Chapter 17

THETIS.Thedeep recesses of this rocky isle,That far from undersea riseth to crownIts flowery head above the circling waves,A home for men with groves and gardens green,I chose not ill to be the hiding-placeOf my loved son. Alas, I could not take himTo live in my blue caverns, where the nymphsOwn me for queen: and hateful is the earthTo me, and all remembrance, since that morn,10When, in the train of May wandering too far,I trafficked with my shells and pearls to buyHer fragrant roses and fresh lilies white.Accurst the day and thou, ah, wretched Peleus,Who forcedst me to learn the fears that womenHave for their mortal offspring: who but I,Thetis, Poseidon’s daughter, who aloneBut I of all the immortals have known this,To bear and love a son in human kind?And yet not wholly ill is the constraint,20Nor do I pity mortals to be bornHeirs of desire and death, and the rich thoughtDenied to easy pleasure in the daysThat neither bring nor take; tho’ more to meEmbittered with foreknowledge of a doomThreatened by fate, and labour how to avert.For to me, questioning the high decreesBy which the sweetly tyrannous stars allotTheir lives and deaths to men, answer was givenThat for my son Achilles there was ruled30One of two things, and neither good; the betterA long and easy life, the worse a deathUntimely-glorious, which should set his nameFirst of the Greeks;—for so must seem to meBetter and worse, so even an earthly motherHad for him chosen, tho’ for the right he died,And conquered all the gods that succour Troy.—But when I, thinking he must share my fear,Showed him the choice, he made a mortal plungeFor glorious death, and would have straight gone forth40To seek it; but in tenderness for me,—Whom without shame he honours, and in thisMy love repays,—he to my tears consentedTo hide him from his fate; and here he dwellsDisguised among the maidens like a maiden;—For so his beauty and youth permit,—to serveThe daughter of the king of this fair isle,Who calls him Pyrrha for his golden hair,And knowing not prefers him o’er the rest.But I with frequent visitings assure me50That he obeys; and,—for I have the powerTo change my semblance,—I will sometimes runIn likeness of a young and timorous fawnBefore the maiden train, that give me chaseFar in the woods, till he outstrip them all;Then turn I quick at bay with loved surprise,And bid him hail: or like a snake I glideUnder the flowers, where they sit at play,And showing suddenly my gleaming eyes,All fly but he, and we may speak alone.60Thus oft my love will lead me, but to-dayMore special need hath brought: for on the seasI met at dawn a royal ship of GreeceSlow stemming toward this isle. What that might bode,And who might sail thereon, I guessed; and takingA dolphin’s shape, that thro’ the heavy watersTumbles in sport, around the labouring prowI gambolled, till her idle crew stood byTo watch me from the wooden battlements.And surely among them there full soon I saw,70Even as I feared, the man I feared, agazeWith hypocrite eyes, the prince of Ithaca,That searcheth for Achilles: of all the GreeksWhom most I dread, for his own endless wiles,And for Athena’s aid. Him when I saw,Lest I should be too late, I hither spedTo warn my son, and here shall meet him soon,—Tho’ yet he hath not come,—for on these lawnsThe damsels of the court are wont to play,And he with them. Hark! see! even now. Nay, nay.80Alas! who cometh thus? Ah, by that gaitCrouching along, it is my persecutor,Ulysses. Woe is me! I must fly hence.Tho’ he should know me not, I fear to face him,My hated foe, alert, invincibleOf will, full of self-love and mortal guile.[Exit.Enter Ulysses from the bushes, followed by Diomede, who wears a Lion’s skin.DIOMEDE.We have made the circuit of the hill, and hereInto the gardens are come round again.What now?ULYSSES.Hush thou! Look there! Some one hath seen us.He flies.Dio.I see not.Ul.Where the myrtle tops90Stir each in turn. He goeth toward the shore.I must see him that seeth me. Bide thou.[Exit among the bushes.Dio.Were I a dog, now, I might learn. Heigh ho!Two hours and more we have wandered on this mountain,Round and round, up and down, and round again,Gardens, and lawns, meadows, and groves, and walks,Thickets, and woods, the windings of the glades,I have them all by rote. Each petty rillWe have tracked by rocky steps and paths about,And peeped into its dank and mossy caves.100What sort of game should this Achilles be,That we should seek him thus? Ah! back so soon?What sport?Ul.(re-entering). Well hit. ’Twas but a milk-white doe,Some petted plaything of the young princess,That fled our stranger steps.Dio.And whither nowTurn we to seek Achilles?Ul.Hark, Diomede:My plot is laid and ready for thine ears.Thou madest offer of thine aid; be patient,And hear me.Dio.I will hearken.Ul.First, thou knowestHow since the day the Danaan kings took oath110To avenge the wrong done by the Trojan ParisAgainst his host, the Spartan Menelaus,One oracle hath thwarted us, which saidOur purpose should not prosper with the godsUnless Achilles the young son of ThetisShould lead our armies.Dio.Certainly, so farI am with you.Ul.Next, when he was sought in vain,Men looked to me; ay, and to me it fellTo learn that he was lurking in this isle119Of Scyros, in the court of Lycomedes.The king denied the charge, adding in challenge,That I might come and make what search I pleased;Now mark ...Dio.I listen, but thou tellest nothing.Why search we not the court if he be there,Instead of this old hill?Ul.’Tis that I come to.King Lycomedes hath been one of thoseWho have held their arms aloof from our alliance,On the main plea of this Achilles’ absence.What if he play the game here for his friends,And hide the lad lest they be forced to fight?130Dio.That well might be. And if the king would hide him,Thy hope would hit upon him thus at hazard?Ul.Call me not fool. Attend and hear my plot:Nor marvel, Diomede, to learn that he,Whom the high gods name champion of the Greeks,Lurks in the habit of a girl disguisedAmid the maidens of this island court.Dio.That were too strange. How guess you that?Ul.My spies,Who have searched the isle, say there’s no youth thereon,Having Achilles’ age of sixteen years,140But is well known of native parentage.Now Thetis’ son must be of wondrous beauty,That could not scape inquiry; we therefore lookFor what is hid, and not to be disguisedSave as I guess.Dio.If this be so, thy purposeIs darker still.Ul.I lead thee by the stepsI came myself to take, slowly and surely ..And next this, that ’twere dull to ask the kingTo help to find the thing he goes to hide:Therefore the search must be without his knowledge.150’Twas thus I sent up Abas to the court,Idly to engage him in preliminaries,The while I work; my only hope being this,To come myself to parley with the maidens;Which to procure I brought with me aboardA pedlar’s gear, and with such gawds and trinketsAs tickle girlish fancies, I shall stealUpon them at their play; my hoary beardAnd rags will set them at their ease; and whileThey come about me, and turn o’er my pack,160I spy. If then Achilles be among them,The lad’s indifference soon will mark him out;When, watching my occasion, I’ll exhibitSomething that should provoke his eye and tongue.If he betray himself, thou being at hand ....Dio.Why, ’tis a dirty trick.Ul.Not if it wins.Dio.Fie! fie!In rags and a white beard?Ul.No better way.Dio.The better way were not to lose the hourHearkening to oracles, while our good shipsRot, and our men grow stale. Why, you may see171Imperial Agamemnon in the eyesOf all his armament walk daily forthTo take fresh note of sparrows and of snakes:And if he spy an eagle, ’twill make talkFor twenty days. Would you have oracles,Give me the whipping of the priests. Zeus help me!If half the chiefs knew but their minds as I,There’d be no parleying. I’ll to war aloneAnd with my eighty ships do what I may’Gainst gods and men. Ay, and the greater oddsThe better fighting.Ul.Now ’tis thou that talkest.181Dio.Tell me then why we are prowling on this hill.Ul.Excellent reasons. First that when I comeI may know how to come, and where to hideFrom them I would not meet: and thereto this,That if Achilles fly, he should not take usAt too great disadvantage: thou mayst head him,Knowing the ground about, while I pursue.He must not scape. But hark, ’tis time the plot190Were put to proof; already it must be noon;And I hear steps and voices. Let us returnTo the ship. If they that come be those we seek,...Hark, and ’tis they,—we can look back upon them.I’ll be amongst them soon.Dio.’Tis a girl’s game.[Exeunt into the bushes.Enter Deidamia, Achilles as Pyrrha, with the chorus of maidens.DEIDAMIA(without).Follow me, follow. I lead the race.[Enters.CHORUS.Follow, we follow, we give thee chase.[Entering.Deid.Follow me, follow.Ch.We come, we come.Deid.Here is my home;200I choose this tree: this is the groundWhere we will make our play. Stand all around,And let us beg the dwellers in this gladeTo bear us company. Be not afraid,(I will begin) sweet birds, whose flowery songsSprinkle with joy the budding boughs above,The airy city where your light folk throngs,Each with his special exquisite of love,—Red-throat and white-throat, finch and golden-crest,Deep-murmuring pigeon, and soft-cooing dove,—210Unto his mate addrest, that close in nestSits on the dun and dappled eggs all day.Come red-throat, white-throat, finch and golden-crest,Let not our merry play drive you away.Ch.And ye brown squirrels, up the rugged barkThat fly, and leap from bending spray to spray,And bite the luscious shoots, if I should mark,Slip not behind the trunks, nor hide away.—Ye earthy moles, that burrowing in the dark219Your glossy velvet coats so much abuse;—Ye watchful dormice, and small skipping shrews,Stay not from foraging; dive not from sight.—Come moles and mice, squirrels and skipping shrews,Come all, come forth, and join in our delight.Deid.Enough. Now while the Dryads of the hillInterpret to the creatures our good will,Listen, and I will tell you a new gameThat we can play together.—As hither I came,I marked that in the hazel copse below,Where we so oft have hidden and loved to go230To hear the night-bird, or to take unseenOur noontide walks beneath the tangled screen,The woodcutter hath been with cruel blade,And of the tasselled plumes his strewage made:And by the mossy moots the covert shornNow lieth low in swathe like autumn corn.These ere he lop and into bundles bind,Let us go choose the fairest we may find,And of their feathered orphan saplings weaveA bowery dome, until the birds believe240We build a nest, and are come here to dwell.Hie forth, ye Scyrian maids; do as I tell:And having built our bower amid the green,We will choose one among us for a queen,And be the Amazons, whose maiden clanBy broad Thermodon dwells, apart from man;Who rule themselves, from his dominion free,And do all things he doth, better than he.First, Amazons, your queen: to choose her now:Who shall she be?Ch.Thyself, thou. Who but thou?Deidamia.Deid.Where then were the play,250If I should still command, and ye obey?Ch.Choose thou for all.Deid.Nor will I name her, lestYe say my favour sets one o’er the rest.Ch.Thy choice is ours.Deid.If then I gave my voiceFor Pyrrha?Ch.Pyrrha, Pyrrha is our choice.Hail, Pyrrha, hail! Queen of the Amazons!Deid.