So shall Minerva learn to fear his ire, Nor dare to combat her's and Nature's sire. For Juno, headstrong and imperious still, She claims some title to transgress his will. But thee what desperate insolence has driven, To lift thy lance against the king of Heaven?" Then, mounting on the pinions of the wind, She flew; and Juno thus her rage resign'd:
"O daughter of that god, whose arm can wield Th' avenging bolt, and shake the dreadful shield! No more let beings of superior birth Contend with Jove for this low race of Earth: Triumphant now, now miserably slain, They breathe or perish as the fates ordain, But Jove's high counsels full effect shall find; And, ever constant, ever rule mankind."
she spoke, and backward turn'd her steeds of light, Adorn'd with manes of gold, and heavenly bright. The Hours unloos'd them, panting as they stood, And beap'd their mangers with ambrosial food. There ty'd, they rest in high celestial stalls; The chariot propt against the chrystal walls. The pensive goddesses, abash'd, control'd Mix with the gods, and fill their seats of gold. And now the thunderer meditates his flight From Ida's summits to th' Olympian height, Swifter than thought the wheels instinctive fly, Fame through the vast of air, and reach the sky. 'Twas Neptune's charge his coursers to unbrace, And tix the car on its immortal base; There stood the chariot, beaming forth its rays, Till with a snowy veil he screen'd the blaze. He, whose all-conscious eyes the world behold, Th' eternal thunderer sat thron'd in gold; High Heaven the footstool of his feet he makes, And wide beneath hin all Olympus shakes. Trembling afar th' offending powers appear'd, Confus'd and silent, for his frown they fear'd. He saw their soul, and thus his word imparts: "Pallas and Juno! say, why heave your hearts? Soon was your battle o'er: proud Troy retir'd Before your face, and in your wrath expir'd. But know, whoe'er almighty power withstand! Uumatch'd our force, unconquer'd is our hand: Who shall the sovereign of the skies control? Not all the gods that crown the starry pole. Your hearts shall treinble, if our arms we take, And each immortal nerve with horrour shake. I For thus i speak, and what I speak shall stand; What power soe'er provokes our lifted hand, On this our hill no more shall hold his place; Cut off, and exil'd, from th' ethereal race."
Juno and Pallas, grieving, hear the doom, Rut feast their souls on Iliou's woes to come. Though secret anger swell'd Minerva's breast, The prudent goddess yet her wrath represt: But Jono, impotent of rage, replies: "What hast thou said, oh tyrant of the skies! Strength and omnipotence invest thy throne; 'Tis thine to punish; ours to grieve alone. For Greece we grieve abandon'd by her fate, To drink the dregs of thy unmeasur'd hate: Fran helds forbidden we submiss refrain, Witit arms unaiding see our Argives slain; Yet grant our counsels still their breasts may move, Lost all should perish in the rage of Jove."
The god-less thus. And thus the god replies, Whorwells the cloyds, and blackens all the skies: "The rustning Son, awak'd by loud alarms, Saall see th' ahnighty thunderer in arms.
What heaps of Argives then shall load the plain, Those radiant eyes shall view, and view in vain. Nor shall great Hector cease the rage of fight, The navy flaming, and thy Greeks in flight, Ev'n till the day, when certain fates ordain That stern Achilles (his Patroclus slain) Shall rise in vengeance, and lay waste the plain. For such is fate, nor canst thou turn its course With all thy rage, with all thy rebel force. Fly, if thou wilt, to Earth's reinotest bound, Where on her utmost verge the seas resound; Where curs'd Jäpetus and Saturn dwell, Fast by the brink, within the steains of Hell; No sun e'er gilds the gloomy hortours there; No chearful gales refresh the lazy air; There arm once more the bold Titanian band; And arm in vain; for what I will shall stand."
Now deep in ocean sunk the lamp of light, And drew behind the cloudy veil of night: The conquering Trojans mourn his beams decay'd; The Greeks, rejoicing, bless the friendly shade.
