The Argonautics of Apollonius Rhodius, In Four Books, By Francis Fawkes: The Whole Revised, Corrected, and Completed, By His Coadjutor and Editor; Who Has Annexed A Translation of Coluthus's Greek Poem on The Rape of Helen, or The Origin of The Trojan War; With Notes

Fawkes, Francis (1720-1777)

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THE ARGONAUTICS OF APOLLONIUS RHODIUS.

BOOK I.

II.

III.

IV.

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BOOK I.

THE ARGUMENT.

This Book commences with the list and character of the Argonauts. Before they embark, two of the chiefs quarrel; but are pacified by the harmony of Orpheus. They set sail, and land at Lemnos, an island inhabited by female warriors; who, though they had slain their husbands and turned Amazons, are so charmed with these heroes, that they admit them to their beds. Thence they sail to the country of the Dolions, and are kindly received by their king Cyzicus. Loosing from thence in the night, and being driven back by contrary winds, they are mistaken for Pelasgians, with whom the Dolions were then at war. A battle ensues, in which Cyzicus and many of his men are slain. The morning discovers the unhappy mistake. Thence they sail to Mysia. Hercules breaks his oar; and while he is gone into a wood to make a new one, Hylas is stolen by a nymph, as he is stooping for water at a fountain. Hercules and Polyphemus go in search of him. Meanwhile the Argonauts leave them behind, and sail to Bithynia.

Inspir'd by thee, O Phœbus, I resound
The glorious deeds of heroes long renown'd,
Whom Pelias urg'd the Golden Fleece to gain,
And well-built Argo wafted o'er the main,
Through the Cyanean rocks. The voice divine
Pronounc'd this sentence from the sacred shrine;
‘Erelong, and dreadful woes, foredoom'd by fate,
‘Thro' that man's counsels shall on Pelias wait,
‘Whom he, before the altar of his God,
‘Shall view in public with one sandal shod.’
And, lo! as by this oracle foretold,
What time adventurous Jason, brave and bold,
Anaurus past, high swoln with winter's flood,
He left one sandal rooted in the mud.

To Pelias, thus, the hasty prince repair'd,
And the rich banquet at his altar shar'd.
The stately altar, with oblations stor'd,
Was to his sire erected, ocean's lord,
And every Power that in Olympus reigns,
Save Juno, regent of Thessalia's plains.
Pelias, whose looks his latent fears express'd,
Fir'd with a bold adventure Jason's breast;
That, sunk in ocean, or on some rude shore
Prostrate, he ne'er might view his country more.
Old bards affirm this warlike ship was made
By skilful Argus, with Minerva's aid.
'Tis mine to sing the chiefs, their names and race,
Their tedious wanderings on the main to trace,
And all their great achievements to rehearse:
Deign, ye propitious Nine, to aid my verse.

First in the list, to join the princely bands,
The tuneful bard, enchanting Orpheus, stands;
Whom fair Calliope, on Thracia's shore,
Near Pimpla's mount, to bold Œägrus bore.
Hard rocks he soften'd with persuasive song,
And sooth'd the rivers as they roll'd along.
Yon beeches tall, that bloom near Zona, still
Remain memorials of his vocal skill:

His lays Pieria's listening trees admire,
And move in measures to his melting lyre.
Thus Orpheus charm'd, who o'er the Bistons reign'd,
By Chiron's art to Jason's interest gain'd.
Asterion next; whose sire rejoic'd to till
Piresian valleys by Phylleion's hill,
Born near Apidanus, who sportive leads
His winding waters thro' the fertile meads;
There where, from far, Enipeus, stream divine,
And wide Apidanus their currents join.
The son of Elatus, of deathless fame,
From fair Larissa, Polyphemus came.
Long since, when in the vigour of his might,
He join'd the hardy Lapithæ in fight
Against the Centaurs; now his strength declin'd
Thro' age, yet young and martial was his mind.
Not long at Phylace Iphiclus staid,
Great Jason's uncle; pleas'd he join'd his aid,
And march'd to meet th' adventurous band from far,
Urg'd by affinity and love of war.
Nor long Admetus, who at Pheræ reign'd,
Near high Chalcodon's bleating fields remain'd,
Echion, Erytus, for wiles renown'd,
Left Alope, with golden harvests crown'd;

The gainful sons of Mercury: with these
Their brother came, the bold Æthalides;
Whom fair Eupolema, the Phthian, bore
Where smooth Amphrysos rolls his watery store:
Those, Menetus, from thy fair daughter sprung,
Antianira, beautiful and young.
Coronus came, from Gyrton's wealthy town,
Great as his sire in valour and renown,
Cæneus his sire; who, as old bards relate,
Receiv'd from Centaurs his untimely fate.
Alone, unaided, with transcendent might,
Boldly he fac'd, and put his foes to flight.
But they, reviving soon, regain'd their ground;
Yet fail'd to vanquish, and they could not wound.
Unbroke, unmov'd, the chief his breath resigns,
O'erwhelm'd beneath a monument of pines,
From Titaresus Mopsus bent his way,
Inspir'd an augur by the God of day.
Eurydamas, to share fair honour's crown,
Forsook near Xynias' lake his native town,
Nam'd Ctimena: Menœtius join'd the band,
Dismiss'd from Opuns by his sire's command.
Next came Eurytion, Irus' valiant son,
And Eribotes, seed of Teleon,

Oïleus join'd these heroes, fam'd afar
For stratagems and fortitude in war;
Well skill'd the hostile squadrons to subdue,
Bold in attack, and ardent to pursue.
Next, by Canethus, son of Abans, sent,
Ambitious Canthus from Eubœa went;
Doom'd ne'er again to reach his native shore,
Nor view the towers of proud Cerinthus more.
For thus decreed the destinies severe,
That he and Mopsus, venerable seer,
After long toils and various wanderings past,
On Afric's dreary coast should breathe their last.
How short the term assign'd to human woe,
Clos'd, as it is, by death's decisive blow!
On Afric's dreary coast their graves were made,
From Phasis distant far their bones were laid;
Far as the east and western limits run,
Far as the rising from the setting sun.
Clytius and Iphitus unite their aid,
Who all the country round Œchalia sway'd;
These were the sons of Eurytus the proud,
On whom his bow the God of day bestow'd;
But he, devoid of gratitude, defy'd,
And challeng'd Phœbus with a rival's pride.

The sons of Æacus, intrepid race!
Separate advanc'd, and from a different place.
For when their brother unawares they slew,
From fair Ægina diverse they withdrew.
Fair Salamis king Telamon obey'd,
And valiant Peleus Phthia's sceptre sway'd:
Next Butes came from fam'd Cecropia far.
Brave Teleon's son, a chief renown'd in war.
To wield the deadly lance Phalerus boasts,
Who, by his sire commission'd, joins the hosts:
No son, save this, e'er bless'd the hoary sage,
And this heaven gave him in declining age:
Yet him he sent, disdaining abject fears,
To shine conspicuous 'midst his gallant peers.
Theseus, far more than all his race renown'd,
Fast in the cave of Tænarus was bound
With adamantine fetters, (dire abode!)
E'er since he trod th' irremeable road
With his belov'd Pirithoüs: had they sail'd,
Much had their might, their courage much avail'd.
Bœotian Tiphys came, experienc'd well
Old ocean's foaming surges to foretell,
Experienc'd well the stormy winds to shun,
And steer his vessel by the stars, or sun.

Minerva urg'd him by her high command,
A welcome mate to join the princely band.
For she the ship had form'd with heavenly skill,
Tho' Argus wrought the dictates of her will.
Thus plann'd, thus fashion'd, this fam'd ship excell'd
The noblest ships by oar or sail impell'd.
From Aræthyrea, that near Corinth lay,
Phlias, the son of Bacchus, bent his way:
Bless'd by his sire, his splendid mansion stood
Fast by the fountains of Asopus' flood.
From Argos next the sons of Bias came,
Areius, Talaus, candidates for fame,
With bold Leodocus, whom Pero bore,
Neleus' fair daughter, on the Argive shore;
For whom Melampus various woes sustain'd,
In a deep dungeon by Iphiclus chain'd.
Next Hercules, endued with dauntless mind,
At Jason's summons, stay'd not long behind.
For warn'd of this adventurous band, when last
The chief to Argos from Arcadia past,
(What time in chains he brought the living boar,
The dread, the bane of Erymanthia's moor,
And at the gate of proud Mycenæ's town,
From his broad shoulders hurl'd the monster down:)

Unask'd the stern Mycenian king's consent,
Instant to join the warlike host he went.
Young Hylas waited with obsequious care,
The hero's quiver and his bow to bear.
Next came, the list of demigods to grace,
He who from Danaüs deriv'd his race,
Nauplius; of whom fam'd Prætus was the son,
Of Prætus Lernus; thus the lineage run:
From Lernus Naubolus his being claim'd,
Whose valiant son was Clytoneüs nam'd.
In navigation's various arts confess'd
Shone Nauplius' skill, superior to the rest:
Him to the sea's dread lord, in days of yore,
Danaüs' fair daughter, Amymone bore.
Last of those chiefs who left the Grecian coast,
Prophetic Idmon join'd the gallant host;
(Full well he knew what cruel fate ordain'd;
But dreaded more than death his honour stain'd)
The son of Phœbus by some stolen embrace,
And number'd too with Æolus's race,
He learn'd his art prophetic from his sire,
Omens from birds and prodigies from fire.
Illustrious Pollux, fam'd for martial force,
And Castor, skill'd to guide the rapid horse,

Ætolian Leda sent from Sparta's shore:
Both at one birth in Tyndarus' house she bore.
No boding fears her generous mind depress'd;
She thought like them whom Jove's embrace had bless'd.
Lynceus and Idas, from Arene's wall,
Heard fame's loud summons, and obey'd her call:
The sons of Aphareus, of matchless might,
But Lynceus stands renown'd for piercing sight:
So keen his beam, that ancient fables tell,
He saw, thro' earth, the wondrous depths of hell.
With these bold Periclymenus appears,
The son of Neleus, most advanc'd in years
Of all his race; his sire's unconquer'd pride:
Him with vast strength old ocean's lord supply'd,
And gave the power, when hard in battle press'd,
To take whatever form might suit him best.
From Tegea's towers, where bore Aphidas sway,
Amphidamas and Cepheus took their way,
The sons of Aleus both; and with them went
Ancæus, by his sire Lycurgus sent.
Of those the brother, and by birth the first,
Was good Lycurgus; tenderly he nurs'd
His sire at home; but bade his gallant son
With the bold chiefs the race of glory run.

