The Odyssey of Homer: [pt.1]

THE FOURTH BOOK OF THE ODYSSEY.

The ARGUMENT.

Telemachus with Pisistratus arriving at Sparta, is hospitably receiv'd by Menelaus, to whom he relates the cause of his coming, and learns from him many particulars of what befel the Greeks since the destruction of Troy. He dwells more at large upon the Prophe|cies of Proteus to him in his return; from which he acquaints Telemachus, that Ulysses is detain'd in the Island of Calypso.

In the mean-time the Suitors consult to destroy Telemachus in his voyage home. Penelope is appriz'd of this, but comforted in a dream by Pallas, in the shape of her sister Ipthima.

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W.K.•••• P.F.sc.

THE FOURTH BOOK OF THE ODYSSEY.

_AND now proud Sparta with their wheels resounds, Sparta, whose walls a range of hills surrounds: At the fair dome their rapid la|bour ends; Where sate Atrides 'midst his bridal friends, With double vows invoking Hymen's pow'r,Line 5 To bless his sons and daughters nuptial hour.

That day, to great Achilles' son resign'd Hermione, (the fairest of her kind) Was sent to crown the long-protracted joy, Espous'd before the final doom of Troy:Line 10 With steeds, and gilded cars, a gorgeous train Attend the nymph to Phthia's distant reign. Mean-while at home, to Megapenthes' bed The virgin-choir Alector's daughter led. Brave Megapenthes, from a stol'n amourLine 15 To great Atrides' age his hand-maid bore: To Helen's bed the Gods alone assign Hermione, t'extend the regal line; On whom a radiant pomp of Graces wait, Resembling Venus in attractive state.Line 20

While this gay friendly troop the King surround, With festival and mirth the roofs resound: A Bard amid the joyous circle sings High airs, attemper'd to the vocal strings; Whilst warbling to the varied strain, advanceLine 25 Two sprightly youths to form the bounding dance.

'Twas then that issuing thro' the palace gate The splendid car roll'd slow in regal state: On the bright eminence young Nestor shone, And fast beside him great Ulysses' son:Line 30 Grave Eteoneus saw the pomp appear, And speeding, thus address'd the royal ear.

Two youths approach, whose semblant features prove Their blood devolving from the source of Jove. Is due reception deign'd, or must they bendLine 35 Their doubtful course to seek a distant friend?

Insensate! with a sigh the King replies, Too long, mis-judging, have I thought thee wise: But sure relentless folly steels thy breast, Obdurate to reject the stranger-guest;Line 40 To those dear hospitable rites a foe, Which in my wand'rings oft reliev'd my woe: Fed by the bounty of another's board, 'Till pitying Jove my native realm restor'd— Strait be the coursers from the car releast,Line 45 Conduct the youths to grace the genial feast.

The Seneshal rebuk'd in haste withdrew; With equal haste a menial train pursue: Part led the coursers, from the car enlarg'd, Each to a crib with choicest grain surcharg'd;Line 50 Part in a portico, profusely grac'd With rich magnificence, the chariot plac'd: Then to the dome the friendly pair invite, Who eye the dazling roofs with vast delight; Resplendent as the blaze of summer-noon,Line 55 Or the pale radiance of the midnight moon. From room to room their eager view they bend; Thence to the bath, a beauteous pile, descend; Where a bright damsel-train attend the guests With liquid odors, and embroider'd vests.Line 60 Refresh'd, they wait them to the bow'r of state, Where circled with his Peers Atrides sate: Thron'd next the King, a fair attendant brings The purest product of the chrystal springs; High on a massy vase of silver mold,Line 65 The burnish'd laver flames with solid gold;

In solid gold the purple vintage flows, And on the board a second banquet rose. When thus the King with hospitable port:— Accept this welcome to the Spartan court;Line 70 The waste of nature let the feast repair, Then your high lineage and your names declare: Say from what scepter'd ancestry ye claim, Recorded eminent in deathless fame? For vulgar parents cannot stamp their raceLine 75 With signatures of such majestic grace.

Ceasing, benevolent he strait assigns The royal portion of the choicest chines To each accepted friend: with grateful haste They share the honours of the rich repast.Line 80 Suffic'd, soft-whispering thus to Nestor's son, His head reclin'd, young Ithacus begun.

View'st thou un-mov'd, O ever-honour'd most! These prodigies of art, and wond'rous cost? Above, beneath, around the Palace shinesLine 85 The sumless treasure of exhausted mines:

The spoils of elephants the roofs inlay, And studded amber darts a golden ray: Such, and not nobler, in the realms above My wonder dictates is the dome of Jove.Line 90

The Monarch took the word, and grave reply'd. Presumptuous are the vaunts, and vain the pride Of man, who dares in pomp with Jove contest, Unchang'd, immortal, and supremely blest! With all my affluence when my woes are weigh'd,Line 95 Envy will own, the purchase dearly paid. For eight slow-circling years by tempests tost, From Cyprus to the far Phoenician coast, (Sidon the Capital) I stretch'd my toil Thro' regions fatten'd with the flows of Nile.Line 100 Next, Aethiopia's utmost bound explore, And the parcht borders of th' Arabian shore: Then warp my voyage on the southern gales, O'er the warm Libyan wave to spread my sails: That happy clime! where each revolving yearLine 105 The teeming Ewes a triple offspring bear;

And two fair crescents of translucent horn The brows of all their young increase adorn: The shepherd swains with sure abundance blest, On the fat flock and rural dainties feast;Line 110 Nor want of herbage makes the dairy fail, But ev'ry season fills the foaming pail. Whilst heaping unwish'd wealth, I distant roam; The best of brothers, at his natal home, By the dire fury of a traitress wife,Line 115 Ends the sad evening of a stormy life: Whence with incessant grief my soul annoy'd, These riches are possess'd, but not enjoy'd! My wars, the copious theme of ev'ry tongue, To you, your fathers have recorded long:Line 120 How fav'ring heav'n repaid my glorious toils With a sack'd Palace, and barbaric spoils. Oh! had the Gods so large a boon deny'd, And Life, the just equivalent, supply'd To those brave warriors, who, with glory fir'd,Line 125 Far from their country in my cause expir'd!

Still in short intervals of pleasing woe, Regardful of the friendly dues I owe, I to the glorious dead, for ever dear! Indulge the tribute of a grateful tear.Line 130 But oh! Ulysses—deeper than the rest That sad Idea wounds my anxious breast! My heart bleeds fresh with agonizing pain; The bowl, and tasteful viands tempt in vain, Nor sleep's soft pow'r can close my streaming eyes,Line 135 When imag'd to my soul his sorrows rise. No peril in my cause he ceas'd to prove, His labours equal'd only by my love: And both alike to bitter fortune born, For him, to suffer, and for me, to mourn!Line 140 Whether he wanders on some friendless coast, Or glides in Stygian gloom a pensive ghost, No fame reveals; but doubtful of his doom, His good old Sire with sorrow to the tomb Declines his trembling steps; untimely careLine 145 Withers the blooming vigour of his heir;

And the chaste partner of his bed and throne, Wastes all her widow'd hours in tender moan.

While thus pathetic to the Prince he spoke, From the brave youth the streaming passion broke:Line 150 Studious to veil the grief, in vain represt, His face he shrowded with his purple vest: The conscious Monarch pierc'd the coy disguise, And view'd his filial love with vast surprize; Dubious to press the tender theme, or waitLine 155 To hear the youth enquire his father's fate.

In this suspence bright Helen grac'd the room; Before her breath'd a gale of rich perfume. So moves, adorn'd with each attractive grace, The silver-shafted Goddess of the Chace!Line 160 The seat of majesty Adraste brings, With art illustrious, for the pomp of Kings. To spread the pall beneath the regal chair Of softest woof, is bright Alcippe's care. A silver canister divinely wrought,Line 165 In her soft hands the beauteous Phylo brought:

To Sparta's Queen of old the radiant vase Alcandra gave, a pledge of royal grace: For Polybus her Lord, (whose sov'reign sway The wealthy tribes of Pharian Thebes obey)Line 170 When to that court Atrides came, carest With vast munificence th'imperial guest: Two lavers from the richest ore refin'd, With silver tripods, the kind host assign'd; And bounteous, from the royal treasure toldLine 175 Ten equal talents of refulgent gold. Alcandra, confort of his high command, A golden distaff gave to Helen's hand; And that rich vase, with living sculpture wrought, Which heap'd with wool the beauteous Phylo brought:Line 180 The silken fleece impurpl'd for the loom, Rival'd the hyacinth in vernal bloom. The sovereign seat then Jove-born Helen press'd, And pleasing thus her sceptred Lord address'd.

Who grace our palace now, that friendly pair,Line 185 Speak they their lineage, or their names declare?

Uncertain of the truth, yet uncontroul'd Hear me the bodings of my breast unfold. With wonder rapt, on yonder cheek I trace The feature of the Ulyssean race:Line 190 Diffus'd o'er each resembling line appear, In just similitude, the grace and air Of young Telemachus! the lovely boy, Who bless'd Ulysses with a father's joy, What time the Greeks combin'd their social arms,Line 195 T'avenge the stain of my ill-fated charms!

Just is thy thought, the King assenting cries, Methinks Ulysses strikes my wond'ring eyes: Full shines the father in the filial frame, His port, his features, and his shape the same:Line 200 Such quick regards his sparkling eyes bestow; Such wavy ringlets o'er his shoulders flow! And when he heard the long disastrous store Of cares, which in my cause Ulysses bore; Dismay'd, heart-wounded with paternal woes,Line 205 Above restraint the tide of sorrow rose:

Cautious to let the gushing grief appear, His purple garment veil'd the falling tear.

See there confess'd, Pisistratus replies, The genuine worth of Ithacus the wise!Line 210 Of that heroic sire the youth is sprung, But modest awe hath chain'd his tim'rous tongue. Thy voice, O King! with pleas'd attention heard, Is like the dictates of a God rever'd. With him at Nestor's high command I came,Line 215 Whose age I honour with a parent's name. By adverse destiny constrain'd to sue For counsel and redress, he sues to you. Whatever ill the friendless orphan bears, Bereav'd of parents in his infant years,Line 220 Still must the wrong'd Telemachus sustain, If hopeful of your aid, he hopes in vain: Affianc'd in your friendly pow'r alone, The youth wou'd vindicate the vacant throne.

Is Sparta blest, and these desiring eyesLine 225 View my friend's son? (the King exulting cries)

Son of my friend, by glorious toils approv'd, Whose sword was sacred to the man he lov'd: Mirror of constant faith, rever'd, and mourn'd!— When Troy was ruin'd, had the chief return'd,Line 230 No Greek an equal space had e'er possest Of dear affection, in my grateful breast. I, to confirm the mutual joys we shar'd, For his abode a Capital prepar'd; Argos the seat of sovereign rule I chose;Line 235 Fair in the plan the future palace rose, Where my Ulysses and his race might reign, And portion to his tribes the wide domain. To them my vassals had resign'd a soil, With teeming plenty to reward their toil.Line 240 There with commutual zeal we both had strove, In acts of dear benevolence, and love: Brothers in peace, not rivals in command, And death alone dissolv'd the friendly band! Some envious pow'r the blissful scene destroys;Line 245 Vanish'd are all the visionary joys:

The soul of friendship to my hope is lost, Fated to wander from his natal coast!

He ceas'd; a gust of grief began to rise: Fast streams a tide from beauteous Helen's eyes;Line 250 Fast for the Sire the filial sorrows flow; The weeping Monarch swells the mighty woe: Thy cheek, Pisistratus, the tears bedew, While pictur'd to thy mind appear'd in view Thy martial * 1.1 Brother; on the Phrygian plainLine 255 Extended pale, by swarthy Memnon slain! But silence soon the son of Nestor broke, And melting with fraternal pity spoke.

