And thefe indulge their want, and thofe their

woe,

420

And here the tears, and there the goblets flow.
By many fuch I have been warn'd; but chief
By one tolian robb'd of all belief,
Whole hap it was to this our roof to roam;
For murder banifh'd from his native home.
He fwore, Ulyffes on the coast of Crete
Staid but a feafon to refit his fleet;
A few revolving months fhould waft him o'er,
Fraught with bold warriors, and a boundless fore.
O thou! whon. age has taught to understand, 425
And Heaven has guided with a favouring haud!
On God or mortal to obtrude a lie
Ferbear, and dread to flatter as to die.
Not for fuch ends my houfe and heart are free,
But dear refpect to Jove, and charity.

430

And why, O fwain of unbelieving mind! (Thus quick reply'd the wifeft of mankind) Doubt you my oath? yet more my faith to try,"

A folemn compact let us ratify, is the fast aas

An

If here Ulyffes from his labours reft,

Be then my prize a tunic and a vesh;

In feven just portions, pure of hand and heart,
One facred to the nymphs apart they lay;
Another to the winged fon of May:
The rural tribe in common fhare the reft,
The king the chine, the honour of the fealt,
Who fate delighted at his fervant's board;
The faithful fervant joy'd his unknown lord.
Oh! be thou dear (Ulyffes cry'd) to Jove,
As well thou claim'ft a grateful tranger's love!
Be then thy thanks (the bounteous fwain re-
ply'd)

490

Enjoyment of the good the Gods provide.
From God's own hand defcend our joys and woes;
These he decrees, and he but fuffers thofe : 495
All power is his, and whatsoe'er he wills,
The will itfelf, omnipotent, fulfils.
This faid, the first fruits to the Gods he gave;
Then pour'd of offer'd wine the fable wave:

And, where my hopes invite me, ftraight tranfport In great Ulyffes' hand he plac'd the bowl,

In fafety to Dulichium's friendly court.
But, if he greets not thy defiring eye,
Hurl me from yon dread precipice on high;
The due reward of fraud and perjury.
Doubtless, O gueft! great land and praife

were mine

445

(Reply'd the fwain for fpotlefs faith divine)
If. after focial rites and gifts beftow'd,
I ftain'd my hofpitable hearth with blood,
How would the Gods my righteous toils fucceed,
And blefs the hand that made a franger bleed?
No more-th' approaching hours of filent night
Firft claim refection, then to re invite;
Beneath our humble cottage let us hafte,
And here, unenvy'd, rural dainties tafle.

450

He fate, and fweet reflection cheer'd his foul.
The bread from canisters Mefaulius gave,
(Eumæus proper treasure bought this flave,
And led from Taphos, to attend his board,
A fervant added to his abfent lord)
His task it was the wheaten loaves to lay,
And from the banquet take the bowls away.
And now the rage of hunger was reprefs'd,
And each betakes him to his couch to reft.

Now came the night, and darknefs cover'd o'er
The face of things; the winds began to roar :
The driving storm the watery west wind pours,
And Jove defcends in deluges of thowers.
Studious of reft and warmth, Ulyffes lies,
Forefecing from the first the storm would rife; 515

Thus commun'd thefe; while to their lowly In mere neceflity of coat and cloak,

dome

455

The full-fed fwine return'd with evening home;
Compell'd, reluctant, to the several fties,
With din obftreperous, and ungrateful cries.
Then to the flaves.-Now from the herd the best
Select, in honour of our foreign gueft:
With him let us the genial banquet fhare,
For great and many are the griefs we bear:
While thofe who from our labours heap
board,

460

their

465

Blafpheme their feeder, and forget their lord.
Thus fpeaking, with dispatchful hand he took
A weighty axe, and cleft the folid oak;
This on the earth he pil'd; a bear full fed,
Of five years age, before the pile was led :
The fwain, whom acts of piety delight,
Obfervant of the Gods, begins the rite;
First thears the forehead of the briftly boar,
And fuppliant fands, invoking every Power 470
To fpeed Ulyffes to his native fhore.
A knotty take then aiming at his head,
Down dropp'd he groaning, and the fpirit fled.
The fcorching flames climb round on every fide:
Then the fing'd members they with skill divide;
On thefe, in rolls of fat involv'd with art,
The choiceft riels lay from every part.