The victors keep the field; and Hector calls A martial council near the navy walls: These to Scamander's banks apart he led, Where, thinly scatter'd, lay the heaps of dead. Th' assembled chiefs, desgending on the ground, Attend his order, and their prince surround. A massy spear he bore of mighty strength, Of fall ten cubits was the lance's length; The point was brass, refulgent to behold, Fix'd to the wood with circling rings of gold: The noble Hector on this lance reclin'd,
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And bending forward, thus reveal'd his mind : Ye valiant Trojans, with attention hear! Ye Dardan bands, and generous aids, give ear! This day, we hop'd, would wrap in conquering flame Greece with her ships, and crown our toils with fame. But darkness now, to save the cowards, falls, And guards them trembling in their wooden walls. Obey the night, and use her peaceful hours Our steeds to forage, and refresh our powers. Straight from the town be sheep and oxen sought, And strengthening bread, and generous wine be brought.
Wide o'er the field, high blazing to the sky, Let numerous fires the absent Sun supply, The flaming piles with plenteous fuel raise, Till the bright morn her purple beam displays; Lest, in the silence and the shades of night, Greece on her sable ships attempt her flight. Not ummolested let the wretches gain Their lofty decks, or safely cleave the main; Some hostile wound let every dart bestow, Some lasting token of the Phrygian foe; Wounds, that long hence may ask their spouses' And warn their children from a Trojan war. (care, Now through the circuit of our Ilion wall, Let sacred heralds sound the solemn call; To bid the sires with hoary honours crown'd, And beardless youths, our battlements surround. Firm be the guard, while distant lie our powers, And let the matrons hang with lights the towers: Lest, under cover of the midnight shade, Th' insidious foe the naked town invade. Suffice, to night, these orders to obey; A nobler charge shall rouze the dawning day. The gods, Itrust, shall give to Hector's hand, From these detested foes to free the land,
Who ploughed, with fates averse, the watery way: For Trojan vultures a predestin'd proy.
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Our common safety must be now the care; But soon as morning paints the fields of air, Sheath'd in bright arms let every troop engage, And the fir'd fleet behold the battle rage, Then, then shall Hector and Tydides prove, Whose fates are heaviest in the scales of Joye: Tomorrow's light (oh haste the glorious morn!).. Shall see his bloody spoils in triumph borne; With this keen javelin shall his breast be gor'd, And prostrate heroes bleed around their lord. Certain as this, oh! might my days endure, From age inglorious, and black death So might my life and glory know no bound, Like Pallas worshipp'd, like the Sun renown'd! As the next dawn, the last they shall enjoy, Shall crush the Greeks, and end the woes of Troy."
The leader spoke. From all his host around Shouts of applause along the shores resound. Each from the yoke the smoking steeds unty'd, And fix'd their headstalls to his chariot side. Fat sheep and oxen from the town are led, With generous wine, and all-sustaining bread. Full hecatombs lay burning on the shore; The winds to Heaven the curling vapours bore. Ungrateful offering to th' immortal powers! Whose wrath hung heavy o'er the Trojan towers; Nor Priam nor his sons obtain'd their grace: Proud Troy they hated, and her guilty race. The troops exulting sat in order round, And beaming fires illumin'd all the ground; As when the Moon, refulgent lamp of night!
he orders the guard to be strengthened, and a council summoned to deliberate what measures are to be followed in this emergency. Agamemnon pursues this advice: and Nestor farther prevails upon him to send ambassadors to Achilles, in order to move him to a reconciliation. Ulysses and Ajax are made choice of, who are accompanied by old Phenix. They make, each of them, very moving and pressing speeches; but are rejected, with roughness, by Achilles, who, notwithstanding, retains Phoenix in his tent. The ambassadors return unsuccessfully to the camp; and the troops betake themselves to sleep.
This book, and the next following, take up the space of one night, which is the twenty-seventh from the beginning of the poem. The scene lies on the sea-shore, the station of the Grecian ships.
