the one-eyed
+Cyclops, at its foot.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At length they came within full sight of the palace, which
+proved to be very large and lofty, with a great number of airy
+pinnacles upon its roof. Though it was now midday, and the sun
+shone brightly over the marble front, yet its snowy whiteness and
+its fantastic style of architecture made it look unreal, like the
+frostwork on a window-pane, or like the shapes of castles which one
+sees among the clouds by moonlight. But just then a puff of wind
+brought down the smoke of the kitchen chimney among them, and
+caused each man to smell the odor of the dish that he liked best;
+and, after scenting it, they thought everything else moonshine, and
+nothing real save this palace, and save the banquet that was
+evidently ready to be served up in it.</p>
+<p>So they hastened their steps towards the portal, but had not got
+half-way across the wide lawn, when a pack of lions, tigers, and
+wolves came bounding to meet them. The terrified mariners started
+back, expecting no better fate than to be torn to pieces and
+devoured. To their surprise and joy, however, these wild beasts
+merely capered around them, wagging their tails, offering their
+heads to be stroked and patted, and behaving just like so many
+well-bred house-dogs, when they wish to express their delight at
+meeting their master or their master&rsquo;s friends. The biggest
+lion licked the feet of Eurylochus; and every other lion, and every
+wolf and tiger, singled out one of his two and twenty followers,
+whom the beast fondled as if he loved him better than a
+beef-bone.</p>
+<p>But, for all that, Eurylochus imagined that he saw something
+fierce and savage in their eyes; nor would he have been surprised,
+at any moment, to feel the big lion&rsquo;s terrible claws, or to
+see each of the tigers make a deadly spring, or each wolf leap at
+the throat of the man whom he had fondled. Their mildness seemed
+unreal, and a mere freak; but their savage nature was as true as
+their teeth and claws.</p>
+<p>Nevertheless, the men went safely across the lawn with the wild
+beasts frisking about them, and doing no manner of harm; although,
+as they mounted the steps of the palace, you might possibly have
+heard a low growl, particularly from the wolves, as if they thought
+it a pity, after all, to let the strangers pass without so much as
+tasting what they were made of.</p>
+<p>Eurylochus and his followers now passed under a lofty portal,
+and looked through the open doorway into the interior of the
+palace. The first thing that they saw was a spacious hall, and a
+fountain in the middle of it, gushing up towards the ceiling out of
+a marble basin, and falling back into it with a continual plash.
+The water of this fountain, as it spouted upward, was constantly
+taking new shapes, not very distinctly, but plainly enough for a
+nimble fancy to recognize what they were. Now it was the shape of a
+man in a long robe, the fleecy whiteness of which was made out of
+the fountain&rsquo;s spray; now it was a lion, or a tiger, or a
+wolf, or an ass, or, as often as anything else, a hog, wallowing in
+the marble basin as if it were his sty. It was either magic or some
+very curious machinery that caused the gushing waterspout to assume
+all these forms. But, before the strangers had time to look closely
+at this wonderful sight, their attention was drawn off by a very
+sweet and agreeable sound. A woman&rsquo;s voice was singing
+melodiously in another room of the palace, and with her voice was
+mingled the noise of a loom, at which she was probably seated,
+weaving a rich texture of cloth, and intertwining the high and low
+sweetness of her voice into a rich tissue of harmony.</p>
+<p>By and by the song came to an end; and then, all at once, there
+were several feminine voices, talking airily and cheerfully, with
+now and then a merry burst of laughter, such as you may always hear
+when three or four young women sit at work together.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What a sweet song that was!&rdquo; exclaimed one of the
+voyagers.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Too sweet, indeed,&rdquo; answered Eurylochus, shaking
+his head. &ldquo;Yet it was not so sweet as the song of the Sirens,
+those birdlike damsels who wanted to tempt us on the rocks, so that
+our vessel might be wrecked, and our bones left whitening along the
+shore.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;But just listen to the pleasant voices of those maidens,
+and that buzz of the loom, as the shuttle passes to and fro,&rdquo;
+said another comrade. &ldquo;What a domestic, household, homelike
+sound it is! Ah, before that weary siege of Troy, I used to hear
+the buzzing loom and the women&rsquo;s voices under my own roof.
+Shall I never hear them again? nor taste those nice little savory
+dishes which my dearest wife knew how to serve up?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Tush! we shall fare better here,&rdquo; said another.
+&ldquo;But how innocently those women are babbling together,
+without guessing that we overhear them! And mark that richest voice
+of all, so pleasant and familiar, but which yet seems to have the
+authority of a mistress among them. Let us show ourselves at once.
+What harm can the lady of the palace and her maidens do to mariners
+and warriors like us?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Remember,&rdquo; said Eurylochus, &ldquo;that it was a
+young maiden who beguiled three of our friends into the palace of
+the king of the L&aelig;strygons, who ate up one of them in the
+twinkling of an eye.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>No warning or persuasion, however, had any effect on his
+companions. They went up to a pair of folding-doors at the farther
+end of the hall, and, throwing them wide open, passed into the next
+room. Eurylochus, meanwhile, had stepped behind a pillar. In the
+short moment while the folding-doors opened and closed again, he
+caught a glimpse of a very beautiful woman rising from the loom and
+coming to meet the poor weather-beaten wanderers, with a hospitable
+smile and her hand stretched out in welcome. There were four other
+young women, who joined their hands and danced merrily forward,
+making gestures of obeisance to the strangers. They were only less
+beautiful than the lady who seemed to be their mistress. Yet
+Eurylochus fancied that one of them had sea-green hair, and that
+the close-fitting bodice of a second looked like the bark of a
+tree, and that both the others had something odd in their aspect,
+although he could not quite determine what it was, in the little
+while that he had to examine them.</p>
+<p>The folding-doors swung quickly back, and left him standing
+behind the pillar, in the solitude of the outer hall. There
+Eurylochus waited until he was quite weary, and listened eagerly to
+every sound, but without hearing anything that could help him to
+guess what had become of his friends. Footsteps, it is true, seemed
+to be passing and repassing in other parts of the palace. Then
+there was a clatter of silver dishes, or golden ones, which made
+him imagine a rich feast in a splendid banqueting-hall. But by and
+by he heard a tremendous grunting and squealing, and then a sudden
+scampering, like that of small, hard hoofs over a marble floor,
+while the voices of the mistress and her four handmaidens were
+screaming all together, in tones of anger and derision. Eurylochus
+could not conceive what had happened, unless a drove of swine had
+broken into the palace, attracted by the smell of the feast.
+Chancing to cast his eyes at the fountain, he saw that it did not
+shift its shape, as formerly, nor looked either like a long-robed
+man, or a lion, a tiger, a wolf, or an ass. It looked like nothing
+but a hog, which lay wallowing in the marble basin, and filled it
+from brim to brim.</p>
+<p>But we must leave the prudent Eurylochus waiting in the outer
+hall, and follow his friends into the inner secrecy of the palace.
+As soon as the beautiful woman saw them, she arose from the loom,
+as I have told you, and came forward, smiling, and stretching out
+her hand. She took the hand of the foremost among them, and bade
+him and the whole party welcome.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You have been long expected, my good friends,&rdquo; said
+she. &ldquo;I and my maidens are well acquainted with you, although
+you do not appear to recognize us. Look at this piece of tapestry,
+and judge if your faces must not have been familiar to
+us.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So the voyagers examined the web of cloth which the beautiful
+woman had been weaving in her loom; and to their vast astonishment
+they saw their own figures perfectly represented in different
+colored threads. It was a lifelike picture of their recent
+adventures, showing them in the cave of Polyphemus, and how they
+had put out his one great moony eye; while in another part of the
+tapestry they were untying the leathern bags, puffed out with
+contrary winds; and farther on, they beheld themselves scampering
+away from the gigantic king of the L&aelig;strygons, who had caught
+one of them by the leg. Lastly, there they were, sitting on the
+desolate shore of this very island, hungry and downcast, and
+looking ruefully at the bare bones of the stag which they devoured
+yesterday. This was as far as the work had yet proceeded; but when
+the beautiful woman should again sit down at her loom, she would
+probably make a picture of what had since happened to the
+strangers, and of what was now going to happen.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You see,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;that I know all about
+your troubles; and you cannot doubt that I desire to make you happy
+for as long a time as you may remain with me. For this purpose, my
+honored guests, I have ordered a banquet to be prepared. Fish,
+fowl, and flesh, roasted, and in luscious stews, and seasoned, I
+trust, to all your tastes, are ready to be served up. If your
+appetites tell you it is dinner-time, then come with me to the
+festal saloon.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At this kind invitation, the hungry mariners were quite
+overjoyed; and one of them, taking upon himself to be spokesman,
+assured their hospitable hostess that any hour of the day was
+dinner-time with them, whenever they could get flesh to put in the
+pot, and fire to boil it with. So the beautiful woman led the way;
+and the four maidens (one of them had sea-green hair, another a
+bodice of oak-bark, a third sprinkled a shower of water-drops from
+her fingers&rsquo; ends, and the fourth had some other oddity,
+which I have forgotten), all these followed behind, and hurried the
+guests along, until they entered a magnificent saloon. It was built
+in a perfect oval, and lighted from a crystal dome above. Around
+the walls were ranged two and twenty thrones, overhung by canopies
+of crimson and gold, and provided with the softest of cushions,
+which were tasseled and fringed with gold cord. Each of the
+strangers was invited to sit down; and there they were, two and
+twenty storm-beaten mariners, in worn and tattered garb, sitting on
+two and twenty cushioned and canopied thrones, so rich and gorgeous
+that the proudest monarch had nothing more splendid in his
+stateliest hall.</p>
+<p>Then you might have seen the guests nodding, winking with one
+eye, and leaning from one throne to another, to communicate their
+satisfaction in hoarse whispers.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Our good hostess has made kings of us all,&rdquo; said
+one. &ldquo;Ha! do you smell the feast? I&rsquo;ll engage it will
+be fit to set before two-and-twenty kings.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I hope,&rdquo; said another, &ldquo;it will be, mainly,
+good substantial joints, sirloins, spareribs, and hinder quarters,
+without too many kickshaws. If I thought the good lady would not
+take it amiss, I should call for a fat slice of fried bacon to
+begin with.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Ah, the gluttons and gormandizers! You see how it was with them.
+In the loftiest seats of dignity, on royal thrones, they could
+think of nothing but their greedy appetite, which was the portion
+of their nature that they shared with wolves and swine; so that
+they resembled those vilest of animals far more than they did
+kings,&mdash;if, indeed, kings were what they ought to be.</p>
+<p>But the beautiful woman now clapped her hands; and immediately
+there entered a train of two and twenty serving-men, bringing
+dishes of the richest food, all hot from the kitchen fire, and
+sending up such a steam that it hung like a cloud below the crystal
+dome of the saloon. An equal number of attendants brought great
+flagons of wine, of various kinds, some of which sparkled as it was
+poured out, and went bubbling down the throat; while, of other
+sorts, the purple liquor was so clear that you could see the
+wrought figures at the bottom of the goblet. While the servants
+supplied the two and twenty guests with food and drink, the hostess
+and her four maidens went from one throne to another, exhorting
+them to eat their fill, and to quaff wine abundantly, and thus to
+recompense themselves, at this one banquet, for the many days when
+they had gone without a dinner. But, whenever the mariners were not
+looking at them (which was pretty often, as they looked chiefly
+into the basins and platters), the beautiful woman and her damsels
+turned aside and laughed. Even the servants, as they knelt down to
+present the dishes, might be seen to grin and sneer, while the
+guests were helping themselves to the offered dainties.</p>
+<p>And once in a while the strangers seemed to taste something that
+they did not like.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Here is an odd kind of a spice in this dish,&rdquo; said
+one. &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t say it quite suits my palate. Down it
+goes, however.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Send a good draught of wine down your throat,&rdquo; said
+his comrade on the next throne. &ldquo;That is the stuff to make
+this sort of cookery relish well. Though I must needs say, the wine
+has a queer taste too. But the more I drink of it the better I like
+the flavor.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Whatever little fault they might find with the dishes, they sat
+at dinner a prodigiously long while; and it would really have made
+you ashamed to see how they swilled down the liquor and gobbled up
+the food. They sat, on golden thrones, to be sure; but they behaved
+like pigs in a sty, and, if they had had their wits about them,
+they might have guessed that this was the opinion of their
+beautiful hostess and her maidens. It brings a blush into my face
+to reckon up, in my own mind, what mountains of meat and pudding,
+and what gallons of wine, these two and twenty guzzlers and
+gormandizers ate and drank. They forgot all about their homes, and
+their wives, and children, and all about Ulysses, and everything
+else, except this banquet, at which they wanted to keep feasting
+forever. But at length they began to give over, from mere
+incapacity to hold any more.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That last bit of fat is too much for me,&rdquo; said
+one.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;And I have not room for another morsel,&rdquo; said his
+next neighbor, heaving a sigh. &ldquo;What a pity! My appetite is
+as sharp as ever.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>In short, they all left off eating, and leaned back on their
+thrones, with such a stupid and helpless aspect as made them
+ridiculous to behold. When their hostess saw this, she laughed
+aloud; so did her four damsels; so did the two-and-twenty serving
+men that bore the dishes, and their two-and-twenty fellows that
+poured out the wine. And the louder they all laughed, the more
+stupid and helpless did the two-and-twenty gormandizers look. Then
+the beautiful woman took her stand in the middle of the saloon, and
+stretching out a slender rod (it had been all the while in her
+hand, although they never noticed it till this moment), she turned
+it from one guest to another, until each had felt it pointed at
+himself. Beautiful as her face was, and though there was a smile on
+it, it looked just as wicked and mischievous as the ugliest serpent
+that ever was seen; and fat-witted as the voyagers had made
+themselves, they began to suspect that they had fallen into the
+power of an evil-minded enchantress.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Wretches,&rdquo; cried she, &ldquo;you have abused a
+lady&rsquo;s hospitality; and in this princely saloon your behavior
+has been suited to a hogpen. You are already swine in everything
+but the human form, which you disgrace, and which I myself should
+be ashamed to keep a moment longer, were you to share it with me.
+But it will require only the slightest exercise of magic to make
+the exterior conform to the hoggish disposition. Assume your proper
+shapes, gormandizers, and begone to the sty!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Uttering these last words, she waved her wand; and stamping her
+foot imperiously, each of the guests was struck aghast at
+beholding, instead of his comrades in human shape, one and twenty
+hogs sitting on the same number of golden thrones. Each man (as he
+still supposed himself to be) essayed to give a cry of surprise,
+but found that he could merely grunt, and that, in a word, he was
+just such another beast as his companions. It looked so intolerably
+absurd to see hogs on cushioned thrones, that they made haste to
+wallow down upon all fours, like other swine. They tried to groan
+and beg for mercy, but forthwith emitted the most awful grunting
+and squealing that ever came out of swinish throats. They would
+have wrung their hands in despair, but, attempting to do so, grew
+all the more desperate for seeing themselves squatted on their
+hams, and pawing the air with their fore trotters. Dear me! what
+pendulous ears they had! what little red eyes, half buried in fat!
+and what long snouts, instead of Grecian noses!</p>
+<p>But brutes as they certainly were, they yet had enough of human
+nature in them to be shocked at their own hideousness; and still
+intending to groan, they uttered a viler grunt and squeal than
+before. So harsh and ear-piercing it was, that you would have
+fancied a butcher was sticking his knife into each of their
+throats, or, at the very least, that somebody was pulling every hog
+by his funny little twist of a tail.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Begone to your sty!&rdquo; cried the enchantress, giving
+them some smart strokes with her wand; and then she turned to the
+serving-men. &ldquo;Drive out these swine, and throw down some
+acorns for them to eat.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The door of the saloon being flung open, the drove of hogs ran
+in all directions save the right one, in accordance with their
+hoggish perversity, but were finally driven into the back yard of
+the palace. It was a sight to bring tears into one&rsquo;s eyes
+(and I hope none of you will be cruel enough to laugh at it) to see
+the poor creatures go snuffing along, picking up here a cabbage
+leaf and there a turnip-top, and rooting their noses in the earth
+for whatever they could find. In their sty, moreover, they behaved
+more piggishly than the pigs that had been born so; for they bit
+and snorted at one another, put their feet in the trough, and
+gobbled up their victuals in a ridiculous hurry; and, when there
+was nothing more to be had, they made a great pile of themselves
+among some unclean straw and fell fast asleep. If they had any
+human reason left, it was just enough to keep them wondering when
+they should be slaughtered, and what quality of bacon they should
+make.</p>
+<p>Meantime, as I told you before, Eurylochus had waited, and
+waited, and waited, in the entrance-hall of the palace, without
+being able to comprehend what had befallen his friends. At last,
+when the swinish uproar resounded through the palace, and when he
+saw the image of a hog in the marble basin, he thought it best to
+hasten back to the vessel, and inform the wise Ulysses of these
+marvelous occurrences. So he ran as fast as he could down the
+steps, and never stopped to draw breath till he reached the
+shore.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Why do you come alone?&rdquo; asked King Ulysses, as soon
+as he saw him. &ldquo;Where are your two and twenty
+comrades?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At these questions Eurylochus burst into tears.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Alas!&rdquo; cried he, &ldquo;I greatly fear that we
+shall never see one of their faces again.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he told Ulysses all that had happened, as far as he knew
+it, and added that he suspected the beautiful woman to be a vile
+enchantress, and the marble palace, magnificent as it looked, to be
+only a dismal cavern in reality. As for his companions, he could
+not imagine what had become of them, unless they had been given to
+the swine to be devoured alive. At this intelligence all the
+voyagers were greatly affrighted. But Ulysses lost no time in
+girding on his sword, and hanging his bow and quiver over his
+shoulders, and taking a spear in his right hand. When his followers
+saw their wise leader making these preparations, they inquired
+whither he was going, and earnestly besought him not to leave
+them.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You are our king,&rdquo; cried they; &ldquo;and what is
+more, you are the wisest man in the whole world, and nothing but
+your wisdom and courage can get us out of this danger. If you
+desert us, and go to the enchanted palace, you will suffer the same
+fate as our poor companions, and not a soul of us will ever see our
+dear Ithaca again.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;As I am your king,&rdquo; answered Ulysses, &ldquo;and
+wiser than any of you, it is therefore the more my duty to see what
+has befallen our comrades, and whether anything can yet be done to
+rescue them. Wait for me here until to-morrow. If I do not then
+return, you must hoist sail, and endeavor to find your way to our
+native land. For my part, I am answerable for the fate of these
+poor mariners, who have stood by my side in battle, and been so
+often drenched to the skin, along with me, by the same tempestuous
+surges. I will either bring them back with me or perish.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Had his followers dared, they would have detained him by force.
+But King Ulysses frowned sternly on them, and shook his spear, and
+bade them stop him at their peril. Seeing him so determined, they
+let him go, and sat down on the sand, as disconsolate a set of
+people as could be, waiting and praying for his return.</p>
+<p>It happened to Ulysses, just as before, that, when he had gone a
+few steps from the edge of the cliff, the purple bird came
+fluttering towards him, crying, &ldquo;Peep, peep,
+pe&mdash;weep!&rdquo; and using all the art it could to persuade
+him to go no farther.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What mean you, little bird?&rdquo; cried Ulysses.
+&ldquo;You are arrayed like a king in purple and gold, and wear a
+golden crown upon your head. Is it because I too am a king that you
+desire so earnestly to speak with me? If you can talk in human
+language, say what you would have me do.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Peep!&rdquo; answered the purple bird, very dolorously.
+&ldquo;Peep, peep, pe&mdash;we&mdash;ep!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Certainly there lay some heavy anguish at the little
+bird&rsquo;s heart; and it was a sorrowful predicament that he
+could not, at least, have the consolation of telling what it was.
+But Ulysses had no time to waste in trying to get at the mystery.
+He therefore quickened his pace, and had gone a good way along the
+pleasant wood-path, when there met him a young man of very brisk
+and intelligent aspect, and clad in a rather singular garb. He wore
+a short cloak, and a sort of cap that seemed to be furnished with a
+pair of wings; and from the lightness of his step, you would have
+supposed that there might likewise be wings on his feet. To enable
+him to walk still better (for he was always on one journey or
+another), he carried a winged staff, around which two serpents were
+wriggling and twisting. In short, I have said enough to make you
+guess that it was Quicksilver; and Ulysses (who knew him of old,
+and had learned a great deal of his wisdom from him) recognized him
+in a moment.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Whither are you going in such a hurry, wise
+Ulysses?&rdquo; asked Quicksilver. &ldquo;Do you not know that this
+island is enchanted? The wicked enchantress (whose name is Circe,
+the sister of King &AElig;etes) dwells in the marble palace which
+you see yonder among the trees. By her magic arts, she changes
+every human being into the brute, beast, or fowl whom he happens
+most to resemble.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;That little bird which met me at the edge of the
+cliff,&rdquo; exclaimed Ulysses; &ldquo;was he a human being
+once?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; answered Quicksilver. &ldquo;He was once a
+king, named Picus, and a pretty good sort of a king too, only
+rather too proud of his purple robe, and his crown, and the golden
+chain about his neck; so he was forced to take the shape of a
+gaudy-feathered bird. The lions, and wolves, and tigers who will
+come running to meet you, in front of the palace, were formerly
+fierce and cruel men, resembling in their dispositions the wild
+beasts whose forms they now rightfully wear.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;And my poor companions,&rdquo; said Ulysses. &ldquo;Have
+they undergone a similar change, through the arts of this wicked
+Circe?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You well know what gormandizers they were,&rdquo; replied
+Quicksilver; and, rogue that he was, he could not help laughing at
+the joke. &ldquo;So you will not be surprised to hear that they
+have all taken the shapes of swine! If Circe had never done
+anything worse, I really should not think her so very much to
+blame.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;But can I do nothing to help them?&rdquo; inquired
+Ulysses.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It will require all your wisdom,&rdquo; said Quicksilver,
+&ldquo;and a little of my own into the bargain, to keep your royal
+and sagacious self from being transformed into a fox. But do as I
+bid you, and the matter may end better than it has
+begun.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>While he was speaking, Quicksilver seemed to be in search of
+something; he went stooping along the ground, and soon laid his
+hand on a little plant with a snow-white flower, which he plucked
+and smelt of. Ulysses had been looking at that very spot only just
+before; and it appeared to him that the plant had burst into full
+flower the instant when Quicksilver touched it with his
+fingers.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Take this flower, King Ulysses,&rdquo; said he.
+&ldquo;Guard it as you do your eyesight; for I can assure you it is
+exceedingly rare and precious, and you might seek the whole earth
+over without ever finding another like it. Keep it in your hand,
+and smell of it frequently after you enter the palace, and while
+you are talking with the enchantress. Especially when she offers
+you food, or a draught of wine out of her goblet, be careful to
+fill your nostrils with the flower&rsquo;s fragrance. Follow these
+directions, and you may defy her magic arts to change you into a
+fox.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Quicksilver then gave him some further advice how to behave,
+and, bidding him be bold and prudent, again assured him that,
+powerful as Circe was, he would have a fair prospect of coming
+safely out of her enchanted palace. After listening attentively,
+Ulysses thanked his good friend, and resumed his way. But he had
+taken only a few steps, when, recollecting some other questions
+which he wished to ask, he turned round again, and beheld nobody on
+the spot where Quicksilver had stood; for that winged cap of his,
+and those winged shoes with the help of the winged staff, had
+carried him quickly out of sight.</p>
+<p>When Ulysses reached the lawn in front of the palace, the lions
+and other savage animals came bounding to meet him, and would have
+fawned upon him and licked his feet. But the wise king struck at
+them with his long spear, and sternly bade them begone out of his
+path; for he knew that they had once been bloodthirsty men, and
+would now tear him limb from limb, instead of fawning upon him,
+could they do the mischief that was in their hearts. The wild
+beasts yelped and glared at him, and stood at a distance while he
+ascended the palace steps.</p>
+<p>On entering the hall, Ulysses saw the magic fountain in the
+centre of it. The up-gushing water had now again taken the shape of
+a man in a long, white, fleecy robe, who appeared to be making
+gestures of welcome. The king likewise heard the noise of the
+shuttle in the loom, and the sweet melody of the beautiful
+woman&rsquo;s song, and then the pleasant voices of herself and the
+four maidens talking together, with peals of merry laughter
+intermixed. But Ulysses did not waste much time in listening to the
+laughter or the song. He leaned his spear against one of the
+pillars of the hall, and then, after loosening his sword in the
+scabbard, stepped boldly forward, and threw the folding-doors wide
+open. The moment she beheld his stately figure standing in the
+doorway, the beautiful woman rose from the loom, and ran to meet
+him with a glad smile throwing its sunshine over her face, and both
+her hands extended.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Welcome, brave stranger!&rdquo; cried she. &ldquo;We were
+expecting you.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the nymph with the sea-green hair made a courtesy down to
+the ground, and likewise bade him welcome; so did her sister with
+the bodice of oaken bark, and she that sprinkled dew-drops from her
+fingers&rsquo; ends, and the fourth one with some oddity which I
+cannot remember. And Circe, as the beautiful enchantress was called
+(who had deluded so many persons that she did not doubt of being
+able to delude Ulysses, not imagining how wise he was), again
+addressed him.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Your companions,&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;have already
+been received into my palace, and have enjoyed the hospitable
+treatment to which the propriety of their behavior so well entitles
+them. If such be your pleasure, you shall first take some
+refreshment, and then join them in the elegant apartments which
+they now occupy. See, I and my maidens have been weaving their
+figures into this piece of tapestry.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>She pointed to the web of beautifully woven cloth in the loom.
+Circe and the four nymphs must have been very diligently at work
+since the arrival of the mariners; for a great many yards of
+tapestry had now been wrought, in addition to what I before
+described. In this new part, Ulysses saw his two and twenty friends
+represented as sitting on cushioned and canopied thrones, greedily
+devouring dainties and quaffing deep draughts of wine. The work had
+not yet gone any further. Oh, no, indeed! The enchantress was far
+too cunning to let Ulysses see the mischief which her magic arts
+had since brought upon the gormandizers.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;As for yourself, valiant sir,&rdquo; said Circe,
+&ldquo;judging by the dignity of your aspect, I take you to be
+nothing less than a king. Deign to follow me, and you shall be
+treated as befits your rank.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So Ulysses followed her into the oval saloon, where his two and
+twenty comrades had devoured the banquet which ended so
+disastrously for themselves. But all this while he had held the
+snow-white flower in his hand, and had constantly smelt of it while
+Circe was speaking; and as he crossed the threshold of the saloon,
+he took good care to inhale several long and deep snuffs of its
+fragrance. Instead of two and twenty thrones, which had before been
+ranged around the wall, there was now only a single throne, in the
+centre of the apartment. But this was surely the most magnificent
+seat that ever a king or an emperor reposed himself upon, all made
+of chased gold, studded with precious stones, with a cushion that
+looked like a soft heap of living roses, and overhung by a canopy
+of sunlight which Circe knew how to weave into drapery. The
+enchantress took Ulysses by the hand, and made him sit down upon
+this dazzling throne. Then, clapping her hands, she summoned the
+chief butler.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Bring hither,&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;the goblet that is
+set apart for kings to drink out of. And fill it with the same
+delicious wine which my royal brother, King &AElig;etes, praised so
+highly, when he visited me with my fair daughter Medea. That good
+and amiable child! Were she now here, it would delight her to see
+me offering this wine to my honored guest.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Ulysses, while the butler was gone for the wine, held the
+snow-white flower to his nose.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Is it a wholesome wine?&rdquo; he asked.</p>
+<p>At this the four maidens tittered; whereupon the enchantress
+looked round at them, with an aspect of severity.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It is the wholesomest juice that ever was squeezed out of
+the grape,&rdquo; said she; &ldquo;for, instead of disguising a
+man, as other liquor is apt to do, it brings him to his true self,
+and shows him as he ought to be.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The chief butler liked nothing better than to see people turned
+into swine, or making any kind of a beast of themselves; so he made
+haste to bring the royal goblet, filled with a liquid as bright as
+gold, and which kept sparkling upward, and throwing a sunny spray
+over the brim. But, delightfully as the wine looked, it was mingled
+with the most potent enchantments that Circe knew how to concoct.
+For every drop of the pure grape-juice there were two drops of the
+pure mischief; and the danger of the thing was, that the mischief
+made it taste all the better. The mere smell of the bubbles, which
+effervesced at the brim, was enough to turn a man&rsquo;s beard
+into pig&rsquo;s bristles, or make a lion&rsquo;s claws grow out of
+his fingers, or a fox&rsquo;s brush behind him.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Drink, my noble guest,&rdquo; said Circe, smiling as she
+presented him with the goblet. &ldquo;You will find in this draught
+a solace for all your troubles.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>King Ulysses took the goblet with his right hand, while with his
+left he held the snow-white flower to his nostrils, and drew in so
+long a breath that his lungs were quite filled with its pure and
+simple fragrance. Then, drinking off all the wine, he looked the
+enchantress calmly in the face.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Wretch,&rdquo; cried Circe, giving him a smart stroke
+with her wand, &ldquo;how dare you keep your human shape a moment
+longer? Take the form of the brute whom you most resemble. If a
+hog, go join your fellow swine in the sty; if a lion, a wolf, a
+tiger, go howl with the wild beasts on the lawn; if a fox, go
+exercise your craft in stealing poultry. Thou hast quaffed off my
+wine, and canst be man no longer.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But, such was the virtue of the snow-white flower, instead of
+wallowing down from his throne in swinish shape or taking any other
+brutal form, Ulysses looked even more manly and kinglike than
+before. He gave the magic goblet a toss, and sent it clashing over
+the marble floor, to the farthest end of the saloon. Then, drawing
+his sword, he seized the enchantress by her beautiful ringlets, and
+made a gesture as if he meant to strike off her head at one
+blow.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Wicked Circe,&rdquo; cried he, in a terrible voice,
+&ldquo;this sword shall put an end to thy enchantments. Thou shalt
+die, vile wretch, and do no more mischief in the world, by tempting
+human beings into the vices which make beasts of them.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The tone and countenance of Ulysses were so awful, and his sword
+gleamed so brightly and seemed to have so intolerably keen an edge,
+that Circe was almost killed by the mere fright, without waiting
+for a blow. The chief butler scrambled out of the saloon, picking
+up the golden goblet as he went; and the enchantress and the four
+maidens fell on their knees, wringing their hands and screaming for
+mercy.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Spare me!&rdquo; cried Circe,&mdash;&ldquo;spare me,
+royal and wise Ulysses. For now I know that thou art he of whom
+Quicksilver forewarned me, the most prudent of mortals, against
+whom no enchantments can prevail. Thou only couldst have conquered
+Circe. Spare me, wisest of men. I will show thee true hospitality,
+and even give myself to be thy slave, and this magnificent palace
+to be henceforth thy home.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The four nymphs, meanwhile, were making a most piteous ado; and
+especially the ocean nymph, with the sea-green hair, wept a great
+deal of salt water, and the fountain nymph, besides scattering
+dewdrops from her fingers&rsquo; ends, nearly melted away into
+tears. But Ulysses would not be pacified until Circe had taken a
+solemn oath to change back his companions, and as many others as he
+should direct, from their present forms of beast or bird into their
+former shapes of men.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;On these conditions,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;I consent to
+spare your life. Otherwise you must die upon the spot.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>With a drawn sword hanging over her, the enchantress would
+readily have consented to do as much good as she had hitherto done
+mischief, however little she might like such employment. She
+therefore led Ulysses out of the back entrance of the palace, and
+showed him the swine in their sty. There were about fifty of these
+unclean beasts in the whole herd; and though the greater part were
+hogs by birth and education, there was wonderfully little
+difference to be seen betwixt them and their new brethren who had
+so recently worn the human shape. To speak critically, indeed, the
+latter rather carried the thing to excess, and seemed to make it a
+point to wallow in the miriest part of the sty, and otherwise to
+outdo the original swine in their own natural vocation. When men
+once turn to brutes, the trifle of man&rsquo;s wit that remains in
+them adds tenfold to their brutality.</p>
+<p>The comrades of Ulysses, however, had not quite lost the
+remembrance of having formerly stood erect. When he approached the
+sty, two and twenty enormous swine separated themselves from the
+herd, and scampered towards him, with such a chorus of horrible
+squealing as made him clap both hands to his ears. And yet they did
+not seem to know what they wanted, nor whether they were merely
+hungry or miserable from some other cause. It was curious, in the
+midst of their distress, to observe them thrusting their noses into
+the mire, in quest of something to eat. The nymph with the bodice
+of oaken bark (she was the hamadryad of an oak) threw a handful of
+acorns among them; and the two and twenty hogs scrambled and fought
+for the prize, as if they had tasted not so much as a noggin of
+sour milk for a twelvemonth.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;These must certainly be my comrades,&rdquo; said Ulysses.
+&ldquo;I recognize their dispositions. They are hardly worth the
+trouble of changing them into the human form again. Nevertheless,
+we will have it done, lest their bad example should corrupt the
+other hogs. Let them take their original shapes, therefore, Dame
+Circe, if your skill is equal to the task. It will require greater
+magic, I trow, than it did to make swine of them.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So Circe waved her wand again, and repeated a few magic words,
+at the sound of which the two and twenty hogs pricked up their
+pendulous ears. It was a wonder to behold how their snouts grew
+shorter and shorter, and their mouths (which they seemed to be
+sorry for, because they could not gobble so expeditiously) smaller
+and smaller, and how one and another began to stand upon his hind
+legs, and scratch his nose with his fore trotters. At first the
+spectators hardly knew whether to call them hogs or men, but by and
+by came to the conclusion that they rather resembled the latter.
+Finally, there stood the twenty-two comrades of Ulysses, looking
+pretty much the same as when they left the vessel.</p>
+<p>You must not imagine, however, that the swinish quality had
+entirely gone out of them. When once it fastens itself into a
+person&rsquo;s character, it is very difficult getting rid of it.
+This was proved by the hamadryad, who, being exceedingly fond of
+mischief, threw another handful of acorns before the twenty-two
+newly restored people; whereupon down they wallowed, in a moment,
+and gobbled them up in a very shameful way. Then, recollecting
+themselves, they scrambled to their feet, and looked more than
+commonly foolish.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Thanks, noble Ulysses!&rdquo; they cried. &ldquo;From
+brute beasts you have restored us to the condition of men
+again.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Do not put yourselves to the trouble of thanking
+me,&rdquo; said the wise king. &ldquo;I fear I have done but little
+for you.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>To say the truth, there was a suspicious kind of a grunt in
+their voices, and for a long time afterwards they spoke gruffly,
+and were apt to set up a squeal.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;It must depend on your own future behavior,&rdquo; added
+Ulysses, &ldquo;whether you do not find your way back to the
+sty.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At this moment, the note of a bird sounded from the branch of a
+neighboring tree.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Peep, peep, pe&mdash;wee&mdash;ep!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>It was the purple bird, who, all this while, had been sitting
+over their heads, watching what was going forward, and hoping that
+Ulysses would remember how he had done his utmost to keep him and
+his followers out of harm&rsquo;s way. Ulysses ordered Circe
+instantly to make a king of this good little fowl, and leave him
+exactly as she found him. Hardly were the words spoken, and before
+the bird had time to utter another &ldquo;Pe&mdash;weep,&rdquo;
+King Picus leaped down from the bough of the tree, as majestic a
+sovereign as any in the world, dressed in a long purple robe and
+gorgeous yellow stockings, with a splendidly wrought collar about
+his neck, and a golden crown upon his head. He and King Ulysses
+exchanged with one another the courtesies which belonged to their
+elevated rank. But from that time forth, King Picus was no longer
+proud of his crown and his trappings of royalty, nor of the fact of
+his being a king; he felt himself merely the upper servant of his
+people, and that it must be his lifelong labor to make them better
+and happier.</p>
+<p>As for the lions, tigers, and wolves (though Circe would have
+restored them to their former shapes at his slightest word),
+Ulysses thought it advisable that they should remain as they now
+were, and thus give warning of their cruel dispositions, instead of
+going about under the guise of men, and pretending to human
+sympathies, while their hearts had the blood-thirstiness of wild
+beasts. So he let them howl as much as they liked, but never
+troubled his head about them. And, when everything was settled
+according to his pleasure, he sent to summon the remainder of his
+comrades, whom he had left at the seashore. These being arrived,
+with the prudent Eurylochus at their head, they all made themselves
+comfortable in Circe&rsquo;s enchanted palace until quite rested
+and refreshed from the toils and hardships of their voyage.</p>
+<h3><a id="Sirens" name="Sirens">The Sirens&mdash;Scylla and
+Charybdis</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>Translated by George Herbert Palmer</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>I turned me toward my ship, and called my crew to come on board
+and loose the cables. Quickly they came, took places at the pins,
+and sitting in order smote the foaming water with their oars. And
+for our aid behind our dark-bowed ship came a fair wind to fill our
+sail, a welcome comrade, sent us by fair-haired Circe, the mighty
+goddess, human of speech. When we had done our work at the several
+ropes about the ship, we sat us down, while wind and helmsman kept
+her steady.</p>
+<p>Now to my men, with aching heart, I said, &ldquo;My friends, it
+is not right for only one or two to know the oracles which Circe
+told, that heavenly goddess. Therefore I speak, that, knowing all,
+we so may die, or fleeing death and doom, we may escape. She warns
+us first against the marvelous Sirens, and bids us flee their voice
+and flowery meadow. Only myself she bade to hear their song; but
+bind me with galling cords, to hold me firm, upright upon the
+mast-block,&mdash;round it let the rope be wound. And if I should
+entreat you, and bid you set me free, thereat with still more
+fetters bind me fast.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Thus I, relating all my tale, talked with my comrades. Meanwhile
+our stanch ship swiftly neared the Sirens&rsquo; island; a fair
+wind swept her on. On a sudden the wind ceased; there came a
+breathless calm; Heaven hushed the waves. My comrades, rising,
+furled the sail, stowed it on board the hollow ship, then sitting
+at their oars whitened the water with the polished blades. But I
+with my sharp sword cut a great cake of wax into small bits, which
+I then kneaded in my sturdy hands. Soon the wax warmed, forced by
+the powerful pressure and by the rays of the exalted sun, the lord
+of all. Then one by one I stopped the ears of all my crew; and on
+the deck they bound me hand and foot, upright upon the mast-block,
+round which they wound the rope; and sitting down they smote the
+foaming water with their oars. But when we were as far away as one
+can call, and driving swiftly onward, our speeding ship, as it drew
+near, did not escape the Sirens, and thus they lifted up their
+penetrating voice:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Come hither, come, Ulysses, whom all praise! great glory
+to the Achaians! Bring on your ship, and listen to our song. For
+none has ever passed us in a black-hulled ship till from our lips
+he heard ecstatic song, then went his way rejoicing and with larger
+knowledge. For we know all that on the plain of Troy Argives and
+Trojans suffered at the Gods&rsquo; behest; we know whatever
+happens on the bounteous earth.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So spoke they, sending forth their glorious song, and my heart
+longed to listen. Knitting my brows, I signed my men to set me
+free; but bending forward, on they rowed. And straightway Perimedes
+and Eurylochus arose and laid upon me still more cords, and drew
+them tighter. Then, after passing by, when we could hear no more
+the Sirens&rsquo; voice nor any singing, quickly my trusty crew
+removed the wax with which I stopped their ears, and set me free
+from bondage.</p>
+<p>Soon after we left the island, I observed a smoke, I saw high
+waves and heard a plunging sound. From the hands of my frightened
+men down fell the oars, and splashed against the current. There the
+ship stayed, for they worked the tapering oars no more. Along the
+ship I passed, inspiriting my men with cheering words, standing by
+each in turn:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Friends, hitherto we have not been untried in danger.
+Here is no greater danger than when the Cyclops penned us with
+brutal might in the deep cave. Yet out of that, through energy of
+mine, through will and wisdom, we escaped. These dangers, too, I
+think some day we shall remember. Come then, and what I say let us
+all follow. You with your oars strike the deep breakers of the sea,
+while sitting at the pins, and see if Zeus will set us free from
+present death and let us go in safety. And, helmsman, these are my
+commands for you; lay them to heart, for you control the rudders of
+our hollow ship: keep the ship off that smoke and surf and hug the
+crags, or else, before you know it, she may veer off that way, and
+you will bring us into danger.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So I spoke, and my words they quickly heeded. But Scylla I did
+not name,&mdash;that hopeless horror,&mdash;for fear through fright
+my men might cease to row, and huddle all together in the hold. I
+disregarded too the hard behest of Circe, when she had said I must
+by no means arm. Putting on my glittering armor and taking in my
+hands my two long spears, I went upon the ship&rsquo;s fore-deck,
+for thence I looked for the first sight of Scylla of the rocks, who
+brought my men disaster. Nowhere could I descry her; I tried my
+eyes with searching up and down the dusky cliff.</p>
+<p>So up the strait we sailed in sadness; for here lay Scylla, and
+there divine Charybdis fearfully sucked the salt sea-water down.
+Whenever she belched it forth, like a kettle in fierce flame all
+would foam swirling up, and overhead spray fell upon the tops of
+both the crags. But when she gulped the salt sea-water down, then
+all within seemed in a whirl; the rock around roared fearfully, and
+down below the bottom showed, dark with the sand. Pale terror
+seized my men; on her we looked and feared to die.</p>
+<p>And now it was that Scylla snatched from the hollow ship six of
+my comrades who were best in skill and strength. Turning my eyes
+toward my swift ship to seek my men, I saw their feet and hands
+already in the air as they were carried up. They screamed aloud and
+called my name for the last time, in agony of heart. As when a
+fisher, on a jutting rock, with long rod throws a bait to lure the
+little fishes, casting into the deep the horn of stall-fed ox;
+then, catching a fish, flings it ashore writhing,&mdash;even so
+were these drawn writhing up the rocks. There at her door she ate
+them, loudly shrieking and stretching forth their hands in mortal
+pangs toward me. That was the saddest sight my eyes have ever seen,
+in all my toils, searching the ocean pathways.</p>
+<h2><a id="UlyssesIthaca" name="UlyssesIthaca">ULYSSES IN
+ITHACA</a></h2>
+<h3><a id="UlyssesLands" name="UlyssesLands">Ulysses Lands on the
+Shore of Ithaca</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By F.S. Marvin, R.J.C. Mayor, and F.M.
+Stowell</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p class="quote">[For ten years Ulysses was driven hither and
+thither over the water, seeking for his homeland, Ithaca. At length
+he was shipwrecked on the shores of Ph&oelig;acia. The king,
+Alcinous, entertained him most hospitably, and Ulysses related to
+him the story of his wanderings.]</p>
+<p>When Ulysses had finished his story, there was silence in the
+hall till Alcinous said, &ldquo;Ulysses, now that you have come to
+my house after all these troubles, you shall return without more
+wandering to your home.&rdquo; And then he bade the princes go home
+for the night and meet again in the morning to bring their
+gifts.</p>
+<p>So next day the Sea-kings went down to the ship and put their
+gifts on board and then returned to the palace and sacrificed an ox
+to Zeus. And then they feasted and drank their good wine and waited
+till the sun went down. And the minstrel sang to them, but Ulysses
+kept looking at the sun impatiently, like a hungry ploughman tired
+out at the close of day. At last the time arrived, and then Ulysses
+said, &ldquo;Alcinous, let me go now, and fare you well. My escort
+and my gifts are all prepared, and I could wish no more. May I but
+find my wife and my dear ones all safe and sound at home! And may
+Heaven grant you, too, happy homes and every blessing and no
+distress among your people!&rdquo; And to Queen Arete he said,
+&ldquo;Lady, may you live happily with your husband and children,
+and all this people, till old age comes to you and death, which
+must come to all!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the herald led the way and Ulysses followed to the ship,
+and the queen sent her servants with him to carry warm clothing for
+the voyage and food and drink. And when they had stored the ship he
+lay down silently in the stern, and the rowers took their places in
+the benches and plied their oars, while a deep, sweet sleep fell
+upon him, like the sleep of death. Then the wonderful ship leapt
+forward on her way, like a team of chariot horses plunging beneath
+the whip, and the great dark wave roared round the stern. No hawk
+could fly so quickly as that ship flew through the waves, and the
+hawk is the swiftest of all birds. And as she sped, the man who had
+suffered so much and was as wise as the Gods lay peacefully asleep,
+and forgot his sufferings.</p>
+<p>But when the bright star rose that tells of the approach of day,
+the ship drew near the island of Ithaca. There is a haven there
+between two steep headlands which break the waves, so that ships
+can ride in safety without a mooring rope, and at the head of it an
+olive-tree, and a shadowy cave where the water fairies come and
+tend their bees and weave their sea-blue garments on the hanging
+looms and mix their wine in bowls and jars of stone. There are
+springs of water in the cave, and two ways into it, one to the
+north for men to enter, and one to the south where none but the
+Gods may pass.</p>
+<p>The Sea-kings knew this harbor and rowed straight into it and
+ran their ship half a keel&rsquo;s length ashore. Then they lifted
+Ulysses out of the stern, wrapt in the rugs and coverlet, and laid
+him still asleep upon the sand. And the gifts they placed in a heap
+by the trunk of the olive-tree, a little out of the road, so that
+no passer-by might rob him as he slept.</p>
+<p>Then they sailed away; and after they were gone Ulysses awoke,
+but he could not recognize the land where he lay, for Athene had
+cast a mist about him so that everything looked strange, though he
+was the lord of it all. There were the mountain paths and the
+sheltering creeks, the high, steep rocks and the trees in bloom;
+but he could not see it aright, and started up and smote his hands
+upon his thighs and cried aloud,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What land have I come to now? And what can I do with all
+this treasure? If the Sea-kings did not really mean to send me back
+to Ithaca they should have conveyed me to some other people who
+would have sent me home.&rdquo; And then he counted the gifts over,
+the golden vessels, and the beautiful garments, and found nothing
+missing, but they gave him no pleasure; and he turned sadly to walk
+along the shore and dream of home, when a young herdsman met him,
+of noble figure, with a javelin in his hand and a fine mantle in
+double folds upon his shoulders. Ulysses was glad to greet him, and
+asked what country he had reached. It was Athene in disguise, and
+she answered, &ldquo;Truly, stranger, you must have come from far
+indeed. For this is a famous island that all men know, whether they
+live in the east or in the west. It is a rugged land, and no place
+for horses and chariots, but though it is narrow, it is not so
+poor; for there are stores of corn and wine, plenty of water for
+the cattle and plenty of wood. Its name is Ithaca, and some men
+have heard of it even at Troy, which they say is a long way
+off.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then brave Ulysses rejoiced in his heart to hear that it was his
+native land; but he would not tell the herdsman who he was, and
+made up a cunning story that he had escaped as an outlaw from Crete
+and had been left upon the island by a Ph&oelig;nician crew. And
+the goddess smiled to hear him, and stood forth in her own true
+form, a wise and noble woman, tall and fair, and put her hand upon
+his shoulder, and said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Come, let us practice no more craft on one another,
+Ulysses, for we are both famous for our wit and wiles, you among
+mortals and I among the Gods. I am Pallas Athene, daughter of Zeus,
+and I have stood beside you and protected you in all your
+wanderings and toil. And now I have come here to tell you of the
+troubles that await you in your house, and to help you with my
+counsel. But you must still endure in silence, and tell no one that
+Ulysses has returned.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Ulysses made answer, &ldquo;It is hard, goddess, for a
+mortal to know you, wise though he may be, for you come in many
+shapes. Truly I have known your kindness from of old in Troy, but
+when we went on board the ships, I never saw you at my side again.
+Tell me, I pray you, if this is Ithaca indeed, my native
+land.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the goddess answered, &ldquo;I see, Ulysses, that you keep
+your ready wit and steadfast mind. I could not show myself your
+friend before for fear of angering Neptune, my own father&rsquo;s
+brother. But come now, and I will show you Ithaca; there is the
+haven and the olive with its slender leaves, and the cave where you
+once made many an offering to the water nymphs.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And then she rolled away the mist, and the long-suffering hero
+rejoiced to see his native land again. He kissed the kindly earth,
+and vowed to the nymphs that he would bring them offerings as of
+old if he lived to see his dear son a man.</p>
+<p>Then the goddess bade him be of good cheer, and showed him a
+hiding-place in the cavern for the gifts. And then they sat down by
+the trunk of the olive-tree, and Athene told him all the misdeeds
+of the suitors, and how his wife had beguiled them and kept them
+waiting till his return, and how he must avenge himself and
+her.</p>
+<p>Then Ulysses said, &ldquo;Truly, I should have perished in my
+own halls, like Agamemnon, if you had not warned me. Help me,
+therefore, with your wisdom, and stand beside me again and put
+strength and courage within me as in the days of Troy. For with you
+by my side I could fight against three hundred men.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Pallas Athene made answer, &ldquo;I will be with you,
+Ulysses, when the hour of the conflict is come, and the blood of
+the suitors who eat up your substance shall be shed at last. But
+now I will change you into a poor beggar, so old and so wretched
+that no one will know you, and in that guise you must go and stay
+with the herdsman Eum&aelig;us, who tends your swine, until I have
+brought your son Telemachus from Sparta, where he has gone to seek
+tidings of you.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then she touched him with her magic wand, and the fair flesh
+withered on his limbs, and the golden locks fell from his head, and
+he was changed into an old man. His skin was shriveled and his
+bright eyes dimmed, and for his covering she gave him a tattered
+wrap, begrimed with smoke, and a worn deerskin on his shoulder, and
+a wallet and a staff in his hand.</p>
+<p>Then she vanished, and left him to take his way alone across the
+hills.</p>
+<h3><a id="Swineherd" name="Swineherd">Ulysses at the House of the
+Swineherd</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By F.S. Marvin, R.J.C. Mayor, and F.M.
+Stowell</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Ulysses went up along the rough mountain path, through the
+forest and over the hills, till he came to the house where his
+faithful steward lived. It stood in an open space, and there was a
+large courtyard in front with a wall of heavy stones and hawthorn
+boughs and a stout oak palisade. Inside the yard there were twelve
+sties for the pigs, and the swineherd kept four watch-dogs to guard
+the place, great beasts and fierce as wolves, that he had reared
+himself. Ulysses found him at home, sitting in the porch alone, and
+cutting himself a pair of sandals from a brown oxhide.</p>
+<p>The dogs caught sight of the king as soon as he came up and flew
+at him, barking, but he had the wit to let go his staff and sit
+down at once on the ground. Still it might have gone hard with him
+there in front of his own servant&rsquo;s house had not
+Eum&aelig;us rushed out of the porch, dropping the leather in his
+haste, and scolded the dogs, driving them off with a volley of
+stones.</p>
+<p>Then he said to Ulysses, &ldquo;A little more, old man, and the
+dogs would have torn you in pieces, and disgraced me forever. And I
+have my full share of trouble as it is, for I have lost the best
+master in all the world and must sit here to mourn for him and
+fatten his swine for other men, while he is wandering somewhere in
+foreign lands, hungry and thirsty perhaps, if he is still alive at
+all. But now come in yourself, and let me give you food and drink
+and tell me your own tale.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So he took Ulysses into the house and made a seat for him with a
+pile of brushwood boughs and a great thick shaggy goat-skin which
+he used for his own bed, and all with so kind a welcome that it
+warmed the king&rsquo;s heart and made him pray the Gods to bless
+him for his goodness. But Eum&aelig;us only said, &ldquo;How could
+I neglect a stranger, though he were a worse man than you? All
+strangers and beggars are sent to us by Zeus. Take my gift and
+welcome, though it is little enough I have to give, a servant such
+as I, with new masters to lord it over him. For we have lost the
+king who would have loved me and given me house and lands and all
+that a faithful servant ought to have, whose work is blest by the
+Gods and prospers, as mine does here. Alas! he is dead and gone! he
+went away with Agamemnon to fight at Troy and never came home
+again.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, the good swineherd rose and fetched what meat and
+wine he had, and set it before Ulysses, grieving that he had
+nothing better for him because the shameless suitors plundered
+everything.</p>
+<p>But Ulysses ate and drank eagerly, and when his strength had
+come again he asked Eum&aelig;us, &ldquo;My friend, who is this
+master of yours you tell me of? Did you not say he was lost for
+Agamemnon&rsquo;s sake? Perhaps I may have seen him, for I have
+traveled far.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But the swineherd answered, &ldquo;Old man, his wife and son
+will believe no traveler&rsquo;s tale. They have heard too many
+such. Every wandering beggar who comes to Ithaca goes to my
+mistress with some empty story to get a meal for himself, and she
+welcomes him and treats him kindly and asks him about it all, with
+the tears running down her cheeks in a woman&rsquo;s way. Yes, even
+you, old man, might learn to weave such tales if you thought they
+would get you a cloak or a vest. No, he is dead, and dogs and birds
+have eaten him, or else he has fed the fishes and his bones lie
+somewhere on the seashore, buried in the sand. And he has left us
+all to grieve for him, but no one more than me, who can never have
+so kind a master again, not though I had my heart&rsquo;s desire
+and went back to my native land and saw my father and mother, and
+the dear home where I was born. It is Ulysses above all whom I long
+to see once more. There, stranger, I have called him by his name,
+and that I should not do; for he is still my dear master though he
+is far away.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Ulysses said, &ldquo;My friend, your hope has gone and you
+will never believe me. But I tell you this and seal it with an
+oath: Ulysses will return! Poor as I am, I will take no reward for
+my news till he comes to his own again, but you shall give me a new
+vest and cloak that day, and I will wear them.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But the swineherd answered, &ldquo;Ah, my friend, I shall never
+need to pay you that reward. He will never come back again. But now
+drink your wine in peace, and let us talk of something else, and do
+not call to mind the sorrow that almost breaks my heart. Tell me of
+yourself and your own troubles and who you are, and what ship
+brought you here, for you will not say you came afoot.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Ulysses pretended he was a Cretan and had fought at Troy,
+and told Eum&aelig;us a long tale of adventures and how he had been
+wrecked at last on the coast of Epirus. The king of the country, he
+said, had rescued him, and he had learned that Ulysses had been
+there a little while before, and was already on his way to
+Ithaca.</p>
+<p>The swineherd listened eagerly to it all, but when Ulysses had
+finished he said, &ldquo;Poor friend, my heart aches to hear of all
+your sufferings. But there is one thing you should not have said,
+one thing I can never believe, and that is that Ulysses will
+return. And why need you lie to please me? I can see for myself
+that you are old and unhappy, a wanderer whom the Gods have sent to
+me. It is not for such a tale I will show you the kindness that you
+need, but because I pity you myself and reverence the law of
+Zeus.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;If I lie,&rdquo; Ulysses answered, &ldquo;you may have me
+thrown from the cliff as a warning to other cheats. I swear it, and
+call the Gods to witness.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But the true-hearted swineherd only said, &ldquo;I should get a
+good name by that, my friend, if I took you into nay house and had
+you for my guest, and then murdered you brutally! Do you think I
+could pray to Zeus after that without a fear? But now it is
+supper-time, and my men will be coming home.&rdquo; While they
+spoke, the herdsmen came up with the swine, and the sows were
+driven into the pens, grunting and squealing noisily as they
+settled in for the night. Then Eum&aelig;us called out,
+&ldquo;Bring in the fattest boar, and let us make a sacrifice in
+honor of our guest, and get some reward ourselves for all the
+trouble we have spent upon the drove,&mdash;trouble lost, since
+strangers take the fruit of it all.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So they brought in a big fat white-tusked boar, while
+Eum&aelig;us split the wood for the fire. And he did not forget the
+Immortals, for he had a pious heart: he made the due offerings
+first and prayed for his master&rsquo;s return, and then he stood
+up at the board to carve, and gave each man his share and a special
+slice for his guest from the whole length of the chine. Ulysses
+took it and thanked him with all his heart:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;May Father Zeus be your friend, Eum&aelig;us, and give
+you what I would give you for your kindness to a poor old man like
+me.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But the swineherd said, &ldquo;Take it, my good friend, take it
+and enjoy it. Zeus will give or withhold as it may please him, for
+he can do all things.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So they sat down to the feast, and after they had had their fill
+the swineherd&rsquo;s servant cleared everything away, and then
+they made ready for sleep. The evening closed in black and stormy,
+and a west wind sprang up bringing the rain with it, and blew hard
+all the night; so Eum&aelig;us made up a bed of fleeces for Ulysses
+by the fire and gave him a great thick cloak as well, that he kept
+for the roughest weather. But he could not bring himself to stay
+there too, away from his herd of pigs, and he wrapped himself up
+warmly and went out to sleep beside them in the open. Ulysses saw,
+and smiled to see, what care he took of everything, while he
+thought his master was far away.</p>
+<p>[On the following morning] Ulysses and the swineherd were
+already preparing their breakfast when Telemachus came up. The dogs
+knew him and played round him lovingly. &ldquo;Eum&aelig;us,&rdquo;
+said Ulysses, &ldquo;some friend of yours is coming, for I hear
+footsteps, and the dogs are pleased and do not bark.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He had hardly finished speaking when his own dear son stood in
+the doorway. The swineherd started up and dropped the vessels in
+which he was mixing the wine. He went to meet his young master and
+fell on his neck and kissed him as a father would kiss an only son
+escaped from death. &ldquo;Light of my eyes, dear son, have you
+come home at last? When you sailed away to Pylos, I never thought
+to see you again. But come in and let me feast my eyes upon you;
+for you do not often visit us, but are kept at home in the town,
+watching that crowd of ruinous suitors.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Telemachus answered, &ldquo;Gladly, good father; I have come
+to see you, and to hear tidings of my mother.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the swineherd told him that his mother still waited
+patiently at home, and spent her days and nights in weeping.</p>
+<div class="figure"><a href="images/big_376.jpg"><img src=
+"images/small_376.jpg" alt="A man kisses his son." id="img08" name=
+"img08" width="360" height="563" /></a>
+<p>&ldquo;DEAR SON, HAVE YOU COME HOME AT LAST? WHEN YOU SAILED
+AWAY TO PYLOS, I NEVER THOUGHT TO SEE YOU AGAIN. BUT COME IN AND
+LET ME FEAST MY EYES UPON YOU; FOR YOU DO NOT OFTEN VISIT US, BUT
+ARE KEPT AT HOME IN THE TOWN, WATCHING THAT CROWD OF RUINOUS
+SUITORS.&rdquo; AND TELEMACHUS ANSWERED, &ldquo;GLADLY, GOOD
+FATHER; I HAVE COME TO SEE YOU, AND TO HEAR TIDINGS OF MY
+MOTHER.&rdquo; THEN THE SWINEHERD TOLD HIM THAT HIS MOTHER STILL
+WAITED PATIENTLY AT HOME.</p>
+</div>
+<p>Then Telemachus went into the house, and as he came up Ulysses
+rose to give him his seat, but he would not take it, and said,
+&ldquo;Keep your seat, stranger, this man shall make up another for
+me.&rdquo; So Ulysses sat down again, and the swineherd made a seat
+for Telemachus of the green brushwood and put a fleece upon it.
+Then he set food before them, and when they had eaten, Telemachus
+asked who the stranger was, and how he had come to Ithaca. And
+Eum&aelig;us told him Ulysses&rsquo;s own story and begged him to
+protect the wanderer. But Telemachus thought of the suitors and did
+not wish to take him to the palace.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I will give him a coat and a vest,&rdquo; he said,
+&ldquo;and shoes for his feet, and a two-edged sword, and I will
+send him on his way. But I cannot take him into the house, where
+the suitors would mock at him and use him ill. One man cannot
+restrain them, and he so young as I.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Ulysses said, &ldquo;Sir, if I may speak, I would say foul
+wrong is done you in your house, and my heart burns at the thought.
+Do your people hate you, or will your brothers give you no support?
+Would that I were as young as you are, and were Ulysses&rsquo;s son
+or Ulysses himself. I would go to the palace and fall upon all the
+throng, and die there, one man against a hundred, sooner than see
+the shameful deeds that are done in that glorious house.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Telemachus answered, &ldquo;Hear me, stranger, and I will
+tell you all. My people do not hate me, and I have no quarrel with
+them. But I have no brothers to stand by me, for Zeus has never
+given more than one son to each generation of our line. And there
+are many foemen in the house, all the princes of the islands, and
+they too woo my mother and threaten my life, and I cannot see how
+it will end.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he said to Eum&aelig;us, &ldquo;Go up to the house, old
+father, as quickly as you can, and tell my mother that I am come
+back safe from Pylos, and I will wait for you here.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Eum&aelig;us answered, &ldquo;I hear, master, and
+understand. But shall I not go to Laertes on my way and tell him
+too? For since you set sail for Pylos, they say he has not eaten or
+drunk or gone about his work, but sits in his house sorrowing and
+wasting away with grief.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Telemachus bade him go straight to the palace and return at
+once, and let the queen send word to Laertes by one of the maids.
+So Eum&aelig;us went forth, and when Athene saw him go, she drew
+near, and came and stood by the gateway and showed herself to
+Ulysses, a tall and beautiful woman, with wisdom in her look. The
+dogs saw her too and were afraid, and shrank away whining into the
+corner of the yard, but Telemachus could not see her. Then the
+goddess nodded to Ulysses, and he went out and stood before her,
+and she said, &ldquo;Noble Ulysses, now is the time to reveal
+yourself to your son, and go forth with him to the town, with death
+and doom for the suitors. I shall be near you in the battle and
+eager to fight.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then she touched him with her golden wand and gave him his
+beauty and stature once more, and his old bronzed color came back
+and his beard grew thick and his garments shone bright again: and
+so she sent him to the hut. And when Telemachus saw him, he
+marveled and turned away his eyes, for he thought it must be a
+god.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Stranger,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;you are changed since a
+moment ago; your color is not the same, nor your garments. If you
+are one of the Immortals, be gracious to us, and let us offer you
+gifts and sacrifice.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Ulysses cried out, &ldquo;I am no god, but your own dear
+father, for whose sake you are suffering cruel wrongs and the spite
+of men.&rdquo; And then he kissed his son and let his tears take
+their way at last.</p>
+<p>But Telemachus could not believe it, and said, &ldquo;You cannot
+be my father, but a god come down to deceive me and make me grieve
+still more. No mortal could do what you have done, for a moment
+since you were old and wretched, and poorly clad, and now you seem
+like one of the heavenly Gods.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then his father answered, &ldquo;My son, no other Ulysses will
+ever come back to you. Athene has done this wonder, for she is a
+goddess and can make men what she will, now poor, now rich, now
+old, now young; such power have the lords of heaven to exalt us or
+bring us low.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Telemachus fell on his neck, and they wept aloud together.
+And they would have wept out their hearts till evening, had not
+Telemachus asked his father how he had come to Ithaca at last; and
+Ulysses told him that the sea-kings had brought him and put him on
+shore asleep, and that Athene had sent him to the swineherd&rsquo;s
+hut. &ldquo;But now tell me of the suitors. How many are they and
+what manner of men? Can the two of us make head against the
+throng?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Father,&rdquo; he answered, &ldquo;I know well your fame,
+mighty and wise in war. But this we could never dare, two men
+against a host. They are a hundred and twenty in all, the best
+fighting men from Ithaca and the islands round. Think, if you can,
+of some champion who would befriend us and give us help.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Ulysses made answer, &ldquo;What think you, if Father Zeus
+and the goddess Athene stood by our side? Should we still need
+other help?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Truly they are the best of champions,&rdquo; said
+Telemachus, &ldquo;though they sit on high among the clouds; and
+they rule both men and Gods.&rdquo; &ldquo;And they will be with
+us,&rdquo; said his father, &ldquo;when we come to the trial of
+war. Now at daybreak you must go home and mix with the suitors, and
+later on the swineherd will bring me to the town, disguised again
+as the old beggar-man; and if they ill-treat me or even strike me
+or drag me out of the house, you must look on and bear it. You may
+check them by speaking, but they will not listen, for the day of
+their doom is at hand. And tell no one that Ulysses has come home,
+not even Laertes nor the swineherd nor Penelope herself; we must
+keep the secret until we are sure of our friends.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Telemachus said that his father might trust him, and so
+they talked on together. Meanwhile Eum&aelig;us had reached the
+palace with the tidings that Telemachus had returned; and the
+suitors who were in the hall heard it and were dismayed, for they
+saw that their plot had failed. They went out of the palace and sat
+down before the gates, and were talking of sending word to their
+ship that was lying in wait for Telemachus, when the ship itself
+came into the harbor, with the other princes on board. So they all
+went up together to the public square and debated what to do, and
+they resolved to murder Telemachus as soon as they found another
+chance. Then they went back and sat down again on the polished
+seats in the hall.</p>
+<p>Now Medon the herald had heard them plotting together in the
+square, and went and told Penelope all they had said, and how they
+had purposed putting her son to death. She went down at once to the
+hall with her women, and stood in the doorway with her bright veil
+before her face and spoke to Antinous and said, &ldquo;Wicked and
+insolent man, can it be that they call you in Ithaca one of their
+wisest men? No, it is a fool&rsquo;s work you are doing, plotting
+to kill my son. He is helpless before you now, but Zeus is the
+friend of the helpless and avenges their wrongs. Impious and
+ungrateful too! Did not Ulysses once shield your father from his
+enemies and save his life? Yet you waste his substance and would
+murder his son?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Eurymachus spoke and tried to soothe her. No one, he said,
+should injure Telemachus while he was alive, for he loved him more
+than any man on earth. Eurymachus&rsquo;s words were fair, and
+Penelope could say no more; yet all the while he was planning the
+death of her son.</p>
+<p>In the evening the swineherd reached his hut again, and found
+Ulysses changed to the old beggar-man once more, preparing supper
+with Telemachus.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;What news, good Eum&aelig;us?&rdquo; said the young man.
+&ldquo;Have the proud lords come home from their ambush, or are
+they still waiting out yonder to take me as I return?&rdquo; And
+Eum&aelig;us replied, &ldquo;I did not stay, master, to go through
+the town and find out the news, for when I had given my message I
+wanted to be at home. But one thing I saw from the brow of the hill
+as I came along. A swift ship was entering the harbor, full of
+armor and armed men. They may have been the princes, but I cannot
+say.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>As he heard this, Telemachus looked at his father and smiled,
+but he took good care that the swineherd should not see.</p>
+<h3><a id="Vengeance" name="Vengeance">The Vengeance of
+Ulysses</a></h3>
+<h4><a id="Reception" name="Reception">A. His Reception at the
+Palace</a></h4>
+<p class="byline"><em>By F.S. Marvin, R.J.C. Mayor, and F.M.
+Stowell</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Early next morning, when the rosy-fingered dawn was in the sky,
+Telemachus bound on his sandals and took his stout spear in his
+hand, and said to the swineherd, &ldquo;Old friend, I must now be
+off to the city and let my mother see me, for I know she will weep
+and sigh until I am there myself. And as for this poor stranger, I
+would have you take him to the town and let him beg for bite and
+sup from door to door, and those who choose can give. For I cannot
+be host to every wanderer with all the trouble I have to bear. And
+if that makes him angry&mdash;well! it is only the worse for him; I
+am a man that speaks his mind.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Ulysses answered readily, &ldquo;Sir, I do not ask to stay
+here myself; a beggar should not beg in the fields. Nor am I young
+enough to work on a farm at a master&rsquo;s beck and call. So go
+your ways, and your man shall take me with him to the town. But I
+will wait till the sun is high, for I am afraid of the morning
+frost with these threadbare rags of mine.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So Telemachus strode away until he reached the palace, and went
+into the hall. The old nurse Eurycleia was there with the maids,
+spreading fleeces on the inlaid stools and chairs; and she saw him
+at once and went up to him with tears in her eyes, and then all the
+women gathered round and kissed him and welcomed him home again.
+And Penelope came down from her chamber and flung her arms round
+her son, and kissed his head and both his eyes, and said to him
+tearfully, &ldquo;You have come home, Telemachus, light of my eyes!
+I thought I should never see you again, when you sailed away to
+Pylos secretly, against my will, to get tidings of your father. And
+now tell me all you heard.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Telemachus said to her, &ldquo;Mother, why make me think of
+trouble now, when I have just escaped from death? Rather put on
+your fairest robes, and go and pray the Gods to grant us a day of
+vengeance. But I must be off to the public square to meet a guest
+of mine whom I brought here in my ship. I sent him on before me
+with the crew, and bade one of them take him to his house until I
+came myself.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So Penelope went away and prayed to the Gods, while the prince
+went down to the public square and found Theoclymenus and brought
+him back to the palace, and they sat down together in the hall.
+Then one of the old servants brought up a polished table and spread
+it for them with good things for their meal, and Penelope came and
+sat beside the door, spinning her fine soft yarn. She did not speak
+till they had finished, but then she said to her son,
+&ldquo;Telemachus, I see I must go up to my room and lie down on my
+bed, the bed I have watered with my tears ever since Ulysses went
+away to Troy; for you are determined not to talk to me and tell me
+the news of your father before the suitors come into the
+hall!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Telemachus said, &ldquo;Mother, I will tell you all I know.
+We reached Pylos and found Nestor there, and he took me into his
+splendid house, and welcomed me as lovingly as though I had been a
+long-lost son of his own. But he could tell me nothing of my
+father, not even if he were alive or dead, and so he sent me on to
+Sparta, to the house of Menelaus. There I saw Helen, the fairest of
+women, for whom the Greeks and Trojans fought and suffered so long.
+Menelaus asked me why I came and I told him about the suitors and
+all the wrong they did. Then he cried, &lsquo;Curse on them! The
+dastards in the hero&rsquo;s place! Oh, that Ulysses would return!
+They would soon have cause enough to hate this suit of
+theirs!&rsquo; And then he told me how he had heard tidings of my
+father from Proteus, the wizard of the sea. He was living still, so
+the wizard said, on an island far away, in the cave of a wood nymph
+called Calypso, who kept him there against his will, and he had no
+ship to carry him over the broad sea. That was all Menelaus could
+tell me; and when I had done my errand I came away, and the Gods
+have brought me home in safety.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And as Penelope listened her heart filled with sorrow; but
+Theoclymenus, the seer, said to her, &ldquo;Listen to me, wife of
+Ulysses, and I will prophesy to you; for your son has heard nothing
+certain, but I have seen omens that are sure. I swear by Zeus, the
+ruler of the Gods, and by the board and the hearth of Ulysses
+himself where I am standing now, he is already here in Ithaca, he
+knows of all this wickedness, and is waiting to punish the suitors
+as they deserve.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At that moment the princes came in from their sport and flung
+their cloaks aside, and set about slaughtering the sheep and the
+fatted goats and the swine for their feast.</p>
+<p>Meanwhile Ulysses was starting for the town, with the swineherd
+to show him the way. He had slung the tattered wallet across his
+shoulder, and Eum&aelig;us had given him a staff, and every one who
+met them would have taken the king for a poor old beggar-man,
+hobbling along with his crutch.</p>
+<p>So they went down the rocky path till they reached a running
+spring by the wayside where the townsfolk got their water. There
+was a grove of tall poplars round it, and the cool stream bubbled
+down from the rock overhead, and above the fountain there was an
+altar to the nymphs where the passers-by laid their offerings.</p>
+<p>There they chanced to meet Melanthius, the king&rsquo;s
+goatherd, driving his fattest goats to the town for the
+suitors&rsquo; feast. He was a favorite of theirs, and did all he
+could to please them. Now as soon as he saw the two he broke out
+into scoffs and gibes, till the heart of Ulysses grew hot with
+anger.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Look there!&rdquo; he shouted, &ldquo;one rascal leading
+another! Trust a man to find his mate! A plague on you, swineherd,
+where are you taking that pitiful wretch? Another beggar, I
+suppose, to hang about the doors and cringe for the scraps and
+spoil our feasts? Now if you would only let me have him to watch my
+farm and sweep out my stalls and fetch fodder for my kids, he could
+drink as much whey as he liked and get some flesh on his bones. But
+no! His tricks have spoilt him for any honest work!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So he jeered at them in his folly, and as he passed he kicked
+Ulysses on the thigh, but the king stood firm, and took the blow in
+silence, though he could have found it in his heart to strike the
+man dead on the spot. But Eum&aelig;us turned round fiercely, and
+cried to the Gods for vengeance.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nymphs of the spring,&rdquo; he prayed, &ldquo;if ever my
+master honored you, hear my prayer, and send him home again! He
+would make a sweep of all your insolence, you good-for-nothing
+wretch, loitering here in the city while your flocks are left to
+ruin!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Oho!&rdquo; cried Melanthius. &ldquo;Listen to the
+foul-mouthed dog! I must put him on board a ship and sell him in a
+foreign land, and make some use of him that way! Why, Ulysses will
+never see the day of his return! He is dead and gone; I wish his
+son would follow him!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>With that he turned on his heel and hastened away to the palace
+hall, where he sat down with the suitors at their feast. And the
+other two followed slowly until they reached the gate. There they
+paused, and Ulysses caught the swineherd by the hand, and
+cried,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Eum&aelig;us, this must be the palace of the king! No one
+could mistake it. See, there is room after room, and a spacious
+courtyard with a wall and coping-stones and solid double doors to
+make it safe. And I am sure that a great company is seated there at
+the banquet, for I can smell the roasted meat and hear the sound of
+the lyre.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Eum&aelig;us said, &ldquo;Your wits are quick enough; it is
+the very place. And now tell me: would you rather go in alone and
+face the princes while I wait here, or will you stay behind and let
+me go in first? But if you wait here, you must not wait too long,
+for some one might catch sight of you and strike you and drive you
+from the gate.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then the hero said to him, &ldquo;I understand; I knew what I
+had to meet. Do you go first and I will wait behind. For I have
+some knowledge of thrusts and blows, and my heart has learned to
+endure; for I have suffered much in storm and battle, and I can
+bear this like the rest.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But while they were talking, a dog who was lying there lifted
+his head and pricked his ears. It was the hound Argus, whom Ulysses
+had reared himself long ago before the war, but had to leave behind
+when he went away to Troy. Once he used to follow the hunters to
+the chase, but no one cared for him now when his master was away,
+and he lay there covered with vermin, on a dung-heap in front of
+the gates. Yet even so, when he felt that Ulysses was near him, he
+wagged his tail and dropped his ears; but he had not strength
+enough to drag himself up to his master. And when Ulysses saw it,
+he turned away his face so that Eum&aelig;us should not see the
+tears in his eyes, and said, &ldquo;Eum&aelig;us, it is strange
+that they let that dog lie there in the dung. He looks a noble
+creature, but perhaps he has never been swift enough for the chase,
+and they have only kept him for his beauty.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah, yes!&rdquo; Eum&aelig;us answered, &ldquo;it is easy
+to see that he has no master now. If you had been here when Ulysses
+went to Troy, you would have wondered at the creature&rsquo;s pace
+and strength. In the thickest depth of the forest no quarry could
+escape him, and no hound was ever keener-scented. But now he is old
+and wretched and his lord has perished far away, and the heedless
+women take no care of him. Slaves can do nothing as they ought when
+the master is not there, for a man loses half his manhood when he
+falls into slavery.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Eum&aelig;us went on into the palace and up to the hall
+where the suitors were. But Argus had seen his master again at
+last, and when he had seen him, he died.</p>
+<p>As soon as the swineherd came in, Telemachus caught sight of
+him, and beckoned him to a stool at his side, and gave him his
+share of the feast. After a little while Ulysses came up too, and
+sat down on the threshold like a poor old beggar-man. Then his son
+sent him meat and bread by the swineherd, and said that a beggar
+should be bold, and he ought to go among the princes and ask each
+man for a dole. So he went round from one to the other, stretching
+out his hand for a morsel in the true beggar&rsquo;s way. And every
+one else felt some pity and gave him an alms, but Antinous mocked
+at them all and told them they were ready enough to be generous
+with another&rsquo;s wealth. And at last he grew angry and cursed
+Ulysses for a whining rascal, and hurled a footstool at his head,
+bidding him begone and trouble them no more. The stool struck
+Ulysses on the shoulder, but he stood like a rock, motionless and
+silent, with black thoughts in his heart. Then he went back
+straight to the threshold and sat down and spoke to all the
+company:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Listen to me, my lords! No man bears any rancor for a
+blow in open war, but Antinous has struck me because I am a beggar
+and know the curse of hunger. If there be any gods who avenge the
+poor man&rsquo;s cause, I pray that he may die before his marriage
+day!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At that the others felt shame, and told Antinous he did wrong to
+strike the homeless wanderer.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Who knows?&rdquo; they said. &ldquo;He might be one of
+the heavenly Gods, and woe to you if he were! For sometimes the
+Immortals take upon themselves the likeness of strangers, and enter
+our cities, and go about among men, watching the good and evil that
+they do.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Thus they warned him, but he cared little for all they said. And
+Telemachus sat there full of rage and grief to see his father
+struck, but he kept back the tears and held his peace.</p>
+<p>Now Penelope was sitting in her room behind the hall, and she
+saw what had happened, and was angry with Antinous, and called the
+swineherd to her side.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Go, good Eum&aelig;us, and tell the stranger to come
+here. And I will ask him if he has ever heard of Ulysses, for he
+looks like a man who has wandered far.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And the swineherd said, &ldquo;Yes, he is a Cretan, and has had
+all kinds of adventures before he was driven here, and he could
+tell you stories that would charm you like a minstrel&rsquo;s
+sweetest song, and you would never tire of listening. And he says
+that he has heard of Ulysses, near home, in the rich land of
+Epirus, and that he is already on his way to us, bringing a store
+of treasures with him.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Penelope said, &ldquo;Quick, bring the stranger here at
+once, and let him speak with me face to face. And if I see that he
+tells the truth I will give him a vest and a cloak for
+himself.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So the swineherd hurried back with the message; but Ulysses said
+he dared not face the princes a second time and it would be better
+to speak with Penelope later in the evening, alone by the fireside;
+and when the queen heard this, she said that the stranger was
+right. By this time it was afternoon, and Eum&aelig;us went up to
+Telemachus and whispered that he must be off to his work again.
+Telemachus said he might go, but bade him have supper first and
+told him to come back next morning without fail. So the swineherd
+took his food in the hall, and then started home for his farm, to
+look after his pigs and everything that he had charge of there.</p>
+<h4><a id="Bow" name="Bow">B. The Trial of the Bow</a></h4>
+<p class="byline"><em>Translated by George Herbert Palmer</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>And now the goddess, clear-eyed Athene, put in the mind of
+Icarius&rsquo;s daughter, heedful Penelope, to offer to the suitors
+in the hall the bow and the gray steel, as means of sport and
+harbingers of death. She mounted the long stairway of her house,
+holding a crooked key in her firm hand,&mdash;a goodly key of
+bronze, having an ivory handle,&mdash;and hastened with her damsels
+to a far-off room where her lord&rsquo;s treasure lay, bronze,
+gold, and well-wrought steel. Here also lay his curved bow and the
+quiver for his arrows,&mdash;and many grievous shafts were in it
+still,&mdash;gifts which a friend had given Ulysses when he met him
+once in Laced&aelig;mon,&mdash;Iphitus, son of Eurytus, a man like
+the Immortals. At Messene the two met, in the house of wise
+Orsilochus. Ulysses had come hither to claim a debt, which the
+whole district owed him; for upon ships of many oars Messenians
+carried off from Ithaca three hundred sheep together with their
+herdsmen. In the long quest for these, Ulysses took the journey
+when he was but a youth; for his father and the other elders sent
+him forth. Iphitus, on the other hand, was seeking horses; for
+twelve mares had been lost, which had as foals twelve hardy mules.
+These afterwards became the death and doom of Iphitus when he met
+the stalwart son of Zeus, the hero Hercules, who well knew deeds of
+daring; for Hercules slew Iphitus in his own house, although his
+guest, and recklessly did not regard the anger of the Gods nor yet
+the proffered table, but slew the man and kept at his own hall the
+strong-hoofed mares. It was when seeking these that Iphitus had met
+Ulysses and given the bow which in old days great Eurytus was wont
+to bear, and which on dying in his lofty hall he left his son. To
+Iphitus Ulysses gave a sharp-edged sword and a stout spear, as the
+beginning of a loving friendship. They never sat, however, at one
+another&rsquo;s table; ere that could be, the son of Zeus slew
+godlike Iphitus, the son of Eurytus, who gave the bow. Royal
+Ulysses, when going off to war in the black ships, would never take
+this bow. It always stood in its own place at home, as a memorial
+of his honored friend. In his own land he bore it.</p>
+<p>Now when the royal lady reached this room and stood on the oaken
+threshold,&mdash;which long ago the carpenter had smoothed with
+skill and leveled to the line, fitting the posts thereto and
+setting the shining doors,&mdash;then quickly from its ring she
+loosed the strap, thrust in the key, and with a careful aim shot
+back the door-bolts. As a bull roars when feeding in the field, so
+roared the goodly door touched by the key, and open flew before
+her. She stepped to a raised dais where stood some chests in which
+lay fragrant garments. Thence reaching up, she took from its peg
+the bow in the glittering case which held it. And now she sat her
+down and laid the case upon her lap, and loudly weeping drew her
+lord&rsquo;s bow forth. But when she had had her fill of tears and
+sighs, she hastened to the hall to meet the lordly suitors, bearing
+in hand the curved bow and the quiver for the arrows, and many
+grievous shafts were in it still. Beside her, damsels bore a box in
+which lay many a piece of steel and bronze, implements of her
+lord&rsquo;s for games like these. And when the royal lady reached
+the suitors, she stood beside a column of the strong-built roof,
+holding before her face her delicate wimple, the while a faithful
+damsel stood on either hand. And straightway she addressed the
+suitors, speaking thus:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Hearken, you haughty suitors who beset this house, eating
+and drinking ever, now my husband is long gone; no word of excuse
+can you suggest except your wish to marry me and win me for your
+wife. Well then, my suitors,&mdash;since before you stands your
+prize,&mdash;I offer you the mighty bow of prince Ulysses; and
+whoever with his hands shall lightliest bend the bow and shoot
+through all twelve axes, him will I follow and forsake this home,
+this bridal home, so very beautiful and full of wealth, a place I
+think I ever shall remember, even in my dreams.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, she bade Eum&aelig;us, the noble swineherd, deliver
+to the suitors the bow and the gray steel. With tears Eum&aelig;us
+took the arms and laid them down before them. Near by, the neatherd
+also wept to see his master&rsquo;s bow. But Antinous rebuked them,
+and spoke to them and said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You stupid boors, who only mind the passing minute,
+wretched pair, what do you mean by shedding tears, troubling this
+lady&rsquo;s heart, when already her heart is prostrated with grief
+at losing her dear husband? Sit down and eat in silence, or else go
+forth and weep, but leave the bow behind, a dread ordeal for the
+suitors; for I am sure this polished bow will not be bent with
+ease. There is not a man of all now here so powerful as Ulysses. I
+saw him once myself, and well recall him, though I was then a
+child.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He spoke, but in his breast his heart was hoping to draw the
+string and send an arrow through the steel; yet he was to be the
+first to taste the shaft of good Ulysses, whom he now wronged
+though seated in his hall, while to like outrage he encouraged all
+his comrades. To these now spoke revered Telemachus:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ha! Zeus the son of Cronos has made me play the fool! My
+mother&mdash;and wise she is&mdash;says she will follow some
+strange man and quit this house; and I but laugh and in my silly
+soul am glad. Come then, you suitors, since before you stands your
+prize, a lady whose like cannot be found throughout Achaian land,
+in sacred Pylos, Argos, or Mycen&aelig;, in Ithaca itself, or the
+dark mainland, as you yourselves well know,&mdash;what needs my
+mother praise?&mdash;come then, delay not with excuse nor longer
+hesitate to bend the bow, but let us learn what is to be. I too
+might try the bow. And if I stretch it and send an arrow through
+the steel, then with no shame to me my honored mother may forsake
+this house and follow some one else, leaving me here behind; for I
+shall then be able to wield my father&rsquo;s arms.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He spoke, and flung his red cloak from his shoulders, rising
+full height, and put away the sharp sword also from his shoulder.
+First then he set the axes, marking one long furrow for them all,
+aligned by cord. The earth on the two sides he stamped down flat.
+Surprise filled all beholders to see how properly he set them,
+though he had never seen the game before. Then he went and stood
+upon the threshold and began to try the bow. Three times he made it
+tremble as he sought to make it bend. Three times he slacked his
+strain, still hoping in his heart to draw the string and send an
+arrow through the steel. And now he might have drawn it by force of
+a fourth tug, had not Ulysses shaken his head and stayed the eager
+boy. So to the suitors once more spoke revered
+Telemachus:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Fie! Shall I ever be a coward and a weakling, or am I
+still but young and cannot trust my arm to right me with the man
+who wrongs me first? But come, you who are stronger men than I,
+come try the bow and end the contest.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, he laid by the bow and stood it on the ground,
+leaning it on the firm-set polished door. The swift shaft, too, he
+likewise leaned against the bow&rsquo;s fair knob, and once more
+took the seat from which he first arose. Then said to them
+Antinous, Eupeithes&rsquo; son,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Rise up in order all, from left to right, beginning where
+the cupbearer begins to pour the wine.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So said Antinous, and his saying pleased them. Then first arose
+Leiodes, son of &OElig;nops, who was their soothsayer and had his
+place beside the goodly mixer, farthest along the hall. To him
+alone their lawlessness was hateful; he abhorred the suitor crowd.
+He it was now who first took up the bow and the swift shaft; and
+going to the threshold, he stood and tried the bow. He could not
+bend it. Tugging the string wearied his hands,&mdash;his soft,
+unhorny hands,&mdash;and to the suitors thus he spoke:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;No, friends, I cannot bend it. Let some other take the
+bow. Ah, many chiefs this bow shall rob of life and breath! Yet
+better far to die than live and still to fail in that for which we
+constantly are gathered, waiting expectantly from day to day! Now
+each man hopes and purposes at heart to win Penelope,
+Ulysses&rsquo; wife. But when he shall have tried the bow and seen
+his failure, then to some other fair-robed woman of Achaia let each
+go, and offer her his suit and woo her with his gifts. So may
+Penelope marry the man who gives her most and comes with fate to
+favor!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>When he had spoken, he laid by the bow, leaning it on the
+firm-set polished door. The swift shaft, too, he likewise leaned
+against the bow&rsquo;s fair knob, and once more took the seat from
+which he first arose. But Antinous rebuked him, and spoke to him,
+and said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Leiodes, what words have passed the barrier of your
+teeth? Strange words and harsh! Vexatious words to hear! As if this
+bow must rob our chiefs of life and breath because you cannot bend
+it! Why, your good mother did not bear you for a brandisher of bows
+and arrows. But others among the lordly suitors will bend it by and
+by.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, he gave an order to Melanthius, the goatherd:
+&ldquo;Hasten, Melanthius, and light a fire in the hall and set a
+long bench near, with fleeces on it; then bring me the large cake
+of fat which lies inside the door, that after we have warmed the
+bow and greased it well, we young men may try the bow and end the
+contest.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He spoke, and straightway Melanthius kindled a steady fire, and
+set a bench beside it with a fleece thereon, and brought out the
+large cake of fat which lay inside the door, and so the young men
+warmed the bow and made their trial. But yet they could not bend
+it; they fell far short of power. Antinous, however, still held
+back, and prince Eurymachus, who were the suitors&rsquo; leaders;
+for they in manly excellence were quite the best of all.</p>
+<p>Meanwhile out of the house at the same moment came two men,
+princely Ulysses&rsquo; herdsmen of the oxen and the swine; and
+after them came royal Ulysses also from the house. And when they
+were outside the gate, beyond the yard, speaking in gentle words
+Ulysses said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Neatherd, and you too, swineherd, may I tell a certain
+tale, or shall I hide it still? My heart bids me speak. How ready
+would you be to aid Ulysses if he should come from somewhere, thus,
+on a sudden, and a god should bring him home? Would you support the
+suitors or Ulysses? Speak freely, as your heart and spirit bid you
+speak.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said to him the herdsman of the cattle, &ldquo;O father
+Zeus, grant this my prayer! May he return and Heaven be his guide!
+Then shall you know what might is mine and how my hands
+obey.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So prayed Eum&aelig;us too to all the Gods, that wise Ulysses
+might return to his own home. So when he knew with certainty the
+heart of each, finding his words once more Ulysses said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Lo, it is I, through many grievous toils now in the
+twentieth year come to my native land! And yet I know that of my
+servants none but you desire my coming. From all the rest I have
+not heard one prayer that I return. To you then I will truly tell
+what shall hereafter be. If God by me subdues the lordly suitors, I
+will obtain you wives and give you wealth and homes established
+near my own; and henceforth in my eyes you shall be friends and
+brethren of Telemachus. Come, then, and I will show you too a very
+trusty sign,&mdash;that you may know me certainly and be assured in
+heart,&mdash;the scar the boar dealt long ago with his white tusk,
+when I once journeyed to Parnassus with Autolycus&rsquo;s
+sons.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, he drew aside his rags from the great scar. And when
+the two beheld and understood it all, their tears burst forth; they
+threw their arms round wise Ulysses, and passionately kissed his
+face and neck. So likewise did Ulysses kiss their heads and hands.
+And daylight had gone down upon their weeping had not Ulysses
+stayed their tears and said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Have done with grief and wailing, or somebody in coming
+from the hall may see, and tell the tale indoors. Nay, go in one by
+one, not all together. I will go first, you after. And let this be
+agreed: the rest within, the lordly suitors, will not allow me to
+receive the bow and quiver. But, noble Eum&aelig;us, bring the bow
+along the room and lay it in my hands. Then tell the women to lock
+the hall&rsquo;s close-fitting doors; and if from their inner room
+they hear a moaning or a strife within our walls, let no one
+venture forth, but stay in silence at her work. And noble
+Philoetius, in your care I put the courtyard gates. Bolt with the
+bar and quickly lash the fastening.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, Ulysses made his way into the stately house, and went
+and took the seat from which he first arose. And soon the
+serving-men of princely Ulysses entered too.</p>
+<p>Now Eurymachus held the bow and turned it up and down, trying to
+heat it at the glowing fire. But still, with all his pains, he
+could not bend it; his proud soul groaned aloud. Then bitterly he
+spoke; these were the words he said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ah! here is woe for me and woe for all! Not that I so
+much mourn missing the marriage, though vexed I am at that. Still,
+there are enough more women of Achaia, both here in sea-girt Ithaca
+and in the other cities. But if in strength we fall so short of
+princely Ulysses that we cannot bend his bow&mdash;oh, the disgrace
+for future times to know!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said Antinous, Eupeithes&rsquo; son, &ldquo;Not so,
+Eurymachus, and you yourself know better. To-day throughout the
+land is the archer-god&rsquo;s high feast. Who then could bend a
+bow? Nay, quietly lay it by; and for the axes, what if we leave
+them standing? Nobody. I am sure, will carry one away and trespass
+on the house of Laertes&rsquo; son, Ulysses. Come then, and let the
+wine-pourer give pious portions to our cups, that after a libation
+we may lay aside curved bows. To-morrow morning tell Melanthius,
+the goatherd, to drive us here the choicest goats of all his flock;
+and we will set the thighs before the archer-god, Apollo, then try
+the bow and end the contest.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So said Antinous, and his saying pleased them. Pages poured
+water on their hands; young men brimmed bowls with drink and served
+to all, with a first pious portion for the cups. And after they had
+poured and drunk as their hearts would, then in his subtlety said
+wise Ulysses,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Hearken, you suitors of the illustrious queen, and let me
+tell you what the heart within me bids. I beg a special favor of
+Eurymachus, and great Antinous too; for his advice was wise, that
+you now drop the bow and leave the matter with the Gods, and in the
+morning God shall grant the power to whom he may. But give me now
+the polished bow, and let me in your presence prove my skill and
+power and see if I have yet such vigor left as once there was
+within my supple limbs, or whether wanderings and neglect have
+ruined all.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At these his words all were exceeding wroth, fearing that he
+might bend the polished bow. But Antinous rebuked him, and spoke to
+him and said, &ldquo;You scurvy stranger, with not a whit of sense,
+are you not satisfied to eat in peace with us, your betters,
+unstinted in your food and hearing all we say? Nobody else,
+stranger or beggar, hears our talk. &rsquo;Tis wine that goads you,
+honeyed wine, a thing that has brought others trouble, when taken
+greedily and drunk without due measure. Wine crazed the Centaur,
+famed Eurytion, at the house of bold Peirithous, on his visit to
+the Lapith&aelig;. And when his wits were crazed with wine, he
+madly wrought foul outrage on the household of Peirithous. So
+indignation seized the heroes. Through the porch and out of doors
+they rushed, dragging Eurytion forth, shorn by the pitiless sword
+of ears and nose. Crazed in his wits, he went his way, bearing in
+his bewildered heart the burden of his guilt. And hence arose a
+feud between the Centaurs and mankind; but the beginning of the woe
+he himself caused by wine. Even so I prophesy great harm to you, if
+you shall bend the bow. No kindness will you meet from any in our
+land, but we will send you by black ship straight to King Echetus,
+the bane of all mankind, out of whose hands you never shall come
+clear. Be quiet, then, and take your drink! Do not presume to vie
+with younger men!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said to him heedful Penelope, &ldquo;Antinous, it is
+neither honorable nor fitting to worry strangers who may reach this
+palace of Telemachus. Do you suppose the stranger, if he bends the
+great bow of Ulysses, confident in his skill and strength of arm,
+will lead me home and take me for his wife? He in his inmost soul
+imagines no such thing. Let none of you sit at the table disturbed
+by such a thought; for that could never, never, be!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then answered her Eurymachus, the son of Polybus,
+&ldquo;Daughter of Icarius, heedful Penelope, we do not think the
+man will marry you. Of course that could not be. And yet we dread
+the talk of men and women, and fear that one of the baser sort of
+the Achaians say,&rsquo;Men far inferior sue for a good man&rsquo;s
+wife, and cannot bend his polished bow. But somebody else&mdash;a
+wandering beggar&mdash;came, and easily bent the bow and sent an
+arrow through the steel.&rsquo; This they will say, to us a shame
+indeed.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said to him heedful Penelope, &ldquo;Eurymachus, men cannot
+be in honor in the land and rudely rob the household of their
+prince. Why, then, count this a shame? The stranger is right tall,
+and well-knit too, and calls himself the son of a good father. Give
+him the polished bow, and let us see. For this I tell you, and it
+shall be done: if he shall bend it and Apollo grants his prayer, I
+will clothe him in a coat and tunic, goodly garments, give him a
+pointed spear to keep off dogs and men, a two-edged sword, and
+sandals for his feet, and I will send him where his heart and soul
+may bid him go.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then answered her discreet Telemachus, &ldquo;My mother, no
+Achaian has better right than I to give or to refuse the bow to any
+as I will. And out of all who rule in rocky Ithaca, or in the
+islands off toward grazing Elis, none may oppose my will, even if I
+wished to put the bows into the stranger&rsquo;s hands and let him
+take them once for all away. Then seek your chamber and attend to
+matters of your own,&mdash;the loom, the distaff,&mdash;and bid the
+women ply their tasks. Bows are for men, for all, especially for
+me; for power within this house rests here.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Amazed, she turned to her own room again, for the wise saying of
+her son she laid to heart. And coming to the upper chamber with her
+maids, she there bewailed Ulysses, her dear husband, till on her
+lids clear-eyed Athene caused a sweet sleep to fall.</p>
+<p>Meanwhile the noble swineherd, taking the curved bow, was
+bearing it away. But the suitors all broke into uproar in the hall,
+and a rude youth would say, &ldquo;Where are you carrying the
+curved bow, you miserable swineherd? Crazy fool! Soon out among the
+swine, away from men, swift dogs shall eat you,&mdash;dogs you
+yourself have bred,&mdash;will but Apollo and the other deathless
+Gods be gracious!&rdquo; At these their words the bearer of the bow
+laid it down where he stood, frightened because the crowd within
+the hall cried out upon him. But from the other side Telemachus
+called threatening aloud, &ldquo;Nay, father! Carry on the bow! You
+cannot well heed all. Take care, or I, a nimbler man than you, will
+drive you to the fields with pelting stones. Superior in strength I
+am to you. Ah, would I were as much beyond the others in the house,
+beyond these suitors, in my skill and strength of arm! Then would I
+soon send somebody away in sorrow from my house; for men work evil
+here.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He spoke, and all burst into merry laughter and laid aside their
+bitter anger with Telemachus. And so the swineherd, bearing the bow
+along the hall, drew near to wise Ulysses and put it in his hands;
+then calling aside nurse Eurycleia, thus he said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Telemachus bids you, heedful Eurycleia, to lock the
+hall&rsquo;s close-fitting doors; and if a woman from the inner
+room hears moaning or a strife within our walls, let her not
+venture forth, but stay in silence at her work.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Such were his words; unwinged, they rested with her. She locked
+the doors of the stately hall. Then silently from the house
+Philoetius stole forth and straightway barred the gates of the
+fenced court. Beneath the portico there lay a curved ship&rsquo;s
+cable, made of biblus plant. With this he lashed the gates, then
+passed indoors himself, and went and took the seat from which he
+first arose, eyeing Ulysses. Now Ulysses already held the bow and
+turned it round and round, trying it here and there to see if worms
+had gnawed the horn while its lord was far away. And glancing at
+his neighbor one would say,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;A sort of fancier and a trickster with the bow this
+fellow is. No doubt at home he has himself a bow like that, or
+means to make one like it. See how he turns it in his hands this
+way and that, ready for mischief,&mdash;rascal!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then would another rude youth answer thus: &ldquo;Oh, may he
+always meet with luck as good as when he is unable now to bend the
+bow!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So talked the suitors. Meantime wise Ulysses, when he had
+handled the great bow and scanned it closely,&mdash;even as one
+well skilled to play the lyre and sing stretches with ease round
+its new peg a string, securing at each end the twisted sheep-gut,
+so without effort did Ulysses string the mighty bow. Holding it now
+with his right hand, he tried its cord; and clear to the touch it
+sang, voiced like the swallow. Great consternation came upon the
+suitors. All faces then changed color. Zeus thundered loud for
+signal. And glad was long-tried royal Ulysses to think the son of
+crafty Cronos had sent an omen. He picked up a swift shaft which
+lay beside him on the table, drawn. Within the hollow quiver still
+remained the rest, which the Achaians soon should prove. Then
+laying the arrow on the arch, he drew the string and arrow notches,
+and forth from the bench on which he sat let fly the shaft, with
+careful aim, and did not miss an axe&rsquo;s ring from first to
+last, but clean through all sped on the bronze-tipped arrow; and to
+Telemachus he said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Telemachus, the guest now sitting in your hall brings you
+no shame. I did not miss my mark, nor in the bending of the bow
+make a long labor. My strength is sound as ever, not what the
+mocking suitors here despised. But it is time for the Achaians to
+make supper ready, while it is daylight still; and then for us in
+other ways to make them sport,&mdash;with dance and lyre; for these
+attend a feast.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>He spoke and frowned the sign. His sharp sword then Telemachus
+girt on, the son of princely Ulysses clasped his right hand around
+his spear, and close beside his father&rsquo;s seat he took his
+stand, armed with the gleaming bronze.</p>
+<h4><a id="Suitors" name="Suitors">C. The Slaying of the
+Suitors</a></h4>
+<p class="byline"><em>By F.S. Marvin, R.J.C. Mayor, and F.M.
+Stowell</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Ulysses sprang to the great threshold with the bow and quiver in
+his hand. He poured out the arrows at his feet, and shouted to the
+princes, &ldquo;So ends the game you could not play! Now for
+another mark which no man has ever hit before!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>With that he shot at Antinous. He, as it chanced, was just
+lifting a golden cup from the board, never dreaming that death
+would meet him there with all his comrades round him at the feast.
+But before the wine touched his lips the arrow struck him in the
+throat, and the cup dropped from his hand, and he fell dying to the
+floor. The princes sprang to their feet when they saw their comrade
+fallen, and looked round the walls for armor, but there was not a
+spear or shield to be found. Then they turned in fury on Ulysses:
+&ldquo;Madman, are you shooting at men? You have slain the noblest
+youth in Ithaca, and you shall not live to draw bow
+again.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Ulysses faced them sternly and said, &ldquo;Dogs, you
+thought that I should never return. You have rioted in my home, and
+outraged the women of my household, and you have wooed my own wife
+while I was yet a living man. You took no thought for the Gods who
+rule in heaven, nor for the indignation of men in days hereafter.
+Now your time is come.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>All grew pale as he spoke, and Eurymachus alone found words:
+&ldquo;If you are in truth King Ulysses, your words are just; there
+have been many shameful deeds done upon your lands and in your
+house. But Antinous, who was the cause of all, lies dead; it was he
+who lead us on, hoping that he might take your kingdom for himself.
+Spare us now that he has met his doom, for we are your own people;
+and we will make you full atonement for all that has been eaten and
+drunk in your halls.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Eurymachus, you might give me all you have, but even then
+I would not hold my hands until I had taken vengeance for every
+wrong. You have your choice. Fight, or fly, if you think that
+flight can save you.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>At that their knees shook beneath them, but Eurymachus cried,
+&ldquo;Comrades, this man will have no mercy. He has got the bow in
+his hands, and he will shoot us down from the threshold, so long as
+there is one of us left alive. Draw your swords, and guard
+yourselves, with the tables; and let us all set upon him at once
+and drive him from the doorway. If we can reach the city, we are
+safe.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>As he spoke he drew his sword and sprang forward with a cry; and
+at the same moment Ulysses shot. The arrow struck him in the
+breast, and he dropped forward over the table, while the mist of
+death sank upon his eyes. Then Amphinomus made a rush on the
+doorway. But Telemachus was too quick for him; he hurled his spear
+and struck him from behind between the shoulders, and he fell
+crashing on the floor. Telemachus sprang back, leaving the spear,
+for he dared not wait to draw it out. He darted to his
+father&rsquo;s side. &ldquo;Father, we ought to have armor; I will
+go and get weapons for us.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Run and bring them,&rdquo; said. Ulysses, &ldquo;while I
+have arrows left; when these are gone I cannot hold the doorway
+against them all.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So Telemachus ran to the armory and hurried back with helmets
+and shields and spears; and he armed himself and made the two
+servants do the same, and they took their stand beside the king.
+While the arrows lasted, Ulysses shot, and struck down the wooers
+man by man. And then he leant the bow against the doorpost, and
+slung the shield about him and put on the helmet and took two
+spears in his hand.</p>
+<p>Now there was a postern in the hall, close beside the great
+doorway and opening on the corridor. Ulysses had put the swineherd
+to guard it, and now the boldest of the suitors said to the rest,
+&ldquo;Could not some of us force a passage there and raise the cry
+for rescue?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Little use in that,&rdquo; said Melanthius, &ldquo;the
+great doorway is too close, and one brave man might stop us all
+before we reached the court. I have a better plan. Ulysses and his
+son have stowed away the weapons, and I think I know where they
+are. I will go and fetch you what you need.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>With these words he clambered up through the lights of the hall
+and got into the armory, and fetched out twelve shields and as many
+spears and helmets, and brought them to the princes. The heart of
+Ulysses misgave him when he saw the armor and the long spears in
+their hands; and he felt that the fight would go hard, and said to
+Telemachus, &ldquo;Melanthius or one of the women has betrayed
+us.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Father, it was my fault,&rdquo; said Telemachus; &ldquo;I
+left the door of the armory open, and one of them must have kept
+sharper watch than I did. Go, Eum&aelig;us, make fast the door, and
+see whether this is the doing of Melanthius, as I guess.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>While they spoke, Melanthius went again to fetch more armor, and
+the swineherd spied him and said, &ldquo;There is the villain going
+to the armory, as we thought; tell me, shall I kill him, if I can
+master him, or shall I bring him here to suffer for his
+sins?&rdquo; &ldquo;Telemachus and I will guard the doorway
+here,&rdquo; said Ulysses, &ldquo;and you and the shepherd shall
+bind him hand and foot and leave him in the chamber to wait his
+doom.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So the two went up to the armory, and stood in wait on either
+side of the door; and as Melanthius came out, they leapt upon him
+and dragged him back by the hair and flung him on the ground and
+bound him tightly to a pillar hand and foot. &ldquo;Lie
+there,&rdquo; said Eum&aelig;us, &ldquo;and take your ease: the
+dawn will not find you sleeping, when it is time for you to rise
+and drive out your goats.&rdquo; With that they went back to join
+Ulysses, and the four stood together at the threshold,&mdash;four
+men against a host.</p>
+<p>Then Athene came among them in the likeness of Mentor, and
+Ulysses knew her and rejoiced. &ldquo;Mentor,&rdquo; he shouted,
+&ldquo;help me in my need, for we are comrades from of old.&rdquo;
+And the wooers sent up another shout, &ldquo;Do not listen to him,
+Mentor; or your turn will come when he is slain.&rdquo; But Athene
+taunted Ulysses and spurred him to the fight: &ldquo;Have you lost
+your strength and courage, Ulysses? It was not thus you did battle
+for Helen in the ten years&rsquo; war at Troy. Is it so hard to
+face the suitors in your own house and home? Come, stand by me, and
+see if Mentor forgets old friendship.&rdquo; Yet she left the
+victory still uncertain, that she might prove his courage to the
+full. She turned herself into a swallow and flew up into the roof
+and perched on a blackened rafter overhead.</p>
+<p>Then the wooers took courage, when they saw that Mentor was
+gone, and that the four stood alone in the doorway. And one of them
+said to the rest, &ldquo;Let six of us hurl our spears together at
+Ulysses. If once he falls, there will be little trouble with the
+rest.&rdquo; So they flung their spears as he bade them; but all of
+them missed the mark. Then Ulysses gave the word to his men, and
+they all took steady aim and threw, and each one killed his man;
+and the wooers fell back into the farther end of the hall, while
+the four dashed on together and drew out their spears from the
+bodies of the slain. Once more the suitors hurled, and Telemachus
+and the swineherd were wounded; but the other spears fell wide.
+Then at last Athene lifted her shield of war high
+overhead,&mdash;the shield that brings death to men,&mdash;and
+panic seized the wooers, and they fled through the hall like a
+drove of cattle when the gadfly stings them. But the four leapt on
+them like vultures swooping from the clouds; and they fled left and
+right through the hall, but there was no escape.</p>
+<p>Only Phemius, the minstrel, whom the wooers had forced to sing
+before them, sprang forward and clasped the knees of Ulysses and
+said, &ldquo;Have mercy on me, Ulysses: you would not slay a
+minstrel, who gladdens the hearts of Gods and men? The princes
+forced me here against my will.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Telemachus heard and said to his father, &ldquo;Do not hurt
+him, for he is not to blame: and let us save the herald too, if he
+is yet alive, for he took care of me when I was a child.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Now the herald had hidden himself under a stool and pulled an
+ox-hide over him, and when he heard this he crept out and clasped
+the knees of Telemachus and begged that he would plead for him.
+&ldquo;Have no fear,&rdquo; said Ulysses; &ldquo;my son has saved
+your life. Go out, you and the minstrel, and wait in the courtyard,
+for I have other work to do within.&rdquo; So the two went out into
+the courtyard, and sat down beside the altar, looking for their
+death each moment.</p>
+<p>Then Ulysses searched through the hall, to see if any one was
+yet lurking alive. But they all lay round him fallen in the dust
+and blood, heaped upon each other like fishes on a sunny beach when
+the fisherman has drawn his net to land. Then he told Telemachus to
+call out the old nurse Eurycleia. She came and found Ulysses
+standing among the bodies of the slain, with his hands and feet all
+stained with blood, and she was ready to shout aloud for triumph
+when she saw the great work accomplished. But Ulysses checked her
+cry and said, &ldquo;Keep your joy unspoken, old nurse; there
+should be no shout of triumph over the slain. It is the judgment of
+Heaven that has repaid them for the evil deeds they did.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he gave orders that the bodies of the dead should be
+carried out and that the blood should be washed away. And when this
+was done he turned to Eurycleia and said, &ldquo;Bring fire and
+sulphur now and I will purify the hall. Then bid Penelope meet me
+here.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, my child,&rdquo; said the old nurse, &ldquo;I will
+obey you. But let me bring you a mantle first: it is not fitting
+that you should stand here with only your rags to cover you.&rdquo;
+But Ulysses said that she must do his bidding at once. So she
+brought sulphur and lit a fire, and Ulysses purified the hall.</p>
+<h4><a id="Penelope" name="Penelope">D. Penelope Recognizes
+Ulysses</a></h4>
+<p class="byline"><em>Translated by George Herbert Palmer</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>The old woman, full of glee, went to the upper chamber to tell
+her mistress her dear lord was in the house. Her knees grew strong;
+her feet outran themselves. By Penelope&rsquo;s head she paused,
+and thus she spoke:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Awake, Penelope, dear child, to see with your own eyes
+what you have hoped to see this many a day! Ulysses is here! He has
+come home at last, and slain the haughty suitors, the men who vexed
+his house, devoured his substance, and oppressed his
+son.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then heedful Penelope said to her, &ldquo;Dear nurse, the Gods
+have crazed you. They can befool one who is very wise, and often
+they have set the simple in the paths of prudence. They have
+confused you; you were sober-minded heretofore. Why mock me when my
+heart is full of sorrow, telling wild tales like these? And why
+arouse me from the sleep that sweetly bound me and kept my eyelids
+closed? I have not slept so soundly since Ulysses went away to see
+accursed Ilium,&mdash;name never to be named. Nay then, go down,
+back to the hall. If any other of my maids had come and told me
+this and waked me out of sleep, I would soon have sent her off in
+sorry wise into the hall once more. This time age serves you
+well.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said to her the good nurse Eurycleia, &ldquo;Dear child, I
+do not mock you. In very truth it is Ulysses; he is come, as I have
+said. He is the stranger whom everybody in the hall has set at
+naught. Telemachus knew long ago that he was here, but out of
+prudence hid his knowledge of his father till he should have
+revenge from those bold men for wicked deeds.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So spoke she; and Penelope was glad, and, springing from her
+bed, fell on the woman&rsquo;s neck, and let the tears burst from
+her eyes; and, speaking in winged words, she said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Nay, tell me, then, dear nurse, and tell me truly; if he
+is really come as you declare, how was it he laid hands upon the
+shameless suitors, being alone, while they were always here
+together?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then answered her the good nurse Eurycleia, &ldquo;I did not
+see; I did not ask; I only heard the groans of dying men. In a
+corner of our protected chamber we sat and trembled,&mdash;the
+doors were tightly closed,&mdash;until your son Telemachus called
+to me from the hall; for his father bade him call. And there among
+the bodies of the slain I found Ulysses standing. All around,
+covering the trodden floor, they lay, one on another. It would have
+warmed your heart to see him, like a lion, dabbled with blood and
+gore. Now all the bodies are collected at the courtyard gate, while
+he is fumigating the fair house by lighting a great fire. He sent
+me here to call you. Follow me, then, that you may come to gladness
+in your true hearts together, for sorely have you suffered. Now the
+long hope has been at last fulfilled. He has come back alive to his
+own hearth, and found you still, you and his son, within his hall;
+and upon those who did him wrong, the suitors, on all of them here
+in his home he has obtained revenge.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then heedful Penelope said to her, &ldquo;Dear nurse, be not too
+boastful yet, nor filled with glee. You know how welcome here the
+sight of him would be to all, and most to me and to the son we had.
+But this is no true tale you tell. Nay, rather some immortal slew
+the lordly suitors, in anger at their galling insolence and wicked
+deeds; for they respected nobody on earth, bad man or good, who
+came among them. So for their sins they suffered. But Ulysses, far
+from Achaia, lost the hope of coming home; nay, he himself was
+lost.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then answered her the good nurse Eurycleia, &ldquo;My child,
+what word has passed the barrier of your teeth, to say your
+husband, who is now beside your hearth, will never come! Your heart
+is always doubting. Come, then, and let me name another sign most
+sure,&mdash;the scar the boar dealt long ago with his white tusk. I
+found it as I washed him, and I would have told you then; but he
+laid his hand upon my mouth, and in his watchful wisdom would not
+let me speak. But follow me. I stake my very life; if I deceive
+you, slay me by the vilest death.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then heedful Penelope answered her, &ldquo;Dear nurse,
+&lsquo;tis hard for you to trace the counsels of the everlasting
+Gods, however wise you are. Nevertheless, let us go down to meet my
+son, and see the suitors who are dead, and him who slew
+them.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying, she went from her chamber to the hall, and much her
+heart debated whether aloof to question her dear husband, or to
+draw near and kiss his face and take his hand. But when she
+entered, crossing the stone threshold, she sat down opposite
+Ulysses, in the firelight, beside the farther wall. He sat by a
+tall pillar, looking down, waiting to hear if his stately wife
+would speak when she should look his way. But she sat silent long;
+amazement filled her heart. Now she would gaze with a long look
+upon his face, and now she would not know him for the mean clothes
+that he wore. But Telemachus rebuked her, and spoke to her and
+said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Mother, hard mother, of ungentle heart, why do you hold
+aloof so from my father, and do not sit beside him, plying him with
+words and questions? There is no other woman of such stubborn
+spirit to stand off from the husband who, after many grievous
+toils, comes in the twentieth year home to his native land. Your
+heart is always harder than a stone!&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said to him heedful Penelope, &ldquo;My child, my soul
+within is dazed with wonder. I cannot speak to him, nor ask a
+question, nor look him in the face. But if this indeed is Ulysses,
+come at last, we certainly shall know each other better than others
+know; for we have signs which we two understand,&mdash;signs hidden
+from the rest.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>As she, long tried, spoke thus, royal Ulysses smiled, and said
+to Telemachus forthwith in winged words, &ldquo;Telemachus, leave
+your mother in the hall to try my truth. She soon will know me
+better. Now, because I am foul and dressed in sorry clothes, she
+holds me in dishonor, and says I am not he. But you and I have yet
+to plan how all may turn out well. For whoso kills one man among a
+tribe, though the man leaves few champions behind, becomes an
+exile, quitting kin and country. We have destroyed the pillars of
+the state, the very noblest youths of Ithaca. Form, then, a plan, I
+pray.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then answered him discreet Telemachus, &ldquo;Look you to that,
+dear father. Your wisdom is, they say, the best among mankind. No
+mortal man can rival you. Zealously will we follow, and not fail, I
+think, in daring, so far as power is ours.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then wise Ulysses answered him and said, &ldquo;Then I will tell
+you what seems best to me. First wash and put on tunics, and bid
+the maids about the house array themselves. Then let the sacred
+bard with tuneful lyre lead us in sportive dancing, that men may
+say, hearing us from without, &lsquo;It is a wedding,&rsquo;
+whether such men be passers-by or neighboring folk; and so broad
+rumor may not reach the town about the suitors&rsquo; murder till
+we are gone to our well-wooded farm. There will we plan as the
+Olympian shall grant us wisdom.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So he spoke, and willingly they heeded and obeyed. For first
+they washed themselves and put on tunics, and the women also put on
+their attire. And then the noble bard took up his hollow lyre, and
+in them stirred desire for merry music and the gallant dance; and
+the great house resounded to the tread of lusty men and gay-girt
+women. And one who heard the dancing from without would say,
+&ldquo;Well, well! some man has married the long-courted queen.
