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Rich was the glft, and glorious to behold,
But yet so pond'rous wlth its plates of gold,
That scarce two servants could the weight sustain; Yet, loaded thus_ Demolehs o'er the plato
Pursued and hghtly seiz'd the Trojan tram.
The thlrd, succeeding to the last reward,
Two goodly bowls of massy silver shar'd,
With figures prominent, and richly wrought,
And two brass caldrons from Dodona brought.
Thus all, rewarded by the hero's hands,
Their conqu'ring temples bound with purple bands; And now Sergesthus, clearing from the rock, Brought back his galley shatter'd with the shock. Forlorn she look'd, without an aiding oar,
And, houted by the vulgar, made to shore.
As when a snake, surpns'd upon the road,
Is crush'd athwart her body by the load
Of heavy wheels; or with a mortal wound
Her belly bruis'd, and trodden to the ground:
? In vain, with Ioosen'd curls, she crawls along;
Yet, fierce above, she brandishes her tongue;
Glares with her eyes, and bristles with her scales;
But, groveling in the dust, her parts unsound she trails: So slowly to the port the Centaur tends,
But, what she wants in oars, with sails amends. Yet, for his galley say'd, the grateful prince
Is pleas'd th' unhappy chief to recompense. Pholoe, the Cretan slave, rewards his care, Beauteous herself, with lovely twins as fair.
From thence his way the Trojan hero bent
Into the neighb'rmg plato, with mountains pent,
Whose sides were shaded with surrounding woo_ Full in the midst of this fair valley stood
? 192 DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL
A nativetheater,which,risingslow
By justdegrees,o'erlook'dtheground below.
High onasylvanthronetheleadcrsate; A num'rous trainattendin solemn state.
Here thosethatintherapidcoursedelight, Deslre of honor and the prizeinvlte.
The rivalrunnerswithoutorderstand;
The Trojans mix'd with the S]cihan band.
First Nlsus, with Euryalus, appears; : Euryalus a boy of blooming years,
With sprightly grace and equal beauty crown'd; Nlsus, for friendship to the youth renown'd
Diores next, of Priam's royal race,
Then Sahus . joined with Patron, took their place; (But Patron in Arcadia had his birth,
And Salius his from Arcanaman earth;)
Then two Sicilian youths--the names of these, Swift Helymus, and lovely Panopes:
Both jolly huntsmen, both in forest bred,
And owmng old Acestes for their head;
With sev'ral others of ignobler name,
Whom time has not dehver'd o'er to fame.
To these the hero thus his thoughts explain'd, In words which gen'ral approbation gain'd" "One common largess is for all design'd,
(The vanquish'd and the vlctor shall be join'd,) Two darts of polish'd steel and Gnosian wood, A silver-studded ax, ahke bestow'd.
The foremost three have olive wreaths decreed: The first of these obtains a stately steed,
Adorn'd with tlappings; and the next in fame,
The quiver of an Amazonian dame,
With feather'd Thracian arrows well supphed:
A golden belt shall gird his manly side,
Which with a sparkling diamond shall be tied. The third this Grecian helmet shall content"
lie said. To their appointed base they went; With beating hearts th' expected sign receive, And, starting all at once, the barrier leave. Spread out Itson the winged winds,they flew,
? THE FIFTH BOOK OF THE . _NEIS 193
P_ad seiz'd the distant goal with greedy view. Shot from the crowd, swift Nisus all o'erpass'd; Nor storms, nor thunder, equal half his haste. The next, but tho' the next, yet far disjoin'd, Came Salius, and Euryalus behind;
Then Helymus, whom young Diores plied,
Step after step, and almost side by side,
His shoulders pressing; and, in longer space, Had won, or left at least a dubious race.
Now, spent, the goal they almost reach at last, When eager Nisus, hapless m his haste,
Slipp'd first, and, slippmg, fell upon the plain, Soak'd with the blood of oxen newly slain.
The careless victor had not mark'd his way;
But, treading where the treach'rous puddle lay,
His heels flew up; and on the grassy floor
He fell, besmear'd with filth and holy gore.
Not mindless then, Euryalus, of thee,
Nor of the sacred bonds of amity,
He strove th' immediate rival's hope to cross,
And caught the foot of Salius as he rose.
So Salius lay extended on the plain;
Euryalus springs out, the prize to gain,
And leaves the crowd: applauding peals attend
The victor to the goal, who vanquish'd by his friend. Next Helymus; and then Diores came,
By two m_sfortunes made the third in fame.
But Salius enters, and, exclaiming lo_d
For justice, deafens and disturbs the crowd; Urges his cause may in the court be heard; And pleads the prize is wrongfully conferr'd. But favor for Euryalus appears;
His blooming beauty, with his tender tears, Had brib'd the judges for the promis'd prize. Besides, Diores fills the court with cries,
Who vainly reaches at the last reward,
If the first palm on Salius be conferr'd.
Then thus the prince: "Let no disptttes arise: Where fortune plac'd it, I award the prize. But fortune's errors give me leave to mend,
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? 194 DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL
At least to pity my deserving friend. "
He said, and, from among the spoils, he draws
(Pond'rous with shaggy mane and golden paws) A lion's hide: to Salius this he gives.
Nisus with envy sees the gift, and grieves.
"If such rewards to vanqmsh'd men are due. " He said, "and falhng is to rise by you,
What prize may Nisus from your bounty clain_. Who merited the first rewards and fame?
In falling, both an equal fortune tried;
Would fortune for my fall so well provide ! "
With this he pointed to his face, and show'd
His hand and all his habit smear'd with blood.
Th' indulgent father of the people stuff'd,
And caus'd to be produc'd an ample shield,
Of wondrous art, by Didymaon wrought,
Long since from Neptune's bars in triumph brought. This giv'n to Nisus, he divides the rest,
And equal justice in his gifts express'd
The race thus ended, and rewards bestow'd, Once more the prince bespeaks th' attentive crowd:
"If there be h_re wi_ose dauntless courage dare In gauntlet-fight, with limbs and body bare, His opposite sustain in open view,
Stand forth the champion, and the games renew. Two prizes I propose, and thus divide:
A bull with gilded horns, and fillets tied,
Shall be the portion of the conqu'ring chief;
A sword and helm shall cheer the loser's grief. "
Then haughty Dares in the lists appears; Stalking he strides, hts head erected bears: His nervous arms the weighty gauntlet wield, And loud applauses echo thro' the field. Dares alone m combat us'd to stand
The match of mighty Paris, hand to hand; The same, at Hector's fun'rals, undertook Gigantic Butes, of th' Amycian stock,
And, by the stroke of his resistless hand, Stretch'_t the vast bulk upon the yellow sand. Such Dares was; and such he strode along,
? _TH BOOK OF THE _ENI_r$ 1_
And drew the wonder of the gazing throng.
