Thersander, already twice defeated,
and surely anticipating a third defeat, took to his heels and fled to
his own house, fearing that the people would, in their fury, stone him.
and surely anticipating a third defeat, took to his heels and fled to
his own house, fearing that the people would, in their fury, stone him.
Scriptori Erotici Graeci
" Encouraged by their presence, "Men of Ephesus!
" I
said, "you see how foully I have been treated. Yes! I, a free man and
a native of no mean city, have had a plot contrived against my life by
this wicked man, and have been preserved only by the intervention of
Diana, who has brought to light the falsehood of the charge against
me. It behoves me now to go forth in order to cleanse my face; I may
not do so within the temple, lest the holy water should be defiled by
the blood of violence. " Thersander was with difficulty forced out, and
muttered to himself as he departed: "Your fate is already sealed, and
ere long the law shall have its due; as for this strumpet who would
fain pass for a virgin, she shall undergo the ordeal of the syrinx. "
When at last we were rid of him, I went out and cleansed my face; it
was now supper-time, and the priest entertained us very hospitably.
I could not summon up courage to look Sostratus in the face, from a
recollection of what had been my conduct towards him, and he perceiving
this, and guessing my feelings, was equally unwilling to look towards
me; Leucippe also sat with downcast eyes, so that the supper was
altogether a very solemn affair. When however the wine circulated, and
reserve began to disappear under the influence of Bacchus, patron
of freedom and ease,[4] the priest, addressing Sostratus, said, "My
worthy guest, will you not favour us with your own history? --it must, I
imagine, contain some interesting passages, and the listening to such
subjects adds zest to the wine. " Sostratus readily availed himself of
the opportunity to speak, and replied, "My own story is a very simple
one; you are already acquainted with my name and country, and when I
have added that I am uncle to this young man and father to the maiden,
you have heard all. --Do you, son Clitopho, (turning to me) lay aside
all bashfulness and relate whatever you have to say worth hearing; the
grief and vexation which I have endured is to be attributed to Fortune
not to you; besides, to tell of past troubles when one has escaped from
them, is a source of pleasure rather than of grief. "[5]
Upon this, I detailed all the events which had occurred since leaving
Tyre--the voyage, the shipwreck, our being cast upon the coast of
Egypt, our falling among the buccaneers, the carrying off of Leucippe,
the adventures of the false stomach contrived by Menelaus, the passion
conceived for her by the commander, the discovery of the love potion
by Chæreas, Leucippe's second rape by corsairs, and the wound received
by me of which I exhibited the scar. When I approached the subject of
Melitta, I related the story in such a manner as to give an exalted
idea of my own continence, yet without being guilty of any falsehood.
I spoke of her violent passion for me, her urgent but unsuccessful
entreaties to obtain its gratification, her munificent promises, her
grief at being disappointed, our subsequent voyage to Ephesus, the
supper, my sharing her bed, and (invoking at the same time Diana's
name) my rising from her side as pure as one female would from another,
my being seized and put in prison, my false accusation of myself; this
and every other matter I detailed down to the appearance of the Sacred
Embassy, suppressing only the disgrace of my connexion with Melitta. [5]
"Leucippe's adventures," said I, in continuation, "are stranger even
than mine. She has been sold to slavery, has been compelled to labour
in the field, has been despoiled of the honours of her head,[6] of
which you can see the tokens;" and then passing on to the conduct of
Sosthenes and Thersander, I entered much more into detail than I had
done, when speaking of myself. My object in doing this, was to gratify
Leucippe, in the hearing of her father. "She has endured every ill in
her person," said I, "excepting one, and to avoid that one, she has
submitted to all the others; and has continued, to this day, father
(addressing Sostratus), pure as when first you sent her from Byzantium.
It is no merit in me to have abstained from consummating the object for
which we fled; the merit is entirely on her side for having preserved
inviolate her chastity in the midst of villains, nay, against that arch
villain, the shameless and violent Thersander. Our flight from home was
caused by mutual love; but I can assure you, father, that during the
voyage we were quite platonic, our intercourse was no other than that
of a brother and a sister; and if there be such a thing as virginity
in men, I am still a virgin as regards Leucippe; she, long since bound
herself by a vow to Diana. [7]
"Queen of love," ejaculated I, "be not wroth nor deem thyself to have
been slighted by us! we were but unwilling to celebrate our nuptials
in the absence of the maiden's father; he has now happily arrived; be
thou present therefore, and smile propitiously upon us. " The priest
had listened open-mouthed to my story, and Sostratus had been shedding
tears during the recital of his daughter's sufferings. "Now that you
have heard the account of our adventures," said I to our host, "I have
a favour to ask of you. What did Thersander's parting words refer to,
when he made mention of the syrinx? "--"You have a right to make the
inquiry," replied he; "and I am both able and willing to comply with
your request. It will be some return for the narrative with which you
have just favoured us. You see the grove in the rear of the temple; in
it is a cave, entrance into which is forbidden to women in general,
but is permitted to maidens who have preserved their purity. A little
within the doors a syrinx is suspended; perhaps you Byzantians are
already acquainted with the nature of this instrument; should it be
otherwise, I will give you a description of it, and will likewise
relate the legend of Pan, with which it is connected.
"The syrinx is composed of a certain number of reed pipes, which
collectively produce the same sounds as a flute; these reeds are placed
in regular order and mutually compacted, presenting the same appearance
on either side; beginning from the shortest, they ascend in gradation
to the longest, and the central one holds a medium proportion between
the two extremities. The principle of this arrangement arises from
the laws of harmony, the two extremes of sound (as well as of length)
are found at either end, and the intervening pipes convey downwards
a gradation of notes so as to combine the first and shrillest with
the last and deepest of all. The same variety of sounds, (as before
observed) are produced by Minerva's flute[8] as by the syrinx of Pan;
but in the former case, the fingers direct the notes, in the latter,
the mouth supplies the place; in the one case, the performer closes
every opening except the one through which the breath is intended to
proceed; in the other case, he leaves open the aperture of every other
reed, and places his mouth upon that one only which he wishes to emit
a sound; his lips leap (as we may say) from reed to reed and dance[9]
along the syrinx; as the laws of harmony require. [10] Now, this syrinx
was originally neither pipe nor reed, but a damsel[11] whose charms
made her most desirable. Smitten by love, Pan pursued her, and she fled
for refuge to a thicket; the god still closely following her, stretched
forth his hand to seize as he supposed her hair, but lo! instead of
hair, he grasped a bunch of reeds, which, so the legend says, sprang
from the earth as she descended into it. Enraged at his disappointment,
Pan cut them down, imagining that they had stolen from him the object
of his love; but when his search after her still proved unavailing, he
supposed the maiden to have been changed into these reeds, and wept
at his hasty act, thinking that in so doing he had caused the death
of his beloved. He then proceeded to collect and place together what
he imagined to be her limbs, and holding them in his hands, continued
to kiss what fancy pictured to be the mangled remains of the maiden's
body. Deeply sighing as he imprinted kisses on the reeds, his sighs
found a passage through these hollow pipes, forming sounds of music,
and thus the syrinx came to have a voice. This instrument Pan suspended
within the cave, and he is said often to resort hither in order to play
upon it. At a period subsequent to the event of which I am speaking,
he conveyed the place as a gift to Diana, upon the condition that
none save a spotless maiden should be allowed to enter it. Whenever
therefore the virginity of any female comes into suspicion, she is
conducted to the entrance of this cavern, and it is left to the syrinx
to pronounce judgment upon her. She enters in her usual dress, and
immediately the doors are closed. If she proves to be a virgin, a
sweetly clear and divinely ravishing sound is heard, caused either by
the air which is there stored up, finding its way into the syrinx,[12]
or by the lips of the god himself. After a short space, the doors open
of their own accord, and the maiden makes her appearance, wearing a
crown of pine leaves. If, on the other hand, the female has falsely
asserted her claim to virginity, the syrinx is silent, and instead of
music, the cave sends forth a doleful sound, upon which those who
attended her to the entrance depart and leave her to her fate. Three
days after, the priestess of the temple enters, and finds the syrinx
fallen to the ground, but the female is no where to be seen. I have
now told you everything, and it is for you maturely to deliberate upon
what course you intend pursuing. If, as I sincerely hope, the maiden
is a virgin, you may fearlessly submit to the ordeal, for the syrinx
has never falsified its character. Should the case be otherwise, it is
needless to suggest what is the safer course; and you well know, what
a female, exposed as she has been to various perils, may have been
compelled to submit to, quite against her will. "
Eagerly interrupting the priest, Leucippe said, "You need be under
no alarm on my account, I am quite ready to enter, and be shut up
within the cave. "--"I rejoice to hear you say so," replied he, "and I
congratulate you on the good fortune which has preserved your virtue. "
As it was near evening we retired to the chambers prepared for us
by the priest; Clinias had not supped with us from fear of being
burdensome to our kind host, but had returned to his former lodgings.
