2, where Sylvia cures Phyllis stung by a bee, by
kissing her, upon which Aminta, pretends to have been stung in order to
be cured by the same agreeable remedy.
kissing her, upon which Aminta, pretends to have been stung in order to
be cured by the same agreeable remedy.
Scriptori Erotici Graeci
On the
other hand, my greatness is commensurate with the air and with the
power of my wings; the flowers of the meadow constitute my comeliness,
they serve me in lieu of garments, with which, when weary with flying,
I invest myself; neither is my valour any laughing matter; I am the
very impersonation of a warlike instrument; I blow a blast[45] when
I go to battle, and it is my mouth which serves for trumpet and for
weapon, so that I am at once, a musician and an archer; moreover I
am my own bow and arrow; my wings poised in air shoot me forward, and
lighting down, I inflict a wound as with a shaft; who so ever feels it
cries out and forthwith tries to find his enemy: I, however, though
present, am at the same time absent; I fly and I stand my ground,
and with my wings circle round the adversary, and laugh to see him
dance with pain. But why should I waste more words? --let us at once
join battle. ' Saying this, he falls upon the lion, attacking his eyes
and every other part which was unprotected by hair; at the same time
wheeling round him and blowing his trumpet. The lion was in a fury,
turning himself in every direction and vainly snapping at the air; his
wrath afforded additional sport to the gnat, who made an onslaught
on his very mouth. Immediately he turned to the side where he was
aggrieved, when his antagonist, like a skilful wrestler, twisting and
twirling his body escaped clean through the lion's teeth, which were
heard to rattle against each other in the vain attempt to seize him.
By this time the lion was thoroughly tired by thus fighting with the
air, and stood still, exhausted by his own efforts; upon which the
gnat, sailing round his mane sounded a triumphant strain of victory;
but stimulated by his excess of vanity he took a wider range, and all
at once fell into a spider's web. When no hope of escape appeared, he
sorrowfully said, 'Fool that I am, I entered the lists against a lion,
and behold I am caught in the meshes of a spider! '" Having finished
his story, Satyrus said, with a sarcastic laugh, "Be on your guard,
and beware of spiders. " Not many days had passed when Satyrus knowing
what a belly-slave Conops was, purchased a powerful soporific draught
and then invited him to supper. [46] Suspicious of some trick, he at
first declined, but afterwards, over persuaded by his most excellent
adviser--appetite,[47] he complied. After supper, when he was on the
point of going away, Satyrus poured the potion into his last draught,
he drank it off, and had just time to reach his dormitory, when he fell
on his bed in a deep sleep. Upon this, Satyrus hurried to me and said,
"Conops is fast asleep, now is the time to prove yourself as valorous
as Ulysses:"[48] we instantly proceeded to the door which conducted to
Leucippe's chamber; there he left me, and Clio stealthily admitted me,
trembling with joy and fear; the dread of danger disturbed my hopes,
but the hope of success qualified the dread, and so hope became the
source of fear, and pain the cause of pleasure.
Just as I had entered the maiden's room, her mother's sleep had been
disturbed by a fearful dream; a robber armed with a naked sword, seized
and carried off her daughter, after which, laying her upon the ground,
he proceeded to rip her up, beginning at her private parts. Terrified
by the vision, her mother started up and hurried to her daughter's
apartment, which as I before said was close at hand. I had but just
got into bed and hearing the doors open, had scarcely time to leap out
before she was at her daughter's side. Aware of my danger I made a bolt
through the opened door, and ran with all my might, till trembling
from head to foot I met Satyrus, when we both made our way in the dark
and retreated each to his own room. Leucippe's mother fainted, but
upon recovering the first thing she did was to box Clio's ears, then
tearing her own hair, she broke forth into lamentation. "Oh Leucippe,"
she said, "you have blighted all my hopes. And you Sostratus, who are
fighting at Byzantium to protect the honour of other people's wives and
daughters, you little think how some enemy has been warring against
your house, and has defiled your own daughter's honour. Oh, Leucippe,
I never thought to see you wedded after such a fashion as this! Would
that you had remained at Byzantium! Would that you had suffered
violence from the chances of war, and that some Thracian had been your
ravisher! In such a case the violence would have excused the shame,
whereas now, you are at the same time wretched and disgraced. The
vision of the night did but mock my mind, the realities of the dream
were hidden from me, for of a truth, yours has been a more fearful
ripping up, and your wound more fatal than any inflicted by the sword;
and the worst is, that I am ignorant who is your ravisher. I do not
even know what is his condition! for aught I can tell, he may be some
wretched slave. [49]" When the maiden felt assured of my escape, she
took courage and said: "Mother, there is no occasion for you to attack
my chastity, nothing has been done to me deserving of your reproaches;
nor do I know whether the intruder was a god, a demigod, or a mortal
ravisher;[50] all I know is that I was heartily frightened and lay
still, quite unable to cry out through fear; for fear, as you know,
acts as a padlock upon the tongue: this, however, you may be assured
of, no one has robbed me of my virginity. " Notwithstanding these
assurances of her daughter, Panthea gave way to a fresh paroxysm of
grief. Meanwhile Satyrus and I were deliberating on the best course
to be pursued; and we determined to make our escape out of the house
before morning should arrive, when Clio would be put to the torture and
be compelled to reveal everything.
This plan we at once carried into execution, and telling the porter
that we were going out to visit our mistresses, we went straight to
Clinias: it was midnight, and we had some trouble in gaining admission:
Clinias who slept in an upper room heard our voices in discussion
with his porter, and hurried down in alarm, while we could see at a
short distance Clio running towards us, for she too it appeared had
determined to make her escape. Almost in the same moment therefore
Clinias heard our story, and we the narrative of Clio, while she was
made acquainted with our future plans; we all went in doors, when we
gave Clinias a more detailed account and stated our determination of
leaving the city. "I will accompany you," said Clio, "for if I remain
behind till morning, death (the sweetest of torments, since it ends
them) will be my lot. " Clinias took my hand and leading me aside, he
said, "It appears to me most advisable to get this wench out of the
way at once, and after waiting a few days we can depart ourselves, if
still of the same mind. According to your account the maiden's mother
does not know who it was whom she surprised, nor will there be any one
to furnish evidence since Clio is removed. Nay, we may perhaps persuade
the maiden herself to share our flight; I will accompany you at all
events. "
We agreed to his proposal, so Clio was delivered to the care of one of
his slaves to be put on board a boat, while we continued to deliberate
upon the course best to be pursued. At last we resolved to make trial
of Leucippe's inclination, and, should she be willing, to carry her
off: in case of her rejecting our proposal, we determined to remain
for the present and to await the course of events. The short remainder
of the night was passed in sleep, and at daylight we returned home.
Panthea had no sooner risen in the morning, than she had preparations
made for putting Clio to the torture;[51] but when summoned she could
no where be found. Upon this, returning to her daughter, "Will you
still persist," said she, "in concealing the particulars of this pretty
plot? Now, I find that Clio also has run off. " Still more reassured by
the intelligence, Leucippe replied, "What more would you have me tell
you? What stronger testimony of the truth would you have me produce?
