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Complete Works of Homer

Page 447

by Homer


  No pow'r to bend it. Disappointment wrung

  A groan from his proud heart, and thus he said.

  Alas! not only for myself I grieve,

  But grieve for all. Nor, though I mourn the loss

  Of such a bride, mourn I that loss alone,

  (For lovely Greecians may be found no few

  In Ithaca, and in the neighbour isles) 300

  But should we so inferior prove at last

  To brave Ulysses, that no force of ours

  Can bend his bow, we are for ever shamed.

  To whom Antinoüs, thus, Eupithes' son.

  Not so; (as even thou art well-assured

  Thyself, Eurymachus!) but Phœbus claims

  This day his own. Who then, on such a day,

  Would strive to bend it? Let it rather rest.

  And should we leave the rings where now they stand,

  I trust that none ent'ring Ulysses' house 310

  Will dare displace them. Cup-bearer, attend!

  Serve all with wine, that, first, libation made,

  We may religiously lay down the bow.

  Command ye too Melanthius, that he drive

  Hither the fairest goats of all his flocks

  At dawn of day, that burning first, the thighs

  To the ethereal archer, we may make

  New trial, and decide, at length, the strife.

  So spake Antinoüs, and his counsel pleased.

  The heralds, then, pour'd water on their hands, 320

  While youths crown'd high the goblets which they bore

  From right to left, distributing to all.

  When each had made libation, and had drunk

  Till well sufficed, then, artful to effect

  His shrewd designs, Ulysses thus began.

  Hear, O ye suitors of the illustrious Queen,

  My bosom's dictates. But I shall entreat

  Chiefly Eurymachus and the godlike youth

  Antinoüs, whose advice is wisely giv'n.

  Tamper no longer with the bow, but leave 330

  The matter with the Gods, who shall decide

  The strife to-morrow, fav'ring whom they will.

  Meantime, grant _me_ the polish'd bow, that I

  May trial make among you of my force,

  If I retain it still in like degree

  As erst, or whether wand'ring and defect

  Of nourishment have worn it all away.

  He said, whom they with indignation heard

  Extreme, alarm'd lest he should bend the bow,

  And sternly thus Antinoüs replied. 340

  Desperate vagabond! ah wretch deprived

  Of reason utterly! art not content?

  Esteem'st it not distinction proud enough

  To feast with us the nobles of the land?

  None robs thee of thy share, thou witnessest

  Our whole discourse, which, save thyself alone,

  No needy vagrant is allow'd to hear.

  Thou art befool'd by wine, as many have been,

  Wide-throated drinkers, unrestrain'd by rule.

  Wine in the mansion of the mighty Chief 350

  Pirithoüs, made the valiant Centaur mad

  Eurytion, at the Lapithæan feast.

  He drank to drunkenness, and being drunk,

  Committed great enormities beneath

  Pirithoüs' roof, and such as fill'd with rage

  The Hero-guests; who therefore by his feet

  Dragg'd him right through the vestibule, amerced

  Of nose and ears, and he departed thence

  Provoked to frenzy by that foul disgrace,

  Whence war between the human kind arose 360

  And the bold Centaurs--but he first incurred

  By his ebriety that mulct severe.

  Great evil, also, if thou bend the bow,

  To thee I prophesy; for thou shalt find

  Advocate or protector none in all

  This people, but we will dispatch thee hence

  Incontinent on board a sable bark

  To Echetus, the scourge of human kind,

  From whom is no escape. Drink then in peace,

  And contest shun with younger men than thou. 370

  Him answer'd, then, Penelope discrete.

  Antinoüs! neither seemly were the deed

  Nor just, to maim or harm whatever guest

  Whom here arrived Telemachus receives.

  Canst thou expect, that should he even prove

  Stronger than ye, and bend the massy bow,

  He will conduct me hence to his own home,

  And make me his own bride? No such design

  His heart conceives, or hope; nor let a dread

  So vain the mind of any overcloud 380

  Who banquets here, since it dishonours me.

  So she; to whom Eurymachus reply'd,

  Offspring of Polybus. O matchless Queen!

  Icarius' prudent daughter! none suspects

  That thou wilt wed with him; a mate so mean

  Should ill become thee; but we fear the tongues

  Of either sex, lest some Achaian say

  Hereafter, (one inferior far to us)

  Ah! how unworthy are they to compare

  With him whose wife they seek! to bend his bow 390

  Pass'd all their pow'r, yet this poor vagabond,

  Arriving from what country none can tell,

  Bent it with ease, and shot through all the rings.

  So will they speak, and so shall we be shamed.

  Then answer, thus, Penelope return'd.

  No fair report, Eurymachus, attends

  Their names or can, who, riotous as ye,

  The house dishonour, and consume the wealth

  Of such a Chief. Why shame ye thus _yourselves_?

  The guest is of athletic frame, well form'd, 400

  And large of limb; he boasts him also sprung

  From noble ancestry. Come then--consent--

  Give him the bow, that we may see the proof;

  For thus I say, and thus will I perform;

  Sure as he bends it, and Apollo gives

  To him that glory, tunic fair and cloak

  Shall be his meed from me, a javelin keen

  To guard him against men and dogs, a sword

  Of double edge, and sandals for his feet,

  And I will send him whither most he would. 410

  Her answer'd then prudent Telemachus.