+Hard-hearted! For the husband of her youth she would not guard her
+great house to the end, till he should come.&rdquo; So they would
+say, but knew not how things were.</p>
+<p>Meanwhile within the house Eurynome, the housekeeper, bathed
+resolute Ulysses and anointed him with oil, and on him put a goodly
+robe and tunic. Upon his face Athene cast great beauty; she made
+him taller than before, and stouter to behold, and made the curling
+locks to fall round his head as on the hyacinth flower. As when a
+man lays gold on silver,&mdash;some skillful man whom Vulcan and
+Pallas Athene have trained in every art, and he fashions graceful
+work, so did she cast a grace upon his head and shoulders. Forth
+from the bath he came, in bearing like the Immortals, and once more
+took the seat from which he first arose, facing his wife, and spoke
+to her these words:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Lady, a heart impenetrable beyond the sex of women the
+dwellers on Olympus gave to you. There is no other woman of such
+stubborn spirit to stand off from the husband who, after many
+grievous toils, comes in the twentieth year home to his native
+land. Come, then, good nurse, and make my bed, that I may lie
+alone. For certainly of iron is the heart within her
+breast.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said to him heedful Penelope, &ldquo;Nay, sir, I am not
+proud, nor contemptuous of you, nor too much dazed with wonder. I
+very well remember what you were when you went upon your long-oared
+ship away from Ithaca. However, Eurycleia, make up his massive bed
+outside that stately chamber which he himself once built. Move the
+massive frame out there, and throw the bedding on,&mdash;the
+fleeces, robes, and bright-hued rugs.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>She said this in the hope to prove her husband, but Ulysses
+spoke in anger to his faithful wife: &ldquo;Woman, these are bitter
+words which you have said! Who set my bed elsewhere? A hard task
+that would be for one, however skilled,&mdash;unless a god should
+come and by his will set it with ease upon some other spot; but
+among men no living being, even in his prime, could lightly shift
+it; for a great token is inwrought into its curious frame. I built
+it; no one else. There grew a thick-leaved olive shrub inside the
+yard, full-grown and vigorous, in girth much like a pillar. Round
+this I formed my chamber, and I worked till it was done, building
+it out of close-set stones, and roofing it over well. Framed and
+tight-fitting doors I added to it. Then I lopped the thick-leaved
+olive&rsquo;s crest, cutting the stem high up above the roots,
+neatly and skillfully smoothed with my axe the sides, and to the
+line I kept all true to shape my post, and with an auger I bored it
+all along. Starting with this, I fashioned me the bed till it was
+finished, and I inlaid it well with gold, with silver, and with
+ivory. On it I stretched a thong of ox-hide, gay with purple. This
+is the token I now tell. I do not know whether the bed still stands
+there, wife, or whether somebody has set it elsewhere, cutting the
+olive trunk.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>As he spoke thus, her knees grew feeble and her very soul, when
+she recognized the tokens which Ulysses exactly told. Then bursting
+into tears, she ran straight toward him, threw her arms round
+Ulysses&rsquo; neck and kissed his face, and said,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Ulysses, do not scorn me! Ever before, you were the
+wisest of mankind. The Gods have sent us sorrow, and grudged our
+staying side by side to share the joys of youth and reach the
+threshold of old age. But do not be angry with me now, nor take it
+ill that then when I first saw you I did not greet you thus; for
+the heart within my breast was always trembling. I feared some man
+might come and cheat me with his tale. Many a man makes wicked
+schemes for gain. Nay, Argive Helen, the daughter of Zeus, would
+not have given herself to love a stranger if she had known how
+warrior sons of the Achaians would bring her home again, back to
+her native land. And yet it was a god prompted her deed of shame.
+Before, she did not cherish in her heart such sin, such grievous
+sin, from which began the woe which stretched to us. But now, when
+you have clearly told the tokens of our bed, which no one else has
+seen, but only you and I and the single servant, Actoris, whom my
+father gave me on my coming here to keep the door of our closed
+chamber,&mdash;you make even my ungentle heart believe.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So she spoke, and stirred still more his yearning after tears;
+and he began to weep, holding his loved and faithful wife. As when
+the welcome land appears to swimmers, whose sturdy ship Neptune
+wrecked at sea, confounded by the winds and solid waters; a few
+escape the foaming sea and swim ashore; thick salt foam crusts
+their flesh; they climb the welcome land, and are escaped from
+danger; so welcome to her gazing eyes appeared her husband. From
+round his neck she never let her white arms go. And rosy-fingered
+dawn had found them weeping, but a different plan the goddess
+formed, clear-eyed Athene. She checked the long night in its
+passage, and at the ocean-stream she stayed the gold-throned dawn,
+and did not suffer it to yoke the swift-paced horses which carry
+light to men, Lampus and Phaethon, which bear the dawn. And now to
+his wife said wise Ulysses,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;O wife, we have not reached the end of all our trials
+yet. Hereafter comes a task immeasurable, long and severe, which I
+must needs fulfill; for so the spirit of Tiresias told me, that day
+when I descended to the house of Hades to learn about the journey
+of my comrades and myself. But come, my wife, let us to bed, that
+there at last we may refresh ourselves with pleasant
+sleep.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said to him heedful Penelope, &ldquo;The bed shall be
+prepared whenever your heart wills, now that the Gods have let you
+reach your stately house and native land. But since you speak of
+this, and God inspires your heart, come, tell that trial. In time
+to come, I know, I shall experience it. To learn about it now,
+makes it no worse.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then wise Ulysses answered her and said, &ldquo;Lady, why urge
+me so insistently to tell? Well, I will speak it out; I will not
+hide it. Yet your heart will feel no joy; I have no joy myself; for
+Tiresias bade me go to many a peopled town, bearing in hand a
+shapely oar, till I should reach the men that know no sea and do
+not eat food mixed with salt. These, therefore, have no knowledge
+of the red-cheeked ships, nor of the shapely oars which are the
+wings of ships. And this was the sign, he said, easy to be
+observed. I will not hide it from you. When another traveler,
+meeting me, should say I had a winnowing-fan on my white shoulder,
+there in the ground he bade me fix my oar and make fit offerings to
+lord Neptune,&mdash;a ram, a bull, and the sow&rsquo;s mate, a
+boar,&mdash;and, turning homeward, to offer sacred hecatombs to the
+immortal gods who hold the open sky, all in the order due. And on
+myself death from the sea shall very gently come and cut me off,
+bowed down with hale old age. Round me shall be a prosperous
+people. All this, he said, should be fulfilled.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said to him heedful Penelope, &ldquo;If gods can make old
+age the better time, then there is hope there will be rest from
+trouble.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So they conversed together. Meanwhile, Eurynome and the nurse
+prepared their bed with clothing soft, under the light of blazing
+torches. And after they had spread the comfortable bed, with busy
+speed, the old woman departed to her room to rest; while the
+chamber-servant, Eurynome, with torch in hand, walked on before, as
+they two came to bed. She brought them to their chamber, and then
+she went her way. So they came gladly to their old bed&rsquo;s
+rites. And now Telemachus, the neatherd, and the swineherd stayed
+their feet from dancing, and bade the women stay, and all betook
+themselves to rest throughout the dusky halls.</p>
+<p>So when the pair had joyed in happy love, they joyed in talking
+too, each one relating; she, the royal lady, what she endured at
+home, watching the wasteful throng of suitors, who, making excuse
+of her, slew many cattle, beeves, and sturdy sheep, and stores of
+wine were drained from out the casks; he, high-born Ulysses, what
+miseries he brought on other men and what he bore himself in
+anguish,&mdash;all he told, and she was glad to listen. No sleep
+fell on her eyelids till he had told her all.</p>
+<p>He began with how at first he conquered the Ciconians, and came
+thereafter to the fruitful land of Lotus-Eaters; then what the
+Cyclops did, and how he took revenge for the brave comrades whom
+the Cyclops ate, and never pitied; then how he came to &AElig;olus,
+who gave him hearty welcome and sent him on his way; but it was
+fated that he should not reach his dear land yet, for a sweeping
+storm bore him once more along the swarming sea, loudly lamenting;
+how he came to Telepylus in L&aelig;strygonia, where the men
+destroyed his ships and his mailed comrades, all of them; Ulysses
+fled in his black ship alone. He told of Circe, too, and all her
+crafty guile; and how on a ship of many oars he came to the
+mouldering house of Hades, there to consult the spirit of Teiresias
+of Thebes, and looked on all his comrades, and on the mother who
+had borne him and cared for him when little; how he had heard the
+full-voiced Sirens&rsquo; song; how he came to the Wandering Rocks,
+to dire Charybdis and to Scylla, past whom none goes unharmed; how
+then his crew slew the Sun&rsquo;s kine; how Zeus with a blazing
+bolt smote his swift ship,&mdash;Zeus, thundering from on
+high,&mdash;and his good comrades perished, utterly, all, while he
+escaped their evil doom; how he came to the island of Ogygia and to
+the nymph Calypso, who held him in her hollow grotto, wishing him
+to be her husband, cherishing him, and saying she would make him an
+immortal, young forever, but she never beguiled the heart within
+his breast; then how he came through many toils to the
+Ph&aelig;acians, who honored him exceedingly, as if he were a god,
+and brought him on his way to his native land, giving him stores of
+bronze and gold and clothing. This was the latest tale he told,
+when pleasant sleep fell on him, easing his limbs and from his
+heart removing care.</p>
+<h2><a id="TrojanWanderings" name="TrojanWanderings">THE WANDERINGS
+OF THE TROJAN &AElig;NEAS</a></h2>
+<h3><a id="Flight" name="Flight">The Flight of &AElig;neas from the
+Ruins of Troy</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>&AElig;neas, a famous Trojan warrior, fought bravely as long as
+the city stood; but when it had fallen, he bethought himself of his
+father Anchises, and his wife Creusa, and of his little son
+Ascanius, and how he had left them without defense at home. But as
+he turned to seek them, the night being now, by reason of many
+fires, as clear as the day, he espied Helen sitting in the temple
+of Vesta, where she had sought sanctuary; for she feared the men of
+Troy, to whom she had brought ruin and destruction, and not less
+her own husband, whom she had deceived. Then was his wrath kindled,
+and he spake to himself, &ldquo;Shall this evil woman return safe
+to Sparta? Shall she see again her home and her children, with
+Trojan women forsooth to be her handmaidens? Shall Troy be burnt
+and King Priam be slain, and she take no harm? Not so; for though
+there be no glory to be won from such a deed, yet shall I satisfy
+myself, taking vengeance upon her for my kinsmen and my
+countrymen.&rdquo; But while he thought these things in his heart,
+lo! there appeared unto him Venus, his mother, made manifest as he
+had never seen her before, as fair and as tall as the dwellers in
+heaven behold her. Then Venus spake thus: &ldquo;What meaneth all
+this rage, my son? Hast thou no care for me? Hast thou forgotten
+thy father Anchises, and thy wife, and thy little son? Of a surety
+the fire and the sword had consumed them long since but that I
+cared for them and saved them. It is not Helen, no, nor Paris, that
+hath laid low this great city of Troy, but the wrath of the Gods.
+See now, for I will take away the mist that covers thine eyes; see
+how Neptune with his trident is overthrowing the walls and rooting
+up the city from its foundations; and how Juno stands with spear
+and shield in the Sc&aelig;an Gate and calls fresh hosts from the
+ships; and how Pallas sits on the height with the storm-cloud about
+her and her Gorgon shield; and how Father Jupiter himself stirs up
+the enemy against Troy. Fly, therefore, my son. I will not leave
+thee till thou shalt reach thy father&rsquo;s house.&rdquo; And as
+she spake she vanished in the darkness.</p>
+<p>Then did &AElig;neas see dreadful forms and gods who were
+enemies of Troy, and before his eyes the whole city seemed to sink
+down into the fire. Even as a mountain oak upon the hills on which
+the woodmen ply their axes bows its head while all its boughs shake
+about it, till at last, as blow comes after blow, with a mighty
+groan it falls crashing down from the height, even so the city
+seemed to fall. Then did &AElig;neas pass on his way, the goddess
+leading him, and the flames gave place to him, and the javelins
+harmed him not.</p>
+<p>But when he was come to his house he bethought him first of the
+old man his father; but when he would have carried him to the
+hills, Anchises would not, being loath to live in some strange
+country when Troy had perished. &ldquo;Nay,&rdquo; said he,
+&ldquo;fly ye who are strong and in the flower of your days. But as
+for me, if the Gods had willed that I should live, they had saved
+this dwelling for me. Enough it is, yea, and more than enough, that
+once I have seen this city taken, and lived. Bid me, then, farewell
+as though I were dead. Death will I find for myself. And truly I
+have long lingered here a useless stock and hated of the Gods,
+since Jupiter smote me with the blast of his thunder.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Nor could the old man be moved from his purpose, though his son
+and his son&rsquo;s wife, and even the child Ascanius, besought him
+with many tears that he should not make yet heavier the doom that
+was upon them. Then was &AElig;neas minded to go back to the battle
+and die. For what hope was left? &ldquo;Thoughtest thou, my
+father,&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;that I should flee and leave thee
+behind? What evil word is this that has fallen from thy lips? If
+the Gods will have it that nought of Troy should be left, and thou
+be minded that thou and thine should perish with the city, be it
+so. The way is easy; soon will Pyrrhus be here: Pyrrhus, red with
+Priam&rsquo;s blood; Pyrrhus, who slays the son before the face of
+the father, and the father at the altar. Was it for this, kind
+Mother Venus, that thou broughtest me safe through fire and sword,
+to see the enemy in my home, and my father and my wife and my son
+lying slaughtered together? Comrades, give me my arms, and take me
+back to the battle. At the least I will die avenged.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But as he girded on his arms and would have departed from the
+house, his wife Creusa caught his feet upon the threshold, staying
+him, and held out the little Ascanius, saying, &ldquo;If thou goest
+to thy death, take wife and child with thee; but if thou hopest
+aught from arms, guard first the house where thou hast father and
+wife and child.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And lo! as she spake there befell a mighty marvel, for before
+the face of father and mother there was seen to shine a light on
+the head of the boy Ascanius, and to play upon his waving hair and
+glitter on his temples. And when they feared to see this thing, and
+would have stifled the flame or quenched it with water, the old man
+Anchises in great joy raised his eyes to heaven, and cried aloud,
+&ldquo;O Father Jupiter, if prayer move thee at all, give thine aid
+and make this omen sure.&rdquo; And even as he spake the thunder
+rolled on his left hand, and a star shot through the skies, leaving
+a long trail of light behind, and passed over the house-tops till
+it was hidden in the woods of Ida. Then the old man lifted himself
+up and did obeisance to the star, and said, &ldquo;I delay no more:
+whithersoever ye lead I will follow. Gods of my country, save my
+house and my grandson. This omen is of you. And now, my son, I
+refuse not to go.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then said &AElig;neas, and as he spake the fire came nearer, and
+the light was clearer to see, and the heat more fierce,
+&ldquo;Climb, dear father, on my shoulders; I will bear thee, nor
+grow weary with the weight. We will be saved or perish together.
+The little Ascanius shall go with me, and my wife follow behind,
+not over near. And ye, servants of my house, hearken to me; ye mind
+how that to one who passes out of the city there is a tomb and a
+temple of Ceres in a lonely place, and an ancient cypress-tree hard
+by. There will we gather by divers ways. And do thou, my father,
+take the holy images in thy hands, for as for me, who have but
+newly come from battle, I may not touch them till I have washed me
+in the running stream.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And as he spake he put a cloak of lion&rsquo;s skin upon his
+shoulders, and the old man sat thereon. Ascanius also laid hold of
+his hand, and Creusa followed behind. So he went in much dread and
+trembling. For indeed before sword and spear of the enemy he had
+not feared, but now he feared for them that were with him. But when
+he was come nigh unto the gates, and the journey was well-nigh
+finished, there befell a grievous mischance, for there was heard a
+sound as of many feet through the darkness; and the old man cried
+to him, &ldquo;Fly, my son, fly; they are coming. I see the
+flashing of shields and swords.&rdquo; But as &AElig;neas hasted to
+go, Creusa his wife was severed from him. But whether she wandered
+from the way or sat down in weariness, no man may say. Only he saw
+her no more, nor knew her to be lost, till all his company being
+met at the temple of Ceres, she only was found wanting. Very
+grievous did the thing seem to him, nor did he cease to cry out in
+his wrath against Gods and men. Also he bade his comrades have a
+care of his father and his son, and of the household gods, and
+girded him again with arms, and so passed into the city. And first
+he went to the wall and to the gate by which he had come forth, and
+then to his house, if haply she had returned thither. But there
+indeed the men of Greece were come, and the fire had well-nigh
+mastered it. And after that he went to the citadel and to the
+palace of King Priam. And lo! in the porch of Juno&rsquo;s temple,
+Ph&oelig;nix and Ulysses were keeping guard over the spoil, even
+the treasure of the temples, tables of the Gods, and solid cups of
+gold, and raiment, and a long array of them that had been taken
+captive, children and women. But not the less did he seek his wife
+through all the streets of the city, yea, and called her aloud by
+name. But lo! as he called, the image of her whom he sought seemed
+to stand before him, only greater than she had been while she was
+yet alive. And the spirit spake, saying, &ldquo;Why art thou vainly
+troubled? These things have not befallen us against the pleasure of
+the Gods. The ruler of Olympus willeth not that Creusa should bear
+thee company in thy journey. For thou hast a long journey to take,
+and many seas to cross, till thou come to the Hesperian shore,
+where Lydian Tiber flows softly through a good land and a fertile.
+There shalt thou have great prosperity, and take to thyself a wife
+of royal race. Weep not, then, for Creusa, whom thou lovest, nor
+think that I shall be carried away to be a bond-slave to some
+Grecian woman. Such fate befits not a daughter of Dardanus and
+daughter-in-law of Venus. The mighty mother of the Gods keepeth me
+in this land to serve her. And now, farewell, and love the young
+Ascanius, even thy son and mine.&rdquo;</p>
+<div class="figure"><a href="images/big_434.jpg"><img src=
+"images/small_434.jpg" alt=
+"A man carries another on his back, while a woman and child follow."
+id="img09" name="img09" width="360" height="558" /></a>
+<p>AND AS HE SPAKE HE PUT A CLOAK OF LION&rsquo;S SKIN UPON HIS
+SHOULDERS, AND THE OLD MAN SAT THEREON. ASCANIUS ALSO LAID HOLD OF
+HIS HAND, AND CREUSA FOLLOWED BEHIND. SO HE WENT IN MUCH DREAD AND
+TREMBLING, FOR INDEED BEFORE SWORD AND SPEAR OF THE ENEMY HE HAD
+NOT FEARED, BUT NOW HE FEARED MUCH FOR THEM THAT WERE WITH HIM</p>
+</div>
+<p>So spake the spirit, and when &AElig;neas wept and would have
+spoken, vanished out of his sight. Thrice he would have cast his
+arms about her neck, and thrice the image mocked him, being thin as
+air and fleeting as a dream. Then, the night being now spent, he
+sought his comrades, and found with much joy and wonder that a
+great company of men and women were gathered together, and were
+willing, all of them, to follow him whithersoever he went. And now
+the morning star rose over Mount Ida, and &AElig;neas, seeing that
+the Greeks held the city, and that there was no longer any hope of
+succor, went his way to the mountains, taking with him his
+father.</p>
+<h3><a id="Harpies" name="Harpies">&AElig;neas&rsquo;s Adventure
+with the Harpies</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Charles Henry Hanson</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p class="quote">[For three days the vessels of &AElig;neas were
+tossed about by terrible storm winds.]</p>
+<p>At last, on the fourth day, the fury of the storm abated, and
+they came in sight of land,&mdash;at first lofty mountains, and
+afterwards, as they drew nearer, rich grassy plains, on which the
+wanderers saw herds of cattle and flocks of goats grazing without a
+keeper. As soon as the storm-beaten vessels could be brought to the
+shore, the Trojans hastened to land, and slaughtered some of the
+cattle, preparing a luxurious banquet. But this they were not
+destined to enjoy in peace; for scarcely had they stretched
+themselves on the couches they had hurriedly prepared beside the
+food when there was a sudden rushing of wings, and three ghastly
+creatures swooped down upon the feast, devoured a large part of it,
+and so defiled the rest with their loathsome touch that very little
+was eatable. These were the Harpies, and by their appearance
+&AElig;neas knew that he and his companions had arrived at the
+Strophades, two islands in the Ionian Sea which for many years had
+been given up to the monsters. They were fearful of aspect: down to
+the breast they resembled women, with scanty black hair and glaring
+red-rimmed eyes, and on their faces ever a famine-stricken look;
+but they had wings instead of arms, and their bodies and lower
+limbs were those of huge birds, foul and uncleanly. These hateful
+creatures had long before been sent by the Gods to plague Pheneus
+the Blind, king of Thrace, who had cruelly treated his sons.
+Whenever a meal was spread for the king, the Harpies used to
+descend and devour it. At last some brave warriors, who were
+passing through Thrace, were persuaded by the promise of rewards
+from Pheneus to rid him of the monsters, and drove them to the far
+Strophades, where they had ever since dwelt.</p>
+<p>Irritated at the loss of their feast, &AElig;neas and his
+companions prepared more food, and determined, if necessary, to
+defend it with their swords. They accordingly concealed their
+weapons in the grass, and stationed one of their number on the
+watch, to give notice with the sound of a trumpet when the Harpies
+were approaching. This was done accordingly, and the obscene
+creatures, when they again swooped down to seize on the cooked
+meats, which they relished more than any other food, were driven
+off, though not without difficulty. But one of them, perching on a
+high rock, croaked forth to the astonished mariners this dismal
+prophecy:&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Woe to you, Trojans! Do you dare to make war upon us
+after having slain our oxen, and to banish the innocent Harpies
+from the kingdom which is theirs by right? Fix, then, in your minds
+these words, which the father of Gods and men revealed to
+Ph&oelig;bus Apollo, and Apollo to me. Italy is the land you seek,
+and Italy you shall reach at last, after many perils; but you shall
+not build up the walls of your new-founded city until dire famine
+and suffering, visiting you because you have injured us, shall
+compel you to devour your tables as well as the food that is upon
+them.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>The gloomy prediction terrified most of the wanderers, and they
+urged &AElig;neas to endeavor to propitiate the unclean monsters
+with invocations and sacrifices. But Anchises, after imploring
+Jupiter to ward off the threatened calamities, commanded that the
+expedition should at once quit that melancholy shore. After passing
+the rugged cliffs of Ithaca, and uttering maledictions on the land
+that bred Ulysses, the most cunning enemy of Troy, the exiles
+arrived in safety at the harbor of Leucadia, where the ships were
+anchored, and the travelers landed to rest awhile after the
+fatigues of the voyage. Here they celebrated the games of their
+country; and &AElig;neas hung on the door-posts of an ancient and
+famous temple of Apollo a suit of armor, which he had taken from a
+Greek warrior slain before Troy, placing above it an inscription,
+&ldquo;These arms &AElig;neas won from the victorious
+Greeks.&rdquo;</p>
+<h3><a id="Cyclops2" name="Cyclops2">&AElig;neas in the Land of the
+Cyclops</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Charles Henry Hanson</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>A day&rsquo;s sail over the blue Mediterranean brought
+&AElig;neas and his followers in sight of the southeastern shores
+of Italy; and as they saw the swelling hills and grassy plains of
+the promised land, they broke into cries of joy. The ships were run
+into a secure harbor, and sacrifices offered up for the
+propitiation of Minerva and of Juno; after which, mindful of the
+injunctions of Helenus to avoid those parts of Italy which lay
+nearest to Greece, the adventurers resumed their voyage. Keeping
+near the coast, they passed the Bay of Tarentum and the lofty
+promontories of Calabria. Now came in sight the immense bulk of
+Etna, lifting its fire-crowned head into the clouds; and the
+roaring of the terrible Charybdis could be distinctly heard.
+Remembering the warnings of Helenus, they hastily turned to the
+left, and avoided the perilous strait, but sought refuge in a place
+scarcely less dangerous; for they landed in the country of the
+Cyclops, where, only a little while before, Ulysses had been with
+his comrades, and had endured great sufferings at the hands of the
+giant Polyphemus. The Cyclops, it will be remembered, were a race
+of savage shepherds, of immense stature, having each but one eye in
+the middle of his forehead. They dwelt in caves, and kept great
+flocks and herds. Polyphemus was the largest and fiercest of them
+all; and when Ulysses and his companions entered his cave he kept
+them prisoners, and devoured several of them. The hero himself and
+the rest of his followers had escaped him by making him drunk with
+wine they had brought on shore from their ships, and then putting
+out his eye with a sharpened stake, the point of which they had
+hardened in the fire. The knowledge of this adventure came to
+&AElig;neas and his Trojans in a strange fashion. On the morning
+after their arrival in the country of the Cyclops, they were on the
+shore, when they were surprised to see a man emerge from the woods,
+and approach them with suppliant gestures. His appearance was wild
+and emaciated, his beard overgrown, his garments ragged; but
+nevertheless it was easy to perceive that he was a Greek. When he
+saw that the voyagers wore Trojan dress and arms, he paused in
+fear, but the next moment he hurried toward them with tears and
+entreaties.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;I conjure you,&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;by the stars, by
+the powers above, by the light of heaven, ye Trojans, take me
+hence. Carry me where you will, do with me what you will, I shall
+be content. I confess that I was one who bore arms against Troy; if
+you deem that a crime, put me to death for it. At least I shall
+have the satisfaction of dying by the hands of men.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&AElig;neas and Anchises received the stranger kindly, assured
+him of his safety, and asked him who he was, and how he came to be
+in that desolate country. He answered that he was an Ithacan, his
+name Ach&aelig;menides, and that he had been one of the companions
+of Ulysses in his wanderings. He related the adventures of the
+Ithacan hero in the cave of Polyphemus, and told how he himself,
+having been by accident left behind when his comrades escaped, had
+since led a wretched existence in the woods, living on wild berries
+and roots, and continually in dread lest he should be seen by the
+Cyclops. He advised &AElig;neas to lose no time in quitting the
+country, lest the ferocious shepherds should discover and destroy
+them. Even as Ach&aelig;menides spoke, Polyphemus was seen
+accompanying his flock to their pasture. So tall was he of stature
+that he carried the trunk of a pine-tree as a staff to guide his
+footsteps. Reaching the sea he stepped into it, and bent down to
+bathe the wound inflicted by Ulysses. The Trojans hastened to cut
+their cables, and rowed out to sea. The giant heard the sound of
+their oars, and turned to follow them; but in his blindness he
+dared not follow far, and therefore he called on his brethren with
+a cry so loud that the very sea was shaken in its depths. Forthwith
+the huge Cyclops came trooping to the shore, like a wood of lofty
+trees endued with life and motion; but by this time the Trojan
+vessels had got beyond their reach.</p>
+<h3><a id="Dido" name="Dido">&AElig;neas and Queen Dido</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p class="quote">[&AElig;neas was driven by a storm upon the shores
+of Carthage.]</p>
+<p>Now it came to pass on the next day that &AElig;neas, having
+first hidden his ships in a bay that was well covered with trees,
+went forth to spy out the new land whither he was come, and Achates
+only went with him. And &AElig;neas had in each hand a
+broad-pointed spear. And as he went there met him in the middle of
+the wood his mother, but habited as a Spartan virgin, for she had
+hung a bow from her shoulders after the fashion of a huntress, and
+her hair was loose, and her tunic short to the knees, and her
+garments gathered in a knot upon her breast. Then first the false
+huntress spake: &ldquo;If perchance ye have seen one of my sisters
+wandering hereabouts, make known to me the place. She is girded
+with a quiver, and is clothed with the skin of a spotted lynx, or,
+maybe, she hunts a wild boar with horn and hound.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>To whom &AElig;neas, &ldquo;I have not seen nor heard sister of
+thine, O virgin&mdash;for what shall I call thee? for, of a surety,
+neither is thy look as of a mortal woman, nor yet thy voice. A
+goddess certainly thou art, sister of Ph&oelig;bus, or, haply, one
+of the nymphs. But whosoever thou art, look favorably upon us and
+help us. Tell us in what land we be, for the winds have driven us
+hither, and we know not aught of place or people.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Venus said, &ldquo;Nay, stranger, I am not such as ye think.
+We virgins of Tyre are wont to carry a quiver and to wear a buskin
+of purple. For indeed it is a Tyrian city that is hard by, though
+the land be Libya. And of this city Dido is queen, having come
+hither from Tyre, flying from the wrong-doing of her brother. And
+indeed the story of the thing is long, but I will recount the chief
+matter thereof to thee. The husband of this Dido was one
+Sich&aelig;us, richest among all the men of Ph&oelig;nicia, and
+greatly beloved of his wife, whom he married from a virgin. Now the
+brother of this Sich&aelig;us was Pygmalion, the king of the
+country, and he exceeded all men in wickedness. And when there
+arose a quarrel between them, the king, being exceedingly mad after
+gold, took him unaware, even as he did sacrifice at the altar, and
+slew him. And the king hid the matter many days from Dido, and
+cheated her with false hopes. But at the last there came to her in
+her dreams the likeness of the dead man, baring his wounds and
+showing the wickedness which had been done. Also he bade her make
+haste and fly from that land, and, that she might do this the more
+easily, told her of great treasure, gold and silver, that was
+hidden in the earth. And Dido, being much moved by these things,
+made ready for flight; also she sought for companions, and there
+came together to her as many as hated the king or feared him. Then
+did they seize ships that chanced to be ready and laded them with
+gold, even the treasure of King Pygmalion, and so fled across the
+sea. And in all this was a woman the leader. Then came they to this
+place, where thou seest the walls and citadel of Carthage, and
+bought so much land as they could cover with a bull&rsquo;s hide.
+And now do ye answer me this, Whence come ye, and whither do ye
+go?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then answered &AElig;neas, &ldquo;Should I tell the whole story
+of our wanderings, and thou have leisure to hear, evening would
+come ere I could make an end. We are men of Troy, who, having
+journeyed over many seas, have now been driven by storms to this
+shore of Libya. And as for me, men call me Prince &AElig;neas. The
+land I seek is Italy, and my race is from Jupiter himself. With
+twenty ships did I set sail, going in the way whereon the Gods sent
+me. And of these scarce seven are left. And now, seeing that Europe
+and Asia endure me not, I wander over the desert places of
+Africa.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Venus suffered him not to speak more, but said,
+&ldquo;Whoever thou art, stranger, that art come to this Tyrian
+city, thou art surely beloved by the Gods. And now go, show thyself
+to the queen. And as for thy ships and thy companions, I tell thee
+that they are safe in the haven, if I have not learnt augury in
+vain. See those twenty swans, how joyously they fly! And now there
+cometh an eagle swooping down from the sky, putting them to
+confusion, but now again they move in due order, and some are
+settling on the earth and some are preparing to settle. Even so
+doth it fare with thy ships, for either are they already in the
+haven or enter thereinto with sails full set.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And as she spoke she turned away, and there shone a rosy light
+from her neck, also there came from her hair a sweet savor as of
+ambrosia, and her garments grew under her feet; and &AElig;neas
+perceived that she was his mother, and cried aloud,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;O my mother, why dost thou mock me so often with false
+shows, nor sufferest me to join my hand unto thy hand, and to speak
+with thee face to face?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And he went towards the walls of the city. But Venus covered him
+and his companions with a mist, that no man might see them, or
+hinder them, or inquire of their business, and then departed to
+Paphos, where was her temple and also many altars of incense. Then
+the men hastened on their way, and mounting a hill which hung over
+the city, marveled to behold it, for indeed it was very great and
+noble, with mighty gates and streets, and a multitude that walked
+therein. For some built the walls and the citadel, rolling great
+stones with their hands, and others marked out places for houses.
+Also they chose those that should give judgment and bear rule in
+the city. Some, too, digged out harbors, and others laid the
+foundations of a theatre, and cut out great pillars of stone. Like
+to bees they were, when, the summer being newly come, the young
+swarms go forth, or when they labor filling the cells with honey,
+and some receive the burdens of those that return from the fields,
+and others keep off the drones from the hive. Even so labored the
+men of Tyre. And when &AElig;neas beheld them he cried,
+&ldquo;Happy ye, who even now have a city to dwell in!&rdquo; And
+being yet hidden by the mist, he went in at the gate and mingled
+with the men, being seen of none.</p>
+<p>Now in the midst of the city was a wood, very thick with trees,
+and here the men of Carthage, first come to the land from their
+voyage, had digged out of the ground that which Juno had said
+should be a sign to them, even a horse&rsquo;s head; for that,
+finding this, their city would be mighty in war, and full of
+riches. Here, then, Dido was building a temple to Juno, very
+splendid, with threshold of bronze, and many steps thereunto; of
+bronze also were the door-posts and the gates. And here befell a
+thing which gave much comfort and courage to &AElig;neas; for as he
+stood and regarded the place, waiting also for the queen, he saw
+set forth in order upon the walls the battles that had been fought
+at Troy, the sons of Atreus also, and King Priam, and fierce
+Achilles. Then said he, not without tears, &ldquo;Is there any
+land, O Achates, that is not filled with our sorrows? Seest thou
+Priam? Yet withal there is a reward for virtue here also, and tears
+and pity for the troubles of men. Fear not, therefore. Surely the
+fame of these things shall profit us.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then he looked, satisfying his soul with the paintings on the
+walls. For there was the city of Troy. In this part of the field
+the Greeks fled and the youth of Troy pursued them, and in that the
+men of Troy fled, and Achilles followed hard upon them in his
+chariot. Also he saw the white tents of Rhesus, king of Thrace,
+whom the fierce Diomed slew in his sleep, when he was newly come to
+Troy, and drave his horses to the camp before they ate of the grass
+of the fields of Troy or drank the waters of Nanthus. There also
+Troilus was pictured, ill matched in battle with Achilles. His
+horses bare him along; but he lay on his back in the chariot, yet
+holding the reins, and his neck and head were dragged upon the
+earth, and the spear-point made a trail in the dust. And in another
+place the women of Troy went suppliant-wise to the temple of
+Minerva, bearing a great and beautiful robe, sad and beating their
+breasts, and with hair unbound; but the goddess regarded them not.
+Also Achilles dragged the body of Hector three times round the
+walls of Troy, and was selling it for gold. And &AElig;neas groaned
+when he saw the man whom he loved, and the old man Priam reaching
+out helpless hands. Also he knew himself, fighting in the midst of
+the Grecian chiefs; black Memnon also he knew, and the hosts of the
+East; and Penthesilea leading the army of the Amazons with shields
+shaped as the moon. Fierce she was to see, with one breast bared
+for battle, and a golden girdle beneath it, a damsel daring to
+fight with men.</p>
+<p>But while &AElig;neas marveled to see these things, lo! there
+came, with a great throng of youths behind her, Dido, most
+beautiful of women, fair as Diana, when, on the banks of Eurotas or
+on the hills of Cynthus, she leads the dance with a thousand nymphs
+of the mountains about her. On her shoulder she bears a quiver, and
+overtops them all, and her mother, even Latona, silently rejoices
+to behold her. So fair and seemly to see was Dido as she bare
+herself right nobly in the midst, being busy in the work of her
+kingdom. Then she sat herself down on a lofty throne in the gate of
+the temple, with many armed men about her. And she did justice
+between man and man; also she divided the work of the city, sharing
+it equally or parting by lot.</p>
+<p>Then of a sudden &AElig;neas heard a great clamor, and saw a
+company of men come quickly to the place, among whom were Antheus
+and Sergestus and Cloanthus, and others of the men of Troy that had
+been parted from him in the storm. Right glad was he to behold
+them, yet was not without fear; and though he would fain have come
+forth and caught them by the hand, yet did he tarry, waiting to
+hear how the men had fared, where they had left their ships, and
+wherefore they were come.</p>
+<p>Then Ilioneus, leave being now given that he should speak, thus
+began: &ldquo;O Queen, whom Jupiter permits to build a new city in
+these lands, we men of Troy, whom the winds have carried over many
+seas, pray thee that thou save our ships from fire, and spare a
+people that serveth the Gods. For, indeed, we are not come to waste
+the dwellings of this land, or to carry off spoils to our ships.
+For, of a truth, they who have suffered so much think not of such
+deeds. There is a land which the Greeks call Hesperia, but the
+people themselves Italy, after the name of their chief; an ancient
+land, mighty in arms and fertile of corn. Hither, were we
+journeying, when a storm arising scattered our ships, and only
+these few that thou seest escaped to the land. And can there be
+nation so savage that it receiveth not shipwrecked men on its
+shore, but beareth arms against them, and forbiddeth them to land?
+Nay, but if ye care not for men, yet regard the Gods, who forget
+neither them that do righteously nor them that transgress. We had a
+king, &AElig;neas, than whom there lived not a man more dutiful to
+Gods and men, and greater in war. If indeed he be yet alive, then
+we fear not at all. For of a truth it will not repent thee to have
+helped us. And if not, other friends have we, as Acestes of Sicily.
+Grant us, therefore, to shelter our ships from the wind; also to
+fit them with fresh timber from the woods, and to make ready oars
+for rowing, so that, finding again our king and our companions, we
+may gain the land of Italy. But if he be dead, and Ascanius his son
+lost also, then there is a dwelling ready for us in the land of
+Sicily, with Acestes, who is our friend.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Dido, her eyes bent on the ground, thus spake: &ldquo;Fear
+not, men of Troy. If we have seemed to deal harshly with you,
+pardon us, seeing that, being newly settled in this land, we must
+keep watch and ward over our coasts. But as for the men of Troy,
+and their deeds in arms, who knows them not? Think not that we in
+Carthage are so dull of heart, or dwell so remote from man, that we
+are ignorant of these things. Whether, therefore, ye will journey
+to Italy or rather return to Sicily and King Acestes, know that I
+will give you all help, and protect you; or, if ye will, settle in
+this land of ours. Yours is this city which I am building. I will
+make no difference between man of Troy and man of Tyre. Would that
+your king also were here! Surely I will send those that shall seek
+him in all parts of Libya, lest haply he should be gone astray in
+any forest or strange city of the land.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And when &AElig;neas and Achates heard these things they were
+glad, and would have come forth from the cloud, and Achates said,
+&ldquo;What thinkest thou? Lo, thy comrades are safe, saving him
+whom we saw with our own eyes drowned in the waves; and all other
+things are according as thy mother said.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And even as he spake the cloud parted from about them, and
+&AElig;neas stood forth, very bright to behold, with face and
+breast as of a god, for his mother had given to him hair beautiful
+to see, and cast about him the purple light of youth, even as a
+workman sets ivory in some fair ornament, or compasseth about
+silver or marble of Paros with gold. Then spake he to the queen:
+&ldquo;Lo! I am he whom ye seek, even &AElig;neas of Troy, scarcely
+saved from the waters of the sea. And as for thee, O Queen, seeing
+that thou only hast been found to pity the unspeakable sorrows of
+Troy, and biddest us, though we be but poor exiles and lacking all
+things, to share thy city and thy home, may the Gods do so to thee
+as thou deservest. And, of a truth, so long as the rivers run to
+the seas, and the shadows fall on the hollows of the hills, so long
+will thy name and thy glory survive, whatever be the land to which
+the Gods shall bring me.&rdquo; Then gave he his right hand to
+Ilioneus, and his left hand to Sergestus, and greeted them with
+great joy.</p>
+<p>And Dido, hearing these things, was silent for a while, but at
+the last she spake. &ldquo;What ill fortune brings thee into perils
+so great? what power drave thee to these savage shores? Well do I
+mind me how in days gone by there came to Sidon one Teucer, who,
+having been banished from his country, sought help from Belus that
+he might find a kingdom for himself. And it chanced that in those
+days Belus, my father, had newly conquered the land of Cyprus. From
+that day did I know the tale of Troy, and thy name also, and the
+chiefs of Greece. Also I remember that Teucer spake honorably of
+the men of Troy, saying that he was himself sprung of the old
+Teucrian stock. Come ye, therefore to my palace. I too have
+wandered far, even as you, and so have come to this land, and
+having suffered much, have learnt to succor them that
+suffer.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So saying she led &AElig;neas into her palace; also she sent to
+his companions in the ships great store of provisions, even twenty
+oxen and a hundred bristly swine and a hundred ewe sheep with their
+lambs. But in the palace a great feast was set forth, couches
+covered with broidered purple and silver vessels without end, and
+cups of gold, whereon were embossed the mighty deeds of the men of
+old time.</p>
+<p>And in the mean time &AElig;neas sent Achates in haste to the
+ships, that he might fetch Ascanius to the feast. Also he bade that
+the boy should bring with him gifts of such things as they had
+saved from the ruins of Troy,&mdash;a mantle stiff with broidery of
+gold and a veil bordered with yellow acanthus, which the fair Helen
+had taken with her, flying from her home; but Leda, her mother, had
+given them to Helen; a sceptre likewise which Ilione, first-born of
+the daughters of Priam, had carried, and a necklace of pearls and a
+double crown of jewels and gold.</p>
+<p>But Venus was troubled in heart, fearing evil to her son should
+the men of Tyre be treacherous, after their wont, and Juno remember
+her wrath. Wherefore, taking counsel with herself, she called to
+the winged boy, even Love, that was her son, and spake: &ldquo;My
+son, who art all my power and strength, who laughest at the
+thunders of Jupiter, thou knowest how Juno, being exceedingly wroth
+against thy brother &AElig;neas, causeth him to wander out of the
+way over all lands. This day Dido hath him in her palace, and
+speaketh him fair; but I fear me much how these things may end.
+Wherefore hear thou that which I purpose. Thy brother hath even now
+sent for the boy Ascanius, that he may come to the palace, bringing
+with him gifts of such things as they saved from the ruins of Troy.
+Him will I cause to fall into a deep sleep and hide in Cythera or
+Idalium, and do thou for one night take upon thee his likeness. And
+when Queen Dido at the feast shall hold thee in her lap, and kiss
+and embrace thee, do thou breathe by stealth thy fire into her
+heart.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then did Love as his mother bade him, and put off his wings, and
+took upon him the shape of Ascanius, but on the boy Venus caused
+there to fall a deep sleep, and carried him to the woods of
+Idalium, and lapped him in sweet-smelling flowers. And in his stead
+Love carried the gifts to the queen. And when he was come they sat
+down to the feast, the queen being in the midst under a canopy.
+&AElig;neas also and the men of Troy lay on coverlets of purple, to
+whom serving-men brought water and bread in baskets and napkins;
+and within fifty handmaids were ready to replenish the store of
+victual and to fan the fire; and a hundred others, with pages as
+many, loaded the tables with dishes and drinking-cups. Many men of
+Tyre also were bidden to the feast. Much they marveled at the gifts
+of &AElig;neas, and much at the false Ascanius. Dido also could not
+satisfy herself with looking on him, nor knew what trouble he was
+preparing for her in the time to come. And he, having first
+embraced the father who was not his father, and clung about his
+neck, addressed himself to Queen Dido, and she ever followed him
+with her eyes, and sometimes would hold him on her lap. And still
+he worked upon her that she should forget the dead Sich&aelig;us
+and conceive a new love in her heart.</p>
+<p>But when they first paused from the feast, lo! men set great
+bowls upon the table and filled them to the brim with wine. Then
+did the queen call for a great vessel of gold, with many jewels
+upon it, from which Belus, and all the kings from Belus, had drunk,
+and called for wine, and having filled it she cried, &ldquo;O
+Jupiter, whom they call the god of hosts and guests, cause that
+this be a day of joy for the men of Troy and for them of Tyre, and
+that our children remember it forever. Also Bacchus, giver of joy,
+be present, and kindly Juno.&rdquo; And when she had touched the
+wine with her lips, she handed the great cup to Prince Bitias, who
+drank thereout a mighty draught, and the other princes after him.
+Then the minstrel Iopas, whom Atlas himself had taught, sang to the
+harp, of the moon, how she goes on her way, and of the sun, how his
+light is darkened. He sang also of men, and of the beasts of the
+field, whence they come; and of the stars, Arcturus, and the
+Greater Bear and the Less, and the Hyades; and of the winter sun,
+why he hastens to dip himself in the ocean; and of the winter
+nights, why they tarry so long. The queen also talked much of the
+story of Troy, of Priam, and of Hector, asking many things, as of
+the arms of Memnon, and of the horses of Diomed, and of Achilles,
+how great he was. And at last she said to &AElig;neas, &ldquo;Tell
+us now thy story, how Troy was taken, and thy wanderings over land
+and sea.&rdquo; And &AElig;neas made answer, &ldquo;Nay, O Queen,
+but thou biddest me renew a sorrow unspeakable. Yet, if thou art
+minded to hear these things, hearken.&rdquo; And he told her all
+that had befallen him, even to the day when his father Anchises
+died.</p>
+<p>Much was Queen Dido moved by the story, and much did she marvel
+at him that told it, and scarce could sleep for thinking of him.
+And the next day she spake to Anna, her sister, &ldquo;O my sister,
+I have been troubled this night with ill dreams, and my heart is
+disquieted within me. What a man is this stranger that hath come to
+our shores! How noble of mien! How bold in war! Sure I am that he
+is of the sons of the Gods. What fortunes have been his! Of what
+wars he told us! Surely were I not steadfastly purposed that I
+would not yoke me again in marriage, this were the man to whom I
+might yield. Only he&mdash;for I will tell thee the truth, my
+sister&mdash;only he, since the day when Sich&aelig;us died by our
+brother&rsquo;s hand, hath moved my heart. But may the earth
+swallow me up, or the almighty Father strike me with lightning, ere
+I stoop to such baseness. The husband of my youth hath carried with
+him my love, and he shall keep it in his grave.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So she spake, with many tears. And her sister made answer,
+&ldquo;Why wilt thou waste thy youth in sorrow, without child or
+husband? Thinkest thou that there is care or remembrance of such
+things in the grave? No suitors indeed have pleased thee here or in
+Tyre, but wilt thou also contend with a love that is after thine
+own heart? Think too of the nations among whom thou dwellest, how
+fierce they are, and of thy brother at Tyre, what he threatens
+against thee. Surely it was by the will of the Gods, and of Juno
+chiefly, that the ships of Troy came hither. And this city, which
+thou buildest, to what greatness will it grow if only thou wilt
+make for thyself such alliance! How great will be the glory of
+Carthage if the strength of Troy be joined unto her! Only do thou
+pray to the Gods and offer sacrifices; and, for the present, seeing
+that the time of sailing is now past, make excuse that these
+strangers tarry with thee awhile.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Thus did Anna comfort her sister and encourage her. And first
+the two offered sacrifice to the Gods, chiefly to Juno, who careth
+for the bond of marriage. Also, examining the entrails of slain
+beasts, they sought to learn the things that should happen
+thereafter. And ever Dido would company with &AElig;neas, leading
+him about the walls of the city which she builded. And often she
+would begin to speak and stay in the midst of her words. And when
+even was come, she would hear again and again at the banquet the
+tale of Troy, and while others slept would watch, and while he was
+far away would seem to see him and to hear him. Ascanius, too, she
+would embrace for love of his father, if so she might cheat her own
+heart. But the work of the city was stayed meanwhile; nor did the
+towers rise in their places, nor the youth practice themselves in
+arms.</p>
+<p>Then Juno, seeing how it fared with the queen, spake to Venus:
+&ldquo;Are ye satisfied with your victory, thou and thy son, that
+ye have vanquished, the two of you, one woman? Well I knew that
+thou fearedst lest this Carthage should harm thy favorite. But why
+should there be war between us? Thou hast what thou seekest. Let us
+make alliance. Let Dido obey a Phrygian husband, and bring the men
+of Tyre as her dowry.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But Venus knew that she spake with ill intent, to the end that
+the men of Troy should not reign in the land of Italy. Nevertheless
+she dissembled with her tongue, and spake: &ldquo;Who would not
+rather have peace with thee than war? Only I doubt whether this
+thing shall be to the pleasure of Jupiter. This thou must learn,
+seeing that thou art his wife, and where thou leadest I will
+follow.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So the two, taking counsel together, ordered things in this
+wise. The next day a great hunting was prepared. For as soon as
+ever the sun was risen upon the earth, the youth of the city
+assembled, with nets and hunting spears and dogs that ran by scent.
+And the princes of Carthage waited for the queen at the palace
+door, where her horse stood champing the bit, with trappings of
+purple and gold. And after a while she came forth, with many
+following her. And she had upon her a Sidonian mantle, with a
+border wrought with divers colors; of gold was her quiver, and of
+gold the knot of her hair, and of gold the clasp to her mantle.
+&AElig;neas likewise came forth, beautiful as is Apollo when he
+leaveth Lydia and the stream of Xanthus, coming to Delos, and hath
+about his hair a wreath of bay-leaves and a circlet of gold. So
+fair was &AElig;neas to see. And when the hunters came to the hills
+they found great store of goats and stags, which they chased. And
+of all the company Ascanius was the foremost, thinking scorn of
+such hunting, and wishing that a wild boar or a lion out of the
+hills would come forth to be his prey.</p>
+<p>And now befell a great storm, with much thunder and hail, from
+which the hunters sought shelter. But &AElig;neas and the queen,
+being left of all their company, came together to the same cave.
+And there they plighted their troth one to the other. Nor did the
+queen after that make secret of her love, but called &AElig;neas
+her husband.</p>
+<p>Straightway went Rumor and told these things through the cities
+of Libya. Now Rumor, men say, is the youngest daughter of Earth, a
+marvelous creature, moving very swiftly with feet and wings, and
+having many feathers upon her, and under every feather an eye and a
+tongue and a mouth and an ear. In the night she flieth between
+heaven and earth, and sleepeth not; and in the day she sitteth on
+some housetop or lofty tower, or spreadeth fear over mighty cities;
+and she loveth that which is false even as she loveth that which is
+true. So now she went telling through Libya how &AElig;neas of Troy
+was come, and Dido was wedded to him, and how they lived careless
+and at ease, and thinking not of the work to which they were
+called.</p>
+<p>And first of all she went to Prince Iarbas, who himself had
+sought Dido in marriage. And Iarbas was very wroth when he heard
+it, and, coming to the temple of Jupiter, spread his grief before
+the Gods, how that he had given a place on his coasts to this Dido,
+and would have taken her to wife, but that she had married a
+stranger from Phrygia, another Paris, whose dress and adornments
+were of a woman rather than of a man.</p>
+<p>And Jupiter saw that this was so, and he said to Mercury, who
+was his messenger, &ldquo;Go speak to &AElig;neas these words:
+&lsquo;Thus saith the king of Gods and men. Is this what thy mother
+promised of thee, twice saving thee from the spear of the Greeks?
+Art thou he that shall rule Italy and its mighty men of war, and
+spread thy dominion to the ends of the world? If thou thyself
+forgettest these things, dost thou grudge to thy son the citadels
+of Rome? What doest thou here? Why lookest thou not to Italy?
+Depart and tarry not.&rsquo;&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Mercury fitted the winged sandals to his feet, and took the
+wand with which he driveth the spirits of the dead, and came right
+soon to Mount Atlas, which standeth bearing the heaven on his head,
+and having always clouds about his top, and snow upon his
+shoulders, and a beard that is stiff with ice. There Mercury stood
+awhile; then, as a bird which seeks its prey in the sea, shot
+headlong down, and came to &AElig;neas where he stood, with a
+yellow jasper in his sword-hilt, and a cloak of purple shot with
+gold about his shoulders, and spake: &ldquo;Buildest thou Carthage,
+forgetting thine own work? The Almighty Father saith to thee,
+&lsquo;What meanest thou? Why tarriest thou here? If thou carest
+not for thyself, yet think of thy son, and that the Fates have
+given to him Italy and Rome.&rsquo;&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And &AElig;neas saw him no more. And he stood stricken with fear
+and doubt. Fain would he obey the voice, and go as the Gods
+commanded. But how should he tell this purpose to the queen? But at
+the last it seemed good to him to call certain of the chiefs, as
+Mnestheus, and Sergestus, and Antheus, and bid them make ready the
+ships in silence, and gather together the people, but dissemble the
+cause, and he himself would watch a fitting time to speak and
+unfold the matter to the queen.</p>
+<p>Yet was not Dido deceived, for love is keen of sight. Rumor also
+told her that they made ready the ships for sailing. Then, flying
+through the city, even as one on whom has come the frenzy of
+Bacchus flies by night over Mount Cith&aelig;ron, she came upon
+&AElig;neas, and spake: &ldquo;Thoughtest thou to hide thy crime,
+and to depart in silence from this land? Carest thou not for her
+whom thou leavest to die? And hast thou no fear of winter storms
+that vex the sea? By all that I have done for thee and given thee,
+if there be yet any place for repentance, repent thee of this
+purpose. For thy sake I suffer the wrath of the princes of Libya
+and of my own people; and if thou leavest me, for what should I
+live?&mdash;till my brother overthrow my city, or Iarbas carry me
+away captive? If but I had a little &AElig;neas to play in my halls
+I should not seem so altogether desolate.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But &AElig;neas, fearing the words of Jupiter, stood with eyes
+that relented not. At the last he spake: &ldquo;I deny not, O
+Queen, the benefits that thou hast done unto me, nor ever, while I
+live, shall I forget Dido. I sought not to fly by stealth; yet did
+I never promise that I would abide in this place. Could I have
+chosen according to my will I had built again the city of Troy
+where it stood; but the Gods command that I should seek Italy. Thou
+hast thy Carthage; why dost thou grudge Italy to us? Nor may I
+tarry. Night after night have I seen my father Anchises warning me
+in dreams. Also even now the messenger of Jupiter came to
+me&mdash;with these ears I heard him&mdash;and bade me
+depart.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then, in great wrath, with eyes askance, did Dido break forth
+upon him: &ldquo;Surely no goddess was thy mother, nor art thou
+come of the race of Dardanus. The rocks of Caucasus brought thee
+forth, and an Hyrcanian tigress gave thee suck. For why should I
+dissemble? Was he moved at all my tears? Did he pity my love? Nay,
+the very Gods are against me. This man I took to myself when he was
+shipwrecked and ready to perish. I brought back his ships, his
+companions from destruction. And now forsooth comes the messenger
+of Jupiter with dreadful commands from the Gods. As for thee, I
+keep thee not. Go, seek thy Italy across the seas: only, if there
+is any vengeance in heaven, thou wilt pay the penalty for this
+wrong, being wrecked on some rock in their midst. Then wilt thou
+call on Dido in vain. Aye, and where-ever thou shalt go I will
+haunt thee, and rejoice in the dwellings below to hear thy
+doom.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then she turned, and hasted to go into the house. But her spirit
+left her, so that her maidens bare her to her chamber and laid her
+on her bed.</p>
+<p>Then &AElig;neas, though indeed he was much troubled in heart,
+and would fain have comforted the queen, was obedient to the
+heavenly word, and departed to his ships. And the men of Troy
+busied themselves in making them ready for the voyage. Even as the
+ants spoil a great heap of corn and store it in their dwellings
+against winter, moving in a black line across the field, and some
+carry the great grains, and some chide those that linger, even so
+did the Trojans swarm along the ways and labor at the work.</p>
+<p>But when Dido saw it she called to Anna her sister and said,
+&ldquo;Seest thou how they hasten the work along the shore? Even
+now the sails are ready for the winds, and the sailors have
+wreathed the ships with garlands, as if for departure. Go
+thou&mdash;the deceiver always trusted thee, and thou knowest how
+best to move him&mdash;go and entreat him. I harmed not him nor his
+people; let him then grant me this only. Let him wait for a fairer
+time for his journey. I ask not that he give up his purpose; only
+that he grant me a short breathing space, till I may learn how to
+bear this sorrow.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Anna hearkened to her sister, and took the message to
+&AElig;neas, yet profited nothing, for the Gods shut his ears that
+he should not hear. Even as the oak stands firm when the north wind
+would root it up from the earth,&mdash;its leaves are scattered all
+around, yet doth it remain firm, for its roots go down to the
+regions below, even as far as its branches reach to
+heaven,&mdash;so stood &AElig;neas firm, and, though he wept many
+tears, changed not his purpose.</p>
+<p>Then did Dido grow weary of her life. For when she did
+sacrifice, the pure water would grow black and the wine be changed
+to blood. Also from the shrine of her husband, which was in the
+midst of her palace, was heard a voice calling her, and the owl
+cried aloud from the house-top. And in her dreams the cruel
+&AElig;neas seemed to drive her before him; or she seemed to be
+going a long way with none to bear her company, and be seeking her
+own people in a land that was desert. Therefore, hiding the thing
+that was in her heart, she spake to her sister, saying, &ldquo;I
+have found a way, my sister, that shall bring him back to me or set
+me free from him. Near the shore of the Great Sea, where the
+&AElig;thiopians dwell, is a priestess, who guards the temple of
+the daughters of Hesperus, being wont to feed the dragons that kept
+the apples of gold. She is able by her charms to loose the heart
+from care or to bind it, and to stay rivers also, and to turn the
+courses of the stars, and to call up the spirits of the dead. Do
+thou, therefore&mdash;for this is what the priestess
+commands&mdash;build a pile in the open court, and put thereon the
+sword which he left hanging in our chamber, and the garments he
+wore, and the couch on which he lay, even all that was his, so that
+they may perish together.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And when these things were done&mdash;for Anna knew not of her
+purpose&mdash;and also an image of &AElig;neas was laid upon the
+pile, the priestess, with her hair unbound, called upon all the
+gods that dwell below, sprinkling thereon water that was drawn, she
+said, from the lake of Avernus, and scattering evil herbs that had
+been cut at the full moon with a sickle of bronze. Dido also, with
+one foot bare and her garments loosened, threw meal upon the fire
+and called upon the gods, if haply there be any, that look upon
+those that love and suffer wrong.</p>
+<p>In the mean time &AElig;neas lay asleep in the hind part of his
+ship, when there appeared to him in a dream the god Mercury, even
+as he had seen him when he brought the commandment of Jupiter. And
+Mercury spake, saying, &ldquo;Son of Venus, canst thou sleep? seest
+thou not what perils surround thee, nor hearest how the favorable
+west wind calls? The queen purposes evil against thee. If thou
+lingerest till the morning come thou wilt see the shore covered
+with them that wish thee harm. Fly, then, and tarry not; for a
+woman is ever of many minds.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then did &AElig;neas in great fear start from his sleep, and
+call his companions, saying, &ldquo;Wake, and sit on the benches,
+and loose the sails. &rsquo;Tis a god thus bids us fly.&rdquo; And
+even as he spake he cut the cable with his sword. And all hasted to
+follow him, and sped over the sea.</p>
+<p>And now it was morning, and Queen Dido, from her watch-tower,
+saw the ships upon the sea. Then she smote upon her breast and tore
+her hair, and cried, &ldquo;Shall this stranger mock us thus?
+Hasten to follow him. Bring down the ships from the docks, make
+ready sword and fire. And this was the man who bare upon his
+shoulders his aged father. Why did I not tear him to pieces, and
+slay his companions with the sword, and serve up the young Ascanius
+at his meal? And if I had perished, what then? for I die to-day. O
+Sun, that regardest all the earth, and Juno, that carest for
+marriage bonds, and Hecate, Queen of the dead, and ye Furies that
+take vengeance on evil-doers, hear me. If it be ordered that he
+reach that land, yet grant that he suffer many things from his
+enemies, and be driven from his city, and beg for help from
+strangers, and see his people cruelly slain with the sword; and,
+when he shall have made peace on ill conditions, that he enjoy not
+long his kingdoms, but die before his day, and lie unburied on the
+plain. And ye, men of Tyre, hate his children and his people
+forever. Let there be no love or peace between you. And may some
+avenger arise from my grave who shall persecute the race of
+Dardanus with fire and sword. So shall there be war forever between
+him and me.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then she spake to old Barce, who had been nurse to her husband
+Sich&aelig;us, &ldquo;Bid my sister bathe herself in water, and
+bring with her beasts for sacrifice. And do thou also put a garland
+about thy head, for I am minded to finish this sacrifice which I
+have begun, and to burn the image of the man of Troy.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And when the old woman made haste to do her bidding, Queen Dido
+ran to the court where the pile was made for the burning, and
+mounted on the pile, and drew the sword of &AElig;neas from the
+scabbard. Then did she throw herself upon the bed, and cry,</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Now do I yield up my life. I have finished my course. I
+have built a mighty city. I have avenged my husband on him that
+slew him. Happy had I been, yea, too happy! had the ships of Troy
+never come to this land.&rdquo; Then she kissed the bed and cried,
+&ldquo;Shall I die unavenged? Nevertheless let me die. The man of
+Troy shall see this fire from the sea whereon he journeys, and
+carry with him an augury of death.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And when her maidens looked, lo! she had fallen upon the sword,
+and the blood was upon her hands. And a great cry went up through
+the palace, exceeding loud and bitter, even as if the enemy had
+taken Carthage or ancient Tyre, and the fire were mounting over the
+dwellings of men and of Gods. And Anna her sister heard it, and
+rushing through the midst called her by name: &ldquo;O my sister,
+was this thy purpose? Were the pile and the sword and the fire for
+this? Why wouldst thou not suffer that I should die with thee? For
+surely, my sister, thou hast slain thyself, and me, and thy people,
+and thy city. But give me water, ye maidens, that I may wash her
+wounds, and if there be any breath left in her, we may yet stay
+it.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then she climbed on to the pile, and caught her sister in her
+arms, and sought to staunch the blood with her garments. Three
+times did Dido strive to raise her eyes; three times did her spirit
+leave her. Three times she would have raised herself upon her
+elbow; three times she fell back upon the bed, looking with
+wandering eyes for the light, and groaning that she yet beheld
+it.</p>
+<p>Then Juno, looking down from heaven, saw that her pain was long,
+and pitied her, and sent down Iris, her messenger, that she might
+loose the soul that struggled to be free. For, seeing that she died
+not by nature, nor yet by the hand of man, but before her time and
+of her own madness, Queen Proserpine had not shred the ringlet from
+her head which she shreds from them that die. Wherefore Iris,
+flying down with dewy wings from heaven, with a thousand colors
+about her from the light of the sun, stood about her head and said,
+&ldquo;I give thee to death, even as I am bidden, and loose thee
+from thy body.&rdquo; Then she shred the lock, and Queen Dido gave
+up the ghost.</p>
+<h3><a id="Anchises" name="Anchises">The Funeral Games of
+Anchises</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Charles Henry Hanson</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>&AElig;neas called together all his followers, and reminded
+minded them that a year had now passed since the death of his
+father. Not of their own purpose, but doubtless by the will of the
+Gods, they had now returned to the friendly land where his bones
+had been laid. It was therefore his intention to celebrate funeral
+games. For eight days there should be feasting, for which Acestes
+had generously provided two oxen for each ship; and on the ninth
+day he would give prizes to be contested in the foot-race, in
+shooting with the bow, and in boxing with the cestus.</p>
+<p>Having thus spoken, the hero, according to the custom of that
+time, placed a wreath of myrtle upon his head and proceeded to the
+tomb of his father, where he poured out, as a libation to the Gods,
+two bowls of wine, two of new milk, and two of sacred blood. Then
+he scattered flowers over the tomb, and offered up a prayer to his
+father&rsquo;s shade. Immediately there came forth from the tomb a
+huge snake with glittering scales of blue and gold, which, after
+tasting of what had been poured out, retired again to the recesses
+of the vault. Believing this creature to be an attendant on his
+father&rsquo;s spirit, &AElig;neas offered rich
+sacrifices&mdash;ewes, sows, and bullocks&mdash;and his companions
+followed his example. The eight days of feasting passed pleasantly
+enough, and the morning appointed for the funeral games dawned
+bright and serene. A joyous crowd assembled on the shore, some to
+take part in the contests, and others to watch them. The first of
+the games was a race between galleys, and four ships had been
+entered to take part in it. The first was the Pristis, or Shark, of
+which Mnestheus was the captain. The Chimera, a vessel of immense
+size, was commanded by Gyas. The other vessels were the Centaur and
+the Scylla,&mdash;the first commanded by Sergestus, and the second
+by Cloanthus. Some way out in the sea, opposite to the
+starting-point, a rock rose amid the restless waters. The galleys
+were to round this rock, on which &AElig;neas had planted an
+oak-tree as a mark, and then return to the shore. The vessels were
+assigned their places by lot, and the captain of each took his
+place on the poop; while the rowers, stripped to the waist, their
+shoulders glistening with oil, sat with their arms stretched to the
+oars, eager for the signal. At the blast of a trumpet all the oars
+struck the sea at once, and beat it into foam, and the vessels shot
+forward amid the loud shouts of the multitude. The Chimera, under
+Gyas&rsquo;s skillful guidance, took the lead; next followed the
+Scylla, whose rowers were more efficient, but were unable to make
+such progress, because the vessel was naturally slower. Behind the
+Shark and the Centaur followed close together, and first the one
+and then the other gained a slight advantage. The two leading
+vessels were rapidly nearing the rock when Gyas perceived that his
+helmsman, Menoetes, was keeping a course too far to the right, in
+fear of some hidden crags, and was thus losing the advantage that
+had been gained. He urged him to steer more to the left, nor to
+care even if the oars grazed the rock; but Menoetes was afraid to
+obey the command. And now Cloanthus in the Scylla, taking the very
+course Gyas had wished to follow, ran boldly between the Chimera
+and the rock, and so got round the goal in front of his antagonist.
+When Gyas beheld this he was full of wrath. Rushing to the helm, he
+seized the over-cautious Menoetes and hurled him into the sea; then
+he himself took the helm, and at once guided his ship and issued
+commands and cries of encouragement to his oarsmen. The luckless
+Menoetes with difficulty contrived to scramble out of the sea onto
+the rock, and sat there in his dripping garments, while the
+spectators roared with laughter at his misadventure. But now
+Mnestheus in the Shark and Sergestus in the Centaur pushed forward
+with redoubled zeal in the hope of obtaining the lead. Sergestus
+got a little in front of his competitor, but Mnestheus, walking
+among his rowers, urged them to put forth their utmost strength,
+and at least not to suffer the disgrace of being last. In response
+to his appeal they bent to the oar with new vigor; the ship
+trembled under their strokes and the water seemed to fly from
+beneath her keel. Suddenly, while the Centaur, in full career, was
+pressing close to the rock to prevent the Shark from passing on the
+inner side, she ran upon a jutting point where she remained fast,
+while the oars were shattered against the hard rocks. In a moment
+the Shark shot past, and having rounded the goal, dashed on the
+homeward way. Ere long Mnestheus had overtaken the Chimera, which
+had lost ground because she was deprived of her steersman.
+Cloanthus in the Scylla was now alone in front of the Shark; and
+though the race was nearly over, the frantic efforts of
+Mnestheus&rsquo; crew might have gained him the victory, but that
+Cloanthus poured forth passionate prayers to the marine deities,
+and promised them ample offerings if the first prize became his.
+They heard his vows, and gathering underneath his vessel, pushed it
+forward, so that it entered the harbor just in front of the Shark.
+Then &AElig;neas proclaimed Cloanthus the victor, and gave him a
+mantle embroidered with gold and ornamented with a thick fringe of
+the costly Melib&oelig;an purple. On Mnestheus, who had so
+gallantly gained the second place, he bestowed a ponderous coat of
+mail worked in gold and brass, which he had himself taken from a
+famous Greek warrior, Demoleus, whom he had slain before Troy. Gyas
+received two caldrons of brass, and some silver bowls ornamented
+with rich carvings. Lastly, when Sergestus had slowly brought back
+to port his crippled galley, his chief bestowed on him, in reward
+for having rescued the vessel from her perilous position, a Cretan
+female slave with her two children.</p>
+<p>Thus ended the galley race; and the assembled multitude now
+proceeded to a grassy plain a little way inland, where thrones were
+placed for Acestes, &AElig;neas, and the other leaders. Here the
+remaining games were to be celebrated, and first of all a foot
+race. Among the competitors in this were Euryalus, a Trojan youth
+distinguished for his personal beauty; Nisus, a brave warrior, who
+was his constant friend and companion; Diores, Salius, and Patron,
+three other Trojans; and two Sicilian youths famous for their
+speed, named Elymus and Panopes. &AElig;neas announced that he
+would give two Cretan javelins of bright steel and a carved
+battle-axe of silver to each who took part in the race, and to the
+three who came in first other rich prizes: to the first a war-horse
+with costly trappings; to the second a quiver full of Thracian
+arrows, with a gold belt and jeweled buckle; and to the third a
+Grecian helmet. The runners having been placed in proper order, the
+signal was given, and they darted forward like a tempest. Nisus led
+the way, Salius coming second, and Euryalus third, with the rest
+following close behind. Already Nisus was near the goal, when
+unluckily his foot slipped at a spot where some victims had been
+sacrificed for the altar, and the blood soaking into the grass had
+made it slippery. Down he fell into the puddle, and in a moment his
+chance of victory had disappeared. But even then, in spite of his
+disappointment, he was mindful of his affection for Euryalus, and
+resolved that since he could not win the race, his friend should do
+so. He rose to his feet just as Salius was coming up, and contrived
+to stand in his way so as to overturn him. Euryalus, who had still
+kept the third place, now sprang forward, and was easily victorious
+amid the applause of the crowd. Elymus came in next, and close
+behind him Diores. But Salius loudly demanded that the first prize
+of right belonged to him, because he had been deprived of the
+victory by unfair means. The spectators, however, favored the claim
+of Euryalus because of his youth and beauty; and Diores vehemently
+took the same side, since, if Salius were adjudged the victory, he
+would not receive a prize at all. &AElig;neas speedily silenced all
+contention by declaring that the promised rewards should go to the
+three who had arrived first at the winning-post; but he added that
+he would show his sympathy for the disaster which had befallen
+Salius, and therefore bestowed on him the shaggy hide of a Getulian
+lion, still retaining the claws, which had been gilt. Upon this,
+Nisus also merrily asked for some consolation, since but for an
+accident the first prize would have been his, and he showed his
+face and limbs all besmeared with mud. His chief entered into the
+jest, and gave him a buckler, finely carved, which had once hung on
+the walls of Neptune&rsquo;s temple at Troy.</p>
+<div class="figure"><a href="images/big_474.jpg"><img src=
+"images/small_474.jpg" alt="A fracas at a foot race." id="img10"
+name="img10" width="360" height="571" /></a>
+<p>HE ROSE TO HIS FEET JUST AT THE MOMENT THAT SALIUS WAS COMING
+UP, AND CONTRIVED TO STAND IN HIS WAY SO AS TO OVERTURN HIM.
+EURYALUS, WHO HAD STILL KEPT THE THIRD PLACE, NOW SPRANG FORWARD,
+AND WAS EASILY VICTORIOUS AMID THE APPLAUSE OF THE CROWD. ELYMUS
+CAME IN NEXT, AND CLOSE BEHIND HIM DIORES. BUT SALIUS LOUDLY
+DEMANDED THAT THE FIRST PRIZE OF RIGHT BELONGED TO HIM.</p>
+</div>
+<p>The next contest was that with the cestus, the boxing-glove of
+the ancients, a formidable implement, intended not to soften the
+blows dealt by the boxers, but to make them more painful, for it
+was composed of strips of hardened oxhide. To the competitors in
+this sport&mdash;if such it could be called&mdash;&AElig;neas
+offered two prizes,&mdash;the first a bullock, decked with gold and
+fillets, and the second a sword and a shining helmet. A noted
+Trojan warrior named Dares, a man of immense strength and bulk, who
+was also celebrated for his skill with the cestus, presented
+himself to contest this prize. He brandished his huge fists in the
+air, and paced vaingloriously backward and forward in the arena,
+challenging any one in the assembly to meet him. But there was no
+response; his friends were too well acquainted with his skill, and
+the Sicilians were awed by his formidable appearance. At last,
+therefore, imagining that nobody would venture to encounter him, he
+advanced to &AElig;neas and asked that the prize might be given up
+to him. It seemed, indeed, that this would have to be done, when
+King Acestes turned to one of his elders, a venerable Sicilian
+chief named Entellus, and asked how it was that he thus allowed
+such splendid prizes to be taken before his eyes without striking a
+blow for them. Entellus had, in his younger days, been a great
+champion with the cestus, having been taught the use of the weapon
+by none other than Eryx, at that time king of Sicily, and one of
+the most expert boxers in the world. So confident had Eryx been in
+his powers, that when the mighty Hercules passed through Sicily on
+his way from Spain, where he had slain King Geryon and carried off
+his splendid cattle, the Sicilian monarch ventured to challenge the
+hero to a combat with the cestus, staking his kingdom against the
+cattle which Hercules was bearing away to Greece. Hercules had
+accepted the challenge, and had slain Eryx in the encounter; but
+the tradition of his skill had been preserved by his pupil
+Entellus. The chief was now old, and disinclined for exertion; but
+when thus urged by King Acestes, he slowly rose and threw into the
+arena the gauntlets which King Eryx had been accustomed to use.
+Terrible weapons indeed they-were, with heavy pieces of iron and
+lead sewn into them underneath the oxhide. At the mere sight of
+them Dares shrank back appalled, and refused to fight with such
+implements. &ldquo;These,&rdquo; said Entellus, &ldquo;were the
+gauntlets with which my master Eryx encountered Hercules; and
+these, after his death, I myself was accustomed to use. But if
+Dares likes not such gloves, let &AElig;neas provide others for
+both of us.&rdquo; With these words he threw off his upper garments
+and bared his massive shoulders and sinewy arms. The Trojan chief
+brought out two pairs of gauntlets of less formidable make, with
+which the two champions armed themselves; and then they stood face
+to face, and both raised their arms for the encounter. For some
+time they stood parrying each other&rsquo;s blows and watching for
+an opportunity. Presently, as they grew warmer, many heavy strokes
+were given on each side, now on the head, now on the breast.
+Entellus stood stiff and unmoved in the same firm posture, only
+bending to evade Dares&rsquo;s blows, and always closely watching
+his antagonist, who, more active, wheeled round him, trying first
+one method of attack, then another. At last Entellus uplifted his
+right arm, thinking he saw an opportunity for delivering a decisive
+stroke; but Dares with great agility slipped out of the way, and as
+the arm of Entellus encountered no resistance save from the empty
+air, he fell forward on the ground through the violence of his own
+effort. Acclamations burst from all the onlookers, and Acestes
+himself stepped forward to assist his old companion to his feet.
+But the mishap had only aroused Entellus&rsquo;s anger; he no
+longer acted on the defensive, but rushed upon his opponent with
+irresistible ardor, and smote blow after blow, driving Dares
+headlong over the field, pouring down strokes as incessantly as a
+shower of hail rattles upon the house-tops. &AElig;neas now deemed
+it high time to put a stop to the combat, and called upon Dares,
+who indeed was quite overpowered, to yield. His comrades led the
+beaten champion to the ships, with the blood flowing from his
+battered head and face, and on his behalf they took away the helmet
+and sword, leaving the bull to the conqueror. Entellus, proud of
+his victory, laid hold of the animal, and exclaimed, &ldquo;Behold,
+O chief, and you Trojans, from this what my strength once was, and
+also from what death you have saved Dares.&rdquo; With these words
+he smote the bull on the forehead with the cestus so mightily that
+the skull was battered in and the brute sank dead at his feet.</p>
+<p>After this exciting competition came a more peaceful
+sport,&mdash;a trial of skill with the bow. A mast was planted on a
+sward, and to the top of it a living dove was secured by a cord.
+This was the mark, and four archers came forward to contend for the
+prizes,&mdash;Hippoco&ouml;n, the brother of Nisus and one of
+&AElig;neas&rsquo;s dearest friends; Mnestheus, the winner of the
+second prize in the galley race; Eurytion, a brother of that
+Pandarus who was one of the most skillful archers that fought in
+the Trojan war, and who, after wounding Menelaus, was slain by
+Diomedes; and lastly, King Acestes himself. Hippoco&ouml;n shot
+first, and his arrow, whizzing past the fluttering dove, pierced
+the pole to which she was fastened. This, though it did not hit the
+mark, was an excellent shot, and it won loud applause from the
+spectators. Mnestheus next discharged his dart, taking a long and
+steady aim; but his arrow, instead of striking the bird, cut in two
+the cord by which she was fastened, and, spreading her wings, the
+dove at once flew away. Instantly, however, Eurytion raised his
+bow, and shot with so true an aim that he struck the bird even in
+mid-flight, and brought her lifeless to the earth. There was thus
+no longer a mark at which Acestes could aim; but notwithstanding he
+drew his bow and discharged a shaft high into the air. And now a
+strange prodigy happened; for the arrow, soaring upward, took fire
+as it flew, and marked out a path of flame, till, being quite
+consumed, it vanished into the air. This spectacle naturally
+excited the wonder and reverence of the assembled multitude; and
+&AElig;neas, embracing Acestes, declared that the incident was an
+omen from the Gods awarding to him the first prize. He therefore
+bestowed on him a splendid bowl, embossed with figures, which had
+once belonged to Anchises, nor did the other competitors dispute
+the justice of the decision.</p>
+<p>But the games were not yet ended. The Trojan chief had prepared
+a closing spectacle as a surprise for the spectators. He sent a
+messenger to summon Ascanius, and in the mean time ordered a large
+space of ground to be cleared. Then suddenly his son entered on
+horseback at the head of a numerous company,&mdash;all the youths
+of the expedition. They were attired alike, with garlands on their
+heads and circles of gold about their necks; and each carried two
+spears of cornel-wood, tipped with steel. The young equestrians
+were divided into three companies; one was commanded by Ascanius
+himself, mounted on a beautiful Sidonian steed which had been given
+him by Queen Dido; a second by the youthful Priam, a son of that
+Polites whom Pyrrhus slew at the fall of Troy; and the third by
+Atys, a boy who was Ascanius&rsquo; especial friend and companion.
+They went through a series of evolutions, now advancing in line,
+again forming in different bands and pretending to charge one
+another, and afterwards going through many other intricate
+man&oelig;uvres. The scene was a most picturesque one, and gave
+great pleasure to those who witnessed it.</p>
+<h3><a id="LowerWorld" name="LowerWorld">&AElig;neas&rsquo;s Visit
+to the Lower World</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Charles Henry Hanson</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Continuing his voyage, &AElig;neas reached the shore of the
+country afterwards named Campania, the modern province of Naples.
+Here the ships were carefully moored, and the crews disembarked.
+Some busied themselves in kindling fires and preparing a meal;
+others explored the country in search of game. &AElig;neas,
+however, hastened at once to seek the temple of Apollo and the
+adjoining cave of the Cum&aelig;an Sibyl,&mdash;the most famous of
+all the oracles of antiquity. The temple and cave were situated in
+a thick wood, closely adjoining the gloomy lake of Avernus, a black
+pool of unknown depth, hedged in by precipitous cliffs, and
+emitting gases so poisonous that no bird was able to fly over it in
+safety. In the rocks at one side of the lake there yawned a sombre
+cavern, which was believed in those days to be the entrance to the
+kingdom of Pluto&mdash;the abode of the dead.</p>
+<p>&AElig;neas was surveying the temple,&mdash;an edifice of great
+splendor, adorned with pictures wrought in metal by the cunning
+hand of D&aelig;dalus,&mdash;when Achates, whom he had sent before
+him to the Sibyl&rsquo;s cave, approached, conducting the
+priestess. &ldquo;O prince,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;this is not the
+time for admiring the works of men. It will be more fitting for you
+to propitiate the god with sacrifices, so that he may inspire
+me.&rdquo; With this mandate the hero at once complied, and then
+the Sibyl summoned him and his followers to the entrance of her
+cave,&mdash;a vast apartment carved out of the living rock, whence
+issued a hundred corridors. Scarcely had the Trojans approached the
+threshold when the virgin exclaimed, &ldquo;Now is the time to
+consult your fate! The god! lo, the god!&rdquo; As she cried out
+thus her looks suddenly changed, her color came and went, her hair
+fell in disorder over her shoulders, her bosom heaved, and she was
+shaken by an uncontrollable passion. Her very form seemed to
+dilate, and the tone of her voice was no longer that of a mere
+mortal, since she was inspired by the influence of the god.
+&ldquo;Trojan &AElig;neas!&rdquo; she exclaimed, &ldquo;delay no
+longer to offer thy prayers for the knowledge which thou seekest;
+for not till then can I reveal to thee the secrets of the
+future.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Earnestly did &AElig;neas implore pity and aid from Apollo; and
+of the Sibyl he entreated that she should proclaim her revelations
+by word of mouth, and not, as was her custom, write them on leaves
+of trees, lest they should become the sport of the winds. At first
+the prophetess did not answer; she was not yet fully possessed by
+the spirit of the god, and raved in wild ecstasy in the cave,
+struggling, as it were, to resist the will of Ph&oelig;bus, who, on
+his part, wearied her foaming lips, subdued her fierce heart, and
+moulded her to his will. Then all at once the hundred doors of the
+cavern flew open of their own accord, and the Sibyl proclaimed the
+divine response,&mdash;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;O thou who hast at length overpassed the perils of the
+ocean, yet more terrible trials await thee on shore. Thou and thy
+Trojans shall indeed reach the promised land&mdash;that is assured;
+but ye shall wish that ye had never come thither. Wars, horrid
+wars, I foresee, and Tiber foaming with a deluge of blood. Another
+Achilles awaits thee in Latium&mdash;he also the son of a goddess.
+Nor shall the persecutions of Juno cease to follow the Trojans
+wherever they may be; and in your distress you will humbly
+supplicate all the surrounding Italian states for aid. Once more
+shall a marriage with a foreign wife be a source of affliction to
+you. But yield not under your sufferings; encounter them resolutely
+in the teeth of adverse fortune, and when you least expect it, the
+means of deliverance shall come to you from a Greek
+city.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>So, under the inspiration of Apollo, spoke the Sibyl. When she
+had ceased, &AElig;neas answered that no prospect of further trials
+could appall him, for he was prepared to endure the worst that
+could befall. But he now entreated, since it was said that the
+entrance to the shades was near, that the Sibyl should conduct him
+into those dark regions, in order that he might obtain an interview
+with the spectre of his father. It was Anchises&rsquo; self, he
+added, who had bidden him make this request; and filial devotion
+would enable him to perform a task which Orpheus had achieved out
+of love for his wife Eurydice, and Pollux through his attachment to
+his brother Castor.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;&AElig;neas,&rdquo; replied the priestess, &ldquo;easy is
+the descent into Hades: grim Pluto&rsquo;s gate stands open night
+and day, but to retrace your steps and escape to the upper regions
+will be a difficult task indeed, and one which few have hitherto
+been able to accomplish. If, however, you are fixed in the resolve
+to pursue so desperate an enterprise, learn what first is to be
+done. There is in the dark woods which surround the Lake of Avernus
+a certain tree, dense of foliage, on which grows a single bough of
+gold, with leaves and twigs of the same precious metal, and no
+living mortal can enter Hades unless he has first found and plucked
+this bough, which is demanded by Proserpine, the consort of Pluto
+and queen of the infernal realms, as her peculiar tribute. When the
+bough is torn off, another always grows in its place. Therefore
+search for it diligently, and when you have discovered it grasp it
+with your hand. If the Fates are propitious to your enterprise, you
+will be able to pluck it easily; if otherwise, your whole strength
+could not tear it from the tree, nor could you ever sever it with
+your sword. In the mean time the body of one of your friends lies
+lifeless, and demands the funeral rites. First bury him with proper
+ceremonies, and then return to me with black cattle for the
+sacrifices; and then you shall be able to visit the realms of
+Hades, to which most living men are denied an entrance.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>With sorrowful thoughts &AElig;neas, closely followed by
+Achates, now withdrew from the shrine, and took the way to the
+shore. Both were greatly perplexed to know what was the corpse
+needing burial of which the Sibyl had spoken. But while they were
+wondering they came to the beach, and there, before them, they saw
+lying the body of Misenus, who had come to a lamentable end.
+Misenus was the most skilled among all the Trojans in the art of
+blowing the trumpet. He had been, besides, a famous warrior, and
+during the siege of Troy was accustomed to be the companion of
+Hector in the field, and to fight by his side. When Hector fell, he
+attached himself to &AElig;neas, scorning to follow any less
+illustrious chief, and so had formed one of the band which the hero
+was conducting to Latium. But he was inordinately vain of his skill
+with the trumpet, and believed himself superior even to the
+Tritons, the sea-deities whose especial province it was to lull the
+seas at the command of Neptune by blowing upon instruments made of
+shells. These Tritons Misenus had challenged to a trial of skill,
+and by way of defiance had blown so loud a note that the deities
+were afraid to respond to his challenge; but being full of
+jealousy, they had now contrived to lure him into the sea and drown
+him. The discovery of his lifeless body filled all his comrades
+with sadness. They gathered about him with loud lamentations, and
+then prepared to erect his funeral pyre, hastening with axes into
+the thick surrounding woods, and cutting down huge oaks and pines
+and ash-trees.</p>
+<p>&AElig;neas himself led the way in the performance of this task,
+and while he was engaged in it he could not help exclaiming, as his
+glance surveyed the wide forest, &ldquo;Would that I could now
+perceive the golden bough which I must find before entering Hades;
+for in this ample forest, how can I begin to search for it?&rdquo;
+Scarcely had he spoken when two pigeons suddenly swooped down from
+the upper air and alighted at his feet. He guessed at once that
+these doves, his mother&rsquo;s favorite birds, had been sent for
+his guidance, and he entreated them to conduct him to the place
+where the precious bough was growing. The doves, feeding and flying
+by turns, advanced through the wood at such a speed that
+&AElig;neas could easily keep them in sight, and presently, having
+reached the very edge of Lake Avernus, both rose at once into the
+air, and settled on a great tree of very dense foliage. The hero
+hastened to the spot, and there indeed, on one of the lower limbs
+of the tree, gleamed the bough, the rich yellow lustre of its
+leaves and twigs contrasting vividly with the deep green of the
+surrounding foliage. &AElig;neas with delight grasped it, and
+plucked it from its place, and, bearing it carefully in his hand,
+hastened to rejoin his companions.</p>
+<p>They, in the mean time, had reared on the shore a vast pile of
+logs of pine and oak, the sides of which they had interlaced with
+smaller boughs. After having carefully washed and purified the body
+of Misenus, they first made a couch upon the pyre, with the apparel
+of the dead man, and then, with renewed cries of grief, placed the
+body upon it. His arms, too, they laid beside him, and having
+poured incense and oil abundantly upon the pile, they set it on
+fire. When only smouldering embers were left, these were quenched
+with wine, and the ashes of the dead were carefully collected and
+placed in a brazen urn. This urn was afterwards deposited in a
+lofty tomb which &AElig;neas erected on a promontory that
+henceforth bore the name of Misenus.</p>
+<p>The funeral ceremonies having thus duly been performed, the hero
+proceeded to the cave of the Sibyl, and called upon her to fulfill
+her promise, and accompany him to the kingdom of the dead. She led
+him to the mouth of the black cavern at the side of Lake Avernus,
+and there offered up sacrifices of black cattle and sheep, uttering
+various invocations. Presently the ground began to rumble beneath
+their feet; upon which the Sibyl ordered those of
+&AElig;neas&rsquo;s followers who had attended him to withdraw from
+the spot, and exhorted the chief himself, drawing his sword from
+its sheath, to march firmly forward. So saying she plunged into the
+cave, nor did he hesitate to follow.</p>
+<p>At first they moved along through a region that was utterly
+waste, void, and covered with an intense gloom, deep as that of a
+winter&rsquo;s night when the moon is obscured by clouds. But this
+desolate tract was not wholly untenanted, for &AElig;neas saw
+flitting about certain hideous shadowy forms. The spirits of Grief
+and Revenge and pale Disease, Fear and Famine and deformed
+Indigence, had their abode in this vestibule of Hades; and so, too,
+Death and Toil, and murderous War, and frantic Discord, her head
+crowned with curling vipers and bound by a blood-dyed fillet. Here,
+also, were the iron chambers in which dwelt the terrible Furies. In
+the midst rose a gloomy elm, which was the haunt of vain Dreams,
+who dwelt under every leaf. Beyond this tree were many huge and
+misshapen monsters,&mdash;Centaurs, and double-formed Scyllas, and
+the great dragon of the Lern&aelig;an lake, which, when it plagued
+the upper earth, was slain by Hercules. Here, also, was the huge
+Chim&aelig;ra, with its three heads vomiting flames; Gorgons,
+Harpies, and other ghastly forms flitted about. At so fearful a
+sight. &AElig;neas was seized with sudden fear; he drew his sword,
+and would have struck at the monsters, if the Sibyl had not
+restrained his hand and reminded him that they were but disembodied
+shadows.</p>
+<p>The path now led them to a place where the three infernal
+rivers, Acheron, Cocytus, and Styx, met in one deep, black, and
+boiling flood. Here there kept guard the grim ferryman Charon, an
+infernal deity of fearful aspect. A long gray beard fell all
+tangled and neglected from his chin; his filthy and ragged garments
+were knotted over his shoulders; his eyes glittered with baleful
+light. He sat on a great black barge, which he pushed to and fro
+across the river with a pole. An immense crowd of shades was
+incessantly pouring to the banks,&mdash;young and old, matrons and
+virgins, warriors who had endured the toils of a long life and
+tender boys who had died while yet under the care of their parents.
+All were eager to cross the stream, and stretched their hands in
+earnest entreaty to Charon to admit them into his boat. But the
+sullen ferryman only consented to receive some; others he drove
+back with his pole, and would on no account permit them to
+cross.</p>
+<p>&AElig;neas was amazed at this scene, and asked the Sibyl to
+explain to him its meaning. &ldquo;You see before you,&rdquo; she
+replied, &ldquo;the deep pools of Cocytus, and the Stygian lake, by
+which the Gods are accustomed to swear when they take an oath which
+they dare not violate. All that crowd which Charon will not ferry
+across is composed of persons who after death received not the
+rites of burial; those only are permitted to enter the boat who
+have been interred with proper ceremonies. As for the others, they
+wander unquiet about these shores for a hundred years before they
+are allowed to cross to the regions beyond.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>When &AElig;neas heard this he was filled with sadness, for
+among the spectres of the unburied who crowded on the bank he saw
+many of his own comrades who had perished during the storms he had
+had to encounter during his long voyages. As he looked, there
+advanced, slow and mournful, the pilot Palinurus, who had been
+thrown overboard by Somnus during the recent voyage from Sicily.
+The hero accosted him, and asked him what god had torn him from his
+post and overwhelmed him in the midst of the ocean. The oracle of
+Apollo, he said, had assured him that Palinurus would be safe on
+the sea, and would arrive on the Italian coast; and yet it would
+seem that the oracle had been falsified. The shade of Palinurus,
+knowing nothing of the enchantment which had been wrought on him by
+Somnus, replied that no god had destroyed him, and that the oracle
+had spoken truly. He had fallen into the sea through being overcome
+by slumber, and having kept afloat for three days and nights, had
+on the fourth day reached the Italian shore alive, but had been
+cruelly murdered by the savage people while clambering up the
+cliffs. Now his body was tossing on the waves, sometimes thrown on
+the shore and then washed off again. But he passionately entreated
+&AElig;neas either to find his corpse and inter it with proper
+solemnities, or else to contrive some means of taking him as his
+companion across the black waters of Styx, unburied as he was, that
+at last his soul might find rest. The Sibyl, however, rebuked him
+for expressing so impious a desire, and for hoping that the fixed
+decrees of the Gods could be violated for the benefit of one
+insignificant mortal. But by way of consolation she informed him
+that the people of the country where he had met with his death,
+compelled by terrible plagues sent by Jupiter, would offer solemn
+atonement to his remains, erect a tomb to his memory, and give his
+name to the place where it stood.</p>
+<p>&AElig;neas and the Sibyl now advanced toward the river; but
+when Charon saw them approaching, he called out, &ldquo;Whoever
+thou mayest be that art now coming armed and in life to our rivers,
+say quickly on what errand thou art coming. This is the region of
+ghosts and death; to waft over the bodies of the living in my boat
+is not permitted. Nor was it joyful to me to receive Hercules when
+he came, nor Theseus and Pirithous, though they were descendants of
+the Gods and unconquerable in war. Hercules dared to bind in chains
+Cerberus himself, the keeper of the gate of Tartarus, and dragged
+him trembling from the very throne of Pluto. The others attempted a
+feat scarcely less perilous, for they sought to carry off our queen
+Proserpine.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Be not disturbed,&rdquo; answered the Sibyl; &ldquo;we at
+least meditate no such plots, nor does this mortal bring with him
+his arms for any purpose of violence. He is &AElig;neas of Troy,
+illustrious for piety and skill in arms, and he penetrates these
+gloomy abodes to have converse with his father Anchises. If your
+compassion is not moved by his filial devotion, at least pay regard
+to this branch.&rdquo; And so saying, she produced the golden
+bough. The surly ferryman, though filled with rage at being forced
+to obey, was at once silenced. He brought his boat to the bank, and
+silently received into it &AElig;neas and his companion, driving
+back the ghosts that at the same time eagerly strove to enter the
+vessel. It was old and leaky, and sank deep in the black flood
+under the unaccustomed weight of living mortals; but Charon ferried
+them safely across, and landed them on the farther side, where, in
+a huge den at the gate of the infernal regions, lay Cerberus, the
+terrible three-headed dog which was the guardian of the
+place&mdash;a ferocious brute which only Hercules among living men
+had been able to subdue. When &AElig;neas approached he opened his
+huge jaws and made all Hades resound with his barking; but the
+Sibyl threw to him a medicated cake, which he at once devoured, and
+was thereby lulled into profound sleep. The way was now safe; the
+Trojan chief and his companion passed quickly through the open
+gate, and entered the dread region where Minos and his fellow
+judges pronounced on the fate of each ghost that came before
+them.</p>
+<p>The first place within the gate was assigned to the shades of
+infants, cut off in the very beginning of life, who filled their
+allotted region with loud wailings and weeping. Beyond these were
+placed persons who had been put to death in consequence of false
+accusations. Not even the unjust suffering which such persons had
+endured on earth could at once procure for them a place among those
+happy spirits declared free of guilt. Here they were doomed to wait
+till the inexorable Minos examined each case and gave his award.
+Immediately adjoining was the place allotted to those who, though
+unstained by crime, had become weary of life and had committed
+self-destruction. Gladly, indeed, would they have now returned to
+the upper world they had despised, but no such return was possible
+to them.</p>
+<p>&AElig;neas and his companion next viewed a region named the
+Fields of Mourning,&mdash;a wide tract, with shady paths and thick
+myrtle groves, dedicated to those who had died through unrequited
+love, and were held to have been emancipated by the miseries they
+had endured on earth from suffering any punishment below. Here were
+to be seen, wandering disconsolately, many women of whom
+&AElig;neas had heard in old legends of Greece and Troy. Among them
+he beheld, with sorrow and pity, the ill-starred Queen of Carthage,
+the wound she had herself inflicted yet gaping in her fair bosom.
+&ldquo;Dido!&rdquo; he exclaimed with tears, &ldquo;was it then a
+true rumor that reached me of your having died after my departure,
+and by your own hand? If I have been the cause of your death, I am
+indeed unhappy. By all I hold sacred, fair queen, I swear to you
+that it was against my own will I quitted Carthage. The will of the
+Gods, which now has brought me, while yet living, into these
+melancholy realms, drove me from you; but I dreamt not that our
+separation would bring upon you such extreme suffering. Why will
+you not speak to me? Why do you fly from me? Never again will the
+Fates permit us to meet together.&rdquo; But all his entreaties and
+his tears were vain. The spectre gazed upon him awhile with eyes of
+inexorable hate, and then turned away, with a gesture of
+unrelenting aversion, to a shady recess near by, where she was
+joined by the ghost of her first lord, Sich&aelig;us, who by the
+compassion of Pluto had been permitted to bear her company.
+&AElig;neas resumed his journey, pondering sadly over the fate of
+the woman who but a little since had loved him so ardently and to
+whom he had unwillingly brought such misfortunes. He and his guide
+now came to a place dedicated to the shades of renowned warriors.
+Here he saw numbers of those brave Trojans, once his companions in
+arms, who had fallen before Troy. They eagerly crowded around him,
+pressed his hands, and questioned him as to the circumstances which
+had brought him, while yet alive, amongst them. There, too, were
+many Greeks who had perished during the Trojan war; but when they
+beheld the hero in the flesh, and wearing his gleaming armor, they
+fled from him in dismay. As he passed on, after exchanging
+affectionate words with many of his old comrades, he met
+De&iuml;phobus, that son of Priam who, after the death of Paris,
+became the husband of Helen. The spectre of the prince was cruelly
+mutilated,&mdash;so that &AElig;neas scarcely knew him. &ldquo;Who,
+O De&iuml;phobus,&rdquo; he exclaimed, &ldquo;could have inflicted
+such shameful wounds upon you? After I had escaped from Troy a
+story was brought to me that you had indeed perished, but honorably
+and in fair fight, having slain many of the enemy. Then I erected
+in your honor an empty tomb on the shore under Mount Ida, and
+offered proper funeral rites, for your body I was unable to
+find.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;You, my friend,&rdquo; answered De&iuml;phobus,
+&ldquo;omitted no duty towards my corpse that you could perform.
+But I owe my death and these infamous wounds to the wickedness of
+Helen; they are the marks of her love. On the night after the fatal
+horse was brought into Troy, I was lying asleep in my chamber,
+enjoying needful repose. Then my faithless wife removed all the
+arms from my palace, and even took away my sword from the side of
+my couch. That done, she threw open the gates, and herself summoned
+her former husband, Menelaus, and he and Ulysses burst into my
+apartment and inflicted on me these wounds, for which I pray the
+Gods that they may be requited.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&AElig;neas would have spent yet more time in conversing with
+the shades of his former comrades; but the Sibyl reminded him that
+the hour was approaching when he must return to the upper world.
+&ldquo;Here,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;the path is divided. To the
+right, past the palace of Pluto, lies our way to the Elysian
+Fields; on the left is the way to Tartarus, the place of punishment
+for the wicked.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>As they proceeded toward Elysium, &AElig;neas looked around him,
+and beheld to the left a vast prison, enclosed by mighty walls, at
+the foot of which ran Phlegethon, the river of fire, whirling along
+great rocks in its furious current. Across the stream, just
+opposite to where he was standing, was a lofty gate, with columns
+of solid adamant. In an iron tower adjoining sat Tisiphone, the
+eldest of the Furies, watching the gate. From within sounds were
+heard&mdash;groans of pain, the sound of cruel lashes, and the
+clanking of chains. &AElig;neas asked his companion what
+punishments were being inflicted within, and who were the
+sufferers. &ldquo;This,&rdquo; replied the Sibyl, &ldquo;is
+Tartarus, whereinto no righteous person can enter. Here
+Rhadamanthus presides: he searches into the deeds of all who are
+sent hither, obliges them to confess all the crimes they have
+committed in the upper world, and awards the punishment. As soon as
+the sentence is pronounced, Tisiphone scourges the doomed one with
+a whip of scorpions, and then consigns him to the fierce attendants
+of her sister Furies. Immediately the gates, creaking on their
+hinges, fly open. Within, the entrance is guarded by a hideous
+Hydra, with fifty black and gaping mouths. In the pit of Tartarus
+beyond, the giants who waged war against the ruler of the Gods lie
+prostrated by his thunderbolts. Beside them, enduring terrible
+tortures, is Salmoneus. He was a king of Elis in Greece, and was so
+puffed up by pride that he rode through his city on a high chariot
+drawn by four prancing horses, waving in his hand a torch, and
+pretending to be Jupiter himself, wielding his thunderbolts. The
+Almighty Sire punished his impiety by hurling from Olympus a real
+thunderbolt, which deprived him of life; and now he pays the
+penalty of his mad pride by eternal sufferings in Tartarus. There
+also lies Tityus, the huge giant who, having insulted the goddess
+Latona, was slain by the darts of her children, Apollo and Diana,
+and whose writhing body now lies extended over nine acres of
+ground, while insatiable vultures perpetually prey on his vitals,
+that are renewed as fast as they are devoured. Beyond him is Ixion,
+bound to a wheel that never ceases to revolve, while he is scourged
+by attendant Furies. He it was who, being admitted to Olympus by
+the generosity of Jupiter himself, dared to seek the love of the
+queen of the Gods. Not less dreadful is the punishment allotted to
+Pirithous, who, along with Theseus, endeavored to carry off the
+Queen of Hades, Proserpine, from the side of Pluto. Over his head
+hangs a huge rock, which every moment seems about to fall and crush
+him, but yet never actually descends; moreover, he is plagued with
+a gnawing hunger, and a rich banquet is always before him, which
+yet he is never able to reach. Myriads of other unhappy shades,
+whose course on earth has been stained by detestable crime, here
+expiate the evil they have done; but had I a hundred mouths and a
+hundred tongues, I could not recount all their offenses and the
+varieties of their punishment. It is necessary that we should go
+forward, since yonder stands the palace of Pluto, where thou, O
+&AElig;neas, must deposit the bough which has gained thee admission
+here.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Obedient to his guide, &AElig;neas advanced to the vast portals
+of the palace where Pluto, the brother of Jupiter and monarch of
+the infernal kingdom, had his abode with his lovely queen
+Proserpine, the daughter of Ceres, whom ages before he had carried
+off from the upper world. There he made due reverence before the
+goddess, and deposited the golden bough at her feet. Advancing
+beyond, &AElig;neas and the Sibyl came at last to the Elysian
+Fields,&mdash;the abode of joy assigned to those who during life
+had been distinguished for piety, virtue, and heroic actions. Here
+were lovely green fields and pleasant groves; the air was pure and
+balmy, the sky was blue, and all was glowing-in the light of the
+blessed sun. Some of the happy spirits who dwelt in this region
+were amusing themselves by wrestling on the greensward, and other
+sports in which they had delighted on earth, such as
+chariot-racing, exercises with the spear and the bow. Others were
+dancing and singing to the delicious notes which Orpheus, the most
+skillful of musicians, produced from his lyre. On the bank of the
+river Eridanus, which pours its clear waters through Elysium over
+sands of gold, were gathered a band whose heads were adorned with
+snow-white fillets. These were priests who had kept unstained the
+purity and sanctity of their office; poets who had sung the praises
+of the Gods in immortal verse; and those who had made human life
+more happy by the invention of useful arts. Among them the Sibyl
+sought out Musseus, the father of the poets, and besought him to
+reveal in what retreat they should find Anchises, on whose account
+she and her companion had traversed all the regions of the
+shades.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;None of us,&rdquo; answered the venerable shade,
+&ldquo;have here any fixed abode. We wander at our will among the
+shady groves and by the pleasant banks of the river. But if you
+mount with me this little eminence, I will show you him whom you
+seek.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>As he spoke, he led them to a spot where they could survey all
+the shining plains around, and pointed to where Anchises, reclined
+in a secluded vale, was surveying the souls of his descendants who
+were destined in future times to visit the earth, and were enacting
+beforehand the achievements they were fated to accomplish during
+life. As soon as he saw &AElig;neas advancing toward him, he rose
+with hands stretched out and joyful tears pouring down his
+face.</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Are you indeed,&rdquo; he exclaimed, &ldquo;come to me at
+last, my son? Am I permitted once more to see your face, and to
+listen to the tones of your dear voice? Now indeed the hopes which
+I cherished are fulfilled. By how many dangers have you been
+threatened since we parted! I was filled with dread lest you should
+be prevented from accomplishing your task by the temptations which
+beset you at Carthage.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;Thy apparition, beloved father,&rdquo; answered
+&AElig;neas, &ldquo;continually appearing to me in dreams, urged me
+forward even to these regions. Permit me now to clasp thee in my
+arms, and do not withdraw from my embrace.&rdquo; Thrice did he
+attempt to throw his arms about the shade, which being only
+composed of thin air, was not perceptible to his touch. While the
+two conversed together, &AElig;neas observed at no great distance
+from them a stream, at which prodigious numbers of ghosts were
+incessantly crowding to drink, swarming like bees round their hive.
+Astonished at this spectacle, the hero inquired of his father what
+that stream was, and why those spectres were so eager to drink of
+it. &ldquo;These,&rdquo; answered Anchises, &ldquo;are souls
+destined by fate to occupy other bodies in the upper world; and the
+stream is Lethe, one draught of which is sufficient to destroy all
+recollection of their former condition.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>&ldquo;But surely,&rdquo; said &AElig;neas, &ldquo;it is not to
+be believed that any souls which have tasted the delights of this
+abode will be desirous to return again to the life of earth, with
+its uncertainties and its miseries. How comes it that this impulse
+possesses them?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>In reply to this question, Anchises entered into a long
+explanation, the substance of which was that all the spirits of the
+departed had to endure in the regions below a process of expiation
+for their earthly sins, longer or shorter according to the nature
+of their transgressions. Those that were not consigned to the pains
+of Tartarus entered the Elysian Fields, where, after they had
+remained a thousand years, they were summoned to drink of the
+waters of Lethe, and thus lose all recollection of their former
+lives; after which, being purified from all stain, they were fitted
+to return to the upper world and inhabit new bodies. Anchises added
+that he would show to his son the forms of his own descendants in
+the Italian kingdom he was destined to establish, and would trace
+for him their achievements. Leading &AElig;neas and the Sibyl onto
+a rising ground, in the midst of the souls which were crowding
+about the magic stream of Lethe, he pointed out to him a long array
+of future kings of Latium,&mdash;Silvius, who was to be the son of
+&AElig;neas&rsquo;s old age by his consort Lavinia; Procas, Capys,
+and Numitor, destined to be monarchs of Alba Longa; and Romulus,
+the future founder of the great city of Rome, which would extend
+over seven hills, and would spread her dominion over the whole
+earth. Not far from these were the souls of Romulus&rsquo;s
+successors in the&rsquo; early days of Rome,&mdash;Numa Pompilius,
+who first would give his country laws, and encourage the arts of
+peace; Tullus Hostilius, who would wage victorious wars, and extend
+the territories of Rome; Ancus Martius, not less successful in the
+field; and Tarquin, destined to lose the throne through his
+oppressive reign. Anchises proceeded to indicate to his wondering
+son many of the patriots and generals who in future years were to
+contribute to the glory and power of the Roman State,&mdash;more
+especially the great Julius Caesar, the lineal descendant of
+&AElig;neas himself; and Augustus, who would once more establish
+the golden age in Latium, and whose empire would extend to
+countries as yet unknown. The venerable shade concluded his
+forecast of the future with a splendid description of the part
+which Rome was destined to play in the world&rsquo;s
+history:&mdash;</p>
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<p>&ldquo;Let others better mould the running mass</p>
+<p>Of metals, and inform the breathing brass,</p>
+<p>And soften into flesh a marble face;</p>
+<p>Plead better at the bar; describes the skies,</p>
+<p>And when the stars descend, and when they rise:</p>
+<p>But Rome! &rsquo;tis thine alone, with awful sway</p>
+<p>To rule mankind, and make the world obey,</p>
+<p>Disposing peace and war thy own majestic way;</p>
+<p>To tame the proud, the fettered slave to free,&mdash;</p>
+<p>These are imperial arts, and worthy thee.&rdquo;</p>
+</div>
+</div>
+<p>Having thus inspired &AElig;neas with renewed determination by
+showing him the brilliant future that was awaiting his descendants,
+Anchises conducted him over those parts of the Elysian Fields which
+he had not yet visited, and showed him everything that was of
+peculiar interest. As they went, he discoursed to him respecting
+the wars which he would have to wage in Latium, and gave him
+counsel as to the means by which he should overcome every
+difficulty. Then at last, having brought him to the ivory gate
+whence the gods were accustomed to send false dreams to the upper
+world, he bade him farewell. By that gate &AElig;neas and the Sibyl
+quitted the abodes of the dead, and ascended without difficulty or
+adventure to the cave of the oracle, whence the hero hastened at
+once to his ships. Without loss of time he ordered the sails to be
+spread, and the ships were steered along the coast, drawing nearer
+ever hour to their final destination.</p>
+<h3><a id="Battle" name="Battle">&AElig;neas&rsquo;s First Great
+Battle with the Latins</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Charles Henry Hanson</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p class="quote">[&AElig;neas finally lands in Italy, the country
+promised him by the Gods as a home for his race. The Italian king,
+Latinus, has been warned by signs and omens that the hand of his
+daughter Lavinia must not be given to an Italian prince, but to a
+stranger coming from a far country. He believes that &AElig;neas is
+the hero chosen by the Fates as her husband, and greets him in most
+friendly manner. Queen Amata, however, is influenced by the
+Trojan-hating Juno to oppose this marriage. Turnus, chief of the
+Rutuli, a suitor of Lavinia, is next aroused, and soon the whole
+kingdom is in a turmoil. A fierce battle ensues.]</p>
+<p>Turnus, having brought the bulk of his forces from before the
+beseiged camp, hurled them against the army of &AElig;neas before
+its ranks were properly formed, and a furious conflict at once
+began to rage. The Trojan hero, rejoicing to find himself once more
+on a field of battle, first encountered the Latian warriors, who
+chanced to be in his front. Their leader was Theron, a man of
+gigantic stature, who did not hesitate to engage &AElig;neas hand
+to hand; but he paid dearly for his rashness, for the sword which
+Vulcan had forged&mdash;so keen was its edge, so excellent its
+temper&mdash;pierced through his brazen buckler and his tunic
+stiffened by bars of gold, and penetrating his side, drained the
+life-blood. Next the hero struck down Lycas; and rushing onward,
+encountered two stalwart rustics, Cisseus and Gyas, who were making
+havoc among the Trojans by beating them down with ponderous clubs.
+On the divine armor the heavy blows of these rude weapons fell
+harmless, while the spear of &AElig;neas proved fatal to both those
+who wielded them. An insolent warrior named Pharus was defying the
+hero from a short distance with taunting speech, when he hurled a
+javelin, which struck the boaster full in the mouth, and
+transfixing the throat, silenced him forever. Now a band of seven
+brothers, the sons of Phorcus, all at once attacked &AElig;neas
+with darts, throwing them together. Some of the weapons struck his
+helmet and shield, and rebounded; others, turned aside by the care
+of Venus, grazed his skin. &AElig;neas called to Achates to bring
+him more spears, and snatching one as soon as it was offered,
+hurled it against M&aelig;on, one of the brothers, with such force
+that it penetrated his shield and corselet, and inflicted a mortal
+wound in his breast. Another brother, Alcanor, hurrying up to
+M&aelig;on&rsquo;s assistance, he smote with a second spear, just
+where the arm and shoulder join, leaving the arm hanging to the
+body only by two or three shreds of skin and muscle. Seeing the
+slaughter that &AElig;neas was spreading around him, Hal&aelig;sus
+and Messapus hurried up with their bands to confront him, and so in
+that part of the field the battle grew still more furious.</p>
+<p>In another part, where Pallas was fighting at the head of his
+Arcadian horsemen, the ground had been rendered so uneven by the
+winter torrents that they were obliged to dismount, and being
+unaccustomed to fight on foot, they began to retreat before the
+fierce assault of the Rutulians. At this sight their brave young
+leader was overwhelmed with shame and mortification.
+&ldquo;Whither,&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;my fellow countrymen, do
+you fly? I implore you, by the memory of your gallant deeds in the
+past, by the name of Evander, the king you love, by my own hopes of
+glory, not to flee. Your way lies through your foes, not from them;
+with your swords must you cut a passage where they crowd most
+densely. These are not gods who pursue us; they are mortals, like
+ourselves, and they are not stronger or more numerous than we. The
+ocean hems us in with an impassable barrier on the one side; the
+enemy confronts us on the other, and separates us from our friends.
+Whether shall we fly into the sea, or force our way toward the
+Trojans?&rdquo; So saying, he turned, and dashed into the midst of
+the hostile ranks. Tagus was the first who fell a victim to his
+noble wrath; for as he was stooping to pick up a heavy stone, the
+spear of Pallas struck him in the middle of the back, and shattered
+the spine and ribs. As the young hero was withdrawing the weapon,
+Hisbon rushed on and struck at him from above; but the blow fell
+short, and before he could recover his guard Pallas buried his
+sword deep in his body. Warrior after warrior he struck down,
+restored the confidence of his followers, and spread confusion and
+dismay in the opposite ranks, raging among them as the flames lit
+by the husbandman in the autumn spread through the stubble, and
+destroy everything in their path. But now the Auruncian chief,
+Hal&aelig;sus, summoned by some of his followers to their aid,
+opposed the advance of the Arcadians. He was a tried and fierce
+warrior, and he slew five of the bravest of Pallas&rsquo;s men
+before the young chief could confront him. Then, however, the son
+of Evander hurled a spear with such skill and certainty of aim that
+he pierced Hal&aelig;sus&rsquo;s heart, and the grim leader of the
+Aurunci sank lifeless on the field. His fall was a sore
+discouragement to the troops of Turnus, which would have sought
+safety in flight, had not Lausus, the gallant son of
+Mezentius,&mdash;noble and upright offspring of an unworthy
+father,&mdash;suddenly come to their aid. First encountering Abas,
+leader of the Populonians, he slew him with a single blow of his
+sword, and followed up his success with a furious slaughter of
+Arcadians and Etrurians. Thus the battle continued: on the one side
+Pallas impetuously urged the attack; on the other Lausus not less
+obstinately maintained the defense. They were equal in years, and
+in beauty and grace of form; and to both alike the Fates had
+assigned a place among the victims of the war. But the Gods had
+ordained that they should not encounter hand to hand; each was
+destined to succumb to a superior foe.</p>
+<p>Turnus was leading his troops in another quarter of the field,
+when he was summoned to hasten to the assistance of Lausus, who
+alone was bearing up the battle against Pallas and his Arcadians.