If there is any way of proving a maid's virginity, you are welcome
to prove mine. " "Aye," said Panthea, "and by so doing to add to the
troubles of our family by bringing in witnesses to its disgrace;" upon
saying which, she hastily quitted the apartment. Leucippe left to
herself, and with her mother's words still ringing in her ears, was
distracted by conflicting and various emotions;[52] she was deeply
pained at having been discovered. Her mother's reproaches filled her
with shame; she felt angry at having her word doubted. Now these
feelings are like three billows which disturb the soul's tranquillity:
shame making an entrance through the eyes unfits them for their natural
office; pain preys upon the mind and extinguishes its ardour; while
the voice of anger baying round the heart overpowers reason with
its wrathful foam. [53] The tongue is the parent of these different
feelings; bending its bow and aiming its arrow at the mark, it inflicts
its several wounds upon the soul:[54] with the wordy shaft of railing
it produces anger, with that of well founded accusation, begets pain,
with that of reproof, causes shame; the peculiarity of all these arrows
is, that they inflict deep but bloodless wounds, and there is available
against their effects one remedy alone, which is, to turn against the
assailant his own weapons. Speech, the weapon of the tongue, must be
repelled by a weapon of like nature, for then the feeling of anger
will become calmed and the sensations of shame and annoyance will be
appeased; but if dread of a superior hinder the employment of such
succours, the very fact of silence makes these wounds to rankle the
more deeply, and unless these mental waves, raised by the power of
speech, can cast up their foam, they will but swell and toss the
more. [55]
What I have been saying will picture the condition of Leucippe's mind,
who felt ready to sink under her troubles; it was while she was in
this frame of mind that I dispatched Satyrus to her, in order to make
overtures of flight. Anticipating him in her words, she exclaimed:--"In
the name of the gods, foreign and hospitable, deliver me out of my
mother's power, and take me whither you will; for if you go away and
leave me here, the noose suspended by my own hands shall be my death. "
When I was informed of her expressions, it freed me from a world of
anxiety; and in the course of two or three days, when my father was
absent from home, we made preparations for our flight. Satyrus had
still remaining some of the potion which he had used so successfully
upon Conops. While waiting at supper he poured out a little into the
last cup, which he presented to Panthea; almost immediately after
drinking it, she retired to her own room, and fell fast asleep.
Leucippe had now another chambermaid, with whom Satyrus was on familiar
terms; having given her likewise a portion of the draught, he proceeded
to a third party, the porter, who was soon lying under the influence of
the same soporific potion.
Meanwhile Clinias was awaiting us at the door with a carriage which
he had in readiness, and while all were yet asleep, between nine and
ten at night, we cautiously left the house, Satyrus leading Leucippe
by the hand: Conops, as I may remark, who used to watch our movements,
being fortunately absent, having been dispatched on an errand by his
mistress. On getting out, we immediately entered the carriage, six
in number, Leucippe, I and Satyrus, together with Clinias and two
servants. We drove off in the direction of Sidon, where we arrived
about midnight, and without delay continued our journey to Berytus, in
hopes of finding some vessel in the harbour; nor were we disappointed,
for on going to the port we found a ship on the point of sailing:
without even inquiring whither she was bound, we got our baggage on
board, and embarked a little before dawn. It was then we learnt that
the vessel was bound for the celebrated city of Alexandria, situated on
the Nile.
The sight of the sea delighted me while as yet we were in the smooth
water of the harbour; soon, however, upon the wind becoming favourable,
loud tumult prevailed throughout the vessel; the sailors hurried to and
fro, the master issued his commands, ropes were bent, the sail-yard
was brought round before the wind, the sail was unfurled, we weighed
anchor,[56] the ship began to move, the port was left behind, and the
coast, as if itself in motion, seemed gradually to be retiring from
us;[57] the Pæan was chanted, and many prayers were addressed to the
guardian deities for a prosperous voyage. Meanwhile the wind freshened
and filled the sail, and the vessel speeded on her course.
There was a young man on board, in the same cabin[58] with ourselves,
when dinner time was come he politely invited us to partake of his
meal. Satyrus was just then bringing out our provisions; so putting
all into a common stock, we shared our dinner and our conversation. I
began by saying, "Pray where do you come from, and by what name are we
to address you? " "My name," he replied, "is Menelaus, and I am a native
of Egypt; and now may I inquire who you are? " "I am called Clitopho,
and my companion Clinias; our country is Phœnicia. " "And what," he
rejoined, "is the motive of your voyage? " "If you will relate your own
story first, you shall then hear ours. " Menelaus assented, and began as
follows:--
"The cause of my leaving my home may be summed up in very few
words:--envious love and ill-fated hunting. I was strongly attached to
a handsome youth, who was very fond of the chase. I did everything
in my power to restrain him from this pursuit, but without success.
Finding I could not prevail with him, I myself accompanied him.
"One day we were out hunting, and for a time everything went on
successfully so long as harmless animals were alone the objects of our
sport. At length a wild boar was roused; the youth pursued the brute,
who faced about, and ran furiously to attack him; still the youth kept
his ground, not withstanding that I repeatedly called out:--'Wheel
round your horse; the beast is too powerful for you. ' The boar
continuing its career, and coming up, they closed in combat. Terrified
lest the beast should wound the horse, and so bring down his rider,
I launched my javelin without taking sufficient aim, and the youth
crossing its course, received the stroke. [59]
"Picture to yourself the feelings of my mind. If I retained life at
that moment, it was like a living death; and what was most lamentable
of all, the wretched youth, who still breathed, extending his arms,
embraced me, and so far from hating his destroyer, he expired still
grasping my homicidal hand. On account of this lamentable occurrence
his parents took legal proceedings against me; nor was I unwilling to
stand my trial; indeed I offered no defence, considering myself fully
deserving to suffer death. The judge, out of compassion, condemned me
to three years' banishment, and that period having now expired, I am on
my return home. "
This narrative reminded Clinias of the unhappy death of Charicles, and
he shed tears, which though in appearance they flowed for another's
grief, were, in reality, drawn forth by his own sorrows. [60] "Are
you weeping on my account," asked Menelaus, "or has any similar
disaster befallen you? " Upon this Clinias, with many sighs, detailed
the circumstances of Charicles and the horse; and I likewise related
my adventures. Seeing Menelaus very low spirited on account of his
own thoughts, and Clinias still shedding tears at the recollection of
Charicles, I endeavoured to dissipate their grief, by introducing a
love topic for conversation; for Leucippe, I may observe, was not then
present, but was asleep in the ship's hold. I began, therefore, with
a smiling air:--"How much better off is Clinias than I am; he was no
doubt longing to inveigh against women, according to his wont, and he
can do so all the better now, having found one who sympathises with his
tastes; but why so many should be addicted to the love of youths, for
my part I cannot tell. "
"There can be no doubt," said Menelaus, "which is preferable. Youths
are much more open and free from affectation than women, and their
beauty stimulates the senses much more powerfully. "
"How so? " I asked; "it no sooner appears than it is gone. It affords
no enjoyment to the lover, but is like the cup of Tantalus, while one
is drinking the liquid disappears; and even the little which has been
swallowed is unsatisfying. No one can leave such favourites without
feeling his pleasure alloyed with pain, the draught of love still
leaves him thirsty. "
"You do not understand," rejoined Menelaus, "that the perfection of
pleasure consists in its bringing with it no satiety; the very fact
of its being of a permanent and satisfying kind takes away from its
delight. What we snatch but now and then is always new, and always in
full beauty. Of such things the pleasure is not liable to decay and
age, and it gains in intensity what it loses by briefness of duration;
for this reason, the rose is considered the most lovely among flowers,
because its beauty so quickly fades. There are two species of beauty
among mortals, each bestowed by its presiding goddess;[61] the one is
of heaven, the other of earth; the former chafes at being linked to
what is mortal, and quickly wings its flight to heaven; the latter
clings to earth, and cleaves to mortal bodies. Would you have a poet's
testimony of the ascent of heavenly beauty? hear what Homer sings:--
'Ganymede,
Fairest of human kind, whom for that cause
The gods caught up to heav'n that he might dwell
For ever there, the cup-bearer of Jove. '[62]
But no woman, I trow, ever ascended to heaven for her beauty's
sake, though Jove had abundance of intrigues with women: grief and
exile were the portion of Alcmena; the chest and the sea were the
receptacle of Danæ; and Semele became food for fire;[63] but--mark the
difference--when Jove became enamoured of a Phrygian youth, he took him
up to heaven to dwell with him, and pour out his nectar, depriving his
predecessor of the office, she being, I rather think, a woman. "
"In my opinion," said I, interrupting him, "female beauty has in it
much more of the heavenly kind, because it does not so quickly fade;
and the freer from decay, the nearer is anything to the divine nature.