His brawny back and ample breast he shows,
His lifted arms around his head he throws,
And deals in whistling air his empty blows.
His match is sought; but, thro' the trembling band, Not one dares answer to the proud demand. Presuming of his force, with sparkling eyes Already he devours the promis'd prize.
He claims the bull with awless insolence,
And having seiz'd his horns, accosts the prince:
"If none my matchless valor dares oppose, How long shall Dares wait his dastard foes? Permit me, chief, permit without delay,
To lead this uneontended gift away. "
The crowd assents, and with redoubled cries For tile proi_d challenger demands the prizd.
Acestes, fir'd with just disdain, to see
The palm usurp'd without a victory,
Reproach'd Entellus thus, who sate beside,
And heard and saw, unmov'd, the Trojan's pride: "Once, but in vain, a champion of renown,
So tamely can you bear the ravish'd crown,
A prize in triumph borne before your sight,
And shun, for fear, the danger of the fight?
Where is our Eryx now, the boasted name,
The god who taught your thund'ring arm the game? Where now your baffled honor? Where the spoil
That fill'd your house, and fame that fill'd our _ste_" Entellus, thus: "My soul is still the same,
Unmov'd with fear, and mov'd with martial fame; But my chill blood is curdled in my veins,
And scarce the shadow of a man remains.
O could I turn to that fair prime again,
That prime of which this boaster is so vain,
The brave, who this decrepid age defies,
Should feel my force, without the promis'd prize. "
He said; and, i'ising at the word, he threw Two pond'rous gauntlets down in open view;
Gauntlets which Eryx wont in fight to wield, And sheathe his hands with in the listed lidd.
? 196 DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL
With fear and wonder seiz'd, the crowd beholds
The gloves of death, with sev'n dlstinguish'd folds
Of tough bull hides; the space within is spread
With iron, or with loads of heavy lead:
Dares himself was daunted at the sight,
Renounc'd his challenge, and refus'd to fight. Astonish'd at their weight, the hero stands,
And pois'd the pond'rous engines in his hands.
"What had your wonder," said Entellus, "been,
Had you the gauntlets of Alcides seen,
Or view'd the stern debate on this unhappy green !
These which I bear your brother Eryx bore,
Still mark'd with batter'd brains and mingled gore.
With these he long sustain'd th' Herculean arm;
And these I wielded while my blood was warm,
This languish'd frame while better spirits fed,
Ere age unstrung my nerves, or time o'ersnow'd my head. But if the challenger these arms refuse,
And cannot wield their weight, or dare not use;
If great . ,Eneas and Acestes join
In his request, these gauntlets I resign;
Let us w_th equal arms perform the fight,
And let him leave to fear, since I resign my right. "
This said, Entellus for the strife prepares, Stripp'd of his qmlted coat, his body bares;
Compos'd of mighty bones and brawn he stands,
A goodly tow'ring object on the sands.
Then just -_neas equal arms supplied,
Which round their shoulders to their wrists they tied. Both on the tiptoe stand, at full extent,
Their arms aloft, their bodles inly bent;
Their heads from aiming blows they bear afar; With clashing gauntlets then provoke the war.
One on his youth and pliant limbs relies; One on his sinews and his giant size.
The last is stiff with age, his motion slow;
He heaves for breath, he staggers to and fro,
And clouds of issuing smoke his nostrils loudly blow, Yet equal in success, they ward, they strike;
Their ways are diff'rent, but their art alike.
? THE FIFTH BOOK OF THt_ /ENEIS
Before, behind, the blows are dealt; around
Their hollow sides the rattling thumps resound.
A storm of strokes, well meant, with fury flies,
And errs about their temples, ears, and eyes.
Nor always errs; for oft the gauntlet draws
A sweeping stroke along the crackling jaws.
Heavy with age, Entellus stands his ground,
But with his warping body wards the wound.
His hand and watchful eye keep even pace;
While Dares traverses and shifts his place,
And, hke a captain who beleaguers round
Some strong-built castle on a rising ground,
Views all th' approaches with observing eyes:
This and that other part in vain he tries,
And more on industry than force relies.
With hands on high, Entellus threats the foe;
But Dares watch'd the motion from below,
And slipp'd aside, and shunn'd the long descending blow. EnteUus wastes his forces on the wind,
And, thus deluded of the stroke de_ign'd,
Headlong and heavy fell; his ample breast
And weighty hmbs his ancient mother press'd.
So falls a hollow pine, that long had stood
On Ida's height, or Erymanthus' wood,
Torn from the roots. The dlff'ring nations rise,
And shouts and mingled murmurs rend the sloes, Acestus runs with eager haste, to raise
The fall'n compamon of his youthful days.
Dauntless he rose, and to the fight return'd;
With shame his glowing cheeks, his eyes with fury burn'ck Disdain and conscious virtue fir'd his breast,
Autl with redoubled force h_s foe he press'd.
He lays on load wxth either hand, amain,
And headlong drives the Trojan o'er the plain;
Nor stops, nor stays; nor rest nor breath allows;
But storms of strokes descend about his brows,
A rattling tempest, and a had of blows
But now the prince, who saw the wild increase
Of wounds, commands the combatants to cease,
. And bounds Entellus' wrath, and bids the peace.
? lg8
DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL First to the Trojan, spent with toil, he came,
And sooth'd his sorrow for the suffer'd shame "What fury seiz'd my friend ? The gods," said he,
"To him propitious, and averse to thee,
Have giv'n his arm superior force to thine
'Tis madness to contend with strength divine, Fhe gauntlet fight thus ended, from the shore His faithful friends unhappy Dares bore"
His mouth and nostrils pour'd a purple flood, And pounded teeth came rushing with his bloo_. Faintly he stagger'd thro' the hissing throng, And hung his head, and trail'd his legs along. The sword and casque are carried by his trainf But with his foe the palm and ox remain.
The champion, then, before . _Eneas came, Proud of his prize, but prouder of his fame: "O goddess-born, and you, Dardanian host, Mark with attention, and forgive my boast; Learn what I was, by what remains; and know From what impending fate you sav'd my foe. " Sternly he spoke, and then confronts the bull; And, on his ample forehead aiming full,
The deadly stroke, descending, pierc'd the skull. Down drops the beast, nor needs a second wound,
But sprawls in pangs of death, and spurns the ground. Then, thus: "In Dares' stead I offer this.
Eryx, accept a nobler sacrifice;
Take the last gift my wither'd arms can yield:
Thy gauntlets I resign, and here renounce the field? "
This done, . _neas orders, for the close,
The strife of archers with contending bows. The mast Sergesthus' shatter'd galley bore With his own hands he raises on the shore.