+Quickly he turned his chariot in that direction, and as soon as he
+reached the spot, called on his warriors to withdraw from the
+conflict. &ldquo;I alone,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;will encounter
+Pallas; to me his life is given. Would to Heaven his father were
+here to witness our combat.&rdquo; The Rutulians obeyed the command
+of their king, and fell back; while Pallas, amazed at their retreat
+and the sudden appearance of Turnus, gazed on his opponent. Then,
+in reply to his vaunting speech, he said, &ldquo;Now, either by
+carrying off thy spoils or by a noble death at thy hands, I shall
+be rendered famous. My sire knows how to bear either extremity of
+fortune. Cease thy threatenings and let us engage.&rdquo; As he
+spoke, the hearts of the Arcadians, who loved him, were filled with
+fear and sorrow. Turnus sprang from his chariot, and came forward
+to the encounter on foot, advancing as a lion bounds toward his
+prey. As soon as Pallas thought him within reach of his spear, he
+prepared to throw it, and uttered this prayer to Hercules:
+&ldquo;By my father&rsquo;s hospitality, and that abode which thou,
+his guest, didst visit, O Alcides, aid, I implore thee, my arduous
+attempt. May the dying eyes of Turnus behold me strip him,
+expiring, of his bloody armor, and endure the sight of a victorious
+foe.&rdquo; Hercules, from his place on Olympus, heard the prayer,
+and knowing that the decree of Fate was otherwise, answered with
+heavy groans and unavailing tears. These were not unseen by
+Jupiter, who strove to console his immortal son. &ldquo;To every
+one,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;his day is fixed; a short and
+irretrievable term of life is given to all; but to lengthen out
+fame by heroic deeds is the best that man can do. Under the lofty
+walls of Troy many sons of gods themselves perished,&mdash;among
+them the heroic Sarpedon, my own offspring, perished; Turnus, too,
+is summoned by the Fates, and has nearly reached his term of
+life.&rdquo; He spoke, and turned away his gaze from the
+battlefield, himself pitying the untimely death of Pallas.</p>
+<p>And now the brave son of Evander with his utmost force hurled
+his spear, and then hastened to draw his sword from its scabbard.
+The weapon struck Turnus where the shoulder was protected by the
+corselet, and piercing through the solid brass, slightly grazed the
+hero&rsquo;s body. Then Turnus, poising a steel-tipped javelin,
+darted it at Pallas, exclaiming, &ldquo;See whether mine be not the
+more penetrating shaft.&rdquo; Cast with irresistible might, it
+tore its way through the youth&rsquo;s shield, composed though it
+was of thick plates of brass and iron, and through his cuirass, and
+inflicted a ghastly wound in his breast. In vain he wrenched out
+the deadly missile from his body; even as he withdrew it life
+deserted his quivering form, and he fell to the ground. Bestriding
+the corpse, Turnus cried, &ldquo;Ye Arcadians, faithfully report to
+Evander this message,&mdash;I send him back his Pallas in such a
+plight as he deserved. Whatever honor is in a tomb, whatever solace
+in the performance of funeral rites, I freely grant him. His league
+with the Trojan intruder shall cost him dear.&rdquo; So saying, he
+pressed his foot on the body, and tore away a massive belt, adorned
+with figures richly carved in gold. This spoil Turnus exultingly
+clasped around his own body, little dreaming that the time would
+come when he would wish that he had never taken it, and that he and
+Pallas had never met. But now the lifeless corpse of the youth,
+stripped of its arms and still bleeding from the fatal wound
+inflicted by the Rutulian chief, was laid on a shield and borne
+away by his weeping followers. Thus the first day on which he took
+a part in war saw also the young hero&rsquo;s death, though not,
+indeed, before he had strewn the plain with Rutulian corpses.</p>
+<p>Speedily the news of this sad disaster, and of the consequent
+retreat of his forces in that part of the field, was borne to
+&AElig;neas. Rendered furious by the event, he impetuously mowed
+with his sword a bloody passage through the hostile ranks in search
+of Turnus, on whom he was eager to avenge the death of his friend.
+The thought of the bright youth who had thus perished in his cause,
+of the hoary father bereaved of all that made life dear to him,
+filled his heart with sorrow as he recalled the kindness which both
+had shown to him, and the pledges of enduring friendship he had
+exchanged with them. Eight Rutulian warriors he struck down, and
+captured them alive, destining them as victims to be offered to the
+shade of Pallas, and to drench with their blood the flames of the
+hero&rsquo;s funeral pyre. Next, &AElig;neas having hurled a
+javelin at a Latian named Magus, the trembling wretch evaded the
+dart by stooping, and as &AElig;neas rushed upon him with uplifted
+sword, he clasped his knees, and implored him to spare his life,
+proffering a large ransom of silver and gold which lay concealed
+underground in his house. Sternly the Trojan chief bade him keep
+his treasures for his sons; as for showing mercy, that was
+forbidden to him from the moment that Pallas fell by the hand of
+Turnus. Then grasping the suppliant&rsquo;s helmet, and forcing
+back his head so as to expose the neck, even as Magus renewed his
+petition he plunged the sword into his body to the hilt. Near by,
+the luckless &AElig;monides, a priest of Apollo and Diana, who wore
+a sacred fillet on his temples and shone in burnished armor, fell a
+victim to his relentless spear, and the splendid arms he had worn
+were carried off by Serestus as an offering to Mars. The Rutulians
+fled in terror before the raging chief; but King C&aelig;culus of
+Pr&aelig;neste, and Umbro, the leader of the Marsians, renewed the
+struggle. A huge warrior named Tarquitus, the son of the nymph
+Dryope, dared to oppose himself to &AElig;neas, but his fate was
+soon decided. The hero first pierced his corselet with a spear, and
+then, as he lay wounded and imploring mercy, smote off his head
+with his sword. Spurning the bleeding trunk, he furiously cried,
+&ldquo;Lie there, haughty champion! Thee no tender mother shall
+lodge in the earth, or place a tomb above thy body; to birds of
+prey thou shalt be left, or cast in the sea to be devoured by
+fishes.&rdquo; Still insatiable of slaughter, he drove into
+terrified flight Ant&aelig;us and Lycas, two of Turnus&rsquo;s
+bravest followers. But now the fierce Lucagus approached in a
+chariot drawn by two snow-white coursers. These were guided by his
+brother Liger, while he himself flourished his sword in the air,
+and prepared to encounter &AElig;neas, who on his part rushed
+forward to meet them. &ldquo;These,&rdquo; cried Liger, &ldquo;are
+not the steeds of Diomedes, nor this the plain of Troy. Here an end
+shall be put at once to thy life and to the war.&rdquo; Against
+these insults &AElig;neas prepared to give an answer otherwise than
+in words, and as Lucagus bent forward in readiness for the fight,
+the Trojan javelin whizzed through the rim of his shield, smote him
+in the groin, and hurled him, quivering in the pangs of death, out
+of the chariot. &AElig;neas assailed his dying ears with a bitter
+scoff: &ldquo;It is not, O Lucagus, the slowness of thy steeds in
+flight that hath lost thee thy chariot, but thou thyself, springing
+from thy seat, hast abandoned it.&rdquo; So saying, he seized the
+chariot; and now the miserable Liger, extending his hands in
+supplication, begged for his life. &ldquo;It was not in this
+fashion that thou spokest a little while since,&rdquo; replied the
+relentless hero. &ldquo;It would not be fitting that thou shouldst
+desert thy brother. Die, therefore, and attend him to the
+shades.&rdquo; With that he thrust the avenging sword through his
+heart, whence the trembling soul fled with a shriek.</p>
+<p>So &AElig;neas spread havoc amid the hostile ranks, and drove
+the forces of Turnus back in headlong rout, so that Ascanius and
+those who had hitherto been shut up in the fortifications were able
+to issue forth into the field. Meanwhile Jupiter, watching from
+Olympus the fortunes of the day, accosted his consort. &ldquo;Thou
+art in the right, my cherished queen, in alleging that Venus gives
+her aid to the Trojans; for without divine aid, how would it be
+possible for any mortal to achieve such deeds as &AElig;neas is now
+accomplishing?&rdquo; &ldquo;Why,&rdquo; submissively answered
+Juno, &ldquo;dost thou tease me, who am already oppressed with
+anguish for the fate of the people I befriend? Had I that share in
+your love which I once enjoyed, and which it is fitting for me to
+possess, thou surely couldst not refuse me this much, that I might
+have permission to rescue Turnus from the fate that threatens him,
+and restore him safe to his father Daunus. But since that cannot
+be, let him die, and glut the vengeance of the Trojan with his
+blood; yet his origin is divine, and often has he piled thy altars
+with sacrifices.&rdquo; Not unmoved, the ruler of the Gods replied,
+&ldquo;If you plead for a respite from immediate death, and a
+little breathing-time for the youth, I grant you to bear him from
+the field, and for a short time to preserve him. So far I will
+indulge you; but if you hope to gain any greater favor, and imagine
+that the whole predetermined course of the war is to be altered at
+your entreaty, you delude yourself with empty hopes.&rdquo; With
+tears Juno responded, &ldquo;What if thou shouldst grant in thy
+heart what in words thou dost refuse, and continue the life of
+Turnus for its natural duration? I fear much that a speedy end
+awaits the brave youth; but oh! I pray that I may be misled by
+groundless alarms, and that thou, to whom all power belongs, may
+alter thy purpose for the better.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Not daring to say more, the queen of heaven hastily descended
+from Olympus towards the contending armies. Then she devised an
+airy phantom, wearing armor which exactly resembled that of
+&AElig;neas, and imitating to the life his walk and mien. This
+shadow she caused to flutter in the forefront of the battle, full
+in the view of Turnus, and to provoke him with darts and insolent
+words. The enraged Rutulian eagerly pressed upon it, and from a
+distance hurled against it a spear. Immediately the spectre,
+wheeling about, took to flight. Turnus, imagining that in very
+truth it was the Trojan chief who feared to meet him, and filled
+with baseless exultation, cried out, &ldquo;&AElig;neas, whither
+dost thou fly? Desert not thus thy promised bride; with this right
+hand will I bestow upon thee the settled abode thou hast sought in
+vain through so many lands and seas.&rdquo; Thus vociferating, he
+madly pursued the deceitful phantom. It chanced that near the shore
+there lay a vessel, joined to the land by a temporary bridge of
+planks. Hither Juno led the shadow, and caused it in seeming fear
+to leap on board and throw itself into a hiding-place. With not
+less speed Turnus followed, bounded along the bridge, and mounted
+to the lofty prow of the ship in search of the supposed fugitive.
+Instantly the goddess severed the cable, and drove the vessel over
+the foaming waves. Then the phantom melted into the air, and the
+Rutulian, utterly bewildered, gazed about him in despair, nor did
+he feel at all thankful to the guardian deity for having thus
+preserved him from the arms of &AElig;neas. &ldquo;Almighty
+Father,&rdquo; he cried, raising his eyes and hands towards heaven,
+&ldquo;why dost thou think me worthy of such shame as this? What
+have I done to merit such a punishment? whither am I borne? How
+shall I venture again to enter the walls of Laurentum or look upon
+my camp? What will be said of me by the warriors who have followed
+me into this war, and whom&mdash;unutterable shame!&mdash;I have
+abandoned to the bloodthirsty Trojans! O winds! take pity on me, I
+entreat you; dash this vessel on some rugged crag, and overwhelm me
+so that I can no longer be conscious either of my humiliation or of
+the reproaches of my Rutulians.&rdquo; While he thus lamented, he
+was uncertain whether he should put an end to his own life with his
+sword or plunge into the sea and endeavor to regain the land by
+swimming. Three times he attempted each expedient, and as often
+Juno, full of pity, restrained him. Carried along by a favorable
+wind, the ship bore him safely to the capital of his father, King
+Daunus.</p>
+<p>Meanwhile &AElig;neas raged through the battle-field in search
+of the victim whom the queen of the Gods had thus snatched from his
+conquering hands. Under his leadership the Trojans and their
+allies, flushed with success, pressed more eagerly on their
+discomfited foe; but Mezentius now advanced to restore the courage
+of the Rutulians. The Etrurians, as soon as they saw their expelled
+monarch, out of hostility to whom they had engaged in the war,
+rushed upon him with shouts of rage; but he, as fearless as he was
+wicked, stood as firmly against them as a great rock on the shore
+meets all the fury of the winds and waves. Three warriors he
+overthrew in quick succession: Hebrus he cut down with his sword,
+Latagus he slew by hurling a great stone which battered in his
+face, and at Palmus he threw a javelin which pierced his thigh and
+extended him helpless on the ground. Then the raging king slew Evas
+the Phrygian, and a Trojan named Mimas, who in former days had been
+the companion of Paris, having been born in Troy on the same night
+that gave to the light the ill-starred son of Priam. Paris now lay
+in eternal repose amid the ruins of his native city, while to Mimas
+the sword of Mezentius assigned an unknown grave on the distant
+shore of Italy. And just as when an old wild boar, chased from his
+retreat amid the wooded Alps, stands at bay among the underwood,
+and the hunters, afraid to approach him, ply him with darts from a
+distance, while he gnashes his tusks with rage and faces them
+undaunted, so stood Mezentius; while his former subjects, though
+filled with just anger against him, and eager for his destruction,
+dare not come within reach of his dreaded sword, but galled him
+with spears and useless clamor. It chanced that a Greek from
+Corytus, named Acron, presented himself in the front, conspicuous
+in nodding plumes, and in purple trappings that had been worked for
+him by his betrothed wife. His gay attire caught the eye of
+Mezentius, who rushed forward and smote down the luckless Greek;
+then, as the others fell back, he cut off the retreat of an
+Etrurian chief, Orodes, forced him to engage hand to hand, and
+speedily slew him. Pressing his foot on the expiring warrior to
+draw out his lance from his body, Mezentius cried to his followers,
+&ldquo;Behold, friends! Orodes has fallen&mdash;not the meanest of
+our foes.&rdquo; The Rutulians raised a joyful shout, but the dying
+Orodes faintly answered, &ldquo;Not long shall thou rejoice with
+impunity over me; a similar fate awaits thyself, and soon shalt
+thou also be stretched lifeless on this same field.&rdquo; Smiling
+scornfully, Mezentius returned, &ldquo;Die thou, and leave my fate
+to the Gods, in whose hands it rests.&rdquo; His example inspired
+other of the Rutulians; they pressed fiercely forward and drove
+back the troops of &AElig;neas. Mezentius advanced at their head,
+and as he strode along, the Trojan hero espied him, and hastened
+towards him. Unawed by the prospect of an encounter even with so
+terrible a foe, Mezentius stood firm, and poising a huge spear in
+his hand, exclaimed,&mdash;for he was a contemner of the Gods, and
+never offered invocations to them,&mdash;&ldquo;Now let this right
+hand and this good dart be my aid; and then I vow that my son, my
+dear Lausus, shall be clad in the bright arms torn from the body of
+yon Trojan pirate.&rdquo; With these words he drew the spear. Sent
+with a true aim, it struck the shield of &AElig;neas, but glanced
+from the hardened surface, and turning aside, pierced the side of
+Antores, a faithful follower of Evander, who had come with Pallas
+to the war. Thus died Antores, by a weapon never aimed at him, but
+he was speedily avenged. &AElig;neas, putting all his might into
+the cast, now in his turn hurled his spear. It tore its way through
+the triple plates of Mezentius&rsquo; shield, through his corselet,
+and inflicted a severe wound in his groin, though its force was so
+far spent that the injury was not mortal.</p>
+<p>Overjoyed at the sight of his enemy&rsquo;s blood, &AElig;neas
+drew his sword from its sheath, and rushed upon Mezentius, who was
+as yet bewildered by the blow. When Lausus saw his father in such
+peril he sprang forward and stood before &AElig;neas, while
+Mezentius fell back among his friends, the Trojan lance still
+trailing in his armor. Lausus received the first stroke of
+&AElig;neas&rsquo; sword on his buckler, while the Rutulians with
+loud shouts applauded him, and poured on the Trojan hero a tempest
+of darts. Against this he protected himself with his shield, and
+meanwhile, pitying the youth and courage of Lausus, spoke to him in
+words of warning: &ldquo;Why do you thus rush on your own
+destruction, and attempt what is beyond your strength? Your filial
+devotion blinds you to your danger.&rdquo; But Lausus, resolute to
+defend his wounded sire, returned a haughty defiance. Then
+&AElig;neas could no longer control his wrath; he exerted all his
+strength, and thrust his terrible sword up to the hilt through the
+body of the youth, who sank lifeless on the blood-steeped ground.
+When &AElig;neas saw the comely young warrior stretched dead before
+him, his heart was filled with pity. &ldquo;Ill-fated youth!&rdquo;
+he cried, &ldquo;how can I testify my reverence for thy filial
+piety and thy undaunted valor? Thou shalt at least retain those
+arms which it was thy delight to wear, and thy body shall be given
+up unspoiled to thy friends.&rdquo; With that he summoned the
+dismayed followers of Lausus, and with his own hands raised from
+the ground the comely body, all disfigured with blood and wounds.
+Meantime Mezentius had retreated to the bank of the Tiber, where he
+took off his armor, and bathed his wound with water. While he was
+thus resting from the fatigues of the battle, he was full of
+anxiety for his son, and sent messenger after messenger to recall
+him from the fight. But too soon a crowd of weeping warriors
+appeared, carrying the corpse of Lausus in their arms. The
+sorrowing father divined what had occurred from their lamentations,
+even before the body was brought to him. He threw dust upon his
+head, he clasped the loved form in his arms, and bedewed the pallid
+face with his tears. &ldquo;O my son,&rdquo; he exclaimed,
+&ldquo;was I possessed with such a fond desire of life as to suffer
+thee to offer thyself in my place to the relentless foe? Am I
+preserved at the cost of these cruel wounds? Now, indeed, I feel
+the calamity of exile. My crimes have cost thee not only thy
+paternal throne and sceptre, but thy life also. It was I that owed
+expiation to my country, and should have satisfied my people by a
+deserved death. And yet I live! yet I do not quit the detested
+light! but I will quickly follow thee.&rdquo; Then he rose up, and
+though crippled by the wound in his thigh, and suffering anguish
+from its smart, he did not flinch, but ordered his attendants to
+bring his courser. This was a horse famous for its speed and its
+prompt obedience to the rein. When it was brought, he accosted it:
+&ldquo;Long have we lived together, Rh&oelig;bus, and many great
+deeds have we accomplished. To-day we shall either bear away the
+head of &AElig;neas and his arms all spattered with his blood, or
+we shall perish together; for I am assured that thou wilt never
+condescend to bear a Trojan lord.&rdquo; Then mounting the noble
+steed, he filled both hands with darts, and dashed recklessly into
+the midst of the battle. His heart swelling with rage and shame and
+grief, he thrice loudly summoned &AElig;neas to the combat.
+&AElig;neas heard, and rejoiced at the challenge; and with
+threatening spear advanced to meet his foe. &ldquo;Barbarous
+wretch,&rdquo; cried Mezentius, &ldquo;thinkest thou to affright me
+with thy weapons, now that thou hast robbed me of my son? That was
+the only means by which thou couldst destroy me. I fear neither
+death nor the anger of any of your gods. Forbear threats; now am I
+come hither to die, but first I bring you these gifts.&rdquo; So
+saying, he rapidly hurled one dart after another at the hero,
+whirling swiftly round him on his horse; but the shield framed by
+Vulcan&rsquo;s hands received all the shafts and repelled them.
+Wearied at last of so unequal a fight, in which he had to endure
+ceaseless attacks without striking a blow, &AElig;neas stepped
+forward, and hurled his spear against the charger, piercing its
+skull betwixt the ears. The fiery horse reared upward in the death
+agony, and then fell backward upon his rider, pressing him to the
+earth. The spectators of this fierce combat uplifted their voices
+in shouts, some in joy and others in sorrow, as &AElig;neas rushed
+up to the fallen warrior, and lifting his sword to deal the fatal
+blow, cried, &ldquo;Where is now the stern Mezentius?&rdquo; The
+Etrurian, on the other hand, replied, &ldquo;Spiteful foe, why dost
+thou threaten and insult before thou strikest? Thou wilt do me no
+wrong in slaying me. I sought thee expecting nothing else, and
+neither I nor my son has asked mercy at thy hands. One favor alone
+I implore of thee, that thou wilt give burial to my corpse. I know
+well that the hate of my former subjects would pursue me after
+death. Defend my remains, I entreat, from outrage, and grant me a
+grave along with my son.&rdquo; He said no more, but extended his
+throat to receive the fatal blow, which descended and drew forth
+his life as the blood poured over his armor.</p>
+<p>The shades of night were now gathering, and as the Rutulians and
+Latins had quitted the field in confusion, the conflicts of that
+sanguinary day were at last, ended.</p>
+<h3><a id="Conquers" name="Conquers">&AElig;neas Finally Conquers
+the Latins</a></h3>
+<p class="byline"><em>By Alfred J. Church</em></p>
+<p class="returnTOC"><a href="#Contents">Return to Table of
+Contents</a></p>
+<p>Prince Turnus was filled with rage. Even as a lion which a
+hunter hath wounded breaketh the arrow wherewith he hath been
+stricken, and rouseth himself to battle, shaking his mane and
+roaring, so Turnus arose. And first he spake to King Latinus,
+saying, &ldquo;I will meet this man face to face, and slay him
+while ye look on; or, if the Gods will that he vanquish me so, he
+shall rule over you, and have Lavinia to wife.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But King Latinus made answer, &ldquo;Yet think awhile, my son.
+Thou hast the kingdom of thy father Daunus; and there are other
+noble virgins in Latium whom thou mayest have to wife. Wilt thou
+not then be content? For to give my daughter to any husband of this
+nation I was forbidden, as thou knowest. Yet did I disobey, being
+moved by love of thee, my wife also beseeching me with many tears.
+Thou seest what troubles I and my people, and thou more than all,
+have suffered from that time. Twice have we fled in the battle, and
+now the city only is left to us. If I must yield me to these men,
+let me yield whilst thou art yet alive. For what doth it profit me
+that thou shouldst die? Nay, but all men would cry shame on me if I
+gave thee to death!&rdquo; Now for a space Turnus spake not for
+wrath. Then he said, &ldquo;Be not troubled for me, my father. For
+I, too, can smite with the spear; and as for this &AElig;neas, his
+mother will not be at hand to snatch him in a cloud from my
+sight.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Amata cried to him, saying, &ldquo;Fight not, I beseech
+thee, with these men of Troy, my son; for surely what thou
+sufferest I also shall suffer. Nor will I live to see &AElig;neas
+my son-in-law.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Lavinia heard the voice of her mother, and wept. As a man
+stains ivory with crimson, or as roses are seen mixed with lilies,
+even so the virgin&rsquo;s face burned with crimson. And Turnus,
+regarding her, loved her exceedingly, and made answer,
+&ldquo;Trouble me not with tears or idle words, my mother, for to
+this battle I must go. And do thou, Idmon the herald, say to the
+Phrygian king, &lsquo;To-morrow, when the sun shall rise, let the
+people have peace, but we two will fight together. And let him that
+prevaileth have Lavinia to wife.&rsquo;&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then first he went to the stalls of his horses. The wife of the
+North Wind gave them to Pilumnus. Whiter than snow were they, and
+swifter than the wind. Then he put the coat of mail about his
+shoulders, and fitted a helmet on his head, and took the great
+sword which Vulcan had made for Daunus his father, and had dipped
+it when it was white-hot in the river of Styx. His spear also he
+took where it stood against a pillar, saying, &ldquo;Serve me well,
+my spear, that hast never failed me before, that I may lay low this
+womanish robber of Phrygia, and soil with dust his curled and
+perfumed hair.&rdquo; The next day the men of Italy and the men of
+Troy measured out a space for the battle. And in the midst they
+builded an altar of turf. And the two armies sat on the one side
+and on the other, having fixed their spears in the earth and laid
+down their shields. Also the women and the old men stood on the
+towers and roofs of the city, that they might see the fight.</p>
+<p>But Queen Juno spake to Juturna, the sister of Turnus, saying,
+&ldquo;Seest thou how these two are now about to fight, face to
+face? And indeed Turnus goeth to his death. As for me, I endure not
+to look upon this covenant or this battle. But if thou canst do
+aught for thy brother, lo! the time is at hand.&rdquo; And when the
+nymph wept and beat her breast, Juno said, &ldquo;This is no time
+for tears. Save thy brother, if thou canst, from death; or cause
+that they break this covenant.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>After this came the kings, that they might make the covenant
+together. And King Latinus rode in a chariot with four horses, and
+he had on his head a crown with twelve rays of gold, for he was of
+the race of the sun; and Turnus came in a chariot with two white
+horses, having a javelin in either hand; and &AElig;neas had donned
+the arms which Vulcan had made, and with him was the young Iulus.
+And after due offering &AElig;neas sware, calling on all the Gods,
+&ldquo;If the victory shall fall this day to Turnus, the men of
+Troy shall depart to the city of Evander, nor trouble this land any
+more. But if it fall to me, I will not that the Latins should serve
+the men of Troy. Let the nations be equal one with the other. The
+gods that I bring we will worship together, but King Latinus shall
+reign as before. A new city shall the men of Troy build for me, and
+Lavinia shall call it after her own name.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then King Latinus sware, calling on the gods that are above and
+the gods that are below, saying, &ldquo;This covenant shall stand
+forever, whatsoever may befall. As sure as this sceptre which I
+bear&mdash;once it was a tree, but a cunning workman closed it in
+bronze, to be the glory of the Latian kings&mdash;shall never again
+bear twig or leaf, so surely shall this covenant be
+kept.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>But the thing pleased not the Latins; for before, indeed, they
+judged that the battle would not be equal between two; and now were
+they the more assured, seeing them when they came together, and
+that Turnus walked with eyes cast to the ground, and was pale and
+wan. Wherefore there arose a murmuring among the people, which when
+Juturna perceived, she took upon herself the likeness of Camertus,
+who was a prince and a great warrior among them, and passed through
+the host saying, &ldquo;Are ye not ashamed, men of Italy, that one
+man should do battle for you all? For count these men; surely they
+are scarce one against two. And if he be vanquished, what shame for
+you! As for him, indeed, though he die, yet shall his glory reach
+to the heavens; but ye shall suffer disgrace, serving these
+strangers forever.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And when she saw that the people were moved, she gave also a
+sign from heaven. For lo! an eagle, that drave a crowd of sea-fowl
+before him, swooped down to the water, and caught a great swan; and
+even while the Italians looked, the birds that before had fled
+turned and pursued the eagle, and drave him before them, so that he
+dropped the swan and fled away. Which thing when the Italians
+perceived they shouted, and made them ready for battle. And the
+augur Tolumnius cried, &ldquo;This is the token that I have looked
+for. For this eagle is the stranger, and ye are the birds, which
+before, indeed, have fled, but shall now make him to
+flee.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And he ran forward and cast his spear, smiting a man of Arcadia
+below the belt, upon the groin. One of nine brothers was he, sons
+of a Tuscan mother, but their father was a Greek; and they, when
+they saw him slain, caught swords and spears, and ran forward. And
+straightway the battle was begun. First they brake down the altars,
+that they might take firebrands therefrom; and King Latinus fled
+from the place. Then did Messapus drive his horses against King
+Aulestes of Mantua, who, being fain to fly, stumbled upon the altar
+and fell headlong on the ground. And Messapus smote him with a
+spear that was like a weaver&rsquo;s beam, saying, &ldquo;This, of
+a truth, is a worthier victim.&rdquo; After this Coryneus, the
+Arcadian, when Ebysus would have smitten him, snatched a brand from
+the altar and set fire to the beard of the man, and, before he came
+to himself, caught him by the hair, and thrusting him to the
+ground, so slew him. And when Podalirius pursued Alsus the
+shepherd, and now held his sword over him ready to strike, the
+other turned, and with a battle-axe cleft the man&rsquo;s head from
+forehead to chin.</p>
+<p>But all the while the righteous &AElig;neas, having his head
+bare, and holding neither spear nor sword, cried to the people,
+&ldquo;What seek ye? what madness is this? The covenant is
+established, and I only have the right to do battle.&rdquo; But
+even while he spake an arrow smote him, wounding him. But who let
+it fly no man knoweth; for who, of a truth, would boast that he had
+wounded &AElig;neas? And he departed from the battle.</p>
+<p>Now when Turnus saw that &AElig;neas had departed from the
+battle he called for his chariot. And when he had mounted thereon
+he drave it through the host of the enemy, slaying many valiant
+heroes, as Sthenelus and Pholus, and the two sons of Imbrasus the
+Lycian, Glaucus and Lades. Then he saw Eumedes, son of that Dolon
+who would have spied out the camp of the Greeks, asking as his
+reward the horses of Achilles (but Diomed slew him). Him Turnus
+smote with a javelin from afar, and, when he fell, came near and
+put his foot upon him, and taking his sword drave it into his neck,
+saying, &ldquo;Lo! now thou hast the land which thou soughtest. Lie
+there and measure out Italy for thyself.&rdquo; Many others he
+slew, for the army fled before him. Yet did one man, Phegeus by
+name, stand against him, and would have stayed the chariot,
+clutching the bridles of the horses in his hand. But as he clung to
+the yoke and was dragged along, Turnus broke his cuirass with his
+spear, and wounded him. And when the man set his shield before him,
+and made at Turnus with his sword, the wheels dashed him to the
+ground, and Turnus struck him between the helmet and the
+breastplate and smote off his head.</p>
+<p>But in the meanwhile Mnestheus and Achates and Iulus led
+&AElig;neas to the camp, leaning on his spear. Very wroth was he,
+and strove to draw forth the arrow. And when he could not, he
+commanded that they should open the wound with the knife, and so
+send him back to the battle. Iapis also, the physician, ministered
+to him. Now this Iapis was dearer than all other men to Apollo, and
+when the god would have given him all his arts, even prophecy and
+music and archery, he chose rather to know the virtues of herbs and
+the art of healing, that so he might prolong the life of his
+father, who was even ready to die. This Iapis, then, having his
+garments girt about him in healer&rsquo;s fashion, would have drawn
+forth the arrow with the pincers, but could not. And while he
+strove, the battle came nearer, and the sky was hidden by clouds of
+dust, and javelins fell thick into the camp. But when Venus saw how
+grievously her son was troubled, she brought from Ida, which is a
+mountain of Crete, the herb dittany. A hairy stalk it hath and a
+purple flower. The wild goats know it well if so be that they have
+been wounded by arrows. This, then, Venus, having hidden her face,
+brought and dipped into the water, and sprinkled there with
+ambrosia and sweet-smelling panacea.</p>
+<p>And Iapis, unawares, applied the water that had been healed; and
+lo! the pain was stayed and the blood was staunched and the arrow
+came forth, though no man drew it, and &AElig;neas&rsquo;s strength
+came back to him as before. Then said lapis, &ldquo;Art of mine
+hath not healed thee, my son. The Gods call thee to thy
+work.&rdquo; Then did &AElig;neas arm himself again, and when he
+had kissed Iulus and bidden him farewell, he went forth to the
+battle. And all the chiefs went with him, and the men of Troy took
+courage and drave back the Latins. Then befell a great slaughter,
+for Gyas slew Ufens, who was the leader of the &AElig;quians; also
+Tolumnius, the great augur, was slain, who had first broken the
+covenant, slaying a man with his spear. But &AElig;neas deigned not
+to turn his hand against any man, seeking only for Turnus, that he
+might fight with him. But when the nymph Juturna perceived this she
+was sore afraid. Therefore she came near to the chariot of her
+brother, and thrust out Metiscus, his charioteer, where he held the
+reins, and herself stood in his room, having made herself like to
+him in shape and voice. Then as a swallow flies through the halls
+and arcades of some rich man&rsquo;s house, seeking food for its
+young, so Juturna drave the chariot of her brother hither and
+thither. And ever &AElig;neas followed behind, and called to him
+that he should stay; but whenever he espied the man, and would have
+overtaken him by running, then again did Juturna turn the horses
+about and flee. And as he sped Messapus cast a spear at him. But
+&AElig;neas saw it coming, and put his shield over him, resting on
+his knee. Yet did the spear smite him on the helmet-top and shear
+off the crest. Then indeed was his wrath kindled, and he rushed
+into the army of the enemy, slaying many as he went.</p>
+<p>Then was there a great slaughter made on this side and on that.
+But after a while Venus put it into the heart of &AElig;neas that
+he should lead his army against the city. Therefore he called
+together the chiefs, and, standing in the midst of them on a mound,
+spake, saying, &ldquo;Hearken now to my words, and delay not to
+fulfill them, for of a truth Jupiter is on our side. I am purposed
+this day to lay this city of Latinus even with the ground, if they
+still refuse to obey. For why should I wait for Turnus till it
+please him to meet me in battle?&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then did the whole array make for the walls of the city. And
+some carried firebrands, and some scaling-ladders, and some slew
+the warders at the gates, and cast javelins at them who stood on
+the walls. And then there arose a great strife in the city, for
+some would have opened the gates that the men of Troy might enter,
+and others made haste to defend the walls. Hither and thither did
+they run with much tumult, even as bees in a hive in a rock which a
+shepherd hath filled with smoke, having first shut all the doors
+thereof.</p>
+<p>Then also did other ill fortune befall the Latins, for when
+Queen Amata saw from the roof of the palace that the enemy were
+come near to the walls, and saw not anywhere the army of the
+Latins, she supposed Turnus to have fallen in the battle.
+Whereupon, crying out that she was the cause of all these woes, she
+made a noose of the purple garment wherewith she was clad, and
+hanged herself from a beam of the roof. Then did lamentation go
+through the city, for the women wailed and tore their hair, and
+King Latinus rent his clothes and threw dust upon his head.</p>
+<p>But the cry that went up from the city came to the ears of
+Turnus where he fought in the farthest part of the plain. And he
+caught the reins and said, &ldquo;What meaneth this sound of
+trouble and wailing that I hear?&rdquo; And the false Metiscus, who
+was in truth his sister, made answer, &ldquo;Let us fight, O
+Turnus, here where the Gods give us victory. There are enough to
+defend the city.&rdquo; But Turnus spake, saying, &ldquo;Nay, my
+sister, for who thou art I have known even from the beginning; it
+must not be so. Why camest thou down from heaven? Was it to see thy
+brother die? And now what shall I do? Have I not seen Murranus die,
+and Ufens the &AElig;quian? And shall I suffer this city to be
+destroyed? Shall this land see Turnus flee before his enemies? Be
+ye kind to me, O gods of the dead, seeing that the gods of heaven
+hate me. I come down to you a righteous spirit, and not unworthy of
+my fathers.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And even as he spake came Saces, riding on a horse that was
+covered with foam, and on his face was the wound of an arrow. And
+he cried, &ldquo;O Turnus, our last hopes are in thee. For
+&AElig;neas is about to destroy the city, and the firebrands are
+cast upon the roofs. And King Latinus is sore tried with doubt, and
+the Queen hath laid hands upon herself and is dead. And now only
+Messapus and Atinas maintain the battle, and the fight grows fierce
+around them, whilst thou drivest thy chariot about these empty
+fields.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then for a while Turnus stood speechless, and shame and grief
+and madness were in his soul; and he looked to the city, and lo!
+the fire went up even to the top of the tower which he himself had
+builded upon the walls to be a defense against the enemy. And when
+he saw it, he cried, &ldquo;It is enough, my sister; I go whither
+the Gods call me. I will meet with &AElig;neas face to face, and
+endure my doom.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And as he spake he leapt down from his chariot, and ran across
+the plain till he came near to the city, even where the blood was
+deepest upon the earth, and the arrows were thickest in the air.
+And he beckoned with the hand and called to the Italians, saying,
+&ldquo;Stay now your arrows. I am come to fight this battle for you
+all.&rdquo; And when they heard it they left a space in the midst.
+&AElig;neas also, when he heard the name of Turnus, left attacking
+the city, and came to meet him, mighty as Athos, or Eryx, or Father
+Apenninus, that raiseth his snowy head to the heavens. And the men
+of Troy and the Latins and King Latinus marveled to see them meet,
+so mighty they were.</p>
+<p>First they cast their spears at each other, and then ran
+together, and their shields struck one against the other with a
+crash that went up to the sky. And Jupiter held the balance in
+heaven, weighing their doom. Then Turnus, rising to the stroke,
+smote fiercely with his sword. And the men of Troy and the Latins
+cried out when they saw him strike. But the treacherous sword brake
+in the blow. And when he saw the empty hilt in his hand he turned
+to flee. They say that when he mounted his chariot that day to
+enter the battle, not heeding the matter in his haste, he left his
+father&rsquo;s sword behind him, and took the sword of Metiscus,
+which, indeed, served him well while the men of Troy fled before
+him, but brake, even as ice breaks, when it came to the shield
+which Vulcan had made. Thereupon Turnus fled, and &AElig;neas,
+though the wound which the arrow had made hindered him, pursued.
+Even as a hound follows a stag that is penned within some narrow
+space, for the beast flees hither and thither, and the staunch
+Umbrian hound follows close upon him, and almost holds him, and
+snaps his teeth, yet bites him not, so did &AElig;neas follow hard
+on Turnus. And still Turnus cried out that some one should give him
+his sword, and &AElig;neas threatened that he would destroy the
+city if any should help him. Five times about the space they ran;
+not for some prize they strove, but for the life of Turnus. Now
+there stood in the plain the stump of a wild olive-tree. The tree
+was sacred to Faunus, but the men of Troy had cut it, and the stump
+only was left. Herein the spear of &AElig;neas was fixed, and now
+he would have drawn it forth that he might slay Turnus therewith,
+seeing that he could not overtake him by running. Which when Turnus
+perceived, he cried to Faunus, saying, &ldquo;O Faunus, if I have
+kept holy for thee that which the men of Troy have profaned, hold
+fast this spear.&rdquo; And the god heard him; nor could
+&AElig;neas draw it forth. But while he strove, Juturna, taking
+again the form of Metiscus, ran and gave to Turnus his sword. And
+Venus, perceiving it, wrenched forth the spear from the stump. So
+the two stood again face to face.</p>
+<p>Then spake Jupiter to Juno, where she sat in a cloud watching
+the battle, &ldquo;How long wilt thou fight against fate? What
+purpose hast thou now in thy heart? Was it well that
+Juturna&mdash;for what could she avail without thy
+help?&mdash;should give back to Turnus his sword? Thou hast driven
+the men of Troy over land and sea, and kindled a dreadful war, and
+mingled the song of marriage with mourning. Further thou mayest not
+go.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>And Juno humbly made answer, &ldquo;This is thy will, great
+Father; else had I not sat here, but stood in the battle smiting
+the men of Troy. And indeed I spake to Juturna that she should help
+her brother; but aught else I know not. And now I yield. Yet grant
+me this. Suffer not that the Latins should be called after the name
+of Troy, nor change their speech, nor their garb. Let Rome rule the
+world, but let Troy perish forever.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then spake with a smile the Maker of all things, &ldquo;Truly
+thou art a daughter of Saturn, so fierce is the wrath of thy soul.
+And now what thou prayest I give. The Italians shall not change
+name, nor speech, nor garb. The men of Troy shall mingle with them,
+and I will give them a new worship, and call them all Latins. Nor
+shall any race pay thee more honor than they.&rdquo;</p>
+<p>Then Jupiter sent a fury from the pit. And she took the form of
+a bird, even of an owl that sitteth by night on the roof of a
+desolate house, and flew before the face of Turnus and flapped her
+wings against his shield. Then was Turnus stricken with great fear,
+so that his hair stood up and his tongue clave to the roof of his
+mouth. And when Juturna knew the sound of the false bird what it
+was, she cried aloud for fear, and left her brother and fled,
+hiding herself in the river of Tiber.</p>
+<p>But &AElig;neas came on, shaking his spear that was like unto a
+tree, and said, &ldquo;Why delayest thou, O Turnus? Why drawest
+thou back? Fly now if thou canst through the air, or hide thyself
+in the earth.&rdquo; And Turnus made answer, &ldquo;I fear not thy
+threats, but the Gods and Jupiter, that are against me this
+day.&rdquo; And as he spake he saw-a great stone which lay hard by,
+the landmark of a field. Scarce could twelve chosen men, such as
+men are now, lift it on their shoulders. This he caught from the
+earth and cast it at his enemy, running forward as he cast. But he
+knew not, so troubled was he in his soul, that he ran or that he
+cast, for his knees tottered beneath him and his blood grew cold
+with fear. And the stone fell short, nor reached the mark. Even as
+in a dream, when dull sleep is on the eyes of a man, he would fain
+run but cannot, for his strength faileth him, neither cometh there
+any voice when he would speak; so it fared with Turnus. For he
+looked to the Latins and to the city, and saw the dreadful spear
+approach, nor knew how he might fly, neither how he might fight,
+and could not spy anywhere his chariot or his sister. And all the
+while &AElig;neas shook his spear and waited that his aim should be
+sure. And at the last he threw it with all his might. Even as a
+whirlwind it flew, and brake through the seven folds of the shield
+and pierced the thigh. And Turnus dropped with his knee bent to the
+ground. And all the Latins groaned aloud to see him fall. Then he
+entreated &AElig;neas, saying, &ldquo;I have deserved my fate. Take
+thou that which thou hast won. Yet perchance thou mayest have pity
+on the old man, my father, even Daunus, for such an one was thy
+father Anchises, and give me back to my own people, if it be but my
+body that thou givest. Yet hast thou conquered, and the Latins have
+seen me beg my life of thee, and Lavinia is thine. Therefore I pray
+thee, stay now thy wrath.&rdquo; Then for a while &AElig;neas stood
+doubting; aye, and might have spared the man, when lo! he spied
+upon his shoulders the belt of Pallas, whom he had slain. And his
+wrath was greatly kindled, and he cried with a dreadful voice,
+&ldquo;Shalt thou who art clothed with the spoils of my friends
+escape me? &rsquo;Tis Pallas slays thee with this wound, and takes
+vengeance on thy accursed blood.&rdquo; And as he spake he drave
+the steel into his breast. And with a groan the wrathful spirit
+passed into darkness.</p>
+<hr class="short" />
+<p>According to the old legends &AElig;neas wedded the fair
+Lavinia, founded his city of Lavinium, and ruled over it for three
+years. Then in a battle with the Rutulians, or some other Italian
+people, he disappeared; and as his body was not found after the
+conflict was over, it was believed that the Gods had taken him up
+to heaven. His son Ascanius peacefully succeeded him, and removed
+the capital of his kingdom to Alba Longa, which city again, after
+the lapse of centuries, gave birth to mighty Rome.</p>
+<hr />
+<h2>End of Volume III</h2>
+
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<hr class="full" />
+<p>***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CHILDREN'S HOUR, VOLUME 3 (OF 10)***</p>
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@@ -0,0 +1,12785 @@
+The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Children's Hour, Volume 3 (of 10), by
+Various, Edited by Eva March Tappan
+
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+
+
+
+Title: The Children's Hour, Volume 3 (of 10)
+
+Author: Various
+
+Release Date: January 21, 2005  [eBook #14752]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII)
+
+
+***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CHILDREN'S HOUR, VOLUME 3 (OF
+10)***
+
+
+E-text prepared by Bill Tozier, Barbara Tozier, and the Project Gutenberg
+Online Distributed Proofreading Team
+
+
+
+Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this
+      file which includes the original illustrations.
+      See 14752-h.htm or 14752-h.zip:
+      (https://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/1/4/7/5/14752/14752-h/14752-h.htm)
+      or
+      (https://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/1/4/7/5/14752/14752-h.zip)
+
+
+
+
+
+THE CHILDREN'S HOUR
+
+In Ten Volumes
+
+Illustrated
+
+VOLUME III
+
+STORIES FROM THE CLASSICS
+
+Selected & Arranged by
+
+EVA MARCH TAPPAN
+
+Houghton Mifflin Company
+
+1907
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration: "_It is strange that they let that dog lie there_"]
+
+
+
+
+Between the dark and the daylight, when the night is beginning to lower
+comes a pause in the days occupations, that is known as the Children's
+Hour.
+
+
+
+
+NOTE
+
+
+All rights in stories in this volume are reserved by the holders of the
+copyrights. The publishers and others named in the subjoined list are the
+proprietors, either in their own right or as agents for the authors, of
+the stories taken from the works enumerated, of which the ownership is
+hereby acknowledged. The editor takes this opportunity to thank both
+authors and publishers for the ready generosity with which they have
+allowed her to include these stories in "The Children's Hour."
+
+"The Wonder-Book," and "Tanglewood Tales," by Nathaniel Hawthorne;
+published by Houghton, Mifflin & Company.
+
+"Old Greek Folk Stories," by Josephine Preston Peabody; published by
+Houghton, Mifflin & Company.
+
+"The Odyssey of Homer," English prose version by George Herbert Palmer;
+published by Houghton, Mifflin & Company.
+
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+  TO THE CHILDREN
+
+  STORIES FROM HERODOTUS
+    LADRONIUS, THE PRINCE OF THIEVES
+                  Retold by G. H. Boden and W. Barrington d'Almeida
+    ARION AND THE DOLPHIN
+                  Retold by G. H. Boden and W. Barrington d'Almeida
+
+  STORIES FROM LIVY
+    ROMULUS, FOUNDER OF ROME                       Alfred J. Church
+    HOW HORATIUS HELD THE BRIDGE                   Alfred J. Church
+    HOW CINCINNATUS SAVED ROME                     Alfred J. Church
+    THE STORY OF VIRGINIA                          Alfred J. Church
+    THE SACRIFICE OF MARCUS CURTIUS                Alfred J. Church
+
+  STORIES FROM OVID
+    THE MIRACULOUS PITCHER                      Nathaniel Hawthorne
+    THE GOLDEN TOUCH                            Nathaniel Hawthorne
+    THE POMEGRANATE SEEDS                       Nathaniel Hawthorne
+
+  OLD GREEK FOLK-STORIES
+    ORPHEUS AND EURYDICE                  Josephine Preston Peabody
+    ICARUS AND DAEDALUS                    Josephine Preston Peabody
+    PHAETHON                              Josephine Preston Peabody
+    NIOBE                                 Josephine Preston Peabody
+    PYRAMUS AND THISBE                    Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+  STORIES OF THE TROJAN WAR
+    THE APPLE OF DISCORD                  Josephine Preston Peabody
+    THE QUARREL BETWEEN AGAMEMNON AND ACHILLES     Alfred J. Church
+    THE FIGHT BETWEEN PARIS AND MENELAUS            Walter C. Perry
+    THE DUEL BETWEEN HECTOR AND AJAX                Walter C. Perry
+    THE DEATH OF PATROCLUS AND THE BATTLE OF THE RIVER
+                                                   Alfred J. Church
+    VULCAN MAKES ARMOR FOR ACHILLES                 Walter C. Perry
+    THE SLAYING OF HECTOR                           Walter C. Perry
+    THE FUNERAL GAMES IN HONOR OF PATROCLUS         Walter C. Perry
+    THE WOODEN HORSE AND THE FALL OF TROY Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+  THE WANDERINGS OF ULYSSES
+    AN ADVENTURE WITH THE CYCLOPS                  Alfred J. Church
+    CIRCE'S PALACE                              Nathaniel Hawthorne
+    THE SIRENS--SCYLLA AND CHARYBDIS
+                                Translated by George Herbert Palmer
+
+  ULYSSES IN ITHACA
+    ULYSSES LANDS ON THE SHORE OF ITHACA
+                    F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+    ULYSSES AT THE HOUSE OF THE SWINEHERD
+                    F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+    THE VENGEANCE OF ULYSSES
+      A. HIS RECEPTION AT THE PALACE
+                    F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+      B. THE TRIAL OF THE BOW
+                                Translated by George Herbert Palmer
+      C. THE SLAYING OF THE SUITORS
+                    F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+      D. PENELOPE RECOGNIZES ULYSSES
+                                Translated by George Herbert Palmer
+
+  THE WANDERINGS OF THE TROJAN AENEAS
+    THE FLIGHT OF AENEAS FROM THE RUINS OF TROY     Alfred J. Church
+    AENEAS'S ADVENTURE WITH THE HARPIES         Charles Henry Hanson
+    AENEAS IN THE LAND OF THE CYCLOPS           Charles Henry Hanson
+    AENEAS AND QUEEN DIDO                           Alfred J. Church
+    THE FUNERAL GAMES OF ANCHISES              Charles Henry Hanson
+    AENEAS'S VISIT TO THE LOWER WORLD           Charles Henry Hanson
+    AENEAS'S FIRST GREAT BATTLE WITH THE LATINS Charles Henry Hanson
+    AENEAS FINALLY CONQUERS THE LATINS              Alfred J. Church
+
+
+
+
+ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+
+  "IT IS STRANGE THAT THEY LET THAT DOG LIE THERE"
+                                                L.F. Schutzenberger
+
+  "I AM AFRAID THERE WILL NOT BE HALF ENOUGH SUPPER"   Walter Crane
+
+  THEY LEAPED OUT OF THE BOTTOMLESS HOLE     George Wharton Edwards
+
+  TO HIM AT LAST THE THREE GODDESSES INTRUSTED THE JUDGMENT
+  AND THE GOLDEN APPLE                                Giulio Romano
+
+  FIERCE WAS THE FIGHT ABOUT THE BODY OF PATROCLUS    Giulio Romano
+
+  A GREAT IMAGE OF A HORSE                              Franz Cleyn
+
+  THE CYCLOPS IN HIS WRATH BRAKE OFF THE TOP OF A GREAT HILL
+                                                L.F. Schutzenberger
+
+  "DEAR SON, HAVE YOU COME HOME AT LAST?"              G. Truffault
+
+  THE FLIGHT FROM TROY                                  Franz Cleyn
+
+  THE VICTORY OF EURYALUS                               Franz Cleyn
+
+
+
+
+TO THE CHILDREN
+
+
+The greater part of this book is made up of stories from the poems of
+Homer and Virgil. Homer is thought to have lived in Greece about three
+thousand years ago, and yet his poems never seem old-fashioned and people
+do not tire of reading them. Boys and girls almost always like them,
+because they are so full of stories. If you want to read about giants or
+mermaids or shipwrecks or athletic contests or enchanters or furious
+battles or the capture of cities or voyages to strange countries, all you
+have to do is to open the Iliad and the Odyssey, and you will find stories
+on all of these subjects. Homer can describe a foot-race or the throwing
+of a discus so that you hold your breath to see who will win; and he can
+picture a battle so vividly that you almost try to dodge the arrows and
+spears. He can make the tears come into your eyes by telling you of the
+grief of the warrior's wife when he leaves her and their baby son to go to
+battle; and he can almost make you shout, "Hurrah for the brave champion!"
+when he tells you what wonderful deeds of prowess have been done. He can
+describe a shield so minutely that you could make one like it; and he can
+paint a scene of feasting so perfectly that you feel as if you had been in
+the very room.
+
+How is it that Homer makes his stories seem so real? There are several
+reasons, but one of the strongest is because he tells the little things
+that writers often forget to put in. When he describes the welcome given
+to two strangers at the house of the lost Ulysses, by Telemachus, son of
+the wanderer, he begins, "When they were come within the lofty hall, he
+carried the spear to a tall pillar and set it in a well-worn rack." That
+one word, "well-worn," gives us the feeling that Homer is not making up a
+story, but that he has really seen the rack and noticed how it looked. The
+same sentence shows why it is that people do not tire of reading Homer. It
+ends, "where also stood many a spear of hardy Ulysses." This reminds the
+reader that in spite of the hero's long years of absence, no one has been
+allowed to remove his weapons from their old place. From this one phrase,
+then, we can realize how much his wife and son love him, and how they have
+mourned for him. Telemachus welcomes the strangers, but we can feel how
+eager he is for them to be made comfortable as soon as possible so he can
+talk of his father and learn whether they have chanced to meet him in
+their wanderings. Homer's poems are full of such sentences as these; and,
+no matter how many times one reads them, some thought, unnoticed before,
+is ever coming to light. That is why they are always fresh and new and
+interesting.
+
+There is a tradition that Homer was blind, and that he wandered about from
+one place to another, singing or reciting his poems; but this is only
+tradition, and there is little hope that we shall ever be able to find out
+whether it is true or not.
+
+Homer's great poem, the Iliad, is the account of the Trojan War. His
+Odyssey relates the adventures of the hero Ulysses, or Odysseus, as the
+Greeks called him, in many years of wandering at the close of the war
+before his enemies among the Gods would permit him to return to his home.
+There were Trojan heroes, however, as well as Greek, and AEneas was one of
+them. Virgil, the Latin poet, has told in the AEneid the story of his
+troubles and adventures. AEneas, too, was driven over the waters, for the
+Gods had told him it was the will of Jupiter, or Zeus, as it is in Greek,
+for him to seek Italy and there found a city. Part of his journey is the
+same as that of Ulysses. He, too, stops at the country of the one-eyed
+giants and has to row as fast as he can to escape the rocks that they
+throw at his vessel. He, too, hears the thunders of Mount AEtna and sees
+the flashing of the fires of the volcano. His sailors point to it in fear
+and whisper to one another, "That is the giant Enceladus. He rebelled
+against the Gods and they piled the mountain on top of him. The fires of
+Jupiter burn him, and he breathes out glowing flames. When he tosses from
+one side to the other, the whole island of Sicily is shaken with a mighty
+earthquake."
+
+Virgil was no homeless singer; he was one of the great literary men of
+Rome, and he read his poems aloud to the Emperor Augustus. He had a
+handsome villa and a troop of friends. He enjoyed everything that was
+beautiful and seemed as happy when a friend had written a good poem as if
+he had composed it himself. He was never satisfied with his verse till he
+had made every line as perfect as possible. When he was ill and knew that
+he could not recover, he made a will, and in it he ordered the AEneid to be
+burned, because it was not so polished as he wished. "I meant to spend
+three years more on it," he said. Fortunately for all the people who enjoy
+a great poem, the Emperor forbade that this part of the will should be
+carried out. He gave the manuscript to three friends of Virgil, all of
+them poets, with orders to strike out every phrase that they believed
+Virgil would have struck out on revision, but not to add one word. This is
+the way that the AEneid was saved for us. If it had been destroyed, we
+should have lost the work of one of the best storytellers that have ever
+lived.
+
+Livy, too, was a friend of the Emperor Augustus, He lived in Rome,
+enjoying his companions, the libraries of the city, and, most of all, his
+independence. Even Virgil was ready to insert a few lines here and there
+in a poem to gratify his friends, or to choose a subject that he knew
+would please the Emperor; but Livy wrote on the subject that pleased him
+and treated it just as he believed to be best. His great work was his
+history, and this he begins with a little preface, as independent as it is
+graceful. "Whether I shall gain any share of glory," he says, "by writing
+a history of the Roman people, I do not know. The work, however, will be a
+pleasure to me; and even if any fame that might otherwise be mine should
+be hidden by the success of other writers, I shall console myself by
+thinking of their excellence and greatness." No such thing happened,
+however, for the kindly historian was so praised and his work so fully
+appreciated that he said he had all the fame he could wish.
+
+Herodotus was a Greek who liked to travel. The world was very small in his
+day, for little of it was known except some of the lands bordering on the
+Mediterranean. To visit Tyre, Babylon, Egypt, Palestine, and the islands
+of the eastern Mediterranean, as he did, made a man a great traveler five
+centuries before Christ. Herodotus enjoyed all these wanderings, but they
+also "meant business" to him. Whenever he came to a place of historical
+interest, he stayed awhile. He explored the country thereabouts, he
+measured the important buildings, he talked with the people who knew most
+about the place. Then, when he came to write of its history, he did not
+write like a man who had read an article or two in an encyclopaedia and was
+trying to recite what he had learned, but like one who knew the place
+which he was describing and liked to talk about it, and about what had
+happened there. It is no wonder that his history has always been a
+favorite; and to be a favorite author for twenty centuries is no small
+glory.
+
+Ovid was a Latin poet who knew how to tell a story. He could not only
+invent a tale, but he could tell it so well that the reader feels as if it
+must be true. His most interesting stories, however, he did not invent,
+for they are a rewriting of the old mythological tales. In one respect he
+is like Homer; he never forgets the little things, and he tells so many
+details that we can hardly believe he is imagining them. In his story of
+Baucis and Philemon, for instance, Ovid does not forget to say that the
+cottage door was so low that the two gods had to stoop to pass through it;
+that Baucis hurried to brighten the fire with dry leaves and bits of bark;
+that one leg of the table was too short and had to be propped up with a
+piece of tile. He tells us that the kindhearted couple tried to catch
+their one goose so as to cook it for the supper of their guests; but that
+they were so old, and the goose so nimble of wing, that he escaped them
+and flew to the Gods for refuge. We are so accustomed to think of Latin as
+a grave, dignified language that almost every line of Ovid's
+"Metamorphoses" is a pleasant surprise. The stories that he tells, "The
+Miraculous Pitcher", "The Golden Touch", "The Pomegranate Seeds", and
+others, retold by Hawthorne, are favorites among the boys and girls of
+to-day, and they must have been liked just as well by the Roman children.
+In Rome the children read the great poets in school, and I fancy that they
+were always glad when the hour came to read the "Metamorphoses."
+
+
+
+
+STORIES FROM HERODOTUS
+
+
+LADRONIUS, THE PRINCE OF THIEVES
+
+Retold by G. H. Boden and W. Barrington d'Almeida
+
+
+Many hundreds of years ago, not long after the Greeks returned from the
+famous siege of Troy, there lived a king of Egypt, whose name was
+Rhampsinitus. So great a king was he, that he kept a small army constantly
+employed in supplying the royal household with food, and another small
+army was required to keep the gardens of the palace in order. And had any
+one been bold enough to doubt the greatness of the king, he need only have
+looked at his magnificent dress to set all doubts at rest forever. Upon
+the neck of the king was a heavy necklace, glittering with priceless
+jewels, and on his arms were massive bracelets of pure gold. A golden
+serpent, the symbol of royalty, gleamed from his forehead, and his golden
+breastplate showed the sacred beetle worked in precious stones, to protect
+him from evil spirits. Whenever he appeared in the streets of his capital,
+he was borne in the royal chair on the shoulders of eight of his
+courtiers, while on each side walked a great noble carrying a fan, shaped
+like a palm leaf, with a long, straight stem. In front marched the
+bodyguard of Sardinians, men with fair skins and blue eyes, who looked
+very much out of place among the swarthy Egyptians; and last of all came
+the grim, black guards from Ethiopia, with their sabres flashing in the
+sun. And all the people fell on their faces and kissed the dust before
+their royal master. Moreover, King Rhampsinitus erected several enormous
+statues of himself, as well as many fine palaces and a beautiful temple,
+bearing inscriptions which related all his great and glorious deeds, so
+that the people who lived after him might know how great a king he had
+been.
+
+But, in spite of all his greatness, there was one thing that prevented
+King Rhampsinitus from being a happy man. He had so many treasures--masses
+of silver, nuggets of gold, and bags of gold-dust, jewelry, precious
+stones, and carvings in ivory--that he lived in constant fear of being
+robbed. He had all his treasures packed in large jars and strong chests,
+which were securely fastened, sealed up, and stowed away in a strong room
+of the palace; but even then he did not feel comfortable, for might not
+the palace be broken into by a clever thief and part of his treasure
+stolen, while he slept? Besides, there was so much treasure packed away
+already, that it was difficult to find a safe place for any more. His
+anxiety made the king so unhappy, and caused him so many sleepless nights,
+that he determined at last to build a large chamber of stone, with walls
+too thick for any thief to break through. He sent for his chief architect,
+who collected a great multitude of workmen and set to work building the
+chamber without delay. Whole villages were compelled to join in the work;
+even the old men and children were employed in carrying away rubbish,
+bringing water and clay, and doing other work that was not too hard for
+them. The stronger and more skillful workmen hewed great blocks of
+granite, which were dragged to the place on wooden sledges; and, as they
+had no cranes to lift the stones into their places on the walls, they were
+obliged to build mounds of sand and rough bricks, and roll up each stone
+gradually with wooden levers, until they got it into its proper place. It
+was terribly hard work, but there were so many workmen, and the foremen
+used their whips so unmercifully, that the walls rose very rapidly.
+
+Now the architect was a cunning man, and guessed what the chamber was
+intended to hold. He therefore fitted one stone in such a way that it
+would slide down and leave a hole just large enough for a man to crawl
+through; and yet, when you looked at the wall, there was no sign at all by
+which the secret could be discovered. Nor did the architect think it
+necessary to mention the secret opening to his majesty, when he showed the
+chamber to him and told him that it was as strong as he could make it.
+
+Rhampsinitus lost no time in moving his treasures into the new
+treasure-chamber. The key he kept with him night and day, so that at last
+he could sleep peacefully, knowing that any one who wished to pass the
+solid, brass-bound door, must first prevail upon him to unlock it.
+
+For some time all went well. The king went to the treasury every morning,
+and found everything in its place. Evidently he had been too clever for
+the thieves.
+
+In the mean time the architect was lying ill in bed, and day by day he
+grew weaker and weaker; until at length he knew that his end was
+approaching, and, calling his two sons to his bedside, he told them of the
+secret way into the treasure-chamber.
+
+"I have little of my own to leave you, my sons," he said, "and I have but
+little influence at court; but by the aid of this secret, which I devised
+for your sake, you may become rich men, and hold the office of king's
+treasurers for life."
+
+The young men were delighted at his words, and so impatient were they to
+enjoy their good fortune, that on the very night of their father's funeral
+they stole away quietly to the place where the treasure-house stood. They
+found the sliding stone exactly as their father had described it. The
+younger and slimmer of the two brothers crawled through the opening and
+found himself in a dark chamber, surrounded by heavy chests and jars with
+sealed covers. Breaking open one of the latter, he put in his hand and
+drew out a handful of gold, which sparkled and twinkled at him even in the
+faint light which came through the hole in the wall. Handful after handful
+he drew out and passed to his brother, at the same time filling the bags
+he had brought with him, until both had as much as they could conveniently
+carry. Then they replaced the stone, and returned to lay the treasure
+before their mother; for in those days stealing was considered rather a
+clever trick, and even the thief's mother did not scold him, so long as he
+was not so clumsy as to be caught.
+
+Imagine the consternation of King Rhampsinitus when he visited the chamber
+the following morning! Everything seemed as secure as ever, and yet, when
+he opened the door, there lay one of the great jars turned over and empty,
+while the lid of one of the chests was broken open and part of the
+contents scattered on the floor. He examined every nook and cranny of the
+chamber from floor to ceiling, and there was no sign of any one's having
+forced an entrance. The fastenings of the door were firm, and the lock was
+one which it was perfectly impossible to pick. For greater security,
+however, Rhampsinitus sent at once for a locksmith, and commanded him to
+fit the door with a second lock, the key of which he kept with the other.
+
+Notwithstanding this precaution, the treasure-chamber was robbed again on
+the next night, and this time the thieves had broken open a great many of
+the chests, and carried away some of the most valuable jewels. On the
+following night a sentinel was posted, and still the treasury was robbed.
+The sentinel vowed that he had stood with his back to the door all night,
+and there is little doubt that he spoke the truth, though the poor fellow
+was accused of sleeping at his post, and punished for his negligence.
+
+Then the king took counsel of the fan-bearer on the right hand, who was
+also prime minister. He made a long speech, beginning with his regret that
+his majesty had not thought fit to consult him earlier, and concluding
+with a learned discourse on the habits of rats.
+
+"This is all very interesting," said Rhampsinitus, "but I do not see that
+it helps very much to protect my treasure."
+
+"I crave your majesty's pardon," the prime minister answered. "I was about
+to observe that the best way to catch a rat is first to study the habits
+and tastes of the rat, and next to apply the knowledge so gained in
+setting a trap."
+
+From which one may see that the prime minister was a very learned man, and
+could not be expected to come to the point all at once. The king thanked
+him for his valuable advice, and procured two or three powerful man-traps,
+which he placed within his treasure-chamber.
+
+Night came on, and the two thieves set to work as before, but no sooner
+had the younger brother disappeared through the hole in the wall than he
+began to utter loud cries of agony.
+
+"Peace, brother! You will rouse the guard," said the elder. "What can have
+befallen you?"
+
+The other controlled himself, and said with a groan, "Ladronius, we are
+ruined. I am held fast in a trap, and I think my leg is broken. O Horus,
+Lord of Life, deliver me!"
+
+With some difficulty Ladronius crawled through the opening to aid his
+brother, for, though a thief, he was no coward.
+
+"Go back, Ladronius, go back!" cried his brother. "Leave me to my fate! I
+think I hear the cries of the guard. No, brother, waste no more time!" he
+entreated, as Ladronius tugged in vain at the cruel teeth of the trap.
+"One thing remains to be done. Cut off my head, and take it away with you,
+that I may not be recognized and so we both perish! I hear the footsteps
+of men approaching. Do not rob our mother of both her sons!"
+
+And Ladronius, seeing that there was nothing else to be done, drew his
+sword, cut off his brother's head, and escaped through the opening, not
+forgetting to replace the stone behind him. He was only just in time, for
+scarcely had he gained the cover of a clump of trees, when the soldiers of
+the guard came running to the place and began to belabor the door. To
+their surprise they found everything quiet and nothing displaced. They
+examined the outside of the building thoroughly, and then, supposing that
+they had been roused by a false alarm, they returned to the palace.
+
+In the morning, Rhampsinitus paid his daily visit to the chamber, and
+discovered the headless body in the trap. He was more puzzled than ever.
+He examined the fastenings of the door and the whole of the chamber over
+and over again, and no hole nor crevice could he find.
+
+"Nevertheless," said he, "I have now bait for my trap. What can I do
+better than set a thief to catch a thief?"
+
+So he ordered the body to be hung from the outer wall of the chamber, and
+placed sentinels to guard it, strictly charging them to bring before him
+any one who showed pity or sorrow for the dead.
+
+When the mother heard of her son's death and how the body had been
+treated, she reproached Ladronius bitterly for his cowardice, and implored
+him with many tears to bring back the body for proper burial. For the
+Egyptians thought that unless a man's body were properly embalmed and
+buried whole, he could have no life in the next world; so that it would be
+a terrible misfortune if the head and the body were buried separately.
+Ladronius attempted to comfort his mother, but did not dare to carry off
+his brother's body so long as the sentinels were watching. In vain his
+mother wept and entreated him, until at last her grief was turned to
+anger, and she vowed that, if he did not obey her, she would go to the
+king and tell him the whole story. Then Ladronius, seeing her so
+determined, promised to do as she wished, and set his wits to work to
+invent some means of carrying off the body without being caught by the
+sentinels. At last he thought of a plan, which seemed to have some chance
+of success. He hired two donkeys, and having bought some wineskins, which
+were used in the place of bottles, he filled them with strong wine and
+placed them on the donkeys' backs.
+
+Thus equipped, and dressed up to look like an old merchant, he set out for
+the place where his brother's body was suspended. When he drew near to the
+sentinels, he secretly loosened some of the strings which fastened the
+necks of the wineskins, and then whipping the donkeys and letting them run
+on a little way in front, he pursued them with loud cries.
+
+"Oh, miserable wretch that I am!" he cried, beating his head and looking
+the very picture of despair. "All my good wine wasted on the ground! What
+shall I do? Oh, what shall I do? Stop, most ungrateful of donkeys,
+children of Set, that devour my substance and waste my wine as if it were
+water! May Tefnet plague you with gadflies, and Renenutet poison the
+thistles! Oh dear! oh dear! I am a ruined man."
+
+The soldiers, supposing it to be a genuine accident, laughed loudly at the
+fellow's distress, and while some chased and caught the donkeys, the
+others brought bowls and pitchers and began to drink the wine, as it ran
+out of the skins.
+
+"Never mind, worthy sir!" they said to Ladronius. "The wine is serving a
+very good purpose. Here is to our future friendship and your excellency's
+very good health!"
+
+Ladronius pretended to fly into a great passion, and called them thieves
+and monsters of iniquity for robbing a poor man of his wine.
+
+"Ay, laugh away!" he cried. "But a day of reckoning will come for your
+wickedness. See how the law treats robbers!" And he pointed to his
+brother's body hanging on the wall.
+
+"Now, by Anubis, the fellow speaks truth," said one of the soldiers. "We
+are but sorry fellows to drink away a poor man's living, and if this were
+to come to the ears of the king, we should be in evil case for leaving our
+duty."
+
+The others laughed good-humoredly, as they tied up some of the skins, and
+did their best to put the merchant into a good temper. Ladronius, after a
+little more grumbling, appeared to be pacified, and, as a sign of
+good-will, presented a wineskin to the soldier who had first spoken in his
+favor.
+
+"May you never want a young friend to speak for you in your old age," said
+he, "and may you meet with no worse companions than these; for though they
+seem to be somewhat headstrong, yet I perceive that I spoke hard words in
+my anger."
+
+The soldiers, who by this time had sat down on the grass and were passing
+the wineskin from one to another, declared that the merchant was a
+good-hearted old fellow and invited him to come and drink their health.
+
+"Nay, my masters," said Ladronius, pretending to adjust the straps on the
+donkeys' backs. "I have far to go, and I am but a little way on my
+journey."
+
+But, as they pressed him, he consented to drink one cup with them before
+he went. "Though in truth," he added, "if I mistake not, the skin is
+emptied already. I see that you would force me to part with another,
+before I set out."
+
+As he spoke, he produced another wineskin, and the soldiers, who were
+growing merry, greeted him with a shout of delight, and insisted on his
+sitting down with them. Ladronius, still declaring that he could stay only
+long enough to drink one cup with them, allowed himself to be placed in
+the midst, where he presently proved himself so good a companion and told
+so many merry tales that the soldiers would not hear of his departure.
+They drank more and more heavily, until at length a third skin was opened,
+and one by one the sentinels were overpowered by the strong wine, and all
+lay asleep on the ground.
+
+By this time it had grown dark, and Ladronius, who had pretended to be as
+drunk as the rest, cautiously raised his head, and finding that all the
+sentinels were snoring, he took down his brother's body and carried it
+off. But, before he went, he shaved the right side of the head of each of
+the sentinels, to show his contempt for the king's precautions.
+
+The king was furious when he discovered the failure of his plan and the
+insult offered to his guards, all of whom were beheaded for their
+disobedience to his orders. He was more determined than ever to catch the
+thief, and after taking counsel once more with his prime minister, he
+decided upon another plan. He caused a proclamation to be made, in which
+he promised the hand of his daughter to the man whom she should consider
+the cleverest and most wicked of all men. He commanded the princess to sit
+on a throne in the temple of Ra, the sun-god, and to speak to all who came
+to pay their homage to her, asking them what was the cleverest and most
+wicked deed they had done. But secretly Rhampsinitus told her that, if any
+one related the story of the robbing of the treasury, she was to seize him
+by the hand, and hold him till the guards came and secured him.
+
+The moment Ladronius heard the proclamation, he saw that it was another
+trick to catch him, but he was so daring and so fond of adventure that he
+could not resist the temptation to outdo the king in cunning once more. He
+determined actually to put his head in the lion's mouth--in other words,
+to go boldly to the temple and talk to the princess. He took with him
+under his cloak the strangest of presents, an arm cut from a dead man's
+body.
+
+When he entered the temple, he beheld the princess seated on her throne,
+looking very beautiful in her royal robes, with her dark curls flowing
+over her shoulders, and the golden vulture of Egypt spreading his wings
+over her head. She looked a little pale and weary too, for she had talked
+with many scores of suitors, all of whom had told her tales which were
+very much alike and nothing at all to do with her father's
+treasure-chamber. And when the princess looked up and saw Ladronius
+standing there, with his bold, handsome face, and resolute eyes, she had a
+suspicion that this was the robber of the treasury. At the same time she
+felt some pity for the young man, whom she was to be the means of
+punishing for his bravery. However, she could only obey her father, and
+motioning to Ladronius to approach, she addressed him with great courtesy,
+saying, "You seem, sir, by your bearing, to be a man of some strength and
+courage. Tell me now, what is the most wicked thing, and what the
+cleverest, you ever did in your life?"
+
+And Ladronius looked her straight in the face and answered, "Most gracious
+princess, the most wicked thing I ever did in my life was to cut off my
+brother's head in His Majesty's treasure-house, and the cleverest was when
+I made the sentinels drunk and carried off my brother's body."
+
+Scarcely were the words out of his mouth, when the princess jumped up and
+caught him, as she supposed, by the arm, at the same time crying out for
+the guards, who were concealed behind the throne. But, to her dismay, the
+arm seemed to part company with the rest of the body, and she was left
+with the cloak of Ladronius and the arm of the dead man, while Ladronius
+himself was out of the temple before she had recovered from her surprise;
+nor could the guards find any trace of him outside.
+
+The princess went back to her father in fear and trembling, and related
+how Ladronius had escaped once more; but the king was so amazed at the
+daring and skill of the young man, that he quite forgot to be angry.
+
+The picture of the princess holding the arm that had no body attached to
+it, and gazing blankly after the departing figure of Ladronius, so took
+his fancy, that he lay back on his couch, and laughed till his sides
+ached.
+
+"Bast!" he cried at length. "If the youth is really as clever as this, I
+would rather have him my friend than my enemy. Such a man should be
+rewarded and not punished for his genius. So he made you a present of his
+cloak too, did he?" And the king collapsed once more.
+
+"And what manner of youth is he?" he asked the princess; the princess
+answered, with a blush, that he looked like a brave young man.
+
+"That I am sure he is," said the king. "I have learnt it to my cost. And
+he is not ill-looking?"
+
+"No," said the princess; she would not describe him as ill-looking.
+
+"Ah! well," said the king dryly, "we must see whether we cannot find some
+means of securing his friendship."
+
+So King Rhampsinitus ordered another proclamation to be made, promising
+that if the robber would present himself to the king and confess how he
+had broken into the treasury, the king would grant him a free pardon and a
+great reward beside.
+
+Ladronius was not long in making up his mind. He knew that kings were not
+always above treachery, but he had survived so many dangers that he
+determined to risk this also. He arrayed himself, therefore, in his best
+attire, and boldly presented himself to the king, who was delighted with
+his courage and bade him relate the whole story fearlessly. And when
+Rhampsinitus heard of the secret way into his treasury, he would not rest
+until he had seen the sliding stone and moved it for himself. He laughed
+heartily when he remembered how he had put another lock on the door, and
+how he had posted a sentinel in the one place where he could see nothing
+of the thieves. Then he returned to the palace, and sent for the princess,
+his daughter. Presently she entered with her train of maidens, and
+Ladronius was so overcome by her fresh, girlish beauty, that he could
+hardly find voice enough to reply to the king's questions. The king rose
+and embraced his daughter, and then, addressing Ladronius before the
+assembled courtiers, he said, "Ladronius, the Egyptians are the most
+cunning of all nations on the face of the earth, and you have proved
+yourself more cunning than all the Egyptians. And now, after robbing me of
+so many treasures, you are about to rob me of the best and most priceless
+of all."
+
+So saying, he took his daughter by the hand, and led her to Ladronius.
+
+"Take her, my son!" he said. "A good and obedient daughter should make a
+faithful and loving wife."
+
+The princess stood with her eyes cast down, blushing very prettily, and
+Ladronius looked very handsome as he knelt and kissed her hand. Then the
+trumpets began to blare, the drums rattled, the cymbals clashed, and the
+courtiers shouted, "Long live our gracious princess! Long live
+Rhampsinitus and his son-in-law Ladronius!" The royal minstrel brought his
+harp and sang a solemn chant, all about the beauty of the princess and the
+bravery of Ladronius; and the maids of honor performed a graceful dance to
+the music, winding wreaths of lotus flowers about the bride and
+bridegroom. As the music ceased, the venerable High Priest of Ra, a tall
+old man with his head clean-shaven, came forward to bless and anoint them,
+and to tell how he had foreseen it all from the beginning.
+
+So Ladronius and the beautiful princess were married, and, though it is
+not in the story, there can be no doubt that they lived very happily for
+the rest of their lives.
+
+
+
+
+ARION AND THE DOLPHIN
+
+Retold by G. H. Boden and W. Barrington d'Almeida
+
+
+It happened once upon a time, in the olden days, that a young man,
+Periander of Corinth, started from a port in the south of Greece to sail
+to Miletus. Being caught in a storm, the boat was carried out of her
+course as far as the island of Lesbos, where she stayed for several days,
+in order that the damage caused by the storm might be repaired. In the
+mean time Periander landed, and occupied himself in wandering about the
+island and watching the inhabitants. In his wanderings, he came one
+evening upon a group of men and women, the sight of whom made him pause
+with a longing to join them. They had been working hard all day, gathering
+the grapes, and pressing them in big, wooden vats, to extract the wine for
+which Lesbos was famous; and now, in the beautiful autumn evening, they
+were making merry after their labors.
+
+No wonder Periander stayed to watch them, for they made a very pretty
+picture,--the handsome youths, with their bronzed faces and strong, fine
+limbs; the women with their gay dresses and bare feet, that seemed to have
+been made for dancing; the vine-clad hill at the back, and, over it all,
+the glow of the setting sun. In the centre of the dancers sat a boy,
+playing upon a small lute with seven strings. To this accompaniment the
+dancers chanted a song in praise of Dionysus, the god of the vine.
+Gradually the music went faster and faster; and faster and faster the feet
+of the dancers sped over the ground, until they were all out of breath,
+and lay laughing on the grass.
+
+Then, as the boy struck another chord, all laughter was hushed, and he
+began to sing; it was a simple, plaintive little song, but there was a
+magic in his voice which held the listeners spellbound. The last rays of
+the setting sun played about his golden curls, and lit up his sweet,
+childish face, as he sang:--
+
+  "Why should you grieve for me, my love,
+    When I am laid to rest?
+  Our lives are shaped by the gods above,
+    And they know best.
+  What though I stand on the farther shore,
+  Others have crossed the stream before--
+    Why weep in vain?
+  Life is but a drop in the deep,
+  Soon we wake from the last, lone sleep,
+    And meet again."
+
+As the last note died away, a sigh came from the listeners; some of the
+women turned away their faces, and the young men began to talk hastily, as
+if to hide their emotion.
+
+Periander waited until the group began to break up. Then he stepped
+forward and laid his hand on the boy's shoulder. The boy looked up with a
+smile.
+
+"What is your name, my fair minstrel?" asked Periander.
+
+"My name is Arion," answered the boy, as if he were used to being
+questioned. "I come from Methymna beyond the hills, where I used to tend
+the goats." And he told Periander that his mother and father died before
+he could remember, and that he was brought up by an old goat-herd; until a
+traveling minstrel, who happened one day to hear him singing on the hills,
+took charge of him and taught him to play the lute.
+
+"That was one of his own songs I was singing," said Arion. "He always
+liked me to sing his songs; but, when I am a man, I shall make my own
+songs, and sing them in the great cities over the sea."
+
+"And so you shall," said Periander. "Now, listen to me, Arion! Some day,
+perhaps, I also may be a great man, able to help you to become a great
+singer. Remember, when you have need of a friend, that Periander of
+Corinth will help you, if he can!"
+
+And, when he departed, Periander left a sum of money with a worthy old
+couple, who promised to look after the boy, and see that he wanted
+nothing.
+
+After some years, Periander became king of Corinth, and having a love of
+everything beautiful, he soon gathered about him a little band of poets,
+artists, and musicians. One day, when he was listening to one of the court
+musicians, something--it might have been a chord in the music--reminded
+him of the little Lesbian Arion. He seemed to see once more the boy with
+the golden light on his curls, and the upturned faces of the peasants
+grouped around him; and the very words of the song ran in his head.
+
+"By Apollo!" he cried, so suddenly that the musician nearly fell off his
+seat. "We will have the little Lesbian at court, and make a famous singer
+of him. Where is Glaucus? Ho, there! Bid Glaucus attend the king!"
+
+When Glaucus appeared, the king bade him take a boat and sail for Lesbos.
+"There you will make search for one Arion, a singer," he said. "And when
+you have found him, say, 'Periander of Corinth has need of his friend
+Arion.' And see that you bring him safely to Corinth!"
+
+Glaucus did as he was bidden, and in due time found Arion, now grown into
+a tall, graceful youth. Arion, when he heard the message, consented to
+accompany Glaucus to Corinth, where he was greeted with great kindness by
+Periander. He very soon became a great favorite among the Corinthians, and
+all the musicians envied him his beautiful voice and his skill in playing
+on the lute. No one had such power to soothe the king in his black moods;
+nor was it at court alone that his fame as a singer was known, for he was
+ever ready to sing to the people, who idolized him and called him the son
+of Apollo. Among other things he taught them the song and dance of the
+Lesbians in honor of Dionysus and the vine; it afterwards became one of
+the most famous songs of Greece.
+
+Many years Arion stayed with Periander, who held him in high honor and
+loaded him with costly presents. His fame spread as far as Italy and
+Sicily, and he had many requests that he would go over and sing to the
+people there. At length, he determined to make the journey, not only from
+curiosity to see new countries, but also because he had heard of the songs
+sung by the Sicilian shepherds, and had a great desire to study them.
+Periander tried to dissuade him, but, finding him resolved, he assisted
+him in his preparations, and on his departure exacted from him a promise
+that he would return to Corinth.
+
+Arion traveled about Italy and Sicily for a long time, and made a great
+fortune by his singing. But growing tired at last of the wandering life,
+he went to Tarentum to find a ship which would take him back to Corinth.
+There were two or three ships ready to make the journey, among them one
+named the Nausicaa, which was manned by a crew of Corinthians. This he
+chose, being somewhat nervous about the large sum of money he was
+carrying, and thinking that he could trust the Corinthians, whom he knew,
+better than a crew of foreigners.
+
+The Nausicaa was a strange-looking vessel, with a single sail, and long
+oars pulled by men who sat on benches along the side. The prow, which was
+carved to represent the maiden Nausicaa, stood well out of the water, and
+the bulwarks descended in a graceful curve to rise again at the stern,
+where the captain stood and shaped his course by means of a broad paddle,
+which was hung over the side.
+
+The voyage began happily enough, the wind being favorable, and the captain
+and crew all deference and politeness. But when they were well out to sea,
+the behavior of the crew changed; they answered Arion's questions with
+scant politeness, and held many whispered consultations, which, from the
+black glances cast at him, made him uneasy as to his safety. On the second
+evening, waking out of a light sleep, he heard them conspiring to throw
+him overboard and divide his wealth among them. Arion started up and
+implored them not to carry out their evil purpose, offering to hand over
+all his wealth, if they would spare his life. His entreaties and promises
+were all in vain.
+
+"We give you a fair choice," said the captain brutally. "Either leap into
+the sea at once, or kill yourself in some other way, and we will bury you
+decently on shore."
+
+Abandoning his vain appeals for mercy, Arion begged them, as a last favor,
+to let him sing once more before he died.
+
+"That we will not refuse," the captain answered; "though, if you think to
+move us by your wailing, let me tell you that you waste your breath!" In
+reality, he was not displeased to have an opportunity of hearing the most
+famous singer in the world.
+
+Arion put on his sacred robes, in which he used to sing in the temple of
+Apollo, and taking his lute he stepped firmly to the prow of the vessel.
+There he stood, pale and calm, in the silvery light of the moon, his fair
+hair playing with the wind, while the little waves lifted themselves to
+look at him, and then ran playfully into the shadow of the boat, to dash
+their heads against the beams and be broken into spray. The sailors were
+awed in spite of themselves, as that beautiful voice rose on the breeze.
+He sang the old song which he had sung in the Lesbian vineyards when
+Periander saw him first. And when he came to the last lines,--
+
+  "Life is but a drop in the deep,
+  Soon we wake from the last, lone sleep,
+     And meet again,"
+
+Arion leapt over the side of the vessel, just as he was.
+
+The captain, fearing that some of the crew might be moved to lend him
+assistance, gave the order to make all speed ahead. Had he waited, he
+might have seen a most wonderful sight. For, as Arion fell into the sea,
+the water seemed to become alive beneath him, and he felt it lifting him
+up, and carrying him rapidly away from the ship. Then he discovered that
+he was seated astride on a great, black fish, which was swimming very
+rapidly on the top of the water, and he knew it must be a dolphin, which
+had been attracted by his singing; for the dolphins, unlike most things
+that live in the sea, have sharp ears, and are very fond of music. He
+touched his lute, to see if the strings had suffered from the water, and,
+as he did so, the great back quivered beneath him. Finding, therefore,
+that the dolphin liked the music, and thinking that he owed it some return
+for saving his life, Arion began to sing, and sang song after song;
+whenever he stopped, the dolphin ceased from swimming, as if to inquire
+the reason; and when Arion began again, the dolphin bounded through the
+water with great strokes of his broad tail. A strange sight it must have
+been, had there been any one there to see! But the dolphin went straight
+across the open sea, where no ships were to be seen; for the sailors of
+that day did not care to lose sight of the coast, but would sail all the
+way round a large bay rather than straight across it. So it was that Arion
+came to Taenarus in Greece, without having been seen by any man. The
+dolphin took him close to the shore, where he bade it good-by, and watched
+it swim away disconsolately.
+
+From Taenarus he made his way on foot to Corinth. Periander was overjoyed
+to see him once more; and when he marveled at the strange costume in which
+Arion had traveled, Arion related the whole story.
+
+Periander listened attentively, and, when it was finished, remarked
+gravely, "Are you then so little satisfied with your victories over the
+musicians, Arion, that you have determined to be king of story-tellers
+also?"
+
+"Does your majesty intend to throw doubt on my story?" asked Arion.
+
+"Far be it from me!" answered Periander. "The story pleases me well, and
+if you will tell me another such, I will take pains to believe that also."
+
+"Then Zeus be my witness! I will find means to prove it," cried Arion.
+
+"Have I not said that I doubted not?" asked Periander. "Yet I would gladly
+see the proof. My crown to your lute upon the issue!"
+
+"So be it!" said Arion. "But first I must ask your majesty that none may
+speak of my return; and when the ship _Nausicaa_ comes to port, let the
+seamen be dealt with as I shall appoint!"
+
+The king assented laughing, for he deemed the tale impossible. After some
+days, however, it was announced that the ship _Nausicaa_ was in the
+harbor. Periander summoned the captain and all the crew to the palace, and
+asked them whether they had brought any news of his minstrel Arion. The
+captain replied that men said at Tarentum that Arion was still in Italy,
+traveling from place to place, and received everywhere with great honor.
+The rest of the sailors confirmed the story, and one of them added that
+Arion was said to prefer Italy to Greece, nor had he any intention of
+returning to Corinth.
+
+At that moment a curtain was drawn and disclosed Arion, standing in his
+sacred robes and holding his lute, just as they had seen him last in the
+prow of the ship. The sailors, supposing that they beheld his spirit, were
+seized with terror, and fell at the king's feet, confessing all their
+wickedness and begging for mercy. But Periander was filled with
+indignation, and spurned them angrily. Arion interposed, urging the king
+to be merciful, now that the seamen had seen their wickedness, and were
+willing to make restitution. Periander, however, would not hear of mercy.
+
+"Your compassion bears witness to your noble spirit, Arion," he replied.
+"But these men have planned a most cruel and cowardly murder, and cruelly
+shall they suffer for it. Seize me these men, guards, and bind them!"
+
+The guards came forward and began to lead away the trembling wretches.
+
+"Stay!" cried Arion. "It is I who am king. Did not your majesty stake your
+crown against my lute, and can the royal word be broken? Back, guards! I
+claim my wager."
+
+Periander could not refrain from laughter, but confessed himself beaten by
+this piece of strategy. "The wit of Arion," he said, "is stronger than the
+tears of repentance. Release the prisoners!"
+
+"That being so," said Arion, "and seeing that I find myself more easy with
+the lute, I will restore the royal crown to Periander."
+
+So the men were set at liberty, after having restored the property of
+Arion, and departed full of gratitude, invoking blessings on his head.
+
+And lest any man should doubt the truth of the story in time to come,
+Arion erected at Taenarus a statue in bronze, representing a man riding on
+a dolphin's back.
+
+
+
+
+STORIES FROM LIVY
+
+
+ROMULUS, FOUNDER OF ROME
+
+Adapted by Alfred J. Church
+
+
+AEneas of Troy, coming to the land of Italy, took to wife Lavinia, daughter
+of King Latinus, and built him a city, which he called Lavinium, after the
+name of his wife. And, after thirty years, his son Ascanius went forth
+from Lavinium with much people, and built him a new city, which he called
+Alba. In this city reigned kings of the house and lineage of AEneas for
+twelve generations. Of these kings the eleventh in descent was one Procas,
+who, having two sons, Numitor and Amulius, left his kingdom, according to
+the custom, to Numitor, the elder. But Amulius drove out his brother, and
+reigned in his stead. Nor was he content with this wickedness, but slew
+all the male children of his brother. And the daughter of his brother,
+that was named Rhea Silvia, he chose to be a priestess of Vesta, making as
+though he would do the maiden honor, but his thought was that the name of
+his brother should perish, for they that serve Vesta are vowed to
+perpetual virginity.
+
+But it came to pass that Rhea bare twin sons, whose father, it was said,
+was the god Mars. Very wroth was Amulius when he heard this thing; Rhea he
+made fast in prison, and the children he gave to certain of his servants
+that they should cast them into the river. Now it chanced that at this
+season Tiber had overflowed his banks, neither could the servants come
+near to the stream of the river; nevertheless they did not doubt that the
+children would perish, for all that the overflowing of the water was
+neither deep nor of a swift current. Thinking, then, that they had duly
+performed the commandment of the king, they set down the babes in the
+flood and departed. But after a while the flood abated, and left the
+basket wherein the children had been laid on dry ground. And a she-wolf,
+coming down from the hill to drink at the river (for the country in those
+days was desert and abounding in wild beasts), heard the crying of the
+children and ran to them. Nor did she devour them, but gave them suck;
+nay, so gentle was she that Faustulus, the king's shepherd, chancing to go
+by, saw that she licked them with her tongue. This Faustulus took the
+children and gave them to his wife to rear; and these, when they were of
+age to go by themselves, were not willing to abide with the flocks and
+herds, but were hunters, wandering through the forests that were in those
+parts. And afterward, being now come to full strength, they were not
+content to slay wild beasts only, but would assail troops of robbers, as
+these were returning laden with their booty, and would divide the spoils
+among the shepherds. Now there was held in those days, on the hill that is
+now called the Palatine, a yearly festival to the god Pan. This festival
+King Evander first ordained, having come from Arcadia, in which land,
+being a land of shepherds, Pan, that is the god of shepherds, is greatly
+honored. And when the young men and their company (for they had gathered a
+great company of shepherds about them, and led them in all matters both of
+business and of sport) were busy with the festival, there came upon them
+certain robbers that had made an ambush in the place, being very wroth by
+reason of the booty which they had lost. These laid hands on Remus, but
+Romulus they could not take, so fiercely did he fight against them. Remus,
+therefore, they delivered up to King Amulius, accusing him of many things,
+and chiefly of this, that he and his companions had invaded the land of
+Numitor, dealing with them in the fashion of an enemy and carrying off
+much spoil. To Numitor, therefore, did the king deliver Remus, that he
+might put him to death. Now Faustulus had believed from the beginning that
+the children were of the royal house, for he knew that the babes had been
+cast into the river by the king's command, and the time also of his
+finding them agreed thereto. Nevertheless he had not judged it expedient
+to open the matter before due time, but waited till occasion or necessity
+should arise. But now, there being such necessity, he opened the matter to
+Romulus. Numitor also, when he had the young man Remus in his custody,
+knowing that he and his brother were twins, and that the time agreed, and
+seeing that they were of a high spirit, bethought him of his grandsons;
+and, indeed, having asked many questions of Remus, was come nigh to
+knowing of what race he was. And now also Romulus was ready to help his
+brother. To come openly with his whole company he dared not, for he was
+not a match for the power of King Amulius; but he bade sundry shepherds
+make their way to the palace, each as best he could, appointing to them a
+time at which they should meet. And now came Remus also, with a troop of
+youths gathered together from the household of Numitor. Then did Romulus
+and Remus slay King Amulius. In the meanwhile Numitor gathered the youth
+of Alba to the citadel, crying out that they must make the place safe, for
+that the enemy was upon them; but when he perceived that the young men had
+done the deed, forthwith he called an assembly of the citizens, and set
+forth to them the wickedness which his brother had wrought against him,
+and how his grandsons had been born and bred and made known to him, and
+then, in order, how the tyrant had been slain, himself having counseled
+the deed. When he had so spoken the young men came with their company into
+the midst of the assembly, and saluted him as king; to which thing the
+whole multitude agreeing with one consent, Numitor was established upon
+the throne.
+
+After this Romulus and his brother conceived this purpose, that, leaving
+their grandfather to be king at Alba, they should build for themselves a
+new city in the place where, having been at the first left to die, they
+had been brought up by Faustulus the shepherd. And to this purpose many
+agreed both of the men of Alba and of the Latins, and also of the
+shepherds that had followed them from the first, holding it for certain
+all of them that Alba and Lavinium would be of small account in comparison
+of this new city which they should build together. But while the brothers
+were busy with these things, there sprang up afresh the same evil thing
+which had before wrought such trouble in their house, even the lust of
+power. For though the beginnings of the strife between them were peaceful,
+yet did it end in great wickedness. The matter fell out in this wise.
+Seeing that the brothers were twins, and that neither could claim to have
+the preference to the other in respect of his age, it was agreed between
+them that the gods that were the guardians of that country should make
+known by means of augury which of the two they chose to give his name to
+the new city. Then Romulus stood on the Palatine hill, and when there had
+been marked out for him a certain region of the sky, watched therein for a
+sign; and Remus watched in like manner, standing on the Aventine. And to
+Remus first came a sign, six vultures; but so soon as the sign had been
+proclaimed there came another to Romulus, even twelve vultures. Then they
+that favored Remus clamored that the gods had chosen him for king, because
+he had first seen the birds; and they that favored Romulus answered that
+he was to be preferred because he had seen more in number. This dispute
+waxed so hot that they fell to fighting; and in the fight it chanced that
+Remus was slain. But some say that when Romulus had marked out the borders
+of the town which he would build, and had caused a wall to be built round
+it, Remus leapt over the wall, scorning it because it was mean and low;
+and that Romulus slew him, crying out, "Thus shall every man perish that
+shall dare to leap over my walls." Only others will have it that though he
+perished for this cause Romulus slew him not, but a certain Celer. This
+much is certain, that Romulus gained the whole kingdom for himself, and
+called the city after his own name.
+
+And now, having first done sacrifice to the Gods, he called a general
+assembly of the people, that he might give them laws, knowing that without
+laws no city can endure. And judging that these would be the better kept
+of his subjects if he should himself bear something of the show of royal
+majesty, he took certain signs of dignity, and especially twelve men that
+should continually attend him, bearing bundles of rods, and in the midst
+of the rods an axe; these men they called _lictors_. Meanwhile the city
+increased, for the king and his people enlarged their borders, looking
+rather to the greatness for which they hoped than to that which they had.
+And that this increase might not be altogether empty walls without men,
+Romulus set up a sanctuary, to which were gathered a great multitude of
+men from the nations round about. All that were discontented and lovers of
+novelty came to him. Nor did he take any account of their condition,
+whether they were bond or free, but received them all. Thus was there
+added to the city great strength. And the king, when he judged that there
+was strength sufficient, was minded to add to the strength counsel.
+Wherefore he chose a hundred men for counselors. A hundred he chose,
+either because he held that number to be sufficient, or because there were
+no more that were fit to bear this dignity and be called Fathers, for this
+was the name of these counselors.
+
+After this the people bethought themselves how they should get for
+themselves wives, for there were no women in the place. Wherefore Romulus
+sent ambassadors to the nations round about, praying that they should give
+their daughters to his people for wives. "Cities," he said, "have humble
+beginnings even as all other things. Nevertheless they that have the Gods
+and their own valor to help become great. Now that the gods are with us,
+as ye know, be assured also that valor shall not be wanting." But the
+nations round about would not hearken to him, thinking scorn of this
+gathering of robbers and slaves and runaways, so that they said, "Why do
+ye not open a sanctuary for women also that so ye may find fit wives for
+your people?" Also they feared for themselves and their children what this
+new city might grow to. Now when the ambassadors brought back this answer
+the Romans were greatly wroth, and would take by force that which their
+neighbors would not give of their free will. And to the end that they
+might do this more easily, King Romulus appointed certain days whereon he
+and his people would hold a festival with games to Neptune; and to this
+festival he called all them that dwelt in the cities round about. But when
+many were gathered together (for they were fain to see what this new city
+might be), and were now wholly bent on the spectacle of the games, the
+young men of the Romans ran in upon them, and carried off all such as were
+unwedded among the women. To these King Romulus spake kindly, saying, "The
+fault is not with us but with your fathers, who dealt proudly with us, and
+would not give you to us in marriage. But now ye shall be held in all
+honor as our wives, and shall have your portion of all that we possess.
+Put away therefore your anger, for ye shall find us so much the better
+husbands than other men, as we must be to you not for husbands only but
+parents also and native country."
+
+In the meanwhile the parents of them that had been carried off put on
+sackcloth, and went about through the cities crying out for vengeance upon
+the Romans. And chiefly they sought for help from Titus Tatius, that was
+king of the Sabines in those days, and of great power and renown. But when
+the Sabines seemed to be tardy in the matter, the men of Caere first
+gathered together their army and marched into the country of the Romans.
+Against these King Romulus led forth his men and put them to flight
+without much ado, having first slain their king with his own hand. Then,
+after returning to Rome, he carried the arms which he had taken from the
+body of the king to the hill of the Capitol, and laid them down at the
+shepherds' oak that stood thereon in those days. And when he had measured
+out the length and breadth of a temple that he would build to Jupiter upon
+the hill, he said, "O Jupiter, I, King Romulus, offer to thee these arms
+of a king, and dedicate therewith a temple in this place, in which temple
+they that come after me shall offer to thee like spoils in like manner,
+when it shall chance that the leader of our host shall himself slay with
+his own hands the leader of the host of the enemy." And this was the first
+temple that was dedicated in Rome. And in all the time to come two only
+offered in this manner, to wit, Cornelius Cossus that slew Lars Tolumnius,
+king of Veii, and Claudius Marcellus that slew Britomarus, king of the
+Gauls.
+
+After this, King Tatius and the Sabines came up against Rome with a great
+army. And first of all they gained the citadel by treachery in this
+manner. One Tarpeius was governor of the citadel, whose daughter, Tarpeia
+by name, going forth from the walls to fetch water for a sacrifice, took
+money from the king that she should receive certain of the soldiers within
+the citadel; but when they had been so received, the men cast their
+shields upon her, slaying her with the weight of them. This they did
+either that they might be thought to have taken the place by force, or
+that they judged it to be well that no faith should be kept with traitors.
+Some also tell this tale, that the Sabines wore great bracelets of gold on
+their left arms, and on their left hands fair rings with precious stones
+therein, and that when the maiden covenanted with them that she should
+have for a reward that which they carried in their left hands, they cast
+their shields upon her. And others say that she asked for their shields
+having the purpose to betray them, and for this cause was slain.
+
+Thus the Sabines had possession of the citadel; and the next day King
+Romulus set the battle in array on the plain that lay between the hill of
+the Capitol and the hill of the Palatine. And first the Romans were very
+eager to recover the citadel, a certain Hostilius being their leader. But
+when this man, fighting in the forefront of the battle, was slain, the
+Romans turned their backs and fled before the Sabines, even unto the gate
+of the Palatine. Then King Romulus (for he himself had been carried away
+by the crowd of them that fled) held up his sword and his spear to the
+heavens, and cried aloud, "O Jupiter, here in the Palatine didst thou
+first, by the tokens which thou sentest me, lay the foundations of my
+city. And lo! the Sabines have taken the citadel by wicked craft, and have
+crossed the valley, and are come up even hither. But if thou sufferest
+them so far, do thou at the least defend this place against them, and stay
+this shameful flight of my people. So will I build a temple for thee in
+this place, even a temple of Jupiter the Stayer, that may be a memorial to
+after generations of how thou didst this day save this city." And when he
+had so spoken, even as though he knew that the prayer had been heard, he
+cried, "Ye men of Rome, Jupiter bids you stand fast in this place and
+renew the battle." And when the men of Rome heard these words, it was as
+if a voice from heaven had spoken to them, and they stood fast, and the
+king himself went forward and stood among the foremost. Now the leader of
+the Sabines was one Curtius. This man, as he drave the Romans before him,
+cried out to his comrades, "See, we have conquered these men, false hosts
+and feeble foes that they are! Surely now they know that it is one thing
+to carry off maidens and another to fight with men." But whilst he boasted
+himself thus, King Romulus and a company of the youth rushed upon him. Now
+Curtius was fighting on horseback, and being thus assailed he fled,
+plunging into a certain pool which lay between the Palatine hill and the
+Capitol. Thus did he barely escape with his life, and the lake was called
+thereafter Curtius' pool. And now the Sabines began to give way to the
+Romans, when suddenly the women for whose sake they fought, having their
+hair loosened and their garments rent, ran in between them that fought,
+crying out, "Shed ye not each other's blood, ye that are fathers-in-law
+and sons-in-law to each other. But if ye break this bond that is between
+you, slay us that are the cause of this trouble. And surely it were better
+for us to die than to live if we be bereaved of our fathers or of our
+husbands." With these words they stirred the hearts both of the chiefs and
+of the people, so that there was suddenly made a great silence. And
+afterward the leaders came forth to make a covenant; and these indeed so
+ordered matters that there was not peace only, but one state where there
+had been two. For the Sabines came to Rome and dwelt there; and King
+Romulus and King Tatius reigned together. Only, after a while, certain men
+of Lanuvium slew King Tatius as he was sacrificing to the Gods at
+Lavinium; and thereafter Romulus only was king as before.
+
+When he had reigned thirty and seven years there befell the thing that
+shall now be told. On a certain day he called the people together on the
+field of Mars, and held a review of his army. But while he did this there
+arose suddenly a great storm, with loud thunderings and very thick clouds,
+so that the king was hidden away from the eyes of all the people. Nor
+indeed was he ever again seen upon the earth. And when men were recovered
+of their fear they were in great trouble, because they had lost their
+king, though indeed the Fathers would have it that he had been carried by
+a whirlwind into heaven. Yet after a while they began to worship him as
+being now a god; and when nevertheless some doubted, and would even
+whisper among themselves that Romulus had been torn in pieces by the
+Fathers, there came forward a certain Proculus, who spake after this
+manner: "Ye men of Rome, this day, in the early morning, I saw Romulus,
+the father of this city, come down from heaven and stand before me. And
+when great fear came upon me, I prayed that it might be lawful for me to
+look upon him face to face. Then said he to me, 'Go thy way, tell the men
+of Rome that it is the will of them that dwell in heaven that Rome should
+be the chiefest city in the world. Bid them therefore be diligent in war;
+and let them know for themselves and tell their children after them that
+there is no power on earth so great that it shall be able to stand against
+them.' And when he had thus spoken, he departed from me, going up into
+heaven." All men believed Proculus when he thus spake, and the people
+ceased from their sorrow when they knew that King Romulus had been taken
+up into heaven.
+
+
+
+
+HOW HORATIUS HELD THE BRIDGE
+
+Adapted by Alfred J. Church
+
+
+    [King Tarquin had been driven from Rome because of his tyranny.]
+
+
+King Tarquin and his son Lucius (for he only remained to him of the three)
+fled to Lars Porsenna, king of Clusium, and besought him that he would
+help them. "Suffer not," they said, "that we, who are Tuscans by birth,
+should remain any more in poverty and exile. And take heed also to thyself
+and thine own kingdom if thou permit this new fashion of driving forth
+kings to go unpunished. For surely there is that in freedom which men
+greatly desire, and if they that be kings defend not their dignity as
+stoutly as others seek to overthrow it, then shall the highest be made
+even as the lowest, and there shall be an end of kingship, than which
+there is nothing more honorable under heaven." With these words they
+persuaded King Porsenna, who judging it well for the Etrurians that there
+should be a king at Rome, and that king an Etrurian by birth, gathered
+together a great army and came up against Rome. But when men heard of his
+coming, so mighty a city was Clusium in those days, and so great the fame
+of King Porsenna, there was such fear as had never been before.
+Nevertheless they were steadfastly purposed to hold out. And first all
+that were in the country fled into the city, and round about the city they
+set guards to keep it, part thereof being defended by walls, and part, for
+so it seemed, being made safe by the river. But here a great peril had
+well-nigh overtaken the city; for there was a wooden bridge on the river
+by which the enemy had crossed but for the courage of a certain Horatius
+Cocles. The matter fell out in this wise.
+
+There was a certain hill which men called Janiculum on the side of the
+river, and this hill King Porsenna took by a sudden attack. Which when
+Horatius saw (for he chanced to have been set to guard the bridge, and saw
+also how the enemy were running at full speed to the place, and how the
+Romans were fleeing in confusion and threw away their arms as they ran),
+he cried with a loud voice, "Men of Rome, it is to no purpose that ye thus
+leave your post and flee, for if ye leave this bridge behind you for men
+to pass over, ye shall soon find that ye have more enemies in your city
+than in Janiculum. Do ye therefore break it down with axe and fire as best
+ye can. In the meanwhile I, so far as one man may do, will stay the
+enemy." And as he spake he ran forward to the farther end of the bridge
+and made ready to keep the way against the enemy. Nevertheless there stood
+two with him, Lartius and Herminius by name, men of noble birth both of
+them and of great renown in arms. So these three for a while stayed the
+first onset of the enemy; and the men of Rome meanwhile brake down the
+bridge. And when there was but a small part remaining, and they that brake
+it down called to the three that they should come back, Horatius bade
+Lartius and Herminius return, but he himself remained on the farther side,
+turning his eyes full of wrath in threatening fashion on the princes of
+the Etrurians, and crying, "Dare ye now to fight with me? or why are ye
+thus come at the bidding of your master, King Porsenna, to rob others of
+the freedom that ye care not to have for yourselves?" For a while they
+delayed, looking each man to his neighbor, who should first deal with this
+champion of the Romans. Then, for very shame, they all ran forward, and
+raising a great shout, threw their javelins at him. These all he took upon
+his shield, nor stood the less firmly in his place on the bridge, from
+which when they would have thrust him by force, of a sudden the men of
+Rome raised a great shout, for the bridge was now altogether broken down,
+and fell with a great crash into the river. And as the enemy stayed a
+while for fear, Horatius turned him to the river and said, "O Father
+Tiber, I beseech thee this day with all reverence that thou kindly receive
+this soldier and his arms." And as he spake he leapt with all his arms
+into the river and swam across to his own people, and though many javelins
+of the enemy fell about him, he was not one whit hurt. Nor did such valor
+fail to receive due honor from the city. For the citizens set up a statue
+of Horatius in the market-place; and they gave him of the public land so
+much as he could plough about in one day. Also there was this honor paid
+him, that each citizen took somewhat of his own store and gave it to him,
+for food was scarce in the city by reason of the siege.
+
+
+
+
+HOW CINCINNATUS SAVED ROME
+
+Adapted by Alfred J. Church
+
+
+It came to pass that the AEquians brake the treaty of peace which they had
+made with Rome, and, taking one Gracchus Cloelius for their leader,
+marched into the land of Tusculum; and when they had plundered the country
+thereabouts, and had gathered together much booty, they pitched their camp
+on Mount AEgidus. To them the Romans sent three ambassadors, who should
+complain of the wrong done, and seek redress. But when they would have
+fulfilled their errand, Gracchus the AEquian spake, saying, "If ye have any
+message from the Senate of Rome, tell it to this oak, for I have other
+business to do;" for it chanced that there was a great oak that stood hard
+by, and made a shadow over the general's tent. Then one of the
+ambassadors, as he turned to depart, made reply, "Yes, let this sacred oak
+and all the gods that are in heaven hear how ye have wrongfully broken the
+treaty of peace; and let them that hear help us also in the day of battle,
+when we shall avenge on you the laws both of gods and of men that ye have
+set at nought."
+
+When the ambassadors had returned to Rome the Senate commanded that there
+should be levied two armies; and that Minucius the Consul should march
+with the one against the AEquians on Mount AEgidus, and that the other
+should hinder the enemy from their plundering. This levying the tribunes
+of the Commons sought to hinder; and perchance had done so, but there also
+came well-nigh to the walls of the city a great host of the Sabines
+plundering all the country. Thereupon the people willingly offered
+themselves, and there were levied forthwith two great armies. Nevertheless
+when the Consul Minucius had marched to Mount AEgidus, and had pitched his
+camp not far from the AEquians, he did nought for fear of the enemy, but
+kept himself within his entrenchments. And when the enemy perceived that
+he was afraid, growing the bolder for his lack of courage, they drew lines
+about him, keeping him in on every side. Yet before that he was altogether
+shut up there escaped from his camp five horsemen, that bare tidings to
+Rome how that the Consul, together with his army, was besieged. The people
+were sorely dismayed to hear such tidings; nor, when they cast about for
+help, saw they any man that might be sufficient for such peril, save only
+Cincinnatus. By common consent, therefore, he was made Dictator for six
+months, a thing that may well be noted by those who hold that nothing is
+to be accounted of in comparison of riches, and that no man may win great
+honor or show forth singular virtue unless he be well furnished with
+wealth. For here in this great peril of the Roman people there was no hope
+of safety but in one who was cultivating with his own hand a little plot
+of scarcely three acres of ground. For when the messengers of the people
+came to him they found him ploughing, or, as some say, digging a ditch.
+When they had greeted each the other, the messengers said, "May the Gods
+prosper this thing to the Roman people and to thee. Put on thy robe and
+hear the words of the people." Then said Cincinnatus, being not a little
+astonished, "Is all well?" and at the same time he called to his wife
+Racilia that she should bring forth his robe from the cottage. So she
+brought it forth, and the man wiped from him the dust and the sweat, and
+clad himself in his robe, and stood before the messengers. These said to
+him, "The people of Rome make thee Dictator, and bid thee come forthwith
+to the city." And at the same time they told how the Consul and his army
+were besieged by the AEquians. So Cincinnatus departed to Rome; and when he
+came to the other side of the Tiber there met him first his three sons,
+and next many of his kinsfolk and friends, and after them a numerous
+company of the nobles. These all conducted him to his house, the lictors,
+four and twenty in number, marching before him. There was also assembled a
+very great concourse of the people, fearing much how the Dictator might
+deal with them, for they knew what manner of man he was, and that there
+was no limit to his power, nor any appeal from him.
+
+The next day before dawn the Dictator came into the market-place, and
+appointed one Lucius Tarquinius to be Master of the Horse. This Tarquinius
+was held by common consent to excel all other men in exercises of war;
+only, though, being a noble by birth, he should have been among the
+horsemen, he had served, for lack of means, as a foot soldier. This done
+he called an assembly of the people and commanded that all the shops in
+the city should be shut; that no man should concern himself with any
+private business, but all that were of an age to go to the war should be
+present before sunset in the Field of Mars, each man having with him
+provisions of cooked food for five days, and twelve stakes. As for them
+that were past the age, they should prepare the food while the young men
+made ready their arms and sought for the stakes. These last they took as
+they found them, no man hindering them; and when the time appointed by the
+Dictator was come, all were assembled, ready, as occasion might serve,
+either to march or to give battle. Forthwith they set out, the Dictator
+leading the foot soldiers by their legions, and Tarquinius the horsemen,
+and each bidding them that followed make all haste. "We must needs come,"
+they said, "to our journey's end while it is yet night. Remember that the
+Consul and his army have been besieged now for three days, and that no man
+knows what a day or a night may bring forth." The soldiers themselves also
+were zealous to obey, crying out to the standard-bearers that they should
+quicken their steps, and to their fellows that they should not lag behind.
+Thus they came at midnight to Mount AEgidus, and when they perceived that
+the enemy was at hand they halted the standards. Then the Dictator rode
+forward to see, so far as the darkness would suffer him, how great was the
+camp of the AEquians and after what fashion it was pitched. This done he
+commanded that the baggage should be gathered together into a heap, and
+that the soldiers should stand every man in his own place. After this he
+compassed about the whole army of the enemy with his own army, and
+commanded that at a set signal every man should shout, and when they had
+shouted should dig a trench and set up therein the stakes. This the
+soldiers did, and the noise of the shouting passed over the camp of the
+enemy and came into the city, causing therein great joy, even as it caused
+great fear in the camp. For the Romans cried, "These be our countrymen,
+and they bring us help." Then said the Consul, "We must make no delay. By
+that shout is signified, not that they are come only, but that they are
+already dealing with the enemy. Doubtless the camp of the AEquians is even
+now assailed from without. Take ye your arms and follow me." So the legion
+went forth, it being yet night, to the battle, and as they went they
+shouted, that the Dictator might be aware. Now the AEquians had set
+themselves to hinder the making of a ditch and rampart which should shut
+them in; but when the Romans from the camp fell upon them, fearing lest
+these should make their way through the midst of their camp, they left
+them that were with Cincinnatus to finish their entrenching, and fought
+with the Consul. And when it was now light, lo! they were already shut in,
+and the Romans, having finished their entrenching, began to trouble them.