On the other hand, whatsoever in accordance with its mortal nature soon
decays, is not of heaven, but of earth. I grant that Jove, enamoured
of a Phrygian youth, raised him to the skies, but the beauty of woman
brought him down from heaven; for a woman he bellowed under the form of
a bull, for a woman he danced as a satyr, for a woman he transformed
himself into a golden shower. Let Ganymede, therefore, be Jove's
cup-bearer, if you will, provided that Juno[64] also reclines at the
banquet, and has a youth to wait on her. For my part, I cannot think
upon his rape without feelings of pity: a savage bird is sent down, he
is seized and borne aloft (cruel and tyrannous treatment, methinks),
and the unseemly spectacle is seen of a youth suspended from an eagle's
talons. No ravenous bird of prey, but the element of fire, bore Semele
aloft; nor should there seem anything strange and unnatural in this,
since it was by the same means that Hercules went up to heaven. You
amuse yourself at the expense of Danæ's chest, but why do you pass over
Perseus, who shared her fate? For Alcmena it sufficed that Jove for
love of her robbed the world of three whole days. [65]
"Passing, however, from the legends of mythology, I will speak of the
real delights of love, though my experience in such matters has been
small, compared with that of others, and confined to females who sell
their charms for lucre. In the first place, how tender and yielding
is a woman's body to the touch, how soft are her lips when kissed;
her person is in every way fitted for the amorous embrace: he who is
connected with her tastes genuine enjoyments; her kisses are impressed
upon his lips as seals upon a letter, and she kisses with such studied
art as imbues the kiss with double sweetness. Not content to use her
lips, she brings her teeth also into play, and feeding upon her lover's
mouth, makes her very kisses bite. What pleasure also is there in the
sensation of pressing a woman's breast, while in the amorous crisis, so
powerful is her excitement, that she is actually maddened with delight.
Her kisses are not confined to the lips, but lovers' tongues even do
their endeavour to kiss each other. At the conclusion of the amorous
combat, she pants, overcome with the fiery delight, and her love-sick
breath finding its way to her lips, encounter the lover's kiss still
wandering there, and mingling with it both descend and exert their
electric influence upon her heart, which leaps and beats, and were it
not fast bound within, would desert its seat, and be drawn forth by the
strength of kisses. "[66]
"Upon my word," said Menelaus, "you seem no raw recruit, but a
thorough veteran in the service of the Queen of Love, so minute are
you in all your detail. Now hear what I have to say in favour of male
beauty. With women their words and postures, everything, in short, is
studied and artificial: and their beauty, if they possess any, is the
laborious work of cosmetic appliances, of perfumes and of dyes;[67]
divest them of these meretricious attractions, and they will appear
like the daw stripped of its feathers, which we read of in the fable.
The beauty of youths, on the other hand, requires no unguents or
artificial essences to recommend it; nature has made it complete and
sufficient in itself. "[68]
[Footnote 1: Il. xvi. 823.
"As when the lion and the sturdy boar,
Contend in battle on the mountain tops
For some scant rivulet which both desire,
Ere long the lion quelle the panting boar. "
Cowper's Tr.
]
[Footnote 2: καμπαί, signify properly, the changes and inflections in a
piece of music. ]
[Footnote 3:
"The rose, of flow'rs th' enchanting pride;
The rose is Spring's enchanting bride;
The rose of every god's the joy;
With roses Cytherea's boy,
When, dancing, he'd some Grace ensnare,
Adorns the love-nets of his hair. "
Anacreon. v. Addison's Tr.
]
[Footnote 4: προτρυγαίου Διονύσου. ]
[Footnote 5: The wine of most early celebrity was that which the
minister of Apollo, Maron, who dwelt upon the skirts of Thracian
Ismarus gave to Ulysses. It was red and honey-sweet; so precious, that
it was unknown to all in the mansion save the wife of the priest and
one trusty housekeeper; so strong, that a single cup was mixed with
twenty of water; so fragrant, that even when thus diluted it diffused a
divine and most tempting perfume.
See Odyss. ix. 203. ; Dict. of Greek and Roman Antiq. ]
[Footnote 6: κύλικα φιλοτησίαν. ]
[Footnote 7:
. . . . "Ο this is from above--a stream
Of nectar and ambrosia, all divine! "
Od. B. ix. 355, Cowper.
]
[Footnote 8: "He washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the
_blood of grapes_. "--Gen. xlix. 11. ]
[Footnote 9: ὑάλου ὀρωρυγμένης. Herodotus, iii. 24, uses the word
ύάλος, to describe the clear transparent stone, supposed to be Oriental
alabaster, used by the Egyptians to enclose their mummies. ]
[Footnote 10: The translation of this passage follows Villoisin's
reading. For a mention of the cup of Glaucus, see Herod. i. 25. Mr.
Blakesley, in his Edition remarks, that ή Γλαύκου τέχνη, was in the
time of Plato (Phædon, § 132) a proverbial one, applied to everything
requiring in extraordinary amount of skill. ]
[Footnote 11:
"While Venus fills the heart. . . .
. . . . . .
Ceres presents a plate of vermicelli,--
For love must be sustain'd like flesh and blood,--
While Bacchus pours out wine or hands a jelly. --Byron.
]
[Footnote 12: τὸ αὐτόματον ἡμῶν. ]
[Footnote 13: "πῶς ἄν τις αὐτο φύγοι; πτερὰ ἔχει καὶ
καταλήψεται. "--Longus, B. i.
"Αll his body is a fire,
And his breath a flame entire.
. . . . . .
He doth bear a golden bow,
And a quiver hanging low.
. . . . . .
Wings he hath which though ye clip
He will leap from lip to lip,
. . . . . .
And if chance his arrow misses
He will shoot himself in kisses. "--Ben Jonson.
]
[Footnote 14: The translation follows the reading in the edition by
Jacobs. ]
[Footnote 15: Tasso has introduced this stratagem of a lover into his
Aminta, Act ii. sc.
2, where Sylvia cures Phyllis stung by a bee, by
kissing her, upon which Aminta, pretends to have been stung in order to
be cured by the same agreeable remedy.
"Che, fingendo ch' un' ape avesse morso
Il mio labbre di sotto, incominciai
A lamentarmi di cotal maniera,
Che quella medicina che la lingua
Non richiedeva, il volto richiedeva. "
]
[Footnote 16:
. . . "fece
Più cupa, e più mortale
La mia piaga verace,
Quando le labbre sua
Giunse a le labbre mie.
N'a l'api d'alcun fiore
Colgon al dolce il mel, ch'allora io colei
Da quelle fresche rose. "--Tasso.
]
[Footnote 17:
"She blushed and frown'd not, but she strove to speak,
And held her tongue, her voice was grown so weak. "--Byron.
]
[Footnote 18:
"How delicious is the winning
Of a kiss at love's beginning. "--Campbell.
]
[Footnote 19:
"Fac primus rapias illius tacta labellis
Pocula; quoque bibit parte puella bibe. "
Ovid, de Art. Am. i. 595.
"Drink to me only with thine eyes,
And I will pledge thee with mine;
Or leave a kiss but in the cup
And I'll not look for wine. "
Ben Jonson (imitation of a passage in Philostratus. )
]
[Footnote 20: The original is highly poetical:--ἐπιτήρησας oὖν ὅτε τοῦ
φωτὸς τὸ πολὺ τῆς αὐγῆς ἐμαραίνετο. ]
[Footnote 21: In B. v. of the Ethiopics, Heliodorus says of the Spanish
and British amethyst, that it is of a dull ruddy colour, resembling a
newly budding rose; and of the amethyst of Ethiopia, that it emits a
lustre like that of gold. ]
[Footnote 22:
. . . "blending every colour into one,
Just like a black eye in a recent scuffle. "--Byron.