Frequent, O King, was Nestor wont to raise And charm attention, with thy copious praise:Line 260 To crown thy various gifts, the sage assign'd The glory of a firm capacious mind: With that superior attribute controul This unavailing impotence of soul. Let not your roof with echoing grief resound,Line 265 Now for the feast the friendly bowl is crown'd:

But when from dewy shade emerging bright, Aurora streaks the sky with orient light, Let each deplore his dead: the rites of woe Are all, alas! the living can bestow:Line 270 O'er the congenial dust injoin'd to shear The graceful curl, and drop the tender tear. Then mingling in the mournful pomp with you, I'll pay my brother's ghost a warrior's due, And mourn the brave Antilochus, a nameLine 275 Not unrecorded in the rolls of fame: With strength and speed superior form'd, in fight To face the foe, or intercept his flight: Too early snatch'd by fate ere known to me! I boast a witness of his worth in thee.Line 280

Young and mature! the Monarch thus rejoins, In thee renew'd the soul of Nestor shines: Form'd by the care of that consummate sage, In early bloom an Oracle of age. When-e'er his influence Jove vouchsafes to show'rLine 285 To bless the natal, and the nuptial hour;

From the great sire transmissive to the race, The boon devolving gives distinguish'd grace. Such, happy Nestor! was thy glorious doom; Around thee full of years, thy offspring bloom,Line 290 Expert of arms, and prudent in debate; The gifts of heav'n to guard thy hoary state. But now let each becalm his troubled breast, Wash, and partake serene the friendly feast. To move thy suit, Telemachus, delay,Line 295 'Till heav'n's revolving lamp restores the day.

He said, Asphalion swift the laver brings; Alternate all partake the grateful springs: Then from the rites of purity repair, And with keen gust the sav'ry viands share.Line 300 Mean-time with genial joy to warm the soul, Bright Helen mix'd a mirth-inspiring bowl: Temper'd with drugs of sov'reign use, t'assuage The boiling bosom of tumultuous Rage; To clear the cloudy front of wrinkled Care,Line 305 And dry the tearful sluices of Despair:

Charm'd with that virtuous draught, th' exalted mind All sense of woe delivers to the wind. Though on the blazing pile his parent lay, Or a lov'd brother groan'd his life away,Line 310 Or darling son oppress'd by ruffian-force Fell breathless at his feet, a mangled corse, From morn to eve, impassive and serene, The man entranc'd wou'd view the deathful scene. These drugs, so friendly to the joys of life,Line 315 Bright Helen learn'd from Thone's imperial wife; Who sway'd the sceptre, where prolific Nile With various simples cloaths the fat'ned soil. With wholsome herbage mix'd, the direful bane Of vegetable venom, taints the plain;Line 320 From Paeon sprung, their patron-god imparts To all the Pharian race his healing arts. The beverage now prepar'd t'inspire the feast, The circle thus the beauteous Queen address'd.

Thron'd in omnipotence, supremest JoveLine 325 Tempers the fates of human race above;

By the firm sanction of his sov'reign will, Alternate are decreed our good and ill. To feastful mirth be this white hour assign'd, And sweet discourse, the banquet of the mind.Line 330 My self assisting in the social joy, Will tell Ulysses' bold exploit in Troy: Sole witness of the deed I now declare; Speak you, (who saw) his wonders in the war.

Seam'd o'er with wounds, which his own sabre gave,Line 335 In the vile habit of a village slave, The foe deceiv'd, he pass'd the tented plain, In Troy to mingle with the hostile train. In this attire secure from searching eyes, 'Till haply piercing thro' the dark disguiseLine 340 The chief I challeng'd; he, whose practis'd wit Knew all the serpent-mazes of deceit, Eludes my search: but when his form I view'd Fresh from the bath with fragrant oils renew'd, His limbs in military purple dress'd;Line 345 Each brightning grace the genuine Greek confess'd.

A previous pledge of sacred faith obtain'd, 'Till he the lines and Argive fleet regain'd To keep his stay conceal'd; the chief declar'd The plans of war against the town prepar'd.Line 350 Exploring then the secrets of the state, He learn'd what best might urge the Dardan fate: And safe returning to the Grecian host, Sent many a shade to Pluto's dreary coast. Loud grief resounded thro' the tow'rs of Troy,Line 355 But my pleas'd bosom glow'd with secret joy: For then with dire remorse, and conscious shame, I view'd th' effects of that disastrous flame, Which kindled by th' imperious Queen of love, Constrain'd me from my native realm to rove:Line 360 And oft in bitterness of soul deplor'd My absent daughter, and my dearer Lord; Admir'd among the first of human race, For ev'ry gift of mind, and manly grace.

Right well, reply'd the King, your speech displaysLine 365 The matchless merit of the chief you praise:

Heroes in various climes my self have found, For martial deeds, and depth of thought renown'd; But Ithacus, unrival'd in his claim, May boast a title to the loudest fame:Line 370 In battel calm he guides the rapid storm, Wise to resolve, and patient to perform. What wond'rous conduct in the chief appear'd, When the vast fabric of the Steed we rear'd! Some Daemon anxious for the Trojan doom,Line 375 Urg'd you with great Deiphobus to come, T'explore the fraud: with guile oppos'd to guile, Slow-pacing thrice around th' insidious pile; Each noted leader's name you thrice invoke, Your accent varying as their spouses spoke:Line 380 The pleasing founds each latent warrior warm'd, But most Tydides' and my heart alarm'd: To quit the steed we both impatient press, Threat'ning to answer from the dark recess. Unmov'd the mind of Ithacus remain'd,Line 385 And the vain ardors of our love restrain'd:

But Anticlus unable to controul, Spoke loud the languish of his yerning soul: Ulysses strait with indignation fir'd, (For so the common care of Greece requir'd)Line 390 Firm to his lips his forceful hands apply'd, 'Till on his tongue the flutt'ring murmurs dy'd: Mean-time Minerva from the fraudful horse, Back to the Court of Priam bent your course.

Inclement fate! Telemachus replies,Line 395 Frail is the boasted attribute of wise: The leader, mingling with the vulgar host, Is in the common mass of matter lost! But now let sleep the painful waste repair Of sad reflection, and corroding care.Line 400

He ceas'd; the menial fair that round her wait, At Helen's beck prepare the room of state: Beneath an ample Portico, they spread The downy fleece to form the slumbrous bed; And o'er soft palls of purple grain unfoldLine 405 Rich tapistry, stiff with inwoven gold:

Then thro' th'illumin'd dome, to balmy rest Th'obsequious Herald guides each princely guest: While to his regal bow'r the King ascends, And beauteous Helen on her Lord attends.Line 410

Soon as the morn, in orient purple drest, Unbarr'd the portal of the roseate east The Monarch rose: magnificent to view, Th'imperial mantle o'er his vest he threw; The glitt'ring zone athwart his shoulder castLine 415 A starry fauchion low-depending grac'd, Clasp'd on his feet th'embroider'd sandals shine, And forth he moves, majestic and divine: Instant to young Telemachus he press'd, And thus benevolent his speech address'd.Line 420

Say, royal youth, sincere of soul report What cause hath led you to the Spartan court? Do public or domestic cares constrain This toilsom voyage o'er the surgy main?

O highly favour'd delegate of Jove!Line 425 (Replies the Prince) inflam'd with filial love,

And anxious hope, to hear my parent's doom, A suppliant to your royal court I come. Our sovereign seat a lewd usurping race With lawless riot, and mis-rule disgrace;Line 430 To pamper'd insolence devoted fall Prime of the flock, and choicest of the stall: For wild ambition wings their bold desire, And all to mount th'imperial bed aspire. But prostrate I implore, oh King! relateLine 435 The mournful series of my father's fate: Each known disaster of the Man disclose, Born by his mother to a world of woes! Recite them! nor in erring pity fear To wound with storied grief the filial ear:Line 440 If e'er Ulysses, to reclaim your right, Avow'd his zeal in council or in fight, If Phrygian camps the friendly toils attest, To the sire's merit give the son's request.

Deep from his inmost soul Atrides sigh'd,Line 445 And thus indignant to the Prince reply'd:

Heav'ns! wou'd a soft, inglorious, dastard train An absent heroe's nuptial joys profane! So with her young, amid the woodland shades A tim'rous hind the lion's court invades,Line 450 Leaves in that fatal laire the tender fawns, Climbs the green cliff, or feeds the flow'ry lawns: Mean-time return'd, with dire remorseless sway The monarch-savage rends the trembling prey. With equal fury, and with equal fame,Line 455 Ulysses soon shall re-assert his claim. O Jove, supreme, whom Gods and men revere! And * 1.2 thou, to whom 'tis giv'n to gild the sphere! With pow'r congenial join'd, propitious aid The chief adopted by the martial maid!Line 460 Such to our wish the warrior soon restore, As when contending on the Lesbian shore His prowess Philomelides confess'd, And loud-acclaiming Greeks the victor bless'd: Then soon th'invaders of his bed and throne,Line 465 Their love presumptuous shall with life atone.

With patient ear, oh royal youth, attend The storied labours of thy father's friend: Fruitful of deeds, the copious tale is long, But truth severe shall dictate to my tongue:Line 470 Learn what I heard the sea-born Seer relate, Whose eye can pierce the dark recess of fate.

Long on th' Aegyptian coast by calms confin'd, Heav'n to my fleet refus'd a prosp'rous wind: No vows had we prefer'd, nor victim slain!Line 475 For this the Gods each sav'ring gale restrain: Jealous, to see their high behests obey'd, Severe, if men th' eternal rights evade! High o'er a gulphy sea, the Pharian Isle Fronts the deep roar of disemboguing Nile:Line 480 Her distance from the shore, the course begun At dawn, and ending with the setting sun, A gally measures; when the stiffer gales Rise on the poop, and fully stretch the sails. There anchor'd vessels safe in harbour lye,Line 485 Whilst limpid springs the failing cask supply.

And now the twentieth sun descending, laves His glowing axle in the western waves; Still with expanded sails we court in vain Propitious winds, to waft us o'er the main:Line 490 And the pale mariner at once deplores His drooping vigour, and exhausted stores. When lo! a bright caerulean form appears, The fair Eidothea! to dispel my fears; Proteus her sire divine. With pity press'd,Line 495 Me sole the daughter of the deep address'd; What-time, with hunger pin'd, my absent mates Roam the wild Isle in search of rural cates, Bait the barb'd steel, and from the fishy flood Appease th' afflictive fierce desire of food.Line 500

Whoe'er thou art, (the azure Goddess cries,) Thy conduct ill deserves the praise of wise: Is death thy choice, or misery thy boast, That here inglorious on a barren coast Thy brave associates droop, a meagre trainLine 505 With famine pale, and ask thy care in vain?

Struck with the kind reproach, I strait reply; Whate'er thy title in thy native sky, A Goddess sure! for more than mortal grace Speaks thee descendent of etherial race:Line 510 Deem not, that here of choice my fleet remains; Some heav'nly pow'r averse my stay constrains: O, piteous of my fate, vouchsafe to shew, (For what's sequester'd from celestial view?) What pow'r becalms th'innavigable seas?Line 515 What guilt provokes him, and what vows appease?

I ceas'd, when affable the Goddess cry'd; Observe, and in the truths I speak confide: Th'oraculous Seer frequents the Pharian coast, From whose high bed my birth divine I boast;Line 520 Proteus, a name tremendous o'er the main, The delegate of Neptune's watry reign. Watch with insidious care his known abode; There fast in chains constrain the various God: Who bound, obedient to superior force,Line 525 Unerring will prescribe your destin'd course.

If studious of your realms, you then demand Their state, since last you left your natal land; Instant the God obsequious will disclose Bright tracks of glory, or a cloud of woes.Line 530

She ceas'd, and suppliant thus I made reply; O Goddess! on thy aid my hopes rely: Dictate propitious to my duteous ear, What arts can captivate the changeful Seer? For perilous th' assay, unheard the toil,Line 535 T' elude the prescience of a God by guile.

Thus to the Goddess mild my suit I end. Then she. Obedient to my rule, attend: When thro' the Zone of heav'n the mounted sun Hath journey'd half, and half remains to run;Line 540 The Seer, while Zephyrs curl the swelling deep, Basks on the breezy shore, in grateful sleep, His oozy limbs. Emerging from the wave, The Phocae swift surround his rocky cave, Frequent and full; the consecrated trainLine 545 Of * 1.3 her, whose azure trident awes the main:

There wallowing warm, th'enormous herd exhales An oily steam, and taints the noon-tide gales. To that recess, commodious for surprize, When purple light shall next suffuse the skies,Line 550 With me repair; and from thy warrior band Three chosen chiefs of dauntless soul command: Let their auxiliar force befriend the toil, For strong the God, and perfected in guile. Stretch'd on the shelly shore, he first surveysLine 555 The flouncing herd ascending from the seas; Their number summ'd, repos'd in sleep profound The scaly charge their guardian God surround: So with his batt'ring flocks the careful swain Abides, pavilion'd on the grassy plain.Line 560 With pow'rs united, obstinately bold Invade him, couch'd amid the scaly fold: Instant he wears, elusive of the rape, The mimic force of every savage shape: Or glides with liquid lapse a murm'ring stream,Line 565 Or wrapt in flame, he glows at every limb.