+And when the AEquians perceived that the battle was now on either side of
+them, they could withstand no longer, but sent ambassadors praying for
+peace, and saying, "Ye have prevailed; slay us not, but rather permit us
+to depart, leaving our arms behind us." Then said the Dictator, "I care
+not to have the blood of the AEquians. Ye may depart, but ye shall depart
+passing under the yoke, that ye may thus acknowledge to all men that ye
+are indeed vanquished." Now the yoke is thus made. There are set up in the
+ground two spears, and over them is bound by ropes a third spear. So the
+AEquians passed under the yoke.
+
+In the camp of the enemy there was found abundance of spoil. This the
+Dictator gave wholly to his own soldiers. "Ye were well-nigh a spoil to
+the enemy," said he to the army of the Consul, "therefore ye shall have no
+share in the spoiling of them. As for thee, Minucius, be thou a lieutenant
+only till thou hast learnt how to bear thyself as a consul." Meanwhile at
+Rome there was held a meeting of the Senate, at which it was commanded
+that Cincinnatus should enter the city in triumph, his soldiers following
+him in order of march. Before his chariot there were led the generals of
+the enemy; also the standards were carried in the front; and after these
+came the army, every man laden with spoil. That day there was great
+rejoicing in the city, every man setting forth a banquet before his doors
+in the street.
+
+After this, Virginius, that had borne false witness against Caeso, was
+found guilty of perjury, and went into exile. And when Cincinnatus saw
+that justice had been done to this evil-doer, he resigned his
+dictatorship, having held it for sixteen days only.
+
+
+
+
+THE STORY OF VIRGINIA
+
+Adapted by Alfred J. Church
+
+
+It was agreed between the nobles and the commons that, to make an end of
+disputing about the laws, ambassadors should be sent into Greece, and
+especially to Athens (which city and its lawgiver, Solon, were held in
+high repute in those days), to learn what manner of laws and customs they
+had, and to bring back a report of them. And when the ambassadors had
+brought back their report, it seemed good to the people that in the
+following year there should be appointed neither consuls nor any other
+magistrate, but decemvirs only; that is to say, ten men, who should set in
+order the laws of Rome. Thus it came to pass in the ninety and first year
+from the driving out of the kings, that decemvirs were appointed in the
+stead of consuls, Appius Claudius being the chief of the ten.
+
+For a while these pleased the people well, doing justice equally between
+man and man. And the custom was that each day one of the ten sat as judge
+with the twelve lictors about him, the nine others sitting with one
+minister only. Also they busied themselves with the ordering of the laws;
+and at last set forth ten tables on which these were written. At the same
+time they called the people together to an assembly, and spake to them
+thus: "The Gods grant that this undertaking may turn to the credit of the
+state, and of you, and of your children. Go, therefore, and read these
+laws which we have set forth; for though we have done what ten men could
+do to provide laws that should be just to all, whether they be high or
+low, yet the understandings of many men may yet change many things for the
+better. Consider therefore all these matters in your own minds, and debate
+them among yourselves. For we will that the Roman people should be bound
+by such laws only as they shall have agreed together to establish."
+
+The ten tables were therefore set forth, and when these had been
+sufficiently considered, and such corrections made therein as seemed good,
+a regular assembly of the people was called, and the laws were duly
+established. But now there was spread abroad a report that two tables were
+yet wanting, and that when these should have been added the whole would be
+complete; and thence there arose a desire that the Ten should be appointed
+to hold office a second year. This indeed was done; but Appius Claudius so
+ordered matters that there were elected together with him none of the
+chief men of the state, but only such as were of an inferior condition and
+fortune.
+
+After this the Ten began more and more to set aside all law and right.
+Thus whereas at the first one only on each day was followed by the twelve
+lictors, each of the Ten came daily into the market-place so attended, and
+whereas before the lictors carried bundles of rods only, now there was
+bound up with the rods an axe; whereby was signified the power of life and
+death. Their actions also agreed with this show, for they and their
+ministers plundered the goods and chattels of the people. Some also they
+scourged, and some they beheaded. And when they had so put a man to death,
+they would divide his substance among those that waited upon them to do
+their pleasure.
+
+Among their misdeeds two were especially notable. There was a certain
+Sicinius in the host, a man of singular strength and courage, who took it
+ill that the Ten should thus set themselves above all law, and was wont to
+say to his comrades that the commons should depart from the city as they
+had done in time past, or should at the least make them tribunes to be
+their champions as of old. This Sicinius the Ten sent on before the army,
+there being then war with the Sabines, to search out a place for a camp;
+and with him they sent certain others, bidding them slay him when they
+should have come to some convenient place. This they did, but not without
+suffering much loss; for the man fought for his life and defended himself,
+slaying many of his enemies. Then they that escaped ran into the camp,
+saying that Sicinius had fallen into an ambuscade, and had died along with
+certain others of the soldiers. At the first, indeed, this story was
+believed; but afterward, when, by permission of the Ten, there went some
+to bury the dead, they found that none of the dead bodies had been
+spoiled, and that Sicinius lay with his arms in the midst, the others
+having their faces toward him; also that there was no dead body of an
+enemy in the place, nor any track as of them that had gone from the place;
+for which reasons they brought back tidings that Sicinius had certainly
+been slain by his own comrades. At this there was great wrath in the camp;
+and the soldiers were ready to carry the body of Sicinius to Rome, but
+that the Ten made a military funeral for him at the public cost. So they
+buried Sicinius with great lamentation; but the Ten were thereafter in
+very ill repute among the soldiers.
+
+Again, there was a certain centurion, Lucius Virginius by name, an upright
+man and of good credit both at home and abroad. This Virginius had a
+daughter, Virginia, a very fair and virtuous maiden, whom he had espoused
+to a certain Icilius that had once been a tribune of the commons. On this
+maiden Appius Claudius, the chief of the Ten, sought to lay hands, and for
+this end gave commandment to one Marcus Claudius, who was one of the
+clients of his house, that he should claim the girl for a slave. On the
+morrow therefore, as Virginia passed across the market-place, being on her
+way to school (for the schools in those days were held in the
+market-place), this Claudius seized her, affirming that she was born of a
+woman that was a slave, and was therefore by right a slave herself. The
+maiden standing still for fear, the nurse that attended her set up a great
+cry and called the citizens to help. Straightway there was a great
+concourse, for many knew the maiden's father Virginius, and Icilius to
+whom she was betrothed. Then said Claudius, seeing that he could not take
+her by force, "There is no need of tumult or of gathering a crowd. I would
+proceed by law, not by force." Thereupon he summoned the girl before the
+judge. When they came to the judgment-seat of Appius the man told a tale
+that had already been agreed upon between the two. "This girl," he said,
+"was born in my house, and was thence secretly taken to the house of
+Virginius, and passed off on the man as his daughter. Of this I will bring
+proof sufficient, such as will convince Virginius himself, who doubtless
+has received the chief wrong in this matter. But in the meanwhile it is
+reasonable that the slave should remain in the house of her master." To
+this the friends of the girl made answer, "Virginius is absent on the
+service of the state, and will be here within the space of two days, if
+tidings of this matter be sent to him. Now it is manifestly wrong that
+judgment concerning a man's children should be given while he is himself
+absent. Let the cause, therefore, be postponed till he come. Meanwhile let
+the maiden have her freedom, according to the law which Appius and his
+fellows have themselves established."
+
+Appius gave sentence in these words: "That I am a favorer of freedom is
+manifest from this law of which ye make mention. Yet this law must be
+observed in all cases and without respect of persons; and as to this girl,
+there is none but her father only to whom her owner may yield the custody
+of her. Let her father therefore be sent for; but in the meanwhile
+Claudius must have custody of her, as is his right, only giving security
+that he will produce her on the morrow."
+
+At this decree, so manifestly unrighteous was it, there was much
+murmuring, yet none dared to oppose it, till Numitorius, the girl's uncle,
+and Icilius came forth from the crowd. The lictor cried, "Sentence has
+been given," and bade Icilius give place. Then Icilius turned to Appius,
+saying, "Appius, thou must drive me hence with the sword before thou canst
+have thy will in this matter. This maiden is my espoused wife; and verily,
+though thou call hither all thy lictors and the lictors of thy colleagues,
+she shall not remain in any house save the house of her father."
+
+To this Appius, seeing that the multitude was greatly moved and were ready
+to break forth into open violence, made this reply: "Icilius cares not for
+Virginia, but being a lover of sedition and tumult, seeks an occasion for
+strife. Such occasion I will not give him to-day. But that he may know
+that I yield not to his insolence, but have regard to the rights of a
+father, I pronounce no sentence. I ask of Marcus Claudius that he will
+concede something of his right, and suffer surety to be given for the girl
+against the morrow. But if on the morrow the father be not present here,
+then I tell Icilius and his fellows that he who is the author of this law
+will not fail to execute it. Neither will I call in the lictors of my
+colleague to put down them that raise a tumult. For this my own lictors
+shall suffice."
+
+So much time being thus gained, it seemed good to the friends of the
+maiden that the son of Numitorius and the brother of Icilius, young men
+both of them and active, should hasten with all speed to the camp, and
+bring Virginius thence as quickly as might be. So the two set out, and
+putting their horses to their full speed, carried tidings of the matter to
+the father. As for Appius, he sat awhile on the judgment-seat, waiting for
+other business to be brought before him, for he would not have it seem
+that he had come for this cause only; but finding that there was none, and
+indeed the people were wholly intent on the matter of Virginia, he
+departed to his own house. Thence he sent an epistle to his colleagues
+that were at the camp, saying, "Grant no leave of absence to Virginius,
+but keep him in safe custody with you." But this availed nothing, for
+already, before ever the epistle was brought to the camp, at the very
+first watch of the night, Virginius had set forth.
+
+When Virginius was come to the city, it being then early dawn, he put on
+mean apparel, as was the custom with such as were in danger of life or
+liberty, and carried about his daughter, who was clad in like manner,
+praying all that he met to help and succor him. "Remember," said he, "that
+day by day I stand fighting for you and for your children against your
+enemies. But what shall this profit you or me if this city being safe,
+nevertheless our children stand in peril of slavery and shame?" Icilius
+spake in like manner, and the women (for a company of matrons followed
+Virginia) wept silently, stirring greatly the hearts of all that looked
+upon them. But Appius, so set was his heart on evil, heeded none of these
+things; but so soon as he had sat him down on the seat of judgment, and he
+that claimed the girl had said a few words complaining that right had not
+been done to him, he gave his sentence, suffering not Virginius to speak.
+What pretense of reason he gave can scarce be imagined, but the sentence
+(for this only is certain) was that the girl should be in the custody of
+Claudius till the matter should be decided by law. But when Claudius came
+to take the maiden, her friends and all the women that bare her company
+thrust him back. Then said Appius, "I have sure proof, and this not from
+the violence only of Icilius, but from what is told to me of gatherings by
+night in the city, that there is a purpose in certain men to stir up
+sedition. Knowing this I have come hither with armed men; not to trouble
+quiet citizens, but to punish such as would break the peace of the state.
+Such as be wise, therefore, will keep themselves quiet. Lictor, remove
+this crowd, and make room for the master that he may take his slave."
+These words he thundered forth in great anger; and the people, when they
+heard them, fell back in fear, so that the maiden stood without defense.
+Then Virginius, seeing that there were none to help him, said to Appius,
+"I pray thee, Appius, if I have said aught that was harsh to thee, that
+thou wilt pardon it, knowing how a father must needs suffer in such a
+case. But now suffer me to inquire somewhat of this woman that is the
+girl's nurse, that I may know what is the truth of the matter. For if I
+have been deceived in the matter, and am not in truth father to the girl,
+I shall be more content." Then, Appius giving permission, he led his
+daughter and her nurse a little space aside, to the shops that are by the
+temple of Cloacina, and snatching a knife from a butcher's, said, "My
+daughter, there is but this one way that I can make thee free," and he
+drave the knife into her breast. Then he looked back to the judgment-seat
+and cried, "With this blood, Appius, I devote thee and thy life to
+perdition." There went up a great cry from all that stood there when they
+saw so dreadful a deed, and Appius commanded that they should seize him.
+But no man laid hands on him, for he made a way for himself with the knife
+that he carried in his hand, and they that followed defended him, till he
+came to the gate of the city. Then Icilius and Numitorius took up the dead
+body of the maiden and showed it to the people, saying much of the
+wickedness of him who had driven a father to do such a deed, and much also
+of the liberty which had been taken from them, and which, if they would
+only use this occasion, they might now recover. As for Appius, he cried
+out to his lictors that they should lay hands on Icilius, and when the
+crowd suffered not the lictors to approach, would himself have made a way
+to him, by the help of the young nobles that stood by him. But now the
+crowd had leaders, themselves also nobles, Valerius and Horatius. These
+said, "If Appius would deal with Icilius according to law we will be
+securities for him; if he mean to use violence, we are ready to meet him."
+And when the lictor would have laid hands on these two the multitude brake
+his rods to pieces. Then Appius would have spoken to the people, but they
+clamored against him, so that at last, losing all courage and fearing for
+his life, he covered his head and fled secretly to his own house.
+
+Meanwhile Virginius had made his way to the camp, which was now on Mount
+Vecilius, and stirred up the army yet more than he had stirred the city.
+"Lay not to my charge," he said, "that which is in truth the wickedness of
+Appius; neither turn from me as from the murderer of my daughter. Her
+indeed I slew, thinking that death was better than slavery and shame; nor
+indeed had I survived her but that I hoped to avenge her death by the help
+of my comrades." Others also that had come from the city persuaded the
+soldiers; some saying that the power of the Ten was overthrown, and others
+that Appius had gone of his own accord into banishment. These words so
+prevailed with the soldiers that, without any bidding from their generals,
+they took up their arms, and, with their standards carried before them,
+came to Rome and pitched their camp on the Aventine.
+
+Nevertheless, the Ten were still obstinate, affirming that they would not
+resign their authority till they had finished the work for which they had
+been appointed, namely, the drawing up of the twelve tables of the laws.
+And when the army perceived this they marched from the Aventine and took
+up their abode on the Sacred Hill, all the commons following them, so that
+there was not left in the city a single man that had ability to move; nor
+did the women and children stay behind, but all, as many as could move,
+bare them company; for Duilius, that had been tribune, said, "Unless the
+Senate see the city deserted, they will take no heed of your complaints."
+And indeed, when these perceived what had taken place, they were more
+urgent than before that the Ten should resign their office. And these at
+last consented. "Only," said they, "do not suffer us to perish from the
+rage of the commons. It will be an ill day for the nobles when the people
+shall learn to take vengeance on them." And the Senate so wrought that
+though at the first the commons in their great fury demanded that the Ten
+should be burned alive, yet they were persuaded to yield, it being agreed
+that each man should be judged by the law according to his deserts.
+Appius, therefore, was accused by Virginius, and being cast into prison,
+slew himself before the day appointed for the trial. Oppius also, another
+of the Ten, whom the commons hated for his misdeeds next after Appius, was
+accused and died in like manner. As for Claudius, that had claimed
+Virginia for his slave, he was condemned to be banished. And thus at the
+last, the guilty having been punished, the spirit of Virginia had rest.
+
+
+
+
+THE SACRIFICE OF MARCUS CURTIUS
+
+Adapted by Alfred J. Church
+
+
+In the three hundred and ninety-third year after the building of the city
+there was seen suddenly to open in the market-place a great gulf of a
+deepness that no man could measure. And this gulf could not be filled up,
+though all the people brought earth and stones and the like to cast into
+it. But at the last there was sent a message from the Gods that the Romans
+must inquire what was that by which more than all things the state was
+made strong. "For," said the soothsayer, "this thing must be dedicated to
+the Gods in this place if the commonwealth of Rome is to stand fast
+forever." And while they doubted, one Marcus Curtius, a youth that had won
+great renown in war, rebuked them, saying, "Can ye doubt that Rome hath
+nothing better than arms and valor?"
+
+Then all the people stood silent; and Curtius, first beholding the temples
+of the immortal Gods that hung over the market-place and the Capitol, and
+afterward stretching forth his hands both to heaven above and to this gulf
+that opened its mouth to the very pit, as it were, of hell, devoted
+himself for his country; and so--being clothed in armor and with arms in
+his hand, and having his horse arrayed as sumptuously as might be--he
+leapt into the gulf; and the multitude, both of men and women, threw in
+gifts and offerings of the fruits of the earth, and afterward the earth
+closed together.
+
+
+
+
+STORIES FROM OVID
+
+
+THE MIRACULOUS PITCHER
+
+By Nathaniel Hawthorne
+
+
+One evening, in times long ago, old Philemon and his old wife Baucis sat
+at their cottage door, enjoying the calm and beautiful sunset. They had
+already eaten their frugal supper, and intended now to spend a quiet hour
+or two before bedtime. So they talked together about their garden, and
+their cow, and their bees, and their grapevine, which clambered over the
+cottage wall, and on which the grapes were beginning to turn purple. But
+the rude shouts of children, and the fierce barking of dogs, in the
+village near at hand, grew louder and louder, until, at last, it was
+hardly possible for Baucis and Philemon to hear each other speak.
+
+"Ah, wife," cried Philemon, "I fear some poor traveler is seeking
+hospitality among our neighbors yonder, and, instead of giving him food
+and lodging, they have set their dogs at him, as their custom is!"
+
+"Well-a-day!" answered old Baucis, "I do wish our neighbors felt a little
+more kindness for their fellow-creatures. And only think of bringing up
+their children in this naughty way, and patting them on the head when they
+fling stones at strangers!"
+
+"Those children will never come to any good," said Philemon, shaking his
+white head. "To tell you the truth, wife, I should not wonder if some
+terrible thing were to happen to all the people in the village, unless
+they mend their manners. But, as for you and me, so long as Providence
+affords us a crust of bread, let us be ready to give half to any poor,
+homeless stranger that may come along and need it."
+
+"That's right, husband!" said Baucis. "So we will!"
+
+These old folks, you must know, were quite poor, and had to work pretty
+hard for a living. Old Philemon toiled diligently in his garden, while
+Baucis was always busy with her distaff, or making a little butter and
+cheese with their cow's milk, or doing one thing and another about the
+cottage. Their food was seldom anything but bread, milk, and vegetables,
+with sometimes a portion of honey from their beehive, and now and then a
+bunch of grapes, that had ripened against the cottage wall. But they were
+two of the kindest old people in the world, and would cheerfully have gone
+without their dinners, any day, rather than refuse a slice of their brown
+loaf, a cup of new milk, and a spoonful of honey, to the weary traveler
+who might pause before their door. They felt as if such guests had a sort
+of holiness, and that they ought, therefore, to treat them better and more
+bountifully than their own selves.
+
+Their cottage stood on a rising ground, at some short distance from a
+village, which lay in a hollow valley, that was about half a mile in
+breadth. This valley, in past ages, when the world was new, had probably
+been the bed of a lake. There fishes had glided to and fro in the depths,
+and water-weeds had grown along the margin, and trees and hills had seen
+their reflected images in the broad and peaceful mirror. But, as the
+waters subsided, men had cultivated the soil, and built houses on it, so
+that it was now a fertile spot, and bore no traces of the ancient lake,
+except a very small brook, which meandered through the midst of the
+village, and supplied the inhabitants with water. The valley had been dry
+land so long that oaks had sprung up, and grown great and high, and
+perished with old age, and been succeeded by others, as tall and stately
+as the first. Never was there a prettier or more fruitful valley. The very
+sight of the plenty around them should have made the inhabitants kind and
+gentle, and ready to show their gratitude to Providence by doing good to
+their fellow-creatures.
+
+But, we are sorry to say, the people of this lovely village were not
+worthy to dwell in a spot on which Heaven had smiled so beneficently. They
+were a very selfish and hard-hearted people, and had no pity for the poor,
+nor sympathy with the homeless. They would only have laughed, had anybody
+told them that human beings owe a debt of love to one another, because
+there is no other method of paying the debt of love and care which all of
+us owe to Providence. You will hardly believe what I am going to tell you.
+These naughty people taught their children to be no better than
+themselves, and used to clap their hands, by way of encouragement, when
+they saw the little boys and girls run after some poor stranger, shouting
+at his heels, and pelting him with stones. They kept large and fierce
+dogs, and whenever a traveler ventured to show himself in the village
+street, this pack of disagreeable curs scampered to meet him, barking,
+snarling, and showing their teeth. Then they would seize him by his leg,
+or by his clothes, just as it happened; and if he were ragged when he
+came, he was generally a pitiable object before he had time to run away.
+This was a very terrible thing to poor travelers, as you may suppose,
+especially when they chanced to be sick, or feeble, or lame, or old. Such
+persons (if they once knew how badly these unkind people, and their unkind
+children and curs, were in the habit of behaving) would go miles and miles
+out of their way, rather than try to pass through the village again.
+
+What made the matter seem worse, if possible, was that when rich persons
+came in their chariots, or riding on beautiful horses, with their servants
+in rich liveries attending on them, nobody could be more civil and
+obsequious than the inhabitants of the village. They would take off their
+hats, and make the humblest bows you ever saw. If the children were rude,
+they were pretty certain to get their ears boxed; and as for the dogs, if
+a single cur in the pack presumed to yelp, his master instantly beat him
+with a club, and tied him up without any supper. This would have been all
+very well, only it proved that the villagers cared much about the money
+that a stranger had in his pocket, and nothing whatever for the human
+soul, which lives equally in the beggar and the prince.
+
+So now you can understand why old Philemon spoke so sorrowfully, when he
+heard the shouts of the children and the barking of the dogs, at the
+farther extremity of the village street. There was a confused din, which
+lasted a good while, and seemed to pass quite through the breadth of the
+valley.
+
+"I never heard the dogs so loud!" observed the good old man.
+
+"Nor the children so rude!" answered his good old wife.
+
+They sat shaking their heads, one to the other, while the noise came
+nearer and nearer; until, at the foot of the little eminence on which
+their cottage stood, they saw two travelers approaching on foot. Close
+behind them came the fierce dogs, snarling at their very heels. A little
+farther off ran a crowd of children, who sent up shrill cries, and flung
+stones at the two strangers, with all their might. Once or twice, the
+younger of the two men (he was a slender and very active figure) turned
+about and drove back the dogs with a staff which he carried in his hand.
+His companion, who was a very tall person, walked calmly along as if
+disdaining to notice either the naughty children or the pack of curs,
+whose manners the children seemed to imitate.
+
+Both of the travelers were very humbly clad, and looked as if they might
+not have money enough in their pockets to pay for a night's lodging. And
+this, I am afraid, was the reason why the villagers had allowed their
+children and dogs to treat them so rudely.
+
+"Come, wife," said Philemon to Baucis, "let us go and meet these poor
+people. No doubt, they feel almost too heavy-hearted to climb the hill."
+
+"Go you and meet them," answered Baucis, "while I make haste within doors,
+and see whether we can get them anything for supper. A comfortable bowl of
+bread and milk would do wonders towards raising their spirits."
+
+Accordingly, she hastened into the cottage. Philemon, on his part, went
+forward, and extended his hand with so hospitable an aspect that there was
+no need of saying what nevertheless he did say, in the heartiest tone
+imaginable,--
+
+"Welcome, strangers! welcome!"
+
+"Thank you!" replied the younger of the two, in a lively kind of way,
+notwithstanding his weariness and trouble. "This is quite another greeting
+than we have met with yonder in the village. Pray, why do you live in such
+a bad neighborhood?"
+
+"Ah!" observed old Philemon, with a quiet and benign smile, "Providence
+put me here, I hope, among other reasons, in order that I may make you
+what amends I can for the inhospitality of my neighbors."
+
+"Well said, old father!" cried the traveler, laughing; "and, if the truth
+must be told, my companion and myself need some amends. Those children
+(the little rascals!) have bespattered us finely with their mud-balls; and
+one of the curs has torn my cloak, which was ragged enough already. But I
+took him across the muzzle with my staff; and I think you may have heard
+him yelp, even thus far off."
+
+Philemon was glad to see him in such good spirits; nor, indeed, would you
+have fancied, by the traveler's look and manner, that he was weary with a
+long day's journey, besides being disheartened by rough treatment at the
+end of it. He was dressed in rather an odd way, with a sort of cap on his
+head, the brim of which stuck out over both ears. Though it was a summer
+evening, he wore a cloak, which he kept wrapt closely about him, perhaps
+because his under garments were shabby. Philemon perceived, too, that he
+had on a singular pair of shoes; but, as it was now growing dusk, and as
+the old man's eyesight was none the sharpest, he could not precisely tell
+in what the strangeness consisted. One thing, certainly, seemed queer. The
+traveler was so wonderfully light and active, that it appeared as if his
+feet sometimes rose from the ground of their own accord, or could only be
+kept down by an effort.
+
+"I used to be light-footed, in my youth," said Philemon to the traveler.
+"But I always found my feet grow heavier towards nightfall."
+
+"There is nothing like a good staff to help one along," answered the
+stranger; "and I happen to have an excellent one, as you see."
+
+This staff, in fact, was the oddest-looking staff that Philemon had ever
+beheld. It was made of olive-wood, and had something like a little pair of
+wings near the top. Two snakes, carved in the wood, were represented as
+twining themselves about the staff, and were so very skillfully executed
+that old Philemon (whose eyes, you know, were getting rather dim) almost
+thought them alive, and that he could see them wriggling and twisting.
+
+"A curious piece of work, sure enough!" said he. "A staff with wings! It
+would be an excellent kind of stick for a little boy to ride astride of!"
+
+By this time Philemon and his two guests had reached the cottage door.
+
+"Friends," said the old man, "sit down and rest yourselves here on this
+bench. My good wife Baucis has gone to see what you can have for supper.
+We are poor folks; but you shall be welcome to whatever we have in the
+cupboard."
+
+The younger stranger threw himself carelessly on the bench, letting his
+staff fall, as he did so. And here happened something rather marvelous,
+though trifling enough, too. The staff seemed to get up from the ground of
+its own accord, and, spreading its little pair of wings, it half hopped,
+half flew, and leaned itself against the wall of the cottage. There it
+stood quite still, except that the snakes continued to wriggle. But, in my
+private opinion, old Philemon's eyesight had been playing him tricks
+again.
+
+Before he could ask any questions, the elder stranger drew his attention
+from the wonderful staff, by speaking to him.
+
+"Was there not," asked the stranger, in a remarkably deep tone of voice,
+"a lake, in very ancient times, covering the spot where now stands yonder
+village?"
+
+"Not in my day, friend," answered Philemon; "and yet I am an old man, as
+you see. There were always the fields and meadows, just as they are now,
+and the old trees, and the little stream murmuring through the midst of
+the valley. My father, nor his father before him, ever saw it otherwise,
+so far as I know; and doubtless it will still be the same, when old
+Philemon shall be gone and forgotten!"
+
+"That is more than can be safely foretold," observed the stranger; and
+there was something very stern in his deep voice. He shook his head, too,
+so that his dark and heavy curls were shaken with the movement. "Since the
+inhabitants of yonder village have forgotten the affections and sympathies
+of their nature, it were better that the lake should be rippling over
+their dwellings again!"
+
+The traveler looked so stern that Philemon was really almost frightened;
+the more so, that, at his frown, the twilight seemed suddenly to grow
+darker, and that, when he shook his head, there was a roll as of thunder
+in the air.
+
+But, in a moment afterwards, the stranger's face became so kindly and mild
+that the old man quite forgot his terror. Nevertheless, he could not help
+feeling that this elder traveler must be no ordinary personage, although
+he happened now to be attired so humbly and to be journeying on foot. Not
+that Philemon fancied him a prince in disguise, or any character of that
+sort; but rather some exceedingly wise man, who went about the world in
+this poor garb, despising wealth and all worldly objects, and seeking
+everywhere to add a mite to his wisdom. This idea appeared the more
+probable, because, when Philemon raised his eyes to the stranger's face,
+he seemed to see more thought there, in one look, than he could have
+studied out in a lifetime.
+
+While Baucis was getting the supper, the travelers both began to talk very
+sociably with Philemon. The younger, indeed, was extremely loquacious, and
+made such shrewd and witty remarks that the good old man continually burst
+out a-laughing, and pronounced him the merriest fellow whom he had seen
+for many a day.
+
+"Pray, my young friend," said he, as they grew familiar together, "what
+may I call your name?"
+
+"Why, I am very nimble, as you see," answered the traveler. "So, if you
+call me Quicksilver, the name will fit tolerably well."
+
+"Quicksilver? Quicksilver?" repeated Philemon, looking in the traveler's
+face, to see if he were making fun of him. "It is a very odd name! And
+your companion there? Has he as strange a one?"
+
+"You must ask the thunder to tell it you!" replied Quicksilver, putting on
+a mysterious look. "No other voice is loud enough."
+
+This remark, whether it were serious or in jest, might have caused
+Philemon to conceive a very great awe of the elder stranger, if, on
+venturing to gaze at him, he had not beheld so much beneficence in his
+visage. But undoubtedly here was the grandest figure that ever sat so
+humbly beside a cottage door. When the stranger conversed, it was with
+gravity, and in such a way that Philemon felt irresistibly moved to tell
+him everything which he had most at heart. This is always the feeling that
+people have when they meet with any one wise enough to comprehend all
+their good and evil, and to despise not a tittle of it.
+
+But Philemon, simple and kind-hearted old man that he was, had not many
+secrets to disclose. He talked, however, quite garrulously, about the
+events of his past life, in the whole course of which he had never been a
+score of miles from this very spot. His wife Baucis and himself had dwelt
+in the cottage from their youth upward, earning their bread by honest
+labor, always poor, but still contented. He told what excellent butter and
+cheese Baucis made, and how nice were the vegetables which he raised in
+his garden. He said, too, that, because they loved one another so very
+much, it was the wish of both that death might not separate them, but that
+they should die, as they had lived, together.
+
+As the stranger listened, a smile beamed over his countenance, and made
+its expression as sweet as it was grand.
+
+"You are a good old man," said he to Philemon, "and you have a good old
+wife to be your helpmeet. It is fit that your wish be granted."
+
+And it seemed to Philemon, just then, as if the sunset clouds threw up a
+bright flash from the west, and kindled a sudden light in the sky.
+
+Baucis had now got supper ready, and, coming to the door, began to make
+apologies for the poor fare which she was forced to set before her guests.
+
+"Had we known you were coming," said she, "my good man and myself would
+have gone without a morsel, rather than you should lack a better supper.
+But I took the most part of to-day's milk to make cheese; and our last
+loaf is already half eaten. Ah me! I never feel the sorrow of being poor,
+save when a poor traveler knocks at our door."
+
+"All will be very well; do not trouble yourself, my good dame," replied
+the elder stranger kindly. "An honest, hearty welcome to a guest works
+miracles with the fare, and is capable of turning the coarsest food to
+nectar and ambrosia."
+
+"A welcome you shall have," cried Baucis, "and likewise a little honey
+that we happen to have left, and a bunch of purple grapes besides."
+
+"Why, Mother Baucis, it is a feast!" exclaimed Quicksilver, laughing; "an
+absolute feast! and you shall see how bravely I will play my part at it! I
+think I never felt hungrier in my life."
+
+"Mercy on us!" whispered Baucis to her husband. "If the young man has such
+a terrible appetite, I am afraid there will not be half enough supper!"
+
+[Illustration: "I AM AFRAID THERE WILL NOT BE HALF ENOUGH SUPPER"]
+
+They all went into the cottage.
+
+And now, my little auditors, shall I tell you something that will make you
+open your eyes very wide? It is really one of the oddest circumstances in
+the whole story. Quicksilver's staff, you recollect, had set itself up
+against the wall of the cottage. Well, when its master entered the door,
+leaving this wonderful staff behind, what should it do but immediately
+spread its little wings, and go hopping and fluttering up the doorsteps!
+Tap, tap, went the staff, on the kitchen floor; nor did it rest until it
+had stood itself on end, with the greatest gravity and decorum, beside
+Quicksilver's chair. Old Philemon, however, as well as his wife, was so
+taken up in attending to their guests that no notice was given to what the
+staff had been about.
+
+As Baucis had said, there was but a scanty supper for two hungry
+travelers. In the middle of the table was the remnant of a brown loaf,
+with a piece of cheese on one side of it, and a dish of honeycomb on the
+other. There was a pretty good bunch of grapes for each of the guests. A
+moderately sized earthen pitcher, nearly full of milk, stood at a corner
+of the board; and when Baucis had filled two bowls, and set them before
+the strangers, only a little milk remained in the bottom of the pitcher.
+Alas! it is a very sad business, when a bountiful heart finds itself
+pinched and squeezed among narrow circumstances. Poor Baucis kept wishing
+that she might starve for a week to come, if it were possible, by so
+doing, to provide these hungry folks a more plentiful supper.
+
+And, since the supper was so exceedingly small, she could not help wishing
+that their appetites had not been quite so large. Why, at their very first
+sitting down, the travelers both drank off all the milk in their two
+bowls, at a draught.
+
+"A little more milk, kind Mother Baucis, if you please," said Quicksilver.
+"The day has been hot, and I am very much athirst."
+
+"Now, my dear people," answered Baucis, in great confusion, "I am so sorry
+and ashamed! But the truth is, there is hardly a drop more milk in the
+pitcher. O husband, husband, why didn't we go without our supper?"
+
+"Why, it appears to me," cried Quicksilver, starting up from table and
+taking the pitcher by the handle, "it really appears to me that matters
+are not quite so bad as you represent them. Here is certainly more milk in
+the pitcher."
+
+So saying, and to the vast astonishment of Baucis, he proceeded to fill,
+not only his own bowl, but his companion's likewise, from the pitcher that
+was supposed to be almost empty. The good woman could scarcely believe her
+eyes. She had certainly poured out nearly all the milk, and had peeped in
+afterwards, and seen the bottom of the pitcher, as she set it down upon
+the table.
+
+"But I am old," thought Baucis to herself, "and apt to be forgetful. I
+suppose I must have made a mistake. At all events, the pitcher cannot help
+being empty now, after filling the bowls twice over."
+
+"What excellent milk!" observed Quicksilver, after quaffing the contents
+of the second bowl. "Excuse me, my kind hostess, but I must really ask you
+for a little more."
+
+Now Baucis had seen, as plainly as she could see anything, that
+Quicksilver had turned the pitcher upside down, and consequently had
+poured out every drop of milk, in filling the last bowl. Of course, there
+could not possibly be any left. However, in order to let him know
+precisely how the case was, she lifted the pitcher, and made a gesture as
+if pouring milk into Quicksilver's bowl, but without the remotest idea
+that any milk would stream forth. What was her surprise, therefore, when
+such an abundant cascade fell bubbling into the bowl, that it was
+immediately filled to the brim, and overflowed upon the table! The two
+snakes that were twisted about Quicksilver's staff (but neither Baucis nor
+Philemon happened to observe this circumstance) stretched out their heads,
+and began to lap up the spilt milk.
+
+And then what a delicious fragrance the milk had! It seemed as if
+Philemon's only cow must have pastured, that day, on the richest herbage
+that could be found anywhere in the world. I only wish that each of you,
+my beloved little souls, could have a bowl of such nice milk, at
+supper-time!
+
+"And now a slice of your brown loaf, Mother Baucis," said Quicksilver,
+"and a little of that honey!"
+
+Baucis cut him a slice accordingly; and though the loaf, when she and her
+husband ate of it, had been rather too dry and crusty to be palatable, it
+was now as light and moist as if but a few hours out of the oven. Tasting
+a crumb, which had fallen on the table, she found it more delicious than
+bread ever was before, and could hardly believe that it was a loaf of her
+own kneading and baking. Yet, what other loaf could it possibly be?
+
+But oh, the honey! I may just as well let it alone, without trying to
+describe how exquisitely it smelt and looked. Its color was that of the
+purest and most transparent gold; and it had the odor of a thousand
+flowers; but of such flowers as never grew in an earthly garden, and to
+seek which the bees must have flown high above the clouds. The wonder is,
+that, after alighting on a flower-bed of so delicious fragrance and
+immortal bloom, they should have been content to fly down again to their
+hive in Philemon's garden. Never was such honey tasted, seen, or smelt.
+The perfume floated around the kitchen, and made it so delightful, that,
+had you closed your eyes, you would instantly have forgotten the low
+ceiling and smoky walls, and have fancied yourself in an arbor, with
+celestial honeysuckles creeping over it.
+
+Although good Mother Baucis was a simple old dame, she could not but think
+that there was something rather out of the common way in all that had been
+going on. So, after helping the guests to bread and honey, and laying a
+bunch of grapes by each of their plates, she sat down by Philemon, and
+told him what she had seen, in a whisper.
+
+"Did you ever hear the like?" asked she.
+
+"No, I never did," answered Philemon, with a smile. "And I rather think,
+my dear old wife, you have been walking about in a sort of a dream. If I
+had poured out the milk, I should have seen through the business at once.
+There happened to be a little more in the pitcher than you thought,--that
+is all."
+
+"Ah, husband," said Baucis, "say what you will, these are very uncommon
+people."
+
+"Well, well," replied Philemon, still smiling, "perhaps they are. They
+certainly do look as if they had seen better days; and I am heartily glad
+to see them making so comfortable a supper."
+
+Each of the guests had now taken his bunch of grapes upon his plate.
+Baucis (who rubbed her eyes, in order to see the more clearly) was of
+opinion that the clusters had grown larger and richer, and that each
+separate grape seemed to be on the point of bursting with ripe juice. It
+was entirely a mystery to her how such grapes could ever have been
+produced from the old stunted vine that climbed against the cottage wall.
+
+"Very admirable grapes these!" observed Quicksilver, as he swallowed one
+after another, without apparently diminishing his cluster. "Pray, my good
+host, whence did you gather them?"
+
+"From my own vine," answered Philemon. "You may see one of its branches
+twisting across the window, yonder. But wife and I never thought the
+grapes very fine ones."
+
+"I never tasted better," said the guest. "Another cup of this delicious
+milk, if you please, and I shall then have supped better than a prince."
+
+This time, old Philemon bestirred himself, and took up the pitcher; for he
+was curious to discover whether there was any reality in the marvels which
+Baucis had whispered to him. He knew that his good old wife was incapable
+of falsehood, and that she was seldom mistaken in what she supposed to be
+true; but this was so very singular a case, that he wanted to see into it
+with his own eyes. On taking up the pitcher, therefore, he slyly peeped
+into it, and was fully satisfied that it contained not so much as a single
+drop. All at once, however, he beheld a little white fountain, which
+gushed up from the bottom of the pitcher, and speedily filled it to the
+brim with foaming and deliciously fragrant milk. It was lucky that
+Philemon, in his surprise, did not drop the miraculous pitcher from his
+hand.
+
+"Who are ye, wonder-working strangers!" cried he, even more bewildered
+than his wife had been.
+
+"Your guests, my good Philemon, and your friends," replied the elder
+traveler, in his mild, deep voice, that had something at once sweet and
+awe-inspiring in it. "Give me likewise a cup of the milk; and may your
+pitcher never be empty for kind Baucis and yourself, any more than for the
+needy wayfarer!"
+
+The supper being now over, the strangers requested to be shown to their
+place of repose. The old people would gladly have talked with them a
+little longer, and have expressed the wonder which they felt, and their
+delight at finding the poor and meagre supper prove so much better and
+more abundant than they hoped. But the elder traveler had inspired them
+with such reverence that they dared not ask him any questions. And when
+Philemon drew Quicksilver aside, and inquired how under the sun a fountain
+of milk could have got into an old earthen pitcher, this latter personage
+pointed to his staff.
+
+"There is the whole mystery of the affair," quoth Quicksilver; "and if you
+can make it out, I'll thank you to let me know. I can't tell what to make
+of my staff. It is always playing such odd tricks as this; sometimes
+getting me a supper, and, quite as often, stealing it away. If I had any
+faith in such nonsense, I should say the stick was bewitched!"
+
+He said no more, but looked so slyly in their faces, that they rather
+fancied he was laughing at them. The magic staff went hopping at his
+heels, as Quicksilver quitted the room. When left alone, the good old
+couple spent some little time in conversation about the events of the
+evening, and then lay down on the floor, and fell fast asleep. They had
+given up their sleeping-room to the guests, and had no other bed for
+themselves, save these planks, which I wish had been as soft as their own
+hearts.
+
+The old man and his wife were stirring, betimes, in the morning, and the
+strangers likewise arose with the sun, and made their preparations to
+depart. Philemon hospitably entreated them to remain a little longer,
+until Baucis could milk the cow, and bake a cake upon the hearth, and,
+perhaps, find them a few fresh eggs, for breakfast. The guests, however,
+seemed to think it better to accomplish a good part of their journey
+before the heat of the day should come on. They, therefore, persisted in
+setting out immediately, but asked Philemon and Baucis to walk forth with
+them a short distance, and show them the road which they were to take.
+
+So they all four issued from the cottage, chatting together like old
+friends. It was very remarkable, indeed, how familiar the old couple
+insensibly grew with the elder traveler, and how their good and simple
+spirits melted into his, even as two drops of water would melt into the
+illimitable ocean. And as for Quicksilver, with his keen, quick, laughing
+wits, he appeared to discover every little thought that but peeped into
+their minds, before they suspected it themselves. They sometimes wished,
+it is true, that he had not been quite so quick-witted, and also that he
+would fling away his staff, which looked so mysteriously mischievous, with
+the snakes always writhing about it. But then, again, Quicksilver showed
+himself so very good-humored, that they would have been rejoiced to keep
+him in their cottage, staff, snakes, and all, every day, and the whole day
+long.
+
+"Ah me! Well-a-day!" exclaimed Philemon, when they had walked a little way
+from their door. "If our neighbors only knew what a blessed thing it is to
+show hospitality to strangers, they would tie up all their dogs, and never
+allow their children to fling another stone."
+
+"It is a sin and shame for them to behave so,--that it is!" cried good old
+Baucis vehemently. "And I mean to go this very day, and tell some of them
+what naughty people they are!"
+
+"I fear," remarked Quicksilver; slyly smiling, "that you will find none of
+them at home."
+
+The elder traveler's brow, just then, assumed such a grave, stern, and
+awful grandeur, yet serene withal, that neither Baucis nor Philemon dared
+to speak a word. They gazed reverently into his face, as if they had been
+gazing at the sky.
+
+"When men do not feel towards the humblest stranger as if he were a
+brother," said the traveler, in tones so deep that they sounded like those
+of an organ, "they are unworthy to exist on earth, which was created as
+the abode of a great human brotherhood!"
+
+"And, by the by, my dear old people," cried Quicksilver, with the
+liveliest look of fun and mischief in his eyes, "where is this same
+village that you talk about? On which side of us does it lie? Methinks I
+do not see it hereabouts."
+
+Philemon and his wife turned towards the valley, where, at sunset, only
+the day before, they had seen the meadows, the houses, the gardens, the
+clumps of trees, the wide, green-margined street, with children playing in
+it, and all the tokens of business, enjoyment, and prosperity. But what
+was their astonishment! There was no longer any appearance of a village!
+Even the fertile vale, in the hollow of which it lay, had ceased to have
+existence. In its stead, they beheld the broad, blue surface of a lake,
+which filled the great basin of the valley from brim to brim, and
+reflected the surrounding hills in its bosom with as tranquil an image as
+if it had been there ever since the creation of the world. For an instant,
+the lake remained perfectly smooth. Then a little breeze sprang up, and
+caused the water to dance, glitter, and sparkle in the early sunbeams, and
+to dash, with a pleasant rippling murmur, against the hither shore.
+
+The lake seemed so strangely familiar, that the old couple were greatly
+perplexed, and felt as if they could only have been dreaming about a
+village having lain there. But, the next moment, they remembered the
+vanished dwellings, and the faces and characters of the inhabitants, far
+too distinctly for a dream. The village had been there yesterday, and now
+was gone!
+
+"Alas!" cried these kind-hearted old people, "what has become of our poor
+neighbors?"
+
+"They no longer exist as men and women," said the elder traveler, in his
+grand and deep voice, while a roll of thunder seemed to echo it at a
+distance. "There was neither use nor beauty in such a life as theirs; for
+they never softened or sweetened the hard lot of mortality by the exercise
+of kindly affections between man and man. They retained no image of the
+better life in their bosoms; therefore, the lake, that was of old, has
+spread itself forth again, to reflect the sky!"
+
+"And as for those foolish people," said Quicksilver, with his mischievous
+smile, "they are all transformed to fishes. There needed but little
+change, for they were already a scaly set of rascals, and the
+coldest-blooded beings in existence. So, kind Mother Baucis, whenever you
+or your husband have an appetite for a dish of broiled trout, he can throw
+in a line, and pull out half a dozen of your old neighbors!"
+
+"Ah," cried Baucis shuddering, "I would not, for the world, put one of
+them on the gridiron!"
+
+"No," added Philemon, making a wry face, "we could never relish them!"
+
+"As for you, good Philemon," continued the elder traveler,--"and you, kind
+Baucis,--you, with your scanty means, have mingled so much heartfelt
+hospitality with your entertainment of the homeless stranger, that the
+milk became an inexhaustible fount of nectar, and the brown loaf and the
+honey were ambrosia. Thus, the divinities have feasted, at your board, off
+the same viands that supply their banquets on Olympus. You have done well,
+my dear old friends. Wherefore, request whatever favor you have most at
+heart, and it is granted."
+
+Philemon and Baucis looked at one another, and then--I know not which of
+the two it was who spoke, but that one uttered the desire of both their
+hearts.
+
+"Let us live together, while we live, and leave the world at the same
+instant, when we die! For we have always loved one another!"
+
+"Be it so!" replied the stranger, with majestic kindness. "Now, look
+towards your cottage!"
+
+They did so. But what was their surprise on beholding a tall edifice of
+white marble, with a wide-open portal, occupying the spot where their
+humble residence had so lately stood!
+
+"There is your home," said the stranger, beneficently smiling on them
+both. "Exercise your hospitality in yonder palace as freely as in the poor
+hovel to which you welcomed us last evening."
+
+The old folks fell on their knees to thank him; but, behold! neither he
+nor Quicksilver was there.
+
+So Philemon and Baucis took up their residence in the marble palace, and
+spent their time, with vast satisfaction to themselves, in making
+everybody jolly and comfortable who happened to pass that way. The
+milk-pitcher, I must not forget to say, retained its marvelous quality of
+being never empty, when it was desirable to have it full. Whenever an
+honest, good-humored, and free-hearted guest took a draught from this
+pitcher, he invariably found it the sweetest and most invigorating fluid
+that ever ran down his throat. But, if a cross and disagreeable curmudgeon
+happened to sip, he was pretty certain to twist his visage into a hard
+knot, and pronounce it a pitcher of sour milk!
+
+Thus the old couple lived in their palace a great, great while, and grew
+older and older, and very old indeed. At length, however, there came a
+summer morning when Philemon and Baucis failed to make their appearance,
+as on other mornings, with one hospitable smile overspreading both their
+pleasant faces, to invite the guests of over-night to breakfast. The
+guests searched everywhere, from top to bottom of the spacious palace, and
+all to no purpose. But, after a great deal of perplexity, they espied, in
+front of the portal, two venerable trees, which nobody could remember to
+have seen there the day before. Yet there they stood, with their roots
+fastened deep into the soil, and a huge breadth of foliage overshadowing
+the whole front of the edifice. One was an oak, and the other a
+linden-tree. Their boughs--it was strange and beautiful to see--were
+intertwined together, and embraced one another, so that each tree seemed
+to live in the other tree's bosom much more than in its own.
+
+While the guests were marveling how these trees, that must have required
+at least a century to grow, could have come to be so tall and venerable in
+a single night, a breeze sprang up, and set their intermingled boughs
+astir. And then there was a deep, broad murmur in the air, as if the two
+mysterious trees were speaking.
+
+"I am old Philemon!" murmured the oak.
+
+"I am old Baucis!" murmured the linden-tree.
+
+But, as the breeze grew stronger, the trees both spoke at
+once,--"Philemon! Baucis! Baucis! Philemon!"--as if one were both and both
+were one, and talking together in the depths of their mutual heart. It was
+plain enough to perceive that the good old couple had renewed their age,
+and were now to spend a quiet and delightful hundred years or so, Philemon
+as an oak, and Baucis as a linden-tree. And oh, what a hospitable shade
+did they fling around them! Whenever a wayfarer paused beneath it, he
+heard a pleasant whisper of the leaves above his head, and wondered how
+the sound should so much resemble words like these:--
+
+"Welcome, welcome, dear traveler, welcome!"
+
+And some kind soul, that knew what would have pleased old Baucis and old
+Philemon best, built a circular seat around both their trunks, where, for
+a great while afterwards, the weary, and the hungry, and the thirsty used
+to repose themselves, and quaff milk abundantly from the miraculous
+pitcher.
+
+And I wish, for all our sakes, that we had the pitcher here now!
+
+
+
+
+THE GOLDEN TOUCH
+
+By Nathaniel Hawthorne
+
+
+Once upon a time, there lived a very rich man, and a king besides, whose
+name was Midas; and he had a little daughter, whom nobody but myself ever
+heard of, and whose name I either never knew or have entirely forgotten.
+So, because I love odd names for little girls, I choose to call her
+Marygold.
+
+This King Midas was fonder of gold than of anything else in the world. He
+valued his royal crown chiefly because it was composed of that precious
+metal. If he loved anything better, or half so well, it was the one little
+maiden who played so merrily around her father's footstool. But the more
+Midas loved his daughter, the more did he desire and seek for wealth. He
+thought, foolish man! that the best thing he could possibly do for this
+dear child would be to bequeath her the immensest pile of yellow,
+glistening coin, that had ever been heaped together since the world was
+made. Thus, he gave all his thoughts and all his time to this one purpose.
+If ever he happened to gaze for an instant at the gold-tinted clouds of
+sunset, he wished that they were real gold, and that they could be
+squeezed safely into his strong box. When little Marygold ran to meet him
+with a bunch of buttercups and dandelions, he used to say, "Poh, poh,
+child! If these flowers were as golden as they look, they would be worth
+the plucking!"
+
+And yet, in his earlier days, before he was so entirely possessed of this
+insane desire for riches, King Midas had shown a great taste for flowers.
+He had planted a garden, in which grew the biggest and beautifulest and
+sweetest roses that any mortal ever saw or smelt. These roses were still
+growing in the garden, as large, as lovely, and as fragrant as when Midas
+used to pass whole hours in gazing at them and inhaling their perfume. But
+now, if he looked at them at all, it was only to calculate how much the
+garden would be worth if each of the innumerable rose-petals were a thin
+plate of gold. And though he once was fond of music (in spite of an idle
+story about his ears, which were said to resemble those of an ass), the
+only music for poor Midas, now, was the chink of one coin against another.
+
+At length (as people always grow more and more foolish, unless they take
+care to grow wiser and wiser), Midas had got to be so exceedingly
+unreasonable, that he could scarcely bear to see or touch any object that
+was not gold. He made it his custom, therefore, to pass a large portion of
+every day in a dark and dreary apartment, under ground, at the basement of
+his palace. It was here that he kept his wealth. To this dismal hole--for
+it was little better than a dungeon--Midas betook himself, whenever he
+wanted to be particularly happy. Here, after carefully locking the door,
+he would take a bag of gold coin, or a gold cup as big as a washbowl, or a
+heavy golden bar, or a peck-measure of gold-dust, and bring them from the
+obscure corners of the room into the one bright and narrow sunbeam that
+fell from the dungeon-like window. He valued the sunbeam for no other
+reason but that his treasure would not shine without its help. And then
+would he reckon over the coins in the bag; toss up the bar, and catch it
+as it came down; sift the gold-dust through his fingers; look at the funny
+image of his own face, as reflected in the burnished circumference of the
+cup; and whisper to himself, "O Midas, rich King Midas, what a happy man
+art thou!" But it was laughable to see how the image of his face kept
+grinning at him, out of the polished surface of the cup. It seemed to be
+aware of his foolish behavior, and to have a naughty inclination to make
+fun of him.
+
+Midas called himself a happy man, but felt that he was not yet quite so
+happy as he might be. The very tiptop of enjoyment would never be reached,
+unless the whole world were to become his treasure-room, and be filled
+with yellow metal which should be all his own.
+
+Now, I need hardly remind such wise little people as you are, that in the
+old, old times, when King Midas was alive, a great many things came to
+pass, which we should consider wonderful if they were to happen in our own
+day and country. And, on the other hand, a great many things take place
+nowadays, which seem not only wonderful to us, but at which the people of
+old times would have stared their eyes out. On the whole, I regard our own
+times as the strangest of the two; but, however that may be, I must go on
+with my story.
+
+Midas was enjoying himself in his treasure-room, one day, as usual, when
+he perceived a shadow fall over the heaps of gold; and, looking suddenly
+up, what should he behold but the figure of a stranger, standing in the
+bright and narrow sunbeam! It was a young man, with a cheerful and ruddy
+face. Whether it was that the imagination of King Midas threw a yellow
+tinge over everything, or whatever the cause might be, he could not help
+fancying that the smile with which the stranger regarded him had a kind of
+golden radiance in it. Certainly, although his figure intercepted the
+sunshine, there was now a brighter gleam upon all the piled-up treasures
+than before. Even the remotest corners had their share of it, and were
+lighted up, when the stranger smiled, as with tips of flame and sparkles
+of fire. As Midas knew that he had carefully turned the key in the lock,
+and that no mortal strength could possibly break into his treasure-room,
+he, of course, concluded that his visitor must be something more than
+mortal. It is no matter about telling you who he was. In those days, when
+the earth was comparatively a new affair, it was supposed to be often the
+resort of beings endowed with supernatural power, and who used to interest
+themselves in the joys and sorrows of men, women, and children, half
+playfully and half seriously. Midas had met such beings before now, and
+was not sorry to meet one of them again. The stranger's aspect, indeed,
+was so good-humored and kindly, if not beneficent, that it would have been
+unreasonable to suspect him of intending any mischief. It was far more
+probable that he came to do Midas a favor. And what could that favor be,
+unless to multiply his heaps of treasure?
+
+The stranger gazed about the room; and when his lustrous smile had
+glistened upon all the golden objects that were there, he turned again to
+Midas.
+
+"You are a wealthy man, friend Midas!" he observed. "I doubt whether any
+other four walls, on earth, contain so much gold as you have contrived to
+pile up in this room."
+
+"I have done pretty well,--pretty well," answered Midas, in a discontented
+tone. "But, after all, it is but a trifle, when you consider that it has
+taken me my whole life to get it together. If one could live a thousand
+years, he might have time to grow rich!"
+
+"What!" exclaimed the stranger. "Then you are not satisfied?"
+
+Midas shook his head.
+
+"And pray what would satisfy you?" asked the stranger. "Merely for the
+curiosity of the thing, I should be glad to know."
+
+Midas paused and meditated. He felt a presentiment that this stranger,
+with such a golden lustre in his good-humored smile, had come hither with
+both the power and the purpose of gratifying his utmost wishes. Now,
+therefore, was the fortunate moment, when he had but to speak, and obtain
+whatever possible, or seemingly impossible thing, it might come into his
+head to ask. So he thought, and thought, and thought, and heaped up one
+golden mountain upon another, in his imagination, without being able to
+imagine them big enough. At last, a bright idea occurred to King Midas. It
+seemed really as bright as the glistening metal which he loved so much.
+
+Raising his head, he looked the lustrous stranger in the face.
+
+"Well, Midas," observed his visitor, "I see that you have at length hit
+upon something that will satisfy you. Tell me your wish."
+
+"It is only this," replied Midas. "I am weary of collecting my treasures
+with so much trouble, and beholding the heap so diminutive, after I have
+done my best. I wish everything that I touch to be changed to gold!"
+
+The stranger's smile grew so very broad, that it seemed to fill the room
+like an outburst of the sun, gleaming into a shadowy dell where the yellow
+autumnal leaves--for so looked the lumps and particles of gold--lie strewn
+in the glow of light.
+
+"The Golden Touch!" exclaimed he. "You certainly deserve credit, friend
+Midas, for striking out so brilliant a conception. But are you quite sure
+that this will satisfy you?"
+
+"How could it fail?" said Midas.
+
+"And will you never regret the possession of it?"
+
+"What could induce me?" asked Midas. "I ask nothing else, to render me
+perfectly happy."
+
+"Be it as you wish, then," replied the stranger, waving his hand in token
+of farewell. "To-morrow, at sunrise, you will find yourself gifted with
+the Golden Touch."
+
+The figure of the stranger then became exceedingly bright, and Midas
+involuntarily closed his eyes. On opening them again, he beheld only one
+yellow sunbeam in the room, and, all around him, the glistening of the
+precious metal which he had spent his life in hoarding up.
+
+Whether Midas slept as usual that night, the story does not say. Asleep or
+awake, however, his mind was probably in the state of a child's, to whom a
+beautiful new plaything has been promised in the morning. At any rate, day
+had hardly peeped over the hills, when King Midas was broad awake, and,
+stretching his arms out of bed, began to touch the objects that were
+within reach. He was anxious to prove whether the Golden Touch had really
+come, according to the stranger's promise. So he laid his finger on a
+chair by the bedside, and on various other things, but was grievously
+disappointed to perceive that they remained of exactly the same substance
+as before. Indeed, he felt very much afraid that he had only dreamed about
+the lustrous stranger, or else that the latter had been making game of
+him. And what a miserable affair would it be, if, after all his hopes,
+Midas must content himself with what little gold he could scrape together
+by ordinary means, instead of creating it by a touch!
+
+All this while it was only the gray of the morning, with but a streak of
+brightness along the edge of the sky, where Midas could not see it. He lay
+in a very disconsolate mood, regretting the downfall of his hopes, and
+kept growing sadder and sadder, until the earliest sunbeam shone through
+the window, and gilded the ceiling over his head. It seemed to Midas that
+this bright yellow sunbeam was reflected in rather a singular way on the
+white covering of the bed. Looking more closely, what was his astonishment
+and delight, when he found that this linen fabric had been transmuted to
+what seemed a woven texture of the purest and brightest gold! The Golden
+Touch had come to him with the first sunbeam!
+
+Midas started up, in a kind of joyful frenzy, and ran about the room,
+grasping at everything that happened to be in his way. He seized one of
+the bed-posts, and it became immediately a fluted golden pillar. He pulled
+aside a window-curtain, in order to admit a clear spectacle of the wonders
+which he was performing; and the tassel grew heavy in his hand,--a mass of
+gold. He took up a book from the table. At his first touch, it assumed the
+appearance of such a splendidly bound and gilt-edged volume as one often
+meets with, nowadays; but, on running his fingers through the leaves,
+behold! it was a bundle of thin golden plates, in which all the wisdom of
+the book had grown illegible. He hurriedly put on his clothes, and was
+enraptured to see himself in a magnificent suit of gold cloth, which
+retained its flexibility and softness, although it burdened him a little
+with its weight. He drew out his handkerchief, which little Marygold had
+hemmed for him. That was likewise gold, with the dear child's neat and
+pretty stitches running all along the border, in gold thread!
+
+Somehow or other, this last transformation did not quite please King
+Midas. He would rather that his little daughter's handiwork should have
+remained just the same as when she climbed his knee and put it into his
+hand.
+
+But it was not worth while to vex himself about a trifle. Midas now took
+his spectacles from his pocket, and put them on his nose, in order that he
+might see more distinctly what he was about. In those days, spectacles for
+common people had not been invented, but were already worn by kings; else,
+how could Midas have had any? To his great perplexity, however, excellent
+as the glasses were, he discovered that he could not possibly see through
+them. But this was the most natural thing in the world; for on taking them
+off, the transparent crystals turned out to be plates of yellow metal,
+and, of course, were worthless as spectacles, though valuable as gold. It
+struck Midas as rather inconvenient that, with all his wealth, he could
+never again be rich enough to own a pair of serviceable spectacles.
+
+"It is no great matter, nevertheless," said he to himself, very
+philosophically. "We cannot expect any great good, without its being
+accompanied with some small inconvenience. The Golden Touch is worth the
+sacrifice of a pair of spectacles, at least, if not of one's very
+eyesight. My own eyes will serve for ordinary purposes, and little
+Marygold will soon be old enough to read to me."
+
+Wise King Midas was so exalted by his good fortune that the palace seemed
+not sufficiently spacious to contain him. He therefore went downstairs,
+and smiled, on observing that the balustrade of the staircase became a bar
+of burnished gold, as his hand passed over it in his descent. He lifted
+the door-latch (it was brass only a moment ago, but golden when his
+fingers quitted it), and emerged into the garden. Here, as it happened, he
+found a great number of beautiful roses in full bloom, and others in all
+the stages of lovely bud and blossom. Very delicious was their fragrance
+in the morning breeze. Their delicate blush was one of the fairest sights
+in the world; so gentle, so modest, and so full of sweet tranquillity did
+these roses seem to be.
+
+But Midas knew a way to make them far more precious, according to his way
+of thinking, than roses had ever been before. So he took great pains in
+going from bush to bush, and exercised his magic touch most indefatigably;
+until every individual flower and bud, and even the worms at the heart of
+some of them, were changed to gold. By the time this good work was
+completed, King Midas was summoned to breakfast; and as the morning air
+had given him an excellent appetite, he made haste back to the palace.
+
+What was usually a king's breakfast in the days of Midas, I really do not
+know, and cannot stop now to investigate. To the best of my belief,
+however, on this particular morning, the breakfast consisted of hot cakes,
+some nice little brook trout, roasted potatoes, fresh boiled eggs, and
+coffee, for King Midas himself, and a bowl of bread and milk for his
+daughter Marygold. At all events, this is a breakfast fit to set before a
+king; and, whether he had it or not, King Midas could not have had a
+better.
+
+Little Marygold had not yet made her appearance. Her father ordered her to
+be called, and, seating himself at table, awaited the child's coming, in
+order to begin his own breakfast. To do Midas justice, he really loved his
+daughter, and loved her so much the more this morning, on account of the
+good fortune which had befallen him. It was not a great while before he
+heard her coming along the passage-way crying bitterly. This circumstance
+surprised him, because Marygold was one of the cheerfullest little people
+whom you would see in a summer's day, and hardly shed a thimbleful of
+tears in a twelvemonth. When Midas heard her sobs, he determined to put
+little Marygold into better spirits, by an agreeable surprise; so, leaning
+across the table, he touched his daughter's bowl (which was a China one,
+with pretty figures all around it), and transmuted it to gleaming gold.
+
+Meanwhile, Marygold slowly and disconsolately opened the door, and showed
+herself with her apron at her eyes, still sobbing as if her heart would
+break.
+
+"How now, my little lady!" cried Midas. "Pray what is the matter with you,
+this bright morning?"
+
+Marygold, without taking the apron from her eyes, held out her hand, in
+which was one of the roses which Midas had so recently transmuted.
+
+"Beautiful!" exclaimed her father. "And what is there in this magnificent
+golden rose to make you cry?"
+
+"Ah, dear father!" answered the child, as well as her sobs would let her;
+"it is not beautiful, but the ugliest flower that ever grew! As soon as I
+was dressed I ran into the garden to gather some roses for you; because I
+know you like them, and like them the better when gathered by your little
+daughter. But, oh dear, dear me! What do you think has happened? Such a
+misfortune! All the beautiful roses, that smelled so sweet and had so many
+lovely blushes, are blighted and spoilt! They are grown quite yellow, as
+you see this one, and have no longer any fragrance! What can have been the
+matter with them?"
+
+"Poh, my dear little girl,--pray don't cry about it!" said Midas, who was
+ashamed to confess that he himself had wrought the change which so greatly
+afflicted her. "Sit down and eat your bread and milk! You will find it
+easy enough to exchange a golden rose like that (which will last hundreds
+of years) for an ordinary one which would wither in a day."
+
+"I don't care for such roses as this!" cried Marygold, tossing it
+contemptuously away. "It has no smell, and the hard petals prick my nose!"
+
+The child now sat down to table, but was so occupied with her grief for
+the blighted roses that she did not even notice the wonderful
+transmutation of her China bowl. Perhaps this was all the better; for
+Marygold was accustomed to take pleasure in looking at the queer figures,
+and strange trees and houses, that were painted on the circumference of
+the bowl; and these ornaments were now entirely lost in the yellow hue of
+the metal.
+
+Midas, meanwhile, had poured out a cup of coffee, and, as a matter of
+course, the coffee-pot, whatever metal it may have been when he took it
+up, was gold when he set it down. He thought to himself, that it was
+rather an extravagant style of splendor, in a king of his simple habits,
+to breakfast off a service of gold, and began to be puzzled with the
+difficulty of keeping his treasures safe. The cupboard and the kitchen
+would no longer be a secure place of deposit for articles so valuable as
+golden bowls and coffee-pots.
+
+Amid these thoughts, he lifted a spoonful of coffee to his lips, and,
+sipping it, was astonished to perceive that the instant his lips touched
+the liquid, it became molten gold, and the next moment, hardened into a
+lump!
+
+"Ha!" exclaimed Midas, rather aghast.
+
+"What is the matter, father?" asked little Marygold, gazing at him, with
+the tears still standing in her eyes.
+
+"Nothing, child, nothing!" said Midas. "Eat your milk, before it gets
+quite cold."
+
+He took one of the nice little trouts on his plate, and, by way of
+experiment, touched its tail with his finger. To his horror, it was
+immediately transmuted from an admirably fried brook trout into a
+gold-fish, though not one of those gold-fishes which people often keep in
+glass globes, as ornaments for the parlor. No; but it was really a
+metallic fish, and looked as if it had been very cunningly made by the
+nicest goldsmith in the world. Its little bones were now golden wires; its
+fins and tail were thin plates of gold; and there were the marks of the
+fork in it, and all the delicate, frothy appearance of a nicely fried
+fish, exactly imitated in metal. A very pretty piece of work, as you may
+suppose; only King Midas, just at that moment, would much rather have had
+a real trout in his dish than this elaborate and valuable imitation of
+one.
+
+"I don't quite see," thought he to himself, "how I am to get any
+breakfast!"
+
+He took one of the smoking-hot cakes, and had scarcely broken it, when, to
+his cruel mortification, though, a moment before, it had been of the
+whitest wheat, it assumed the yellow hue of Indian meal. To say the truth,
+if it had really been a hot Indian cake, Midas would have prized it a good
+deal more than he now did, when its solidity and increased weight made him
+too bitterly sensible that it was gold. Almost in despair, he helped
+himself to a boiled egg, which immediately underwent a change similar to
+those of the trout and the cake. The egg, indeed, might have been mistaken
+for one of those which the famous goose, in the story-book, was in the
+habit of laying; but King Midas was the only goose that had had anything
+to do with the matter.
+
+"Well, this is a quandary!" thought he, leaning back in his chair, and
+looking quite enviously at little Marygold, who was now eating her bread
+and milk with great satisfaction. "Such a costly breakfast before me, and
+nothing that can be eaten!"
+
+Hoping that, by dint of great dispatch, he might avoid what he now felt to
+be a considerable inconvenience, King Midas next snatched a hot potato,
+and attempted to cram it into his mouth, and swallow it in a hurry. But
+the Golden Touch was too nimble for him. He found his mouth full, not of
+mealy potato, but of solid metal, which so burnt his tongue that he roared
+aloud, and, jumping up from the table, began to dance and stamp about the
+room, both with pain and affright.
+
+"Father, dear father!" cried little Marygold, who was a very affectionate
+child, "pray what is the matter? Have you burnt your mouth?"
+
+"Ah, dear child," groaned Midas dolefully, "I don't know what is to become
+of your poor father!"
+
+And, truly, my dear little folks, did you ever hear of such a pitiable
+case in all your lives? Here was literally the richest breakfast that
+could be set before a king, and its very richness made it absolutely good
+for nothing. The poorest laborer, sitting down to his crust of bread and
+cup of water, was far better off than King Midas, whose delicate food was
+really worth its weight in gold. And what was to be done? Already, at
+breakfast, Midas was excessively hungry. Would he be less so by
+dinner-time? And how ravenous would be his appetite for supper, which must
+undoubtedly consist of the same sort of indigestible dishes as those now
+before him! How many days, think you, would he survive a continuance of
+this rich fare?
+
+These reflections so troubled wise King Midas, that he began to doubt
+whether, after all, riches are the one desirable thing in the world, or
+even the most desirable. But this was only a passing thought. So
+fascinated was Midas with the glitter of the yellow metal, that he would
+still have refused to give up the Golden Touch for so paltry a
+consideration as a breakfast. Just imagine what a price for one meal's
+victuals! It would have been the same as paying millions and millions of
+money (and as many millions more as would take forever to reckon up) for
+some fried trout, an egg, a potato, a hot cake, and a cup of coffee!
+
+"It would be quite too dear," thought Midas.
+
+Nevertheless, so great was his hunger, and the perplexity of his
+situation, that he again groaned aloud, and very grievously too. Our
+pretty Marygold could endure it no longer. She sat, a moment, gazing at
+her father, and trying with all the might of her little wits to find out
+what was the matter with him. Then, with a sweet and sorrowful impulse to
+comfort him, she started from her chair, and, running to Midas, threw her
+arms affectionately about his knees. He bent down and kissed her. He felt
+that his little daughter's love was worth a thousand times more than he
+had gained by the Golden Touch.
+
+"My precious, precious Marygold!" cried he.
+
+But Marygold made no answer.
+
+Alas, what had he done? How fatal was the gift which the stranger
+bestowed! The moment the lips of Midas touched Marygold's forehead, a
+change had taken place. Her sweet, rosy face, so full of affection as it
+had been, assumed a glittering yellow color, with yellow teardrops
+congealing on her cheeks. Her beautiful brown ringlets took the same tint.
+Her soft and tender little form grew hard and inflexible within her
+father's encircling arms. Oh, terrible misfortune! The victim of his
+insatiable desire for wealth, little Marygold was a human child no longer,
+but a golden statue!
+
+Yes, there she was, with the questioning look of love, grief, and pity,
+hardened into her face. It was the prettiest and most woeful sight that
+ever mortal saw. All the features and tokens of Marygold were there; even
+the beloved little dimple remained in her golden chin. But the more
+perfect was the resemblance, the greater was the father's agony at
+beholding this golden image, which was all that was left him of a
+daughter. It had been a favorite phrase of Midas, whenever he felt
+particularly fond of the child, to say that she was worth her weight in
+gold. And now the phrase had become literally true. And now, at last, when
+it was too late, he felt how infinitely a warm and tender heart, that
+loved him, exceeded in value all the wealth that could be piled up betwixt
+the earth and sky!
+
+It would be too sad a story, if I were to tell you how Midas, in the
+fullness of all his gratified desires, began to wring his hands and bemoan
+himself; and how he could neither bear to look at Marygold, nor yet to
+look away from her. Except when his eyes were fixed on the image, he could
+not possibly believe that she was changed to gold. But stealing another
+glance, there was the precious little figure, with a yellow tear-drop on
+its yellow cheek, and a look so piteous and tender that it seemed as if
+that very expression must needs soften the gold, and make it flesh again.
+This, however, could not be. So Midas had only to wring his hands, and to
+wish that he were the poorest man in the wide world, if the loss of all
+his wealth might bring back the faintest rose-color to his dear child's
+face.
+
+While he was in this tumult of despair, he suddenly beheld a stranger
+standing near the door. Midas bent down his head, without speaking; for he
+recognized the same figure which had appeared to him, the day before, in
+the treasure-room, and had bestowed on him this disastrous faculty of the
+Golden Touch. The stranger's countenance still wore a smile, which seemed
+to shed a yellow lustre all about the room, and gleamed on little
+Marygold's image, and on the other objects that had been transmuted by the
+touch of Midas.
+
+"Well, friend Midas," said the stranger, "pray how do you succeed with the
+Golden Touch?"
+
+Midas shook his head.
+
+"I am very miserable," said he.
+
+"Very miserable, indeed!" exclaimed the stranger. "And how happens that?
+Have I not faithfully kept my promise with you? Have you not everything
+that your heart desired?"
+
+"Gold is not everything," answered Midas. "And I have lost all that my
+heart really cared for."
+
+"Ah! So you have made a discovery, since yesterday?" observed the
+stranger. "Let us see, then. Which of these two things do you think is
+really worth the most,--the gift of the Golden Touch, or one cup of clear
+cold water?"
+
+"O blessed water!" exclaimed Midas. "It will never moisten my parched
+throat again!"
+
+"The Golden Touch," continued the stranger, "or a crust of bread?"
+
+"A piece of bread," answered Midas, "is worth all the gold on earth!"
+
+"The Golden Touch," asked the stranger, "or your own little Marygold,
+warm, soft, and loving as she was an hour ago?"
+
+"Oh, my child, my dear child!" cried poor Midas, wringing his hands. "I
+would not have given that one small dimple in her chin for the power of
+changing this whole big earth into a solid lump of gold!"
+
+"You are wiser than you were, King Midas!" said the stranger, looking
+seriously at him. "Your own heart, I perceive, has not been entirely
+changed from flesh to gold. Were it so, your case would indeed be
+desperate. But you appear to be still capable of understanding that the
+commonest things, such as lie within everybody's grasp, are more valuable
+than the riches which so many mortals sigh and struggle after. Tell me,
+now, do you sincerely desire to rid yourself of this Golden Touch?"
+
+"It is hateful to me!" replied Midas.
+
+A fly settled on his nose, but immediately fell to the floor; for it, too,
+had become gold. Midas shuddered.
+
+"Go, then," said the stranger, "and plunge into the river that glides past
+the bottom of your garden. Take likewise a vase of the same water, and
+sprinkle it over any object that you may desire to change back again from
+gold into its former substance. If you do this in earnestness and
+sincerity, it may possibly repair the mischief which your avarice has
+occasioned."
+
+King Midas bowed low; and when he lifted his head, the lustrous stranger
+had vanished.
+
+You will easily believe that Midas lost no time in snatching up a great
+earthen pitcher (but, alas me! it was no longer earthen after he touched
+it), and hastening to the riverside. As he scampered along, and forced his
+way through the shrubbery, it was positively marvelous to see how the
+foliage turned yellow behind him, as if the autumn had been there, and
+nowhere else. On reaching the river's brink, he plunged headlong in,
+without waiting so much as to pull off his shoes.
+
+"Poof! poof! poof!" snorted King Midas, as his head emerged out of the
+water. "Well; this is really a refreshing bath, and I think it must have
+quite washed away the Golden Touch. And now for filling my pitcher!"
+
+As he dipped the pitcher into the water, it gladdened his very heart to
+see it change from gold into the same good, honest earthen vessel which it
+had been before he touched it. He was conscious, also, of a change within
+himself. A cold, hard, and heavy weight seemed to have gone out of his
+bosom. No doubt his heart had been gradually losing its human substance,
+and transmuting itself into insensible metal, but had now softened back
+again into flesh. Perceiving a violet, that grew on the bank of the river,
+Midas touched it with his finger, and was overjoyed to find that the
+delicate flower retained its purple hue, instead of undergoing a yellow
+blight. The curse of the Golden Touch had therefore really been removed
+from him.
+
+King Midas hastened back to the palace; and I suppose the servants knew
+not what to make of it when they saw their royal master so carefully
+bringing home an earthen pitcher of water. But that water, which was to
+undo all the mischief that his folly had wrought, was more precious to
+Midas, than an ocean of molten gold could have been. The first thing he
+did, as you need hardly be told, was to sprinkle it by handfuls over the
+golden figure of little Marygold.
+
+No sooner did it fall on her than you would have laughed to see how the
+rosy color came back to the dear child's cheek! and how she began to
+sneeze and sputter!--and how astonished she was to find herself dripping
+wet, and her father still throwing more water over her!
+
+"Pray do not, dear father!" cried she. "See how you have wet my nice
+frock, which I put on only this morning!"
+
+For Marygold did not know that she had been a little golden statue; nor
+could she remember anything that had happened since the moment when she
+ran with outstretched arms to comfort poor King Midas.
+
+Her father did not think it necessary to tell his beloved child how very
+foolish he had been, but contented himself with showing how much wiser he
+had now grown. For this purpose he led little Marygold into the garden,
+where he sprinkled all the remainder of the water over the rose-bushes,
+and with such good effect that above five thousand roses recovered their
+beautiful bloom. There were two circumstances, however, which, as long as
+he lived, used to put King Midas in mind of the Golden Touch. One was,
+that the sands of the river sparkled like gold; the other, that little
+Marygold's hair had now a golden tinge, which he had never observed in it
+before she had been transmuted by the effect of his kiss. This change of
+hue was really an improvement, and made Marygold's hair richer than in her
+babyhood.
+
+When King Midas had grown quite an old man, and used to trot Marygold's
+children on his knee, he was fond of telling them this marvelous story,
+pretty much as I have now told it to you. And then would he stroke their
+glossy ringlets, and tell them that their hair, likewise, had a rich shade
+of gold, which they had inherited from their mother.
+
+"And to tell you the truth, my precious little folks," quoth King Midas,
+diligently trotting the children all the while, "ever since that morning,
+I have hated the very sight of all other gold, save this!"
+
+
+
+
+THE POMEGRANATE SEEDS
+
+By Nathaniel Hawthorne
+
+
+Mother Ceres was exceedingly fond of her daughter Proserpina, and seldom
+let her go alone into the fields. But, just at the time when my story
+begins, the good lady was very busy, because she had the care of the
+wheat, and the Indian corn, and the rye and barley, and, in short, of the
+crops of every kind, all over the earth; and as the season had thus far
+been uncommonly backward, it was necessary to make the harvest ripen more
+speedily than usual. So she put on her turban, made of poppies (a kind of
+flower which she was always noted for wearing), and got into her car drawn
+by a pair of winged dragons, and was just ready to set off.
+
+"Dear mother," said Proserpina, "I shall be very lonely while you are
+away. May I not run down to the shore, and ask some of the sea-nymphs to
+come up out of the waves and play with me?"
+
+"Yes, child," answered Mother Ceres. "The sea-nymphs are good creatures,
+and will never lead you into any harm. But you must take care not to stray
+away from them, nor go wandering about the fields by yourself. Young
+girls, without their mothers to take care of them, are very apt to get
+into mischief."
+
+The child promised to be as prudent as if she were a grown-up woman, and,
+by the time the winged dragons had whirled the car out of sight, she was
+already on the shore, calling to the sea-nymphs to come and play with her.
+They knew Proserpina's voice, and were not long in showing their
+glistening faces and sea-green hair above the water, at the bottom of
+which was their home. They brought along with them a great many beautiful
+shells; and, sitting down on the moist sand, where the surf wave broke
+over them, they busied themselves in making a necklace, which they hung
+round Proserpina's neck. By way of showing her gratitude, the child
+besought them to go with her a little way into the fields, so that they
+might gather abundance of flowers, with which she would make each of her
+kind playmates a wreath.
+
+"Oh, no, dear Proserpina," cried the sea-nymphs; "we dare not go with you
+upon the dry land. We are apt to grow faint, unless at every breath we can
+snuff up the salt breeze of the ocean. And don't you see how careful we
+are to let the surf wave break over us every moment or two, so as to keep
+ourselves comfortably moist? If it were not for that, we should soon look
+like bunches of uprooted sea-weed dried in the sun."
+
+"It is a great pity," said Proserpina, "but do you wait for me here, and I
+will run and gather my apron full of flowers, and be back again before the
+surf wave has broken ten times over you. I long to make you some wreaths
+that shall be as lovely as this necklace of many-colored shells."
+
+"We will wait, then," answered the sea-nymphs. "But while you are gone, we
+may as well lie down on a bank of soft sponge, under the water. The air
+to-day is a little too dry for our comfort. But we will pop up our heads
+every few minutes to see if you are coming."
+
+The young Proserpina ran quickly to a spot where, only the day before, she
+had seen a great many flowers. These, however, were now a little past
+their bloom; and wishing to give her friends the freshest and loveliest
+blossoms, she strayed farther into the fields, and found some that made
+her scream with delight. Never had she met with such exquisite flowers
+before,--violets, so large and fragrant,--roses, with so rich and delicate
+a blush,--such superb hyacinths and such aromatic pinks,--and many others,
+some of which seemed to be of new shapes and colors. Two or three times,
+moreover, she could not help thinking that a tuft of most splendid flowers
+had suddenly sprouted out of the earth before her very eyes, as if on
+purpose to tempt her a few steps farther. Proserpina's apron was soon
+filled and brimming over with delightful blossoms. She was on the point of
+turning back in order to rejoin the sea-nymphs, and sit with them on the
+moist sands, all twining wreaths together. But, a little farther on, what
+should she behold? It was a large shrub, completely covered with the most
+magnificent flowers in the world.
+
+"The darlings!" cried Proserpina; and then she thought to herself, "I was
+looking at that spot only a moment ago. How strange it is that I did not
+see the flowers!"
+
+The nearer she approached the shrub, the more attractive it looked, until
+she came quite close to it; and then, although its beauty was richer than
+words can tell, she hardly knew whether to like it or not. It bore above a
+hundred flowers of the most brilliant hues, and each different from the
+others, but all having a kind of resemblance among themselves, which
+showed them to be sister blossoms. But there was a deep, glossy lustre on
+the leaves of the shrub, and on the petals of the flowers, that made
+Proserpina doubt whether they might not be poisonous. To tell you the
+truth, foolish as it may seem, she was half inclined to turn round and run
+away.
+
+"What a silly child I am!" thought she, taking courage. "It is really the
+most beautiful shrub that ever sprang out of the earth. I will pull it up
+by the roots, and carry it home, and plant it in my mother's garden."
+
+Holding up her apron full of flowers with her left hand, Proserpina seized
+the large shrub with the other, and pulled and pulled, but was hardly able
+to loosen the soil about its roots. What a deep-rooted plant it was! Again
+the girl pulled with all her might, and observed that the earth began to
+stir and crack to some distance around the stem. She gave another pull,
+but relaxed her hold, fancying that there was a rumbling sound right
+beneath her feet. Did the roots extend down into some enchanted cavern?
+Then, laughing at herself for so childish a notion, she made another
+effort; up came the shrub, and Proserpina staggered back, holding the stem
+triumphantly in her hand, and gazing at the deep hole which its roots had
+left in the soil.
+
+Much to her astonishment this hole kept spreading wider and wider, and
+growing deeper and deeper, until it really seemed to have no bottom; and
+all the while, there came a rumbling noise out of its depths, louder and
+louder, and nearer and nearer, and sounding like the tramp of horses'
+hoofs and the rattling of wheels. Too much frightened to run away, she
+stood straining her eyes into this wonderful cavity, and soon saw a team
+of four sable horses, snorting smoke out of their nostrils, and tearing
+their way out of the earth with a splendid golden chariot whirling at
+their heels. They leaped out of the bottomless hole, chariot and all; and
+there they were, tossing their black manes, flourishing their black tails,
+and curvetting with every one of their hoofs off the ground at once, close
+by the spot where Proserpina stood. In the chariot sat the figure of a
+man, richly dressed, with a crown on his head, all flaming with diamonds.
+He was of a noble aspect, and rather handsome, but looked sullen and
+discontented; and he kept rubbing his eyes and shading them with his hand,
+as if he did not live enough in the sunshine to be very fond of its light.
+
+[Illustration: THEY LEAPED OUT OF THE BOTTOMLESS HOLE, CHARIOT AND ALL;
+AND THERE THEY WERE TOSSING THEIR BLACK TAILS, AND CURVETTING WITH EVERY
+ONE OF THEIR HOOFS OFF THE GROUND AT ONCE, CLOSE BY THE SPOT WHERE
+PROSERPINA STOOD. IN THE CHARIOT SAT THE FIGURE OF A MAN]
+
+As soon as this personage saw the affrighted Proserpina, he beckoned her
+to come a little nearer.
+
+"Do not be afraid," said he, with as cheerful a smile as he knew how to
+put on. "Come! Will not you like to ride a little way with me, in my
+beautiful chariot?"
+
+But Proserpina was so alarmed that she wished for nothing but to get out
+of his reach. And no wonder. The stranger did not look remarkably
+good-natured, in spite of his smile; and as for his voice, its tones were
+deep and stern, and sounded as much like the rumbling of an earthquake
+under ground as anything else. As is always the case with children in
+trouble, Proserpina's first thought was to call for her mother.
+
+"Mother, Mother Ceres!" cried she, all in a tremble. "Come quickly and
+save me."
+
+But her voice was too faint for her mother to hear. Indeed, it is most
+probable that Ceres was then a thousand miles off, making the corn grow in
+some far-distant country. Nor could it have availed her poor daughter,
+even had she been within hearing; for no sooner did Proserpina begin to
+cry out, than the stranger leaped to the ground, caught the child in his
+arms, and again mounting the chariot, shook the reins, and shouted to the
+four black horses to set off. They immediately broke into so swift a
+gallop that it seemed rather like flying through the air than running
+along the earth. In a moment, Proserpina lost sight of the pleasant vale
+of Enna, in which she had always dwelt. Another instant, and even the
+summit of Mount AEtna had become so blue in the distance that she could
+scarcely distinguish it from the smoke that gushed out of its crater. But
+still the poor child screamed, and scattered her apron full of flowers
+along the way, and left a long cry trailing behind the chariot; and many
+mothers, to whose ears it came, ran quickly to see if any mischief had
+befallen their children. But Mother Ceres was a great way off, and could
+not hear the cry.
+
+As they rode on, the stranger did his best to soothe her.
+
+"Why should you be so frightened, my pretty child?" said he, trying to
+soften his rough voice. "I promise not to do you any harm. What! You have
+been gathering flowers? Wait till we come to my palace, and I will give
+you a garden full of prettier flowers than those, all made of pearls, and
+diamonds, and rubies. Can you guess who I am? They call my name Pluto, and
+I am the king of diamonds and all other precious stones. Every atom of the
+gold and silver that lies under the earth belongs to me, to say nothing of
+the copper and iron, and of the coal-mines, which supply me with abundance
+of fuel. Do you see this splendid crown upon my head? You may have it for
+a plaything. Oh, we shall be very good friends, and you will find me more
+agreeable than you expect, when once we get out of this troublesome
+sunshine."
+
+"Let me go home!" cried Proserpina. "Let me go home!"
+
+"My home is better than your mother's," answered King Pluto "It is a
+palace, all made of gold, with crystal windows; and because there is
+little or no sunshine thereabouts, the apartments are illuminated with
+diamond lamps. You never saw anything half so magnificent as my throne. If
+you like, you may sit down on it, and be my little queen, and I will sit
+on the footstool."
+
+"I don't care for golden palaces and thrones," sobbed Proserpina. "Oh, my
+mother, my mother! Carry me back to my mother!"
+
+But King Pluto, as he called himself, only shouted to his steeds to go
+faster.
+
+"Pray do not be foolish, Proserpina," said he, in rather a sullen tone. "I
+offer you my palace and my crown, and all the riches that are under the
+earth; and you treat me as if I were doing you an injury. The one thing
+which my palace needs is a merry little maid, to run upstairs and down,
+and cheer up the rooms with her smile. And this is what you must do for
+King Pluto."
+
+"Never!" answered Proserpina, looking as miserable as she could. "I shall
+never smile again till you set me down at my mother's door."
+
+But she might just as well have talked to the wind that whistled past
+them; for Pluto urged on his horses, and went faster than ever. Proserpina
+continued to cry out, and screamed so long and so loudly, that her poor
+little voice was almost screamed away; and when it was nothing but a
+whisper, she happened to cast her eyes over a great, broad field of waving
+grain--and whom do you think she saw? Who, but Mother Ceres, making the
+corn grow, and too busy to notice the golden chariot as it went rattling
+along. The child mustered all her strength, and gave one more scream, but
+was out of sight before Ceres had time to turn her head.
+
+King Pluto had taken a road which now began to grow excessively gloomy. It
+was bordered on each side with rocks and precipices, between which the
+rumbling of the chariot-wheels was reverberated with a noise like rolling
+thunder. The trees and bushes that grew in the crevices of the rocks had
+very dismal foliage; and by and by, although it was hardly noon, the air
+became obscured with a gray twilight. The black horses had rushed along so
+swiftly, that they were already beyond the limits of the sunshine. But the
+duskier it grew, the more did Pluto's visage assume an air of
+satisfaction. After all, he was not an ill-looking person, especially when
+he left off twisting his features into a smile that did not belong to
+them. Proserpina peeped at his face through the gathering dusk, and hoped
+that he might not be so very wicked as she at first thought him.
+
+"Ah, this twilight is truly refreshing," said King Pluto, "after being so
+tormented with that ugly and impertinent glare of the sun. How much more
+agreeable is lamplight or torchlight, more particularly when reflected
+from diamonds! It will be a magnificent sight when we get to my palace."
+
+"Is it much farther?" asked Proserpina. "And will you carry me back when I
+have seen it?"
+
+"We will talk of that by and by," answered Pluto. "We are just entering my
+dominions. Do you see that tall gateway before us? When we pass those
+gates, we are at home. And there lies my faithful mastiff at the
+threshold. Cerberus! Cerberus! Come hither, my good dog!"
+
+So saying, Pluto pulled at the reins, and stopped the chariot right
+between the tall, massive pillars of the gateway. The mastiff of which he
+had spoken got up from the threshold, and stood on his hinder legs, so as
+to put his forepaws on the chariot-wheel. But, my stars, what a strange
+dog it was! Why, he was a big, rough, ugly-looking monster, with three
+separate heads, and each of them fiercer than the two others; but, fierce
+as they were, King Pluto patted them all. He seemed as fond of his
+three-headed dog as if it had been a sweet little spaniel, with silken
+ears and curly hair. Cerberus, on the other hand, was evidently rejoiced
+to see his master, and expressed his attachment, as other dogs do, by
+wagging his tail at a great rate. Proserpina's eyes being drawn to it by
+its brisk motion, she saw that this tail was neither more nor less than a
+live dragon, with fiery eyes, and fangs that had a very poisonous aspect.
+And while the three-headed Cerberus was fawning so lovingly on King Pluto,
+there was the dragon tail wagging against its will, and looking as cross
+and ill-natured as you can imagine, on its own separate account.
+
+"Will the dog bite me?" asked Proserpina, shrinking closer to Pluto. "What
+an ugly creature he is!"
+
+"Oh, never fear," answered her companion. "He never harms people unless
+they try to enter my dominions without being sent for, or to get away when
+I wish to keep them here. Down, Cerberus! Now, my pretty Proserpina, we
+will drive on."
+
+On went the chariot, and King Pluto seemed greatly pleased to find himself
+once more in his own kingdom. He drew Proserpina's attention to the rich
+veins of gold that were to be seen among the rocks, and pointed to several
+places where one stroke of a pick-axe would loosen a bushel of diamonds.
+All along the road, indeed, there were sparkling gems, which would have
+been of inestimable value above ground, but which were here reckoned of
+the meaner sort, and hardly worth a beggar's stooping for.
+
+Not far from the gateway, they came to a bridge, which seemed to be built
+of iron. Pluto stopped the chariot, and bade Proserpina look at the stream
+which was gliding so lazily beneath it. Never in her life had she beheld
+so torpid, so black, so muddy-looking a stream: its waters reflected no
+images of anything that was on the banks, and it moved as sluggishly as if
+it had quite forgotten which way it ought to flow, and had rather stagnate
+than flow either one way or the other.
+
+"This is the river Lethe," observed King Pluto. "Is it not a very pleasant
+stream?" "I think it a very dismal one," said Proserpina. "It suits my
+taste, however," answered Pluto, who was apt to be sullen when anybody
+disagreed with him. "At all events, its water has one very excellent
+quality; for a single draught of it makes people forget every care and
+sorrow that has hitherto tormented them. Only sip a little of it, my dear
+Proserpina, and you will instantly cease to grieve for your mother, and
+will have nothing in your memory that can prevent your being perfectly
+happy in my palace. I will send for some, in a golden goblet, the moment
+we arrive."
+
+"Oh, no, no, no!" cried Proserpina, weeping afresh. "I had a thousand
+times rather be miserable with remembering my mother than be happy in
+forgetting her. That dear, dear mother! I never, never will forget her."
+
+"We shall see," said King Pluto. "You do not know what fine times we will
+have in my palace. Here we are just at the portal. These pillars are solid
+gold, I assure you."
+
+He alighted from the chariot, and taking Proserpina in his arms, carried
+her up a lofty flight of steps into the great hall of the palace. It was
+splendidly illuminated by means of large precious stones, of various hues,
+which seemed to burn like so many lamps, and glowed with a hundred-fold
+radiance all through the vast apartment. And yet there was a kind of gloom
+in the midst of this enchanted light; nor was there a single object in the
+hall that was really agreeable to behold, except the little Proserpina
+herself, a lovely child, with one earthly flower which she had not let
+fall from her hand. It is my opinion that even King Pluto had never been
+happy in his palace, and that this was the true reason why he had stolen
+away Proserpina, in order that he might have something to love, instead of
+cheating his heart any longer with this tiresome magnificence. And, though
+he pretended to dislike the sunshine of the upper world, yet the effect of
+the child's presence, bedimmed as she was by her tears, was as if a faint
+and watery sunbeam had somehow or other found its way into the enchanted
+hall.
+
+Pluto now summoned his domestics, and bade them lose no time in preparing
+a most sumptuous banquet, and above all things, not to fail of setting a
+golden beaker of the water of Lethe by Proserpina's plate.
+
+"I will neither drink that nor anything else," said Proserpina. "Nor will
+I taste a morsel of food, even if you keep me forever in your palace." on
+the seashore, she hastened thither as fast as she could, and there beheld
+the wet faces of the poor sea-nymphs peeping over a wave. All this while,
+the good creatures had been waiting on the bank of sponge, and once every
+half-minute or so, had popped up their four heads above water, to see if
+their playmate were yet coming back. When they saw Mother Ceres, they sat
+down on the crest of the surf wave, and let it toss them ashore at her
+feet.
+
+"Where is Proserpina?" cried Ceres. "Where is my child? Tell me, you
+naughty sea-nymphs, have you enticed her under the sea?"
+
+"Oh, no, good Mother Ceres," said the innocent sea-nymphs, tossing back
+their green ringlets, and looking her in the face. "We never should dream
+of such a thing. Proserpina has been at play with us, it is true; but she
+left us a long while ago, meaning only to run a little way upon the dry
+land, and gather some flowers for a wreath. This was early in the day, and
+we have seen nothing of her since."
+
+Ceres scarcely waited to hear what the nymphs had to say, before she
+hurried off to make inquiries all through the neighborhood. But nobody
+told her anything that could enable the poor mother to guess what had
+become of Proserpina. A fisherman, it is true, had noticed her little
+footprints in the sand, as he went homeward along the beach with a basket
+of fish; a rustic had seen the child stooping to gather flowers; several
+persons had heard either the rattling of chariot-wheels or the rumbling of
+distant thunder; and one old woman, while plucking vervain and catnip, had
+heard a scream, but supposed it to be some childish nonsense, and
+therefore did not take the trouble to look up. The stupid people! It took
+them such a tedious while to tell the nothing that they knew, that it was
+dark night before Mother Ceres found out that she must seek her daughter
+elsewhere. So she lighted a torch, and set forth, resolving never to come
+back until Proserpina was discovered.
+
+In her haste and trouble of mind, she quite forgot her car and the winged
+dragons; or, it may be, she thought that she could follow up the search
+more thoroughly on foot. At all events, this was the way in which she
+began her sorrowful journey, holding her torch before her, and looking
+carefully at every object along the path. And as it happened, she had not
+gone far before she found one of the magnificent flowers which grew on the
+shrub that Proserpina had pulled up.
+
+"Ha!" thought Mother Ceres, examining it by torchlight. "Here is mischief
+in this flower! The earth did not produce it by any help of mine, nor of
+its own accord. It is the work of enchantment, and is therefore poisonous;
+and perhaps it has poisoned my poor child."
+
+But she put the poisonous flower in her bosom, not knowing whether she
+might ever find any other memorial of Proserpina.
+
+All night long, at the door of every cottage and farmhouse, Ceres knocked,
+and called up the weary laborers to inquire if they had seen her child;
+and they stood, gaping and half asleep, at the threshold, and answered her
+pityingly, and besought her to come in and rest. At the portal of every
+palace, too, she made so loud a summons that the menials hurried to throw
+open the gate, thinking that it must be some great king or queen, who
+would demand a banquet for supper and a stately chamber to repose in. And
+when they saw only a sad and anxious woman, with a torch in her hand and a
+wreath of withered poppies on her head, they spoke rudely, and sometimes
+threatened to set the dogs upon her. But nobody had seen Proserpina, nor
+could give Mother Ceres the least hint which way to seek her. Thus passed
+the night; and still she continued her search without sitting down to
+rest, or stopping to take food, or even remembering to put down the torch;
+although first the rosy dawn, and then the glad light of the morning sun,
+made its red flame look thin and pale. But I wonder what sort of stuff
+this torch was made of; for it burned dimly through the day, and at night
+was as bright as ever, and never was extinguished by the rain or wind, in
+all the weary days and nights while Ceres was seeking for Proserpina.
+
+It was not merely of human beings that she asked tidings of her daughter.
+In the woods and by the streams, she met creatures of another nature, who
+used, in those old times, to haunt the pleasant and solitary places, and
+were very sociable with persons who understood their language and customs,
+as Mother Ceres did. Sometimes, for instance, she tapped with her finger
+against the knotted trunk of a majestic oak; and immediately its rude bark
+would cleave asunder, and forth would step a beautiful maiden, who was the
+hamadryad of the oak, dwelling inside of it, and sharing its long life,
+and rejoicing when its green leaves sported with the breeze. But not one
+of these leafy damsels had seen Proserpina. Then, going a little farther,
+Ceres would, perhaps, come to a fountain, gushing out of a pebbly hollow
+in the earth, and would dabble with her hand in the water. Behold, up
+through its sandy and pebbly bed, along with the fountain's gush, a young
+woman with dripping hair would arise, and stand gazing at Mother Ceres,
+half out of the water, and undulating up and down with its ever-restless
+motion. But when the mother asked whether her poor lost child had stopped
+to drink out of the fountain, the naiad, with weeping eyes (for these
+water-nymphs had tears to spare for everybody's grief), would answer,
+"No!" in a murmuring voice, which was just like the murmur of the stream.
+
+Often, likewise, she encountered fauns, who looked like sunburnt country
+people, except that they had hairy ears, and little horns upon their
+foreheads, and the hinder legs of goats, on which they gamboled merrily
+about the woods and fields. They were a frolicsome kind of creature, but
+grew as sad as their cheerful dispositions would allow when Ceres inquired
+for her daughter, and they had no good news to tell. But sometimes she
+came suddenly upon a rude gang of satyrs, who had faces like monkeys and
+horses' tails behind them, and who were generally dancing in a very
+boisterous manner, with shouts of noisy laughter. When she stopped to
+question them, they would only laugh the louder, and make new merriment
+out of the lone woman's distress. How unkind of those ugly satyrs! And
+once, while crossing a solitary sheep pasture, she saw a personage named
+Pan, seated at the foot of a tall rock. And making music on a shepherd's
+flute. He, too, had horns and hairy ears, and goat's feet; but being
+acquainted with Mother Ceres, he answered her question as civilly as he
+knew how, and invited her to taste some milk and honey out of a wooden
+bowl. But neither could Pan tell her what had become of Proserpina, any
+better than the rest of these wild people.
+
+And thus Mother Ceres went wandering about for nine long days and nights,
+finding no trace of Proserpina, unless it were now and then a withered
+flower; and these, she picked up and put in her bosom, because she fancied
+that they might have fallen from her poor child's hand. All day she
+traveled onward through the hot sun; and at night, again, the flame of the
+torch would redden and gleam along the pathway, and she continued her
+search by its light, without ever sitting down to rest.
+
+On the tenth day, she chanced to espy the mouth of a cavern, within which
+(though it was bright noon everywhere else) there would have been only a
+dusky twilight: but it so happened that a torch was burning there. It
+flickered and struggled with the duskiness, but could not half light up
+the gloomy cavern with all its melancholy glimmer. Ceres was resolved to
+leave no spot without a search; so she peeped into the entrance of the
+cave, and lighted it up a little more by holding her own torch before her.
+In so doing, she caught a glimpse of what seemed to be a woman, sitting on
+the brown leaves of the last autumn, a great heap of which had been swept
+into the cave by the wind. This woman (if woman it were) was by no means
+so beautiful as many of her sex: for her head, they tell me, was shaped
+very much like a dog's, and, by way of ornament, she wore a wreath of
+snakes around it. But Mother Ceres, the moment she saw her, knew that this
+was an odd kind of a person, who put all her enjoyment in being miserable,
+and never would have a word to say to other people, unless they were as
+melancholy and wretched as she herself delighted to be.
+
+"I am wretched enough now," thought poor Ceres, "to talk with this
+melancholy Hecate, were she ten times sadder than ever she was yet."
+
+So she stepped into the cave, and sat down, on the withered leaves by the
+dog-headed woman's side. In all the world, since her daughter's loss, she
+had found no other companion.
+
+"O Hecate." said she, "if ever you lose a daughter, you will know what
+sorrow is. Tell me, for pity's sake, have you seen my poor child
+Proserpina pass by the mouth of your cavern?"
+
+"No." answered Hecate, in a cracked voice, and sighing betwixt every word
+or two.--"no. Mother Ceres, I have seen nothing of your daughter. But my
+ears, you must know, are made in such a way that all cries of distress and
+affright, all over the world, are pretty sure to find their way to them:
+and nine days ago, as I sat in my cave, making myself very miserable. I
+heard the voice of a young girl, shrieking as if in great distress.
+Something terrible has happened to the child, you may rest assured. As
+well as I could judge, a dragon, or some other cruel monster, was carrying
+her away."
+
+"You kill me by saying so," cried Ceres, almost ready to faint. "Where was
+the sound, and which way did it seem to go?"
+
+"It passed very swiftly along," said Hecate, "and, at the same time, there
+was a heavy rumbling of wheels towards the eastward. I can tell you
+nothing more, except that, in my honest opinion, you will never see your
+daughter again. The best advice I can give you is to take up your abode in
+this cavern, where we will be the two most wretched women in the world."
+
+"Not yet, dark Hecate." replied Ceres, "But do you first come with your
+torch, and help me to seek for my lost child. And when there shall be no
+more hope of finding her (if that black day is ordained to come), then, if
+you will give me room to fling myself down, either on these withered
+leaves or on the naked rock, I will show you what it is to be miserable.
+But until I know that she has perished from the face of the earth, I will
+not allow myself space even to grieve."
+
+The dismal Hecate did not much like the idea of going abroad into the
+sunny world. But then she reflected that the sorrow of the disconsolate
+Ceres would be like a gloomy twilight round about them both, let the sun
+shine ever so brightly, and that therefore she might enjoy her bad spirits
+quite as well as if she were to stay in the cave. So she finally consented
+to go, and they set out together, both carrying torches, although it was
+broad daylight and clear sunshine. The torchlight seemed to make a gloom;
+so that the people whom they met along the road could not very distinctly
+see their figures; and, indeed, if they once caught a glimpse of Hecate,
+with the wreath of snakes round her forehead, they generally thought it
+prudent to run away, without waiting for a second glance.
+
+As the pair traveled along in this woebegone manner, a thought struck
+Ceres.
+
+"There is one person." she exclaimed, "who must have seen my poor child,
+and can doubtless tell what has become of her. Why did not I think of him
+before? It is Phoebus."
+
+"What," said Hecate, "the young man that always sits in the sunshine? Oh,
+pray do not think of going near him. He is a gay, light, frivolous young
+fellow, and will only smile in your face. And besides, there is such a
+glare of the sun about him, that he will quite blind my poor eyes, which I
+have almost wept away already."
+
+"You have promised to be my companion," answered Ceres. "Come, let us make
+haste, or the sunshine will be gone, and Phoebus along with it."
+
+Accordingly, they went along in quest of Phoebus, both of them, sighing
+grievously, and Hecate, to say the truth, making a great deal worse
+lamentation than Ceres; for all the pleasure she had, you know, lay in
+being miserable, and therefore she made the most of it. By and by, after a
+pretty long journey, they arrived at the sunniest spot in the whole world.
+There they beheld a beautiful young man, with long, curling ringlets,
+which seemed to be made of golden sunbeams; his garments were like light
+summer clouds; and the expression of his face was so exceedingly vivid,
+that Hecate held her hands before her eyes, muttering that he ought to
+wear a black veil. Phoebus (for this was the very person whom they were
+seeking) had a lyre in his hands, and was making its chords tremble with
+sweet music; at the same time singing a most exquisite song, which he had
+recently composed. For besides a great many other accomplishments, this
+young man was renowned for his admirable poetry.
+
+As Ceres and her dismal companion approached him, Phoebus smiled on them
+so cheerfully that Hecate's wreath of snakes gave a spiteful hiss, and
+Hecate heartily wished herself back in her cave. But as for Ceres, she was
+too earnest in her grief either to know or care whether Phoebus smiled or
+frowned.
+
+"Phoebus!" exclaimed she, "I am in great trouble, and have come to you for
+assistance. Can you tell me what has become of my dear child Proserpina?"
+
+"Proserpina! Proserpina, did you call her name?" answered Phoebus,
+endeavoring to recollect; for there was such a continual flow of pleasant
+ideas in his mind that he was apt to forget what had happened no longer
+ago than yesterday. "Ah, yes, I remember her now. A very lovely child,
+indeed. I am happy to tell you, my dear madam, that I did see the little
+Proserpina not many days ago. You may make yourself perfectly easy about
+her. She is safe, and in excellent hands."
+
+"Oh, where is my dear child?" cried Ceres, clasping her hands and flinging
+herself at his feet.
+
+"Why," said Phoebus,--and as he spoke, he kept touching his lyre so as to
+make a thread of music run in and out among his words,--"as the little
+damsel was gathering flowers (and she has really a very exquisite taste
+for flowers) she was suddenly snatched up by King Pluto, and carried off
+to his dominions. I have never been in that part of the universe; but the
+royal palace, I am told, is built in a very noble style of architecture,
+and of the most splendid and costly materials. Gold, diamonds, pearls, and
+all manner of precious stones will be your daughter's ordinary playthings.
+I recommend to you, my dear lady, to give yourself no uneasiness.
+Proserpina's sense of beauty will be duly gratified, and, even in spite of
+the lack of sunshine, she will lead a very enviable life."
+
+"Hush! Say not such a word!" answered Ceres indignantly. "What is there to
+gratify her heart? What are all the splendors you speak of, without
+affection? I must have her back again. Will you go with me, Phoebus, to
+demand my daughter of this wicked Pluto?"
+
+"Pray excuse me," replied Phoebus, with an elegant obeisance. "I certainly
+wish you success, and regret that my own affairs are so immediately
+pressing that I cannot have the pleasure of attending you. Besides, I am
+not upon the best of terms with King Pluto. To tell you the truth, his
+three-headed mastiff would never let me pass the gateway; for I should be
+compelled to take a sheaf of sunbeams along with me, and those, you know,
+are forbidden things in Pluto's kingdom."
+
+"Ah, Phoebus," said Ceres, with bitter meaning in her words, "you have a
+harp instead of a heart. Farewell."
+
+"Will not you stay a moment," asked Phoebus, "and hear me turn the pretty
+and touching story of Proserpina into extemporary verses?"
+
+But Ceres shook her head, and hastened away, along with Hecate. Phoebus
+(who, as I have told you, was an exquisite poet) forthwith began to make
+an ode about the poor mother's grief; and, if we were to judge of his
+sensibility by this beautiful production, he must have been endowed with a
+very tender heart. But when a poet gets into the habit of using his
+heartstrings to make chords for his lyre, he may thrum upon them as much
+as he will, without any great pain to himself. Accordingly, though Phoebus
+sang a very sad song, he was as merry all the while as were the sunbeams
+amid which he dwelt.
+
+Poor Mother Ceres had now found out what had become of her daughter, but
+was not a whit happier than before. Her case, on the contrary, looked more
+desperate than ever. As long as Proserpina was above ground there might
+have been hopes of regaining her. But now that the poor child was shut up
+within the iron gates of the king of the mines, at the threshold of which
+lay the three-headed Cerberus, there seemed no possibility of her ever
+making her escape. The dismal Hecate, who loved to take the darkest view
+of things, told Ceres that she had better come with her to the cavern, and
+spend the rest of her life in being miserable. Ceres answered that Hecate
+was welcome to go back thither herself, but that, for her part, she would
+wander about the earth in quest of the entrance to King Pluto's dominions.
+And Hecate took her at her word, and hurried back to her beloved cave,
+frightening a great many little children with a glimpse of her dog's face,
+as she went.
+
+Poor Mother Ceres! It is melancholy to think of her, pursuing her toilsome
+way all alone, and holding up that never-dying torch, the flame of which
+seemed an emblem of the grief and hope that burned together in her heart.
+So much did she suffer, that, though her aspect had been quite youthful
+when her troubles began, she grew to look like an elderly person in a very
+brief time. She cared not how she was dressed, nor had she ever thought of
+flinging away the wreath of withered poppies, which she put on the very
+morning of Proserpina's disappearance. She roamed about in so wild a way,
+and with her hair so dishevelled, that people took her for some distracted
+creature, and never dreamed that this was Mother Ceres, who had the
+oversight of every seed which the husbandman planted. Nowadays, however,
+she gave herself no trouble about seed-time nor harvest, but left the
+farmers to take care of their own affairs, and the crops to fade or
+flourish, as the case might be. There was nothing, now, in which Ceres
+seemed to feel an interest, unless when she saw children at play or
+gathering flowers along the wayside. Then, indeed, she would stand and
+gaze at them with tears in her eyes. The children, too, appeared to have a
+sympathy with her grief, and would cluster themselves in a little group
+about her knees, and look up wistfully in her face; and Ceres, after
+giving them a kiss all around, would lead them to their homes, and advise
+their mothers never to let them stray out of sight.
+
+"For if you do," said she, "it may happen to you, as it has to me, that
+the iron-hearted King Pluto will take a liking to your darlings, and
+snatch them up in his chariot, and carry them away."
+
+One day, during her pilgrimage in quest of the entrance to Pluto's
+kingdom, she came to the palace of King Celeus, who reigned at Eleusis.
+Ascending a lofty flight of steps, she entered the portal, and found the
+royal household in very great alarm about the queen's baby. The infant, it
+seems, was sickly (being troubled with its teeth, I suppose), and would
+take no food, and was all the time moaning with pain. The queen--her name
+was Metanira--was desirous of finding a nurse; and when she beheld a woman
+of matronly aspect coming up the palace steps, she thought, in her own
+mind that here was the very person whom she needed. So Queen Metanira ran
+to the door, with the poor wailing baby in her arms, and besought Ceres to
+take charge of it, or, at least, to tell her what would do it good."
+
+"Will you trust the child entirely to me?" asked Ceres.
+
+"Yes, and gladly too," answered the queen, "if you will devote all your
+time to him. For I can see that you have been a mother."
+
+"You are right," said Ceres. "I once had a child of my own. Well, I will
+be the nurse of this poor, sickly boy. But beware, I warn you, that you do
+not interfere with any kind of treatment which I may judge proper for him.
+If you do so, the poor infant must suffer for his mother's folly."
+
+Then she kissed the child, and it seemed to do him good, for he smiled and
+nestled closely into her bosom.
+
+So Mother Ceres set her torch in a corner (where it kept burning all the
+while), and took up her abode in the palace of King Celeus, as nurse to
+the little Prince Demophoeon. She treated him as if he were her own child,
+and allowed neither the king nor the queen to say whether he should be
+bathed in warm or cold water, or what he should eat, or how often he
+should take the air, or when he should be put to bed. You would hardly
+believe me, if I were to tell how quickly the baby prince got rid of his
+ailments, and grew fat, and rosy, and strong, and how he had two rows of
+ivory teeth in less time than any other little fellow, before or since.
+Instead of the palest, and wretchedest, and puniest imp in the world (as
+his own mother confessed him to be when Ceres first took him in charge),
+he was now a strapping baby, crowing, laughing, kicking up his heels, and
+rolling from one end of the room to the other. All the good women of the
+neighborhood crowded to the palace, and held up their hands, in
+unutterable amazement, at the beauty and wholesomeness of this darling
+little prince. Their wonder was the greater, because he was never seen to
+taste any food,--not even so much as a cup of milk.
+
+"Pray, nurse," the queen kept saying, "how is it that you make the child
+thrive so?"
+
+"I was a mother once," Ceres replied always; "and having nursed my own
+child, I know what other children need."
+
+But Queen Metanira, as was very natural, had a great curiosity to know
+precisely what the nurse did to her child. One night, therefore, she hid
+herself in the chamber where Ceres and the little prince were accustomed
+to sleep. There was a fire in the chimney, and it had now crumbled into
+great coals and embers, which lay glowing on the hearth, with a blaze
+flickering up now and then, and flinging a warm and ruddy light upon the
+walls. Ceres sat before the hearth with the child in her lap, and the
+firelight making her shadow dance upon the ceiling overhead. She undressed
+the little prince, and bathed him all over with some fragrant liquid out
+of a vase. The next thing she did was to rake back the red embers, and
+make a hollow place among them, just where the backlog had been. At last,
+while the baby was crowing and clapping its fat little hands, and laughing
+in the nurse's face (just as you may have seen your little brother or
+sister do before going into its warm bath), Ceres suddenly laid him, all
+naked as he was, in the hollow, among the red-hot embers. She then raked
+the ashes over him, and turned quietly away.
+
+You may imagine, if you can, how Queen Metanira shrieked, thinking nothing
+less than that her dear child would be burned to a cinder. She burst forth
+from her hiding-place, and running to the hearth, raked open the fire, and
+snatched up poor little Prince Demophoeon out of his bed of live coals, one
+of which he was griping in each of his fists. He immediately set up a
+grievous cry, as babies are apt to do when rudely startled out of a sound
+sleep. To the queen's astonishment and joy, she could perceive no token of
+the child's being injured by the hot fire in which he had lain. She now
+turned to Mother Ceres, and asked her to explain the mystery.