On his broad back a bear's rough spoils he wore,
And in his hand a two-edg'd pole-axe bore,
Which, that the youth might in no danger share,
Were safe secreted by his grandsire's care.
Augeas too, lord of the Elean coast,
Sail'd, brave associate, with the warlike host.
Rich in possessions, of his riches proud,
Fame says his being to the Sun he ow'd.
Ardent he wish'd to see the Colchian shore,
And old Æeta who the sceptre bore.
Asterius and Amphion, urg'd by fame,
The valiant sons of Hyperasius, came
From fair Pellene, built in days of yore
By Pelle's grandsire on the lofty shore.
From Tænarus, that yawns with gulf profound,
Euphemus came, for rapid race renown'd.
By Neptune forc'd, Europa gave him birth,
Daughter to Tityus, hugest son of Earth.
Whene'er he skimm'd along the watery plain,
With feet unbath'd he swept the surging main,
Scarce brush'd the surface of the briny dew,
And light along the liquid level flew.
Two other sons of Neptune join'd the host,
This from Miletus on th' Ionian coast,

Erginus nam'd, but that from Samos came,
Juno's lov'd isle, Ancæus was his name;
Illustrious chiefs, and both renown'd afar
For the joint arts of sailing and of war.
Young Meleager, Œneus' warlike son,
And sage Laocoon march'd from Calydon.
From the same father he and Œneus sprung;
But on the breasts of different mothers hung.
Him Œneus purpos'd with his son to send,
A wise companion, and a faithful friend.
Thus to the royal chiefs his name he gave,
And green in years was number'd with the brave.
Had he continu'd but one summer more
A martial pupil on th' Ætolian shore,
First on the lists of fame the youth had shone,
Or own'd superior Hercules alone.
His uncle too, well-skill'd the dart to throw,
And in th' embattled plain resist the foe,
Iphiclus, venerable Thestius' son,
Join'd the young chief, and boldly led him on.
The son of Lernus, Palæmonius, came,
Olenian Lernus; but the voice of fame
Whispers, that Vulcan was the hero's sire,
And therefore limps he like the God of fire.

Of nobler port or valour none could boast;
He added grace to Jason's godlike host.
From Phocis Iphitus with ardour press'd
To join the chiefs; great Jason was his guest,
When to the Delphic Oracle he went,
Consulting fate, and anxious for th' event.
Zetes and Calaïs of royal race,
Whom Orithyïa bore in wintry Thrace
To blustering Boreas in his airy hall,
Heard fame's loud summons, and obey'd the call.
Erectheus, who th' Athenian sceptre sway'd,
Was parent of the violated maid,
Whom dancing with her mates rude Boreas stole,
Where the fam'd waters of Ilissus roll;
And to his rock-fenc'd Sarpedonian cave
Convey'd her, where Erginus pours his wave:
There, circumfus'd in gloom and grateful shade,
The god of tempests woo'd the gentle maid.
They, when on tip-toe rais'd, in act to fly,
Like the light-pinion'd vagrants of the sky,
Wav'd their dark wings, and, wondrous to behold!
Display'd each plume distinct with drops of gold;
While down their backs, of bright cerulean hue,
Loose in the winds their wanton tresses flew.

Not long with Pelias young Acastus stay'd;
He left his sire to lend the Grecians aid.
Argus, whom Pallas with her gifts inspir'd,
Follow'd his friend, with equal glory fir'd.

Such the compeers of Jason highly fam'd;
And all these demigods were Minyans nam'd.
The most illustrious heroes of the host
Their lineage from the seed of Minyas boast:
For Minyas' daughter, Clymena the fair,
Alcimeda, great Jason's mother, bare.

When all was furnish'd by the busy band
Which vessels destin'd for the main demand;
The heroes from Iölcos bent their way
To the fam'd port, the Pagasæan bay,
And deep-environ'd with thick-gathering crowds,
They shone like stars resplendent thro' the clouds.
Then thus among the rout, with wondering look,
Some swain survey'd the bright-arm'd chiefs and spoke:
‘Say, what can Pelias, mighty Jove, intend,
‘Far, far from Greece so great a force to send!
‘Sure, should Æeta spurn the sons of Greece,
‘And to their claims refuse the golden Fleece,
‘That self-same day shall see his palace, crown'd
‘With glittering turrets, levell'd to the ground.

‘But endless toils pursue them as they go,
‘And Fate hath mark'd their desperate steps with woe.’
Thus, when he saw the delegated bands,
Spoke the rude swain with heaven-uplifted hands:
The gentler females thus the Gods implore;
“Safe may they reach again their native shore:”
And thus some matron mild her mind express'd;
(Tears in her eye, and terrors at her breast)
‘Unfortunate Alcimeda, thy fate
‘Now frowns malignant, tho' it frowns so late;
‘Nor wills the tenor of thy life to run
‘Serene and peaceful, as it first begun.
‘On Æson too attend unnumber'd woes;
‘Far, better far, a lingering life to close,
‘And bury all his sorrows in the tomb,
‘Unconscious of calamities to come.
‘Oh! had both Phrixus and the ram been drown'd,
‘When Helle perish'd in the gulf profound:
‘But the dire monster was with voice endu'd,
‘And human accents from his mouth ensu'd,
‘To sad Alcimeda denouncing strife,
‘And woes to cloud the evening of her life.’
Thus spoke some matron as the heroes went;
Around their lords the menial train lament:

Alcimeda embrac'd her son with tears,
Each breast was chill'd with sad presaging fears.
Age-drooping Æson heard the general moan,
Wrapp'd in soft robes, and answer'd groan for groan.
But Jason sooths their fears, their bosom warms,
And bids his servants bring the burnish'd arms.
They, with a downcast look and lowly bow,
Obey their chief with silent steps and slow.
The pensive Queen, while tears bedew her face,
Her son still circles with a fond embrace.
Thus to her nurse an infant orphan springs,
And weeps unceasing as she closely clings;
Experienc'd insults make her loath to stay
Beneath a step-dame's proud, oppressive sway.
Thus in her royal breast the sorrows pent
Forc'd sighs and tears, and struggled for a vent.
Still in her arms she held her favourite son,
And comfortless with faltering speech begun:
‘Oh had I died on that detested day,
‘And with my sorrows sigh'd my soul away,
‘When Pelias publish'd his severe decree,
‘Severe and fatal to my son and me!
‘Thyself had then my aged eyelids clos'd,
‘And those dear hands my decent limbs compos'd;

‘This boon alone I wish'd thee to impart,

This wish alone lay dormant at my heart.
‘But now, alas! tho' first of Grecian names,
‘Admir'd and envy'd by Thessalian dames,
‘I, like an hand-maid, now am left behind,
‘Bereav'd of all tranquillity of mind.
‘By thee rever'd, in dignity I shone,
‘And first and last for thee unloos'd my zone.
‘For unrelenting hate Lucina bore,
‘Thee, one lov'd son, she gave, but gave no more.
‘Alas! not ev'n the visions of the night
‘Foretold such fatal woes from Phrixus' flight.’

Thus mourn'd Alcimeda; her handmaids hear,
Sigh back her sighs, and answer tear with tear.
Then Jason these consoling words address'd,
To sooth the rising anguish of her breast:
“Cease, mother, cease excess of grief to show,
“Oh! cease this wild extravagance of woe.
“Tears cannot make one dire disaster less;
“They cherish grief, and aggravate distress.
“Wisely and justly have the Gods assign'd
“Unthought-of miseries to all mankind.
“The lot they give you, tho' perchance severe,
“Confiding in Minerva, bravely bear.

“Minerva first this bold adventure mov'd,
“Apollo, and the Oracles approv'd.
“These calls of heaven our confidence command,
“Join'd with the valour of this princely band.
“Haste, royal mother, to your native tow'rs,
“Pass with your handmaids there the peaceful hours.
“Forebode not here calamities to come:
“Your female train will re-conduct you home.”
He spoke; and from the palace bent his way,
Graceful of port; so moves the god of day
At Delos, from his odour-breathing fanes,
Or Claros situate on Ionian plains,
Or Lycia's ample shores, where Xanthus leads
His winding waters thro' irriguous meads.
Thus Jason march'd majestic thro' the crowd,
And Fame auspicious rais'd her voice aloud:
When lo! the priestess of Diana came,
Their guardian Goddess, Iphias was her name,
Bending with age, and kiss'd the chief's right hand;
In vain she wish'd to speak; the hasty band
With speedy footsteps from the dame withdrew,
And Jason mingled with his valiant crew.
Then from the tower-fenc'd town he bent his way,
And reach'd ere long the Pagasæan bay;

There join'd his comrades waiting on the coast,
And there saluted his confederate host.
When from Iölcos, lo, the wondering train
Observe Acastus hastening o'er the plain,
And with him Argus, his compeer and friend;
Unknown to Pelias, to the ship they tend.
Argus around his brawny shoulders flung
A bull's black spoils that to his ancles hung.
Acastus wore a mantle rich and gay,
Wrought by his sister, lovely Pelopa.
Thus rob'd, the chiefs approach'd the crowded shore;
Illustrious Jason stay'd not to explore
What cause so long detain'd them, but commands
To council all the delegated bands.
On shrouds and sails that cover'd half the beach,
And the tall, tapering mast, in order each,
The heroes sat; then rising o'er the rest,
His bold associates Jason thus address'd:

‘Since now the stores lie ready on the strand,
‘And since our chiefs and arms are all at hand,
‘No longer let us waste the golden day,
‘But the first summons of the breeze obey.
‘And, since we all with equal ardour burn
‘For Colchian spoils, and hope a safe return,

‘Impartial choose some hero fam'd afar
‘To guide the vessel, and conduct the war,
‘Let him, your sovereign chief, with foreign foes
‘The terms of treaty, and of fight propose.’

