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The monster Cacus, more than half a beast,
This hold, impervious to the sun, possess'&
The pavement ever foul with human gore;
I-Ieads, and their mangled members, hung the door. Vulcan this plague begot; and, like Ins sire,
? _I_E ]_IGHTH BOOK OF THE _NEI8 _g
Black clouds he belch'd, and flakes of livid fire. Time, long expected, eas'd us of our load,
And brought the needful presence of a god.
Th' avenging force of Hercules, from Spain, Arrlv'd in triumph, from Geryon slam:
Thrice liv'd the grant, and thrice liv'd in vain. His prize, the lowing herds, Alcides drove Near Tlber's bank, to graze the shady grove. Allur'd with hope of plunder, and intent
By force to rob, by fraud to circumvent,
The brutal Cacus, as by chance they stray'd,
Four oxen thence, and four fair kine convey'd; And, lest the printed footsteps might be seen, He dragg'd 'em backwards to his rocky den. The tracks averse a lying notice gave,
And led the searcher backward from the cave. ". Meantime the herdsman hero shifts his place,
To find fresh pasture and untrodden grass.
The beasts, who miss'd their mates, fill'd all around
With bellowings, and the rocks restor'd the sound. One heifer, who had heard her loxe complain, Roar'd from the cave, and made the project vain. Alcldes found the fraud; x_lth rage he shook,
And toss'd about his head Ins knotted oak. Swlft as the winds, or Scytlnan arrows' flight,
He clomb, with eager haste, th' a_rial height.
Then first we saw the monster mend his pace;
Fear in his eyes, and paleness in his face,
Confess'd the god's approach. Trembhng he springs, As terror had increas'd his feet with wings;
Nor stay'd for stairs; but down the depth he threw His body, on his back the door he drew
(The door, a rib of living rock, with pains
His father hew'd it out, and bound wlth iron chains): IIe broke the heavy links, the mountain clos'd.
And bars and levers to h2s foe oppos'd.
The wretch had hardly made his dungeon fast;
The fierce avenger came with bounding haste;
Survey'd the mouth of the forbidden hold,
And here and there his raging eyes he roll'd.
? 280 DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL
He gnash'd his teeth, and thrice he compass'd round With winged speed the circuit of the ground. Thrice at the cavern's mouth he pull'd in vain,
And, pantmg, thrice desisted from his pain.
A pointed flinty rock, all bare and black,
Grew gibbous from behind the mountain's back;
Owls, ravens, all ill omens of the night,
Here bmlt their nests, and bather wmg'd their flight.
The leaning head hung threat'ning o'er the flood, And nodded to the left. The hero stood
Adverse, with planted feet, and, from the mght, Tugg'd at the sohd stone with all his might Thus hear'd, the fix'd foundations of the rock Gave way; heav'n echo'd at the rattling shock. Tumbling, it chok'd the flood: on either side
The banks leap back_xald, and the streams divide; The sky shrunk upward with unusual dread,
And trembling Tiber d_v'd beneath hls bed.
Tile court of Cacus stands re_eal'd to sight, The cavern glares with new-admitted light.
So the pent vapors, with a rumbling sound, Heave from below, and rend the hollow ground; A sounding flaw succeeds: and, from on h_gh, The gods w,th hate beheld the nether sky:
The ghosts repine at violated mght,
And curse th' invading sun, and sicken at the sight.
The graceless monster, caught in open day, Inclos'd, and in despair to fly away,
Howls horrible from underneath, and fills His hollow palace with unmanly yells.
The hero stances above, and from afar
Plies him with darts, and stones, and distant war-
He, from his nostrils and huge mouth, expires
Black clouds of smoke, amidst his father's fires, Gath'rlng, with each repeated blast, the night,
To make uncertain aim, and erring s_ght.
The wrathful god then plunges from above,
And, where in thickest waves the sparkles drove,
There lights; and wades thro' fumes, and gropes his wayp Half sing'd, hal/stifled, till he grasps h_s prey.
? THE EIGHTH BOOK OF THE _NEIS 281
The monster, spewing frmtless flames, he found; He squeez'd his throat, he writh'd hls neck around, And in a knot his crippled members bound;
Then from their sockets tore his burning eyes: RolFd on a heap, the breathless robber lies.
The doors, unbarr'd, receive the rushing day, And thoro' lights disclose the ravish'd prey The bulls, redeem'd, breathe open air again Next, by the feet, they drag hnn from his den. The wend'ring neighborhood, with glad surpmse, /_ehold his shagged breast, his giant size,
His mouth that flames no more, and Ins extmguish'd eyes. From that auspicious day, with rites divine,
We worship at the hero's holy shrine. Potitius first ordam'd these annual vows:
As priests, were added the Pmarlan house,
Who rals'd this altar in the sacred shade,
Where honors, ever due, for ever shall be paid.
For these deserts, and this h_gh virtue sho_n.
Ye warlike youths, your heads with garlands crown: Fill high the goblets _lth a sparkling flood,
And with deep draughts invoke our common god. " This said, a double wreath Evander twin'd,
And poplars black and white his temples bind Then brims his ample bowl. With like design The rest invoke the gods, with sprinkled wine. Meantime the sun descended from the skies, And the bright evening star began to rise. And now the priests. Pot_t,. us at their head,
In skans of beasts involv'd, the long process,on led;
Held high the flaming tapers in their hands,
As custom had preserib'd their holy bands: Then with a second course the tables load,
And with full chargers offer to the god The Sahi sing, and cense his altars round
With Saban smoke, their heads with poplar bound-= One choir of old, another of the young,
To dance, and bear the burthen of the song.
The lay records the labors, and the praise, And all th' immortal acts of Hercules:
? 282 DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL
First, how the mighty babe, when swath'd in banfl6_
The serpents strangled with his infant hands; Then, as in years and matchless force he grew,
Th' (Echal/an wa/ls, and Trojan, overthrew. Besides, a thousand hazards they relate,
Procur'd by Juno's and Eurystheus' hate:
"Thy hands, unconquer'd hero, could subdue
The cloud-horn Centaurs, and the monster crew: Nor thy resistless arm the bull withstood,
Nor he, the roaring terror of the wood.
The triple porter of the Stygian seat,
With lolling tongue, lay fawning at thy feet, And, selz'd with fear, forgot his mangled meat. Th' infernal waters trembled at thy sight;
Thee, god, no face of danger could affright. Not huge Typhceus, nor th' unnumber'd snake, Increas'd with hissing heads, in Lerna's lake. Hall, Jove's undoubted son Wan added grace To heav'n and the great author of thy race l Receive the grateful off'rings which we pay, And smile propmous on thy solemn day ! "
In numbers thus they sung; above the rest, The den and death of Cacus crown the feast. The woods to hollow vales convey the sound, The vales to hills, and hills the notes rebound. The rxtes perform'd, the cheerful train retire.