A flutt'ring dove upon the top they tie,
The living mark at which their arrows fly.
The rival archers in a line advance,
Their turn of shooting to receive from chance. A helmet holds their names; the lots are drawn: On the first scroll was read Hippoco/Sn.
The people shout. Upon the next was fott_d
? THE FIFTH BOOK OF THE 2ENEIS IW
Young Mnestheus, late with naval honors crown'd. The third contain'd Eurytion's noble name,
Thy brother, Pandarus, and next m fame,
Whom Pallas urg'd the treaty to confound,
And send among the Greeks a feather'd wound. Acestes in the bottom last remain'd,
Whom not his age from youthful sports restrain'd. Soon all with vigor bend their trusty bows,
And from the quiver each his arrow chose Hlppocoon's was the first, with forceful sway
It flew, and, whlzzing, cut the hquid way
Fix'd m the mast the feather'd weapon stands:
The fearful pigeon flutters in her bands,
And the tree trembled, and the shouting cries
Of the pleas'd people rend the vaulted skies. Then Mnestheus to the head his arrow drove, With hfted eyes, and took his aim above,
But made a glancing shot, and miss'd the dove; Yet miss'd so narrow, that he cut the cord
Which fasten'd by the foot the flitting bird
The captive thus releas'd, away she flies,
And beats with clapping wings the yielding skies. His bow already bent, Eurytion stood;
And, hazing first invok'd his brother god,
His winged shaft with eager haste he sped.
The fatal message reach'd her as she fled:
She leaves her life aloft; she strikes the ground, And renders back the weapon in the wound. Acestes, grudging at his lot, remains,
Without a prize to gratify his pains.
Yet, shooting upward, sends his shaft, to show An archer's art, and boast his twanging bow.
The feather'd arrow gave a dire portent,
And latter augurs judge from this event.
Chaf'd by the speed, it fir'd; and, as it flew,
A trail of following flames aseend,. 'ng drew: Kindling they mount, and mark the shiny way; Across the skies as falling meteors play,
And vanish into wind, or in a blaze decay.
The Trojans mad Sicilians wildly stare,
? , _
DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL And, trembling, turn their wonder into pray'r.
The Dardan prince put on a smiling face, And strain'd Acestes with a close embrace;
Then, hon'ring him with gifts above the rest, Turn'd the bad omen, nor his fears confess'& "The gods," said he, "this miracle have wrought, And order'd you the prize without the lot. Accept this goblet, rough with figur'd gold, Which Thracian Ctsseus gave my sire of old: This pledge of ancient amity receive,
Which to my second sire I justly give"
He said, and, with the trumpets' cheerful sound, Proclaim'd him victor, and with laurel crown'd. Nor good Eurytion envied him the prize,
Tho' he transfix'd the pigeon in the skies.
Who cut the line, with second gifts was grac'd; The third was his whose arrow pierc'd the mast
The chief, before the games were wholly done, Call'd Periphantes, tutor to his son,
And whisper'd thus: "With speed Ascanius find; And, if his childish troop be ready join'd,
On horseback let him grace his grandsire's day, And lead his equals arm'd m just array. "
He said; and, calling out, the cirque he clears. The crowd withdrawn, an open plain appears.
And now the noble youths, of form divine,
Advance before their fathers, in a line;
The riders grace the steeds; the steeds with glory shine
Thus marching on in military pride,
Shouts of applau:2 resound from side to side.
Their casques adorn'd with laurel wreaths they wear, Each brandishing aloft a cornel spear.
Some at their backs their gilded quivers bore;
Their chains of burnish'd gold hung down before. Three graceful troops they form'c[ upon the green; Three graceful leaders at their head were seen; Twelve follow'd ev'ry chief, and left a space betwee_ The first young Priam led; a lovely boy,
Whose grandsire was th' unhappy king of Troy;
His race in after times was known to fame,
? THE FIFTH BOOK OF THE JENEIS 201 New honors adding to the Latian name;
And well the royal boy his Thracian steed became. White were the fetlocks of his feet before,
And on his front a snowy star he bore. Then beauteous Atys, with Iulus bred,
Of equal age, the second squadron led.
The last in order, but the first in place, First in the lovely features of his face, Rode falr Ascanius on a fiery steed,
Queen Dtdo's gift, and of the Tyrian breed. Sure coursers for the rest the king ordains, With golden blts adorn'd, and purple reins.
The pleas'd spectators peals of shouts renew,
And all the parents in the chAdren view,
Their make, their motions, and their sprightly grace, And hopes and fears alternate in their face.
Th' unfledg'd commanders and their martial train First make the circuit of the sandy plain
Around their sires, and, at th' appointed sign, Drawn up in beauteous order, form a hne.
The second signal sounds, the troop divides
In three distinguish'd parts, with three distinguish'd guidea. Again they close, and once again dtsjoin;
In troop to troop oppos'd, and hne to hne
They meet; they wheel; they throw their darts afar
Wtth harmless rage and well-dissembled war.
Then in a round the mingled bodies run:
Flying the3' follow, and pursuing shun;
Broken, they break; and, rallying, they renew
In other forms the military shew
At last, in order, undiscern'd they join,
And march together in a friendly line.
And, as the Cretan labyrinth of old,
With wand'ring ways and many a winding fold,
Involv'd the weary feet, without redress,
In a round error, which denied recess;
So fought the Trojan boys in warlike play,
Turn'd and return'd, and still a diff'rent way
Thus dolphins in the deep each other chase
In circles, when they swim around the wat'ry race.
? , ;
_
DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL
This game, these carousels, Aseanius taught;
And, bullchng All)a, to the Latins brought;
Shew'd what he learn'd: the Latin sires impart
To their succeeding sons the graceful art;
From these imperial Rome reeeiv'd the game,
Which Troy, the youths the Trojan troop, they name.
Thus far the sacred sports they celebrate:
But Fortune soon resum'd her ancient hate;
For, while they pay the dead his annual dues,
Those envied rites Saturnian Juno views;
And sends the goddess of the various bows
To try new methods o_ revenge below;
Supplies the winds to wing her airy way,
Where m the port secure the navy lay.
Swiftly fair Iris down her arch descends,
And, undlscern'd, her fatal voyage ends.
She saw the gath'ring crowd; and, ghdmg thence,
The desart shore, and fleet without defense
The Trojan matrons, on the sands alone,
With fighs and tears Anchlses' death bemoan;
Then, turning to the sea their weeping eyes,
Their pity to themselves renews their cries.
"Alas ! " said one, "what oceans yet remain For us to sail Xwhat labors to sustain ! "
All take the word, and, with a gen'ral groan,
Implore the gods for peace, and places of their own.
The goddess, great in mischief, views their pains, And in a woman's form her heav'nly limbs restrains.
