THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 LOS ANGELES

 
 THE 
 
 EPIGONIAD. 
 
 POEM 
 
 IN NINE BOOKS. 
 
 Nam veluti pueris aiftnthia tetra medentes 
 Cum dare conantur, friui orai pocula circum 
 Contlngunt mellis duki, flavcque llquorc, 
 Vt puerorum *tas tmpravida ludtficetur 
 Labrorum trnus, interea perpotet amarum 
 ^bftntbi lalicem, deceptaque non capiatur ; 
 Sed potius tali fafto recreata valefcat. 
 Sic ego LucRET.lib.it. 
 
 EDINBURGH.- 
 Printed by HA MILTON, BALFOUR, & NBUL. 
 
 W.DCC.LV1I,
 
 -
 
 PyP 
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 AS there is no clafs of writers more free- 
 ly cenfured than Poets, and that by 
 judges of all forts, competent and in- 
 competent : I mall attempt to anfwer fome 
 objections that may be made to the following 
 Poem, by perfous not fufficiently acquainted 
 with Epic poetry, and the rules upon which 
 it ought to be formed. 
 
 THE beauties of the piece, if it has any, 
 mail be left to be difcovered by every reader 
 for himfelf. This is his undoubted privilege ; 
 and I have no intention to break in upou it : 
 neither would it be of any advantage to do 
 fo ; for poetical beauties, if they are real, will 
 make thenifelves obferved, and have their full 
 effe& without a comment. 
 SOME willobjed to the choice of the fubjecl, 
 That it is taken from the hiftory of an age 
 and nation, the particular manners of which 
 are not now well known, and therefore can- 
 not be accurately defcribed. This obje5tion 
 will appear to be of little weight, when we 
 confider that the facl upon which it proceeds 
 is fo far from being ftri&ly true, that there are 
 
 none 
 
 '89607
 
 fcr PREFACE. 
 
 none who have any tolerable fhare of claffical 
 learning, that are not better acquainted with 
 the manners and cuftoms of the heroic ages, 
 than with thofe of their own country, at the 
 'diftance of a few centuries. Neither is this 
 knowledge of antient manners confined to the 
 learned ; the vulgar themfelyes, from the 
 books of Mofes, and other accounts of the firfl 
 periods of the Jewifli ftate, are fufficiently in- 
 ftru&ed in the cufloms of the earlieft times, to 
 be able to relifh any work where thefe are 
 juftly reprefented. With what favor, for in- 
 ftance, has Mr. Pope's' tranflation of the Iliad 
 been received by perfons of all conditions? 
 and how much is it commonly preferred to 
 the Fairy >neen, a poem formed upon man- 
 ners of a much more modern cafl. But, fup- 
 pofmg the facl upon which the objection 
 proceeds to be true, and that the cuftoms and 
 manners peculiar to the times from which the 
 fubjecl: of the poem is taken are not now well 
 underftood, I do not apprehend, that even 
 with this conceffion, the objection amounts to 
 any thing confiderable ; for manners are to 
 be diftinguimed into two kinds, univerfal and 
 particular. Univerfal manners, are thofe which 
 arife from the original frame and conftitution 
 of the human nature, and which consequent- 
 
 ft
 
 F R E F A C E: v 
 
 ly are the fame in all nations and periods of 
 the world. Particular manners, on the other 
 hand, confifl of fuch cuftoms and modes of 
 behaviour, as proceed from the influence of 
 partial caufes, and that Ihift and vary as thofe 
 caufes do upon which they depend. To make 
 myfelf underftoodby an example; it is agreeable 
 to common or univerfal manners, to revenge 
 an injury ; but particular manners, in ordinary 
 cafes, determine the way of doing it. For 
 great offences, an Italian poifons his enemy ; 
 a Spaniard flabs him over the ftioulder ; and 
 -a Frenchman feeks fatisfaclion in a duel. 
 From this example, it will be eafy to fee that 
 particular manners ought to appear but very 
 little, either in Epic poetry, Tragedy, or any 
 other of the higher kinds of poetical compo- 
 fition ; for they are vulgar, and depend up- 
 on cuftom : but great paflions and high cha- 
 racters rejec~l ordinary forms ; and therefore 
 muft, upon every occafion, break thro' all 
 the common methods both of fpeech and be- 
 haviour. Tho* antient manners, therefore, 
 were not fo precifely known as they are, I 
 ihould imagine, that a ftory taken from the 
 accounts which we have of the heroic ages, 
 might very well ferve for the fubjecl of an 
 Epic poem, and have all the advantages ne- 
 
 celTary
 
 *i PREFACE. 
 
 cellary in refpeet of that fpecies of compe- 
 tition. 
 
 IT may likewise be alledged, That I have 
 done wrong in chooiing for my fubjeft a piece 
 of hiftory which has no connection with pre- 
 fent affairs ; and that, if I had done othenviie, 
 my work would have been more interefling 
 and uleful. 
 
 THIS objection, feemingly a very material 
 one, admits, notwithftanding, of an eafy an- 
 iwer, viz. that lubjects for Epic poetry ought 
 always to be taken from periods too early to 
 fall within the reach of true hiftory. And, 
 if this rule is ihewn to be eflential, which I 
 ihall attempt to do in what follows, it will be 
 found to be impoffible that any fubject proper 
 for that kind of writing mould have a con- 
 nection with prefent affairs. The proper bu- 
 finefs of Epic poetry is to extend our ideas of 
 human perfection, or, as die critics exprefe 
 it, to excite admiration. In order to do 
 this in any tolerable degree, characters 
 jnufl be magnified, and accommodated, ra* 
 ther to our notions of heroic greatnefs, than 
 to the real ftate of human nature. There ap- 
 pears a certain littleneis in all men when 
 truly known, which checks admiration, and 
 confines it to very narrow limits; heroes, 
 
 themfelves,
 
 PREFACE. vii 
 
 themfelves, tho' pofTefled of the greateft qua- 
 lities, are, in mod circumftances of their con- 
 dition, fo much upon a level with the ordina- 
 ry run of mankind, that fuch as have an op- 
 portunity of being intimately acquainted with 
 them, do not admire them at the fame rate that 
 others do, who view them only at a diftance. 
 The common conditions of humanity leflen 
 eveiy man ; and there are many little circum- 
 flances infeparably connected with our flate of 
 being, which we cannot eafily reconcile with 
 our idea of Epaminondas, Plato, Scipio, or 
 Caefar. From all this it plainly appears, that 
 admiration claims for its objed fomething fu- 
 perior to mere humanity ; and therefore fuch 
 poems as have it for their end to excite ad- 
 miration, ought to celebrate thofe perfons 
 only that never have been treated of by 
 regular hiftorians. For hiftory gives to all 
 things their jufl and natural dimensions ; and, 
 if it mould interfere with poetical fiction, 
 would effectually confute thole beautiful le- 
 gends which are invented to raife our ideas of 
 character and aftion, above the ftandard at 
 which experience has fixed them. 
 
 LET it be obferved', as a further confirma- 
 tion of the maxim which I am eftabliihing, 
 that there is in our minds a principle which 
 
 leads
 
 viii PREFACE. 
 
 leads us to admire paft times, efpecially thofe 
 .which are mod remote from our own. This 
 prejudice is ftrong in us ; and, without being 
 directed or aflifled by art, forms in die mere 
 vulgar of all countries, the moft extravagant 
 notions of the ftature, ftrength, and other he- 
 roic qualities of their remote anceftors. This 
 prejudice fo favourable to poetical fiction, true 
 hiftory effectually deftroys ; and therefore 
 Poets, that they may have the advantage of 
 it, ought to celebrate perfons and events only 
 that are of fo great antiquity, that they can- 
 not be remembered with any degree of cer- 
 tainty and exaclnefs. 
 
 BUT, in place of a thoufand arguments to 
 this purpofe, let us only confider the machi- 
 nery which mud be employed in an Epic 
 poem : how heaven and hell muft both of 
 them be put in motion, and brought into the 
 action; how events altogether out of the com- 
 mon road of human affairs, and no ways 
 countenanced either by reafon or experience, 
 mufl be offered to men's imaginations, fo as 
 to be admitted for true. Let us confider all 
 this, and it will appear, that there is nothing 
 which Poets ought more carefully to avoid, 
 than interfering with fuch regular and well 
 vouched accounts of things as would effectu- 
 ally
 
 PREFACE. ix 
 
 ally confute their fable, and make the mean- 
 eft reader reject it with contempt. This is 
 a point of prudence which no poet has yet ne- 
 glected with impunity. Lucan, according to 
 his ufual railmefs, has taken, for the fubject of 
 an Epic poem, one of the moft known events 
 which he could have pitched upon in the 
 whole feries of human affairs ; and, in order 
 to diftinguilh himfelf from a mere hiftorian, 
 is often under a neceflity of ftarting from his 
 fubject, and employing the whole force of a 
 very lively and fruitful invention in unneceffi- 
 ry defcriptions and trifling digrellions. This, be- 
 fides other inconveniencies of greater moment, 
 gives fuch an appearance of labor and {train- 
 ing to his whole performance, as takes much 
 from the merit of it, with all who have any 
 notion of eafe, majefly and fimplicity in wri- 
 ting. He, and all other poets who have fallen 
 into the fame error, find always this difadvan- 
 tage attending it, that the true and fictitious 
 parts of their work refufe to unite, and ftand- 
 ing as it were at a diftance, upon terms of 
 mutual averfion, reproach each other with 
 their peculiar defects. Fiction accufes truth 
 of narrownefs and want of dignity ; and this 
 again reprefents the other as vain and extra- 
 vagant. Spencer, who, in his Fairy >ueen, 
 b treats'
 
 x PREFACE. 
 
 treats of matters, not only within the fphere 
 of regular hiftory, but even of the trani- 
 atfions of his own rime, in order to avoid 
 the inconveniencies which he knew to be 
 almoft infeparable from fuch an attempt, co- 
 vers Ms ftory with a vail of allegory, that 
 few of his readers are able to penetrate. 
 This ilratagem leaves him at full liberty in the 
 exercile of his invention ; but he pays, in my 
 opinion, too dear for that privilege, by facri- 
 ficing to it all the weight and authority 
 which a mixture of received tradition and 
 real geography would have added to his fable. 
 Milton takes the fubjeds of both his great 
 poems from true hiftory, yet does not fucceed 
 the worfe upon that account. But it is to be 
 remembered, that his chief actors are divine 
 and angelical beings, not men ; and that it is 
 the human nature only which fuffers by a jufl 
 reprefentation, and lofes in point of dignity, 
 when truly known. Befides, die hiftorical 
 circumftances upon which he builds are fo 
 few, and of lo extraordinary a nature, that 
 they are eafily accommodated to poetical fi- 
 ction ; and therefore, inftead of limiting him, 
 and letting bounds to his invention, they 
 ferve only to countenance and give a degree 
 of credibility to whatever he pleafes to feign. 
 
 Shakefpear
 
 PREFACE. xi 
 
 Shakefpear may likewife be quoted as an ex- 
 ception to the general rule, who takes the 
 fubjefts of many of his pieces from periods of 
 the Englilh hiftory not very remote, and, not- 
 \\ithftanding, fucceeds remarkably in exciting 
 admiration. That Shakefpear makes us ad- 
 mire his heroes is undeniable ; and no man of 
 common fenfe will ever pretend to aflert, 
 that real characters of great men, touched up 
 and brightened by a poetical fancy, will not 
 very naturally excite admiration. But there are 
 different degrees of this paflion, as well as of 
 all others : and it is evident, that the degree 
 of it which Shakefpear intends to raife, is not 
 equal to that which Homer aims at, and the 
 other writers of the Epic tribe. We admire 
 no chat-after in Shakefpear's works more than 
 that of Henry V. ; but the idea which Homer 
 gives us of Achilles is dill nobler and more 
 auguft. The Tragedian mixes fo much of 
 the ordinary man in the character of his hero, 
 that we become too familiar with him to ad- 
 mire him in a high degree : for in thofe ve- 
 ry pieces in which he is reprefented as per- 
 forming his moft remarkable exploits, he is 
 often found at his leifure hours amuflng him- 
 ielf with a knot of humorifts, pickpockets 
 and buffoons. I do not pretend to cenfure 
 
 Shakei'pear
 
 sdi PREFACE. 
 
 Shakefpear for tliis conduct ; becaufe it is not 
 the bufinefs of a Tragedian to make us admire, 
 but to interefl our other affeclions : and, to 
 make his heroes very much objects of admira- 
 tion, would poffibly be one of the greateft 
 errors that an author of that kind could fall 
 into : for the principle of companion, to 
 which Tragedy is peculiarly addrelled, is in- 
 compatible with high admiration ; and a man, 
 in order either to be loved or pitied, muft ap- 
 pear with evident fymptoms of the weakneiTes 
 common to the reft of the human kind. It 
 is our own image in diftrefs which afflicls us ; 
 and we never pity one under calamities, who 
 is not weak enough to be moved by them. 
 Homer, upon this account, never attempts to 
 excite pity, but from fuch private and do- 
 meftic diftrefles as mew his heroes in the light 
 of ordinary men. Sophocles too, from a juft 
 apprehenfion that the heroic paflion interferes 
 with the proper fpirit of Tragedy, and is un- 
 favorable to it, lefTens on purpofe the great 
 characters which he introduces, and ftrips 
 them of more than half their dignity. Tho' 
 therefore Shakefpear makes us admire his he- 
 roes as much as a Tragedian ought to do, and 
 even more in fome inftances than the rules of 
 &rt would juftify; yet, as die degree of admi* 
 
 ration
 
 PREFACE. xiii 
 
 ration which he excites is lefs by far, than that 
 which Epic poetry aims at, it may well be 
 raifed from fubjects that are ftrictly hiflorica], 
 fho' the higher degrees pf that pajfion cannot. 
 Was my judgment pf fufficjent authority in 
 matters pf criticiim, I would have it under- 
 flood as a rule, That the fubjects of Epic poe- 
 try mould be taken from tradition only : that 
 Tragedy ihould keep within the limits of true 
 hiftory ; and that Comedy, without meddling 
 at all with pad times, ihould expofe vice and 
 folly in recent inftances, and from living ex- 
 amples. That part of the rule which regards 
 Epic poetry, is fufficiently juftified from what 
 has been already faid ; and, concerning Trage- 
 dy, I have likewife obferved, that it ought not 
 to exalt its greateft characters above the flan- 
 dard of real life. From this it will follow, 
 that it may be ftrietly hiftorical without lofing 
 any real advantage, and attain to its full per- 
 fection without the affiflance of fable. I be- 
 lieve it will be eafily allowed, that where truth 
 and fiction are equally fubfervient to the pur- 
 pofes of poetry, the firft ought always to be 
 preferred; for true hiftory carries a weight and 
 authority with it, which feldom attends ilories 
 that are merely fictitious, and has many advan- 
 f ages befides for interefting our affections above 
 
 the
 
 xiv PREFACE. 
 
 the legends of remote antiquity. But as Tra- 
 gedy Ihould never go fo far back as the fabu- 
 lous ages, neither ihould it, in my opinion, 
 approach too near to prefent times ; for, tho' 
 it does not aim at railing and gratifying the 
 paffion of admiration, yet it has a degree of 
 dignity to maintain, which it would endanger 
 by meddling with events too recent, and cha- 
 racters too particularly remembered. Come- 
 dy, on the other hand, and indeed every fpe- 
 cies of fatire whatfoever, ought to attack li- 
 ving characters onlv, and the vices and follies 
 of prefent times. That imperfection which 
 appears in every thing when viewed near at 
 hand, a circumftance fo unfavorable to the 
 genius of Epic poetry and Tragedy, falls in 
 precifely with that of Comedy, a kind of wri- 
 ting that has no dignity to fupport, which 
 points always at what is ridiculous, and marks 
 its objects with characters of littlcnefj and con- 
 tempt. "We naturally admire pall times, and 
 reverence the dead ; and confequently are not 
 fo much difpofed to laugh at fools, who have 
 already finilhed their parts, and retired, as at 
 fools who are yet upon the ftage. The antient 
 Comedy of the Greeks, \vliich proceeded upon 
 this maxim, was certainly, upon that account, 
 rite molt perfect Ipecies of fatire that ever
 
 P R 'E T A C E. xv 
 
 tvas invented. Homer, as he exceeded all o- 
 ther poets in merit, had likewife the advan- 
 tage of them in point of good fortune ; the 
 condition of the age in which he wrote gave 
 him an opportunity of celebrating, in his poems, 
 events, which tho* they were in his days of no 
 great antiquity, and confequently the more 
 interefling, yet had fallen, thro' the want of 
 authentic records, into fo happy a degree of 
 obfcurity, that he was at full liberty to feign 
 concerning them what he pleafed, without a- 
 ny danger of confutation. This is an advan- 
 tage which fucceeding poets could not boafl 
 of; and therefore have found themfelves un- 
 der a neceffity, either of taking their fubjec"h 
 from remote antiquity, as I have done, or 
 (which, in my opinion, is worfe) of attempt- 
 ing to mix fable with true hiftory, which ne- 
 ver can be done with iuccefs. 
 
 THE mythology in the following poem will 
 probably give offence to fome readers, who 
 will think it indecent for a Chriflian to write 
 in fuch a manner as to fuppofe the truth of 
 a Heathen religion. They will therefore 
 think, that it would have been better, ei- 
 ther to have introduced no religious iyflem at 
 all, or to have chofen fuch a fubjecl as would. 
 
 have
 
 xvi PREFACE. 
 
 have admitted of the true. I iliall endeavour 
 to aniwer this objection, by eftabliihing two 
 maxiins directly oppofite to what is propofedin 
 the preceeding alternative, and ihew not only 
 that divine beings are neceflary characters in an 
 Epic poem, but likewife that it is highly im- 
 proper to introduce the true God into a work 
 of that nature. If thefe two points are fully 
 made out, the force of the obje&ion will be ta- 
 ken away. As to the firft of them, let us again 
 conilder the end which Epic poetry propoies 
 toitfelf: it aims at exciting admiration, by 
 fettiug before us images of whatever is great 
 and noble in the human chara&er : it is ne- 
 ceilary for this purpofe that a poet ihould give 
 his heroes, not only all thofe intrinfic qualities 
 which make men admired, but that he iliould 
 magnify them likewife by a fldlful manage- 
 ment of outward circumftances. "We do 
 not form our notions either of perfons or 
 things from their real qualities only; things 
 that are of a foreign nature, and merely ac- 
 ceirory, have as great an influence as 
 thefe. in determining both our approba- 
 tion or diflike. This obfervation fiiews the 
 importance of mythology to Epic poetry ; for 
 no circumflance can render a perfon of greater 
 
 confequence
 
 PREFACE. xvii 
 
 confequence in the eye of the world, than an 
 opinion that the gods regard him with a pecu- 
 liar degree of attention, and are much inter- 
 cfted in all that relates to him. If people are 
 once coniidered as the favorites of heaven, or 
 inflruments chofen for the accompliflunent of 
 its important purpofes; poets may tell of 
 them what great things they pleafe, without 
 feeming to exaggerate, or fay any thing that 
 exceeds the bounds of probability. Homer was 
 certainly of this opinion, when he afcribed, to 
 his heroes, valor and other great qualities in 
 fo immoderate a degree : for, had the gods 
 never interpofed in any of the events which 
 he celebrates; had his chief a&ors been no 
 ways connected with them, either in point of 
 favor or confanguinity, and reprefented, at 
 the fame time, as performing the high ex- 
 ploits afcribed to them, in place of being ap- 
 plauded as the firft of poets, he would only 
 have been cenfured as the falfefl and moll cre- 
 dulous of hiftorians. This argument in favor 
 of poetical mythology, with another which 
 might be taken from the advantage it brings 
 in point of ornament, and a third from its ufe 
 in allegory, has determined almofl all the wri- 
 ters who have followed the Epic or heroic 
 ftyle, to allow it a place in their compofitions : 
 c -fuch
 
 xviii PREFACE. 
 
 fuch of them as have taken their fubject from 
 Greek or Roman ftory, have adopted the my- 
 thology of Homer ; and the reft, in celebra- 
 ting more modern heroes, have, in place of 
 that, made ufe of the true religion, corrupted 
 by an unnatural mixture of northern fuperfti- 
 tion and Grecian fable. From a practice there- 
 fore fo univerfal, we may juftly infer, that 
 poets have looked upon mythology as a thing 
 eflential to their art, and what it cannot well 
 be without. 
 
 IT may be alledged, after all that has been 
 faid, That, to bring gods into Epic poetry, is 
 inconvenient on many accounts ; that it pre- 
 vents a proper difplay of character in the hu- 
 man actors, turning them all into fo many ma- 
 chines, to be moved and guided by the imme- 
 diate impulfes of deity : that it breaks in up- 
 on the order of natural caufes, and renders all 
 art, either in the plan or conduct of a work, 
 fuperfluous and unneceflary. If what this ob- 
 jection fuppoies were true, and that the mix- 
 ing of gods with men in the action of an Epic 
 poem, neceflarily turned the whole into mira- 
 cle ; if it was an unavoidable confequence of 
 this method, that the human actors mould be 
 governed in all that they do by divine impulie 
 determining them, without regard to their na- 
 tural
 
 PREFACE. xk 
 
 tural characters, and the probable motives 
 which ought to influence them : in ftiort, if 
 mythology could have no place in a poem, 
 but at the expence of manners, order, conne- 
 ction, and every other dung that can render 
 a work either beautiful or inftructive, it would 
 be an argument of fuch weight againft it, as 
 nothing that could be alledged in its favor 
 would be able to counterbalance. But the ob- 
 je&ion is by no means well founded ; for, tho' 
 there may be an indifcreet application of my- 
 thology, productive of all the difadvantages 
 that have been mentioned ; yet it is obvious, 
 both from reafon and experience, that mytho- 
 logy may be managed in fuch a manner as to 
 be attended with none of them. And this will 
 appear from a very obvious example : The 
 greateft part of mankind in every age, has 
 believed that gods and-fuperior beings govern 
 and direcl the courfe of human affairs. Many in- 
 dividuals, and even whole nations, have thought 
 tjiat all the actions and events of our lives are 
 predetermined by an over-ruling power, and 
 that we fuffer the control of an irrefiftible ne- 
 cemty in all that we do : yet this opinion ne- 
 ver changes the moral feelings of fuch as en- 
 tertain it, and their judgment of characters 
 and aclions; they love and hate, approve and 
 
 difapprove,
 
 xx PREFACE. 
 
 difapprove, admire and defpife, in the fame 
 manner as others do who believe that men are 
 abfolutely free, and that their final determina- 
 tions proceed only from themfelves. But when 
 it is underflood, that people act without con- 
 fcioufnefs, or that the organs of their bodies are 
 not under the dominion of their own wills, but 
 actuated by fome other being without their con- 
 fent ; in more, when mere phyfical neceflity is 
 fubftituted in place of moral, all idea of chara- 
 cter, all fenfe of approbation and difapproba- 
 tion immediately ceafes. From this obferva- 
 tion, the truth of which no body will difpute, 
 it is eafy to judge in what cafes the interpofi- 
 tion of gods in the action of a poem will pre- 
 fent a proper difplay of the human characters, 
 and when not. Volition, as appears by the 
 example now given, is that upon which all 
 our moral ideas are founded : fo long then as 
 volition is exerted, there is a character, and, 
 when that ceafes, the character is loft. If 
 therefore the deities in a poem are employed 
 in animating and deterring the heroes, only 
 by fuggefting fuch motives as are proper to 
 influence their wills; fuch interpolition 
 by no means interferes with the difplay 
 of character, but rather favors it ; for the 
 quality of every mind may be known from the 
 
 motives
 
 PREFACE. xxi 
 
 motives by which it is determined ; and Mi- 
 nerva's prevailing with Pandaras to be guilty 
 of a piece of treachery, by fuggefting that 
 Paris would reward him for it, difcovered the 
 venality of his temper as much as if he had 
 done the fame action from a like motive oc- 
 curring to himfelf. 
 
 POETS often make the gods infufe an un- 
 common degree of vigor into their heroes, 
 for ajifwering fome great occafion, and add to 
 the grace and dignity of their figure. Some- 
 times they make a fecond rate hero the firft in 
 a particular action, and, with their affiflance, 
 fce diflinguifhes himfelf above fuch as are at 
 other times more remarkable for valor and 
 fuccefs : all this is fo agreeable to what hap- 
 pens naturally, and from mere mechanical 
 caufes, that we forget the gods, and interpret 
 what happens as if they had not interpofed at 
 all. For every body knows, that when peo- 
 ple are roufed to any remarkable exertion of 
 force, they become ftronger than they are at 
 other times, and that, when in this manner 
 the fpirits rife to an uncommon height, the 
 whole body acquires new graces. Valor is 
 not a fixt and permanent quality, nor is it 
 found in any one always in the fame degree. 
 Plutarch obferves, that of all the virtues it 
 
 exerts
 
 xxii P R E. F ACE. 
 
 exerts itfelf moil irregularly, and rifes by fits 
 like a divine infpiratiqn. The ienfe which e- 
 very man has of thefe things, makes him look 
 upon the interpoiition of gods in fuch cafes as 
 a mythological way of exprefling what is mere- 
 ly natural, and allow fuch as perform die great 
 actions in a poem to poflefs the whole merit 
 of them. It never leiTens our opinion of 
 Hector's valor, for inftance, that Apollo often 
 afTirtshim; nor do we think UlyjGfes lefs pru- 
 dent, becaufe he is guided by the influence of 
 Minerva. We have as clear imprefllons of 
 thofe, and the other Homeric characters, as 
 vie have of any characters whatfoever, and dif- 
 cern their limits and diitinguiihing marks as 
 clearly, as if they had acted altogether of 
 themfelves. That fuperior beings ihould be 
 employed in governing the events of things, 
 and interpoiing by thunder, earthquakes, in- 
 undations, peililences, and the like, can ne- 
 ver be thought unnatural in poetry, by any 
 who believe that Providence actually manages 
 the affairs of the world by fuch means. It be- 
 longs to men to defign and act, but to Heaven 
 alone to determine events. Tho' a poet, 
 therefore, ihould reprefent an army weaker 
 and worfe conducted, prevailing, in confe- 
 quence of that kind of interpoiition which has 
 
 been
 
 PREFACE. xxiii 
 
 been mentioned, over another, evidently bet- 
 ter and ftronger ; there would be nothing 
 unnatural in fuch an account, or contrary to 
 what is often experienced in real affairs. 
 
 AFTER all that has been faid, it muft be 
 owned, that if gods are brought in upon flight 
 occafions, and for trifling purpofes ; if they 
 are put upon working miracles in order to co- 
 ver blunders, either in the plan or execution 
 of a poem, and employed in cutting fuch 
 knots as the author himfelf has not the fkill or 
 patience to untie; it mufl be owned, I fay, 
 that this is a very wrong application of mytho- 
 logy, and attended with all the difadvantages 
 which the objection mentions. It is a ftrata- 
 gem, which, if often practifed, would teach, 
 the reader at laft to difregard all appearances, 
 and, when the moil important periods of af- 
 fairs were approaching, to remain quite fe- 
 cure and uninterefted, trailing that a god 
 would always be at hand in time of need to 
 manage every thing as the poet would have it, 
 and put all to rights by the mortefl and moft 
 effectual methods. I have coniidered this ob- 
 jecYion at greater length, becaufe at firft view 
 it appears very plaufible ; and ihall proceed to 
 what remains, after I have taken notice of an- 
 other, which has likewife fome appearance of 
 
 force.
 
 xxiv PREFACE, 
 
 force. It will be thought inconvenient, as it 
 is the defign of Epic poetry to raife and dig- 
 nify human characters, that gods mould ap- 
 pear with men in the fame fcenes of action. It 
 will be alledged, that in this cafe the divine 
 perfons will neceflarily overtop the human, 
 leflen them by a comparifon, and confequent- 
 ly produce an effeft directly oppofite to the 
 chief fcope of that kind of writing. This ob- 
 je&ion, however plaufible, does not feem to 
 be favored by experience ; at leaft I never 
 found in any inflance, that the fpleudor of die 
 divine characters in a poem eclipfed the hu- 
 man. Beiides, this is what cannot eafily hap- 
 pen ; for, let us fuppofe two parties of boys 
 engaged in fome trial, either of force or fkill, 
 and that a few men take part in the debate, 
 dividing themfelves between die oppofite fides, 
 and amfting them againft each other, would 
 the exploits of the full grown men, however 
 remarkable, leflen thofe of the boys? by no 
 means ; for things that are confefledly une- 
 qual, never come into competition, and there- 
 fore cannot be either leflened or magnified by 
 appearing together. Are we lefs difpofed to 
 admire the valor of Achilles, becaufe it is un- 
 derflood he was not a match for Jupiter ? or 
 the fagacity of UlyfTes, becaufe his penetra- 
 tion
 
 PREFACE. xxv 
 
 tion was not equal to that of Minerva ? But 
 there is one circumftance which renders it ab- 
 folutely impoflible for the gods in Epic poe- 
 try to eclipfe the men in point of heroifm ; 
 and it is this, That the gods are immortal, and 
 confequently cannot exert that in which he- 
 roifm chiefly confifts, viz. the contempt of 
 death. Homer, in order to give his deities 
 as much of that quality as poffible, has made 
 them vulnerable and fufceptible of pain ; a. 
 freedom which has mocked fome of the cri- 
 tics, who did not attend to the reafon of his 
 doing fo. But Homer was too good a judge 
 of propriety, not to be ienfible that no peribn 
 could appear with advantage in military acti- 
 ons who rilked nothing by doing fo ; and that 
 flature, force, magnilicent armor, and even 
 the higheft atchievements, will never confti- 
 tute the heroic character, where patience and 
 a contempt of danger have no opportunity of 
 appearing. It is this circumftance which gives 
 the mortals in Epic poetry a manifeft advan- 
 tage over the immortals ; and Mars, when 
 ufhered into the field with all the pomp and 
 magnificence of Homeric dcfcription, is an 
 objecl lefs to be admired than Diomed, Ajax, 
 and many others who combat bravely, tho* 
 confcious of mortality. Homer, who has ma- 
 d naged
 
 xxvi PREFACE. 
 
 naged his great'characlers with the trueft judg- 
 ment and ftrifteft attention to circumftances, 
 takes care to have Achilles early informed that 
 he was to perifh at Troy, elfe he might feem 
 too confcious of fafety, from his matchlefs va- 
 lor and the armor which he wore, to be great 
 in that which is mod to be admired, the con- 
 tempt of death, when the danger of it is im- 
 minent. It muft be acknowledged, that in 
 Milton's Paradlfe Loft, the perfons in the ma- 
 chinery over-top the human chara&ers, and 
 that the heroes of that poem are all of them 
 immortals : but then it is to be remembered, 
 that Paradife Loft is a work altogether irregu- 
 lar ; that the fubjecl of it is not Epic, but 
 Tragic ; and that Adam and Eve are not de- 
 figned to be objects of admiration, but of pi- 
 ty: it is Tragic in its plot, and Epic in its 
 drefs and machinery : as a Tragedy, it does 
 hot fall under the prefent queflion ; and as an 
 Epic poem, it evades it likewife, by a circum- 
 flance very uncommon, viz. that in that part 
 of it which is properly Epic, there are no hu- 
 man perfons at all. 
 
 I have in this manner endeavoured to prove 
 that mythology is neceflary to an Epic poem, 
 and that the chief objections to the ufe of it 
 arc of little confequence. I proceed to efta- 
 
 bliih
 
 PREFACE. xxvii 
 
 blifli the other propofidon which I mentioned, 
 and ihew, that the true God ought not to be 
 brought into a work of that nature. And if 
 this proportion can be made out, it will eafily 
 appear from it and the preceeding one taken 
 together, that Poets are under a neceffity of 
 having recourfe to a falfe theology, and that 
 they are not to be blamed for doing what the 
 nature of Epic poetry on die one hand, and re- 
 fpecl to die true religion on the other, renders 
 neceflary and unavoidable. For proving the 
 point in queflion, I need only obferve, that 
 no perfon can appear with advantage in 
 poetry, who is not reprefented according to 
 the form and condition of a man. This art 
 addrefles itfelf chiefly to the imagination, a 
 faculty which apprehends nodiing in die way 
 of character that is not human, and according 
 to the analogy of that nature of which we our- 
 felves are conlcious. But it would be equally 
 impious and abfurd to reprefent the Deity in 
 this manner, and to contrive for him a particu- 
 lar character, and method of acting, agreeable 
 to the prejudices of weak and ignorant mortals. 
 In the early ages of the church, he thought fit 
 to accommodate himfelf, by fuch a piece of 
 coudefcenfion, to the notions and apprehenfi-
 
 xxviii P R E FACE.' 
 
 cms of his creatures : but it would be indecent 
 in any man to ufe the fame freedom, and do 
 that for God, which he only has a right to do 
 for himfclf. The author of Paradife Loji has 
 offended notorioufly in this refpecl ; and, tho* 
 no encomiums are too great for him as a poet, 
 he is jiiftly chargeable with impiety, for pre- 
 fuming to reprelent the Divine Nature, and 
 the myfteries of religion, according to the 
 narrownefs of human prejudice : his dialogues 
 between the Father and the Son; his employ- 
 ing a Being of infinite wifdoin in difcufling the 
 fubtleties of fchool divinity ; die feufual views 
 w r liich he gives of the happinefs of heaven, ad- 
 mitting into it, as a part, not only real eating 
 and drinking, but another kind of animal plea- 
 fure too by no means more refined : thefe, 
 and fuch like circumftances, tho' perfectly po- 
 etical, and agreeable to the genius of an art 
 which adapts every thing to the human model, 
 are, at the fame time, fo inconiiftent with 
 truth, and the exalted ideas which we ought 
 to entertain of divine things, that to publifh 
 them in the manner that has been mentioned, 
 rnufl be highly offeniive to all fuch as have juft 
 impreflions of religion, and would not choofe 
 to lee a fyftem of doftrine revealed from hea- 
 ven, reduced to a ftate of conformity with 
 
 Heathen
 
 P R E' F A C E. xxix 
 
 Heathen fuperftition. True theology ought not 
 to be ufed in an Epic poem, for another rea- 
 fon, of no lefs weight than that which has been 
 mentioned, viz. That the human characters 
 which it repreients ihould never be formed up- 
 on a perfect moral plan, but have their piety, 
 (for initance) tinctured with fuperftition, and 
 their general behavior influenced by affection, 
 paffion and prejudice. This will be thought 
 a violent paradox, by fuch as do not know that 
 imperfect characters interelt us more than 
 perfect ones, and that we are doubly instructed 
 when we fee in one and the fame example, 
 both what we ought to follow, and what we 
 pught to avoid. Accordingly Horace, in 
 his Epiftle to Lollius, where he beftows the 
 higheit encomiums upon the Iliad, as a work 
 which delineated vice and virtue better than 
 the writings of the molt celebrated philofo- 
 phers, fays of it, notwithftanding, That it --is 
 taken up in defcribing the animofities of fool- 
 ilh kings and infatuated nations. To go to 
 the bottom of tills matter, it will be proper 
 to obferve, that men are capable of two forts 
 of character, which may be diftinguifned by 
 the names of natural and artificial. The 
 natural character implies all thofe feelings, 
 
 paiftons.
 
 x*x PREFACE. 
 
 paffions, deiires and opinions which men have 
 
 3 nature and common experience, inde- 
 ent of fpeculation and moral refinement. 
 A perfon of this character looks upon outward 
 profperity as a real good, and confiders the 
 calamities of life as real evils; loves his friends, 
 hates his enemies, admires his fuperiors, af- 
 fumes with refpect to his inferiors, and (lands 
 upon terms of rivalfhip with his equals ; in 
 ftiort, is governed by all thofe pafiions and o- 
 prnions that polTefs the hearts and determine 
 the actions of ordinaiy men. The force and 
 magnitude of this character is in proportion to 
 die flrength of thefe natural difpoikions ; and 
 its virtue confifls in having the generous and 
 beneficent ones predominant. As to that fort 
 of character, again, which I diflinguilhed by 
 the name of artificial ; it confifls in a habit 
 of mind formed by difcipline, according to the 
 cool and difpaflionaie dictates of reafon. This 
 character is highly moral, but, in my opinion, 
 far lefs poetical than the other, by being lefs 
 fit for interefting our affections, which are 
 formed by the wife Author of our nature for 
 embracing beings of the fame temper and 
 complexion with ourfelves, and who are mark- 
 c4 with die common infirmities of the human 
 
 nature.
 
 P R E F A. C E. xxri 
 
 nature. Perfons of that high philofophic cha- 
 racter which has been defcribed, are too nrm 
 and unmoved, amidft the calamities they meet 
 with, to excite much fympathy in others, and 
 are too much iiiperior to the Tallies of pailion 
 and partial affection, the popular marks of ge- 
 nerofity and greatnefs of mind, ever to be much 
 admired by the bulk of mankind* If the mo& 
 accomplifhed poet in the world mould take a. ri- 
 gid philofopher for the chief charter either of 
 an Epic poem or a Tragedy, it is eafy to con- 
 jecture what would be the fuccefs of fuch an 
 attempt ; the work would aflume the chara- 
 cter of its hero, and be cold, difpaffionate and 
 lifelefs. There is, however, a Ipecies of pa- 
 negyric proper for fuch fort of perfection, and 
 it may be reprefented to advantage, either ia 
 hiflory or profe dialogue, but will never be ge- 
 nerally interefling. Plato, in his apology of 
 Socrates, deceives us; as Mr. Addifon likewlfe 
 does in his Tragedy of Cato : for both of them 
 attempt to perfuadc us, that we are affected 
 with the contemplation of unlhakcn fortitude, 
 while we are ouly iympathmng with fulfcr- 
 ing innocence. The tcndcrrids of humani- 
 ty appearing thro* the hardnefs of the philo- 
 fophic chara5ler ; is that which affects us in 
 
 bcafe
 
 xxxn 
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 both inftances, and not that unconqueretl 
 greatnels of mind, which occalions rather won- 
 der and aftonilhment than genuine affection. 
 
 FROM what has been faid, it is eafy to in- 
 fer, that the great characters, both in Epic 
 poetry and Tragedy, ought not to be formed 
 upon a perfed moral plan ; and therefore he- 
 roes them! elves muft often be reprefented as 
 ailing from fuch motives, and governed by 
 fuch affections as impartial reafon cannot ap- 
 prove of: but it would be highly indecent to 
 make a being, whom religion teaches us to 
 confider as perfect, enter into the views of 
 fuch perfons, and exert himfelf in order to 
 promote their extravagant enterprizes. This 
 would be to bring down the infinite wifdom of 
 God to the level of human folly, and to make 
 him altogether fuch an one as ourfelves. 
 
 A falfe theology, therefore, ought rather to 
 be employed in poetical compofitions than die 
 true ; for, as the fuperior beings which are 
 introduced mufl of neceffity be reprefented as 
 afTuming the paflions and opinions of thofe 
 whom they favor, it is furely fafer to employ 
 a fet of imaginary beings for this purpofe, than 
 God himfelf, and the blefled angels, who 
 ought always to be objects of our reverence. 
 
 TUB
 
 PREFACE. xxxiii 
 
 THE fame reafoning which leads to this 
 concluflon, will likewife make us femlble, 
 that among falfe religions, thofe which are 
 lead connected with the true, ought, for the 
 purpofes of poetry, to be preferred ; for the 
 fuperflitions which priefls and poets have built 
 upon the Ghriflian faith, dilhonor it, and there- 
 fore mould, if poffible, be buried in oblivion. 
 The antient Greek theology feems upon all ac- 
 counts die fitteft. It has no connexion with 
 the true fyflem, and therefore may be treated 
 with the greateft freedom, without indecency 
 or ground of offence. It confifts of a number of 
 beautiful fables fuited to the tafle of the moil 
 lively and ingenious people that ever exifted, 
 and fo much calculated to ravilh and tranfport 
 a warm imagination, that many poets in mo- 
 dern times, who proceeded upon a different 
 theology, have notwithftanding been fo be- 
 witched with its charms, as to admit it into 
 their works, tho' it claihed violently with the 
 fyftem which they had embraced. Milton is re- 
 markable in this refpeft, and the more fo, as 
 his poem is altogether of a religious nature, 
 and the fubjecl: of it taken from Holy Writ. 
 
 SOME may poflibly imagine, that the fol- 
 lowing work would have had greater merit, 
 if it had offered to the world a fet of cha- 
 e rafters
 
 xxxiv PREFACE. 
 
 rafters altogether new, and a {lory no ways 
 connected with any thing that is already 
 known. I own, that I am not of the fame 
 opinion, but perfuaded, on the contrary, 
 that, to invent a flory quite new, with a 
 catalogue of names never before heard 
 of, would be an attempt of fuch a nature, 
 as could not be made with tolerable iuc- 
 cefs ; for every man mufl be fenfible, that 
 the wonders which Epic poetry relates, will 
 {hock even the ignorant vulgar, and appear 
 altogether ridiculous, if they are not founded 
 upon fomething which has already gained a 
 degree of credit. Our firft notions of things 
 are taken from experience ; and, tho' we may 
 be brought to admit impreffions, not only ve- 
 ry different from what experience fuggefts, but 
 even contrary to it, yet this is not to be done 
 fuddenly and at one attempt : fuch, therefore, as: 
 would have their ficlions favorably received, 
 muft lay it down as a rule, to accommodate 
 what they feign to eftabliihed prejudices, and 
 build upon flories which are already in fomc 
 meafure believed. With this precaution, they 
 may go great lengths without appearing ab- 
 furd, but will foon Ihock the meaneft under- 
 ftandings, if they neglect it. Had there been 
 no fabulous accounts concerning the Trojan 
 
 expedition
 
 PREFACE. xxxv 
 
 expedition current in Greece and Afia, at the 
 time when Homer wrote, die ftories which he 
 tells, tho' the mod beautiful that ever were 
 invented, would have appeared to his co-tem- 
 poraries altogether ridiculous, and never been 
 admired, till antiquity had procured them cre- 
 dit, or a tradition been formed afterwards to 
 vouch for them to the world ; for, in matters 
 of an extraordinary kind, not only reafon, 
 but even imagination, requires more than 
 a fmgle teftimony to ground its aflent upon ; 
 and therefore, tho' I Ihould have invented a 
 fet of characters intirely new, and framed a 
 ilory for the fubject of my poem no ways con- 
 nected with any thing that has yet been heard 
 of, and have been lo happy in this attempt 
 as to produce what would equal, in point of 
 perfection, any of the moil beautiful fables of 
 .antiquity; I would have wanted, notwithftand- 
 ing, what is abfolutely necelTary in order to 
 fuccefs, viz. that credit which new invented 
 -fictions derive from their connexion with fuch 
 as are already received. 
 
 TRADITION is the beft ground upon which 
 fable can be built, not only becaufe it gives 
 the appearance of reality to things that are 
 merely fictitious, but likewile becaufe it fup- 
 plies a poet with the moil proper materials 
 
 for
 
 xxxvi PREFACE. 
 
 for his invention to work upon. There are 
 feme fabulous {lories that pleafe more univer^ 
 fally than others ; and of this kind are the 
 wonders which tradition reports; for they 
 are accommodated to the affections and paf- 
 fions of the bulk of mankind, in the fame 
 manner as national proverbs are to their un- 
 derfhandings. The flricl accommodation in 
 both inilances proceeds from the fame caufe, 
 viz. that nothing of either fort is the work of 
 one man, or of one age, but of many. Tra.- 
 ditions are not perfected by their firft inven- 
 tors, nor proverbs eliabliihed upon a tingle aur 
 thority. Proverbs derive their credit from 
 the general confeiit of mankind ; and tradi- 
 tion is gradually corrected and improved in 
 the hands of fuch as tranfmit it to each other 
 thro' a fucceflion of ages. In its firft periods, 
 it is a narrow thing, but extends itfelf after- 
 wards, and, with the advantage of time and 
 experiments often repeated, adapts kfeif io 
 precifely to the affetfions, paflions and preju- 
 dices, natural to the human fp.ecies, that it 
 becomes at laft perfectly agreeable to the 
 feelings and fentiments of every heart. 
 No one man, therefore, can pretend to 
 invent fables that will pleafe fo univerially, 
 ^s thofe. which are formed by the progrefs of 
 
 popular
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 XXXVil 
 
 popular tradition. The faculties of any indivi- 
 dual muft be too narrow for that purpofe, and 
 have too much of a peculiar caft to be capa- 
 ble of producing what will be fo ftrictly adapt. 
 ed to the common feelings and fentiments 
 of all. It is this fort of perfection which 
 pleafes us in archaeology, or the traditio- 
 nal accounts which we have of the origins 
 of nations ; for we are often more agreeably 
 entertained with (lories of that kind, tho' we 
 know them to be abfolutely falfe, than with 
 the jufteft reprefentations of real events. But 
 as tradition, while it continues in the hands 
 of the people, muft be but rude and difagree- 
 able in relpecl of its form, and have many 
 things low and abfurd in it, necellary to be 
 palliated or fuppreifed, it does not arrive at that 
 perfection of which it is capable, till it comes 
 under the care of the poets, and from them 
 receives its laft improvement. By means 
 of this progrefs, tales that, in the mouths of 
 their firft inventors, were the moft abfurd thai 
 can be imagined, the effects of mere fuperili- 
 tion, ignorance and national prejudice, rife up 
 at lall to aftonilh the world, and draw the ad- 
 miration of all ages, in the form of an Iliad 
 or Odyjfey. It is not the bufinets of a poet, 
 to make fable, but to form, correct, and
 
 xxxviii PREFACE. 
 
 improve tradition : and it is to his following 
 this method, that Homer undoubtedly owes his 
 fuccefs ; for it is obvious to any one who con- 
 fiders his works with attention, that he only 
 collected the various traditions that were cur- 
 rent in his days, and reduced them to a fy- 
 ftem. That infinite variety of independent 
 {lories which occur in his works, is a proof 
 of this, told with fo minute, and often fo un- 
 neceflary a detail of circumftances, that it is 
 cafy to fee that he followed accounts already 
 current, and did not invent what he has re- 
 corded. I could as eafily believe that Prome- 
 theus made a man of clay, and put life. into 
 him, or alTent to any other of the moil abfurd 
 ficlions of antiquity ; I could even as foon be 
 perfuaded that all that Homer has written is 
 ftrict matter of fact, as believe that any one 
 mortal man was capable of inventing that infi- 
 nite variety of hiftorical circumftances which 
 occur in the works of that celebrated poet : 
 for invention is by no means an eafy thing ; 
 and to contrive a tale that will pleafe univer- 
 fally is certainly one of the moft difficult un- 
 dertakings that can be imagined. Poets, 
 therefore, have found themfelves under a ne- 
 cefiity of trufting to fomething more power- 
 ful than their own invention in this important 
 
 article,
 
 PREFACE. xxxl* 
 
 article, viz. the joint endeavours of many, re- 
 gulated and directed by the cenfure of ages. 
 
