Chapter VIII: Part II: Page (6)

_Her._ It is thy will then a rash war to wage: May strength and victory on our males attend!

[_Exit_

_King._ Nay, thou shall find the dwellers of this land Are also males, and drink not draughts of ale 930 From barley brewed.[265] [_To the Suppliants._] But ye, and your attendants, Take courage, go within the fencèd city, Shut in behind its bulwark deep of towers; Yea, many houses to the State belong, And I a palace own not meanly built, If ye prefer to live with many others In ease and plenty: or if that suits better, Ye may inhabit separate abodes. Of these two offers that which pleases best Choose for yourselves, and I as your protector, 940 And all our townsmen, will defend the pledge Which our decree has given you. Why wait'st thou For any better authorised than these?

_Chor._ For these thy good deeds done may'st thou in good, All good, abound, great chief of the Pelasgi! But kindly send to us Our father Danaos, brave and true of heart, To counsel and direct. His must the first decision be where we Should dwell, and where to find A kindly home; for ready is each one To speak his word of blame 'gainst foreigners. 950 But may all good be ours! And so with fair repute and speech of men, Free from all taint of wrath, So place yourselves, dear handmaids, in the land, As Danaos hath for each of us assigned Dowry of handmaid slaves.

_Enter_ DANAOS _followed by_ Soldiers

_Dan._ My children, to the Argives ye should pray, And sacrifice, and full libations pour, As to Olympian Gods, for they have proved, With one consent, deliverers: and they heard *All that I did towards those cousins there, 960 *Those lovers hot and bitter. And they gave To me as followers these that bear the spear, That I might have my meed of honour due, And might not die by an assassin's hand A death unlooked-for, and thus leave the land A weight of guilt perpetual: and 'tis fit That one who meets such kindness should return, *From his heart's depths, a nobler gratitude; And add ye this to all already written, Your father's many maxims of true wisdom, That we, though strangers, may in time be known; 970 For as to aliens each man's tongue is apt For evil, and spreads slander thoughtlessly; But ye, I charge you, see ye shame me not, With this your life's bloom drawing all men's eyes. The goodly vintage is full hard to watch, All men and beasts make fearful havoc of it, Nay, birds that fly, and creeping things of earth; And Kypris offers fruitage, dropping ripe, *As prey to wandering lust, nor lets it stay;[266] And on the goodly comeliness of maidens 980 Each passer-by, o'ercome with hot desire, Darts forth the amorous arrows of the eye. And therefore let us suffer nought of this, Through which our ship has ploughed such width of sea, Such width of trouble; neither let us work Shame to ourselves, and pleasure to our foes. This twofold choice of home is open to you: [Pelasgos offers his, the city theirs,] To dwell rent-free. Full easy terms are these: Only, I charge you, keep your father's precepts, Prizing as more than life your chastity. 990

_Chor._ May the high Gods that on Olympos dwell Bless us in all things; but for this our vintage Be of good cheer, my father; for unless The counsels of the Gods work strange device, I will not leave my spirit's former path.

STROPHE I

_Semi-Chor. A_. Go then and make ye glad the high Gods, blessed for ever, Those who rule our towns, and those who watch over our city, And they who dwell by the stream of Erasinos ancient.[267]

_Semi-Chor. B_. And ye, companions true, Take up your strain of song. 1000 Let praise attend this city of Pelasgos; Let us no more, no more adore the mouths of Neilos With these our hymns of praise;

ANTISTROPHE I

_Semi-Chor. A_. Nay, but the rivers here that pour calm streams through our country,[268] Parents of many a son, making glad the soil of our meadows, With wide flood rolling on, in full and abounding richness.

_Semi-Chor. B_. And Artemis the chaste, May she behold our band 1010 With pity; ne'er be marriage rites enforcèd On us by Kythereia: those who hate us, Let that ill prize be theirs.

STROPHE II

_Semi-Chor. A_. Not that our kindly strain does slight to Kypris immortal; For she, together with Hera, as nearest to Zeus is mighty, A goddess of subtle thoughts, she is honoured in mysteries solemn.

_Semi-Chor. B_. Yea, as associates too with that their mother belovèd,1020 Are fair Desire and Suasion,[269] whose pleading no man can gainsay, Yea, to sweet Concord too Aphrodite's power is entrusted, *And the whispering paths of the Loves.

ANTISTROPHE II

_Semi-Chor. A_. Yet am I sore afraid of the ship that chases us wanderers, Of terrible sorrows, and wars that are bloody and hateful; *Why else have they had fair gale for this their eager pursuing?1030

_Semi-Chor. B_. Whate'er is decreed of us, I know that it needs must happen; The mighty purpose of Zeus, unfailing, admits no transgression: *May this fate come to us, as to many women before us, *Fate of marriage and spouse!

STROPHE III

_Semi-Chor. A_. Ah, may great Zeus avert From me all marriage with Ægyptos' sons!

_Semi-Chor. B_. Nay, all will work for good.

_Semi-Chor. A_. Thou glozest that which will no glozing bear.1040

_Semi-Chor. B_. And thou know'st not what future comes to us.

ANTISTROPHE III

_Semi-Chor. A_. How can I read the mind Of mightiest Zeus, to sight all fathomless?

_Semi-Chor. B_. Well-tempered be thy speech!

_Semi-Chor. A_. What mood of calmnesss wilt thou school me in?

_Semi-Chor. B_. Be not o'er-rash in what concerns the Gods.

STROPHE IV

_Semi-Chor. A_. Nay, may our great king Zeus avert that marriage
With husbands whom we hate,
E'en He who, touching her with healing hand,
Freed Io from her pain,
Putting an end from all her wanderings,
Working with kindly force! 1050

ANTISTROPHE IV

_Semi-Chor. B_. And may He give the victory to women!
I choose the better part,
Though mixed with ill; and that the trial end
Justly, as I have prayed,
By means of subtle counsels which God gives
To liberate from ills.[270]

ÆSCHYLOS

-----

Footnote 206:

The daughters of Danaos are always represented as fifty in number. It
seems probable, however, that the vocal chorus was limited to twelve,
the others appearing as mutes.