He spoke; with earnest eyes the youthful band
Mark bold Alcides for supreme command;
On him with voice unanimous they call,
Own him their leader, and the lord of all.
In the mid circle sat the godlike man,
His broad right hand he wav'd, and thus began:

“Let none to me this arduous task assign,
“For I the glory with the charge decline.
“Jason alone shall lead this valiant band,
“The chief who rais'd it, let that chief command.”

Thus briefly spoke th' unconquerable man;
Loud approbation thro' the circle ran:
Then Jason rose, (complacence fill'd his breast)
And thus the pleas'd, attentive throng address'd:

‘Friends and associates, since your wills decree
‘This great, this honourable trust to me,
‘No longer be our enterprize delay'd:
‘To Phœbus first be due oblations paid;
‘Let then a short repast our strength renew:
‘And, till my herdsmen to our gallant crew

‘With beeves return, the best my stalls contain,
‘Strive we to launch our vessel in the main.
‘And when close stow'd our military stores,
‘Each take his post, and ply the nimble oars.
‘To Phœbus first, Embasian Phœbus, raise
‘The smoaking altar; let the victims blaze.
‘He promis'd, if due rites to him I pay,
‘To point thro' ocean's paths our dubious way.’

He said, and instant to the task he flew;
Example fir'd his emulative crew.
They heap'd their vestments on a rock, that stood
Far from the insults of the roaring flood,
But, in times past, when wintry storms prevail'd,
Th' encroaching waves its towering top assail'd.
As Argus counsel'd, with strong ropes they bound,
Compacting close, the vessel round and round;
Then with stout nails the sturdy planks they join'd,
To brave the fury of the waves or wind:
Next delv'd with spades a channel deep and wide,
Thro' which the ship might launch into the tide.
Near to the water deeper was the way,
Where wooden cylinders transversely lay;
On these they heav'd the vessel from the plain,
To roll her, smoothly-gliding, to the main.

Then to the benches, tapering oars they fix'd;
A cubit's measure was the space betwixt:
This was the station for the labouring bands,
To tug with bending breasts, and out-stretch'd hands.
First Tiphys mounted on th' aerial prow
To issue orders to the train below,
That at his word, their strength uniting, all
Might join together, and together haul.
With eager look th' attentive heroes stand,
And wait impatient till he gave command;
Then all at once, with full exerted sway,
They move her from the station where she lay,
And pushing instant, as the pilot guides,
On smooth round rollers Pelian Argo glides;
Glibly she glides; loud shouts the jovial band;
They haul, they pull, they push her from the strand.
Beneath the huge hulk groan the rollers strong;
Black smoke arises as she moves along;
With swift descent she rushes to the main:
Coercive ropes her rapid race restrain.
Then, next, their sails they hoisted, fix'd their oars,
The mast erected, and embark'd the stores.
By lots on benches were the heroes plac'd,
And with two heroes every bench was grac'd.

On great Alcides, formidable name,
And on Ancæus, who from Tegea came,
With voice unanimous, the martial host
Bestow'd the centre's honourable post.
To watchful Tiphys was the helm assign'd,
To stem the waves, and catch the favouring wind.
This done, with stones beside the shore which lay,
They rear'd an altar to the God of day,
Embasian Phœbus, and the surface round
With the dry branches of an olive crown'd.
Meanwhile the herdsmen drove two beeves well fed
From Jason's stalls; youths to the altar led
The victims; some brought water from the lake;
Some the due offering of the salted cake.
Jason, while these the sacrifice prepare,
Thus to his parent God prefers his pray'r:

‘Patron of Pagasæ, thine ear we claim,
‘Guard of the city grac'd with Æson's name:
‘When to consult thine oracle I went,
‘It promis'd to reveal this great event,
‘The final issue of our bold emprise:
‘On thee, chief author, all our hope relies.
‘Conduct my comrades to the far-fam'd Fleece,
‘Then safe restore them to the realms of Greece.

‘And here I vow, whatever chiefs return,
‘So many bulls shall on thine altar burn;
‘A sacrifice at Delphos is decreed,
‘And in Ortygia shall the victims bleed.
‘But now these humble offerings which we pay,
‘Gracious accept, far-darting God of day.
‘Be thou, O father, our auspicious guide,
‘When hence we sail across the sounding tide.
‘Smooth the rough billows, and let breezes bland
‘Propitious waft us to the Colchian land.’

Thus pray'd he suppliant, and prepar'd to make
The sacred offering of the salted cake.
Alcides, fam'd for manly strength and sway,
And bold Ancæus rose the beeves to slay.
Alcides' club impress'd a deadly wound
On the steer's front, and fell'd him to the ground.
Thy axe, Ancæus, at one sturdy stroke,
The steer's skull fractur'd, and the neck-bone broke,
Down fell the victim, floundering with the blow,
Prone on his horns, and plough'd the sand below.
The ready train, that round in order stood,
Stab the fallen beeves, and shed the life-warm blood;
Then from the body strip the smoaking hide,
The beasts they quarter, and the joints divide;

The thighs devoted to the Gods they part,
On these the fat, involv'd in cawls, with art
They spread, and as the lambent flame devours,
The Grecian chief the pure libation pours.
Joy fill'd the breast of Idmon to behold,
How from the thighs the flame relucent roll'd
In purple volumes, and propitious smoke;
And thus the seer, inspir'd by Phœbus, spoke:

‘Tho' various perils your attempt oppose,
‘And toils unnumber'd bring unnumber'd woes;
‘Yet shall ye safe return, ye sons of Greece,
‘Adorn'd with conquest, and the golden Fleece.
‘Me cruel Fate ordains on Asia's shore
‘To die, nor e'er behold my country more.
‘And tho' my destiny long fix'd I knew,
‘Yet, still resolv'd, I join'd the martial crew;
‘Inflam'd with glory to the host I came,
‘Of life regardless, emulous of fame.’
Thus he; the host the fate of Idmon mourn,
But joy transports them for their wish'd return.
The sun, remitting now his fiercer ray,
Pours from the west the faint remains of day:
Low as he sinks, the lofty rocks expand
Their lengthen'd shadows o'er the distant land.

On leafy couches now the warlike train
Repose along the beach that skirts the main.
Before the chiefs are savoury viands plac'd,
And generous wines, delicious to the taste.
The hours in mutual converse they employ,
In festive songs and undissembled joy.
Thus at the banquet sport the young and gay,
When Mirth breaks in, and Envy skulks away.
But not unmark'd was Jason's pensive look;
Idas beheld him, and licentious spoke:

‘What doubts, what fears do Æson's son perplex?
‘What dangers fright him, and what sorrows vex?
‘Proclaim thy thoughts: or is thy dubious mind
‘Dismay'd with terrours of the dastard kind?
‘Now by this stout, unconquer'd lance, I swear,
‘On which in war victorious wreaths I bear,
‘(Scorning from Jove's assistance to receive
‘Those palms, which this resistless lance can give)
‘No foes shall brave, no wiles of war withstand,
‘Tho' Jove frown adverse, this impetuous hand.
‘Such Idas is, for prowess fam'd afar,
‘Arene's boast, the thunder-bolt of war.’

This said, the boaster seiz'd a goblet, fill'd
With racy wine, and to the bottom swill'd.

O'er his black beard and cheeks the liquor flow'd:
Th' assembled host with indignation glow'd.
Then Idmon rose and boldly thus reply'd:

“Vain wretch! to brand our leader and our guide;
“And more irreverent still, thus flush'd with wine,
“To dare reproach superior powers divine.
“Far different speech must cheer the social train;
“Thy words are brutish, and thy boasts are vain.
“Thus, fame reports, the Aloïdæ strove
“Long since to irritate the powers above
“By vile aspersions, infamously free;
“Yet they in valour far exceeded thee.
“Slain by the shafts of Phœbus, down they fell,
“Tho' high aspiring, to the depths of Hell.”

He said; but Idas, with sarcastic sneer,
Laughing, provok'd the venerable feer:
‘Declare, wise augur, if the Gods decree,
‘The same perdition shall be hurl'd on me,
‘Which fam'd Aloëus' impious sons befell
‘When slain by Phœbus, and condemn'd to hell.
‘Meantime escape, or manfully withstand,
‘Vain seer, the fury of this vengeful hand.’

Thus Idas spoke, impatient of controul,
And rising rage inflam'd his fiery soul;

Nor had they here ceas'd fiercely to contest,
But Jason and his friends their wrath repress'd.
'Twas then, the jarring heroes to compose,
Th' enchanting bard, Oeagrian Orpheus rose,
And thus, attuning to the trembling strings
His soothing voice, of harmony he sings:
“How at the first, beneath chaotic sway,
“Heaven, earth and sea in wild disorder lay;
“Till nature parted the conflicting foes,
“And beauteous order from confusion rose.
“How in yon bright etherial fields above
“The lucid stars in constant orbits move;
“How the pale queen of night and golden sun,
“Thro' months, and years their radiant journeys run:
“Whence rose the mountains, clad with waving woods,
“The crystal founts, and hoarse-resounding floods,
“With all their nymphs; from what celestial seed
“Springs the vast species of the serpent breed:
“How o'er the new-created world below,
“On high Olympus' summits crown'd with snow,
“Ophion, and, from ocean sprung of old,
“The fair Eurynome reign'd uncontroll'd:
“How haughty Saturn, with superior sway
“Exil'd Ophion from the realms of day;

“Eurynome before proud Rhea fled,
“And how both sunk in ocean's billowy bed.
“Long time they rul'd the blest Titanian Gods,
“While infant Jove possess'd the dark abodes
“Of Dictè's cave; yet uninform'd his mind
“With heavenly wisdom, and his hand confin'd.
“Forg'd by earth's giant sons, with livid rays
“Flam'd not as yet the lightning's piercing blaze;
“Nor roar'd the thunder thro' the realms above,
“The strength and glory of almighty Jove.”