 WHAT has been laid, is not only fufficient 
 to juftify me in forming my poem upon hifto- 
 rical circumflances already known, and intro- 
 ducing characters which the reader is before 
 acquainted with; but (hews the neceflity like- 
 wife of taking many of the hiflorical circum- 
 flances from die antient poets. For tradition, 
 the proper foundation of Epic poetry, is now 
 to be found only in their writings ; and there- 
 fore muft be uled like a common flock, and 
 not confidered as the property of individuals. 
 
 FOR the immoderate length of the two 
 Epifodes, viz. thofe in the third and fifth 
 books, all that I can fay, is, that they are 
 both brought in for very important purpofes, 
 and therefore may be permitted to take up 
 more room than is ordinarily allow ed to things 
 of that fort. I intended the firft of them as an 
 experiment in that kind of fi&ion which di- 
 {linguilhes Homer's Qdyfley, and the other as 
 an attempt in heroic Tragedy, after the man- 
 ner of Sophocles. 
 
 THE language is fimple and artlefs. This 
 I take to be a beauty, rather than a defeft ; 
 for it gives an air of antiquity to the work, 
 and makes the f:ylc more luitable to the fub- 
 
 jed
 
 xl PREFACE. 
 
 ject. The quaintnefs of Mr. Pope's expreffion, 
 in his tranilation of the Iliad and Odyfley, is 
 not at all fuitable, either to the antiquity or 
 majeftic gravity of his author, and contri- 
 butes more to make his fable appear vain and 
 abfurd, than any circumflance that feems of 
 fo little moment, could eafily be fuppofed to 
 do. 
 
 MY learned readers will be furpris'd to find 
 Agamemnon and Menelaus at die fiege of 
 Thebes, when, according to Homer, they 
 were riot there : and, at die fame time, no 
 notice taken of Sdienelus, the friend and com- 
 panion of Diomed, whom the fame audior 
 mentions as preient in that expedition. 
 
 WITH refpeft to the mil circumflance ; I did 
 not chooie, for the fake of a faft of fo little 
 confequence, and diat too depending only up- 
 on poetical authority, to deprive myfelf of 
 two illuftrious names very proper for adorning 
 my catalogue of heroes. And as to die fe- 
 cond ; it will be eafily allowed, that I could 
 not have made Sdienelus appear, without af- 
 figning him that place in Diomed's friend- 
 iliip, and confequently in the aftion of the 
 poem, which Ulyffes now poflefTes j and which 
 
 13
 
 PREFACE xli 
 
 is die only part in the whole fuited to his pe- 
 culiar character. I muft have put a fecond 
 rate hero in the place of a firft rate one ; and a 
 name little known, in the place of one which 
 every body is acquainted with. Befides, I muft 
 have transferred, to Sthenelus, the valor, firm- 
 nefs, and addrefs of Ulyfles j becaufe the part 
 he was to aft would have required thefe, and 
 muft, at the fame time, have funk Ulyfles in- 
 to the character of Sthenelus, for want of a 
 proper opportunity of difplaying him in hia 
 own. Tliefe are inconveniencies too great to be 
 incurred for the fake of a fcrupulous agree- 
 ment with Homer in point of facl ; and are 
 therefore, in my opinion, prudently avoided. 
 
 I have explained myfelf upon the foregoing 
 particulars, for the fake of the learned part of 
 my readers only : and {hall now drop a hint 
 for fuch of them as do not fall under that de- 
 nomination. 
 
 THE following poem is called the Epigoniad, 
 becaufe the heroes, whofe a&ions it celebrates, 
 have got the name of The Epigones (or de- 
 Jcendants) being the fons of thole who at- 
 tempted the conquefl of Thebes in a former 
 expedition. 
 
 / THUS
 
 *Hi PREFACE. 
 
 THUS fair I have attempted to apologize for 
 the following performance. It may be que- 
 ftioned, no doubt, upon many accounts befides 
 thofe that have been mentioned : but I perfuade 
 myfelf, that what has been faid will determine 
 every candid reader, not to be peremptory in 
 condemning what at firft view he may diflike ; 
 for the fpecimen of cridcifin which has been 
 given, will convince him that the real faults 
 of Epic poetry are not eafily afcertained, and 
 diftinguilhed from thofe inconveniencies that 
 muft be allowed to take place, in order to 
 prevent greater evils, and produce a higher 
 degree of perfection upon the whole. 
 
 THE
 
 THE 
 
 
 E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 BOOK I. 
 
 YE poVrs of fong ! with whofe immortal fire 
 Your bard inraptur'd fung Pelides' ire, 
 To Greece fo fatal, when in evil hour 
 He brav'd, in ftern debate, the fov'reign pow'r > 
 By like example, teach me now to {how 
 From love, no lefs, what dire difaflers flow. 
 For when the youth of Greece, by Thefeus led, 
 Return'd to conquer where their fathers bled, 
 And punifh guilty Thebes, by heav'n ordain'd 
 Tor perfidy to fall, and oaths profaned ; 
 Venus, flill partial to the Theban arms, 
 Tydeus's fon feduc'd by female charms ; 
 Who, from his plighted faith by paffion fway'd, 
 The chiefs, the army, and himfelf betray'd. 
 A
 
 2 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 THIS theme did once your fav'rite bard employ, 
 Whofe verfe immortalized the fall of Troy : 
 But time's oblivious gulf, which ftill conceals 
 What art or nature to die light reveals, 
 In whofe wide vortex worlds themielves are toft, 
 And rounding fwift fucceffively arc loft, 
 This fong hath fnatch'd. I now relume the drain, 
 Not from proud hope and emulation vain, 
 By this attempt to merit equal praife 
 With worth heroic, born in happier days. 
 Sooner the weed, that with the Spring appears, 
 And in the Summer's heat its bloflbm bears, 
 But, flmv'ling at the touch of Winter hoar, 
 Sinks, tolts native earth, and is no more ; 
 Might match the lofty oak, which long hath flood, 
 Frojn age to age, die monarch of die wood. 
 But love excites me, and defire to ttace 
 His glorious fteps, tho* with unequal pace. 
 Before me ftill I fee his awful (hade, 
 With garlands crown'd of leaves which never fade; 
 He points the path to fame, and bids me fcale 
 Parnafliis' flipp'ry height, where thoui'ands fail :
 
 BOOK!. 3 
 
 I follow trembling ; for the cliffs are high, 
 And hov'ring round them watchful Harpies fly, 
 To fnatch the poet's wreath with envious claws, 
 And hifs contempt for merited applaufe. 
 But if great CAMPBELL, whofe aufpicious finite 
 Bids genius yet revive to blefs our ifle, 
 Who, from the toils of ftate and public cares, 
 jQft with the mufes to the iliade repairs, 
 My numbers fliall approve, I rife to fame ; 
 
 For what he praifes, envy dares not blame. 
 
 . 
 
 WHERE high Olympus' hundred heads arife, 
 Divide the clouds, and mingle with the fkies, 
 The Gods aflerabled met ; and view'd, from far, 
 Thebes and the various combats of the war. 
 From all apart the Paphian goddefs fat, 
 And pity'd in her heart her fav'rite ftate, 
 Decreed to periili, by die Argive bands, 
 Pallas's art, Tydides' mighty hands : 
 Penfive Ihe fat, and ev'ry art explor'd 
 To charm the viftor, and reflrain his fword ; 
 
 But
 
 4 THE E P I G N I A D. 
 
 But veilM her purpofe from the piercing ray 
 Of Pallas, ever jealous of her fway : 
 Unfeen the Goddefs, from th' Olympian height 
 To {hady Cyprus bent her rapid flight, 
 Down the fleep air, as, from the fetting fkies, 
 At ev'n's approach, a {beaming meteor flies ; 
 Where lofty (bores the temper's rage reftrain, 
 And fleeps, in peace diflblv'd, the hoary main; 
 In Love's fam'd ifle a deep recefs is found, 
 Which woods embrace, and precipices bound, 
 To Venus facred ; there her temple Hands, 
 Where azure billows waih the golden fands, 
 A hollow cave ; and lifts its rocky head, 
 With native myrtle crown'd, a lofty ftiade ; 
 Whither refort the Naiads of the flood, 
 Aflembl'd with the nymphs from ev'ry wood ; 
 Her heifers there they tend, and fleecy {lore, 
 Along the windings of the defart {hore. 
 Thither the Goddefs, from th'Olympian height 
 Defcending fwift, precipitates her flight ; 
 Confpicuous, on the yellow fand, fhe flood, 
 Above the margin of die azure flood. 
 
 From
 
 BOOK!.- 5 
 
 From ev'ry grove and ftream the nymphs attend^. 
 And to their Queen in chearful homage bend. 
 Some haft'ning to the facred grott repair, 
 And deck its rocky walls with garlands fair ; 
 Others produce the gifts which Autumn brings, 
 And fparkling nedar quench'd with mountain 
 
 Iprings. 
 
 And now the Queen, impatient to explain 
 Her fecret griefs, addrefs'd her lift'ning train,. 
 
 YE rural Goddefles, immortal fair ! 
 Who all my joys and all my forrows ihare ; 
 I come, afflicted, from th' ethereal tow'rs, 
 Where Thebes is doom'd to fall by partial pow'rs. 
 Nor can intreaty fave my fav'rite flatc, 
 Avert or change the rigour of her fate ; 
 Tho', breathing incenfe, there my altar (lands, 
 With daily gifts fupply'd from virgins hands. 
 Juno now rules the fenate of the ikies, 
 And with her diclat.es ev'ry pow'r complies ; 
 Her jealous hate the guiltleis town condemns 
 To wafteful havock, and the rage of names ; 
 
 Since,
 
 6 THE E P I G N I A D. 
 
 Since, thither tempted by a Granger's charms, 
 The mighty Thunderer foribok her arms. 
 Jove's warlike daughter too promotes her aim, 
 Who, for Tydides, feeks immortal fame ; 
 For him employs a mother's watchful cares, 
 And the firil honours of the war prepares : 
 To fruftrate both, a monument would raife 
 Of lafting triumph and immortal praife, 
 Allure the fon of Tydeus from die field, 
 Towhofe victorious hands die town muft yield; 
 For by the all-decreeing will of fate 
 He only can o'erthrow the Theban ftate. 
 A way which promifes fuccefs I'll name : 
 The valiant youth adores a lovely dame, 
 Alcander's daughter, whom the Graces join'd 
 With gifts adorn, above the human kind : 
 She with her fire forfook th'Hefperian ftrand, 
 By hoflile arms expel I'd their native land : 
 For Echetus who rules, with tyrant force, 
 Where Aufidus directs his downward courfe, 
 And high Garganus, on th'Apulian plain, 
 |s mark'd by failors, from the diftant main ; 
 
 Oft
 
 B O O K L 7 
 
 Oft from her fire had claim'd the lovely maid, 
 Who, flill averfe, to grant his fuit delayM ; 
 For, barb'rous in extreme, the tyrant feeds 
 With mangl'd limbs of men his hungry deeds : 
 Impatient of his love, by hoflile arms 
 And force declar'd, he claim'd her matchlefs charms, 
 Pelignium raz'd, the hero's royal feat, 
 Who fought in foreign climes a fafe retreat : 
 His flight, JEtolia's friendly fhore receives, 
 Her gen'rous lord prote&s him and relieves ; 
 Three cities to pofleis, the chief obtains, 
 With hills for pafture fit, and fruitful plains. 
 Cailandra for his bride, Tydides claimed ; 
 For hymeneal rites, the hour was nam'd, 
 When call'd to arms againft the Theban toVrs 
 The chief reluctant led his martial pow'rs. 
 Hence jealoufy and fear his bread divide, 
 Fear for the fafety of an abient bride ; 
 Left, by his paffion rous'd, the tyrant rile 
 And unoppos'd ufurp the lovely prize, 
 He knows not, that, in martial arms conceal'd, 
 With him, ihe braves the terrors of the field ; 
 
 True
 
 8 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 True to his Tide, noon's fultry toil endures, 
 And the cold damps that chill the midnight hours, 
 If dreams, or figns, could jealoufy impart, 
 And whet the cares that {ling the heroes heart, 
 Impatient of his pain, he'd foo-n prepare, 
 With all his native bands, to quit the war. 
 
 THE Goddefs thus r a Paphian nymph replyM, 
 And drew the lifl'ning crowd on ev'ry fide, 
 Zelotype, whom fell Aleclo bore, 
 With Cupid mixing on th' infernal iliore. 
 
 GODDESS! thefe (hafts ftiall compafs what you aim, 
 My mother dipt their points in Stygian flame ; 
 Where'er my father's darts their way have found, 
 Mine follow deep, and poifon all the wound. 
 By thefe we foon, with triumph, fliall behold 
 Pallas deceiv'd, and Juno's felf control'd. 
 
 THEY all approve ; and, to the rural fane, 
 Around their fov'reign, moves the joyful train ; 
 
 The
 
 BOOK L 
 
 The Goddefs plac'd, in order each fucceeds, 
 With fong and dance the genial feafl proceeds ; 
 While to the fprightly harp, the voice explains 
 The loves of all the gods in wanton flrains : 
 But when arriv'd the iilent hour which brings 
 The ihades of ev'ning on its dewy wings; 
 Zelotype, impatient to purfue 
 Her journey, hafl'ning to her cave, withdrew ; 
 Firft to her feet the winged ihoes flic binds, 
 Which tread the air, and mount the rapid winds; 
 Aloft they bear her thro' th' ethereal plain, 
 Above the iblid earth and liquid main : 
 Her arrows next me takes of pointed ftcel, 
 For fight too fmall, but terrible to feel ; 
 Rous'd by their fmart, the favage lion roars, 
 And mad to combat ru(h the tufky boars, 
 Of wounds fccure ; for when their venom bites, 
 What feels their power all other torture flights. 
 A figur'd zone, myfterioufly defign'd, 
 Around her waift her yellow robe confin'd : 
 There dark Sufpicion lurk'd, of fable hue ; - 
 There hafly Rage his deadly dagger drew; 
 
 B Pale
 
 io THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Pale Envy inly pin'd ; and by her fide, 
 Outrageous Phrenzy with his chains unty'd ; 
 Affronted Pride with thirft of vengeance burn'd, 
 And Love's excefs to deepeft hatred turn'd. 
 All thefe the artift's curious hand cxprefsM, 
 The work divine his matchlefs Mil confefs'd. 
 The virgin lad, around her {boulders flung 
 The bow; and by her fide the quiver hung: 
 Then, fpringing up, her airy courfe {he bends 
 For Thebes ; and lightly o'er the tents defcend?. 
 The fon of Tydeus, 'midft his bands, (he found 
 In arms compleat, repofing on die ground ; 
 And, as he flept the hero thus addrefs'd, 
 Her form to fancy's waking eye exprefs'd. 
 
 THRICE happy youth! whofe glory 'tis to {hare 
 The Paphian goddefs's peculiar care ; 
 But happy only, as you now improve 
 The warning fent as earnefl of her love. 
 Her meflenger I am : if in your heart, 
 The fair Hefperian virgin claims a part, 
 
 If
 
 B O K. I. it 
 
 If, with regret, you'd fee her matchlefs charms 
 Deftin'd to blefs a happier rival's arms ; 
 Your coafts defencelefs, and unguarded tow'rs 
 Confum'd, and ravaged by hoftile pow'rs ; 
 Withdraw your warriors from the Argive hoft, 
 And fave whate'er you value, ere 'tis loft. 
 For Echetus, who rules with tyrant force, 
 Where Aufidus directs Ms downward courfe ; 
 And high Garganus on th* Apulian ftrand, 
 Mirks to the mariner die diitant land, 
 Prepares, by fwift invafion, to remove 
 Your virgin bride, and difappoint your love. 
 Before, excited by her matchlefs charms, 
 He claini'd her from her fire by hoftile arms ; 
 Pelignium raz'd, the hero's royal feat, 
 When in your land he fought a fafe retreat. 
 Caflandra follow'd with reluctant mind, 
 To love the tyrant, fecredy inclin'd ; 
 Tho' fierce and barb'rous in extreme he feeds, 
 With mangl'd limbs of men, his hungry fteeds. 
 And now at anchor on the Latian tide, 
 With all their train on board, his galleys ride : 
 
 Prepar'd,
 
 12 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Prepared, when favorM by the weilern breeze, 
 With courfe direft to crofs the narrow feas. 
 This to your ear the Paphian goddefs fends; 
 The reft upon your timely care depends. 
 
 SHE faid ; and turning fix'd upon the bow 
 A venom'd {haft, the caufe of future woe : 
 Then, with reverted aim, the fubtile dart 
 Difmifs'd, and fix'd it in the hero's heart. 
 Amaz'd he wak'd ; and, on his arm reclin'd, 
 Piiburden'd thus witji groans his anxious mind. 
 
 WHAT dire difafters all my ways befet! 
 How clofe around me pitch'd the fatal net ! 
 Here if I ftay, nor quit the Argive hoft, 
 Etolia's ravag'd, and Caflandra's loft: 
 For fure the pow'rs immortal ne'er in vain, 
 To- mortals thus the fecret fates explain. 
 If I retire, the princes muft upbraid 
 My plighted faith infringed, the hoft betray'd ; 
 And, to fucceeding times, the voice of fame, 
 'Vylr.h cowardice a.nd flotb, will blot my name. 
 
 Between
 
 B O O K I. 13 
 
 Between thefe fad alternatives I find 
 No diftant hopes to footh my troubled mind ; 
 Unlefs I could perfuade tlie Argive po\v'rs 
 To quit at once thefe long contefted tow'rs : 
 Nor want I realbns fpecious in debate 
 To move the bold eft warriors to retreat. 
 Divided thus, the ihame would lighter fall; 
 Reproach is fcarce reproach which touches all 
 
 THUS pond' ring in his mind the hero lay, 
 Till darknefs fled before the morning ray : 
 Then rofe; and, grafping in his mighty hand 
 The regal flaff, the fign of high command, 
 Peniive and fad forfook his lofty tent, 
 And fought the fon of Dares as he went ; 
 Talthybius he fought, nor fought in vain ; 
 IJe found the hero 'mijlft his native train ; 
 And charg'd him to convene, from tent tp tent, 
 The kings to Eteon's lofty monument. 
 
 to the charge, he took his way, 
 Where Thefeus 'midil the bold Athenians lay, 
 
 The
 
 14 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 The king of men ; in whofe fuperior hand, 
 Confenting princes plac'd the chief command* 
 Adraftus next he call'd, whofe hoary hairs 
 By age were whiten'd and a length of cares ; 
 Who firfl to Thebes the Argive warriors led : 
 In vain for Polynices* right they bled, 
 By fate decreed to fall ; he now infpires 
 The fons to conquer, and avenge their fires. 
 UlylTes heard, who led liis martial train, 
 In twenty {hips, acrofs the founding main : 
 The youth, in Ithaca, Zacynthus, bred, 
 And Cephalenia crown'd with lofty made. 
 The Spartan monarch, with his brother, heard 
 The herald's call ; and at the call appearM : 
 Yet young in arms, tho' great in after fame, 
 When Greece to Troy beneath their conducl came. 
 The Cretan chief appeared ; and he whole fway. 
 Meflenia and the Pylian realms obey. 
 Oileus next he call'd, whofe martial powers 
 From Befla move and Scarphe's lofty tow'rs. 
 Elpenor too, who from the Chalcian ftrand 
 And fair Eretria led his martial band, 
 
 Appear'd
 
 BOOK I. 15 
 
 Appear'd ; and all who merited renown 
 In ten years war before the Trojan town. 
 Achilles only, yet unfit to wield 
 The Pelian jav'lin, and the pond'rous fhield, 
 In Phthia {laid; to Chiron's care refign'd, 
 Whofe wife inftruclions form'd his mighty mind. 
 The chiefs were placed. Superior to the reft 
 The monarch fat, and thus the peers addreft. 
 
 PRINCES! let Tyde us' valiant fon declare 
 What caufe convenes the fenate of the war. 
 If of himfelf, or from advice he knows 
 Some fecret mifchief plotted by our foes, 
 Which prudence may prevent and timely care; 
 We come his counfels and his works to mare. 
 The monarch thus. Tydides thus reply'd, 
 And drew attention deep on ev'ry fide. 
 
 PRINCES! I have not now the hoft conven'd, 
 For fecrets by intelligence obtain'd; 
 But openly my judgment to exprefs 
 Of miichiefs feen, which prudence muil redrefs: 
 
 By
 
 16 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 By war's devouring rage, our martial pow'rs 
 
 Grow thin and wafte before thefe hoftile tow'rs ; 
 
 While Thebes fectire our vain attempts withftands, 
 
 By daily aids fuftain'd from diftant lands. 
 
 Shall we proceed to urge this dire debate, ' 
 
 Aiid pufh, with hoftile arms, the Theban ftate ? 
 
 Or, by experience taught the worft to fear, 
 
 Confult the public fafety, and forbear? 
 
 Had our great fires, by happier counfcls fway'd, 
 
 As prudence taught, neceflity obey'd ; 
 
 Renounc'd in time this fatal ftrife, which brings 
 
 Alike to nations mifchief, and to kings ; 
 
 Thofe heroes had not, with their martial train, 
 
 DiftinguifliM by their fall a foreign plain. 
 
 The gods themfelves, in vengeance for our crimes, 
 
 With fuch difafters lafti the guilty times ; 
 
 In judgment jult they fow'd the feeds of ftrife, 
 
 To fweep tranfgreflbrs from the feats of life. 
 
 Let him, who obftinately will, proceed, 
 
 And wait the vengeance hov'ring o'er his head ; 
 
 Since Thebes grows ftronger and the Argive pow'rs 
 
 Decreafe, as famine or the fword devours, 
 
 To
 
 B O O K I. 17 
 
 To-morrow I withdraw my martial train ; 
 Nor .flay to perilh, like my fire, in vain, 
 
 THUS as the hero fpoke, the kings divide, 
 And mingled murmurs round th' aflembly glide, 
 Heard like the founds which warn the careful fwaia 
 Of fudden winds or thick defcending rain ; 
 When mountain echoes catch the fullen roar 
 Of billows burfting on the fandy ftiore, 
 And hurl it round in airy circles toft, 
 Till in the diftant clouds the voice is loft. 
 The king of men to fudden rage refign'd, 
 At once, the empire of his mighty mind, 
 With ftiarp reproaches haft'ning to reply j 
 But, more fedate, the Pylian monarch nigh, 
 In acT: to rife, the angry chief confin'd ; 
 And, whifp'ring, thus addrefs'd with head declin'd. 
 It ill becomes the prince, whofe fov'reign hand 
 Sways the dread fcepter of fupreme command, 
 To be the firft in difcord ; and obey 
 As head-long paffion blindly leads the way. 
 
 C For
 
 i8 THE EPIGONIAD. 
 
 For when die kings in rafh debate engage, 
 Tis yours to check and moderate their rage ; 
 Since, of the various ills that can diftrefs 
 Confed'rate councils and prevent fuccefs, 
 Difcord is chief; where'er the Fury fways, 
 The parts (lie fevers, and the whole betrays. 
 
 THE hero thus. The king of men remain'd 
 By found advice perfuaded, and reftrain'd. 
 Crete's valiant monarch rofe ; and to die reft, 
 Thus fpoke the di&ates of his gen'rous breafl. 
 
 CONFED'RATE kings, when any leader here 
 The war difluades, and warns you to forbear, 
 I might approve ; for, fafe beyond the fea, 
 Creon and Thebes can never injure me. 
 And when the barb'rous tyrant, unwithfteod, 
 His hot revenge ihall quench in Grecian blood ; 
 When Thrace and Macedon, by his command, 
 Shall ravage Argos and the Pylian ftrand ; 
 Secure and guarded by the ocean's ftream, 
 Crete's hundred towns Ihall know it but by fame. 
 
 Yet
 
 IS O K I. 19 
 
 Yet would not I, tho' many fuch were found, 
 
 For open war, advife a peace unfound. 
 
 Let Macedon to Thebes her fuccours fend, 
 
 And Thrace, with all her barb'rous tribes, defcend; 
 
 By foreign aids die more our foes increafe, 
 
 The greater glory waits .us from fuccefs. 
 
 You all remember, on the Ifthmean ftrand 
 
 Where neighboring feas befiege the flrait'ned land, 
 
 When Greece enleagu'd a full aflembly held, 
 
 By public juftice to the war compelled ; 
 
 That blood of flaughter'd victims drench'd the 
 
 ground, 
 
 While oaths divine the willing nations bound, 
 Ne'er to return, till our victorious pow'rs 
 Had levelled with the duft the Theban tow'rs. 
 JOVE heard, and bid applauding thunders roll, 
 Loud on the right ; they {hook the ftarry pole : 
 For JOVE himfelf is witnefs of our vows, 
 And him, who violates, his wrath purfues. 
 Our joyful fliouts the eaith, the ocean heard ; 
 ~We catch'd the omen, and the God reverM j 
 
 In
 
 *d THE E P I N I A D. 
 
 In confidence of full fuccefs we came, 
 
 To conquer Thebes, and win immortal fame. 
 
 But if the gods and fate our fears diftruft, 
 
 To public juflice and ourfelves unjuft j 
 
 Diftionour'd to our native feats \ve go, 
 
 And yield a lafting triumph to the foe. 
 
 Should now, fromhence arriv'd, fome warrior's gho ft 
 
 Greet valiant Tydeus on the Stygian coaft, 
 
 And tell, when danger or diftrefs is near, 
 
 That Diomed perfuades the reft to fear ; 
 
 He'd fhun the fynod of the mighty dead, 
 
 And hide his anguiih in fome lonely {hade : 
 
 Nature in all an equal courfe maintains ; 
 
 The lion's whelp fucceeds to awe the plains ; 
 
 Pards gender pards ; from tygers tygers fpring ; 
 
 No doves are hatch'd beneath a vultur's wing : 
 
 Each parent's image in his offspring lives ; 
 
 But nought of Tydeus in'his fon furvives. 
 
 HE faid ; and by his (harp reproaches ftung, 
 And wav'ring in- fufpenfe the hero hung, 
 
 In
 
 B K I. 2I 
 
 In words now prone to vent his kindl'd ire, 
 
 Or fk'd in fullen filence to retire. 
 
 As when a current, from the ocean wide, 
 
 Rolls, thro' the Cyclades, its angry tide ; 
 
 Now here, now there, in circling eddies toft, ' 
 
 The certain tenor of its courfe is loft, 
 
 Each wary pilot for his fafety fears 
 
 In mute fufpence, and trembles as he fleers : 
 
 Such feem'd the tumult of the hero's breaft, 
 
 And Mich amazement long reftrain'd the reft. 
 
 Laertes* fon at laft the filence broke, 
 
 And, riling, thus With prudent purpofe fpoke. 
 
 PRINCES ! I counfel war; but will not blame 
 The chief dilTenting, whofe illuftrious name 
 We all rnuft honor : yet, with patience, hear 
 What now I offer to the public ear. 
 I freely own th' unnumber'd ills that wait 
 On ftrife prolonged, and war's difaftrous ftate. 
 With war, lean Famine and difeafes dwell, 
 And Difcord fierce, efcap'd the bounds of hell. - 
 
 Where'er
 
 22 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Where'er on earth her courfe the Fury bends 
 
 A crowd of mifchiefs ftill her fleps attends ; 
 
 Fear flies before her fwifter than the wind, 
 
 And defolation marks her path behind. 
 
 Yet her, attended thus, the Gods ordain 
 
 Stern arbitrefs of right to mortal men ; 
 
 To awe injustice with her lifted fpear, 
 
 And teach the tyrants of the earth to fear. 
 
 If Thebes is perjur'd, and exeits her might 
 
 For ufurpation in contempt of right ; 
 
 If (oaths defpis'd, and all the ties which bind 
 
 The great fociety of human kind) 
 
 For Eteocles in the war fhe flood, 
 
 And drench'd her thirfty fields with Grecian blood ; 
 
 The Gods themfelves have err'd, and fet in vain 
 
 The fcepter'd kings injuftice to reftrain ; 
 
 Elfe flie deferves the laft extremes to feel 
 
 Of wafteful fire and keen devouring fteel. 
 
 Tho' prudence urg'd and equity approv'd, 
 
 Joining to fecond what Tydides mov'd, 
 
 We could not hope the war for peace to change, 
 
 For Thebes of fafety thinks not, but revenge. 
 
 Laft
 
 B K I. 23 
 
 Laft night, difguis'd, I mingled with the foe, 
 Their fecret hopes and purpofes to know ; 
 And found that Creon, with his martial train, 
 This day intends to brave us on the plain. 
 Greece too, I heard, by barb'rous fov'reigns claim'd, 
 Some Athens, Argos, fome Mycaene nam'd ; 
 Sparta and Pylos, with the various towns 
 Which grace, in profpeft fair, th' Arcadian downs : 
 Others Etolia challeng'd for their lot ; 
 Nor was ev'n Ithaca itielf forgot. 
 From fuch vain hopes to boafling they proceed ; 
 Each promifes to win fome hero's head. 
 Leophron too, diftinguiih'd from the reft, 
 Superior pride and infolence exprefs'd ; 
 In form a God he 'midft th'aflembly flood, 
 By all ador'd, die idol of the crowd ; 
 And promis'd, if he once in fight could meet 
 Th'Etolian chief, to ftretch him at his feet ; 
 Unlefs fome god oppos'd, or daftard fear, 
 By fudden flight, ihould fnatch him from his fpear. 
 Can we then hope by peace to end our toils, 
 "When foes fecure already {hare our fpoils ? 
 
 Peace
 
 24 THE EPIGONIAD. 
 
 Peace to expect from flight itfelf were vain ; 
 And flight, I know, your gen'rous fouls difdain. 
 
 HE faid. The chiefs with indignation bura'd j 
 And Diomed fubmitting thus return'd. 
 Princes ! I need not for myfelf profefs, 
 What all have witnefled, and muft confefs ; 
 That in the front of battle flill engag'd, 
 I never ihun'd to mingle where it rag'd. 
 Nor now does fear perfuade me to retire, 
 Falie Creon fafe, and guilty Thebes entire ; 
 But war and famine thin our martial pow'rs, 
 While gods adverfe protect the Theban tow'rs. 
 And as the careful fhepherd turns his flock 
 Back from the dangers of the flipp'ry rock, 
 And from the haunts where foxes mark the ground, 
 Or rapid rivers flow with banks unfound ; 
 So kings (hould warn the people to forbear 
 Attempts, when fymptoms point deftrudtion near. 
 But imce the leaders, with confenting voice, 
 For war already fix the public choice ; 
 I freely yield, nor ever will divide, 
 Where all deliberate, and all decide.
 
 B K t 25 
 
 THE hero thus, and ceas'd. And thus the reft, 
 From his high feat, the king of men addrefs'd. 
 Since war is now decreed, 'tis next our care 
 That all Ihould fpeedily for fight prepare. 
 Creon, this day, intends with all his train 
 To try our valor on the equal plain ; 
 And will, with diligence, improve an hour, 
 Which finds us inattentive and fecure. 
 Firft let each leader with his bands in hafte 
 Snatch, as the time allows, a Ihort repaft ; 
 Then arm for fight, and to the field proceed, 
 The phalanx following as the chariots lead. 
 Who arms the firft, and firft to combat goes, 
 Tho' weaker, feems mperior to his foes ; 
 But fuch as lag are more than half o'erthrown, 
 Lefs in the eyes of others and their own. 
 
 THE monarch thus. The princes all aflent. 
 Straight from the council thro' the hoft they went, 
 To arm their bands with diligence and care ; 
 They all obey, and all for fight prepare. 
 
 D THE

 
 THE 
 
 EPIGONIAD. 
 
 BOOK II. 
 
 A SSEMBL'D on the plain, the Theban pow'rs 
 
 In ordered ranks appear before the tow'rs; 
 Creon their leader, whofe ufurped fway, 
 Defpifmg right, the citizens obey. 
 The chiefs of Thebes, beneath his high command, 
 Rul'd the whole war and marfhal'd ev'ry band. 
 His valiant fon the firfl, his country's boaft, 
 The hope of Thebes, the bulwark of her hoft, 
 Leophron, to the field the warriors led, 
 "Whom Thebes herfelf within her ramparts bred; 
 Peneleus, who from Medeon led his pow'rs, 
 CEchalia low, and Arne's lofty tow'rs : 
 Leitus from Thefpia, where the verdant {hades 
 Of Helicon invite the tuneful maids : 
 
 Porthenor
 
 2& THE E P I G N I A D. 
 
 Porthenor rich, whofe wide pofleffions lay 
 Where fam'd Afopus winds his wat'ry way; 
 Beneath Cytheron's height, the lofty mound 
 Which parts Boeotian plains from hoPdle ground : 
 Phericles, who the valiant warriors led 
 In Mycalefliis, Harma, Aulis, bred : 
 Andremon, leader of his native band, 
 From lofty Schoenus on th'Iinienian ilrand j 
 And Anthedon where fwift Euripus pent 
 Divides Euboea from the continent : 
 Thefe rul'd the Theban pow'rs beneath the care 
 Of Creon, chief and fov'reign of the war. 
 
 THE aids from Macedon the next were plac'd ; 
 Their ihining cafques with waving plumage grac'd j 
 A wolf's grey hide, around their ihoulders flung, 
 With martial grace above their armour hung : 
 From high Dodona's facred {hades they came ; 
 Catfander led them to the fields of fame. 
 The Thracians next, a formidable band ; 
 Nations and tribes diflincl, in order (land : 
 
 Byzantines
 
 B O O K n. 29 
 
 Byzantines fierce, whofe crooked keels divide 
 The Pontic gulf, and ftem the downward tide : 
 In Grecian arms the hardy warriors move, 
 With ponderous iliields and glitt'ring fpears above. 
 The Thynians next were marfhal'd on the field ; 
 Each with a faulcion arm'd and lunar Meld, 
 Whofe bending horns a verge of filver bound ; 
 And figures fierce their brazen helmets crown'd : 
 With thefe the Daci came, a martial race ; 
 fierce as their clime, they rear the pond'rous mace ; 
 In giant flrength fecure, they fcorn the fpear, 
 And crufti, with weighty blows, the ranks of war; 
 From Ifter's icy ftreams, a barb'rous crowd, 
 In faaggy furs, a herd promifcuous flood - ti 
 Swift as their favage game ; for wide they roem 
 In tribes and nations, ignorant of home ; 
 Excelling all who boaft fuperior lldll 
 To fend the winged arrow fwift to kill : 
 Thefe RhoeHis rul'd, of various tribes compos'd, 
 By various leaders on the field difpos'd. 
 
 To
 
 3 o THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 To fight the Argives movM in clofe array ; 
 Bright fhone their arms and flalh'd redoubl'dday ; 
 Refolv'd, and ftill as iilent night, they go ; 
 Nor with infulting ftiouts provoke the foe. 
 Thick from their fteps, in duiky volumes, rile 
 The parched fields, and darken all the ikies. 
 Beneath the fliade the ardent warriors clofe ; 
 Their fhields and helmets ring with founding blows, 
 
 FIRST Menelaus (truck a Theban lord ; 
 His armed bread the weighty launce explor'd ; 
 Burft the clofe mail ; the {turning breaft-plate tore ; 
 And, from life's fountain, drew a ftream of gore. 
 Supine he fell amidft his native bands, 
 And wrench'd the fixed dart with dying hands, 
 To fpoil the {lain, the fon of Atreus flies ; 
 The Thebans interpofe with hoflile cries ; 
 And Creon's valiant fon his buckler fpread, 
 An orb of triple brafe, to guard die dead : 
 AS JOVE'S imperial bird her wings extends, 
 And from the fhepherds rage her young defends ; 
 So ftern Leophron bore his ample ftiield ; 
 Lake Mars, be flood the terror of the field. 
 
 With
 
 B O K n. 31 
 
 With dread unufual check'd, the Spartan band 
 RecoiPd ; Atrides only dar'd to ftand. 
 He thus began. Prefumptuous youth ! forbear 
 To tempt the fury of my flying fpear. 
 That warrior there was by my jav'lin flain, 
 His fpoils to guard you interpofe in vain. 
 Atrides thus ; and Creon's fon replies : 
 Thy launce I dread not, and thy threats defpife. 
 This hand hath many a chief of high renown, 
 And braver warriors oft in fight overthrown : 
 Like theirs thy fall ihall dignify my fpear, 
 And future boaflers thence be taught to fear. 
 Thus as he fpoke his weighty launce he threw 
 At Atreus' fon ; which riling as it flew 
 Upon the hero's creft with furious fway, 
 Glanc'd as it pals' d and fhav'd the plumes away. 
 Hilling amidil the Spartan ranks it came, 
 And (truck a youth of undiflinguifti'd name : 
 Cold, thro' his breaft, the fteel and polifh'd wood 
 A paflage forc'd, and drew a ftream of blood. 
 His launce Atrides next prepares to throw ; 
 Poifes it long, and meditates the blow: 
 
 Then,
 
 32 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Then, from his hand dilinifs'd with happier aim, 
 Thund'ring againft the Theban fhicld it came ; 
 Where wreath'd around a mimic ferpent twin'd, 
 With plates of poliihM filver lightly join'd : 
 Thence turn'd with courfe oblique it drove along, 
 And fpent its fury on the vulgar throng. 
 Leophron ftraight his flaming faulcion drew, 
 And at his foe, with eager fury, flew : 
 As, {looping from above, an eagle fprings 
 To fnatch his prey, and ihoots upon his wings. 
 The Spartan warrior dreads impending fate ; 
 And, turning, meditates a quick retreat. 
 As when a ihepherd fwain, in defart {hades, 
 The blood-nurs'd offspring of the wolf invades ; 
 If, to protecl her young, appears the dame, 
 Her angry teeth difplay'd and eyes of flame ; 
 With darts at firft, and threatening ihouts he tries, 
 To awe the guardian, and ailert the prize : 
 But, when (he fprings, the clofe encounter dreads, 
 And trembling, from the angry foe recedes. 
 So Menelaus fled. His native train, 
 In wild diforder, fcatters o'er the plain. 
 
 His
 
 BOOK II. 33 
 
 His valiant brother heard upon the right, 
 Where in his lofty car he rulM the fight ; 
 And to his fquire Nicomachus : With fpeed, 
 Turn to the left, and urge the flying Heed. 
 For, if thefe founds deceive not, Sparta fails ; 
 And, with a tide of conqueft, Thebes prevails. 
 Quick as the word, the filver reins he drew, 
 And thro' the fight the bounding chariot flew. 
 Like fome fwift vcflel, when a profp'rous gale 
 Favours her courfe, and ftretches ev'ry fail j 
 Above the parting waves flie lightly flies, 
 And fmooth behind a tract of ocean lies : 
 So, 'midft the combat, mih'd the lofty car ; 
 Pierc'd the thick tumult, and disjoin'd the war, 
 But Clytodemon's fon a jav'lin threw ; 
 With force impel'd, it lightened as it flew, 
 And ftruck the right-hand courfer to the ground, 
 Ethon for fwiftnefs in the race renown'd. 
 Behind his ear the deadly weapon flood, 
 Loos'd his high neck, and drew a dream of blood. 
 Groaning he funk ; and fpread his flowing mane, 
 A (hining circle, on the dufty plain. 
 
 E Intangle<L
 
 34 THE EPIGONIAD. 
 
 Intangled deep the royal chariot flood, 
 With hoftile fpears befet, an iron wood. 
 
 FROM his high feat the Spartan hero fprung ; 
 Amidfl the foe his clanging armour rung. 
 Before the king, the armed bands retire ; 
 As Ihepherd fwains avoid a lion's ire, 
 When fierce from famine on their darts he turns, 
 And rage indignant in his eye-balls burns. 
 'Midft the black tumult, like the early ftar 
 Of ev'ning, flione his filver arms afar ; 
 Which, o'er the hills, its fetting light difplays ; 
 And marks the ruddy weft with filver rays. 
 Pale and amaz'd his brother chief he found, 
 An armed circle of his friends around. 
 Alas, my brother ! have I liv'd to fee 
 Thy life redeem'd with deathlefs infamy 
 (The hero cry'd) ; far better that a ghoil 
 You now had wander'd on the Stygian coaft, 
 And by a glorious fall preferv'd your name 
 Safe and unblafted by the breath of fame ; 
 Which foon ftiall tell the world, amaz'd to hear, 
 That Menelaus taught the hoft to fear. 
 
 Bv
 
 B O K II. 35 
 
 BY confcious guilt fubdu'd the youth appearM ; 
 Without reply, the juft reproach he heard : 
 Confounded, to the ground he turn'd his eyes; 
 Indignant thus the great Atrides cries : 
 My cam cans ! Spartans ! taught to feek renown 
 From dangers greatly brav'd and battles won ; 
 Ah warriors ! will ye fly, when clofe behind 
 Dishonour follows fwifter than the wind ? 
 Return to glory : whether JOVE ordains, 
 With wreaths of conqueft, to reward your pains, 
 Or dooms your fall ; he merits equal praife, 
 With him who conquers, he who bravely dies. 
 The hero thus ; and, like fwift light'ning driven 
 Thro'fcatter'd clouds along the vault of heav'n 
 By JOVE'S dread arm, his martial voice infpirtl 
 The fainting hod, and ev'ry bofom fir'd. 
 Again upon the conqu'ring foe they turn'd : 
 The war again, in all its fury, burn'd. 
 As when the deep, which ebbing from the land 
 Along the coaft difplays a wafte of fand, 
 Returns ; and, blown by angry tempefts, roars 
 A ftormy deluge 'gainfl the rocky fhores : 
 
 So,
 
 36 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 So, rufhing to the fight, the warriors came ; 
 Ardent to conquer, and retrieve their fame. 
 
 BEFORE his hofl die fan of Creon itood, 
 With labourM duft obfcure, and hoftile blood ; 
 And thus exclaim'd : Gods ! ihall tliis daitard tram 
 (Warriors of Thebes ! ) difpute die field again? 
 Their better chief, I know Mm, leads the band ; 
 But fate Ihall foon fubdue him by my hand. 
 fje faid ; and, at the king, his jav'iin threw ; 
 WMch, aim'd amifs, with erring fmy Hew. 
 Acrofe the armed ranks it fwiftly drove, 
 The warriors (looping as it ruih ? d above, 
 The Spartan hero aim'd Ms weighty fpear ; 
 And thus to JOVE addrefs'd an ardent prayer : 
 Hear me, great Sire of gods ! whofe boundleis iway 
 The fates of men and mortal things obey ; 
 Whofe fov'reign hand, with unrefiiled might, 
 DeprelTes or exalts die fcales of fight : 
 Now grant fuccefs to my avenging hand, 
 And flretch diis dire dellroyer on the land. 
 
 JOVE,
 
 BOOK II. 37 
 
 JOVE, grant nie now to reach his hated life, 
 And fave my warriors in this doubtful ftrife. 
 The hero thus ; and ftnt his weighty fpear. 
 With fpeed it flew, and pierc'd the yielding air ; 
 Swift, as a faulcon to her quarry fprings, 
 When down the wind Ihe flretches on her wings. 
 Leophron, {looping, ihun'd the deadly ftrpke, 
 Which on the ihield of Hegifander broke. 
 Vain now his lute ; in vain his melting {brains, 
 Soft as Apollo's on the Lycian plains : 
 His foul excluded, feeks the dark abodes ' 
 By Styx embraced, the terror of the gods ; 
 Where furly Charon, with his lifted oar, 
 Prives the light ghofts, and rules the dreary ihorc. 
 