THUS joyful Troy maintain'd the watch of night; While fear, pale comrade of inglorious flight, And heaven-bred horrour, on the Grecian part, Sat on each face, and sadden'd every heart. As, from its cloudy dungeon issuing forth, A double tempest of the west and north Swells o'er the sea, from Thracia's frozen shore, Heaps waves on waves, and bids the Ægean roar; This way and that, the boiling doeps are tost; Such various passions urge the troubled host.
O'er Heaven's clear azure spreads her sacred light, Great Agamemnon griev'd above the rest;
When not a breath disturbs the deep serene, And not a cloud o'ercasts the solemn scene; Around her throne the vivid planets roll, And stars unnumber'd gild the glowing pole; O'er the dark trees a yellower verdure shed, And tip with silver every mountain's head; Then shine the vales, the rocks in prospect rise, A flood of glory bursts from all the skies: The conscious swains, rejoicing in the sight, Eye the blue vault, and bless the useful light: So many flames before proud Ilion blaze, And lighten glimmering Xanthus with their rays: The long reflections of the distant fires Gleam on the walls, and tremble on the spires." A thousand piles the dusky horrours gild, And shoot a shady lustre o'er the field. Full fifty guards each flaming pile attend, Whose umber'd arms, by fits, thick flashes send; Loud neigh the coursers o'er their heaps of corn; And ardent warriors wait the rising morn.
ARGUMENT.
THE EMBASSY TO ACHILLES..
AGAMEMNON, after the last day's defeat, proposes to the Greeks to quit the siege, and return to their country. Diomed opposes this; and Nestor seconds him, praising his wisdom and resolution:
Superior sorrows swell'd his royal breast; Himself his orders to the heralds bears, To bid to council all the Grecian peers; But bid in whispers: these surround the chief, In solemn sadness, and majestic grief. The king amidst the mournful circle rose; Down his wan cheek a briny torrent flows: So silent fountains, from a rock's tall head, - In sable streams soft-trickling waters shed. With more than vulgar grief he stood opprest, Words, mix'd with sighs, thus bursting from his
"Ye sons of Greece! partake your leader's care; Fellows in arms, and princes of the war! Of partial Jove too justly we complain, And heavenly oracles believ'd in vain. A safe return was promis'd to our toils, With conquest honour'd, and enrich'd with spoils : Now shameful flight alone can save the host; Our wealth, our people, and our glory lost. So Jove decrecs. Almighty lord of all! Jove, at whose nod whole empires rise or fall, Who shakes the feeble props of human trust, And towers and armies humbles to the dust. Haste then, for ever quit these fatal fields, Haste to the joys our native country yields; Spread all your canvass, all your oars employ; Nor hope the fall of heaven-defended Troy."
He said; deep silence held the Grecian band, Silent, unmov'd, in dire dismay they stand, A pensive scene! till Tydeus' warlike son Roll'd on the king his eyes, and thus begun:
"When kings advise us to renounce our fame, First let him speak, who first has suffer'd shame. If I oppose thee, prince, thy wrath withhold, The laws of council bid my tongue be bold. Thou first, and thou alone, in fields of fight, Durst brand my courage, and defame my might:
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Nor from a friend th' unkind reproach appear'd, The Greeks stood witness, all our army heard. The gods, O chief! from whom our honours spring, The gods have made thee but by halves a king. They gave thee sceptres, and a wide command, They gave dominion o'er the seas and land; The noblest power that might the world control They gave thee not a brave and virtuous soul. Is this a general's voice, that would suggest Fears like his own to every Grecian breast ? Confiding in our want of worth, he stands; And if we fly, 'tis what our king commands. Go thou, inglorious! from th' embattled plain; Ships thou hast store, and nearest to the main; A nobler care the Grecians shall employ, To combat, conquer, and extirpate Troy. Here Greece shall stay; or, if all Greece retire, Myself will stay, till Troy or I expire; Myself and Sthenelus will fight for fame;