The legend of the syrinx caused Sostratus much uneasiness, as he
evidently feared, that out of regard to him, we had been advancing
undue claims to chastity; perceiving this, I made a sign to Leucippe to
remove as best she could, the suspicions of her father. His anxiety had
not escaped her observation, and even before receiving a hint from me,
she had been devising how to set his mind at rest. Upon embracing him,
therefore, as he retired to rest, "Father," she said, in a low voice,
"you need be under no apprehension; I solemnly swear to you by Diana,
that both of us have spoken nothing but the truth. " The following day,
Sostratus and the priest were occupied in performing the object of the
sacred embassy, by offering the victims; the members of the Senate were
present at the solemnity, and hymns of praise resounded in honour of
the goddess. Thersander also was there, and coming to the president he
desired to have his case postponed to the next day, as the condemned
criminal had been set at liberty by some meddling persons, and
Sosthenes could no where be found. His request was complied with, and
we on our part, made every preparation for meeting the charge which was
to be brought against us. When the morning of trial arrived, Thersander
spoke as follows:--"I am utterly at a loss how to begin, and against
whom first to direct my charges; the offence which has given rise to
this trial involves various others equal in importance, and implicates
several parties, and each of their offences might supply matter for a
separate trial; my words must almost unavoidably fail in doing justice
to each division of the subject, and in my eagerness to hasten to some
point hitherto untouched, I must necessarily deal imperfectly with
that upon which I am engaged. How indeed can it be otherwise in a
case like this, wherein is mixed up adultery, impiety, bloodshed and
lawless excesses of every kind! Where adulterers are found murdering
other people's slaves, murderers corrupting other people's wives,
whoremongers and harlots interrupting and disgracing with their
presence holy solemnities and the most sacred places? Nevertheless I
will proceed. You condemned a criminal to death--on account of what
cause, it matters not--you sent him back in chains to prison, there
to be kept until the execution of the sentence; yet this man who is
virtually your prisoner, now stands before you at liberty and attired
in white; aye, and no doubt will venture to raise his voice in order to
declaim against me--or rather, I should say, against you and against
the justice of your verdict. I demand to have the sentence of the Court
read aloud. --There, you have now heard it. 'The sentence of the Court
is that Clitopho be put to death. '--Where then is the executioner? Let
the prisoner be led away, let the hemlock[13] be administered--he is
already dead in law, and has lived a day too long. And now, what excuse
have you to plead, holy and reverend priest? In which of the sacred
laws do you find it laid down that prisoners, duly condemned by a
sentence of the court, and delivered up to chains and death, are to be
rescued and set at liberty? On what grounds do you arrogate to yourself
a power superior to that of the judges and the Court? President! it is
time for you to quit your chair and to abdicate to him your place and
power! Your authority is gone, your decrees are good for nought! He
takes upon himself to reverse the sentence you have passed. --Why any
longer stand among us, sir Priest, as a mere private individual? By all
means go up higher, take your place upon the bench; issue henceforth
your judgments, or if it please you better, your arbitrary and
tyrannical decrees; spurn law and justice under your feet; believe that
you are more than man; claim for yourself worship next after Diana,
since you have already arrogated her peculiar privilege. Hitherto she
alone has afforded sanctuary to suppliants, but to suppliants, be it
remembered, whom the law has not yet condemned;--not those to whom
chains and death have been decreed, for the altar should be a refuge
not to the wicked but to the unfortunate! You, forsooth, liberate a
prisoner; you acquit a condemned criminal! You therefore arrogate a
power superior to that of Diana's self! Who, until now, ever heard of a
murderer and adulterer inhabiting the chamber of a temple, instead of
the dungeon of a prison? A foul adulterer under the same roof with a
virgin goddess, and having for his partner a shameless woman, a slave
and runaway! You it is who have entertained the worthy pair at bed and
board; nay, probably have shared her bed. You have converted the temple
of the goddess into a common brothel. You have made her sanctuary,
a den of whoremongers and harlots; your doings would hardly find a
parallel in the vilest stew! So far as regards these two I have now
done, one will I trust meet with his just deserts, let the sentence of
the law be put in force against the other.
"My second charge is against Melitta for adultery; and here I need not
speak at any length, as it has already been decided that her maids
shall be submitted to the torture, in order to ascertain the truth. I
demand, therefore, to have them produced; and if, after undergoing the
question, they persist in denying their knowledge that the accused has
for a considerable time cohabited with her in my house, not only in the
character of paramour but of husband, then I am bound freely to acquit
her of all blame. But should the contrary be proved, then I claim that
in accordance with the laws she be deprived of her marriage portion,
and that it be given up to me,[14] in which case the prisoner must
suffer death, the punishment awarded to adulterers. Whether, however,
he shall suffer under this charge or as a murderer, matters little;
he is guilty of both crimes, and though suffering punishment will, in
fact, be evading justice,[15]--for whereas he owes two deaths, he will
have paid but one. One other subject there remains for me to touch
upon: this slave of mine and her respectable pretended father. I shall,
however, reserve what I have to say on this head until you have come to
a decision respecting the other parties. "
Thersander having now ended, it was for the priest to speak. He
was possessed of eloquence, and had in him a large share of the
Aristophanic vein; accordingly he attacked Thersander's debauched
manner of life with great wit and humour. "By the goddess," said he,
"it is the sign of having a foul tongue, thus shamelessly to rail
against honest folks,--but it is nothing new to this worthy gentleman,
for throughout his life the filthiness of his tongue has been
notorious. [16] The season of his youth was passed among the lewdest of
mankind, among whom he gave himself up to the most abandoned practices,
and while affecting gravity, sobriety, and a regard for learning, his
body was made the slave of all impurity. After a time he left his
father's house, and hired a miserable lodging, where he took up his
abode. And how do you suppose he earned his living? Why, partly by
strolling about the town and singing ballads, partly by receiving at
home fellows like himself, for purposes which I shall not now name. All
this time he was supposed to be cultivating his mind, and improving
his education; whereas, accomplished hypocrite! he was but throwing
a veil over his iniquities. Even in the wrestling school his manner
while anointing his body, and his attitudes, and his always choosing
to engage in wrestling with the stoutest and comeliest of the youths,
showed his detestable propensities. Such was his character during
his youthful days. Upon arriving at manhood, he threw off the mask,
and exhibited before the eyes of all the vices which hitherto he had
endeavoured to keep concealed.
"As he could no longer turn any other part of his body to account,
he determined thenceforth to exercise his tongue, and admirably has
he succeeded in sharpening it upon the whetstone of impurity,[17]
making his mouth the vehicle for shameless speech, pouring out its
torrents of abuse on every one, and having his effrontery stamped upon
his very face, he has gone the length (as you have seen) of coarsely
insulting in your presence an individual whom you have honoured with
the priesthood. Were I a stranger to you, and had not my life been
passed among you, I should deem it necessary to dwell upon my own
character, and that of my usual associates; but there is no occasion
for doing this. You well know how opposite has been my way of living
to the slanderous imputations which he has cast upon me. I therefore
pass on at once to his recent charges. I have set at liberty, he says,
a convicted criminal; and upon these grounds he proceeds to inveigh
bitterly against me, and applies to me the epithet of tyrant, and I
know not how many other hard words. Now a tyrant is one who oppresses
the innocent, not one who steps forward to defend the victim of false
accusation. What law, I demand, sanctioned your committing this young
man to prison? Before what tribunal had he been condemned? What judge
had pronounced his sentence? Granting the truth of every charge
advanced against him, he has at all events a right to a fair trial;
he has a right to be heard in his own defence; he has a right to be
legally convicted! If need be, let the law (which is supreme over all
alike,) imprison him; until it has altered its decrees not one of us
can claim authority over another. But if proceedings such as we have
seen, are to be countenanced, it would be advisable at once to close
the courts, to abolish the tribunals, to depose the magistrates. With
far greater justice may I retort against him the expressions which
he has employed respecting me. I may say, President, make way for
Thersander, for your presidentship is but an empty name,--it is he who
really exercises your powers; nay, more, exercises powers which you do
not possess. You have assessors, without whose concurrence you can pass
no sentence. You can exercise no authority except upon the judgment
seat; you cannot sit at home and condemn a man to chains and prisons.