 WITH grief Leophron faw the warrior {lain. 
 He fnatch'd a pond'rous mace from off the plain, 
 Cut in the Thracian woods, with {hags around 
 Of pointed fteel with iron circles bound. 
 Heav'd with gigantic force the club to throw, 
 Jje fwung it thrice, and hurl'd it at his foe. 
 
 Thund'Ying
 
 3 3 THE E P I G N I A D. 
 
 ThundYmg upon his armed head it fell ; 
 
 The brazen helmet rang with ilunning knelj. 
 
 As feme huge rock by forceful engines thrown, 
 
 "WTien hoftile arms inveft a frontier town, 
 
 Threat'ning deflruction, rolls along the Ikies; 
 
 And war itfelf ftands wond'ring as it flies : 
 
 If on foine turret's top the temp eft falls, 
 
 The tottering ftructure tumbles from the walls 
 
 With hideous cralh ; thus, {looping to the ground, 
 
 Atrides funk ; his filver arms refound. 
 
 But Pallas, mixing in the dire debate, 
 
 A life to refcue yet not due to fate, 
 
 Had o'er his head her cloudy buckler held ; 
 
 And half die fury of the blow repel'd. 
 
 The fori.of Creon ruihM to feize his prize, 
 
 The hero's fpoils ; and thus exulting cries : 
 
 Warriors of Thebes ! your labours foon lhall ceafe, 
 
 And final vicloiy reftore your peace ; 
 
 For great Atrides, by my valor (lain, 
 
 A lifelefs corpie, lies flretch'd upon the plain. 
 
 Only be men ! and make the Argive bands 
 
 Dread in fucceeding times your mighty hands ; 
 
 That
 
 BOOK II. 39 
 
 That foes no more, when mad ambition calls, 
 With dire alarms may lhake your peaceful walls. 
 Exulting thus, the hero rufh'd along ; 
 And kindled, with his (hours, the vulgar throng. 
 Refolv'd and firm the Spartan warriors {land 
 Around their king, a formidable band. 
 Their fpears, protended thick, the foe reftrain'd ; 
 Their bucklers join'd, the weighty war fuflain'd; 
 But as a mountain wolf, from famine bold, 
 On prey intent, furveys the midnight fold ; 
 Where, in the ihelter of fome arching rock. 
 At ev'n the careful fhepherd pens his flock; 
 On fpoil and ravage bent, he ilalks around, 
 And meditates to fpring the lofty mound; 
 Impatient thus the Theban chief furvey'il 
 The clofe-compacted ranks on ev'ry fide ; 
 To find where leaft the ferried orb could bear 
 The ftrong impreffion of a pointed war. 
 Him Menelaus faw, with anguifh flung ; 
 And, from amidft .his armed .warriors, fpruiig
 
 40 THE E P I G N I A D. 
 
 With wrath inflam'd ; as darting from a brake, 
 Againfl feme trav'ler, darts a crefled fnake. 
 His rage in vain the Theban ranks withfland ; 
 Tile braveft warriors fink beneath his hand. 
 Clytartder, Iphitus, Palemon, fam'd 
 For chariots rul'd and fiery courfers tam'd ; 
 And Perciphaus, like the God of light, 
 Whofe pointed arrows thin'd the lines of fight : 
 Thefe the firfl tranfports of his fury feel, 
 Againfl Leophron now he lifts his fleel, 
 And fpeeds to vengeance ; but, in full career, 
 He flood arrefled by a vulgar fpear. 
 Fix'd in his thigh the barbed weapon hung, 
 Relax'd the mufcles, and the nerves unflrung. 
 The Spattan warriors to his fuccour flew ; 
 Againfl the darts their ample Ihields they threw, 
 Which florm'd around ; and, from the rage of war, 
 Convey'd the wounded hero to his car. 
 
 WITH fierce impatience Creon's fon beheld 
 The Spartan warriors dill difpute the field. 
 
 Before
 
 BOOK II. 41 
 
 Before their leader fall'n the heroes flood ; 
 Their fpears erefted, like the facred wood 
 Which round fome altar rifes bn the plain 
 The myftic rites to hide from eyes profane. 
 Thither his native bands the hero turn'd ; 
 Drawn to a wedge, again the combat burn'd. 
 Thro' all the air a ftorm of jav'lins fung ; 
 With founding blows each hollow buckler rung. 
 Firir. Enopaeus felt a deadly wound, 
 Who in Amycle tilTd the fruitful ground ; 
 To great Andremon's fpear he yields his breath, 
 And flarts and quivers in the grafp of death. 
 Next Hegefippus prefs'd th'infanguin'd plain.; 
 Leophron's jav'lin mix'd him with the (lain. 
 On Malea's cliffs he fed his fleecy ftore, 
 Along the windings of the craggy Ihoie. 
 He vow'd to Phoebus, for a fafe return, 
 An hundred victims on his health to bum. 
 In vain ! the God, in juflice, had decreed^ 
 His gifts contemn'd, the offerer to bleed : 
 For violence augmented Mill his ftore ; 
 And, unreliev'd, the ftranger left his door., 
 
 F Prone
 
 42 THE E P I G N I A D. 
 
 Prone on the bloody ground the warrior fell ; 
 His foul indignant fought the ftiades of hell. 
 
 NEXT Areas, Cleon, valiant Chromius, dy'd ; 
 With Dares to the Spartan chiefs ally'd. 
 And Phcemius, whom the gods in early youth 
 Had fonn'd for virtue and the love of truth ; 
 His gen'rous foul to noble deeds they turn'd, 
 And love to mankind in his bofom burn'd : 
 Cold thro' his tliroat the hifling weapon glides, 
 And on his neck the waving locks divides. 
 His fate the Graces mourn'd. The gods above, 
 Who fit around the ftarry throne of JOVE, 
 On high Olympus bending from the fides, 
 His fate beheld with forrow-ftreaming eyes. 
 Pallas alone, unalter'd and ferene r 
 With fecret triumph faw the mournful fcene ; 
 Not hard of heart ; for none of all the pow'rs, 
 In earth or ocean, or th' Olympian tow'rs, 
 Holds equal fympathy with human grief, 
 Or with a freer hand bellows relief; 
 
 BUL
 
 B O O K 1L 43 
 
 But confcious that by fate's eternal will, 
 'To virtue, all is good and nothing ill ; 
 Which mocks diflrefs, and in its awful hour 
 O'er death kfelf exerts immortal pow'r. 
 
 Now Thebes prevailing, Sparta's hofl retreats ; 
 As falls fome rampart where the ocean beats : 
 Unable to refill its flormy way, 
 Mounds heap'd on mounds, and bars of rock give 
 
 way ; 
 
 With inundation wide the deluge reigns, 
 Drowns the deep,valleys, and o'erfpreads the plains. 
 Thus o'er the field, by great Leophron led, 
 Their foes repulsM, the Theban fquadrons fpread. 
 The hero, ftooping where Atrides lay, 
 Rent from his head the golden cafque away ; 
 His mail unlock'd ; and loos'd the golden chains, 
 The zone which by Ms fide the fword.fuflains. 
 The monarch now amidfl the vulgar dead, 
 For wheels to crufb. and armed hoofs to tread, 
 Defencelefs lay. But flern Leophron's hate 
 Retriev'd him, thus expos'd, from certain fate. 
 
 In
 
 44 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 In femblance dead, he purpos'd to convey 
 The body naked to fome public way ; 
 Where dogs obfcene, and all die rav'nous race, 
 With wounds unfightly, might his limbs difgrace. 
 Straight he commands ; and to aneighb'ring grove, 
 His warriors, charg'd, the Spartan chief remove. 
 On their broad lliieldsthey bore him from the plain, 
 To fenfe a corpfe, and number'd with the flam. 
 His fixed eyes in hov'ring {hades were drown'd ; 
 His mighty limbs in death-like fetters bound. 
 The fhouts tumultuous and the din of war, 
 His ear receiv'd like murmurs heard afar ; 
 Or as fome peafant hears, fecurely laid 
 Beneath a vaulted cliff or woodland fhade, 
 When o'er his head unnumber'd infecls fmg 
 In airy rounds, the children of the fpring. 
 
 ADRASTUS' valiant Ton, with grief, beheld 
 The Spartans to inglorious flight compel'd ; 
 Their valiant chief reiign'd to hoftile hands. 
 He thus aloud addrefs'dthe featuring bands : 
 
 What
 
 BOOK II. 45 
 
 What flume, ye warriors ! if ye thus expofe 
 
 Your leader to the injuries of foes ! 
 
 Tho 1 all ftiould quit him, honor bids you bring 
 
 His reliques back, or periih with your king. 
 
 Leophron fure injurioufly ordains, 
 
 With infults, to deface his dear remains ; 
 
 Spurn'd by the feet of men, expos'd and bare, 
 
 For dogs obfcene and rav'nous birds to lhare. 
 
 Exclaiming thus, thro' all the field he flew; 
 
 And call'd the hoft the conflicl: to renew. 
 
 They flop, they charge; again the combat burns; 
 
 They bleed, they conquer, and retreat by turns. 
 
 Hegialus excites the dire debate ; 
 
 And, by example, leads the work of fate : 
 
 For now he fees Atrides borne afar, 
 
 By hoflile hands, beyond the lines of war. 
 
 With indignation new his bofom glows ; 
 
 He nifties fearlefs 'midft a hoft of foes ; 
 
 And now had merited a deathlefs name, 
 
 And with a deed immortal crown'd his fame, 
 
 Atrides fav'd ; but fate's fupreme command 
 
 That honQr deflin'd for a mightier hand, 
 
 LEOPHRON
 
 46 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 LEOPHRON vex'd, that twice conflrain'd to yield, 
 The Spartan warriors re-afliim'd the field, 
 His pow'rs addrefs'd : For ever loft our fame, 
 Dilhonor foul will blot the Theban name ; 
 If daflard foes, twice routed and purfu'd, 
 Shall brave the vidors, flill with rage renew'd. 
 Your glory gain'd with vigor now maintain ; 
 Nor let us conquer thus and bleed in vain. 
 He faid, and 'gainft the Argive hero turn'd > 
 With martial wrath his ardent bofom burn'd ; 
 Who fearlefs and undaunted, dar'd to wait ; 
 Nor by ignoble flight declined his fate. 
 For, at the Theban chief, his launce he threw, 
 Which, aim'd amils, with erring fury flew : 
 Beyond the hoflile ranks the weapon drove ; 
 The warriors {looping as it rufh'd above. 
 Not fo the Theban fpear ; with happier aim, 
 Full to the center of die Ihield, it came ; 
 And, ruing fwiftly from the polifh'd round, 
 His throat transfix'd ; and bent him to the ground. 
 To fpoil the (lain the ardent vi&or flew : 
 The Spiitan bands the bloody fhock renew; 
 
 Fierce
 
 B O O K H. 47 
 
 Fierce to the charge with tenfold rage return, 
 And all at once with thirft of vengeance burn. 
 O'er all the field the raging tumult grows ; 
 And ev'ry helmet rings with founding blows : 
 But moil around the Argive hero dead ; 
 There toil the mightieft, there the bravefl bleed. 
 As when outrageous winds the ocean fweep, 
 And from the bottom ftir the hoary deep ; 
 O'er all the w r at'ry plain the tempefl raves, 
 Mixing in conflicT: loud the angry waves : 
 But where fome pointed cliff the furface hides, 
 Whofe top unfeen provokes the angry tides j 
 "With tenfold fury there the billows fly, 
 And mount in fmoak and thunder to the fky, 
 
 ADRASTUS, by inactive age reftrain'd, 
 Behind the army on a mount remain'd ; 
 Under an oak the ancient warrior fat, 
 And faw and lift'ned to the dire debate. 
 Now, tam'd by age, his courfers flood unbound j 
 His ufelefs arms lay fcatter'd on the ground ; 
 
 Two
 
 4* THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Two aged heralds there the chief obey'd ; 
 
 The fquire attending by his matter ftay'd. 
 
 And thus the king : What founds invade mine ear I 
 
 My friends ! what fad difafler mufl we hear? 
 
 Some hero's fall ; for with die fhouts, I know 
 
 Loud lamentation mixt, and founds of woe. 
 
 So were we told, when mighty Tydeus fell, 
 
 And Polynices trod the path to hell ; 
 
 So rag'd the combat o'er the heroes {lain, 
 
 And fuch the din and tumult of the plain. 
 
 He faid ; and lifl'ning (what he greatly fear'd) 
 
 Hegialus's name at laft he heard 
 
 Mix'd with the noife; and, fick'ning at the found, 
 
 By grief mbdu'd fell proftrate on the ground. 
 
 But rage fucceeding and defpair, he rofe 
 
 Eager to rufh amidft the thickeft foes. 
 
 His fpear he grafp'd, impatient for the fight ; 
 
 And pond'rous fhield, unequal to the weight. 
 
 Him frantic thus his wife attendants held ; 
 
 And to retire with prudent care compel'd. 
 
 Impatient of his ftate, by quick returns, 
 
 With grief he melts ; with indignation burns. 
 
 And
 
 B O O K It. 49 
 
 And thus at laft : Stern ruler of the Iky! 
 
 Whofe fport is man, and human mifery ; 
 
 What deed of mine has flir'd thyboundlefs rage, 
 
 And call'd for vengeance on my helplefs age ? 
 
 Have I, by facrilege, your treafures drained ; 
 
 Your altars llighted ; or your rites profan'd f 
 
 Did I forget my holy vows to pay ? 
 
 Or bid you witnefs, and my faith betray? 
 
 Has lawlefs rapine e'er increas'd my ftore, 
 
 Or unreliev'd the flranger left my door? 
 
 If not; injuftice> can your flern decree 
 
 With \vrath purfue my guiltlefs race and me ? 
 
 Two hofts againfl the Theban walls I've led j 
 
 The firft in vain, for Polynices bled 
 
 By partial fates ; for JOVE decrees to guard 
 
 Injuftice, and her foul attempts reward. 
 
 Here valiant Tydeus, Polynices fell, 
 
 In one fad hour they trod the path to hell ; 
 
 For them my daughters mourn, their forrows flow 
 
 Still frefh, and all their days are fpent in woe. 
 
 Hegialus remain'd my hopes to raiie ; 
 
 The only comfort of my joylefs days : 
 
 G In
 
 5 o THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 In whom I faw my vigorous youth return, 
 And all our native virtues brighter burn. 
 He's now no more ; and to the nether ikies, 
 By fate exil'd, a bloodlefs fpeftre flies. 
 For what, ye gods ! has unrelenting fate 
 Cursed my misfortunes with fo long a date ? 
 That thus I live to fee our antient race 
 At once extinguiih'd, and for ever ceafe ! 
 Gods! grant me now, the only boon I crave, 
 For all my forrows paft, a peaceful grave : 
 Now let me perifti, that my fleeting ghoft 
 May reach my fon in Pluto's fhady coaft ; 
 Where join'd for ever, kindred fouls abide, 
 Which death no more ihall fever and divide. 
 He faid ; and finking proftrate on the ground, 
 His furrowed cheeks with floods of forrow drown'd : 
 And furious in the rage of grief, o'erlpread 
 With duft the reverend honors of his head. 
 
 THE
 
 THE 
 
 E P I G O N I A D 
 
 BOOK III. 
 
 Spartan bands, with thirft of vengeance 
 
 fir'd, 
 
 The fight maintain'd ; nor from their toils refpir'd. 
 Before the hero fall'n the warriors {land, 
 Firm as the chains of rock which guard the flrand ; 
 Whofe rooted flrength the angry ocean braves, 
 And bounds the fury of his burfling waves. 
 So Sparta flood ; their ferried bucklers bar 
 The Theban phalanx, and exclude the war. 
 While from the field, upon their fhoulders laid, 
 His warriors fad the Argive prince convey'd ; 
 Leophron faw, with indignation fir'd, 
 And, with his Ihouts, the lingering war inipir'd. 
 
 Again
 
 52 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Again the rigor of the ftiock returns; 
 The daughter rages, and the combat burns : 
 Till, pulh'd and yielding to fuperior fway, 
 In flow retreat the Spartan ranks gave way. 
 As, in fome channel pent, intangled wood 
 Reluctant ftirs before the angry flood ; 
 Which, on its loaded current, llowly heaves 
 The fpoils of forefts mix'd with harveft ftieaves, 
 
 PALLAS obferv'd, and from th'Olympian height, 
 Precipitated fwift her downward flight. 
 Like Cleon's valiant fon, the Goddefs came; 
 The fame her ftature, and her arms the fame. 
 Defcending from his chariot to the ground, 
 The fon of Tydeus, 'midft his bands, Ihe found ; 
 His fteeds unrul'd : for, flretch'd before the wheel, 
 L-iy the bold driver pierc'd with Theban fleel. 
 On the high car her mighty hand Ihe laid j 
 And thus addrefs'd the valiant Diomed : 
 The Spartan warriors, Prince ! renounce the fight, 
 Q'ermatch'd by numbers and fuperior might : 
 
 While
 
 BOOK HI. 53 
 
 While fate adverfe their valiant chief reftrains, 
 Who dead or wounded with the foe remains ; 
 Hegialus lies lifelefs on the earth, 
 Brother to her from whom you claim your birth t 
 The great Atrides, as he> prefs'd to fave, 
 Leophron's jav'lin mark'd him for the grave. 
 To vengeance hafte ; and, ere it is too late, 
 With fpeedy fuccor flop impending fate : 
 For ft era Leophron, like the rage of flame, 
 With ruin threatens all the Spartan name. 
 
 THE Goddsfs thus ; Tydides thus replies : 
 How partial are the counfels of the ikies! 
 Oft for the bad the gods with partial care 
 Honor and peace and happinefs prepare ; 
 While others groan beneath their partial hate, 
 Exhaufling all the injuries of fate. 
 Adraftus thus, with juftice, may complain 
 His daughters widow'd, fons in battle flain. 
 In the devoted line, myfelf I Hand ; 
 And here muft periih by fome hoftile hand : 
 
 Yet
 
 54 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Yet not, for this, I faun die works of war, 
 Nor fculk inglorious when I ought to dare. 
 And now I'll meet yon terror of the plain ; 
 To crown his conquefts, or avenge die flam. 
 But with fome valiant youth, to rule my car 
 And puih the horles diro' the lanes of war, 
 Were prefent ; for, extended in his gore, 
 The brave Speufippus knows his charge no more. 
 
 THUS as the hero fpoke, CafTandra heard, 
 And prefent, to afliime the reins, appear'd. 
 By love mfpirM, fhe fought the fields of war ; 
 Her hero's fafety was her only care. 
 A polifli'd cafque her lovely temples hound, 
 With flow' rs of gold and various plumage crown' d ; 
 Confus'dly gay, the peacocks changeful train, 
 With gaudy colors mix'd of ev'ry grain; 
 The virgin white, die yellow's golden hue, 
 The regal purple, and the fhining blue, 
 With female ikill compos'd. The ftiield flie bore 
 With fiow'rs of gold was mark'd and fpangled ore : 
 
 Light
 
 BOOK III. 55 
 
 Light and of flend'reft make, flic held a launce j 
 Like fome mock warrior armed for the dance, 
 When fpring's return and mufic's chearful {train 
 The youth invites to frolic on the plain. 
 
 ILLUSTRIOUS chief, the armed virgin faid, 
 To rule your fteeds, on me the talk be laid ; 
 Skill'd to direct their courfe with (teddy rein, 
 To wake their fiery mettle, or reftrain ; 
 To (top, to turn, the various arts I know ; 
 To puih diem on direct, or Ihun the foe. 
 With ready hand your voice I ihall obey ; 
 And urge their fury where you point the way. 
 The virgin thus ; and thus Tydides faid : 
 Your zeal I honor, but reject your aid. 
 Fierce are my fteeds ; their fury to reftrain 
 The ftrongeft hand requires and ftifieft rein : 
 For oft, their mettle rous'd, they rufli along ; 
 Nor feel the biting curb, or founding thong. 
 Oft have I feen you brave the toils of fight, 
 With daundefs courage but unequal might. 
 
 Small
 
 56 THE "H P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Small is your force ; and, from your arm undoing, 
 The harmlefs launce is impotently flung. 
 Yet not for this you ihun the martial ftrife, 
 Patient of wounds and prodigal of life. 
 Where'er I combat ; faithful to my fide, 
 No danger awes you, and no toils divide. 
 Yet grudge not that your fervice I decline ; 
 Homocleon's better hand lhall guide the rein : 
 His manly voice my horfes will obey, 
 And move fubmiffive to his firmer fway. 
 
 TH' Etolian warrior thus ; and, with a bound, 
 Rofe to his lofty chariot from the ground. 
 The Goddefs to the driver's feat proceeds ; 
 AfTumes the reins, and winds the willing fteeds. 
 On their fmooth fides the founding lafh fhe plies j 
 And thro' the fight the finoaking chariot flies. 
 Th' Athenians foon they pafs'd; and Phocians 
 
 flrong, 
 
 Who from fair Crifla led their martial throng* 
 Th' Arcadians next from Alpheus'filver flood, 
 And hardy Eleans grim with dull and blood, 
 
 With
 
 B O K m. 57 
 
 With fpeed they pais'd. As when fome pilot ipes 
 The rocky cliffs in long fucceflion rife, 
 When near the land his galley fcours the fliores, 
 By pro'p'rous winds impel'd and i'peeding oars : 
 So, crofs the field of war> the hero new. 
 And now the Spartan hoft appears in view: 
 By wounds fubdu'd, their braveft warriors lay; 
 Others, by (hameful flight, their fear obey ; 
 The reft, in flow retreat, forfake the field, 
 O'ermatch'd by numbers and conftrain'd to yield. 
 Th' Etolian hero faw, and rais'd his voice, 
 Loud as the filver trumpet's martial noife ; 
 And ruih'd to fight : Thro' all the field it flew; 
 The hoft at once the happy fignal knew ; 
 And joy'd, as they who, from the found'ring Ihip 
 Efcap'd, had ftruggled long amidft the deep : 
 Faint from defpair, when hope and vigor fail, 
 If, haft'ning to their aid, appears a fail ; 
 With force renew'd their weary limbs they ftrain, 
 And climb the fiipp'ry ridges of the main. 
 So joy'd the Spartans to repulfe the foe ; 
 With ho^e reftor'd, their gen'rous bofoms glow: 
 H While
 
 5 3 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 While Thebes, fufpended 'midfl her conqueft, 
 
 (lands ; 
 And feels a fudden check thro' all her bands. 
 
 LEOPHRON only, far before the reft, 
 Tydides waited with a dauntlefs breafl. 
 Firm and unaw'd the hardy warrior flood ; 
 Like fome fierce boar amidfl his native wood, 
 When armed fwains his gloomy haunts invade, 
 And trace his footfleps thro* the lonely lhade ; 
 Refolv'd he hears approach the hoflile found, 
 Grinds his white teeth, and threat'ning glares around j 
 So flood Leophron trufling in his might, 
 And fhook his armor, eager for the fight. 
 Tydides faw ; and, fpringing from his car, 
 Thus brav'd the hero, as he rulh'd to war : 
 O fon unhappy, of a fire accurfl ! 
 The plague of all, and fated to the worfl ! 
 The injuries of Greece demand thy breath; 
 See, in my hand, the inflrument of death. 
 Hegialus's ghoft fhall lefs deplore 
 His fate untimely on the Stygian Ihore, 
 
 When,
 
 BOOK III. 59 
 
 When, from the light exil'd, your iliade lhall come 
 To mingle with the dark infernal gloom. 
 Tydides thus ; and Creon's fon replies : 
 Your fear in vain, by boafting, you difguife ; 
 Such vulgar art a novice oft confounds, 
 To fcenes of battle new and martial founds ; 
 Tho' loft on me, who dwell amidft alarms, 
 And never met a greater yet in arms. 
 
 TH u s as the warrior fpoke, his launce with care 
 He aim'd, and fent it luffing thro' the air. 
 On Dioined's broad ihield the weapon fell ; 
 Loud rung the echoing brafs with ilunning knell : 
 But the ftrong orb, by Vulcan's labor bound, 
 Repel'd, and fent it blunted to the ground. 
 Tydides next his pond'rous jav'lin threw : 
 With force impel'd, it brighten'd as it flew ; 
 And pierc'd the border of die Theban ihield, 
 Where, wreath'd around, a ferpent guards the field ; 
 Thro' the clofe mail an eafy pafTage found; 
 And mark'd his thigh, in paiTing, with a wound. 
 
 Now
 
 6o THE E P I G N I A D. 
 
 Now in clofe fight the angry chiefs engage ; 
 Like two fell griffins rous'd to equal rage ; 
 Pois'd on their rolling trains they fiercely rife, 
 With bldod-befpotted crefts and burning eyes ; 
 With poifbn fraught they aim their deadly flings, 
 Clafp their iharp fang?, and mix their rattling wings. 
 In combat thus, the ardent warriors clos'd, 
 With fliield to fhield, and foot to foot oppos'd. 
 Firfl at his foe Leophron aim'd a flroke ; 
 But, on his polifh'd cafque, the faulcion broke : 
 From the fmooth fleel the ihiverM weapon fprung; 
 Aloft in air its luffing fplinters fung. 
 Not fo, Tydides, did thy weapon fail ; 
 With force impel'd it pierc'd the illver mail, 
 Whofe fliding plates the warrior's neck furround : 
 A tide of gore came rulhing from the wound. 
 Stagg'ring to earth he funk with head declined.; 
 And life in long convulfive throbs refign'd. 
 Nor flop'd Tydicles to defpoil the flain ; 
 The warrior Goddefs led him, crofs the plain, 
 Towards the grove where great Atrides lay ; 
 Th ? immortal ipear fhe dretch'd, and mark'd the way k 
 
 THITHER
 
 BOOK HI. 61 
 
 THITHER amidfl furraunding foes they hade ; 
 Who fliun'd them, flill retreating, as they pafs'd : 
 And ent'ring found the Spartan hero laid 
 On the green fward, beneath the bow'ring lhadf. 
 The guard fecure, lay flretch'd upon the ground ; 
 Their ihields refign'd, their launces pitch'd around : 
 One only near a winding riv'let flood, 
 Wliich turn'd its wand'ring current thro* the wood ; 
 His helmet fill'd with both his hands he rear'd, 
 In aft to drink ; when in the grove appeared 
 Tk' Etolian prince. His armour's fiery blaze . 
 The dark recefs illumin'd with its rays. 
 Amaz'd the Theban flood ; and, from his hand, 
 The helmet flip'd, and roll'd upon the fand. 
 Not more afraid the wond'ring fwain defcries, 
 'Midfl night's thick gloom, a flaming meteor rife ; 
 Sent by the furies, as he deems, to fow 
 Death and difeafes on the earth below. 
 Tydides comes : with fault'ring voice he.cry'd, 
 And ftraight to flight his willing limbs apply 'd 
 With fudden fear furpris'd the -guards retire ; - 
 As fhepherd fwains avoid 'a lion's ire ? . 
 
 Who
 
 62 THE E P I G O NI A D. 
 
 Who roams the heights and plains, from famine 
 
 bold, 
 The flails to ravage or aflault the fold. 
 
 Now, lifelefs as he lay, the martial maid 
 Atrides, with a pitying eye, furvey'd ; 
 And with her fpear revers'd, the hero fhook : 
 The touch divine his iron (lumber broke ; 
 As when his drowfy mate the (hepherd fwain 
 Stirs with his crook, and calls him to the plain ; 
 When in die eafl he fees the morning rife, 
 And red'ning o'er his head the color'd ikies. 
 As from the ground his head the hero rais'd, 
 In full divinity the Goddefs blaz'd ; 
 Her left, reveal'd, the dreadful .Egis rears, 
 Whofe ample field the fnaky Gorgon bears ; 
 Th' immortal launce flood naming in the right, 
 Which fcatters and confounds die ranks of fight. 
 Speechlefs the chiefs remain'4 ; amazement flrong, 
 In mute fufpence and filence, held them long. 
 And thus the Goddefs : Atreus* fon ! arife, 
 Confefs die partial favour of the ikies. 
 
 For
 
 BOOK HI. 63 
 
 For thee I leave the thund'rer's lofty feat, 
 To wake thee flumb'ring on the verge of fate ; 
 To you let Diomed his arms refign j 
 Unequal were your force to govern mine : 
 His ftronger arm fliall bear this pond'rous Ihield ; 
 His better hand the weighty jav'lin wield. 
 Arife ! be fudden, for your foes draw near ; 
 Aflur'd to conquer when the gods appear. 
 
 THE Goddefs thus ; and, mixing with the wind, 
 Left in a heap her Ihining arms behind 
 Upon the field ; with loud harmonious peal, 
 Th> immortal buckler rung and golden mail. 
 And thus Atrides, rifmg from the ground : 
 In this, approved is hoar tradition found ; 
 That oft, defcending from th' ethereal tow'rs, 
 To mix with mortals, come the heav'nly pow'rs: 
 But ne'er till now I faw a god appear, 
 Or, more than human voice, did ever hear. 
 Do you, my friend, aflfume thefe arms divine ; 
 The mortal and inferior ihall be mine. 
 
 Atride*
 
 64 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Atrides thus ; and Diomed reply'd : 
 
 To heav'n obedience muft not be deny'd ; 
 
 Elfe you yourfelfth' immortal arms ihould wield, 
 
 And I with thefe attend you on the field. 
 
 But of the po\v'rs above, whofe fov'reign fway 
 
 The fates of men and mortal things obey, 
 
 Pallas, with furefl vengeance, ftill purfues 
 
 Such as obedience to her will refufe. 
 
 HE faid ; and ftraight his fhming arms unbound, 
 The caique, the mail, the buckler's weighty round ; 
 With fecret joy th' immortal helmet took : 
 High on its creft the waving plumage (hook. 
 This whofoever wears, his iharp'ned eyes 
 All dangers mock of ambuih and furprize j 
 Their ray unquench'd, the midnight (hade divides ; 
 No cunning covers, and no darknefs hides. 
 The breafl-plate next he takes, whofe matchlefs art 
 Firm courage fixes in the bounding heart ; 
 The rage of war unmov'd the wearer braves, 
 And rides ferene amidlt the flormy waves : 
 
 The
 
 BOOK III, 65 
 
 The gHtt'ring mail a Harry baldric bound, 
 His arm fuftain'd the buckler's weighty round ; 
 Impenetrably ftrong> its orb can bear 
 And turn, like fofteft lead, the pointed fpear; 
 Nor yields to aught, in earth or heav'n above, 
 But the dread thunder of almighty JOVE. 
 TV immortal fpear the hero lafl did wield, 
 Which fixes conqueft and decides a field; 
 Nor ftrength nor numbers can its rage withstand, 
 Sent by a mortal or immortal hand. 
 
 THUS arm'd to meet the foe Tydides mov'd, 
 And glory'd confcious of his might improv'd ; 
 Like the proud (teed rejoicing in his force, 
 When the ihrill trumpet wakes him to the courfe : 
 Fierce and impatient of reftraint, he {trains 
 With fliff'ned neck againft the galling reins. 
 Taller he feem'd ; as when the morning fpread, 
 With golden luftre, crowns fome mountain's head 
 In early fpring; when, from the meads below, 
 A wreath of vapors binds his rocky brow ; 
 
 I In
 
 66 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 In cloudy volumes fettling as they rife, 
 They lift the lofty profpeft to the ikies : 
 So in immortal arms the chief appear'd , 
 His ftature broad difplay'd and higher rear'd. 
 
 Now from the field approaching to the grove, 
 Embattel'd thick, the Theban warriors move; 
 Slowly they move, as fwains with doubtful fteps 
 Approach the thicket where a lion fleeps. 
 Tydides faw ; and, rufliing from die (hade, 
 The Spartan call'd and to the combat led. 
 Unaw'd the hero met the hoftile band ; 
 Nor could united force his rage withfland. 
 They wheel'd aloof; as when a dragon fprings. 
 From his dark den, and rears his pointed wings 
 Againft approaching fwains, when fummer bums, 
 And the frelh lakes to parched defart turns ; 
 They fly difpers'd, nor tempt his fatal ire, 
 His wrath-fwoln neck and eyes of living fire : 
 So fled the Thebans, nor efcap'd by flight. 
 Arnidft their fquadrons, like a faulcon light, 
 
 The
 
 BOOK III. 67 
 
 The hero fprung ; wild, ftooping from the fides, 
 The feather'd race difperfes as he flies. 
 Still from his hand th' immortal weapon flew ; 
 And ev'ry flight an armed warrior flew. 
 Andremon firft, beneath his mighty hand, 
 Of life bereft, lay ftretch'd upon the fand. 
 Pherecydes gigantic prefs'd die plain ; 
 And valiant Tereus funk amidfl the flain. 
 Warriors to thefe of vulgar name fucceed ; 
 And all his path is mark'd with heaps of dead. 
 As when fome woodman, by incefTant ftrokes, 
 Befbews a mountain with its falling oaks ; 
 Fells the thick planes, the hawthorn's flow'ry fhade, 
 The poplar fair by paffing currents fed, 
 The laurel with unfading verdure crown'd ; 
 Heaps roll'd on heaps, the forefl finks around : 
 So fpreads the flaughter as the chief proceeds ; 
 At ev'ry flroke an armed warrior bleeds. 
 Atrides combats by the hero's fide, 
 To fhare his glory and the toil divide : 
 Unmov'd amidfl the hoftile ranks they go ; 
 Before them far retreats the routed foe.. 
 
 And
 
 68 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 AND now the Spartan hoft appeared in fight, 
 By toil fubdu'd and lingering in the fight. 
 Their valiant leader faw, and rais'd his voice, 
 Loud as the filver trumpet's martial noife, 
 With hopes of victory his bands to chear ; 
 It fwiftly flew : the diflant Spartans hear 
 With glad furprize. Polyctes thus addreft, 
 And rous'd the languid valor of the reft. 
 Myceneans ! Spartans ! taught to feek renown 
 From dangers greatly brav'd, and battles won j 
 With forrow and regret I fee you yield, 
 And Thebes victorious drive you from the field. 
 Atrides calls us ; to his aid repair : 
 No foe fubdues you but your own defpair. 
 He yet rurvives, befet with hoftile bands, 
 And, from your valor, prefent aid demands. 
 He faid. The rigor of the (hock returns ; 
 The {laughter rages, and the combat burns. 
 As when a reaping train their fickles wield, 
 Where yellow harveft loads fome fruitful field ; 
 The matter's heart, with fecret joy, overflows ; 
 Jfe prompts the work, and counts the leiigth'ning 
 
 rows: 
 
 Sq
 
 BOOK HI. 69 
 
 So 'midft the war, the Pow'r of battles flood, 
 Pkas'd with the carnage and the ftreams of blood, 
 
 EL PEN OR firft lay lifelefs on the plain, 
 By Ithobolus with a jav'lin flain, 
 A grief to Thebes. Euryalus the bold, 
 Rich in his flocks and rich in fums of gold, 
 Beneath the arm of Ariflaeus fell ; 
 Loud rung his filver arms with echoing knell ; 
 And like fome flow'r, whofe painted foliage fair 
 With fragrant breath perfumes the vernal air, 
 If die rude fcythe its tender root invades, 
 It falls difhonor'd and its luftre fades. 
 Thus fell Euryalus ; whofe matchlefs grace, 
 In youth's full bloom, furpafs'd the human race ; 
 For Cynthius only could with him compare, 
 In comely features, (liape, and flowing hair. 
 
 Now o'er the fields, the rage of war is fpread ; 
 And, heaps on heaps, aicend the hills of dead. 
 Ranks meeting ranks oppofe with equal rage : 
 As when the north and flormy fouth engage, 
 
 Benearh
 
 70 THE E P I G O N I A D, 
 
 Beneath their flrife the troubled ocean roars ; 
 And ruftiing waves o'envhelm the rocky fhores ; 
 So rag'd die fight ; when, burfling from a crowd 
 Of thick oppofmg foes, the princes flood 
 Between the hods. And thus th'Etolian lord : 
 Spartans ! behold your valiant chief reflor'd ; 
 Ye owe his fafety to Minerva's care ; 
 Let hecatombs your gratitude declare, 
 Soon as from Thebes you reach your native ground, 
 Where flocks and herds for facrifice abound ; 
 Now fight and conquer ; let this fignal day 
 Your tedious toils, with viclory, repay ; 
 And, for Hegialus, let thoufands dead 
 With ample vengeance gratify his {hade. 
 As thus the hero fpoke, the warriors heard, 
 And hope rekindled thro' the hoft appear'd ; 
 With joyful fhouts they rent the trembling air, 
 And blefs'd the gods, and own'd Minerva's care. 
 
 Now, tow'ring in the midfl, Atrides flood, 
 And call'd his warriors to die fight aloud : 
 
 As
 
 B o o K m: 7 i 
 
 As mariners with joy the fun defcry, 
 Afcending, in his courfe, the eaftern iky; 
 Who all night long, by angry tempefts toft, 
 Shun'd with inceffant toil forae faithlefs coaft ; 
 So to his wilhing friends Atrides came ; 
 Their danger fuch before, their joy the fame. 
 Again the rigor of the Ihock returns ; 
 The (laughter rages,- and the combat burns ; 
 With thirft of vengeance ev'ry bofom glows. 
 Tydides leads, and rufhes on his foes ; 
 Around his head a ray of light'ning (hone 
 From die fmooth helmet and the glitt'ring cone ; 
 Like that by night which ftreams with fiery glare 
 When fome red meteor glides along the air, 
 Sent by the angry gods, with tainted breath, 
 To fow the feeds of peftilence and death : 
 From look to look infeftious tenor fpreads ; 
 And ev'ry wretch th' impending vengeance dreads, 
 
 BEFORE the chief the Theban bands retire, 
 As fliepherd fwains avoid the lion's ire. 
 
 Clytander
 
 72 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Clytander only, by the fates impel'd, 
 Oppos'd him fmgle and difdain'd to yield ; 
 Lycaon's fon ; deceiv'd by glory's charms, 
 Superior might he brav'd and matchlels arms. 
 Nor was his brother prefent by his fide, 
 To {hare the danger and the toil divide ; 
 Himfelf a youth, and yet by time unfteel'd, 
 Single, he metTydides in the field. 
 Againft th' immortal ihield his launce he flung, 
 Wliofc hollow orb, with deaf 'ning clangor, rung : 
 The tow'rs of Thebes re-echo'd to the found ; 
 The fpear repuls'd fell blunted on the ground. 
 Tydides next th' immortal jav'lin threw; 
 With force impel'd, it bright'ned as it flew; 
 And piercM the Theban helmet near the cone; 
 Behind his ear the ftarting weapon {hone. 
 Supine the warrior fell, his fpirit fled, 
 And mix'"d with heroes in th'Elyfian lliade. 
 To fpoil the {lain the ardent viclor flew : 
 Firfl from the wound die fixed launce he drew, 
 The helmet loos'd, die coftly mail unbound, 
 And lliining Jhield \vith fculpturM figures crownM. 
 
 Thefe
 
 B O O K HI. 73 
 
 Thefe fpoils the hero, in his grateful mind, 
 A prefent for the gen'rous youth defign'd ; 
 Who ftill in perilous battle fought his fide, 
 And proffer'd late his warlike deeds to guide. 
 Fatal the gift, the caufc of future woe ! 
 But good and ill th' immortals only know. 
 The armor to a vulgar hand coniign'd, 
 Again the hero, fwifter than die wind, 
 To combat ruih'd. 
 
 BUT, from his throne above 
 Declin'd, the all-furv eying eye of JOVE 
 His progrefs mark'd. The herald pow'r, who brings 
 His fov'reign mandates on immortal wings, 
 He thus addrefs'd : To yonder fphere defcend ; 
 Bid Phoebus ftraight his ev'ning charge attend : 
 For, with reverted eye, he views the war, 
 And checks the progrefs of his downward car. 
 Let him not linger in th' ethereal way, 
 But lafli his ftceds, and ftraight conclude the day ; 
 For, if the gods defcend not to her aid, 
 Or ev'ning interpofe with friendly fliade, 
 
 K Thebes
 
 74 THE EPIGONI.AD. 
 
 Thebes now muft periih; and die doom of fate, . 
 Anticipated, have an earlier date 
 Than fate ordains : for, like devouring flame, 
 Tydides threatens all the Theban name ; 
 Immortal arms his native force improve, 
 Conferr'd by Pallas partial in her love. , 
 Thefe to retrieve muft be your next efTay ; 
 Win them by art, and hither ftraight convey t 
 For man with man an equal war {hall wage ; 
 Nor with immortal weapons arm his rage. 
 
 HE faid. And Maia's fon, with fpeed, addreft 
 His flight to Phoebus hov'ring in the weft. 
 Upon a cloud his winged feet he flay'd ; 
 And thus the mandates of his fire convey'd. 
 Ruler of light ! let now thy car defcend, 
 So JOVE commands, and night her lhade extend, 
 Elfe Thebes muft perifh; and the doom of fate, 
 Anticipated, have an earlier date 
 Than fate decrees : for, like devouring flame, 
 Tydides threatens all the Theban name ; 
 
 Immortal
 
 BOOK III. 75 
 
 Immortal arms his native force improve, 
 Conferr'd by Pallas partial in her love. 
 
 THE fon of Maia thus. The God obey'd; 
 The founding lalh upon his fteeds he lay'd. 
 Swift to the goal with winged feet they flew ; 
 And night afcended as the day withdrew. 
 
 To Thebes the herald next purfu'd his way; 
 Shot like a meteor with the fetting ray. 
 Behind Tydides in the fight he flay'd ; 
 And on his head the potent fceptre lay'd : 
 Whofe magic pow'r on waking fenfe prevails ; 
 Or, in profoundefl ileep, the eye unfeals ; 
 The ftrUggling ghofl unbinds from mortal clay, 
 And drives it down the dark Tartarean way. 
 Subdu'd the hero flood by pow'rful charms, 
 Till Hermes flript him of th' immortal arms ; 
 And, mounting to the flarry roofs above, 
 Difpos'd them in the armory of JOVE. , 
 And, recollected, thus Tydides fpoke : 
 Whate'er they give, th' immortals may revoke 
 
 I
 
 76 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 I own their favor ; that, of mortal line 
 
 The firft, I wore a panoply divine. 
 
 But if the day were lengthened to my will, 
 
 With light to point my jav'lin where to kill, 
 
 Thebes now Ihould perifli ; but the morning ray 
 
 Shall finilh what the ev'ning iliades delay. 
 
 AND now the night began her filent reign ; 
 Afcending, from the deep, th' ethereal plain, 
 O'er both die hofls (he ftretchM her ample fhade, 
 Their conflict to fufpend : the hofls obey'd. 
 The field no more a noify fcene appears, 
 With fleeds and chariots throng'd and glitt'ring 
 
 fpears; 
 
 But ftill, and filent : like the hoary deep, 
 When,' in their caves, the angry tempefls fleep, 
 Peaceful and fmooth it fpreads from fliore to (hore, 
 Where florins had rag'd and billows fwell'd before : 
 Such feem'd the field ; the martial clangors ceafe; 
 And war tumultuous lulls itfelf to peace. 
 
 THE
 
 THE 
 
 E P I G O N I A D, 
 
 BOOK IV. 
 
 , ND now the princes of die Theban flate 
 /"A. In council fat, aflembled in the gate, 
 WJiere rows of marble pillars bound the fpace, 
 To judgment facred in the days of peace. 
 And Creon thus, with public cares opprefs'd 
 And private griefs, the fenatprs addrefs'd. 
 
 FRINGES of Thebes, and valiant aids from far, 
 Our firm aflbciates in the works of war, 
 Herges, attend! I {hall nqt now proppfe 
 To fupplicate, for peace, our haughty foes ; 
 No peace can grow, no friendihip e'er be found, 
 When mutual hate has torn fo wide an wound.
 
 7 3 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Yet for a truce of feven days fpace I plead, 
 And fun'ral obiequies to grace the dead, 
 Nor were it juft, that they, who greatly fall 
 From rage of foes to guard their native wall, 
 Should want the honors which their merits claim, 
 Sepulchral rites deny'd and fun'ral flame. 
 
 THUS as he fpoke, parental- grief fuppreil 
 His voice, and fwell'd within his lab'ring bread. 
 Silent amidfl th' aflembled peers he Hands, 
 And wipes his falling tears with trembling hands; 
 For great Leophron, once his country's boail, 
 The glory and the bulwark of her holt, 
 Pierc'd by a foe and lifelefs on the plain, 
 Lay drench'd in gore and mix'd with vulgar ilain : 
 Silent he flood ; the Theban lords around 
 His grief partake, in ftreams of forrow drown'd ; 
 Till fage Palantes rofe, and to the reft, 
 The Monarch feconding, his words addreft. 
 