]
[Footnote 23: The πέπλος was an ample shawl serving for a robe; those
of the most splendid hues and curious workmanship were imported from
Tyre and Sidon. --See Iliad, vi. 289. ]
[Footnote 24: τὸ ἕρμαιον. ]
[Footnote 25: πpoτέλεια γάμων. These consisted of sacrifices and
offerings made to the θεoὶ γαμήλιοι, or divinities who presided over
marriage; the sacrificer was the father of the bride elect. ]
[Footnote 26: οἱωνῶν βασιλεὺς. Æsch. Ag. 113. ]
[Footnote 27:
. . . , "ministrum fulminis alitem
Cui rex Deorum regnum in aves vagas
Permisit. "--Hor. iv. Od. iv. i.
]
[Footnote 28: "nunquam visæ flagrabat amore puellæ. "--Juv. iv. 14. ]
[Footnote 29: Jacobs observes that this law of Byzantium is purely the
invention of Tatius; one resembling it existed at Athens. ]
[Footnote 30:
Nῆσός τις πόλις ἐστί φυτώνυμον αῖμα λαχοῦσα
Ίσθμὸν ὁμοῦ καὶ πορθμὸν ἐπ' ἠπείροιο φέρουσα,
Ένθ'Ἥφαιστος ἔχων χαίρει γλαυκώπιν 'Αθηνην.
Κεῖθι θυηπολίην σε φἐρειν κέλομσι Ήρακλῆι.
Tyre is called by Euripides, φοίνισσα νήσος, (Phœn. 211,) was built
upon a small island, 200 furlongs from the shore. Alexander took it,
after having joined the island to the continent by a mole. ]
[Footnote 31: Herod. B. ii. c. 44, gives an account of his visit to the
temple of the Tyrian Hercules, and of the rich offerings which he saw
in it. ]
[Footnote 32: "The fire had power in the water, forgetting his own
virtue; and the water forget his own quenching nature. "--Wisdom, xix.
20. ]
[Footnote 33: See p. 234 of Brewster's Natural Magic, for a solution
of the acoustic wonder of the vocal sounds emitted by the statue of
Memnon. ]
[Footnote 34: Herod. iii. 102, says of the Indian soil--
Ή δὲ ψάμμος ἠ αναφερομένη εστὶ χρυσῖτις.
]
[Footnote 35: Herod. Β. iv. 195, gives an account of a lake in the isle
Cyraunis, on the east of Africa, from which the young women obtain
gold-dust by means of feathers smeared with pitch. ]
[Footnote 36: τῶν θεωρῶν. ]
[Footnote 37:
. . . . "plurima cervix,
Tam longo nullus lateri modus: omnia magna. "
Virg. G. iii. 52.
]
[Footnote 38:
"His steeds I saw, the fairest by these eyes
Ever beheld and loftiest; snow itself
They pass in whiteness. "--Iliad, x. 43. 7. Cowper's Tr.
]
[Footnote 39: πανήγυρις. ]
[Footnote 40: τὴν θεωρίαν ἀφοσιωμένος. ]
[Footnote 41: μυσταγωγήσῃ. ]
[Footnote 42: See the plan of a Greek house taken from Bekker's
Charikles. --Dict. of Greek and Roman Antiq. p. 494. ]
[Footnote 43: This fact is asserted by Ælian, B. vi. 22, and B. xiv. 9. ]
[Footnote 44: "Oh! " sobb'd Antonia, "I could tear their eyes
out. "--Byron. ]
[Footnote 45: In case the reader wishes to understand the philosophy of
the gnat's trumpet, we insert the following passage from Cumberland's
Trans. of the "Clouds" of Aristophanes.
_Disciple_. "'Twas put to Socrates, if he could say, when a goat
humm'd, whether the sound did issue from mouth or tail.
_Streps_. Aye; marry, what said he?
_Disciple. _ He said your gnat doth blow his trumpet backwards
From a sonorous cavity within him,
Which being filled with breath, and forced along
The narrow pipe or rectum of his body,
Doth vent itself in a loud hum behind. "
]
[Footnote 46:
"Fallitur et multo custodis cura Lyæo;
Illa vel Hispano lecta sit una jugo.
Sunt quoque, quæ faciant altos medicamina somnos;
Victaque Lethæâ lumina nocte premant. "
Ovid. Art. Am. iii. 645.
]
[Footnote 47: ὡς δ' ἡ βελτίστη γαστήρ κατηνάγκασεν. ]
[Footnote 48: The allusion is to Ulysses preparing to put out the eye
of the Cyclops.
. . . "the gods infused
Heroic fortitude into our hearts. "--Odyss. ix. 381.
]
[Footnote 49:
"'Sdeath! with a _page_--perchance a king
Had reconciled him to the thing;
But with a stripling of a page--
I felt--but cannot paint his rage. "--Byron.
]
[Footnote 50: εἴτε δαίμων, εἴτε ἥρως, εἴτε ληστής.
For an instance of intercourse between demigods--ἥρωες--and mortals,
see Herod. vi. 69. ]
[Footnote 51: The evidence of slaves was always taken with torture, and
their testimony was not otherwise received. For an animated picture of
the severity sometimes practised towards slaves, male and female, by a
capricious mistress, see Juv. vi. 475, 495. ]
[Footnote 52: παντοδαπή τις ἧν.
This passage may be illustrated by a parallel one in the beginning of
B. vii. ]
[Footnote 53: Pliny, B. iv. 5. "Tot sinus Poloponnensem oram lancinant,
tot maria allatrant. "]
[Footnote 54: "They bend their tongues like their _bow_ for lies. "]
[Footnote 55: "Their tongue is as an _arrow_ shot out. "--Jer. ix. 3, 8.
See also S. James iii. 5-9.
"Strangulat inclusus dolor atque cor æstuat intus
Cogitur et vires multiplicare suas. "--Ovid. Trist. I. 63.
"Give sorrow words; the grief that doth not speak,
Whispers the o'er-fraught heart, and bids it break. "--Macbeth.
]
[Footnote 56: The various operations when a vessel quitted or entered
the harbour are described in two passages of Homer. --
"The crew
Cast loose the hawsers, and embarking, filled
The benches. . . .
He, loud exhorting them, his people bade
Hand brisk the tackle; they obedient rear'd
The pine-tree mast, which in its socket deep
They lodg'd, then strained the cordage, and with thongs
Well twisted, drew the shining sail aloft. "--Odyss. ii. 419.
"Around within the haven deep, their sails
Furling, they stow'd them in the bark below.
Then by its tackle lowering the mast
Into its crutch, they briskly push'd to land,
Heav'd anchors out, and moor'd the vessel fast. "--Il. i. 4331
]
[Footnote 57:
"Provehimur portu; terræque urbesque recedunt. "
Vir. Æn. iii. 72.
]
[Footnote 58: παρασκηνῶν. ]
[Footnote 59: Tatius appears to have had in his mind the story of the
death of Atys, son of Crœsus. See Herod. B. i. 37.
Compare the spirited account of the Boar-hunt and the death of
Tlepolemus in the viiith book of Apuleius. ]
[Footnote 60: Πάτροκλον πρόφασιν, a proverb derived from a passage in
the Iliad, xix. 302:--
"All her fellow-captives heav'd
Responsive sighs, deploring each, in show
The dead Patroclus, but, in truth, herself. "
]
[Footnote 61: Tatius alludes to Venus Urania and Venus Popularis, the
one the patroness of pure, the other of impure, love. ]
[Footnote 62: Iliad xx. 2, 3, 4. ]
[Footnote 63: See Anthon's Lemprière for the legends attached to their
names. ]
[Footnote 64: Göttling proposes to read "Hebe," which suits the context
better. ]
[Footnote 65: According to some accounts, two; according to others,
three nights were required for the formation of Hercules, son of
Alcmena.
"Violentus ille
Nocte non unâ poterat creari. "--Seneca Ag. 825.
]
[Footnote 66:
"A long, long kiss, a kiss of youth and love,
And beauty, all concentrating like rays
Into one focus, kindled from above;
Such kisses as belong to early days,
Where heart, and soul, and sense, in concert move,
And the blood's lava, and the pulse a blaze,
Each kiss a heart-quake. "--Byron.
