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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6833f05 --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,3 @@ +* text=auto +*.txt text +*.md text diff --git a/22660-0.txt b/22660-0.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..4c75f66 --- /dev/null +++ b/22660-0.txt @@ -0,0 +1,2344 @@ +The Project Gutenberg eBook of King Candaules, by Théophile Gautier + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and +most other parts of the world 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. If you are not located in the United States, you +will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before +using this eBook. + +Title: King Candaules + +Author: Théophile Gautier + +Translator: Lafcadio Hearn + +Release Date: September 18, 2007 [eBook #22660] +[Most recently updated: September 10, 2021] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: UTF-8 + +Produced by: David Widger + +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KING CANDAULES *** + + + + +KING CANDAULES + +By Théophile Gautier + +Translated By Lafcadio Hearn + +1908 + + + + +CHAPTER I + +Five hundred years before the Trojan war, and seventeen hundred and +fifteen years before our own era, there was a grand festival at Sardes. +King Candaules was going to marry. The people were affected with that +sort of pleasurable interest and aimless emotion wherewith any royal +event inspires the masses, even though it in no wise concerns them, +and transpires in superior spheres of life which they can never hope to +reach. + +As soon as Phoebus-Apollo, standing in his quadriga, had gilded to +saffron the summits of fertile Mount Tmolus with his rays, the +good people of Sardes were all astir, going and coming, mounting or +descending the marble stairways leading from the city to the waters +of the Pactolus, that opulent river whose sands Midas filled with tiny +sparks of gold when he bathed in its stream. One would have supposed +that each one of these good citizens was himself about to marry, so +solemn and important was the demeanour of all. + +Men were gathering in groups in the Agora, upon the steps of the +temples and along the porticoes. At every street corner one might have +encountered women leading by the hand little children, whose uneven walk +ill suited the maternal anxiety and impatience. Maidens were hastening +to the fountains, all with urns gracefully balanced upon their heads, or +sustained by their white arms as with natural handles, so as to procure +early the necessary water provision for the household, and thus obtain +leisure at the hour when the nuptial procession should pass. Washerwomen +hastily folded the still damp tunics and chlamidæ, and piled them upon +mule-wagons. Slaves turned the mill without any need of the overseer’s +whip to tickle their naked and scar-seamed shoulders. Sardes was +hurrying itself to finish with those necessary everyday cares which no +festival can wholly disregard. + +The road along which the procession was to pass had been strewn with +fine yellow sand. Brazen tripods, disposed along the way at regular +intervals, sent up to heaven the odorous smoke of cinnamon and +spikenard. These vapours, moreover, alone clouded the purity of the +azure above. The clouds of a hymeneal day ought, indeed, to be formed +only by the burning of perfumes. Myrtle and rose-laurel branches were +strewn upon the ground, and from the walls of the palaces were suspended +by little rings of bronze rich tapestries, whereon the needles of +industrious captives--intermingling wool, silver, and gold--had +represented various scenes in the history of the gods and heroes: +Ixion embracing the cloud; Diana surprised in the bath by Actaeon; the +shepherd Paris as judge in the contest of beauty held upon Mount +Ida between Hera, the snowy-armed, Athena of the sea-green eyes, and +Aphrodite, girded with her magic cestus; the old men of Troy rising to +honour Helena as she passed through the Skaian gate, a subject taken +from one of the poems of the blind man of Meles. Others exhibited in +preference scenes taken from the life of Heracles, the Theban, through +flattery to Candaules, himself a Heracleid, being descended from the +hero through Alcaeus. Others contented themselves by decorating the +entrances of their dwellings with garlands and wreaths in token of +rejoicing. + +Among the multitudes marshalled along the way from the royal house even +as far as the gates of the city, through which the young queen would +pass on her arrival, conversation naturally turned upon the beauty of +the bride, whereof the renown had spread throughout all Asia; and +upon the character of the bridegroom, who, although not altogether an +eccentric, seemed nevertheless one not readily appreciated from the +common standpoint of observation. + +Nyssia, daughter of the Satrap Megabazus, was gifted with marvellous +purity of feature and perfection of form; at least such was the rumour +spread abroad by the female slaves who attended her, and a few female +friends who had accompanied her to the bath; for no man could boast +of knowing aught of Nyssia save the colour of her veil and the elegant +folds that she involuntarily impressed upon the soft materials which +robed her statuesque body. + +The barbarians did not share the ideas of the Greeks in regard to +modesty. While the youths of Achaia made no scruples of allowing their +oil-anointed torsos to shine under the sun in the stadium, and while the +Spartan virgins danced ungarmented before the altar of Diana, those of +Persepolis, Ebactana, and Bactria, attaching more importance to chastity +of the body than to chastity of mind, considered those liberties +allowed to the pleasure of the eyes by Greek manner as impure and highly +reprehensible, and held no woman virtuous who permitted men to obtain +a glimpse of more than the tip of her foot in walking, as it slightly +deranged the discreet folds of a long tunic. + +Despite all this mystery, or rather, perhaps, by very reason of this +mystery, the fame of Nyssia had not been slow to spread throughout all +Lydia, and become popular there to such a degree that it had reached +even Candaules, although kings are ordinarily the most illy informed +people in their kingdoms, and live like the gods in a kind of cloud +which conceals from them the knowledge of terrestrial things. + +The Eupatridæ of Sardes, who hoped that the young king might, perchance, +choose a wife from their family, the hetairæ of Athens, of Samos, of +Miletus and of Cyprus, the beautiful slaves from the banks of the +Indus, the blond girls brought at a vast expense from the depths of +the Cimmerian fogs, were heedful never to utter in the presence of +Candaules, whether within hearing or beyond hearing, a single word +which bore any relation to Nyssia. The bravest, in a question of beauty, +recoil before the prospect of a contest in which they can anticipate +being outrivalled. + +And nevertheless no person in Sardes, or even in Lydia, had beheld this +redoubtable adversary, no person save one solitary being, who from +the time of that encounter had kept his lips as firmly closed upon the +subject as though Harpocrates, the god of silence, had sealed them with +his finger, and that was Gyges, chief of the guards of Candaules. One +day Gyges, his mind filled with various projects and vague ambitions, +had been wandering among the Bactrian hills, whither his master had +sent him upon an important and secret mission. He was dreaming of the +intoxication of omnipotence, of treading upon purple with sandals of +gold, of placing the diadem upon the brows of the fairest of women. + +These thoughts made his blood boil in his veins, and, as though to +pursue the flight of his dreams, he smote his sinewy heel upon the +foam-whitened flanks of his Numidian horse. + +The weather, at first calm, had changed and waxed tempestuous like the +warrior’s soul; and Boreas, his locks bristling with Thracian frosts, +his cheeks puffed out, his arms folded upon his breast, smote the +rain-freighted clouds with the mighty beatings of his wings. + +A bevy of young girls who had been gathering flowers in the meadow, +fearing the coming storm, were returning to the city in all haste, each +carrying her perfumed harvest in the lap of her tunic. Seeing a stranger +on horseback approaching in the distance, they had hidden their faces +in their mantles, after the custom of the barbarians; but at the very +moment that Gyges was passing by the one whose proud carriage and richer +habiliments seemed to designate her the mistress of the little band, +an unusually violent gust of wind carried away the veil of the fair +unknown, and, whirling it through the air like a feather, chased it to +such a distance that it could not be recovered. It was Nyssia, daughter +of Megabazus, who found herself thus with face unveiled in the presence +of Gyges, a humble captain of King Candaules’s guard. Was it only the +breath of Boreas which had brought about this accident, or had Eros, who +delights to vex the hearts of men, amused himself by severing the string +which had fastened the protecting tissue? However that may have been, +Gyges was stricken motionless at the sight of that Medusa of beauty, and +not till long after the folds of Nyssia’s robe had disappeared beyond +the gates of the city could he think of proceeding on his way. Although +there was nothing to justify such a conjecture, he cherished the belief +that he had seen the satrap’s daughter; and that meeting, which affected +him almost like an apparition, accorded so fully with the thoughts that +were occupying him at the moment of its occurrence, that he could not +help perceiving therein something fateful and ordained of the gods. +In truth it was upon that brow that he would have wished to place the +diadem. What other could be more worthy of it? But what probability was +there that Gyges would ever have a throne to share? He had not sought +to follow up this adventure, and assure himself that it was indeed the +daughter of Megabazus whose mysterious face had been revealed to him by +Chance, the great filcher. Nyssia had fled so swiftly that it would have +been impossible for him then to overtake her; and, moreover, he had been +dazzled, fascinated, thunder-stricken, as it were, rather than charmed +by that superhuman apparition, by that monster of beauty! + +Nevertheless that image, although seen only in the glimpse of a moment, +had engraved itself upon his heart in lines deep as those which +the sculptors trace on ivory with tools reddened in the fire. He had +endeavoured, although vainly, to efface it, for the love which he felt +for Nyssia inspired him with a secret terror. Perfection in such a +degree is ever awe-inspiring, and women so like unto goddesses could +only work evil to feeble mortals; they are formed for divine adulteries, +and even the most courageous men never risk themselves in such amours +without trembling. Therefore no hope had blossomed in the soul of +Gyges, overwhelmed and discouraged in advance by the sentiment of the +impossible. Ere opening his lips to Nyssia he would have wished to +despoil the heaven of its robe of stars, to take from Phoebus his crown +of rays, forgetting that women only give themselves to those unworthy +of them, and that to win their love one must act as though he desired to +earn their hate. + +From that day the roses of joy no longer bloomed upon his cheeks. By +day he was sad and mournful, and seemed to wander abroad in solitary +dreaming, like a mortal who has beheld a divinity. At night he was +haunted by dreams in which he beheld Nyssia seated by his side upon +cushions of purple between the golden griffins of the royal throne. + +Therefore Gyges, the only one who could speak of his own knowledge +concerning Nyssia, having never spoken of her, the Sardians were left to +their own conjectures in her regard; and their conjectures, it must be +confessed, were fantastic and altogether fabulous. The beauty of Nyssia, +thanks to the veils which shrouded her, became a sort of myth, a canvas, +a poem to which each one added ornamentation as the fancy took him. + +‘If report be not false,’ lisped a young debauchee from Athens, who +stood with one hand upon the shoulder of an Asiatic boy, ‘neither +Plangon, nor Archianassa, nor Thais can be compared with this marvellous +barbarian; yet I can scarce believe that she equals Theano of Colophon, +from whom I once bought a single night at the price of as much gold as +she could bear away, after having plunged both her white arms up to the +shoulder in my cedar-wood coffer.’ + +‘Beside her,’ added a Eupatrid, who pretended to be better informed than +any other person upon all manner of subjects, ‘beside her the daughter +of Coelus and the Sea would seem but a mere Ethiopian servant.’ + +‘Your words are blasphemy, and although Aphrodite be a kind and +indulgent goddess, beware of drawing down her anger upon you.’ + +‘By Hercules!--and that ought to be an oath of some weight in a city +ruled by one of his descendants--I cannot retract a word of it.’ + +‘You have seen her, then?’ + +‘No; but I have a slave in my service who once belonged to Nyssia, and +who has told me a hundred stories about her.’ + +‘Is it true,’ demanded in infantile tones an equivocal-looking woman +whose pale-rose tunic, painted cheeks, and locks shining with essences +betrayed wretched pretensions to a youth long passed away--’ is it true +that Nyssia has two pupils in each eye? It seems to me that must be very +ugly, and I cannot understand how Candaules could fall in love with such +a monstrosity, while there is no lack, at Sardes and in Lydia, of women +whose eyes are irreproachable.’ + +And uttering these words with all sorts of affected airs and simperings, +Lamia took a little significant peep in a small mirror of cast metal +which she drew from her bosom, and which enabled her to lead back to +duty certain wandering curls disarranged by the impertinence of the +wind. + +‘As to the double pupil, that seems to me nothing more than an old +nurse’s tale,’ observed the well-informed patrician; ‘but it is a fact +that Nyssia’s eyes are so piercing that she can see through walls. +Lynxes are myopic compared with her.’ + +‘How can a sensible man coolly argue about such an absurdity?’ +interrupted a citizen, whose bald skull, and the flood of snowy beard +into which he plunged his fingers while speaking, lent him an air of +preponderance and philosophical sagacity. ‘The truth is that the +daughter of Megabazus cannot naturally see through a wall any better +than you or I, but the Egyptian priest Thoutmosis, who knows so many +wondrous secrets, has given her the mysterious stone which is found in +the heads of dragons, and whose property, as every one knows, renders +all shadows and the most opaque bodies transparent to the eyes of those +who possess it. Nyssia always carries this stone in her girdle, or +else set into her bracelet, and in that may be found the secret of her +clairvoyance.’ + +The citizen’s explanation seemed the most natural one to those of the +group whose conversation we are endeavouring to reproduce, and the +opinions of Lamia and the patrician were abandoned as improbable. + +‘At all events,’ returned the lover of Theano, ‘we are going to have an +opportunity of judging for ourselves, for it seems to me that I hear the +clarions sounding in the distance, and though Nyssia is still invisible, +I can see the herald yonder approaching with palm branches in his hands, +to announce the arrival of the nuptial _cortége_, and make the crowd +fall back.’ + +At this news, which spread rapidly through the crowd, the strong men +elbowed their way toward the front ranks; the agile boys, embracing the +shafts of the columns, sought to climb up to the capitals and there seat +themselves; others, not without having skinned their knees against the +bark, succeeded in perching themselves comfortably enough in the Y of +some tree-branch. The women lifted their little children upon their +shoulders, warning them to hold tightly to their necks. Those who had +the good fortune to dwell on the street along which Candaules and Nyssia +were about to pass, leaned over from the summit of their roofs, or, +rising on their elbows, abandoned for a time the cushions upon which +they had been reclining. + +A murmur of satisfaction and gratified expectation ran through the +crowd, which had already been waiting many long hours, for the arrows of +the midday sun were commencing to sting. + +The heavy-armed warriors, with cuirasses of bull’s-hide covered with +overlapping plates of metal, helmets adorned with plumes of horse-hair +dyed red, _knemides_ or greaves faced with tin, baldrics studded with +nails, emblazoned bucklers, and swords of brass, rode behind a line of +trumpeters who blew with might and main upon their long tubes, which +gleamed under the sunlight. The horses of these warriors were all white +as the feet of Thetis, and might have served, by reason of their noble +paces and purity of breeds, as models for those which Phidias at a later +day sculptured upon the metopes of the Parthenon. + +At the head of this troop rode Gyges, the well-named, for his name +in the Lydian tongue signifies beautiful. His features, of the most +exquisite regularity, seemed chiselled in marble, owing to his intense +pallor, for he had just discovered in Nyssia, although she was veiled +with the veil of a young bride, the same woman whose face had been +betrayed to his gaze by the treachery of Boreas under the walls of +Bactria. + +‘Handsome Gyges looks very sad,’ said the young maidens. ‘What proud +beauty could have secured his love, or what forsaken one has caused some +Thessalian witch to cast a spell on him? Has that cabalistic ring (which +he is said to have found hidden within the flanks of a brazen horse +in the midst of some forest) lost its virtue, and suddenly ceasing to +render its owner invisible, betrayed him to the astonished eyes of some +innocent husband, who had deemed himself alone in his conjugal chamber?’ + +‘Perhaps he has been wasting his talents and his drachmas at the game of +Palamedes, or else it may be that he is disappointed at not having +won the prize at the Olympian games. He had great faith in his horse +Hyperion.’ + +No one of these conjectures was true. A fact is never guessed. + +After the battalion commanded by Gyges, there came young boys crowned +with myrtle-wreaths, and singing epithalamic hymns after the Lydian +manner, accompanying themselves upon lyres of ivory, which they played +with bows. All were clad in rose-coloured tunics ornamented with +a silver Greek border, and their long hair flowed down over their +shoulders in thick curls. + +They preceded the gift-bearers, strong slaves whose half-nude bodies +exposed to view such interlacements of muscle as the stoutest athletes +might have envied. + +Upon brancards, supported by two or four men or more, according to +the weight of the objects borne, were placed enormous brazen cratera, +chiselled by the most famous artists; vases of gold and silver whose +sides were adorned with bas-reliefs and whose hands were elegantly +worked into chimeras, foliage, and nude women; magnificent ewers to be +used in washing the feet of illustrious guests; flagons encrusted with +precious stones and containing the rarest perfumes; myrrh from Arabia, +cinnamon from the Indies, spikenard from Persia, essence of roses from +Smyrna; kamklins or perfuming pans, with perforated covers; cedar-wood +or ivory coffers of marvellous workmanship, which opened with a secret +spring that none save the inventor could find, and which contained +bracelets wrought from the gold of Ophir, necklaces of the most lustrous +pearls, mantle-brooches constellated with rubies and carbuncles; +toilet-boxes, containing blond sponges, curling-irons, sea-wolves’ teeth +to polish the nails, the green rouge of Egypt, which turns to a most +beautiful pink on touching the skin, powders to darken the eyelashes and +eyebrows, and all the refinements that feminine coquetry could invent. +Other litters were freighted with purple robes of the finest linen and +of all possible shades from the incarnadine hue of the rose to the deep +crimson of the blood of the grape; _calasires_ of the linen of Canopus, +which is thrown all white into the vat of the dyer, and comes forth +again, owing to the various astringents in which it had been steeped, +diapered with the most brilliant colours; tunics brought from the +fabulous land of Seres, made from the spun slime of a worm which feeds +upon leaves, and so fine that they might be drawn through a finger-ring. + +Ethiopians, whose bodies shone like jet, and whose temples were tightly +bound with cords, lest they should burst the veins of their foreheads +in the effort to uphold their burden, carried in great pomp a statue of +Hercules, the ancestor of Candaules, of colossal size, wrought of ivory +and gold, with the club, the skin of the Nemean lion, the three apples +from the garden of the Hesperides, and all the traditional attributes of +the hero. + +Statues of Venus Urania, and of Venus Genitrix, sculptured by the best +pupils of the Sicyon School. That marble of Paros whose gleaming +transparency seemed expressly created for the representation of the +ever-youthful flesh of the immortals, were borne after the statue of +Hercules, which admirably relieved the harmony and elegance of their +proportions by contrast with its massive outlines and rugged forms. + +A painting by Bularchus, which Candaules had purchased for its weight in +gold, executed upon the wood of the female larch-tree, and representing +the defeat of the Magnesians, evoked universal admiration by the beauty +of its design, the truthfulness of the attitude of its figures, and the +harmony of its colouring, although the artist had only employed in +its production the four primitive colours: Attic ochre, white, Pontic +_sinopis_ and _atramentum_. The young king loved painting and sculpture +even more, perhaps, than well became a monarch, and he had not +unfrequently bought a picture at a price equal to the annual revenue of +a whole city. + +Camels and dromedaries, splendidly caparisoned, with musicians seated +on their necks performing upon drums and cymbals, carried the gilded +stakes, the cords, and the material of the tent designed for the use of +the queen during voyages and hunting parties. + +These spectacles of magnificence would upon any other occasion have +ravished the people of Sardes with delight, but their curiosity had been +enlisted in another direction, and it was not without a certain feeling +of impatience that they watched this portion of the procession file by. +The young maidens and the handsome boys, bearing flaming torches, and +strewing handfuls of crocus flowers along the way, hardly attracted any +attention. The idea of beholding Nyssia had preoccupied all minds. + +At last Candaules appeared, riding in a chariot drawn by four horses, +as beautiful and spirited as those of the sun, all rolling their golden +bits in foam, shaking their purple-decked manes, and restrained +with great difficulty by the driver, who stood erect at the side of +Candaules, and was leaning back to gain more power on the reins. + +Candaules was a young man full of vigour, and well worthy of his +Herculean origin. His head was joined to his shoulders by a neck massive +as a bull’s, and almost without a curve; his hair, black and lustrous, +twisted itself into rebellious little curls, here and there concealing +the circlet of his diadem; his ears, small and upright, were of a ruddy +hue; his forehead was broad and full, though a little low, like all +antique foreheads; his eyes full of gentle melancholy, his oval cheeks, +his chin with its gentle and regular curves, his mouth with its slightly +parted lips--all bespoke the nature of the poet rather than that of +the warrior. In fact, although he was brave, skilled in all bodily +exercises, could subdue a wild horse as well as any of the Lapithæ, +or swim across the current of rivers when they descended, swollen with +melted snow, from the mountains, although he might have bent the bow of +Odysseus or borne the shield of Achilles, he seemed little occupied with +dreams of conquest; and war usually so fascinating to young kings, +had little attraction for him. He contented himself with repelling the +attacks of his ambitious neighbours, and sought not to extend his own +dominions. He preferred building palaces, after plans suggested by +himself to the architects, who always found the king’s hints of no small +value, or to form collections of statues and paintings by artists of +the elder and later schools. He had the works of Telephanes of Sicyon, +Cleanthes, Ardices of Corinth, Hygiemon, Deinias, Charmides, Eumarus, +and Cimon, some being simple drawings, and others paintings in various +colours or monochromes. It was even said that Candaules had not +disdained to wield with his own royal hands--a thing hardly becoming +a prince--the chisel of the sculptor and the sponge of the encaustic +painter. + +But why should we dwell upon Candaules? The reader undoubtedly feels +like the people of Sardes: and it is of Nyssia that he desires to hear. + +The daughter of Megabazus was mounted upon an elephant, with wrinkled +skin and immense ears which seemed like flags, who advanced with a heavy +but rapid gait, like a vessel in the midst of the waves. His tusks and +his trunk were encircled with silver rings, and around the pillars of +his limbs were entwined necklaces of enormous pearls. Upon his back, +which was covered with a magnificent Persian carpet of striped +pattern, stood a sort of estrade overlaid with gold finely chased, and +constellated with onyx stones, carnelians, chrysolites, lapis-lazuli, +and girasols; upon this estrade sat the young queen, so covered with +precious stones as to dazzle the eyes of the beholders. A mitre, shaped +like a helmet, on which pearls formed flower designs and letters after +the Oriental manner, was placed upon her head; her ears, both the lobes +and rims of which had been pierced, were adorned with ornaments in the +form of little cups, crescents, and balls; necklaces of gold and silver +beads, which had been hollowed out and carved, thrice encircled her neck +and descended with a metallic tinkling upon her bosom; emerald serpents +with topaz or ruby eyes coiled themselves in many folds about her arms, +and clasped themselves by biting their own tails. These bracelets were +connected by chains of precious stones, and so great was their weight +that two attendants were required to kneel beside Nyssia and support +her elbows. She was clad in a robe embroidered by Syrian workmen with +shining designs of golden foliage and diamond fruits, and over this she +wore the short tunic of Persepolis, which hardly descended to the knee, +and of which the sleeves were slit and fastened by sapphire clasps. +Her waist was encircled from hip to loins by a girdle wrought of narrow +material, variegated with stripes and flowered designs, which formed +themselves into symmetrical patterns as they were brought together by +a certain arrangement of the folds which Indian girls alone know how to +make. Her trousers of byssus, which the Phoenicians called _syndon_ were +confined at the ankles by anklets adorned with gold and silver bells, +and completed this toilet so fantastically rich and wholly opposed to +Greek taste. But, alas! a saffron-coloured _flammeum_ pitilessly masked +the face of Nyssia, who seemed embarrassed, veiled though she was, at +finding so many eyes fixed upon her, and frequently signed to a slave +behind her to lower the parasol of ostrich plumes, and thus conceal her +yet more from the curious gaze of the crowd. + +Candaules had vainly begged of her to lay aside her veil, even for that +solemn occasion. The young barbarian had refused to pay the welcome of +her beauty to his people. Great was the disappointment. Lamia declared +that Nyssia dared not uncover her face for fear of showing her double +pupil. The young libertine remained convinced that Theano of Colophon +was more beautiful than the queen of Sardes; and Gyges sighed when he +beheld Nyssia, after having made her elephant kneel down, descend upon +the inclined heads of Damascus slaves as upon a living ladder, to +the threshold of the royal dwelling, where the elegance of Greek +architecture was blended with the fantasies and enormities of Asiatic +taste. + + + + +CHAPTER II + +In our character of poet we have the right to lift the saffron-coloured +_flammeum_ which concealed the young bride, being more fortunate in this +wise than the Sardians, who after a whole day’s waiting were obliged +to return to their houses, and were left, as before, to their own +conjectures. + +Nyssia was really far superior to her reputation, great as it was. It +seemed as though Nature in creating her had resolved to exhaust her +utmost powers, and thus make atonement for all former experimental +attempts and fruitless essays. One would have said that, moved by +jealousy of the future marvels of the Greek sculptors, she also had +resolved to model a statue herself, and to prove that she was still +sovereign mistress in the plastic art. + +The grain of snow, the micaceous brilliancy of Parian marble, the +sparkling pulp of balsamine flowers, would render but a feeble idea +of the ideal substance whereof. Nyssia had been formed. That flesh, +so fine, so delicate, permitted daylight to penetrate it, and modelled +itself in transparent contours, in lines as sweetly harmonious as music +itself. According to different surroundings, it took the colour of the +sunlight or of purple, like the aromal body of a divinity, and seemed +to radiate light and life. The world of perfections inclosed within the +nobly lengthened oval of her chaste face could have been rendered by no +earthly art--neither by the chisel of the sculptor, nor the brush of the +painter, nor the style of any poet--though it were Praxiteles, +Apelles, or Mimnernus; and on her smooth brow, bathed by waves of +hair amber-bright as molten electrum and sprinkled with gold filings, +according to the Babylonian custom, sat as upon a jasper throne the +unalterable serenity of perfect loveliness. + +As for her eyes, though they did not justify what popular credulity said +of them, they were at least wonderfully strange eyes; brown eyebrows, +with extremities ending in points elegant as those of the arrows of +Eros, and which were joined to each other by a streak of henna after +the Asiatic fashion, and long fringes of silkily-shadowed eyelashes +contrasted strikingly with the twin sapphire stars rolling in the heaven +of dark silver which formed those eyes. The irises of those eyes, +whose pupils were blacker than atrament, varied singularly in shades of +shifting colour. From sapphire they changed to turquoise, from turquoise +to beryl, from beryl to yellow amber, and sometimes, like a limpid +lake whose bottom is strewn with jewels, they offered, through their +incalculable depths, glimpses of golden and diamond sands upon which +green fibrils vibrated and twisted themselves into emerald serpents. In +those orbs of phosphoric lightning the rays of suns extinguished, the +splendours of vanished worlds, the glories of Olympus eclipsed--all +seemed to have concentrated their reflections. When contemplating +them one thought of eternity, and felt himself seized with a mighty +giddiness, as though he were leaning over the verge of the Infinite. + +The expression of those extraordinary eyes was not less variable than +their tint. At times their lids opened like the portals of celestial +dwellings; they invited you into elysiums of light, of azure, of +ineffable felicity; they promised you the realisation, tenfold, a +hundredfold, of all your dreams of happiness, as though they had divined +your soul’s most secret thoughts; again, impenetrable as sevenfold +plated shields of the hardest metals, they flung back your gaze like +blunted and broken arrows. With a simple inflexion of the brow, a +mere flash of the pupil, more terrible than the thunder of Zeus, they +precipitated you from the heights of your most ambitious escalades into +depths of nothingness so profound that it was impossible to rise again. +Typhon himself, who writhes under Ætna, could not have lifted the +mountains of disdain with which they overwhelmed you. One felt that +though he should live for a thousand Olympiads endowed with the beauty +of the fair son of Latona, the genius of Orpheus, the unbounded might +of Assyrian kings, the treasures of the Cabeirei, the Telchines, and +the Dactyli, gods of subterranean wealth, he could never change their +expression to mildness. + +At other times their languishment was so liquidly persuasive, their +brilliancy and irradiation so penetrating, that the icy coldness of +Nestor and Priam would have melted under their gaze, like the wax of +the wings of Icarus when he approached the flaming zones. For one such +glance a man would have gladly steeped his hands in the blood of his +host, scattered the ashes of his father to the four winds, overthrown +the holy images of the gods, and stolen the fire of heaven itself, like +the sublime thief, Prometheus. + +Nevertheless, their most ordinary expression, it must be confessed, was +of a chastity to make one desperate--a sublime coldness--an ignorance +of all possibilities of human passion, such as would have made the +moon-bright eyes of Phoebe or the sea-green eyes of Athena appear by +comparison more liquidly tempting than those of a young girl of Babylon +sacrificing to the goddess Mylitta within the cord-circled enclosure of +Succoth-Benohl. Their invincible virginity seemed to bid love defiance. + +The cheeks of Nyssia, which no human gaze had ever profaned, save that +of Gyges on the day when the veil was blown away, possessed a youthful +bloom, a tender pallor, a delicacy of grain, and a downiness whereof +the faces of our women, perpetually exposed to sunlight and air, cannot +convey the most distant idea. Modesty created fleeting rosy clouds upon +them like those which a drop of crimson essence would form in a cup of +milk, and when uncoloured by any emotion they took a silvery sheen, a +warm light, like an alabaster vessel illumined by a lamp within. That +lamp was her charming soul, which exposed to view the transparency of +her flesh. + +A bee would have been deceived by her mouth, whose form was so perfect, +whose corners were so purely dimpled, whose crimson was so rich and +warm that the gods would have descended from their Olympian dwellings +in order to touch it with lips humid with immortality, but that the +jealousy of the goddesses restrained their impetuosity. Happy the wind +which passed through that purple and pearl, which dilated those +pretty nostrils, so finely cut and shaded with rosy tints like the +mother-of-pearl of the shells thrown by the sea on the shore of Cyprus +at the feet of Venus Anadyomene! But are there not a multitude of +favours thus granted to things which cannot understand them? What lover +would not wish to be the tunic of his well-beloved or the water of her +bath? + +Such was Nyssia, if we dare make use of the expression after so vague +a description of her face. If our foggy Northern idioms had the warm +liberty, the burning enthusiasm of the Sir Hasirim, we might, perhaps, +by comparisons--awakening in the mind of the reader memories of flowers +and perfumes, of music and sunlight, evoking, by the magic of words, +all the graceful and charming images that the universe can contain--have +been able to give some idea of Nyssia’s features; but it is permitted to +Solomon alone to compare the nose of a beautiful woman to the tower +of Lebanon which looketh toward Damascus. And yet what is there in the +world of more importance than the nose of a beautiful woman? Had Helen, +the white Tyndarid, been flat-nosed, would the Trojan War have taken +place? And if the profile of Semiramis had not been perfectly regular, +would she have bewitched the old monarch of Nineveh and encircled her +brow with the mitre of pearls, the symbol of supreme power? + +Although Candaules had brought to his palace the most beautiful slaves +from the people of the Sorse, of Askalon, of Sogdiana, of the Sacse, of +Rhapta, the most celebrated courtesans from Ephesus, from Pergamus, from +Smyrna, and from Cyprus, he was completely fascinated by the charms of +Nyssia. Up to that time he had not even suspected the existence of such +perfection. + +Privileged as a husband to enjoy fully the contemplation of this beauty, +he found himself dazzled, giddy, like one who leans over the edge of +an abyss, or fixes his eyes upon the sun; he felt himself seized, as it +were, with the dilirium of possession, like a priest drunk with the god +who fills and moves him. All other thoughts disappeared from his soul, +and the universe seemed to him only as a vague mist in the midst of +which beamed the shining phantom of Nyssia. His happiness transformed +itself into ecstasy, and his love into madness. At times his very +felicity terrified him. To be only a wretched king, only a remote +descendant of a hero who had become a god by mighty labours, only +a common man formed of flesh and bone, and without having in aught +rendered himself worthy of it--without having even, like his ancestor, +strangled some hydra, or torn some lion asunder--to enjoy a happiness +whereof Zeus of the ambrosial hair would scarce be worthy, though +lord of all Olympus! He felt, as it were, a shame to thus hoard up for +himself alone so rich a treasure, to steal this marvel from the world, +to be the dragon with scales and claws who guarded the living type of +the ideal of lovers, sculptors, and poets. All they had ever dreamed of +in their hope, their melancholy, and their despair, he possessed--he, +Candaules, poor tyrant of Sardes, who had only a few wretched coffers +filled with pearls, a few cisterns filled with gold pieces, and thirty +or forty thousand slaves, purchased or taken in war. + +Candaules’s felicity was too great for him, and the strength which he +would doubtless have found at his command in time of misfortune was +wanting to him in time of happiness. His joy overflowed from his soul +like water from a vase placed upon the fire, and in the exasperation of +his enthusiasm for Nyssia he had reached the point of desiring that she +were less timid and less modest, for it cost him no little effort to +retain in his own breast the secret of such wondrous beauty. + +‘Ah,’ he would murmur to himself during the deep reveries which absorbed +him at all hours that he did not spend at the queen’s side, ‘how strange +a lot is mine! I am wretched because of that which would make any other +husband happy. Nyssia will not leave the shadow of the gynaeceum, and +refuses, with barbarian modesty, to lift her veil in the presence of any +other than myself. Yet with what an intoxication of pride would my love +behold her, radiantly sublime, gaze down upon my kneeling people from +the summit of the royal steps, and, like the rising dawn, extinguish +all those pale stars who during the night thought themselves suns! Proud +Lydian women, who believe yourselves beautiful, but for Nyssia’s reserve +you would appear, even to your lovers, as ugly as the oblique-eyed and +thick-lipped slaves of Nahasi and Kush. Were she but once to pass along +the streets of Sardes with face unveiled, you might in vain pull your +adorers by the lappet of their tunic, for none of them would turn his +head, or, if he did, it would be to demand your name, so utterly would +he have forgotten you! They would rush to precipitate themselves beneath +the silver wheels of her chariot, that they might have even the pleasure +of being crushed by her, like those devotees of the Indus who pave the +pathway of their idol with their bodies. + +‘And you, O goddesses, whom Paris-Alexander judged, had Nyssia appeared +among you, not one of you would have borne away the golden apple, +not even Aphrodite, despite her cestus and her promise to the +shepherd-arbiter that she would make him beloved by the most beautiful +woman in the world!... + +‘Alas! to think that such beauty is not immortal, and that years will +alter those divine outlines, that admirable hymn of forms, that poem +whose strophes are contours, and which no one in the world has ever read +or may ever read save myself; to be the sole depositary of so splendid a +treasure! If I knew even by imitating the play of light and shadow with +the aid of lines and colours, how to fix upon wood a reflection of that +celestial face; if marble were not rebellious to my chisel, how well +would I fashion in the purest vein of Paros or Pentelicus an image of +that charming body, which would make the proud effigies of the goddesses +fall from their altars! And long after, when deep below the slime of +deluges, and beneath the dust of ruined cities, the men of future ages +should find a fragment of that petrified shadow of Nyssia, they would +cry: “Behold, how the women of this vanished world were formed!” And +they would erect a temple wherein to enshrine the divine fragment. But I +have naught save a senseless admiration and a love that is madness! Sole +adorer of an unknown divinity, I possess no power to spread her worship +through the world.’ + +Thus in Candaules had the enthusiasm of the artist extinguished the +jealousy of the lover. Admiration was mightier than love. If in place +of Nyssia, daughter of the Satrap Megabazus, all imbued with Oriental +ideas, he had espoused some Greek girl from Athens or Corinth, he +would certainly have invited to his court the most skilful painters +and sculptors, and have given them the queen for their model, as did +afterward Alexander his favourite Campaspe, who posed naked before +Apelles. Such a whim would have encountered no opposition from a +woman of the land where even the most chaste made a boast of having +contributed--some for the back, some for the bosom--to the perfection of +a famous statue. But hardly would the bashful Nyssia consent to unveil +herself in the discreet shadow of the thalamus, and the earnest prayers +of the king really shocked her rather than gave her pleasure. The +sentiment of duty and obedience alone induced her to yield at times to +what she styled the whims of Candaules. + +Sometimes he besought her to allow the flood of her hair to flow over +her shoulders in a river of gold richer than the Pactolus, to encircle +her brow with a crown of ivy and linden leaves like a bacchante of Mount +Maenalus, to lie, hardly veiled by a cloud of tissue finer than woven +wind, upon a tiger-skin with silver claws and ruby eyes, or to stand +erect in a great shell of mother-of-pearl, with a dew of pearls falling +from her tresses in lieu of drops of sea-water. + +When he had placed himself in the best position for observation, +he became absorbed in silent contemplation. His hand, tracing vague +contours in the air, seemed to be sketching the outlines for some +picture, and he would have remained thus for whole hours if Nyssia, soon +becoming weary of her rôle of model, had not reminded him in chill and +disdainful tones that such amusements were unworthy of royal majesty and +contrary to the holy laws of matrimony. ‘It is thus,’ she would exclaim, +as she withdrew, draped to her very eyes, into the most mysterious +recesses of her apartment, ‘that one treats a mistress, not a virtuous +woman of noble blood!’ + +These wise remonstrances did not cure Candaules, whose passion augmented +in inverse ratio to the coldness shown him by the queen. And it had at +last brought him to that point that he could no longer keep the secrets +of the nuptial couch. A confidant became as necessary to him as to the +prince of a modern tragedy. He did not proceed, you may feel assured, +to fix his choice upon some crabbed philosopher of frowning mien, with +a flood of gray-and-white beard rolling down over a mantle in proud +tatters; nor a warrior who could talk of nothing save ballista, +catapults, and scythed chariots; nor a sententious Eupatrid full of +councils and politic maxims; but Gyges, whose reputation for gallantry +caused him to be regarded as a connoisseur in regard to women. + +One evening he laid his hand upon his shoulder in a more than ordinarily +familiar and cordial manner, and after giving him a look of peculiar +significance, he suddenly strode away from the group of courtiers, +saying in a loud voice: + +‘Gyges, come and give me your opinion in regard to my effigy, which +the Sicyon sculptors have just finished chiselling on the genealogical +bas-relief where the deeds of my ancestors are celebrated.’ + +‘O king, your knowledge is greater than that of your humble subject, +and I know not how to express my gratitude for the honour you do me in +deigning to consult me,’ replied Gyges, with a sign of assent. + +Candaules and his favourite traversed several halls ornamented in the +Hellenic style, where the Corinthian acanthus and the Ionic volute +bloomed or curled in the capitals of the columns, where the friezes +were peopled with little figures in polychromatic plastique representing +processions and sacrifices, and they finally arrived at a remote portion +of the ancient palace whose walls were built with stones of irregular +form, put together without cement in the cyclopean manner. This +ancient architecture was colossally proportioned and weirdly grim. The +immeasurable genius of the elder civilisations of the Orient was there +legibly written, and recalled the granite and brick debauches of Egypt +and Assyria. Something of the spirit of the ancient architects of +the tower of Lylax survived in those thick-set pillars with their +deep-fluted trunks, whose capitals were formed by four heads of bulls, +placed forehead to forehead, and bound together by knots of serpents +that seemed striving to devour them, an obscure cosmogonie symbol +whereof the meaning was no longer intelligible, and had descended into +the tomb with the hierophants of preceding ages. The gates were neither +of a square nor rounded form. They described a sort of ogive much +resembling the mitre of the Magi, and by their fantastic character gave +still more intensity to the character of the building. + +This portion of the palace formed a sort of court surrounded by +a portico whose architecture was ornamented with the genealogical +bas-relief to which Can-daules had alluded. + +In the midst thereof sat Heracles upon a throne, with the upper part of +his body uncovered, and his feet resting upon a stool, according to +the rite for the representation of divine personages. His colossal +proportions would otherwise have left no doubt as to his apotheosis, and +the archaic rudeness and hugeness of the work, wrought by the chisel +of some primitive artist, imparted to his figure an air of barbaric +majesty, a savage grandeur more appropriate, perhaps, to the character +of this monster-slaying hero than would have been the work of a sculptor +consummate in his art. + +On the right of the throne were Alcseus, son of the hero and of +Omphale; Ninus, Belus, Argon, the earlier kings of the dynasty of the +Heracleidae, then all the line of intermediate kings, terminating with +Ardys, Alyattes, Meles or Myrsus, father of Candaules, and finally +Candaules himself. + +All these personages, with their hair braided into little strings, their +beards spirally twisted, their oblique eyes, angular attitudes, cramped +and stiff gestures, seemed to own a sort of factitious life, due to the +rays of the setting sun, and the ruddy hue which time lends to marble +in warm climates. The inscriptions in antique characters, graven beside +them after the manner of legends, enhanced still more the mysterious +weirdness of the long procession of figures in strange barbarian garb. + +By a singular chance, which Gyges could not help observing, the statue +of Candaules occupied the last available place at the right hand of +Heracles; the dynastic cycle was closed, and in order to find a place +for the descendants of Candaules it would be absolutely necessary to +build a new portico and commence the formation of a new bas-relief. + +Candaules, whose arm still rested on the shoulder of Gyges, walked +slowly round the portico in silence. He seemed to hesitate to enter into +the subject, and had altogether forgotten the pretext under which he had +led the captain of his guards into that solitary place. + +‘What would you do, Gyges,’ said Candaules, at last breaking the silence +which had been growing painful to both, ‘if you were a diver, and should +bring up from the green bosom of the ocean a pearl of incomparable +purity and lustre, and of worth so vast as to exhaust the richest +treasures of the earth?’ + +‘I would inclose it,’ answered Gyges, a little surprised at this brusque +question, ‘in a cedar box overlaid with plates of brass, and I would +bury it under a detached rock in some desert place; and from time to +time, when I should feel assured that none could see me, I would go +thither to contemplate my precious jewel and admire the colours of the +sky mingling with its nacreous tints.’ + +‘And I,’ replied Candaules, his eye illuminated with enthusiasm, ‘if I +possessed so rich a gem, I would enshrine it in my diadem, that I might +exhibit it freely to the eyes of all men, in the pure light of the sun, +that I might adorn myself with its splendour and smile with pride when +I should hear it said: “Never did king of Assyria or Babylon, never did +Greek or Trinacrian tyrant possess so lustrous a pearl as Candaules, +son of Myrsus and descendant of Heracles, King of Sardes and of Lydia! +Compared with Candaules, Midas, who changed all things to gold, were +only a mendicant as poor as Irus.”’ + +Gyges listened with astonishment to this discourse of Candaules, and +sought to penetrate the hidden sense of these lyric divagations. The +king appeared to be in a state of extraordinary excitement: his eyes +sparkled with enthusiasm; a feverish rosiness tinted his cheeks; his +dilated nostrils inhaled the air with unusual effort. + +‘Well, Gyges,’ continued Candaules, without appearing to notice the +uneasiness of his favourite, ‘I am that diver. Amid this dark ocean of +humanity, wherein confusedly move so many defective or misshapen beings, +so many forms incomplete or degraded, so many types of bestial ugliness, +wretched outlines of nature’s experimental essays, I have found beauty, +pure, radiant, without spot, without flaw, the ideal made real, the +dream accomplished, a form which no painter or sculptor has ever been +able to translate upon canvas or into marble--I have found Nyssia!’ + +‘Although the queen has the timid modesty of the women of the Orient, +and that no man save her husband has ever beheld her features, Fame, +hundred-tongued and hundred-eared, has celebrated her praise throughout +the world,’ answered Gyges, respectfully inclining his head as he spoke. + +‘Mere vague, insignificant rumours. They say of her, as of all women not +actually ugly, that she is more beautiful than Aphrodite or Helen; but +no person could form even the most remote idea of such perfection. In +vain have I besought Nyssia to appear unveiled at some public festival, +some solemn sacrifice, or to show herself for an instant leaning over +the royal terrace, bestowing upon her people the immense favour of +one look, the prodigality of one profile view, more generous than the +goddesses who permit their worshippers to behold only pale simulacra of +ivory or alabaster. She would never consent to that. Now there is one +strange thing which I blush to acknowledge even to you, dear Gyges. +Formerly I was jealous; I wished to conceal my amours from all eyes, no +shadow was thick enough, no mystery sufficiently impenetrable. Now I can +no longer recognise myself. I have the feelings neither of a lover nor +a husband; my love has melted in adoration like thin wax in a fiery +brazier. All petty feelings of jealousy or possession have vanished. No, +the most finished work that heaven has ever given to earth, since the +day that Prometheus held the flame under the right breast of the +statue of clay, cannot thus be kept hidden in the chill shadow of the +gynaeceum. Were I to die, then the secret of this beauty would for ever +remain shrouded beneath the sombre draperies of widowhood! I feel myself +culpable in its concealment, as though I had the sun in my house, and +prevented it from illuminating the world. And when I think of those +harmonious lines, those divine contours which I dare scarcely touch with +a timid kiss, I feel my heart ready to burst; I wish that some friendly +eye could share my happiness and, like a severe judge to whom a picture +is shown, recognise after careful examination that it is irreproachable, +and that the possessor has not been deceived by his enthusiasm. Yes, +often do I feel myself tempted to tear off with rash hand those odious +tissues, but Nyssia, in her fierce chastity, would never forgive me. And +still I cannot alone endure such felicity. I must have a confidant for +my ecstasies, an echo which will answer my cries of admiration, and it +shall be none other than you.’ + +Having uttered these words, Candaules brusquely turned and disappeared +through a secret passage. Gyges, left thus alone, could not avoid +noticing the peculiar concourse of events which seemed to place him +always in Nyssia’s path. A chance had enabled him to behold her beauty, +though walled up from all other eyes. Among many princes and satraps she +had chosen to espouse Candaules, the very king he served; and through +some strange caprice, which he could only regard as fateful, this king +had just made him, Gyges, his confidant in regard to the mysterious +creature whom none else had approached, and absolutely sought to +complete the work of Boreas on the plain of Bactria! Was not the hand +of the gods visible in all these circumstances? That spectre of beauty, +whose veil seemed to be lifted slowly, a little at a time, as though to +enkindle a flame within him, was it not leading him, without his having +suspected it, toward the accomplishment of some mighty destiny? Such +were the questions which Gyges asked himself, but being unable to +penetrate the obscurity of the future, he resolved to await the course +of events, and left the Court of Images, where the twilight darkness +was commencing to pile itself up in all the angles, and to render +the effigies of the ancestors of Candaules yet more and more weirdly +menacing. + +Was it a mere effort of light, or was it rather an illusion produced by +that vague uneasiness with which the boldest hearts are filled by the +approach of night amid ancient monuments? As he stepped across the +threshold Gyges fancied that he heard deep groans issue from the stone +lips of the bas-reliefs, and it seemed to him that Heracles was making +enormous efforts to loosen his granite club. + + + + +CHAPTER III + +On the following day Candaules again took Gyges aside and continued the +conversation begun under the portico of the Heracleidæ. Having freed +himself from the embarrassment of broaching the subject, he freely +unbosomed himself to his confidant; and had Nyssia been able to +overhear him she might perhaps have been willing to pardon his conjugal +indiscretions for the sake of his passionate eulogies of her charms. + +Gyges listened to all these bursts of praise with the slightly +constrained air of one who is yet uncertain whether his interlocutor is +not feigning an enthusiasm more ardent than he actually feels, in order +to provoke a confidence naturally cautious to utter itself. Can-daules +at last said to him in a tone of disappointment: ‘I see, Gyges, that you +do not believe me. You think I am boasting, or have allowed myself to be +fascinated like some clumsy labourer by a robust country girl on whose +cheeks Hygeia has crushed the gross hues of health. No, by all the gods! +I have collected within my home, like a living bouquet, the fairest +flowers of Asia and of Greece. I know all that the art of sculptors and +painters has produced since the time of Daedalus, whose statues walked +and spoke. Linus, Orpheus, Homer, have taught me harmony and rhythm. I +do not look about me with Love’s bandage blindfolding my eyes. I +judge of all things coolly. The passions of youth never influence my +admiration, and when I am as withered, decrepit, wrinkled, as Tithonus +in his swaddling bands, my opinion will be still the same. But I forgive +your incredulity and want of sympathy. In order to understand me fully, +it is necessary that you should see Nyssia in the radiant brilliancy of +her shining whiteness, free from jealous drapery, even as Nature with +her own hands moulded her in a lost moment of inspiration which never +can return. This evening I will hide you in a corner of the bridal +chamber... you shall see her!’ + +‘Sire, what do you ask of me?’ returned the young warrior with +respectful firmness. ‘How shall I, from the depths of my dust, from +the abyss of my nothingness, dare to raise my eyes to this sun of +perfections, at the risk of remaining blind for the rest of my life, +or being able to see naught but a dazzling spectre in the midst of +darkness? Have pity on your humble slave, and do not compel him to an +action so contrary to the maxims of virtue. No man should look upon what +does not belong to him. We know that the immortals always punish those +who through imprudence or audacity surprise them in their divine nudity. +Nyssia is the loveliest of all women; you are the happiest of lovers and +husbands. Heracles, your ancestor, never found in the course of his many +conquests aught to compare with your queen. If you, the prince of whom +even the most skilful artists seek judgment and counsel--if you find her +incomparable, of what consequence can the opinion of an obscure soldier +like me be to you? Abandon, therefore, this fantasy, which I presume to +say is unworthy of your royal majesty, and of which you would repent so +soon as it had been satisfied.’ + +‘Listen, Gyges,’ returned Candaules; ‘I perceive that you suspect me; +you think that I seek to put you to some proof, but by the ashes of that +funeral pyre whence my ancestor arose a god, I swear to you that I speak +frankly and without any after-purpose.’ + +‘O Candaules, I doubt not of your good faith; your passion is sincere, +but perchance, after I should have obeyed you, you would conceive a deep +aversion to me, and learn to hate me for not having more firmly resisted +your will. You would seek to take back from these eyes, indiscreet +through compulsion, the image which you allowed them to glance upon in a +moment of delirium; and who knows but that you would condemn them to the +eternal night of the tomb to punish them for remaining open at a moment +when they ought to have been closed.’ + +‘Fear nothing; I pledge my royal word that no evil shall befall you.’ + +‘Pardon your slave if he still dares to offer some objection, even after +such a promise. Have you reflected that what you propose to me is a +violation of the sanctity of marriage, a species of visual adultery? A +woman often lays aside her modesty with her garments; and once violated +by a look, without having actually ceased to be virtuous, she might deem +that she had lost her flower of purity. You promise, indeed, to feel +no resentment against me; but who can ensure me against the wrath of +Nyssia, she who is so reserved and chaste, so apprehensive, fierce, and +virginal in her modesty that she might be deemed still ignorant of the +laws of Hymen? Should she ever learn of the sacrilege which I am about +to render myself guilty of in deferring to my master’s wishes, what +punishment would she condemn me to suffer in expiation of such a crime? +Who could place me beyond the reach of her avenging anger?’ + +‘I did not know you were so wise and prudent,’ said Candaules, with +a slightly ironical smile; ‘but such dangers are all imaginary, and I +shall hide you in such a way that Nyssia will never know she has been +seen by any one except her royal husband.’ + +Being unable to offer any further defence, Gyges made a sign of assent +in token of complete submission to the king’s will. He had made all the +resistance in his power, and thenceforward his conscience could feel +at ease in regard to whatever might happen; besides, by any further +opposition to the will of Candaules, he would have feared to oppose +destiny itself, which seemed striving to bring him still nearer to +Nyssia for some grim ulterior purpose into which it was not given to him +to see further. + +Without actually being able to foresee any result, he beheld a thousand +vague and shadowy images passing before his eyes. That subterranean +love, so long crouched at the foot of his soul’s stairway, had climbed +a few steps higher, guided by some fitful glimmer of hope. The weight of +the impossible no longer pressed so heavily upon his breast, now that +he believed himself aided by the gods. In truth, who would have dreamed +that the much-boasted charms of the daughter of Megabazus would ere long +cease to own any mystery for Gyges? + +‘Come, Gyges,’ said Candaules, taking him by the hand, ‘let us make +profit of the time. Nyssia is walking in the garden with her women; let +us look at the place, and plan our stratagems for this evening.’ + +The king took his confidant by the hand and led him along the winding +ways which conducted to the nuptial apartment. The doors of the +sleeping-room were made of cedar planks so perfectly put together that +it was impossible to discover the joints. By dint of rubbing them with +wool steeped in oil, the slaves had rendered the wood as polished as +marble. The brazen nails, with heads cut in facets, which studded them, +had all the brilliancy of the purest gold. A complicated system of +straps and metallic rings, whereof Candaules and his wife alone knew +the combination, served to secure them, for in those heroic ages the +locksmith’s art was yet in its infancy. + +Candaules unloosed the knots, made the rings slide back upon the thongs, +raised with a handle which fitted into a mortise the bar that fastened +the door from within, and bidding Gyges place himself against the wall, +turned back one of the folding-doors upon him in such a way as to hide +him completely; yet the door did not fit so perfectly to its frame of +oaken beams, all carefully polished and put up according to line by a +skilful workman, that the young warrior could not obtain a distinct view +of the chamber interior through the interstices contrived to give room +for the free play of the hinges. + +Facing the entrance, the royal bed stood upon an estrade of several +steps, covered with purple drapery. Columns of chased silver supported +the entablature, all ornamented with foliage wrought in relief, amid +which Loves were sporting with dolphins, and heavy curtains embroidered +with gold surrounded it like the folds of a tent. + +Upon the altar of the household gods were placed vases of precious +metal, paterae enamelled with flowers, double-handled cups, and all +things needful for libations. + +Along the walls, which were faced with planks of cedar-wood, +marvellously worked, at regular intervals stood tall statues of black +basalt in the constrained attitudes of Egyptian art, each sustaining in +its hand a bronze torch into which a splinter of resinous wood had been +fitted. + +An onyx lamp, suspended by a chain of silver, hung from that beam of the +ceiling which is called the black beam, because more exposed than the +others to the embrowning smoke. Every evening a slave carefully filled +this lamp with odoriferous oil. + +Near the head of the bed, on a little column, hung a trophy of arms, +consisting of a visored helmet, a twofold buckler made of four bulls’ +hides and covered with plates of brass and tin, a two-edged sword, and +several ashen javelins with brazen heads. + +The tunics and mantles of Candaules were hung upon wooden pegs. They +comprised garments both simple and double; that is, capable of going +twice around the body. A mantle of thrice-dyed purple, ornamented with +embroidery representing a hunting scene wherein Laconian hounds were +pursuing and tearing deer, and a tunic whereof the material, fine and +delicate as the skin which envelops an onion had all the sheen of woven +sunbeams, were especially noticeable. Opposite to the trophy stood +an armchair inlaid with silver and ivory upon which Nyssia hung her +garments. Its seat was covered with a leopard skin more eye-spotted than +the body of Argus, and its foot-support was richly adorned with openwork +carving. + +‘I am generally the first to retire,’ observed Candaules to Gyges, ‘and +I always leave this door open as it is now. Nyssia, who has invariably +some tapestry flower to finish, or some order to give her women, usually +delays a little in joining me; but at last she comes, and slowly takes +off, one by one, as though the effort cost her dearly, and lays upon +that ivory chair, all those draperies and tunics which by day envelop +her like mummy bandages. From your hiding-place you will be able to +follow all her graceful movements, admire her unrivalled charms, and +judge for yourself whether Candaules be a young fool prone to vain +boasting, or whether he does not really possess the richest pearl of +beauty that ever adorned a diadem.’ + +‘O King, I can well believe your words without such a proof as this,’ +replied Gyges, stepping forth from his hiding-place. ‘When she has +laid aside her garments,’ continued Candaules, without heeding the +exclamation of his confidant, ‘she will come to lie down with me. You +must take advantage of the moment to steal away, for in passing from the +chair to the bed she turns her back to the door. Step lightly as though +you were treading upon ears of ripe wheat; take heed that no grain +of sand squeaks under your sandals; hold your breath, and retire as +stealthily as possible. The vestibule is all in darkness, and the feeble +rays of the only lamp which remains burning do not penetrate beyond the +threshold of the chamber. It is, therefore, certain that Nyssia cannot +possibly see you; and to-morrow there will be some one in the world who +can comprehend my ecstasies, and will feel no longer astonished at my +bursts of admiration. But see, the day is almost spent; the Sun will +soon water his steeds in the Hesperian waves at the further end of the +world, and beyond the Pillars erected by my ancestors. Return to your +hiding-place, Gyges, and though the hours of waiting may seem long, I +can swear by Eros of the Golden Arrows that you will not regret having +waited.’ + +After this assurance Candaules left Gyges again hidden behind the door. +‘The compulsory quiet which the king’s young confidant found himself +obliged to maintain left him ample leisure for thought. His situation +was certainly a most extraordinary one. He had loved Nyssia as one loves +a star. Convinced of the hopelessness of the undertaking, he had made +no effort to approach her. And, nevertheless, by a succession of +extraordinary events he was about to obtain a knowledge of treasures +reserved for lovers and husbands only. Not a word, not a glance had +been exchanged between himself and Nyssia, who probably ignored the very +existence of the one being for whom her beauty would so soon cease to be +a mystery. Unknown to her whose modesty would have naught to sacrifice +for you, how strange a situation! To love a woman in secret and find +oneself led by her husband to the threshold of the nuptial chamber, to +have for guide to that treasure the very dragon who should defend all +approach to it, was there not in all this ample food for astonishment +and wonder at the combination of events wrought by destiny? + +In the midst of these reflections, he suddenly heard the sound of +footsteps on the pavement. It was only the slaves coming to replenish +the oil in the lamp, throw fresh perfumes upon the coals of the +kamklins, and arrange the purple and saffron-tinted sheepskins which +formed the royal bed. + +The hour approached, and Gyges felt his heart beat faster, and the +pulsation of his arteries quicken. He even felt a strong impulse +to steal away before the arrival of the queen, and, after averring +subsequently to Candaules that he had remained, abandon himself +confidently to the most extravagant eulogiums. He felt a strong +repugnance (for, despite his somewhat free life, Gyges was not without +delicacy) to take by stealth a favour for the free granting of which he +would gladly have paid with his life. The husband’s complicity rendered +this theft more odious in a certain sense, and he would have preferred +to owe to any other circumstance the happiness of beholding the marvel +of Asia in her nocturnal toilet. Perhaps, indeed, the approach of +danger, let us acknowledge as veracious historians, had no little to +do with his virtuous scruples. Undoubtedly Gyges did not lack courage. +Mounted upon his war-chariot, with quiver rattling upon his shoulder, +and bow in hand, he would have defied the most valiant warriors; in the +chase he would have attacked without fear the Calydon boar or the Nemean +lion; but--explain the enigma as you will--he trembled at the idea of +looking at a beautiful woman through a chink in a door. No one possesses +every kind of courage. He felt likewise that he could not behold Nyssia +with impunity. It would be a decisive epoch in his life. Through having +obtained but a momentary glimpse of her he had lost all peace of mind; +what, then, would be the result of that which was about to take place? +Could life itself continue for him when to that divine head which fired +his dreams should be added a charming body formed for the kisses of +the immortals? What would become of him should he find himself unable +thereafter to contain his passion in darkness and silence as he had done +till that time? Would he exhibit to the court of Lydia the ridiculous +spectacle of an insane love, or would he strive by some extravagant +action to bring down upon himself the disdainful pity of the queen? Such +a result was strongly probable, since the reason of Candaules himself, +the legitimate possessor of Nyssia, had been unable to resist the +vertigo caused by that superhuman beauty--he, the thoughtless young king +who till then had laughed at love, and preferred pictures and statues +before all things. These arguments were very rational but wholly +useless, for at the same moment Candaules entered the chamber, and +exclaimed in a low but distinct voice as he passed the door: + +‘Patience, my poor Gyges, Nyssia will soon come.’ When he saw that +he could no longer retreat, Gyges, who was but a young man after all, +forgot every other consideration, and no longer thought of aught save +the happiness of feasting his eyes upon the charming spectacle which +Candaules was about to offer him. One cannot demand from a captain of +twenty-five the austerity of a hoary philosopher. + +At last a low whispering of raiment sweeping and trailing over marble, +distinctly audible in the deep silence of the night, announced the +approach of the queen. In effect it was she. With a step as cadenced and +rhythmic as an ode, she crossed the threshold of the thalamus, and the +wind of her veil with its floating folds almost touched the burning +cheek of Gyges, who felt wellnigh on the point of fainting, and found +himself compelled to seek the support of the wall; but soon recovering +from the violence of his emotions, he approached the chink of the door, +and took the most favourable position for enabling him to lose nothing +of the scene whereof he was about to be an invisible witness. + +Nyssia advanced to the ivory chair and commenced to detach the pins, +terminated by hollow balls of gold, which fastened her veil upon her +head; and Gyges from the depths of the shadow-filled angle where he +stood concealed could examine at his ease the proud and charming face of +which he had before obtained only a hurried glimpse; that rounded neck, +at once delicate and powerful, whereon Aphrodite had traced with the +nail of her little finger those three faint lines which are still at +this very day known as the ‘necklace of Venus’; that white nape on +whose alabaster surface little wild rebellious curls were disporting +and entwining themselves; those silver shoulders, half rising from the +opening of the chlamys, like the moon’s disc emerging from an opaque +cloud. Candaules, half reclining upon his cushions, gazed with fondness +upon his wife, and thought to himself: ‘Now Gyges, who is so cold, so +difficult to please, and so sceptical, must be already half convinced.’ + +Opening a little coffer which stood on a table supported by one leg +terminating in carven lion’s paws, the queen freed her beautiful arms +from the weight of the bracelets and jewellery wherewith they had been +overburdened during the day--arms whose form and whiteness might well +have enabled them to compare with those of Hera, sister and wife of +Zeus, the lord of Olympus. Precious as were her jewels, they were +assuredly not worth the spots which they concealed, and had Nyssia been +a coquette, one might have well supposed that she only donned them +in order that she should be entreated to take them off. The rings and +chased work had left upon her skin, fine and tender as the interior pulp +of a lily, light rosy imprints, which she soon dissipated by rubbing +them with her little taper-fingered hand, all rounded and slender at its +extremities. + +Then with the movement of a dove trembling in the snow of its feathers, +she shook her hair, which being no longer held by the golden pins, +rolled down in languid spirals like hyacinth flowers over her back +and bosom. Thus she remained for a few moments ere reassembling the +scattered curls and finally re-uniting them into one mass. It was +marvellous to watch the blond ringlets streaming like jets of liquid +gold between the silver of her fingers; and her arms undulating like +swans’ necks as they were arched above her head in the act of twisting +and confining the natural bullion. If you have ever by chance examined +one of those beautiful Etruscan vases with red figures on a black +ground, and decorated with one of those subjects which are designated +under the title of ‘Greek Toilette,’ then you will have some idea of the +grace of Nyssia in that attitude which, from the age of antiquity to our +own era, has furnished such a multitude of happy designs for painters +and statuaries. + +Having thus arranged her coiffure, she seated herself upon the edge +of the ivory footstool and commenced to untie the little bands which +fastened her buskins. We moderns, owing to our horrible system of +footgear, which is hardly less absurd than the Chinese shoe, no longer +know what a foot is. That of Nyssia was of a perfection rare even in +Greece and antique Asia. The great toe, a little apart like the thumb +of a bird, the other toes, slightly long, and all ranged in charming +symmetry, the nails well shaped and brilliant as agates, the ankles well +rounded and supple, the heel slightly tinted with a rosy hue--nothing +was wanting to the perfection of the little member. The leg attached to +this foot, and which gleamed like polished marble under the lamp-light, +was irreproachable in the purity of its outlines and the grace of its +curves. + +Gyges, lost in contemplation, though all the while fully comprehending +the madness of Candaules, said to himself that had the gods bestowed +such a treasure upon him he would have known how to keep it to himself. + +‘Well, Nyssia, are you not coming to sleep with me?’ exclaimed +Candaules, seeing that the queen was not hurrying herself in the least, +and feeling desirous to abridge the watch of Gyges. + +‘Yes, my dear lord, I will soon be ready,’ answered Nyssia. + +And she detached the cameo which fastened the peplum upon her shoulder. +There remained only the tunic to let fall. Gyges, behind the door, felt +his veins hiss through his temples; his heart beat so violently that +he feared it must make itself heard in the chamber, and to repress its +fierce pulsations he pressed his hand upon his bosom; and when Nyssia, +with a movement of careless grace, unfastened the girdle of her tunic, +he thought his knees would give way beneath him. + +Nyssia--was it an instinctive presentiment, or was her skin, virginally +pure from profane looks, so delicately magnetic in its susceptibility +that it could feel the rays of a passionate eye though that eye was +invisible?--Nyssia hesitated to strip herself of that tunic, the last +rampart of her modesty. Twice or thrice her shoulders, her bosom, +and bare arms shuddered with a nervous chill, as though they had been +suddenly grazed by the wings of a nocturnal butterfly, or as though an +insolent lip had dared to touch them in the darkness. + +At last, seeming to nerve herself for a sudden resolve she doffed +the tunic in its turn; and the white poem of her divine body suddenly +appeared in all its splendour, like the statue of a goddess unveiled on +the day of a temple’s inauguration. Shuddering with pleasure the light +glided and gloated over those exquisite forms, and covered them with +timid kisses, profiting by an occasion, alas, rare indeed! The rays +scattered through the chamber, disdaining to illuminate golden arms, +jewelled clasps, or brazen tripods, all concentrated themselves upon +Nyssia, and left all other objects in obscurity. Were we Greeks of the +age of Pericles we might at our ease eulogise those beautiful serpentine +lines, those polished flanks, those elegant curves, those breasts which +might have served as moulds for the cup of Hebe; but modern prudery +forbids such descriptions, for the pen cannot find pardon for what is +permitted to the chisel; and besides, there are some things which can be +written of only in marble. + +Candaules smiled in proud satisfaction. With a rapid step, as though +ashamed of being so beautiful, for she was only the daughter of a man +and a woman, Nyssia approached the bed, her arms folded upon her bosom; +but with a sudden movement she turned round ere taking her place upon +the couch beside her royal spouse, and beheld through the aperture of +the door a gleaming eye flaming like the carbuncle of Oriental legend; +for if it were false that she had a double pupil, and that she possessed +the stone which is found in the heads of dragons, it was at least true +that her green glance penetrated darkness like the glaucous eye of the +cat and tiger. + +A cry, like that of a fawn who receives an arrow in her flank while +tranquilly dreaming among the leafy shadows, was on the point of +bursting from her lips, yet she found strength to control herself, and +lay down beside Candaules, cold as a serpent, with the violets of death +upon her cheeks and lips. Not a muscle of her limbs quivered, not a +fibre of her body palpitated, and soon her slow, regular breathing +seemed to indicate that Morpheus had distilled his poppy juice upon her +eyelids. + +She had divined and comprehended all. + + + + +CHAPTER IV + +Gyges, trembling and distracted with passion, had retired, following +exactly the instructions of Candaules; and if Nyssia, through some +unfortunate chance, had not turned her head ere taking her place upon +the couch, and perceived him in the act of taking flight, doubtless +she would have remained for ever unconscious of the outrage done to her +charms by a husband more passionate than scrupulous. + +Accustomed to the winding corridors of the palace, the young warrior had +no difficulty in finding his way out. He passed through the city at a +reckless pace like a madman escaped from Anticyra, and by making himself +known to the sentinels who guarded the ramparts, he had the gates opened +for him and gained the fields beyond. His brain burned, his cheeks +flamed as with the fires of fever; his breath came hotly panting through +his lips; he flung himself down upon the meadow-sod humid with the tears +of the night; and at last hearing in the darkness, through the thick +grass and water-plants, the silvery respiration of a Naiad, he dragged +himself to the spring, plunged his hands and arms into the crystal +flood, bathed his face, and drank several mouthfuls of the water in the +hope to cool the ardour which was devouring him. Any one who could have +seen him thus hopelessly bending over the spring in the feeble starlight +would have taken him for Narcissus pursuing his own shadow; but it was +not of himself assuredly that Gyges was enamoured. + +The rapid apparition of Nyssia had dazzled his eyes like the keen zigzag +of a lightning flash. He beheld her floating before him in a luminous +whirlwind, and felt that never through all his life could he banish that +image from his vision. His love had grown to vastness; its flower had +suddenly burst, like those plants which open their blossoms with a clap +of thunder. To master his passion were henceforth a thing impossible: as +well counsel the empurpled waves which Poseidon lifts with his trident +to lie tranquilly in their bed of sand and cease to foam upon the rocks +of the shore. Gyges was no longer master of himself, and he felt a +miserable despair, as of a man riding in a chariot, who finds his +terrified and uncontrollable horses rushing with all the speed of a +furious gallop toward some rock-bristling precipice. A hundred thousand +projects, each wilder than the last, whirled confusedly through his +brain. He blasphemed Destiny, he cursed his mother for having given him +life, and the gods that they had not caused him to be born to a throne, +for then he might have been able to espouse the daughter of the satrap. + +A frightful agony gnawed at his heart; he was jealous of the king. From +the moment of the tunic’s fall at the feet of Nyssia, like the flight +of a white dove alighting upon a meadow, it had seemed to him that she +belonged to him; he deemed himself despoiled of his wealth by Candaules. +In all his amorous reveries he had never until then thought of the +husband; he had thought of the queen only as of a pure abstraction, +without representing to himself in fancy all those intimate details of +conjugal familiarity, so poignant, so bitter for those who love a woman +in the power of another. Now he had beheld Nyssia’s blond head bending +like a blossom beside the dark head of Candaules. The very thought of +it had inflamed his anger to the highest degree, although a moment’s +reflection should have convinced him that things could not have come +to pass otherwise, and he felt growing within him a most unjust hatred +against his master. The act of having compelled his presence at the +queen’s dishabille seemed to him a barbarous irony, an odious refinement +of cruelty, for he did not remember that his love for her could not have +been known by the king, who had sought in him only a confidant of easy +morals and a connoisseur in beauty. That which he ought to have regarded +as a great favour affected him like a mortal injury for which he was +meditating vengeance. While thinking that to-morrow the same scene of +which he had been a mute and invisible witness would infallibly renew +itself, his tongue clove to his palate, his forehead became imbeaded +with drops of cold sweat, and his hand convulsively grasped the hilt of +his great double-edged sword. + +Nevertheless, thanks to the freshness of the night, that excellent +counsellor, he became a little calmer, and returned to Sardes before +the morning light had become bright enough to enable a few early rising +citizens and slaves to notice the pallor of his brow and the disorder of +his apparel. He betook himself to his regular post at the palace, well +suspecting that Can-daules would shortly send for him; and, however +violent the agitation of his feelings, he felt he was not powerful +enough to brave the anger of the king, and could in no way escape +submitting again to this rôle of confidant, which could thenceforth only +inspire him with horror. Having arrived at the palace, he seated himself +upon the steps of the cypress-panelled vestibule, leaned his back +against a column, and, under the pretext of being fatigued by the long +vigil under arms, he covered his head with his mantle and feigned sleep, +to avoid answering the questions of the other guards. + +If the night had been terrible to Gyges, it had not been less so to +Nyssia, as she never for an instant doubted that he had been purposely +hidden there by Candaules. The king’s persistency in begging her not to +veil so austerely a face which the gods had made for the admiration of +men, his evident vexation upon her refusal to appear in Greek costume at +the sacrifices and public solemnities, his unsparing raillery at what he +termed her barbarian shyness, all tended to convince her that the young +Heracleid had sought to admit some one into those mysteries which should +remain secret to all, for without his encouragement no man could have +dared to risk himself in an undertaking the discovery of which would +have resulted in the punishment of a speedy death. + +How slowly did the black hours seem to her to pass! How anxiously did +she await the coming of dawn to mingle its bluish tints with the yellow +gleams of the almost exhausted lamp! It seemed to her that Apollo +would never mount his chariot again, and that some invisible hand was +sustaining the sand of the hourglass in air. Though brief as any other, +that night seemed to her like the Cimmerian nights, six long months of +darkness. + +While it lasted she lay motionless and rigid at full length on the very +edge of her couch in dread of being touched by Candaules. If she had not +up to that night felt a very strong love for the son of Myrsus, she had, +at least, ever exhibited toward him that grave and serene tenderness +which every virtuous woman entertains for her husband, although the +altogether Greek freedom of his morals frequently displeased her, +and though he entertained ideas at variance with her own in regard to +modesty; but after such an affront she could only feel the chilliest +hatred and most icy contempt for him; she would have preferred even +death to one of his caresses. Such an outrage it was impossible to +forgive, for among the barbarians, and above all among the Persians and +Bactrians, it was held a great disgrace, not for women only, but even +for men, to be seen without their garments. + +At length Candaules arose, and Nyssia, awaking from her simulated sleep, +hurried from that chamber now profaned in her eyes as though it had +served for the nocturnal orgies of Bacchantes and courtesans. It was +agony for her to breathe that impure air any longer, and that she +might freely give herself up to her grief she took refuge in the upper +apartments reserved for the women, summoned her slaves by clapping her +hands, and poured ewers of water over her shoulders, her bosom, and +her whole body, as though hoping by this species of lustral ablution +to efface the soil imprinted by the eyes of Gyges. She would have +voluntarily torn, as it were, from her body that skin upon which the +rays shot from a burning pupil seemed to have left their traces. Taking +from the hands of her waiting-women the thick downy materials which +served to drink up the last pearls of the bath, she wiped herself with +such violence that a slight purple cloud rose to the spots she had +rubbed. + +‘In vain,’ she exclaimed, letting the damp tissues fall, and dismissing +her attendants--‘in vain would I pour over myself all the waters of all +the springs and the rivers; the ocean with all its bitter gulfs could +not purify me. Such a stain may be washed out only with blood. Oh, that +look, that look! It has incrusted itself upon me; it clasps me, covers +me, burns me like the tunic dipped in the blood of Nessus; I feel it +beneath my draperies, like an envenomed tissue which nothing can detach +from my body! Now, indeed, would I vainly pile garments upon garments, +select materials the least transparent, and the thickest of mantles. I +would none the less bear upon my naked flesh this infamous robe woven +by one adulterous and lascivious glance. Vainly, since the hour when +I issued from the chaste womb of my mother, have I been brought up in +private, enveloped, like Isis, the Egyptian goddess, with a veil of +which none might have lifted the hem without paying for his audacity +with his life. In vain have I remained guarded from all evil desires, +from all profane imaginings, unknown of men, virgin as the snow on which +the eagle himself could not imprint the seal of his talons, so loftily +does the mountain which it covers lift its head in the pure and icy air. +The depraved caprice of a Lydian Greek has sufficed to make me lose in +a single instant, without any guilt of mine, all the fruit of long years +of precaution and reserve. Innocent and dishonoured, hidden from all yet +made public to all... this is the lot to which Candaules has condemned +me. Who can assure me that, at this very moment, Gyges is not in the act +of discoursing upon my charms with some soldiers at the very threshold +of the palace? Oh shame! Oh infamy! Two men have beheld me naked and yet +at this instant enjoy the sweet light of the sun! In what does +Nyssia now differ from the most shameless hetaira, from the vilest of +courtesans? This body which I have striven to render worthy of being the +habitation of a pure and noble soul, serves for a theme of conversation; +it is talked of like some lascivious idol brought from Sicyon or from +Corinth; it is commended or found fault with. The shoulder is perfect, +the arm is charming, perhaps a little thin--what know I? All the blood +of my heart leaps to my cheeks at such a thought. Oh beauty, fatal gift +of the gods! why am I not the wife of some poor mountain goatherd of +innocent and simple habits? He would not have suborned a goatherd like +himself at the threshold of his cabin to profane his humble happiness! +My lean figure, my unkempt hair, my complexion faded by the burning +sun, would then have saved me from so gross an insult, and my honest +homeliness would not have been compelled to blush. How shall I dare, +after the scene of this night, to pass before those men, proudly erect +under the folds of a tunic which has no longer aught to hide from either +of them. I should drop dead with shame upon the pavement. Candaules, +Candaules, I was at least entitled to more respect from you, and there +was nothing in my conduct which could have provoked such an outrage. +Was I one of those ones whose arms for ever cling like ivy to their +husbands’ necks, and who seem more like slaves bought with money for a +master’s pleasure than free-born women of noble blood? Have I ever after +a repast sung amorous hymns accompanying myself upon the lyre, with +wine-moist lips, naked shoulders, and a wreath of roses about my hair, +or given you cause, by any immodest action, to treat me like a mistress +whom one shows after a banquet to his companions in debauch?’ While +Nyssia was thus buried in her grief, great tears overflowed from her +eyes like rain-drops from the azure chalice of a lotus-flower after +some storm, and rolling down her pale cheeks fell upon her fair forlorn +hands, languishingly open, like roses whose leaves are half-shed, for no +order came from the brain to give them activity. The attitude of Niobe, +beholding her fourteenth child succumb beneath the arrows of Apollo and +Diana, was not more sadly despairing, but soon starting from this state +of prostration, she rolled herself upon the floor, rent her garments, +covered her beautiful dishevelled hair with ashes, tore her bosom and +cheeks with her nails amid convulsive sobs, and abandoned herself to +all the excesses of Oriental grief, the more violently that she had +been forced so long to contain her indignation, shame, pangs of wounded +dignity, and all the agony that convulsed her soul, for the pride of her +whole life had been broken, and the idea that she had nothing wherewith +to reproach herself afforded her no consolation. As a poet has said, +only the innocent know remorse. She was repenting of the crime which +another had committed. + +Nevertheless she made an effort to recover herself, ordered the baskets +filled with wools of different colours, and the spindles wrapped with +flax, to be brought to her, and distributed the work to her women as she +had been accustomed to do; but she thought she noticed that the slaves +looked at her in a very peculiar way, and had ceased to entertain the +same timid respect for her as before. Her voice no longer rang with the +same assurance; there was something humble and furtive in her demeanour; +she felt herself interiorly fallen. + +Doubtless her scruples were exaggerated, and her virtue had received +no stain from the folly of Candaules; but ideas imbibed with a mother’s +milk obtain irresistible sway, and the modesty of the body is carried +by Oriental nations to an extent almost incomprehensible to Occidental +races. When a man desired to speak to Nyssia in the palace of Megabazus +at Bactria, he was obliged to do so keeping his eyes fixed upon the +ground, and two eunuchs stood beside him, poniard in hand, ready to +plunge their keen blades through his heart should he dare lift his head +to look at the princess, notwithstanding that her face was veiled. You +may readily conceive, therefore, how deadly an injury the action of +Candaules would seem to a woman thus brought up, while any other would +doubtless have considered it only a culpable frivolity. Thus the idea +of vengeance had instantly presented itself to Nyssia, and had given her +sufficient self-control to strangle the cry of her offended modesty ere +it reached her lips, at the moment when, turning her head, she beheld +the burning eyes of Gyges flaming through the darkness. She must have +possessed the courage of the warrior in ambush, who, wounded by a random +dart, utters no syllable of pain through fear of betraying himself +behind his shelter of foliage or river-reeds, and in silence permits his +blood to stripe his flesh with long red lines. Had she not withheld that +first impulse to cry aloud, Candaules, alarmed and forewarned, would +have kept upon his guard, which must have rendered it more difficult, if +not impossible, to carry out her purpose. + +Nevertheless, as yet she had conceived no definite plan, but she had +resolved that the insult done to her honour should be fully expiated. At +first she had thought of killing Candaules herself while he slept, with +the sword hung at the bedside. But she recoiled from the thought of +dipping her beautiful hands in blood; she feared lest she might miss her +blow; and, with all her bitter anger, she hesitated at so violent and +unwomanly an act. + +Suddenly she appeared to have decided upon some project. She summoned +Statira, one of the waiting-women who had come with her from Bactria, +and in whom she placed much confidence, and whispered a few words close +to her ear in a very low voice, although there were no other persons in +the room, as if she feared that even the walls might hear her. + +Statira bowed low, and immediately left the apartment. + +Like all persons who are actually menaced by some great peril, Candaules +presumed himself perfectly secure. He was certain that Gyges had stolen +away unperceived, and he thought only upon the delight of conversing +with him about the unrivalled attractions of his wife. + +So he caused him to be summoned, and conducted him to the Court of the +Heracleidæ. + +‘Well, Gyges,’ he said to him with laughing mien, ‘I did not deceive you +when I assured you that you would not regret having passed a few hours +behind that blessed door. Am I right? Do you know of any living woman +more beautiful than the queen? If you know of any superior to her, tell +me so frankly, and go bear her in my name this string of pearls, the +symbol of power.’ + +‘Sire,’ replied Gyges in a voice trembling with emotion, ‘no human +creature is worthy to compare with Nyssia. It is not the pearl fillet +of queens which should adorn her brows, but only the starry crown of the +immortals.’ + +‘I well knew that your ice must melt at last in the fires of that sun. +Now can you comprehend my passion, my delirium, my mad desires? Is it +not true, Gyges, that the heart of a man is not great enough to contain +such a love? It must overflow and diffuse itself.’ + +A hot blush overspread the cheeks of Gyges, who now but too well +comprehended the admiration of Candaules. + +The king noticed it, and said, with a manner half smiling, half serious: + +‘My poor friend, do not commit the folly of becoming enamoured of +Nyssia; you would lose your pains. It is a statue which I have enabled +you to see, not a woman. I have allowed you to read some stanzas of a +beautiful poem, whereof I alone possess the manuscript, merely for the +purpose of having your opinion; that is all.’ + +‘You have no need, sire, to remind me of my nothingness. Sometimes the +humblest slave is visited in his slumbers by some radiant and lovely +vision, with ideal forms, nacreous flesh, ambrosial hair. I--I have +dreamed with open eyes; you are the god who sent me that dream.’ + +‘Now,’ continued the king, ‘it will scarcely be necessary for me to +enjoin silence upon you. If you do not keep a seal upon your lips +you might learn to your cost that Nyssia is not as good as she is +beautiful.’ + +The king waved his hand in token of farewell to his confidant, and +retired for the purpose of inspecting an antique bed sculptured by +Ikmalius, a celebrated artisan, which had been offered him for purchase. + +Candaules had scarcely disappeared when a woman, wrapped in a long +mantle so as to leave but one of her eyes exposed, after the fashion of +the barbarians, came forth from the shadow of a column behind which +she had kept herself hidden during the conversation of the king and +his favourite, walked straight to Gyges, placed her finger upon his +shoulder, and made a sign to him to follow her. + + + + +CHAPTER V + +Statira, followed by Gyges, paused before a little door, of which she +raised the latch by pulling a silver ring attached to a leathern strap, +and commenced to ascend a stairway with rather high steps contrived +in the thickness of the wall. At the head of the stairway was a second +door, which she opened with a key wrought of ivory and brass. As soon as +Gyges entered she disappeared without any further explanation in regard +to what was expected of him. + +The curiosity of Gyges was mingled with uneasiness. He could form no +idea as to the significance of this mysterious message. He had a vague +fancy that he could recognise in the silent Iris one of Nyssia’s women; +and the way by which she had made him follow her led to the queen’s +apartments. He asked himself in terror whether he had been perceived in +his hiding-place or betrayed by Candaules, for both suppositions seemed +probable. + +At the idea that Nyssia knew all, he felt his face bedewed with a sweat +alternately burning and icy. He sought to fly, but the door had been +fastened upon him by Statira, and all escape was cut off; then he +advanced into the chamber, which was shadowed by heavy purple hangings, +and found himself face to face with Nyssia. He thought he beheld a +statue rise before him, such was her pallor. The hues of life had +abandoned her face; a feeble rose tint alone animated her lips; on her +tender temples a few almost imperceptible veins intercrossed their azure +network; tears had swollen her eyelids, and left shining furrows upon +the down of her cheeks; the chrysoprase tints of her eyes had lost their +intensity. She was even more beautiful and touching thus. Sorrow had +given soul to her marmorean beauty. + +Her disordered robe, scarcely fastened to her shoulders, left visible +her beautiful bare arms, her throat, and the commencement of her +death-white bosom. Like a warrior vanquished in his first conflict, her +beauty had laid down its arms. Of what use to her would have been the +draperies which conceal form, the tunics with their carefully fastened +folds? Did not Gyges know her? Wherefore defend what has been lost in +advance? + +She walked straight to Gyges, and fixing upon him an imperial look, +clear and commanding, said to him in a quick, abrupt voice: + +‘Do not lie; seek no vain subterfuges; have at least the dignity and +courage of your crime. I know all; I saw you! Not a word of excuse. I +would not listen to it. Candaules himself concealed you behind the door. +Is it not so the thing happened? And you fancy, doubtless, that it +is all over? Unhappily I am not a Greek woman, pliant to the whims of +artists and voluptuaries. Nyssia will not serve for any one’s toy. There +are now two men, one of whom is a man too much upon the earth. He must +disappear from it! Unless he dies, I cannot live. It will be either you +or Candaules. I leave you master of the choice. Kill him, avenge me, and +win by that murder both my hand and the throne of Lydia, or else shall +a prompt death henceforth prevent you from beholding, through a cowardly +complaisance, what you have not the right to look upon. He who commanded +is more culpable than he who has only obeyed; and, moreover, should +you become my husband, no one will have ever seen me without having the +right to do so. But make your decision at once, for two of those four +eyes in which my nudity has reflected itself must before this very +evening be for ever extinguished.’ + +This strange alternative, proposed with a terrible coolness, with an +immutable resolution, so utterly surprised Gyges, who was expecting +reproaches, menaces, and a violent scene, that he remained for several +minutes without colour and without voice, livid as a shade on the shores +of the black rivers of hell. + +‘I! to dip my hands in the blood of my master! Is it indeed you, O +queen, who demand of me so great a penalty? I comprehend all your anger, +I feel it to be just, and it was not my fault that this outrage took +place; but you know that kings are mighty, they descend from a divine +race. Our destinies repose on their august knees; and it is not +we, feeble mortals, who may hesitate at their commands. Their will +overthrows our refusal, as a dyke is swept away by a torrent By your +feet that I kiss, by the hem of your robe which I touch as a suppliant, +be clement! Forget this injury, which is known to none, and which shall +remain eternally buried in darkness and silence! Candaules worships you, +admires you, and his fault springs only from an excess of love.’ + +‘Were you addressing a sphinx of granite in the arid sands of Egypt, +you would have more chance of melting her. The winged words might fly +uninterruptedly from your lips for a whole Olympiad; you could not move +my resolution in the slightest. A heart of brass dwells in this marble +breast of mine. Die or kill! When the sunbeam which has passed through +the curtains shall touch the foot of this table let your choice have +been made. I wait.’ + +And Nyssia crossed her arms upon her breast in an attitude replete with +sombre majesty. + +To behold her standing erect, motionless and pale, her eyes fixed, her +brows contracted, her hair in disorder, her foot firmly placed upon +the pavement, one would have taken her for Nemesis descended from her +griffin, and awaiting the hour to smite a guilty one. + +‘The shadowy depths of Hades are visited by none with pleasure,’ +answered Gyges. ‘It is sweet to enjoy the pure light of day; and the +heroes themselves who dwell in the Fortunate Isles would gladly return +to their native land. Each man has the instinct of self-preservation, +and since blood must flow, let it be rather from the veins of another +than from mine.’ + +To these sentiments, avowed by Gyges with antique frankness, were added +others more noble whereof he did not speak. He was desperately in love +with Nyssia and jealous of Candaules. It was not, therefore, the fear +of death alone that had induced him to undertake this bloody task. +The thought of leaving Candaules in free possession of Nyssia was +insupportable to him: and, moreover, the vertigo of fatality had seized +him. By a succession of irregular and terrible events he beheld himself +hurried toward the realisation of his dreams; a mighty wave had lifted +him and borne him on in despite of his efforts; Nyssia herself was +extending her hand to him, to help him to ascend the steps of the royal +throne. All this had caused him to forget that Candaules was his master +and his benefactor; for none can flee from Fate, and Necessity walks on +with nails in one hand and whip in the other, to stop your advance or to +urge you forward. + +‘It is well,’ replied Nyssia; ‘here is the means of execution.’ And she +drew from her bosom a Bactrian poniard, with a jade handle enriched with +inlaid circles of white gold. ‘This blade is not made of brass, but with +iron difficult to work, tempered in flame and water, so that Hephaistos +himself could not forge one more keenly pointed or finely edged. +It would pierce, like thin papyrus, metal cuirasses and bucklers of +dragon’s skin. + +‘The time,’ she continued, with the same icy coolness, ‘shall be while +he slumbers. Let him sleep and wake no more!’ + +Her accomplice, Gyges, hearkened to her words with stupefaction, for he +had never thought he could find such resolution in a woman who could not +bring herself to lift her veil. + +‘The ambuscade shall be laid in the very same place where the infamous +one concealed you in order to expose me to your gaze. At the approach +of night I shall turn back one of the folding-doors upon you, undress +myself, lie down, and when he shall be asleep I will give you a signal. +Above all things, let there be no hesitancy, no feebleness; and take +heed that your hand does not tremble when the moment shall have come! +And now, for fear lest you might change your mind, I propose to make +sure of your person until the fatal hour. You might attempt to escape, +to forewarn your master. Do not think to do so.’ + +Nyssia whistled in a peculiar way, and immediately from behind a +Persian tapestry embroidered with flowers, there appeared four monsters, +swarthy, clad in robes diagonally striped, which left visible arms +muscled and gnarled as trunks of oaks. Their thick pouting lips, the +gold rings which they wore through the partition of their nostrils, +their great teeth sharp as the fangs of wolves, the expression of stupid +servility on their faces, rendered them hideous to behold. + +The queen pronounced some words in a language unknown to Gyges, +doubtless in Bactrian, and the four slaves rushed upon the young man, +seized him, and carried him away, even as a nurse might carry off a +child in the fold of her robe. + +Now, what were Nyssia’s real thoughts? Had she, indeed, noticed Gyges at +the time of her meeting with him near Bactria, and preserved some memory +of the young captain in one of those secret recesses of the heart where +even the most virtuous women always have something buried? Was the +desire to avenge her modesty goaded by some other unacknowledged desire? +And if Gyges had not been the handsomest young man in all Asia would she +have evinced the same ardour in punishing Candaules for having outraged +the sanctity of marriage? That is a delicate question to resolve, +especially after a lapse of three thousand years; and although we have +consulted Herodotus, Hephæstion, Plato, Dositheus, Archilochus of Paros, +Hesychius of Miletus, Ptolomæus, Euphorion, and all who have spoken +either at length or in only a few words concerning Candaules, Nyssia, +and Gyges, we have been unable to arrive at any definite conclusion. To +pursue so fleeting a shadow through so many centuries, under the ruins +of so many crumpled empires, under the dust of departed nations, is a +work of extreme difficulty, not to say impossibility. + +At all events, Nyssia’s resolution was implacably taken; this murder +appeared to her in the light of the accomplishment of a sacred duty. +Among the barbarian nations every man who has surprised a woman in her +nakedness is put to death. The queen believed herself exercising her +right; only inasmuch as the injury had been secret, she was doing +herself justice as best she could. The passive accomplice would become +the executioner of the other, and the punishment would thus spring from +the crime itself. The hand would chastise the head. + +The olive-tinted monsters shut Gyges up in an obscure portion of the +palace, whence it was impossible that he could escape, or that his cries +could be heard. + +He passed the remainder of the day there in a state of cruel anxiety, +accusing the hours of being lame, and again of walking too speedily. The +crime which he was about to commit, although he was only, in some sort, +the instrument of it, and though he was only yielding to an irresistible +influence, presented itself to his mind in the most sombre colours. If +the blow should miss through one of those circumstances which none could +foresee? If the people of Sardes should revolt and seek to avenge +the death of the king? Such were the very sensible though useless +reflections which Gyges made while waiting to be taken from his prison +and led to the place whence he could only depart to strike his master. + +At last the night unfolded her starry robe in the sky, and its shadow +fell upon the city and the palace. A light footstep became audible, +a veiled woman entered the room and conducted him through the obscure +corridors and multiplied mazes of the royal edifice with as much +confidence as though she had been preceded by a slave bearing a lamp or +a torch. + +The hand which held that of Gyges was cold, soft, and small; +nevertheless those slender fingers clasped it with a bruising force, +as the fingers of some statue of brass animated by a prodigy would +have done. The rigidity of an inflexible will betrayed itself in that +ever-equal pressure as of a vice--a pressure which no hesitation of head +or heart came to vary. Gyges, conquered, subjugated, crushed, yielded to +that imperious traction, as though he were borne along by the mighty arm +of Fate. + +Alas! it was not thus he had wished to touch for the first time that +fair royal hand, which had presented the poniard to him, and was leading +him to murder, for it was Nyssia herself who had come for Gyges, to +conceal him in the place of ambuscade. + +No word was exchanged between the sinister couple on the way from the +prison to the nuptial chamber. + +The queen unfastened the thongs, raised the bar of the entrance, and +placed Gyges behind the folding-door as Candaules had done the evening +previous. This repetition of the same acts, with so different a purpose, +had something of a lugubrious and fatal character. Vengeance, this +time, had placed her foot upon every track left by the insult. The +chastisement and the crime alike followed the same path. Yesterday it +was the turn of Candaules, to-day it was that of Nyssia; and Gyges, +accomplice in the injury, was also accomplice in the penalty. He had +served the king to dishonour the queen; he would serve the queen to kill +the king, equally exposed by the vices of the one and the virtues of the +other. + +The daughter of Megabazus seemed to feel a savage joy, a ferocious +pleasure, in employing only the same means chosen by the Lydian king, +and turning to account for the murder those very precautions which had +been adopted for voluptuous fantasy. + +‘You will again this evening see me take off these garments which are +so displeasing to Candaules. This spectacle should become wearisome to +you,’ said the queen in accents of bitter irony, as she stood on the +threshold of the chamber; ‘you will end by finding me ugly.’ And +a sardonic, forced laugh momentarily curled her pale mouth; then, +regaining her impassible severity of mien, she continued: ‘Do not +imagine you will be able to steal away this time as you did before; +you know my sight is piercing. At the slightest movement on your part I +shall awake Candaules; and you know that it will not be easy for you to +explain what you are doing in the king’s apartments, behind a door, with +a poniard in your hand. Further, my Bactrian slaves, the copper-coloured +mutes who imprisoned you a short time ago, guard all the issues of +the palace, with orders to massacre you should you attempt to go out. +Therefore let no vain scruples of fidelity cause you to hesitate. Think +that I will make you King of Sardes, and that... I will love you if you +avenge me. The blood of Candaules will be your purple, and his death +will make for you a place in that bed.’ + +The slaves came according to their custom to change the fuel in the +tripod, renew the oil in the lamps, spread tapestry and the skins of +animals upon the royal couch; and Nyssia hurried into the chamber as +soon as she heard their footsteps resounding in the distance. + +In a short time Candaules arrived all joyous. He had purchased the bed +of Ikmalius and proposed to substitute it for the bed wrought after the +Oriental fashion, which he declared had never been much to his taste. +He seemed pleased to find that Nyssia had already retired to the nuptial +chamber. + +‘The trade of embroidery, and spindles, and needles seems not to have +the same attraction for you to-day as usual. In fact, it is a monotonous +labour to perpetually pass one thread between other threads, and I +wonder at the pleasure which you seem ordinarily to take in it. To tell +the truth, I am afraid that some fine day Pallas-Athene, on finding you +so skilful, will break her shuttle over your head as she once did to +poor Arachne.’ + +‘My lord, I felt somewhat tired this evening, and so came downstairs +sooner than usual. Would you not like before going to sleep to drink +a cup of black Samian wine mixed with the honey of Hymettus?’ And +she poured from a golden urn, into a cup of the same metal, the +sombre-coloured beverage which she had mingled with the soporiferous +juice of the nepenthe. + +Candaules took the cup by both handles and drained it to the last drop; +but the young Heracleid had a strong head, and sinking his elbow into +the cushions of his couch he watched Nyssia undressing without any sign +that the dust of sleep was commencing to gather upon his eyes. + +As on the evening before, Nyssia unfastened her hair and permitted its +rich blond waves to ripple over her shoulders. From his hiding-place +Gyges fancied that he saw those locks slowly becoming suffused with +tawny tints, illuminated with reflections of blood and flame; and their +heavy curls seemed to lengthen with vipérine undulations, like the hair +of the Gorgons and Medusas. + +All simple and graceful as that action was in itself, it took from the +terrible events about to transpire a frightful and ominous character, +which caused the hidden assassin to shudder with terror. + +Nyssia then unfastened her bracelets, but agitated as her hands had been +by nervous straining, they ill served her will. She broke the string +of a bracelet of beads of amber inlaid with gold, which rolled over +the floor with a loud noise, causing Candaules to reopen his gradually +closing eyes. + +Each one of those beads fell upon the heart of Gyges as a drop of molten +lead falls upon water. + +Having unlaced her buskins, the queen threw her upper tunic over the +back of an ivory chair. This drapery, thus arranged, produced upon Gyges +the effect of one of those sinister-folding winding-sheets wherein the +dead were wrapped ere being borne to the funeral pyre. Every object +in that room, which had the evening before seemed to him one scene of +smiling splendour, now appeared to him livid, dim, and menacing. The +statues of basalt rolled their eyes and smiled hideously. The lamp +flickered weirdly, and its flame dishevelled itself in red and sanguine +rays like the crest of a comet. Far back in the dimly lighted corners +loomed the monstrous forms of the Lares and Lémures. The mantles hanging +from their hooks seemed animated by a factitious life, and assumed a +human aspect of vitality; and when Nyssia stripped of her last garment, +approached the bed, all white and naked as a shade, he thought that +Death herself had broken the diamond fetters wherewith Hercules of old +enchained her at the gates of hell when he delivered Alcestes, and had +come in person to take possession of Candaules. + +Overcome by the power of the nepenthe-juice, the king at last slumbered. +Nyssia made a sign for Gyges to come forth from his retreat; and +laying her finger upon the breast of the victim, she directed upon her +accomplice a look so humid, so lustrous, so weighty with languishment, +so replete with intoxicating promise, that Gyges, maddened and +fascinated, sprang from his hiding-place like the tiger from the summit +of the rock where it has been couching, traversed the chamber at a +bound, and plunged the Bactrian poniard up to the very hilt in the heart +of the descendant of Hercules. The chastity of Nyssia was avenged, and +the dream of Gyges accomplished. + +Thus ended the dynasty of the Heracleidæ, after having endured for +five hundred and five years, and commenced that of the Mermnades in the +person of Gyges, son of Dascylus. The Sardians, indignant at the +death of Candaules, threatened revolt; but the oracle of Delphi having +declared in favour of Gyges, who had sent thither a vast number of +silver vases and six golden cratera of the value of thirty talents, the +new king maintained his seat on the throne of Lydia, which he occupied +for many long years, lived happily, and never showed his wife to any +one, knowing too well what it cost. + + + + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KING CANDAULES *** + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will +be renamed. + +Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright +law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, +so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the +United States without permission and without paying copyright +royalties. 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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>. If you +are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the +country where you are located before using this eBook. +</div> +<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Title: King Candaules</div> +<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Author: Théophile Gautier</div> +<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Translator: Lafcadio Hearn</div> +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Release Date: September 18, 2007 [eBook #22660]<br /> +[Most recently updated: September 10, 2021]</div> +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Language: English</div> +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Character set encoding: UTF-8</div> +<div style='display:block; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Produced by: David Widger</div> +<div style='margin-top:2em; margin-bottom:4em'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KING CANDAULES ***</div> + + <h1> + KING CANDAULES + </h1> + + <h2 class="no-break"> + By Théophile Gautier + </h2> + + <h3> + Translated By Lafcadio Hearn <br /> <br /> 1908 + </h3> + + <hr /> + +<h2>Contents</h2> + +<table summary="" style=""> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#link2HCH0001">CHAPTER I</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#link2HCH0002">CHAPTER II</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#link2HCH0003">CHAPTER III</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#link2HCH0004">CHAPTER IV</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#link2HCH0005">CHAPTER V</a></td> +</tr> + +</table> + +<div class="chapter"> + + <h2><a name="link2HCH0001" id="link2HCH0001"></a> + CHAPTER I + </h2> + <p> + Five hundred years before the Trojan war, and seventeen hundred and + fifteen years before our own era, there was a grand festival at Sardes. + King Candaules was going to marry. The people were affected with that sort + of pleasurable interest and aimless emotion wherewith any royal event + inspires the masses, even though it in no wise concerns them, and + transpires in superior spheres of life which they can never hope to reach. + </p> + <p> + As soon as Phoebus-Apollo, standing in his quadriga, had gilded to saffron + the summits of fertile Mount Tmolus with his rays, the good people of + Sardes were all astir, going and coming, mounting or descending the marble + stairways leading from the city to the waters of the Pactolus, that + opulent river whose sands Midas filled with tiny sparks of gold when he + bathed in its stream. One would have supposed that each one of these good + citizens was himself about to marry, so solemn and important was the + demeanour of all. + </p> + <p> + Men were gathering in groups in the Agora, upon the steps of the temples + and along the porticoes. At every street corner one might have encountered + women leading by the hand little children, whose uneven walk ill suited + the maternal anxiety and impatience. Maidens were hastening to the + fountains, all with urns gracefully balanced upon their heads, or + sustained by their white arms as with natural handles, so as to procure + early the necessary water provision for the household, and thus obtain + leisure at the hour when the nuptial procession should pass. Washerwomen + hastily folded the still damp tunics and chlamidæ, and piled them upon + mule-wagons. Slaves turned the mill without any need of the overseer’s + whip to tickle their naked and scar-seamed shoulders. Sardes was hurrying + itself to finish with those necessary everyday cares which no festival can + wholly disregard. + </p> + <p> + The road along which the procession was to pass had been strewn with fine + yellow sand. Brazen tripods, disposed along the way at regular intervals, + sent up to heaven the odorous smoke of cinnamon and spikenard. These + vapours, moreover, alone clouded the purity of the azure above. The clouds + of a hymeneal day ought, indeed, to be formed only by the burning of + perfumes. Myrtle and rose-laurel branches were strewn upon the ground, and + from the walls of the palaces were suspended by little rings of bronze + rich tapestries, whereon the needles of industrious captives—intermingling + wool, silver, and gold—had represented various scenes in the history + of the gods and heroes: Ixion embracing the cloud; Diana surprised in the + bath by Actaeon; the shepherd Paris as judge in the contest of beauty held + upon Mount Ida between Hera, the snowy-armed, Athena of the sea-green + eyes, and Aphrodite, girded with her magic cestus; the old men of Troy + rising to honour Helena as she passed through the Skaian gate, a subject + taken from one of the poems of the blind man of Meles. Others exhibited in + preference scenes taken from the life of Heracles, the Theban, through + flattery to Candaules, himself a Heracleid, being descended from the hero + through Alcaeus. Others contented themselves by decorating the entrances + of their dwellings with garlands and wreaths in token of rejoicing. + </p> + <p> + Among the multitudes marshalled along the way from the royal house even as + far as the gates of the city, through which the young queen would pass on + her arrival, conversation naturally turned upon the beauty of the bride, + whereof the renown had spread throughout all Asia; and upon the character + of the bridegroom, who, although not altogether an eccentric, seemed + nevertheless one not readily appreciated from the common standpoint of + observation. + </p> + <p> + Nyssia, daughter of the Satrap Megabazus, was gifted with marvellous + purity of feature and perfection of form; at least such was the rumour + spread abroad by the female slaves who attended her, and a few female + friends who had accompanied her to the bath; for no man could boast of + knowing aught of Nyssia save the colour of her veil and the elegant folds + that she involuntarily impressed upon the soft materials which robed her + statuesque body. + </p> + <p> + The barbarians did not share the ideas of the Greeks in regard to modesty. + While the youths of Achaia made no scruples of allowing their oil-anointed + torsos to shine under the sun in the stadium, and while the Spartan + virgins danced ungarmented before the altar of Diana, those of Persepolis, + Ebactana, and Bactria, attaching more importance to chastity of the body + than to chastity of mind, considered those liberties allowed to the + pleasure of the eyes by Greek manner as impure and highly reprehensible, + and held no woman virtuous who permitted men to obtain a glimpse of more + than the tip of her foot in walking, as it slightly deranged the discreet + folds of a long tunic. + </p> + <p> + Despite all this mystery, or rather, perhaps, by very reason of this + mystery, the fame of Nyssia had not been slow to spread throughout all + Lydia, and become popular there to such a degree that it had reached even + Candaules, although kings are ordinarily the most illy informed people in + their kingdoms, and live like the gods in a kind of cloud which conceals + from them the knowledge of terrestrial things. + </p> + <p> + The Eupatridæ of Sardes, who hoped that the young king might, perchance, + choose a wife from their family, the hetairæ of Athens, of Samos, of + Miletus and of Cyprus, the beautiful slaves from the banks of the Indus, + the blond girls brought at a vast expense from the depths of the Cimmerian + fogs, were heedful never to utter in the presence of Candaules, whether + within hearing or beyond hearing, a single word which bore any relation to + Nyssia. The bravest, in a question of beauty, recoil before the prospect + of a contest in which they can anticipate being outrivalled. + </p> + <p> + And nevertheless no person in Sardes, or even in Lydia, had beheld this + redoubtable adversary, no person save one solitary being, who from the + time of that encounter had kept his lips as firmly closed upon the subject + as though Harpocrates, the god of silence, had sealed them with his + finger, and that was Gyges, chief of the guards of Candaules. One day + Gyges, his mind filled with various projects and vague ambitions, had been + wandering among the Bactrian hills, whither his master had sent him upon + an important and secret mission. He was dreaming of the intoxication of + omnipotence, of treading upon purple with sandals of gold, of placing the + diadem upon the brows of the fairest of women. + </p> + <p> + These thoughts made his blood boil in his veins, and, as though to pursue + the flight of his dreams, he smote his sinewy heel upon the foam-whitened + flanks of his Numidian horse. + </p> + <p> + The weather, at first calm, had changed and waxed tempestuous like the + warrior’s soul; and Boreas, his locks bristling with Thracian frosts, his + cheeks puffed out, his arms folded upon his breast, smote the + rain-freighted clouds with the mighty beatings of his wings. + </p> + <p> + A bevy of young girls who had been gathering flowers in the meadow, + fearing the coming storm, were returning to the city in all haste, each + carrying her perfumed harvest in the lap of her tunic. Seeing a stranger + on horseback approaching in the distance, they had hidden their faces in + their mantles, after the custom of the barbarians; but at the very moment + that Gyges was passing by the one whose proud carriage and richer + habiliments seemed to designate her the mistress of the little band, an + unusually violent gust of wind carried away the veil of the fair unknown, + and, whirling it through the air like a feather, chased it to such a + distance that it could not be recovered. It was Nyssia, daughter of + Megabazus, who found herself thus with face unveiled in the presence of + Gyges, a humble captain of King Candaules’s guard. Was it only the breath + of Boreas which had brought about this accident, or had Eros, who delights + to vex the hearts of men, amused himself by severing the string which had + fastened the protecting tissue? However that may have been, Gyges was + stricken motionless at the sight of that Medusa of beauty, and not till + long after the folds of Nyssia’s robe had disappeared beyond the gates of + the city could he think of proceeding on his way. Although there was + nothing to justify such a conjecture, he cherished the belief that he had + seen the satrap’s daughter; and that meeting, which affected him almost + like an apparition, accorded so fully with the thoughts that were + occupying him at the moment of its occurrence, that he could not help + perceiving therein something fateful and ordained of the gods. In truth it + was upon that brow that he would have wished to place the diadem. What + other could be more worthy of it? But what probability was there that + Gyges would ever have a throne to share? He had not sought to follow up + this adventure, and assure himself that it was indeed the daughter of + Megabazus whose mysterious face had been revealed to him by Chance, the + great filcher. Nyssia had fled so swiftly that it would have been + impossible for him then to overtake her; and, moreover, he had been + dazzled, fascinated, thunder-stricken, as it were, rather than charmed by + that superhuman apparition, by that monster of beauty! + </p> + <p> + Nevertheless that image, although seen only in the glimpse of a moment, + had engraved itself upon his heart in lines deep as those which the + sculptors trace on ivory with tools reddened in the fire. He had + endeavoured, although vainly, to efface it, for the love which he felt for + Nyssia inspired him with a secret terror. Perfection in such a degree is + ever awe-inspiring, and women so like unto goddesses could only work evil + to feeble mortals; they are formed for divine adulteries, and even the + most courageous men never risk themselves in such amours without + trembling. Therefore no hope had blossomed in the soul of Gyges, + overwhelmed and discouraged in advance by the sentiment of the impossible. + Ere opening his lips to Nyssia he would have wished to despoil the heaven + of its robe of stars, to take from Phoebus his crown of rays, forgetting + that women only give themselves to those unworthy of them, and that to win + their love one must act as though he desired to earn their hate. + </p> + <p> + From that day the roses of joy no longer bloomed upon his cheeks. By day + he was sad and mournful, and seemed to wander abroad in solitary dreaming, + like a mortal who has beheld a divinity. At night he was haunted by dreams + in which he beheld Nyssia seated by his side upon cushions of purple + between the golden griffins of the royal throne. + </p> + <p> + Therefore Gyges, the only one who could speak of his own knowledge + concerning Nyssia, having never spoken of her, the Sardians were left to + their own conjectures in her regard; and their conjectures, it must be + confessed, were fantastic and altogether fabulous. The beauty of Nyssia, + thanks to the veils which shrouded her, became a sort of myth, a canvas, a + poem to which each one added ornamentation as the fancy took him. + </p> + <p> + ‘If report be not false,’ lisped a young debauchee from Athens, who stood + with one hand upon the shoulder of an Asiatic boy, ‘neither Plangon, nor + Archianassa, nor Thais can be compared with this marvellous barbarian; yet + I can scarce believe that she equals Theano of Colophon, from whom I once + bought a single night at the price of as much gold as she could bear away, + after having plunged both her white arms up to the shoulder in my + cedar-wood coffer.’ + </p> + <p> + ‘Beside her,’ added a Eupatrid, who pretended to be better informed than + any other person upon all manner of subjects, ‘beside her the daughter of + Coelus and the Sea would seem but a mere Ethiopian servant.’ + </p> + <p> + ‘Your words are blasphemy, and although Aphrodite be a kind and indulgent + goddess, beware of drawing down her anger upon you.’ + </p> + <p> + ‘By Hercules!—and that ought to be an oath of some weight in a city + ruled by one of his descendants—I cannot retract a word of it.’ + </p> + <p> + ‘You have seen her, then?’ + </p> + <p> + ‘No; but I have a slave in my service who once belonged to Nyssia, and who + has told me a hundred stories about her.’ + </p> + <p> + ‘Is it true,’ demanded in infantile tones an equivocal-looking woman whose + pale-rose tunic, painted cheeks, and locks shining with essences betrayed + wretched pretensions to a youth long passed away—’ is it true that + Nyssia has two pupils in each eye? It seems to me that must be very ugly, + and I cannot understand how Candaules could fall in love with such a + monstrosity, while there is no lack, at Sardes and in Lydia, of women + whose eyes are irreproachable.’ + </p> + <p> + And uttering these words with all sorts of affected airs and simperings, + Lamia took a little significant peep in a small mirror of cast metal which + she drew from her bosom, and which enabled her to lead back to duty + certain wandering curls disarranged by the impertinence of the wind. + </p> + <p> + ‘As to the double pupil, that seems to me nothing more than an old nurse’s + tale,’ observed the well-informed patrician; ‘but it is a fact that + Nyssia’s eyes are so piercing that she can see through walls. Lynxes are + myopic compared with her.’ + </p> + <p> + ‘How can a sensible man coolly argue about such an absurdity?’ interrupted + a citizen, whose bald skull, and the flood of snowy beard into which he + plunged his fingers while speaking, lent him an air of preponderance and + philosophical sagacity. ‘The truth is that the daughter of Megabazus + cannot naturally see through a wall any better than you or I, but the + Egyptian priest Thoutmosis, who knows so many wondrous secrets, has given + her the mysterious stone which is found in the heads of dragons, and whose + property, as every one knows, renders all shadows and the most opaque + bodies transparent to the eyes of those who possess it. Nyssia always + carries this stone in her girdle, or else set into her bracelet, and in + that may be found the secret of her clairvoyance.’ + </p> + <p> + The citizen’s explanation seemed the most natural one to those of the + group whose conversation we are endeavouring to reproduce, and the + opinions of Lamia and the patrician were abandoned as improbable. + </p> + <p> + ‘At all events,’ returned the lover of Theano, ‘we are going to have an + opportunity of judging for ourselves, for it seems to me that I hear the + clarions sounding in the distance, and though Nyssia is still invisible, I + can see the herald yonder approaching with palm branches in his hands, to + announce the arrival of the nuptial <i>cortége</i>, and make the crowd + fall back.’ + </p> + <p> + At this news, which spread rapidly through the crowd, the strong men + elbowed their way toward the front ranks; the agile boys, embracing the + shafts of the columns, sought to climb up to the capitals and there seat + themselves; others, not without having skinned their knees against the + bark, succeeded in perching themselves comfortably enough in the Y of some + tree-branch. The women lifted their little children upon their shoulders, + warning them to hold tightly to their necks. Those who had the good + fortune to dwell on the street along which Candaules and Nyssia were about + to pass, leaned over from the summit of their roofs, or, rising on their + elbows, abandoned for a time the cushions upon which they had been + reclining. + </p> + <p> + A murmur of satisfaction and gratified expectation ran through the crowd, + which had already been waiting many long hours, for the arrows of the + midday sun were commencing to sting. + </p> + <p> + The heavy-armed warriors, with cuirasses of bull’s-hide covered with + overlapping plates of metal, helmets adorned with plumes of horse-hair + dyed red, <i>knemides</i> or greaves faced with tin, baldrics studded with + nails, emblazoned bucklers, and swords of brass, rode behind a line of + trumpeters who blew with might and main upon their long tubes, which + gleamed under the sunlight. The horses of these warriors were all white as + the feet of Thetis, and might have served, by reason of their noble paces + and purity of breeds, as models for those which Phidias at a later day + sculptured upon the metopes of the Parthenon. + </p> + <p> + At the head of this troop rode Gyges, the well-named, for his name in the + Lydian tongue signifies beautiful. His features, of the most exquisite + regularity, seemed chiselled in marble, owing to his intense pallor, for + he had just discovered in Nyssia, although she was veiled with the veil of + a young bride, the same woman whose face had been betrayed to his gaze by + the treachery of Boreas under the walls of Bactria. + </p> + <p> + ‘Handsome Gyges looks very sad,’ said the young maidens. ‘What proud + beauty could have secured his love, or what forsaken one has caused some + Thessalian witch to cast a spell on him? Has that cabalistic ring (which + he is said to have found hidden within the flanks of a brazen horse in the + midst of some forest) lost its virtue, and suddenly ceasing to render its + owner invisible, betrayed him to the astonished eyes of some innocent + husband, who had deemed himself alone in his conjugal chamber?’ + </p> + <p> + ‘Perhaps he has been wasting his talents and his drachmas at the game of + Palamedes, or else it may be that he is disappointed at not having won the + prize at the Olympian games. He had great faith in his horse Hyperion.’ + </p> + <p> + No one of these conjectures was true. A fact is never guessed. + </p> + <p> + After the battalion commanded by Gyges, there came young boys crowned with + myrtle-wreaths, and singing epithalamic hymns after the Lydian manner, + accompanying themselves upon lyres of ivory, which they played with bows. + All were clad in rose-coloured tunics ornamented with a silver Greek + border, and their long hair flowed down over their shoulders in thick + curls. + </p> + <p> + They preceded the gift-bearers, strong slaves whose half-nude bodies + exposed to view such interlacements of muscle as the stoutest athletes + might have envied. + </p> + <p> + Upon brancards, supported by two or four men or more, according to the + weight of the objects borne, were placed enormous brazen cratera, + chiselled by the most famous artists; vases of gold and silver whose sides + were adorned with bas-reliefs and whose hands were elegantly worked into + chimeras, foliage, and nude women; magnificent ewers to be used in washing + the feet of illustrious guests; flagons encrusted with precious stones and + containing the rarest perfumes; myrrh from Arabia, cinnamon from the + Indies, spikenard from Persia, essence of roses from Smyrna; kamklins or + perfuming pans, with perforated covers; cedar-wood or ivory coffers of + marvellous workmanship, which opened with a secret spring that none save + the inventor could find, and which contained bracelets wrought from the + gold of Ophir, necklaces of the most lustrous pearls, mantle-brooches + constellated with rubies and carbuncles; toilet-boxes, containing blond + sponges, curling-irons, sea-wolves’ teeth to polish the nails, the green + rouge of Egypt, which turns to a most beautiful pink on touching the skin, + powders to darken the eyelashes and eyebrows, and all the refinements that + feminine coquetry could invent. Other litters were freighted with purple + robes of the finest linen and of all possible shades from the incarnadine + hue of the rose to the deep crimson of the blood of the grape; <i>calasires</i> + of the linen of Canopus, which is thrown all white into the vat of the + dyer, and comes forth again, owing to the various astringents in which it + had been steeped, diapered with the most brilliant colours; tunics brought + from the fabulous land of Seres, made from the spun slime of a worm which + feeds upon leaves, and so fine that they might be drawn through a + finger-ring. + </p> + <p> + Ethiopians, whose bodies shone like jet, and whose temples were tightly + bound with cords, lest they should burst the veins of their foreheads in + the effort to uphold their burden, carried in great pomp a statue of + Hercules, the ancestor of Candaules, of colossal size, wrought of ivory + and gold, with the club, the skin of the Nemean lion, the three apples + from the garden of the Hesperides, and all the traditional attributes of + the hero. + </p> + <p> + Statues of Venus Urania, and of Venus Genitrix, sculptured by the best + pupils of the Sicyon School. That marble of Paros whose gleaming + transparency seemed expressly created for the representation of the + ever-youthful flesh of the immortals, were borne after the statue of + Hercules, which admirably relieved the harmony and elegance of their + proportions by contrast with its massive outlines and rugged forms. + </p> + <p> + A painting by Bularchus, which Candaules had purchased for its weight in + gold, executed upon the wood of the female larch-tree, and representing + the defeat of the Magnesians, evoked universal admiration by the beauty of + its design, the truthfulness of the attitude of its figures, and the + harmony of its colouring, although the artist had only employed in its + production the four primitive colours: Attic ochre, white, Pontic <i>sinopis</i> + and <i>atramentum</i>. The young king loved painting and sculpture even + more, perhaps, than well became a monarch, and he had not unfrequently + bought a picture at a price equal to the annual revenue of a whole city. + </p> + <p> + Camels and dromedaries, splendidly caparisoned, with musicians seated on + their necks performing upon drums and cymbals, carried the gilded stakes, + the cords, and the material of the tent designed for the use of the queen + during voyages and hunting parties. + </p> + <p> + These spectacles of magnificence would upon any other occasion have + ravished the people of Sardes with delight, but their curiosity had been + enlisted in another direction, and it was not without a certain feeling of + impatience that they watched this portion of the procession file by. The + young maidens and the handsome boys, bearing flaming torches, and strewing + handfuls of crocus flowers along the way, hardly attracted any attention. + The idea of beholding Nyssia had preoccupied all minds. + </p> + <p> + At last Candaules appeared, riding in a chariot drawn by four horses, as + beautiful and spirited as those of the sun, all rolling their golden bits + in foam, shaking their purple-decked manes, and restrained with great + difficulty by the driver, who stood erect at the side of Candaules, and + was leaning back to gain more power on the reins. + </p> + <p> + Candaules was a young man full of vigour, and well worthy of his Herculean + origin. His head was joined to his shoulders by a neck massive as a + bull’s, and almost without a curve; his hair, black and lustrous, twisted + itself into rebellious little curls, here and there concealing the circlet + of his diadem; his ears, small and upright, were of a ruddy hue; his + forehead was broad and full, though a little low, like all antique + foreheads; his eyes full of gentle melancholy, his oval cheeks, his chin + with its gentle and regular curves, his mouth with its slightly parted + lips—all bespoke the nature of the poet rather than that of the + warrior. In fact, although he was brave, skilled in all bodily exercises, + could subdue a wild horse as well as any of the Lapithæ, or swim across + the current of rivers when they descended, swollen with melted snow, from + the mountains, although he might have bent the bow of Odysseus or borne + the shield of Achilles, he seemed little occupied with dreams of conquest; + and war usually so fascinating to young kings, had little attraction for + him. He contented himself with repelling the attacks of his ambitious + neighbours, and sought not to extend his own dominions. He preferred + building palaces, after plans suggested by himself to the architects, who + always found the king’s hints of no small value, or to form collections of + statues and paintings by artists of the elder and later schools. He had + the works of Telephanes of Sicyon, Cleanthes, Ardices of Corinth, + Hygiemon, Deinias, Charmides, Eumarus, and Cimon, some being simple + drawings, and others paintings in various colours or monochromes. It was + even said that Candaules had not disdained to wield with his own royal + hands—a thing hardly becoming a prince—the chisel of the + sculptor and the sponge of the encaustic painter. + </p> + <p> + But why should we dwell upon Candaules? The reader undoubtedly feels like + the people of Sardes: and it is of Nyssia that he desires to hear. + </p> + <p> + The daughter of Megabazus was mounted upon an elephant, with wrinkled skin + and immense ears which seemed like flags, who advanced with a heavy but + rapid gait, like a vessel in the midst of the waves. His tusks and his + trunk were encircled with silver rings, and around the pillars of his + limbs were entwined necklaces of enormous pearls. Upon his back, which was + covered with a magnificent Persian carpet of striped pattern, stood a sort + of estrade overlaid with gold finely chased, and constellated with onyx + stones, carnelians, chrysolites, lapis-lazuli, and girasols; upon this + estrade sat the young queen, so covered with precious stones as to dazzle + the eyes of the beholders. A mitre, shaped like a helmet, on which pearls + formed flower designs and letters after the Oriental manner, was placed + upon her head; her ears, both the lobes and rims of which had been + pierced, were adorned with ornaments in the form of little cups, + crescents, and balls; necklaces of gold and silver beads, which had been + hollowed out and carved, thrice encircled her neck and descended with a + metallic tinkling upon her bosom; emerald serpents with topaz or ruby eyes + coiled themselves in many folds about her arms, and clasped themselves by + biting their own tails. These bracelets were connected by chains of + precious stones, and so great was their weight that two attendants were + required to kneel beside Nyssia and support her elbows. She was clad in a + robe embroidered by Syrian workmen with shining designs of golden foliage + and diamond fruits, and over this she wore the short tunic of Persepolis, + which hardly descended to the knee, and of which the sleeves were slit and + fastened by sapphire clasps. Her waist was encircled from hip to loins by + a girdle wrought of narrow material, variegated with stripes and flowered + designs, which formed themselves into symmetrical patterns as they were + brought together by a certain arrangement of the folds which Indian girls + alone know how to make. Her trousers of byssus, which the Phoenicians + called <i>syndon</i> were confined at the ankles by anklets adorned with + gold and silver bells, and completed this toilet so fantastically rich and + wholly opposed to Greek taste. But, alas! a saffron-coloured <i>flammeum</i> + pitilessly masked the face of Nyssia, who seemed embarrassed, veiled + though she was, at finding so many eyes fixed upon her, and frequently + signed to a slave behind her to lower the parasol of ostrich plumes, and + thus conceal her yet more from the curious gaze of the crowd. + </p> + <p> + Candaules had vainly begged of her to lay aside her veil, even for that + solemn occasion. The young barbarian had refused to pay the welcome of her + beauty to his people. Great was the disappointment. Lamia declared that + Nyssia dared not uncover her face for fear of showing her double pupil. + The young libertine remained convinced that Theano of Colophon was more + beautiful than the queen of Sardes; and Gyges sighed when he beheld + Nyssia, after having made her elephant kneel down, descend upon the + inclined heads of Damascus slaves as upon a living ladder, to the + threshold of the royal dwelling, where the elegance of Greek architecture + was blended with the fantasies and enormities of Asiatic taste. + </p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + + <h2><a name="link2HCH0002" id="link2HCH0002"></a> + CHAPTER II + </h2> + <p> + In our character of poet we have the right to lift the saffron-coloured <i>flammeum</i> + which concealed the young bride, being more fortunate in this wise than + the Sardians, who after a whole day’s waiting were obliged to return to + their houses, and were left, as before, to their own conjectures. + </p> + <p> + Nyssia was really far superior to her reputation, great as it was. It + seemed as though Nature in creating her had resolved to exhaust her utmost + powers, and thus make atonement for all former experimental attempts and + fruitless essays. One would have said that, moved by jealousy of the + future marvels of the Greek sculptors, she also had resolved to model a + statue herself, and to prove that she was still sovereign mistress in the + plastic art. + </p> + <p> + The grain of snow, the micaceous brilliancy of Parian marble, the + sparkling pulp of balsamine flowers, would render but a feeble idea of the + ideal substance whereof. Nyssia had been formed. That flesh, so fine, so + delicate, permitted daylight to penetrate it, and modelled itself in + transparent contours, in lines as sweetly harmonious as music itself. + According to different surroundings, it took the colour of the sunlight or + of purple, like the aromal body of a divinity, and seemed to radiate light + and life. The world of perfections inclosed within the nobly lengthened + oval of her chaste face could have been rendered by no earthly art—neither + by the chisel of the sculptor, nor the brush of the painter, nor the style + of any poet—though it were Praxiteles, Apelles, or Mimnernus; and on + her smooth brow, bathed by waves of hair amber-bright as molten electrum + and sprinkled with gold filings, according to the Babylonian custom, sat + as upon a jasper throne the unalterable serenity of perfect loveliness. + </p> + <p> + As for her eyes, though they did not justify what popular credulity said + of them, they were at least wonderfully strange eyes; brown eyebrows, with + extremities ending in points elegant as those of the arrows of Eros, and + which were joined to each other by a streak of henna after the Asiatic + fashion, and long fringes of silkily-shadowed eyelashes contrasted + strikingly with the twin sapphire stars rolling in the heaven of dark + silver which formed those eyes. The irises of those eyes, whose pupils + were blacker than atrament, varied singularly in shades of shifting + colour. From sapphire they changed to turquoise, from turquoise to beryl, + from beryl to yellow amber, and sometimes, like a limpid lake whose bottom + is strewn with jewels, they offered, through their incalculable depths, + glimpses of golden and diamond sands upon which green fibrils vibrated and + twisted themselves into emerald serpents. In those orbs of phosphoric + lightning the rays of suns extinguished, the splendours of vanished + worlds, the glories of Olympus eclipsed—all seemed to have + concentrated their reflections. When contemplating them one thought of + eternity, and felt himself seized with a mighty giddiness, as though he + were leaning over the verge of the Infinite. + </p> + <p> + The expression of those extraordinary eyes was not less variable than + their tint. At times their lids opened like the portals of celestial + dwellings; they invited you into elysiums of light, of azure, of ineffable + felicity; they promised you the realisation, tenfold, a hundredfold, of + all your dreams of happiness, as though they had divined your soul’s most + secret thoughts; again, impenetrable as sevenfold plated shields of the + hardest metals, they flung back your gaze like blunted and broken arrows. + With a simple inflexion of the brow, a mere flash of the pupil, more + terrible than the thunder of Zeus, they precipitated you from the heights + of your most ambitious escalades into depths of nothingness so profound + that it was impossible to rise again. Typhon himself, who writhes under + Ætna, could not have lifted the mountains of disdain with which they + overwhelmed you. One felt that though he should live for a thousand + Olympiads endowed with the beauty of the fair son of Latona, the genius of + Orpheus, the unbounded might of Assyrian kings, the treasures of the + Cabeirei, the Telchines, and the Dactyli, gods of subterranean wealth, he + could never change their expression to mildness. + </p> + <p> + At other times their languishment was so liquidly persuasive, their + brilliancy and irradiation so penetrating, that the icy coldness of Nestor + and Priam would have melted under their gaze, like the wax of the wings of + Icarus when he approached the flaming zones. For one such glance a man + would have gladly steeped his hands in the blood of his host, scattered + the ashes of his father to the four winds, overthrown the holy images of + the gods, and stolen the fire of heaven itself, like the sublime thief, + Prometheus. + </p> + <p> + Nevertheless, their most ordinary expression, it must be confessed, was of + a chastity to make one desperate—a sublime coldness—an + ignorance of all possibilities of human passion, such as would have made + the moon-bright eyes of Phoebe or the sea-green eyes of Athena appear by + comparison more liquidly tempting than those of a young girl of Babylon + sacrificing to the goddess Mylitta within the cord-circled enclosure of + Succoth-Benohl. Their invincible virginity seemed to bid love defiance. + </p> + <p> + The cheeks of Nyssia, which no human gaze had ever profaned, save that of + Gyges on the day when the veil was blown away, possessed a youthful bloom, + a tender pallor, a delicacy of grain, and a downiness whereof the faces of + our women, perpetually exposed to sunlight and air, cannot convey the most + distant idea. Modesty created fleeting rosy clouds upon them like those + which a drop of crimson essence would form in a cup of milk, and when + uncoloured by any emotion they took a silvery sheen, a warm light, like an + alabaster vessel illumined by a lamp within. That lamp was her charming + soul, which exposed to view the transparency of her flesh. + </p> + <p> + A bee would have been deceived by her mouth, whose form was so perfect, + whose corners were so purely dimpled, whose crimson was so rich and warm + that the gods would have descended from their Olympian dwellings in order + to touch it with lips humid with immortality, but that the jealousy of the + goddesses restrained their impetuosity. Happy the wind which passed + through that purple and pearl, which dilated those pretty nostrils, so + finely cut and shaded with rosy tints like the mother-of-pearl of the + shells thrown by the sea on the shore of Cyprus at the feet of Venus + Anadyomene! But are there not a multitude of favours thus granted to + things which cannot understand them? What lover would not wish to be the + tunic of his well-beloved or the water of her bath? + </p> + <p> + Such was Nyssia, if we dare make use of the expression after so vague a + description of her face. If our foggy Northern idioms had the warm + liberty, the burning enthusiasm of the Sir Hasirim, we might, perhaps, by + comparisons—awakening in the mind of the reader memories of flowers + and perfumes, of music and sunlight, evoking, by the magic of words, all + the graceful and charming images that the universe can contain—have + been able to give some idea of Nyssia’s features; but it is permitted to + Solomon alone to compare the nose of a beautiful woman to the tower of + Lebanon which looketh toward Damascus. And yet what is there in the world + of more importance than the nose of a beautiful woman? Had Helen, the + white Tyndarid, been flat-nosed, would the Trojan War have taken place? + And if the profile of Semiramis had not been perfectly regular, would she + have bewitched the old monarch of Nineveh and encircled her brow with the + mitre of pearls, the symbol of supreme power? + </p> + <p> + Although Candaules had brought to his palace the most beautiful slaves + from the people of the Sorse, of Askalon, of Sogdiana, of the Sacse, of + Rhapta, the most celebrated courtesans from Ephesus, from Pergamus, from + Smyrna, and from Cyprus, he was completely fascinated by the charms of + Nyssia. Up to that time he had not even suspected the existence of such + perfection. + </p> + <p> + Privileged as a husband to enjoy fully the contemplation of this beauty, + he found himself dazzled, giddy, like one who leans over the edge of an + abyss, or fixes his eyes upon the sun; he felt himself seized, as it were, + with the dilirium of possession, like a priest drunk with the god who + fills and moves him. All other thoughts disappeared from his soul, and the + universe seemed to him only as a vague mist in the midst of which beamed + the shining phantom of Nyssia. His happiness transformed itself into + ecstasy, and his love into madness. At times his very felicity terrified + him. To be only a wretched king, only a remote descendant of a hero who + had become a god by mighty labours, only a common man formed of flesh and + bone, and without having in aught rendered himself worthy of it—without + having even, like his ancestor, strangled some hydra, or torn some lion + asunder—to enjoy a happiness whereof Zeus of the ambrosial hair + would scarce be worthy, though lord of all Olympus! He felt, as it were, a + shame to thus hoard up for himself alone so rich a treasure, to steal this + marvel from the world, to be the dragon with scales and claws who guarded + the living type of the ideal of lovers, sculptors, and poets. All they had + ever dreamed of in their hope, their melancholy, and their despair, he + possessed—he, Candaules, poor tyrant of Sardes, who had only a few + wretched coffers filled with pearls, a few cisterns filled with gold + pieces, and thirty or forty thousand slaves, purchased or taken in war. + </p> + <p> + Candaules’s felicity was too great for him, and the strength which he + would doubtless have found at his command in time of misfortune was + wanting to him in time of happiness. His joy overflowed from his soul like + water from a vase placed upon the fire, and in the exasperation of his + enthusiasm for Nyssia he had reached the point of desiring that she were + less timid and less modest, for it cost him no little effort to retain in + his own breast the secret of such wondrous beauty. + </p> + <p> + ‘Ah,’ he would murmur to himself during the deep reveries which absorbed + him at all hours that he did not spend at the queen’s side, ‘how strange a + lot is mine! I am wretched because of that which would make any other + husband happy. Nyssia will not leave the shadow of the gynaeceum, and + refuses, with barbarian modesty, to lift her veil in the presence of any + other than myself. Yet with what an intoxication of pride would my love + behold her, radiantly sublime, gaze down upon my kneeling people from the + summit of the royal steps, and, like the rising dawn, extinguish all those + pale stars who during the night thought themselves suns! Proud Lydian + women, who believe yourselves beautiful, but for Nyssia’s reserve you + would appear, even to your lovers, as ugly as the oblique-eyed and + thick-lipped slaves of Nahasi and Kush. Were she but once to pass along + the streets of Sardes with face unveiled, you might in vain pull your + adorers by the lappet of their tunic, for none of them would turn his + head, or, if he did, it would be to demand your name, so utterly would he + have forgotten you! They would rush to precipitate themselves beneath the + silver wheels of her chariot, that they might have even the pleasure of + being crushed by her, like those devotees of the Indus who pave the + pathway of their idol with their bodies. + </p> + <p> + ‘And you, O goddesses, whom Paris-Alexander judged, had Nyssia appeared + among you, not one of you would have borne away the golden apple, not even + Aphrodite, despite her cestus and her promise to the shepherd-arbiter that + she would make him beloved by the most beautiful woman in the world!... + </p> + <p> + ‘Alas! to think that such beauty is not immortal, and that years will + alter those divine outlines, that admirable hymn of forms, that poem whose + strophes are contours, and which no one in the world has ever read or may + ever read save myself; to be the sole depositary of so splendid a + treasure! If I knew even by imitating the play of light and shadow with + the aid of lines and colours, how to fix upon wood a reflection of that + celestial face; if marble were not rebellious to my chisel, how well would + I fashion in the purest vein of Paros or Pentelicus an image of that + charming body, which would make the proud effigies of the goddesses fall + from their altars! And long after, when deep below the slime of deluges, + and beneath the dust of ruined cities, the men of future ages should find + a fragment of that petrified shadow of Nyssia, they would cry: “Behold, + how the women of this vanished world were formed!” And they would erect a + temple wherein to enshrine the divine fragment. But I have naught save a + senseless admiration and a love that is madness! Sole adorer of an unknown + divinity, I possess no power to spread her worship through the world.’ + </p> + <p> + Thus in Candaules had the enthusiasm of the artist extinguished the + jealousy of the lover. Admiration was mightier than love. If in place of + Nyssia, daughter of the Satrap Megabazus, all imbued with Oriental ideas, + he had espoused some Greek girl from Athens or Corinth, he would certainly + have invited to his court the most skilful painters and sculptors, and + have given them the queen for their model, as did afterward Alexander his + favourite Campaspe, who posed naked before Apelles. Such a whim would have + encountered no opposition from a woman of the land where even the most + chaste made a boast of having contributed—some for the back, some + for the bosom—to the perfection of a famous statue. But hardly would + the bashful Nyssia consent to unveil herself in the discreet shadow of the + thalamus, and the earnest prayers of the king really shocked her rather + than gave her pleasure. The sentiment of duty and obedience alone induced + her to yield at times to what she styled the whims of Candaules. + </p> + <p> + Sometimes he besought her to allow the flood of her hair to flow over her + shoulders in a river of gold richer than the Pactolus, to encircle her + brow with a crown of ivy and linden leaves like a bacchante of Mount + Maenalus, to lie, hardly veiled by a cloud of tissue finer than woven + wind, upon a tiger-skin with silver claws and ruby eyes, or to stand erect + in a great shell of mother-of-pearl, with a dew of pearls falling from her + tresses in lieu of drops of sea-water. + </p> + <p> + When he had placed himself in the best position for observation, he became + absorbed in silent contemplation. His hand, tracing vague contours in the + air, seemed to be sketching the outlines for some picture, and he would + have remained thus for whole hours if Nyssia, soon becoming weary of her + rôle of model, had not reminded him in chill and disdainful tones that + such amusements were unworthy of royal majesty and contrary to the holy + laws of matrimony. ‘It is thus,’ she would exclaim, as she withdrew, + draped to her very eyes, into the most mysterious recesses of her + apartment, ‘that one treats a mistress, not a virtuous woman of noble + blood!’ + </p> + <p> + These wise remonstrances did not cure Candaules, whose passion augmented + in inverse ratio to the coldness shown him by the queen. And it had at + last brought him to that point that he could no longer keep the secrets of + the nuptial couch. A confidant became as necessary to him as to the prince + of a modern tragedy. He did not proceed, you may feel assured, to fix his + choice upon some crabbed philosopher of frowning mien, with a flood of + gray-and-white beard rolling down over a mantle in proud tatters; nor a + warrior who could talk of nothing save ballista, catapults, and scythed + chariots; nor a sententious Eupatrid full of councils and politic maxims; + but Gyges, whose reputation for gallantry caused him to be regarded as a + connoisseur in regard to women. + </p> + <p> + One evening he laid his hand upon his shoulder in a more than ordinarily + familiar and cordial manner, and after giving him a look of peculiar + significance, he suddenly strode away from the group of courtiers, saying + in a loud voice: + </p> + <p> + ‘Gyges, come and give me your opinion in regard to my effigy, which the + Sicyon sculptors have just finished chiselling on the genealogical + bas-relief where the deeds of my ancestors are celebrated.’ + </p> + <p> + ‘O king, your knowledge is greater than that of your humble subject, and I + know not how to express my gratitude for the honour you do me in deigning + to consult me,’ replied Gyges, with a sign of assent. + </p> + <p> + Candaules and his favourite traversed several halls ornamented in the + Hellenic style, where the Corinthian acanthus and the Ionic volute bloomed + or curled in the capitals of the columns, where the friezes were peopled + with little figures in polychromatic plastique representing processions + and sacrifices, and they finally arrived at a remote portion of the + ancient palace whose walls were built with stones of irregular form, put + together without cement in the cyclopean manner. This ancient architecture + was colossally proportioned and weirdly grim. The immeasurable genius of + the elder civilisations of the Orient was there legibly written, and + recalled the granite and brick debauches of Egypt and Assyria. Something + of the spirit of the ancient architects of the tower of Lylax survived in + those thick-set pillars with their deep-fluted trunks, whose capitals were + formed by four heads of bulls, placed forehead to forehead, and bound + together by knots of serpents that seemed striving to devour them, an + obscure cosmogonie symbol whereof the meaning was no longer intelligible, + and had descended into the tomb with the hierophants of preceding ages. + The gates were neither of a square nor rounded form. They described a sort + of ogive much resembling the mitre of the Magi, and by their fantastic + character gave still more intensity to the character of the building. + </p> + <p> + This portion of the palace formed a sort of court surrounded by a portico + whose architecture was ornamented with the genealogical bas-relief to + which Can-daules had alluded. + </p> + <p> + In the midst thereof sat Heracles upon a throne, with the upper part of + his body uncovered, and his feet resting upon a stool, according to the + rite for the representation of divine personages. His colossal proportions + would otherwise have left no doubt as to his apotheosis, and the archaic + rudeness and hugeness of the work, wrought by the chisel of some primitive + artist, imparted to his figure an air of barbaric majesty, a savage + grandeur more appropriate, perhaps, to the character of this + monster-slaying hero than would have been the work of a sculptor + consummate in his art. + </p> + <p> + On the right of the throne were Alcseus, son of the hero and of Omphale; + Ninus, Belus, Argon, the earlier kings of the dynasty of the Heracleidae, + then all the line of intermediate kings, terminating with Ardys, Alyattes, + Meles or Myrsus, father of Candaules, and finally Candaules himself. + </p> + <p> + All these personages, with their hair braided into little strings, their + beards spirally twisted, their oblique eyes, angular attitudes, cramped + and stiff gestures, seemed to own a sort of factitious life, due to the + rays of the setting sun, and the ruddy hue which time lends to marble in + warm climates. The inscriptions in antique characters, graven beside them + after the manner of legends, enhanced still more the mysterious weirdness + of the long procession of figures in strange barbarian garb. + </p> + <p> + By a singular chance, which Gyges could not help observing, the statue of + Candaules occupied the last available place at the right hand of Heracles; + the dynastic cycle was closed, and in order to find a place for the + descendants of Candaules it would be absolutely necessary to build a new + portico and commence the formation of a new bas-relief. + </p> + <p> + Candaules, whose arm still rested on the shoulder of Gyges, walked slowly + round the portico in silence. He seemed to hesitate to enter into the + subject, and had altogether forgotten the pretext under which he had led + the captain of his guards into that solitary place. + </p> + <p> + ‘What would you do, Gyges,’ said Candaules, at last breaking the silence + which had been growing painful to both, ‘if you were a diver, and should + bring up from the green bosom of the ocean a pearl of incomparable purity + and lustre, and of worth so vast as to exhaust the richest treasures of + the earth?’ + </p> + <p> + ‘I would inclose it,’ answered Gyges, a little surprised at this brusque + question, ‘in a cedar box overlaid with plates of brass, and I would bury + it under a detached rock in some desert place; and from time to time, when + I should feel assured that none could see me, I would go thither to + contemplate my precious jewel and admire the colours of the sky mingling + with its nacreous tints.’ + </p> + <p> + ‘And I,’ replied Candaules, his eye illuminated with enthusiasm, ‘if I + possessed so rich a gem, I would enshrine it in my diadem, that I might + exhibit it freely to the eyes of all men, in the pure light of the sun, + that I might adorn myself with its splendour and smile with pride when I + should hear it said: “Never did king of Assyria or Babylon, never did + Greek or Trinacrian tyrant possess so lustrous a pearl as Candaules, son + of Myrsus and descendant of Heracles, King of Sardes and of Lydia! + Compared with Candaules, Midas, who changed all things to gold, were only + a mendicant as poor as Irus.”’ + </p> + <p> + Gyges listened with astonishment to this discourse of Candaules, and + sought to penetrate the hidden sense of these lyric divagations. The king + appeared to be in a state of extraordinary excitement: his eyes sparkled + with enthusiasm; a feverish rosiness tinted his cheeks; his dilated + nostrils inhaled the air with unusual effort. + </p> + <p> + ‘Well, Gyges,’ continued Candaules, without appearing to notice the + uneasiness of his favourite, ‘I am that diver. Amid this dark ocean of + humanity, wherein confusedly move so many defective or misshapen beings, + so many forms incomplete or degraded, so many types of bestial ugliness, + wretched outlines of nature’s experimental essays, I have found beauty, + pure, radiant, without spot, without flaw, the ideal made real, the dream + accomplished, a form which no painter or sculptor has ever been able to + translate upon canvas or into marble—I have found Nyssia!’ + </p> + <p> + ‘Although the queen has the timid modesty of the women of the Orient, and + that no man save her husband has ever beheld her features, Fame, + hundred-tongued and hundred-eared, has celebrated her praise throughout + the world,’ answered Gyges, respectfully inclining his head as he spoke. + </p> + <p> + ‘Mere vague, insignificant rumours. They say of her, as of all women not + actually ugly, that she is more beautiful than Aphrodite or Helen; but no + person could form even the most remote idea of such perfection. In vain + have I besought Nyssia to appear unveiled at some public festival, some + solemn sacrifice, or to show herself for an instant leaning over the royal + terrace, bestowing upon her people the immense favour of one look, the + prodigality of one profile view, more generous than the goddesses who + permit their worshippers to behold only pale simulacra of ivory or + alabaster. She would never consent to that. Now there is one strange thing + which I blush to acknowledge even to you, dear Gyges. Formerly I was + jealous; I wished to conceal my amours from all eyes, no shadow was thick + enough, no mystery sufficiently impenetrable. Now I can no longer + recognise myself. I have the feelings neither of a lover nor a husband; my + love has melted in adoration like thin wax in a fiery brazier. All petty + feelings of jealousy or possession have vanished. No, the most finished + work that heaven has ever given to earth, since the day that Prometheus + held the flame under the right breast of the statue of clay, cannot thus + be kept hidden in the chill shadow of the gynaeceum. Were I to die, then + the secret of this beauty would for ever remain shrouded beneath the + sombre draperies of widowhood! I feel myself culpable in its concealment, + as though I had the sun in my house, and prevented it from illuminating + the world. And when I think of those harmonious lines, those divine + contours which I dare scarcely touch with a timid kiss, I feel my heart + ready to burst; I wish that some friendly eye could share my happiness + and, like a severe judge to whom a picture is shown, recognise after + careful examination that it is irreproachable, and that the possessor has + not been deceived by his enthusiasm. Yes, often do I feel myself tempted + to tear off with rash hand those odious tissues, but Nyssia, in her fierce + chastity, would never forgive me. And still I cannot alone endure such + felicity. I must have a confidant for my ecstasies, an echo which will + answer my cries of admiration, and it shall be none other than you.’ + </p> + <p> + Having uttered these words, Candaules brusquely turned and disappeared + through a secret passage. Gyges, left thus alone, could not avoid noticing + the peculiar concourse of events which seemed to place him always in + Nyssia’s path. A chance had enabled him to behold her beauty, though + walled up from all other eyes. Among many princes and satraps she had + chosen to espouse Candaules, the very king he served; and through some + strange caprice, which he could only regard as fateful, this king had just + made him, Gyges, his confidant in regard to the mysterious creature whom + none else had approached, and absolutely sought to complete the work of + Boreas on the plain of Bactria! Was not the hand of the gods visible in + all these circumstances? That spectre of beauty, whose veil seemed to be + lifted slowly, a little at a time, as though to enkindle a flame within + him, was it not leading him, without his having suspected it, toward the + accomplishment of some mighty destiny? Such were the questions which Gyges + asked himself, but being unable to penetrate the obscurity of the future, + he resolved to await the course of events, and left the Court of Images, + where the twilight darkness was commencing to pile itself up in all the + angles, and to render the effigies of the ancestors of Candaules yet more + and more weirdly menacing. + </p> + <p> + Was it a mere effort of light, or was it rather an illusion produced by + that vague uneasiness with which the boldest hearts are filled by the + approach of night amid ancient monuments? As he stepped across the + threshold Gyges fancied that he heard deep groans issue from the stone + lips of the bas-reliefs, and it seemed to him that Heracles was making + enormous efforts to loosen his granite club. + </p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + + <h2><a name="link2HCH0003" id="link2HCH0003"></a> + CHAPTER III + </h2> + <p> + On the following day Candaules again took Gyges aside and continued the + conversation begun under the portico of the Heracleidæ. Having freed + himself from the embarrassment of broaching the subject, he freely + unbosomed himself to his confidant; and had Nyssia been able to overhear + him she might perhaps have been willing to pardon his conjugal + indiscretions for the sake of his passionate eulogies of her charms. + </p> + <p> + Gyges listened to all these bursts of praise with the slightly constrained + air of one who is yet uncertain whether his interlocutor is not feigning + an enthusiasm more ardent than he actually feels, in order to provoke a + confidence naturally cautious to utter itself. Can-daules at last said to + him in a tone of disappointment: ‘I see, Gyges, that you do not believe + me. You think I am boasting, or have allowed myself to be fascinated like + some clumsy labourer by a robust country girl on whose cheeks Hygeia has + crushed the gross hues of health. No, by all the gods! I have collected + within my home, like a living bouquet, the fairest flowers of Asia and of + Greece. I know all that the art of sculptors and painters has produced + since the time of Daedalus, whose statues walked and spoke. Linus, + Orpheus, Homer, have taught me harmony and rhythm. I do not look about me + with Love’s bandage blindfolding my eyes. I judge of all things coolly. + The passions of youth never influence my admiration, and when I am as + withered, decrepit, wrinkled, as Tithonus in his swaddling bands, my + opinion will be still the same. But I forgive your incredulity and want of + sympathy. In order to understand me fully, it is necessary that you should + see Nyssia in the radiant brilliancy of her shining whiteness, free from + jealous drapery, even as Nature with her own hands moulded her in a lost + moment of inspiration which never can return. This evening I will hide you + in a corner of the bridal chamber... you shall see her!’ + </p> + <p> + ‘Sire, what do you ask of me?’ returned the young warrior with respectful + firmness. ‘How shall I, from the depths of my dust, from the abyss of my + nothingness, dare to raise my eyes to this sun of perfections, at the risk + of remaining blind for the rest of my life, or being able to see naught + but a dazzling spectre in the midst of darkness? Have pity on your humble + slave, and do not compel him to an action so contrary to the maxims of + virtue. No man should look upon what does not belong to him. We know that + the immortals always punish those who through imprudence or audacity + surprise them in their divine nudity. Nyssia is the loveliest of all + women; you are the happiest of lovers and husbands. Heracles, your + ancestor, never found in the course of his many conquests aught to compare + with your queen. If you, the prince of whom even the most skilful artists + seek judgment and counsel—if you find her incomparable, of what + consequence can the opinion of an obscure soldier like me be to you? + Abandon, therefore, this fantasy, which I presume to say is unworthy of + your royal majesty, and of which you would repent so soon as it had been + satisfied.’ + </p> + <p> + ‘Listen, Gyges,’ returned Candaules; ‘I perceive that you suspect me; you + think that I seek to put you to some proof, but by the ashes of that + funeral pyre whence my ancestor arose a god, I swear to you that I speak + frankly and without any after-purpose.’ + </p> + <p> + ‘O Candaules, I doubt not of your good faith; your passion is sincere, but + perchance, after I should have obeyed you, you would conceive a deep + aversion to me, and learn to hate me for not having more firmly resisted + your will. You would seek to take back from these eyes, indiscreet through + compulsion, the image which you allowed them to glance upon in a moment of + delirium; and who knows but that you would condemn them to the eternal + night of the tomb to punish them for remaining open at a moment when they + ought to have been closed.’ + </p> + <p> + ‘Fear nothing; I pledge my royal word that no evil shall befall you.’ + </p> + <p> + ‘Pardon your slave if he still dares to offer some objection, even after + such a promise. Have you reflected that what you propose to me is a + violation of the sanctity of marriage, a species of visual adultery? A + woman often lays aside her modesty with her garments; and once violated by + a look, without having actually ceased to be virtuous, she might deem that + she had lost her flower of purity. You promise, indeed, to feel no + resentment against me; but who can ensure me against the wrath of Nyssia, + she who is so reserved and chaste, so apprehensive, fierce, and virginal + in her modesty that she might be deemed still ignorant of the laws of + Hymen? Should she ever learn of the sacrilege which I am about to render + myself guilty of in deferring to my master’s wishes, what punishment would + she condemn me to suffer in expiation of such a crime? Who could place me + beyond the reach of her avenging anger?’ + </p> + <p> + ‘I did not know you were so wise and prudent,’ said Candaules, with a + slightly ironical smile; ‘but such dangers are all imaginary, and I shall + hide you in such a way that Nyssia will never know she has been seen by + any one except her royal husband.’ + </p> + <p> + Being unable to offer any further defence, Gyges made a sign of assent in + token of complete submission to the king’s will. He had made all the + resistance in his power, and thenceforward his conscience could feel at + ease in regard to whatever might happen; besides, by any further + opposition to the will of Candaules, he would have feared to oppose + destiny itself, which seemed striving to bring him still nearer to Nyssia + for some grim ulterior purpose into which it was not given to him to see + further. + </p> + <p> + Without actually being able to foresee any result, he beheld a thousand + vague and shadowy images passing before his eyes. That subterranean love, + so long crouched at the foot of his soul’s stairway, had climbed a few + steps higher, guided by some fitful glimmer of hope. The weight of the + impossible no longer pressed so heavily upon his breast, now that he + believed himself aided by the gods. In truth, who would have dreamed that + the much-boasted charms of the daughter of Megabazus would ere long cease + to own any mystery for Gyges? + </p> + <p> + ‘Come, Gyges,’ said Candaules, taking him by the hand, ‘let us make profit + of the time. Nyssia is walking in the garden with her women; let us look + at the place, and plan our stratagems for this evening.’ + </p> + <p> + The king took his confidant by the hand and led him along the winding ways + which conducted to the nuptial apartment. The doors of the sleeping-room + were made of cedar planks so perfectly put together that it was impossible + to discover the joints. By dint of rubbing them with wool steeped in oil, + the slaves had rendered the wood as polished as marble. The brazen nails, + with heads cut in facets, which studded them, had all the brilliancy of + the purest gold. A complicated system of straps and metallic rings, + whereof Candaules and his wife alone knew the combination, served to + secure them, for in those heroic ages the locksmith’s art was yet in its + infancy. + </p> + <p> + Candaules unloosed the knots, made the rings slide back upon the thongs, + raised with a handle which fitted into a mortise the bar that fastened the + door from within, and bidding Gyges place himself against the wall, turned + back one of the folding-doors upon him in such a way as to hide him + completely; yet the door did not fit so perfectly to its frame of oaken + beams, all carefully polished and put up according to line by a skilful + workman, that the young warrior could not obtain a distinct view of the + chamber interior through the interstices contrived to give room for the + free play of the hinges. + </p> + <p> + Facing the entrance, the royal bed stood upon an estrade of several steps, + covered with purple drapery. Columns of chased silver supported the + entablature, all ornamented with foliage wrought in relief, amid which + Loves were sporting with dolphins, and heavy curtains embroidered with + gold surrounded it like the folds of a tent. + </p> + <p> + Upon the altar of the household gods were placed vases of precious metal, + paterae enamelled with flowers, double-handled cups, and all things + needful for libations. + </p> + <p> + Along the walls, which were faced with planks of cedar-wood, marvellously + worked, at regular intervals stood tall statues of black basalt in the + constrained attitudes of Egyptian art, each sustaining in its hand a + bronze torch into which a splinter of resinous wood had been fitted. + </p> + <p> + An onyx lamp, suspended by a chain of silver, hung from that beam of the + ceiling which is called the black beam, because more exposed than the + others to the embrowning smoke. Every evening a slave carefully filled + this lamp with odoriferous oil. + </p> + <p> + Near the head of the bed, on a little column, hung a trophy of arms, + consisting of a visored helmet, a twofold buckler made of four bulls’ + hides and covered with plates of brass and tin, a two-edged sword, and + several ashen javelins with brazen heads. + </p> + <p> + The tunics and mantles of Candaules were hung upon wooden pegs. They + comprised garments both simple and double; that is, capable of going twice + around the body. A mantle of thrice-dyed purple, ornamented with + embroidery representing a hunting scene wherein Laconian hounds were + pursuing and tearing deer, and a tunic whereof the material, fine and + delicate as the skin which envelops an onion had all the sheen of woven + sunbeams, were especially noticeable. Opposite to the trophy stood an + armchair inlaid with silver and ivory upon which Nyssia hung her garments. + Its seat was covered with a leopard skin more eye-spotted than the body of + Argus, and its foot-support was richly adorned with openwork carving. + </p> + <p> + ‘I am generally the first to retire,’ observed Candaules to Gyges, ‘and I + always leave this door open as it is now. Nyssia, who has invariably some + tapestry flower to finish, or some order to give her women, usually delays + a little in joining me; but at last she comes, and slowly takes off, one + by one, as though the effort cost her dearly, and lays upon that ivory + chair, all those draperies and tunics which by day envelop her like mummy + bandages. From your hiding-place you will be able to follow all her + graceful movements, admire her unrivalled charms, and judge for yourself + whether Candaules be a young fool prone to vain boasting, or whether he + does not really possess the richest pearl of beauty that ever adorned a + diadem.’ + </p> + <p> + ‘O King, I can well believe your words without such a proof as this,’ + replied Gyges, stepping forth from his hiding-place. ‘When she has laid + aside her garments,’ continued Candaules, without heeding the exclamation + of his confidant, ‘she will come to lie down with me. You must take + advantage of the moment to steal away, for in passing from the chair to + the bed she turns her back to the door. Step lightly as though you were + treading upon ears of ripe wheat; take heed that no grain of sand squeaks + under your sandals; hold your breath, and retire as stealthily as + possible. The vestibule is all in darkness, and the feeble rays of the + only lamp which remains burning do not penetrate beyond the threshold of + the chamber. It is, therefore, certain that Nyssia cannot possibly see + you; and to-morrow there will be some one in the world who can comprehend + my ecstasies, and will feel no longer astonished at my bursts of + admiration. But see, the day is almost spent; the Sun will soon water his + steeds in the Hesperian waves at the further end of the world, and beyond + the Pillars erected by my ancestors. Return to your hiding-place, Gyges, + and though the hours of waiting may seem long, I can swear by Eros of the + Golden Arrows that you will not regret having waited.’ + </p> + <p> + After this assurance Candaules left Gyges again hidden behind the door. + ‘The compulsory quiet which the king’s young confidant found himself + obliged to maintain left him ample leisure for thought. His situation was + certainly a most extraordinary one. He had loved Nyssia as one loves a + star. Convinced of the hopelessness of the undertaking, he had made no + effort to approach her. And, nevertheless, by a succession of + extraordinary events he was about to obtain a knowledge of treasures + reserved for lovers and husbands only. Not a word, not a glance had been + exchanged between himself and Nyssia, who probably ignored the very + existence of the one being for whom her beauty would so soon cease to be a + mystery. Unknown to her whose modesty would have naught to sacrifice for + you, how strange a situation! To love a woman in secret and find oneself + led by her husband to the threshold of the nuptial chamber, to have for + guide to that treasure the very dragon who should defend all approach to + it, was there not in all this ample food for astonishment and wonder at + the combination of events wrought by destiny? + </p> + <p> + In the midst of these reflections, he suddenly heard the sound of + footsteps on the pavement. It was only the slaves coming to replenish the + oil in the lamp, throw fresh perfumes upon the coals of the kamklins, and + arrange the purple and saffron-tinted sheepskins which formed the royal + bed. + </p> + <p> + The hour approached, and Gyges felt his heart beat faster, and the + pulsation of his arteries quicken. He even felt a strong impulse to steal + away before the arrival of the queen, and, after averring subsequently to + Candaules that he had remained, abandon himself confidently to the most + extravagant eulogiums. He felt a strong repugnance (for, despite his + somewhat free life, Gyges was not without delicacy) to take by stealth a + favour for the free granting of which he would gladly have paid with his + life. The husband’s complicity rendered this theft more odious in a + certain sense, and he would have preferred to owe to any other + circumstance the happiness of beholding the marvel of Asia in her + nocturnal toilet. Perhaps, indeed, the approach of danger, let us + acknowledge as veracious historians, had no little to do with his virtuous + scruples. Undoubtedly Gyges did not lack courage. Mounted upon his + war-chariot, with quiver rattling upon his shoulder, and bow in hand, he + would have defied the most valiant warriors; in the chase he would have + attacked without fear the Calydon boar or the Nemean lion; but—explain + the enigma as you will—he trembled at the idea of looking at a + beautiful woman through a chink in a door. No one possesses every kind of + courage. He felt likewise that he could not behold Nyssia with impunity. + It would be a decisive epoch in his life. Through having obtained but a + momentary glimpse of her he had lost all peace of mind; what, then, would + be the result of that which was about to take place? Could life itself + continue for him when to that divine head which fired his dreams should be + added a charming body formed for the kisses of the immortals? What would + become of him should he find himself unable thereafter to contain his + passion in darkness and silence as he had done till that time? Would he + exhibit to the court of Lydia the ridiculous spectacle of an insane love, + or would he strive by some extravagant action to bring down upon himself + the disdainful pity of the queen? Such a result was strongly probable, + since the reason of Candaules himself, the legitimate possessor of Nyssia, + had been unable to resist the vertigo caused by that superhuman beauty—he, + the thoughtless young king who till then had laughed at love, and + preferred pictures and statues before all things. These arguments were + very rational but wholly useless, for at the same moment Candaules entered + the chamber, and exclaimed in a low but distinct voice as he passed the + door: + </p> + <p> + ‘Patience, my poor Gyges, Nyssia will soon come.’ When he saw that he + could no longer retreat, Gyges, who was but a young man after all, forgot + every other consideration, and no longer thought of aught save the + happiness of feasting his eyes upon the charming spectacle which Candaules + was about to offer him. One cannot demand from a captain of twenty-five + the austerity of a hoary philosopher. + </p> + <p> + At last a low whispering of raiment sweeping and trailing over marble, + distinctly audible in the deep silence of the night, announced the + approach of the queen. In effect it was she. With a step as cadenced and + rhythmic as an ode, she crossed the threshold of the thalamus, and the + wind of her veil with its floating folds almost touched the burning cheek + of Gyges, who felt wellnigh on the point of fainting, and found himself + compelled to seek the support of the wall; but soon recovering from the + violence of his emotions, he approached the chink of the door, and took + the most favourable position for enabling him to lose nothing of the scene + whereof he was about to be an invisible witness. + </p> + <p> + Nyssia advanced to the ivory chair and commenced to detach the pins, + terminated by hollow balls of gold, which fastened her veil upon her head; + and Gyges from the depths of the shadow-filled angle where he stood + concealed could examine at his ease the proud and charming face of which + he had before obtained only a hurried glimpse; that rounded neck, at once + delicate and powerful, whereon Aphrodite had traced with the nail of her + little finger those three faint lines which are still at this very day + known as the ‘necklace of Venus’; that white nape on whose alabaster + surface little wild rebellious curls were disporting and entwining + themselves; those silver shoulders, half rising from the opening of the + chlamys, like the moon’s disc emerging from an opaque cloud. Candaules, + half reclining upon his cushions, gazed with fondness upon his wife, and + thought to himself: ‘Now Gyges, who is so cold, so difficult to please, + and so sceptical, must be already half convinced.’ + </p> + <p> + Opening a little coffer which stood on a table supported by one leg + terminating in carven lion’s paws, the queen freed her beautiful arms from + the weight of the bracelets and jewellery wherewith they had been + overburdened during the day—arms whose form and whiteness might well + have enabled them to compare with those of Hera, sister and wife of Zeus, + the lord of Olympus. Precious as were her jewels, they were assuredly not + worth the spots which they concealed, and had Nyssia been a coquette, one + might have well supposed that she only donned them in order that she + should be entreated to take them off. The rings and chased work had left + upon her skin, fine and tender as the interior pulp of a lily, light rosy + imprints, which she soon dissipated by rubbing them with her little + taper-fingered hand, all rounded and slender at its extremities. + </p> + <p> + Then with the movement of a dove trembling in the snow of its feathers, + she shook her hair, which being no longer held by the golden pins, rolled + down in languid spirals like hyacinth flowers over her back and bosom. + Thus she remained for a few moments ere reassembling the scattered curls + and finally re-uniting them into one mass. It was marvellous to watch the + blond ringlets streaming like jets of liquid gold between the silver of + her fingers; and her arms undulating like swans’ necks as they were arched + above her head in the act of twisting and confining the natural bullion. + If you have ever by chance examined one of those beautiful Etruscan vases + with red figures on a black ground, and decorated with one of those + subjects which are designated under the title of ‘Greek Toilette,’ then + you will have some idea of the grace of Nyssia in that attitude which, + from the age of antiquity to our own era, has furnished such a multitude + of happy designs for painters and statuaries. + </p> + <p> + Having thus arranged her coiffure, she seated herself upon the edge of the + ivory footstool and commenced to untie the little bands which fastened her + buskins. We moderns, owing to our horrible system of footgear, which is + hardly less absurd than the Chinese shoe, no longer know what a foot is. + That of Nyssia was of a perfection rare even in Greece and antique Asia. + The great toe, a little apart like the thumb of a bird, the other toes, + slightly long, and all ranged in charming symmetry, the nails well shaped + and brilliant as agates, the ankles well rounded and supple, the heel + slightly tinted with a rosy hue—nothing was wanting to the + perfection of the little member. The leg attached to this foot, and which + gleamed like polished marble under the lamp-light, was irreproachable in + the purity of its outlines and the grace of its curves. + </p> + <p> + Gyges, lost in contemplation, though all the while fully comprehending the + madness of Candaules, said to himself that had the gods bestowed such a + treasure upon him he would have known how to keep it to himself. + </p> + <p> + ‘Well, Nyssia, are you not coming to sleep with me?’ exclaimed Candaules, + seeing that the queen was not hurrying herself in the least, and feeling + desirous to abridge the watch of Gyges. + </p> + <p> + ‘Yes, my dear lord, I will soon be ready,’ answered Nyssia. + </p> + <p> + And she detached the cameo which fastened the peplum upon her shoulder. + There remained only the tunic to let fall. Gyges, behind the door, felt + his veins hiss through his temples; his heart beat so violently that he + feared it must make itself heard in the chamber, and to repress its fierce + pulsations he pressed his hand upon his bosom; and when Nyssia, with a + movement of careless grace, unfastened the girdle of her tunic, he thought + his knees would give way beneath him. + </p> + <p> + Nyssia—was it an instinctive presentiment, or was her skin, + virginally pure from profane looks, so delicately magnetic in its + susceptibility that it could feel the rays of a passionate eye though that + eye was invisible?—Nyssia hesitated to strip herself of that tunic, + the last rampart of her modesty. Twice or thrice her shoulders, her bosom, + and bare arms shuddered with a nervous chill, as though they had been + suddenly grazed by the wings of a nocturnal butterfly, or as though an + insolent lip had dared to touch them in the darkness. + </p> + <p> + At last, seeming to nerve herself for a sudden resolve she doffed the + tunic in its turn; and the white poem of her divine body suddenly appeared + in all its splendour, like the statue of a goddess unveiled on the day of + a temple’s inauguration. Shuddering with pleasure the light glided and + gloated over those exquisite forms, and covered them with timid kisses, + profiting by an occasion, alas, rare indeed! The rays scattered through + the chamber, disdaining to illuminate golden arms, jewelled clasps, or + brazen tripods, all concentrated themselves upon Nyssia, and left all + other objects in obscurity. Were we Greeks of the age of Pericles we might + at our ease eulogise those beautiful serpentine lines, those polished + flanks, those elegant curves, those breasts which might have served as + moulds for the cup of Hebe; but modern prudery forbids such descriptions, + for the pen cannot find pardon for what is permitted to the chisel; and + besides, there are some things which can be written of only in marble. + </p> + <p> + Candaules smiled in proud satisfaction. With a rapid step, as though + ashamed of being so beautiful, for she was only the daughter of a man and + a woman, Nyssia approached the bed, her arms folded upon her bosom; but + with a sudden movement she turned round ere taking her place upon the + couch beside her royal spouse, and beheld through the aperture of the door + a gleaming eye flaming like the carbuncle of Oriental legend; for if it + were false that she had a double pupil, and that she possessed the stone + which is found in the heads of dragons, it was at least true that her + green glance penetrated darkness like the glaucous eye of the cat and + tiger. + </p> + <p> + A cry, like that of a fawn who receives an arrow in her flank while + tranquilly dreaming among the leafy shadows, was on the point of bursting + from her lips, yet she found strength to control herself, and lay down + beside Candaules, cold as a serpent, with the violets of death upon her + cheeks and lips. Not a muscle of her limbs quivered, not a fibre of her + body palpitated, and soon her slow, regular breathing seemed to indicate + that Morpheus had distilled his poppy juice upon her eyelids. + </p> + <p> + She had divined and comprehended all. + </p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + + <h2><a name="link2HCH0004" id="link2HCH0004"></a> + CHAPTER IV + </h2> + <p> + Gyges, trembling and distracted with passion, had retired, following + exactly the instructions of Candaules; and if Nyssia, through some + unfortunate chance, had not turned her head ere taking her place upon the + couch, and perceived him in the act of taking flight, doubtless she would + have remained for ever unconscious of the outrage done to her charms by a + husband more passionate than scrupulous. + </p> + <p> + Accustomed to the winding corridors of the palace, the young warrior had + no difficulty in finding his way out. He passed through the city at a + reckless pace like a madman escaped from Anticyra, and by making himself + known to the sentinels who guarded the ramparts, he had the gates opened + for him and gained the fields beyond. His brain burned, his cheeks flamed + as with the fires of fever; his breath came hotly panting through his + lips; he flung himself down upon the meadow-sod humid with the tears of + the night; and at last hearing in the darkness, through the thick grass + and water-plants, the silvery respiration of a Naiad, he dragged himself + to the spring, plunged his hands and arms into the crystal flood, bathed + his face, and drank several mouthfuls of the water in the hope to cool the + ardour which was devouring him. Any one who could have seen him thus + hopelessly bending over the spring in the feeble starlight would have + taken him for Narcissus pursuing his own shadow; but it was not of himself + assuredly that Gyges was enamoured. + </p> + <p> + The rapid apparition of Nyssia had dazzled his eyes like the keen zigzag + of a lightning flash. He beheld her floating before him in a luminous + whirlwind, and felt that never through all his life could he banish that + image from his vision. His love had grown to vastness; its flower had + suddenly burst, like those plants which open their blossoms with a clap of + thunder. To master his passion were henceforth a thing impossible: as well + counsel the empurpled waves which Poseidon lifts with his trident to lie + tranquilly in their bed of sand and cease to foam upon the rocks of the + shore. Gyges was no longer master of himself, and he felt a miserable + despair, as of a man riding in a chariot, who finds his terrified and + uncontrollable horses rushing with all the speed of a furious gallop + toward some rock-bristling precipice. A hundred thousand projects, each + wilder than the last, whirled confusedly through his brain. He blasphemed + Destiny, he cursed his mother for having given him life, and the gods that + they had not caused him to be born to a throne, for then he might have + been able to espouse the daughter of the satrap. + </p> + <p> + A frightful agony gnawed at his heart; he was jealous of the king. From + the moment of the tunic’s fall at the feet of Nyssia, like the flight of a + white dove alighting upon a meadow, it had seemed to him that she belonged + to him; he deemed himself despoiled of his wealth by Candaules. In all his + amorous reveries he had never until then thought of the husband; he had + thought of the queen only as of a pure abstraction, without representing + to himself in fancy all those intimate details of conjugal familiarity, so + poignant, so bitter for those who love a woman in the power of another. + Now he had beheld Nyssia’s blond head bending like a blossom beside the + dark head of Candaules. The very thought of it had inflamed his anger to + the highest degree, although a moment’s reflection should have convinced + him that things could not have come to pass otherwise, and he felt growing + within him a most unjust hatred against his master. The act of having + compelled his presence at the queen’s dishabille seemed to him a barbarous + irony, an odious refinement of cruelty, for he did not remember that his + love for her could not have been known by the king, who had sought in him + only a confidant of easy morals and a connoisseur in beauty. That which he + ought to have regarded as a great favour affected him like a mortal injury + for which he was meditating vengeance. While thinking that to-morrow the + same scene of which he had been a mute and invisible witness would + infallibly renew itself, his tongue clove to his palate, his forehead + became imbeaded with drops of cold sweat, and his hand convulsively + grasped the hilt of his great double-edged sword. + </p> + <p> + Nevertheless, thanks to the freshness of the night, that excellent + counsellor, he became a little calmer, and returned to Sardes before the + morning light had become bright enough to enable a few early rising + citizens and slaves to notice the pallor of his brow and the disorder of + his apparel. He betook himself to his regular post at the palace, well + suspecting that Can-daules would shortly send for him; and, however + violent the agitation of his feelings, he felt he was not powerful enough + to brave the anger of the king, and could in no way escape submitting + again to this rôle of confidant, which could thenceforth only inspire him + with horror. Having arrived at the palace, he seated himself upon the + steps of the cypress-panelled vestibule, leaned his back against a column, + and, under the pretext of being fatigued by the long vigil under arms, he + covered his head with his mantle and feigned sleep, to avoid answering the + questions of the other guards. + </p> + <p> + If the night had been terrible to Gyges, it had not been less so to + Nyssia, as she never for an instant doubted that he had been purposely + hidden there by Candaules. The king’s persistency in begging her not to + veil so austerely a face which the gods had made for the admiration of + men, his evident vexation upon her refusal to appear in Greek costume at + the sacrifices and public solemnities, his unsparing raillery at what he + termed her barbarian shyness, all tended to convince her that the young + Heracleid had sought to admit some one into those mysteries which should + remain secret to all, for without his encouragement no man could have + dared to risk himself in an undertaking the discovery of which would have + resulted in the punishment of a speedy death. + </p> + <p> + How slowly did the black hours seem to her to pass! How anxiously did she + await the coming of dawn to mingle its bluish tints with the yellow gleams + of the almost exhausted lamp! It seemed to her that Apollo would never + mount his chariot again, and that some invisible hand was sustaining the + sand of the hourglass in air. Though brief as any other, that night seemed + to her like the Cimmerian nights, six long months of darkness. + </p> + <p> + While it lasted she lay motionless and rigid at full length on the very + edge of her couch in dread of being touched by Candaules. If she had not + up to that night felt a very strong love for the son of Myrsus, she had, + at least, ever exhibited toward him that grave and serene tenderness which + every virtuous woman entertains for her husband, although the altogether + Greek freedom of his morals frequently displeased her, and though he + entertained ideas at variance with her own in regard to modesty; but after + such an affront she could only feel the chilliest hatred and most icy + contempt for him; she would have preferred even death to one of his + caresses. Such an outrage it was impossible to forgive, for among the + barbarians, and above all among the Persians and Bactrians, it was held a + great disgrace, not for women only, but even for men, to be seen without + their garments. + </p> + <p> + At length Candaules arose, and Nyssia, awaking from her simulated sleep, + hurried from that chamber now profaned in her eyes as though it had served + for the nocturnal orgies of Bacchantes and courtesans. It was agony for + her to breathe that impure air any longer, and that she might freely give + herself up to her grief she took refuge in the upper apartments reserved + for the women, summoned her slaves by clapping her hands, and poured ewers + of water over her shoulders, her bosom, and her whole body, as though + hoping by this species of lustral ablution to efface the soil imprinted by + the eyes of Gyges. She would have voluntarily torn, as it were, from her + body that skin upon which the rays shot from a burning pupil seemed to + have left their traces. Taking from the hands of her waiting-women the + thick downy materials which served to drink up the last pearls of the + bath, she wiped herself with such violence that a slight purple cloud rose + to the spots she had rubbed. + </p> + <p> + ‘In vain,’ she exclaimed, letting the damp tissues fall, and dismissing + her attendants—‘in vain would I pour over myself all the waters of + all the springs and the rivers; the ocean with all its bitter gulfs could + not purify me. Such a stain may be washed out only with blood. Oh, that + look, that look! It has incrusted itself upon me; it clasps me, covers me, + burns me like the tunic dipped in the blood of Nessus; I feel it beneath + my draperies, like an envenomed tissue which nothing can detach from my + body! Now, indeed, would I vainly pile garments upon garments, select + materials the least transparent, and the thickest of mantles. I would none + the less bear upon my naked flesh this infamous robe woven by one + adulterous and lascivious glance. Vainly, since the hour when I issued + from the chaste womb of my mother, have I been brought up in private, + enveloped, like Isis, the Egyptian goddess, with a veil of which none + might have lifted the hem without paying for his audacity with his life. + In vain have I remained guarded from all evil desires, from all profane + imaginings, unknown of men, virgin as the snow on which the eagle himself + could not imprint the seal of his talons, so loftily does the mountain + which it covers lift its head in the pure and icy air. The depraved + caprice of a Lydian Greek has sufficed to make me lose in a single + instant, without any guilt of mine, all the fruit of long years of + precaution and reserve. Innocent and dishonoured, hidden from all yet made + public to all... this is the lot to which Candaules has condemned me. Who + can assure me that, at this very moment, Gyges is not in the act of + discoursing upon my charms with some soldiers at the very threshold of the + palace? Oh shame! Oh infamy! Two men have beheld me naked and yet at this + instant enjoy the sweet light of the sun! In what does Nyssia now differ + from the most shameless hetaira, from the vilest of courtesans? This body + which I have striven to render worthy of being the habitation of a pure + and noble soul, serves for a theme of conversation; it is talked of like + some lascivious idol brought from Sicyon or from Corinth; it is commended + or found fault with. The shoulder is perfect, the arm is charming, perhaps + a little thin—what know I? All the blood of my heart leaps to my + cheeks at such a thought. Oh beauty, fatal gift of the gods! why am I not + the wife of some poor mountain goatherd of innocent and simple habits? He + would not have suborned a goatherd like himself at the threshold of his + cabin to profane his humble happiness! My lean figure, my unkempt hair, my + complexion faded by the burning sun, would then have saved me from so + gross an insult, and my honest homeliness would not have been compelled to + blush. How shall I dare, after the scene of this night, to pass before + those men, proudly erect under the folds of a tunic which has no longer + aught to hide from either of them. I should drop dead with shame upon the + pavement. Candaules, Candaules, I was at least entitled to more respect + from you, and there was nothing in my conduct which could have provoked + such an outrage. Was I one of those ones whose arms for ever cling like + ivy to their husbands’ necks, and who seem more like slaves bought with + money for a master’s pleasure than free-born women of noble blood? Have I + ever after a repast sung amorous hymns accompanying myself upon the lyre, + with wine-moist lips, naked shoulders, and a wreath of roses about my + hair, or given you cause, by any immodest action, to treat me like a + mistress whom one shows after a banquet to his companions in debauch?’ + While Nyssia was thus buried in her grief, great tears overflowed from her + eyes like rain-drops from the azure chalice of a lotus-flower after some + storm, and rolling down her pale cheeks fell upon her fair forlorn hands, + languishingly open, like roses whose leaves are half-shed, for no order + came from the brain to give them activity. The attitude of Niobe, + beholding her fourteenth child succumb beneath the arrows of Apollo and + Diana, was not more sadly despairing, but soon starting from this state of + prostration, she rolled herself upon the floor, rent her garments, covered + her beautiful dishevelled hair with ashes, tore her bosom and cheeks with + her nails amid convulsive sobs, and abandoned herself to all the excesses + of Oriental grief, the more violently that she had been forced so long to + contain her indignation, shame, pangs of wounded dignity, and all the + agony that convulsed her soul, for the pride of her whole life had been + broken, and the idea that she had nothing wherewith to reproach herself + afforded her no consolation. As a poet has said, only the innocent know + remorse. She was repenting of the crime which another had committed. + </p> + <p> + Nevertheless she made an effort to recover herself, ordered the baskets + filled with wools of different colours, and the spindles wrapped with + flax, to be brought to her, and distributed the work to her women as she + had been accustomed to do; but she thought she noticed that the slaves + looked at her in a very peculiar way, and had ceased to entertain the same + timid respect for her as before. Her voice no longer rang with the same + assurance; there was something humble and furtive in her demeanour; she + felt herself interiorly fallen. + </p> + <p> + Doubtless her scruples were exaggerated, and her virtue had received no + stain from the folly of Candaules; but ideas imbibed with a mother’s milk + obtain irresistible sway, and the modesty of the body is carried by + Oriental nations to an extent almost incomprehensible to Occidental races. + When a man desired to speak to Nyssia in the palace of Megabazus at + Bactria, he was obliged to do so keeping his eyes fixed upon the ground, + and two eunuchs stood beside him, poniard in hand, ready to plunge their + keen blades through his heart should he dare lift his head to look at the + princess, notwithstanding that her face was veiled. You may readily + conceive, therefore, how deadly an injury the action of Candaules would + seem to a woman thus brought up, while any other would doubtless have + considered it only a culpable frivolity. Thus the idea of vengeance had + instantly presented itself to Nyssia, and had given her sufficient + self-control to strangle the cry of her offended modesty ere it reached + her lips, at the moment when, turning her head, she beheld the burning + eyes of Gyges flaming through the darkness. She must have possessed the + courage of the warrior in ambush, who, wounded by a random dart, utters no + syllable of pain through fear of betraying himself behind his shelter of + foliage or river-reeds, and in silence permits his blood to stripe his + flesh with long red lines. Had she not withheld that first impulse to cry + aloud, Candaules, alarmed and forewarned, would have kept upon his guard, + which must have rendered it more difficult, if not impossible, to carry + out her purpose. + </p> + <p> + Nevertheless, as yet she had conceived no definite plan, but she had + resolved that the insult done to her honour should be fully expiated. At + first she had thought of killing Candaules herself while he slept, with + the sword hung at the bedside. But she recoiled from the thought of + dipping her beautiful hands in blood; she feared lest she might miss her + blow; and, with all her bitter anger, she hesitated at so violent and + unwomanly an act. + </p> + <p> + Suddenly she appeared to have decided upon some project. She summoned + Statira, one of the waiting-women who had come with her from Bactria, and + in whom she placed much confidence, and whispered a few words close to her + ear in a very low voice, although there were no other persons in the room, + as if she feared that even the walls might hear her. + </p> + <p> + Statira bowed low, and immediately left the apartment. + </p> + <p> + Like all persons who are actually menaced by some great peril, Candaules + presumed himself perfectly secure. He was certain that Gyges had stolen + away unperceived, and he thought only upon the delight of conversing with + him about the unrivalled attractions of his wife. + </p> + <p> + So he caused him to be summoned, and conducted him to the Court of the + Heracleidæ. + </p> + <p> + ‘Well, Gyges,’ he said to him with laughing mien, ‘I did not deceive you + when I assured you that you would not regret having passed a few hours + behind that blessed door. Am I right? Do you know of any living woman more + beautiful than the queen? If you know of any superior to her, tell me so + frankly, and go bear her in my name this string of pearls, the symbol of + power.’ + </p> + <p> + ‘Sire,’ replied Gyges in a voice trembling with emotion, ‘no human + creature is worthy to compare with Nyssia. It is not the pearl fillet of + queens which should adorn her brows, but only the starry crown of the + immortals.’ + </p> + <p> + ‘I well knew that your ice must melt at last in the fires of that sun. Now + can you comprehend my passion, my delirium, my mad desires? Is it not + true, Gyges, that the heart of a man is not great enough to contain such a + love? It must overflow and diffuse itself.’ + </p> + <p> + A hot blush overspread the cheeks of Gyges, who now but too well + comprehended the admiration of Candaules. + </p> + <p> + The king noticed it, and said, with a manner half smiling, half serious: + </p> + <p> + ‘My poor friend, do not commit the folly of becoming enamoured of Nyssia; + you would lose your pains. It is a statue which I have enabled you to see, + not a woman. I have allowed you to read some stanzas of a beautiful poem, + whereof I alone possess the manuscript, merely for the purpose of having + your opinion; that is all.’ + </p> + <p> + ‘You have no need, sire, to remind me of my nothingness. Sometimes the + humblest slave is visited in his slumbers by some radiant and lovely + vision, with ideal forms, nacreous flesh, ambrosial hair. I—I have + dreamed with open eyes; you are the god who sent me that dream.’ + </p> + <p> + ‘Now,’ continued the king, ‘it will scarcely be necessary for me to enjoin + silence upon you. If you do not keep a seal upon your lips you might learn + to your cost that Nyssia is not as good as she is beautiful.’ + </p> + <p> + The king waved his hand in token of farewell to his confidant, and retired + for the purpose of inspecting an antique bed sculptured by Ikmalius, a + celebrated artisan, which had been offered him for purchase. + </p> + <p> + Candaules had scarcely disappeared when a woman, wrapped in a long mantle + so as to leave but one of her eyes exposed, after the fashion of the + barbarians, came forth from the shadow of a column behind which she had + kept herself hidden during the conversation of the king and his favourite, + walked straight to Gyges, placed her finger upon his shoulder, and made a + sign to him to follow her. + </p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + + <h2><a name="link2HCH0005" id="link2HCH0005"></a> + CHAPTER V + </h2> + <p> + Statira, followed by Gyges, paused before a little door, of which she + raised the latch by pulling a silver ring attached to a leathern strap, + and commenced to ascend a stairway with rather high steps contrived in the + thickness of the wall. At the head of the stairway was a second door, + which she opened with a key wrought of ivory and brass. As soon as Gyges + entered she disappeared without any further explanation in regard to what + was expected of him. + </p> + <p> + The curiosity of Gyges was mingled with uneasiness. He could form no idea + as to the significance of this mysterious message. He had a vague fancy + that he could recognise in the silent Iris one of Nyssia’s women; and the + way by which she had made him follow her led to the queen’s apartments. He + asked himself in terror whether he had been perceived in his hiding-place + or betrayed by Candaules, for both suppositions seemed probable. + </p> + <p> + At the idea that Nyssia knew all, he felt his face bedewed with a sweat + alternately burning and icy. He sought to fly, but the door had been + fastened upon him by Statira, and all escape was cut off; then he advanced + into the chamber, which was shadowed by heavy purple hangings, and found + himself face to face with Nyssia. He thought he beheld a statue rise + before him, such was her pallor. The hues of life had abandoned her face; + a feeble rose tint alone animated her lips; on her tender temples a few + almost imperceptible veins intercrossed their azure network; tears had + swollen her eyelids, and left shining furrows upon the down of her cheeks; + the chrysoprase tints of her eyes had lost their intensity. She was even + more beautiful and touching thus. Sorrow had given soul to her marmorean + beauty. + </p> + <p> + Her disordered robe, scarcely fastened to her shoulders, left visible her + beautiful bare arms, her throat, and the commencement of her death-white + bosom. Like a warrior vanquished in his first conflict, her beauty had + laid down its arms. Of what use to her would have been the draperies which + conceal form, the tunics with their carefully fastened folds? Did not + Gyges know her? Wherefore defend what has been lost in advance? + </p> + <p> + She walked straight to Gyges, and fixing upon him an imperial look, clear + and commanding, said to him in a quick, abrupt voice: + </p> + <p> + ‘Do not lie; seek no vain subterfuges; have at least the dignity and + courage of your crime. I know all; I saw you! Not a word of excuse. I + would not listen to it. Candaules himself concealed you behind the door. + Is it not so the thing happened? And you fancy, doubtless, that it is all + over? Unhappily I am not a Greek woman, pliant to the whims of artists and + voluptuaries. Nyssia will not serve for any one’s toy. There are now two + men, one of whom is a man too much upon the earth. He must disappear from + it! Unless he dies, I cannot live. It will be either you or Candaules. I + leave you master of the choice. Kill him, avenge me, and win by that + murder both my hand and the throne of Lydia, or else shall a prompt death + henceforth prevent you from beholding, through a cowardly complaisance, + what you have not the right to look upon. He who commanded is more + culpable than he who has only obeyed; and, moreover, should you become my + husband, no one will have ever seen me without having the right to do so. + But make your decision at once, for two of those four eyes in which my + nudity has reflected itself must before this very evening be for ever + extinguished.’ + </p> + <p> + This strange alternative, proposed with a terrible coolness, with an + immutable resolution, so utterly surprised Gyges, who was expecting + reproaches, menaces, and a violent scene, that he remained for several + minutes without colour and without voice, livid as a shade on the shores + of the black rivers of hell. + </p> + <p> + ‘I! to dip my hands in the blood of my master! Is it indeed you, O queen, + who demand of me so great a penalty? I comprehend all your anger, I feel + it to be just, and it was not my fault that this outrage took place; but + you know that kings are mighty, they descend from a divine race. Our + destinies repose on their august knees; and it is not we, feeble mortals, + who may hesitate at their commands. Their will overthrows our refusal, as + a dyke is swept away by a torrent By your feet that I kiss, by the hem of + your robe which I touch as a suppliant, be clement! Forget this injury, + which is known to none, and which shall remain eternally buried in + darkness and silence! Candaules worships you, admires you, and his fault + springs only from an excess of love.’ + </p> + <p> + ‘Were you addressing a sphinx of granite in the arid sands of Egypt, you + would have more chance of melting her. The winged words might fly + uninterruptedly from your lips for a whole Olympiad; you could not move my + resolution in the slightest. A heart of brass dwells in this marble breast + of mine. Die or kill! When the sunbeam which has passed through the + curtains shall touch the foot of this table let your choice have been + made. I wait.’ + </p> + <p> + And Nyssia crossed her arms upon her breast in an attitude replete with + sombre majesty. + </p> + <p> + To behold her standing erect, motionless and pale, her eyes fixed, her + brows contracted, her hair in disorder, her foot firmly placed upon the + pavement, one would have taken her for Nemesis descended from her griffin, + and awaiting the hour to smite a guilty one. + </p> + <p> + ‘The shadowy depths of Hades are visited by none with pleasure,’ answered + Gyges. ‘It is sweet to enjoy the pure light of day; and the heroes + themselves who dwell in the Fortunate Isles would gladly return to their + native land. Each man has the instinct of self-preservation, and since + blood must flow, let it be rather from the veins of another than from + mine.’ + </p> + <p> + To these sentiments, avowed by Gyges with antique frankness, were added + others more noble whereof he did not speak. He was desperately in love + with Nyssia and jealous of Candaules. It was not, therefore, the fear of + death alone that had induced him to undertake this bloody task. The + thought of leaving Candaules in free possession of Nyssia was + insupportable to him: and, moreover, the vertigo of fatality had seized + him. By a succession of irregular and terrible events he beheld himself + hurried toward the realisation of his dreams; a mighty wave had lifted him + and borne him on in despite of his efforts; Nyssia herself was extending + her hand to him, to help him to ascend the steps of the royal throne. All + this had caused him to forget that Candaules was his master and his + benefactor; for none can flee from Fate, and Necessity walks on with nails + in one hand and whip in the other, to stop your advance or to urge you + forward. + </p> + <p> + ‘It is well,’ replied Nyssia; ‘here is the means of execution.’ And she + drew from her bosom a Bactrian poniard, with a jade handle enriched with + inlaid circles of white gold. ‘This blade is not made of brass, but with + iron difficult to work, tempered in flame and water, so that Hephaistos + himself could not forge one more keenly pointed or finely edged. It would + pierce, like thin papyrus, metal cuirasses and bucklers of dragon’s skin. + </p> + <p> + ‘The time,’ she continued, with the same icy coolness, ‘shall be while he + slumbers. Let him sleep and wake no more!’ + </p> + <p> + Her accomplice, Gyges, hearkened to her words with stupefaction, for he + had never thought he could find such resolution in a woman who could not + bring herself to lift her veil. + </p> + <p> + ‘The ambuscade shall be laid in the very same place where the infamous one + concealed you in order to expose me to your gaze. At the approach of night + I shall turn back one of the folding-doors upon you, undress myself, lie + down, and when he shall be asleep I will give you a signal. Above all + things, let there be no hesitancy, no feebleness; and take heed that your + hand does not tremble when the moment shall have come! And now, for fear + lest you might change your mind, I propose to make sure of your person + until the fatal hour. You might attempt to escape, to forewarn your + master. Do not think to do so.’ + </p> + <p> + Nyssia whistled in a peculiar way, and immediately from behind a Persian + tapestry embroidered with flowers, there appeared four monsters, swarthy, + clad in robes diagonally striped, which left visible arms muscled and + gnarled as trunks of oaks. Their thick pouting lips, the gold rings which + they wore through the partition of their nostrils, their great teeth sharp + as the fangs of wolves, the expression of stupid servility on their faces, + rendered them hideous to behold. + </p> + <p> + The queen pronounced some words in a language unknown to Gyges, doubtless + in Bactrian, and the four slaves rushed upon the young man, seized him, + and carried him away, even as a nurse might carry off a child in the fold + of her robe. + </p> + <p> + Now, what were Nyssia’s real thoughts? Had she, indeed, noticed Gyges at + the time of her meeting with him near Bactria, and preserved some memory + of the young captain in one of those secret recesses of the heart where + even the most virtuous women always have something buried? Was the desire + to avenge her modesty goaded by some other unacknowledged desire? And if + Gyges had not been the handsomest young man in all Asia would she have + evinced the same ardour in punishing Candaules for having outraged the + sanctity of marriage? That is a delicate question to resolve, especially + after a lapse of three thousand years; and although we have consulted + Herodotus, Hephæstion, Plato, Dositheus, Archilochus of Paros, Hesychius + of Miletus, Ptolomæus, Euphorion, and all who have spoken either at length + or in only a few words concerning Candaules, Nyssia, and Gyges, we have + been unable to arrive at any definite conclusion. To pursue so fleeting a + shadow through so many centuries, under the ruins of so many crumpled + empires, under the dust of departed nations, is a work of extreme + difficulty, not to say impossibility. + </p> + <p> + At all events, Nyssia’s resolution was implacably taken; this murder + appeared to her in the light of the accomplishment of a sacred duty. Among + the barbarian nations every man who has surprised a woman in her nakedness + is put to death. The queen believed herself exercising her right; only + inasmuch as the injury had been secret, she was doing herself justice as + best she could. The passive accomplice would become the executioner of the + other, and the punishment would thus spring from the crime itself. The + hand would chastise the head. + </p> + <p> + The olive-tinted monsters shut Gyges up in an obscure portion of the + palace, whence it was impossible that he could escape, or that his cries + could be heard. + </p> + <p> + He passed the remainder of the day there in a state of cruel anxiety, + accusing the hours of being lame, and again of walking too speedily. The + crime which he was about to commit, although he was only, in some sort, + the instrument of it, and though he was only yielding to an irresistible + influence, presented itself to his mind in the most sombre colours. If the + blow should miss through one of those circumstances which none could + foresee? If the people of Sardes should revolt and seek to avenge the + death of the king? Such were the very sensible though useless reflections + which Gyges made while waiting to be taken from his prison and led to the + place whence he could only depart to strike his master. + </p> + <p> + At last the night unfolded her starry robe in the sky, and its shadow fell + upon the city and the palace. A light footstep became audible, a veiled + woman entered the room and conducted him through the obscure corridors and + multiplied mazes of the royal edifice with as much confidence as though + she had been preceded by a slave bearing a lamp or a torch. + </p> + <p> + The hand which held that of Gyges was cold, soft, and small; nevertheless + those slender fingers clasped it with a bruising force, as the fingers of + some statue of brass animated by a prodigy would have done. The rigidity + of an inflexible will betrayed itself in that ever-equal pressure as of a + vice—a pressure which no hesitation of head or heart came to vary. + Gyges, conquered, subjugated, crushed, yielded to that imperious traction, + as though he were borne along by the mighty arm of Fate. + </p> + <p> + Alas! it was not thus he had wished to touch for the first time that fair + royal hand, which had presented the poniard to him, and was leading him to + murder, for it was Nyssia herself who had come for Gyges, to conceal him + in the place of ambuscade. + </p> + <p> + No word was exchanged between the sinister couple on the way from the + prison to the nuptial chamber. + </p> + <p> + The queen unfastened the thongs, raised the bar of the entrance, and + placed Gyges behind the folding-door as Candaules had done the evening + previous. This repetition of the same acts, with so different a purpose, + had something of a lugubrious and fatal character. Vengeance, this time, + had placed her foot upon every track left by the insult. The chastisement + and the crime alike followed the same path. Yesterday it was the turn of + Candaules, to-day it was that of Nyssia; and Gyges, accomplice in the + injury, was also accomplice in the penalty. He had served the king to + dishonour the queen; he would serve the queen to kill the king, equally + exposed by the vices of the one and the virtues of the other. + </p> + <p> + The daughter of Megabazus seemed to feel a savage joy, a ferocious + pleasure, in employing only the same means chosen by the Lydian king, and + turning to account for the murder those very precautions which had been + adopted for voluptuous fantasy. + </p> + <p> + ‘You will again this evening see me take off these garments which are so + displeasing to Candaules. This spectacle should become wearisome to you,’ + said the queen in accents of bitter irony, as she stood on the threshold + of the chamber; ‘you will end by finding me ugly.’ And a sardonic, forced + laugh momentarily curled her pale mouth; then, regaining her impassible + severity of mien, she continued: ‘Do not imagine you will be able to steal + away this time as you did before; you know my sight is piercing. At the + slightest movement on your part I shall awake Candaules; and you know that + it will not be easy for you to explain what you are doing in the king’s + apartments, behind a door, with a poniard in your hand. Further, my + Bactrian slaves, the copper-coloured mutes who imprisoned you a short time + ago, guard all the issues of the palace, with orders to massacre you + should you attempt to go out. Therefore let no vain scruples of fidelity + cause you to hesitate. Think that I will make you King of Sardes, and + that... I will love you if you avenge me. The blood of Candaules will be + your purple, and his death will make for you a place in that bed.’ + </p> + <p> + The slaves came according to their custom to change the fuel in the + tripod, renew the oil in the lamps, spread tapestry and the skins of + animals upon the royal couch; and Nyssia hurried into the chamber as soon + as she heard their footsteps resounding in the distance. + </p> + <p> + In a short time Candaules arrived all joyous. He had purchased the bed of + Ikmalius and proposed to substitute it for the bed wrought after the + Oriental fashion, which he declared had never been much to his taste. He + seemed pleased to find that Nyssia had already retired to the nuptial + chamber. + </p> + <p> + ‘The trade of embroidery, and spindles, and needles seems not to have the + same attraction for you to-day as usual. In fact, it is a monotonous + labour to perpetually pass one thread between other threads, and I wonder + at the pleasure which you seem ordinarily to take in it. To tell the + truth, I am afraid that some fine day Pallas-Athene, on finding you so + skilful, will break her shuttle over your head as she once did to poor + Arachne.’ + </p> + <p> + ‘My lord, I felt somewhat tired this evening, and so came downstairs + sooner than usual. Would you not like before going to sleep to drink a cup + of black Samian wine mixed with the honey of Hymettus?’ And she poured + from a golden urn, into a cup of the same metal, the sombre-coloured + beverage which she had mingled with the soporiferous juice of the + nepenthe. + </p> + <p> + Candaules took the cup by both handles and drained it to the last drop; + but the young Heracleid had a strong head, and sinking his elbow into the + cushions of his couch he watched Nyssia undressing without any sign that + the dust of sleep was commencing to gather upon his eyes. + </p> + <p> + As on the evening before, Nyssia unfastened her hair and permitted its + rich blond waves to ripple over her shoulders. From his hiding-place Gyges + fancied that he saw those locks slowly becoming suffused with tawny tints, + illuminated with reflections of blood and flame; and their heavy curls + seemed to lengthen with vipérine undulations, like the hair of the Gorgons + and Medusas. + </p> + <p> + All simple and graceful as that action was in itself, it took from the + terrible events about to transpire a frightful and ominous character, + which caused the hidden assassin to shudder with terror. + </p> + <p> + Nyssia then unfastened her bracelets, but agitated as her hands had been + by nervous straining, they ill served her will. She broke the string of a + bracelet of beads of amber inlaid with gold, which rolled over the floor + with a loud noise, causing Candaules to reopen his gradually closing eyes. + </p> + <p> + Each one of those beads fell upon the heart of Gyges as a drop of molten + lead falls upon water. + </p> + <p> + Having unlaced her buskins, the queen threw her upper tunic over the back + of an ivory chair. This drapery, thus arranged, produced upon Gyges the + effect of one of those sinister-folding winding-sheets wherein the dead + were wrapped ere being borne to the funeral pyre. Every object in that + room, which had the evening before seemed to him one scene of smiling + splendour, now appeared to him livid, dim, and menacing. The statues of + basalt rolled their eyes and smiled hideously. The lamp flickered weirdly, + and its flame dishevelled itself in red and sanguine rays like the crest + of a comet. Far back in the dimly lighted corners loomed the monstrous + forms of the Lares and Lémures. The mantles hanging from their hooks + seemed animated by a factitious life, and assumed a human aspect of + vitality; and when Nyssia stripped of her last garment, approached the + bed, all white and naked as a shade, he thought that Death herself had + broken the diamond fetters wherewith Hercules of old enchained her at the + gates of hell when he delivered Alcestes, and had come in person to take + possession of Candaules. + </p> + <p> + Overcome by the power of the nepenthe-juice, the king at last slumbered. + Nyssia made a sign for Gyges to come forth from his retreat; and laying + her finger upon the breast of the victim, she directed upon her accomplice + a look so humid, so lustrous, so weighty with languishment, so replete + with intoxicating promise, that Gyges, maddened and fascinated, sprang + from his hiding-place like the tiger from the summit of the rock where it + has been couching, traversed the chamber at a bound, and plunged the + Bactrian poniard up to the very hilt in the heart of the descendant of + Hercules. The chastity of Nyssia was avenged, and the dream of Gyges + accomplished. + </p> + <p> + Thus ended the dynasty of the Heracleidæ, after having endured for five + hundred and five years, and commenced that of the Mermnades in the person + of Gyges, son of Dascylus. The Sardians, indignant at the death of + Candaules, threatened revolt; but the oracle of Delphi having declared in + favour of Gyges, who had sent thither a vast number of silver vases and + six golden cratera of the value of thirty talents, the new king maintained + his seat on the throne of Lydia, which he occupied for many long years, + lived happily, and never showed his wife to any one, knowing too well what + it cost. one, knowing too well what it cost. + </p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div style='display:block; margin-top:4em'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KING CANDAULES ***</div> +<div style='text-align:left'> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will +be renamed. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright +law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, +so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United +States without permission and without paying copyright +royalties. 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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: King Candaules + +Author: Thophile Gautier + +Translator: Lafcadio Hearn + +Release Date: September 18, 2007 [EBook #22660] +Last Updated: December 17, 2012 + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KING CANDAULES *** + + + + +Produced by David Widger + + + + + +</pre> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <h1> + KING CANDAULES + </h1> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <h2> + By Thophile Gautier + </h2> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <h3> + Translated By Lafcadio Hearn <br /> <br /> 1908 + </h3> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <h2> + Contents + </h2> + <table summary=""> + <tr> + <td> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2HCH0001"> CHAPTER I </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2HCH0002"> CHAPTER II </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2HCH0003"> CHAPTER III </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2HCH0004"> CHAPTER IV </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2HCH0005"> CHAPTER V </a> + </p> + </td> + </tr> + </table> + <p> + <a name="link2HCH0001" id="link2HCH0001"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + CHAPTER I + </h2> + <p> + Five hundred years before the Trojan war, and seventeen hundred and + fifteen years before our own era, there was a grand festival at Sardes. + King Candaules was going to marry. The people were affected with that sort + of pleasurable interest and aimless emotion wherewith any royal event + inspires the masses, even though it in no wise concerns them, and + transpires in superior spheres of life which they can never hope to reach. + </p> + <p> + As soon as Phoebus-Apollo, standing in his quadriga, had gilded to saffron + the summits of fertile Mount Tmolus with his rays, the good people of + Sardes were all astir, going and coming, mounting or descending the marble + stairways leading from the city to the waters of the Pactolus, that + opulent river whose sands Midas filled with tiny sparks of gold when he + bathed in its stream. One would have supposed that each one of these good + citizens was himself about to marry, so solemn and important was the + demeanour of all. + </p> + <p> + Men were gathering in groups in the Agora, upon the steps of the temples + and along the porticoes. At every street corner one might have encountered + women leading by the hand little children, whose uneven walk ill suited + the maternal anxiety and impatience. Maidens were hastening to the + fountains, all with urns gracefully balanced upon their heads, or + sustained by their white arms as with natural handles, so as to procure + early the necessary water provision for the household, and thus obtain + leisure at the hour when the nuptial procession should pass. Washerwomen + hastily folded the still damp tunics and chlamid, and piled them upon + mule-wagons. Slaves turned the mill without any need of the overseer's + whip to tickle their naked and scar-seamed shoulders. Sardes was hurrying + itself to finish with those necessary everyday cares which no festival can + wholly disregard. + </p> + <p> + The road along which the procession was to pass had been strewn with fine + yellow sand. Brazen tripods, disposed along the way at regular intervals, + sent up to heaven the odorous smoke of cinnamon and spikenard. These + vapours, moreover, alone clouded the purity of the azure above. The clouds + of a hymeneal day ought, indeed, to be formed only by the burning of + perfumes. Myrtle and rose-laurel branches were strewn upon the ground, and + from the walls of the palaces were suspended by little rings of bronze + rich tapestries, whereon the needles of industrious captives—intermingling + wool, silver, and gold—had represented various scenes in the history + of the gods and heroes: Ixion embracing the cloud; Diana surprised in the + bath by Actaeon; the shepherd Paris as judge in the contest of beauty held + upon Mount Ida between Hera, the snowy-armed, Athena of the sea-green + eyes, and Aphrodite, girded with her magic cestus; the old men of Troy + rising to honour Helena as she passed through the Skaian gate, a subject + taken from one of the poems of the blind man of Meles. Others exhibited in + preference scenes taken from the life of Heracles, the Theban, through + flattery to Candaules, himself a Heracleid, being descended from the hero + through Alcaeus. Others contented themselves by decorating the entrances + of their dwellings with garlands and wreaths in token of rejoicing. + </p> + <p> + Among the multitudes marshalled along the way from the royal house even as + far as the gates of the city, through which the young queen would pass on + her arrival, conversation naturally turned upon the beauty of the bride, + whereof the renown had spread throughout all Asia; and upon the character + of the bridegroom, who, although not altogether an eccentric, seemed + nevertheless one not readily appreciated from the common standpoint of + observation. + </p> + <p> + Nyssia, daughter of the Satrap Megabazus, was gifted with marvellous + purity of feature and perfection of form; at least such was the rumour + spread abroad by the female slaves who attended her, and a few female + friends who had accompanied her to the bath; for no man could boast of + knowing aught of Nyssia save the colour of her veil and the elegant folds + that she involuntarily impressed upon the soft materials which robed her + statuesque body. + </p> + <p> + The barbarians did not share the ideas of the Greeks in regard to modesty. + While the youths of Achaia made no scruples of allowing their oil-anointed + torsos to shine under the sun in the stadium, and while the Spartan + virgins danced ungarmented before the altar of Diana, those of Persepolis, + Ebactana, and Bactria, attaching more importance to chastity of the body + than to chastity of mind, considered those liberties allowed to the + pleasure of the eyes by Greek manner as impure and highly reprehensible, + and held no woman virtuous who permitted men to obtain a glimpse of more + than the tip of her foot in walking, as it slightly deranged the discreet + folds of a long tunic. + </p> + <p> + Despite all this mystery, or rather, perhaps, by very reason of this + mystery, the fame of Nyssia had not been slow to spread throughout all + Lydia, and become popular there to such a degree that it had reached even + Candaules, although kings are ordinarily the most illy informed people in + their kingdoms, and live like the gods in a kind of cloud which conceals + from them the knowledge of terrestrial things. + </p> + <p> + The Eupatrid of Sardes, who hoped that the young king might, perchance, + choose a wife from their family, the hetair of Athens, of Samos, of + Miletus and of Cyprus, the beautiful slaves from the banks of the Indus, + the blond girls brought at a vast expense from the depths of the Cimmerian + fogs, were heedful never to utter in the presence of Candaules, whether + within hearing or beyond hearing, a single word which bore any relation to + Nyssia. The bravest, in a question of beauty, recoil before the prospect + of a contest in which they can anticipate being outrivalled. + </p> + <p> + And nevertheless no person in Sardes, or even in Lydia, had beheld this + redoubtable adversary, no person save one solitary being, who from the + time of that encounter had kept his lips as firmly closed upon the subject + as though Harpocrates, the god of silence, had sealed them with his + finger, and that was Gyges, chief of the guards of Candaules. One day + Gyges, his mind filled with various projects and vague ambitions, had been + wandering among the Bactrian hills, whither his master had sent him upon + an important and secret mission. He was dreaming of the intoxication of + omnipotence, of treading upon purple with sandals of gold, of placing the + diadem upon the brows of the fairest of women. + </p> + <p> + These thoughts made his blood boil in his veins, and, as though to pursue + the flight of his dreams, he smote his sinewy heel upon the foam-whitened + flanks of his Numidian horse. + </p> + <p> + The weather, at first calm, had changed and waxed tempestuous like the + warrior's soul; and Boreas, his locks bristling with Thracian frosts, his + cheeks puffed out, his arms folded upon his breast, smote the + rain-freighted clouds with the mighty beatings of his wings. + </p> + <p> + A bevy of young girls who had been gathering flowers in the meadow, + fearing the coming storm, were returning to the city in all haste, each + carrying her perfumed harvest in the lap of her tunic. Seeing a stranger + on horseback approaching in the distance, they had hidden their faces in + their mantles, after the custom of the barbarians; but at the very moment + that Gyges was passing by the one whose proud carriage and richer + habiliments seemed to designate her the mistress of the little band, an + unusually violent gust of wind carried away the veil of the fair unknown, + and, whirling it through the air like a feather, chased it to such a + distance that it could not be recovered. It was Nyssia, daughter of + Megabazus, who found herself thus with face unveiled in the presence of + Gyges, a humble captain of King Candaules's guard. Was it only the breath + of Boreas which had brought about this accident, or had Eros, who delights + to vex the hearts of men, amused himself by severing the string which had + fastened the protecting tissue? However that may have been, Gyges was + stricken motionless at the sight of that Medusa of beauty, and not till + long after the folds of Nyssia's robe had disappeared beyond the gates of + the city could he think of proceeding on his way. Although there was + nothing to justify such a conjecture, he cherished the belief that he had + seen the satrap's daughter; and that meeting, which affected him almost + like an apparition, accorded so fully with the thoughts that were + occupying him at the moment of its occurrence, that he could not help + perceiving therein something fateful and ordained of the gods. In truth it + was upon that brow that he would have wished to place the diadem. What + other could be more worthy of it? But what probability was there that + Gyges would ever have a throne to share? He had not sought to follow up + this adventure, and assure himself that it was indeed the daughter of + Megabazus whose mysterious face had been revealed to him by Chance, the + great filcher. Nyssia had fled so swiftly that it would have been + impossible for him then to overtake her; and, moreover, he had been + dazzled, fascinated, thunder-stricken, as it were, rather than charmed by + that superhuman apparition, by that monster of beauty! + </p> + <p> + Nevertheless that image, although seen only in the glimpse of a moment, + had engraved itself upon his heart in lines deep as those which the + sculptors trace on ivory with tools reddened in the fire. He had + endeavoured, although vainly, to efface it, for the love which he felt for + Nyssia inspired him with a secret terror. Perfection in such a degree is + ever awe-inspiring, and women so like unto goddesses could only work evil + to feeble mortals; they are formed for divine adulteries, and even the + most courageous men never risk themselves in such amours without + trembling. Therefore no hope had blossomed in the soul of Gyges, + overwhelmed and discouraged in advance by the sentiment of the impossible. + Ere opening his lips to Nyssia he would have wished to despoil the heaven + of its robe of stars, to take from Phoebus his crown of rays, forgetting + that women only give themselves to those unworthy of them, and that to win + their love one must act as though he desired to earn their hate. + </p> + <p> + From that day the roses of joy no longer bloomed upon his cheeks. By day + he was sad and mournful, and seemed to wander abroad in solitary dreaming, + like a mortal who has beheld a divinity. At night he was haunted by dreams + in which he beheld Nyssia seated by his side upon cushions of purple + between the golden griffins of the royal throne. + </p> + <p> + Therefore Gyges, the only one who could speak of his own knowledge + concerning Nyssia, having never spoken of her, the Sardians were left to + their own conjectures in her regard; and their conjectures, it must be + confessed, were fantastic and altogether fabulous. The beauty of Nyssia, + thanks to the veils which shrouded her, became a sort of myth, a canvas, a + poem to which each one added ornamentation as the fancy took him. + </p> + <p> + 'If report be not false,' lisped a young debauchee from Athens, who stood + with one hand upon the shoulder of an Asiatic boy, 'neither Plangon, nor + Archianassa, nor Thais can be compared with this marvellous barbarian; yet + I can scarce believe that she equals Theano of Colophon, from whom I once + bought a single night at the price of as much gold as she could bear away, + after having plunged both her white arms up to the shoulder in my + cedar-wood coffer.' + </p> + <p> + 'Beside her,' added a Eupatrid, who pretended to be better informed than + any other person upon all manner of subjects, 'beside her the daughter of + Coelus and the Sea would seem but a mere Ethiopian servant.' + </p> + <p> + 'Your words are blasphemy, and although Aphrodite be a kind and indulgent + goddess, beware of drawing down her anger upon you.' + </p> + <p> + 'By Hercules!—and that ought to be an oath of some weight in a city + ruled by one of his descendants—I cannot retract a word of it.' + </p> + <p> + 'You have seen her, then?' + </p> + <p> + 'No; but I have a slave in my service who once belonged to Nyssia, and who + has told me a hundred stories about her.' + </p> + <p> + 'Is it true,' demanded in infantile tones an equivocal-looking woman whose + pale-rose tunic, painted cheeks, and locks shining with essences betrayed + wretched pretensions to a youth long passed away—' is it true that + Nyssia has two pupils in each eye? It seems to me that must be very ugly, + and I cannot understand how Candaules could fall in love with such a + monstrosity, while there is no lack, at Sardes and in Lydia, of women + whose eyes are irreproachable.' + </p> + <p> + And uttering these words with all sorts of affected airs and simperings, + Lamia took a little significant peep in a small mirror of cast metal which + she drew from her bosom, and which enabled her to lead back to duty + certain wandering curls disarranged by the impertinence of the wind. + </p> + <p> + 'As to the double pupil, that seems to me nothing more than an old nurse's + tale,' observed the well-informed patrician; 'but it is a fact that + Nyssia's eyes are so piercing that she can see through walls. Lynxes are + myopic compared with her.' + </p> + <p> + 'How can a sensible man coolly argue about such an absurdity?' interrupted + a citizen, whose bald skull, and the flood of snowy beard into which he + plunged his fingers while speaking, lent him an air of preponderance and + philosophical sagacity. 'The truth is that the daughter of Megabazus + cannot naturally see through a wall any better than you or I, but the + Egyptian priest Thoutmosis, who knows so many wondrous secrets, has given + her the mysterious stone which is found in the heads of dragons, and whose + property, as every one knows, renders all shadows and the most opaque + bodies transparent to the eyes of those who possess it. Nyssia always + carries this stone in her girdle, or else set into her bracelet, and in + that may be found the secret of her clairvoyance.' + </p> + <p> + The citizen's explanation seemed the most natural one to those of the + group whose conversation we are endeavouring to reproduce, and the + opinions of Lamia and the patrician were abandoned as improbable. + </p> + <p> + 'At all events,' returned the lover of Theano, 'we are going to have an + opportunity of judging for ourselves, for it seems to me that I hear the + clarions sounding in the distance, and though Nyssia is still invisible, I + can see the herald yonder approaching with palm branches in his hands, to + announce the arrival of the nuptial <i>cortge</i>, and make the crowd + fall back.' + </p> + <p> + At this news, which spread rapidly through the crowd, the strong men + elbowed their way toward the front ranks; the agile boys, embracing the + shafts of the columns, sought to climb up to the capitals and there seat + themselves; others, not without having skinned their knees against the + bark, succeeded in perching themselves comfortably enough in the Y of some + tree-branch. The women lifted their little children upon their shoulders, + warning them to hold tightly to their necks. Those who had the good + fortune to dwell on the street along which Candaules and Nyssia were about + to pass, leaned over from the summit of their roofs, or, rising on their + elbows, abandoned for a time the cushions upon which they had been + reclining. + </p> + <p> + A murmur of satisfaction and gratified expectation ran through the crowd, + which had already been waiting many long hours, for the arrows of the + midday sun were commencing to sting. + </p> + <p> + The heavy-armed warriors, with cuirasses of bull's-hide covered with + overlapping plates of metal, helmets adorned with plumes of horse-hair + dyed red, <i>knemides</i> or greaves faced with tin, baldrics studded with + nails, emblazoned bucklers, and swords of brass, rode behind a line of + trumpeters who blew with might and main upon their long tubes, which + gleamed under the sunlight. The horses of these warriors were all white as + the feet of Thetis, and might have served, by reason of their noble paces + and purity of breeds, as models for those which Phidias at a later day + sculptured upon the metopes of the Parthenon. + </p> + <p> + At the head of this troop rode Gyges, the well-named, for his name in the + Lydian tongue signifies beautiful. His features, of the most exquisite + regularity, seemed chiselled in marble, owing to his intense pallor, for + he had just discovered in Nyssia, although she was veiled with the veil of + a young bride, the same woman whose face had been betrayed to his gaze by + the treachery of Boreas under the walls of Bactria. + </p> + <p> + 'Handsome Gyges looks very sad,' said the young maidens. 'What proud + beauty could have secured his love, or what forsaken one has caused some + Thessalian witch to cast a spell on him? Has that cabalistic ring (which + he is said to have found hidden within the flanks of a brazen horse in the + midst of some forest) lost its virtue, and suddenly ceasing to render its + owner invisible, betrayed him to the astonished eyes of some innocent + husband, who had deemed himself alone in his conjugal chamber?' + </p> + <p> + 'Perhaps he has been wasting his talents and his drachmas at the game of + Palamedes, or else it may be that he is disappointed at not having won the + prize at the Olympian games. He had great faith in his horse Hyperion.' + </p> + <p> + No one of these conjectures was true. A fact is never guessed. + </p> + <p> + After the battalion commanded by Gyges, there came young boys crowned with + myrtle-wreaths, and singing epithalamic hymns after the Lydian manner, + accompanying themselves upon lyres of ivory, which they played with bows. + All were clad in rose-coloured tunics ornamented with a silver Greek + border, and their long hair flowed down over their shoulders in thick + curls. + </p> + <p> + They preceded the gift-bearers, strong slaves whose half-nude bodies + exposed to view such interlacements of muscle as the stoutest athletes + might have envied. + </p> + <p> + Upon brancards, supported by two or four men or more, according to the + weight of the objects borne, were placed enormous brazen cratera, + chiselled by the most famous artists; vases of gold and silver whose sides + were adorned with bas-reliefs and whose hands were elegantly worked into + chimeras, foliage, and nude women; magnificent ewers to be used in washing + the feet of illustrious guests; flagons encrusted with precious stones and + containing the rarest perfumes; myrrh from Arabia, cinnamon from the + Indies, spikenard from Persia, essence of roses from Smyrna; kamklins or + perfuming pans, with perforated covers; cedar-wood or ivory coffers of + marvellous workmanship, which opened with a secret spring that none save + the inventor could find, and which contained bracelets wrought from the + gold of Ophir, necklaces of the most lustrous pearls, mantle-brooches + constellated with rubies and carbuncles; toilet-boxes, containing blond + sponges, curling-irons, sea-wolves' teeth to polish the nails, the green + rouge of Egypt, which turns to a most beautiful pink on touching the skin, + powders to darken the eyelashes and eyebrows, and all the refinements that + feminine coquetry could invent. Other litters were freighted with purple + robes of the finest linen and of all possible shades from the incarnadine + hue of the rose to the deep crimson of the blood of the grape; <i>calasires</i> + of the linen of Canopus, which is thrown all white into the vat of the + dyer, and comes forth again, owing to the various astringents in which it + had been steeped, diapered with the most brilliant colours; tunics brought + from the fabulous land of Seres, made from the spun slime of a worm which + feeds upon leaves, and so fine that they might be drawn through a + finger-ring. + </p> + <p> + Ethiopians, whose bodies shone like jet, and whose temples were tightly + bound with cords, lest they should burst the veins of their foreheads in + the effort to uphold their burden, carried in great pomp a statue of + Hercules, the ancestor of Candaules, of colossal size, wrought of ivory + and gold, with the club, the skin of the Nemean lion, the three apples + from the garden of the Hesperides, and all the traditional attributes of + the hero. + </p> + <p> + Statues of Venus Urania, and of Venus Genitrix, sculptured by the best + pupils of the Sicyon School. That marble of Paros whose gleaming + transparency seemed expressly created for the representation of the + ever-youthful flesh of the immortals, were borne after the statue of + Hercules, which admirably relieved the harmony and elegance of their + proportions by contrast with its massive outlines and rugged forms. + </p> + <p> + A painting by Bularchus, which Candaules had purchased for its weight in + gold, executed upon the wood of the female larch-tree, and representing + the defeat of the Magnesians, evoked universal admiration by the beauty of + its design, the truthfulness of the attitude of its figures, and the + harmony of its colouring, although the artist had only employed in its + production the four primitive colours: Attic ochre, white, Pontic <i>sinopis</i> + and <i>atramentum</i>. The young king loved painting and sculpture even + more, perhaps, than well became a monarch, and he had not unfrequently + bought a picture at a price equal to the annual revenue of a whole city. + </p> + <p> + Camels and dromedaries, splendidly caparisoned, with musicians seated on + their necks performing upon drums and cymbals, carried the gilded stakes, + the cords, and the material of the tent designed for the use of the queen + during voyages and hunting parties. + </p> + <p> + These spectacles of magnificence would upon any other occasion have + ravished the people of Sardes with delight, but their curiosity had been + enlisted in another direction, and it was not without a certain feeling of + impatience that they watched this portion of the procession file by. The + young maidens and the handsome boys, bearing flaming torches, and strewing + handfuls of crocus flowers along the way, hardly attracted any attention. + The idea of beholding Nyssia had preoccupied all minds. + </p> + <p> + At last Candaules appeared, riding in a chariot drawn by four horses, as + beautiful and spirited as those of the sun, all rolling their golden bits + in foam, shaking their purple-decked manes, and restrained with great + difficulty by the driver, who stood erect at the side of Candaules, and + was leaning back to gain more power on the reins. + </p> + <p> + Candaules was a young man full of vigour, and well worthy of his Herculean + origin. His head was joined to his shoulders by a neck massive as a + bull's, and almost without a curve; his hair, black and lustrous, twisted + itself into rebellious little curls, here and there concealing the circlet + of his diadem; his ears, small and upright, were of a ruddy hue; his + forehead was broad and full, though a little low, like all antique + foreheads; his eyes full of gentle melancholy, his oval cheeks, his chin + with its gentle and regular curves, his mouth with its slightly parted + lips—all bespoke the nature of the poet rather than that of the + warrior. In fact, although he was brave, skilled in all bodily exercises, + could subdue a wild horse as well as any of the Lapith, or swim across + the current of rivers when they descended, swollen with melted snow, from + the mountains, although he might have bent the bow of Odysseus or borne + the shield of Achilles, he seemed little occupied with dreams of conquest; + and war usually so fascinating to young kings, had little attraction for + him. He contented himself with repelling the attacks of his ambitious + neighbours, and sought not to extend his own dominions. He preferred + building palaces, after plans suggested by himself to the architects, who + always found the king's hints of no small value, or to form collections of + statues and paintings by artists of the elder and later schools. He had + the works of Telephanes of Sicyon, Cleanthes, Ardices of Corinth, + Hygiemon, Deinias, Charmides, Eumarus, and Cimon, some being simple + drawings, and others paintings in various colours or monochromes. It was + even said that Candaules had not disdained to wield with his own royal + hands—a thing hardly becoming a prince—the chisel of the + sculptor and the sponge of the encaustic painter. + </p> + <p> + But why should we dwell upon-Candaules? The reader undoubtedly feels like + the people of Sardes: and it is of Nyssia that he desires to hear. + </p> + <p> + The daughter of Megabazus was mounted upon an elephant, with wrinkled skin + and immense ears which seemed like flags, who advanced with a heavy but + rapid gait, like a vessel in the midst of the waves. His tusks and his + trunk were encircled with silver rings, and around the pillars of his + limbs were entwined necklaces of enormous pearls. Upon his back, which was + covered with a magnificent Persian carpet of striped pattern, stood a sort + of estrade overlaid with gold finely chased, and constellated with onyx + stones, carnelians, chrysolites, lapis-lazuli, and girasols; upon this + estrade sat the young queen, so covered with precious stones as to dazzle + the eyes of the beholders. A mitre, shaped like a helmet, on which pearls + formed flower designs and letters after the Oriental manner, was placed + upon her head; her ears, both the lobes and rims of which had been + pierced, were adorned with ornaments in the form of little cups, + crescents, and balls; necklaces of gold and silver beads, which had been + hollowed out and carved, thrice encircled her neck and descended with a + metallic tinkling upon her bosom; emerald serpents with topaz or ruby eyes + coiled themselves in many folds about her arms, and clasped themselves by + biting their own tails. These bracelets were connected by chains of + precious stones, and so great was their weight that two attendants were + required to kneel beside Nyssia and support her elbows. She was clad in a + robe embroidered by Syrian workmen with shining designs of golden foliage + and diamond fruits, and over this she wore the short tunic of Persepolis, + which hardly descended to the knee, and of which the sleeves were slit and + fastened by sapphire clasps. Her waist was encircled from hip to loins by + a girdle wrought of narrow material, variegated with stripes and flowered + designs, which formed themselves into symmetrical patterns as they were + brought together by a certain arrangement of the folds which Indian girls + alone know how to make. Her trousers of byssus, which the Phoenicians + called <i>syndon</i> were confined at the ankles by anklets adorned with + gold and silver bells, and completed this toilet so fantastically rich and + wholly opposed to Greek taste. But, alas! a saffron-coloured <i>flammeum</i> + pitilessly masked the face of Nyssia, who seemed embarrassed, veiled + though she was, at finding so many eyes fixed upon her, and frequently + signed to a slave behind her to lower the parasol of ostrich plumes, and + thus conceal her yet more from the curious gaze of the crowd. + </p> + <p> + Candaules had vainly begged of her to lay aside her veil, even for that + solemn occasion. The young barbarian had refused to pay the welcome of her + beauty to his people. Great was the disappointment. Lamia declared that + Nyssia dared not uncover her face for fear of showing her double pupil. + The young libertine remained convinced that Theano of Colophon was more + beautiful than the queen of Sardes; and Gyges sighed when he beheld + Nyssia, after having made her elephant kneel down, descend upon the + inclined heads of Damascus slaves as upon a living ladder, to the + threshold of the royal dwelling, where the elegance of Greek architecture + was blended with the fantasies and enormities of Asiatic taste. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2HCH0002" id="link2HCH0002"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + CHAPTER II + </h2> + <p> + In our character of poet we have the right to lift the saffron-coloured <i>flammeum</i> + which concealed the young bride, being more fortunate in this wise than + the Sardians, who after a whole day's waiting were obliged to return to + their houses, and were left, as before, to their own conjectures. + </p> + <p> + Nyssia was really far superior to her reputation, great as it was. It + seemed as though Nature in creating her had resolved to exhaust her utmost + powers, and thus make atonement for all former experimental attempts and + fruitless essays. One would have said that, moved by jealousy of the + future marvels of the Greek sculptors, she also had resolved to model a + statue herself, and to prove that she was still sovereign mistress in the + plastic art. + </p> + <p> + The grain of snow, the micaceous brilliancy of Parian marble, the + sparkling pulp of balsamine flowers, would render but a feeble idea of the + ideal substance whereof. Nyssia had been formed. That flesh, so fine, so + delicate, permitted daylight to penetrate it, and modelled itself in + transparent contours, in lines as sweetly harmonious as music itself. + According to different surroundings, it took the colour of the sunlight or + of purple, like the aromal body of a divinity, and seemed to radiate light + and life. The world of perfections inclosed within the nobly lengthened + oval of her chaste face could have been rendered by no earthly art—neither + by the chisel of the sculptor, nor the brush of the painter, nor the style + of any poet—though it were Praxiteles, Apelles, or Mimnernus; and on + her smooth brow, bathed by waves of hair amber-bright as molten electrum + and sprinkled with gold filings, according to the Babylonian custom, sat + as upon a jasper throne the unalterable serenity of perfect loveliness. + </p> + <p> + As for her eyes, though they did not justify what popular credulity said + of them, they were at least wonderfully strange eyes; brown eyebrows, with + extremities ending in points elegant as those of the arrows of Eros, and + which were joined to each other by a streak of henna after the Asiatic + fashion, and long fringes of silkily-shadowed eyelashes contrasted + strikingly with the twin sapphire stars rolling in the heaven of dark + silver which formed those eyes. The irises of those eyes, whose pupils + were blacker than atrament, varied singularly in shades of shifting + colour. From sapphire they changed to turquoise, from turquoise to beryl, + from beryl to yellow amber, and sometimes, like a limpid lake whose bottom + is strewn with jewels, they offered, through their incalculable depths, + glimpses of golden and diamond sands upon which green fibrils vibrated and + twisted themselves into emerald serpents. In those orbs of phosphoric + lightning the rays of suns extinguished, the splendours of vanished + worlds, the glories of Olympus eclipsed—all seemed to have + concentrated their reflections. When contemplating them one thought of + eternity, and felt himself seized with a mighty giddiness, as though he + were leaning over the verge of the Infinite. + </p> + <p> + The expression of those extraordinary eyes was not less variable than + their tint. At times their lids opened like the portals of celestial + dwellings; they invited you into elysiums of light, of azure, of ineffable + felicity; they promised you the realisation, tenfold, a hundredfold, of + all your dreams of happiness, as though they had divined your soul's most + secret thoughts; again, impenetrable as sevenfold plated shields of the + hardest metals, they flung back your gaze like blunted and broken arrows. + With a simple inflexion of the brow, a mere flash of the pupil, more + terrible than the thunder of Zeus, they precipitated you from the heights + of your most ambitious escalades into depths of nothingness so profound + that it was impossible to rise again. Typhon himself, who writhes under + tna, could not have lifted the mountains of disdain with which they + overwhelmed you. One felt that though he should live for a thousand + Olympiads endowed with the beauty of the fair son of Latona, the genius of + Orpheus, the unbounded might of Assyrian kings, the treasures of the + Cabeirei, the Telchines, and the Dactyli, gods of subterranean wealth, he + could never change their expression to mildness. + </p> + <p> + At other times their languishment was so liquidly persuasive, their + brilliancy and irradiation so penetrating, that the icy coldness of Nestor + and Priam would have melted under their gaze, like the wax of the wings of + Icarus when he approached the flaming zones. For one such glance a man + would have gladly steeped his hands in the blood of his host, scattered + the ashes of his father to the four winds, overthrown the holy images of + the gods, and stolen the fire of heaven itself, like the sublime thief, + Prometheus. + </p> + <p> + Nevertheless, their most ordinary expression, it must be confessed, was of + a chastity to make one desperate—a sublime coldness—an + ignorance of all possibilities of human passion, such as would have made + the moon-bright eyes of Phoebe or the sea-green eyes of Athena appear by + comparison more liquidly tempting than those of a young girl of Babylon + sacrificing to the goddess Mylitta within the cord-circled enclosure of + Succoth-Benohl. Their invincible virginity seemed to bid love defiance. + </p> + <p> + The cheeks of Nyssia, which no human gaze had ever profaned, save that of + Gyges on the day when the veil was blown away, possessed a youthful bloom, + a tender pallor, a delicacy of grain, and a downiness whereof the faces of + our women, perpetually exposed to sunlight and air, cannot convey the most + distant idea. Modesty created fleeting rosy clouds upon them like those + which a drop of crimson essence would form in a cup of milk, and when + uncoloured by any emotion they took a silvery sheen, a warm light, like an + alabaster vessel illumined by a lamp within. That lamp was her charming + soul, which exposed to view the transparency of her flesh. + </p> + <p> + A bee would have been deceived by her mouth, whose form was so perfect, + whose corners were so purely dimpled, whose crimson was so rich and warm + that the gods would have descended from their Olympian dwellings in order + to touch it with lips humid with immortality, but that the jealousy of the + goddesses restrained their impetuosity. Happy the wind which passed + through that purple and pearl, which dilated those pretty nostrils, so + finely cut and shaded with rosy tints like the mother-of-pearl of the + shells thrown by the sea on the shore of Cyprus at the feet of Venus + Anadyomene! But are there not a multitude of favours thus granted to + things which cannot understand them? What lover would not wish to be the + tunic of his well-beloved or the water of her bath? + </p> + <p> + Such was Nyssia, if we dare make use of the expression after so vague a + description of her face. If our foggy Northern idioms had the warm + liberty, the burning enthusiasm of the Sir Hasirim, we might, perhaps, by + comparisons—awakening in the mind of the reader memories of flowers + and perfumes, of music and sunlight, evoking, by the magic of words, all + the graceful and charming images that the universe can contain—have + been able to give some idea of Nyssia's features; but it is permitted to + Solomon alone to compare the nose of a beautiful woman to the tower of + Lebanon which looketh toward Damascus. And yet what is there in the world + of more importance than the nose of a beautiful woman? Had Helen, the + white Tyndarid, been flat-nosed, would the Trojan War have taken place? + And if the profile of Semiramis had not been perfectly regular, would she + have bewitched the old monarch of Nineveh and encircled her brow with the + mitre of pearls, the symbol of supreme power? + </p> + <p> + Although Candaules had brought to his palace the most beautiful slaves + from the people of the Sorse, of Askalon, of Sogdiana, of the Sacse, of + Rhapta, the most celebrated courtesans from Ephesus, from Pergamus, from + Smyrna, and from Cyprus, he was completely fascinated by the charms of + Nyssia. Up to that time he had not even suspected the existence of such + perfection. + </p> + <p> + Privileged as a husband to enjoy fully the contemplation of this beauty, + he found himself dazzled, giddy, like one who leans over the edge of an + abyss, or fixes his eyes upon the sun; he felt himself seized, as it were, + with the dilirium of possession, like a priest drunk with the god who + fills and moves him. All other thoughts disappeared from his soul, and the + universe seemed to him only as a vague mist in the midst of which beamed + the shining phantom of Nyssia. His happiness transformed itself into + ecstasy, and his love into madness. At times his very felicity terrified + him. To be only a wretched king, only a remote descendant of a hero who + had become a god by mighty labours, only a common man formed of flesh and + bone, and without having in aught rendered himself worthy of it—without + having even, like his ancestor, strangled some hydra, or torn some lion + asunder—to enjoy a happiness whereof Zeus of the ambrosial hair + would scarce be worthy, though lord of all Olympus! He felt, as it were, a + shame to thus hoard up for himself alone so rich a treasure, to steal this + marvel from the world, to be the dragon with scales and claws who guarded + the living type of the ideal of lovers, sculptors, and poets. All they had + ever dreamed of in their hope, their melancholy, and their despair, he + possessed—he, Candaules, poor tyrant of Sardes, who had only a few + wretched coffers filled with pearls, a few cisterns filled with gold + pieces, and thirty or forty thousand slaves, purchased or taken in war. + </p> + <p> + Candaules's felicity was too great for him, and the strength which he + would doubtless have found at his command in time of misfortune was + wanting to him in time of happiness. His joy overflowed from his soul like + water from a vase placed upon the fire, and in the exasperation of his + enthusiasm for Nyssia he had reached the point of desiring that she were + less timid and less modest, for it cost him no little effort to retain in + his own breast the secret of such wondrous beauty. + </p> + <p> + 'Ah,' he would murmur to himself during the deep reveries which absorbed + him at all hours that he did not spend at the queen's side, 'how strange a + lot is mine! I am wretched because of that which would make any other + husband happy. Nyssia will not leave the shadow of the gynaeceum, and + refuses, with barbarian modesty, to lift her veil in the presence of any + other than myself. Yet with what an intoxication of pride would my love + behold her, radiantly sublime, gaze down upon my kneeling people from the + summit of the royal steps, and, like the rising dawn, extinguish all those + pale stars who during the night thought themselves suns! Proud Lydian + women, who believe yourselves beautiful, but for Nyssia's reserve you + would appear, even to your lovers, as ugly as the oblique-eyed and + thick-lipped slaves of Nahasi and Kush. Were she but once to pass along + the streets of Sardes with face unveiled, you might in vain pull your + adorers by the lappet of their tunic, for none of them would turn his + head, or, if he did, it would be to demand your name, so utterly would he + have forgotten you! They would rush to precipitate themselves beneath the + silver wheels of her chariot, that they might have even the pleasure of + being crushed by her, like those devotees of the Indus who pave the + pathway of their idol with their bodies. + </p> + <p> + 'And you, O goddesses, whom Paris-Alexander judged, had Nyssia appeared + among you, not one of you would have borne away the golden apple, not even + Aphrodite, despite her cestus and her promise to the shepherd-arbiter that + she would make him beloved by the most beautiful woman in the world!... + </p> + <p> + 'Alas! to think that such beauty is not immortal, and that years will + alter those divine outlines, that admirable hymn of forms, that poem whose + strophes are contours, and which no one in the world has ever read or may + ever read save myself; to be the sole depositary of so splendid a + treasure! If I knew even by imitating the play of light and shadow with + the aid of lines and colours, how to fix upon wood a reflection of that + celestial face; if marble were not rebellious to my chisel, how well would + I fashion in the purest vein of Paros or Pentelicus an image of that + charming body, which would make the proud effigies of the goddesses fall + from their altars! And long after, when deep below the slime of deluges, + and beneath the dust of ruined cities, the men of future ages should find + a fragment of that petrified shadow of Nyssia, they would cry: "Behold, + how the women of this vanished world were formed!" And they would erect a + temple wherein to enshrine the divine fragment. But I have naught save a + senseless admiration and a love that is madness! Sole adorer of an unknown + divinity, I possess no power to spread her worship through the world.' + </p> + <p> + Thus in Candaules had the enthusiasm of the artist extinguished the + jealousy of the lover. Admiration was mightier than love. If in place of + Nyssia, daughter of the Satrap Megabazus, all imbued with Oriental ideas, + he had espoused some Greek girl from Athens or Corinth, he would certainly + have invited to his court the most skilful painters and sculptors, and + have given them the queen for their model, as did afterward Alexander his + favourite Campaspe, who posed naked before Apelles. Such a whim would have + encountered no opposition from a woman of the land where even the most + chaste made a boast of having contributed—some for the back, some + for the bosom—to the perfection of a famous statue. But hardly would + the bashful Nyssia consent to unveil herself in the discreet shadow of the + thalamus, and the earnest prayers of the king really shocked her rather + than gave her pleasure. The sentiment of duty and obedience alone induced + her to yield at times to what she styled the whims of Candaules. + </p> + <p> + Sometimes he besought her to allow the flood of her hair to flow over her + shoulders in a river of gold richer than the Pactolus, to encircle her + brow with a crown of ivy and linden leaves like a bacchante of Mount + Maenalus, to lie, hardly veiled by a cloud of tissue finer than woven + wind, upon a tiger-skin with silver claws and ruby eyes, or to stand erect + in a great shell of mother-of-pearl, with a dew of pearls falling from her + tresses in lieu of drops of sea-water. + </p> + <p> + When he had placed himself in the best position for observation, he became + absorbed in silent contemplation. His hand, tracing vague contours in the + air, seemed to be sketching the outlines for some picture, and he would + have remained thus for whole hours if Nyssia, soon becoming weary of her + rle of model, had not reminded him in chill and disdainful tones that + such amusements were unworthy of royal majesty and contrary to the holy + laws of matrimony. 'It is thus,' she would exclaim, as she withdrew, + draped to her very eyes, into the most mysterious recesses of her + apartment, 'that one treats a mistress, not a virtuous woman of noble + blood!' + </p> + <p> + These wise remonstrances did not cure Candaules, whose passion augmented + in inverse ratio to the coldness shown him by the queen. And it had at + last brought him to that point that he could no longer keep the secrets of + the nuptial couch. A confidant became as necessary to him as to the prince + of a modern tragedy. He did not proceed, you may feel assured, to fix his + choice upon some crabbed philosopher of frowning mien, with a flood of + gray-and-white beard rolling down over a mantle in proud tatters; nor a + warrior who could talk of nothing save ballista, catapults, and scythed + chariots; nor a sententious Eupatrid full of councils and politic maxims; + but Gyges, whose reputation for gallantry caused him to be regarded as a + connoisseur in regard to women. + </p> + <p> + One evening he laid his hand upon his shoulder in a more than ordinarily + familiar and cordial manner, and after giving him a look of peculiar + significance, he suddenly strode away from the group of courtiers, saying + in a loud voice: + </p> + <p> + 'Gyges, come and give me your opinion in regard to my effigy, which the + Sicyon sculptors have just finished chiselling on the genealogical + bas-relief where the deeds of my ancestors are celebrated.' + </p> + <p> + 'O king, your knowledge is greater than that of your humble subject, and I + know not how to express my gratitude for the honour you do me in deigning + to consult me,' replied Gyges, with a sign of assent. + </p> + <p> + Candaules and his favourite traversed several halls ornamented in the + Hellenic style, where the Corinthian acanthus and the Ionic volute bloomed + or curled in the capitals of the columns, where the friezes were peopled + with little figures in polychromatic plastique representing processions + and sacrifices, and they finally arrived at a remote portion of the + ancient palace whose walls were built with stones of irregular form, put + together without cement in the cyclopean manner. This ancient architecture + was colossally proportioned and weirdly grim. The immeasurable genius of + the elder civilisations of the Orient was there legibly written, and + recalled the granite and brick debauches of Egypt and Assyria. Something + of the spirit of the ancient architects of the tower of Lylax survived in + those thick-set pillars with their deep-fluted trunks, whose capitals were + formed by four heads of bulls, placed forehead to forehead, and bound + together by knots of serpents that seemed striving to devour them, an + obscure cosmogonie symbol whereof the meaning was no longer intelligible, + and had descended into the tomb with the hierophants of preceding ages. + The gates were neither of a square nor rounded form. They described a sort + of ogive much resembling the mitre of the Magi, and by their fantastic + character gave still more intensity to the character of the building. + </p> + <p> + This portion of the palace formed a sort of court surrounded by a portico + whose architecture was ornamented with the genealogical bas-relief to + which Can-daules had alluded. + </p> + <p> + In the midst thereof sat Heracles upon a throne, with the upper part of + his body uncovered, and his feet resting upon a stool, according to the + rite for the representation of divine personages. His colossal proportions + would otherwise have left no doubt as to his apotheosis, and the archaic + rudeness and hugeness of the work, wrought by the chisel of some primitive + artist, imparted to his figure an air of barbaric majesty, a savage + grandeur more appropriate, perhaps, to the character of this + monster-slaying hero than would have been the work of a sculptor + consummate in his art. + </p> + <p> + On the right of the throne were Alcseus, son of the hero and of Omphale; + Ninus, Belus, Argon, the earlier kings of the dynasty of the Heracleidae, + then all the line of intermediate kings, terminating with Ardys, Alyattes, + Meles or Myrsus, father of Candaules, and finally Candaules himself. + </p> + <p> + All these personages, with their hair braided into little strings, their + beards spirally twisted, their oblique eyes, angular attitudes, cramped + and stiff gestures, seemed to own a sort of factitious life, due to the + rays of the setting sun, and the ruddy hue which time lends to marble in + warm climates. The inscriptions in antique characters, graven beside them + after the manner of legends, enhanced still more the mysterious weirdness + of the long procession of figures in strange barbarian garb. + </p> + <p> + By a singular chance, which Gyges could not help observing, the statue of + Candaules occupied the last available place at the right hand of Heracles; + the dynastic cycle was closed, and in order to find a place for the + descendants of Candaules it would be absolutely necessary to build a new + portico and commence the formation of a new bas-relief. + </p> + <p> + Candaules, whose arm still rested on the shoulder of Gyges, walked slowly + round the portico in silence. He seemed to hesitate to enter into the + subject, and had altogether forgotten the pretext under which he had led + the captain of his guards into that solitary place. + </p> + <p> + 'What would you do, Gyges,' said Candaules, at last breaking the silence + which had been growing painful to both, 'if you were a diver, and should + bring up from the green bosom of the ocean a pearl of incomparable purity + and lustre, and of worth so vast as to exhaust the richest treasures of + the earth?' + </p> + <p> + 'I would inclose it,' answered Gyges, a little surprised at this brusque + question, 'in a cedar box overlaid with plates of brass, and I would bury + it under a detached rock in some desert place; and from time to time, when + I should feel assured that none could see me, I would go thither to + contemplate my precious jewel and admire the colours of the sky mingling + with its nacreous tints.' + </p> + <p> + 'And I,' replied Candaules, his eye illuminated with enthusiasm, 'if I + possessed so rich a gem, I would enshrine it in my diadem, that I might + exhibit it freely to the eyes of all men, in the pure light of the sun, + that I might adorn myself with its splendour and smile with pride when I + should hear it said: "Never did king of Assyria or Babylon, never did + Greek or Trinacrian tyrant possess so lustrous a pearl as Candaules, son + of Myrsus and descendant of Heracles, King of Sardes and of Lydia! + Compared with Candaules, Midas, who changed all things to gold, were only + a mendicant as poor as Irus."' + </p> + <p> + Gyges listened with astonishment to this discourse of Candaules, and + sought to penetrate the hidden sense of these lyric divagations. The king + appeared to be in a state of extraordinary excitement: his eyes sparkled + with enthusiasm; a feverish rosiness tinted his cheeks; his dilated + nostrils inhaled the air with unusual effort. + </p> + <p> + 'Well, Gyges,' continued Candaules, without appearing to notice the + uneasiness of his favourite, 'I am that diver. Amid this dark ocean of + humanity, wherein confusedly move so many defective or misshapen beings, + so many forms incomplete or degraded, so many types of bestial ugliness, + wretched outlines of nature's experimental essays, I have found beauty, + pure, radiant, without spot, without flaw, the ideal made real, the dream + accomplished, a form which no painter or sculptor has ever been able to + translate upon canvas or into marble—I have found Nyssia!' + </p> + <p> + 'Although the queen has the timid modesty of the women of the Orient, and + that no man save her husband has ever beheld her features, Fame, + hundred-tongued and hundred-eared, has celebrated her praise throughout + the world,' answered Gyges, respectfully inclining his head as he spoke. + </p> + <p> + 'Mere vague, insignificant rumours. They say of her, as of all women not + actually ugly, that she is more beautiful than Aphrodite or Helen; but no + person could form even the most remote idea of such perfection. In vain + have I besought Nyssia to appear unveiled at some public festival, some + solemn sacrifice, or to show herself for an instant leaning over the royal + terrace, bestowing upon her people the immense favour of one look, the + prodigality of one profile view, more generous than the goddesses who + permit their worshippers to behold only pale simulacra of ivory or + alabaster. She would never consent to that. Now there is one strange thing + which I blush to acknowledge even to you, dear Gyges. Formerly I was + jealous; I wished to conceal my amours from all eyes, no shadow was thick + enough, no mystery sufficiently impenetrable. Now I can no longer + recognise myself. I have the feelings neither of a lover nor a husband; my + love has melted in adoration like thin wax in a fiery brazier. All petty + feelings of jealousy or possession have vanished. No, the most finished + work that heaven has ever given to earth, since the day that Prometheus + held the flame under the right breast of the statue of clay, cannot thus + be kept hidden in the chill shadow of the gynaeceum. Were I to die, then + the secret of this beauty would for ever remain shrouded beneath the + sombre draperies of widowhood! I feel myself culpable in its concealment, + as though I had the sun in my house, and prevented it from illuminating + the world. And when I think of those harmonious lines, those divine + contours which I dare scarcely touch with a timid kiss, I feel my heart + ready to burst; I wish that some friendly eye could share my happiness + and, like a severe judge to whom a picture is shown, recognise after + careful examination that it is irreproachable, and that the possessor has + not been deceived by his enthusiasm. Yes, often do I feel myself tempted + to tear off with rash hand those odious tissues, but Nyssia, in her fierce + chastity, would never forgive me. And still I cannot alone endure such + felicity. I must have a confidant for my ecstasies, an echo which will + answer my cries of admiration, and it shall be none other than you.' + </p> + <p> + Having uttered these words, Candaules brusquely turned and disappeared + through a secret passage. Gyges, left thus alone, could not avoid noticing + the peculiar concourse of events which seemed to place him always in + Nyssia's path. A chance had enabled him to behold her beauty, though + walled up from all other eyes. Among many princes and satraps she had + chosen to espouse Candaules, the very king he served; and through some + strange caprice, which he could only regard as fateful, this king had just + made him, Gyges, his confidant in regard to the mysterious creature whom + none else had approached, and absolutely sought to complete the work of + Boreas on the plain of Bactria! Was not the hand of the gods visible in + all these circumstances? That spectre of beauty, whose veil seemed to be + lifted slowly, a little at a time, as though to enkindle a flame within + him, was it not leading him, without his having suspected it, toward the + accomplishment of some mighty destiny? Such were the questions which Gyges + asked himself, but being unable to penetrate the obscurity of the future, + he resolved to await the course of events, and left the Court of Images, + where the twilight darkness was commencing to pile itself up in all the + angles, and to render the effigies of the ancestors of Candaules yet more + and more weirdly menacing. + </p> + <p> + Was it a mere effort of light, or was it rather an illusion produced by + that vague uneasiness with which the boldest hearts are filled by the + approach of night amid ancient monuments? As he stepped across the + threshold Gyges fancied that he heard deep groans issue from the stone + lips of the bas-reliefs, and it seemed to him that Heracles was making + enormous efforts to loosen his granite club. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2HCH0003" id="link2HCH0003"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + CHAPTER III + </h2> + <p> + On the following day Candaules again took Gyges aside and continued the + conversation begun under the portico of the Heracleid. Having freed + himself from the embarrassment of broaching the subject, he freely + unbosomed himself to his confidant; and had Nyssia been able to overhear + him she might perhaps have been willing to pardon his conjugal + indiscretions for the sake of his passionate eulogies of her charms. + </p> + <p> + Gyges listened to all these bursts of praise with the slightly constrained + air of one who is yet uncertain whether his interlocutor is not feigning + an enthusiasm more ardent than he actually feels, in order to provoke a + confidence naturally cautious to utter itself. Can-daules at last said to + him in a tone of disappointment: 'I see, Gyges, that you do not believe + me. You think I am boasting, or have allowed myself to be fascinated like + some clumsy labourer by a robust country girl on whose cheeks Hygeia has + crushed the gross hues of health. No, by all the gods! I have collected + within my home, like a living bouquet, the fairest flowers of Asia and of + Greece. I know all that the art of sculptors and painters has produced + since the time of Daedalus, whose statues walked and spoke. Linus, + Orpheus, Homer, have taught me harmony and rhythm. I do not look about me + with Love's bandage blindfolding my eyes. I judge of all things coolly. + The passions of youth never influence my admiration, and when I am as + withered, decrepit, wrinkled, as Tithonus in his swaddling bands, my + opinion will be still the same. But I forgive your incredulity and want of + sympathy. In order to understand me fully, it is necessary that you should + see Nyssia in the radiant brilliancy of her shining whiteness, free from + jealous drapery, even as Nature with her own hands moulded her in a lost + moment of inspiration which never can return. This evening I will hide you + in a corner of the bridal chamber... you shall see her!' + </p> + <p> + 'Sire, what do you ask of me?' returned the young warrior with respectful + firmness. 'How shall I, from the depths of my dust, from the abyss of my + nothingness, dare to raise my eyes to this sun of perfections, at the risk + of remaining blind for the rest of my life, or being able to see naught + but a dazzling spectre in the midst of darkness? Have pity on your humble + slave, and do not compel him to an action so contrary to the maxims of + virtue. No man should look upon what does not belong to him. We know that + the immortals always punish those who through imprudence or audacity + surprise them in their divine nudity. Nyssia is the loveliest of all + women; you are the happiest of lovers and husbands. Heracles, your + ancestor, never found in the course of his many conquests aught to compare + with your queen. If you, the prince of whom even the most skilful artists + seek judgment and counsel—if you find her incomparable, of what + consequence can the opinion of an obscure soldier like me be to you? + Abandon, therefore, this fantasy, which I presume to say is unworthy of + your royal majesty, and of which you would repent so soon as it had been + satisfied.' + </p> + <p> + 'Listen, Gyges,' returned Candaules; 'I perceive that you suspect me; you + think that I seek to put you to some proof, but by the ashes of that + funeral pyre whence my ancestor arose a god, I swear to you that I speak + frankly and without any after-purpose.' + </p> + <p> + 'O Candaules, I doubt not of your good faith; your passion is sincere, but + perchance, after I should have obeyed you, you would conceive a deep + aversion to me, and learn to hate me for not having more firmly resisted + your will. You would seek to take back from these eyes, indiscreet through + compulsion, the image which you allowed them to glance upon in a moment of + delirium; and who knows but that you would condemn them to the eternal + night of the tomb to punish them for remaining open at a moment when they + ought to have been closed.' + </p> + <p> + 'Fear nothing; I pledge my royal word that no evil shall befall you.' + </p> + <p> + 'Pardon your slave if he still dares to offer some objection, even after + such a promise. Have you reflected that what you propose to me is a + violation of the sanctity of marriage, a species of visual adultery? A + woman often lays aside her modesty with her garments; and once violated by + a look, without having actually ceased to be virtuous, she might deem that + she had lost her flower of purity. You promise, indeed, to feel no + resentment against me; but who can ensure me against the wrath of Nyssia, + she who is so reserved and chaste, so apprehensive, fierce, and virginal + in her modesty that she might be deemed still ignorant of the laws of + Hymen? Should she ever learn of the sacrilege which I am about to render + myself guilty of in deferring to my master's wishes, what punishment would + she condemn me to suffer in expiation of such a crime? Who could place me + beyond the reach of her avenging anger?' + </p> + <p> + 'I did not know you were so wise and prudent,' said Candaules, with a + slightly ironical smile; 'but such dangers are all imaginary, and I shall + hide you in such a way that Nyssia will never know she has been seen by + any one except her royal husband.' + </p> + <p> + Being unable to offer any further defence, Gyges made a sign of assent in + token of complete submission to the king's will. He had made all the + resistance in his power, and thenceforward his conscience could feel at + ease in regard to whatever might happen; besides, by any further + opposition to the will of Candaules, he would have feared to oppose + destiny itself, which seemed striving to bring him still nearer to Nyssia + for some grim ulterior purpose into which it was not given to him to see + further. + </p> + <p> + Without actually being able to foresee any result, he beheld a thousand + vague and shadowy images passing before his eyes. That subterranean love, + so long crouched at the foot of his soul's stairway, had climbed a few + steps higher, guided by some fitful glimmer of hope. The weight of the + impossible no longer pressed so heavily upon his breast, now that he + believed himself aided by the gods. In truth, who would have dreamed that + the much-boasted charms of the daughter of Megabazus would ere long cease + to own any mystery for Gyges? + </p> + <p> + 'Come, Gyges,' said Candaules, taking him by the hand, 'let us make profit + of the time. Nyssia is walking in the garden with her women; let us look + at the place, and plan our stratagems for this evening.' + </p> + <p> + The king took his confidant by the hand and led him along the winding ways + which conducted to the nuptial apartment. The doors of the sleeping-room + were made of cedar planks so perfectly put together that it was impossible + to discover the joints. By dint of rubbing them with wool steeped in oil, + the slaves had rendered the wood as polished as marble. The brazen nails, + with heads cut in facets, which studded them, had all the brilliancy of + the purest gold. A complicated system of straps and metallic rings, + whereof Candaules and his wife alone knew the combination, served to + secure them, for in those heroic ages the locksmith's art was yet in its + infancy. + </p> + <p> + Candaules unloosed the knots, made the rings slide back upon the thongs, + raised with a handle which fitted into a mortise the bar that fastened the + door from within, and bidding Gyges place himself against the wall, turned + back one of the folding-doors upon him in such a way as to hide him + completely; yet the door did not fit so perfectly to its frame of oaken + beams, all carefully polished and put up according to line by a skilful + workman, that the young warrior could not obtain a distinct view of the + chamber interior through the interstices contrived to give room for the + free play of the hinges. + </p> + <p> + Facing the entrance, the royal bed stood upon an estrade of several steps, + covered with purple drapery. Columns of chased silver supported the + entablature, all ornamented with foliage wrought in relief, amid which + Loves were sporting with dolphins, and heavy curtains embroidered with + gold surrounded it like the folds of a tent. + </p> + <p> + Upon the altar of the household gods were placed vases of precious metal, + paterae enamelled with flowers, double-handled cups, and all things + needful for libations. + </p> + <p> + Along the walls, which were faced with planks of cedar-wood, marvellously + worked, at regular intervals stood tall statues of black basalt in the + constrained attitudes of Egyptian art, each sustaining in its hand a + bronze torch into which a splinter of resinous wood had been fitted. + </p> + <p> + An onyx lamp, suspended by a chain of silver, hung from that beam of the + ceiling which is called the black beam, because more exposed than the + others to the embrowning smoke. Every evening a slave carefully filled + this lamp with odoriferous oil. + </p> + <p> + Near the head of the bed, on a little column, hung a trophy of arms, + consisting of a visored helmet, a twofold buckler made of four bulls' + hides and covered with plates of brass and tin, a two-edged sword, and + several ashen javelins with brazen heads. + </p> + <p> + The tunics and mantles of Candaules were hung upon wooden pegs. They + comprised garments both simple and double; that is, capable of going twice + around the body. A mantle of thrice-dyed purple, ornamented with + embroidery representing a hunting scene wherein Laconian hounds were + pursuing and tearing deer, and a tunic whereof the material, fine and + delicate as the skin which envelops an onion had all the sheen of woven + sunbeams, were especially noticeable. Opposite to the trophy stood an + armchair inlaid with silver and ivory upon which Nyssia hung her garments. + Its seat was covered with a leopard skin more eye-spotted than the body of + Argus, and its foot-support was richly adorned with openwork carving. + </p> + <p> + 'I am generally the first to retire,' observed Candaules to Gyges, 'and I + always leave this door open as it is now. Nyssia, who has invariably some + tapestry flower to finish, or some order to give her women, usually delays + a little in joining me; but at last she comes, and slowly takes off, one + by one, as though the effort cost her dearly, and lays upon that ivory + chair, all those draperies and tunics which by day envelop her like mummy + bandages. From your hiding-place you will be able to follow all her + graceful movements, admire her unrivalled charms, and judge for yourself + whether Candaules be a young fool prone to vain boasting, or whether he + does not really possess the richest pearl of beauty that ever adorned a + diadem.' + </p> + <p> + 'O King, I can well believe your words without such a proof as this,' + replied Gyges, stepping forth from his hiding-place. 'When she has laid + aside her garments,' continued Candaules, without heeding the exclamation + of his confidant, 'she will come to lie down with me. You must take + advantage of the moment to steal away, for in passing from the chair to + the bed she turns her back to the door. Step lightly as though you were + treading upon ears of ripe wheat; take heed that no grain of sand squeaks + under your sandals; hold your breath, and retire as stealthily as + possible. The vestibule is all in darkness, and the feeble rays of the + only lamp which remains burning do not penetrate beyond the threshold of + the chamber. It is, therefore, certain that Nyssia cannot possibly see + you; and to-morrow there will be some one in the world who can comprehend + my ecstasies, and will feel no longer astonished at my bursts of + admiration. But see, the day is almost spent; the Sun will soon water his + steeds in the Hesperian waves at the further end of the world, and beyond + the Pillars erected by my ancestors. Return to your hiding-place, Gyges, + and though the hours of waiting may seem long, I can swear by Eros of the + Golden Arrows that you will not regret having waited.' + </p> + <p> + After this assurance Candaules left Gyges again hidden behind the door. + 'The compulsory quiet which the king's young confidant found himself + obliged to maintain left him ample leisure for thought. His situation was + certainly a most extraordinary one. He had loved Nyssia as one loves a + star. Convinced of the hopelessness of the undertaking, he had made no + effort to approach her. And, nevertheless, by a succession of + extraordinary events he was about to obtain a knowledge of treasures + reserved for lovers and husbands only. Not a word, not a glance had been + exchanged between himself and Nyssia, who probably ignored the very + existence of the one being for whom her beauty would so soon cease to be a + mystery. Unknown to her whose modesty would have naught to sacrifice for + you, how strange a situation! To love a woman in secret and find oneself + led by her husband to the threshold of the nuptial chamber, to have for + guide to that treasure the very dragon who should defend all approach to + it, was there not in all this ample food for astonishment and wonder at + the combination of events wrought by destiny? + </p> + <p> + In the midst of these reflections, he suddenly heard the sound of + footsteps on the pavement. It was only the slaves coming to replenish the + oil in the lamp, throw fresh perfumes upon the coals of the kamklins, and + arrange the purple and saffron-tinted sheepskins which formed the royal + bed. + </p> + <p> + The hour approached, and Gyges felt his heart beat faster, and the + pulsation of his arteries quicken. He even felt a strong impulse to steal + away before the arrival of the queen, and, after averring subsequently to + Candaules that he had remained, abandon himself confidently to the most + extravagant eulogiums. He felt a strong repugnance (for, despite his + somewhat free life, Gyges was not without delicacy) to take by stealth a + favour for the free granting of which he would gladly have paid with his + life. The husband's complicity rendered this theft more odious in a + certain sense, and he would have preferred to owe to any other + circumstance the happiness of beholding the marvel of Asia in her + nocturnal toilet. Perhaps, indeed, the approach of danger, let us + acknowledge as veracious historians, had no little to do with his virtuous + scruples. Undoubtedly Gyges did not lack courage. Mounted upon his + war-chariot, with quiver rattling upon his shoulder, and bow in hand, he + would have defied the most valiant warriors; in the chase he would have + attacked without fear the Calydon boar or the Nemean lion; but—explain + the enigma as you will—he trembled at the idea of looking at a + beautiful woman through a chink in a door. No one possesses every kind of + courage. He felt likewise that he could not behold Nyssia with impunity. + It would be a decisive epoch in his life. Through having obtained but a + momentary glimpse of her he had lost all peace of mind; what, then, would + be the result of that which was about to take place? Could life itself + continue for him when to that divine head which fired his dreams should be + added a charming body formed for the kisses of the immortals? What would + become of him should he find himself unable thereafter to contain his + passion in darkness and silence as he had done till that time? Would he + exhibit to the court of Lydia the ridiculous spectacle of an insane love, + or would he strive by some extravagant action to bring down upon himself + the disdainful pity of the queen? Such a result was strongly probable, + since the reason of Candaules himself, the legitimate possessor of Nyssia, + had been unable to resist the vertigo caused by that superhuman beauty—he, + the thoughtless young king who till then had laughed at love, and + preferred pictures and statues before all things. These arguments were + very rational but wholly useless, for at the same moment Candaules entered + the chamber, and exclaimed in a low but distinct voice as he passed the + door: + </p> + <p> + 'Patience, my poor Gyges, Nyssia will soon come.' When he saw that he + could no longer retreat, Gyges, who was but a young man after all, forgot + every other consideration, and no longer thought of aught save the + happiness of feasting his eyes upon the charming spectacle which Candaules + was about to offer him. One cannot demand from a captain of twenty-five + the austerity of a hoary philosopher. + </p> + <p> + At last a low whispering of raiment sweeping and trailing over marble, + distinctly audible in the deep silence of the night, announced the + approach of the queen. In effect it was she. With a step as cadenced and + rhythmic as an ode, she crossed the threshold of the thalamus, and the + wind of her veil with its floating folds almost touched the burning cheek + of Gyges, who felt wellnigh on the point of fainting, and found himself + compelled to seek the support of the wall; but soon recovering from the + violence of his emotions, he approached the chink of the door, and took + the most favourable position for enabling him to lose nothing of the scene + whereof he was about to be an invisible witness. + </p> + <p> + Nyssia advanced to the ivory chair and commenced to detach the pins, + terminated by hollow balls of gold, which fastened her veil upon her head; + and Gyges from the depths of the shadow-filled angle where he stood + concealed could examine at his ease the proud and charming face of which + he had before obtained only a hurried glimpse; that rounded neck, at once + delicate and powerful, whereon Aphrodite had traced with the nail of her + little finger those three faint lines which are still at this very day + known as the 'necklace of Venus'; that white nape on whose alabaster + surface little wild rebellious curls were disporting and entwining + themselves; those silver shoulders, half rising from the opening of the + chlamys, like the moon's disc emerging from an opaque cloud. Candaules, + half reclining upon his cushions, gazed with fondness upon his wife, and + thought to himself: 'Now Gyges, who is so cold, so difficult to please, + and so sceptical, must be already half convinced.' + </p> + <p> + Opening a little coffer which stood on a table supported by one leg + terminating in carven lion's paws, the queen freed her beautiful arms from + the weight of the bracelets and jewellery wherewith they had been + overburdened during the day—arms whose form and whiteness might well + have enabled them to compare with those of Hera, sister and wife of Zeus, + the lord of Olympus. Precious as were her jewels, they were assuredly not + worth the spots which they concealed, and had Nyssia been a coquette, one + might have well supposed that she only donned them in order that she + should be entreated to take them off. The rings and chased work had left + upon her skin, fine and tender as the interior pulp of a lily, light rosy + imprints, which she soon dissipated by rubbing them with her little + taper-fingered hand, all rounded and slender at its extremities. + </p> + <p> + Then with the movement of a dove trembling in the snow of its feathers, + she shook her hair, which being no longer held by the golden pins, rolled + down in languid spirals like hyacinth flowers over her back and bosom. + Thus she remained for a few moments ere reassembling the scattered curls + and finally re-uniting them into one mass. It was marvellous to watch the + blond ringlets streaming like jets of liquid gold between the silver of + her fingers; and her arms undulating like swans' necks as they were arched + above her head in the act of twisting and confining the natural bullion. + If you have ever by chance examined one of those beautiful Etruscan vases + with red figures on a black ground, and decorated with one of those + subjects which are designated under the title of 'Greek Toilette,' then + you will have some idea of the grace of Nyssia in that attitude which, + from the age of antiquity to our own era, has furnished such a multitude + of happy designs for painters and statuaries. + </p> + <p> + Having thus arranged her coiffure, she seated herself upon the edge of the + ivory footstool and commenced to untie the little bands which fastened her + buskins. We moderns, owing to our horrible system of footgear, which is + hardly less absurd than the Chinese shoe, no longer know what a foot is. + That of Nyssia was of a perfection rare even in Greece and antique Asia. + The great toe, a little apart like the thumb of a bird, the other toes, + slightly long, and all ranged in charming symmetry, the nails well shaped + and brilliant as agates, the ankles well rounded and supple, the heel + slightly tinted with a rosy hue—nothing was wanting to the + perfection of the little member. The leg attached to this foot, and which + gleamed like polished marble under the lamp-light, was irreproachable in + the purity of its outlines and the grace of its curves. + </p> + <p> + Gyges, lost in contemplation, though all the while fully comprehending the + madness of Candaules, said to himself that had the gods bestowed such a + treasure upon him he would have known how to keep it to himself. + </p> + <p> + 'Well, Nyssia, are you not coming to sleep with me?' exclaimed Candaules, + seeing that the queen was not hurrying herself in the least, and feeling + desirous to abridge the watch of Gyges. + </p> + <p> + 'Yes, my dear lord, I will soon be ready,' answered Nyssia. + </p> + <p> + And she detached the cameo which fastened the peplum upon her shoulder. + There remained only the tunic to let fall. Gyges, behind the door, felt + his veins hiss through his temples; his heart beat so violently that he + feared it must make itself heard in the chamber, and to repress its fierce + pulsations he pressed his hand upon his bosom; and when Nyssia, with a + movement of careless grace, unfastened the girdle of her tunic, he thought + his knees would give way beneath him. + </p> + <p> + Nyssia—was it an instinctive presentiment, or was her skin, + virginally pure from profane looks, so delicately magnetic in its + susceptibility that it could feel the rays of a passionate eye though that + eye was invisible?—Nyssia hesitated to strip herself of that tunic, + the last rampart of her modesty. Twice or thrice her shoulders, her bosom, + and bare arms shuddered with a nervous chill, as though they had been + suddenly grazed by the wings of a nocturnal butterfly, or as though an + insolent lip had dared to touch them in the darkness. + </p> + <p> + At last, seeming to nerve herself for a sudden resolve she doffed the + tunic in its turn; and the white poem of her divine body suddenly appeared + in all its splendour, like the statue of a goddess unveiled on the day of + a temple's inauguration. Shuddering with pleasure the light glided and + gloated over those exquisite forms, and covered them with timid kisses, + profiting by an occasion, alas, rare indeed! The rays scattered through + the chamber, disdaining to illuminate golden arms, jewelled clasps, or + brazen tripods, all concentrated themselves upon Nyssia, and left all + other objects in obscurity. Were we Greeks of the age of Pericles we might + at our ease eulogise those beautiful serpentine lines, those polished + flanks, those elegant curves, those breasts which might have served as + moulds for the cup of Hebe; but modern prudery forbids such descriptions, + for the pen cannot find pardon for what is permitted to the chisel; and + besides, there are some things which can be written of only in marble. + </p> + <p> + Candaules smiled in proud satisfaction. With a rapid step, as though + ashamed of being so beautiful, for she was only the daughter of a man and + a woman, Nyssia approached the bed, her arms folded upon her bosom; but + with a sudden movement she turned round ere taking her place upon the + couch beside her royal spouse, and beheld through the aperture of the door + a gleaming eye flaming like the carbuncle of Oriental legend; for if it + were false that she had a double pupil, and that she possessed the stone + which is found in the heads of dragons, it was at least true that her + green glance penetrated darkness like the glaucous eye of the cat and + tiger. + </p> + <p> + A cry, like that of a fawn who receives an arrow in her flank while + tranquilly dreaming among the leafy shadows, was on the point of bursting + from her lips, yet she found strength to control herself, and lay down + beside Candaules, cold as a serpent, with the violets of death upon her + cheeks and lips. Not a muscle of her limbs quivered, not a fibre of her + body palpitated, and soon her slow, regular breathing seemed to indicate + that Morpheus had distilled his poppy juice upon her eyelids. + </p> + <p> + She had divined and comprehended all. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2HCH0004" id="link2HCH0004"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + CHAPTER IV + </h2> + <p> + Gyges, trembling and distracted with passion, had retired, following + exactly the instructions of Candaules; and if Nyssia, through some + unfortunate chance, had not turned her head ere taking her place upon the + couch, and perceived him in the act of taking flight, doubtless she would + have remained for ever unconscious of the outrage done to her charms by a + husband more passionate than scrupulous. + </p> + <p> + Accustomed to the winding corridors of the palace, the young warrior had + no difficulty in finding his way out. He passed through the city at a + reckless pace like a madman escaped from Anticyra, and by making himself + known to the sentinels who guarded the ramparts, he had the gates opened + for him and gained the fields beyond. His brain burned, his cheeks flamed + as with the fires of fever; his breath came hotly panting through his + lips; he flung himself down upon the meadow-sod humid with the tears of + the night; and at last hearing in the darkness, through the thick grass + and water-plants, the silvery respiration of a Naiad, he dragged himself + to the spring, plunged his hands and arms into the crystal flood, bathed + his face, and drank several mouthfuls of the water in the hope to cool the + ardour which was devouring him. Any one who could have seen him thus + hopelessly bending over the spring in the feeble starlight would have + taken him for Narcissus pursuing his own shadow; but it was not of himself + assuredly that Gyges was enamoured. + </p> + <p> + The rapid apparition of Nyssia had dazzled his eyes like the keen zigzag + of a lightning flash. He beheld her floating before him in a luminous + whirlwind, and felt that never through all his life could he banish that + image from his vision. His love had grown to vastness; its flower had + suddenly burst, like those plants which open their blossoms with a clap of + thunder. To master his passion were henceforth a thing impossible: as well + counsel the empurpled waves which Poseidon lifts with his trident to lie + tranquilly in their bed of sand and cease to foam upon the rocks of the + shore. Gyges was no longer master of himself, and he felt a miserable + despair, as of a man riding in a chariot, who finds his terrified and + uncontrollable horses rushing with all the speed of a furious gallop + toward some rock-bristling precipice. A hundred thousand projects, each + wilder than the last, whirled confusedly through his brain. He blasphemed + Destiny, he cursed his mother for having given him life, and the gods that + they had not caused him to be born to a throne, for then he might have + been able to espouse the daughter of the satrap. + </p> + <p> + A frightful agony gnawed at his heart; he was jealous of the king. From + the moment of the tunic's fall at the feet of Nyssia, like the flight of a + white dove alighting upon a meadow, it had seemed to him that she belonged + to him; he deemed himself despoiled of his wealth by Candaules. In all his + amorous reveries he had never until then thought of the husband; he had + thought of the queen only as of a pure abstraction, without representing + to himself in fancy all those intimate details of conjugal familiarity, so + poignant, so bitter for those who love a woman in the power of another. + Now he had beheld Nyssia's blond head bending like a blossom beside the + dark head of Candaules. The very thought of it had inflamed his anger to + the highest degree, although a moment's reflection should have convinced + him that things could not have come to pass otherwise, and he felt growing + within him a most unjust hatred against his master. The act of having + compelled his presence at the queen's dishabille seemed to him a barbarous + irony, an odious refinement of cruelty, for he did not remember that his + love for her could not have been known by the king, who had sought in him + only a confidant of easy morals and a connoisseur in beauty. That which he + ought to have regarded as a great favour affected him like a mortal injury + for which he was meditating vengeance. While thinking that to-morrow the + same scene of which he had been a mute and invisible witness would + infallibly renew itself, his tongue clove to his palate, his forehead + became imbeaded with drops of cold sweat, and his hand convulsively + grasped the hilt of his great double-edged sword. + </p> + <p> + Nevertheless, thanks to the freshness of the night, that excellent + counsellor, he became a little calmer, and returned to Sardes before the + morning light had become bright enough to enable a few early rising + citizens and slaves to notice the pallor of his brow and the disorder of + his apparel. He betook himself to his regular post at the palace, well + suspecting that Can-daules would shortly send for him; and, however + violent the agitation of his feelings, he felt he was not powerful enough + to brave the anger of the king, and could in no way escape submitting + again to this rle of confidant, which could thenceforth only inspire him + with horror. Having arrived at the palace, he seated himself upon the + steps of the cypress-panelled vestibule, leaned his back against a column, + and, under the pretext of being fatigued by the long vigil under arms, he + covered his head with his mantle and feigned sleep, to avoid answering the + questions of the other guards. + </p> + <p> + If the night had been terrible to Gyges, it had not been less so to + Nyssia, as she never for an instant doubted that he had been purposely + hidden there by Candaules. The king's persistency in begging her not to + veil so austerely a face which the gods had made for the admiration of + men, his evident vexation upon her refusal to appear in Greek costume at + the sacrifices and public solemnities, his unsparing raillery at what he + termed her barbarian shyness, all tended to convince her that the young + Heracleid had sought to admit some one into those mysteries which should + remain secret to all, for without his encouragement no man could have + dared to risk himself in an undertaking the discovery of which would have + resulted in the punishment of a speedy death. + </p> + <p> + How slowly did the black hours seem to her to pass! How anxiously did she + await the coming of dawn to mingle its bluish tints with the yellow gleams + of the almost exhausted lamp! It seemed to her that Apollo would never + mount his chariot again, and that some invisible hand was sustaining the + sand of the hourglass in air. Though brief as any other, that night seemed + to her like the Cimmerian nights, six long months of darkness. + </p> + <p> + While it lasted she lay motionless and rigid at full length on the very + edge of her couch in dread of being touched by Candaules. If she had not + up to that night felt a very strong love for the son of Myrsus, she had, + at least, ever exhibited toward him that grave and serene tenderness which + every virtuous woman entertains for her husband, although the altogether + Greek freedom of his morals frequently displeased her, and though he + entertained ideas at variance with her own in regard to modesty; but after + such an affront she could only feel the chilliest hatred and most icy + contempt for him; she would have preferred even death to one of his + caresses. Such an outrage it was impossible to forgive, for among the + barbarians, and above all among the Persians and Bactrians, it was held a + great disgrace, not for women only, but even for men, to be seen without + their garments. + </p> + <p> + At length Candaules arose, and Nyssia, awaking from her simulated sleep, + hurried from that chamber now profaned in her eyes as though it had served + for the nocturnal orgies of Bacchantes and courtesans. It was agony for + her to breathe that impure air any longer, and that she might freely give + herself up to her grief she took refuge in the upper apartments reserved + for the women, summoned her slaves by clapping her hands, and poured ewers + of water over her shoulders, her bosom, and her whole body, as though + hoping by this species of lustral ablution to efface the soil imprinted by + the eyes of Gyges. She would have voluntarily torn, as it were, from her + body that skin upon which the rays shot from a burning pupil seemed to + have left their traces. Taking from the hands of her waiting-women the + thick downy materials which served to drink up the last pearls of the + bath, she wiped herself with such violence that a slight purple cloud rose + to the spots she had rubbed. + </p> + <p> + 'In vain,' she exclaimed, letting the damp tissues fall, and dismissing + her attendants—'in vain would I pour over myself all the waters of + all the springs and the rivers; the ocean with all its bitter gulfs could + not purify me. Such a stain may be washed out only with blood. Oh, that + look, that look! It has incrusted itself upon me; it clasps me, covers me, + burns me like the tunic dipped in the blood of Nessus; I feel it beneath + my draperies, like an envenomed tissue which nothing can detach from my + body! Now, indeed, would I vainly pile garments upon garments, select + materials the least transparent, and the thickest of mantles. I would none + the less bear upon my naked flesh this infamous robe woven by one + adulterous and lascivious glance. Vainly, since the hour when I issued + from the chaste womb of my mother, have I been brought up in private, + enveloped, like Isis, the Egyptian goddess, with a veil of which none + might have lifted the hem without paying for his audacity with his life. + In vain have I remained guarded from all evil desires, from all profane + imaginings, unknown of men, virgin as the snow on which the eagle himself + could not imprint the seal of his talons, so loftily does the mountain + which it covers lift its head in the pure and icy air. The depraved + caprice of a Lydian Greek has sufficed to make me lose in a single + instant, without any guilt of mine, all the fruit of long years of + precaution and reserve. Innocent and dishonoured, hidden from all yet made + public to all... this is the lot to which Candaules has condemned me. Who + can assure me that, at this very moment, Gyges is not in the act of + discoursing upon my charms with some soldiers at the very threshold of the + palace? Oh shame! Oh infamy! Two men have beheld me naked and yet at this + instant enjoy the sweet light of the sun! In what does Nyssia now differ + from the most shameless hetaira, from the vilest of courtesans? This body + which I have striven to render worthy of being the habitation of a pure + and noble soul, serves for a theme of conversation; it is talked of like + some lascivious idol brought from Sicyon or from Corinth; it is commended + or found fault with. The shoulder is perfect, the arm is charming, perhaps + a little thin—what know I? All the blood of my heart leaps to my + cheeks at such a thought. Oh beauty, fatal gift of the gods! why am I not + the wife of some poor mountain goatherd of innocent and simple habits? He + would not have suborned a goatherd like himself at the threshold of his + cabin to profane his humble happiness! My lean figure, my unkempt hair, my + complexion faded by the burning sun, would then have saved me from so + gross an insult, and my honest homeliness would not have been compelled to + blush. How shall I dare, after the scene of this night, to pass before + those men, proudly erect under the folds of a tunic which has no longer + aught to hide from either of them. I should drop dead with shame upon the + pavement. Candaules, Candaules, I was at least entitled to more respect + from you, and there was nothing in my conduct which could have provoked + such an outrage. Was I one of those ones whose arms for ever cling like + ivy to their husbands' necks, and who seem more like slaves bought with + money for a master's pleasure than free-born women of noble blood? Have I + ever after a repast sung amorous hymns accompanying myself upon the lyre, + with wine-moist lips, naked shoulders, and a wreath of roses about my + hair, or given you cause, by any immodest action, to treat me like a + mistress whom one shows after a banquet to his companions in debauch?' + While Nyssia was thus buried in her grief, great tears overflowed from her + eyes like rain-drops from the azure chalice of a lotus-flower after some + storm, and rolling down her pale cheeks fell upon her fair forlorn hands, + languishingly open, like roses whose leaves are half-shed, for no order + came from the brain to give them activity. The attitude of Niobe, + beholding her fourteenth child succumb beneath the arrows of Apollo and + Diana, was not more sadly despairing, but soon starting from this state of + prostration, she rolled herself upon the floor, rent her garments, covered + her beautiful dishevelled hair with ashes, tore her bosom and cheeks with + her nails amid convulsive sobs, and abandoned herself to all the excesses + of Oriental grief, the more violently that she had been forced so long to + contain her indignation, shame, pangs of wounded dignity, and all the + agony that convulsed her soul, for the pride of her whole life had been + broken, and the idea that she had nothing wherewith to reproach herself + afforded her no consolation. As a poet has said, only the innocent know + remorse. She was repenting of the crime which another had committed. + </p> + <p> + Nevertheless she made an effort to recover herself, ordered the baskets + filled with wools of different colours, and the spindles wrapped with + flax, to be brought to her, and distributed the work to her women as she + had been accustomed to do; but she thought she noticed that the slaves + looked at her in a very peculiar way, and had ceased to entertain the same + timid respect for her as before. Her voice no longer rang with the same + assurance; there was something humble and furtive in her demeanour; she + felt herself interiorly fallen. + </p> + <p> + Doubtless her scruples were exaggerated, and her virtue had received no + stain from the folly of Candaules; but ideas imbibed with a mother's milk + obtain irresistible sway, and the modesty of the body is carried by + Oriental nations to an extent almost incomprehensible to Occidental races. + When a man desired to speak to Nyssia in the palace of Megabazus at + Bactria, he was obliged to do so keeping his eyes fixed upon the ground, + and two eunuchs stood beside him, poniard in hand, ready to plunge their + keen blades through his heart should he dare lift his head to look at the + princess, notwithstanding that her face was veiled. You may readily + conceive, therefore, how deadly an injury the action of Candaules would + seem to a woman thus brought up, while any other would doubtless have + considered it only a culpable frivolity. Thus the idea of vengeance had + instantly presented itself to Nyssia, and had given her sufficient + self-control to strangle the cry of her offended modesty ere it reached + her lips, at the moment when, turning her head, she beheld the burning + eyes of Gyges flaming through the darkness. She must have possessed the + courage of the warrior in ambush, who, wounded by a random dart, utters no + syllable of pain through fear of betraying himself behind his shelter of + foliage or river-reeds, and in silence permits his blood to stripe his + flesh with long red lines. Had she not withheld that first impulse to cry + aloud, Candaules, alarmed and forewarned, would have kept upon his guard, + which must have rendered it more difficult, if not impossible, to carry + out her purpose. + </p> + <p> + Nevertheless, as yet she had conceived no definite plan, but she had + resolved that the insult done to her honour should be fully expiated. At + first she had thought of killing Candaules herself while he slept, with + the sword hung at the bedside. But she recoiled from the thought of + dipping her beautiful hands in blood; she feared lest she might miss her + blow; and, with all her bitter anger, she hesitated at so violent and + unwomanly an act. + </p> + <p> + Suddenly she appeared to have decided upon some project. She summoned + Statira, one of the waiting-women who had come with her from Bactria, and + in whom she placed much confidence, and whispered a few words close to her + ear in a very low voice, although there were no other persons in the room, + as if she feared that even the walls might hear her. + </p> + <p> + Statira bowed low, and immediately left the apartment. + </p> + <p> + Like all persons who are actually menaced by some great peril, Candaules + presumed himself perfectly secure. He was certain that Gyges had stolen + away unperceived, and he thought only upon the delight of conversing with + him about the unrivalled attractions of his wife. + </p> + <p> + So he caused him to be summoned, and conducted him to the Court of the + Heracleid. + </p> + <p> + 'Well, Gyges,' he said to him with laughing mien, 'I did not deceive you + when I assured you that you would not regret having passed a few hours + behind that blessed door. Am I right? Do you know of any living woman more + beautiful than the queen? If you know of any superior to her, tell me so + frankly, and go bear her in my name this string of pearls, the symbol of + power.' + </p> + <p> + 'Sire,' replied Gyges in a voice trembling with emotion, 'no human + creature is worthy to compare with Nyssia. It is not the pearl fillet of + queens which should adorn her brows, but only the starry crown of the + immortals.' + </p> + <p> + 'I well knew that your ice must melt at last in the fires of that sun. Now + can you comprehend my passion, my delirium, my mad desires? Is it not + true, Gyges, that the heart of a man is not great enough to contain such a + love? It must overflow and diffuse itself.' + </p> + <p> + A hot blush overspread the cheeks of Gyges, who now but too well + comprehended the admiration of Candaules. + </p> + <p> + The king noticed it, and said, with a manner half smiling, half serious: + </p> + <p> + 'My poor friend, do not commit the folly of becoming enamoured of Nyssia; + you would lose your pains. It is a statue which I have enabled you to see, + not a woman. I have allowed you to read some stanzas of a beautiful poem, + whereof I alone possess the manuscript, merely for the purpose of having + your opinion; that is all.' + </p> + <p> + 'You have no need, sire, to remind me of my nothingness. Sometimes the + humblest slave is visited in his slumbers by some radiant and lovely + vision, with ideal forms, nacreous flesh, ambrosial hair. I—I have + dreamed with open eyes; you are the god who sent me that dream.' + </p> + <p> + 'Now,' continued the king, 'it will scarcely be necessary for me to enjoin + silence upon you. If you do not keep a seal upon your lips you might learn + to your cost that Nyssia is not as good as she is beautiful.' + </p> + <p> + The king waved his hand in token of farewell to his confidant, and retired + for the purpose of inspecting an antique bed sculptured by Ikmalius, a + celebrated artisan, which had been offered him for purchase. + </p> + <p> + Candaules had scarcely disappeared when a woman, wrapped in a long mantle + so as to leave but one of her eyes exposed, after the fashion of the + barbarians, came forth from the shadow of a column behind which she had + kept herself hidden during the conversation of the king and his favourite, + walked straight to Gyges, placed her finger upon his shoulder, and made a + sign to him to follow her. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2HCH0005" id="link2HCH0005"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + CHAPTER V + </h2> + <p> + Statira, followed by Gyges, paused before a little door, of which she + raised the latch by pulling a silver ring attached to a leathern strap, + and commenced to ascend a stairway with rather high steps contrived in the + thickness of the wall. At the head of the stairway was a second door, + which she opened with a key wrought of ivory and brass. As soon as Gyges + entered she disappeared without any further explanation in regard to what + was expected of him. + </p> + <p> + The curiosity of Gyges was mingled with uneasiness. He could form no idea + as to the significance of this mysterious message. He had a vague fancy + that he could recognise in the silent Iris one of Nyssia's women; and the + way by which she had made him follow her led to the queen's apartments. He + asked himself in terror whether he had been perceived in his hiding-place + or betrayed by Candaules, for both suppositions seemed probable. + </p> + <p> + At the idea that Nyssia knew all, he felt his face bedewed with a sweat + alternately burning and icy. He sought to fly, but the door had been + fastened upon him by Statira, and all escape was cut off; then he advanced + into the chamber, which was shadowed by heavy purple hangings, and found + himself face to face with Nyssia. He thought he beheld a statue rise + before him, such was her pallor. The hues of life had abandoned her face; + a feeble rose tint alone animated her lips; on her tender temples a few + almost imperceptible veins intercrossed their azure network; tears had + swollen her eyelids, and left shining furrows upon the down of her cheeks; + the chrysoprase tints of her eyes had lost their intensity. She was even + more beautiful and touching thus. Sorrow had given soul to her marmorean + beauty. + </p> + <p> + Her disordered robe, scarcely fastened to her shoulders, left visible her + beautiful bare arms, her throat, and the commencement of her death-white + bosom. Like a warrior vanquished in his first conflict, her beauty had + laid down its arms. Of what use to her would have been the draperies which + conceal form, the tunics with their carefully fastened folds? Did not + Gyges know her? Wherefore defend what has been lost in advance? + </p> + <p> + She walked straight to Gyges, and fixing upon him an imperial look, clear + and commanding, said to him in a quick, abrupt voice: + </p> + <p> + 'Do not lie; seek no vain subterfuges; have at least the dignity and + courage of your crime. I know all; I saw you! Not a word of excuse. I + would not listen to it. Candaules himself concealed you behind the door. + Is it not so the thing happened? And you fancy, doubtless, that it is all + over? Unhappily I am not a Greek woman, pliant to the whims of artists and + voluptuaries. Nyssia will not serve for any one's toy. There are now two + men, one of whom is a man too much upon the earth. He must disappear from + it! Unless he dies, I cannot live. It will be either you or Candaules. I + leave you master of the choice. Kill him, avenge me, and win by that + murder both my hand and the throne of Lydia, or else shall a prompt death + henceforth prevent you from beholding, through a cowardly complaisance, + what you have not the right to look upon. He who commanded is more + culpable than he who has only obeyed; and, moreover, should you become my + husband, no one will have ever seen me without having the right to do so. + But make your decision at once, for two of those four eyes in which my + nudity has reflected itself must before this very evening be for ever + extinguished.' + </p> + <p> + This strange alternative, proposed with a terrible coolness, with an + immutable resolution, so utterly surprised Gyges, who was expecting + reproaches, menaces, and a violent scene, that he remained for several + minutes without colour and without voice, livid as a shade on the shores + of the black rivers of hell. + </p> + <p> + 'I! to dip my hands in the blood of my master! Is it indeed you, O queen, + who demand of me so great a penalty? I comprehend all your anger, I feel + it to be just, and it was not my fault that this outrage took place; but + you know that kings are mighty, they descend from a divine race. Our + destinies repose on their august knees; and it is not we, feeble mortals, + who may hesitate at their commands. Their will overthrows our refusal, as + a dyke is swept away by a torrent By your feet that I kiss, by the hem of + your robe which I touch as a suppliant, be clement! Forget this injury, + which is known to none, and which shall remain eternally buried in + darkness and silence! Candaules worships you, admires you, and his fault + springs only from an excess of love.' + </p> + <p> + 'Were you addressing a sphinx of granite in the arid sands of Egypt, you + would have more chance of melting her. The winged words might fly + uninterruptedly from your lips for a whole Olympiad; you could not move my + resolution in the slightest. A heart of brass dwells in this marble breast + of mine. Die or kill! When the sunbeam which has passed through the + curtains shall touch the foot of this table let your choice have been + made. I wait.' + </p> + <p> + And Nyssia crossed her arms upon her breast in an attitude replete with + sombre majesty. + </p> + <p> + To behold her standing erect, motionless and pale, her eyes fixed, her + brows contracted, her hair in disorder, her foot firmly placed upon the + pavement, one would have taken her for Nemesis descended from her griffin, + and awaiting the hour to smite a guilty one. + </p> + <p> + 'The shadowy depths of Hades are visited by none with pleasure,' answered + Gyges. 'It is sweet to enjoy the pure light of day; and the heroes + themselves who dwell in the Fortunate Isles would gladly return to their + native land. Each man has the instinct of self-preservation, and since + blood must flow, let it be rather from the veins of another than from + mine.' + </p> + <p> + To these sentiments, avowed by Gyges with antique frankness, were added + others more noble whereof he did not speak. He was desperately in love + with Nyssia and jealous of Candaules. It was not, therefore, the fear of + death alone that had induced him to undertake this bloody task. The + thought of leaving Candaules in free possession of Nyssia was + insupportable to him: and, moreover, the vertigo of fatality had seized + him. By a succession of irregular and terrible events he beheld himself + hurried toward the realisation of his dreams; a mighty wave had lifted him + and borne him on in despite of his efforts; Nyssia herself was extending + her hand to him, to help him to ascend the steps of the royal throne. All + this had caused him to forget that Candaules was his master and his + benefactor; for none can flee from Fate, and Necessity walks on with nails + in one hand and whip in the other, to stop your advance or to urge you + forward. + </p> + <p> + 'It is well,' replied Nyssia; 'here is the means of execution.' And she + drew from her bosom a Bactrian poniard, with a jade handle enriched with + inlaid circles of white gold. 'This blade is not made of brass, but with + iron difficult to work, tempered in flame and water, so that Hephaistos + himself could not forge one more keenly pointed or finely edged. It would + pierce, like thin papyrus, metal cuirasses and bucklers of dragon's skin. + </p> + <p> + 'The time,' she continued, with the same icy coolness, 'shall be while he + slumbers. Let him sleep and wake no more!' + </p> + <p> + Her accomplice, Gyges, hearkened to her words with stupefaction, for he + had never thought he could find such resolution in a woman who could not + bring herself to lift her veil. + </p> + <p> + 'The ambuscade shall be laid in the very same place where the infamous one + concealed you in order to expose me to your gaze. At the approach of night + I shall turn back one of the folding-doors upon you, undress myself, lie + down, and when he shall be asleep I will give you a signal. Above all + things, let there be no hesitancy, no feebleness; and take heed that your + hand does not tremble when the moment shall have come! And now, for fear + lest you might change your mind, I propose to make sure of your person + until the fatal hour. You might attempt to escape, to forewarn your + master. Do not think to do so.' + </p> + <p> + Nyssia whistled in a peculiar way, and immediately from behind a Persian + tapestry embroidered with flowers, there appeared four monsters, swarthy, + clad in robes diagonally striped, which left visible arms muscled and + gnarled as trunks of oaks. Their thick pouting lips, the gold rings which + they wore through the partition of their nostrils, their great teeth sharp + as the fangs of wolves, the expression of stupid servility on their faces, + rendered them hideous to behold. + </p> + <p> + The queen pronounced some words in a language unknown to Gyges, doubtless + in Bactrian, and the four slaves rushed upon the young man, seized him, + and carried him away, even as a nurse might carry off a child in the fold + of her robe. + </p> + <p> + Now, what were Nyssia's real thoughts? Had she, indeed, noticed Gyges at + the time of her meeting with him near Bactria, and preserved some memory + of the young captain in one of those secret recesses of the heart where + even the most virtuous women always have something buried? Was the desire + to avenge her modesty goaded by some other unacknowledged desire? And if + Gyges had not been the handsomest young man in all Asia would she have + evinced the same ardour in punishing Candaules for having outraged the + sanctity of marriage? That is a delicate question to resolve, especially + after a lapse of three thousand years; and although we have consulted + Herodotus, Hephstion, Plato, Dositheus, Archilochus of Paros, Hesychius + of Miletus, Ptolomus, Euphorion, and all who have spoken either at length + or in only a few words concerning Candaules, Nyssia, and Gyges, we have + been unable to arrive at any definite conclusion. To pursue so fleeting a + shadow through so many centuries, under the ruins of so many crumpled + empires, under the dust of departed nations, is a work of extreme + difficulty, not to say impossibility. + </p> + <p> + At all events, Nyssia's resolution was implacably taken; this murder + appeared to her in the light of the accomplishment of a sacred duty. Among + the barbarian nations every man who has surprised a woman in her nakedness + is put to death. The queen believed herself exercising her right; only + inasmuch as the injury had been secret, she was doing herself justice as + best she could. The passive accomplice would become the executioner of the + other, and the punishment would thus spring from the crime itself. The + hand would chastise the head. + </p> + <p> + The olive-tinted monsters shut Gyges up in an obscure portion of the + palace, whence it was impossible that he could escape, or that his cries + could be heard. + </p> + <p> + He passed the remainder of the day there in a state of cruel anxiety, + accusing the hours of being lame, and again of walking too speedily. The + crime which he was about to commit, although he was only, in some sort, + the instrument of it, and though he was only yielding to an irresistible + influence, presented itself to his mind in the most sombre colours. If the + blow should miss through one of those circumstances which none could + foresee? If the people of Sardes should revolt and seek to avenge the + death of the king? Such were the very sensible though useless reflections + which Gyges made while waiting to be taken from his prison and led to the + place whence he could only depart to strike his master. + </p> + <p> + At last the night unfolded her starry robe in the sky, and its shadow fell + upon the city and the palace. A light footstep became audible, a veiled + woman entered the room and conducted him through the obscure corridors and + multiplied mazes of the royal edifice with as much confidence as though + she had been preceded by a slave bearing a lamp or a torch. + </p> + <p> + The hand which held that of Gyges was cold, soft, and small; nevertheless + those slender fingers clasped it with a bruising force, as the fingers of + some statue of brass animated by a prodigy would have done. The rigidity + of an inflexible will betrayed itself in that ever-equal pressure as of a + vice—a pressure which no hesitation of head or heart came to vary. + Gyges, conquered, subjugated, crushed, yielded to that imperious traction, + as though he were borne along by the mighty arm of Fate. + </p> + <p> + Alas! it was not thus he had wished to touch for the first time that fair + royal hand, which had presented the poniard to him, and was leading him to + murder, for it was Nyssia herself who had come for Gyges, to conceal him + in the place of ambuscade. + </p> + <p> + No word was exchanged between the sinister couple on the way from the + prison to the nuptial chamber. + </p> + <p> + The queen unfastened the thongs, raised the bar of the entrance, and + placed Gyges behind the folding-door as Candaules had done the evening + previous. This repetition of the same acts, with so different a purpose, + had something of a lugubrious and fatal character. Vengeance, this time, + had placed her foot upon every track left by the insult. The chastisement + and the crime alike followed the same path. Yesterday it was the turn of + Candaules, to-day it was that of Nyssia; and Gyges, accomplice in the + injury, was also accomplice in the penalty. He had served the king to + dishonour the queen; he would serve the queen to kill the king, equally + exposed by the vices of the one and the virtues of the other. + </p> + <p> + The daughter of Megabazus seemed to feel a savage joy, a ferocious + pleasure, in employing only the same means chosen by the Lydian king, and + turning to account for the murder those very precautions which had been + adopted for voluptuous fantasy. + </p> + <p> + 'You will again this evening see me take off these garments which are so + displeasing to Candaules. This spectacle should become wearisome to you,' + said the queen in accents of bitter irony, as she stood on the threshold + of the chamber; 'you will end by finding me ugly.' And a sardonic, forced + laugh momentarily curled her pale mouth; then, regaining her impassible + severity of mien, she continued: 'Do not imagine you will be able to steal + away this time as you did before; you know my sight is piercing. At the + slightest movement on your part I shall awake Candaules; and you know that + it will not be easy for you to explain what you are doing in the king's + apartments, behind a door, with a poniard in your hand. Further, my + Bactrian slaves, the copper-coloured mutes who imprisoned you a short time + ago, guard all the issues of the palace, with orders to massacre you + should you attempt to go out. Therefore let no vain scruples of fidelity + cause you to hesitate. Think that I will make you King of Sardes, and + that... I will love you if you avenge me. The blood of Candaules will be + your purple, and his death will make for you a place in that bed.' + </p> + <p> + The slaves came according to their custom to change the fuel in the + tripod, renew the oil in the lamps, spread tapestry and the skins of + animals upon the royal couch; and Nyssia hurried into the chamber as soon + as she heard their footsteps resounding in the distance. + </p> + <p> + In a short time Candaules arrived all joyous. He had purchased the bed of + Ikmalius and proposed to substitute it for the bed wrought after the + Oriental fashion, which he declared had never been much to his taste. He + seemed pleased to find that Nyssia had already retired to the nuptial + chamber. + </p> + <p> + 'The trade of embroidery, and spindles, and needles seems not to have the + same attraction for you to-day as usual. In fact, it is a monotonous + labour to perpetually pass one thread between other threads, and I wonder + at the pleasure which you seem ordinarily to take in it. To tell the + truth, I am afraid that some fine day Pallas-Athene, on finding you so + skilful, will break her shuttle over your head as she once did to poor + Arachne.' + </p> + <p> + 'My lord, I felt somewhat tired this evening, and so came downstairs + sooner than usual. Would you not like before going to sleep to drink a cup + of black Samian wine mixed with the honey of Hymettus?' And she poured + from a golden urn, into a cup of the same metal, the sombre-coloured + beverage which she had mingled with the soporiferous juice of the + nepenthe. + </p> + <p> + Candaules took the cup by both handles and drained it to the last drop; + but the young Heracleid had a strong head, and sinking his elbow into the + cushions of his couch he watched Nyssia undressing without any sign that + the dust of sleep was commencing to gather upon his eyes. + </p> + <p> + As on the evening before, Nyssia unfastened her hair and permitted its + rich blond waves to ripple over her shoulders. From his hiding-place Gyges + fancied that he saw those locks slowly becoming suffused with tawny tints, + illuminated with reflections of blood and flame; and their heavy curls + seemed to lengthen with viprine undulations, like the hair of the Gorgons + and Medusas. + </p> + <p> + All simple and graceful as that action was in itself, it took from the + terrible events about to transpire a frightful and ominous character, + which caused the hidden assassin to shudder with terror. + </p> + <p> + Nyssia then unfastened her bracelets, but agitated as her hands had been + by nervous straining, they ill served her will. She broke the string of a + bracelet of beads of amber inlaid with gold, which rolled over the floor + with a loud noise, causing Candaules to reopen his gradually closing eyes. + </p> + <p> + Each one of those beads fell upon the heart of Gyges as a drop of molten + lead falls upon water. + </p> + <p> + Having unlaced her buskins, the queen threw her upper tunic over the back + of an ivory chair. This drapery, thus arranged, produced upon Gyges the + effect of one of those sinister-folding winding-sheets wherein the dead + were wrapped ere being borne to the funeral pyre. Every object in that + room, which had the evening before seemed to him one scene of smiling + splendour, now appeared to him livid, dim, and menacing. The statues of + basalt rolled their eyes and smiled hideously. The lamp flickered weirdly, + and its flame dishevelled itself in red and sanguine rays like the crest + of a comet. Far back in the dimly lighted corners loomed the monstrous + forms of the Lares and Lmures. The mantles hanging from their hooks + seemed animated by a factitious life, and assumed a human aspect of + vitality; and when Nyssia stripped of her last garment, approached the + bed, all white and naked as a shade, he thought that Death herself had + broken the diamond fetters wherewith Hercules of old enchained her at the + gates of hell when he delivered Alcestes, and had come in person to take + possession of Candaules. + </p> + <p> + Overcome by the power of the nepenthe-juice, the king at last slumbered. + Nyssia made a sign for Gyges to come forth from his retreat; and laying + her finger upon the breast of the victim, she directed upon her accomplice + a look so humid, so lustrous, so weighty with languishment, so replete + with intoxicating promise, that Gyges, maddened and fascinated, sprang + from his hiding-place like the tiger from the summit of the rock where it + has been couching, traversed the chamber at a bound, and plunged the + Bactrian poniard up to the very hilt in the heart of the descendant of + Hercules. The chastity of Nyssia was avenged, and the dream of Gyges + accomplished. + </p> + <p> + Thus ended the dynasty of the Heracleid, after having endured for five + hundred and five years, and commenced that of the Mermnades in the person + of Gyges, son of Dascylus. The Sardians, indignant at the death of + Candaules, threatened revolt; but the oracle of Delphi having declared in + favour of Gyges, who had sent thither a vast number of silver vases and + six golden cratera of the value of thirty talents, the new king maintained + his seat on the throne of Lydia, which he occupied for many long years, + lived happily, and never showed his wife to any one, knowing too well what + it cost. one, knowing too well what it cost. <br /> <br /> + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of King Candaules, by Thophile Gautier + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KING CANDAULES *** + +***** This file should be named 22660-h.htm or 22660-h.