 PRINCES! renown'd for wifdom and for might, 
 ReverM in council and approv'd in fight; 
 
 What
 
 BOOK IV. 79 
 
 What Creomnoves the laws themfelves require, 
 With obfequies to grace and fun'ral fire 
 Each warrior, who in battle bravely falls 
 From rage of foes to guard his native walls. 
 If all approve, and none will fure withftand 
 What Creon counfelsand the laws command, 
 Charg'd with the truce, Apollo's prieft Dial] go 
 To offer and conclude it with the foe. 
 His filver hairs a mild refpeft may-claim, 
 And great Apollo's ever hoiior'dname, 
 
 THE reft aiTenti The venerable man, 
 Slow from his feat arifing, thus began : 
 Princes of Thebes ! and thou, whole fov'reign hand 
 Sways the dread fceptre of fupreme command ; 
 Tho' well I might this perilous charge refuie, 
 And plead my feeble age a jufl excufe ; 
 Yet nothing lliall reflrain me, for I go, 
 Pleas'd with the pious charge, to meet the -foe. ' 
 Willing I go; our bleeding warriors' claim 
 Sepulchral honors and the fun'ral- flame. 
 
 If
 
 So THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 If all approve, let Clytophon attend ; 
 With juft fuccefs our labors thus iliall end : 
 For fure no Theban boafls an equal fldll, 
 With pleafmg words, to bend the fixed will. 
 
 SOOTH'D with die friendly pr'aife, the hero laid, 
 No felf-regard fhall hold me or diiliiade ; 
 The pious charge my inmoft thoughts approve. 
 He faid ; and flow thro' yielding crowds they move j 
 While Thebes on ev'ry fide aflembled ftands, 
 And fupplicates the gods with lifted hands : 
 O grant that wrathful enemies may fpare 
 Thefe rev'rend heads ; nor wrong the filver hair ! 
 
 AND now they pafs'd the lofty gates, and came 
 Where flow Ifmenus winds his gentle ftream ; 
 Amphion's grove they pafs'd, whofe umbrage wide 
 His rural tomb defends on ev'ry fide. 
 Thefcene of fight diey reach'd, and fpacious fields 
 With mingled flaughter heap'd, and fpears and fluelds. 
 Under their feet tlie hollow bucklers found ; 
 And fplintcrM faulcions glitter on die ground. 
 
 And
 
 B O O K IV. 8* 
 
 And now the flations of the camp appear, 
 Far as a fliaft can wound the flying deer. 
 Thither, amidft the wrecks of war, they go 
 With filent fteps ; and fcape the watchful foe. 
 Now full in view before the guards they {land } 
 The priefl difplays his enfigns in his hand, 
 The laurel wreath, the gold befpangled rod 
 With flars adorn' d, the fymbols of the god. 
 
 HE thus began : Ye Argive warriors) hear ! 
 A peaceful meflage to your tents we bear ; 
 A truce is aik'd, till the revolving lun, 
 Seven times from eaft to weft his journey run, 
 Again afcends ; and, from the ocean's ftreams, 
 Crowns the green mountains with his golden beams ; 
 That mutually fecure, with pious care, 
 Both hofls funereal honors may prepare 
 For ev'ry hero, whom the rage of fight 
 Has fwept to darknefs and the mores of night. 
 
 THUS as he fpoke, die lifl'ning warriors heard 
 With approbation, and the priefl rever'd. 
 
 L The
 
 82 THE E P I G O N. I A D. 
 
 The chief of Salamis, their leader, went 
 Himfelf to guide them to the royal tent ; 
 Which llione confpicnous ; thro* the ihades of nig] I 
 Its fpacious portal pour'd a ftream of light. 
 Thither conduced by the chief, they found 
 The king of men with all his peers around. 
 On thrones with purple fpread each royal gueft 
 In order fat, and ihar'd the genial feaft. 
 Silent they enter'd. From his chair of ftate, 
 Full in the mid ft oppofed to the gate, 
 The monarch faw ; and riling thus expreft 
 The gen'rous dictates of his royal breaft. 
 
 MY guefts, approach ! no enemy is near ; 
 This roof protefts you, ftr-aight forget your fear. 
 Ev'n tho' from yon devoted walls you come, 
 For vengeance mark'd by fate's eternal doom ; 
 Here in my tent, with fafety, you lhall reft, 
 An^ with the princes, lhare the genial feaft. 
 You freely then your meilage may propofe, 
 When round the board the chearing vintage flows, 
 Which fooths impatience, and die op'ned ear, 
 With favor and attention, bends to hear. 
 
 THE
 
 BOOK IV. 83 
 
 THE hero thus. Apollo's pried replies : 
 Humane thy manners, and thy words are wife ; 
 With thee their noblefl gifts the gods have plac'd, 
 And pow'r fupremewith equal wifdom grac'd: 
 Tho' oft, by parts, for others they ordain, 
 The arts of fway, the privilege to reign ; 
 In thee their partial favor has combin'd 
 The highefl fortune with the greatefl mind. 
 
 As thus the fage reply'd, the princely band 
 By turns prefented each his friendly hand, 
 The fign of peace. For each a fplendid throne, 
 Where fringM with gold the purple covering flione, 
 The ready waiters, by command, prepar'd ; 
 There fat die envoys and the banquet ihar'd. 
 On ev'ry fide the fparkling vintage flows, 
 The momentary cure of human woes. 
 The rage of thirfl and hunger thus fupprefs'd, 
 To Neilor turning Clytophon addrefs'd. 
 
 ILLUSTRIOUS chief! an honor no\y I'll claim,. 
 Which not to publifh, fure, would merit blame. 
 
 Your
 
 8 4 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Your father's gueft I was ; by fortune led, 
 When from Trinacria's defart ihores I fled 
 With ills befet : but, in his friendly land, 
 His gen'rous heart I prov'd and lib'ral hand. 
 A grateful mind excites me to reveal 
 His fov'reign bounty, and attempt a tale 
 Of dear remembrance. But the fond defign, 
 Prudence dilTenting, warns me to decline; 
 For when to public cares your thoughts you bend, 
 A private {lory mingled mufl offend. 
 
 THE artful Theban thus. The chief replyM, 
 Whofe fov'reign mandates all the hoft obey'd : 
 My honor'd gueft ! proceed ; nor aught conceal 
 Which gratitude enjoins you to reveal : 
 For gen'rous deeds, imprudently fuppreft, 
 ^ie unapplauded in the grateful breaft : 
 And now the feafl, Ihort interval of care, 
 To vocal fymphony unbends the ear ; 
 Or fweet difcourfe, which to the foul conveys 
 S^blimer joys than mulic's tuneful lays. 
 
 The
 
 BOOK TV. 85 
 
 The monarch thus. The prudent fage fupprefs'd 
 Hh inward joy, and thus the peers addrefs'd : 
 Each chief he drove to gain, but Neftor mofb, 
 Whofe wifdom fway'd die councUs of the Jioil. 
 
 CONFED'RATE kings ! andthouwhofefov'reign 
 
 hand 
 
 Sways the dread fceptre of fupreme command, 
 Attend and hearken ! fince you feek to know 
 The fad beginnings of a life of woe. 
 In Rhodes my father once dominion claimM, 
 Qrfilochus, for deeds of valor, fam'd. 
 The Sporades his fov'reign fceptre own'd, 
 And high Carpathus with its forefls crown'd. 
 His youngeft hope I was, and fcarce had feen/ 
 The tenth returning fummer clothe the green, 
 When pirates fiiatch'd me from my native land, 
 When with my infant equals on the flrand 
 I play'd, of harm fecure, and from the deep 
 "\yith pleafure faw approach the fatal Ihip ; 
 Pleas'd with the whitenefs of Uie fails we iloo^ 
 And the red flreamers iliining on the flood ; 
 
 And
 
 86 THE EPIGONIAD. 
 
 And fearlefs faw the hoftile galley land, 
 AVTiere from the hills a current feeks the ftrand. 
 They climb'd the rocky beach, and far around, 
 Intent on fpoil and rapine, view'd die ground ; 
 If any herd were near or fleecy (lore, 
 Or lonely manlion on die winding Ihore. 
 My young companions ftraight their fear obey. 
 I bold and unfufpecling, dar'd to (lay. 
 Me flraight they feiz-'d ; and doom'd tofervile toil 
 A wretched captive in a foreign foil. 
 Struggling in vain, they bore me down the bay, 
 Where, anchor'd near the beach, their veflel lay ; 
 And placM me on the deck with bitter cries : 
 To fpeeding gales I faw the canvafs rife ; 
 The boundlefs ocean far before me fpread ; 
 And from my reach the mores at diftance fled. 
 All day I wept ; but when die fetting light 
 Retir'd, and yielded to the {hades of night, 
 Sleep ftole upon my grief with foft furprize, 
 Which care ne'er banifh'd long from infant eyes. 
 
 NINE days we fail'd ; the tenth returning ray 
 
 Show'd us Trinacria riling in our wav, 
 
 Far
 
 B O O K IV. 87 
 
 Far in the weft; where, with his ev'ning beams, 
 The fun descending gilds the ocean's ftreams. 
 Thither the failors ply, and blindly run 
 On hidden dangers which they ought to ftiun ; 
 For whom the gods diftinguifti by their hate, 
 They firft confound and then refign to fate. 
 All day we fail'd ; and with the ev'ning hour, 
 Which calls the mepherd to his rural bow'r, 
 Approach'd the more. The forefts on the land 
 We mark'd, and rivers op'ning from the flrand. 
 Then gladnefs touch'd my heart ; the firft I knew 
 Since fate had mix'd me with that lawlefs crew ; 
 With joy I faw the riimg mores appear ; 
 And hop'd to find fome kind deliv'rer near; 
 Some gen'rous lord, to whom I might relate, 
 Low bending at his knees, my wretched fate. ' 
 Vain was the hope ; the Cyclopes never know 
 Companion, nor to melt at human woe. 
 
 NEAR on the left, and where the parted tides 
 A promontory's rocky height divides, 
 
 A
 
 88 THE E P I G N I A D. 
 
 A bay they found ; and on the fatal ftrand- 
 Defcending, fix'd their veflel to the land. 
 The valleys ftraight and mountains they explore, 
 And the long windings of the defart more ; 
 And find, of fheep and goats, a mingled Hock, 
 Under the (belter of a cavern'd rock, 
 The largeil and the beft the pirate band 
 Seiz'd ; and prepaid a banquet on the ftrand. 
 With joy they feafted ; while the goblet, crown'd 
 With Mithymnean vintage, flow'd around. 
 Of harm fecure they fat ; and void of fear 
 To mirth refign'd; nor knew deftruclion near. 
 
 AMIDST them there I meditating fat ; 
 Sojne god infpir'd me or the pow'r of fate, 
 To fcape their hated hands : and foon I found 
 The wiih'd occaflon ; when along the ground. 
 Each where he fat, die ruffians lay lupine, 
 With fleep opprefs'd and fenfe-fubduing wine ; 
 Softly I rofe, and to a lofty grove, 
 Which (haded all the mountain tops above, 
 
 Afcending,
 
 BOOK IV. 89 
 
 Afcending, in a rocky cavern lay, 
 Till darknefs fled before die morning ray. 
 Then from above I faw die pirate band. 
 In parties, roaming o'er the dcfart flrand ; 
 The mountain goats they drove and fleecy flore/ 
 From all the paftures, crowded to the fliore. 
 Me too by name they call'd ; and oft, in vain, 
 Explored each grove and thicket on the plain ; 
 While from above I faw, with carelefs eye, 
 Them fearching round and liil'ning for reply. 
 Some to die fliip the bleating fpoil convey'd; 
 While, others to prepare a banquet ftay'd, 
 And call'd their mates : to mare die full repafl 
 With mirth they came, nor knew it was dieirlail, 
 
 THEN from the rocky fummit where I lay, 
 A flock appear'd defcending to the bay ; 
 Which diro' a narrow valley rulii'd along, 
 Oxen and iheep, an undifbinguilh'd throng. 
 With thefe the floping hills were cover'd o'er, 
 And the long windings of the fandy Ihore. 
 
 M Behind
 
 po THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Behind a Cyclops came ; and, by degrees, 
 Role to my view, and tower'd above the trees. 
 His giant ftature, like a lofty rock, 
 Appear'd : and in his hand a knotted oak 
 Of talleft growth; around his fhoulder flung 
 His bag enormous, by a cable hung. 
 Panting I lay ; as when a lurking deer, 
 From fome clofe thicket, fees the hunter near. 
 By dread fubdu'd, confounded and amaz'd, 
 My fixed eye-balls dark'ned as I gaz'd. 
 Soon from above my wrenched mates he knew, 
 As on the level more, in open view, 
 They fat fecure, with flow'ry garlands crown'd ; 
 The figns of fpoil and ravage fcatter'd round. 
 With indignation, for his wafted flock, 
 Inflam'd, he thus like diftant thunder fpoke. 
 Whoe'er thefe are, who from their native foil 
 To foreign climates thus, in quefl of fpoil, 
 Licentious roam ; they loon ihall feel my hand, 
 And rue that e'er they touch'd Trinacria's ftrand. 
 As mutt'ring thus, along the craggy road 
 He came, the mountain trembled as he trode. 
 
 The
 
 BOOK IV. 91 
 
 The wretches faw with horror and affright ; 
 Each limb enfeebled loft the pow'r of flight. 
 Their cries in vain the monfter mov'd to fpare; 
 His club he rear'd and fwung it thrice in air, 
 Then hurl'd it crofs the bay : it fwiftly drove 
 O'er the fmooth deep, and raz,'d the beach above. 
 Threat'ning it rufti'd along ; but, bending low, 
 Each, where he fat, efcap'd the weighty blow. 
 Beyond them far it pitch'd upon the land, 
 Tore the green fward, and heav'd a mount of fand. 
 Now ftarting from the ground they ftrove to fly, 
 Prefs'd by defpair and ftrong neceflity ; 
 The woody fummits of the cliffs to gain, 
 With fault'ring hafte they fled acrofs die plain. 
 But the impending mountains barr'd their flight. 
 High and projecting from their airy height ; 
 Back from the flipp'ry arch, in heaps, they fall j 
 And with imploring cries for mercy call, 
 In vain. The monfter with gigantic ftrides. 
 At twenty fteps, the fpacious bay divides ; 
 Around his knees the whit'ning billows roar, 
 And his rude voice like thunder makes fhe more. 
 
 THERE
 
 $2 THE E P I G ONI A D. 
 
 THERE thirty youths he flew; againft the 
 
 ftones 
 
 And ragged clifls, he daih'd their crackling bones. 
 Twenty his feet and heavy hands purfue, 
 As to the ocean in defpair they flew ; 
 Striving the fummit of the beach to gain, 
 With headlong courfe to rufti into the main : 
 For there they hop'd a milder fate to have, 
 And lefs abhorM, beneath the whelming wave. 
 Thefe too he reach'd ; and, with his weighty hand, 
 Their flight opprefs'd, and mix'd them with the fand. 
 Two yet furviv'd ; who fupplicating ftrove, 
 With humble fuit, his barb'rous foul to move. 
 With trembling knees the fandy beach they prefs'd ; 
 And, as he came, the monfter thus addrefs'd. 
 
 O thou ! with whom no mortal can compare 
 For flrength refiftlefs, pity now and fpare. 
 O let the blood, already med, atone 
 For our provoking guilt, and trefpafs done ! 
 O fpare and pity! fure, the gods above, 
 Who fit around the ftarry throne of JOVE, 
 
 Are
 
 BOOK IV. 93 
 
 Are won by pray'r ; and he whofe matchlefs might 
 The folid earth fuftains and ftarry height, 
 Oft fpares the guilty ; for his foul approves 
 Compaffion, and the works of mercy loves. 
 Let fov'reign pity touch thy mighty breaft ; 
 And him revere, the greatefl and the beft; 
 Who pardons oft, but meafures grief and pain 
 To fuch as hear the wretched plead in vain. 
 
 As thus to touch his iron heart they try'd, 
 The Cyclops fmiling, fcornful thus reply'd : 
 The praife of mercy well your words proclaim ; 
 And vengeance mark, tho' merited, with blame. 
 Well have you ipoken ; therefore, from my hand, 
 More favor hope than any of your band : 
 They, on die defart Ihore expos'd and bare, 
 The wolves mail feaft and ev'ry bird of air; 
 But ye, prefer'd above the reft, mall have 
 This body for your monument and grave. 
 
 HE faid, and feizing lifts them both on high, 
 With hands and feet extended in the fky : 
 
 Then
 
 94 THE EPIGONIAD. 
 
 Then dafh'd them thrice againft the rocky fhore ; 
 Gnaw'd their warm flefh, and drank their {beaming 
 
 gore. 
 
 Oft have I feen the havoc of the plain, 
 The rage of tempefb and the ftormy main ; 
 But fate, in fuch a form, ne'er met my eyes, 
 And, while I fpeak, afreih its horrors rife 
 To chill my veins : nor can the vary'd ftate 
 Of fprightly youth, and middle age fedate, 
 Or life's lafl flage with all its griefs oppreft, 
 Baniih the dire impreffion from my breaft. 
 For flill I fee the monfter, as he flood, 
 His hahy vifage dy'd in human bood : , 
 As the grim lion leaves the wafted plains, 
 Red from the ravage of the flocks and fwains. 
 
 WITH vengeance pleasM he view'd the ihores 
 
 around ; 
 
 And, riding near the beach, our vefTel found : 
 Her by the mail he feiz'd ; and to the land, 
 With all her anchors, dragged along the (brand. 
 
 Exploring,
 
 BOOK IV. 95 
 
 Exploring, next the folid deck he tore, 
 And found, conceal'd below, his fleecy flore. 
 With fcornful {miles he faw the theft bewray'd ; 
 And, fidelong on the beach, the galley laid; 
 And call'd his flock : to open light they drain, 
 Throng the wide rent, and crowd upon the plain : 
 Still, as they pafs'd, his weighty hands he laid 
 On their foft backs, and, ftroaking gently, faid : 
 Go now, my flock! enjoy the verdant hills, 
 The rivers cool, the fweet refrefhing rills, 
 The meads and fhady forefts, fafe from harm ; 
 Your foes lie crulh'd beneath your matter's arm. 
 The giant thus ; and next die hold explorM : 
 Four jars he found with Lefbian vintage flor'd. 
 Thefe firft he drain'd ; then to his lips apply'd 
 His flute, which like a quiver by his fide, 
 Of fize enormous, hung. Its hollow found 
 The woods repeated and the caves around. 
 Its mufic fuch, as when a flormy gale 
 Roars thro' a hollow cliff with hideous peal, 
 Refounding deep, along the level ihore : 
 He play'd, and drove his pafl'ring flock before^ 
 
 HORROR
 
 96 THE E P I G N I A D. 
 
 HORROR and grief at once my heart aftaiFd j 
 Prefages fad o'er ev'ry hope prevailed. 
 My dillant country rufti'd upon my mind ; 
 My friends, my Aveeping parents, left behind. 
 Now loft to hope, and furious from defpair, 
 AVith both my hands I rent my rooted hair ; 
 And, in an agony of ibrrow, preft 
 With ftrokes repeated oft, my heaving breaft. 
 All day I mourn'd ; but when the fetting ray 
 Retir'd, and ev'ning mades expel'd the day ; 
 Eneourag'd by the night, I fought die plain ; 
 And, wand'ring anxious 'midft the mangled flain, 
 Oft call'd, to know if any of the band 
 Did yet furvive, elcap'd the monfter's hand :] 
 But none reply'd. Along the deiart more 
 All night I wanderM, 'midft the fullen roar 
 Of burfting billows ; till the morning ray 
 Appeared to light my folitary way. 
 Twas then I reach'd a mountain's height o'erfpread 
 With thickets clofe, and dark impending fliade, 
 Hung o'er a valley, where a river leads 
 His wand'ring current thro' a grove of reeds. 
 
 THITHER
 
 BOOK IV. 97 
 
 THITHER I went ; and, op'ning to die deep, 
 A cavern found beneath the rocky fleep ; 
 The haunt of mountain goats, when wint'ry rains 
 Have chac'd them from the hills and naked plains. 
 Gladly I enter'd ; for, deceiv'd by fear, 
 I always thought the barb'rous Cyclops near; 
 His form defciy'd in ev'ry tree behind, 
 And heard his voice approaching in the wind. 
 Of honey there a fweet repaft I found, 
 In clutters hanging from the cliffs around. 
 My hunger foon appeas'd, the gentle pow'r 
 Of fleep fubdu'd me till the ev'ning hour. 
 Twas then I wak'd ; and to the deep below, 
 Thro' thickets, creep'd with careful ileps and flow j 
 And gaz'tl -around if any hut were there, 
 Or folitary wretch my grief to iliare : 
 But none appear'd. I climb'd a mountain's head, 
 Where, wide before me, lay the ocean fprcad ; 
 And there no objeft met my wiihing eyes, 
 But billows bounded by the letting fides. 
 Yet (till I gaz'd, till night's prevailing fway 
 Extinguiih'd, in the weft, the ev'ning ray. 
 
 N Honclefs
 
 98 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Hopelefs and fad, defcending from my {land, 
 I wand'red on the folhary flrand, 
 Thro' the thick gloom ; and heard the fullen roar 
 Of billows burfting on die defart Ihore. 
 
 THUS ten long years I liv'd, conceal'd by day, 
 Under a rock on wither'd leaves I lay ; 
 At dawn and twilight on the mountains flood, 
 Exploring with my eyes the pathlefs flood ; 
 Impatient till fome friendly fail mould come, 
 To waft me to my fire and native home : 
 But none appear'd. The pilots Ihun the ihores 
 Where .Etna flames, and dire Charybdis roars ; 
 And where the curs'd Cyclopean brothers reign, 
 The lonely tyrants of the defart plain. 
 Prefs'd by defpair, at laft I dard to brave, 
 Even in a fkiff, the terrors of the wave ; 
 Contemning all the perils in my way, 
 For worfe it feem'd than death itfeJf to flay. 
 
 OF oziers foft the bending hull I wove ; 
 And ply'd the flans of mountain goats above. 
 A flender fir, ten cubit lengths, I found 
 Fall'n from a mould'ring bank, and flript it round. 
 
 This
 
 B O O K IV. 99 
 
 This for die mail, with bulrufli ropes, I ty'd ; 
 A pole to fteer the rudder's ufe fupply'd : 
 Four goat-fkius join'd I fitted for the fail, 
 And fpread it with a pole to catch the gale. 
 Each chink with gum, againft the brine, I clos'd : 
 And the whole work beneath a made difpos'd, 
 Where, from the hilts defcending to the main, 
 A winding current cuts the fandy plain. 
 Nuts and dry'd figs in bafkets next I fhar'd ; 
 And liquid ftores in bags of Ikin prepar'd : 
 And waited anxious till the fouthern gale, 
 From the dire coaft, mould bear my flying fail. 
 Nine days I flay'd; and ftill the northern breeze, 
 From great Hefperia, fwept the whit'ning feas : 
 But on the tenth it changed; and, when the hour 
 Of twilight call'd the giant to his bow'r, 
 Down from my grotto to the more I came, 
 And call'd the God who rules die ocean's ftream ; 
 Oblations vowM, if, by his mighty hand 
 Conducted fafe, I found my native land. 
 And, turning where concealed my veflfel lay, 
 The halfer loos'd and pufh'd her to the bay ; 
 
 The
 
 ioo THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 The fail unfurl'd, and, fleering from the flran.d, 
 Behind me left with joy the hated land. 
 
 ALL night, by breezes fped, the prow divides 
 The deep, and o'er the billows lightly glides. 
 Bat when the dawn, prevailing o'er die night, 
 Had tingM the glowing eaft with purple light ; 
 Tlje air was hufh'd : deferted by the gale, 
 Loole to the mafl defccnds the empty fail. 
 And full againfl my courfe a current came ; 
 Which hurl'd me backwards, floating on its ftream, 
 Towards the land. I faw the mores draw near ; 
 And the long billows on the beach appear. 
 -The cruel Cyclops Ipy'd me, as he drove 
 His pafl'ring flock along the hills above ; 
 And winding thro' the groves his fecret way, 
 ConcealM behind a promontory lay ; 
 Prepar'd to fnatch me, when his arm could reach 
 My fkiff which drove ungovern'd to the beach. 
 I mark'd his purpofe ; furious from defpair, 
 With both my hands I rent my rooted hair ; 
 And on the poop with defp'rate purpoie flood, 
 Prepar'd to plunge into die whelming flood. 
 
 But
 
 BOOK IV. ioi 
 
 But Neptune fav'd me in that perilous hour ; 
 The headlong current felt his prefent pow'r : 
 Back from the fhore it turn'd, at his command, 
 And bore me joyful from the fatal ftrand. 
 The Cyclops vex'd ; as when fome fowler fpies, 
 Safe from his cover'd fnares, the quarry rife : 
 His feat forfbok, and, leaning o'er the fteep, 
 Strove with foft words to lure me from the deep. 
 Stranger, approach ! nor fly this friendly ftrand; 
 Share the free bleflings of a happy land : 
 Here, from each cliff, aftream of honey flows ; 
 And ev'ry hill with purple vintage glows. 
 Approach ; your fear forget ; my bounty mare ; 
 My kindnefs prove and hofpitable care. 
 As to allure me thus the monfter try'd, 
 His fraud I knew ; and radii y thus reply'd : 
 Talk not of friendfhip ; well I know the doom 
 Of fuch as to your dire dominions come. 
 Thefe eyes beheld when, with a ruthlefs hand, 
 My wretched mates you murder'd on die ftrand. 
 Two pled for pity, but their limbs you tore 
 With brutal rage, and drank their dreaming gore. 
 
 If
 
 102 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 If heav*n's dread Sov'reign, to my vengeful hand 
 His wafting flames would yield, and forked brand ; 
 Scorch'd on the cliffs, your giant limbs mould feed 
 The mountain wolves, and all the rav'nous breed. 
 
 I faid ; and from the fouth a rifmg breeze 
 Brufh'd the thick woods, and fwept the curling feas. 
 Above the waves my veflel lightly flew ; 
 The ocean wid'ned, and the mores withdrew. 
 InragM die Cyclops, ruming down the fteep, 
 Eager to f natch me, plung'd into the deep : 
 My flight he folio w'd with gigantic ftrides, 
 And ftem'd with both his knees die milling tides. 
 Soon had I perifh'd, but efcapM again, 
 Protected by the God who rules the main. 
 He fent a fpeftre from his wat'ry caves ; 
 Like mill it rofe and hover'd o'er the waves. 
 A fldff like mine, by art divine, it grew ; 
 And to the left acrofs the ocean flew. 
 With courie divided, where the pilot {pies 
 Amidil the deep two defart iflands rife, 
 
 la
 
 BOOK IV. 103 
 
 In fhape like altars, fo by failors nam'd, 
 A mark for pilots, elfe for nothing fam'd; 
 The angry giant doubting flood, nor knew 
 Which to fortake, the ihadow or the true : 
 For both feem'd equal. By the fates milled, 
 He chac'd the airy image as it fled ; 
 Nor reach'd it : for it led him thro' the main, 
 As the bright rainbow mocks fome fiinple fwain ; 
 Who ftill intent to catch it where it (lands, 
 And grafp the mining meteor with his hands, 
 Along the dewy meadows holds his way; 
 But ftill before him flies the coloured ray. 
 The Cyclops fo, along the wat'ry plain, 
 The fhadowy phantom chac'd and chac'd in vain : 
 The billows burfted on his hairy fides, 
 And far behind him mftiM the parted tides. 
 Diflblv'd at laft, its airy ftniifhire broke, 
 And vanim'd hov'rmg like a cloud of fmoke. 
 His error then, and my efcape, he knew ; 
 For, favoured by the breeze, my veilel flew 
 Far to the deep : yet plunging in the waves, 
 Torn from its bed a pond'rous rock he heaves, 
 
 Craggy
 
 io 4 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Craggy and black, with dangling fea-weed hung; 
 Pufti'd from his hand the \veighty-mafs he flung, 
 To crufh my flight : along th' ethereal plain 
 It roll'd, and rhund'ring downwards ihookthe main. 
 Behind it fell ; and farther from the Ihore, 
 Hurl'd on the mounting waves, my veflel bore 
 Towards the deep. The giant faw, with pain, 
 His fraud detected, force elTay'd in vain. 
 He curs'd the partial pow'rs, and lalh'd on liigh, 
 With both his hands, the ocean to the Iky. 
 
 Now fafe beyond his reach a profp'rous gale, 
 With breath uninterrupted, filPd my fail. 
 The ftiores retir'd; but, from the diflant main, 
 I faw him tow'ring on the wat'ry plain, 
 Like a tall Ihip ; and moving to the more, 
 Sullen and fad, to tend his fleecy flore. 
 Seven days I fail'd ; the eighth returning light 
 The Pylian fliores prefented to my fight 
 Far in the eaft ; and where the fun difplays, 
 Along the glitt'ring waves his early rays. 
 Thither I fteerM, and, where a point divides 
 Extended in the deep, the parted tides, 
 
 A
 
 'BOOK IV. 105 
 
 A fane I mark'd ; whdfe tow'ring fummit, rear'd 
 High in the air, with gilded fpires appear'd* 
 To Neptune facred on the beach it Hands, 
 Confpicuous from the fea and diilant lands. 
 Membled on the more the people flood 
 On ev'ry fide extended, like a wood : 
 And in the midfl I faw a pillar rife, 
 Of facred fmoke, afcending to the Ikies, 
 Twas there I reach'd the hofpitable ftrand, 
 And joyful, fix'd my vcffel to the land. 
 
 THERE, with his peers, your royal fire I found ', 
 And fell before him proftrate on the ground, 
 Imploring aid ; my lineage I reveal'd, 
 Nor aught of all my tedious toils conceal'd. 
 Attentive, as I fpoke, the hero heard, 
 Nor credulous nor diffident appear'd ; 
 For prudence taught him, neither to receive 
 With eafy faith, nor ralhly diibelieve. 
 
 O fon of Neleus! tho' you juftJy claim, 
 For eloquence and (kill, fuperior fame ; 
 Yet to an equal glory ne'er afpire : 
 Vain were the hope to emulate yoirr lire. 
 
 O Eight
 
 io6 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Eight days we feafled : Still the flowing bowl 
 Returned, and fweet difcourfe, to glad the foul, 
 With pleafure heard ; as comes the found of rain, 
 In rummer's drought, to chear the careful fwain. 
 And when the ninth returning morn arofe, 
 Sixty bold mariners the hero chofe, 
 Skill'd, thro' the deep, the flying keel to guide, 
 And fweep, with equal oars, the hoary tide : 
 They trimm'd a veflel, by their lord's command, 
 To waft me to my fire and native land. 
 With gifts enrich'd of robes and precious ore, 
 He fent me joyful from the Pylian Ihore. 
 Such Neleus was ! and fuch his matchlefs praife 
 For hofpitable deeds in former days ; 
 The friend, the patron, deftin'd to redrefs 
 The wrongs of fate, and comfort my diftrefs. 
 
 BUT what is man ! a reptile of the eaith j 
 To toils fucceiTive fated from his birth ; 
 Few are our joys ; in long fucceffion flow 
 Our griefs; we number all our days in woe. 
 
 Misfortune
 
 15 O O K IV. 107 
 
 Misfortune enter'd with my infant years; 
 My feeble age a load of forrow bears. 
 Driv'n from my country by domeftic foes, 
 Thebes but receiv'd me to partake her woes. 
 The fword I've feen and wide devouring fire, 
 Againil her twice in fatal league confpire. 
 The public griefs, which ev'ry heart mull mare, 
 By nature taught to feel another's care, 
 Augment my own : our matrons weeping (land ; . 
 Our rev'rend elders mourn a ruin'd land ; 
 Their furrow'd cheeks with flreams of forrow flow ; 
 And wailing orphans fwell the gen'ral woe ; 
 They mourn their deareft hopes, in battle (lain, 
 "VvTiofe limbs unbury'd load their native plain ; 
 And now by us entreat that war may ceafe, 
 And, for feven days fucceflive, yield to peace : 
 That mutually fecure, with pious care, 
 Both hofts funereal honors may prepare 
 For ev'ry warrior, whom the rage of fight 
 Has fwept to darknefs and the coafls of night. 
 To ratify the truce, if ye approve, 
 We come alike commiffion'd, as to move. 
 
 THUS
 
 io8 THE E P I G N I A D. 
 
 THU s Clytophon ; and he, whofe fov'reign fway 
 The warriors of the Pylian race obey, 
 Neftor, Ills partial favor thus exprefs'd ; 
 And to the Theban chief himfelf addrefsM. 
 The truth you fpeak, nor do your words appeal; 
 Prepar'd with art, or dictated by fear ; 
 For what you tell, in part I can recal, 
 When young I faw you in my father's hall, 
 Yourfelf a youth ; tho' now a length of years, 
 Imprinted deep, in all, your form appears; 
 Yet ftill, with fure remembrance, can I trace 
 Your voice the fame and lineaments efface. 
 An infant then upon your knees I hung, 
 And catch'd the pleafing wonders from your tongue ; 
 Your woes I pity'd, as I pity ftill ; 
 And, were the reft determin'd by my will, 
 The truce mould ftand : for piety confpires 
 With juftice, to demand what Thebes requires. 
 
 THE hero thus; the king of men replies; 
 Princes, in %ht approv'd, in council wife ! ' 
 
 What
 
 . B O O K IV. 109 
 
 \VJiat Thebes propounds 'tis yours alone to chui'e, 
 If it feems bed and fitted, or refufe : 
 For tho'your votes confenting, in my hand 
 Have plac'd the fceptre of fupreme command ; 
 Yet dill my pow'r, obedient to your choice, 
 Shall with its fandion join the public voice. 
 
 THE monarch thus; and thus the chief reply'd, 
 Whom fair Etolia's martial fons obey'd : 
 Princes, attend ! and tliou, whole fov'reign hand 
 Sways the dread fceptre of fupreme command ! 
 What Thebes requires I do not now oppofe, 
 Becaufe, infeniible to human woes, 
 The widow's tears I fcorn, the mother's fighs, 
 The groans of fathers, or the orphans' cries, 
 Whofe dearefl hopes, in rage of battle flain, 
 Drench'd in their gore, lie fcatter'd on the plain : 
 Companion for the hofl, wiiich fruitlefs toil 
 So long has wailed in a foreign foil, 
 What Thebes propounds, impels me to difluade, 
 And, for the living, difregard the dead. 
 
 How
 
 no THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 How long has war and famine tliin'J our po\v*rs, 
 Jnactive camp'd around the Theban tow'rs ? 
 And peftilence, \vhofe dire infedion flies, 
 Blown by the furies thro' the tainted ikies ? 
 Many now wander on the Stygian ihore, 
 Whom fires and conforts {hall behold no more ; 
 And many dill, who yet enjoy die day, 
 Mufl follow down the dark Tartarean way, 
 If, blinded by the fates, our counfels bar 
 The courfe of conquefl and protracl the war. 
 If equity and public right demands 
 That Thebes ihould fall by our avenging hands; 
 Now let us combat, till die gods above, 
 Who fit around die ftarry throne of JOVE, 
 The judges of die nations, crown our toil, 
 So long endur'd, with viftory and ipoil ; 
 Or, defline us to fall in glorious fight 
 Elate and dauntlefs in the caufe of right. 
 Shall we delay till dire infection fpreads 
 Her raven wings o'er our devoted heads? 
 Till gen'rous wrath, by flow difeafe fuppreft, 
 Expires inaclive in die warrior's breaft, 
 
 And
 
 BOOK IV. in 
 
 And life, the price of glory, paid in vain, 
 We die forgotten on a foreign plain. 
 
 TYDIDES thus; and he, whofe fov'reign fway 
 The warriors of the Pylian race obey, 
 Neftor reply'd, for eloquence approv'd, 
 By Pallas and the tuneful fitters lov'd : 
 Confed'rate kings ! and thou, whofe fov'reign hand 
 Sways the dread.fceptre of fupreme command, 
 Attend ! and judge the reafons which I plead 
 For fun'ral rites, the honors of the dead. 
 Well have you heard the various ills that wait 
 On flrife prolong'd, and war's difaflrous flate : 
 And they, who choofe to dwell amidft alarms 
 The rage of flaughter and the din of arms, 
 Know little of the joys, when combats ceafe, 
 That crown with milder blifs the hours of peace. 
 Tho' gladly would I fee, in vengeance ' juft, 
 The Theban tow'rs compounded with the duft j 
 That from the war releas'd, we might again 
 Each mare the pleaiures of his native reign': 
 
 Yet
 
 in THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Yet let us not prefumptuoufly withftand 
 What piety alike and right command, 
 The honors of the dead ; nor tempt the gods, 
 To ciirfe our labors, from their bright abodes. 
 Far in the heav'ns, above this mortal fcene, 
 In boundlefs light, the Thund'rer fits ferene ; 
 He views the works of men'; the good he knows, 
 And on their jufl attempts fuccefs beftows ; 
 But blafts impiety, and mocks it.s aim, 
 With difappointment fure, and lading fliame. 
 
 ATTEND, ye princes ! and I iliali unfold 
 Wharfage Harmodious taught my fire of old; 
 The Locri furnmon'd all their martial pow'rs, 
 And fought around the Orchomenian tow'rs. 
 From oxen feiz/d, began the dire debate ; 
 And wide and wafleful was the work of fate. 
 The Orchomenians oft a truce propos'd 
 For fun'ral rites ; the Locrian chiefs oppos'd. 
 Nine days expir'd, the bleeding warriors lay } 
 Their wounds hot {learning to the folar ray. 
 From Styx's fable more their ghofts implor'd, 
 With fuppliant cries, hell's dread avenging lord. 
 
 He
 
 BOOK IV. 113 
 
 He heard, and from the gloomy deep below 
 Of Erebus profound, the houfe of woe, 
 A fury fent, the fierceft of the crew, 
 Whofe iron fcourges human crimes purfue : 
 Difcord her name ; among th' infernal gods 
 She dwells, excluded from the bled abodes ; 
 Tho' oft on earth me rears her baleful head, 
 To kindle ftrife> and make the nations bleed. 
 The fury came ; and, hov'ring o'er the plain, 
 Devoted with her eyes the Locrian train. 
 In form a raven, to a mountain's brow, 
 Which hung above the fcene of war, me flew ; 
 And on the airy fummit took her feat, 
 With potent charms, to kindle dire debate* 
 The howling dogs her prefence firfl declare ; 
 The war-horfe trembling fnorts aloft in air j 
 On man at laft the dire infection fell, 
 The awful vengeance of the pow'rs of hell* 
 Confufion flraight thro* all the camp is found j 
 The wandering centinel deferts his ground, 
 Fatally gay and crown'd with ev'ry weed, 
 Which weeping matrons fcatter o'er the dead ; 
 
 P Of
 
 ii 4 THE EPIGO.NIAD. 
 
 Of dire portent : but when the filent reign 
 Of night pofleis'd the mountains and the plain 
 Above the camp her torch the fury rear'd, 
 Red, in the air,- its baleful flame appear'd, 
 Kindling debate : outrageous flrife- arofe/ 
 Loud as the ocean when a temped blows, 
 O'er all the plain, and ftun'd the ear of night 
 With ftiouts tumultuous and the din of fight. 
 Down from her airy ftand the Coddefs came, 
 Gliding meteorous, like a ftream of flame, 
 To kindle fiercer ftrife, with ftronger charms, 
 To fwell the tumult and the rage of arms. 
 The combat burn'd ; the Orchomenians heard 
 With horror, nor beyond their walls appear'd, 
 By. awe divine reilrain'd : but when die light 
 Returned fucceffive on die fteps of night, 
 From ev'ry tow'r they faw die fpacious plain 
 With havoc heap'd, and mountains of the flain. 
 The fecret caufe die augurs firft declar'd ; 
 The juilice of die gods they own'd and fear'd. ' 
 No fun'ral rite the Orchomendan ftate 
 On diem beftow'd, the vulgar or the great; 
 
 In
 
 BOOK' IV. 115 
 
 In one deep pit, whofe mouth extended wide 
 Four hundred cubit lengths from fide to fide, 
 They whelm'd them all ; their bucklers and their 
 
 fpears, 
 
 The fteeds, the chariots, and the charioteers, 
 One ruin mix'd; for fo the will of JOVE 
 The priefls declar'd; and heap'd a mount above: 
 Such was the fate, by heav'n and hell decreed, 
 For them who impioufly defpis'd the dead. 
 And let not us their fatal wrath provoke, 
 Nor merit by our guilt an equal ftroke ; 
 But feal the truce, and pioufly beftow 
 What to the reliques of the dead we owe. 
 
 HE faid ; the peers their joint affent declare, 
 The dead to honor, and the gods revere. 
 The king of men commands a herald flraight, 
 The priefls to call and haften ev'ry rite. 
 While thus the fov'reign mandate they obey'd, 
 Th' Etolian leader rofe, and frowning faid : 
 
 O blind to truth ! and fated to fuflain 
 A length of woes, and tedious toils in vain ! 
 
 By
 
 1x6 THE E P I G O N I A D, 
 
 By magic founds deceiv'd, as to her den 
 Some vocal forc'refs lures the fteps of men; 
 eloquence ! thou fatal charm ! how few, 
 Guided by thee, their real good purfue ! 
 By thee, our minds, with magic fetters bound, 
 In all decifipns, true and falfe confound. 
 Not the unnumber'd wrecks, which lie along 
 The Syrens' coaft the trophies of their fong, 
 Nor there where Circe from the neighb'ring deep, 
 With ftrong inchantments, draws the palling {hip, 
 Can match thy fpoils : O let me ne'er obey, 
 And follow blindly, as you point the way ! 
 Confed'rate kings ! fince nothing can oppofe 
 The truce you purpofe with our treach'rous foes, 
 Pregnant with mifchief; I alone am free, 
 Nor thefe my eyes the fatal rite mall fee ; 
 Left it be faid, when mifchief mall fucceed, 
 Tydides faw it, and approved the deed. 
 SPEAKING he grafp'd his fpear and pond'rous 
 
 fhield; 
 
 And mov'd like Mars,when,'midft th' imbattel'd field, 
 
 Sublime
 
 B K JV. 117 
 
 Sublime he flalks to kindle fierce alarms, 
 To fwell the tumult and the rage of arms. 
 Such feem'dthe chief: the princes "with, furprize 
 Turn'd on the king of men, at once, their eyes. 
 
 HE thus began : Since now the public choice, 
 The truce approves, with one confenting voice ; 
 Tydides only, with fuperior pride, 
 Tljo' youngeft, flill the prompteft to decide, 
 Our gen'ral fenfe condemns ; his haughty foul 
 Mufl not the counfels of the holt control, 
 Brave tho* he is : the altars ready Hand ; 
 In order waits the confecrated band ; 
 Straight let us feal the truce with blood and wine ? 
 And, to atteft it, call the pow'rs divine. 
 
 THE monarch thus; Tydides to his tent, 
 Thro' die flill hoil, in fallen forrow went. 
 Fix'd in his mind the fatal viiion flay'd, 
 Snatch'd by invading force his lovely maid ; 
 The fraud of Cytharea ; flill his heart 
 Jnceflant anguifli felt, and lafting fmart :
 
 jit THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 And, as a lion, when his fide retains 
 A barbed maft, the caufe of bitter pains, 
 Growls in fome lonely (hade ; his friends declin'd, 
 He breath'd in groans the anguiih of his mind. 
 
 Now round the flaming hearth th'aiTembly 
 
 (lands, 
 
 AndThefeus thus invokes with lifted hands : 
 Hear me, ye pow'rs, that rule the realms of light I 
 And ye dread fov'reigris of the (hades of night ! 
 If, till the eighth fucceeding fun difplays, 
 Above the eaflern hills, his early rays, 
 Any bold warrior of the Argive bands, 
 Againft aTheban lifts his hoftile hands 
 By us approvM ; let ev'ry curfe fucceed 
 On me, and all, for perjury decreed. 
 And as by blood this awful oath we feal, 
 The blood of viclims drawn by deathful fteel ; 
 So let their blood be med, who fcorning right, 
 Shall impioufly dare its ties to (light. 
 Apollo's priefl, for Thebes, refum'd the vow, 
 The gods above, invoking, and below, 
 
 Their
 
 BOOK IV. ,19 
 
 Their vengeance to inflift, if force, or art, 
 The truce Ihould violate on either part. 
 
 THE rites concluded thus, the king commands 
 Two younger warriors of his native bands 
 A chariot to prepare ; the driver's place 
 Sophronimus aflum'd ; with tardy pace, 
 Afcend the fage ambafladors ; before 
 A lighted torch Afteropceus bore, 
 And led the way ; the tents, the field of war, 
 They pafs'd, and at the gate difmifs'd the car.
 
 THE 
 
 E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 BOOK V. 
 
