Ulysses slept in the cloister upon an undressed bullock's hide,
on
the top of which he threw several skins of the sheep the suitors
had
eaten, and Eurynome threw a cloak over him after he had laid
himself
down. There, then, Ulysses lay wakefully brooding upon the way
in
which he should kill the suitors; and by and by, the women who
had
been in the habit of misconducting themselves with them, left
the
house giggling and laughing with one another. This made Ulysses
very
angry, and he doubted whether to get up and kill every single
one
of them then and there, or to let them sleep one more and last
time
with the suitors. His heart growled within him, and as a with
puppies growls and shows her teeth when she sees a stranger, so
did
his heart growl with anger at the evil deeds that were being
done:
but he beat his breast and said, "Heart, be still, you had worse
than
this to bear on the day when the terrible Cyclops ate your brave
companions;
yet you bore it in silence till your cunning got you safe out of
the
cave, though you made sure of being killed."
Thus he chided with his heart, and checked it into endurance,
but
he tossed about as one who turns a paunch full of blood and fat
in
front of a hot fire, doing it first on one side and then on the
other,
that he may get it cooked as soon as possible, even so did he
turn
himself about from side to side, thinking all the time how,
single
handed as he was, he should contrive to kill so large a body of
men
as the wicked suitors. But by and by Minerva came down from
heaven
in the likeness of a woman, and hovered over his head saying,
"My
poor unhappy man, why do you lie awake in this way? This is your
house:
your wife is safe inside it, and so is your son who is just such
a
young man as any father may be proud of."
"Goddess," answered Ulysses, "all that you have said is true,
but
I am in some doubt as to how I shall be able to kill these
wicked
suitors single handed, seeing what a number of them there always
are.
And there is this further difficulty, which is still more
considerable.
Supposing that with Jove's and your assistance I succeed in
killing
them, I must ask you to consider where I am to escape to from
their
avengers when it is all over."
"For shame," replied Minerva, "why, any one else would trust a
worse
ally than myself, even though that ally were only a mortal and
less
wise than I am. Am I not a goddess, and have I not protected you
throughout
in all your troubles? I tell you plainly that even though there
were
fifty bands of men surrounding us and eager to kill us, you
should
take all their sheep and cattle, and drive them away with you.
But
go to sleep; it is a very bad thing to lie awake all night, and
you
shall be out of your troubles before long."
As she spoke she shed sleep over his eyes, and then went back to Olympus.
While Ulysses was thus yielding himself to a very deep slumber
that
eased the burden of his sorrows, his admirable wife awoke, and
sitting
up in her bed began to cry. When she had relieved herself by
weeping
she prayed to Diana saying, "Great Goddess Diana, daughter of
Jove,
drive an arrow into my heart and slay me; or let some whirlwind
snatch
me up and bear me through paths of darkness till it drop me into
the
mouths of overflowing Oceanus, as it did the daughters of
Pandareus.
The daughters of Pandareus lost their father and mother, for the
gods
killed them, so they were left orphans. But Venus took care of
them,
and fed them on cheese, honey, and sweet wine. Juno taught them
to
excel all women in beauty of form and understanding; Diana gave
them
an imposing presence, and Minerva endowed them with every kind
of
accomplishment; but one day when Venus had gone up to Olympus to
see
Jove about getting them married (for well does he know both what
shall
happen and what not happen to every one) the storm winds came
and
spirited them away to become handmaids to the dread Erinyes.
Even
so I wish that the gods who live in heaven would hide me from
mortal
sight, or that fair Diana might strike me, for I would fain go
even
beneath the sad earth if I might do so still looking towards
Ulysses
only, and without having to yield myself to a worse man than he
was.
Besides, no matter how much people may grieve by day, they can
put
up with it so long as they can sleep at night, for when the eyes
are
closed in slumber people forget good and ill alike; whereas my
misery
haunts me even in my dreams. This very night methought there was
one
lying by my side who was like Ulysses as he was when he went
away
with his host, and I rejoiced, for I believed that it was no
dream,
but the very truth itself."
On this the day broke, but Ulysses heard the sound of her
weeping,
and it puzzled him, for it seemed as though she already knew him
and
was by his side. Then he gathered up the cloak and the fleeces
on
which he had lain, and set them on a seat in the cloister, but
he
took the bullock's hide out into the open. He lifted up his
hands
to heaven, and prayed, saying "Father Jove, since you have seen
fit
to bring me over land and sea to my own home after all the
afflictions
you have laid upon me, give me a sign out of the mouth of some
one
or other of those who are now waking within the house, and let
me
have another sign of some kind from outside."