In face and shape old Beroe she became,
Doryclus' wife, a venerable dame,
Once blest with riches, and a mother's name.
Thus chang'd, amidst the crying crowd she ran,
Mix'd with the matrons, and these words began:
"O wretched we, whom not the Grecian pow'r,
Nor flames, destroy'd, m Troy's unhappy hour f
O wretched we, reserv'd by cruel fate,
Beyond the i'uins of the sinking state!
Now sev'n revolwng years are wholly run,
Since this improsp'rous voyage we begun ;
Since, toss'd from shores to shores, from lands to iands,
? THE FIFTH BOOK OF THE Aigl_EIS L_
Inhospitable rocks and barren sands,
Wand'ring m exile thro' the stormy sea,
We search in vain for flying Italy.
Now cast by fortune on this kindred land,
What should our rest and rising walls withstand, Or hinder here to fix our banish'd band?
O country lost, and gods redeem'd in vain, If still in endless exile we remam l
Shall we no more the Trojan walls renew, Or streams of some dissembled Simois view!
Haste, join wtth me, th' unhappy fleet consume 1 Cassandra bids; and I declare her doom.
In sleep I saw her; she supphed my hands
(For this I more than dreamt) with flaming brands: 'Wtth these,' said she, 'these wand'ring sh_ps destroy: These are your fatal seats, and th_s your Troy. '
T_me calls you now ; the precious hour employ: Slack not the good presage, while Heav'n inspires Our minds to dare, and gives the ready fires. See! Neptune's altars minister their brands:
The god is pleas'd; the god supplies our hands. " Then from the pile a flaming fire she drew,
And, toss'd in air, amidst the galleys threw.
Wrapp'd in amaze, the matrons wildly stare: Then Pyrgo, reverenc'd for her hoary hair, Pyrgo, the nurse of Priam's num'rous race:
"No Beroe this, tho' she belies her face l
What terrors from her frowmng front artse!
Behold a goddess in her ardent eyes l
What rays around her heav'nly face are seen l
Mark her majestic voice, and more than mortal mien! Beroe but now I left, whom, pin'd with pain,
Her age and anguish from these rites detain,"
She said. The matrons, seiz'd with new amaze,
Roll their malignant eyes, and on the navy gaze.
They fear, and hope, and neither part obey:
They hope the fated land, but fear the fatal way.
The goddess, having done her task below,
Mounts up on equal wings, and bends her painted bow. Struck with the sight, and seiz'd with rage divine,
? _Ii) ,"
'. ': " :
204 DRYDEI_S TRANSLATIOI_ OF VIRGIL
The matrons prosecute their mad design:
They shriek aloud; they snatch, with impious hands, The food of altars; fires and flaming brands.
Green boughs and saphngs, mingled in their haste, And smoking torches, on the ships they cast.
The flame, unstopp'd at first, more fury gains,
And Vulcan rides at large with loosen'd reins: Triumphant to the painted sterns he soars,
And seizes, in his way, the banks and crackling oars. Eumelus was the first the news to bear,
While yet they crowd the rural theater.
Then, what they hear, is witness'd by their eyes:
A storm of sparkles and of flames arise.
Ascanius took th' alarm, while yet he led
His early warriors on his prancing steed,
And, spurring on, his equals soon o'erpass'd;
Nor could his frighted friends reclaim his haste. Soon as the royal youth appear'd in view,
He sent his voice before him as he flew:
"What madness moves you, matrons, to destroy
The last remahaders of unhappy Troy!
Not hostile fleets, but your own hopes, you burn,
And on your friends your fatal fury turn Behold your own Ascamus t,, While he said,
He drew his glitt'ring helmet from his head, In which the youths to sportful arms he led. By this, . SEneas and his train appear;
And now the women, seiz'd with shame and fear, Dispers'd, to woods and caverns take their flight, Abhor their actions, and avold the light;
Their frlends acknowledge, and their error find, And shake the goddess from their alter'd mind.
Not so the raging fires their fury cease,
But, lurking in the searas, with seeming peace, Work on their way amid the smold'ring tow, Sure in destruction, but in motion slow.
The silent plague thro' the green timber eats, And vomits out a tardy flame by fits.
Down to the keels, and upward to the sails, The fire descends, or mounts, but still prevads ;
? _HE FIFTH BOOK OF THE ,_EIS _05 Nor bucketspour'dn,orstrengthof human hand,
Can thevictorioueslementwithstand. The plo_sherorendshisrobe,and throws
To hcav'nhishands,andwithhishandshisvows. "0 Jove,"hecried',i? pray'rscanyethaveplace;
Ifthouabhorr'sntotalltheDardanrace; If anysparkofpitystilrlemain;
Ifgodsaregods,andnotinvok'dinvain; Yet spare the relics of the Trojan train l
Yet from the flames our burning vessels freej Or let thy fury fall alone on reel
At this devoted head thy thunder throw, And send the willing sacrifice below l"
Scarce had he said, when southern storms arise: From pole to pole the forky lightning flies;
Loud rattling shakes the mountains and the plain; Heav'n bellies downward, and descends in rain. Whole sheets of water from the clouds are sent, Which, hissing thro' the planks, the flames prevent, And stop the fiery pest. Four ships alone
Burn to the waist, and for the fleet atone. But doubtful thoughts the hero's heart divide;
If he should still in Sicily reside,
Forgetful of his fates, or tempt the main,
In hope the promis'd Italy to gain.
Then Nantes, old and wise, to whom alone
The will of Heav'n by Pallas was foreshown; Vers'd in portents, experlenc'd, and inspir'd
To tell events, and what the fates requir'd;
Thus while he stood, to neither part inclin'd,
With cheerful words reliev'd his lab'ring mind: "O goddess-born, resign'd in ev'ry state,
With patience bear, with prudence push your fate. By suff'ring well, our Fortune we subdue;
Fly when she frowns, and, when she calls, pursue Your friend Acestes is of Trojan kind;
To him disclose the secrets of your mind:
Trust in his hands your old and useless train;
Too num'rous for the ships which yet remain:
The feeble, old, indulgent of their ease,
? The dames who dread the dangers of the seas, With all the dastard crew, who dare not stand The shock of battle with your foes by land. Here you may build a common town for all, And, from Acestes' name, Acesta call. "
The reasons, with his friend's experience join'd, Encourag'd much, but more disturb'd his mind.
'T was dead of night; when to his slumb'ring eyes His father's shade descended from the skies,
And thus he spoke: "O more than vital breath, Lov'd while I liv'd, and dear ev'n after death;
O son, in various toils and troubles toss'd,
The King of Heav'n employs my careful ghost On his commands: the god, who sav'd from fire Your flaming fleet, and heard your just desire. The wholesome counsel of your friend receive, And here the coward train and women leave: The chosen youth, and those who nobly dare, Transport, to tempt the dangers of the war.