God bade us fight, and 'twas with God we came." He ceas'd; the Greeks loud acclamations raise, And voice to voice resounds Tydides' praise. Wise Nestor then his reverend figure rear'd; He spoke; the host in still attention heard: "O truly great! in whom the gods have join'd Such strength of body with such force of mind; In conduct, as in courage, you excel,
Still first to act what you advise so well. Those wholesome counsels which thy wisdom moves, Applauding Greece, with common voice, approves. Kings thou canst blame: a bold, but prudent youth; And blame ev'n kings with praise, because with
And yet those years that since thy birth have run, Would hardly style thee Nestor's youngest son. Then let me add what yet remains behind, A thought unfinish'd in that generous mind; Age bids me speak; nor shall th' advice I bring Distaste the people, or offend the king: "Curs'd is the man, and void of law and right, Unworthy property, unworthy light, Unfit for public rule, or private care; That wretch, that monster, who delights in war: Whose lust is murder, and whose horrid joy, To tear his country, and his kind destroy! This night, refresh and fortify thy train; Between the trench and wall let guards remain: Be that the duty of the young and bold; But thou, O king! to council call the old: Great is thy sway, and weighty are thy cares; Thy high commands must spirit all our wars. With Thracian wines recruit thy honour'd guests, For happy counsels flow from sober feasts. Wise, weighty counsels, aid a state distrest, And such a monarch as can choose the best. See! what a blaze from hostile tents aspires, How near our flect approach the Trojan fires! Who can, unmov'd, behold the dreadful light? What eye beholds them, and can close to night? This dreadful interval determines all;
Tomorrow, Troy must flame, or Greece must
Thus spoke the hoary sage: the rest obey; Swift through the gates the guards direct their way. His son was first to pass the lofty mound, The generous Thrasymed, in arms renown'd: Next him, Ascalaphus, lälmen, stood, The double offspring of the warrior god. Deipyrus, Apharius, Merion, join, 4ad Lycomed, of Creon's noble line.
Seven were the leaders of the nightly bands; And each bold chief a hundred spears commands. The tires they light, to short repasts they fall; Some line the trench, and others man the wall. The king of men, on public counsels bent,
Conven'd the princes in his ample tent; Fach seiz'd a portion of the kingly feast, But staid his hand when thirst and hunger ceas'd. Then Nestor spoke, for wisdom long approv'd, And, slowly rising, thus the council mov'd:
"Monarch of nations! whose superior sway Assembled states and lords of Earth obey, The laws and sceptres to thy hand are given, And millions own the care of thee and Heaven. O king! the counsels of my age attend; With thee my cares begin, in thee must end; Thee, prince! it fits alike to speak and hear, Pronounce with judgment, with regard give ear, To see no wholesome motion be withstood, And ratify the best for public good. Nor, though a meaner give advice, repine, But follow it, and make the wisdom thine. Hear then a thought, not now conceiv'd in haste, At once my present judgment, and my past: When from Pelides' tent you fore'd the maid, I first oppos'd, and faithful durst dissuade; But bold of soul, when headlong fury fir'd, You wrong'd the man, by men and gods admir'd: Now seek some means his fatal wrath to end, With prayers to move him, or with gifts to bend."