(To Ach.). To thee I abdicate my place, and giveMy wreath for crown. Long, my queen, mayst thou live!Now, fellow-subjects, hie we off at once.ACHILLES.260Stay, stay! Is this the privilege of the throne?Am I preferred but to be left alone?No guard, no counsellor, no company!Deidamia, stay!Deid.Thy word must beMy law, O queen: I will abide. But yeForth quickly, as I said; ye know the place.Ch.Follow me, follow: I lead the race.Follow, we follow, we give thee chase.Follow me, follow.We come, we come.[Exeunt Chor.270Ach.I could not bear that thou shouldst strain thy handsDragging those branches up the sunny hill;Nor for a thousand honours thou shouldst do me,Making me here thy queen, would I consentTo lose thy company, even for an hour.See, while the maids warm in their busy play,We may enjoy in quiet the sweet air,And thro’ the quivering golden green look upTo the deep sky, and have high thoughts as idleAnd bright, as are the small white clouds becalmed280In disappointed voyage to the noon:There is no better pastime.Deid.I will sit with theeIn idleness, while idleness can please.Ach.It is not idleness to steep the soulIn nature’s beauty: rather every dayWe are idle letting beauteous things go byUnheld, or scarce perceived. We cannot dreamToo deeply, nor o’erprize the mood of love,When it comes on us strongly, and the hourIs ripe for thought.Deid.I have a thought, a dream;If thou canst keep it secret.Ach.I am thy slave.290Deid.Suppose—’tis more than that, yet I’ll but saySuppose—we played this game of AmazonsIn earnest. What an isle this Scyros were;Rich and wellplanted, and its rocky coastEasy of defence: the women now upon itCould hold it. Nay, I have often thought it out:The king my sire is threescore years and more,And hath no heir: suppose that when he dies,—The gods defer it long, but when he dies,300If thou and I should plan to seize this isle,Drive out the men, and rule it for our own ...Wouldst thou work with me, Pyrrha, the thing could be.Why shouldst thou smile? I do not say that IWould rate my strength with men; but on the farmsWomen are thicker sinewed; and in theeI see what all might be. I am sure for speedNo man could match thee, and thou hast an armTo tug an oar or hurl the heaviest spear,Or wrestle with the best. Why dost thou smile?Ach.When thou art queen, I’ll be thy general.Deid.That was my thought. What dost thou think?Ach.I think312That Fate hath marked me for a general.Deid.Nay, but I jest not.Ach.Then shall I forecastAnd weigh impediments against thee? as menWill in like case, who think no scheme matureTill counsel hath forestalled all obstacles.Deid.If thou canst think of any.Ach.First is this,Whence shall we get our subjects when our isleIs peopled but by women?Deid.Fairly asked,320Had I not thought of it. We shall import themFrom other isles. Girl children everywhereAre held of small account: these we will buy,Bartering for them our fruits and tapestries,And chiefly from the country whence thou comest;For there I think the women must be tallerAnd stronger than with us.Ach.And who will actPersuader to the maidens of the isleTo banish all their lovers?Deid.O Pyrrha, shame!Man’s love is nothing; what knowst thou of it330To magnify its folly? ’Tis a mischiefTo thwart our good: therefore I banish it.A woman’s love may be as much to womanAs a man’s love can be. ’Tis reasonableThis, and no dream. ’Tis my experience.When I am with thee, Pyrrha, I want nothing.No woman sitting by her silly loverCould take such pleasure from his flatteriesAs I from thy speech. When thou lookest on meI am all joy; and if ’tis so with thee,Why need we argue? Tell me, when I am with thee341Dost thou lack aught, or wish I were a man?Ach.In truth nay, but ...Deid.A wretched but: I knowWhat that would say; this thing cannot be doneBecause ’twas never done. But that’s with meThe reason why it should be done.Ach.I see.Yet novelty hath no wear. Remember tooWe must grow old. The spirit of such adventureTires as the body ages.Deid.For that I thinkI make the best provision. Nay, I have seen350Full many an old dame left in last neglect,Whose keen gray eye, peaked face, and silver hairWere god-like set beneath a helm of brass.Ach.Here be the maids: ask them their mind at once.Deid.Nay, for the world no word.Enter Chorus, with flowers.Why run they breathlessly in merry fear?What have ye seen? What now?Ch.The king. Fly, fly!Ach.Why should we fly the king?Ch.A man is with him, and they come this way.Deid.Who is it?Ch.Nay, we know not.Deid.What hath happed?Ch.We went forth as ye bade, and all togetherRan down the hill, the straightest way we might,362Into the copse, and lo! ’twas as thou saidst;The hazels are all felled, but on the ground,That ’neath the straight trunks of the airy treesLies in the spotted sunlight, are upsprungCountless anemones, white, red, and blue,In the bright glade. Forgetting why we came,We fell to gathering these. I chose the blue,As ye may see, loving blue blossoms best,That are content with heaven.2nd Speaker.And I the red,370Love’s passionate colour; and the love in theseIs mixed with heavenly to a royal purple.3rd.And I the white: whose praise I will not tell,Lest it should blush.4th.And I have mixed togetherThe red and white.5th.And I the red and blue.6th.And I the blue and white.Deid.Well, but the matter.What happened next, tell me?Ch.(1st.)Still at this game,Like to a hungry herd that stops and feeds,Snatching what tempts it on, we made advanceTo the entrance of the combe; and then one cried,Look up! Look there! And from the open brow,382Whence we looked down upon the sea, we sawA great war-ship in the harbour: and one said,She comes from Athens; and another, nay,Her build is Rhodian: when as there we gazed,Counting her ports, and wondering of her name,—We heard men’s voices and beheld the kingMounting the hill-side, with a stranger cladIn short Greek robes. Then ran we back to thee,390Ere we were seen, in haste; that we may hide,And not be called within to attend the guests.Deid.So did ye well, whoe’er it be, and bestIf ’tis the prince of Melos, as I fear:Who late my father said would come to woo me:But he must find me first.[Going.Ach.I’ll be thine eyesAnd take his measure. Let me lurk behind,I’ll learn his height, the colour of his beard,And bring thee word.Deid.I pray, no beards for me.Those that love beards remain. The rest with me.Follow me, follow: I lead the race.[Exit.Ch.Follow, we follow. We give thee chase—Follow me, follow—402—We come, we come.[Exeunt Chor.Ach.I wish I had had Apollo for my sire;Or that old Cheiron, when he taught me arms,Hunting the beasts on bushy Pelion,Had led and trained me rather, as well he knew,In that fair park of fancy and delight,Where but the Graces and the Muses come.410For he could sing: and oft took down at eveFrom the high pillar of his rocky caveThe lyre or pipe, and whiled the darksome hours.Which would I had learned, to touch the stops and strings,Nor only harked thereto: for nought he sang,Whether of gods or men, of peace or war,Had any theme of sweetness to compareWith my new world, here, where I am king, and ruleThe sweetest thing in nature. Had I skillTo give translation to my joy, I thinkI could make music that should charm the world.421O Deidamia, thou Queen of my heart,I would enchant thee and thine isle. Alas!How wilt thou learn thou art mine? How can I tellAnd with the word not lose thee? Now this suitorThreats my betrayal ... He comes. I’ll watch. Yet notWith jealous eyes, but heedful of my fate.[Hides in bushes.Enter Lycomedes and Abas.LYCOMEDES.’Tis folly and impertinence. I say itWith due respect unto the prince, thy master,Who am as much his elder as the kingHis father is. He ne’er would so have wronged me,—431The mild and good Laertes.—In this isleThink’st thou ’twere possible a man should hide,And I not know it?ABAS.My Lord Ulysses, sire,Bade me assure your majesty he cameMore with the purpose to acquit your honour,—Which suffers greatly in the common tongue,—Than with a hope to find what he pretendsHe comes to seek.Lyc.Why should he come at all?Ab.Taking your invitation in the senseThat I have spoken ...Lyc.Thinks he, if I chose440To hide the man in Scyros, that a strangerFrom Ithaca could find him?Ab.Nay ...Lyc.It followsYour search can never quit my honesty,Where I am held accomplice; but no lessMust put a slight upon my wits, implyingMe the deceived.Ab.Your invitation, sire,Covers that charge.Lyc.My invitation, sir,Was but my seal of full denial, a challengeFor honour’s eye, not to be taken up.Your master hath slipped in manners: yet fear not451But I will meet and treat him as his birthAnd name require. Speak we no more of this.What think’st thou of our isle?Ab.The famed ÆgeanHath not a finer jewel on her breast.Lyc.Come, come! you overpraise us: there’s no need.We Scyrians are contented.—Now we are climbedAbove the town to the east; and you may seeThe western seaboard, and our other port.The island narrows here to twenty stades,460Cut like a wasp; the shoulder where we standIs its best natured spot: It falls to the sun,And at this time of the year takes not too much.Ab.’Tis strange how in all points the lie of the landIs like our Ithaca, but better clothed.Lyc.And larger, is’t not?Ab.Past comparison.—Lyc.What navy bring ye to the war?Ab.Ah, sire!We have no ships to boast of—with our ownZakynthus, Cephallenia, and the rest,Joining their numbers, raise but ten or twelve.Lyc.And these your prince commands?470Ab.Such as they be.Lyc.Tidings come slowly to us here. I pray youTell me the latest of your preparations.The thing must drag: there was some talk awhileOf coldness ’twixt the chiefs: ’twould be no wonder.They that combine upon one private grudgeMay split upon another.Ab.Still their zealIncreases: ’tis as fire spread from a spark.Lyc.A spark? well—Menelaus. At this timeWhat numbers hath he drawn, and whence?Ab.The ships480Number above a thousand: a tenth of theseAre sent by Corinth, Sicyon and Mycenæ;Sixty are Spartan, and king AgamemnonProvides as many as these all told together.Then from Ægina, Epidaurus, Argos,And Tiryns Diomede brings eighty: NestorNinety from Pylos; from BœotiaCome eighty; Phocis and Phthiotis eachSend forty; Athens fifty; and EubœaForty; from Salamis Ajax brings twelve;490Oilean Ajax with the LocriansForty more; from our neighbours in the west,Dulichium and Ætolia, eighty sail;Again as many from hundred-citied CreteUnder the king Idomeneus, and nineFrom Rhodes: All these, with others that escapeMy hasty summing, lie drawn up at Aulis.’Tis such a sight as, I am bold to say,If but your majesty could see it, would move youTo make a part of the splendour.