+
+"Foolish woman," answered Ceres, "did you not promise to intrust this poor
+infant entirely to me? You little know the mischief you have done him. Had
+you left him to my care, he would have grown up like a child of celestial
+birth, endowed with superhuman strength and intelligence, and would have
+lived forever. Do you imagine that earthly children are to become immortal
+without being tempered to it in the fiercest heat of the fire? But you
+have ruined your own son. For though he will be a strong man and a hero in
+his day, yet, on account of your folly, he will grow old, and finally die,
+like the sons of other women. The weak tenderness of his mother has cost
+the poor boy an immortality. Farewell."
+
+Saying these words, she kissed the little prince Demophoeon, and sighed to
+think what he had lost, and took her departure without heeding Queen
+Metanira, who entreated her to remain, and cover up the child among the
+hot embers as often as she pleased. Poor baby! He never slept so warmly
+again.
+
+While she dwelt in the king's palace, Mother Ceres had been so continually
+occupied with taking care of the young prince, that her heart was a little
+lightened of its grief for Proserpina. But now, having nothing else to
+busy herself about, she became just as wretched as before. At length, in
+her despair, she came to the dreadful resolution that not a stalk of
+grain, nor a blade of grass, not a potato, nor a turnip, nor any other
+vegetable that was good for man or beast to eat, should be suffered to
+grow until her daughter were restored. She even forbade the flowers to
+bloom, lest somebody's heart should be cheered by their beauty.
+
+Now, as not so much as a head of asparagus ever presumed to poke itself
+out of the ground, without the especial permission of Ceres, you may
+conceive what a terrible calamity had here fallen upon the earth. The
+husbandmen ploughed and planted as usual; but there lay the rich black
+furrows, all as barren as a desert of sand. The pastures looked as brown
+in the sweet month of June as ever they did in chill November. The rich
+man's broad acres and the cottager's small garden-patch were equally
+blighted. Every little girl's flower-bed showed nothing but dry stalks.
+The old people shook their white heads, and said that the earth had grown
+aged like themselves, and was no longer capable of wearing the warm smile
+of summer on its face. It was really piteous to see the poor starving
+cattle and sheep, how they followed behind Ceres, lowing and bleating, as
+if their instinct taught them to expect help from her; and everybody that
+was acquainted with her power besought her to have mercy on the human
+race, and, at all events, to let the grass grow. But Mother Ceres, though
+naturally of an affectionate disposition, was now inexorable.
+
+"Never," said she. "If the earth is ever again to see any verdure, it must
+first grow along the path which my daughter will tread in coming back to
+me."
+
+Finally, as there seemed to be no other remedy, our old friend Quicksilver
+was sent post haste to King Pluto, in hopes that he might be persuaded to
+undo the mischief he had done, and to set everything right again, by
+giving up Proserpina. Quicksilver accordingly made the best of his way to
+the great gate, took a flying leap right over the three-headed mastiff,
+and stood at the door of the palace in an inconceivably short time. The
+servants knew him both by his face and garb; for his short cloak and his
+winged cap and shoes and his snaky staff had often been seen thereabouts
+in times gone by. He requested to be shown immediately into the king's
+presence; and Pluto, who heard his voice from the top of the stairs, and
+who loved to recreate himself with Quicksilver's merry talk, called out to
+him to come up. And while they settle their business together, we must
+inquire what Proserpina has been doing ever since we saw her last.
+
+The child had declared, as you may remember, that she would not taste a
+mouthful of food as long as she should be compelled to remain in King
+Pluto's palace. How she contrived to maintain her resolution, and at the
+same time to keep herself tolerably plump and rosy, is more than I can
+explain; but some young ladies, I am given to understand, possess the
+faculty of living on air, and Proserpina seems to have possessed it too.
+At any rate, it was now six months since she left the outside of the
+earth; and not a morsel, so far as the attendants were able to testify,
+had yet passed between her teeth. This was the more creditable to
+Proserpina, inasmuch as King Pluto had caused her to be tempted day after
+day, with all manner of sweetmeats, and richly preserved fruits, and
+delicacies of every sort, such as young people are generally most fond of.
+But her good mother had often told her of the hurtfulness of these things;
+and for that reason alone, if there had been no other, she would have
+resolutely refused to taste them.
+
+All this time, being of a cheerful and active disposition, the little
+damsel was not quite so unhappy as you may have supposed. The immense
+palace had a thousand rooms, and was full of beautiful and wonderful
+objects. There was a never-ceasing gloom, it is true, which half hid
+itself among the innumerable pillars, gliding before the child as she
+wandered among them, and treading stealthily behind her in the echo of her
+footsteps. Neither was all the dazzle of the precious stones, which flamed
+with their own light, worth one gleam of natural sunshine; nor could the
+most brilliant of the many-colored gems which Proserpina had for
+playthings vie with the simple beauty of the flowers she used to gather.
+But still, wherever the girl went, among those gilded halls and chambers,
+it seemed as if she carried nature and sunshine along with her, and as if
+she scattered dewy blossoms on her right hand and on her left. After
+Proserpina came, the palace was no longer the same abode of stately
+artifice and dismal magnificence that it had before been. The inhabitants
+all felt this, and King Pluto more than any of them.
+
+"My own little Proserpina," he used to say, "I wish you could like me a
+little better. We gloomy and cloudy-natured persons have often as warm
+hearts at bottom as those of a more cheerful character. If you would only
+stay with me of your own accord, it would make me happier than the
+possession of a hundred such palaces as this."
+
+"Ah," said Proserpina, "you should have tried to make me like you before
+carrying me off. And the best thing you can do now is to let me go again.
+Then I might remember you sometimes, and think that you were as kind as
+you knew how to be. Perhaps, too, one day or other, I might come back, and
+pay you a visit."
+
+"No, no," answered Pluto, with his gloomy smile, "I will not trust you for
+that. You are too fond of living in the broad daylight, and gathering
+flowers. What an idle and childish taste that is! Are not these gems,
+which I have ordered to be dug for you, and which are richer than any in
+my crown,--are they not prettier than a violet?"
+
+"Not half so pretty," said Proserpina, snatching the gems from Pluto's
+hand, and flinging them to the other end of the hall. "Oh, my sweet
+violets, shall I never see you again?"
+
+And then she burst into tears. But young people's tears have very little
+saltness or acidity in them, and do not inflame the eyes so much as those
+of grown persons; so that it is not to be wondered at if, a few moments
+afterwards, Proserpina was sporting through the hall almost as merrily as
+she and the four sea-nymphs had sported along the edge of the surf wave,
+King Pluto gazed after her, and wished that he, too was a child. And
+little Proserpina, when she turned about, and beheld this great king
+standing in his splendid hall, and looking so grand, and so melancholy,
+and so lonesome, was smitten with a kind of pity. She ran back to him,
+and, for the first time in all her life, put her small, soft hand in his.
+
+"I love you a little," whispered she, looking up in his face.
+
+"Do you, indeed, my dear child?" cried Pluto, bending his dark face down
+to kiss her; but Proserpina shrank away from the kiss, for though his
+features were noble, they were very dusky and grim. "Well, I have not
+deserved it of you, after keeping you a prisoner for so many months, and
+starving you, besides. Are you not terribly hungry? Is there nothing which
+I can get you to eat?"
+
+In asking this question, the king of the mines had a very cunning purpose;
+for, you will recollect, if Proserpina tasted a morsel of food in his
+dominions, she would never afterwards be at liberty to quit them.
+
+"No, indeed," said Proserpina. "Your head cook is always baking, and
+stewing, and roasting, and rolling out paste, and contriving one dish or
+another, which he imagines may be to my liking. But he might just as well
+save himself the trouble, poor, fat little man that he is. I have no
+appetite for anything in the world, unless it were a slice of bread of my
+mother's own baking, or a little fruit out of her garden."
+
+When Pluto heard this, he began to see that he had mistaken the best
+method of tempting Proserpina to eat. The cook's made dishes and
+artificial dainties were not half so delicious, in the good child's
+opinion, as the simple fare to which Mother Ceres had accustomed her.
+Wondering that he had never thought of it before, the king now sent one of
+his trusty attendants, with a large basket, to get some of the finest and
+juiciest pears, peaches, and plums which could anywhere be found in the
+upper world. Unfortunately, however, this was during the time when Ceres
+had forbidden any fruits or vegetables to grow; and, after seeking all
+over the earth, King Pluto's servants found only a single pomegranate, and
+that so dried up as to be not worth eating. Nevertheless, since there was
+no better to be had, he brought this dry, old, withered pomegranate home
+to the palace, put it on a magnificent golden salver, and carried it up to
+Proserpina. Now it happened, curiously enough, that, just as the servant
+was bringing the pomegranate into the back door of the palace, our friend
+Quicksilver had gone up the front steps, on his errand to get Proserpina
+away from King Pluto.
+
+As soon as Proserpina saw the pomegranate on the golden salver, she told
+the servant he had better take it away again.
+
+"I shall not touch it, I assure you," said she. "If I were ever so hungry,
+I should never think of eating such a miserable, dry pomegranate as that."
+
+"It is the only one in the world," said the servant.
+
+He set down the golden salver, with the wizened pomegranate upon it, and
+left the room. When he was gone, Proserpina could not help coming close to
+the table, and looking at this poor specimen of dried fruit with a great
+deal of eagerness; for, to say the truth, on seeing something that suited
+her taste, she felt all the six months' appetite taking possession of her
+at once. To be sure, it was a very wretched-looking pomegranate, and
+seemed to have no more juice in it than an oyster-shell. But there was no
+choice of such things in King Pluto's palace. This was the first fruit she
+had seen there, and the last she was ever likely to see; and unless she
+ate it up immediately, it would grow drier than it already was, and be
+wholly unfit to eat.
+
+"At least, I may smell it," thought Proserpina.
+
+So she took up the pomegranate, and applied it to her nose; and, somehow
+or other, being in such close neighborhood to her mouth, the fruit found
+its way into that little red cave. Dear me! what an everlasting pity!
+Before Proserpina knew what she was about, her teeth had actually bitten
+it, of their own accord. Just as this fatal deed was done, the door of the
+apartment opened, and in came King Pluto, followed by Quicksilver, who had
+been urging him to let his little prisoner go. At the first noise of their
+entrance, Proserpina withdrew the pomegranate from her mouth. But
+Quicksilver (whose eyes were very keen, and his wits the sharpest that
+ever anybody had) perceived that the child was a little confused; and
+seeing the empty salver, he suspected that she had been taking a sly
+nibble of something or other. As for honest Pluto, he never guessed at the
+secret.
+
+"My little Proserpina," said the king, sitting down, and affectionately
+drawing her between his knees, "here is Quicksilver, who tells me that a
+great many misfortunes have befallen innocent people on account of my
+detaining you in my dominions. To confess the truth, I myself had already
+reflected that it was an unjustifiable act to take you away from your good
+mother. But, then, you must consider, my dear child, that this vast palace
+is apt to be gloomy (although the precious stones certainly shine very
+bright), and that I am not of the most cheerful disposition, and that
+therefore it was a natural thing enough to seek for the society of some
+merrier creature than myself. I hoped you would take my crown for a
+plaything, and me--ah, you laugh, naughty Proserpina--me, grim as I am,
+for a playmate. It was a silly expectation."
+
+"Not so extremely silly," whispered Proserpina. "You have really amused me
+very much, sometimes."
+
+"Thank you," said King Pluto, rather dryly. "But I can see, plainly
+enough, that you think my palace a dusky prison, and me the iron-hearted
+keeper of it. And an iron heart I should surely have, if I could detain
+you here any longer, my poor child, when it is now six months since you
+tasted food. I give you your liberty. Go with Quicksilver. Hasten home to
+your dear mother."
+
+Now, although you may not have supposed it, Proserpina found it impossible
+to take leave of poor King Pluto without some regrets, and a good deal of
+compunction for not telling him about the pomegranate. She even shed a
+tear or two, thinking how lonely and cheerless the great palace would seem
+to him, with all its ugly glare of artificial light, after she
+herself,--his one little ray of natural sunshine, whom he had stolen, to
+be sure, but only because he valued her so much,--after she should have
+departed. I know not how many kind things she might have said to the
+disconsolate king of the mines, had not Quicksilver hurried her away.
+
+"Come along quickly," whispered he in her ear, "or his majesty may change
+his royal mind. And take care, above all things, that you say nothing of
+what was brought you on the golden salver."
+
+In a very short time, they had passed the great gateway (leaving the
+three-headed Cerberus, barking and yelping, and growling, with threefold
+din, behind them), and emerged upon the surface of the earth. It was
+delightful to behold, as Proserpina hastened along, how the path grew
+verdant behind and on either side of her. Wherever she set her blessed
+foot, there was at once a dewy flower. The violets gushed up along the
+wayside. The grass and the grain began to sprout with tenfold vigor and
+luxuriance, to make up for the dreary months that had been wasted in
+barrenness. The starved cattle immediately set to work grazing, after
+their long fast, and ate enormously all day, and got up at midnight to eat
+more. But I can assure you it was a busy time of year with the farmers,
+when they found the summer coming upon them with such a rush. Nor must I
+forget to say that all the birds in the whole world hopped about upon the
+newly blossoming trees, and sang together in a prodigious ecstasy of joy.
+
+Mother Ceres had returned to her deserted home, and was sitting
+disconsolately on the doorstep, with her torch burning in her hand. She
+had been idly watching the flame for some moments past, when, all at once,
+it flickered and went out.
+
+"What does this mean?" thought she. "It was an enchanted torch, and should
+have kept burning till my child came back."
+
+Lifting her eyes, she was surprised to see a sudden verdure flashing over
+the brown and barren fields, exactly as you may have observed a golden hue
+gleaming far and wide across the landscape, from the just risen sun.
+
+"Does the earth disobey me?" exclaimed Mother Ceres indignantly. "Does it
+presume to be green, when I have bidden it be barren until my daughter
+shall be restored to my arms?"
+
+"Then open your arms, dear mother," cried a well-known voice, "and take
+your little daughter into them."
+
+And Proserpina came running, and flung herself upon her mother's bosom.
+Their mutual transport is not to be described. The grief of their
+separation had caused both of them to shed a great many tears; and now
+they shed a great many more, because their joy could not so well express
+itself in any other way.
+
+When their hearts had grown a little more quiet, Mother Ceres looked
+anxiously at Proserpina.
+
+"My child," said she, "did you taste any food while you were in King
+Pluto's palace?"
+
+"Dearest mother," answered Proserpina. "I will tell you the whole truth.
+Until this very morning, not a morsel of food had passed my lips. But
+to-day, they brought me a pomegranate (a very dry one it was, and all
+shriveled up, till there was little left of it but seeds and skin), and
+having seen no fruit for so long a time, and being faint with hunger, I
+was tempted just to bite it. The instant I tasted it, King Pluto and
+Quicksilver came into the room. I had not swallowed a morsel; but--dear
+mother, I hope it was no harm--but six of the pomegranate seeds, I am
+afraid, remained in my mouth."
+
+"Ah, unfortunate child, and miserable me!" exclaimed Ceres. "For each of
+those six pomegranate seeds you must spend one month of each year in King
+Pluto's palace. You are but half restored to your mother. Only six months
+with me, and six with that good-for-nothing King of Darkness!"
+
+"Do not speak so harshly of poor King Pluto," said Proserpina, kissing her
+mother. "He has some very good qualities, and I really think I can bear to
+spend six months in his palace, if he will only let me spend the other six
+with you. He certainly did very wrong to carry me off; but then, as he
+says, it was but a dismal sort of life for him, to live in that great
+gloomy place, all alone; and it has made a wonderful change in his spirits
+to have a little girl to run up stairs and down. There is some comfort in
+making him so happy; and so, upon the whole, dearest mother, let us be
+thankful that he is not to keep me the whole year round."
+
+
+
+
+OLD GREEK FOLK-STORIES
+
+
+ORPHEUS AND EURYDICE
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+When gods and shepherds piped and the stars sang, that was the day of
+musicians! But the triumph of Phoebus Apollo himself was not so wonderful
+as the triumph of a mortal man who lived on earth, though some say that he
+came of divine lineage. This was Orpheus, that best of harpers, who went
+with the Grecian heroes of the great ship Argo in search of the Golden
+Fleece.
+
+After his return from the quest, he won Eurydice for his wife, and they
+were as happy as people can be who love each other and every one else. The
+very wild beasts loved them, and the trees clustered about their home as
+if they were watered with music. But even the gods themselves were not
+always free from sorrow, and one day misfortune came upon that harper
+Orpheus whom all men loved to honor.
+
+Eurydice, his lovely wife, as she was wandering with the nymphs,
+unwittingly trod upon a serpent in the grass. Surely, if Orpheus had been
+with her, playing upon his lyre, no creature could have harmed her. But
+Orpheus came too late. She died of the sting, and was lost to him in the
+Underworld.
+
+For days he wandered from his home, singing the story of his loss and his
+despair to the helpless passers-by. His grief moved the very stones in the
+wilderness, and roused a dumb distress in the hearts of savage beasts.
+Even the gods on Mount Olympus gave ear, but they held no power over the
+darkness of Hades.
+
+Wherever Orpheus wandered with his lyre, no one had the will to forbid him
+entrance; and at length he found unguarded that very cave that leads to
+the Underworld, where Pluto rules the spirits of the dead. He went down
+without fear. The fire in his living heart found him a way through the
+gloom of that place. He crossed the Styx, the black river that the Gods
+name as their most sacred oath. Charon, the harsh old ferryman who takes
+the shades across, forgot to ask of him the coin that every soul must pay.
+For Orpheus sang. There in the Underworld the song of Apollo would not
+have moved the poor ghosts so much. It would have amazed them, like a star
+far off that no one understands. But here was a human singer, and he sang
+of things that grow in every human heart, youth and love and death, the
+sweetness of the Earth, and the bitterness of losing aught that is dear to
+us.
+
+Now the dead, when they go to the Underworld, drink of the pool of Lethe;
+and forgetfulness of all that has passed comes upon them like a sleep, and
+they lose their longing for the world, they lose their memory of pain, and
+live content with that cool twilight. But not the pool of Lethe itself
+could withstand the song of Orpheus; and in the hearts of the shades all
+the old dreams awoke wondering. They remembered once more the life of men
+on earth, the glory of the sun and moon, the sweetness of new grass, the
+warmth of their homes, all the old joy and grief that they had known. And
+they wept.
+
+Even the Furies were moved to pity. Those, too, who were suffering
+punishment for evil deeds ceased to be tormented for themselves, and
+grieved only for the innocent Orpheus who had lost Eurydice. Sisyphus,
+that fraudulent king (who is doomed to roll a monstrous boulder uphill
+forever), stopped to listen. The daughters of Danaus left off their task
+of drawing water in a sieve. Tantalus forgot hunger and thirst, though
+before his eyes hung magical fruits that were wont to vanish out of his
+grasp, and just beyond reach bubbled the water that was a torment to his
+ears; he did not hear it while Orpheus sang.
+
+So, among a crowd of eager ghosts, Orpheus came, singing with all his
+heart, before the king and queen of Hades. And the queen Proserpina wept
+as she listened and grew homesick, remembering the fields of Enna and the
+growing of the wheat, and her own beautiful mother, Demeter. Then Pluto
+gave way.
+
+They called Eurydice and she came, like a young guest unused to the
+darkness of the Underworld. She was to return with Orpheus, but on one
+condition. If he turned to look at her once before they reached the upper
+air, he must lose her again and go back to the world alone.
+
+Rapt with joy, the happy Orpheus hastened on the way, thinking only of
+Eurydice, who was following him. Past Lethe, across the Styx they went, he
+and his lovely wife, still silent as a shade. But the place was full of
+gloom, the silence weighed upon him, he had not seen her for so long; her
+footsteps made no sound; and he could hardly believe the miracle, for
+Pluto seldom relents. When the first gleam of upper daylight broke through
+the cleft to the dismal world, he forgot all, save that he must know if
+she still followed. He turned to see her face, and the promise was broken!
+
+She smiled at him forgivingly, but it was too late. He stretched out his
+arms to take her, but she faded from them, as the bright snow, that none
+may keep, melts in our very hands. A murmur of farewell came to his
+ears,--no more. She was gone.
+
+He would have followed, but Charon, now on guard, drove him back. Seven
+days he lingered there between the worlds of life and death, but after the
+broken promise Hades would not listen to his song. Back to the earth he
+wandered, though it was sweet to him no longer. He died young, singing to
+the last, and round about the place where his body rested, nightingales
+nested in the trees. His lyre was set among the stars; and he himself went
+down to join Eurydice, unforbidden.
+
+Those two had no need of Lethe, for their life on earth had been wholly
+fair, and now that they are together they no longer own a sorrow.
+
+
+
+
+ICARUS AND DAEDALUS
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+Among all those mortals who grew so wise that they learned the secrets of
+the gods, none was more cunning than Daedalus.
+
+He once built, for King Minos of Crete, a wonderful Labyrinth of winding
+ways so cunningly tangled up and twisted around that, once inside, you
+could never find your way out again without a magic clue. But the king's
+favor veered with the wind, and one day he had his master architect
+imprisoned in a tower. Daedalus managed to escape from his cell; but it
+seemed impossible to leave the island, since every ship that came or went
+was well guarded by order of the king.
+
+At length, watching the sea-gulls in the air,--the only creatures that
+were sure of liberty,--he thought of a plan for himself and his young son
+Icarus, who was captive with him.
+
+Little by little, he gathered a store of feathers great and small. He
+fastened these together with thread, moulded them in with wax, and so
+fashioned two great wings like those of a bird. When they were done,
+Daedalus fitted them to his own shoulders, and after one or two efforts, he
+found that by waving his arms he could winnow the air and cleave it, as a
+swimmer does the sea. He held himself aloft, wavered this way and that,
+with the wind, and at last, like a great fledgling, he learned to fly.
+
+Without delay, he fell to work on a pair of wings for the boy Icarus, and
+taught him carefully how to use them, bidding him beware of rash
+adventures among the stars. "Remember," said the father, "never to fly
+very low or very high, for the fogs about the earth would weigh you down,
+but the blaze of the sun will surely melt your feathers apart if you go
+too near."
+
+For Icarus, these cautions went in at one ear and out by the other. Who
+could remember to be careful when he was to fly for the first time? Are
+birds careful? Not they! And not an idea remained in the boy's head but
+the one joy of escape.
+
+The day came, and the fair wind that was to set them free. The father bird
+put on his wings, and, while the light urged them to be gone, he waited to
+see that all was well with Icarus, for the two could not fly hand in hand.
+Up they rose, the boy after his father. The hateful ground of Crete sank
+beneath them; and the country folk, who caught a glimpse of them when they
+were high above the tree-tops, took it for a vision of the gods,--Apollo,
+perhaps, with Cupid after him.
+
+At first there was a terror in the joy. The wide vacancy of the air dazed
+them,--a glance downward made their brains reel. But when a great wind
+filled their wings, and Icarus felt himself sustained, like a halcyon-bird
+in the hollow of a wave, like a child uplifted by his mother, he forgot
+everything in the world but joy. He forgot Crete and the other islands
+that he had passed over: he saw but vaguely that winged thing in the
+distance before him that was his father Daedalus. He longed for one draught
+of flight to quench the thirst of his captivity: he stretched out his arms
+to the sky and made towards the highest heavens.
+
+Alas for him! Warmer and warmer grew the air. Those arms, that had seemed
+to uphold him, relaxed. His wings wavered, drooped. He fluttered his young
+hands vainly,--he was falling,--and in that terror he remembered. The heat
+of the sun had melted the wax from his wings; the feathers were falling,
+one by one, like snowflakes; and there was none to help.
+
+He fell like a leaf tossed down the wind, down, down, with one cry that
+overtook Daedalus far away. When he returned, and sought high and low for
+the poor boy, he saw nothing but the bird-like feathers afloat on the
+water, and he knew that Icarus was drowned.
+
+The nearest island he named Icaria, in memory of the child; but he, in
+heavy grief, went to the temple of Apollo in Sicily, and there hung up his
+wings as an offering. Never again did he attempt to fly.
+
+
+
+
+PHAETHON
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+Once upon a time, the reckless whim of a lad came near to destroying the
+Earth and robbing the spheres of their wits.
+
+There were two playmates, said to be of heavenly parentage. One was
+Epaphus, who claimed Zeus as a father; and one was Phaethon, the earthly
+child of Phoebus Apollo (or Helios, as some name the sun-god). One day
+they were boasting together, each of his own father, and Epaphus, angry at
+the other's fine story, dared him to go prove his kinship with the Sun.
+
+Full of rage and humiliation, Phaethon went to his mother, Clymene, where
+she sat with his young sisters, the Heliades.
+
+"It is true, my child," she said, "I swear it in the light of yonder Sun.
+If you have any doubt, go to the land whence he rises at morning and ask
+of him any gift you will; he is your father, and he cannot refuse you."
+
+As soon as might be, Phaethon set out for the country of sunrise. He
+journeyed by day and by night far into the east, till he came to the
+palace of the Sun. It towered high as the clouds, glorious with gold and
+all manner of gems that looked like frozen fire, if that might be. The
+mighty walls were wrought with images of earth and sea and sky. Vulcan,
+the smith of the Gods, had made them in his workshop (for Mount AEtna is
+one of his forges, and he has the central fires of the earth to help him
+fashion gold and iron, as men do glass). On the doors blazed the twelve
+signs of the Zodiac, in silver that shone like snow in the sunlight.
+Phaethon was dazzled with the sight, but when he entered the palace hall
+he could hardly bear the radiance.
+
+In one glimpse through his half-shut eyes, he beheld a glorious being,
+none other than Phoebus himself, seated upon a throne. He was clothed in
+purple raiment, and round his head there shone a blinding light, that
+enveloped even his courtiers upon the right and upon the left,--the
+Seasons with their emblems, Day, Month, Year, and the beautiful young
+Hours in a row. In one glance of those all-seeing eyes, the sun-god knew
+his child; but in order to try him he asked the boy his errand.
+
+"O my father," stammered Phaethon, "if you are my father indeed"--and then
+he took courage; for the god came down from his throne, put off the
+glorious halo that hurt mortal eyes, and embraced him tenderly.
+
+"Indeed, thou art my son," said he. "Ask any gift of me, and it shall be
+thine; I call the Styx to witness."
+
+"Ah!" cried Phaethon rapturously. "Let me drive thy chariot for one day!"
+
+For an instant the Sun's looks clouded. "Choose again, my child," said he.
+"Thou art only a mortal, and this task is mine alone of all the Gods. Not
+Zeus himself dare drive the chariot of the Sun. The way is full of
+terrors, both for the horses and for all the stars along the roadside, and
+for the Earth, who has all blessings from me. Listen, and choose again."
+And therewith he warned Phaethon of all the dangers that beset the
+way,--the great steep that the steeds must climb, the numbing dizziness of
+the height, the fierce constellations that breathe out fire, and that
+descent in the west where the Sun seems to go headlong.
+
+But these counsels only made the reckless boy more eager to win honor of
+such a high enterprise.
+
+"I will take care; only let me go," he begged.
+
+Now Phoebus had sworn by the black river Styx, an oath that none of the
+Gods dare break, and he was forced to keep his promise.
+
+Already Aurora, goddess of dawn, had thrown open the gates of the east,
+and the stars were beginning to wane. The Hours came forth to harness the
+four horses, and Phaethon looked with exultation at the splendid
+creatures, whose lord he was for a day. Wild, immortal steeds they were,
+fed with ambrosia, untamed as the winds; their very pet names signified
+flame, and all that flame can do,--Pyrois, Eoues, AEthon, Phlegon.
+
+As the lad stood by, watching, Phoebus anointed his face with a philter
+that should make him strong to endure the terrible heat and light, then
+set the halo upon his head, with a last word of counsel.
+
+"Follow the road," said he, "and never turn aside. Go not too high or too
+low, for the sake of heavens and earth; else men and Gods will suffer. The
+Fates alone know whether evil is to come of this. Yet if your heart fails
+you, as I hope, abide here and I will make the journey, as I am wont to
+do."
+
+But Phaethon held to his choice and bade his father farewell. He took his
+place in the chariot, gathered up the reins, and the horses sprang away,
+eager for the road.
+
+As they went, they bent their splendid necks to see the meaning of the
+strange hand upon the reins,--the slender weight in the chariot. They
+turned their wild eyes upon Phaethon, to his secret foreboding, and
+neighed one to another. This was no master charioteer, but a mere lad, a
+feather riding the wind. It was holiday for the horses of the Sun, and
+away they went.
+
+Grasping the reins that dragged him after, like an enemy, Phaethon looked
+down from the fearful ascent and saw the Earth far beneath him, dim and
+fair. He was blind with dizziness and bewilderment. His hold slackened and
+the horses redoubled their speed, wild with new liberty. They left the old
+tracks. Before he knew where he was, they had startled the constellations
+and well-nigh grazed the Serpent, so that it woke from its torpor and
+hissed.
+
+The steeds took fright. This way and that they went, terrified by the
+monsters they had never encountered before, shaking out of their silver
+quiet the cool stars towards the north, then fleeing as far to the south
+among new wonders. The heavens were full of terror.
+
+Up, far above the clouds, they went, and down again, towards the
+defenseless Earth, that could not flee from the chariot of the Sun. Great
+rivers hid themselves in the ground, and mountains were consumed. Harvests
+perished like a moth that is singed in a candle-flame.
+
+In vain did Phaethon call to the horses and pull upon the reins. As in a
+hideous dream, he saw his own Earth, his beautiful home and the home of
+all men, his kindred, parched by the fires of this mad chariot, and
+blackening beneath him. The ground cracked open and the sea shrank.
+Heedless water-nymphs, who had lingered in the shallows, were left gasping
+like bright fishes. The dryads shrank, and tried to cover themselves from
+the scorching heat. The poor Earth lifted her withered face in a last
+prayer to Zeus to save her if he might.
+
+Then Zeus, calling all the Gods to witness that there was no other means
+of safety, hurled his thunderbolt; and Phaethon knew no more.
+
+His body fell through the heavens, aflame like a shooting star; and the
+horses of the Sun dashed homeward with the empty chariot.
+
+Poor Clymene grieved sore over the boy's death; but the young Heliades,
+daughters of the Sun, refused all comfort. Day and night they wept
+together about their brother's grave by the river, until the Gods took
+pity and changed them all into poplar-trees. And ever after that they wept
+sweet tears of amber, clear as sunlight.
+
+
+
+
+NIOBE
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+There are so many tales of the vanity of kings and queens that the half of
+them cannot be told.
+
+There was Cassiopaeia, queen of AEthiopia, who boasted that her beauty
+outshone the beauty of all the sea-nymphs, so that in anger they sent a
+horrible sea-serpent to ravage the coast. The king prayed of an oracle to
+know how the monster might be appeased, and learned that he must offer up
+his own daughter, Andromeda. The maiden was therefore chained to a rock by
+the sea-side, and left to her fate. But who should come to rescue her but
+a certain young hero, Perseus, who was hastening homeward after a perilous
+adventure with the snaky-haired Gorgons. Filled with pity at the story of
+Andromeda, he waited for the dragon, met and slew him, and set the maiden
+free. As for the boastful queen, the Gods forgave her, and at her death
+she was set among the stars. That story ended well.
+
+But there was once a queen of Thebes, Niobe, fortunate above all women,
+and yet arrogant in the face of the gods. Very beautiful she was, and
+nobly born, but above all things she boasted of her children, for she had
+seven sons and seven daughters.
+
+Now there came the day when the people were wont to celebrate the feast of
+Latona, mother of Apollo and Diana; and Niobe, as she stood looking upon
+the worshipers on their way to the temple, was filled with overweening
+pride.
+
+"Why do you worship Latona before me?" she cried out. "What does she
+possess that I have not in greater abundance? She has but two children,
+while I have seven sons and as many daughters. Nay, if she robbed me out
+of envy, I should still be rich. Go back to your houses; you have not eyes
+to know the rightful goddess."
+
+Such impiety was enough to frighten any one, and her subjects returned to
+their daily work, awestruck and silent.
+
+But Apollo and Diana were filled with wrath at this insult to their divine
+mother. Not only was she a great goddess and a power in the heavens, but
+during her life on earth she had suffered many hardships for their sake.
+The serpent Python had been sent to torment her; and, driven from land to
+land, under an evil spell, beset with dangers, she had found no
+resting-place but the island of Delos, held sacred ever after to her and
+her children. Once she had even been refused water by some churlish
+peasants, who could not believe in a goddess if she appeared in humble
+guise and travel-worn. But these men were all changed into frogs.
+
+It needed no word from Latona herself to rouse her children to vengeance.
+Swift as a thought, the two immortal archers, brother and sister, stood in
+Thebes, upon the towers of the citadel. Near by, the youth were pursuing
+their sports, while the feast of Latona went neglected. The sons of Queen
+Niobe were there, and against them Apollo bent his golden bow. An arrow
+crossed the air like a sunbeam, and without a word the eldest prince fell
+from his horse. One by one his brothers died by the same hand, so swiftly
+that they knew not what had befallen them, till all the sons of the royal
+house lay slain. Only the people of Thebes, stricken with terror, bore the
+news to Queen Niobe, where she sat with her seven daughters. She would not
+believe in such a sorrow.
+
+"Savage Latona," she cried, lifting her arms against the heavens, "never
+think that you have conquered. I am still the greater."
+
+At that moment one of her daughters sank beside her. Diana had sped an
+arrow from her bow that is like the crescent moon. Without a cry, nay,
+even as they murmured words of comfort, the sisters died, one by one. It
+was all as swift and soundless as snowfall.
+
+Only the guilty mother was left, transfixed with grief. Tears flowed from
+her eyes, but she spoke not a word, her heart never softened; and at last
+she turned to stone, and the tears flowed down her cold face forever.
+
+
+
+
+PYRAMUS AND THISBE
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+Venus did not always befriend true lovers, as she had befriended
+Hippomenes, with her three golden apples. Sometimes, in the enchanted
+island of Cyprus, she forgot her worshipers far away, and they called on
+her in vain.
+
+So it was in the sad story of Hero and Leander, who lived on opposite
+borders of the Hellespont. Hero dwelt at Sestos, where she served as a
+priestess, in the very temple of Venus; and Leander's home was in Abydos,
+a town on the opposite shore. But every night this lover would swim across
+the water to see Hero, guided by the light which she was wont to set in
+her tower. Even such loyalty could not conquer fate. There came a great
+storm, one night, that put out the beacon, and washed Leander's body up
+with the waves to Hero, and she sprang into the water to rejoin him, and
+so perished.
+
+Not wholly unlike this was the fate of Halcyone, a queen of Thessaly, who
+dreamed that her husband Ceyx had been drowned, and on waking hastened to
+the shore to look for him. There she saw her dream come true,--his
+lifeless body floating towards her on the tide; and as she flung herself
+after him, mad with grief, the air upheld her and she seemed to fly.
+Husband and wife were changed into birds; and there on the very water, at
+certain seasons, they build a nest that floats unhurt,--a portent of calm
+for many days and safe voyage for the ships. So it is that seamen love
+these birds and look for halcyon weather.
+
+But there once lived in Babylonia two lovers named Pyramus and Thisbe, who
+were parted by a strange mischance. For they lived in adjoining houses;
+and although their parents had forbidden them to marry, these two had
+found a means of talking together through a crevice in the wall.
+
+Here, again and again, Pyramus on his side of the wall and Thisbe on hers,
+they would meet to tell each other all that had happened during the day,
+and to complain of their cruel parents. At length they decided that they
+would endure it no longer, but that they would leave their homes and be
+married, come what might. They planned to meet, on a certain evening, by a
+mulberry-tree near the tomb of King Ninus, outside the city gates. Once
+safely met, they were resolved to brave fortune together.
+
+So far all went well. At the appointed time, Thisbe, heavily veiled,
+managed to escape from home unnoticed, and after a stealthy journey
+through the streets of Babylon, she came to the grove of mulberries near
+the tomb of Ninus. The place was deserted, and once there she put off the
+veil from her face to see if Pyramus waited anywhere among the shadows.
+She heard the sound of a footfall and turned to behold--not Pyramus, but a
+creature unwelcome to any tryst--none other than a lioness crouching to
+drink from the pool hard by.
+
+Without a cry, Thisbe fled, dropping her veil as she ran. She found a
+hiding-place among the rocks at some distance, and there she waited, not
+knowing what else to do.
+
+The lioness, having quenched her thirst (after some ferocious meal),
+turned from the spring and, coming upon the veil, sniffed at it curiously,
+tore and tossed it with her reddened jaws,--as she would have done with
+Thisbe herself,--then dropped the plaything and crept away to the forest
+once more.
+
+It was but a little after this that Pyramus came hurrying to the
+meeting-place, breathless with eagerness to find Thisbe and tell her what
+had delayed him. He found no Thisbe there. For a moment he was confounded.
+Then he looked about for some signs of her, some footprint by the pool.
+There was the trail of a wild beast in the grass, and near by a woman's
+veil, torn and stained with blood; he caught it up and knew it for
+Thisbe's.
+
+So she had come at the appointed hour, true to her word; she had waited
+there for him alone and defenseless, and she had fallen a prey to some
+beast from the jungle! As these thoughts rushed upon the young man's mind,
+he could endure no more.
+
+"Was it to meet me, Thisbe, that you came to such a death!" cried he. "And
+I followed all too late. But I will atone. Even now I come lagging, but by
+no will of mine!"
+
+So saying, the poor youth drew his sword and fell upon it, there at the
+foot of that mulberry-tree which he had named as the trysting-place, and
+his life-blood ran about the roots.
+
+During these very moments, Thisbe, hearing no sound and a little
+reassured, had stolen from her hiding-place and was come to the edge of
+the grove. She saw that the lioness had left the spring, and, eager to
+show her lover that she had dared all things to keep faith, she came
+slowly, little by little, back to the mulberry-tree.
+
+She found Pyramus there, according to his promise. His own sword was in
+his heart, the empty scabbard by his side, and in his hand he held her
+veil still clasped. Thisbe saw these things as in a dream, and suddenly
+the truth awoke her. She saw the piteous mischance of all; and when the
+dying Pyramus opened his eyes and fixed them upon her, her heart broke.
+With the same sword she stabbed herself, and the lovers died together.
+
+There the parents found them, after a weary search, and they were buried
+together in the same tomb. But the berries of the mulberry-tree turned red
+that day, and red they have remained ever since.
+
+
+
+
+STORIES OF THE TROJAN WAR
+
+
+THE APPLE OF DISCORD
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+There was once a war so great that the sound of it has come ringing down
+the centuries from singer to singer, and will never die.
+
+The rivalries of men and gods brought about many calamities, but none so
+heavy as this; and it would never have come to pass, they say, if it had
+not been for jealousy among the immortals,--all because of a golden apple!
+But Destiny has nurtured ominous plants from little seeds; and this is how
+one evil grew great enough to overshadow heaven and earth.
+
+The sea-nymph Thetis (whom Zeus himself had once desired for his wife) was
+given in marriage to a mortal, Peleus, and there was a great wedding-feast
+in heaven. Thither all the immortals were bidden, save one, Eris, the
+goddess of Discord, ever an unwelcome guest. But she came unbidden. While
+the wedding-guests sat at feast, she broke in upon their mirth, flung
+among them a golden apple, and departed with looks that boded ill. Some
+one picked up the strange missile and read its inscription, "For the
+Fairest;" and at once discussion arose among the goddesses. They were all
+eager to claim the prize, but only three persisted.
+
+Venus, the very goddess of beauty, said that it was hers by right; but
+Juno could not endure to own herself less fair than another, and even
+Athene coveted the palm of beauty as well as of wisdom, and would not give
+it up! Discord had indeed come to the wedding-feast. Not one of the Gods
+dared to decide so dangerous a question,--not Zeus himself,--and the three
+rivals were forced to choose a judge among mortals.
+
+Now there lived on Mount Ida, near the city of Troy, a certain young
+shepherd by the name of Paris. He was as comely as Ganymede himself,--that
+Trojan youth whom Zeus, in the shape of an eagle, seized and bore away to
+Olympus, to be a cup-bearer to the gods. Paris, too, was a Trojan of royal
+birth, but like Oedipus, he had been left on the mountain in his infancy,
+because the oracle had foretold that he would be the death of his kindred
+and the ruin of his country. Destiny saved and nurtured him to fulfill
+that prophecy. He grew up as a shepherd and tended his flocks on the
+mountain, but his beauty held the favor of all the wood-folk there and won
+the heart of the nymph Oenone.
+
+To him, at last, the three goddesses intrusted the judgment and the golden
+apple. Juno first stood before him in all her glory as queen of Gods and
+men, and attended by her favorite peacocks as gorgeous to see as royal
+fan-bearers.
+
+[Illustration: TO HIM, AT LAST, THE THREE GODDESSES INTRUSTED THE JUDGMENT
+AND THE GOLDEN APPLE]
+
+"Use but the judgment of a prince, Paris," she said, "and I will give thee
+wealth and kingly power."
+
+Such majesty and such promises would have moved the heart of any man; but
+the eager Paris had at least to hear the claims of the other rivals.
+Athene rose before him, a vision welcome as daylight, with her sea-gray
+eyes and golden hair beneath a golden helmet.
+
+"Be wise in honoring me, Paris," she said, "and I will give thee wisdom
+that shall last forever, great glory among men, and renown in war."
+
+Last of all, Venus shone upon him, beautiful as none can ever hope to be.
+If she had come, unnamed, as any country maid, her loveliness would have
+dazzled him like sea-foam in the sun; but she was girt with her magical
+Cestus, a spell of beauty that no one can resist.
+
+Without a bribe she might have conquered, and she smiled upon his dumb
+amazement, saying, "Paris, thou shalt yet have for wife the fairest woman
+in the world."
+
+At these words, the happy shepherd fell on his knees and offered her the
+golden apple. He took no heed of the slighted goddesses, who vanished in a
+cloud that boded storm.
+
+From that hour he sought only the counsel of Venus, and only cared to find
+the highway to his new fortunes. From her he learned that he was the son
+of King Priam of Troy, and with her assistance he deserted the nymph
+Oenone, whom he had married, and went in search of his royal kindred.
+
+For it chanced at that time that Priam proclaimed a contest of strength
+between his sons and certain other princes, and promised as prize the most
+splendid bull that could be found among the herds of Mount Ida. Thither
+came the herdsmen to choose, and when they led away the pride of Paris's
+heart, he followed to Troy, thinking that he would try his fortune and
+perhaps win back his own.
+
+The games took place before Priam and Hecuba and all their children,
+including those noble princes Hector and Helenus, and the young Cassandra,
+their sister. This poor maiden had a sad story, in spite of her royalty;
+for, because she had once disdained Apollo, she was fated to foresee all
+things, and ever to have her prophecies disbelieved. On this fateful day,
+she alone was oppressed with strange forebodings.
+
+But if he who was to be the ruin of his country had returned, he had come
+victoriously. Paris won the contest. At the very moment of his honor, poor
+Cassandra saw him with her prophetic eyes; and seeing as well all the
+guilt and misery that he was to bring upon them, she broke into bitter
+lamentations, and would have warned her kindred against the evil to come.
+But the Trojans gave little heed; they were wont to look upon her visions
+as spells of madness. Paris had come back to them a glorious youth and a
+victor; and when he made known the secret of his birth, they cast the
+words of the oracle to the winds, and received the shepherd as a long-lost
+prince.
+
+Thus far all went happily. But Venus, whose promise had not yet been
+fulfilled, bade Paris procure a ship and go in search of his destined
+bride. The prince said nothing of this quest, but urged his kindred to let
+him go; and giving out a rumor that he was to find his father's lost
+sister Hesione, he set sail for Greece, and finally landed at Sparta.
+
+There he was kindly received by Menelaus, the king, and his wife, Fair
+Helen.
+
+This queen had been reared as the daughter of Tyndarus and Queen Leda, but
+some say that she was the child of an enchanted swan, and there was indeed
+a strange spell about her. All the greatest heroes of Greece had wooed her
+before she left her father's palace to be the wife of King Menelaus, and
+Tyndarus, fearing for her peace, had bound her many suitors by an oath.
+According to this pledge, they were to respect her choice, and to go to
+the aid of her husband if ever she should be stolen away from him. For in
+all Greece there was nothing so beautiful as the beauty of Helen. She was
+the fairest woman in the world.
+
+Now thus did Venus fulfill her promise and the shepherd win his reward
+with dishonor. Paris dwelt at the court of Menelaus for a long time,
+treated with a royal courtesy which he ill repaid. For at length, while
+the king was absent on a journey to Crete, his guest won the heart of Fair
+Helen, and persuaded her to forsake her husband and sail away to Troy, or
+Ilium.
+
+King Menelaus returned to find the nest empty of the swan. Paris and the
+fairest woman in the world were well across the sea.
+
+When this treachery came to light, all Greece took fire with indignation.
+The heroes remembered their pledge, and wrath came upon them at the wrong
+done to Menelaus. But they were less angered with Fair Helen than with
+Paris, for they felt assured that the queen had been lured from her
+country and out of her own senses by some spell of enchantment. So they
+took counsel how they might bring back Fair Helen to her home and husband.
+
+Years had come and gone since that wedding-feast when Eris had flung the
+apple of discord, like a firebrand, among the guests. But the spark of
+dissension that had smouldered so long burst into flame now, and, fanned
+by the enmities of men and the rivalries of the Gods, it seemed like to
+fire heaven and earth.
+
+A few of the heroes answered the call to arms unwillingly. Time had
+reconciled them to the loss of Fair Helen, and they were loath to leave
+home and happiness for war, even in her cause.
+
+One of these was Odysseus, or Ulysses, king of Ithaca, who had married
+Penelope, and was quite content with his kingdom and his little son
+Telemachus. Indeed, he was so unwilling to leave them that he feigned
+madness in order to escape service, appeared to forget his own kindred,
+and went ploughing the seashore and sowing salt in the furrows. But a
+messenger, Palamedes, who came with the summons to war, suspected that
+this sudden madness might be a stratagem, for the king was far famed as a
+man of many devices. He therefore stood by, one day (while Ulysses,
+pretending to take no heed of him, went ploughing the sand) and he laid
+the baby Telemachus directly in the way of the ploughshare. For once the
+wise man's craft deserted him. Ulysses turned the plough sharply, caught
+up the little prince, and there his fatherly wits were manifest! After
+this he could no longer play madman. He had to take leave of his beloved
+wife Penelope and set out to join the heroes, little dreaming that he was
+not to return for twenty years. Once embarked, however, he set himself to
+work in the common cause of the heroes, and was soon as ingenious as
+Palamedes in rousing laggard warriors.
+
+There remained one who was destined to be the greatest warrior of all.
+This was Achilles, the son of Thetis,--foretold in the day of Prometheus
+as a man who should far outstrip his own father in glory and greatness.
+Years had passed since the marriage of Thetis to King Peleus, and their
+son Achilles was now grown to manhood, a wonder of strength indeed, and,
+moreover, invulnerable. For his mother, forewarned of his death in the
+Trojan War, had dipped him in the sacred river Styx when he was a baby, so
+that he could take no hurt from any weapon. From head to foot she had
+plunged him in, only forgetting the little heel that she held him by, and
+this alone could be wounded by any chance. But even with such precautions
+Thetis was not content. Fearful at the rumors of war to be, she had her
+son brought up, in woman's dress, among the daughters of King Lycomedes of
+Scyros, that he might escape the notice of men and cheat his destiny.
+
+To this very palace, however, came Ulysses in the guise of a merchant, and
+he spread his wares before the royal household,--jewels and ivory, fine
+fabrics, and curiously wrought weapons. The king's daughters chose girdles
+and veils and such things as women delight in; but Achilles, heedless of
+the like, sought out the weapons, and handled them with such manly
+pleasure that his nature stood revealed. So he, too, yielded to his
+destiny and set out to join the heroes.
+
+Everywhere men were banded together, building the ships and gathering
+supplies. The allied forces of Greece (the Achaians, as they called
+themselves) chose Agamemnon for their commander-in-chief. He was a mighty
+man, king of Mycenae and Argos, and the brother of the wronged Menelaus.
+Second to Achilles in strength was the giant Ajax; after him Diomedes,
+then wise Ulysses, and Nestor, held in great reverence because of his
+experienced age and fame. These were the chief heroes. After two years of
+busy preparation, they reached the port of Aulis, whence they were to sail
+for Troy.
+
+But here delay held them. Agamemnon had chanced to kill a stag which was
+sacred to Diana, and the army was visited by pestilence, while a great
+calm kept the ships imprisoned. At length the oracle made known the reason
+of this misfortune and demanded for atonement the maiden Iphigenia,
+Agamemnon's own daughter. In helpless grief the king consented to offer
+her up as a victim, and the maiden was brought, ready for sacrifice. But
+at the last moment Diana caught her away in a cloud, leaving a white hind
+in her place, and carried her to Tauris in Scythia, there to serve as a
+priestess in the temple. In the mean time, her kinsfolk, who were at a
+loss to understand how she had disappeared, mourned her as dead. But Diana
+had accepted their child as an offering, and healing came to the army, and
+the winds blew again. So the ships set sail.
+
+Meanwhile, in Troy across the sea, the aged Priam and Hecuba gave shelter
+to their son Paris and his stolen bride. They were not without misgivings
+as to these guests, but they made ready to defend their kindred and the
+citadel.
+
+There were many heroes among the Trojans and their allies, brave and
+upright men, who little deserved that such reproach should be brought upon
+them by the guilt of Prince Paris. There were AEneas and Deiphobus, Glaucus
+and Sarpedon, and Priam's most noble son Hector, chief of all the forces,
+and the very bulwark of Troy. These and many more were bitterly to regret
+the day that had brought Paris back to his home. But he had taken refuge
+with his own people, and the Trojans had to take up his cause against the
+hostile fleet that was coming across the sea.
+
+Even the Gods took sides. Juno and Athene, who had never forgiven the
+judgment of Paris, condemned all Troy with him and favored the Greeks, as
+did also Neptune, god of the sea. But Venus, true to her favorite,
+furthered the interests of the Trojans with all her power, and persuaded
+the warlike Mars to do likewise. Zeus and Apollo strove to be impartial,
+but they were yet to aid now one side, now another, according to the
+fortunes of the heroes whom they loved.
+
+Over the sea came the great embassy of ships, sped hither safely by the
+god Neptune; and the heroes made their camp on the plain before Troy.
+First of all Ulysses and King Menelaus himself went into the city and
+demanded that Fair Helen should be given back to her rightful husband.
+This the Trojans refused, and so began the siege of Troy.
+
+
+
+
+THE QUARREL BETWEEN AGAMEMNON AND ACHILLES
+
+By Alfred J. Church
+
+
+The Greeks sacked the city of Chryse, where was a temple of Apollo, and a
+priest that served the temple. And when they divided the spoil, they gave
+to King Agamemnon with other gifts, the priest's daughter, Chryseis.
+Thereupon there came to the camp Chryses, the priest, wishing to ransom
+his daughter. Much gold he brought with him, and on his staff of gold he
+carried the holy garland, that men might reverence him the more. He went
+to all the chiefs, and to the sons of Atreus first of all, saying,--
+"Loose, I pray you, my dear daughter, and take the ransom for her; so may
+the gods that dwell in Olympus grant you to take the city of Troy, and to
+have safe return to your homes."
+
+Then all the others spake him fair, and would have done what he wished.
+Only Agamemnon would not have it so.
+
+"Get thee out, graybeard!" he cried in great wrath. "Let me not find thee
+lingering now by the ships, neither coming hither again, or it shall be
+the worse for thee, for all thy priesthood. And as for thy daughter, I
+shall carry her away to Argos, when I shall have taken this city of Troy."
+
+Then the old man went out hastily in great fear and trouble. And he walked
+in his sorrow by the shore of the sounding sea, and prayed to his god
+Apollo.
+
+"Hear me, god of the silver bow! If I have built thee a temple, and
+offered thee fat of many bullocks and rams, hear me, and avenge my tears
+on the Greeks with thine arrows!"
+
+And Apollo heard him. Wroth was he that men had so dishonored his priest,
+and he came down from the top of Olympus, where he dwelt. Dreadful was the
+rattle of his arrows as he went, and his coming was as the night when it
+cometh over the sky. Then he shot the arrows of death, first on the dogs
+and the mules, and then on the men; and soon all along the shore rolled
+the black smoke from the piles of wood on which they burnt the bodies of
+the dead.
+
+For nine days the shafts of the god went throughout the host; but on the
+tenth day Achilles called the people to an assembly. So Juno bade him, for
+she loved the Greeks, and grieved to see them die. When they were gathered
+together he stood up among them, and spake to Agamemnon:--
+
+"Surely it were better to return home, than that we should all perish here
+by war or plague. But come, let us ask some prophet or priest or dreamer
+of dreams why it is that Apollo is so wroth with us."
+
+Then stood up Calchas, best of seers, who knew what had been, and what
+was, and what was to come, and spake:--
+
+"Achilles, thou biddest me tell the people why Apollo is wroth with them.
+Lo! I will tell thee, but thou must first swear to stand by me, for I know
+that what I shall say will anger King Agamemnon, and it goes ill with
+common men when kings are angry."
+
+"Speak out, thou wise man!" cried Achilles; "for I swear by Apollo that
+while I live no one shall lay hands on thee, no, not Agamemnon's self,
+though he be sovereign lord of the Greeks."
+
+Then the blameless seer took heart, and spake: "It is not for vow or
+offering that Apollo is wroth; it is for his servant the priest, for he
+came to ransom his daughter, but Agamemnon scorned him, and would not let
+the maiden go. Now, then, ye must send her back to Chryse without ransom,
+and with her a hundred beasts for sacrifice, so that the plague may be
+stayed."
+
+Then Agamemnon stood up in a fury, his eyes blazing like fire.
+
+"Never," he cried, "hast thou spoken good concerning me, ill prophet that
+thou art, and now thou tellest me to give up this maiden! I will do it,
+for I would not that the people should perish. Only take care, ye Greeks,
+that there be a share of the spoil for me, for it would ill beseem the
+lord of all the host that he alone should be without his share."
+
+"Nay, my lord Agamemnon," cried Achilles, "thou art too eager for gain. We
+have no treasures out of which we may make up thy loss, for what we got
+out of the towns we have either sold or divided; nor would it be fitting
+that the people should give back what has been given to them. Give up the
+maiden, then, without conditions, and when we shall have taken this city
+of Troy, we will repay thee three and four fold."
+
+"Nay, great Achilles," said Agamemnon, "thou shalt not cheat me thus. If
+the Greeks will give me such a share as I should have, well and good. But
+if not, I will take one for myself, whether it be from thee or from Ajax
+or from Ulysses; for my share I will have. But of this hereafter. Now let
+us see that this maiden be sent back. Let them get ready a ship, and put
+her herein, and with her a hundred victims, and let some chief go with the
+ship, and see that all things be rightly done."
+
+Then cried Achilles, and his face was as black as a thunder-storm: "Surely
+thou art altogether shameless and greedy, and, in truth, an ill ruler of
+men. No quarrel have I with the Trojans. They never harried oxen or sheep
+of mine in fertile Phthia, for many murky mountains lie between, and a
+great breadth of roaring sea. But I have been fighting in thy cause, and
+that of thy brother Menelaus. Naught carest thou for that. Thou leavest me
+to fight, and sittest in thy tent at ease. But when the spoil is divided,
+thine is always the lion's share. Small, indeed, is my part,--'a little
+thing, but dear.' And this, forsooth, thou wilt take away! Now am I
+resolved to go home. I have no mind to heap up goods and gold for thee,
+and be myself dishonored."
+
+And King Agamemnon answered, "Go, and thy Myrmidons with thee! I have
+other chieftains as good as thou art, and ready, as thou art not, to pay
+me due respect; and Zeus, the god of council, is with me. I hate thee, for
+thou always lovest war and strife. And as for the matter of the spoil,
+know that I will take thy share, the girl Briseis, and fetch her myself,
+if need be, that all may know that I am sovereign lord here in the host of
+the Greeks."
+
+Then Achilles was mad with anger, and he thought in his heart, "Shall I
+arise and slay this caitiff, or shall I keep down the wrath in my breast?"
+And as he thought he laid his hand on his sword-hilt, and had half-drawn
+his sword from the scabbard, when lo! the goddess Athene stood behind him
+(for Juno, who loved both this chieftain and that, had sent her), and
+caught him by the long locks of his yellow hair. But Achilles marveled
+much to feel the mighty grasp, and turned and looked, and knew the
+goddess, but no one else in the assembly might see her. Terrible was the
+flash of his eyes as he cried, "Art thou come, child of Zeus, to see the
+insolence of Agamemnon? Of a truth, I think that he will perish for his
+folly."
+
+But Athene said, "Nay, but I am come from heaven to abate thy wrath, if
+thou wilt hear me; white-armed Juno sent me, for she loveth and cherisheth
+you both alike. Draw not thy sword; but use bitter words, even as thou
+wilt. Of a truth, I tell thee that for this insolence of to-day he will
+bring thee hereafter splendid gifts, threefold and fourfold for all that
+he may take away. Only refrain thyself and do my bidding."
+
+Then Achilles answered, "I will abide by thy command for all my wrath, for
+the man who hearkens to the immortal gods is also heard of them." And as
+he spake he laid his heavy hand upon the hilt, and thrust back the sword
+into the scabbard, and Athene went her way to Olympus.
+
+Then he turned him to King Agamemnon, and spake again, for his anger was
+not spent. "Drunkard, with the eyes of a dog and the heart of a deer!
+never fighting in the front of the battle, nor daring to lie in the
+ambush! 'Tis a race of dastards that thou rulest, or this had been thy
+last wrong. But this I tell thee, and confirm my words with a mighty
+oath--by this sceptre do I swear. Once it was the branch of a tree, but
+now the sons of the Greeks bear it in their hands, even they who maintain
+the laws of Zeus; as surely as it shall never again have bark, or leaves,
+or shoot, so surely shall the Greeks one day miss Achilles, when they fall
+in heaps before the dreadful Hector; and thou shalt eat thy heart for
+rage, to think that thou hast wronged the bravest of thy host."
+
+And as he spake he dashed the sceptre, all embossed with studs of gold,
+upon the ground, and sat down. And on the other side Agamemnon sat in
+furious anger. Then Nestor rose, an old man of a hundred years and more,
+and counseled peace. Let them listen, he said, to his counsel. Great
+chiefs in the old days, with whom no man now alive would dare to fight,
+had listened. Let not Agamemnon take away from the bravest of the Greeks
+the prize of war; let not Achilles, though he was mightier in battle than
+all other men, contend with Agamemnon, who was sovereign lord of all the
+hosts of Greece. But he spake in vain. For Agamemnon answered,--
+
+"Nestor, thou speakest well, and peace is good. But this fellow would lord
+it over all; yet there are some, methinks, who will not obey him. For if
+the immortal Gods have made him a great warrior, do they therefore grant
+him leave to speak lawless words? Verily he must be taught that there is
+one here, at least, who is better than he."
+
+And Achilles said, "I were a slave and a coward if I owned thee as my
+lord. Not so; play the master over others, but think not to master me. As
+for the prize which the Greeks gave me, let them do as they will. They
+gave it; let them take it away. But if thou darest to touch aught that is
+mine own, that hour thy life-blood shall redden on my spear."
+
+Then the assembly was dismissed. Chryseis was sent to her home with due
+offerings to the god, the wise Ulysses going with her. And all the people
+purified themselves, and offered offerings to the Gods; and the sweet
+savor went up to heaven in the wreathing smoke.
+
+But King Agamemnon would not go back from his purpose. So he called to him
+the heralds, Talthybius and Eurybates, and said,--
+
+"Heralds, go to the tents of Achilles, and fetch the maiden Briseis. But
+if he will not let her go, say that I will come myself with many others to
+fetch her; so will it be the worse for him."
+
+Sorely against their will the heralds went. Along the seashore they
+walked, till they came to where, amidst the Myrmidons, were the tents of
+Achilles. There they found him, sitting between his tent and his ship. He
+did not rejoice to see them, and they stood in great terror and shame. But
+he knew in his heart wherefore they had come, and cried aloud, "Come near,
+ye heralds, messengers of Gods and men. 'Tis no fault of yours that ye are
+come on such an errand."
+
+Then he turned to Patroclus (now Patroclus was his dearest friend) and
+said,--
+
+"Bring the maiden from her tent, and let the heralds lead her away. But
+let them be witnesses, before gods and men, and before this evil-minded
+king, against the day when he shall have sore need of me to save his hosts
+from destruction. Fool that he is, who knoweth not to look back and to
+look forward, that his people may be safe!"
+
+Then Patroclus brought forth the maiden from her tent, and gave her to the
+heralds. And they led her away; but it was sorely against her will that
+she went. But Achilles went apart from his comrades, and sat upon the
+seashore, falling into a great passion of tears, and stretching out his
+hands with loud prayer to his mother, Thetis, daughter of the sea. She
+heard him where she sat in the depths by her father, the old god of the
+sea, and rose from the gray sea, as a vapor rises, and came to where he
+was weeping, and stroked him with her hand, and called him by his name.
+
+"What ails thee, my son?" she said.
+
+Then he told her the story of his wrong, and when he had ended he said,--
+
+"Go, I pray thee, to the top of Olympus, to the palace of Zeus. Often have
+I heard thee in my father's hall boast how, long ago, thou didst help him
+when the other gods would have bound him, fetching Briareus of the hundred
+hands, who sat by him in his strength, so that the Gods feared to touch
+him. Go now, and call these things to his mind, and pray him that he help
+the sons of Troy, and give them victory in the battle, so that the Greeks,
+as they flee before them, may have joy of this king of theirs, who has
+done such wrong to the bravest of his host."
+
+And his mother answered him, "Surely thine is an evil lot, my son. This
+life is short, and it should of right be without tears and full of joy;
+but now it seems to me to be both short and sad. But I will go as thou
+sayest to Olympus, to the palace of Zeus; but not now, for he has gone,
+and the other Gods with him, to a twelve days' feast with the pious
+Ethiopians. But when he cometh back I will entreat and persuade him. And
+do thou sit still, nor go forth to battle."
+
+Meanwhile Ulysses drew near to Chryse with the holy offerings. And when
+they were come within the haven, they furled the sail, and laid it in the
+ship, and lowered the mast, and rowed the ship to her moorings. They cast
+out the anchor stones, and made fast the cables from the stern. After that
+they landed, taking with them the offerings and the maid Chryseis. To the
+altar they brought the maid, and gave her into the arms of her father, and
+the wise Ulysses said, "See now; Agamemnon, King of men, sends back thy
+daughter, and with her a hundred beasts for sacrifice, that we may appease
+the god who hath smitten the Greeks in his wrath."
+
+Then the priest received his daughter right gladly, and when they had
+ranged the beasts about the altar, and poured out the water of
+purification, and taken up handfuls of bruised barley, then the priest
+prayed, "Hear me, God of the silver bow! If before thou didst hearken to
+my prayer, and grievously afflict the Greeks, so hear me now, and stay
+this plague which is come upon them."
+
+So prayed he, and the god gave ear.
+
+Then they cast the barley on the heads of the cattle, and slew them, and
+flayed them, and they cut out the thigh-bones and wrapped them up in folds
+of fat, and laid raw morsels on them. These the priest burned on fagots,
+pouring on sparkling wine; and the young men stood by, having the
+five-pronged forks in their hands. And when the thighs were consumed, then
+they cut up the rest, and broiled the pieces carefully on spits. This
+being done, they made their meal, nor did any one lack his share. And when
+the meal was ended, then they poured a little wine into the cups to serve
+for libations to the Gods. After that they sat till sunset, singing a hymn
+to the Archer God, and making merry; and he heard their voice and was
+pleased.
+
+When the sun went down, they slept beside the stern-cables; and when the
+dawn appeared, then they embarked, raising the mast and spreading the
+sail; and Apollo sent them a favoring wind, and the dark blue wave hissed
+about the stem of the ship as she went: so they came to the camp of the
+Greeks.
+
+But all the time Achilles sat in wrath beside his ships; he went not to
+the war, nor yet to the assembly, but sat fretting in his heart, because
+he longed for the cry of the battle.
+
+
+
+
+THE FIGHT BETWEEN PARIS AND MENELAUS
+
+By Walter C. Perry
+
+
+In obedience to the summons of their leaders, the great host of the
+Achaians assembled on the plain of the flowing river Scamander,
+innumerable as the leaves and flowers in the season of spring. And in the
+midst of them stood the great ruler, Agamemnon: his head and eyes like
+those of Loud-thundering Zeus; his waist like that of the Man-slaying
+Mars; and with a breast like that of Neptune, the Ruler of the Sea. As the
+mail-clad Argives marched on, and rushed across the plain, the earth
+groaned beneath them.
+
+Now AEgis-bearing Zeus sent his messenger, Iris, to the assembly of the
+Trojans, with the voice of Polites, son of Priam, their sentinel at
+Priam's gate, and spake thus to Hector: "This is no time for idle words,
+for stern war is already upon you. But to thee, O Hector, do I especially
+speak; and do thou obey my voice! As thou hast many allies, of diverse
+nations and tongues, let each chief marshal and command his own people,
+and lead them forth to war."
+
+And the glorious Hector knew the voice of the messenger, and hastened to
+obey. He straightway dissolved the assembly. The gates of Troy were then
+thrown open, and the Trojan host rushed forth, with a mighty din. The
+blameless Hector, with his glancing helmet, was foremost of all, and led
+the bravest and strongest of the men; AEneas, son of the goddess Aphrodite,
+or Venus, born amidst the peaks of Ida, led the Dardans; and of the other
+leaders of the allies, the most famous were Sarpedon, son of Zeus, and
+blameless Glaucus, who led the Lycians, from distant Lycia, by the
+swift-eddying Xanthus.
+
+And, as the countless hosts advanced, to meet each other in deadly
+conflict, the Trojans marched with noisy shouts, like the clamor of the
+cranes, when they fly to the streams of Oceanus, in the early morning,
+screaming, and bringing death and destruction to the Pigmy men; but the
+Achaieans came on in silence, breathing dauntless courage.
+
+But when they came near to each other, the goodly Paris went before the
+front rank of the Trojans, and brandished his spear, and challenged all
+the Argive chiefs to single combat. When the warlike Menelaus, whom Paris
+had so deeply wronged by carrying off his wife, the beautiful Helen, saw
+Paris there, he was glad, thinking that he should now punish the false
+traitor for his wickedness. So he leaped from his chariot, in his clanging
+armor, and advanced to meet the challenger. And Paris saw him; and pale
+fear got hold of him, like to a man who has trodden on a serpent, in a
+wooded valley among the mountains; and he shrank back among the lordly
+Trojans.
+
+His brother Hector saw him, and reproached him with scornful words. "Base
+deceiver of women, beautiful in appearance and favor, but coward at heart!
+would that thou hadst never been born, or that thou hadst died unwedded!
+Now thou seest what kind of man is he, whose lovely wife thou hast carried
+off by stealth. Of no avail will be thy sounding lyre, thy beauteous face
+and curling hair, or all the gifts of golden Venus, when thou liest
+groveling in the dust."
+
+And the goodly Paris answered him, "Hector, thou rightly chidest me, and
+not more than I deserve. _Thy_ heart is ever undaunted, and keen as the
+axe, which cutteth the strong oak, in the hands of a skillful shipwright.
+But reproach me not for the lovely gifts of golden Aphrodite; for no man
+can obtain them by wishing for them, for they are among the precious gifts
+of the blessed Gods. But if thou desirest that I should do battle with the
+valiant Menelaus, make the Trojans and the Achaians sit down; and set me
+and Menelaus in the midst, to fight for Helen and for all the treasures
+which were taken away with her. And whichever of us twain shall be the
+victor, let him bear away the woman and the treasure, and take them home."
+
+So spake he, and they all kept silence; but Menelaus of the loud war-cry
+stood forward amongst the Greeks and made harangue, "Hearken now to me,
+for my heart hath endured the greatest grief. Whosoever of us twain shall
+fall, there let him lie. But now bring a goodly sacrifice, a white ram and
+a black ewe, for the Earth and for the Sun; and another for
+Loud-thundering Zeus; and summon hither the great King Priam, that he may
+take the pledge; for his sons are reckless and faithless; young men's
+hearts are too frivolous and fickle, but an old man looketh to the future
+and the past."
+
+And Hector sent heralds to the city, to fetch two lambs, and to summon
+Priam; while Agamemnon sent Talthybius for a ram. Now Iris, in Troy, came
+to Helen, in the semblance of Laodice, Paris's sister, fairest of Priam's
+daughters, wife of Helicaon, the son of Antenor. She found Helen weaving a
+great purple web, on which she was embroidering the battles of the Argives
+and the Trojans. The swift-footed Iris came near her, and said, "Come
+hither, dear lady, come with me, to see the wondrous deeds of the
+horse-taming Trojans and the mail-clad Argives; for now the battle is
+suspended, while Paris, and Menelaus, dear to Mars, will fight alone with
+their spears, for _thee_; and thou wilt be the fair wife of the victor."
+So Iris spoke, and put into Helen's bosom a longing for her former
+husband, and for her darling daughter. Then Helen veiled her face, and
+went straightway to the Scaean Gate, letting fall a tear; and her two
+handmaidens, AEthre and Clymene, followed her.
+
+On the tower above the Scaean Gate, she found the Trojan elders. These, on
+account of their age, had ceased from war, but were still good orators,
+with voices like the grasshoppers which sit upon a tree, and send forth
+their lily-like voice; so sat the elders of the Trojans on the Tower. When
+those ancient sages saw the fair Helen coming to them, they were
+astounded, and whispered one to another, "No wonder that the Trojans and
+the Achaians have suffered so many things for such a glorious woman! But,
+fair as she is, let her sail away, and not stay here to trouble us and our
+children after us."
+
+But the aged King Priam addressed her kindly. "Dear Daughter! come hither,
+and see thy former husband and kinsmen! I do not blame _thee_, but the
+Gods, and especially Venus, by whom this sad war has been brought upon us.
+But tell me who is that huge Achaian warrior? Many are taller than he, but
+I have never seen a man so stately and royal." And the fair Helen, the
+daughter of Zeus, replied, "O venerable Father of my lord! would that
+death had been my lot, when I followed thy son to Troy, and left my home
+and husband, and my dear young daughter, and all the loved companions of
+my girlhood! But that was not to be, and therefore I mourn and weep. The
+man of whom thou speakest is Atreides, the wide-ruling monarch Agamemnon,
+who is both a stately king and a doughty warrior; he is the brother of
+Menelaus my husband--shameless thing that I am!"
+
+Then the aged Priam asked her about the other Achaian chiefs,--Ulysses,
+and the gigantic Ajax, the bulwark of the host, and the godlike Idomeneus;
+and the lovely Helen told him all, and said, "I see all the other
+bright-eyed Achaians, and could tell their names; but two I see not, even
+mine own brothers, horse-taming Castor and the boxer Pollux; peradventure
+they came not with the Achaians; or if they came, they fight not, for fear
+of the revilings which men heap on me--shameless that I am!" She knew not
+that the earth already covered them, in Lacedaemon, their dear native land.
+Now the aged Priam drove out through the Scaean Gate, with Antenor by his
+side; and, when he had come to the Achaians and the Trojans, he descended
+from his chariot, and stood on the Earth, the bounteous grain-giver. Then
+Agamemnon, the king of men, and Ulysses, the man of many devices, rose up;
+and the stately heralds brought the holy oath-offerings to the gods, and
+mixed the ruddy wine in the mixing-bowl, from which they gave portions to
+the Achaian and the Trojan chiefs. Agamemnon raised his hands to heaven
+and prayed, "O Father Zeus, most great and glorious! O Sun, who seest and
+hearest all things! O ye Rivers, and thou, Mother Earth! be ye all
+witnesses to our oaths! If Paris shall kill Menelaus, then let him keep
+Helen and all her possessions; but if the yellow-haired Menelaus slay
+Paris, then let the Trojans give back Helen and her treasures!"
+
+Then the lordly Agamemnon slew the lambs, and prayed again to Zeus. But
+Priam spake unto the Achaians and the Trojans. "I verily will return to
+breezy Ilium; for I cannot bear to see my own son engaged in deadly
+conflict with the war-loving Menelaus."
+
+Then the goodly Paris, lord of the fair-haired Helen, put on his beautiful
+armor. First he set the splendid greaves upon his legs, fastened round the
+ankles with silver clasps; then he donned the corslet, which he had
+borrowed from his brother Lycaon; and he threw over his shoulders the
+silver-studded sword-belt with his sword, and took up his mighty shield;
+and upon his beauteous head he placed the helmet, with a horsehair crest,
+and the plume nodded terribly; and he took a strong spear in his hand.
+
+Then he and Menelaus stood face to face, on the ground which Hector and
+Ulysses had meted out; and they brandished their spears, with wrath
+against each other. Paris drew the lot to be the first to cast his
+long-shafted spear; he threw it, and it struck the round shield of
+Atreides Menelaus, but did not pierce it; for the point of the spear was
+turned.
+
+Then Menelaus, poising his lance, prayed to Zeus, "O Father Zeus! grant me
+to take vengeance on goodly Paris, who did me such foul wrong--_me_, who
+had shown him so much kindness!" He said, and hurled his strong spear,
+which struck the bright shield of the son of Priam; and the sharp point
+passed through it, and through his breastplate, and rent the tunic, close
+to the side of his body; but Paris swerved from it, and shunned the black
+fate of death. Then Menelaus drew his sword from the silver-studded
+sheath, and smote on the helmet of Paris, but the sword was shattered, and
+fell in pieces from his hand. Then he looked up to heaven, and exclaimed,
+"O Father Zeus! thou art the most cruel of all the Gods!"
+
+So saying, he caught Paris by his horse-hair crest, and dragged him
+towards the well-greaved Achaians, and the embroidered strap of the helmet
+went nigh to strangle him. But Venus, daughter of great Zeus, who loved
+the beauteous Paris, drew near him, and tore the strap of leather; and the
+helmet came away, empty, in the strong hand of the son of Atreus. Full of
+wrath, he hurled it towards his trusty companions, and they took it up. He
+then rushed back again, to slay his enemy; but golden-haired Venus, being
+a goddess, easily caught up Paris, and hid him in thick darkness, and
+carried him into Troy, to his high and fragrant chamber.
+
+Venus, the golden Goddess of Love, then went to summon Helen, in the
+likeness of an old woman, a wool-comber, who had worked for Helen in
+Lacedaemon, and whom she greatly loved. She found the white-armed Helen on
+the high tower, and spake: "Come hither to Paris, who sends for thee; he
+is there in the fragrant chamber, shining in beauty--
+
+  "Not like a warrior parted from the foe,
+  But some fair dancer from the public show."
+          (Pope's Translation of the _Iliad_.)
+
+But Helen's heart was greatly moved; she knew the golden Venus, saw her
+fair neck and sparkling eyes, and called her by her name. "O thou strange
+Goddess! wouldst thou again deceive me? Now Menelaus hath conquered Paris,
+and will carry me home--accursed as I am! And now do _thou_ no more return
+to Olympus, but leave the dwelling of the Gods, and go and sit by Paris,
+till he make _thee_ his wife--or perchance, his slave. But _I_ will not go
+to him; for all the Trojan women would justly blame me hereafter; I have
+innumerable griefs within my heart."
+
+Then was the bright goddess sore displeased, and spake harshly to her.
+"Beware! thou foolish woman! lest in my wrath I leave thee, and henceforth
+hate thee, as I have loved thee until now!" Venus spake, and Helen,
+daughter of great Zeus, trembled and obeyed, wrapping her beautiful
+garments about her; and the goddess led her to the fragrant chamber in the
+palace, and set her on a chair before the goodly Paris.
+
+But Helen looked askance at her lord, and chode him with bitter words.
+"Would that thou hadst never come back from the fight, but hadst perished
+by the arm of the warrior who was once my husband! Thou didst boast
+thyself to be a better man than Menelaus! Go then, and challenge him
+again, to meet thee face to face once more!"
+
+Yet Helen, though she could not but despise Paris, soon became reconciled
+to him, partly from a remnant of her former love for him, and partly from
+her fear of Venus.
+
+In the meantime, Menelaus was raging through the field in search of him.
+Nor could any of the Trojans find him, or they would have given him up;
+for they hated him like death, as the cause of all their sufferings.
+
+And King Agamemnon said to the Trojans, "Now that the Mars-loving Menelaus
+hath conquered Paris do ye give back to us Helen and all her treasures!"
+But this was not to be.
+
+
+
+
+THE DUEL BETWEEN HECTOR AND AJAX
+
+By Walter C. Perry
+
+
+And now we must speak of Hector, the noble Trojan prince, who, after
+Achilles, was the most famous warrior of the two hostile armies. Achilles,
+indeed, was the son of a goddess, even silver-footed Thetis; while
+Hector's mother, Hecuba, was a mortal woman.
+
+Well knowing the dangers to which he was exposed, and how soon he might
+fall in battle, Hector now bethought him of his lovely wife, Andromache,
+and his little boy Astyanax. When he came to the Scaean Gate, the Trojan
+women came running to him, with eager questions about their husbands,
+sons, and brothers; and sorrow filled their hearts. Among them came his
+fond and generous mother, Hecuba, leading by the hand the fairest of her
+daughters, Laodice, and she called him by his name, and spoke: "Dear Son!
+why hast thou left the field? Do the Achaians press thee hard? Dost thou
+come to make prayers to Father Zeus, from the Citadel? But come, I will
+bring thee honey-sweet wine, that thou mayest pour out a libation to
+Almighty Zeus, the Son of Cronos, and refresh thyself with a draught."
+
+But Hector answered her, "Bring me no luscious wine, dear mother! lest
+thou rob me of my strength and courage. Nor dare I make a libation to
+Zeus, with hands unwashen and soiled with blood. But go thou to the Temple
+of Athene, driver of the spoil; and lay the finest robe, the most precious
+to thyself, upon her knees; and vow to sacrifice twelve fat kine to her;
+and beg her to have mercy on the Trojans, and on their wives and little
+children! So, perhaps, she will hold back the terrible warrior, Tydides,
+from sacred Ilium. And I will go and seek out Paris; would that the earth
+would swallow him up! for Zeus hath cherished him to be the bane of his
+country, and of his father Priam."
+
+Then Hecuba went to her ambrosial chamber, and took the finest of her
+embroidered robes, the work of Sidonian women, which shone like a star;
+and went, with other aged women, to the temple of Athene. And the
+fair-cheeked Theano, daughter of Kisseus, the priestess, wife of Antenor,
+opened the temple gates, and took the shining robe, and laid it upon
+Athene's knees, and prayed to the great daughter of Zeus. But the goddess
+did not grant her prayer.
+
+But Hector went his way to the fair palace of Paris, and found him in his
+chamber, polishing his beautiful armor, and proving his curved bow. Then,
+when Hector saw him, he reproached him with bitter words. "O thou strange
+man! thou dost not well to nurse thy spite against the Trojans, who are
+now perishing before the city, and all for thy sake! Rise, then, now, lest
+the city be burned with fire!"
+
+And the goodly Paris answered, "It is not so much by reason of my wrath
+against the Trojans, but I would fain indulge my sorrow. My wife, too,
+hath urged me to the battle. Tarry then awhile, and I will don my armor;
+or go thou before, and I will follow."
+
+Then the divine Helen, daughter of great Zeus, came and spoke gently to
+Hector, and said, "O brother! brother of vile _me_, who am a dog--would
+that, when my mother bare me, the storm-wind had snatched me away to a
+mountain, or a billow of the loud-roaring sea had swept me away, before
+all these evil things had befallen me! Would that I had been mated with a
+better man than Paris, whose heart is not sound, and never will be. But
+come, my brother, and sit by me; for thou verily hast suffered most for
+me, who am a dog, and for the grievous sin of Paris, upon whom, surely,
+Zeus is bringing evil days; he will be, hereafter, a song of scorn in the
+mouths of future men, through all time to come."
+
+But noble Hector answered her, "If thou lovest me, dear Helen, bid me not
+stay; for I go to succor my friends, who long for me in my absence. But do
+thou try and rouse this husband of thine, and bid him overtake me. As for
+me, I shall first go to my home, and to my wife and my little son; for who
+knoweth whether I shall ever return to them again?"
+
+So spake the glorious Hector, and went his way to his own well-furnished
+house; but he found not Andromache there; for she had gone to the tower,
+with her fair-robed nurse and with her boy, all bathed in tears. Hector
+asked the servants whither the white-armed Andromache was gone; and the
+busy matron of the house replied, "She is gone to the tower of holy Troy;
+for she heard that the Trojans were defeated, and the Achaians
+victorious." Then Hector returned, by the same way, down the wide streets,
+and came to the Scaean Gate.
+
+And his peerless wife, even Andromache, daughter of the high-minded
+Eetion, king of Cilicia--she whom he had won by countless gifts--came
+running to meet him. And with her came the handmaid, the nurse, bearing in
+her arms Hector's tender boy, Astyanax, beautiful as the morning star. And
+Hector smiled, and looked on his darling boy, while Andromache stood
+beside him weeping. And she clasped his hand, and called him by his name.
+"O my dear lord, thy dauntless courage will destroy thee! Hast thou no
+pity for thy infant child, and for thy hapless wife, who soon will be a
+widow? It were far better for me to die, if I lose _thee_; for nevermore
+can I know comfort, but only pain and sorrow. For I shall be utterly
+alone. I have neither father nor mother; for Eetion, my royal sire, was
+slain by great Achilles. And all my seven brothers went down to Hades on
+the selfsame day! they too were slain by swift-footed Pelides. But my
+mother was smitten in her father's halls, by the gentle arrows of the
+archer Artemis. Lo! now, _thou_ art all in all to me, father, mother,
+brother, and dearly loved husband! Come, then, take pity on us, and abide
+in the tower, and make not thy boy an orphan, and thy wife a widow!"
+
+And the glorious Hector of the glancing helm answered her, and said, "Dear
+Wife! I too think of all these things. But how can I shun the battle, like
+a coward, to be the mock of the Trojans, and of the Trojan dames with
+trailing robes? I, who have always fought in the van of battle, and won
+glory for my father and myself? I know that the day will come, when sacred
+Ilium shall be leveled with the ground, and Priam and the people of Priam
+shall perish. But it is not so much the fate of Priam, and of my mother,
+Hecuba, and of my brethren, which fills my soul with anguish; but it is
+_thy_ misery, dear one, in the day when some Achaian warrior shall bear
+thee away, weeping, and rob thee of thy freedom. Thou, alas! wilt abide in
+Argos, and ply the loom, the slave of another woman; or bear water from
+the Hypereian fount, being harshly treated! And one will say, as he
+looketh upon thee, 'This was the wife of Hector, the foremost of the
+horse-taming Trojans in the war round Ilium.' But may the deep earth cover
+_me_, ere I hear thee crying in the day of thy captivity."
+
+So spake he, and held out his arms to take his darling boy. But the child
+shrank crying, and nestled in the bosom of his well-girdled nurse; for he
+feared the horsehair crest, nodding terribly from the brazen helmet. Then
+the fond parents laughed; and Hector doffed his helmet, and laid it on the
+ground. And he kissed his dear child, and fondled him, and prayed thus to
+Zeus:--
+
+"O Zeus! and all ye Gods! grant that this, my son, may like me be foremost
+to fight among the Trojans, and rule as a king in Ilium; so that men may
+say, 'He is far better than his father'!"
+
+Thus speaking, he laid the child in the fragrant bosom of his dear wife
+Andromache; and he pitied her, and caressed her with his hand, and called
+her by her name. "Dear one! be not thus utterly cast down. No man can slay
+me till my hour of destiny is come. But no man, when once he hath been
+born, can escape his fate, be he a brave man or a coward. Go thou to thy
+house, to the distaff and the loom, and make thy maidens ply their labors.
+But _men_ shall engage in war, and I the first of all in Troy."
+
+So spake Hector of the glancing helmet, and went his way. And his dear
+wife went to her home, looking back at him as she went, shedding bitter
+tears. And she found her maidens there, and with them she bewailed her
+lord, while yet he lived; for they feared that he would never again return
+from battle.
+
+And the goodly Paris donned his beautiful armor, and hastened after his
+brother, whom he overtook, and he made excuse for his long tarrying. And
+Hector answered him, "No man can justly speak lightly of thy deeds, for
+thou art strong; but thou art slack and careless, and I am grieved when I
+hear shameful things said of thee by the Trojans, who for thee bear so
+much toil. But let us be going."
+
+So the twain brothers, the glorious Hector and the goodly Paris, went
+forth to the battle. And Paris slew Menesthius, of Arne, son of Areithous;
+and Hector smote noble Eioneus in the neck, and relaxed his limbs in
+death. And Glaucus, captain of the Lycian allies, cast his spear at
+Iphinous, and pierced his shoulder; and he fell from his chariot, and his
+limbs were loosened.
+
+But when the fierce-eyed Athene saw the Trojans making havoc of the
+Achaians, she rushed down from the peaks of Olympus, to sacred Ilium. And
+Apollo, who favored the Trojans, saw her from Pergamus, and hastened to
+meet her; and they met by the beech-tree, and Apollo of the Silver Bow
+addressed her: "Why dost thou come, O Daughter of the Loud-Thunderer? Is
+it to bring victory to the Greeks? for thou hast no pity on the Trojans.
+But hearken unto me, and let us stop the battle for this day--hereafter
+they shall fight again."
+
+And the fierce-eyed goddess answered him, "Be it so, Far-Darter! for this
+was my purpose when I came from high Olympus. But how thinkest thou to
+make the war to cease?"
+
+Then King Apollo spake. "Let us rouse the valiant spirit of horse-taming
+Hector, to challenge one of the Greeks to deadly single combat." And the
+fierce-eyed Maid assented to his words.
+
+And the dear son of royal Priam, Helenus, the wise augur, who knew the
+counsel of the Gods, drew near to Hector, and spake thus to him: "Dear
+brother, who art peer of Zeus in counsel, wouldst thou listen to me? Make
+the Trojans and the Achaians sit down; and do thou challenge the bravest
+of the Achaians to meet thee in single combat. I hear the voice of the
+deathless Gods, that it is not yet thy lot to die."
+
+And the great Hector rejoiced at his words; and going into the throng, he
+held back the companies of the Trojans with his spear, holding it in the
+middle, and made them all sit down. And Agamemnon made the well-greaved
+Achaians sit down. And Athene and Apollo, in the form of vultures, sat on
+a lofty tree, and watched the hosts. And Hector stood between the two
+armies, and spake: "Hear me, ye Trojans and Achaians! Amongst you are the
+great chiefs of the Achaians. Now let one of these be your champion, to
+fight with me, Hector: and I call Zeus to witness, that if he slay me, you
+shall let him carry off my armor, but give my body to the Trojans, that
+they may render to me the honor of the funeral pyre. But if the Far-Darter
+shall grant me glory, that I may slay _him_, then will I strip him of his
+armor, and hang it in the Temple of Apollo; but his lifeless body I will
+give back to the long-haired Achaians, that they may bury him, and build
+him a barrow by the Hellespont."
+
+Thus spake the glorious Hector; but all were silent; for they were afraid
+to meet him. Then, at last, Menelaus, groaning deeply, reproached the
+Achaians, and said, "O ye women of Achaia, no longer _men!_ surely this
+will be an everlasting shame to us, if none of the Greeks dare to fight
+with the noble Hector! But I myself will arm me; for the issues of victory
+are with the Gods."
+
+And he began to put on his dazzling armor. And now wouldst thou, Menelaus,
+have yielded up thy life at the hands of Hector; but the great ruler,
+Agamemnon, rose up and stayed thee. "Art thou mad, O foster-son of Zeus?
+Draw back, though with grief and pain; and think not to fight with Hector,
+the man-slaying son of Priam; for he is a far better man than thou, even
+godlike Achilles feareth to meet this man in battle. Go then and sit down;
+and we will choose another champion."
+
+And the fair-haired Menelaus obeyed his brother's words, and his henchmen
+gladly took off his bright armor. And the wise Nestor arose, and upbraided
+all the Achaian chiefs: "Fie on us! Shame and lamentation have come upon
+us all. Surely the aged Peleus, the goodly king of the Myrmidons, would
+deeply groan, if he heard that we are all cowering before great Hector; he
+would pray that his soul might leave his body and go down to Hades. Would
+to Zeus, and to Athene and Apollo, that I were young, as when the Pylians
+met the Arcadians in battle, and Ereuthalion, the squire of King Lycurgus
+of Arcadia, wearing the divine armor of Areithous, of the iron mace,
+before the walls of Pheia, by the waters of Iardanus, challenged all our
+host; and they were afraid and trembled. Then I, the youngest of all,
+stood up and fought with him, and Athene gave me great glory; for he was
+the tallest man, and of the greatest bulk, that I have ever slain. Would
+that I were still so young and strong! But of you, leaders of the
+Achaians, not one has heart enough to meet great Hector."
+
+The wise old man's reproaches filled the Achaian chiefs with shame; and
+nine of them rose up, ready to fight; namely, Agamemnon, king of men; and
+the stalwart Diomedes; and Idomeneus, and his brother in arms, Meriones,
+equal in fight to murderous Mars; and Eurypylus, and Thaus, and the wily
+Ulysses, and two others. Then Nestor spake again. "Now cast lots for him
+that shall be champion." Then each man marked his lot, and threw it into
+Agamemnon's helmet; and all men prayed that the lot might fall on Ajax or
+Diomedes, or the king of rich Mycenae. Then Nestor shook the helmet, and
+the lot of Ajax leapt out; and the herald placed it in the hand of mighty
+Ajax, and he was glad; for he said, "I think that I shall vanquish goodly
+Hector." And they all prayed to the Son of Cronos, to give victory to
+Ajax, or to grant unto each of them equal glory and renown.
+
+Then huge Ajax donned his bright armor of bronze, and came forth like the
+war-god Mars when he goeth to battle. The Achaians were glad, but the
+Trojans trembled; and even the brave Hector felt his heart beat quicker in
+his breast. But he would not shrink from the combat, seeing that he had
+himself challenged all the Achaians. And Ajax came on, bearing a mighty
+shield, like a tower, which Tychius, the cunning leather-worker, had made
+for him, of sevenfold hides of lusty bulls, all overlaid with bronze. And
+he stood near godlike Hector, and spake: "Now shalt thou see what manner
+of men the Greeks have among them, even now when Achilles, the
+lion-hearted, hath left us in his wrath. But do thou begin the fight!"
+
+And Hector answered him, "Great Ajax, son of Telamon, sprung from Zeus!
+speak not to me as if I were a poor weak boy, or a woman! for I too have
+knowledge of war and slaughter. I know how to charge into the midst of the
+chariots, or, at close quarters, to join in the wild dance of Mars." He
+said, and hurled his long-shafted spear, and struck the sevenfold shield
+of Ajax; it passed through six folds, but was stopped by the seventh.
+
+Then Ajax, sprung from Zeus, threw his ponderous lance at the shield of
+mighty Priam's son. It passed right through the bright shield, and through
+the well-wrought corselet, and rent his tunic; but he swerved aside, and
+escaped gloomy death. Then the two fell upon each other, like ravening
+lions or wild boars; and Hector smote the shield of Ajax with his spear,
+but the sharp point was turned by the stout buckler. Then Ajax leapt upon
+him, and drove his spear at Hector's neck, making a wound from which the
+dark blood flowed.
+
+But Hector, undismayed, took up a great stone from the ground, and with it
+smote the boss of Ajax's shield. And Ajax heaved up a far bigger stone and
+threw it on the buckler of Hector, and it fell on him like a huge
+millstone, and stretched him on his back! But Apollo raised him, and set
+him on his legs again.
+
+Then they would have furiously attacked each other with their swords, had
+not the Achaian herald, Talthybius, and the Trojan herald, Idaius,
+intervened and stopped the fight, holding their staves of office between
+the godlike warriors; and Idaius spake to them: "Fight no longer, brave
+youths; for Zeus loveth you both; and we know well what gallant warriors
+ye are. Night is upon us, whose commands it behooveth us to obey."
+
+And the Telamonian Ajax answered, "Let Hector say those words; for it was
+he who challenged us."
+
+And Hector of the shining helmet said, "Ajax, since thou hast received
+strength and wisdom from the Gods, and dost excel all the Achaians in the
+fight, let us now cease from battle for the day, and hereafter we will
+fight again, until the Gods shall give victory to one of us. Go now, and
+rejoice thy friends and kinsmen by the ships, and I will gladden the
+hearts of Trojan men and long-robed dames in the holy city of King Priam.
+But now let us exchange costly gifts, that Trojans and Achaians may say of
+us that we, having met in this heart-gnawing strife, have parted like good
+friends." He spake, and gave to Ajax a silver-studded sword; and Ajax gave
+him a purple belt. So they parted, and went their way; the one to the
+ships of the Achaians, and the other to the holy city of Troy. And the
+Trojans rejoiced that Hector had escaped unhurt from the unapproachable
+hands of mighty Ajax.
+
+
+
+
+THE DEATH OF PATROCLUS AND THE BATTLE OF THE RIVER
+
+By Alfred J. Church
+
+
+Patroclus came and stood by the side of Achilles weeping. Then said
+Achilles, "What ails thee, Patroclus, that thou weepest like a girl-child
+that runs along by her mother's side, and would be taken up, holding her
+gown, and looking at her with tearful eyes till she lift her in her arms?
+Hast thou heard evil news from Phthia? Menoetius yet lives, they say, and
+Peleus. Or art thou weeping for the Greeks, because they perish for their
+folly?"
+
+Then said Patroclus, "Be not wroth with me, great Achilles, for indeed the
+Greeks are in grievous straits, and all their bravest are wounded, and
+still thou cherishest thy wrath. Surely Peleus was not thy father, nor
+Thetis thy mother; but the rocks begat thee, and the sea brought thee
+forth. Or if thou goest not to battle, fearing some warning from the Gods,
+yet let me go, and thy Myrmidons with me. And let me put thy armor on me;
+so shall the Greeks have breathing-space from the war."
+
+So he spake, entreating, nor knew that for his own doom he entreated. And
+Achilles made reply,--
+
+"It is no warning that I heed, that I keep back from the war. But these
+men took from me my prize, which I won with my own hands. But let the past
+be past. I said I would not rise up till the battle should come nigh to my
+own ships. But thou mayest put my armor upon thee, and lead my Myrmidons
+to the fight. For in truth the men of Troy are gathered as a dark cloud
+about the ships, and the Greeks have scarce standing-ground between them
+and the sea. For they see not the gleam of my helmet. And Diomed is not
+there with his spear; nor do I hear the voice of Agamemnon, but only the
+voice of Hector as he calls the men of Troy to the battle. Go, therefore,
+Patroclus, and drive the fire from the ships. And then come thou back, nor
+fight any more with the Trojans, lest thou take my glory from me. And go
+not near, in the delight of the battle, to the walls of Troy, lest one of
+the Gods meet thee to thy hurt; and, of a truth, the keen Archer Apollo
+loves the Trojans well."
+
+But as they talked the one to the other, Ajax could hold out no longer.
+For swords and javelins came thick upon him, and clattered on his helmet,
+and his shoulder was weary with the great shield which he held; and he
+breathed heavily and hard, and the great drops of sweat fell upon the
+ground. Then at the last Hector came near and smote his spear with a great
+sword, so that the head fell off. Then was Ajax sore afraid, and gave way,
+and the men of Troy set torches to the ship's stem, and a great flame shot
+up to the sky. And Achilles saw it, and smote his thigh and spake:--
+
+"Haste thee, Patroclus, for I see the fire rising up from the ships. Put
+thou on the armor, and I will call my people to the war." So Patroclus put
+on the armor--corselet, and shield, and helmet--and bound upon his
+shoulder the silver-studded sword, and took a mighty spear in his hand.
+But the great Pelian spear he took not, for that no man but Achilles might
+wield. Then Automedon yoked the horses to the chariot, Bayard and Piebald,
+and with them in the side harness, Pedasus; and they two were deathless
+steeds, but he was mortal.
+
+Meanwhile Achilles had called the Myrmidons to battle. Fifty ships had he
+brought to Troy, and in each there were fifty men. Five leaders they had,
+and the bravest of the five was Pisander.
+
+Then Achilles said, "Forget not, ye Myrmidons, the bold words that ye
+spake against the men of Troy during the days of my wrath, making
+complaint that I kept you from the battle against your will. Now,
+therefore, ye have that which you desired."
+
+So the Myrmidons went to the battle in close array, helmet to helmet, and
+shield to shield, close as the stones with which a builder builds a wall.
+And in front went Patroclus, and Automedon in the chariot beside him. Then
+Achilles went to his tent and took a great cup from the chest, which
+Thetis his mother had given him. Now no man drank of that cup but he only,
+nor did he pour out of it libations to any of the Gods, but only to Zeus.
+This first he cleansed with sulphur, and then with water from the spring.
+And after this he washed his hands, and stood in the midst of the space
+before his tent, and poured out of it to Zeus, saying, "O Zeus, I send my
+comrade to this battle; make him strong and bold, and give him glory, and
+bring him home safe to the ships, and my people with him."
+
+So he prayed, and Father Zeus heard him, and part he granted and part
+denied.
+
+But now Patroclus with the Myrmidons had come to where the battle was
+raging about the ship of Protesilaus, and when the men of Troy beheld him
+they thought that Achilles had forgotten his wrath and was come forth to
+the war. And first Patroclus slew Pyraechmes, who was the chief of the
+Paeonians who live on the banks of the broad Axius. Then the men of Troy
+turned to flee, and many chiefs of fame fell by the spears of the Greeks.
+So the battle rolled back to the trench, and in the trench many chariots
+of the Trojans were broken, but the horses of Achilles went across it at a
+stride, so nimble were they and strong. And the heart of Patroclus was set
+to slay Hector; but he could not overtake him, so swift were his horses.
+Then did Patroclus turn his chariot, and keep back those that fled, that
+they should not go to the city, and rushed hither and thither, still
+slaying as he went.
+
+But Sarpedon, when he saw the Lycians dismayed and scattered, called to
+them that they should be of good courage, saying that he would himself
+make trial of this great warrior. So he leapt down from his chariot, and
+Patroclus also leapt down, and they rushed at each other as two eagles
+rush together. Then first Patroclus struck down Thrasymelus, who was the
+comrade of Sarpedon; and Sarpedon, who had a spear in either hand, with
+the one struck the horse Pedasus, which was of mortal breed, on the right
+shoulder, and with the other missed his aim, sending it over the left
+shoulder of Patroclus. But Patroclus missed not his aim, driving his spear
+into Sarpedon's heart. Then fell the great Lycian chief, as an oak, or a
+poplar, or a pine falls upon the hills before the axe. But he called to
+Glaucus, his companion, saying, "Now must thou show thyself a good
+warrior, Glaucus. First call the men of Lycia to fight for me, and do thou
+fight thyself, for it would be foul shame to thee, all thy days, if the
+Greeks should spoil me of my arms."
+
+Then he died. But Glaucus was sore troubled, for he could not help him, so
+grievous was the wound where Teucer had wounded him. Therefore he prayed
+to Apollo, and Apollo helped him and made him whole. Then he went first to
+the Lycians, bidding them fight for their king, and then to the chiefs of
+the Trojans, that they should save the body of Sarpedon. And to Hector he
+said, "Little carest thou for thy allies. Lo! Sarpedon is dead, slain by
+Patroclus. Suffer not the Myrmidons to carry him off and do dishonor to
+his body."
+
+But Hector was troubled to hear such news, and so were all the sons of
+Troy, for Sarpedon was the bravest of the allies, and led most people to
+the battle. So with a great shout they charged, and drove the Greeks back
+a space from the body; and then again the Greeks did the like. And so the
+battle raged, till no one would have known the great Sarpedon, so covered
+was he with spears and blood and dust. But at the last the Greeks drave
+back the men of Troy from the body, and stripped the arms, but the body
+itself they harmed not. For Apollo came down at the bidding of Zeus, and
+carried it out of the midst of the battle, and washed it with water, and
+anointed it with ambrosia, and wrapped it in garments of the Gods. And
+then he gave it to Sleep and Death, and these two carried it to Lycia, his
+fatherland.
+
+Then did Patroclus forget the word which Achilles had spoken to him, that
+he should not go near to Troy, for he pursued the men of the city even to
+the wall. Thrice he mounted on the angle of the wall, and thrice Apollo
+himself drove him back, pushing his shining shield. But the fourth time
+the god said, "Go thou back, Patroclus. It is not for thee to take the
+city of Troy; no, nor for Achilles, who is far better than thou art."
+
+So Patroclus went back, fearing the wrath of the archer god. Then Apollo
+stirred up the spirit of Hector, that he should go against Patroclus.
+Therefore he went, with his brother Cebriones for driver of his chariot.
+But when they came near, Patroclus cast a great stone which he had in his
+hand, and smote Cebriones on the forehead, crushing it in, so that he fell
+headlong from the chariot. And Patroclus mocked him, saying,--
+
+"How nimble is this man! how lightly he dives! What spoil he would take of
+oysters, diving from a ship, even in a stormy sea! Who would have thought
+that there were such skillful divers in Troy!"
+
+Then again the battle waxed hot about the body of Cebriones, and this too,
+at the last, the Greeks drew unto themselves, and spoiled it of the arms.
+And this being accomplished, Patroclus rushed against the men of Troy.
+Thrice he rushed, and each time he slew nine chiefs of fame. But the
+fourth time Apollo stood behind him and struck him on the head and
+shoulders, so that his eyes were darkened. And the helmet fell from off
+his head, so that the horse-hair plumes were soiled with dust. Never
+before had it touched the ground, for it was the helmet of Achilles. And
+also the god brake the spear in his hand, and struck the shield from his
+arms, and loosed his corselet. All amazed he stood, and then Euphorbus,
+son of Panthous, smote him on the back with his spear, but slew him not.
+Then Patroclus sought to flee to the ranks of his comrades. But Hector saw
+him, and thrust at him with his spear, smiting him in the groin, so that
+he fell. And when the Greeks saw him fall, they sent up a terrible cry.
+Then Hector stood over him and cried,--
+
+"Didst thou think to spoil our city, Patroclus, and to carry away our
+wives and daughters in the ships? But lo! I have slain thee, and the fowls
+of the air shall eat thy flesh; nor shall the great Achilles help thee at
+all,--Achilles, who bade thee, I trow, strip the tunic from my breast, and
+thou thoughtest in thy folly to do it."
+
+But Patroclus answered, "Thou boasteth much, Hector. Yet _thou_ didst not
+slay me, but Apollo, who took from me my arms, for had twenty such as thou
+met me, I had slain them all. And mark thou this: death and fate are close
+to thee by the hand of the great Achilles."
+
+And Hector answered, but Patroclus was dead already, "Why dost thou
+prophesy death to me? Maybe the great Achilles himself shall fall by my
+hand." Then he drew his spear from the wound, and went after Automedon, to
+slay him, but the swift horse of Achilles carried him away.
+
+Fierce was the fight about the body of Patroclus, and many heroes fell,
+both on this side and on that.
+
+[Illustration: FIERCE WAS THE FIGHT ABOUT THE BODY OF PATROCLUS AND MANY
+HEROES FELL]
+
+Meanwhile Antilochus, son of Nestor, ran to Achilles and said, "I bring
+ill news; Patroclus lies low. The Greeks fight for his body, but Hector
+hath his arms."
+
+Then Achilles took of the dust of the plain in his hand, and poured it on
+his head, and lay at his length upon the ground, and tare his hair. And
+all the women wailed. And Antilochus sat weeping; but ever he held the
+hands of Achilles, lest he should slay himself in his great grief.
+
+Then came his mother, hearing his cry, from where she sat in the depths of
+the sea, and laid her hand on him and said,--
+
+"Why weepest thou, my son? Hide not the matter from me, but tell me."
+
+And Achilles answered, "All that Zeus promised thee for me he hath
+fulfilled. But what profit have I, for my friend Patroclus is dead, and
+Hector has the arms which I gave him to wear. And as for me, I care not to
+live, except I can avenge me upon him."
+
+Then said Thetis, "Nay, my son, speak not thus. For when Hector dieth, thy
+doom also is near."
+
+And Achilles spake in great wrath: "Would that I might die this hour,
+seeing that I could not help my friend, but am a burden on the earth,--I,
+who am better in battle than all the Greeks besides. Cursed be the wrath
+that sets men to strive the one with the other, even as it set me to
+strive with King Agamemnon! But let the past be past. And as for my
+fate--let it come when it may, so that I first avenge myself on Hector.
+Wherefore, seek not to keep me back from the battle."
+
+Then Thetis said, "Be it so; only thou canst not go without thy arms which
+Hector hath. But to-morrow will I go to Vulcan, that he may furnish thee
+anew."
+
+But while they talked the men of Troy pressed the Greeks more and more,
+and the two heroes, Ajax the Greater and Ajax the Less, could no longer
+keep Hector back, but that he should lay hold of the body of Patroclus.
+And indeed he would have taken it, but that Zeus sent Iris to Achilles,
+who said,--
+
+"Rouse thee, son of Peleus, or Patroclus will be a prey for the dogs of
+Troy."
+
+But Achilles said, "How shall I go?--for arms have I none, nor know I
+whose I might wear. Haply I could shift with the shield of Ajax, son of
+Telamon, but he, I know, is carrying it in the front of the battle."
+
+Then answered Iris, "Go only to the trench and show thyself; so shall the
+men of Troy tremble and cease from the battle, and the Greeks shall have
+breathing-space."
+
+So he went, and Athene put her aegis about his mighty shoulders, and a
+golden halo about his head, making it shine as a flame of fire, even as
+the watch-fires shine at night from some city that is beseiged. Then went
+he to the trench; with the battle he mingled not, heeding his mother's
+commands, but he shouted aloud, and his voice was as the sound of a
+trumpet. And when the men of Troy heard, they were stricken with fear, and
+the horses backed with the chariots, and the drivers were astonished when
+they saw the flaming fire above his head which Athene had kindled. Thrice
+across the trench the great Achilles shouted, and thrice the men of Troy
+fell back. And that hour there perished twelve chiefs of fame, wounded by
+their own spears or trampled by their own steeds, so great was the terror
+among the men of Troy.
+
+Right gladly did the Greeks take Patroclus out of the press. Then they
+laid him on a bier, and carried him to the tent, Achilles walking with
+many tears by his side.
+
+But on the other side the men of Troy held an assembly. Standing they held
+it, for none dared to sit, lest Achilles should be upon them.
+
+Then spake Polydamas: "Let us not wait here for the morning. It was well
+for us to fight at the ships while Achilles yet kept his wrath against
+Agamemnon. But now it is not so, for to-morrow he will come against us in
+his anger, and many will fall before him. Wherefore, let us go back to the
+city, for high are the walls and strong the gates, and he will perish
+before he pass them."
+
+Then said Hector, "This is ill counsel, Polydamas. Shall we shut ourselves
+up in the city, where all our goods are wasted already, buying meat for
+the people? Nay, let us watch to-night, and to-morrow will we fight with
+the Greeks. And if Achilles be indeed come forth from his tent, be it so.
+I will not shun to meet him, for Mars gives the victory now to one man and
+now to another."
+
+So he spake, and all the people applauded, not knowing what the morrow
+should bring forth.
+
+Thus did it come to pass that Achilles went again into the battle, eager
+above all things to meet with Hector and to slay him.
+
+But Apollo stood by AEneas, and spake to him: "AEneas, where are now thy
+boastings that thou wouldst meet Achilles face to face?"
+
+Then AEneas answered, "Nay, I have stood up against him in the day when he
+took the town of Lyrnessus. But I fled before him, and only my nimble feet
+saved me from falling by his spear. Surely a god is ever with him, making
+his spear to fly aright."
+
+Him Apollo answered again, "Thou, too, art the son of a goddess, and thy
+mother is greater than his, for she is but a daughter of the sea. Drive
+straight at him with thy spear, and let not his threats dismay thee."
+
+Then AEneas stood out from the press to meet Achilles and Achilles said,
+"Fightest thou with me because thou hopest to reign over the men of Troy,
+or have they given thee a choice portion of ground, ploughland and
+orchard, to be thine when thou hast slain me? Thou wilt not find it easy.
+Dost thou not remember how thou fleddest before me in the day that I took
+Lyrnessus?"
+
+Then AEneas answered, "Think not to terrify me with words, son of Peleus,
+for I, too, am the son of a goddess. Let us make a trial one of the
+other."
+
+Then he cast his spear, and it struck the shield of Achilles with so
+dreadful a sound that the hero feared lest it should pierce it through,
+knowing not that the gifts of the Gods are not easy for mortal man to
+vanquish. Two folds, indeed, it pierced, that were of bronze, but in the
+gold it was stayed, and there were yet two of tin within. Then Achilles
+cast his spear. Through the shield of AEneas it passed, and though it
+wounded him not, yet was he sore dismayed, so near it came. Then Achilles
+drew his sword, and rushed on AEneas, and AEneas caught up a great stone to
+cast at him. But it was not the will of the Gods that AEneas should perish,
+seeing that he and his sons after him should rule over the men of Troy in
+the ages to come. Therefore Neptune lifted him up, and bore him over the
+ranks of men to the left of the battle, but first he drew the spear out of
+the shield, and laid it at the feet of Achilles. Much the hero marveled to
+see it, crying, "This is a great wonder that I behold with mine eyes. For
+I see my spear before me, but the man whom I sought to slay, I see not. Of
+a truth AEneas spake truth, saying that he was dear to the immortal Gods."
+
+Then he rushed into the battle, slaying as he went. And Hector would have
+met him, but Apollo stood by him and said, "Fight not with Achilles, lest
+he slay thee." Therefore he went back among the men of Troy. Many did
+Achilles slay, and among them Polydorus, son of Priam, who, because he was
+the youngest and very dear, his father suffered not to go to the battle.
+Yet he went, in his folly, and being very swift of foot, he trusted in his
+speed, running through the foremost of the fighters. But as he ran
+Achilles smote him and wounded him to the death. When Hector saw it, he
+could not bear any more to stand apart. Therefore he rushed at Achilles,
+and Achilles rejoiced to see him, saying, "This is the man who slew my
+comrade;" and to Hector he cried, "Come hither, and taste of death."
+
+And Hector made answer, "Son of Peleus, seek not to make me afraid with
+words. For though I be weaker than thou, yet victory lieth on the knees of
+the Gods, and I, too, bear a spear."
+
+Then he cast his spear, but Athene turned it aside with her breath, and
+laid it again at his feet. And when Achilles leapt upon Hector with a
+shout, Apollo snatched him away. Three times did Achilles leap upon him,
+and three times he struck only the mist. But the fourth time he cried with
+a terrible voice, "Dog, thou hast escaped from death, Apollo helping thee;
+but I shall meet thee again, and make an end of thee."
+
+Then Achilles turned to the others, and slew multitudes of them, so that
+they fled, some across the plain, and some to the river, the eddying
+Xanthus. And these leapt into the water as locusts leap into a river when
+a fire which men light drives them from the fields. And all the river was
+full of horses and men. Then Achilles leapt into the stream, leaving his
+spear on the bank, resting on the tamarisk trees. Only his sword had he,
+and with this he slew many; and they were as fishes which fly from some
+great dolphin in the sea. In all the bays of a harbor they hide
+themselves, for the great beast devours them apace. So did the Trojans
+hide themselves under the banks of the river. And when Achilles was weary
+of slaying, he took twelve alive, whom he would slay on the tomb of
+Patroclus.
+
+Yet there was one man who dared to stand up against him, while the others
+fled. This was Asteropaeus, who was the grandson of the river-god Axius,
+and led the men of Paeonia. And Achilles wondered to see him, and said,
+"Who art thou that standest against me?"
+
+And he said, "I am the grandson of the river-god Axius, fairest of all the
+streams on the earth, and I lead the men of Paeonia."
+
+And as he spake he cast two spears, one with each hand, for he could use
+either alike; and the one struck the shield, nor pierced it through, for
+the gold staved it, and the other grazed the right hand of Achilles so
+that the blood spurted forth. Then did Achilles cast his spear, but missed
+his aim, and the great spear stood fast in the bank. And thrice Asteropaeus
+strove to draw it forth. Thrice he strove in vain, and the fourth time he
+strove to break the spear. But as he strove Achilles smote him that he
+died. Yet had he some glory, for that he wounded the great Achilles.
+
+When the River saw that Asteropaeus was dead, and that Achilles was slaying
+many of the Paeonians--for these were troubled, their chief being dead--he
+took upon him the shape of a man, and spake to Achilles, saying, "Truly,
+Achilles, thou excellest all other men in might and deeds of blood, for
+the Gods themselves protect thee. It may be that Zeus hath given thee to
+slay all the sons of Troy; nevertheless, depart from me and work thy will
+upon the plain; for my stream is choked with the multitude of corpses, nor
+can I pass to the sea. Do thou, therefore, cease from troubling me."
+
+To him Achilles made answer, "This shall be as thou wilt, O Scamander. But
+the Trojans I will not cease from slaying till I have driven them into
+their city and have made trial of Hector, whether I shall vanquish him or
+he shall vanquish me."