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/2/2/6/6/22660/ + +Produced by David Widger + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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Thus, we do not necessarily +keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. + + +Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: + + http://www.gutenberg.org + +This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, +including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary +Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to +subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. + + +</pre> + </body> +</html> diff --git a/old/22660-8.txt b/old/22660-8.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..5568e90 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/22660-8.txt @@ -0,0 +1,2359 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of King Candaules, by Thophile Gautier + +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: King Candaules + +Author: Thophile Gautier + +Translator: Lafcadio Hearn + +Release Date: September 18, 2007 [EBook #22660] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KING CANDAULES *** + + + + +Produced by David Widger + + + + + +KING CANDAULES + +By Thophile Gautier + +Translated By Lafcadio Hearn + +1908 + + + + +CHAPTER I + +Five hundred years before the Trojan war, and seventeen hundred and +fifteen years before our own era, there was a grand festival at Sardes. +King Candaules was going to marry. The people were affected with that +sort of pleasurable interest and aimless emotion wherewith any royal +event inspires the masses, even though it in no wise concerns them, +and transpires in superior spheres of life which they can never hope to +reach. + +As soon as Phoebus-Apollo, standing in his quadriga, had gilded to +saffron the summits of fertile Mount Tmolus with his rays, the +good people of Sardes were all astir, going and coming, mounting or +descending the marble stairways leading from the city to the waters +of the Pactolus, that opulent river whose sands Midas filled with tiny +sparks of gold when he bathed in its stream. One would have supposed +that each one of these good citizens was himself about to marry, so +solemn and important was the demeanour of all. + +Men were gathering in groups in the Agora, upon the steps of the +temples and along the porticoes. At every street corner one might have +encountered women leading by the hand little children, whose uneven walk +ill suited the maternal anxiety and impatience. Maidens were hastening +to the fountains, all with urns gracefully balanced upon their heads, or +sustained by their white arms as with natural handles, so as to procure +early the necessary water provision for the household, and thus obtain +leisure at the hour when the nuptial procession should pass. Washerwomen +hastily folded the still damp tunics and chlamid, and piled them upon +mule-wagons. Slaves turned the mill without any need of the overseer's +whip to tickle their naked and scar-seamed shoulders. Sardes was +hurrying itself to finish with those necessary everyday cares which no +festival can wholly disregard. + +The road along which the procession was to pass had been strewn with +fine yellow sand. Brazen tripods, disposed along the way at regular +intervals, sent up to heaven the odorous smoke of cinnamon and +spikenard. These vapours, moreover, alone clouded the purity of the +azure above. The clouds of a hymeneal day ought, indeed, to be formed +only by the burning of perfumes. Myrtle and rose-laurel branches were +strewn upon the ground, and from the walls of the palaces were suspended +by little rings of bronze rich tapestries, whereon the needles of +industrious captives--intermingling wool, silver, and gold--had +represented various scenes in the history of the gods and heroes: +Ixion embracing the cloud; Diana surprised in the bath by Actaeon; the +shepherd Paris as judge in the contest of beauty held upon Mount +Ida between Hera, the snowy-armed, Athena of the sea-green eyes, and +Aphrodite, girded with her magic cestus; the old men of Troy rising to +honour Helena as she passed through the Skaian gate, a subject taken +from one of the poems of the blind man of Meles. Others exhibited in +preference scenes taken from the life of Heracles, the Theban, through +flattery to Candaules, himself a Heracleid, being descended from the +hero through Alcaeus. Others contented themselves by decorating the +entrances of their dwellings with garlands and wreaths in token of +rejoicing. + +Among the multitudes marshalled along the way from the royal house even +as far as the gates of the city, through which the young queen would +pass on her arrival, conversation naturally turned upon the beauty of +the bride, whereof the renown had spread throughout all Asia; and +upon the character of the bridegroom, who, although not altogether an +eccentric, seemed nevertheless one not readily appreciated from the +common standpoint of observation. + +Nyssia, daughter of the Satrap Megabazus, was gifted with marvellous +purity of feature and perfection of form; at least such was the rumour +spread abroad by the female slaves who attended her, and a few female +friends who had accompanied her to the bath; for no man could boast +of knowing aught of Nyssia save the colour of her veil and the elegant +folds that she involuntarily impressed upon the soft materials which +robed her statuesque body. + +The barbarians did not share the ideas of the Greeks in regard to +modesty. While the youths of Achaia made no scruples of allowing their +oil-anointed torsos to shine under the sun in the stadium, and while the +Spartan virgins danced ungarmented before the altar of Diana, those of +Persepolis, Ebactana, and Bactria, attaching more importance to chastity +of the body than to chastity of mind, considered those liberties +allowed to the pleasure of the eyes by Greek manner as impure and highly +reprehensible, and held no woman virtuous who permitted men to obtain +a glimpse of more than the tip of her foot in walking, as it slightly +deranged the discreet folds of a long tunic. + +Despite all this mystery, or rather, perhaps, by very reason of this +mystery, the fame of Nyssia had not been slow to spread throughout all +Lydia, and become popular there to such a degree that it had reached +even Candaules, although kings are ordinarily the most illy informed +people in their kingdoms, and live like the gods in a kind of cloud +which conceals from them the knowledge of terrestrial things. + +The Eupatrid of Sardes, who hoped that the young king might, perchance, +choose a wife from their family, the hetair of Athens, of Samos, of +Miletus and of Cyprus, the beautiful slaves from the banks of the +Indus, the blond girls brought at a vast expense from the depths of +the Cimmerian fogs, were heedful never to utter in the presence of +Candaules, whether within hearing or beyond hearing, a single word +which bore any relation to Nyssia. The bravest, in a question of beauty, +recoil before the prospect of a contest in which they can anticipate +being outrivalled. + +And nevertheless no person in Sardes, or even in Lydia, had beheld this +redoubtable adversary, no person save one solitary being, who from +the time of that encounter had kept his lips as firmly closed upon the +subject as though Harpocrates, the god of silence, had sealed them with +his finger, and that was Gyges, chief of the guards of Candaules. One +day Gyges, his mind filled with various projects and vague ambitions, +had been wandering among the Bactrian hills, whither his master had +sent him upon an important and secret mission. He was dreaming of the +intoxication of omnipotence, of treading upon purple with sandals of +gold, of placing the diadem upon the brows of the fairest of women. + +These thoughts made his blood boil in his veins, and, as though to +pursue the flight of his dreams, he smote his sinewy heel upon the +foam-whitened flanks of his Numidian horse. + +The weather, at first calm, had changed and waxed tempestuous like the +warrior's soul; and Boreas, his locks bristling with Thracian frosts, +his cheeks puffed out, his arms folded upon his breast, smote the +rain-freighted clouds with the mighty beatings of his wings. + +A bevy of young girls who had been gathering flowers in the meadow, +fearing the coming storm, were returning to the city in all haste, each +carrying her perfumed harvest in the lap of her tunic. Seeing a stranger +on horseback approaching in the distance, they had hidden their faces +in their mantles, after the custom of the barbarians; but at the very +moment that Gyges was passing by the one whose proud carriage and richer +habiliments seemed to designate her the mistress of the little band, +an unusually violent gust of wind carried away the veil of the fair +unknown, and, whirling it through the air like a feather, chased it to +such a distance that it could not be recovered. It was Nyssia, daughter +of Megabazus, who found herself thus with face unveiled in the presence +of Gyges, a humble captain of King Candaules's guard. Was it only the +breath of Boreas which had brought about this accident, or had Eros, who +delights to vex the hearts of men, amused himself by severing the string +which had fastened the protecting tissue? However that may have been, +Gyges was stricken motionless at the sight of that Medusa of beauty, and +not till long after the folds of Nyssia's robe had disappeared beyond +the gates of the city could he think of proceeding on his way. Although +there was nothing to justify such a conjecture, he cherished the belief +that he had seen the satrap's daughter; and that meeting, which affected +him almost like an apparition, accorded so fully with the thoughts that +were occupying him at the moment of its occurrence, that he could not +help perceiving therein something fateful and ordained of the gods. +In truth it was upon that brow that he would have wished to place the +diadem. What other could be more worthy of it? But what probability was +there that Gyges would ever have a throne to share? He had not sought +to follow up this adventure, and assure himself that it was indeed the +daughter of Megabazus whose mysterious face had been revealed to him by +Chance, the great filcher. Nyssia had fled so swiftly that it would have +been impossible for him then to overtake her; and, moreover, he had been +dazzled, fascinated, thunder-stricken, as it were, rather than charmed +by that superhuman apparition, by that monster of beauty! + +Nevertheless that image, although seen only in the glimpse of a moment, +had engraved itself upon his heart in lines deep as those which +the sculptors trace on ivory with tools reddened in the fire. He had +endeavoured, although vainly, to efface it, for the love which he felt +for Nyssia inspired him with a secret terror. Perfection in such a +degree is ever awe-inspiring, and women so like unto goddesses could +only work evil to feeble mortals; they are formed for divine adulteries, +and even the most courageous men never risk themselves in such amours +without trembling. Therefore no hope had blossomed in the soul of +Gyges, overwhelmed and discouraged in advance by the sentiment of the +impossible. Ere opening his lips to Nyssia he would have wished to +despoil the heaven of its robe of stars, to take from Phoebus his crown +of rays, forgetting that women only give themselves to those unworthy +of them, and that to win their love one must act as though he desired to +earn their hate. + +From that day the roses of joy no longer bloomed upon his cheeks. By +day he was sad and mournful, and seemed to wander abroad in solitary +dreaming, like a mortal who has beheld a divinity. At night he was +haunted by dreams in which he beheld Nyssia seated by his side upon +cushions of purple between the golden griffins of the royal throne. + +Therefore Gyges, the only one who could speak of his own knowledge +concerning Nyssia, having never spoken of her, the Sardians were left to +their own conjectures in her regard; and their conjectures, it must be +confessed, were fantastic and altogether fabulous. The beauty of Nyssia, +thanks to the veils which shrouded her, became a sort of myth, a canvas, +a poem to which each one added ornamentation as the fancy took him. + +'If report be not false,' lisped a young debauchee from Athens, who +stood with one hand upon the shoulder of an Asiatic boy, 'neither +Plangon, nor Archianassa, nor Thais can be compared with this marvellous +barbarian; yet I can scarce believe that she equals Theano of Colophon, +from whom I once bought a single night at the price of as much gold as +she could bear away, after having plunged both her white arms up to the +shoulder in my cedar-wood coffer.' + +'Beside her,' added a Eupatrid, who pretended to be better informed than +any other person upon all manner of subjects, 'beside her the daughter +of Coelus and the Sea would seem but a mere Ethiopian servant.' + +'Your words are blasphemy, and although Aphrodite be a kind and +indulgent goddess, beware of drawing down her anger upon you.' + +'By Hercules!--and that ought to be an oath of some weight in a city +ruled by one of his descendants--I cannot retract a word of it.' + +'You have seen her, then?' + +'No; but I have a slave in my service who once belonged to Nyssia, and +who has told me a hundred stories about her.' + +'Is it true,' demanded in infantile tones an equivocal-looking woman +whose pale-rose tunic, painted cheeks, and locks shining with essences +betrayed wretched pretensions to a youth long passed away--' is it true +that Nyssia has two pupils in each eye? It seems to me that must be very +ugly, and I cannot understand how Candaules could fall in love with such +a monstrosity, while there is no lack, at Sardes and in Lydia, of women +whose eyes are irreproachable.' + +And uttering these words with all sorts of affected airs and simperings, +Lamia took a little significant peep in a small mirror of cast metal +which she drew from her bosom, and which enabled her to lead back to +duty certain wandering curls disarranged by the impertinence of the +wind. + +'As to the double pupil, that seems to me nothing more than an old +nurse's tale,' observed the well-informed patrician; 'but it is a fact +that Nyssia's eyes are so piercing that she can see through walls. +Lynxes are myopic compared with her.' + +'How can a sensible man coolly argue about such an absurdity?' +interrupted a citizen, whose bald skull, and the flood of snowy beard +into which he plunged his fingers while speaking, lent him an air of +preponderance and philosophical sagacity. 'The truth is that the +daughter of Megabazus cannot naturally see through a wall any better +than you or I, but the Egyptian priest Thoutmosis, who knows so many +wondrous secrets, has given her the mysterious stone which is found in +the heads of dragons, and whose property, as every one knows, renders +all shadows and the most opaque bodies transparent to the eyes of those +who possess it. Nyssia always carries this stone in her girdle, or +else set into her bracelet, and in that may be found the secret of her +clairvoyance.' + +The citizen's explanation seemed the most natural one to those of the +group whose conversation we are endeavouring to reproduce, and the +opinions of Lamia and the patrician were abandoned as improbable. + +'At all events,' returned the lover of Theano, 'we are going to have an +opportunity of judging for ourselves, for it seems to me that I hear the +clarions sounding in the distance, and though Nyssia is still invisible, +I can see the herald yonder approaching with palm branches in his hands, +to announce the arrival of the nuptial _cortge_, and make the crowd +fall back.' + +At this news, which spread rapidly through the crowd, the strong men +elbowed their way toward the front ranks; the agile boys, embracing the +shafts of the columns, sought to climb up to the capitals and there seat +themselves; others, not without having skinned their knees against the +bark, succeeded in perching themselves comfortably enough in the Y of +some tree-branch. The women lifted their little children upon their +shoulders, warning them to hold tightly to their necks. Those who had +the good fortune to dwell on the street along which Candaules and Nyssia +were about to pass, leaned over from the summit of their roofs, or, +rising on their elbows, abandoned for a time the cushions upon which +they had been reclining. + +A murmur of satisfaction and gratified expectation ran through the +crowd, which had already been waiting many long hours, for the arrows of +the midday sun were commencing to sting. + +The heavy-armed warriors, with cuirasses of bull's-hide covered with +overlapping plates of metal, helmets adorned with plumes of horse-hair +dyed red, _knemides_ or greaves faced with tin, baldrics studded with +nails, emblazoned bucklers, and swords of brass, rode behind a line of +trumpeters who blew with might and main upon their long tubes, which +gleamed under the sunlight. The horses of these warriors were all white +as the feet of Thetis, and might have served, by reason of their noble +paces and purity of breeds, as models for those which Phidias at a later +day sculptured upon the metopes of the Parthenon. + +At the head of this troop rode Gyges, the well-named, for his name +in the Lydian tongue signifies beautiful. His features, of the most +exquisite regularity, seemed chiselled in marble, owing to his intense +pallor, for he had just discovered in Nyssia, although she was veiled +with the veil of a young bride, the same woman whose face had been +betrayed to his gaze by the treachery of Boreas under the walls of +Bactria. + +'Handsome Gyges looks very sad,' said the young maidens. 'What proud +beauty could have secured his love, or what forsaken one has caused some +Thessalian witch to cast a spell on him? Has that cabalistic ring (which +he is said to have found hidden within the flanks of a brazen horse +in the midst of some forest) lost its virtue, and suddenly ceasing to +render its owner invisible, betrayed him to the astonished eyes of some +innocent husband, who had deemed himself alone in his conjugal chamber?' + +'Perhaps he has been wasting his talents and his drachmas at the game of +Palamedes, or else it may be that he is disappointed at not having +won the prize at the Olympian games. He had great faith in his horse +Hyperion.' + +No one of these conjectures was true. A fact is never guessed. + +After the battalion commanded by Gyges, there came young boys crowned +with myrtle-wreaths, and singing epithalamic hymns after the Lydian +manner, accompanying themselves upon lyres of ivory, which they played +with bows. All were clad in rose-coloured tunics ornamented with +a silver Greek border, and their long hair flowed down over their +shoulders in thick curls. + +They preceded the gift-bearers, strong slaves whose half-nude bodies +exposed to view such interlacements of muscle as the stoutest athletes +might have envied. + +Upon brancards, supported by two or four men or more, according to +the weight of the objects borne, were placed enormous brazen cratera, +chiselled by the most famous artists; vases of gold and silver whose +sides were adorned with bas-reliefs and whose hands were elegantly +worked into chimeras, foliage, and nude women; magnificent ewers to be +used in washing the feet of illustrious guests; flagons encrusted with +precious stones and containing the rarest perfumes; myrrh from Arabia, +cinnamon from the Indies, spikenard from Persia, essence of roses from +Smyrna; kamklins or perfuming pans, with perforated covers; cedar-wood +or ivory coffers of marvellous workmanship, which opened with a secret +spring that none save the inventor could find, and which contained +bracelets wrought from the gold of Ophir, necklaces of the most lustrous +pearls, mantle-brooches constellated with rubies and carbuncles; +toilet-boxes, containing blond sponges, curling-irons, sea-wolves' teeth +to polish the nails, the green rouge of Egypt, which turns to a most +beautiful pink on touching the skin, powders to darken the eyelashes and +eyebrows, and all the refinements that feminine coquetry could invent. +Other litters were freighted with purple robes of the finest linen and +of all possible shades from the incarnadine hue of the rose to the deep +crimson of the blood of the grape; _calasires_ of the linen of Canopus, +which is thrown all white into the vat of the dyer, and comes forth +again, owing to the various astringents in which it had been steeped, +diapered with the most brilliant colours; tunics brought from the +fabulous land of Seres, made from the spun slime of a worm which feeds +upon leaves, and so fine that they might be drawn through a finger-ring. + +Ethiopians, whose bodies shone like jet, and whose temples were tightly +bound with cords, lest they should burst the veins of their foreheads +in the effort to uphold their burden, carried in great pomp a statue of +Hercules, the ancestor of Candaules, of colossal size, wrought of ivory +and gold, with the club, the skin of the Nemean lion, the three apples +from the garden of the Hesperides, and all the traditional attributes of +the hero. + +Statues of Venus Urania, and of Venus Genitrix, sculptured by the best +pupils of the Sicyon School. That marble of Paros whose gleaming +transparency seemed expressly created for the representation of the +ever-youthful flesh of the immortals, were borne after the statue of +Hercules, which admirably relieved the harmony and elegance of their +proportions by contrast with its massive outlines and rugged forms. + +A painting by Bularchus, which Candaules had purchased for its weight in +gold, executed upon the wood of the female larch-tree, and representing +the defeat of the Magnesians, evoked universal admiration by the beauty +of its design, the truthfulness of the attitude of its figures, and the +harmony of its colouring, although the artist had only employed in +its production the four primitive colours: Attic ochre, white, Pontic +_sinopis_ and _atramentum_. The young king loved painting and sculpture +even more, perhaps, than well became a monarch, and he had not +unfrequently bought a picture at a price equal to the annual revenue of +a whole city. + +Camels and dromedaries, splendidly caparisoned, with musicians seated +on their necks performing upon drums and cymbals, carried the gilded +stakes, the cords, and the material of the tent designed for the use of +the queen during voyages and hunting parties. + +These spectacles of magnificence would upon any other occasion have +ravished the people of Sardes with delight, but their curiosity had been +enlisted in another direction, and it was not without a certain feeling +of impatience that they watched this portion of the procession file by. +The young maidens and the handsome boys, bearing flaming torches, and +strewing handfuls of crocus flowers along the way, hardly attracted any +attention. The idea of beholding Nyssia had preoccupied all minds. + +At last Candaules appeared, riding in a chariot drawn by four horses, +as beautiful and spirited as those of the sun, all rolling their golden +bits in foam, shaking their purple-decked manes, and restrained +with great difficulty by the driver, who stood erect at the side of +Candaules, and was leaning back to gain more power on the reins. + +Candaules was a young man full of vigour, and well worthy of his +Herculean origin. His head was joined to his shoulders by a neck massive +as a bull's, and almost without a curve; his hair, black and lustrous, +twisted itself into rebellious little curls, here and there concealing +the circlet of his diadem; his ears, small and upright, were of a ruddy +hue; his forehead was broad and full, though a little low, like all +antique foreheads; his eyes full of gentle melancholy, his oval cheeks, +his chin with its gentle and regular curves, his mouth with its slightly +parted lips--all bespoke the nature of the poet rather than that of +the warrior. In fact, although he was brave, skilled in all bodily +exercises, could subdue a wild horse as well as any of the Lapith, +or swim across the current of rivers when they descended, swollen with +melted snow, from the mountains, although he might have bent the bow of +Odysseus or borne the shield of Achilles, he seemed little occupied with +dreams of conquest; and war usually so fascinating to young kings, +had little attraction for him. He contented himself with repelling the +attacks of his ambitious neighbours, and sought not to extend his own +dominions. He preferred building palaces, after plans suggested by +himself to the architects, who always found the king's hints of no small +value, or to form collections of statues and paintings by artists of +the elder and later schools. He had the works of Telephanes of Sicyon, +Cleanthes, Ardices of Corinth, Hygiemon, Deinias, Charmides, Eumarus, +and Cimon, some being simple drawings, and others paintings in various +colours or monochromes. It was even said that Candaules had not +disdained to wield with his own royal hands--a thing hardly becoming +a prince--the chisel of the sculptor and the sponge of the encaustic +painter. + +But why should we dwell upon-Candaules? The reader undoubtedly feels +like the people of Sardes: and it is of Nyssia that he desires to hear. + +The daughter of Megabazus was mounted upon an elephant, with wrinkled +skin and immense ears which seemed like flags, who advanced with a heavy +but rapid gait, like a vessel in the midst of the waves. His tusks and +his trunk were encircled with silver rings, and around the pillars of +his limbs were entwined necklaces of enormous pearls. Upon his back, +which was covered with a magnificent Persian carpet of striped +pattern, stood a sort of estrade overlaid with gold finely chased, and +constellated with onyx stones, carnelians, chrysolites, lapis-lazuli, +and girasols; upon this estrade sat the young queen, so covered with +precious stones as to dazzle the eyes of the beholders. A mitre, shaped +like a helmet, on which pearls formed flower designs and letters after +the Oriental manner, was placed upon her head; her ears, both the lobes +and rims of which had been pierced, were adorned with ornaments in the +form of little cups, crescents, and balls; necklaces of gold and silver +beads, which had been hollowed out and carved, thrice encircled her neck +and descended with a metallic tinkling upon her bosom; emerald serpents +with topaz or ruby eyes coiled themselves in many folds about her arms, +and clasped themselves by biting their own tails. These bracelets were +connected by chains of precious stones, and so great was their weight +that two attendants were required to kneel beside Nyssia and support +her elbows. She was clad in a robe embroidered by Syrian workmen with +shining designs of golden foliage and diamond fruits, and over this she +wore the short tunic of Persepolis, which hardly descended to the knee, +and of which the sleeves were slit and fastened by sapphire clasps. +Her waist was encircled from hip to loins by a girdle wrought of narrow +material, variegated with stripes and flowered designs, which formed +themselves into symmetrical patterns as they were brought together by +a certain arrangement of the folds which Indian girls alone know how to +make. Her trousers of byssus, which the Phoenicians called _syndon_ were +confined at the ankles by anklets adorned with gold and silver bells, +and completed this toilet so fantastically rich and wholly opposed to +Greek taste. But, alas! a saffron-coloured _flammeum_ pitilessly masked +the face of Nyssia, who seemed embarrassed, veiled though she was, at +finding so many eyes fixed upon her, and frequently signed to a slave +behind her to lower the parasol of ostrich plumes, and thus conceal her +yet more from the curious gaze of the crowd. + +Candaules had vainly begged of her to lay aside her veil, even for that +solemn occasion. The young barbarian had refused to pay the welcome of +her beauty to his people. Great was the disappointment. Lamia declared +that Nyssia dared not uncover her face for fear of showing her double +pupil. The young libertine remained convinced that Theano of Colophon +was more beautiful than the queen of Sardes; and Gyges sighed when he +beheld Nyssia, after having made her elephant kneel down, descend upon +the inclined heads of Damascus slaves as upon a living ladder, to +the threshold of the royal dwelling, where the elegance of Greek +architecture was blended with the fantasies and enormities of Asiatic +taste. + + + + +CHAPTER II + +In our character of poet we have the right to lift the saffron-coloured +_flammeum_ which concealed the young bride, being more fortunate in this +wise than the Sardians, who after a whole day's waiting were obliged +to return to their houses, and were left, as before, to their own +conjectures. + +Nyssia was really far superior to her reputation, great as it was. It +seemed as though Nature in creating her had resolved to exhaust her +utmost powers, and thus make atonement for all former experimental +attempts and fruitless essays. One would have said that, moved by +jealousy of the future marvels of the Greek sculptors, she also had +resolved to model a statue herself, and to prove that she was still +sovereign mistress in the plastic art. + +The grain of snow, the micaceous brilliancy of Parian marble, the +sparkling pulp of balsamine flowers, would render but a feeble idea +of the ideal substance whereof. Nyssia had been formed. That flesh, +so fine, so delicate, permitted daylight to penetrate it, and modelled +itself in transparent contours, in lines as sweetly harmonious as music +itself. According to different surroundings, it took the colour of the +sunlight or of purple, like the aromal body of a divinity, and seemed +to radiate light and life. The world of perfections inclosed within the +nobly lengthened oval of her chaste face could have been rendered by no +earthly art--neither by the chisel of the sculptor, nor the brush of the +painter, nor the style of any poet--though it were Praxiteles, +Apelles, or Mimnernus; and on her smooth brow, bathed by waves of +hair amber-bright as molten electrum and sprinkled with gold filings, +according to the Babylonian custom, sat as upon a jasper throne the +unalterable serenity of perfect loveliness. + +As for her eyes, though they did not justify what popular credulity said +of them, they were at least wonderfully strange eyes; brown eyebrows, +with extremities ending in points elegant as those of the arrows of +Eros, and which were joined to each other by a streak of henna after +the Asiatic fashion, and long fringes of silkily-shadowed eyelashes +contrasted strikingly with the twin sapphire stars rolling in the heaven +of dark silver which formed those eyes. The irises of those eyes, +whose pupils were blacker than atrament, varied singularly in shades of +shifting colour. From sapphire they changed to turquoise, from turquoise +to beryl, from beryl to yellow amber, and sometimes, like a limpid +lake whose bottom is strewn with jewels, they offered, through their +incalculable depths, glimpses of golden and diamond sands upon which +green fibrils vibrated and twisted themselves into emerald serpents. In +those orbs of phosphoric lightning the rays of suns extinguished, the +splendours of vanished worlds, the glories of Olympus eclipsed--all +seemed to have concentrated their reflections. When contemplating +them one thought of eternity, and felt himself seized with a mighty +giddiness, as though he were leaning over the verge of the Infinite. + +The expression of those extraordinary eyes was not less variable than +their tint. At times their lids opened like the portals of celestial +dwellings; they invited you into elysiums of light, of azure, of +ineffable felicity; they promised you the realisation, tenfold, a +hundredfold, of all your dreams of happiness, as though they had divined +your soul's most secret thoughts; again, impenetrable as sevenfold +plated shields of the hardest metals, they flung back your gaze like +blunted and broken arrows. With a simple inflexion of the brow, a +mere flash of the pupil, more terrible than the thunder of Zeus, they +precipitated you from the heights of your most ambitious escalades into +depths of nothingness so profound that it was impossible to rise again. +Typhon himself, who writhes under tna, could not have lifted the +mountains of disdain with which they overwhelmed you. One felt that +though he should live for a thousand Olympiads endowed with the beauty +of the fair son of Latona, the genius of Orpheus, the unbounded might +of Assyrian kings, the treasures of the Cabeirei, the Telchines, and +the Dactyli, gods of subterranean wealth, he could never change their +expression to mildness. + +At other times their languishment was so liquidly persuasive, their +brilliancy and irradiation so penetrating, that the icy coldness of +Nestor and Priam would have melted under their gaze, like the wax of +the wings of Icarus when he approached the flaming zones. For one such +glance a man would have gladly steeped his hands in the blood of his +host, scattered the ashes of his father to the four winds, overthrown +the holy images of the gods, and stolen the fire of heaven itself, like +the sublime thief, Prometheus. + +Nevertheless, their most ordinary expression, it must be confessed, was +of a chastity to make one desperate--a sublime coldness--an ignorance +of all possibilities of human passion, such as would have made the +moon-bright eyes of Phoebe or the sea-green eyes of Athena appear by +comparison more liquidly tempting than those of a young girl of Babylon +sacrificing to the goddess Mylitta within the cord-circled enclosure of +Succoth-Benohl. Their invincible virginity seemed to bid love defiance. + +The cheeks of Nyssia, which no human gaze had ever profaned, save that +of Gyges on the day when the veil was blown away, possessed a youthful +bloom, a tender pallor, a delicacy of grain, and a downiness whereof +the faces of our women, perpetually exposed to sunlight and air, cannot +convey the most distant idea. Modesty created fleeting rosy clouds upon +them like those which a drop of crimson essence would form in a cup of +milk, and when uncoloured by any emotion they took a silvery sheen, a +warm light, like an alabaster vessel illumined by a lamp within. That +lamp was her charming soul, which exposed to view the transparency of +her flesh. + +A bee would have been deceived by her mouth, whose form was so perfect, +whose corners were so purely dimpled, whose crimson was so rich and +warm that the gods would have descended from their Olympian dwellings +in order to touch it with lips humid with immortality, but that the +jealousy of the goddesses restrained their impetuosity. Happy the wind +which passed through that purple and pearl, which dilated those +pretty nostrils, so finely cut and shaded with rosy tints like the +mother-of-pearl of the shells thrown by the sea on the shore of Cyprus +at the feet of Venus Anadyomene! But are there not a multitude of +favours thus granted to things which cannot understand them? What lover +would not wish to be the tunic of his well-beloved or the water of her +bath? + +Such was Nyssia, if we dare make use of the expression after so vague +a description of her face. If our foggy Northern idioms had the warm +liberty, the burning enthusiasm of the Sir Hasirim, we might, perhaps, +by comparisons--awakening in the mind of the reader memories of flowers +and perfumes, of music and sunlight, evoking, by the magic of words, +all the graceful and charming images that the universe can contain--have +been able to give some idea of Nyssia's features; but it is permitted to +Solomon alone to compare the nose of a beautiful woman to the tower +of Lebanon which looketh toward Damascus. And yet what is there in the +world of more importance than the nose of a beautiful woman? Had Helen, +the white Tyndarid, been flat-nosed, would the Trojan War have taken +place? And if the profile of Semiramis had not been perfectly regular, +would she have bewitched the old monarch of Nineveh and encircled her +brow with the mitre of pearls, the symbol of supreme power? + +Although Candaules had brought to his palace the most beautiful slaves +from the people of the Sorse, of Askalon, of Sogdiana, of the Sacse, of +Rhapta, the most celebrated courtesans from Ephesus, from Pergamus, from +Smyrna, and from Cyprus, he was completely fascinated by the charms of +Nyssia. Up to that time he had not even suspected the existence of such +perfection. + +Privileged as a husband to enjoy fully the contemplation of this beauty, +he found himself dazzled, giddy, like one who leans over the edge of +an abyss, or fixes his eyes upon the sun; he felt himself seized, as it +were, with the dilirium of possession, like a priest drunk with the god +who fills and moves him. All other thoughts disappeared from his soul, +and the universe seemed to him only as a vague mist in the midst of +which beamed the shining phantom of Nyssia. His happiness transformed +itself into ecstasy, and his love into madness. At times his very +felicity terrified him. To be only a wretched king, only a remote +descendant of a hero who had become a god by mighty labours, only +a common man formed of flesh and bone, and without having in aught +rendered himself worthy of it--without having even, like his ancestor, +strangled some hydra, or torn some lion asunder--to enjoy a happiness +whereof Zeus of the ambrosial hair would scarce be worthy, though +lord of all Olympus! He felt, as it were, a shame to thus hoard up for +himself alone so rich a treasure, to steal this marvel from the world, +to be the dragon with scales and claws who guarded the living type of +the ideal of lovers, sculptors, and poets. All they had ever dreamed of +in their hope, their melancholy, and their despair, he possessed--he, +Candaules, poor tyrant of Sardes, who had only a few wretched coffers +filled with pearls, a few cisterns filled with gold pieces, and thirty +or forty thousand slaves, purchased or taken in war. + +Candaules's felicity was too great for him, and the strength which he +would doubtless have found at his command in time of misfortune was +wanting to him in time of happiness. His joy overflowed from his soul +like water from a vase placed upon the fire, and in the exasperation of +his enthusiasm for Nyssia he had reached the point of desiring that she +were less timid and less modest, for it cost him no little effort to +retain in his own breast the secret of such wondrous beauty. + +'Ah,' he would murmur to himself during the deep reveries which absorbed +him at all hours that he did not spend at the queen's side, 'how strange +a lot is mine! I am wretched because of that which would make any other +husband happy. Nyssia will not leave the shadow of the gynaeceum, and +refuses, with barbarian modesty, to lift her veil in the presence of any +other than myself. Yet with what an intoxication of pride would my love +behold her, radiantly sublime, gaze down upon my kneeling people from +the summit of the royal steps, and, like the rising dawn, extinguish +all those pale stars who during the night thought themselves suns! Proud +Lydian women, who believe yourselves beautiful, but for Nyssia's reserve +you would appear, even to your lovers, as ugly as the oblique-eyed and +thick-lipped slaves of Nahasi and Kush. Were she but once to pass along +the streets of Sardes with face unveiled, you might in vain pull your +adorers by the lappet of their tunic, for none of them would turn his +head, or, if he did, it would be to demand your name, so utterly would +he have forgotten you! They would rush to precipitate themselves beneath +the silver wheels of her chariot, that they might have even the pleasure +of being crushed by her, like those devotees of the Indus who pave the +pathway of their idol with their bodies. + +'And you, O goddesses, whom Paris-Alexander judged, had Nyssia appeared +among you, not one of you would have borne away the golden apple, +not even Aphrodite, despite her cestus and her promise to the +shepherd-arbiter that she would make him beloved by the most beautiful +woman in the world!... + +'Alas! to think that such beauty is not immortal, and that years will +alter those divine outlines, that admirable hymn of forms, that poem +whose strophes are contours, and which no one in the world has ever read +or may ever read save myself; to be the sole depositary of so splendid a +treasure! If I knew even by imitating the play of light and shadow with +the aid of lines and colours, how to fix upon wood a reflection of that +celestial face; if marble were not rebellious to my chisel, how well +would I fashion in the purest vein of Paros or Pentelicus an image of +that charming body, which would make the proud effigies of the goddesses +fall from their altars! And long after, when deep below the slime of +deluges, and beneath the dust of ruined cities, the men of future ages +should find a fragment of that petrified shadow of Nyssia, they would +cry: "Behold, how the women of this vanished world were formed!" And +they would erect a temple wherein to enshrine the divine fragment. But I +have naught save a senseless admiration and a love that is madness! Sole +adorer of an unknown divinity, I possess no power to spread her worship +through the world.' + +Thus in Candaules had the enthusiasm of the artist extinguished the +jealousy of the lover. Admiration was mightier than love. If in place +of Nyssia, daughter of the Satrap Megabazus, all imbued with Oriental +ideas, he had espoused some Greek girl from Athens or Corinth, he +would certainly have invited to his court the most skilful painters +and sculptors, and have given them the queen for their model, as did +afterward Alexander his favourite Campaspe, who posed naked before +Apelles. Such a whim would have encountered no opposition from a +woman of the land where even the most chaste made a boast of having +contributed--some for the back, some for the bosom--to the perfection of +a famous statue. But hardly would the bashful Nyssia consent to unveil +herself in the discreet shadow of the thalamus, and the earnest prayers +of the king really shocked her rather than gave her pleasure. The +sentiment of duty and obedience alone induced her to yield at times to +what she styled the whims of Candaules. + +Sometimes he besought her to allow the flood of her hair to flow over +her shoulders in a river of gold richer than the Pactolus, to encircle +her brow with a crown of ivy and linden leaves like a bacchante of Mount +Maenalus, to lie, hardly veiled by a cloud of tissue finer than woven +wind, upon a tiger-skin with silver claws and ruby eyes, or to stand +erect in a great shell of mother-of-pearl, with a dew of pearls falling +from her tresses in lieu of drops of sea-water. + +When he had placed himself in the best position for observation, +he became absorbed in silent contemplation. His hand, tracing vague +contours in the air, seemed to be sketching the outlines for some +picture, and he would have remained thus for whole hours if Nyssia, soon +becoming weary of her rle of model, had not reminded him in chill and +disdainful tones that such amusements were unworthy of royal majesty and +contrary to the holy laws of matrimony. 'It is thus,' she would exclaim, +as she withdrew, draped to her very eyes, into the most mysterious +recesses of her apartment, 'that one treats a mistress, not a virtuous +woman of noble blood!' + +These wise remonstrances did not cure Candaules, whose passion augmented +in inverse ratio to the coldness shown him by the queen. And it had at +last brought him to that point that he could no longer keep the secrets +of the nuptial couch. A confidant became as necessary to him as to the +prince of a modern tragedy. He did not proceed, you may feel assured, +to fix his choice upon some crabbed philosopher of frowning mien, with +a flood of gray-and-white beard rolling down over a mantle in proud +tatters; nor a warrior who could talk of nothing save ballista, +catapults, and scythed chariots; nor a sententious Eupatrid full of +councils and politic maxims; but Gyges, whose reputation for gallantry +caused him to be regarded as a connoisseur in regard to women. + +One evening he laid his hand upon his shoulder in a more than ordinarily +familiar and cordial manner, and after giving him a look of peculiar +significance, he suddenly strode away from the group of courtiers, +saying in a loud voice: + +'Gyges, come and give me your opinion in regard to my effigy, which +the Sicyon sculptors have just finished chiselling on the genealogical +bas-relief where the deeds of my ancestors are celebrated.' + +'O king, your knowledge is greater than that of your humble subject, +and I know not how to express my gratitude for the honour you do me in +deigning to consult me,' replied Gyges, with a sign of assent. + +Candaules and his favourite traversed several halls ornamented in the +Hellenic style, where the Corinthian acanthus and the Ionic volute +bloomed or curled in the capitals of the columns, where the friezes +were peopled with little figures in polychromatic plastique representing +processions and sacrifices, and they finally arrived at a remote portion +of the ancient palace whose walls were built with stones of irregular +form, put together without cement in the cyclopean manner. This +ancient architecture was colossally proportioned and weirdly grim. The +immeasurable genius of the elder civilisations of the Orient was there +legibly written, and recalled the granite and brick debauches of Egypt +and Assyria. Something of the spirit of the ancient architects of +the tower of Lylax survived in those thick-set pillars with their +deep-fluted trunks, whose capitals were formed by four heads of bulls, +placed forehead to forehead, and bound together by knots of serpents +that seemed striving to devour them, an obscure cosmogonie symbol +whereof the meaning was no longer intelligible, and had descended into +the tomb with the hierophants of preceding ages. The gates were neither +of a square nor rounded form. They described a sort of ogive much +resembling the mitre of the Magi, and by their fantastic character gave +still more intensity to the character of the building. + +This portion of the palace formed a sort of court surrounded by +a portico whose architecture was ornamented with the genealogical +bas-relief to which Can-daules had alluded. + +In the midst thereof sat Heracles upon a throne, with the upper part of +his body uncovered, and his feet resting upon a stool, according to +the rite for the representation of divine personages. His colossal +proportions would otherwise have left no doubt as to his apotheosis, and +the archaic rudeness and hugeness of the work, wrought by the chisel +of some primitive artist, imparted to his figure an air of barbaric +majesty, a savage grandeur more appropriate, perhaps, to the character +of this monster-slaying hero than would have been the work of a sculptor +consummate in his art. + +On the right of the throne were Alcseus, son of the hero and of +Omphale; Ninus, Belus, Argon, the earlier kings of the dynasty of the +Heracleidae, then all the line of intermediate kings, terminating with +Ardys, Alyattes, Meles or Myrsus, father of Candaules, and finally +Candaules himself. + +All these personages, with their hair braided into little strings, their +beards spirally twisted, their oblique eyes, angular attitudes, cramped +and stiff gestures, seemed to own a sort of factitious life, due to the +rays of the setting sun, and the ruddy hue which time lends to marble +in warm climates. The inscriptions in antique characters, graven beside +them after the manner of legends, enhanced still more the mysterious +weirdness of the long procession of figures in strange barbarian garb. + +By a singular chance, which Gyges could not help observing, the statue +of Candaules occupied the last available place at the right hand of +Heracles; the dynastic cycle was closed, and in order to find a place +for the descendants of Candaules it would be absolutely necessary to +build a new portico and commence the formation of a new bas-relief. + +Candaules, whose arm still rested on the shoulder of Gyges, walked +slowly round the portico in silence. He seemed to hesitate to enter into +the subject, and had altogether forgotten the pretext under which he had +led the captain of his guards into that solitary place. + +'What would you do, Gyges,' said Candaules, at last breaking the silence +which had been growing painful to both, 'if you were a diver, and should +bring up from the green bosom of the ocean a pearl of incomparable +purity and lustre, and of worth so vast as to exhaust the richest +treasures of the earth?' + +'I would inclose it,' answered Gyges, a little surprised at this brusque +question, 'in a cedar box overlaid with plates of brass, and I would +bury it under a detached rock in some desert place; and from time to +time, when I should feel assured that none could see me, I would go +thither to contemplate my precious jewel and admire the colours of the +sky mingling with its nacreous tints.' + +'And I,' replied Candaules, his eye illuminated with enthusiasm, 'if I +possessed so rich a gem, I would enshrine it in my diadem, that I might +exhibit it freely to the eyes of all men, in the pure light of the sun, +that I might adorn myself with its splendour and smile with pride when +I should hear it said: "Never did king of Assyria or Babylon, never did +Greek or Trinacrian tyrant possess so lustrous a pearl as Candaules, +son of Myrsus and descendant of Heracles, King of Sardes and of Lydia! +Compared with Candaules, Midas, who changed all things to gold, were +only a mendicant as poor as Irus."' + +Gyges listened with astonishment to this discourse of Candaules, and +sought to penetrate the hidden sense of these lyric divagations. The +king appeared to be in a state of extraordinary excitement: his eyes +sparkled with enthusiasm; a feverish rosiness tinted his cheeks; his +dilated nostrils inhaled the air with unusual effort. + +'Well, Gyges,' continued Candaules, without appearing to notice the +uneasiness of his favourite, 'I am that diver. Amid this dark ocean of +humanity, wherein confusedly move so many defective or misshapen beings, +so many forms incomplete or degraded, so many types of bestial ugliness, +wretched outlines of nature's experimental essays, I have found beauty, +pure, radiant, without spot, without flaw, the ideal made real, the +dream accomplished, a form which no painter or sculptor has ever been +able to translate upon canvas or into marble--I have found Nyssia!' + +'Although the queen has the timid modesty of the women of the Orient, +and that no man save her husband has ever beheld her features, Fame, +hundred-tongued and hundred-eared, has celebrated her praise throughout +the world,' answered Gyges, respectfully inclining his head as he spoke. + +'Mere vague, insignificant rumours. They say of her, as of all women not +actually ugly, that she is more beautiful than Aphrodite or Helen; but +no person could form even the most remote idea of such perfection. In +vain have I besought Nyssia to appear unveiled at some public festival, +some solemn sacrifice, or to show herself for an instant leaning over +the royal terrace, bestowing upon her people the immense favour of +one look, the prodigality of one profile view, more generous than the +goddesses who permit their worshippers to behold only pale simulacra of +ivory or alabaster. She would never consent to that. Now there is one +strange thing which I blush to acknowledge even to you, dear Gyges. +Formerly I was jealous; I wished to conceal my amours from all eyes, no +shadow was thick enough, no mystery sufficiently impenetrable. Now I can +no longer recognise myself. I have the feelings neither of a lover nor +a husband; my love has melted in adoration like thin wax in a fiery +brazier. All petty feelings of jealousy or possession have vanished. No, +the most finished work that heaven has ever given to earth, since the +day that Prometheus held the flame under the right breast of the +statue of clay, cannot thus be kept hidden in the chill shadow of the +gynaeceum. Were I to die, then the secret of this beauty would for ever +remain shrouded beneath the sombre draperies of widowhood! I feel myself +culpable in its concealment, as though I had the sun in my house, and +prevented it from illuminating the world. And when I think of those +harmonious lines, those divine contours which I dare scarcely touch with +a timid kiss, I feel my heart ready to burst; I wish that some friendly +eye could share my happiness and, like a severe judge to whom a picture +is shown, recognise after careful examination that it is irreproachable, +and that the possessor has not been deceived by his enthusiasm. Yes, +often do I feel myself tempted to tear off with rash hand those odious +tissues, but Nyssia, in her fierce chastity, would never forgive me. And +still I cannot alone endure such felicity. I must have a confidant for +my ecstasies, an echo which will answer my cries of admiration, and it +shall be none other than you.' + +Having uttered these words, Candaules brusquely turned and disappeared +through a secret passage. Gyges, left thus alone, could not avoid +noticing the peculiar concourse of events which seemed to place him +always in Nyssia's path. A chance had enabled him to behold her beauty, +though walled up from all other eyes. Among many princes and satraps she +had chosen to espouse Candaules, the very king he served; and through +some strange caprice, which he could only regard as fateful, this king +had just made him, Gyges, his confidant in regard to the mysterious +creature whom none else had approached, and absolutely sought to +complete the work of Boreas on the plain of Bactria! Was not the hand +of the gods visible in all these circumstances? That spectre of beauty, +whose veil seemed to be lifted slowly, a little at a time, as though to +enkindle a flame within him, was it not leading him, without his having +suspected it, toward the accomplishment of some mighty destiny? Such +were the questions which Gyges asked himself, but being unable to +penetrate the obscurity of the future, he resolved to await the course +of events, and left the Court of Images, where the twilight darkness +was commencing to pile itself up in all the angles, and to render +the effigies of the ancestors of Candaules yet more and more weirdly +menacing. + +Was it a mere effort of light, or was it rather an illusion produced by +that vague uneasiness with which the boldest hearts are filled by the +approach of night amid ancient monuments? As he stepped across the +threshold Gyges fancied that he heard deep groans issue from the stone +lips of the bas-reliefs, and it seemed to him that Heracles was making +enormous efforts to loosen his granite club. + + + + +CHAPTER III + +On the following day Candaules again took Gyges aside and continued the +conversation begun under the portico of the Heracleid. Having freed +himself from the embarrassment of broaching the subject, he freely +unbosomed himself to his confidant; and had Nyssia been able to +overhear him she might perhaps have been willing to pardon his conjugal +indiscretions for the sake of his passionate eulogies of her charms. + +Gyges listened to all these bursts of praise with the slightly +constrained air of one who is yet uncertain whether his interlocutor is +not feigning an enthusiasm more ardent than he actually feels, in order +to provoke a confidence naturally cautious to utter itself. Can-daules +at last said to him in a tone of disappointment: 'I see, Gyges, that you +do not believe me. You think I am boasting, or have allowed myself to be +fascinated like some clumsy labourer by a robust country girl on whose +cheeks Hygeia has crushed the gross hues of health. No, by all the gods! +I have collected within my home, like a living bouquet, the fairest +flowers of Asia and of Greece. I know all that the art of sculptors and +painters has produced since the time of Daedalus, whose statues walked +and spoke. Linus, Orpheus, Homer, have taught me harmony and rhythm. I +do not look about me with Love's bandage blindfolding my eyes. I +judge of all things coolly. The passions of youth never influence my +admiration, and when I am as withered, decrepit, wrinkled, as Tithonus +in his swaddling bands, my opinion will be still the same. But I forgive +your incredulity and want of sympathy. In order to understand me fully, +it is necessary that you should see Nyssia in the radiant brilliancy of +her shining whiteness, free from jealous drapery, even as Nature with +her own hands moulded her in a lost moment of inspiration which never +can return. This evening I will hide you in a corner of the bridal +chamber... you shall see her!' + +'Sire, what do you ask of me?' returned the young warrior with +respectful firmness. 'How shall I, from the depths of my dust, from +the abyss of my nothingness, dare to raise my eyes to this sun of +perfections, at the risk of remaining blind for the rest of my life, +or being able to see naught but a dazzling spectre in the midst of +darkness? Have pity on your humble slave, and do not compel him to an +action so contrary to the maxims of virtue. No man should look upon what +does not belong to him. We know that the immortals always punish those +who through imprudence or audacity surprise them in their divine nudity. +Nyssia is the loveliest of all women; you are the happiest of lovers and +husbands. Heracles, your ancestor, never found in the course of his many +conquests aught to compare with your queen. If you, the prince of whom +even the most skilful artists seek judgment and counsel--if you find her +incomparable, of what consequence can the opinion of an obscure soldier +like me be to you? Abandon, therefore, this fantasy, which I presume to +say is unworthy of your royal majesty, and of which you would repent so +soon as it had been satisfied.' + +'Listen, Gyges,' returned Candaules; 'I perceive that you suspect me; +you think that I seek to put you to some proof, but by the ashes of that +funeral pyre whence my ancestor arose a god, I swear to you that I speak +frankly and without any after-purpose.' + +'O Candaules, I doubt not of your good faith; your passion is sincere, +but perchance, after I should have obeyed you, you would conceive a deep +aversion to me, and learn to hate me for not having more firmly resisted +your will. You would seek to take back from these eyes, indiscreet +through compulsion, the image which you allowed them to glance upon in a +moment of delirium; and who knows but that you would condemn them to the +eternal night of the tomb to punish them for remaining open at a moment +when they ought to have been closed.' + +'Fear nothing; I pledge my royal word that no evil shall befall you.' + +'Pardon your slave if he still dares to offer some objection, even after +such a promise. Have you reflected that what you propose to me is a +violation of the sanctity of marriage, a species of visual adultery? A +woman often lays aside her modesty with her garments; and once violated +by a look, without having actually ceased to be virtuous, she might deem +that she had lost her flower of purity. You promise, indeed, to feel +no resentment against me; but who can ensure me against the wrath of +Nyssia, she who is so reserved and chaste, so apprehensive, fierce, and +virginal in her modesty that she might be deemed still ignorant of the +laws of Hymen? Should she ever learn of the sacrilege which I am about +to render myself guilty of in deferring to my master's wishes, what +punishment would she condemn me to suffer in expiation of such a crime? +Who could place me beyond the reach of her avenging anger?' + +'I did not know you were so wise and prudent,' said Candaules, with +a slightly ironical smile; 'but such dangers are all imaginary, and I +shall hide you in such a way that Nyssia will never know she has been +seen by any one except her royal husband.' + +Being unable to offer any further defence, Gyges made a sign of assent +in token of complete submission to the king's will. He had made all the +resistance in his power, and thenceforward his conscience could feel +at ease in regard to whatever might happen; besides, by any further +opposition to the will of Candaules, he would have feared to oppose +destiny itself, which seemed striving to bring him still nearer to +Nyssia for some grim ulterior purpose into which it was not given to him +to see further. + +Without actually being able to foresee any result, he beheld a thousand +vague and shadowy images passing before his eyes. That subterranean +love, so long crouched at the foot of his soul's stairway, had climbed +a few steps higher, guided by some fitful glimmer of hope. The weight of +the impossible no longer pressed so heavily upon his breast, now that +he believed himself aided by the gods. In truth, who would have dreamed +that the much-boasted charms of the daughter of Megabazus would ere long +cease to own any mystery for Gyges? + +'Come, Gyges,' said Candaules, taking him by the hand, 'let us make +profit of the time. Nyssia is walking in the garden with her women; let +us look at the place, and plan our stratagems for this evening.' + +The king took his confidant by the hand and led him along the winding +ways which conducted to the nuptial apartment. The doors of the +sleeping-room were made of cedar planks so perfectly put together that +it was impossible to discover the joints. By dint of rubbing them with +wool steeped in oil, the slaves had rendered the wood as polished as +marble. The brazen nails, with heads cut in facets, which studded them, +had all the brilliancy of the purest gold. A complicated system of +straps and metallic rings, whereof Candaules and his wife alone knew +the combination, served to secure them, for in those heroic ages the +locksmith's art was yet in its infancy. + +Candaules unloosed the knots, made the rings slide back upon the thongs, +raised with a handle which fitted into a mortise the bar that fastened +the door from within, and bidding Gyges place himself against the wall, +turned back one of the folding-doors upon him in such a way as to hide +him completely; yet the door did not fit so perfectly to its frame of +oaken beams, all carefully polished and put up according to line by a +skilful workman, that the young warrior could not obtain a distinct view +of the chamber interior through the interstices contrived to give room +for the free play of the hinges. + +Facing the entrance, the royal bed stood upon an estrade of several +steps, covered with purple drapery. Columns of chased silver supported +the entablature, all ornamented with foliage wrought in relief, amid +which Loves were sporting with dolphins, and heavy curtains embroidered +with gold surrounded it like the folds of a tent. + +Upon the altar of the household gods were placed vases of precious +metal, paterae enamelled with flowers, double-handled cups, and all +things needful for libations. + +Along the walls, which were faced with planks of cedar-wood, +marvellously worked, at regular intervals stood tall statues of black +basalt in the constrained attitudes of Egyptian art, each sustaining in +its hand a bronze torch into which a splinter of resinous wood had been +fitted. + +An onyx lamp, suspended by a chain of silver, hung from that beam of the +ceiling which is called the black beam, because more exposed than the +others to the embrowning smoke. Every evening a slave carefully filled +this lamp with odoriferous oil. + +Near the head of the bed, on a little column, hung a trophy of arms, +consisting of a visored helmet, a twofold buckler made of four bulls' +hides and covered with plates of brass and tin, a two-edged sword, and +several ashen javelins with brazen heads. + +The tunics and mantles of Candaules were hung upon wooden pegs. They +comprised garments both simple and double; that is, capable of going +twice around the body. A mantle of thrice-dyed purple, ornamented with +embroidery representing a hunting scene wherein Laconian hounds were +pursuing and tearing deer, and a tunic whereof the material, fine and +delicate as the skin which envelops an onion had all the sheen of woven +sunbeams, were especially noticeable. Opposite to the trophy stood +an armchair inlaid with silver and ivory upon which Nyssia hung her +garments. Its seat was covered with a leopard skin more eye-spotted than +the body of Argus, and its foot-support was richly adorned with openwork +carving. + +'I am generally the first to retire,' observed Candaules to Gyges, 'and +I always leave this door open as it is now. Nyssia, who has invariably +some tapestry flower to finish, or some order to give her women, usually +delays a little in joining me; but at last she comes, and slowly takes +off, one by one, as though the effort cost her dearly, and lays upon +that ivory chair, all those draperies and tunics which by day envelop +her like mummy bandages. From your hiding-place you will be able to +follow all her graceful movements, admire her unrivalled charms, and +judge for yourself whether Candaules be a young fool prone to vain +boasting, or whether he does not really possess the richest pearl of +beauty that ever adorned a diadem.' + +'O King, I can well believe your words without such a proof as this,' +replied Gyges, stepping forth from his hiding-place. 'When she has +laid aside her garments,' continued Candaules, without heeding the +exclamation of his confidant, 'she will come to lie down with me. You +must take advantage of the moment to steal away, for in passing from the +chair to the bed she turns her back to the door. Step lightly as though +you were treading upon ears of ripe wheat; take heed that no grain +of sand squeaks under your sandals; hold your breath, and retire as +stealthily as possible. The vestibule is all in darkness, and the feeble +rays of the only lamp which remains burning do not penetrate beyond the +threshold of the chamber. It is, therefore, certain that Nyssia cannot +possibly see you; and to-morrow there will be some one in the world who +can comprehend my ecstasies, and will feel no longer astonished at my +bursts of admiration. But see, the day is almost spent; the Sun will +soon water his steeds in the Hesperian waves at the further end of the +world, and beyond the Pillars erected by my ancestors. Return to your +hiding-place, Gyges, and though the hours of waiting may seem long, I +can swear by Eros of the Golden Arrows that you will not regret having +waited.' + +After this assurance Candaules left Gyges again hidden behind the door. +'The compulsory quiet which the king's young confidant found himself +obliged to maintain left him ample leisure for thought. His situation +was certainly a most extraordinary one. He had loved Nyssia as one loves +a star. Convinced of the hopelessness of the undertaking, he had made +no effort to approach her. And, nevertheless, by a succession of +extraordinary events he was about to obtain a knowledge of treasures +reserved for lovers and husbands only. Not a word, not a glance had +been exchanged between himself and Nyssia, who probably ignored the very +existence of the one being for whom her beauty would so soon cease to be +a mystery. Unknown to her whose modesty would have naught to sacrifice +for you, how strange a situation! To love a woman in secret and find +oneself led by her husband to the threshold of the nuptial chamber, to +have for guide to that treasure the very dragon who should defend all +approach to it, was there not in all this ample food for astonishment +and wonder at the combination of events wrought by destiny? + +In the midst of these reflections, he suddenly heard the sound of +footsteps on the pavement. It was only the slaves coming to replenish +the oil in the lamp, throw fresh perfumes upon the coals of the +kamklins, and arrange the purple and saffron-tinted sheepskins which +formed the royal bed. + +The hour approached, and Gyges felt his heart beat faster, and the +pulsation of his arteries quicken. He even felt a strong impulse +to steal away before the arrival of the queen, and, after averring +subsequently to Candaules that he had remained, abandon himself +confidently to the most extravagant eulogiums. He felt a strong +repugnance (for, despite his somewhat free life, Gyges was not without +delicacy) to take by stealth a favour for the free granting of which he +would gladly have paid with his life. The husband's complicity rendered +this theft more odious in a certain sense, and he would have preferred +to owe to any other circumstance the happiness of beholding the marvel +of Asia in her nocturnal toilet. Perhaps, indeed, the approach of +danger, let us acknowledge as veracious historians, had no little to +do with his virtuous scruples. Undoubtedly Gyges did not lack courage. +Mounted upon his war-chariot, with quiver rattling upon his shoulder, +and bow in hand, he would have defied the most valiant warriors; in the +chase he would have attacked without fear the Calydon boar or the Nemean +lion; but--explain the enigma as you will--he trembled at the idea of +looking at a beautiful woman through a chink in a door. No one possesses +every kind of courage. He felt likewise that he could not behold Nyssia +with impunity. It would be a decisive epoch in his life. Through having +obtained but a momentary glimpse of her he had lost all peace of mind; +what, then, would be the result of that which was about to take place? +Could life itself continue for him when to that divine head which fired +his dreams should be added a charming body formed for the kisses of +the immortals? What would become of him should he find himself unable +thereafter to contain his passion in darkness and silence as he had done +till that time? Would he exhibit to the court of Lydia the ridiculous +spectacle of an insane love, or would he strive by some extravagant +action to bring down upon himself the disdainful pity of the queen? Such +a result was strongly probable, since the reason of Candaules himself, +the legitimate possessor of Nyssia, had been unable to resist the +vertigo caused by that superhuman beauty--he, the thoughtless young king +who till then had laughed at love, and preferred pictures and statues +before all things. These arguments were very rational but wholly +useless, for at the same moment Candaules entered the chamber, and +exclaimed in a low but distinct voice as he passed the door: + +'Patience, my poor Gyges, Nyssia will soon come.' When he saw that +he could no longer retreat, Gyges, who was but a young man after all, +forgot every other consideration, and no longer thought of aught save +the happiness of feasting his eyes upon the charming spectacle which +Candaules was about to offer him. One cannot demand from a captain of +twenty-five the austerity of a hoary philosopher. + +At last a low whispering of raiment sweeping and trailing over marble, +distinctly audible in the deep silence of the night, announced the +approach of the queen. In effect it was she. With a step as cadenced and +rhythmic as an ode, she crossed the threshold of the thalamus, and the +wind of her veil with its floating folds almost touched the burning +cheek of Gyges, who felt wellnigh on the point of fainting, and found +himself compelled to seek the support of the wall; but soon recovering +from the violence of his emotions, he approached the chink of the door, +and took the most favourable position for enabling him to lose nothing +of the scene whereof he was about to be an invisible witness. + +Nyssia advanced to the ivory chair and commenced to detach the pins, +terminated by hollow balls of gold, which fastened her veil upon her +head; and Gyges from the depths of the shadow-filled angle where he +stood concealed could examine at his ease the proud and charming face of +which he had before obtained only a hurried glimpse; that rounded neck, +at once delicate and powerful, whereon Aphrodite had traced with the +nail of her little finger those three faint lines which are still at +this very day known as the 'necklace of Venus'; that white nape on +whose alabaster surface little wild rebellious curls were disporting +and entwining themselves; those silver shoulders, half rising from the +opening of the chlamys, like the moon's disc emerging from an opaque +cloud. Candaules, half reclining upon his cushions, gazed with fondness +upon his wife, and thought to himself: 'Now Gyges, who is so cold, so +difficult to please, and so sceptical, must be already half convinced.' + +Opening a little coffer which stood on a table supported by one leg +terminating in carven lion's paws, the queen freed her beautiful arms +from the weight of the bracelets and jewellery wherewith they had been +overburdened during the day--arms whose form and whiteness might well +have enabled them to compare with those of Hera, sister and wife of +Zeus, the lord of Olympus. Precious as were her jewels, they were +assuredly not worth the spots which they concealed, and had Nyssia been +a coquette, one might have well supposed that she only donned them +in order that she should be entreated to take them off. The rings and +chased work had left upon her skin, fine and tender as the interior pulp +of a lily, light rosy imprints, which she soon dissipated by rubbing +them with her little taper-fingered hand, all rounded and slender at its +extremities. + +Then with the movement of a dove trembling in the snow of its feathers, +she shook her hair, which being no longer held by the golden pins, +rolled down in languid spirals like hyacinth flowers over her back +and bosom. Thus she remained for a few moments ere reassembling the +scattered curls and finally re-uniting them into one mass. It was +marvellous to watch the blond ringlets streaming like jets of liquid +gold between the silver of her fingers; and her arms undulating like +swans' necks as they were arched above her head in the act of twisting +and confining the natural bullion. If you have ever by chance examined +one of those beautiful Etruscan vases with red figures on a black +ground, and decorated with one of those subjects which are designated +under the title of 'Greek Toilette,' then you will have some idea of the +grace of Nyssia in that attitude which, from the age of antiquity to our +own era, has furnished such a multitude of happy designs for painters +and statuaries. + +Having thus arranged her coiffure, she seated herself upon the edge +of the ivory footstool and commenced to untie the little bands which +fastened her buskins. We moderns, owing to our horrible system of +footgear, which is hardly less absurd than the Chinese shoe, no longer +know what a foot is. That of Nyssia was of a perfection rare even in +Greece and antique Asia. The great toe, a little apart like the thumb +of a bird, the other toes, slightly long, and all ranged in charming +symmetry, the nails well shaped and brilliant as agates, the ankles well +rounded and supple, the heel slightly tinted with a rosy hue--nothing +was wanting to the perfection of the little member. The leg attached to +this foot, and which gleamed like polished marble under the lamp-light, +was irreproachable in the purity of its outlines and the grace of its +curves. + +Gyges, lost in contemplation, though all the while fully comprehending +the madness of Candaules, said to himself that had the gods bestowed +such a treasure upon him he would have known how to keep it to himself. + +'Well, Nyssia, are you not coming to sleep with me?' exclaimed +Candaules, seeing that the queen was not hurrying herself in the least, +and feeling desirous to abridge the watch of Gyges. + +'Yes, my dear lord, I will soon be ready,' answered Nyssia. + +And she detached the cameo which fastened the peplum upon her shoulder. +There remained only the tunic to let fall. Gyges, behind the door, felt +his veins hiss through his temples; his heart beat so violently that +he feared it must make itself heard in the chamber, and to repress its +fierce pulsations he pressed his hand upon his bosom; and when Nyssia, +with a movement of careless grace, unfastened the girdle of her tunic, +he thought his knees would give way beneath him. + +Nyssia--was it an instinctive presentiment, or was her skin, virginally +pure from profane looks, so delicately magnetic in its susceptibility +that it could feel the rays of a passionate eye though that eye was +invisible?