Here the sweet bard his tuneful lyre unstrung,
And ceas'd the heavenly music of his tongue;
But, with the sound entranc'd, the listening ear
Still thought him singing, and still seem'd to hear:
In silent rapture every chief remains,
And feels within his heart the thrilling strains.
Forthwith the bowl they crown with rosy wine,
And pay due honours to the powers divine;
Then on the flaming tongues libations pour,
And wait salubrious sleep's composing hour.
Soon as the bright-ey'd morning's splendid ray
On Pelion's summit pour'd the welcome day,
Light skimm'd the breezes o'er the liquid plain,
And gently swell'd the fluctuating main;

Then Tiphys rose, and, summon'd by his care,
Embark the heroes, and their oars prepare.
Portentous now along the winding shores
Hoarse sounding Pagasæan Neptune roars:
From Pelian Argo's keel loud murmurs broke,
Urgent to sail; the keel of sacred oak,
Endu'd with voice, and marvellously wrought,
Itonian Pallas from Dodona brought.
Now on their destin'd posts, arrang'd along,
In seemly order sat the princely throng;
Fast by each chief his glittering armour flames:
The midmost station bold Ancæus claims,
With great Alcides, (whose enormous might
Arm'd with a massy club provokes the fight,)
Close plac'd beside him: in the yielding flood
The keel deep-sinking owns the demigod.

Their hausers now they loose, and on the brine
To Neptune pour the consecrated wine:
Then from his native shore sad Jason turns
His oft-reverted eye, and silent mourns.
As in Ortygia, or the Delphic fane,
Or where Ismenus laves Bœotia's plain,
Apollo's altar round, the youthful quire,
The dance according with the sounding lyre,

The hallow'd ground with equal cadence beat,
And move in measure their alternate feet;
Together so Thessalia's princes sweep
With well-tim'd oars the silver-curling deep:
While, raising high the Thracian harp, presides
Melodious Orpheus, and the movement guides.
Dash'd by their oars the foaming billows broke,
And loud remurmur'd to each mighty stroke.
Swift sail'd the ship, the sun refulgent beam'd,
And bright as flame their glittering armour gleam'd.
While to their outstretch'd oars the heroes bow,
The parted ocean whitening foams below.
So shines the path, along some grassy plain,
Worn by the footsteps of the village-swain.

Th' immortal powers that Jove's proud palace crown,
All on that memorable day look'd down,
The godlike chiefs and Argo to survey,
As thro' the deep they urg'd their daring way.
Then too on Pelion's cloud-capt summit stood
The Nymphs that wander in that sacred wood;
Wondering they view'd below the sailing pine,
(Itonian Pallas fram'd the work divine)
And bold Thessalia's labouring heroes sweep
With stretching oars the navigable deep.

Lo! from the mountain's topmost cliff descends
The Centaur Chiron; to the shore he bends
His hasty footsteps: on the beach he stood,
And dipp'd his fetlocks in the hoary flood.
He hail'd the heroes with his big, broad hand,
And wish'd them safe to gain their native land.
With Chiron came Chariclo to the shore;
The young Achilles in her arms she bore.
Peleus, his sire, with secret pleasure smil'd,
As high in air she rais'd the royal child.
And now the winding bay's safe precincts past,
Thessalian Argo plough'd the watery waste;
On Tiphys' care the valiant chiefs rely'd,
To steer the vessel o'er the foaming tide,
The smooth well-modell'd rudder to command,
Obsequious to the movement of his hand.
And next inserting in the keel below
The mast tall-tapering, to the stern and prow,
With ropes that thro' the rolling pulleys glide,
They rear upright, and firm on every side.
Then high in air the swelling sails they raise,
While on their bosoms buxom Zephyr plays.
With favouring gales their steady course they keep
To where Tisæum frowns upon the deep.

Meanwhile sweet Orpheus, as they sail'd along,
Rais'd to Diana the melodious song,
Who sav'd them, where her guardian power presides,
From treacherous rocks that lurk beneath the tides.
The fish in shoals, attentive to his lay,
Pursu'd the poet o'er the watery way;
And oft emerging from their liquid sphere,
Strove more distinct his heavenly notes to hear.
As sheep in flocks thick-pasturing on the plain
Attend the footsteps of the shepherd-swain,
His well-known call they hear, and fully fed,
Pace slowly on, their leader at their head;
Who pipes melodious, as he moves along,
On sprightly reeds his modulated song:
Thus charm'd with tuneful sounds, the scaly train
Pursu'd the flying vessel o'er the main.
And now the winds with favouring breezes blew,
Corn-crown'd Thessalia lessen'd to the view,
The Grecian heroes pass by Pelion's steep,
Whose rocky summit nodded o'er the deep.
Now Sepias' cliffs beneath the waves subside,
And sea-girt Sciathos surmounts the tide.
Next, but far distant, was Piresiæ seen,
(Built on Magnesia's continent serene)

And Dolops' tomb, for this pacific shore,
Blest with mild evening's soften'd gales, they bore.
To him with victims was an altar crown'd,
While night prevail'd, and ocean roar'd around.
Two days they tarried, till propitious gales
Rose with the third, and bellied all their sails.
Assiduous then, the well-known shore they fill,
The shore call'd Aphetæ of Argo still.
Next Melibœa, on Thessalia's shore,
They pass, where winds and thundering tempests roar.
At early dawn, incumbent o'er the deep,
They view high Omole's aspiring steep.
Next by the streams of Amyrus they steer,
And where thy vales, Eurymena, appear,
And Ossa and Olympus' shady brow;
Loud from deep caverns gush the waves below.
By night beside Pallene's heights they sail,
And rough Canastra frowning o'er the vale.
But when the morn display'd her orient light,
Tall Athos rose conspicuous to the sight;
Which tho' from Lemnos far remov'd it lay,
As far as ships can sail till noon of day,
Yet the proud mountain's high-exalted head,
A gloom umbrageous o'er Myrina spread.

All day till eve the soft, indulgent gales
Their succour lent, and fill'd the swelling sails.
But when with eve the breezes ceas'd to blow,
The mariners to Sintian Lemnos row,
Ill-fated island! where the female train
Had all the males, the year preceding, slain.
For, deep-enamour'd with the nymphs of Thrace,
The men declin'd the conjugal embrace;
Their wives they slighted, and unwary led
War's pleasing spoils, fair captives, to their bed.
For angry Venus robb'd of love's delights
The Lemnian females, for neglected rites.
Ah miserable train! with envy curs'd
And jealousy, of passions far the worst!
One fatal night this unrelenting crew
Their mates, and all the lovely captives, slew,
And every male; lest in the course of time
Should rise some hero to revenge the crime.
Hypsipyla alone, illustrious maid,
Spar'd her sire Thoas, who the sceptre sway'd.
With pious care, in reverence to his age,
In a capacious ark she plac'd the sage,
Confiding in the mercy of the wave
The monarch from the massacre to save.

Some faithful fishers, to their mandate just,
Convey'd with care the delegated trust
Safe to a neighbouring, sea-surrounded shore,
Œnœa nam'd, so nam'd in days of yore,
Now Sicinum; from Sicinus it takes
Its title, whom a naiad of the lakes,
The nymph Œnœa, beautiful and fair,
Compress'd by Thoas, to the monarch bare.
The widow'd Lemnians, tho' by waves secur'd,
Oft shone in arms, to martial toils inur'd.
To feed their cattle was their daily care,
Or cleave the furrow with the crooked share:
Expert at these, Minerva's arts they scorn'd,
Which once employ'd them, and which once adorn'd.
Oft to the main, oppress'd with dire alarms,
They look'd; for much they fear'd the Thracian arms.
And when Thessalian Argo caught their view,
Quick from Myrina to the shore they flew.
All clad in glittering arms they press'd the strand,
Impetuous; (like the Bacchanalian band,
When with raw flesh their horrid feasts they close;)
They deem'd the vessel stor'd with Thracian foes.
Hypsipyla advanc'd among the rest,
In the bright armour of her father dress'd;

Anxious, astonish'd all the dames appear,
And by their silence testified their fear.
Meanwhile Æthalides the heroes send;
To him their peaceful mandates they commend.
Invested with the office of the God,
They grace their herald too with Hermes' rod,
Hermes his sire; who bless'd his favourite heir
With memory nor time, nor place impair.
In vain around him Acheron's waters roll;
They pour no dull oblivion o'er his soul.
To him the fates this privilege bestow,
By turns to wander with the shades below;
By turns with men to view the golden day,
And feel the sun's invigorating ray.
But why expatiate on such themes as these?
Why tell the fame of great Æthalides?
The herald to Hypsipyla address'd,
With mild benevolence, this joint request;
That now, at evening-close, the friendly land
Might hospitably treat this gallant band,
Who fear'd at morn to hoist their swelling sails,
For Boreas blew with unpropitious gales.