  Mother--the bow is mine; and, save myself,

  No Greek hath right to give it, or refuse.

  None who in rock-bound Ithaca possess

  Dominion, none in the steed-pastured isles

  Of Elis, if I chose to make the bow

  His own for ever, should that choice controul.

  But thou into the house repairing, ply

  Spindle and loom, thy province, and enjoin

  Diligence to thy maidens; for the bow 420

  Is man's concern alone, and shall be mine

  Especially, since I am master here.

  She heard astonish'd, and the prudent speech

  Reposing of her son deep in her heart,

  Withdrew; then mounting with her female train

  To her superior chamber, there she wept

  Her lost Ulysses, till Minerva bathed

  With balmy dews of sleep her weary lids.

  And now the noble swine-herd bore the bow

  Toward Ulysses, but with one voice all 430

  The suitors, clamorous, reproved the deed,

  Of whom a youth, thus, insolent exclaim'd.

  Thou clumsy swine-herd, whither bear'st the bow,

  Delirious wretch? the hounds that thou hast train'd

  Shall eat thee at thy solitary home

  Ere long, let but Apollo prove, at last,

  Propitious to us, and the Pow'rs of heav'n.

  So they, whom hearing he replaced the bow

  Where erst it stood, terrified at the sound

  Of such loud menaces;
on the other side 440

  Telemachus as loud assail'd his ear.

  Friend! forward with the bow; or soon repent

  That thou obey'dst the many. I will else

  With huge stones drive thee, younger as I am,

  Back to the field. My strength surpasses thine.

  I would to heav'n that I in force excell'd

  As far, and prowess, every suitor here!

  So would I soon give rude dismission hence

  To some, who live but to imagine harm.

  He ceased, whose words the suitors laughing heard. 450

  And, for their sake, in part their wrath resign'd

  Against Telemachus; then through the hall

  Eumæus bore, and to Ulysses' hand

  Consign'd the bow; next, summoning abroad

  The ancient nurse, he gave her thus in charge.

  It is the pleasure of Telemachus,

  Sage Euryclea! that thou key secure

  The doors; and should you hear, perchance, a groan

  Or other noise made by the Princes shut

  Within the hall, let none look, curious, forth, 460

  But each in quietness pursue her work.

  So he; nor flew his words useless away,

  But she, incontinent, shut fast the doors.

  Then, noiseless, sprang Philœtius forth, who closed

  The portals also of the palace-court.

  A ship-rope of Ægyptian reed, it chanced,

  Lay in the vestibule; with that he braced

  The doors securely, and re-entring fill'd

  Again his seat, but watchful, eyed his Lord.

  He, now, assaying with his hand the bow, 470

  Made curious trial of it ev'ry way,

  And turn'd it on all sides, lest haply worms

  Had in its master's absence drill'd the horn.

  Then thus a suitor to his next remark'd.

  He hath an eye, methinks, exactly skill'd

  In bows, and steals them; or perhaps, at home,

  Hath such himself, or feels a strong desire

  To make them; so inquisitive the rogue

  Adept in mischief, shifts it to and fro!

  To whom another, insolent, replied. 480

  I wish him like prosperity in all

  His efforts, as attends his effort made

  On this same bow, which he shall never bend.

  So they; but when the wary Hero wise

  Had made his hand familiar with the bow

  Poising it and examining--at once--

  As when in harp and song adept, a bard

  Unlab'ring strains the chord to a new lyre,

  The twisted entrails of a sheep below

  With fingers nice inserting, and above, 490

  With such facility Ulysses bent

  His own huge bow, and with his right hand play'd

  The nerve, which in its quick vibration sang

  Clear as the swallow's voice. Keen anguish seized

  The suitors, wan grew ev'ry cheek, and Jove

  Gave him his rolling thunder for a sign.

  That omen, granted to him by the son

  Of wily Saturn, with delight he heard.

  He took a shaft that at the table-side

  Lay ready drawn; but in his quiver's womb 500

  The rest yet slept, by those Achaians proud

  To be, ere long, experienced. True he lodg'd

  The arrow on the centre of the bow,

  And, occupying still his seat, drew home

  Nerve and notch'd arrow-head; with stedfast sight

  He aimed and sent it; right through all the rings

  From first to last the steel-charged weapon flew

  Issuing beyond, and to his son he spake.

  Thou need'st not blush, young Prince, to have received

  A guest like me; neither my arrow swerved, 510

  Nor labour'd I long time to draw the bow;

  My strength is unimpair'd, not such as these

  In scorn affirm it. But the waning day

  Calls us to supper, after which succeeds

  Jocund variety, the song, the harp,

  With all that heightens and adorns the feast.

  He said, and with his brows gave him the sign.

  At once the son of the illustrious Chief

  Slung his keen faulchion, grasp'd his spear, and stood

  Arm'd bright for battle at his father's side. 520

  FOOTNOTES:

  A province of Laconia.