 N as the fun difplay'd his orient ray, 
 And crown'd the mountain tops with early dayj 
 Thro' ev'ry gate the Theban warriors flow, 
 Unarm'd and fearlefs of th ? invading foe : 
 As when, in early fpring, the fhepherd fees 
 Rufh from fome hollow rock a ftream of bees, 
 Long in the cliffs, from winter's rage, conceal'd, 
 New to the light, and flrangers to the field ; 
 In compafs wide their mazy flight they fleer, 
 Which wings of balmy zephyrs lightly bear 
 Along the meads, where fome foft river flows, 
 Or forefts, where the flow'ry hawthorn blows ; 
 To taile the early fpring their courfe they bend, 
 And lightly with die genial breeze defcend : 
 
 Q. So
 
 122 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 So o'er the heights and plains the Thebans fpread ; 
 Some, 'midft the heaps of {laughter, fought their 
 
 dead; 
 
 Others with axes to the woods repair'd, 
 Fell'd the thick forefts, and the mountains barM. 
 
 Now from their tents the Argive warriors mov'd, 
 By Thefeus led, whom virgin Pallas lov'd. 
 The harnefs'd wains ten thoufand oxen drew 
 Tam'd to the yoke, the fervants of the plow ; 
 Slow up the mountains move the heavy wheels, 
 The fteep afcent each groaning axle feels : 
 In ev'ry grove the temper'd axes found ; 
 The diick trees crackle, and die caves refound. 
 Now to the plain the moving woods defcend, 
 Under their weight a thoufand axles bend : 
 And round the camp and round the Tlieban walls, 
 Heaps roll'd on heaps, the mingled foreft falls. 
 
 OF this die Spartan chief, his native bands, 
 Widi fpeed to rear a lofty pile, commands ; 
 Which for Hegialus, with grateful mind, 
 Adrailus' valiant fon, the chief deiign'd; 
 
 Who
 
 BOOK V. 123 
 
 Who to his aid, when ev'ry warrior fled, 
 Repair'd, and for his refcue greatly bled : 
 His gen'rous warriors thus the chief addreft, 
 While fighs inceflant labor'd from his breaft. 
 
 THE chief of Argos, warriors! firft demands 
 Funereal honors from our grateful hands ; 
 For him this lofty ftruclure is decreed, 
 And ev'ry rite in order (hall fucceed : 
 His dear remains in my pavilion reft ; 
 Nor can Adraftus at the rites affift ; 
 To rage, to phrenzy, and defpair refign'd, 
 By griefs on griefs, fubdu'd his manly mind : 
 The other princes of the army wait 
 The obfequies to grace, with mournful flate. 
 
 HE faid; and to his tent the warriors led, 
 Where flood already deck'd the fun'ral bed, 
 With Syrian oil bedew'd ; the corpfe they found 
 Frefhfrom the bath, and breathing fragrance round 
 For Menelaus, with divided care, 
 Each rite domeftic hafl'ned to prepare. 
 
 Twelve
 
 124 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Twelve princes to the pile the corpfe fuftain'd ; 
 The head on Agamemnon's hands reclin'd : 
 With mournful pomp the flow proceflion movM j 
 For all the hero honor'd and approv'd. 
 
 FIRST on the top the fun'ral bed they place; 
 And next, the fad folemnity to grace, 
 And gratify the manes of the ilain, 
 The blood of fleedsand bullocks drench'd the plain. 
 The four fair fleeds which drew the rapid car, 
 That bore the hero thro' the ranks of war, 
 Their lofty necks the pointed faulcion tore, 
 With force impel'd, and drew a fire am of gore : 
 Three groaning funk ; but, fiercer from theflroke, 
 The filver reins the fourth with fury broke, 
 And fled around the field : his fnowy cheft, 
 Was dafti'd with flreaming blood, and lofty crefl. 
 In circles Hill he wheel'd : at ev'ry round, 
 Sail nearer to the pile himfelf he found ; 
 Till drain'd of life, by blood alone fupply'd, 
 Where firft he felt the blow, he funk, and dy'd. 
 
 BY awe divine fubdu'd, the warriors Hand ; 
 And fiient wonder fixes ev'ry band : 
 
 Till
 
 BOOK V, 125 
 
 Till thus Atrfdes: Sure th' immortal gods, 
 The glorious fynod of the bleft abodes, 
 Approve our rites ; tlie good their favor (hare, 
 In death and life the objects of their care. 
 
 ATRIDES thus : and, further to augment 
 The mournful pomp, the martial Goddeis went 
 Thro* all the camp, in Merlon's form exprefs'd ; 
 And thus aloud the public ear addrefs'd : 
 Warriors and friends! on yonder lofty pyre, 
 Hegialus expects the fun'ral fire ; 
 For fuch high merit, public tears mould flow; 
 And Greece aflembled pour a flood of woe. 
 Now let us all his obfequies attend ; 
 And, with the mournful rites, our forrows blend. 
 Proclaiming thus aloud the Goddefs went ; 
 The army heard ; and each forfakes his tent ; 
 Her voice had touch'd their hearts ; they mov'd along 
 Nations and tribes, an undiftinguiih'd throng. 
 Around the pile the wid'ning circle grows; 
 As, fpreading, in fame vale, a deluge flows,
 
 126 THE E P I G tf I A D. 
 
 By mountain torrents fed, which ftretches wide , 
 And floats the level lands on ev'ry fide. 
 Diitinguilh'd in the midft the princes tland, 
 \Vith fcepters graeM, the enfigns of command. 
 Atrides with fuperior grief opprefs'd, 
 Thus to the fire of gods his pray'r addrefsM. 
 
 DREAD fov'reign, hear ! whofe unrefifted fway 
 The fates of men and mortal things obey : 
 From thee the virtue of the hero fprings ; 
 Thine is the glory and the pow'r of kings. 
 If e'er by thee, and virgin Pallas, led, 
 To noble deeds this gen'rous youth was bred : 
 If love to men, or piety, pofleft, 
 With higheft purpofes, his dauntlefs bread ; 
 Command the winds in bolder gufts to rife, 
 And bear the flames, I kindle, to the fkies. 
 
 THE hero thus ; and, with the ftm'ral brand, 
 The {fou&ure touch'd ; and climbing from his hand, 
 Afcends the blaze : the ruler of the Iky 
 Commands ; at once the willing tempefls fly : 
 Rufliing in dreams invifible, they came, 
 Drove the light fnioke, and rais'd the iheeted flame. 
 
 The
 
 BOOK V. 127 
 
 The favor of the gods, the nations own, 
 
 And, with their joint applaufe, the hero crown. 
 
 From morn till noon die roaring flames afpire,. 
 
 And fat of vi&ims added feeds the fire ; 
 
 Then fall their lofty fpires, and, finking low, 
 
 O'er the pale aihes tremuloully glow. 
 
 With wine, the fmoke, and burning embers lay'd ; 
 
 The bones they glean'd, and to a tomb convey'd 
 
 Under an oak, which, near the public way, 
 
 Travellers invites to ftmn the noontide ray. 
 
 Now twenty warriors of Atrides' train, 
 Loaded with treafure, brought a harnefs'd wain ; 
 Vafes and tripods in bright order plac'd, 
 And fplendid arms with fair devices gracM: 
 Thefe for the games the Spartan chief decreed, 
 The fun'ral games in honor of the dead. 
 Amid/I the princes firfl a poliili'd yew, 
 Unbent upon the ground the hero threw, 
 Of work divine ; wliich Cynthius bent before, 
 And Chiron next upon the mountains bore ; 
 
 Hi-
 
 123 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 His fire the third receiv'd it : now it lies, 
 
 For him who farthefr, (hoots, the deflin'd prize. 
 
 HEROES, approach! Atrides thus aloud, 
 Stand forth, diftinguiih'd from the circling crowd, 
 Ye who, by fldll or manly force, may claim 
 Your rivals' to furpafs and merit fame. 
 This bow, worth twenty oxen, is decreed 
 For him who fartheft fends the winged reed : 
 This bowl, worth eight, {hall be referv'd to grace 
 The man whofe merit holds the fecond place. 
 He fpoke. His words the bold Ajaces fir'd ; 
 Crete's valiant monarch to the prize afpirM ; 
 Teucer for mooting fam'd ; and Merion ftrong, 
 "\Vhofe force enormous drag'd a bull along ; 
 Prompt to contend and rais'd with hope, they flood ; 
 Laertes' fon the laft forfook die crowd. 
 Tydides too ,had join'd them, and obtain'd 
 Whatever could by ikill or force be gain'd ; 
 Bat in his tent, indulging fad defpair, 
 He fat, fubdu'd by heart-confuming care. 
 
 Straight in a cafque the equal lots were thrown ; 
 Idonieneus drew and found his own ; 
 
 Teucer
 
 BOOK V. 129 
 
 Teucer, with hope infpir'd, the fecond claim'd ; 
 The third Oileus, much for mooting fam' d : 
 Next claim'd die wearer of the feven-fold ihield, 
 Tho' young in arms, diftinguiih'd in the field : 
 Ulyfles ! diine came next ; and, laft of all, 
 Bold Merion widi a fmile receiv'd his ball. 
 
 PRESS'D with incumbent force, the Cretan lord 
 Strain'd the fliff bow, and bent it to the cord; 
 Then, from the full ftor'd quiver, chofe with art, 
 Wing'd for th' aerial flight, a pointed dart. 
 Thefeus commands the warriors to divide, 
 Who crowded thick and prefs'd on ev'iy fide ; 
 Straight diey retire; as, at the word of JOVE, 
 From day's bright face the featuring cloud;; remove ; 
 And thro' the hofl appear'd a fpacious way, 
 Where woods and fields in diflant profpect lay. 
 With force immenfe, the Cretan monarch drew, 
 Stretched the tough cord, andftrain'd the circling 
 
 yew; 
 
 From his firm gripe the darting arrow fpnmg, 
 The ftiff bow crack'd, the twanging cor4age fung. 
 R Up
 
 i 3 o THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Up the light air the hifling weapon flies, 
 Pierces the winds, and ftreams along the fkies : 
 Far to the diftant plain it fwiftly drove ; 
 The hofl flood wond'ring as it rulh'd above : 
 Defcending there upon a mount it ftood ; 
 A depth of foil receiv'd the trembling wood. 
 Applaufe from all, tumultuous Ihouts declare, 
 By the rous'd echoes wafted thro' the air. 
 Such joy the hero feels, as praife infpires, 
 And to the circle of the kings retires. 
 
 THE valiant Teucer next receiv'd the bow, 
 And to Apollo thus addrefs'd a vow : 
 Hear me, dread king ! whofe unrefifted fway 
 Controls die fun, and rules the courfe of day ; 
 Great patron of the bow ! this ihaft impell ; 
 And hecatombs my gratitude ihall tell ; 
 Soon as to Salamis our martial pow'rs 
 Return, victorious, from the Theban tow'rs. 
 He faid, and bid die winged arrow fly ; 
 It pierc'd the winds, and fwept a length of iky ; 
 
 In
 
 BOOK V. 131 
 
 In compafs, like the colored arch, which Ihines 
 Exalted, as the fetting fun declines ; 
 From north to fouth it marks th' ethereal fpace, 
 And woods and mountains fill its wide embrace : 
 Beyond the Cretan lhaft, it reach'd the plain ; 
 As far before, as now a fhepherd fwain, 
 Hurl'd from a fling, the founding flint can throw, 
 From his young charge, to drive the deadly crow. 
 
 OILEAN Ajax next the weapon claim'd, 
 For Ikill above the reft, and praftice fam'd ; 
 But Phoebus, chief and patron of the art, 
 Retarded in its flight the winged dart: 
 For, nor by pray'rs, nor holy vows, he drove, 
 Of grateful facrifice, the God to move. 
 Downwards he turn'd it, where a cedar fair 
 Had fhot its fpiring top aloft in air ; 
 Catch'd in a bough the quiv'ring weapon flood, 
 Nor forc'd a paflage thro' the clofing wood. 
 
 AJAX the next appear'd upon the plain, 
 With ftrength untaught, and emulous ia vain ;"" 
 
 With
 
 j 3 2 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 With finewy arms the folid yew he bends ; 
 Near and more near, approach the doubling ends : 
 The arrow fprung ; but erring took its way, 
 Far to the left, where oozy marines lay 
 And groves of reeds ; where flow Ifmenus flrays, 
 And winds, thro' thickets green, his wat'ry maze. 
 Abafh'd the youth, with painful Heps, retires ; 
 And now Ulyfles to die prize afpires, 
 
 IN filence thus the prudent warrior pray'd, 
 And, in his heait, addrefs'd the martial maid : 
 Great queen of arts! on thee my hopes depend; 
 With favor, to thy fuppliant's fuit, attend ! 
 By thee my infant arms were taught to throw 
 The dart with certain aim, and bend the bow i 
 Oft on my little hands, immortal maid ! 
 To guide the {haft, thy mighty hands were laid : 
 Now, Goddefs, aid me, while I ftrive for fame ; 
 Wing the fwift weapon, and aflert my claim. 
 He pray'd ; and Pallas, at his fuit, defcends ; 
 And prefent frgiu th' Olympian courts attends. 
 
 With
 
 BOOK V. 133 
 
 With force divine his manly limbs (he fining* 
 The bow he ftrain'd : the darting arrow fang ; 
 As when the fire of gods, with wrathful hand, 
 Drives the fwift lightening and the forked brand, 
 To wafte the labors of the careful fwains, 
 Confume the mountain flocks, or fcorch the plains ; 
 With fudden glare appears the fiery ray ; 
 No thought can trace it thro'th' ethereal way : 
 So fwift thy winged lhaft, Ulyfles ! flew, 
 Nor could the following eye its fpeed purfue. 
 The flight of Teucer's arrow far furpafl, 
 Upon a rural hearth it pitch'd at laft, 
 To Ceres built ; where fwains, in early fpring, 
 With joy were wont their annual gifts to bring ; 
 When firft to view, above the furrow'd plain, 
 With pleafmg verdure, rofe the fpringing grain. 
 Thro' all the hoft applauding (hours refound ; 
 The hills repeat them, and the woods around. 
 
 THE bended bow bold Merion next afTumes, 
 A iliaft felecls, and fmooths its purple plumes ; 
 
 Which
 
 I 3 4 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 He plac'd it on the firing, and bending low, 
 With all his force collected, flrain'd die bow. 
 Up die light air the Halting arrow fprung ; 
 Thetoughbowcrack'd ; the twanging cordage fung. 
 Beyond the reach of fight the weapon drove, 
 And tow Yd amidfl th' ethereal fpace above: 
 But as it rofc, a heron crofs'd before, 
 From inland marines fleering to the more ; 
 Under the wing it reach'd her with an wound ; 
 Screaming me wheel' d ; then tumbled to the ground. 
 And dius the youth : Illuflrious chiefs ! I claim, 
 If not the prize, at leafl fuperior fame : 
 Ungovern'd flrength alone the arrow fends ; 
 To hit the mark, the (hooter's art commends. 
 In mirthful mood the hero thus addrefs'd ; 
 And all their favor and applaufe expreis'd. 
 
 ULYSSES ! take the bow, Atrides cries, 
 The filver bowl, brave Teucer ! be thy prize. 
 In ev'ry art, my friends ! you all excell ; 
 And each deferves a prize for {hooting well : 
 
 For
 
 BOOK V. 135 
 
 For tho' the firil rewards the vic"lors claim, 
 Glory ye merit all, and lifting fame. 
 He faid; and pond'ring in his grateful mind, 
 DiftinguinYd honors for the dead defign'd. 
 
 WARRIORS of Greece, and valiant aids from far, 
 Our firm aflbciates in the works of war! 
 Here from a rock the Theban dream defcends, 
 And to a lake its filver current fends; 
 Whofe furface fmooth, unruffled by the breeze, 
 The hills inverted (hows and downward trees -. 
 Ye daring youths ! whofe manly limbs divide 
 The mounting furge, and brave the ruftiing tide ; 
 All ye, whom hopes of victory infpire, 
 Stand forth diflinguiih'd ; let the crowd retire. 
 This coilly armor fhall the youth obtain, 
 Who comes victorious from the wat'ry plain ; 
 That ifland compals'd, where the poplar grows 
 And in the lake its wav'ring image {hows, 
 Who meafuring back the liquid fpace, before 
 His rivals, (hall regain the fiow'ry iliore. 
 
 This
 
 136 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Tliis golden bowl is fix'd die fecond prize, 
 Of curious workmanihip, and amplefl fize. 
 
 THE hero thus : with thirft of glory fii-'d, 
 Crete's valiant monarch to the prize afpir'd; 
 With Sparta's younger chief; Ulyffes came ; 
 And brave Clearchus emulous of fame, 
 A wealthy warrior from the Samian iliore, 
 In cattle rich, and heaps of precious ore : 
 Diflinguiili'd in the midft the heroes flood, 
 Eager to plunge into the {tuning flood. 
 
 His brother's ardor purpos'd to reflrain, 
 Atrides flrove, and counfel'd thus, in vain : 
 Defift, my brother! ihun th' unequal ftrife ; 
 For late you flood upon die verge of life : 
 No mortal man his vigor can retain, 
 When flowing wounds have empry'd ev'ry vein. 
 If now you perifti in die wat'ry way, 
 Grief upon grief mall cloud this mournful day, 
 Defift, refpecl my counfel, and be wife ; 
 Some odier Spartan in your place will rife. 
 
 To
 
 B O O K V. 137 
 
 To change his brother's purpofe thus he try'd ; 
 But Menelaus rejblute reply'd : 
 Brother ! in vain you urge me to forbear, 
 From love and fond affedlion prompt to fear; 
 For firm, as e'er before, my limbs remain, 
 To dafh the fluid waves, or fcour the plain. 
 
 HE faid, and went before. The heroes move 
 To the dark covert of a neighb'ring grove ; 
 Which to the bank its mady walks extends, 
 Where mixing with the lake a riv'let ends. 
 Prompt to contend, their purple robes they loofe, 
 Their figur'd vefts and gold embroider'd fhoes ; 
 And thro* the grove defcending to the flrand, 
 Along the flow'ry bank in order {land. 
 As when, in fome fair temple's facred mrine, 
 A ftatue flands, exprefs'd by fkill divine, 
 Apollo's or die herald pow'r's, who brings 
 JOVE'S mighty mandates on his airy wings ; 
 The form majeflic awes the bending crowd : 
 In port and ftature fuch, the heroes Hood, 
 
 S STARTING
 
 138 THE -E P I G O N I A t). 
 
 STARTING at once; with equal ftrokes, they fweep 
 The fmooth expanfe, and {hoot into the deep ; 
 The Cretan chief, exerting all his force, 
 His rivals far furpafs'd, and led the courfe; 
 Behind Atrides, emulous of fame ; 
 Clearchus next ; and lafl Ulyfles came. 
 And now they meafur'd back the wat'ry fpace, 
 And faw from far the limits of the race. 
 Ulyfles then, with thirft of glory nVd, 
 The Samian left, and to the prize afpir'd ; 
 Who, emulous, and dreading to be laft, 
 With equal fpeed, the Spartan hero pafs'd. 
 Alarm'd, the Cretan monarch drove, with pain, 
 His doubtful hopes of conquefl to maintain; 
 Exerting ev'ry nerve, his limbs he ply'd, 
 And wilhing, from afar, the more defcry'd : 
 For near and nearer ftill Ulyfles preft ; 
 The waves he felt rebounding from his breaft. 
 With equal zeal for vi&ory they flrove ; 
 When, gliding fudden from the roofs of JOVE, 
 Pallas approach'd ; behind a cloud conceal'd, 
 Ulyfles only faw her form reveal'd. 
 
 MajefUc
 
 B O O K V. 139 
 
 Majeftic by the hero's fide Ihe flood ; 
 
 Her {hming fandals prefs'd die trembling flood. 
 
 She whifper'd foft, as when the weflern breeze 
 
 Stirs the thick reeds, or makes the ruflling trees : 
 
 Still fhall thy foul, with endlefs third of fame, 
 
 Afpire to victory, in ev'ry game. 
 
 The honors, which from bones and flnews rife, 
 
 Are lightly valu'd by the good and wife : 
 
 To envy flill they roufe the human kind ; 
 
 And oft, than courted, better far declin'd. 
 
 To brave Idomeneus yield the race ; 
 
 Contented to obtain the fecond place. 
 
 The Goddefs thus : while, flretching to the land, 
 
 With joy the Cretan chief approach'd the ftrand; 
 
 Ulyfles next arriv'd ; and, fpent with toil, 
 
 The weary Samian grafp'd the welcome foil. 
 
 BUT far behind the Spartan warrior lay, 
 Fatigu'd, and fainting, in the wat'ry way. 
 Thrice ftruggling, from the lake, his head he rear'd ; 
 And thrice, imploring aid, his voice was heard. 
 The Cretan monarch hafles the youth to fave, 
 And Itfracus again divides the wave : 
 
 With
 
 I 4 o THE E P I G O NI A D. 
 
 With force renew'd their manly limbs they ply j 
 
 And from their breafts the whit'ning billows fly. 
 
 Full in the mldft a rocky ifle divides 
 
 The liquid fpace, and parts the filver tides ; 
 
 Once cultivated, now with thickets green 
 
 O'erfpread, two hillocks and a vale between. 
 
 Here dwelt an aged fwain ; his cottage flood 
 
 Under the cliffs, encompafs'd by a wood. 
 
 From poverty fecure, he heard afar, 
 
 In peace profound, the tumults of the war. 
 
 Mending a net before his rural gate, 
 
 From other toils repos'd, the peafant fat ; 
 
 When firft the voice of Menelaus came, 
 
 By ev'ning breezes wafted from the ftream. 
 
 He rofe ; and, turning whence the voice was heard, 
 
 Far ftruggling in the deep the youth appear'd. 
 
 Haft'ning, his fkiffhe loos'd, and fpread the fail; 
 
 Some prefent god fupply'd a profp'rous gale: 
 
 For as the Spartan chief, with toil fubdu'd, 
 
 Hopelefs of life, was finking in the flood ; 
 
 The fwain approach'd, and in his barge receiv'd 
 
 fCm fafe, from danger imminent retriev'd. 
 
 UPON
 
 BOOK V. 141 
 
 UPON a willow's trunk Therfites fat, 
 Contempt and laughter fated to create, 
 Where, bending from a hollow bank, it hung, 
 And rooted to the mould'ring furface clung ; 
 He faw Atrides fafb; and thus aloud, 
 With leer malign, addrefs'd the lifl'ning crow.d f 
 Here on the flow'ry turf a hearth mall ftand; 
 A hecatomb the fav'ring gods demand, 
 Who fav'd Atrides in this dire debate, 
 And fnatch'd the hero from the jaws of fate : 
 Without his aid we all might quit die field ; 
 Ulyfles, Ajax, and Tydides, yield : 
 His mighty arm alone the hoft defends, 
 But dire difafler flill the chief attends : 
 Lafl fun beheld him vanquiih'd on the plain ; 
 Then warriors fav'd him, now a Ihepherd fwain. 
 Defend him ftill from perfecuting fate ! 
 Proteft the hero who protects the ftate ; 
 Guard him amidft the dangers of the war ; 
 And, when he fwims, let aid be never far ! 
 He faid ; and fcorn and laughter to excite 
 His features foul he writh'd, with envious fpite. 
 
 Smiling
 
 I 4 2 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Smiling contempt ; and pleas'd his ranc'rous heart 
 With aiming thus oblique a venom'd dart. 
 But joy'd not long; for Toon the faithlefs wood, 
 Strain'd from the root, refign'd him to the flood. 
 Plunging and fputt'ring as his arms he fpread, 
 A load of foil came thund'ring on his head, 
 Slipt from die bank : along the winding ihore, 
 With laughter loud he heard the echoes roar, 
 When from the lake his crooked form he rear'd, 
 With horror pale, with blotting clay befmear'd : 
 Then clamb'i ing by the trunk, in fad difmay, 
 Which half immers'd with all its branches lay, 
 Confounded, to the tents he fculk'd along, 
 e fhouts and infults of the throng. 
 
 Now cloth'd in public view the heroes fland, 
 With fcepters grac'd the enfigns of command. 
 The Cretan monarch, as his prize, alTumes 
 The poliih'd helmet, crown'd with waving plumes, 
 The filver mail, the buckler's weighty round, 
 Th'embroider'd belt, with golden buckles bound. 
 
 Tfce
 
 B O O K V. 143 
 
 The fecond prize Laertes' fon receiv'd, 
 With lefs applaufe from multitudes deceived ; 
 The firft he could have purchased ; but declin'd, 
 And yielded, to the martial maid refign'd. 
 
 THUS they. TheThebans, near the Cadmean gate, 
 Around their pyres in filent forrow wait : 
 Hopelefs and fad they mourn'd their heroes flain, 
 The belt and braveil on their native plain. 
 The king hirnfelf, in deeper forrow, mourn'd ; 
 With rage and mingled grief his bofom burn'd. 
 Like the grim lion, when his offspring flain 
 He fees, and round him drawn the hunter's train j 
 Couch'd in the made with fell intent he lies, 
 And glares upon the foes with burning eyes : 
 Such Creon feem'd : hot indignation drain'd 
 Grief's wat'ry fources, and their flow reilrain'd. 
 Upon a turret o'er the gate he ftood, 
 And faw the Argives, like a fhady wood, 
 Extended wide; and dreading fraud defign'd, 
 Still to the plain his watchful eyes confin'd, 
 
 Sufpicious
 
 144 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Sufpicions from his hatred, and the pow'r 
 Of reftlefs paffions, which his heart devour i 
 And when at ev'n's approach the hoft retir'd, 
 And from the labors of the day refpir'd, 
 Within the walls he drew his martial pow'rs, 
 And kept with ftrifteft watch the gates and tow'rs. 
 Soox as the night poflefs'd th' ethereal plain, 
 And o'er the nations ftretch'd her filent reign, 
 The guards were plac'd, and to the gentle iway 
 Of fleep fubdu'd, the weary warriors lay. 
 Tydides only wak'd, by anxious care 
 Diftrafted, (till he mourn'd his abfent fair, 
 Deeming her loft ; his (lighted counfel mov'd 
 Lafling refentment, and the truce approv'd : 
 Contending paifions (hook his mighty frame j 
 As warring winds impel the ocean's dream, 
 When fouth and eaft with mingled rage contend, 
 And in a tempeft on the deep defcend: 
 Now, ftretch'd upon the couch, fupine he lay * 
 Then, rifmg anxious, wifh'd the morning ray. 
 Impatient thus, at laft, his turbid mind, 
 By various counfels variouily inclin'd, 
 
 The
 
 B O O K V. 145 
 
 The chief addreis'd : Or fliall I now recall 
 Th'Etolian warriors from the Theban wall ; 
 Obey the warning by a goddefs giv'n, 
 Nor flight her counfel dictated from heav'n? 
 Or ihall I try, by one deciding blow, 
 The war at once to end, and crufli the foe ? 
 This pleafes mofl ; nor fliall the voice of fame 
 The daring deed, in after ages, blame. 
 No truce I fwore, but flmn'd it, and remov'd, 
 Alone diilenting while the reft approv'd. 
 Soon as the morn, with early light reveal'd, 
 Has call'd the Theban warriors to the field ; 
 Againft the town, I'll lead my martial pow'rs, 
 And fire with flaming brands her guardlefs tow'r.s : 
 The bane of Greece, whence dire debate arofe 
 To bid the peaceful nations firft be foes; 
 Where Tydeus fell, and many heroes more, 
 The blood of princes mix'd with vulgar gore. 
 The public voice of Greece for vengeance calls j 
 And ihall applaud the flroke by which me falls* 
 He purpos'd : but the gods, who honor right, 
 Deny'd to treafon what is due to might. 
 
 T SOON
 
 146 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 SOON with new light appeared the morning fair; 
 The Theban warriors to the field repair, 
 To fell the groves ; with many a harnefs'd wain, 
 The woody heights were crowded and the plain. 
 Tydides faw ; and, uTuing from his tent, 
 In' arms complete, to call, his warriors, went. 
 Their leader's martial voice die foldiers heard 
 Each in his tent, and at the call appeared 
 In finning arms. Deiphobus began, 
 For virtue fam'd, a venerable man. 
 Him Tydeus lov'd ; and in his faithful hand 
 Had plac'd the fceptre of fupreme command, 
 To rule the ftate ; when, from his native tow'rs, 
 To Thebes the hero led his martial pow'rs ; 
 His fon, an infant, to his care refign'd, 
 With fage advice to form his tender mind. 
 The hero thus : IHuftrious chief ! declare 
 What you intend, and whither point the war. 
 The truce commenc'd, you cannot, and be juft, 
 The Thebans now aflault, who freely truft 
 To public faith engag'd : unarm'd they go 
 Far thro' the woods and plains, nor fear a foe. 
 
 His
 
 BOOK V. 147 
 
 His leader's purpofe thus the warrior try'd ; 
 And, inly vex'd, Tydides thus reply'd : 
 Father ! thy words from ignorance proceed; 
 The truce I fwore not, nor approv'd the deed. 
 If others did, let them their pow'rs reftrain, 
 Ling'ring inaclive on the hoflile plain : 
 The works of war abandon'd, let them fhed 
 Their unavailing forrows o'er the dead : 
 Or aim the dart, or hurl the diik in air ; 
 Some paultry prefents mall the vigors fhare. 
 Warriors we came, in nobler ftrifes to dare ; 
 To fight and conquer in the lifts of war ; 
 To conquer Thebes : and JOVE himfelf ordains, 
 With wreaths of triumph, to reward our pains. 
 Wide to receive us ftand the Theban gates ; 
 A fpacious entry, op'ned by the fates, 
 To take definition in ; their turrets ftand 
 Defencelefs, and expert the flaming brand. 
 Now let us (hatch th'occafion while we may, 
 Years wafte in vain and perilh by delay, 
 That,Thebes o'erthrown, our tedious toils may ceafc, 
 And we behold our native walls in peace. 
 
 TYDIPES
 
 148 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 TYDIDES thus: the antient warrior burns 
 With indignation juft, and thus returns : 
 O fon ! unworthy of th' illuflrious line 
 From which you fpring ; your fire's reproach and 
 
 mine ! 
 
 Did I e'er teach you, juftice to difclaim ; 
 And fbeal, by treachery, diihoneft fame ? 
 The truce fubfifts with all the reft; are we 
 Alone excepted, unengaged and free ? 
 Why, warriors ! do not then thefe hoftile tow'rs, 
 Againft us, fend at once their martial pow'rs? 
 And are we fafe, but tliat the treaty ftands 
 A^id from unequal force protects our bands ? 
 In this our foes confide ; the dead they burn, 
 And mix with tears their alhes in the urn. 
 Their tow'rs defencelefs, and their gates unbarrM, 
 Shall we with wrongs their confidence reward ? 
 No ; tho' each warrior of this num'rous band 
 Should yield to execute what you command ; 
 Yet would not I, obedient to thy will, 
 $lot my long labors with a deed fo ill, 
 
 Whatever
 
 B O O K V. 149 
 
 Whatever hard or dang'rous you propofe, 
 Tho' old and weak, I fhun not, nor oppofe : 
 But what die gods command us to forbear, 
 The prudent will avoid, the braved fear. 
 He faid ; and to the ground his buckler flung; 
 On the hard foil the brazen orbit rung : 
 The reft, approving, dropt upon the field 
 His pond'rous jav'lin, each, and mining fhield. 
 
 THE warlike fon of Tydeus flraight refign'd, 
 To dire diforder, all his mighty mind, 
 And fudden wrath ; as when die troubled air, 
 From kindled light'ning, mines with fiery glare : 
 With fury fo inflam'd, the hero burn'd, 
 And frowning to Deiphobus returned : 
 I know thee, wretch ! and mark thy conflant aim, 
 To teach the hoft their leader thus to blame. 
 L&ng have I borne your pride ; your rev'rend age, 
 A guardian's name, fupprefs'd my kindling rage : 
 But to protect your infolence, no more 
 Shall thefe avail, and fcreen it as before, 
 
 m
 
 150 THE EPIGONIAD. 
 
 HE faid ; and more his fury to provoke, 
 Replying thus, the aged warrior fpoke : 
 Vain youth ! unmovM thy angry threats I hear ; 
 When tyrants threaten, flaves alone mould fear: 
 To me is ev'ry fervile part unknown, 
 To glory in a fmile, or fear a frown. 
 Your mighty fire I knew by counfel rul'd; 
 His fierceft tranfports fober reafon cool'd. 
 But wild and lawlefs, like the flormy wind, 
 The fport of pailion, impotent, and blind, 
 The defp>rate paths of folly you purfue, 
 And fcorn inftruction with a lofty brow : 
 Yet know, proud prince ! my purpofe I retain, 
 And fee thy threatening eye-balls roll in vain : 
 Never, obfequious to thy mad command, 
 Againft the foe I'll lift a hoflile hand ; 
 Till, righteoufly fulfil'd, the truce expires 
 Which heav'n has witnefs'd and the facred fires. 
 
 HE faid ; and, by his fliarp reproaches flung, 
 With fudden hand, his launce the hero flung : 
 
 Too
 
 B O K V. 151 
 
 Too Cure the aim ; his faithful friend it found, 
 And opened in his fide a deadly wound : 
 Stagg'ring he fell ; and, on the verge of death, 
 In words like thefe refign'd his parting breath : 
 O Diomed, my fon ! for thee I fear : 
 Sure heav'n is angry, and its vengeance neart 
 For whom the gods diftinguiih by their hate, 
 Themfelves are made the miniilers of fate ; 
 Far from their fide, the deftin'd viclims diive 
 Their friends intent to fuccor and retrieve. 
 Ere yet their vengeance falls, the pow'rs invoke, 
 While uninflied hangs the fatal ftroke ; 
 And rule the tranfpoits of your wrath, left fear 
 Make found advice a ftranger to your ear. 
 Speaking he dy'd ; his gen'rous fpirit fled 
 To mix with heroes in th' Elyfian {hade. 
 
 AMAZ'D, at firft, th'Etolian warriors ftood; 
 No voice, no a&ion, thro' the wond'ring crowd; 
 Silent they flood, like rows of foreft trees, 
 When JOVE'S dread thunder quells die fummer 
 breeze : 
 
 But
 
 152 THE EPIGONIAD. 
 
 But foon on ev'ry fide a tumult rofe, 
 Loud, as the ocean, when a tempefl blows; 
 Diforder wild the mingling ranks confounds, 
 The voice of forrow mix'd with angry founds. 
 On ev'ry fide againft the chief appears 
 A brazen bulwark rais'd of Melds, and fpears, 
 Threat'ning revenge. But from his thigh he drew 
 His ftiining blade, and on the phalanx flew ; 
 With gefture fierce the threatening fteel he wav'd 
 But check'd its fury, and the people fav'd: 
 As the good Ihepherd fpares his tender flock, 
 And lightens, when he flrikes, the falling crook. 
 The crowd dividing fhun'd the hero's ire ; 
 As from a lion's rage the fwains retire, 
 When dreadful o'er the mangled prey he {lands, 
 By brandiiVd darts unaw'd and flaming brands. 
 
 AND now the flame of fudden rage fuppreft, 
 Remorfe and forrow ftung the hero's breaft. 
 Diftra&ed thro' the fcatt'ring crowd he went, 
 And fought the dark recefles of his tent ; 
 
 He
 
 BOOK V. 153 
 
 He enter'd : but the menial fervants, bred 
 To wait his coming, flraight with horror fled. 
 Againft the ground he dalh'd his bloody dart ; 
 And utter'd thus the fwellings of his heart : 
 Why fly my warriors? why die menial train, 
 Who joy'd before to meet me from the plain, 
 Why ftiun they now their lord's approach ; nor bring, 
 To wafti my bloody hands, the cleanfmg fpring ? 
 Too well, alas ! my fatal rage they know, 
 To them more dreadful now than to the foe ; 
 No enemy, alas ! this fpear has ftain'd, 
 With hoftile gore in glorious battle drain'd : 
 My guardian's blood it mews, whofe hoary hairs 
 Still watch'd my welfare with a father's cares. 
 Thou Pow'r fupreme ! whofe unrefifted fway 
 The fates of men and mortal things obey ! 
 If wife and good, why did thy hand impart 
 So fierce an impulfe to this bounding heart ? 
 By fary rul'd and impotent of mind, 
 No awe reftrains me, and no tie can bind ; 
 Hence, by the madnefs of my rage o'erthrown, 
 My father's friend lies murder'd, and my own. 
 
 U Ho
 
 i 5 4 THE E PI G O N I A D. 
 
 He faid ; and, yielding to his fierce defpairy 
 With both his hands he rent his rooted hair ; 
 And, where his' locks in fliining ringlets grew,' 
 A load of allies from the hearth he threw, 
 Rolling in dufl : but now around the flain 
 His warriors flood, aiTembled on the plain ; 
 For total infurre&ion ripe they flood ; 
 Their angry murmurs rofe to tumult loud. 
 
 ULYSSES foon the dire diforder heard; 
 And prefent to explore the caufe appear'd : 
 The hero came, and, 'midft the warriors, found 
 Deiphobus extended on the ground. 
 A flopd of forrow flarted to his eyes, 
 But foon he check'd each fymptom of furprrze 
 With prudent care ; while prefling round the chief 
 Each flrove to fpeak the univerfal grief: 
 Their mingled fpears in wild diforder fliook; 
 Like the lharp reeds along fome. winding brook, 
 When thro' the leaflefs woods the north wind blows, 
 Parent of ice and thick defcending fnows : 
 
 Now 
 U
 
 BOOK V. 155 
 
 Now fell revenge had bath'd in dreams of blood, 
 And pow'r in vain- her defp'rate courfe withftood : 
 B'at Ichacus, well fkill'd in ev'ry art 
 To- fix, or change each purpofe of the heart; 
 Their ftern decrees by foft perfuafion broke ; 
 And anfw'ring, thus with prudent purpofe fpoke : 
 Warriors ! your gen'rous rage approve I muft; 
 Dire was the deed ; the purpos'd vengeance juft ; 
 But, when the kings in full aflembly fit ; 
 To them the crime, and punifhment commit : 
 For rafli procedure wrongs the fairefl caufe ; 
 And private juftice flill infults the laws. 
 Now to your tents your fliields and launces bear ; 
 Thefeus expecls us, and the hour is near : 
 The altars flame ; the priefts in order {land, 
 With facrifice, to hallow ev'ry band : 
 And to the covert of a tent convey, 
 Sav'd from the fcorching winds and folar ray, 
 Thefe dear remains ; till Thefeus has decreed 
 DifUnguifh'd obfequies to grace the dead. 
 The hero thus ; and, from his moulders, threw 
 The regal cloak of gold, and ihining blue ; 
 
 Which '
 
 156 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Which o'er the {lain, with prudent care, he fpread, 
 His ghaftly features, from the cro\yd, to {hade. 
 Thrice to his eyes a flood of forrow came ; 
 Thrice on the brink he check'd the gufiiing.ftreani 
 In acl to flow ; his rifing fighs fuppreft ; 
 Patient of grief, he lock'd it in his breafl. 
 
 THE
 
 THE 
 
 E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 BOOK VI. 
 
 r T^O fad defpair th'Etolian chief refignM, 
 
 And dire remorfe,whichftung his tort ur'd mind, 
 From early dawn, in duft extended lay, 
 By all abandon'd till the fetting ray. 
 'Twos then Caffandra came ; and, at the door, 
 Thrice call'd her lord : he ftarted from die floor ; 
 In fullen majefty his chair of flate, 
 Full in the midil oppofed to the gate, 
 The hero prefs'd : the anxious maid drew near, 
 By love excited, and reftrain'd by fear : 
 Trembling before the chief me flood ; and held 
 A bowl of wine with temp'ring mixtures quell'd ; 
 The fragrant juice which fam'd Thefprotia yields, 
 The vintage of her cliffs, and fanny fields. 
 
 And
 
 158 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 And thus : Dread lord ! reje not with difdain 
 
 A prefent offer'd by a humble fwain. 
 
 This bowl receive, of gentle force to chaviii 
 
 Diftrefs, and of its rigor grief difarm. 
 
 How vain to grieve for ever for the pail ! 
 
 No hour recals the a&ious of the lafl ; 
 
 Nor groans, nor iighs, nor ftreams of forrow Ihed, 
 
 From their long {lumber can awake the dead. 
 
 When death's ftern powV his iron fceptre lays 
 
 On the cold lips, the vital fpirit ftrays 
 
 To worlds unknown? nor can -the dead perceive 
 
 The tears of friends or lovers when they grieve. 
 
 To footh his pafiion, thus the virgin try'd; 
 With wonder, thus th'Etolian chief reply'd : 
 Say who you are, who thus approach my feat, 
 Unaw'd by good Deiphobus's fate ? 
 When all avoid my prefence, nor appear, 
 By indignation baiiifli'd, or by fear. 
 What is thy name ? what deed of mine could bind 
 To friendthip fo unchang'd thy conftant mind ; 
 Still to iurvive the horror of a crime, 
 Whofe-color blots the regifters of time ? 
 
 THE
 
 .( B O 0;,K VI. 159 
 
 THE hero thus. Gaflandra thus replies : 
 Iplikles is my name ; my countty lies 
 Where Antirrihum's rocky mores divide, 
 Extende4 in the deep> th' Ionian tide. 
 There dwells my fire pofleft of ample (lore, 
 In flocks and herds and gold's refulgent ore. 
 CEneus his name ; his- veflels on the main, 
 From rich Hefperia.waft him yearly gain, 
 And that fam'd land, whofe promontories run 
 Far to the weft,- beneath the fetting fun ; 
 Where ev'ry cliff with veins of filver gleams, 
 And lands of gold lie glitt'ring in the ftr earns. 
 In Hymen's facred ties two Tons he bred, 
 .Me, and my valiant brother Ly corned. 
 The youngeft I, was charg'd his flocks to keep: 
 My brother rul'd his galleys on the deep. 
 Once as he left Iberia's wealthy more, 
 With Boetic fleeces fraught and precious ore; 
 Phoenician pirates waited on the ftrand, 
 Where high Pachynus ftretches from the land ; 
 In that fam'd iile where JEtna lifts his fpires, 
 With fmoke obfcure, and blows his fulph'rous fires- 
 
 Behind
 
 160 THE E P I G N I A D. 
 
 Behind die cliffs conceal'd, the treach'rous band 
 Waited the Greeks, defcending on the {brand : 
 My brother there with twenty youths they flew ; 
 Their fudden arrows from an ambufti flew. 
 Dire was the deed ; and flill my forrows ftream, 
 Whene'er that argument of woe I name, 
 And grief prevails ; but, in your prefence, mod ; 
 You flill recal the brother whom I loft : 
 For fuch he was in lineaments efface, 
 In martial ftature, and majeftic grace ; 
 Tho'lefs in all; in form inferior far ; 
 And ftill, tho' valiant, lefs in works of war. 
 Hence, deeply rooted in my conftant heart, 
 You challenge, as your own, a brother's part : 
 And I alone, of all the hoft, remain 
 To fhare your grief and fuffer in your pain. 
 
 THUS by an artful tale, the virgin flrove 
 To fhun difcov'ry, and conceal her love. 
 Yet ftill her looks, her geftures, all exprefs'd 
 The maid; her love in blufhes flood confefs'd. 
 
 Tvdide?
 
 B O O K VI. 161 
 
 Tydides faw; and quickly, to his thought, 
 Each circumftance the fair CafTandra brought. 
 Silent he fat ; and fix'd in deep furprize, 
 Her flufiiing features mark'd and downcaft eyes. 
 He thus reply'd : The native truth reveal ; 
 And, what I afk you, hope not to conceal. 
 Or lhall I credit what you now have faid, 
 GEneus your fire, your brother Ly corned? 
 Or art thou fhe, whofe beauty fiiil did move, 
 Within my peaceful bread, the rage of love? 
 
 WITH look and voice fevere, the hero fpoke. 
 Aw'd and abafti'd, the confcious virgin ihook; 
 She dropt the filver goblet on the ground ; 
 The fragrant liquor drench'd the pavement round 
 And thus Tydides with a frown addrefs'd t 
 Thy art is ufelefs, and the truth confefs'd ; 
 Nor can that fair difguife of martial arms 
 And male attire, conceal thy fatal charms. 
 Thofe eyes I fee, whofe foft inchantment ftole 
 My peace ; and ftir'd a temped in my foul : 
 
 X By
 
 162 THE E P I'-G O N I A D. 
 
 By their mild fight, in innocence array'd, 
 To guilty madnefs was my heart betray'd. 
 Deiphobus is dead ; his mournful ghoil, 
 Lamenting, wanders on the Stygian coaft ; 
 And blames my wrath. Oh! that die fun, which gave 
 Light to this birth, had fet upon thy grave ; 
 And he had liv'd ! now lifelefs on the plain 
 A corpfe he lies, and numbered with the (lain. 
 