Betwixt young Pallas and his aged sire,
The Trojan pass'd, the city to survey,
And pleasing talk beguil'd the tedious way.
The stranger cast around his curious eyes,
New objects viewing still, with new surprise;
With greedy joy enqmres of various things,
And acts and monuments of ancient kings.
Then thus the _ounder of the Roman tow'rs:
"These woods were first the seat of sylvan pow'rs, Of Nymphs and Fauns, and salvage men, who took Their birth from trunks of trees and stubborn oak. Nor laws they knew, nor manners, nor the care
Of hb'ring oxen, or the shining share,
Nor arts of gain, nor what they gain'd to spare.
? THE_IGHTH BOOK OF THE _NEIS 28_ Their exercise the chase; the running flood
Supphed their thirst, the trees supphed thelr food. Then Saturn came, who fled the pow'r of Jove, Robb'd of his realms, and bamsh'd from above
The men, dlspers'd on hills, to towns he brought, And laws ordain'd, and c:v_ customs taught,
And Latium call'd the land where safe he lay From his unduteous son, and his usurping sway. \Vlth his mild empire, peace and plenty came; And hence the golden times dem'd their name. A more degenerate and discolor'd age
Succeeded this, with avarice and rage
Th' Ausonians then, and bold Sicamans came;
And Saturn's empire often chang'd the name.
Then kings, gigantic Tybris, and the rest,
With arbitrary sway the land oppress'd"
For Tiber's flood was Albula before,
Till, from the tyrant's fate, hss name it bore
I last arriv'd, driv'n from my native home
By fortune's pow'r, and fate's resistless doom.
Long toss'd on seas, I sought tlns happy land,
Warn'd by my mother nymph, and call'd by Heav'n's
command "
Thus, walking on, he spoke, and shew'd the gate,
Since call'd Carmental by the Roman state; Where stood an altar, sacred to the name
Of old Carmenta, the prophetic dame,
Who to her son foretold th' ,,Enean race. Sublime in fame, and Rome's imperial place: Then shews the forest, which, in after t_mes, Fierce Romulus for perpetrated crimes
A sacred refuge made, with this, the shrine Where Pan below the rock had rites d_vine:
Then tells of Argus' death, his nmrderd' guest,
Whose grave and tomb his innocence attest.
Thence, to the steep Tarpeian rock he leads,
Now roof'd with gold, then thatch'd with homely reeds. A reverent fear (such superstition reigns
Among the rude) ev'n then possess'd the swains.
Some god, they knew_what god, they could not tell---
? DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL D_d there amidst the sacred horror d_ell
Th' Arcadians thought him Jove; and sa_d they saw The mighty Thund'rer with majestic awe,
Who took his shield, and dealt his bolts around, And scatter'd tempests on the teeming ground. Then saw two heaps of ruins, (once they stood Two stately towns, on either side the flood,) Saturma's and Janicula's remains;
And eltI_er place the founder's name retain_ Discoursing thus together, they resort
Where poor Evander kept his country court
They vlew'd the ground of Rome's htlglous hall; (Once oxen low'd, where now tile lawyers bawl,) Then, stooping, thro' the narrow gate they press'd, When thus the king bespoke h_s Trojan guest "Mean as it _s, th_s palace, and this door,
Receiv'd Alcldes, then a conqueror.
Dare to be poor, accept our homely food,
Which feasted hm_, and emulate a god "
Then underneath a lowly roof he led
The weary prince, and laid him on a bed;
The stuffing leaves, _xlth hides of bears o'erspread. Now Night had shed her silver dews around,
And w_th her sable wings embrac'd the ground, When love's falr goddess, anxious for her son,
(New tumults rising, and new wars begam,) Couch'd with her husband in his golden bed,
With these alluring words invokes h_s aid,
And, that her pleasing speech his mind may move, Inspires each accent with the charms of love" "While cruel fate conspir'd with Grecian pow'rs, To level with the ground the Trojan tow'rs,
I ask'd not aid th' unhappy to restore, Nor did the succor of thy skill implore; Nor urg'd the labors of my lord in vain, A sinking empire longer to sustain,
Tho' much I ow'd to Priam's house, and more The dangers of . ,'_neas did deplore.
But now, by Jove's command_ and fate's decree, His race is doom'd to reign in Italy:
? THE EIGHTH BOOK OF THE r_NEIS 28_
With humble suit I beg thy needful art,
O still propitious pow'r, that rules my heart !
A mother kneels a supphant for her son
By Thetis and Aurora thou weft won
To forge impenetrable shields, and grace
With fated arms a less Illustrious race.
Behold, what haughty nations are combin'd Against the relies of the Phryglan kind,
With fire and sword my people to destroy,
And conquer Venus t_lce, in conqu'rmg Troy. " She said, and straight her arms, of snowy hue, About her unresolvmg husband threw.
tier soft embraces soon refuse desire;
His bones and marrow sudden x_armth inspire; And all the godhead feel_ the wonted fire
Not half so swlft the ratthng thunder files,
Or forky lightnings fla>h along the skies.
The goddess, proud of her auccessful x_llc_,
And conscious of her form, in secret _mfles
Then thus the pow'r, obnoxious tc her charms, Pantmg, and half d_ssolvmg m her arms"
"\Vhy seek you reasons for a cause _. o just,
Or your own beauties or my love d_strust_
I. ong since, had you requir'd my helpft_l hand, Th' art2ficer and art you might command,
To labor arms for Troy- nor Jove, nor fate, Confin'd their empire to _o short a date
And, if you now desire nc_ _xar_ to x;age, My skill I promise, and my pains engage.
Whatever melting metals can conspire.
Or breathing" bellows, or the forming fire,
Is freely yours: your anxious fears remove, And think no task is d,t:fieult to love"
Trembling he spoke; and, eager of her charms He snateh'd the v,_. lling goddess to his arms;
Till in her lap infus'd, he lay possess'd
Of full desire, and sunk to pleasing rest.
Now when the Night her middle race had rode, And his first slumber had refresh'd the god_ The time when early housewives leave the bed;
? 286 DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL
When living embers on the hearth they spread, Supply the lamp, and call the maids to rlse--
Wtth yawning mouths, and wtth half-open'd eyes_ They ply the distaff by the winking light,
And to their daily labor add the night:
Thus frugally they earn their children's bread,
And uncorrupted keep the nuptial bed-- Not less concern'd, nor at a later hour,
Rose from hts downy couch the forging pow'r. Sacred to Vulcan's name, an tsle there lay,
Betwixt Sicilia's coasts and Llpare,
Rais'd high on smoking rocks; and, deep below,
In hollow caves the fires of . _Etna glow.
The Cyclops here their heavy hammers deal,
Loud strokes, and hissings of tormented steel,
Are heard around; the boiling waters roar,
And smoky flames thro' fuming tunnels soar.
Hether the Father of the Fire, by night,
Thro' the brown air precipitates his flight
On their eternal anvils here he found
The brethren beating, and the blows go round.