A deathful ambush for the foe to lay,
Beneath Troy's walls by night we took cur way:
There clad in arms, along the marthes fpread,
We made the ozier-fringed bank our bed.
Full foon th' inclemency of Heaven I feel,
Nor had thefe fhoulders covering but of steel, 535
Sharp blew the north; fnow whitening all the
fields
[Thields.
Froze with the blaft, and gathering glaz'd our
There all but I, well fenc'd with cloak and veft,
Lay-cover'd by their ample fields at reft.

5407

545

550

Fool that I was! I left behind my own;
The skill of weather and of winds unknown,
And trusted to my coat and shield alone!
When now was wafted more than half the night,
And the stars faded at approaching light;
Sudden I jogg'd Ulyffes, who was laid
Faft by my fide, and fhivering thus I faid:
Here longer in this field I cannot lie;
The winter pinches, and with cold I die,
And die afham'd (O wisest of mankind) ·
The only fool who left his cloak behind.
He thought, and anfwer'd: hardly waking yet,
Sprung in his mind the momentary wit
(That wit, which, or in council or in fight,
Still met th' emergence, and determin'd right.)
Hush thee, he cry'd, (foft-whispering in my ear)
Speak not a word, left any Greek may hear-
And then (fupporting on his arm his head)
Hear me, companions? (thus aloud he said)
Methinks too diftant from the fleet we lie:
Ev'n now a vifion ftood before my eye,
And fure the warning vision was from high:
Let from among us fome swift courier rife,
Hafte to the general, and deinand supplies,

560

565

Upftarted Thoas straight, Andræmon's fon,
Nimbly he rofe, and caft his garment down;
Inftant, the racer vanish'd off the ground;
That inftant in his cloak I wrapp'd me round:
And safe I flept, till brightly dawning fhone
The morn confpicuous on her golden throne.
Oh, were my ftrength as then, as then my age!
Some friend would fence me from the winter's
rage.

Yet, tatter'd as I look, I challeng'd then

The honours and the offices of men :
Some mafter, or fome fervant would allow
A cloak and vest-but I am nothing now!
Well haft thou spoke (rejoin'd th' attentive
fwain)

575

580

Thy lips let fall no idle word or vain!
Nor garment fhalt thou want, nor aught befide,
Meet for the wandering suppliant to provide.
But in the morning take thy clothes again,
For here one veft fuffices every fwain;
No change of garments to our binds is known:
But, when return'd, the good Ulyffes' fon
With better hand fhall grace with fit attires
His guest, and fend thee where thy foul defires. 585
The honeft herdsman rose, as this he said,
And drew before the hearth the stranger's bed:
The fleecy fpoils of fheep, a goat's rough hide
He spreads; and adds a mantle thick and wide;
With ftore to heap above him, and below,
And guard each quarter as the tempests blow.
There lay the king and all the reft fupine;
All, but the careful master of the swine :
Forth hafted he to tend his bristly care:

590

BOOK XV.

THE ARGUMENT.

The Return of Telemachus.

2be Goddess Minerva commands Telemachus in a vifion to return to Ithaca. Piffiratus and be take leave of Menelaüs, and arrive at Pylos, where they part; and Telema.bus fets fail, after having received on board Theoclymenus the footbfayer. The feene then changes to the cottage of Eumaus, who entertains Ulyffes with a recital of his adventures. In the mean time Telemachus arrives on the coaft, and, fending the vef fel to the town, proceeds by himself to the lodge of Eumaus.