 THE hero ended thus ; with melting eye, 
 The virgin turn'd, unable to reply. 
 In forrow graceful, as the queen of love 
 Who mourn'd Adonis in the Syrian grove, 
 Confounded and abaOi'd, me left the tent, 
 And thro' the hoft in filent anguilh went, 
 Far to the left ; where, in a lonely wood, 
 To Ceres built, a rural temple flood ; 
 By fwains frequented once, but now the place 
 Unfightly mrubs o'erfpread and weeds difgrace. 
 Thither Caflandra went ; and at the ilirine, 
 With fuppliant voice addrefs'd the pow'r divine : 
 
 Hear
 
 BQOK vi. i6 3 
 
 Hear me, dread genius of this facred grove ! 
 Let my complaints thy fov'reign pity move. 
 To feek the friendly fhelter of thy dome, 
 Yv r hh heart unftain'd, and guiltlefs hands, I come 
 Love is my crime ; and, in thy rural feat, 
 From infamy, I leek a fafe retreat. 
 B; blame unmerited, and cold negleft, 
 Banifh'd I come; receive me and protedl 
 She pray'd, and ent'ring, 'gainfl a pillar, {laid 
 Her launce j and on the floor her armor laid. 
 Then falling proftrate pour'd a flood of tears, 
 With prefent ills opprefs'd and future fears. 
 
 'TWAS then the herald of the queen of love, 
 Zelotype, defcended in the grove, 
 By Venus fent ; but ftill her couniels fail'd ; 
 And Pallas with fuperior fway prevail'd : 
 The phantom enter'd, and affum'd a form, 
 Pale as the moon appearing thro' a florm ; 
 In Amyclea's fhape difguis'd (he came ; 
 The fame her afpect, and her voice die fame. 
 
 Caflandra
 
 164 THE EPIGONIA'D. 
 
 Caflandra faw, and fudden horror froze 
 Her veins ; ereft her paited locks arofe, 
 Stir'd from the root : impatient thus the maid, 
 With trembling lips, in fault'ring accents, faid : 
 My lov'd, my honor'd, parent ! have my groans, 
 From death's deep flumber, rous'd thy facred bones: 
 I hop'd that nothing could your peace moleft ; 
 Nor mortal cares diflurb eternal reft ; 
 That fafe for ever on th' Elyfian more, 
 You heard of human mifery no more. 
 
 CASSANDRA thus ; and thus the Paphian maid : 
 Your gen'rons love, my child, is ill repaid ; 
 Your griefs I feel, and bear a parent's part ; 
 Tho' blood no more returns to warm my heart ; 
 And that, which firlt your mortal being bred, 
 To dull lies mould'ring, in its earthy bed. 
 To Calydon, my child, with fpeed return ; 
 Your father grieves ; your gay companions mourn ; 
 He deems you loft, and defp'rate of his ftate, 
 By grief fubdu'd, invokes his ling'ring fate : 
 
 Inceflant
 
 BOOK VI. 165 
 
 IncejTant tears bedew his wrinkled face, 
 And afhes foul his hoary locks difgrace. 
 Return, return ! nor let misjudging pride, 
 With further errors, ftrive the paft to hide. 
 Return, once more to blifs his aged eyes, 
 Or, by your guilty flay a parent dies. 
 
 SHE ended thus. Her arms Cailandra fpred 
 To fold, in clofe embrace, the parting made ; 
 In vain ; for, ftarting from her grafp, it flew, 
 And, gliding thro* the mady walks, withdrew, 
 And now the virgin waits the riling morn, 
 With purpofe fk'd impatient to return. 
 When, thro' the broken clouds, a glimm'ring ray 
 Of early dawn foretold approaching day ; 
 The fpear me grafp'd, and on her temples plac'd 
 The golden cafque, with various plumage grac'd; 
 Tydides' gift ; when in the ranks of fight 
 The brave Clytander funk beneath his might. 
 The gods me call'd ; and, bending to the ground, 
 Their aid invok'dwith reverence profound. 
 
 Thejj
 
 166 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Then left die dome ; and where Ifraenus flfay?, 
 Winding thro' thickefl woods his wat'ry maze, 
 Her way purlu'd : a hoflile band drew near ; 
 Their tread (he heard, and law their armor clear ; 
 Chief of the Theban youth ; the herds they drove, 
 
 -And flocks collected from the hills above. 
 For thus, the Paphian goddefs had betray'd, 
 To hands of cruel foes, the guiltlefs maid ; 
 Whom Thebes might hold an hoflage for her lord, 
 To awe him, and reflrain his wafleful fword. 
 BY fudden terror check'd, at firft me flood; 
 Then turn'd, and fought the covert of the wood ; 
 Nor fo efcap'd : her glitt'ring armor ilioiie, 
 The flarry helmet and the lofty cone, 
 Full to the glowing eafl ; its golden rays 
 Her winding flight betray'd thro' all its maze. 
 The Thebans faw ; and, ruining 'midfl the Iliad e 
 With ftiouts of triumph, feiz'd the trembling maid. 
 Amaz'd and pale, before the hoftile band, 
 She flood ; and dropt the jav'lin from her hand : 
 O fpare my life ! me cry'd, nor wealth, nor fame 
 
 .To purchafe in the works of war, I came. 
 
 No
 
 BOOK VI. 167 
 
 No hate to you, I bear, nor Creon's fway 
 Condemn, whofe laws the fons of Thebes obey : 
 Me haplefs friendfliip hither led, to (hare, 
 With Diomed, the dangers of the war. 
 I now return and quit the martial flrife, 
 My iire to fuccor on the verge of life ; 
 Who crufh'd beneath a load of forrow bends, 
 And to the grave, with painful fteps, defcends. 
 But if the plea of pity you rejecl, 
 The ftronger ties of equity refpect : 
 A truce we fwore ; JOVE witnefled the deed; 
 On him who breaks it, vengeance will fucceed. 
 
 THUS as the virgin fpoke, Phericles ey'd 
 The arms me wore ; and fternly thus reply'd : 
 Ill-fated wretch ! that panoply to wear; 
 The fame my brother once in fight did bear ; 
 Whom fierce Tydides, with fuperior might, 
 Overthrew and vanquilW in the ranks of fight. 
 If with his foe my brother's fpoils you ihar'd, 
 A mark of love, or merited reward j 
 
 Prepare
 
 168 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Prepare to yield them and refign thy breath ; 
 To vengeance due : Clytander claims thy death. 
 
 FROWNING he fpoke, and drew his mining blade; 
 Beneath tl\e lifted fteel, th' unhappy maid 
 Confounded ftoop'd : Mencetius catch'd die flroke 
 On his broad fhield; and interpofmg fpoke : 
 Brave youth! refped my counfel, and fufpend 
 The fudden vengeance which you now intend. 
 The chiefs and rulers of the Theban ftate^ 
 In full aflembly, at the Cadmean gate, 
 A monument for great Leophron rear ; 
 His name, atchievements, and deicent to bear. 
 Tliither let this devoted youth be led, 
 An off'ring grateful to the hero's ihade : 
 Nor mail Clytander lefs the deed approve ; 
 Or friendly zeal applaud, and feel our love j 
 When fame mall tell, in Pluto's gloomy reign, 
 How {lern Tydides mourns this warrior flain. 
 Thus ignorantly they ; nor knew the peace 
 Of happy patriots, when their labors ceale ; 
 That fell revenge and life-coniuming hate 
 Find 110 admittance, to molefl their ftate. 
 
 AND
 
 BOOK VI. 169 
 
 AND now they led the captive crofs the plain ; 
 Scarce could her trembling knees their load fuftain ; 
 Thrice had her fault'ring tongue her fex reveal'd, ' 
 But confcious fhame oppos'd it and conceal' d . 
 Their monarch at the Cadniean gate they found, 
 In mournful ftate, with all his peers around. 
 Oblations to Leophron's mighty (hade, 
 In honey, milk, and fragrant wines they paid. 
 And thus Lycaon's fon addrefs'd the king : 
 A grateful off 'ring to your rites we bring. 
 This youth, the friend of Diorned, we found, 
 Clad in the armor which Clytander own'd ; 
 My brother's fpoils, by Diomed pofleit, 
 When his keen jav'lin pierc'd the hero's bread. 
 Soon had my rage the hoflile deed repaid, 
 With vengeance grateful to his mournful mads ; 
 But public griefs the firft atonements claim, 
 And heroes of a more diflinguiih'd name. 
 Leophron, once his country's pride and boaft; 
 Andremon too, the bulwark of the hoft, 
 His blood demand ; for when their fouls mall know 
 The fweet revenge, in Pluto's ftiades below, 
 
 Y Pleas'd
 
 i;o THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Pleased with our zeal, will each illuftrious ghoft, 
 With lighter footfleps, prefs th'Elyiian coaft. 
 
 HE fpoke; the princes all at once incline; 
 The reft, with ihouts, applaud the dire defign. 
 An altar foon of flow'ry turf they raife : 
 On ev'ry fide, the facred torches blaze : 
 The bowls, in Ihining order, plac'd around ; 
 The fatal knife was whetted for the wound. 
 Decreed to periih, flood the helplefs fair ; 
 Like fome foft fawn, when, in the hunter's fnare 
 Involv'd, me fees him from his feat arife, 
 His brandiftYd truncheon dreads, and hears his cries : 
 Silent the ftands, to barb'rous force reiign'd, 
 In anguifh foft, dillblv'd her tender mind. 
 The priefts in order ev'ry rite prepared ; 
 Her neck and bofom, for the blow, they bar'd ; 
 The helmet loos'd, the buckled mail unbound, 
 Whofe mining circles fenc'd her neck around. 
 Down funk the fair dilguife ; and full to fight 
 The virgin flood, with charms divinely bright. 
 
 The
 
 BOOK VI. 171 
 
 'The comely ringlets of her flowing hair, 
 Such as the wood-nymphs wear, and Naiades fair, 
 Hung loofe ; her middle by a zone embrac'd, 
 Which fix'd the floating garment round her waifl. 
 Venus herfelf divine eifulgence ftied 
 O'er all her flature, and her lovely head ; 
 Such as in fpring the color'd bloflbms Ihow, 
 When on their op'ning leaves the zephyrs blow : 
 Amazement feiz'd the chiefs ; and all around, 
 With murmurs mix'dthe wond'ring crowds refound. 
 Mofl vote to fpare : the angry monarch cries : 
 Ye minifters, proceed ! the captive dies. 
 Shall any here, by weak compaflion mov'd, 
 A captive fpare by flern Tydides lov'd ? 
 The fcourge of Thebes, whofe wide deftroying hand 
 Has tMn'd our armies in their native land, 
 And flam my fon : by all the gods I fwear, 
 Whofe names, to cite in vain, the nations fear, 
 That none, he loves, mall ever fcape my rage : 
 The vulgar plea I fcora, of fex, or age. 
 Ev'n me, who now appears with ev'ry grace 
 Adom'd, each charm of ftature and of face; 
 
 Ev'n
 
 J7 i THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Ev'n tho' from Venus (he could claim the prize, 
 Her life to vengeance forfeited, flic dies. 
 
 STERNLY the monarch ended. All were flill, 
 And heard, without reply, the fov'reign will : 
 Lycaon's valiant fon except ; alone 
 His gen'rous ardor thus oppos'd the throne : 
 Dread fov'reign ! liflen with a patient ear, 
 And what I now mall offer, deign to hear. 
 When firft by force we feiz'd this captive maid, 
 The truce was vi'lated, our faith betray'd ; 
 And juftice, which, in war and peace, prevails* 
 Alike, and weighs their deeds with equal fcales, 
 Her freedom claims, with prefents to atone 
 For what our rage perfidioufly has done : 
 Let us not, now, to further wrongs proceed; 
 But fear the curfe for perjury decreed. 
 
 PHERICLES thus : and, with a flern regard, 
 His indignation thus the king declar'd : 
 Vain giddy youth ! forbear, with factious breath, 
 To roufe my juflice to pronounce thy death ; 
 
 In
 
 BOOK VI. i 73 
 
 In oppofition, firft of all you move, 
 While others hear in filence, and approve. 
 Your bold prefumption check, and learn to dread 
 My vengeance thund'red on your wretched head. 
 
 FROWNING he ended thus: his threats defy'4, 
 With gen'rous heat Phericles thus reply'd : 
 Princes ! attend, and truft my words fmcere ; 
 The king I honor, and his will revere, 
 When truth gives fanclion to his jufl commands, 
 Nor common right in oppofition Hands : 
 Yet gen'rous minds a principle retain, 
 Which promifes and threats attempt in vain, 
 Which claims dominion, by the gods impreft, 
 The love of juflice in the human bread : 
 By this infpirM, againfl fuperior might, 
 I rife undaunte4 in the caufe of rjght. 
 And now, by all th' avenging gods, I fwear, 
 Whofe names, to cite in vain, the nations fear $ 
 That no bold warrior of the Theban bands, 
 This maid mall violate with hoflile hands ; 
 
 While
 
 174 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 While thefe my arms have force th e launce to wield, 
 And lift in her defence this pond'rous {hi eld, 
 Not ev*n the king himfelf, whofe fov'reign fway 
 The martial fons of facred Thebes obey. 
 
 HE faid; and, by his bold example fir'd, 
 Twelve warriors rofe, with equal zeal infpir'd. 
 With fliining fteel, the altar they furround, 
 The fire now naming, and the vicYim crown'd. 
 On ev'ry fide in wild diibrder move 
 The thick compacted crowds ; as when a grove, 
 Rock'd by a fudden whirlwind, bends and flrains, 
 From right to left, along the woodland plains : 
 Fell difcord foon had rag'd, in civil blood, 
 With wide deftruftion not to be withRood; 
 For from his feat the angry monarch fprung, 
 And lifted, for the blow, the fceptre hung : 
 3ut 'midfl: the tumult Clytophon appear'd , 
 Approv'd for wifdom, and with rev'rence heard. 
 Straight, by the robe, the furious chief he feiz'd, 
 And thus, with fage advice, his wrath appeas'd : 
 
 Hear,
 
 B O K VI. 175 
 
 Hear, mighty prince ! refped the words of age, 
 And calm the wafteful tempeft of thy rage ; 
 The public welfare to revenge prefer, 
 For n|tions fuffer when their fov'reigns err. 
 It ill becomes us now, when hoflile pow'rs 
 With ftrifteft fiege invefl our ftrak'ned tow'rs ; 
 It ill becomes us thus, with civil arms, 
 To wound the flate,'and aggravate our harms. 
 Hear, all ye princes ! what to me appears 
 A prudent counfel, worthy of your ears : 
 Let us inquire, if in our hands we hold 
 A life efleem'd by Dioined the bold : 
 If, in his bread, thofe tender pafTions move, 
 Which youth and beauty kindle and improve j 
 Our mandates freely to his tent we fend, 
 For to our will his haughty foul muft bend : 
 Nor dares he, while die Theban walls retain 
 A pledge fo dear, oppofe us on the. plain ; 
 But muft fubmit, whenever we require, 
 Or with his pow'rs to aid us, or retire. 
 
 HE faid; the monarch painfully fuppreft 
 His burning rage, and lock'd it in his brealt 
 
 He
 
 i;6 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 He thus reply'd: Thy prudent \vords infpire 
 Pacific counfels, and fubdue mine ire : 
 But if in peace I rul'd the Theban flate, 
 Nor hoftile armies thund'red at my gate ; 
 They had not dar'd, with infolence and fpight, 
 My counfels to oppofe and fcorn my might. 
 He faid, and to his feat again retir'd ; 
 While fudden traufport ev'ry breaft infpir'd; 
 As fwains rejoice, when, from the troubled Ikies, 
 By breezes fwept, a gathered tempeft flies; 
 With wilh'd return the fun exerts his beams, 
 To chear the woods and gild the fliining flreams. 
 
 MEAN while Tydides, thro' the tented plain, 
 With wiihing eyes, Caflandra fought, in vain ; 
 At ev'ry leader of the bands inquired ; 
 Then, fad and hopelefs, to his tent retir'd. 
 Twas then his grief the bounds of filence broke, 
 And thus in fecret to himfelf he fpoke : 
 Me fure, of all men's fons, the gods have curfl 
 With their chief plagues, the greatefl and the worft ; 
 
 Dooitfd
 
 BOOK VI. f;7 
 
 Doom'd to difafters, .from my earlieft hour ; 
 Not wife to ftmn nor patient to endure. 
 From me the fource, 'unnumber'd ills proceed 
 To all my 'friends; Deiphobus is dead ! 
 His foul excluded feeks the nether fkies, 
 And wrong'd Caflandra from my prefence flies. 
 Me furely, at my birth, the gods defign'd 
 Their rod of wrath, to fcourge the human kind ; 
 For {laughter form'd, with brutal fury brave, 
 Prompt to deftroy, 'but impotent to fave. 
 How could my madnefs blame thee, gen'rous maid! 
 And, with my crime, thy innocence upbraid ! 
 Deiphobus is fall'n ! but not by thee ; 
 Thy only fault, alas! was love to me: 
 For this, -in plated fteel thy limbs were drefs'd, 
 A weighty mi eld thy tender arm opprefs'd : 
 For this, thou didfl to hbftile fields repair, 
 And court fuch objefts as diftrad the fair; 
 Patient above thy Tex ! an ill reward, 
 Blame and unjiift reproach, was all you fhar'd. 
 By my unkindnefs banim'd, now you roam, 
 And feek, thro' perilous paths, your diflant home : 
 Z To
 
 i 7 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 To mountain wolves expos'd, a helplefs prey, 
 And men unjufl more terrible than they. 
 Save" her, ye gods ! . and let me {land the aim 
 Of JOVE'S all-dreaded bolt, and fcorching flame. 
 
 THUS plain'd die hero till the fetting ray 
 Withdrew, and ev'ning ihades expel'd the day ; 
 Then in his tent, before his lofty feat, 
 Appeared a herald from the Theban flate ; 
 The hero's knees, with trembling hands, he prefsM, 
 And with his meflage thus the chief addrefs'd : 
 Hear, foighty prince ! the tidings which I bring, 
 From Thebes aflembled, and the Theban king. 
 An armed warrior of your native train, 
 At early dawn, was feiz'd upon the plain. 
 What others did, forgive, if I relate ; 
 Creon commands me and the Theban flate. 
 A fairer youth, in martial arms, ne'er came 
 To court bright honor in the fields of fame. 
 A cafque of poliili'd fleel his temples prefs'd, 
 The golden cone with various plumage drefs'dj 
 
 A
 
 BOOK VL ' 179 
 
 A filver mail embrac'd his' body round, 
 And greaves of brafs his {lender ancles bound: 
 To Thebes well known the panoply he wore, 
 The fame, which once, renown'd Clytander bore. 
 Our warriors drag'd him to the Cadmean gate, 
 Where Creon, with the rulers of the ftate, 
 Aflembled fat ; the trembling captive flood, 
 With arms furrounded, and th'infulting crowd. 
 
 fpare my life! he cry'd, nor wealth, nor fame 
 To purchafe in the works of war, I came. 
 
 No hate to you, I bear, or Creon's fway, 
 Whofe fov'reign will the fons of Thebes obey. 
 Me lucklefs friendihip hither led, to (hare, 
 With Diomed, the dangers of the war. 
 
 1 now return, and quit the martial flrife, 
 My fire to fuccor on the verge of life ; 
 Whofe feeble age the pfefent aid demands, 
 And kind afliftance of my filial hands. 
 
 His words inclin'd the wifeft and the beft, 
 And fome their gen'rous fympathy expreft : 
 But fa5tious multitudes, his guiltleis head 
 With threats, demanded, to avenge the dead : 
 
 And
 
 i8o THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 And thus the king: My countrymen, attend? 
 In this, let all your loud contention end; 
 If Diomed, to favethis valu'd life, 
 The field abandons and the martial fbife ; 
 The captive fafe, with prefents, I'll reftore, 
 Of brafs, and fteel, and gold's refulgent ore : 
 But if thefe terms the haughty chief mall flight, 
 And for the Argives ftill exert his might ; 
 Before our heroes' tombs, this yOuth fhall bleed, 
 To pleale the living, and avenge the dead. 
 His fentence all approved; and to your. ear, 
 From Thebes aflembled, I the meflage bear ; 
 And muft your anfwer crave,, without delay ; 
 The multitude already blames my flay. 
 
 . 
 
 THUS as he fpoke, contending paflions flroye, 
 With force oppos'd, the hero's foul to move j 
 As fhifting winds impel the ocean's tide, 
 And fway the reeling waves from fide to fide :. 
 Rage diftated revenge ; but tender fear, 
 From love and pity, warn'd him to forbear : 
 
 Till,
 
 BOOK VI. iBi 
 
 Till, like a lion, fiercer from his pain, 
 Thefe words broke forth in wrath and high difdain : 
 Go, tell your tyrant, that he tempts a foul,- 
 Whch prefents cannot win, nor threats control : 
 Not form'd, like his, to mock at ev'ry tie ; 
 With perjury to fport, and heav'n defy, 
 A common league the Argive leaders fwore, 
 And feal'dthe facred tie with wine and gore : 
 My faith was plighted then, and -ne'er (hall fail, 
 NorCreon's arts, to- change -me, anght avail. 
 But tell him load, that all the hoft may^hear, 
 And Thebes thro' all her warriors learn to fear; 
 If any, from himfelf, or by command, 
 The captive violates with hoftile hand ; 
 That all mall quickly rue the guilty deed, 
 When, to requite it, multitudes mall bleed. 
 
 STERNLY the hero ended, and rcfign'd, 
 To fierce diforder, all his mighty mind. . 
 Already in his thoughts, with vengeful hands. 
 He dealt deflruaion 'midfl the Theban bands, 
 
 lu
 
 tSa THE E P.I G O N I A D. 
 
 In fancy faw the tott'ring turrets fall, 
 And led his warriors o'er the fevel'd wall. 
 Ro us'd with the thought, from his high feat he fprung ; 
 And grafp'd the fword, which 'midfl his armor hung ; 
 The finning blade he balanc'd thrice in air ; 
 His launqe he next review'd, and armor fair. 
 When, hanging 'midfl die coflly panoply, 
 A fcarf embroider'd met the hero's eye, 
 Which fair Caflandra's Ikilful hands had wrought; 
 A prefent for her lord, in fecret brought, 
 That day, when firft he led his martial train 
 In arms, to combat on the Theban plain. 
 As fome ftrong charm, which magic founds coinpofe, 
 Sufpends a downward torrent as it flows ; 
 Checks in the precipice its headlong courfe, 
 And calls it trembling upwards to its fource : 
 Such feem'd the robe, which, to the hero's eyes, 
 Made the fair artift in her charms to rife. 
 His rage, fufpended in its full career, 
 To love refigns, to grief and tender fear. 
 Glad would he now his former words revoke, 
 And change the purpofe which in wrath he fpoke; 
 
 From
 
 B O O K VI. 183 
 
 From hoflile hands his captive fair to gain, 
 From fate to fave her, or the fervile chain :. 
 Bat pride, and ihame, the fond defign fuppreft; 
 Silent he flood, and lock'd it in liis breaft. 
 
 BUT now the wary Theban had divin'd, 
 By fymptoms fure, each motion of his mind : 
 With joy he faw the heat of rage fupprefs'd ; 
 And thus again his artful words addrefs'd : 
 Illuflrious prince ! with, patience bend thine ear, 
 And what I now mail offer, deign to hear. 
 Of all the griefs, diflrefsful mortals prove, 
 The woes of friendihip molt my pity move. 
 You much I pity, and the youth regret, 
 Whom you too rigidly refign to fate ; 
 Expps'd, alone, no friend to fuccor near, 
 The fcorn and cruelty of foes to bear. 
 O that my timely counfel might avail, 
 For love, and fympathy, to turn the fcale ! 
 That Thebes releas'd from thy devouring fword, 
 The captive honor'd, and with gifts reflor'd ; 
 
 We
 
 i8 4 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 We yet might dare to hope, and you again 
 Enjoy the pleafures of -your -native reign. 
 
 INSINUATING thus, the herald tryM 
 His aim to compafs; and the chief reply'd : 
 In vain you drive to fway my conftant mind ; 
 Pll riot depart while Thefeus flays behind : 
 Me nothing e'er, to change my faith, {hall move, 
 By men attefted, and the gods above : 
 But fince your lawlefs tyrant has detain'd 
 A valu'd lioftage, treacheroufly gain'd ; 
 And dire injuftice only will reflore 
 When force compels, or profferM gifts implore : 
 A truce I grant, till the revolving fun, 
 Twice ten full circuits of his journey run, 
 ^rom the red ocean, points the morning ray, 
 And on the fteps of darknefs pours the day : 
 Till then, from fight and council I abftain, 
 Nor lead my pow'rs to combat on the plain : 
 For this, your monarch to my tent fliall fend 
 The captive, and from injuries defend. 
 
 Tliis
 
 BOOK VI. i5 
 
 This prefer is my laft ; in vain will prove 
 All your attempts my fixed mind to move : 
 If Thebes accepts it, let a fign declare, 
 A flaming torch, difplay'd aloft in air, 
 From that high tow'r, whofe airy top is known 
 By trav'lers from afar, and marks the town ; 
 The fane of JOVE : biit if they mall rejeft 
 The terms I fend,. -nor equity refped: ; 
 They foon mall feel the fur}- of mine ire, 
 In wafleful havoc, and the rage of fire. 
 
 THE hero thus ; and round his moulders flung 
 A ftiaggy cloak, with vulgar trappings hung ; 
 And on his head a leathern helmet plac'd, 
 A boar's rough front with grilly terrors grac'd ; 
 A fpeaf he next aflum'd, and pond'rous mield, 
 And led the Theban, ifluing to the field. 
 Amidft furrounding guards they pafs'd unfeen, 
 For night had flretch'd her friendly Ihade between ; 
 Till nearer, thro' the gloom, the gate they knew j 
 The herald enter'd, and the chief withdrew ; 
 
 A a But
 
 ,86 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 But turning oft on Thebes his eager eyes, 
 The fignal, on the tow'r, at laft he fpies ; 
 A flaming torch, upon the top, expos'd, 
 Its ray at once his troubled mind compos'd : 
 Such joy he felt, as when a watch tower's light, 
 Seen thro* the gloom of fome tempefluous night, 
 Glads the wet mariner, a ftar to guide 
 His lab'ring vefiel, thro' the (lormy tide. 
 
 THE
 
 THE 
 
 E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 BOOK VII. 
 
 OW filent night the middle fpace pofleft 
 Of heav'n, or journey'd downwards to the 
 
 weft : 
 
 But Creon, ftill with thirft of vengeance fir'd, 
 Rej5ofe declin'd, nor from his toils refpir'd ; 
 But held his peers in council to debate 
 Plans for revenge fuggefted by his hate. 
 Before the king Dienices appear'd ; 
 To fpeak his tidings fad, the hero fear'd ; 
 Return'd from Oeta ; thither fent to call 
 Alcides to proted his native wall. 
 
 AND
 
 i88 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 AND Creon thus : Dienices ! explain 
 Your forrow ; are our hopes of aid in vain ? 
 Does Hercules negleft his native foil ; 
 While ftrangers reap the harvefl of his toil : 
 We from your filence cannot hope fuccefs j 
 But further ills your flowing tears confefs : 
 Cleon my fon is dead ; liis fate you mourn ; 
 I muft not hope to fee his fafe return. 
 Sure, if he liv'd, he had not come the laft ; 
 But found his father with a filial hafte. 
 His fate, whatever it is, reveal ; nor fear, 
 With any tale of woe, to wound mine ear, 
 Proof to misfortune : for the man, who knows, 
 Like me, difafters and a length of woes, 
 Can ftand unmov'd tho' loads of forrow prefs ; 
 Prac~tis'd to bear, familiar with diflrefs, 
 
 TH E monarch thus inquir'd ; and thus the youth : 
 Too well thy boding fear has found die truth. 
 Cleon is dead ; the hero's allies lie 
 Where Pelion's lofty head afcends the Iky. 
 
 For
 
 BOOK VII, 189 
 
 For as, on Oeta's top, he vainly drove 
 
 To win the arrows of the fon of JOVE ; 
 
 Compelling Philoftetes, to reiign, 
 
 The friend of Hercules, his arms divine ; 
 
 The infult to repel, an arrow flew, 
 
 And from his heart die vital current drew : 
 
 Proftratehe funk ; and welling from the wound, 
 
 A flood of gore impurpled all the ground. 
 
 THUS fpoke Dienices. The king fuppreil 
 His big diftrefs, and lock'd it in his breaft : 
 Sighing he thus reply'd ; The caufe declare, 
 Which holds the great Alcides from the war ; 
 And why another now, the bow commands 
 And arrows facred, from his mighty hands. 
 Nor fear my valiant fon's untimely fate, 
 With all its weight of forrow, to relate : 
 All I can bear. Againft my naked heat}, 
 I fee the vengeance of the gods decreed; 
 With hoftile arms befet my tott'ring reign ; 
 The people wafted, and my children {lain. 
 
 Attempt*
 
 1 9 o THE E P I G. N I AD. 
 
 Attempts prove fruitlefs ; ev'ry hope deceives ; 
 And, for the joy it promised, forrow gives. 
 In fwift approach, I fee deftraftion come ; 
 But with a mind unmov'd, I'll meet my doom ; 
 Nor (lain this war-worn vifage with a tear, 
 Since all that heav'n has purpos'd, I can bear. 
 The monarch thus his riling grief fupprefs'd ; 
 And thus the peers Dienices addrefs'd : 
 PRINCES of Thebes ! and thou, whofe fov'reigu 
 
 hand 
 
 Sways the dread fceptre of fupreme command ! 
 To what I offer, lend an equal ear ; 
 The tntth I'll fpeak, and judge me when you hear. 
 If Cleon, by my fault, no more returns, 
 For whom, her fecond hope, his country mourns ; 
 No doom I deprecate, no torture fly, 
 ' Which juftice can denounce, or rage apply : 
 But if my innocence appears, I claim 
 Your cenfure to efcape, and public blame. 
 
 FROM Marathon by night our courfe we fteer'd, 
 And pafs'd Geraftus when the day appeared ; 
 
 Andros
 
 BOOK VII. 191 
 
 Andros we faw, with promontories deep, 
 Afcend ; and Delos level with the deep. 
 A circuit wide ; for where Euripus roars 
 Between Euboea and the Theban mores, 
 The Argives had difpos'd their naval train ; 
 And prudence taught to ihun the hoflile plain. 
 Four days we fail'd ; the fifth oiir voyage ends, 
 Where Oeta, Hoping to the fea, defcends. 
 The vales I fearch'd, and woody heights above, 
 Guided by fame, to find the fon of JOVE ; 
 With Cleon only : for we charg'd the band 
 To (lay, and guard our veffel on the ftrand. 
 In vain we fearch'd ; but \yhen the lamp of day 
 Approach'd die ocean with its fetting ray, 
 A cave appear'd, which from a mountain deep, 
 Thro' a low valley, look'd into the deep. 
 Thither we turn'd our weary fteps, and fouii J 
 The qavern hung with favage fpoils around ; 
 The wolf's grey furr, the wild boar's ihaggy hide, 
 The lion's mane, the panther's fpeckled pride : 
 Thefe figns we mark'd ; and knew the rocky feat, 
 Some folitary hunter's wild retreat. 
 
 Farther
 
 ici THE E -P I G N I A D. 
 
 Farther invited by a glimm'ring ray, 
 Which thro' the darknefs flied uncertain day, 
 In the recefTes of the cave we found 
 The club of Hercules ; and wrapt around 
 Which, feen before, we knew, the lion's fpoils, 
 The mantle which he wore in all his toils. 
 Amaz'd we flood ; in filence, eacli his mind 
 To fear arid hope alternately refign'd : 
 With joy we hop'd to find the hero near ; 
 The club and mantle found, difpos'd to fear. 
 His force invincible in fight we knew, 
 Which nought of mortal kind could e'er fubdue, 
 But fear'd Apollo's might, or his who heaves 
 "Hie folid earth, and rules the flormy waves. 
 
 POND'RING we flood; when on die roof above, 
 The tread of feet defcending thro' the grove 
 Which crown'd the hollow cliff, amaz,'d we heard j 
 And flraight before die cave a youth appear'd. 
 A bleeding buck acrofs his moulders flung, 
 Ty'd with a rope of twifled ruihes, hung. 
 Prefs'd by the weight upon a bow he lean'd, 
 Of fiz,e unufual, which his fleps fuflaiu'd. 
 
 He
 
 BOOK VII. 193 
 
 He dropt his burden in the gate, and plac'd, 
 Againfl the pillar'd cliff, his bow unbrac'd. 
 Twas then our footfteps in die cave he heard, 
 And thro' the gloom our ihining arms appear'd. 
 His bow he bent ; and backwards from the rock 
 Retir'd, and, of our purpofe queft'ning, fpoke : 
 Say who you are, who feek this wild abode, 
 Thro' defart paths, by mortals rarely trod? 
 If juil, and with a fair intent you come, 
 Friendfhip expecl, and fafety in my dome : 
 But if for violence ; your danger learn, 
 And truft my admonition when I warn : 
 Certain as fate, where'er this arrow flies, 
 The haplefs wretch, who meets its fury, dies : 
 No buckler to refill its point avails, 
 The hammer'd cuirafs yields, the breafl-plate fails; 
 And where it once has drawn the purple gore, 
 No charm can cure, no med'cine health rellore. 
 
 WITH threats he queftion'd thus ; and Cleon faid ; 
 We come to call Alcides to our aid ; 
 By us the fenators of Thebes entreat 
 The hero, to protect his native {late : 
 
 B b For
 
 i 9 4 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 For hoflile arms invefl the Theban tow'rs ; 
 Famine within, without the fword, devours. 
 If you have learn'd where Hercules remains, 
 In mountain caves, or hamlets on the plains, 
 Our way direcl ; for, led by gen'ral fame, 
 To find him in thefe defart wilds \ve came. 
 HE fpoke ; and Philo&etes thus again : 
 May JOVE, for Thebes, fome other aid ordain; 
 For Hercules no more exerts his might, 
 Againft oppreffive force, for injur'd right : 
 Retir'd, among the gods, he fits ferene, 
 And views, beneath him far, this mortal fcene : 
 But enter now this grotto, and partake 
 What I can offer, for the hero's fake : 
 With you from facred Thebes he claim'd his birth, 
 For god-like virtue fam'd thro' all the earth; 
 And me to virtue's facred paths inclin'd, 
 Taught by his deeds, and honored as his friend. 
 Enter ; for now the doubtful twilight fails; 
 And o'er the filent earth the night prevails : 
 From the moift vall'eys noxious fogs arifc, 
 To wrap die rocky heights, and {hade the ikies, 
 v THE
 
 BOOK VH. 195 
 
 THE cave we enter'd, and his bounty mar'd ; 
 A rural banquet by himfelf pvepav'd. 
 But foon the rage of third and hunger flay'd, 
 My mind flill doubtful, to the youth I faid : 
 Mufl hapleis Thebes, defpairing and undone, 
 Want the ailiftance of her braveft fon ? 
 The hero's fate explain, nor grudge mine ear 
 The fad affurance of our lofs to hear. 
 I queftion'd thus. The youth, with horror pale, 
 Attempted to recite an awful tale ; 
 Above the fabled woes which bards rehearfe, 
 When fad Melpomene infpires the verfe. 
 
 THE wife of JOVE (Poeonides reply'd) 
 All arts in vain to crufh the hero try'd ; 
 For brighter from her hate his virtue burn'd ; 
 And difappointed flill, the Goddefs mourn'd. 
 His ruin to effeft at lafl Ihe ftrove 
 By jealoufy, the rage of injur'd love. 
 The bane to Deianira's breaft convey'd, 
 Who, as a rival, fear'd th* Oechalian maid. 
 
 The
 
 196 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 The Goddefs knew, that jealous of her lord, 
 A robe Hie kept with latent poiibns flor'd ; 
 The centaur's gift, bequeadi'd her, to reclaim 
 The hero's love, and light his dying flame ; 
 If e'er, devoted to a {Granger's charms, 
 He ftray'd, unconftant to her widow'd arms : 
 Bat giv'n with treacherous intent to prove 
 The death of nature, not the life of love. 
 Mad from her jealoufy, the charm me try'd; 
 His love to change, the deadly robe apply'd : 
 And, guildefs of die prefent which he bore, 
 Lychas convey'd it to the Ccenian lliore. 
 For there to all the gods the. hero paid 
 An hundred victims, for their friendly aid : 
 When favor'd from above, his arm o'erdirew 
 The proud Eurytus, and his warriors flew. 
 The venom'd robe the hero took, nor fear'd 
 A gift by conjugal refpefts endear'd : 
 And ftraight refign'd the lion's ftiaggy fpoils, 
 The mande which he wore in all his toils. 
 No fign of harm the fatal prefent fliow'd ; 
 Till rous'd by heat its fecret venom glow'd ; 
 
 Straight
 
 BOOK VII. 197 
 
 Straight on the flefli it feiz'd, like ftiffeft glue, 
 An4 fcorcliing deep, to ev'ry member grew. 
 Then tearing with his hands th' infernal fnare, 
 His fkin he rent, and laid the mufcles bare ; 
 "While dreams of blood, defceuding from the wound, 
 IMix'd \vith the gore of victims on the ground. 
 The guiltlefs Lychas, in his furious mood, 
 He feiz'd, as trembling by his fide he flood : 
 Him, by the {lender ancle fnatch'd, he fwung ; 
 And'gainlt a rocky promontory flung : 
 Which, from the dire event, his name retains ; 
 Thro' his white locks impurpled rufh'd the brains. 
 Aw'd by the deed, his defp'rate rage to fhun, 
 Our bold companions from his prefence ran : 
 I too, conceal'd behind a rock, remain'd ; 
 My love and fympathy by fear reflrain'd: 
 For furious 'midfl the facred fires he flew ; 
 The victims fcatterM, and the hearths o'erthrew. 
 Then finking proflrate, where a tide of gore 
 From oxen flain had blacken'd all the ihore, 
 His form divine he roll'd in duft and blood; 
 
 His groans die hills re-echo'd and the flood. 
 
 Then
 
 1 9 S THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Then rifing furious, to the ocean's ftreams 
 He ruih'd, in hope to quench his raging flames j 
 But burning ftill the unextinguiih'd pain, 
 The more he left, and ftretch'd into the main. 
 A galley, on the Coenian beach we found ; 
 Her furled canvafs to the breez,e unbound ; 
 And trac'd his defp'rate courfe, till far before 
 We faw him land on Oeta's defart ftiore. 
 Towards the fkies his furious hands he rear'd, 
 And thus, acrofs the deep, his voice we heard : 
 
 SOV'REIGN of heav'n and earth ! whofe boundlefs 
 
 fway 
 
 The fates of men and mortal tilings obey I 
 If e'er delighted from the courts above, 
 In human form, you fought Alcmena's love ; 
 If fame's unchanging voice to all the earth, 
 With truth, proclaims you author of my birth ; 
 Whence, from a courfe of fpotlefs glory run, 
 Succefsful toils and wreaths of triumph won, 
 Am I thus wretched ? better, that before 
 Some monfter fierce had drunk my flreaminggore ; 
 
 Or
 
 B ' O O K VII. 199 
 
 Or crnfh'd by Cacus, foe to gods and men, 
 My batter'd brains had flrew'd his rocky den : 
 Than, from my glorious toils and triumphs pad, 
 To fall fubdu'd by female arts, at laft. 
 O cool my boiling blood, ye winds, that blow 
 From mountains loaded with eternal fnow, 
 And crack the icy cliffs : in vain ! in vain ! 
 Your rigor cannot quench my raging pain ! 
 For round this heart the furies wave their brands, 
 And wring my entrails with their burning hands. 
 Now bending from the Ikies, O wife of JOVE ! 
 Enjoy the vengeance of thy injur'd love : 
 For fate, by me, the Thund'rer's guilt atones ; 
 And, puniih'd in her fon, Akmena.groans : 
 The object of your hate {hall foon expire ; 
 Fix'd on my ftiOulders preys a net of fire : 
 Whom nor the toils nor dangers could fubdue, 
 By falfe Euryftheus dictated from you ; 
 Nor tyrants lawlefs, nor the monflrous brood, 
 Which haunts the defart or infefts the flood, 
 Nor Greece, nor all the barb'rous climes that lie 
 Where Phoebus ever points his golden eye ; 
 
 A
 
 *2oo THE E P.I G O N I A D, 
 
 A woman hath o'erthrown ! ye gods! 1 yield 
 To female arts, unconquer'd in the field. 
 My arms alas! are thefe die fame that bow'd 
 Anteus, and his giant force fubdu'd? 
 That drag'd Nemea's monfter from his den ; 
 And dy'd, with dragon's gore, the Lernean fen ? 
 Alas, alas ! their mighty mufcles fail, 
 While .pains infernal ev'ry nerve aflail : 
 Alas, alas ! I feel in flreams of woe 
 Thefe eyes diflblv'd, before untaught to flow. 
 Awake my virtue, oft in dangers try'd, 
 Patient in toils, in deaths unterrify'd, 
 Roufe to my aid ; nor let my labors paft, 
 With fame atchiev'd, be blotted by the lafl : 
 Firm and unmov'd, the prefent (hock endure ; 
 Once triumph, and for ever reft fecare. 
 
 THE hero thus ; and grafp'd a pointed rock 
 With both his arms, which ftraight in pieces broke, 
 Crufli'd in his agony : then on his bread 
 Defcending proftrate, further plaintjiipprefl:. " 
 
 And
 
 BOOK VII. 201 
 
 And now the clouds, in dufky volumes fpread, 
 Had darken'd all the mountains with their (hade : 
 The winds withhold their breath ; the billows reft ; 
 The iky's dark image on die deep impreft. 
 A bay for fhelter, op'ning in the ftrand, 
 We faw, and ileer'd our veffel to the land. 
 Then mounting on the rocky beach above, 
 Thro' the thick gloom, defcry'd the fon of JOVE. 
 His head, declin'd between his hands, he lean'd ; 
 His elbows on his bended knees fuilain'd. 
 Above him flill a hov'ring vapor flew, 
 Which, from his boiling veins, the garment drew. 
 Thro' the thick woof tf e faw the fumes afpire ; 
 Like fmoke of victims from the facred fire. 
 Compaflion's keeneft touch my bofoin thrill'd ; 
 My eyes, a flood of melting forrow nlTd : 
 Doubtful I flood ; and pond'ring in my mind, 
 By fear, and pity, varioufly inclin'd, 
 Whether to ihun the hero, or eflay, 
 With friendly words, his torment to allay : 
 When broiling from above with hideous glare, 
 A flood of light'ning kindled all the ah". 
 
 C c From
 
 *0 2 THE EPIGONI-A D. 
 
 From Oeta's top it rufti'd in fudden flreams ; 
 The ocean redden'd at its fiery beams. 
 Then, bellowing deep, the thunder's awful found 
 Shook the firm mountains and the mores around. 
 Far to the eaft it roll'd, a length of fky j 
 We heard Euboea's rattling cliffs reply 
 As at his mailer's voice a fwain appears, 
 When wak'd from fleep his early call he hears, 
 The hero rofc ; and to the mountain turn'd 
 Whofe cloud-involved top with light'ning burn'd : 
 And thus his fire addrefs'd : With patient mind, 
 Thy call I hear, obedient and refign'd ; 
 Faithful and true the oracle ! which (poke, 
 In high Dodona, from the facred oak ; 
 " That twenty years of painful labors part:, 
 11 On Oeta's top I fliould repofe at laft :" 
 Before, involv'd, the meaning lay conceal'd ; 
 But now I find it in my fate reveal'd. 
 Thy fov'reign will I blame not, which denies, 
 With length of days, to crown my victories : 
 Tho' (till with danger and diftrefs engag'd, 
 For injur'd right eternal war I wagM
 
 BOOK VII. 203 
 
 A life of pain, in barb'rous climates, led, 
 The heav'n's my canopy, a rock my bed : 
 More joy I've felt than delicacy knows, 
 Or all the pride of regal pomp bellows. 
 Dread fire ! thy will I honor and revere, 
 And own thy love with gratitude fincere, 
 Which watch'd me in my toils, that none could boaft 
 To raife a trophy from my glory loft: 
 And tho'at laft, by female arts o'ercome, 
 And unfufpefted fraud, I find my doom ; 
 There to have fail'd, my honor ne'er can make. 
 Where vice is only (Irong and virtue weak. 
 
 HE faid ; and turning, to the cloudy height, 
 The feat of thunder, wrapt in fable night, 
 With fteps undaunted trod the fteep afcent; 
 An earthquake rock'd the mountain as he went. 
 Back from the making mores retir'd the flood ; 
 In horror loft, my bold companions flood, 
 To fpeech or motion : but the prefent pow'r 
 Of love infpir'd me, in that awful, hour j 
 
 With
 
 204 THE EPIGONIAD. 
 
 With trembling fteps, I trac'd die fon of JOVE ; 
 And law him darkly on the fteep above, 
 Thro' the thick gloom. The thunder's awful noife 
 Ceas'd ; and I call'd him thus with feeble voice : 
 O fon of mighty JOVE ! thy friend await ; 
 Who comes to comfort thee, or (hare thy fate. 
 In ev'ry danger and diftrefs before, 
 His part your faithful Philoftetes bore. 
 Suffer me ftill to tend you ; and receive 
 The comfort which a prefent friend can give, 
 Who comes obfequious for your laft commands, 
 And tenders to your need his willing hands. 
 