+
+And as he spake he sped on, pursuing the Trojans. Then the River cried to
+Apollo, "Little thou doest the will of thy father, thou of the Silver Bow,
+who bade thee stand by the men of Troy and help them till darkness should
+cover the land." And he rushed on with a great wave, stirring together all
+his streams. The dead bodies he threw upon the shore, roaring as a bull
+roareth; and them that lived he hid in the depths of his eddies. And all
+about Achilles rose up the flood, beating full upon his shield, so that he
+could not stand fast upon his feet. Then Achilles laid hold of a
+lime-tree, fair and tall, that grew upon the bank; but the tree brake
+therefrom with all its roots, and tare down the bank, and lay across the
+River, staying its flood, for it had many branches. Thereupon Achilles
+leapt out of the water and sped across the plain, being sore afraid. But
+the River ceased not from pursuing him, that he might stay him from
+slaughter and save the sons of Troy. So far as a man may throw a spear, so
+far did Achilles leap; strong as an eagle was he, the hunting-bird that is
+the strongest and swiftest of all birds. And still as he fled the River
+pursued after him with a great roar. Even as it is with a man that would
+water his garden, bringing a stream from a fountain; he has a pick-axe in
+his hand to break down all that would stay the water; and the stream runs
+on, rolling the pebbles along with it, and overtakes him that guides it.
+Even so did the River overtake Achilles, for all that he was swift of
+foot, for indeed the Gods are mightier than men. And when Achilles would
+have stood against the River, seeking to know whether indeed all the Gods
+were against him, then the great wave smote upon his shoulders; and when
+he leapt into the air, it bowed his knees beneath him and devoured the
+ground from under his feet. Then Achilles looked up to heaven and groaned,
+crying out, "O Zeus, will none of the Gods pity me, and save me from the
+River? I care not what else may befall me. Truly my mother hath deceived
+me, saying that I should perish under the walls of Troy by the arrows of
+Apollo. Surely it had been better that Hector should slay me, for he is
+the bravest of the men of Troy, but now I shall perish miserably in the
+River, as some herd-boy perisheth whom a torrent sweeps away in a storm."
+
+So he spake; but Poseidon and Athene stood by him, having taken upon them
+the shape of men, and took him by the hand and strengthened him with
+comforting words, for Poseidon spake, saying, "Son of Peleus, tremble not,
+neither be afraid. It is not thy fate to be mastered by the River. He
+shall soon cease from troubling thee. And do thou heed what we say. Stay
+not thy hands from the battle, till thou shalt have driven all the sons of
+Troy that escape thee within the walls of the city. And when thou shalt
+have slain Hector, go back to the ships; for this day is the day of thy
+glory."
+
+Then the two departed from him. Now all the plain was covered with water,
+wherein floated much fair armor and many dead bodies. But Achilles went on
+even against the stream, nor could the River hold him back; for Athene put
+great might into his heart. Yet did not Scamander cease from his wrath,
+but lifted his waves yet higher, and cried aloud to Simois, "Dear brother,
+let us two stay the fury of this man, or else of a surety he will destroy
+the city of Priam. Come now, fill all thy streams and rouse thy torrents
+against him, and lift up against him a mighty wave with a great concourse
+of tree-trunks and stones, that we may stay this wild man from his
+fighting. Very high thoughts hath he, even as a god; yet shall neither his
+might nor his beauty nor his fair form profit him; for they shall be
+covered with much mud; and over himself will I heap abundance of sand
+beyond all counting. Neither shall the Greeks be able to gather his bones
+together, with such a heap will I hide them. Surely a great tomb will I
+build for him; nor will his people have need to make a mound over him when
+they would bury him."
+
+Then he rushed again upon Achilles, swelling high with foam and blood and
+dead bodies of men. Very dark was the wave as it rose, and was like to
+have overwhelmed the man, so that Juno greatly feared for him, lest the
+River should sweep him away. And she cried to Vulcan, her son, saying,
+"Rouse thee, Haltfoot, my son! I thought that thou wouldst have been a
+match for Scamander in battle. But come, help us, and bring much fire with
+thee; and I will call the west wind and the south wind from the sea, with
+such a storm as shall consume the sons of Troy, both them and their arms.
+And do thou burn the trees that are by the banks of Xanthus, yea, and the
+River himself. And let him not turn thee from thy purpose by fury or by
+craft; but burn till I shall bid thee cease."
+
+Then Vulcan lit a great fire. First he burned the dead bodies that lay
+upon the plain, and it dried all the plain, as the north wind in the
+autumn time dries a field, to the joy of him that tills it. After this it
+laid hold of the River. The lime-trees and the willows and the tamarisks
+it burned; also the plants that grew in the streams. And the eels and the
+fishes were sore distressed, twisting hither and thither in the water,
+being troubled by the breath of Vulcan. So the might of the River was
+subdued, and he cried aloud, "O Vulcan, no one of the Gods can match
+himself with thee. Cease now from consuming me; and Achilles may drive the
+men of Troy from their city if he will. What have I to do with the strife
+and sorrow of men?"
+
+So he spake, for all his streams were boiling--as a cauldron boils with a
+great fire beneath it, when a man would melt the fat of a great hog; nor
+could he flow any longer to the sea, so sorely did the breath of the
+Fire-god trouble him. Then he cried aloud to Juno, entreating her: "O
+Juno, why doth thy son torment me only among all? Why should I be blamed
+more than others that help the men of Troy? Verily, I will cease from
+helping them, if he also will cease. Nay, I will swear a great oath that I
+will keep no more the day of doom from the sons of Troy; no, not when all
+the city shall be consumed with fire."
+
+And Queen Juno heard him, and called to Vulcan, saying, "Cease, my son; it
+doth not beseem thee to work such damage to a god for the sake of a mortal
+man."
+
+So Vulcan quenched his fire, and the River flowed as he flowed before.
+
+
+
+
+VULCAN MAKES ARMOR FOR ACHILLES
+
+By Walter C. Perry
+
+
+On high Olympus, the Loud-thundering Zeus spake mockingly to his consort,
+Juno, and said, "At length, thou hast what thou desirest, and hast roused
+Achilles to fight against the Trojans. Surely, the long-haired Achaians
+must be thine own children, since thou lovest them so dearly!"
+
+And the ox-eyed queen replied, "Dread son of Cronos! what words are these
+which have passed the barrier of thy teeth? Even a mortal man doth what he
+can to help another; and shall not I, the chief of goddesses by birth and
+as thy wife--O thou king of the deathless Gods!--shall not _I_ avenge
+myself upon the men of Troy?"
+
+Thus these two strove with one another.
+
+Meantime, the silver-footed Thetis came to the splendid palace of Vulcan,
+bright and immortal, which shone like a star among the mansions of the
+Gods. She found him at his bellows, sweating from his mighty toil; for he
+was forging twenty tripods, to stand round the walls of his well-built
+mansion. Beneath each of them he placed wheels of gold; and they move, of
+themselves, into the assembly of the Gods, and so return.
+
+While he was thus employed, the silver-footed Thetis approached the house.
+And Charis, of the shining veil, the wedded wife of Vulcan (whose first
+wife had been Aphrodite or Venus), came forth to meet her, and took her by
+the hand, and called her by her name. "O long-robed Thetis! dear and
+honored as thou art! not oft, I ween, dost thou come to visit us. But
+follow me, that I may show thee due hospitality."
+
+Then she led the way in, and seated Thetis on a lofty chair with silver
+studs, beautiful, and cunningly wrought, and placed a footstool beneath
+her shining feet. And she called to Vulcan, the divine artificer, "Come
+hither, Vulcan! for the silver-footed Thetis seeketh thine aid."
+
+And the glorious lame god answered, "Revered and dear to me is she; for
+she saved me, when my shameless mother threw me down from heaven; and I
+should have suffered dire anguish had not Eurynome, daughter of Oceanos,
+and Thetis taken me to their hearts and comforted me. Nine years I spent
+with them, and fashioned all kinds of curious work of bronze--clasps, and
+spiral bracelets, and ear-rings, like the calyx of a flower, and
+necklaces--in the hollow grot, while all around me roared the streams of
+great Oceanus. And none of the other Gods knew where I was, but only
+Thetis and Eurynome. And now that she is come, a welcome guest, to my
+house, I will repay the fair-haired nymph in every way, for saving my
+life."
+
+So saying, he raised his mighty bulk from the block, and, limping on his
+slender legs, moved quickly; and he put away his bellows, and placed his
+tools in a silver chest, and sponged his face and hands, his strong neck
+and hairy breast; then he donned his tunic, and leaning on a staff, he
+limped along. And golden handmaids, in the form of living maidens, came to
+help their lord; these have intelligent minds, and human voices, and skill
+from the deathless Gods. And he went with halting gait, and seated himself
+on a shining throne, near the silver-footed Thetis; and he took her by the
+hand, and said to her, "O dear and honored Thetis of the flowing robes!
+why comest thou to our house, thou, an infrequent guest?"
+
+Then the silver-footed goddess answered him, "O Vulcan! hath Zeus, the son
+of Cronos, laid on any other goddess in Olympus such grievous woes as on
+_me_, unhappy that I am? He chose out me, from all the sea nymphs, to
+endure marriage with a mortal. A son I bare, the greatest of heroes. I
+brought him up, like a young tree in a fruitful soil, and sent him in a
+high-peaked ship to war against the Trojans; but never again will he
+return to me, in the halls of his aged father Peleus. And even while I yet
+see him, and he beholdeth the light of the sun, he is full of grief, and I
+cannot help him. For King Agamemnon took away his prize, the dearly loved
+maiden Briseis. For the loss of her, he pined and wept; nor would he allow
+his Myrmidons to join in the battle, though the Achaians were hard pressed
+and driven to their ships. The chiefs of the Argives came to him with
+prayers and tears, and many costly gifts. And though he refused himself to
+rescue them, he suffered Patroclus to put on his divine armor, and sent
+many of the Myrmidons with him to the battle. And the son of Menoetius
+performed high deeds of valor, and went near to sack the city. But the
+Far-Darting Apollo and glorious Hector slew him, and gained immortal
+glory. And now, I come as a suppliant, to clasp thy knees, and to pray
+that thou wouldst give my short-lived son a shield, a helmet, a
+breastplate, and goodly greaves."
+
+Then the lame god, the famous artificer, replied, "Be of good cheer, O
+silver-footed Queen, and be not troubled about these things! Would that I
+could as surely save him from mournful death, as that I will supply him
+with goodly armor, a wonder to behold!"
+
+And he returned to his workshop, and bade his bellows--there were twenty
+of them--blow the blasts on the fire and prepare the earthen moulds; and
+as Vulcan willed, the work was done. He melted the tough bronze and tin,
+the gold and silver, with the fire; and placed an anvil and took a strong
+hammer in one hand, and tongs in the other, and with these he worked.
+
+First, he made the shield, broad and strong, with many decorations. Around
+it he placed a triple bright rim, and a silver strap depended from it. The
+shield itself was formed with five zones, in each of which he fashioned
+many curious works.
+
+Therein he fashioned the Earth, the Sky, the Sea, the unwearied Sun, the
+Moon at the full, and all the bright luminaries which crown the azure
+firmament: the Pleiades, daughters of Atlas, the Hyades, the mighty Orion,
+and, turning about to watch Orion, the Bear, which alone of all the stars
+bathes not in the streams of Oceanus.
+
+Also, on the shield, he sculptured two fair cities of articulate-speaking
+men. In one of these were wedding-festivals; and, with a blaze of
+torchlight, the brides were conducted from their chambers along the
+streets; while the hymeneal song was loud, and the youths whirled round
+and round in the giddy dance, to the music of flute and harp; while the
+women stood at their doors, watching and admiring. In that city he also
+fashioned an assembly of the people, in which a contention had arisen,
+about the blood-fine or "were-geld" for a murdered man; the people, with
+noisy shouts, cheered, on either side; but the heralds stilled the tumult,
+holding their staves of office in their hands; and then the judges rose
+up, to pronounce their verdict.
+
+Around the other city lay two armies besieging it, with flashing arms. Two
+plans were considered: either to destroy the town, or to divide the wealth
+thereof with its citizens. But the beleaguered garrison had not yet
+yielded, but armed themselves and set an ambush. Their dear wives and
+children, and the old men, stood on the walls to defend it, while the
+strong men went forth to fight. And they were led by Mars and Athene,
+whose forms were fashioned in gold, with golden raiment; and, as gods, he
+made them larger and more beautiful than the mortals around them.
+
+The men in ambush set upon the herdsmen who were driving oxen to the
+watering-place of the army, and making music with their pipes. They
+carried off the cattle; but the besiegers, as they sat before the rostra,
+heard the lowing of the oxen and drove up, with their high-stepping
+horses, to repel the raid. Then a fierce conflict arose; and in it were
+seen Strife, and Uproar, and Dire Fate; like living warriors, they rushed
+on one another, and haled away the dead whom they slew.
+
+In another part of the shield, he represented a rich, deep-soiled, fallow
+field, thrice ploughed; and when the ploughers came to the end of the
+furrow, a man would give to each of them a goblet of sweet wine. And the
+ploughed ground grew black behind them, like real soil, although it was of
+gold. Then there, too, was a rich field of corn, where reapers were
+cutting the harvest with their sickles and it fell in rows; and others
+were binding it with bands of straw; while the lord looked on, and was
+glad at heart. And under a spreading oak a feast was being made ready for
+the reapers.
+
+And he fashioned therein a vineyard, rich with clusters of black grapes,
+which the youths and maidens, in their glee, carried in baskets; while a
+boy, in their midst, made sweet music on a clear-sounding harp; and he
+sang the "Song of Linos," and the rest kept time with their feet.
+
+And there was a herd of straight-horned oxen, all of gold and tin,
+hurrying to the pasture beside the gently murmuring stream and the waving
+rushes. Four herdsmen, of gold, followed them, and nine fleet dogs. And
+two terrible lions seized a bellowing bull. The herdsmen followed, but
+they could not set on their dogs to bite the lions, for the dogs shrank
+back, barking and whining, and turned away.
+
+And therein the glorious divine artist placed a wide pasture full of white
+sheep, with folds and tents and huts. And he made a dancing-ground, like
+that which Daedalus wrought at Gnosos for lovely fair-haired Ariadne.
+There, lusty youths in shining tunics glistening with oil, danced with
+fair maidens of costly wooing. The maidens had wreaths of flowers upon
+their heads; and the youths wore daggers banging from silver sword-belts.
+They whirled round, with lightly tripping feet, swift as the potter's
+wheel, holding each other by the wrist; and then they ran, in lines, to
+meet each other. A crowd of friends stood round and joyfully watched the
+dance, and a divine minstrel made sweet music with his harp, while a pair
+of tumblers diverted the crowd.
+
+Lastly, around the margin of the shield, Vulcan made the stream of the
+mighty river Oceanus, which encircleth the earth.
+
+And when he had finished this strong and splendid shield, he wrought the
+breastplate, glowing with blazing fire; and he made a heavy helmet for the
+head, beautiful, and adorned with curious art; upon it was a crest of
+gold. But the goodly greaves he made of flexible tin. When he had
+completed the whole suit of glorious armor, he laid it before the
+silver-footed Thetis, the mother of Achilles; and she darted, swift as a
+hawk, from snowy Olympus, bearing the brightly glittering arms to her dear
+son.
+
+
+
+
+THE SLAYING OF HECTOR
+
+By Walter C. Perry
+
+
+Meantime, Achilles went on slaughtering the Trojans; and the aged Priam
+stood on the sacred tower, and saw the son of Peleus driving the Trojans
+before him. And he shouted aloud to the brave warders of the gates, "Open
+the gates, that the fugitives may enter!" And the Far-Darter went to the
+front, to save the Trojans who were fleeing to the sheltering walls, with
+Achilles behind them in hot pursuit.
+
+Then would the Achaians have stormed the lofty gates of Troy, had not
+Phoebus Apollo roused Agenor, a brave and noble prince, son of Antenor.
+Apollo stood by this man's side, leaning on an oak, and shrouded in mist,
+and put courage into his heart, that he might ward off fate from the
+Trojans. And when Agenor saw Achilles, he stood irresolute, and said to
+his mighty heart, "If I too flee before Achilles, he will catch me and
+slay me as a coward. Or shall I fly by another way, and hide me in the
+spurs of Ida? How, then, if I go forth to meet him? for his flesh, too,
+may surely be pierced by the keen bronze, and he has but one life, like
+other mortals."
+
+And his heart grew strong within him, to stay and fight. And he cried out
+aloud to Achilles, "Surely, thou thinkest this very day to sack the proud
+city of Troy? Fool! many terrible things will happen before _that_; for
+there are many of us--many and brave--to protect our dear parents and
+wives and little children, and to guard holy Ilium. Thou, too, perhaps,
+mighty as thou art, mayest here meet death."
+
+He spake and hurled a spear at Achilles with his strong hand. And it smote
+him below the knee, and the tin-wrought greave rang loudly; but the stout
+spear bounded off, for it could not pierce the work of Vulcan.
+
+Then Achilles rushed on godlike Agenor; but him Apollo caught in a mist,
+and carried him safely out of the fray. And the god took the form of
+Agenor, and ran a little way before Achilles, towards the deep-flowing
+Scamander. And while Apollo thus deceived the mighty son of Peleus, the
+routed Trojans ran, well pleased, to their stronghold, and the great city
+was filled with their multitude.
+
+Then as he ran before Achilles, the mighty Far-Darter addressed him, and
+spake: "O son of Peleus! why dost thou, being a mortal man, pursue _me_
+with thy swift feet, who am a deathless god?" Then, in wrath, the son of
+Peleus answered him: "Thou hast blinded me, most mischievous of all the
+Gods! and lured me away from the walls; else would many a Trojan have
+fallen, or ever he had reached the city." He then went towards the city,
+with a proud heart, like a war-horse victorious in a chariot race; and the
+aged Priam saw him, blazing like the star in autumn brightest of all,
+which men call "Orion's Dog," that bringeth fever upon wretched mortals.
+
+And the old man cried aloud, in his agony, and beat his head with his
+fists, and called in a piercing voice to his dear son Hector. For the
+brave hero, when all the others had escaped into the city, remained alone
+at the Scaean Gate eager to fight with Achilles. And his wretched father
+stretched forth his withered hands, and pleaded piteously to his son:--
+
+"Hector! dear Hector! do not meet this terrible man alone, for he is far
+mightier than thou, and knoweth no pity. Already hath he robbed me of many
+a brave son; and now I no longer see two of my children, Lycaon and the
+goodly Polydorus, whom Laothoe, princess among women, bare to me. But the
+death of others will cause us briefer grief, if thou, dear Hector, art not
+slain. Come, then, within the walls, and save the men and women of Troy!
+And have pity on me, too, to whom the son of Cronos hath allotted a
+terrible doom in my old age--to see my brave sons dragged away, and my
+fair daughters carried off, as captives, by the cruel hands of the
+Achaians. Last of all, I too shall be torn, on my own threshold, by
+ravenous dogs--even the dogs which I myself have reared with food from my
+table, to guard my house. They will tear my flesh and drink my blood! It
+may well become a _young_ man to lie slain on the field, for he is highly
+honored in his death; but when dogs defile an old man's head and beard,
+this is the most lamentable thing that befalleth wretched mortals."
+
+And the old man tore his hair in his sore agony; but even he prevailed not
+with the soul of Hector. And then his dear mother, Hecuba, took up the
+plaint and spake through her piteous tears.
+
+"Hector! my child! have respect to the mother who bare thee and nursed
+thee on this bosom! Pity _me_! and fight the foe from this side of the
+wall! For if he slay thee, not on a funeral bed shall I, and thy dear
+wife, won by so many gifts, deplore thee; but the swift dogs shall devour
+thee, far away from us, by the black ships of the Argives."
+
+Thus wailed they over their glorious son, beseeching him; but they could
+not prevail, for honor held him fast. Meanwhile, Achilles drew nigh, in
+strength like a giant; but Hector awaited him undismayed, leaning his
+shield against the tower. And he communed thus with his brave soul: "Alas,
+if I go through the gates, Polydamas will justly blame me; for he gave me
+good advice--that I should lead the host into the city on that fatal
+night, when the noble Achilles returned to the war. And I would not
+hearken to him, although he counseled well. And now that I have brought
+this evil on the city by my folly, I am ashamed to appear before the men,
+and the proud dames with trailing robes, lest some one should taunt me and
+say, 'Hector in his pride hath ruined us.' Better then would it be for me
+to meet Achilles, and either slay him or fall with glory before the city.
+Or how would it be if I should lay aside all my arms, and go to meet the
+son of Peleus, and offer to restore Argive Helen and all her possessions
+to Menelaus and Agamemnon, and to divide the wealth of Troy with the
+Achaians? But no! I might come to him unarmed, but he is merciless, and
+would slay me on the spot, as if I were a woman. But why do I hesitate?
+This is no time to hold dalliance with him, from oak or rock, like youths
+and maidens. Better to fight at once, and see to whom Olympian Zeus will
+give the victory!"
+
+While he thus pondered, Achilles, peer of Mars, came on, poising his
+terrible spear of Pelian ash; and his divine armor, the work of a god,
+blazed like fire or the rising sun. And when Hector saw him he was seized
+with panic, and he fled from the gates in terror.
+
+But Achilles, swift of foot, rushed after him. As a falcon, swiftest of
+all birds, swoops upon the trembling dove, and takes no heed of her
+piteous screaming, so Achilles flew straight at Hector. And pursuer and
+pursued passed by the guard and the wild fig-tree, the sport of the winds,
+and came to the two springs of water, which feed the deep-whirling
+Scamander. Brave was he who fled, but mightier far was he who chased him
+on his swift feet; and they were racing not for some prize in the games,
+but for the life of the noble horse-taming Hector. And like horses in the
+race for a great prize--a tripod or a woman--so the twain ran thrice round
+the sacred city of King Priam; and all the Gods were looking on.
+
+And Zeus, the great father of Gods and men, spake first: "Alas! I see a
+man whom I love above all others chased round the walls of Troy. Come now,
+let us take some counsel, whether to save him or leave him to be slain by
+the son of Peleus."
+
+And the fierce-eyed Athene answered him, "O thou great Lord of the
+Lightning, Cloud-girt King! what a word hast thou spoken! Wouldst thou
+indeed save a mortal long ago doomed by Fate? Do as thou pleasest; but we
+Gods shall not praise thee."
+
+And her great father, the Cloud-Gatherer, answered with gentle words, "O
+Trito-born, my dear child! be of good cheer. I spake not in earnest, and
+would fain please thee. Do as seemeth good to thee." And Athene, full of
+joy, sped down from high Olympus.
+
+Achilles, with all speed, was chasing the noble Hector, as the dogs hunt
+the fawn of a deer through dale and woodland; and though the fawn hideth
+behind a bush, they follow by the scent until they find it; so Hector
+could not escape from the swift-footed son of Peleus. Often did Hector
+rush along the strong walls, in hopes that the Trojans within might succor
+him from above with their arrows. But Achilles gained on him and turned
+him into the plain again.
+
+And so, though Hector failed in his flight and Achilles in his pursuit,
+yet might Hector have escaped his doom, had not this been the last time
+that Apollo the Far-Darter came nigh to him, to nerve his heart and his
+swift knees. Achilles had made a sign to his comrades, and forbade them to
+launch their darts against the noble Hector, lest one of them should gain
+high honor, and he come only second. And when they had, for the fourth
+time, run round the walls and reached the springs, then Zeus, the Great
+Father, raised his golden scales, and placed in each the lot of gloomy
+death,--one for Hector, and the other for Achilles. And he held the scales
+by the middle, and poised them; and the noble Hector's scale sank down to
+Hades; and Phoebus Apollo left him.
+
+But the fierce-eyed goddess Athene came near to Achilles and spake winged
+words: "Now, at last, O godlike Achilles! shall we twain carry off great
+glory to the Achaian ships! He cannot now escape us, though the Far-Darter
+should grovel at the feet of Zeus with fruitless prayers. But do thou stay
+and recover thy breath; and I will go and persuade Hector to stand up
+against thee in fight." And he gladly obeyed her voice, and stood leaning
+on his ashen spear.
+
+And she, Athene, came to noble Hector in the likeness of his brother
+Deiphobus, and spake to him: "Dear Lord and elder Brother, surely the
+fleet-footed son of Peleus hath done great violence against thee, chasing
+thee round the walls! But let us twain make a stand against him!"
+
+And the great Hector answered, "Deiphobus, thou wert ever the dearest of
+my brothers; now I honor thee still more, because thou hast dared to come
+out from behind the walls to aid me, while others skulk within."
+
+The fierce-eyed goddess, as Deiphobus, spake again: "It is true that my
+father, and my queenly mother, and all my comrades, besought me to stay
+with them, so greatly do they fear the mighty son of Peleus; but my heart
+was sore for thee, dear brother! But let us fight amain, and see whether
+he will carry our spoils to his ships, or fall beneath thy spear!" And so,
+with her cunning words, she led him on to death.
+
+And when he and Achilles were come near to each other, the noble Hector
+spake: "O mighty Achilles, thrice did I flee before thee round the great
+city of Priam, and dared not await thy onslaught. But now I will stand up
+against thee, to slay or to be slain. But come, let us make a covenant
+with one another, and call the Gods, the best guardians of oaths, to
+witness. If Zeus grant me to take thy life, and despoil thee of thy divine
+armor, then will I give back thy body to the warlike Achaians; and do thou
+the same by me!"
+
+And Achilles, with a malignant scowl, replied, "Speak not to me of
+covenants! There is no covenant between men and lions, or between wolves
+and sheep, but only eternal war. And there can be no pledge of faith
+between us twain, until one of us hath sated the murderous Mars with his
+blood. Therefore, show thyself a good spearman and a brave man of war!
+There is no escape for thee; for Pallas Athene hath delivered thee into my
+hands."
+
+He spake, and cast his long-shafted spear at Hector. But Hector stooped,
+and the strong bronze spear flew over his head; but Athene picked it up,
+unknown to Hector, and gave it back to Achilles. Then Hector, rejoicing,
+spake to the son of Peleus: "Thou hast missed! Nor dost thou surely know
+the day of my doom, as thou pretendest. Thou shalt not plant thy spear in
+my back, as I flee before thee; but in my breast, if the Gods allow it.
+But now, in thy turn, avoid _my_ spear!" So spake he, and smote the middle
+of Achilles' shield with his long-shafted spear, but it bounded back from
+the shield. Then Hector was dismayed, for he had no second spear to throw.
+And he called aloud to his brother, Deiphobus; but no answer came, for
+_he_ was far away. Then Hector knew that he was betrayed, and that Athene
+had deceived him, in the likeness of his brother. "Now," he cried, "is
+Death come near me, and there is no way of escape! This is the will of
+Zeus and of the Far-Darter, who once were wont to succor me. But I will
+not die ingloriously, but yet perform some notable deed of arms."
+
+He said, and, with his sharp sword, swooped down upon Achilles. But
+Achilles rushed at him, wild with fury, brandishing his spear, with evil
+intent against noble Hector, and eyed him over, to see where he might
+pierce his flesh most easily. The rest of Hector's body was protected by
+the splendid armor which he had stripped from the body of Patroclus; but
+there was one chink, between the collar-bone and the throat, through which
+Achilles thrust his spear. Yet it cut not the windpipe; and Hector was
+able to speak faint words to his insulting foe, after he had fallen to the
+ground.
+
+Achilles triumphed over him: "Ah, Hector! when thou wert stripping
+Patroclus of my goodly armor, thou caredst nothing for me, who was far
+away! I, his friend and avenger, was left among the black ships--even I, a
+mightier man than he! Thee shall the dogs and birds devour; but he shall
+have honorable burial."
+
+Then, with his last breath, the noble Hector of the bright helm addressed
+his pitiless foe: "Achilles! I pray thee, by thy soul, and by thy parents'
+heads, let not Achaian dogs devour me by the ships! but accept great store
+of gold and bronze from my father and my queenly mother, and restore my
+body to them, that the Trojans may deck my funeral pyre with all due
+honor!"
+
+And Achilles, with a grim scowl, replied, "Clasp not my knees, vile dog!
+nor speak to me of parents! Such evil hast thou done me, that I could
+devour thee raw! Not for thy weight in gold would I give thee to thy
+queenly mother, to mourn over thee; but dogs and birds shall batten on thy
+flesh!"
+
+Then the dying Hector uttered his last words: "Thou iron-hearted man! now
+I know thee; nor did I think to prevail upon thee. But beware of the wrath
+of the Gods, when Paris and the Far-Darter slay thee, at the Scaean Gate,
+brave though thou art!"
+
+He spake; and Death overshadowed him; and his soul went down to Hades,
+wailing to leave beauty, youth, and vigor.
+
+And Achilles spake again to the dead Hector: "Lie thou there! And as for
+me, I will die when it seemeth good to the deathless Gods!"
+
+And the Achaians ran up, and looked with wonder at the noble stature and
+beauty of the Trojan hero. And they all inflicted wounds upon him, as he
+lay, saying, "He is easier to deal with now than when he was burning our
+ships with flames of fire."
+
+And when the son of Peleus had stripped him of his armor, he stood up, and
+spake to the Achaians:--
+
+"Great chiefs and counselors of the Argives! at last the Gods have granted
+us to slay this man, whose single arm hath wrought more evil to us than
+all the rest together. Let us now approach the city, and learn the purpose
+of the Trojans; whether they will now surrender the citadel or go on
+fighting, though great Hector is no more. But why do I thus ponder in my
+mind? Patroclus is lying unburied and unwept by the ships. Never can I
+forget him, while I live; and even in the House of Hades, I will remember
+my dearest friend. Come, then! let us raise the chant of victory, and bear
+our deadliest foe to the black ships!"
+
+Then he foully outraged the dead body of glorious Hector; slitting the
+sinews of both feet, from heel to ankle, he passed ox-hide straps through
+them, and fastened them to his chariot, leaving the goodly head to trail
+upon the ground. Then he laid the armor on the chariot; and mounting it,
+lashed his willing horses to full speed. And in the dust lay the once
+beautiful head, with its flowing hair; for Zeus had now given Hector up to
+his enemies, to be foully used in his own native land.
+
+And when his dear mother, Hecuba, saw her much-loved son dragged along,
+begrimed with dust, she tore her hair, and shrieked aloud, and tossed far
+away her glistening veil. And his father, King Priam, wailed and mourned;
+and with him all the men and women in the city, as if the beetling towers
+of Ilium were already smouldering in fire. Hardly could they keep the aged
+father from rushing through the gates; for he threw himself in the dust
+and supplicated each man by name: "O friend, forbear! and if you love me,
+let me go to the ships of the Achaians, and pray to this arrogant, this
+fearful man!" Thus wailed old Priam; and the men wailed with him. And
+Queen Hecuba led the loud lamentations of the women. "Why," she cried,
+"should I yet live, when thou, my son, my boast, my glory, art dead? the
+pride and blessing of all, both men and women of the city, who honored
+thee as a god; for in thy life thou wert an honor to them all!" Thus
+mourned his unhappy mother.
+
+But to his wife, the noble, beautiful, tender-hearted Andromache, no
+messenger had brought the fearful tidings that Hector had remained without
+the gates. All unconscious, she was sitting in the inner chamber of her
+lofty palace, weaving a purple web of double woof, and embroidering it
+with many flowers. And she was ordering her handmaids to prepare a warm
+bath for her dear husband, when he should return from the battle; poor
+child! little knowing that the fierce-eyed Athene had treacherously slain
+him, by the hand of Achilles! But when she heard shrieks and lamentations
+from the walls, she reeled, and the shuttle dropped from her hands. And
+she spake again to her fair-haired maidens: "Surely, that was the cry of
+Hector's noble mother! Some terrible thing must have befallen my godlike
+husband! Come, then, follow me, that I may learn what has happened; I
+greatly fear that he has been cut off from the city by Achilles; for he
+would never retreat among the throng, or yield to any man, in his high
+courage."
+
+And she rushed, all frantic, through the house, followed by her maidens,
+and came to the walls, and saw Hector dragged through the dust, towards
+the black ships of the Achaians. Then darkness shrouded her fair eyes, and
+she fell backwards in a swoon. And when roused, she tore from her head the
+net, the fillet, and the nuptial veil which golden Venus had given her,
+when noble Hector of the shining helm led her forth, from King Eetion's
+palace, as his bride. And the sisters-in-law of her dear husband gathered
+round her, and raised her from the ground, all distracted as she was and
+nigh unto death. When she had recovered from her swoon, she sobbed and
+wailed, crying, "O Hector! to the same evil fate were we twain born, thou
+in Troy, and I in Thebes, where my great father, Eetion, reared me as a
+little child. Would that I had never been born, since thou leavest me a
+hapless widow! And our son, thine and mine, ill-fated one! is but a little
+child; and thou canst no more profit him, nor he be a joy to thee, since
+thou art dead! A helpless orphan, he is cut off from his playmates; and if
+he pluck the robe of his father's friends, one may, in pity, just hold the
+cup to his lips, but give him not to satisfy his hunger and his thirst;
+while other children, whose parents still live, will drive him from their
+feast, with taunts and blows, saying, 'Away with thee! thou hast no father
+at our table!' Then will he come back to me, his lonely mother; he, who so
+lately sat on his father's knee, and fed on the choicest of food! and when
+sleep fell upon him, tired with his childish play, he nestled in a soft
+bed in his nurse's arms. But now that his father is no more, he shall
+suffer untold griefs, even he whom the Trojans called 'Astyanax,' king of
+the city, because thou, O my beloved lord! wert the sole defense and glory
+of their lofty walls." Thus wailed the fair Andromache; and the women
+moaned around her.
+
+
+
+
+THE FUNERAL GAMES IN HONOR OF PATROCLUS
+
+By Walter C. Perry
+
+
+The noble Achilles could not do enough in honor of his lost friend,
+Patroclus, and he had determined to hold games, of every kind, in which
+the mail-clad Achaians might compete for prizes; and to this end he had
+brought goodly treasures from his ships,--tripods, and caldrons, horses,
+mules, and oxen, well-girdled women, and hoary iron. The first and most
+important contest was a chariot race, for which he offered a woman skilled
+in needlework, and a two-handled tripod, holding two-and-twenty
+measures--these, for the best man of all; the second prize was a mare, six
+years old, with a mule foal; the third prize was a fair new caldron, of
+four measures; the fourth was two talents of bright gold; the fifth was a
+two-handled vase, untarnished by the fire.
+
+And Achilles addressed the chiefs, and said, "If the race were in honor of
+some other warrior, then should I enter the lists, and bear away the
+prize; for ye know that my horses are immortal, and by far the best;
+Neptune, the Earth-Girdler, gave them to my father, and he to me. But I
+and they will stand aside; for they have lost a noble and gentle driver,
+who oft-times washed them with clear water and then poured soft oil upon
+their goodly manes! And now they stand with sorrow in their breasts, and
+their full long manes are trailing on the earth. But now, let whoever of
+you trusteth in his horses and his strong chariot take his place in the
+lists!"
+
+And first came forward Eumelus, son of Admetus; next came the mighty
+Diomedes, with the famous horses of Tros, which he had taken from AEneas;
+then arose Menelaus,--the fair-haired, godlike Menelaus, with Aithe,
+Agamemnon's mare, and his own horse, Podargus; and the fourth was
+Antilochus, son of the wise Nestor, who yoked swift Pylian horses to his
+chariot.
+
+His father Nestor, son of Neleus, stood by Antilochus, and gave him good
+advice, although he himself was wise. "Antilochus, my son," he said,
+"though thou art young, yet Zeus and Neptune have loved thee, and made
+thee a perfect horseman; and there is little need for me to teach thee.
+But the other horses are better than thine; and I fear that much trouble
+is in store for thee. But skill and cunning are better than force, and so
+one charioteer defeats another. Look well to the posts at either end, and
+run closely by them. Now I will tell thee another thing. Some six feet
+above the ground, there stands the withered stump of a tree, with two
+white stones, on either side; this is the mark fixed by the swift-footed
+Achilles. Do thou drive thy horses hard by this, and lean slightly to the
+left, and lash the off horse and give him rein; but let the near horse so
+closely skirt the post that the nave of the wheel of thy car may seem to
+graze the stone; but beware of touching it!"
+
+Next, Meriones made ready his chariot; and so did the others. Then they
+mounted their cars, and drew lots for their places. Great Diomedes drew
+the best. Achilles ranged them all side by side, and pointed to the
+turning-post, in the plain, near which he posted old Phoenix, as umpire.
+
+Then, at a signal from the son of Peleus, they raised their long whips,
+together, standing upright, and lashed their horses, and encouraged them
+by hand and voice. And the chariots now ran evenly on the ground, and now
+bounded high in air. But when they entered the last part of the course,
+driving towards the sea, the fleet mares of Eumelus, grandson of Pheres,
+rushed to the front; and next came Diomedes, with the stallions of Tros,
+so near that they seemed to be mounting the car of Eumelus, and with their
+hot breath covered his back and shoulders. Then Tydides would either have
+gained a victory, or it would have been at least a dead heat; but Phoebus
+Apollo was angry with him, and dashed his shining whip from his hand. He
+shed hot tears of fury, when he saw that the mares of Eumelus were still
+at their utmost speed, while his own horses slackened their speed, no
+longer feeling the lash. But, luckily for Diomedes, his constant friend
+Athene marked the trick of Apollo; and, speeding after Diomedes, she gave
+him back the scourge, and put fresh mettle into his steeds. She then
+pursued Eumelus, and brake the yoke of his horses; they bolted from the
+course, and he was hurled off his car into the dust. Meanwhile, Tydides
+rushed on before the others, for Athene was shedding glory on his head.
+
+Next to him ran the horses of Menelaus, son of Atreus. Then came
+Antilochus, son of Nestor, who spake thus to his father's Pylian horses:
+"I do not ask you to contend with Tydides, whose horses Athene herself is
+speeding; but I pray you to catch up the chariot of Atrides; and be not
+beaten by Aithe, lest she, who is only a mare, pour ridicule upon you."
+Thus spake Antilochus, and his horses were afraid, and sped on more
+swiftly. But Antilochus noted a narrow gully, where the rain had collected
+and had carried away a part of the course. There Menelaus was driving,
+when Antilochus turned his horses out of the way, and followed him at one
+side. Then Menelaus, fearing a collision, shouted loudly to the son of
+Nestor: "Antilochus, hold in thy horses! and drive not so recklessly!
+close ahead there is a wider space, where we can pass one another!" But
+Antilochus, as if he heard him not, drove on more madly than ever and
+plied the lash; and the golden-haired son of Atreus called again to him,
+reproving him: "Antilochus, there is no man more spiteful than thou; away
+with thee! wrongly have we called thee _wise_!" Then he called on his
+horses, and they increased their speed, fearing the anger of their lord,
+and quickly overtook the others.
+
+Now the Argive chiefs sat together, watching the race as the chariots flew
+along the course. The first to see them coming was Idomeneus, the Cretan
+prince, the son of Deucalion; he was sitting apart from the rest on the
+highest place, and he could distinguish the voices of the drivers. He
+noticed a chestnut horse, with a white star on his forehead, round like
+the full moon; and he stood up and spake: "Friends and Counselors of the
+Argives! can ye see the horses as I do? To me, there appeareth a new
+chariot and horses; and the mares which led at the start I can no longer
+see."
+
+Then the son of Oileus, Ajax, rebuked him in boorish fashion: "Idomeneus,
+why chatterest thou before the time? Thou art not one of the youngest, nor
+are thine eyes of the sharpest. The same mares of Eumelus are still
+leading, and he is standing up in the chariot."
+
+And the great chief, Idomeneus, answered in great wrath, "Ajax, ever ready
+to abuse, inconsiderate slanderer! thou art in all respects inferior to
+the other Argives, for thy mind is rude."
+
+Thus spoke the Cretan hero. And the son of Oileus rose again, to reply
+with scornful words; but Achilles himself stood forward and said, "No
+longer, Idomeneus and Ajax, bandy insulting words with one another; for it
+is not meet! Sit ye still, and watch; and soon will ye know which horses
+are leading." He spake; and straightway Tydides came driving up in his
+fair chariot, overlaid with gold and tin, which ran lightly behind the
+horses, and scarcely left a trace in the fine dust of the plain. Checking
+his horses in the middle of the crowd, he leapt to the ground and claimed
+the splendid prize; and the gallant Sthenelus made no delay, but gave to
+his victorious comrade the woman and the tripod to bear away.
+
+Next to Diomedes came the son of Nestor, Antilochus, who had passed by
+Menelaus by a clever stratagem, though his horses were inferior; but even
+so, Menelaus had pressed him hard, and was behind him only so far as a
+horse is from the wheel of the chariot which he draweth.
+
+But Meriones, the brave charioteer of Idomeneus, came in about the cast of
+a lance behind Menelaus; for his horses were the slowest, and he was
+himself but a sluggish driver. Last of all came Eumelus, the son of
+Admetus, dragging his broken chariot. The swift-footed Achilles, son of
+Peleus, pitied him, and spake winged words to the chiefs: "Lo! the best
+man of all comes last; but let us give him a prize--the second! And let
+Tydides bear away the first!"
+
+All the Achaians heard him, and shouted applause; and the noble Achilles
+would have given him the mare had not Antilochus, son of the wise and
+glorious Nestor, stood up in defense of his claim: "O Achilles!" he said,
+"justly shall I be wroth with thee, if thou takest away the prize which I
+have fairly won. Thou thinkest only of the unlucky chance which hath
+befallen Eumelus and his horses; but he ought to have made prayer to the
+deathless Gods, and then he would not have come in last of all. If thou
+pitiest him, there is much treasure in thy house,--gold, and bronze, and
+sheep, and handmaids, and horses. Give him, if it pleaseth thee and the
+Achaians, a still richer prize. But I will not give up the mare; for she
+is _mine_."
+
+And Achilles smiled on his comrade Antilochus, whom he dearly loved, and
+answered him, "Antilochus, I will do as thou sayest: I will give him the
+bronze cuirass, edged with shining tin, which I took from Asteropaeus."
+
+But the great Menelaus arose, filled with insatiable wrath against
+Antilochus. The herald placed a sceptre in his hand, and called for
+silence. Then the godlike king made harangue, and said, "Antilochus! thou
+who wert once accounted wise--what is this that thou hast done? Thou hast
+disgraced my skill, and discomfited my horses, by thrusting thine, which
+are far worse, in front of them. Come then, great chiefs of the Argives!
+give judgment, without favor, between him and me! That no one may say
+hereafter, that ye favored me for my power and rank, I will myself set the
+issue before you; so that no one may reproach me. Stand forth, Antilochus,
+before thy chariot; and take thy whip, and lay thy hand upon thy horses,
+and swear by the great Girdler and Shaker of the Earth, that thou didst
+not, by set purpose and malice, hinder my chariot in the course!"
+
+Then Antilochus made prudent answer, "Be patient with me, King Menelaus!
+for I am younger, and thou art in all respects my better. Bear with me,
+then: and I will myself give thee the mare, my prize, rather than lose my
+place in thy heart, O thou beloved of Zeus!" Thus spake the noble-minded
+son of Nestor; and he gave the mare to Menelaus, king of men.
+
+And the heart of the son of Atreus rejoiced, as the ripe ears of corn,
+when the dew descendeth upon them, in the glistening cornfield. And he
+spake kindly to Antilochus, and said, "Lo! at once do I put away my anger;
+for of old thou wert never rash or light-minded; but now thy reason was
+overborne by the impetuosity of youth. Therefore I grant thy prayer, and
+will even give thee the mare; for I am in no wise covetous or
+unforgiving."
+
+He spake, and gave the mare to Noemon, the comrade of Antilochus, to lead
+away; but he took the bright caldron to himself. And Meriones, who came in
+fourth, took the two talents of gold. But the fifth prize, a vase with two
+handles, was not obtained; and the noble Achilles gave this to Nestor,
+and, standing by him, uttered winged words:--
+
+"Let this, O Father! be for thee an heirloom, and a memorial of Patroclus'
+funeral games--of him, whom thou wilt never see again! I give it to thee
+since thou mayest not contend in boxing, nor in wrestling, nor in throwing
+the lance, nor in the foot-race; for rueful old age weigheth heavily upon
+thee."
+
+Nestor gladly received the splendid gift, and spake: "True and fitting are
+thy words, dear friend! My limbs are no longer sound, nor do my arms move
+easily from my shoulders; and I must make way for younger men. But I
+accept thy free gift with joy, and rejoice that thou dost remember our old
+friendship."
+
+Then Pelides brought forward the prizes for the rough, fierce
+boxing-match: a six-year-old unbroken mule for the winner; and a
+two-handled goblet for the loser. Then quickly rose the famous boxer
+Epeius, and laid his hand on the stubborn mule, and boasted aloud: "Let
+who will bear away the goblet; but the mule is mine! for no one will beat
+me with his fists!" They all kept silence, and feared. Only one came
+forward, even Euryalus, the gallant son of King Mecistus. The famous
+warrior Tydides made him ready for the fight, and bade him God speed. The
+twain went into the ring, and fell to work; and terrible was the gnashing
+of their teeth, and the sweat ran down from their limbs. Epeius came on
+fiercely, and struck Euryalus on the cheek, and that was enough; for all
+his limbs were loosened. As a fish on a weedy beach, in the ripple caused
+by Boreas, leapeth high in air, so Euryalus leapt up in his anguish. But
+the generous Epeius raised him again to his feet, and his comrades led him
+away, with dragging feet and drooping head, and spitting out black blood.
+
+Next came the terrible wrestling match; and for this the glorious Achilles
+brought out two costly prizes: for the winner, a fireproof tripod, worth
+twelve oxen; and for the loser, a woman skilled in handiwork, valued at
+four oxen. And he cried aloud to the Achaians, "Stand forward all ye who
+will enter into this contest!"
+
+Then rose Telamonian Ajax and the crafty Ulysses, and faced each other.
+And they entered the ring, and grasped each other with their strong hands,
+like the rafters of a house, joined by some skillful builder to withstand
+the wind. Their backbones grated and creaked beneath the strain; the sweat
+poured down from their limbs, and bloody weals streaked their sides and
+shoulders, as they struggled for the well-wrought tripod. But neither
+could Ulysses throw the burly Ajax, nor Ajax him. And when the Achaians
+grew tired of the futile contest, Ajax spake to Ulysses: "O thou offspring
+of the Gods, Laertes' son! do thou lift me, or I will lift thee, and the
+issue will be on the lap of Zeus!"
+
+So saying, he raised Ulysses. But the Wily One did not forget his craft.
+From behind, he struck the hollow of Ajax's knee, and threw him on his
+back; and Ulysses fell upon him; and the people marveled. Then, in his
+turn, Ulysses tried to lift huge Ajax, but could not; so he thrust his
+crooked knee into the hollow of the other's; and they again both fell to
+the ground, covered with dust. When they rose for a third bout, Achilles
+restrained them. "No longer wear ye one another out, with toil and pain!
+Ye both have won and shall receive equal prizes!" And they cleansed
+themselves, and put on their doublets.
+
+Then the noble son of Peleus offered prizes for the foot-race; the first,
+a silver krater holding six measures, curiously chased by Sidonian
+artists--by far the most beautiful mixing-cup in the whole world. For the
+second he offered a stalled ox; and for the third, half a talent of gold.
+The wondrous krater Phoenicians had brought by sea, and given it to Thoas,
+the ruler of Lemnos; and Euneus, son of Jason, inherited it from Jason,
+who received it from Thoas, his father-in-law; and Euneus gave it to the
+hero Patroclus, as a ransom for Lycaon, son of Priam; this splendid goblet
+was offered to the swiftest of foot.
+
+Then three valiant heroes arose: Ajax, son of Oileus; Ulysses, the wily
+one; and Antilochus, the best runner of the youths. Achilles ranged them
+side by side, and showed them the goal. All started at full speed; but
+Ajax soon took the lead; and Ulysses came close behind him, near as the
+shuttle to the breast of a fair-girdled woman when she is weaving,--so
+near that his breath was warm on the back of Ajax. But as they neared the
+goal, the wily Ulysses prayed to the fierce-eyed Athene, "O goddess, come
+and help my feet!" And Athene heard her favorite, and strengthened all his
+limbs. But just as they were about to pounce upon the prize, Ajax slipped
+in the blood of the slaughtered oxen, and fell; his mouth and nostrils
+were filled with dirt and gore. So the patient Ulysses took the priceless
+krater, and Ajax the fatted ox. But Ajax, holding his prize by the horn,
+and spitting the filth from his mouth, spake to the Achaians: "O fie upon
+it! it was the goddess who betrayed me; she who is ever near to Ulysses,
+as a mother to her child." And the Achaians laughed merrily, to see him in
+such a sorry plight.
+
+Antilochus, smiling, took the last prize, half a talent of gold; and he
+too spake winged words to the Argives: "My friends, ye too will agree with
+me that the deathless Gods show favor to the older men. Ajax is a little
+older than I; but Ulysses is of a former generation. It were not easy for
+any one, except Achilles, fleet of foot, to outrun _him_."
+
+Achilles was pleased at the honor done to his swiftness. "Not unrewarded,"
+he said, "shall the praise be which thou hast bestowed on me: I give thee
+another half-talent of gold." Antilochus received it gladly. Then the
+assembly was dissolved, and the Achaians dispersed, each to his own ship.
+
+
+
+
+THE WOODEN HORSE AND THE FALL OF TROY
+
+By Josephine Preston Peabody
+
+
+Nine years the Greeks laid siege to Troy, and Troy held out against every
+device. On both sides the lives of many heroes were spent, and they were
+forced to acknowledge each other enemies of great valor.
+
+Sometimes the chief warriors fought in single combat, while the armies
+looked on, and the old men of Troy, with the women, came out to watch afar
+off from the city walls. King Priam and Queen Hecuba would come, and
+Cassandra, sad with foreknowledge of their doom, and Andromache, the
+lovely young wife of Hector, with her little son, whom the people called
+the city's king. Sometimes fair Helen came to look across the plain to the
+fellow-countrymen whom she had forsaken; and although she was the cause of
+all this war, the Trojans half forgave her when she passed by, because her
+beauty was like a spell, and warmed hard hearts as the sunshine mellows
+apples. So for nine years the Greeks plundered the neighboring towns, but
+the city Troy stood fast, and the Grecian ships waited with folded wings.
+
+In the tenth year of the war the Greeks, who could not take the city by
+force, pondered how they might take it by craft. At length, with the aid
+of Ulysses, they devised a plan.
+
+A portion of the Grecian host broke up camp and set sail as if they were
+homeward bound; but, once out of sight, they anchored their ships behind a
+neighboring island. The rest of the army then fell to work upon a great
+image of a horse. They built it of wood, fitted and carved, and with a
+door so cunningly concealed that none might notice it. When it was
+finished the horse looked like a prodigious idol; but it was hollow,
+skillfully pierced here and there, and so spacious that a band of men
+could lie hidden within and take no harm. Into this hiding-place went
+Ulysses, Menelaus, and the other chiefs, fully armed, and when the door
+was shut upon them, the rest of the Grecian army broke camp and went away.
+
+[Illustration: A GREAT IMAGE OF A HORSE. THEY BUILT IT OF WOOD, FITTED AND
+CARVED, AND WITH A DOOR SO CUNNINGLY CONCEALED THAT NONE MIGHT NOTICE IT.
+WHEN IT WAS FINISHED THE HORSE LOOKED LIKE A PRODIGIOUS IDOL, BUT IT WAS
+HOLLOW, SKILLFULLY PIERCED HERE AND THERE]
+
+Meanwhile, in Troy, the people had seen the departure of the ships, and
+the news had spread like wildfire. The great enemy had lost heart,--after
+ten years of war! Part of the army had gone,--the rest were going. Already
+the last of the ships had set sail, and the camp was deserted. The tents
+that had whitened the plain were gone like a frost before the sun. The war
+was over!
+
+The whole city went wild with joy. Like one who has been a prisoner for
+many years, it flung off all restraint, and the people rose as a single
+man to test the truth of new liberty. The gates were thrown wide, and the
+Trojans--men, women, and children--thronged over the plain and into the
+empty camp of the enemy. There stood the Wooden Horse.
+
+No one knew what it could be. Fearful at first, they gathered around it,
+as children gather around a live horse; they marveled at its wondrous
+height and girth, and were for moving it into the city as a trophy of war.
+
+At this, one man interposed,--Laocooen, a priest of Neptune. "Take heed,
+citizens," said he. "Beware of all that comes from the Greeks. Have you
+fought them for ten years without learning their devices? This is some
+piece of treachery."
+
+But there was another outcry in the crowd, and at that moment certain of
+the Trojans dragged forward a wretched man who wore the garments of a
+Greek. He seemed the sole remnant of the Grecian army, and as such they
+consented to spare his life, if he would tell them the truth.
+
+Sinon, for this was the spy's name, said that he had been left behind by
+the malice of Ulysses, and he told them that the Greeks had built the
+Wooden Horse as an offering to Athene, and that they had made it so huge
+in order to keep it from being moved out of the camp, since it was
+destined to bring triumph to its possessors.
+
+At this the joy of the Trojans was redoubled, and they set their wits to
+find out how they might soonest drag the great horse across the plain and
+into the city to insure victory. While they stood talking, two immense
+serpents rose out of the sea and made towards the camp. Some of the people
+took flight, others were transfixed with terror; but all, near and far,
+watched this new omen. Rearing their crests, the sea-serpents crossed the
+shore, swift, shining, terrible as a risen water-flood that descends upon
+a helpless little town. Straight through the crowd they swept, and seized
+the priest Laocooen where he stood, with his two sons, and wrapped them all
+round and round in fearful coils. There was no chance of escape. Father
+and sons perished together; and when the monsters had devoured the three
+men, into the sea they slipped again, leaving no trace of the horror.
+
+The terrified Trojans saw an omen in this. To their minds punishment had
+come upon Laocooen for his words against the Wooden Horse. Surely, it was
+sacred to the Gods; he had spoken blasphemy, and had perished before their
+eyes. They flung his warning to the winds. They wreathed the horse with
+garlands, amid great acclaim; and then, all lending a hand, they dragged
+it, little by little, out of the camp and into the city of Troy. With the
+close of that victorious day, they gave up every memory of danger and made
+merry after ten years of privation.
+
+That very night Sinon the spy opened the hidden door of the Wooden Horse,
+and in the darkness, Ulysses, Menelaus, and the other chiefs who had lain
+hidden there crept out and gave the signal to the Grecian army. For, under
+cover of night, those ships that had been moored behind the island had
+sailed back again, and the Greeks were come upon Troy.
+
+Not a Trojan was on guard. The whole city was at feast when the enemy rose
+in its midst, and the warning of Laocooen was fulfilled.
+
+Priam and his warriors fell by the sword, and their kingdom was plundered
+of all its fair possessions, women and children and treasure. Last of all,
+the city itself was burned to its very foundations.
+
+Homeward sailed the Greeks, taking as royal captives poor Cassandra and
+Andromache and many another Trojan. And home at last went fair Helen, the
+cause of all this sorrow, eager to be forgiven by her husband, King
+Menelaus. For she had awakened from the enchantment of Venus, and even
+before the death of Paris she had secretly longed for her home and
+kindred. Home to Sparta she came with the king after a long and stormy
+voyage, and there she lived and died the fairest of women.
+
+But the kingdom of Troy was fallen. Nothing remained of all its glory but
+the glory of its dead heroes and fair women, and the ruins of its citadel
+by the river Scamander. There even now, beneath the foundations of later
+homes that were built and burned, built and burned, in the wars of a
+thousand years after, the ruins of ancient Troy lie hidden, like mouldered
+leaves deep under the new grass. And there, to this very day, men who love
+the story are delving after the dead city as you might search for a buried
+treasure.
+
+
+
+
+THE WANDERINGS OF ULYSSES
+
+
+AN ADVENTURE WITH THE CYCLOPS
+
+By Alfred J. Church
+
+
+    [After the fall of Troy the Greeks set out for home, but many of
+    them had troubles and dangers to meet before they saw again the
+    shores of their native land. The one who suffered most was
+    Ulysses, and the following is his story of his adventure with the
+    one-eyed giant, the Cyclops.]
+
+
+The wind that bore me from Troy brought me to Ismarus, a city of the
+Ciconians. This I sacked, slaying the people that dwelt therein. Much
+spoil did we take out of the city, dividing it among the people, so that
+each man had his share. And when we had done this, I commanded my men that
+they should depart with all speed; but they, in their folly, would not
+hear me. For there was much wine to drink, and sheep and kine to slay;
+therefore they sat on the shore and feasted. Meanwhile the people of the
+city fetched others, their kinsmen that dwelt in the mountains, and were
+more in number and more valiant than they, and skillful in all manner of
+fighting. In the early morning they assembled themselves together, thick
+as the flowers and the leaves that grow in the springtime, and set the
+battle in array. Then we fought with them; while the day waxed we
+prevailed over them, and beat them back, though they were more in number
+than we; but when the sun was descending in the heavens, then the Cicones
+overcame us, and drave us to our ships. Six from each ship perished, but
+the remnant of us escaped from death.
+
+On the tenth day after this we came to the land where the lotus grows--a
+wondrous fruit of which whosoever eats cares not to see country or wife or
+children again. Now the Lotus-Eaters, for they so called the people of the
+land, were a kindly folk, and gave of the fruit to some of the sailors,
+not meaning them any harm, but thinking it to be the best that they had to
+give. These, when they had eaten, said that they would not sail any more
+over the sea; which, when I heard, I bade their comrades bind them and
+carry them, sadly complaining, to the ships.
+
+Then, the wind having abated, we took to our oars, and rowed for many days
+till we came to the country where the Cyclops dwell. Now, a mile or so
+from the shore there was an island, very fair and fertile, but no man
+dwells there or tills the soil, and in the island a harbor where a ship
+may be safe from all winds, and at the head of the harbor a stream falling
+from a rock, and whispering alders all about it. Into this the ships
+passed safely, and were hauled up on the beach, and the crews slept by
+them, waiting for the morning.
+
+When the dawn appeared, then we wandered through the island; and the
+nymphs of the land started the wild goats that my company might have food
+to eat. Thereupon we took our bows and our spears from the ships, and shot
+at the goats; and the Gods gave us plenty of prey. Twelve ships I had in
+my company, and each ship had nine goats for its share, and my own portion
+was ten.
+
+Then all the day we sat and feasted, drinking the sweet wine which we had
+taken from the city of the Cicones, and eating the flesh of the goats; and
+as we sat we looked across to the land of the Cyclops, seeing the smoke
+and hearing the voices of the men and of the sheep and of the goats. And
+when the sun set and darkness came over the land, we lay down upon the
+seashore and slept.
+
+The next day I gathered my men together, and said, "Abide ye here, dear
+friends; I with my own ship and my own company will go and make trial of
+the folk that dwell in yonder island, whether they are just or unjust."
+
+So I climbed into my ship, and bade my company follow me; so we came to
+the land of the Cyclops. Close to the shore was a cave, with laurels round
+about the mouth. This was the dwelling of the Cyclops. Alone he dwelt, a
+creature without law. Nor was he like to mortal men, but rather to some
+wooded peak of the hills that stands out apart from all the rest.
+
+Then I bade the rest of my comrades abide by the ship, and keep it, but I
+took twelve men, the bravest that there were in the crew, and went forth.
+I had with me a goat-skin full of the wine, dark red, and sweet, which the
+priest of Apollo at Ismarus had given me. Because we kept him and his wife
+and child from harm when we sacked the city, reverencing the god,
+therefore did he give it me. Three things did he give me,--seven talents
+of gold, and a mixing-bowl of silver, and of wine twelve jars. So precious
+was it that none in his house knew of it saving himself and his wife and
+one dame that kept the house. When they drank of it they mixed twenty
+measures of water with one of wine, and the smell that went up from it was
+wondrous sweet. No man could easily refrain from drinking it. With this
+wine I filled a great skin and bore it with me; also I bare corn in a
+wallet, for my heart within me boded that I should need it.
+
+So we entered the cave, and judged that it was the dwelling of some rich
+and skillful shepherd. For within there were pens for the young of the
+sheep and of the goats, divided all according to their age, and there were
+baskets full of cheeses, and full milkpails ranged along the wall. But the
+Cyclops himself was away in the pastures. Then my companions besought me
+that I would depart, taking with me, if I would, a store of cheeses and
+sundry of the lambs and of the kids. But I would not, for I wished to see,
+after my wont, what manner of host this strange shepherd might be, and, if
+it might be, to take a gift from his hand, such as is the due of
+strangers. Verily, his coming was not to be a joy to my company.
+
+It was evening when the Cyclops came home,--a mighty giant, very tall of
+stature, and when we saw him we fled into the sacred place of the cave in
+great fear. On his shoulder he bore a vast bundle of pine logs for his
+fire, and threw them down outside the cave with a great crash, and drove
+the flocks within, and closed the entrance with a huge rock, which twenty
+wagons and more could not bear. Then he milked the ewes and all the
+she-goats, and half of the milk he curdled for cheese, and half he set
+ready for himself, when he should sup. Next he kindled a fire with the
+pine logs, and the flame lighted up all the cave, showing to him both me
+and my comrades.
+
+"Who are ye?" cried Polyphemus, for that was the giant's name. "Are ye
+traders, or, haply, pirates?"
+
+I shuddered at the dreadful voice and shape, but bare me bravely, and
+answered, "We are no pirates, mighty sir, but Greeks sailing back from
+Troy, and subjects of the great King Agamemnon, whose fame is spread from
+one end of heaven to the other. And we are come to beg hospitality of thee
+in the name of Zeus, who rewards or punishes hosts and guests, according
+as they be faithful the one to the other, or no."
+
+"Nay," said the giant; "it is but idle talk to tell me of Zeus and the
+other Gods. We Cyclops take no account of gods, holding ourselves to be
+much better and stronger than they. But come, tell me, where have you left
+your ship?"
+
+But I saw his thought when he asked about the ship, how he was minded to
+break it, and take from us all hope of flight. Therefore I answered him
+craftily,--
+
+"Ship have we none, for that which was ours King Neptune brake, driving it
+on a jutting rock on this coast, and we whom thou seest are all that are
+escaped from the waves."
+
+Polyphemus answered nothing, but without more ado caught up two of the
+men, as a man might catch up the whelps of a dog, and dashed them on the
+ground, and tare them limb from limb, and devoured them, with huge
+draughts of milk between, leaving not a morsel, not even the very bones.
+But we that were left, when we saw the dreadful deed, could only weep and
+pray to Zeus for help. And when the giant had filled his maw with human
+flesh and with the milk of the flocks, he lay down among his sheep and
+slept.
+
+Then I questioned much in my heart whether I should slay the monster as he
+slept, for I doubted not that my good sword would pierce to the giant's
+heart, mighty as he was. But my second thought kept me back, for I
+remembered that, should I slay him, I and my comrades would yet perish
+miserably. For who should move away the great rock that lay against the
+door of the cave? So we waited till the morning, with grief in our hearts.
+And the monster woke, and milked his flocks, and afterwards, seizing two
+men, devoured them for his meal. Then he went to the pastures, but put the
+great rock on the mouth of the cave, just as a man puts down the lid upon
+his quiver.
+
+All that day I was thinking what I might best do to save myself and my
+companions, and the end of my thinking was this: there was a mighty pole
+in the cave, green wood of an olive-tree, big as a ship's mast, which
+Polyphemus purposed to use, when the smoke should have dried it, as a
+walking-staff. Of this I cut off a fathom's length, and my comrades
+sharpened it and hardened it in the fire, and then hid it away. At evening
+the giant came back, and drove his sheep into the cave, nor left the rams
+outside, as he had been wont to do before, but shut them in. And having
+duly done his shepherd's work, he took, as before, two of my comrades, and
+devoured them. And when he had finished his supper, I came forward,
+holding the wineskin in my hand, and said,--
+
+"Drink, Cyclops, now that thou hast feasted. Drink, and see what precious
+things we had in our ship. But no one hereafter will come to thee with
+such like, if thou dealest with strangers as cruelly as thou hast dealt
+with us."
+
+Then the Cyclops drank, and was mightily pleased, and said, "Give me again
+to drink, and tell me thy name, stranger, and I will give thee a gift such
+as a host should give. In good truth this is a rare liquor. We, too, have
+vines, but they bear not wine like this, which, indeed, must be such as
+the Gods drink in heaven."
+
+Then I gave him the cup again, and he drank. Thrice I gave it to him, and
+thrice he drank, not knowing what it was, and how it would work within his
+brain.
+
+Then I spake to him: "Thou didst ask my name, Cyclops. My name is No Man.
+And now that thou knowest my name, thou shouldst give me thy gift."
+
+And he said, "My gift shall be that I will eat thee last of all thy
+company."
+
+And as he spake, he fell back in a drunken sleep. Then I bade my comrades
+be of good courage, for the time was come when they should be delivered.
+And they thrust the stake of olive-wood into the fire till it was ready,
+green as it was, to burst into flame, and they thrust it into the
+monster's eye; for he had but one eye, and that in the midst of his
+forehead, with the eyebrow below it. And I, standing above, leant with all
+my force upon the stake, and turned it about, as a man bores the timber of
+a ship with a drill. And the burning wood hissed in the eye, just as the
+red-hot iron hisses in the water when a man seeks to temper steel for a
+sword.
+
+Then the giant leapt up, and tore away the stake, and cried aloud, so that
+all the Cyclops who dwelt on the mountain-side heard him and came about
+his cave, asking him, "What aileth thee, Polyphemus, that thou makest this
+uproar in the peaceful night, driving away sleep? Is any one robbing thee
+of thy sheep, or seeking to slay thee by craft or force?"
+
+And the giant answered, "No Man slays me by craft."
+
+"Nay, but," they said, "if no man does thee wrong we cannot help thee. The
+sickness which great Zeus may send, who can avoid? Pray to our father,
+Neptune, for help."
+
+So they spake, and I laughed in my heart when I saw how I had beguiled
+them by the name that I had given.
+
+But the Cyclops rolled away the great stone from the door of the cave, and
+sat in the midst, stretching out his hands, to feel whether perchance the
+men within the cave would seek to go out among the sheep.
+
+Long did I think how I and my comrades should best escape. At last I
+lighted upon a device that seemed better than all the rest, and much I
+thanked Zeus for that this once the giant had driven the rams with the
+other sheep into the cave. For, these being great and strong, I fastened
+my comrades under the bellies of the beasts, tying them with osier twigs,
+of which the giant made his bed. One ram I took, and fastened a man
+beneath it, and two rams I set, one on either side. So I did with the six,
+for but six were left out of the twelve who had ventured with me from the
+ship. And there was one mighty ram far larger than all the others, and to
+this I clung, grasping the fleece tight with both my hands. So we all
+waited for the morning. And when the morning came, the rams rushed forth
+to the pasture; but the giant sat in the door and felt the back of each as
+it went by, nor thought to try what might be underneath. Last of all went
+the great ram. And the Cyclops knew him as he passed, and said,--
+
+"How is this, thou who art the leader of the flock? Thou art not wont thus
+to lag behind. Thou hast always been the first to run to the pastures and
+streams in the morning, and the first to come back to the fold when
+evening fell; and now thou art last of all. Perhaps thou art troubled
+about thy master's eye, which some wretch--No Man, they call him--has
+destroyed, having first mastered me with wine. He has not escaped, I ween.
+I would that thou couldst speak, and tell me where he is lurking. Of a
+truth, I would dash out his brains upon the ground, and avenge me of this
+No Man."
+
+So speaking, he let the ram pass out of the cave. But when we were now out
+of reach of the giant, I loosed my hold of the ram, and then unbound my
+comrades. And we hastened to our ship, not forgetting to drive the sheep
+before us, and often looking back till we came to the seashore. Right glad
+were those that had abode by the ship to see us. Nor did they lament for
+those that had died, though we were fain to do so, for I forbade, fearing
+lest the noise of their weeping should betray us to the giant, where we
+were. Then we all climbed into the ship, and sitting well in order on the
+benches smote the sea with our oars, laying to right lustily, that we
+might the sooner get away from the accursed land. And when we had rowed a
+hundred yards or so, so that a man's voice could yet be heard by one who
+stood upon the shore, I stood up in the ship and shouted,--
+
+"He was no coward, O Cyclops, whose comrades thou didst so foully slay in
+thy den. Justly art thou punished, monster, that devourest thy guests in
+thy dwelling. May the Gods make thee suffer worse things than these!"
+
+Then the Cyclops in his wrath brake off the top of a great hill, a mighty
+rock, and hurled it where he had heard the voice. Right in front of the
+ship's bow it fell, and a great wave rose as it sank, and washed the ship
+back to the shore. But I seized a long pole with both hands, and pushed
+the ship from the land, and bade my comrades ply their oars, nodding with
+my head, for I would not speak, lest the Cyclops should know where we
+were. Then they rowed with all their might and main.
+
+[Illustration: THE CYCLOPS IN HIS WRATH BRAKE OFF THE TOP OF A GREAT HILL]
+
+And when we had gotten twice as far as before I made as if I would speak
+again; but my comrades sought to hinder me, saying, "Nay, my lord, anger
+not the giant any more. Surely we thought we were lost before, when he
+threw the great rock, and washed our ship back to the shore. And if he
+hear thee now, he may crush our ship and us, for the man throws a mighty
+bolt, and throws it far."
+
+But I would not be persuaded, but stood up and said, "Hear, Cyclops! If
+any man ask who blinded thee, say that it was the warrior Ulysses, son of
+Laertes, dwelling in Ithaca."
+
+
+
+
+CIRCE'S PALACE
+
+By Nathaniel Hawthorne
+
+
+At one time in the course of Ulysses' weary voyage, he arrived at an
+island that looked very green and pleasant, but the name of which was
+unknown to him. For, only a little while before he came thither, he had
+met with a terrible hurricane, or rather a great many hurricanes at once,
+which drove his fleet of vessels into a strange part of the sea, where
+neither himself nor any of his mariners had ever sailed. This misfortune
+was entirely owing to the foolish curiosity of his shipmates, who, while
+Ulysses lay asleep, had untied some very bulky leathern bags, in which
+they supposed a valuable treasure to be concealed. But in each of these
+stout bags, King AEolus, the ruler of the winds, had tied up a tempest, and
+had given it to Ulysses to keep, in order that he might be sure of a
+favorable passage homeward to Ithaca; and when the strings were loosened,
+forth rushed the whistling blasts, like air out of a blown bladder,
+whitening the sea with foam, and scattering the vessels nobody could tell
+whither.
+
+Immediately after escaping from this peril, a still greater one had
+befallen him. Scudding before the hurricane, he reached a place which, as
+he afterwards found, was called Laestrygonia, where some monstrous giants
+had eaten up many of his companions, and had sunk every one of his
+vessels, except that in which he himself sailed, by flinging great masses
+of rock at them, from the cliffs along the shore. After going through such
+troubles as these, you cannot wonder that King Ulysses was glad to moor
+his tempest-beaten bark in a quiet cove of the green island, which I began
+with telling you about. But he had encountered so many dangers from
+giants, and one-eyed Cyclops, and monsters of the sea and land, that he
+could not help dreading some mischief, even in this pleasant and seemingly
+solitary spot. For two days, therefore, the poor weather-worn voyagers
+kept quiet, and either stayed on board of their vessel or merely crept
+along under cliffs that bordered the shore; and to keep themselves alive,
+they dug shell-fish out of the sand, and sought for any little rill of
+fresh water that might be running towards the sea.
+
+Before the two days were spent, they grew very weary of this kind of life;
+for the followers of King Ulysses, as you will find it important to
+remember, were terrible gormandizers, and pretty sure to grumble if they
+missed their regular meals, and their irregular ones besides. Their stock
+of provisions was quite exhausted, and even the shell-fish began to get
+scarce, so that they had now to choose between starving to death or
+venturing into the interior of the island, where, perhaps, some huge
+three-headed dragon or other horrible monster had his den. Such misshapen
+creatures were very numerous in those days; and nobody ever expected to
+make a voyage or take a journey without running more or less risk of being
+devoured by them.
+
+But King Ulysses was a bold man as well as a prudent one; and on the third
+morning he determined to discover what sort of a place the island was, and
+whether it were possible to obtain a supply of food for the hungry mouths
+of his companions. So, taking a spear in his hand, he clambered to the
+summit of a cliff, and gazed round about him. At a distance, towards the
+centre of the island, he beheld the stately towers of what seemed to be a
+palace, built of snow-white marble, and rising in the midst of a grove of
+lofty trees. The thick branches of these trees stretched across the front
+of the edifice, and more than half concealed it, although, from the
+portion which he saw, Ulysses judged it to be spacious and exceedingly
+beautiful, and probably the residence of some great nobleman or prince. A
+blue smoke went curling up from the chimney, and was almost the
+pleasantest part of the spectacle to Ulysses. For, from the abundance of
+this smoke, it was reasonable to conclude that there was a good fire in
+the kitchen, and that, at dinnertime, a plentiful banquet would be served
+up to the inhabitants of the palace, and to whatever guests might happen
+to drop in.
+
+With so agreeable a prospect before him, Ulysses fancied that he could not
+do better than to go straight to the palace gate, and tell the master of
+it that there was a crew of poor shipwrecked mariners, not far off, who
+had eaten nothing for a day or two save a few clams and oysters, and would
+therefore be thankful for a little food. And the prince or nobleman must
+be a very stingy curmudgeon, to be sure, if, at least, when his own dinner
+was over, he would not bid them welcome to the broken victuals from the
+table.
+
+Pleasing himself with this idea, King Ulysses had made a few steps in the
+direction of the palace, when there was a great twittering and chirping
+from the branch of a neighboring tree. A moment afterwards, a bird came
+flying towards him, and hovered in the air, so as almost to brush his face
+with its wings. It was a very pretty little bird, with purple wings and
+body, and yellow legs, and a circle of golden feathers round its neck, and
+on its head a golden tuft, which looked like a king's crown in miniature.
+Ulysses tried to catch the bird. But it fluttered nimbly out of his reach,
+still chirping in a piteous tone, as if it could have told a lamentable
+story, had it only been gifted with human language. And when he attempted
+to drive it away, the bird flew no farther than the bough of the next
+tree, and again came fluttering about his head, with its doleful chirp, as
+soon as he showed a purpose of going forward.
+
+"Have you anything to tell me, little bird?" asked Ulysses.
+
+And he was ready to listen attentively to whatever the bird might
+communicate; for at the siege of Troy and elsewhere he had known such odd
+things to happen that he would not have considered it much out of the
+common run had this little feathered creature talked as plainly as
+himself.
+
+"Peep!" said the bird. "Peep, peep, pe--weep!" And nothing else would it
+say, but only, "Peep, peep, pe--weep!" in a melancholy cadence, and over
+and over and over again. As often as Ulysses moved forward, however, the
+bird showed the greatest alarm, and did its best to drive him back, with
+the anxious flutter of its purple wings. Its unaccountable behavior made
+him conclude, at last, that the bird knew of some danger that awaited him,
+and which must needs be very terrible, beyond all question, since it moved
+even a little fowl to feel compassion for a human being. So he resolved,
+for the present, to return to the vessel, and tell his companions what he
+had seen.
+
+This appeared to satisfy the bird. As soon as Ulysses turned back, it ran
+up the trunk of a tree, and began to pick insects out of the bark with its
+long, sharp bill; for it was a kind of woodpecker, you must know, and had
+to get its living in the same manner as other birds of that species. But
+every little while, as it pecked at the bark of the tree, the purple bird
+bethought itself of some secret sorrow, and repeated its plaintive note of
+"Peep, peep, pe--weep!"
+
+On his way to the shore, Ulysses had the good luck to kill a large stag by
+thrusting his spear into its back. Taking it on his shoulders (for he was
+a remarkably strong man), he lugged it along with him, and flung it down
+before his hungry companions. I have already hinted to you what
+gormandizers some of the comrades of King Ulysses were. From what is
+related of them, I reckon that their favorite diet was pork, and that they
+had lived upon it until a good part of their physical substance was
+swine's flesh, and their tempers and dispositions were very much akin to
+the hog. A dish of venison, however, was no unacceptable meal to them,
+especially after feeding so long on oysters and clams. So, beholding the
+dead stag, they felt of its ribs in a knowing way, and lost no time in
+kindling a fire, of drift-wood, to cook it. The rest of the day was spent
+in feasting; and if these enormous eaters got up from table at sunset, it
+was only because they could not scrape another morsel off the poor
+animal's bones.
+
+The next morning their appetites were as sharp as ever. They looked at
+Ulysses, as if they expected him to clamber up the cliff again, and come
+back with another fat deer upon his shoulders. Instead of setting out,
+however, he summoned the whole crew together, and told them it was in vain
+to hope that he could kill a stag every day for their dinner, and
+therefore it was advisable to think of some other mode of satisfying their
+hunger.
+
+"Now," said he, "when I was on the cliff yesterday, I discovered that this
+island is inhabited. At a considerable distance from the shore stood a
+marble palace, which appeared to be very spacious, and had a great deal of
+smoke curling out of one of its chimneys."
+
+"Aha!" muttered some of his companions, smacking their lips. "That smoke
+must have come from the kitchen fire. There was a good dinner on the spit;
+and no doubt there will be as good a one to-day."
+
+"But," continued the wise Ulysses, "you must remember, my good friends,
+our misadventure in the cavern of one-eyed Polyphemus, the Cyclops!
+Instead of his ordinary milk diet, did he not eat up two of our comrades
+for his supper, and a couple more for breakfast, and two at his supper
+again? Methinks I see him yet, the hideous monster, scanning us with that
+great red eye, in the middle of his forehead, to single out the fattest.
+And then again, only a few days ago, did we not fall into the hands of the
+king of the Laestrygons, and those other horrible giants, his subjects, who
+devoured a great many more of us than are now left? To tell you the truth,
+if we go to yonder palace, there can be no question that we shall make our
+appearance at the dinner-table; but whether seated as guests or served up
+as food, is a point to be seriously considered."
+
+"Either way," murmured some of the hungriest of the crew, "it will be
+better than starvation; particularly if one could be sure of being well
+fattened beforehand and daintily cooked afterwards."
+
+"That is a matter of taste," said King Ulysses, "and, for my own part,
+neither the most careful fattening nor the daintiest of cookery would
+reconcile me to being dished at last. My proposal is, therefore, that we
+divide ourselves into two equal parties, and ascertain, by drawing lots,
+which of the two shall go to the palace, and beg for food and assistance.
+If these can be obtained, all is well. If not, and if the inhabitants
+prove as inhospitable as Polyphemus or the Laestrygons, then there will but
+half of us perish, and the remainder may set sail and escape."
+
+As nobody objected to this scheme, Ulysses proceeded to count the whole
+band, and found that there were forty-six men, including himself. He then
+numbered off twenty-two of them, and put Eurylochus (who was one of his
+chief officers, and second only to himself in sagacity) at their head.
+Ulysses took command of the remaining twenty-two men, in person. Then,
+taking off his helmet, he put two shells into it, on one of which was
+written, "Go," and on the other, "Stay." Another person now held the
+helmet, while Ulysses and Eurylochus drew out each a shell; and the word
+"Go" was found written on that which Eurylochus had drawn. In this manner
+it was decided that Ulysses and his twenty-two men were to remain at the
+seaside until the other party should have found out what sort of treatment
+they might expect at the mysterious palace. As there was no help for it,
+Eurylochus immediately set forth at the head of his twenty-two followers,
+who went off in a very melancholy state of mind, leaving their friends in
+hardly better spirits than themselves.
+
+No sooner had they clambered up the cliff, than they discerned the tall
+marble towers of the palace, ascending, as white as snow, out of the
+lovely green shadow of the trees which surrounded it. A gush of smoke came
+from a chimney in the rear of the edifice. This vapor rose high in the
+air, and meeting with a breeze, was wafted seaward, and made to pass over
+the heads of the hungry mariners. When people's appetites are keen, they
+have a very quick scent for anything savory in the wind.
+
+"That smoke comes from the kitchen!" cried one of them, turning up his
+nose as high as he could, and snuffing eagerly. "And, as sure as I'm a
+half-starved vagabond, I smell roast meat in it."
+
+"Pig, roast pig!" said another. "Ah, the dainty little porker! My mouth
+waters for him."
+
+"Let us make haste," cried the others, "or we shall be too late for the
+good cheer!"
+
+But scarcely had they made half a dozen steps from the edge of the cliff,
+when a bird came fluttering to meet them. It was the same pretty little
+bird, with the purple wings and body, the yellow legs, the golden collar
+round its neck, and the crown-like tuft upon its head, whose behavior had
+so much surprised Ulysses. It hovered about Eurylochus, and almost brushed
+his face with its wings.
+
+"Peep, peep, pe--weep!" chirped the bird.
+
+So plaintively intelligent was the sound, that it seemed as if the little
+creature were going to break its heart with some mighty secret that it had
+to tell, and only this one poor note to tell it with.
+
+"My pretty bird," said Eurylochus,--for he was a wary person, and let no
+token of harm escape his notice,--"my pretty bird, who sent you hither?
+And what is the message which you bring?"
+
+"Peep, peep, pe--weep!" replied the bird, very sorrowfully.
+
+Then it flew towards the edge of the cliff, and looked round at them, as
+if exceedingly anxious that they should return whence they came.
+Eurylochus and a few of the others were inclined to turn back. They could
+not help suspecting that the purple bird must be aware of something
+mischievous that would befall them at the palace, and the knowledge of
+which affected its airy spirit with a human sympathy and sorrow. But the
+rest of the voyagers, snuffing up the smoke from the palace kitchen,
+ridiculed the idea of returning to the vessel. One of them (more brutal
+than his fellows, and the most notorious gormandizer in the whole crew)
+said such a cruel and wicked thing, that I wonder the mere thought did not
+turn him into a wild beast in shape, as he already was in his nature.
+
+"This troublesome and impertinent little fowl," said he, "would make a
+delicate titbit to begin dinner with. Just one plump morsel, melting away
+between the teeth. If he comes within my reach, I'll catch him, and give
+him to the palace cook to be roasted on a skewer."
+
+The words were hardly out of his mouth, before the purple bird flew away,
+crying, "Peep, peep, pe--weep," more dolorously than ever.
+
+"That bird," remarked Eurylochus, "knows more than we do about what awaits
+us at the palace."
+
+"Come on, then," cried his comrades, "and we'll soon know as much as he
+does."
+
+The party, accordingly, went onward through the green and pleasant wood.
+Every little while they caught new glimpses of the marble palace, which
+looked more and more beautiful the nearer they approached it. They soon
+entered a broad pathway, which seemed to be very neatly kept, and which
+went winding along with streaks of sunshine falling across it, and specks
+of light quivering among the deepest shadows that fell from the lofty
+trees. It was bordered, too, with a great many sweet-smelling flowers,
+such as the mariners had never seen before. So rich and beautiful they
+were that, if the shrubs grew wild here and were native in the soil, then
+this island was surely the flower-garden of the whole earth; or, if
+transplanted from some other clime, it must have been from the Happy
+Islands that lay towards the golden sunset.
+
+"There has been a great deal of pains foolishly wasted on these flowers,"
+observed one of the company; and I tell you what he said, that you may
+keep in mind what gormandizers they were. "For my part, if I were the
+owner of the palace, I would bid my gardener cultivate nothing but savory
+potherbs to make a stuffing for roast meat, or to flavor a stew with."
+
+"Well said!" cried the others. "But I'll warrant you there's a kitchen
+garden in the rear of the palace."
+
+At one place they came to a crystal spring, and paused to drink at it for
+want of liquor which they liked better. Looking into its bosom, they
+beheld their own faces dimly reflected, but so extravagantly distorted by
+the gush and motion of the water, that each one of them appeared to be
+laughing at himself and all his companions. So ridiculous were these
+images of themselves, indeed, that they did really laugh aloud, and could
+hardly be grave again as soon as they wished. And after they had drunk,
+they grew still merrier than before.
+
+"It has a twang of the wine-cask in it," said one, smacking his lips.
+
+"Make haste!" cried his fellows; "we'll find the wine-cask itself at the
+palace; and that will be better than a hundred crystal fountains."
+
+Then they quickened their pace, and capered for joy at the thought of the
+savory banquet at which they hoped to be guests. But Eurylochus told them
+that he felt as if he were walking in a dream.
+
+"If I am really awake," continued he, "then, in my opinion, we are on the
+point of meeting with some stranger adventure than any that befell us in
+the cave of Polyphemus, or among the gigantic man-eating Laestrygons, or in
+the windy palace of King AEolus, which stands on a brazen-walled island.
+This kind of dreamy feeling always comes over me before any wonderful
+occurrence. If you take my advice, you will turn back."
+
+"No, no," answered his comrades, snuffing the air, in which the scent from
+the palace kitchen was now very perceptible. "We would not turn back,
+though we were certain that the king of the Laestrygons, as big as a
+mountain, would sit at the head of the table, and huge Polyphemus, the
+one-eyed Cyclops, at its foot."
+
+At length they came within full sight of the palace, which proved to be
+very large and lofty, with a great number of airy pinnacles upon its roof.
+Though it was now midday, and the sun shone brightly over the marble
+front, yet its snowy whiteness and its fantastic style of architecture
+made it look unreal, like the frostwork on a window-pane, or like the
+shapes of castles which one sees among the clouds by moonlight. But just
+then a puff of wind brought down the smoke of the kitchen chimney among
+them, and caused each man to smell the odor of the dish that he liked
+best; and, after scenting it, they thought everything else moonshine, and
+nothing real save this palace, and save the banquet that was evidently
+ready to be served up in it.
+
+So they hastened their steps towards the portal, but had not got half-way
+across the wide lawn, when a pack of lions, tigers, and wolves came
+bounding to meet them. The terrified mariners started back, expecting no
+better fate than to be torn to pieces and devoured. To their surprise and
+joy, however, these wild beasts merely capered around them, wagging their
+tails, offering their heads to be stroked and patted, and behaving just
+like so many well-bred house-dogs, when they wish to express their delight
+at meeting their master or their master's friends. The biggest lion licked
+the feet of Eurylochus; and every other lion, and every wolf and tiger,
+singled out one of his two and twenty followers, whom the beast fondled as
+if he loved him better than a beef-bone.
+
+But, for all that, Eurylochus imagined that he saw something fierce and
+savage in their eyes; nor would he have been surprised, at any moment, to
+feel the big lion's terrible claws, or to see each of the tigers make a
+deadly spring, or each wolf leap at the throat of the man whom he had
+fondled. Their mildness seemed unreal, and a mere freak; but their savage
+nature was as true as their teeth and claws.
+
+Nevertheless, the men went safely across the lawn with the wild beasts
+frisking about them, and doing no manner of harm; although, as they
+mounted the steps of the palace, you might possibly have heard a low
+growl, particularly from the wolves, as if they thought it a pity, after
+all, to let the strangers pass without so much as tasting what they were
+made of.
+
+Eurylochus and his followers now passed under a lofty portal, and looked
+through the open doorway into the interior of the palace. The first thing
+that they saw was a spacious hall, and a fountain in the middle of it,
+gushing up towards the ceiling out of a marble basin, and falling back
+into it with a continual plash. The water of this fountain, as it spouted
+upward, was constantly taking new shapes, not very distinctly, but plainly
+enough for a nimble fancy to recognize what they were. Now it was the
+shape of a man in a long robe, the fleecy whiteness of which was made out
+of the fountain's spray; now it was a lion, or a tiger, or a wolf, or an
+ass, or, as often as anything else, a hog, wallowing in the marble basin
+as if it were his sty. It was either magic or some very curious machinery
+that caused the gushing waterspout to assume all these forms. But, before
+the strangers had time to look closely at this wonderful sight, their
+attention was drawn off by a very sweet and agreeable sound. A woman's
+voice was singing melodiously in another room of the palace, and with her
+voice was mingled the noise of a loom, at which she was probably seated,
+weaving a rich texture of cloth, and intertwining the high and low
+sweetness of her voice into a rich tissue of harmony.
+
+By and by the song came to an end; and then, all at once, there were
+several feminine voices, talking airily and cheerfully, with now and then
+a merry burst of laughter, such as you may always hear when three or four
+young women sit at work together.
+
+"What a sweet song that was!" exclaimed one of the voyagers.
+
+"Too sweet, indeed," answered Eurylochus, shaking his head. "Yet it was
+not so sweet as the song of the Sirens, those birdlike damsels who wanted
+to tempt us on the rocks, so that our vessel might be wrecked, and our
+bones left whitening along the shore."
+
+"But just listen to the pleasant voices of those maidens, and that buzz of
+the loom, as the shuttle passes to and fro," said another comrade. "What a
+domestic, household, homelike sound it is! Ah, before that weary siege of
+Troy, I used to hear the buzzing loom and the women's voices under my own
+roof. Shall I never hear them again? nor taste those nice little savory
+dishes which my dearest wife knew how to serve up?"
+
+"Tush! we shall fare better here," said another. "But how innocently those
+women are babbling together, without guessing that we overhear them! And
+mark that richest voice of all, so pleasant and familiar, but which yet
+seems to have the authority of a mistress among them. Let us show
+ourselves at once. What harm can the lady of the palace and her maidens do
+to mariners and warriors like us?"
+
+"Remember," said Eurylochus, "that it was a young maiden who beguiled
+three of our friends into the palace of the king of the Laestrygons, who
+ate up one of them in the twinkling of an eye."
+
+No warning or persuasion, however, had any effect on his companions. They
+went up to a pair of folding-doors at the farther end of the hall, and,
+throwing them wide open, passed into the next room. Eurylochus, meanwhile,
+had stepped behind a pillar. In the short moment while the folding-doors
+opened and closed again, he caught a glimpse of a very beautiful woman
+rising from the loom and coming to meet the poor weather-beaten wanderers,
+with a hospitable smile and her hand stretched out in welcome. There were
+four other young women, who joined their hands and danced merrily forward,
+making gestures of obeisance to the strangers. They were only less
+beautiful than the lady who seemed to be their mistress. Yet Eurylochus
+fancied that one of them had sea-green hair, and that the close-fitting
+bodice of a second looked like the bark of a tree, and that both the
+others had something odd in their aspect, although he could not quite
+determine what it was, in the little while that he had to examine them.
+
+The folding-doors swung quickly back, and left him standing behind the
+pillar, in the solitude of the outer hall. There Eurylochus waited until
+he was quite weary, and listened eagerly to every sound, but without
+hearing anything that could help him to guess what had become of his
+friends. Footsteps, it is true, seemed to be passing and repassing in
+other parts of the palace. Then there was a clatter of silver dishes, or
+golden ones, which made him imagine a rich feast in a splendid
+banqueting-hall. But by and by he heard a tremendous grunting and
+squealing, and then a sudden scampering, like that of small, hard hoofs
+over a marble floor, while the voices of the mistress and her four
+handmaidens were screaming all together, in tones of anger and derision.
+Eurylochus could not conceive what had happened, unless a drove of swine
+had broken into the palace, attracted by the smell of the feast. Chancing
+to cast his eyes at the fountain, he saw that it did not shift its shape,
+as formerly, nor looked either like a long-robed man, or a lion, a tiger,
+a wolf, or an ass. It looked like nothing but a hog, which lay wallowing
+in the marble basin, and filled it from brim to brim.
+
+But we must leave the prudent Eurylochus waiting in the outer hall, and
+follow his friends into the inner secrecy of the palace. As soon as the
+beautiful woman saw them, she arose from the loom, as I have told you, and
+came forward, smiling, and stretching out her hand. She took the hand of
+the foremost among them, and bade him and the whole party welcome.
+
+"You have been long expected, my good friends," said she. "I and my
+maidens are well acquainted with you, although you do not appear to
+recognize us. Look at this piece of tapestry, and judge if your faces must
+not have been familiar to us."
+
+So the voyagers examined the web of cloth which the beautiful woman had
+been weaving in her loom; and to their vast astonishment they saw their
+own figures perfectly represented in different colored threads. It was a
+lifelike picture of their recent adventures, showing them in the cave of
+Polyphemus, and how they had put out his one great moony eye; while in
+another part of the tapestry they were untying the leathern bags, puffed
+out with contrary winds; and farther on, they beheld themselves scampering
+away from the gigantic king of the Laestrygons, who had caught one of them
+by the leg. Lastly, there they were, sitting on the desolate shore of this
+very island, hungry and downcast, and looking ruefully at the bare bones
+of the stag which they devoured yesterday. This was as far as the work had
+yet proceeded; but when the beautiful woman should again sit down at her
+loom, she would probably make a picture of what had since happened to the
+strangers, and of what was now going to happen.
+
+"You see," she said, "that I know all about your troubles; and you cannot
+doubt that I desire to make you happy for as long a time as you may remain
+with me. For this purpose, my honored guests, I have ordered a banquet to
+be prepared. Fish, fowl, and flesh, roasted, and in luscious stews, and
+seasoned, I trust, to all your tastes, are ready to be served up. If your
+appetites tell you it is dinner-time, then come with me to the festal
+saloon."
+
+At this kind invitation, the hungry mariners were quite overjoyed; and one
+of them, taking upon himself to be spokesman, assured their hospitable
+hostess that any hour of the day was dinner-time with them, whenever they
+could get flesh to put in the pot, and fire to boil it with. So the
+beautiful woman led the way; and the four maidens (one of them had
+sea-green hair, another a bodice of oak-bark, a third sprinkled a shower
+of water-drops from her fingers' ends, and the fourth had some other
+oddity, which I have forgotten), all these followed behind, and hurried
+the guests along, until they entered a magnificent saloon. It was built in
+a perfect oval, and lighted from a crystal dome above. Around the walls
+were ranged two and twenty thrones, overhung by canopies of crimson and
+gold, and provided with the softest of cushions, which were tasseled and
+fringed with gold cord. Each of the strangers was invited to sit down; and
+there they were, two and twenty storm-beaten mariners, in worn and
+tattered garb, sitting on two and twenty cushioned and canopied thrones,
+so rich and gorgeous that the proudest monarch had nothing more splendid
+in his stateliest hall.
+
+Then you might have seen the guests nodding, winking with one eye, and
+leaning from one throne to another, to communicate their satisfaction in
+hoarse whispers.
+
+"Our good hostess has made kings of us all," said one. "Ha! do you smell
+the feast? I'll engage it will be fit to set before two-and-twenty kings."
+
+"I hope," said another, "it will be, mainly, good substantial joints,
+sirloins, spareribs, and hinder quarters, without too many kickshaws. If I
+thought the good lady would not take it amiss, I should call for a fat
+slice of fried bacon to begin with."
+
+Ah, the gluttons and gormandizers! You see how it was with them. In the
+loftiest seats of dignity, on royal thrones, they could think of nothing
+but their greedy appetite, which was the portion of their nature that they
+shared with wolves and swine; so that they resembled those vilest of
+animals far more than they did kings,--if, indeed, kings were what they
+ought to be.
+
+But the beautiful woman now clapped her hands; and immediately there
+entered a train of two and twenty serving-men, bringing dishes of the
+richest food, all hot from the kitchen fire, and sending up such a steam
+that it hung like a cloud below the crystal dome of the saloon. An equal
+number of attendants brought great flagons of wine, of various kinds, some
+of which sparkled as it was poured out, and went bubbling down the throat;
+while, of other sorts, the purple liquor was so clear that you could see
+the wrought figures at the bottom of the goblet. While the servants
+supplied the two and twenty guests with food and drink, the hostess and
+her four maidens went from one throne to another, exhorting them to eat
+their fill, and to quaff wine abundantly, and thus to recompense
+themselves, at this one banquet, for the many days when they had gone
+without a dinner. But, whenever the mariners were not looking at them
+(which was pretty often, as they looked chiefly into the basins and
+platters), the beautiful woman and her damsels turned aside and laughed.
+Even the servants, as they knelt down to present the dishes, might be seen
+to grin and sneer, while the guests were helping themselves to the offered
+dainties.
+
+And once in a while the strangers seemed to taste something that they did
+not like.
+
+"Here is an odd kind of a spice in this dish," said one. "I can't say it
+quite suits my palate. Down it goes, however."
+
+"Send a good draught of wine down your throat," said his comrade on the
+next throne. "That is the stuff to make this sort of cookery relish well.
+Though I must needs say, the wine has a queer taste too. But the more I
+drink of it the better I like the flavor."
+
+Whatever little fault they might find with the dishes, they sat at dinner
+a prodigiously long while; and it would really have made you ashamed to
+see how they swilled down the liquor and gobbled up the food. They sat, on
+golden thrones, to be sure; but they behaved like pigs in a sty, and, if
+they had had their wits about them, they might have guessed that this was
+the opinion of their beautiful hostess and her maidens. It brings a blush
+into my face to reckon up, in my own mind, what mountains of meat and
+pudding, and what gallons of wine, these two and twenty guzzlers and
+gormandizers ate and drank. They forgot all about their homes, and their
+wives, and children, and all about Ulysses, and everything else, except
+this banquet, at which they wanted to keep feasting forever. But at length
+they began to give over, from mere incapacity to hold any more.
+
+"That last bit of fat is too much for me," said one.
+
+"And I have not room for another morsel," said his next neighbor, heaving
+a sigh. "What a pity! My appetite is as sharp as ever."
+
+In short, they all left off eating, and leaned back on their thrones, with
+such a stupid and helpless aspect as made them ridiculous to behold. When
+their hostess saw this, she laughed aloud; so did her four damsels; so did
+the two-and-twenty serving men that bore the dishes, and their
+two-and-twenty fellows that poured out the wine. And the louder they all
+laughed, the more stupid and helpless did the two-and-twenty gormandizers
+look. Then the beautiful woman took her stand in the middle of the saloon,
+and stretching out a slender rod (it had been all the while in her hand,
+although they never noticed it till this moment), she turned it from one
+guest to another, until each had felt it pointed at himself. Beautiful as
+her face was, and though there was a smile on it, it looked just as wicked
+and mischievous as the ugliest serpent that ever was seen; and fat-witted
+as the voyagers had made themselves, they began to suspect that they had
+fallen into the power of an evil-minded enchantress.
+
+"Wretches," cried she, "you have abused a lady's hospitality; and in this
+princely saloon your behavior has been suited to a hogpen. You are already
+swine in everything but the human form, which you disgrace, and which I
+myself should be ashamed to keep a moment longer, were you to share it
+with me. But it will require only the slightest exercise of magic to make
+the exterior conform to the hoggish disposition. Assume your proper
+shapes, gormandizers, and begone to the sty!"
+
+Uttering these last words, she waved her wand; and stamping her foot
+imperiously, each of the guests was struck aghast at beholding, instead of
+his comrades in human shape, one and twenty hogs sitting on the same
+number of golden thrones. Each man (as he still supposed himself to be)
+essayed to give a cry of surprise, but found that he could merely grunt,
+and that, in a word, he was just such another beast as his companions. It
+looked so intolerably absurd to see hogs on cushioned thrones, that they
+made haste to wallow down upon all fours, like other swine. They tried to
+groan and beg for mercy, but forthwith emitted the most awful grunting and
+squealing that ever came out of swinish throats. They would have wrung
+their hands in despair, but, attempting to do so, grew all the more
+desperate for seeing themselves squatted on their hams, and pawing the air
+with their fore trotters. Dear me! what pendulous ears they had! what
+little red eyes, half buried in fat! and what long snouts, instead of
+Grecian noses!
+
+But brutes as they certainly were, they yet had enough of human nature in
+them to be shocked at their own hideousness; and still intending to groan,
+they uttered a viler grunt and squeal than before. So harsh and
+ear-piercing it was, that you would have fancied a butcher was sticking
+his knife into each of their throats, or, at the very least, that somebody
+was pulling every hog by his funny little twist of a tail.
+
+"Begone to your sty!" cried the enchantress, giving them some smart
+strokes with her wand; and then she turned to the serving-men. "Drive out
+these swine, and throw down some acorns for them to eat."
+
+The door of the saloon being flung open, the drove of hogs ran in all
+directions save the right one, in accordance with their hoggish
+perversity, but were finally driven into the back yard of the palace. It
+was a sight to bring tears into one's eyes (and I hope none of you will be
+cruel enough to laugh at it) to see the poor creatures go snuffing along,
+picking up here a cabbage leaf and there a turnip-top, and rooting their
+noses in the earth for whatever they could find. In their sty, moreover,
+they behaved more piggishly than the pigs that had been born so; for they
+bit and snorted at one another, put their feet in the trough, and gobbled
+up their victuals in a ridiculous hurry; and, when there was nothing more
+to be had, they made a great pile of themselves among some unclean straw
+and fell fast asleep. If they had any human reason left, it was just
+enough to keep them wondering when they should be slaughtered, and what
+quality of bacon they should make.
+
+Meantime, as I told you before, Eurylochus had waited, and waited, and
+waited, in the entrance-hall of the palace, without being able to
+comprehend what had befallen his friends. At last, when the swinish uproar
+resounded through the palace, and when he saw the image of a hog in the
+marble basin, he thought it best to hasten back to the vessel, and inform
+the wise Ulysses of these marvelous occurrences. So he ran as fast as he
+could down the steps, and never stopped to draw breath till he reached the
+shore.
+
+"Why do you come alone?" asked King Ulysses, as soon as he saw him. "Where
+are your two and twenty comrades?"
+
+At these questions Eurylochus burst into tears.
+
+"Alas!" cried he, "I greatly fear that we shall never see one of their
+faces again."
+
+Then he told Ulysses all that had happened, as far as he knew it, and
+added that he suspected the beautiful woman to be a vile enchantress, and
+the marble palace, magnificent as it looked, to be only a dismal cavern in
+reality. As for his companions, he could not imagine what had become of
+them, unless they had been given to the swine to be devoured alive. At
+this intelligence all the voyagers were greatly affrighted. But Ulysses
+lost no time in girding on his sword, and hanging his bow and quiver over
+his shoulders, and taking a spear in his right hand. When his followers
+saw their wise leader making these preparations, they inquired whither he
+was going, and earnestly besought him not to leave them.
+
+"You are our king," cried they; "and what is more, you are the wisest man
+in the whole world, and nothing but your wisdom and courage can get us out
+of this danger. If you desert us, and go to the enchanted palace, you will
+suffer the same fate as our poor companions, and not a soul of us will
+ever see our dear Ithaca again."
+
+"As I am your king," answered Ulysses, "and wiser than any of you, it is
+therefore the more my duty to see what has befallen our comrades, and
+whether anything can yet be done to rescue them. Wait for me here until
+to-morrow. If I do not then return, you must hoist sail, and endeavor to
+find your way to our native land. For my part, I am answerable for the
+fate of these poor mariners, who have stood by my side in battle, and been
+so often drenched to the skin, along with me, by the same tempestuous
+surges. I will either bring them back with me or perish."
+
+Had his followers dared, they would have detained him by force. But King
+Ulysses frowned sternly on them, and shook his spear, and bade them stop
+him at their peril. Seeing him so determined, they let him go, and sat
+down on the sand, as disconsolate a set of people as could be, waiting and
+praying for his return.
+
+It happened to Ulysses, just as before, that, when he had gone a few steps
+from the edge of the cliff, the purple bird came fluttering towards him,
+crying, "Peep, peep, pe--weep!" and using all the art it could to persuade
+him to go no farther.
+
+"What mean you, little bird?" cried Ulysses. "You are arrayed like a king
+in purple and gold, and wear a golden crown upon your head. Is it because
+I too am a king that you desire so earnestly to speak with me? If you can
+talk in human language, say what you would have me do."
+
+"Peep!" answered the purple bird, very dolorously. "Peep, peep,
+pe--we--ep!"
+
+Certainly there lay some heavy anguish at the little bird's heart; and it
+was a sorrowful predicament that he could not, at least, have the
+consolation of telling what it was. But Ulysses had no time to waste in
+trying to get at the mystery. He therefore quickened his pace, and had
+gone a good way along the pleasant wood-path, when there met him a young
+man of very brisk and intelligent aspect, and clad in a rather singular
+garb. He wore a short cloak, and a sort of cap that seemed to be furnished
+with a pair of wings; and from the lightness of his step, you would have
+supposed that there might likewise be wings on his feet. To enable him to
+walk still better (for he was always on one journey or another), he
+carried a winged staff, around which two serpents were wriggling and
+twisting. In short, I have said enough to make you guess that it was
+Quicksilver; and Ulysses (who knew him of old, and had learned a great
+deal of his wisdom from him) recognized him in a moment.
+
+"Whither are you going in such a hurry, wise Ulysses?" asked Quicksilver.
+"Do you not know that this island is enchanted? The wicked enchantress
+(whose name is Circe, the sister of King AEetes) dwells in the marble
+palace which you see yonder among the trees. By her magic arts, she
+changes every human being into the brute, beast, or fowl whom he happens
+most to resemble."
+
+"That little bird which met me at the edge of the cliff," exclaimed
+Ulysses; "was he a human being once?"
+
+"Yes," answered Quicksilver. "He was once a king, named Picus, and a
+pretty good sort of a king too, only rather too proud of his purple robe,
+and his crown, and the golden chain about his neck; so he was forced to
+take the shape of a gaudy-feathered bird. The lions, and wolves, and
+tigers who will come running to meet you, in front of the palace, were
+formerly fierce and cruel men, resembling in their dispositions the wild
+beasts whose forms they now rightfully wear."
+
+"And my poor companions," said Ulysses. "Have they undergone a similar
+change, through the arts of this wicked Circe?"
+
+"You well know what gormandizers they were," replied Quicksilver; and,
+rogue that he was, he could not help laughing at the joke. "So you will
+not be surprised to hear that they have all taken the shapes of swine! If
+Circe had never done anything worse, I really should not think her so very
+much to blame."
+
+"But can I do nothing to help them?" inquired Ulysses.
+
+"It will require all your wisdom," said Quicksilver, "and a little of my
+own into the bargain, to keep your royal and sagacious self from being
+transformed into a fox. But do as I bid you, and the matter may end better
+than it has begun."
+
+While he was speaking, Quicksilver seemed to be in search of something; he
+went stooping along the ground, and soon laid his hand on a little plant
+with a snow-white flower, which he plucked and smelt of. Ulysses had been
+looking at that very spot only just before; and it appeared to him that
+the plant had burst into full flower the instant when Quicksilver touched
+it with his fingers.
+
+"Take this flower, King Ulysses," said he. "Guard it as you do your
+eyesight; for I can assure you it is exceedingly rare and precious, and
+you might seek the whole earth over without ever finding another like it.
+Keep it in your hand, and smell of it frequently after you enter the
+palace, and while you are talking with the enchantress. Especially when
+she offers you food, or a draught of wine out of her goblet, be careful to
+fill your nostrils with the flower's fragrance. Follow these directions,
+and you may defy her magic arts to change you into a fox."
+
+Quicksilver then gave him some further advice how to behave, and, bidding
+him be bold and prudent, again assured him that, powerful as Circe was, he
+would have a fair prospect of coming safely out of her enchanted palace.
+After listening attentively, Ulysses thanked his good friend, and resumed
+his way. But he had taken only a few steps, when, recollecting some other
+questions which he wished to ask, he turned round again, and beheld nobody
+on the spot where Quicksilver had stood; for that winged cap of his, and
+those winged shoes with the help of the winged staff, had carried him
+quickly out of sight.
+
+When Ulysses reached the lawn in front of the palace, the lions and other
+savage animals came bounding to meet him, and would have fawned upon him
+and licked his feet. But the wise king struck at them with his long spear,
+and sternly bade them begone out of his path; for he knew that they had
+once been bloodthirsty men, and would now tear him limb from limb, instead
+of fawning upon him, could they do the mischief that was in their hearts.
+The wild beasts yelped and glared at him, and stood at a distance while he
+ascended the palace steps.
+
+On entering the hall, Ulysses saw the magic fountain in the centre of it.
+The up-gushing water had now again taken the shape of a man in a long,
+white, fleecy robe, who appeared to be making gestures of welcome. The
+king likewise heard the noise of the shuttle in the loom, and the sweet
+melody of the beautiful woman's song, and then the pleasant voices of
+herself and the four maidens talking together, with peals of merry
+laughter intermixed. But Ulysses did not waste much time in listening to
+the laughter or the song. He leaned his spear against one of the pillars
+of the hall, and then, after loosening his sword in the scabbard, stepped
+boldly forward, and threw the folding-doors wide open. The moment she
+beheld his stately figure standing in the doorway, the beautiful woman
+rose from the loom, and ran to meet him with a glad smile throwing its
+sunshine over her face, and both her hands extended.
+
+"Welcome, brave stranger!" cried she. "We were expecting you."
+
+And the nymph with the sea-green hair made a courtesy down to the ground,
+and likewise bade him welcome; so did her sister with the bodice of oaken
+bark, and she that sprinkled dew-drops from her fingers' ends, and the
+fourth one with some oddity which I cannot remember. And Circe, as the
+beautiful enchantress was called (who had deluded so many persons that she
+did not doubt of being able to delude Ulysses, not imagining how wise he
+was), again addressed him.
+
+"Your companions," said she, "have already been received into my palace,
+and have enjoyed the hospitable treatment to which the propriety of their
+behavior so well entitles them. If such be your pleasure, you shall first
+take some refreshment, and then join them in the elegant apartments which
+they now occupy. See, I and my maidens have been weaving their figures
+into this piece of tapestry."
+
+She pointed to the web of beautifully woven cloth in the loom. Circe and
+the four nymphs must have been very diligently at work since the arrival
+of the mariners; for a great many yards of tapestry had now been wrought,
+in addition to what I before described. In this new part, Ulysses saw his
+two and twenty friends represented as sitting on cushioned and canopied
+thrones, greedily devouring dainties and quaffing deep draughts of wine.
+The work had not yet gone any further. Oh, no, indeed! The enchantress was
+far too cunning to let Ulysses see the mischief which her magic arts had
+since brought upon the gormandizers.
+
+"As for yourself, valiant sir," said Circe, "judging by the dignity of
+your aspect, I take you to be nothing less than a king. Deign to follow
+me, and you shall be treated as befits your rank."
+
+So Ulysses followed her into the oval saloon, where his two and twenty
+comrades had devoured the banquet which ended so disastrously for
+themselves. But all this while he had held the snow-white flower in his
+hand, and had constantly smelt of it while Circe was speaking; and as he
+crossed the threshold of the saloon, he took good care to inhale several
+long and deep snuffs of its fragrance. Instead of two and twenty thrones,
+which had before been ranged around the wall, there was now only a single
+throne, in the centre of the apartment. But this was surely the most
+magnificent seat that ever a king or an emperor reposed himself upon, all
+made of chased gold, studded with precious stones, with a cushion that
+looked like a soft heap of living roses, and overhung by a canopy of
+sunlight which Circe knew how to weave into drapery. The enchantress took
+Ulysses by the hand, and made him sit down upon this dazzling throne.
+Then, clapping her hands, she summoned the chief butler.
+
+"Bring hither," said she, "the goblet that is set apart for kings to drink
+out of. And fill it with the same delicious wine which my royal brother,
+King AEetes, praised so highly, when he visited me with my fair daughter
+Medea. That good and amiable child! Were she now here, it would delight
+her to see me offering this wine to my honored guest."
+
+But Ulysses, while the butler was gone for the wine, held the snow-white
+flower to his nose.
+
+"Is it a wholesome wine?" he asked.
+
+At this the four maidens tittered; whereupon the enchantress looked round
+at them, with an aspect of severity.
+
+"It is the wholesomest juice that ever was squeezed out of the grape,"
+said she; "for, instead of disguising a man, as other liquor is apt to do,
+it brings him to his true self, and shows him as he ought to be."
+
+The chief butler liked nothing better than to see people turned into
+swine, or making any kind of a beast of themselves; so he made haste to
+bring the royal goblet, filled with a liquid as bright as gold, and which
+kept sparkling upward, and throwing a sunny spray over the brim. But,
+delightfully as the wine looked, it was mingled with the most potent
+enchantments that Circe knew how to concoct. For every drop of the pure
+grape-juice there were two drops of the pure mischief; and the danger of
+the thing was, that the mischief made it taste all the better. The mere
+smell of the bubbles, which effervesced at the brim, was enough to turn a
+man's beard into pig's bristles, or make a lion's claws grow out of his
+fingers, or a fox's brush behind him.
+
+"Drink, my noble guest," said Circe, smiling as she presented him with the
+goblet. "You will find in this draught a solace for all your troubles."
+
+King Ulysses took the goblet with his right hand, while with his left he
+held the snow-white flower to his nostrils, and drew in so long a breath
+that his lungs were quite filled with its pure and simple fragrance. Then,
+drinking off all the wine, he looked the enchantress calmly in the face.
+
+"Wretch," cried Circe, giving him a smart stroke with her wand, "how dare
+you keep your human shape a moment longer? Take the form of the brute whom
+you most resemble. If a hog, go join your fellow swine in the sty; if a
+lion, a wolf, a tiger, go howl with the wild beasts on the lawn; if a fox,
+go exercise your craft in stealing poultry. Thou hast quaffed off my wine,
+and canst be man no longer."
+
+But, such was the virtue of the snow-white flower, instead of wallowing
+down from his throne in swinish shape or taking any other brutal form,
+Ulysses looked even more manly and kinglike than before. He gave the magic
+goblet a toss, and sent it clashing over the marble floor, to the farthest
+end of the saloon. Then, drawing his sword, he seized the enchantress by
+her beautiful ringlets, and made a gesture as if he meant to strike off
+her head at one blow.
+
+"Wicked Circe," cried he, in a terrible voice, "this sword shall put an
+end to thy enchantments. Thou shalt die, vile wretch, and do no more
+mischief in the world, by tempting human beings into the vices which make
+beasts of them."
+
+The tone and countenance of Ulysses were so awful, and his sword gleamed
+so brightly and seemed to have so intolerably keen an edge, that Circe was
+almost killed by the mere fright, without waiting for a blow. The chief
+butler scrambled out of the saloon, picking up the golden goblet as he
+went; and the enchantress and the four maidens fell on their knees,
+wringing their hands and screaming for mercy.
+
+"Spare me!" cried Circe,--"spare me, royal and wise Ulysses. For now I
+know that thou art he of whom Quicksilver forewarned me, the most prudent
+of mortals, against whom no enchantments can prevail. Thou only couldst
+have conquered Circe. Spare me, wisest of men. I will show thee true
+hospitality, and even give myself to be thy slave, and this magnificent
+palace to be henceforth thy home."