Compare Lucret.
other hand, my greatness is commensurate with the air and with the
power of my wings; the flowers of the meadow constitute my comeliness,
they serve me in lieu of garments, with which, when weary with flying,
I invest myself; neither is my valour any laughing matter; I am the
very impersonation of a warlike instrument; I blow a blast[45] when
I go to battle, and it is my mouth which serves for trumpet and for
weapon, so that I am at once, a musician and an archer; moreover I
am my own bow and arrow; my wings poised in air shoot me forward, and
lighting down, I inflict a wound as with a shaft; who so ever feels it
cries out and forthwith tries to find his enemy: I, however, though
present, am at the same time absent; I fly and I stand my ground,
and with my wings circle round the adversary, and laugh to see him
dance with pain. But why should I waste more words? --let us at once
join battle. ' Saying this, he falls upon the lion, attacking his eyes
and every other part which was unprotected by hair; at the same time
wheeling round him and blowing his trumpet. The lion was in a fury,
turning himself in every direction and vainly snapping at the air; his
wrath afforded additional sport to the gnat, who made an onslaught
on his very mouth. Immediately he turned to the side where he was
aggrieved, when his antagonist, like a skilful wrestler, twisting and
twirling his body escaped clean through the lion's teeth, which were
heard to rattle against each other in the vain attempt to seize him.
By this time the lion was thoroughly tired by thus fighting with the
air, and stood still, exhausted by his own efforts; upon which the
gnat, sailing round his mane sounded a triumphant strain of victory;
but stimulated by his excess of vanity he took a wider range, and all
at once fell into a spider's web. When no hope of escape appeared, he
sorrowfully said, 'Fool that I am, I entered the lists against a lion,
and behold I am caught in the meshes of a spider! '" Having finished
his story, Satyrus said, with a sarcastic laugh, "Be on your guard,
and beware of spiders. " Not many days had passed when Satyrus knowing
what a belly-slave Conops was, purchased a powerful soporific draught
and then invited him to supper. [46] Suspicious of some trick, he at
first declined, but afterwards, over persuaded by his most excellent
adviser--appetite,[47] he complied. After supper, when he was on the
point of going away, Satyrus poured the potion into his last draught,
he drank it off, and had just time to reach his dormitory, when he fell
on his bed in a deep sleep. Upon this, Satyrus hurried to me and said,
"Conops is fast asleep, now is the time to prove yourself as valorous
as Ulysses:"[48] we instantly proceeded to the door which conducted to
Leucippe's chamber; there he left me, and Clio stealthily admitted me,
trembling with joy and fear; the dread of danger disturbed my hopes,
but the hope of success qualified the dread, and so hope became the
source of fear, and pain the cause of pleasure.
Just as I had entered the maiden's room, her mother's sleep had been
disturbed by a fearful dream; a robber armed with a naked sword, seized
and carried off her daughter, after which, laying her upon the ground,
he proceeded to rip her up, beginning at her private parts. Terrified
by the vision, her mother started up and hurried to her daughter's
apartment, which as I before said was close at hand. I had but just
got into bed and hearing the doors open, had scarcely time to leap out
before she was at her daughter's side. Aware of my danger I made a bolt
through the opened door, and ran with all my might, till trembling
from head to foot I met Satyrus, when we both made our way in the dark
and retreated each to his own room. Leucippe's mother fainted, but
upon recovering the first thing she did was to box Clio's ears, then
tearing her own hair, she broke forth into lamentation. "Oh Leucippe,"
she said, "you have blighted all my hopes. And you Sostratus, who are
fighting at Byzantium to protect the honour of other people's wives and
daughters, you little think how some enemy has been warring against
your house, and has defiled your own daughter's honour. Oh, Leucippe,
I never thought to see you wedded after such a fashion as this! Would
that you had remained at Byzantium! Would that you had suffered
violence from the chances of war, and that some Thracian had been your
ravisher! In such a case the violence would have excused the shame,
whereas now, you are at the same time wretched and disgraced. The
vision of the night did but mock my mind, the realities of the dream
were hidden from me, for of a truth, yours has been a more fearful
ripping up, and your wound more fatal than any inflicted by the sword;
and the worst is, that I am ignorant who is your ravisher. I do not
even know what is his condition! for aught I can tell, he may be some
wretched slave. [49]" When the maiden felt assured of my escape, she
took courage and said: "Mother, there is no occasion for you to attack
my chastity, nothing has been done to me deserving of your reproaches;
nor do I know whether the intruder was a god, a demigod, or a mortal
ravisher;[50] all I know is that I was heartily frightened and lay
still, quite unable to cry out through fear; for fear, as you know,
acts as a padlock upon the tongue: this, however, you may be assured
of, no one has robbed me of my virginity. " Notwithstanding these
assurances of her daughter, Panthea gave way to a fresh paroxysm of
grief. Meanwhile Satyrus and I were deliberating on the best course
to be pursued; and we determined to make our escape out of the house
before morning should arrive, when Clio would be put to the torture and
be compelled to reveal everything.
This plan we at once carried into execution, and telling the porter
that we were going out to visit our mistresses, we went straight to
Clinias: it was midnight, and we had some trouble in gaining admission:
Clinias who slept in an upper room heard our voices in discussion
with his porter, and hurried down in alarm, while we could see at a
short distance Clio running towards us, for she too it appeared had
determined to make her escape. Almost in the same moment therefore
Clinias heard our story, and we the narrative of Clio, while she was
made acquainted with our future plans; we all went in doors, when we
gave Clinias a more detailed account and stated our determination of
leaving the city. "I will accompany you," said Clio, "for if I remain
behind till morning, death (the sweetest of torments, since it ends
them) will be my lot. " Clinias took my hand and leading me aside, he
said, "It appears to me most advisable to get this wench out of the
way at once, and after waiting a few days we can depart ourselves, if
still of the same mind. According to your account the maiden's mother
does not know who it was whom she surprised, nor will there be any one
to furnish evidence since Clio is removed. Nay, we may perhaps persuade
the maiden herself to share our flight; I will accompany you at all
events. "
We agreed to his proposal, so Clio was delivered to the care of one of
his slaves to be put on board a boat, while we continued to deliberate
upon the course best to be pursued. At last we resolved to make trial
of Leucippe's inclination, and, should she be willing, to carry her
off: in case of her rejecting our proposal, we determined to remain
for the present and to await the course of events. The short remainder
of the night was passed in sleep, and at daylight we returned home.
Panthea had no sooner risen in the morning, than she had preparations
made for putting Clio to the torture;[51] but when summoned she could
no where be found. Upon this, returning to her daughter, "Will you
still persist," said she, "in concealing the particulars of this pretty
plot? Now, I find that Clio also has run off. " Still more reassured by
the intelligence, Leucippe replied, "What more would you have me tell
you? What stronger testimony of the truth would you have me produce?