Thus did he pray. Jove heard his prayer and forthwith thundered
high
up among the from the splendour of Olympus, and Ulysses was glad
when
he heard it. At the same time within the house, a miller-woman
from
hard by in the mill room lifted up her voice and gave him
another
sign. There were twelve miller-women whose business it was to
grind
wheat and barley which are the staff of life. The others had
ground
their task and had gone to take their rest, but this one had not
yet
finished, for she was not so strong as they were, and when she
heard
the thunder she stopped grinding and gave the sign to her
master.
"Father Jove," said she, "you who rule over heaven and earth,
you
have thundered from a clear sky without so much as a cloud in
it,
and this means something for somebody; grant the prayer, then,
of
me your poor servant who calls upon you, and let this be the
very
last day that the suitors dine in the house of Ulysses. They
have
worn me out with the labour of grinding meal for them, and I
hope
they may never have another dinner anywhere at all."
Ulysses was glad when he heard the omens conveyed to him by the
woman's
speech, and by the thunder, for he knew they meant that he
should
avenge himself on the suitors.
Then the other maids in the house rose and lit the fire on the
hearth;
Telemachus also rose and put on his clothes. He girded his sword
about
his shoulder, bound his sandals on his comely feet, and took a
doughty
spear with a point of sharpened bronze; then he went to the
threshold
of the cloister and said to Euryclea, "Nurse, did you make the
stranger
comfortable both as regards bed and board, or did you let him
shift
for himself?- for my mother, good woman though she is, has a way
of
paying great attention to second-rate people, and of neglecting
others
who are in reality much better men."
"Do not find fault child," said Euryclea, "when there is no one
to
find fault with. The stranger sat and drank his wine as long as
he
liked: your mother did ask him if he would take any more bread
and
he said he would not. When he wanted to go to bed she told the
servants
to make one for him, but he said he was re such wretched outcast
that
he would not sleep on a bed and under blankets; he insisted on
having
an undressed bullock's hide and some sheepskins put for him in
the
cloister and I threw a cloak over him myself."
Then Telemachus went out of the court to the place where the
Achaeans
were meeting in assembly; he had his spear in his hand, and he
was
not alone, for his two dogs went with him. But Euryclea called
the
maids and said, "Come, wake up; set about sweeping the cloisters
and
sprinkling them with water to lay the dust; put the covers on
the
seats; wipe down the tables, some of you, with a wet sponge;
clean
out the mixing-jugs and the cups, and for water from the
fountain
at once; the suitors will be here directly; they will be here
early,
for it is a feast day."
Thus did she speak, and they did even as she had said: twenty of
them
went to the fountain for water, and the others set themselves
busily
to work about the house. The men who were in attendance on the
suitors
also came up and began chopping firewood. By and by the women
returned
from the fountain, and the swineherd came after them with the
three
best pigs he could pick out. These he let feed about the
premises,
and then he said good-humouredly to Ulysses, "Stranger, are the
suitors
treating you any better now, or are they as insolent as ever?"
"May heaven," answered Ulysses, "requite to them the wickedness
with
which they deal high-handedly in another man's house without any
sense
of shame."
Thus did they converse; meanwhile Melanthius the goatherd came
up,
for he too was bringing in his best goats for the suitors'
dinner;
and he had two shepherds with him. They tied the goats up under
the
gatehouse, and then Melanthius began gibing at Ulysses. "Are you
still
here, stranger," said he, "to pester people by begging about the
house?
Why can you not go elsewhere? You and I shall not come to an
understanding
before we have given each other a taste of our fists. You beg
without
any sense of decency: are there not feasts elsewhere among the
Achaeans,
as well as here?"
Ulysses made no answer, but bowed his head and brooded. Then a
third
man, Philoetius, joined them, who was bringing in a barren
heifer
and some goats. These were brought over by the boatmen who are
there
to take people over when any one comes to them. So Philoetius
made
his heifer and his goats secure under the gatehouse, and then
went
up to the swineherd. "Who, Swineherd," said he, "is this
stranger
that is lately come here? Is he one of your men? What is his
family?