 Mv voice he heard ; and from the mountain's brow 
 Saw me afcending on the fteep below. 
 To favor my approach his fteps he ftay'd ; 
 And pleas'd, amidft his anguim, fmiling faid : 
 Approach, my Philocletes ! Oft I've known 
 Your friendly zeal in former labors mown : 
 The prefent, more than all, your love proclaims, 
 Which braves theThund'rer's bolts and volley'd 
 
 flames; 
 
 With
 
 BOOK VII. 205 
 
 With daring ftep, the rocking earthquake treads, 
 While the firm mountains fliake their trembling 
 
 heads. 
 
 As my laft gift, thefe arrows, with the bow, 
 Accept ; the greateil which I can beflow ; 
 My glory all my wealth ; of pow'r to raife 
 Your name to honor and immortal praife ; 
 If for wrong'd innocence your (hafts mall fly, 
 As JOVE by figns direcls them from the iky. 
 
 STRAIGHT from his mighty moulders, as hefpoke, 
 He loos'd and lodg'd them in a cavern'd rock ; 
 To lie untouch'd, till future care had drain'd 
 Their poifon from the venom'd robe retain'd. 
 And thus again : The only aid I need, 
 For all my favors paft, the only meed, 
 Is, that, with vengeful hand, you fix a dart 
 In cruel Deianira's faithlefs heart : 
 Her treach'rous meflenger already dead, 
 Let her the author of his crime fucceed. 
 This awful fcene forfake without delay ; 
 In vain -to mingle with my fate you (lay : 
 
 No
 
 zoo* THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 No kind affiftance can my ftate retrieve, 
 Nor any friend attend me, and iurvive. 
 
 THE hero thusliis tender care expreft, 
 And fpred his arms to clafp me to his breaft ; 
 But foon withdrew them, left his tainted veins 
 Infeftion had convey'd and raging pains : 
 Silent I ftood in ftreams of forrow drown'd, 
 Till from my heait theie words a paiFage found : 
 
 bid me not forfake thee, nor impofe 
 What wretched Philocletes muft refufe. 
 
 By him I fwear, wliofe prefence, now proclaim 
 The thunder's awful voice and forked flame, 
 Beneath whofe fteps the trembling defart quakes, 
 And earth affrighted to her center makes; 
 
 1 never will forfake thee, but remain 
 
 While ftruggling life thefe ruin'd limbs retain: 
 No form of fate mall drive me from thy fide, 
 Nor death with all its terrors e'er divide ; 
 Tho' the fame ftroke our mortal lives mould end, 
 One flafti con fume us, and our allies blend. 
 
 I
 
 BOOK VII. 207 
 
 I fpoke; and to the cloudy fteep we turn' d ; 
 Along its brow the kindled forefl burn'd. 
 The favage brood, defcending to the plains, 
 The fcatter'd flocks and dread diftraded fwains, 
 Rufh'd from the making clilfs: we faw them come, 
 In wild diibrder mingled, thro' the gloom. 
 And now appealed the defart's lofty head, 
 A narrow rock with foreft thinly fpread. 
 His mighty hands difplay'd aloft in air, 
 To JOVE the hero thus addrefs'd a pray'r : 
 Hear me, dread pow'r ! whofe nod controls the fkiesy 
 At whofe command the winged light'ning flies : 
 Almighty fire ! if yet you deign to own 
 Alcmena's wretched offspring as your foil ; 
 Some comfort in my agony impart, 
 And bid thy forked thunder rend this heart : 
 Round my devoted head it idly plays ; 
 And aids the fire, which waftes me, with its rays ; 
 By heat inflam'd, this robe exerts its pow'r, 
 My fcorched limbs to Ihrivcl and devour; 
 Upon my ihoulders, like a dragon, clings, 
 Ai}d fixes yi my flefh a thoufand flings. 
 
 preat
 
 208 THE EPIGONIAD. 
 
 Great fire ! in pity to my fuit attend, 
 And with a fudden ftroke my being end. 
 
 As thus the hero pray'd, the tightening ceas'd, 
 And thicker darknefs all the hill embraced. 
 He faw his fuit deny'd : in fierce defpair, 
 The rooted pines he tore, and cedars fair ; 
 And from the crannies of the rifted rocks, 
 Twilled with force immenfe the flubborn oaks. 
 Of thefe upon the cliff a heap he laid, 
 And thus addrefs'd me, as I flood difmay'd: 
 Behold, my friend ! the ruler of the ikies, 
 In agony invok'd, my fuit denies : 
 But fare the oracle infpir'd from heaven, 
 Which in Dodona's facred grove was given, 
 The truth declar'd; " that now my toils mall ceafe, 
 " And all my painful labors end in peace:" 
 Peace, death can only bring : the raging fmart, 
 Warpt with my vitals, mocks each healing art. 
 Not all the plants that clothe die verdant field, 
 Nor all the health a thoufand mountains yield,
 
 BOOK VIL 209 
 
 Which on their tops the fage phyfician gleans, 
 Or feeks in darknefs thro' their fecret veins, 
 This fire can quench. And therefore, to obey 
 My laft" commands, prepare without delay. 
 When on this pile you fee my limbs compos'd, 
 Shrink not, but hear what mud not be oppos'd ; 
 Approach, and, with an unrelenting hand, 
 Fix, -in the boughs beneath, a Earning brand. 
 I mud not longer trufl this madding pain, ; 
 Left fome raih deed {hould all my glory flain. 
 Lychas I flew upon die Coenian more, 
 Who knew not, fure, the fatal gift he bore : 
 His guilt had taught him elfe to fly, nor wait, 
 Till from my rage he found a fudden fate. 
 I will not Deianira's aclion blame ; 
 Let heav'n decide, which only knows her aim : 
 Whether from hate, with treacherous intent, 
 This fatal garment to her lord (he fent ; 
 Or, by the cunning of a foe betray'd, 
 His vengeance, thus imprudently convey'd. 
 If this, or that, I urge not my command, 
 Nor claim her fate from thy avenging hand : 
 
 D d To
 
 4io THE E P I G N I A D. 
 
 Tolodge my lifelefs bones, is all I crave, 
 Safe and uninjur'd in the peaceful grave. 
 
 THIS with a hollow v.olce and alter'd look, 
 In agony extreme, the hero Ipoke. 
 I pour'd a flood of forrow, and withdrew, 
 Ainidft the kindled groves, to pluck a bough ; 
 With which the flruclure at the bafe I fir'd : 
 On ev'ry fide the pointed flames afpir'd. 
 Bat ere involving fmoke the pile inclos'd, 
 I faw the hero on the top repos'd ; 
 Serene as one who, near the fountain laid. 
 At noon enjoys the cool refrefhing fliade. 
 The venom'd garment hifs'd ; its touch the fires 
 Avoiding, flop'd oblique their pointed fpires : 
 On ev'ry fide ihe parted flame withdrew, 
 And level'd, round the burning ftruclure, flew. 
 At laft vi&orious to the top they rofe ; 
 Firm and unmov'd the hero faw them clofe. 
 His fooil, unfetter'd, fought the bleft abodes, 
 To mingle with the children of the gods. 
 
 His
 
 BOOK VII. an 
 
 His bones in earth, with pious hands, I laid ; 
 The place to publiih nothing {hall perfuade ; 
 Left tyrant, now unaw'd, and men unjuft, 
 With.infults, fliould profane Ms facred duft. 
 E'er fmce, I haunt this folitary den, 
 Retir'd from all the biify paths of men ; 
 For thefe wild mountains only fuit my ft ate, 
 And footh, with kindred gloom, my deep regret. 
 
 HE ended thus : amazement long fupprefs'd , 
 My voice ; but Cleon anfw'ring thus addreis'd : 
 Brave youth! you offer, to our wond'ring ears, 
 Events more awful than tradition bears. 
 Fix'd in my mind the hero's fate remains, 
 I fee his agonies, and feel his pains. 
 Yet fuifer, that for haplefs Thebes I mourn, 
 Whofe faireft hopes die envious fates o'erturn. 
 If great Alcides liv'd, her tow'rs fliould ftand 
 Safe and protected by his mighty hand : 
 On you, brave youth! our fecoud hopes depend; 
 To you the arms of Hercules defcend. 
 
 He
 
 212 THE EPIGONIAD. 
 
 He did not, fure, thofe glorious gifts bellow, 
 The (hafts invincible, the mighty bow ; 
 From which the innocent protection claim, 
 To dye the hills with blood of favage game. 
 Such toils as thefe your glory ne'er can raife, 
 Nor crown your merit with immortal praife ; 
 And with the great Alcides, place your name, 
 To fland diflinguifh'd in the rolls of fame. 
 
 THE hero thus. The fon of Pean faid: 
 Myfelf, my arms, I offer for your aid ; 
 If fav'ring from the Ikies, the figns of JOVE 
 Confirm what thus I purpofe and approve. 
 For when Alcides, with his laft commands, 
 His bow and ftiafts committed to my hands j 
 Succefs he promis'd only, if I fought, 
 As JOVE before by auguries had taught. 
 But thefe the rifing fun will befl difclofe; 
 The feafon now invites to foft repofe, 
 
 HE faid; and, from the hearth a flaming bough, 
 To light us thro' the fhady cavern, drew. 
 
 Far
 
 BOOK VII. 213 
 
 Far in the dark recefs, a rocky bed 
 We found, with Ikins of mountain monfters, fpread. 
 There we compos'd our weary limbs, and lay, 
 Till darknefs fled before the morning ray. 
 Then rofe, and climb'd a promontory ffceep, 
 Whofe rocky brow, impending o'er the deep, 
 Shoots high into the air, and lifts the eye, 
 In boundiefs flretch, to take a length of iky. 
 With hands extended to th* ethereal height, 
 The pow'r we call'd, who rules die realms of light ; 
 That fymbols fure his purpofe might explain, 
 Whether the youth mould aid us, or refrain : 
 We pray'd; and on the left along the vales, 
 With pinions broad difplay'd, an eagle fails. 
 Ap near the ground his level flight he drew, 
 He (loop'd, and bruili'd the thickets as he flew ; . 
 When, flatting from the center of a brake, 
 With horrid liifs appear'd a crefted fnake : 
 Her young to guard, her venom'd fangs .Ihe rear'd ; 
 Above the Ihrubs her wavy length appear'd; 
 Againft his fwift approaches, as he flew, 
 PIJ ev'ry fide her forked tongue me threw, 
 
 And
 
 2i 4 THE P I G O N I A D. 
 
 And armed jaws ; but wheeling from the fiiare 
 The fwift alTailant Hill efcap'd in air; 
 Till milling with his pounces (harp, he tore 
 Her purple creft, and drew a dream of gore. 
 She wreath'd ; and, in the fiercenefs of her pain, 
 Shook die long tliickets with her twitted train : 
 Relax'd at laft, its fpires. forgot to roll, 
 And, in a hifs, (he breath'd her fiery foul : 
 Then, (looping from above, die bird of JOVE 
 Down to the bottom of the thicket drove ; 
 The young defencelefs from the covert drew; 
 Devour'd diem ftraighr, and to the mountains flew. 
 This omen feen, another worfe we hear ; 
 The fubterraneous thunder greets our ear : 
 The worft of all the figns which angurs know ; 
 A dire prognoftic of impending woe. 
 
 AMAZ'D we flood, till Philoftetes broke 
 Our long dejecled filence thus, and fpoke : 
 Warriors of Thebes ! the auguries dilluade 
 My purpofe, and withhold me from your aid ; 
 
 The'
 
 BOOK VII. 215 
 
 Tho' pity moves me, and ambition draws, 
 
 To (hare your labors and aflert your caufe ; 
 
 In fight the arms of Hercules to (how, 
 
 And from his native ramparts drive the foe. 
 
 But vain it is againft the gods to drive ; 
 
 Whofe counfels ruin nations or retrieve ; 
 
 Without their favor, valor nought avails, 
 
 And human prudence felf-fubverted fails; 
 
 For irrefiftibly their councils guide 
 
 All human things, and good and ill divide. 
 
 Let all your princes at the altars wait, 
 
 And long proceflibns crowd each facred gate : 
 
 With facrifice appeas'd, and humble pray*r, 
 
 Their omens fruftrated, the gods may fpare. 
 
 To day my guefts repofe ; to morrow fail, 
 
 If heav'n propitious fends a profp'rous gale : 
 
 For, threat'ning fudden dorms, the fouthern breeze 
 
 Forbids you now to truft the faithlefs feas. 
 
 THE hero thus; in filence fad, we mournM; 
 And to the folkary cave return'd, 
 
 Dcfpairing
 
 THE/ EPIGONlAD. 
 
 Defpairing of fuccefs ; our grief he mar'd, 
 And fpr relief a chearing bowl prepar'd; 
 The vintage which the grape fpontaneous yields, 
 By art untutorM, on the woodland fields, 
 He fought with care/ and mingled in die bowl, 
 A plant; of pow'r to calm the troubled foul; 
 Its name Nepenthe ; fwains, on defart ground, 
 Do often glean it, elfe but rarely found ; 
 This in the bowl he mix'd ; and foon we found, 
 In foft oblivion, all our farrows drown'd : 
 "We felt no more the agonies of care, 
 And hope, fucceeding, dawn'd upon defpair. 
 From morn we feafted, till the fetting ray 
 Retir'd, and ev'ning {hades expelM the day ; 
 Then in the dark recefles of the cave, 
 To {lumbers foft, our willing limbs we gave : 
 But ere the morning, from the eaft, appear'd, 
 And fooner than the early lark is heard, 
 Cleon awak'd, my carelefs {lumber broke, 
 And bending to my ear, in whifpers fpoke ; 
 Dienices ! while here we refl fecure, 
 We think not what our citizens endure. 
 
 The
 
 BOOK VII. 217 
 
 .."The word the flgns have threatened, nought appeal's 
 With happier afpecl to difpel our fears ; 
 Alcides lives not, and his friend in vain 
 To arms we call, while auguries reftrain : 
 Returning thus, we bring the Theban ftate 
 But hopes- deceiv'd, and omens of her fate : 
 Better fuccefs our labors fhall attend, 
 Nor all our aims in difappoiqtment end ; 
 If you approve my purpofe, nor diffuade 
 "What now I counfel for your country's aid. 
 Soon as the fun difplays his early beam, 
 Tlie arms of great Alcides let us claim; 
 Then for Bceotia's mores direcl our fails ; 
 And force muil fecond if perfuafion fails : 
 Againil reproach neceffity mall plead ; 
 And all, who hear it, juflify the deed. 
 
 THE hero thus, and ceas'd : \vith pity mov'd, 
 And zeal for Thebes, I ralhly thus approv'd. 
 You counfel well; but prudence would advifc 
 To work by cunning rather, and furprize, 
 
 E e Than
 
 ii8 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Than force declar'd; his venom'd Ihafts you know, 
 Which fly refiftlefs from th' Herculean bow ; 
 A fafe occafion now the filent hour 
 Of midnight yields ; when, by the gentle pow'r 
 Of carelefs (lumber bound, the hero lies, 
 Our necefTary fraud ihall fcape his eyes ; 
 Without the aid of force obtain its aim, 
 With danger lefs incurM, and lefs of blame. 
 
 I counfel'd thus ; and Cleon ftraight approv'd. 
 In filence from the dark recefs we mov'd ; 
 Towards the hearth, with wary flcps, we came, 
 The aflies ftirM, and rous'd die flumb'ring flame. 
 On ev'ry fide in vain we turn'd our eyes, 
 Nor, as our hopes had promis'd, found the prize: 
 Till to the couch, where Philocletes lay, 
 The quiver led us by its filver ray ; 
 For in a panther's furr together ty'd, 
 His bow and fhafts, the pillow's place fupply'd : 
 Thither I went with careful fteps and flow ; 
 And by degrees obtain'd th' Herculean bow : 
 
 The
 
 B O O K VII. 
 
 The quiver next to difengage effayM; 
 It (luck intangled, but at laft obeyed. 
 The prize obtain'd, we haften to the (Irand, 
 And roufe the mariners, and ftraight command 
 The canvafs to unfurl : a gentle gale 
 Favor'd our courfe, and breath'd on ev'iy fail j 
 Tlie ihores retired; and when the morning ray 
 Afcended, from the deep, th' ethereal way ; 
 Upon the right the Coenian beach appeared, 
 And Pelion on die lefc his fummit rear'd. 
 All day we fail'd ; but when the fetting light 
 Approach'd the ocean, from th' Olympian height, 
 The breeze was hufh'd; and, flretch'd acrofs the 
 
 main, 
 
 Like mountains rifing on the wat'ry plain, 
 The clouds collected on the billows flood, 
 And, with incumbent made, obfcur'd the flood. 
 Thither a current bore us ; foon we found 
 A night of vapor clofmg faft around. 
 Loofe hung the empty fail : we ply'd our oars, 
 And ftrove to .reach Eubosa's ihendly ihores ; 
 
 But
 
 20 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 But fhrove in vain : for erring from the courfe, 
 In mazes wide, the rower fpent his force. 
 Seven days and nights we try'd fome port to gain, 
 Where Greek or barb'rous (hores exclude the main ; 
 But knew not, whether backwards, or before, 
 Or on the right, or left, to feek the more : 
 Till, rifing on the eighth, a gentle breeze 
 Drove the light fog, and bruih'd the curling feas. 
 Our canvafs to its influence we fpread ; 
 And fix'd our oars, and follow' d as it led. 
 Before us foon, impending from above, 
 Thro' parting clouds, we law a lofty grove. 
 Alarm'd, the fail we flacken, and explore 
 The deeps and fhallows of the unknown more. 
 Near on the right a winding ereek appearM, 
 Tliither, directed by the pole, we fkeer'd ; 
 And landed on die -beach, by fate milled, 
 Nor knew again the port from which we fled. 
 The gods themfelves deceiv'd us : to our eyes 
 New caverns open, airy cliffs arife ; 
 That Philocletes might again poilefs 
 His arms, and heav'n our injury redrefs. 
 
 THE
 
 B O K Vn. 221 
 
 THE unknown region purpos'd to explore, 
 Cieon, with me alone, forfakes the ihore ; 
 Back to the cave we left, by angry fate 
 Implicitly conduced, at the gate 
 The injur'd youth we found ; a thick difguife 
 His native form conceal'd, and mock'd our eyes; 
 For the black locks in waving ringlets fpread, 
 A wreath of hoary white involv'd his head ; 
 Beneath a load of years, he feem'd to bend, 
 His breafl to fink, his ihoulders to afcend. 
 He faw us ftraight, and, rifing from his feat, 
 Began with iharp reproaches to repeat 
 Our crime ; but could not thus fufpicion give; 
 So ftrong is error when the gods deceive ! 
 We queftion'd of the country as we came, 
 By whom inhabited, and what its name ; 
 How far from Thebes : that thither we were bound ; 
 And thus the wary youth our error found. 
 Smoothed to deceive, his accent ftraight he turn'd, 
 While hi his breail the thirfl of vengeance burn'd ; 
 And hoping now his arrows to poflefs, 
 Thus to our queilion fpoke, with prompt addrefs : 
 
 On
 
 222 THE E P I G O NI AD. 
 
 On Ida's facred height, my gucfts ! you Hand ; 
 Here Priam rules, in peace, a happy land. 
 Twelve cities own him, on the Phrygian plain, ! 
 Their lord, and twelve fair iflands. on the main. 
 From hence to Thebes in feven days fpace you'll fail, 
 If JOVE propitious fends a profp'rous gale. 
 But now accept a homely meal, and deign 
 To (hare, what heaven affords a humble fwain. 
 
 HE faid ; and brought a bowl with vintage fifl'd, 
 From berries wild, and mountain grapes diftill'd> 
 Of largeft fize ; :and plac'd it on a rock, 
 Uader the covert of a fpreading oak; 
 Around it autumn's mellow: ftores he laid, 
 Which the fun ripens, in the woodland made. . 
 Our thirft and hunger thus at once allay'd, 
 To Cleon turning, Philodetes faid: 
 The bow you wear of fucli fuperior fizc, 
 With wonder {till I view and curious eyes ; 
 For length, for thicknefs, and the workman's art, 
 Sarpafimg all I've feeii in ev'ry part. 
 
 DISSEMBLING
 
 BOOK VH. 223 
 
 DISSEMBLING, thusinquir'd the wary yontb, 
 And thus your valiant Ton deckr'd the truth : 
 Father! the weapon, which you thus commend, 
 The force of great Alcides once did bend; 
 Theie ihafts the fame which monilers fierce fubdu'd, 
 And lawlcfs. men with vengeance juft purfu'd. 
 
 THE hero thus ; and Poean's ion again: 
 What now I afk, refufe not to explain : 
 Whether the hero ftill exerts his might, 
 For innocence oppreis'd, and injured right? 
 Or yields to fate ; and with the mighty dead. 
 From toil repofes in the Elyfian ihade ! 
 Sure, if.hc liv'd, he would not thus forgoe 
 His Ihafts invincible and mighty bow, 
 By which, he oft immortal honor gain'd 
 For wrongs redrefs'd and lawleis force reftrain'd. 
 
 THE rage fupprefs'd, which in his bofom burned, 
 He queflion'd thus ; and Cleon thus return'd : 
 What we have heard of Hercules, I'll fhow ; 
 \VJiat by report we learn'd, and what we know. 
 
 From
 
 JU4 THE E P I G O N I A D, 
 
 from Thebes to Oeta's wildernefs we went, 
 With fupplications, to the hero, fent 
 From all our princes ; that he would exert 
 His matchlefs valor on his country's part, 
 Againfl whofe flate united foes confpire, 
 And wafte her wide domain with fword and fire. . 
 There on the cliffs, which bound the neighb'ring main, 
 We found the manfion of a lonely fwain ; 
 Much like to this, but that its rocky mouth 
 The cooling north refpecls, as this the fouth ; 
 And, in a corner of the cave, conceal'd, 
 The club which great Alcides us'd to wield. 
 Wrapt in his fhaggy robe, the lion's fpoils, 
 The mantle which he wore in all his toils. 
 At ev'n a hunter in the cave appear'd ; 
 From whom the fate of Hercules we heard. 
 He told us that he faw the chief expire, 
 That he himfelf did light his fun'ral fire ; 
 And boafled, that die hero had refign'd, 
 TO him, the bow and quiver, as his friend : 
 Oft feen before, thefe deadly Ihafts we know, 
 Aod tip'd with liars of gold th' Herculean bow : 
 
 But
 
 BOOK VII. 425 
 
 But of the hero's fate, the tale he told, 
 Whether 'tis true, I cannot now unfold. 
 
 HE fpoke. The youth with indignation burti'd, 
 Yet calm in outward femblance, thus return'd : 
 I mull admire the man who could refign 
 To you, thefe arms fo precious and divine, 
 Which, to the love of fuch a friend, he owM : 
 Great was the gift if willingly beftowM : 
 By force they could not eafily be gain'd, 
 And fraud, I know, your gen'rous fouls diidain'd. 
 
 SEVERELY fmiling, thus the hero fpoke ; 
 With confcious ftiame we heard, nor filence broke : 
 And thus again : The only boon I claim, 
 Which, to your hoft deny'd, would merit blame ; 
 Is, that my hands that weapon may embrace, 
 And on the flaxen cord an arrow place ; 
 An honor which I covet ; tho' we mourn'd, 
 By great Alcides, once our ftate o'erturn'd : 
 When proud Laomedon the hero brav'd, 
 Nor paid the ranfom for his daughter fav'd. 
 
 F f DISSEMBLING
 
 226 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 DISSEMBLING thus, did Philo&etes {hive 
 His inflruments of vengeance to retrieve : 
 And, by the fates deceiv'd, in evil hour, 
 The bow and lhafts we yielded to his pow'r, 
 In mirthful mood, provoking him to try 
 Whether the weapon would his force obey ; 
 For weak he feem'd, like one whofe nerves had lofl 
 Tliro' age, the vigor which in youth they boaft. 
 The belt around his moulders firft he Hung, 
 And glitt'ring by his fide die quiver hung: 
 Comprefs'd with all his force the ilubborn yew . 
 He bent, and from die cafe an arrow drew : 
 And yielding to his rage, in furious mood, 
 With aim dired: againfl us full he flood, 
 For vengeance arm'd ; and now the thick difguife, 
 Which veil'd his form before, and mock'd our eyes, 
 Vaniih'd in air j our error dien appear'd ; 
 I faw the vengeance of the gods, and fear'd. 
 Before him to the ground my knees I bow'd, 
 And, with extended hands, for mercy fu'd. 
 But Cleon, fierce and fcorning to intreat, 
 His weapon drew, and rufti'd upon his fate : 
 
 For,
 
 BOOK VII. 227 
 
 For as lie came, the fatal arrow fent, 
 Straight to his dauntlefs bread unerring went ; 
 Supine he fell ; and, welling from the wound, 
 A tide of gore impurpled all the ground. 
 The fon of Paean Hooping drew the dart, 
 Yet warm with (laughter, from the hero's heart j 
 And turn'd it full on me : with humble pray'r 
 And lifted hands, I mov'd him {till to (pare. 
 At la/I he yielded, from his purpofe fway'd, 
 And anfw'ring thus in milder accents, faid : 
 No favor, fure, you merit ; and the caufe, 
 Of right infringed and hofpitable laws, 
 Would juftify revenge ; but as you claim, 
 With Hercules, your native foil the fame ; 
 I now mall pardon for the hero's fake, 
 Nor, tho' the means are offer'd, vengeance take. 
 But ftraight avoid myprefence, and unbind, 
 With fpeed, your flying canvafs to the wind : 
 For if again to meet thefe eyes you come, 
 No pray'rs mail change, or mitigate your doom, 
 
 WITH
 
 128 TH* E P I C N I A D. 
 
 WITH frowning afpeft thus the hero faid. 
 His threats I fear'd, and willingly obey'd. 
 Straight in his purple robe the dead I bound, 
 Then rais'd him to my ihoulders from the ground; 
 And from the hills defcending to the bay, 
 Where anchor'd near the beach our galley lay, 
 The reft conveen'd, with forrow to relate 
 This anger of the gods and Cleon's fate : 
 The hero's fate his bold companions mourn'd, 
 And ev'ry breafl with keen refcntment burn'd. 
 They incheir heady tranfports ftraight decreed, 
 His fall with vengeance to requite 'or bleed. 
 I fearM the angry gods ; and gave command, 
 With fail and oar, to fly the fatal {fcrand ; 
 Inrag'd and fad, the mariners obey'd, 
 Unfarl'd the canvafs, and the anchor weighM. 
 Our courfe, behind the weftcrn breezes iped, 
 And from the coaft with heavy hearts we fled. 
 All day they favor'd, but, 'with ev'ning.c'eas'dj 
 And ftraight a temped, from the flormy eaft, 
 In oppofition full, began to blow, 
 And rear in ridges high the deep below. 
 
 Againfl
 
 B O O K -VII. 229 
 
 Againft its boift'rous fway in vain we (trove ; ' 
 Obliquely to the Thracian coaft we drove : 
 Where Pelion lifts his head aloft in air, 
 With pointed cliffs and precipices bare ; 
 Thither our courle we ileer'd, and on the ftrand 
 Defcendi;)g, fix'd our cable to the laud. 
 There twenty days we ftay'd, and wiih'd, in vain, 
 A favorable breeze, to crofs the main ; 
 For with unceafing rage die temped rav'd, 
 And o'er the rocky beach the ocean heav'd. 
 At laft with care the hero's limbs \ve burn'd, 
 And, water'd \vith our tears^ his bones inurn'd. 
 There, where a promontory's height divides, 
 Extended in the deep, the parted tides, 
 His tomb is feen, which, from its aiiy ftand, 
 Marks to the mariner the diftant land. 
 
 THIS, princes ! is the truth; and tho* the will ' 
 Of heav'n, the fov'reign caufe of good and ill, 
 Has dalh'd our hopes, and, for the good in view, 
 \Vith griefs aftiifts us and diiailers new : 
 
 Yet
 
 230 THE E P I G N I A D. 
 
 Yet, innocent of all, I juftly claim 
 To ftand exempt from punimment, or blame. 
 That zeal for Thebes 'gainft hofphable laws 
 Prevail' d, and ardor in my country's caufe, 
 I freely have confefs'd ; but fure, if wrong 
 Was e'er permitted to inducement ftrong, 
 This claims to be excus'd : our country's need, 
 With all who hear it, will for favor plead. 
 
 HE ended thus. Unable to fubdue 
 His grief, the monarch from the throne withdrew * 
 In filent wonder fix'd, die reft remain'd; 
 Till Clytophon the gen'ral fenfe explain'd : 
 Jour juft defence, we mean not to refufe ; 
 Your prudence cenfure, or your zeal accufe : 
 To heav'n we owe the valiant Cleon's fate, 
 With each difafter which affiicls the flate. 
 Soon as the fun forfakes the eaftern main, 
 At ev'ry altar let a bull be ilain ; 
 And Thebes afTembled move the pow'rs to fpare, 
 
 With vows of facrifice and humble pray'r : 
 
 Bat
 
 BOOK VII. 231 
 
 But now the night invites to fort repofe, 
 The momentary cure of human woes ; 
 The ftars deicend; and foon the morning ray 
 Shall roufe us to the labors of the day. 
 The hero thus. In filence all approv'd, 
 And riling, various, from th' aflembly movM. 
 
 T II E
 
 THE 
 
 E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 BOOK VIII. 
 
 "OEHIND the palace, where a flream defcends, 
 
 Its lonely walks a lliady grove extends ; 
 Once facred, now for common ufe ordain'd, 
 By war's wide licence and the ax profan'd : 
 Thither the monarch, from th' afleinbly, went 
 Alone, his fury and defpair to vent, 
 And thus to heav'n : Dread Pow'r ! whole fov' 
 
 reign fway 
 
 The fates of men and moital things obey 1 
 From me expect not fuch applaufe to hear, 
 As fawning vot'ries to thine altars bear ; 
 But truth fevere. Altho' the forked brand, 
 Which for deilruclkm arms thy mighty hand, 
 
 G g Were
 
 234 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Were level'd at my head ; a 'mind I hold, 
 By prefent ills, or future, uncontrol'd. 
 Beneath thy fway, the race of mortals groan ; 
 Felicity iincere is felt by none : 
 Delufive hope th' unpra&is'd mind aflails, 
 And, by ten thoufand treach'rous arts, prevails -, 
 Thro' all the earth the fair deceiver ftrays, 
 And wretched man to mifery betrays. 
 Our crimes you punifli, never teach to fliun, 
 When, 'blind from folly, on our fate we run : 
 Hence iighs and groans thy tyrant reign confds, 
 With ev'ry rueful fymptom of diftrefs. 
 Here war unchain'd exerts his wafteful pow'r ; 
 Here famine pines ; difeafes there devour, 
 And lead a train of all die ills that know 
 To ftiorten life, or lengthen it in woe. 
 All men are curft ; but I, above the reft, 
 With tenfold vengeance, for my crimes, oppreft : 
 With hoftile pow'rs befet my tott'ring reign, 
 The people wafted, and my children llain ; 
 In fwift" approach, I lee deftruclion come, 
 But, with a mind unmov'd, I'll meet my doom ; 
 : .-. . For
 
 BOOK VIII. 235 
 
 For know flernPow'r ! whofe vengeance has decreed 
 That Creon, after all his Tons, mould bleed ; 
 As from the fummit of ibme defart rock, 
 The fport of tempefts, falls the leaflefs oak, 
 Of all its honors ftript, thou ne'er malt find, 
 \Yeakly fubmifs, or ftupidly refign'd 
 This dauntlefs heart ; but purpos'd to debate 
 Thy flern decrees, and burft the chains of fate. 
 
 HE faid; and turning where the heralds (land 
 All night by turns, and wait their lord's command ; 
 Meneftheus there and Hegefander found, 
 And Phxmius fage for valor once renown'd ; 
 He charg'd them thus : Beyond the eaftern tow'n, 
 Summon to meet in arms our martial pow'rs. 
 In filence let them move ; let figns command, ' 
 And mute obedience reign thro' ev'ry band ; 
 For, when the eaft, with early twilight, glows, 
 We ruih, from cover'd ambuth, on our foes 
 Secure and unprepar'd : the truce we fwore, 1 
 Our pliglited .faith, the feal of wine, and gore, 
 
 Np
 
 E P I G O N I A D- 
 
 No ties I hold ; all piety difclaim : 
 Adverfe to me the gods, and I to them. 
 The angry monarch thus his will declared ; 
 His rage the heralds fear'd, and ftraight repaired 
 To roufe the warriors. Now the morning light 
 Begins to mingle with the (hades of night: 
 In ev'ry ftreet a glitt'ring dream appears, 
 Of poliftiM helmets raix'd with ihining fpears t 
 Towards the eaflern gate they drive along, 
 Nations and tribes, an undiftinguiih'd throng i 
 Creon himfelf fnperior, in his car, 
 Received them coming, and difpos'd die war, 
 
 AND now the Argives from their tents proceed, 
 With rites fepulchral, to intomb the dead. 
 The king of men, amidft the fan'ral fires, 
 The cliiefs aflembles, and the work infpires. 
 And thus the Pylian fage, in counfel wife : 
 Princes ! I view, with wonder and iurprize, 
 Yon field abandon'd, where the foe purfu'd 
 Their fua'ral rites before, with toil renew'd : 
 
 Not
 
 BOOK VIII. 237 
 
 Not half their dead intcrr'd, they now abftain, 
 And fiknce reigns thro' all the fmoaky plain : 
 Thence jealoufy and fear poifefs my mind 
 Of faith infring'd, and treachery defign'd : 
 Behind diefe woody heights, belli nd thefe tow'rs, 
 I dread, in ambufh laid, the Theban pow'rs ; 
 With purpofe to aflault us, when they know 
 That we confiding leaft exped. a foe : 
 Let half the warriors arm, and ftand prepared, 
 From fudden violence, the hoft to guard ; 
 While, in the mournful rites, the reft proceed, 
 Due to the honor'd reliqu.es of the dead. 
 
 THUS as he fpoke 5 approaching from afar, 
 The hoitile pow'rs, embattel'd for the war, 
 Appear'd ; and dreaming from their polilh'd ihieJds 
 A blaze of fplendor brightened all the fields. 
 And thus the king of men, with lifted eyes, 
 And both his hands extended to the ikies : 
 Ye Pow'rs fupreme ! whole unrefifted fway 
 The fate of men and mortal things obey i 
 
 Ltt
 
 238 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Let all the plagues, which perjury attend, 
 At once, and hidden, on our foes defcend : 
 Let not the facred feal of wine and gore, 
 The hands we plighted, and the oaths we fwore, 
 Jk now in vain ; but, from your bright abodes, 
 Confound die bold defpifers of the gods. 
 
 HE pray'd ; and nearer came the hoftile train, 
 With f \vift approach advancing on the plain ; 
 Embattel'd thick ; as when, at fall of night, 
 A Ihepherd, from fome promontory's height, 
 Approaching from the deep, a fog defcries 
 Which hov'ring lightly o'er the billows flies ; 
 By breezes borne, the folid foon it gains, 
 Climbs the ftcep hills, and darkens all the plains : 
 Silent and fwift the Theban pow'rs draw near ; 
 The chariots led, a phalanx form'd die rear. 
 
 CONTUSION ftraight thro' all the hoft arofe, 
 Scir'd like the ocean when a tempeft blows. 
 Some arm for fighl; the reft to terror yield, 
 Inactive Hand, or trembling quit the field. 
 
 On
 
 BOOK VIII. 239 
 
 On ev'ry fide, aflaults the deaf ned ear 
 The difcord loud of tumult, rage and fear. 
 Superior in his car, with ardent eyes, 
 The king of men thro' all the army flies ; 
 The rath retrains, the cold with courage fires, 
 And all with hope and confidence infpires ; 
 As when the deep, in liquid mountains hurl'd, 
 Allaults the rocky limits of the world ; 
 When tempefts with unlicenc'd fury rave, 
 And fxveep from ihore to more the flying wave : 
 If he, to whom each pow'r of ocean bends, 
 To quell fuch uproar, from the deep afcends, 
 Serene, amidft the wat'ry war, he rides, 
 And fixes, with his voice, the moving tides : 
 Such feem'd die monarch. From th' Olympian 
 
 height, 
 
 The martial maid precipitates her flight ; 
 To aid her fav'rite hofl the goddeis came, 
 Mentor ihe feem'd, her radiant anus the fame ; 
 Who with Ulyiles brought a chofen band 
 Of warriors from the Cephalenian ftrand ; 
 
 Already.
 
 i4 THE E P I G N 1 A D. 
 
 Already arm'd die 'valiant youth ihe found, 
 And arming for the nght his warriors round. 
 And thus began : Brave prince ! our foes appear 
 For battle order'd, and the light is near. 
 Dauntlefs they come fuperior and elate, 
 While fear unmans us, and refigns to fate* 
 Would now fome god his prefent favor fliow, 
 And for a moment flop th' invading foe ; 
 Till from dejection rous'd, and fad defpair, 
 The hoft might arm, and for the fight prepare ; 
 Or, if on human aid we muft depend, 
 Nor hope to fee the fav'ring gods defcend, 
 Great were the hero's -praife, who now could boafl 
 From ruin imminent to fave die holt ! 
 The danger near fome prompt expedient claims, . 
 And prudence triumphs oft in worfl extremes. 
 
 THUS, in a form aflum'd, the martial maid; 
 And thus the Ion of wife Laertes faid : 
 In youth, I cannot hope to win the praife, 
 With which experience crowns a length of days: 
 
 Weak
 
 BOOK VIII. 241 
 
 Weak are the hopes that on my counfels (land 
 To combats new, nor practised in command : 
 But as the gods, to fave a finking flate, 
 Or {hatch an army from the jaws of fate, 
 When prudence (lands confounded, oft fuggeft 
 A prompt expedient to fome vulgar breaft ; 
 To your discerning ear I (hall expofe 
 What now my mind excites me to difclofe. 
 Sav'd from th' unfiniih'd honors of the {lain, 
 The mingled fpoils of forefts load the plain ; 
 In heaps contiguous, round the camp they lie, 
 A fence too weak to flop the enemy : 
 But if we mix them with the feeds of fire, 
 Which unextinguifh'd glow in ev'ry pyre, 
 Againfl the foe fudden a wall mall rife, 
 Of flame and fmoke afcending to the fides : 
 The fleed difmay'd mall backwards hurl die car ; 
 Mix with the phalanx, and confound the war. 
 
 HE faid. The Goddefs, in her confcious breaft, 
 A mother's triumph for a fon poflefs'd, 
 
 H h Who
 
 242 THE E P I G N I A D. 
 
 Who emulates his fire in glorious deeds, 
 And, with his virtue, to his fame fucceeds : 
 Graceful the Goddefs turn'd, and with a voicr, 
 Bold, and fuperior to the vulgar noife, 
 O'er all the field commands the woods to fire ; 
 Straight to obey a thoufand hands confpire. 
 On ev'ry fide the fpreading flame extends, 
 And, rofl'd in cloudy wreaths, the fmoke afcends. 
 
 CfiEOx beheld ; inrag'd to be withflood ; 
 Like fome fierce lion when he meets a flood 
 Or trench defenfive, which his rage reflrains 
 For flocks unguarded, left by carelefs fwains: 
 O'er all die field he fends "his eyes afar, 
 To mark fit entrance for a pointed war ; 
 Near on the right a narrow fpace he found, 
 Where fuii'ral ames fmok'd upon the ground: 
 Thither the warriors of the Theban hoft, 
 Whofe martial fkill he priz'd and valor moft, 
 The monarch fent, Chalcidamus the ftrong, 
 Who from {air Thelpia led his 'martial throng, 
 
 Where
 
 BOOK VIII. 243 
 
 Where Helicon erecls his verdant head, 
 And crowns the champaign with a lofty {hade ; 
 Oechalia's chief was added to the band, 
 For valor fam'd and fkilful in command ; 
 Diotimus, with him, his brother, came, 
 Of worth unequal, and unequal fame. 
 Rhefus, with thefe, the Thracian leader, went, 
 To merit fame by high atchievements, bent ; 
 Of ftature tall he fcorns the pointed fpear, 
 And crufhes with his mace the ranks of war : 
 With him twelve leaders of his native train, 
 In combats, taught the bounding fteed to rein, 
 By none furpafs'd who boaft fuperior Ikill 
 To fend the winged arrow fwift to kill, 
 Mov'd to the fight. The reft of vulgar name, 
 Tho' brave in combat, were unknown to fame. 
 
 THEIR bold invafion dauntlefs to oppofe, 
 Full in die midft, the bulk of Ajax rofe ; 
 Unarm'd he ftood ; but, in his mighty hand, 
 Brandiili'd, with gefture fierce, a burning brand, 
 
 Snatch'd
 
 244 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Snatch'd from die allies of a fun'ral fire ; 
 
 An olive's trunk, five cubit lengths entire. 
 
 Arm'd for the fight, the Cretan monarch flood ; 
 
 And Merion, thirfting dill for hoftile blood ; 
 
 The prince of Ithaca, with him who led 
 
 The youth, in Sycipn, and Pellene, bred. 
 
 But ere they clos'd, the Thracian leader preft, 
 
 With eager courage, far before the reft ; 
 
 Him Ajax met, inflain'd with equal rage : 
 
 Between the wond'ring hods the chiefs engage ; 
 
 Their weighty weapons round their heads they throw, 
 
 And fwift, and heavy falls each thundVmg blow ; 
 
 As when in .Etna's caves the giant brood, 
 
 The one-ey'd fervants of the Lemnian god, 
 
 In order round the burning anvil ftand, 
 
 And forge, with weighty flrokes, the forked brand : 
 
 The fhaking hills their fervid toil confefs, 
 
 And echoes rattling thro' each dark recefs : 
 
 So rag'd the fight ; their mighty limbs they ftrain ; 
 
 And oft their pond'rous maces fall in vain : 
 
 For neither chief was deilin'd yet to bleed ; 
 
 But fate at lafl the victory decreed. 
 
 The
 
 BOOK VIII. 245 
 
 The oalaminian hero aim'd a ftroke, 
 Which thund'ring on the Tliracian helmet brofce ; 
 S;un'd by the boifl'rous Ihock the warrior reel'd,. 
 With giddy poife, then funk upon the field. 
 Their leader to defend, his native train 
 With fpeed advance, and guard him on the plain. 
 Againfl Ms foe, their threatening Jaunces rife, 
 And aim'd at once, a florin of arrows flies ; 
 Around the chief on ev'ry fide they fing ; 
 One in his moulder fix'd its barbed fling. 
 Amaz'd he flood, nor could the fight renew; 
 But flow and fullen from the foe withdrew. 
 Straight to the charge Idomeneus proceeds, 
 With hardy Merion try'd in martial deeds, 
 Laertes' valiant fbn, and he who led 
 The youth in Sycion, and Pellene, bred : 
 With force united, thefe the foe fuilain, 
 And wafteful havoc loads the purple plain ; 
 In doubtful poife the fcales of combat fway'd, 
 And various fates alternately obey'd. 
 
 BUT now the flames, which barr'd th' invadingfoe, 
 Sunk to the wafle4 wood, in allies glow ; 
 
 Thebes
 
 246 THE E P I G N I A D. 
 
 Thebes ruihes to the fight ; their polim'd fhields 
 Gleam thro' the fmoke, and brighten all the fields ; 
 Thick fly the embers, where the courfers tread, 
 And cloudy volumes all the welkin (hade. 
 The king of men, to meet the temped, fires 
 His wav'ring bands, and valor thus infpires. 
 Gods ! mail one fatal hour deface the praife 
 Of all our fleeplefs nights, and bloody days ? 
 Shall no juft meed for all our toils remain? 
 Our labors, blood, and victories in vain? 
 Shall Creon triumph, and his impious brow 
 Claim the fair wreath, to truth and valor due ? 
 No, warriors ! by the heav'nly pow'rs, is weigh'd 
 Juftice with wrong, in equal balance laid : 
 From JOVE'S high roof depend th' eternal fcales, 
 Wrong mounts defeated Ml, and right prevails. 
 Fear then no odds ; on heav'n itfelf depend, 
 Which falfhood will confound, and truth defend. 
 
 HE faid ; and fudden in the mock they clofe, 
 Their (hields and helmets ring with mutual blows : 
 
 Diforder
 
 . BOOK VIII. -247 
 
 Diforder dire the mingling ranks confounds, 
 And ihouts of triumph mix with dying founds ; 
 As fire, with wafteful conflagration, fpreads, 
 And kindles, in its courfe, the woodland {hades, 
 When, Ihouting fudden from the clouds above, 
 On fome thick foreft fall the flames of JOVE ; 
 The lofty oaks, the pines and cedars burn, 
 Their verdant honors all to afhes turn ; 
 Loud roars the tempeft ; and the trembling fwains 
 See the wide havoc of the wafled plains : 
 Such feem'd the confficl; fuch the dire alarms, 
 From (liouts of battle mix'd with din of arms. 
 Phericles firft, Lycaon's valiant fon, 
 The fage whofe counfels prop'd die Theban. throne, 
 Rofe in the fight, fuperior to the reft, 
 And brave Democleon's fall his might confeft, 
 The chief and leader of a valiant band, 
 From fair Eione and th' Afinian ftrand. 
 Next Afms, Iphitus, and Crates fell ; 
 Terynthian Fodius trode the path to hell : 
 And Schedius, from Mazeta's fruitful plain, 
 Met there liis fate, and periih'd with the ilain. 
 