This worshipful gentleman, however, is both judge and jury;[18] all
offices are, forsooth, concentrated in his single person; he makes
his house his court of justice; there he inflicts his punishments;
thence he issues his decrees and condemns a man to chains; and to
make matters yet better, he holds his court at night! [19] And what
is it which now finds employment for his lungs? 'You have set free,'
he says, 'a criminal condemned to death. ' I ask, What death? I ask,
What criminal? --for what crime condemned? 'For murder,' he replies. A
murderer! Where, then, is the murdered victim? She whom you declared to
have been done to death, stands before you alive and well. The charge,
therefore, at once falls to the ground, for you cannot consider this
maiden as an airy phantom, sent up by Pluto from the realms below! You
are yourself a murderer,--aye, and a double murderer. Her you have
slain by lying words; him you wished in reality to slay. I may add her
also; for we know of your doings in the country. The great goddess
Diana has, however, happily preserved them both, by delivering the
maiden from the hands of Sosthenes, and this young man from you. As
for Sosthenes, you have purposely got him out of the way, in order to
escape detection. Are you not ashamed to have your charges against
these strangers proved to be the vilest calumnies? What I have said
will have sufficed to clear myself; the defence of the strangers I
shall leave to others. "
An advocate of considerable reputation as an orator, and a member
of the senate, was about to address the court on behalf of me and
Melitta, when he was interrupted by one of Thersander's counsel, named
Sopater:--"Brother Nicostralus," said he, "I must claim the right of
being first heard against this adulterous couple; it will be your turn
to reply afterwards.
"What Thersander said related only to the priest, and scarcely
touched upon the case of the prisoner; and when I shall prove him to
be richly deserving of a two-fold death, then will be the time for
you to rebut my charges. " Then, stroking his chin, and with a great
flourish of words, he proceeded:--"We have listened to the buffoonery
of this priest, venting his scurrilous falsehoods against Thersander,
and endeavouring to turn against him the language so justly directed
against himself. Now, I maintain, that throughout Thersander has
adhered to truth; the priest has taken upon himself to liberate a
prisoner; he has received a harlot beneath his roof; he has been on
friendly terms with an adulterer. Not a word has he uttered against
Thersander but what savours of the vilest calumny, but if anything
especially becomes a priest, surely it is to keep a civil tongue
in his head,--and in saying this I am but borrowing his own words.
However, after edifying us with his wit and jests, he went on to adopt
a tragic strain, and bitterly inveighed against us for handcuffing an
adulterer, and sending him to prison. I wonder what it cost to kindle
in him this prodigious warmth of zeal? Methinks I can give a tolerably
shrewd guess. He has looked with a longing eye upon the features
of these two shameless guests of his; the wench is handsome, the
youth has a goodly countenance; both are well suited for the private
pleasures of a priest! Which of the two best served your turn? At any
rate you all slept together; you all got drunk together; and there
are no witnesses to depose how your nights were passed. I sadly fear
me that Diana's fane has been perverted into Aphrodite's temple! It
will furnish matter for future discussion whether you are fit to be
a priest. As to my client Thersander, every one knows that from his
earliest years he has been a pattern of sobriety and virtue; no sooner
was he arrived at manhood, than he contracted a marriage according to
the laws; his choice was indeed unfortunate, and trusting to her rank
and wealth, he found himself the husband of a wife very different from
what he had expected. There can be little doubt that she long ago went
astray, unknown to this most exemplary of men; it is plain enough that
latterly she has cast off all shame, and has indulged her disgraceful
propensities to the utmost. No sooner had her husband set out on a long
voyage than she thought it a favourable opportunity for indulging her
loose desires; and then it was that, unfortunately for her, she lighted
upon this 'masculine whore;'[20] a paramour who among women is a man,
and among men a woman.
"Not content to cohabit with him in impunity in a foreign land, she
must needs transport him with her over an extent of sea, and on the
voyage must needs take her lascivious sport in the sight of all the
passengers. O, shameless adultery, in which sea and land, had both
a share. Ο shameless adultery, prolonged even from Egypt to Ionia!
Generally, when women are guilty of adultery they confine themselves
to a single act, or if they repeat their crime, it is with every
precaution which may ensure concealment. In the present case, however,
she commits the sin by sound of trumpet, if I may so say. The adulterer
is known to every one in Ephesus, and she herself is not ashamed to
have brought him hither like so much merchandise; making an investment
in good looks, taking in a paramour by way of freight! She will say,
'I concluded my husband to be dead. ' 'In that case,' I reply, 'were
your husband dead, you would be free from criminality, for there would
then be no sufferer by the adulterous act, nor is any dishonour cast on
marriage if the husband is no longer in existence; but if the husband
be alive, the marriage bond is still in force, his rights over his wife
continue, and he has, by her criminality, suffered a grievous wrong. '"
Thersander here interrupted him, "It is needless to examine any one
by torture, as was formerly proposed. I offer two challenges: one to
this wife of mine, Melitta; the other to the pretended daughter of
this ambassador, who is lawfully my slave. " He then read aloud; "I
Thersander challenge Melitta and Leucippe (such I understand is the
strumpet's name) to submit to the following ordeal:--If the former,
as she asserts, has had no intercourse with this stranger during the
period of my absence, let her go unto the sacred fountain of the Styx,
declare her innocence upon oath, and then stand acquitted of any
further guilt. Let the latter, if free-born and no longer a maiden,
remain my slave, for the temple of the goddess affords sanctuary to
slaves alone; if, on the other hand, she asserts herself to be a
virgin, let her be shut into the cave of the syrinx. " We immediately
accepted this challenge, being already aware that it would be made.
Melitta, likewise conscious that nothing improper had taken place
during the actual absence of Thersander, said, "I accept the challenge;
and will here add, that during the period referred to I had criminal
intercourse with no one, whether foreigner or citizen; and I will ask
you," addressing Thersander, "to what penalty will you submit, provided
the charge prove groundless and calumnious? "--"I will submit to
whatever the law decrees," was his reply. The court then broke up, the
following day being appointed for the respective ordeals referred to in
the challenge. The following is the legend of the Stygian fountain:--
"There was once a beauteous maiden, named Rhodopis, whose supreme
delight was in the chase. She was swift of foot, unerring in her
aim; she wore a head-band, had her robe girt up to the knee, and her
hair short, after the fashion of men. Diana met her, bestowed many
commendations on her, and made her her companion in the chase. The
maiden bound herself by oath to observe perpetual virginity, to avoid
the company of men, and never to humiliate herself by submitting to
amorous indulgence. [21] Venus overheard the oath, and was incensed
at it, and determined to punish the damsel for her presumption.
There happened to be a youth of Ephesus, named Euthynicus, as much
distinguished among men for beauty as Rhodopis was among those of her
own sex. He was as ardently devoted to the chase as the maiden, and
like her was averse to the delights of love. One day when Diana was
absent, Venus contrived to make the game which they were following
run in the same direction; then addressing her archer son, she said,
'Do you see yon frigid and unloving pair, enemies to us and to our
mysteries? The maiden has even gone the length of registering an oath
against me! Do you see them both following a hind? Join the chase, and
begin by making an example of the maiden;--your arrows never miss. '
Both at the same moment bend their bows,--she against the hind, but
Cupid against her,--and both hit the mark, but the successful huntress
herself becomes a victim; her arrow pierces the shoulder of the deer,
but Cupid's shaft penetrates her heart, and the result of the wound was
love for Euthynicus. Cupid then aims a shaft at him, and with the same
effect. For a time they stand and gaze upon each other; their eyes are
fascinated; they cannot turn away;[22] gradually their inward wounds
become inflamed; the fire kindles,[23] and love urges their steps to
the cavern where now the fountain flows, and there they violate their
oath. [24] Diana soon after saw Venus laughing, and readily comprehended
what had taken place, and as a punishment changed the maiden into a
fountain, upon the spot where her chastity was lost. For this reason,
when any female is suspected of impurity, she is made to step into
the fountain, which is shallow, reaching only to midleg, and then it
is that the ordeal takes place. The oath declarative of chastity is
written on a tablet, and suspended from her neck; if truly sworn, the
fountain remains unmoved; if falsely taken, it swells and rages, rises
to her neck, and flows over the tablet. "
Next morning a great concourse assembled, and at the head came
Thersander, with a confident expression of countenance, and looking at
us with a contemptuous smile. Leucippe was attired in a sacred robe
of fine white linen, reaching to the feet and girded about her waist;
round her head she had a purple fillet, and her feet were bare. She
entered the cavern with an air of becoming modesty. Upon seeing her
disappear within, I was overcome by agitation, and said mentally, "I
doubt not your chastity, dearest Leucippe, but I am afraid of Pan;
he is a virgin-loving god, and for aught I know, you may become a
second syrinx. His former mistress easily escaped him, for her course
lay over an open plain; whereas you are shut up within doors, and so
blockaded that flight is out of the question, however much you may
wish to fly. Ο Pan! be thou propitious; do not violate the statutes
of the place, which we have religiously observed; grant that Leucippe
may again return to us a virgin; remember thy compact with Diana, and
do no injury to the maiden. " While talking to myself in this manner,
sounds of music proceeded from the cavern, more ravishingly sweet, I
was assured, than had been heard on any former occasion: the doors
were immediately opened, and when Leucippe sprang forth, the multitude
shouted with delight, and vented execrations upon Thersander. What my
own feelings were, I cannot pretend to describe. After gaining this
first signal triumph, we left the spot, and proceeded to the place
which was to be the scene of the remaining ordeal, the people following
again to behold the spectacle. Everything was in readiness, the tablet
was suspended to Melitta's neck, and she descended into the shallow
fountain with a smiling countenance. No change was perceptible in the
water, which remained perfectly still, and did not in the slightest
degree exceed its usual depth, and at the expiration of the allotted
time the president came forward, and taking Melitta by the hand,
conducted her out of the fountain.