The queen had summon'd to the council-hall
The Lemnian dames, the dames obey'd her call:

Who mildly, with persuasion in her look,
In order rang'd, the heroines bespoke:

‘Let us, my mates, and ye my words attend,
‘Commodious presents to these strangers send;
‘Such as their friends to mariners consign,
‘Salubrious viands, and delicious wine;
‘So will they peaceful on our borders stay,
‘Nor need compel them to the town to stray.
‘Here will they learn the story of our guilt,
‘The vows we broke, the kindred blood we spilt;
‘And sure a tale, thus horrid, must appear
‘Cruel and impious to a foreign ear.
‘These are the counsels of your faithful friend,
‘Prompt to advise, and steady to defend.
‘She who can furnish counsel more discreet,
‘Now let her offer—for this cause we meet.’

Thus spoke the queen, and press'd her father's throne,
A royal seat, compos'd of solid stone.
Then rose Polyxo, venerable dame,
Once the queen's nurse, oppress'd with age, and lame;
A staff sustain'd her (for her limbs were weak)
Tottering with age, yet vehement to speak.
Near her four damsels, blooming, fresh and fair,
Sat crown'd with ringlets of the whitest hair.

Full in the midst she stood, then rais'd her head,
Her back was bent with years, and thus she said:

‘The queen's advice I greatly must commend,
‘Commodious presents to our guests to send.
‘And what more saving counsel shall I give
‘To those my friends who shall hereafter live;
‘Whene'er the sons of Thrace, or hostile hosts
‘From other kingdoms shall infest our coasts;
‘Which well may happen, we must all allow,
‘As this invasion that alarms us now?
‘But should some God avert th' impending ill,
‘Yet greater evils may befall, and will.
‘For when the oldest die, as die they must,
‘And our wise matrons be transform'd to dust,
‘And you, now young, oppress'd at last with age,
‘Shall unprolific tread life's irksome stage:
‘What wretched mortals ye, who then survive!
‘Who to their labour, then, the steers shall drive?
‘Will oxen then their necks spontaneous bow
‘Beneath the yoke, and drag the ponderous plough?
‘Or will they reap the harvest on the plain,
‘And every autumn house the golden grain?
‘I, tho' preserv'd to this important day,
‘(For death from me abhorrent turns away,)

‘Yet, ere the sun compleats his annual round,
‘If right I judge, shall mingle with the ground,
‘Lodg'd in the lap of Earth, at Nature's call,
‘And 'scape the ruin that involves you all.
‘Hear then, young damsels, what my years advise;
‘Before you now the fair occasion lies:
‘Commit your city to these strangers' care,
‘Let them your mansions and possessions share.’

She spoke, pleas'd murmurs fill'd the spacious hall;
Polyxo's counsel was approv'd by all.
From her sire's throne Hypsipyla arose,
Thus in few words the conference to close:
“My mates, since all this sage advice commend,
“An instant message to the ship I send.”

She said, and to Iphinoa gave command;
“Haste, find the leader of yon martial band,
“Invite him (of our amity a proof)
“To lodge beneath my hospitable roof;
“There time will furnish leisure to relate
“The genius and the manners of our state.
“But let his comrades rove, as pleasure leads,
“And pitch their tents along the fertile meads;
“Or to the tower-defended town repair,
“Assur'd of safety, and our royal care.”

Th' assembly rose, as thus the princess spoke,
Then to the regal dome her way she took.
Iphinoa, mindful of the queen's command,
Approach'd the Minyans scatter'd o'er the strand,
Who throng'd around her, eager to explore
Wherefore she came, and what commands she bore.
Then thus she said; ‘Strangers, to you as friends
‘Hypsipyla, the seed of Thoas, sends
‘Her faithful herald, with this strict command
‘To find the leader of your martial band;
‘Him she invites (of amity a proof)
‘To lodge beneath her hospitable roof:
‘There time will furnish leisure to relate
‘The genius, and the manners of our state.
‘But let his comrades rove, as pleasure leads,
‘And pitch their tents along the fertile meads;
‘Or to the tower-defended town repair,
‘Assur'd of safety, and the royal care.’

These words were grateful to the warlike band;
From her they learn'd whose sceptre rul'd the land;
Instant they urg'd their chief's assent, and all
Prepar'd obsequious to accept the call.
A mantle doubly lin'd, of purple hue,
The son of Æson o'er his shoulders threw.

This Pallas gave him, when, with wondrous art,
She plann'd his ship, and measur'd every part.
'Twere safer to survey the radiant globe
Of rising Phœbus, than this splendid robe.
Full in the middle beam'd a crimson blaze,
The verge surrounding darted purple rays.
In every part historic scenes were wrought;
The moving figures seem'd inform'd with thought.
Here, on their work intent, the Cyclops strove
Eager to forge a thunder-bolt for Jove;
Half-rough, half-form'd the glowing engine lay,
And only wanted the fire-darting ray;
And this they hammer'd out on anvils dire;
At each collision flash'd the fatal fire.
Not distant far, in lively colours plann'd,
Two brothers, Zethus and Amphion stand,
Sons of Antiopa: no turrets crown'd
Thy city, Thebes, but walls were rising round.
A mountain's rocky summit Zethus bore
On his broad back, but seem'd to labour sore.
Behind, Amphion tun'd his golden shell,
Amphion, deem'd in music to excel:
Rocks still pursu'd him as he mov'd along,
Charm'd by the music of his magic song.

Crown'd with soft tresses, in a fairer field,
Gay Venus toy'd with Mars's splendid shield.
Down from her shoulder her expanded vest
Display'd the swelling beauties of her breast.
She in the brazen buckler, glittering bright,
Beheld her lovely image with delight.
On a rich plain appear, not distant far,
The Taphians, and Electryon's sons at war;
Fat steers the prize for which the swains contend,
Those strive to plunder, these their herds defend;
The meads were moist with blood and rosy dew:
The powerful many triumph'd o'er the few.
Two chariots next roll'd lightly o'er the plains,
This Pelops drove, and shook the sounding reins;
Hippodamia at his side he view'd:
In the next chariot, Myrtilus pursu'd,
And with him Oenomas; approaching near,
At Pelops' back he aim'd the vengeful spear;
The faithless axle, as the wheels whirl'd round,
Snapp'd short, and left him stretch'd along the ground.
Here young Apollo stood, in act to throw
The whirring arrow from the twanging bow,
At mighty Tityus aim'd, who basely strove
To force his mother, erst belov'd by Jove:

He from fair Elara deriv'd his birth,
Tho' fed and nourish'd by prolific Earth.
There Phryxus stoop'd to listen to the ram,
On whose broad back the Hellespont he swam.
The beast look'd speaking; earnest could you gaze,
The lively piece would charmingly amaze.
Long might you feast your eye, and lend an ear,
With pleasing hope the conference to hear.

Such was the present of the blue-ey'd maid—
In his right hand a missile lance he sway'd,
Which Atalanta, to reward the brave,
Sure pledge of friendship, to the hero gave,
When on the breezy Mænalus she rov'd,
And wish'd the company of him she lov'd;
But he, of suitors' amorous strife afraid,
Repress'd the fond intention of the maid.
Thus rob'd, thus arm'd, he to the city went,
Bright as a star that gilds the firmament,
Which maids assembled view with eager eyes
High o'er their roof in orient beauty rise.
On the bright signal, as it darts its rays,
Attentive they with silent transport gaze.
Each, with this omen charm'd, expects, tho' late,
Return'd from distant climes her destin'd mate.

Thus shone the chief, for high achievements known,
Majestic as he mov'd to Lemnos' town.
The noble heroines his footsteps meet,
With courteous joy the Grecian guest to greet,
Whose downcast eye ne'er wander'd, till he came
To the proud palace of the royal dame;
Obsequious damsels at the portal wait,
And quick unbar the double-folding gate:
Then thro' the various courts extending wide,
And stately rooms, Iphinoa was his guide;
On a bright throne, with rich embroidery grac'd,
Fronting her sovereign she the hero plac'd.
Th' embarrass'd queen, her face with blushes spread,
In courteous terms address'd the prince, and said:
‘Why, gentle stranger, should your warlike train
‘At distance far, without the walls remain?
‘The men who till'd these ample fields before,
‘Now turn rich furrows on the Thracian shore.
‘But hear, while I our matchless woes relate;
‘So shall you know the story of our fate.
‘When o'er this realm my father Thoas reign'd,
‘The Lemnian youth, to fraud and rapine train'd,
‘On Thracian borders seiz'd the trembling prey,
‘And brought whole flocks, and lovely maids away.

‘This Venus plann'd, with mischievous intent,
‘And fierce among them fatal discord sent.
‘Their wives they loath'd, and vainly impious led
‘War's spoils, fair captives, to the lawless bed.
‘Long we endur'd, forgiving insults past,
‘And hop'd the faithless would reform at last.
‘In vain; each day but doubled our disgrace,
‘Our children yielded to a spurious race.
‘The widow'd mother, the discarded maid,
‘Forlorn, neglected thro' the city stray'd.
‘No tender pity touch'd the parent's breast,
‘To see his darling child abus'd, oppress'd
‘Beneath a step-dame's proud, imperious sway:
‘No sons would then maternal duty pay,
‘Nor, as before, their mother's cause defend;
‘No sister then to sister prov'd a friend:
‘But the gay troops of Thracian captives fair
‘Inthrall'd the men, and challeng'd all their care;
‘At home, abroad, the first, at pleasure's call,
‘To share the banquet, and conduct the ball.
‘At length, but strange! some favouring power divine
‘In female minds inspir'd this bold design,
‘That, when return'd from Thracia's hateful shore,
‘Our roofs these traitors might protect no more;

‘That, thus constrain'd, they might forego their crimes,
‘Or with their captives flee to distant climes.
‘They sail, return, the few remaining males
‘Demand, then quit us with auspicious gales;
‘And now the frigid fields of Thrace they plough,
‘And countries whiten'd with Sithonian snow.
‘Haste then, conduct your comrades to the town:
‘Here fix your seat, and Lemnos is your own.
‘And if to high dominion you aspire,
‘Reign here, and wield the sceptre of my sire.
‘You must approve; for not so fair a coast,
‘Or isle so fertile can the Ægean boast.
‘Haste to your friends, and make my pleasure known,
‘Nor let them longer lodge without the town.’