THETIS.

Thedeep recesses of this rocky isle,That far from undersea riseth to crownIts flowery head above the circling waves,A home for men with groves and gardens green,I chose not ill to be the hiding-placeOf my loved son. Alas, I could not take himTo live in my blue caverns, where the nymphsOwn me for queen: and hateful is the earthTo me, and all remembrance, since that morn,10When, in the train of May wandering too far,I trafficked with my shells and pearls to buyHer fragrant roses and fresh lilies white.Accurst the day and thou, ah, wretched Peleus,Who forcedst me to learn the fears that womenHave for their mortal offspring: who but I,Thetis, Poseidon’s daughter, who aloneBut I of all the immortals have known this,To bear and love a son in human kind?And yet not wholly ill is the constraint,20Nor do I pity mortals to be bornHeirs of desire and death, and the rich thoughtDenied to easy pleasure in the daysThat neither bring nor take; tho’ more to meEmbittered with foreknowledge of a doomThreatened by fate, and labour how to avert.For to me, questioning the high decreesBy which the sweetly tyrannous stars allotTheir lives and deaths to men, answer was givenThat for my son Achilles there was ruled30One of two things, and neither good; the betterA long and easy life, the worse a deathUntimely-glorious, which should set his nameFirst of the Greeks;—for so must seem to meBetter and worse, so even an earthly motherHad for him chosen, tho’ for the right he died,And conquered all the gods that succour Troy.—But when I, thinking he must share my fear,Showed him the choice, he made a mortal plungeFor glorious death, and would have straight gone forth40To seek it; but in tenderness for me,—Whom without shame he honours, and in thisMy love repays,—he to my tears consentedTo hide him from his fate; and here he dwellsDisguised among the maidens like a maiden;—For so his beauty and youth permit,—to serveThe daughter of the king of this fair isle,Who calls him Pyrrha for his golden hair,And knowing not prefers him o’er the rest.But I with frequent visitings assure me50That he obeys; and,—for I have the powerTo change my semblance,—I will sometimes runIn likeness of a young and timorous fawnBefore the maiden train, that give me chaseFar in the woods, till he outstrip them all;Then turn I quick at bay with loved surprise,And bid him hail: or like a snake I glideUnder the flowers, where they sit at play,And showing suddenly my gleaming eyes,All fly but he, and we may speak alone.60Thus oft my love will lead me, but to-dayMore special need hath brought: for on the seasI met at dawn a royal ship of GreeceSlow stemming toward this isle. What that might bode,And who might sail thereon, I guessed; and takingA dolphin’s shape, that thro’ the heavy watersTumbles in sport, around the labouring prowI gambolled, till her idle crew stood byTo watch me from the wooden battlements.And surely among them there full soon I saw,70Even as I feared, the man I feared, agazeWith hypocrite eyes, the prince of Ithaca,That searcheth for Achilles: of all the GreeksWhom most I dread, for his own endless wiles,And for Athena’s aid. Him when I saw,Lest I should be too late, I hither spedTo warn my son, and here shall meet him soon,—Tho’ yet he hath not come,—for on these lawnsThe damsels of the court are wont to play,And he with them. Hark! see! even now. Nay, nay.80Alas! who cometh thus? Ah, by that gaitCrouching along, it is my persecutor,Ulysses. Woe is me! I must fly hence.Tho’ he should know me not, I fear to face him,My hated foe, alert, invincibleOf will, full of self-love and mortal guile.[Exit.