Where does he come from? Poor fellow, he looks as if he had been
some
great man, but the gods give sorrow to whom they will- even to
kings
if it so pleases them
As he spoke he went up to Ulysses and saluted him with his right
hand;
"Good day to you, father stranger," said he, "you seem to be
very
poorly off now, but I hope you will have better times by and by.
Father
Jove, of all gods you are the most malicious. We are your own
children,
yet you show us no mercy in all our misery and afflictions. A
sweat
came over me when I saw this man, and my eyes filled with tears,
for
he reminds me of Ulysses, who I fear is going about in just such
rags
as this man's are, if indeed he is still among the living. If he
is
already dead and in the house of Hades, then, alas! for my good
master,
who made me his stockman when I was quite young among the
Cephallenians,
and now his cattle are countless; no one could have done better
with
them than I have, for they have bred like ears of corn;
nevertheless
I have to keep bringing them in for others to eat, who take no
heed
of his son though he is in the house, and fear not the wrath of
heaven,
but are already eager to divide Ulysses' property among them
because
he has been away so long. I have often thought- only it would
not
be right while his son is living- of going off with the cattle
to
some foreign country; bad as this would be, it is still harder
to
stay here and be ill-treated about other people's herds. My
position
is intolerable, and I should long since have run away and put
myself
under the protection of some other chief, only that I believe my
poor
master will yet return, and send all these suitors flying out of
the
house."
"Stockman," answered Ulysses, "you seem to be a very
well-disposed
person, and I can see that you are a man of sense. Therefore I
will
tell you, and will confirm my words with an oath: by Jove, the
chief
of all gods, and by that hearth of Ulysses to which I am now
come,
Ulysses shall return before you leave this place, and if you are
so
minded you shall see him killing the suitors who are now masters
here."
"If Jove were to bring this to pass," replied the stockman, "you
should
see how I would do my very utmost to help him."
And in like manner Eumaeus prayed that Ulysses might return home.
Thus did they converse. Meanwhile the suitors were hatching a
plot
to murder Telemachus: but a bird flew near them on their left
hand-
an eagle with a dove in its talons. On this Amphinomus said, "My
friends,
this plot of ours to murder Telemachus will not succeed; let us
go
to dinner instead."
The others assented, so they went inside and laid their cloaks
on
the benches and seats. They sacrificed the sheep, goats, pigs,
and
the heifer, and when the inward meats were cooked they served
them
round. They mixed the wine in the mixing-bowls, and the
swineherd
gave every man his cup, while Philoetius handed round the bread
in
the breadbaskets, and Melanthius poured them out their wine.
Then
they laid their hands upon the good things that were before
them.
Telemachus purposely made Ulysses sit in the part of the
cloister
that was paved with stone; he gave him a shabby-looking seat at
a
little table to himself, and had his portion of the inward meats
brought
to him, with his wine in a gold cup. "Sit there," said he, "and
drink
your wine among the great people. I will put a stop to the gibes
and
blows of the suitors, for this is no public house, but belongs
to
Ulysses, and has passed from him to me. Therefore, suitors, keep
your
hands and your tongues to yourselves, or there will be
mischief."
The suitors bit their lips, and marvelled at the boldness of his
speech;
then Antinous said, "We do not like such language but we will
put
up with it, for Telemachus is threatening us in good earnest. If
Jove
had let us we should have put a stop to his brave talk ere
now."
Thus spoke Antinous, but Telemachus heeded him not. Meanwhile
the
heralds were bringing the holy hecatomb through the city, and
the
Achaeans gathered under the shady grove of Apollo.
Then they roasted the outer meat, drew it off the spits, gave
every
man his portion, and feasted to their hearts' content; those who
waited
at table gave Ulysses exactly the same portion as the others
had,
for Telemachus had told them to do so.
But Minerva would not let the suitors for one moment drop their
insolence,
for she wanted Ulysses to become still more bitter against them.
Now
there happened to be among them a ribald fellow, whose name was
Ctesippus,
and who came from Same. This man, confident in his great wealth,
was
paying court to the wife of Ulysses, and said to the suitors,
"Hear
what I have to say. The stranger has already had as large a
portion
as any one else; this is well, for it is not right nor
reasonable
to ill-treat any guest of Telemachus who comes here. I will,
however,
make him a present on my own account, that he may have something
to
give to the bath-woman, or to some other of Ulysses' servants."