Artful she spoke, forbearing to relate
How in one night each woman slew her mate.

Then Jason thus: “Whate'er your bounty grants,
“Stores for our voyage, or our present wants,
“Pleas'd we accept: I to my valiant bands
“Will speed to signify your kind commands,
“Then soon conduct my comrades to the town:
“But still, O Queen, still wear your father's crown.
“Not from disdain I shun imperial sway,
“But great achievements call me hence away.”

He spoke, and gently press'd her fair right hand,
Then sought his comrades scatter'd o'er the strand.
Unnumber'd damsels round the hero wait,
Gazing with joy, and follow to the gate;
Then grateful presents in swift cars convey
To the land's margin, where the warriours lay.
When Jason now to his adventurous bands
Had signified Hypsipyla's commands,
With eager joy the Minyans haste to share
Her friendly roofs, and hospitable fare.
The Queen of Love Thessalia's chiefs inspires,
For Vulcan's sake, with amorous desires;
That Lemnos, Vulcan's sacred isle, agen
May flourish, peopled with a race of men.
Great Jason hastens to the regal walls;
The rest proceed where chance or pleasure calls,
Save great Alcides; with a chosen train,
Ambitious he in Argo to remain.
Eager with joy the jolly crowds advance
To share the genial feast, or lead the dance;
To Venus' and to Vulcan's fane they throng,
And crown the day with victims and with song.
Sunk in soft ease th' enamour'd heroes lay,
(Their voyage still deferr'd from day to day)

And longer still, and longer had declin'd,
Full loath to leave the lovely place behind,
Had not Alcides, the fair dames apart,
Thus spoke incens'd the language of his heart:

‘Mistaken comrades, does our kindred, say,
‘From our own country drive us far away?
‘Or are we fondly thus enamour'd grown
‘Of foreign damsels, and despise our own?
‘Here shall we stay to till the Lemnian fields?
‘Small fame to heroes this base commerce yields.
‘No God, propitious to the sons of Greece,
‘Without our toil, will grant the golden Fleece.
‘Our course pursue we; for the breeze invites;
‘And let him revel in Love's soft delights,
‘Who here but stays to propagate his kind,
‘And leave a memorable name behind.’

Alcides thus: none dar'd to lift his eye,
To breathe a murmur, or to make reply;
But keenly stung with this sarcastic stile,
They haste to leave the lov'd Vulcanian isle.
Soon as the damsels their fix'd purpose knew,
Around the chiefs in busy crowds they flew.
As bees from some deep-cavern'd rock proceed,
Buzz o'er the lilies of the laughing mead,

The sweets of all ambrosial herbs devour,
And suck the soul of every fragrant flow'r;
Thus they in swarms the parting Greeks address,
With hands salute, with soothing words caress;
Then to the Powers above with fervour pray,
Safe to their arms the heroes to convey.
Hypsipyla the hand of Jason press'd,
And thus with tears the parting chief address'd:
“Adieu!—and may you with the sons of Greece
“Return triumphant with the golden Fleece.
“Here shall you then my father's sceptre sway,
“And his domains your sovereign will obey.
“The neighbouring states will furnish large supplies,
“And a vast empire by your wisdom rise.
“But if on nobler plans your thoughts are bent,
“And vainly I presage the wish'd event;
“Absent or present, to my memory kind,
“Still let Hypsipyla possess your mind.
“And if with offspring heaven should bless me, say,
“How shall I then my Jason's will obey?”

The prince beheld the queen with rapturous look,
And thus with mild benevolence bespoke:

‘May these events, foredoom'd by heaven's decree,
‘Successful prove, Hypsipyla, to thee.

‘But still of Jason nobler thoughts retain:
‘Enough for me o'er my own realms to reign;
‘May but the powers of heaven (I ask no more)
‘Safe reconvey me to my native shore.
‘If that's denied, and you, my source of joy,
‘Bear, the soft token of our loves, a boy;
‘Him, when mature, in kindness to your friend,
‘My parents' solace, to Iölcos send;
‘If then perchance the venerable pair
‘Survive their woes, and breathe this vital air.
‘There may he live, from Pelias far remov'd,
‘By Grecians honour'd, who his father lov'd.

He spoke his last farewell: then first ascends
The ship, and with him his illustrious friends.
In their due stations plac'd, each seiz'd an oar,
While Argus loos'd the cable from the shore.
With active strokes the vigorous heroes sweep
The sounding bosom of the billowy deep.
As Orpheus counsel'd, and mild evening near,
To Samothrace, Electra's isle, they steer;
That there initiated in rites divine,
Safe might they sail the navigable brine.
But, Muse, presume not of these rites to tell:
Farewell, dread isle! dire deities, farewell!

Let not my verse these mysteries explain;
To name is impious, to reveal profane.
Thence the black main they lash'd with all their might,
Thrace on their left, and Imbros on the right;
And safely, with the now-declining sun,
To far-projecting Chersonesus run.
Then stemm'd they, aided by the southern gales,
The stormy Hellespont with swelling sails,
Left the high-surging sea with morning light,
And reach'd Sigæum with approaching night.
Dardania past, and high exalted Ide,
They saw Abydos on the stormy tide.
Thence sail'd they by Percote's pasture lands,
Pityëa's meadows, and Abarnis' sands:
And nightly, favour'd by the friendly blast,
The purple-foaming Hellespont they past.
An ancient island in Propontis lies,
That towering lifts its summit to the skies;
Near Phrygia's corn-abounding coast it stands,
And far-projecting all the main commands;
An island this, save where the isthmus' chain
Connects both lands, and curbs the boisterous main.
Round its rough sides the thundering tempests roar,
And a safe bay is form'd on either shore.

Æsepus' waters near this isthmus fall:
And bordering tribes the mountain Arcton call.
On this rough mountain, barbarous, fierce and bold,
Dwell mighty giants, hideous to behold;
And, wonderful to tell! each monster stands
With six huge arms, and six rapacious hands;
Two pendent on their shaggy shoulders grow,
And four deform their horrid sides below.
The lowland isthmus, verging to the main,
The Dolions till'd, and all the fertile plain.
O'er these reign'd Cyzicus the brave, the young,
Who from the gallant warriour, Æneus, sprung.
The daughter of Eusorus, first in fame,
Bore Cyzicus, Æneta was her name.
Secure they liv'd, and free from war's alarms,
Tho' Earth's huge sons were terrible in arms.
Sprung from the monarch of the hoary tide,
On Neptune's aid the Dolian race rely'd.
To this fair port, with gentle-breathing gales,
This friendly shore, Thessalian Argo sails.
Here the rope-fasten'd stone they heave on shore,
Which serv'd as anchor to the ship before,
But now too light, so Typhis bids, they bring,
And leave it at the pure Artacian spring;

Then choose another on the rocky bay,
More ponderous far, the rolling ship to stay.
There the first stone unnumber'd years remain'd,
Till, as Apollo's oracle ordain'd,
Th' Ionians found, with rites mysterious grac'd,
And sacred to Jasonian Pallas plac'd.
Soon as the Dolians, near approaching, knew
Thessalian Argo, and the godlike crew,
Led on by Cyzicus they haste to meet
The princely band, and amicably greet;
Invite them down the winding bay to fall,
And fix their cable near the city-wall.
Thus friendly treated, the Pelasgic train
Strive with their oars th' interiour port to gain.
Then first Ecbasian Phœbus they adore,
And rear an altar on the sounding shore.
To them the king dispatch'd, with heart benign,
Fat sheep, and strong, exhilarating wine.
For thus the sacred oracle foretold,
‘When here arrives a band of heroes bold,
‘With kind complacence treat the godlike crew,
‘Meet not in arms, but pay them honours due!’
Scarce had the down the monarch's cheeks o'erspread;
No children yet had bless'd the nuptial bed.

Clita, his lovely queen, the young, the fair,
Renown'd for beauty, and her golden hair,
Sprung from Percosian Merops, still remains
A stranger to Lucina's cruel pains.
Late from her father's court the king convey'd,
With ample dower enrich'd, the blameless maid;
Yet he neglects the genial bed, and feasts,
All fears far banishing, with foreign guests.
Oft he enquires of Pelias' stern command,
And why the heroes left their native land.
As oft they ask'd what cities neighbouring lay,
And in Propontis which the safest bay.
But scanty knowledge could the king bestow,
Tho' it behov'd them much these truths to know.
When morning rose, the Dindymean steep
Some mount, to view the navigable deep,
And all its winding bays; the road they came
They honour'd with illustrious Jason's name.
The chiefs, who chose aboard the ship to stay,
Remov'd her from the moorings where she lay.
Mean while the sons of Earth, a numerous train,
From their bleak mountains rush into the plain,
Besiege the pervious bay, and strive to block
Its mouth with massy fragments from the rock;

Intending there Thessalia's pine to keep
Hemm'd up, like some huge monster of the deep.
But Hercules remain'd; his bow he drew,
And heaps of giants with his arrows stew.
The rest enrag'd, rough, rocky fragments tore,
Hurl'd high in air, and thunder'd from the shore.
(This labour still for Hercules remain'd,
By Juno, Jove's imperial queen, ordain'd)
And fiercely now the glowing battle burn'd,
When lo! the chiefs from Dindymus return'd,
Attack'd the desperate giants in the rear,
And dealt destruction with the dart and spear;
Till Earth's fierce sons, defil'd with wounds and gore,
Dropp'd dead; their bodies cover'd half the shore.
As near the sea's broad brink, with sturdy strokes,
Assiduous woodmen fell aspiring oaks;
Then draw them in due order from the flood,
And thus well drench'd they cleave with ease the wood:
Thus at the entrance of the hoary bay,
The frequent corse of many a giant lay;
Some, tumbled headlong, made the sea their grave,
While their legs rose above the briny wave;
Some o'er the sands their horrid visage show,
Their feet deep-rooted in the mud below.