If there is any way of proving a maid's virginity, you are welcome
to prove mine. " "Aye," said Panthea, "and by so doing to add to the
troubles of our family by bringing in witnesses to its disgrace;" upon
saying which, she hastily quitted the apartment. Leucippe left to
herself, and with her mother's words still ringing in her ears, was
distracted by conflicting and various emotions;[52] she was deeply
pained at having been discovered. Her mother's reproaches filled her
with shame; she felt angry at having her word doubted. Now these
feelings are like three billows which disturb the soul's tranquillity:
shame making an entrance through the eyes unfits them for their natural
office; pain preys upon the mind and extinguishes its ardour; while
the voice of anger baying round the heart overpowers reason with
its wrathful foam. [53] The tongue is the parent of these different
feelings; bending its bow and aiming its arrow at the mark, it inflicts
its several wounds upon the soul:[54] with the wordy shaft of railing
it produces anger, with that of well founded accusation, begets pain,
with that of reproof, causes shame; the peculiarity of all these arrows
is, that they inflict deep but bloodless wounds, and there is available
against their effects one remedy alone, which is, to turn against the
assailant his own weapons. Speech, the weapon of the tongue, must be
repelled by a weapon of like nature, for then the feeling of anger
will become calmed and the sensations of shame and annoyance will be
appeased; but if dread of a superior hinder the employment of such
succours, the very fact of silence makes these wounds to rankle the
more deeply, and unless these mental waves, raised by the power of
speech, can cast up their foam, they will but swell and toss the
more. [55]
What I have been saying will picture the condition of Leucippe's mind,
who felt ready to sink under her troubles; it was while she was in
this frame of mind that I dispatched Satyrus to her, in order to make
overtures of flight. Anticipating him in her words, she exclaimed:--"In
the name of the gods, foreign and hospitable, deliver me out of my
mother's power, and take me whither you will; for if you go away and
leave me here, the noose suspended by my own hands shall be my death. "
When I was informed of her expressions, it freed me from a world of
anxiety; and in the course of two or three days, when my father was
absent from home, we made preparations for our flight. Satyrus had
still remaining some of the potion which he had used so successfully
upon Conops. While waiting at supper he poured out a little into the
last cup, which he presented to Panthea; almost immediately after
drinking it, she retired to her own room, and fell fast asleep.
Leucippe had now another chambermaid, with whom Satyrus was on familiar
terms; having given her likewise a portion of the draught, he proceeded
to a third party, the porter, who was soon lying under the influence of
the same soporific potion.
Meanwhile Clinias was awaiting us at the door with a carriage which
he had in readiness, and while all were yet asleep, between nine and
ten at night, we cautiously left the house, Satyrus leading Leucippe
by the hand: Conops, as I may remark, who used to watch our movements,
being fortunately absent, having been dispatched on an errand by his
mistress. On getting out, we immediately entered the carriage, six
in number, Leucippe, I and Satyrus, together with Clinias and two
servants. We drove off in the direction of Sidon, where we arrived
about midnight, and without delay continued our journey to Berytus, in
hopes of finding some vessel in the harbour; nor were we disappointed,
for on going to the port we found a ship on the point of sailing:
without even inquiring whither she was bound, we got our baggage on
board, and embarked a little before dawn. It was then we learnt that
the vessel was bound for the celebrated city of Alexandria, situated on
the Nile.
The sight of the sea delighted me while as yet we were in the smooth
water of the harbour; soon, however, upon the wind becoming favourable,
loud tumult prevailed throughout the vessel; the sailors hurried to and
fro, the master issued his commands, ropes were bent, the sail-yard
was brought round before the wind, the sail was unfurled, we weighed
anchor,[56] the ship began to move, the port was left behind, and the
coast, as if itself in motion, seemed gradually to be retiring from
us;[57] the Pæan was chanted, and many prayers were addressed to the
guardian deities for a prosperous voyage. Meanwhile the wind freshened
and filled the sail, and the vessel speeded on her course.
There was a young man on board, in the same cabin[58] with ourselves,
when dinner time was come he politely invited us to partake of his
meal. Satyrus was just then bringing out our provisions; so putting
all into a common stock, we shared our dinner and our conversation. I
began by saying, "Pray where do you come from, and by what name are we
to address you? " "My name," he replied, "is Menelaus, and I am a native
of Egypt; and now may I inquire who you are? " "I am called Clitopho,
and my companion Clinias; our country is Phœnicia. " "And what," he
rejoined, "is the motive of your voyage? " "If you will relate your own
story first, you shall then hear ours. " Menelaus assented, and began as
follows:--
"The cause of my leaving my home may be summed up in very few
words:--envious love and ill-fated hunting. I was strongly attached to
a handsome youth, who was very fond of the chase. I did everything
in my power to restrain him from this pursuit, but without success.
Finding I could not prevail with him, I myself accompanied him.
"One day we were out hunting, and for a time everything went on
successfully so long as harmless animals were alone the objects of our
sport. At length a wild boar was roused; the youth pursued the brute,
who faced about, and ran furiously to attack him; still the youth kept
his ground, not withstanding that I repeatedly called out:--'Wheel
round your horse; the beast is too powerful for you. ' The boar
continuing its career, and coming up, they closed in combat. Terrified
lest the beast should wound the horse, and so bring down his rider,
I launched my javelin without taking sufficient aim, and the youth
crossing its course, received the stroke. [59]
"Picture to yourself the feelings of my mind. If I retained life at
that moment, it was like a living death; and what was most lamentable
of all, the wretched youth, who still breathed, extending his arms,
embraced me, and so far from hating his destroyer, he expired still
grasping my homicidal hand. On account of this lamentable occurrence
his parents took legal proceedings against me; nor was I unwilling to
stand my trial; indeed I offered no defence, considering myself fully
deserving to suffer death. The judge, out of compassion, condemned me
to three years' banishment, and that period having now expired, I am on
my return home. "
This narrative reminded Clinias of the unhappy death of Charicles, and
he shed tears, which though in appearance they flowed for another's
grief, were, in reality, drawn forth by his own sorrows. [60] "Are
you weeping on my account," asked Menelaus, "or has any similar
disaster befallen you? " Upon this Clinias, with many sighs, detailed
the circumstances of Charicles and the horse; and I likewise related
my adventures. Seeing Menelaus very low spirited on account of his
own thoughts, and Clinias still shedding tears at the recollection of
Charicles, I endeavoured to dissipate their grief, by introducing a
love topic for conversation; for Leucippe, I may observe, was not then
present, but was asleep in the ship's hold. I began, therefore, with
a smiling air:--"How much better off is Clinias than I am; he was no
doubt longing to inveigh against women, according to his wont, and he
can do so all the better now, having found one who sympathises with his
tastes; but why so many should be addicted to the love of youths, for
my part I cannot tell. "
"There can be no doubt," said Menelaus, "which is preferable. Youths
are much more open and free from affectation than women, and their
beauty stimulates the senses much more powerfully. "
"How so? " I asked; "it no sooner appears than it is gone. It affords
no enjoyment to the lover, but is like the cup of Tantalus, while one
is drinking the liquid disappears; and even the little which has been
swallowed is unsatisfying. No one can leave such favourites without
feeling his pleasure alloyed with pain, the draught of love still
leaves him thirsty. "
"You do not understand," rejoined Menelaus, "that the perfection of
pleasure consists in its bringing with it no satiety; the very fact
of its being of a permanent and satisfying kind takes away from its
delight. What we snatch but now and then is always new, and always in
full beauty. Of such things the pleasure is not liable to decay and
age, and it gains in intensity what it loses by briefness of duration;
for this reason, the rose is considered the most lovely among flowers,
because its beauty so quickly fades. There are two species of beauty
among mortals, each bestowed by its presiding goddess;[61] the one is
of heaven, the other of earth; the former chafes at being linked to
what is mortal, and quickly wings its flight to heaven; the latter
clings to earth, and cleaves to mortal bodies. Would you have a poet's
testimony of the ascent of heavenly beauty? hear what Homer sings:--
'Ganymede,
Fairest of human kind, whom for that cause
The gods caught up to heav'n that he might dwell
For ever there, the cup-bearer of Jove. '[62]
But no woman, I trow, ever ascended to heaven for her beauty's
sake, though Jove had abundance of intrigues with women: grief and
exile were the portion of Alcmena; the chest and the sea were the
receptacle of Danæ; and Semele became food for fire;[63] but--mark the
difference--when Jove became enamoured of a Phrygian youth, he took him
up to heaven to dwell with him, and pour out his nectar, depriving his
predecessor of the office, she being, I rather think, a woman. "
"In my opinion," said I, interrupting him, "female beauty has in it
much more of the heavenly kind, because it does not so quickly fade;
and the freer from decay, the nearer is anything to the divine nature.