Thedeep recesses of this rocky isle,

That far from undersea riseth to crown

Its flowery head above the circling waves,

A home for men with groves and gardens green,

I chose not ill to be the hiding-place

Of my loved son. Alas, I could not take him

To live in my blue caverns, where the nymphs

Own me for queen: and hateful is the earth

To me, and all remembrance, since that morn,

When, in the train of May wandering too far,

I trafficked with my shells and pearls to buy

Her fragrant roses and fresh lilies white.

Accurst the day and thou, ah, wretched Peleus,

Who forcedst me to learn the fears that women

Have for their mortal offspring: who but I,

Thetis, Poseidon’s daughter, who alone

But I of all the immortals have known this,

To bear and love a son in human kind?

And yet not wholly ill is the constraint,

Nor do I pity mortals to be born

Heirs of desire and death, and the rich thought

Denied to easy pleasure in the days

That neither bring nor take; tho’ more to me

Embittered with foreknowledge of a doom

Threatened by fate, and labour how to avert.

For to me, questioning the high decrees

By which the sweetly tyrannous stars allot

Their lives and deaths to men, answer was given

That for my son Achilles there was ruled

One of two things, and neither good; the better

A long and easy life, the worse a death

Untimely-glorious, which should set his name

First of the Greeks;—for so must seem to me

Better and worse, so even an earthly mother

Had for him chosen, tho’ for the right he died,

And conquered all the gods that succour Troy.—

But when I, thinking he must share my fear,

Showed him the choice, he made a mortal plunge

For glorious death, and would have straight gone forth

To seek it; but in tenderness for me,—

Whom without shame he honours, and in this

My love repays,—he to my tears consented

To hide him from his fate; and here he dwells

Disguised among the maidens like a maiden;—

For so his beauty and youth permit,—to serve

The daughter of the king of this fair isle,

Who calls him Pyrrha for his golden hair,

And knowing not prefers him o’er the rest.

But I with frequent visitings assure me

That he obeys; and,—for I have the power

To change my semblance,—I will sometimes run

In likeness of a young and timorous fawn

Before the maiden train, that give me chase

Far in the woods, till he outstrip them all;

Then turn I quick at bay with loved surprise,

And bid him hail: or like a snake I glide

Under the flowers, where they sit at play,

And showing suddenly my gleaming eyes,

All fly but he, and we may speak alone.

Thus oft my love will lead me, but to-day

More special need hath brought: for on the seas

I met at dawn a royal ship of Greece

Slow stemming toward this isle. What that might bode,

And who might sail thereon, I guessed; and taking

A dolphin’s shape, that thro’ the heavy waters

Tumbles in sport, around the labouring prow

I gambolled, till her idle crew stood by

To watch me from the wooden battlements.

And surely among them there full soon I saw,

Even as I feared, the man I feared, agaze

With hypocrite eyes, the prince of Ithaca,

That searcheth for Achilles: of all the Greeks

Whom most I dread, for his own endless wiles,

And for Athena’s aid. Him when I saw,

Lest I should be too late, I hither sped

To warn my son, and here shall meet him soon,—

Tho’ yet he hath not come,—for on these lawns

The damsels of the court are wont to play,

And he with them. Hark! see! even now. Nay, nay.

Alas! who cometh thus? Ah, by that gait

Crouching along, it is my persecutor,

Ulysses. Woe is me! I must fly hence.

Tho’ he should know me not, I fear to face him,

My hated foe, alert, invincible

Of will, full of self-love and mortal guile.[Exit.

Enter Ulysses from the bushes, followed by Diomede, who wears a Lion’s skin.

DIOMEDE.

We have made the circuit of the hill, and hereInto the gardens are come round again.What now?

We have made the circuit of the hill, and here

Into the gardens are come round again.

What now?

ULYSSES.

Hush thou! Look there! Some one hath seen us.He flies.

Hush thou! Look there! Some one hath seen us.

He flies.

Dio.I see not.

Ul.Where the myrtle tops90Stir each in turn. He goeth toward the shore.I must see him that seeth me. Bide thou.[Exit among the bushes.

Ul.Where the myrtle tops

Stir each in turn. He goeth toward the shore.

I must see him that seeth me. Bide thou.

[Exit among the bushes.

Dio.Were I a dog, now, I might learn. Heigh ho!Two hours and more we have wandered on this mountain,Round and round, up and down, and round again,Gardens, and lawns, meadows, and groves, and walks,Thickets, and woods, the windings of the glades,I have them all by rote. Each petty rillWe have tracked by rocky steps and paths about,And peeped into its dank and mossy caves.100What sort of game should this Achilles be,That we should seek him thus? Ah! back so soon?What sport?

Dio.Were I a dog, now, I might learn. Heigh ho!

Two hours and more we have wandered on this mountain,

Round and round, up and down, and round again,

Gardens, and lawns, meadows, and groves, and walks,

Thickets, and woods, the windings of the glades,

I have them all by rote. Each petty rill

We have tracked by rocky steps and paths about,

And peeped into its dank and mossy caves.

What sort of game should this Achilles be,

That we should seek him thus? Ah! back so soon?

What sport?

Ul.(re-entering). Well hit. ’Twas but a milk-white doe,Some petted plaything of the young princess,That fled our stranger steps.

Ul.(re-entering). Well hit. ’Twas but a milk-white doe,

Some petted plaything of the young princess,

That fled our stranger steps.

Dio.And whither nowTurn we to seek Achilles?

Dio.And whither now

Turn we to seek Achilles?

Ul.Hark, Diomede:My plot is laid and ready for thine ears.Thou madest offer of thine aid; be patient,And hear me.

Ul.Hark, Diomede:

My plot is laid and ready for thine ears.

Thou madest offer of thine aid; be patient,

And hear me.

Dio.I will hearken.

Ul.First, thou knowestHow since the day the Danaan kings took oath110To avenge the wrong done by the Trojan ParisAgainst his host, the Spartan Menelaus,One oracle hath thwarted us, which saidOur purpose should not prosper with the godsUnless Achilles the young son of ThetisShould lead our armies.

Ul.First, thou knowest

How since the day the Danaan kings took oath

To avenge the wrong done by the Trojan Paris

Against his host, the Spartan Menelaus,

One oracle hath thwarted us, which said

Our purpose should not prosper with the gods

Unless Achilles the young son of Thetis

Should lead our armies.

Dio.Certainly, so farI am with you.

Dio.Certainly, so far

I am with you.

Ul.Next, when he was sought in vain,Men looked to me; ay, and to me it fellTo learn that he was lurking in this isle119Of Scyros, in the court of Lycomedes.The king denied the charge, adding in challenge,That I might come and make what search I pleased;Now mark ...

Ul.Next, when he was sought in vain,

Men looked to me; ay, and to me it fell

To learn that he was lurking in this isle

Of Scyros, in the court of Lycomedes.

The king denied the charge, adding in challenge,

That I might come and make what search I pleased;

Now mark ...

Dio.I listen, but thou tellest nothing.Why search we not the court if he be there,Instead of this old hill?