--Nyssia hesitated to strip herself of that tunic, the last +rampart of her modesty. Twice or thrice her shoulders, her bosom, +and bare arms shuddered with a nervous chill, as though they had been +suddenly grazed by the wings of a nocturnal butterfly, or as though an +insolent lip had dared to touch them in the darkness. + +At last, seeming to nerve herself for a sudden resolve she doffed +the tunic in its turn; and the white poem of her divine body suddenly +appeared in all its splendour, like the statue of a goddess unveiled on +the day of a temple's inauguration. Shuddering with pleasure the light +glided and gloated over those exquisite forms, and covered them with +timid kisses, profiting by an occasion, alas, rare indeed! The rays +scattered through the chamber, disdaining to illuminate golden arms, +jewelled clasps, or brazen tripods, all concentrated themselves upon +Nyssia, and left all other objects in obscurity. Were we Greeks of the +age of Pericles we might at our ease eulogise those beautiful serpentine +lines, those polished flanks, those elegant curves, those breasts which +might have served as moulds for the cup of Hebe; but modern prudery +forbids such descriptions, for the pen cannot find pardon for what is +permitted to the chisel; and besides, there are some things which can be +written of only in marble. + +Candaules smiled in proud satisfaction. With a rapid step, as though +ashamed of being so beautiful, for she was only the daughter of a man +and a woman, Nyssia approached the bed, her arms folded upon her bosom; +but with a sudden movement she turned round ere taking her place upon +the couch beside her royal spouse, and beheld through the aperture of +the door a gleaming eye flaming like the carbuncle of Oriental legend; +for if it were false that she had a double pupil, and that she possessed +the stone which is found in the heads of dragons, it was at least true +that her green glance penetrated darkness like the glaucous eye of the +cat and tiger. + +A cry, like that of a fawn who receives an arrow in her flank while +tranquilly dreaming among the leafy shadows, was on the point of +bursting from her lips, yet she found strength to control herself, and +lay down beside Candaules, cold as a serpent, with the violets of death +upon her cheeks and lips. Not a muscle of her limbs quivered, not a +fibre of her body palpitated, and soon her slow, regular breathing +seemed to indicate that Morpheus had distilled his poppy juice upon her +eyelids. + +She had divined and comprehended all. + + + + +CHAPTER IV + +Gyges, trembling and distracted with passion, had retired, following +exactly the instructions of Candaules; and if Nyssia, through some +unfortunate chance, had not turned her head ere taking her place upon +the couch, and perceived him in the act of taking flight, doubtless +she would have remained for ever unconscious of the outrage done to her +charms by a husband more passionate than scrupulous. + +Accustomed to the winding corridors of the palace, the young warrior had +no difficulty in finding his way out. He passed through the city at a +reckless pace like a madman escaped from Anticyra, and by making himself +known to the sentinels who guarded the ramparts, he had the gates opened +for him and gained the fields beyond. His brain burned, his cheeks +flamed as with the fires of fever; his breath came hotly panting through +his lips; he flung himself down upon the meadow-sod humid with the tears +of the night; and at last hearing in the darkness, through the thick +grass and water-plants, the silvery respiration of a Naiad, he dragged +himself to the spring, plunged his hands and arms into the crystal +flood, bathed his face, and drank several mouthfuls of the water in the +hope to cool the ardour which was devouring him. Any one who could have +seen him thus hopelessly bending over the spring in the feeble starlight +would have taken him for Narcissus pursuing his own shadow; but it was +not of himself assuredly that Gyges was enamoured. + +The rapid apparition of Nyssia had dazzled his eyes like the keen zigzag +of a lightning flash. He beheld her floating before him in a luminous +whirlwind, and felt that never through all his life could he banish that +image from his vision. His love had grown to vastness; its flower had +suddenly burst, like those plants which open their blossoms with a clap +of thunder. To master his passion were henceforth a thing impossible: as +well counsel the empurpled waves which Poseidon lifts with his trident +to lie tranquilly in their bed of sand and cease to foam upon the rocks +of the shore. Gyges was no longer master of himself, and he felt a +miserable despair, as of a man riding in a chariot, who finds his +terrified and uncontrollable horses rushing with all the speed of a +furious gallop toward some rock-bristling precipice. A hundred thousand +projects, each wilder than the last, whirled confusedly through his +brain. He blasphemed Destiny, he cursed his mother for having given him +life, and the gods that they had not caused him to be born to a throne, +for then he might have been able to espouse the daughter of the satrap. + +A frightful agony gnawed at his heart; he was jealous of the king. From +the moment of the tunic's fall at the feet of Nyssia, like the flight +of a white dove alighting upon a meadow, it had seemed to him that she +belonged to him; he deemed himself despoiled of his wealth by Candaules. +In all his amorous reveries he had never until then thought of the +husband; he had thought of the queen only as of a pure abstraction, +without representing to himself in fancy all those intimate details of +conjugal familiarity, so poignant, so bitter for those who love a woman +in the power of another. Now he had beheld Nyssia's blond head bending +like a blossom beside the dark head of Candaules. The very thought of +it had inflamed his anger to the highest degree, although a moment's +reflection should have convinced him that things could not have come +to pass otherwise, and he felt growing within him a most unjust hatred +against his master. The act of having compelled his presence at the +queen's dishabille seemed to him a barbarous irony, an odious refinement +of cruelty, for he did not remember that his love for her could not have +been known by the king, who had sought in him only a confidant of easy +morals and a connoisseur in beauty. That which he ought to have regarded +as a great favour affected him like a mortal injury for which he was +meditating vengeance. While thinking that to-morrow the same scene of +which he had been a mute and invisible witness would infallibly renew +itself, his tongue clove to his palate, his forehead became imbeaded +with drops of cold sweat, and his hand convulsively grasped the hilt of +his great double-edged sword. + +Nevertheless, thanks to the freshness of the night, that excellent +counsellor, he became a little calmer, and returned to Sardes before +the morning light had become bright enough to enable a few early rising +citizens and slaves to notice the pallor of his brow and the disorder of +his apparel. He betook himself to his regular post at the palace, well +suspecting that Can-daules would shortly send for him; and, however +violent the agitation of his feelings, he felt he was not powerful +enough to brave the anger of the king, and could in no way escape +submitting again to this rle of confidant, which could thenceforth only +inspire him with horror. Having arrived at the palace, he seated himself +upon the steps of the cypress-panelled vestibule, leaned his back +against a column, and, under the pretext of being fatigued by the long +vigil under arms, he covered his head with his mantle and feigned sleep, +to avoid answering the questions of the other guards. + +If the night had been terrible to Gyges, it had not been less so to +Nyssia, as she never for an instant doubted that he had been purposely +hidden there by Candaules. The king's persistency in begging her not to +veil so austerely a face which the gods had made for the admiration of +men, his evident vexation upon her refusal to appear in Greek costume at +the sacrifices and public solemnities, his unsparing raillery at what he +termed her barbarian shyness, all tended to convince her that the young +Heracleid had sought to admit some one into those mysteries which should +remain secret to all, for without his encouragement no man could have +dared to risk himself in an undertaking the discovery of which would +have resulted in the punishment of a speedy death. + +How slowly did the black hours seem to her to pass! How anxiously did +she await the coming of dawn to mingle its bluish tints with the yellow +gleams of the almost exhausted lamp! It seemed to her that Apollo +would never mount his chariot again, and that some invisible hand was +sustaining the sand of the hourglass in air. Though brief as any other, +that night seemed to her like the Cimmerian nights, six long months of +darkness. + +While it lasted she lay motionless and rigid at full length on the very +edge of her couch in dread of being touched by Candaules. If she had not +up to that night felt a very strong love for the son of Myrsus, she had, +at least, ever exhibited toward him that grave and serene tenderness +which every virtuous woman entertains for her husband, although the +altogether Greek freedom of his morals frequently displeased her, +and though he entertained ideas at variance with her own in regard to +modesty; but after such an affront she could only feel the chilliest +hatred and most icy contempt for him; she would have preferred even +death to one of his caresses. Such an outrage it was impossible to +forgive, for among the barbarians, and above all among the Persians and +Bactrians, it was held a great disgrace, not for women only, but even +for men, to be seen without their garments. + +At length Candaules arose, and Nyssia, awaking from her simulated sleep, +hurried from that chamber now profaned in her eyes as though it had +served for the nocturnal orgies of Bacchantes and courtesans. It was +agony for her to breathe that impure air any longer, and that she +might freely give herself up to her grief she took refuge in the upper +apartments reserved for the women, summoned her slaves by clapping her +hands, and poured ewers of water over her shoulders, her bosom, and +her whole body, as though hoping by this species of lustral ablution +to efface the soil imprinted by the eyes of Gyges. She would have +voluntarily torn, as it were, from her body that skin upon which the +rays shot from a burning pupil seemed to have left their traces. Taking +from the hands of her waiting-women the thick downy materials which +served to drink up the last pearls of the bath, she wiped herself with +such violence that a slight purple cloud rose to the spots she had +rubbed. + +'In vain,' she exclaimed, letting the damp tissues fall, and dismissing +her attendants--'in vain would I pour over myself all the waters of all +the springs and the rivers; the ocean with all its bitter gulfs could +not purify me. Such a stain may be washed out only with blood. Oh, that +look, that look! It has incrusted itself upon me; it clasps me, covers +me, burns me like the tunic dipped in the blood of Nessus; I feel it +beneath my draperies, like an envenomed tissue which nothing can detach +from my body! Now, indeed, would I vainly pile garments upon garments, +select materials the least transparent, and the thickest of mantles. I +would none the less bear upon my naked flesh this infamous robe woven +by one adulterous and lascivious glance. Vainly, since the hour when +I issued from the chaste womb of my mother, have I been brought up in +private, enveloped, like Isis, the Egyptian goddess, with a veil of +which none might have lifted the hem without paying for his audacity +with his life. In vain have I remained guarded from all evil desires, +from all profane imaginings, unknown of men, virgin as the snow on which +the eagle himself could not imprint the seal of his talons, so loftily +does the mountain which it covers lift its head in the pure and icy air. +The depraved caprice of a Lydian Greek has sufficed to make me lose in +a single instant, without any guilt of mine, all the fruit of long years +of precaution and reserve. Innocent and dishonoured, hidden from all yet +made public to all... this is the lot to which Candaules has condemned +me. Who can assure me that, at this very moment, Gyges is not in the act +of discoursing upon my charms with some soldiers at the very threshold +of the palace? Oh shame! Oh infamy! Two men have beheld me naked and yet +at this instant enjoy the sweet light of the sun! In what does +Nyssia now differ from the most shameless hetaira, from the vilest of +courtesans? This body which I have striven to render worthy of being the +habitation of a pure and noble soul, serves for a theme of conversation; +it is talked of like some lascivious idol brought from Sicyon or from +Corinth; it is commended or found fault with. The shoulder is perfect, +the arm is charming, perhaps a little thin--what know I? All the blood +of my heart leaps to my cheeks at such a thought. Oh beauty, fatal gift +of the gods! why am I not the wife of some poor mountain goatherd of +innocent and simple habits? He would not have suborned a goatherd like +himself at the threshold of his cabin to profane his humble happiness! +My lean figure, my unkempt hair, my complexion faded by the burning +sun, would then have saved me from so gross an insult, and my honest +homeliness would not have been compelled to blush. How shall I dare, +after the scene of this night, to pass before those men, proudly erect +under the folds of a tunic which has no longer aught to hide from either +of them. I should drop dead with shame upon the pavement. Candaules, +Candaules, I was at least entitled to more respect from you, and there +was nothing in my conduct which could have provoked such an outrage. +Was I one of those ones whose arms for ever cling like ivy to their +husbands' necks, and who seem more like slaves bought with money for a +master's pleasure than free-born women of noble blood? Have I ever after +a repast sung amorous hymns accompanying myself upon the lyre, with +wine-moist lips, naked shoulders, and a wreath of roses about my hair, +or given you cause, by any immodest action, to treat me like a mistress +whom one shows after a banquet to his companions in debauch?' While +Nyssia was thus buried in her grief, great tears overflowed from her +eyes like rain-drops from the azure chalice of a lotus-flower after +some storm, and rolling down her pale cheeks fell upon her fair forlorn +hands, languishingly open, like roses whose leaves are half-shed, for no +order came from the brain to give them activity. The attitude of Niobe, +beholding her fourteenth child succumb beneath the arrows of Apollo and +Diana, was not more sadly despairing, but soon starting from this state +of prostration, she rolled herself upon the floor, rent her garments, +covered her beautiful dishevelled hair with ashes, tore her bosom and +cheeks with her nails amid convulsive sobs, and abandoned herself to +all the excesses of Oriental grief, the more violently that she had +been forced so long to contain her indignation, shame, pangs of wounded +dignity, and all the agony that convulsed her soul, for the pride of her +whole life had been broken, and the idea that she had nothing wherewith +to reproach herself afforded her no consolation. As a poet has said, +only the innocent know remorse. She was repenting of the crime which +another had committed. + +Nevertheless she made an effort to recover herself, ordered the baskets +filled with wools of different colours, and the spindles wrapped with +flax, to be brought to her, and distributed the work to her women as she +had been accustomed to do; but she thought she noticed that the slaves +looked at her in a very peculiar way, and had ceased to entertain the +same timid respect for her as before. Her voice no longer rang with the +same assurance; there was something humble and furtive in her demeanour; +she felt herself interiorly fallen. + +Doubtless her scruples were exaggerated, and her virtue had received +no stain from the folly of Candaules; but ideas imbibed with a mother's +milk obtain irresistible sway, and the modesty of the body is carried +by Oriental nations to an extent almost incomprehensible to Occidental +races. When a man desired to speak to Nyssia in the palace of Megabazus +at Bactria, he was obliged to do so keeping his eyes fixed upon the +ground, and two eunuchs stood beside him, poniard in hand, ready to +plunge their keen blades through his heart should he dare lift his head +to look at the princess, notwithstanding that her face was veiled. You +may readily conceive, therefore, how deadly an injury the action of +Candaules would seem to a woman thus brought up, while any other would +doubtless have considered it only a culpable frivolity. Thus the idea +of vengeance had instantly presented itself to Nyssia, and had given her +sufficient self-control to strangle the cry of her offended modesty ere +it reached her lips, at the moment when, turning her head, she beheld +the burning eyes of Gyges flaming through the darkness. She must have +possessed the courage of the warrior in ambush, who, wounded by a random +dart, utters no syllable of pain through fear of betraying himself +behind his shelter of foliage or river-reeds, and in silence permits his +blood to stripe his flesh with long red lines. Had she not withheld that +first impulse to cry aloud, Candaules, alarmed and forewarned, would +have kept upon his guard, which must have rendered it more difficult, if +not impossible, to carry out her purpose. + +Nevertheless, as yet she had conceived no definite plan, but she had +resolved that the insult done to her honour should be fully expiated. At +first she had thought of killing Candaules herself while he slept, with +the sword hung at the bedside. But she recoiled from the thought of +dipping her beautiful hands in blood; she feared lest she might miss her +blow; and, with all her bitter anger, she hesitated at so violent and +unwomanly an act. + +Suddenly she appeared to have decided upon some project. She summoned +Statira, one of the waiting-women who had come with her from Bactria, +and in whom she placed much confidence, and whispered a few words close +to her ear in a very low voice, although there were no other persons in +the room, as if she feared that even the walls might hear her. + +Statira bowed low, and immediately left the apartment. + +Like all persons who are actually menaced by some great peril, Candaules +presumed himself perfectly secure. He was certain that Gyges had stolen +away unperceived, and he thought only upon the delight of conversing +with him about the unrivalled attractions of his wife. + +So he caused him to be summoned, and conducted him to the Court of the +Heracleid. + +'Well, Gyges,' he said to him with laughing mien, 'I did not deceive you +when I assured you that you would not regret having passed a few hours +behind that blessed door. Am I right? Do you know of any living woman +more beautiful than the queen? If you know of any superior to her, tell +me so frankly, and go bear her in my name this string of pearls, the +symbol of power.' + +'Sire,' replied Gyges in a voice trembling with emotion, 'no human +creature is worthy to compare with Nyssia. It is not the pearl fillet +of queens which should adorn her brows, but only the starry crown of the +immortals.' + +'I well knew that your ice must melt at last in the fires of that sun. +Now can you comprehend my passion, my delirium, my mad desires? Is it +not true, Gyges, that the heart of a man is not great enough to contain +such a love? It must overflow and diffuse itself.' + +A hot blush overspread the cheeks of Gyges, who now but too well +comprehended the admiration of Candaules. + +The king noticed it, and said, with a manner half smiling, half serious: + +'My poor friend, do not commit the folly of becoming enamoured of +Nyssia; you would lose your pains. It is a statue which I have enabled +you to see, not a woman. I have allowed you to read some stanzas of a +beautiful poem, whereof I alone possess the manuscript, merely for the +purpose of having your opinion; that is all.' + +'You have no need, sire, to remind me of my nothingness. Sometimes the +humblest slave is visited in his slumbers by some radiant and lovely +vision, with ideal forms, nacreous flesh, ambrosial hair. I--I have +dreamed with open eyes; you are the god who sent me that dream.' + +'Now,' continued the king, 'it will scarcely be necessary for me to +enjoin silence upon you. If you do not keep a seal upon your lips +you might learn to your cost that Nyssia is not as good as she is +beautiful.' + +The king waved his hand in token of farewell to his confidant, and +retired for the purpose of inspecting an antique bed sculptured by +Ikmalius, a celebrated artisan, which had been offered him for purchase. + +Candaules had scarcely disappeared when a woman, wrapped in a long +mantle so as to leave but one of her eyes exposed, after the fashion of +the barbarians, came forth from the shadow of a column behind which +she had kept herself hidden during the conversation of the king and +his favourite, walked straight to Gyges, placed her finger upon his +shoulder, and made a sign to him to follow her. + + + + +CHAPTER V + +Statira, followed by Gyges, paused before a little door, of which she +raised the latch by pulling a silver ring attached to a leathern strap, +and commenced to ascend a stairway with rather high steps contrived +in the thickness of the wall. At the head of the stairway was a second +door, which she opened with a key wrought of ivory and brass. As soon as +Gyges entered she disappeared without any further explanation in regard +to what was expected of him. + +The curiosity of Gyges was mingled with uneasiness. He could form no +idea as to the significance of this mysterious message. He had a vague +fancy that he could recognise in the silent Iris one of Nyssia's women; +and the way by which she had made him follow her led to the queen's +apartments. He asked himself in terror whether he had been perceived in +his hiding-place or betrayed by Candaules, for both suppositions seemed +probable. + +At the idea that Nyssia knew all, he felt his face bedewed with a sweat +alternately burning and icy. He sought to fly, but the door had been +fastened upon him by Statira, and all escape was cut off; then he +advanced into the chamber, which was shadowed by heavy purple hangings, +and found himself face to face with Nyssia. He thought he beheld a +statue rise before him, such was her pallor. The hues of life had +abandoned her face; a feeble rose tint alone animated her lips; on her +tender temples a few almost imperceptible veins intercrossed their azure +network; tears had swollen her eyelids, and left shining furrows upon +the down of her cheeks; the chrysoprase tints of her eyes had lost their +intensity. She was even more beautiful and touching thus. Sorrow had +given soul to her marmorean beauty. + +Her disordered robe, scarcely fastened to her shoulders, left visible +her beautiful bare arms, her throat, and the commencement of her +death-white bosom. Like a warrior vanquished in his first conflict, her +beauty had laid down its arms. Of what use to her would have been the +draperies which conceal form, the tunics with their carefully fastened +folds? Did not Gyges know her? Wherefore defend what has been lost in +advance? + +She walked straight to Gyges, and fixing upon him an imperial look, +clear and commanding, said to him in a quick, abrupt voice: + +'Do not lie; seek no vain subterfuges; have at least the dignity and +courage of your crime. I know all; I saw you! Not a word of excuse. I +would not listen to it. Candaules himself concealed you behind the door. +Is it not so the thing happened? And you fancy, doubtless, that it +is all over? Unhappily I am not a Greek woman, pliant to the whims of +artists and voluptuaries. Nyssia will not serve for any one's toy. There +are now two men, one of whom is a man too much upon the earth. He must +disappear from it! Unless he dies, I cannot live. It will be either you +or Candaules. I leave you master of the choice. Kill him, avenge me, and +win by that murder both my hand and the throne of Lydia, or else shall +a prompt death henceforth prevent you from beholding, through a cowardly +complaisance, what you have not the right to look upon. He who commanded +is more culpable than he who has only obeyed; and, moreover, should +you become my husband, no one will have ever seen me without having the +right to do so. But make your decision at once, for two of those four +eyes in which my nudity has reflected itself must before this very +evening be for ever extinguished.' + +This strange alternative, proposed with a terrible coolness, with an +immutable resolution, so utterly surprised Gyges, who was expecting +reproaches, menaces, and a violent scene, that he remained for several +minutes without colour and without voice, livid as a shade on the shores +of the black rivers of hell. + +'I! to dip my hands in the blood of my master! Is it indeed you, O +queen, who demand of me so great a penalty? I comprehend all your anger, +I feel it to be just, and it was not my fault that this outrage took +place; but you know that kings are mighty, they descend from a divine +race. Our destinies repose on their august knees; and it is not +we, feeble mortals, who may hesitate at their commands. Their will +overthrows our refusal, as a dyke is swept away by a torrent By your +feet that I kiss, by the hem of your robe which I touch as a suppliant, +be clement! Forget this injury, which is known to none, and which shall +remain eternally buried in darkness and silence! Candaules worships you, +admires you, and his fault springs only from an excess of love.' + +'Were you addressing a sphinx of granite in the arid sands of Egypt, +you would have more chance of melting her. The winged words might fly +uninterruptedly from your lips for a whole Olympiad; you could not move +my resolution in the slightest. A heart of brass dwells in this marble +breast of mine. Die or kill! When the sunbeam which has passed through +the curtains shall touch the foot of this table let your choice have +been made. I wait.' + +And Nyssia crossed her arms upon her breast in an attitude replete with +sombre majesty. + +To behold her standing erect, motionless and pale, her eyes fixed, her +brows contracted, her hair in disorder, her foot firmly placed upon +the pavement, one would have taken her for Nemesis descended from her +griffin, and awaiting the hour to smite a guilty one. + +'The shadowy depths of Hades are visited by none with pleasure,' +answered Gyges. 'It is sweet to enjoy the pure light of day; and the +heroes themselves who dwell in the Fortunate Isles would gladly return +to their native land. Each man has the instinct of self-preservation, +and since blood must flow, let it be rather from the veins of another +than from mine.' + +To these sentiments, avowed by Gyges with antique frankness, were added +others more noble whereof he did not speak. He was desperately in love +with Nyssia and jealous of Candaules. It was not, therefore, the fear +of death alone that had induced him to undertake this bloody task. +The thought of leaving Candaules in free possession of Nyssia was +insupportable to him: and, moreover, the vertigo of fatality had seized +him. By a succession of irregular and terrible events he beheld himself +hurried toward the realisation of his dreams; a mighty wave had lifted +him and borne him on in despite of his efforts; Nyssia herself was +extending her hand to him, to help him to ascend the steps of the royal +throne. All this had caused him to forget that Candaules was his master +and his benefactor; for none can flee from Fate, and Necessity walks on +with nails in one hand and whip in the other, to stop your advance or to +urge you forward. + +'It is well,' replied Nyssia; 'here is the means of execution.' And she +drew from her bosom a Bactrian poniard, with a jade handle enriched with +inlaid circles of white gold. 'This blade is not made of brass, but with +iron difficult to work, tempered in flame and water, so that Hephaistos +himself could not forge one more keenly pointed or finely edged. +It would pierce, like thin papyrus, metal cuirasses and bucklers of +dragon's skin. + +'The time,' she continued, with the same icy coolness, 'shall be while +he slumbers. Let him sleep and wake no more!' + +Her accomplice, Gyges, hearkened to her words with stupefaction, for he +had never thought he could find such resolution in a woman who could not +bring herself to lift her veil. + +'The ambuscade shall be laid in the very same place where the infamous +one concealed you in order to expose me to your gaze. At the approach +of night I shall turn back one of the folding-doors upon you, undress +myself, lie down, and when he shall be asleep I will give you a signal. +Above all things, let there be no hesitancy, no feebleness; and take +heed that your hand does not tremble when the moment shall have come! +And now, for fear lest you might change your mind, I propose to make +sure of your person until the fatal hour. You might attempt to escape, +to forewarn your master. Do not think to do so.' + +Nyssia whistled in a peculiar way, and immediately from behind a +Persian tapestry embroidered with flowers, there appeared four monsters, +swarthy, clad in robes diagonally striped, which left visible arms +muscled and gnarled as trunks of oaks. Their thick pouting lips, the +gold rings which they wore through the partition of their nostrils, +their great teeth sharp as the fangs of wolves, the expression of stupid +servility on their faces, rendered them hideous to behold. + +The queen pronounced some words in a language unknown to Gyges, +doubtless in Bactrian, and the four slaves rushed upon the young man, +seized him, and carried him away, even as a nurse might carry off a +child in the fold of her robe. + +Now, what were Nyssia's real thoughts? Had she, indeed, noticed Gyges at +the time of her meeting with him near Bactria, and preserved some memory +of the young captain in one of those secret recesses of the heart where +even the most virtuous women always have something buried? Was the +desire to avenge her modesty goaded by some other unacknowledged desire? +And if Gyges had not been the handsomest young man in all Asia would she +have evinced the same ardour in punishing Candaules for having outraged +the sanctity of marriage? That is a delicate question to resolve, +especially after a lapse of three thousand years; and although we have +consulted Herodotus, Hephstion, Plato, Dositheus, Archilochus of Paros, +Hesychius of Miletus, Ptolomus, Euphorion, and all who have spoken +either at length or in only a few words concerning Candaules, Nyssia, +and Gyges, we have been unable to arrive at any definite conclusion. To +pursue so fleeting a shadow through so many centuries, under the ruins +of so many crumpled empires, under the dust of departed nations, is a +work of extreme difficulty, not to say impossibility. + +At all events, Nyssia's resolution was implacably taken; this murder +appeared to her in the light of the accomplishment of a sacred duty. +Among the barbarian nations every man who has surprised a woman in her +nakedness is put to death. The queen believed herself exercising her +right; only inasmuch as the injury had been secret, she was doing +herself justice as best she could. The passive accomplice would become +the executioner of the other, and the punishment would thus spring from +the crime itself. The hand would chastise the head. + +The olive-tinted monsters shut Gyges up in an obscure portion of the +palace, whence it was impossible that he could escape, or that his cries +could be heard. + +He passed the remainder of the day there in a state of cruel anxiety, +accusing the hours of being lame, and again of walking too speedily. The +crime which he was about to commit, although he was only, in some sort, +the instrument of it, and though he was only yielding to an irresistible +influence, presented itself to his mind in the most sombre colours. If +the blow should miss through one of those circumstances which none could +foresee? If the people of Sardes should revolt and seek to avenge +the death of the king? Such were the very sensible though useless +reflections which Gyges made while waiting to be taken from his prison +and led to the place whence he could only depart to strike his master. + +At last the night unfolded her starry robe in the sky, and its shadow +fell upon the city and the palace. A light footstep became audible, +a veiled woman entered the room and conducted him through the obscure +corridors and multiplied mazes of the royal edifice with as much +confidence as though she had been preceded by a slave bearing a lamp or +a torch. + +The hand which held that of Gyges was cold, soft, and small; +nevertheless those slender fingers clasped it with a bruising force, +as the fingers of some statue of brass animated by a prodigy would +have done. The rigidity of an inflexible will betrayed itself in that +ever-equal pressure as of a vice--a pressure which no hesitation of head +or heart came to vary. Gyges, conquered, subjugated, crushed, yielded to +that imperious traction, as though he were borne along by the mighty arm +of Fate. + +Alas! it was not thus he had wished to touch for the first time that +fair royal hand, which had presented the poniard to him, and was leading +him to murder, for it was Nyssia herself who had come for Gyges, to +conceal him in the place of ambuscade. + +No word was exchanged between the sinister couple on the way from the +prison to the nuptial chamber. + +The queen unfastened the thongs, raised the bar of the entrance, and +placed Gyges behind the folding-door as Candaules had done the evening +previous. This repetition of the same acts, with so different a purpose, +had something of a lugubrious and fatal character. Vengeance, this +time, had placed her foot upon every track left by the insult. The +chastisement and the crime alike followed the same path. Yesterday it +was the turn of Candaules, to-day it was that of Nyssia; and Gyges, +accomplice in the injury, was also accomplice in the penalty. He had +served the king to dishonour the queen; he would serve the queen to kill +the king, equally exposed by the vices of the one and the virtues of the +other. + +The daughter of Megabazus seemed to feel a savage joy, a ferocious +pleasure, in employing only the same means chosen by the Lydian king, +and turning to account for the murder those very precautions which had +been adopted for voluptuous fantasy. + +'You will again this evening see me take off these garments which are +so displeasing to Candaules. This spectacle should become wearisome to +you,' said the queen in accents of bitter irony, as she stood on the +threshold of the chamber; 'you will end by finding me ugly.' And +a sardonic, forced laugh momentarily curled her pale mouth; then, +regaining her impassible severity of mien, she continued: 'Do not +imagine you will be able to steal away this time as you did before; +you know my sight is piercing. At the slightest movement on your part I +shall awake Candaules; and you know that it will not be easy for you to +explain what you are doing in the king's apartments, behind a door, with +a poniard in your hand. Further, my Bactrian slaves, the copper-coloured +mutes who imprisoned you a short time ago, guard all the issues of +the palace, with orders to massacre you should you attempt to go out. +Therefore let no vain scruples of fidelity cause you to hesitate. Think +that I will make you King of Sardes, and that... I will love you if you +avenge me. The blood of Candaules will be your purple, and his death +will make for you a place in that bed.' + +The slaves came according to their custom to change the fuel in the +tripod, renew the oil in the lamps, spread tapestry and the skins of +animals upon the royal couch; and Nyssia hurried into the chamber as +soon as she heard their footsteps resounding in the distance. + +In a short time Candaules arrived all joyous. He had purchased the bed +of Ikmalius and proposed to substitute it for the bed wrought after the +Oriental fashion, which he declared had never been much to his taste. +He seemed pleased to find that Nyssia had already retired to the nuptial +chamber. + +'The trade of embroidery, and spindles, and needles seems not to have +the same attraction for you to-day as usual. In fact, it is a monotonous +labour to perpetually pass one thread between other threads, and I +wonder at the pleasure which you seem ordinarily to take in it. To tell +the truth, I am afraid that some fine day Pallas-Athene, on finding you +so skilful, will break her shuttle over your head as she once did to +poor Arachne.' + +'My lord, I felt somewhat tired this evening, and so came downstairs +sooner than usual. Would you not like before going to sleep to drink +a cup of black Samian wine mixed with the honey of Hymettus?' And +she poured from a golden urn, into a cup of the same metal, the +sombre-coloured beverage which she had mingled with the soporiferous +juice of the nepenthe. + +Candaules took the cup by both handles and drained it to the last drop; +but the young Heracleid had a strong head, and sinking his elbow into +the cushions of his couch he watched Nyssia undressing without any sign +that the dust of sleep was commencing to gather upon his eyes. + +As on the evening before, Nyssia unfastened her hair and permitted its +rich blond waves to ripple over her shoulders. From his hiding-place +Gyges fancied that he saw those locks slowly becoming suffused with +tawny tints, illuminated with reflections of blood and flame; and their +heavy curls seemed to lengthen with viprine undulations, like the hair +of the Gorgons and Medusas. + +All simple and graceful as that action was in itself, it took from the +terrible events about to transpire a frightful and ominous character, +which caused the hidden assassin to shudder with terror. + +Nyssia then unfastened her bracelets, but agitated as her hands had been +by nervous straining, they ill served her will. She broke the string +of a bracelet of beads of amber inlaid with gold, which rolled over +the floor with a loud noise, causing Candaules to reopen his gradually +closing eyes. + +Each one of those beads fell upon the heart of Gyges as a drop of molten +lead falls upon water. + +Having unlaced her buskins, the queen threw her upper tunic over the +back of an ivory chair. This drapery, thus arranged, produced upon Gyges +the effect of one of those sinister-folding winding-sheets wherein the +dead were wrapped ere being borne to the funeral pyre. Every object +in that room, which had the evening before seemed to him one scene of +smiling splendour, now appeared to him livid, dim, and menacing. The +statues of basalt rolled their eyes and smiled hideously. The lamp +flickered weirdly, and its flame dishevelled itself in red and sanguine +rays like the crest of a comet. Far back in the dimly lighted corners +loomed the monstrous forms of the Lares and Lmures. The mantles hanging +from their hooks seemed animated by a factitious life, and assumed a +human aspect of vitality; and when Nyssia stripped of her last garment, +approached the bed, all white and naked as a shade, he thought that +Death herself had broken the diamond fetters wherewith Hercules of old +enchained her at the gates of hell when he delivered Alcestes, and had +come in person to take possession of Candaules. + +Overcome by the power of the nepenthe-juice, the king at last slumbered. +Nyssia made a sign for Gyges to come forth from his retreat; and +laying her finger upon the breast of the victim, she directed upon her +accomplice a look so humid, so lustrous, so weighty with languishment, +so replete with intoxicating promise, that Gyges, maddened and +fascinated, sprang from his hiding-place like the tiger from the summit +of the rock where it has been couching, traversed the chamber at a +bound, and plunged the Bactrian poniard up to the very hilt in the heart +of the descendant of Hercules. The chastity of Nyssia was avenged, and +the dream of Gyges accomplished. + +Thus ended the dynasty of the Heracleid, after having endured for +five hundred and five years, and commenced that of the Mermnades in the +person of Gyges, son of Dascylus. The Sardians, indignant at the +death of Candaules, threatened revolt; but the oracle of Delphi having +declared in favour of Gyges, who had sent thither a vast number of +silver vases and six golden cratera of the value of thirty talents, the +new king maintained his seat on the throne of Lydia, which he occupied +for many long years, lived happily, and never showed his wife to any +one, knowing too well what it cost. + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of King Candaules, by Thophile Gautier + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KING CANDAULES *** + +***** This file should be named 22660-8.txt or 22660-8.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/2/2/6/6/22660/ + +Produced by David Widger + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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Thus, we do not necessarily +keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. + + +Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: + + http://www.gutenberg.org + +This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, +including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary +Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to +subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. diff --git a/old/22660-8.zip b/old/22660-8.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..af684f2 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/22660-8.zip diff --git a/old/22660-h.htm b/old/22660-h.htm new file mode 100644 index 0000000..40fc00a --- /dev/null +++ b/old/22660-h.htm @@ -0,0 +1,2682 @@ +<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN"> +<html lang="en"> +<head> +<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" + content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1"> +<title> + King Candaules, + by Thophile Gautier +</title> + +<style type="text/css"> + <!-- + body {text-align:justify} + P { margin:10%; + text-indent: 1em; + margin-top: .75em; + margin-bottom: .75em; } + H1,H2,H3,H4,H5,H6 { text-align: center; } + hr { width: 50%; } + hr.full { width: 100%; } + .foot { margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%; text-align: justify; text-indent: -3em; font-size: 95%; } + img {border: 0;} + HR { width: 33%; text-align: center; } + blockquote {font-size: 97%; } + .pagenum { /* uncomment the next line for invisible page numbers */ + /* visibility: hidden; */ + position: absolute; + left: 1%; + font-size: smaller; + text-align: left; + color: gray; + } /* page numbers */ + .figleft {float: left; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 1%;} + .figright {float: right; margin-right: 10%; margin-left: 1%;} + .toc { margin-left: 15%; margin-bottom: 0em;} + CENTER { padding: 10px;} + PRE { font-style: italic; font-size: 90%; margin-left: 20%;} + // --> +</style> + +</head> +<body> + + +<pre> + +The Project Gutenberg EBook of King Candaules, by Thophile Gautier + +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: King Candaules + +Author: Thophile Gautier + +Translator: Lafcadio Hearn + +Release Date: September 18, 2007 [EBook #22660] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KING CANDAULES *** + + + + +Produced by David Widger + + + + + +</pre> + +<br /> +<br /> + + +<h1> + KING CANDAULES +</h1><br /> + +<h2> +By Thophile Gautier +</h2><br /> +<br /> + +<h3> +Translated By Lafcadio Hearn +<br /> +<br /> + +1908 +</h3> + + + + +<br /> +<br /> +<hr> +<br /> +<br /> + + +<h2>Contents</h2> + + +<center> +<table summary=""> +<tr><td> + + +<p class="toc"><a href="#2HCH0001"> +CHAPTER I +</a></p> +<p class="toc"><a href="#2HCH0002"> +CHAPTER II +</a></p> +<p class="toc"><a href="#2HCH0003"> +CHAPTER III +</a></p> +<p class="toc"><a href="#2HCH0004"> +CHAPTER IV +</a></p> +<p class="toc"><a href="#2HCH0005"> +CHAPTER V +</a></p> + +</td></tr> +</table> +</center> + +<a name="2HCH0001"><!-- H2 anchor --></a> + +<div style="height: 4em;"><br><br><br><br></div> + +<h2> + CHAPTER I +</h2> +<p> +Five hundred years before the Trojan war, and seventeen hundred and +fifteen years before our own era, there was a grand festival at Sardes. +King Candaules was going to marry. The people were affected with that +sort of pleasurable interest and aimless emotion wherewith any royal +event inspires the masses, even though it in no wise concerns them, +and transpires in superior spheres of life which they can never hope to +reach. +</p> +<p> +As soon as Phoebus-Apollo, standing in his quadriga, had gilded to +saffron the summits of fertile Mount Tmolus with his rays, the +good people of Sardes were all astir, going and coming, mounting or +descending the marble stairways leading from the city to the waters +of the Pactolus, that opulent river whose sands Midas filled with tiny +sparks of gold when he bathed in its stream. One would have supposed +that each one of these good citizens was himself about to marry, so +solemn and important was the demeanour of all. +</p> +<p> +Men were gathering in groups in the Agora, upon the steps of the +temples and along the porticoes. At every street corner one might have +encountered women leading by the hand little children, whose uneven walk +ill suited the maternal anxiety and impatience. Maidens were hastening +to the fountains, all with urns gracefully balanced upon their heads, or +sustained by their white arms as with natural handles, so as to procure +early the necessary water provision for the household, and thus obtain +leisure at the hour when the nuptial procession should pass. Washerwomen +hastily folded the still damp tunics and chlamid, and piled them upon +mule-wagons. Slaves turned the mill without any need of the overseer's +whip to tickle their naked and scar-seamed shoulders. Sardes was +hurrying itself to finish with those necessary everyday cares which no +festival can wholly disregard. +</p> +<p> +The road along which the procession was to pass had been strewn with +fine yellow sand. Brazen tripods, disposed along the way at regular +intervals, sent up to heaven the odorous smoke of cinnamon and +spikenard. These vapours, moreover, alone clouded the purity of the +azure above. The clouds of a hymeneal day ought, indeed, to be formed +only by the burning of perfumes. Myrtle and rose-laurel branches were +strewn upon the ground, and from the walls of the palaces were suspended +by little rings of bronze rich tapestries, whereon the needles of +industrious captives—intermingling wool, silver, and gold—had +represented various scenes in the history of the gods and heroes: +Ixion embracing the cloud; Diana surprised in the bath by Actaeon; the +shepherd Paris as judge in the contest of beauty held upon Mount +Ida between Hera, the snowy-armed, Athena of the sea-green eyes, and +Aphrodite, girded with her magic cestus; the old men of Troy rising to +honour Helena as she passed through the Skaian gate, a subject taken +from one of the poems of the blind man of Meles. Others exhibited in +preference scenes taken from the life of Heracles, the Theban, through +flattery to Candaules, himself a Heracleid, being descended from the +hero through Alcaeus. Others contented themselves by decorating the +entrances of their dwellings with garlands and wreaths in token of +rejoicing. +</p> +<p> +Among the multitudes marshalled along the way from the royal house even +as far as the gates of the city, through which the young queen would +pass on her arrival, conversation naturally turned upon the beauty of +the bride, whereof the renown had spread throughout all Asia; and +upon the character of the bridegroom, who, although not altogether an +eccentric, seemed nevertheless one not readily appreciated from the +common standpoint of observation. +</p> +<p> +Nyssia, daughter of the Satrap Megabazus, was gifted with marvellous +purity of feature and perfection of form; at least such was the rumour +spread abroad by the female slaves who attended her, and a few female +friends who had accompanied her to the bath; for no man could boast +of knowing aught of Nyssia save the colour of her veil and the elegant +folds that she involuntarily impressed upon the soft materials which +robed her statuesque body. +</p> +<p> +The barbarians did not share the ideas of the Greeks in regard to +modesty. While the youths of Achaia made no scruples of allowing their +oil-anointed torsos to shine under the sun in the stadium, and while the +Spartan virgins danced ungarmented before the altar of Diana, those of +Persepolis, Ebactana, and Bactria, attaching more importance to chastity +of the body than to chastity of mind, considered those liberties +allowed to the pleasure of the eyes by Greek manner as impure and highly +reprehensible, and held no woman virtuous who permitted men to obtain +a glimpse of more than the tip of her foot in walking, as it slightly +deranged the discreet folds of a long tunic. +</p> +<p> +Despite all this mystery, or rather, perhaps, by very reason of this +mystery, the fame of Nyssia had not been slow to spread throughout all +Lydia, and become popular there to such a degree that it had reached +even Candaules, although kings are ordinarily the most illy informed +people in their kingdoms, and live like the gods in a kind of cloud +which conceals from them the knowledge of terrestrial things. +</p> +<p> +The Eupatrid of Sardes, who hoped that the young king might, perchance, +choose a wife from their family, the hetair of Athens, of Samos, of +Miletus and of Cyprus, the beautiful slaves from the banks of the +Indus, the blond girls brought at a vast expense from the depths of +the Cimmerian fogs, were heedful never to utter in the presence of +Candaules, whether within hearing or beyond hearing, a single word +which bore any relation to Nyssia. The bravest, in a question of beauty, +recoil before the prospect of a contest in which they can anticipate +being outrivalled. +</p> +<p> +And nevertheless no person in Sardes, or even in Lydia, had beheld this +redoubtable adversary, no person save one solitary being, who from +the time of that encounter had kept his lips as firmly closed upon the +subject as though Harpocrates, the god of silence, had sealed them with +his finger, and that was Gyges, chief of the guards of Candaules. One +day Gyges, his mind filled with various projects and vague ambitions, +had been wandering among the Bactrian hills, whither his master had +sent him upon an important and secret mission. He was dreaming of the +intoxication of omnipotence, of treading upon purple with sandals of +gold, of placing the diadem upon the brows of the fairest of women. +</p> +<p> +These thoughts made his blood boil in his veins, and, as though to +pursue the flight of his dreams, he smote his sinewy heel upon the +foam-whitened flanks of his Numidian horse. +</p> +<p> +The weather, at first calm, had changed and waxed tempestuous like the +warrior's soul; and Boreas, his locks bristling with Thracian frosts, +his cheeks puffed out, his arms folded upon his breast, smote the +rain-freighted clouds with the mighty beatings of his wings. +</p> +<p> +A bevy of young girls who had been gathering flowers in the meadow, +fearing the coming storm, were returning to the city in all haste, each +carrying her perfumed harvest in the lap of her tunic. Seeing a stranger +on horseback approaching in the distance, they had hidden their faces +in their mantles, after the custom of the barbarians; but at the very +moment that Gyges was passing by the one whose proud carriage and richer +habiliments seemed to designate her the mistress of the little band, +an unusually violent gust of wind carried away the veil of the fair +unknown, and, whirling it through the air like a feather, chased it to +such a distance that it could not be recovered. It was Nyssia, daughter +of Megabazus, who found herself thus with face unveiled in the presence +of Gyges, a humble captain of King Candaules's guard. Was it only the +breath of Boreas which had brought about this accident, or had Eros, who +delights to vex the hearts of men, amused himself by severing the string +which had fastened the protecting tissue? However that may have been, +Gyges was stricken motionless at the sight of that Medusa of beauty, and +not till long after the folds of Nyssia's robe had disappeared beyond +the gates of the city could he think of proceeding on his way. Although +there was nothing to justify such a conjecture, he cherished the belief +that he had seen the satrap's daughter; and that meeting, which affected +him almost like an apparition, accorded so fully with the thoughts that +were occupying him at the moment of its occurrence, that he could not +help perceiving therein something fateful and ordained of the gods. +In truth it was upon that brow that he would have wished to place the +diadem. What other could be more worthy of it? But what probability was +there that Gyges would ever have a throne to share? He had not sought +to follow up this adventure, and assure himself that it was indeed the +daughter of Megabazus whose mysterious face had been revealed to him by +Chance, the great filcher. Nyssia had fled so swiftly that it would have +been impossible for him then to overtake her; and, moreover, he had been +dazzled, fascinated, thunder-stricken, as it were, rather than charmed +by that superhuman apparition, by that monster of beauty! +</p> +<p> +Nevertheless that image, although seen only in the glimpse of a moment, +had engraved itself upon his heart in lines deep as those which +the sculptors trace on ivory with tools reddened in the fire. He had +endeavoured, although vainly, to efface it, for the love which he felt +for Nyssia inspired him with a secret terror. Perfection in such a +degree is ever awe-inspiring, and women so like unto goddesses could +only work evil to feeble mortals; they are formed for divine adulteries, +and even the most courageous men never risk themselves in such amours +without trembling. Therefore no hope had blossomed in the soul of +Gyges, overwhelmed and discouraged in advance by the sentiment of the +impossible. Ere opening his lips to Nyssia he would have wished to +despoil the heaven of its robe of stars, to take from Phoebus his crown +of rays, forgetting that women only give themselves to those unworthy +of them, and that to win their love one must act as though he desired to +earn their hate. +</p> +<p> +From that day the roses of joy no longer bloomed upon his cheeks. By +day he was sad and mournful, and seemed to wander abroad in solitary +dreaming, like a mortal who has beheld a divinity. At night he was +haunted by dreams in which he beheld Nyssia seated by his side upon +cushions of purple between the golden griffins of the royal throne. +</p> +<p> +Therefore Gyges, the only one who could speak of his own knowledge +concerning Nyssia, having never spoken of her, the Sardians were left to +their own conjectures in her regard; and their conjectures, it must be +confessed, were fantastic and altogether fabulous. The beauty of Nyssia, +thanks to the veils which shrouded her, became a sort of myth, a canvas, +a poem to which each one added ornamentation as the fancy took him. +</p> +<p> +'If report be not false,' lisped a young debauchee from Athens, who +stood with one hand upon the shoulder of an Asiatic boy, 'neither +Plangon, nor Archianassa, nor Thais can be compared with this marvellous +barbarian; yet I can scarce believe that she equals Theano of Colophon, +from whom I once bought a single night at the price of as much gold as +she could bear away, after having plunged both her white arms up to the +shoulder in my cedar-wood coffer.' +</p> +<p> +'Beside her,' added a Eupatrid, who pretended to be better informed than +any other person upon all manner of subjects, 'beside her the daughter +of Coelus and the Sea would seem but a mere Ethiopian servant.' +</p> +<p> +'Your words are blasphemy, and although Aphrodite be a kind and +indulgent goddess, beware of drawing down her anger upon you.' +</p> +<p> +'By Hercules!—and that ought to be an oath of some weight in a city +ruled by one of his descendants—I cannot retract a word of it.' +</p> +<p> +'You have seen her, then?' +</p> +<p> +'No; but I have a slave in my service who once belonged to Nyssia, and +who has told me a hundred stories about her.' +</p> +<p> +'Is it true,' demanded in infantile tones an equivocal-looking woman +whose pale-rose tunic, painted cheeks, and locks shining with essences +betrayed wretched pretensions to a youth long passed away—' is it true +that Nyssia has two pupils in each eye? It seems to me that must be very +ugly, and I cannot understand how Candaules could fall in love with such +a monstrosity, while there is no lack, at Sardes and in Lydia, of women +whose eyes are irreproachable.' +</p> +<p> +And uttering these words with all sorts of affected airs and simperings, +Lamia took a little significant peep in a small mirror of cast metal +which she drew from her bosom, and which enabled her to lead back to +duty certain wandering curls disarranged by the impertinence of the +wind. +</p> +<p> +'As to the double pupil, that seems to me nothing more than an old +nurse's tale,' observed the well-informed patrician; 'but it is a fact +that Nyssia's eyes are so piercing that she can see through walls. +Lynxes are myopic compared with her.' +</p> +<p> +'How can a sensible man coolly argue about such an absurdity?' +interrupted a citizen, whose bald skull, and the flood of snowy beard +into which he plunged his fingers while speaking, lent him an air of +preponderance and philosophical sagacity. 'The truth is that the +daughter of Megabazus cannot naturally see through a wall any better +than you or I, but the Egyptian priest Thoutmosis, who knows so many +wondrous secrets, has given her the mysterious stone which is found in +the heads of dragons, and whose property, as every one knows, renders +all shadows and the most opaque bodies transparent to the eyes of those +who possess it. Nyssia always carries this stone in her girdle, or +else set into her bracelet, and in that may be found the secret of her +clairvoyance.' +</p> +<p> +The citizen's explanation seemed the most natural one to those of the +group whose conversation we are endeavouring to reproduce, and the +opinions of Lamia and the patrician were abandoned as improbable. +</p> +<p> +'At all events,' returned the lover of Theano, 'we are going to have an +opportunity of judging for ourselves, for it seems to me that I hear the +clarions sounding in the distance, and though Nyssia is still invisible, +I can see the herald yonder approaching with palm branches in his hands, +to announce the arrival of the nuptial <i>cortge</i>, and make the crowd +fall back.' +</p> +<p> +At this news, which spread rapidly through the crowd, the strong men +elbowed their way toward the front ranks; the agile boys, embracing the +shafts of the columns, sought to climb up to the capitals and there seat +themselves; others, not without having skinned their knees against the +bark, succeeded in perching themselves comfortably enough in the Y of +some tree-branch. The women lifted their little children upon their +shoulders, warning them to hold tightly to their necks. Those who had +the good fortune to dwell on the street along which Candaules and Nyssia +were about to pass, leaned over from the summit of their roofs, or, +rising on their elbows, abandoned for a time the cushions upon which +they had been reclining. +</p> +<p> +A murmur of satisfaction and gratified expectation ran through the +crowd, which had already been waiting many long hours, for the arrows of +the midday sun were commencing to sting. +</p> +<p> +The heavy-armed warriors, with cuirasses of bull's-hide covered with +overlapping plates of metal, helmets adorned with plumes of horse-hair +dyed red, <i>knemides</i> or greaves faced with tin, baldrics studded with +nails, emblazoned bucklers, and swords of brass, rode behind a line of +trumpeters who blew with might and main upon their long tubes, which +gleamed under the sunlight. The horses of these warriors were all white +as the feet of Thetis, and might have served, by reason of their noble +paces and purity of breeds, as models for those which Phidias at a later +day sculptured upon the metopes of the Parthenon. +</p> +<p> +At the head of this troop rode Gyges, the well-named, for his name +in the Lydian tongue signifies beautiful. His features, of the most +exquisite regularity, seemed chiselled in marble, owing to his intense +pallor, for he had just discovered in Nyssia, although she was veiled +with the veil of a young bride, the same woman whose face had been +betrayed to his gaze by the treachery of Boreas under the walls of +Bactria. +</p> +<p> +'Handsome Gyges looks very sad,' said the young maidens. 'What proud +beauty could have secured his love, or what forsaken one has caused some +Thessalian witch to cast a spell on him? Has that cabalistic ring (which +he is said to have found hidden within the flanks of a brazen horse +in the midst of some forest) lost its virtue, and suddenly ceasing to +render its owner invisible, betrayed him to the astonished eyes of some +innocent husband, who had deemed himself alone in his conjugal chamber?' +</p> +<p> +'Perhaps he has been wasting his talents and his drachmas at the game of +Palamedes, or else it may be that he is disappointed at not having +won the prize at the Olympian games. He had great faith in his horse +Hyperion.' +</p> +<p> +No one of these conjectures was true. A fact is never guessed. +</p> +<p> +After the battalion commanded by Gyges, there came young boys crowned +with myrtle-wreaths, and singing epithalamic hymns after the Lydian +manner, accompanying themselves upon lyres of ivory, which they played +with bows. All were clad in rose-coloured tunics ornamented with +a silver Greek border, and their long hair flowed down over their +shoulders in thick curls. +</p> +<p> +They preceded the gift-bearers, strong slaves whose half-nude bodies +exposed to view such interlacements of muscle as the stoutest athletes +might have envied. +</p> +<p> +Upon brancards, supported by two or four men or more, according to +the weight of the objects borne, were placed enormous brazen cratera, +chiselled by the most famous artists; vases of gold and silver whose +sides were adorned with bas-reliefs and whose hands were elegantly +worked into chimeras, foliage, and nude women; magnificent ewers to be +used in washing the feet of illustrious guests; flagons encrusted with +precious stones and containing the rarest perfumes; myrrh from Arabia, +cinnamon from the Indies, spikenard from Persia, essence of roses from +Smyrna; kamklins or perfuming pans, with perforated covers; cedar-wood +or ivory coffers of marvellous workmanship, which opened with a secret +spring that none save the inventor could find, and which contained +bracelets wrought from the gold of Ophir, necklaces of the most lustrous +pearls, mantle-brooches constellated with rubies and carbuncles; +toilet-boxes, containing blond sponges, curling-irons, sea-wolves' teeth +to polish the nails, the green rouge of Egypt, which turns to a most +beautiful pink on touching the skin, powders to darken the eyelashes and +eyebrows, and all the refinements that feminine coquetry could invent. +Other litters were freighted with purple robes of the finest linen and +of all possible shades from the incarnadine hue of the rose to the deep +crimson of the blood of the grape; <i>calasires</i> of the linen of Canopus, +which is thrown all white into the vat of the dyer, and comes forth +again, owing to the various astringents in which it had been steeped, +diapered with the most brilliant colours; tunics brought from the +fabulous land of Seres, made from the spun slime of a worm which feeds +upon leaves, and so fine that they might be drawn through a finger-ring. +</p> +<p> +Ethiopians, whose bodies shone like jet, and whose temples were tightly +bound with cords, lest they should burst the veins of their foreheads +in the effort to uphold their burden, carried in great pomp a statue of +Hercules, the ancestor of Candaules, of colossal size, wrought of ivory +and gold, with the club, the skin of the Nemean lion, the three apples +from the garden of the Hesperides, and all the traditional attributes of +the hero. +</p> +<p> +Statues of Venus Urania, and of Venus Genitrix, sculptured by the best +pupils of the Sicyon School. That marble of Paros whose gleaming +transparency seemed expressly created for the representation of the +ever-youthful flesh of the immortals, were borne after the statue of +Hercules, which admirably relieved the harmony and elegance of their +proportions by contrast with its massive outlines and rugged forms. +</p> +<p> +A painting by Bularchus, which Candaules had purchased for its weight in +gold, executed upon the wood of the female larch-tree, and representing +the defeat of the Magnesians, evoked universal admiration by the beauty +of its design, the truthfulness of the attitude of its figures, and the +harmony of its colouring, although the artist had only employed in +its production the four primitive colours: Attic ochre, white, Pontic +<i>sinopis</i> and <i>atramentum</i>. The young king loved painting and sculpture +even more, perhaps, than well became a monarch, and he had not +unfrequently bought a picture at a price equal to the annual revenue of +a whole city. +</p> +<p> +Camels and dromedaries, splendidly caparisoned, with musicians seated +on their necks performing upon drums and cymbals, carried the gilded +stakes, the cords, and the material of the tent designed for the use of +the queen during voyages and hunting parties. +</p> +<p> +These spectacles of magnificence would upon any other occasion have +ravished the people of Sardes with delight, but their curiosity had been +enlisted in another direction, and it was not without a certain feeling +of impatience that they watched this portion of the procession file by. +The young maidens and the handsome boys, bearing flaming torches, and +strewing handfuls of crocus flowers along the way, hardly attracted any +attention. The idea of beholding Nyssia had preoccupied all minds. +</p> +<p> +At last Candaules appeared, riding in a chariot drawn by four horses, +as beautiful and spirited as those of the sun, all rolling their golden +bits in foam, shaking their purple-decked manes, and restrained +with great difficulty by the driver, who stood erect at the side of +Candaules, and was leaning back to gain more power on the reins. +</p> +<p> +Candaules was a young man full of vigour, and well worthy of his +Herculean origin. His head was joined to his shoulders by a neck massive +as a bull's, and almost without a curve; his hair, black and lustrous, +twisted itself into rebellious little curls, here and there concealing +the circlet of his diadem; his ears, small and upright, were of a ruddy +hue; his forehead was broad and full, though a little low, like all +antique foreheads; his eyes full of gentle melancholy, his oval cheeks, +his chin with its gentle and regular curves, his mouth with its slightly +parted lips—all bespoke the nature of the poet rather than that of +the warrior. In fact, although he was brave, skilled in all bodily +exercises, could subdue a wild horse as well as any of the Lapith, +or swim across the current of rivers when they descended, swollen with +melted snow, from the mountains, although he might have bent the bow of +Odysseus or borne the shield of Achilles, he seemed little occupied with +dreams of conquest; and war usually so fascinating to young kings, +had little attraction for him. He contented himself with repelling the +attacks of his ambitious neighbours, and sought not to extend his own +dominions. He preferred building palaces, after plans suggested by +himself to the architects, who always found the king's hints of no small +value, or to form collections of statues and paintings by artists of +the elder and later schools. He had the works of Telephanes of Sicyon, +Cleanthes, Ardices of Corinth, Hygiemon, Deinias, Charmides, Eumarus, +and Cimon, some being simple drawings, and others paintings in various +colours or monochromes. It was even said that Candaules had not +disdained to wield with his own royal hands—a thing hardly becoming +a prince—the chisel of the sculptor and the sponge of the encaustic +painter. +</p> +<p> +But why should we dwell upon-Candaules? The reader undoubtedly feels +like the people of Sardes: and it is of Nyssia that he desires to hear. +</p> +<p> +The daughter of Megabazus was mounted upon an elephant, with wrinkled +skin and immense ears which seemed like flags, who advanced with a heavy +but rapid gait, like a vessel in the midst of the waves. His tusks and +his trunk were encircled with silver rings, and around the pillars of +his limbs were entwined necklaces of enormous pearls. Upon his back, +which was covered with a magnificent Persian carpet of striped +pattern, stood a sort of estrade overlaid with gold finely chased, and +constellated with onyx stones, carnelians, chrysolites, lapis-lazuli, +and girasols; upon this estrade sat the young queen, so covered with +precious stones as to dazzle the eyes of the beholders. A mitre, shaped +like a helmet, on which pearls formed flower designs and letters after +the Oriental manner, was placed upon her head; her ears, both the lobes +and rims of which had been pierced, were adorned with ornaments in the +form of little cups, crescents, and balls; necklaces of gold and silver +beads, which had been hollowed out and carved, thrice encircled her neck +and descended with a metallic tinkling upon her bosom; emerald serpents +with topaz or ruby eyes coiled themselves in many folds about her arms, +and clasped themselves by biting their own tails. These bracelets were +connected by chains of precious stones, and so great was their weight +that two attendants were required to kneel beside Nyssia and support +her elbows. She was clad in a robe embroidered by Syrian workmen with +shining designs of golden foliage and diamond fruits, and over this she +wore the short tunic of Persepolis, which hardly descended to the knee, +and of which the sleeves were slit and fastened by sapphire clasps. +Her waist was encircled from hip to loins by a girdle wrought of narrow +material, variegated with stripes and flowered designs, which formed +themselves into symmetrical patterns as they were brought together by +a certain arrangement of the folds which Indian girls alone know how to +make. Her trousers of byssus, which the Phoenicians called <i>syndon</i> were +confined at the ankles by anklets adorned with gold and silver bells, +and completed this toilet so fantastically rich and wholly opposed to +Greek taste. But, alas! a saffron-coloured <i>flammeum</i> pitilessly masked +the face of Nyssia, who seemed embarrassed, veiled though she was, at +finding so many eyes fixed upon her, and frequently signed to a slave +behind her to lower the parasol of ostrich plumes, and thus conceal her +yet more from the curious gaze of the crowd. +</p> +<p> +Candaules had vainly begged of her to lay aside her veil, even for that +solemn occasion. The young barbarian had refused to pay the welcome of +her beauty to his people. Great was the disappointment. Lamia declared +that Nyssia dared not uncover her face for fear of showing her double +pupil. The young libertine remained convinced that Theano of Colophon +was more beautiful than the queen of Sardes; and Gyges sighed when he +beheld Nyssia, after having made her elephant kneel down, descend upon +the inclined heads of Damascus slaves as upon a living ladder, to +the threshold of the royal dwelling, where the elegance of Greek +architecture was blended with the fantasies and enormities of Asiatic +taste. +</p> +<a name="2HCH0002"><!-- H2 anchor --></a> + +<div style="height: 4em;"><br><br><br><br></div> + +<h2> + CHAPTER II +</h2> +<p> +In our character of poet we have the right to lift the saffron-coloured +<i>flammeum</i> which concealed the young bride, being more fortunate in this +wise than the Sardians, who after a whole day's waiting were obliged +to return to their houses, and were left, as before, to their own +conjectures. +</p> +<p> +Nyssia was really far superior to her reputation, great as it was. It +seemed as though Nature in creating her had resolved to exhaust her +utmost powers, and thus make atonement for all former experimental +attempts and fruitless essays. One would have said that, moved by +jealousy of the future marvels of the Greek sculptors, she also had +resolved to model a statue herself, and to prove that she was still +sovereign mistress in the plastic art. +</p> +<p> +The grain of snow, the micaceous brilliancy of Parian marble, the +sparkling pulp of balsamine flowers, would render but a feeble idea +of the ideal substance whereof. Nyssia had been formed. That flesh, +so fine, so delicate, permitted daylight to penetrate it, and modelled +itself in transparent contours, in lines as sweetly harmonious as music +itself. According to different surroundings, it took the colour of the +sunlight or of purple, like the aromal body of a divinity, and seemed +to radiate light and life. The world of perfections inclosed within the +nobly lengthened oval of her chaste face could have been rendered by no +earthly art—neither by the chisel of the sculptor, nor the brush of the +painter, nor the style of any poet—though it were Praxiteles, +Apelles, or Mimnernus; and on her smooth brow, bathed by waves of +hair amber-bright as molten electrum and sprinkled with gold filings, +according to the Babylonian custom, sat as upon a jasper throne the +unalterable serenity of perfect loveliness. +</p> +<p> +As for her eyes, though they did not justify what popular credulity said +of them, they were at least wonderfully strange eyes; brown eyebrows, +with extremities ending in points elegant as those of the arrows of +Eros, and which were joined to each other by a streak of henna after +the Asiatic fashion, and long fringes of silkily-shadowed eyelashes +contrasted strikingly with the twin sapphire stars rolling in the heaven +of dark silver which formed those eyes. The irises of those eyes, +whose pupils were blacker than atrament, varied singularly in shades of +shifting colour. From sapphire they changed to turquoise, from turquoise +to beryl, from beryl to yellow amber, and sometimes, like a limpid +lake whose bottom is strewn with jewels, they offered, through their +incalculable depths, glimpses of golden and diamond sands upon which +green fibrils vibrated and twisted themselves into emerald serpents. In +those orbs of phosphoric lightning the rays of suns extinguished, the +splendours of vanished worlds, the glories of Olympus eclipsed—all +seemed to have concentrated their reflections. When contemplating +them one thought of eternity, and felt himself seized with a mighty +giddiness, as though he were leaning over the verge of the Infinite. +</p> +<p> +The expression of those extraordinary eyes was not less variable than +their tint. At times their lids opened like the portals of celestial +dwellings; they invited you into elysiums of light, of azure, of +ineffable felicity; they promised you the realisation, tenfold, a +hundredfold, of all your dreams of happiness, as though they had divined +your soul's most secret thoughts; again, impenetrable as sevenfold +plated shields of the hardest metals, they flung back your gaze like +blunted and broken arrows. With a simple inflexion of the brow, a +mere flash of the pupil, more terrible than the thunder of Zeus, they +precipitated you from the heights of your most ambitious escalades into +depths of nothingness so profound that it was impossible to rise again. +Typhon himself, who writhes under tna, could not have lifted the +mountains of disdain with which they overwhelmed you. One felt that +though he should live for a thousand Olympiads endowed with the beauty +of the fair son of Latona, the genius of Orpheus, the unbounded might +of Assyrian kings, the treasures of the Cabeirei, the Telchines, and +the Dactyli, gods of subterranean wealth, he could never change their +expression to mildness. +</p> +<p> +At other times their languishment was so liquidly persuasive, their +brilliancy and irradiation so penetrating, that the icy coldness of +Nestor and Priam would have melted under their gaze, like the wax of +the wings of Icarus when he approached the flaming zones. For one such +glance a man would have gladly steeped his hands in the blood of his +host, scattered the ashes of his father to the four winds, overthrown +the holy images of the gods, and stolen the fire of heaven itself, like +the sublime thief, Prometheus. +</p> +<p> +Nevertheless, their most ordinary expression, it must be confessed, was +of a chastity to make one desperate—a sublime coldness—an ignorance +of all possibilities of human passion, such as would have made the +moon-bright eyes of Phoebe or the sea-green eyes of Athena appear by +comparison more liquidly tempting than those of a young girl of Babylon +sacrificing to the goddess Mylitta within the cord-circled enclosure of +Succoth-Benohl. Their invincible virginity seemed to bid love defiance. +</p> +<p> +The cheeks of Nyssia, which no human gaze had ever profaned, save that +of Gyges on the day when the veil was blown away, possessed a youthful +bloom, a tender pallor, a delicacy of grain, and a downiness whereof +the faces of our women, perpetually exposed to sunlight and air, cannot +convey the most distant idea. Modesty created fleeting rosy clouds upon +them like those which a drop of crimson essence would form in a cup of +milk, and when uncoloured by any emotion they took a silvery sheen, a +warm light, like an alabaster vessel illumined by a lamp within. That +lamp was her charming soul, which exposed to view the transparency of +her flesh. +</p> +<p> +A bee would have been deceived by her mouth, whose form was so perfect, +whose corners were so purely dimpled, whose crimson was so rich and +warm that the gods would have descended from their Olympian dwellings +in order to touch it with lips humid with immortality, but that the +jealousy of the goddesses restrained their impetuosity. Happy the wind +which passed through that purple and pearl, which dilated those +pretty nostrils, so finely cut and shaded with rosy tints like the +mother-of-pearl of the shells thrown by the sea on the shore of Cyprus +at the feet of Venus Anadyomene! But are there not a multitude of +favours thus granted to things which cannot understand them? What lover +would not wish to be the tunic of his well-beloved or the water of her +bath? +</p> +<p> +Such was Nyssia, if we dare make use of the expression after so vague +a description of her face. If our foggy Northern idioms had the warm +liberty, the burning enthusiasm of the Sir Hasirim, we might, perhaps, +by comparisons—awakening in the mind of the reader memories of flowers +and perfumes, of music and sunlight, evoking, by the magic of words, +all the graceful and charming images that the universe can contain—have +been able to give some idea of Nyssia's features; but it is permitted to +Solomon alone to compare the nose of a beautiful woman to the tower +of Lebanon which looketh toward Damascus. And yet what is there in the +world of more importance than the nose of a beautiful woman? Had Helen, +the white Tyndarid, been flat-nosed, would the Trojan War have taken +place? And if the profile of Semiramis had not been perfectly regular, +would she have bewitched the old monarch of Nineveh and encircled her +brow with the mitre of pearls, the symbol of supreme power? +</p> +<p> +Although Candaules had brought to his palace the most beautiful slaves +from the people of the Sorse, of Askalon, of Sogdiana, of the Sacse, of +Rhapta, the most celebrated courtesans from Ephesus, from Pergamus, from +Smyrna, and from Cyprus, he was completely fascinated by the charms of +Nyssia. Up to that time he had not even suspected the existence of such +perfection. +</p> +<p> +Privileged as a husband to enjoy fully the contemplation of this beauty, +he found himself dazzled, giddy, like one who leans over the edge of +an abyss, or fixes his eyes upon the sun; he felt himself seized, as it +were, with the dilirium of possession, like a priest drunk with the god +who fills and moves him. All other thoughts disappeared from his soul, +and the universe seemed to him only as a vague mist in the midst of +which beamed the shining phantom of Nyssia. His happiness transformed +itself into ecstasy, and his love into madness. At times his very +felicity terrified him. To be only a wretched king, only a remote +descendant of a hero who had become a god by mighty labours, only +a common man formed of flesh and bone, and without having in aught +rendered himself worthy of it—without having even, like his ancestor, +strangled some hydra, or torn some lion asunder—to enjoy a happiness +whereof Zeus of the ambrosial hair would scarce be worthy, though +lord of all Olympus! He felt, as it were, a shame to thus hoard up for +himself alone so rich a treasure, to steal this marvel from the world, +to be the dragon with scales and claws who guarded the living type of +the ideal of lovers, sculptors, and poets. All they had ever dreamed of +in their hope, their melancholy, and their despair, he possessed—he, +Candaules, poor tyrant of Sardes, who had only a few wretched coffers +filled with pearls, a few cisterns filled with gold pieces, and thirty +or forty thousand slaves, purchased or taken in war. +</p> +<p> +Candaules's felicity was too great for him, and the strength which he +would doubtless have found at his command in time of misfortune was +wanting to him in time of happiness. His joy overflowed from his soul +like water from a vase placed upon the fire, and in the exasperation of +his enthusiasm for Nyssia he had reached the point of desiring that she +were less timid and less modest, for it cost him no little effort to +retain in his own breast the secret of such wondrous beauty. +</p> +<p> +'Ah,' he would murmur to himself during the deep reveries which absorbed +him at all hours that he did not spend at the queen's side, 'how strange +a lot is mine! I am wretched because of that which would make any other +husband happy. Nyssia will not leave the shadow of the gynaeceum, and +refuses, with barbarian modesty, to lift her veil in the presence of any +other than myself. Yet with what an intoxication of pride would my love +behold her, radiantly sublime, gaze down upon my kneeling people from +the summit of the royal steps, and, like the rising dawn, extinguish +all those pale stars who during the night thought themselves suns! Proud +Lydian women, who believe yourselves beautiful, but for Nyssia's reserve +you would appear, even to your lovers, as ugly as the oblique-eyed and +thick-lipped slaves of Nahasi and Kush. Were she but once to pass along +the streets of Sardes with face unveiled, you might in vain pull your +adorers by the lappet of their tunic, for none of them would turn his +head, or, if he did, it would be to demand your name, so utterly would +he have forgotten you! They would rush to precipitate themselves beneath +the silver wheels of her chariot, that they might have even the pleasure +of being crushed by her, like those devotees of the Indus who pave the +pathway of their idol with their bodies. +</p> +<p> +'And you, O goddesses, whom Paris-Alexander judged, had Nyssia appeared +among you, not one of you would have borne away the golden apple, +not even Aphrodite, despite her cestus and her promise to the +shepherd-arbiter that she would make him beloved by the most beautiful +woman in the world!... +</p> +<p> +'Alas! to think that such beauty is not immortal, and that years will +alter those divine outlines, that admirable hymn of forms, that poem +whose strophes are contours, and which no one in the world has ever read +or may ever read save myself; to be the sole depositary of so splendid a +treasure! If I knew even by imitating the play of light and shadow with +the aid of lines and colours, how to fix upon wood a reflection of that +celestial face; if marble were not rebellious to my chisel, how well +would I fashion in the purest vein of Paros or Pentelicus an image of +that charming body, which would make the proud effigies of the goddesses +fall from their altars! And long after, when deep below the slime of +deluges, and beneath the dust of ruined cities, the men of future ages +should find a fragment of that petrified shadow of Nyssia, they would +cry: "Behold, how the women of this vanished world were formed!" And +they would erect a temple wherein to enshrine the divine fragment. But I +have naught save a senseless admiration and a love that is madness! Sole +adorer of an unknown divinity, I possess no power to spread her worship +through the world.' +</p> +<p> +Thus in Candaules had the enthusiasm of the artist extinguished the +jealousy of the lover. Admiration was mightier than love. If in place +of Nyssia, daughter of the Satrap Megabazus, all imbued with Oriental +ideas, he had espoused some Greek girl from Athens or Corinth, he +would certainly have invited to his court the most skilful painters +and sculptors, and have given them the queen for their model, as did +afterward Alexander his favourite Campaspe, who posed naked before +Apelles. Such a whim would have encountered no opposition from a +woman of the land where even the most chaste made a boast of having +contributed—some for the back, some for the bosom—to the perfection of +a famous statue. But hardly would the bashful Nyssia consent to unveil +herself in the discreet shadow of the thalamus, and the earnest prayers +of the king really shocked her rather than gave her pleasure. The +sentiment of duty and obedience alone induced her to yield at times to +what she styled the whims of Candaules. +</p> +<p> +Sometimes he besought her to allow the flood of her hair to flow over +her shoulders in a river of gold richer than the Pactolus, to encircle +her brow with a crown of ivy and linden leaves like a bacchante of Mount +Maenalus, to lie, hardly veiled by a cloud of tissue finer than woven +wind, upon a tiger-skin with silver claws and ruby eyes, or to stand +erect in a great shell of mother-of-pearl, with a dew of pearls falling +from her tresses in lieu of drops of sea-water. +</p> +<p> +When he had placed himself in the best position for observation, +he became absorbed in silent contemplation. His hand, tracing vague +contours in the air, seemed to be sketching the outlines for some +picture, and he would have remained thus for whole hours if Nyssia, soon +becoming weary of her rle of model, had not reminded him in chill and +disdainful tones that such amusements were unworthy of royal majesty and +contrary to the holy laws of matrimony. 'It is thus,' she would exclaim, +as she withdrew, draped to her very eyes, into the most mysterious +recesses of her apartment, 'that one treats a mistress, not a virtuous +woman of noble blood!' +</p> +<p> +These wise remonstrances did not cure Candaules, whose passion augmented +in inverse ratio to the coldness shown him by the queen. And it had at +last brought him to that point that he could no longer keep the secrets +of the nuptial couch. A confidant became as necessary to him as to the +prince of a modern tragedy. He did not proceed, you may feel assured, +to fix his choice upon some crabbed philosopher of frowning mien, with +a flood of gray-and-white beard rolling down over a mantle in proud +tatters; nor a warrior who could talk of nothing save ballista, +catapults, and scythed chariots; nor a sententious Eupatrid full of +councils and politic maxims; but Gyges, whose reputation for gallantry +caused him to be regarded as a connoisseur in regard to women. +</p> +<p> +One evening he laid his hand upon his shoulder in a more than ordinarily +familiar and cordial manner, and after giving him a look of peculiar +significance, he suddenly strode away from the group of courtiers, +saying in a loud voice: +</p> +<p> +'Gyges, come and give me your opinion in regard to my effigy, which +the Sicyon sculptors have just finished chiselling on the genealogical +bas-relief where the deeds of my ancestors are celebrated.' +</p> +<p> +'O king, your knowledge is greater than that of your humble subject, +and I know not how to express my gratitude for the honour you do me in +deigning to consult me,' replied Gyges, with a sign of assent. +</p> +<p> +Candaules and his favourite traversed several halls ornamented in the +Hellenic style, where the Corinthian acanthus and the Ionic volute +bloomed or curled in the capitals of the columns, where the friezes +were peopled with little figures in polychromatic plastique representing +processions and sacrifices, and they finally arrived at a remote portion +of the ancient palace whose walls were built with stones of irregular +form, put together without cement in the cyclopean manner. This +ancient architecture was colossally proportioned and weirdly grim. The +immeasurable genius of the elder civilisations of the Orient was there +legibly written, and recalled the granite and brick debauches of Egypt +and Assyria. Something of the spirit of the ancient architects of +the tower of Lylax survived in those thick-set pillars with their +deep-fluted trunks, whose capitals were formed by four heads of bulls, +placed forehead to forehead, and bound together by knots of serpents +that seemed striving to devour them, an obscure cosmogonie symbol +whereof the meaning was no longer intelligible, and had descended into +the tomb with the hierophants of preceding ages. The gates were neither +of a square nor rounded form. They described a sort of ogive much +resembling the mitre of the Magi, and by their fantastic character gave +still more intensity to the character of the building. +</p> +<p> +This portion of the palace formed a sort of court surrounded by +a portico whose architecture was ornamented with the genealogical +bas-relief to which Can-daules had alluded. +</p> +<p> +In the midst thereof sat Heracles upon a throne, with the upper part of +his body uncovered, and his feet resting upon a stool, according to +the rite for the representation of divine personages. His colossal +proportions would otherwise have left no doubt as to his apotheosis, and +the archaic rudeness and hugeness of the work, wrought by the chisel +of some primitive artist, imparted to his figure an air of barbaric +majesty, a savage grandeur more appropriate, perhaps, to the character +of this monster-slaying hero than would have been the work of a sculptor +consummate in his art. +</p> +<p> +On the right of the throne were Alcseus, son of the hero and of +Omphale; Ninus, Belus, Argon, the earlier kings of the dynasty of the +Heracleidae, then all the line of intermediate kings, terminating with +Ardys, Alyattes, Meles or Myrsus, father of Candaules, and finally +Candaules himself. +</p> +<p> +All these personages, with their hair braided into little strings, their +beards spirally twisted, their oblique eyes, angular attitudes, cramped +and stiff gestures, seemed to own a sort of factitious life, due to the +rays of the setting sun, and the ruddy hue which time lends to marble +in warm climates. The inscriptions in antique characters, graven beside +them after the manner of legends, enhanced still more the mysterious +weirdness of the long procession of figures in strange barbarian garb. +</p> +<p> +By a singular chance, which Gyges could not help observing, the statue +of Candaules occupied the last available place at the right hand of +Heracles; the dynastic cycle was closed, and in order to find a place +for the descendants of Candaules it would be absolutely necessary to +build a new portico and commence the formation of a new bas-relief. +</p> +<p> +Candaules, whose arm still rested on the shoulder of Gyges, walked +slowly round the portico in silence. He seemed to hesitate to enter into +the subject, and had altogether forgotten the pretext under which he had +led the captain of his guards into that solitary place. +</p> +<p> +'What would you do, Gyges,' said Candaules, at last breaking the silence +which had been growing painful to both, 'if you were a diver, and should +bring up from the green bosom of the ocean a pearl of incomparable +purity and lustre, and of worth so vast as to exhaust the richest +treasures of the earth?' +</p> +<p> +'I would inclose it,' answered Gyges, a little surprised at this brusque +question, 'in a cedar box overlaid with plates of brass, and I would +bury it under a detached rock in some desert place; and from time to +time, when I should feel assured that none could see me, I would go +thither to contemplate my precious jewel and admire the colours of the +sky mingling with its nacreous tints.' +</p> +<p> +'And I,' replied Candaules, his eye illuminated with enthusiasm, 'if I +possessed so rich a gem, I would enshrine it in my diadem, that I might +exhibit it freely to the eyes of all men, in the pure light of the sun, +that I might adorn myself with its splendour and smile with pride when +I should hear it said: "Never did king of Assyria or Babylon, never did +Greek or Trinacrian tyrant possess so lustrous a pearl as Candaules, +son of Myrsus and descendant of Heracles, King of Sardes and of Lydia! +Compared with Candaules, Midas, who changed all things to gold, were +only a mendicant as poor as Irus."' +</p> +<p> +Gyges listened with astonishment to this discourse of Candaules, and +sought to penetrate the hidden sense of these lyric divagations. The +king appeared to be in a state of extraordinary excitement: his eyes +sparkled with enthusiasm; a feverish rosiness tinted his cheeks; his +dilated nostrils inhaled the air with unusual effort. +</p> +<p> +'Well, Gyges,' continued Candaules, without appearing to notice the +uneasiness of his favourite, 'I am that diver. Amid this dark ocean of +humanity, wherein confusedly move so many defective or misshapen beings, +so many forms incomplete or degraded, so many types of bestial ugliness, +wretched outlines of nature's experimental essays, I have found beauty, +pure, radiant, without spot, without flaw, the ideal made real, the +dream accomplished, a form which no painter or sculptor has ever been +able to translate upon canvas or into marble—I have found Nyssia!' +</p> +<p> +'Although the queen has the timid modesty of the women of the Orient, +and that no man save her husband has ever beheld her features, Fame, +hundred-tongued and hundred-eared, has celebrated her praise throughout +the world,' answered Gyges, respectfully inclining his head as he spoke. +</p> +<p> +'Mere vague, insignificant rumours. They say of her, as of all women not +actually ugly, that she is more beautiful than Aphrodite or Helen; but +no person could form even the most remote idea of such perfection. In +vain have I besought Nyssia to appear unveiled at some public festival, +some solemn sacrifice, or to show herself for an instant leaning over +the royal terrace, bestowing upon her people the immense favour of +one look, the prodigality of one profile view, more generous than the +goddesses who permit their worshippers to behold only pale simulacra of +ivory or alabaster. She would never consent to that. Now there is one +strange thing which I blush to acknowledge even to you, dear Gyges. +Formerly I was jealous; I wished to conceal my amours from all eyes, no +shadow was thick enough, no mystery sufficiently impenetrable. Now I can +no longer recognise myself. I have the feelings neither of a lover nor +a husband; my love has melted in adoration like thin wax in a fiery +brazier. All petty feelings of jealousy or possession have vanished. No, +the most finished work that heaven has ever given to earth, since the +day that Prometheus held the flame under the right breast of the +statue of clay, cannot thus be kept hidden in the chill shadow of the +gynaeceum. Were I to die, then the secret of this beauty would for ever +remain shrouded beneath the sombre draperies of widowhood! I feel myself +culpable in its concealment, as though I had the sun in my house, and +prevented it from illuminating the world. And when I think of those +harmonious lines, those divine contours which I dare scarcely touch with +a timid kiss, I feel my heart ready to burst; I wish that some friendly +eye could share my happiness and, like a severe judge to whom a picture +is shown, recognise after careful examination that it is irreproachable, +and that the possessor has not been deceived by his enthusiasm. Yes, +often do I feel myself tempted to tear off with rash hand those odious +tissues, but Nyssia, in her fierce chastity, would never forgive me. And +still I cannot alone endure such felicity. I must have a confidant for +my ecstasies, an echo which will answer my cries of admiration, and it +shall be none other than you.' +</p> +<p> +Having uttered these words, Candaules brusquely turned and disappeared +through a secret passage. Gyges, left thus alone, could not avoid +noticing the peculiar concourse of events which seemed to place him +always in Nyssia's path. A chance had enabled him to behold her beauty, +though walled up from all other eyes. Among many princes and satraps she +had chosen to espouse Candaules, the very king he served; and through +some strange caprice, which he could only regard as fateful, this king +had just made him, Gyges, his confidant in regard to the mysterious +creature whom none else had approached, and absolutely sought to +complete the work of Boreas on the plain of Bactria! Was not the hand +of the gods visible in all these circumstances? That spectre of beauty, +whose veil seemed to be lifted slowly, a little at a time, as though to +enkindle a flame within him, was it not leading him, without his having +suspected it, toward the accomplishment of some mighty destiny? Such +were the questions which Gyges asked himself, but being unable to +penetrate the obscurity of the future, he resolved to await the course +of events, and left the Court of Images, where the twilight darkness +was commencing to pile itself up in all the angles, and to render +the effigies of the ancestors of Candaules yet more and more weirdly +menacing. +</p> +<p> +Was it a mere effort of light, or was it rather an illusion produced by +that vague uneasiness with which the boldest hearts are filled by the +approach of night amid ancient monuments? As he stepped across the +threshold Gyges fancied that he heard deep groans issue from the stone +lips of the bas-reliefs, and it seemed to him that Heracles was making +enormous efforts to loosen his granite club. +</p> +<a name="2HCH0003"><!-- H2 anchor --></a> + +<div style="height: 4em;"><br><br><br><br></div> + +<h2> + CHAPTER III +</h2> +<p> +On the following day Candaules again took Gyges aside and continued the +conversation begun under the portico of the Heracleid. Having freed +himself from the embarrassment of broaching the subject, he freely +unbosomed himself to his confidant; and had Nyssia been able to +overhear him she might perhaps have been willing to pardon his conjugal +indiscretions for the sake of his passionate eulogies of her charms. +</p> +<p> +Gyges listened to all these bursts of praise with the slightly +constrained air of one who is yet uncertain whether his interlocutor is +not feigning an enthusiasm more ardent than he actually feels, in order +to provoke a confidence naturally cautious to utter itself. Can-daules +at last said to him in a tone of disappointment: 'I see, Gyges, that you +do not believe me. You think I am boasting, or have allowed myself to be +fascinated like some clumsy labourer by a robust country girl on whose +cheeks Hygeia has crushed the gross hues of health. No, by all the gods! +I have collected within my home, like a living bouquet, the fairest +flowers of Asia and of Greece. I know all that the art of sculptors and +painters has produced since the time of Daedalus, whose statues walked +and spoke. Linus, Orpheus, Homer, have taught me harmony and rhythm. I +do not look about me with Love's bandage blindfolding my eyes. I +judge of all things coolly. The passions of youth never influence my +admiration, and when I am as withered, decrepit, wrinkled, as Tithonus +in his swaddling bands, my opinion will be still the same. But I forgive +your incredulity and want of sympathy. In order to understand me fully, +it is necessary that you should see Nyssia in the radiant brilliancy of +her shining whiteness, free from jealous drapery, even as Nature with +her own hands moulded her in a lost moment of inspiration which never +can return. This evening I will hide you in a corner of the bridal +chamber... you shall see her!' +</p> +<p> +'Sire, what do you ask of me?' returned the young warrior with +respectful firmness. 