On the other hand, whatsoever in accordance with its mortal nature soon
decays, is not of heaven, but of earth. I grant that Jove, enamoured
of a Phrygian youth, raised him to the skies, but the beauty of woman
brought him down from heaven; for a woman he bellowed under the form of
a bull, for a woman he danced as a satyr, for a woman he transformed
himself into a golden shower. Let Ganymede, therefore, be Jove's
cup-bearer, if you will, provided that Juno[64] also reclines at the
banquet, and has a youth to wait on her. For my part, I cannot think
upon his rape without feelings of pity: a savage bird is sent down, he
is seized and borne aloft (cruel and tyrannous treatment, methinks),
and the unseemly spectacle is seen of a youth suspended from an eagle's
talons. No ravenous bird of prey, but the element of fire, bore Semele
aloft; nor should there seem anything strange and unnatural in this,
since it was by the same means that Hercules went up to heaven. You
amuse yourself at the expense of Danæ's chest, but why do you pass over
Perseus, who shared her fate? For Alcmena it sufficed that Jove for
love of her robbed the world of three whole days. [65]
"Passing, however, from the legends of mythology, I will speak of the
real delights of love, though my experience in such matters has been
small, compared with that of others, and confined to females who sell
their charms for lucre. In the first place, how tender and yielding
is a woman's body to the touch, how soft are her lips when kissed;
her person is in every way fitted for the amorous embrace: he who is
connected with her tastes genuine enjoyments; her kisses are impressed
upon his lips as seals upon a letter, and she kisses with such studied
art as imbues the kiss with double sweetness. Not content to use her
lips, she brings her teeth also into play, and feeding upon her lover's
mouth, makes her very kisses bite. What pleasure also is there in the
sensation of pressing a woman's breast, while in the amorous crisis, so
powerful is her excitement, that she is actually maddened with delight.
Her kisses are not confined to the lips, but lovers' tongues even do
their endeavour to kiss each other. At the conclusion of the amorous
combat, she pants, overcome with the fiery delight, and her love-sick
breath finding its way to her lips, encounter the lover's kiss still
wandering there, and mingling with it both descend and exert their
electric influence upon her heart, which leaps and beats, and were it
not fast bound within, would desert its seat, and be drawn forth by the
strength of kisses. "[66]
"Upon my word," said Menelaus, "you seem no raw recruit, but a
thorough veteran in the service of the Queen of Love, so minute are
you in all your detail. Now hear what I have to say in favour of male
beauty. With women their words and postures, everything, in short, is
studied and artificial: and their beauty, if they possess any, is the
laborious work of cosmetic appliances, of perfumes and of dyes;[67]
divest them of these meretricious attractions, and they will appear
like the daw stripped of its feathers, which we read of in the fable.
The beauty of youths, on the other hand, requires no unguents or
artificial essences to recommend it; nature has made it complete and
sufficient in itself. "[68]
[Footnote 1: Il. xvi. 823.
"As when the lion and the sturdy boar,
Contend in battle on the mountain tops
For some scant rivulet which both desire,
Ere long the lion quelle the panting boar. "
Cowper's Tr.
]
[Footnote 2: καμπαί, signify properly, the changes and inflections in a
piece of music. ]
[Footnote 3:
"The rose, of flow'rs th' enchanting pride;
The rose is Spring's enchanting bride;
The rose of every god's the joy;
With roses Cytherea's boy,
When, dancing, he'd some Grace ensnare,
Adorns the love-nets of his hair. "
Anacreon. v. Addison's Tr.
]
[Footnote 4: προτρυγαίου Διονύσου. ]
[Footnote 5: The wine of most early celebrity was that which the
minister of Apollo, Maron, who dwelt upon the skirts of Thracian
Ismarus gave to Ulysses. It was red and honey-sweet; so precious, that
it was unknown to all in the mansion save the wife of the priest and
one trusty housekeeper; so strong, that a single cup was mixed with
twenty of water; so fragrant, that even when thus diluted it diffused a
divine and most tempting perfume.
See Odyss. ix. 203. ; Dict. of Greek and Roman Antiq. ]
[Footnote 6: κύλικα φιλοτησίαν. ]
[Footnote 7:
. . . . "Ο this is from above--a stream
Of nectar and ambrosia, all divine! "
Od. B. ix. 355, Cowper.
]
[Footnote 8: "He washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the
_blood of grapes_. "--Gen. xlix. 11. ]
[Footnote 9: ὑάλου ὀρωρυγμένης. Herodotus, iii. 24, uses the word
ύάλος, to describe the clear transparent stone, supposed to be Oriental
alabaster, used by the Egyptians to enclose their mummies. ]
[Footnote 10: The translation of this passage follows Villoisin's
reading. For a mention of the cup of Glaucus, see Herod. i. 25. Mr.
Blakesley, in his Edition remarks, that ή Γλαύκου τέχνη, was in the
time of Plato (Phædon, § 132) a proverbial one, applied to everything
requiring in extraordinary amount of skill. ]
[Footnote 11:
"While Venus fills the heart. . . .
. . . . . .
Ceres presents a plate of vermicelli,--
For love must be sustain'd like flesh and blood,--
While Bacchus pours out wine or hands a jelly. --Byron.
]
[Footnote 12: τὸ αὐτόματον ἡμῶν. ]
[Footnote 13: "πῶς ἄν τις αὐτο φύγοι; πτερὰ ἔχει καὶ
καταλήψεται. "--Longus, B. i.
"Αll his body is a fire,
And his breath a flame entire.
. . . . . .
He doth bear a golden bow,
And a quiver hanging low.
. . . . . .
Wings he hath which though ye clip
He will leap from lip to lip,
. . . . . .
And if chance his arrow misses
He will shoot himself in kisses. "--Ben Jonson.
]
[Footnote 14: The translation follows the reading in the edition by
Jacobs. ]
[Footnote 15: Tasso has introduced this stratagem of a lover into his
Aminta, Act ii. sc.
2, where Sylvia cures Phyllis stung by a bee, by
kissing her, upon which Aminta, pretends to have been stung in order to
be cured by the same agreeable remedy.
"Che, fingendo ch' un' ape avesse morso
Il mio labbre di sotto, incominciai
A lamentarmi di cotal maniera,
Che quella medicina che la lingua
Non richiedeva, il volto richiedeva. "
]
[Footnote 16:
. . . "fece
Più cupa, e più mortale
La mia piaga verace,
Quando le labbre sua
Giunse a le labbre mie.
N'a l'api d'alcun fiore
Colgon al dolce il mel, ch'allora io colei
Da quelle fresche rose. "--Tasso.
]
[Footnote 17:
"She blushed and frown'd not, but she strove to speak,
And held her tongue, her voice was grown so weak. "--Byron.
]
[Footnote 18:
"How delicious is the winning
Of a kiss at love's beginning. "--Campbell.
]
[Footnote 19:
"Fac primus rapias illius tacta labellis
Pocula; quoque bibit parte puella bibe. "
Ovid, de Art. Am. i. 595.
"Drink to me only with thine eyes,
And I will pledge thee with mine;
Or leave a kiss but in the cup
And I'll not look for wine. "
Ben Jonson (imitation of a passage in Philostratus. )
]
[Footnote 20: The original is highly poetical:--ἐπιτήρησας oὖν ὅτε τοῦ
φωτὸς τὸ πολὺ τῆς αὐγῆς ἐμαραίνετο. ]
[Footnote 21: In B. v. of the Ethiopics, Heliodorus says of the Spanish
and British amethyst, that it is of a dull ruddy colour, resembling a
newly budding rose; and of the amethyst of Ethiopia, that it emits a
lustre like that of gold. ]
[Footnote 22:
. . . "blending every colour into one,
Just like a black eye in a recent scuffle. "--Byron.