Dio.I listen, but thou tellest nothing.

Why search we not the court if he be there,

Instead of this old hill?

Ul.’Tis that I come to.King Lycomedes hath been one of thoseWho have held their arms aloof from our alliance,On the main plea of this Achilles’ absence.What if he play the game here for his friends,And hide the lad lest they be forced to fight?

Ul.’Tis that I come to.

King Lycomedes hath been one of those

Who have held their arms aloof from our alliance,

On the main plea of this Achilles’ absence.

What if he play the game here for his friends,

And hide the lad lest they be forced to fight?

130Dio.That well might be. And if the king would hide him,Thy hope would hit upon him thus at hazard?

Dio.That well might be. And if the king would hide him,

Thy hope would hit upon him thus at hazard?

Ul.Call me not fool. Attend and hear my plot:Nor marvel, Diomede, to learn that he,Whom the high gods name champion of the Greeks,Lurks in the habit of a girl disguisedAmid the maidens of this island court.

Ul.Call me not fool. Attend and hear my plot:

Nor marvel, Diomede, to learn that he,

Whom the high gods name champion of the Greeks,

Lurks in the habit of a girl disguised

Amid the maidens of this island court.

Dio.That were too strange. How guess you that?

Ul.My spies,Who have searched the isle, say there’s no youth thereon,Having Achilles’ age of sixteen years,140But is well known of native parentage.Now Thetis’ son must be of wondrous beauty,That could not scape inquiry; we therefore lookFor what is hid, and not to be disguisedSave as I guess.

Ul.My spies,

Who have searched the isle, say there’s no youth thereon,

Having Achilles’ age of sixteen years,

But is well known of native parentage.

Now Thetis’ son must be of wondrous beauty,

That could not scape inquiry; we therefore look

For what is hid, and not to be disguised

Save as I guess.

Dio.If this be so, thy purposeIs darker still.

Dio.If this be so, thy purpose

Is darker still.

Ul.I lead thee by the stepsI came myself to take, slowly and surely ..And next this, that ’twere dull to ask the kingTo help to find the thing he goes to hide:Therefore the search must be without his knowledge.150’Twas thus I sent up Abas to the court,Idly to engage him in preliminaries,The while I work; my only hope being this,To come myself to parley with the maidens;Which to procure I brought with me aboardA pedlar’s gear, and with such gawds and trinketsAs tickle girlish fancies, I shall stealUpon them at their play; my hoary beardAnd rags will set them at their ease; and whileThey come about me, and turn o’er my pack,160I spy. If then Achilles be among them,The lad’s indifference soon will mark him out;When, watching my occasion, I’ll exhibitSomething that should provoke his eye and tongue.If he betray himself, thou being at hand ....

Ul.I lead thee by the steps

I came myself to take, slowly and surely ..

And next this, that ’twere dull to ask the king

To help to find the thing he goes to hide:

Therefore the search must be without his knowledge.

’Twas thus I sent up Abas to the court,

Idly to engage him in preliminaries,

The while I work; my only hope being this,

To come myself to parley with the maidens;

Which to procure I brought with me aboard

A pedlar’s gear, and with such gawds and trinkets

As tickle girlish fancies, I shall steal

Upon them at their play; my hoary beard

And rags will set them at their ease; and while

They come about me, and turn o’er my pack,

I spy. If then Achilles be among them,

The lad’s indifference soon will mark him out;

When, watching my occasion, I’ll exhibit

Something that should provoke his eye and tongue.

If he betray himself, thou being at hand ....

Dio.Why, ’tis a dirty trick.

Ul.Not if it wins.

Dio.Fie! fie!In rags and a white beard?

Dio.Fie! fie!

In rags and a white beard?

Ul.No better way.

Dio.The better way were not to lose the hourHearkening to oracles, while our good shipsRot, and our men grow stale. Why, you may see171Imperial Agamemnon in the eyesOf all his armament walk daily forthTo take fresh note of sparrows and of snakes:And if he spy an eagle, ’twill make talkFor twenty days. Would you have oracles,Give me the whipping of the priests. Zeus help me!If half the chiefs knew but their minds as I,There’d be no parleying. I’ll to war aloneAnd with my eighty ships do what I may’Gainst gods and men. Ay, and the greater oddsThe better fighting.

Dio.The better way were not to lose the hour

Hearkening to oracles, while our good ships

Rot, and our men grow stale. Why, you may see

Imperial Agamemnon in the eyes

Of all his armament walk daily forth

To take fresh note of sparrows and of snakes:

And if he spy an eagle, ’twill make talk

For twenty days. Would you have oracles,

Give me the whipping of the priests. Zeus help me!

If half the chiefs knew but their minds as I,

There’d be no parleying. I’ll to war alone

And with my eighty ships do what I may

’Gainst gods and men. Ay, and the greater odds

The better fighting.

Ul.Now ’tis thou that talkest.181

Dio.Tell me then why we are prowling on this hill.

Ul.Excellent reasons. First that when I comeI may know how to come, and where to hideFrom them I would not meet: and thereto this,That if Achilles fly, he should not take usAt too great disadvantage: thou mayst head him,Knowing the ground about, while I pursue.He must not scape. But hark, ’tis time the plot190Were put to proof; already it must be noon;And I hear steps and voices. Let us returnTo the ship. If they that come be those we seek,...Hark, and ’tis they,—we can look back upon them.I’ll be amongst them soon.

Ul.Excellent reasons. First that when I come

I may know how to come, and where to hide

From them I would not meet: and thereto this,

That if Achilles fly, he should not take us

At too great disadvantage: thou mayst head him,

Knowing the ground about, while I pursue.

He must not scape. But hark, ’tis time the plot

Were put to proof; already it must be noon;

And I hear steps and voices. Let us return

To the ship. If they that come be those we seek,...

Hark, and ’tis they,—we can look back upon them.

I’ll be amongst them soon.

Dio.’Tis a girl’s game.[Exeunt into the bushes.

Dio.’Tis a girl’s game.

[Exeunt into the bushes.

Enter Deidamia, Achilles as Pyrrha, with the chorus of maidens.

DEIDAMIA(without).

Follow me, follow. I lead the race.[Enters.

CHORUS.

Follow, we follow, we give thee chase.[Entering.

Deid.Follow me, follow.

Ch.We come, we come.

Deid.Here is my home;200I choose this tree: this is the groundWhere we will make our play. Stand all around,And let us beg the dwellers in this gladeTo bear us company. Be not afraid,(I will begin) sweet birds, whose flowery songsSprinkle with joy the budding boughs above,The airy city where your light folk throngs,Each with his special exquisite of love,—Red-throat and white-throat, finch and golden-crest,Deep-murmuring pigeon, and soft-cooing dove,—210Unto his mate addrest, that close in nestSits on the dun and dappled eggs all day.Come red-throat, white-throat, finch and golden-crest,Let not our merry play drive you away.

Deid.Here is my home;

I choose this tree: this is the ground

Where we will make our play. Stand all around,

And let us beg the dwellers in this glade

To bear us company. Be not afraid,

(I will begin) sweet birds, whose flowery songs

Sprinkle with joy the budding boughs above,

The airy city where your light folk throngs,

Each with his special exquisite of love,—

Red-throat and white-throat, finch and golden-crest,

Deep-murmuring pigeon, and soft-cooing dove,—

Unto his mate addrest, that close in nest

Sits on the dun and dappled eggs all day.

Come red-throat, white-throat, finch and golden-crest,

Let not our merry play drive you away.

Ch.And ye brown squirrels, up the rugged barkThat fly, and leap from bending spray to spray,And bite the luscious shoots, if I should mark,Slip not behind the trunks, nor hide away.—Ye earthy moles, that burrowing in the dark219Your glossy velvet coats so much abuse;—Ye watchful dormice, and small skipping shrews,Stay not from foraging; dive not from sight.—Come moles and mice, squirrels and skipping shrews,Come all, come forth, and join in our delight.