Thersander, already twice defeated,
and surely anticipating a third defeat, took to his heels and fled to
his own house, fearing that the people would, in their fury, stone him.
His apprehensions were well founded, for some young men were seen at a
distance dragging Sosthenes along; two of them were Melitta's kinsmen,
and the others were servants, whom she had despatched in quest of him.
Thersander had caught sight of him, and feeling sure that when put to
the torture he would confess everything, he secretly left the city,
as soon as night came on. Sosthenes was committed to prison by order
of the magistrates, and we returned triumphant upon every point, and
accompanied by the shouts and good wishes of the people.
Next morning they whose business it was[25] conducted Sosthenes before
the magistrates. Aware that he was about to be put to the question, he
made a full confession of everything, stating how far Thersander had
been the prime agent, and how far he had himself assisted in carrying
out his schemes! nor did he omit to repeat the conversation which had
taken place between his master and him before the cottage-door. He
was sent back to prison there to await his sentence, and a decree of
banishment was pronounced against Thersander. When this business was
concluded, we again returned to the hospitable dwelling of the priest,
and while at supper resumed the subject of our former conversation,
mutually relating any incidents which had previously been omitted.
Leucippe, now that the purity of her character was fully established,
no longer stood in awe of her father, but took pleasure in narrating
the events which had befallen her. When she came to that part of her
story which referred to Pharos and the pirates, I requested her to give
us every particular about them, and especially to explain the riddle of
the severed head, as this alone was wanting to complete the history of
her adventures. "The recital will interest us all," I said, "especially
your father. "
"The unhappy female to whom you allude," replied Leucippe, "was one of
that class who sell their charms for money. She was inveigled on board,
under pretence of becoming the wife of a sea captain, and remained
there in ignorance of the real cause for which she had been brought,
passing her time in the company of one of the pirates, who pretended
to have a passion for her. When I was seized, they placed me, as you
saw, in a boat, and rowed off with all their might; and afterwards
when they perceived that the vessel despatched in pursuit was gaining
upon them, they stripped the wretched woman of her clothes, which they
put on me, making her dress herself in mine; then placing her at the
stern in sight of the pursuers, they cut off her head and cast the body
overboard, doing the same with the head, when the pursuit was given
up. Whether she had been brought on board for the above purpose, or in
order to be sold, as they afterwards told me, I cannot say; certain
it is that she was put to death by way of eluding the pursuers, the
pirates imagining that I should fetch more money as a slave than she
would do. It was this determination on their part which earned his
just reward for Chæreas, who had suggested the murder of the female in
place of me. The pirates refused to let him retain exclusive possession
of me, saying that on his account one woman had already been lost to
them, who would have been a source of gain. They proposed, therefore,
that I should be sold to make up the loss, and that the money should
be equally divided. He replied in an angry and threatening manner,
asserting his prior claims, and reminding them of their compact, and
that I had been carried off, not in order to be sold, but to be his
mistress. Upon this, one of the pirates came behind him, and dealt him
his measure of justice by striking off his head and flinging his body
into the sea,--a worthy requital of his perfidious conduct towards me.
"After two days' sail, the pirates put in at some place, the name of
which I do not know, where they sold me to a merchant who used to
traffic with them, and from his hands I passed into the possession of
Sosthenes. "
"My children," said Sostratus, when Leucippe had concluded, "I will
now relate what has happened to Calligone, for it is but fair that I
should contribute my share to the conversation. "[26] Upon hearing my
sister's name mentioned, I became all attention, and said, "Prithee,
sir, proceed; I shall rejoice to hear that she is still alive. " He
commenced by repeating what has already been mentioned respecting
Callisthenes, the oracle given to the Byzantians, the sacred embassy
sent to Tyre, and the stratagem for carrying off Calligone. He went on
to say: "Callisthenes discovered during the voyage that she was not my
daughter; but although matters had thus turned out quite contrary to
his intentions, he conceived a strong passion for his fair captive, and
throwing himself at her knees: 'Lady,' he said, 'do not imagine that I
am a corsair or a villain; I am of good birth, and second in rank to
none in Byzantium. It is Love who has compelled me to turn pirate, and
to employ this stratagem against you. Deign, therefore, to consider
me your slave from this day forth. I offer you my hand in marriage.
You shall have for your dowry more wealth than your father would have
bestowed upon you, and you shall preserve your maiden state so long as
you may please. '
"By means of these, and other insinuating words, he brought her to
look favourably upon him, for he was handsome in person and possessed
a flow of persuasive language. Upon arriving at Byzantium he had a
deed drawn up assigning her an ample dowry; he then proceeded to make
other preparations, purchased for her splendid dresses, jewellery and
ornaments, in short, whatsoever was required for the wardrobe and
toilette of a lady of rank and wealth. Having done this, he abstained
from soliciting her virtue, and in fulfilment of his promise allowed
her to remain a maiden, and thus he gradually won her affections. In
a short time, quite a wonderful alteration took place in the young
man; he became conciliatory in manner, and prudent and orderly in his
mode of living; he shewed respect by rising up before his elders,[27]
and was the first courteously to salute any whom he met; his former
indiscriminate profusion, which had been mere lavish prodigality, now
became wisely directed liberality, choosing for its objects those who
were suffering from poverty and required assistance.
"All who remembered his former and dissolute course of life were amazed
at this sudden change. He shewed me the most marked attention, and I
could not help loving him and attributing his former conduct more to
an excess of open-heartedness than to any actual vicious propensities,
and I called to mind the case of Themistocles, who after a youth
spent in licentiousness, in after life excelled all his countrymen
in soundness of judgment and many virtues. [28] I really felt sorry
at having repulsed him, when he was a suitor for my daughter's hand,
he treated me with so much respect, giving me the title of father,
and escorting me[29] whenever I had occasion to go through the forum.
He likewise took great interest in military exercises, especially in
what related to the cavalry department; he had always been fond of
horses, but hitherto merely to indulge his love of amusement and his
luxurious tastes; yet though actuated by no higher motives, he had been
unconsciously fostering the seeds of skill and courage; and eventually
his chief ambition was to distinguish himself by valour and ability
in the field. He contributed largely from his own private resources
the expenses of the war, and was elected my colleague in command,
in which position he shewed me a still greater degree of attention
and deference. When at length, victory declared itself on our side,
through the visible intervention of the deity,[30] we returned to
Byzantium, and it was decreed, that the public thanks of the State
should be conveyed to Hercules and Diana, for which purpose he was to
proceed to Tyre, while I was despatched to this city. Before setting
out Callisthenes took me by the hand and related every particular
respecting Calligone. 'Father,' he said, 'the impetuosity of youth led
me away in the first instance; but in the course which since then,
I have pursued, deliberate choice and principle have influenced my
actions. I have scrupulously respected the maiden's honour, during a
time of war and confusion when men are generally least inclined to
deny themselves the indulgence of their desires. My intention is now
to conduct her to her father's house, at Tyre; and then to claim her
for my bride, at her father's hand, in accordance with the law. [31] I
have made an ample settlement upon her, and shall consider myself most
fortunate, if he grants my suit; if, on the contrary, I meet with a
repulse he will receive back his daughter as pure as when she left his
home. '
"I will now read you a friendly letter, which--feeling anxious that the
marriage should be concluded--I addressed to my brother, before the
termination of the war, in which I mentioned the rank of Callisthenes,
and bore testimony to his good birth, the honourable position which he
had attained, and his eminent services in the field. If we gain our
cause in the new trial[32] moved by Thersander, I propose, first of all
to sail to Byzantium, and afterwards to proceed to Tyre. "
Clinias came to us next day, with the intelligence that Thersander
had secretly left the city, that his object in appealing from the
recent decision was but a pretext to gain time, and that he had no
intention of following up the case. After waiting three days, the
period appointed for taking fresh proceedings,[33] we appeared before
the President, and having satisfactorily proved by reference to the
statutes, that Thersander had no longer any legal ground against us,
we embarked and enjoyed a favourable voyage to Byzantium, where our
long-desired nuptials took place. A short time after, we sailed to
Tyre, which we reached two days after the arrival of Callisthenes,
and where I found my father preparing to celebrate my sister's wedding
on the following day. We were present on the occasion, and assisted
at the religious ceremonial, offering up our united prayers that both
our marriages might be crowned with happiness; and we arranged, after
wintering at Ephesus, to proceed to Byzantium in the spring.
said, "you see how foully I have been treated. Yes! I, a free man and
a native of no mean city, have had a plot contrived against my life by
this wicked man, and have been preserved only by the intervention of
Diana, who has brought to light the falsehood of the charge against
me. It behoves me now to go forth in order to cleanse my face; I may
not do so within the temple, lest the holy water should be defiled by
the blood of violence. " Thersander was with difficulty forced out, and
muttered to himself as he departed: "Your fate is already sealed, and
ere long the law shall have its due; as for this strumpet who would
fain pass for a virgin, she shall undergo the ordeal of the syrinx. "
When at last we were rid of him, I went out and cleansed my face; it
was now supper-time, and the priest entertained us very hospitably.