A load of pointless thunder now there hes
Before their hands, to ripen for the sktes:
These darts, for angry Jove, they daily cast;
Consum'd on mortals with prodigious waste.
Three rays of writhen rain, of fire three more,
Of winged southern winds and cloudy store
As many parts, the dreadful mixture frame;
And fears are added, and avenging flame.
Inferior ministers, for Mars, repair
His broken axletrees and blunted war,
And send him forth again with furbish'd arms,
To wake the lazy war with trumpets' loud alarms.
The rest refresh the scaly snakes that fold
The shield of Pallas, and renew their gold
Full on the crest the Gorgon's head they place,
With eyes that roll in death, and with distorted face?
"My sons," said Vulcan, "set your tasks aside; Your strength and master-skill must now be tried. _x_as for a hero forge; arms that require
? THE EIGHTH BOOK OF THE _ENEIS
28?
Your force, your speed, and all your forming fire. " He said They set their former work aside,
And their new toils _lth eager haste d_vlde.
A flood of molten silver, brass, and gold,
And deadly steel, in the large furnace roll'd; Of this, their artful hands a shield prepare,
Alone sufficient to sustain the war.
Sev'n orbs within a spacious round they close: One stirs the fire, and one the bellows blows. The h_ssmg steel is m the smithy drown'd; The grot with beaten anwls groans around
By turns their arms advance, in equal time;
By turns their hands descend, and hammers chime. They turn the glowing mass with crooked tongs; The fiery work proceeds, with rusuc songs.
Wh_le, at the Lemman god's command, they urge Their labors thus, and ply th' _ohan forge,
The cheerful morn salutes Evander's eyes,
And songs of chirping birds invite to rise.
He leaves his lowly bed. his buskins meet
Abo_e his ankles, sandals sheathe his feet:
He sets his trusty sword upon his side,
And o'er his shoulder throws a panther's hide.
Two menial dogs before their master press'd
Thus clad, and guarded thus, he seeks his kingly guest. Mindful of promls'd aid, he mends his pace,
But meets 3Eneas m the middle space Young Pallas did his father's steps attend,
And true Achates waited on his friend.
They join their hands, a secret seat they choose;
Th' Arcadian first their former talk renews: "Undaunted p-inee, I never can beheve
The Trojan empire lost, while you survive. Command th' assistance of a faithful friend; But feeble are the succors I can send.
Our narrow kingdom here the Tiber bounds; That other side the Lattan state surrounds,
Insults our walls, and wastes our fruitful grounds But m_ghty nations I prepare, to join
"? heir arms wlth yours, and aid your just design,
'"
_" t'
? _8 DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL
You come, as by your better gemus sent, And fortune seems to favor your intent
Not far from hence there stands a h_lly town, Of ancient bulidmg, and of hlgh renown,
Torn from the Tuscans by the Ly&an race, Who gave the name of C_re to the place, Once Agylhna call'd It floursh'd long,
In pride of wealth and warhke people strong, Till curs'd Mezentius, in a fatal hour,
Assum'd the crown, w2th arbztrary poxx'r. What words can paint those execrable tlmcs,
The subjects' suff'rmgs, and the tyrant's crHnes! That blood, those murthers, O )e gods, replace
On his own head, and on his impious race_ The living and the dead at his command
Were coupled, face to face, and hand to hand, Till, chok'd with stench, m loath d embraces twd,
The hng'rmg wretches pm'd away and &ed Thus plung'd in ills, and medltatmg more-- The people's patience, tw'd, no longer bore The raging monster, hut x_th arms be_. et
]I_s house, and vengeance and destructmn threat
They fire his palace: while the flame ascends,
. a They force h_s guards, and execute his frJends. He cleaves the crowd, and, favor'd by the night,
To Turnus' friendly court dwects lus fl_ght.
By just revenge the Tuscans set on fire,
Wtth arms, their king to punishment reqmre'
Thew num'rous t_oops, now muster'd on the strand, My counsel shall submlt to your command
Their navy swarms upon the coasts, they cry
To hoist their anchors, but the gods deny.
An ancmnt augur, skill'd in future fate,
With these foreboding words restrains their hate: 'Ye brave in arms, ye Lydian blood, the fiow'r
Of Tuscan youth, and choice of all their pow'r, Whom just revenge against Mezentius arms, To seek your tyrant's death by lawful arms; Know this: no native of our land may lead This pow'rful people; seek a foreign head. '
? THE EIGHTH BOOK OF THE 7ENEIS 289
Aw'd with these words, in camps they still abide, And wait _lth longing looks their promis'd guide. Tarchon, the Tuscan chief, to me has sent
Their crown, and ev'ry regal ornament.
The people join their o_n with his desire; And all my conduct, as their king, require
But the chill blood that creeps within my veins, A_ad age, and listless limbs unfit for pains,
And a soul conscious of its own decay,
Have forc'd me to refuse unper_al sway
_Jy Pallas were more fit to mount the throne, And should, but he's a Sabine mother's son,
And half a native: but, in you, combine
A manly vigor, and a foreign line.
Where Fate and smlhng Fortune shew the way, Pursue the ready path to soy'reign sway.
The staff of my declining days, my son,
Shall make 3"our good or ill success his own;
In fighting fields from you _hall learn to dare, And serve the hard apprenticeship of war;
Your matchless courage and your conduct view, And early shall begin t' admire and copy you Besides, two hundred horse lie shall command; Tho' few, a _arhke and well-chosen band.
These in my name are listed, and my son
As many more has added in his o_n"
Scarce had he said; Achates and his guest,
With downcast eyes, their silent grief express'd;
_, ho, short of succors, and in deep despair,
Shook at the dismal prospect of the war.
But his bright mother, from a breaking cloud,
To cheer her issue, thunder'd thrice aloud:
Thrice forky hghtning flash'd along the sky,
And Tyrrhene trumpets thrice were heard on high. Then, gazing up, repeated peals they hear,
And, in a heav'n serene, refulgent arms appear: Redd'ning the skies, and ghtt'rang all around.
The temper'd metals clash, and yield a silver sound. The rest stood trembling, struck with awe divine. ;
. ,_neas only, conscious to the s_gn, _C XIII_IC
? DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL
Presag'd th' event, and joyful view'd, above, Th' accomplish'd promise of the Queen of Love. Then, to th' Arcadian king: "This prodig-y
(Dismiss your fear) belongs alone to me.
Heav'n calls me to the war: th' expected sign
Is giv'n of promis'd aid, and arms divine.