Yet still retentive, with redoubled might Thro' each vain passive form constrain his flight. But when, his native shape resum'd, he stands Patient of conquest, and your cause demands;Line 570 The cause that urg'd the bold attempt declare, And sooth the vanquish'd with a victor's pray'r. The bands relax'd, implore the Seer to say What godhead interdicts the wat'ry way? Who strait propitious, in prophetic strainLine 575 Will teach you to repass th' unmeasur'd main. She ceas'd, and bounding from the shelfy shore, Round the descending nymph the waves redounding roar.

High rapt in wonder of the future deed, With joy impetuous, to the port I speed:Line 580 The wants of nature with repast suffice, 'Till night with grateful shade involv'd the skies, And shed ambrosial dews. Fast by the deep, Along the tented shore, in balmy sleep Our cares were lost. When o'er the eastern lawn,Line 585 In saffron robes the Daughter of the dawn

Advanc'd her rosy steps; before the bay, Due ritual honours to the Gods I pay: Then seek the place the sea-born nymph assign'd, With three associates of undaunted mind.Line 590 Arriv'd, to form along th' appointed strand For each a bed, she scoops the hilly sand: Then from her azure car, the finny spoils Of four vast Phocae takes, to veil her wiles; Beneath the finny spoils extended prone,Line 595 Hard toil! the prophet's piercing eye to shun; New from the corse, the scaly frauds diffuse Unsavoury stench of oil, and brackish ooze: But the bright sea-maid's gentle pow'r implor'd, With nectar'd drops the sick'ning sense restor'd.Line 600

Thus 'till the sun had travel'd half the skies, Ambush'd we lie, and wait the bold emprise: When thronging thick to bask in open air, The flocks of Ocean to the strand repair: Couch'd on the sunny sand, the monsters sleep:Line 605 Then Proteus mounting from the hoary deep,

Surveys his charge, unknowing of deceit: (In order told, we make the sum compleat.) Pleas'd with the false review, secure he lies, And leaden slumbers press his drooping eyes.Line 610 Rushing impetuous forth, we strait prepare A furious onset with the sound of war, And shouting seize the God: our force t'evade His various arts he soon resumes in aid: A Lion now, he curls a surgy mane;Line 615 Sudden, our bands a spotted Pard restrain; Then arm'd with tusks, and lightning in his eyes, A Boar's obscener shape the God belies: On spiry volumes there a Dragon rides; Here, from our strict embrace a Stream he glides:Line 620 And last, sublime his stately growth he rears, A Tree, and well-dissembled foliage wears. Vain efforts! with superior pow'r compress'd, Me with reluctance thus the Seer address'd. Say, son of Atreus, say what God inspir'dLine 625 This daring fraud, and what the boon desir'd?

I thus; O thou, whose certain eye foresees The fix'd event of fate's remote decrees; After long woes, and various toil endur'd, Still on this desert Isle my fleet is moor'd;Line 630 Unfriended of the gales. All-knowing! say What Godhead interdicts the wat'ry way? What vows repentant will the Pow'r appease, To speed a prosp'rous voyage o'er the seas?

To Jove, (with stern regard the God replies,)Line 635 And all th' offended synod of the skies; Just hecatombs with due devotion slain, Thy guilt absolv'd, a prosp'rous voyage gain. To the firm sanction of thy fate attend! An exile thou, nor cheering face of friend,Line 640 Nor sight of natal shore, nor regal dome Shalt yet enjoy, but still art doom'd to roam. Once more the Nile, who from the secret source Of Jove's high seat descends with sweepy force, Must view his billows white beneath thy oar,Line 645 And altars blaze along his sanguine shore.

Then will the Gods, with holy pomp ador'd, To thy long vows a safe return accord.

He ceas'd: heart-wounded with afflictive pain, (Doom'd to repeat the perils of the main,Line 650 A shelfy tract, and long!) O Seer, I cry, To the stern sanction of th' offended sky My prompt obedience bows. But deign to say, What fate propitious, or what dire dismay Sustain those Peers, the reliques of our host,Line 655 Whom I with Nestor on the Phrygian coast Embracing left? Must I the warriors weep, Whelm'd in the bottom of the monstrous deep? Or did the kind domestic friend deplore The breathless heroes on their native shore?Line 660

Press not too far, reply'd the God; but cease To know, what known will violate thy peace: Too curious of their doom! with friendly woe Thy breast will heave, and tears eternal flow. Part live; the rest, a lamentable train!Line 665 Range the dark bounds of Pluto's dreary reign.

Two, foremost in the roll of Mars renown'd, Whose arms with conquest in thy cause were crown'd, Fell by disastrous fate; by tempests tost, A third lives wretched on a distant coast.Line 670

By Neptune rescu'd from Minerva's hate, On Gyrae safe Oilean Ajax sate, His ship o'erwhelm'd: but frowning on the floods, Impious he roar'd defiance to the Gods: To his own prowess all the glory gave,Line 675 The pow'r defrauding who vouchsaf'd to save. This heard the raging Ruler of the main; His spear, indignant for such high disdain, He launch'd; dividing with his forky mace Th' aerial summit from the marble base:Line 680 The rock rush'd sea-ward, with impetuous roar Ingulf'd, and to th' abyss the boaster bore.

By Juno's guardian aid, the wat'ry Vast Secure of storms, your royal brother past: 'Till coasting nigh the Cape, where Malea shrowdsLine 685 Her spiry cliffs amid surrounding clouds;

A whirling gust tumultuous from the shore, Across the deep his lab'ring vessel bore. In an ill-fated hour the coast he gain'd, Where late in regal pomp Thyestes reign'd;Line 690 But when his hoary honours bow'd to fate, Aegisthus govern'd in paternal state. The surges now subside, the tempest ends; From his tall ship the King of men descends: There fondly thinks the Gods conclude his toil!Line 695 Far from his own domain salutes the soil; With rapture oft the verge of Greece reviews, And the dear turf with tears of joy bedews. Him thus exulting on the distant strand, A Spy distinguish'd from his airy stand;Line 700 To bribe whose vigilance, Aegisthus told A mighty sum of ill-persuading gold: There watch'd this guardian of his guilty fear, 'Till the twelfth moon had wheel'd her pale career; And now admonish'd by his eye, to courtLine 705 With terror wing'd conveys the dread report.

Of deathful arts expert, his Lord employs The ministers of blood in dark surprize: And twenty youths in radiant mail incas'd, Close ambush'd nigh the spacious hall he plac'd.Line 710 Then bids prepare the hospitable treat: Vain shews of love to veil his felon hate! To grace the victor's welcome from the wars, A train of coursers, and triumphal cars Magnificent he leads: the royal guestLine 715 Thoughtless of ill, accepts the fraudful feast. The troop forth issuing from the dark recess, With homicidal rage the King oppress! So, whilst he feeds luxurious in the stall, The sov'reign of the herd is doom'd to fall.Line 720 The partners of his fame and toils at Troy, Around their Lord, a mighty ruin! lye: Mix'd with the brave, the base invaders bleed; Aegisthus sole survives to boast the deed.

He said; chill horrors shook my shiv'ring soul,Line 725 Rack'd with convulsive pangs in dust I roul;

And hate, in madness of extreme despair, To view the sun, or breathe the vital air. But when superior to the rage of woe, I stood restor'd, and tears had ceas'd to flow;Line 730 Lenient of grief, the pitying God began.— Forget the brother, and resume the man: To fate's supreme dispose the dead resign, That care be fate's, a speedy passage thine. Still lives the wretch who wrought the death deplor'd,Line 735 But lives a victim for thy vengeful sword; Unless with filial rage Orestes glow, And swift prevent the meditated blow: You timely will return a welcome guest, With him to share the sad funereal feast.Line 740

He said: new thoughts my beating heart employ, My gloomy soul receives a gleam of joy. Fair hope revives; and eager I addrest The prescient Godhead to reveal the rest. The doom decreed of those disastrous TwoLine 745 I've heard with pain, but oh! the tale pursue;

What third brave son of Mars the fates constrain To roam the howling desart of the main: Or in eternal shade if cold he lies, Provoke new sorrow from these grateful eyes.Line 750

That chief (rejoin'd the God) his race derives From Ithaca, and wond'rous woes survives; Laertes' son: girt with circumfluous tides, He still calamitous constraint abides. Him in Calypso's cave of late I view'd,Line 755 When streaming grief his faded cheek bedew'd. But vain his pray'r, his arts are vain to move Th'enamour'd Goddess, or elude her love: His vessel sunk, and dear companions lost, He lives reluctant on a foreign coast.Line 760 But oh belov'd by heav'n! reserv'd to thee A happier lot the smiling fates decree: Free from that law, beneath whose mortal sway Matter is chang'd, and varying forms decay; Elysium shall be thine; the blissful plainsLine 765 Of utmost earth, where Rhadamanthus reigns.

Joys ever-young, unmix'd with pain or fear, Fill the wide circle of th'eternal year: Stern winter smiles on that auspicious clime: The fields are florid with unfading prime:Line 770 From the bleak pole no winds inclement blow, Mold the round hail, or flake the fleecy snow; But from the breezy deep, the Blest inhale The fragrant murmurs of the western gale. This grace peculiar will the Gods affordLine 775 To thee the Son of Jove, and beauteous Helen's Lord.

He ceas'd, and plunging in the vast profound, Beneath the God the whirling billows bound. Then speeding back, involv'd in various thought, My friends attending at the shore I sought.Line 780 Arriv'd, the rage of hunger we controll, 'Till night with silent shade invests the pole; Then lose the cares of life in pleasing rest.— Soon as the morn reveals the roseate east, With sails we wing the masts, our anchors weigh,Line 785 Unmoor the fleet, and rush into the sea.

Rang'd on the banks, beneath our equal oars White curl the waves, and the vex'd ocean roars. Then steering backward from the Pharian Isle, We gain the stream of Jove-descended Nile:Line 790 There quit the ships, and on the destin'd shore With ritual hecatombs the Gods adore: Their wrath aton'd, to Agamemnon's name A Cenotaph I raise of deathless fame. These rites to piety and grief discharg'd,Line 795 The friendly Gods a springing gale inlarg'd: The fleet swift tilting o'er the surges flew, 'Till Grecian cliffs appear'd, a blissful view!

Thy patient ear hath heard me long relate A story, fruitful of disastrous fate:Line 800 And now, young Prince, indulge my fond request; Be Sparta honour'd with his royal guest, 'Till from his eastern goal, the joyous sun His twelfth diurnal race begins to run. Mean-time my train the friendly gifts prepare,Line 805 Three sprightly coursers, and a polish'd car:

With these, a goblet of capacious mold, Figur'd with art to dignify the gold, (Form'd for libation to the Gods,) shall prove A pledge and monument of sacred love.Line 810

My quick return, young Ithacus rejoin'd, Damps the warm wishes of my raptur'd mind: Did not my fate my needful haste constrain, Charm'd by your speech, so graceful and humane, Lost in delight the circling year wou'd roll,Line 815 While deep attention fix'd my list'ning soul. But now to Pyle permit my destin'd way, My lov'd associates chide my long delay. In dear remembrance of your royal grace, I take the present of the promis'd Vase;Line 820 The coursers for the champian sports, retain; That gift our barren rocks will render vain: Horrid with cliffs, our meagre land allows Thin herbage for the mountain-goat to browze, But neither mead nor plain supplies, to feedLine 825 The sprightly courser, or indulge his speed:

To sea-surrounded realms the Gods assign Small tract of fertile lawn, the least to mine.

His hand the King with tender passion press'd, And smiling thus, the royal Youth address'd:Line 830 O early worth! a soul so wise, and young, Proclaims you from the sage Ulysses sprung. Selected from my stores, of matchless price An urn shall recompence your prudent choice: Not mean the massy mold, of silver grac'dLine 835 By Vulcan's art, the verge with gold enchas'd: A pledge the sceptred pow'r of Sidon gave, When to his realm I plow'd the orient wave.

Thus they alternate; while with artful care The menial train the regal feast prepare:Line 840 The firstlings of the flock are doom'd to dye; Rich fragrant wines the cheering bowl supply; A female band the gift of Ceres bring; And the gilt roofs with genial triumph ring.

Mean-while, in Ithaca, the Suitor-powrsLine 845 In active games divide their jovial hours:

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In Areas vary'd with mosaic art, Some whirl the disk, and some the jav'lin dart. Aside, sequester'd from the vast resort, Antinous sate spectator of the sport;Line 850 With great Eurymachus, of worth confest, And high descent, superior to the rest; Whom young Noëmon lowly thus addrest.

