The Odyssey of Homer Part 20

I bade them land me on the Pylian sh.o.r.e, Or in fair Elis by th' Epeans ruled, But they, reluctant, were by violent winds Driv'n devious thence, for fraud they purposed none. 330 Thus through constraint we here arrived by night, And with much difficulty push'd the ship Into safe harbour, nor was mention made Of food by any, though all needed food, But, disembark'd in haste, on sh.o.r.e we lay.

I, weary, slept profound, and they my goods Forth heaving from the bark, beside me placed The treasures on the sea-beach where I slept, Then, reimbarking, to the populous coast Steer'd of Sidonia, and me left forlorn. 340 He ceased; then smiled Minerva azure-eyed And stroaked his cheek, in form a woman now, Beauteous, majestic, in all elegant arts Accomplish'd, and with accents wing'd replied.

Who pa.s.ses thee in artifice well-framed And in imposture various, need shall find Of all his policy, although a G.o.d.

Canst thou not cease, inventive as thou art And subtle, from the wiles which thou hast lov'd Since thou wast infant, and from tricks of speech 350 Delusive, even in thy native land?

But come, dismiss we these ingenious shifts From our discourse, in which we both excel; For thou of all men in expedients most Abound'st and eloquence, and I, throughout All heav'n have praise for wisdom and for art.

And know'st thou not thine Athenaean aid, Pallas, Jove's daughter, who in all thy toils a.s.sist thee and defend? I gave thee pow'r T' engage the hearts of all Phaeacia's sons, 360 And here arrive ev'n now, counsels to frame Discrete with thee, and to conceal the stores Giv'n to thee by the rich Phaeacian Chiefs On my suggestion, at thy going thence.

I will inform thee also what distress And hardship under thy own palace-roof Thou must endure; which, since constraint enjoins, Bear patiently, and neither man apprize Nor woman that thou hast arrived forlorn And vagabond, but silent undergo 370 What wrongs soever from the hands of men.

To whom Ulysses, ever-wise, replied.

O G.o.ddess! thou art able to elude, Wherever met, the keenest eye of man, For thou all shapes a.s.sum'st; yet this I know Certainly, that I ever found thee kind, Long as Achaia's Heroes fought at Troy; But when (the lofty tow'rs of Priam laid In dust) we re-embark'd, and by the will Of heav'n Achaia's fleet was scatter'd wide, 380 Thenceforth, O daughter wise of Jove, I thee Saw not, nor thy appearance in my ship Once mark'd, to rid me of my num'rous woes, But always bearing in my breast a heart With anguish riv'n, I roam'd, till by the G.o.ds Relieved at length, and till with gracious words Thyself didst in Phaeacia's opulent land Confirm my courage, and becam'st my guide.

But I adjure thee in thy father's name-- O tell me truly, (for I cannot hope 390 That I have reach'd fair Ithaca; I tread Some other soil, and thou affirm'st it mine To mock me merely, and deceive) oh say-- Am I in Ithaca? in truth, at home?

Thus then Minerva the caerulean-eyed.

Such caution in thy breast always prevails Distrustful; but I know thee eloquent, With wisdom and with ready thought endued, And cannot leave thee, therefore, thus distress'd For what man, save Ulysses, new-return'd 400 After long wand'rings, would not pant to see At once his home, his children, and his wife?

But thou preferr'st neither to know nor ask Concerning them, till some experience first Thou make of her whose wasted youth is spent In barren solitude, and who in tears Ceaseless her nights and woeful days consumes.

I ne'er was ignorant, but well foreknew That not till after loss of all thy friends Thou should'st return; but loth I was to oppose 410 Neptune, my father's brother, sore incensed For his son's sake deprived of sight by thee.

But, I will give thee proof--come now--survey These marks of Ithaca, and be convinced.

This is the port of Phorcys, sea-born sage; That, the huge olive at the haven's head; Fast by it, thou behold'st the pleasant cove Umbrageous, to the nymphs devoted named The Naiads; this the broad-arch'd cavern is Where thou wast wont to offer to the nymphs 420 Many a whole hecatomb; and yonder stands The mountain Neritus with forests cloath'd.

So saying, the G.o.ddess scatter'd from before His eyes all darkness, and he knew the land.

Then felt Ulysses, Hero toil-inured, Transport unutterable, seeing plain Once more his native isle. He kiss'd the glebe, And with uplifted hands the nymphs ador'd.