WOW had Minerva reach'd those ample plains, | Hence to Atrides; and his leave implore

NOW
Fam'd for the dance, where Menelausreigns;

Anxious fhe flies to great Ulyffes' heir,
His inftant voyage challeng'd all her care.
Beneath the royal portico difplay'd,
With Neftor's fon, Telemachus was lay'd;
In fleep profound the fon of Neftor lies;
Not thine, Ulyffes! Care unfeal'd his eyes:
Reftlefs he griev'd, with various fears oppress'd,
And all thy fortunes roll'd within his breast.
When, O Telemachus! (the Goddess faid)
Too long in vain, too widely haft thou stray'd.
Thus leaving careless thy paternal right
The robber's prize, the prey to lawless might.
On fond pursuits neglectful while you roanı,
Ev'n now the hand of rapine facks the dome.

25

To launch thy veffel for thy natal fhore;
Fly, whilft thy mother virtuous yet withstands
Her kindred's wishes, and her fire's commands; 20
5 Through both Eurymachus pursues the dame,
And with the nobleft gifts afferts his claim.
Hence, therefore, while thy ftores thy own remain;
Thou know't the practice of the female train:
Loft in the children of the prefent spouse
They flight the pledges of their former vows;
Their love is always with the lover past;
Still the fucceeding flame expels the last.
Let o'er thy house some chofen maid preside,
Till Heaven decrees to blifs thee in a bride.
But now thy more attentive ears incline,
Obferve the warnings of a Power divine:

30

To whom the youth, for prudence fam'd, replied: O monarch, care of Heaven! thy people's pride!

To feize thy life fhall lurk the murderous band, 35 No friend in Ithaca my place fupplies,

75 Mean time may'ft thou with happiest speed regain Thy ftately palace, and thy wide domain.

His right-hand held: before the fleeds he stands,
Then, mix'd with prayers, he utters thefe com-

mands:

Farewell, and profper, youths' let Neftor know What grateful thoughts fill in this bofom glow, For all the proofs of his paternal care, 170

175

Through the long dangers of the ten years war.
Ah! doubt not our report (the prince rejoin'd)
Of all the virtues of thy generous mind
And oh! return'd might we Ulyffes meet!
To him thy prefents fhow, thy words repeat:
How will each fpeech his grateful wonder raife!
How will each gift indulge us in thy praife!
Scarce ended thus the prince, when on the right
Advanc'd the bird of Jove: aufpicicus fight!
A milk-white fowl his clinching talons bure, 18
With care domeftic pamper'd at the floor.
Peasants in vain with threatening cries purfue,
In folemn speed the bird majestic flew
Full dexter to the car: the profperous fight
Fill'd every breast with wonder and delight.

But Neftor's fon the cheerful filence broke,
And in these words the Spartan chief belpoke.
Say, if to us the Gods thefe omeus fend,
Or fates peculiar to thyfelf portend?

185

Whilft yet the monarch paus'd with doubts op prefs'd,

The beauteous queen reliev'd his labouring breast.
Hear me, the cried, to whom the Gods have gi-

ven

195

To read this fign, and myftic fenfe of Heaven.
As thus the plumy fovereign of the air
Left on the mountain's brow his callow care,
And wander'd through the wide æthereal way
To pour his wrath on yon luxurious prey;
So fhall thy godlike father tofs'd in vain
Through all the dangers of the boundless main,
Arrive (or is perchance already come),
From flaughter'd gluttons to releafe the dome.
Oh! if this promis'd blifs by thundering Jove
(The prince replied) ftand fix'd in fate above;
To thee, as to fome God, I'll temples raife,
And crown thy altars with the colly blaze.

200

205

210

He faid; and, bending o'er his chariot, flung
Athwart the fiery fleeds the fmarting thong;
The bounding shafts upon the harness play,
Till night defcending intercepts the way.
To Diccles, at Phere, they repair,
Whofe boafted fire was facred Alpheus' heir;
With him all night the youthful frangers ftay'd,
Nor found the hofpitable rites unpay'd.
But foon as morning from her orient bed
Had ting'd the mountains with her earliest red, 215
They join'd the fleeds, and on the chariot fprung;
The brazen portals in their paffage rung.