My goddess mother, whose indulgent care
Foresaw the dangers of the growing war,
This omen gave, when blight Vuleanian arms,
Fated from force of steel by Stygian charms, Suspended, shone on high: she then foreshoxx'd Approaching fights, and fields to float m blood. Turnus shall dearly pay for faith fors_orn;
And corps, and swords, and shields, on Ttber borne, Shall choke his flood: now sound the loud alarms; And, Latian troops, prepare )'our perjur'd arms. "
He sa_d, and, rising from h_s homely throne, The solemn rites of Hercules begun,
And on his altars wak'd the sleeping fires; Then cheerful to Ins household gods retires; There offers chosen sheep. Th' Arcadtan king And Trojan youth the same oblauons bnng. Next, of ins men and sh_ps he makes review; Draws out the best and ablest of the crew, Down with the falhng stream the refuse run, To raise with ioyful news his drooping son. Steeds are prepar'd to mount the TroJan band, Who walt their leader to the Tyrrhene land.
A sprightly courser, fairer than the rest, The king himself presents his royal guest:
A hon's hide his back and hmbs infold,
Precious with studded work, and paws of gold.
Fame thro' the little city spreads aloud
Th' intended march, amid the fearful crowd"
The matlons beat their breasts, dlssolve in tears, And double their devotion in their fears.
The war at hand appears with more affright,
And rises ov'ry moment to the sight.
Then old Evander, with a close embrace,
Strain'd his departing _riend; and tears o'erflow his face.
? THE EIGHTH BOOK OF THE _NEIS 291
"Would Heav'n," said he, "my strength and youth recall, Such as I was beneath Pr_eneste's wall;
Then when I made the foremost foes retire,
And set whole heaps of conquer'd shields on fire; When Herllus in single fight I slew,
Whom with three lives Feronia did endue;
And thrice I sent him to the Stygian shore,
Till the last ebbing soul return'd no more--
Such if I stood renew'd, not these alarms,
Nor death, should rend me from my Pallas' arms; Nor proud Mezentius, thus unpunish'd, boast
I-Its rapes and murthers on the Tuscan coast.
Ye gods, and mighty Jove, m pity bring
Relief, and hear a father and a king!
If fate and you reserve these eyes, to see
My son return with peace and victory;
If the lov'd boy shall bless his father's sight;
If we shall meet again with more dehght;
Then draw my hfe m length; let me sustain,
In hopes of h_s embrace, the worst of pain.
But if your hard decrees--which, O1 I dreadm Have doom'd to death his undeserving head; Th_s, O this very moment, let me dte!
Wh_le hopes and fears in equal balance lie; Wtnle, yet possess'd of all his youthful charms,
I strain him close within these aged arms;
Before that fatal news my soul shall wound ! " He said, and, swooning, sunk upon the ground. His servants bore him off, and softly la_d
His languish'd limbs upon his homely bed.
The horsemen march; the gates are open'd wider -_neas at their head, Achates by his stde
Next these, the Trojan leaders rode along,
Last follows in the rear th' Arcadtan throng Young Pallas shone conspicuous o'er the rest; Gilded his arms, embroider'd was his vest
So, from the seas, exerts his radiant head
The star by whom the lights of heav'n are led;
Shakes from his rosy locks the pearly dexxs, Dispelsthedarknessa,nd theday renews.
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DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL
The trembling wives the walls and turrets crowd, And follow, with their eyes, the dusty cloud, Which winds disperse by fits, and shew from far The blaze of arms, and shields, and shining war. The troops, drawn up in beautiful array,
O'er heathy plains pursue the ready way. Repeated peals of shouts are heard around;
The neighing coursers answer to the sound, And shake _ith horny hoofs the solid ground.
At greenwood shade, for long religion known, Stands by the streams that wash the Tuscan town,
Incompass'd round with gloomy hills above, Which add a holy horror to the grove
The first inhabitants of Grecian blood,
That sacred forest to Sllvanus vow'd,
The guardian of their flocks and fields, and pay Their due devotions on his annual day.
Not far from hence, along the river's side,
In tents secure, the Tuscan troops abide,
By Tarchon led. Now, from a rising ground, ? Eneas cast his wond'rmg eyes around,
And all the Tyrrhene army had in sight,
Stretch'd on the spacious plain from left to right. Thether his warlike train the Trojan led, Re_[resh'd his men, and wearied horses fed.
Meantime the mother goddess, crown'd with charms, Breaks thro' the clouds, and brings the fated arms. Within a winding vale she finds her son,
On the cool river's banks, retir'd alone
She shews her heav'nly t"orm without disguise, And gives herself to his desiring eyes. "Behold," she said, "perform'd in ev'ry part, My promise made, and Vulcan's labor'd art Now seek, secure, the Latian enemy,
And haughty Turnus to the field defy. "
She said; and, having first her son embrac'd, The radiant arms beneath an oak she plac'd, Proud of the gift, he roll'd his greedy sight
Around the work, and gaz'd with vast delight, He lifts, he turns, he poises, and admires
? THE EIGHTH BOOK OF THE A_NEIS 293
The crested helm, that vomits radiant fires:
His hands the fatal sword and corslet hold,
One keen with temper'd steel, one stiff with gold:
Both ample, flaming both, and beamy bright;
So shines a cloud, when edg'd with adverse light.
He shakes the pointed spear, and longs to try
The plated cuishes on his manly thigh;
But most admires the shield's mysterious mold,
And Roman triumphs rising on the gold:
For these, emboss'd, the heav'nly snuth had wrought
(Not in the rolls of future fate untaught)
The wars in order, and the race divine
Of warriors issuing from the Juhan line.
The cave of Mars was dress'd with mossy greens"
There, by the wolf, were laid the martial twins.
Intrepid on her swelhng dugs they hung;
The foster dam loll'd out her fawning tongue:
They suck'd secure, while, bending back her head,
She lick'd their tender limbs, and form'd them as they fed. Not far from thence new Rome appears, with games Projected for the rape of Sabine dames.
The pit resounds with shrieks, a war succeeds,
For breach of pubhc fa:th, and unexampled deeds.
Here for revenge the Sabine troops contend;
The Romans there with armq the prey defend
Wearied wath tedmus war, at length they cease;
And both the kings and kingdoms phght the peace.
The friendly chiefs before Jove's altar stand,
Both arm'd, with each a charger in his hand:
A fatted sow for sacr,fice is led,
With imprecations on the perjur'd head.
Near this, the traitor Metius, stretch'd between
Four fiery steeds, is dragg'd along the green,
By Tullus' doom: the brambles drink his blood,
And his torn limbs are left the vulture's food. There, Porsena to Rome proud Tarquin brings,
And would by force restore the banish'd kings. One tyrant for his fellow-tyrant fights;
The Roman youth assert their native rights. Before the town file Tuscan army lies,
? 294 DRYDEN'S TRAN_LA'rION OF VIRGIL
To win by famine, or by fraud surprise.
Their king, half-threat'ning, half-disdaining stood, While Cocles broke the bridge, and stemm'd the flood The captive maids there tempt the ragtag tide,
Scap'd from their chains, with Clcelia for their guide. High on a rock heroic lX_anlius stood,
To guard the temple, and the temple's god.