My ship equip'd within the neighb'ring port, The Prince, departing for the Pylian court,Line 855 Requested for his speed; but, courteous, say When steers he home, or why this long delay? For Elis I shou'd sail with utmost speed, T'import twelve mares which there luxurious feed, And twelve young mules, a strong laborious race,Line 860 New to the plow, unpractis'd in the trace.

Unknowing of the course to Pyle design'd, A sudden horror seiz'd on either mind: The Prince in rural bow'r they fondly thought, Numb'ring his flocks and herds, not far remote.Line 865

Relate, Antinous cries, devoid of guile, When spread the Prince his sail for distant Pyle? Did chosen chiefs across the gulphy main Attend his voyage, or domestic train? Spontaneous did you speed his secret course,Line 870 Or was the vessel seiz'd by fraud or force?

With willing duty, not reluctant mind, (Noëmon cry'd) the vessel was resign'd. Who in the balance, with the great affairs Of courts, presume to weigh their private cares?Line 875 With him, the peerage next in pow'r to you: And Mentor, captain of the lordly crew, Or some Celestial in his reverend form, Safe from the secret rock and adverse storm, Pilots their course: For when the glimm'ring rayLine 880 Of yester dawn disclos'd the tender day, Mentor himself I saw, and much admir'd.— Then ceas'd the Youth, and from the court retir'd.

Confounded and appall'd, th'unfinish'd game The Suitors quit, and all to council came:Line 885

Antinous first th'assembled Peers addrest, Rage sparkling in his eyes, and burning in his breast.

O shame to manhood! shall one daring boy The scheme of all our happiness destroy? Fly unperceiv'd, seducing half the flow'rLine 890 Of nobles, and invite a foreign pow'r? The pond'rous engine rais'd to crush us all, Recoiling, on his head is sure to fall. Instant prepare me, on the neighb'ring strand, With twenty chosen mates a vessel mann'd;Line 895 For ambush'd close beneath the Samian shore His ship returning shall my spies explore: He soon his rashness shall with life atone, Seek for his father's fate, but find his own.

With vast applause the sentence all approve;Line 900 Then rise, and to the feastful hall remove: Swift to the Queen the Herald Medon ran, Who heard the consult of the dire Divan: Before her dome the royal matron stands, And thus the message of his haste demands.Line 905

What will the Suitors? must my servant train Th' allotted labours of the day refrain, For them to form some exquisite repast? Heav'n grant this festival may prove their last! Or if they still must live, from me removeLine 910 The double plague of luxury and love! Forbear, ye sons of insolence! forbear, In riot to consume a wretched heir. In the young soul illustrious thought to raise, Were ye not tutor'd with Ulysses' praise?Line 915 Have not your fathers oft my Lord defin'd, Gentle of speech, beneficent of mind? Some Kings with arbitrary rage devour, Or in their tyrant-Minions vest the pow'r: Ulysses let no partial favours fall,Line 920 The people's parent, he protected all: But absent now, perfidious and ingrate! His stores ye ravage, and usurp his state.

He thus; O were the woes you speak the worst! They form a deed more odious and accurst;Line 925

More dreadful than your boding soul divines: But pitying Jove avert the dire designs! The darling object of your royal care Is mark'd to perish in a deathful snare: Before he anchors in his native port,Line 930 From Pyle re-sailing and the Spartan court, Horrid to speak! in ambush is decreed The hope and heir of Ithaca to bleed!

Sudden she sunk beneath the weighty woes; The vital streams a chilling horror froze:Line 935 The big round tear stands trembling in her eye, And on her tongue imperfect accents dye. At length, in tender language interwove With sighs, she thus express'd her anxious love. Why rashly wou'd my son his fate explore,Line 940 Ride the wild waves, and quit the safer shore? Did he, with all the greatly wretched, crave A blank oblivion, and untimely grave?

'Tis not, reply'd the Sage, to Medon giv'n To know, if some inhabitant of heav'n,Line 945

In his young breast the daring thought inspir'd: Or if alone with filial duty fir'd, The winds and waves he tempts in early bloom, Studious to learn his absent father's doom.

The Sage retir'd: Unable to controulLine 950 The mighty griefs that swell her lab'ring soul, Rolling convulsive on the floor, is seen The piteous object of a prostrate Queen. Words to her dumb complaint a pause supplies, And breath, to waste in unavailing cries.Line 955 Around their sov'reign wept the menial fair, To whom she thus address'd her deep despair.

Behold a wretch whom all the Gods consign To woe! Did ever sorrows equal mine? Long to my joys my dearest Lord is lost,Line 960 His country's buckler, and the Grecian boast: Now from my fond embrace by tempests torn, Our other column of the state is born: Nor took a kind adieu, nor sought consent!— Unkind confed'rates in his dire intent!Line 965

Ill suits it with your shews of duteous zeal, From me the purpos'd voyage to conceal: Tho' at the solemn midnight hour he rose, Why did you fear to trouble my repose? He either had obey'd my fond desire,Line 970 Or seen his mother pierc'd with grief expire. Bid Dolius quick attend, the faithful slave Whom to my nuptial train Icarius gave, To tend the fruit-groves: With incessant speed He shall this violence of death decreed,Line 975 To good Laertes tell. Experienc'd age May timely intercept their ruffian rage, Convene the tribes, the murd'rous plot reveal, And to their pow'r to save his race appeal.

Then Euryclea thus. My dearest dread!Line 980 Tho' to the sword I bow this hoary head, Or if a dungeon be the pain decreed, I own me conscious of th'unpleasing deed: Auxiliar to his flight, my aid implor'd, With wine and viands I the vessel stor'd:Line 985

A solemn oath impos'd the secret seal'd, 'Till the twelfth dawn the light of heav'n reveal'd. Dreading th'effect of a fond mother's fear, He dar'd not violate your royal ear. But bathe, and in imperial robes array'd,Line 990 Pay due devotions to the * 1.4 martial maid, And rest affianc'd in her guardian aid. Send not to good Laertes, nor engage In toils of state the miseries of age: 'Tis impious to surmize, the pow'rs divineLine 995 To ruin doom the Jove-descended line: Long shall the race of just Arcesius reign, And Isles remote enlarge his old domain.

The Queen her speech with calm attention hears, Her eyes restrain the silver-streaming tears:Line 1000 She bathes, and rob'd, the sacred dome ascends; Her pious speed a female train attends: The salted cakes in canisters are laid, And thus the Queen invokes Minerva's aid.

Daughter divine of Jove, whose arm can wieldLine 1005 Th'avenging bolt, and shake the dreadful shield! If e'er Ulysses to thy fane prefer'd The best and choicest of his flock and herd; Hear, Goddess, hear, by those oblations won; And for the pious sire preserve the son:Line 1010 His wish'd return with happy pow'r befriend, And on the suitors let thy wrath descend.

She ceas'd; shrill ecstasies of joy declare The fav'ring Goddess present to the pray'r: The Suitors heard, and deem'd the mirthful voiceLine 1015 A signal of her Hymenaeal choice: Whilst one most jovial thus accosts the board; " Too late the Queen selects a second lord: " In evil hour the nuptial rite intends, " When o'er her son disastrous death impends."Line 1020 Thus he, unskill'd of what the fates provide! But with severe rebuke Antinous cry'd.

These empty vaunts will make the voyage vain; Alarm not with discourse the menial train: Line 1025

The great event with silent hope attend;Line 1025 Our deeds alone our council must commend.

His speech thus ended short, he frowning rose, And twenty chiefs renown'd for valour chose: Down to the strand he speeds with haughty strides, Where anchor'd in the bay the vessel rides;Line 1030 Replete with mail, and military store, In all her tackle trim, to quit the shore. The desp'rate crew ascend, unfurl the sails; (The sea-ward prow invites the tardy gales) Then take repast, 'till Hesperus display'dLine 1035 His golden circlet in the western shade.

Mean-time the Queen without refection due, Heart-wounded, to the bed of state withdrew: In her sad breast the Prince's fortunes roul, And hope and doubt alternate seize her soul.Line 1040 So when the wood-man's toyl her cave surrounds And with the hunter's cry the grove resounds; With grief and rage the mother-lion stung, Fearless herself, yet trembles for her young.

While pensive in the silent slumb'rous shade,Line 1045 Sleep's gentle pow'rs her drooping eyes invade; Minerva, life-like on imbody'd air, Impress'd the form of Iphthima the fair: (Icarius' daughter she, whose blooming charms Allur'd Eumelus to her virgin-arms;Line 1050 A sceptred Lord, who o'er the fruitful plain Of Thessaly wide stretch'd his ample reign:) As Pallas will'd, along the sable skies To calm the Queen the Phantom-sister flies. Swift on the regal dome descending right,Line 1055 The bolted Valves are pervious to her flight. Close to her head the pleasing vision stands, And thus performs Minerva's high commands.

O why, Penelope, this causeless fear, To render sleep's soft blessing unsincere?Line 1060 Alike devote to sorrow's dire extreme The day reflection, and the midnight dream! Thy son, the Gods propitious will restore, And bid thee cease his absence to deplore.

To whom the Queen, (whilst yet her pensive mindLine 1065 Was in the silent gates of sleep confin'd) O sister, to my soul for ever dear, Why this first visit to reprove my fear? How in a realm so distant shou'd you know From what deep source my ceaseless sorrows flow?Line 1070 To all my hope my royal Lord is lost, His country's buckler, and the Grecian boast: And with consummate woe to weigh me down, The heir of all his honours, and his crown, My darling son is fled! an easy preyLine 1075 To the fierce storms, or men more fierce than they: Who in a league of blood associates sworn, Will intercept th'unwary Youth's return.

Courage resume, the shadowy form reply'd, In the protecting care of heav'n confide:Line 1080 On him attends the blue-ey'd martial Maid; What earthly can implore a surer aid? Me now the guardian Goddess deigns to send, To bid thee patient his return attend.

The Queen replies: If in the blest abodes,Line 1085 A Goddess thou, hast commerce with the Gods; Say, breathes my Lord the blissful realm of light, Or lies he wrapt in ever-during night?

Enquire not of his doom, the Phantom cries, I speak not all the counsel of the skies:Line 1090 Nor must indulge with vain discourse, or long, The windy satisfaction of the tongue.

Swift thro' the valves the visionary fair Repass'd, and viewless mix'd with common air. The Queen awakes, deliver'd of her woes;Line 1095 With florid joy her heart dilating glows: The vision, manifest of future fate, Makes her with hope her son's arrival wait.

Mean-time the Suitors plow the wat'ry plain, Telemachus in thought already slain!Line 1100 When sight of less'ning Ithaca was lost, Their sail directed for the Samian coast, A small but verdant Isle appear'd in view, And Asteris th'advancing Pilot knew: Line 1105

An ample port the rocks projected form,Line 1105 To break the rowling waves, and ruffling storm: That safe recess they gain with happy speed, And in close ambush wait the murd'rous deed.

[figure]

W.K.•••• P.F.sc.

OBSERVATIONS ON THE FOURTH BOOK.

OBSERVATIONS ON THE FOURTH BOOK.

I.

_ARISTOTLE in his Poetics reports, that certain ancient Critics reproached Homer for an inde|cency in making Telemachus take his abode with Menelaus, and not with his own grand|father Icarius: this Monsieur Dacier suffici|ently answers, by shewing that Icarius had settled himself in Acarnania, and not in La|cedaemon.

II.

VERSE 5.— invoking Hymen's pow'r.]

Athenaeus has been very severe upon this passage, as Eustathius observes, and Dacier from Eustathius.

Aristarchus, says Athenaeus, misguides us, the words 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, led him into an error; whereas the marriage is com|pleated, the wedded couples gone away from Menelaus, and he and Helen are alone at Lacedaemon. The five verses, continues he,

(the fifteenth to the twentieth inclusively) are taken from the 18th book of the Iliads, and inserted very improperly in this place by Aristarchus. Athenaeus gives several reasons for his opinion, as that music and dancing were very contrary to the severe manners of the Lacedaemonians; besides the dance was a Cretan dance, how then could it be practis'd among the Spartans? The Poet men|tions neither the name of the Bard, nor one word of the sub|ject of the songs: neither can the words 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, be apply'd at all to the Dancers, but to the Musicians; and last|ly, it is not to be imagin'd that Telemachus and Pisistratus should be so unpolite, as not to be at all affected with the music, had there been any, and yet break out into such wonder at the sight of the beauty of the Palace of Menelaus. Aristarchus, adds he, thought the description of the wedding of the son and daughter of a King was too meanly and concisely describ'd, and therefore made this addition.