The stern Italians will their courage try;
Rough are their manners, and their minds are high.
But first to Pluto's palace you shall go,
And seek my shade among the blest below:
For not with impious ghosts my soul remains,
Nor suffers with the damn'd perpetual pains,
But breathes the living air of soft Elysian plains. The chaste Sibylla shall your steps convey,
And blood of offer'd victims free the way.
There shall you know what realms the gods assign, And learn the fates and fortunes of your line.
But now, farewell l I vanish with the night,
And feel the blast of heav'n's approachin[_ light. "
He said, and mix'd with shades, and took his airy flight "Whither so fast? " the filial duty cried;
"And why, ah why, the wish'd embrace denied ? " He said, and rose; as holy zeal inspires,
He rakes hot embersj and renews the fires;
His country gods and Vesta then adores
With cakes and incense, and their aid implores. Next, for his friends and royal host he sent_
? _ _IFTH BOOK OP TH_ _IB
Reveal'd his vision, and the gods' intent, With his own p_rpose. All, without delay,
The will o? Jove, and his desires obey.
They list with women each degenerate name,
Who dares not hazard life for future fame. These they cashier: the brave remaining few,
Oars, banks, and cables, half consum'd, renew. The prince designs a city with the plow;
The lots their sev'ral tenements allow.
This part is nam'd from Ilium, that from Troy, And the new king ascends the throne with joy;
A chosen senate from the people draws;
Appoints the judges, and ordains the laws.
Then, on the top of Eryx, 'they begin
A rising temple to the Paphian queen.
Anchises, last, is honor'd as a god;
A priest is added, annual gifts bestow'd,
And groves are planted round his blest abode.
Nine days they pass in feasts, their temples crown'd| And fumes of incense in the fanes abound.
Then from the so_th arose a gentle breeze
That curl'd the smoothness of the glassy seas;
The rising winds a r_/ting gale afford,
And call the merry mariners aboard.
Now loud laments along the shores resound, Of parting friends in close embraces bound.
The trembling women, the degenerate train,
Who shunn'd the frightful dangers of the main, Ev'n those desire to sail, and take their share
Of the rough passage and the promis'd war: Whom good . _neas cheers, and recommends
To their new master's care his fearful friends
On Eryx's altars three fat calves he lays;
A lamb new-fallen to the stormy seas;
Then slips his haulsers, and his anchors weighs. High on the deck the godlike hero stands,
With olive crown'd, a charger in his hands; Then cast the reeking entrails in the brine,
And pour'd the sacrifice of purple wine.
Fresh gales arise; with equal strokes they vie,
? 208 DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL
And brush the buxom seas, and o'er the billows fly. Meantime the mother goddess, full of fears,
To Neptune thus address'd, with tender tears: "The pride of Jove's imperious queen, the rage,
The malice which no suff'rings can assuage, Compel me to these pray'rs; since neither fate, Nor time, nor pity, can remove her bate:
Ev'n Jove is thwarted by his haughty wife; Still vanquish'd, yet she still renews the strife. As if 't were little to consume the town
Which aw'd the world, and wore th' imperial crown, She prosecutes the ghost of Troy with pains,
And gnaws, ev'n to the bones, the last remains. Let her the causes of her hatred tell;
But you can witness its effects too well.
You saw the storm she rais'd on Libyan floods, That mix'd the mounting billows with the clouds; "_Vhen, bribing . TEolus, she shook the main,
And moved rebellion in your wat'ry reign. With fury she possess'd the Dardan dames, To burn their fleet with execrable flames, And forc'd . ,Eneas, when his ships were lost, To leave his foll'wers on a foreign coast. For what remains, your godhead I implore, And trust my son to your protecting pow'r.
If neither Jove's nor Fate's decree withstand, Secttre his passage to the Latian land. "
Then thus the mighty Ruler of the Main:
"What may not Venus hope from Neptune's reign ?
My kingdom claims your birth; my late defense Of your indanger'd fleet may claim your confidence. Nor less by land than sea my deeds declare
How much your lov'd 2Eneas is my care.
Thee, Xantbus, and thee, Simois, I attest.
Your Trojan troops when proud Achilles press'd,
And drove before him headlong on the plain, And dash'd against the walls the trembling train;
When floods were fiU'd with bodies of the slain; When crimson Xanthus, doubtful of his way,
Stood up, on ridges to behold the sea;
? TI_IE FIFTH BOOK OF THE _1_8
(New heaps came tumbling in, and chok'd his way;) When your . _Eneas fought, but fought with odds
Of force unequal, and unequal gods;
I spread a cloud before the victor's sight, Sustain'd the vanqulsh'd, and secur'd his flight; Ev'n then secur'd him, when I sought with joy The vow'd destruction of ungrateful Troy.
My will's the same: fair goddess, fear no more, Your fleet shall safely gain the Latian shore; Their lives are giv'n; one destin'd head alone Shall perish, and for multitudes atone. "
Thus having arm'd with hopes her anxlo_s rnlnd_ His finny team Saturnian Neptune join'd,
Then adds the foamy bridle to their jaws,
And to the loosen'd reins permits the laws.
High on the waves his azure car he guides;
Its axles thunder, and the sea subsides,
And the smooth ocean rolls her silent tides.
The tempests fly before their father's face,
Trains of inferior gods his triumph grace,
And monster whales before their master play, And choir_ of Tritons crowd the wat'ry way.
The marshal'd pow'rs in equal troops divide
To right and left; the gods his better side
Inclose, and on the worse the Nymphs and Nereids ride. .
Now smiling hope, with sweet vicissitude,
Within the hero's mind his joys renew'&
He calls to raise the masts, the sheets display;
The cheerful crew with diligence obey;
They scud before the wind, and sail in open sea. Ahead of all the master pilot steers;
And, as he leads, the following navy veers.
The steeds of Night had travel'd half the sky,
The drowsy rowers on their benches lie,
When the soft God of Sleep, with easy flight, Descends, and draws behind a trail of light.
Thou, Palinurus, art his destin'd prey;
To thee alone he takes his fatal way.
Dire dreams to thee, and iron sleep, he bears;
And, lighting on thy prow, the form of Phorbas wears.
? DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF V_ Then thus the traitor god began his tale:
"The winds, my friend, inspire a pleasing ga|e; tl The ships, without thy care, securely sail.
Ii Now steal an hour of sweet repose; and I Will take the rudder and thy room supply. "
To whom the yawning pilot, half asleep:
"Me dost thou bid to trust the treach'rous deep,
The harlot smiles of her dissembling face,
And to her faith commit the Trojan race?