I could not summon up courage to look Sostratus in the face, from a
recollection of what had been my conduct towards him, and he perceiving
this, and guessing my feelings, was equally unwilling to look towards
me; Leucippe also sat with downcast eyes, so that the supper was
altogether a very solemn affair. When however the wine circulated, and
reserve began to disappear under the influence of Bacchus, patron
of freedom and ease,[4] the priest, addressing Sostratus, said, "My
worthy guest, will you not favour us with your own history? --it must, I
imagine, contain some interesting passages, and the listening to such
subjects adds zest to the wine. " Sostratus readily availed himself of
the opportunity to speak, and replied, "My own story is a very simple
one; you are already acquainted with my name and country, and when I
have added that I am uncle to this young man and father to the maiden,
you have heard all. --Do you, son Clitopho, (turning to me) lay aside
all bashfulness and relate whatever you have to say worth hearing; the
grief and vexation which I have endured is to be attributed to Fortune
not to you; besides, to tell of past troubles when one has escaped from
them, is a source of pleasure rather than of grief. "[5]
Upon this, I detailed all the events which had occurred since leaving
Tyre--the voyage, the shipwreck, our being cast upon the coast of
Egypt, our falling among the buccaneers, the carrying off of Leucippe,
the adventures of the false stomach contrived by Menelaus, the passion
conceived for her by the commander, the discovery of the love potion
by Chæreas, Leucippe's second rape by corsairs, and the wound received
by me of which I exhibited the scar. When I approached the subject of
Melitta, I related the story in such a manner as to give an exalted
idea of my own continence, yet without being guilty of any falsehood.
I spoke of her violent passion for me, her urgent but unsuccessful
entreaties to obtain its gratification, her munificent promises, her
grief at being disappointed, our subsequent voyage to Ephesus, the
supper, my sharing her bed, and (invoking at the same time Diana's
name) my rising from her side as pure as one female would from another,
my being seized and put in prison, my false accusation of myself; this
and every other matter I detailed down to the appearance of the Sacred
Embassy, suppressing only the disgrace of my connexion with Melitta. [5]
"Leucippe's adventures," said I, in continuation, "are stranger even
than mine. She has been sold to slavery, has been compelled to labour
in the field, has been despoiled of the honours of her head,[6] of
which you can see the tokens;" and then passing on to the conduct of
Sosthenes and Thersander, I entered much more into detail than I had
done, when speaking of myself. My object in doing this, was to gratify
Leucippe, in the hearing of her father. "She has endured every ill in
her person," said I, "excepting one, and to avoid that one, she has
submitted to all the others; and has continued, to this day, father
(addressing Sostratus), pure as when first you sent her from Byzantium.
It is no merit in me to have abstained from consummating the object for
which we fled; the merit is entirely on her side for having preserved
inviolate her chastity in the midst of villains, nay, against that arch
villain, the shameless and violent Thersander. Our flight from home was
caused by mutual love; but I can assure you, father, that during the
voyage we were quite platonic, our intercourse was no other than that
of a brother and a sister; and if there be such a thing as virginity
in men, I am still a virgin as regards Leucippe; she, long since bound
herself by a vow to Diana. [7]
"Queen of love," ejaculated I, "be not wroth nor deem thyself to have
been slighted by us! we were but unwilling to celebrate our nuptials
in the absence of the maiden's father; he has now happily arrived; be
thou present therefore, and smile propitiously upon us. " The priest
had listened open-mouthed to my story, and Sostratus had been shedding
tears during the recital of his daughter's sufferings. "Now that you
have heard the account of our adventures," said I to our host, "I have
a favour to ask of you. What did Thersander's parting words refer to,
when he made mention of the syrinx? "--"You have a right to make the
inquiry," replied he; "and I am both able and willing to comply with
your request. It will be some return for the narrative with which you
have just favoured us. You see the grove in the rear of the temple; in
it is a cave, entrance into which is forbidden to women in general,
but is permitted to maidens who have preserved their purity. A little
within the doors a syrinx is suspended; perhaps you Byzantians are
already acquainted with the nature of this instrument; should it be
otherwise, I will give you a description of it, and will likewise
relate the legend of Pan, with which it is connected.
"The syrinx is composed of a certain number of reed pipes, which
collectively produce the same sounds as a flute; these reeds are placed
in regular order and mutually compacted, presenting the same appearance
on either side; beginning from the shortest, they ascend in gradation
to the longest, and the central one holds a medium proportion between
the two extremities. The principle of this arrangement arises from
the laws of harmony, the two extremes of sound (as well as of length)
are found at either end, and the intervening pipes convey downwards
a gradation of notes so as to combine the first and shrillest with
the last and deepest of all. The same variety of sounds, (as before
observed) are produced by Minerva's flute[8] as by the syrinx of Pan;
but in the former case, the fingers direct the notes, in the latter,
the mouth supplies the place; in the one case, the performer closes
every opening except the one through which the breath is intended to
proceed; in the other case, he leaves open the aperture of every other
reed, and places his mouth upon that one only which he wishes to emit
a sound; his lips leap (as we may say) from reed to reed and dance[9]
along the syrinx; as the laws of harmony require. [10] Now, this syrinx
was originally neither pipe nor reed, but a damsel[11] whose charms
made her most desirable. Smitten by love, Pan pursued her, and she fled
for refuge to a thicket; the god still closely following her, stretched
forth his hand to seize as he supposed her hair, but lo! instead of
hair, he grasped a bunch of reeds, which, so the legend says, sprang
from the earth as she descended into it. Enraged at his disappointment,
Pan cut them down, imagining that they had stolen from him the object
of his love; but when his search after her still proved unavailing, he
supposed the maiden to have been changed into these reeds, and wept
at his hasty act, thinking that in so doing he had caused the death
of his beloved. He then proceeded to collect and place together what
he imagined to be her limbs, and holding them in his hands, continued
to kiss what fancy pictured to be the mangled remains of the maiden's
body. Deeply sighing as he imprinted kisses on the reeds, his sighs
found a passage through these hollow pipes, forming sounds of music,
and thus the syrinx came to have a voice. This instrument Pan suspended
within the cave, and he is said often to resort hither in order to play
upon it. At a period subsequent to the event of which I am speaking,
he conveyed the place as a gift to Diana, upon the condition that
none save a spotless maiden should be allowed to enter it. Whenever
therefore the virginity of any female comes into suspicion, she is
conducted to the entrance of this cavern, and it is left to the syrinx
to pronounce judgment upon her. She enters in her usual dress, and
immediately the doors are closed. If she proves to be a virgin, a
sweetly clear and divinely ravishing sound is heard, caused either by
the air which is there stored up, finding its way into the syrinx,[12]
or by the lips of the god himself. After a short space, the doors open
of their own accord, and the maiden makes her appearance, wearing a
crown of pine leaves. If, on the other hand, the female has falsely
asserted her claim to virginity, the syrinx is silent, and instead of
music, the cave sends forth a doleful sound, upon which those who
attended her to the entrance depart and leave her to her fate. Three
days after, the priestess of the temple enters, and finds the syrinx
fallen to the ground, but the female is no where to be seen. I have
now told you everything, and it is for you maturely to deliberate upon
what course you intend pursuing. If, as I sincerely hope, the maiden
is a virgin, you may fearlessly submit to the ordeal, for the syrinx
has never falsified its character. Should the case be otherwise, it is
needless to suggest what is the safer course; and you well know, what
a female, exposed as she has been to various perils, may have been
compelled to submit to, quite against her will. "
Eagerly interrupting the priest, Leucippe said, "You need be under
no alarm on my account, I am quite ready to enter, and be shut up
within the cave. "--"I rejoice to hear you say so," replied he, "and I
congratulate you on the good fortune which has preserved your virtue. "
As it was near evening we retired to the chambers prepared for us
by the priest; Clinias had not supped with us from fear of being
burdensome to our kind host, but had returned to his former lodgings.