But it is easy to refute Athenaeus, and vindicate Aristarchus. A|thenaeus understood 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 and 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 in the wrong sense, they are of the imperfect, he was sending, or about to send, and not had sent, &c. If the marriage had been absolutely finish'd, why should Minerva absent her self from Menelaus, when the ce|lebration of the nuptials is the only reason of the absence of that Goddess? and as for music and dancing being contrary to the severe manners of the Lacedaemonians, this is all conjecture: Menelaus lived more than three hundred years before Lycurgus; and because such diversions were forbid in Sparta in the days of Lycurgus, must it follow that they were not used in those of Me|nelaus? And should it be granted that music and dancing were not used in his times, might he not relax a little from the se|verity of his times, upon such an occasion of joy as the marriage of a son and daughter? I am sure these diversions are not more contrary to the severity of the Spartans, than the magnificence of the Palace of Menelaus was to their simplicity.

"But he does not name the Bard, or the subject of his songs":

But is this a reason why the verses are spurious? we should rather admire the judgment of the Poet, who having so fair an opportunity to

describe these nuptials, yet rejects the temptation, dismisses the whole in a few lines, and follows where his subject leads him. The obje|ction about the dance being Cretan is not more valid: Menelaus (as we learn from the preceding book) had been in Crete, and might bring it thence to Lacedaemon. And as for the Criticism upon 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 it is but a fallacy; Casaubon has shewn beyond contradiction, that 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 is apply'd indifferently to all those who give example to others; and consequently may be apply'd to Dancers as well as Musicians. It may be further added, that al|though it should be allow'd that the word 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 is only pro|perly apply'd to music, yet in this place the word would not be improperly apply'd to dancers; for the dancers, without usurping upon the province of the singer, might 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, or chuse those songs, to which they desired to dance; as is the usage at this day.

Diodorus is of opinion, that the whole twelve lines after the second to the fifteenth are not genuine; but what has been said of Athenaeus, may be apply'd to Diodorus.

III.

VERSE 37. Menelaus blames Eteoneus.]

This is the first ap|pearance of Menelaus; and surely nothing can more reconcile him to the favour of the spectators, than those amiable colours in which the Poet paints him. There is an overflow of humanity and gratitude in his expressions, like that of Dido in Virgil,

Non ignara mali, miseris succurrere disco.

They contain a fine piece of morality, and teach that those men are more tender-hearted and humane who have felt the reverse of fortune, than those who have only liv'd in a condition of prosperity.

IV.

VERSE 81. Soft-whisp'ring thus to Nestor's son.]

This may be thought a circumstance of no importance, and very trivial in Telemachus; but it shews his address and decency: He whispers, to avoid the appearance of a flatterer, or to conceal his own inex|perience, in shewing too much surprize at the magnificence of the Palace of Menelaus. Eustathius.

V.

VERSE 91. The Monarch took the word, &c.]

The ancients, says Eustathius, observe the prudence of Menelaus in his reply to Telemachus; and the prudence of Telemachus in his behaviour to Menelaus: Menelaus denies not his riches and magnificence, but to take off the envy which they might attract, he throws the calamities he has undergone into the contrary scale, and balan|ces his felicity with his misfortunes: And Telemachus coming into the Palace at the time of an entertainment, chuses to satisfie his curiosity rather than his appetite. Plutarch I confess condemns Telemachus of inexperience; who when he saw the Palace of Ne|stor furnish'd only with things useful to life, as beds, tables, &c. is seiz'd with no admiration; but the superfluities of Menelaus, his ivory, amber and gold, &c. carry him into transports: whereas a Socrates or a Diogenes would have exclaim'd, What heaps of vanities have I beheld! 'Tis true, such a judgment might become Philosophers; but who, as Dacier observes, can think the character of a Socrates or a Diogenes suitable to young Telemachus? What is decent in a Prince, and a young man, would ill become the gravity and wisdom of a Philosopher.

VI.

VERSE 100. Thro' regions fatten'd with the flows of Nile. Next, Aethiopia, &c.]

The words are in the original 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, others read

them 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, from their veracity in oracles, for which they were very famous; and indeed the word 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 is not necessary, it being used in the very same sentence, tho' it must be confess'd such repetitions are frequent in Homer. There is also a different reading of the word 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉; some have it 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, or Blacks; others, 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉; but the com|mon reading is thought the best. The Erembri are the Arabian Troglodytes. Strabo informs us, that in former ages the bounds of the Aethiopians lay near to Thebes in Aegypt, so that Mene|laus travelling to Thebes, might with ease visit the Aethiopians. Others have without any foundation imagin'd that he pass'd the streights of Gibraltar, and sail'd to the Indies. Sidon is the capi|tal of the Phaenicians. Eustathius.

VII.

VERSE 105.— Where each revolving year The teeming Ewes, &c.]

These sheep, as describ'd by Homer, may be thought the creation of the Poet, and not the production of nature: But Herodotus, says Eustathius, writes, that in Scythia the oxen have no horns thro' the extremity of the cold: He quotes this very verse, right|ly intimating, adds Herodotus, that in hot regions the horns of cattle shoot very speedily. Aristotle directly asserts, that in Libya the young ones of horned cattle have horns immediately after they are brought into the world. So that Aristotle and Herodotus vindicate Homer. The Poet adds, that the sheep breed three times in the year; these words may have a different interpretation, and imply that they breed in three seasons of the year, and not only in the spring as in other countries; or that the sheep have at once three lambs; but the first is the better interpretation. Athe|naeus upon this passage writes, that there are things in other coun|tries no less strange than what Homer relates of these sheep of Li|bya. Thus in Lusitania a country of Spain, now Portugal, there is a wonderful fruitfulness in all cattle, by reason of the excellent temper of the air; the fruits there never rot, and the roses, vio|lets

and asparagus, never fail above three months in the year. Eustathius.

VIII.

VERSE 114. The best of brothers,— —a traitress wife.

Menelaus neither mentions Agamemnon, Clytemnestra, nor Aegy|sthus by name: a just indignation and resentment is the occasion of his suppressing the names of Clytemnestra and Aegysthus. Thro' the whole Iliad Menelaus is describ'd as a very affectionate bro|ther, and the love he bears Agamemnon is the reason why he pas|ses by his name in silence. We see that he dispatches the whole in one verse and a half; Nestor had told the story pretty large|ly in the preceding book, and as he was a person less nearly concern'd, might speak of it with more ease and better temper than Menelaus; the Poet avoids a needless repetition, and a re|petition too of a story universally known to all the Greeks. The death of Agamemnon is distributed into four places in the Odyssey; Nestor, Menelaus, Proteus, and the shade of Agamem|non in the 11th book, all relate it, and every one very pro|perly. Proteus as a prophet more fully than Nestor or Menela|us, and Agamemnon more fully than them all, as being best ac|quainted with it. Eustathius.

IX.

VERSE 119. My wars, the copious theme, &c.]

In the ori|ginal Menelaus says, I have destroy'd a house, &c. There is an ambi|guity in the expression, as Eustathius observes: for it may either sig|nify the house of Priam, or his own in Argos; if it be understood of his own, then the meaning is,

"I have indeed great wealth, but have purchas'd it with the loss of my people; I could be con|tent with the third part of it, if I could restore those to life who have perish'd before Troy."

If it be understood of the kingdom of Priam, the regret he shews will still appear the

greater. He is enumerating his domestic happiness, and his fo|rein conquest of Troy; but he throws the destruction of so many brave men who fell before it, in the contrary scale; and it so far outweighs both his wealth and his glory, that they both are joyless to him. Either of these interpretations shew an excellent tem|per of humanity in Menelaus, who thinks the effusion of blood too dear a price for glory. At the same time the Poet gives an admirable picture of human nature, which is restless in the pursuit of what it miscalls happiness, and when in possession of it, neglects it. But the disquiet of Menelaus arises not from incon|stancy of temper, but wisdom; it shews that all happiness is un|satisfactory.

X.

VERSE 131. But oh! Ulysses—&c.]

It is with admira|ble address that the Poet falls into his subject; it is art, but yet it seems to be nature: This conduct has a double effect, it takes away all suspicion of flattery, for Menelaus is ignorant that the person with whom he discourses is Telemachus, this gives him a manifest evidence of the love he bears to Ulysses; the young man could not but be pleased with the praise of his father, and with the sincerity of it. It is also observable, that Menelaus builds his friendship for Ulysses upon a noble foundation; I mean the sufferings which Ulysses underwent for his friend: Menelaus ascribes not their affection to any familiarity or Intercourse of entertainments, but to a more sincere cause, to the hazards which brave men undertake for a friend. In short, the friendship of Menelaus and Ulysses is the friendship of Heroes. Eustathius.

XI.

VERSE 157.— Bright Helen grac'd the room.]

Menelaus conjectur'd that the person he had entertain'd was the son of U|lysses, from the tears he shed at the name of his father, and from the resemblance there was between Ulysses and Telemachus; it

might therefore have been expected that Menelaus should imme|diately have acknowledg'd Telemachus, and not delay'd a full dis|covery one moment, out of regard to his absent friend; but Me|nelaus defers it upon a twofold account, to give some time to Telemachus to indulge his sorrow for his father, and recover him|self from it, and also to avoid the repetition of a discovery upon the appearance of Helen, who would be curious to know the condition of the strangers.

It may be necessary to say something concerning Helen, that fatal beauty that engag'd Greece and Asia in arms; she is drawn in the same colours in the Odyssey as in the Iliad; it is a vicious character, but the colours are so admirably soften'd by the art of the Poet, that we pardon her infidelity. Menelaus is an uncom|mon instance of conjugal affection, he forgives a wife who had been false to him, and receives her into a full degree of favour. But perhaps the Reader might have been shock'd at it, and pre|judiced against Helen as a person that ought to be forgot, or have her name only mention'd to disgrace it: The Poet there|fore, to reconcile her to his Reader, brings her in as a penitent, condemning her own infidelity in very strong expressions; she shews true modesty, when she calls herself impudent, and by this conduct we are inclined, like Menelaus, to forgive her.

XII.

VERSE 161. &c. Adraste, Alcippe, Helen's Maids.]

It has been observ'd, that Helen has not the same attendants in the O|dessey as she had in the Iliad; they perhaps might be Trojans, and consequently be left in their own country; or rather, it was an act of prudence in Menelaus, not to suffer those servants about her who had been her attendants and confidents in her infidelity. Eustathius.

XIII.

VERSE 192.— The grace and air Of young Telemachus!]

It may seem strange that Helen should at first view recollect the features of Ulysses in Telemachus; and that Menelaus, who was bet|ter acquainted with him, and his constant friend, should not make the same observation. But Athenaeus, to reconcile this to probability, says, that women are curious and skilful ob|servers of the likeness of children to parents, for one particu|lar reason, that they may, upon finding any dissimilitude, have the pleasure of hinting at the Unchastity of others.

XIV.

VERSE 234. For his abode a Capital prepar'd.]

The Poet puts these words in the mouth of Menelaus, to express the sinceri|ty of his friendship to Ulysses; he intended him all advantage, and no detriment: we must therefore conclude, that Ulysses was still to retain his sovereignty over Ithaca, and only remove to Argos, to live with so sincere a friend as Menelaus. Eustathius.

XV.

VERSE 249.— A gust of grief began to rise, &c.]

It has been observ'd thro' the Iliad, and may be observ'd through the whole Odyssey, that it was not a disgrace to the greatest Heroes to shed tears; and indeed I cannot see why it should be an ho|nour to any man, to be able to divest himself of humane nature so far as to appear insensible upon the most affecting occasions; No man is born a Stoic; it is art, not nature; tears are only a shame, when the cause from whence they flow is mean or vici|ous. Here Menelaus laments a friend, Telemachus a father, Pisi|stratus

a brother: but from what cause arise the tears of Helen? It is to be remember'd that Helen is drawn in the softest colours in the Odyssey; the character of the adultress is lost in that of the penitent; the name of Ulysses throws her into tears, because she is the occasion of all the sufferings of that brave man; the Poet makes her the first in sorrow, as she is the cause of all their tears.

XVI.

VERSE 265. Let not your roof with echoing grief resound, Now for the feast the friendly howl is crown'd.