Thus their huge trunks afford abundant fare
To Neptune's fishes, and the birds of air.
Soon as concluded was the bloody fray,
And favouring breezes call'd the chiefs away,
They loos'd; o'er swelling ocean southern gales
Breath'd all day long, and fill'd their bellying sails.
Night rose, the favouring gales no longer last,
The ship drives backward with the stormy blast.
Again they harbour on the friendly coast,
Where late the Dolians entertain'd the host;
And round the rock the steady cable bind,
The rock ev'n now to sacred fame consign'd.
Here thro' the gloom of night again they came,
And knew not that the country was the same.
Nor knew the Dolians, so dark night prevail'd,
That back to Cyzicum the Greeks had sail'd;
But deem'd the chiefs a band of Macrian foes:
To arms they call, and force to force oppose.
A gleamy lustre glanc'd along the field,
While spear met spear, and shield encounter'd shield.
In sun-scorch'd bushes thus the bickering blaze
Flames forth, and crackling on the branches preys.
Dire was the conflict; on the fatal plain
Their prince, alas! was number'd with the slain,
His queen and bridal bed beheld he ne'er again.

For Jason spy'd the prince advancing near,
And thro' his bosom plung'd the furious spear;
The ribs it broke, and circumscrib'd his date,
Wing'd with th' inevitable will of Fate.
Fate, like a wall, devoted man surrounds,
And fast confines him in its circling bounds.
Himself he deem'd, in that disorder'd fight,
Vainly he deem'd! protected by the night:
The favouring night, alas! produc'd his bane,
And chiefs unnumber'd with their prince were slain.
For Hercules, with his all-conquering bow,
Dispatch'd Telecles to the shades below,
And Megabrontes: by Acastus' hand
Pale Sphodris lay extended on the strand.
Peleus to Pluto's dark dominions gave
Zelys the hardy, and Gephyrus brave.
Bold Telamon, well-skill'd the lance to wield,
Left Basileus expiring on the field.
Next Idas vanquish'd Promeus by his side;
By warlike Clytius Hyacinthus died.
Fair Leda's sons, in bloody combat skill'd,
Fierce Megalossacus and Phlogius kill'd.
And Meleager added two to these,
Itymoneus and valiant Artaces.

These all were chiefs in fighting fields approv'd,
Deplor'd as heroes, and as brothers lov'd.
The rest for safety on their flight rely;
(As trembling doves before the falcon fly)
Then to the city-gates tumultuous press,
And raise the piercing cry of deep distress;
The city mourn'd: they deem'd, return'd from far,
That hostile Macrians had renew'd the war.

But when the rosy morn began to wake,
All found their irretrievable mistake.
Heart-rending grief oppress'd the Grecian train,
To see the hospitable monarch slain,
A clay-cold corse, extended on the shore,
Deform'd with dust, and all besmear'd with gore.
The Greeks and Dolians, sunk in deep despair,
Mourn three long days, and rend their graceful hair.
A tomb they rear upon the rising ground,
And clad in brazen arms thrice march around;
Then for the monarch, on Limonia's plain,
Of rites observant, funeral-games ordain.
There stands the tomb, adorn'd with honours due,
Which distant ages will with sorrow view.
When the sad news at Clita's ear arriv'd,
Not long the queen her monarch's fate surviv'd;

But woe augmenting, round her neck she tied
The noose dishonest, and unseemly died.
Her mournful dirge the weeping Dryads sung,
While Dindymus with lamentations rung;
And all the tears that from their eye-lids fell,
The Gods transform'd, in pity, to a well;
In crystal streams it murmurs still, and weeps,
And still the name of wretched Clita keeps.
A day so dismal, so replete with woes,
Till this sad day, to Dolians never rose.
Deep, deep immers'd in sorrow they remain'd,
And all from life-supporting food abstain'd;
Save such poor pittance as man's needs require,
Of corn unground, or unprepar'd by fire.
And annual, on this day, the Dolians still
Sift coarsest meal, and at the public mill.

Thenceforth twelve days and nights dire storms prevail,
Nor could the chiefs unfurl the swelling sail.
The following night, by sleep's soft power oppress'd,
Once more in Cyzicum the heroes rest;
Mopsus alone and brave Acastus keep
The watch nocturnal, while their comrades sleep;
When, lo! a Halcyon, of cerulean hue,
O'er the fair head of slumbering Jason flew,

In airy circles, wondrous to behold,
And, screaming loud, the ceasing storm foretold.
The grateful sound attentive Mopsus heard,
And mark'd the meaning of the sea-bred bird;
(Which gently rising from the deck below,
Perch'd on the summit of th' aerial prow)
Then rous'd he Jason from his fleecy bed,
Of sheeps' soft skins compos'd, and thus he said;
‘O son of Æson, hear! be this thy care,
‘Haste, to the fane of Dindymus repair;
‘There Cybele with sacrifice implore,
‘So will the winds tempestuous cease to roar.
‘For this proclaim'd the boding Halcyon true,
‘As round thee, sunk in deep repose, she flew.
‘By Cybele's dread power the vast profound,
‘And all the winds in harmony are bound.
‘By her subsists prolific earth below,
‘And high Olympus, ever crown'd with snow.
‘Jove yields, when she ascends the courts of day,
‘And all the powers immortal own her sway.’

To Jason thus the venerable seer;
And welcome came the tidings to his ear.
Instant the chief, exulting with a bound,
Sprung from the bed, and wak'd his comrades round.

Elate with joy his looks, his words unfold
The glad presage which Mopsus had foretold.
Then from the stalls the youths appointed drove
Selected oxen to the heights above.
Some from the rock unloos'd the corded stay,
And with fleet oars approach'd the Thracian bay.
From thence the top of Dindymus they gain'd;
Few were the heroes that aboard remain'd:
By those the Macrian rocks, and Thracian land
Directly opposite, appear'd at hand;
The Thracian Bosphorus here, involv'd in shade,
And Mysia's rising mountains were survey'd;
There, where his waters black Æsepus pours,
Nepea's plain, and Adrasteia's tow'rs.
A vine's vast trunk adorn'd with branches stood,
Though old, yet sound, and long had grac'd the wood;
This trunk they hew'd, and made, by Argus' skill,
An image of the Goddess of the hill;
Which on the rocky eminence they plac'd,
With the thick boughs of circling beeches grac'd,
They rear an altar, then, on rising ground,
Of stones that readiest lay, and wide around
Dispose the branches of the sacred oak,
And Dindymus's deity invoke,

The guardian power of Phrygia's hills and woods,
The venerable mother of the Gods.
On Tityas and Cyllenus too they call,
Of all her priests most lov'd, and honour'd most of all:
For skill prophetic they alone are fam'd;
Idean Dactyli these priests are nam'd;
Both whom Anchiala in Dicte's cave
Brought forth, where chill Oaxis rolls his wave.
While on the burning victims Jason pours
Libations due, the Goddess he implores
To smile propitious on the Grecian train,
And still the tempests of the roaring main.
Then Orpheus call'd, and youthful chiefs advance,
All clad in arms, to lead the martial dance;
With clashing swords they clatter'd on their shields,
And fill'd with festive sounds th' aerial fields.
Lost in these sounds was every doleful strain,
And their loud wailings for their monarch slain.
The Phrygians still their Goddess' favour win
By the revolving wheel and timbrel's din.
Of these pure rites the mighty mother show'd
Her mind approving, by these signs bestow'd;
Boughs bend with fruit, Earth from her bosom pours
Herbs ever green, and voluntary flow'rs.

Fierce forest-beasts forsake the lonely den,
Approach with gentleness, and fawn on men.
A pleasing omen, and more wondrous still
The Goddess gave: the Dindymean hill,
That ne'er knew water on its airy brow,
Bursts into streams, and founts perennial flow.
This wonder still the Phrygian shepherds sing,
And give the name of Jason to the spring.
Then on the mount the chiefs the feast prolong,
And praise the venerable queen in song.
But when the morning rose, they plied their oars,
And, the wind ceasing, left the Phrygian shores.
Then fair contention fir'd the princely train,
Who best the toil of rowing could sustain.
For now the howling storm was lull'd to sleep;
Etherial mildness had compos'd the deep.
On the calm sea the labouring chiefs rely'd;
Fleet flew the ship along the yielding tide;
Not Neptune's steeds so swift, with loosen'd reins,
Skim the light level of the liquid plains.
But when with even-tide the blustering breeze
Brush'd the broad bosom of the swelling seas,
The wearied chiefs their toilsome course repress'd,
And all, save great Alcides, sunk to rest.