Ch.And ye brown squirrels, up the rugged bark

That fly, and leap from bending spray to spray,

And bite the luscious shoots, if I should mark,

Slip not behind the trunks, nor hide away.—

Ye earthy moles, that burrowing in the dark

Your glossy velvet coats so much abuse;—

Ye watchful dormice, and small skipping shrews,

Stay not from foraging; dive not from sight.—

Come moles and mice, squirrels and skipping shrews,

Come all, come forth, and join in our delight.

Deid.Enough. Now while the Dryads of the hillInterpret to the creatures our good will,Listen, and I will tell you a new gameThat we can play together.—As hither I came,I marked that in the hazel copse below,Where we so oft have hidden and loved to go230To hear the night-bird, or to take unseenOur noontide walks beneath the tangled screen,The woodcutter hath been with cruel blade,And of the tasselled plumes his strewage made:And by the mossy moots the covert shornNow lieth low in swathe like autumn corn.These ere he lop and into bundles bind,Let us go choose the fairest we may find,And of their feathered orphan saplings weaveA bowery dome, until the birds believe240We build a nest, and are come here to dwell.Hie forth, ye Scyrian maids; do as I tell:And having built our bower amid the green,We will choose one among us for a queen,And be the Amazons, whose maiden clanBy broad Thermodon dwells, apart from man;Who rule themselves, from his dominion free,And do all things he doth, better than he.First, Amazons, your queen: to choose her now:Who shall she be?

Deid.Enough. Now while the Dryads of the hill

Interpret to the creatures our good will,

Listen, and I will tell you a new game

That we can play together.—As hither I came,

I marked that in the hazel copse below,

Where we so oft have hidden and loved to go

To hear the night-bird, or to take unseen

Our noontide walks beneath the tangled screen,

The woodcutter hath been with cruel blade,

And of the tasselled plumes his strewage made:

And by the mossy moots the covert shorn

Now lieth low in swathe like autumn corn.

These ere he lop and into bundles bind,

Let us go choose the fairest we may find,

And of their feathered orphan saplings weave

A bowery dome, until the birds believe

We build a nest, and are come here to dwell.

Hie forth, ye Scyrian maids; do as I tell:

And having built our bower amid the green,

We will choose one among us for a queen,

And be the Amazons, whose maiden clan

By broad Thermodon dwells, apart from man;

Who rule themselves, from his dominion free,

And do all things he doth, better than he.

First, Amazons, your queen: to choose her now:

Who shall she be?

Ch.Thyself, thou. Who but thou?Deidamia.

Ch.Thyself, thou. Who but thou?

Deidamia.

Deid.Where then were the play,250If I should still command, and ye obey?

Deid.Where then were the play,250

If I should still command, and ye obey?

Ch.Choose thou for all.

Deid.Nor will I name her, lestYe say my favour sets one o’er the rest.

Deid.Nor will I name her, lest

Ye say my favour sets one o’er the rest.

Ch.Thy choice is ours.

Deid.If then I gave my voiceFor Pyrrha?

Deid.If then I gave my voice

For Pyrrha?

Ch.Pyrrha, Pyrrha is our choice.Hail, Pyrrha, hail! Queen of the Amazons!

Ch.Pyrrha, Pyrrha is our choice.

Hail, Pyrrha, hail! Queen of the Amazons!

Deid.(To Ach.). To thee I abdicate my place, and giveMy wreath for crown. Long, my queen, mayst thou live!Now, fellow-subjects, hie we off at once.

Deid.(To Ach.). To thee I abdicate my place, and give

My wreath for crown. Long, my queen, mayst thou live!

Now, fellow-subjects, hie we off at once.

ACHILLES.

260Stay, stay! Is this the privilege of the throne?Am I preferred but to be left alone?No guard, no counsellor, no company!Deidamia, stay!

Stay, stay! Is this the privilege of the throne?

Am I preferred but to be left alone?

No guard, no counsellor, no company!

Deidamia, stay!

Deid.Thy word must beMy law, O queen: I will abide. But yeForth quickly, as I said; ye know the place.

Deid.Thy word must be

My law, O queen: I will abide. But ye

Forth quickly, as I said; ye know the place.

Ch.Follow me, follow: I lead the race.Follow, we follow, we give thee chase.Follow me, follow.We come, we come.[Exeunt Chor.

Ch.Follow me, follow: I lead the race.

Follow, we follow, we give thee chase.

Follow me, follow.

We come, we come.[Exeunt Chor.

270Ach.I could not bear that thou shouldst strain thy handsDragging those branches up the sunny hill;Nor for a thousand honours thou shouldst do me,Making me here thy queen, would I consentTo lose thy company, even for an hour.See, while the maids warm in their busy play,We may enjoy in quiet the sweet air,And thro’ the quivering golden green look upTo the deep sky, and have high thoughts as idleAnd bright, as are the small white clouds becalmed280In disappointed voyage to the noon:There is no better pastime.

Ach.I could not bear that thou shouldst strain thy hands

Dragging those branches up the sunny hill;

Nor for a thousand honours thou shouldst do me,

Making me here thy queen, would I consent

To lose thy company, even for an hour.

See, while the maids warm in their busy play,

We may enjoy in quiet the sweet air,

And thro’ the quivering golden green look up

To the deep sky, and have high thoughts as idle

And bright, as are the small white clouds becalmed

In disappointed voyage to the noon:

There is no better pastime.

Deid.I will sit with theeIn idleness, while idleness can please.

Deid.I will sit with thee

In idleness, while idleness can please.

Ach.It is not idleness to steep the soulIn nature’s beauty: rather every dayWe are idle letting beauteous things go byUnheld, or scarce perceived. We cannot dreamToo deeply, nor o’erprize the mood of love,When it comes on us strongly, and the hourIs ripe for thought.

Ach.It is not idleness to steep the soul

In nature’s beauty: rather every day

We are idle letting beauteous things go by

Unheld, or scarce perceived. We cannot dream

Too deeply, nor o’erprize the mood of love,

When it comes on us strongly, and the hour

Is ripe for thought.

Deid.I have a thought, a dream;If thou canst keep it secret.

Deid.I have a thought, a dream;

If thou canst keep it secret.

Ach.I am thy slave.290

Deid.Suppose—’tis more than that, yet I’ll but saySuppose—we played this game of AmazonsIn earnest. What an isle this Scyros were;Rich and wellplanted, and its rocky coastEasy of defence: the women now upon itCould hold it. Nay, I have often thought it out:The king my sire is threescore years and more,And hath no heir: suppose that when he dies,—The gods defer it long, but when he dies,300If thou and I should plan to seize this isle,Drive out the men, and rule it for our own ...Wouldst thou work with me, Pyrrha, the thing could be.Why shouldst thou smile? I do not say that IWould rate my strength with men; but on the farmsWomen are thicker sinewed; and in theeI see what all might be. I am sure for speedNo man could match thee, and thou hast an armTo tug an oar or hurl the heaviest spear,Or wrestle with the best. Why dost thou smile?

Deid.Suppose—’tis more than that, yet I’ll but say

Suppose—we played this game of Amazons

In earnest. What an isle this Scyros were;

Rich and wellplanted, and its rocky coast

Easy of defence: the women now upon it

Could hold it. Nay, I have often thought it out:

The king my sire is threescore years and more,

And hath no heir: suppose that when he dies,—

The gods defer it long, but when he dies,

If thou and I should plan to seize this isle,

Drive out the men, and rule it for our own ...

Wouldst thou work with me, Pyrrha, the thing could be.

Why shouldst thou smile? I do not say that I

Would rate my strength with men; but on the farms

Women are thicker sinewed; and in thee

I see what all might be. I am sure for speed

No man could match thee, and thou hast an arm

To tug an oar or hurl the heaviest spear,

Or wrestle with the best. Why dost thou smile?

Ach.When thou art queen, I’ll be thy general.

Deid.That was my thought. What dost thou think?

Ach.I think312That Fate hath marked me for a general.

Ach.I think

That Fate hath marked me for a general.

Deid.Nay, but I jest not.