Then Rome was poor; and there you mlght behold The palace thatch'd x_lth straw, now roof'd with gold The silver goose before the shining gate
There flew, and, by her cackle, sav'd the state
She told the Gauls' approach; th' approaching Gauls, Obscure in night, ascend, and seize the walls
The gold dissembled well their yellow hair,
And golden chains on their white necks they wear. Gold are their vests; long Alpine spears they wield, And their left arm sustains a len_h of shield.
Hard by, the leaping Salian priests advance;
And naked thro' the streets the mad Luperct dance, In caps of wool; the targets dropp'd from heav'n. Here modest matrons, in soft litters driv'n,
To pay their vows in solemn pomp appear,
And odorous gums in their chaste hands the3' bear. Far hence remov'd, the Stygian seats are seen; Pains of the damn'd, and punish'd Catiline
Hung on a rock--the traitor; and, around,
The Furies hissing from the nether ground.
Apart from these, the happy souls he draws,
And Cato's holy ghost dispensing laws.
Betwixt the quarters flows a golden sea;
But foaming surges there in silver play.
The dancing dolphins with their tails divide The glitt'ring waves, and cut the precious tide. Amid the main, two m_ghty fleets engage
Their brazen beaks, oppos'd with equal rage. Actium surveys the well-disputed prize; Leucate's wat'ry plain with foamy billows fries. Young C_esar, on the stern, in armor bright, Here leads the Romans and their gods to fight: His beamy temples shoot their flames afar,
? THE EIG_H BOOE OF THE _ENEIS 2_
And o'erhisheadishung theJulianstar. Agrippa seconds him, with prosp'rougsales, And, with propitious gods, his foes assails:
A naval crown, that binds his manly brows, The happy fortune of the fight fore,how,. Rang'd on the line oppos'd, Antonius brings Barbarian aids, and troops of Eastern kings; Th' Arabians near, and Bactrians from afar,
Of tongues discordant, and a mingled war: And, rich in gaudy robes, amidst the strife, His 111fate follows h_m--th' Egyptian wife. Moving they fight; with oars and forky prows The froth is gather'd, and the water glows.
It seems, as if the Cyclades again
Were rooted up, and justled in the main;
Or floating mountains floating mountains meet; Such is the fierce encounter of the fleet.
Fireballs are thrown, and pointed jav'lins fly;
The fields of Neptune take a purple dye.
The queen herself, amidst the loud alarms,
With cymbals toss'd her fainting soldiers warms--- Fool as she was! who had not yet divin'd
Her cruel fate, nor saw the snakes behir_d.
Her country gods, the monsters of the sky,
Great Neptune, Pallas, and Love's Queen defy:
The dog Anubis barks, but barks in vain,
:Nor longer dares oppose th' ethereal train.
Mars in the middle of the shining shield
Is gray'd, and strides along the hquid field.
The Dirge souse from heav'n w_th swift descent; And Discord, dyed in blood, with garments rent, Divides the prease: her steps Bellona treads,
And shakes her iron rod above their heads.
This seen, Apollo, from his Actian height,
Pours down his arrows; at whose winged flight The trembling Indians and Egyptians yield,
And soft Sah,_ans quit the wat'ry field.
The fatal mistress hoists her silken sails,
And, shrinking from the fight, invokes the gales. Aghast she looks, and heaves her breast for breath,
? LmcJ6 DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL
Panting, and pale with fear of future death.
The god had figur'd her as drlv'n along
By winds and waves, and scudding thro' the throng.
Just opposite, sad Nilus opens wide
His arms and ample bosom to the tide,
And spreads his mantle o'er the winding coast,
In which he wraps his queen, and hides the flying host. The victor to the gods his thanks express'd,
And Rome, triumphant, wtth h_s presence bless'd.
Three hundred temples in the town he plac'd;
With spoils and altars ev'ry temple grac'd.
Three shining nights, and three succeeding days,
The fields resound with shouts, the streets _th praise, The domes wlth songs, the theaters with plays.
All altars flame: before each altar lies,
Drench'd m h_s gore, the destm'd sacrifice. Great Caesar sits subhme upon his throne, Before Apollo's porch of Parian stone;
Accepts the presents vow'd for victory,
And hangs the monumental crowns on h_gh. Vast crowds of vanquish'd nations march along, Various m arms, in habit, and in tongue.
Here, Mulciber assigns the proper place
For Carians, and th' ungirt Numid_an race;
Then ranks the Thracmns in the second row, W_th Scythmns, expert in the dart and bow.
And here the tam'd Euphrates humbly glides, And there the Rhine submits her swelling tides, And proud Araxes, whom no bridge could bind; The Danes' unconquer'd offspring march behind, And Mormi, the last of humankind.
These figures, on the shield divinely wrought, By Vulcan labor'd, and by Venus brought,
With joy and wonder fill the hero's thought. Unknown the names, he yet admires the grace,
bears aloft the fame and fortune of his race. .
? THE NINTH BOOK OF THE 2ENEIS
TH_ A_Gu_czI_T. _Turnus takes advantage of 2Eneas's absence, fires some of his ships (which are transformed into sea nymphs), and assaults hts camp The Trojans, redue'd to the last extremities, send Nisus and EuryaIus to recall ,2Eneas: whleh furnishes the poet wlth that admirable episode of their friendship, generosity, and
the conclusion of their adventures. I HILE these affairs in distant places pass'd,
The various Iris Juno sends with haste, ! To find bold Turnns, who, with anxious thotcght_ i The secret shade of his great grandsire sought. [
Retir'd alone she found the daring man, And op'd her rosy lips, and thus began:
"What none of all the gods could grant thy vows, That, Turnus, this auspicious day bestows.
_neas, gone to seek th' Arcadian prince,
Has left the Trojan camp without dcfense; And, short of succors there, employs his pains In parts renmte to raise thc Tuscan sx,ains. Now snatch an hour that favors thy designs; Unite thy forces, and attack their lines. "
This said, on equal wings she pois'd her weight, And form'd a radiant rainbow m her flight.
The Daunian hero lifts his hands and eyes, And thus invokes the goddess as she flies:
"Iris, the grace of heav'n, what pow'r divine
Has sent thee down, thro' dusky clouds to shine? See, they divide; immortal day appears,
And ghtt'ring planets dancing in their spheres! With joy, these happy omens I obey,
? 298 DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL And fullow to the war the god that leads the way. "
Thus having said, as by the brook he stood,
He scoop'd the water from the crystal flood; . .
Then with his hands the drops to heav'n he throws,
And loads the pow'rs above with offer'd vows. i
Now march the bold confed'rates thro' the plain, Well hors'd, well clad; a rich and shining train.
Messap_s leads the van; and, in the rear,
The sons of Tyrrheus in bright arms appear.
In the main battle, with his flaming crest,
The mighty Turnus tow'rs above the rest.
Silent they move, majestically slow,
Like ebbing Nile, or Ganges in his flow.