To whom the king: "With justice hast thou A prince's faults, and I with reason own. [shown That happy man, whom Jove still honours most, Is more than armies, and himself an host. Blest in his love, this wond'rous hero stands; Heaven fights his war, and humbles all our bands, Fain would my heart, which err'd thro' frantic rage, The wrathful chief and angry gods assuage. If gifts immense his mighty soul can bow, Hear, all ye Greeks, and witness what I vow: Ten weighty talents of the purest gold, And twice ten vases of refulgent mould; Seven sacred tripods, whose unsully'd frame Yet knows no office, nor has felt the flame; Twelve steeds unmatch'd in fleetness and in force, And still victorious in the dusty course; (Rich were the man whose ample stores exceed The prizes purchas'd by their winged speed). Seven lovely captives of the Lesbian line, Skif'd in each art, unmatch'd, in form divine; The same 1 chose for more than vulgar charms, When Lesbos sunk beneath the hero's arms : All these, to buy his friendship, shall be paid, And, join'd with these, the long-contested maid; With all her charms, Briseïs I resign,
And solemu swear those charms were never mine: Untouch'd she stay'd, uninjur'd she removes, Pure from my arms, and guiltless of my loves. These, instant, shall be his; and if the powers Give to our arms proud Ilion's hostile towers, Then shall he store (when Greece the spoil divides) With gold and brass his loaded navy's sides. Besides, full twenty nymphs, of Trojan race, With copious love shall crown his warm embrace; Such as himself will choose who yield to none, Or yield to Helen's heavenly charms alone. Yet hear me farther: when our wars are o'er, If safe we land on Argos' fruitful shore, There shall he live my son, our honours share, And with Orestes' self divide my care.
Yet more-three daughters in my court are bred, And each well worthy of a royal bed;
Laodicè and Iphigenia fair,
And bright Chrysothemis with golden hair;
Her let him choose, whom most his eyes approve; I ask no presents, no reward, for love: Myself will give the dower; so vast a store As never father gave a child before. Seven ample cities shall confess his sway, Him Enopè, and Pheræ him obey, Cardamylè with ample turrets crown'd, And sacred Pedasus for vines renown'd; Æpea fair, the pastures Hira yields, And rich Antheia with her flowery fields: The whole extent to Pylos' sandy plain, Along the verdant margin of the main. There heifers graze, and labouring oxen toil; Bold are the men, and generous is the soil; There shall he reign with power and justice crown'd, And rule the tributary realms around. All this I give, his vengeance to control, And sure all this may move his mighty soul. Pluto, the grisly god, who never spares, Who feels no mercy, and who hears no prayers, Lives dark and dreadful in deep liell's abodes, And mortals hate him, as t! worst of gods. Great though he be, it fits him to obey; Since more than his my years, and more my sway."
The monarch thus. The reverend Nestor then:
"Great Agamemnon! glorious king of men! Such are thy offers as a prince may take, And such as fits a generous king to make. Let chosen delegates this hour be sent (Myself will name them) to Pelides' tent: Let Phœnix lead, rever'd for hoary age, Great Ajax next, and Ithacus the sage. Yet more to sanctify the word you send, Let Hodius and Eurybates attend. Now pray to Jove to grant what Greece demands; Pray, in deep silence, and with purest hands."
He said, and all approv'd. The heralds bring
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He said; Patroclus o'er the blazing fire, Heaps in a brazen vase three chines entire : The brazen vase Automedon sustains, Which desh of porket, sheep, and goat, contains: Achilles at the genial feast presides, The parts transfixes, and with skill divides. Meanwhile Patroclus sweats the fire to raise; The tent is brighten'd with the rising blaze: Then, when the languid flames at length subside, He strows a bed of glowing embers wide, Above the coals the smoking fragments turns, And sprinkles sacred salt from lifted urns; With bread the glittering cannisters they load, Which round the board Menœtius' son bestow'd; Himself, oppos'd t' Ulysses full in sight, Each portion parts, and orders every rite. The first fat offerings, to th' immortals due, Amidst the greedy flames Patroclus threw; Then each, indulging in the social feast, His thirst and hunger soberly represt. That done, to Phœnix Ajax gave the sign, Not unperceiv'd; Ulysses crown'd with wine The foaming bowl, and instant thus began, His speech addressing to the godlike man:
"Health to Achilles! happy are thy guests! Not those more honour'd whom Atrides feasts: Though generous plenty crown thy loaded boards,
The cleansing water from the living spring. The youth with wine the sacred goblets crown'd, And large libations drench'd the sands around. The rite perform'd, the chiefs their thirst allay, Then from the royal tent they take their way; Wise Nestor turns on each his careful eye, Forbids t' offend, instructs them to apply: Much he advis'd them all, Ulysses most, To deprecate the chief, and save the host.