]
[Footnote 23: The πέπλος was an ample shawl serving for a robe; those
of the most splendid hues and curious workmanship were imported from
Tyre and Sidon. --See Iliad, vi. 289. ]
[Footnote 24: τὸ ἕρμαιον. ]
[Footnote 25: πpoτέλεια γάμων. These consisted of sacrifices and
offerings made to the θεoὶ γαμήλιοι, or divinities who presided over
marriage; the sacrificer was the father of the bride elect. ]
[Footnote 26: οἱωνῶν βασιλεὺς. Æsch. Ag. 113. ]
[Footnote 27:
. . . , "ministrum fulminis alitem
Cui rex Deorum regnum in aves vagas
Permisit. "--Hor. iv. Od. iv. i.
]
[Footnote 28: "nunquam visæ flagrabat amore puellæ. "--Juv. iv. 14. ]
[Footnote 29: Jacobs observes that this law of Byzantium is purely the
invention of Tatius; one resembling it existed at Athens. ]
[Footnote 30:
Nῆσός τις πόλις ἐστί φυτώνυμον αῖμα λαχοῦσα
Ίσθμὸν ὁμοῦ καὶ πορθμὸν ἐπ' ἠπείροιο φέρουσα,
Ένθ'Ἥφαιστος ἔχων χαίρει γλαυκώπιν 'Αθηνην.
Κεῖθι θυηπολίην σε φἐρειν κέλομσι Ήρακλῆι.
Tyre is called by Euripides, φοίνισσα νήσος, (Phœn. 211,) was built
upon a small island, 200 furlongs from the shore. Alexander took it,
after having joined the island to the continent by a mole. ]
[Footnote 31: Herod. B. ii. c. 44, gives an account of his visit to the
temple of the Tyrian Hercules, and of the rich offerings which he saw
in it. ]
[Footnote 32: "The fire had power in the water, forgetting his own
virtue; and the water forget his own quenching nature. "--Wisdom, xix.
20. ]
[Footnote 33: See p. 234 of Brewster's Natural Magic, for a solution
of the acoustic wonder of the vocal sounds emitted by the statue of
Memnon. ]
[Footnote 34: Herod. iii. 102, says of the Indian soil--
Ή δὲ ψάμμος ἠ αναφερομένη εστὶ χρυσῖτις.
]
[Footnote 35: Herod. Β. iv. 195, gives an account of a lake in the isle
Cyraunis, on the east of Africa, from which the young women obtain
gold-dust by means of feathers smeared with pitch. ]
[Footnote 36: τῶν θεωρῶν. ]
[Footnote 37:
. . . . "plurima cervix,
Tam longo nullus lateri modus: omnia magna. "
Virg. G. iii. 52.
]
[Footnote 38:
"His steeds I saw, the fairest by these eyes
Ever beheld and loftiest; snow itself
They pass in whiteness. "--Iliad, x. 43. 7. Cowper's Tr.
]
[Footnote 39: πανήγυρις. ]
[Footnote 40: τὴν θεωρίαν ἀφοσιωμένος. ]
[Footnote 41: μυσταγωγήσῃ. ]
[Footnote 42: See the plan of a Greek house taken from Bekker's
Charikles. --Dict. of Greek and Roman Antiq. p. 494. ]
[Footnote 43: This fact is asserted by Ælian, B. vi. 22, and B. xiv. 9. ]
[Footnote 44: "Oh! " sobb'd Antonia, "I could tear their eyes
out. "--Byron. ]
[Footnote 45: In case the reader wishes to understand the philosophy of
the gnat's trumpet, we insert the following passage from Cumberland's
Trans. of the "Clouds" of Aristophanes.
_Disciple_. "'Twas put to Socrates, if he could say, when a goat
humm'd, whether the sound did issue from mouth or tail.
_Streps_. Aye; marry, what said he?
_Disciple. _ He said your gnat doth blow his trumpet backwards
From a sonorous cavity within him,
Which being filled with breath, and forced along
The narrow pipe or rectum of his body,
Doth vent itself in a loud hum behind. "
]
[Footnote 46:
"Fallitur et multo custodis cura Lyæo;
Illa vel Hispano lecta sit una jugo.
Sunt quoque, quæ faciant altos medicamina somnos;
Victaque Lethæâ lumina nocte premant. "
Ovid. Art. Am. iii. 645.
]
[Footnote 47: ὡς δ' ἡ βελτίστη γαστήρ κατηνάγκασεν. ]
[Footnote 48: The allusion is to Ulysses preparing to put out the eye
of the Cyclops.
. . . "the gods infused
Heroic fortitude into our hearts. "--Odyss. ix. 381.
]
[Footnote 49:
"'Sdeath! with a _page_--perchance a king
Had reconciled him to the thing;
But with a stripling of a page--
I felt--but cannot paint his rage. "--Byron.
]
[Footnote 50: εἴτε δαίμων, εἴτε ἥρως, εἴτε ληστής.
For an instance of intercourse between demigods--ἥρωες--and mortals,
see Herod. vi. 69. ]
[Footnote 51: The evidence of slaves was always taken with torture, and
their testimony was not otherwise received. For an animated picture of
the severity sometimes practised towards slaves, male and female, by a
capricious mistress, see Juv. vi. 475, 495. ]
[Footnote 52: παντοδαπή τις ἧν.
This passage may be illustrated by a parallel one in the beginning of
B. vii. ]
[Footnote 53: Pliny, B. iv. 5. "Tot sinus Poloponnensem oram lancinant,
tot maria allatrant. "]
[Footnote 54: "They bend their tongues like their _bow_ for lies. "]
[Footnote 55: "Their tongue is as an _arrow_ shot out. "--Jer. ix. 3, 8.
See also S. James iii. 5-9.
"Strangulat inclusus dolor atque cor æstuat intus
Cogitur et vires multiplicare suas. "--Ovid. Trist. I. 63.
"Give sorrow words; the grief that doth not speak,
Whispers the o'er-fraught heart, and bids it break. "--Macbeth.
]
[Footnote 56: The various operations when a vessel quitted or entered
the harbour are described in two passages of Homer. --
"The crew
Cast loose the hawsers, and embarking, filled
The benches. . . .
He, loud exhorting them, his people bade
Hand brisk the tackle; they obedient rear'd
The pine-tree mast, which in its socket deep
They lodg'd, then strained the cordage, and with thongs
Well twisted, drew the shining sail aloft. "--Odyss. ii. 419.
"Around within the haven deep, their sails
Furling, they stow'd them in the bark below.
Then by its tackle lowering the mast
Into its crutch, they briskly push'd to land,
Heav'd anchors out, and moor'd the vessel fast. "--Il. i. 4331
]
[Footnote 57:
"Provehimur portu; terræque urbesque recedunt. "
Vir. Æn. iii. 72.
]
[Footnote 58: παρασκηνῶν. ]
[Footnote 59: Tatius appears to have had in his mind the story of the
death of Atys, son of Crœsus. See Herod. B. i. 37.
Compare the spirited account of the Boar-hunt and the death of
Tlepolemus in the viiith book of Apuleius. ]
[Footnote 60: Πάτροκλον πρόφασιν, a proverb derived from a passage in
the Iliad, xix. 302:--
"All her fellow-captives heav'd
Responsive sighs, deploring each, in show
The dead Patroclus, but, in truth, herself. "
]
[Footnote 61: Tatius alludes to Venus Urania and Venus Popularis, the
one the patroness of pure, the other of impure, love. ]
[Footnote 62: Iliad xx. 2, 3, 4. ]
[Footnote 63: See Anthon's Lemprière for the legends attached to their
names. ]
[Footnote 64: Göttling proposes to read "Hebe," which suits the context
better. ]
[Footnote 65: According to some accounts, two; according to others,
three nights were required for the formation of Hercules, son of
Alcmena.
"Violentus ille
Nocte non unâ poterat creari. "--Seneca Ag. 825.
]
[Footnote 66:
"A long, long kiss, a kiss of youth and love,
And beauty, all concentrating like rays
Into one focus, kindled from above;
Such kisses as belong to early days,
Where heart, and soul, and sense, in concert move,
And the blood's lava, and the pulse a blaze,
Each kiss a heart-quake. "--Byron.
Compare Lucret.