'How shall I, from the depths of my dust, from +the abyss of my nothingness, dare to raise my eyes to this sun of +perfections, at the risk of remaining blind for the rest of my life, +or being able to see naught but a dazzling spectre in the midst of +darkness? Have pity on your humble slave, and do not compel him to an +action so contrary to the maxims of virtue. No man should look upon what +does not belong to him. We know that the immortals always punish those +who through imprudence or audacity surprise them in their divine nudity. +Nyssia is the loveliest of all women; you are the happiest of lovers and +husbands. Heracles, your ancestor, never found in the course of his many +conquests aught to compare with your queen. If you, the prince of whom +even the most skilful artists seek judgment and counsel—if you find her +incomparable, of what consequence can the opinion of an obscure soldier +like me be to you? Abandon, therefore, this fantasy, which I presume to +say is unworthy of your royal majesty, and of which you would repent so +soon as it had been satisfied.' +</p> +<p> +'Listen, Gyges,' returned Candaules; 'I perceive that you suspect me; +you think that I seek to put you to some proof, but by the ashes of that +funeral pyre whence my ancestor arose a god, I swear to you that I speak +frankly and without any after-purpose.' +</p> +<p> +'O Candaules, I doubt not of your good faith; your passion is sincere, +but perchance, after I should have obeyed you, you would conceive a deep +aversion to me, and learn to hate me for not having more firmly resisted +your will. You would seek to take back from these eyes, indiscreet +through compulsion, the image which you allowed them to glance upon in a +moment of delirium; and who knows but that you would condemn them to the +eternal night of the tomb to punish them for remaining open at a moment +when they ought to have been closed.' +</p> +<p> +'Fear nothing; I pledge my royal word that no evil shall befall you.' +</p> +<p> +'Pardon your slave if he still dares to offer some objection, even after +such a promise. Have you reflected that what you propose to me is a +violation of the sanctity of marriage, a species of visual adultery? A +woman often lays aside her modesty with her garments; and once violated +by a look, without having actually ceased to be virtuous, she might deem +that she had lost her flower of purity. You promise, indeed, to feel +no resentment against me; but who can ensure me against the wrath of +Nyssia, she who is so reserved and chaste, so apprehensive, fierce, and +virginal in her modesty that she might be deemed still ignorant of the +laws of Hymen? Should she ever learn of the sacrilege which I am about +to render myself guilty of in deferring to my master's wishes, what +punishment would she condemn me to suffer in expiation of such a crime? +Who could place me beyond the reach of her avenging anger?' +</p> +<p> +'I did not know you were so wise and prudent,' said Candaules, with +a slightly ironical smile; 'but such dangers are all imaginary, and I +shall hide you in such a way that Nyssia will never know she has been +seen by any one except her royal husband.' +</p> +<p> +Being unable to offer any further defence, Gyges made a sign of assent +in token of complete submission to the king's will. He had made all the +resistance in his power, and thenceforward his conscience could feel +at ease in regard to whatever might happen; besides, by any further +opposition to the will of Candaules, he would have feared to oppose +destiny itself, which seemed striving to bring him still nearer to +Nyssia for some grim ulterior purpose into which it was not given to him +to see further. +</p> +<p> +Without actually being able to foresee any result, he beheld a thousand +vague and shadowy images passing before his eyes. That subterranean +love, so long crouched at the foot of his soul's stairway, had climbed +a few steps higher, guided by some fitful glimmer of hope. The weight of +the impossible no longer pressed so heavily upon his breast, now that +he believed himself aided by the gods. In truth, who would have dreamed +that the much-boasted charms of the daughter of Megabazus would ere long +cease to own any mystery for Gyges? +</p> +<p> +'Come, Gyges,' said Candaules, taking him by the hand, 'let us make +profit of the time. Nyssia is walking in the garden with her women; let +us look at the place, and plan our stratagems for this evening.' +</p> +<p> +The king took his confidant by the hand and led him along the winding +ways which conducted to the nuptial apartment. The doors of the +sleeping-room were made of cedar planks so perfectly put together that +it was impossible to discover the joints. By dint of rubbing them with +wool steeped in oil, the slaves had rendered the wood as polished as +marble. The brazen nails, with heads cut in facets, which studded them, +had all the brilliancy of the purest gold. A complicated system of +straps and metallic rings, whereof Candaules and his wife alone knew +the combination, served to secure them, for in those heroic ages the +locksmith's art was yet in its infancy. +</p> +<p> +Candaules unloosed the knots, made the rings slide back upon the thongs, +raised with a handle which fitted into a mortise the bar that fastened +the door from within, and bidding Gyges place himself against the wall, +turned back one of the folding-doors upon him in such a way as to hide +him completely; yet the door did not fit so perfectly to its frame of +oaken beams, all carefully polished and put up according to line by a +skilful workman, that the young warrior could not obtain a distinct view +of the chamber interior through the interstices contrived to give room +for the free play of the hinges. +</p> +<p> +Facing the entrance, the royal bed stood upon an estrade of several +steps, covered with purple drapery. Columns of chased silver supported +the entablature, all ornamented with foliage wrought in relief, amid +which Loves were sporting with dolphins, and heavy curtains embroidered +with gold surrounded it like the folds of a tent. +</p> +<p> +Upon the altar of the household gods were placed vases of precious +metal, paterae enamelled with flowers, double-handled cups, and all +things needful for libations. +</p> +<p> +Along the walls, which were faced with planks of cedar-wood, +marvellously worked, at regular intervals stood tall statues of black +basalt in the constrained attitudes of Egyptian art, each sustaining in +its hand a bronze torch into which a splinter of resinous wood had been +fitted. +</p> +<p> +An onyx lamp, suspended by a chain of silver, hung from that beam of the +ceiling which is called the black beam, because more exposed than the +others to the embrowning smoke. Every evening a slave carefully filled +this lamp with odoriferous oil. +</p> +<p> +Near the head of the bed, on a little column, hung a trophy of arms, +consisting of a visored helmet, a twofold buckler made of four bulls' +hides and covered with plates of brass and tin, a two-edged sword, and +several ashen javelins with brazen heads. +</p> +<p> +The tunics and mantles of Candaules were hung upon wooden pegs. They +comprised garments both simple and double; that is, capable of going +twice around the body. A mantle of thrice-dyed purple, ornamented with +embroidery representing a hunting scene wherein Laconian hounds were +pursuing and tearing deer, and a tunic whereof the material, fine and +delicate as the skin which envelops an onion had all the sheen of woven +sunbeams, were especially noticeable. Opposite to the trophy stood +an armchair inlaid with silver and ivory upon which Nyssia hung her +garments. Its seat was covered with a leopard skin more eye-spotted than +the body of Argus, and its foot-support was richly adorned with openwork +carving. +</p> +<p> +'I am generally the first to retire,' observed Candaules to Gyges, 'and +I always leave this door open as it is now. Nyssia, who has invariably +some tapestry flower to finish, or some order to give her women, usually +delays a little in joining me; but at last she comes, and slowly takes +off, one by one, as though the effort cost her dearly, and lays upon +that ivory chair, all those draperies and tunics which by day envelop +her like mummy bandages. From your hiding-place you will be able to +follow all her graceful movements, admire her unrivalled charms, and +judge for yourself whether Candaules be a young fool prone to vain +boasting, or whether he does not really possess the richest pearl of +beauty that ever adorned a diadem.' +</p> +<p> +'O King, I can well believe your words without such a proof as this,' +replied Gyges, stepping forth from his hiding-place. 'When she has +laid aside her garments,' continued Candaules, without heeding the +exclamation of his confidant, 'she will come to lie down with me. You +must take advantage of the moment to steal away, for in passing from the +chair to the bed she turns her back to the door. Step lightly as though +you were treading upon ears of ripe wheat; take heed that no grain +of sand squeaks under your sandals; hold your breath, and retire as +stealthily as possible. The vestibule is all in darkness, and the feeble +rays of the only lamp which remains burning do not penetrate beyond the +threshold of the chamber. It is, therefore, certain that Nyssia cannot +possibly see you; and to-morrow there will be some one in the world who +can comprehend my ecstasies, and will feel no longer astonished at my +bursts of admiration. But see, the day is almost spent; the Sun will +soon water his steeds in the Hesperian waves at the further end of the +world, and beyond the Pillars erected by my ancestors. Return to your +hiding-place, Gyges, and though the hours of waiting may seem long, I +can swear by Eros of the Golden Arrows that you will not regret having +waited.' +</p> +<p> +After this assurance Candaules left Gyges again hidden behind the door. +'The compulsory quiet which the king's young confidant found himself +obliged to maintain left him ample leisure for thought. His situation +was certainly a most extraordinary one. He had loved Nyssia as one loves +a star. Convinced of the hopelessness of the undertaking, he had made +no effort to approach her. And, nevertheless, by a succession of +extraordinary events he was about to obtain a knowledge of treasures +reserved for lovers and husbands only. Not a word, not a glance had +been exchanged between himself and Nyssia, who probably ignored the very +existence of the one being for whom her beauty would so soon cease to be +a mystery. Unknown to her whose modesty would have naught to sacrifice +for you, how strange a situation! To love a woman in secret and find +oneself led by her husband to the threshold of the nuptial chamber, to +have for guide to that treasure the very dragon who should defend all +approach to it, was there not in all this ample food for astonishment +and wonder at the combination of events wrought by destiny? +</p> +<p> +In the midst of these reflections, he suddenly heard the sound of +footsteps on the pavement. It was only the slaves coming to replenish +the oil in the lamp, throw fresh perfumes upon the coals of the +kamklins, and arrange the purple and saffron-tinted sheepskins which +formed the royal bed. +</p> +<p> +The hour approached, and Gyges felt his heart beat faster, and the +pulsation of his arteries quicken. He even felt a strong impulse +to steal away before the arrival of the queen, and, after averring +subsequently to Candaules that he had remained, abandon himself +confidently to the most extravagant eulogiums. He felt a strong +repugnance (for, despite his somewhat free life, Gyges was not without +delicacy) to take by stealth a favour for the free granting of which he +would gladly have paid with his life. The husband's complicity rendered +this theft more odious in a certain sense, and he would have preferred +to owe to any other circumstance the happiness of beholding the marvel +of Asia in her nocturnal toilet. Perhaps, indeed, the approach of +danger, let us acknowledge as veracious historians, had no little to +do with his virtuous scruples. Undoubtedly Gyges did not lack courage. +Mounted upon his war-chariot, with quiver rattling upon his shoulder, +and bow in hand, he would have defied the most valiant warriors; in the +chase he would have attacked without fear the Calydon boar or the Nemean +lion; but—explain the enigma as you will—he trembled at the idea of +looking at a beautiful woman through a chink in a door. No one possesses +every kind of courage. He felt likewise that he could not behold Nyssia +with impunity. It would be a decisive epoch in his life. Through having +obtained but a momentary glimpse of her he had lost all peace of mind; +what, then, would be the result of that which was about to take place? +Could life itself continue for him when to that divine head which fired +his dreams should be added a charming body formed for the kisses of +the immortals? What would become of him should he find himself unable +thereafter to contain his passion in darkness and silence as he had done +till that time? Would he exhibit to the court of Lydia the ridiculous +spectacle of an insane love, or would he strive by some extravagant +action to bring down upon himself the disdainful pity of the queen? Such +a result was strongly probable, since the reason of Candaules himself, +the legitimate possessor of Nyssia, had been unable to resist the +vertigo caused by that superhuman beauty—he, the thoughtless young king +who till then had laughed at love, and preferred pictures and statues +before all things. These arguments were very rational but wholly +useless, for at the same moment Candaules entered the chamber, and +exclaimed in a low but distinct voice as he passed the door: +</p> +<p> +'Patience, my poor Gyges, Nyssia will soon come.' When he saw that +he could no longer retreat, Gyges, who was but a young man after all, +forgot every other consideration, and no longer thought of aught save +the happiness of feasting his eyes upon the charming spectacle which +Candaules was about to offer him. One cannot demand from a captain of +twenty-five the austerity of a hoary philosopher. +</p> +<p> +At last a low whispering of raiment sweeping and trailing over marble, +distinctly audible in the deep silence of the night, announced the +approach of the queen. In effect it was she. With a step as cadenced and +rhythmic as an ode, she crossed the threshold of the thalamus, and the +wind of her veil with its floating folds almost touched the burning +cheek of Gyges, who felt wellnigh on the point of fainting, and found +himself compelled to seek the support of the wall; but soon recovering +from the violence of his emotions, he approached the chink of the door, +and took the most favourable position for enabling him to lose nothing +of the scene whereof he was about to be an invisible witness. +</p> +<p> +Nyssia advanced to the ivory chair and commenced to detach the pins, +terminated by hollow balls of gold, which fastened her veil upon her +head; and Gyges from the depths of the shadow-filled angle where he +stood concealed could examine at his ease the proud and charming face of +which he had before obtained only a hurried glimpse; that rounded neck, +at once delicate and powerful, whereon Aphrodite had traced with the +nail of her little finger those three faint lines which are still at +this very day known as the 'necklace of Venus'; that white nape on +whose alabaster surface little wild rebellious curls were disporting +and entwining themselves; those silver shoulders, half rising from the +opening of the chlamys, like the moon's disc emerging from an opaque +cloud. Candaules, half reclining upon his cushions, gazed with fondness +upon his wife, and thought to himself: 'Now Gyges, who is so cold, so +difficult to please, and so sceptical, must be already half convinced.' +</p> +<p> +Opening a little coffer which stood on a table supported by one leg +terminating in carven lion's paws, the queen freed her beautiful arms +from the weight of the bracelets and jewellery wherewith they had been +overburdened during the day—arms whose form and whiteness might well +have enabled them to compare with those of Hera, sister and wife of +Zeus, the lord of Olympus. Precious as were her jewels, they were +assuredly not worth the spots which they concealed, and had Nyssia been +a coquette, one might have well supposed that she only donned them +in order that she should be entreated to take them off. The rings and +chased work had left upon her skin, fine and tender as the interior pulp +of a lily, light rosy imprints, which she soon dissipated by rubbing +them with her little taper-fingered hand, all rounded and slender at its +extremities. +</p> +<p> +Then with the movement of a dove trembling in the snow of its feathers, +she shook her hair, which being no longer held by the golden pins, +rolled down in languid spirals like hyacinth flowers over her back +and bosom. Thus she remained for a few moments ere reassembling the +scattered curls and finally re-uniting them into one mass. It was +marvellous to watch the blond ringlets streaming like jets of liquid +gold between the silver of her fingers; and her arms undulating like +swans' necks as they were arched above her head in the act of twisting +and confining the natural bullion. If you have ever by chance examined +one of those beautiful Etruscan vases with red figures on a black +ground, and decorated with one of those subjects which are designated +under the title of 'Greek Toilette,' then you will have some idea of the +grace of Nyssia in that attitude which, from the age of antiquity to our +own era, has furnished such a multitude of happy designs for painters +and statuaries. +</p> +<p> +Having thus arranged her coiffure, she seated herself upon the edge +of the ivory footstool and commenced to untie the little bands which +fastened her buskins. We moderns, owing to our horrible system of +footgear, which is hardly less absurd than the Chinese shoe, no longer +know what a foot is. That of Nyssia was of a perfection rare even in +Greece and antique Asia. The great toe, a little apart like the thumb +of a bird, the other toes, slightly long, and all ranged in charming +symmetry, the nails well shaped and brilliant as agates, the ankles well +rounded and supple, the heel slightly tinted with a rosy hue—nothing +was wanting to the perfection of the little member. The leg attached to +this foot, and which gleamed like polished marble under the lamp-light, +was irreproachable in the purity of its outlines and the grace of its +curves. +</p> +<p> +Gyges, lost in contemplation, though all the while fully comprehending +the madness of Candaules, said to himself that had the gods bestowed +such a treasure upon him he would have known how to keep it to himself. +</p> +<p> +'Well, Nyssia, are you not coming to sleep with me?' exclaimed +Candaules, seeing that the queen was not hurrying herself in the least, +and feeling desirous to abridge the watch of Gyges. +</p> +<p> +'Yes, my dear lord, I will soon be ready,' answered Nyssia. +</p> +<p> +And she detached the cameo which fastened the peplum upon her shoulder. +There remained only the tunic to let fall. Gyges, behind the door, felt +his veins hiss through his temples; his heart beat so violently that +he feared it must make itself heard in the chamber, and to repress its +fierce pulsations he pressed his hand upon his bosom; and when Nyssia, +with a movement of careless grace, unfastened the girdle of her tunic, +he thought his knees would give way beneath him. +</p> +<p> +Nyssia—was it an instinctive presentiment, or was her skin, virginally +pure from profane looks, so delicately magnetic in its susceptibility +that it could feel the rays of a passionate eye though that eye was +invisible?—Nyssia hesitated to strip herself of that tunic, the last +rampart of her modesty. Twice or thrice her shoulders, her bosom, +and bare arms shuddered with a nervous chill, as though they had been +suddenly grazed by the wings of a nocturnal butterfly, or as though an +insolent lip had dared to touch them in the darkness. +</p> +<p> +At last, seeming to nerve herself for a sudden resolve she doffed +the tunic in its turn; and the white poem of her divine body suddenly +appeared in all its splendour, like the statue of a goddess unveiled on +the day of a temple's inauguration. Shuddering with pleasure the light +glided and gloated over those exquisite forms, and covered them with +timid kisses, profiting by an occasion, alas, rare indeed! The rays +scattered through the chamber, disdaining to illuminate golden arms, +jewelled clasps, or brazen tripods, all concentrated themselves upon +Nyssia, and left all other objects in obscurity. Were we Greeks of the +age of Pericles we might at our ease eulogise those beautiful serpentine +lines, those polished flanks, those elegant curves, those breasts which +might have served as moulds for the cup of Hebe; but modern prudery +forbids such descriptions, for the pen cannot find pardon for what is +permitted to the chisel; and besides, there are some things which can be +written of only in marble. +</p> +<p> +Candaules smiled in proud satisfaction. With a rapid step, as though +ashamed of being so beautiful, for she was only the daughter of a man +and a woman, Nyssia approached the bed, her arms folded upon her bosom; +but with a sudden movement she turned round ere taking her place upon +the couch beside her royal spouse, and beheld through the aperture of +the door a gleaming eye flaming like the carbuncle of Oriental legend; +for if it were false that she had a double pupil, and that she possessed +the stone which is found in the heads of dragons, it was at least true +that her green glance penetrated darkness like the glaucous eye of the +cat and tiger. +</p> +<p> +A cry, like that of a fawn who receives an arrow in her flank while +tranquilly dreaming among the leafy shadows, was on the point of +bursting from her lips, yet she found strength to control herself, and +lay down beside Candaules, cold as a serpent, with the violets of death +upon her cheeks and lips. Not a muscle of her limbs quivered, not a +fibre of her body palpitated, and soon her slow, regular breathing +seemed to indicate that Morpheus had distilled his poppy juice upon her +eyelids. +</p> +<p> +She had divined and comprehended all. +</p> +<a name="2HCH0004"><!-- H2 anchor --></a> + +<div style="height: 4em;"><br><br><br><br></div> + +<h2> + CHAPTER IV +</h2> +<p> +Gyges, trembling and distracted with passion, had retired, following +exactly the instructions of Candaules; and if Nyssia, through some +unfortunate chance, had not turned her head ere taking her place upon +the couch, and perceived him in the act of taking flight, doubtless +she would have remained for ever unconscious of the outrage done to her +charms by a husband more passionate than scrupulous. +</p> +<p> +Accustomed to the winding corridors of the palace, the young warrior had +no difficulty in finding his way out. He passed through the city at a +reckless pace like a madman escaped from Anticyra, and by making himself +known to the sentinels who guarded the ramparts, he had the gates opened +for him and gained the fields beyond. His brain burned, his cheeks +flamed as with the fires of fever; his breath came hotly panting through +his lips; he flung himself down upon the meadow-sod humid with the tears +of the night; and at last hearing in the darkness, through the thick +grass and water-plants, the silvery respiration of a Naiad, he dragged +himself to the spring, plunged his hands and arms into the crystal +flood, bathed his face, and drank several mouthfuls of the water in the +hope to cool the ardour which was devouring him. Any one who could have +seen him thus hopelessly bending over the spring in the feeble starlight +would have taken him for Narcissus pursuing his own shadow; but it was +not of himself assuredly that Gyges was enamoured. +</p> +<p> +The rapid apparition of Nyssia had dazzled his eyes like the keen zigzag +of a lightning flash. He beheld her floating before him in a luminous +whirlwind, and felt that never through all his life could he banish that +image from his vision. His love had grown to vastness; its flower had +suddenly burst, like those plants which open their blossoms with a clap +of thunder. To master his passion were henceforth a thing impossible: as +well counsel the empurpled waves which Poseidon lifts with his trident +to lie tranquilly in their bed of sand and cease to foam upon the rocks +of the shore. Gyges was no longer master of himself, and he felt a +miserable despair, as of a man riding in a chariot, who finds his +terrified and uncontrollable horses rushing with all the speed of a +furious gallop toward some rock-bristling precipice. A hundred thousand +projects, each wilder than the last, whirled confusedly through his +brain. He blasphemed Destiny, he cursed his mother for having given him +life, and the gods that they had not caused him to be born to a throne, +for then he might have been able to espouse the daughter of the satrap. +</p> +<p> +A frightful agony gnawed at his heart; he was jealous of the king. From +the moment of the tunic's fall at the feet of Nyssia, like the flight +of a white dove alighting upon a meadow, it had seemed to him that she +belonged to him; he deemed himself despoiled of his wealth by Candaules. +In all his amorous reveries he had never until then thought of the +husband; he had thought of the queen only as of a pure abstraction, +without representing to himself in fancy all those intimate details of +conjugal familiarity, so poignant, so bitter for those who love a woman +in the power of another. Now he had beheld Nyssia's blond head bending +like a blossom beside the dark head of Candaules. The very thought of +it had inflamed his anger to the highest degree, although a moment's +reflection should have convinced him that things could not have come +to pass otherwise, and he felt growing within him a most unjust hatred +against his master. The act of having compelled his presence at the +queen's dishabille seemed to him a barbarous irony, an odious refinement +of cruelty, for he did not remember that his love for her could not have +been known by the king, who had sought in him only a confidant of easy +morals and a connoisseur in beauty. That which he ought to have regarded +as a great favour affected him like a mortal injury for which he was +meditating vengeance. While thinking that to-morrow the same scene of +which he had been a mute and invisible witness would infallibly renew +itself, his tongue clove to his palate, his forehead became imbeaded +with drops of cold sweat, and his hand convulsively grasped the hilt of +his great double-edged sword. +</p> +<p> +Nevertheless, thanks to the freshness of the night, that excellent +counsellor, he became a little calmer, and returned to Sardes before +the morning light had become bright enough to enable a few early rising +citizens and slaves to notice the pallor of his brow and the disorder of +his apparel. He betook himself to his regular post at the palace, well +suspecting that Can-daules would shortly send for him; and, however +violent the agitation of his feelings, he felt he was not powerful +enough to brave the anger of the king, and could in no way escape +submitting again to this rle of confidant, which could thenceforth only +inspire him with horror. Having arrived at the palace, he seated himself +upon the steps of the cypress-panelled vestibule, leaned his back +against a column, and, under the pretext of being fatigued by the long +vigil under arms, he covered his head with his mantle and feigned sleep, +to avoid answering the questions of the other guards. +</p> +<p> +If the night had been terrible to Gyges, it had not been less so to +Nyssia, as she never for an instant doubted that he had been purposely +hidden there by Candaules. The king's persistency in begging her not to +veil so austerely a face which the gods had made for the admiration of +men, his evident vexation upon her refusal to appear in Greek costume at +the sacrifices and public solemnities, his unsparing raillery at what he +termed her barbarian shyness, all tended to convince her that the young +Heracleid had sought to admit some one into those mysteries which should +remain secret to all, for without his encouragement no man could have +dared to risk himself in an undertaking the discovery of which would +have resulted in the punishment of a speedy death. +</p> +<p> +How slowly did the black hours seem to her to pass! How anxiously did +she await the coming of dawn to mingle its bluish tints with the yellow +gleams of the almost exhausted lamp! It seemed to her that Apollo +would never mount his chariot again, and that some invisible hand was +sustaining the sand of the hourglass in air. Though brief as any other, +that night seemed to her like the Cimmerian nights, six long months of +darkness. +</p> +<p> +While it lasted she lay motionless and rigid at full length on the very +edge of her couch in dread of being touched by Candaules. If she had not +up to that night felt a very strong love for the son of Myrsus, she had, +at least, ever exhibited toward him that grave and serene tenderness +which every virtuous woman entertains for her husband, although the +altogether Greek freedom of his morals frequently displeased her, +and though he entertained ideas at variance with her own in regard to +modesty; but after such an affront she could only feel the chilliest +hatred and most icy contempt for him; she would have preferred even +death to one of his caresses. Such an outrage it was impossible to +forgive, for among the barbarians, and above all among the Persians and +Bactrians, it was held a great disgrace, not for women only, but even +for men, to be seen without their garments. +</p> +<p> +At length Candaules arose, and Nyssia, awaking from her simulated sleep, +hurried from that chamber now profaned in her eyes as though it had +served for the nocturnal orgies of Bacchantes and courtesans. It was +agony for her to breathe that impure air any longer, and that she +might freely give herself up to her grief she took refuge in the upper +apartments reserved for the women, summoned her slaves by clapping her +hands, and poured ewers of water over her shoulders, her bosom, and +her whole body, as though hoping by this species of lustral ablution +to efface the soil imprinted by the eyes of Gyges. She would have +voluntarily torn, as it were, from her body that skin upon which the +rays shot from a burning pupil seemed to have left their traces. Taking +from the hands of her waiting-women the thick downy materials which +served to drink up the last pearls of the bath, she wiped herself with +such violence that a slight purple cloud rose to the spots she had +rubbed. +</p> +<p> +'In vain,' she exclaimed, letting the damp tissues fall, and dismissing +her attendants—'in vain would I pour over myself all the waters of all +the springs and the rivers; the ocean with all its bitter gulfs could +not purify me. Such a stain may be washed out only with blood. Oh, that +look, that look! It has incrusted itself upon me; it clasps me, covers +me, burns me like the tunic dipped in the blood of Nessus; I feel it +beneath my draperies, like an envenomed tissue which nothing can detach +from my body! Now, indeed, would I vainly pile garments upon garments, +select materials the least transparent, and the thickest of mantles. I +would none the less bear upon my naked flesh this infamous robe woven +by one adulterous and lascivious glance. Vainly, since the hour when +I issued from the chaste womb of my mother, have I been brought up in +private, enveloped, like Isis, the Egyptian goddess, with a veil of +which none might have lifted the hem without paying for his audacity +with his life. In vain have I remained guarded from all evil desires, +from all profane imaginings, unknown of men, virgin as the snow on which +the eagle himself could not imprint the seal of his talons, so loftily +does the mountain which it covers lift its head in the pure and icy air. +The depraved caprice of a Lydian Greek has sufficed to make me lose in +a single instant, without any guilt of mine, all the fruit of long years +of precaution and reserve. Innocent and dishonoured, hidden from all yet +made public to all... this is the lot to which Candaules has condemned +me. Who can assure me that, at this very moment, Gyges is not in the act +of discoursing upon my charms with some soldiers at the very threshold +of the palace? Oh shame! Oh infamy! Two men have beheld me naked and yet +at this instant enjoy the sweet light of the sun! In what does +Nyssia now differ from the most shameless hetaira, from the vilest of +courtesans? This body which I have striven to render worthy of being the +habitation of a pure and noble soul, serves for a theme of conversation; +it is talked of like some lascivious idol brought from Sicyon or from +Corinth; it is commended or found fault with. The shoulder is perfect, +the arm is charming, perhaps a little thin—what know I? All the blood +of my heart leaps to my cheeks at such a thought. Oh beauty, fatal gift +of the gods! why am I not the wife of some poor mountain goatherd of +innocent and simple habits? He would not have suborned a goatherd like +himself at the threshold of his cabin to profane his humble happiness! +My lean figure, my unkempt hair, my complexion faded by the burning +sun, would then have saved me from so gross an insult, and my honest +homeliness would not have been compelled to blush. How shall I dare, +after the scene of this night, to pass before those men, proudly erect +under the folds of a tunic which has no longer aught to hide from either +of them. I should drop dead with shame upon the pavement. Candaules, +Candaules, I was at least entitled to more respect from you, and there +was nothing in my conduct which could have provoked such an outrage. +Was I one of those ones whose arms for ever cling like ivy to their +husbands' necks, and who seem more like slaves bought with money for a +master's pleasure than free-born women of noble blood? Have I ever after +a repast sung amorous hymns accompanying myself upon the lyre, with +wine-moist lips, naked shoulders, and a wreath of roses about my hair, +or given you cause, by any immodest action, to treat me like a mistress +whom one shows after a banquet to his companions in debauch?' While +Nyssia was thus buried in her grief, great tears overflowed from her +eyes like rain-drops from the azure chalice of a lotus-flower after +some storm, and rolling down her pale cheeks fell upon her fair forlorn +hands, languishingly open, like roses whose leaves are half-shed, for no +order came from the brain to give them activity. The attitude of Niobe, +beholding her fourteenth child succumb beneath the arrows of Apollo and +Diana, was not more sadly despairing, but soon starting from this state +of prostration, she rolled herself upon the floor, rent her garments, +covered her beautiful dishevelled hair with ashes, tore her bosom and +cheeks with her nails amid convulsive sobs, and abandoned herself to +all the excesses of Oriental grief, the more violently that she had +been forced so long to contain her indignation, shame, pangs of wounded +dignity, and all the agony that convulsed her soul, for the pride of her +whole life had been broken, and the idea that she had nothing wherewith +to reproach herself afforded her no consolation. As a poet has said, +only the innocent know remorse. She was repenting of the crime which +another had committed. +</p> +<p> +Nevertheless she made an effort to recover herself, ordered the baskets +filled with wools of different colours, and the spindles wrapped with +flax, to be brought to her, and distributed the work to her women as she +had been accustomed to do; but she thought she noticed that the slaves +looked at her in a very peculiar way, and had ceased to entertain the +same timid respect for her as before. Her voice no longer rang with the +same assurance; there was something humble and furtive in her demeanour; +she felt herself interiorly fallen. +</p> +<p> +Doubtless her scruples were exaggerated, and her virtue had received +no stain from the folly of Candaules; but ideas imbibed with a mother's +milk obtain irresistible sway, and the modesty of the body is carried +by Oriental nations to an extent almost incomprehensible to Occidental +races. When a man desired to speak to Nyssia in the palace of Megabazus +at Bactria, he was obliged to do so keeping his eyes fixed upon the +ground, and two eunuchs stood beside him, poniard in hand, ready to +plunge their keen blades through his heart should he dare lift his head +to look at the princess, notwithstanding that her face was veiled. You +may readily conceive, therefore, how deadly an injury the action of +Candaules would seem to a woman thus brought up, while any other would +doubtless have considered it only a culpable frivolity. Thus the idea +of vengeance had instantly presented itself to Nyssia, and had given her +sufficient self-control to strangle the cry of her offended modesty ere +it reached her lips, at the moment when, turning her head, she beheld +the burning eyes of Gyges flaming through the darkness. She must have +possessed the courage of the warrior in ambush, who, wounded by a random +dart, utters no syllable of pain through fear of betraying himself +behind his shelter of foliage or river-reeds, and in silence permits his +blood to stripe his flesh with long red lines. Had she not withheld that +first impulse to cry aloud, Candaules, alarmed and forewarned, would +have kept upon his guard, which must have rendered it more difficult, if +not impossible, to carry out her purpose. +</p> +<p> +Nevertheless, as yet she had conceived no definite plan, but she had +resolved that the insult done to her honour should be fully expiated. At +first she had thought of killing Candaules herself while he slept, with +the sword hung at the bedside. But she recoiled from the thought of +dipping her beautiful hands in blood; she feared lest she might miss her +blow; and, with all her bitter anger, she hesitated at so violent and +unwomanly an act. +</p> +<p> +Suddenly she appeared to have decided upon some project. She summoned +Statira, one of the waiting-women who had come with her from Bactria, +and in whom she placed much confidence, and whispered a few words close +to her ear in a very low voice, although there were no other persons in +the room, as if she feared that even the walls might hear her. +</p> +<p> +Statira bowed low, and immediately left the apartment. +</p> +<p> +Like all persons who are actually menaced by some great peril, Candaules +presumed himself perfectly secure. He was certain that Gyges had stolen +away unperceived, and he thought only upon the delight of conversing +with him about the unrivalled attractions of his wife. +</p> +<p> +So he caused him to be summoned, and conducted him to the Court of the +Heracleid. +</p> +<p> +'Well, Gyges,' he said to him with laughing mien, 'I did not deceive you +when I assured you that you would not regret having passed a few hours +behind that blessed door. Am I right? Do you know of any living woman +more beautiful than the queen? If you know of any superior to her, tell +me so frankly, and go bear her in my name this string of pearls, the +symbol of power.' +</p> +<p> +'Sire,' replied Gyges in a voice trembling with emotion, 'no human +creature is worthy to compare with Nyssia. It is not the pearl fillet +of queens which should adorn her brows, but only the starry crown of the +immortals.' +</p> +<p> +'I well knew that your ice must melt at last in the fires of that sun. +Now can you comprehend my passion, my delirium, my mad desires? Is it +not true, Gyges, that the heart of a man is not great enough to contain +such a love? It must overflow and diffuse itself.' +</p> +<p> +A hot blush overspread the cheeks of Gyges, who now but too well +comprehended the admiration of Candaules. +</p> +<p> +The king noticed it, and said, with a manner half smiling, half serious: +</p> +<p> +'My poor friend, do not commit the folly of becoming enamoured of +Nyssia; you would lose your pains. It is a statue which I have enabled +you to see, not a woman. I have allowed you to read some stanzas of a +beautiful poem, whereof I alone possess the manuscript, merely for the +purpose of having your opinion; that is all.' +</p> +<p> +'You have no need, sire, to remind me of my nothingness. Sometimes the +humblest slave is visited in his slumbers by some radiant and lovely +vision, with ideal forms, nacreous flesh, ambrosial hair. I—I have +dreamed with open eyes; you are the god who sent me that dream.' +</p> +<p> +'Now,' continued the king, 'it will scarcely be necessary for me to +enjoin silence upon you. If you do not keep a seal upon your lips +you might learn to your cost that Nyssia is not as good as she is +beautiful.' +</p> +<p> +The king waved his hand in token of farewell to his confidant, and +retired for the purpose of inspecting an antique bed sculptured by +Ikmalius, a celebrated artisan, which had been offered him for purchase. +</p> +<p> +Candaules had scarcely disappeared when a woman, wrapped in a long +mantle so as to leave but one of her eyes exposed, after the fashion of +the barbarians, came forth from the shadow of a column behind which +she had kept herself hidden during the conversation of the king and +his favourite, walked straight to Gyges, placed her finger upon his +shoulder, and made a sign to him to follow her. +</p> +<a name="2HCH0005"><!-- H2 anchor --></a> + +<div style="height: 4em;"><br><br><br><br></div> + +<h2> + CHAPTER V +</h2> +<p> +Statira, followed by Gyges, paused before a little door, of which she +raised the latch by pulling a silver ring attached to a leathern strap, +and commenced to ascend a stairway with rather high steps contrived +in the thickness of the wall. At the head of the stairway was a second +door, which she opened with a key wrought of ivory and brass. As soon as +Gyges entered she disappeared without any further explanation in regard +to what was expected of him. +</p> +<p> +The curiosity of Gyges was mingled with uneasiness. He could form no +idea as to the significance of this mysterious message. He had a vague +fancy that he could recognise in the silent Iris one of Nyssia's women; +and the way by which she had made him follow her led to the queen's +apartments. He asked himself in terror whether he had been perceived in +his hiding-place or betrayed by Candaules, for both suppositions seemed +probable. +</p> +<p> +At the idea that Nyssia knew all, he felt his face bedewed with a sweat +alternately burning and icy. He sought to fly, but the door had been +fastened upon him by Statira, and all escape was cut off; then he +advanced into the chamber, which was shadowed by heavy purple hangings, +and found himself face to face with Nyssia. He thought he beheld a +statue rise before him, such was her pallor. The hues of life had +abandoned her face; a feeble rose tint alone animated her lips; on her +tender temples a few almost imperceptible veins intercrossed their azure +network; tears had swollen her eyelids, and left shining furrows upon +the down of her cheeks; the chrysoprase tints of her eyes had lost their +intensity. She was even more beautiful and touching thus. Sorrow had +given soul to her marmorean beauty. +</p> +<p> +Her disordered robe, scarcely fastened to her shoulders, left visible +her beautiful bare arms, her throat, and the commencement of her +death-white bosom. Like a warrior vanquished in his first conflict, her +beauty had laid down its arms. Of what use to her would have been the +draperies which conceal form, the tunics with their carefully fastened +folds? Did not Gyges know her? Wherefore defend what has been lost in +advance? +</p> +<p> +She walked straight to Gyges, and fixing upon him an imperial look, +clear and commanding, said to him in a quick, abrupt voice: +</p> +<p> +'Do not lie; seek no vain subterfuges; have at least the dignity and +courage of your crime. I know all; I saw you! Not a word of excuse. I +would not listen to it. Candaules himself concealed you behind the door. +Is it not so the thing happened? And you fancy, doubtless, that it +is all over? Unhappily I am not a Greek woman, pliant to the whims of +artists and voluptuaries. Nyssia will not serve for any one's toy. There +are now two men, one of whom is a man too much upon the earth. He must +disappear from it! Unless he dies, I cannot live. It will be either you +or Candaules. I leave you master of the choice. Kill him, avenge me, and +win by that murder both my hand and the throne of Lydia, or else shall +a prompt death henceforth prevent you from beholding, through a cowardly +complaisance, what you have not the right to look upon. He who commanded +is more culpable than he who has only obeyed; and, moreover, should +you become my husband, no one will have ever seen me without having the +right to do so. But make your decision at once, for two of those four +eyes in which my nudity has reflected itself must before this very +evening be for ever extinguished.' +</p> +<p> +This strange alternative, proposed with a terrible coolness, with an +immutable resolution, so utterly surprised Gyges, who was expecting +reproaches, menaces, and a violent scene, that he remained for several +minutes without colour and without voice, livid as a shade on the shores +of the black rivers of hell. +</p> +<p> +'I! to dip my hands in the blood of my master! Is it indeed you, O +queen, who demand of me so great a penalty? I comprehend all your anger, +I feel it to be just, and it was not my fault that this outrage took +place; but you know that kings are mighty, they descend from a divine +race. Our destinies repose on their august knees; and it is not +we, feeble mortals, who may hesitate at their commands. Their will +overthrows our refusal, as a dyke is swept away by a torrent By your +feet that I kiss, by the hem of your robe which I touch as a suppliant, +be clement! Forget this injury, which is known to none, and which shall +remain eternally buried in darkness and silence! Candaules worships you, +admires you, and his fault springs only from an excess of love.' +</p> +<p> +'Were you addressing a sphinx of granite in the arid sands of Egypt, +you would have more chance of melting her. The winged words might fly +uninterruptedly from your lips for a whole Olympiad; you could not move +my resolution in the slightest. A heart of brass dwells in this marble +breast of mine. Die or kill! When the sunbeam which has passed through +the curtains shall touch the foot of this table let your choice have +been made. I wait.' +</p> +<p> +And Nyssia crossed her arms upon her breast in an attitude replete with +sombre majesty. +</p> +<p> +To behold her standing erect, motionless and pale, her eyes fixed, her +brows contracted, her hair in disorder, her foot firmly placed upon +the pavement, one would have taken her for Nemesis descended from her +griffin, and awaiting the hour to smite a guilty one. +</p> +<p> +'The shadowy depths of Hades are visited by none with pleasure,' +answered Gyges. 'It is sweet to enjoy the pure light of day; and the +heroes themselves who dwell in the Fortunate Isles would gladly return +to their native land. Each man has the instinct of self-preservation, +and since blood must flow, let it be rather from the veins of another +than from mine.' +</p> +<p> +To these sentiments, avowed by Gyges with antique frankness, were added +others more noble whereof he did not speak. He was desperately in love +with Nyssia and jealous of Candaules. It was not, therefore, the fear +of death alone that had induced him to undertake this bloody task. +The thought of leaving Candaules in free possession of Nyssia was +insupportable to him: and, moreover, the vertigo of fatality had seized +him. By a succession of irregular and terrible events he beheld himself +hurried toward the realisation of his dreams; a mighty wave had lifted +him and borne him on in despite of his efforts; Nyssia herself was +extending her hand to him, to help him to ascend the steps of the royal +throne. All this had caused him to forget that Candaules was his master +and his benefactor; for none can flee from Fate, and Necessity walks on +with nails in one hand and whip in the other, to stop your advance or to +urge you forward. +</p> +<p> +'It is well,' replied Nyssia; 'here is the means of execution.' And she +drew from her bosom a Bactrian poniard, with a jade handle enriched with +inlaid circles of white gold. 'This blade is not made of brass, but with +iron difficult to work, tempered in flame and water, so that Hephaistos +himself could not forge one more keenly pointed or finely edged. +It would pierce, like thin papyrus, metal cuirasses and bucklers of +dragon's skin. +</p> +<p> +'The time,' she continued, with the same icy coolness, 'shall be while +he slumbers. Let him sleep and wake no more!' +</p> +<p> +Her accomplice, Gyges, hearkened to her words with stupefaction, for he +had never thought he could find such resolution in a woman who could not +bring herself to lift her veil. +</p> +<p> +'The ambuscade shall be laid in the very same place where the infamous +one concealed you in order to expose me to your gaze. At the approach +of night I shall turn back one of the folding-doors upon you, undress +myself, lie down, and when he shall be asleep I will give you a signal. +Above all things, let there be no hesitancy, no feebleness; and take +heed that your hand does not tremble when the moment shall have come! +And now, for fear lest you might change your mind, I propose to make +sure of your person until the fatal hour. You might attempt to escape, +to forewarn your master. Do not think to do so.' +</p> +<p> +Nyssia whistled in a peculiar way, and immediately from behind a +Persian tapestry embroidered with flowers, there appeared four monsters, +swarthy, clad in robes diagonally striped, which left visible arms +muscled and gnarled as trunks of oaks. Their thick pouting lips, the +gold rings which they wore through the partition of their nostrils, +their great teeth sharp as the fangs of wolves, the expression of stupid +servility on their faces, rendered them hideous to behold. +</p> +<p> +The queen pronounced some words in a language unknown to Gyges, +doubtless in Bactrian, and the four slaves rushed upon the young man, +seized him, and carried him away, even as a nurse might carry off a +child in the fold of her robe. +</p> +<p> +Now, what were Nyssia's real thoughts? Had she, indeed, noticed Gyges at +the time of her meeting with him near Bactria, and preserved some memory +of the young captain in one of those secret recesses of the heart where +even the most virtuous women always have something buried? Was the +desire to avenge her modesty goaded by some other unacknowledged desire? +And if Gyges had not been the handsomest young man in all Asia would she +have evinced the same ardour in punishing Candaules for having outraged +the sanctity of marriage? That is a delicate question to resolve, +especially after a lapse of three thousand years; and although we have +consulted Herodotus, Hephstion, Plato, Dositheus, Archilochus of Paros, +Hesychius of Miletus, Ptolomus, Euphorion, and all who have spoken +either at length or in only a few words concerning Candaules, Nyssia, +and Gyges, we have been unable to arrive at any definite conclusion. To +pursue so fleeting a shadow through so many centuries, under the ruins +of so many crumpled empires, under the dust of departed nations, is a +work of extreme difficulty, not to say impossibility. +</p> +<p> +At all events, Nyssia's resolution was implacably taken; this murder +appeared to her in the light of the accomplishment of a sacred duty. +Among the barbarian nations every man who has surprised a woman in her +nakedness is put to death. The queen believed herself exercising her +right; only inasmuch as the injury had been secret, she was doing +herself justice as best she could. The passive accomplice would become +the executioner of the other, and the punishment would thus spring from +the crime itself. The hand would chastise the head. +</p> +<p> +The olive-tinted monsters shut Gyges up in an obscure portion of the +palace, whence it was impossible that he could escape, or that his cries +could be heard. +</p> +<p> +He passed the remainder of the day there in a state of cruel anxiety, +accusing the hours of being lame, and again of walking too speedily. The +crime which he was about to commit, although he was only, in some sort, +the instrument of it, and though he was only yielding to an irresistible +influence, presented itself to his mind in the most sombre colours. If +the blow should miss through one of those circumstances which none could +foresee? If the people of Sardes should revolt and seek to avenge +the death of the king? Such were the very sensible though useless +reflections which Gyges made while waiting to be taken from his prison +and led to the place whence he could only depart to strike his master. +</p> +<p> +At last the night unfolded her starry robe in the sky, and its shadow +fell upon the city and the palace. A light footstep became audible, +a veiled woman entered the room and conducted him through the obscure +corridors and multiplied mazes of the royal edifice with as much +confidence as though she had been preceded by a slave bearing a lamp or +a torch. +</p> +<p> +The hand which held that of Gyges was cold, soft, and small; +nevertheless those slender fingers clasped it with a bruising force, +as the fingers of some statue of brass animated by a prodigy would +have done. The rigidity of an inflexible will betrayed itself in that +ever-equal pressure as of a vice—a pressure which no hesitation of head +or heart came to vary. Gyges, conquered, subjugated, crushed, yielded to +that imperious traction, as though he were borne along by the mighty arm +of Fate. +</p> +<p> +Alas! it was not thus he had wished to touch for the first time that +fair royal hand, which had presented the poniard to him, and was leading +him to murder, for it was Nyssia herself who had come for Gyges, to +conceal him in the place of ambuscade. +</p> +<p> +No word was exchanged between the sinister couple on the way from the +prison to the nuptial chamber. +</p> +<p> +The queen unfastened the thongs, raised the bar of the entrance, and +placed Gyges behind the folding-door as Candaules had done the evening +previous. This repetition of the same acts, with so different a purpose, +had something of a lugubrious and fatal character. Vengeance, this +time, had placed her foot upon every track left by the insult. The +chastisement and the crime alike followed the same path. Yesterday it +was the turn of Candaules, to-day it was that of Nyssia; and Gyges, +accomplice in the injury, was also accomplice in the penalty. He had +served the king to dishonour the queen; he would serve the queen to kill +the king, equally exposed by the vices of the one and the virtues of the +other. +</p> +<p> +The daughter of Megabazus seemed to feel a savage joy, a ferocious +pleasure, in employing only the same means chosen by the Lydian king, +and turning to account for the murder those very precautions which had +been adopted for voluptuous fantasy. +</p> +<p> +'You will again this evening see me take off these garments which are +so displeasing to Candaules. This spectacle should become wearisome to +you,' said the queen in accents of bitter irony, as she stood on the +threshold of the chamber; 'you will end by finding me ugly.' And +a sardonic, forced laugh momentarily curled her pale mouth; then, +regaining her impassible severity of mien, she continued: 'Do not +imagine you will be able to steal away this time as you did before; +you know my sight is piercing. At the slightest movement on your part I +shall awake Candaules; and you know that it will not be easy for you to +explain what you are doing in the king's apartments, behind a door, with +a poniard in your hand. Further, my Bactrian slaves, the copper-coloured +mutes who imprisoned you a short time ago, guard all the issues of +the palace, with orders to massacre you should you attempt to go out. +Therefore let no vain scruples of fidelity cause you to hesitate. Think +that I will make you King of Sardes, and that... I will love you if you +avenge me. The blood of Candaules will be your purple, and his death +will make for you a place in that bed.' +</p> +<p> +The slaves came according to their custom to change the fuel in the +tripod, renew the oil in the lamps, spread tapestry and the skins of +animals upon the royal couch; and Nyssia hurried into the chamber as +soon as she heard their footsteps resounding in the distance. +</p> +<p> +In a short time Candaules arrived all joyous. He had purchased the bed +of Ikmalius and proposed to substitute it for the bed wrought after the +Oriental fashion, which he declared had never been much to his taste. +He seemed pleased to find that Nyssia had already retired to the nuptial +chamber. +</p> +<p> +'The trade of embroidery, and spindles, and needles seems not to have +the same attraction for you to-day as usual. In fact, it is a monotonous +labour to perpetually pass one thread between other threads, and I +wonder at the pleasure which you seem ordinarily to take in it. To tell +the truth, I am afraid that some fine day Pallas-Athene, on finding you +so skilful, will break her shuttle over your head as she once did to +poor Arachne.' +</p> +<p> +'My lord, I felt somewhat tired this evening, and so came downstairs +sooner than usual. Would you not like before going to sleep to drink +a cup of black Samian wine mixed with the honey of Hymettus?' And +she poured from a golden urn, into a cup of the same metal, the +sombre-coloured beverage which she had mingled with the soporiferous +juice of the nepenthe. +</p> +<p> +Candaules took the cup by both handles and drained it to the last drop; +but the young Heracleid had a strong head, and sinking his elbow into +the cushions of his couch he watched Nyssia undressing without any sign +that the dust of sleep was commencing to gather upon his eyes. +</p> +<p> +As on the evening before, Nyssia unfastened her hair and permitted its +rich blond waves to ripple over her shoulders. From his hiding-place +Gyges fancied that he saw those locks slowly becoming suffused with +tawny tints, illuminated with reflections of blood and flame; and their +heavy curls seemed to lengthen with viprine undulations, like the hair +of the Gorgons and Medusas. +</p> +<p> +All simple and graceful as that action was in itself, it took from the +terrible events about to transpire a frightful and ominous character, +which caused the hidden assassin to shudder with terror. +</p> +<p> +Nyssia then unfastened her bracelets, but agitated as her hands had been +by nervous straining, they ill served her will. She broke the string +of a bracelet of beads of amber inlaid with gold, which rolled over +the floor with a loud noise, causing Candaules to reopen his gradually +closing eyes. +</p> +<p> +Each one of those beads fell upon the heart of Gyges as a drop of molten +lead falls upon water. +</p> +<p> +Having unlaced her buskins, the queen threw her upper tunic over the +back of an ivory chair. This drapery, thus arranged, produced upon Gyges +the effect of one of those sinister-folding winding-sheets wherein the +dead were wrapped ere being borne to the funeral pyre. Every object +in that room, which had the evening before seemed to him one scene of +smiling splendour, now appeared to him livid, dim, and menacing. The +statues of basalt rolled their eyes and smiled hideously. The lamp +flickered weirdly, and its flame dishevelled itself in red and sanguine +rays like the crest of a comet. Far back in the dimly lighted corners +loomed the monstrous forms of the Lares and Lmures. The mantles hanging +from their hooks seemed animated by a factitious life, and assumed a +human aspect of vitality; and when Nyssia stripped of her last garment, +approached the bed, all white and naked as a shade, he thought that +Death herself had broken the diamond fetters wherewith Hercules of old +enchained her at the gates of hell when he delivered Alcestes, and had +come in person to take possession of Candaules. +</p> +<p> +Overcome by the power of the nepenthe-juice, the king at last slumbered. +Nyssia made a sign for Gyges to come forth from his retreat; and +laying her finger upon the breast of the victim, she directed upon her +accomplice a look so humid, so lustrous, so weighty with languishment, +so replete with intoxicating promise, that Gyges, maddened and +fascinated, sprang from his hiding-place like the tiger from the summit +of the rock where it has been couching, traversed the chamber at a +bound, and plunged the Bactrian poniard up to the very hilt in the heart +of the descendant of Hercules. The chastity of Nyssia was avenged, and +the dream of Gyges accomplished. +</p> +<p> +Thus ended the dynasty of the Heracleid, after having endured for +five hundred and five years, and commenced that of the Mermnades in the +person of Gyges, son of Dascylus. The Sardians, indignant at the +death of Candaules, threatened revolt; but the oracle of Delphi having +declared in favour of Gyges, who had sent thither a vast number of +silver vases and six golden cratera of the value of thirty talents, the +new king maintained his seat on the throne of Lydia, which he occupied +for many long years, lived happily, and never showed his wife to any +one, knowing too well what it cost. +one, knowing too well what it cost. + +<br /> +<br /> + + + + + + + + +<pre> + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of King Candaules, by Thophile Gautier + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KING CANDAULES *** + +***** This file should be named 22660-h.htm or 22660-h.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/2/2/6/6/22660/ + +Produced by David Widger + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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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: King Candaules + +Author: Theophile Gautier + +Translator: Lafcadio Hearn + +Release Date: September 18, 2007 [EBook #22660] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KING CANDAULES *** + + + + +Produced by David Widger + + + + + +KING CANDAULES + +By Theophile Gautier + +Translated By Lafcadio Hearn + +1908 + + + + +CHAPTER I + +Five hundred years before the Trojan war, and seventeen hundred and +fifteen years before our own era, there was a grand festival at Sardes. +King Candaules was going to marry. The people were affected with that +sort of pleasurable interest and aimless emotion wherewith any royal +event inspires the masses, even though it in no wise concerns them, +and transpires in superior spheres of life which they can never hope to +reach. + +As soon as Phoebus-Apollo, standing in his quadriga, had gilded to +saffron the summits of fertile Mount Tmolus with his rays, the +good people of Sardes were all astir, going and coming, mounting or +descending the marble stairways leading from the city to the waters +of the Pactolus, that opulent river whose sands Midas filled with tiny +sparks of gold when he bathed in its stream. One would have supposed +that each one of these good citizens was himself about to marry, so +solemn and important was the demeanour of all. + +Men were gathering in groups in the Agora, upon the steps of the +temples and along the porticoes. At every street corner one might have +encountered women leading by the hand little children, whose uneven walk +ill suited the maternal anxiety and impatience. Maidens were hastening +to the fountains, all with urns gracefully balanced upon their heads, or +sustained by their white arms as with natural handles, so as to procure +early the necessary water provision for the household, and thus obtain +leisure at the hour when the nuptial procession should pass. Washerwomen +hastily folded the still damp tunics and chlamidae, and piled them upon +mule-wagons. Slaves turned the mill without any need of the overseer's +whip to tickle their naked and scar-seamed shoulders. Sardes was +hurrying itself to finish with those necessary everyday cares which no +festival can wholly disregard. + +The road along which the procession was to pass had been strewn with +fine yellow sand. Brazen tripods, disposed along the way at regular +intervals, sent up to heaven the odorous smoke of cinnamon and +spikenard. These vapours, moreover, alone clouded the purity of the +azure above. The clouds of a hymeneal day ought, indeed, to be formed +only by the burning of perfumes. Myrtle and rose-laurel branches were +strewn upon the ground, and from the walls of the palaces were suspended +by little rings of bronze rich tapestries, whereon the needles of +industrious captives--intermingling wool, silver, and gold--had +represented various scenes in the history of the gods and heroes: +Ixion embracing the cloud; Diana surprised in the bath by Actaeon; the +shepherd Paris as judge in the contest of beauty held upon Mount +Ida between Hera, the snowy-armed, Athena of the sea-green eyes, and +Aphrodite, girded with her magic cestus; the old men of Troy rising to +honour Helena as she passed through the Skaian gate, a subject taken +from one of the poems of the blind man of Meles. Others exhibited in +preference scenes taken from the life of Heracles, the Theban, through +flattery to Candaules, himself a Heracleid, being descended from the +hero through Alcaeus. Others contented themselves by decorating the +entrances of their dwellings with garlands and wreaths in token of +rejoicing. + +Among the multitudes marshalled along the way from the royal house even +as far as the gates of the city, through which the young queen would +pass on her arrival, conversation naturally turned upon the beauty of +the bride, whereof the renown had spread throughout all Asia; and +upon the character of the bridegroom, who, although not altogether an +eccentric, seemed nevertheless one not readily appreciated from the +common standpoint of observation. + +Nyssia, daughter of the Satrap Megabazus, was gifted with marvellous +purity of feature and perfection of form; at least such was the rumour +spread abroad by the female slaves who attended her, and a few female +friends who had accompanied her to the bath; for no man could boast +of knowing aught of Nyssia save the colour of her veil and the elegant +folds that she involuntarily impressed upon the soft materials which +robed her statuesque body. + +The barbarians did not share the ideas of the Greeks in regard to +modesty. While the youths of Achaia made no scruples of allowing their +oil-anointed torsos to shine under the sun in the stadium, and while the +Spartan virgins danced ungarmented before the altar of Diana, those of +Persepolis, Ebactana, and Bactria, attaching more importance to chastity +of the body than to chastity of mind, considered those liberties +allowed to the pleasure of the eyes by Greek manner as impure and highly +reprehensible, and held no woman virtuous who permitted men to obtain +a glimpse of more than the tip of her foot in walking, as it slightly +deranged the discreet folds of a long tunic. + +Despite all this mystery, or rather, perhaps, by very reason of this +mystery, the fame of Nyssia had not been slow to spread throughout all +Lydia, and become popular there to such a degree that it had reached +even Candaules, although kings are ordinarily the most illy informed +people in their kingdoms, and live like the gods in a kind of cloud +which conceals from them the knowledge of terrestrial things. + +The Eupatridae of Sardes, who hoped that the young king might, perchance, +choose a wife from their family, the hetairae of Athens, of Samos, of +Miletus and of Cyprus, the beautiful slaves from the banks of the +Indus, the blond girls brought at a vast expense from the depths of +the Cimmerian fogs, were heedful never to utter in the presence of +Candaules, whether within hearing or beyond hearing, a single word +which bore any relation to Nyssia. The bravest, in a question of beauty, +recoil before the prospect of a contest in which they can anticipate +being outrivalled. + +And nevertheless no person in Sardes, or even in Lydia, had beheld this +redoubtable adversary, no person save one solitary being, who from +the time of that encounter had kept his lips as firmly closed upon the +subject as though Harpocrates, the god of silence, had sealed them with +his finger, and that was Gyges, chief of the guards of Candaules. One +day Gyges, his mind filled with various projects and vague ambitions, +had been wandering among the Bactrian hills, whither his master had +sent him upon an important and secret mission. He was dreaming of the +intoxication of omnipotence, of treading upon purple with sandals of +gold, of placing the diadem upon the brows of the fairest of women. + +These thoughts made his blood boil in his veins, and, as though to +pursue the flight of his dreams, he smote his sinewy heel upon the +foam-whitened flanks of his Numidian horse. + +The weather, at first calm, had changed and waxed tempestuous like the +warrior's soul; and Boreas, his locks bristling with Thracian frosts, +his cheeks puffed out, his arms folded upon his breast, smote the +rain-freighted clouds with the mighty beatings of his wings. + +A bevy of young girls who had been gathering flowers in the meadow, +fearing the coming storm, were returning to the city in all haste, each +carrying her perfumed harvest in the lap of her tunic. Seeing a stranger +on horseback approaching in the distance, they had hidden their faces +in their mantles, after the custom of the barbarians; but at the very +moment that Gyges was passing by the one whose proud carriage and richer +habiliments seemed to designate her the mistress of the little band, +an unusually violent gust of wind carried away the veil of the fair +unknown, and, whirling it through the air like a feather, chased it to +such a distance that it could not be recovered. It was Nyssia, daughter +of Megabazus, who found herself thus with face unveiled in the presence +of Gyges, a humble captain of King Candaules's guard. Was it only the +breath of Boreas which had brought about this accident, or had Eros, who +delights to vex the hearts of men, amused himself by severing the string +which had fastened the protecting tissue? However that may have been, +Gyges was stricken motionless at the sight of that Medusa of beauty, and +not till long after the folds of Nyssia's robe had disappeared beyond +the gates of the city could he think of proceeding on his way. Although +there was nothing to justify such a conjecture, he cherished the belief +that he had seen the satrap's daughter; and that meeting, which affected +him almost like an apparition, accorded so fully with the thoughts that +were occupying him at the moment of its occurrence, that he could not +help perceiving therein something fateful and ordained of the gods. +In truth it was upon that brow that he would have wished to place the +diadem. What other could be more worthy of it? But what probability was +there that Gyges would ever have a throne to share? He had not sought +to follow up this adventure, and assure himself that it was indeed the +daughter of Megabazus whose mysterious face had been revealed to him by +Chance, the great filcher. Nyssia had fled so swiftly that it would have +been impossible for him then to overtake her; and, moreover, he had been +dazzled, fascinated, thunder-stricken, as it were, rather than charmed +by that superhuman apparition, by that monster of beauty! + +Nevertheless that image, although seen only in the glimpse of a moment, +had engraved itself upon his heart in lines deep as those which +the sculptors trace on ivory with tools reddened in the fire. He had +endeavoured, although vainly, to efface it, for the love which he felt +for Nyssia inspired him with a secret terror. Perfection in such a +degree is ever awe-inspiring, and women so like unto goddesses could +only work evil to feeble mortals; they are formed for divine adulteries, +and even the most courageous men never risk themselves in such amours +without trembling. Therefore no hope had blossomed in the soul of +Gyges, overwhelmed and discouraged in advance by the sentiment of the +impossible. Ere opening his lips to Nyssia he would have wished to +despoil the heaven of its robe of stars, to take from Phoebus his crown +of rays, forgetting that women only give themselves to those unworthy +of them, and that to win their love one must act as though he desired to +earn their hate. + +From that day the roses of joy no longer bloomed upon his cheeks. By +day he was sad and mournful, and seemed to wander abroad in solitary +dreaming, like a mortal who has beheld a divinity. At night he was +haunted by dreams in which he beheld Nyssia seated by his side upon +cushions of purple between the golden griffins of the royal throne. + +Therefore Gyges, the only one who could speak of his own knowledge +concerning Nyssia, having never spoken of her, the Sardians were left to +their own conjectures in her regard; and their conjectures, it must be +confessed, were fantastic and altogether fabulous. The beauty of Nyssia, +thanks to the veils which shrouded her, became a sort of myth, a canvas, +a poem to which each one added ornamentation as the fancy took him. + +'If report be not false,' lisped a young debauchee from Athens, who +stood with one hand upon the shoulder of an Asiatic boy, 'neither +Plangon, nor Archianassa, nor Thais can be compared with this marvellous +barbarian; yet I can scarce believe that she equals Theano of Colophon, +from whom I once bought a single night at the price of as much gold as +she could bear away, after having plunged both her white arms up to the +shoulder in my cedar-wood coffer.' + +'Beside her,' added a Eupatrid, who pretended to be better informed than +any other person upon all manner of subjects, 'beside her the daughter +of Coelus and the Sea would seem but a mere Ethiopian servant.' + +'Your words are blasphemy, and although Aphrodite be a kind and +indulgent goddess, beware of drawing down her anger upon you.' + +'By Hercules!--and that ought to be an oath of some weight in a city +ruled by one of his descendants--I cannot retract a word of it.' + +'You have seen her, then?' + +'No; but I have a slave in my service who once belonged to Nyssia, and +who has told me a hundred stories about her.' + +'Is it true,' demanded in infantile tones an equivocal-looking woman +whose pale-rose tunic, painted cheeks, and locks shining with essences +betrayed wretched pretensions to a youth long passed away--' is it true +that Nyssia has two pupils in each eye? It seems to me that must be very +ugly, and I cannot understand how Candaules could fall in love with such +a monstrosity, while there is no lack, at Sardes and in Lydia, of women +whose eyes are irreproachable.' + +And uttering these words with all sorts of affected airs and simperings, +Lamia took a little significant peep in a small mirror of cast metal +which she drew from her bosom, and which enabled her to lead back to +duty certain wandering curls disarranged by the impertinence of the +wind. + +'As to the double pupil, that seems to me nothing more than an old +nurse's tale,' observed the well-informed patrician; 'but it is a fact +that Nyssia's eyes are so piercing that she can see through walls. +Lynxes are myopic compared with her.' + +'How can a sensible man coolly argue about such an absurdity?' +interrupted a citizen, whose bald skull, and the flood of snowy beard +into which he plunged his fingers while speaking, lent him an air of +preponderance and philosophical sagacity. 'The truth is that the +daughter of Megabazus cannot naturally see through a wall any better +than you or I, but the Egyptian priest Thoutmosis, who knows so many +wondrous secrets, has given her the mysterious stone which is found in +the heads of dragons, and whose property, as every one knows, renders +all shadows and the most opaque bodies transparent to the eyes of those +who possess it. Nyssia always carries this stone in her girdle, or +else set into her bracelet, and in that may be found the secret of her +clairvoyance.' + +The citizen's explanation seemed the most natural one to those of the +group whose conversation we are endeavouring to reproduce, and the +opinions of Lamia and the patrician were abandoned as improbable. + +'At all events,' returned the lover of Theano, 'we are going to have an +opportunity of judging for ourselves, for it seems to me that I hear the +clarions sounding in the distance, and though Nyssia is still invisible, +I can see the herald yonder approaching with palm branches in his hands, +to announce the arrival of the nuptial _cortege_, and make the crowd +fall back.' + +At this news, which spread rapidly through the crowd, the strong men +elbowed their way toward the front ranks; the agile boys, embracing the +shafts of the columns, sought to climb up to the capitals and there seat +themselves; others, not without having skinned their knees against the +bark, succeeded in perching themselves comfortably enough in the Y of +some tree-branch. The women lifted their little children upon their +shoulders, warning them to hold tightly to their necks. Those who had +the good fortune to dwell on the street along which Candaules and Nyssia +were about to pass, leaned over from the summit of their roofs, or, +rising on their elbows, abandoned for a time the cushions upon which +they had been reclining. + +A murmur of satisfaction and gratified expectation ran through the +crowd, which had already been waiting many long hours, for the arrows of +the midday sun were commencing to sting. + +The heavy-armed warriors, with cuirasses of bull's-hide covered with +overlapping plates of metal, helmets adorned with plumes of horse-hair +dyed red, _knemides_ or greaves faced with tin, baldrics studded with +nails, emblazoned bucklers, and swords of brass, rode behind a line of +trumpeters who blew with might and main upon their long tubes, which +gleamed under the sunlight. The horses of these warriors were all white +as the feet of Thetis, and might have served, by reason of their noble +paces and purity of breeds, as models for those which Phidias at a later +day sculptured upon the metopes of the Parthenon. + +At the head of this troop rode Gyges, the well-named, for his name +in the Lydian tongue signifies beautiful. His features, of the most +exquisite regularity, seemed chiselled in marble, owing to his intense +pallor, for he had just discovered in Nyssia, although she was veiled +with the veil of a young bride, the same woman whose face had been +betrayed to his gaze by the treachery of Boreas under the walls of +Bactria. + +'Handsome Gyges looks very sad,' said the young maidens. 