The Trojans view the dusty cloud from _ar_ And the dark menace of the distant war.
Caicus from the rampire saw it rise,
Black'ning the fields, and thick'nlng thro' the sides. Then to his fellows thus aloud he calls:
"What rolling clouds, my friends, approach the wallslb Arm l arm l and man the works l prepare your spears And pointed darts l the Latian host appears. "
Thus warn'd, they shut their gates; with shotlts ascend The bttlwarks, and, secure, their foes attend:
For their wise gen'ral. , with foreseeing care,
Had charg'a them not to tempt the douhtful war, Nor, tho' provok'd, in open fields advance,
But close within their lines attend their chance. Unwilling, yet they keep the strict command,
And sourly wait in arms the hostile band.
The fiery Turnus flew before the rest:
A piebald steed of Thracian strain he press'd;
His helm of massy gold, and crimson was his cresL With twenty horse to second his designs,
An unexpected foe, he fac'd the lines.
"Is there," he said, "in arms, who bravely dare
His leader's honor and his danger share? "
Then spurring on, his brandish'd dart he threwB
In sign of war: applauding sho_lts ensue.
Amaz'd to find a dastard race, that run Behind the ramplres and the battle shun,
? THE NINTH BOOK OF Tlq_. _E_f_a
299
He rides around the camp, with rolling eyes, And stops at ev'ry post, and ev'ry passage tries
So roams the nightly wolf about the fold:
Wet with descending show'rs, and stiff with cold
He howls for hunger, and he grins for pain,
(His gnashing teeth are exercis'd in vain,)
And, impotent of anger, finds no way
In his distended paws to grasp the prey.
The mothers listen; but the bleating lambs
Securely swig the dug, beneath the dams.
Thus ranges eager Turnus o'er the plain.
Sharp with desire, and furious with d_sdaha_
Surveys each passage with a piercing sight,
To force his foes in equal field to fight.
Thus while he gazes round, at length he spies, Where, fenc'd with strong redoubts, their navy lies, Close underneath the walls; the washing tide Secures from all approach this weaker side,
He takes the wish'd occasion, fills his hand
With ready fires, and shakes a flaming brand.
Urg'd by his presence, ev'ry soul is warm'd,
And ev'ry hand with kindled firs is arm'd.
From the fir'd pines the scatt'rlng sparkles fly,
Fat vapors, mix'd with flames, involve the sky? What pow'r, O Muses, could avert the flame
Which threaten'd, in the fleet, the Trojan name? Tell: for the fact, thro' length of time obscure,
Is hard to faith; yet shall the fame endure.
'Tis said that, when the chief prepar'd hi_ flight, And fell'd his timber from Mount Ida's height,
The grandam goddess then approach'd her son, And with a mother's majesty beg-un:
"Grant me," she said, "the sole request I bring, Since conquer'd heav'n has own'd you for its king On Ida's brows, for ages past, there stood,
With firs and maples fill'd, a shady wood;
And on the summit rose a sacred grove,
Where I was worship'd with religious love. Those woods, that holy grove, my long delight, I gave the Trojan prince, to speed his flight.
]
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? ${}0 DRYDEN'S TRAI_SLATION OF _*IRGI_
Now, fill'd with fear, on their behalf I come; Let neither winds o'erset, nor waves mtomb The floating forests of the sacred pine;
:But let it be their safety to be mine. "
Then thus rephed her awful son, who rolls
The radiant stars, and heav'n and earth controls: "How dare you, mother, endless date demand
For vessels molded by a mortal hand?
What then is fate? Shall bold . -_neas ride,
Of safety certain, on th' uncertain tlde?
"Yet, what I can, I grant; when, wafted o'er,
The cluef is landed on the Latlan shore,
Whatever shlps escape the raging storms,
At my command shall change their fading form_
To nymphs divine, and plow the wat'ry way,
Like Doffs and the daughters of the sea. "
To seal his sacred vow, by Styx he swore,
The lake of liquid pitch, the dreary shore,
. And Phlegethon's innavigable flood,
And the black regions of his brother god.
lie said; and shook the skies with his imperial nod.
And now at length the number'd hours were come, Prefix'd by fate's irrevocable doom,
When the great Mother of the Gods was free
To save her ships, and finish Jove's decree.
First, from tile quarter of the morn, there sprung A light that slgn'd the heav'ns, and shot along; Then from a cloud, fring'd round with golden fires, Were timbrels heard, and Berecynth,an choirs,
And, last, a voice, with more than mortal sounds,
Both hosts, in arms oppos'd, with equal horror wounds: "'0 Trojan race, your needless aid forbear,
And know, my ships are my peculiar care.
With greater ease the bold Rutulian may,
With hissing brands, attempt to burn the sea,
Than singe my sacred pines. But you, my charge, Loos'd from your crooked anchors, launch at large, Exalted each a nymph: forsake the sand,
And swim the seas, at Cybele's command. "
1_/o sooner had the goddess ceas'd to speak,
? _I-IE NINTH BOOK OF THE _NEIS 301 When, lol th' obedient ships their haulsers break;
And, strange to tell, hke dolphins, In the main
They plunge their prows, and dive, and spring again:
As many beauteous maids the billows sweep, i As ode before tall vessels on the deep
The foes, surprls'd with wonder, stood aghast; 1. Messapus curb'd his fiery courser's haste; !
Old Tiber roar'd, and, raising up his head, i Call'd back his waters to their oozy bed
Turnus alone, undaunted, bore the shock,
And _th these words his trembling troops bespoke:
r
"These monsters for the Trojans' fate are meant, ! _ And are by Jove for black presages sent
He takes the cowards' last relief away; 1' For fly they cannot, and, constrain'd to stay,
Must yield unfought, a base inglorious prey.
The liquid half of all the globe is lost; i: Heav'n shuts the seas, and we secure the coast. I Theirs is no more than that small spot of ground
Which myriads of our martial men surround.
Their fates I fear not, or vain oracles, f
'T was giv'n to Venus they should cross the seas, l And land secure upon the Latian plains:
Their promis'd hour is pass'd, and mine remains.
'T is in the fate of Turnus to destroy, '_
With sword and fire, the faithless race of Troy. Shall such affronts as these alone inflame
Tile Grecian brothers, and the Grecian name? _iy caase and theirs is one; a fatal strife,
And final ruin, for a ravish'd wife
Was 't not enough, that, punish'd for the crime,
They fell; but will they fall a second time? ! One would have thought they paid enough before,
To enrse the costly sex, and durst offend no more
Can they securely trust their feeble wall,
A slight partition, a thin interval,
Betwixt their fate and them; when Troy, tho' built
By hands dlvlne, yet perish'd by their guilt ?
Lend me, for once, my friends, your valiant hands, To force from out their lines these dastard bands.
? DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL
Less than a thousand ships will end this war, _Ior Vulcan needs his fated arms prepare.