As he spoke he picked up a heifer's foot from the meat-basket in
which
it lay, and threw it at Ulysses, but Ulysses turned his head a
little
aside, and avoided it, smiling grimly Sardinian fashion as he
did
so, and it hit the wall, not him. On this Telemachus spoke
fiercely
to Ctesippus, "It is a good thing for you," said he, "that the
stranger
turned his head so that you missed him. If you had hit him I
should
have run you through with my spear, and your father would have
had
to see about getting you buried rather than married in this
house.
So let me have no more unseemly behaviour from any of you, for I
am
grown up now to the knowledge of good and evil and understand
what
is going on, instead of being the child that I have been
heretofore.
I have long seen you killing my sheep and making free with my
corn
and wine: I have put up with this, for one man is no match for
many,
but do me no further violence. Still, if you wish to kill me,
kill
me; I would far rather die than see such disgraceful scenes day
after
day- guests insulted, and men dragging the women servants about
the
house in an unseemly way."
They all held their peace till at last Agelaus son of Damastor
said,
"No one should take offence at what has just been said, nor
gainsay
it, for it is quite reasonable. Leave off, therefore,
ill-treating
the stranger, or any one else of the servants who are about the
house;
I would say, however, a friendly word to Telemachus and his
mother,
which I trust may commend itself to both. 'As long,' I would
say,
'as you had ground for hoping that Ulysses would one day come
home,
no one could complain of your waiting and suffering the suitors
to
be in your house. It would have been better that he should have
returned,
but it is now sufficiently clear that he will never do so;
therefore
talk all this quietly over with your mother, and tell her to
marry
the best man, and the one who makes her the most advantageous
offer.
Thus you will yourself be able to manage your own inheritance,
and
to eat and drink in peace, while your mother will look after
some
other man's house, not yours."'
To this Telemachus answered, "By Jove, Agelaus, and by the
sorrows
of my unhappy father, who has either perished far from Ithaca,
or
is wandering in some distant land, I throw no obstacles in the
way
of my mother's marriage; on the contrary I urge her to choose
whomsoever
she will, and I will give her numberless gifts into the bargain,
but
I dare not insist point blank that she shall leave the house
against
her own wishes. Heaven forbid that I should do this."
Minerva now made the suitors fall to laughing immoderately, and
set
their wits wandering; but they were laughing with a forced
laughter.
Their meat became smeared with blood; their eyes filled with
tears,
and their hearts were heavy with forebodings. Theoclymenus saw
this
and said, "Unhappy men, what is it that ails you? There is a
shroud
of darkness drawn over you from head to foot, your cheeks are
wet
with tears; the air is alive with wailing voices; the walls and
roof-beams
drip blood; the gate of the cloisters and the court beyond them
are
full of ghosts trooping down into the night of hell; the sun is
blotted
out of heaven, and a blighting gloom is over all the land."
Thus did he speak, and they all of them laughed heartily.
Eurymachus
then said, "This stranger who has lately come here has lost his
senses.
Servants, turn him out into the streets, since he finds it so
dark
here."
But Theoclymenus said, "Eurymachus, you need not send any one
with
me. I have eyes, ears, and a pair of feet of my own, to say
nothing
of an understanding mind. I will take these out of the house
with
me, for I see mischief overhanging you, from which not one of
you
men who are insulting people and plotting ill deeds in the house
of
Ulysses will be able to escape."
He left the house as he spoke, and went back to Piraeus who gave
him
welcome, but the suitors kept looking at one another and
provoking
Telemachus fly laughing at the strangers. One insolent fellow
said
to him, "Telemachus, you are not happy in your guests; first you
have
this importunate tramp, who comes begging bread and wine and has
no
skill for work or for hard fighting, but is perfectly useless,
and
now here is another fellow who is setting himself up as a
prophet.
Let me persuade you, for it will be much better, to put them on
board
ship and send them off to the Sicels to sell for what they will
bring."
Telemachus gave him no heed, but sat silently watching his
father,
expecting every moment that he would begin his attack upon the
suitors.
Meanwhile the daughter of Icarius, wise Penelope, had had had a
rich
seat placed for her facing the court and cloisters, so that she
could
hear what every one was saying. The dinner indeed had been
prepared
amid merriment; it had been both good and abundant, for they had
sacrificed
many victims; but the supper was yet to come, and nothing can be
conceived
more gruesome than the meal which a goddess and a brave man were
soon
to lay before them- for they had brought their doom upon
themselves.