Footnote 207:

The alluvial deposit of the Delta.

Footnote 208:

Syria is used obviously with a certain geographical vagueness, as
including all that we know as Palestine, and the wilderness to the
south of it, and so as conterminous with Egypt.

Footnote 209:

Elsewhere in Æschylos (_Agam._ 33, _Fr._ 132) we trace allusion to
games played with dice. Here we have a reference to one, the details
of which are not accurately known to us, but which seems to have been
analogous to draughts or chess.

Footnote 210:

See the whole story, given as in prophecy, in the _Prometheus_, v.
865-880.

Footnote 211:

The invocation is addressed—(1) to the Olympian Gods in the brightness
of heaven; (2) to the Chthonian deities in the darkness below the
earth; (3) to Zeus, the preserver, as the supreme Lord of both.

Footnote 212:

An Athenian audience would probably recognise in this a description of
the swampy meadows near the coast of Lerna. The descendants of Io had
come to the very spot where the tragic history of their ancestors had
had its origin.

Footnote 213:

The invocation passes on to Epaphos, as a guardian deity able and
willing to succour his afflicted children.

Footnote 214:

Philomela. See the tale as given in the notes to _Agam._ 1113.

Footnote 215:

“Streams,” as flowing through the shady solitude of the groves which
the nightingale frequented.

Footnote 216:

“Ionian,” as soft and elegiac, in contrast with the more military
character of Dorian music.

Footnote 217:

In the Greek the _paronomasia_ turns upon the supposed etymological
connection between θεὸς and τιθήμι. I have here, as elsewhere,
attempted an analogous rather than identical _jeu de mot_.

Footnote 218:

The Greek word which I have translated “bluff” was one not familiar to
Attic ears, and was believed to be of Kyrenean origin. Æschylos
accordingly puts it into the lips of the daughters of Danaos, as
characteristic more or less of the “alien speech” of the land from
which they came.

Footnote 219:

So in v. 235 Danaos speaks of the “second Zeus” who sits as Judge in
Hades. The feeling to which the Chorus gives utterance is that of—

“Flectere si nequeo superos, Acheronta movebo.”

Footnote 220:

Some mound dedicated to the Gods, with one or more altars and statues
of the Gods on it, is on the stage, and the suppliants are told to
take up their places there. The Gods of conflict who are named below,
Zeus, Apollo, Poseidon, presided generally over the three great games
of Greece. Hermes is added to the list.

Footnote 221:

Comp. _Libation-Pourers_, 1024, _Eumen._ 44.

Footnote 222:

The Argives are supposed to share the love of brevity which we
commonly connect with their neighbours the Laconians.

Footnote 223:

The “mighty bird of Zeus” seems here, from the answer of the Chorus,
to mean not the “eagle” but the “sun,” which roused men from their
sleep as the cock did, so that “cockcrow” and “sunrise” were
synonymous. It is, in any case, striking that Zeus, rather than
Apollo, appears as the Sun-God.

Footnote 224:

The words refer to the myth of Apollo's banishment from heaven and
servitude under Admetos.

Footnote 225:

In the Acropolis at Athens the impress of a trident was seen on the
rock, and was believed to commemorate the time when Poseidon had
claimed it as his own by setting up his weapon there. Something of the
same kind seems here to be supposed to exist at Argos, where a like
legend prevailed.

Footnote 226:

The Hellenic Hermes is distinguished from his Egyptian counterpart,
Thoth, as being different in form and accessories.

Footnote 227:

A possible reference to the Egyptian Osiris, as lord or judge of
Hades. Comp. v. 145.

Footnote 228:

“Shall I,” the Chorus asks, “speak to you as a private citizen, or as
a herald, or as a king?”

Footnote 229:

It would appear from this that the king himself bore the name
Pelasgos. In some versions of the story he is so designated.

Footnote 230:

The lines contain a tradition of the wide extent of the old Pelasgic
rule, including Thessalia, or the Pelasgic Argos, between the mouths
of Peneus and Pindos, Perrhæbia, Dodona, and finally the Apian land or
Peloponnesos.

Footnote 231:

The true meaning of the word “Apian,” as applied to the Peloponnesos,
seems to have been “distant.” Here the myth is followed which
represented it as connected with Apis the son of Telchin (son of
Apollo, in the sense of being a physician-prophet), who had freed the
land from monsters.

Footnote 232:

The description would seem to indicate—(1) that the daughter of Danaos
appeared on the stage as of swarthy complexion; and (2) that Indians,
Æthiopians, Kyprians, and Amazons, were all thought of as in this
respect alike.

Footnote 233:

The line is conjectural, but some question of this kind is implied in
the answer of the Chorus.

Footnote 234:

By sacrificing personal likings to schemes of ambition, men and women
contract marriages which increase their power.

Footnote 235:

The Gods of conflict are the pilots of the ship of the State. The
altar dedicated to them is as its stern: the garlands and wands of
suppliants which adorn it are as the decorations of the vessels.

Footnote 236:

Some editors have seen in this an attempt to enlist the constitutional
sympathies of an Athenian audience in favour of the Argive king, who
will not act without consulting his assembly. There seems more reason
to think that the aim of the dramatist was in precisely the opposite
direction, and that the words which follow set forth his admiration
for the king who can act, as compared with one who is tied and
hampered by restrictions.

Footnote 237:

By an Attic law, analogous in principle to that of the Jews, (Num.
xxxvi. 8; 1 Chron. xxiii. 22), heiresses were absolutely bound to
marry their next of kin, if he claimed his right. The king at once
asserts this as the law which was _primâ facie_ applicable to the
case, and declares himself ready to surrender it if the petitioners
can show that their own municipal law is on the other side. He will
not thrust his country's customs upon foreigners, who can prove that
they live under a different rule, but in the absence of evidence must
act on the law which he is bound officially to recognise.

Footnote 238:

_Sc._, the pollution which the statues of the Gods would contract if
they carried into execution their threat of suicide.