Let all the Tuscans, all th' Arcadians, join!
Nor these, nor those, shah frustrate my design. Let them not fear the treasons of the night,
The robb'd Palladium, the pretended flight:
Our onset shall be made in open light.
No wooden engine shall their town betray;
]Vires they shall have around, but fires by day.
No Grecian babes before their camp appear,
Whom Hector's arms detain'd to the tenth tardy year. Now, since the sun is rolling to the west,
Give we the silent night to needful rest:
Refresh your bodies, and your arms prepare; I The morn shall end the small remains of war. "
The post of honor to Messapus falls,
To keep the nightly guard, to watch the walls,
To pitch the fires at distances around,
And close the Trojans in their scanty ground
Twice seven Rutulian captains ready stand,
And twice seven hundred horse these chiefs command; All clad in shining arms the works invest,
Each with a radiant helm and waving crest
Stretch'd at their length, they press the grassy ground; They laugh, they sing, (the jolly bowls go round,)
With lights and cheerful fires renew the day,
And pass the wakeful night in feasts and play.
The Trojans, from above, their foes beheld, And with arm'd legions all the rampires fill'd. Seiz'd with affright, their gates they first explore; Join works to works with bridges, tow'r to tow'r: Thus all things needful for defense abound. Mnestheus and brave Seresthus walk the round, Commission'd by their absent prince to share
The common danger, and divide the care.
The soldiers draw their lots, and, as they fall, By turns relieve each other on the wall.
Nigh where the foes their utmost guards advance, To watch the gate was warlike Nisus' chance.
His father Hyrtacus of noble blood;
? THE NINTH BOOK OF THE _ENEIS His mother was a huntress of the wood,
. And sent him to the wars. \Vell could he bear
His lance in fight, and dart the flying spear, But be_ter skill'd unerring shafts to send Beside hxm stood Euryalus, his friend: Euryalus, than whom the Trojan host
No fairer face, or sweeter air, could boast-- Scarce had the down to shade Ins cheeks begun One was their care, and their delight was one" One common hazard m the war they shar'd, . And now were both by choice upon the guard.
Then Nisus thus: "Or do the gods respire This warmth, or make we gods of our desire?
A gen'rous ardor boils wlthin my breast, Eager of action, enemy to rest:
This urges me to fight, and fires my mmd To leave a memorable name behind
Thou see'st the foe secure; how faintly shine Their scatter'd fires I the most, m sleep supine
Along the ground, an easy conquest he:
The wakeful few the fuming flagon ply;
All hush'd around Now hear that I revolve_ A thought unripe--and scarcely yet resolxe
Our absent prince both camp and council mourn, By message both would hasten h_s return:
If they confer what I demand on thee, (For fame is recompense enough for me,) Methinks, beneath yon hall, I have espied
A way that safely will my passage grade. " Euryalus stood hst'nmg while he spoke,
Wxth love of praise and noble env_ struck; Then to his ardent friend cxpos'd his mind: "All this, alone, and tearing me behind)
Am I unworthy, Nisus, to be join'd?
Think'st thou I can my share of glory yield, Or send thee unassxsted to the field?
Not so my father taught my childhood arms; Born in a siege, and bred anaong alarms!
Nor is my youth unworthy of my friend, Nor of the hear'n-born hero I attend.
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? 304 DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL
The thing eall'd hfe, with ease I can disclaim, And think tt over-sold to purchase fame "
Then Nisus thus. "Alas! thy tender years _,Vould minister new matter to my fears.
So may the gods, who view this friendly strife, Restore me to thy lov'd embrace with hfe. Condemn'd to pay my vows, (as sure I trust,) This thy request is cruel and unjust
But _f some chance--as many chances are, And doubtful hazards, 11"1the deeds of war-- If one should reach my head, there let it fall, And spare thy life; I would not perish all Thy bloomy youth deserves a longer date: Live thou to mourn thy love's unhappy fate; To bear my mangled body from the foe,
Or buy it back, and fun'ral rites bestow, Or, if hard fortune shall those dues deny,
Thou canst at least an empty tomb supply, O let not me the widow's tears renew!
Nor let a mother's curse my name pur_ue: Thy pious parent, who, for love of thee, Forsook the coasts of friendly" Sicily,
Her age committing to the seat a_d wind, When ev'ry weary matron stay'd behind. " To this, Euryalus. "You plead m vain,
And but protract the cause you cannot gain
No more delays, but haste t" With that, he wakes The nodding watch, each to his office takes
The guard rehev'd, the gen'rous couple went
To find the council at the royal tent.
All creatures else forgot their dally care, And sleep, the common gift of nature, share;
Except the Trojan peers, who wakeful sate
In nightly council for th' mdanger'd state
They vote a message to their absent chief,
Shew their distress, and beg a swift relief,
Amid the camp a silent seat they chose,
Remote from clamor, and secure from foes
On their left arms their ample shields they bear, The right rechn'd upon the bending spear.
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? THE NINTH BOOK OF THE _NEIS ,_ow Ntsus and ht_ frlend approach the guard,
And beg admission, eager to be heard: Th' affair important, not to be deferr'd. Ascamus Nds 'era be conducted in,
Ord'rmg the more expenenc'd to begin.
Then Nlsus thus "Ye fathers, lend 3. our ears; Nor judge our bold attempt beyond our years The foe, securely drench'd m sleep and x_ine, Neglect their watch, the fires but thinly dune; And where the smoke m cloudy vapors flies, Coy'ring tile plain, and curling to the skies, Betsauxt two paths, which at the gate divide, Close by the sea, a passage we have spmd, Which wdl our wa) to great -_neas guide. Expect each hour to see him safe again,
Loaded with spoils of foes in battle slain. Snatch _xe the lucky minute while we may;
Nor can we be mistaken in tile way;
For, hunting m the vale, we both have seen
The rising turrets, and tile stream between,
And know the x_mdmg course, with ev'D ford"
Fie cea_'cl, and old Alethes took the word:
"Our country god% m whom our trust we place, \Vxll yet from rum sa_e the Trojan race,
While we behold such dauntless worth appear
In dawning youth, and souls so xold of fear. "
Then into tears of joy the father broke;
Each in his longing arms by turns he took;
Panted and paus'd, and thus again he spoke:
"Ye brave young men. what equal gafts can we,
In recompense of such desert, decree?
The greatest, sure, and best you can recmve,
The gods and _our m_n conscious worth will g_ve. The rest our grateful gen'ral will bestow,
And young Ascanius till his manhood owe. "
"And I, whose welfare m my father hes," Ascamus adds, "by the great deities,
By my dear country, by my household gods, By hoary Vesta's rites and dark abodes,
Adjure yott both, (on yota my fortune stands;
305
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? DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL
That and my faith I plight into your hands,) Make me but happy m his safe return,
Whose wanted presence I can only mourn; Your common glft shall two large goblets be Of silver, wrought with curious imagery,
And high emboss'd, whmh, when old Priam reign'd, My conqu'ring sire at sack'd Arisba gain'd;
And more, two tripods cast m antic mold,
With two great talents of the finest gold;
Beside a cosily bowl, ingrav'd with art,
Which Dido gave, when first she gaxe her heart.