That Agamemnon's regal tent affords; But greater cares sit heavy on our souls, Not eas'd by banquets, or by flowing bowls. What scenes of slaughter in yon fields appear! The dead we mourn, and for the living fear; Greece on the brink of fate all doubtful stands, And owns no help but from thy saving hands: Troy, and her aids, for ready vengeance call;
Thro' the still night they march, and hear the roar Their threatening tents already shade our wall:
Of murmuring billows on the sounding shore.
To Neptune, ruler of the seas profound, Whose liquid arms the mighty globe surround, They pour forth vows, their embassy to bless, And calm the rage of stern Æacides.
And now, arriv'd where on the sandy bay The Myrmidonian tents and vessels lay,
Amus'd at ease, the godlike man they found Pleas'd with the solemn harp's harmonious sound: (The well-wronght harp from conquer'd Thebæ Of polish'd silver was its costly frame): With this he soothes his angry soul, and sings Th' immortal deeds of heroes and of kings. Patroclus only of the royal train, Plac'd in his tent, attends the lofty strain: Full opposite he sate, aud listen'd long, In silence waiting till he ceas'd the song. Unseen the Grecian embassy proceeds
To his high tent; the great Ulysses leads.
Hear how with shouts their conquest they proclaim, And point at every ship their vengeful flame! For them the father of the gods declares, Theirs are his omens, and his thunder theirs. See, full of Jove, avenging Hector rise! See, Heaven and Earth the raging chief defies; What fury in his breast, what lightning in his cycs He waits but for the morn, to sink in flame The ships, the Greeks, and all the Grecian name. Heavens! how my country's woes distract my mind, Lest fate accomplish all his rage design'd. And must we, gods! our heads inglorious lay In Trojan dust, and this the fatal day? Return, Achilles! oh return, though late, To save thy Greeks, and stop the course of fate; If in that heart or grief or courage lies, Rise to redeem; ah yet, to conquer, rise! The day may come, when, all our warriors slain, That heart shall melt, that courage rise in vain.
Regard in time, O prince divinely brave! Those wholesome counsels which thy father gave.
When Peleus in his aged arms embrac'd
here,His parting son, these accents were his last :
'My child! with strength, with glory and success, Thy arms nay Juno and Minerva bless! Trust that to Heaven: but thou, thy cares engage To calm thy passions, and subdue thy rage: From gentler manners let thy glory grow,
And shun contention, the sure source of woe; That young and old may in thy praise combine, The virtues of humanity be thine
This now despis'd advice, thy father gave; Ah, check thy anger, and be truly brave. If thou wilt yield to great Atrides' prayers, Gifts worthy thee his royal hand prepares; If not-but hear me, while I number o'er The proffer'd presents, an exhaustless store: Ten weighty talents of the purest gold, And twice ten vases of refulgent mould;
Seven sacred tripods, whose unsully'd frame Yet knows no office, nor has felt the flame: Twelve steeds unmatch'd in fleetness and in force, And still victorious in the dusty course; (Rich were the man whose ample stores exceed The prizes purchas'd by their winged speed). Seven lovely captives of the Lesbian line, Skill'd in each art, unmatch'd, in form divine; The same he chose for more than vulgar charms, When Lesbos sunk beneath thy conquering arins. All these, to buy thy friendship, shall be paid, And, join'd with these, the long-contested maid; With all her charms, Briseïs he'll resign, And solemn swear those charms were only thine; Untouch'd she stay'd, uninjur'd she removes, Pure from his arms, and guiltless of his loves. These, instant, shall be thine; and if the powers Give to our arms proud Ilion's hostile towers, Then shalt thou store (when Greece the spoil divides) With gold and brass thy loaded navy's sides. Besides, full twenty nymphs of Trojan race, With copious love, shall crown thy warm embrace; Such as thyself shall choose; who yield to none, Or yield to Helen's heavenly charms alone.