+
+The four nymphs, meanwhile, were making a most piteous ado; and especially
+the ocean nymph, with the sea-green hair, wept a great deal of salt water,
+and the fountain nymph, besides scattering dewdrops from her fingers'
+ends, nearly melted away into tears. But Ulysses would not be pacified
+until Circe had taken a solemn oath to change back his companions, and as
+many others as he should direct, from their present forms of beast or bird
+into their former shapes of men.
+
+"On these conditions," said he, "I consent to spare your life. Otherwise
+you must die upon the spot."
+
+With a drawn sword hanging over her, the enchantress would readily have
+consented to do as much good as she had hitherto done mischief, however
+little she might like such employment. She therefore led Ulysses out of
+the back entrance of the palace, and showed him the swine in their sty.
+There were about fifty of these unclean beasts in the whole herd; and
+though the greater part were hogs by birth and education, there was
+wonderfully little difference to be seen betwixt them and their new
+brethren who had so recently worn the human shape. To speak critically,
+indeed, the latter rather carried the thing to excess, and seemed to make
+it a point to wallow in the miriest part of the sty, and otherwise to
+outdo the original swine in their own natural vocation. When men once turn
+to brutes, the trifle of man's wit that remains in them adds tenfold to
+their brutality.
+
+The comrades of Ulysses, however, had not quite lost the remembrance of
+having formerly stood erect. When he approached the sty, two and twenty
+enormous swine separated themselves from the herd, and scampered towards
+him, with such a chorus of horrible squealing as made him clap both hands
+to his ears. And yet they did not seem to know what they wanted, nor
+whether they were merely hungry or miserable from some other cause. It was
+curious, in the midst of their distress, to observe them thrusting their
+noses into the mire, in quest of something to eat. The nymph with the
+bodice of oaken bark (she was the hamadryad of an oak) threw a handful of
+acorns among them; and the two and twenty hogs scrambled and fought for
+the prize, as if they had tasted not so much as a noggin of sour milk for
+a twelvemonth.
+
+"These must certainly be my comrades," said Ulysses. "I recognize their
+dispositions. They are hardly worth the trouble of changing them into the
+human form again. Nevertheless, we will have it done, lest their bad
+example should corrupt the other hogs. Let them take their original
+shapes, therefore, Dame Circe, if your skill is equal to the task. It will
+require greater magic, I trow, than it did to make swine of them."
+
+So Circe waved her wand again, and repeated a few magic words, at the
+sound of which the two and twenty hogs pricked up their pendulous ears. It
+was a wonder to behold how their snouts grew shorter and shorter, and
+their mouths (which they seemed to be sorry for, because they could not
+gobble so expeditiously) smaller and smaller, and how one and another
+began to stand upon his hind legs, and scratch his nose with his fore
+trotters. At first the spectators hardly knew whether to call them hogs or
+men, but by and by came to the conclusion that they rather resembled the
+latter. Finally, there stood the twenty-two comrades of Ulysses, looking
+pretty much the same as when they left the vessel.
+
+You must not imagine, however, that the swinish quality had entirely gone
+out of them. When once it fastens itself into a person's character, it is
+very difficult getting rid of it. This was proved by the hamadryad, who,
+being exceedingly fond of mischief, threw another handful of acorns before
+the twenty-two newly restored people; whereupon down they wallowed, in a
+moment, and gobbled them up in a very shameful way. Then, recollecting
+themselves, they scrambled to their feet, and looked more than commonly
+foolish.
+
+"Thanks, noble Ulysses!" they cried. "From brute beasts you have restored
+us to the condition of men again."
+
+"Do not put yourselves to the trouble of thanking me," said the wise king.
+"I fear I have done but little for you."
+
+To say the truth, there was a suspicious kind of a grunt in their voices,
+and for a long time afterwards they spoke gruffly, and were apt to set up
+a squeal.
+
+"It must depend on your own future behavior," added Ulysses, "whether you
+do not find your way back to the sty."
+
+At this moment, the note of a bird sounded from the branch of a
+neighboring tree.
+
+"Peep, peep, pe--wee--ep!"
+
+It was the purple bird, who, all this while, had been sitting over their
+heads, watching what was going forward, and hoping that Ulysses would
+remember how he had done his utmost to keep him and his followers out of
+harm's way. Ulysses ordered Circe instantly to make a king of this good
+little fowl, and leave him exactly as she found him. Hardly were the words
+spoken, and before the bird had time to utter another "Pe--weep," King
+Picus leaped down from the bough of the tree, as majestic a sovereign as
+any in the world, dressed in a long purple robe and gorgeous yellow
+stockings, with a splendidly wrought collar about his neck, and a golden
+crown upon his head. He and King Ulysses exchanged with one another the
+courtesies which belonged to their elevated rank. But from that time
+forth, King Picus was no longer proud of his crown and his trappings of
+royalty, nor of the fact of his being a king; he felt himself merely the
+upper servant of his people, and that it must be his lifelong labor to
+make them better and happier.
+
+As for the lions, tigers, and wolves (though Circe would have restored
+them to their former shapes at his slightest word), Ulysses thought it
+advisable that they should remain as they now were, and thus give warning
+of their cruel dispositions, instead of going about under the guise of
+men, and pretending to human sympathies, while their hearts had the
+blood-thirstiness of wild beasts. So he let them howl as much as they
+liked, but never troubled his head about them. And, when everything was
+settled according to his pleasure, he sent to summon the remainder of his
+comrades, whom he had left at the seashore. These being arrived, with the
+prudent Eurylochus at their head, they all made themselves comfortable in
+Circe's enchanted palace until quite rested and refreshed from the toils
+and hardships of their voyage.
+
+
+
+
+THE SIRENS--SCYLLA AND CHARYBDIS
+
+Translated by George Herbert Palmer
+
+
+I turned me toward my ship, and called my crew to come on board and loose
+the cables. Quickly they came, took places at the pins, and sitting in
+order smote the foaming water with their oars. And for our aid behind our
+dark-bowed ship came a fair wind to fill our sail, a welcome comrade, sent
+us by fair-haired Circe, the mighty goddess, human of speech. When we had
+done our work at the several ropes about the ship, we sat us down, while
+wind and helmsman kept her steady.
+
+Now to my men, with aching heart, I said, "My friends, it is not right for
+only one or two to know the oracles which Circe told, that heavenly
+goddess. Therefore I speak, that, knowing all, we so may die, or fleeing
+death and doom, we may escape. She warns us first against the marvelous
+Sirens, and bids us flee their voice and flowery meadow. Only myself she
+bade to hear their song; but bind me with galling cords, to hold me firm,
+upright upon the mast-block,--round it let the rope be wound. And if I
+should entreat you, and bid you set me free, thereat with still more
+fetters bind me fast."
+
+Thus I, relating all my tale, talked with my comrades. Meanwhile our
+stanch ship swiftly neared the Sirens' island; a fair wind swept her on.
+On a sudden the wind ceased; there came a breathless calm; Heaven hushed
+the waves. My comrades, rising, furled the sail, stowed it on board the
+hollow ship, then sitting at their oars whitened the water with the
+polished blades. But I with my sharp sword cut a great cake of wax into
+small bits, which I then kneaded in my sturdy hands. Soon the wax warmed,
+forced by the powerful pressure and by the rays of the exalted sun, the
+lord of all. Then one by one I stopped the ears of all my crew; and on the
+deck they bound me hand and foot, upright upon the mast-block, round which
+they wound the rope; and sitting down they smote the foaming water with
+their oars. But when we were as far away as one can call, and driving
+swiftly onward, our speeding ship, as it drew near, did not escape the
+Sirens, and thus they lifted up their penetrating voice:--
+
+"Come hither, come, Ulysses, whom all praise! great glory to the Achaians!
+Bring on your ship, and listen to our song. For none has ever passed us in
+a black-hulled ship till from our lips he heard ecstatic song, then went
+his way rejoicing and with larger knowledge. For we know all that on the
+plain of Troy Argives and Trojans suffered at the Gods' behest; we know
+whatever happens on the bounteous earth."
+
+So spoke they, sending forth their glorious song, and my heart longed to
+listen. Knitting my brows, I signed my men to set me free; but bending
+forward, on they rowed. And straightway Perimedes and Eurylochus arose and
+laid upon me still more cords, and drew them tighter. Then, after passing
+by, when we could hear no more the Sirens' voice nor any singing, quickly
+my trusty crew removed the wax with which I stopped their ears, and set me
+free from bondage.
+
+Soon after we left the island, I observed a smoke, I saw high waves and
+heard a plunging sound. From the hands of my frightened men down fell the
+oars, and splashed against the current. There the ship stayed, for they
+worked the tapering oars no more. Along the ship I passed, inspiriting my
+men with cheering words, standing by each in turn:--
+
+"Friends, hitherto we have not been untried in danger. Here is no greater
+danger than when the Cyclops penned us with brutal might in the deep cave.
+Yet out of that, through energy of mine, through will and wisdom, we
+escaped. These dangers, too, I think some day we shall remember. Come
+then, and what I say let us all follow. You with your oars strike the deep
+breakers of the sea, while sitting at the pins, and see if Zeus will set
+us free from present death and let us go in safety. And, helmsman, these
+are my commands for you; lay them to heart, for you control the rudders of
+our hollow ship: keep the ship off that smoke and surf and hug the crags,
+or else, before you know it, she may veer off that way, and you will bring
+us into danger."
+
+So I spoke, and my words they quickly heeded. But Scylla I did not
+name,--that hopeless horror,--for fear through fright my men might cease
+to row, and huddle all together in the hold. I disregarded too the hard
+behest of Circe, when she had said I must by no means arm. Putting on my
+glittering armor and taking in my hands my two long spears, I went upon
+the ship's fore-deck, for thence I looked for the first sight of Scylla of
+the rocks, who brought my men disaster. Nowhere could I descry her; I
+tried my eyes with searching up and down the dusky cliff.
+
+So up the strait we sailed in sadness; for here lay Scylla, and there
+divine Charybdis fearfully sucked the salt sea-water down. Whenever she
+belched it forth, like a kettle in fierce flame all would foam swirling
+up, and overhead spray fell upon the tops of both the crags. But when she
+gulped the salt sea-water down, then all within seemed in a whirl; the
+rock around roared fearfully, and down below the bottom showed, dark with
+the sand. Pale terror seized my men; on her we looked and feared to die.
+
+And now it was that Scylla snatched from the hollow ship six of my
+comrades who were best in skill and strength. Turning my eyes toward my
+swift ship to seek my men, I saw their feet and hands already in the air
+as they were carried up. They screamed aloud and called my name for the
+last time, in agony of heart. As when a fisher, on a jutting rock, with
+long rod throws a bait to lure the little fishes, casting into the deep
+the horn of stall-fed ox; then, catching a fish, flings it ashore
+writhing,--even so were these drawn writhing up the rocks. There at her
+door she ate them, loudly shrieking and stretching forth their hands in
+mortal pangs toward me. That was the saddest sight my eyes have ever seen,
+in all my toils, searching the ocean pathways.
+
+
+
+
+ULYSSES IN ITHACA
+
+
+ULYSSES LANDS ON THE SHORE OF ITHACA
+
+By F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+
+
+    [For ten years Ulysses was driven hither and thither over the
+    water, seeking for his homeland, Ithaca. At length he was
+    shipwrecked on the shores of Phoeacia. The king, Alcinous,
+    entertained him most hospitably, and Ulysses related to him the
+    story of his wanderings.]
+
+
+When Ulysses had finished his story, there was silence in the hall till
+Alcinous said, "Ulysses, now that you have come to my house after all
+these troubles, you shall return without more wandering to your home." And
+then he bade the princes go home for the night and meet again in the
+morning to bring their gifts.
+
+So next day the Sea-kings went down to the ship and put their gifts on
+board and then returned to the palace and sacrificed an ox to Zeus. And
+then they feasted and drank their good wine and waited till the sun went
+down. And the minstrel sang to them, but Ulysses kept looking at the sun
+impatiently, like a hungry ploughman tired out at the close of day. At
+last the time arrived, and then Ulysses said, "Alcinous, let me go now,
+and fare you well. My escort and my gifts are all prepared, and I could
+wish no more. May I but find my wife and my dear ones all safe and sound
+at home! And may Heaven grant you, too, happy homes and every blessing and
+no distress among your people!" And to Queen Arete he said, "Lady, may you
+live happily with your husband and children, and all this people, till old
+age comes to you and death, which must come to all!"
+
+Then the herald led the way and Ulysses followed to the ship, and the
+queen sent her servants with him to carry warm clothing for the voyage and
+food and drink. And when they had stored the ship he lay down silently in
+the stern, and the rowers took their places in the benches and plied their
+oars, while a deep, sweet sleep fell upon him, like the sleep of death.
+Then the wonderful ship leapt forward on her way, like a team of chariot
+horses plunging beneath the whip, and the great dark wave roared round the
+stern. No hawk could fly so quickly as that ship flew through the waves,
+and the hawk is the swiftest of all birds. And as she sped, the man who
+had suffered so much and was as wise as the Gods lay peacefully asleep,
+and forgot his sufferings.
+
+But when the bright star rose that tells of the approach of day, the ship
+drew near the island of Ithaca. There is a haven there between two steep
+headlands which break the waves, so that ships can ride in safety without
+a mooring rope, and at the head of it an olive-tree, and a shadowy cave
+where the water fairies come and tend their bees and weave their sea-blue
+garments on the hanging looms and mix their wine in bowls and jars of
+stone. There are springs of water in the cave, and two ways into it, one
+to the north for men to enter, and one to the south where none but the
+Gods may pass.
+
+The Sea-kings knew this harbor and rowed straight into it and ran their
+ship half a keel's length ashore. Then they lifted Ulysses out of the
+stern, wrapt in the rugs and coverlet, and laid him still asleep upon the
+sand. And the gifts they placed in a heap by the trunk of the olive-tree,
+a little out of the road, so that no passer-by might rob him as he slept.
+
+Then they sailed away; and after they were gone Ulysses awoke, but he
+could not recognize the land where he lay, for Athene had cast a mist
+about him so that everything looked strange, though he was the lord of it
+all. There were the mountain paths and the sheltering creeks, the high,
+steep rocks and the trees in bloom; but he could not see it aright, and
+started up and smote his hands upon his thighs and cried aloud,--
+
+"What land have I come to now? And what can I do with all this treasure?
+If the Sea-kings did not really mean to send me back to Ithaca they should
+have conveyed me to some other people who would have sent me home." And
+then he counted the gifts over, the golden vessels, and the beautiful
+garments, and found nothing missing, but they gave him no pleasure; and he
+turned sadly to walk along the shore and dream of home, when a young
+herdsman met him, of noble figure, with a javelin in his hand and a fine
+mantle in double folds upon his shoulders. Ulysses was glad to greet him,
+and asked what country he had reached. It was Athene in disguise, and she
+answered, "Truly, stranger, you must have come from far indeed. For this
+is a famous island that all men know, whether they live in the east or in
+the west. It is a rugged land, and no place for horses and chariots, but
+though it is narrow, it is not so poor; for there are stores of corn and
+wine, plenty of water for the cattle and plenty of wood. Its name is
+Ithaca, and some men have heard of it even at Troy, which they say is a
+long way off."
+
+Then brave Ulysses rejoiced in his heart to hear that it was his native
+land; but he would not tell the herdsman who he was, and made up a cunning
+story that he had escaped as an outlaw from Crete and had been left upon
+the island by a Phoenician crew. And the goddess smiled to hear him, and
+stood forth in her own true form, a wise and noble woman, tall and fair,
+and put her hand upon his shoulder, and said,--
+
+"Come, let us practice no more craft on one another, Ulysses, for we are
+both famous for our wit and wiles, you among mortals and I among the Gods.
+I am Pallas Athene, daughter of Zeus, and I have stood beside you and
+protected you in all your wanderings and toil. And now I have come here to
+tell you of the troubles that await you in your house, and to help you
+with my counsel. But you must still endure in silence, and tell no one
+that Ulysses has returned."
+
+And Ulysses made answer, "It is hard, goddess, for a mortal to know you,
+wise though he may be, for you come in many shapes. Truly I have known
+your kindness from of old in Troy, but when we went on board the ships, I
+never saw you at my side again. Tell me, I pray you, if this is Ithaca
+indeed, my native land."
+
+Then the goddess answered, "I see, Ulysses, that you keep your ready wit
+and steadfast mind. I could not show myself your friend before for fear of
+angering Neptune, my own father's brother. But come now, and I will show
+you Ithaca; there is the haven and the olive with its slender leaves, and
+the cave where you once made many an offering to the water nymphs."
+
+And then she rolled away the mist, and the long-suffering hero rejoiced to
+see his native land again. He kissed the kindly earth, and vowed to the
+nymphs that he would bring them offerings as of old if he lived to see his
+dear son a man.
+
+Then the goddess bade him be of good cheer, and showed him a hiding-place
+in the cavern for the gifts. And then they sat down by the trunk of the
+olive-tree, and Athene told him all the misdeeds of the suitors, and how
+his wife had beguiled them and kept them waiting till his return, and how
+he must avenge himself and her.
+
+Then Ulysses said, "Truly, I should have perished in my own halls, like
+Agamemnon, if you had not warned me. Help me, therefore, with your wisdom,
+and stand beside me again and put strength and courage within me as in the
+days of Troy. For with you by my side I could fight against three hundred
+men."
+
+And Pallas Athene made answer, "I will be with you, Ulysses, when the hour
+of the conflict is come, and the blood of the suitors who eat up your
+substance shall be shed at last. But now I will change you into a poor
+beggar, so old and so wretched that no one will know you, and in that
+guise you must go and stay with the herdsman Eumaeus, who tends your swine,
+until I have brought your son Telemachus from Sparta, where he has gone to
+seek tidings of you."
+
+Then she touched him with her magic wand, and the fair flesh withered on
+his limbs, and the golden locks fell from his head, and he was changed
+into an old man. His skin was shriveled and his bright eyes dimmed, and
+for his covering she gave him a tattered wrap, begrimed with smoke, and a
+worn deerskin on his shoulder, and a wallet and a staff in his hand.
+
+Then she vanished, and left him to take his way alone across the hills.
+
+
+
+
+ULYSSES AT THE HOUSE OF THE SWINEHERD
+
+By F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+
+
+Ulysses went up along the rough mountain path, through the forest and over
+the hills, till he came to the house where his faithful steward lived. It
+stood in an open space, and there was a large courtyard in front with a
+wall of heavy stones and hawthorn boughs and a stout oak palisade. Inside
+the yard there were twelve sties for the pigs, and the swineherd kept four
+watch-dogs to guard the place, great beasts and fierce as wolves, that he
+had reared himself. Ulysses found him at home, sitting in the porch alone,
+and cutting himself a pair of sandals from a brown oxhide.
+
+The dogs caught sight of the king as soon as he came up and flew at him,
+barking, but he had the wit to let go his staff and sit down at once on
+the ground. Still it might have gone hard with him there in front of his
+own servant's house had not Eumaeus rushed out of the porch, dropping the
+leather in his haste, and scolded the dogs, driving them off with a volley
+of stones.
+
+Then he said to Ulysses, "A little more, old man, and the dogs would have
+torn you in pieces, and disgraced me forever. And I have my full share of
+trouble as it is, for I have lost the best master in all the world and
+must sit here to mourn for him and fatten his swine for other men, while
+he is wandering somewhere in foreign lands, hungry and thirsty perhaps, if
+he is still alive at all. But now come in yourself, and let me give you
+food and drink and tell me your own tale."
+
+So he took Ulysses into the house and made a seat for him with a pile of
+brushwood boughs and a great thick shaggy goat-skin which he used for his
+own bed, and all with so kind a welcome that it warmed the king's heart
+and made him pray the Gods to bless him for his goodness. But Eumaeus only
+said, "How could I neglect a stranger, though he were a worse man than
+you? All strangers and beggars are sent to us by Zeus. Take my gift and
+welcome, though it is little enough I have to give, a servant such as I,
+with new masters to lord it over him. For we have lost the king who would
+have loved me and given me house and lands and all that a faithful servant
+ought to have, whose work is blest by the Gods and prospers, as mine does
+here. Alas! he is dead and gone! he went away with Agamemnon to fight at
+Troy and never came home again."
+
+So saying, the good swineherd rose and fetched what meat and wine he had,
+and set it before Ulysses, grieving that he had nothing better for him
+because the shameless suitors plundered everything.
+
+But Ulysses ate and drank eagerly, and when his strength had come again he
+asked Eumaeus, "My friend, who is this master of yours you tell me of? Did
+you not say he was lost for Agamemnon's sake? Perhaps I may have seen him,
+for I have traveled far."
+
+But the swineherd answered, "Old man, his wife and son will believe no
+traveler's tale. They have heard too many such. Every wandering beggar who
+comes to Ithaca goes to my mistress with some empty story to get a meal
+for himself, and she welcomes him and treats him kindly and asks him about
+it all, with the tears running down her cheeks in a woman's way. Yes, even
+you, old man, might learn to weave such tales if you thought they would
+get you a cloak or a vest. No, he is dead, and dogs and birds have eaten
+him, or else he has fed the fishes and his bones lie somewhere on the
+seashore, buried in the sand. And he has left us all to grieve for him,
+but no one more than me, who can never have so kind a master again, not
+though I had my heart's desire and went back to my native land and saw my
+father and mother, and the dear home where I was born. It is Ulysses above
+all whom I long to see once more. There, stranger, I have called him by
+his name, and that I should not do; for he is still my dear master though
+he is far away."
+
+Then Ulysses said, "My friend, your hope has gone and you will never
+believe me. But I tell you this and seal it with an oath: Ulysses will
+return! Poor as I am, I will take no reward for my news till he comes to
+his own again, but you shall give me a new vest and cloak that day, and I
+will wear them."
+
+But the swineherd answered, "Ah, my friend, I shall never need to pay you
+that reward. He will never come back again. But now drink your wine in
+peace, and let us talk of something else, and do not call to mind the
+sorrow that almost breaks my heart. Tell me of yourself and your own
+troubles and who you are, and what ship brought you here, for you will not
+say you came afoot."
+
+Then Ulysses pretended he was a Cretan and had fought at Troy, and told
+Eumaeus a long tale of adventures and how he had been wrecked at last on
+the coast of Epirus. The king of the country, he said, had rescued him,
+and he had learned that Ulysses had been there a little while before, and
+was already on his way to Ithaca.
+
+The swineherd listened eagerly to it all, but when Ulysses had finished he
+said, "Poor friend, my heart aches to hear of all your sufferings. But
+there is one thing you should not have said, one thing I can never
+believe, and that is that Ulysses will return. And why need you lie to
+please me? I can see for myself that you are old and unhappy, a wanderer
+whom the Gods have sent to me. It is not for such a tale I will show you
+the kindness that you need, but because I pity you myself and reverence
+the law of Zeus."
+
+"If I lie," Ulysses answered, "you may have me thrown from the cliff as a
+warning to other cheats. I swear it, and call the Gods to witness."
+
+But the true-hearted swineherd only said, "I should get a good name by
+that, my friend, if I took you into nay house and had you for my guest,
+and then murdered you brutally! Do you think I could pray to Zeus after
+that without a fear? But now it is supper-time, and my men will be coming
+home." While they spoke, the herdsmen came up with the swine, and the sows
+were driven into the pens, grunting and squealing noisily as they settled
+in for the night. Then Eumaeus called out, "Bring in the fattest boar, and
+let us make a sacrifice in honor of our guest, and get some reward
+ourselves for all the trouble we have spent upon the drove,--trouble lost,
+since strangers take the fruit of it all."
+
+So they brought in a big fat white-tusked boar, while Eumaeus split the
+wood for the fire. And he did not forget the Immortals, for he had a pious
+heart: he made the due offerings first and prayed for his master's return,
+and then he stood up at the board to carve, and gave each man his share
+and a special slice for his guest from the whole length of the chine.
+Ulysses took it and thanked him with all his heart:--
+
+"May Father Zeus be your friend, Eumaeus, and give you what I would give
+you for your kindness to a poor old man like me."
+
+But the swineherd said, "Take it, my good friend, take it and enjoy it.
+Zeus will give or withhold as it may please him, for he can do all
+things."
+
+So they sat down to the feast, and after they had had their fill the
+swineherd's servant cleared everything away, and then they made ready for
+sleep. The evening closed in black and stormy, and a west wind sprang up
+bringing the rain with it, and blew hard all the night; so Eumaeus made up
+a bed of fleeces for Ulysses by the fire and gave him a great thick cloak
+as well, that he kept for the roughest weather. But he could not bring
+himself to stay there too, away from his herd of pigs, and he wrapped
+himself up warmly and went out to sleep beside them in the open. Ulysses
+saw, and smiled to see, what care he took of everything, while he thought
+his master was far away.
+
+[On the following morning] Ulysses and the swineherd were already
+preparing their breakfast when Telemachus came up. The dogs knew him and
+played round him lovingly. "Eumaeus," said Ulysses, "some friend of yours
+is coming, for I hear footsteps, and the dogs are pleased and do not
+bark."
+
+He had hardly finished speaking when his own dear son stood in the
+doorway. The swineherd started up and dropped the vessels in which he was
+mixing the wine. He went to meet his young master and fell on his neck and
+kissed him as a father would kiss an only son escaped from death. "Light
+of my eyes, dear son, have you come home at last? When you sailed away to
+Pylos, I never thought to see you again. But come in and let me feast my
+eyes upon you; for you do not often visit us, but are kept at home in the
+town, watching that crowd of ruinous suitors."
+
+And Telemachus answered, "Gladly, good father; I have come to see you, and
+to hear tidings of my mother."
+
+Then the swineherd told him that his mother still waited patiently at
+home, and spent her days and nights in weeping.
+
+[Illustration: "DEAR SON, HAVE YOU COME HOME AT LAST? WHEN YOU SAILED AWAY
+TO PYLOS, I NEVER THOUGHT TO SEE YOU AGAIN. BUT COME IN AND LET ME FEAST
+MY EYES UPON YOU; FOR YOU DO NOT OFTEN VISIT US, BUT ARE KEPT AT HOME IN
+THE TOWN, WATCHING THAT CROWD OF RUINOUS SUITORS." AND TELEMACHUS
+ANSWERED, "GLADLY, GOOD FATHER; I HAVE COME TO SEE YOU, AND TO HEAR
+TIDINGS OF MY MOTHER." THEN THE SWINEHERD TOLD HIM THAT HIS MOTHER STILL
+WAITED PATIENTLY AT HOME.]
+
+Then Telemachus went into the house, and as he came up Ulysses rose to
+give him his seat, but he would not take it, and said, "Keep your seat,
+stranger, this man shall make up another for me." So Ulysses sat down
+again, and the swineherd made a seat for Telemachus of the green brushwood
+and put a fleece upon it. Then he set food before them, and when they had
+eaten, Telemachus asked who the stranger was, and how he had come to
+Ithaca. And Eumaeus told him Ulysses's own story and begged him to protect
+the wanderer. But Telemachus thought of the suitors and did not wish to
+take him to the palace.
+
+"I will give him a coat and a vest," he said, "and shoes for his feet, and
+a two-edged sword, and I will send him on his way. But I cannot take him
+into the house, where the suitors would mock at him and use him ill. One
+man cannot restrain them, and he so young as I."
+
+Then Ulysses said, "Sir, if I may speak, I would say foul wrong is done
+you in your house, and my heart burns at the thought. Do your people hate
+you, or will your brothers give you no support? Would that I were as young
+as you are, and were Ulysses's son or Ulysses himself. I would go to the
+palace and fall upon all the throng, and die there, one man against a
+hundred, sooner than see the shameful deeds that are done in that glorious
+house."
+
+And Telemachus answered, "Hear me, stranger, and I will tell you all. My
+people do not hate me, and I have no quarrel with them. But I have no
+brothers to stand by me, for Zeus has never given more than one son to
+each generation of our line. And there are many foemen in the house, all
+the princes of the islands, and they too woo my mother and threaten my
+life, and I cannot see how it will end."
+
+Then he said to Eumaeus, "Go up to the house, old father, as quickly as you
+can, and tell my mother that I am come back safe from Pylos, and I will
+wait for you here."
+
+And Eumaeus answered, "I hear, master, and understand. But shall I not go
+to Laertes on my way and tell him too? For since you set sail for Pylos,
+they say he has not eaten or drunk or gone about his work, but sits in his
+house sorrowing and wasting away with grief."
+
+But Telemachus bade him go straight to the palace and return at once, and
+let the queen send word to Laertes by one of the maids. So Eumaeus went
+forth, and when Athene saw him go, she drew near, and came and stood by
+the gateway and showed herself to Ulysses, a tall and beautiful woman,
+with wisdom in her look. The dogs saw her too and were afraid, and shrank
+away whining into the corner of the yard, but Telemachus could not see
+her. Then the goddess nodded to Ulysses, and he went out and stood before
+her, and she said, "Noble Ulysses, now is the time to reveal yourself to
+your son, and go forth with him to the town, with death and doom for the
+suitors. I shall be near you in the battle and eager to fight."
+
+Then she touched him with her golden wand and gave him his beauty and
+stature once more, and his old bronzed color came back and his beard grew
+thick and his garments shone bright again: and so she sent him to the hut.
+And when Telemachus saw him, he marveled and turned away his eyes, for he
+thought it must be a god.
+
+"Stranger," he said, "you are changed since a moment ago; your color is
+not the same, nor your garments. If you are one of the Immortals, be
+gracious to us, and let us offer you gifts and sacrifice."
+
+Then Ulysses cried out, "I am no god, but your own dear father, for whose
+sake you are suffering cruel wrongs and the spite of men." And then he
+kissed his son and let his tears take their way at last.
+
+But Telemachus could not believe it, and said, "You cannot be my father,
+but a god come down to deceive me and make me grieve still more. No mortal
+could do what you have done, for a moment since you were old and wretched,
+and poorly clad, and now you seem like one of the heavenly Gods."
+
+Then his father answered, "My son, no other Ulysses will ever come back to
+you. Athene has done this wonder, for she is a goddess and can make men
+what she will, now poor, now rich, now old, now young; such power have the
+lords of heaven to exalt us or bring us low."
+
+Then Telemachus fell on his neck, and they wept aloud together. And they
+would have wept out their hearts till evening, had not Telemachus asked
+his father how he had come to Ithaca at last; and Ulysses told him that
+the sea-kings had brought him and put him on shore asleep, and that Athene
+had sent him to the swineherd's hut. "But now tell me of the suitors. How
+many are they and what manner of men? Can the two of us make head against
+the throng?"
+
+"Father," he answered, "I know well your fame, mighty and wise in war. But
+this we could never dare, two men against a host. They are a hundred and
+twenty in all, the best fighting men from Ithaca and the islands round.
+Think, if you can, of some champion who would befriend us and give us
+help."
+
+And Ulysses made answer, "What think you, if Father Zeus and the goddess
+Athene stood by our side? Should we still need other help?"
+
+"Truly they are the best of champions," said Telemachus, "though they sit
+on high among the clouds; and they rule both men and Gods." "And they will
+be with us," said his father, "when we come to the trial of war. Now at
+daybreak you must go home and mix with the suitors, and later on the
+swineherd will bring me to the town, disguised again as the old
+beggar-man; and if they ill-treat me or even strike me or drag me out of
+the house, you must look on and bear it. You may check them by speaking,
+but they will not listen, for the day of their doom is at hand. And tell
+no one that Ulysses has come home, not even Laertes nor the swineherd nor
+Penelope herself; we must keep the secret until we are sure of our
+friends."
+
+Then Telemachus said that his father might trust him, and so they talked
+on together. Meanwhile Eumaeus had reached the palace with the tidings that
+Telemachus had returned; and the suitors who were in the hall heard it and
+were dismayed, for they saw that their plot had failed. They went out of
+the palace and sat down before the gates, and were talking of sending word
+to their ship that was lying in wait for Telemachus, when the ship itself
+came into the harbor, with the other princes on board. So they all went up
+together to the public square and debated what to do, and they resolved to
+murder Telemachus as soon as they found another chance. Then they went
+back and sat down again on the polished seats in the hall.
+
+Now Medon the herald had heard them plotting together in the square, and
+went and told Penelope all they had said, and how they had purposed
+putting her son to death. She went down at once to the hall with her
+women, and stood in the doorway with her bright veil before her face and
+spoke to Antinous and said, "Wicked and insolent man, can it be that they
+call you in Ithaca one of their wisest men? No, it is a fool's work you
+are doing, plotting to kill my son. He is helpless before you now, but
+Zeus is the friend of the helpless and avenges their wrongs. Impious and
+ungrateful too! Did not Ulysses once shield your father from his enemies
+and save his life? Yet you waste his substance and would murder his son?"
+
+Then Eurymachus spoke and tried to soothe her. No one, he said, should
+injure Telemachus while he was alive, for he loved him more than any man
+on earth. Eurymachus's words were fair, and Penelope could say no more;
+yet all the while he was planning the death of her son.
+
+In the evening the swineherd reached his hut again, and found Ulysses
+changed to the old beggar-man once more, preparing supper with Telemachus.
+
+"What news, good Eumaeus?" said the young man. "Have the proud lords come
+home from their ambush, or are they still waiting out yonder to take me as
+I return?" And Eumaeus replied, "I did not stay, master, to go through the
+town and find out the news, for when I had given my message I wanted to be
+at home. But one thing I saw from the brow of the hill as I came along. A
+swift ship was entering the harbor, full of armor and armed men. They may
+have been the princes, but I cannot say."
+
+As he heard this, Telemachus looked at his father and smiled, but he took
+good care that the swineherd should not see.
+
+
+
+
+THE VENGEANCE OF ULYSSES
+
+
+A. HIS RECEPTION AT THE PALACE.
+
+By F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+
+
+Early next morning, when the rosy-fingered dawn was in the sky, Telemachus
+bound on his sandals and took his stout spear in his hand, and said to the
+swineherd, "Old friend, I must now be off to the city and let my mother
+see me, for I know she will weep and sigh until I am there myself. And as
+for this poor stranger, I would have you take him to the town and let him
+beg for bite and sup from door to door, and those who choose can give. For
+I cannot be host to every wanderer with all the trouble I have to bear.
+And if that makes him angry--well! it is only the worse for him; I am a
+man that speaks his mind."
+
+Then Ulysses answered readily, "Sir, I do not ask to stay here myself; a
+beggar should not beg in the fields. Nor am I young enough to work on a
+farm at a master's beck and call. So go your ways, and your man shall take
+me with him to the town. But I will wait till the sun is high, for I am
+afraid of the morning frost with these threadbare rags of mine."
+
+So Telemachus strode away until he reached the palace, and went into the
+hall. The old nurse Eurycleia was there with the maids, spreading fleeces
+on the inlaid stools and chairs; and she saw him at once and went up to
+him with tears in her eyes, and then all the women gathered round and
+kissed him and welcomed him home again. And Penelope came down from her
+chamber and flung her arms round her son, and kissed his head and both his
+eyes, and said to him tearfully, "You have come home, Telemachus, light of
+my eyes! I thought I should never see you again, when you sailed away to
+Pylos secretly, against my will, to get tidings of your father. And now
+tell me all you heard."
+
+But Telemachus said to her, "Mother, why make me think of trouble now,
+when I have just escaped from death? Rather put on your fairest robes, and
+go and pray the Gods to grant us a day of vengeance. But I must be off to
+the public square to meet a guest of mine whom I brought here in my ship.
+I sent him on before me with the crew, and bade one of them take him to
+his house until I came myself."
+
+So Penelope went away and prayed to the Gods, while the prince went down
+to the public square and found Theoclymenus and brought him back to the
+palace, and they sat down together in the hall. Then one of the old
+servants brought up a polished table and spread it for them with good
+things for their meal, and Penelope came and sat beside the door, spinning
+her fine soft yarn. She did not speak till they had finished, but then she
+said to her son, "Telemachus, I see I must go up to my room and lie down
+on my bed, the bed I have watered with my tears ever since Ulysses went
+away to Troy; for you are determined not to talk to me and tell me the
+news of your father before the suitors come into the hall!"
+
+Then Telemachus said, "Mother, I will tell you all I know. We reached
+Pylos and found Nestor there, and he took me into his splendid house, and
+welcomed me as lovingly as though I had been a long-lost son of his own.
+But he could tell me nothing of my father, not even if he were alive or
+dead, and so he sent me on to Sparta, to the house of Menelaus. There I
+saw Helen, the fairest of women, for whom the Greeks and Trojans fought
+and suffered so long. Menelaus asked me why I came and I told him about
+the suitors and all the wrong they did. Then he cried, 'Curse on them! The
+dastards in the hero's place! Oh, that Ulysses would return! They would
+soon have cause enough to hate this suit of theirs!' And then he told me
+how he had heard tidings of my father from Proteus, the wizard of the sea.
+He was living still, so the wizard said, on an island far away, in the
+cave of a wood nymph called Calypso, who kept him there against his will,
+and he had no ship to carry him over the broad sea. That was all Menelaus
+could tell me; and when I had done my errand I came away, and the Gods
+have brought me home in safety."
+
+And as Penelope listened her heart filled with sorrow; but Theoclymenus,
+the seer, said to her, "Listen to me, wife of Ulysses, and I will prophesy
+to you; for your son has heard nothing certain, but I have seen omens that
+are sure. I swear by Zeus, the ruler of the Gods, and by the board and the
+hearth of Ulysses himself where I am standing now, he is already here in
+Ithaca, he knows of all this wickedness, and is waiting to punish the
+suitors as they deserve."
+
+At that moment the princes came in from their sport and flung their cloaks
+aside, and set about slaughtering the sheep and the fatted goats and the
+swine for their feast.
+
+Meanwhile Ulysses was starting for the town, with the swineherd to show
+him the way. He had slung the tattered wallet across his shoulder, and
+Eumaeus had given him a staff, and every one who met them would have taken
+the king for a poor old beggar-man, hobbling along with his crutch.
+
+So they went down the rocky path till they reached a running spring by the
+wayside where the townsfolk got their water. There was a grove of tall
+poplars round it, and the cool stream bubbled down from the rock overhead,
+and above the fountain there was an altar to the nymphs where the
+passers-by laid their offerings.
+
+There they chanced to meet Melanthius, the king's goatherd, driving his
+fattest goats to the town for the suitors' feast. He was a favorite of
+theirs, and did all he could to please them. Now as soon as he saw the two
+he broke out into scoffs and gibes, till the heart of Ulysses grew hot
+with anger.
+
+"Look there!" he shouted, "one rascal leading another! Trust a man to find
+his mate! A plague on you, swineherd, where are you taking that pitiful
+wretch? Another beggar, I suppose, to hang about the doors and cringe for
+the scraps and spoil our feasts? Now if you would only let me have him to
+watch my farm and sweep out my stalls and fetch fodder for my kids, he
+could drink as much whey as he liked and get some flesh on his bones. But
+no! His tricks have spoilt him for any honest work!"
+
+So he jeered at them in his folly, and as he passed he kicked Ulysses on
+the thigh, but the king stood firm, and took the blow in silence, though
+he could have found it in his heart to strike the man dead on the spot.
+But Eumaeus turned round fiercely, and cried to the Gods for vengeance.
+
+"Nymphs of the spring," he prayed, "if ever my master honored you, hear my
+prayer, and send him home again! He would make a sweep of all your
+insolence, you good-for-nothing wretch, loitering here in the city while
+your flocks are left to ruin!"
+
+"Oho!" cried Melanthius. "Listen to the foul-mouthed dog! I must put him
+on board a ship and sell him in a foreign land, and make some use of him
+that way! Why, Ulysses will never see the day of his return! He is dead
+and gone; I wish his son would follow him!"
+
+With that he turned on his heel and hastened away to the palace hall,
+where he sat down with the suitors at their feast. And the other two
+followed slowly until they reached the gate. There they paused, and
+Ulysses caught the swineherd by the hand, and cried,--
+
+"Eumaeus, this must be the palace of the king! No one could mistake it.
+See, there is room after room, and a spacious courtyard with a wall and
+coping-stones and solid double doors to make it safe. And I am sure that a
+great company is seated there at the banquet, for I can smell the roasted
+meat and hear the sound of the lyre."
+
+Then Eumaeus said, "Your wits are quick enough; it is the very place. And
+now tell me: would you rather go in alone and face the princes while I
+wait here, or will you stay behind and let me go in first? But if you wait
+here, you must not wait too long, for some one might catch sight of you
+and strike you and drive you from the gate."
+
+Then the hero said to him, "I understand; I knew what I had to meet. Do
+you go first and I will wait behind. For I have some knowledge of thrusts
+and blows, and my heart has learned to endure; for I have suffered much in
+storm and battle, and I can bear this like the rest."
+
+But while they were talking, a dog who was lying there lifted his head and
+pricked his ears. It was the hound Argus, whom Ulysses had reared himself
+long ago before the war, but had to leave behind when he went away to
+Troy. Once he used to follow the hunters to the chase, but no one cared
+for him now when his master was away, and he lay there covered with
+vermin, on a dung-heap in front of the gates. Yet even so, when he felt
+that Ulysses was near him, he wagged his tail and dropped his ears; but he
+had not strength enough to drag himself up to his master. And when Ulysses
+saw it, he turned away his face so that Eumaeus should not see the tears in
+his eyes, and said, "Eumaeus, it is strange that they let that dog lie
+there in the dung. He looks a noble creature, but perhaps he has never
+been swift enough for the chase, and they have only kept him for his
+beauty."
+
+"Ah, yes!" Eumaeus answered, "it is easy to see that he has no master now.
+If you had been here when Ulysses went to Troy, you would have wondered at
+the creature's pace and strength. In the thickest depth of the forest no
+quarry could escape him, and no hound was ever keener-scented. But now he
+is old and wretched and his lord has perished far away, and the heedless
+women take no care of him. Slaves can do nothing as they ought when the
+master is not there, for a man loses half his manhood when he falls into
+slavery."
+
+Then Eumaeus went on into the palace and up to the hall where the suitors
+were. But Argus had seen his master again at last, and when he had seen
+him, he died.
+
+As soon as the swineherd came in, Telemachus caught sight of him, and
+beckoned him to a stool at his side, and gave him his share of the feast.
+After a little while Ulysses came up too, and sat down on the threshold
+like a poor old beggar-man. Then his son sent him meat and bread by the
+swineherd, and said that a beggar should be bold, and he ought to go among
+the princes and ask each man for a dole. So he went round from one to the
+other, stretching out his hand for a morsel in the true beggar's way. And
+every one else felt some pity and gave him an alms, but Antinous mocked at
+them all and told them they were ready enough to be generous with
+another's wealth. And at last he grew angry and cursed Ulysses for a
+whining rascal, and hurled a footstool at his head, bidding him begone and
+trouble them no more. The stool struck Ulysses on the shoulder, but he
+stood like a rock, motionless and silent, with black thoughts in his
+heart. Then he went back straight to the threshold and sat down and spoke
+to all the company:--
+
+"Listen to me, my lords! No man bears any rancor for a blow in open war,
+but Antinous has struck me because I am a beggar and know the curse of
+hunger. If there be any gods who avenge the poor man's cause, I pray that
+he may die before his marriage day!"
+
+At that the others felt shame, and told Antinous he did wrong to strike
+the homeless wanderer.
+
+"Who knows?" they said. "He might be one of the heavenly Gods, and woe to
+you if he were! For sometimes the Immortals take upon themselves the
+likeness of strangers, and enter our cities, and go about among men,
+watching the good and evil that they do."
+
+Thus they warned him, but he cared little for all they said. And
+Telemachus sat there full of rage and grief to see his father struck, but
+he kept back the tears and held his peace.
+
+Now Penelope was sitting in her room behind the hall, and she saw what had
+happened, and was angry with Antinous, and called the swineherd to her
+side.
+
+"Go, good Eumaeus, and tell the stranger to come here. And I will ask him
+if he has ever heard of Ulysses, for he looks like a man who has wandered
+far."
+
+And the swineherd said, "Yes, he is a Cretan, and has had all kinds of
+adventures before he was driven here, and he could tell you stories that
+would charm you like a minstrel's sweetest song, and you would never tire
+of listening. And he says that he has heard of Ulysses, near home, in the
+rich land of Epirus, and that he is already on his way to us, bringing a
+store of treasures with him."
+
+Then Penelope said, "Quick, bring the stranger here at once, and let him
+speak with me face to face. And if I see that he tells the truth I will
+give him a vest and a cloak for himself."
+
+So the swineherd hurried back with the message; but Ulysses said he dared
+not face the princes a second time and it would be better to speak with
+Penelope later in the evening, alone by the fireside; and when the queen
+heard this, she said that the stranger was right. By this time it was
+afternoon, and Eumaeus went up to Telemachus and whispered that he must be
+off to his work again. Telemachus said he might go, but bade him have
+supper first and told him to come back next morning without fail. So the
+swineherd took his food in the hall, and then started home for his farm,
+to look after his pigs and everything that he had charge of there.
+
+
+
+
+B. THE TRIAL OF THE BOW
+
+Translated by George Herbert Palmer
+
+
+And now the goddess, clear-eyed Athene, put in the mind of Icarius's
+daughter, heedful Penelope, to offer to the suitors in the hall the bow
+and the gray steel, as means of sport and harbingers of death. She mounted
+the long stairway of her house, holding a crooked key in her firm hand,--a
+goodly key of bronze, having an ivory handle,--and hastened with her
+damsels to a far-off room where her lord's treasure lay, bronze, gold, and
+well-wrought steel. Here also lay his curved bow and the quiver for his
+arrows,--and many grievous shafts were in it still,--gifts which a friend
+had given Ulysses when he met him once in Lacedaemon,--Iphitus, son of
+Eurytus, a man like the Immortals. At Messene the two met, in the house of
+wise Orsilochus. Ulysses had come hither to claim a debt, which the whole
+district owed him; for upon ships of many oars Messenians carried off from
+Ithaca three hundred sheep together with their herdsmen. In the long quest
+for these, Ulysses took the journey when he was but a youth; for his
+father and the other elders sent him forth. Iphitus, on the other hand,
+was seeking horses; for twelve mares had been lost, which had as foals
+twelve hardy mules. These afterwards became the death and doom of Iphitus
+when he met the stalwart son of Zeus, the hero Hercules, who well knew
+deeds of daring; for Hercules slew Iphitus in his own house, although his
+guest, and recklessly did not regard the anger of the Gods nor yet the
+proffered table, but slew the man and kept at his own hall the
+strong-hoofed mares. It was when seeking these that Iphitus had met
+Ulysses and given the bow which in old days great Eurytus was wont to
+bear, and which on dying in his lofty hall he left his son. To Iphitus
+Ulysses gave a sharp-edged sword and a stout spear, as the beginning of a
+loving friendship. They never sat, however, at one another's table; ere
+that could be, the son of Zeus slew godlike Iphitus, the son of Eurytus,
+who gave the bow. Royal Ulysses, when going off to war in the black ships,
+would never take this bow. It always stood in its own place at home, as a
+memorial of his honored friend. In his own land he bore it.
+
+Now when the royal lady reached this room and stood on the oaken
+threshold,--which long ago the carpenter had smoothed with skill and
+leveled to the line, fitting the posts thereto and setting the shining
+doors,--then quickly from its ring she loosed the strap, thrust in the
+key, and with a careful aim shot back the door-bolts. As a bull roars when
+feeding in the field, so roared the goodly door touched by the key, and
+open flew before her. She stepped to a raised dais where stood some chests
+in which lay fragrant garments. Thence reaching up, she took from its peg
+the bow in the glittering case which held it. And now she sat her down and
+laid the case upon her lap, and loudly weeping drew her lord's bow forth.
+But when she had had her fill of tears and sighs, she hastened to the hall
+to meet the lordly suitors, bearing in hand the curved bow and the quiver
+for the arrows, and many grievous shafts were in it still. Beside her,
+damsels bore a box in which lay many a piece of steel and bronze,
+implements of her lord's for games like these. And when the royal lady
+reached the suitors, she stood beside a column of the strong-built roof,
+holding before her face her delicate wimple, the while a faithful damsel
+stood on either hand. And straightway she addressed the suitors, speaking
+thus:--
+
+"Hearken, you haughty suitors who beset this house, eating and drinking
+ever, now my husband is long gone; no word of excuse can you suggest
+except your wish to marry me and win me for your wife. Well then, my
+suitors,--since before you stands your prize,--I offer you the mighty bow
+of prince Ulysses; and whoever with his hands shall lightliest bend the
+bow and shoot through all twelve axes, him will I follow and forsake this
+home, this bridal home, so very beautiful and full of wealth, a place I
+think I ever shall remember, even in my dreams."
+
+So saying, she bade Eumaeus, the noble swineherd, deliver to the suitors
+the bow and the gray steel. With tears Eumaeus took the arms and laid them
+down before them. Near by, the neatherd also wept to see his master's bow.
+But Antinous rebuked them, and spoke to them and said,--
+
+"You stupid boors, who only mind the passing minute, wretched pair, what
+do you mean by shedding tears, troubling this lady's heart, when already
+her heart is prostrated with grief at losing her dear husband? Sit down
+and eat in silence, or else go forth and weep, but leave the bow behind, a
+dread ordeal for the suitors; for I am sure this polished bow will not be
+bent with ease. There is not a man of all now here so powerful as Ulysses.
+I saw him once myself, and well recall him, though I was then a child."
+
+He spoke, but in his breast his heart was hoping to draw the string and
+send an arrow through the steel; yet he was to be the first to taste the
+shaft of good Ulysses, whom he now wronged though seated in his hall,
+while to like outrage he encouraged all his comrades. To these now spoke
+revered Telemachus:--
+
+"Ha! Zeus the son of Cronos has made me play the fool! My mother--and wise
+she is--says she will follow some strange man and quit this house; and I
+but laugh and in my silly soul am glad. Come then, you suitors, since
+before you stands your prize, a lady whose like cannot be found throughout
+Achaian land, in sacred Pylos, Argos, or Mycenae, in Ithaca itself, or the
+dark mainland, as you yourselves well know,--what needs my mother
+praise?--come then, delay not with excuse nor longer hesitate to bend the
+bow, but let us learn what is to be. I too might try the bow. And if I
+stretch it and send an arrow through the steel, then with no shame to me
+my honored mother may forsake this house and follow some one else, leaving
+me here behind; for I shall then be able to wield my father's arms."
+
+He spoke, and flung his red cloak from his shoulders, rising full height,
+and put away the sharp sword also from his shoulder. First then he set the
+axes, marking one long furrow for them all, aligned by cord. The earth on
+the two sides he stamped down flat. Surprise filled all beholders to see
+how properly he set them, though he had never seen the game before. Then
+he went and stood upon the threshold and began to try the bow. Three times
+he made it tremble as he sought to make it bend. Three times he slacked
+his strain, still hoping in his heart to draw the string and send an arrow
+through the steel. And now he might have drawn it by force of a fourth
+tug, had not Ulysses shaken his head and stayed the eager boy. So to the
+suitors once more spoke revered Telemachus:--
+
+"Fie! Shall I ever be a coward and a weakling, or am I still but young and
+cannot trust my arm to right me with the man who wrongs me first? But
+come, you who are stronger men than I, come try the bow and end the
+contest."
+
+So saying, he laid by the bow and stood it on the ground, leaning it on
+the firm-set polished door. The swift shaft, too, he likewise leaned
+against the bow's fair knob, and once more took the seat from which he
+first arose. Then said to them Antinous, Eupeithes' son,--
+
+"Rise up in order all, from left to right, beginning where the cupbearer
+begins to pour the wine."
+
+So said Antinous, and his saying pleased them. Then first arose Leiodes,
+son of Oenops, who was their soothsayer and had his place beside the
+goodly mixer, farthest along the hall. To him alone their lawlessness was
+hateful; he abhorred the suitor crowd. He it was now who first took up the
+bow and the swift shaft; and going to the threshold, he stood and tried
+the bow. He could not bend it. Tugging the string wearied his hands,--his
+soft, unhorny hands,--and to the suitors thus he spoke:--
+
+"No, friends, I cannot bend it. Let some other take the bow. Ah, many
+chiefs this bow shall rob of life and breath! Yet better far to die than
+live and still to fail in that for which we constantly are gathered,
+waiting expectantly from day to day! Now each man hopes and purposes at
+heart to win Penelope, Ulysses' wife. But when he shall have tried the bow
+and seen his failure, then to some other fair-robed woman of Achaia let
+each go, and offer her his suit and woo her with his gifts. So may
+Penelope marry the man who gives her most and comes with fate to favor!"
+
+When he had spoken, he laid by the bow, leaning it on the firm-set
+polished door. The swift shaft, too, he likewise leaned against the bow's
+fair knob, and once more took the seat from which he first arose. But
+Antinous rebuked him, and spoke to him, and said,--
+
+"Leiodes, what words have passed the barrier of your teeth? Strange words
+and harsh! Vexatious words to hear! As if this bow must rob our chiefs of
+life and breath because you cannot bend it! Why, your good mother did not
+bear you for a brandisher of bows and arrows. But others among the lordly
+suitors will bend it by and by."
+
+So saying, he gave an order to Melanthius, the goatherd: "Hasten,
+Melanthius, and light a fire in the hall and set a long bench near, with
+fleeces on it; then bring me the large cake of fat which lies inside the
+door, that after we have warmed the bow and greased it well, we young men
+may try the bow and end the contest."
+
+He spoke, and straightway Melanthius kindled a steady fire, and set a
+bench beside it with a fleece thereon, and brought out the large cake of
+fat which lay inside the door, and so the young men warmed the bow and
+made their trial. But yet they could not bend it; they fell far short of
+power. Antinous, however, still held back, and prince Eurymachus, who were
+the suitors' leaders; for they in manly excellence were quite the best of
+all.
+
+Meanwhile out of the house at the same moment came two men, princely
+Ulysses' herdsmen of the oxen and the swine; and after them came royal
+Ulysses also from the house. And when they were outside the gate, beyond
+the yard, speaking in gentle words Ulysses said,--
+
+"Neatherd, and you too, swineherd, may I tell a certain tale, or shall I
+hide it still? My heart bids me speak. How ready would you be to aid
+Ulysses if he should come from somewhere, thus, on a sudden, and a god
+should bring him home? Would you support the suitors or Ulysses? Speak
+freely, as your heart and spirit bid you speak."
+
+Then said to him the herdsman of the cattle, "O father Zeus, grant this my
+prayer! May he return and Heaven be his guide! Then shall you know what
+might is mine and how my hands obey."
+
+So prayed Eumaeus too to all the Gods, that wise Ulysses might return to
+his own home. So when he knew with certainty the heart of each, finding
+his words once more Ulysses said,--
+
+"Lo, it is I, through many grievous toils now in the twentieth year come
+to my native land! And yet I know that of my servants none but you desire
+my coming. From all the rest I have not heard one prayer that I return. To
+you then I will truly tell what shall hereafter be. If God by me subdues
+the lordly suitors, I will obtain you wives and give you wealth and homes
+established near my own; and henceforth in my eyes you shall be friends
+and brethren of Telemachus. Come, then, and I will show you too a very
+trusty sign,--that you may know me certainly and be assured in heart,--the
+scar the boar dealt long ago with his white tusk, when I once journeyed to
+Parnassus with Autolycus's sons."
+
+So saying, he drew aside his rags from the great scar. And when the two
+beheld and understood it all, their tears burst forth; they threw their
+arms round wise Ulysses, and passionately kissed his face and neck. So
+likewise did Ulysses kiss their heads and hands. And daylight had gone
+down upon their weeping had not Ulysses stayed their tears and said,--
+
+"Have done with grief and wailing, or somebody in coming from the hall may
+see, and tell the tale indoors. Nay, go in one by one, not all together. I
+will go first, you after. And let this be agreed: the rest within, the
+lordly suitors, will not allow me to receive the bow and quiver. But,
+noble Eumaeus, bring the bow along the room and lay it in my hands. Then
+tell the women to lock the hall's close-fitting doors; and if from their
+inner room they hear a moaning or a strife within our walls, let no one
+venture forth, but stay in silence at her work. And noble Philoetius, in
+your care I put the courtyard gates. Bolt with the bar and quickly lash
+the fastening."
+
+So saying, Ulysses made his way into the stately house, and went and took
+the seat from which he first arose. And soon the serving-men of princely
+Ulysses entered too.
+
+Now Eurymachus held the bow and turned it up and down, trying to heat it
+at the glowing fire. But still, with all his pains, he could not bend it;
+his proud soul groaned aloud. Then bitterly he spoke; these were the words
+he said,--
+
+"Ah! here is woe for me and woe for all! Not that I so much mourn missing
+the marriage, though vexed I am at that. Still, there are enough more
+women of Achaia, both here in sea-girt Ithaca and in the other cities. But
+if in strength we fall so short of princely Ulysses that we cannot bend
+his bow--oh, the disgrace for future times to know!"
+
+Then said Antinous, Eupeithes' son, "Not so, Eurymachus, and you yourself
+know better. To-day throughout the land is the archer-god's high feast.
+Who then could bend a bow? Nay, quietly lay it by; and for the axes, what
+if we leave them standing? Nobody. I am sure, will carry one away and
+trespass on the house of Laertes' son, Ulysses. Come then, and let the
+wine-pourer give pious portions to our cups, that after a libation we may
+lay aside curved bows. To-morrow morning tell Melanthius, the goatherd, to
+drive us here the choicest goats of all his flock; and we will set the
+thighs before the archer-god, Apollo, then try the bow and end the
+contest."
+
+So said Antinous, and his saying pleased them. Pages poured water on their
+hands; young men brimmed bowls with drink and served to all, with a first
+pious portion for the cups. And after they had poured and drunk as their
+hearts would, then in his subtlety said wise Ulysses,--
+
+"Hearken, you suitors of the illustrious queen, and let me tell you what
+the heart within me bids. I beg a special favor of Eurymachus, and great
+Antinous too; for his advice was wise, that you now drop the bow and leave
+the matter with the Gods, and in the morning God shall grant the power to
+whom he may. But give me now the polished bow, and let me in your presence
+prove my skill and power and see if I have yet such vigor left as once
+there was within my supple limbs, or whether wanderings and neglect have
+ruined all."
+
+At these his words all were exceeding wroth, fearing that he might bend
+the polished bow. But Antinous rebuked him, and spoke to him and said,
+"You scurvy stranger, with not a whit of sense, are you not satisfied to
+eat in peace with us, your betters, unstinted in your food and hearing all
+we say? Nobody else, stranger or beggar, hears our talk. 'Tis wine that
+goads you, honeyed wine, a thing that has brought others trouble, when
+taken greedily and drunk without due measure. Wine crazed the Centaur,
+famed Eurytion, at the house of bold Peirithous, on his visit to the
+Lapithae. And when his wits were crazed with wine, he madly wrought foul
+outrage on the household of Peirithous. So indignation seized the heroes.
+Through the porch and out of doors they rushed, dragging Eurytion forth,
+shorn by the pitiless sword of ears and nose. Crazed in his wits, he went
+his way, bearing in his bewildered heart the burden of his guilt. And
+hence arose a feud between the Centaurs and mankind; but the beginning of
+the woe he himself caused by wine. Even so I prophesy great harm to you,
+if you shall bend the bow. No kindness will you meet from any in our land,
+but we will send you by black ship straight to King Echetus, the bane of
+all mankind, out of whose hands you never shall come clear. Be quiet,
+then, and take your drink! Do not presume to vie with younger men!"
+
+Then said to him heedful Penelope, "Antinous, it is neither honorable nor
+fitting to worry strangers who may reach this palace of Telemachus. Do you
+suppose the stranger, if he bends the great bow of Ulysses, confident in
+his skill and strength of arm, will lead me home and take me for his wife?
+He in his inmost soul imagines no such thing. Let none of you sit at the
+table disturbed by such a thought; for that could never, never, be!"
+
+Then answered her Eurymachus, the son of Polybus, "Daughter of Icarius,
+heedful Penelope, we do not think the man will marry you. Of course that
+could not be. And yet we dread the talk of men and women, and fear that
+one of the baser sort of the Achaians say,'Men far inferior sue for a good
+man's wife, and cannot bend his polished bow. But somebody else--a
+wandering beggar--came, and easily bent the bow and sent an arrow through
+the steel.' This they will say, to us a shame indeed."
+
+Then said to him heedful Penelope, "Eurymachus, men cannot be in honor in
+the land and rudely rob the household of their prince. Why, then, count
+this a shame? The stranger is right tall, and well-knit too, and calls
+himself the son of a good father. Give him the polished bow, and let us
+see. For this I tell you, and it shall be done: if he shall bend it and
+Apollo grants his prayer, I will clothe him in a coat and tunic, goodly
+garments, give him a pointed spear to keep off dogs and men, a two-edged
+sword, and sandals for his feet, and I will send him where his heart and
+soul may bid him go."
+
+Then answered her discreet Telemachus, "My mother, no Achaian has better
+right than I to give or to refuse the bow to any as I will. And out of all
+who rule in rocky Ithaca, or in the islands off toward grazing Elis, none
+may oppose my will, even if I wished to put the bows into the stranger's
+hands and let him take them once for all away. Then seek your chamber and
+attend to matters of your own,--the loom, the distaff,--and bid the women
+ply their tasks. Bows are for men, for all, especially for me; for power
+within this house rests here."
+
+Amazed, she turned to her own room again, for the wise saying of her son
+she laid to heart. And coming to the upper chamber with her maids, she
+there bewailed Ulysses, her dear husband, till on her lids clear-eyed
+Athene caused a sweet sleep to fall.
+
+Meanwhile the noble swineherd, taking the curved bow, was bearing it away.
+But the suitors all broke into uproar in the hall, and a rude youth would
+say, "Where are you carrying the curved bow, you miserable swineherd?
+Crazy fool! Soon out among the swine, away from men, swift dogs shall eat
+you,--dogs you yourself have bred,--will but Apollo and the other
+deathless Gods be gracious!" At these their words the bearer of the bow
+laid it down where he stood, frightened because the crowd within the hall
+cried out upon him. But from the other side Telemachus called threatening
+aloud, "Nay, father! Carry on the bow! You cannot well heed all. Take
+care, or I, a nimbler man than you, will drive you to the fields with
+pelting stones. Superior in strength I am to you. Ah, would I were as much
+beyond the others in the house, beyond these suitors, in my skill and
+strength of arm! Then would I soon send somebody away in sorrow from my
+house; for men work evil here."
+
+He spoke, and all burst into merry laughter and laid aside their bitter
+anger with Telemachus. And so the swineherd, bearing the bow along the
+hall, drew near to wise Ulysses and put it in his hands; then calling
+aside nurse Eurycleia, thus he said,--
+
+"Telemachus bids you, heedful Eurycleia, to lock the hall's close-fitting
+doors; and if a woman from the inner room hears moaning or a strife within
+our walls, let her not venture forth, but stay in silence at her work."
+
+Such were his words; unwinged, they rested with her. She locked the doors
+of the stately hall. Then silently from the house Philoetius stole forth
+and straightway barred the gates of the fenced court. Beneath the portico
+there lay a curved ship's cable, made of biblus plant. With this he lashed
+the gates, then passed indoors himself, and went and took the seat from
+which he first arose, eyeing Ulysses. Now Ulysses already held the bow and
+turned it round and round, trying it here and there to see if worms had
+gnawed the horn while its lord was far away. And glancing at his neighbor
+one would say,--
+
+"A sort of fancier and a trickster with the bow this fellow is. No doubt
+at home he has himself a bow like that, or means to make one like it. See
+how he turns it in his hands this way and that, ready for
+mischief,--rascal!"
+
+Then would another rude youth answer thus: "Oh, may he always meet with
+luck as good as when he is unable now to bend the bow!"
+
+So talked the suitors. Meantime wise Ulysses, when he had handled the
+great bow and scanned it closely,--even as one well skilled to play the
+lyre and sing stretches with ease round its new peg a string, securing at
+each end the twisted sheep-gut, so without effort did Ulysses string the
+mighty bow. Holding it now with his right hand, he tried its cord; and
+clear to the touch it sang, voiced like the swallow. Great consternation
+came upon the suitors. All faces then changed color. Zeus thundered loud
+for signal. And glad was long-tried royal Ulysses to think the son of
+crafty Cronos had sent an omen. He picked up a swift shaft which lay
+beside him on the table, drawn. Within the hollow quiver still remained
+the rest, which the Achaians soon should prove. Then laying the arrow on
+the arch, he drew the string and arrow notches, and forth from the bench
+on which he sat let fly the shaft, with careful aim, and did not miss an
+axe's ring from first to last, but clean through all sped on the
+bronze-tipped arrow; and to Telemachus he said,--
+
+"Telemachus, the guest now sitting in your hall brings you no shame. I did
+not miss my mark, nor in the bending of the bow make a long labor. My
+strength is sound as ever, not what the mocking suitors here despised. But
+it is time for the Achaians to make supper ready, while it is daylight
+still; and then for us in other ways to make them sport,--with dance and
+lyre; for these attend a feast."
+
+He spoke and frowned the sign. His sharp sword then Telemachus girt on,
+the son of princely Ulysses clasped his right hand around his spear, and
+close beside his father's seat he took his stand, armed with the gleaming
+bronze.
+
+
+
+
+C. THE SLAYING OF THE SUITORS
+
+By F. S. Marvin, R. J. C. Mayor, and F. M. Stowell
+
+
+Ulysses sprang to the great threshold with the bow and quiver in his hand.
+He poured out the arrows at his feet, and shouted to the princes, "So ends
+the game you could not play! Now for another mark which no man has ever
+hit before!"
+
+With that he shot at Antinous. He, as it chanced, was just lifting a
+golden cup from the board, never dreaming that death would meet him there
+with all his comrades round him at the feast. But before the wine touched
+his lips the arrow struck him in the throat, and the cup dropped from his
+hand, and he fell dying to the floor. The princes sprang to their feet
+when they saw their comrade fallen, and looked round the walls for armor,
+but there was not a spear or shield to be found. Then they turned in fury
+on Ulysses: "Madman, are you shooting at men? You have slain the noblest
+youth in Ithaca, and you shall not live to draw bow again."
+
+But Ulysses faced them sternly and said, "Dogs, you thought that I should
+never return. You have rioted in my home, and outraged the women of my
+household, and you have wooed my own wife while I was yet a living man.
+You took no thought for the Gods who rule in heaven, nor for the
+indignation of men in days hereafter. Now your time is come."
+
+All grew pale as he spoke, and Eurymachus alone found words: "If you are
+in truth King Ulysses, your words are just; there have been many shameful
+deeds done upon your lands and in your house. But Antinous, who was the
+cause of all, lies dead; it was he who lead us on, hoping that he might
+take your kingdom for himself. Spare us now that he has met his doom, for
+we are your own people; and we will make you full atonement for all that
+has been eaten and drunk in your halls."
+
+"Eurymachus, you might give me all you have, but even then I would not
+hold my hands until I had taken vengeance for every wrong. You have your
+choice. Fight, or fly, if you think that flight can save you."
+
+At that their knees shook beneath them, but Eurymachus cried, "Comrades,
+this man will have no mercy. He has got the bow in his hands, and he will
+shoot us down from the threshold, so long as there is one of us left
+alive. Draw your swords, and guard yourselves, with the tables; and let us
+all set upon him at once and drive him from the doorway. If we can reach
+the city, we are safe."
+
+As he spoke he drew his sword and sprang forward with a cry; and at the
+same moment Ulysses shot. The arrow struck him in the breast, and he
+dropped forward over the table, while the mist of death sank upon his
+eyes. Then Amphinomus made a rush on the doorway. But Telemachus was too
+quick for him; he hurled his spear and struck him from behind between the
+shoulders, and he fell crashing on the floor. Telemachus sprang back,
+leaving the spear, for he dared not wait to draw it out. He darted to his
+father's side. "Father, we ought to have armor; I will go and get weapons
+for us."
+
+"Run and bring them," said. Ulysses, "while I have arrows left; when these
+are gone I cannot hold the doorway against them all."
+
+So Telemachus ran to the armory and hurried back with helmets and shields
+and spears; and he armed himself and made the two servants do the same,
+and they took their stand beside the king. While the arrows lasted,
+Ulysses shot, and struck down the wooers man by man. And then he leant the
+bow against the doorpost, and slung the shield about him and put on the
+helmet and took two spears in his hand.
+
+Now there was a postern in the hall, close beside the great doorway and
+opening on the corridor. Ulysses had put the swineherd to guard it, and
+now the boldest of the suitors said to the rest, "Could not some of us
+force a passage there and raise the cry for rescue?"
+
+"Little use in that," said Melanthius, "the great doorway is too close,
+and one brave man might stop us all before we reached the court. I have a
+better plan. Ulysses and his son have stowed away the weapons, and I think
+I know where they are. I will go and fetch you what you need."
+
+With these words he clambered up through the lights of the hall and got
+into the armory, and fetched out twelve shields and as many spears and
+helmets, and brought them to the princes. The heart of Ulysses misgave him
+when he saw the armor and the long spears in their hands; and he felt that
+the fight would go hard, and said to Telemachus, "Melanthius or one of the
+women has betrayed us."
+
+"Father, it was my fault," said Telemachus; "I left the door of the armory
+open, and one of them must have kept sharper watch than I did. Go, Eumaeus,
+make fast the door, and see whether this is the doing of Melanthius, as I
+guess."
+
+While they spoke, Melanthius went again to fetch more armor, and the
+swineherd spied him and said, "There is the villain going to the armory,
+as we thought; tell me, shall I kill him, if I can master him, or shall I
+bring him here to suffer for his sins?" "Telemachus and I will guard the
+doorway here," said Ulysses, "and you and the shepherd shall bind him hand
+and foot and leave him in the chamber to wait his doom."
+
+So the two went up to the armory, and stood in wait on either side of the
+door; and as Melanthius came out, they leapt upon him and dragged him back
+by the hair and flung him on the ground and bound him tightly to a pillar
+hand and foot. "Lie there," said Eumaeus, "and take your ease: the dawn
+will not find you sleeping, when it is time for you to rise and drive out
+your goats." With that they went back to join Ulysses, and the four stood
+together at the threshold,--four men against a host.
+
+Then Athene came among them in the likeness of Mentor, and Ulysses knew
+her and rejoiced. "Mentor," he shouted, "help me in my need, for we are
+comrades from of old." And the wooers sent up another shout, "Do not
+listen to him, Mentor; or your turn will come when he is slain." But
+Athene taunted Ulysses and spurred him to the fight: "Have you lost your
+strength and courage, Ulysses? It was not thus you did battle for Helen in
+the ten years' war at Troy. Is it so hard to face the suitors in your own
+house and home? Come, stand by me, and see if Mentor forgets old
+friendship." Yet she left the victory still uncertain, that she might
+prove his courage to the full. She turned herself into a swallow and flew
+up into the roof and perched on a blackened rafter overhead.
+
+Then the wooers took courage, when they saw that Mentor was gone, and that
+the four stood alone in the doorway. And one of them said to the rest,
+"Let six of us hurl our spears together at Ulysses. If once he falls,
+there will be little trouble with the rest." So they flung their spears as
+he bade them; but all of them missed the mark. Then Ulysses gave the word
+to his men, and they all took steady aim and threw, and each one killed
+his man; and the wooers fell back into the farther end of the hall, while
+the four dashed on together and drew out their spears from the bodies of
+the slain. Once more the suitors hurled, and Telemachus and the swineherd
+were wounded; but the other spears fell wide. Then at last Athene lifted
+her shield of war high overhead,--the shield that brings death to
+men,--and panic seized the wooers, and they fled through the hall like a
+drove of cattle when the gadfly stings them. But the four leapt on them
+like vultures swooping from the clouds; and they fled left and right
+through the hall, but there was no escape.
+
+Only Phemius, the minstrel, whom the wooers had forced to sing before
+them, sprang forward and clasped the knees of Ulysses and said, "Have
+mercy on me, Ulysses: you would not slay a minstrel, who gladdens the
+hearts of Gods and men? The princes forced me here against my will."
+
+And Telemachus heard and said to his father, "Do not hurt him, for he is
+not to blame: and let us save the herald too, if he is yet alive, for he
+took care of me when I was a child."
+
+Now the herald had hidden himself under a stool and pulled an ox-hide over
+him, and when he heard this he crept out and clasped the knees of
+Telemachus and begged that he would plead for him. "Have no fear," said
+Ulysses; "my son has saved your life. Go out, you and the minstrel, and
+wait in the courtyard, for I have other work to do within." So the two
+went out into the courtyard, and sat down beside the altar, looking for
+their death each moment.
+
+Then Ulysses searched through the hall, to see if any one was yet lurking
+alive. But they all lay round him fallen in the dust and blood, heaped
+upon each other like fishes on a sunny beach when the fisherman has drawn
+his net to land. Then he told Telemachus to call out the old nurse
+Eurycleia. She came and found Ulysses standing among the bodies of the
+slain, with his hands and feet all stained with blood, and she was ready
+to shout aloud for triumph when she saw the great work accomplished. But
+Ulysses checked her cry and said, "Keep your joy unspoken, old nurse;
+there should be no shout of triumph over the slain. It is the judgment of
+Heaven that has repaid them for the evil deeds they did."
+
+Then he gave orders that the bodies of the dead should be carried out and
+that the blood should be washed away. And when this was done he turned to
+Eurycleia and said, "Bring fire and sulphur now and I will purify the
+hall. Then bid Penelope meet me here."
+
+"Yes, my child," said the old nurse, "I will obey you. But let me bring
+you a mantle first: it is not fitting that you should stand here with only
+your rags to cover you." But Ulysses said that she must do his bidding at
+once. So she brought sulphur and lit a fire, and Ulysses purified the
+hall.
+
+
+
+
+D. PENELOPE RECOGNIZES ULYSSES
+
+Translated by George Herbert Palmer
+
+
+The old woman, full of glee, went to the upper chamber to tell her
+mistress her dear lord was in the house. Her knees grew strong; her feet
+outran themselves. By Penelope's head she paused, and thus she spoke:--
+
+"Awake, Penelope, dear child, to see with your own eyes what you have
+hoped to see this many a day! Ulysses is here! He has come home at last,
+and slain the haughty suitors, the men who vexed his house, devoured his
+substance, and oppressed his son."
+
+Then heedful Penelope said to her, "Dear nurse, the Gods have crazed you.
+They can befool one who is very wise, and often they have set the simple
+in the paths of prudence. They have confused you; you were sober-minded
+heretofore. Why mock me when my heart is full of sorrow, telling wild
+tales like these? And why arouse me from the sleep that sweetly bound me
+and kept my eyelids closed? I have not slept so soundly since Ulysses went
+away to see accursed Ilium,--name never to be named. Nay then, go down,
+back to the hall. If any other of my maids had come and told me this and
+waked me out of sleep, I would soon have sent her off in sorry wise into
+the hall once more. This time age serves you well."
+
+Then said to her the good nurse Eurycleia, "Dear child, I do not mock you.
+In very truth it is Ulysses; he is come, as I have said. He is the
+stranger whom everybody in the hall has set at naught. Telemachus knew
+long ago that he was here, but out of prudence hid his knowledge of his
+father till he should have revenge from those bold men for wicked deeds."
+
+So spoke she; and Penelope was glad, and, springing from her bed, fell on
+the woman's neck, and let the tears burst from her eyes; and, speaking in
+winged words, she said,--
+
+"Nay, tell me, then, dear nurse, and tell me truly; if he is really come
+as you declare, how was it he laid hands upon the shameless suitors, being
+alone, while they were always here together?"
+
+Then answered her the good nurse Eurycleia, "I did not see; I did not ask;
+I only heard the groans of dying men. In a corner of our protected chamber
+we sat and trembled,--the doors were tightly closed,--until your son
+Telemachus called to me from the hall; for his father bade him call. And
+there among the bodies of the slain I found Ulysses standing. All around,
+covering the trodden floor, they lay, one on another. It would have warmed
+your heart to see him, like a lion, dabbled with blood and gore. Now all
+the bodies are collected at the courtyard gate, while he is fumigating the
+fair house by lighting a great fire. He sent me here to call you. Follow
+me, then, that you may come to gladness in your true hearts together, for
+sorely have you suffered. Now the long hope has been at last fulfilled. He
+has come back alive to his own hearth, and found you still, you and his
+son, within his hall; and upon those who did him wrong, the suitors, on
+all of them here in his home he has obtained revenge."
+
+Then heedful Penelope said to her, "Dear nurse, be not too boastful yet,
+nor filled with glee. You know how welcome here the sight of him would be
+to all, and most to me and to the son we had. But this is no true tale you
+tell. Nay, rather some immortal slew the lordly suitors, in anger at their
+galling insolence and wicked deeds; for they respected nobody on earth,
+bad man or good, who came among them. So for their sins they suffered. But
+Ulysses, far from Achaia, lost the hope of coming home; nay, he himself
+was lost."
+
+Then answered her the good nurse Eurycleia, "My child, what word has
+passed the barrier of your teeth, to say your husband, who is now beside
+your hearth, will never come! Your heart is always doubting. Come, then,
+and let me name another sign most sure,--the scar the boar dealt long ago
+with his white tusk. I found it as I washed him, and I would have told you
+then; but he laid his hand upon my mouth, and in his watchful wisdom would
+not let me speak. But follow me. I stake my very life; if I deceive you,
+slay me by the vilest death."
+
+Then heedful Penelope answered her, "Dear nurse, 'tis hard for you to
+trace the counsels of the everlasting Gods, however wise you are.
+Nevertheless, let us go down to meet my son, and see the suitors who are
+dead, and him who slew them."
+
+So saying, she went from her chamber to the hall, and much her heart
+debated whether aloof to question her dear husband, or to draw near and
+kiss his face and take his hand. But when she entered, crossing the stone
+threshold, she sat down opposite Ulysses, in the firelight, beside the
+farther wall. He sat by a tall pillar, looking down, waiting to hear if
+his stately wife would speak when she should look his way. But she sat
+silent long; amazement filled her heart. Now she would gaze with a long
+look upon his face, and now she would not know him for the mean clothes
+that he wore. But Telemachus rebuked her, and spoke to her and said,--
+
+"Mother, hard mother, of ungentle heart, why do you hold aloof so from my
+father, and do not sit beside him, plying him with words and questions?
+There is no other woman of such stubborn spirit to stand off from the
+husband who, after many grievous toils, comes in the twentieth year home
+to his native land. Your heart is always harder than a stone!"
+
+Then said to him heedful Penelope, "My child, my soul within is dazed with
+wonder. I cannot speak to him, nor ask a question, nor look him in the
+face. But if this indeed is Ulysses, come at last, we certainly shall know
+each other better than others know; for we have signs which we two
+understand,--signs hidden from the rest."
+
+As she, long tried, spoke thus, royal Ulysses smiled, and said to
+Telemachus forthwith in winged words, "Telemachus, leave your mother in
+the hall to try my truth. She soon will know me better. Now, because I am
+foul and dressed in sorry clothes, she holds me in dishonor, and says I am
+not he. But you and I have yet to plan how all may turn out well. For
+whoso kills one man among a tribe, though the man leaves few champions
+behind, becomes an exile, quitting kin and country. We have destroyed the
+pillars of the state, the very noblest youths of Ithaca. Form, then, a
+plan, I pray."
+
+Then answered him discreet Telemachus, "Look you to that, dear father.
+Your wisdom is, they say, the best among mankind. No mortal man can rival
+you. Zealously will we follow, and not fail, I think, in daring, so far as
+power is ours."
+
+Then wise Ulysses answered him and said, "Then I will tell you what seems
+best to me. First wash and put on tunics, and bid the maids about the
+house array themselves. Then let the sacred bard with tuneful lyre lead us
+in sportive dancing, that men may say, hearing us from without, 'It is a
+wedding,' whether such men be passers-by or neighboring folk; and so broad
+rumor may not reach the town about the suitors' murder till we are gone to
+our well-wooded farm. There will we plan as the Olympian shall grant us
+wisdom."
+
+So he spoke, and willingly they heeded and obeyed. For first they washed
+themselves and put on tunics, and the women also put on their attire. And
+then the noble bard took up his hollow lyre, and in them stirred desire
+for merry music and the gallant dance; and the great house resounded to
+the tread of lusty men and gay-girt women. And one who heard the dancing
+from without would say, "Well, well! some man has married the long-courted
+queen. Hard-hearted! For the husband of her youth she would not guard her
+great house to the end, till he should come." So they would say, but knew
+not how things were.
+
+Meanwhile within the house Eurynome, the housekeeper, bathed resolute
+Ulysses and anointed him with oil, and on him put a goodly robe and tunic.
+Upon his face Athene cast great beauty; she made him taller than before,
+and stouter to behold, and made the curling locks to fall round his head
+as on the hyacinth flower. As when a man lays gold on silver,--some
+skillful man whom Vulcan and Pallas Athene have trained in every art, and
+he fashions graceful work, so did she cast a grace upon his head and
+shoulders. Forth from the bath he came, in bearing like the Immortals, and
+once more took the seat from which he first arose, facing his wife, and
+spoke to her these words:--
+
+"Lady, a heart impenetrable beyond the sex of women the dwellers on
+Olympus gave to you. There is no other woman of such stubborn spirit to
+stand off from the husband who, after many grievous toils, comes in the
+twentieth year home to his native land. Come, then, good nurse, and make
+my bed, that I may lie alone. For certainly of iron is the heart within
+her breast."
+
+Then said to him heedful Penelope, "Nay, sir, I am not proud, nor
+contemptuous of you, nor too much dazed with wonder. I very well remember
+what you were when you went upon your long-oared ship away from Ithaca.
+However, Eurycleia, make up his massive bed outside that stately chamber
+which he himself once built. Move the massive frame out there, and throw
+the bedding on,--the fleeces, robes, and bright-hued rugs."
+
+She said this in the hope to prove her husband, but Ulysses spoke in anger
+to his faithful wife: "Woman, these are bitter words which you have said!
+Who set my bed elsewhere? A hard task that would be for one, however
+skilled,--unless a god should come and by his will set it with ease upon
+some other spot; but among men no living being, even in his prime, could
+lightly shift it; for a great token is inwrought into its curious frame. I
+built it; no one else. There grew a thick-leaved olive shrub inside the
+yard, full-grown and vigorous, in girth much like a pillar. Round this I
+formed my chamber, and I worked till it was done, building it out of
+close-set stones, and roofing it over well. Framed and tight-fitting doors
+I added to it. Then I lopped the thick-leaved olive's crest, cutting the
+stem high up above the roots, neatly and skillfully smoothed with my axe
+the sides, and to the line I kept all true to shape my post, and with an
+auger I bored it all along. Starting with this, I fashioned me the bed
+till it was finished, and I inlaid it well with gold, with silver, and
+with ivory. On it I stretched a thong of ox-hide, gay with purple. This is
+the token I now tell. I do not know whether the bed still stands there,
+wife, or whether somebody has set it elsewhere, cutting the olive trunk."
+
+As he spoke thus, her knees grew feeble and her very soul, when she
+recognized the tokens which Ulysses exactly told. Then bursting into
+tears, she ran straight toward him, threw her arms round Ulysses' neck and
+kissed his face, and said,--
+
+"Ulysses, do not scorn me! Ever before, you were the wisest of mankind.
+The Gods have sent us sorrow, and grudged our staying side by side to
+share the joys of youth and reach the threshold of old age. But do not be
+angry with me now, nor take it ill that then when I first saw you I did
+not greet you thus; for the heart within my breast was always trembling. I
+feared some man might come and cheat me with his tale. Many a man makes
+wicked schemes for gain. Nay, Argive Helen, the daughter of Zeus, would
+not have given herself to love a stranger if she had known how warrior
+sons of the Achaians would bring her home again, back to her native land.
+And yet it was a god prompted her deed of shame. Before, she did not
+cherish in her heart such sin, such grievous sin, from which began the woe
+which stretched to us. But now, when you have clearly told the tokens of
+our bed, which no one else has seen, but only you and I and the single
+servant, Actoris, whom my father gave me on my coming here to keep the
+door of our closed chamber,--you make even my ungentle heart believe."
+
+So she spoke, and stirred still more his yearning after tears; and he
+began to weep, holding his loved and faithful wife. As when the welcome
+land appears to swimmers, whose sturdy ship Neptune wrecked at sea,
+confounded by the winds and solid waters; a few escape the foaming sea and
+swim ashore; thick salt foam crusts their flesh; they climb the welcome
+land, and are escaped from danger; so welcome to her gazing eyes appeared
+her husband. From round his neck she never let her white arms go. And
+rosy-fingered dawn had found them weeping, but a different plan the
+goddess formed, clear-eyed Athene. She checked the long night in its
+passage, and at the ocean-stream she stayed the gold-throned dawn, and did
+not suffer it to yoke the swift-paced horses which carry light to men,
+Lampus and Phaethon, which bear the dawn. And now to his wife said wise
+Ulysses,--
+
+"O wife, we have not reached the end of all our trials yet. Hereafter
+comes a task immeasurable, long and severe, which I must needs fulfill;
+for so the spirit of Tiresias told me, that day when I descended to the
+house of Hades to learn about the journey of my comrades and myself. But
+come, my wife, let us to bed, that there at last we may refresh ourselves
+with pleasant sleep."
+
+Then said to him heedful Penelope, "The bed shall be prepared whenever
+your heart wills, now that the Gods have let you reach your stately house
+and native land. But since you speak of this, and God inspires your heart,
+come, tell that trial. In time to come, I know, I shall experience it. To
+learn about it now, makes it no worse."
+
+Then wise Ulysses answered her and said, "Lady, why urge me so insistently
+to tell? Well, I will speak it out; I will not hide it. Yet your heart
+will feel no joy; I have no joy myself; for Tiresias bade me go to many a
+peopled town, bearing in hand a shapely oar, till I should reach the men
+that know no sea and do not eat food mixed with salt. These, therefore,
+have no knowledge of the red-cheeked ships, nor of the shapely oars which
+are the wings of ships. And this was the sign, he said, easy to be
+observed. I will not hide it from you. When another traveler, meeting me,
+should say I had a winnowing-fan on my white shoulder, there in the ground
+he bade me fix my oar and make fit offerings to lord Neptune,--a ram, a
+bull, and the sow's mate, a boar,--and, turning homeward, to offer sacred
+hecatombs to the immortal gods who hold the open sky, all in the order
+due. And on myself death from the sea shall very gently come and cut me
+off, bowed down with hale old age. Round me shall be a prosperous people.
+All this, he said, should be fulfilled."
+
+Then said to him heedful Penelope, "If gods can make old age the better
+time, then there is hope there will be rest from trouble."
+
+So they conversed together. Meanwhile, Eurynome and the nurse prepared
+their bed with clothing soft, under the light of blazing torches. And
+after they had spread the comfortable bed, with busy speed, the old woman
+departed to her room to rest; while the chamber-servant, Eurynome, with
+torch in hand, walked on before, as they two came to bed. She brought them
+to their chamber, and then she went her way. So they came gladly to their
+old bed's rites. And now Telemachus, the neatherd, and the swineherd
+stayed their feet from dancing, and bade the women stay, and all betook
+themselves to rest throughout the dusky halls.
+
+So when the pair had joyed in happy love, they joyed in talking too, each
+one relating; she, the royal lady, what she endured at home, watching the
+wasteful throng of suitors, who, making excuse of her, slew many cattle,
+beeves, and sturdy sheep, and stores of wine were drained from out the
+casks; he, high-born Ulysses, what miseries he brought on other men and
+what he bore himself in anguish,--all he told, and she was glad to listen.
+No sleep fell on her eyelids till he had told her all.
+
+He began with how at first he conquered the Ciconians, and came thereafter
+to the fruitful land of Lotus-Eaters; then what the Cyclops did, and how
+he took revenge for the brave comrades whom the Cyclops ate, and never
+pitied; then how he came to AEolus, who gave him hearty welcome and sent
+him on his way; but it was fated that he should not reach his dear land
+yet, for a sweeping storm bore him once more along the swarming sea,
+loudly lamenting; how he came to Telepylus in Laestrygonia, where the men
+destroyed his ships and his mailed comrades, all of them; Ulysses fled in
+his black ship alone. He told of Circe, too, and all her crafty guile; and
+how on a ship of many oars he came to the mouldering house of Hades, there
+to consult the spirit of Teiresias of Thebes, and looked on all his
+comrades, and on the mother who had borne him and cared for him when
+little; how he had heard the full-voiced Sirens' song; how he came to the
+Wandering Rocks, to dire Charybdis and to Scylla, past whom none goes
+unharmed; how then his crew slew the Sun's kine; how Zeus with a blazing
+bolt smote his swift ship,--Zeus, thundering from on high,--and his good
+comrades perished, utterly, all, while he escaped their evil doom; how he
+came to the island of Ogygia and to the nymph Calypso, who held him in her
+hollow grotto, wishing him to be her husband, cherishing him, and saying
+she would make him an immortal, young forever, but she never beguiled the
+heart within his breast; then how he came through many toils to the
+Phaeacians, who honored him exceedingly, as if he were a god, and brought
+him on his way to his native land, giving him stores of bronze and gold
+and clothing. This was the latest tale he told, when pleasant sleep fell
+on him, easing his limbs and from his heart removing care.
+
+
+
+
+THE WANDERINGS OF THE TROJAN AENEAS
+
+
+THE FLIGHT OF AENEAS FROM THE RUINS OF TROY
+
+By Alfred J. Church
+
+
+AEneas, a famous Trojan warrior, fought bravely as long as the city stood;
+but when it had fallen, he bethought himself of his father Anchises, and
+his wife Creusa, and of his little son Ascanius, and how he had left them
+without defense at home. But as he turned to seek them, the night being
+now, by reason of many fires, as clear as the day, he espied Helen sitting
+in the temple of Vesta, where she had sought sanctuary; for she feared the
+men of Troy, to whom she had brought ruin and destruction, and not less
+her own husband, whom she had deceived. Then was his wrath kindled, and he
+spake to himself, "Shall this evil woman return safe to Sparta? Shall she
+see again her home and her children, with Trojan women forsooth to be her
+handmaidens? Shall Troy be burnt and King Priam be slain, and she take no
+harm? Not so; for though there be no glory to be won from such a deed, yet
+shall I satisfy myself, taking vengeance upon her for my kinsmen and my
+countrymen." But while he thought these things in his heart, lo! there
+appeared unto him Venus, his mother, made manifest as he had never seen
+her before, as fair and as tall as the dwellers in heaven behold her. Then
+Venus spake thus: "What meaneth all this rage, my son? Hast thou no care
+for me? Hast thou forgotten thy father Anchises, and thy wife, and thy
+little son? Of a surety the fire and the sword had consumed them long
+since but that I cared for them and saved them. It is not Helen, no, nor
+Paris, that hath laid low this great city of Troy, but the wrath of the
+Gods. See now, for I will take away the mist that covers thine eyes; see
+how Neptune with his trident is overthrowing the walls and rooting up the
+city from its foundations; and how Juno stands with spear and shield in
+the Scaean Gate and calls fresh hosts from the ships; and how Pallas sits
+on the height with the storm-cloud about her and her Gorgon shield; and
+how Father Jupiter himself stirs up the enemy against Troy. Fly,
+therefore, my son. I will not leave thee till thou shalt reach thy
+father's house." And as she spake she vanished in the darkness.
+
+Then did AEneas see dreadful forms and gods who were enemies of Troy, and
+before his eyes the whole city seemed to sink down into the fire. Even as
+a mountain oak upon the hills on which the woodmen ply their axes bows its
+head while all its boughs shake about it, till at last, as blow comes
+after blow, with a mighty groan it falls crashing down from the height,
+even so the city seemed to fall. Then did AEneas pass on his way, the
+goddess leading him, and the flames gave place to him, and the javelins
+harmed him not.
+
+But when he was come to his house he bethought him first of the old man
+his father; but when he would have carried him to the hills, Anchises
+would not, being loath to live in some strange country when Troy had
+perished. "Nay," said he, "fly ye who are strong and in the flower of your
+days. But as for me, if the Gods had willed that I should live, they had
+saved this dwelling for me. Enough it is, yea, and more than enough, that
+once I have seen this city taken, and lived. Bid me, then, farewell as
+though I were dead. Death will I find for myself. And truly I have long
+lingered here a useless stock and hated of the Gods, since Jupiter smote
+me with the blast of his thunder."
+
+Nor could the old man be moved from his purpose, though his son and his
+son's wife, and even the child Ascanius, besought him with many tears that
+he should not make yet heavier the doom that was upon them. Then was AEneas
+minded to go back to the battle and die. For what hope was left?
+"Thoughtest thou, my father," he cried, "that I should flee and leave thee
+behind? What evil word is this that has fallen from thy lips? If the Gods
+will have it that nought of Troy should be left, and thou be minded that
+thou and thine should perish with the city, be it so. The way is easy;
+soon will Pyrrhus be here: Pyrrhus, red with Priam's blood; Pyrrhus, who
+slays the son before the face of the father, and the father at the altar.
+Was it for this, kind Mother Venus, that thou broughtest me safe through
+fire and sword, to see the enemy in my home, and my father and my wife and
+my son lying slaughtered together? Comrades, give me my arms, and take me
+back to the battle. At the least I will die avenged."
+
+But as he girded on his arms and would have departed from the house, his
+wife Creusa caught his feet upon the threshold, staying him, and held out
+the little Ascanius, saying, "If thou goest to thy death, take wife and
+child with thee; but if thou hopest aught from arms, guard first the house
+where thou hast father and wife and child."
+
+And lo! as she spake there befell a mighty marvel, for before the face of
+father and mother there was seen to shine a light on the head of the boy
+Ascanius, and to play upon his waving hair and glitter on his temples. And
+when they feared to see this thing, and would have stifled the flame or
+quenched it with water, the old man Anchises in great joy raised his eyes
+to heaven, and cried aloud, "O Father Jupiter, if prayer move thee at all,
+give thine aid and make this omen sure." And even as he spake the thunder
+rolled on his left hand, and a star shot through the skies, leaving a long
+trail of light behind, and passed over the house-tops till it was hidden
+in the woods of Ida. Then the old man lifted himself up and did obeisance
+to the star, and said, "I delay no more: whithersoever ye lead I will
+follow. Gods of my country, save my house and my grandson. This omen is of
+you. And now, my son, I refuse not to go."
+
+Then said AEneas, and as he spake the fire came nearer, and the light was
+clearer to see, and the heat more fierce, "Climb, dear father, on my
+shoulders; I will bear thee, nor grow weary with the weight. We will be
+saved or perish together. The little Ascanius shall go with me, and my
+wife follow behind, not over near. And ye, servants of my house, hearken
+to me; ye mind how that to one who passes out of the city there is a tomb
+and a temple of Ceres in a lonely place, and an ancient cypress-tree hard
+by. There will we gather by divers ways. And do thou, my father, take the
+holy images in thy hands, for as for me, who have but newly come from
+battle, I may not touch them till I have washed me in the running stream."
+
+And as he spake he put a cloak of lion's skin upon his shoulders, and the
+old man sat thereon. Ascanius also laid hold of his hand, and Creusa
+followed behind. So he went in much dread and trembling. For indeed before
+sword and spear of the enemy he had not feared, but now he feared for them
+that were with him. But when he was come nigh unto the gates, and the
+journey was well-nigh finished, there befell a grievous mischance, for
+there was heard a sound as of many feet through the darkness; and the old
+man cried to him, "Fly, my son, fly; they are coming. I see the flashing
+of shields and swords." But as AEneas hasted to go, Creusa his wife was
+severed from him. But whether she wandered from the way or sat down in
+weariness, no man may say. Only he saw her no more, nor knew her to be
+lost, till all his company being met at the temple of Ceres, she only was
+found wanting. Very grievous did the thing seem to him, nor did he cease
+to cry out in his wrath against Gods and men. Also he bade his comrades
+have a care of his father and his son, and of the household gods, and
+girded him again with arms, and so passed into the city. And first he went
+to the wall and to the gate by which he had come forth, and then to his
+house, if haply she had returned thither. But there indeed the men of
+Greece were come, and the fire had well-nigh mastered it. And after that
+he went to the citadel and to the palace of King Priam. And lo! in the
+porch of Juno's temple, Phoenix and Ulysses were keeping guard over the
+spoil, even the treasure of the temples, tables of the Gods, and solid
+cups of gold, and raiment, and a long array of them that had been taken
+captive, children and women. But not the less did he seek his wife through
+all the streets of the city, yea, and called her aloud by name. But lo! as
+he called, the image of her whom he sought seemed to stand before him,
+only greater than she had been while she was yet alive. And the spirit
+spake, saying, "Why art thou vainly troubled? These things have not
+befallen us against the pleasure of the Gods. The ruler of Olympus willeth
+not that Creusa should bear thee company in thy journey. For thou hast a
+long journey to take, and many seas to cross, till thou come to the
+Hesperian shore, where Lydian Tiber flows softly through a good land and a
+fertile. There shalt thou have great prosperity, and take to thyself a
+wife of royal race. Weep not, then, for Creusa, whom thou lovest, nor
+think that I shall be carried away to be a bond-slave to some Grecian
+woman. Such fate befits not a daughter of Dardanus and daughter-in-law of
+Venus. The mighty mother of the Gods keepeth me in this land to serve her.
+And now, farewell, and love the young Ascanius, even thy son and mine."
+
+[Illustration: AND AS HE SPAKE HE PUT A CLOAK OF LION'S SKIN UPON HIS
+SHOULDERS, AND THE OLD MAN SAT THEREON. ASCANIUS ALSO LAID HOLD OF HIS
+HAND, AND CREUSA FOLLOWED BEHIND. SO HE WENT IN MUCH DREAD AND TREMBLING,
+FOR INDEED BEFORE SWORD AND SPEAR OF THE ENEMY HE HAD NOT FEARED, BUT NOW
+HE FEARED MUCH FOR THEM THAT WERE WITH HIM]
+
+So spake the spirit, and when AEneas wept and would have spoken, vanished
+out of his sight. Thrice he would have cast his arms about her neck, and
+thrice the image mocked him, being thin as air and fleeting as a dream.
+Then, the night being now spent, he sought his comrades, and found with
+much joy and wonder that a great company of men and women were gathered
+together, and were willing, all of them, to follow him whithersoever he
+went. And now the morning star rose over Mount Ida, and AEneas, seeing that
+the Greeks held the city, and that there was no longer any hope of succor,
+went his way to the mountains, taking with him his father.
+
+
+
+
+AENEAS'S ADVENTURE WITH THE HARPIES
+
+By Charles Henry Hanson
+
+
+    [For three days the vessels of AEneas were tossed about by terrible
+    storm winds.]
+
+
+At last, on the fourth day, the fury of the storm abated, and they came in
+sight of land,--at first lofty mountains, and afterwards, as they drew
+nearer, rich grassy plains, on which the wanderers saw herds of cattle and
+flocks of goats grazing without a keeper. As soon as the storm-beaten
+vessels could be brought to the shore, the Trojans hastened to land, and
+slaughtered some of the cattle, preparing a luxurious banquet. But this
+they were not destined to enjoy in peace; for scarcely had they stretched
+themselves on the couches they had hurriedly prepared beside the food when
+there was a sudden rushing of wings, and three ghastly creatures swooped
+down upon the feast, devoured a large part of it, and so defiled the rest
+with their loathsome touch that very little was eatable. These were the
+Harpies, and by their appearance AEneas knew that he and his companions had
+arrived at the Strophades, two islands in the Ionian Sea which for many
+years had been given up to the monsters. They were fearful of aspect: down
+to the breast they resembled women, with scanty black hair and glaring
+red-rimmed eyes, and on their faces ever a famine-stricken look; but they
+had wings instead of arms, and their bodies and lower limbs were those of
+huge birds, foul and uncleanly. These hateful creatures had long before
+been sent by the Gods to plague Pheneus the Blind, king of Thrace, who had
+cruelly treated his sons. Whenever a meal was spread for the king, the
+Harpies used to descend and devour it. At last some brave warriors, who
+were passing through Thrace, were persuaded by the promise of rewards from
+Pheneus to rid him of the monsters, and drove them to the far Strophades,
+where they had ever since dwelt.
+
+Irritated at the loss of their feast, AEneas and his companions prepared
+more food, and determined, if necessary, to defend it with their swords.
+They accordingly concealed their weapons in the grass, and stationed one
+of their number on the watch, to give notice with the sound of a trumpet
+when the Harpies were approaching. This was done accordingly, and the
+obscene creatures, when they again swooped down to seize on the cooked
+meats, which they relished more than any other food, were driven off,
+though not without difficulty. But one of them, perching on a high rock,
+croaked forth to the astonished mariners this dismal prophecy:--
+
+"Woe to you, Trojans! Do you dare to make war upon us after having slain
+our oxen, and to banish the innocent Harpies from the kingdom which is
+theirs by right? Fix, then, in your minds these words, which the father of
+Gods and men revealed to Phoebus Apollo, and Apollo to me. Italy is the
+land you seek, and Italy you shall reach at last, after many perils; but
+you shall not build up the walls of your new-founded city until dire
+famine and suffering, visiting you because you have injured us, shall
+compel you to devour your tables as well as the food that is upon them."
+
+The gloomy prediction terrified most of the wanderers, and they urged
+AEneas to endeavor to propitiate the unclean monsters with invocations and
+sacrifices. But Anchises, after imploring Jupiter to ward off the
+threatened calamities, commanded that the expedition should at once quit
+that melancholy shore. After passing the rugged cliffs of Ithaca, and
+uttering maledictions on the land that bred Ulysses, the most cunning
+enemy of Troy, the exiles arrived in safety at the harbor of Leucadia,
+where the ships were anchored, and the travelers landed to rest awhile
+after the fatigues of the voyage. Here they celebrated the games of their
+country; and AEneas hung on the door-posts of an ancient and famous temple
+of Apollo a suit of armor, which he had taken from a Greek warrior slain
+before Troy, placing above it an inscription, "These arms AEneas won from
+the victorious Greeks."
+
+
+
+
+AENEAS IN THE LAND OF THE CYCLOPS
+
+By Charles Henry Hanson
+
+
+A day's sail over the blue Mediterranean brought AEneas and his followers
+in sight of the southeastern shores of Italy; and as they saw the swelling
+hills and grassy plains of the promised land, they broke into cries of
+joy. The ships were run into a secure harbor, and sacrifices offered up
+for the propitiation of Minerva and of Juno; after which, mindful of the
+injunctions of Helenus to avoid those parts of Italy which lay nearest to
+Greece, the adventurers resumed their voyage. Keeping near the coast, they
+passed the Bay of Tarentum and the lofty promontories of Calabria. Now
+came in sight the immense bulk of Etna, lifting its fire-crowned head into
+the clouds; and the roaring of the terrible Charybdis could be distinctly
+heard. Remembering the warnings of Helenus, they hastily turned to the
+left, and avoided the perilous strait, but sought refuge in a place
+scarcely less dangerous; for they landed in the country of the Cyclops,
+where, only a little while before, Ulysses had been with his comrades, and
+had endured great sufferings at the hands of the giant Polyphemus. The
+Cyclops, it will be remembered, were a race of savage shepherds, of
+immense stature, having each but one eye in the middle of his forehead.
+They dwelt in caves, and kept great flocks and herds. Polyphemus was the
+largest and fiercest of them all; and when Ulysses and his companions
+entered his cave he kept them prisoners, and devoured several of them. The
+hero himself and the rest of his followers had escaped him by making him
+drunk with wine they had brought on shore from their ships, and then
+putting out his eye with a sharpened stake, the point of which they had
+hardened in the fire. The knowledge of this adventure came to AEneas and
+his Trojans in a strange fashion. On the morning after their arrival in
+the country of the Cyclops, they were on the shore, when they were
+surprised to see a man emerge from the woods, and approach them with
+suppliant gestures. His appearance was wild and emaciated, his beard
+overgrown, his garments ragged; but nevertheless it was easy to perceive
+that he was a Greek. When he saw that the voyagers wore Trojan dress and
+arms, he paused in fear, but the next moment he hurried toward them with
+tears and entreaties.
+
+"I conjure you," he cried, "by the stars, by the powers above, by the
+light of heaven, ye Trojans, take me hence. Carry me where you will, do
+with me what you will, I shall be content. I confess that I was one who
+bore arms against Troy; if you deem that a crime, put me to death for it.
+At least I shall have the satisfaction of dying by the hands of men."
+
+AEneas and Anchises received the stranger kindly, assured him of his
+safety, and asked him who he was, and how he came to be in that desolate
+country. He answered that he was an Ithacan, his name Achaemenides, and
+that he had been one of the companions of Ulysses in his wanderings. He
+related the adventures of the Ithacan hero in the cave of Polyphemus, and
+told how he himself, having been by accident left behind when his comrades
+escaped, had since led a wretched existence in the woods, living on wild
+berries and roots, and continually in dread lest he should be seen by the
+Cyclops. He advised AEneas to lose no time in quitting the country, lest
+the ferocious shepherds should discover and destroy them. Even as
+Achaemenides spoke, Polyphemus was seen accompanying his flock to their
+pasture. So tall was he of stature that he carried the trunk of a
+pine-tree as a staff to guide his footsteps. Reaching the sea he stepped
+into it, and bent down to bathe the wound inflicted by Ulysses. The
+Trojans hastened to cut their cables, and rowed out to sea. The giant
+heard the sound of their oars, and turned to follow them; but in his
+blindness he dared not follow far, and therefore he called on his brethren
+with a cry so loud that the very sea was shaken in its depths. Forthwith
+the huge Cyclops came trooping to the shore, like a wood of lofty trees
+endued with life and motion; but by this time the Trojan vessels had got
+beyond their reach.
+
+
+
+
+AENEAS AND QUEEN DIDO
+
+By Alfred J. Church
+
+
+    [AEneas was driven by a storm upon the shores of Carthage.]
+
+
+Now it came to pass on the next day that AEneas, having first hidden his
+ships in a bay that was well covered with trees, went forth to spy out the
+new land whither he was come, and Achates only went with him. And AEneas
+had in each hand a broad-pointed spear. And as he went there met him in
+the middle of the wood his mother, but habited as a Spartan virgin, for
+she had hung a bow from her shoulders after the fashion of a huntress, and
+her hair was loose, and her tunic short to the knees, and her garments
+gathered in a knot upon her breast. Then first the false huntress spake:
+"If perchance ye have seen one of my sisters wandering hereabouts, make
+known to me the place. She is girded with a quiver, and is clothed with
+the skin of a spotted lynx, or, maybe, she hunts a wild boar with horn and
+hound."
+
+To whom AEneas, "I have not seen nor heard sister of thine, O virgin--for
+what shall I call thee? for, of a surety, neither is thy look as of a
+mortal woman, nor yet thy voice. A goddess certainly thou art, sister of
+Phoebus, or, haply, one of the nymphs. But whosoever thou art, look
+favorably upon us and help us. Tell us in what land we be, for the winds
+have driven us hither, and we know not aught of place or people."
+
+And Venus said, "Nay, stranger, I am not such as ye think. We virgins of
+Tyre are wont to carry a quiver and to wear a buskin of purple. For indeed
+it is a Tyrian city that is hard by, though the land be Libya. And of this
+city Dido is queen, having come hither from Tyre, flying from the
+wrong-doing of her brother. And indeed the story of the thing is long, but
+I will recount the chief matter thereof to thee. The husband of this Dido
+was one Sichaeus, richest among all the men of Phoenicia, and greatly
+beloved of his wife, whom he married from a virgin. Now the brother of
+this Sichaeus was Pygmalion, the king of the country, and he exceeded all
+men in wickedness. And when there arose a quarrel between them, the king,
+being exceedingly mad after gold, took him unaware, even as he did
+sacrifice at the altar, and slew him. And the king hid the matter many
+days from Dido, and cheated her with false hopes. But at the last there
+came to her in her dreams the likeness of the dead man, baring his wounds
+and showing the wickedness which had been done. Also he bade her make
+haste and fly from that land, and, that she might do this the more easily,
+told her of great treasure, gold and silver, that was hidden in the earth.
+And Dido, being much moved by these things, made ready for flight; also
+she sought for companions, and there came together to her as many as hated
+the king or feared him. Then did they seize ships that chanced to be ready
+and laded them with gold, even the treasure of King Pygmalion, and so fled
+across the sea. And in all this was a woman the leader. Then came they to
+this place, where thou seest the walls and citadel of Carthage, and bought
+so much land as they could cover with a bull's hide. And now do ye answer
+me this, Whence come ye, and whither do ye go?"
+
+Then answered AEneas, "Should I tell the whole story of our wanderings, and
+thou have leisure to hear, evening would come ere I could make an end. We
+are men of Troy, who, having journeyed over many seas, have now been
+driven by storms to this shore of Libya. And as for me, men call me Prince
+AEneas. The land I seek is Italy, and my race is from Jupiter himself. With
+twenty ships did I set sail, going in the way whereon the Gods sent me.
+And of these scarce seven are left. And now, seeing that Europe and Asia
+endure me not, I wander over the desert places of Africa."
+
+But Venus suffered him not to speak more, but said, "Whoever thou art,
+stranger, that art come to this Tyrian city, thou art surely beloved by
+the Gods. And now go, show thyself to the queen. And as for thy ships and
+thy companions, I tell thee that they are safe in the haven, if I have not
+learnt augury in vain. See those twenty swans, how joyously they fly! And
+now there cometh an eagle swooping down from the sky, putting them to
+confusion, but now again they move in due order, and some are settling on
+the earth and some are preparing to settle. Even so doth it fare with thy
+ships, for either are they already in the haven or enter thereinto with
+sails full set."
+
+And as she spoke she turned away, and there shone a rosy light from her
+neck, also there came from her hair a sweet savor as of ambrosia, and her
+garments grew under her feet; and AEneas perceived that she was his mother,
+and cried aloud,--
+
+"O my mother, why dost thou mock me so often with false shows, nor
+sufferest me to join my hand unto thy hand, and to speak with thee face to
+face?"
+
+And he went towards the walls of the city. But Venus covered him and his
+companions with a mist, that no man might see them, or hinder them, or
+inquire of their business, and then departed to Paphos, where was her
+temple and also many altars of incense. Then the men hastened on their
+way, and mounting a hill which hung over the city, marveled to behold it,
+for indeed it was very great and noble, with mighty gates and streets, and
+a multitude that walked therein. For some built the walls and the citadel,
+rolling great stones with their hands, and others marked out places for
+houses. Also they chose those that should give judgment and bear rule in
+the city. Some, too, digged out harbors, and others laid the foundations
+of a theatre, and cut out great pillars of stone. Like to bees they were,
+when, the summer being newly come, the young swarms go forth, or when they
+labor filling the cells with honey, and some receive the burdens of those
+that return from the fields, and others keep off the drones from the hive.
+Even so labored the men of Tyre. And when AEneas beheld them he cried,
+"Happy ye, who even now have a city to dwell in!" And being yet hidden by
+the mist, he went in at the gate and mingled with the men, being seen of
+none.
+
+Now in the midst of the city was a wood, very thick with trees, and here
+the men of Carthage, first come to the land from their voyage, had digged
+out of the ground that which Juno had said should be a sign to them, even
+a horse's head; for that, finding this, their city would be mighty in war,
+and full of riches. Here, then, Dido was building a temple to Juno, very
+splendid, with threshold of bronze, and many steps thereunto; of bronze
+also were the door-posts and the gates. And here befell a thing which gave
+much comfort and courage to AEneas; for as he stood and regarded the place,
+waiting also for the queen, he saw set forth in order upon the walls the
+battles that had been fought at Troy, the sons of Atreus also, and King
+Priam, and fierce Achilles. Then said he, not without tears, "Is there any
+land, O Achates, that is not filled with our sorrows? Seest thou Priam?
+Yet withal there is a reward for virtue here also, and tears and pity for
+the troubles of men. Fear not, therefore. Surely the fame of these things
+shall profit us."
+
+Then he looked, satisfying his soul with the paintings on the walls. For
+there was the city of Troy. In this part of the field the Greeks fled and
+the youth of Troy pursued them, and in that the men of Troy fled, and
+Achilles followed hard upon them in his chariot. Also he saw the white
+tents of Rhesus, king of Thrace, whom the fierce Diomed slew in his sleep,
+when he was newly come to Troy, and drave his horses to the camp before
+they ate of the grass of the fields of Troy or drank the waters of
+Nanthus. There also Troilus was pictured, ill matched in battle with
+Achilles. His horses bare him along; but he lay on his back in the
+chariot, yet holding the reins, and his neck and head were dragged upon
+the earth, and the spear-point made a trail in the dust. And in another
+place the women of Troy went suppliant-wise to the temple of Minerva,
+bearing a great and beautiful robe, sad and beating their breasts, and
+with hair unbound; but the goddess regarded them not. Also Achilles
+dragged the body of Hector three times round the walls of Troy, and was
+selling it for gold. And AEneas groaned when he saw the man whom he loved,
+and the old man Priam reaching out helpless hands. Also he knew himself,
+fighting in the midst of the Grecian chiefs; black Memnon also he knew,
+and the hosts of the East; and Penthesilea leading the army of the Amazons
+with shields shaped as the moon. Fierce she was to see, with one breast
+bared for battle, and a golden girdle beneath it, a damsel daring to fight
+with men.
+
+But while AEneas marveled to see these things, lo! there came, with a great
+throng of youths behind her, Dido, most beautiful of women, fair as Diana,
+when, on the banks of Eurotas or on the hills of Cynthus, she leads the
+dance with a thousand nymphs of the mountains about her. On her shoulder
+she bears a quiver, and overtops them all, and her mother, even Latona,
+silently rejoices to behold her. So fair and seemly to see was Dido as she
+bare herself right nobly in the midst, being busy in the work of her
+kingdom. Then she sat herself down on a lofty throne in the gate of the
+temple, with many armed men about her. And she did justice between man and
+man; also she divided the work of the city, sharing it equally or parting
+by lot.