'What proud +beauty could have secured his love, or what forsaken one has caused some +Thessalian witch to cast a spell on him? Has that cabalistic ring (which +he is said to have found hidden within the flanks of a brazen horse +in the midst of some forest) lost its virtue, and suddenly ceasing to +render its owner invisible, betrayed him to the astonished eyes of some +innocent husband, who had deemed himself alone in his conjugal chamber?' + +'Perhaps he has been wasting his talents and his drachmas at the game of +Palamedes, or else it may be that he is disappointed at not having +won the prize at the Olympian games. He had great faith in his horse +Hyperion.' + +No one of these conjectures was true. A fact is never guessed. + +After the battalion commanded by Gyges, there came young boys crowned +with myrtle-wreaths, and singing epithalamic hymns after the Lydian +manner, accompanying themselves upon lyres of ivory, which they played +with bows. All were clad in rose-coloured tunics ornamented with +a silver Greek border, and their long hair flowed down over their +shoulders in thick curls. + +They preceded the gift-bearers, strong slaves whose half-nude bodies +exposed to view such interlacements of muscle as the stoutest athletes +might have envied. + +Upon brancards, supported by two or four men or more, according to +the weight of the objects borne, were placed enormous brazen cratera, +chiselled by the most famous artists; vases of gold and silver whose +sides were adorned with bas-reliefs and whose hands were elegantly +worked into chimeras, foliage, and nude women; magnificent ewers to be +used in washing the feet of illustrious guests; flagons encrusted with +precious stones and containing the rarest perfumes; myrrh from Arabia, +cinnamon from the Indies, spikenard from Persia, essence of roses from +Smyrna; kamklins or perfuming pans, with perforated covers; cedar-wood +or ivory coffers of marvellous workmanship, which opened with a secret +spring that none save the inventor could find, and which contained +bracelets wrought from the gold of Ophir, necklaces of the most lustrous +pearls, mantle-brooches constellated with rubies and carbuncles; +toilet-boxes, containing blond sponges, curling-irons, sea-wolves' teeth +to polish the nails, the green rouge of Egypt, which turns to a most +beautiful pink on touching the skin, powders to darken the eyelashes and +eyebrows, and all the refinements that feminine coquetry could invent. +Other litters were freighted with purple robes of the finest linen and +of all possible shades from the incarnadine hue of the rose to the deep +crimson of the blood of the grape; _calasires_ of the linen of Canopus, +which is thrown all white into the vat of the dyer, and comes forth +again, owing to the various astringents in which it had been steeped, +diapered with the most brilliant colours; tunics brought from the +fabulous land of Seres, made from the spun slime of a worm which feeds +upon leaves, and so fine that they might be drawn through a finger-ring. + +Ethiopians, whose bodies shone like jet, and whose temples were tightly +bound with cords, lest they should burst the veins of their foreheads +in the effort to uphold their burden, carried in great pomp a statue of +Hercules, the ancestor of Candaules, of colossal size, wrought of ivory +and gold, with the club, the skin of the Nemean lion, the three apples +from the garden of the Hesperides, and all the traditional attributes of +the hero. + +Statues of Venus Urania, and of Venus Genitrix, sculptured by the best +pupils of the Sicyon School. That marble of Paros whose gleaming +transparency seemed expressly created for the representation of the +ever-youthful flesh of the immortals, were borne after the statue of +Hercules, which admirably relieved the harmony and elegance of their +proportions by contrast with its massive outlines and rugged forms. + +A painting by Bularchus, which Candaules had purchased for its weight in +gold, executed upon the wood of the female larch-tree, and representing +the defeat of the Magnesians, evoked universal admiration by the beauty +of its design, the truthfulness of the attitude of its figures, and the +harmony of its colouring, although the artist had only employed in +its production the four primitive colours: Attic ochre, white, Pontic +_sinopis_ and _atramentum_. The young king loved painting and sculpture +even more, perhaps, than well became a monarch, and he had not +unfrequently bought a picture at a price equal to the annual revenue of +a whole city. + +Camels and dromedaries, splendidly caparisoned, with musicians seated +on their necks performing upon drums and cymbals, carried the gilded +stakes, the cords, and the material of the tent designed for the use of +the queen during voyages and hunting parties. + +These spectacles of magnificence would upon any other occasion have +ravished the people of Sardes with delight, but their curiosity had been +enlisted in another direction, and it was not without a certain feeling +of impatience that they watched this portion of the procession file by. +The young maidens and the handsome boys, bearing flaming torches, and +strewing handfuls of crocus flowers along the way, hardly attracted any +attention. The idea of beholding Nyssia had preoccupied all minds. + +At last Candaules appeared, riding in a chariot drawn by four horses, +as beautiful and spirited as those of the sun, all rolling their golden +bits in foam, shaking their purple-decked manes, and restrained +with great difficulty by the driver, who stood erect at the side of +Candaules, and was leaning back to gain more power on the reins. + +Candaules was a young man full of vigour, and well worthy of his +Herculean origin. His head was joined to his shoulders by a neck massive +as a bull's, and almost without a curve; his hair, black and lustrous, +twisted itself into rebellious little curls, here and there concealing +the circlet of his diadem; his ears, small and upright, were of a ruddy +hue; his forehead was broad and full, though a little low, like all +antique foreheads; his eyes full of gentle melancholy, his oval cheeks, +his chin with its gentle and regular curves, his mouth with its slightly +parted lips--all bespoke the nature of the poet rather than that of +the warrior. In fact, although he was brave, skilled in all bodily +exercises, could subdue a wild horse as well as any of the Lapithae, +or swim across the current of rivers when they descended, swollen with +melted snow, from the mountains, although he might have bent the bow of +Odysseus or borne the shield of Achilles, he seemed little occupied with +dreams of conquest; and war usually so fascinating to young kings, +had little attraction for him. He contented himself with repelling the +attacks of his ambitious neighbours, and sought not to extend his own +dominions. He preferred building palaces, after plans suggested by +himself to the architects, who always found the king's hints of no small +value, or to form collections of statues and paintings by artists of +the elder and later schools. He had the works of Telephanes of Sicyon, +Cleanthes, Ardices of Corinth, Hygiemon, Deinias, Charmides, Eumarus, +and Cimon, some being simple drawings, and others paintings in various +colours or monochromes. It was even said that Candaules had not +disdained to wield with his own royal hands--a thing hardly becoming +a prince--the chisel of the sculptor and the sponge of the encaustic +painter. + +But why should we dwell upon-Candaules? The reader undoubtedly feels +like the people of Sardes: and it is of Nyssia that he desires to hear. + +The daughter of Megabazus was mounted upon an elephant, with wrinkled +skin and immense ears which seemed like flags, who advanced with a heavy +but rapid gait, like a vessel in the midst of the waves. His tusks and +his trunk were encircled with silver rings, and around the pillars of +his limbs were entwined necklaces of enormous pearls. Upon his back, +which was covered with a magnificent Persian carpet of striped +pattern, stood a sort of estrade overlaid with gold finely chased, and +constellated with onyx stones, carnelians, chrysolites, lapis-lazuli, +and girasols; upon this estrade sat the young queen, so covered with +precious stones as to dazzle the eyes of the beholders. A mitre, shaped +like a helmet, on which pearls formed flower designs and letters after +the Oriental manner, was placed upon her head; her ears, both the lobes +and rims of which had been pierced, were adorned with ornaments in the +form of little cups, crescents, and balls; necklaces of gold and silver +beads, which had been hollowed out and carved, thrice encircled her neck +and descended with a metallic tinkling upon her bosom; emerald serpents +with topaz or ruby eyes coiled themselves in many folds about her arms, +and clasped themselves by biting their own tails. These bracelets were +connected by chains of precious stones, and so great was their weight +that two attendants were required to kneel beside Nyssia and support +her elbows. She was clad in a robe embroidered by Syrian workmen with +shining designs of golden foliage and diamond fruits, and over this she +wore the short tunic of Persepolis, which hardly descended to the knee, +and of which the sleeves were slit and fastened by sapphire clasps. +Her waist was encircled from hip to loins by a girdle wrought of narrow +material, variegated with stripes and flowered designs, which formed +themselves into symmetrical patterns as they were brought together by +a certain arrangement of the folds which Indian girls alone know how to +make. Her trousers of byssus, which the Phoenicians called _syndon_ were +confined at the ankles by anklets adorned with gold and silver bells, +and completed this toilet so fantastically rich and wholly opposed to +Greek taste. But, alas! a saffron-coloured _flammeum_ pitilessly masked +the face of Nyssia, who seemed embarrassed, veiled though she was, at +finding so many eyes fixed upon her, and frequently signed to a slave +behind her to lower the parasol of ostrich plumes, and thus conceal her +yet more from the curious gaze of the crowd. + +Candaules had vainly begged of her to lay aside her veil, even for that +solemn occasion. The young barbarian had refused to pay the welcome of +her beauty to his people. Great was the disappointment. Lamia declared +that Nyssia dared not uncover her face for fear of showing her double +pupil. The young libertine remained convinced that Theano of Colophon +was more beautiful than the queen of Sardes; and Gyges sighed when he +beheld Nyssia, after having made her elephant kneel down, descend upon +the inclined heads of Damascus slaves as upon a living ladder, to +the threshold of the royal dwelling, where the elegance of Greek +architecture was blended with the fantasies and enormities of Asiatic +taste. + + + + +CHAPTER II + +In our character of poet we have the right to lift the saffron-coloured +_flammeum_ which concealed the young bride, being more fortunate in this +wise than the Sardians, who after a whole day's waiting were obliged +to return to their houses, and were left, as before, to their own +conjectures. + +Nyssia was really far superior to her reputation, great as it was. It +seemed as though Nature in creating her had resolved to exhaust her +utmost powers, and thus make atonement for all former experimental +attempts and fruitless essays. One would have said that, moved by +jealousy of the future marvels of the Greek sculptors, she also had +resolved to model a statue herself, and to prove that she was still +sovereign mistress in the plastic art. + +The grain of snow, the micaceous brilliancy of Parian marble, the +sparkling pulp of balsamine flowers, would render but a feeble idea +of the ideal substance whereof. Nyssia had been formed. That flesh, +so fine, so delicate, permitted daylight to penetrate it, and modelled +itself in transparent contours, in lines as sweetly harmonious as music +itself. According to different surroundings, it took the colour of the +sunlight or of purple, like the aromal body of a divinity, and seemed +to radiate light and life. The world of perfections inclosed within the +nobly lengthened oval of her chaste face could have been rendered by no +earthly art--neither by the chisel of the sculptor, nor the brush of the +painter, nor the style of any poet--though it were Praxiteles, +Apelles, or Mimnernus; and on her smooth brow, bathed by waves of +hair amber-bright as molten electrum and sprinkled with gold filings, +according to the Babylonian custom, sat as upon a jasper throne the +unalterable serenity of perfect loveliness. + +As for her eyes, though they did not justify what popular credulity said +of them, they were at least wonderfully strange eyes; brown eyebrows, +with extremities ending in points elegant as those of the arrows of +Eros, and which were joined to each other by a streak of henna after +the Asiatic fashion, and long fringes of silkily-shadowed eyelashes +contrasted strikingly with the twin sapphire stars rolling in the heaven +of dark silver which formed those eyes. The irises of those eyes, +whose pupils were blacker than atrament, varied singularly in shades of +shifting colour. From sapphire they changed to turquoise, from turquoise +to beryl, from beryl to yellow amber, and sometimes, like a limpid +lake whose bottom is strewn with jewels, they offered, through their +incalculable depths, glimpses of golden and diamond sands upon which +green fibrils vibrated and twisted themselves into emerald serpents. In +those orbs of phosphoric lightning the rays of suns extinguished, the +splendours of vanished worlds, the glories of Olympus eclipsed--all +seemed to have concentrated their reflections. When contemplating +them one thought of eternity, and felt himself seized with a mighty +giddiness, as though he were leaning over the verge of the Infinite. + +The expression of those extraordinary eyes was not less variable than +their tint. At times their lids opened like the portals of celestial +dwellings; they invited you into elysiums of light, of azure, of +ineffable felicity; they promised you the realisation, tenfold, a +hundredfold, of all your dreams of happiness, as though they had divined +your soul's most secret thoughts; again, impenetrable as sevenfold +plated shields of the hardest metals, they flung back your gaze like +blunted and broken arrows. With a simple inflexion of the brow, a +mere flash of the pupil, more terrible than the thunder of Zeus, they +precipitated you from the heights of your most ambitious escalades into +depths of nothingness so profound that it was impossible to rise again. +Typhon himself, who writhes under AEtna, could not have lifted the +mountains of disdain with which they overwhelmed you. One felt that +though he should live for a thousand Olympiads endowed with the beauty +of the fair son of Latona, the genius of Orpheus, the unbounded might +of Assyrian kings, the treasures of the Cabeirei, the Telchines, and +the Dactyli, gods of subterranean wealth, he could never change their +expression to mildness. + +At other times their languishment was so liquidly persuasive, their +brilliancy and irradiation so penetrating, that the icy coldness of +Nestor and Priam would have melted under their gaze, like the wax of +the wings of Icarus when he approached the flaming zones. For one such +glance a man would have gladly steeped his hands in the blood of his +host, scattered the ashes of his father to the four winds, overthrown +the holy images of the gods, and stolen the fire of heaven itself, like +the sublime thief, Prometheus. + +Nevertheless, their most ordinary expression, it must be confessed, was +of a chastity to make one desperate--a sublime coldness--an ignorance +of all possibilities of human passion, such as would have made the +moon-bright eyes of Phoebe or the sea-green eyes of Athena appear by +comparison more liquidly tempting than those of a young girl of Babylon +sacrificing to the goddess Mylitta within the cord-circled enclosure of +Succoth-Benohl. Their invincible virginity seemed to bid love defiance. + +The cheeks of Nyssia, which no human gaze had ever profaned, save that +of Gyges on the day when the veil was blown away, possessed a youthful +bloom, a tender pallor, a delicacy of grain, and a downiness whereof +the faces of our women, perpetually exposed to sunlight and air, cannot +convey the most distant idea. Modesty created fleeting rosy clouds upon +them like those which a drop of crimson essence would form in a cup of +milk, and when uncoloured by any emotion they took a silvery sheen, a +warm light, like an alabaster vessel illumined by a lamp within. That +lamp was her charming soul, which exposed to view the transparency of +her flesh. + +A bee would have been deceived by her mouth, whose form was so perfect, +whose corners were so purely dimpled, whose crimson was so rich and +warm that the gods would have descended from their Olympian dwellings +in order to touch it with lips humid with immortality, but that the +jealousy of the goddesses restrained their impetuosity. Happy the wind +which passed through that purple and pearl, which dilated those +pretty nostrils, so finely cut and shaded with rosy tints like the +mother-of-pearl of the shells thrown by the sea on the shore of Cyprus +at the feet of Venus Anadyomene! But are there not a multitude of +favours thus granted to things which cannot understand them? What lover +would not wish to be the tunic of his well-beloved or the water of her +bath? + +Such was Nyssia, if we dare make use of the expression after so vague +a description of her face. If our foggy Northern idioms had the warm +liberty, the burning enthusiasm of the Sir Hasirim, we might, perhaps, +by comparisons--awakening in the mind of the reader memories of flowers +and perfumes, of music and sunlight, evoking, by the magic of words, +all the graceful and charming images that the universe can contain--have +been able to give some idea of Nyssia's features; but it is permitted to +Solomon alone to compare the nose of a beautiful woman to the tower +of Lebanon which looketh toward Damascus. And yet what is there in the +world of more importance than the nose of a beautiful woman? Had Helen, +the white Tyndarid, been flat-nosed, would the Trojan War have taken +place? And if the profile of Semiramis had not been perfectly regular, +would she have bewitched the old monarch of Nineveh and encircled her +brow with the mitre of pearls, the symbol of supreme power? + +Although Candaules had brought to his palace the most beautiful slaves +from the people of the Sorse, of Askalon, of Sogdiana, of the Sacse, of +Rhapta, the most celebrated courtesans from Ephesus, from Pergamus, from +Smyrna, and from Cyprus, he was completely fascinated by the charms of +Nyssia. Up to that time he had not even suspected the existence of such +perfection. + +Privileged as a husband to enjoy fully the contemplation of this beauty, +he found himself dazzled, giddy, like one who leans over the edge of +an abyss, or fixes his eyes upon the sun; he felt himself seized, as it +were, with the dilirium of possession, like a priest drunk with the god +who fills and moves him. All other thoughts disappeared from his soul, +and the universe seemed to him only as a vague mist in the midst of +which beamed the shining phantom of Nyssia. His happiness transformed +itself into ecstasy, and his love into madness. At times his very +felicity terrified him. To be only a wretched king, only a remote +descendant of a hero who had become a god by mighty labours, only +a common man formed of flesh and bone, and without having in aught +rendered himself worthy of it--without having even, like his ancestor, +strangled some hydra, or torn some lion asunder--to enjoy a happiness +whereof Zeus of the ambrosial hair would scarce be worthy, though +lord of all Olympus! He felt, as it were, a shame to thus hoard up for +himself alone so rich a treasure, to steal this marvel from the world, +to be the dragon with scales and claws who guarded the living type of +the ideal of lovers, sculptors, and poets. All they had ever dreamed of +in their hope, their melancholy, and their despair, he possessed--he, +Candaules, poor tyrant of Sardes, who had only a few wretched coffers +filled with pearls, a few cisterns filled with gold pieces, and thirty +or forty thousand slaves, purchased or taken in war. + +Candaules's felicity was too great for him, and the strength which he +would doubtless have found at his command in time of misfortune was +wanting to him in time of happiness. His joy overflowed from his soul +like water from a vase placed upon the fire, and in the exasperation of +his enthusiasm for Nyssia he had reached the point of desiring that she +were less timid and less modest, for it cost him no little effort to +retain in his own breast the secret of such wondrous beauty. + +'Ah,' he would murmur to himself during the deep reveries which absorbed +him at all hours that he did not spend at the queen's side, 'how strange +a lot is mine! I am wretched because of that which would make any other +husband happy. Nyssia will not leave the shadow of the gynaeceum, and +refuses, with barbarian modesty, to lift her veil in the presence of any +other than myself. Yet with what an intoxication of pride would my love +behold her, radiantly sublime, gaze down upon my kneeling people from +the summit of the royal steps, and, like the rising dawn, extinguish +all those pale stars who during the night thought themselves suns! Proud +Lydian women, who believe yourselves beautiful, but for Nyssia's reserve +you would appear, even to your lovers, as ugly as the oblique-eyed and +thick-lipped slaves of Nahasi and Kush. Were she but once to pass along +the streets of Sardes with face unveiled, you might in vain pull your +adorers by the lappet of their tunic, for none of them would turn his +head, or, if he did, it would be to demand your name, so utterly would +he have forgotten you! They would rush to precipitate themselves beneath +the silver wheels of her chariot, that they might have even the pleasure +of being crushed by her, like those devotees of the Indus who pave the +pathway of their idol with their bodies. + +'And you, O goddesses, whom Paris-Alexander judged, had Nyssia appeared +among you, not one of you would have borne away the golden apple, +not even Aphrodite, despite her cestus and her promise to the +shepherd-arbiter that she would make him beloved by the most beautiful +woman in the world!... + +'Alas! to think that such beauty is not immortal, and that years will +alter those divine outlines, that admirable hymn of forms, that poem +whose strophes are contours, and which no one in the world has ever read +or may ever read save myself; to be the sole depositary of so splendid a +treasure! If I knew even by imitating the play of light and shadow with +the aid of lines and colours, how to fix upon wood a reflection of that +celestial face; if marble were not rebellious to my chisel, how well +would I fashion in the purest vein of Paros or Pentelicus an image of +that charming body, which would make the proud effigies of the goddesses +fall from their altars! And long after, when deep below the slime of +deluges, and beneath the dust of ruined cities, the men of future ages +should find a fragment of that petrified shadow of Nyssia, they would +cry: "Behold, how the women of this vanished world were formed!" And +they would erect a temple wherein to enshrine the divine fragment. But I +have naught save a senseless admiration and a love that is madness! Sole +adorer of an unknown divinity, I possess no power to spread her worship +through the world.' + +Thus in Candaules had the enthusiasm of the artist extinguished the +jealousy of the lover. Admiration was mightier than love. If in place +of Nyssia, daughter of the Satrap Megabazus, all imbued with Oriental +ideas, he had espoused some Greek girl from Athens or Corinth, he +would certainly have invited to his court the most skilful painters +and sculptors, and have given them the queen for their model, as did +afterward Alexander his favourite Campaspe, who posed naked before +Apelles. Such a whim would have encountered no opposition from a +woman of the land where even the most chaste made a boast of having +contributed--some for the back, some for the bosom--to the perfection of +a famous statue. But hardly would the bashful Nyssia consent to unveil +herself in the discreet shadow of the thalamus, and the earnest prayers +of the king really shocked her rather than gave her pleasure. The +sentiment of duty and obedience alone induced her to yield at times to +what she styled the whims of Candaules. + +Sometimes he besought her to allow the flood of her hair to flow over +her shoulders in a river of gold richer than the Pactolus, to encircle +her brow with a crown of ivy and linden leaves like a bacchante of Mount +Maenalus, to lie, hardly veiled by a cloud of tissue finer than woven +wind, upon a tiger-skin with silver claws and ruby eyes, or to stand +erect in a great shell of mother-of-pearl, with a dew of pearls falling +from her tresses in lieu of drops of sea-water. + +When he had placed himself in the best position for observation, +he became absorbed in silent contemplation. His hand, tracing vague +contours in the air, seemed to be sketching the outlines for some +picture, and he would have remained thus for whole hours if Nyssia, soon +becoming weary of her role of model, had not reminded him in chill and +disdainful tones that such amusements were unworthy of royal majesty and +contrary to the holy laws of matrimony. 'It is thus,' she would exclaim, +as she withdrew, draped to her very eyes, into the most mysterious +recesses of her apartment, 'that one treats a mistress, not a virtuous +woman of noble blood!' + +These wise remonstrances did not cure Candaules, whose passion augmented +in inverse ratio to the coldness shown him by the queen. And it had at +last brought him to that point that he could no longer keep the secrets +of the nuptial couch. A confidant became as necessary to him as to the +prince of a modern tragedy. He did not proceed, you may feel assured, +to fix his choice upon some crabbed philosopher of frowning mien, with +a flood of gray-and-white beard rolling down over a mantle in proud +tatters; nor a warrior who could talk of nothing save ballista, +catapults, and scythed chariots; nor a sententious Eupatrid full of +councils and politic maxims; but Gyges, whose reputation for gallantry +caused him to be regarded as a connoisseur in regard to women. + +One evening he laid his hand upon his shoulder in a more than ordinarily +familiar and cordial manner, and after giving him a look of peculiar +significance, he suddenly strode away from the group of courtiers, +saying in a loud voice: + +'Gyges, come and give me your opinion in regard to my effigy, which +the Sicyon sculptors have just finished chiselling on the genealogical +bas-relief where the deeds of my ancestors are celebrated.' + +'O king, your knowledge is greater than that of your humble subject, +and I know not how to express my gratitude for the honour you do me in +deigning to consult me,' replied Gyges, with a sign of assent. + +Candaules and his favourite traversed several halls ornamented in the +Hellenic style, where the Corinthian acanthus and the Ionic volute +bloomed or curled in the capitals of the columns, where the friezes +were peopled with little figures in polychromatic plastique representing +processions and sacrifices, and they finally arrived at a remote portion +of the ancient palace whose walls were built with stones of irregular +form, put together without cement in the cyclopean manner. This +ancient architecture was colossally proportioned and weirdly grim. The +immeasurable genius of the elder civilisations of the Orient was there +legibly written, and recalled the granite and brick debauches of Egypt +and Assyria. Something of the spirit of the ancient architects of +the tower of Lylax survived in those thick-set pillars with their +deep-fluted trunks, whose capitals were formed by four heads of bulls, +placed forehead to forehead, and bound together by knots of serpents +that seemed striving to devour them, an obscure cosmogonie symbol +whereof the meaning was no longer intelligible, and had descended into +the tomb with the hierophants of preceding ages. The gates were neither +of a square nor rounded form. They described a sort of ogive much +resembling the mitre of the Magi, and by their fantastic character gave +still more intensity to the character of the building. + +This portion of the palace formed a sort of court surrounded by +a portico whose architecture was ornamented with the genealogical +bas-relief to which Can-daules had alluded. + +In the midst thereof sat Heracles upon a throne, with the upper part of +his body uncovered, and his feet resting upon a stool, according to +the rite for the representation of divine personages. His colossal +proportions would otherwise have left no doubt as to his apotheosis, and +the archaic rudeness and hugeness of the work, wrought by the chisel +of some primitive artist, imparted to his figure an air of barbaric +majesty, a savage grandeur more appropriate, perhaps, to the character +of this monster-slaying hero than would have been the work of a sculptor +consummate in his art. + +On the right of the throne were Alcseus, son of the hero and of +Omphale; Ninus, Belus, Argon, the earlier kings of the dynasty of the +Heracleidae, then all the line of intermediate kings, terminating with +Ardys, Alyattes, Meles or Myrsus, father of Candaules, and finally +Candaules himself. + +All these personages, with their hair braided into little strings, their +beards spirally twisted, their oblique eyes, angular attitudes, cramped +and stiff gestures, seemed to own a sort of factitious life, due to the +rays of the setting sun, and the ruddy hue which time lends to marble +in warm climates. The inscriptions in antique characters, graven beside +them after the manner of legends, enhanced still more the mysterious +weirdness of the long procession of figures in strange barbarian garb. + +By a singular chance, which Gyges could not help observing, the statue +of Candaules occupied the last available place at the right hand of +Heracles; the dynastic cycle was closed, and in order to find a place +for the descendants of Candaules it would be absolutely necessary to +build a new portico and commence the formation of a new bas-relief. + +Candaules, whose arm still rested on the shoulder of Gyges, walked +slowly round the portico in silence. He seemed to hesitate to enter into +the subject, and had altogether forgotten the pretext under which he had +led the captain of his guards into that solitary place. + +'What would you do, Gyges,' said Candaules, at last breaking the silence +which had been growing painful to both, 'if you were a diver, and should +bring up from the green bosom of the ocean a pearl of incomparable +purity and lustre, and of worth so vast as to exhaust the richest +treasures of the earth?' + +'I would inclose it,' answered Gyges, a little surprised at this brusque +question, 'in a cedar box overlaid with plates of brass, and I would +bury it under a detached rock in some desert place; and from time to +time, when I should feel assured that none could see me, I would go +thither to contemplate my precious jewel and admire the colours of the +sky mingling with its nacreous tints.' + +'And I,' replied Candaules, his eye illuminated with enthusiasm, 'if I +possessed so rich a gem, I would enshrine it in my diadem, that I might +exhibit it freely to the eyes of all men, in the pure light of the sun, +that I might adorn myself with its splendour and smile with pride when +I should hear it said: "Never did king of Assyria or Babylon, never did +Greek or Trinacrian tyrant possess so lustrous a pearl as Candaules, +son of Myrsus and descendant of Heracles, King of Sardes and of Lydia! +Compared with Candaules, Midas, who changed all things to gold, were +only a mendicant as poor as Irus."' + +Gyges listened with astonishment to this discourse of Candaules, and +sought to penetrate the hidden sense of these lyric divagations. The +king appeared to be in a state of extraordinary excitement: his eyes +sparkled with enthusiasm; a feverish rosiness tinted his cheeks; his +dilated nostrils inhaled the air with unusual effort. + +'Well, Gyges,' continued Candaules, without appearing to notice the +uneasiness of his favourite, 'I am that diver. Amid this dark ocean of +humanity, wherein confusedly move so many defective or misshapen beings, +so many forms incomplete or degraded, so many types of bestial ugliness, +wretched outlines of nature's experimental essays, I have found beauty, +pure, radiant, without spot, without flaw, the ideal made real, the +dream accomplished, a form which no painter or sculptor has ever been +able to translate upon canvas or into marble--I have found Nyssia!' + +'Although the queen has the timid modesty of the women of the Orient, +and that no man save her husband has ever beheld her features, Fame, +hundred-tongued and hundred-eared, has celebrated her praise throughout +the world,' answered Gyges, respectfully inclining his head as he spoke. + +'Mere vague, insignificant rumours. They say of her, as of all women not +actually ugly, that she is more beautiful than Aphrodite or Helen; but +no person could form even the most remote idea of such perfection. In +vain have I besought Nyssia to appear unveiled at some public festival, +some solemn sacrifice, or to show herself for an instant leaning over +the royal terrace, bestowing upon her people the immense favour of +one look, the prodigality of one profile view, more generous than the +goddesses who permit their worshippers to behold only pale simulacra of +ivory or alabaster. She would never consent to that. Now there is one +strange thing which I blush to acknowledge even to you, dear Gyges. +Formerly I was jealous; I wished to conceal my amours from all eyes, no +shadow was thick enough, no mystery sufficiently impenetrable. Now I can +no longer recognise myself. I have the feelings neither of a lover nor +a husband; my love has melted in adoration like thin wax in a fiery +brazier. All petty feelings of jealousy or possession have vanished. No, +the most finished work that heaven has ever given to earth, since the +day that Prometheus held the flame under the right breast of the +statue of clay, cannot thus be kept hidden in the chill shadow of the +gynaeceum. Were I to die, then the secret of this beauty would for ever +remain shrouded beneath the sombre draperies of widowhood! I feel myself +culpable in its concealment, as though I had the sun in my house, and +prevented it from illuminating the world. And when I think of those +harmonious lines, those divine contours which I dare scarcely touch with +a timid kiss, I feel my heart ready to burst; I wish that some friendly +eye could share my happiness and, like a severe judge to whom a picture +is shown, recognise after careful examination that it is irreproachable, +and that the possessor has not been deceived by his enthusiasm. Yes, +often do I feel myself tempted to tear off with rash hand those odious +tissues, but Nyssia, in her fierce chastity, would never forgive me. And +still I cannot alone endure such felicity. I must have a confidant for +my ecstasies, an echo which will answer my cries of admiration, and it +shall be none other than you.' + +Having uttered these words, Candaules brusquely turned and disappeared +through a secret passage. Gyges, left thus alone, could not avoid +noticing the peculiar concourse of events which seemed to place him +always in Nyssia's path. A chance had enabled him to behold her beauty, +though walled up from all other eyes. Among many princes and satraps she +had chosen to espouse Candaules, the very king he served; and through +some strange caprice, which he could only regard as fateful, this king +had just made him, Gyges, his confidant in regard to the mysterious +creature whom none else had approached, and absolutely sought to +complete the work of Boreas on the plain of Bactria! Was not the hand +of the gods visible in all these circumstances? That spectre of beauty, +whose veil seemed to be lifted slowly, a little at a time, as though to +enkindle a flame within him, was it not leading him, without his having +suspected it, toward the accomplishment of some mighty destiny? Such +were the questions which Gyges asked himself, but being unable to +penetrate the obscurity of the future, he resolved to await the course +of events, and left the Court of Images, where the twilight darkness +was commencing to pile itself up in all the angles, and to render +the effigies of the ancestors of Candaules yet more and more weirdly +menacing. + +Was it a mere effort of light, or was it rather an illusion produced by +that vague uneasiness with which the boldest hearts are filled by the +approach of night amid ancient monuments? As he stepped across the +threshold Gyges fancied that he heard deep groans issue from the stone +lips of the bas-reliefs, and it seemed to him that Heracles was making +enormous efforts to loosen his granite club. + + + + +CHAPTER III + +On the following day Candaules again took Gyges aside and continued the +conversation begun under the portico of the Heracleidae. Having freed +himself from the embarrassment of broaching the subject, he freely +unbosomed himself to his confidant; and had Nyssia been able to +overhear him she might perhaps have been willing to pardon his conjugal +indiscretions for the sake of his passionate eulogies of her charms. + +Gyges listened to all these bursts of praise with the slightly +constrained air of one who is yet uncertain whether his interlocutor is +not feigning an enthusiasm more ardent than he actually feels, in order +to provoke a confidence naturally cautious to utter itself. Can-daules +at last said to him in a tone of disappointment: 'I see, Gyges, that you +do not believe me. You think I am boasting, or have allowed myself to be +fascinated like some clumsy labourer by a robust country girl on whose +cheeks Hygeia has crushed the gross hues of health. No, by all the gods! +I have collected within my home, like a living bouquet, the fairest +flowers of Asia and of Greece. I know all that the art of sculptors and +painters has produced since the time of Daedalus, whose statues walked +and spoke. Linus, Orpheus, Homer, have taught me harmony and rhythm. I +do not look about me with Love's bandage blindfolding my eyes. I +judge of all things coolly. The passions of youth never influence my +admiration, and when I am as withered, decrepit, wrinkled, as Tithonus +in his swaddling bands, my opinion will be still the same. But I forgive +your incredulity and want of sympathy. In order to understand me fully, +it is necessary that you should see Nyssia in the radiant brilliancy of +her shining whiteness, free from jealous drapery, even as Nature with +her own hands moulded her in a lost moment of inspiration which never +can return. This evening I will hide you in a corner of the bridal +chamber... you shall see her!' + +'Sire, what do you ask of me?' returned the young warrior with +respectful firmness. 'How shall I, from the depths of my dust, from +the abyss of my nothingness, dare to raise my eyes to this sun of +perfections, at the risk of remaining blind for the rest of my life, +or being able to see naught but a dazzling spectre in the midst of +darkness? Have pity on your humble slave, and do not compel him to an +action so contrary to the maxims of virtue. No man should look upon what +does not belong to him. We know that the immortals always punish those +who through imprudence or audacity surprise them in their divine nudity. +Nyssia is the loveliest of all women; you are the happiest of lovers and +husbands. Heracles, your ancestor, never found in the course of his many +conquests aught to compare with your queen. If you, the prince of whom +even the most skilful artists seek judgment and counsel--if you find her +incomparable, of what consequence can the opinion of an obscure soldier +like me be to you? Abandon, therefore, this fantasy, which I presume to +say is unworthy of your royal majesty, and of which you would repent so +soon as it had been satisfied.' + +'Listen, Gyges,' returned Candaules; 'I perceive that you suspect me; +you think that I seek to put you to some proof, but by the ashes of that +funeral pyre whence my ancestor arose a god, I swear to you that I speak +frankly and without any after-purpose.' + +'O Candaules, I doubt not of your good faith; your passion is sincere, +but perchance, after I should have obeyed you, you would conceive a deep +aversion to me, and learn to hate me for not having more firmly resisted +your will. You would seek to take back from these eyes, indiscreet +through compulsion, the image which you allowed them to glance upon in a +moment of delirium; and who knows but that you would condemn them to the +eternal night of the tomb to punish them for remaining open at a moment +when they ought to have been closed.' + +'Fear nothing; I pledge my royal word that no evil shall befall you.' + +'Pardon your slave if he still dares to offer some objection, even after +such a promise. Have you reflected that what you propose to me is a +violation of the sanctity of marriage, a species of visual adultery? A +woman often lays aside her modesty with her garments; and once violated +by a look, without having actually ceased to be virtuous, she might deem +that she had lost her flower of purity. You promise, indeed, to feel +no resentment against me; but who can ensure me against the wrath of +Nyssia, she who is so reserved and chaste, so apprehensive, fierce, and +virginal in her modesty that she might be deemed still ignorant of the +laws of Hymen? Should she ever learn of the sacrilege which I am about +to render myself guilty of in deferring to my master's wishes, what +punishment would she condemn me to suffer in expiation of such a crime? +Who could place me beyond the reach of her avenging anger?' + +'I did not know you were so wise and prudent,' said Candaules, with +a slightly ironical smile; 'but such dangers are all imaginary, and I +shall hide you in such a way that Nyssia will never know she has been +seen by any one except her royal husband.' + +Being unable to offer any further defence, Gyges made a sign of assent +in token of complete submission to the king's will. He had made all the +resistance in his power, and thenceforward his conscience could feel +at ease in regard to whatever might happen; besides, by any further +opposition to the will of Candaules, he would have feared to oppose +destiny itself, which seemed striving to bring him still nearer to +Nyssia for some grim ulterior purpose into which it was not given to him +to see further. + +Without actually being able to foresee any result, he beheld a thousand +vague and shadowy images passing before his eyes. That subterranean +love, so long crouched at the foot of his soul's stairway, had climbed +a few steps higher, guided by some fitful glimmer of hope. The weight of +the impossible no longer pressed so heavily upon his breast, now that +he believed himself aided by the gods. In truth, who would have dreamed +that the much-boasted charms of the daughter of Megabazus would ere long +cease to own any mystery for Gyges? + +'Come, Gyges,' said Candaules, taking him by the hand, 'let us make +profit of the time. Nyssia is walking in the garden with her women; let +us look at the place, and plan our stratagems for this evening.' + +The king took his confidant by the hand and led him along the winding +ways which conducted to the nuptial apartment. The doors of the +sleeping-room were made of cedar planks so perfectly put together that +it was impossible to discover the joints. By dint of rubbing them with +wool steeped in oil, the slaves had rendered the wood as polished as +marble. The brazen nails, with heads cut in facets, which studded them, +had all the brilliancy of the purest gold. A complicated system of +straps and metallic rings, whereof Candaules and his wife alone knew +the combination, served to secure them, for in those heroic ages the +locksmith's art was yet in its infancy. + +Candaules unloosed the knots, made the rings slide back upon the thongs, +raised with a handle which fitted into a mortise the bar that fastened +the door from within, and bidding Gyges place himself against the wall, +turned back one of the folding-doors upon him in such a way as to hide +him completely; yet the door did not fit so perfectly to its frame of +oaken beams, all carefully polished and put up according to line by a +skilful workman, that the young warrior could not obtain a distinct view +of the chamber interior through the interstices contrived to give room +for the free play of the hinges. + +Facing the entrance, the royal bed stood upon an estrade of several +steps, covered with purple drapery. Columns of chased silver supported +the entablature, all ornamented with foliage wrought in relief, amid +which Loves were sporting with dolphins, and heavy curtains embroidered +with gold surrounded it like the folds of a tent. + +Upon the altar of the household gods were placed vases of precious +metal, paterae enamelled with flowers, double-handled cups, and all +things needful for libations. + +Along the walls, which were faced with planks of cedar-wood, +marvellously worked, at regular intervals stood tall statues of black +basalt in the constrained attitudes of Egyptian art, each sustaining in +its hand a bronze torch into which a splinter of resinous wood had been +fitted. + +An onyx lamp, suspended by a chain of silver, hung from that beam of the +ceiling which is called the black beam, because more exposed than the +others to the embrowning smoke. Every evening a slave carefully filled +this lamp with odoriferous oil. + +Near the head of the bed, on a little column, hung a trophy of arms, +consisting of a visored helmet, a twofold buckler made of four bulls' +hides and covered with plates of brass and tin, a two-edged sword, and +several ashen javelins with brazen heads. + +The tunics and mantles of Candaules were hung upon wooden pegs. They +comprised garments both simple and double; that is, capable of going +twice around the body. A mantle of thrice-dyed purple, ornamented with +embroidery representing a hunting scene wherein Laconian hounds were +pursuing and tearing deer, and a tunic whereof the material, fine and +delicate as the skin which envelops an onion had all the sheen of woven +sunbeams, were especially noticeable. Opposite to the trophy stood +an armchair inlaid with silver and ivory upon which Nyssia hung her +garments. Its seat was covered with a leopard skin more eye-spotted than +the body of Argus, and its foot-support was richly adorned with openwork +carving. + +'I am generally the first to retire,' observed Candaules to Gyges, 'and +I always leave this door open as it is now. Nyssia, who has invariably +some tapestry flower to finish, or some order to give her women, usually +delays a little in joining me; but at last she comes, and slowly takes +off, one by one, as though the effort cost her dearly, and lays upon +that ivory chair, all those draperies and tunics which by day envelop +her like mummy bandages. From your hiding-place you will be able to +follow all her graceful movements, admire her unrivalled charms, and +judge for yourself whether Candaules be a young fool prone to vain +boasting, or whether he does not really possess the richest pearl of +beauty that ever adorned a diadem.' + +'O King, I can well believe your words without such a proof as this,' +replied Gyges, stepping forth from his hiding-place. 'When she has +laid aside her garments,' continued Candaules, without heeding the +exclamation of his confidant, 'she will come to lie down with me. You +must take advantage of the moment to steal away, for in passing from the +chair to the bed she turns her back to the door. Step lightly as though +you were treading upon ears of ripe wheat; take heed that no grain +of sand squeaks under your sandals; hold your breath, and retire as +stealthily as possible. The vestibule is all in darkness, and the feeble +rays of the only lamp which remains burning do not penetrate beyond the +threshold of the chamber. It is, therefore, certain that Nyssia cannot +possibly see you; and to-morrow there will be some one in the world who +can comprehend my ecstasies, and will feel no longer astonished at my +bursts of admiration. But see, the day is almost spent; the Sun will +soon water his steeds in the Hesperian waves at the further end of the +world, and beyond the Pillars erected by my ancestors. Return to your +hiding-place, Gyges, and though the hours of waiting may seem long, I +can swear by Eros of the Golden Arrows that you will not regret having +waited.' + +After this assurance Candaules left Gyges again hidden behind the door. +'The compulsory quiet which the king's young confidant found himself +obliged to maintain left him ample leisure for thought. His situation +was certainly a most extraordinary one. He had loved Nyssia as one loves +a star. Convinced of the hopelessness of the undertaking, he had made +no effort to approach her. And, nevertheless, by a succession of +extraordinary events he was about to obtain a knowledge of treasures +reserved for lovers and husbands only. Not a word, not a glance had +been exchanged between himself and Nyssia, who probably ignored the very +existence of the one being for whom her beauty would so soon cease to be +a mystery. Unknown to her whose modesty would have naught to sacrifice +for you, how strange a situation! To love a woman in secret and find +oneself led by her husband to the threshold of the nuptial chamber, to +have for guide to that treasure the very dragon who should defend all +approach to it, was there not in all this ample food for astonishment +and wonder at the combination of events wrought by destiny? + +In the midst of these reflections, he suddenly heard the sound of +footsteps on the pavement. It was only the slaves coming to replenish +the oil in the lamp, throw fresh perfumes upon the coals of the +kamklins, and arrange the purple and saffron-tinted sheepskins which +formed the royal bed. + +The hour approached, and Gyges felt his heart beat faster, and the +pulsation of his arteries quicken. He even felt a strong impulse +to steal away before the arrival of the queen, and, after averring +subsequently to Candaules that he had remained, abandon himself +confidently to the most extravagant eulogiums. He felt a strong +repugnance (for, despite his somewhat free life, Gyges was not without +delicacy) to take by stealth a favour for the free granting of which he +would gladly have paid with his life. The husband's complicity rendered +this theft more odious in a certain sense, and he would have preferred +to owe to any other circumstance the happiness of beholding the marvel +of Asia in her nocturnal toilet. Perhaps, indeed, the approach of +danger, let us acknowledge as veracious historians, had no little to +do with his virtuous scruples. Undoubtedly Gyges did not lack courage. +Mounted upon his war-chariot, with quiver rattling upon his shoulder, +and bow in hand, he would have defied the most valiant warriors; in the +chase he would have attacked without fear the Calydon boar or the Nemean +lion; but--explain the enigma as you will--he trembled at the idea of +looking at a beautiful woman through a chink in a door. No one possesses +every kind of courage. He felt likewise that he could not behold Nyssia +with impunity. It would be a decisive epoch in his life. Through having +obtained but a momentary glimpse of her he had lost all peace of mind; +what, then, would be the result of that which was about to take place? +Could life itself continue for him when to that divine head which fired +his dreams should be added a charming body formed for the kisses of +the immortals? What would become of him should he find himself unable +thereafter to contain his passion in darkness and silence as he had done +till that time? Would he exhibit to the court of Lydia the ridiculous +spectacle of an insane love, or would he strive by some extravagant +action to bring down upon himself the disdainful pity of the queen? Such +a result was strongly probable, since the reason of Candaules himself, +the legitimate possessor of Nyssia, had been unable to resist the +vertigo caused by that superhuman beauty--he, the thoughtless young king +who till then had laughed at love, and preferred pictures and statues +before all things. These arguments were very rational but wholly +useless, for at the same moment Candaules entered the chamber, and +exclaimed in a low but distinct voice as he passed the door: + +'Patience, my poor Gyges, Nyssia will soon come.' When he saw that +he could no longer retreat, Gyges, who was but a young man after all, +forgot every other consideration, and no longer thought of aught save +the happiness of feasting his eyes upon the charming spectacle which +Candaules was about to offer him. One cannot demand from a captain of +twenty-five the austerity of a hoary philosopher. + +At last a low whispering of raiment sweeping and trailing over marble, +distinctly audible in the deep silence of the night, announced the +approach of the queen. In effect it was she. With a step as cadenced and +rhythmic as an ode, she crossed the threshold of the thalamus, and the +wind of her veil with its floating folds almost touched the burning +cheek of Gyges, who felt wellnigh on the point of fainting, and found +himself compelled to seek the support of the wall; but soon recovering +from the violence of his emotions, he approached the chink of the door, +and took the most favourable position for enabling him to lose nothing +of the scene whereof he was about to be an invisible witness. + +Nyssia advanced to the ivory chair and commenced to detach the pins, +terminated by hollow balls of gold, which fastened her veil upon her +head; and Gyges from the depths of the shadow-filled angle where he +stood concealed could examine at his ease the proud and charming face of +which he had before obtained only a hurried glimpse; that rounded neck, +at once delicate and powerful, whereon Aphrodite had traced with the +nail of her little finger those three faint lines which are still at +this very day known as the 'necklace of Venus'; that white nape on +whose alabaster surface little wild rebellious curls were disporting +and entwining themselves; those silver shoulders, half rising from the +opening of the chlamys, like the moon's disc emerging from an opaque +cloud. Candaules, half reclining upon his cushions, gazed with fondness +upon his wife, and thought to himself: 'Now Gyges, who is so cold, so +difficult to please, and so sceptical, must be already half convinced.' + +Opening a little coffer which stood on a table supported by one leg +terminating in carven lion's paws, the queen freed her beautiful arms +from the weight of the bracelets and jewellery wherewith they had been +overburdened during the day--arms whose form and whiteness might well +have enabled them to compare with those of Hera, sister and wife of +Zeus, the lord of Olympus. Precious as were her jewels, they were +assuredly not worth the spots which they concealed, and had Nyssia been +a coquette, one might have well supposed that she only donned them +in order that she should be entreated to take them off. The rings and +chased work had left upon her skin, fine and tender as the interior pulp +of a lily, light rosy imprints, which she soon dissipated by rubbing +them with her little taper-fingered hand, all rounded and slender at its +extremities. + +Then with the movement of a dove trembling in the snow of its feathers, +she shook her hair, which being no longer held by the golden pins, +rolled down in languid spirals like hyacinth flowers over her back +and bosom. Thus she remained for a few moments ere reassembling the +scattered curls and finally re-uniting them into one mass. It was +marvellous to watch the blond ringlets streaming like jets of liquid +gold between the silver of her fingers; and her arms undulating like +swans' necks as they were arched above her head in the act of twisting +and confining the natural bullion. If you have ever by chance examined +one of those beautiful Etruscan vases with red figures on a black +ground, and decorated with one of those subjects which are designated +under the title of 'Greek Toilette,' then you will have some idea of the +grace of Nyssia in that attitude which, from the age of antiquity to our +own era, has furnished such a multitude of happy designs for painters +and statuaries. + +Having thus arranged her coiffure, she seated herself upon the edge +of the ivory footstool and commenced to untie the little bands which +fastened her buskins. We moderns, owing to our horrible system of +footgear, which is hardly less absurd than the Chinese shoe, no longer +know what a foot is. That of Nyssia was of a perfection rare even in +Greece and antique Asia. The great toe, a little apart like the thumb +of a bird, the other toes, slightly long, and all ranged in charming +symmetry, the nails well shaped and brilliant as agates, the ankles well +rounded and supple, the heel slightly tinted with a rosy hue--nothing +was wanting to the perfection of the little member. The leg attached to +this foot, and which gleamed like polished marble under the lamp-light, +was irreproachable in the purity of its outlines and the grace of its +curves. + +Gyges, lost in contemplation, though all the while fully comprehending +the madness of Candaules, said to himself that had the gods bestowed +such a treasure upon him he would have known how to keep it to himself. + +'Well, Nyssia, are you not coming to sleep with me?' exclaimed +Candaules, seeing that the queen was not hurrying herself in the least, +and feeling desirous to abridge the watch of Gyges. + +'Yes, my dear lord, I will soon be ready,' answered Nyssia. + +And she detached the cameo which fastened the peplum upon her shoulder. +There remained only the tunic to let fall. Gyges, behind the door, felt +his veins hiss through his temples; his heart beat so violently that +he feared it must make itself heard in the chamber, and to repress its +fierce pulsations he pressed his hand upon his bosom; and when Nyssia, +with a movement of careless grace, unfastened the girdle of her tunic, +he thought his knees would give way beneath him. + +Nyssia--was it an instinctive presentiment, or was her skin, virginally +pure from profane looks, so delicately magnetic in its susceptibility +that it could feel the rays of a passionate eye though that eye was +invisible?--Nyssia hesitated to strip herself of that tunic, the last +rampart of her modesty. Twice or thrice her shoulders, her bosom, +and bare arms shuddered with a nervous chill, as though they had been +suddenly grazed by the wings of a nocturnal butterfly, or as though an +insolent lip had dared to touch them in the darkness. + +At last, seeming to nerve herself for a sudden resolve she doffed +the tunic in its turn; and the white poem of her divine body suddenly +appeared in all its splendour, like the statue of a goddess unveiled on +the day of a temple's inauguration. Shuddering with pleasure the light +glided and gloated over those exquisite forms, and covered them with +timid kisses, profiting by an occasion, alas, rare indeed! The rays +scattered through the chamber, disdaining to illuminate golden arms, +jewelled clasps, or brazen tripods, all concentrated themselves upon +Nyssia, and left all other objects in obscurity. Were we Greeks of the +age of Pericles we might at our ease eulogise those beautiful serpentine +lines, those polished flanks, those elegant curves, those breasts which +might have served as moulds for the cup of Hebe; but modern prudery +forbids such descriptions, for the pen cannot find pardon for what is +permitted to the chisel; and besides, there are some things which can be +written of only in marble. + +Candaules smiled in proud satisfaction. With a rapid step, as though +ashamed of being so beautiful, for she was only the daughter of a man +and a woman, Nyssia approached the bed, her arms folded upon her bosom; +but with a sudden movement she turned round ere taking her place upon +the couch beside her royal spouse, and beheld through the aperture of +the door a gleaming eye flaming like the carbuncle of Oriental legend; +for if it were false that she had a double pupil, and that she possessed +the stone which is found in the heads of dragons, it was at least true +that her green glance penetrated darkness like the glaucous eye of the +cat and tiger. + +A cry, like that of a fawn who receives an arrow in her flank while +tranquilly dreaming among the leafy shadows, was on the point of +bursting from her lips, yet she found strength to control herself, and +lay down beside Candaules, cold as a serpent, with the violets of death +upon her cheeks and lips. Not a muscle of her limbs quivered, not a +fibre of her body palpitated, and soon her slow, regular breathing +seemed to indicate that Morpheus had distilled his poppy juice upon her +eyelids. + +She had divined and comprehended all. + + + + +CHAPTER IV + +Gyges, trembling and distracted with passion, had retired, following +exactly the instructions of Candaules; and if Nyssia, through some +unfortunate chance, had not turned her head ere taking her place upon +the couch, and perceived him in the act of taking flight, doubtless +she would have remained for ever unconscious of the outrage done to her +charms by a husband more passionate than scrupulous. + +Accustomed to the winding corridors of the palace, the young warrior had +no difficulty in finding his way out. He passed through the city at a +reckless pace like a madman escaped from Anticyra, and by making himself +known to the sentinels who guarded the ramparts, he had the gates opened +for him and gained the fields beyond. His brain burned, his cheeks +flamed as with the fires of fever; his breath came hotly panting through +his lips; he flung himself down upon the meadow-sod humid with the tears +of the night; and at last hearing in the darkness, through the thick +grass and water-plants, the silvery respiration of a Naiad, he dragged +himself to the spring, plunged his hands and arms into the crystal +flood, bathed his face, and drank several mouthfuls of the water in the +hope to cool the ardour which was devouring him. Any one who could have +seen him thus hopelessly bending over the spring in the feeble starlight +would have taken him for Narcissus pursuing his own shadow; but it was +not of himself assuredly that Gyges was enamoured. + +The rapid apparition of Nyssia had dazzled his eyes like the keen zigzag +of a lightning flash. He beheld her floating before him in a luminous +whirlwind, and felt that never through all his life could he banish that +image from his vision. His love had grown to vastness; its flower had +suddenly burst, like those plants which open their blossoms with a clap +of thunder. To master his passion were henceforth a thing impossible: as +well counsel the empurpled waves which Poseidon lifts with his trident +to lie tranquilly in their bed of sand and cease to foam upon the rocks +of the shore. Gyges was no longer master of himself, and he felt a +miserable despair, as of a man riding in a chariot, who finds his +terrified and uncontrollable horses rushing with all the speed of a +furious gallop toward some rock-bristling precipice. A hundred thousand +projects, each wilder than the last, whirled confusedly through his +brain. He blasphemed Destiny, he cursed his mother for having given him +life, and the gods that they had not caused him to be born to a throne, +for then he might have been able to espouse the daughter of the satrap. + +A frightful agony gnawed at his heart; he was jealous of the king. From +the moment of the tunic's fall at the feet of Nyssia, like the flight +of a white dove alighting upon a meadow, it had seemed to him that she +belonged to him; he deemed himself despoiled of his wealth by Candaules. +In all his amorous reveries he had never until then thought of the +husband; he had thought of the queen only as of a pure abstraction, +without representing to himself in fancy all those intimate details of +conjugal familiarity, so poignant, so bitter for those who love a woman +in the power of another. Now he had beheld Nyssia's blond head bending +like a blossom beside the dark head of Candaules. The very thought of +it had inflamed his anger to the highest degree, although a moment's +reflection should have convinced him that things could not have come +to pass otherwise, and he felt growing within him a most unjust hatred +against his master. The act of having compelled his presence at the +queen's dishabille seemed to him a barbarous irony, an odious refinement +of cruelty, for he did not remember that his love for her could not have +been known by the king, who had sought in him only a confidant of easy +morals and a connoisseur in beauty. That which he ought to have regarded +as a great favour affected him like a mortal injury for which he was +meditating vengeance. While thinking that to-morrow the same scene of +which he had been a mute and invisible witness would infallibly renew +itself, his tongue clove to his palate, his forehead became imbeaded +with drops of cold sweat, and his hand convulsively grasped the hilt of +his great double-edged sword. + +Nevertheless, thanks to the freshness of the night, that excellent +counsellor, he became a little calmer, and returned to Sardes before +the morning light had become bright enough to enable a few early rising +citizens and slaves to notice the pallor of his brow and the disorder of +his apparel. He betook himself to his regular post at the palace, well +suspecting that Can-daules would shortly send for him; and, however +violent the agitation of his feelings, he felt he was not powerful +enough to brave the anger of the king, and could in no way escape +submitting again to this role of confidant, which could thenceforth only +inspire him with horror. Having arrived at the palace, he seated himself +upon the steps of the cypress-panelled vestibule, leaned his back +against a column, and, under the pretext of being fatigued by the long +vigil under arms, he covered his head with his mantle and feigned sleep, +to avoid answering the questions of the other guards. + +If the night had been terrible to Gyges, it had not been less so to +Nyssia, as she never for an instant doubted that he had been purposely +hidden there by Candaules. The king's persistency in begging her not to +veil so austerely a face which the gods had made for the admiration of +men, his evident vexation upon her refusal to appear in Greek costume at +the sacrifices and public solemnities, his unsparing raillery at what he +termed her barbarian shyness, all tended to convince her that the young +Heracleid had sought to admit some one into those mysteries which should +remain secret to all, for without his encouragement no man could have +dared to risk himself in an undertaking the discovery of which would +have resulted in the punishment of a speedy death. + +How slowly did the black hours seem to her to pass! How anxiously did +she await the coming of dawn to mingle its bluish tints with the yellow +gleams of the almost exhausted lamp! It seemed to her that Apollo +would never mount his chariot again, and that some invisible hand was +sustaining the sand of the hourglass in air. Though brief as any other, +that night seemed to her like the Cimmerian nights, six long months of +darkness. + +While it lasted she lay motionless and rigid at full length on the very +edge of her couch in dread of being touched by Candaules. If she had not +up to that night felt a very strong love for the son of Myrsus, she had, +at least, ever exhibited toward him that grave and serene tenderness +which every virtuous woman entertains for her husband, although the +altogether Greek freedom of his morals frequently displeased her, +and though he entertained ideas at variance with her own in regard to +modesty; but after such an affront she could only feel the chilliest +hatred and most icy contempt for him; she would have preferred even +death to one of his caresses. Such an outrage it was impossible to +forgive, for among the barbarians, and above all among the Persians and +Bactrians, it was held a great disgrace, not for women only, but even +for men, to be seen without their garments. + +At length Candaules arose, and Nyssia, awaking from her simulated sleep, +hurried from that chamber now profaned in her eyes as though it had +served for the nocturnal orgies of Bacchantes and courtesans. It was +agony for her to breathe that impure air any longer, and that she +might freely give herself up to her grief she took refuge in the upper +apartments reserved for the women, summoned her slaves by clapping her +hands, and poured ewers of water over her shoulders, her bosom, and +her whole body, as though hoping by this species of lustral ablution +to efface the soil imprinted by the eyes of Gyges. She would have +voluntarily torn, as it were, from her body that skin upon which the +rays shot from a burning pupil seemed to have left their traces. Taking +from the hands of her waiting-women the thick downy materials which +served to drink up the last pearls of the bath, she wiped herself with +such violence that a slight purple cloud rose to the spots she had +rubbed. + +'In vain,' she exclaimed, letting the damp tissues fall, and dismissing +her attendants--'in vain would I pour over myself all the waters of all +the springs and the rivers; the ocean with all its bitter gulfs could +not purify me. Such a stain may be washed out only with blood. Oh, that +look, that look! It has incrusted itself upon me; it clasps me, covers +me, burns me like the tunic dipped in the blood of Nessus; I feel it +beneath my draperies, like an envenomed tissue which nothing can detach +from my body! Now, indeed, would I vainly pile garments upon garments, +select materials the least transparent, and the thickest of mantles. I +would none the less bear upon my naked flesh this infamous robe woven +by one adulterous and lascivious glance. Vainly, since the hour when +I issued from the chaste womb of my mother, have I been brought up in +private, enveloped, like Isis, the Egyptian goddess, with a veil of +which none might have lifted the hem without paying for his audacity +with his life. In vain have I remained guarded from all evil desires, +from all profane imaginings, unknown of men, virgin as the snow on which +the eagle himself could not imprint the seal of his talons, so loftily +does the mountain which it covers lift its head in the pure and icy air. +The depraved caprice of a Lydian Greek has sufficed to make me lose in +a single instant, without any guilt of mine, all the fruit of long years +of precaution and reserve. Innocent and dishonoured, hidden from all yet +made public to all... this is the lot to which Candaules has condemned +me. Who can assure me that, at this very moment, Gyges is not in the act +of discoursing upon my charms with some soldiers at the very threshold +of the palace? Oh shame! Oh infamy! Two men have beheld me naked and yet +at this instant enjoy the sweet light of the sun! In what does +Nyssia now differ from the most shameless hetaira, from the vilest of +courtesans? This body which I have striven to render worthy of being the +habitation of a pure and noble soul, serves for a theme of conversation; +it is talked of like some lascivious idol brought from Sicyon or from +Corinth; it is commended or found fault with. The shoulder is perfect, +the arm is charming, perhaps a little thin--what know I? All the blood +of my heart leaps to my cheeks at such a thought. Oh beauty, fatal gift +of the gods! why am I not the wife of some poor mountain goatherd of +innocent and simple habits? He would not have suborned a goatherd like +himself at the threshold of his cabin to profane his humble happiness! +My lean figure, my unkempt hair, my complexion faded by the burning +sun, would then have saved me from so gross an insult, and my honest +homeliness would not have been compelled to blush. How shall I dare, +after the scene of this night, to pass before those men, proudly erect +under the folds of a tunic which has no longer aught to hide from either +of them. I should drop dead with shame upon the pavement. Candaules, +Candaules, I was at least entitled to more respect from you, and there +was nothing in my conduct which could have provoked such an outrage. +Was I one of those ones whose arms for ever cling like ivy to their +husbands' necks, and who seem more like slaves bought with money for a +master's pleasure than free-born women of noble blood? Have I ever after +a repast sung amorous hymns accompanying myself upon the lyre, with +wine-moist lips, naked shoulders, and a wreath of roses about my hair, +or given you cause, by any immodest action, to treat me like a mistress +whom one shows after a banquet to his companions in debauch?' While +Nyssia was thus buried in her grief, great tears overflowed from her +eyes like rain-drops from the azure chalice of a lotus-flower after +some storm, and rolling down her pale cheeks fell upon her fair forlorn +hands, languishingly open, like roses whose leaves are half-shed, for no +order came from the brain to give them activity. The attitude of Niobe, +beholding her fourteenth child succumb beneath the arrows of Apollo and +Diana, was not more sadly despairing, but soon starting from this state +of prostration, she rolled herself upon the floor, rent her garments, +covered her beautiful dishevelled hair with ashes, tore her bosom and +cheeks with her nails amid convulsive sobs, and abandoned herself to +all the excesses of Oriental grief, the more violently that she had +been forced so long to contain her indignation, shame, pangs of wounded +dignity, and all the agony that convulsed her soul, for the pride of her +whole life had been broken, and the idea that she had nothing wherewith +to reproach herself afforded her no consolation. As a poet has said, +only the innocent know remorse. She was repenting of the crime which +another had committed. + +Nevertheless she made an effort to recover herself, ordered the baskets +filled with wools of different colours, and the spindles wrapped with +flax, to be brought to her, and distributed the work to her women as she +had been accustomed to do; but she thought she noticed that the slaves +looked at her in a very peculiar way, and had ceased to entertain the +same timid respect for her as before. Her voice no longer rang with the +same assurance; there was something humble and furtive in her demeanour; +she felt herself interiorly fallen. + +Doubtless her scruples were exaggerated, and her virtue had received +no stain from the folly of Candaules; but ideas imbibed with a mother's +milk obtain irresistible sway, and the modesty of the body is carried +by Oriental nations to an extent almost incomprehensible to Occidental +races. When a man desired to speak to Nyssia in the palace of Megabazus +at Bactria, he was obliged to do so keeping his eyes fixed upon the +ground, and two eunuchs stood beside him, poniard in hand, ready to +plunge their keen blades through his heart should he dare lift his head +to look at the princess, notwithstanding that her face was veiled. You +may readily conceive, therefore, how deadly an injury the action of +Candaules would seem to a woman thus brought up, while any other would +doubtless have considered it only a culpable frivolity. Thus the idea +of vengeance had instantly presented itself to Nyssia, and had given her +sufficient self-control to strangle the cry of her offended modesty ere +it reached her lips, at the moment when, turning her head, she beheld +the burning eyes of Gyges flaming through the darkness. She must have +possessed the courage of the warrior in ambush, who, wounded by a random +dart, utters no syllable of pain through fear of betraying himself +behind his shelter of foliage or river-reeds, and in silence permits his +blood to stripe his flesh with long red lines. Had she not withheld that +first impulse to cry aloud, Candaules, alarmed and forewarned, would +have kept upon his guard, which must have rendered it more difficult, if +not impossible, to carry out her purpose. + +Nevertheless, as yet she had conceived no definite plan, but she had +resolved that the insult done to her honour should be fully expiated. At +first she had thought of killing Candaules herself while he slept, with +the sword hung at the bedside. But she recoiled from the thought of +dipping her beautiful hands in blood; she feared lest she might miss her +blow; and, with all her bitter anger, she hesitated at so violent and +unwomanly an act. + +Suddenly she appeared to have decided upon some project. She summoned +Statira, one of the waiting-women who had come with her from Bactria, +and in whom she placed much confidence, and whispered a few words close +to her ear in a very low voice, although there were no other persons in +the room, as if she feared that even the walls might hear her. + +Statira bowed low, and immediately left the apartment. + +Like all persons who are actually menaced by some great peril, Candaules +presumed himself perfectly secure. He was certain that Gyges had stolen +away unperceived, and he thought only upon the delight of conversing +with him about the unrivalled attractions of his wife. + +So he caused him to be summoned, and conducted him to the Court of the +Heracleidae. + +'Well, Gyges,' he said to him with laughing mien, 'I did not deceive you +when I assured you that you would not regret having passed a few hours +behind that blessed door. Am I right? Do you know of any living woman +more beautiful than the queen? If you know of any superior to her, tell +me so frankly, and go bear her in my name this string of pearls, the +symbol of power.' + +'Sire,' replied Gyges in a voice trembling with emotion, 'no human +creature is worthy to compare with Nyssia. It is not the pearl fillet +of queens which should adorn her brows, but only the starry crown of the +immortals.' + +'I well knew that your ice must melt at last in the fires of that sun. +Now can you comprehend my passion, my delirium, my mad desires? Is it +not true, Gyges, that the heart of a man is not great enough to contain +such a love? It must overflow and diffuse itself.' + +A hot blush overspread the cheeks of Gyges, who now but too well +comprehended the admiration of Candaules. + +The king noticed it, and said, with a manner half smiling, half serious: + +'My poor friend, do not commit the folly of becoming enamoured of +Nyssia; you would lose your pains. It is a statue which I have enabled +you to see, not a woman. I have allowed you to read some stanzas of a +beautiful poem, whereof I alone possess the manuscript, merely for the +purpose of having your opinion; that is all.' + +'You have no need, sire, to remind me of my nothingness. Sometimes the +humblest slave is visited in his slumbers by some radiant and lovely +vision, with ideal forms, nacreous flesh, ambrosial hair. I--I have +dreamed with open eyes; you are the god who sent me that dream.' + +'Now,' continued the king, 'it will scarcely be necessary for me to +enjoin silence upon you. If you do not keep a seal upon your lips +you might learn to your cost that Nyssia is not as good as she is +beautiful.' + +The king waved his hand in token of farewell to his confidant, and +retired for the purpose of inspecting an antique bed sculptured by +Ikmalius, a celebrated artisan, which had been offered him for purchase. + +Candaules had scarcely disappeared when a woman, wrapped in a long +mantle so as to leave but one of her eyes exposed, after the fashion of +the barbarians, came forth from the shadow of a column behind which +she had kept herself hidden during the conversation of the king and +his favourite, walked straight to Gyges, placed her finger upon his +shoulder, and made a sign to him to follow her. + + + + +CHAPTER V + +Statira, followed by Gyges, paused before a little door, of which she +raised the latch by pulling a silver ring attached to a leathern strap, +and commenced to ascend a stairway with rather high steps contrived +in the thickness of the wall. At the head of the stairway was a second +door, which she opened with a key wrought of ivory and brass. As soon as +Gyges entered she disappeared without any further explanation in regard +to what was expected of him. + +The curiosity of Gyges was mingled with uneasiness. He could form no +idea as to the significance of this mysterious message. He had a vague +fancy that he could recognise in the silent Iris one of Nyssia's women; +and the way by which she had made him follow her led to the queen's +apartments. He asked himself in terror whether he had been perceived in +his hiding-place or betrayed by Candaules, for both suppositions seemed +probable. + +At the idea that Nyssia knew all, he felt his face bedewed with a sweat +alternately burning and icy. He sought to fly, but the door had been +fastened upon him by Statira, and all escape was cut off; then he +advanced into the chamber, which was shadowed by heavy purple hangings, +and found himself face to face with Nyssia. He thought he beheld a +statue rise before him, such was her pallor. The hues of life had +abandoned her face; a feeble rose tint alone animated her lips; on her +tender temples a few almost imperceptible veins intercrossed their azure +network; tears had swollen her eyelids, and left shining furrows upon +the down of her cheeks; the chrysoprase tints of her eyes had lost their +intensity. She was even more beautiful and touching thus. Sorrow had +given soul to her marmorean beauty. + +Her disordered robe, scarcely fastened to her shoulders, left visible +her beautiful bare arms, her throat, and the commencement of her +death-white bosom. Like a warrior vanquished in his first conflict, her +beauty had laid down its arms. Of what use to her would have been the +draperies which conceal form, the tunics with their carefully fastened +folds? Did not Gyges know her? Wherefore defend what has been lost in +advance? + +She walked straight to Gyges, and fixing upon him an imperial look, +clear and commanding, said to him in a quick, abrupt voice: + +'Do not lie; seek no vain subterfuges; have at least the dignity and +courage of your crime. I know all; I saw you! Not a word of excuse. I +would not listen to it. Candaules himself concealed you behind the door. +Is it not so the thing happened? And you fancy, doubtless, that it +is all over? Unhappily I am not a Greek woman, pliant to the whims of +artists and voluptuaries. Nyssia will not serve for any one's toy. There +are now two men, one of whom is a man too much upon the earth. He must +disappear from it! Unless he dies, I cannot live. It will be either you +or Candaules. I leave you master of the choice. Kill him, avenge me, and +win by that murder both my hand and the throne of Lydia, or else shall +a prompt death henceforth prevent you from beholding, through a cowardly +complaisance, what you have not the right to look upon. He who commanded +is more culpable than he who has only obeyed; and, moreover, should +you become my husband, no one will have ever seen me without having the +right to do so. But make your decision at once, for two of those four +eyes in which my nudity has reflected itself must before this very +evening be for ever extinguished.' + +This strange alternative, proposed with a terrible coolness, with an +immutable resolution, so utterly surprised Gyges, who was expecting +reproaches, menaces, and a violent scene, that he remained for several +minutes without colour and without voice, livid as a shade on the shores +of the black rivers of hell. + +'I! to dip my hands in the blood of my master! Is it indeed you, O +queen, who demand of me so great a penalty? I comprehend all your anger, +I feel it to be just, and it was not my fault that this outrage took +place; but you know that kings are mighty, they descend from a divine +race. Our destinies repose on their august knees; and it is not +we, feeble mortals, who may hesitate at their commands. Their will +overthrows our refusal, as a dyke is swept away by a torrent By your +feet that I kiss, by the hem of your robe which I touch as a suppliant, +be clement! Forget this injury, which is known to none, and which shall +remain eternally buried in darkness and silence! Candaules worships you, +admires you, and his fault springs only from an excess of love.' + +'Were you addressing a sphinx of granite in the arid sands of Egypt, +you would have more chance of melting her. The winged words might fly +uninterruptedly from your lips for a whole Olympiad; you could not move +my resolution in the slightest. A heart of brass dwells in this marble +breast of mine. Die or kill! When the sunbeam which has passed through +the curtains shall touch the foot of this table let your choice have +been made. I wait.' + +And Nyssia crossed her arms upon her breast in an attitude replete with +sombre majesty. + +To behold her standing erect, motionless and pale, her eyes fixed, her +brows contracted, her hair in disorder, her foot firmly placed upon +the pavement, one would have taken her for Nemesis descended from her +griffin, and awaiting the hour to smite a guilty one. + +'The shadowy depths of Hades are visited by none with pleasure,' +answered Gyges. 'It is sweet to enjoy the pure light of day; and the +heroes themselves who dwell in the Fortunate Isles would gladly return +to their native land. Each man has the instinct of self-preservation, +and since blood must flow, let it be rather from the veins of another +than from mine.' + +To these sentiments, avowed by Gyges with antique frankness, were added +others more noble whereof he did not speak. He was desperately in love +with Nyssia and jealous of Candaules. It was not, therefore, the fear +of death alone that had induced him to undertake this bloody task. +The thought of leaving Candaules in free possession of Nyssia was +insupportable to him: and, moreover, the vertigo of fatality had seized +him. By a succession of irregular and terrible events he beheld himself +hurried toward the realisation of his dreams; a mighty wave had lifted +him and borne him on in despite of his efforts; Nyssia herself was +extending her hand to him, to help him to ascend the steps of the royal +throne. All this had caused him to forget that Candaules was his master +and his benefactor; for none can flee from Fate, and Necessity walks on +with nails in one hand and whip in the other, to stop your advance or to +urge you forward. + +'It is well,' replied Nyssia; 'here is the means of execution.' And she +drew from her bosom a Bactrian poniard, with a jade handle enriched with +inlaid circles of white gold. 'This blade is not made of brass, but with +iron difficult to work, tempered in flame and water, so that Hephaistos +himself could not forge one more keenly pointed or finely edged. +It would pierce, like thin papyrus, metal cuirasses and bucklers of +dragon's skin. + +'The time,' she continued, with the same icy coolness, 'shall be while +he slumbers. Let him sleep and wake no more!' + +Her accomplice, Gyges, hearkened to her words with stupefaction, for he +had never thought he could find such resolution in a woman who could not +bring herself to lift her veil. + +'The ambuscade shall be laid in the very same place where the infamous +one concealed you in order to expose me to your gaze. At the approach +of night I shall turn back one of the folding-doors upon you, undress +myself, lie down, and when he shall be asleep I will give you a signal. +Above all things, let there be no hesitancy, no feebleness; and take +heed that your hand does not tremble when the moment shall have come! +And now, for fear lest you might change your mind, I propose to make +sure of your person until the fatal hour. You might attempt to escape, +to forewarn your master. Do not think to do so.' + +Nyssia whistled in a peculiar way, and immediately from behind a +Persian tapestry embroidered with flowers, there appeared four monsters, +swarthy, clad in robes diagonally striped, which left visible arms +muscled and gnarled as trunks of oaks. Their thick pouting lips, the +gold rings which they wore through the partition of their nostrils, +their great teeth sharp as the fangs of wolves, the expression of stupid +servility on their faces, rendered them hideous to behold. + +The queen pronounced some words in a language unknown to Gyges, +doubtless in Bactrian, and the four slaves rushed upon the young man, +seized him, and carried him away, even as a nurse might carry off a +child in the fold of her robe. + +Now, what were Nyssia's real thoughts? Had she, indeed, noticed Gyges at +the time of her meeting with him near Bactria, and preserved some memory +of the young captain in one of those secret recesses of the heart where +even the most virtuous women always have something buried? Was the +desire to avenge her modesty goaded by some other unacknowledged desire? +And if Gyges had not been the handsomest young man in all Asia would she +have evinced the same ardour in punishing Candaules for having outraged +the sanctity of marriage? That is a delicate question to resolve, +especially after a lapse of three thousand years; and although we have +consulted Herodotus, Hephaestion, Plato, Dositheus, Archilochus of Paros, +Hesychius of Miletus, Ptolomaeus, Euphorion, and all who have spoken +either at length or in only a few words concerning Candaules, Nyssia, +and Gyges, we have been unable to arrive at any definite conclusion. To +pursue so fleeting a shadow through so many centuries, under the ruins +of so many crumpled empires, under the dust of departed nations, is a +work of extreme difficulty, not to say impossibility. + +At all events, Nyssia's resolution was implacably taken; this murder +appeared to her in the light of the accomplishment of a sacred duty. +Among the barbarian nations every man who has surprised a woman in her +nakedness is put to death. The queen believed herself exercising her +right; only inasmuch as the injury had been secret, she was doing +herself justice as best she could. The passive accomplice would become +the executioner of the other, and the punishment would thus spring from +the crime itself. The hand would chastise the head. + +The olive-tinted monsters shut Gyges up in an obscure portion of the +palace, whence it was impossible that he could escape, or that his cries +could be heard. + +He passed the remainder of the day there in a state of cruel anxiety, +accusing the hours of being lame, and again of walking too speedily. The +crime which he was about to commit, although he was only, in some sort, +the instrument of it, and though he was only yielding to an irresistible +influence, presented itself to his mind in the most sombre colours. If +the blow should miss through one of those circumstances which none could +foresee? If the people of Sardes should revolt and seek to avenge +the death of the king? Such were the very sensible though useless +reflections which Gyges made while waiting to be taken from his prison +and led to the place whence he could only depart to strike his master. + +At last the night unfolded her starry robe in the sky, and its shadow +fell upon the city and the palace. A light footstep became audible, +a veiled woman entered the room and conducted him through the obscure +corridors and multiplied mazes of the royal edifice with as much +confidence as though she had been preceded by a slave bearing a lamp or +a torch. + +The hand which held that of Gyges was cold, soft, and small; +nevertheless those slender fingers clasped it with a bruising force, +as the fingers of some statue of brass animated by a prodigy would +have done. The rigidity of an inflexible will betrayed itself in that +ever-equal pressure as of a vice--a pressure which no hesitation of head +or heart came to vary. Gyges, conquered, subjugated, crushed, yielded to +that imperious traction, as though he were borne along by the mighty arm +of Fate. + +Alas! it was not thus he had wished to touch for the first time that +fair royal hand, which had presented the poniard to him, and was leading +him to murder, for it was Nyssia herself who had come for Gyges, to +conceal him in the place of ambuscade. + +No word was exchanged between the sinister couple on the way from the +prison to the nuptial chamber. + +The queen unfastened the thongs, raised the bar of the entrance, and +placed Gyges behind the folding-door as Candaules had done the evening +previous. This repetition of the same acts, with so different a purpose, +had something of a lugubrious and fatal character. Vengeance, this +time, had placed her foot upon every track left by the insult. The +chastisement and the crime alike followed the same path. Yesterday it +was the turn of Candaules, to-day it was that of Nyssia; and Gyges, +accomplice in the injury, was also accomplice in the penalty. He had +served the king to dishonour the queen; he would serve the queen to kill +the king, equally exposed by the vices of the one and the virtues of the +other. + +The daughter of Megabazus seemed to feel a savage joy, a ferocious +pleasure, in employing only the same means chosen by the Lydian king, +and turning to account for the murder those very precautions which had +been adopted for voluptuous fantasy. + +'You will again this evening see me take off these garments which are +so displeasing to Candaules. This spectacle should become wearisome to +you,' said the queen in accents of bitter irony, as she stood on the +threshold of the chamber; 'you will end by finding me ugly.' And +a sardonic, forced laugh momentarily curled her pale mouth; then, +regaining her impassible severity of mien, she continued: 'Do not +imagine you will be able to steal away this time as you did before; +you know my sight is piercing. At the slightest movement on your part I +shall awake Candaules; and you know that it will not be easy for you to +explain what you are doing in the king's apartments, behind a door, with +a poniard in your hand. Further, my Bactrian slaves, the copper-coloured +mutes who imprisoned you a short time ago, guard all the issues of +the palace, with orders to massacre you should you attempt to go out. +Therefore let no vain scruples of fidelity cause you to hesitate. Think +that I will make you King of Sardes, and that... I will love you if you +avenge me. The blood of Candaules will be your purple, and his death +will make for you a place in that bed.' + +The slaves came according to their custom to change the fuel in the +tripod, renew the oil in the lamps, spread tapestry and the skins of +animals upon the royal couch; and Nyssia hurried into the chamber as +soon as she heard their footsteps resounding in the distance. + +In a short time Candaules arrived all joyous. He had purchased the bed +of Ikmalius and proposed to substitute it for the bed wrought after the +Oriental fashion, which he declared had never been much to his taste. +He seemed pleased to find that Nyssia had already retired to the nuptial +chamber. + +'The trade of embroidery, and spindles, and needles seems not to have +the same attraction for you to-day as usual. In fact, it is a monotonous +labour to perpetually pass one thread between other threads, and I +wonder at the pleasure which you seem ordinarily to take in it. To tell +the truth, I am afraid that some fine day Pallas-Athene, on finding you +so skilful, will break her shuttle over your head as she once did to +poor Arachne.' + +'My lord, I felt somewhat tired this evening, and so came downstairs +sooner than usual. Would you not like before going to sleep to drink +a cup of black Samian wine mixed with the honey of Hymettus?' And +she poured from a golden urn, into a cup of the same metal, the +sombre-coloured beverage which she had mingled with the soporiferous +juice of the nepenthe. + +Candaules took the cup by both handles and drained it to the last drop; +but the young Heracleid had a strong head, and sinking his elbow into +the cushions of his couch he watched Nyssia undressing without any sign +that the dust of sleep was commencing to gather upon his eyes. + +As on the evening before, Nyssia unfastened her hair and permitted its +rich blond waves to ripple over her shoulders. From his hiding-place +Gyges fancied that he saw those locks slowly becoming suffused with +tawny tints, illuminated with reflections of blood and flame; and their +heavy curls seemed to lengthen with viperine undulations, like the hair +of the Gorgons and Medusas. + +All simple and graceful as that action was in itself, it took from the +terrible events about to transpire a frightful and ominous character, +which caused the hidden assassin to shudder with terror. + +Nyssia then unfastened her bracelets, but agitated as her hands had been +by nervous straining, they ill served her will. She broke the string +of a bracelet of beads of amber inlaid with gold, which rolled over +the floor with a loud noise, causing Candaules to reopen his gradually +closing eyes. + +Each one of those beads fell upon the heart of Gyges as a drop of molten +lead falls upon water. + +Having unlaced her buskins, the queen threw her upper tunic over the +back of an ivory chair. This drapery, thus arranged, produced upon Gyges +the effect of one of those sinister-folding winding-sheets wherein the +dead were wrapped ere being borne to the funeral pyre. Every object +in that room, which had the evening before seemed to him one scene of +smiling splendour, now appeared to him livid, dim, and menacing. The +statues of basalt rolled their eyes and smiled hideously. The lamp +flickered weirdly, and its flame dishevelled itself in red and sanguine +rays like the crest of a comet. Far back in the dimly lighted corners +loomed the monstrous forms of the Lares and Lemures. The mantles hanging +from their hooks seemed animated by a factitious life, and assumed a +human aspect of vitality; and when Nyssia stripped of her last garment, +approached the bed, all white and naked as a shade, he thought that +Death herself had broken the diamond fetters wherewith Hercules of old +enchained her at the gates of hell when he delivered Alcestes, and had +come in person to take possession of Candaules. + +Overcome by the power of the nepenthe-juice, the king at last slumbered. +Nyssia made a sign for Gyges to come forth from his retreat; and +laying her finger upon the breast of the victim, she directed upon her +accomplice a look so humid, so lustrous, so weighty with languishment, +so replete with intoxicating promise, that Gyges, maddened and +fascinated, sprang from his hiding-place like the tiger from the summit +of the rock where it has been couching, traversed the chamber at a +bound, and plunged the Bactrian poniard up to the very hilt in the heart +of the descendant of Hercules. The chastity of Nyssia was avenged, and +the dream of Gyges accomplished. + +Thus ended the dynasty of the Heracleidae, after having endured for +five hundred and five years, and commenced that of the Mermnades in the +person of Gyges, son of Dascylus. The Sardians, indignant at the +death of Candaules, threatened revolt; but the oracle of Delphi having +declared in favour of Gyges, who had sent thither a vast number of +silver vases and six golden cratera of the value of thirty talents, the +new king maintained his seat on the throne of Lydia, which he occupied +for many long years, lived happily, and never showed his wife to any +one, knowing too well what it cost. + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of King Candaules, by Theophile Gautier + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KING CANDAULES *** + +***** This file should be named 22660.txt or 22660.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/2/2/6/6/22660/ + +Produced by David Widger + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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