Nymphs, Naiads, Jove's own daughters! I despair'd To see you more, whom yet with happy vows 430 I now can hail again. Gifts, as of old, We will hereafter at your shrines present, If Jove-born Pallas, huntress of the spoils, Grant life to me, and manhood to my son.

Then Pallas, blue-eyed progeny of Jove.

Take courage; trouble not thy mind with thoughts Now needless. Haste--delay not--far within This hallow'd cave's recess place we at once Thy precious stores, that they may thine remain, Then muse together on thy wisest course. 440 So saying, the G.o.ddess enter'd deep the cave Caliginous, and its secret nooks explored From side to side; meantime, Ulysses brought All his stores into it, the gold, the bra.s.s, And robes magnificent, his gifts received From the Phaeacians; safe he lodg'd them all, And Pallas, daughter of Jove aegis-arm'd, Closed fast, herself, the cavern with a stone.

Then, on the consecrated olive's root Both seated, they in consultation plann'd 450 The deaths of those injurious suitors proud, And Pallas, blue-eyed G.o.ddess, thus began.

Laertes' n.o.ble son, Ulysses! think By what means likeliest thou shalt a.s.sail Those shameless suitors, who have now controuled Three years thy family, thy matchless wife With language amorous and with spousal gifts Urging importunate; but she, with tears Watching thy wish'd return, hope gives to all By messages of promise sent to each, 460 Framing far other purposes the while.

Then answer thus Ulysses wise return'd.

Ah, Agamemnon's miserable fate Had surely met me in my own abode, But for thy gracious warning, pow'r divine!

Come then--Devise the means; teach me, thyself, The way to vengeance, and my soul inspire With daring fort.i.tude, as when we loos'd Her radiant frontlet from the brows of Troy.

Would'st thou with equal zeal, O Pallas! aid 470 Thy servant here, I would encounter thrice An hundred enemies, let me but perceive Thy dread divinity my prompt ally.

Him answer'd then Pallas caerulean-eyed.

And such I will be; not unmark'd by me, (Let once our time of enterprize arrive) Shalt thou a.s.sail them. Many, as I judge, Of those proud suitors who devour thy wealth Shall leave their brains, then, on thy palace floor.

But come. Behold! I will disguise thee so 480 That none shall know thee! I will parch the skin On thy fair body; I will cause thee shed Thy wavy locks; I will enfold thee round In such a kirtle as the eyes of all Shall loath to look on; and I will deform With blurring rheums thy eyes, so vivid erst; So shall the suitors deem thee, and thy wife, And thy own son whom thou didst leave at home, Some sordid wretch obscure. But seek thou first Thy swine-herd's mansion; he, alike, intends 490 Thy good, and loves, affectionate, thy son And thy Penelope; thou shalt find the swain Tending his herd; they feed beneath the rock Corax, at side of Arethusa's fount, On acorns dieted, nutritious food To them, and drinking of the limpid stream.

There waiting, question him of thy concerns, While I from Sparta praised for women fair Call home thy son Telemachus, a guest With Menelaus now, whom to consult 500 In s.p.a.cious Lacedaemon he is gone, Anxious to learn if yet his father lives.

To whom Ulysses, ever-wise, replied.

And why, alas! all-knowing as thou art, Him left'st thou ignorant? was it that he, He also, wand'ring wide the barren Deep, Might suffer woe, while these devour his wealth?

Him answer'd then Pallas caerulean-eyed.

Grieve thou not much for him. I sent him forth Myself, that there arrived, he might acquire 510 Honour and fame. No suff'rings finds he there, But in Atrides' palace safe resides, Enjoying all abundance. Him, in truth, The suitors watch close ambush'd on the Deep, Intent to slay him ere he reach his home, But shall not as I judge, till of themselves The earth hide some who make thee, now, a prey.

So saying, the G.o.ddess touch'd him with a wand.

At once o'er all his agile limbs she parch'd The polish'd skin; she wither'd to the root 520 His wavy locks; and cloath'd him with the hide Deform'd of wrinkled age; she charged with rheums His eyes before so vivid, and a cloak And kirtle gave him, tatter'd, both, and foul, And s.m.u.tch'd with smoak; then, casting over all An huge old deer-skin bald, with a long staff She furnish'd him, and with a wallet patch'd On all sides, dangling by a twisted thong.

Thus all their plan adjusted, diff'rent ways They took, and she, seeking Ulysses' son, 530 To Lacedaemon's s.p.a.cious realm repair'd.