Footnote 239:

Inachos, the river-God of Argos, and as such contrasted with Neilos.

Footnote 240:

_i.e._, “Unconsecrate,” marked out by no barriers, accessible to all,
and therefore seeming to offer but little prospect of a safe asylum.
The place described seems to have been an open piece of turf rather
than a grove of trees.

Footnote 241:

Comp. the narrative as given in _Prometheus Bound_, vv. 660, _et seq._

Footnote 242:

Teuthras' fort, or Teuthrania, is described by Strabo (xii. p. 571) as
lying between the Hellespont and Mount Sipylos, in Magnesia.

Footnote 243:

Kypros, as dedicated to the worship of Aphrodite, and famous for its
wine, and oil, and corn.

Footnote 244:

The question, what caused the mysterious exceptional inundations of
the Nile, occupied, as we see from Herodotos (ii. c. 19-27), the minds
of the Greeks. Of the four theories which the historian discusses,
Æschylos adopts that which referred it to the melting of the snows on
the mountains of central Africa.

Footnote 245:

Typhon, the mythical embodiment of the power of evil, was fabled to
have wandered over Egypt, seeking the body of Osiris. Isis, to baffle
him, placed coffins in all parts of Egypt, all empty but the one which
contained the body.

Footnote 246:

The fame of the Nile for the purity of its water, after the earthy
matter held in solution had been deposited, seems to have been as
great in the earliest periods of its history as it is now.

Footnote 247:

Io was represented as a woman with a heifer's head, and was probably a
symbolic representation of the moon, with her crescent horns.
Sometimes the transformation is described (as in v. 294) in words
which imply a more thorough change.

Footnote 248:

Perhaps—

“For not as subject sitting 'neath the sway
Of strength above his own.”

Footnote 249:

The passage takes its place among the noblest utterances of a faith
passing above the popular polytheism to the thought of one sovereign
Will ruling and guiding all things, as Will—without effort, in the
calmness of a power irresistible.

Footnote 250:

Double, as involving a sin against the laws of hospitality, so far as
the suppliants were strangers—a sin against the laws of kindred, so
far as they might claim by descent the rights of citizenship.

Footnote 251:

If, as has been conjectured, the tragedy was written with a view to
the alliance between Argos and Athens, made in B.C. 461, this choral
ode must have been the centre, if not of the dramatic, at all events
of the political interest of the play.

Footnote 252:

The image is that of a bird of evil omen, perched upon the roof, and
defiling the house, while it uttered its boding cries.

Footnote 253:

The suppliants' boughs, so held as to shade the face from view.

Footnote 254:

The name of Hecate connected Artemis as, on the one side, with the
unseen world of Hades, so, on the other, with childbirth, and the
purifications that followed on it.

Footnote 255:

The name of Lykeian, originally, perhaps, simply representing Apollo
as the God of Light, came afterwards to be associated with the might
of destruction (the Wolf-destroyer) and the darts of pestilence and
sudden death. The prayer is therefore that he, the Destroyer, may
hearken to the suppliants, and spare the people for whom they pray.

Footnote 256:

The “three great laws” were those ascribed to Triptolemos, “to honour
parents, to worship the Gods with the fruits of the earth, to hurt
neither man nor beast.”

Footnote 257:

The Egyptian ships, like those of many other Eastern countries, had
eyes (the eyes of Osiris, as they were called) painted on their bows.

Footnote 258:

A side-thrust, directed by the poet, who had fought at Marathon,
against the growing effeminacy of the Athenian youth, many of whom
were learning to shrink from all activity and exposure that might
spoil their complexions. Comp. Plato, _Phædros_, p. 239.

Footnote 259:

The saying is somewhat dark, but the meaning seems to be that if the
“dogs” of Egypt are strong, the “wolves” of Argos are stronger; that
the wheat on which the Hellenes lived gave greater strength to limbs
and sinew than the “byblos fruit” on which the Egyptian soldiers and
sailors habitually lived. Some writers, however, have seen in the last
line, rendered—

“The byblos fruit not always bears full ear,”

a proverb like the English,

“There's many a slip
'Twixt the cup and the lip.”

Footnote 260:

The words recall the vision of the “seven well-favoured kine and
fat-fleshed,” which “came out of the river,” as Pharaoh dreamed (Gen.
xli. 1, 2), and which were associated so closely with the fertility
which it ordinarily produced through the whole extent of the valley of
the Nile.

Footnote 261:

Two dangerous low headlands seem to have been known by this name, one
on the coast of Kilikia, the other on that of the Thrakian Chersonese.

Footnote 262:

No traces of ships of this structure are found in Egyptian art; but,
if the reading be right, it implies the existence of boats of some
kind, so built that they could be steered from either end.

Footnote 263:

Hermes, the guardian deity of heralds, is here described by the
epithet which marked him out as being also the patron of detectives.
Every stranger arriving in a Greek port had to place himself under a
_proxenos_ or patron of some kind. The herald, having no _proxenos_
among the citizens, appeals to his patron deity.

Footnote 264:

The words refer to the custom of nailing decrees, proclamations,
treaties, and the like, engraved on metal or marble, upon the walls of
temples or public buildings. Traces of the same idea may possibly be
found in the promise to Eliakim that he shall be “as a nail in a sure
place” (Isa. xxii. 23), in the thanksgiving of Ezra that God had given
His people “a nail in his holy place” (Ezra ix. 8).

Footnote 265:

As before, the bread of the Hellenes was praised to the disparagement
of the “byblos fruit” of Egypt, so here their wine to that of the
Egyptian beer, which was the ordinary drink of the lower classes.

Footnote 266:

The words present a striking parallelism to the erotic imagery of the
_Song of Solomon_: “Take us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil our
vines, for our vines have tender grapes.” (ii. 15).

Footnote 267:

The Erasinos was supposed to rise in Arcadia, in Mount Stymphalos, to
disappear below the earth, and to come to sight again in Argolis.