+
+Then of a sudden AEneas heard a great clamor, and saw a company of men come
+quickly to the place, among whom were Antheus and Sergestus and Cloanthus,
+and others of the men of Troy that had been parted from him in the storm.
+Right glad was he to behold them, yet was not without fear; and though he
+would fain have come forth and caught them by the hand, yet did he tarry,
+waiting to hear how the men had fared, where they had left their ships,
+and wherefore they were come.
+
+Then Ilioneus, leave being now given that he should speak, thus began: "O
+Queen, whom Jupiter permits to build a new city in these lands, we men of
+Troy, whom the winds have carried over many seas, pray thee that thou save
+our ships from fire, and spare a people that serveth the Gods. For,
+indeed, we are not come to waste the dwellings of this land, or to carry
+off spoils to our ships. For, of a truth, they who have suffered so much
+think not of such deeds. There is a land which the Greeks call Hesperia,
+but the people themselves Italy, after the name of their chief; an ancient
+land, mighty in arms and fertile of corn. Hither, were we journeying, when
+a storm arising scattered our ships, and only these few that thou seest
+escaped to the land. And can there be nation so savage that it receiveth
+not shipwrecked men on its shore, but beareth arms against them, and
+forbiddeth them to land? Nay, but if ye care not for men, yet regard the
+Gods, who forget neither them that do righteously nor them that
+transgress. We had a king, AEneas, than whom there lived not a man more
+dutiful to Gods and men, and greater in war. If indeed he be yet alive,
+then we fear not at all. For of a truth it will not repent thee to have
+helped us. And if not, other friends have we, as Acestes of Sicily. Grant
+us, therefore, to shelter our ships from the wind; also to fit them with
+fresh timber from the woods, and to make ready oars for rowing, so that,
+finding again our king and our companions, we may gain the land of Italy.
+But if he be dead, and Ascanius his son lost also, then there is a
+dwelling ready for us in the land of Sicily, with Acestes, who is our
+friend."
+
+Then Dido, her eyes bent on the ground, thus spake: "Fear not, men of
+Troy. If we have seemed to deal harshly with you, pardon us, seeing that,
+being newly settled in this land, we must keep watch and ward over our
+coasts. But as for the men of Troy, and their deeds in arms, who knows
+them not? Think not that we in Carthage are so dull of heart, or dwell so
+remote from man, that we are ignorant of these things. Whether, therefore,
+ye will journey to Italy or rather return to Sicily and King Acestes, know
+that I will give you all help, and protect you; or, if ye will, settle in
+this land of ours. Yours is this city which I am building. I will make no
+difference between man of Troy and man of Tyre. Would that your king also
+were here! Surely I will send those that shall seek him in all parts of
+Libya, lest haply he should be gone astray in any forest or strange city
+of the land."
+
+And when AEneas and Achates heard these things they were glad, and would
+have come forth from the cloud, and Achates said, "What thinkest thou? Lo,
+thy comrades are safe, saving him whom we saw with our own eyes drowned in
+the waves; and all other things are according as thy mother said."
+
+And even as he spake the cloud parted from about them, and AEneas stood
+forth, very bright to behold, with face and breast as of a god, for his
+mother had given to him hair beautiful to see, and cast about him the
+purple light of youth, even as a workman sets ivory in some fair ornament,
+or compasseth about silver or marble of Paros with gold. Then spake he to
+the queen: "Lo! I am he whom ye seek, even AEneas of Troy, scarcely saved
+from the waters of the sea. And as for thee, O Queen, seeing that thou
+only hast been found to pity the unspeakable sorrows of Troy, and biddest
+us, though we be but poor exiles and lacking all things, to share thy city
+and thy home, may the Gods do so to thee as thou deservest. And, of a
+truth, so long as the rivers run to the seas, and the shadows fall on the
+hollows of the hills, so long will thy name and thy glory survive,
+whatever be the land to which the Gods shall bring me." Then gave he his
+right hand to Ilioneus, and his left hand to Sergestus, and greeted them
+with great joy.
+
+And Dido, hearing these things, was silent for a while, but at the last
+she spake. "What ill fortune brings thee into perils so great? what power
+drave thee to these savage shores? Well do I mind me how in days gone by
+there came to Sidon one Teucer, who, having been banished from his
+country, sought help from Belus that he might find a kingdom for himself.
+And it chanced that in those days Belus, my father, had newly conquered
+the land of Cyprus. From that day did I know the tale of Troy, and thy
+name also, and the chiefs of Greece. Also I remember that Teucer spake
+honorably of the men of Troy, saying that he was himself sprung of the old
+Teucrian stock. Come ye, therefore to my palace. I too have wandered far,
+even as you, and so have come to this land, and having suffered much, have
+learnt to succor them that suffer."
+
+So saying she led AEneas into her palace; also she sent to his companions
+in the ships great store of provisions, even twenty oxen and a hundred
+bristly swine and a hundred ewe sheep with their lambs. But in the palace
+a great feast was set forth, couches covered with broidered purple and
+silver vessels without end, and cups of gold, whereon were embossed the
+mighty deeds of the men of old time.
+
+And in the mean time AEneas sent Achates in haste to the ships, that he
+might fetch Ascanius to the feast. Also he bade that the boy should bring
+with him gifts of such things as they had saved from the ruins of Troy,--a
+mantle stiff with broidery of gold and a veil bordered with yellow
+acanthus, which the fair Helen had taken with her, flying from her home;
+but Leda, her mother, had given them to Helen; a sceptre likewise which
+Ilione, first-born of the daughters of Priam, had carried, and a necklace
+of pearls and a double crown of jewels and gold.
+
+But Venus was troubled in heart, fearing evil to her son should the men of
+Tyre be treacherous, after their wont, and Juno remember her wrath.
+Wherefore, taking counsel with herself, she called to the winged boy, even
+Love, that was her son, and spake: "My son, who art all my power and
+strength, who laughest at the thunders of Jupiter, thou knowest how Juno,
+being exceedingly wroth against thy brother AEneas, causeth him to wander
+out of the way over all lands. This day Dido hath him in her palace, and
+speaketh him fair; but I fear me much how these things may end. Wherefore
+hear thou that which I purpose. Thy brother hath even now sent for the boy
+Ascanius, that he may come to the palace, bringing with him gifts of such
+things as they saved from the ruins of Troy. Him will I cause to fall into
+a deep sleep and hide in Cythera or Idalium, and do thou for one night
+take upon thee his likeness. And when Queen Dido at the feast shall hold
+thee in her lap, and kiss and embrace thee, do thou breathe by stealth thy
+fire into her heart."
+
+Then did Love as his mother bade him, and put off his wings, and took upon
+him the shape of Ascanius, but on the boy Venus caused there to fall a
+deep sleep, and carried him to the woods of Idalium, and lapped him in
+sweet-smelling flowers. And in his stead Love carried the gifts to the
+queen. And when he was come they sat down to the feast, the queen being in
+the midst under a canopy. AEneas also and the men of Troy lay on coverlets
+of purple, to whom serving-men brought water and bread in baskets and
+napkins; and within fifty handmaids were ready to replenish the store of
+victual and to fan the fire; and a hundred others, with pages as many,
+loaded the tables with dishes and drinking-cups. Many men of Tyre also
+were bidden to the feast. Much they marveled at the gifts of AEneas, and
+much at the false Ascanius. Dido also could not satisfy herself with
+looking on him, nor knew what trouble he was preparing for her in the time
+to come. And he, having first embraced the father who was not his father,
+and clung about his neck, addressed himself to Queen Dido, and she ever
+followed him with her eyes, and sometimes would hold him on her lap. And
+still he worked upon her that she should forget the dead Sichaeus and
+conceive a new love in her heart.
+
+But when they first paused from the feast, lo! men set great bowls upon
+the table and filled them to the brim with wine. Then did the queen call
+for a great vessel of gold, with many jewels upon it, from which Belus,
+and all the kings from Belus, had drunk, and called for wine, and having
+filled it she cried, "O Jupiter, whom they call the god of hosts and
+guests, cause that this be a day of joy for the men of Troy and for them
+of Tyre, and that our children remember it forever. Also Bacchus, giver of
+joy, be present, and kindly Juno." And when she had touched the wine with
+her lips, she handed the great cup to Prince Bitias, who drank thereout a
+mighty draught, and the other princes after him. Then the minstrel Iopas,
+whom Atlas himself had taught, sang to the harp, of the moon, how she goes
+on her way, and of the sun, how his light is darkened. He sang also of
+men, and of the beasts of the field, whence they come; and of the stars,
+Arcturus, and the Greater Bear and the Less, and the Hyades; and of the
+winter sun, why he hastens to dip himself in the ocean; and of the winter
+nights, why they tarry so long. The queen also talked much of the story of
+Troy, of Priam, and of Hector, asking many things, as of the arms of
+Memnon, and of the horses of Diomed, and of Achilles, how great he was.
+And at last she said to AEneas, "Tell us now thy story, how Troy was taken,
+and thy wanderings over land and sea." And AEneas made answer, "Nay, O
+Queen, but thou biddest me renew a sorrow unspeakable. Yet, if thou art
+minded to hear these things, hearken." And he told her all that had
+befallen him, even to the day when his father Anchises died.
+
+Much was Queen Dido moved by the story, and much did she marvel at him
+that told it, and scarce could sleep for thinking of him. And the next day
+she spake to Anna, her sister, "O my sister, I have been troubled this
+night with ill dreams, and my heart is disquieted within me. What a man is
+this stranger that hath come to our shores! How noble of mien! How bold in
+war! Sure I am that he is of the sons of the Gods. What fortunes have been
+his! Of what wars he told us! Surely were I not steadfastly purposed that
+I would not yoke me again in marriage, this were the man to whom I might
+yield. Only he--for I will tell thee the truth, my sister--only he, since
+the day when Sichaeus died by our brother's hand, hath moved my heart. But
+may the earth swallow me up, or the almighty Father strike me with
+lightning, ere I stoop to such baseness. The husband of my youth hath
+carried with him my love, and he shall keep it in his grave."
+
+So she spake, with many tears. And her sister made answer, "Why wilt thou
+waste thy youth in sorrow, without child or husband? Thinkest thou that
+there is care or remembrance of such things in the grave? No suitors
+indeed have pleased thee here or in Tyre, but wilt thou also contend with
+a love that is after thine own heart? Think too of the nations among whom
+thou dwellest, how fierce they are, and of thy brother at Tyre, what he
+threatens against thee. Surely it was by the will of the Gods, and of Juno
+chiefly, that the ships of Troy came hither. And this city, which thou
+buildest, to what greatness will it grow if only thou wilt make for
+thyself such alliance! How great will be the glory of Carthage if the
+strength of Troy be joined unto her! Only do thou pray to the Gods and
+offer sacrifices; and, for the present, seeing that the time of sailing is
+now past, make excuse that these strangers tarry with thee awhile."
+
+Thus did Anna comfort her sister and encourage her. And first the two
+offered sacrifice to the Gods, chiefly to Juno, who careth for the bond of
+marriage. Also, examining the entrails of slain beasts, they sought to
+learn the things that should happen thereafter. And ever Dido would
+company with AEneas, leading him about the walls of the city which she
+builded. And often she would begin to speak and stay in the midst of her
+words. And when even was come, she would hear again and again at the
+banquet the tale of Troy, and while others slept would watch, and while he
+was far away would seem to see him and to hear him. Ascanius, too, she
+would embrace for love of his father, if so she might cheat her own heart.
+But the work of the city was stayed meanwhile; nor did the towers rise in
+their places, nor the youth practice themselves in arms.
+
+Then Juno, seeing how it fared with the queen, spake to Venus: "Are ye
+satisfied with your victory, thou and thy son, that ye have vanquished,
+the two of you, one woman? Well I knew that thou fearedst lest this
+Carthage should harm thy favorite. But why should there be war between us?
+Thou hast what thou seekest. Let us make alliance. Let Dido obey a
+Phrygian husband, and bring the men of Tyre as her dowry."
+
+But Venus knew that she spake with ill intent, to the end that the men of
+Troy should not reign in the land of Italy. Nevertheless she dissembled
+with her tongue, and spake: "Who would not rather have peace with thee
+than war? Only I doubt whether this thing shall be to the pleasure of
+Jupiter. This thou must learn, seeing that thou art his wife, and where
+thou leadest I will follow."
+
+So the two, taking counsel together, ordered things in this wise. The next
+day a great hunting was prepared. For as soon as ever the sun was risen
+upon the earth, the youth of the city assembled, with nets and hunting
+spears and dogs that ran by scent. And the princes of Carthage waited for
+the queen at the palace door, where her horse stood champing the bit, with
+trappings of purple and gold. And after a while she came forth, with many
+following her. And she had upon her a Sidonian mantle, with a border
+wrought with divers colors; of gold was her quiver, and of gold the knot
+of her hair, and of gold the clasp to her mantle. AEneas likewise came
+forth, beautiful as is Apollo when he leaveth Lydia and the stream of
+Xanthus, coming to Delos, and hath about his hair a wreath of bay-leaves
+and a circlet of gold. So fair was AEneas to see. And when the hunters came
+to the hills they found great store of goats and stags, which they chased.
+And of all the company Ascanius was the foremost, thinking scorn of such
+hunting, and wishing that a wild boar or a lion out of the hills would
+come forth to be his prey.
+
+And now befell a great storm, with much thunder and hail, from which the
+hunters sought shelter. But AEneas and the queen, being left of all their
+company, came together to the same cave. And there they plighted their
+troth one to the other. Nor did the queen after that make secret of her
+love, but called AEneas her husband.
+
+Straightway went Rumor and told these things through the cities of Libya.
+Now Rumor, men say, is the youngest daughter of Earth, a marvelous
+creature, moving very swiftly with feet and wings, and having many
+feathers upon her, and under every feather an eye and a tongue and a mouth
+and an ear. In the night she flieth between heaven and earth, and sleepeth
+not; and in the day she sitteth on some housetop or lofty tower, or
+spreadeth fear over mighty cities; and she loveth that which is false even
+as she loveth that which is true. So now she went telling through Libya
+how AEneas of Troy was come, and Dido was wedded to him, and how they lived
+careless and at ease, and thinking not of the work to which they were
+called.
+
+And first of all she went to Prince Iarbas, who himself had sought Dido in
+marriage. And Iarbas was very wroth when he heard it, and, coming to the
+temple of Jupiter, spread his grief before the Gods, how that he had given
+a place on his coasts to this Dido, and would have taken her to wife, but
+that she had married a stranger from Phrygia, another Paris, whose dress
+and adornments were of a woman rather than of a man.
+
+And Jupiter saw that this was so, and he said to Mercury, who was his
+messenger, "Go speak to AEneas these words: 'Thus saith the king of Gods
+and men. Is this what thy mother promised of thee, twice saving thee from
+the spear of the Greeks? Art thou he that shall rule Italy and its mighty
+men of war, and spread thy dominion to the ends of the world? If thou
+thyself forgettest these things, dost thou grudge to thy son the citadels
+of Rome? What doest thou here? Why lookest thou not to Italy? Depart and
+tarry not.'"
+
+Then Mercury fitted the winged sandals to his feet, and took the wand with
+which he driveth the spirits of the dead, and came right soon to Mount
+Atlas, which standeth bearing the heaven on his head, and having always
+clouds about his top, and snow upon his shoulders, and a beard that is
+stiff with ice. There Mercury stood awhile; then, as a bird which seeks
+its prey in the sea, shot headlong down, and came to AEneas where he stood,
+with a yellow jasper in his sword-hilt, and a cloak of purple shot with
+gold about his shoulders, and spake: "Buildest thou Carthage, forgetting
+thine own work? The Almighty Father saith to thee, 'What meanest thou? Why
+tarriest thou here? If thou carest not for thyself, yet think of thy son,
+and that the Fates have given to him Italy and Rome.'"
+
+And AEneas saw him no more. And he stood stricken with fear and doubt. Fain
+would he obey the voice, and go as the Gods commanded. But how should he
+tell this purpose to the queen? But at the last it seemed good to him to
+call certain of the chiefs, as Mnestheus, and Sergestus, and Antheus, and
+bid them make ready the ships in silence, and gather together the people,
+but dissemble the cause, and he himself would watch a fitting time to
+speak and unfold the matter to the queen.
+
+Yet was not Dido deceived, for love is keen of sight. Rumor also told her
+that they made ready the ships for sailing. Then, flying through the city,
+even as one on whom has come the frenzy of Bacchus flies by night over
+Mount Cithaeron, she came upon AEneas, and spake: "Thoughtest thou to hide
+thy crime, and to depart in silence from this land? Carest thou not for
+her whom thou leavest to die? And hast thou no fear of winter storms that
+vex the sea? By all that I have done for thee and given thee, if there be
+yet any place for repentance, repent thee of this purpose. For thy sake I
+suffer the wrath of the princes of Libya and of my own people; and if thou
+leavest me, for what should I live?--till my brother overthrow my city, or
+Iarbas carry me away captive? If but I had a little AEneas to play in my
+halls I should not seem so altogether desolate."
+
+But AEneas, fearing the words of Jupiter, stood with eyes that relented
+not. At the last he spake: "I deny not, O Queen, the benefits that thou
+hast done unto me, nor ever, while I live, shall I forget Dido. I sought
+not to fly by stealth; yet did I never promise that I would abide in this
+place. Could I have chosen according to my will I had built again the city
+of Troy where it stood; but the Gods command that I should seek Italy.
+Thou hast thy Carthage; why dost thou grudge Italy to us? Nor may I tarry.
+Night after night have I seen my father Anchises warning me in dreams.
+Also even now the messenger of Jupiter came to me--with these ears I heard
+him--and bade me depart."
+
+Then, in great wrath, with eyes askance, did Dido break forth upon him:
+"Surely no goddess was thy mother, nor art thou come of the race of
+Dardanus. The rocks of Caucasus brought thee forth, and an Hyrcanian
+tigress gave thee suck. For why should I dissemble? Was he moved at all my
+tears? Did he pity my love? Nay, the very Gods are against me. This man I
+took to myself when he was shipwrecked and ready to perish. I brought back
+his ships, his companions from destruction. And now forsooth comes the
+messenger of Jupiter with dreadful commands from the Gods. As for thee, I
+keep thee not. Go, seek thy Italy across the seas: only, if there is any
+vengeance in heaven, thou wilt pay the penalty for this wrong, being
+wrecked on some rock in their midst. Then wilt thou call on Dido in vain.
+Aye, and where-ever thou shalt go I will haunt thee, and rejoice in the
+dwellings below to hear thy doom."
+
+Then she turned, and hasted to go into the house. But her spirit left her,
+so that her maidens bare her to her chamber and laid her on her bed.
+
+Then AEneas, though indeed he was much troubled in heart, and would fain
+have comforted the queen, was obedient to the heavenly word, and departed
+to his ships. And the men of Troy busied themselves in making them ready
+for the voyage. Even as the ants spoil a great heap of corn and store it
+in their dwellings against winter, moving in a black line across the
+field, and some carry the great grains, and some chide those that linger,
+even so did the Trojans swarm along the ways and labor at the work.
+
+But when Dido saw it she called to Anna her sister and said, "Seest thou
+how they hasten the work along the shore? Even now the sails are ready for
+the winds, and the sailors have wreathed the ships with garlands, as if
+for departure. Go thou--the deceiver always trusted thee, and thou knowest
+how best to move him--go and entreat him. I harmed not him nor his people;
+let him then grant me this only. Let him wait for a fairer time for his
+journey. I ask not that he give up his purpose; only that he grant me a
+short breathing space, till I may learn how to bear this sorrow."
+
+And Anna hearkened to her sister, and took the message to AEneas, yet
+profited nothing, for the Gods shut his ears that he should not hear. Even
+as the oak stands firm when the north wind would root it up from the
+earth,--its leaves are scattered all around, yet doth it remain firm, for
+its roots go down to the regions below, even as far as its branches reach
+to heaven,--so stood AEneas firm, and, though he wept many tears, changed
+not his purpose.
+
+Then did Dido grow weary of her life. For when she did sacrifice, the pure
+water would grow black and the wine be changed to blood. Also from the
+shrine of her husband, which was in the midst of her palace, was heard a
+voice calling her, and the owl cried aloud from the house-top. And in her
+dreams the cruel AEneas seemed to drive her before him; or she seemed to be
+going a long way with none to bear her company, and be seeking her own
+people in a land that was desert. Therefore, hiding the thing that was in
+her heart, she spake to her sister, saying, "I have found a way, my
+sister, that shall bring him back to me or set me free from him. Near the
+shore of the Great Sea, where the AEthiopians dwell, is a priestess, who
+guards the temple of the daughters of Hesperus, being wont to feed the
+dragons that kept the apples of gold. She is able by her charms to loose
+the heart from care or to bind it, and to stay rivers also, and to turn
+the courses of the stars, and to call up the spirits of the dead. Do thou,
+therefore--for this is what the priestess commands--build a pile in the
+open court, and put thereon the sword which he left hanging in our
+chamber, and the garments he wore, and the couch on which he lay, even all
+that was his, so that they may perish together."
+
+And when these things were done--for Anna knew not of her purpose--and
+also an image of AEneas was laid upon the pile, the priestess, with her
+hair unbound, called upon all the gods that dwell below, sprinkling
+thereon water that was drawn, she said, from the lake of Avernus, and
+scattering evil herbs that had been cut at the full moon with a sickle of
+bronze. Dido also, with one foot bare and her garments loosened, threw
+meal upon the fire and called upon the gods, if haply there be any, that
+look upon those that love and suffer wrong.
+
+In the mean time AEneas lay asleep in the hind part of his ship, when there
+appeared to him in a dream the god Mercury, even as he had seen him when
+he brought the commandment of Jupiter. And Mercury spake, saying, "Son of
+Venus, canst thou sleep? seest thou not what perils surround thee, nor
+hearest how the favorable west wind calls? The queen purposes evil against
+thee. If thou lingerest till the morning come thou wilt see the shore
+covered with them that wish thee harm. Fly, then, and tarry not; for a
+woman is ever of many minds."
+
+Then did AEneas in great fear start from his sleep, and call his
+companions, saying, "Wake, and sit on the benches, and loose the sails.
+'Tis a god thus bids us fly." And even as he spake he cut the cable with
+his sword. And all hasted to follow him, and sped over the sea.
+
+And now it was morning, and Queen Dido, from her watch-tower, saw the
+ships upon the sea. Then she smote upon her breast and tore her hair, and
+cried, "Shall this stranger mock us thus? Hasten to follow him. Bring down
+the ships from the docks, make ready sword and fire. And this was the man
+who bare upon his shoulders his aged father. Why did I not tear him to
+pieces, and slay his companions with the sword, and serve up the young
+Ascanius at his meal? And if I had perished, what then? for I die to-day.
+O Sun, that regardest all the earth, and Juno, that carest for marriage
+bonds, and Hecate, Queen of the dead, and ye Furies that take vengeance on
+evil-doers, hear me. If it be ordered that he reach that land, yet grant
+that he suffer many things from his enemies, and be driven from his city,
+and beg for help from strangers, and see his people cruelly slain with the
+sword; and, when he shall have made peace on ill conditions, that he enjoy
+not long his kingdoms, but die before his day, and lie unburied on the
+plain. And ye, men of Tyre, hate his children and his people forever. Let
+there be no love or peace between you. And may some avenger arise from my
+grave who shall persecute the race of Dardanus with fire and sword. So
+shall there be war forever between him and me."
+
+Then she spake to old Barce, who had been nurse to her husband Sichaeus,
+"Bid my sister bathe herself in water, and bring with her beasts for
+sacrifice. And do thou also put a garland about thy head, for I am minded
+to finish this sacrifice which I have begun, and to burn the image of the
+man of Troy."
+
+And when the old woman made haste to do her bidding, Queen Dido ran to the
+court where the pile was made for the burning, and mounted on the pile,
+and drew the sword of AEneas from the scabbard. Then did she throw herself
+upon the bed, and cry,
+
+"Now do I yield up my life. I have finished my course. I have built a
+mighty city. I have avenged my husband on him that slew him. Happy had I
+been, yea, too happy! had the ships of Troy never come to this land." Then
+she kissed the bed and cried, "Shall I die unavenged? Nevertheless let me
+die. The man of Troy shall see this fire from the sea whereon he journeys,
+and carry with him an augury of death."
+
+And when her maidens looked, lo! she had fallen upon the sword, and the
+blood was upon her hands. And a great cry went up through the palace,
+exceeding loud and bitter, even as if the enemy had taken Carthage or
+ancient Tyre, and the fire were mounting over the dwellings of men and of
+Gods. And Anna her sister heard it, and rushing through the midst called
+her by name: "O my sister, was this thy purpose? Were the pile and the
+sword and the fire for this? Why wouldst thou not suffer that I should die
+with thee? For surely, my sister, thou hast slain thyself, and me, and thy
+people, and thy city. But give me water, ye maidens, that I may wash her
+wounds, and if there be any breath left in her, we may yet stay it."
+
+Then she climbed on to the pile, and caught her sister in her arms, and
+sought to staunch the blood with her garments. Three times did Dido strive
+to raise her eyes; three times did her spirit leave her. Three times she
+would have raised herself upon her elbow; three times she fell back upon
+the bed, looking with wandering eyes for the light, and groaning that she
+yet beheld it.
+
+Then Juno, looking down from heaven, saw that her pain was long, and
+pitied her, and sent down Iris, her messenger, that she might loose the
+soul that struggled to be free. For, seeing that she died not by nature,
+nor yet by the hand of man, but before her time and of her own madness,
+Queen Proserpine had not shred the ringlet from her head which she shreds
+from them that die. Wherefore Iris, flying down with dewy wings from
+heaven, with a thousand colors about her from the light of the sun, stood
+about her head and said, "I give thee to death, even as I am bidden, and
+loose thee from thy body." Then she shred the lock, and Queen Dido gave up
+the ghost.
+
+
+
+
+THE FUNERAL GAMES OF ANCHISES
+
+By Charles Henry Hanson
+
+
+AEneas called together all his followers, and reminded minded them that a
+year had now passed since the death of his father. Not of their own
+purpose, but doubtless by the will of the Gods, they had now returned to
+the friendly land where his bones had been laid. It was therefore his
+intention to celebrate funeral games. For eight days there should be
+feasting, for which Acestes had generously provided two oxen for each
+ship; and on the ninth day he would give prizes to be contested in the
+foot-race, in shooting with the bow, and in boxing with the cestus.
+
+Having thus spoken, the hero, according to the custom of that time, placed
+a wreath of myrtle upon his head and proceeded to the tomb of his father,
+where he poured out, as a libation to the Gods, two bowls of wine, two of
+new milk, and two of sacred blood. Then he scattered flowers over the
+tomb, and offered up a prayer to his father's shade. Immediately there
+came forth from the tomb a huge snake with glittering scales of blue and
+gold, which, after tasting of what had been poured out, retired again to
+the recesses of the vault. Believing this creature to be an attendant on
+his father's spirit, AEneas offered rich sacrifices--ewes, sows, and
+bullocks--and his companions followed his example. The eight days of
+feasting passed pleasantly enough, and the morning appointed for the
+funeral games dawned bright and serene. A joyous crowd assembled on the
+shore, some to take part in the contests, and others to watch them. The
+first of the games was a race between galleys, and four ships had been
+entered to take part in it. The first was the Pristis, or Shark, of which
+Mnestheus was the captain. The Chimera, a vessel of immense size, was
+commanded by Gyas. The other vessels were the Centaur and the Scylla,--the
+first commanded by Sergestus, and the second by Cloanthus. Some way out in
+the sea, opposite to the starting-point, a rock rose amid the restless
+waters. The galleys were to round this rock, on which AEneas had planted an
+oak-tree as a mark, and then return to the shore. The vessels were
+assigned their places by lot, and the captain of each took his place on
+the poop; while the rowers, stripped to the waist, their shoulders
+glistening with oil, sat with their arms stretched to the oars, eager for
+the signal. At the blast of a trumpet all the oars struck the sea at once,
+and beat it into foam, and the vessels shot forward amid the loud shouts
+of the multitude. The Chimera, under Gyas's skillful guidance, took the
+lead; next followed the Scylla, whose rowers were more efficient, but were
+unable to make such progress, because the vessel was naturally slower.
+Behind the Shark and the Centaur followed close together, and first the
+one and then the other gained a slight advantage. The two leading vessels
+were rapidly nearing the rock when Gyas perceived that his helmsman,
+Menoetes, was keeping a course too far to the right, in fear of some
+hidden crags, and was thus losing the advantage that had been gained. He
+urged him to steer more to the left, nor to care even if the oars grazed
+the rock; but Menoetes was afraid to obey the command. And now Cloanthus
+in the Scylla, taking the very course Gyas had wished to follow, ran
+boldly between the Chimera and the rock, and so got round the goal in
+front of his antagonist. When Gyas beheld this he was full of wrath.
+Rushing to the helm, he seized the over-cautious Menoetes and hurled him
+into the sea; then he himself took the helm, and at once guided his ship
+and issued commands and cries of encouragement to his oarsmen. The
+luckless Menoetes with difficulty contrived to scramble out of the sea
+onto the rock, and sat there in his dripping garments, while the
+spectators roared with laughter at his misadventure. But now Mnestheus in
+the Shark and Sergestus in the Centaur pushed forward with redoubled zeal
+in the hope of obtaining the lead. Sergestus got a little in front of his
+competitor, but Mnestheus, walking among his rowers, urged them to put
+forth their utmost strength, and at least not to suffer the disgrace of
+being last. In response to his appeal they bent to the oar with new vigor;
+the ship trembled under their strokes and the water seemed to fly from
+beneath her keel. Suddenly, while the Centaur, in full career, was
+pressing close to the rock to prevent the Shark from passing on the inner
+side, she ran upon a jutting point where she remained fast, while the oars
+were shattered against the hard rocks. In a moment the Shark shot past,
+and having rounded the goal, dashed on the homeward way. Ere long
+Mnestheus had overtaken the Chimera, which had lost ground because she was
+deprived of her steersman. Cloanthus in the Scylla was now alone in front
+of the Shark; and though the race was nearly over, the frantic efforts of
+Mnestheus' crew might have gained him the victory, but that Cloanthus
+poured forth passionate prayers to the marine deities, and promised them
+ample offerings if the first prize became his. They heard his vows, and
+gathering underneath his vessel, pushed it forward, so that it entered the
+harbor just in front of the Shark. Then AEneas proclaimed Cloanthus the
+victor, and gave him a mantle embroidered with gold and ornamented with a
+thick fringe of the costly Meliboean purple. On Mnestheus, who had so
+gallantly gained the second place, he bestowed a ponderous coat of mail
+worked in gold and brass, which he had himself taken from a famous Greek
+warrior, Demoleus, whom he had slain before Troy. Gyas received two
+caldrons of brass, and some silver bowls ornamented with rich carvings.
+Lastly, when Sergestus had slowly brought back to port his crippled
+galley, his chief bestowed on him, in reward for having rescued the vessel
+from her perilous position, a Cretan female slave with her two children.
+
+Thus ended the galley race; and the assembled multitude now proceeded to a
+grassy plain a little way inland, where thrones were placed for Acestes,
+AEneas, and the other leaders. Here the remaining games were to be
+celebrated, and first of all a foot race. Among the competitors in this
+were Euryalus, a Trojan youth distinguished for his personal beauty;
+Nisus, a brave warrior, who was his constant friend and companion; Diores,
+Salius, and Patron, three other Trojans; and two Sicilian youths famous
+for their speed, named Elymus and Panopes. AEneas announced that he would
+give two Cretan javelins of bright steel and a carved battle-axe of silver
+to each who took part in the race, and to the three who came in first
+other rich prizes: to the first a war-horse with costly trappings; to the
+second a quiver full of Thracian arrows, with a gold belt and jeweled
+buckle; and to the third a Grecian helmet. The runners having been placed
+in proper order, the signal was given, and they darted forward like a
+tempest. Nisus led the way, Salius coming second, and Euryalus third, with
+the rest following close behind. Already Nisus was near the goal, when
+unluckily his foot slipped at a spot where some victims had been
+sacrificed for the altar, and the blood soaking into the grass had made it
+slippery. Down he fell into the puddle, and in a moment his chance of
+victory had disappeared. But even then, in spite of his disappointment, he
+was mindful of his affection for Euryalus, and resolved that since he
+could not win the race, his friend should do so. He rose to his feet just
+as Salius was coming up, and contrived to stand in his way so as to
+overturn him. Euryalus, who had still kept the third place, now sprang
+forward, and was easily victorious amid the applause of the crowd. Elymus
+came in next, and close behind him Diores. But Salius loudly demanded that
+the first prize of right belonged to him, because he had been deprived of
+the victory by unfair means. The spectators, however, favored the claim of
+Euryalus because of his youth and beauty; and Diores vehemently took the
+same side, since, if Salius were adjudged the victory, he would not
+receive a prize at all. AEneas speedily silenced all contention by
+declaring that the promised rewards should go to the three who had arrived
+first at the winning-post; but he added that he would show his sympathy
+for the disaster which had befallen Salius, and therefore bestowed on him
+the shaggy hide of a Getulian lion, still retaining the claws, which had
+been gilt. Upon this, Nisus also merrily asked for some consolation, since
+but for an accident the first prize would have been his, and he showed his
+face and limbs all besmeared with mud. His chief entered into the jest,
+and gave him a buckler, finely carved, which had once hung on the walls of
+Neptune's temple at Troy.
+
+[Illustration: HE ROSE TO HIS FEET JUST AT THE MOMENT THAT SALIUS WAS
+COMING UP, AND CONTRIVED TO STAND IN HIS WAY SO AS TO OVERTURN HIM.
+EURYALUS, WHO HAD STILL KEPT THE THIRD PLACE, NOW SPRANG FORWARD, AND WAS
+EASILY VICTORIOUS AMID THE APPLAUSE OF THE CROWD. ELYMUS CAME IN NEXT, AND
+CLOSE BEHIND HIM DIORES. BUT SALIUS LOUDLY DEMANDED THAT THE FIRST PRIZE
+OF RIGHT BELONGED TO HIM.]
+
+The next contest was that with the cestus, the boxing-glove of the
+ancients, a formidable implement, intended not to soften the blows dealt
+by the boxers, but to make them more painful, for it was composed of
+strips of hardened oxhide. To the competitors in this sport--if such it
+could be called--AEneas offered two prizes,--the first a bullock, decked
+with gold and fillets, and the second a sword and a shining helmet. A
+noted Trojan warrior named Dares, a man of immense strength and bulk, who
+was also celebrated for his skill with the cestus, presented himself to
+contest this prize. He brandished his huge fists in the air, and paced
+vaingloriously backward and forward in the arena, challenging any one in
+the assembly to meet him. But there was no response; his friends were too
+well acquainted with his skill, and the Sicilians were awed by his
+formidable appearance. At last, therefore, imagining that nobody would
+venture to encounter him, he advanced to AEneas and asked that the prize
+might be given up to him. It seemed, indeed, that this would have to be
+done, when King Acestes turned to one of his elders, a venerable Sicilian
+chief named Entellus, and asked how it was that he thus allowed such
+splendid prizes to be taken before his eyes without striking a blow for
+them. Entellus had, in his younger days, been a great champion with the
+cestus, having been taught the use of the weapon by none other than Eryx,
+at that time king of Sicily, and one of the most expert boxers in the
+world. So confident had Eryx been in his powers, that when the mighty
+Hercules passed through Sicily on his way from Spain, where he had slain
+King Geryon and carried off his splendid cattle, the Sicilian monarch
+ventured to challenge the hero to a combat with the cestus, staking his
+kingdom against the cattle which Hercules was bearing away to Greece.
+Hercules had accepted the challenge, and had slain Eryx in the encounter;
+but the tradition of his skill had been preserved by his pupil Entellus.
+The chief was now old, and disinclined for exertion; but when thus urged
+by King Acestes, he slowly rose and threw into the arena the gauntlets
+which King Eryx had been accustomed to use. Terrible weapons indeed
+they-were, with heavy pieces of iron and lead sewn into them underneath
+the oxhide. At the mere sight of them Dares shrank back appalled, and
+refused to fight with such implements. "These," said Entellus, "were the
+gauntlets with which my master Eryx encountered Hercules; and these, after
+his death, I myself was accustomed to use. But if Dares likes not such
+gloves, let AEneas provide others for both of us." With these words he
+threw off his upper garments and bared his massive shoulders and sinewy
+arms. The Trojan chief brought out two pairs of gauntlets of less
+formidable make, with which the two champions armed themselves; and then
+they stood face to face, and both raised their arms for the encounter. For
+some time they stood parrying each other's blows and watching for an
+opportunity. Presently, as they grew warmer, many heavy strokes were given
+on each side, now on the head, now on the breast. Entellus stood stiff and
+unmoved in the same firm posture, only bending to evade Dares's blows, and
+always closely watching his antagonist, who, more active, wheeled round
+him, trying first one method of attack, then another. At last Entellus
+uplifted his right arm, thinking he saw an opportunity for delivering a
+decisive stroke; but Dares with great agility slipped out of the way, and
+as the arm of Entellus encountered no resistance save from the empty air,
+he fell forward on the ground through the violence of his own effort.
+Acclamations burst from all the onlookers, and Acestes himself stepped
+forward to assist his old companion to his feet. But the mishap had only
+aroused Entellus's anger; he no longer acted on the defensive, but rushed
+upon his opponent with irresistible ardor, and smote blow after blow,
+driving Dares headlong over the field, pouring down strokes as incessantly
+as a shower of hail rattles upon the house-tops. AEneas now deemed it high
+time to put a stop to the combat, and called upon Dares, who indeed was
+quite overpowered, to yield. His comrades led the beaten champion to the
+ships, with the blood flowing from his battered head and face, and on his
+behalf they took away the helmet and sword, leaving the bull to the
+conqueror. Entellus, proud of his victory, laid hold of the animal, and
+exclaimed, "Behold, O chief, and you Trojans, from this what my strength
+once was, and also from what death you have saved Dares." With these words
+he smote the bull on the forehead with the cestus so mightily that the
+skull was battered in and the brute sank dead at his feet.
+
+After this exciting competition came a more peaceful sport,--a trial of
+skill with the bow. A mast was planted on a sward, and to the top of it a
+living dove was secured by a cord. This was the mark, and four archers
+came forward to contend for the prizes,--Hippocooen, the brother of Nisus
+and one of AEneas's dearest friends; Mnestheus, the winner of the second
+prize in the galley race; Eurytion, a brother of that Pandarus who was one
+of the most skillful archers that fought in the Trojan war, and who, after
+wounding Menelaus, was slain by Diomedes; and lastly, King Acestes
+himself. Hippocooen shot first, and his arrow, whizzing past the fluttering
+dove, pierced the pole to which she was fastened. This, though it did not
+hit the mark, was an excellent shot, and it won loud applause from the
+spectators. Mnestheus next discharged his dart, taking a long and steady
+aim; but his arrow, instead of striking the bird, cut in two the cord by
+which she was fastened, and, spreading her wings, the dove at once flew
+away. Instantly, however, Eurytion raised his bow, and shot with so true
+an aim that he struck the bird even in mid-flight, and brought her
+lifeless to the earth. There was thus no longer a mark at which Acestes
+could aim; but notwithstanding he drew his bow and discharged a shaft high
+into the air. And now a strange prodigy happened; for the arrow, soaring
+upward, took fire as it flew, and marked out a path of flame, till, being
+quite consumed, it vanished into the air. This spectacle naturally excited
+the wonder and reverence of the assembled multitude; and AEneas, embracing
+Acestes, declared that the incident was an omen from the Gods awarding to
+him the first prize. He therefore bestowed on him a splendid bowl,
+embossed with figures, which had once belonged to Anchises, nor did the
+other competitors dispute the justice of the decision.
+
+But the games were not yet ended. The Trojan chief had prepared a closing
+spectacle as a surprise for the spectators. He sent a messenger to summon
+Ascanius, and in the mean time ordered a large space of ground to be
+cleared. Then suddenly his son entered on horseback at the head of a
+numerous company,--all the youths of the expedition. They were attired
+alike, with garlands on their heads and circles of gold about their necks;
+and each carried two spears of cornel-wood, tipped with steel. The young
+equestrians were divided into three companies; one was commanded by
+Ascanius himself, mounted on a beautiful Sidonian steed which had been
+given him by Queen Dido; a second by the youthful Priam, a son of that
+Polites whom Pyrrhus slew at the fall of Troy; and the third by Atys, a
+boy who was Ascanius' especial friend and companion. They went through a
+series of evolutions, now advancing in line, again forming in different
+bands and pretending to charge one another, and afterwards going through
+many other intricate manoeuvres. The scene was a most picturesque one, and
+gave great pleasure to those who witnessed it.
+
+
+
+
+AENEAS'S VISIT TO THE LOWER WORLD
+
+By Charles Henry Hanson
+
+
+Continuing his voyage, AEneas reached the shore of the country afterwards
+named Campania, the modern province of Naples. Here the ships were
+carefully moored, and the crews disembarked. Some busied themselves in
+kindling fires and preparing a meal; others explored the country in search
+of game. AEneas, however, hastened at once to seek the temple of Apollo and
+the adjoining cave of the Cumaean Sibyl,--the most famous of all the
+oracles of antiquity. The temple and cave were situated in a thick wood,
+closely adjoining the gloomy lake of Avernus, a black pool of unknown
+depth, hedged in by precipitous cliffs, and emitting gases so poisonous
+that no bird was able to fly over it in safety. In the rocks at one side
+of the lake there yawned a sombre cavern, which was believed in those days
+to be the entrance to the kingdom of Pluto--the abode of the dead.
+
+AEneas was surveying the temple,--an edifice of great splendor, adorned
+with pictures wrought in metal by the cunning hand of Daedalus,--when
+Achates, whom he had sent before him to the Sibyl's cave, approached,
+conducting the priestess. "O prince," she said, "this is not the time for
+admiring the works of men. It will be more fitting for you to propitiate
+the god with sacrifices, so that he may inspire me." With this mandate the
+hero at once complied, and then the Sibyl summoned him and his followers
+to the entrance of her cave,--a vast apartment carved out of the living
+rock, whence issued a hundred corridors. Scarcely had the Trojans
+approached the threshold when the virgin exclaimed, "Now is the time to
+consult your fate! The god! lo, the god!" As she cried out thus her looks
+suddenly changed, her color came and went, her hair fell in disorder over
+her shoulders, her bosom heaved, and she was shaken by an uncontrollable
+passion. Her very form seemed to dilate, and the tone of her voice was no
+longer that of a mere mortal, since she was inspired by the influence of
+the god. "Trojan AEneas!" she exclaimed, "delay no longer to offer thy
+prayers for the knowledge which thou seekest; for not till then can I
+reveal to thee the secrets of the future."
+
+Earnestly did AEneas implore pity and aid from Apollo; and of the Sibyl he
+entreated that she should proclaim her revelations by word of mouth, and
+not, as was her custom, write them on leaves of trees, lest they should
+become the sport of the winds. At first the prophetess did not answer; she
+was not yet fully possessed by the spirit of the god, and raved in wild
+ecstasy in the cave, struggling, as it were, to resist the will of
+Phoebus, who, on his part, wearied her foaming lips, subdued her fierce
+heart, and moulded her to his will. Then all at once the hundred doors of
+the cavern flew open of their own accord, and the Sibyl proclaimed the
+divine response,--
+
+"O thou who hast at length overpassed the perils of the ocean, yet more
+terrible trials await thee on shore. Thou and thy Trojans shall indeed
+reach the promised land--that is assured; but ye shall wish that ye had
+never come thither. Wars, horrid wars, I foresee, and Tiber foaming with a
+deluge of blood. Another Achilles awaits thee in Latium--he also the son
+of a goddess. Nor shall the persecutions of Juno cease to follow the
+Trojans wherever they may be; and in your distress you will humbly
+supplicate all the surrounding Italian states for aid. Once more shall a
+marriage with a foreign wife be a source of affliction to you. But yield
+not under your sufferings; encounter them resolutely in the teeth of
+adverse fortune, and when you least expect it, the means of deliverance
+shall come to you from a Greek city."
+
+So, under the inspiration of Apollo, spoke the Sibyl. When she had ceased,
+AEneas answered that no prospect of further trials could appall him, for he
+was prepared to endure the worst that could befall. But he now entreated,
+since it was said that the entrance to the shades was near, that the Sibyl
+should conduct him into those dark regions, in order that he might obtain
+an interview with the spectre of his father. It was Anchises' self, he
+added, who had bidden him make this request; and filial devotion would
+enable him to perform a task which Orpheus had achieved out of love for
+his wife Eurydice, and Pollux through his attachment to his brother
+Castor.
+
+"AEneas," replied the priestess, "easy is the descent into Hades: grim
+Pluto's gate stands open night and day, but to retrace your steps and
+escape to the upper regions will be a difficult task indeed, and one which
+few have hitherto been able to accomplish. If, however, you are fixed in
+the resolve to pursue so desperate an enterprise, learn what first is to
+be done. There is in the dark woods which surround the Lake of Avernus a
+certain tree, dense of foliage, on which grows a single bough of gold,
+with leaves and twigs of the same precious metal, and no living mortal can
+enter Hades unless he has first found and plucked this bough, which is
+demanded by Proserpine, the consort of Pluto and queen of the infernal
+realms, as her peculiar tribute. When the bough is torn off, another
+always grows in its place. Therefore search for it diligently, and when
+you have discovered it grasp it with your hand. If the Fates are
+propitious to your enterprise, you will be able to pluck it easily; if
+otherwise, your whole strength could not tear it from the tree, nor could
+you ever sever it with your sword. In the mean time the body of one of
+your friends lies lifeless, and demands the funeral rites. First bury him
+with proper ceremonies, and then return to me with black cattle for the
+sacrifices; and then you shall be able to visit the realms of Hades, to
+which most living men are denied an entrance."
+
+With sorrowful thoughts AEneas, closely followed by Achates, now withdrew
+from the shrine, and took the way to the shore. Both were greatly
+perplexed to know what was the corpse needing burial of which the Sibyl
+had spoken. But while they were wondering they came to the beach, and
+there, before them, they saw lying the body of Misenus, who had come to a
+lamentable end. Misenus was the most skilled among all the Trojans in the
+art of blowing the trumpet. He had been, besides, a famous warrior, and
+during the siege of Troy was accustomed to be the companion of Hector in
+the field, and to fight by his side. When Hector fell, he attached himself
+to AEneas, scorning to follow any less illustrious chief, and so had formed
+one of the band which the hero was conducting to Latium. But he was
+inordinately vain of his skill with the trumpet, and believed himself
+superior even to the Tritons, the sea-deities whose especial province it
+was to lull the seas at the command of Neptune by blowing upon instruments
+made of shells. These Tritons Misenus had challenged to a trial of skill,
+and by way of defiance had blown so loud a note that the deities were
+afraid to respond to his challenge; but being full of jealousy, they had
+now contrived to lure him into the sea and drown him. The discovery of his
+lifeless body filled all his comrades with sadness. They gathered about
+him with loud lamentations, and then prepared to erect his funeral pyre,
+hastening with axes into the thick surrounding woods, and cutting down
+huge oaks and pines and ash-trees.
+
+AEneas himself led the way in the performance of this task, and while he
+was engaged in it he could not help exclaiming, as his glance surveyed the
+wide forest, "Would that I could now perceive the golden bough which I
+must find before entering Hades; for in this ample forest, how can I begin
+to search for it?" Scarcely had he spoken when two pigeons suddenly
+swooped down from the upper air and alighted at his feet. He guessed at
+once that these doves, his mother's favorite birds, had been sent for his
+guidance, and he entreated them to conduct him to the place where the
+precious bough was growing. The doves, feeding and flying by turns,
+advanced through the wood at such a speed that AEneas could easily keep
+them in sight, and presently, having reached the very edge of Lake
+Avernus, both rose at once into the air, and settled on a great tree of
+very dense foliage. The hero hastened to the spot, and there indeed, on
+one of the lower limbs of the tree, gleamed the bough, the rich yellow
+lustre of its leaves and twigs contrasting vividly with the deep green of
+the surrounding foliage. AEneas with delight grasped it, and plucked it
+from its place, and, bearing it carefully in his hand, hastened to rejoin
+his companions.
+
+They, in the mean time, had reared on the shore a vast pile of logs of
+pine and oak, the sides of which they had interlaced with smaller boughs.
+After having carefully washed and purified the body of Misenus, they first
+made a couch upon the pyre, with the apparel of the dead man, and then,
+with renewed cries of grief, placed the body upon it. His arms, too, they
+laid beside him, and having poured incense and oil abundantly upon the
+pile, they set it on fire. When only smouldering embers were left, these
+were quenched with wine, and the ashes of the dead were carefully
+collected and placed in a brazen urn. This urn was afterwards deposited in
+a lofty tomb which AEneas erected on a promontory that henceforth bore the
+name of Misenus.
+
+The funeral ceremonies having thus duly been performed, the hero proceeded
+to the cave of the Sibyl, and called upon her to fulfill her promise, and
+accompany him to the kingdom of the dead. She led him to the mouth of the
+black cavern at the side of Lake Avernus, and there offered up sacrifices
+of black cattle and sheep, uttering various invocations. Presently the
+ground began to rumble beneath their feet; upon which the Sibyl ordered
+those of AEneas's followers who had attended him to withdraw from the spot,
+and exhorted the chief himself, drawing his sword from its sheath, to
+march firmly forward. So saying she plunged into the cave, nor did he
+hesitate to follow.
+
+At first they moved along through a region that was utterly waste, void,
+and covered with an intense gloom, deep as that of a winter's night when
+the moon is obscured by clouds. But this desolate tract was not wholly
+untenanted, for AEneas saw flitting about certain hideous shadowy forms.
+The spirits of Grief and Revenge and pale Disease, Fear and Famine and
+deformed Indigence, had their abode in this vestibule of Hades; and so,
+too, Death and Toil, and murderous War, and frantic Discord, her head
+crowned with curling vipers and bound by a blood-dyed fillet. Here, also,
+were the iron chambers in which dwelt the terrible Furies. In the midst
+rose a gloomy elm, which was the haunt of vain Dreams, who dwelt under
+every leaf. Beyond this tree were many huge and misshapen
+monsters,--Centaurs, and double-formed Scyllas, and the great dragon of
+the Lernaean lake, which, when it plagued the upper earth, was slain by
+Hercules. Here, also, was the huge Chimaera, with its three heads vomiting
+flames; Gorgons, Harpies, and other ghastly forms flitted about. At so
+fearful a sight. AEneas was seized with sudden fear; he drew his sword, and
+would have struck at the monsters, if the Sibyl had not restrained his
+hand and reminded him that they were but disembodied shadows.
+
+The path now led them to a place where the three infernal rivers, Acheron,
+Cocytus, and Styx, met in one deep, black, and boiling flood. Here there
+kept guard the grim ferryman Charon, an infernal deity of fearful aspect.
+A long gray beard fell all tangled and neglected from his chin; his filthy
+and ragged garments were knotted over his shoulders; his eyes glittered
+with baleful light. He sat on a great black barge, which he pushed to and
+fro across the river with a pole. An immense crowd of shades was
+incessantly pouring to the banks,--young and old, matrons and virgins,
+warriors who had endured the toils of a long life and tender boys who had
+died while yet under the care of their parents. All were eager to cross
+the stream, and stretched their hands in earnest entreaty to Charon to
+admit them into his boat. But the sullen ferryman only consented to
+receive some; others he drove back with his pole, and would on no account
+permit them to cross.
+
+AEneas was amazed at this scene, and asked the Sibyl to explain to him its
+meaning. "You see before you," she replied, "the deep pools of Cocytus,
+and the Stygian lake, by which the Gods are accustomed to swear when they
+take an oath which they dare not violate. All that crowd which Charon will
+not ferry across is composed of persons who after death received not the
+rites of burial; those only are permitted to enter the boat who have been
+interred with proper ceremonies. As for the others, they wander unquiet
+about these shores for a hundred years before they are allowed to cross to
+the regions beyond."
+
+When AEneas heard this he was filled with sadness, for among the spectres
+of the unburied who crowded on the bank he saw many of his own comrades
+who had perished during the storms he had had to encounter during his long
+voyages. As he looked, there advanced, slow and mournful, the pilot
+Palinurus, who had been thrown overboard by Somnus during the recent
+voyage from Sicily. The hero accosted him, and asked him what god had torn
+him from his post and overwhelmed him in the midst of the ocean. The
+oracle of Apollo, he said, had assured him that Palinurus would be safe on
+the sea, and would arrive on the Italian coast; and yet it would seem that
+the oracle had been falsified. The shade of Palinurus, knowing nothing of
+the enchantment which had been wrought on him by Somnus, replied that no
+god had destroyed him, and that the oracle had spoken truly. He had fallen
+into the sea through being overcome by slumber, and having kept afloat for
+three days and nights, had on the fourth day reached the Italian shore
+alive, but had been cruelly murdered by the savage people while clambering
+up the cliffs. Now his body was tossing on the waves, sometimes thrown on
+the shore and then washed off again. But he passionately entreated AEneas
+either to find his corpse and inter it with proper solemnities, or else to
+contrive some means of taking him as his companion across the black waters
+of Styx, unburied as he was, that at last his soul might find rest. The
+Sibyl, however, rebuked him for expressing so impious a desire, and for
+hoping that the fixed decrees of the Gods could be violated for the
+benefit of one insignificant mortal. But by way of consolation she
+informed him that the people of the country where he had met with his
+death, compelled by terrible plagues sent by Jupiter, would offer solemn
+atonement to his remains, erect a tomb to his memory, and give his name to
+the place where it stood.
+
+AEneas and the Sibyl now advanced toward the river; but when Charon saw
+them approaching, he called out, "Whoever thou mayest be that art now
+coming armed and in life to our rivers, say quickly on what errand thou
+art coming. This is the region of ghosts and death; to waft over the
+bodies of the living in my boat is not permitted. Nor was it joyful to me
+to receive Hercules when he came, nor Theseus and Pirithous, though they
+were descendants of the Gods and unconquerable in war. Hercules dared to
+bind in chains Cerberus himself, the keeper of the gate of Tartarus, and
+dragged him trembling from the very throne of Pluto. The others attempted
+a feat scarcely less perilous, for they sought to carry off our queen
+Proserpine."
+
+"Be not disturbed," answered the Sibyl; "we at least meditate no such
+plots, nor does this mortal bring with him his arms for any purpose of
+violence. He is AEneas of Troy, illustrious for piety and skill in arms,
+and he penetrates these gloomy abodes to have converse with his father
+Anchises. If your compassion is not moved by his filial devotion, at least
+pay regard to this branch." And so saying, she produced the golden bough.
+The surly ferryman, though filled with rage at being forced to obey, was
+at once silenced. He brought his boat to the bank, and silently received
+into it AEneas and his companion, driving back the ghosts that at the same
+time eagerly strove to enter the vessel. It was old and leaky, and sank
+deep in the black flood under the unaccustomed weight of living mortals;
+but Charon ferried them safely across, and landed them on the farther
+side, where, in a huge den at the gate of the infernal regions, lay
+Cerberus, the terrible three-headed dog which was the guardian of the
+place--a ferocious brute which only Hercules among living men had been
+able to subdue. When AEneas approached he opened his huge jaws and made all
+Hades resound with his barking; but the Sibyl threw to him a medicated
+cake, which he at once devoured, and was thereby lulled into profound
+sleep. The way was now safe; the Trojan chief and his companion passed
+quickly through the open gate, and entered the dread region where Minos
+and his fellow judges pronounced on the fate of each ghost that came
+before them.
+
+The first place within the gate was assigned to the shades of infants, cut
+off in the very beginning of life, who filled their allotted region with
+loud wailings and weeping. Beyond these were placed persons who had been
+put to death in consequence of false accusations. Not even the unjust
+suffering which such persons had endured on earth could at once procure
+for them a place among those happy spirits declared free of guilt. Here
+they were doomed to wait till the inexorable Minos examined each case and
+gave his award. Immediately adjoining was the place allotted to those who,
+though unstained by crime, had become weary of life and had committed
+self-destruction. Gladly, indeed, would they have now returned to the
+upper world they had despised, but no such return was possible to them.
+
+AEneas and his companion next viewed a region named the Fields of
+Mourning,--a wide tract, with shady paths and thick myrtle groves,
+dedicated to those who had died through unrequited love, and were held to
+have been emancipated by the miseries they had endured on earth from
+suffering any punishment below. Here were to be seen, wandering
+disconsolately, many women of whom AEneas had heard in old legends of
+Greece and Troy. Among them he beheld, with sorrow and pity, the
+ill-starred Queen of Carthage, the wound she had herself inflicted yet
+gaping in her fair bosom. "Dido!" he exclaimed with tears, "was it then a
+true rumor that reached me of your having died after my departure, and by
+your own hand? If I have been the cause of your death, I am indeed
+unhappy. By all I hold sacred, fair queen, I swear to you that it was
+against my own will I quitted Carthage. The will of the Gods, which now
+has brought me, while yet living, into these melancholy realms, drove me
+from you; but I dreamt not that our separation would bring upon you such
+extreme suffering. Why will you not speak to me? Why do you fly from me?
+Never again will the Fates permit us to meet together." But all his
+entreaties and his tears were vain. The spectre gazed upon him awhile with
+eyes of inexorable hate, and then turned away, with a gesture of
+unrelenting aversion, to a shady recess near by, where she was joined by
+the ghost of her first lord, Sichaeus, who by the compassion of Pluto had
+been permitted to bear her company. AEneas resumed his journey, pondering
+sadly over the fate of the woman who but a little since had loved him so
+ardently and to whom he had unwillingly brought such misfortunes. He and
+his guide now came to a place dedicated to the shades of renowned
+warriors. Here he saw numbers of those brave Trojans, once his companions
+in arms, who had fallen before Troy. They eagerly crowded around him,
+pressed his hands, and questioned him as to the circumstances which had
+brought him, while yet alive, amongst them. There, too, were many Greeks
+who had perished during the Trojan war; but when they beheld the hero in
+the flesh, and wearing his gleaming armor, they fled from him in dismay.
+As he passed on, after exchanging affectionate words with many of his old
+comrades, he met Deiphobus, that son of Priam who, after the death of
+Paris, became the husband of Helen. The spectre of the prince was cruelly
+mutilated,--so that AEneas scarcely knew him. "Who, O Deiphobus," he
+exclaimed, "could have inflicted such shameful wounds upon you? After I
+had escaped from Troy a story was brought to me that you had indeed
+perished, but honorably and in fair fight, having slain many of the enemy.
+Then I erected in your honor an empty tomb on the shore under Mount Ida,
+and offered proper funeral rites, for your body I was unable to find."
+
+"You, my friend," answered Deiphobus, "omitted no duty towards my corpse
+that you could perform. But I owe my death and these infamous wounds to
+the wickedness of Helen; they are the marks of her love. On the night
+after the fatal horse was brought into Troy, I was lying asleep in my
+chamber, enjoying needful repose. Then my faithless wife removed all the
+arms from my palace, and even took away my sword from the side of my
+couch. That done, she threw open the gates, and herself summoned her
+former husband, Menelaus, and he and Ulysses burst into my apartment and
+inflicted on me these wounds, for which I pray the Gods that they may be
+requited."
+
+AEneas would have spent yet more time in conversing with the shades of his
+former comrades; but the Sibyl reminded him that the hour was approaching
+when he must return to the upper world. "Here," she said, "the path is
+divided. To the right, past the palace of Pluto, lies our way to the
+Elysian Fields; on the left is the way to Tartarus, the place of
+punishment for the wicked."
+
+As they proceeded toward Elysium, AEneas looked around him, and beheld to
+the left a vast prison, enclosed by mighty walls, at the foot of which ran
+Phlegethon, the river of fire, whirling along great rocks in its furious
+current. Across the stream, just opposite to where he was standing, was a
+lofty gate, with columns of solid adamant. In an iron tower adjoining sat
+Tisiphone, the eldest of the Furies, watching the gate. From within sounds
+were heard--groans of pain, the sound of cruel lashes, and the clanking of
+chains. AEneas asked his companion what punishments were being inflicted
+within, and who were the sufferers. "This," replied the Sibyl, "is
+Tartarus, whereinto no righteous person can enter. Here Rhadamanthus
+presides: he searches into the deeds of all who are sent hither, obliges
+them to confess all the crimes they have committed in the upper world, and
+awards the punishment. As soon as the sentence is pronounced, Tisiphone
+scourges the doomed one with a whip of scorpions, and then consigns him to
+the fierce attendants of her sister Furies. Immediately the gates,
+creaking on their hinges, fly open. Within, the entrance is guarded by a
+hideous Hydra, with fifty black and gaping mouths. In the pit of Tartarus
+beyond, the giants who waged war against the ruler of the Gods lie
+prostrated by his thunderbolts. Beside them, enduring terrible tortures,
+is Salmoneus. He was a king of Elis in Greece, and was so puffed up by
+pride that he rode through his city on a high chariot drawn by four
+prancing horses, waving in his hand a torch, and pretending to be Jupiter
+himself, wielding his thunderbolts. The Almighty Sire punished his impiety
+by hurling from Olympus a real thunderbolt, which deprived him of life;
+and now he pays the penalty of his mad pride by eternal sufferings in
+Tartarus. There also lies Tityus, the huge giant who, having insulted the
+goddess Latona, was slain by the darts of her children, Apollo and Diana,
+and whose writhing body now lies extended over nine acres of ground, while
+insatiable vultures perpetually prey on his vitals, that are renewed as
+fast as they are devoured. Beyond him is Ixion, bound to a wheel that
+never ceases to revolve, while he is scourged by attendant Furies. He it
+was who, being admitted to Olympus by the generosity of Jupiter himself,
+dared to seek the love of the queen of the Gods. Not less dreadful is the
+punishment allotted to Pirithous, who, along with Theseus, endeavored to
+carry off the Queen of Hades, Proserpine, from the side of Pluto. Over his
+head hangs a huge rock, which every moment seems about to fall and crush
+him, but yet never actually descends; moreover, he is plagued with a
+gnawing hunger, and a rich banquet is always before him, which yet he is
+never able to reach. Myriads of other unhappy shades, whose course on
+earth has been stained by detestable crime, here expiate the evil they
+have done; but had I a hundred mouths and a hundred tongues, I could not
+recount all their offenses and the varieties of their punishment. It is
+necessary that we should go forward, since yonder stands the palace of
+Pluto, where thou, O AEneas, must deposit the bough which has gained thee
+admission here."
+
+Obedient to his guide, AEneas advanced to the vast portals of the palace
+where Pluto, the brother of Jupiter and monarch of the infernal kingdom,
+had his abode with his lovely queen Proserpine, the daughter of Ceres,
+whom ages before he had carried off from the upper world. There he made
+due reverence before the goddess, and deposited the golden bough at her
+feet. Advancing beyond, AEneas and the Sibyl came at last to the Elysian
+Fields,--the abode of joy assigned to those who during life had been
+distinguished for piety, virtue, and heroic actions. Here were lovely
+green fields and pleasant groves; the air was pure and balmy, the sky was
+blue, and all was glowing-in the light of the blessed sun. Some of the
+happy spirits who dwelt in this region were amusing themselves by
+wrestling on the greensward, and other sports in which they had delighted
+on earth, such as chariot-racing, exercises with the spear and the bow.
+Others were dancing and singing to the delicious notes which Orpheus, the
+most skillful of musicians, produced from his lyre. On the bank of the
+river Eridanus, which pours its clear waters through Elysium over sands of
+gold, were gathered a band whose heads were adorned with snow-white
+fillets. These were priests who had kept unstained the purity and sanctity
+of their office; poets who had sung the praises of the Gods in immortal
+verse; and those who had made human life more happy by the invention of
+useful arts. Among them the Sibyl sought out Musseus, the father of the
+poets, and besought him to reveal in what retreat they should find
+Anchises, on whose account she and her companion had traversed all the
+regions of the shades.
+
+"None of us," answered the venerable shade, "have here any fixed abode. We
+wander at our will among the shady groves and by the pleasant banks of the
+river. But if you mount with me this little eminence, I will show you him
+whom you seek."
+
+As he spoke, he led them to a spot where they could survey all the shining
+plains around, and pointed to where Anchises, reclined in a secluded vale,
+was surveying the souls of his descendants who were destined in future
+times to visit the earth, and were enacting beforehand the achievements
+they were fated to accomplish during life. As soon as he saw AEneas
+advancing toward him, he rose with hands stretched out and joyful tears
+pouring down his face.
+
+"Are you indeed," he exclaimed, "come to me at last, my son? Am I
+permitted once more to see your face, and to listen to the tones of your
+dear voice? Now indeed the hopes which I cherished are fulfilled. By how
+many dangers have you been threatened since we parted! I was filled with
+dread lest you should be prevented from accomplishing your task by the
+temptations which beset you at Carthage."
+
+"Thy apparition, beloved father," answered AEneas, "continually appearing
+to me in dreams, urged me forward even to these regions. Permit me now to
+clasp thee in my arms, and do not withdraw from my embrace." Thrice did he
+attempt to throw his arms about the shade, which being only composed of
+thin air, was not perceptible to his touch. While the two conversed
+together, AEneas observed at no great distance from them a stream, at which
+prodigious numbers of ghosts were incessantly crowding to drink, swarming
+like bees round their hive. Astonished at this spectacle, the hero
+inquired of his father what that stream was, and why those spectres were
+so eager to drink of it. "These," answered Anchises, "are souls destined
+by fate to occupy other bodies in the upper world; and the stream is
+Lethe, one draught of which is sufficient to destroy all recollection of
+their former condition."
+
+"But surely," said AEneas, "it is not to be believed that any souls which
+have tasted the delights of this abode will be desirous to return again to
+the life of earth, with its uncertainties and its miseries. How comes it
+that this impulse possesses them?"
+
+In reply to this question, Anchises entered into a long explanation, the
+substance of which was that all the spirits of the departed had to endure
+in the regions below a process of expiation for their earthly sins, longer
+or shorter according to the nature of their transgressions. Those that
+were not consigned to the pains of Tartarus entered the Elysian Fields,
+where, after they had remained a thousand years, they were summoned to
+drink of the waters of Lethe, and thus lose all recollection of their
+former lives; after which, being purified from all stain, they were fitted
+to return to the upper world and inhabit new bodies. Anchises added that
+he would show to his son the forms of his own descendants in the Italian
+kingdom he was destined to establish, and would trace for him their
+achievements. Leading AEneas and the Sibyl onto a rising ground, in the
+midst of the souls which were crowding about the magic stream of Lethe, he
+pointed out to him a long array of future kings of Latium,--Silvius, who
+was to be the son of AEneas's old age by his consort Lavinia; Procas,
+Capys, and Numitor, destined to be monarchs of Alba Longa; and Romulus,
+the future founder of the great city of Rome, which would extend over
+seven hills, and would spread her dominion over the whole earth. Not far
+from these were the souls of Romulus's successors in the' early days of
+Rome,--Numa Pompilius, who first would give his country laws, and
+encourage the arts of peace; Tullus Hostilius, who would wage victorious
+wars, and extend the territories of Rome; Ancus Martius, not less
+successful in the field; and Tarquin, destined to lose the throne through
+his oppressive reign. Anchises proceeded to indicate to his wondering son
+many of the patriots and generals who in future years were to contribute
+to the glory and power of the Roman State,--more especially the great
+Julius Caesar, the lineal descendant of AEneas himself; and Augustus, who
+would once more establish the golden age in Latium, and whose empire would
+extend to countries as yet unknown. The venerable shade concluded his
+forecast of the future with a splendid description of the part which Rome
+was destined to play in the world's history:--
+
+  "Let others better mould the running mass
+  Of metals, and inform the breathing brass,
+  And soften into flesh a marble face;
+  Plead better at the bar; describes the skies,
+  And when the stars descend, and when they rise:
+  But Rome! 'tis thine alone, with awful sway
+  To rule mankind, and make the world obey,
+  Disposing peace and war thy own majestic way;
+  To tame the proud, the fettered slave to free,--
+  These are imperial arts, and worthy thee."
+
+Having thus inspired AEneas with renewed determination by showing him the
+brilliant future that was awaiting his descendants, Anchises conducted him
+over those parts of the Elysian Fields which he had not yet visited, and
+showed him everything that was of peculiar interest. As they went, he
+discoursed to him respecting the wars which he would have to wage in
+Latium, and gave him counsel as to the means by which he should overcome
+every difficulty. Then at last, having brought him to the ivory gate
+whence the gods were accustomed to send false dreams to the upper world,
+he bade him farewell. By that gate AEneas and the Sibyl quitted the abodes
+of the dead, and ascended without difficulty or adventure to the cave of
+the oracle, whence the hero hastened at once to his ships. Without loss of
+time he ordered the sails to be spread, and the ships were steered along
+the coast, drawing nearer ever hour to their final destination.
+
+
+
+
+AENEAS'S FIRST GREAT BATTLE WITH THE LATINS
+
+By Charles Henry Hanson
+
+
+    [AEneas finally lands in Italy, the country promised him by the
+    Gods as a home for his race. The Italian king, Latinus, has been
+    warned by signs and omens that the hand of his daughter Lavinia
+    must not be given to an Italian prince, but to a stranger coming
+    from a far country. He believes that AEneas is the hero chosen by
+    the Fates as her husband, and greets him in most friendly manner.
+    Queen Amata, however, is influenced by the Trojan-hating Juno to
+    oppose this marriage. Turnus, chief of the Rutuli, a suitor of
+    Lavinia, is next aroused, and soon the whole kingdom is in a
+    turmoil. A fierce battle ensues.]
+
+
+Turnus, having brought the bulk of his forces from before the beseiged
+camp, hurled them against the army of AEneas before its ranks were properly
+formed, and a furious conflict at once began to rage. The Trojan hero,
+rejoicing to find himself once more on a field of battle, first
+encountered the Latian warriors, who chanced to be in his front. Their
+leader was Theron, a man of gigantic stature, who did not hesitate to
+engage AEneas hand to hand; but he paid dearly for his rashness, for the
+sword which Vulcan had forged--so keen was its edge, so excellent its
+temper--pierced through his brazen buckler and his tunic stiffened by bars
+of gold, and penetrating his side, drained the life-blood. Next the hero
+struck down Lycas; and rushing onward, encountered two stalwart rustics,
+Cisseus and Gyas, who were making havoc among the Trojans by beating them
+down with ponderous clubs. On the divine armor the heavy blows of these
+rude weapons fell harmless, while the spear of AEneas proved fatal to both
+those who wielded them. An insolent warrior named Pharus was defying the
+hero from a short distance with taunting speech, when he hurled a javelin,
+which struck the boaster full in the mouth, and transfixing the throat,
+silenced him forever. Now a band of seven brothers, the sons of Phorcus,
+all at once attacked AEneas with darts, throwing them together. Some of the
+weapons struck his helmet and shield, and rebounded; others, turned aside
+by the care of Venus, grazed his skin. AEneas called to Achates to bring
+him more spears, and snatching one as soon as it was offered, hurled it
+against Maeon, one of the brothers, with such force that it penetrated his
+shield and corselet, and inflicted a mortal wound in his breast. Another
+brother, Alcanor, hurrying up to Maeon's assistance, he smote with a second
+spear, just where the arm and shoulder join, leaving the arm hanging to
+the body only by two or three shreds of skin and muscle. Seeing the
+slaughter that AEneas was spreading around him, Halaesus and Messapus
+hurried up with their bands to confront him, and so in that part of the
+field the battle grew still more furious.
+
+In another part, where Pallas was fighting at the head of his Arcadian
+horsemen, the ground had been rendered so uneven by the winter torrents
+that they were obliged to dismount, and being unaccustomed to fight on
+foot, they began to retreat before the fierce assault of the Rutulians. At
+this sight their brave young leader was overwhelmed with shame and
+mortification. "Whither," he cried, "my fellow countrymen, do you fly? I
+implore you, by the memory of your gallant deeds in the past, by the name
+of Evander, the king you love, by my own hopes of glory, not to flee. Your
+way lies through your foes, not from them; with your swords must you cut a
+passage where they crowd most densely. These are not gods who pursue us;
+they are mortals, like ourselves, and they are not stronger or more
+numerous than we. The ocean hems us in with an impassable barrier on the
+one side; the enemy confronts us on the other, and separates us from our
+friends. Whether shall we fly into the sea, or force our way toward the
+Trojans?" So saying, he turned, and dashed into the midst of the hostile
+ranks. Tagus was the first who fell a victim to his noble wrath; for as he
+was stooping to pick up a heavy stone, the spear of Pallas struck him in
+the middle of the back, and shattered the spine and ribs. As the young
+hero was withdrawing the weapon, Hisbon rushed on and struck at him from
+above; but the blow fell short, and before he could recover his guard
+Pallas buried his sword deep in his body. Warrior after warrior he struck
+down, restored the confidence of his followers, and spread confusion and
+dismay in the opposite ranks, raging among them as the flames lit by the
+husbandman in the autumn spread through the stubble, and destroy
+everything in their path. But now the Auruncian chief, Halaesus, summoned
+by some of his followers to their aid, opposed the advance of the
+Arcadians. He was a tried and fierce warrior, and he slew five of the
+bravest of Pallas's men before the young chief could confront him. Then,
+however, the son of Evander hurled a spear with such skill and certainty
+of aim that he pierced Halaesus's heart, and the grim leader of the Aurunci
+sank lifeless on the field. His fall was a sore discouragement to the
+troops of Turnus, which would have sought safety in flight, had not
+Lausus, the gallant son of Mezentius,--noble and upright offspring of an
+unworthy father,--suddenly come to their aid. First encountering Abas,
+leader of the Populonians, he slew him with a single blow of his sword,
+and followed up his success with a furious slaughter of Arcadians and
+Etrurians. Thus the battle continued: on the one side Pallas impetuously
+urged the attack; on the other Lausus not less obstinately maintained the
+defense. They were equal in years, and in beauty and grace of form; and to
+both alike the Fates had assigned a place among the victims of the war.
+But the Gods had ordained that they should not encounter hand to hand;
+each was destined to succumb to a superior foe.
+
+Turnus was leading his troops in another quarter of the field, when he was
+summoned to hasten to the assistance of Lausus, who alone was bearing up
+the battle against Pallas and his Arcadians. Quickly he turned his chariot
+in that direction, and as soon as he reached the spot, called on his
+warriors to withdraw from the conflict. "I alone," he said, "will
+encounter Pallas; to me his life is given. Would to Heaven his father were
+here to witness our combat." The Rutulians obeyed the command of their
+king, and fell back; while Pallas, amazed at their retreat and the sudden
+appearance of Turnus, gazed on his opponent. Then, in reply to his
+vaunting speech, he said, "Now, either by carrying off thy spoils or by a
+noble death at thy hands, I shall be rendered famous. My sire knows how to
+bear either extremity of fortune. Cease thy threatenings and let us
+engage." As he spoke, the hearts of the Arcadians, who loved him, were
+filled with fear and sorrow. Turnus sprang from his chariot, and came
+forward to the encounter on foot, advancing as a lion bounds toward his
+prey. As soon as Pallas thought him within reach of his spear, he prepared
+to throw it, and uttered this prayer to Hercules: "By my father's
+hospitality, and that abode which thou, his guest, didst visit, O Alcides,
+aid, I implore thee, my arduous attempt. May the dying eyes of Turnus
+behold me strip him, expiring, of his bloody armor, and endure the sight
+of a victorious foe." Hercules, from his place on Olympus, heard the
+prayer, and knowing that the decree of Fate was otherwise, answered with
+heavy groans and unavailing tears. These were not unseen by Jupiter, who
+strove to console his immortal son. "To every one," he said, "his day is
+fixed; a short and irretrievable term of life is given to all; but to
+lengthen out fame by heroic deeds is the best that man can do. Under the
+lofty walls of Troy many sons of gods themselves perished,--among them the
+heroic Sarpedon, my own offspring, perished; Turnus, too, is summoned by
+the Fates, and has nearly reached his term of life." He spoke, and turned
+away his gaze from the battlefield, himself pitying the untimely death of
+Pallas.
+
+And now the brave son of Evander with his utmost force hurled his spear,
+and then hastened to draw his sword from its scabbard. The weapon struck
+Turnus where the shoulder was protected by the corselet, and piercing
+through the solid brass, slightly grazed the hero's body. Then Turnus,
+poising a steel-tipped javelin, darted it at Pallas, exclaiming, "See
+whether mine be not the more penetrating shaft." Cast with irresistible
+might, it tore its way through the youth's shield, composed though it was
+of thick plates of brass and iron, and through his cuirass, and inflicted
+a ghastly wound in his breast. In vain he wrenched out the deadly missile
+from his body; even as he withdrew it life deserted his quivering form,
+and he fell to the ground. Bestriding the corpse, Turnus cried, "Ye
+Arcadians, faithfully report to Evander this message,--I send him back his
+Pallas in such a plight as he deserved. Whatever honor is in a tomb,
+whatever solace in the performance of funeral rites, I freely grant him.
+His league with the Trojan intruder shall cost him dear." So saying, he
+pressed his foot on the body, and tore away a massive belt, adorned with
+figures richly carved in gold. This spoil Turnus exultingly clasped around
+his own body, little dreaming that the time would come when he would wish
+that he had never taken it, and that he and Pallas had never met. But now
+the lifeless corpse of the youth, stripped of its arms and still bleeding
+from the fatal wound inflicted by the Rutulian chief, was laid on a shield
+and borne away by his weeping followers. Thus the first day on which he
+took a part in war saw also the young hero's death, though not, indeed,
+before he had strewn the plain with Rutulian corpses.
+
+Speedily the news of this sad disaster, and of the consequent retreat of
+his forces in that part of the field, was borne to AEneas. Rendered furious
+by the event, he impetuously mowed with his sword a bloody passage through
+the hostile ranks in search of Turnus, on whom he was eager to avenge the
+death of his friend. The thought of the bright youth who had thus perished
+in his cause, of the hoary father bereaved of all that made life dear to
+him, filled his heart with sorrow as he recalled the kindness which both
+had shown to him, and the pledges of enduring friendship he had exchanged
+with them. Eight Rutulian warriors he struck down, and captured them
+alive, destining them as victims to be offered to the shade of Pallas, and
+to drench with their blood the flames of the hero's funeral pyre. Next,
+AEneas having hurled a javelin at a Latian named Magus, the trembling
+wretch evaded the dart by stooping, and as AEneas rushed upon him with
+uplifted sword, he clasped his knees, and implored him to spare his life,
+proffering a large ransom of silver and gold which lay concealed
+underground in his house. Sternly the Trojan chief bade him keep his
+treasures for his sons; as for showing mercy, that was forbidden to him
+from the moment that Pallas fell by the hand of Turnus. Then grasping the
+suppliant's helmet, and forcing back his head so as to expose the neck,
+even as Magus renewed his petition he plunged the sword into his body to
+the hilt. Near by, the luckless AEmonides, a priest of Apollo and Diana,
+who wore a sacred fillet on his temples and shone in burnished armor, fell
+a victim to his relentless spear, and the splendid arms he had worn were
+carried off by Serestus as an offering to Mars. The Rutulians fled in
+terror before the raging chief; but King Caeculus of Praeneste, and Umbro,
+the leader of the Marsians, renewed the struggle. A huge warrior named
+Tarquitus, the son of the nymph Dryope, dared to oppose himself to AEneas,
+but his fate was soon decided. The hero first pierced his corselet with a
+spear, and then, as he lay wounded and imploring mercy, smote off his head
+with his sword. Spurning the bleeding trunk, he furiously cried, "Lie
+there, haughty champion! Thee no tender mother shall lodge in the earth,
+or place a tomb above thy body; to birds of prey thou shalt be left, or
+cast in the sea to be devoured by fishes." Still insatiable of slaughter,
+he drove into terrified flight Antaeus and Lycas, two of Turnus's bravest
+followers. But now the fierce Lucagus approached in a chariot drawn by two
+snow-white coursers. These were guided by his brother Liger, while he
+himself flourished his sword in the air, and prepared to encounter AEneas,
+who on his part rushed forward to meet them. "These," cried Liger, "are
+not the steeds of Diomedes, nor this the plain of Troy. Here an end shall
+be put at once to thy life and to the war." Against these insults AEneas
+prepared to give an answer otherwise than in words, and as Lucagus bent
+forward in readiness for the fight, the Trojan javelin whizzed through the
+rim of his shield, smote him in the groin, and hurled him, quivering in
+the pangs of death, out of the chariot. AEneas assailed his dying ears with
+a bitter scoff: "It is not, O Lucagus, the slowness of thy steeds in
+flight that hath lost thee thy chariot, but thou thyself, springing from
+thy seat, hast abandoned it." So saying, he seized the chariot; and now
+the miserable Liger, extending his hands in supplication, begged for his
+life. "It was not in this fashion that thou spokest a little while since,"
+replied the relentless hero. "It would not be fitting that thou shouldst
+desert thy brother. Die, therefore, and attend him to the shades." With
+that he thrust the avenging sword through his heart, whence the trembling
+soul fled with a shriek.
+
+So AEneas spread havoc amid the hostile ranks, and drove the forces of
+Turnus back in headlong rout, so that Ascanius and those who had hitherto
+been shut up in the fortifications were able to issue forth into the
+field. Meanwhile Jupiter, watching from Olympus the fortunes of the day,
+accosted his consort. "Thou art in the right, my cherished queen, in
+alleging that Venus gives her aid to the Trojans; for without divine aid,
+how would it be possible for any mortal to achieve such deeds as AEneas is
+now accomplishing?" "Why," submissively answered Juno, "dost thou tease
+me, who am already oppressed with anguish for the fate of the people I
+befriend? Had I that share in your love which I once enjoyed, and which it
+is fitting for me to possess, thou surely couldst not refuse me this much,
+that I might have permission to rescue Turnus from the fate that threatens
+him, and restore him safe to his father Daunus. But since that cannot be,
+let him die, and glut the vengeance of the Trojan with his blood; yet his
+origin is divine, and often has he piled thy altars with sacrifices." Not
+unmoved, the ruler of the Gods replied, "If you plead for a respite from
+immediate death, and a little breathing-time for the youth, I grant you to
+bear him from the field, and for a short time to preserve him. So far I
+will indulge you; but if you hope to gain any greater favor, and imagine
+that the whole predetermined course of the war is to be altered at your
+entreaty, you delude yourself with empty hopes." With tears Juno
+responded, "What if thou shouldst grant in thy heart what in words thou
+dost refuse, and continue the life of Turnus for its natural duration? I
+fear much that a speedy end awaits the brave youth; but oh! I pray that I
+may be misled by groundless alarms, and that thou, to whom all power
+belongs, may alter thy purpose for the better."
+
+Not daring to say more, the queen of heaven hastily descended from Olympus
+towards the contending armies. Then she devised an airy phantom, wearing
+armor which exactly resembled that of AEneas, and imitating to the life his
+walk and mien. This shadow she caused to flutter in the forefront of the
+battle, full in the view of Turnus, and to provoke him with darts and
+insolent words. The enraged Rutulian eagerly pressed upon it, and from a
+distance hurled against it a spear. Immediately the spectre, wheeling
+about, took to flight. Turnus, imagining that in very truth it was the
+Trojan chief who feared to meet him, and filled with baseless exultation,
+cried out, "AEneas, whither dost thou fly? Desert not thus thy promised
+bride; with this right hand will I bestow upon thee the settled abode thou
+hast sought in vain through so many lands and seas." Thus vociferating, he
+madly pursued the deceitful phantom. It chanced that near the shore there
+lay a vessel, joined to the land by a temporary bridge of planks. Hither
+Juno led the shadow, and caused it in seeming fear to leap on board and
+throw itself into a hiding-place. With not less speed Turnus followed,
+bounded along the bridge, and mounted to the lofty prow of the ship in
+search of the supposed fugitive. Instantly the goddess severed the cable,
+and drove the vessel over the foaming waves. Then the phantom melted into
+the air, and the Rutulian, utterly bewildered, gazed about him in despair,
+nor did he feel at all thankful to the guardian deity for having thus
+preserved him from the arms of AEneas. "Almighty Father," he cried, raising
+his eyes and hands towards heaven, "why dost thou think me worthy of such
+shame as this? What have I done to merit such a punishment? whither am I
+borne? How shall I venture again to enter the walls of Laurentum or look
+upon my camp? What will be said of me by the warriors who have followed me
+into this war, and whom--unutterable shame!--I have abandoned to the
+bloodthirsty Trojans! O winds! take pity on me, I entreat you; dash this
+vessel on some rugged crag, and overwhelm me so that I can no longer be
+conscious either of my humiliation or of the reproaches of my Rutulians."
+While he thus lamented, he was uncertain whether he should put an end to
+his own life with his sword or plunge into the sea and endeavor to regain
+the land by swimming. Three times he attempted each expedient, and as
+often Juno, full of pity, restrained him. Carried along by a favorable
+wind, the ship bore him safely to the capital of his father, King Daunus.
+
+Meanwhile AEneas raged through the battle-field in search of the victim
+whom the queen of the Gods had thus snatched from his conquering hands.
+Under his leadership the Trojans and their allies, flushed with success,
+pressed more eagerly on their discomfited foe; but Mezentius now advanced
+to restore the courage of the Rutulians. The Etrurians, as soon as they
+saw their expelled monarch, out of hostility to whom they had engaged in
+the war, rushed upon him with shouts of rage; but he, as fearless as he
+was wicked, stood as firmly against them as a great rock on the shore
+meets all the fury of the winds and waves. Three warriors he overthrew in
+quick succession: Hebrus he cut down with his sword, Latagus he slew by
+hurling a great stone which battered in his face, and at Palmus he threw a
+javelin which pierced his thigh and extended him helpless on the ground.
+Then the raging king slew Evas the Phrygian, and a Trojan named Mimas, who
+in former days had been the companion of Paris, having been born in Troy
+on the same night that gave to the light the ill-starred son of Priam.
+Paris now lay in eternal repose amid the ruins of his native city, while
+to Mimas the sword of Mezentius assigned an unknown grave on the distant
+shore of Italy. And just as when an old wild boar, chased from his retreat
+amid the wooded Alps, stands at bay among the underwood, and the hunters,
+afraid to approach him, ply him with darts from a distance, while he
+gnashes his tusks with rage and faces them undaunted, so stood Mezentius;
+while his former subjects, though filled with just anger against him, and
+eager for his destruction, dare not come within reach of his dreaded
+sword, but galled him with spears and useless clamor. It chanced that a
+Greek from Corytus, named Acron, presented himself in the front,
+conspicuous in nodding plumes, and in purple trappings that had been
+worked for him by his betrothed wife. His gay attire caught the eye of
+Mezentius, who rushed forward and smote down the luckless Greek; then, as
+the others fell back, he cut off the retreat of an Etrurian chief, Orodes,
+forced him to engage hand to hand, and speedily slew him. Pressing his
+foot on the expiring warrior to draw out his lance from his body,
+Mezentius cried to his followers, "Behold, friends! Orodes has fallen--not
+the meanest of our foes." The Rutulians raised a joyful shout, but the
+dying Orodes faintly answered, "Not long shall thou rejoice with impunity
+over me; a similar fate awaits thyself, and soon shalt thou also be
+stretched lifeless on this same field." Smiling scornfully, Mezentius
+returned, "Die thou, and leave my fate to the Gods, in whose hands it
+rests." His example inspired other of the Rutulians; they pressed fiercely
+forward and drove back the troops of AEneas. Mezentius advanced at their
+head, and as he strode along, the Trojan hero espied him, and hastened
+towards him. Unawed by the prospect of an encounter even with so terrible
+a foe, Mezentius stood firm, and poising a huge spear in his hand,
+exclaimed,--for he was a contemner of the Gods, and never offered
+invocations to them,--"Now let this right hand and this good dart be my
+aid; and then I vow that my son, my dear Lausus, shall be clad in the
+bright arms torn from the body of yon Trojan pirate." With these words he
+drew the spear. Sent with a true aim, it struck the shield of AEneas, but
+glanced from the hardened surface, and turning aside, pierced the side of
+Antores, a faithful follower of Evander, who had come with Pallas to the
+war. Thus died Antores, by a weapon never aimed at him, but he was
+speedily avenged. AEneas, putting all his might into the cast, now in his
+turn hurled his spear. It tore its way through the triple plates of
+Mezentius' shield, through his corselet, and inflicted a severe wound in
+his groin, though its force was so far spent that the injury was not
+mortal.
+
+Overjoyed at the sight of his enemy's blood, AEneas drew his sword from its
+sheath, and rushed upon Mezentius, who was as yet bewildered by the blow.
+When Lausus saw his father in such peril he sprang forward and stood
+before AEneas, while Mezentius fell back among his friends, the Trojan
+lance still trailing in his armor. Lausus received the first stroke of
+AEneas' sword on his buckler, while the Rutulians with loud shouts
+applauded him, and poured on the Trojan hero a tempest of darts. Against
+this he protected himself with his shield, and meanwhile, pitying the
+youth and courage of Lausus, spoke to him in words of warning: "Why do you
+thus rush on your own destruction, and attempt what is beyond your
+strength? Your filial devotion blinds you to your danger." But Lausus,
+resolute to defend his wounded sire, returned a haughty defiance. Then
+AEneas could no longer control his wrath; he exerted all his strength, and
+thrust his terrible sword up to the hilt through the body of the youth,
+who sank lifeless on the blood-steeped ground. When AEneas saw the comely
+young warrior stretched dead before him, his heart was filled with pity.
+"Ill-fated youth!" he cried, "how can I testify my reverence for thy
+filial piety and thy undaunted valor? Thou shalt at least retain those
+arms which it was thy delight to wear, and thy body shall be given up
+unspoiled to thy friends." With that he summoned the dismayed followers of
+Lausus, and with his own hands raised from the ground the comely body, all
+disfigured with blood and wounds. Meantime Mezentius had retreated to the
+bank of the Tiber, where he took off his armor, and bathed his wound with
+water. While he was thus resting from the fatigues of the battle, he was
+full of anxiety for his son, and sent messenger after messenger to recall
+him from the fight. But too soon a crowd of weeping warriors appeared,
+carrying the corpse of Lausus in their arms. The sorrowing father divined
+what had occurred from their lamentations, even before the body was
+brought to him. He threw dust upon his head, he clasped the loved form in
+his arms, and bedewed the pallid face with his tears. "O my son," he
+exclaimed, "was I possessed with such a fond desire of life as to suffer
+thee to offer thyself in my place to the relentless foe? Am I preserved at
+the cost of these cruel wounds? Now, indeed, I feel the calamity of exile.
+My crimes have cost thee not only thy paternal throne and sceptre, but thy
+life also. It was I that owed expiation to my country, and should have
+satisfied my people by a deserved death. And yet I live! yet I do not quit
+the detested light! but I will quickly follow thee." Then he rose up, and
+though crippled by the wound in his thigh, and suffering anguish from its
+smart, he did not flinch, but ordered his attendants to bring his courser.
+This was a horse famous for its speed and its prompt obedience to the
+rein. When it was brought, he accosted it: "Long have we lived together,
+Rhoebus, and many great deeds have we accomplished. To-day we shall either
+bear away the head of AEneas and his arms all spattered with his blood, or
+we shall perish together; for I am assured that thou wilt never condescend
+to bear a Trojan lord." Then mounting the noble steed, he filled both
+hands with darts, and dashed recklessly into the midst of the battle. His
+heart swelling with rage and shame and grief, he thrice loudly summoned
+AEneas to the combat. AEneas heard, and rejoiced at the challenge; and with
+threatening spear advanced to meet his foe. "Barbarous wretch," cried
+Mezentius, "thinkest thou to affright me with thy weapons, now that thou
+hast robbed me of my son? That was the only means by which thou couldst
+destroy me. I fear neither death nor the anger of any of your gods.
+Forbear threats; now am I come hither to die, but first I bring you these
+gifts." So saying, he rapidly hurled one dart after another at the hero,
+whirling swiftly round him on his horse; but the shield framed by Vulcan's
+hands received all the shafts and repelled them. Wearied at last of so
+unequal a fight, in which he had to endure ceaseless attacks without
+striking a blow, AEneas stepped forward, and hurled his spear against the
+charger, piercing its skull betwixt the ears. The fiery horse reared
+upward in the death agony, and then fell backward upon his rider, pressing
+him to the earth. The spectators of this fierce combat uplifted their
+voices in shouts, some in joy and others in sorrow, as AEneas rushed up to
+the fallen warrior, and lifting his sword to deal the fatal blow, cried,
+"Where is now the stern Mezentius?" The Etrurian, on the other hand,
+replied, "Spiteful foe, why dost thou threaten and insult before thou
+strikest? Thou wilt do me no wrong in slaying me. I sought thee expecting
+nothing else, and neither I nor my son has asked mercy at thy hands. One
+favor alone I implore of thee, that thou wilt give burial to my corpse. I
+know well that the hate of my former subjects would pursue me after death.
+Defend my remains, I entreat, from outrage, and grant me a grave along
+with my son." He said no more, but extended his throat to receive the
+fatal blow, which descended and drew forth his life as the blood poured
+over his armor.
+
+The shades of night were now gathering, and as the Rutulians and Latins
+had quitted the field in confusion, the conflicts of that sanguinary day
+were at last, ended.
+
+
+
+
+AENEAS FINALLY CONQUERS THE LATINS
+
+By Alfred J. Church
+
+
+Prince Turnus was filled with rage. Even as a lion which a hunter hath
+wounded breaketh the arrow wherewith he hath been stricken, and rouseth
+himself to battle, shaking his mane and roaring, so Turnus arose. And
+first he spake to King Latinus, saying, "I will meet this man face to
+face, and slay him while ye look on; or, if the Gods will that he vanquish
+me so, he shall rule over you, and have Lavinia to wife."
+
+But King Latinus made answer, "Yet think awhile, my son. Thou hast the
+kingdom of thy father Daunus; and there are other noble virgins in Latium
+whom thou mayest have to wife. Wilt thou not then be content? For to give
+my daughter to any husband of this nation I was forbidden, as thou
+knowest. Yet did I disobey, being moved by love of thee, my wife also
+beseeching me with many tears. Thou seest what troubles I and my people,
+and thou more than all, have suffered from that time. Twice have we fled
+in the battle, and now the city only is left to us. If I must yield me to
+these men, let me yield whilst thou art yet alive. For what doth it profit
+me that thou shouldst die? Nay, but all men would cry shame on me if I
+gave thee to death!" Now for a space Turnus spake not for wrath. Then he
+said, "Be not troubled for me, my father. For I, too, can smite with the
+spear; and as for this AEneas, his mother will not be at hand to snatch him
+in a cloud from my sight."
+
+Then Amata cried to him, saying, "Fight not, I beseech thee, with these
+men of Troy, my son; for surely what thou sufferest I also shall suffer.
+Nor will I live to see AEneas my son-in-law."
+
+And Lavinia heard the voice of her mother, and wept. As a man stains ivory
+with crimson, or as roses are seen mixed with lilies, even so the virgin's
+face burned with crimson. And Turnus, regarding her, loved her
+exceedingly, and made answer, "Trouble me not with tears or idle words, my
+mother, for to this battle I must go. And do thou, Idmon the herald, say
+to the Phrygian king, 'To-morrow, when the sun shall rise, let the people
+have peace, but we two will fight together. And let him that prevaileth
+have Lavinia to wife.'"
+
+Then first he went to the stalls of his horses. The wife of the North Wind
+gave them to Pilumnus. Whiter than snow were they, and swifter than the
+wind. Then he put the coat of mail about his shoulders, and fitted a
+helmet on his head, and took the great sword which Vulcan had made for
+Daunus his father, and had dipped it when it was white-hot in the river of
+Styx. His spear also he took where it stood against a pillar, saying,
+"Serve me well, my spear, that hast never failed me before, that I may lay
+low this womanish robber of Phrygia, and soil with dust his curled and
+perfumed hair." The next day the men of Italy and the men of Troy measured
+out a space for the battle. And in the midst they builded an altar of
+turf. And the two armies sat on the one side and on the other, having
+fixed their spears in the earth and laid down their shields. Also the
+women and the old men stood on the towers and roofs of the city, that they
+might see the fight.
+
+But Queen Juno spake to Juturna, the sister of Turnus, saying, "Seest thou
+how these two are now about to fight, face to face? And indeed Turnus
+goeth to his death. As for me, I endure not to look upon this covenant or
+this battle. But if thou canst do aught for thy brother, lo! the time is
+at hand." And when the nymph wept and beat her breast, Juno said, "This is
+no time for tears. Save thy brother, if thou canst, from death; or cause
+that they break this covenant."
+
+After this came the kings, that they might make the covenant together. And
+King Latinus rode in a chariot with four horses, and he had on his head a
+crown with twelve rays of gold, for he was of the race of the sun; and
+Turnus came in a chariot with two white horses, having a javelin in either
+hand; and AEneas had donned the arms which Vulcan had made, and with him
+was the young Iulus. And after due offering AEneas sware, calling on all
+the Gods, "If the victory shall fall this day to Turnus, the men of Troy
+shall depart to the city of Evander, nor trouble this land any more. But
+if it fall to me, I will not that the Latins should serve the men of Troy.
+Let the nations be equal one with the other. The gods that I bring we will
+worship together, but King Latinus shall reign as before. A new city shall
+the men of Troy build for me, and Lavinia shall call it after her own
+name."
+
+Then King Latinus sware, calling on the gods that are above and the gods
+that are below, saying, "This covenant shall stand forever, whatsoever may
+befall. As sure as this sceptre which I bear--once it was a tree, but a
+cunning workman closed it in bronze, to be the glory of the Latian
+kings--shall never again bear twig or leaf, so surely shall this covenant
+be kept."
+
+But the thing pleased not the Latins; for before, indeed, they judged that
+the battle would not be equal between two; and now were they the more
+assured, seeing them when they came together, and that Turnus walked with
+eyes cast to the ground, and was pale and wan. Wherefore there arose a
+murmuring among the people, which when Juturna perceived, she took upon
+herself the likeness of Camertus, who was a prince and a great warrior
+among them, and passed through the host saying, "Are ye not ashamed, men
+of Italy, that one man should do battle for you all? For count these men;
+surely they are scarce one against two. And if he be vanquished, what
+shame for you! As for him, indeed, though he die, yet shall his glory
+reach to the heavens; but ye shall suffer disgrace, serving these
+strangers forever."
+
+And when she saw that the people were moved, she gave also a sign from
+heaven. For lo! an eagle, that drave a crowd of sea-fowl before him,
+swooped down to the water, and caught a great swan; and even while the
+Italians looked, the birds that before had fled turned and pursued the
+eagle, and drave him before them, so that he dropped the swan and fled
+away. Which thing when the Italians perceived they shouted, and made them
+ready for battle. And the augur Tolumnius cried, "This is the token that I
+have looked for. For this eagle is the stranger, and ye are the birds,
+which before, indeed, have fled, but shall now make him to flee."
+
+And he ran forward and cast his spear, smiting a man of Arcadia below the
+belt, upon the groin. One of nine brothers was he, sons of a Tuscan
+mother, but their father was a Greek; and they, when they saw him slain,
+caught swords and spears, and ran forward. And straightway the battle was
+begun. First they brake down the altars, that they might take firebrands
+therefrom; and King Latinus fled from the place. Then did Messapus drive
+his horses against King Aulestes of Mantua, who, being fain to fly,
+stumbled upon the altar and fell headlong on the ground. And Messapus
+smote him with a spear that was like a weaver's beam, saying, "This, of a
+truth, is a worthier victim." After this Coryneus, the Arcadian, when
+Ebysus would have smitten him, snatched a brand from the altar and set
+fire to the beard of the man, and, before he came to himself, caught him
+by the hair, and thrusting him to the ground, so slew him. And when
+Podalirius pursued Alsus the shepherd, and now held his sword over him
+ready to strike, the other turned, and with a battle-axe cleft the man's
+head from forehead to chin.
+
+But all the while the righteous AEneas, having his head bare, and holding
+neither spear nor sword, cried to the people, "What seek ye? what madness
+is this? The covenant is established, and I only have the right to do
+battle." But even while he spake an arrow smote him, wounding him. But who
+let it fly no man knoweth; for who, of a truth, would boast that he had
+wounded AEneas? And he departed from the battle.
+
+Now when Turnus saw that AEneas had departed from the battle he called for
+his chariot. And when he had mounted thereon he drave it through the host
+of the enemy, slaying many valiant heroes, as Sthenelus and Pholus, and
+the two sons of Imbrasus the Lycian, Glaucus and Lades. Then he saw
+Eumedes, son of that Dolon who would have spied out the camp of the
+Greeks, asking as his reward the horses of Achilles (but Diomed slew him).
+Him Turnus smote with a javelin from afar, and, when he fell, came near
+and put his foot upon him, and taking his sword drave it into his neck,
+saying, "Lo! now thou hast the land which thou soughtest. Lie there and
+measure out Italy for thyself." Many others he slew, for the army fled
+before him. Yet did one man, Phegeus by name, stand against him, and would
+have stayed the chariot, clutching the bridles of the horses in his hand.
+But as he clung to the yoke and was dragged along, Turnus broke his
+cuirass with his spear, and wounded him. And when the man set his shield
+before him, and made at Turnus with his sword, the wheels dashed him to
+the ground, and Turnus struck him between the helmet and the breastplate
+and smote off his head.
+
+But in the meanwhile Mnestheus and Achates and Iulus led AEneas to the
+camp, leaning on his spear. Very wroth was he, and strove to draw forth
+the arrow. And when he could not, he commanded that they should open the
+wound with the knife, and so send him back to the battle. Iapis also, the
+physician, ministered to him. Now this Iapis was dearer than all other men
+to Apollo, and when the god would have given him all his arts, even
+prophecy and music and archery, he chose rather to know the virtues of
+herbs and the art of healing, that so he might prolong the life of his
+father, who was even ready to die. This Iapis, then, having his garments
+girt about him in healer's fashion, would have drawn forth the arrow with
+the pincers, but could not. And while he strove, the battle came nearer,
+and the sky was hidden by clouds of dust, and javelins fell thick into the
+camp. But when Venus saw how grievously her son was troubled, she brought
+from Ida, which is a mountain of Crete, the herb dittany. A hairy stalk it
+hath and a purple flower. The wild goats know it well if so be that they
+have been wounded by arrows. This, then, Venus, having hidden her face,
+brought and dipped into the water, and sprinkled there with ambrosia and
+sweet-smelling panacea.
+
+And Iapis, unawares, applied the water that had been healed; and lo! the
+pain was stayed and the blood was staunched and the arrow came forth,
+though no man drew it, and AEneas's strength came back to him as before.
+Then said lapis, "Art of mine hath not healed thee, my son. The Gods call
+thee to thy work." Then did AEneas arm himself again, and when he had
+kissed Iulus and bidden him farewell, he went forth to the battle. And all
+the chiefs went with him, and the men of Troy took courage and drave back
+the Latins. Then befell a great slaughter, for Gyas slew Ufens, who was
+the leader of the AEquians; also Tolumnius, the great augur, was slain, who
+had first broken the covenant, slaying a man with his spear. But AEneas
+deigned not to turn his hand against any man, seeking only for Turnus,
+that he might fight with him. But when the nymph Juturna perceived this
+she was sore afraid. Therefore she came near to the chariot of her
+brother, and thrust out Metiscus, his charioteer, where he held the reins,
+and herself stood in his room, having made herself like to him in shape
+and voice. Then as a swallow flies through the halls and arcades of some
+rich man's house, seeking food for its young, so Juturna drave the chariot
+of her brother hither and thither. And ever AEneas followed behind, and
+called to him that he should stay; but whenever he espied the man, and
+would have overtaken him by running, then again did Juturna turn the
+horses about and flee. And as he sped Messapus cast a spear at him. But
+AEneas saw it coming, and put his shield over him, resting on his knee. Yet
+did the spear smite him on the helmet-top and shear off the crest. Then
+indeed was his wrath kindled, and he rushed into the army of the enemy,
+slaying many as he went.
+
+Then was there a great slaughter made on this side and on that. But after
+a while Venus put it into the heart of AEneas that he should lead his army
+against the city. Therefore he called together the chiefs, and, standing
+in the midst of them on a mound, spake, saying, "Hearken now to my words,
+and delay not to fulfill them, for of a truth Jupiter is on our side. I am
+purposed this day to lay this city of Latinus even with the ground, if
+they still refuse to obey. For why should I wait for Turnus till it please
+him to meet me in battle?"
+
+Then did the whole array make for the walls of the city. And some carried
+firebrands, and some scaling-ladders, and some slew the warders at the
+gates, and cast javelins at them who stood on the walls. And then there
+arose a great strife in the city, for some would have opened the gates
+that the men of Troy might enter, and others made haste to defend the
+walls. Hither and thither did they run with much tumult, even as bees in a
+hive in a rock which a shepherd hath filled with smoke, having first shut
+all the doors thereof.
+
+Then also did other ill fortune befall the Latins, for when Queen Amata
+saw from the roof of the palace that the enemy were come near to the
+walls, and saw not anywhere the army of the Latins, she supposed Turnus to
+have fallen in the battle. Whereupon, crying out that she was the cause of
+all these woes, she made a noose of the purple garment wherewith she was
+clad, and hanged herself from a beam of the roof. Then did lamentation go
+through the city, for the women wailed and tore their hair, and King
+Latinus rent his clothes and threw dust upon his head.
+
+But the cry that went up from the city came to the ears of Turnus where he
+fought in the farthest part of the plain. And he caught the reins and
+said, "What meaneth this sound of trouble and wailing that I hear?" And
+the false Metiscus, who was in truth his sister, made answer, "Let us
+fight, O Turnus, here where the Gods give us victory. There are enough to
+defend the city." But Turnus spake, saying, "Nay, my sister, for who thou
+art I have known even from the beginning; it must not be so. Why camest
+thou down from heaven? Was it to see thy brother die? And now what shall I
+do? Have I not seen Murranus die, and Ufens the AEquian? And shall I suffer
+this city to be destroyed? Shall this land see Turnus flee before his
+enemies? Be ye kind to me, O gods of the dead, seeing that the gods of
+heaven hate me. I come down to you a righteous spirit, and not unworthy of
+my fathers."
+
+And even as he spake came Saces, riding on a horse that was covered with
+foam, and on his face was the wound of an arrow. And he cried, "O Turnus,
+our last hopes are in thee. For AEneas is about to destroy the city, and
+the firebrands are cast upon the roofs. And King Latinus is sore tried
+with doubt, and the Queen hath laid hands upon herself and is dead. And
+now only Messapus and Atinas maintain the battle, and the fight grows
+fierce around them, whilst thou drivest thy chariot about these empty
+fields."
+
+Then for a while Turnus stood speechless, and shame and grief and madness
+were in his soul; and he looked to the city, and lo! the fire went up even
+to the top of the tower which he himself had builded upon the walls to be
+a defense against the enemy. And when he saw it, he cried, "It is enough,
+my sister; I go whither the Gods call me. I will meet with AEneas face to
+face, and endure my doom."
+
+And as he spake he leapt down from his chariot, and ran across the plain
+till he came near to the city, even where the blood was deepest upon the
+earth, and the arrows were thickest in the air. And he beckoned with the
+hand and called to the Italians, saying, "Stay now your arrows. I am come
+to fight this battle for you all." And when they heard it they left a
+space in the midst. AEneas also, when he heard the name of Turnus, left
+attacking the city, and came to meet him, mighty as Athos, or Eryx, or
+Father Apenninus, that raiseth his snowy head to the heavens. And the men
+of Troy and the Latins and King Latinus marveled to see them meet, so
+mighty they were.
+
+First they cast their spears at each other, and then ran together, and
+their shields struck one against the other with a crash that went up to
+the sky. And Jupiter held the balance in heaven, weighing their doom. Then
+Turnus, rising to the stroke, smote fiercely with his sword. And the men
+of Troy and the Latins cried out when they saw him strike. But the
+treacherous sword brake in the blow. And when he saw the empty hilt in his
+hand he turned to flee. They say that when he mounted his chariot that day
+to enter the battle, not heeding the matter in his haste, he left his
+father's sword behind him, and took the sword of Metiscus, which, indeed,
+served him well while the men of Troy fled before him, but brake, even as
+ice breaks, when it came to the shield which Vulcan had made. Thereupon
+Turnus fled, and AEneas, though the wound which the arrow had made hindered
+him, pursued. Even as a hound follows a stag that is penned within some
+narrow space, for the beast flees hither and thither, and the staunch
+Umbrian hound follows close upon him, and almost holds him, and snaps his
+teeth, yet bites him not, so did AEneas follow hard on Turnus. And still
+Turnus cried out that some one should give him his sword, and AEneas
+threatened that he would destroy the city if any should help him. Five
+times about the space they ran; not for some prize they strove, but for
+the life of Turnus. Now there stood in the plain the stump of a wild
+olive-tree. The tree was sacred to Faunus, but the men of Troy had cut it,
+and the stump only was left. Herein the spear of AEneas was fixed, and now
+he would have drawn it forth that he might slay Turnus therewith, seeing
+that he could not overtake him by running. Which when Turnus perceived, he
+cried to Faunus, saying, "O Faunus, if I have kept holy for thee that
+which the men of Troy have profaned, hold fast this spear." And the god
+heard him; nor could AEneas draw it forth. But while he strove, Juturna,
+taking again the form of Metiscus, ran and gave to Turnus his sword. And
+Venus, perceiving it, wrenched forth the spear from the stump. So the two
+stood again face to face.
+
+Then spake Jupiter to Juno, where she sat in a cloud watching the battle,
+"How long wilt thou fight against fate? What purpose hast thou now in thy
+heart? Was it well that Juturna--for what could she avail without thy
+help?--should give back to Turnus his sword? Thou hast driven the men of
+Troy over land and sea, and kindled a dreadful war, and mingled the song
+of marriage with mourning. Further thou mayest not go."
+
+And Juno humbly made answer, "This is thy will, great Father; else had I
+not sat here, but stood in the battle smiting the men of Troy. And indeed
+I spake to Juturna that she should help her brother; but aught else I know
+not. And now I yield. Yet grant me this. Suffer not that the Latins should
+be called after the name of Troy, nor change their speech, nor their garb.
+Let Rome rule the world, but let Troy perish forever."
+
+Then spake with a smile the Maker of all things, "Truly thou art a
+daughter of Saturn, so fierce is the wrath of thy soul. And now what thou
+prayest I give. The Italians shall not change name, nor speech, nor garb.
+The men of Troy shall mingle with them, and I will give them a new
+worship, and call them all Latins. Nor shall any race pay thee more honor
+than they."
+
+Then Jupiter sent a fury from the pit. And she took the form of a bird,
+even of an owl that sitteth by night on the roof of a desolate house, and
+flew before the face of Turnus and flapped her wings against his shield.
+Then was Turnus stricken with great fear, so that his hair stood up and
+his tongue clave to the roof of his mouth. And when Juturna knew the sound
+of the false bird what it was, she cried aloud for fear, and left her
+brother and fled, hiding herself in the river of Tiber.
+
+But AEneas came on, shaking his spear that was like unto a tree, and said,
+"Why delayest thou, O Turnus? Why drawest thou back? Fly now if thou canst
+through the air, or hide thyself in the earth." And Turnus made answer, "I
+fear not thy threats, but the Gods and Jupiter, that are against me this
+day." And as he spake he saw-a great stone which lay hard by, the landmark
+of a field. Scarce could twelve chosen men, such as men are now, lift it
+on their shoulders. This he caught from the earth and cast it at his
+enemy, running forward as he cast. But he knew not, so troubled was he in
+his soul, that he ran or that he cast, for his knees tottered beneath him
+and his blood grew cold with fear. And the stone fell short, nor reached
+the mark. Even as in a dream, when dull sleep is on the eyes of a man, he
+would fain run but cannot, for his strength faileth him, neither cometh
+there any voice when he would speak; so it fared with Turnus. For he
+looked to the Latins and to the city, and saw the dreadful spear approach,
+nor knew how he might fly, neither how he might fight, and could not spy
+anywhere his chariot or his sister. And all the while AEneas shook his
+spear and waited that his aim should be sure. And at the last he threw it
+with all his might. Even as a whirlwind it flew, and brake through the
+seven folds of the shield and pierced the thigh. And Turnus dropped with
+his knee bent to the ground. And all the Latins groaned aloud to see him
+fall. Then he entreated AEneas, saying, "I have deserved my fate. Take thou
+that which thou hast won. Yet perchance thou mayest have pity on the old
+man, my father, even Daunus, for such an one was thy father Anchises, and
+give me back to my own people, if it be but my body that thou givest. Yet
+hast thou conquered, and the Latins have seen me beg my life of thee, and
+Lavinia is thine. Therefore I pray thee, stay now thy wrath." Then for a
+while AEneas stood doubting; aye, and might have spared the man, when lo!
+he spied upon his shoulders the belt of Pallas, whom he had slain. And his
+wrath was greatly kindled, and he cried with a dreadful voice, "Shalt thou
+who art clothed with the spoils of my friends escape me? 'Tis Pallas
+slays thee with this wound, and takes vengeance on thy accursed blood."
+And as he spake he drave the steel into his breast. And with a groan the
+wrathful spirit passed into darkness.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+According to the old legends AEneas wedded the fair Lavinia, founded his
+city of Lavinium, and ruled over it for three years. Then in a battle with
+the Rutulians, or some other Italian people, he disappeared; and as his
+body was not found after the conflict was over, it was believed that the
+Gods had taken him up to heaven. His son Ascanius peacefully succeeded
+him, and removed the capital of his kingdom to Alba Longa, which city
+again, after the lapse of centuries, gave birth to mighty Rome.
+
+
+
+
+END OF VOLUME III
+
+
+
+***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CHILDREN'S HOUR, VOLUME 3 (OF
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