It may be ask'd why sorrow for the dead should be more unsea|sonable in the evening than the morning? Eustathius answers, lest others should look upon our evening tears as the effect of wine, and not of love to the dead.

Intempestiores venit inter pocula fletus. Nee lacrymas dulci fas est miscere falerno.

I fancy there may be a more rational account given of this ex|pression; The time of feasting was ever look'd upon as a time of joy, and thanksgiving to the Gods; it bore a religious venerati|on among the Ancients, and consequently to shed tears when they should express their gratitude to the Gods with joy, was esteem'd a prophanation.

XVII.

VERSE 301. Bright Helen mix'd a mirth-inspiring bowl, &c.]

The conjectures about this cordial of Helen have been almost in|finite. Some take Nepenthes allegorically, to signify History, Mu|sic, or Philosophy. Plutarch in the first of the Symposiacs af|firms it to be, discourse well suiting the present passions and con|ditions

of the hearers. Macrobius is of the same opinion, Delinimentum illud quod Helena vino miscuit, non herba fuit, non ex Indiâ succus, sed narrandi opportunitas, quae hospitem maero|ris oblitum flexit ad gaudium. What gave a foundation to this fiction of Homer, as Dacier observes, might be this. Diodorus writes that in Aegypt, and chiefly at Heliopolis, the same with Thebes where Menelaus sojourn'd, as has been already observ'd, there lived women who boasted of certain potions which not only made the unfortunate forget all their calamities, but drove away the most violent sallies of grief or anger. Eusebius directly af|firms, that even in his time the women of Diospolis were able to calm the rage of grief or anger by certain potions. Now whe|ther this be truth or fiction, it fully vindicates Homer, since a Poet may make use of a prevailing, tho' false, opinion.

Milton mentions this Nepenthes in his excellent Masque of Comus.

—Behold this cordial Julep here, That flames and dances in his chrystal bounds! Not that Nepenthes which the wife of Thone In Aegypt gave to Jove-born Helena, Is of such pow'r as this to stir up joy, To life so friendly, or so cool to thirst.

But that there may be something more than fiction in this is very probable, since the Aegyptians were so notoriously skill'd in phy|sick; and particularly since this very Thon, or Thonis, or Thoon, is reported by the ancients to have been the inventor of physic a|mong the Aegyptians. The description of this Nepenthes agrees admirably with what we know of the qualities and effects of Opium.

It is further said of Thon, that he was King of Canopus, and entertain'd Menelaus hospitably before he had seen Helen; but after|wards falling in love with her, and offering violence, he was slain by Menelaus. From his name the Aegyptians gave the name of Thoth to the first month of their year, and also to a city the name of Thonis. Aelian writes that Menelaus when he travell'd

to the Aethiopians, committed Helen to the protection of Thonis; that she fell in love with him, that Polydamna growing jealous confin'd her to the Island Pharos, but gave her an herb to pre|serve her from the poison of serpents there frequent, which from Helen was call'd Helenium. Strabo writes, that at Canopus on the mouth of Nile there stands a city named Thonies, from King Thonis, who receiv'd Helen and Menelaus. Herodotus relates, that Thonis was Governor of Canopus, that he represented the injury which Paris had done to Menelaus, to Proteus who reign'd in Mem|phis. Eustathius.

This last remark from Herodotus is sufficient to shew, that Ho|mer is not so fictitious as is generally imagined, that there really was a King named Proteus, that the Poet builds his fables upon truth, and that it was truth that originally determin'd Homer to intro|duce Proteus into his Poetry; but I intend to explain this more largely in the story of Proteus.

XVIII.

VERSE 331. My self— Will tell Ulysses' bold exploit—]

What is here related shews the necessity of the introduction of He|len, and the use the Poet makes of it: she is not brought in merely as a muta Persona, to fill up the number of persons; but she re|lates several incidents, in which she her self was concern'd, and which she could only know; and consequently not only diversisies, but carries on the design of the story. Eustathius.

XIX.

VERSE 335. Seam'd o'er with wounds, &c.]

The Poet here shews his judgment in passing over many instances of the suffe|rings of Ulysses, and relating this piece of conduct, not mention'd by any other Author. The art of Ulysses in extricating himself from difficulties is laid down as the groundwork of the Poem, he is 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, and this is an excellent example of it. This fur|ther

shews the necessity of the appearance of Helen, no other per|son being acquainted with the story. If this stratagem be not a reality, yet it bears the resemblance of it; and Megabysus the Persian (as Eustathius observes) practis'd it, as we learn from history. We may reasonably conjecture that Ulysses was commit|ted to Helen, in hopes that he would discover the affairs of the army more freely to her than any other person: for what could be more agreeable to a Greek, than to be committed to the care of a Greek, as Ulysses was to Helen? By the same conduct the Poet raises the character of Helen, by making her shew her re|pentance by an act of generosity to her countryman. The origi|nal says she gave an oath to Ulysses not to discover him before he was in Safety in the Grecian army: Now this does not imply that she ever discover'd to the Trojans that Ulysses had enter'd Troy: the contrary opinion is most probable; for it cannot be imagin'd but all Troy must have been incens'd greatly against her, had they known that she had conceal'd one of their mor|tal enemies, and dismiss'd him in safety: It was sufficient for U|lysses to take her oath that she would not discover him, 'till he was in security: he left her future conduct to her own discretion. It is probable that she furnish'd Ulysses with a sword, for in his re|turn he slew many Trojans: He came to Troy, observes Eustathius, in rags, and like a slave; and to have conceal'd a sword, would have endanger'd his life upon a discovery of it, and given strong suspicions of an impostor.

XX.

VERSE 351. Exploring then the secrets of the state.]

The word 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 is here used in a large sense: it takes in all the ob|servations Ulysses made during his continuance in Troy; it takes in the designs and counsels of the enemy, his measuring the gates, the height of the walls, the easiest plan for an assault or ambush, the taking away the Palladium, or whatever else a wise man may be suppos'd to observe, or act, in execution of such a stratagem. Eustathius.

XXI.

VERSE 357. For then with dire remorse, &c.]

The conclu|sion of this speech is very artful: Helen ascribes her seduction to Venus, and mentions nothing of Paris. Instead of naming Troy, she conceals it, and only says she was carry'd thither, leaving Troy to the imagination of Menelaus; she suffers not herself to menti|on names so odious now to herself, and ever to Menelaus, as Pa|ris and Troy. She compliments Menelaus very handsomely, and says, that he wanted no accomplishment either in mind or body: It being the nature of man not to resent the injuries of a wife so much upon the account of her being corrupted, but of the preference she gives to another person; he looks upon such a pre|ference as the most affecting part of the injury. Eustathius.

XXII.

VERSE 365. Menelaus's answer.]

The judgment of the Poet in continuing the story concerning Ulysses is not observ'd by any Commentator. Ulysses is the chief Heroe of the Poem, every thing should have a reference to him, otherwise the narra|tion stands still without any advance towards the conclusion of it. The Poet therefore to keep Ulysses in our minds, dwells upon his sufferings and adventures: he supplies his not appearing in the present scene of Action, by setting his character before us, and continually forcing his prudence, patience, and valour upon our observation. He uses the same art and judgment with relation to Achilles in the Iliads: The Heroe of the Poem is absent from the chief scenes of action during much of the time which that Poem comprises, but he is continually brought into the mind of the Reader, by recounting his exploits and glory.

XXIII.

VERSE 375. Some Daemon anxious for the Trojan doom.]

It is the observation of Eustathius, that these words are very artful|ly introduced to vindicate Helen; They imply that what she acted was by compulsion, and to evidence this more clearly, Deiphobus is given her for an attendant as a spy upon her actions, that she might not conceal any thing that should happen, but act her part well by endeavouring to deceive the Greeks in favour of Troy. It is the Daemon, not Helen, that is in fault; this, continues Eustathius, answers many objections that lye against Helen; for if she was a real penitent, as she her self affirms, how comes she to endeavour to deceive the Greeks, by the disguise of her voice, into more mi|sery than had yet arisen from a ten years war? Or indeed is it credible that any person could modulate her voice so artfully as to resemble so many voices? And how could the Greeks enclosed in the wooden horse believe that their wives who were in Greece, could be arriv'd in so short a space as they had been conceal'd there, from the various regions of Greece, and meet together in Troy? Would the wives of these Heroes come into an enemy's country, when the whole army, except these latent Heroes, were retir'd from it? this is ridiculous and impossible. I must confess there is great weight in these objections: But Eustathius answers all by the interposition of the Daemon; and by an idle tradition that Helen had the name of Echo, from the faculty of mimicking sounds; and that this gift was bestow'd upon her by Venus when she married Menelaus, that she might be able to detect him if he should prove false to her bed, by imitating the voice of the suspected person: (but Menelaus had more occasion for this faculty than Helen.) As for the excuse of the Daemon, it equally excuses all crimes: For instance, was Helen false to Menelaus? The Daemon occasion'd it: Does she act an imposture to destroy all her Grecian friends, and even Menelaus? The Daemon compells her to it: The Daemon compells her to go with Deiphobus, to surround the horse thrice, to sound the

sides of it, to endeavour to surprize the latent Greeks by an imi|tion of the voices of their wives, and in short, to act like a per|son that was very sincere in mischief.

Dacier takes another course, and gives up Helen, but remarks the great address of Menelaus. Helen had, said she, long de|sired nothing so much as to return to Lacedaemon; and her heart had long been wholly turn'd to Menelaus: Menelaus is not at all convinc'd of this pretended sincerity; but it would have been too gross, after he had taken her again to his bed, to con|vict her of falshood: He therefore contents himself barely to re|ply that some Daemon, an enemy to the Greeks, had forc'd her to a conduct disagreeable to her sincerity. This (continues Dacier) is an artful, but severe Irony.

As for the objection concerning the impossibility of the Greeks believing their wives could be in Troy; she answers, that the Au|thors of this objection have not sufficiently consider'd human na|ture. The voice of a belov'd person might of a sudden, and by surprize, draw from any person a word involuntary, before he has time to make reflection. This undoubtedly is true, where cir|cumstances make an imposture probable; but here is an impossi|bility; it is utterly impossible to believe the wives of these He|roes could be in Troy. Besides, Menelaus himself tells us, that even he had fallen into the snare, but Ulysses prevented it; this adds to the incredibility of the story, for if this faculty of mi|mickry was given upon his marriage with Helen, it was nothing new to him, he must be suppos'd to be acquainted with it, and consequently be the less liable to surprize: Nay it is not impos|sible, but the experiment might have been made upon him be|fore Helen fled away with Paris.

In short, I think this passage wants a further vindication: the circumstances are low, if not incredible. Virgil, the great imitator of Homer, has given us a very different and more noble descri|ption of the destruction of Troy: he has not thought fit to imi|tate him in this description.

If we allow Helen to act by compulsion, to have fear'd the Trojans, and that Deiphobus was sent as a spy upon her actions; yet this is no vindication of her conduct: she still acts a mean part, and thro' fear becomes an accomplice in endeavouring to betray and ruin the Greeks.

I shall just add, that after the death of Paris, Helen married Deiphobus; that the story of the wooden horse is probably foun|ded upon the taking of Troy by an engine call'd a Horse, as the like engine was call'd a Ram by the Romans.

XXIV.

VERSE 447. Heav'ns! would a soft, inglorious, dastard train.]

Menelaus is fir'd with indignation at the injuries offer'd his friend by the Suitors: he breaks out into an exclamation, and in a just contempt vouchsafes not to mention them: he thinks he fully distinguishes whom he intends, by calling them 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 those cowards. The comparison which he introduces is very just, they are the Fawns, Ulysses is the Lion.

This is the first Simile that Homer has inserted in the Odyssey; but I cannot think it proceeded from a barrenness of invention, or thro'phlegm in the declension of his years, as some have imagin'd. The nature of the Poem requires a difference of stile from the Iliad: The Iliad rushes along like a torrent; the Odyssey flows; gently on like a deep stream, with a smooth tranquility: Achilles is all fire, Ulysses all wisdom.

The Simile in Homer is really beautiful; but in Hobbs ridi|culous.

As when a stag and hind ent'ring the den Of th' absent Lion, lulls his whelps with tales, Of hills and dales; the Lion comes agen, And tears them into pieces with his nails.

Can any thing be more foreign to the sense of Homer, or worse translated? He construes 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, by telling stories of

hills and dales to the Lion's whelps, instead of Juga investigat: but such mistakes are so frequent in Hobbs, that one would almost suspect his learning in Greek: he has disgraced the best Poet, and a very great Historian; Homer, and Thucydides.