Ach.Then shall I forecastAnd weigh impediments against thee? as menWill in like case, who think no scheme matureTill counsel hath forestalled all obstacles.

Ach.Then shall I forecast

And weigh impediments against thee? as men

Will in like case, who think no scheme mature

Till counsel hath forestalled all obstacles.

Deid.If thou canst think of any.

Ach.First is this,Whence shall we get our subjects when our isleIs peopled but by women?

Ach.First is this,

Whence shall we get our subjects when our isle

Is peopled but by women?

Deid.Fairly asked,320Had I not thought of it. We shall import themFrom other isles. Girl children everywhereAre held of small account: these we will buy,Bartering for them our fruits and tapestries,And chiefly from the country whence thou comest;For there I think the women must be tallerAnd stronger than with us.

Deid.Fairly asked,

Had I not thought of it. We shall import them

From other isles. Girl children everywhere

Are held of small account: these we will buy,

Bartering for them our fruits and tapestries,

And chiefly from the country whence thou comest;

For there I think the women must be taller

And stronger than with us.

Ach.And who will actPersuader to the maidens of the isleTo banish all their lovers?

Ach.And who will act

Persuader to the maidens of the isle

To banish all their lovers?

Deid.O Pyrrha, shame!Man’s love is nothing; what knowst thou of it330To magnify its folly? ’Tis a mischiefTo thwart our good: therefore I banish it.A woman’s love may be as much to womanAs a man’s love can be. ’Tis reasonableThis, and no dream. ’Tis my experience.When I am with thee, Pyrrha, I want nothing.No woman sitting by her silly loverCould take such pleasure from his flatteriesAs I from thy speech. When thou lookest on meI am all joy; and if ’tis so with thee,Why need we argue? Tell me, when I am with thee341Dost thou lack aught, or wish I were a man?

Deid.O Pyrrha, shame!

Man’s love is nothing; what knowst thou of it

To magnify its folly? ’Tis a mischief

To thwart our good: therefore I banish it.

A woman’s love may be as much to woman

As a man’s love can be. ’Tis reasonable

This, and no dream. ’Tis my experience.

When I am with thee, Pyrrha, I want nothing.

No woman sitting by her silly lover

Could take such pleasure from his flatteries

As I from thy speech. When thou lookest on me

I am all joy; and if ’tis so with thee,

Why need we argue? Tell me, when I am with thee

Dost thou lack aught, or wish I were a man?

Ach.In truth nay, but ...

Deid.A wretched but: I knowWhat that would say; this thing cannot be doneBecause ’twas never done. But that’s with meThe reason why it should be done.

Deid.A wretched but: I know

What that would say; this thing cannot be done

Because ’twas never done. But that’s with me

The reason why it should be done.

Ach.I see.Yet novelty hath no wear. Remember tooWe must grow old. The spirit of such adventureTires as the body ages.

Ach.I see.

Yet novelty hath no wear. Remember too

We must grow old. The spirit of such adventure

Tires as the body ages.

Deid.For that I thinkI make the best provision. Nay, I have seen350Full many an old dame left in last neglect,Whose keen gray eye, peaked face, and silver hairWere god-like set beneath a helm of brass.

Deid.For that I think

I make the best provision. Nay, I have seen

Full many an old dame left in last neglect,

Whose keen gray eye, peaked face, and silver hair

Were god-like set beneath a helm of brass.

Ach.Here be the maids: ask them their mind at once.

Deid.Nay, for the world no word.

Enter Chorus, with flowers.

Why run they breathlessly in merry fear?What have ye seen? What now?

Why run they breathlessly in merry fear?

What have ye seen? What now?

Ch.The king. Fly, fly!

Ach.Why should we fly the king?

Ch.A man is with him, and they come this way.

Deid.Who is it?

Ch.Nay, we know not.

Deid.What hath happed?

Ch.We went forth as ye bade, and all togetherRan down the hill, the straightest way we might,362Into the copse, and lo! ’twas as thou saidst;The hazels are all felled, but on the ground,That ’neath the straight trunks of the airy treesLies in the spotted sunlight, are upsprungCountless anemones, white, red, and blue,In the bright glade. Forgetting why we came,We fell to gathering these. I chose the blue,As ye may see, loving blue blossoms best,That are content with heaven.

Ch.We went forth as ye bade, and all together

Ran down the hill, the straightest way we might,

Into the copse, and lo! ’twas as thou saidst;

The hazels are all felled, but on the ground,

That ’neath the straight trunks of the airy trees

Lies in the spotted sunlight, are upsprung

Countless anemones, white, red, and blue,

In the bright glade. Forgetting why we came,

We fell to gathering these. I chose the blue,

As ye may see, loving blue blossoms best,

That are content with heaven.

2nd Speaker.And I the red,370Love’s passionate colour; and the love in theseIs mixed with heavenly to a royal purple.

2nd Speaker.And I the red,370

Love’s passionate colour; and the love in these

Is mixed with heavenly to a royal purple.

3rd.And I the white: whose praise I will not tell,Lest it should blush.

3rd.And I the white: whose praise I will not tell,

Lest it should blush.

4th.And I have mixed togetherThe red and white.

4th.And I have mixed together

The red and white.

5th.And I the red and blue.

6th.And I the blue and white.

Deid.Well, but the matter.What happened next, tell me?

Deid.Well, but the matter.

What happened next, tell me?

Ch.(1st.)Still at this game,Like to a hungry herd that stops and feeds,Snatching what tempts it on, we made advanceTo the entrance of the combe; and then one cried,Look up! Look there! And from the open brow,382Whence we looked down upon the sea, we sawA great war-ship in the harbour: and one said,She comes from Athens; and another, nay,Her build is Rhodian: when as there we gazed,Counting her ports, and wondering of her name,—We heard men’s voices and beheld the kingMounting the hill-side, with a stranger cladIn short Greek robes. Then ran we back to thee,390Ere we were seen, in haste; that we may hide,And not be called within to attend the guests.

Ch.(1st.)Still at this game,

Like to a hungry herd that stops and feeds,

Snatching what tempts it on, we made advance

To the entrance of the combe; and then one cried,

Look up! Look there! And from the open brow,

Whence we looked down upon the sea, we saw

A great war-ship in the harbour: and one said,

She comes from Athens; and another, nay,

Her build is Rhodian: when as there we gazed,

Counting her ports, and wondering of her name,—

We heard men’s voices and beheld the king

Mounting the hill-side, with a stranger clad

In short Greek robes. Then ran we back to thee,

Ere we were seen, in haste; that we may hide,

And not be called within to attend the guests.

Deid.So did ye well, whoe’er it be, and bestIf ’tis the prince of Melos, as I fear:Who late my father said would come to woo me:But he must find me first.[Going.

Deid.So did ye well, whoe’er it be, and best

If ’tis the prince of Melos, as I fear:

Who late my father said would come to woo me:

But he must find me first.[Going.

Ach.I’ll be thine eyesAnd take his measure. Let me lurk behind,I’ll learn his height, the colour of his beard,And bring thee word.

Ach.I’ll be thine eyes

And take his measure. Let me lurk behind,

I’ll learn his height, the colour of his beard,

And bring thee word.

Deid.I pray, no beards for me.Those that love beards remain. The rest with me.Follow me, follow: I lead the race.[Exit.

Deid.I pray, no beards for me.

Those that love beards remain. The rest with me.

Follow me, follow: I lead the race.[Exit.

Ch.Follow, we follow. We give thee chase—Follow me, follow—402—We come, we come.[Exeunt Chor.

Ch.Follow, we follow. We give thee chase—

Follow me, follow—402

—We come, we come.[Exeunt Chor.