Swift thro' the waves his arm unaided drew
The ship, deep-laden with the drowsy crew.
Thro' all her planks the well-compacted pine
Shook, as his oar dispers'd the foamy brine.
But soon the heroes view'd the Mysian shore,
As by the mouth of Rhyndacus they bore.
On Phrygia's fields a wishful look they cast,
And huge Ægæon's promontory pass'd,
When great Alcides, at one luckless stroke,
His oar, hard straining, near the middle broke.
One part was swallow'd in the whelming main,
One, though he fell, his grasping hands retain;
Backward he fell, but soon his seat regain'd,
And, loathing rest, in mute amaze remain'd.
What time the weary labourer, wanting rest,
Hies to his cot with pining fast oppress'd;
Ev'n in the entrance of his rural door
His tottering knees he bends, and moves no more;
His dusty limbs he views, and callous hands,
And curses hunger's insolent demands:
Then, nor till then, the chiefs to Chius row,
Chius, whose streams around Arganthon flow.
The friendly Mysians on their peaceful coast
Receive with hospitality the host;

Abundant stores they send, with hearts benign,
Fat sheep, and strong exhilarating wine.
Some bring dry wood, and some in order spread
Soft leaves and herbage for a spacious bed;
Some from the flint elicit living fire;
Some mix the wines that generous deeds inspire:
The feast they crown, and rites to Phœbus pay,
Ecbasian Phœbus, at the close of day.
But Hercules the genial feast declin'd,
And sought the wood, a fitting oar to find.
Nor long he sought before a fir he found;
Few leaves adorn'd it, and few branches crown'd;
Yet as the poplar's stem aspires on high,
This fir, so stout and tall, attracts his eye.
On the green grass his bow he laid aside,
His arrowy quiver, and the lion's hide.
First with his club the solid soil he shook,
Then in both arms, assur'd, the fir-tree took;
Firm on his feet he stood, with bended knee;
His big broad shoulder lean'd against the tree;
Then heav'd it up, deep-rooted in the ground,
Clogg'd with the soil's impediments around.
As when, beneath Orion's wintry reign,
The sudden tempest rushes from the main,

Some tall ship's mast it tears, and every stay,
And all the cordage, all the sails away:
Thus he the trunk; then took, in haste to go,
The hide, the club, his arrows and his bow.

Meanwhile, preparing for his friend's return
A ready supper, with his brazen urn
Alone rov'd Hylas o'er the fields, to bring
The purest water from the sacred spring.
For to such tasks Alcides train'd his squire,
Whom first he took an infant from his sire
Theodamas; but him with sword severe
He slew, who churlish had refus'd a steer.
For when Theodamas, oppress'd with care,
Turn'd the fresh furrow with his shining share,
He disobey'd, ah wretch! the chief's command,
Who claim'd the labouring ox that till'd the land.
But know, Alcides sought for cause to bring
War on Dryopia's kingdom and the king,
For barbarous acts, and rights neglected long.

But rove not, Muse, digressive from the song.
Soon faithful Hylas to the fountain came,
Which Mysian shepherds crystal Pegæ name;
It chanc'd the nymphs, in neighbouring streams that dwell,
Then kept a concert at the sacred well.

In Dian's praise they rais'd the nightly song,
All who to high, aerial hills belong;
All who in caverns hide, or devious rove
The mountain-forest, or the shady grove.
When from her spring, unsullied with a stain,
Rose Ephydatia, to attend the train,
The form of Hylas rush'd upon her sight,
In every grace of blushing beauty bright:
For the full moon a beamy lustre shed,
And heighten'd all the honours of his head.
Fir'd with love's sudden flame, by Venus rais'd,
The frantic naiad languish'd as she gaz'd:
And soon as, stooping to receive the tide,
He to the stream his brazen urn apply'd,
In gush'd the foaming waves; the nymph with joy
Sprung from the deep to kiss the charming boy.
Her left arm round his lovely neck she threw,
And with her right hand to the bottom drew.
First Polyphemus heard, as wandering nigh
This fatal fount, the youth's distressful cry,
(In search of Hercules he rov'd the wood)
And hied with hasty footsteps to the flood.
As when a lion from his cavern'd rock,
At distance hears the bleatings of the flock,

To seize his prey he springs, with hunger bold,
But faithful shepherds had secur'd the fold;
Defeated of his prize, he roars amain,
Rends his hoarse throat, and terrifies the swain:
Thus Polyphemus call'd with voice profound,
And vainly anxious rov'd the forest round.
At length retreating, he the path explor'd
Thro' which he came, and drew his trusty sword,
Lest savage beasts should seize him for their prey,
Or nightly robbers intercept his way.
And as he brandish'd the bright burnish'd blade,
He met Alcides in the gloomy shade,
Unknown at first, but as he nearer drew,
His friend returning to the ship he knew.
Though his breath falters, and his spirits fail,
He thus reveals the melancholy tale:
‘Hard is my lot, and much averse my will,
‘To be the first sad messenger of ill;
‘Young Hylas went to fetch fresh water late,
‘Not yet return'd; I tremble for his fate:
‘By robbers seiz'd or beasts, 'tis hard to guess;
‘I heard his cry, the signal of distress:’
Thus he: the sweat from great Alcides flow'd,
And the black blood thro' all his body glow'd:

Enrag'd, the fir-tree on the ground he threw,
And, where his feet or frenzy hurried, flew.

As when a bull, whom galling gadflies wound,
Forsakes the meadows, and the marshy ground,
The flowery food, the herd and herdsmen shuns,
Now stands stock-still, and restless now he runs;
Stung by the breese, he maddens with the pain,
Tosses aloft his head, and roars amain:
Thus ran the raging chief with matchless force,
Then sudden stopp'd he, wearied with the course.
Anxious in vain, he rov'd the forest round,
The distant hills and vales his voice rebound.
Now o'er the lofty mountains rose in view
The morning-star, and mildest breezes blew:
That instant Tiphys bade the heroes sail,
Ascend the vessel, and enjoy the gale.
The ready crew obey the pilot's word,
Their anchor weigh, and haul the cords aboard;
Then give the stretching canvass to the wind,
And leave the Posidean rocks behind.
When from the rosy orient, beaming bright,
Aurora tipp'd the foot-worn paths with light;
And o'er moist meads the glittering dew-drops shin'd,
They miss'd those friends their folly left behind,

Then rose contention keen, and pungent grief,
For thus abandoning their bravest chief.
In silence Jason sat, and long suppress'd,
Though griev'd, the labouring anguish of his breast.
Brave Telamon, with anger kindling, spoke:

‘Mute is thy tongue, and unconcern'd thy look:
‘To leave unconquer'd Hercules behind
‘Was a base project, and by thee design'd;
‘Lest, when to Greece we steer the sailing pine,
‘His brighter glories should out-dazzle thine.
‘But words avail not—I renounce the band,
‘Whose selfish wiles this stratagem have plann'd:’

Thus spoke Æacides, inflam'd with ire,
His eye-balls sparkling like the burning fire;
On Tiphys then, by rage impell'd, he flew:
And once more Mysia had receiv'd the crew;
Again the heroes the same course had sail'd,
Though roaring winds and raging waves prevail'd,
Had not bold Boreas' sons the chief address'd,
And, nobly daring, his rough rage repress'd.
(Ill fated youths! for that heroic deed
Doom'd by the hands of Hercules to bleed.
For when returning home their course they sped,
From funeral games perform'd for Pelias dead,

In sea-girt Tenos he the brothers slew,
And o'er their graves in heapy hillocks threw
The crumbling mould; then with two columns crown'd,
Erected high the death-devoted ground;
And one still moves, how marvellous the tale!
With every motion of the Northern gale—
But these are facts reserv'd for future years)
Lo! sudden, Glaucus to their sight appears,
Prophet of Nereus, rising from the main,
Most skill'd of all his fate-foretelling train.
High o'er the waves he rear'd his shaggy head,
With his strong hand the rudder seiz'd, and said:

‘Why strive ye thus, tho' Jove's high will withstands,
‘To bear Alcides to the Colchian lands?
‘He must at Argos, so the fates ordain,
‘And so Eurystheus has decreed, sustain
‘Twelve mighty labours, thence be rais'd above,
‘To high Olympus, and the court of Jove.
‘Cease for Amphytrion's son, your murmurs cease,
‘And lull the sorrows of your souls to peace.
‘In Mysia, where meandering Chius strays,
‘Must Polyphemus a proud city raise:
‘Then, mid' the Calybes, a desperate clan,
‘Expires on Scythian plains the gallant man.

‘But strange is Hylas' fate: his youthful charms
‘Entic'd a nymph, who clasp'd him in her arms.
‘Now the blest pair the bands of Hymen bind;
‘In search of him the chiefs are left behind.’

This said, he plung'd into the gulf profound,
The purple ocean foam'd in eddies round.
The God descending with resistless sway,
Impell'd the hollow vessel on her way.
The chiefs rejoic'd this prodigy to view,
And instant Telamon to Jason flew
In friendly sort, and in his right he took
The prince's hand, and thus embracing spoke:

‘Illustrious chief, let not thine anger rise
‘At aught I said impetuous and unwise.
‘Grief for my friend has made me indiscreet,
‘And utter words for Jason's ear unmeet;
‘Those to the winds wide-scattering let us give,
‘And, as before, in friendly concord live.’

Then Jason thus; “Thy censures wound my mind,
“Which say, I left the bravest Greek behind.
“Yet though thy words reproachful guilt suggest,
“Rage dwells not long in Jason's generous breast;
“Since not for flocks or riches we contend,
“But a bold hero, and a faithful friend.

“And thou, I trust, if reason calls, wilt be
“As firm and warm an advocate for me.”

He spoke; and now, the hateful contest o'er,
The chiefs resum'd the seats they held before.
But for those heroes, whom they left behind,
By Jove's decree are various cares design'd.
Nam'd from its stream, the boast of future days,
Must one on Mysian plains a city raise:
One (great Alcides) other toils must share,
And learn Euristheus' stern commands to bear.
Long time he threaten'd, for his Hylas lost,
Instant destruction to the Mysian coast,
Unless the Mysians to his arms restor'd,
Alive or dead, the partner of his board.
Of all their bands the choicest youths they chose,
And them as pledges of their faith propose;
Then swore they all, their search should never end,
Till haply they had found the hero's friend.
Still to this day the fond Cianians seek
(All who at Trachin dwell) the lovely Greek.
For beauteous youths, to Trachin's walls convey'd,
Were there as pledges to Alcides paid.

Meanwhile all day and night brisk breezes blew,
Fleet o'er the foaming flood the vessel flew;

But when the dawn gave promise of the day,
The winds expiring gently died away.
A land projecting o'er the bay below
The chiefs discover'd, and to this they row;
This peaceful port awhile the Minyans chose,
And, as they reach'd it, grateful morning rose.

END OF THE FIRST BOOK.

University of Virginia Library

BOOK I.

THE ARGUMENT.