Footnote 268:

In this final choral ode of the _Suppliants_, as in that of the _Seven
against Thebes_, we have the phenomenon of the division of the Chorus,
hitherto united, into two sections of divergent thought and purpose.
Semi-Chorus A. remains steadfast in its purpose of perpetual
virginity; Semi-Chorus B. relents, and is ready to accept wedlock.

Footnote 269:

The two names were closely connected in the local worship of Athens,
the temples of Aphrodite and Peitho (Suasion) standing at the
south-west angle of the Acropolis. If any special purpose is to be
traced in the invocation, we may see it in the poet's desire to bring
out the nobler, more ethical side of Aphrodite's attributes, in
contrast with the growing tendency to look on her as simply the
patroness of brutal lust.

Footnote 270:

The play, as acted, formed part of a trilogy, and the next play, the
_Danaids_, probably contained the sequel of the story, the acceptance
by the Suppliants of the sons of Ægyptos in marriage, the plot of
Danaos for the destruction of the bridegrooms on the wedding-night,
and the execution of the deed of blood by all but Hypermnestra.

AGAMEMNON

DRAMATIS PERSONÆ

_Watchman_
CLYTÆMNESTRA
AGAMEMNON
_Chorus of Argive Elders_
_Herald_ (TALTHYBIOS)
CASSANDRA
ÆGISTHOS

_ARGUMENT.—Ten years had passed since Agamemnon, son of Atreus, king of Mykenæ, had led the Hellenes to Troïa to take vengeance on Alexandros (also known as Paris), son of Priam. For Paris had basely wronged Menelaos, king of Sparta, Agamemnon's brother, in that, being received by him as a guest, he enticed his wife Helena to leave her lord and go with him to Troïa. And now the tenth year had come, and Paris was slain, and the city of the Troïans was taken and destroyed, and Agamemnon and the Hellenes were on their way homeward with the spoil and prisoners they had taken. But meanwhile Clytæmnestra too, Agamemnon's queen, had been unfaithful, and had taken as her paramour Ægisthos, son of that Thyestes whom Atreus, his brother, had made to eat, unknowing, of the flesh of his own children. And now, partly led by her adulterer, and partly seeking to avenge the death of her daughter Iphigeneia, whom Agamemnon had sacrificed to appease the wrath of Artemis, and partly also jealous because he was bringing back Cassandra, the daughter of Priam, as his concubine, she plotted with Ægisthos against her husband's life. But this was done secretly, and she stationed a guard on the roof of the royal palace to give notice when he saw the beacon-fires, by which Agamemnon had promised that he would send tidings that Troïa was taken._

_Note._—The unfaithfulness of Clytæmnestra and the murder of Agamemnon had entered into the Homeric cycle of the legends of the house of Atreus. In the _Odyssey_, however, Ægisthos is the chief agent in this crime (_Odyss._ iii. 264, iv. 91, 532, xi. 409); and the manner of it differs from that which Æschylos has adopted. Clytæmnestra first appears as slaying both her husband and Cassandra in Pindar (_Pyth._ xi. 26).

SCENE.—Argos. _The Palace of_ AGAMEMNON; _statues of the Gods
in front. Watchman on the roof. Time, night._

_Watchman._ I ask the Gods a respite from these toils, This keeping at my post the whole year round, Wherein, upon the Atreidæ's roof reclined, Like dog, upon my elbow, I have learnt To know night's goodly company of stars, And those bright lords that deck the firmament, And winter bring to men, and harvest-tide; [The rising and the setting of the stars.] And now I watch for sign of beacon-torch, The flash of fire that bringeth news from Troïa, And tidings of its capture. So prevails *A woman's manly-purposed, hoping heart; 10 And when I keep my bed of little ease, Drenched with the dew, unvisited by dreams, (For fear, instead of sleep, my comrade is, So that in sound sleep ne'er I close mine eyes,) And when I think to sing a tune, or hum, (My medicine of song to ward off sleep,) Then weep I, wailing for this house's chance, No more, as erst, right well administered. Well! may I now find blest release from toils, 20 When fire from out the dark brings tidings good.

[_Pauses, then springs up suddenly, seeing a
light in the distance_

Hail! thou torch-bearer of the night, that shedd'st Light as of morn, and bringest full array Of many choral bands in Argos met, Because of this success. Hurrah! hurrah! So clearly tell I Agamemnon's queen, With all speed rising from her couch to raise Shrill cry of triumph o'er this beacon-fire Throughout the house, since Ilion's citadel Is taken, as full well that bright blaze shows. 30 I, for my part, will dance my prelude now;

[_Leaps and dances_

For I shall score my lord's new turn of luck, This beacon-blaze may throw of triple six.[271] Well, would that I with this mine hand may touch The dear hand of our king when he comes home! As to all else, the word is “Hush!” An ox[272] Rests on my tongue; had the house a voice 'Twould tell too clear a tale. I'm fain to speak To those who know, forget with those who know not.

[_Exit_

_Enter Chorus of twelve Argive elders, chanting as they march to take
up their position in the centre of the stage. A procession of
women bearing torches is seen in the distance_

Lo! the tenth year now is passing 40 Since, of Priam great avengers, Menelaos, Agamemnon, Double-throned and doubled-sceptred, Power from sovran Zeus deriving— Mighty pair of the Atreidæ— Raised a fleet of thousand vessels Of the Argives from our country, Potent helpers in their warfare, Shouting cry of Ares fiercely; E'en as vultures shriek who hover, Wheeling, whirling o'er their eyrie, 50 In wild sorrow for their nestlings, With their oars of stout wings rowing, Having lost the toil that bound them To their callow fledglings' couches. But on high One,—or Apollo, Zeus, or Pan,—the shrill cry hearing, Cry of birds that are his clients,[273] Sendeth forth on men transgressing, Erinnys, slow but sure avenger; So against young Alexandros[274] Atreus' sons the great King sendeth, Zeus, of host and guest protector: 60 He, for bride with many a lover, Will to Danai give and Troïans Many conflicts, men's limbs straining, When the knee in dust is crouching, And the spear-shaft in the onset Of the battle snaps asunder. But as things are now, so are they, So, as destined, shall the end be. Nor by tears, nor yet libations Shall he soothe the wrath unbending Caused by sacred rites left fireless.[275] 70 We, with old frame little honoured, Left behind that host are staying, Resting strength that equals childhood's On our staff: for in the bosom *Of the boy, life's young sap rushing, Is of old age but the equal; Ares not as yet is found there: And the man in age exceeding, When the leaf is sere and withered, Goes with three feet on his journey;[276] 80 Not more Ares-like than boyhood, Like a day-seen dream he wanders.