FOOTNOTES:

[59] ?e??? e??? ?????????.

[60] Homer dates all the fictions of Ulysses from Crete, as if he meant to pa.s.s a similar censure on the Cretans to that quoted by St.

Paul--???te? ae? ?e?sa?.

BOOK XIV

ARGUMENT

Ulysses arriving at the house of Eumaeus, is hospitably entertained, and spends the night there.

Leaving the haven-side, he turn'd his steps Into a rugged path, which over hills Mantled with trees led him to the abode By Pallas mention'd of his n.o.ble friend[61]

The swine-herd, who of all Ulysses' train Watch'd with most diligence his rural stores.

Him sitting in the vestibule he found Of his own airy lodge commodious, built Amidst a level lawn. That structure neat Eumaeus, in the absence of his Lord, 10 Had raised, himself, with stones from quarries hewn, Unaided by Laertes or the Queen.

With tangled thorns he fenced it safe around, And with contiguous stakes riv'n from the trunks Of solid oak black-grain'd hemm'd it without.

Twelve penns he made within, all side by side, Lairs for his swine, and fast-immured in each Lay fifty pregnant females on the floor.

The males all slept without, less num'rous far, Thinn'd by the princely wooers at their feasts 20 Continual, for to them he ever sent The fattest of his saginated charge.

Three hundred, still, and sixty brawns remained.

Four mastiffs in adjoining kennels lay, Resembling wild-beasts nourish'd at the board Of the ill.u.s.trious steward of the styes.

Himself sat fitting sandals to his feet, Carved from a stain'd ox-hide. Four hinds he kept, Now busied here and there; three in the penns Were occupied; meantime, the fourth had sought 30 The city, whither, for the suitors' use, With no good will, but by constraint, he drove A boar, that, sacrificing to the G.o.ds, Th' imperious guests might on his flesh regale.

Soon as those clamorous watch-dogs the approach Saw of Ulysses, baying loud, they ran Toward him; he, as ever, well-advised, Squatted, and let his staff fall from his hand.

Yet foul indignity he had endured Ev'n there, at his own farm, but that the swain, 40 Following his dogs in haste, sprang through the porch To his a.s.sistance, letting fall the hide.

With chiding voice and vollied stones he soon Drove them apart, and thus his Lord bespake.

Old man! one moment more, and these my dogs Had, past doubt, worried thee, who should'st have proved, So slain, a source of obloquy to me.

But other pangs the G.o.ds, and other woes To me have giv'n, who here lamenting sit My G.o.dlike master, and his fatted swine 50 Nourish for others' use, while he, perchance, A wand'rer in some foreign city, seeks Fit sustenance, and none obtains, if still Indeed he live, and view the light of day.

But, old friend! follow me into the house, That thou, at least, with plenteous food refresh'd, And cheer'd with wine sufficient, may'st disclose Both who thou art, and all that thou hast borne.

So saying, the gen'rous swine-herd introduced Ulysses, and thick bundles spread of twigs 60 Beneath him, cover'd with the s.h.a.ggy skin Of a wild goat, of which he made his couch Easy and large; the Hero, so received, Rejoiced, and thus his grat.i.tude express'd.

Jove grant thee and the G.o.ds above, my host, For such beneficence thy chief desire!

To whom, Eumaeus, thou didst thus reply.

My guest! I should offend, treating with scorn The stranger, though a poorer should arrive Than ev'n thyself; for all the poor that are, 70 And all the strangers are the care of Jove.

Little, and with good will, is all that lies Within my scope; no man can much expect From servants living in continual fear Under young masters; for the G.o.ds, no doubt, Have intercepted my own Lord's return, From whom great kindness I had, else, received, With such a recompense as servants gain From gen'rous masters, house and competence, And lovely wife from many a wooer won, 80 Whose industry should have requited well His goodness, with such blessing from the G.o.ds As now attends me in my present charge.

Much had I, therefore, prosper'd, had my Lord Grown old at home; but he hath died--I would That the whole house of Helen, one and all, Might perish too, for she hath many slain Who, like my master, went glory to win For Agamemnon in the fields of Troy.

So saying, he girdled, quick, his tunic close, 90 And, issuing, sought the styes; thence bringing two Of the imprison'd herd, he slaughter'd both, Singed them, and slash'd and spitted them, and placed The whole well-roasted banquet, spits and all, Reeking before Ulysses; last, with flour He sprinkled them, and filling with rich wine His ivy goblet, to his master sat Opposite, whom inviting thus he said.