Shall I believe the Siren South again,
And, oft betray'd, not know the monster main? "
He said: his fasten'd hands the rudder keep,
And, fix'd on hear'n, his eyes repel invading sleep. The god was wroth, and at his temples threw
A branch in Lethe dipp'd, and drunk with Stygian dew: The pilot, vanquish'd by the pow'r divine,
Soon clos'd his swimming eyes, and lay supine. Scarce were his limbs extended at their length,
The god, insulting with superior strength, Fell heavy on him, plung'd him in the sea,
And, with the stern, the rudder tore away.
Headlong he fell, and, struggling in the main,
Cried out for helping hands, but cried in vain.
The victor d_rnon mounts obscure in air,
While the ship sails without the pilot's care.
On Neptune's faith the floating fleet relies;
But what the man forsook, the god supplies,
And o'er the dang'rous deep secure the navy flies; Glides by the Sirens' cliffs, a shelly coast,
Long infamous for ships and sailors lost,
And white with bones. Th' impetuous ocean roars,
And rocks rebellow from the sounding shores.
The watchful hero felt the knocks, and found
The tossing vessel sail'd on shoaly ground.
Sure of his pilot's loss, he takes himself
The helm, and steers aloof, and shuns the shelf.
Inly he griev'd, and, groaning from the breast,
Deplor'd his death; ,Ild thus his pain express'd:
"For faith repos'd on seas, and on the flatt'ring sky, Thy naked corpse is doom'd on shores unknown to lie. "
? THE SIXTH BOOK OF THE iENEI8
THE ARGUMZNT. --The Sibyl foretells . _neas the adventures he should meet wlth in Italy. She attends him to hell; descrlbmg to him the various scenes of that place, and conducting him to hls father Anohises, who instructs hlm in those sublime mysteries of the soul of the world, and the transmlgratlon;and shews hlm that gloriousrace of heroes which was to descend from him, and his posterity.
E said,and wept;thenspreadhissailsbefore The winds,andreach'adtlengththeCurn_anshore:
Theiranchorsdropp'dh,iscrew the vesselmsoor. They turn their heads to sea, their sterns to land,
And greet with greedy joy th' Italian strand. Some strike from clashing flints their fiery seed; Some gather sticks_ the kindled flames to feed, Or search for hollow trees, and fell the wood% Or trace thro' valleys the discover'd floods.
Thus, while their sev'ral charges they fulfil,
The pious prince ascends the sacred hill
Where Phoebus is ador'd; and seeks the shade Which hides from sight his venerable maid.
Deep in a cave the Sibyl makes abode;
Thence full of fate returns, and of the god. Thro' Trivia's grove they walk; and now behold, And enter now, the temple roof'd with gold. When Daedalus, to fly the Cretan shore,
His heavy limbs on jointed pinions bore,
(The first who sail'd in air,) 't is sung by Fame, To the Cumaean coast at length he came,
And here alighting, built this costly frame.
2tl
f
? 212 DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION' OF _tGIL
Inscrib'd to Phoebus, here he hung on high
The steerage of his wings, that cut the sky:
Then o'er the lofty gate his art emboss'd
Androgeos' death, and off'rings to his ghost;
Sev'n youths from Athens yearly sent, to meet
The fate appointed by revengeful Crete.
And next to those the dreadful urn was plac'd,
In which the destin'd names by lots were cast:
The mournful parents stand around in tears,
And rising Crete against their shore appears.
There too, in living sculpture, might be seen
The mad affection of the Cretan queen;
Then how she cheats her hellowmg lover's eye;
The rushing leap, the doubtful progeny,
The lower part a beast, a man above,
The monument of their polluted love.
Not far from thence he grav'd the wondrous maze, A thou_nd doors, a thousand winding ways.
Here dwells the monster, hid from human view, Not to be found, but by the faithft_l clew;
Till the kind artist, mov'd with pious grief, Lent to the loving maid this last relief,
And all those erring paths describ'd so well
That Theseus conquer'd and the monster fell.
Here hapless Icarus had found his part,
Had not the father's grief restrai_l'd his art.
He twice assay'd to cast his son in gold;
Twice from his hands he dropp'd the forming mold.
All this with wond'ring eyes . _neas vlew'd; Each varying object his delight renew'd:
Eager to read the rest--Achates came,
And by his side the mad divinmg dame,
The priestess of the god, Deiphobe her name. "Time suffers not," she said, "to feed your eyes With empty pleasures; haste the sacrifice.
Sev'n bullocks, yet unyok'd, for Phoebus choose, And for Diana sev'n unspotted ewes. "
This said, the servants urge the sacred rites, While to the temple she the prince invites.
A sp. acious cave, within its farmost part_
? THE SIXTH BOOK OF THE . 2ENEIS _13
Was hew'd and fashion'd by laborious art
Thro' the hill's hollow sides: before the place,
A hundred doors a hundred entries grace;
As many voices issue, and the sound
Of Sybd's words as many times rebound
Now to the mouth they come. Aloud she cries:
"This is the time; enquire your destinies
He comes; behold the god r, Thus whde she said, (And shiv'rmg at the sacred entry stay'd,)
Her color chang'd; her face was not the same,
And hollow groans from her deep spirit came.
Her hair stood up; convulsive rage possess'd
Iter trembling hmbs, and heav'd her lab'ring breast. Greater than humankind she seem'd to look,
And with an accent more than mortal spoke.
Her staring eyes with sparkhng fury roll;
When all the god came rushing on her soul.
Swiftly she turn'd, and, foaming as she spoke:
"Why this delay? " she cried--"the pow'rs invoke l Thy pray'rs alone can open this abode;
Else vain are my demands, and dumb the god. "
She said no more The trembling Trojans hear, O'erspread with a damp sweat and holy fear.
The prince himseIf, with awful dread possess'd,
His vows to great ApolJo thus address'd:
"Indulgent god, propitious pow'r to Troy,
S_ift to reheve, unwilling to destroy,
Directed by whose hand the Dardan dart
Plerc'd the proud Grecian's only mortal part:
Thus Car, by fate's decrees and thy commands, Thro' ambient seas and thro' devouring sands, Our exil'd crew has sought th' Ausonian ground; And now, at length, the flying coast is found.
Thus far the fate of Troy, from place to place, With fury has pursued her wand'ring race.
Here cease, ye pow'rs, and let your vengeance end: Troy is no more, and can no more offend.
And thou, 0 sacred maid, inspir'd to see Th' event of things m dark futurity;
Give me what Heav'n has promis'd to my fate,
? _14 DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL
To conquer and command the Latian state; To fix my wand'ring gods, and find a place For the long exiles of the Trojan race.
,_ Then shall my grateful hands a temple rear
To the twin gods, with vows and solemn pray'r;
_t And annual rites, anti festivals, and games, Shall be perform'd to their auspicious names.