[_Enter_ CLYTÆMNESTRA, _followed by the procession
of torch-bearers_

Thou, of Tyndareus the daughter, Queen of Argos, Clytæmnestra, What has happened? what news cometh? What perceiving, on what tidings Leaning, dost thou put in motion All this solemn, great procession? Of the Gods who guard the city, Those above and those beneath us, Of the heaven, and of the market, 90 Lo! with thy gifts blaze the altars; And through all the expanse of Heaven, Here and there, the torch-fire rises, With the flowing, pure persuasion Of the holy unguent nourished, *And the chrism rich and kingly From the treasure-store's recesses. Telling what of this thou canst tell, What is right for thee to utter, Be a healer of my trouble, Trouble now my soul disturbing, 100 *While anon fond hope displaying Sacrificial signs propitious, Wards off care that no rest knoweth, Sorrow mind and heart corroding.

[_The Chorus, taking their places round the central
thymele, begin their song_[277]

STROPHE

Able am I to utter, setting forth
The might from omens sprung
*What met the heroes as they journeyed on,
(For still, by God's great gift,
My age, yet linked with strength,
*Breathes suasive power of song,)
How the Achæans' twin-throned majesty,
Accordant rulers of the youth of Hellas, 110
With spear and vengeful hand,
Were sent by fierce, strong bird 'gainst Teucrian shore,
Kings of the birds to kings of ships appearing,
One black, with white tail one,
Near to the palace, on the spear-hand side,
On station seen of all,
A pregnant hare devouring with her young,
Robbed of all runs to come:
Wail as for Linos, wail, wail bitterly,
And yet may good prevail![278] 120

ANTISTROPHE

And the wise prophet of the army seeing
The brave Atreidæ twain
Of diverse mood, knew those that tore the hare,
And those that led the host;
And thus divining spake:
“One day this armament
Shall Priam's city sack, and all the herds
Owned by the people, countless, by the towers,
Fate shall with force lay low.
Only take heed lest any wrath of Gods 130
Blunt the great curb of Troïa yet encamped,
Struck down before its time;
For Artemis the chaste that house doth hate,
Her father's wingèd hounds,
Who slay the mother with her unborn young,
And loathes the eagles' feast.
Wail as for Linos, wail, wail bitterly;
And yet may good prevail!

EPODE

“*For she, the fair One, though so kind of heart
*To fresh-dropt dew from mighty lion's womb,[279]
And young that suck the teats
Of all that roam the fields, 140
*Yet prays Him bring to pass
The portents of those birds,
The omens good yet also full of dread.
And Pæan I invoke
As Healer, lest she on the Danai send
Delays that keep the ships
Long time with hostile blasts,
So urging on a new, strange sacrifice,
Unblest, unfestivalled,[280]
By natural growth artificer of strife,
Bearing far other fruit than wife's true fear,
For there abideth yet,
Fearful, recurring still,
Ruling the house, full subtle, unforgetting,
Vengeance for children slain.”[281] 150
Such things, with great good mingled, Calchas spake,
In voice that pierced the air,
As destined by the birds that crossed our path
To this our kingly house:
And in accord with them,
Wail as for Linos, wail, wail bitterly;
And yet may good prevail.

STROPHE I

O Zeus—whate'er He be,[282]
If that Name please Him well,
By that on Him I call:
Weighing all other names I fail to guess
Aught else but Zeus, if I would cast aside,
Clearly, in every deed,
From off my soul this idle weight of care. 160

ANTISTROPHE I

Nor He who erst was great,[283]
Full of the might to war,
*Avails now; He is gone;
And He who next came hath departed too,
His victor meeting; but if one to Zeus,
High triumph-praise should sing,
His shall be all the wisdom of the wise;

STROPHE II

Yea, Zeus, who leadeth men in wisdom's way, 170 And fixeth fast the law, That pain is gain; And slowly dropping on the heart in sleep Comes woe-recording care, And makes the unwilling yield to wiser thoughts: And doubtless this too comes from grace of Gods, *Seated in might upon their awful thrones.

ANTISTROPHE II

And then of those Achæan ships the chief,[284] The elder, blaming not Or seer or priest; But tempered to the fate that on him smote.... 180 When that Achæan host Were vexed with adverse winds and failing stores, Still kept where Chalkis in the distance lies, And the vexed waves in Aulis ebb and flow;

STROPHE III

And breezes from the Strymon sweeping down, Breeding delays and hunger, driving forth Our men in wandering course, On seas without a port. Sparing nor ships, nor rope, nor sailing gear, With doubled months wore down the Argive host; 190 And when, for that wild storm, Of one more charm far harder for our chiefs The prophet told, and spake of Artemis,[285] In tone so piercing shrill, The Atreidæ smote their staves upon the ground, And could not stay their tears.

ANTISTROPHE III

And then the old king lifted up his voice, And spake, “Great woe it is to disobey; Great too to slay my child, 200 The pride and joy of home, Polluting with the streams of maiden's blood Her father's hands upon the altar steps. What course is free from ill? How lose my ships and fail of mine allies? 'Tis meet that they with strong desire should seek A rite the winds to soothe, E'en though it be with blood of maiden pure; May all end well at last!” 210

STROPHE III

So when he himself had harnessed
To the yoke of Fate unbending,
With a blast of strange, new feeling,
Sweeping o'er his heart and spirit,
Aweless, godless, and unholy,
He his thoughts and purpose altered
To full measure of all daring,
(Still base counsel's fatal frenzy,
Wretched primal source of evils,
Gives to mortal hearts strange boldness,)
And at last his heart he hardened
His own child to slay as victim,
Help in war that they were waging,
To avenge a woman's frailty,
Victim for the good ship's safety.