But, if in conquer'd Italy we relgn,
When spoils by lot the victor shall obtain--
Thou saw'st the courser by proud Turnus press'd:
That, Nlsus, and his arms, and nodding crest,
And shield, from chance exempt, shall be thy share. Twelve lab'ring slaves, twelve handmaids young and fair. All clad in rich attire, and train'd with care;
And, last, a Latian field with fruitful plains,
And a large portion of the king's domains
But thou, whose years are more to mine alhed--
No fate my vow'd affectton shall divide
From thee, heroic youth! Be wholly mine,
Take full possession, all my soul is thme
One faith, one fame, one fate, shall both attend;
My hfe's compamon, and my bosom friend:
My peace shall be committed to thy care,
And to thy conduct my concerns in war. "
Then thus the young Euryalus rephed: "Whatever fortune, good or bad, bettde,
The same shall be my age, as now my youth; No time shall find me wanting to my truth. This only from your goodness let me gain (And, this ungranted, all rewards are vain) : Of Priam's royal race my mother came--
And sure the best that ever bore the name--- Whom neither Troy nor Sicily could hold From me departing, but, o'erspent and old, My (ate she foIlow'd. Ignorant of this (Whatever) danger, neither parting kiss,
? _-IE NINTH BOOK OF THE _ENEIS SO) !
Nor pious blessing taken, her I leave,
And in this only act of all my hfe deceive.
By this right hand and conscious Night I swear, My soul so sad a farewell could not bear.
Be you her comfort; fill my vacant place (Permit me to presume so great a grace) ; Support her age, forsaken and distress'd.
That hope alone will fortify my breast
Against the worst of fortunes, and of fears. "
He said. The mov'd assistants melt m tears.
Then thus Ascanius, wonderstruck to see That image of his filial piety:
"So great beginnings, in so green an age, Exact the faith which I again ingage.
Thy mother all the dues shall justly claim, Creusa had, and only want the name.
Whate'er event thy bold attempt shall have, 'T is merit to have borne a son so brave.
Now by my head, a sacred oath, I swear, (My father us'd it,) what, returning here Crown'd with success, I for thyself prepare,
That, if thou fail, ,hall thy lov'd mother share. " He said, and weeping, while he spoke the word,
From his broad belt he drew a shining sword,
Magnificent with gold. Lycaon made,
And in an iv'ry scabbard sheath'd the blade.
This was his gift Great Mnestheus gave his friend A lion's hide, his body to defend;
And good Alethes furnish'd him, beside,
With his own trusty helm, of temper tried
Thus arm'd they went The noble Trojans wait Their issuing forth, and follow to the gate
With prayers and vows. Above the rest appears Ascanius, manly far beyond his years,
And messages committed to their care, Which all in winds were lost, and flitting air
The trenches first they pass'd; then took their way Where their proud foes in pitch'd pavilions lay;
To many fatal, ere themselves were slain.
,They found the careless host dispers'd upon the plain,
[
? 308 DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL
Who, gorg'd, and drunk with wine, sapinely snore, Unharnass'd chariots stand along the shore:
Amidst the wheels and reins, the goblet by,
A medley of debauch and war, they lie. Observing Nlsus shew'd his friend the sight: "Behold a conquest gain'd without a fight. Occasion offers, and I stand prepar'd;
There lies our way; be thou upon the guard, And look around, while I securely go,
And hew a passage thro' the sleeping foe. "
Softly he spoke; then striding took his way,
With his drawn sword, where haughty Rhamnes lay; His head rais'd high on tapestry beneath,
And heaving from his breast, he drew his breath;
A king and prophet, by King Turnus lov'd:
But fate by prescienee cannot be remov'd.
Him and his sleeping slaves he slew; then spies Where Remus, with his rich retinue, lies.
t/is armor-bearer first, and next he kills
His charioteer, intrench'd betwixt the wheels
And his lov'd horses; last invades their lord;
Full on his neck he drives the fatal sword:
The gasping head flies off; a purple flood
Flows from the trunk, that welters in the blood, Wblch, by the spurning heels dispers'd around,
The bed besprinkles and bedews the ground.
Lamus the bold, and Lamyr_s the strong,
He slew, and then Serranus fair and young.
From dice and wine the youth retir'd to rest,
And puff'd the fumy god from out his breast:
Ev'n then he dreamt of drink and lucky play_
More lucky, had it lasted till the day.
The famlsh'd lion thus, with hunger bold,
O'erleaps the fences of the nightly fold,
And tears the peaceful flocks" with silent awe Trembling they lie, and pant beneath his paw.
Nor with less rage Euryalus employs
The wrathful sword, or fewer foes destroys;
But on th' ignoble crowd his fury flew; He Fadus, Hebesus, and Rheetus slew.
? THE NINTH BOOK OF THE . _NEIS
309
Oppress'd wffh heavy sleep the former fell, But Rhcetus wakeful, and observing all: Behind a spacious jar he shnk'd for fear;
The fatal iron found and reach'd him there; For, as he rose, it plerc'd his naked slde,
And, reeking, thence return'd in crtmson dyed. The wound pours out a stream of wme and blood; The purple soul comes floatmg in the flood.
Now, where Messapus quarter'd, they arrive. The fires were fainting there, and just ahve;
The warrior-horses, tied m order, fed Nisus observ'd the disc@me, and said:
"Our eager thirst of blood may both betray;
And see the scatter'd streaks of dawning day,
Foe to nocturnal thefts No more, my frtend;
Here let our glutted execution end
A lane thro' slaughter'd bodies we ha_ e made. "
The bold Euryalus, tho' loth, obey'd
Of arms, and arras, and of plate, they fiud
A precious load; but these they leave behind.
Yet, fond of gaudy spoils, the boy would stay
To make the mch caparison his prey,
Which on the steed of conquer'd Rhamnes lay.
Nor did his eyes less longingly behold
The girdle-belt, _ith nails of burmsh'd gold.
This present Cmdicus the rich bestow'd
On Renmlus, when friendship first the 3, vow'd,
And, absent, join'd in hospitable ties"
He, dying, to his heir bequeath'd the prize;
Till, by the c_lqu'ring Ardean troops oppress'd,
He fell; and they the glorious gift posscss'd
These glitt'rmg spoils (now made the victor's gain) He to his body suits, but suits in vain:
Messapus' helm he finds among the rest,
And laces on, and wears the waving crest
Proud of their conquest, prouder of their prey, They leave the camp, and take the ready way.
But far they had not pass'd, before they sp_ed Three hundred horse, with Volscens for their guide.
The queen a legion to King Turnus sent;
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