XXV.

VERSE 462. As when contending on the Lesbian shore.]

The Poet here gives an account of one of Ulysses's adventures. Philome|lides was King of Lesbos, and Eustathius observes, that there was a tradition that Ulysses and Diomedes slew him, and turn'd a state|ly monument he had rais'd for himself into a public place for the reception of strangers.

XXVI.

VERSE 479.— The Pharian Isle.]

This description of Pha|ros has given great trouble to the Critics and Geographers; it is generally concluded, that the distance of Pharos is about seven Stadia from Alexandria; Ammianus Marcellinus mentions this very passage thus, lib. 22. Insula Pharos, ubi Protea cum Phocarum gre|gibus diversatum Homerus fabulatur inflatius, a civitatis littore mille passibus disparata, or, about a mile distant from the shores. How then comes Homer to affirm it to be distant a full day's sail? Da|cier answers, that Homer might have heard that the Nile, continu|ally bringing down much earthy substance, had enlarg'd the con|tinent: and knowing it not to be so distant in his time, took the liberty of a Poet, and describ'd it as still more distant in the days of Menelaus. But Dacier never sees a mistake in Homer. Had his Poetry been worse if he had describ'd the real distance of Pha|ros? It is allowable in a Poet to disguise the truth, to adorn his story; but what ornament has he given his Poetry by this enlarge|ment? Bochart has fully prov'd that there is no accession to the Continent from any substance that the Nile brings down with it:

the violent agitation of the seas prohibit it from lodging, and forming it self into solidity. Eratosthenes is of opinion, that Ho|mer was ignorant of the mouths of Nile: but Strabo answers, that his silence about them is not an argument of his ignorance, for neither has he ever mention'd where he was born. But Strabo does not enter fully into the meaning of Eratosthenes: Eratost|henes does not mean that Homer was ignorant of the mouths of Nile from his silence, but because he places Pharos at the distance of a whole day's sail from the Continent. The only way to u|nite this inconsistence is to suppose, that the Poet intended to spe|cify the Pelusiac mouth of Nile, from which Pharos stands about a day's sail: but this is submitted to the Critics.

I can't tell whether one should venture to make use of the word Nile in the translation, it is doubtless an Anachronism; that name being unknown in the times of Homer and Menelaus, when the Nile was call'd Aegyptus. Homer in this very book

—〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉

Yet on the other hand, this name of Aegyptus is so little known, that a common Reader would scarce distinguish the river from the country; and indeed universal custom has obtain'd for using the Latin name instead of the Grecian, in many other instances which are equally anachronisms. Witness all the names of the Gods and Goddesses throughout Homer. Jupiter for Zeus, Ju|no for Erè, Neptune for Posidaon, &c.

XXVII.

VERSE 499. Bait the barb'd steel, and from the fishy flood.]

Menelaus says, hunger was so violent among his companions that they were compell'd to eat fish. Plutarch in his Symposiacs ob|serves, that among the Aegyptians, Syrians, and Greeks, to abstain from fish was esteem'd a piece of sanctity; that tho' the Greeks were encamp'd upon the Hellespont, there is not the least intima|tion

that they eat fish, or any sea-provision; and that the com|panions of Ulysses, in the 12th book of the Odyssey, never fought for fish till all their other provisions were consum'd, and that the same necessity compell'd them to eat the herds of the Sun which induced them to taste fish. No fish is ever offer'd in sacri|fice: The Pythagoreans in particular command fish not to be eaten more strictly than any other animal: Fish afford no excuse at all for their destruction, they live as it were in another world, disturb not our air, consume not our fruits, or injure the wa|ters; and therefore the Pythagoreans, who were unwilling to offer violence to any animals, fed very little, or not at all on fishes. I thought it necessary to insert this from Plutarch, because it is an observation that explains other passages in the sequel of the Odyssey.

XXVIII.

VERSE 521. Proteus, a name tremendous o'er the main.]

Eu|stathius enumerates various opinions concerning Proteus; some understand Proteus allegorically to signify the first matter which undergoes all changes; others make him an emblem of true friend|ship, which ought not to be settled till it has been try'd in all shapes: others make Proteus a picture of a flatterer, who takes up all shapes, and suits himself to all forms, in compliance to the temper of the person whom he courts. The Greeks (observes Di|odorus) imagin'd all these metamorphoses of Proteus to have been borrow'd from the practices of the Aegyptian Kings, who were accustom'd to wear the figures of Lions, Bulls or Dragons in their diadems, as emblems of Royalty, and sometimes that of Trees, &c. not so much for ornament as terror. Others took Proteus to be an enchanter; and Eustathius recounts several that were eminent in this art, as Cratisthenes the Phliasian, (which Da|cier renders by mistake Callisthenes the Physician) who when he pleased could appear all on fire, and assume other appearances to the astonishment of the spectators: such also was Xenophon, Scymnus

of Tarentum, Philippides of Syracuse, Heraclitus of Mitylene, and Nymphodorus, all practisers of magical arts; and Eusta|thius recites that the Phocae were made use of in their Incan|tations. Some write that Proteus was an Aegyptian tumbler, who could throw himself into variety of figures and postures; others, a Stage-player; others, that he was a great General, skill'd in all the arts and stratagems of war: Dacier looks upon him to have been an enchanter, or 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉. 'Tis certain from Herodotus, that there was in the times of Menelaus a King named Proteus, who reign'd in Memphis; that Aegypt was always remarkable for those who excell'd in magical Arts; thus Jannes and Jambres chang'd, at least in appearance, a rod into a Serpent, and water into blood: It is not therefore improbable but that Menelaus hearing of him while he was in Aegypt went to consult him as an Enchanter, which kind of men always pretended to fore-know events; This perhaps was the real foundation of the whole story concerning Proteus; the rest is the fiction and embellishment of the Poet, who ascribes to his Proteus whatever the credulity of men usually ascribes to Enchanters.

XXIX.

VERSE 569. But when, his native shape resum'd, &c.]

This is founded upon the practice of Enchanters, who never give their answers, till they have astonish'd the imagination of those who consult them with their juggling delusions. Dacier.

XXX.

VERSE 613. And shouting seize the God.—]

Proteus has, thro' the whole story, been describ'd as a God who knew all things; it may then be ask'd, how comes it that he did not fore|know the violence that was design'd against his own person? and is it not a contradiction, that he who knew Menelaus without information, should not know that he lay in ambush to seize him? The only answer that occurs to me is, that these enchanters never

pretend to have an inherent fore-knowledge of events, but learn things by magical arts, and by recourse to the secrets of their profession; so that Proteus having no suspicion, had not consulted his art, and consequently might be surprized by Mene|laus: So far is agreeable to the pretensions of such deluders: The Poet indeed has drawn him in colours stronger than life; but Poetry adds or detracts at pleasure, and is allow'd frequently to step out of the way, to bring a foreign ornament into the story.

XXXI.

VERSE 635. To Jove—just Hecatombs—&c.]

Homer continually inculcates morality, and piety to the Gods; he gives in this place a great instance of the necessity of it. Menelaus cannot succeed in any of his actions, till he pays due honours to the Gods; the neglect of sacrifice is the occasion of all his cala|mity, and the performance of it opens a way to all his future prosperity.

XXXII.

VERSE 643.— Nile, who from the secret source Of Jove's high seat descends—]

Homer, it must be confess'd, gives the epithet 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 generally to all rivers; if he had used it here peculiarly, there might have been room to have imagin'd that he had been acquainted with the true cause of the inundations of this famous river: The word 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 implies it: For it is now generally agreed, that these prodigious inundations proceed from the vast rains and the melt|ing of the snows on the mountains of the Moon in Aethiopia, a|bout the autumnal Aequinox; when those rains begin to fall, the river by degrees increases, and as they abate, it decreases; the word 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 is therefore peculiarly proper when apply'd to the Nile, for tho' all rivers depend upon the waters that fall from the air, or 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 yet the Nile more especially, for when the rain ceases, the Nile consists only of seven empty channels.

XXXIII.

VERSE 682. And to th' abyss the boaster bore.]

It is in the original, He dy'd having drunk the salt water. This verse has been omitted in many editions of Homer; and the Ancients, says Eu|stathius, blame Aristarchus for not marking it as a verse that ought to be rejected; the simplicity of it consists in the sense, more than in the terms, and it is unworthy of Proteus to treat the death of Ajax with pleasantry, as he seems to do, by adding having drunk salt water: But why may not Proteus be suppos'd to be serious, and the terms 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, to imply no more than that he was drown'd in waves of the ocean? I know only one reason that can give any colour to the objection, viz. it's being possi|bly become a vulgar expression, and used commonly in a ludi|crous sense; then indeed it is to be avoided in Poetry; but it does not follow, because perhaps it might be used in this man|ner in the days of these Critics, that therefore it was so used in the days of Homer. What was poetical in the time of the Poet might be grown vulgar in the time of the Critics.

XXXIV.

VERSE 719. So, whilst he feeds luxurious in the stall, &c.]

Dacier translates 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, by taureau a bull; and misunderstands Eu|stathius who directly says, that in the 2d Iliad the Poet compares Agamemnon to a bull, in this place to an oxe, 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉. The one was undoubtedly design'd to describe the courage and majestic port of a warrior, the o|ther to give us an image of a Prince falling in full peace and plenty, 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉.

XXXV.

VERSE 749. Or in eternal shade if cold he lyes.]

Proteus in the beginning of his relation had said, that one person was alive,

and remain'd enclosed by the ocean: How then comes Menelaus here to say, Give me an account of that other person who is a|live, or dead? Perhaps the sorrow which Menelaus conceived for his friend Ulysses, might make him fear the worst; and Proteus adding enclos'd by the ocean might give a suspicion that he was dead, the words being capable of ambiguity. However this be, it sets the friendship of Menelaus in a strong light: where friend|ship is sincere, a state of uncertainty is a state of fears, we dread even possibilities, and give them an imaginary certainty. Upon this, one of the finest compliments that a Poet ever made to a patron turns, that of Horace to Mecaenas, in the first of the Epodes.

It may not perhaps be disagreeable to the Reader to observe, that Virgil has borrow'd this story of Proteus from Homer, and translated it almost literally. Rapine says, that Homer's descripti|on is more ingenious and fuller of invention, but Virgil's more judicious. I wish that Critic had given his reasons for his opi|nion. I believe in general, the plan of the Iliad and Odyssey is allow'd by the best of Critics to be more perfect than that of the Aeneis. Homer with respect to the unity of time, has the advan|tage very manifestly; Rapine confesses it, and Aristotle proposes him as an example to all Epic Authors. Where then is the su|periority of judgment? Is it that there are more fabulous, I mean incredible, stories in Homer than Virgil? as that of the Cyclops, the ships of Alcinous, &c. Virgil has imitated most of these bold fables, and the story of the ships of Alcinous is not more incre|dible than the transformation of the ships of Aeneas. But this is too large a subject to be discuss'd in the compass of these Annotati|ons. In particular passages I freely allow the preference to Vir|gil, as in the descent of Aeneas into hell, &c. but in this story of Proteus, I cannot see any superiority of judgment. Virgil is little more than a translator; to shew the particulars would be too tedious: I refer it to the Reader to compare the two Authors, and shall only instance in one passage.

〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉

〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, &c.

Cum clamore ruit magno, manicisque jacentem Occupat: ille suae contra non immemor artis, Omnia transformat sese in miracula rerum, Ignemque, horribilemque feram, fluviumque liquentem. &c.

Homer has a manifest advantage in the occasion of the story: The loss of a few bees seems to be a cause too trivial for an un|dertaking so great as the surprize of a Deity; whereas the whole happiness of Menelaus depends upon this consultation of Proteus: This is a far more important cause, and consequently in this re|spect something more is due to Homer, than the sole honour of an inventor.

XXXVI.

VERSE 765. Elysium shall be thine; the blissful plains Of utmost earth, &c.—]

This is the only place in which the Elysian field is mention'd in Homer. The conjectures of the Ancients are very various about it: Plato in his Phaed. places it in coelo stellato, or the region of the Stars; but since Homer fixes it, 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, or (as Mil|ton expresses it) at the earth's green end, I will pass over the con|jectures of others, especially since the 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, by which others express Elysium, confines it to this world.