ANTISTROPHE III

All her prayers and eager callings, 220
On the tender name of Father,
All her young and maiden freshness,
They but set at nought, those rulers,
In their passion for the battle.
And her father gave commandment
To the servants of the Goddess,
When the prayer was o'er, to lift her,
Like a kid, above the altar,
In her garments wrapt, face downwards,—[286]
Yea, to seize with all their courage,
And that o'er her lips of beauty
Should be set a watch to hinder
Words of curse against the houses,
With the gag's strength silence-working.[287]

STROPHE IV

And she upon the ground
Pouring rich folds of veil in saffron dyed, 230
Cast at each one of those who sacrificed
A piteous glance that pierced,
Fair as a pictured form;[288]
And wishing,—all in vain,—
To speak; for oftentimes
In those her father's hospitable halls
She sang, a maiden pure with chastest song,
*And her dear father's life
That poured its threefold cup of praise to God,[289]
Crowned with all choicest good,
She with a daughter's love
Was wont to celebrate.

ANTISTROPHE IV

What then ensued mine eyes
Saw not, nor may I tell, but Calchas' arts 240
Were found not fruitless. Justice turns the scale
For those to whom through pain
At last comes wisdom's gain.
*But for our future fate,
*Since help for it is none,
*Good-bye to it before it comes, and this
Has the same end as wailing premature;
For with to-morrow's dawn
It will come clear; may good luck crown our fate!
So prays the one true guard,
Nearest and dearest found,
Of this our Apian land.[290]

[_The Chief of the Chorus turns to_ CLYTÆMNESTRA, _and
her train of handmaids, who are seen
approaching_

_Chor._ I come, O Clytæmnestra, honouring Thy majesty: 'tis meet to pay respect To a chief's wife, the man's throne empty left: 250 But whether thou hast heard good news, or else In hopes of tidings glad dost sacrifice, I fain would hear, yet will not silence blame.

_Clytæm._ May Morning, as the proverb runs, appear Bearing glad tidings from his mother Night![291] Joy thou shalt learn beyond thy hope to hear; For Argives now have taken Priam's city.

_Chor._ What? Thy words sound so strange they flit by me.

_Clytæm._ The Achæans hold Troïa. Speak I clear enough? 260

_Chor._ Joy creeps upon me, drawing forth my tears.

_Clytæm._ Of loyal heart thine eyes give token true.

_Chor._ What witness sure hast thou of these events?

_Clytæm._ Full clear (how else?) unless the God deceive.[292]

_Chor._ Reliest thou on dreams or visions seen?

_Clytæm._ I place no trust in mind weighed down with sleep.[293]

_Chor._ Hath then some wingless omen charmed thy soul?[294]

_Clytæm._ My mind thou scorn'st, as though 'twere but a girl's.

_Chor._ What time has passed since they the city sacked?

_Clytæm._ This very night, the mother of this morn. 270

_Chor._ What herald could arrive with speed like this?

_Clytæm._ Hephæstos flashing forth bright flames from Ida: Beacon to beacon from that courier-fire Sent on its tidings; Ida to the rock[295] Hermæan named, in Lemnos: from the isle The height of Athos, dear to Zeus, received A third great torch of flame, and lifted up, So as on high to skim the broad sea's back, The stalwart fire rejoicing went its way; The pine-wood, like a sun, sent forth its light Of golden radiance to Makistos' watch; 280 And he, with no delay, nor unawares Conquered by sleep, performed his courier's part: Far off the torch-light, to Eurîpos' straits Advancing, tells it to Messapion's guards: They, in their turn, lit up and passed it on, Kindling a pile of dry and aged heath. Still strong and fresh the torch, not yet grown dim, Leaping across Asôpos' plain in guise Like a bright moon, towards Kithæron's rock, Roused the next station of the courier flame. 290 And that far-travelled light the sentries there Refused not, burning more than all yet named: And then the light swooped o'er Gorgôpis' lake, And passing on to Ægiplanctos' mount, Bade the bright fire's due order tarry not; And they, enkindling boundless store, send on A mighty beard of flame, and then it passed The headland e'en that looks on Saron's gulf, Still blazing. On it swept, until it came To Arachnæan heights, the watch-tower near; 300 Then here on the Atreidæ's roof it swoops, This light, of Ida's fire no doubtful heir. Such is the order of my torch-race games; One from another taking up the course,[296] But here the winner is both first and last; And this sure proof and token now I tell thee, Seeing that my lord hath sent it me from Troïa.

_Chor._ I to the Gods, O Queen, will pray hereafter, But fain would I hear all thy tale again, E'en as thou tell'st, and satiate my wonder. 310

_Clytæm._ This very day the Achæans Troïa hold. I trow full diverse cry pervades the town: Pour in the same vase vinegar and oil, *And you would call them enemies, not friends; And so from conquerors and from captives now The cries of varied fortune one may hear. For these, low-fallen on the carcases Of husbands and of brothers, children too By aged fathers, mourn their dear ones' death, And that with throats that are no longer free. 320 And those the hungry toil of sleepless guard, After the battle, at their breakfast sets; Not billeted in order fixed and clear, But just as each his own chance fortune grasps, They in the captive houses of the Troïans Dwell, freed at last from all the night's chill frosts, And dews of heaven, for now, poor wretches, they Will sleep all night without the sentry's watch; And if they reverence well the guardian Gods Of that new-conquered country, and their shrines, 330 Then they, the captors, will not captured be. Ah! let no evil lust attack the host Conquered by greed, to plunder what they ought not: For yet they need return in safety home, Doubling the goal to run their backward race.[297] *But should the host come sinning 'gainst the Gods, Then would the curse of those that perishèd Be watchful, e'en though no quick ill might fall. Such thoughts are mine, mere woman though I be. May good prevail beyond all doubtful chance! 340 For I have got the blessing of great joy.

_Chor._ Thou, lady, kindly, like a sage, dost speak, And I, on hearing thy sure evidence, Prepare myself to give the Gods due thanks; For they have wrought full meed for all our toil.