Yet hear me farther: when our wars are o'er,
If safe we land on Argos' fruitful-shore,
There shalt thou live his son, his honours share, And with Orestes' self divide his care.
Yet more-three daughters in his court are bred,
And each well worthy of a royal bed;
Laodice and Iphigenia fair,
And bright Chrysothemis with golden hair;
Her shalt thou wed whom most thy eyes approve: He asks no presents, no reward for love: Himself will give the dower: so vast a store As never father gave a child before. Seven ample cities shall confess thy sway, Thee Enope, and Pheræ thee obey, Cardamylè with ample turrets crown'd, And sacred Pedasus, for vines renown'd: Epea fair, the pastures Hira yields, And rich Antheia with her flowery fields: The whole extent to Pylos' sandy plain, Along the verdant margin of the main. There heifers graze, and labouring oxen toil; Bold are the men, and generous is the soif. There shalt thou reign with power and justice And rule the tributary realms around. [crown'd, Such are the proffers which this day we bring, Such the repentance of a suppliant king;
But if all this, relentless, thou disdain, If honour, and if interest, plead in vain; Yet some redress to suppliant Greece afford, And be, amongst her guardian gods, ador'd. If no regard thy suffering country claim, Hear thy own glory, and the voice of fame: For know that chief, whose unresisted ire Made nations tremble, and whole hosts retire, Proud Hector, now, th' unequal fight demands, And only triumphs to deserve thy hands."
Then thus the goddess-born: "Ulysses, hear A faithful speech, that knows nor art, nor fear; What in my secret soul is understood,
My tongue shall utter, and my deeds make good. Let Greece then know, my purpose I retain : Nor with new treaties vex my peace in vain. Who dares think one thing, and another tell, My heart detests him as the gates of Hell.
"Then thus, in short, my fixt resolves attend, Which nor Atrides, nor his Greeks, can bend; Long toils, long perils, in their cause I bore, But now th' unfruitful glories charm no more. Fight or fight not, a like reward we claim, The wretch and hero find their prize the same; Alike regretted in the dust he lies,
Who yields ignobly, or who bravely dies. Of all my dangers, all my glorious pains, A life of labours, lo! what fruit remains? As the bold bird her helpless young attends, From Canger guards them, and from want defends: In search of prey she wings the spacious air, And with th' untasted food supplies her care: For thankless Greece such hardships have I brav'd, Her wives, her infants, by my labours sav'd; Long sleepless nights in heavy arms I stood, And sweat laborious days in dust and blood. I sack'd twelve ample cities on the main, And twelve lay smoking on the Trojan plain: Then at Atrides' haughty feet were laid The wealth I gather'd, and the spoils I made. Your mighty monarch these in peace possest; Some few my soldiers had, himself the rest. Some present too to every prince was paid; And every prince enjoys the gift he made; I only must refund, of all his train; See what pre-eminence our merits gain! My spoil alone his greedy soul delights: My spouse alone must bless his lustful nights: The woman, let him (as he may) enjoy;
But what's the quarrel then of Greece to Troy? What to these shores th' assembled nations draws, What calls for vengeance but a woman's cause? Are fair endowments, and a beauteous face, Belov'd by none but those of Atreus' race? The wife whom choice and passion both approve, Sure every wise and worthy man will love. Nor did my fair-one less distinction claim; Slave as she was, my soul ador'd the dame. Wrong'd in my love, all proffers I disdain; Deceiv'd for once, I trust not kings again. Ye have my answer-what remains to do, Your king, Ulysses, may consult with you. What needs he the defence this arm can make? Has he not walls no human force can shake? Has he not fene'd his guarded navy round, With piles, with ramparts, and a trench profound? And will not these (the wonders he has done) Repel the rage of Priam's single son? There was a time ('twas when for Greece I fought) When Hector's prowess no such wonders wrought:
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