To Pylos foon they came; when thus begun
To Neftor's heir Clyffes' godlike fon :
Let not Pififtratus in vain be preft,

Nor unconfesting hear his friend's request;
His friend by long hereditary claim,
In toils his equal, and in years the fame.
No farther from our veffel, I implore,

235

At length refolv'd, he turn'd his ready hand, 230
And lafh'd his panting courfers to the strand.
There, while within the poop with care he ftor'd
The regal prefents of the Spartan lord;
With fpeed begone (faid he); call every mate,
Ere yet to Neftor I the tale relate:
Ti true, the fervour of his generous heart
Brooks no repulfe, nor could thou foon depart;
Himfelf will feek the here, nor wilt thou find,
In word alone, the Pylian monarch kind:
But when, arriv'd, he thy return fhali know, 240
How will his breaft with honeft fury glow!
This faid, the founding ftrokes his horfes fire,
And foon he reach'd the palace of his fire.

245

Now (cried Telemachus) with fpeedy care
Hoift every fail, and every oar prepare.
swift as the word his willing mates obey,
And feize their feats, impatient for the fea:
Mean time the prince with facrifice adores
Minerva, and her guardian aid implores;
When lo! a wretch ran breathiefs to the fhore, 250
New from his crime, and recking yet with gore.
A feer he was, from great Melampus fprung,
Melampus, who in Pylos flourish'd long,
Fill, urg'd by wrongs, a foreign realm he chofe,
Far from the hateful caufe of all his woes.
Neleus his treafures one long year detains;
As long, he groan'd in Philacus's chains:
Mean time, what anguifh, and what rage, combin'd,
For lovely Pero rack'd his labouring mind!
Yet 'cap'd he death; and vengeful of his wrong 260
To Pylos drove the lowing herds along :
Then (Neleus vanquifh'd, and confign'd the Fair
To Bjas' arms) he fought a foreign air;
Argos the rich for his retreat he chofe,

255

There form'd his empire; there his palace rose. 265
From him Antiphates and Mantius came :
The first begot Oiclus great in fame,
And he Amphiaraus, immortal name!
The people's faviour, and divinely wife,

275

Belov'd by Jove, and him who gilds the skies, 270
Yet fhort his date of life! by female pride he dies.
From Mantius Clitus, whom Aurora's love
Snatch'd from his beauty to the thrones above:
And Polyphides on whom Phoebus fhone
With fulleft rays, Amphiaraus new gone;
In Hyperefia's groves he made abode,
And taught mankind the counfels of the God.
From him fprung Theoclymenus, who found
(The facred wine yet foaming on the ground)
Telemachus: whom, as to Heaven he prefs'd 280
His ardent vows, the ftranger thus addrets'd:

O thou! that deft thy happy course prepare
With pure libations, and with folemn prayer;
By that dread Power to whom thy vows are
paid:

By all the lives of the fe; thy own dear head, 285 22c Declare fincerely to no foe's demand

The courfers drive: but lath them to the fhore. 225
Too long thy father would his friends detain;
I dread his preffer'd kindnefs urg'd in vain.

The hero paus'd and ponder'd this request,
While love and duty warr'd within his breaft.

315

The chief his orders gives: the obedient band 310
With due obfervance wait the chict's command;
With speed the mat they rear, with speed unbind
The fpacious fheet, and ftretch it to the wind.
Minerva calls; the ready gales obey
With rapid fpeed to whirl them o'er the fea.
Crunus they pafs'd, next Chalcis roll'd away,
When thickening darkness clos'd the doubtful day;
The filver Phæa's glittering rills they loft,
And kimm'd along by Elis' facred coast.
Then cautious through the rocky reaches wind,
And, turning fudden, fhun the death defign'd.
Mean time the king, Eumæus, and the reft,
Eate in the cottage, at their rural feast:
The banquet paft, and fatiate every man,
To try his hoft, Ulyffes thus began :
Yet one night more, my friends, indulge
guest;

325

your

330

And blefs the friendly hand that gives me bread.