[_Exit_ CLYTÆM. _with her train_

O Zeus our King! O Night beloved,
Mighty winner of great glories,
Who upon the towers of Troïa
Casted'st snare of closest meshes,
So that none full-grown or youthful 350
Could o'erleap the net of bondage,
Woe of universal capture;—
Zeus, of host and guest protector,
Who hath brought these things, I worship;
He long since on Alexandros
Stretched his bow that so his arrow
Might not sweep at random, missing,
Or beyond the stars shoot idly.

STROPHE I

Yes, one may say, 'tis Zeus whose blow they feel;
This one may clearly trace:
They fared as He decreed:
Yea, one there was who said, 360
“The Gods deign not to care for mortal men[298]
By whom the grace of things inviolable
Is trampled under foot.”
No fear of God had he:
*Now is it to the children manifest[299]
Of those who, overbold,
Breathed rebel War beyond the bounds of Right,
Their houses overfilled with precious store
*Above the golden mean.
*Ah! let our life be free from all that hurts, 370
So that for one who gains
Wisdom in heart and soul,
That lot may be enough.
Since still there is no bulwark strong in wealth
Against destruction's doom,
For one who in the pride of wantonness
Spurns the great altar of the Right and Just.

ANTISTROPHE I

Him woeful, subtle Impulse urges on,
Resistless in her might,
Atè's far-scheming child:
All remedy is vain.
It is not hidden, but is manifest,
That mischief with its horrid gleaming light; 380
And, like to worthless bronze,[300]
By friction tried and tests,
It turns to tarnished blackness in its hue:
Since, boy-like, he pursues
A bird upon its flight, and so doth bring
Upon his city shame intolerable:
And no God hears his prayer,
But bringeth low the unjust,
Who deals with deeds like this.
Thus Paris came to the Atreidæ's home, 390
And stole its queen away,
And so left brand of shame indelible
Upon the board where host and guest had sat.

STROPHE II

She, leaving to her countrymen at home
Wild din of spear and shield and ships of war,
And bringing, as her dower,
To Ilion doom of death,
Passed very swiftly through the palace gates,
Daring what none should dare;
And many a wailing cry
They raised, the minstrel prophets of the house,
“Woe for that kingly home!
Woe for that kingly home and for its chiefs! 400
Woe for the marriage-bed and traces left
Of wife who loved her lord!”
*There stands he silent; foully wronged and yet
*Uttering no word of scorn,[301]
*In deepest woe perceiving she is gone;
And in his yearning love
For one beyond the sea,
A ghost shall seem to queen it o'er the house;
The grace of sculptured forms[302]
Is loathèd by her lord,
And in the penury of life's bright eyes
All Aphroditè's charm
To utter wreck has gone.

ANTISTROPHE II

And phantom shades that hover round in dreams 410
Come full of sorrow, bringing vain delight;
For vain it is, when one
Sees seeming shows of good,
And gliding through his hands the dream is gone,
After a moment's space,
On wings that follow still
Upon the path where sleep goes to and fro.
Such are the woes at home
Upon the altar hearth, and worse than these.
But on a wider scale for those who went
From Hellas' ancient shore,
A sore distress that causeth pain of heart 420
Is seen in every house.
Yea, many things there are that touch the quick:
For those whom each did send
He knoweth; but, instead
Of living men, there come to each man's home
Funeral urns alone,
And ashes of the dead.

STROPHE III

For Ares, trafficking for golden coin
The lifeless shapes of men,
And in the rush of battle holding scales,
Sends now from Ilion
Dust from the funeral pyre,
A burden sore to loving friends at home,
And bitterly bewailed,
Filling the brazen urn
With well-smoothed ashes in the place of men; 430
And with high praise they mourn
This hero skilled and valiant in the fight,
And that who in the battle nobly fell,
All for another's wife:
And other words some murmur secretly;
And jealous discontent
Against the Atreidæ, champions in the suit,
Creeps on all stealthily;
And some around the wall,
In full and goodly form have sepulture
There upon Ilion's soil, 440
And their foes' land inters its conquerors.

ANTISTROPHE III

And so the murmurs of their subjects rise
With sullen discontent,
And do the dread work of a people's curse;
And now my boding fear
Awaits some news of ill,
As yet enwrapt in blackness of the night.
Not heedless are the Gods
Of shedders of much blood,
And the dark-robed Erinnyes in due time,
By adverse chance of life, 450
Place him who prospers in unrighteousness
In gloom obscure; and once among the unseen,
There is no help for him:
Fame in excess is but a perilous thing;
For on men's quivering eyes
Is hurled by Zeus the blinding thunderbolt.
I praise the good success
That rouses not God's wrath;
Ne'er be it mine a city to lay waste.[303]
Nor, as a prisoner, see
My life wear on beneath another's power!

EPODE

And now at bidding of the courier flame, The herald of good news, A rumour swift spreads through the city streets, 460 But who knows clearly whether it be true, Or whether God has mingled lies with it? Who is so childish or so reft of sense, As with his heart a-glow At that fresh uttered message of the flame, Then to wax sad at changing rumour's sound? It suits the mood that sways a woman's mind To pour thanksgiving ere the truth is seen: Quickly, with rapid steps, too credulous, The limit which a woman sets to trust Advances evermore;[304] And with swift doom of death 470 A rumour spread by woman perishes.

[_As the Chorus ends, a Herald is seen approaching,
his head wreathed with olive_[305]

Soon we shall know the sequence of the torches Light-giving, and of all the beacon-fires, If they be true; or if, as 'twere a dream, This sweet light coming hath beguiled our minds. I see a herald coming from the shore, With olive boughs o'ershadowed, and the dust,[306] Dry sister-twin of mire,[307] announces this, That neither without voice, nor kindling blaze Of wood upon the mountains, he will signal 480 With smoke from fire, but either he will come, With clear speech bidding us rejoice, or else ... [_pauses_ The word opposed to this I much mislike. Nay, may good issue good beginnings crown! Who for our city utters other prayers, May he himself his soul's great error reap!