  The reader will of course observe, that the whole of this process

  implies a sort of mechanism very different from that with which we are

  acquainted.--The translation, I believe, is exact.

  This first attempt of Telemachus and the suitors was not an attempt

  to shoot, but to lodge the bow-string on the opposite horn, the bow

  having been released at one end, and slackened while it was laid by.

  Antinoüs prescribes to them this manner of rising to the trial for

  the good omen's sake, the left-hand being held unpropitious.

  The δεσμὸς seems to have been a strap designed to close the only

  aperture by which the bolt could be displaced, and the door opened.

  When Pirithoüs, one of the Lapithæ, married Hippodamia, daughter of

  Adrastus, he invited the Centaurs to the wedding. The Centaurs,

  intoxicated with wine, attempted to ravish the wives of the Lapithæ, who

  in resentment of that insult, slew them.

  This is an instance of the Σαρδανιον μαλα τοιον mentioned in Book

  XX.; such as, perhaps, could not be easily paralleled. I question if

  there be a passage, either in ancient or modern tragedy, so truly

  terrible as this seeming levity of Ulysses, in the moment when he was

  going to begin the slaughter.

  BOOK XXII

  ARGUMENT

  Ulysses, with some little assistance from Telemachus, Eumæus and

  Philœtius, slays all the suitors, and twelve of the female servants

  who had allowed themselves an illicit intercourse with them, are hanged.

  Melanthius also is punished with miserable mutilation.

  Then, girding up his rags, Ulysses sprang

  With bow and full-charged quiver to the door;

  Loose on the broad stone at his feet he pour'd

  His arrows, and the suitors, thus, bespake.

  This prize, though difficult, hath been atchieved.

  Now for another mark which never man

  Struck yet, but I will strike it if I may,

  And if Apollo make that glory mine.

  He said, and at Antinoüs aimed direct

  A bitter shaft; he, purposing to drink, 10

  Both hands advanced toward the golden cup

  Twin-ear'd, nor aught suspected death so nigh.

  For who, at the full banquet, could suspect

  That any single guest, however brave,

  Should plan his death, and execute the blow?

  Yet him Ulysses with an arrow pierced

  Full in the throat, and through his neck behind

  Started the glitt'ring point. Aslant he droop'd;

  Down fell the goblet, through his nostrils flew

  The spouted blood, and spurning with his foot 20

  The board, he spread his viands in the dust.

  Confusion, when they saw Antinoüs fall'n,

  Seized all the suitors; from the thrones they sprang,

  Flew ev'ry way, and on all sides explored

  The palace-walls, but neither sturdy lance

  As erst, nor buckler could they there discern,

  Then, furious, to Ulysses thus they spake.

  Thy arrow, stranger, was ill-aimed; a man

  Is no just mark. Thou never shalt dispute

  Prize more. Inevitable death is thine. 30

  For thou hast slain a Prince noblest of all

>   In Ithaca, and shalt be vultures' food.

  Various their judgments were, but none believed

  That he had slain him wittingly, nor saw

  Th' infatuate men fate hov'ring o'er them all.

  Then thus Ulysses, louring dark, replied.

  O dogs! not fearing aught my safe return

  From Ilium, ye have shorn my substance close,

  Lain with my women forcibly, and sought,

  While yet I lived, to make my consort yours, 40

  Heedless of the inhabitants of heav'n

  Alike, and of the just revenge of man.

  But death is on the wing; death for you all.

  He said; their cheeks all faded at the sound,

  And each with sharpen'd eyes search'd ev'ry nook

  For an escape from his impending doom,

  Till thus, alone, Eurymachus replied.

  If thou indeed art he, the mighty Chief

  Of Ithaca return'd, thou hast rehears'd

  With truth the crimes committed by the Greeks 50

  Frequent, both in thy house and in thy field.

  But he, already, who was cause of all,

  Lies slain, Antinoüs; he thy palace fill'd

  With outrage, not solicitous so much

  To win the fair Penelope, but thoughts

  Far diff'rent framing, which Saturnian Jove

  Hath baffled all; to rule, himself, supreme

  In noble Ithaca, when he had kill'd

  By an insidious stratagem thy son.

  But he is slain. Now therefore, spare thy own, 60

  Thy people; public reparation due

  Shall sure be thine, and to appease thy wrath

  For all the waste that, eating, drinking here

  We have committed, we will yield thee, each,

  Full twenty beeves, gold paying thee beside

  And brass, till joy shall fill thee at the sight,

  However just thine anger was before.

  To whom Ulysses, frowning stern, replied,

  Eurymachus, would ye contribute each

  His whole inheritance, and other sums 70

  Still add beside, ye should not, even so,

  These hands of mine bribe to abstain from blood,

  Till ev'ry suitor suffer for his wrong.

  Ye have your choice. Fight with me, or escape

  (Whoever may) the terrours of his fate,

  But ye all perish, if my thought be true.

  He ended, they with trembling knees and hearts

  All heard, whom thus Eurymachus address'd.

  To your defence, my friends! for respite none

  Will he to his victorious hands afford, 80

  But, arm'd with bow and quiver, will dispatch

 

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