 Aw>d
 
 248 TH& E P I G N I A D. 
 
 Aw*d by their fall, the Argive bands give way ; 
 As yields fome rampart to the ocean's fway, 
 When rous'd to rage, it {corns oppofing mounds, 
 And fweeps victorious thro' forbidden grounds. 
 
 BUT Pallas, anxious for her fav'rite hoft, 
 Their beft already wounded, many loft, 
 Ulyfles fought : flic found him, in the rear, 
 Wounded and faint, and leaning on his fpear. 
 And thus in Mentor's form : Brave prince ! I dread 
 Our hopes defeated, and our fall decreed : 
 For conqu'ring on the right the foe prevails, 
 And all defence againfb their fury fails; 
 While here, in doubtful poife, the battle lungs ; 
 Faint is the Jboft and wounded half the kings, 
 For flight prepared ; when Creon fhall renew 
 The bloody ihock, and viclory purfue. 
 If great Tydides, who beholds from far 
 Our danger imminent, yet fliuns the war, 
 Held by refentment, or fome caufe unknown, 
 And, with the gen'ral wreck, incurs -his own, ' 
 
 Would
 
 BOOK VIII, 249 
 
 Would rife to aid us ; yet we might refpire, 
 And Creon, fruftrated, again retire. 
 Great were his praife, who could the cliief perfuade, 
 In peril fo extreme, the hod to aid. 
 The fitted you, who boaft the happy (kill, 
 With pleaiing words, to move the fixed will : 
 The' Neftor juftly merits equal fame, 
 A friend the fooneft will a friend reclaim. 
 
 THE Goddefs thus: and thus Ulylles faid: 
 I cannot hope the hero to perfuade : 
 The fource unknown from which his rage proceeds, 
 Reafon hi vain from loofe conjecture pleads ; 
 The fatal truce, with faithlefs Creon made, 
 Provokes him not, nor holds him from our aid; 
 He eafily refign'd whate'er he mov'd, 
 Till now, approving as the reft approv'd, 
 Some dire difafter, fome difgrace unfeen, 
 Confounds his fteady temper, elfe ferene : 
 But with my utmoft fearch, I'll drive to find 
 The fecret griefs which wound his gen'rous mind; 
 I i If
 
 250 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 If drain'd of blood, and fpent with toils of war, 
 My weary limbs can bear their load fo far. 
 
 HE fpoke ; his words the martial maid admir'd ; 
 With influence divine his bread infpir'd ; 
 Lightly the hero mov'd, and took his way 
 Where broad encamp'd th'Etolian warriors lay : 
 Already arm'd he found the daring band, 
 Fierce and impatient of their lord's command ; 
 Some, murm'ring, round the king's pavilion ftood, 
 While others, more remote, complain'd aloud : 
 With pleafing words he footh'd them as he went, 
 And fought their valiant leader in his tent : 
 Him pond'ring deep in his diftracled mind, 
 He found, and fitting fad, with head declin'd. 
 He thus addrefs'd him : Will the news, I bring, ] 
 Afflict, or gratify, th'Etolian king? 
 " That wav'ring on the brink of foul defeat, 
 To Creon's perfidy refign'd by fate, 
 Our valiant bands th' unequal fight maintain ; 
 Their bed already wounded, many fiain." 
 
 If
 
 
 BOOK VIII. 251 
 
 If treach'rous Thebes has brib'd you with her ftore, 
 And bought the venal faith which once youfwore; 
 Has promis'd precious ore, or lovely dames, 
 And pays to luft the price which treafon claims : 
 Name but the proffers of the perjur'd king, 
 And more, and better, from your friends I'll bring; 
 Vaft liims of precious ore and greater for 
 Than Thebes, in peace, had treafur'd for the war: 
 Or, tho', to gratify thy boundlefs mind, 
 Her private wealth and public were combin'd. 
 If beauty's pow'r your am'rous heart inflames, 
 Unrival'd are Achaia's lovely dames ; 
 Her faired dames Adraflus mall beflow, 
 And purchafe thus the aid you freely owe. 
 Gods ! that our armies e'er mould need to fear 
 Deftruclion, and the fon ofTydeus near! 
 
 ULYSSES thus ; and Tydeus' fon again : 
 Your falfe reproaches aggravate my pain 
 Too great already : in my heart I feel 
 Its venom' d fling, more iharp than pointed fteel. 
 
 No
 
 25* THE EPIGONIAD. 
 
 No bribe perfuades, or promife from the foe, 
 
 Mv oath to vi'late, and the war forgoe : 
 
 In vain for this were all the precious llore, 
 
 Which trading Zidon wafts from more to fhore ; 
 
 With all that rich Iberia yet contains, 
 
 Safe and unrifled in her golden veins. 
 
 The fource from which my miferies arife, 
 
 The caufe, which to the hoft my aid denies, 
 
 With truth I fliall relate ; and hope to claim 
 
 Your friendly fympathy, for groundlefs blame.. 
 
 In yonder walls a captive maid remains, 
 
 To me more dear thin all the world contains ; 
 
 Fairer fhe is than nymph was ever fair ; 
 
 Pallas in ftature and majeftic air ; 
 
 As Venus foft, with Cynthia's fprighdy grace, 
 
 When on Taigetus flic leads the chace, 
 
 Or Erymanthus ; while in fix'd amaze, 
 
 At awful -diftance held, the fatyrs gaze. 
 
 With oaths divine our plighted faith we bound ; 
 
 Hymen had foon our mutual wiflies crown'd ; 
 
 When, call'd to arms, againft the Theban tow'rs 
 
 Fioni Calydoii I led my martial pow'rs. 
 
 Her
 
 BOOK VIII. 253 
 
 Her female form in martial arms conceal'd, 
 With me (he brav'd the terrors of the field : 
 Unknown and unrewarded, from my irde 
 No toil could drive her, and no ihock divide. 
 But now proud Thebes injurioufly detains 
 The lovely virgin, lock'd in hoIEIe chains ; 
 Doom'd, and referv'd to periih, for my fake, 
 If of your counfels, I,' or works partake; 
 Till twenty mornings in the eaft mall rife, 
 And twenty ev'nings gild the weftern fides. 
 See then the caufe which holds me, and confines 
 My arm, to aid you, tho' my heart inclines; 
 Love mix'd with pity, whofe reftraiiits I feel 
 Than adamant more flrong, and links of fteel. 
 
 THE hero thus. Laertes' fon reply'd; 
 Oft have I heard what now is verify'd; 
 That ftill when paflion reigns without control, 
 Its fway confounds and darkens all die foul. 
 If Thebes, by perjury, the gods provok'd, 
 The'vengeance flighted, by themfelves invok'd; 
 
 . Ailaulted.
 
 254 THE E P I G N I A D. 
 
 Alfaulted as, fecure, with, hoftile arms, 
 And mix'd oar pious rites with dire alarms : 
 With better faith, by faithlefs Creon fway'd, 
 Will they at laft reftore the captive maid ? 
 When from their battlements and lofty fpires, 
 They fee their champaign mine with hoftile fires : 
 And, pitch'd around them, hofts of armed foes, 
 With ftrift embrace, their ftrait'ned walls inclofe ? 
 The gods they fcorn as impotent, and vain : 
 What will they do, when you alone remain? 
 Our princes fali'n, the vulgar warriors fled, 
 Shall to your tent the captive fair be led? 
 Or rather muft you fee her matchlefs charms 
 Referv'd to blefs fome happier rival's arms ; 
 While rage and jealoufy divide your bread, 
 No prefent friend to pity or affift ? 
 Now rather rife ; and, ere it is too late, 
 Refcue our armies from impending fate. 
 The captive maid uninjur'd you'll regain ; 
 Force oft obtains what juftice afks in vain. 
 Thus with fuccefs your wimes mall be crown'd, 
 \yiiich truft in Thebes would fruflrate and confound. 
 
 ULYSSES
 
 BOO K VIII. 255 
 
 ULYSSES thus : his weighty words inclin'd, 
 Long tortur'd with fufpence, the hero's mind ; 
 As fettling winds the moving deep control, 
 And teach the wav'ring billows how to roll : 
 Straight from his feat th' Etolian \varrior rofe ; 
 His mighty limbs the martial greaves inclofe ; 
 His bread and thighs in polilh'd fleel he drefs'd ; 
 A plumed helmet next his temples prefs'd : 
 The various baldric round his ihoulders flung; 
 His mining fword, and Harry faukion hung : 
 The fpear he laft aflum'd, and pond'rous fliield, 
 With martial grace, and iflli'd to the field : 
 To mingle in the fight, with eager hafle, 
 He rufti'd, nor call'd his warriors as he paft. 
 Ulyfles thefe conven'4; his prudent care 
 Their ranks difpos'd, and led them to the war. 
 Afar diflinguiih'd by his armor bright, 
 With (houts Tydides rous'd the ling'ring figlit ; 
 Thro' all the hoit lus martial voice reibunds, 
 And ev'ry heart with kindling ardor bounds ; 
 As when the iun afcends, with gladfome ray, 
 To light the weary trav'ler on liis way ; 
 
 Or
 
 256 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Or chear the mariner by tempefts toll 
 Amidfl die dangers of fome perilous coafl : 
 So to his wiihing friends Tydides came; 
 Their danger fuch before, their joy die fame. 
 
 PHERICLES fa\v ; and, fpringing from the throng, 
 Call'd the bold Thebans, as he rufti'd along : 
 Ye gen'rous youths ! whom fair Boeotia breeds, 
 The nurfe of valor and heroic deeds; 
 Let not, tho'oft renew'd, thefe tedious toils 
 Your martial ardor quench, and damp your fouls. 
 Tydides comes ; and leads, in armor bright, 
 His native bands, impatient for the fight ; 
 Myfelf die firfl the hero's arm mall try, 
 Or teach you how to conquer, or to die. 
 We flrive not now ; as when, in days of peace, 
 Some prince's hymeneal rites to grace, 
 In lifted fields bedew'd with fragrant oil, 
 In combat feign'd, the mimic warriors toil; 
 Alike the viclors, and die vanquifli'd fare, 
 And genial feafls, to both, conclude die war : 
 
 We
 
 BOOK VIII. 257 
 
 We now mufl conquer ; or it ftands decreed 
 That Thebes mall periih, and her people bleed. 
 No hopes of peace remain ; nor can we find 
 New gods to witnefs, or new oaths to bind, 
 The firil infring'd : and therefore mufl prepare 
 To fland or periih by the die of war : 
 Then let us all undaunted meet our fate : 
 To flop is doubtful, defp'rate to retreat. 
 
 THE hero thus; and to the battle led ; 
 Like Mars, he feem'd, in radiant armor clad*. 
 Tow'ring fublime, behind his ample mield, 
 He mov'd to meet Tydides on die field : 
 As when at noon, defcending to die rills, 
 T\vo herds encounter, from the neighb'ring hills ; 
 Before the reft, the rival bulls prepare, 
 With awful prelude, for th' approaching war ; 
 With defp'rate horns they plough die imoaking 
 
 ground ; 
 
 Their hideous roar .die hollow caves refound; 
 Heav'd o'er their backs the ftreaming land afcends j 
 Their flern encounter both the herds iufpends : 
 K k So
 
 258 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 So met the chiefs ; and fuch amazement quelPd 
 The refl, and in fufpence the combat held. 
 Tydides firft his weighty weapon threw, 
 Wide of die mark with erring force it flew. 
 Phericles ! thine fucceeds with happier aim, 
 Full to the center of the fhi.eld it came : 
 But flightly join'd, unequal to the ftroke, 
 Short from the fleel, the flaff in fplinters broke. 
 Widi grief Tydides faw his aim deceiv'd ; 
 From oif the field a pond'rous. rock he heav'd ; 
 With figures rude of antique fculpture grac'd, 
 It mark'd the reliques of a man deceas'd. 
 Pufa'd at his foe the weighty mafs he flung ; 
 Thund'wng it fell ; the Theban helmet rung : 
 Deep with the brain the dinted fteel it mix'd, 
 And lifekfs, on the ground, the warrior fix'd. 
 
 ; AW'D by his fall, the Theban bands retire ; 
 As flocks defencelefs ihun a lion^s ire ; 
 At once they yield, unable to withftand 
 The wide deflruclion of Tydides' hand. 
 
 Diforder
 
 BOOK VIII. 259 
 
 )iforder foon, the form of war confounds, 
 And ihouts of triumph mix with dying founds. 
 Creon defcry'd, where ruling on the right 
 In equal poife he held the fcales of fight, 
 His pow'rs defeated, and himfelf depriv'd 
 Of hopes of conqueft, not to be retriev'd : 
 The gods he curs'd, and impioufly refign'd, 
 To flern defpair, his unfubmitting mind : 
 Yet, vers'd in all the various turns of fate, 
 The briik aflault to rule, or fafe retreat, 
 He drew his firm battalions from the foe, 
 In martial order, regularly flow. 
 The Argive leaders, thund'ring in the rear, 
 Still forwards on the yielding fquadrons bear : 
 The ftrife with unabated fury burns, 
 They flop, they combat, and retreat by turns ; 
 As the grim lion fourly leaves the plains, 
 By dogs compel'd, and bands of armed fwains ; 
 Indignant to his woody haunts he goes, 
 And with retorted glare reflrains his foes.
 
 260 THE E P I G O N FA D. 
 
 MEAN while Tydides, near the Cadmeari'gatc, 
 UrgM -with inceflant toil die work of fate ; 
 Towards the walls, an undulingmuVd throng, 
 The vi&ors and the vanquilli'd, rulhtt along. 
 The guarded wall to both accefs denies ; 
 From ev'ry tow'r, a ftorm of jav'lins flies ; 
 Thick as the hail defcends, when Boreas flings 
 The rattling tempeft from his airy wings : 
 So thick the jav'lins fell, and pointed fpeajfs; 
 Behind them clofe, another hoft appears, 
 In ordered columns rang'd, by Creon led ; 
 Ulyfles faw ; and thus to Diomed : 
 Bold as you are, avoid thele guarded tpw'rs, 
 From loofe purfuit recal your fcatter'd pow'rs ; 
 See Creon comes ; his thick embattel'd train, 
 In ^lalanx join'd, approaches from the plain, 
 Here if we ftay til' unequal fight to prove, 
 The to-.v'rs and ramparts threaten from above 
 With dar.ts and ftones ; while to tli' invading foe, 
 In order loofe, our fcatter'd ranks we ihow ; 
 Nor by your matchlefs valor hope, in vain, 
 Such odds to conquer, and die fight maintain ; 
 
 Againfl
 
 BOOK VIII. s>6* 
 
 Againft an army fingle force muft lofc ; 
 Immod'rate courage ftill like folly (hows. 
 See where into the field yon' turret calls, 
 Drawn to a point the long-extended walls : 
 There force your way, and fpeedily regain 
 The fpace, and lafety of the open plain. 
 
 ULYSSES thus 5 and, by his prudence fway'd, 
 The martial fon of Tydeus flraight obey'd. 
 Thrice to the height the hero rais'd his voice, 
 Loud as the filver trumpet's martial noife, 
 The iignal of retreat ; his warriors heard, 
 And round their chief in order'd rinks appear'd, 
 Drawn from the mingled tumult of the plain ; 
 As, fever' d on the floor, the golden grain 
 Swells to a heap ; while, whirling thro' the Ikies, 
 The dufty chaff in thick diforder flies ; 
 Tydides leads, between the guarded tow'rs 
 And hoflile ranks, he draws his martial pow'rs 
 Towards the plain ; as manners, with oars 
 And iails, avoid, fome promontory's ihores ; 
 
 When
 
 6z THE E P I G N I A D. 
 
 "When, catch' d benveeen the ocean and the land, 
 A fudden temped bears them on the ftrand ; 
 The ftem oppofmg to its boifl'rous fway, 
 They fhun the cape and flretch into the bay : 
 So fcap'd Tydides. Cover'd by their tow'rs, 
 In fafety flood retir'd the Theban pow'rs, 
 For from above an iron tempeft rain'd, 
 And the incurfions of the foe reftrain'd. 
 
 THE
 
 
 
 THE 
 
 E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 BOOK IX. 
 
 ' 
 
 :b-. - 
 
 A ND now the king of men his army calls 
 
 Back from the danger of th' impending walls; 
 They quit die combat, and in order long 
 The field poflefs, a phalanx deep and ftrong. 
 Rank following rank, the Theban fqnadrons move 
 Sail to the rampart, and the tow'rs above : 
 Creon himfelf, unwilling quits the field, 
 By gods adverfe, and fate, conftrain'd to yield : 
 'Gainft all his foes, his indignation burns, 
 But firft on Diomed its fuiy turns. 
 He call'd a vulgar warrior from the crowd, 
 A villain da&, and try'd in works of blood, 
 Erembus nam'd, of huge gigantic fize, 
 With cloudy features mark'd, and down call eyes; 
 
 Cold
 
 264 THE E P I G O N 1 A D. 
 
 Cold and inaclive dill in combat found, 
 Nor taught to kindle at the trumpet's found ; 
 But bold in villainy when pow'r commands j 
 A weapon fitted for a tyrant's hands. 
 And thus the angry monarch : Take this fword, 
 A fign, to all my fervants, from their lord ; 
 And hither bring the fair Etolian's head ; 
 I, who command you, will reward the deed : 
 But let not pity, or remorfe, prevail ; 
 Your own mail anfwer, if in aught you fail. 
 
 HE faid : the miirtherer, pracYis'd to obey, 
 The royal fword receiv'd, and took his way 
 Straight to the palace, where the captive fair, 
 Of hope bereft, and yielding to defpair, 
 Lamenting fat. Their mutual griefs to blend, 
 The queen and all the royal maids attend. 
 And thus the queen : Fair ftranger ! mall your grief 
 All hopes rejecl of comfort and relief? 
 Your woes I've meafur'd, all your ferrows known ; 
 And find them light when balanced with my own. 
 
 In
 
 BOOK ix. 265 
 
 In one fad day my valiant fire I mourn'd ; 
 My brothers llain ; my native walls o'crturn'd ; 
 Myfelf a captive, deithi'd to fulfill, 
 In fervile drudgery, a mailer's will ; 
 Yet to a fall fo low, the gods decreed 
 This envy'd height of greatnefs to fucceed. 
 The pow'rs above^ for purpofes unknown, 
 Oft raife the fall'n, and bring the lofty down 5 
 Elude the vigilance of all our care : 
 Our fureft hopes deceive, and mock defpair. 
 Let no defponding thoughts your mind poflcfs, 
 To banifli hope, the med'cine of diftrefs : 
 For iline ihort days your freedom will reftore, 
 And break the bondage which you thus deplore. 
 But I, alas ! unhappy Hill, muft mourn 
 Joys once poffefs'd, which never can return ; 
 Four valiant fons, who perilled on the plain 
 In this dire itrife, a fifth on Oeta {lain : 
 Thefe fliall return to bleis my eyes no more j 
 The grave's dark manfion knows not to reilore, 
 Nor time, which bids fo oft the folar ray 
 Repeat, with light renew'd, th' ethereal way, 
 
 L 1 And
 
 2 66 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 And from the foil, by heat and vernal winds, 
 To fecond life the latent plant unbinds, 
 Again to flourith, nurs'd by \\holefonie dews, 
 Ever to mortal man his life renews. 
 Thefe griefs are fure ; but others flill I fear ; 
 A royal huiband loft, and bondage near ; 
 Myfelf, my daughters, drag'd by hoftile hands ; 
 Our dignity exchanged for fervile bands : 
 All this the gods may purpofe, and fulfill ; 
 And we with patience muft endure their will. 
 
 As thus Laodice her forrow, try'd, 
 With fympathy, to footh ; the maid reply'd : 
 Great queen ! on whom the fov'reign pow'rs beflow 
 A gen'rous heart to feel another's woe ; 
 Let ftill untouch'd thro* life your honors laft, 
 With happier days to come for forrows pad ! 
 Yet ftrive not thus a hopelefs wretch to chear, 
 Whom lure conje&ure leads the worft to fear. 
 Shall Diomed a public caule forgoe, 
 His faithful friends betray, and truft a foe? 
 
 By
 
 BOOK IX. 267 
 
 By treachery behold die hoft overthrown, 
 And with the gen'ral wreck, incur his own ? 
 Shall kings and armies, in the balance laid, 
 Avail not to out-weigh a fingle maid ? 
 One, whom his fury falfely did reprove 
 For crimes unknown, whofe only crime was love : 
 No, fure ere this he triumphs in the field ; 
 Your armies to his matchlefs valor yield : 
 And foon fubmitting to the fatal blow, 
 This head muft gratify a vanquifti'd foe. 
 If fymbols e'er the fecret fates explain, 
 If vifions do not always warn in vain, 
 If dreams do ever true prognoses prove, 
 And dreams, the fages fay, defcend from Jove, 
 My fate approaches : Late at dead of night ; 
 My veins yet freeze with horror and affright ! 
 I thought that, all forfaken and alone, 
 Penfive I wand'red far thro' ways unknc. -vn ; 
 A gloomy twilight, neither night nor day 
 Frown'd on my fleps, and fadden'd all die way : 
 Long dreary vales I faw on ev'ry fide, 
 And caverns finking deep, with entrance wide ; 
 
 On
 
 268 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 On ragged clifts the blafted fbrefls hung ; 
 Her baleful note the boding fcreech-o\vl fung. 
 At laft, with many a weary ftep, 1 found 
 This melancholy country's outmoft bound, 
 An ocean vaft : upon a clift I flood, 
 And faw, beneath me far, the fable flood; 
 No i (lands rofe the dull expanfe to grace, 
 And nought was feen, thro' all the boundlefs fpace, 
 But low-brow'd clouds, which on the billows frown'd, 
 And, in a'night of ihade, the profpecT: drown'd. 
 The winds, which feem'd around the cliffs to blow, 
 With doleful cadence, utter'd founds of woe, 
 Wafting, from ev'ry cave and dreary den, 
 The wail of infants mix'd with groans of men : 
 Amaz'd, on ev'ry fide my eyes I turn, 
 And fee depending from the craggy bourn 
 Wretches unnumber'd; fome the mould'ring foil, 
 Some grafp'd the (lipp'ry rock, with fruitlefs toil j 
 Some dangled by the (lender roots, which pafs 
 Thro' crannies of the cliffs, or withered grafs. 
 Still from the deep they plung'd into the main ; 
 As from the eves defcends die trickling rain. 
 
 Amaz'd
 
 BOOK IX. 269 
 
 Amaz'd I turn'd, and ftrove in vain to fly ; 
 Thickets opposed, and precipices high 
 To flop my flight : and, from the airy deep, 
 A temped fnatch'd, and hurl'd me to the deep. 
 The fudden violence my (lumber brol:e ; 
 The waves I feem'd to touch, and (Iraight awoke. 
 With fleep the vifion fled; but, in my mind, 
 Imprinted deep, its image left behind. 
 For had the frightful fcene which fancy drew, 
 And what I feem'd to fuffer, all been true ; 
 Had fate appear'd, in blacked colors drefs'd, 
 No deeper had its horrors been imprefs'd. 
 When thus the gods by certain fymbols warn, 
 And fure, from dreams, their purpofes we learn, 
 No blame I merit, that to fear refign'd, 
 Fate's dread approach (its heavy on my mind. 
 
 CASSANDRA thus; Laodice again : 
 In dreams our fate to find, we feek in vain ; 
 For oft, from thoughts difturb'd, fuch phantoms rife, 
 As fogs from marines climb, to blot die (kies : 
 With a dark veil, the chearful face of day 
 They fadden, and eclipfe the folar ray ; 
 
 But
 
 270 THE E P IG O N I A D. 
 
 But foon, in dews and foft defcending rain?, 
 Fall to refreih the mountains and the plains. 
 For Diomed's offence you ne'er can bleed ; 
 Favor, your fex and innocence will plead, 
 Ev'n with die word ; nor will a gen'rous foe 
 His rage, in cruelty and bafenefs, mow. 
 Now to die tow'rs I hade, to view from far 
 The danger, or fuccefs of this day's war. 
 Let Clymene with me the walls afcend ; 
 The reft at home domeflic cares attend. 
 
 SHE ended thus ; and from her feat arofe ; 
 The royal maid attends her, as me goes 
 Towards the Cadmean gate ; where full to view 
 Zxpos'd, die armies And the camp me knew. 
 And now appear'd within the lofty gate, 
 By Creon fent, the melTenger of fate. 
 His mining blade, for execution barM, 
 And aipe5t dark, his purpofe llraight declar'd. 
 Alarm'd, at once the royal virgins rife, 
 And featuring, fill the dome with female cries : 
 
 But,
 
 BOOK IX. 271 
 
 But, bolder from defpair, Caflandra flaid, 
 And to the aflaffin, undaunted, faid : 
 Approach ! divide this neck with deathful fteel, 
 A tyrant's vaflal no remorfe mould feel. 
 
 Diomed ! let this example prove, 
 
 In man, that ftubborn honor conquers love : 
 With weight fuperior, great ambition draws 
 The fcale for glory, and a public caufe. 
 
 1 blame thee not for this ; nor will impeach 
 A great example, which I could not reach : 
 For had whole armies, in the balance laid, 
 
 And kings and mighty ftates with thee been weigh'd, 
 And I the judge appointed to decree, 
 They all had perillied to ranfom thee. 
 Caflandra thus ; and for the blow prepar'd, 
 With both her hands, her ihining neck me bav'd, 
 And round her head a purple garment roll'd, 
 With leaves of filver mark'd, and flow'rs of gold. 
 Rais'd for the ftroke, the glitt'ring faulcion hung, 
 And fwift defcending, bore the head along. 
 A tide of gore, diffus'd in purple dreams, 
 Dalhes the wall, and o'er die pavement fwims, 
 
 Prone
 
 272 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Prone to the ground the headlefs trunk reclines, 
 And life, in long convulfive throbs, refigns. 
 
 Now on the open plain before the walk, 
 The king of men the chiefs to council calls. 
 And Diomed with fecret griefs opprefs'd, 
 Impatient, thus the public ear addrefs'd : 
 Confed'rate kings ! and thon, whofe fov 'feign hand 
 Sways the dread fcepter of fupreme command! 
 What holds us, and reflrains our martial pow'rs ; 
 While haughty Thebes infults us, from her tow'rs ? 
 In vain we conquer thus, and bleed in vain, 
 If viclory but yields die empty plain. 
 Behind his walls, perfidious Creon lies, 
 And fafely meditates a new furprize : 
 When on the urn our pious tears we pour ; 
 Or mirth difarms us, and die genial hour ; 
 No ; let us rather, now when fortune calls, 
 With bold aflault, attempt to mount die walls ; 
 Myfelf the firft a chofen band {hall lead, 
 Where yon low rampart finks into the mead : 
 
 There
 
 BOOK IX. 273 
 
 There will I gain the battlements, and lay, 
 For others to fucceed, an open way, 
 If bars of fleel have force their works to tear, 
 Or, from their hinges heav'd the gates, can bear. 
 
 T YD IDES thus. His counfel to oppofe, 
 The leader of the Cretan warriors rofe : 
 Confederate kings ! and them, whofe fov'reign hand 
 Sways the dread fcepter of fupreme command ! 
 Let not Tydides now, with martial rage, 
 In meafures hot and ram, the hoft engage ; 
 To fober reafon, frill let paflion yield, 
 Nor here, admit the ardor of the field : 
 If Thebes could thus with one aflault be won, 
 Her armies vanquilh'd, and her walls o'erthrown ; 
 Could this one fignal day reward our toil, 
 So long endur'd, with vitfory and fpoil : 
 No foldier in the ranks, no leader here, 
 Would mun the fight or counfel to forbear. 
 But if for viclory, a foul defeat, 
 With all the mame and danger of retreat, 
 
 M m Should
 
 274 THE E P I G N I A D. 
 
 Should be the iflue, which the wife muft dread, 
 To paufe is better, fure, than to proceed. 
 On yonder walls and lofty turrets, {land, 
 Not, fav'd from ftiarneful flight, a heartlefs band, 
 Who, defp'rate of their Hate, would foon forgoe 
 Their lafl defences, and admit the foe ; 
 But, who, from fight recal'd, without difmay, 
 A fafe retreat maintain'd, in firm array. 
 Secure they combat from protecting walls ; 
 Thrown from above each weapon heavier falls : 
 Againft fuch odds, can we the fight maintain, 
 And with a foe found equal on the plain? 
 Though we defift, no leader will oppofe 
 That thus the fruits of victory we lofe ; 
 When, pent within their battlements and tow'rs, 
 In narrow fpace, we hold the Theban pow'rs : 
 For oftner, than by arms, are hofls o'erthrown 
 By dearth and ficknefs, in a ftrait'ned town. 
 He who can only wield the fword and fpear. 
 Knows lefs than half the inftruments of wa.r. 
 Heart-gnawing hunger, enemy to life, 
 Wide-wafting peflilence, and civil flrife, 
 
 By
 
 BOOK IX. 275 
 
 By want inflam'd, to all our weapons claim 
 Superior force, and flrike with furer aim : 
 With thefe, whoever arm'd to combat goesj 
 Inftru&ed how to turn them on his foes, 
 Shall fee them foon laid proftrate on the ground. 
 And all his hopes, \vith final conqueft, crown'd. 
 Our warriors, therefore, let us ftraight recal, 
 Nor, by aflault, attempt to force the wall ; 
 But with a rampart, to the gates oppos'd, 
 Beiiege, in narrow {pace, our foes inclos'd. 
 
 THE hero thus; and, eager to reply, 
 Tydides rofe : when on a turret nigh 
 Creon appeared; Caflandra's head, difplay'd 
 Upon a launce's point, he held, and faid : 
 Ye Argive warriors ! view this fign ; and know, 
 That Creon never fails to quit a foe. 
 This bloody trophy mark ; and if it brings 
 Grief and defpair to any of the kings ; 
 Let him revenge it on the man who broke 
 His faith, and dar'd my fury to provoke* 
 
 HE
 
 276 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 HE ended thus. Tydides, as he heard, 
 With rage diftradled, and defpair, appear'd. 
 Long on the tow'r he fix'd his burning eyes ; 
 The reft were mute with wonder and furprize ; 
 And, to the council turning, thus at laft : 
 If any favor claim my merits paft ; 
 If, by a prefent benefit, ye'd bind 
 To future fervices a grateful mind ; 
 Let, what I urge, in council now prevail, 
 With.hoftile arms yon rampart to aflail : 
 Elfe, with my native bands, alone I'll try 
 The combat, fix'd to conquer or to die. 
 
 THE hero thus. Ulyffes thus addrefl, 
 Who only knew the fecrets of his bread : 
 Princes ! ihall dire contention dill prefide 
 In all our councils, and the kings divide ? 
 For, of die various ills that can diftrefs 
 United armies and prevent fuccefs, 
 Difcord is chief : where'er the fury ftrays, 
 The parts ilie fevers and the whole betrays. 
 
 Now
 
 BOOK IX. 277 
 
 Now let Tydides lead his native pow'rs 
 To combat, and aflault the Theban tow'rs ; 
 The reft, on various parts, their forces fhow, 
 By mock approaches to diftracl the foe. 
 If he prevails, to victory he leads ; 
 And fafe behind him all the hoft fucceeds : 
 If JOVE forbids and all-decreeing fate, 
 The field is open, and a fafe retreat, 
 
 ULYSSES thus. The princes all aflent ; 
 Straight from the council thro' the hoft they went, 
 Review'd its order, and in front difpos'd 
 The (lingers, and the rear with bowmen clos'd ; 
 Arming the reft with all that could avail, 
 The tow'rs and battlements to fap or fcale. 
 Tydides firft his martial fquadrons leads j 
 Ulyfles, with his native band, fucceeds. 
 Upon them, as they came, the Thebans pour 
 A ftorm of jav'lins, mot from ev'ry tow'r ; 
 As from the naked heights the feather'd kind, 
 By bitter ihow'rs compel'd, and wintry wind, 
 
 In
 
 278 THE E I G O N I A D. 
 
 In clouds afTembled, on fome mountain's head> 
 To ftielter crowd, and dive into the {hade : 
 Such and fo thick the winged weapons flew, 
 And many warriors wounded, many flew. 
 Now on their ranks, by forceful engines thrown> 
 Springs, from the twilled rope, the pond'rous {lone, 
 With wide deftru&ion thro' the hoft to roll, 
 To mix its order and confound the whole. 
 
 INTREPID flill th> Etolian chief proceeds ; 
 And flill Ulyflcs follows as he leads. 
 They reach'd the wall. Tydides, with a bound, 
 Twee ftrove in vain to mount it from the ground. 
 Twice fled the foe ; as, to the boift'rous fway 
 Of fome proud billow, mariners give way ; 
 Which, rous'd by tempefts, 'gainft a veflel bends 
 Its force, and mounting o'er the deck afcends : 
 Again he rofe : the third attempt prevail'd ; 
 But, crumbling in his grafp, the rampart failM : 
 For thunder there its fury had imprefl, 
 And loos'd a mattered fragment from the reft. 
 
 Supine
 
 BOOK IX. 279 
 
 Supine upon the earth the hero falls, 
 
 Mix'd with the finoke and ruin of the walls. 
 
 By difappointment chaff'd, and fierce from pain, 
 
 Unable now the rampart to regain, 
 
 He turn'd, and faw th' Etolian warriors fletj, 
 
 Difpers'd as fear, and hopes of fafety le<J. 
 
 From Creon flraight and Thebes, his anger turns, 
 
 And 'gainfl his friends, with equal fury, burns ; 
 
 As when, from fnows diflblv'd or fudden rains, 
 
 A torrent fwells and roars along the plains ; 
 
 If, riling to oppofe its angry tide, 
 
 In full career, it meets a mountain's fide ; 
 
 In foaming eddies, backwards to its fource, 
 
 Jt wheels, and rages with inverted courfe : 
 
 So turn'd at once, the fur)-, in his breafl, 
 
 Againft Ulyfles, thus itfelf expreft : 
 
 Author accurs'd, and fource of all my woes ! 
 
 Friend more pernicious than the word of foes ! 
 
 By thy fuggeftions from my purpofe fway'd, 
 
 I flew Caffandra, and myfelf betray'd ; 
 
 Jlence, lodgM within this torturM breail, remains 
 
 A fury, to inflid eternal pains.
 
 28o THE EP'IGONIAD. 
 
 I need not follow, with vindictive fpear, 
 A traitor abfent, while a worfe is near : 
 Creon but acled what you well foreknew, 
 When me unwilling to the fight you drew. 
 To you the firfl my vengeance fnall proceed, 
 And then on Creon and myfelf fucceed : 
 Such facrifice Caflandra's ghofl demands, 
 And fhch I'll offer widi determin'd hands. 
 
 THUS as he fpoke, UlyfTes pond'ring flood, 
 Whether by art to footh his furious mood, 
 Or, with a fudden hand, his launce to throw, 
 Preventing, ere it fell, the threat'ned blow. 
 But, gliding from above, the martial maid 
 Between them flood, in majefly difplay'd ; 
 Her radiant eyes with indignation burn'd, 
 On Diomed their piercing light ihe turn'd : 
 And frowning thus : Thy frantic rage reflrain ; 
 Elfe by dread Styx I fwear, nor fwear in vain, 
 That proof fliall teach you whether moital might 
 This arm invincible can match in fight. 
 
 Is't
 
 BOOK IX. 281 
 
 Is't not enough that he, whofe hoary hairs 
 Still watch'd your welfare with a father's cares, 
 Who dar'd, with zeal and courage, to wiihftand 
 Your fatal phrenzy, periih'd by your hand ? 
 That, flighting ev'ry tie which princes know> 
 You leagu'd in fecret with a public foe ? 
 And, from your faith by fond affeftion fway'd, 
 The kings, the army, and yourfelf betray'd? 
 Yet, unreclaimed, from fuch atrocious deeds, 
 To more and worfe your deip'rate rage proceeds, 
 And dooms to perifh, by a mad decree, 
 The chief who fav'd alike the hoft and thee. 
 Had Thebes prevail'd, and one decifive hour 
 The victory had fix'd beyond thy pow'r ; 
 Thefe limbs, ere now had captive fetters worn,. 
 To infamy condemn'd, and hoflile fcorn ; 
 While fair Caflandra, with her virgin charms, 
 A prize decreed, had blefl fome rival's arms. 
 Did not the worth of mighty Tydeus plead, 
 Whom living much I lov'd, and honor dead, 
 For favor to his guilty fon, and ftand 
 A rampart to oppoie my vengeful hand; 
 
 Nn You
 
 282 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 You foori had found, how mad it is to wage 
 War with the gods, and roufe immortal rage. 
 This Thebes mall know, ere to the ocean's ftreams 
 The fun again withdraws his fetting beams; 
 For now the gods confent, in vengeance juft, 
 For all her crimes, to mix her with the duft. 
 The Goddefs thus ; and turning to the field, 
 Her deity in Mentor's form conceal'd, 
 From flight recal'd, and join'd the fcatt'red bind ; 
 They flop, they turn, again in order Hand ; 
 A prefent deity each heart infpires, 
 And wakes again, in all, their martial fires. 
 
 CONSCIOUS of wrong, and fpeechlefs from furprize, 
 Tydides ftood, nor dar'd to lift his eyes, 
 Of fate regardlefs ; tho'frorii ev'ry tow'r, 
 Stones, darts, and arrows fell, a mingled fliow'r: 
 For awe divine fubdu'd him, and the mame 
 Which virtue fuffers from the touch of blame. 
 But to Ulyfles turning, thus at laft : 
 Prince ! can thy gen'rons love forget the pafl ; 
 
 And
 
 B O K IX. 383 
 
 And all remembrance banifh from thy mind, 
 Of what my fury and defpair defign'd? 
 If you forgive me, ftraight our pow'rs recall 
 From flight ; while I again attempt the wall. 
 Some.prefent god infpires me; for I feel 
 My heart exulting knock the plated fleel : 
 In briiker rounds the vital fpirit flies, 
 And ev'ry limb, with doable force, fupplies. 
 
 TYDIDES thus. Ulyfles thus again : 
 Shall heav'n forgive offences, man retain ; 
 Tho'born.to err, by jarring paffions toil? 
 The heft, in good no fteadinefs, can boail : 
 No malice therefore in my heart (hall live ; 
 To fin is human ; human to forgive. 
 But do not now your fingle force oppofe 
 T.o lofty ramparts, and an hoft of foes ; 
 Let me at leaft, attending at your fide, 
 Partake the danger, and the toil divide : 
 For fee our pow'rs advancing to the florm ! 
 Pallas excites diem in a mortal form. 
 
 Let
 
 284 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Let us, to mount the rampart, ftraight proceed; 
 And they themfelves will follow as we lead. 
 
 ULYSSES thus; and, fpringing from the ground, 
 Both chiefs at once afcend the lofty mound. 
 JBefore him each his ftiining buckler bears 
 'Gainft flying darts, and thick protended fpears. 
 Now, on the bulwark's level top, they ftand, 
 And charge on ev'ry fide the hoflile band : 
 There many warriors in clofe fight they Hew, 
 And many headlong from the rampart threw. 
 Pallas her fav'rite champions Hill infjwres, 
 Their nerves confirms, and wakes their martial fires. 
 With courfe divided, on the foe they fall, 
 And bare between them leave a length of wall ; 
 AS fire, when kindled on fome mountain's head,. 
 Where runs, in long extent, the woodland lhade, 
 Confumes the middle forefl, and extends 
 Its parted progrefs to the diftant ends : 
 So fought the leaders, while their icatt'red pow'rs, 
 In phalanx join'd, approach'd the Theban tow'rs ; 
 
 With
 
 BOOK IX. 285 
 
 With hands, and heads againft the rampart lean'd, 
 The firft, upon their fhields, the reft fuftainM : 
 Rank above rank the living ftruAure grows, 
 As fettling bees the pendent heap compote, 
 Which in f'ome made or vaulted cavern, liings, 
 Woven thick with complicated feet and wings : 
 Thus mutually fuftain'd, the warriors bend; 
 While o'er their heads the order'd ranks afcend. 
 
 AND now the martial goddefs with delight, 
 Plac'd on a turret's top, furvey'd the fight. 
 Thrice to the height, flic rais'd her awful voice ; 
 The tow'rs and bulwarks trembled at the noife : 
 Both warring hofts alike the fignal hear ; 
 To this, the caufe of hope, to that, of fear. 
 And Thefeus thus addrefs'd his martial train : 
 Here mail we wage a diftant war in vain, 
 When now Tydides, from the conquer'd tow'rs 
 Defcending, on the town his fquadrons pours? 
 Your glory, if ye would aflert, nor yield 
 At once the praile of many a well-fought field; 
 
 jUceud
 
 a86 THE E P I G O N I A D. 
 
 Afcend thefe lofty battlements, and claim 
 With thofe who conquer now an equal fame. 
 The monarch thus ; and to the combat leads ; 
 With emulation nYd the hoft proceeds ; 
 Under a ihow'r of falling darts they go, 
 Climb the fleep ramparts, and aflault die foe ; 
 As winds outrageous, from the ocean wide, 
 Againft fome mole impel the ftormy tide, 
 Whofe rocky arms, oppofed to the deep, 
 From tempefts, fafe the anchoring vcflel keep ; 
 Wave heap'd on wave, the ftormy deluge tow'rs, 
 And o'er it, with reliftlefs fury, pours : 
 Such feem'd the fight, the Theban hoft o'erthrowu, 
 Tlie wall deferts, and mingles with the town. 
 
 CREON in vain the defp'ratc rout withftands, 
 With ftiarp reproaches and vindiAive hands ; 
 His rage they fhun not, nor his threatnings hear, 
 From ftunning clamors deaf, and blind from fear. 
 And thus the monarch with uplifted eyes, 
 And both his hands extended to the fkies : 
 
 Ye
 
 BOOK IX. 287 
 
 Ye PowVs fupreme, whofe unrefifted fway 
 The fates of men and mortal things obey ! 
 Againfl your counfels, vain it is to flrive, 
 Which only ruin nations or retrieve. 
 Here in your fight, with patience, I reflgn. 
 That envy'd royalty which once was mine ; 
 Renounce the cares,- that wait upon a crown, 
 And make my lad attention all my own. 
 Seven virgin daughters in my houfe remain, 
 Who mud not live to fwell a viftor's train ; 
 Nor (hall my wretched queen, in triumph borne, 
 Be lifted to the eye of public fcorn: 
 One common fate our miferies (hall end, 
 And, with the duft of Thebes, our afties blend. 
 
 His fix'd decree the monarch thus expreft; 
 One half the fates confirm'd, deny'd the reft : 
 For -now furrounded by the hoftile crowd 
 His captive queen, an humble fiippliant, flood. 
 Tydides found her as me left the walls; 
 Before the hero to the ground Ihe falls ; 
 
 With
 
 2 88 THE E P I G N I A D. 
 
 With trembling hands, his mighty knees {he prefs'd, 
 And, fupplicating, thus with tears addrefs'd : 
 Illuftrious chief! for fure your gallant mien 
 No lefs proclaims you, fpare a wretched queen ; 
 One whom the gods with endlefs hate purfue, 
 To griefs already fumlefs adding new ; 
 O fpare a helplefs wretch, who humbly bends, 
 And for protection on thy might depends ! 
 As fupplicating thus her fuit me prefs'd, 
 Ulyfles heard, and thus the chief addrefsM : 
 See how th* immortals, by a juft decree, 
 CafTandra's fall avenge, and honor thee ! 
 See, at thy feet, the wife of Creon laid, 
 A viclim off'red for die injur'd maid. 
 Let her the firft your juft refentment feel ; 
 By -heav'n prefented to your vengeful fteeL 
 
 ULYSSES thus. With fighs die hero faid: 
 Enough is off'red to Caflandra's made ; 
 With wide deftruetion, wafting fword and fire, 
 To plague the authors of her fall, confpire. 
 
 Yet
 
 BOOK IX- 289 
 
 Yet all in vain. No facrifice recalls 
 The parted ghofl from Plato's gloomy walls. 
 Too long alas ! has lawlefs fury rul'd, 
 To reafon deaf, by no reflection cool'd : 
 While I unhappy, by its didates fway'd, 
 My guardian murder'd, and the hofl betray'd. 
 No viclim, therefore, to my rage Pll pay j 
 Nor ever follow as it points the way. 
 
 THE fon of Tydeus thus; and to his tent, 
 From infults fafe, the royal matron fent. 
 Himfelf again the courfe of conqueft led 
 Till Thebes was overthrown, and Creon bled. 
 
 FINIS.
 
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