_Herald._ Hail, soil of this my Argive fatherland. Now in the light of the tenth year I reach thee, Though many hopes are shattered, gaining one. For never did I think in Argive land To die, and share the tomb that most I craved. 490 Now hail! thou land; and hail! thou light of day: Zeus our great ruler, and thou Pythian king, No longer darting arrows from thy bow.[308] Full hostile wast thou by Scamandros' banks, Now be thou Saviour, yea, and Healer found, O king Apollo! and the Gods of war, These I invoke; my patron Hermes too, Dear herald, whom all heralds reverence,— Those heroes, too, that sent us,[309]—graciously To welcome back the host that war has spared. 500 Hail, O ye royal dwellings, home beloved! Ye solemn thrones, and Gods who face the sun![310] If e'er of old, with cheerful glances now After long time receive our king's array. For he is come, in darkness bringing light To you and all, our monarch, Agamemnon. Salute him with all grace; for so 'tis meet, Since he hath dug up Troïa with the spade Of Zeus the Avenger, and the plain laid waste; Fallen their altars and the shrines of Gods; 510 The seed of all the land is rooted out, This yoke of bondage casting over Troïa, Our chief, the elder of the Atreidæ, comes, A man full blest, and worthiest of high honour Of all that are. For neither Paris' self, Nor his accomplice city now can boast Their deed exceeds its punishment. For he, Found guilty on the charge of rape and theft,[311] Hath lost his prize and brought his father's house, With lands and all, to waste and utter wreck; And Priam's sons have double forfeit paid.[312] 520

_Chor._ Joy, joy, thou herald of the Achæan host!

_Her._ All joy is mine: I shrink from death no more.

_Chor._ Did love for this thy fatherland so try thee?

_Her._ So that mine eyes weep tears for very joy,*

_Chor._ Disease full sweet then this ye suffered from ...

_Her._ How so? When taught, I shall thy meaning master.

_Chor._ Ye longed for us who yearned for you in turn.

_Her._ Say'st thou this land its yearning host yearned o'er?

_Chor._ Yea, so that oft I groaned in gloom of heart.

_Her._ Whence came these bodings that an army hates? 530

_Chor._ Silence I've held long since a charm for ill.

_Her._ How, when your lords were absent, feared ye any?

_Chor._ To use thy words, death now would welcome be.

_Her._ Good is the issue; but in so long time Some things, one well might say, have prospered well, And some give cause for murmurs. Save the Gods, Who free from sorrow lives out all his life? For should I tell of toils, and how we lodged Full hardly, seldom putting in to shore,[313] And then with couch full hard.... What gave us not Good cause for mourning? What ill had we not 540 As daily portion? And what passed on land, That brought yet greater hardship: for our beds Were under our foes' walls, and meadow mists From heaven and earth still left us wringing wet, A constant mischief to our garments, making Our hair as shaggy as the beasts'.[314] And if One spoke of winter frosts that killed the birds, By Ida's snow-storms made intolerable,[315] Or heat, when Ocean in its noontide couch Windless reclined and slept without a wave.... But why lament o'er this? Our toil is past; 550 Past too is theirs who in the warfare fell, So that no care have they to rise again. Why should I count the number of the dead, Or he that lives mourn o'er a past mischance? To change and chance I bid a long Farewell: With us, the remnant of the Argive host, Good fortune wins, no ills as counterpoise. So it is meet to this bright sun we boast, Who travel homeward over land and sea; “The Argive host who now have captured Troïa, 560 These spoils of battle[316] to the Gods of Hellas Hang on their pegs, enduring prize and joy.”[317] Hearing these things we ought to bless our country And our commanders; and the grace of Zeus That wrought this shall be honoured. My tale's told.

_Chor._ Thy words o'ercome me, and I say not nay; To learn good keeps youth's freshness with the old. 'Tis meet these things should be a special care To Clytæmnestra and the house, and yet That they should make me sharer in their joy.

_Enter_ CLYTÆMNESTRA

_Clytæm._ I long ago for gladness raised my cry, 570 When the first fiery courier came by night, Telling of Troïa taken and laid waste: And then one girding at me spake, “Dost think, Trusting in beacons, Troïa is laid waste? This heart elate is just a woman's way.” In words like these they made me out distraught; Yet still I sacrificed, and with a strain Shrill as a woman's, they, now here, now there, Throughout the city hymns of blessing raised In shrines of Gods, and lulled to gentle sleep The fragrant flame that on the incense fed. 580 And now why need'st thou lengthen out thy words? I from the king himself the tale shall learn; And that I show all zeal to welcome back My honoured lord on his return (for what Is brighter joy for wife to see than this, When God has brought her husband back from war, To open wide her gates?) tell my lord this, “To come with all his speed, the city's idol;” And “may he find a faithful wife at home, Such as he left her, noble watch-dog still 590 For him, and hostile to his enemies; And like in all things else, who has not broken One seal of his in all this length of time.”[318] No pleasure have I known, nor scandal ill With any other more than ... stains on bronze.[319] Such is my vaunt, and being full of truth, Not shameful for a noble wife to speak.[320] [_Exit_

_Chor._ [_to Herald_.] She hath thus spoken in thy hearing now A goodly word for good interpreters. But tell me, herald, tell of Menelaos, 600 If, coming home again in safety he Is with you, the dear strength of this our land.

_Her._ I cannot make report of false good news, So that my friends should long rejoice in it.

_Chor._ Ah! could'st thou good news speak, and also true! These things asunder are not well concealed.

_Her._ The chief has vanished from the Achæan host, He and his ship. I speak no falsehood here.

_Chor._ In sight of all when he from Ilion sailed? Or did a storm's wide evil part him from you? 610

_Her._ Like skilful archer thou hast hit the mark, And in few words has told of evil long.

_Chor._ And was it of him as alive or dead The whisper of the other sailors ran?

_Her._ None to that question answer clear can give, Save the Sun-God who feeds the life of earth.

_Chor._ How say'st thou? Did a storm come on our fleet, And do its work through anger of the Gods?