The legend of the syrinx caused Sostratus much uneasiness, as he
evidently feared, that out of regard to him, we had been advancing
undue claims to chastity; perceiving this, I made a sign to Leucippe to
remove as best she could, the suspicions of her father. His anxiety had
not escaped her observation, and even before receiving a hint from me,
she had been devising how to set his mind at rest. Upon embracing him,
therefore, as he retired to rest, "Father," she said, in a low voice,
"you need be under no apprehension; I solemnly swear to you by Diana,
that both of us have spoken nothing but the truth. " The following day,
Sostratus and the priest were occupied in performing the object of the
sacred embassy, by offering the victims; the members of the Senate were
present at the solemnity, and hymns of praise resounded in honour of
the goddess. Thersander also was there, and coming to the president he
desired to have his case postponed to the next day, as the condemned
criminal had been set at liberty by some meddling persons, and
Sosthenes could no where be found. His request was complied with, and
we on our part, made every preparation for meeting the charge which was
to be brought against us. When the morning of trial arrived, Thersander
spoke as follows:--"I am utterly at a loss how to begin, and against
whom first to direct my charges; the offence which has given rise to
this trial involves various others equal in importance, and implicates
several parties, and each of their offences might supply matter for a
separate trial; my words must almost unavoidably fail in doing justice
to each division of the subject, and in my eagerness to hasten to some
point hitherto untouched, I must necessarily deal imperfectly with
that upon which I am engaged. How indeed can it be otherwise in a
case like this, wherein is mixed up adultery, impiety, bloodshed and
lawless excesses of every kind! Where adulterers are found murdering
other people's slaves, murderers corrupting other people's wives,
whoremongers and harlots interrupting and disgracing with their
presence holy solemnities and the most sacred places? Nevertheless I
will proceed. You condemned a criminal to death--on account of what
cause, it matters not--you sent him back in chains to prison, there
to be kept until the execution of the sentence; yet this man who is
virtually your prisoner, now stands before you at liberty and attired
in white; aye, and no doubt will venture to raise his voice in order to
declaim against me--or rather, I should say, against you and against
the justice of your verdict. I demand to have the sentence of the Court
read aloud. --There, you have now heard it. 'The sentence of the Court
is that Clitopho be put to death. '--Where then is the executioner? Let
the prisoner be led away, let the hemlock[13] be administered--he is
already dead in law, and has lived a day too long. And now, what excuse
have you to plead, holy and reverend priest? In which of the sacred
laws do you find it laid down that prisoners, duly condemned by a
sentence of the court, and delivered up to chains and death, are to be
rescued and set at liberty? On what grounds do you arrogate to yourself
a power superior to that of the judges and the Court? President! it is
time for you to quit your chair and to abdicate to him your place and
power! Your authority is gone, your decrees are good for nought! He
takes upon himself to reverse the sentence you have passed. --Why any
longer stand among us, sir Priest, as a mere private individual? By all
means go up higher, take your place upon the bench; issue henceforth
your judgments, or if it please you better, your arbitrary and
tyrannical decrees; spurn law and justice under your feet; believe that
you are more than man; claim for yourself worship next after Diana,
since you have already arrogated her peculiar privilege. Hitherto she
alone has afforded sanctuary to suppliants, but to suppliants, be it
remembered, whom the law has not yet condemned;--not those to whom
chains and death have been decreed, for the altar should be a refuge
not to the wicked but to the unfortunate! You, forsooth, liberate a
prisoner; you acquit a condemned criminal! You therefore arrogate a
power superior to that of Diana's self! Who, until now, ever heard of a
murderer and adulterer inhabiting the chamber of a temple, instead of
the dungeon of a prison? A foul adulterer under the same roof with a
virgin goddess, and having for his partner a shameless woman, a slave
and runaway! You it is who have entertained the worthy pair at bed and
board; nay, probably have shared her bed. You have converted the temple
of the goddess into a common brothel. You have made her sanctuary,
a den of whoremongers and harlots; your doings would hardly find a
parallel in the vilest stew! So far as regards these two I have now
done, one will I trust meet with his just deserts, let the sentence of
the law be put in force against the other.
"My second charge is against Melitta for adultery; and here I need not
speak at any length, as it has already been decided that her maids
shall be submitted to the torture, in order to ascertain the truth. I
demand, therefore, to have them produced; and if, after undergoing the
question, they persist in denying their knowledge that the accused has
for a considerable time cohabited with her in my house, not only in the
character of paramour but of husband, then I am bound freely to acquit
her of all blame. But should the contrary be proved, then I claim that
in accordance with the laws she be deprived of her marriage portion,
and that it be given up to me,[14] in which case the prisoner must
suffer death, the punishment awarded to adulterers. Whether, however,
he shall suffer under this charge or as a murderer, matters little;
he is guilty of both crimes, and though suffering punishment will, in
fact, be evading justice,[15]--for whereas he owes two deaths, he will
have paid but one. One other subject there remains for me to touch
upon: this slave of mine and her respectable pretended father. I shall,
however, reserve what I have to say on this head until you have come to
a decision respecting the other parties. "
Thersander having now ended, it was for the priest to speak. He
was possessed of eloquence, and had in him a large share of the
Aristophanic vein; accordingly he attacked Thersander's debauched
manner of life with great wit and humour. "By the goddess," said he,
"it is the sign of having a foul tongue, thus shamelessly to rail
against honest folks,--but it is nothing new to this worthy gentleman,
for throughout his life the filthiness of his tongue has been
notorious. [16] The season of his youth was passed among the lewdest of
mankind, among whom he gave himself up to the most abandoned practices,
and while affecting gravity, sobriety, and a regard for learning, his
body was made the slave of all impurity. After a time he left his
father's house, and hired a miserable lodging, where he took up his
abode. And how do you suppose he earned his living? Why, partly by
strolling about the town and singing ballads, partly by receiving at
home fellows like himself, for purposes which I shall not now name. All
this time he was supposed to be cultivating his mind, and improving
his education; whereas, accomplished hypocrite! he was but throwing
a veil over his iniquities. Even in the wrestling school his manner
while anointing his body, and his attitudes, and his always choosing
to engage in wrestling with the stoutest and comeliest of the youths,
showed his detestable propensities. Such was his character during
his youthful days. Upon arriving at manhood, he threw off the mask,
and exhibited before the eyes of all the vices which hitherto he had
endeavoured to keep concealed.
"As he could no longer turn any other part of his body to account,
he determined thenceforth to exercise his tongue, and admirably has
he succeeded in sharpening it upon the whetstone of impurity,[17]
making his mouth the vehicle for shameless speech, pouring out its
torrents of abuse on every one, and having his effrontery stamped upon
his very face, he has gone the length (as you have seen) of coarsely
insulting in your presence an individual whom you have honoured with
the priesthood. Were I a stranger to you, and had not my life been
passed among you, I should deem it necessary to dwell upon my own
character, and that of my usual associates; but there is no occasion
for doing this. You well know how opposite has been my way of living
to the slanderous imputations which he has cast upon me. I therefore
pass on at once to his recent charges. I have set at liberty, he says,
a convicted criminal; and upon these grounds he proceeds to inveigh
bitterly against me, and applies to me the epithet of tyrant, and I
know not how many other hard words. Now a tyrant is one who oppresses
the innocent, not one who steps forward to defend the victim of false
accusation. What law, I demand, sanctioned your committing this young
man to prison? Before what tribunal had he been condemned? What judge
had pronounced his sentence? Granting the truth of every charge
advanced against him, he has at all events a right to a fair trial;
he has a right to be heard in his own defence; he has a right to be
legally convicted! If need be, let the law (which is supreme over all
alike,) imprison him; until it has altered its decrees not one of us
can claim authority over another. But if proceedings such as we have
seen, are to be countenanced, it would be advisable at once to close
the courts, to abolish the tribunals, to depose the magistrates. With
far greater justice may I retort against him the expressions which
he has employed respecting me. I may say, President, make way for
Thersander, for your presidentship is but an empty name,--it is he who
really exercises your powers; nay, more, exercises powers which you do
not possess. You have assessors, without whose concurrence you can pass
no sentence. You can exercise no authority except upon the judgment
seat; you cannot sit at home and condemn a man to chains and prisons.