Now, eat, my guest! such as a servant may I set before thee, neither large of growth 100 Nor fat; the fatted--those the suitors eat, Fearless of heav'n, and pitiless of man.

Yet deeds unjust as theirs the blessed G.o.ds Love not; they honour equity and right.

Even an hostile band when they invade A foreign sh.o.r.e, which by consent of Jove They plunder, and with laden ships depart, Even they with terrours quake of wrath divine.

But these are wiser; these must sure have learn'd From some true oracle my master's death, 110 Who neither deign with decency to woo, Nor yet to seek their homes, but boldly waste His substance, shameless, now, and sparing nought.

Jove ne'er hath giv'n us yet the night or day When with a single victim, or with two They would content them, and his empty jars Witness how fast the squand'rers use his wine.

Time was, when he was rich indeed; such wealth No Hero own'd on yonder continent, Nor yet in Ithaca; no twenty Chiefs 120 Could match with all their treasures his alone; I tell thee their amount. Twelve herds of his The mainland graze;[62] as many flocks of sheep; As many droves of swine; and hirelings there And servants of his own seed for his use, As many num'rous flocks of goats; his goats, (Not fewer than eleven num'rous flocks) Here also graze the margin of his fields Under the eye of servants well-approved, And ev'ry servant, ev'ry day, brings home 130 The goat, of all his flock largest and best.

But as for me, I have these swine in charge, Of which, selected with exactest care From all the herd, I send the prime to them.

He ceas'd, meantime Ulysses ate and drank Voracious, meditating, mute, the death Of those proud suitors. His repast, at length, Concluded, and his appet.i.te sufficed, Eumaeus gave him, charged with wine, the cup From which he drank himself; he, glad, received 140 The boon, and in wing'd accents thus began.

My friend, and who was he, wealthy and brave As thou describ'st the Chief, who purchased thee?

Thou say'st he perish'd for the glory-sake Of Agamemnon. Name him; I, perchance, May have beheld the Hero. None can say But Jove and the inhabitants of heav'n That I ne'er saw him, and may not impart News of him; I have roam'd through many a clime.

To whom the n.o.ble swine-herd thus replied. 150 Alas, old man! no trav'ler's tale of him Will gain his consort's credence, or his son's; For wand'rers, wanting entertainment, forge Falsehoods for bread, and wilfully deceive.

No wand'rer lands in Ithaca, but he seeks With feign'd intelligence my mistress' ear; She welcomes all, and while she questions each Minutely, from her lids lets fall the tear Affectionate, as well beseems a wife Whose mate hath perish'd in a distant land. 160 Thou could'st thyself, no doubt, my h.o.a.ry friend!

(Would any furnish thee with decent vest And mantle) fabricate a tale with ease; Yet sure it is that dogs and fowls, long since, His skin have stript, or fishes of the Deep Have eaten him, and on some distant sh.o.r.e Whelm'd in deep sands his mould'ring bones are laid.

So hath he perish'd; whence, to all his friends, But chiefly to myself, sorrow of heart; For such another Lord, gentle as he, 170 Wherever sought, I have no hope to find, Though I should wander even to the house Of my own father. Neither yearns my heart So feelingly (though that desiring too) To see once more my parents and my home, As to behold Ulysses yet again.

Ah stranger; absent as he is, his name Fills me with rev'rence, for he lov'd me much, Cared for me much, and, though we meet no more, Holds still an elder brother's part in me. 180 Him answer'd, then, the Hero toil-inured.

My friend! since his return, in thy account, Is an event impossible, and thy mind Always incredulous that hope rejects, I shall not slightly speak, but with an oath-- Ulysses comes again; and I demand No more, than that the boon such news deserves, Be giv'n me soon as he shall reach his home.

Then give me vest and mantle fit to wear, Which, ere that hour, much as I need them both, 190 I neither ask, nor will accept from thee.

For him whom poverty can force aside From truth--I hate him as the gates of h.e.l.l.

Be Jove, of all in heav'n, my witness first, Then, this thy hospitable board, and, last, The household G.o.ds of the ill.u.s.trious Chief Himself, Ulysses, to whose gates I go, That all my words shall surely be fulfill'd.

In this same year Ulysses shall arrive, Ere, this month closed, another month succeed, 200 He shall return, and punish all who dare Insult his consort and his n.o.ble son.

To whom Eumaeus, thou didst thus reply.