The lafti purpofe in your walls to reft

To-morrow for myself I must provide,

And only ask your counfel, and a guide:

Patient to roam the fireet, by hunger led,

365

Who knows the fon of forrow to relieve,
Cheers the fad heart, nor lets affliction grieve.
Of all the ills unhappy mortals know,
A life of wanderings is the greatest woe:
On all their weary paths wair care and pain,
And pine and penury, a meagre train.
To fuch a man fince harbour you afford,
Relate the farther fortunes of your lord;
What cares his mother's tender breaft engage, 370
And fire forfiken on the verge of age;
Beneath the fun prolong they yet their breath,
Or range the houfe of darkness and of death?
To whom the fwain: Attend what you inquire;
Laertes lives, the miferable fire

375

380

385

390

395

Lives, but implores of every Power to lay
The burden down, and wishes for the day.
Torn from his offspring in the eve of life,
Forn from th' embraces of his tender wife,
Sole, and all comfortless, he waftes away
Old
age, untimely posting ere his day,
She too, fad mother! for Ulyffes loft
Pin'd out her bloam, and vanish'd to a ghost.
(So dire a fate, ye righteous Gods! avert,
From every friendly, every feeling heart !)
While yet he was, tho' clouded o'er with grief,
Her pleafing converfe minifter'd relief;
With Ctimene, her youngest daughter, bred,
One roof contain'd us, and one table fed.
But when the foftly-ftealing pace of time
Crept on from childhood into youthful prime,
To Samos' ile fhe fent the wedded fair;
Me to the fields, to tend the rural care ;
Array'd in garments her own hands had wove,
Nor lefs the darling object of her love.
Her hapless death my brighter days o'ercast,
Yet Providence deferts me not at last;
My prefent labours food and drink procure,
And more, the pleafure to relieve the poor.
Small is the comfort from the queen to hear
Unwelcome news, or vex the royal ear;
Black and difcountenanc'd the fervants fland,
Nor dare to question where the proud command:
No profit fprings beneath ufurping powers:
Want feeds not there, where luxury devours,
Nor harbours charity where riot reigns:
340 Proud are the lords, and wretched are the fwains.
The fuffering chief at this began to melt;
And, O Eumæus! thou (he cries; halt felt
The spite of fortune too! her cruel hand
Snatch'd thee an infant from thy native land!
Snatch'd from thy parent's arms, thy parents' eyes,
To early wants a man of miferies!
Thy whole fad ftory, from its first, declare.
Sunk the fair city by the rage of war,
Where once thy parents dwelt ? or did they keep,
In humbler life, the lowing herds and fheep?
So left perhaps to tend the fleecy train,
Rude pirates feiz'd, and fhipp'd thee o'er the
main?

335

Few can with me in dextrous works contend,
The pyre to build, the tubborn oak to rend;
To turn the tasteful viand o'er the flame;
Or foam the goblet with a purple stream.
Such are the safks of men of mean eftate,
Whom fortune dooms to ferve the rich and great.
Alas! (Eumæus with a figh rejoin'd)

How fprung a thought fo monftrous in thy mind!
If on that godlefs race thou would'st attend,
Fate owes thee fure a miferable end!
Their wrongs and blafphemics afcend the sky,
And pull defcending vengeance from on high.
Not fuch, my friend, the fervants of their feaft; 350
A blooming train in rich embroidery drett,
With earth's whole tribute the bright table bends,
And fmiling round celcitial youth attends.
Stay then no eye afkance beholds thee here:
Sweet is thy converfe to each focial car;
Well-pleas'd, and pleafing, in our cottage reft,
Till good Telemachus accepts his guett
With genial gifts, and change of fair attires,
And fafe conveys thee where thy foul defires.
To him the man of woes: O gracious Jove! 360
Reward this ftranger's hofpitable love !

355