This worshipful gentleman, however, is both judge and jury;[18] all
offices are, forsooth, concentrated in his single person; he makes
his house his court of justice; there he inflicts his punishments;
thence he issues his decrees and condemns a man to chains; and to
make matters yet better, he holds his court at night! [19] And what
is it which now finds employment for his lungs? 'You have set free,'
he says, 'a criminal condemned to death. ' I ask, What death? I ask,
What criminal? --for what crime condemned? 'For murder,' he replies. A
murderer! Where, then, is the murdered victim? She whom you declared to
have been done to death, stands before you alive and well. The charge,
therefore, at once falls to the ground, for you cannot consider this
maiden as an airy phantom, sent up by Pluto from the realms below! You
are yourself a murderer,--aye, and a double murderer. Her you have
slain by lying words; him you wished in reality to slay. I may add her
also; for we know of your doings in the country. The great goddess
Diana has, however, happily preserved them both, by delivering the
maiden from the hands of Sosthenes, and this young man from you. As
for Sosthenes, you have purposely got him out of the way, in order to
escape detection. Are you not ashamed to have your charges against
these strangers proved to be the vilest calumnies? What I have said
will have sufficed to clear myself; the defence of the strangers I
shall leave to others. "
An advocate of considerable reputation as an orator, and a member
of the senate, was about to address the court on behalf of me and
Melitta, when he was interrupted by one of Thersander's counsel, named
Sopater:--"Brother Nicostralus," said he, "I must claim the right of
being first heard against this adulterous couple; it will be your turn
to reply afterwards.
"What Thersander said related only to the priest, and scarcely
touched upon the case of the prisoner; and when I shall prove him to
be richly deserving of a two-fold death, then will be the time for
you to rebut my charges. " Then, stroking his chin, and with a great
flourish of words, he proceeded:--"We have listened to the buffoonery
of this priest, venting his scurrilous falsehoods against Thersander,
and endeavouring to turn against him the language so justly directed
against himself. Now, I maintain, that throughout Thersander has
adhered to truth; the priest has taken upon himself to liberate a
prisoner; he has received a harlot beneath his roof; he has been on
friendly terms with an adulterer. Not a word has he uttered against
Thersander but what savours of the vilest calumny, but if anything
especially becomes a priest, surely it is to keep a civil tongue
in his head,--and in saying this I am but borrowing his own words.
However, after edifying us with his wit and jests, he went on to adopt
a tragic strain, and bitterly inveighed against us for handcuffing an
adulterer, and sending him to prison. I wonder what it cost to kindle
in him this prodigious warmth of zeal? Methinks I can give a tolerably
shrewd guess. He has looked with a longing eye upon the features
of these two shameless guests of his; the wench is handsome, the
youth has a goodly countenance; both are well suited for the private
pleasures of a priest! Which of the two best served your turn? At any
rate you all slept together; you all got drunk together; and there
are no witnesses to depose how your nights were passed. I sadly fear
me that Diana's fane has been perverted into Aphrodite's temple! It
will furnish matter for future discussion whether you are fit to be
a priest. As to my client Thersander, every one knows that from his
earliest years he has been a pattern of sobriety and virtue; no sooner
was he arrived at manhood, than he contracted a marriage according to
the laws; his choice was indeed unfortunate, and trusting to her rank
and wealth, he found himself the husband of a wife very different from
what he had expected. There can be little doubt that she long ago went
astray, unknown to this most exemplary of men; it is plain enough that
latterly she has cast off all shame, and has indulged her disgraceful
propensities to the utmost. No sooner had her husband set out on a long
voyage than she thought it a favourable opportunity for indulging her
loose desires; and then it was that, unfortunately for her, she lighted
upon this 'masculine whore;'[20] a paramour who among women is a man,
and among men a woman.
"Not content to cohabit with him in impunity in a foreign land, she
must needs transport him with her over an extent of sea, and on the
voyage must needs take her lascivious sport in the sight of all the
passengers. O, shameless adultery, in which sea and land, had both
a share. Ο shameless adultery, prolonged even from Egypt to Ionia!
Generally, when women are guilty of adultery they confine themselves
to a single act, or if they repeat their crime, it is with every
precaution which may ensure concealment. In the present case, however,
she commits the sin by sound of trumpet, if I may so say. The adulterer
is known to every one in Ephesus, and she herself is not ashamed to
have brought him hither like so much merchandise; making an investment
in good looks, taking in a paramour by way of freight! She will say,
'I concluded my husband to be dead. ' 'In that case,' I reply, 'were
your husband dead, you would be free from criminality, for there would
then be no sufferer by the adulterous act, nor is any dishonour cast on
marriage if the husband is no longer in existence; but if the husband
be alive, the marriage bond is still in force, his rights over his wife
continue, and he has, by her criminality, suffered a grievous wrong. '"
Thersander here interrupted him, "It is needless to examine any one
by torture, as was formerly proposed. I offer two challenges: one to
this wife of mine, Melitta; the other to the pretended daughter of
this ambassador, who is lawfully my slave. " He then read aloud; "I
Thersander challenge Melitta and Leucippe (such I understand is the
strumpet's name) to submit to the following ordeal:--If the former,
as she asserts, has had no intercourse with this stranger during the
period of my absence, let her go unto the sacred fountain of the Styx,
declare her innocence upon oath, and then stand acquitted of any
further guilt. Let the latter, if free-born and no longer a maiden,
remain my slave, for the temple of the goddess affords sanctuary to
slaves alone; if, on the other hand, she asserts herself to be a
virgin, let her be shut into the cave of the syrinx. " We immediately
accepted this challenge, being already aware that it would be made.
Melitta, likewise conscious that nothing improper had taken place
during the actual absence of Thersander, said, "I accept the challenge;
and will here add, that during the period referred to I had criminal
intercourse with no one, whether foreigner or citizen; and I will ask
you," addressing Thersander, "to what penalty will you submit, provided
the charge prove groundless and calumnious? "--"I will submit to
whatever the law decrees," was his reply. The court then broke up, the
following day being appointed for the respective ordeals referred to in
the challenge. The following is the legend of the Stygian fountain:--
"There was once a beauteous maiden, named Rhodopis, whose supreme
delight was in the chase. She was swift of foot, unerring in her
aim; she wore a head-band, had her robe girt up to the knee, and her
hair short, after the fashion of men. Diana met her, bestowed many
commendations on her, and made her her companion in the chase. The
maiden bound herself by oath to observe perpetual virginity, to avoid
the company of men, and never to humiliate herself by submitting to
amorous indulgence. [21] Venus overheard the oath, and was incensed
at it, and determined to punish the damsel for her presumption.
There happened to be a youth of Ephesus, named Euthynicus, as much
distinguished among men for beauty as Rhodopis was among those of her
own sex. He was as ardently devoted to the chase as the maiden, and
like her was averse to the delights of love. One day when Diana was
absent, Venus contrived to make the game which they were following
run in the same direction; then addressing her archer son, she said,
'Do you see yon frigid and unloving pair, enemies to us and to our
mysteries? The maiden has even gone the length of registering an oath
against me! Do you see them both following a hind? Join the chase, and
begin by making an example of the maiden;--your arrows never miss. '
Both at the same moment bend their bows,--she against the hind, but
Cupid against her,--and both hit the mark, but the successful huntress
herself becomes a victim; her arrow pierces the shoulder of the deer,
but Cupid's shaft penetrates her heart, and the result of the wound was
love for Euthynicus. Cupid then aims a shaft at him, and with the same
effect. For a time they stand and gaze upon each other; their eyes are
fascinated; they cannot turn away;[22] gradually their inward wounds
become inflamed; the fire kindles,[23] and love urges their steps to
the cavern where now the fountain flows, and there they violate their
oath. [24] Diana soon after saw Venus laughing, and readily comprehended
what had taken place, and as a punishment changed the maiden into a
fountain, upon the spot where her chastity was lost. For this reason,
when any female is suspected of impurity, she is made to step into
the fountain, which is shallow, reaching only to midleg, and then it
is that the ordeal takes place. The oath declarative of chastity is
written on a tablet, and suspended from her neck; if truly sworn, the
fountain remains unmoved; if falsely taken, it swells and rages, rises
to her neck, and flows over the tablet. "
Next morning a great concourse assembled, and at the head came
Thersander, with a confident expression of countenance, and looking at
us with a contemptuous smile. Leucippe was attired in a sacred robe
of fine white linen, reaching to the feet and girded about her waist;
round her head she had a purple fillet, and her feet were bare. She
entered the cavern with an air of becoming modesty. Upon seeing her
disappear within, I was overcome by agitation, and said mentally, "I
doubt not your chastity, dearest Leucippe, but I am afraid of Pan;
he is a virgin-loving god, and for aught I know, you may become a
second syrinx. His former mistress easily escaped him, for her course
lay over an open plain; whereas you are shut up within doors, and so
blockaded that flight is out of the question, however much you may
wish to fly. Ο Pan! be thou propitious; do not violate the statutes
of the place, which we have religiously observed; grant that Leucippe
may again return to us a virgin; remember thy compact with Diana, and
do no injury to the maiden. " While talking to myself in this manner,
sounds of music proceeded from the cavern, more ravishingly sweet, I
was assured, than had been heard on any former occasion: the doors
were immediately opened, and when Leucippe sprang forth, the multitude
shouted with delight, and vented execrations upon Thersander. What my
own feelings were, I cannot pretend to describe. After gaining this
first signal triumph, we left the spot, and proceeded to the place
which was to be the scene of the remaining ordeal, the people following
again to behold the spectacle. Everything was in readiness, the tablet
was suspended to Melitta's neck, and she descended into the shallow
fountain with a smiling countenance. No change was perceptible in the
water, which remained perfectly still, and did not in the slightest
degree exceed its usual depth, and at the expiration of the allotted
time the president came forward, and taking Melitta by the hand,
conducted her out of the fountain.