Ach.I wish I had had Apollo for my sire;Or that old Cheiron, when he taught me arms,Hunting the beasts on bushy Pelion,Had led and trained me rather, as well he knew,In that fair park of fancy and delight,Where but the Graces and the Muses come.410For he could sing: and oft took down at eveFrom the high pillar of his rocky caveThe lyre or pipe, and whiled the darksome hours.Which would I had learned, to touch the stops and strings,Nor only harked thereto: for nought he sang,Whether of gods or men, of peace or war,Had any theme of sweetness to compareWith my new world, here, where I am king, and ruleThe sweetest thing in nature. Had I skillTo give translation to my joy, I thinkI could make music that should charm the world.421O Deidamia, thou Queen of my heart,I would enchant thee and thine isle. Alas!How wilt thou learn thou art mine? How can I tellAnd with the word not lose thee? Now this suitorThreats my betrayal ... He comes. I’ll watch. Yet notWith jealous eyes, but heedful of my fate.[Hides in bushes.

Ach.I wish I had had Apollo for my sire;

Or that old Cheiron, when he taught me arms,

Hunting the beasts on bushy Pelion,

Had led and trained me rather, as well he knew,

In that fair park of fancy and delight,

Where but the Graces and the Muses come.

For he could sing: and oft took down at eve

From the high pillar of his rocky cave

The lyre or pipe, and whiled the darksome hours.

Which would I had learned, to touch the stops and strings,

Nor only harked thereto: for nought he sang,

Whether of gods or men, of peace or war,

Had any theme of sweetness to compare

With my new world, here, where I am king, and rule

The sweetest thing in nature. Had I skill

To give translation to my joy, I think

I could make music that should charm the world.

O Deidamia, thou Queen of my heart,

I would enchant thee and thine isle. Alas!

How wilt thou learn thou art mine? How can I tell

And with the word not lose thee? Now this suitor

Threats my betrayal ... He comes. I’ll watch. Yet not

With jealous eyes, but heedful of my fate.

[Hides in bushes.

Enter Lycomedes and Abas.

LYCOMEDES.

’Tis folly and impertinence. I say itWith due respect unto the prince, thy master,Who am as much his elder as the kingHis father is. He ne’er would so have wronged me,—431The mild and good Laertes.—In this isleThink’st thou ’twere possible a man should hide,And I not know it?

’Tis folly and impertinence. I say it

With due respect unto the prince, thy master,

Who am as much his elder as the king

His father is. He ne’er would so have wronged me,—

The mild and good Laertes.—In this isle

Think’st thou ’twere possible a man should hide,

And I not know it?

ABAS.

My Lord Ulysses, sire,Bade me assure your majesty he cameMore with the purpose to acquit your honour,—Which suffers greatly in the common tongue,—Than with a hope to find what he pretendsHe comes to seek.

My Lord Ulysses, sire,

Bade me assure your majesty he came

More with the purpose to acquit your honour,—

Which suffers greatly in the common tongue,—

Than with a hope to find what he pretends

He comes to seek.

Lyc.Why should he come at all?

Ab.Taking your invitation in the senseThat I have spoken ...

Ab.Taking your invitation in the sense

That I have spoken ...

Lyc.Thinks he, if I chose440To hide the man in Scyros, that a strangerFrom Ithaca could find him?

Lyc.Thinks he, if I chose440

To hide the man in Scyros, that a stranger

From Ithaca could find him?

Ab.Nay ...

Lyc.It followsYour search can never quit my honesty,Where I am held accomplice; but no lessMust put a slight upon my wits, implyingMe the deceived.

Lyc.It follows

Your search can never quit my honesty,

Where I am held accomplice; but no less

Must put a slight upon my wits, implying

Me the deceived.

Ab.Your invitation, sire,Covers that charge.

Ab.Your invitation, sire,

Covers that charge.

Lyc.My invitation, sir,Was but my seal of full denial, a challengeFor honour’s eye, not to be taken up.Your master hath slipped in manners: yet fear not451But I will meet and treat him as his birthAnd name require. Speak we no more of this.What think’st thou of our isle?

Lyc.My invitation, sir,

Was but my seal of full denial, a challenge

For honour’s eye, not to be taken up.

Your master hath slipped in manners: yet fear not

But I will meet and treat him as his birth

And name require. Speak we no more of this.

What think’st thou of our isle?

Ab.The famed ÆgeanHath not a finer jewel on her breast.

Ab.The famed Ægean

Hath not a finer jewel on her breast.

Lyc.Come, come! you overpraise us: there’s no need.We Scyrians are contented.—Now we are climbedAbove the town to the east; and you may seeThe western seaboard, and our other port.The island narrows here to twenty stades,460Cut like a wasp; the shoulder where we standIs its best natured spot: It falls to the sun,And at this time of the year takes not too much.

Lyc.Come, come! you overpraise us: there’s no need.

We Scyrians are contented.—Now we are climbed

Above the town to the east; and you may see

The western seaboard, and our other port.

The island narrows here to twenty stades,

Cut like a wasp; the shoulder where we stand

Is its best natured spot: It falls to the sun,

And at this time of the year takes not too much.

Ab.’Tis strange how in all points the lie of the landIs like our Ithaca, but better clothed.

Ab.’Tis strange how in all points the lie of the land

Is like our Ithaca, but better clothed.

Lyc.And larger, is’t not?

Ab.Past comparison.—

Lyc.What navy bring ye to the war?

Ab.Ah, sire!We have no ships to boast of—with our ownZakynthus, Cephallenia, and the rest,Joining their numbers, raise but ten or twelve.

Ab.Ah, sire!

We have no ships to boast of—with our own

Zakynthus, Cephallenia, and the rest,

Joining their numbers, raise but ten or twelve.

Lyc.And these your prince commands?470

Ab.Such as they be.

Lyc.Tidings come slowly to us here. I pray youTell me the latest of your preparations.The thing must drag: there was some talk awhileOf coldness ’twixt the chiefs: ’twould be no wonder.They that combine upon one private grudgeMay split upon another.

Lyc.Tidings come slowly to us here. I pray you

Tell me the latest of your preparations.

The thing must drag: there was some talk awhile

Of coldness ’twixt the chiefs: ’twould be no wonder.

They that combine upon one private grudge

May split upon another.

Ab.Still their zealIncreases: ’tis as fire spread from a spark.

Ab.Still their zeal

Increases: ’tis as fire spread from a spark.

Lyc.A spark? well—Menelaus. At this timeWhat numbers hath he drawn, and whence?

Lyc.A spark? well—Menelaus. At this time

What numbers hath he drawn, and whence?

Ab.The ships480Number above a thousand: a tenth of theseAre sent by Corinth, Sicyon and Mycenæ;Sixty are Spartan, and king AgamemnonProvides as many as these all told together.Then from Ægina, Epidaurus, Argos,And Tiryns Diomede brings eighty: NestorNinety from Pylos; from BœotiaCome eighty; Phocis and Phthiotis eachSend forty; Athens fifty; and EubœaForty; from Salamis Ajax brings twelve;490Oilean Ajax with the LocriansForty more; from our neighbours in the west,Dulichium and Ætolia, eighty sail;Again as many from hundred-citied CreteUnder the king Idomeneus, and nineFrom Rhodes: All these, with others that escapeMy hasty summing, lie drawn up at Aulis.’Tis such a sight as, I am bold to say,If but your majesty could see it, would move youTo make a part of the splendour.

Ab.The ships

Number above a thousand: a tenth of these

Are sent by Corinth, Sicyon and Mycenæ;

Sixty are Spartan, and king Agamemnon

Provides as many as these all told together.

Then from Ægina, Epidaurus, Argos,

And Tiryns Diomede brings eighty: Nestor

Ninety from Pylos; from Bœotia

Come eighty; Phocis and Phthiotis each

Send forty; Athens fifty; and Eubœa

Forty; from Salamis Ajax brings twelve;

Oilean Ajax with the Locrians

Forty more; from our neighbours in the west,

Dulichium and Ætolia, eighty sail;

Again as many from hundred-citied Crete

Under the king Idomeneus, and nine

From Rhodes: All these, with others that escape

My hasty summing, lie drawn up at Aulis.

’Tis such a sight as, I am bold to say,

If but your majesty could see it, would move you

To make a part of the splendour.

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