Nor shalt thou want thy honors in my land; For there thy faithful oracles shall stand, Preserv'd in shrines; and ev'ry sacred lay, Whtch, by thy mouth, Apollo shall convey:
All shall be treasur'd by a chosen train Of holy priests, and ever shall remain. But 0 ! commlt not thy prophetic mind
To flitting leaves, the sport of ev'ry wind, Lest they disperse in air our empty fate; Write not, but, what the pow'rs ordain, relate. "
Struggling in vain, impatient of her load,
And lab'ring underneath the pond'rous god,
The-more she strove to shake him from her breast, With more and far superior force he press'd; Commands his entrance, and, without control,
Usurps her organs and inspires her soul.
Now, with a furious blast, the hundred doors
Ope of themselves; a rushing whirlwind roars
Within the cave, and Sibyl's voice restores:
"Escap'd the dangers of the wat'ry reign,
Yet more and greater dls by land remain.
The coast, so long desir'd (nor doubt th' event),
Thy troops shall reach, but, having reach'd, repent.
Wars, horrid wars, I view--a field of blood, And Tiber rolhng with a purple flood. Simois nor Xanthus shall be wanting there: A new Achtlles shall in arms appear,
And he, too, goddess-born. Fierce Juno's hate, Added to hostile force, shall urge thy "fate.
To what strange nations shalt not thou resort, Driv'n to solicit aid at ev'ry court[
The cause the same which Ilium once oppress'd; A foreign mistress, and a foreign guest.
? THE SIXTH BOOK OF THE _Ek'EI8 Z15 But thou, secure of soul, unbent with woes,
The more thy fortune frowns, the more oppose.
The dawnings of thy safety shall be shown
From whence thou least shalt hope, a Grecian town. "
Thus, from the dark recess, the Sibyl spoke, And the resisting air the thunder broke;
The cave rebeUow'd, and the temple shook.
Th' ambiguous god, who rul'd her lob'ring breast, In these mysterious words his mind express'd; Some truths reveal'd, in terms involv'd the rest. At length her fury fell, her foaming teas'd,
And, ebbing in her soul, the god decreas'd. Then thus the chief: "No terror to my vlew,
No frightful face of danger can be new.
Inur'd to suffer, and resolv'd to dare,
The Fates, without my pow'r, shall be without my care. This let me crave, since near your grove the road
To hell lies open, and the dark abode
Which Acheron surrounds, th' innavigable flood; Conduct me thro' the regions void of light,
And lead me longing to my father's sight.
For him, a thousand dangers I have sought,
And, rushing where the thickest Grecian_. fought,
Safe on my back the sacred burthen brought.
He, for my sake, the raging ocean tried,
And wrath of Hear'n, my still auspicious guide,
And bore beyond the strength decrepid age supplied.
Oft, since he breath'd his last, in dead of night
His reverend image stood before my sight;
Enjoin'd to seek, below, his holy shade;
Conducted there by your unerring aid.
But you, if pious minds by pray'rs are won,
Oblige the father, and protect the son.
Yours is the pow'r; nor Proserpine in vain
Has made you priestess of her nightly relg_
If Orpheus, arm'd with his enchanting lyre,
The ruthless king with pity could inspire,
And from the shades below redeem his wife;
If Pollux, off'ring his alternate life, Could free his brother, and can dally go
? 216 DRYDEN'S TRANSLATION OF VIRGIL
By turns aloft, by turns descend below-- Why name I Theseus, or his greater friend,
Who trod the downward path, and upward could ascend? Not less than theirs from Jove my lineage came;
My mother greater, my descent the same. "
So pray'd the Trojan prince, and, while he pray'd,
His hand upon the holy altar laid.
Then thus rephed the prophetess divine:
"O goddess-born of great Anchises' line, The gates of hell are open night and day;
Smooth the descent, and easy is the way:
But to return, and view the cheerful skies, In this the task and mighty labor lies.
To few great Jupiter imparts this grace,
And those of shining worth and heav'nly race.
Betwixt those regions and our upper fight, Deep forests and impenetrable night
Possess the middle space: th' infernal bounds Cocytus,--with his sable waves, surrounds. But if so dire a love your soul invades,
As twice below to view the trembling shades;
If you so hard a toil will undertake,
As twice to pass th' innavigable lake;
Receive my counsel In the neighb'ring grove There stands a tree; the queen of Stygian Jove Claims it her own; thick woods and gloomy night Conceal the happy plant from human sight
One bough it bear_ ; but (wondrous to behold _) The ductile rind and leaves of radiant gold : This from the vulgar branches must be torn, And to fair Proserpine the present borne,
Ere leave be giv'n to tempt the nether skies. The first thus rent a second will arise,
And the same metal the same room supplies. Look round the wood, with lifted eyes, to see The lurking gold upon the fatal tree:
Then rend it off, as holy rites command; The willing metal will obey thy hand,
Following with ease, if favor'd by thy fate, Thou art foredoom'd to view the Stygian state:
? THE SIXTH BOOK OF THE ,_NEIS 2]7
If not, no labor can the tree constrain;
And strength of stubborn arms and steel are vain. Besides, you know not, wh_le you here attend,
Th' unworthy fate of your unhappy friend: Breathless he lies; and his unburied ghost,
Depriv'd of fun'ral rites, pollutes your host.
Pay first his pious dues; and, for the dead,
Two sable sheep around his hearse be led;
Then, living turfs upon his body lay:
This done, securely take the destiu'd way,
"70 find the regions destitute of day. "
She said, and held her peace. . /_Eneas went Sad from the cave, and full of discontent, Unknowing whom the sacred Sibyl meant.
Achates, the companion of his breast,
Goes grieving by his side, with equal cares oppress'd. Walking, they talk'd, and fruitlessly divin'd
What friend the priestess by those words design'(,.
But soon they found an object to deplore:
Misenus lay extended on the shore;
Son of the God of Winds: none so renown'd
The warrior trumpet in the field to sound;
With breathing brass to kindle fierce alarms,
And rouse to dare their fate in honorable arms.
He serv'd great Hector, and was ever near,
Not with his trumpet only, but his spear.
But by Pelides' arms when Hector fell,
He chose . ,Enos; and he chose as well.
Swoln with applause, and aiming still at more,
He now provokes the sea gods from the shore;
With envy Triton heard the martial sound,
And the bold champion, for his challenge, drown'd; Then cast his mangled carcass on the strand:
The gazing crowd around the body stand.
All weep; but most . ,Eneas mourns his fate,
And hastens to perform the funeral state.
In altar-wlse, a stately pile they rear;
The basis broad below, and top advanc'd in air.