Thersander, already twice defeated,
and surely anticipating a third defeat, took to his heels and fled to
his own house, fearing that the people would, in their fury, stone him.
His apprehensions were well founded, for some young men were seen at a
distance dragging Sosthenes along; two of them were Melitta's kinsmen,
and the others were servants, whom she had despatched in quest of him.
Thersander had caught sight of him, and feeling sure that when put to
the torture he would confess everything, he secretly left the city,
as soon as night came on. Sosthenes was committed to prison by order
of the magistrates, and we returned triumphant upon every point, and
accompanied by the shouts and good wishes of the people.
Next morning they whose business it was[25] conducted Sosthenes before
the magistrates. Aware that he was about to be put to the question, he
made a full confession of everything, stating how far Thersander had
been the prime agent, and how far he had himself assisted in carrying
out his schemes! nor did he omit to repeat the conversation which had
taken place between his master and him before the cottage-door. He
was sent back to prison there to await his sentence, and a decree of
banishment was pronounced against Thersander. When this business was
concluded, we again returned to the hospitable dwelling of the priest,
and while at supper resumed the subject of our former conversation,
mutually relating any incidents which had previously been omitted.
Leucippe, now that the purity of her character was fully established,
no longer stood in awe of her father, but took pleasure in narrating
the events which had befallen her. When she came to that part of her
story which referred to Pharos and the pirates, I requested her to give
us every particular about them, and especially to explain the riddle of
the severed head, as this alone was wanting to complete the history of
her adventures. "The recital will interest us all," I said, "especially
your father. "
"The unhappy female to whom you allude," replied Leucippe, "was one of
that class who sell their charms for money. She was inveigled on board,
under pretence of becoming the wife of a sea captain, and remained
there in ignorance of the real cause for which she had been brought,
passing her time in the company of one of the pirates, who pretended
to have a passion for her. When I was seized, they placed me, as you
saw, in a boat, and rowed off with all their might; and afterwards
when they perceived that the vessel despatched in pursuit was gaining
upon them, they stripped the wretched woman of her clothes, which they
put on me, making her dress herself in mine; then placing her at the
stern in sight of the pursuers, they cut off her head and cast the body
overboard, doing the same with the head, when the pursuit was given
up. Whether she had been brought on board for the above purpose, or in
order to be sold, as they afterwards told me, I cannot say; certain
it is that she was put to death by way of eluding the pursuers, the
pirates imagining that I should fetch more money as a slave than she
would do. It was this determination on their part which earned his
just reward for Chæreas, who had suggested the murder of the female in
place of me. The pirates refused to let him retain exclusive possession
of me, saying that on his account one woman had already been lost to
them, who would have been a source of gain. They proposed, therefore,
that I should be sold to make up the loss, and that the money should
be equally divided. He replied in an angry and threatening manner,
asserting his prior claims, and reminding them of their compact, and
that I had been carried off, not in order to be sold, but to be his
mistress. Upon this, one of the pirates came behind him, and dealt him
his measure of justice by striking off his head and flinging his body
into the sea,--a worthy requital of his perfidious conduct towards me.
"After two days' sail, the pirates put in at some place, the name of
which I do not know, where they sold me to a merchant who used to
traffic with them, and from his hands I passed into the possession of
Sosthenes. "
"My children," said Sostratus, when Leucippe had concluded, "I will
now relate what has happened to Calligone, for it is but fair that I
should contribute my share to the conversation. "[26] Upon hearing my
sister's name mentioned, I became all attention, and said, "Prithee,
sir, proceed; I shall rejoice to hear that she is still alive. " He
commenced by repeating what has already been mentioned respecting
Callisthenes, the oracle given to the Byzantians, the sacred embassy
sent to Tyre, and the stratagem for carrying off Calligone. He went on
to say: "Callisthenes discovered during the voyage that she was not my
daughter; but although matters had thus turned out quite contrary to
his intentions, he conceived a strong passion for his fair captive, and
throwing himself at her knees: 'Lady,' he said, 'do not imagine that I
am a corsair or a villain; I am of good birth, and second in rank to
none in Byzantium. It is Love who has compelled me to turn pirate, and
to employ this stratagem against you. Deign, therefore, to consider
me your slave from this day forth. I offer you my hand in marriage.
You shall have for your dowry more wealth than your father would have
bestowed upon you, and you shall preserve your maiden state so long as
you may please. '
"By means of these, and other insinuating words, he brought her to
look favourably upon him, for he was handsome in person and possessed
a flow of persuasive language. Upon arriving at Byzantium he had a
deed drawn up assigning her an ample dowry; he then proceeded to make
other preparations, purchased for her splendid dresses, jewellery and
ornaments, in short, whatsoever was required for the wardrobe and
toilette of a lady of rank and wealth. Having done this, he abstained
from soliciting her virtue, and in fulfilment of his promise allowed
her to remain a maiden, and thus he gradually won her affections. In
a short time, quite a wonderful alteration took place in the young
man; he became conciliatory in manner, and prudent and orderly in his
mode of living; he shewed respect by rising up before his elders,[27]
and was the first courteously to salute any whom he met; his former
indiscriminate profusion, which had been mere lavish prodigality, now
became wisely directed liberality, choosing for its objects those who
were suffering from poverty and required assistance.
"All who remembered his former and dissolute course of life were amazed
at this sudden change. He shewed me the most marked attention, and I
could not help loving him and attributing his former conduct more to
an excess of open-heartedness than to any actual vicious propensities,
and I called to mind the case of Themistocles, who after a youth
spent in licentiousness, in after life excelled all his countrymen
in soundness of judgment and many virtues. [28] I really felt sorry
at having repulsed him, when he was a suitor for my daughter's hand,
he treated me with so much respect, giving me the title of father,
and escorting me[29] whenever I had occasion to go through the forum.
He likewise took great interest in military exercises, especially in
what related to the cavalry department; he had always been fond of
horses, but hitherto merely to indulge his love of amusement and his
luxurious tastes; yet though actuated by no higher motives, he had been
unconsciously fostering the seeds of skill and courage; and eventually
his chief ambition was to distinguish himself by valour and ability
in the field. He contributed largely from his own private resources
the expenses of the war, and was elected my colleague in command,
in which position he shewed me a still greater degree of attention
and deference. When at length, victory declared itself on our side,
through the visible intervention of the deity,[30] we returned to
Byzantium, and it was decreed, that the public thanks of the State
should be conveyed to Hercules and Diana, for which purpose he was to
proceed to Tyre, while I was despatched to this city. Before setting
out Callisthenes took me by the hand and related every particular
respecting Calligone. 'Father,' he said, 'the impetuosity of youth led
me away in the first instance; but in the course which since then,
I have pursued, deliberate choice and principle have influenced my
actions. I have scrupulously respected the maiden's honour, during a
time of war and confusion when men are generally least inclined to
deny themselves the indulgence of their desires. My intention is now
to conduct her to her father's house, at Tyre; and then to claim her
for my bride, at her father's hand, in accordance with the law. [31] I
have made an ample settlement upon her, and shall consider myself most
fortunate, if he grants my suit; if, on the contrary, I meet with a
repulse he will receive back his daughter as pure as when she left his
home. '
"I will now read you a friendly letter, which--feeling anxious that the
marriage should be concluded--I addressed to my brother, before the
termination of the war, in which I mentioned the rank of Callisthenes,
and bore testimony to his good birth, the honourable position which he
had attained, and his eminent services in the field. If we gain our
cause in the new trial[32] moved by Thersander, I propose, first of all
to sail to Byzantium, and afterwards to proceed to Tyre. "
Clinias came to us next day, with the intelligence that Thersander
had secretly left the city, that his object in appealing from the
recent decision was but a pretext to gain time, and that he had no
intention of following up the case. After waiting three days, the
period appointed for taking fresh proceedings,[33] we appeared before
the President, and having satisfactorily proved by reference to the
statutes, that Thersander had no longer any legal ground against us,
we embarked and enjoyed a favourable voyage to Byzantium, where our
long-desired nuptials took place. A short time after, we sailed to
Tyre, which we reached two days after the arrival of Callisthenes,
and where I found my father preparing to celebrate my sister's wedding
on the following day. We were present on the occasion, and assisted
at the religious ceremonial, offering up our united prayers that both
our marriages might be crowned with happiness; and we arranged, after
wintering at Ephesus, to proceed to Byzantium in the spring.