Strabo, says Eustathius, places it not far from Maurusia, that lies near the Streights: It is suppos'd by Bochart, as Dacier ob|serves, that the fable is of Phaenician extraction, that Alizuth in Hebrew signifies joy or exultation, which word the Greeks adapt|ing to their way of pronunciation, call'd Elysius. If this be true, I should come into an opinion that has much prevail'd, that the Greeks had heard of Paradise from the Hebrews; and that the

Hebrews describing Paradise as a place of Alizuth, or joy, gave occasion to all the fables of the Grecian Elysium.

XXXVII.

VERSE 806. Three sprightly coursers.]

How comes it to pass that Menelaus proffers three horses to Telemachus? This was a compleat set among the Ancients, they used one Pole-horse and two leaders. Eustathius.

XXXVIII.

VERSE 822. That gift our barren rocks will render vain.]

This passage where Telemachus refuses the horses has been much observ'd, and turn'd to a moral sense, viz. as a lesson to men to desire nothing but what is suitable to their conditions. Horace has introduced it into his Epistles.

Haud male Telemachus proles patientis Ulyssei; Non est aptus equis Ithacae locus, ut neque planis Porrectus spatiis, nec multae prodigus herbae: Atride, magis apta tibi tua dona relinquam.

This is the reason why Ulysses (as Eustathius observes upon the 10th of the Iliads) leaves the horses of Rhesus to the disposal of Diomedes; so that the same spirit of Wisdom reign'd in Telema|chus, that was so remarkable in Ulysses. This is the reason why Menelaus smil'd; it was not at the frankness or simplicity of Telemachus, but it was a smile of joy, to see the young Prince inherit his father's wisdom.

It is the remark of Eustathius, that Telemachus is far from ex|alting the nature of his country; he confesses it to be barren, and more barren than the neighbouring Islands; yet that natural and laudable affection which all worthy persons have for their country makes him prefer it to places of a more happy situati|on. This appears to me a replication to what Menelaus had be|fore

offer'd concerning the transplantation of Ulysses to Sparta; this is contain'd in 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉; and then the meaning is, 'Tis true I|thaca is a barren region, yet more desirable than this country of Lacedaemon, this 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉. It is the more probable from the offer of horses which Menelaus had then made, and is also another reason for the smile of Menelaus.

Eustathius remarks that Menelaus, tho' he has expressed the greatest friendship for Ulysses, yet makes no offer to restore the fortunes of his friend by any military assistance; tho' he had a most fair opportunity given him to repay the past kindness of Ulysses to his wife Penelope, and his son Telemachus; and how comes Telemachus not to ask it either of Nestor or Menelaus? He an|swers, that this depended upon the uncertainty they were yet under, concerning the life of Ulysses. But the truer reason in my opinion is, that the nature of Epic Poetry requires a contrary conduct: The Heroe of the Poem is to be the chief agent, and the re-establishment of his fortunes must be owing to his own wisdom and valour. I have enlarg'd upon this already, so that there is no occasion in this place to insist upon it.

XXXIX.

VERSE 896. For ambush'd close, &c.]

We have here ano|ther use which the Poet makes of the voyage of Telemachus. Eu|stathius remarks that these incidents not only diversify but enli|ven the Poem. But it may be ask'd why the Poet makes not use of so fair an opportunity to insert a gallant action of Telemachus, and draw him not as eluding, but defeating his adversaries? The answer is easy; That the Suitors sail'd compleatly arm'd, and Tele|machus unprovided of any weapons: and therefore Homer consults credibility, and forbears to paint his young Heroe in the colours of a Knight in Romance, who upon all disadvantages engages and defeats his opposers. But then to what purpose is this ambush of the Suitors, and what part of the design of the Poem is car|ry'd on by it? The very chief aim of it; To shew the sufferings of Ulysses: He is unfortunate in all relations of life, as a King,

as an husband, and here very eminently as a father; these sufferings are laid down in the proposition of the Odyssey as essential to the Poem, and consequently this ambush laid by the Suitors against the life of Telemachus is an essential ornament.

XL.

VERSE 906. The speech of Penelope.]

Longinus in particu|lar commends this speech as a true picture of a person that feels various emotions of soul, and is born by every gust of passion from sentiment to sentiment, with sudden and unex|pected transitions. There is some obscurity in the Greek, this ari|ses from the warmth with which she speaks, she has not leisure to explain her self fully, a circumstance natural to a person in anger.

Penelope gives a very beautiful picture of Ulysses:

"The best of Princes are allow'd to have their favourites, and give a greater share of affection than ordinary to particular persons. But Ulysses was a father to all his people alike, and loved them all as his children; a father, tho' he bears a more tender affection to one child than to another, yet shews them all an equal treatment; thus also a good King is not sway'd by inclination, but justice, towards all his subjects." Dacier.

One circumstance is very remarkable, and gives us a full view of a person in anger; at the very sight of Medon Penelope flies out into passion, she gives him not time to speak one sylla|ble, but speaks her self as if all the Suitors were present, and re|proaches them in the person of Medon, tho' Medon is just to her and Ulysses; but anger is an undistinguishing passion. What she says of ingratitude, recalls to my memory what is to be found in Laertius: Aristotle being ask'd what thing upon earth soonest grew old? reply'd, an Obligation. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉; respondit, 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉.

XLI.

VERSE 941. Ride the wild waves—]

Were this passage to be render'd literally, it would run thus; climb the swift ships, which are horses to men on the seas. Eustathius observes the allu|sion is very just, and that the only doubt is, whether it be brought in opportunely by Penelope? it may be doubted, if the mind could find leisure to introduce such allusions? Dacier answers, that Penelope speaks thus thro' indignation: The grief that she conceives at the hardiness of men, in finding out a way to pass the seas as well as land, furnished her with these figures very na|turally, for figures are agreeable to passion.

XLII.

VERSE 998. And Isles remote enlarge his old domain.]

Da|cier offers a Criticism upon these last words of Euryclea: It can|not be imagin'd that these fertile fields can be spoken of Ithaca, Plutarch's description of it is entirely contradictory to this:

"I|thaca, says he, is rough and mountainous, fit only to breed goats; upon cultivation it scarce yields any fruits, and these so worthless, as scarce to recompence the labour of gathering."

Homer therefore by this expression intended the other dominions of Ulysses, such as Cephalenia, &c.

But I question not that the whole dominions of Ulysses are included, Ithaca as well as Cephalenia; for tho' Ithaca was moun|tainous, yet the vallies were fruitful, according to the description of it in the 13th of the Odyssey.

The rugged soil allows no level space For flying chariots, or the rapid race; Yet not ungrateful to the Peasant's pain, Suffices fulness to the swelling grain: The loaded trees their various fruits produce, And clustring grapes afford a gen'rous juice, &c.

As for her remark upon 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, it is of no validity; the word stands in opposition to 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, and implies no more than here, or at a distance in general.

XLIII.

VERSE 1015. The Suitors heard, and deem'd the mirthful voice, A signal of her hymenaeal choice.]

It may be ask'd whence this conjecture of the Suitors arises? Pe|nelope is describ'd as weeping grievously, and fainting away, and yet immediately the Suitors conclude she is preparing for the Nuptials. Eustathius answers, that undoubtedly the Suitors un|derstood the Queen had purify'd her self with water, and supplicated the Goddess Minerva, tho' the Poet omits the rela|tion of such little particularities. But whence is it that the Po|et gives a greater share of wisdom to Euryclea than to Penelope? Penelope commands a servant to fly with the news of the absence of Telemachus to Laertes, which could not at all advantage Tele|machus, and only grieve Laertes: Euryclea immediately diverts her from that vain intention, advises her to have recourse to heaven, and not add misery to the already miserable Laertes: This is Wisdom in Euryclea. But it must be confess'd that the other is Nature in Penelope: Euryclea is calm, Penelope in a passion: and Homer would have been a very bad painter of human Nature, if he had drawn Penelope thus heated with passion in the mild temper of Euryclea; grief and resentment give Penelope no time to deli|berate, whereas Euryclea is less concern'd, and consequently capa|ble of thinking with more tranquillity.

XLIV.

VERSE 1022. With rebuke severe Antinous cry'd.]

Antinous speaks thus in return to what had been before said by one of the Suitors concerning Telemachus, viz.

"the Queen little imagines that her son's death approaches;"

he fears lest Penelope should know their intentions, and hinder their measures by raising the subjects of Ithaca that still retain'd their fidelity. Dacier.

XLV.

VERSE 1041. So when the woodman's toyl, &c.]

The Poet, to shew the majesty and high spirit of Penelope, compares her to a Lioness: He manages the allusion very artfully: he describes the Lioness not as exerting any dreadful act of violence, (for such a comparison is only proper to be apply'd to a Heroe) but in|closed by her enemies; which at once shews both her danger and nobleness of spirit under it: It is in the Greek 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, which may signify either, a circle of toils or nets, or a circle of enemies: The former is perhaps preferable, as corresponding best with the condition of Penelope, who was surrounded with the secret ambushes and snares of the Suitors. Eustathius.

XLVI.

VERSE 1047. Minerva, life-like on imbody'd air, Imprest the form, &c.]

We have here an imaginary Being introduc'd by the Poet: The whole is manag'd with great judgment; It is short, because it has not a direct and immediate relation to the progress of the Poem, and because such imaginary entercourses have ever been looked upon as sudden in appearance, and as sudden in vanishing away. The use the Poet makes of it, is to relieve Penelope from the ex|tremity of despair, that she may act her part in the future scenes with courage and constancy. We see it is Minerva who sends this phantom to Penelope to comfort her: Now this is an allegory to express that as soon as the violence of sorrow was over, the mind of Penelope return'd to some degree of tranquilli|ty: Minerva is no more than the result of her own refle|ction and wisdom, which banish'd from her breast those me|lancholy apprehensions. The manner likewise of its intro|duction is not less judicious; the mind is apt to dwell upon those objects in sleep which make a deep impression when awake: This is the foundation of the Poet's fiction; it is

no more than a dream which he here describes, but he cloaths it with a body, gives it a momentary existence, and by this method exalts a low circumstance into dignity and Poetry.

XLVII.

VERSE 1073. And with consummate woe, &c.]

In the ori|ginal, Penelope says plainly, she is more concern'd for her son than her husband. I shall translate Dacier's observation upon this pas|sage. We ought not to reproach Penelope for this seemingly shock|ing declaration, in preferring a son to an husband: Her senti|ment is natural and just; she had all the reason in the world to believe that Ulysses was dead, so that all her hopes, all her affection was entirely placed upon Telemachus: His loss therefore must unavoidably touch her with the highest degree of sensibili|ty; if he is lost, she can have recourse to no second comfort. But why may we not allow the reason which Penelope her self gives for this superiority of sorrow for Telemachus?

"Telemachus, says she, is unexperienc'd in the world, and unable to contend with difficulties; whereas Ulysses knew how to extricate himself up|on all emergencies."

This is a sufficient reason why she should fear more for Telemachus than Ulysses: Her affection might be greater for Ulysses than Telemachus, yet her fears might be strong|er for the son than the husband, Ulysses being capable to sur|mount dangers by experience, Telemachus being new to all diffi|culties.

XLVIII.

VERSE 1089. Enquire not of his doom, &c.]

It may be ask'd what is the reason of this conduct, and why should the Phantom refuse to relate any thing concerning the condition of Ulysses? Eustathius answers, that if the Phantom had related the full truth of the story, the Poem had been at an end; the very constitution of it requires that Ulysses should arrive unknown to all, but chiefly to his wife, as will appear in the prosecution of

the story: The question is very natural for an affectionate wife to make concerning an absent husband; but this being an im|proper place for the discovery, the Poet defers the solution of it, 'till the unravelling of the whole in the conclusion of the Poem.

The action of this book takes up the space of two nights and one day, so that from the opening of the Poem to the introdu|ction of Ulysses are six days compleated.

But how long a time Telemachus afterwards stay'd with Mene|laus, is a question which has employ'd some modern French Cri|tics; one of which maintains, that he stay'd no longer than these two nights at Lacedaemon: But it is evident from the sequel of the Odyssey, that Telemachus arriv'd again at Ithaca two days after U|lysses; but Ulysses was twenty nine days in passing from Ogygia to Ithaca, and consequently during that whole time Telemachus must have been absent from Ithaca. The ground of that Critick's mi|stake was from the silence of Homer as to the exact time of his stay, which was of no importance, being distinguish'd by no action, and only in an Episodical part. The same thing led me into the like error in the 33d Note on the second book, where it is said that Telemachus return'd to Ithaca in less than twelve days.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Antilochus.
• * 1.2

  Apollo.
• * 1.3

  Amphitrite.
• * 1.4

  Minerva.