An ancient wood, fit for the work design'd,
(The shady covert of the salvage kind,)
? _IS DRYDEN'S TRA_WJ[mJrON OF VIRGIL
The Trojans found: the sounding ax is plied; Firs, pines, and pitch trees, and the tow'ring pride Of forest ashes, feel the fatal stroke,
And piercing wedges cleave the stubborn oak.
Huge trunks of trees, fell'd from the steepy crown Of the bare mountains, roll with ruin down. Arm'd like the rest the Trojan prince appears,
And by his pious labor urges theirs.
Thus while he wrought, revolving in his mind The ways to compass what his wish design'd,
He cast his eyes upon the gloomy grove,
And then with vows implor'd the Queen of Love: "O may thy pow'r, propitious still to me,
Conduct my steps to find the fatal tree,
In this deep forest; since the Sibyl's breath Foretold, alas! too true, Misenus' death "
Scarce_had he said, when, full before his sight, Two doves, descending from their airy flight,
Secure upon the grassy plain alight.
He knew his mother's birds; and thus he pray'd:
"Be you my guides, with your auspicious aid,
And lead my footsteps, till the branch be found,
Whose glitt'ring shadow gilds the sacred ground.
And thou, great parent, with celestial care,
In this distress be present to my pray'r 1"
Thus having said, he stopp'd with watchful sight, Observing still the motions of their flight,
What course they took, what happy slgns they shew. They fed, and, flutt'ring, by degrees withdrew
Still farther from the place, but still in view:
Hopping and flying, thus they led him on
To the slow lake, whose baleful stench to shun
They wing'd their flight aloft; then, stooping low, Perch'd on the double tree that bears the golden bough. Thro' the green leafs the glitt'ring shadows glow;
As, on the sacred oak, the wintry mistletoe,
Where the proud mother views her precious brood,
And happier branches, which she never aow'd.
Such was the glitt'ring; such the ruddy rind,
And dancing leaves, that wanton'd in the wind.
? THE SIXTH _OOK OF THE . _NEIS SI9
He seiz'd the shining bough with griping hold, And rent away, with ease, the ling'ring gold;
Then to the Sibyl's palace bore the prize.
Meantime the Trojan troops, with weeping eyes,
To dead Misenus pay his obsequies.
First, from the ground a lofty pile they rear,
Of pitch trees, oaks, and pines, and unctuous fir:
The fabric's front with cypress twigs they strew, And stick the sides with boughs of baleful yew.
The topmost part his glitt'ring arms adorn;
Warm waters, then, in brazen caldrons borne,
Are pour'd to wash his body, joint by joint,
And fragrant oils the stiffen'd limbs anoint.
With groans and cries M_senus they deplore:
Then on a bier, with purple cover'd o'er,
The breathless body, thus bewail'd, they lay,
And fire the pile, their faces turn'd awaym
Such reverend rites their fathers us'd to pay.
Pure oil and incense on the fire they throw,
And fat of victims, which his friends bestow.
These gifts the greedy flames to dust devour;
Then on the living coals red wine they pour;
And, last, the rehcs by themselves dispose,
Which in a brazen urn the priests inclose.
Old Coryn_eus compass'd thrice the crew,
And dipp'd an olive branch in holy dew,
Which thrice he sprinkled round, and thrice aloud Invok'd the dead, and then dismiss'd the crowd.
But good . ,Eneas order'd on the shore
A stately tomb, whose top a trumpet bore,
A soldier's fauchion, and a seaman's oar.
Thus was his friend interr'd; and deathless fame Still to the lofty cape consigns his name.
These rites perform'd, the prince, without delay, Hastes to the nether world his destin'd way.
Deep was the cave; and, downward as it went From the wide mouth, a rocky rough descent;
And here th' access a gloomy grove defends,
And there th' unnavigable lake extends,
O'er whose unhappy waters, void of light_
? 220 DRYDEN'S TgANSLATION OF VIRGIL
No bird presumes to steer his airy flight; Such deadly stenches from the depths arise,
And steaming sulphur, that infects the skies.
From hence the Grecian bards their legends make, And gave the name Avernus to the lake
Four sable bullocks, in the yoke untaught,
For sacmfice the pious hero brought
The priestess pours the wine betwixt their horns; Then cuts the curling hair, that first oblation burns, Invoking Hecate hither to repair.
A pow'rful name in hell and upper air.
The sacred priests with ready knives bereave
The beasts of life, and m full bowls receive
The streaming blood: a lamb to Hell and Night
(The sable wool without a streak of white)
gEneas offers; and, by fate's decree,
A barren heifer, Proserpine, to thee.
With_holocausts he Pluto's altar fills;
Sev'n brawny bulls wlth his own hand he kills;
Then on the brodmg entrails oil he pours;
Which, orated thus, the raging flame devours.
Late the nocturnal sacrifice begun,
Nor ended till the next returning sun.
Then earth began to bellow, trees to dance,
And howhng dogs in glimm'ring hght advance,
Ere Hecate came. "Far hence be souls profane! "
Tlle Sibyl cried "and from the grove abstain!
Now, Trojan, take tile way thy fates afford;
Assume thy courage, and unsheathe thy sword. "
She sa_d, and pass'd along the gloomy space;
The prince pursued her steps with equal pace.
Ye realms, yet unreveal'd to human sight, Ye gods who rule the regions of the night,
Ye gliding ghosts, permit me to relate
The mystic wonders of your silent state l
Obscure they went thro' dreary shades, that led Along the waste dominions of the dead
Thus wander travelers in woods by mght,
_y the moon's doubtful and malignant light,
When Jove m dusky clouds revolves the skie_j
? THE SIXTH BOOK OF THE _I_NEIS 221
And the faint crescent shoots by fits before their eyes. Just in the gate and in the jaws of hell,
Revengeful Cares and sullen Sorrows dwell, And pale Diseases, and repining Age,
Want, Fear, and Famine's unresisted rage;
Here Toils, and Death, and Death's half-brother, Sleep_ Forms terrible to view, their sentry keep;
With anxious Pleasures of a guilty mind,
Deep Frauds before, and open Force behind;
The Furies' iron beds; and Strife, that shalkes
Her hissing tresses and unfolds her snakes
Full in the midst of this infernal road,
An elm displays her dusky arms abroad:
The God of Sleep there hides his heavy head,
And empty dreams on ev'ry leaf are spread.
Of various forms unnumber'd specters more, Centaurs, and double shapes, besiege the door.
Before the passage, horrid Hydra stands,
And Briareus with all his hundred hands; Gorgons, Geryon with his triple frame;
And vain Chimaera vomits empty flame
The chief unsheath'd his shining steel, prepar'd, Tho' seiz'd with sudden fear, to force the guard, Off'ring his brandish'd weapon at their face; Had not the Sibyl stopp'd his eager pace,
And told him what those empty phantoms were: Forms without bodies, and impassive air.